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Building bridges on the brink of war : urban planning, pan-American identity, and the international expositions of 1939
Get PDFTouted by organizers as the ‘last best chance for peace’, the 1939–40 New York World's Fair and San Francisco Golden Gate International Exposition offered foreign governments the opportunity to express alternative, and sometimes competing, world views alongside one another in national pavilions and exhibit halls constructed in of two of America’s most significant port cities. While many historians continue to echo Walter Benjamin’s contemporary criticism of the exposition as a failing medium and disregard the interwar fairs as sites of mere amusement, obfuscation, or commercial exchange, this article contends that the 1939 expositions are best understood in terms of statecraft. It reads these international fora as sites of significant socio-political negotiation and maintains particular focus on the ways in which Washington worked with exposition planners to promote a new sense of civic nationalism through the reimagined built environments of each host city. This paper relies on architectural sketches, blueprints, development plans and budgets to better understand the politically-inflected organization of space that shaped the average fairgoer’s interaction with the representation of governments both foreign and domestic on the eve of war.Peer reviewe
2002-2022 : 20 years of e-waste regulation in the European Union and the Worldwide trends in legislation and innovation technologies for a circular economy.
No full textFunding: The authors thank the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Funder ID: 10.13039/100006987, Grant Number: 2014-031-3-600, Project website: https://iupac.org/project/2014-031-3-600; and the Italian Ministry of the Ecological Transition, in the framework of the project “Sustainable MAterials Recycling Technology for Printed Circuits Boards-SMART PCBs”—CUP F57G20000050001, for the financial support of research and dissemination activity behind this manuscript.Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE or e-waste) has emerged as a formidable global waste stream, reflecting the mounting demand for technology in our interconnected world. Over the past two decades, besides a world facing a rapid digital, e-mobility, and green energy transition, there has been a growing recognition across the globe, among both society and industries, regarding the hazards and opportunities linked to e-waste management. This collective consciousness has driven the adoption of best practices, including the implementation of circular economy (CE) models, fostering environmentally sustainable production and recycling processes. With a rate of around the 72% of the global population (81 countries) reached by specific regulations by 2023, this review explores the evolving landscape of international legislation and emerging technologies designed for e-waste prevention and valorization, emphasizing low-environmental impact and sustainability. Despite a prolific scientific community (papers published on e-waste grew over 1000 times in the period 2002–2022) and the rise in good practices in different countries, the modest increase of innovation patents (rate of around 50% increase) and the limited number of industrially established innovation processes demonstrates that while the advancing technologies are promising, they remain in an early, embryonic stage. This paper offers a concise review of life cycle assessments from existing literature to underpin the technological advancements discussed. These assessments provide insights into the reduced environmental footprint of various innovative processes aimed at enhancing the circular economy and incorporating them into the emerging concept of safe- and sustainable-by-design. Meanwhile, global e-waste production rose from an estimated 34 Mt in 2010 to 62 Mt in 2022, while documented proper collection and recycling only increased from 8 Mt to 13.8 Mt over the same period. This shows that e-waste generation is growing nearly five times faster than formal recycling. Furthermore, if waste management activities remain at 2022 levels, a projected economic (benefit – costs) deficit of 40 billion USD is expected by 2030. It is time for communities to reverse the trend by expanding good practices and implementing technology-economic-environment sustainable and efficient circular economy models.Peer reviewe
Estimating total body lipid store of free-ranging whales in-vivo using drone photogrammetry and biologging tags
Get PDFFunding: Portuguese Ministry of the Sea and Blue Fund. Grant Number: FA_06_2017_017; Operational Program AZORES2020. Grant Number: 01-0145-FEDER-000140; School of Biology, University of St Andrews; FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, I.P.. Grant Numbers: UIDB/05634/2023, UIDP/05634/2023 Office of Naval Research. Grant Number: 00014-17- 1-2757.Lipid reserve mass is a key indicator of individual fitness and population health in wild animal populations, but no method currently exists to measure it in large aquatic species for which capture is impractical. Here, we develop and employ a new method for quantifying lipid stores in a free-ranging cetacean, the sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). This method combines UAV (drone) photogrammetry-based estimates of body volume with tag-derived tissue density to estimate lipid store mass to within an estimated 18% on average. Statistical analysis cross validating volume and density-based condition indicators confirmed the predicted relationships between body volume, tissue density and body composition. On average, for a whale 12 m in length, an increment in volume of 1 m3 was predicted to be accompanied by a 6.3% increase in total body lipid content, while a decrease of 1 kg m−3 in tissue density was predicted to reflect a 5.1% increase in total body lipid content. These results support the effectiveness and encourage continued use of densitometric and morphometric methods for quantifying body condition in cetaceans and highlight the value of simultaneously employing both approaches to directly estimate lipid reserve mass. We anticipate that this method could be extended to other aquatic taxa allowing, for example, major life history events or exposure to stressors to be tied to absolute measures of lipid energy store.Peer reviewe
Revisiting the original 2003 garnet-like Li-ion conducting solid electrolytes Li5La3M2O12 (M = Nb, Ta, Nb/Ta) : a look into phase formation and the identification of carbonate and alumina contamination
No full textFunding: The authors acknowledge the support from EPSRC Core Equipment Grant (EP/V034138/1) for powder diffractometers and the support from the EPSRC Light Element Analysis Facility Grant EP/T 0192981 and the EPSRC Strategic Equipment Resource Grant EP/R 023751/1 for the Raman spectrometer and Scanning electron microscope. They gratefully acknowledge support from the EPSRC through grant numbers EP/L017008/1, EP/R023751/1 and EP/T019298/1 for scanning transmission electron microscope data. H. S. S. thanks the Allan Handsel Postgraduate Research Scholarship. V. T. also thanks University of St Andrews for Chair in Energy.Garnet-type electrolytes are a promising class of solid-state oxide materials for next-generation lithium batteries. In this study, parent-phase garnets, Li5La3M2O12 (M = Nb, Ta, Nb/Ta), were synthesised via solid-state reaction at 900 °C and 1100 °C, enabling comprehensive structural and chemical stability characterisation. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and Raman spectroscopy confirmed single-phase garnets with Ia[3 with combining macron]d symmetry, while scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging revealed improved densification at 1100 °C. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed the high ionic conductivities of 4.8 × 10−5 S cm−1 at 55 °C for Nb and Ta co-substituted Li5La3NbTaO12 prepared at 1100 °C. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis identified a surface lithium carbonate layer formed under ambient conditions, which was not discussed in the original garnet reported in 2003. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy provided an insight into the lithium environment in the surface and bulk of the samples and confirmed aluminium contamination in samples sintered at the base of alumina crucibles at 1100 °C, with LaAlO3 identified as the dominant secondary phase, corroborated by PXRD, SEM, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis. Nb-based garnet showed the most severe reaction with the alumina crucible. The use of a sacrificial mother powder of targeted garnet oxides, an approach commonly used for the preparation of Li-garnets, or sintering at 900 °C effectively reduced Al contamination. This work delivers a detailed evaluation of the parent-phase garnet, offering renewed insights into phase and structure two decades on from its initial development in 2003.Peer reviewe
Advanced preclinical models for evaluation of drug-induced liver injury - consensus statement by the European Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network [PRO-EURO-DILI-NET]
Get PDFFunding: This work is supported by COST Action CA17112, www.cost.eu. LJN is supported by AMMF 2018/117; with support from grants - BBSRC (Grant BB/L023687/1), EPSRC (IAA Grant PIII013). MK and JM were partly funded by the Fundação para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal), through grants UID/BIM/0009/2020 for the Research Center for Toxicogenomics and Human Health-(ToxOmics) and PTDC/MED-TOX/29183/2017 and UIDB/04138/2020 for the iMed.ULisboa, respectively. OK is supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK 116Z388) and COST Action CA17112. PSB is supported by the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria Carlos III, cofinanced by the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER), Unión Europea, “Una manera de hacer Europa” (FIS PI20/00765, PI17/00673), DTS18/00088 and Miguel Servet (CPII16/00041); AGAUR 2019_PROD_00055; NIHAAA 1U01AA026972-01. OL is supported by the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (Project No. LTC19040). FJC is supported by the MINECO Retos SAF2016-78711 EXOHEP-CM S2017/BMD-3727, NanoLiver-CM Y2018/NMT-4949, ERAB Ref. EA 18/14, AMMF 2018/117, UCM-25-2019 and COST Action CA17112, RYC-2014-15242 and Gilead Liver Research 2018. JCFC and CGR are supported from grants and SAF2017-85877R, PID2019-111669RB-100 the CIBEREHD; the center grant P50AA011999 Southern California Research Center for ALPD and Cirrhosis funded by NIAAA/NIH; as well as support from AGAUR of the Generalitat de Catalunya SGR-2017-1112, the “ER stress-mitochondrial cholesterol axis in obesity-associated insulin resistance and comorbidities”-Ayudas FUNDACION BBVA and the Red Nacional 2018-102799-T de Enfermedades Metabólicas y Cáncer, Project 201916/31 from Fundació Marato TV3, and European Cooperation in Science & Technology (COST) ACTION CA17112 Prospective European Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network, www.cost.eu. GJS was partially supported by the Research Council of Norway through its Centres of Excellence funding scheme (Project number 262613).Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a major cause of acute liver failure (ALF) and one of the leading indications for liver transplantation in Western societies. Given the wide use of both prescribed and over the counter drugs, DILI has become a major health issue for which there is a pressing need to find novel and effective therapies. Although significant progress has been made in understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying DILI, our incomplete knowledge of its pathogenesis and inability to predict DILI is largely due to both discordance between human and animal DILI in preclinical drug development and a lack of models that faithfully recapitulate complex pathophysiological features of human DILI. This is exemplified by the hepatotoxicity of acetaminophen (APAP) overdose, a major cause of ALF because of its extensive worldwide use as an analgesic. Despite intensive efforts utilising current animal and in vitro models, the mechanisms involved in the hepatotoxicity of APAP are still not fully understood. In this expert Consensus Statement, which is endorsed by the European Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network, we aim to facilitate and outline clinically impactful discoveries by detailing the requirements for more realistic human-based systems to assess hepatotoxicity and guide future drug safety testing. We present novel insights and discuss major players in APAP pathophysiology, and describe emerging in vitro and in vivo pre-clinical models, as well as advanced imaging and in silico technologies, which may improve prediction of clinical outcomes of DILI.Peer reviewe
The social burden of antimicrobial resistance : what is it, how can we measure it, and why does it matter?
Get PDFFunding: K.K. acknowledges the Holistic Approach to Unravel Antibacterial Resistance in East Africa, a Global Context Consortia Award (MR/S004785/1) funded by the National Institute for Health Research, UK Medical Research Council, and the Department of Health and Social Care, and a 3-month Visiting Professor award from the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) [88887.900085/2023-00]. J.S.C. was funded by a fellowship provided by CNPQ [151272/2023-9] and FAPESP [2023/09515-5]. S.N. and C.I.R.C. are supported by British Academy [GCPS2\100009], ‘A Just Transitions framework for the equitable and sustainable mitigation of AMR’. L.S., S.N. and C.I.R.C. were supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) [ES/P008100/1] on behalf of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) for the Antimicrobials in Society (AMIS) grant.Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing global health threat, which is increasingly quantified in terms of its human health and economic burden. In this article, we highlight that for policy and planning purposes the social burden of AMR is as important to attend to as health and economic burdens, requiring systematic consideration and measurement of multiple dimensions. We provide a conceptual and empirical overview of four dimensions of the social burden of AMR: the distribution of AMR among and between populations; the lived experiences of AMR by patients and carers; how and by whom AMR interventions are shouldered; and how AMR can change society. We illustrate these dimensions through five case studies drawn from research projects in the UK, East Africa, Thailand and Brazil. Drawing on these insights, we discuss challenges and opportunities for documentation and measurement of AMR’s social burden going forward. Taking this seriously aligns with the consensus observation that to address AMR requires moving away from pathogen-based and siloed disciplinary perspectives and means embracing different forms of data and evidence from around the world. We propose an interdisciplinary engagement across researchers, policy makers and community stakeholders to arrive at agreed principles and metrics for future monitoring of the social burden. We need to tackle invisibility through lack of data by considering the social burden in design of AMR surveillance and research, includes mainstreaming social science data, and incorporating arts-based approaches to understanding AMR. Recognition, documentation and measurement of the social burdens of AMR will advance AMR approaches and help develop equitable solutions.Peer reviewe
Dante the theologian, Pierre Mandonnet : edited & translated by George Corbett & Patricia Kelly
No full textFunding: GC and PK grateful to the Carnegie Foundation for a Research Incentive Grant to fund early research trips to collaborate in Leeds. GC is also grateful to the School of Divinity’s Deas Fund for funding a research assistant
Designing tortuous gas diffusion path for hydrogen oxidation reaction and stability of solid oxide fuel cell : an engineered microstructural aspect in anode functional layer
Get PDFCommercialization of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is restricted due to long term performance degradation. SOFC is activated by diffusion of gasses through porous electrodes to the electrochemical active sites termed as triple phase boundary (TPB). Among all other parameters, tortuosity influences the functionality of TPB and is responsible for gas transport which relates its bulk diffusion and its migration through the porous electrode. The novelty of present research lies in designing of optimum tortuous gas diffusion path for effective hydrogen oxidation reaction through engineered morphology of anode functional layer. The study involves the fabrication of anode for planar SOFC using four configurations. Configuration A and B involves anode monolith synthesized through conventional route [(40 vol % Ni in dispersed-8 mol % Yttria stabilized zirconia (SZ)] and functional core-shell Ni@SZ. Configuration C (trilayer anode, TLA) is designed to have graded matrix with conventional Ni-SZ (fuel inlet side), 28 vol% Ni@SZ acting as active layer and 32 vol % Ni@SZ sandwiched in between. Configuration D consists of Ni@SZ as the active layer onto conventional Ni-SZ support. TLA is found to have minimum tortuosity (τ = 2) with maximum cell endurance for 2000 h (2.06–8.2 %/1000 h@800 °C under load). Ni@SZ with unimodal pore distribution is capable of reducing the activation barrier for charge migration (14 kJmol-1) compared to Ni-SZ (32 kJmol-1) with multimodal pores. This results in higher redox tolerance for Configuration B-D (4–7 % conductivity degradation/20 cycles) compared to Configuration A (27% conductivity degradation/20 cycles). Post mortem analyses of microstructure support the retention of core-shell morphology of Ni@SZ with lower deterioration.Peer reviewe
Near-to-patient-testing to inform targeted antibiotic use for sexually transmitted infections in a public sexual health clinic : the NEPTUNE cohort study
Get PDFFunding: ARC ITRP Hub-grant; NHMRC.Background: Empiric treatment of sexually transmitted infections can cause unnecessary antibiotic use. We determined if near-to-patient-testing (NPT) for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis and Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) improved antibiotic-use for a range of clinical presentations. Methods: Clients attending with non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU), proctitis, as STI-contacts, or for an MG-test-of-cure (MG-TOC) between March and December 2021 were recruited. Participants received near-to-patient-testing (NPT-group) for the three STIs using the GeneXpert® System (Cepheid), and concurrent routine-testing by transcription-mediated-amplification (TMA; Aptima, Hologic). Antibiotic-use among NGU or proctitis cases in the NPT-group was compared to clinic-controls undergoing routine-testing only. The proportion in the NPT-group who notified partners <24 hrs of their STI-specific result was calculated. Findings: Among 904 consults by 808 NPT-participants, ≥1 STI was detected in 63/252 (25.0%) with NGU, 22/51 (43.1%) with proctitis, and 167/527 (31.7%) STI-contacts. MG was detected among 35/157 (22.3%) MG-TOC consults. Among NGU and proctitis cases, fewer in the NPT-group received empiric treatment compared to clinic-controls (29.4% [95% CI: 24.3-34.9%] vs 83.8% [95% CI: 79.2-87.8%], p < 0.001), resulting in more NPT-group cases appropriately treated (STI-specific drug/no drug appropriately; 80.9% [95% CI: 76.0-85.1%] vs 33.0% [95% CI: 27.7-38.6%], p < 0.001) and fewer mistreated (incorrect drug/treated but pathogen-negative; 17.8% [13.7-22.6%] vs 61.4% [55.6-66.9%], p < 0.001). Of 167/264 in the NPT-group with an STI who responded regarding partner-notification, 95.2% notified all/some partners; 85.9% notified them <24 hrs of the STI-specific result. Interpretation: Near-to-patient-testing significantly improved antibiotic use and a high proportion of individuals rapidly notified partners of STI-specific results, highlighting the broad benefits of timely diagnostic strategies for STIs in clinical decision making and partner notification.Peer reviewe
Immunoglobulin G genetic variation can confound assessment of antibody levels via altered binding to detection reagents
Get PDFFunding: This study was supported by a Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) GNT #2016062 to JAT, JAJ, AKW, MPD, THON, KK, SJK and AWC, and a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator grant #2008092 to AWC. JAJ, AKW, MPD, THON, KK and SJK are also supported by NHMRC Investigator grants.Objectives. Amino acid variations across more than 30 immunoglobulin (Ig) allotypes may introduce structural changes that influence recognition by anti-Ig detection reagents, consequently confounding interpretation of antibody responses, particularly in genetically diverse cohorts. Here, we assessed a panel of commercial monoclonal anti-IgG1 clones for capacity to universally recognise two dominant IgG1 haplotypes (G1m-1,3 and G1m1,17). Methods. Four commercial monoclonal anti-human IgG1 clones were assessed via ELISAs and multiplex bead-based assays for their ability to bind G1m-1,3 and G1m1,17 IgG1 variants. Detection antibodies were validated against monoclonal IgG1 allotype standards and tested for capacity to recognise antigen-specific plasma IgG1 from G1m-1,3 and G1m1,17 homozygous and heterozygous SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 vaccinated ( n = 28) and COVID-19 convalescent ( n = 44) individuals. An Fc-specific pan-IgG detection antibody corroborated differences between hinge- and Fc-specific anti-IgG1 responses. Results. Hinge-specific anti-IgG1 clone 4E3 preferentially bound G1m1,17 compared to G1m-1,3 IgG1. Consequently, SARS-CoV-2 Spike-specific IgG1 levels detected in G1m1,17/G1m1,17 BNT162b2 vaccinees appeared 9- to 17-fold higher than in G1m-1,3/G1m-1,3 vaccinees. Fc-specific IgG1 and pan-IgG detection antibodies equivalently bound G1m-1,3 and G1m1,17 IgG1 variants, and detected comparable Spike-specific IgG1 levels between haplotypes. IgG1 responses against other human coronaviruses and influenza were similarly poorly detected by 4E3 anti-IgG1 in G1m-1,3/G1m-1,3 subjects. Conclusion. Anti-IgG1 clone 4E3 confounds assessment of antibody responses in clinical cohorts owing to bias towards detection of G1m1,17 IgG1 variants. Validation of anti-Ig clones should include evaluation of binding to relevant antibody variants, particularly as the role of immunogenetics upon humoral immunity is increasingly explored in diverse populations.Peer reviewe
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