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Renewable Heat Incentive in Northern Ireland: devolved government policy failure
No full textThe Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme in Northern Ireland (NI), 2012–17, led to a major scandal in terms of misuse of public money. The RHI was the subject of a public inquiry and the RHI was a contributory factor in the collapse of the regional government in January 2017. The RHI is a case study in government failure: illustrating how well-intentioned interventions can lead to harmful outcomes. The RHI shows how the devolved machinery of government created policies containing significant design flaws. This was partly the result of a capacity problem: a lack of resources to handle complex policies. Ironically, in the RHI case, a greater level of accountability helped to skew policy in a harmful direction by giving undue influence to vested interest groups. The authors’ focus is on how the civil servants designed policies with significant flaws but with attention given to the role of consultants, special advisers and politicians.<br/
Land use and land cover analysis of cultural World Heritage to inform assessment of climate vulnerability
No full textThe UNESCO World Heritage (WH) List contains cultural and natural properties deemed to be of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) to all humanity. Property boundaries should encompass all elements that contribute to the OUV of the property and be sufficient to protect the OUV from any natural or anthropogenic threats. Climate change-related hazards are impacting WH properties at multiple scales. In many cases, especially for slow onset hazards, existing boundaries are not sufficient to monitor and respond to change. In these cases, it can help to explore the wider landscape context. This paper considers the utility of standardised remote sensing land use and land cover (LULC) data to understand the high-level environmental classifications within and surrounding cultural and mixed WH properties. Of 11 LULC classes within the analysed dataset, 10 were present in at least one of the 49 properties in the Indian Subcontinent recognised for their cultural heritage, with the most common being Tree cover (≥5% of the area of 40 properties and/or their surrounds). Protection of cultural properties from climate-based impacts can benefit from LULC analysis by responding to known climate-related risks (e.g., flood, wildfire, etc.) on specific land cover classes. These risk profiles can be useful decision support tools for climate adaptation. The analysis is demonstrated for four case studies at three locations, using properties with a range of sizes and values. For example, trees in the broader landscape within and around Khangchendzonga National Park may encounter future impacts from temperature change (resulting in shifting biomes and changing phenology), precipitation changes (resulting in changes in rainfall and drought) and wind changes (resulting in storm damage). Each of those climate drivers increase the risk of wildfires. Additionally, LULC analysis provides valuable information on a property’s environmental context when inscribed boundaries are unknown. This study demonstrates that a systematic and reliable analysis of LULC data can provide a way to consider the broader environmental context of WH properties, complementing property values described in their Statements of OUV. However, the study also acknowledges key limitations to using LULC, including classification accuracy concerns and challenges with validation across diverse site types. Finally, this work complements a parallel thematic approach that categorises values from WH documentation to streamline assessment of climate impacts
Formulation development of a dapivirine-releasing subdermal implant for HIV prevention
No full textThere have been several significant advances in recent years around long-acting strategies for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, including DapiRing® (a 1-month dapivirine (DPV)-releasing vaginal ring), Apretude® (a cabotegravir intramuscular injection administered every two months), and Yeztugo® (a twice-yearly lenacapavir injection). With the goal of developing new drug delivery devices that can extend antiretroviral release for 12 months or longer, we report here our preliminary efforts to design a subdermal implant releasing the antiretroviral drug DPV. These reservoir-type rod implants (length 40 mm, cross-sectional diameters 2.5, 3.2, 3.5 or 4.0 mm) comprised a silicone elastomer core containing solid crystalline DPV (loading 10, 20 or 40 % w/w) and an open-ended non-medicated rate-controlling silicone elastomer membrane (thickness 0.5, 0.8 or 1.0 mm). DPV in vitro release rates could be modulated by adjusting the membrane thickness. Continuous in vitro DPV release ∼12 μg/day was demonstrated over 330 days, with sufficient residual drug content (∼87 mg/∼95 %) to extend release for at least 5 years. In particular, the study highlights the challenges in designing subdermal implants providing sufficient DPV release to maintain systemic/vaginal concentrations at protective levels.<br/
SynFinTabs: a dataset of synthetic financial tables for information and table extraction
No full textTable extraction from document images is a challenging AI problem, and labelled data for many content domains is difficult to come by. Existing table extraction datasets often focus on scientific tables due to the vast amount of academic articles that are readily available, along with their source code. However, there are significant layout and typographical differences between tables found across scientific, financial, and other domains. Current datasets often lack the words, and their positions, contained within the tables, instead relying on unreliable OCR to extract these features for training modern machine learning models on natural language processing tasks. Therefore, there is a need for a more general method of obtaining labelled data. We present SynFinTabs, a large-scale, labelled dataset of synthetic financial tables. Our hope is that our method of generating these synthetic tables is transferable to other domains. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our dataset in training models to extract information from table images, we create FinTabQA, a layout large language model trained on an extractive question-answering task. We test our model using real-world financial tables and compare it to a state-of-the-art generative model and discuss the results. We make the dataset, model, and dataset generation code publicly available (https://ethanbradley.co.uk/research/synfintabs)
Folate-functionalized polymeric nanoparticles for 5-fluorouracil delivery to prostate cancer: physicochemical and in vitro/in vivo characterization
No full textProstate cancer is the second most common cancer in men worldwide, highlighting the urgent need for effective and targeted chemotherapeutic approaches. This study reports the development and optimization of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)–loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)–polyethylene glycol–folic acid (PLGA–PEG–FOL) nanoparticles designed for folate receptor–mediated targeted therapy. The PLGA–PEG–FOL conjugate was synthesized via a stepwise carbodiimide coupling reaction and confirmed by FT-IR analysis. Nanoparticles were formulated via a modified emulsification–solvent evaporation method and optimized through a Box–Behnken design. The optimized formulation demonstrated a particle size of 178.47 ± 3.26 nm, a narrow polydispersity index (0.119 ± 0.008), a zeta potential of −23.4 ± 0.35 mV, a high entrapment efficiency (78.93 ± 1.05%), and sustained release of 5-FU for up to 72 h. In vitro cytotoxicity assays in PC-3 prostate cancer cells revealed a 1.6-fold reduction in the IC50 value compared with that of free 5-FU, indicating enhanced therapeutic potency. In vivo efficacy was evaluated in testosterone-induced prostate cancer in male Wistar rats. Compared with the control, treatment with 5-FU-loaded PLGA–PEG–FOL nanoparticles significantly reduced the prostate index and produced a 2.2-fold decrease in serum PSA levels and a 1.9-fold decrease in serum testosterone levels. Histopathological examination confirmed the attenuation of hyperplastic and dysplastic lesions in the nanoparticle-treated group. These findings suggest that PLGA–PEG–FOL nanoparticles are a promising targeted delivery platform for enhancing the therapeutic efficacy of 5-FU in prostate cancer treatment.<br/
Rose Bengal as a multifunctional agent: from biomedical uses to catalysis and materials science
No full textSince its discovery in 1882, Rose Bengal (RB) has evolved from a vibrant textile dye into a multifaceted scientific asset with a versatile molecular platform spanning medicine, catalysis, and materials science. Initially developed for fabric coloring, RB has now become essential for a wide array of advanced technologies because of its intricate photochemical and photophysical properties. This review traces the remarkable journey of RB, emphasizing its inherent anticancer and antibacterial properties and role as a photosensitizer (PS) in contemporary cancer treatments and infectious diseases through photodynamic therapy (PDT), sonodynamic therapy (SDT), and combination therapy, where it facilitates targeted therapies by generating reactive oxygen species (ROS). The properties of RB are compared with FDA-approved and clinically explored photosensitizers currently available in the market. Promising results from RB clinical trials further underline its therapeutic potential. In addition to biomedical applications, RB contributes to enhanced drug delivery, catalysis, and microbiological applications while also demonstrating potential in sensing, solar energy conversion, and environmental remediation. Its established use in ophthalmology and emerging roles in neurodegenerative disease treatment reflect its expanding biomedical relevance. By exploring the mechanisms of action of RB and its integration into diverse systems, this review underscores its transformative potential across various disciplines, establishing RB as a pivotal agent in scientific and technological innovation.</p
Water and sulfate management manipulates soil arsenic cycling at the fine scale
No full textArsenic (As) is a carcinogenic environmental contaminant whose dissolution and speciation are strongly related to sulfate reactions, including reduction-oxidation, precipitation, complexation, and the microbial activities of sulfate-reducing bacteria. In lowland rice paddy fields, the interaction between As and sulfate are highly variable due to the sharp oxic/anoxic transition in the upper soils and the strongly reducing condition in the lower soils. Both water and sulfate managements have been demonstrated to reduce As bioavailability. However, interactions between these processes at sub-centimeter scales within paddy soil profiles are poorly understood and could even lead to enhanced As mobilization. To address this knowledge gap, we established mesocosms with mine-impacted soil under continuous or intermittent flooding, with and without sulfate addition. Millimeter-scale in situ profiles of dissolved AsIII, S-II and FeII were obtained using diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT) and diffusive equilibration in thin-films (DET), and these were complemented by centimeter-scale soil DNA sampling to quantify the abundance of functional microbial groups. Our results show that high sulfate concentrations enhance AsIII in the near-surface 0-2 cm layer of the soil profile (near the soil-water interface) under continuous flooding, while in the anaerobic zone (below 4 cm), sulfate inhibits AsIII mobilization by facilitating the reduction of FeIII and SO4 2- to FeII and S-II through the enhanced activity of iron- and sulfate-reducing bacteria. The subsequent FeS precipitation adsorbs As, thereby reducing AsIII availability by 40%. Additionally, in this mesocosm experiment, differences in As mobilization between continuous and intermittent flooding were evident only in the near-surface 0-2 cm layer, with similar As profiles observed below 2 cm depth. This study provides insights into As migration and transformation mechanisms across soil depths under varying redox conditions and sulfate levels. Under flooded conditions, high-concentration sulfate increase AsIII mobility in this near-surface 0-2 cm layer, whereas intermittent flooding reduces its mobility. These findings inform remediation strategies for As contamination in high-sulfate soils
Hierarchical human activity recognition with fusion of audio and multiple inertial sensor modalities
No full textIn everyday life, individuals engage in a multitude of activities, and recent technological advancements have facilitated the development of Artificial Intelligence systems that analyse these activities through data in various contexts. Human activity recognition, an essential Artificial Intelligence application in healthcare, detects deviations from normal activities, such as falls, which may indicate health issues. The widespread adoption of mobile and wearable technology enables the development of personalized activity recognition solutions. Given the critical importance of these Artificial Intelligence applications in healthcare, designing systems with high recognition accuracy is imperative. Moreover, these systems must be lightweight to ensure they operate seamlessly on end-user devices like smartphones without compromising their primary functions. Our research introduces innovative input representations and advanced methods in data fusion and multimodal learning that surpass previous methods in recognition accuracy while reducing computational and memory demands. We propose a streamlined neural network model that creatively integrates inertial and audio sensor data to generate color-coded image representations. This implemented Artificial Intelligence system was tested using a complex, publicly available activity recognition dataset organized hierarchically. Compared to earlier studies, our solution demonstrates significant performance enhancements, achieving a 91% balanced accuracy rate in activity recognition and offering substantial improvements in Central Processing Unit and memory efficiency
MUSE IFU observations of galaxies hosting of Tidal Disruption Events
No full textWe present an analysis of twenty tidal disruption event (TDE) host galaxies observed with the MUSE integral-field spectrograph on ESO VLT. We investigate the presence of extended emission line regions (EELRs) and study stellar populations mostly at sub-kpc scale around the host nuclei. EELRs are detected in 5/20 hosts, including two unreported systems. All EELRs are found at z &lt; 0.045, suggesting a distance bias and faint EELRs may be missed at higher redshift. EELRs only appear in post-merger systems and all such hosts at z &lt; 0.045 show them. Thus, we conclude that TDEs and galaxy mergers have a strong relation, and &gt;45% of post-merger hosts in the sample exhibit EELRs. Furthermore, we constrained the distributions of stellar masses near the central black holes (BHs), using the spectral synthesis code Starlight and BPASS stellar evolution models. The youngest nuclear populations have typical ages of ∼1 Gyr and stellar masses below 2.5M⊙. The populations that can produce observable TDEs around non-rotating BHs are dominated by subsolar-mass stars. 3/4 TDEs requiring larger stellar masses exhibit multi-peaked light curves, possibly implying relation to repeated partial disruptions of high-mass stars. The found distributions are in tension with the masses of the stars derived using light curve models. Mass segregation of the disrupted stars can enhance the rate of TDEs from supersolar-mass stars but our study implies that low-mass TDEs should still be abundant and even dominate the distribution, unless there is a mechanism that prohibits low-mass TDEs or their detection
"What impact does having a diagnosis of an inherited cardiac condition have on children and young people's physical activity and quality of life?" A scoping review
No full textInherited cardiac conditions (ICCs) are an umbrella group of genetic disorders affecting the heart. They are life-long conditions that are often diagnosed through family screening or after cardiac events. For many years, it has been customary practice to restrict physical activity (PA) in children to prevent ventricular arrhythmia or sudden cardiac death. This scoping review aims to identify and analyse the current literature on the impact that having a diagnosis of an ICC has on a young person’s PA and quality of life (QoL). This scoping review follows the methods of Arksey and O’Malley. Studies concerned with QoL and PA published between 1957 and 2025 were included. Literature searches were conducted across the following databases: Medline (Ovid), Scopus, Web of Science, Embase (Ovid) CINAHL, and PsycINFO. The data was extracted and charted focussing on aims, study populations, measures, and results. Data was then summarised with a descriptive summary as well as visual mapping and descriptive statistics. The review was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Scoping Reviews guidelines. From a total of 1358 identified articles, 27 articles were included in the final review. There were twenty quantitative articles, three mixed method, and four qualitative studies included. Reduced QoL and mental health issues were common in this cohort. Children with ICCs had lower reported and measured PA in comparison to healthy peers. Lower PA was associated with reduced QOL amongst patients with ICCs. Themes identified in qualitative studies included activity restriction, fear of cardiac events, a need for improved communication by healthcare professionals, re-orientation, and coping. Conclusion: Children and young people with ICCs appear to have poorer QoL and engage in less PA than healthy peers. Empowering them to safely engage in PA should be a priority for healthcare providers. Consistent outcome measure across future studies would improve wider applicability of the findings.<br/