Nomadic Norwegian Architecture: An Historical and Contemporary Study of Prefabricated Norwegian Whaling Settlements in the Southern Hemisphere

<p>The early 1900’s saw a Norwegian Whaler’s base formed on Stewart Island where they shipped prefabricated buildings from Norway to create a settlement. The majority of these kitset buildings are still standing and apparently have had little modification from their original form. These buildings have no documentation of their materials, suitability of site or analysis of their current condition in this foreign environment. Initial research found one book by J.P.C Watt from the 1980’s which researches the Ross Sea whalers with little focus on the architecture or design. The book documents the movements of the buildings from their original service as a whaling station in the early 1900’s. This is an interesting ensemble of nomadic buildings, foreign to New Zealand, being moved around consistently and yet still remaining in the country today. Through the investigation of materiality, tectonics and individual building elements the research demonstrates how the buildings reacted to their nomadic inhabitants and also how the materials allowed for a sense of personal belonging to occur. This research aims to explore the materiality of Norwegian portable architecture and the material’s present conditions. It establishes that the nomadic/temporal nature of the Norwegian kitset buildings were not adapted to fit the New Zealand context and documents these buildings for future reference. The first step is literature research and design exploration of Norwegian kitset materials, tectonics and components. In the second step, analysis of case studies is conducted. Findings have been judged upon functionality, and therefore the design is a result of the site context and research.</p>

Nomadic Norwegian Architecture: An Historical and Contemporary Study of Prefabricated Norwegian Whaling Settlements in the Southern Hemisphere

<p>The early 1900’s saw a Norwegian Whaler’s base formed on Stewart Island where they shipped prefabricated buildings from Norway to create a settlement. The majority of these kitset buildings are still standing and apparently have had little modification from their original form. These buildings have no documentation of their materials, suitability of site or analysis of their current condition in this foreign environment. Initial research found one book by J.P.C Watt from the 1980’s which researches the Ross Sea whalers with little focus on the architecture or design. The book documents the movements of the buildings from their original service as a whaling station in the early 1900’s. This is an interesting ensemble of nomadic buildings, foreign to New Zealand, being moved around consistently and yet still remaining in the country today. Through the investigation of materiality, tectonics and individual building elements the research demonstrates how the buildings reacted to their nomadic inhabitants and also how the materials allowed for a sense of personal belonging to occur. This research aims to explore the materiality of Norwegian portable architecture and the material’s present conditions. It establishes that the nomadic/temporal nature of the Norwegian kitset buildings were not adapted to fit the New Zealand context and documents these buildings for future reference. The first step is literature research and design exploration of Norwegian kitset materials, tectonics and components. In the second step, analysis of case studies is conducted. Findings have been judged upon functionality, and therefore the design is a result of the site context and research.</p>

The contemporary study of acute myocarditis in South Africa – CAMISA

Introduction The aetiology and estimated incidence of acute myocarditis (AM) remains undefined in Africa. Whilst cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) provides for a provisional non-invasive diagnosis, endomyocardial biopsy (EMB), which is infrequently clinically sought, remains the gold standard. The developed world has experienced a shift in the viral epidemiology of AM and the ESC's most recent position statement on myocarditis recommends both CMR and EMB as the standard of care in suspected cases. We report on the interim results of the study. Purpose To determine the nature of presentation, underlying aetiology, and outcomes of patients presenting with AM to a single tertiary centre in South Africa. Methods A cohort of patients from a single tertiary centre in South Africa will be recruited from January 2018 to December 2022. All patients presenting or referred to the centre with clinically suspected AM that are investigated according to the ESC recommendations on myocarditis, which includes blood tests (CRP, hsTNT, HIV and Hepatitis C serology, ANA), a standard twelve-lead ECG, TTE, coronary angiography, CMR and EMB, will be included. Enrolment is ongoing. Results A total of 102 (mean age 42.2±13 years, 64.7% male) cases of clinically suspected AM were identified between January 2018 and January 2021. AM was confirmed in 41 (40.2%) cases on CMR only, while 41 (40.2%) were also confirmed on EMB. 4 cases of sarcoidosis, 1 case each of eosinophilic myocarditis, amyloidosis and primary cardiac lymphoma were diagnosed. Viral genome was isolated by PCR in 60 (59.8%) patients. PVB19 (73.5%) was the most commonly identified virus in those with confirmed AM followed by EBV (12.2%), HHV6 (4.1%) and Human Bocavirus (2%). 3 were coinfected with PVB19/EBV, and 1 with PVB19/EBV/HHV6. PVB19 was also isolated in 9 patients with no evidence of AM on CMR or EMB, but with lower median viral load compared to those with AM (198copies/ml IQR 113 – 282 vs 483copies/ml IQR 366 – 1460, p=0.005). The virus-positive patients with confirmed AM tended to be older (43.1±13.4 years vs 37.6±12.2 years, p=n/s), had higher median CRP (24mg/L vs 16mg/L, p=n/s) but lower median hsTnT (326.5ng/L vs 434.5ng/L, p=n/s) at presentation, and were more likely to be EMB positive (60% vs 37.5%, p=0.04) when compared to the virus-negative group. To date 6 patients have demised, of which 4 were related to AM. Conclusion To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate AM in Africa, and the biggest cohort of AM patients outside of the developed world. It demonstrates the heterogeneity in presentations and provides insight into the viral pathogens within our local setting, which appears similar to those reported in the developed world. We were also able to highlight some differences in demographic and clinical characteristics between those with virus-positive and virus-negative AM. The background prevalence and causal role of PVB19 in our setting will also need to be further explored. FUNDunding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

A Brief Perspective on Environmental Science in the Anthropocene: Recalibrating, Rethinking and Re-Evaluating to Meet the Challenge of Complexity

A convincing case has been made that the scale of human activity has reached such pervasiveness that humans are akin to a force of nature. How environmental science responds to the many new challenges of the Anthropocene is at the forefront of the field. The aim of this perspective is to describe Anthropocene as a concept and a time period and discuss its relevance to the contemporary study of environmental science. Specifically, we consider areas in environmental science which may need to be revisited to adjust to complexity of the new era: (a) recalibrate the idea of environmental baselines as Anthropogenic baselines; (b) rethink multiple stressor approaches to recognize a system under flux; (c) re-evaluate the relationship of environmental science with other disciplines, particularly Earth Systems Science, but also social sciences and humanities. The all-encompassing nature of the Anthropocene necessitates the need to revise and reorganize to meet the challenge of complexity.

APLICAÇÕES CLÍNICAS DA VITAMINA C: UMA BREVE REVISÃO

Vitamin C or ascorbic acid (AA) is extremely important for humans, as it is not metabolized by the human body, it is necessary to ingest it through diet and / or supplementation. AA has several functions in the body, such as enzymatic cofactors, hormone biosynthesis and antioxidant effect. However, research reports indicate that ingesting high doses of AA may pose health risks. Therefore, the descriptive effect of the clinical application of AA was analyzed. A bibliographic review was carried out and divided into two aspects: the historical view, which was published between 1753 and 2012, and another contemporary study was carried out between 1990 and 2017. The research was carried out on the Academic Google, PubMed, Scielo, Portal de Periódicos da Capes and books, using the keywords: vitamin C, ascorbic acid, antioxidants and pro-oxidants. AA supplements are controversial and their antioxidant and pro-oxidant effects have been described. Its effectiveness in preventing and treating diabetes and cancer is questionable. Therefore, excessive AA supplementation can cause a transition from a healthy to a pathological state, triggering pro-oxidant activity. In addition, the optimal intake dose and the limit between beneficial and harmful doses are still controversial. Therefore, vitamin C should be supplemented with caution and prescribed and supervised by the medical team.

Antimicrobial Susceptibility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Isolated from Hospital Environment

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a leading cause of disease and death particularly in cystic fibrosis patients and also considered resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. Therefore, it is very difficult to remove the Pseudomonas aeruginosa from the hospital environment by using simple techniques. In the contemporary study, biofilm mediated mechanism of various antimicrobial responses were analyzed. For this purpose, different Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates were collected from Pakistan medical institute Islamabad (PIMS) hospital and were investigated for pellicle formation. Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were studied for different groups of antibiotics including imipenem, meropenem, ceftazidime, amikacin, tobramycin, gentamicin, piperacillin, cefoperazone, and cefotaxime. The goal was to check antimicrobial susceptibility of pseudomonas aeruginosa which shows resistant to tobramycin, imipenem, meropenem, amikacin, gentamicin, cefotaxime, piperacillin, ceftazidime, cefoperazone. Additionally, in this study, Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains were also investigated for pellicle formation. In conclusion, this research work wills highlights the useful mechanism of antibiotics resistance to Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections in clinical practice. Keywords: Antibiotics, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, antibiotics, Biofilm, Peliclle.

North of Empire: essays on the cultural technologies of space

Jody Berland’s North of Empire is an astute, compelling retrospective of half a career’s thought on media spaces from a distinctly Canadian perspective.It is the best book in a generation to argue for the value of a Canadian approach to cultural studies, not just parochially but as a critical contribution to the contemporary study of culture anywhere. Given its substantive focus, it should be no surprise to learn that the Canadian Communication Association awarded North of Empire its 2009 Gertrude J. Robinson book prize (full disclosure: I served on the jury). Nonetheless, an anthology of previously published essays is not an obvious choice for a book award.Referring in her postscript to the heightened concern about protecting and nurturing Canadian culture amidst debates over free trade negotiations in the 1980s, Berland reminds us that “just because something is past does not mean it is not present” (p. 301). She could be explaining the continuing relevance, even spectral centrality, of her own concerns in this collection of essays. Although the chapters were originally published between 1988 and 2005, each is updated and thematically positioned out of chronological order to create a surprisingly cohesive monograph.

North of Empire: essays on the cultural technologies of space

Jody Berland’s North of Empire is an astute, compelling retrospective of half a career’s thought on media spaces from a distinctly Canadian perspective.It is the best book in a generation to argue for the value of a Canadian approach to cultural studies, not just parochially but as a critical contribution to the contemporary study of culture anywhere. Given its substantive focus, it should be no surprise to learn that the Canadian Communication Association awarded North of Empire its 2009 Gertrude J. Robinson book prize (full disclosure: I served on the jury). Nonetheless, an anthology of previously published essays is not an obvious choice for a book award.Referring in her postscript to the heightened concern about protecting and nurturing Canadian culture amidst debates over free trade negotiations in the 1980s, Berland reminds us that “just because something is past does not mean it is not present” (p. 301). She could be explaining the continuing relevance, even spectral centrality, of her own concerns in this collection of essays. Although the chapters were originally published between 1988 and 2005, each is updated and thematically positioned out of chronological order to create a surprisingly cohesive monograph.