Rhodium nanoparticles for ultraviolet plasmonics

The nonoxidizing catalytic noble metal rhodium is introduced for ultraviolet plasmonics. Planar tripods of 8 nm Rh nanoparticles, synthesized by a modified polyol reduction method, have a calculated local surface plasmon resonance near 330 nm. By attaching p-aminothiophenol, local field-enhanced Raman spectra and accelerated photodamage were observed under near-resonant ultraviolet illumination, while charge transfer simultaneously increased fluorescence for up to 13 min. The combined local field enhancement and charge transfer demonstrate essential steps toward plasmonically enhanced ultraviolet photocatalysis.This work has been supported by NSF-ECCS-12-32239. This work was partially supported by the Army’s In-house Laboratory Innovative Research program. Financial support from USAITCA (project no. W911NF-13-1-0245) and MICINN (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, project no. FIS2013- 45854-P) is also acknowledged

Treatment and Intervention for Opiate Dependence in the United Kingdom:Lessons from Triumph and Failure

The history of opiate treatment in the United Kingdom (UK) since the early 1980s is a rich source of learning about the benefits and pitfalls of drug treatment policy. We present five possible lessons to be learnt about how factors outside the clinic, including government, charities and researchers can influence treatment and outcomes. First, do not let a crisis go to waste. The philosophical shift from abstinence to harm reduction in the 1980s, in response to an HIV outbreak in injecting users, facilitated expansion in addiction services and made a harm reduction approach more acceptable. Second, studies of drug-related deaths can lead to advances in care. By elucidating the pattern of mortality, and designing interventions to address the causes, researchers have improved patient safety in certain contexts, though significant investment in Scotland has not arrested rising mortality. Third, collection of longitudinal data and its use to inform clinical guidelines, as pursued from the mid-1990s, can form an enduring evidence base and shape policy, sometimes in unintended ways. Fourth, beware of the presentation of harm reduction and recovery as in conflict. At the least, this reduces patient choice, and at worst, it has caused some services to be redesigned in a manner that jeopardises patient safety. Fifth, the relationship between the third and state sectors must be carefully nurtured. In the UK, early collaboration has been replaced by competition, driven by changes in funding, to the detriment of service provision

The role of social innovation in criminal justice reform and the risk posed by proposed reforms in England and Wales

© The Author(s) 2013.The UK government has called for a rehabilitation revolution in England and Wales and put its faith in market testing. It hopes this will lead to greater innovation, resulting in reductions in re-offending while also driving down costs. However, many of the most innovative developments in criminal justice over recent decades have come through social innovation. Examples include restorative justice and justice reinvestment. In this article we argue that while social innovation will respond to some extent to conventional economic policy levers such as market testing, de-regulation and the intelligent use of public sector purchasing power it is not simply an extension of the neo-liberal model into the social realm. Social innovation, based on solidarity and reciprocity, is an alternative to the logic of the neo-liberal paradigm. In policy terms, the promotion of social innovation will need to take account of the interplay between government policy, social and cultural norms and individual and social capacity. Current proposals for reforming the criminal justice system may not leave sufficient scope to develop the conditions for effective social innovation

Surface modification of ion exchange membrane using amines

The enhancement in ion selectivity of a cation exchange membrane by amine modification of its surface has been assessed. The amines used were butylamine (BA) and two forms of diamine. The precursor membrane supplied was Nafion 115 with sulphonyl fluoride (SO2F) side groups, which was then hydrolysed into the ion exchange form containing sulphonate (SO3-K+) functional groups that attract water, which in turn carries the ions. In order to reduce the ionic nature of the membrane, the precursor was modified with amines; the resulting aminated groups are not ionised on hydrolysis. The influence of the surface modification on the selectivity and the resistivity of the membrane was investigated to reveal that amination in some cases was detrimental to the selectivity/resistivity balance. The diamines gave better performance, perhaps due to the incorporation of cross-links. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Inputs and outcomes:what do staff in services for people with intellectual disabilities perceive they bring to and receive from their work-based relationships?

A number of studies involving staff working in services for people with intellectual disabilities have utilised equity theory as a theoretical framework. According to this theory, people evaluate social relationships through the comparison of inputs and outcomes, respectively, with what a person brings to and receives from a relationship. Little is known about what constitute inputs and outcomes for staff working in services for people with intellectual disabilities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 staff to find out what constitute inputs and outcomes for staff who work with people with intellectual disabilities. The interviews were conducted in the first half of 2008 in the United Kingdom. Data were analysed using template analysis. A wide range of inputs and outcomes was identified by staff, which were grouped under high-level themes relating to relationships with their employers, their co-workers and the service users. The utility of the findings, in terms of informing future research, is discussed