Susceptibility, diffusion and relaxation contrast in NMR microscopy at high resolution : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science in physics at Massey University

An integrated approach to the functional NMR imaging of plant tissue at moderately-high transverse resolution (23 µm) was undertaken. Attention was paid to all the possible commonly-known influences, such as sources of nuclear spin relaxation or of artefacts, relevant to the final image intensity of the different tissues. While it was not clear at the outset which influences might prove to be significant, two phenomena in particular, susceptibility inhomogeneity and correlated diffusion effects, were selected for detailed investigation using simple model systems constructed from small glass tubes and rods combined with aqueous solutions, before continuing on to more complex plant samples. Simulated images compared well with the experimental results in these studies. Preliminary images of a stem of an intact Stachys sylvatica L. plant showed that the apparent T₂ relaxation time is much less (an order of magnitude) than the T₁ relaxation time in all tissues. A range of diagnostic pulse sequences was then carried out on this and similar stems in order to reveal the signatures for different models of T₂ relaxation which might explain this fact (assuming that the water protons imaged fall within the extreme-narrowed region of Bloembergen, Purcell and Pound theory). It was found that measures were necessary to avoid the complicating factor of attenuation due to diffusion in the applied read gradient, specifically the use of Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) refocusing pulses. Susceptibility inhomogeneity seemed important in sensitive gradient echo images, but further experiments at different B₀ strengths revealed that it (and chemical shift exchange) does not contribute significantly to the spin echo image contrast. The Brownstein-Tarr model of relaxation at boundaries and surfaces (without local field offsets) was also considered as a possibility, but was ruled out for at least some of the tissues (those which display a CPMG pulse-spacing dependence). Another alternative explanation is short-range dipole interactions between water protons and protons of more slowly-moving molecules, which should be abundant in the particular cells which escape the other hypotheses, but it is difficult to confirm this within the scope of the pulse sequences used here. More progress might be possible with proper multicomponent T₂ analysis and improved knowledge of subcellular structure of our particular tissues

Networking: Promotion of Horizontal Partnership in the Local Development Programme

Social partnership, or \u27the search for consensus on economic and social objectives between sectoral interests\u27 (Walsh et aI., 1998) has gained increasing importance in Irish public policy in recent years. The Programme of Integrated Development in Disadvantaged Areas 1995-1999 (P.I.D.D.A), under the Local Development Programme, is one of several initiatives to stem from the Irish commitment to social partnership. The Programme represents a locally-based response to unemployment and disadvantage. Two of its principal objectives are as follows: • To improve the capacity of local communities \u27to participate fully in local development and to counter social exclusion\u27 (Ireland, 1995, p. 60). • To \u27improve co-ordination and evaluation at local level of mainstream programmes and policies to ensure their effective delivery to the long-term unemployed and the socially excluded\u27 (AD.M., 1995, p. 9). Both objectives are problematic, and recent research suggests that the P.I.D.D.A has experienced some difficulties in achieving them

Labour law for the worker? An examination of the effectiveness of post-war and contemporary labour law in protecting hospitality workers

This thesis examines and compares the protection afforded to hospitality workers by labour law in the years following the Second World War and today. The primary issue addressed throughout the thesis is the effectiveness of labour law in these two time periods in providing hospitality workers with decent terms and conditions of employment. When compared to other industries and sectors, work in hospitality has traditionally been unstable and unpredictable, due in part to fluctuating demand across working weeks and seasons, and reliance on customers for tips. Today, the high prevalence of precarious employment relationships, such as zero-hours contracts, compound these problems, placing many workers in a vulnerable position and making it especially difficult for them to access and enforce employment rights. The investigation of the effectiveness of labour law proceeds in four stages. First, the general organisation of labour law in the two periods is discussed. Second, the legal implications of work on a zero-hours contract, as well as some wider implications for workers, are examined. Third, labour law specifically relating to hospitality workers in the two periods is examined, as well as the way in which the nature of work in hospitality can exacerbate precarious employment. Finally, there is an examination of data and literature relating to employer non- compliance with employment law in the two periods. The thesis concludes that the catering wages boards that existed in the post-war years provided hospitality workers with a more effective model for ensuring employer compliance with employment law, and worker involvement in setting terms and conditions of employment. It is suggested that for labour law today to effectively provide hospitality workers with decent terms and conditions of employment, a similar model to the wages boards could be adopted

Children and young people's experiences of participation in decision-making at home, in schools and in their communities

The aim of this study is to explore the extent to which children and young people, aged 7-17 and living in contemporary urban and rural Ireland, are able to participate and influence matters affecting them in their homes, schools and communities. The investigative focus of the study is shaped by Lundy’s (2007) conceptualisation of Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which focuses on space, voice, audience and influence. With this in mind, the objectives of this research are: to consider the extent to which children and young people have a voice and influence in matters affecting them at home, in their school and in the community where they live; to identify the facilitators and barriers to giving children and young people a voice and influence in matters affecting them in each of these settings; to examine the type of approaches used in each setting and identify examples of good practice; to distil key messages for consideration by parents and families, teachers, schools and communities in Ireland

Children and Young People’s Participation in the Community in Ireland: Experiences and Issues

This paper presents the findings of research into children and young people’s experiences of participating in their communities in Ireland. Using a social and relational understanding of participation, the research found that children and young people are engaged in a wide range of activities in their communities. They are however often misunderstood in the community and have limited opportunities for participation in decisions affecting them. Despite these problems, they report positive experiences of participating in youth clubs and organisations, where their participation is supported by adults. The paper discusses the implications of these findings for research, public policy and community

Children's voice in the home: a relational, generational space

This chapter draws on data from a qualitative study examining the extent to which children and young people age 7 to 17 are able to participate and influence matters affecting them in their home, school, and community. It was commissioned by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in Ireland to inform the National Strategy on Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-Making, 2015–2020. Utilising Lundy’s (2007) conceptualisation of Article 12 of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and Leonard’s (2016) concept of generagency, this chapter will examine children and young people’s everyday lives and relationships within the home and family in the context of agency and structure. In the study, home was experienced by children generally as the setting most facilitative of their voice and participation in their everyday lives reflecting research findings that children are more likely to have their initiative and ideas encouraged in the family than in school or their wider communities (Mayall, 1994). Key areas of decision-making included everyday consumption activities such as food, clothes, and pocket money as well as temporal activities including bed-time, leisure, and friends. This concurs with Bjerke (2011) that consumption of various forms is a major field of children’s participation. Positive experiences of participation reported by children and young people involved facilitation by adults whom they respected and with whom they had some rapport. This locates children as relational beings, embedded in multiple overlapping intergenerational processes and highlights the interdependency between children’s participation and their environment (Leonard, 2016; Percy-Smith & Thomas, 2010)

Children's participation: moving from the performative to the social

The body of work on children’s participation has been valuable in asserting its importance. Nonetheless, participation is a contested concept and key challenges arise relating to its emphasis on age and voice, its focus on socialising the participative responsible citizen, and its failure to sufficiently recognise the range of participatory activities of children in their everyday lives. This article presents findings of a study on children’s experiences of participation in their homes, schools, and communities including the importance of the relational context, how everyday interactions rather than ‘performative’ formal structures for participation are valued by children and how their participation is limited by adult processes based on notions of competence and voice. It concludes with an argument for recognising and facilitating children’s informal and social participation as well as new forms of democratic processes being developed by children to address the possibility of governance and over-responsibilisation of children

Understanding developments in Participatory Governance: a report on findings from a scoping review of the literature and expert interviews

The following report presents findings from a scoping review of the literature and a series of expert interviews carried out between April and December 2021. The purpose of both the scoping review and the interviews was to gain an overview of recent practice in participatory governance, looking at initiatives across Europe over the past decade. By participatory governance, we refer to participatory forms of political decision-making used to improve the quality of democracy (Geißel 2009, cited in Heinelt 2019). More specifically, we were interested in understanding whether and how efforts at institutionalisation and rapid digitalisation are facilitating deeper embedding of participatory governance within politics and policymaking, by identifying and analysing innovations, new insights, and persistent barriers. Furthermore, we examined what efforts are being made to include disempowered people within analogue and digital spaces, how certain groups continue to be excluded, and which strategies are being adopted to deepen inclusion.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Temporal development and neutralising potential of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in hospitalised COVID-19 patients: An observational cohort study

Antibody responses are important in the control of viral respiratory infection in the human host. What is not clear for SARS-CoV-2 is how rapidly this response occurs, or when antibodies with protective capability evolve. Hence, defining the events of SARS-CoV-2 seroconversion and the time frame for the development of antibodies with protective potential may help to explain the different clinical presentations of COVID-19. Furthermore, accurate descriptions of seroconversion are needed to inform the best use of serological assays for diagnostic testing and serosurveillance studies. Here, we describe the humoral responses in a cohort of hospitalised COVID-19 patients (n = 19) shortly following the onset of symptoms. Commercial and ‘in-house’ serological assays were used to measure IgG antibodies against different SARS-CoV-2 structural antigens–Spike (S) S1 sub-unit and Nucleocapsid protein (NP)–and to assess the potential for virus neutralisation mediated specifically by inhibition of binding between the viral attachment protein (S protein) and cognate receptor (ACE-2). Antibody response kinetics varied amongst the cohort, with patients seroconverting within 1 week, between 1–2 weeks, or after 2 weeks, following symptom onset. Anti-NP IgG responses were generally detected earlier, but reached maximum levels slower, than anti-S1 IgG responses. The earliest IgG antibodies produced by all patients included those that recognised the S protein receptor-binding domain (RBD) and were capable of inhibiting binding to ACE-2. These data revealed events and patterns of SARS-CoV-2 seroconversion that may be important predictors of the outcome of infection and guide the delivery of clinical services in the COVID-19 response