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Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have been associated with development programmes for many decades. A theme of Lamberton's commentary on such initiatives focuses on the lack of attention given to information as a key factor in the development process. His writing reiterated a number of arguments that he saw as being fundamental to the application of an information perspective to development issues. With a focus on agricultural development policy in the Pacific region, the paper uses a number of propositions that are suggested by Lamberton to analyse contemporary development initiatives in Pacific Island agriculture. These propositions focus attention on information costs that can influence the transfer of information and development of knowledge. Document analysis of selected published sources from a Pacific Island development programme are reviewed to illustrate the significance of information costs for development processes. The paper addresses the contention between traditional authority and knowledge and its significance for development.

Research into strong light–matter interactions continues to fascinate, being spurred on by unforeseen and often spectacular experimental observations. Properties that were considered to depend exclusively on material composition have been found to be drastically altered when a material is placed inside a resonant optical cavity. This is nowhere more the case than in the field of intermolecular energy transfer, where polaritonic states formed as a result of strong light–matter interactions have been shown to promote energy transfer over distances vastly exceeding conventional limits. In this review, we provide the reader with a succinct account of the fundamental concepts of intermolecular energy transfer, and how they are modified by strong light–matter interactions. We also summarize recent experimental advances in the area, including in optoelectronic device contexts, and highlight both the potential and challenges that remain in this exciting field of research going forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Aprepitant is used for the treatment of chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting. A liquid formulation is needed for treatment of young children. However, the commercial (powder for) suspension was not available worldwide for a prolonged period of time and, therefore, a 10 mg/mL aprepitant oral suspension was extemporarily prepared to prevent suboptimal antiemetic treatment. The current pharmacokinetic study was developed to investigate whether this extemporaneous oral suspension offers an appropriate treatment option. Methods: From 49 pediatric patients (0.7–17.9 years) 235 plasma concentrations were collected. Patients were either treated with our extemporaneous oral suspension (n = 26; 53%), commercially available capsules (n = 18; 37%), or the intravenous prodrug formulation of aprepitant (fosaprepitant, n = 5; 10%). Pharmacokinetic analyses were performed using nonlinear mixed effects modelling. Results: A one-compartment model adequately described the pharmacokinetics of aprepitant in children. The bioavailability of the extemporaneous oral suspension was not significantly different to that of the capsules (P = 0.26). The observed bioavailability throughout the total population was 83% (95% CI 69%-97%). The absorption of the extemporaneous oral suspension was 39.4% (95%CI 19.5–57.4%) faster than that of capsules (mean absorption time of 1.78 h (95%CI 1.32–2.35), but was comparable to that of the commercial oral suspension. The median area under the curve after (fos)aprepitant was 22.2 mg/L*h (range 8.9–50.3 mg/L*h) on day 1. Conclusion: Our extemporaneous oral suspension is an adequate alternative for the commercially (un)available oral suspension in young children. An adequate exposure to aprepitant in children was yielded and the bioavailability of the extemporaneous suspension was comparable to capsules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ObjectiveTo develop a generic scale for assessing attitudes towards genetic testing and to psychometrically assess these attitudes in the context of BRCA1/2 among a sample of French general practitioners, breast specialists and gyneco-obstetricians.Study design and settingNested within the questionnaire developed for the European InCRisC (International Cancer Risk Communication Study) project were 14 items assessing expected benefits (8 items) and drawbacks (6 items) of the process of breast/ovarian genetic cancer testing (BRCA1/2). Another item assessed agreement with the statement that, overall, the expected health benefits of BRCA1/2 testing exceeded its drawbacks, thereby justifying its prescription. The questionnaire was mailed to a sample of 1,852 French doctors. Of these, 182 breast specialists, 275 general practitioners and 294 gyneco-obstetricians completed and returned the questionnaire to the research team. Principal Component Analysis, Cronbach's α coefficient, and Pearson's correlation coefficients were used in the statistical analyses of collected data.ResultsThree dimensions emerged from the respondents' responses, and were classified under the headings: "Anxiety, Conflict and Discrimination", "Risk Information", and "Prevention and Surveillance". Cronbach's α coefficient for the 3 dimensions was 0.79, 0.76 and 0.62, respectively, and each dimension exhibited strong correlation with the overall indicator of agreement (criterion validity).ConclusionsThe validation process of the 15 items regarding BRCA1/2 testing revealed satisfactory psychometric properties for the creation of a new scale entitled the Attitudes Towards Genetic Testing for BRCA1/2 (ATGT-BRCA1/2) Scale. Further testing is required to confirm the validity of this tool which could be used generically in other genetic contexts.