We present the most sensitive and detailed view of the neutral hydrogen ( ${\rm H\small I}$ ) emission associated with the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), through the combination of data from the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) and Parkes (Murriyang), as part of the Galactic Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (GASKAP) pilot survey. These GASKAP-HI pilot observations, for the first time, reveal ${\rm H\small I}$ in the SMC on similar physical scales as other important tracers of the interstellar medium, such as molecular gas and dust. The resultant image cube possesses an rms noise level of 1.1 K ( $1.6\,\mathrm{mJy\ beam}^{-1}$ ) $\mathrm{per}\ 0.98\,\mathrm{km\ s}^{-1}$ spectral channel with an angular resolution of $30^{\prime\prime}$ ( ${\sim}10\,\mathrm{pc}$ ). We discuss the calibration scheme and the custom imaging pipeline that utilises a joint deconvolution approach, efficiently distributed across a computing cluster, to accurately recover the emission extending across the entire ${\sim}25\,\mathrm{deg}^2$ field-of-view. We provide an overview of the data products and characterise several aspects including the noise properties as a function of angular resolution and the represented spatial scales by deriving the global transfer function over the full spectral range. A preliminary spatial power spectrum analysis on individual spectral channels reveals that the power law nature of the density distribution extends down to scales of 10 pc. We highlight the scientific potential of these data by comparing the properties of an outflowing high-velocity cloud with previous ASKAP+Parkes ${\rm H\small I}$ test observations.

Capacity development is critical to long-term conservation success, yet we lack a robust and rigorous understanding of how well its effects are being evaluated. A comprehensive summary of who is monitoring and evaluating capacity development interventions, what is being evaluated and how, would help in the development of evidence-based guidance to inform design and implementation decisions for future capacity development interventions and evaluations of their effectiveness. We built an evidence map by reviewing peer-reviewed and grey literature published since 2000, to identify case studies evaluating capacity development interventions in biodiversity conservation and natural resource management. We used inductive and deductive approaches to develop a coding strategy for studies that met our criteria, extracting data on the type of capacity development intervention, evaluation methods, data and analysis types, categories of outputs and outcomes assessed, and whether the study had a clear causal model and/or used a systems approach. We found that almost all studies assessed multiple outcome types: most frequent was change in knowledge, followed by behaviour, then attitude. Few studies evaluated conservation outcomes. Less than half included an explicit causal model linking interventions to expected outcomes. Half of the studies considered external factors that could influence the efficacy of the capacity development intervention, and few used an explicit systems approach. We used framework synthesis to situate our evidence map within the broader literature on capacity development evaluation. Our evidence map (including a visual heat map) highlights areas of low and high representation in investment in research on the evaluation of capacity development.

ABSTRACT IMPACT: Racial differences in the prevalence of hypertension and endothelial (dys)function are well established, yet research investigating the mechanism(s) underlying this disparity is still lacking. OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Investigate the influence of race and the effect of serum collected from hypertensive donors on Protein Phosphatase 2A (PP2A) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression and activity in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) from Caucasian (CA) and African American (AA) donors. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: HUVECs from 3 CA & 3 AA donors were cultured in parallel. Experiments were conducted between passages 5-7. At ?90% confluency, cells were serum starved ˜12hrs prior to incubating for 24 or 48 hours in one of the following conditions: 1) Control (Fetal Bovine Serum), 2) serum from normotensives (NT; 5 CA & 5 AA donors), or 3) serum from hypertensives (HT; 5 CA & 5 AA donors). NT and HT serum was pooled from donors with the following characteristics: Male, 30-50 years, nonsmokers, no comorbidities, and non-obese (BMI < 30 kg/m2). Western blotting was used to measure protein expression of total eNOS, p-eNOSS1177, total PP2A, and p-PP2AY307. For activity p-eNOSS1177/total eNOS and p-PP2AY307/ total PP2A ratio was used. A two-way ANOVA was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Irrespective of the donors’ race, there was no influence of serum treatment or interaction effect in any of the measured proteins of interest. Moreover, compared to CA, HUVECs from AA had lower expression of eNOS irrespective of condition (race p=0.01). Compared to CA, HUVECs from AA tended to have lower expression of p-eNOSS1177 irrespective of condition (race p=0.07). However, there was no racial differences in eNOS activity (p=0.68). There was no racial difference in the expression of PP2A (p=0.35), p-PP2AY307 (p=0.30), or PP2A activity (p=0.97) in all conditions. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF FINDINGS: Our preliminary results suggest no influence serum constituents from hypertensive donors or race on PP2A or eNOS expression and activity in HUVECS. Future research should consider conducting proteomics profiling to compare NT and HT serum.

Gravitational waves from coalescing neutron stars encode information about nuclear matter at extreme densities, inaccessible by laboratory experiments. The late inspiral is influenced by the presence of tides, which depend on the neutron star equation of state. Neutron star mergers are expected to often produce rapidly rotating remnant neutron stars that emit gravitational waves. These will provide clues to the extremely hot post-merger environment. This signature of nuclear matter in gravitational waves contains most information in the 2–4 kHz frequency band, which is outside of the most sensitive band of current detectors. We present the design concept and science case for a Neutron Star Extreme Matter Observatory (NEMO): a gravitational-wave interferometer optimised to study nuclear physics with merging neutron stars. The concept uses high-circulating laser power, quantum squeezing, and a detector topology specifically designed to achieve the high-frequency sensitivity necessary to probe nuclear matter using gravitational waves. Above 1 kHz, the proposed strain sensitivity is comparable to full third-generation detectors at a fraction of the cost. Such sensitivity changes expected event rates for detection of post-merger remnants from approximately one per few decades with two A+ detectors to a few per year and potentially allow for the first gravitational-wave observations of supernovae, isolated neutron stars, and other exotica.

Background: Loss of a spouse is a frequent occurrence in later life, with about 10% of the individuals finding themselves unable to cope and progressing to prolonged grief, risking further mental and physical problems.

Objective: The development and implementation of an online grief program, such as LEAVES (optimizing the menta L hEalth and resilience of older Adults that haVe lost th Eir spou Se via blended, online therapy), intends to improve prevention and treatment of prolonged grief, so that elderly mourners can continue to lead an active, meaningful and dignified life.

Methods: The LEAVES program, a project under AAL (Active and Assisted Living) 2019 Call for Sustainable Smart Solutions for Ageing Well, is in development by an international consortium and integrates academical, clinical and technical experts. The project will take place between February 2020 and January 2023 and involve real-life evaluation of 315 end-users. The Psychiatric Department at the Health Unit of Baixo Alentejo (ULSBA) will offer the service to its primary users, blending online services with telephone, video calls and face-to-face sessions. Widowed older adults >65 that express the need for help in mourning their spouse will be recruited in the community as well as via the geriatric psychiatry team and primary care.

Results: With LEAVES program we aim for older adults to process the loss of a spouse in a blended online/presential environment, detecting olders at risk for complications, reveal negative trends in their emotional life, and act to counter such trends. The evaluation will focus on wellbeing and involve several measures to assess grief symptoms, loneliness, hopelessness, satisfaction and quality of life. Conclusions: ULSBA will use LEAVES to improve clinical practice on preventing and managing prolonged grief as well as, after testing and validating it in this project, to save economical costs and improve effectiveness, both to hospital and patients.

The giant gypsum crystals of Naica cave have fascinated scientists since their discovery in 2000. Human activity has changed the microclimate inside the cave, making scientists wonder about the potential environmental impact on the crystals. Over the last 9 years, we have studied approximately 70 samples. This paper reports on the detailed chemical–structural characterization of the impurities present at the surface of these crystals and the experimental simulations of their potential deterioration patterns. Selected samples were studied by petrography, optical and electronic microscopy, and laboratory X-ray diffraction. 2D grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, X-ray μ-fluorescence, and X-ray μ-absorption near-edge structure were used to identify the impurities and their associated phases. These impurities were deposited during the latest stage of the gypsum crystal formation and have afterward evolved with the natural high humidity. The simulations of the behavior of the crystals in microclimatic chambers produced crystal dissolution by 1–4% weight fraction under high CO2 concentration and permanent fog, and gypsum phase dehydration under air and CO2 gaseous environment. Our work suggests that most surface impurities are of natural origin; the most significant anthropogenic damage on the crystals is the extraction of water from the caves.

There are currently over 600 million people aged over 60 and it is predicted that, by 2025, the number will double and, by 2050 there will be over 2 billion people aged 60 and above and the number of over 60's will be greater than the number of children under the age of 15. Co-morbid physical and mental health conditions are associated with an aging population and many of this population will suffer from stroke, hypertension, loneliness, depression, dementia, mobility and sight problems. The traditional approach of caring for people in hospitals is increasingly inappropriate for many of the elderly population and primary care is often the first point of contact for many people seeking access to health and social care. In 2008, the WHO and Wonca (World Organisation of Family Doctors) published a document about the integration of mental health into primary care across spectrum. We will be describing the principles and method of integration of mental health problems in old age into primary care using examples from the Australian and UK setting. Also we will examine the role non-governmental organisations can play in the process of integration. Caring for the elderly is rewarding and possible in the primary care setting. The current situation where many elderly people do not have access to an integrated health care system is unacceptable. Using data and a series of case vignettes we will illustrate that primary care has an important role to play within an integrated system.

The stiffness of conjugated polymers should lead to chain alignment near buried interfaces, even if the polymer film is nominally amorphous. Although simulations predict that this alignment layer is approximately 1.5 times the persistence length, chain alignment at buried interfaces of amorphous polymers has not been experimentally measured. Using Mueller matrix spectroscopy, the optical response of regiorandom poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) was modeled in order to extract the aligned layer thickness. By approximating the optical properties of the aligned layer as that of regioregular P3HT, the data can be effectively modeled. When the film is thicker than 150 nm, optical properties are best described with a 4-nm aligned layer, which is quantitatively consistent with previous predictions.