Birds breeding in urban environments have lower reproductive output compared to rural conspecifics, most likely because of food limitation. However, which characteristics of urban environments may cause this deficiency is not clear. Here, we investigated how tree composition within urban territories of passerine birds is associated with breeding probability and reproductive success. We used 7 year

MicroRNAs are short non-coding RNAs with important functions in the regulation of gene expression in healthy and diseased tissues. To optimally utilize the biological and clinical information that is contained in microRNA expression levels, tools for their accurate and cost-effective quantification are needed. While the standard method, qPCR, allows for quick and cheap microRNA quantification, spe

Background/Aim: Signs of hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) on head computed tomography (CT) predicts poor neurological outcome after cardiac arrest. We explore whether levels of brain injury markers in blood could predict the likelihood of HIE on CT. Methods: Retrospective analysis of CT performed at 24–168 h post cardiac arrest on clinical indication within the Target Temperature Management

The lifetime of an enzyme is critical to prevent system failure and optimize maintenance schedules in biological and analytical chemistry. The lifetime metrics of an enzyme can be evaluated from enzyme activity in terms of catalytic cycles per enzyme at various storage times. Trypsin, which is a gold-standard enzyme in proteomics, has been known to decrease activity due to self-digestion. To impro

Background: Speech impairments are an early feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and consequently, analysing speech performance is a promising new digital biomarker for AD screening. Future clinical AD trials on disease modifying drugs will require a shift to very early identification of individuals at risk of dementia. Hence, digital markers of language and speech may offer a method for screening

Spin–valley locking is ubiquitous among transition metal dichalcogenides with local or global inversion asymmetry, in turn stabilizing properties such as Ising superconductivity, and opening routes towards ‘valleytronics’. The underlying valley–spin splitting is set by spin–orbit coupling but can be tuned via the application of external magnetic fields or through proximity coupling. However, only

The aim of this article is to articulate how legal processes, that produce assumptions about social realities which subsequently shape relations of inequality and oppression, may be explored using a critical legal cartographic approach. Critical cartography points to the duality of representation and construction that is innate to cartography, i.e. when portraying reality, maps are also making it.The aim of this article is to articulate how legal processes, that produce assumptions about social realities which subsequently shape relations of inequality and oppression, may be explored using a critical legal cartographic approach. Critical cartography points to the duality of representation and construction that is innate to cartography, i.e. when portraying reality, maps are also making it.

This article reports on the development and validation of the Informal Second Language Engagement questionnaire (ISLE) for capturing various aspects of learner engagement with informal second language practices. Whereas other questionnaires have primarily focused on learner behavior (the frequency, quantity, and diversity of informal activities in which learners engage), the ISLE additionally targ

Background: The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence and morbidity of neck pain with or without cervical rhizopathy, upper extremity motor deficit and/or thoracolumbar pain in elderly men. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire study of 3,000 community-dwelling older men with a mean age of 75.4 ± 3.2 years (range 69–81) to determine if they had experienced neck pain

Background: The aim of this study was to compare performance on the six-minute walk test (6MWT) performed over 15 m and 30 m courses by children and youths with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods: Children and youths with CP at Gross Motor Function Classification System levels I–IV performed the 6MWT in a straight 15 m-long corridor (first trial) and 30 m-long corridor (second trial). The intraclass cor

We demonstrate a significant improvement in the optical performance of GaAs nanowires achieved using a mixed nitrogen-hydrogen plasma which passivates surface states and reduces the rate of nonradiative recombination. This has been confirmed by time-resolved photoluminescence measurements. At room temperature, the intensity and lifetime of radiative recombination in the plasma-treated nanowires wa

We present property probes, a mechanism for helping a developer interactively explore partial program analysis results in terms of the source program, and as the program is edited. A node locator data structure is introduced that maps between source code spans and program representation nodes, and that helps identify probed nodes in a robust way, after modifications to the source code. We have dev

Despite the benefits of a diverse approach to crop pollination, global food production remains reliant on a low diversity of managed pollinators, especially the European honey bee (Apis mellifera). To facilitate more robust pollinator management and improve the resilience of the production system, it is necessary to understand regional variation in the pollination ecology of global food crops. Wat

There is a general consensus that private car ownership is a significant barrier to transport system change, specifically in regard to injuries, space, air pollutants, or greenhouse gas emissions. Observed changes in automobile characteristics also suggest that the system is becoming less sustainable, given trends towards larger cars with greater mass and horsepower. It is thus relevant to underst

We apply insights from the political economy of secession to analyse the early years of the Irish Free State (IFS). The IFS was fortuitous in a debt settlement that enabled it to begin its existence debt free while also receiving financial assistance to quell civil unrest. Yet the IFS was unable to continue to provide the welfare spending inherited from the old regime thereby exacerbating inequali