Welsh National College

Dr Matthews’ article about the impact of the First World War on Welsh Baptists challenges us to see what can be found in our churches’ records. Lists of names on war memorials (1914-18 and 1939-45) brought together in one place would help family historians, but what else is there? We would welcome further contributions: what can you find?

According to current models, solar closed-field active regions are isolated from contributing directly to the solar wind except through smallor large-scale magnetic reconnection, including coronal mass ejections. Here we show the first direct evidence of active regions contributing directly to the solar wind by a steady-state, quiescent expansion. Advanced image processing of coronagraph data reveals a large system of nested closed-field magnetic structures expanding and accelerating to heights of at least 14 R within a helmet streamer above a large active region. The system persists for several days, and must therefore be an important contribution to the slow solar wind.

Advanced image processing of Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph Experiment (LASCO) C2 observations reveals the expansion of the active region closed field into the extended corona. The nested closed-loop systems are large, with an apparent latitudinal extent of 50 Degree-Sign , and expanding to heights of at least 12 R{sub Sun }. The expansion speeds are {approx}10 km s{sup -1} in the AIA/SDO field of view, below {approx}20 km s{sup -1} at 2.3 R{sub Sun }, and accelerate linearly to {approx}60 km s{sup -1} at 5 R{sub Sun }. They appear with a frequency of one every {approx}3 hr over a time period of around three days. They are not coronal mass ejections (CMEs) since their gradual expansion is continuous and steady. They are also faint, with an upper limit of 3% of the brightness of background streamers. Extreme ultraviolet images reveal continuous birth and expansion of hot, bright loops from a new active region at the base of the system. The LASCO images show that the loops span a radial fan-like system of streamers, suggesting that they are not propagating within the main coronal streamer structure. The expanding loops brighten at low heights a few hours prior to amore » CME eruption, and the expansion process is temporarily halted as the closed field system is swept away. Closed magnetic structures from some active regions are not isolated from the extended corona and solar wind, but can expand to large heights in the form of quiescent expanding loops.« less

For ecosystems perceived as degraded, but for which the causal factors or timescales for the degradation are disputed or not known, long-term (palaeo-)ecological records may aid understanding and lead to more meaningful conservation approaches. To help ‘bridge the gap’ between (very) long-term ecology and contemporary ecology for practical application, there have been calls for working relationships to be established between palaeoecologists and conservation ecologists. One environment in which this has been attempted is blanket mire. Many blanket mires in Europe are degraded and contain few sphagna. In South Wales, almost all exhibit symptoms of degradation, with dominance by purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea) widespread. We used palaeoecological techniques on three peat profiles in the Brecon Beacons to investigate vegetation history of high-altitude blanket mire to help assess the relative contribution of various factors in mire degradation and to inform strategies for mire conservation and restoration management. We found that declines in sphagna preceded the rise to dominance of monocotyledons. Macrofossil records showed that although Molinia was already present on the Beacons before the start of the industrial revolution, its major rise to dominance in one profile was within the 20th Century, coincident with evidence for local fire. In another profile, it was out-competed by Eriophorum vaginatum after the start of the industrial revolution; there is circumstantial evidence to suggest that a reduction in burning contributed to the rise in E. vaginatum. Conservation management to reduce the current local dominance of both Eriophorum and Molinia is supported by the palaeoecological data, but severe erosion and hagging of peat will constrain practical methods for achieving this on the Beacons until the peat is stabilised. We suggest that palaeoecological techniques have wider applicability in conservation.

This paper seeks to evaluate the factors influencing students’ choice of Higher Education provision with specific reference to language of study. Placing the recent development of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol (the National Welsh-Medium College) in an appropriate historical and theoretical perspective, this paper evaluates a major qualitative study relating to student choice in Wales. It argues that while location, reputation, finance and employability are the primary drivers for student choice, there is considerable evidence to demonstrate a latent demand for Welsh-medium provision in specific subjects and locations. Furthermore there is a clear link to future job prospects in patterns of linguistic choice amongst prospective Higher Education students.

Multiple lifestyle factors can have a direct effect on athletic performance. This column presents guidelines for evaluating these lifestyle factors in the athletes we train. By monitoring these areas, we can better manage the athlete and have a positive effect on athletic performance

Abstract The clinical and radiological features of 7 small-bowel tumours are described. The presentation of such tumours is usually insidious, with vague dyspepsia, occult intestinal bleeding, and episodes of subacute intestinal obstruction. However, when growth is predominantly extraluminal the lesions are more likely to present as perforations or abdominal masses. In jejunal lesions resection is dangerous because the tumours encroach on the middle colic and superior mesenteric vesels. Furthermore, the position makes anastomosis technically difficult. Greater clinical awareness, improved radiological definition of the small intestine, and a willingness to undertake exploratory laparotomy are the features most likely to improve the prognosis of these tumours.

Optimum performance requires a balance between training stress and recovery. Thus, programming recovery needs to be an active and integral part of an athlete's program. Because the nature of fatigue and subsequent recovery is complex and related to a large number of diverse factors, a recovery program needs to be multidimensional and address fatigue and recovery from a number of directions, utilizing both short-and long-term strategies.

summary Using small-sided games, coaches can deliver movement specific endurance programs that can also be combined with skill development.

To investigate the reproducibility of peer ratings of consultant radiologists' reports, as part of the new General Medical Council (GMC) Performance Procedures. An evaluation protocol was piloted, used in a blocked, balanced, randomized generalizability analysis with three blocks of three judges (raters), each rating 30 reports from 10 radiologists, and re-rated to estimate intrarater reliability with conventional statistics (kappa). Rating was performed at the Royal College of Radiologists. Volunteers were sampled from 23 departments of radiology in university teaching and district general hospitals. A nationally drawn non-random sample of 30 consultant radiologists contributing a total of 900 reports. Three trained and six non-trained judges were used in the rating analysis. A protocol was generated that was usable by judges. Generalizable results would be obtained with not less than three judges all rating the same 60 reports from a radiologist. Any assessment of performance of technical abilities in this field will need to use multiple assessors, basing judgements on an adequate sample of reports.