Extending the functionalities of shear-driven chromatography nano-channels using high aspect ratio etching

An new injection system is presented for shear-driven chromatography. The device has been fabricated by high aspect ratio etching of silicon. The performance of the injection slit is studied through the aid of computational fluid dynamics, and the first experimental results are presented

Reconstruction of sea surface temperatures from the oxygen isotope composition of fossil planktic foraminifera.

Knowledge of the historic surface temperature of sea water is of importance for the calibration of climate models. The oxygen isotope composition of the shells of several species of planktic foraminifera can be used as a measure for this sea surface temperature. In this paper we investigate how mathematical models can contribute to the process of extracting information about the temperature at which the foraminifera lived from measurement of the oxygen isotope composition of their shells. A simple model is proposed which captures both the average and the variability of the temperature. Preliminary findings suggest that this model forms a solid basis for future research

Distribution of Schmallenberg virus and seroprevalence in Belgian sheep and goats

A serological survey to detect Schmallenberg virus (SBV)-specific antibodies by ELISA was organized in the Belgian sheep population to study the seroprevalence at the end of the epidemic. One thousand eighty-two sheep samples which were collected from 83 herds all over Belgium between November 2011 and April 2012 were tested. The overall within-herd seroprevalence and the intraclass correlation coefficient were estimated at 84.31% (95% CI: 84.19-84.43) and 0.34, respectively. The overall between-herd seroprevalence was 98.03% (95% CI: 97.86-98.18). A spatial cluster analysis identified a cluster of six farms with significantly lower within-herd seroprevalence in the south of Belgium compared with the rest of the population (P = 0.04). It was shown that seroprevalence was associated to flock density and that the latter explained the presence of the spatial cluster. Additionally, 142 goat samples from eight different herds were tested for SBV-specific antibodies. The within-herd seroprevalence in goats was estimated at 40.68% (95% CI: 23.57-60.4%). The results of the current study provided evidence that almost every Belgian sheep herd has been in contact with SBV during 2011 and should be taken into consideration as part of comprehensive SBV surveillance and control strategies

Epidemiologic Questions from Anthrax Outbreak, Hunter Valley, Australia

Anthrax was introduced into Australia in 1847 near Sydney, New South Wales, and spread along stock routes throughout New South Wales and southern Queensland. Anthrax was considered endemic to the Hunter Valley, New South Wales, during the 1890s. The last recorded anthrax-related stock losses there occurred on 3 properties in the Upper Hunter Valley in 1939. During the past 4 decades, anthrax has become uncommon in Australia. However, our experience is a timely reminder that veterinary public health authorities should be on high alert for possible anthrax when unexpected livestock deaths follow flooding in areas where anthrax has historically occurred

Copula-based downscaling of spatial rainfall: a proof of concept

Fine-scale rainfall data is important for many hydrological applications. However, often the only data available is at a coarse scale. To bridge this gap in resolution, stochastic disaggregation methods can be used. Such methods generally assume that the distribution of the field is stationary, i.e. the distribution for the entire (fine-scale) field is the same as the distribution of a smaller region within the field. This assumption is generally incorrect and we provide a proof of concept of a method to estimate the distribution of a smaller region. In this method, a copula is used to construct a bivariate distribution describing the relation between the scales. This distribution is then used to estimate the distribution of the fine-scale rainfall within a single coarse-scale pixel, by conditioning on the coarse-scale rainfall depth

Willingness to participate in a lifestyle intervention program of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a conjoint analysis

Background: Several studies suggest that lifestyle interventions can be effective for people with, or at risk for, diabetes. The participation in lifestyle interventions is generally low. Financial incentives may encourage participation in lifestyle intervention programs. Objetive: The main aim of this exploratory analysis is to study empirically potential effects of financial incentives on diabetes patients' willingness to participate in lifestyle interventions. One financial incentive is negative ("copayment") and the other incentive is positive ("bonus"). The key part of this research is to contrast both incentives. The second aim is to investigate the factors that influence participation in a lifestyle intervention program. Methods: Conjoint analysis techniques were used to empirically identify factors that influence willingness to participate in a lifestyle intervention. For this purpose diabetic patients received a questionnaire with descriptions of various forms of hypothetical lifestyle interventions. They were asked if they would be willing to participate in these hypothetical programs. Results: In total, 174 observations were rated by 46 respondents. Analysis showed that money was an important factor independently associated with respondents' willingness to participate. Receiving a bonus seemed to be associated with a higher willingness to participate, but having to pay was negatively associated with participation in the lifestyle intervention. Conclusion: Conjoint analysis results suggest that financial considerations may influence willingness to participate in lifestyle intervention programs. Financial disincentives in the form of copayments might discourage participation. Although the positive impact of bonuses is smaller than the negative impact of copayments, bonuses could still be used to encourage willingness to participate