The response of a neutral atom to a strong laser field probed by transient absorption near the ionisation threshold

We present transient absorption spectra of an extreme ultraviolet attosecond pulse train in helium dressed by an 800 nm laser field with intensity ranging from $2times10^{12}$ W/cm$^2$ to $2times10^{14}$ W/cm$^2$. The energy range probed spans 16-42 eV, straddling the first ionisation energy of helium (24.59 eV). By changing the relative polarisation of the dressing field with respect to the attosecond pulse train polarisation we observe a large change in the modulation of the absorption reflecting the vectorial response to the dressing field. With parallel polarized dressing and probing fields, we observe significant modulations with periods of one half and one quarter of the dressing field period. With perpendicularly polarized dressing and probing fields, the modulations of the harmonics above the ionisation threshold are significantly suppressed. A full-dimensionality solution of the single-atom time-dependent Schr odinger equation obtained using the recently developed ab-initio time-dependent B-spline ADC method reproduce some of our observations

Measurement of sulfur L2,3 and carbon K edge XANES in a polythiophene film using a high harmonic supercontinuum

We use a high harmonic generated supercontinuum in the soft X-ray region to measure X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectra in polythiophene (poly(3-hexylthiophene)) films at multiple absorption edges. A few-cycle carrier-envelope phase-stable laser pulse centered at 1800 nm was used to generate a stable soft X-ray supercontinuum, with amplitude gating limiting the generated pulse duration to a single optical half-cycle. We report a quantitative transmission measurement of the sulfur L2,3 edge over the range 160-200 eV and the carbon K edge from 280 to 330 eV. These spectra show all the features previously reported in the XANES spectra of polythiophene, but for the first time they are measured with a source that has an approximately 1 fs pulse duration. This study opens the door to measurements that can fully time-resolve the photoexcited electronic dynamics in these systems

Mapping environmental injustices: pitfalls and potential of geographic information systems in assessing environmental health and equity.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been used increasingly to map instances of environmental injustice, the disproportionate exposure of certain populations to environmental hazards. Some of the technical and analytic difficulties of mapping environmental injustice are outlined in this article, along with suggestions for using GIS to better assess and predict environmental health and equity. I examine 13 GIS-based environmental equity studies conducted within the past decade and use a study of noxious land use locations in the Bronx, New York, to illustrate and evaluate the differences in two common methods of determining exposure extent and the characteristics of proximate populations. Unresolved issues in mapping environmental equity and health include lack of comprehensive hazards databases; the inadequacy of current exposure indices; the need to develop realistic methodologies for determining the geographic extent of exposure and the characteristics of the affected populations; and the paucity and insufficiency of health assessment data. GIS have great potential to help us understand the spatial relationship between pollution and health. Refinements in exposure indices; the use of dispersion modeling and advanced proximity analysis; the application of neighborhood-scale analysis; and the consideration of other factors such as zoning and planning policies will enable more conclusive findings. The environmental equity studies reviewed in this article found a disproportionate environmental burden based on race and/or income. It is critical now to demonstrate correspondence between environmental burdens and adverse health impacts--to show the disproportionate effects of pollution rather than just the disproportionate distribution of pollution sources

Economic Valuation of Poor Road Infrastructure Lagos: A Focus on Urban Households

The inefficiency and lack of urban transport services and infrastructure is a major impediment to economic growth and urban productivity in cities of developing countries like Nigeria This study is aimed at assessing the impact of poor road infrastructure on urban households using environmental valuation techniques The study is based on a survey research carried out with the distribution of structured questionnaires to 1040 households in eight metropolitan local government areas namely Alimosho Apapa Eti-osa Ikeja Kosofe Mushin Shomolu and Surulere in Lagos State to elicit information on current condition of infrastructure in the area household consequential cost due to poor road condition willingness to pay for improved road condition preferred service option for road infrastructure Analysis was carried out using descriptive statistical tools Results from the study shows that urban roads in Lagos are in a deplorable condition and households suffer a lot of consequential damages arising from it The results also show that households are willing to pay for improved road conditions The paper recommends that the government should formulate a good infrastructure policy that will enhance the sustainability of infrastructure over time and should also encourage public participation in urban infrastructure provision and maintenanc

Development and validation of a questionnaire to measure moral distress in community pharmacists

The Author(s) 2016. . This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. Jayne L. Astbury, and Cathal T. Gallagher, 'Development and validation of a questionnaire to measure moral distress in community pharmacists', International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy (2017) Vol 39(1): 156-164, first published online on 22 December 2016, the version of record is available on line via doi: 10.1007/s11096-016-0413-3 Funding for this work was provided by Pharmacy Research UK (PRUK).Background Pharmacists work within a highly-regulated occupational sphere, and are bound by strict legal frameworks and codes of professional conduct. This regulatory environment creates the potential for moral distress to occur due to the limitations it places on acting in congruence with moral judgements. Very little research regarding this phenomenon has been undertaken in pharmacy: thus, prominent research gaps have arisen for the development of a robust tool to measure and quantify moral distress experienced in the profession. Objective The aim of this study was to develop an instrument to measure moral distress in community pharmacists. Setting Community pharmacies in the United Kingdom. Method This study adopted a three-phase exploratory sequential mixed-method design. Three semi-structured focus groups were then conducted to allow pharmacists to identify and explore scenarios that cause moral distress. Each of the identified scenarios were developed into a statement, which was paired with twin seven-point Likert scales to measure the frequency and intensity of the distress, respectively. Content validity, reliability, and construct validity were all tested, and the questionnaire was refined. Main outcome measure The successful development of the valid instrument for use in the United Kingdom. Results This research has led to the development of a valid and reliable instrument to measure moral distress in community pharmacists in the UK. The questionnaire has already been distributed to a large sample of community pharmacists. Conclusion Results from this distribution will be used to inform the formulation of coping strategies for dealing with moral distress.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Australian Sphingidae – DNA Barcodes Challenge Current Species Boundaries and Distributions

© 2014 Rougerie et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. The attached file is the published version of the article

Publishing in the Top Journals of the ABDC Journal List: A Cross-Disciplinary Study

The purpose of this research is to determine the probability that faculty will publish in the top journals in their respective fields, and if the probability of publishing in those top journals is equally likely across accounting, finance, and management disciplines. To address these questions we collected data from the top journals on the ABDC Journal list for the years 2013-2014. Specifically, we wanted to know how many publication opportunities in the top journals were available during the those two years, how many schools were able to publish in the top journals, and which schools had the most success in publishing in the top journals. For example, a total of 788 papers were published in accounting, compared to about 7,000 papers in the top A* management journals. Our findings prove that the probability of a faculty member to publish in a top A* journal is higher for a management faculty member than it is for accounting or finance faculty. This paper focuses on the statistics and analysis of the data collected

Mrub_2836, Mrub_1595, and Mrub_1596 are orthologs of b_1857, b_1859 and b_1858 in \u3cem\u3eEscherichia Coli\u3c/em\u3e Coding for a Zinc Uptake ABC Transporter System

In this project we investigated the biological function of the genes Mrub_2836, Mrub_1595, and Mrub_1596 (KEGG map number 02010). We predict these genes encode components of a Zn2+ ATP Binding Cassette (ABC) transporter: 1) Mrub_2836 (DNA coordinates 1878670-2879569 on the complement strand) encodes the substrate binding protein (aka periplasmic protein), predicted to be an ortho; and 2) Mrub_1595 (DNA coordinates 1628074-1628865 on the complement strand) encodes the permease component (aka transmembrane domain); and 3) Mrub_1596 (DNA coordinates 1628867-1629637 on the complement strand) encodes the ATP-binding protein (aka nucleotide binding domain). This is an ATP transport system that imports Zinc into the cell. This is done by coupling ATP hydrolysis to the system in order to move Zinc against the cell potential gradient. This project is part of the Meiothermus ruber genome analysis project, which predicts gene function using the bioinformatics tools collected under the umbrella of the Guiding Education through Novel Investigation –Annotation Collaboration Toolkit (GENI-ACT)

Enacting corporate governance of health care safety and quality: a dramaturgy of hospital boards in England

The governance of patient safety is a challenging concern for all health systems. Yet, while the role of executive Boards receives increased scrutiny, the area remains theoretically and methodologically underdeveloped. Specifically, we lack a detailed understanding of the performative aspects at play: what Board members say and do to discharge their accountabilities for patient safety. This article draws on qualitative data from overt non-participant observation of four NHS hospital Foundation Trust Boards in England. Applying a dramaturgical framework to explore scripting, setting, staging and performance, we found important differences between case study sites in the performative dimensions of processing and interpretation of infection control data. We detail the practices associated with these differences - the legitimation of current performance, the querying of data classification, and the naming and shaming of executives – to consider their implications