Some mortality statistics are misleading when comparing between countries due to varying age distributions in their populations. In order to adjust for these differences, age-standardised mortality ...rates (ASMRs) are often produced. ASMRs allow for comparisons between countries as if both had the same standardised population. We examined whether the updating of the standard population for Europe affected the description of the relative burden between countries in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality across the continent.
Mortality and population data were obtained from the World Health Organization (WHO) mortality database. ASMRs were calculated using the direct method and two European Standard Populations (ESP): 1976 ESP and 2013 ESP. We investigated differences in ASMR76 (calculated using 1976 ESP) and ASMR13 (calculated using 2013 ESP), changes in rankings of countries between the two ASMRs and differences in trends in CVD mortality in each country for the two ASMRs.
CVD rates calculated using the 1976 ESP were on average half the size of rates calculated using the 2013 ESP. Spearman's rank coefficient showed that the ranks of countries by ASMRs calculated using the two ESPs were different for both sexes. Joinpoint analyses showed no difference in the direction of trend between ASMR76 and ASMR13 although differences in the magnitude of the change were found in some countries.
ASMRs are commonly used in studying the epidemiology of a disease. It is crucial that policy makers understand the effect of changes in standard populations on these rates. This includes how populations with different age distributions compare to each other. Similar effects may be seen in other diseases that are also more prevalent in older age groups, such as cancer and dementia.
The primary aim of this study was to analyze studies that use electrochemotherapy (ECT) in “deep-seated” tumors in solid organs (liver, kidney, bone metastasis, pancreas, and abdomen) and understand ...the similarities between patient selection, oncologic selection, and use of new procedures and technology across the organ systems to assess response rates. A literature search was conducted using the term “Electrochemotherapy” in the title field using publications from 2017 to 2023. After factoring in inclusion and exclusion criteria, 29 studies were analyzed and graded based on quality in full. The authors determined key patient and oncologic selection characteristics and ECT technology employed across organ systems that yielded overall responses, complete responses, and partial responses of the treated tumor. It was determined that key selection factors included: the ability to be administered bleomycin, life expectancy greater than three months, unrespectability of the lesion being treated, and a later stage, more advanced cancer. Regarding oncologic selection, all patient cohorts had received chemotherapy or surgery previously but had disease recurrence, making ECT the only option for further treatment. Lastly, in terms of the use of technology, the authors found that studies with better response rates used the ClinporatorTM and updated procedural guidelines by SOP. Thus, by considering patient, oncologic, and technology selection, ECT can be further improved in treating lesions in solid organs.
Standardised fishing methods using gillnets (EN 14575), electric fishing (EN 14011) and hydroacoustics (WI 00230244 CEN enquiry) to estimate species composition, abundance, biomass and size ...distribution were compared in 14 alpine lakes >50 ha. More fish species were detected using benthic gillnets (mean = 72.7%) than electric fishing (mean = 59.5%) and pelagic gillnets (mean = 29.6%). For all but two lakes, additional information from a local fisheries manager was required to obtain a complete list of species. Biomass data generated by standardised gillnetting and hydroacoustic surveys were not fully comparable, but a positive correlation was found. Gill netting and hydroacoustics both indicated a nearly fishless habitat below 75 m, which confirmed the maximum required fishing depth according to the European Standard EN 14757. Size distributions obtained from gillnet and hydroacoustic surveys differed statistically for large fish (>40 cm). Each standardised method reflected typical shortcomings. The European standard (EN 14757) should be amended for pelagic fish habitat in deep alpine lakes to include sampling effort corresponding to water volume, and additional gillnets with larger mesh sizes (e.g. 70 mm). Furthermore, the electric fishing standard (EN 14011) should be extended to incorporate requirements of lake fish sampling.
Seismic features of the site are studied in earthquake prone areas. In these studies, the seismic design parameters of the site are determined based on geological and geotechnical engineering ...features. In this regard, part of the building regulations (European Standard) is related to site classification. In order to classify the land, the bylaws provide various methods such as mean shear wave velocity up to 30 m depth. In the present study, the values of the dynamic modulus of layers are calculated using conventional relationships based on the values of wave velocities for different depths. In this study, data from 22 boreholes, in which Downhole Seismic surveys were performed, were identified and implemented to identify subsurface layers and to determine the dynamic modulus in the area. The results of these studies in land classification were used to evaluate the site effect based on European Standard. The results show that the area under study is classified in class B according to this standard.
Objective: A new European Union (EU) regulation for safety barriers, which is based on performance, has encouraged road agencies to perform an upgrade of old barriers, with the expectation that there ...will be safety benefits at the retrofitted sites. The new class of barriers was designed and installed in compliance with the 1998 (European Norm) EN 1317 standards for road restraint systems, which lays down common requirements for the testing and certification of road restraint systems in all countries of the European Committee for Standardization (CEN). Both the older and new barriers are made of steel and are installed in such a way as to avoid vehicle intrusion, but the older ones are thought to be only effective at low speeds and large angles of impact. The new standard seeks to remedy this by providing better protection at higher speeds. This article seeks to quantify the effect on the frequency of fatal and injury crashes of retrofitting motorways with barriers meeting the new standards.
Methods: The estimation of the crash modification was carried out by performing an empirical Bayes before-after analysis based on data from the A18 Messina-Catania motorway in Italy. The methodology has the great advantage to account for the regression to the mean effects. Besides, to account for time trend effects and dispersion of crash data, a modified calibration methodology of safety performance was used.
Results: This study, based on data collected on 76 km of motorway in the period 2000-2012, derived Crash Modification Factor point estimates that indicate reductions of 72% for run-off-road fatal and injury crashes and 38% in total fatal and injury crashes that could be expected by upgrading an old safety barrier by complying with new EU 1317 standards. The estimated benefit-cost ratio of 5.57 for total crashes indicates that the treatment is cost effective.
Conclusions: The magnitude of this benefit indicates that the retrofits are cost-effective even for total crashes and should continue in any European country inasmuch as the estimated Crash Modification Factors are based on treatment sites that are reasonably representative of all European motorways.
Asphalt used as a paving material is a mix of aggregates and bituminous binder. Due to reasons of acceptance tests after paving or for fault analysis, it is necessary to separate asphalt mixes into ...their components. Therefore, different organic solvents are commonly used. The European Standard defines a procedure for both, recovery of aggregates and the distillation of binder from solvent mixture. Within the distillation procedure, the applied maximum temperature and the time of its application are not defined clearly. This research is an approach to define the distillation temperature depending on the viscosity of the binder. Four different binder samples (unmodified, polymer-modified) were used to determine the impact of distillation temperature on solvent residue and the recovered binder and its rheological properties. The solvent residue was calculated by weight and the binder properties were obtained by a dynamic shear rheometer and rotational viscometer. These results show a dependence of the solvent residue on the viscosity at distillation temperature. Thus, it is possible to choose reasonable distillation temperatures with regard to binder viscosity instead of setting one temperature for all binders. It was also found that there is no impact of tetrachloroethene as solvent on the binder properties if its residue is low enough (<1% w/w).
European Standard EN 15251 has broken new ground. Firstly, it assembles existing information about optimizing thermal, air quality, acoustic and visual comfort so that designers can make energy ...calculations which embody all the best information about aspects of the environment that impinge on energy use. Secondly, it follows other standards in recognizing the different expectations occupants have of the thermal environment in mechanically and naturally ventilated buildings. Potentially this makes EN 15251 an important standard in the design and the evaluation of new and existing buildings. Therefore, it is essential to be clear about its strengths and weaknesses and to indicate ways in which future updates might improve on it. This paper considers the way in which the Standard is written, its underlying philosophy and purpose, and the ways in which it defines unacceptable thermal conditions and how they might be misunderstood. Questions are raised regarding the use of outdoor temperature to define indoor comfort as the basis for providing a comfortable indoor thermal environment. Suggestions are made for improving the Standard.
La norme européenne EN 15251 marque de nouvelles avancées. En premier lieu, elle rassemble les informations existantes relatives à l'optimisation du confort thermique, acoustique, visuel et lié à la qualité de l'air, de façon à permettre aux concepteurs d'effectuer des calculs énergétiques qui soient l'expression du meilleur des informations relatives aux aspects environnementaux qui affectent l'utilisation de l'énergie. En deuxième lieu, cette norme suit les autres normes en ce qu'elle reconnaît les différentes attentes qui sont celles des occupants en matière d'environnement thermique dans des immeubles à ventilation mécanique et naturelle. Cela fait potentiellement de la norme EN 15251 une norme importante pour la conception et l'évaluation des immeubles neufs et existants. Il est par conséquent essentiel d'en montrer clairement les points forts et les points faibles et d'indiquer les moyens par lesquels de futures mises à jour pourraient y apporter des améliorations. Le présent article examine la manière dont la norme est rédigée, la philosophie et le dessein qui la sous-tendent, ainsi que les façons dont elle définit les conditions thermiques qui ne sont pas acceptables et en quoi celles-ci pourraient être mal comprises. Des interrogations sont soulevées concernant le fait de se baser, pour assurer un environnement thermique intérieur confortable, sur l'utilisation de la température extérieure servant à définir le confort intérieur. Des suggestions sont faites pour l'amélioration de cette norme.
Mots clés: confort thermique adaptatif normes de construction immeubles utilisation de l'énergie norme européenne EN 15251 normes
Background: Situated at the crossroads of Asia, Middle East and Europe, Turkey has an ethnically diverse population of over 78 milllion people.
Aim: To investigate the population genetics and ...potential differences in the autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) polymorphisms across all the major geographic regions and largest metropolitan province of Turkey within the context of the Near Eastern/European genetic landscape.
Subjects and methods: Samples from a total of 5299 unrelated individuals were analysed at 10 common D2S1338, D3S1358, D8S1179, D16S539, D18S51, D19S433, D21S11, FGA, TH01, vWA and five new European Standard Set (ESS) core autosomal STR loci D1S1656, D2S441, D10S1248, D12S391, D22S1045.
Results: Allele frequencies, statistical parameters of forensic interest and population differentiation tests were calculated for nine population datasets corresponding to the seven major geographic regions, the largest metropolitan province, and a combined dataset for the entire country. Cumulative results confirmed the presence of significant differences among these nine autosomal datasets themselves and with those from the nearby populations, therefore justifying the differential use of these separate datasets on a case-by-case basis in forensic investigations.
Conclusion: This collection of autosomal STR population datasets comprises the largest and most comprehensive of its kind from Turkey so far.
Currently various industries using translation services stress the necessity of analytical, critical and practical knowledge of 2 foreign languages, substantial skills of translation technologies, as ...well as transferable skills for professional translator performance. A changing translator profile causes a shift in translation study programmes towards the development of transferable skills along with translation-related skills. Therefore, the paper focuses on employers’ expectations in relation to the abilities and skills of professionally trained translators. The outcomes of this study reflect the overall situation in the country, still undergoing significant changes in the translation-related industry from the perspective of employers who agree that together with translation-related skills graduates of translation programmes should possess a range of transferable skills, which empower them to act professionally in a changing environment.
The interaction between wood and soil is one of the most hostile environment that a piece of wood can be exposed to. However, few field tests have been developed to determine its natural durability ...of Mexican timber species. In this study, the natural durability of seven tropical timber species was determined in Mexico, according to the European Standard EN 252. Test stakes were placed at three sites (Veracruz, Michoacan and Nuevo León) with different climatic, altitude, biodiversity and soil type conditions. After one year of exposure, statistical differences (p < 0.001) in decay level for sites and species were determined. The site with the most adverse environment was Veracruz followed by Michoacan and Nuevo León. Dalbergia granadillo, Cordia elaeagnoides and Swietenia humillis were classified according to the European Standard EN 350-1 as very durable (Class 1), while Enterolobium cyclocarpum and Hura polyandra were classified as durable (Class 4). Tabebuia donell-smithii, Tabebuia rosea and Fagus sylvatica (control) were classified as non-durable (Class 5).-
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