Search

Police forces are constantly competing to provide adequate service whilst faced with major funding cuts. The funding cuts result in limited resources hence methods of improving resource efficiency are vital to public safety. One area where improving the efficiency could drastically improve service is the planning of patrol routes for incident response officers. Current methods of patrolling lack direction and do not consider response demand. Police patrols have the potential to deter crime when directed to the right areas. Patrols also have the ability to position officers with access to high demand areas by pre-empting where response demand will arise. The algorithm developed in this work directs patrol routes in real-time by targeting high crime areas whilst maximising demand coverage. Methods used include kernel density estimation for hotspot identification and maximum coverage location problems for positioning. These methods result in more effective daily patrolling which reduces response times and accurately targets problem areas. Though applied in this instance to daily patrol operations, the methodology could help to reduce the need for disaster relief operations whilst also positioning proactively to allow quick response when disaster relief operations are required.

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) are being extensively used for intelligent transportation and distribution of materials in warehouses and autoproduction lines due to their attributes of high efficiency and low costs. Such vehicles travel along a predefined route to deliver desired tasks without the supervision of an operator. Much effort in this area has focused primarily on route optimisation and traffic management of these AGVs. However, the health management of these vehicles and their optimal mission configuration have received little attention. To assure their added value, taking a typical AGV transport system as an example, the capability to evaluate reliability issues in AGVs are investigated in this paper. Following a failure modes effects and criticality analysis (FMECA), the reliability of the AGV system is analysed via fault tree analysis (FTA) and the vehicles mission reliability is evaluated using the Petri net (PN) method. By performing the analysis, the acceptability of failure of the mission can be analysed, and hence the service capability and potential profit of the AGV system can be reviewed and the mission altered where performance is unacceptable. The PN method could easily be extended to have the capability to deal with fleet AGV mission reliability assessment.

Zostera marina is a cosmopolitan, temperate seagrass species capable of both sexual and asexual (i.e., clonal) reproduction. Until recently, the importance of sexual reproduction has been largely dismissed, and clonal growth has dominated our understanding of space acquisition by Z. marina. This model of Z. marina growth was developed in locations where reproductive effort falls on the lower end of a wide range in sexual productivity. This study assessed Z. marina seed production as a function of patch size in a landscape where sexual reproduction has played a significant role in meadow expansion. Additionally, a landscape-scale analysis of seagrass proximity was performed to determine whether relationships between seed production and percent seagrass coverage exist. Reproductive shoots were collected from 58 seagrass patches of four different size classes: 2.5, 5, 10, and 20 m2 over a two-year period. Seeds were harvested, enumerated, and scored for viability. Viable seed density was significantly related to patch size, but no statistically significant difference was found for non-viable seed densities between patch sizes. Larger patches, with both an edge and center region, were evaluated by region; no difference was found between seed production at the edge vs. center for these size classes. Finally, seed densities were not positively correlated with the amount of proximate seagrass in the landscape. The results of this study suggest that more explicit regional studies of sexual reproduction dynamics must be undertaken to fully understand the complex reproductive ecology of this angiosperm.

Predation is among the most important biotic factors affecting benthic populations. Habitat complexity, such as seagrass shoot density, can significantly reduce rates of predation by changing predator and prey behaviors, increasing searching and handling times, and reducing encounter rates; this relationship is assumed to be nonlinear. For bay scallops, and other commercially important seagrass-associated prey, understanding the relationship between survival and habitat can have important implications. In this study, we looked at the shape of the habitat survival function (HSF) for bay scallops across four different decapod predator species (Callinectes sapidus, Carcinus maenas, Dyspanopeus sayi, and Libinia sp.) using a series of mesocosm experiments at four different levels of habitat complexity (0, 200, 400, and 800 shoots m−2). As expected, scallop survival was higher in the complex seagrass habitat than when no seagrass was present. However, the shape of the HSF varied among predators: when green crabs were predators, the HSF was linear, whereas the HSF was hyperbolic in the presence of both mud and blue crabs. These data suggest that even small increases of seagrass shoot density from very low levels may rapidly increase prey survival, but that prey survival is unlikely to increase across broad changes in habitat complexity. Further, this experiment suggests that predator identity may be important in determining the relationship between prey survival and habitat complexity. For scallop restoration, efforts can be enhanced by selecting even relatively low levels of seagrass habitat, regardless of perceived “value” based on shoot density.

A series of transgenic lines of alfalfa (Medicago sativa) were generated in which either one of the two potentially terminal enzymes of the monolignol pathway, cinnamoyl CoA reductase (CCR) or cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) was down-regulated by expression of antisense transgenes. Levels of CCR enzymatic activity were reduced to between 10% to 65% of the control level, and levels of CAD activity were similarly reduced to between 5% to 40% of the control. Biomass yields were reduced in the most strongly down-regulated lines for both transgenes, but many of the lines exhibited reduced lignin levels but normal biomass and flowering time. In vitro dry matter digestibility was increased for most transgenic lines compared to controls. Saccharification efficiency was determined by measuring the release of sugars from cell walls directly, or after sulfuric acid pre-treatment and subsequent digestion with a mixture of cellulase and cellobiase. Several CCR down-regulated lines had significantly enhanced saccharification efficiency with both pre-treated and untreated tissues, whereas CAD down-regulation had less impact on sugar release when compared to that from CCR lines with similar lignin contents. One CCR line with a 50–60% improvement in saccharification efficiency exhibited normal biomass production, indicating the potential for producing high yielding, improved feedstocks for bioethanol production through genetic modification of the monolignol pathway.

Men and women differ in their response to cocaine, and a woman's response varies with the menstrual cycle. For example, women have greater subjective responses to cocaine in the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle when estradiol is predominant, than they do during the luteal phase when both estradiol and progesterone are elevated. Similarly, female rats show significantly more cocaine-induced locomotor behavior and cocaine self-administration during behavioral estrus, shortly after estradiol peaks, than during other stages of the cycle, and estradiol administration to ovariectomized (OVX) females enhances the acquisition of cocaine self-administration. The purpose of this study was to expand upon these findings by studying the effects of progesterone administration to females, and estradiol administration to males, on acquisition of cocaine self-administration. We report here that there are both sex differences in and effects of circulating ovarian hormones on acquisition of cocaine self-administration. We demonstrate that although estradiol administration enhances acquisition of cocaine self-administration in OVX female rats, concurrent administration of progesterone with estradiol inhibits this effect of estradiol. In a separate experiment, we demonstrate that estradiol administration does not enhance acquisition of cocaine self-administration in castrated male rats. We conclude that (1) there is a sex difference in the effects of estradiol on cocaine self-administration: it facilitates acquisition in female, but not male rats; and that (2) in females concurrent progesterone treatment counteracts the facilitory effect of estradiol on cocaine self-administration.

Objectives: While 75-90% of people who develop lung cancer are smokers, only a small proportion of smokers develop lung cancer. Identifying factors that increase a smoker's risk of developing lung cancer may help scientists to better understand the etiology of lung cancer and more effectively target high-risk groups for screening. Methods: Information on physician-diagnosed non-malignant lung diseases [asbestosis, asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema (CB/E), pneumonia, and tuberculosis] was obtained at baseline from 17,698 men and women involved in CARET, a randomized lung cancer prevention trial of beta-carotene and vitamin A among heavy smokers and asbestos-exposed workers. Hazard ratios for lung cancer were estimated through Cox regression models, after controlling for potential confounding factors, included smoking. Analyses were restricted to former and current smokers. Results: During a median follow up of 9.1 years, 1028 cases of lung cancer occurred. Those who developed lung cancer were more likely to report a history of CB/E than controls (adjusted HR = 1.29, 95% CI: 1.09-1.53). In subgroup analyses, the association between a history of CB/E and lung cancer was stronger for those who were younger at diagnosis/reference, men in the heavy smoker cohort, former smokers, and those with squamous cell carcinomas. There was little association between a history of other lung diseases and lung cancer. Conclusions: Smokers with a history of CB/E may be at higher risk of developing lung cancer, independent of their smoking history.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common psychiatric condition in childhood and adolescence. Rates vary widely depending upon the type of trauma exposure. Interpersonal traumas, such as rape or physical abuse, are more likely to result in PTSD than exposure to natural or technological disaster. Clinical presentations are exceedingly complex and children with PTSD are at increased risk of having comorbid psychiatric diagnoses. Because of its complexity and frequent occurrence with other disorders, assessment of PTSD necessitates a broad-based evaluation utilizing multiple informations and structured instruments specific to the symptoms of PTSD in youth. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is the treatment of first choice. Pharmacological agents for PTSD treatment have received little empirical investigation in childhood. Pharmacological treatment is used to target disabling symptoms of the disorder, which limit psychotherapy or life functioning, by helping children to tolerate working through distressful material in therapy and life. Pharmacological treatment should be based on a stepwise approach utilizing broad spectrum medications such as the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors as first-line agents. Comorbid conditions should be identified and treated with appropriate medication or psychosocial interventions. Treatment algorithms are provided to guide rational medication strategies for children and adolescents with PTSD, subsyndromal PTSD, and in PTSD that is comorbid with other psychiatric conditions of childhood. Reduction in even one debilitating symptom of PTSD can improve a child's overall functioning across multiple domains.

Using Black feminist thought and the sociocultural model of the self, this paper explores the relationship between race and gender in the self-definitions of African American women attending predominately white colleges and universities. The African American women who participated in the study, suggest that knowledge generated about the self pushes us beyond the categorical thinking that limits our ability to understand the complexity of the self. Data from 13 interviews conducted at two predominately white schools is presented and analyzed. Using this data, I present a way of thinking about the identity of African American women that demonstrates the complexity of defining self within the narrow confines of “race” and “gender.”

Background Seasonal influenza imposes a substantial personal morbidity and societal cost burden. Vaccination is the major strategy for influenza prevention; however, because antigenically drifted influenza A and B viruses circulate annually, influenza vaccines must be updated to provide protection against the predicted prevalent strains for the next influenza season. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy, safety, reactogenicity, and immunogenicity of a trivalent inactivated split virion influenza vaccine (TIV) in healthy adults over two influenza seasons in the US. Methods The primary endpoint of this double-blind, randomized study was the average efficacy of TIV versus placebo for the prevention of vaccine-matched, culture-confirmed influenza (VMCCI) across the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 influenza seasons. Secondary endpoints included the prevention of laboratory-confirmed (defined by culture and/or serology) influenza, as well as safety, reactogenicity, immunogenicity, and consistency between three consecutive vaccine lots. Participants were assessed actively during both influenza seasons, and nasopharyngeal swabs were collected for viral culture from individuals with influenza-like illness. Blood specimens were obtained for serology one month after vaccination and at the end of each influenza season's surveillance period. Results Although the point estimate for efficacy in the prevention of all laboratory-confirmed influenza was 63.2% (97.5% confidence interval [CI] lower bound of 48.2%), the point estimate for the primary endpoint, efficacy of TIV against VMCCI across both influenza seasons, was 46.3% with a 97.5% CI lower bound of 9.8%. This did not satisfy the pre-specified success criterion of a one-sided 97.5% CI lower bound of >35% for vaccine efficacy. The VMCCI attack rates were very low overall at 0.6% and 1.2% in the TIV and placebo groups, respectively. Apart from a mismatch for influenza B virus lineage in 2005-2006, there was a good match between TIV and the circulating strains. TIV was highly immunogenic, and immune responses were consistent between three different TIV lots. The most common reactogenicity events and spontaneous adverse events were associated with the injection site, and were mild in severity. Conclusions Despite a good immune response, and an average efficacy over two influenza seasons against laboratory-confirmed influenza of 63.2%, the pre-specified target (lower one-sided 97.5% confidence bound for efficacy > 35%) for the primary efficacy endpoint, the prevention of VMCCI, was not met. However, the results should be interpreted with caution in view of the very low attack rates we observed at the study sites in the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007, which corresponded to relatively mild influenza seasons in the US. Overall, the results showed that TIV has an acceptable safety profile and offered clinical benefit that exceeded risk. Trial registration NCT00216242

Kindergarten and second grade children discovered items added to pictures more often and faster than items deleted from pictures. In Experiments 1a and 1b children experienced either four addition problems then four deletion problems, or four deletion problems then four addition problems. The problems were presented with pairs of pictures containing animals, children, adults, and things. Addition problems had an item added to the second picture; deletion problems had an item deleted from the second picture. In Experiment 2, children in one condition were instructed to name the important objects in the first picture of each problem. In another condition children were given a list of the important objects in the first picture of each problem by the experimenter. Control groups were not asked to create a list, nor given a list of the important objects. Children in the condition in which they named the objects performed superiorly to the children in the other conditions.

Background Local reactions are the most commonly reported adverse events following tetanus and diphtheria toxoid (Td) vaccine and the risk of local reactions may increase with number of prior Td vaccinations. Methods To estimate the risk of medically attended local reactions following Td vaccination in adolescents and young adults we conducted a six-year retrospective cohort study assessing 436,828 Td vaccinations given to persons 9 through 25 years of age in the Vaccine Safety Datalink population from 1999 through 2004. Results Overall, the estimated risk of a medically attended local reaction was 3.6 events per 10,000 Td vaccinations. The lowest risk (2.8 events per 10,000 vaccinations) was found in the 11 to 15 year old age group. In comparison with that group, the event risks were significantly higher in both the 9 to 10 and 21 to 25 year old age groups. The risk of a local reaction was significantly higher in persons who had received another tetanus and diphtheria toxoid containing vaccine (TDCV) in the previous five years (incidence rate ratio, 2.9; 95% confidence interval, 1.2 to 7.2). Twenty-eight percent of persons with a local reaction to Td vaccine were prescribed antibiotics. Conclusion Medically attended local reactions were uncommon following Td vaccination. The risk of those reactions varied by age and by prior receipt of TDCVs. These findings provide a point of reference for future evaluations of the safety profile of newer vaccines containing tetanus or diphtheria toxoid.

The Frequency of Serologic Evidence of Bordetella Infections and Mixed Infections with Other Respiratory Pathogens in University Students with Cough Illnesses

The Comparison of Single Serum Antibody Values Against B. pertussis, C. pneumoniae , and M. pneumoniae Antigens in Active Duty American Soldiers in Korea Who Had Prolonged Cough Illnesses (Cases) with Similar Antibody Values in Sera from Well Active Duty Soldiers in Hawaii (Controls)