The interaction of relativistically intense lasers with opaque targets represents a highly non-linear, multi-dimensional parameter space. This limits the utility of sequential 1D scanning of experimental parameters for the optimization of secondary radiation, although to-date this has been the accepted methodology due to low data acquisition rates. High repetition-rate (HRR) lasers augmented by machine learning present a valuable opportunity for efficient source optimization. Here, an automated, HRR-compatible system produced high-fidelity parameter scans, revealing the influence of laser intensity on target pre-heating and proton generation. A closed-loop Bayesian optimization of maximum proton energy, through control of the laser wavefront and target position, produced proton beams with equivalent maximum energy to manually optimized laser pulses but using only 60% of the laser energy. This demonstration of automated optimization of laser-driven proton beams is a crucial step towards deeper physical insight and the construction of future radiation sources.

We present the development and characterization of a high-stability, multi-material, multi-thickness tape-drive target for laser-driven acceleration at repetition rates of up to 100 Hz. The tape surface position was measured to be stable on the sub-micrometre scale, compatible with the high-numerical aperture focusing geometries required to achieve relativistic intensity interactions with the pulse energy available in current multi-Hz and near-future higher repetition-rate lasers ($>$kHz). Long-term drift was characterized at 100 Hz demonstrating suitability for operation over extended periods. The target was continuously operated at up to 5 Hz in a recent experiment for 70,000 shots without intervention by the experimental team, with the exception of tape replacement, producing the largest data-set of relativistically intense laser–solid foil measurements to date. This tape drive provides robust targetry for the generation and study of high-repetition-rate ion beams using next-generation high-power laser systems, also enabling wider applications of laser-driven proton sources.

If a body enters a viscous-inviscid fluid layer near a wall, then significant effects can be felt from the presence of incident vorticity, viscous forces and nonlinear forces. The focus here is on the response in the outer edge of such a wall layer. Nonlinear two-dimensional unsteady behaviour is examined through modelling, computation and analysis applied for a thin body travelling streamwise upstream or downstream or staying still relative to the wall. The wall layer with its balance between inviscid and viscous effects interacts freely with the body movement, causing relatively high magnitudes of pressure on top of the body and nonlinear responses in the gap between the body and the wall. The study finds explicit solutions for the motion of the body, separation of the flow arising near the wall and possible instabilities occurring over the length scale of any short body.

Alkali-deficient tourmalines are found in albitized rocks from the hanging-wall of the Sullivan Pb-Zn-Ag deposit (British Columbia, Canada). They approximate the Mg-equivalent of foitite with an idealized formula □(Mg2Al)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4. Major chemical substitutions in the tourmalines are the alkali-defect type [Na*(x) + Mg*(Y) = □(x) + Al(Y)] and the uvite type [Na*(x) + Al(Y) = Ca(x) + Mg*(Y)], where Na* = Na + K, Mg* = Mg + Fe + Mn. The occurrence of these alkali-deficient tourmalines reflects a unique geochemical environment that is either alkali-depleted overall or one in which the alkalis preferentially partitioned into coexisting minerals (e.g. albite).

Some of the alkali-deficient tourmalines have unusually high Mn contents (up to 1.5 wt.% MnO) compared to other Sullivan tourmalines. Manganese has a strong preference for incorporation into coexisting garnet and carbonate at Sullivan, thus many tourmalines in Mn-rich rocks are poor in Mn (<0.2 wt.% MnO). It appears that the dominant controls over the occurrence of Mn-rich tourmalines at Sullivan are the local availability of Mn and the lack of other coexisting minerals that may preferentially incorporate Mn into their structures.

The Rockeskyll complex in the north, central part of the Quaternary West Eifel volcanic field encapsulates an association of carbonatite, nephelinite and phonolite. The volcanic complex is dominated by three eruptive centres, which are distinct in their magma chemistry and their mode of emplacement. The Auf Dickel diatreme forms one centre and has erupted the only known carbonatite in the West Eifel, along with a broad range of alkaline rock types. Extrusive carbonatitic volcanism is represented by spheroidal autoliths, which preserve an equilibrium assemblage. The diatreme has also erupted xenoliths of calcite-bearing feldspathoidal syenite, phonolite and sanidine and clinopyroxene megacrysts, which are interpreted as fragments of a sub-volcanic complex. The carbonate phase of volcanism has several manifestations; extrusive lapilli, recrystallized ashes and calcite-bearing syenites, fragmented during diatreme emplacement.

A petrogenetic link between carbonatites and alkali mafic magmas is confirmed from Sr and Nd isotope systematics, and an upper mantle origin for the felsic rocks is suggested. The chemistry and mineralogy of mantle xenoliths erupted throughout the West Eifel indicate enrichment in those elements incompatible in the mantle. In addition, the evidence from trace element signatures and melts trapped as glasses support interaction between depleted mantle and small volume carbonate and felsic melts. This close association between carbonate and felsic melts in the mantle is mirrored in the surface eruptives of Auf Dickel and at numerous alkaline-carbonatite provinces worldwide.

One of the most conspicuous phenomena in the Arctic Is the fracture of sea ice. It is scarcely possible to travel far without seeing a variety of fracture forms, produced both by natural processes and by human activity.

At strain-rates below about 10−4 s−1, deformation is dominated by creep, but at higher strain-rates fracture is much more important. One of the reasons for this is the very low fracture toughness of ice. The movements of ice in contact with offshore structures often induce strain-rates well beyond the level at which fracture begins, and so offshore structures will often operate in the fracture regime, and it is fracture processes which will determine the design loads. We consider the different modes of repeated fracture that will occur, and classify them into distinct mechanisms of crushing, spalling, and radial and circumferential cracking. Experimental and field observations are plotted on a deformation mode map. A theoretical treatment of radial cracking confirms that very low loads can propagate cracks to long distances; these loads are small by comparison with those calculated from theoretical models that treat ice as a plastically-deforming continuum.

The concept of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease initially stemmed from the developmental programming of metabolic diseases. Reproductive functions and fertility in adulthood may also be programmed during foetal development. We studied the impact of dietary-induced maternal hyperlipidaemia and hypercholesterolaemia (HH), administered at 10 weeks of age and throughout the gestation and lactation, on male reproductive functions of rabbit offspring. Male rabbits born to HH dams and fed a control diet had significantly lighter testes and epididymes compared with rabbits born to control dams at adulthood. No significant changes in sperm concentration, sperm DNA integrity and sperm membrane composition were observed, but serum-free testosterone concentrations were decreased in HH males. This study confirms the importance of maternal metabolic status for the development of male reproductive organs.

Leptospirosis is a globally important zoonotic infection caused by spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira. It is transmitted to humans by direct contact with infected animals or indirectly via contaminated water. It is mainly a problem of the resource-poor developing countries of the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world but outbreaks due to an increase in travel and recreational activities have been reported in developed and more industrialized areas of the world. Current methods of diagnosis are costly, time-consuming and require the use of specialized laboratory equipment and personnel. The purpose of this paper is to report the validation of the ‘Leptorapide®’ test (Linnodee Ltd, Northern Ireland) for the diagnosis of human leptospirosis. It is a simple one-step latex agglutination assay performed using equal volumes of serum sample and antigen-bound latex beads. Evidence of leptospiral antibodies is determined within minutes. Agglutination is scored on a scale of 1–5 and the results interpreted using a score card provided with the kit. Validation has been performed with a large sample size obtained from individuals originating from various parts of the world including Brazil and India. The test has shown sensitivity and specificity values of 97·1% and 94·0%, respectively, relative to the microscopic agglutination test. The results demonstrate that Leptorapide offers a cost-effective and accurate alternative to the more historical methods of antibody detection.

This study aimed to determine whether there was a difference in skin permeability to methylene blue dye or skin morphology between dairy cows that differed in their susceptibility to digital dermatitis (DD) and to assess the effect of contact with slurry on skin permeability. Twenty nine dairy cows were monitored for DD during the winter housing period and classed as DD+ (previous DD infection, n = 17), or DD− (no recorded infection, n = 12). The animals were culled and a skin sample was taken from above the heel of each hind foot and frozen. Samples were later defrosted and one sample from each cow was tested for permeability, whereas the other was treated with slurry for 24 h before permeability testing. To test permeability, methylene blue dye was applied to the skin surface in a Franz diffusion cell. After 48 h, the amount of dye that had passed through the skin was estimated. The stratum corneum thickness and the density of hair follicles were determined from additional heel skin samples. Skin permeability to methylene blue dye was significantly greater for samples that had been treated with slurry but did not differ between DD+ and DD− animals. No difference was found in the stratum corneum thickness or density of hair follicles between DD+ and DD− animals. These findings imply that individual differences in general skin permeability are not a major factor in determining DD susceptibility and suggest that contact with slurry could contribute to DD infection by increasing the permeability of the skin, which may facilitate pathogen entry. Further work is required to clarify the role played by slurry in the pathogenesis of DD.

Grivet monkeys experimentally infected with two different strains of Leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo showed no signs of severe clinical disease. There were no significant macroscopic lesions in any of the tissues examined, but the organisms were demonstrated in various tissues by immunofluorescent technique and were isolated from the blood and urine of two monkeys and the kidney of one. Abraded skin was shown to be a viable route of infection in non-human primates.

Many vector-borne pathogens whose primary vectors are generalists, such as Ixodid ticks, can infect a wide range of host species and are often zoonotic. Understanding their transmission dynamics is important for the development of disease management programmes. Models exist to describe the transmission dynamics of such diseases, but are necessarily simplistic and generally limited by knowledge of vector population dynamics. They are typically deterministic SIR-type models, which predict disease dynamics in a single, non-spatial, closed patch. Here we explore the limitations of such a model of louping-ill virus dynamics by challenging it with novel field data. The model was only partially successful in predicting Ixodes ricinus density and louping-ill virus prevalence at 6 Scottish sites. We extend the existing multi-host model by forming a two-patch model, incorporating the impact of roaming hosts. This demonstrates that host movement may account for some of the discrepancies between the original model and empirical data. We conclude that insights into the dynamics of multi-host vector-borne pathogens can be gained by using a simple two-patch model. Potential improvements to the model, incorporating aspects of spatial and temporal heterogeneity, are outlined.

An outbreak of Salmonella enteritidis PT 6B food poisoning, the first reported of this recently described phage type, resulted in illness among 46 of 49 members of a camping group in North Wales. 33 of whom were hospitalized. Epidemiological evidence (P < 0·0001) indicated that a lemon meringue pie was the vehicle of infection. Fresh shell eggs, stored after purchase at ambient temperature, appear to be the most likely source of infection, with multiplication during preparation and subsequent storage of the pie a significant contributory factor. Campers may be at greater risk than others and should consider the use of cold boxes for the transport and storage of eggs, and avoid the preparation of lightly cooked egg products under these basic conditions.

In 1985 an outbreak of ornithosis affected 13 of 80 (16%) workers in a duck-processing plant. New employees were three times more likely to become cases than established employees. The highest attack rate was in those on the production line. Following the outbreak, an occupational health scheme was set up to monitor the health of new recruits to the company. Serological evidence of recent infection was demonstrated in 18 of 37 (49%) new employees tested in the first 3 months of employment. Five (14%) also had clinical evidence of ornithosis. Veterinary investigation of the ducks demonstrated a high proportion with asymptomatic chlamydial infection. It is suggested that ornithosis may be more common in duck processors than ins processors than is currently supposed. Strategies to reduce occupational risks are discussed.