A conceptual framework for sustainable waste management in small municipalities: the cases of Langebaan, South Africa and Swakopmund, Namibia.

Municipal waste management is a major challenge for local governments in South Africa and Namibia, as in other developing countries. The circular economy concept in waste management is an alternative sustainable development framework that has the potential to combat resource depletion, pollution, and poverty while achieving the SDGs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the current waste management systems in Langebaan and Swakopmund municipalities resulting from municipal policies, procedures, and practices in the context of a circular economy. A mixed method approach was used to collect qualitative and quantitative data through structured in-depth interviews, document analyses, and direct observation. The study found that the Langebaan and Swakopmund municipalities have not yet fully implemented the circular economy concept into their waste management systems. A mix of waste consisting of papers, plastics, cans, tyres, and organic products is dumped into landfills weekly at a rate of about 85%. The main challenges to implementing the circular economy concept include: lack of technical solutions, inadequate regulatory frameworks, insufficient financial resources, lack of private sector involvement, insufficient human resource capacity, and inadequate information and knowledge. A conceptual framework was therefore proposed to guide the municipalities of Langebaan and Swakopmund in implementing the circular economy concept in their waste management systems.

Modifying sensory perception of chocolate coated rice waffles through bite-to-bite contrast: an application case study using 3D inkjet printing.

Consumers expect perceptual constancy between multiple bites of the same food. In this study, we investigated how sweetness, creaminess, expected fullness and liking of chocolate coated rice waffles can be modified by bite-to-bite variation in chocolate thickness. 3D inkjet printing was used to accurately deposit the chocolate layers varying in thickness (0.8, 1.6 and 3.2 mm) onto rice waffles. In the first study, single bites of rice waffles with a homogeneous chocolate coating were evaluated. With increasing thickness of chocolate coating, the sweetness, creaminess, and expected fullness increased significantly. In the second study, we evaluated seven chocolate coated rice waffles containing a constant total chocolate amount but different chocolate thicknesses between three sequential bites. The order of chocolate thickness between bites had significant, but small effects on sweetness, expected fullness and liking. Interestingly, rice waffles with a homogeneous chocolate coating were preferred over rice waffles with an inhomogeneous chocolate coating. Neither recency nor primacy effects were sufficient to explain sweetness perception in this study. We conclude that the sweetness of chocolate coated rice waffles can be modified by bite-to-bite variation in chocolate thickness. This study demonstrates that 3D inkjet printing allows the production of foods with bite-to-bite contrast, which possibly might be used for healthier food product design.

Vibration isolation with high thermal conductance for a cryogen-free dilution refrigerator.

We present the design and implementation of a mechanical low-pass filter vibration isolation used to reduce the vibrational noise in a cryogen-free dilution refrigerator operated at 10 mK, intended for scanning probe techniques. We discuss the design guidelines necessary to meet the competing requirements of having a low mechanical stiffness in combination with a high thermal conductance. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach by measuring the vibrational noise levels of an ultrasoft mechanical resonator positioned above a superconducting quantum interference device. Starting from a cryostat base temperature of 8 mK, the vibration isolation can be cooled to 10.5 mK, with a cooling power of 113 µW at 100 mK. We use the low vibrations and low temperature to demonstrate an effective cantilever temperature of less than 20 mK. This results in a force sensitivity of less than 500 zN/Hz and an integrated frequency noise as low as 0.4 mHz in a 1 Hz measurement bandwidth.

Synthesis of Densely Substituted Conjugated Dienes by Transition-Metal-Free Reductive Coupling of Allenylboronic Acids and Tosylhydrazones.

Tosylhydrazones and allenylboronic acids underwent a transition-metal-free reductive coupling reaction. This process is suitable for synthesis of tetra- and pentasubstituted conjugated dienes. The corresponding allenyl-Bpin substrate showed a very poor reactivity. The reaction is suggested to involve coupling of the in situ formed diazo compound and allenylboronic acid. The intermediate formed in this coupling undergoes allenyl migration followed by protodeboronation to furnish a conjugated diene as major product.

A Multicenter Nominal Group Study to Rank Outcomes Important to Patients, and Their Representation in Existing Composite Outcome Measures for Psoriatic Arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: To rank outcomes identified as important to patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and examine their representation in existing composite measures. METHODS: Seven nominal group technique (NGT) meetings took place at 4 hospital sites. Two sorting rounds were conducted to generate a shortlist of outcomes followed by a group discussion and final ranking. In the final ranking round, patients were given 15 points each and asked to rank their top 5 outcomes from the shortlist. The totals were summed across the 7 NGT groups and were presented as a percentage of the maximum possible priority score. RESULTS: Thirty-one patients took part: 16 men and 15 women; the mean age was 54 years (range 24-77; SD 12.2), the mean disease duration was 10.3 years (range 1-40; SD 9.2), and mean Health Assessment Questionnaire was 1.15 (range 0-2.63; SD 0.7). The highest-ranked outcomes that patients wished to see from treatment were pain with 93 points (20.0%), fatigue 62 (13.3%), physical fitness 33 (7.1%), halting/slowing damage 32 (6.9%), and quality of life/well-being 29 (6.2%). Reviewing existing composite measures for PsA demonstrated that no single measure adequately identifies all these outcomes. CONCLUSION: Pain and fatigue were ranked as the outcomes most important to patients receiving treatment for PsA and are not well represented within existing composite measures. Future work will focus on validating composite measures modified to identify outcomes important to patients.

The economics of restoration: looking back and leaping forward.

Since the publication of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment in 2005 there has been a surge of interest in ecological restoration (ER) to recover biodiversity, re-establish ecosystem functioning and connectivity, and reactivate the delivery of ecosystem services. In policy spheres, there have also been repeated calls for expansion of restoration efforts. In many countries, new legislation now requires some form of restoration and/or a form of offset investment. All of this will require major increases in financial allocations toward restoration science, technology, and implementation, and much more detailed valuation techniques. The economics of restoration is a new field emerging to support these needs. Our paper here starts with an analysis of the articles and reviews published on this broad subject from 1928 to 2012, as captured in the Scopus academic search platform. Our goal is to present and summarize what has been said and done in this area to date. Next, we map out one possible way forward, illustrated by examples and based on a coherent bundle of decision parameters related to the economics of ER and, more broadly, to the restoration of natural capital. The restoration of natural capital is defined as activities that integrate investment in, and replenishment of, natural capital stocks to improve the flows of ecosystem goods and services, and the preservation of biodiversity, while enhancing all aspects of human well-being. We give special attention to system dynamic approaches and other promising tools and techniques.