Identifying programs to reduce road trauma to A.C.T. motorcyclists

A broad range of motorcycle safety programs and systems exist in Australia and New Zealand. These vary from statewide licensing and training systems run by government licensing and transport agencies to safety programs run in small communities and by individual rider groups. While the effectiveness of licensing and training has been reviewed and recommendations for improvement have been developed (e.g. Haworth & Mulvihill, 2005), little is known about many smaller or innovative programs, and their potential to improve motorcycle safety in the ACT.

Translating tissue engineering technology platforms into cancer research

Technology platforms originally developed for tissue engineering applications produce valuable models that mimic three-dimensional (3D) tissue organization and function to enhance the understanding of cell/tissue function under normal and pathological situations. These models show that when replicating physiological and pathological conditions as closely as possible investigators are allowed to probe the basic mechanisms of morphogenesis, differentiation and cancer. Significant efforts investigating angiogenetic processes and factors in tumorigenesis are currently undertaken to establish ways of targeting angiogenesis in tumours. Anti-angiogenic agents have been accepted for clinical application as attractive targeted therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. Combining the areas of tumour angiogenesis, combination therapies and drug delivery systems is therefore closely related to the understanding of the basic principles that are applied in tissue engineering models. Studies with 3D model systems have repeatedly identified complex interacting roles of matrix stiffness and composition, integrins, growth factor receptors and signalling in development and cancer. These insights suggest that plasticity, regulation and suppression of these processes can provide strategies and therapeutic targets for future cancer therapies. The historical perspective of the fields of tissue engineering and controlled release of therapeutics, including inhibitors of angiogenesis in tumours is becoming clearly evident as a major future advance in merging these fields. New delivery systems are expected to greatly enhance the ability to deliver drugs locally and in therapeutic concentrations to relevant sites in living organisms. Investigating the phenomena of angiogenesis and anti-angiogenesis in 3D in vivo models such as the Arterio-Venous (AV) loop mode in a separated and isolated chamber within a living organism adds another significant horizon to this perspective and opens new modalities for translational research in this field.

Impacts of periodic tillage on soil C stocks : a synthesis

Long-term loss of soil C stocks under conventional tillage and accrual of soil C following adoption of no-tillage have been well documented. No-tillage use is spreading, but it is common to occasionally till within a no-till regime or to regularly alternate between till and no-till practices within a rotation of different crops. Short-term studies indicate that substantial amounts of C can be lost from the soil immediately following a tillage event, but there are few field studies that have investigated the impact of infrequent tillage on soil C stocks. How much of the C sequestered under no-tillage is likely to be lost if the soil is tilled? What are the longer-term impacts of continued infrequent no-tillage? If producers are to be compensated for sequestering C in soil following adoption of conservation tillage practices, the impacts of infrequent tillage need to be quantified. A few studies have examined the short-term impacts of tillage on soil C and several have investigated the impacts of adoption of continuous no-tillage. We present: (1) results from a modeling study carried out to address these questions more broadly than the published literature allows, (2) a review of the literature examining the short-term impacts of tillage on soil C, (3) a review of published studies on the physical impacts of tillage and (4) a synthesis of these components to assess how infrequent tillage impacts soil C stocks and how changes in tillage frequency could impact soil C stocks and C sequestration. Results indicate that soil C declines significantly following even one tillage event (1-11 % of soil C lost). Longer-term losses increase as frequency of tillage increases. Model analyses indicate that cultivating and ripping are less disruptive than moldboard plowing, and soil C for those treatments average just 6% less than continuous NT compared to 27% less for CT. Most (80%) of the soil C gains of NT can be realized with NT coupled with biannual cultivating or ripping. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Stabilization mechanisms of soil organic matter: Implications for C-saturation of soils

The relationship between soil structure and the ability of soil to stabilize soil organic matter (SOM) is a key element in soil C dynamics that has either been overlooked or treated in a cursory fashion when developing SOM models. The purpose of this paper is to review current knowledge of SOM dynamics within the framework of a newly proposed soil C saturation concept. Initially, we distinguish SOM that is protected against decomposition by various mechanisms from that which is not protected from decomposition. Methods of quantification and characteristics of three SOM pools defined as protected are discussed. Soil organic matter can be: (1) physically stabilized, or protected from decomposition, through microaggregation, or (2) intimate association with silt and clay particles, and (3) can be biochemically stabilized through the formation of recalcitrant SOM compounds. In addition to behavior of each SOM pool, we discuss implications of changes in land management on processes by which SOM compounds undergo protection and release. The characteristics and responses to changes in land use or land management are described for the light fraction (LF) and particulate organic matter (POM). We defined the LF and POM not occluded within microaggregates (53-250 mum sized aggregates as unprotected. Our conclusions are illustrated in a new conceptual SOM model that differs from most SOM models in that the model state variables are measurable SOM pools. We suggest that physicochemical characteristics inherent to soils define the maximum protective capacity of these pools, which limits increases in SOM (i.e. C sequestration) with increased organic residue inputs.

Validation of the Chinese version of the Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID-C) scale

OBJECTIVE To examine the psychometric properties of a Chinese version of the Problem Areas In Diabetes (PAID-C) scale. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The reliability and validity of the PAID-C were evaluated in a convenience sample of 205 outpatients with type 2 diabetes. Confirmatory factor analysis, Bland-Altman analysis, and Spearman's correlations facilitated the psychometric evaluation. RESULTS Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a one-factor structure of the PAID-C (χ2/df ratio = 1.894, goodness-of-fit index = 0.901, comparative fit index = 0.905, root mean square error of approximation = 0.066). The PAID-C was associated with A1C (rs = 0.15; P < 0.05) and diabetes self-care behaviors in general diet (rs = −0.17; P < 0.05) and exercise (rs = −0.17; P < 0.05). The 4-week test-retest reliability demonstrated satisfactory stability (rs = 0.83; P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS The PAID-C is a reliable and valid measure to determine diabetes-related emotional distress in Chinese people with type 2 diabetes.

Encyclopedia contributions: entries C-G in Oxford Companion to Australian Gardens

Caulfield, Harold William; p.131 Cowan, Alexander; p.164 Cowley, Ebenezer; p.164 East Talgai Station; p.193 Eaves, S.H.; p.193-194 Edgar, J.S.; p.196 Everist, Selwyn; p.206 Experimental Farms and Gardens; pp.207-208 Government Houses - Queensland; pp.267-268

Automatic generation of assertions to detect potential security vulnerabilities in C programs that use union and pointer types

Type unions, pointer variables and function pointers are a long standing source of subtle security bugs in C program code. Their use can lead to hard-to-diagnose crashes or exploitable vulnerabilities that allow an attacker to attain privileged access over classified data. This paper describes an automatable framework for detecting such weaknesses in C programs statically, where possible, and for generating assertions that will detect them dynamically, in other cases. Exclusively based on analysis of the source code, it identifies required assertions using a type inference system supported by a custom made symbol table. In our preliminary findings, our type system was able to infer the correct type of unions in different scopes, without manual code annotations or rewriting. Whenever an evaluation is not possible or is difficult to resolve, appropriate runtime assertions are formed and inserted into the source code. The approach is demonstrated via a prototype C analysis tool.

Thermal studies of D.C. traction motors

This paper describes a thorough thermal study on a fleet of DC traction motors which were found to suffer from overheating after 3 years of full operation. Overheating of these traction motors is attributed partly because of the higher than expected number of starts and stops between train terminals. Another probable cause of overheating is the design of the traction motor and/or its control strategy. According to the motor manufacturer, a current shunt is permanently connected across the motor field winding. Hence, some of the armature current is bypassed into the current shunt. The motor then runs above its rated speed in the field weakening mode. In this study, a finite difference model has been developed to simulate the temperature profile at different parts inside the traction motor. In order to validate the simulation result, an empty vehicle loaded with drums of water was also used to simulate the full pay-load of a light rail vehicle experimentally. The authors report that the simulation results agree reasonably well with experimental data, and it is likely that the armature of the traction motor will run cooler if its field shunt is disconnected at low speeds

Visualizing digital media interactions : providing feedback on jam2jam AV performances

Instrumental music performance is a well-established case of real-time interaction with technology and, when extended to ensembles, of interaction with others. However, these interactions are fleeting and the opportunities to reflect on action is limited, even though audio and video recording has recently provided important opportunities in this regard. In this paper we report on research to further extend these reflective opportunities through the capture and visualization of gestural data collected during collaborative virtual performances; specifically using the digital media instrument Jam2jam AV and the specifically-developed visualization software Jam2jam AV Visualize. We discusses how such visualization may assist performance development and understanding. The discussion engages with issues of representation, authenticity of virtual experiences, intersubjectivity and wordless collaboration, and creativity support. Two usage scenarios are described showing that collaborative intent is evident in the data visualizations more clearly than in audio-visual recordings alone, indicating that the visualization of performance gestures can be an efficient way of identifying deliberate and co-operative performance behaviours.