Integrating the patients' voice in designing and delivering a research study: The Yorkshire Cancer Research funded PREHABS study's experience.

INTRODUCTION: Engaging with patients when designing a clinical or research project is beneficial; feedback from the intended audience provides invaluable insight form the patients' perspective. Working with patients can result in developing successful research grants and interventions. The benefit of including the voice of the patient in the Yorkshire Cancer Research funded PREHABS study is described in this article. METHODS: Patients were included in the PREHABS study from inception to completion. The Theory of Change methodology was used to provide a framework to implement patient feedback to refine the study intervention. RESULTS: In total, 69 patients engaged with the PREHABS project. Two patients were recruited as co-applicants on the grant and were members on the Trial Management Group. Six patients attended the pre application workshop and provided feedback on their lived experiences of being a lung cancer patient. Commentary from the patients influenced the interventions selected and the design of the prehabs study. Following ethical approval (21/EE/0048) and informed written consent, 61 patients were recruited into the PREHABS study between October 2021 and November 2022. The breakdown of recruited patients was 19 males: mean age 69.1 years (SD 8.91) and 41 females; mean age 74.9 years (SD 8.9). CONCLUSION: It is practicable and beneficial to include patients at all stages of designing and delivering a research study. Patient feedback can help refine the study interventions to allow for maximum acceptance, recruitment and retention. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Including patients in the design of radiotherapy research studies can provide invaluable insight that can support the selection and delivery of interventions that are acceptable to the patient cohort.

Small molecule binding to surface-supported single-site transition-metal reaction centres.

Despite dominating industrial processes, heterogeneous catalysts remain challenging to characterize and control. This is largely attributable to the diversity of potentially active sites at the catalyst-reactant interface and the complex behaviour that can arise from interactions between active sites. Surface-supported, single-site molecular catalysts aim to bring together benefits of both heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysts, offering easy separability while exploiting molecular design of reactivity, though the presence of a surface is likely to influence reaction mechanisms. Here, we use metal-organic coordination to build reactive Fe-terpyridine sites on the Ag(111) surface and study their activity towards CO and C2H4 gaseous reactants using low-temperature ultrahigh-vacuum scanning tunnelling microscopy, scanning tunnelling spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy supported by density-functional theory models. Using a site-by-site approach at low temperature to visualize the reaction pathway, we find that reactants bond to the Fe-tpy active sites via surface-bound intermediates, and investigate the role of the substrate in understanding and designing single-site catalysts on metallic supports.

Prehabilitation and Rehabilitation for Patients with Lung Cancer: A Review of Where we are Today.

Lung cancer is the third most common type of cancer in the UK, with nearly 50 000 new cases diagnosed a year. Treatments for lung cancer have improved in recent years with the advent of new surgical and radiotherapy techniques and the increased use of immunotherapies. These advances have resulted in increasing numbers of patients surviving beyond the completion of their treatment. Lung cancer patients are now not dying from their cancer diagnosis, but from other co-existing pathologies. Lung cancer patients commonly present with multiple comorbidities. Mitigating the effects of poor lifestyles and changing behaviours may improve the efficacy of treatments, reduce side-effects and improve the quality of life for lung cancer patients. Published evidence supports the use of interventions to manage behavioural habits, to optimise the health of patients. There is no consensus as to what, when or how to embed these into the patient pathway. Supporting patients before, during and after their cancer treatments to increase activity, eat well and stop smoking have been seen to decrease side-effects and improve patient outcomes and wellbeing. The challenge is to provide a package of interventions that is acceptable to patients and fits within the patient pathway so as not to conflict with diagnostic and therapeutic activities. This article reviews where we are today with providing behavioural support to optimise the health of lung cancer patients undergoing treatment.

A Direct Comparison of Theta Power and Frequency to Speed and Acceleration.

Decades of hippocampal neurophysiology research have linked the hippocampal theta rhythm to voluntary movement. A consistent observation has been a robust correlation between the amplitude (or power) and frequency of hippocampal theta and running speed. Recently, however, it has been suggested that acceleration, not running speed, is the dominating influence on theta frequency. There is an inherent interdependence among these two variables, as acceleration is the rate of change in velocity. Therefore, we investigated theta frequency and amplitude of the local-field potential recorded from the stratum pyramidale, stratum radiatum, and stratum lacunosum moleculare of the CA1 subregion, considering both speed and acceleration in tandem as animals traversed a circular task or performed continuous alternation. In male and female rats volitionally controlling their own running characteristics, we found that running speed carries nearly all of the variability in theta frequency and power, with a minute contribution from acceleration. These results contradicted a recent publication using a speed-clamping task, where acceleration and movement are compelled through the use of a bottomless car (Kropff et al., 2021a). Therefore, we reanalyzed the speed-clamping data replicating a transient increase in theta frequency during acceleration. Compared with track running rats, the speed-clamped animals exhibited lower velocities and acceleration values but still showed a stronger influence of speed on theta frequency relative to acceleration. As navigation is the integration of many sensory inputs that are not necessarily linearly related, we offer caution in making absolute claims regarding hippocampal physiology from correlates garnered from a single behavioral repertoire.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT A long-standing, replicable observation has been the increase of hippocampal theta power and frequency with increasing running speed. Recently, however, an experimental approach that clamps the running speed of an animal has suggested that acceleration is the dominant influence. Therefore, we analyzed data from freely behaving rats as well as data from the speed-clamping experiment. In unrestrained behavior, speed remains the dominant behavioral correlate to theta amplitude and frequency. Positive acceleration in the speed-clamp experiment induced a transient increase in theta frequency and power. However, speed retained the dominant influence over theta frequency, changing with velocity in both acceleration and deceleration conditions.

Analysis of the foam-forming of non-woven lightweight fibrous materials using X-ray tomography.

ABSTRACT: Foam-forming has in the past predominantly been used to create two-dimensional sheet-like fibrous materials. Allowing the foam to drain freely and decay under gravity, rather than applying a vacuum to remove it rapidly, we can produce lightweight three-dimensional fibrous structures from cellulose fibres, of potential use for thermal and acoustic insulation. µ CT scanning of the fibrous materials enable us to determine both void size distributions and also distributions of fibre orientations. Through image analysis and uniaxial compression testing, we find that the orientation of the fibres, rather than the size of the voids, determine the compressive strength of the material. The fibrous samples display a layering of the fibres perpendicular to the direction of drainage of the precursor liquid foam. This leads to an anisotropy of the compressive behaviour of the samples. Varying the initial liquid fraction of the foam allows for tuning of the compressive strength. We show an increase in over seven times can be achieved for samples of the same density (13 kg.m-3).

Fish growth rates and lake sulphate explain variation in mercury levels in ninespine stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska.

Mercury concentrations in freshwater food webs are governed by complex biogeochemical and ecological interactions that spatially vary and are often mediated by climate. The Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska (ACP) is a heterogeneous, lake-rich landscape where variability in mercury accumulation is poorly understood. Earlier research indicated that the level of catchment influence on lakes varied spatially on the ACP, and affected mercury accumulation in lake sediments. This work sought to determine drivers of spatial variation in mercury accumulation in lake food webs on the ACP. Three lakes that were a priori identified as "high catchment influence" (Reindeer Camp region) and three lakes that were a priori identified as "low catchment influence" (Atqasuk region) were sampled, and variability in water chemistry, food web ecology, and mercury accumulation was investigated. Among-lake differences in ninespine stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) length-adjusted methylmercury concentrations were significantly explained by sulphate concentration in lake water, a tracer of catchment runoff input. This effect was mediated by fish growth, which had no pattern between regions. Together, lake water sulphate concentration and fish age-at-size (proxy for growth) accounted for nearly all of the among-lake variability in length-adjusted methylmercury concentrations in stickleback (R2adj = 0.94, p < 0.01). The percentage of total mercury as methylmercury (a proxy for net Hg methylation) was higher in sediments of more autochthonous, "low catchment influence" lakes (p < 0.05), and in the periphyton of more allochthonous, "high catchment influence" lakes (p < 0.05). The results indicate that dominant sources of primary production (littoral macrophyte/biofilm vs. pelagic phytoplankton) and food web structure (detrital vs. grazing) are regulated by catchment characteristics on the ACP, and that this ultimately influences the amount of methylmercury in the aquatic food web. These results have important implications for predicting future mercury concentrations in fish in lakes where fish growth rates and catchment inputs may change in response to a changing climate.

Testosterone effects on functional amygdala lateralization: A study in adolescent transgender boys and cisgender boys and girls.

The influence of testosterone on the development of human brain lateralization has been subject of debate for a long time, partly because studies investigating this are necessarily mostly correlational. In the present study we used a quasi-experimental approach by assessing functional brain lateralization in trans boys (female sex assigned at birth, diagnosed with Gender Dysphoria, n = 21) before and after testosterone treatment, and compared these results to the functional lateralization of age-matched control groups of cisgender boys (n = 20) and girls (n = 21) around 16 years of age. The lateralization index of the amygdala was determined with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during an emotional face matching task with angry and fearful faces, as the literature indicates that boys show more activation in the right amygdala than girls during the perception of emotional faces. As expected, the lateralization index in trans boys shifted towards the right amygdala after testosterone treatment, and the cumulative dose of testosterone treatment correlated significantly with amygdala lateralization after treatment. However, we did not find any significant group differences in lateralization and endogenous testosterone concentrations predicted rightward amygdala lateralization only in the cis boys, but not in cis girls or trans boys. These inconsistencies may be due to sex differences in sensitivity to testosterone or its metabolites, which would be a worthwhile course for future studies.

Room temperature strain-induced Landau levels in graphene on a wafer-scale platform.

Graphene is a powerful playground for studying a plethora of quantum phenomena. One of the remarkable properties of graphene arises when it is strained in particular geometries and the electrons behave as if they were under the influence of a magnetic field. Previously, these strain-induced pseudomagnetic fields have been explored on the nano- and micrometer-scale using scanning probe and transport measurements. Heteroepitaxial strain, in contrast, is a wafer-scale engineering method. Here, we show that pseudomagnetic fields can be generated in graphene through wafer-scale epitaxial growth. Shallow triangular nanoprisms in the SiC substrate generate strain-induced uniform fields of 41 T, enabling the observation of strain-induced Landau levels at room temperature, as detected by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, and confirmed by model calculations and scanning tunneling microscopy measurements. Our work demonstrates the feasibility of exploiting strain-induced quantum phases in two-dimensional Dirac materials on a wafer-scale platform, opening the field to new applications.

Methodological Considerations on the Use of Different Spectral Decomposition Algorithms to Study Hippocampal Rhythms.

Local field potential (LFP) oscillations are primarily shaped by the superposition of postsynaptic currents. Hippocampal LFP oscillations in the 25- to 50-Hz range ("slow γ") are proposed to support memory retrieval independent of other frequencies. However, θ harmonics extend up to 48 Hz, necessitating a study to determine whether these oscillations are fundamentally the same. We compared the spectral analysis methods of wavelet, ensemble empirical-mode decomposition (EEMD), and Fourier transform. EEMD, as previously applied, failed to account for the θ harmonics. Depending on analytical parameters selected, wavelet may convolve over high-order θ harmonics due to the variable time-frequency atoms, creating the appearance of a broad 25- to 50-Hz rhythm. As an illustration of this issue, wavelet and EEMD depicted slow γ in a synthetic dataset that only contained θ and its harmonics. Oscillatory transience cannot explain the difference in approaches as Fourier decomposition identifies ripples triggered to epochs of high-power, 120- to 250-Hz events. When Fourier is applied to high power, 25- to 50-Hz events, only θ harmonics are resolved. This analysis challenges the identification of the slow γ rhythm as a unique fundamental hippocampal oscillation. While there may be instances in which slow γ is present in the rat hippocampus, the analysis presented here shows that unless care is exerted in the application of EEMD and wavelet techniques, the results may be misleading, in this case misrepresenting θ harmonics. Moreover, it is necessary to reconsider the characteristics that define a fundamental hippocampal oscillation as well as theories based on multiple independent γ bands.

The perirhinal cortex supports spatial intertemporal choice stability.

In order to optimize outcomes in the face of uncertainty, one must recall past experiences and extrapolate to the future by assigning values to different choice outcomes. This behavior requires an interplay between memory and reward valuation, necessitating communication across many brain regions. At the anatomical nexus of this interplay is the perirhinal cortex (PRC). The PRC is densely connected to the amygdala and orbital frontal cortex, regions that have been implicated in reward-based decision making, as well as the hippocampus. Thus, the PRC could serve as a hub for integrating memory, reward, and prediction. The PRC's role in value-based decision making, however, has not been empirically examined. Therefore, we tested the role of the PRC in a spatial delay discounting task, which allows rats to choose between a 1-s delay for a small food reward and a variable delay for a large food reward, with the delay to the large reward increasing after choice of each large reward and decreasing after each small reward. The rat can therefore adjust the delay by consecutively choosing the same reward or stabilize the delay by alternating between sides. The latter has been shown to occur once the 'temporal cost' of the large reward is established and is a decision-making process termed 'exploitation'. When the PRC was bilaterally inactivated with the GABA(A) agonist muscimol, rats spent fewer trials successfully exploiting to maintain a fixed delay compared to the vehicle control condition. Moreover, PRC inactivation resulted in an increased number of vicarious trial and error (VTE) events at the choice point, where rats had to decide between the two rewards. These behavioral patterns suggest that the PRC is critical for maintaining stability in linking a choice to a reward outcome in the face of a variable cost.

Effect of age, ethnicity, sex, cognitive status and APOE genotype on amyloid load and the threshold for amyloid positivity.

The threshold for amyloid positivity by visual assessment on PET has been validated by comparison to amyloid load measured histopathologically and biochemically at post mortem. As such, it is now feasible to use qualitative visual assessment of amyloid positivity as an in-vivo gold standard to determine those factors which can modify the quantitative threshold for amyloid positivity. We calculated quantitative amyloid load, measured as Standardized Uptake Value Ratios (SUVRs) using [18-F]florbetaben PET scans, for 159 Hispanic and non-Hispanic participants, who had been classified clinically as Cognitively Normal (CN), Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) or Dementia (DEM). PET scans were visually rated as amyloid positive (A+) or negative (A-), and these judgments were used as the gold standard with which to determine (using ROC analyses) the SUVR threshold for amyloid positivity considering factors such as age, ethnicity (Hispanic versus non-Hispanic), gender, cognitive status, and apolipoprotein E ε4 carrier status. Visually rated scans were A+ for 11% of CN, 39.0% of MCI and 70% of DEM participants. The optimal SUVR threshold for A+ among all participants was 1.42 (sensitivity = 94%; specificity = 92.5%), but this quantitative threshold was higher among E4 carriers (SUVR = 1.52) than non-carriers (SUVR = 1.31). While mean SUVRs did not differ between Hispanic and non-Hispanic participants;, a statistically significant interaction term indicated that the effect of E4 carrier status on amyloid load was greater among non-Hispanics than Hispanics. Visual assessment, as the gold standard for A+, facilitates determination of the effects of various factors on quantitative thresholds for amyloid positivity. A continuous relationship was found between amyloid load and global cognitive scores, suggesting that any calculated threshold for the whole group, or a subgroup, is artefactual and that the lowest calculated threshold may be optimal for the purposes of early diagnosis and intervention.

Strong and recurring seasonality revealed within stream diatom assemblages.

Improving stream water quality in agricultural landscapes is an ecological priority and a legislative duty for many governments. Ecosystem health can be effectively characterised by organisms sensitive to water quality changes such as diatoms, single-celled algae that are a ubiquitous component of stream benthos. Diatoms respond within daily timescales to variables including light, temperature, nutrient availability and flow conditions that result from weather and land use characteristics. However, little consideration has been given to the ecological dynamics of diatoms through repeated seasonal cycles when assessing trajectories of stream function, even in catchments actively managed to reduce human pressures. Here, six years of monthly diatom samples from three independent streams, each receiving differing levels of diffuse agricultural pollution, reveal robust and repeated seasonal variation. Predicted seasonal changes in climate-related variables and anticipated ecological impacts must be fully captured in future ecological and water quality assessments, if the apparent resistance of stream ecosystems to pollution mitigation measures is to be better understood.

Factors influencing medical student self-competence to provide weight management services.

This study aimed to identify factors associated with high obesity care self-competence among US medical students. The authors performed a cross-sectional analysis of 2014 survey data on fourth year medical students collected online as part of the Medical Student Cognitive Habits and Growth Evaluation Study (CHANGES). Independent variables included quality and quantity of interaction with patients and peers with obesity; hours of communication and partnership skills training; negative remarks against patients with obesity by supervising physicians, and witnessed discrimination against patients with obesity. The dependent variable was self-competence in providing obesity care. Of 5823 students invited to participate, 3689 (63%) responded and were included in our analyses. Most students were white (65%), half were women and 42% had high self-competence in caring for patients with obesity. Factors associated with high self-competence included increased interaction with peers with obesity (39% vs. 49%, P < 0.001) and increased partnership skills training (32% vs. 61%, P < 0.001). Increased partnership skills training and quantity of interactions with peers with obesity were associated with high student self-competence in providing obesity-related care to patients. Medical schools might consider increasing partnership skills training to improve students' preparedness and skill in performing obesity-related care.

Theta-gamma cascades and running speed.

Oscillations in the hippocampal local field potential at theta and gamma frequencies are prominent during awake behavior and have demonstrated several behavioral correlates. Both oscillations have been observed to increase in amplitude and frequency as a function of running speed. Previous investigations, however, have examined the relationship between speed and each of these oscillation bands separately. Based on energy cascade models where "…perturbations of slow frequencies cause a cascade of energy dissipation at all frequency scales" (Buzsaki G. Rhythms of the Brain, 2006), we hypothesized that cross-frequency interactions between theta and gamma should increase as a function of speed. We examined these relationships across multiple layers of the CA1 subregion, which correspond to synaptic zones receiving different afferents. Across layers, we found a reliable correlation between the power of theta and the power of gamma, indicative of an amplitude-amplitude relationship. Moreover, there was an increase in the coherence between the power of gamma and the phase of theta, demonstrating increased phase-amplitude coupling with speed. Finally, at higher velocities, phase entrainment between theta and gamma increases. These results have important implications and provide new insights regarding how theta and gamma are integrated for neuronal circuit dynamics, with coupling strength determined by the excitatory drive within the hippocampus. Specifically, rather than arguing that different frequencies can be attributed to different psychological processes, we contend that cognitive processes occur across multiple frequency bands simultaneously with organization occurring as a function of the amount of energy iteratively propagated through the brain. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Often, the theta and gamma oscillations in the hippocampus have been believed to be a consequence of two marginally overlapping phenomena. This perspective, however, runs counter to an alternative hypothesis in which a slow-frequency, high-amplitude oscillation provides energy that cascades into higher frequency, lower amplitude oscillations. We found that as running speed increases, all measures of cross-frequency theta-gamma coupling intensify, providing evidence in favor of the energy cascade hypothesis.

Agreement between expert thoracic radiologists and the chest radiograph reports provided by consultant radiologists and reporting radiographers in clinical practice: Review of a single clinical site.

INTRODUCTION: To compare the clinical chest radiograph (CXR) reports provided by consultant radiologists and reporting radiographers with expert thoracic radiologists. METHODS: Adult CXRs (n = 193) from a single site were included; 83% randomly selected from CXRs performed over one year, and 17% selected from the discrepancy meeting. Chest radiographs were independently interpreted by two expert thoracic radiologists (CTR1/2).Clinical history, previous and follow-up imaging was available, but not the original clinical report. Two arbiters compared expert and clinical reports independently. Kappa (Ƙ), Chi Square (χ2) and McNemar tests were performed to determine inter-observer agreement. RESULTS: CTR1 interpreted 187 (97%) and CTR2 186 (96%) CXRs, with 180 CXRs interpreted by both experts. Radiologists and radiographers provided 93 and 87 of the original clinical reports respectively. Consensus between both expert thoracic radiologists and the radiographer clinical report was 70 (CTR1; Ƙ = 0.59) and 70 (CTR2; Ƙ = 0.62), and comparable to agreement between expert thoracic radiologists and the radiologist clinical report (CTR1 = 76, Ƙ = 0.60; CTR2 = 75, Ƙ = 0.62). Expert thoracic radiologists agreed in 131 cases (Ƙ = 0.48). There was no difference in agreement between either expert thoracic radiologist, when the clinical report was provided by radiographers or radiologists (CTR1 χ = 0.056, p = 0.813; CTR2 χ = 0.014, p = 0.906), or when stratified by inter-expert agreement; radiographer McNemar p = 0.629 and radiologist p = 0.701. CONCLUSION: Even when weighted with chest radiographs reviewed at discrepancy meetings, content of CXR reports from trained radiographers were indistinguishable from content of reports issued by radiologists and expert thoracic radiologists.

Climate change and mental health: risks, impacts and priority actions.

BACKGROUND: This article provides an overview of the current and projected climate change risks and impacts to mental health and provides recommendations for priority actions to address the mental health consequences of climate change. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The authors argue the following three points: firstly, while attribution of mental health outcomes to specific climate change risks remains challenging, there are a number of opportunities available to advance the field of mental health and climate change with more empirical research in this domain; secondly, the risks and impacts of climate change on mental health are already rapidly accelerating, resulting in a number of direct, indirect, and overarching effects that disproportionally affect those who are most marginalized; and, thirdly, interventions to address climate change and mental health need to be coordinated and rooted in active hope in order to tackle the problem in a holistic manner. This discussion paper concludes with recommendations for priority actions to address the mental health consequences of climate change.

Next generation sequencing reveals packaging of host RNAs by brome mosaic virus.

Although RNA viruses evolved the mechanisms of specific encapsidation, miss-packaging of cellular RNAs has been reported in such RNA virus systems as flock house virus or cucumber necrosis virus. To find out if brome mosaic virus (BMV), a tripartite RNA virus, can package cellular RNAs, BMV was propagated in barley and in Nicotiana benthamiana hosts, purified by cesium chloride (CsCl) gradient ultracentrifugation followed by nuclease treatment to remove any contaminating cellular (host) RNAs. The extracted virion RNA was then sequenced by using next-generation sequencing (NGS RNA-Seq) with the Illumina protocol. Bioinformatic analysis revealed the content of host RNAs ranging from 0.07% for BMV extracted from barley to 0.10% for the virus extracted from N. benthamiana. The viruses from two sources appeared to co-encapsidate different patterns of host-RNAs, including ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs), messenger RNAs (mRNAs) but also mitochondrial and plastid RNAs and, interestingly, transposable elements, both transposons and retrotransposons. Our data reveal that BMV virions can carry host RNAs, having a potential to mediate horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in plants.

The economic impact of workplace wellness programmes in Canada.

BACKGROUND: The economic benefits of workplace wellness programmes (WWPs) are commonly cited as a reason for employers to implement such programmes; however, there is limited evidence outside of the US context exploring their economic impact. US evidence is less relevant in countries such as Canada with universal publicly funded health systems because of the lower potential employer savings from WWPs. AIMS: To conduct a systematic review of the Canadian literature investigating the economic impact of WWPs from an employer perspective. The quality of that evidence was also assessed. METHODS: We reviewed literature which included analyses of four economic outcomes: return on investment calculations; cost-effectiveness or cost-benefit analyses; valuations of productivity, turnover, absenteeism and/or presenteeism costs; and valuations of health care utilization costs. We applied the British Medical Journal (BMJ) Economic Evaluation Working Party Checklist to evaluate the quality of this evidence. RESULTS: Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. Although the studies showed that WWPs generated economic benefits from an employer perspective (largely from productivity changes), none of the reviewed studies were in the high-quality category (i.e. fulfilled at least 75% of the checklist criteria) and most had severe methodological issues. CONCLUSIONS: Though the Canadian literature pertaining to the economic impact of WWPs spans over three decades, robust evidence on this topic remains sparse. Future research should include a comparable control group, a time horizon of over a year, both direct and indirect costs, and researchers should apply analytical techniques that account for potential selection bias.

Major agricultural changes required to mitigate phosphorus losses under climate change.

Phosphorus losses from land to water will be impacted by climate change and land management for food production, with detrimental impacts on aquatic ecosystems. Here we use a unique combination of methods to evaluate the impact of projected climate change on future phosphorus transfers, and to assess what scale of agricultural change would be needed to mitigate these transfers. We combine novel high-frequency phosphorus flux data from three representative catchments across the UK, a new high-spatial resolution climate model, uncertainty estimates from an ensemble of future climate simulations, two phosphorus transfer models of contrasting complexity and a simplified representation of the potential intensification of agriculture based on expert elicitation from land managers. We show that the effect of climate change on average winter phosphorus loads (predicted increase up to 30% by 2050s) will be limited only by large-scale agricultural changes (e.g., 20-80% reduction in phosphorus inputs).The impact of climate change on phosphorus (P) loss from land to water is unclear. Here, the authors use P flux data, climate simulations and P transfer models to show that only large scale agricultural change will limit the effect of climate change on average winter P loads in three catchments across the UK.

Imaging the real space structure of the spin fluctuations in an iron-based superconductor.

Spin fluctuations are a leading candidate for the pairing mechanism in high temperature superconductors, supported by the common appearance of a distinct resonance in the spin susceptibility across the cuprates, iron-based superconductors and many heavy fermion materials. The information we have about the spin resonance comes almost exclusively from neutron scattering. Here we demonstrate that by using low-temperature scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy we can characterize the spin resonance in real space. We show that inelastic tunnelling leads to the characteristic dip-hump feature seen in tunnelling spectra in high temperature superconductors and that this feature arises from excitations of the spin fluctuations. Spatial mapping of this feature near defects allows us to probe non-local properties of the spin susceptibility and to image its real space structure.