Child abuse investigation: an in depth analysis of how police officers perceive and cope with daily work challenges

Purpose: The purpose of the current study was two-fold: to explore police officers' perceptions of the daily challenges involved in child abuse investigation and how those challenges affect their ability to undertake child abuse investigations, and to explore how these challenges are managed on a daily basis. Design/methodology/approach: This study employed a qualitative research design. In-depth interviews were conducted with a diverse sample of 25 police officers working in child abuse units across three Australian states. Findings: Inductive thematic analysis revealed that heavy caseload and collaboration with other professional groups are two key sources of negative work stress frequently associated with child abuse investigation. Further, despite the provision of organisational strategies aimed at reducing work stress, the officers tended to rely predominantly on informal coping mechanisms.  Research limitations/implications: This study has raised many questions for further research aimed at developing interventions to assist police organisations in managing work stress. Originality/value: This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the key challenges associated with child abuse investigation and the coping mechanisms employed for overcoming these challenges from the unique perspective of police officers authorised to investigate child abuse.

Activation of MAP kinase by insulin and vanadate in adipocytes from young and old rats

Vanadate has insulin-like effects in adipocytes without stimulating insulin receptor kinase activity. However, it activates IRS-1 associated PI 3-kinase, suggesting that it mimics insulin effects by stimulating signaling elements downstream of PI 3-kinase. Here we analysed the stimulation of MAPK by insulin and vanadate and observed that both elicit a rapid 3.5–4 fold activation which is abolished by wortmannin and PD98059. Simultaneous addition of insulin and vanadate does not result in an additive effect neither on MAPK nor in MEK. Whereas insulin action is transient, vanadate stimulation lasts up to 20 min. In insulin-resistant adipocytes from old rats, insulin stimulates poorly MAPK, whereas a normal activation is achieved with vanadate. We conclude that: (a) insulin and vanadate use a common signaling pathway from PI 3-kinase to MEK and MAPK; (b) vanadate but not insulin, elicits a sustained activation of both enzymes; (c) this pathway is functional in old rat adipocytes.

Estimates of Heterozostera tasmanica, Zostera muelleri and Ruppia megacarpa distribution and biomass in the Hopkins Estuary, western Victoria, by GIS

Knowledge of the spatial arrangement of the seagrass distribution and biomass within the Hopkins Estuary is an essential step towards gaining an understanding of the functioning of the estuarine ecosystem. This study marks the first attempt to map seagrass distribution and model seagrass biomass and epiphyte biomass along depth gradients by the use of global positioning system (GPS) and geographical information system (GIS) technologies in the estuary. For mapping seagrass in small estuaries, ground-surveying the entire system is feasible. Three species of seagrasses, Heterozostera tasmanica (Martens ex Aschers), Zostera muelleri (Irmisch ex Aschers) and Ruppia megacarpa (Mason), were identified in the Hopkins Estuary. All beds investigated contained a mixed species relationship. Three harvest techniques were trialed in a pilot study, with the 25 × 25-cm quadrat statistically most appropriate. Biomass of seagrasses and epiphytes was found to vary significantly with depth, but not between sites. The average estimate of biomass for total seagrasses and their epiphytes in the estuary in January 2000 was 222.7 g m^–2 (dry weight). Of the total biomass, 50.6% or 112.7 g m^–2 (dry weight) was contributed by seagrasses and 49.4% of the biomass (110.0 g m^–2) were epiphytes. Of the 50.6% of the total biomass represented by seagrasses, 39.3% (87.5 g m^–2) were leaves and 11.3% (25.2 g m^–2) were rhizomes. The total area of seagrasses present in the Hopkins Estuary was estimated to be 0.4 ± 0.005 km², with the total area of the estuary estimated to be 1.6 ± 0.02 km² (25% cover). The total standing crop of seagrasses and epiphytes in the Hopkins Estuary in January 2000 was estimated to be 102.3 ± 57 t in dry weight, 56% (56.9 ± 17 t, dry weight) seagrasses and 44% (45.4 ± 19 t, dry weight) epiphytes. Of the seagrass biomass, 39% (39.7 ± 13 t, dry weight) was contributed by leaves and 17% (17.3 ± 7 t, dry weight) by rhizomes.

Localization with orientation using RSSI measurements: RF map based approach

Localization of RFIDs in the indoor environment will entail determining both the position and the orientation of the user. This paper develops estimator using RSSI measurements to predict the position and orientation of a transmitter in an indoor environment. The best estimator tried was an K-nearest neighbours model that gave an accuracy of approximately 83% for position prediction and 93% for orientation prediction. It was also found that the RSSI values change throughout the day, meaning that an adaptive estimator is necessary for localization.

Depth estimation using multi-wavelet analysis based stereo vision approach

The problem of dimensional defects in aluminum die- casting is widespread throughout the foundry industry and their detection is of paramount importance in maintaining product quality. Due to the unpredictable factory environment and metallic, with highly reflective, nature of aluminum die-castings, it is extremely hard to estimate true dimensionality of the die-casting, autonomously. In this work, we propose a novel robust 3D reconstruction algorithm capable of reconstructing dimensionally accurate 3D depth models of the aluminum die-castings. The developed system is very simple and cost effective as it consists of only a stereo cameras pair and a simple fluorescent light. The developed system is capable of estimating surface depths within the tolerance of 1.5 mm. Moreover, the system is invariant to illuminative variations and orientation of the objects in the input image space, which makes the developed system highly robust. Due to its hardware simplicity and robustness, it can be implemented in different factory environments without a significant change in the setup.

Corporate ethics and trust in intra-corporate relationships, an in-depth and longitudinal case description

Theoretically, a contribution of this article is the pinpointed connection between corporate ethics and trust in intra-corporate relationships. Furthermore, it contributes to a conceptual framework that distinguishes between the constructs of business ethics and corporate ethics. The authors also provide a grounded conceptual framework of corporate ethics and trust. The principal dyadic determinants of corporate ethics in intra-corporate relationships are interpreted to be management behaviour versus employee perception of that behaviour. Empirically, the contribution is an in-depth and longitudinal case description that underpins the topic and the discussion provided in the article.

Altering dietary nutrient intake that reduces glycogen content leads to phosphorylation of nuclear p38 MAP kinase in human skeletal muscle: association with IL-6 gene transcription during contraction

To determine the effect of glycogen availability and contraction on intracellular signaling and IL-6 gene transcription, eight males performed 60 min of exercise on two occasions: either with prior ingestion of a normal (Con) or low carbohydrate (LCHO) diet that reduced pre-exercise muscle glycogen content. Muscle biopsies were obtained and analyzed for IL-6 mRNA. In addition, nuclear proteins were isolated from the samples and analyzed for the mitogen- activated protein kinases (MAPK) c-jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK) 1 and 2 and p38 MAPK. Nuclear fractions were also analyzed for the phosphorylated forms of JNK (p-JNK) and p38 MAPK (p-p38 MAPK) and the abundance of the nuclear transcription factors nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) and nuclear factor kappa-β (NF-κβ). No differences were observed in the protein abundance of total JNK 1/2, p38 MAPK, NFAT, or NF-κβ before exercise, but the nuclear abundance of p-p38 MAPK was higher (P<0.05) in LCHO. Contraction resulted in an increase (P<0.05) in nuclear p-JNK 1/2, but there were no differences when comparing CON with LCHO. The fold increase in IL-6 mRNA with contraction was potentiated (P<0.05) in LCHO. A correlation between pre-exercise nuclear phosphorylated p38 MAPK and contraction-induced fold increase in IL-6 mRNA was performed, revealing a highly significant correlation (r=0.96; P<0.01). We next incubated L6 myotubes in ionomycin (a compound known to induce IL-6 mRNA) with or without the pyridinylimidazole p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580. Treatments did not affect total nuclear p38 MAPK, but ionomycin increased (P<0.05) both nuclear p-p38 MAPK and IL-6 mRNA. The addition of SB203580 to ionomycin decreased (P<0.05) nuclear p-p38 MAPK and totally abolished (P<0.05) the ionomycin- induced increase in IL-6 mRNA. These data suggest that reduced carbohydrate intake that results in low intramuscular glycogen leads to phosphorylation of p38 MAPK at the nucleus. Furthermore, phosphorylation of p38 MAPK in the nucleus appears to be an upstream target for IL-6, providing new insights into the regulation of IL-6 gene transcription.

A Map of Impoundments and Their Primary Purpose on Maine Rivers

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DETAILED MAP AND RECREATIONAL SUITABILITY ASSESSMENT OF THE COLBY TRAIL SYSTEM

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