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An exploratory investigation of hydration levels of fishers aboard three working fishing vessels in New Zealand waters identified that crew hypo-hydration was common. The opportunity to collect this data occurred in the context of ergonomics work to discover opportunities to reduce musculoskeletal injury rates for fishers. Hydration was considered worthy of inclusion in this exploratory work following anecdotal suggestion that urinary tract and kidney infections were perhaps common in crew. Whilst dehydration-related health problems and detrimental effects on worker performance are well understood, the international literature revealed no previous hydration evaluation specific to fishing crews. Dehydration research has however been reported from forestry, mining and manual labour industries with knowledge that can be applied to the maritime work environment. Hydration (urine specific gravity) was measured with a manual refractometer from crew volunteering to participate, and findings shared with participants. On-vessel crew education regarding hydration practices and factors that may contribute to improved hydration allowed some crew to improve their hydration status, whilst others became more dehydrated during the five week trip. The hypo-hydration finding is concerning as trawler crew work rotating shifts for 7 days per week for periods of up to 6 weeks at sea with potential for dehydration-related health and safety impacts, and productivity loss.

This study explores barriers to the uptake of plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) using the case of Ireland, a country which lags well behind the adoption rates of neighbouring countries with EVs representing a market share of just 0.7% of new vehicles in 2017. The article investigates the mismatch between early aspirations, policy and infrastructure interventions and the outcomes achieved, presenting findings from semi-structured interviews with policy-makers and car dealership representatives. These point to progress being limited by a lack of sustained promotion and awareness-raising around EVs, an over-reliance on fiscal instruments and weaknesses in an incentive regime that has remained static throughout, despite limited results and progressively poorer CO2 reductions in proportion to policy costs. The study also identifies a steep rise in used diesel vehicle imports from the UK market following the Brexit vote as potentially further impairing Ireland’s progress on transport decarbonisation. Moreover, it is suggested that EV policy has been weakened by the avoidance of clear signals over the future of diesel vehicles, even as this has been called into question internationally. The case is seen to present important lessons on the need to maintain responsive national EV policies as the development of plug-in technologies progresses.

There is a significant body of knowledge linking lean tools to waste reduction. This research considered system-wide relationships that enabled lean tools to aid waste reduction in industrial processes in a multicultural workplace environment in organisations that previously committed to Lean practices. Ten categories of waste prevalent in industry were categorised into manufacturing, non-manufacturing and well-being. Seven case studies from five companies were conducted which sought to establish the relationship between lean tools and waste in their processes. The study was based on interviews that highlighted the positive and negative impacts that lean tools have on waste. The study generally found a strong connectivity between lean tools and manufacturing waste reduction. However, the key performance indicators (KPIs) tool increased non-manufacturing waste and six lean tools increased well-being waste. Additionally, the findings indicate that some tools can be counter-productive to waste reduction in an industrial system when non-manufacturing and well-being are taken into account. Lean tools were resilient enough that implementation in multicultural workplaces, even with transient populations, did not influence waste generation.

In recent years, electroacoustic theorists have drawn attention to the experiences and interpretations of listeners; well-known examples include the writings of Stephane Roy, Luke Windsor, Christiane Ten Hoopen and Denis Smalley. During the same period, relatively little has been said about the methods and techniques employed by composers during the creation of their works. This article starts by considering some of the reasons why methods have been overlooked within the existing body of literature. It goes on to discuss the existing software tool developed at the University of Sheffield, and explains how this software documents the process chain and affords an interaction with the compositional process. The software is then contextualized within a proposed research project, which aims to further develop the software tools, and deliver a series of complete compositional traces by a number of composers, offering these for compilation and comparison. It finishes by proposing ways in which compositional methods might be identified and analysed. © 2013 Intellect Ltd Article.

The coconut palm is an important crop in the sub arid coastal plain of Dhofar, Oman, for the high demand for its nut water and its use as ornamental plant. Damage of coconut fruits by the eriophyid mite Aceria guerreronis Keifer was first reported in that region in the late 1980s, but background information about the ecology of the pest in Oman was missing. Four surveys were conducted in different seasons from 2008 to 2009, to assess the distribution and prevalence of the coconut mite and its damage as well as the presence of natural enemies. Infestation by the coconut mite was conspicuous on most (99.7 %) palm trees, with 82.5 % damaged fruits. The average (±SE) density of coconut mites per fruit was 750 ± 56; this level of infestation led to the incidence of over 25 % of surface damage on more than half of the fruits. The mite appeared more abundant at the end of the cold season through the summer. No significant differences were observed between infestation levels on local varieties, hybrids and on dwarf varieties. Neoseiulus paspalivorus (De Leon), Cydnoseius negevi (Swirski & Amitai) and Amblyseius largoensis (Muma) were the predatory mites found under the bracts of over 30 % of the coconut fruits and on 68 % of the coconut trees. Considering all sampling dates and all varieties together, average (± SE) phytoseiid density was 1.4 ± 1.19 per fruit. Other mites found in the same habitat as A. guerreronis included the tarsonemids Steneotarsonemus furcatus De Leon and Nasutitarsonemus omani Lofego & Moraes. The pathogenic fungus Hirsutella thompsonii Fisher was rarely found infecting the coconut mite in Dhofar. Other fungal pathogens, namely Cordyceps sp. and Simplicillium sp., were more prevalent.

This paper is the result of a desire to include social factors alongside environmental and economic considerations in Life Cycle Assessment studies for the construction sector. We describe a specific search for a method to include injurious impact for construction Life Cycle Assessment studies, by evaluating a range of methods and data sources. A simple case study using selected Accident Compensation Corporation information illustrates that data relating to injury could provide a compelling evidence to cause changes in construction supply chains, and could provide an economic motive to pursue further research in this area. The paper concludes that limitations notwithstanding, the suggested approach could be useful as a fast and cheap high level tool that can accelerate the discussions and research agenda that will bring about the inclusion of social metrics in construction sector supply chain management and declarations.

Objective: To determine personal and workplace factors associated with quad bike loss of control events (LCEs) on New Zealand farms. Methods: Rural community databases were used to sample 130 farme ...

Diabroticina is a speciose subtribe of New World Chrysomelidae (Subfamily Galerucinae: Tribe Luperini) that includes pests such as corn rootworms, cucumber beetles and bean leaf beetles (e.g. Diabrotica, Acalymma, Cerotoma species). The evolution and spread of pesticide resistance, the European invasion of Diabrotica v. virgifera LeConte, and possible development of resistance due to the large-scale deployment of Diabrotica-active Bt maize in North America have generated a sense of urgency in developing biological control options against Diabroticina pests. In the present study, we review available knowledge on biological control options, including 290 publications on natural enemy–Diabroticina associations in the New World. Several natural enemy species or groups appear to be promising candidates for control strategies with different ecological rationales. We propose that future research should pursue: (1) development of inundative biological control products, particularly mass-produced entomopa...

Slip, trip and fall (STF) incidents, particularly falls from a height, are a leading cause of injury in the New Zealand residential construction industry. The most common origins of falls from a height in this sector are ladders, scaffolding and roofs, while slipping is the most frequent fall initiating event category. The study aimed to provide detailed information on construction industry STF risk factors for high-risk tasks, work equipment and environments, as identified from an earlier analysis of STF claims data, together with information to be used in the development of interventions to reduce STF risk in New Zealand residential construction. The study involved the use of both incident-centred and incident-independent methods of investigation, including detailed follow-up investigations of incidents and observations and interviews with workers on construction sites, to provide data on a wide range of risk factors. A large number of risk factors for residential construction STFs were identified, including factors related to the work environment, tasks and the use and availability of appropriate height work equipment. The different methods of investigation produced complementary information on factors related to equipment design and work organization, which underlie some of the site conditions and work practices identified as key risk factors for residential construction STFs. A conceptual systems model of residential construction STF risk is presented.

Influenced by both the intrinsic viscoelasticity of the tissue constituents and the time-evolved redistribution of fluid within the tissue, the biomechanical response of skin can reflect not only localized pathology but also systemic physiology of an individual. While clinical diagnosis of skin pathologies typically relies on visual inspection and manual palpation, a more objective and quantitative approach for tissue characterization is highly desirable. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an interferometry-based imaging modality that enables in vivo assessment of cross-sectional tissue morphology with micron-scale resolution, which surpasses those of most standard clinical imaging tools, such as ultrasound imaging and magnetic resonance imaging. This pilot study investigates the feasibility of characterizing the biomechanical response of in vivo human skin using OCT. OCT-based quantitative metrics were developed and demonstrated on the human subject data, where a significant difference between deformed and nondeformed skin was revealed. Additionally, the quantified postindentation recovery results revealed differences between aged (adult) and young (infant) skin. These suggest that OCT has the potential to quantitatively assess the mechanically perturbed skin as well as distinguish different physiological conditions of the skin, such as changes with age or disease.

In line with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Code of Conduct for the import and release of biological control agents, and taking into consideration the recommendations in the draft IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Guidelines for the Prevention of Biodiversity Loss Due to Biological Invasion, a procedure was developed to assess the host range of Phymastichus coffea , an endoparasitoid of coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei . Host specificity was tested by exposing a Kenyan biotype of P. coffea to a selection of Scolytidae under quarantine conditions. The results demonstrated that P. coffea can be considered as oligophagous, attacking and developing on other species of the genus of the target borer. In no-choice tests, three species, H. obscurus , H. seriatus and Araptus sp. yielded parasitism. The risk of attack to potential alternative hosts if P. coffea were to be released as a potential biological control agent of coffee berry borer in ...

Background Traditionally, gentamicin is given eight hourly, guided by drug levels. Several studies have shown that single-daily dosing of gentamicin offers an equal, if not improved, toxicity profile compared to traditional dosing. Single one-off dose gentamicin has been suggested as treatment for gonorrhoea, but its safety has not been reviewed. Aim Systematically review the frequency and type of adverse events associated with a single dose of intravenous or intramuscular gentamicin in adults, for any indication, in studies where a comparator was available. Methods A review protocol was developed and registered (PROSPERO: CRD42013003229). Studies were eligible for review if they; recruited participants ≥16 years old, used gentamicin intramuscularly or intravenously as a single one-off dose, compared gentamicin to another medication or placebo, and if adverse events were monitored. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and other relevant databases. Risk of bias was assessed in included studies. Results 12,116 records were identified. After removal of duplicates, screening of title/abstracts for relevance and independent selection of full texts by two reviewers, 20 studies were included. 3589 participants were analysed across all studies, 2042 received a single one-off dose of gentamicin (doses ranged from 1 mg/kg - 280 mg). Reversible nephrotoxicity/creatinine rise was reported in 37 cases, with one case of irreversible renal impairment. There were three cases of ototoxicity, with similar frequency reported in the comparator group. A meta-analysis was not possible due to heterogeneity. Reporting of adverse events was poor in the majority of studies. Discussion Adverse events with single dose gentamicin are infrequent.

This paper introduces an emerging (research-in-progress) creative computing prototype, refined iteratively through user feedback, to retrieve and display information regarding a historical timeline composition of a town, in particular a Canadian prairie town. The purpose of this prototype is to use the advantages of creative computing, by means of multi-dimensional visual and aural content within an n-tier system of historical period layers, to provide an interactive, multiple style (visual, textual, and aural) approach to education, notably the teaching of the developmental history of a small town with the significant historical factors affecting it. As part of the iterative development approach of the prototype and to ensure that the historical context was conveyed adequately to the user, a series of usability studies were conducted using a small but representative group of users. The feedback from these usability studies helped direct and validate the refinement of the prototype to enable it to convey its historical composition's content to the user/learner more effectively.

This paper contributes towards knowledge and understanding of the creative use of software and hardware tools for computer music. It stems from a strategic need to continually rationalize the way money is spent within an academic department on Music IT, and an interest in the advantages of open source software for managing musical and collaborative projects. The authors discussed the most practical way of assessing the use of a completely open source software platform (Linux) and a specific distribution (Ubuntu-studio). It was considered appropriate that the composer-author (Adrian Moore, AM) try to write something in his style, using his knowledge of software, calling upon the more broadly experienced software developer (Dave Moore, DM) who has an interest in open source software. After a concerted effort in the studio, it is apparent that the Linux platform has much to offer, but remains limited in a number of areas of Music IT that are used extensively in academia, industry and at home. However, as a platform for teaching and learning computer music it is an ideal tool, though we conclude that some ‘introduction’ at the outset is required for those who are uninitiated to a Linux based system.

Forestry is among the most hazardous of all industry sectors internationally. In New Zealand, highest work-related morbidity and mortality incidence rates are found in the logging sector. The New Zealand Forest Industry Accident Reporting Scheme (ARS) is a forestry injury surveillance system maintained by the Centre for Human Factors and Ergonomics (COHFE). The paper highlights the pivotal role of an industry-wide injury surveillance system in an industry-specific strategic research programme, giving examples of the use of ARS data in identification of priority areas for ergonomics, safety and health research attention, for safety awareness feedback to the industry, and in the evaluation of injury countermeasures. An analysis of injury patterns and trends for one high-risk forestry operation (skid work) is presented to illustrate both the capabilities and limitations of the ARS in its present stage of development.