Our diet and its impact on the human gut microbiota in terms of composition and function are key determinants of human health across the life-course(1). Fermented vegetables can have enhanced functional and nutritional properties through substrate transformation by microbes and production of biochemicals during the fermentation process(2). Kimchi is a traditional Korean vegetable ferment produced via spontaneous lactic acid bacteria fermentation. Plant nutrients and biochemicals, microbial metabolites and microbial cell components are present in kimchi(3). As live products, fermented vegetables present challenges to commercial producers who need shelf/ transport stability to deliver consistent products to consumers. We hypothesise that fermented vegetable health advantages will be preserved by freeze-drying, while enabling product stability, extended shelf and storage life, stable transportation and utility as food ingredients.

Utilising existing kimchi physiochemical data, we identified kimchi biochemicals (KBs) (benefit health but not essential to it) and kimchi nutrients (KNs) (essential to health). We quantified these components in 3-day old fresh kimchi (T3) and in 3-day old fresh kimchi that had been freeze-dried and powdered (T3 FDP). We sampled technical triplicates and calculated P values using an unpaired 2 tailed t-test.

The hypothesis that KBs and KNs in T3 FDP are preserved at levels not statistically significantly different to those in (T3) (P > 0.005) was disproved. Components of kimchi were affected differently by the FDP process, with decreases in some and increases in others. As a result, the overall profile of KBs and KNs in T3 FDP was different to T3. Based on a daily portion of fresh kimchi being ∼50 g, there was 2.64 g KBs and KNs in 50 g T3 and 2.28 g KBs and KNs in equivalent portion T3 FDP (7.5 g), a reduction of 13.64% after FDP in KBs and KNs combined. Unexpectedly, soluble fibre and iron were significantly lower in equivalent sample T3 FDP compared to T3 (P=0.003 and P < 0.0001 respectively) and vitamin B9 was significantly higher in T3 FDP compared to T3 (P < 0.0001). For KBs, acetic acid and lactic acid were significantly lower in T3 FDP (P=0.020 and P=0.046 respectively), but propionic acid was undetectable in T3 and the equivalent sample T3 FDP contained 1.44 g. Capsaicinoids were not detectable in T3, but were notably present in T3 FDP.

This study represents a critical first step in understanding the extent to which the functionality of fresh kimchi is preserved in its freeze dried and powdered form (termed a FermentceuticalTM). Improving health through fermented foods is a critical concept for consumers, food manufacturers and healthcare professionals, alike.

Introduction: Patients with chronic diseases are known to benefit from exercise. Such patients often visit the emergency department (ED). There are few studies examining prescribing exercise in the ED. We wished to study if exercise prescription in the ED is feasible and effective. Methods: In this pilot prospective block randomized trial, patients in the control group received routine care, whereas the intervention group received a combined written and verbal prescription for moderate exercise (150 minutes/week). Both groups were followed up by phone at 2 months. The primary outcome was achieving 150 min of exercise per week. Secondary outcomes included change in exercise, and differences in reported median weekly exercise. Comparisons were made by Mann-Whitney and Fishers tests (GraphPad). Results: Follow-up was completed for 22 patients (11 Control; 11 Intervention). Baseline reported median (with IQR) weekly exercise was similar between groups; Control 0(0-0)min; Intervention 0(0-45)min. There was no difference between groups for the primary outcome of 150 min/week at 2 months (Control 3/11; Intervention 4/11, RR 1.33 (95%CI 0.38-4.6;p=1.0). There was a significant increase in median exercise from baseline in both groups, but no difference between the groups (Control 75(10-225)min; Intervention 120(52.5-150)min;NS). 3 control patients actually received exercise prescription as part of routine care. A post-hoc comparison of patients receiving intervention vs. no intervention, revealed an increase in patients meeting the primary target of 150min/week (No intervention 0/8; Intervention 7/14, RR 2.0 (95%CI 1.2-3.4);p=0.023). Conclusion: Recruitment was feasible, however our study was underpowered to quantify an estimated effect size. As a significant proportion of the control group received the intervention (as part of standard care), any potential measurable effect was diluted. The improvement seen in patients receiving intervention and the increase in reported exercise in both groups (possible Hawthorne effect) suggests that exercise prescription for ED patients may be beneficial.

Introduction: Point-of-care-ultrasound is an established tool in the early diagnosis of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), with a reported pooled sensitivity of 97.5% and pooled specificity 98.9%. Despite these impressive numbers, body habitus and bowel gas often render emergency department (ED) PoCUS for AAA inconclusive. We devised a manual aid “the modified peace sign technique” to improve visualization of the aorta, consisting of placing the divided fingers of the free hand of the sonographer around the probe to increase gas dispersion and improve the view of the obscured aorta. We tested the technique on volunteers during a training course when the initial scan was indeterminate due to inability to view the aorta from sub-xiphoid to bifurcation. Methods: In our pilot study, 7 physicians were asked to make a best attempt to perform an aortic scan. If they were unable to visualize the aorta, they were asked to use the modified peace sign technique. Participants recorded the number of times which they used the technique and the frequency that the technique allowed for a complete aortic scan, previously unobtainable. All scans were supervised by certified PoCUS physicians. Results: The technique was used a total of 25 times. Following failure to complete an aortic scan using their best attempt, participants were subsequently able to obtain a complete aortic scan 70% (95% CI 48 to 83%) of the time using the modified peace sign technique. Conclusion: In our pilot study, the modified peace sign technique had an estimated effect size of 70% improvement for visualization of the aorta in volunteers. Further studies are required to validate the technique in clinical practice.

Introduction: The positive health outcomes of exercise have been well-studied, and exercise prescription has been shown to reduce morbidity in several chronic health conditions. However, patient attitudes around the prescription of exercise in the emergency department (ED) have not been explored. The aim of our pilot study is to explore patients’ willingness and perceptions of exercise being discussed and prescribed in the ED. Methods: This study is a survey of patients who had been previously selected for exercise prescription in a pilot study conducted at a tertiary care ED. This intervention group were given a standardized provincial written prescription to perform moderate exercise for 150 minutes per week. Participants answered a discharge questionnaire and were followed up by a telephone interview 2 months later. A structured interview of opinions around exercise prescription was conducted. Questions included a combination of non-closed style interview questions and Likert scale. Patients rated prescription detail, helpfulness and likelihood on a Likert scale from 1-5 (1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly agree). Median values (+/-IQRs) are presented, along with dominant themes. Results: 17 people consented to exercise prescription and follow up surveys. 2 were excluded due to hospital admission. 15 participants were enrolled and completed the discharge survey. Two-month follow up survey response rate was 80%. Patients rated the detail given in their prescription as 5 (+/-1). Helpfulness of prescription was rated as 4 (+/-2). Likelihood to continue exercising based on the prescription was rated as 4 (+/-2). 11/12 participants felt that exercise should be discussed in the Emergency Department either routinely or on a case-by-case basis.1 participant felt it should not be discussed at all. Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that most patients are open to exercise being discussed during their Emergency Department visit, and that the prescription format was well-received by study participants.

The objective of design is the production of manufacturing drawings which are right. This objective will rarely be achieved without first making mistakes which require experiment to rectify so that design is the work of a team which includes designers who draw, development engineers and experimental manufacturing operatives.

Design must have an output which can be valued and the value of the output must exceed its costs. In the aircraft industry, the cost of design is a considerable part of the cost of the product and must be recovered directly from the customer. Because underestimating the cost of design is endemic and because some work done to obtain orders will not be successful, not all cost of design can be recovered from the customer and so some costs must be written off.

Fathers’ child-directed speech across two contexts was examined. Father–child dyads from sixty-nine low-income families were videotaped interacting during book reading and toy play when children were 2;0. Fathers used more diverse vocabulary and asked more questions during book reading while their mean length of utterance was longer during toy play. Variation in these specific characteristics of fathers’ speech that differed across contexts was also positively associated with child vocabulary skill measured on the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory. Results are discussed in terms of how different contexts elicit specific qualities of child-directed speech that may promote language use and development.

During the summer of 1985, an intensive effort was made to collect the invertebrates, particularly insects and spiders, of the Wagner Natural Area. This is a 162-ha area 6 km west of the city limits of Edmonton, Alta., on the south side of Highway 16X.

An examination of the spiders collected in the pitfall pans revealed two species of pisaurids, Dolomedes striatus Giebel, 1869, and Dolomedes triton (Walckenaer, 1837). This is the first record of Dolomedes striatus for Alberta. The previous known western limit of its distribution was more or less between Lake Nipigon and Thunder Bay, Ont. (Carico 1973).

Eight species of spiders belonging to two families were collected on northeastern Devon Island, N.W.T., in connection with the Canadian International Biological Program, Tundra Biome. They are Lycosidae: Tarentula exasperans Pickard-Cambridge; Erigonidae: Acartauchenius pilifrons (Koch), Collinsia spetsbergensis (Thorell), Diplocephalus barbatus (Koch), Erigone psychrophila Thorell, Hilaira vexatrix (Pickard-Cambridge), Minyriolus pampia Chamberlin, and Typhochraestus latithorax (Strand). The three most commonly collected species were E. psychrophila, T. exasperans, and H. vexatrix, in that order. New distributional data from other arctic localities for the above-mentioned species are given. A. pilifrons is recorded for the first time from the Nearctic Region and is described and figured in detail.

About fifty species of terrestrial arthropods have been collected in Antarctica; these include mites, ticks, springtails, sucking lice, biting lice and flies. The mites include both free-living and parasitic forms, the springtails and flies are free-living, and the ticks and lice are parasitic. The ticks, parasitic mites, and biting lice are associated with birds, and the sucking lice with seals. The number of species are about equally divided between free-living and parasitic forms. The ability of insects and mites to survive the very low winter temperatures and frequent strong winds of Antarctica is of considerable interest; judged in relation to commonly accepted ideas of tolerance, the environment is extremely forbidding.

Matching assessment strategies to learning outcomes in radiation therapy education is of the utmost importance. Assessing clinical competence requires that ‘competence’ be clearly defined prior to the start of any clinical programme. In this article, we report on our experience in using clinical oral examinations in assessing competence in second year undergraduate radiation therapy students. The shortcomings of clinical oral examinations such as ‘leaking’ of the agenda are addressed and more positive attributes, such as increased collaboration between academic and clinical radiation therapists are discussed.

1. A preparation containing 0·7% scilliroside (the glucoside of red squill) had been tested as a poison for Rattus norvegicus and R. rattus.

2. The preparation has been found to be effective in the field against norvegicus but not against rattus.

3. Assayed against a strain of white rats, the preparation had an LD 50 for males of about 25mg./kg., and for feamales of about 5 mg./kg.

4. The LD 50 for adult Rhode Island Red fowls was greater than 400 mg. /kg. Pigs, dogs and cats were treated with doses up to 16mg./kg. without fatal results.

5. Silmurine was unpalatable to pigs, dose and cates, but fowls readily consumed a mash containing 1% Slimurine.

The petrography and stratigraphical setting of the Nutfield fuller's earths were recently described by E. F. Newton (I) who also made a complete study of the accessory minerals associated with the actual “fuller's earth material”, which is the main constituent of the native earths processed at Redhill, Surrey.

1. The results of a survey of the methods of milk production on a random sample of farms in four counties of England and Wales were used in conjunction with bacteriological and keeping quality tests of the milk produced, to estimate the influence on milk quality of factors in equipment and technique.

2. Of the many factors in technique investigated, only the sterilization of utensils and the cooling of the milk appeared to affect milk quality. The effects of these two factors differed in some degree with the four tests used.

3. Milk samples from machine-milked herds had significantly greater thermoduric colony counts than samples from hand-milked herds. No other factor of equipment showed appreciable association with milk-quality tests.

4. Brief recommendations are made about the conduct of any future field survey of factors affecting bacteriological and keeping quality of milk.

To obtain records of individual animals' habits when a small herd is observed for long periods of time, several observers are essential. The errors between observers were so much less than those between animals and between periods of observation that for most purposes records made by a succession of different observers will be adequate.

The errors of observations at 1 and 4 min. intervals, using the grazing records of ten animals, were 3·20 and 7·36% of the mean respectively. The latter figure being of sufficient accuracy for practical application, it is concluded that the 4 min. interval is suitable for records of a major habit.

The errors for the minor habits were large relative to the mean time occupied on them, but still reasonable in relation to the purposes for which work of this sort would usually be required.

1. Methods, buildings and equipment used for milk production in Caernarvonshire, Hertfordshire, Pembrokeshire and Wiltshire have been ascertained by a random sample survey carried out in 1948–9.

2. The results showed marked differences between counties in practically every respect which are summarized in thirty-two tables.

3. The value of this survey and some points in its planning and execution are critically discussed.

Conservation planners often seek short cuts when making decisions about land use by directing management towards one or a few species that will benefit the wider ecosystem. The umbrella species concept is one such proposed short cut. An umbrella species comprises a population of individuals of a particular species whose resource requirements and habitat needs encompass the sufficient home ranges and resource needs of viable populations of co-occurring species. We examined the 17 published criteria available to identify a potential umbrella species and recommend that conservation managers wishing to apply this concept could focus on only seven criteria: well-known biology; large home range size; high probability of population persistence; co-occurrence of species of conservation interest; management needs that are beneficial to co-occurring species; sensitivity to human disturbance; and ease of monitoring. We note however, that rigorous assessment of candidate umbrella species requires such detailed knowledge of candidate and co-occurring species that it seems less of a short cut than planners may wish.