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ROBIN: Reference observatory of basins for international hydrological climate change detection
Full text linkHuman-induced warming is modifying the water cycle. Adaptation to posed threats requires an understanding of hydrological responses to climate variability. Whilst these can be computationally modelled, observed streamflow data is essential for constraining models, and understanding and quantifying emerging trends in the water cycle. To date, the identification of such trends at the global scale has been hindered by data limitations – in particular, the prevalence of direct human influences on streamflow which can obscure climate-driven variability. By removing these influences, trends in streamflow data can be more confidently attributed to climate variability. Here we describe the Reference Observatory of Basins for INternational hydrological climate change detection (ROBIN) – the first iteration of a global network of streamflow data from national reference hydrological networks (RHNs) – comprised of catchments which are near-natural or have limited human influences. This collaboration has established a freely available global RHN dataset of over 3,000 catchments and code libraries, which can be used to underpin new science endeavours and advance change detection studies to support international climate policy and adaptation
Synthesis of aromatic glycoconjugates as anti-fungal agents against Candida spp. and assessment of their covalent crosslinking capabilities
Full text linkCovalent drugs are becoming increasingly attractive in drug discovery, as they can enhance potency and selectivity for their molecular targets. Covalent inhibitors have been investigated for several therapeutic applications, including anti-cancer and anti-infection agents. However, there are only a few examples of covalent inhibitors targeting fungal pathogens. We have previously reported aromatic glycoconjugates (AGCs) capable of inhibiting the adhesion of Candida albicans to buccal epithelial cells. In this work, we synthesize novel derivatives of the AGCs to which we have added reactive functional groups, such as acryloyl and vinyl sulfones, and investigated their antifungal efficacy against Candida spp. Although the compounds were ineffective at clinically relevant concentrations, we found that some of the galactose derivatives featuring reactive groups were amongst the most active, so their ability to crosslink nucleophilic side chains was assessed in model reactions
Flexible working in freelance self-employment during COVID-19: gender differences and comparisons with wage-and-salaried employees.
Full text linkSolo self-employment or freelance work offers greater flexibility and autonomy over the timing and conditions of work than wage-and-salaried employment. This flexibility is known to be gendered as women take up greater shares of part-time self-employment than their male counterparts. This form of employment facilitates working from home for caring and family reasons. In 2020, COVID-19 and subsequent containment measures drastically accelerated moves towards flexible working, particularly remote and hybrid working, in the waged sector. Labour Force Survey data from Ireland show that flexible working factors are less strongly associated with self-employment for women after 2020, reflecting narrowing of gaps between self-employed and wage-and-salaried workers during this period. While some levelling is evident, gender gaps in flexible working among the solo self-employed remain robust to broader changes. The results point to the continued relevance of, and desire for more flexible and autonomous working conditions among the working mother demographic and that these factors may be a motivator into self-employment or freelance work
Shaping Management Scholarship in Ireland - Editorial Perspectives on the Irish Journal of Management
Full text linkThis paper reflects on the development of management research in Ireland through the lens of the Irish Journal of Management and its evolving editorial practices. Drawing on conversations with past editors, it explores how the role of the editor has changed since the journal’s inception, alongside broader shifts in the publishing landscape. The paper is informed by an online panel discussion held with previous editors and additional contributions from editors unable to attend the live session. Rather than providing a chronological account, the discussion is woven into a set of reflections on editorial leadership, the challenges and opportunities of academic publishing, and the journal’s contribution to the management research community in Ireland over time
ACORN School Completion Programme. SCP Operational Framework from practice based research.
Full text linkAcorn SCP is one of121 School Completion Programmes in Ireland. The School Completion Programme CSCP) is a programme of support for children and young people at risk of educational disadvantage. A key aim of SCP is improvement of school retention and attendance rates. The OECD Review of Resourcing Schools to Address Educational Disadvantage in Ireland (2024) refers to the fact that the SCP is widely appreciated within the Irish educational system. Using a case study of one primary school, Fenwick and Kinsella (2020) also found SCP to be perceived as a
valuable and effective service for the students and teachers in the school. However, notwithstanding research that captures the effectiveness of SCP and the shared aims and aspects of provision and principles for SCPs, it is important to note that there is no agreed operational framework model
for the School Completion Programme that explains how it works. Smyth (2025: xi) refers to the
need to 'build and maintain a shared vision of SCP'. Lacking a shared vision and agreed operational framework, leaves a gap in terms of understanding why SCP is effective
Where and why do women lead? The importance of leadership for private profit versus purpose beyond profit.
Full text linkTo examine how personal preferences and social norms can influence women's occupancy of organizational leadership roles, this research compared leadership roles that differ in their stakeholder focus on private profit (PP), producing gains for shareholders, or on purpose beyond profit (PBP), producing gains for the community and society. Consistent with the greater representation of women leaders in non-profit than for-profit sectors, the research showed that men preferred and were expected to prefer leader roles focussed on PP and women preferred and were expected to prefer leader roles focussed on PBP. These differing preferences and normative expectations reflected divergent life goals, whereby men favoured agentic goals and women favoured communal goals, with social norms reflecting this gender difference. This research thus showed how the communal and agentic life goals of women and men are linked to their personal role preferences and to normative expectations about leader role occupancy, thus fostering gender segregated leader roles
Beyond FimH: Diversity and Relevance of Carbohydrate-Binding Fimbrial Proteins in Escherichia coli.
Full text linkEscherichia coli (E. coli) is responsible for multiple diseases in humans and animals. Many of them are treated with antibiotics; however, the need for new therapies has led to research in alternative treatments. One such approach involves preventing the adherence of E. coli to host cells by inhibiting their adhesins. Adherence is a crucial step of pathogenesis, and bacterial lectins that recognize host glycans play major roles in host cell adhesion. In fact, lectins are the most common bacterial adhesins. The various pathogenic and nonpathogenic E. coli strains express a multitude of lectins, many of which are found on E. coli fimbriae. Current research on lectin inhibition using glycomimetics has produced many mannose-based inhibitors of the uropathogenic E. coli fimbrial lectin FimH. However, only a limited number of synthetic inhibitors are reported for other lectins. In this review, many other cell surface adhesins of E. coli are discussed, focusing on fimbrial lectins. The types of E. coli strains they are found in, their carbohydrate targets, and their binding sites are also discussed. This review aims to highlight the many lectins that can become therapeutic targets to treat E. coli infections in addition to FimH
Serum protein biomarker signature of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Full text linkIn contrast to invasive skeletal muscle biopsies and the associated complexity of tissue sampling techniques and potential detrimental side effects, the alternative application of liquid biopsy procedures has considerable advantages concerning minimal invasiveness, repeated sampling options, assay robustness and cost effectiveness. This article outlines the current status of serum biomarkers used for diagnosing and characterizing Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a primary muscle wasting disease of early childhood due to primary abnormalities in the extremely large DMD gene. Reviewed are important aspects of the discovery, characterization and diagnostic value of biofluid-based protein markers of dystrophinopathy. This includes an overview of traditional general skeletal muscle damage markers, such as creatine kinase, myoglobin and lactate dehydrogenase, which have been used for many decades in clinical applications to evaluate patients with muscular weakness. In addition, this article outlines the biochemical identification of novel biomarker candidates focusing on the usage of mass spectrometry-based proteomic surveys to establish comprehensive profiles of protein alterations in dystrophinopathy. Pathoproteomic serum markers of myonecrosis with great potential for improved patient screening, differential diagnosis, stage-specific prognosis and therapeutic monitoring include specific isoforms of muscle-derived cytosolic proteins, such as carbonic anhydrase isoform CA3 and fatty acid binding protein FABP3, as well as sarcomeric proteins, including specific isoforms of myosin light chain, myosin binding protein, troponin, and myomesin, in addition to peptide fragments derived from the giant protein titin. Biofluid-associated marker proteins of reactive myofibrosis include the extracellular matrix proteins fibronectin, osteopontin, collagen and matrix-metalloproteinases
Book Review: Educational research practice in Southern contexts: recentring, reframing and reimagining methodological canons: edited by Sharlene Swartz, Nidhi Singal and Madeleine Arnot, Oxon, Routledge, 2024, 359pp., £35.69 (paperback) and available Open Access, ISBN 9781003355397
Full text linkBook Review: Opening with a sketch of the rather tense landscape of contemporary educational scholarship, Swartz,
Singal, and Arnot, present a pressing aim to “open up the debate about ‘what works’ when researching Southern contexts” (p. 1). The editors’ deep reflection on this challenge impressively highlights their focus not just on the level of method, as so many edited volumes on research methods do; this itself revealing the effects of coloniality, which has sheared critical imaginaries from the production of knowledge fuelled by the “cognitive perspective of Eurocentrism” and a “growing techno critization” of knowledge production(Quijano, 2002). Instead, the focus goes deeper to encompass ontological and epistemological concerns, prior to “learning about first-hand experience of conducting research in such[Southern] contexts” to “recognise different cultural ways of being, knowing, and doing”(p. 1; original emphases), that lie outside the dominant Northern Anglophone systems of understanding, which have been deeply imbricated in domination and violence. Subsequently, the organisation and structure of this book is harmonious to the editors’ overarching goals and encourages the reader to engage with a diverse, robust and situationally rich volume of scholarship, taking them through themes of Centring, Reframing and Reimagining approaches to educational research, informed by postcolonial and decolonial perspectives
Numerical Analysis of Counter-Flow Converging Channels for Uniform Temperature Distribution in PV Panels to Enhance Energy Conversion Efficiency
Full text linkEffective thermal management is crucial for enhancing photovoltaic efficiency, especially
under high solar irradiation. Traditional water-cooling methods, including serpentine tubes and
parallel channels, face challenges like temperature inhomogeneity. Recent innovations, such as
porous cooling channels, fin turbulators, and converging geometries, improve temperature
uniformity and photoelectric conversion efficiency. While limited research exists on
converging channels, no studies have explored counter-flow converging channels for PV
cooling. This study employs Ansys Fluent 2024 R2 to assess counter-flow converging water
channels as an alternative cooling method. The impact of various convergence angles on
temperature reduction is analysed under irradiation levels from 600 W/m² to 1050 W/m²,
demonstrating significant improvements over uncooled PV panels. Findings demonstrate that
channels with larger convergence angles consistently exhibit enhanced thermal performance
compared to those with smaller angles. Under an irradiance of 600 W/m², the channel with a
1.28° convergence angle achieved a temperature reduction of 13.24 K, surpassing the 11.45 K
decrease observed in the straight channel. This disparity became more pronounced under higher
irradiance conditions, such as 1050 W/m², where the maximum convergence angle channel
achieved a temperature drop of 23.73 K, compared to 20.55 K for the straight channel.
Furthermore, increasing the convergence ratio improves temperature uniformity across the
solar cell, as indicated by lower standard deviation values at higher angles, which helps reduce
thermal stress and enhance the panel's operational stability. However, increasing the
convergence ratio also raises the pressure drop, leading to higher pumping power requirements
and operational costs. The optimal channel design must balance thermal and hydraulic
efficiency to maximize cooling effectiveness while minimizing energy consumption