Kingsley House

The UK aims to capture and store 20–30 Mt $$\hbox {CO}_{2}\hbox {e}$$ annually and produce 10 GW of low-carbon hydrogen by 2030. This study evaluates the potential water resource impacts of these decarbonisation efforts across five UK water company regions: Anglian Water, Northumbrian Water, Severn Trent Water, United Utilities, and Yorkshire Water. Projected $$\hbox {CO}_{2}$$ capture and hydrogen production rates are obtained from publicly available project databases and converted into associated water withdrawal rates using specific water intensity factors (SWIF) for $$\hbox {CO}_{2}$$ capture, blue hydrogen production and green hydrogen production. These SWIFs are derived through a combination of literature review and Integrated Environmental Control Model (IECM) simulations. Parameter uncertainty and project start-time uncertainty are incorporated using Monte Carlo simulation. Water withdrawals are spatially allocated to water company regions and compared with existing regional water availability forecasts derived from UK Water Resources Management Plans (WRMP24). Results indicate that additional water demand due to decarbonisation in the UK could reach 860 ± 150 ML/day by 2050, driven equally by $$\hbox {CO}_{2}$$ capture, blue hydrogen production, and green hydrogen production. Regional impacts vary, with significant deficits projected for Anglian Water and United Utilities by 2030 and for Yorkshire Water by 2040, while other regions are expected to maintain surplus capacity. Recommendations include adopting technologies with lower SWIF values, enhancing collaboration between decarbonisation project managers and water companies, establishing regional desalination hubs, redistributing water resources, and implementing adaptive water management strategies to ensure sustainable resource use.

This study examined the concentrations and toxicological risks of four priority heavy metals lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), and mercury (Hg) in blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) collected from oil-affected creeks in Rivers State, Nigeria. A total of 90 crabs were gathered from Bodo, Ataba, and Okpoka creeks, and metal analysis was conducted using Microwave Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (MP-AES 4200) after acid digestion. One-way ANOVA revealed significant site-related variations for all metals (p < 0.001) and significant gender effects for Pb and Hg (p < 0.05), with Tukey’s post-hoc tests indicating that crabs from Ataba and Bodo contained significantly higher concentrations than those from Okpoka (p < 0.05). Human health risk indices, including Estimated Daily Intake (EDI), Target Hazard Quotient (THQ), Hazard Index (HI), and Lifetime Cancer Risk (LCR), were calculated for both adult and child consumers based on mean metal concentrations. Results indicated that mean concentrations of Pb, Cd, As, and Hg in crab tissues exceeded permissible limits set by the World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (WHO/FAO), with the highest values recorded in Ataba and Bodo creeks. THQ and HI values for Pb and As surpassed the acceptable threshold of 1 in both adult and child groups, signalling potential non-carcinogenic health risks. LCR values for As and Pb also exceeded the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) acceptable range (10⁻⁶–10⁻⁴), suggesting carcinogenic potential with prolonged exposure. These findings highlight critical environmental and public health concerns linked to seafood consumption from oil-contaminated ecosystems in the Niger Delta and underscore the need for continuous ecological monitoring, stricter seafood safety regulations, and targeted community health awareness programmes.

In today’s increasingly complex, competitive and uncertain market environment, stakeholders are constantly seeking to get as much information on corporate organizations as they can to aid informed decisions relating to such organizations. Integrated reporting is progressively gaining traction since it encompasses both financial and non-financial information. This research aimed to empirically assess the significance of integrated reporting content aspects in influencing investors' decision-making within listed banks in Nigeria. The analysis consisted of content elements including organizational overview, business model, risk assessment, disclosure of resource distribution, and forward-looking disclosures. It applied annual reports from five top banks listed in the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) and extracted data using a checklist guided by the Integrated Reporting Framework 2021. Data was analyzed by regression analysis, taking into account the P/E ratio and market capitalization from 2014 to 2023 as benchmarks in the measurement of stakeholders’ perceptions. Findings revealed that the overall model for both hypotheses was significant but none of the individual content elements of IR showed a statistically significant effect on MKPF. In the case of the price-earnings ratio, only the organizational overview and Risks and Opportunities disclosures showed a statistically significant effect on PER. The study attributed this lack of value relevance to a low level of awareness and adoption and recommended that integrated reporting be imbibed into the reporting framework in Nigeria. In addition, relevant regulatory authorities should enforce mandatory integrated reporting on companies.

This paper examines the potential for extending the Information Delivery Specification (IDS) schema to facilitate its integration into the building permit process. IDS is an open specification for defining and verifying information requirements for digital building models. Building authorities have already begun utilising IDS to define information requirements for automated code compliance checks. However, this requires the filtering of elements beyond the current scope of IDS. Such filtering functionality also has the potential to facilitate simple code compliance checks. This paper presents concepts for extending IDS to define information requirements for escape route analysis and code compliance checks for Austrian fire resistance regulations. The main extension was the filtering of elements depending on characteristics of related elements. Nesting existing functionalities enabled the schema to remain simple. A prototype implementation demonstrated that minor extensions to the IDS schema can significantly enhance its functionality, paving the way for broader applications of IDS.

Abstract This is a book about the law of legal professional privilege and its practical application in criminal cases and internal investigations. It is intended to be a single point of reference for all criminal practitioners regardless of the type of case in which they are involved. Although aimed primarily at criminal defence lawyers—both solicitors and barristers—it also contains guidance for others involved in the criminal justice system more widely, including prosecution lawyers, investigators, independent counsel undertaking privilege reviews, and members of the judiciary who are asked to determine privilege issues in criminal proceedings. The content and structure of the book are determined first and foremost by the practical issues that criminal lawyers encounter and the stage in proceedings at which they typically arise. Topics include communicating with third parties to obtain evidence for trial, invoking the crime-fraud exception in criminal proceedings, the effect on privilege of disclosing the reasons for advice to answer no comment, the relationship between privilege and powers of search and seizure, conducting privilege reviews, compelled interviews, reference to privileged material in an expert’s report, prosecution privilege and disclosure obligations, corporate cooperation and waiver of privilege, inadvertent waiver by lawyers at court, appeals based on criticism of previous legal representatives and fresh evidence, and the extent to which privilege can apply to internal investigation witness interviews and fact-finding reports.

Ludovico Foscarini (1409-1480) war mit Abstand einer der aktivsten Diplomaten, Amtsträger und Juristen der Republik Venedig im 15. Jahrhundert 1 und wird von der Forschung meistens als Humanist bezeichnet. 2 Dieses Urteil stützt sich vor allem auf die von ihm zusammengestellte Briefsammlung, mit der er einen weiteren Superlativ für sich verbuchen kann: es handelt sich um die umfangreichste kommunikatorische Hinterlassenschaft eines adeligen Amtsträgers aus Venedig für die Jahre von 1454 bis 1467. Bisherige Studien sahen den Humanismus in Venedig an Idealen und Normen des Staatswohls orientiert. 3 Die These der vorliegenden Arbeit ist, dass es in Foscarinis Briefsammlung weniger um Ideale und Normen, sondern um ein pragmatisches Ziel ging, nämlich seinen männlichen Nachkommen die "Kodifizierung eines Handlungswissens" (Claudia Märtl) 4 für soziales und kulturelles Verhalten mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der politischen Kultur zu bieten. Zu diesem Zweck wählte Foscarini aus seiner Korrespondenz bestimmte Briefe aus und ordnete sie in einem didaktischen Schema an, das kommenden Generationen seines Hauses zu situativer Anpassungsfähigkeit verhelfen sollte. Darunter wird hier die Fähigkeit verstanden, sich unterschiedlichen, aber wiederkehrenden und vorhersehbaren Situationen in Regierung, Justiz und Diplomatie anzupassen. Die Nachkommen sollten durch erfolgreiches politisches Handeln den Ruf der Kompetenz und Exzellenz erwerben, von ihren Peers in hohe Positionen gewählt werden und noch mehr Ansehen gewinnen. Foscarini folgte sicherlich auch Normen und Idealen, in seinen situativ angepassten Briefen lassen sie sich aber nur schwer als persönliche Überzeugungen nachweisen. Foscarinis Epistolar ist von herausragendem Interesse, weil es sich für die Laufzeit (1449-1467), besonders nach dem Tod von Foscarinis politischem Mentor Francesco Barbaro 1454 und damit dem Abbrechen von dessen Briefen, um die einzige vom Verfasser selbst zusammengestellte Sammlung handelt, die Reaktionen auf Lebenssachverhalte aus dem Alltag eines führenden adeligen Politikers Venedigs überliefert. In dieser Zeit konsolidierte die Republik Venedig mit dem Frieden von Lodi 1454 ihre Besitzungen im Westen, überwand bei der Absetzung des Dogen Francesco Foscari 1457 eine für venezianische Verhältnisse heftige in-

Background: Remnant lipoprotein-cholesterol (RLP-C) has emerged as a potential contributor to adverse cardiovascular events. While the association of low-density lipoprotein- cholesterol and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is well-established, the joint association of RLP-C and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in driving major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) remains less explored. Methods: We included a total of 118,004 participants from the UK Biobank with nuclear magnetic resonance-measured RLP-C. Participants were categorized into four groups based on their RLP-C levels and T2DM status: Group 1 (RLP-C below the median and no T2DM), Group 2 (RLP-C above the median and no T2DM), Group 3 (RLP-C below the median and T2DM), and Group 4 (RLP-C above the median and T2DM). Cox proportional hazards regression was employed to assess the association of these four categories with the time to incident MACE. The model was adjusted for age, sex, race, BMI, smoking, systolic blood pressure, anti-hypertensive and lipid-lowering therapy, and physical activity. Results: Our analysis revealed significant associations between RLP-C levels, T2DM, and the risk of MACE. Compared to the reference group (Group 1), Groups 2-4 had hazard ratio for the MACE outcome of 1.27 (95% CI: 1.18-1.37, p < .0001), 1.43 (95% CI: 1.29-1.59, p < .0001), and 2.04 (95% CI: 1.78-2.32, p < .0001), respectively (see Figure). Conclusion: This analysis from individuals in UK Biobank free from cardiovascular disease at baseline demonstrated a significant joint association between elevated RLP-C levels and T2DM, with the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events. Keywords: remnant lipoprotein cholesterol, type 2 diabetes mellitus, major adverse cardiovascular events, UK Biobank, nuclear magnetic resonance

G enerative artificial intelligence (AI) describes algorithms (such as ChatGPT) that can be used to create new content, including audio, code, images, text, simulations, and videos. Large Language Models are specialized AI models trained on enormous volumes of text data and created to comprehend and produce text-based content. I am hardly the first to ask the question of whether these tools can facilitate the research process. A proposed Scholarly AI taxonomy “outlines seven key roles that AI could potentially play in a scholarly publishing workflow.” 1 UNESCO has suggested possible uses of ChatGPT in the research process including for research design, data collection, data analysis, and writing up. 2 Indeed, an industry has already sprung up with enterprising researchers selling their knowledge in this area with tutorials such as “Become an efficient academic writer with AI apps.” So, for what it is worth, here’s my take on where generative AI can assist (or not) the research process. The only prediction I am making is this will be out of date by publication.