From harmonisation to better, smart and fit food law

As the European Union (EU) approaches its 60th anniversary, it is worth assessing progress towards a key objective – the abolition of barriers to the marketing of food in the EU. Food has always created particular problems for the EU as national differences in diets, culture and geography make standardisation impossible. Early attempts focussed on direct measures to harmonise requirements or, later, to create an ‘internal market’. Subsequently a changed emphasis brought about the need to focus more clearly on the harmonisation of food safety. More widely, the recent recognition that too much legislation can itself create barriers has led legislators to attempt to consider more carefully the impact of their efforts. This paper reflects on the various stages in the creation of harmonised food controls and considers how case law has impacted the process. Today there are still differences and complete barrier-free trade seems some way off.

Examining the interfaces to e-journal articles: what do users expect?

Researchers are increasingly relying on e-journals to access literature within their fields. The design of the interfaces to these journals is determined by the individual host or publisher and there appears to be little standardization. This exploratory study samples a set of sixteen home screens of e-journals from different disciplines and identifies common features across the set. The particular wording used to identify the features and their locations are recorded. An online survey of e-journal readers investigates where users would normally expect to locate features when first accessing a journal article. Comparison of observed and expected locations confirms inconsistencies across interfaces in terminology and locations. Mental models of the interface design do not appear to be well developed. A move toward standardization, based on some existing conventions, is desirable.

Defining children's rights to work and care in Sub-Saharan Africa: tensions and challenges in policy and practice

This chapter explores the spatialities of children's rights through a focus on how children's paid and unpaid work in Sub-Saharan Africa intersects with wider debates about child labor, child domestic work and young caregiving. Several tensions surround the universalist and individualistic nature of the rights discourse in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa and policymakers, practitioners, children and community members have emphasized children's responsibilities to their families and communities, as well as their rights. The limitations of ILO definitions of child labor and child domestic work and UNCRC concerns about 'hazardous' and 'harmful' work are highlighted through examining the situation of children providing unpaid domestic and care support to family members in the private space of their own or a relative's home. Differing perspectives towards young caregiving have been adopted to date by policymakers and practitioners in East Africa, ranging from a child labor/ child protection/ abolitionist approach, to a 'young carers'/ child-centered rights perspective. These differing perspectives influence the level and nature of support and resources that children involved in care work may be able to access. A contextual, multi-sectorial approach to young caregiving is needed that seeks to understand children's, family members' and community members' perceptions of what constitutes inappropriate caring responsibilities within particular cultural contexts and how these should best be alleviated.

The use and usefulness of financial assistance to UK SMEs

Existing literature has paid considerable attention to the effects of supporting programmes on the survival and performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but it lacks a deep understanding of the benefits of the use of such assistance and the factors influencing the evaluation of such services from the perspective of SMEs. We examine the factors affecting the propensity to use assistance when SMEs make financial decisions and the usefulness perceived by the users. We examine 2500 UK SMEs and find that the use of assistance and the usefulness of such services, as perceived by SMEs, are much related to: the characteristics of the entrepreneur, the nature of the business, and the financial products used by the business. These empirical results imply that support and advice on financial decision making, available for SMEs, are important for them to better manage and to access finance. Assistance and advice are also very valuable for SMEs and entrepreneurs to compensate for their lack of human capital and thus facilitate overcoming possible problems in managing their businesses.

Concordant Phylogeographies of 2 Malaria Vectors Attest to Common Spatial and Demographic Histories

The phylogeography of South American lineages is a topic of heated debate. Although a single process is unlikely to describe entire ecosystems, related species, which incur similar habitat limitations, can inform the history for a subsection of assemblages. We compared the phylogeographic patterns of the cytochrome oxidase I marker from Anopheles triannulatus (N = 72) and previous results for A. darlingi (N = 126) in a broad portion of their South American distributions. Both species share similar population subdivisions, with aggregations northeast of the Amazon River, in southern coastal Brazil and 2 regions in central Brazil. The average (ST) between these groups was 0.39 for A. triannulatus. Populations northeast of the Amazon and in southeastern Brazil are generally reciprocally monophyletic to the remaining groups. Based on these initial analyses, we constructed the a priori hypothesis that the Amazon and regions of high declivity pose geographic barriers to dispersal in these taxa. Mantel tests confirmed that these areas block gene flow for more than 1000 km for both species. The efficacy of these impediments was tested using landscape genetics, which could not reject our a priori hypothesis but did reject simpler scenarios. Results form summary statistics and phylogenetics suggest that both lineages originated in central Amazonia (south of the Amazon River) during the late Pleistocene (579 000 years ago) and that they followed the same paths of expansion into their contemporary distributions. These results may have implications for other species sharing similar ecological limitations but probably are not applicable as a general paradigm of Neotropical biogeography.

p53 Mutant Human Glioma Cells Are Sensitive to UV-C-Induced Apoptosis Due to Impaired Cyclobutane Pyrimidine Dimer Removal

The p53 protein is a key regulator of cell responses to DNA damage, and it has been shown that It sensitizes glioma cells to the alkylating agent temozolomide by up-regulating the extrinsic apoptotic pathway, whereas it increases the resistance to chloroethylating agents, such as ACNU and BCNU, probably by enhancing the efficiency of DNA repair. However, because these agents induce a wide variety of distinct DNA lesions, the direct Importance of DNA repair is hard to access. Here, it is shown that the Induction of photoproducts by UV light (UV-C) significantly Induces apoptosis In a p53-mutated glioma background. This Is caused by a reduced level of photoproduct repair, resulting In the persistence of DNA lesions in p53-mutated glioma cells. UV-C-Induced apoptosis in p53 mutant glioma cells Is preceded by strong transcription and replication inhibition due to blockage by unrepaired photolesions. Moreover, the results Indicate that UV-C-induced apoptosis of p53 mutant glioma cells Is executed through the intrinsic apoptotic pathway, with Bcl-2 degradation and sustained Bax and Bak up-regulation. Collectively, the data Indicate that unrepaired DNA lesions Induce apoptosis In p53 mutant gliomas despite the resistance of these gliomas to temozolomide, suggesting that efficiency of treatment of p53 mutant gliomas might be higher with agents that Induce the formation of DNA lesions whose global genomic repair is dependent on p53. (Mol Cancer Res 2009;7(2):237-46)

Implementation and role of device management Solutions to the end users

This research is based on consumer complaints with respect to recently purchased consumer electronics. This research document will investigate the instances of development and device management as a tool used to aid consumer and manage consumer’s mobile products in order to resolve issues in or before the consumers is aware one exists. The problem at the present time is that mobile devices are becoming very advanced pieces of technology, and not all manufacturers and network providers have kept up the support element of End users. As such, the subject of the research is to investigate how device management could possibly be used as a method to promote research and development of mobile devices, and provide a better experience for the consumer. The wireless world is becoming increasingly complex as revenue opportunities are driven by new and innovative data services. We can no longer expect the customer to have the knowledge or ability to configure their own device. Device Management platforms can address the challenges of device configuration and support through new enabling technologies. Leveraging these technologies will allow a network operator to reduce the cost of subscriber ownership, drive increased ARPU (Average Revenue per User) by removing barriers to adoption, reduce churn by improving the customer experience and increase customer loyalty. DM technologies provide a flexible and powerful management method but are managing the same device features that have historically been configured manually through call centers or by the end user making changes directly on the device. For this reason DM technologies must be treated as part of a wider support solution. The traditional requirement for discovery, fault finding, troubleshooting and diagnosis are still as relevant with DM as they are in the current human support environment yet the current generation of solutions do little to address this problem. In the deployment of an effective Device Management solution the network operator must consider the integration of the DM platform, interfacing with many areas of the business, supported by knowledge of the relationship between devices, applications, solutions and services maintained on an ongoing basis. Complementing the DM solution with published device information, setup guides, training material and web based tools will ensure the quality of the customer experience, ensuring that problems are completely resolved, driving data usage by focusing customer education on the use of the wireless service In this way device management becomes a tool used both internally within the network or device vendor and by the customer themselves, with each user empowered to effectively manage the device without any prior knowledge or experience, confident that changes they apply will be relevant, accurate, stable and compatible. The value offered by an effective DM solution with an expert knowledge service will become a significant differentiator for the network operator in an ever competitive wireless market. This research document is intended to highlight some of the issues the industry faces as device management technologies become more prevalent, and offers some potential solutions to simplify the increasingly complex task of managing devices on the network, where device management can be used as a tool to aid customer relations and manage customer’s mobile products in order to resolve issues before the user is aware one exists. The research is broken down into the following, Customer Relationship Management, Device management, the role of knowledge with the DM, Companies that have successfully implemented device management, and the future of device management and CRM. And it also consists of questionnaires aimed at technical support agents and mobile device users. Interview was carried out with CRM managers within support centre to further the evidence gathered. To conclude, the document is to consider the advantages and disadvantages of device management and attempt to determine the influence it will have over customer support centre, and what methods could be used to implement it.

Improving continence services for older people from the service-providers’ perspective : a qualitative interview study

Objective: To examine in depth the views and experiences of continence service leads in England on key service and continence management characteristics in order to identify and to improve our understanding of barriers to a good-quality service and potential facilitators to develop and to improve services for older people with urinary incontinence (UI). Design: Qualitative semistructured interviews using a purposive sample recruited across 16 continence services. Setting: 3 acute and 13 primary care National Health Service Trusts in England. Participants: 16 continence service leads in England actively treating and managing older people with UI. Results: In terms of barriers to a good-quality service, participants highlighted a failure on the part of commissioners, managers and other health professionals in recognising the problem of UI and in acknowledging the importance of continence for older people and prevalent negative attitudes towards continence and older people. Patient assessment and continence promotion regardless of age, rather than pad provision, were identified as important steps for a good-quality service for older people with UI. More rapid and appropriate patient referral pathways, investment in service capacity, for example, more trained staff and strengthened interservice collaborations and a higher profile within medical and nurse training were specified as being important facilitators for delivering an equitable and highquality continence service. There is a need, however, to consider the accounts given by our participants as perhaps serving the interests of their professional group within the context of interprofessional work. Conclusions: Our data point to important barriers and facilitators of a good-quality service for older people with UI, from the perspective of continence service leads. Further research should address the views of other stakeholders, and explore options for the empirical evaluation of the effectiveness of identified service facilitators.

Lessons learned from stakeholders in a facilitation intervention targeting neonatal health in Quang Ninh province, Vietnam

BACKGROUND: In northern Vietnam the Neonatal health - Knowledge Into Practice (NeoKIP, Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN44599712) trial has evaluated facilitation as a knowledge translation intervention to improve neonatal survival. The results demonstrated that intervention sites, each having an assigned group including local stakeholders supported by a facilitator, lowered the neonatal mortality rate by 50% during the last intervention year compared with control sites. This process evaluation was conducted to identify and describe mechanisms of the NeoKIP intervention based on experiences of facilitators and intervention group members. METHODS: Four focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with all facilitators at different occasions and 12 FGDs with 6 intervention groups at 2 occasions. Fifteen FGDs were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, translated into English, and analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Four themes and 17 sub-themes emerged from the 3 FGDs with facilitators, and 5 themes and 18 sub-themes were identified from the 12 FGDs with the intervention groups mirroring the process of, and the barriers to, the intervention. Facilitators and intervention group members concurred that having groups representing various organisations was beneficial. Facilitators were considered important in assembling the groups. The facilitators functioned best if coming from the same geographical area as the groups and if they were able to come to terms with the chair of the groups. However, the facilitators' lack of health knowledge was regarded as a deficit for assisting the groups' assignments. FGD participants experienced the NeoKIP intervention to have impact on the knowledge and behaviour of both intervention group members and the general public, however, they found that the intervention was a slow and time-consuming process. Perceived facilitation barriers were lack of money, inadequate support, and the function of the intervention groups. CONCLUSIONS: This qualitative process evaluation contributes to explain the improved neonatal survival and why this occurred after a latent period in the NeoKIP project. The used knowledge translation intervention, where facilitators supported multi-stakeholder coalitions with the mandate to impact upon attitudes and behaviour in the communes, has low costs and potential for being scaled-up within existing healthcare systems.

Trade barriers and productivity growth: cross-industry evidence

This article investigates the impact of trade protection on the evolution of labor productivity and total factor productivity (TFP) of the Brazilian manufacturing sector. An annual panel-dataset of 16 industries for the years 1985 through 1997, a period that includes a major trade liberalization, was used. The regressions reported here are robust to openness indicator (nominal tari®s and e®ective protection rate were used), control variables and time period and suggest that barriers to trade negatively a®ects productivity growth at industry level: those sectors with lower barriers experienced higher growth. We were also able to link the observed increase of industry productivity growth after 1991 to the widespread reduction on exective protection experienced in the country in the nineties.

Transparência da governança florestal na Amazônia: uma análise de cumprimento da Lei de Acesso à Informação nos estados

A efetividade das políticas para a redução do desmatamento depende da capacidade dos governos nacionais e subnacionais, em conjunto com a sociedade e o mercado, em formular, implementar e fiscalizar tais políticas. Tal capacidade reflete a qualidade da governança florestal, conceito que se refere ao exercício de poder no processo político relacionado à utilização de recursos florestais e que tem a transparência como um de seus componentes fundamentais. Considerando que a Lei de Acesso à Informação (LAI) é um dos mais relevantes instrumentos legais com propósito de assegurar transparência à administração pública brasileira, o presente trabalho avalia a transparência das instituições estaduais responsáveis pela política florestal na Amazônia, por meio do grau de cumprimento da LAI. Os resultados apontam para uma implementação ainda baixa desta Lei na transparência ativa (informações que divulgam independente de pedidos) e, principalmente, na transparência passiva (respostas a pedidos de acesso à informação). Neste assunto, apenas 15,7% dos pedidos foram respondidos no prazo, com tempo médio de resposta de 11,7 dias e a taxa de precisão de apenas 5%. A baixa implementação de facto é aderente à hipótese de que os fatores que incentivariam a adoção de mecanismos de transparência na região são mais fracos que suas barreiras.

A proposal to the supervision of processes in an industrial environment with heterogeneous systems

SOUZA, Rodrigo B. ; MEDEIROS, Adelardo A. D. ; NASCIMENTO, João Maria A. ; GOMES, Heitor P. ; MAITELLI, André L. A Proposal to the Supervision of Processes in an Industrial Environment with Heterogeneous Systems. In: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEEOF THE INDUSTRUI ELECTRONICS SOCIETY,32., Paris, 2006, Paris. Anais... Paris: IECON, 2006

Violência intrafamiliar contra a criança: intervenção de enfermeiros da estratégia saúde da família

Objetivou analisar a atuação dos enfermeiros da Estratégia Saúde da Família frente à violência intrafamiliar contra a criança, visando identificar ações de prevenção do problema. Pesquisa descritiva e exploratória de cunho qualitativo, cujos dados foram analisados conforme análise de conteúdo. Participaram do estudo 14 enfermeiros da Estratégia de Saúde da Família do município de Mossoró-RN. Dados coletados utilizando-se questionário semiestruturado. As ações de promoção à saúde são atividades educativas desenvolvidas após detecção de casos. O medo de represálias do agente agressor, a sobrecarga de trabalho, a falta de apoio dos gestores e a dificuldade para a materialização da interdisciplinaridade, intersetorialidade e integralidade da atenção foram mencionadas como barreiras ao enfrentamento do problema

Avaliação do programa saúde da família no Rio Grande do Norte

The Family Health Program implemented in Brazilian municipalities from 1994 represents today the most promising proposal to promote important changes in municipality`s health systems, to allow universal access to health care, comprehensiveness, equity and to promote social control, achievements provided by the health reform process and incorporated to the Unified Health System principles. However, many are the challenges imposed to the Family Health Program so that it can cause these advances. In this study, we aimed to answer the following research question: what are the results of the Family Health Program in relation to beneficiaries at small, medium and large municipalities? The hypothesis that guided this work was that the variation in levels of achievement/results (strict, impacts and effects) of the Family Health Program is related to the size of the municipalities. Therefore, our general aim was to evaluate the results of the Family Health Program in municipalities at Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. And as specific objectives, to measure strict results, effects and impacts of the Program, from the criteria of efficiency and effectiveness on the beneficiated population, and to measure the Program`s impact on the organization of municipality`s health system. This is an impact assessment research, developed from multiple case studies with quanti-qualitative approach. The study included small municipalities (Acari and Taipu), midsize (Canguaretama and Santa Cruz) and large (Natal and Mossoró). The individuals chosen to the research were users/beneficiaries of the Program and health professionals. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and content analysis compared from the Program`s logical /theoretical model. The results obtained in relation to the principles evaluated (universality, comprehensiveness and community participation) presented that municipalities show different results, although not directly related to the size, but related with characteristics of the Program`s implementation form in each municipality and the arrangements made for its operationalization. The positive effect that generated significant change in people`s lives has been linked to the increase of access and to the decrease of geographic barriers. However, to the municipal health system, regarding the changes desired by the Program, it was not observed a positive impact, but a negative impact related to the increase of barriers for the user to access other levels of the health system

Mediação como instrumento de desjudicialização das questões familiares: constitucionalização do Direito de Família

The Liberal Constitutionalism emerged from the late eighteenth century, a period of major revolutions (French and American), fruit of the struggle for libertarian rights. Although the time of the first written constitutions, these were linked to mere political letters, did not provide for fundamental human rights, as it is, so only on the state organization, structure of powers, division of powers of the state and some relations between state and individuals. There was a clear division between the civil codes and constitutions, those governing private relations and acted as barriers to non-state intervention. After the Second World War, the constitutions are no longer Letters political order to establish how the human person, in order to enshrine the fundamental rights, the primacy of constitutional principles and take their normative function against ordinary legislator. Constitutional evolution gave the name of contemporary constitutionalism, based on repersonalization or despatrimonialização of Private Law, ceasing the separation of legislative civil codes and constitutions, in favor of the protection of fundamental rights of the human person. And this tendency to the Brazilian Federal Constitution of 1988 brought higher ground the dignity of the human person, the epicenter axiological legal to govern private relations, including family law. The constitutionalization of family law motivates the adoption of desjudicialização family issues, so as to respect the direio intimacy, privacy, private autonomy and access to justice. Conflictual family relationships require special treatment, given the diversity and dynamism of their new compositions. The break in the family relationship is guided in varied feelings among its members in order to hinder an end harmonic. Thus, the judiciary, through performances impositive, not to honor the power of decision of the parties, as also on the structural problems faced to operate on these cases, the environment is not the most appropriate to offer answers to the end of family quarrels. Situation that causes future demands on the dissatisfaction of the parties with the result. Before the development of the Family Law comes the need to adopt legal institutions, which monitor the socio-cultural, and that promote an effective assistance to people involved in this kind of conflict. In obedience to the private autonomy, before manifestations of volunteers involved in family mediation, among autocompositivos instruments of conflict resolution, is indicated as the most shaped the treatment of family quarrels. Remaining, then the state a minimal intervention to prevent excessive intrusion into private life and personal privacy