The Role of Urban Environment, Social and Health Determinants in the Tracking of Leisure-Time Physical Activity Throughout Adolescence

Purpose: Adolescence may be a period particularly relevant for acquisition of lifelong habits of physical activity (PA). We investigated the tracking of leisure-time PA from 13 to 17 years old and the influence of urban environment and other determinants. Methods: As part of the EPITeen cohort (Portugal), we evaluated 969 adolescents living in the city of Porto. Participants were assembled in public and private schools at 13 years and reevaluated at 17 years. Leisure-time PA was evaluated by self-reported questionnaires. The shortest routes from residence to urban green spaces and open sports spaces were calculated using the street network within a Geographical Information System. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated by multinomial logistic regression. Results: Among sedentary girls at 13 years, 33.1% were still sedentary at 17 years, 39.8% changed to low, 22.3% to moderate, and only 4.6% changed to vigorous PA. In boys, the respective values were 32.3%, 17.3%, 36.2%, and 14.2%. High PA levels were maintained by 19.5% of the girls and by 41.1% of the boys. After adjustment for parental education and body image at 13 years, practice of sports at 13 years was strongly associated with stable high PA at 17 years: in girls OR = 3.96 (2.21, 7.12); in boys OR = 6.81 (3.30, 14.07). Distance to urban green spaces or to open sports spaces was not associated to changes in leisure-time PA. Conclusion: Practice of sports in early adolescence may be important to promote maintenance of high PA. Urban environment in the vicinity of residence did not affect changes in the practice of leisure-time PA.This work was financed by FEDER funds through the Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade–COMPETE and by Portuguese funds through FCT–Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia in the framework of the project POCTI/SAU-ESP/62399/2004 and FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-015750

Assessing connectivity between an overlying aquifer and a coal seam gas resource using methane isotopes, dissolved organic carbon and tritium

Coal seam gas (CSG) production can have an impact on groundwater quality and quantity in adjacent or overlying aquifers. To assess this impact we need to determine the background groundwater chemistry and to map geological pathways of hydraulic connectivity between aquifers. In south-east Queensland (Qld), Australia, a globally important CSG exploration and production province, we mapped hydraulic connectivity between the Walloon Coal Measures (WCM, the target formation for gas production) and the overlying Condamine River Alluvial Aquifer (CRAA), using groundwater methane (CH4) concentration and isotopic composition (δ13C-CH4), groundwater tritium (3H) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration. A continuous mobile CH4 survey adjacent to CSG developments was used to determine the source signature of CH4 derived from the WCM. Trends in groundwater δ13C-CH4 versus CH4 concentration, in association with DOC concentration and 3H analysis, identify locations where CH4 in the groundwater of the CRAA most likely originates from the WCM. The methodology is widely applicable in unconventional gas development regions worldwide for providing an early indicator of geological pathways of hydraulic connectivity

Benefits of adding food education sessions to an exercise programme on cardiovascular risk factors in patients with type 2 diabetes

To evaluate the impact of adding food education sessions to an exercise programme on cardiovascular risk factors in middle-aged and older patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D), a randomised parallel-group study was performed. Glycated haemoglobin, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, fat mass (FM) and blood pressure were assessed at baseline and after 9 months. The recruitment was made in three primary healthcare centres from Vila Real, Portugal. Thirty-three patients (65⋅4 ± 5⋅9 years old) were engaged in a 9-month community-based lifestyle intervention programme: a supervised exercise programme (EX; n = 15; combined aerobic, resistance, agility/balance and flexibility exercise; three sessions per week; 75 min per session); or the same exercise programme plus concomitant food education sessions (EXFE; n = 18; 15-min lectures and dual-task strategies during exercise (answer nutrition questions while walking); 16 weeks). Significant differences between groups were identified in the evolution of BMI (P < 0.001, ) and FM (P < 0.001, ), with best improvements observed in the EXFE group. The addition of a simple food education dietary intervention to an exercise programme improved body weight and composition, but not glycaemic control and blood pressure in middle-aged and older patients with T2D.This research received no specific grant from any funding agency, commercial or not-for-profit sectors

Characteristics and controls of the runout behaviour of non-Boussinesq particle-laden gravity currents – A large-scale experimental investigation of dilute pyroclastic density currents

One of the most dangerous aspects of explosive volcanism is the occurrence of dilute pyroclastic density currents that move at high velocities of tens to about a hundred of metres per second outwards from volcanic vents. Predicting the runout behaviour of these turbulent flows of hot particles and air is complicated by strong changes in the flow density resulting from entrainment of ambient air, sedimentation of particles, as well as heating and expansion of the gas phase. Current hazard models that are based on the behaviour of aqueous gravity currents cannot capture all aspects of the flow dynamics, and thus pyroclastic density current dynamics remain comparatively poorly understood. Here we interrogate the runout behaviour of dilute pyroclastic density currents in large-scale experiments using hot volcanic material and gas. We demonstrate that the flows transition through four dynamic regimes with distinct density and force characteristics. The first, inertial regime is characterized by strong deceleration under high density differences between the flow and ambient air where suspended particles carry a main proportion of the flows' momentum. When internal gravity waves start to propagate from the flow body into the advancing flow front, the currents transition into a second, inertia-buoyancy regime while flow density continues to decline. In this regime, subsequent arrivals of fast-moving internal gravity waves into the front replenish momentum and lead to sudden short-lived front accelerations. In the third regime, when the density ratio between flow and ambient air decreases closer to a value of unity, buoyancy forces become negligible, but pressure drag forces are large and constitute the main flow retarding force. In this inertia-pressure drag regime, internal gravity waves cease to reach the front. Finally, and with the density ratio decreasing below 1, the current transitions into a buoyantly rising thermal in regime 4. Unlike for aqueous gravity currents, the Froude number is not constant and viscous forces are negligible in these gas-particle gravity currents. We show that, in this situation, existing Boussinesq and non-Boussinesq gravity current models strongly underpredict the front velocity for most of the flow runout for at least half of the flow propagation. These results are not only important for hazard mitigation of pyroclastic density currents but are also relevant for other turbulent gas-particle gravity currents, such as powder snow avalanches and dust storms

EU migrant sex work in the UK post-referendum

Over recent decades, UK governments have implemented increasingly repressive immigration controls. Stricter conditions of entry have been accompanied by an expanding immigration detention estate, the increased use of criminal penalties for so-called immigration ‘offences’, and an increasingly hostile environment for people who have migrated to the UK. The UK can be particularly hostile for migrant sex workers, with the quasi-criminalised and stigmatised nature of the sex industry compounding the negative effects of ‘migrant’ status. It is in this socio-political context that we set out to explore: 1) what impact, if any, the EU Referendum result had on EU migrant sex workers; and 2) what strategies EU migrant sex workers have adopted to navigate sex work post-Referendum. The findings included in this report draw on the views and experiences of 41 EU migrant sex workers. We show that violence and xenophobia have increased post-Referendum. However, far from being able to rely on the police for support, migrant sex workers are facing harm at the hands of the police, increased criminalisation and - via close working between the police and immigration agencies - an increased risk of deportation. We make a number of evidence-informed recommendations to redress the negative experiences of migrant sex workers in the post-Referendum context

Destructiveness of pyroclastic surges controlled by turbulent fluctuations

Pyroclastic surges are lethal hazards from volcanoes that exhibit enormous destructiveness through dynamic pressures of 100–102 kPa inside flows capable of obliterating reinforced buildings. However, to date, there are no measurements inside these currents to quantify the dynamics of this important hazard process. Here we show, through large-scale experiments and the first field measurement of pressure inside pyroclastic surges, that dynamic pressure energy is mostly carried by large-scale coherent turbulent structures and gravity waves. These perpetuate as low-frequency high-pressure pulses downcurrent, form maxima in the flow energy spectra and drive a turbulent energy cascade. The pressure maxima exceed mean values, which are traditionally estimated for hazard assessments, manifold. The frequency of the most energetic coherent turbulent structures is bounded by a critical Strouhal number of ~0.3, allowing quantitative predictions. This explains the destructiveness of real-world flows through the development of c. 1–20 successive high-pressure pulses per minute. This discovery, which is also applicable to powder snow avalanches, necessitates a re-evaluation of hazard models that aim to forecast and mitigate volcanic hazard impacts globally

Israeli assault on Palestinian civil society : the case of the 6+1 criminalised organisations

The case of the 6+1 organisations criminalised by Israel - Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center, DCI-P, UAWC, UPWC and HWC- is part of a more general policy and practice by Israeli authorities to attack and harass Palestinian civil society and critics who question the occupation and the systematic violations of Palestinians'rights. This is a trend that is part of an international scenario of reduced space for action for critical civil society and that, in this particular case, has intensified in recent years. The case of the 6+1 criminalised organisations was preceded by a series of measures, regulations and actions not only against Palestinian organisations, but also against Israeli and international actors involved in investigating the situation of the Palestinian population, in reporting violations and abuses that affect them and in promoting and defending Palestinians' rights. The legal action against the 6+1 criminalised NGOs, and particularly the designation of the six as terrorist organisations, is a qualitative leap in the action taken by Israeli authorities against Palestinian civil society actors. The international reaction to the criminalisation of the 6+1 organisations -especially the displays of solidarity, the recognition of their background and the work they do, and the denouncement of the lack of evidence justifying the action taken against them- raises questions about the long-term impact of the criminalisation and casts doubts on the success of Israels' efforts to question and discredit the NGOs' work. However, as the representatives of the affected organisations acknowledge, criminalisation has had an impact on their work and on their teams and uncertainty remains about how this and other possible new Israeli authorities' actions andpolicies can affect their activities in key areas for Palestinian society. The experience of the 6+1 organisations is far from being a "closed case" and its development requires careful monitoring, considering the way it affects their activities and other critical Palestinian civil society organisations, the political and economic commitment of external actors and the movement to show solidarity with Palestinians and to defend their rights

Turbulent particle-gas feedback exacerbates the hazard impacts of pyroclastic density currents

Causing one-third of all volcanic fatalities, pyroclastic density currents create destruction far beyond our current scientific explanation. Opportunities to interrogate the mechanisms behind this hazard have long been desired, but pyroclastic density currents persistently defy internal observation. Here we show, through direct measurements of destruction-causing dynamic pressure in large-scale experiments, that pressure maxima exceed theoretical values used in hazard assessments by more than one order of magnitude. These distinct pressure excursions occur through the clustering of high-momentum particles at the peripheries of coherent turbulence structures. Particle loading modifies these eddies and generates repeated high-pressure loading impacts at the frequency of the turbulence structures. Collisions of particle clusters against stationary objects generate even higher dynamic pressures that account for up to 75% of the local flow energy. To prevent severe underestimation of damage intensities, these multiphase feedback processes must be considered in hazard models that aim to mitigate volcanic risk globally.fals