A new bycatch reduction device, termed “Excluder”, is presented as an alternative to a traditional rigid sorting grid, mandatory in the small-meshed Norway Pout (<i>Trisopterus esmarkii</i>) trawl fishery in the North Sea. The fishery is a high-volume fishery with large vessels, large demersal trawls and catches up to 100 tons per haul of this small forage fish. The Excluder is a 30 m long netting-based ...

Our purpose is to shed some new light on problems arising from a study of the classical Single Ladder Problem (SLP). The basic idea is to convert the SLP to a corresponding Single Staircase Problem. The main result (Theorem 1) shows that this idea works fine and new results can be obtained by just calculating rational solutions of an algebraic equation. Some examples of such concrete calculations ...

<p>Objective: <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> is a major human pathogen, and nasal carriers have an increased risk for infection and disease. The exploration of host determinants for nasal carriage is relevant to decrease infection burden. Former studies demonstrate lower carriage prevalence in women and among users of progestin-only contraceptives. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible ...

The increasing demand for Electric Vehicle (EV) charging is putting pressure on the power grids and capacities of charging stations. This work focuses on how to use indirect control through price signals to level out the load curve in order to avoid the power consumption from exceeding these capacities. We propose mathematical programming models for the indirect control of EV charging that aim at ...

This paper investigates the use of the class-E inverter for power factor correction (PFC) applications. Analytical and state-space models are derived showing the class-E inverter’s capability of achieving inherent PFC operation with a constant duty cycle. The inherent PFC operation limits the controller responsibility to the regulation of the output voltage, which is key for resonant converters with ...

This paper presents the benefits of PVA fibers in improving the mechanical properties of class F fly-ash-based geopolymer concrete. The activator used in the geopolymer was 8M sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and sodium silicate (Na₂SiO₃), with a mass ratio of Na₂SiO₃ to NaOH varied from 1.5 to 2.5. Cylindrical specimens with a diameter of 100 mm and a height of ...

Plastic pollution is ubiquitous across marine environments, yet detection of anthropogenic debris in the global oceans is in its infancy. Here, we exploit high-resolution multispectral satellite imagery over the North Pacific Ocean and information from GPS-tracked floating plastic conglomerates to explore the potential for detecting marine plastic debris via spaceborne remote sensing platforms. ...

Adherence to the complex set of recommended self-care practices among people with Sickle-Cell Disease (SCD) positively impacts health outcomes. However, few patients possess the required skills (i.e. disease-specific knowledge, adequate levels of self-efficacy). Consequently, adherence rates remain low and only 1% of patients are empowered enough to master the self-care practices. Health coaching ...

While expectations are well-known drivers of electronic health record (EHR) adoption, the drivers of expectations are more elusive. On the basis of interviews with general practitioners (GPs), we investigate how the early implementation process drives their expectations of an EHR that is being implemented in Norway. The GPs’ expectations of the prospective EHR are driven by (a) satisfying experiences ...

We investigate German–Russian bilingual children's sensitivity to formal and semantic cues when assigning gender to nouns in German. Across languages, young children have been shown to primarily rely on phonological cues, whereas sensitivity to semantic and syntactic cues increases with age. With its semi-transparent gender assignment system, where both formal and semantic cues are psycho linguistically ...