Study of Co-based hydrotalcite-derived mixed metal oxides partially modified with silver as potential catalysts for N2O decomposition

Co-Al-Ox mixed metal oxides partially modified with Cu or Mg, as well as Ag were successfully prepared, characterized and evaluated as potential catalysts for the N2O decomposition. The materials were characterized by the following techniques: X-Ray Diffraction, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), N2 Physisorption, Hydrogen Temperature-Programmed Reduction (H2-TPR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Ag-modified HT-derived mixed oxides showed enhanced activity compared to the undoped materials, the optimum composition was found for (1 wt.% Ag)CHT-Co3Al. The catalyst characterization studies suggested that the improved catalytic activity of Ag-promoted catalysts were mainly because of the altered redox properties of the materials.

Understanding the Patient Experience Through the Power of Film: a Mixed Method Qualitative Research Study

Background For decades film has proved to be a powerful form of communication. Whether produced as entertainment, art or documentary, films have the capacity to inform and move us. Films are a highly attractive teaching instrument and an appropriate teaching method in health education. It is a valuable tool for studying situations most transcendental to human beings such as pain, disease and death. Objectives The objectives were to determine how this helps students engage with their role as health care professionals; to determine how they view the personal experience of illness, disease, disability or death; and to determine how this may impact upon their provision of patient care. Design, Setting and Participants The project was underpinned by the film selection determined by considerate review, intensive scrutiny, contemplation and discourse by the research team. 7 films were selected, ranging from animation; foreign, documentary, biopic and Hollywood drama. Each film was shown discretely, in an acoustic lecture theatre projected onto a large screen to pre-registration student nurses (adult, child and mental health) across each year of study from different cohorts (n = 49). Method A mixed qualitative method approach consisted of audio-recorded 5-minute reactions post film screening; coded questionnaires; and focus group. Findings were drawn from the impact of the films through thematic analysis of data sets and subjective text condensation categorised as: new insights looking through patient eyes; evoking emotion in student nurses; spiritual care; going to the moves to learn about the patient experience; self discovery through films; using films to link theory to practice. Results Deeper learning through film as a powerful medium was identified in meeting the objectives of the study. Integration of film into pre registration curriculum, pedagogy, teaching and learning is recommended. Conclusion The teaching potential of film stems from the visual process linked to human emotion and experience. Its impact has the power to not only help in learning the values that underpin nursing, but also for respecting the patient experience of disease, disability, death and its reality.

Properties of a composite material with mixed imperfect contact conditions

We present an analytical solution of a mixed boundary value problem for an unbounded 2D doubly periodic domain which is a model of a composite material with mixed imperfect interface conditions. We find the effective conductivity of the composite material with mixed imperfect interface conditions, and also give numerical analysis of several of their properties such as temperature and flux.

On independent component analysis applied to unmixing hyperspectral data

One of the most challenging task underlying many hyperspectral imagery applications is the spectral unmixing, which decomposes a mixed pixel into a collection of reectance spectra, called endmember signatures, and their corresponding fractional abundances. Independent Component Analysis (ICA) have recently been proposed as a tool to unmix hyperspectral data. The basic goal of ICA is to nd a linear transformation to recover independent sources (abundance fractions) given only sensor observations that are unknown linear mixtures of the unobserved independent sources. In hyperspectral imagery the sum of abundance fractions associated to each pixel is constant due to physical constraints in the data acquisition process. Thus, sources cannot be independent. This paper address hyperspectral data source dependence and its impact on ICA performance. The study consider simulated and real data. In simulated scenarios hyperspectral observations are described by a generative model that takes into account the degradation mechanisms normally found in hyperspectral applications. We conclude that ICA does not unmix correctly all sources. This conclusion is based on the a study of the mutual information. Nevertheless, some sources might be well separated mainly if the number of sources is large and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is high.

Self-management of coronary heart disease in angina patients after percutaneous coronary intervention: A mixed methods study.

After having elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) patients are expected to self-manage their coronary heart disease (CHD) by modifying their risk factors, adhering to medication and effectively managing any recurring angina symptoms but that may be ineffective. Objective: Explore how patients self-manage their coronary heart disease (CHD) after elective PCI and identify any factors that may infl uence that. Design and method: This mixed methods study recruited a convenience sample of patients (n=93) approximately three months after elective PCI. Quantitative data were collected using a survey and were subject to univariate, bivariate and multi-variate analysis. Qualitative data from participant interviews was analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: After PCI, 74% of participants managed their angina symptoms inappropriately. Younger participants and those with threatening perceptions of their CHD were more likely to know how to effectively manage their angina symptoms. Few patients adopted a healthier lifestyle after PCI. Qualitative analysis revealed that intentional non-adherence to some medicines was an issue. Some participants felt unsupported by healthcare providers and social networks in relation to their self-management. Participants reported strong emotional responses to CHD and this had a detrimental effect on their self-management. Few patients accessed cardiac rehabilitation.

Is land condition a useful indicator of soil organic carbon stock in Australia?

The grazing lands of northern Australia contain a substantial soil organic carbon (SOC) stock due to the large land area. Manipulating SOC stocks through grazing management has been presented as an option to offset national greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and other industries. However, research into the response of SOC stocks to a range of management activities has variously shown positive, negative or negligible change. This uncertainty in predicting change in SOC stocks represents high project risk for government and industry in relation to SOC sequestration programs. In this paper, we seek to address the uncertainty in SOC stock prediction by assessing relationships between SOC stocks and grazing land condition indicators. We reviewed the literature to identify land condition indicators for analysis and tested relationships between identified land condition indicators and SOC stock using data from a paired-site sampling experiment (10 sites). We subsequently collated SOC stock datasets at two scales (quadrat and paddock) from across northern Australia (329 sites) to compare with the findings of the paired-site sampling experiment with the aim of identifying the land condition indicators that had the strongest relationship with SOC stock. The land condition indicators most closely correlated with SOC stocks across datasets and analysis scales were tree basal area, tree canopy cover, ground cover, pasture biomass and the density of perennial grass tussocks. In combination with soil type, these indicators accounted for up to 42% of the variation in the residuals after climate effects were removed. However, we found that responses often interacted with soil type, adding complexity and increasing the uncertainty associated with predicting SOC stock change at any particular location. We recommend that caution be exercised when considering SOC offset projects in northern Australian grazing lands due to the risk of incorrectly predicting changes in SOC stocks with change in land condition indicators and management activities for a particular paddock or property. Despite the uncertainty for generating SOC sequestration income, undertaking management activities to improve land condition is likely to have desirable complementary benefits such as improving productivity and profitability as well as reducing adverse environmental impact.

The code document's structure and analysis

The purpose of this paper is twofold. Firstly it presents a preliminary and ethnomethodologically-informed analysis of the way in which the growing structure of a particular program's code was ongoingly derived from its earliest stages. This was motivated by an interest in how the detailed structure of completed program `emerged from nothing' as a product of the concrete practices of the programmer within the framework afforded by the language. The analysis is broken down into three sections that discuss: the beginnings of the program's structure; the incremental development of structure; and finally the code productions that constitute the structure and the importance of the programmer's stock of knowledge. The discussion attempts to understand and describe the emerging structure of code rather than focus on generating `requirements' for supporting the production of that structure. Due to time and space constraints, however, only a relatively cursory examination of these features was possible. Secondly the paper presents some thoughts on the difficulties associated with the analytic---in particular ethnographic---study of code, drawing on general problems as well as issues arising from the difficulties and failings encountered as part of the analysis presented in the first section.

Financing local development through crowdfunding: An empirical analysis of social projects in Portugal

Crowdfunding (CF) is an increasingly attractive source to fund social projects. However, to our best knowledge, the study of CF for social purposes has remained largely unexplored in the literature. This research envisages a detailed examination of the role of CF on the early-stage of the social projects at regional level. By comparing the characteristics of the projects available in the Portuguese Social Stock Exchange (PSSE) platform with others that did not use this source of financial support, we explore its role on regional development. The results we got show that, in most cases, both PSSE and Non-Governmental Organizations projects complemented the services offered by the State or by the private sector. Furthermore, about a quarter of the projects present in PSSE operated in areas that were not being addressed neither by the services offered by the State nor by the ones of the private sector. The results attained show that more recent social ventures have a greater propensity to use PSSE. The same is find in those organizations which work closely with the target audience. We also observed that the use of PSSE was correlated with the geographical scope of the Social Venture. The circumstance of having the social organization acting at a local or regional level seems to be strongly associated with the possibility of using social crowdfunding for financing social projects.

Patterns of Play in the Fast attack of F. C. Barcelona, Manchester United and F. C. Internazionale Milano: a Mixed Method Approach

This study aimed to detect and analyse regular patterns of play in fast attack of football teams, through the combination of the sequential analysis technique and semi-structured interviews to experienced first League Portuguese coaches. The sample included 36 games (12 games of the respective national leagues per team) of the F.C. Barcelona, Inter Milan, and Manchester United teams that were coded with the observational instrument tool developed by Sarmento et al. (2010) and the data analysed through sequential analysis with the software SDIS-GSEQ 5.0. Based on the detected patterns, semi-structured interviews were carried out to 8 expert high-performance football coaches and data were analysed through the content analysis technique using the software NVivo 10. The detected patterns of play revealed specific characteristics of the teams under study. The combination of the results of sequential analysis with the qualitative interviews to the professional coaches proved to be very fruitful in this game the analysis of scope, allowing reconcile scientific knowledge with practical interpretation of coaches who develop their tasks in the field.

GGE biplot analysis of multi-environment yield trials of rice produced in a temperate climate

Low temperature is one of the main environmental constraints for rice ( Oryza sativa L.) grain production yield. It is known that multi-environment studies play a critical role in the sustainability of rice production across diverse environments. However, there are few studies based on multi-environment studies of rice in temperate climates. The aim was to study the performance of rice plants in cold environments. Four experimental lines and six cultivars were evaluated at three locations during three seasons. The grain yield data were analyzed with ANOVA, mixed models based on the best linear unbiased predictors (BLUPs), and genotype plus Genotype × Environment interaction (GGE) biplot. High genotype contribution (> 25%) was observed in grain yield and the interaction between genotype and locations was not very important. Results also showed that ‘Quila 241319’ was the best experimental line with the highest grain yield (11.3 t ha-1) and grain yield stability across the environments; commercial cultivars were classified as medium grain yield genotypes.

Intraseasonal variability of mixed layer depth in the tropical Indian Ocean

In this paper, we use an observational dataset built from Argo in situ profiles to describe the main large-scale patterns of intraseasonal mixed layer depth (MLD) variations in the Indian Ocean. An eddy permitting (0.25A degrees) regional ocean model that generally agrees well with those observed estimates is then used to investigate the mechanisms that drive MLD intraseasonal variations and to assess their potential impact on the related SST response. During summer, intraseasonal MLD variations in the Bay of Bengal and eastern equatorial Indian Ocean primarily respond to active/break convective phases of the summer monsoon. In the southern Arabian Sea, summer MLD variations are largely driven by seemingly-independent intraseasonal fluctuations of the Findlater jet intensity. During winter, the Madden-Julian Oscillation drives most of the intraseasonal MLD variability in the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean. Large winter MLD signals in northern Arabian Sea can, on the other hand, be related to advection of continental temperature anomalies from the northern end of the basin. In all the aforementioned regions, peak-to-peak MLD variations usually reach 10 m, but can exceed 20 m for the largest events. Buoyancy flux and wind stirring contribute to intraseasonal MLD fluctuations in roughly equal proportions, except for the Northern Arabian Sea in winter, where buoyancy fluxes dominate. A simple slab ocean analysis finally suggests that the impact of these MLD fluctuations on intraseasonal sea surface temperature variability is probably rather weak, because of the compensating effects of thermal capacity and sunlight penetration: a thin mixed-layer is more efficiently warmed at the surface by heat fluxes but loses more solar flux through its lower base.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for older people in a community setting: a mixed methods feasibility study

Rationale: In line with complex intervention development, this research takes a systematic approach to examining the feasibility and acceptability of delivering Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) to older people who experience symptoms of depression. Methods: A mixed methods approach was adopted in line with recommendations made by the MRC Complex Intervention Development framework. Quantitative and qualitative methods were combined by administering questionnaires as well as conducting post intervention interviews. A number of trial feasibility factors were examined such as recruitment and attrition rates. Qualitative data was analysed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis framework. Results: Nine participants started the MBCT intervention and six completed the 8-week programme. The results suggest that MBCT for older people is feasible and acceptable. Participants reported improved mindfulness skills. Participants responded positively to being asked to take part in research and appeared to particularly value the group delivery format of the intervention. Conclusions: MBCT is both feasible and acceptable for older people experiencing symptoms of depression. Further research is required with larger sample sizes to allow for more robust statistical exploration of outcome measures, including mechanisms of change.

Exploring redox-driven self-assembly of mixed metal polyoxometalates

How can we control the experimental conditions towards the isolation of specific structures? Why do particular architectures form? These are some challenging questions that synthetic chemists try to answer, specifically within polyoxometalate (POM) chemistry, where there is still much unknown regarding the synthesis of novel molecular structures in a controlled and predictive manner. This work covers a wide range of POM chemistry, exploring the redox self-assembly of polyoxometalate clusters, using both “one-pot”, flow and hydrothermal conditions. For this purpose, different vanadium, molybdenum and tungsten reagents, heteroatoms, inorganic salts and reducing agents have been used. The template effect of lone-pair containing pyramidal heteroatoms has been investigated. Efforts to synthesize new POM clusters displaying pyramidal heteroanions (XO32-, where X= S, Se, Te, P) are reported. The reaction of molybdenum with vanadium in the presence of XO32- heteroatoms is explored, showing how via the cation and experimental control it is possible to direct the self-assembly process and to isolate isostructural compounds. A series of four isostructural (two new, namely {Mo11V7P} and {Mo11V7Te} and two already known, namely {Mo11V7Se} and {Mo11V7S} disordered egg-shaped Polyoxometalates have been reported. The compounds were characterized by X-ray structural analysis, TGA, UV-Vis, FT-IR, Elemental and Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS) analysis and Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Cyclic Voltammetry measurements have been carried out in all four compounds showing the effect of the ionic density of the heteroatom on the potential. High-Resolution ESI-MS studies have revealed that the structures retain their integrity in solution. Efforts to synthesize new mixed-metal compounds led to isolation, structural, and electronic characterization of the theoretically predicted, but experimentally elusive δ-isomer of the Keggin polyoxometalate cluster anion, {H2W4V9O33(C6H13NO3)}, by the reaction of tungstate(VI) and vanadium(V) with triethanolammonium ions (TEAH), acting as a tripodal ligand grafted to the surface of the cluster. Control experiments (in the absence of the organic compound) have proven that the tripodal ligand plays crucial role on the formation of the isomer. The six vanadium metal centres, which consist the upper part of the cluster, are bonded to the “capping” TEA tripodal ligand. This metal-ligand bonding directs and stabilises the formation of the final product. The δ-Keggin species was characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, FT-IR, UV-vis, NMR and ESI-MS spectrometry. Electronic structure and structure-stability correlations were evaluated by means of DFT calculations. The compounds exhibited photochromic properties by undergoing single-crystal-to-single-crystal (SC-SC) transformations and changing colour under light. Non-conventional synthetic approaches are also used for the synthesis of the POM clusters comparing the classical “one-pot” reaction conditions and exploring the synthetic parameters of the synthesis of POM compounds. Reactions under hydrothermal and flow conditions, where single crystals that depend on the solubility of the minerals under hot water and high pressure can be synthesized, resulted in the isolation of two isostructural compounds, namely, {Mo12V3Te5}. The compound isolated from a continuous processing method, crystallizes in a hexagonal crystal system, forming a 2D porous plane net, while the compound isolated using hard experimental conditions (high temperature and pressure) crystallizes in monoclinic system, resulting in a different packing configuration. Utilizing these alternative synthetic approaches, the most kinetically and thermodynamically compounds would possibly be isolated. These compounds were characterised by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, FT-IR and UV-vis spectroscopy. Finally, the redox-controlled driven oscillatory template exchange between phosphate (P) and vanadate (V) anions enclosed in an {M18O54(XO4)2} cluster is further investigated using UV-vis spectroscopy as a function of reaction time, showed that more than six complete oscillations interconverting the capsule species present in solution from {P2M18} to {V2M18} were possible, provided that a sufficient concentration of the TEA reducing agent was present in solution. In an effort to investigate the periodicity of the exchange of the phosphate and vanadate anions, time dependent Uv-vis measurements were performed for a period at a range of 170-550 hours. Different experimental conditions were also applied in order to investigate the role of the reducing agent, as well as the effect of other experimental variables on the oscillatory system.

Using an end-of-life care pathway in acute stroke: a mixed methods study of decision-making and care experiences

Background: The evidence base on end-of-life care in acute stroke is limited, particularly with regard to recognising dying and related decision-making. There is also limited evidence to support the use of end-of-life care pathways (standardised care plans) for patients who are dying after stroke. Aim: This study aimed to explore the clinical decision-making involved in placing patients on an end-of-life care pathway, evaluate predictors of care pathway use, and investigate the role of families in decision-making. The study also aimed to examine experiences of end-of-life care pathway use for stroke patients, their relatives and the multi-disciplinary health care team. Methods: A mixed methods design was adopted. Data were collected in four Scottish acute stroke units. Case-notes were identified prospectively from 100 consecutive stroke deaths and reviewed. Multivariate analysis was performed on case-note data. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 relatives of stroke decedents and 23 healthcare professionals, using a modified grounded theory approach to collect and analyse data. The VOICES survey tool was also administered to the bereaved relatives and data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of free-text responses. Results: Relatives often played an important role in influencing aspects of end-of-life care, including decisions to use an end-of-life care pathway. Some relatives experienced enduring distress with their perceived responsibility for care decisions. Relatives felt unprepared for and were distressed by prolonged dying processes, which were often associated with severe dysphagia. Pro-active information-giving by staff was reported as supportive by relatives. Healthcare professionals generally avoided discussing place of care with families. Decisions to use an end-of-life care pathway were not predicted by patients’ demographic characteristics; decisions were generally made in consultation with families and the extended health care team, and were made within regular working hours. Conclusion: Distressing stroke-related issues were more prominent in participants’ accounts than concerns with the end-of-life care pathway used. Relatives sometimes perceived themselves as responsible for important clinical decisions. Witnessing prolonged dying processes was difficult for healthcare professionals and families, particularly in relation to the management of persistent major swallowing difficulties.