Non-contact measurement of respiratory function and deduction of tidal volume

 This paper further the investigation of Doppler radar feasibility in measuring the flow in and out due to inhalation and exhalation under different conditions of breathing activities. Three different experiment conditions were designed to investigate the feasibility and consistency of Doppler radar which includes the combination of the states of normal breathing, deep breathing and apnoea state were demonstrated. The obtained Doppler radar signals were correlated and compared with the gold standard medical device, spirometer, yielding a good correlations between both devices. We also demonstrated the calibration of the Doppler radar signal can be performed in a simple manner in order to have a good agreements with the spirometer readings. The measurement of the flow in and out during the breathing activities can be measured accurately under different dynamics of breathing as long as the calibration is performed correctly.

A longitudinal study of the association of adolescent polydrug use, alcohol use and high school non-completion

AIMS: Failure to complete high school predicts substantial economic and social disadvantage in adult life. The aim of this study was to determine the longitudinal association of mid-adolescent polydrug use and high school non-completion, relative to other drug use profiles. DESIGN: A longitudinal analysis of the relationship between polydrug use in three cohorts at grade 9 (age 14-15 years) and school non-completion (reported post-high school). SETTING: A State-representative sample of students across Victoria, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 2287 secondary school students from 152 high schools. The retention rate was 85%. MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcome was non-completion of grade 12 (assessed at age 19-23 years). At grade 9, predictors included 30-day use of eight drugs, school commitment, academic failure and peer drug use. Other controls included socio-economic status, family relationship quality, depressive symptoms, gender, age and cohort. FINDINGS: Three distinct classes of drug use were identified-no drug use (31.7%), mainly alcohol use (61.8%) and polydrug use (6.5%). Polydrug users were characterized by high rates of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use. In the full model, mainly alcohol users and polydrug users were less likely to complete school than non-drug users [odds ratio (OR) = 1.54, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.17-2.03) and OR = 2.51, 95% CI = 1.45-4.33), respectively, P < 0.001]. These effects were independent of school commitment, academic failure, peer drug use and other controls. CONCLUSIONS: Mid-adolescent polydrug use in Australia predicts subsequent school non-completion after accounting for a range of potential confounding factors. Adolescents who mainly consume alcohol are also at elevated risk of school non-completion.

Using occupancy as a state variable for monitoring the critically endangered Alaotran gentle lemur Hapalemur alaotrensis

Although monitoring is an essential tool for biodiversity conservation, monitoring programmes are often poorly designed and thus unlikely to produce results that are meaningful for management. Monitoring is especially challenging when dealing with rare and elusive species in areas where conservation resources are particularly limited. In such cases, monitoring techniques aimed at estimating occupancy represent an attractive alternative to traditional methods concerned with estimating population size, as the collection of detection/non-detection data is in general less costly and easier to implement. In this study, we evaluated the use of occupancy as a state variable for the monitoring of the Alaotran gentle lemur Hapalemur alaotrensis, a Critically Endangered primate exclusively inhabiting the dense marshes around Lake Alaotra in Madagascar. We used a likelihood-based modelling approach that explicitly accounts for detectability. This showed that the probability of detection of H. alaotrensis was extremely low and depended on site characteristics that can vary in space and time, confirming the need to account for imperfect detection when monitoring this species. We used our models to explore factors affecting the probability of occupancy and detection to identify management implications, and also developed recommendations for the ongoing monitoring of this species. The method applied in this study provides an efficient tool for the monitoring of an elusive species and has the potential to provide a flexible sampling framework for local community based monitoring initiatives.

Peer group patterns of adolescent alcohol using behaviours in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, US

 The goal of this study was to examine and cross-nationally compare the peer group patterns of alcohol-drinking behaviors among cohorts of early adolescents (ages 11–14 years) in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States. Latent transition analysis revealed that after 1 year, transitions congruent with peer influence (whereby non-drinking adolescents initiated alcohol use in the presence of drinking peers) and reverse peer influence were observed in both states; however, transitions congruent with peer selection (whereby drinking adolescents self-selected into drinking peer groups) were only observed among Victorian early adolescents. Findings were interpreted to suggest that Australian family and cultural norms that more commonly allow early adolescent alcohol use lead to a higher rate of peer selection.

Non-wage benefits, corporate ownership and firm performance in post-communist economies: evidence from Ukraine

The economic reforms in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe have fundamentally reshaped ownership and governance of economic production, notably through the privatization of former state-owned enterprises. These reforms were expected to transform management practices by displacing ‘cradle-to-grave’ welfare arrangements administered by state-owned enterprises. Using data drawn from two large samples of Ukrainian establishments, we investigate, in two different time points, the relationship between non-wage benefits and firm performance during the period of transition to a market economy (1994–2004). We found that non-wage benefits continued to be a critical feature of HRM practices in Ukraine during this period, and were positively associated with firm performance.

Simmel, the police form and the limits of democratic policing

© 2015 The Author. I argue that the social theory of Georg Simmel can be used to illustrate certain limitations to the potential of democratic policing. Simmel makes a number of claims about trust, secrecy and accountability that are shown to have immediate relevance to my empirical case study of police-public consultation forums in Edinburgh, Scotland. Two particular aspects of the 'form' of the police-public relationship-the police's command of non-negotiable force and inequality in the reciprocity of information-play a key role in limiting some of the principal aspirations of democratic policing theory. There are permanent barriers to improving the democratic credentials of the police I argue, yet positive and progressive change is still achievable.

A multiobjective state transition algorithm for single machine scheduling

In this paper, a discrete state transition algorithm is introduced to solve a multiobjective single machine job shop scheduling problem. In the proposed approach, a non-dominated sort technique is used to select the best from a candidate state set, and a Pareto archived strategy is adopted to keep all the non-dominated solutions. Compared with the enumeration and other heuristics, experimental results have demonstrated the effectiveness of the multiobjective state transition algorithm.