A Community Study of the Psychological Effects of the Omagh Car Bomb on Adults

Background: The main aims of the study were to assess psychological morbidity among adults nine months after a car bomb explosion in the town of Omagh, Northern Ireland and to identify predictors of chronic posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms.

Method: A questionnaire was sent to all adults in households in The Omagh District Council area. The questionnaire comprised established predictors of PTSD (such as pre-trauma personal characteristics, type of exposure, initial emotional response and long-term adverse physical or financial problems), predictors derived from the Ehlers and Clark (2000) cognitive model, a measure of PTSD symptoms and the General Health Questionnaire.

Results: Among respondents (n = 3131) the highest rates of PTSD symptoms and probable casesness (58.5%) were observed among people who were present in the street when the bomb exploded but elevated rates were also observed in people who subsequently attended the scene (21.8% probable caseness) and among people for whom someone close died (11.9%). People with a near miss (left the scene before the explosion) did not show elevated rates. Exposure to the bombing increased PTSD symptoms to a greater extent than general psychiatric symptoms. Previously established predictors accounted for 42% of the variance in PTSD symptoms among people directly exposed to the bombing. Predictors derived from the cognitive model accounted for 63%.

Conclusions: High rates of chronic PTSD were observed in individuals exposed to the bombing. Psychological variables that are in principle amenable to treatment were the best predictors of PTSD symptoms. Teams planning treatment interventions for victims of future bombings and other traumas may wish to take these results into account.

The ocean sunfish Mola mola: insights into distribution, abundance and behaviour in the Irish and Celtic Seas

Here we provide baseline data on the distribution and abundance of Mola mola within the Irish and Celtic Seas, made during aerial surveys from June to October during 2003-2005. These data were considered in conjunction with concurrent observations of three potential jellyfish prey species found throughout the region: Rhizostoma octopus, Chrysaora hysoscella and Cyanea capillata. A total area of 7850 km(2) was surveyed over the three years with an observed abundance of 68 sunfish giving a density of 0.98 ind/100 km(2). Although modest, these findings highlight that the species is more common than once thought around Britain and Ireland and an order of magnitude greater than the other apex jellyfish predator found in the region, the leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). furthermore, the distribution of sunfish sightings was inconsistent with the extensive aggregations of Rhizostoma octopus found throughout the study area. The modelled distributions of predator-prey co-occurrence (using data for all three jellyfish species) was less than the observed co-occurrence with the implication that neither jellyfish nor sunfish were randomly distributed but co-occurred more in the same areas than expected by chance. Finally, observed sunfish were typically small (similar to 1 in or less) and seen to either bask or actively swim at the surface.

Jellyfish aggregations and leatherback turtle foraging patterns in a temperate coastal environment

Leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are obligate predators of gelatinous zooplankton. However, the spatial relationship between predator and prey remains poorly understood beyond sporadic and localized reports. To examine how jellyfish (Phylum Cnidaria: Orders Semaeostomeae and Rhizostomeae) might drive the broad-scale distribution of this wide ranging species, we employed aerial surveys to map jellyfish throughout a temperate coastal shelf area bordering the northeast Atlantic. Previously unknown, consistent aggregations of Rhizostoma octopus extending over tens of square kilometers were identified in distinct coastal

Developing a simple, rapid method for identifying and monitoring jellyfish aggregations from the air

Within the marine environment, aerial surveys have historically centred on apex predators, such as pinnipeds, cetaceans and sea birds. However, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the utility of this technique may also extend to subsurface species such as pre-spawning fish stocks and aggregations of jellyfish that occur close to the surface. In light of this, we tested the utility of aerial surveys to provide baseline data for 3 poorly understood scyphozoan jellyfish found throughout British and Irish waters: Rhizostoma octopus, Cyanea capillata and Chrysaora hysoscella. Our principal objectives were to develop a simple sampling protocol to identify and quantify surface aggregations, assess their consistency in space and time, and consider the overall applicability of this technique to the study of gelatinous zooplankton. This approach provided a general understanding of range and relative abundance for each target species, with greatest suitability to the study of R. octopus. For this species it was possible to identify and monitor extensive, temporally consistent and previously undocumented aggregations throughout the Irish Sea, an area spanning thousands of square kilometres. This finding has pronounced implications for ecologists and fisheries managers alike and, moreover, draws attention to the broad utility of aerial surveys for the study of gelatinous aggregations beyond the range of conventional ship-based techniques.

The contours of memory in post-conflict societies: enacting public remembrance of the bomb in Omagh, Northern Ireland

Drawing on the theoretical insights of Paul Ricoeur this paper investigates the geographies of public remembrance in a post-conflict society. In Northern Ireland, where political divisions have found expression through acts of extreme violence over the past 30 years, questions of memory and an amnesty for forgetting have particular resonance both at the individual and societal level, and render Ricoeur’s framework particularly prescient. Since the signing of the Belfast Agreement in 1998, initiating the Peace Process through consociational structures, discovering a nomenclature and set of practices which would aid in the rapprochement of a deeply divided society has presented a complex array of issues. In this paper I examine the various practices of public remembrance of the 1998 bombing of Omagh as a means of understanding how memory-spaces evolve in a post-conflict context. In Omagh there were a variety of commemorative practices instituted and each, in turn, adopted a different contour towards achieving reconciliation with the violence and grief of the bombing. In particular the Garden of Light project is analysed as a collective monument which, with light as its metaphysical centre, invited the populace to reflect backward on the pain of the bombing while at the same time enabling the society to look forward toward a peaceful future where a politics of hope might eclipse a politics of despair.

The cardiac responses of the scallop Pecten maximus (L.) to respiratory stress

Heart activity of Pecten maximus (L.) has been recorded during various forms of experimentally induced respiratory stress. There was considerable variation in the responses of individual scallops but bradycardia generally occurred in response to all forms of respiratory stress, with the rate of fall in heart rate dependent upon the severity of hypoxia. When oxygen tension declined slowly in a closed respirometer there was regulation of both heart rate and oxygen consumption. The critical tension, Pc, for oxygen consumption lay between 70 and 80 mm Hg, and corresponded with a slight regulatory upswing of the heart rate, whereas the Pc for heart rate was much lower at 20–30 mm Hg. Sudden transfer to deoxygenated water for 3 h resulted in very rapid bradycardia and there was a rapid recovery and initial overshoot of the normal rate on return to well-oxygenated sea water. Aerial exposure for 3 h produced more gradual bradycardia followed by gradual recovery on return to sea water. The results of this work are compared in some detail with previous work on other species of bivalve from different geographical areas and habitats, and the mechanisms controlling cardiac and respiratory regulation are discussed. It is concluded that there are few clear-cut general differences between littoral and sublittoral species in their behavioural and physiological adaptations to hypoxia; the main distinguishing feature of littoral-adapted species is their ability to control air-gaping. Changes in heart activity generally indicate variations in metabolic rate, the speed at which the metabolic rate may be altered reflecting the degree of adaptation to the littoral environment.

Behavioural, physiological and morphological adaptations of the shanny (Blennius pholis) to the intertidal habitat

Immersed shannies (Blennius pholis) showed peak locomotory activity coincident with daylight high tides. Emersion caused cessation of breathing and bradycardia though Q02 was little affected. Q02 fell, however, when the abdomen was enclosed in an impermeable sheath to block cutaneous respiration. Gulping of air into the extensively vascular oesophagus probably also acts as a means of aerial respiration. Reimmersion of fish caused a transient bradycardia followed by a tachycardia and a fall in Q02 followed subsequently by a rise. The results are discussed in relation to the behavioural, circulatory, respiratory and morphological adaptations of the shanny to the intertidal habitat.

Large-Range Movements of Neotropical Orchid Bees Observed via Radio Telemetry

Neotropical orchid bees (Euglossini) are often cited as classic examples of trapline-foragers with potentially extensive foraging ranges. If long-distance movements are habitual, rare plants in widely scattered locations may benefit from euglossine pollination services. Here we report the first successful use of micro radio telemetry to track the movement of an insect pollinator in a complex and forested environment. Our results indicate that individual male orchid bees (Exaerete frontalis) habitually use large rainforest areas (at least 42-115 ha) on a daily basis. Aerial telemetry located individuals up to 5 km away from their core areas, and bees were often stationary, for variable periods, between flights to successive localities. These data suggest a higher degree of site fidelity than what may be expected in a free living male bee, and has implications for our understanding of biological activity patterns and the evolution of forest pollinators.

ACID ENHANCEMENT EFFECT IN THE CLEAN OXIDATION OF TOLUENES PHOTOCATALYZED BY TIO2

The yield of substituted benzaldehydes and benzoic acids formed by the aerial oxidation of a range of substituted toluenes photocatalysed by titanium dioxide in acetonitrile is dramatically improved by the addition of small amounts of sulfuric acid.

Assessing the Impact of Technology on Aircraft Systems using Technology Impact Forecasting

In today’s atmosphere of constrained defense spending and reduced research budgets, determining how to allocate resources for research and design has become a critical and challenging task. In the area of aircraft design there are many promising technologies to be explored, yet limited funds with which to explore them. In addition, issues concerning uncertainty in technology readiness as well as the quantification of the impact of a technology (or combinations of technologies), are of key importance during the design process. This paper presents a methodology that details a comprehensive and structured process in which to quantitatively explore the effects of technology for a given baseline aircraft. This process, called Technology Impact Forecasting (TIF), involves the creation of a assessment environment for use in conjunction with defined technology scenarios, and will have a significant impact on resource allocation strategies for defense acquisition. The advantages and limitations of the method are discussed. In addition, an example TIF application, that of an Uninhabited Combat Aerial Vehicle, is presented and serves to illustrate the applicability of this methodology to a military system.

Emergence time and foraging activity in Pallas' mastiff bat, Molossus molossus (Chiroptera: Molossidae) in relation to sunset/sunrise and phase of the moon

The decision on when to emerge from the safety of a roost and forage for prey is thought to be a result of the trade off between peak insect abundance and predation pressure for bats. In this study we show that the velvety free-tailed bat Molossus molossus emerges just after sunset and just before sunrise for very short foraging bouts (average 82.2 min foraging per night). Contrary to previous studies, bats remain inactive in their roost between activity patterns. Activity was measured over two complete lunar cycles and there was no indication that phase of the moon had an influence on emergence time or the numbers of bats that emerged from the roost. This data suggests that M. molossus represents an example of an aerial hawking bat whose foraging behaviour is in fact adapted to the compromise between the need to exploit highest prey availability and the need to avoid predation.

A school based study of psychological disturbance in children following the Omagh bomb

Objective
To assess the extent and nature of psychiatric morbidity among children (aged 8 to 13 years) 15 months after a car bomb explosion in the town of Omagh, Northern Ireland.

Method
A survey was conducted of 1945 school children attending 13 schools in the Omagh district. Questionnaires included demographic details, measures of exposure, the Horowitz Impact of Events Scale, the Birleson Self-Rating Depression Scale, and the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale.

Results
Children directly exposed to the bomb reported higher levels of probable PTSD (70%), and psychological distress than those not exposed. Direct exposure was more closely associated with an increase in PTSD symptoms than in general psychiatric distress. Significant predictors of increased IES scores included being male, witnessing people injured and reporting a perceived life threat but when co-morbid anxiety and depression are included as potential predictors anxiety remains the only significant predictor of PTSD scores.

Conclusions
School-based studies are a potentially valuable means of screening and assessing for PTSD in children after large-scale tragedies. Assessment should consider type of exposure, perceived life threat and other co-morbid anxiety as risk factors for PTSD.

The effects of the Omagh bomb on adolescent mental health: a school-based study

Background: The main objective of this study was to assess psychiatric morbidity among adolescentsfollowing the Omagh car bombing in Northern Ireland in 1998.

Methods: Data was collected within schools from adolescents aged between 14 and 18 years via a selfcompletionbooklet comprised of established predictors of PTSD; type of exposure, initialemotional response, long-term adverse physical problems, predictors derived from Ehlers andClark’s (2000) cognitive model, a PTSD symptoms measure (PDS) and the General HealthQuestionnaire (GHQ).

Results:Those with more direct physical exposure were significantly more likely to meet caseness onthe GHQ and the PDS. The combined pre and peri trauma risk factors highlighted in previousmeta-analyses accounted for 20% of the variance in PDS scores but the amount of varianceaccounted for increased to 56% when the variables highlighted in Ehlers and Clark’scognitive model for PTSD were added.

Conclusions: High rates of chronic PTSD were observed in adolescents exposed to the bombing. Whilstincreased exposure was associated with increased psychiatric morbidity, the best predictors ofPTSD were specific aspects of the trauma (‘seeing someone you think is dying’), what youare thinking during the event (‘think you are going to die’) and the cognitive mechanismsemployed after the trauma. As these variables are in principle amenable to treatment theresults have implications for teams planning treatment interventions after future traumas.

‘Darkened surfaces’: camouflage and the nocturnal observation of Britain, 1941–45

Positioned in relation to an emerging geographical interest into the effects of different atmospheric and observational conditions in shaping sensory engagements with the Earth's surfaces, this paper considers how a critical examination of the practices of camouflage can open up new dialogues into how the Earth's surfaces become known, are interacted with, and transformed in the conditions of darkness. With an empirical focus on the cultural and historical geographies of nocturnal camouflage practised during the Second World War, the paper examines the systematic attempts of civil camoufleurs to understand how natural and artificial landforms were visibly 'present' in the nocturnal landscape, despite darkness often being conceived as producing an environment of 'visual absence' through diminished sensory engagement. Furthermore, the paper highlights how the tensions between visual presence/absence that shape both the nocturnal experience and the 'knowing' of landscape can often be exploited for social, cultural, and political ends, in this case, to enable protection against aerial attack. © 2013 Pion and its Licensors.

Decentralised formation control and stability analysis for cooperative multi-vehicle manoeuvre

Multi-vehicle cooperative formation control problem is an important and typical topic of research on multi-agent system. This paper presents a formation stability conjecture to conceive a new methodology for solving the decentralised multi-vehicle formation control problem. It employs the “extension-decomposition-aggregation” scheme to transform the complex multi-agent control problem into a group of sub-problems which is able to be solved conveniently. Based on this methodology, it is proved that if all the individual augmented subsystems can be stabilised by using any approach, the overall formation system is not only asymptotically but also exponentially stable in the sense of Lyapunov within a neighbourhood of the desired formation. Simulation study on 6-DOF aerial vehicles (Aerosonde UAVs) has been performed to verify the achieved formation stability result. The proposed multi-vehicle formation control strategy can be conveniently extended to other cooperative control problems of multi-agent systems.