1,720,952 research outputs found
Solid waste management and recycling : actors, partnerships and policies in Hyderabad, India and Nairobi, Kenya
No full textSolid waste management and recycling : actors, partnerships and policies in Hyderabad, India and Nairobi, Kenya / ed. by Isa Baud, Johan Post and Christine Furedy Author: Isabelle Suzanne Antoinette Baud; Johan Post Year: cop. 2004 Publisher: Dordrecht [etc.] : Kluwer Academic Publishers Series: The geojournal library, ISSN 0924-5499 ; vol. 76 Note: ill., krtMet lit. opg Extent: VIII, 303 p Size: 25 cm ISBN: 1-402-01975-0 geb. Number: (Library of Congress) 200442710; (British National Bibliography) BA4Z3663; (Brinkman) B0408423 Subject heading: (LCS) Refuse and refuse disposal; (LCS) Refuse and refuse disposal; (LCS) Recycling (Waste, etc.); (LCS) Recycling (Waste, etc.); (GTR) Waste disposal; (GTR) Milieumanagement; (GTR) 5.430 Hyderabad (city,india); (GTR) 6.510 Nairobi; (BTR) vuilverwerkin
Genetic association study of QT interval highlights role for calcium signaling pathways in myocardial repolarization.
Full text linkThe QT interval, an electrocardiographic measure reflecting myocardial repolarization, is a heritable trait. QT prolongation is a risk factor for ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death (SCD) and could indicate the presence of the potentially lethal mendelian long-QT syndrome (LQTS). Using a genome-wide association and replication study in up to 100,000 individuals, we identified 35 common variant loci associated with QT interval that collectively explain ∼8-10% of QT-interval variation and highlight the importance of calcium regulation in myocardial repolarization. Rare variant analysis of 6 new QT interval-associated loci in 298 unrelated probands with LQTS identified coding variants not found in controls but of uncertain causality and therefore requiring validation. Several newly identified loci encode proteins that physically interact with other recognized repolarization proteins. Our integration of common variant association, expression and orthogonal protein-protein interaction screens provides new insights into cardiac electrophysiology and identifies new candidate genes for ventricular arrhythmias, LQTS and SCD
Beyond the veneer of reconciliation: human rights and democracy in Rwanda
No full textIn this Opinion piece, PhD candidate Jennifer Melvin argues that Rwanda’s national unity and reconciliation
programme promotes two differing but inter-related political images at the domestic and international levels. She
analyses how these images are constructed and disseminated to the national population and international community
of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), donors and foreign investors. Jennifer argues that the current Rwandan
Patriotic Front (RPF) government successfully manipulates national reconciliation to bolster political support,
silence opposition and promote development that is primarily uneven. She urges the Commonwealth to look beyond
the appearance of unity, and reconciliation to consider the detrimental consequences of government programming
upon democracy and human rights in Rwanda
The coevolution of renewable resources and institutions - implications for policy design
No full text This PhD thesis studies how natural renewable resources and institutions governing those resources mutually influence each other. Theoretical models are developed in which members of a small community have joint access to a common pool resource. We analyze under which circumstances social norms of cooperation evolve that effectively regulate resource exploitation, but also when those social norms break down, identifying obstacles for community governance. Furthermore, in the light of biological and social complexity this thesis analyzes how governmental policy should be designed if self-governance is not sufficient to protect the resource stock. The insights obtained are applied to the case of Arcto-Norwegian cod. An optimal management plan is developed that can be adapted to several policy objectives concerning the utilization of the fleet. In addition, management advice is given for the case that harvesting may trigger an evolutionary response of the fish stock. </p
Calling the judiciary to account for the past : transitional justice and judicial accountability in Nigeria
Full text linkInstitutional and individual accountability is an important feature of societies in transition from conflict or authoritarian rule. The imperative of accountability has both normative and transformational underpinnings in the context of restoration of the rule of law and democracy. This article argues a case for extending the purview of truth-telling processes to the judiciary in postauthoritarian contexts. The driving force behind the inquiry is the proposition that the judiciary as the third arm of government at all times participates in governance. To contextualize the argument, I focus on judicial governance and accountability within the paradigm of Nigeria’s transition to democracy after decades of authoritarian military rule
Veinzen of verlangen? Spel en geloof bij Johan Huizinga en Frans Kellendonk
No full textHistorian and linguist Johan Huizinga’s theory of the function of play in human culture in Homo ludens (1938) includes a discussion of the close link between liturgy and play. In the 1980’s author and cultural critic Frans Kellendonk put forward the notion of sincerelyfeigning (‘oprecht veinzen’) in relation to faith in a post-Christian society. This article examines the socio-cultural background of Huizinga’s and Kellendonk’s ideas and their personal commitment to the faith. It concludes with a consideration of the question: Towhat extent can sincerely feigning be considered a sign of longing
Capturing the SARS-CoV-2 infection pyramid within the municipality of Rotterdam using longitudinal sewage surveillance
No full textDespite high vaccination rates in the Netherlands, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to circulate. Longitudinal sewage surveillance was implemented along with the notification of cases as two parts of the surveillance pyramid to validate the use of sewage for surveillance, as an early warning tool, and to measure the effect of interventions. Sewage samples were collected from nine neighborhoods between September 2020 and November 2021. Comparative analysis and modeling were performed to understand the correlation between wastewater and case trends. Using high resolution sampling, normalization of wastewater SARS-CoV-2 concentrations, and ‘normalization’ of reported positive tests for testing delay and intensity, the incidence of reported positive tests could be modeled based on sewage data, and trends in both surveillance systems coincided. The high collinearity implied that high levels of viral shedding around the onset of disease largely determined SARS-CoV-2 levels in wastewater, and that the observed relationship was independent of variants of concern and vaccination levels. Sewage surveillance alongside a large-scale testing effort where 58 % of a municipality was tested, indicated a five-fold difference in the number of SARS-CoV-2-positive individuals and reported cases through standard testing. Where trends in reported positive cases were biased due to testing delay and testing behavior, wastewater surveillance can objectively display SARS-CoV-2 dynamics for both small and large locations and is sensitive enough to measure small variations in the number of infected individuals within or between neighborhoods. With the transition to a post-acute phase of the pandemic, sewage surveillance can help to keep track of re-emergence, but continued validation studies are needed to assess the predictive value of sewage surveillance with new variants. Our findings and model aid in interpreting SARS-CoV-2 surveillance data for public health decision-making and show its potential as one of the pillars of future surveillance of (re)emerging viruses.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Sanitary Engineerin
Do proton pump inhibitors reduce the incidence of pharyngocutaneous fistulae following total laryngectomy?
No full textIncludes abstract.Includes bibliographical references.Pharyngocutaneous fistula is a common complication of total laryngectomy. We hypothesised that perioperative proton pump inhibitor (PPI) treatment could reduce the incidence of pharyngocutaneous fistulae. This prospective placebo-controlled double-blind randomised controlled trial compared PPI treatment (14 days enteral omeprazole) with a placebo in patients undergoing primary total laryngectomy. The incidence of pharyngocutaneous fistula was recorded
Rise and fall of SARS-CoV-2 variants in Rotterdam: Comparison of wastewater and clinical surveillance
No full textMonitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater (WW) is a promising tool for epidemiological surveillance, correlating not only viral RNA levels with the infection dynamics within the population, but also to viral diversity. However, the complex mixture of viral lineages in WW samples makes tracking of specific variants or lineages circulating in the population a challenging task. We sequenced sewage samples of 9 WW-catchment areas within the city of Rotterdam, used specific signature mutations from individual SARS-CoV-2 lineages to estimate their relative abundances in WW and compared them against those observed in clinical genomic surveillance of infected individuals between September 2020 and December 2021. We showed that especially for dominant lineages, the median of the frequencies of signature mutations coincides with the occurrence of those lineages in Rotterdam's clinical genomic surveillance. This, along with digital droplet RT-PCR targeting signature mutations of specific variants of concern (VOCs), showed that several VOCs emerged, became dominant and were replaced by the next VOC in Rotterdam at different time points during the study. In addition, single nucleotide variant (SNV) analysis provided evidence that spatio-temporal clusters can also be discerned from WW samples. We were able to detect specific SNVs in sewage, including one resulting in the Q183H amino acid change in the Spike gene, that was not captured by clinical genomic surveillance. Our results highlight the potential use of WW samples for genomic surveillance, increasing the set of epidemiological tools to monitor SARS-CoV-2 diversity.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Sanitary Engineerin
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