Patient perspectives of the impact and long-term management of lymphoedema

Lymphoedema following cancer treatment is characterized by swelling, and adversely influences mobility, function and quality of life. There is no cure, but without treatment lymphedema may progress. Since lymphedema treatment options are costly and time consuming, understanding the influence of these, and other potential barriers, on treatment adherence is vital in reducing the public health burden of lymphedema. Complex physical therapy and compression are supported by scientific evidence and patients also perceive these treatments as effective for improving symptoms and function. Multiple treatments may be required to treat all aspects of the condition. Patients and health professionals should consider effect and costs when identifying optimal treatment strategies.

Impact of a change in tillage and crop residue management practice on soil chemical and microbiological properties in a cereal-producing red duplex soil in NSW, Australia

The effect of a change of tillage and crop residue management practice on the chemical and micro-biological properties of a cereal-producing red duplex soil was investigated by superimposing each of three management practices (CC: conventional cultivation, stubble burnt, crop conventionally sown; DD: direct-drilling, stubble retained, no cultivation, crop direct-drilled; SI: stubble incorporated with a single cultivation, crop conventionally sown), for a 3-year period on plots previously managed with each of the same three practices for 14 years. A change from DD to CC or SI practice resulted in a significant decline, in the top 0-5 cm of soil, in organic C, total N, electrical conductivity, NH4-N, NO3-N, soil moisture holding capacity, microbial biomass and CO2 respiration as well as a decline in the microbial quotient (the ratio of microbial biomass C to organic C; P <0.05). In contrast, a change from SI to DD or CC practice or a change from CC to DD or SI practice had only negligible impact on soil chemical properties (P >0.05). However, there was a significant increase in microbial biomass and the microbial quotient in the top 0-5 cm of soil following the change from CC to DD or SI practice and with the change from SI to DD practice (P <0.05). Analysis of ester-linked fatty acid methyl esters (EL-FAMEs) extracted from the 0- to 5-cm and 5- to 10-cm layers of the soils of the various treatments detected changes in the FAME profiles following a change in tillage practice. A change from DD practice to SI or CC practice was associated with a significant decline in the ratio of fungal to bacterial fatty acids in the 0- to 5-cm soil (P <0.05). The results show that a change in tillage practice, particularly the cultivation of a previously minimum-tilled (direct-drilled) soil, will result in significant changes in soil chemical and microbiological properties within a 3-year period. They also show that soil microbiological properties are sensitive indicators of a change in tillage practice.

Creating flexible mappings between building information models and cost information

During the early design stages of construction projects, accurate and timely cost feedback is critical to design decision making. This is particularly challenging for cost estimators, as they must quickly and accurately estimate the cost of the building when the design is still incomplete and evolving. State-of-the-art software tools typically use a rule-based approach to generate detailed quantities from the design details present in a building model and relate them to the cost items in a cost estimating database. In this paper, we propose a generic approach for creating and maintaining a cost estimate using flexible mappings between a building model and a cost estimate. The approach uses queries on the building design that are used to populate views, and each view is then associated with one or more cost items. The benefit of this approach is that the flexibility of modern query languages allows the estimator to encode a broad variety of relationships between the design and estimate. It also avoids the use of a common standard to which both designers and estimators must conform, allowing the estimator added flexibility and functionality to their work.

Catalyst size effects on the growth of single-walled nanotubes in neutral and plasma systems

The results of large-scale (∼109 atoms) numerical simulations of the growth of different-diameter vertically-aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes in plasma systems with different sheath widths and in neutral gases with the same operating parameters are reported. It is shown that the nanotube lengths and growth rates can be effectively controlled by varying the process conditions. The SWCNT growth rates in the plasma can be up to two orders of magnitude higher than in the equivalent neutral gas systems. Under specific process conditions, thin SWCNTs can grow much faster than their thicker counterparts despite the higher energies required for catalyst activation and nanotube nucleation. This selective growth of thin SWCNTs opens new avenues for the solution of the currently intractable problem of simultaneous control of the nanotube chirality and length during the growth stage.

Educating for the creative economy in emerging countries

In 1972, the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Human Environment expressed a growing realization that economic and social progress needed to be balanced with a concern for the environment and the stewardship of natural resources. The hard-to-grasp concept of "sustainable development" was first defined as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs" (World Commission on Environment and Development [WESDJ, 1987, p. 43). This definition contains two concepts: first, "human needs," with priority given to the world's poor, and, second, the environment's limits for meeting the state of technological and social organization (WESD, 1987, p. 43). At the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (UN, 2002a), the focus on environmental protection broadened to encompass social justice and the fight against poverty as key principles of development that is sustainable. Three interdependent and mutually reinforcing "pillars" were recognized: economic development, social development, and environmental protection. These pillars must be established at local, national, and global levels. The complexity and interrelationship of critical issues such as poverty, wasteful consumption, urban decay, population growth, gender inequality, health, conflict, and the violation of human rights are addressed in all three pillars (Pigozzi, 2003, p. 3). Following the concept of sustainable development, we argue that the challenge for developing countries in contemporary society is to meet the very real need for economic development and opportunities for income generation, while avoiding the unintended and unwanted consequences of economic development and globalization. These consequences include social exclusion, loss of cultural heritage, and environmental and ecological problems.

Optimal Irrigation and N-fertilizer Management for Sustainable Winter Wheat Production in Khorezm, Uzbekistan

The efficiency of the nitrogen (N) application rates 0, 120, 180 and 240 kg N ha−1 in combination with low or medium water levels in the cultivation of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cv. Kupava was studied for the 2005–2006 and 2006–2007 growing seasons in the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan. The results show an impact of the initial soil Nmin (NO3-N + NH4-N) levels measured at wheat seeding on the N fertilizer rates applied. When the Nmin content in the 0–50 cm soil layer was lower than 10 mg kg−1 during wheat seeding in 2005, the N rate of 180 kg ha−1 was found to be the most effective for achieving high grain yields of high quality. With a higher Nmin content of about 30 mg kg−1 as was the case in the 2006 season, 120 kg N ha−1 was determined as being the technical and economical optimum. The temporal course of N2O emissions of winter wheat cultivation for the two water-level studies shows that emissions were strongly influenced by irrigation and N-fertilization. Extremely high emissions were measured immediately after fertilizer application events that were combined with irrigation events. Given the high impact of N-fertilizer and irrigation-water management on N2O emissions, it can be concluded that present N-management practices should be modified to mitigate emissions of N2O and to achieve higher fertilizer use efficiency.

The work of Media Arts in the age of digital production

This chapter uses as a beginning point Walter Benjamin’s famous essay ‘The work of art in the age of technological reproducibility’(1935/2008) to discuss Media Arts education. It locates ‘Media Arts’ at the intersection of three key ideas: 1) media arts products as objects for popular and everyday consumption and intervention by individuals and broader audiences; 2) materiality and how individuals use their bodies and technologies to produce, combine and share digital materials and; 3) the construction of aesthetic knowledge and how this relates to critical and conceptual thinking. These ideas are discussed in the context of the development of curriculum for students at all ages of schooling, with specific attention given to the knowledge and skills students might develop within Media Arts education in primary schools. Examples from a Media Arts project in a primary school in Australia – where a new Media Arts national curriculum has been developed –are provided to illustrate the key ideas discussed in the chapter.

Introduction : At the Intersection of Entrepreneurship and Human Resource Management

In recent years there has been a growing literature on human resource management (HRM) and smaller firms which has also encompassed firms that are growing and entrepreneurial. For example we have seen a special edition of Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice (Katz et al., 2000), two of Human Resource Management Review (Baron, 2003; Barrett and Mayson, 2006) and one of Human Resource Management (Huselid, 2003; Tansky and Heneman, 2003), with another of Human Resource Management (to be edited by Ribeiro, Roig and Tansky) scheduled for publication in 2010. In addition, symposia on the topic have been undertaken at the Academy of Management in 2005 (organized by Mayson) and in 2004 (organized by Hayton). Papers dealing with issues of HRM for new, small, growing and/or entrepreneurial firms have been presented at a range of different conferences, whether they are management oriented such as the Academy of Management (AoM) and its regional variants (for example, the British Academy of Management (BAM) or the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management (ANZAM)), entrepreneurially focused ones like the Babson College Entrepreneurship Research conference or ones focused specifically on smaller firms such as the conferences of the Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ISBE) in the UK or the International Council for Small Business (ICSB) and its regional affiliates. With all these papers and all this discussion is there anything left to say? Well yes, we think there is and we are...

Organizations as distinction generating and processing systems : Niklas Luhmann's contribution to organization studies

Niklas Luhmann's theory of social systems has been widely influential in the German-speaking countries in the past few decades. However, despite its significance, particularly for organization studies, it is only very recently that Luhmann's work has attracted attention on the international stage as well. This Special Issue is in response to that. In this introductory paper, we provide a systematic overview of Luhmann's theory. Reading his work as a theory about distinction generating and processing systems, we especially highlight the following aspects: (i) Organizations are processes that come into being by permanently constructing and reconstructing themselves by means of using distinctions, which mark what is part of their realm and what not. (ii) Such an organizational process belongs to a social sphere sui generis possessing its own logic, which cannot be traced back to human actors or subjects. (iii) Organizations are a specific kind of social process characterized by a specific kind of distinction: decision, which makes up what is specifically organizational about organizations as social phenomena. We conclude by introducing the papers in this Special Issue. Copyright © 2006 SAGE.

Simulated hyperopic anisometropia and reading, visual information processing, and reading-related eye movement performance in children

Purpose: This study investigated the impact of simulated hyperopic anisometropia and sustained near work on performance of academic-related measures in children. Methods: Participants included 16 children (mean age: 11.1 ± 0.8 years) with minimal refractive error. Academic-related outcome measures included a reading test (Neale Analysis of Reading Ability), visual information processing tests (Coding and Symbol Search subtests from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children) and a reading-related eye movement test (Developmental Eye Movement test). Performance was assessed with and without 0.75 D of imposed monocular hyperopic defocus (administered in a randomised order), before and after 20 minutes of sustained near work. Unilateral hyperopic defocus was systematically assigned to either the dominant or non-dominant sighting eye to evaluate the impact of ocular dominance on any performance decrements. Results: Simulated hyperopic anisometropia and sustained near work both independently reduced performance on all of the outcome measures (p<0.001). A significant interaction was also observed between simulated anisometropia and near work (p<0.05), with the greatest decrement in performance observed during simulated anisometropia in combination with sustained near work. Laterality of the refractive error simulation (ocular dominance) did not significantly influence the outcome measures (p>0.05). A reduction of up to 12% in performance was observed across the range of academic-related measures following sustained near work undertaken during the anisometropic simulation. Conclusion: Simulated hyperopic anisometropia significantly impaired academic–related performance, particularly in combination with sustained near work. The impact of uncorrected habitual anisometropia on academic-related performance in children requires further investigation.

The visual and functional impacts of astigmatism and its clinical management

Purpose: To provide a comprehensive overview of research examining the impact of astigmatism on clinical and functional measures of vision, the short and longer term adaptations to astigmatism that occur in the visual system, and the currently available clinical options for the management of patients with astigmatism. Recent findings: The presence of astigmatism can lead to substantial reductions in visual performance in a variety of clinical vision measures and functional visual tasks. Recent evidence demonstrates that astigmatic blur results in short-term adaptations in the visual system that appear to reduce the perceived impact of astigmatism on vision. In the longer term, uncorrected astigmatism in childhood can also significantly impact on visual development, resulting in amblyopia. Astigmatism is also associated with the development of spherical refractive errors. Although the clinical correction of small magnitudes of astigmatism is relatively straightforward, the precise, reliable correction of astigmatism (particularly high astigmatism) can be challenging. A wide variety of refractive corrections are now available for the patient with astigmatism, including spectacle, contact lens and surgical options. Conclusion: Astigmatism is one of the most common refractive errors managed in clinical ophthalmic practice. The significant visual and functional impacts of astigmatism emphasise the importance of its reliable clinical management. With continued improvements in ocular measurement techniques and developments in a range of different refractive correction technologies, the future promises the potential for more precise and comprehensive correction options for astigmatic patients.

Activation of membrane-bound proteins and receptor systems: A link between tissue kallikrein and the KLK-related peptidases

The 15 members of the kallikrein-related serine peptidase (KLK) family have diverse tissue-specific expression profiles and roles in a range of cellular processes, including proliferation, migration, invasion, differentiation, inflammation and angiogenesis that are required in both normal physiology as well as pathological conditions. These roles require cleavage of a range of substrates, including extracellular matrix proteins, growth factors, cytokines as well as other proteinases. In addition, it has been clear since the earliest days of KLK research that cleavage of cell surface substrates is also essential in a range of KLK-mediated cellular processes where these peptidases are essentially acting as agonists and antagonists. In this review we focus on these KLK-regulated cell surface receptor systems including bradykinin receptors, proteinase-activated receptors, as well as the plasminogen activator, ephrins and their receptors, and hepatocyte growth factor/Met receptor systems and other plasma membrane proteins. From this analysis it is clear that in many physiological and pathological settings KLKs have the potential to regulate multiple receptor systems simultaneously; an important issue when these peptidases and substrates are targeted in disease.

Balancing information disclosure and “Red Tape” : Queensland’s proposal of seller disclosure

The Queensland Property Law Review is currently reviewing seller disclosure laws in Queensland. The review will consider if the desire to provide consumers of real estate with valuable timely information about a property offered for sale can be effectively delivered with a minimum of red tape. This article examines the principles proposed by the first discussion paper on seller disclosure and their likely effect in practice.