Evaluating knowledge and capacity development in the water sector: challenges and progress

As knowledge and capacity development (KCD) is increasingly acknowledged as crucial for development, the need to evaluate its impact increases, too. However, evaluating KCD in practice remains a challenge. This article aims to synthesize the current wisdom on the topic of KCD evaluation in the water sector. We discuss two leading approaches to KCD (positivist and complex adaptive systems) and their associated evaluation paradigms, the major methodological challenges facing KCD evaluation, and progress made in that respect. The article provides insights for KCD practitioners and policy makers in the water sector that can help them improve their KCD evaluation practice.     

GutSelf: Interindividual Variability in the Processing of Dietary Compounds by the Human Gastrointestinal Tract

Nutritional research is currently entering the field of personalized nutrition, to a large extent driven by major technological breakthroughs in analytical sciences and biocomputing. An efficient launching of the personalized approach depends on the ability of researchers to comprehensively monitor and characterize interindividual variability in the activity of the human gastrointestinal tract. This information is currently not available in such a form. This review therefore aims at identifying and discussing published data, providing evidence on interindividual variability in the processing of the major nutrients, i.e., protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, along the gastrointestinal tract, including oral processing, intestinal digestion, and absorption. Although interindividual variability is not a primary endpoint of most studies identified, a significant number of publications provides a wealth of information on this topic for each category of nutrients. This knowledge remains fragmented, however, and understanding the clinical relevance of most of the interindividual responses to food ingestion described in this review remains unclear. In that regard, this review has identified a gap and sets the base for future research addressing the issue of the interindividual variability in the response of the human organism to the ingestion of foods.     

Label-free microelectronic PCR quantification

We present a robust and simple method for direct, label-free PCR product quantification using an integrated microelectronic sensor. The field-effect sensor can sequentially detect the intrinsic charge of multiple unprocessed PCR products and does not require sample processing or additional reagents in the PCR mixture. The sensor measures nucleic acid concentration in the PCR relevant range and specifically detects the PCR products over reagents such as Taq polymerase and nucleotide monomers. The sensor can monitor the product concentration at various stages of PCR and can generate a readout that resembles that of a real-time fluorescent measurement using an intercalating dye but without its potential inhibition artifacts. The device is mass-produced using standard semiconductor processes, can be reused for months, and integrates all sensing components directly on-chip. As such, our approach establishes a foundation for the direct integration of PCR-based in vitro biotechnologies with microelectronics.     

On the stochastic timed Pétri nets model and its application to the DQDB protocol

The goal of this paper is twofold : at first, to present the stochastic timed Pétri nets model by emphasizing its ability to express the main characteristics of real time distributed systems (parallelism, synchronization by message exchange, time attributes and in particular time constraints) and to allow both qualitative and quantitative analysis (concept of randomized states graph); second, to show a modeling methodology based on this model that allows a rigorous modeling of theDqdb protocol (Qa access, bwb mechanism role,Pa access influence). A new contribution to theQa mechanism has been done (1).     

Evaluation of FFT-Based and Moder Parametrc Methods for the Spectral Analysis of Bioprosthetic Valve Sounds

The objective of this paper is to compare the performance of conventional FFT-based (basic periodogram and Welch's method) and modern parametric (all-pole and pole-zero modeling) methods in estimating the spectral distribution of cardiac bioprosthetic valve sounds, and for the extraction of the two most dominant frequency peaks (DFP). These methods were tested for stability by adding random noise and truncating the bioprosthetic valve closing sounds, and for reproducibility by measuring the variance of the spectra obtained from three consecutive recordings of each patient. Results from a group of 11 patients show that the basic periodogram and Steiglitz-McBride's method with maximum entropy (pole-zero modeling) provide the most consistent (minimal variance) estimates of the DFP's of the closing sounds. However, for estimating spectral distributions, the most stable methods appear to be the basic periodogram and Steiglitz-McBride's method with extrapolation to zero. The basic periodogram appears to be the best compromise to estimate both the spectral distribution and the DFP's of the bioprosthetic closing sounds.     

Book reviews

Outward from Home—A Planner's Odyssey. Kenneth Watts. Lewes, East Sussex, The Book Guild, 1997, 171 pp., £16.95/hb, ISBN 1–85776–271–1.

Urban Planning Theory since 1945. Nigel Taylor. London, Sage, 1998, 190 pp., £13.99 pb, ISBN 0–7619–6093–7

Urban Regimes and Strategies. Building Europe's Central Executive District in Brussels. Alex G. Papadopoulos. Chicago, IL, The University of Chicago Press, 1996, 308 pp., £18.50, ISBN 0–226–64559–2     

Effect of green building certification on organizational productivity metrics

There is increasing interest in understanding how office accommodation affects organizational productivity. Data on metrics of engagement, job satisfaction, job performance and facility complaints for thousands of employees (n?=?14,569) of a large Canadian financial organization were analysed to explore differences in outcomes between those working in green-certified office buildings (n?=?10) and those in otherwise similar conventional buildings (n?=?10). Overall, green-certified buildings demonstrated higher scores on survey outcomes related to job satisfaction, value to clients and stakeholders, evaluation of management, and corporate engagement. There was also a tendency for manager-assessed job performance to be higher in green-certified buildings. Nevertheless, not all green-certified buildings outperformed all conventional buildings, and superior performance was not exhibited on all outcomes examined. A key observation is that such metrics are routinely recorded by organizations, but relating them to building characteristics is new. Recognition of such datasets opens up many promising avenues for buildings research.     

Performance of Sulfate-reducing Passive Bioreactors for the Removal of Cd and Zn from Mine Drainage in a Cold Climate

Mine Water and the Environment - Passive treatment is a promising, green technology that is increasingly being used for mine drainage treatment. However, several challenges remain concerning its...