Validation of the completeness and accuracy of the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry

Background: It has been suggested that inaccuracies in cancer registries are distorting UK survival statistics. This study compared the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry (NICR) database of living patients, with independent data held by Northern Ireland's General Practitioners (GPs) to compare and validate the recorded diagnoses and dates held by the registry. 

Methods: All 387 GP practice managers were invited to participate. 100 practices (25.84%) responded. Comparisons were made for 17,102 patients, equivalent to 29.08% of the living patients (58,798) extracted from the NICR between 1993 and 2010. 

Results: There were no significant differences (p > 0.05) between the responding and nonresponding GP patient profiles for age, marital status or deprivation score. However, the responding GPs included more female patients (p = 0.02). NICR data accuracy was high, 0.08% of GP cancer patients (n = 15) were not included in registry records and 0.02% (n = 2) had a diagnosis date which varied more than 2 weeks from GP records (3 weeks and 5 months). The NICR had recorded two different tumour types and three different tumour statuses (benign vs. malignant) to the GPs. 

Conclusion: This comparison demonstrates a high level of accuracy within the NICR and that the survival statistics based on this data can be relied upon.

Domestic fridge-freezer load aggregation to support ancillary services

Grid operators and electricity retailers in Ireland manage peak demand, power system balancing and grid congestion by offering relevant incentives to consumers to reduce or shift their load. The need for active consumers in the home using smart appliances has never been greater, due to increased variable renewable generation and grid constraints. In this paper an aggregated model of a single compressor fridge-freezer population is developed. A price control strategy is examined to quantify and value demand response savings during a representative winter and summer week for Ireland in 2020. The results show an average reduction in fridge-freezer operating cost of 8.2% during winter and significantly lower during summer in Ireland. A peak reduction of at least 68% of the average winter refrigeration load is achieved consistently during the week analysed using a staggering control mode. An analysis of the current ancillary service payments confirms that these are insufficient to ensure widespread uptake by the small consumer, and new mechanisms need to be developed to make becoming an active consumer attractive. Demand response is proposed as a new ancillary service called ramping capability, as the need for this service will increase with more renewable energy penetration on the power system.

Small molecular logic systems can draw the outlines of objects via edge visualization

The recently-discovered ability of small logical molecules to recognize edges is exploited to achieve outline drawing from binary templates. Outlines of arbitrary curvature, several colours and thicknesses down to 1 mm are drawn in around 30 min or less by employing a common laboratory two-colour ultraviolet lamp. The outlines and the light dose-driven XOR logic with fluorescence output or ‘off-on-off’ action which is observed in the irradiated regions are modelled by combining foundational principles of photochemistry, acid-base neutralization and diffusion.

Large- and small-scale structure of the intermediate- and high-velocity clouds towards the LMC and SMC.

We employ Ca II K and Na I D interstellar absorption-line spectroscopy of early-type stars in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds (LMC, SMC) to investigate the large- and small-scale structure in foreground intermediate- and high-velocity clouds (I/HVCs). Data include FLAMES-GIRAFFE Ca II K observations of 403 stars in four open clusters, plus FEROS or UVES spectra of 156 stars in the LMC and SMC. The FLAMES observations are amongst the most extensive probes to date of Ca II structures on ∼20 arcsec scales in Magellanic I/HVCs. From the FLAMES data within a 0 ∘.∘.∘.5 field of view, the Ca II K equivalent width in the I/HVC components towards three clusters varies by factors of ≥10. There are no detections of molecular gas in absorption at intermediate or high velocities, although molecular absorption is present at LMC and Galactic velocities towards some sightlines. The FEROS/UVES data show Ca II K I/HVC absorption in ∼60 per cent of sightlines. The range in the Ca II/Na I ratio in I/HVCs is from –0.45 to +1.5 dex, similar to previous measurements for I/HVCs. In 10 sightlines we find Ca II/O I ratios in I/HVC gas ranging from 0.2 to 1.5 dex below the solar value, indicating either dust or ionization effects. In nine sightlines I/HVC gas is detected in both H I and Ca II at similar velocities, implying that the two elements form part of the same structure.

Young Men and Domestic Abuse

Surveys reveal that domestic abuse is more commonplace among teenagers and young adults than older populations, yet surprisingly little is written about young men’s involvement in it. Reporting on a three-year study based in the UK, this book explores young men’s involvement in domestic abuse, whether as victims, perpetrators or witnesses to violent behaviors between adults. Original survey data, focus group material and in-depth biographical interviews are used to make the case for a more thoroughgoing engagement with the meanings young men come to attribute to violent behavior, include the tendency among many to configure violence within families as "fights" that call for acts of male heroism. The book also highlights the dearth of services interventions for young men prone to domestic abuse, and the challenges of developing responsive practice in this area. Each section of the book highlights further online resources that those looking to conduct research in this area or apply its insights in practice can draw upon.

This is Abuse… Or is it? Domestic abuse perpetrators’ responses to anti-domestic violence publicity

Social marketing has become a key component of policy initiatives aimed at reducing the incidence of domestic abuse. However, its efficacy remains debated, with most measures of effectiveness being somewhat crude. More subtle effects of social marketing, such as the boomerang effect whereby the message engenders the opposite effect to that intended, have been detected, suggesting a need for modes of analysis sensitive to the multiple ways in which viewers react to social opprobrium. This article attempts to deliver just this. It begins with a short history and critique of the concept of social marketing. It then proceeds to explore the utility of the more complex notion that viewers often identify with the subject positions thrown open by social marketing on a quite temporary basis, before reconfiguring them. Using the responses of domestic abuse perpetrators exposed to the UK Government’s This is Abuse campaign film, the article shows how contradictory identifications with both anti-violence messages and victim-blaming discourses are negotiated by those young men prone to perpetrating domestic abuse. The article concludes by exploring how effectiveness might be better conceptualised and assessed with regard to the impact of anti-violence social marketing that speaks to domestic abuse perpetrators.

Evaluating the effectiveness of domestic abuse prevention education: Are certain children more or less receptive to the messages conveyed?

Purpose
A number of school-based domestic abuse prevention programmes have been developed in the United Kingdom, but evidence as to the effectiveness of such programmes is limited. The aim of the research was to evaluate the effectiveness of one such programme and to see whether the outcomes differ by gender and experiences of domestic abuse.

Method
Pupils aged 13–14 years, across seven schools, receiving a 6-week education programme completed a questionnaire to measure their attitudes towards domestic violence at pre-, post-test, and 3-month follow-up, and also responded to questions about experiences of abuse (as victims, perpetrators, and witnesses) and help seeking. Children in another six schools not yet receiving the intervention responded to the same questions at pre- and post-test. In total, 1,203 children took part in the research.

Results
Boys and girls who had received the intervention became less accepting of domestic violence and more likely to seek help from pre- to post-test compared with those in the control group; outcomes did not vary by experiences of abuse. There was evidence that the change in attitudes for those in the intervention group was maintained at 3-month follow-up.

Conclusions
These findings suggest that such a programme shows great promise, with both boys and girls benefiting from the intervention, and those who have experienced abuse and those who have not (yet) experienced abuse showing a similar degree of attitude change.

Young teenagers' experiences of domestic abuse

This article reports on the first findings from the Boys to Men Research Project. In total, 1143 pupils aged 13–14 years completed a questionnaire to assess their experiences of domestic abuse as victims, witnesses and perpetrators. Overall, 45% of pupils who had been in a dating relationship reported having been victimised, 25% having perpetrated it, with the only difference in rates of victimisation and perpetration between boys and girls being in relation to sexual victimisation. Of the whole sample, 34% reported having witnessed it in their own family. There was a relationship between victimisation and perpetration with the vast majority of perpetrators (92%) also reporting experiencing abuse from a boyfriend/girlfriend. There was also a relationship between experiencing abuse and help seeking from adults, with those who have been victimised less likely to say they would seek help if they were hit by a partner than those who had yet to experience any abuse. The relationship between help seeking and experiences of abuse is further complicated by gender, with girls twice as likely to seek help than boys, but with girls who have previously hit a partner among the most reticent group. The paper concludes with highlighting the implications of these findings for those undertaking preventative work in schools.

From Boys to Men Phase One Key Findings

The From Boys to Men Project was funded by the Economic and Social Research
Council to explore why some boys become domestic abuse perpetrators when
others do not. In so doing, it sought to establish what more could be done to
reduce the number of young men who become perpetrators. The study
involved three phases of data collection including: Phase 1 - a survey of school
children aged 13-14, Phase 2 - focus groups with 69 young people aged 13-19,
and Phase 3 - life history interviews with 30 young men, aged 16-21, who had experienced domestic violence as victims, perpetrators or witnesses.

From Boys to Men Phase Two Key Findings

The From Boys to Men Project was funded by the Economic and Social Research
Council to explore why some boys become domestic abuse perpetrators when
others do not. In so doing, it sought to establish what more could be done to
reduce the number of young men who become perpetrators. The study
involved three phases of data collection including: Phase 1 - a survey of school
children aged 13-14, Phase 2 - focus groups with 69 young people aged 13-19,
and Phase 3 - life history interviews with 30 young men, aged 16-21, who had experienced domestic violence as victims, perpetrators or witnesses.

From Boys to Men Phase Three Key Findings

The From Boys to Men Project was funded by the Economic and Social Research
Council to explore why some boys become domestic abuse perpetrators when
others do not. In so doing, it sought to establish what more could be done to
reduce the number of young men who become perpetrators. The study
involved three phases of data collection including: Phase 1 - a survey of school
children aged 13-14, Phase 2 - focus groups with 69 young people aged 13-19,
and Phase 3 - life history interviews with 30 young men, aged 16-21, who
had experienced domestic violence as victims, perpetrators or witnesses.

From Boys to Men Overview and Recommendations

The From Boys to Men Project was funded by the Economic and Social Research
Council to explore why some boys become domestic abuse perpetrators when
others do not. In so doing, it sought to establish what more could be done to
reduce the number of young men who become perpetrators. The study
involved three phases of data collection including: Phase 1 - a survey of 1203
school children aged 13-14; Phase 2 - focus groups with 69 young people aged
13-19; and Phase 3 - life history interviews with 30 young men, aged 16-21,
who had experienced domestic abuse as victims, perpetrators or witnesses.
Reports on all stages of the project are freely available on our website
www.boystomenproject.com.
This report provides a brief overview of what we found and what
recommendations follow from the project’s findings.