ß-Delayed One and Two Neutron Emission Probabilities Southeast of

The ß-delayed one- and two-neutron emission probabilities (P_{1n} and P_{2n}) of 20 neutron-rich nuclei with N≥82 have been measured at the RIBF facility of the RIKEN Nishina Center. P_{1n} of ^{130,131}Ag, ^{133,134}Cd, ^{135,136}In, and ^{138,139}Sn were determined for the first time, and stringent upper limits were placed on P_{2n} for nearly all cases. ß-delayed two-neutron emission (ß2n) was unambiguously identified in ^{133}Cd and ^{135,136}In, and their P_{2n} were measured. Weak ß2n was also detected from ^{137,138}Sn. Our results highlight the effect of the N=82 and Z=50 shell closures on ß-delayed neutron emission probability and provide stringent benchmarks for newly developed macroscopic-microscopic and self-consistent global models with the inclusion of a statistical treatment of neutron and γ emission. The impact of our measurements on r-process nucleosynthesis was studied in a neutron star merger scenario. Our P_{1n} and P_{2n} have a direct impact on the odd-even staggering of the final abundance, improving the agreement between calculated and observed Solar System abundances. The odd isotope fraction of Ba in r-process-enhanced (r-II) stars is also better reproduced using our new data.

Atomic-scale Studies of Uranium Oxidation and Corrosion by Water Vapour.

Understanding the corrosion of uranium is important for its safe, long-term storage. Uranium metal corrodes rapidly in air, but the exact mechanism remains subject to debate. Atom Probe Tomography was used to investigate the surface microstructure of metallic depleted uranium specimens following polishing and exposure to moist air. A complex, corrugated metal-oxide interface was observed, with approximately 60 at.% oxygen content within the oxide. Interestingly, a very thin (~5 nm) interfacial layer of uranium hydride was observed at the oxide-metal interface. Exposure to deuterated water vapour produced an equivalent deuteride signal at the metal-oxide interface, confirming the hydride as originating via the water vapour oxidation mechanism. Hydroxide ions were detected uniformly throughout the oxide, yet showed reduced prominence at the metal interface. These results support a proposed mechanism for the oxidation of uranium in water vapour environments where the transport of hydroxyl species and the formation of hydride are key to understanding the observed behaviour.

Crime and health: a preliminary study into the effects of crime on the mental health of UK university students.

In this paper we report on the findings from a preliminary study in the UK into the effects of crime on health. The aim of the study was to investigate what victims of crime report to be the effects of both actual crime and the fear of crime on their physical and psychological health (as well as social well-being) and what actions they take (if any) to deal with these effects. A survey method was adopted using a modified version of the 'Health, Quality of Life and Crime Questionnaire' with 866 undergraduate student respondents from three UK universities. University students were selected as the sample population because, as a group, they form a specific 'victim community'. Conclusions extrapolated from the respondents' replies were first, there are serious negative health effects (particularly on psychological health) of a considerable minority of those students who are victims of crime. Second, the vast majority of the victims did not initiate any health intervention. Third, a large minority of the victims did not report the crime to the police. Fourth, a majority of both victims and non-victims suffered psychological negative effects from the fear of crime. Fifth, there is a huge gender imbalance among those affected by crime with female students much more fearful of crime than men. Moreover, female students were much more likely to use specific strategies to lower the risk of crime. These conclusions suggest that there may be important policy implications for universities, the police, victim support organizations and mental health services, regarding the effects of crime on students. This study is intended as a preliminary stage for subsequent in-depth and larger projects.

Architecture signifying social control: the restoration of asylumdom in mental health care?

Prior to the era of community care, the asylum has been an architectural manifestation of the power of psychiatry and the State. Asylumdom was a period in which custodial warehouses were used by the State to store sections of the population considered to be 'unreasonable'. There are signs, however, of a re-birth of asylumdom in both the UK and Australia. For example, there is a projected growth in the number of 'secure units' in the community, and a growing concern with issues of security and risk management in mental health care. Furthermore, new technologies for containment and surveillance are being installed in acute inpatient psychiatric units. Once again the asylum will symbolize emphatically the authority of the State (and its agencies of social control), and re-emphasize the exclusion of 'unreason' from the 'reasonable' society.

Professionalism and community psychiatric nursing: a case study of four mental health teams.

In this paper I report on a 2-year study of the professional status of 10 psychiatric nurses, working in four community mental health teams. The focus of the research was directed towards identifying the levels of clinical autonomy experienced by psychiatric nurses working in these teams. Diary-interview schedules were used to record how new clients were processed by the psychiatric nurse. The other members of the teams were interviewed (as were the managers to whom the nurses were accountable), using focused-interview schedules. The quantitative data from the diary-interview schedules were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. An adapted form of the technique advocated by Burnard was used to analyse qualitative data extracted from the diary-interview schedules and the focused-interviews. Conclusions from the research indicated that the nurses experienced a high degree of de facto clinical autonomy, which was characterized by unsupervized and arbitrary decision-making processes. In order to protect the user of mental health services, it is recommended that the espoused occupational strategy of professionalization for community psychiatric nurses is reconsidered.

Quality assurance in nurse education--the social context of learning.

In this article I will critically examine the social context of learning in nurse education from a sociological perspective. I will begin with a brief review of recent developments in the philosophy and practice of nurse education. The concepts of 'tokenism', 'relative autonomy', 'de-mystification', and 'social control' will be used to identify what the present socio-political status of the nurse-learner is. Whilst it is recognised that major improvements in the quality of nurse education have occurred over recent years, the application of these concepts helps to highlight the need for further radical developments before students can be said to have attained educational 'self-actualisation'. Finally, I will suggest positive strategies aimed at advancing the quality of learning for nurses in the future.

Factors affecting the absorption of iron from cereals.

Non-haem-iron absorption from a variety of cereal and fibre meals was measured in parous Indian women, using the erythrocyte utilization of radioactive Fe method. The present study was undertaken to establish whether alteration of the phytate and polyphenol contents of sorghum (Sorghum vulgare) affected Fe absorption from sorghum meals, and to assess the influence of fibre on Fe absorption. Removing the outer layers of sorghum grain by pearling reduced the polyphenol and phytate contents by 96 and 92% respectively. This treatment significantly increased the geometric mean Fe absorption from 0.017 to 0.035 (t 3.9, P less than 0.005). The geometric mean Fe absorption from a sorghum cultivar that lacked polyphenols (albino sorghum) was 0.043, which was significantly greater than the 0.019 absorbed from bird-proof sorghum, a cultivar with a high polyphenol content (t 2.83, P less than 0.05). Fe was less well absorbed from the phytate-rich pearlings of the albino sorghum than from the pearled albino sorghum (0.015 v. 0.035 (t 8.4, P less than 0.0005]. Addition of sodium phytate to a highly Fe-bioavailable broccoli (Brassica oleracea) meal reduced Fe absorption from 0.185 to 0.037. The geometric mean Fe absorption from malted sorghum porridge was 0.024 when 9.5 mg ascorbic acid were added and 0.094 when the ascorbic acid was increased to 50 mg (t 3.33, P less than 0.005). This enhancing effect of 50 mg ascorbic acid was significantly depressed to 0.04 by tea (t 38.1, P less than 0.0005).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)