Evaluation of European energy behavioural change programmes

This article is based on the findings of the BEHAVE Project (Evaluation of Energy Behavioural Change Programmes) which was supported by the European Commission under the EU Intelligent Energy–Europe (IEE) Programme. The project started with a review of behavioural theories and their applicability in the development and evaluation of energy-related behavioural change programmes, progressed to a case study analysis and finished with a publication of guidelines for programme developers and policy makers. This paper concentrates on the results of the case study analysis and the recommendations arising from it. In the case study analysis, information was collected on almost 100 cases aiming at behavioural change in energy use from 11 European countries. More detailed information was collected on 41 cases which were subject to meta-analysis to identify success factors and weak points and to gather information on the current evaluation practices in such programmes. The meta-analysis was carried out in five phases: context (pre-planning), planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Planning and evaluation were recognised as two of the most critical phases. Many of the programmes operated with quite formal plans but were typically not based on scientific theories or evidence. In many cases, there was lack of market segmentation; the goals were not targeted and the programmes tried to offer “everything to everybody”. A multitude of ex-post evaluation methods for programme impacts were reported ranging from participant surveys, testing and comparison with control groups to top–down method evaluating the impact of several programmes focusing on the same target group. Process evaluation (25 cases) was slightly less common than impact evaluation (29 cases). Evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of the programmes was a rarity, most likely due to difficulties in quantitative impact evaluation.     

Norms and screening utility of the Dutch version of the Children's Depression Inventory in clinical and nonclinical youths.

This study aimed to (a) assess relationships between the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and DSM-oriented depression and anxiety scales of the Youth Self Report, (b) develop reliable norms for the CDI, and (c) determine CDI cutoff scores for selecting youngsters at risk for depression and anxiety. A total of 3,073 nonclinical and 511 clinically referred children and adolescents from The Netherlands and Belgium were included. Results showed that CDI scores were significantly related to DSM-oriented symptoms of both depression and anxiety. CDI scores correlated highly with depression symptoms and moderately with anxiety symptoms. Norms for the CDI were determined by means of multiple regression analysis and depended on sex, age, and country. CDI cutoff scores for selecting individuals at risk for depression and anxiety as measured by the DSM-oriented depression and anxiety scales of the Youth Self Report were determined by means of multiple regression analysis and receiver operating characteristic analysis. A CDI score of 16 was found to have the most optimal balance between sensitivity and specificity for depression, whereas a score of 21 provided the best sensitivity and specificity for anxiety in a subsample of children. We conclude that the CDI is an effective instrument for screening depression and to a lesser extent anxiety in primary and secondary care centers, before applying further assessment of high-risk individuals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Surface Modification of Coir Fibers for Extended Hydrophobicity and Antimicrobial Property for Possible Geotextile Application

Experimental investigations are conducted to study the effectiveness of protective coating with cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) on coir. CNSL solution has been applied on suitably pretreated coir yarns and coating concentrations are optimized to reduce moisture absorption and microbial growth. Two common cellulose and lignin degrading fungi (Aspergillus niger and Rhizopus stolonifer) have been taken as test organisms. Qualitative and quantitative analyses are carried out to measure fungal growth on untreated and treated fibers. The study shows that treated fibers inhibit the development of fugal growth on fiber surface by 95%. The reduced moisture absorption and improved hydrophobicity of the treated yarns are also reported. Increase in tensile strength up to 17% is noticed. The better properties achieved are explained on the basis of selection of the coating methodology and also the interfacial features of the coatings with the coir fiber. The results indicate the possibility of future application of such treated fibers in geotextiles having better performance compared to the untreated counterparts.     

Stress Adaptation and the Brainstem with Focus on Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone

Stress adaptation is of utmost importance for the maintenance of homeostasis and, therefore, of life itself. The prevalence of stress-related disorders is increasing, emphasizing the importance of exploratory research on stress adaptation. Two major regulatory pathways exist: the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenocortical axis and the sympathetic adrenomedullary axis. They act in unison, ensured by the enormous bidirectional connection between their centers, the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), and the brainstem monoaminergic cell groups, respectively. PVN and especially their corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) producing neurons are considered to be the centrum of stress regulation. However, the brainstem seems to be equally important. Therefore, we aimed to summarize the present knowledge on the role of classical neurotransmitters of the brainstem (GABA, glutamate as well as serotonin, noradrenaline, adrenaline, and dopamine) in stress adaptation. Neuropeptides, including CRH, might be co-localized in the brainstem nuclei. Here we focused on CRH as its role in stress regulation is well-known and widely accepted and other CRH neurons scattered along the brain may also complement the function of the PVN. Although CRH-positive cells are present on some parts of the brainstem, sometimes even in comparable amounts as in the PVN, not much is known about their contribution to stress adaptation. Based on the role of the Barrington’s nucleus in micturition and the inferior olivary complex in the regulation of fine motoric—as the main CRH-containing brainstem areas—we might assume that these areas regulate stress-induced urination and locomotion, respectively. Further studies are necessary for the field.     

Phenolic compounds and plant extracts as potential natural anti-obesity substances

One strategy to prevent obesity could consist in the inhibition of the pancreatic lipase (PL). In an attempt to find natural antiobesity agents, phenolic compounds (PCs) and plant extracts were investigated on PL activity. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate > kaempferol and quercetin were detected as potent PL inhibitors, with ICs₅₀ of 0.8, 13.4 and 21.5 μM, respectively. Plant extracts from green tea and grape seed also shown potent inhibitory effect. Selected PCs were then assayed in an in vitro model of simulated intestinal fat digestion, based on the lipolysis of triolein. In such conditions closer to physiological reality, resveratrol, but also epigallocatechin-3-gallate and quercetin reduced the triolein digestion to ±50%. This could delay or decrease in vivo fatty acid absorption by enterocytes. This work therefore suggests that some PCs, at concentrations easily reached in the intestine following ingestion of tea beverages, fruits or vegetables, but also flavonoid-enriched supplements or functional food, are potential candidates for obesity prevention.     

Arctic vegetation damage by winter-generated coal mining pollution released upon thawing

Acid mine drainage (known as AMD) is a well-known environmental problem resulting from the oxidation of sulfidic mine waste. In cold regions, AMD is often considered limited by low temperatures most of the year and observed environmental impact is related to pollution generated during the warm summer period. Here we show that heat generation within an oxidizing, sulfidic, coal-mining waste-rock pile in Svalbard (78 degrees N) is high enough to keep the pile warm (roughly 5 degrees C throughout the year) despite mean annual air temperatures below -5 degrees C. Consequently, weathering processes continue year-round within the waste-rock pile. During the winter, weathering products accumulate within the pile because of a frozen outer layer on the pile and are released as a flush within 2 weeks of soil thawing in the spring. Consequently, spring runoff water contains elevated concentrations of metals. Several of these metals are taken up and accumulated in plants where they reach phytotoxic levels, including aluminum and manganese. Laboratory experiments document that uptake of Al and Mn in native plant species is highly correlated with dissolved concentrations. Therefore, future remedial actions to control the adverse environmental impacts of cold region coal-mining need to pay more attention to winter processes including AMD generation and accumulation of weathering products.     

Cultured beef: from small biopsy to substantial quantity

Cultured meat is an emerging technology with the potential to solve huge challenges related to the environmental, ethical, and health implications of conventional meat production. Establishing the basic science of cultured meat has been the primary focus of the last decade but it is now feasible that cultured meat products will enter the market within the next 3 to 4 years. This proximity to market introduction demands an evaluation of aspects of the cultured meat production process that have not yet been outlined or discussed in significant detail. For example, one technological approach for the production of cultured meat uses adult muscle stem cells, the limited proliferative capacity of which necessitates repeated collection of tissue samples via biopsies of living donor animals. The selection of donor animals and the details of biopsy processes must be optimized, as this is a key bottleneck in the cultured meat production process. The number of stem cells harvested from a biopsy, together with their proliferative capacity, determines a ‘multiplicity factor’ achieved by a cultured meat production process, thus dictating the reduction in number of animals required to produce a given quantity of meat. This article considers potential scenarios for these critical upstream steps, focusing on the production of cultured beef as an example. Considerations related to donor selection and details of the biopsy process are discussed in detail. The practicalities of various scenarios for cultured beef production, the health of donor animals, and regulatory issues associated with the safety of cultured meat for consumers are also considered. © 2020 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

Interpreting the effects of image manipulation on picture perception in pigeons (Columba livia) and humans (Homo sapiens).

The effects of picture manipulations on humans' and pigeons' performance were examined in a go/no-go discrimination of two perceptually similar categories, cat and dog faces. Four types of manipulation were used to modify the images. Mosaicization and scrambling were used to produce degraded versions of the training stimuli, while morphing and cell exchange were used to manipulate the relative contribution of positive and negative training stimuli to test stimuli. Mosaicization mainly removes information at high spatial frequencies, whereas scrambling removes information at low spatial frequencies to a greater degree. Morphing leads to complex transformations of the stimuli that are not concentrated at any particular spatial frequency band. Cell exchange preserves high spatial frequency details, but sometimes moves them into the “wrong” stimulus. The four manipulations also introduce high-frequency noise to differing degrees. Responses to test stimuli indicated that high and low spatial frequency information were both sufficient but not necessary to maintain discrimination performance in both species, but there were also species differences in relative sensitivity to higher and lower spatial frequency information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of modified atmosphere storage on colour and microbiological shelf life of normal and pale, soft and exudative pork

Pale, soft and exudative (PSE) and normal pork loins (n = 9 of each) were deboned, divided and packaged in modified atmospheres (MA) of 100% carbon dioxide containing 0, 0.5 and 1.0% residual oxygen (O(2)). The meat was stored at 3 °C, first in MA for 21 days, followed by 5 additional days under retail display conditions with access to air. Before packaging, PSE loins were more light and less red than those of normal meat. The drip loss after MA storage was twice as high from PSE meat as from normal meat. PSE meat was not more discoloured after MA storage than normal meat. The level of residual O(2) in the MA had a significant impact on the colour of the two types of meat. Discoloration was observed on both PSE and normal meat with 0.5% O(2) and even more clearly with 1.0% O(2), as demonstrated by instrumental and visual colour analyses. After MA storage, the microbiological shelf life and flora were not affected by the type of meat, or level of residual O(2).