Outcomes Assessment and Health Care Reform

Argues for the use of outcomes assessment in measuring cost-effectiveness and quality to capture the overall impact of multi-dimensional treatment strategies and to identify healthcare systems that both adopt appropriate technologies and perform well

Capturing Trojans and Irregular Satellites - the key required to unlock planetary migration

It is now accepted that the Solar system's youth was a dynamic and chaotic time. The giant planets migrated significant distances to reach their current locations, and evidence of that migration's influence on the Solar system abounds. That migration's pace, and the distance over which it occurred, is still heavily debated. Some models feature systems in which the giant planets were initially in an extremely compact configuration, in which Uranus and Neptune are chaotically scattered into the outer Solar system. Others feature architectures that were initially more relaxed, and smoother, more sedate migration. To determine which of these scenarios best represents the formation of our Solar system, we must turn to the structure of the system's small body populations, in which the scars of that migration are still clearly visible. We present the first results of a program investigating the effect of giant planet migration on the reservoirs of small bodies that existed at that time. As the planets migrate, they stir these reservoirs, scattering vast numbers of small bodies onto dynamically unstable orbits in the outer Solar system. The great majority of those bodies are rapidly removed from the system, through collisions and ejections, but a small number become captured as planetary Trojans or irregular satellites. Others are driven by the migration, leading to a significant sculpting of the asteroid belt and trans-Neptunian region. The capture and retention efficiencies to these stable reservoirs depend on the particular migration scenario used. Advocates of chaotic migration from an initially compact scenario argue that smoother, more sedate migration cannot explain the observed populations of Trojans and irregular satellites. Our results draw a strikingly different picture, revealing that such smooth migration is perfectly capable of reproducing the observed populations.Comment: 13 pages, accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed proceedings of the 12th annual Australian Space Science Conferenc

Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

This thesis project looked at the preparedness of the Quick Service Restaurant Sector (QSRS) in Sweden for the introduction of a new EU law in 2024, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). Food systems play a major role in the climate crisis, contributing up to one third of all greenhouse gas emissions, with the QSRS playing a significant role in this across the globe. The QSRS is also associated with a number of health issues, with their supply chain also presenting a number of human rights risks. The aim of this study was to identify the challenges in meeting the CSDDD in the service sector. The theoretical perspective of the Triple Bottom Line served as a point of ontological departure. Focus was placed on due diligence reporting as seen in the sustainability reports published in the QSRS. The project assessed preparedness of due diligence processes and sustainability strategies of the Swedish QSRS for the implementation of the CSDDD. It addressed human rights and environmental issues along the supply chains of the three biggest Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs), McDonald’s, Max Hamburgers, and Burger King. A case study was carried out that analysed the sustainability reports and codes of conduct of these QSRs, as well as interviewing two sustainability professionals on due diligence practices. The results showed that McDonald’s and Max Hamburgers have the due diligence processes in place to work towards meeting the requirements of the CSDDD, though Burger King has significant work ahead to reach this level