bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Design thinking in early childhood education and care. A literature review and consideration from the perspective of young learners’ craft, design, and technology education
Authors: Grönman Satu , Lindfors Eila , Rönkkö Marja-Leena
Published: October 2024

Design thinking is a cognitive, iterative process that involves identifying goals, understanding users, and creating solutions. It has changed from a designers’ activity to an all-around approach to the innovation process and become a pedagogical phenomenon. In this article, design thinking method is studied in an educational context among young learners (children aged 5–8) through a literature review. The aim of this review is to gain an understanding of the reasons why and the ways in which design thinking is applied as an educational method in early childhood education and care. Through the review, we aim to find new ideas for teaching craft, design, and technology education with young learners. We present the results of 20 peer-reviewed articles reporting empirical studies of applying design thinking methods in an educational context with young learners. The results show that previous research has identified three themes of reasons to apply design thinking in early childhood education and care: enhancing multidisciplinary teaching, teaching design thinking as a method and supporting children’s developmental domains, and participatory learning. The ways to apply design thinking with young learners also coalesced into three themes: children acting as designers by solving real-life problems, open-ended science problems, and challenges in imaginary play. In conclusion, we consider these findings from the perspective of teaching craft, design, and technology education for young learners.
Personality and cardiovascular mortality risk: a multi-cohort analysis in individuals with and without pre-existing cardiovascular disease
Authors: Jokela Markus , Pulkki-Råback Laura , Elovainio Marko , Batty G. David , Kivimäki Mika
Published: October 2024

This study investigated the associations between personality traits of the Five Factor Model and cardiovascular mortality, with a specific focus on whether pre-existing cardiovascular conditions modified these associations. We used data from 43,027 participants across five cohort studies: Health and Retirement Study (HRS); Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS); National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP); Midlife in the United States (MIDUS); Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) with a mean age 55.9 years and 6493 individuals with pre-existing cardiovascular disease. We conducted meta-analyses examining conscientiousness, emotional stability, agreeableness, openness to experience, and extraversion in relation to mortality due to coronary heart disease and stroke. During a mean follow-up of 12.1 years, 1620 participants died from coronary heart disease and 454 from stroke. Lower conscientiousness was associated with higher mortality risk from both coronary heart disease (hazard ratio per 1SD = 0.82, 95%CI = 0.75–0.90) and stroke (HR = 0.84, CI = 0.72–0.99). Lower emotional stability predicted increased coronary heart disease mortality (HR = 0.91, CI = 0.85–0.97). The association between conscientiousness and cardiovascular mortality did not differ between individuals with or without baseline cardiovascular conditions. In addition, adjustments for health behaviors and other covariates only slightly attenuated this association. Other personality traits were not associated with cardiovascular disease mortality. Our findings highlight the role of low conscientiousness, and to a lesser extent low emotional stability, in the development and progression of fatal cardiovascular disease through pathways that may extend beyond established health behaviors.
A Denseness Property of Stochastic Processes
Authors: Passeggeri Riccardo
Published: October 2024

In this work, we show the following general property of stochastic processes: Denseness of probability distributions extends to denseness of stochastic processes. In particular, for every

$$d\in \mathbb {N}$$

d
∈
N

, we consider any class of probability distributions which is dense in the space of probability distributions on

$$\mathbb {R}^{d}$$

R

d

with respect to convergence in distribution. Using these classes, we construct various explicit families of times series, continuous processes and càdlàg processes that are dense in their respective spaces with respect to convergence in distribution. This is particularly interesting because, for processes, finite-dimensional distributions convergence does not automatically imply convergence in distribution.
Feminism, Femininity, and Negative Embodiment: A Contemporary Meta-Analytic Test
Authors: Kvaka Adrienne , Murnen Sarah K. , Nolen Erin , Myers Taryn A.
Published: October 2024

Previous work has examined the relations between feminism, feminine gender roles, and body image concerns with inconclusive findings. The purpose of this study was to conduct an updated meta-analysis of the relation between feminist identity and negative embodiment, and to conduct new analyses to test how endorsement of femininity relates to negative embodiment. Through the technique of meta-analysis, we analyzed 80 studies (87 samples, N = 24,308) and 217 effect sizes to examine these associations. The predictor variables were measures of feminist identity and endorsement of femininity. The negative embodiment criterion variables were measures of body dissatisfaction, self-objectification, internalization of cultural body ideals, and disordered eating attitudes. Feminist identity was found to be negatively associated with negative embodiment, but only modestly, with small but significant effect sizes across most variables. Endorsement of femininity was found to be positively associated with negative embodiment, with mostly significant effect sizes ranging from small to large. These findings underscore the importance of considering the roles of feminist identity and traditional gender ideology in the etiology and prevention of women’s experiences of negative embodiment.
Bounding Seed Loss from Isolated Habitat Patches
Authors: Hafner Benjamin , Meyer Katherine
Published: October 2024

Dispersal of propagules (seeds, spores) from a geographically isolated habitat into an uninhabitable matrix can play a decisive role in driving population dynamics. ODE and integrodifference models of these dynamics commonly feature a “dispersal success” parameter representing the average proportion of dispersing propagules that remain in viable habitat. While dispersal success can be estimated by empirical measurements or by integration of dispersal kernels, one may lack resources for fieldwork or details on dispersal kernels for numerical computation. Here we derive simple upper bounds on the proportion of propagule loss—the complement of dispersal success—that require only habitat area, habitat perimeter, and the mean dispersal distance of a propagule. Using vector calculus in a probabilistic framework, we rigorously prove bounds for the cases of both symmetric and asymmetric dispersal. We compare the bounds to simulations of integral models for the population of Asclepias syriaca (common milkweed) at McKnight Prairie—a 14 hectare reserve surrounded by agricultural fields in Goodhue County, Minnesota—and identify conditions under which the bounds closely estimate propagule loss.
„Affektdelikte“ revisited: ein Abgesang auf die „tiefgreifende Bewusstseinsstörung“
Authors: Kröber Hans-Ludwig
Published: October 2024

Henning Saß hat mit seinen Arbeiten seit 1983 eine Ordnung in die Vielgestalt affektiv akzentuierter Delikte gebracht, die psychiatrische Diskussion über die Schuldfähigkeit bei solchen Taten wesentlich strukturiert und den Raum für jeweils individuelle („normative“), juristische Täter-Empathie eingeengt. Er hat zwei Merkmalslisten aufgestellt, deren erste Merkmale versammelt, die nach der Literatur für ein Affektdelikt und eine mögliche Beeinträchtigung der Schuldfähigkeit sprechen könnten. Er hat selbst innovativ eine zweite Liste von Merkmalen erstellt, die eher gegen das Vorliegen einer tiefgreifenden Bewusstseinsstörung sprechen. Er hat zugleich darauf insistiert, dass es auf die Gesamtwürdigung des Falles ankomme, unter Berücksichtigung der Tatvorgeschichte und der Persönlichkeiten von Täter und der geschädigten Frau.

Es erscheint sinnvoll, darüber hinauszugehen und den Glauben aufzugeben, dass tatsächlich ein unvorhergesehener, kurz dauernder intensiver, unbezwingbarer Affekt das Ende einer konflikthaften Beziehungsgeschichte bildet – und dass es der „Affekt“ ist, der entscheidend für die Beurteilung von Tatschuld sein kann. Dies erschließt sich auch aus der veränderten kriminalistischen Situation: Die universelle Verbreitung des Smartphones hat ein Dokumentationsinstrument (Chat-Protokolle) für den Beziehungsverlauf zwischen Täter und Opfer geschaffen und in foro die Einrede eines plötzlich überwältigenden Affektgeschehens zur Rarität werden lassen. Damit aber geraten die Konstruktionsfehler der unterstellten „Bewusstseinsstörung“, die anders als die drei anderen Eingangsvoraussetzungen verminderter oder aufgehobener Schuldfähigkeit kein empirisches, psychiatrisches Fundament hat, in den Blick.
Management of Urinary Symptoms after Urethroplasty
Authors: Dwyer Kate , Johnsen Niels Vass
Published: October 2024

Purpose of review

The most definitive treatment for urethral stricture disease is urethroplasty, a procedure that has demonstrated great efficacy and durability in creating a patent urethral lumen. Criteria for success after urethroplasty have evolved over time, now with growing recognition of the importance of the patient experience.

Recent Findings

Despite good surgical outcomes, patient reported metrics demonstrate that some patients have persistent urinary symptoms that impact satisfaction rates. Achieving success in patient reported outcomes after urethroplasty may require repeat intervention or addressing alternative etiologies including benign prostatic hypertrophy, overactive bladder, and underactive bladder.

For patients who do not achieve symptom resolution after urethroplasty, evaluation should include addressing common complications, evaluating for recurrence, and consideration and treatment of additional causes of urinary bother.
Between Can’t and Won’t: The Relationship Between Trait Mindfulness, Stoic Ideology, and Alexithymia in Norway and New Zealand
Authors: Karl Johannes Alfons , Lassen Espen R. , Solem Stian , Fischer Ronald
Published: October 2024

Objectives

The aim of the present study was to provide cross-cultural insight into the relationship between mindfulness, alexithymia, and stoic ideology.

Method

Using samples from New Zealand (n = 330) and Norway (n = 326), we estimated the facet-level network relationship of our target constructs, as well as the invariance of the estimated networks across cultural contexts.

Results

Across cultural contexts, we found a consistent pattern of relationships in which both stoic ideology and alexithymia were negatively related to mindfulness. Negative relationships were especially pronounced between alexithymia and the mindfulness facets of Describing, Non-Judgement, and Acting with Awareness. This indicates that individual differences in these mindfulness facets might be more firmly rooted in difficulties identifying and describing emotions, compared to beliefs related to emotional suppression, as captured by stoic ideology. While the mindfulness facets showed overall expected patterns of relationships with both alexithymia and stoic ideology, Non-Reacting showed a divergent pattern. Non-Reacting was positively related to a tendency of Externally Oriented Thinking, as well as with Death-Acceptance, in both countries. Thus, this facet not only might capture Non-reactivity within the context of mindfulness, but also could potentially capture aspects of emotional avoidance.

Conclusions

Overall, the study highlights that mindfulness could be influenced by both individual differences in emotion processing and cognitive beliefs about emotion processing. This accentuates the importance of examining both individual differences in, and cognitive beliefs about emotion regulation in research regarding mindfulness.
Is the Position of Power More Relevant than Gender for Commercialization of Research? An Explorative Longitudinal Study over 21 Years
Authors: Jonsson Lars
Published: October 2024

The existing gender gap regarding commercialization of research is a limiting factor for the knowledge economy. The aim of this study is to explore the long-time development of the proportion of women researcher’s involvement in the process of university spin-out (USO) foundations in a longitudinal study over 21 years at the Uppsala University in Sweden, using the perspective of the position of power. It was found that the proportion of women researchers among the USO-founders increased at the same pace as the increase in the proportion of women among full professors at the University and the gender gap was significantly reduced during the last 7 years studied. Furthermore, during the last 7 years studied, 2.7% of the women full professors at the University participated in USO creations compared to 2.6% of their male counterparts. These findings challenge the perception that women in general have a lower entrepreneurial propensity and strongly indicate that the position of power has a significant impact. Furthermore, the prosperity of women researchers to get involved in commercialization efforts in this Scandinavian study seems to be much higher than those previously reported from the Anglo-Saxen context which is discussed from the perspective of other influential factors. Since the study is limited to only one university recommendations for further studies to validate, the findings are given as well as policy recommendations.
Educators’ and Parents’ Perspectives About Belonging in Early Years Education in Europe
Authors: Johansson Eva , Walker Sue , Lunn Jo , Whiteford Chrystal , Karlsudd Peter , Puroila Anna-Maija , Piskur Barbara , Einarsdóttir Jóhanna
Published: October 2024

The overall goal of this project is to gain a broad picture of belonging and the politics of belonging in early education settings (In Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland the children attend school from 6 or 7 years. In the Netherlands children attend compulsory school at 4 years of age. Using the terms early education settings and (pre)schools with parenthesis we refer to educational institutions (preschool, day-care, compulsory school) involving children between 4 and 6 years) in five European countries: Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. By ‘belonging’ we refer to children´s sense of feeling safe and ‘at home’. By ‘politics of belonging’ we refer to societal structures and processes of safeguarding communities and their borders among children (and educators) in their early education settings. Educators (n = 648) and parents (n = 1,598) were surveyed about their perspectives about, and pedagogies for, belonging. Results indicated that, in general, parents and educators felt positively about belonging in their (pre)schools. Even so the study shows that experiences of belonging cannot be taken for granted, and a number of parents and educators worry about children being excluded and alienated. The study also revealed a relation between the educational level of educators and the complexity of pedagogic methods educators used to support children´s belonging in early education settings.
Development and Validation of a Driving Simulator for Comfort Assessment
Authors: Colmenares Jon Ander Ruiz , Asua Estibaliz , Fuente Victor de la , Rojo Ander
Published: October 2024

The passenger’s comfort is of vital importance in today’s car, even more so in the future autonomous car. Its thorough analysis requires the use of objective measures, but the subjectivity of the passenger must also be considered. The relationship between both aspects is an uncommon research avenue, and could greatly benefit from the use of a vehicle simulator. This study use a simulator to replicate a journey with diverse characteristics that numerous passengers may experience (including engaging in different activities). The appropriate variables for a proper comfort analysis are determined in this study, resulting in a comprehensive database for the same purpose. Additionally, a passenger comfort based questionnaire is developed and applied to obtain the subjective assessment of different passengers. The results of these questionnaires help not only in the identification and study of the self perception of comfort by the passengers but also in the use of the simulator for comfort experiments. The detailed comparison between both the objective approach of signal analysis and the subjective approach of questionnaires that is performed thanks to the simulator creates a foundation for future research and narrows the existing research gap.
A novel frameshift TBX4 variant in a family with ischio-coxo-podo-patellar syndrome and variable severity
Authors: Moresco Giada , Rondinone Ornella , Mauri Alessia , Gorgoglione Rita , Graziani Daniela Maria Grazia , Dziuback Michal , Miozzo Monica Rosa , Sirchia Silvia Maria , Pietrogrande Luca , Peron Angela , Fontana Laura
Published: October 2024

Background

Congenital anomalies of the knee are a spectrum of rare disorders with wide clinical and genetic variability, which are mainly due to the complex processes underlying knee development. Despite progresses in understanding pathomechanisms and associated genes, many patients remain undiagnosed.

Objective

To uncover the genetic bases of a congenital patellar dislocation affecting multiple family members with variable severity.

Methods

We performed ES in the proband and his father, both showing bilateral patellar dislocation, his sister with a milder similar condition, and his unaffected mother. Sanger sequencing was then performed in the proband’s brother and paternal aunt, both affected as well.

Results

ES and Sanger sequencing identified the presence of the novel heterozygous frameshift mutation c.735delT in the TBX4 gene in all affected family members. TBX4 is associated with autosomal dominant ischio-coxo-podo-patellar syndrome with/without pulmonary arterial hypertension (ICPPS, #147891), reaching a diagnosis in the family. Intrafamilial clinical heterogeneity suggests that other factors might be involved, such as additional variants in TBX4 or in other modifier genes. Interestingly, we identified three additional variants in the TBX4 gene in the proband only, whose phenotype is more severe. Despite being classified as benign, one of these variants is predicted to disrupt a splicing protein binding site, and may therefore affect TBX4 alternative splicing, accounting for the more severe phenotype of the proband.

Conclusion

We expand and further delineate the genotypic and phenotypic spectrum of ICPPS. Further studies are necessary to shed light on the potential effect of this variant and on the variable phenotypic expressivity of TBX4-related phenotypes.
Qualitätsindikatoren zur Förderung von Krisenresilienz in primärärztlichen Praxen im Projekt RESILARE
Authors: Litke Nicola , Poß-Doering Regina , Weis Aline , Koetsenruijter Jan , Köppen Martina , Kümmel Stephanie , Broge Björn , Wensing Michel , Szecsenyi Joachim
Published: October 2024

Krisen, wie die COVID-19-Pandemie und der Klimawandel, stellen große Herausforderungen für die gesundheitliche Versorgung dar. Ärztliche Praxen sind zentral in der Versorgung von vulnerablen Personengruppen und sollten daher optimal auf aktuelle und zukünftige Krisen vorbereitet sein. Durch die Entwicklung von Qualitätsindikatoren im Rahmen des Projekts RESILARE sollen die Resilienz von ärztlichen Praxen gefördert und Potenziale der Vorbereitung und Reaktion auf potenzielle Krisen aufgezeigt werden. Im Rahmen eines etablierten 2‑stufigen Panelverfahrens wurden insgesamt 32 Qualitätsindikatoren entwickelt, die sich in die 4 Handlungsfelder a: individuelle Resilienz, b: Krisenprävention, c: Praxisorganisation und d: Klimaresilienz gliedern lassen. Die Indikatoren wurden in 34 allgemeinmedizinischen Praxen pilotiert und evaluiert. Dabei zeigte sich das größte Verbesserungspotenzial der Praxen in den Handlungsfeldern Krisenprävention und Klimaresilienz. Insgesamt sahen die pilotierenden Praxen eine hohe Relevanz der Indikatoren und ihrer Themenfelder für die primärärztliche Versorgung und wurden durch sie zu einer Vielzahl an Maßnahmen angeregt. Die entwickelten Qualitätsindikatoren zeigten sich somit als geeignet zur Förderung der Krisenresilienz in ärztlichen Praxen. Weiterhin bringen sie großes Verwertungspotenzial mit sich, auch außerhalb von allgemeinmedizinischen Praxen.
Spatiotemporal distribution of sedimentary chloropigments and organic carbon in a shelf sea ecosystem, with a focus on the cold water mass
Authors: Zhou Hong , Zeng Ruiwen , Cong Bingqing , Jiang Qianqian , Zhang Zhinan
Published: October 2024

The Yellow Sea is one of the most thoroughly studied shelf seas in the northwestern Pacific. However, many aspects of the northern Yellow Sea sediments remain poorly understood. Sedimentary chloropigments and total organic carbon (TOC) are crucial components that indicate benthic primary productivity and ecosystem functioning in the marginal sea system. The present study investigated the temporal and spatial variations of sediment chloroplastic pigments (Chl-a and Pha-a) and TOC contents in relation to seasons and the northern Yellow Sea Cold Water Mass (NYSCWM). Decadal trends were also examined using linear regression on time-series data from 12 cruises conducted over a nine-year period (2006–2014). The correlations between sedimentary Chorophy-a (Chl-a), Pheophorbide-a (Pha-a), TOC, and their ratios with other abiotic and biotic factors were analyzed to detect any effects of the NYSCWM on the spatiotemporal distribution of sediment Chl-a, Pha-a, TOC contents, as well as the ecological relevance of their ratios as indicators of food quality (freshness) in the benthic system. The NYSCWM substantially influences the spatial and seasonal distribution of sedimentary Chl-a, Pha-a, and TOC contents. High values of Pha-a, TOC, and the ratios of Pha-a/(Chl-a + Pha-a) and TOC/Chl-a were often observed in the central region of the NYSCWM, where Chl-a showed clear seasonal fluctuations while Pha-a and TOC remained relatively constant. While sedimentary TOC appears to negatively mirror the spatial pattern of primary productivity in the water column, the spatial pattern of sedimentary Chl-a in relation to NYSCWM is less evident. However, the contents of Pha-a and TOC in the central NYSCWM sediments were higher than those at surrounding NYSCWM stations. Surface sediment Pha-a/(Chl-a + Pha-a) ratio was negatively correlated with meiofauna abundance and biomass and positively correlated with nematode/copepod ratio. This finding indicates that the quality of sediment organic matter is important to meiofauna. Conversely, the lower organic degradation rate at the lower bottom temperature of the NYSCWM may explain the observed higher Pha-a and TOC contents in its central area. Time-series data collected over nine years at the NYSCWM stations showed a decreasing trend for Chl-a, while TOC and the ratio of Pha-a/(Chl-a + Pha-a) exhibited increasing tendencies. This trend may imply a reduced quality of food supply to the benthic food web in the shelf sea system, along with degraded ecosystem functioning and service under the impacts of global change and anthropogenic disturbances.
Escalating Health Crisis: Dissecting Mortality Causes and Trends Among Indigenous Populations in Northeast Brazil
Authors: Martins-Filho Paulo Ricardo , Cavalcante Taise Ferreira , Lima Shirley Verônica Melo Almeida , Santiago Bianca Marques , Machado Carlos Eduardo Palhares , Cunha Eugénia
Published: October 2024

Objectives

In Northeast Brazil, the poorest region of the country, indigenous communities face critical health care challenges. Despite legal entitlements to the Unified Health System (SUS), systemic barriers persist, exacerbating health disparities and mortality. This ecological study analyzed mortality trends and causes of death within the Special Indigenous Sanitary District (DSEI) Alagoas-Sergipe over a decade.

Methods

Data on deaths from 2012 to 2022 were obtained from the Indigenous Health Secretariat. Causes of death were classified into 13 categories. Mortality rates per 1,000 indigenous inhabitants were calculated, and trends were analyzed using the Mann-Kendall test. The study also compared causes of death by age group.

Results

Mortality rates ranged from 3.3 to 5.2 per 1,000, showing a moderate upward trend over time (τ = 0.5, p = 0.042). Predominant causes included heart and vascular disorders (24.3%), external causes (12.4%), respiratory issues (11.1%), and infections (10.9%). About one-third of pediatric deaths were associated with general neonatal complications.

Conclusions

This study highlights increasing mortality in indigenous communities in Northeast Brazil. The predominant causes of death reflect broader public health concerns. These trends emphasize the urgency for more effective, culturally sensitive public health policies and improved health care access.
Effect of Virtual-Reality-Based Training on Emotions of Medical Students Undertaking Radiation Emergency Medicine: An Educational Experimental Study
Authors: Nomura Osamu , Soma Yuki , Ikezaki Yusuke , Tazoe Hirofumi , Osanai Minoru , Hosokawa Shota , Tsujiguchi Takakiyo , Ito Katsuhiro , Hanada Hiroyuki , Tomisawa Toshiko
Published: October 2024

Objective

Integration of head-mounted virtual reality (VR) devices has been revolutionary in health professions education. In disaster preparedness training, VR simulation-based learning exposes health care professionals to the unique challenges of diverse scenarios, enhancing their adaptability. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a head-mounted VR tool for teaching basic radiation emergency medicine skills to medical students.

Methods

The participants were 64 medical students (5th-year) who underwent a 3-hour training session in radiation emergency medicine that was conducted via head-mounted VR devices. Students scored their perceived emotion, performance, and self-efficacy at various time points in a self-reported online questionnaire.

Results

Comparison of survey responses before and after the session showed significant differences in terms of neutral emotion (P = 0.011), negative activating emotions (P < 0.001), and negative deactivating emotions (P = 0.004). The post-hoc test revealed statistically significant differences in negative activating emotions between before and during (P < 0.05), and between before and after (P < 0.05) the VR simulation. In addition, negative deactivation and neutral emotions changed significantly after the simulation.

Conclusions

The use of head-mounted VR devices was effective in modulating medical students’ emotions and contributed to improving their perceived performance in radiation emergency medicine.
Illustrating the Anticipate, Recruit, Retain, Adapt, Sustain (ARRAS) Framework for Surge Capacity. How Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal Maintained Their Health Workforce During COVID-19
Authors: Yoo Katelyn J. , Mannan Masuma , Weerasinghe Inoka , Borse Nagesh N. , Bishai David
Published: October 2024

Surge capacity—the ability to acquire additional workers and resources during unexpected increases in service demand—is often perceived as a luxury. However, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated an urgent expansion of surge capacity within health systems globally. Health systems in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka managed to scale up their capacities despite severely limited budgets. This study employs a mixed-methods approach, integrating qualitative interviews with quantitative data analysis, to propose a comprehensive framework for understanding Human Resources for Health (HRH) surge capacity from 2018 to 2021, termed ARRAS: Anticipate, Recruit, Retain, Adapt, Sustain. We present national-level data to demonstrate how each country was able to maintain their per capita health care workforce during the crisis. Interviews with key informants from each country reinforce the ARRAS framework. Quantitative data revealed ongoing increases in doctors and nurses pre- and post-pandemic, but no country could rapidly expand its health workforce during the crisis. Qualitative findings highlighted critical strategies such as pre-crisis planning, financial incentives, telemedicine, and re-skilling the workforce. Despite adaptive measures, challenges included inadequate funding, poor data systems, and coordination issues. This study underscores the necessity for robust, long-term strategies to enhance surge capacity and better prepare health systems for future crises.
Coping with Unknown Health Crisis via Social Media: A Content Analysis of Online Mutual Aid Group in the Beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Guo Yu , Xiang Hongzhe , Hou Yongkang
Published: October 2024

Objective

The initial emergence of SARS-CoV-2 created uncertainty for humanity, driving people to seek assistance on social media. This study aims to understand the role of social media in coping with crises and to offer guidance for future uncertainties by examining the experiences of Wuhan during the early stages of the pandemic.

Methods

Using quantitative content analysis, this study investigated 2207 Weibo posts tagged with “COVID-19 Mutual Aid” from individuals located in Wuhan during the early lockdown period from January 23, 2020, to March 23, 2020.

Results

At the start of pandemic, messages seeking tangible support were most common. A hurdle regression model showed that deeper self-disclosure led to more retransmission of help-seeking messages. The Chi-Square and Mann-Whitney U tests revealed that health professionals and laypeople had different self-disclosure strategies.

Conclusions

This study provides insight into the online social support exchange during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan, highlighting the importance of self-disclosure on message retransmission, and the differences in self-disclosure strategies between health professionals and laypeople in online help-seeking.
Stability conditions for line bundles on nodal curves
Authors: Pagani Nicola , Tommasi Orsola
Published: October 2024

We introduce the abstract notion of a smoothable fine compactified Jacobian of a nodal curve, and of a family of nodal curves whose general element is smooth. Then we introduce the combinatorial notion of a stability assignment for line bundles and their degenerations.

We prove that smoothable fine compactified Jacobians are in bijection with these stability assignments.

We then turn our attention to fine compactified universal Jacobians – that is, fine compactified Jacobians for the moduli space

$\overline {\mathcal {M}}_g$

of stable curves (without marked points). We prove that every fine compactified universal Jacobian is isomorphic to the one first constructed by Caporaso, Pandharipande and Simpson in the nineties. In particular, without marked points, there exists no fine compactified universal Jacobian unless

$\gcd (d+1-g, 2g-2)=1$

.
Defining Evil from the Hebrew Text of Genesis
Authors: Faro Ingrid
Published: October 2024

An overview of findings from an in-depth inductive study of ‘the lexical, exegetical, conceptual, and theological study of evil from the Hebrew text of Genesis’ provides key insights into the broad use of the primary lexeme(s) for evil (ra as an adjective, raa as a verb, and raah as a noun). The use of evil is followed sequentially through each occurrence in Genesis to assess its meaning and concept contextually. The plot conflict of good and evil is observed from the beginning to its bookend. Evil is never called good nor found to be the absence of good, but rather, the corruption of creational and covenantal goodness. God is found to work in and through flawed and dysfunctional humans to overturn evil and accomplish his good creational and covenantal purposes.
Anxiolytic-like effects of acute serotonin-releasing agents in zebrafish models of anxiety: experimental study and systematic review
Authors: Näslund Jakob , Landin Jenny , Hieronymus Fredrik , Banote Rakesh Kumar , Kettunen Petronella
Published: October 2024

Though commonly used to model affective disorders, zebrafish display notable differences in terms of the structure and function of the brain serotonin system, including responses to pharmacological interventions, as compared to mammals. For example, elevation of brain serotonin following acute administration of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) generally has anxiogenic effects, both in the clinical situation and in rodent models of anxiety, but previous research has indicated the opposite in zebrafish. However, several issues remain unresolved. We conducted a systematic review of SRI effects in zebrafish models of anxiety and, on the basis of these results, performed a series of experiments further investigating the influence of serotonin-releasing agents on anxiety-like behaviour in zebrafish, with sex-segregated wild-type animals being administered either escitalopram, or the serotonin releaser fenfluramine, in the light-dark test. In the systematic review, we find that the available literature indicates an anxiolytic-like effect of SRIs in the novel-tank diving test. Regarding the light-dark test, most studies reported no behavioural effects of SRIs, although the few that did generally saw anxiolytic-like responses. In the experimental studies, consistent anxiolytic-like effects were observed with neither sex nor habituation influencing treatment response. We find that the general effect of acute SRI administration in zebrafish indeed appears to be anxiolytic-like, indicating, at least partly, differences in the functioning of the serotonin system as compared to mammals and that caution is advised when using zebrafish to model affective disorders.
EXTENDING TORSORS UNDER QUASI-FINITE FLAT GROUP SCHEMES
Authors: MEHIDI SARA
Published: October 2024

Let R be a discrete valuation ring of field of fractions K and of residue field k of characteristic

$p> 0$

. In an earlier work, we studied the question of extending torsors over K-curves into torsors over R-regular models of the curves in the case when the structural K-group scheme of the torsor admits a finite flat model over R. In this paper, we first give a simpler description of the problem in the case where the curve is semistable using recent work in Holmes, Molcho, Orecchia, and Poiret (2023, Journal für die Reine und Angewandte Mathematik [Crelle’s Journal] 230, 115–159) and Molcho and Wise (2022, Compositio Mathematica 158, 1477–1562). Second, if R is assumed to be Henselian and Japanese, we solve the problem of extending torsors by combining our previous work together with results in Antei and Emsalem (2018, Nagoya Mathematical Journal 230, 18–34) and Phung and Dos Santos (2023, Algebraic Geometry 230, 1–40), including the case where the structural group does not admit a finite flat R-model.
Maximal cliques in scale-free random graphs
Authors: Bläsius Thomas , Katzmann Maximillian , Stegehuis Clara
Published: October 2024

We investigate the number of maximal cliques, that is, cliques that are not contained in any larger clique, in three network models: Erdős–Rényi random graphs, inhomogeneous random graphs (IRGs) (also called Chung–Lu graphs), and geometric inhomogeneous random graphs (GIRGs). For sparse and not-too-dense Erdős–Rényi graphs, we give linear and polynomial upper bounds on the number of maximal cliques. For the dense regime, we give super-polynomial and even exponential lower bounds. Although (G)IRGs are sparse, we give super-polynomial lower bounds for these models. This comes from the fact that these graphs have a power-law degree distribution, which leads to a dense subgraph in which we find many maximal cliques. These lower bounds seem to contradict previous empirical evidence that (G)IRGs have only few maximal cliques. We resolve this contradiction by providing experiments indicating that, even for large networks, the linear lower-order terms dominate, before the super-polynomial asymptotic behavior kicks in only for networks of extreme size.
Type 2 diabetes prevention: genetic association analysis of dried fruit intake and disease risk
Authors: Gong Liya , Wu Ziqi , Gao Liaoming , Wen Junyan , Lin Xuecong , Wen Ge
Published: October 2024

Prior research has suggested an inverse correlation between dried fruit intake and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), yet the causal link remains uncertain. This study seeks to investigate the potential causal impact of dried fruit intake on T2DM, covering cases both with and without various complications, as well as glycaemic traits, using a two-sample Mendelian randomisation (MR) approach. Using MR analysis with genome-wide association study summary statistics, the primary analysis investigated the causal relationship between dried fruit intake and T2DM, both with and without complications, as well as glycaemic traits, employing the inverse variance weighted method. Supplementary analyses were conducted using MR-Egger and the weighted median method. Heterogeneity and intercept tests were utilised to evaluate the robustness of the study outcomes. The results show a significant association between dried fruit intake and T2DM without complications, as well as fasting insulin. Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of the results and the independence from multicollinearity. However, no association was found between dried fruit intake and T2DM with various complications or other glycaemic traits. The significant association between dried fruit intake and T2DM without complications and fasting insulin persisted even after adjusting for BMI. This study offers genetic evidence endorsing the protective effects of dried fruit intake against T2DM, specifically for cases without complications, and in regulating fasting insulin. These findings suggest that dried fruit intake might serve as a primary preventive strategy for T2DM.
The Laws of War and Public Support for Foreign Combatants
Authors: Lupu Yonatan , Wallace Geoffrey P.R.
Published: October 2024

Are publics in great power democracies more likely to approve of foreign armed combatants that comply with international humanitarian law (IHL)? There is a wealth of evidence that armed combatants with an incentive to seek the support of outside compliance constituencies are more likely to adhere to IHL. Yet a key mechanism underlying these claims—that people in great power democracies are more likely to support armed combatants that comply with IHL—has not been directly tested. We address this question using a series of experiments embedded in nationally representative surveys conducted in three democracies that have frequently been involved in foreign interventions: France, the United Kingdom, and the United States. We find that belligerents—both governments and rebels—that comply with the laws of war are significantly more likely to garner support from publics in likely intervening countries compared to those who do not comply. In all three countries, compliance with international law caused greater approval of armed combatants as well as greater support for economic or military intervention (although support for military intervention remained relatively low in the treatment groups). This lends support to arguments that, to the extent combatants seek support from outside audiences, this can serve as a mechanism by which international law constrains armed combat.
Never ending diversity: two new species of the genus Allocreadium (Digenea: Allocreadiidae) including new keys to the genus
Authors: Vainutis K.S.
Published: October 2024

Two new species of the genus Allocreadium were isolated from the intestines of the Lake minnow Rhynchocypris percnura caught in the backwater of the Komissarovka River in the South of the Russian Far East. The morphology of A. anastasii n. sp. corresponds to that of Allocreadium sp. from Lake Khar (Mongolia) and Allocreadium sp. Belous, 1952 from the Primorsky region of Russia except for the preacetabular anterior border of the vitelline follicles in A. anastasii n. sp. from the Komissarovka River vs. at anterior half of ventral sucker in Allocreadium sp. Genetic analysis revealed the identity of A. anastasii n. sp. to Allocreadium sp. 1 from the Nezhinka River and Lake Khar. Allocreadium macrolecithum n. sp. was differentiated from Palaearctic Allocreadium spp. by having the following features: respectively large vitelline follicles extending from posterior extremity to anterior margin of the ventral sucker; relatively short caeca reaching the border of middle and posterior thirds of hindbody; and small testes in the middle of hindbody. Interspecific genetic p-distances between Allocreadium spp. were 0.16–7.23% in 28S gene and 18.62–31.54% in Cox1 mtDNA gene. In the phylogenetic tree reconstructed with Maximum parsimony and Bayesian Inference methods, A. anastasii n. sp. and A. macrolecithum n. sp. were nested into different species groups of the genus Allocreadium – sister to A. khankaiense and A. bursense, respectively. Modified dichotomous keys were prepared for 31 Palaearctic species of Allocreadium including A. crassum, A. dogieli, A. papilligerum, A. bursense, A. anastasii n. sp., and A. macrolecithum n. sp.
Can total electrical energy (TEED) after subthalamic DBS alter verbal fluency in Parkinson’s disease patients? A preliminary evidence
Authors: Ruggiero Fabiana , Mameli Francesca , Aiello Edoardo Nicolò , Zirone Eleonora , Cogiamanian Filippo , Borellini Linda , Pirola Elena , Ampollini Antonella , Poletti Barbara , De Sandi Angelica , Prenassi Marco , Marceglia Sara , Ticozzi Nicola , Silani Vincenzo , Locatelli Marco , D’Urso Giordano , Barbieri Sergio , Priori Alberto , Ferrucci Roberta
Published: October 2024

Objective

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) improves motor outcomes in Parkinson’s disease (PD) but may have adverse long-term effects on specific cognitive domains. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between total electrical energy (TEED) delivered by DBS and postoperative changes in verbal fluency.

Methods

Seventeen PD patients undergoing bilateral STN-DBS were assessed with the Alternate Verbal Fluency Battery (AVFB), which includes phonemic (PVF), semantic (SVF), and alternate verbal fluency (AVF) tests, before surgery (T0) and after 6 (T1) and 12 months (T2). Bilateral TEED and average TEEDM were recorded at T1 and T2. For each AVFB measurement, changes from T0 to T1 (Δ-01) and from T0 to T2 (Δ-02) were calculated.

Results

At T1, PVF (p = 0.007) and SVF scores (p = 0.003) decreased significantly. TEED measures at T1 and T2 were unrelated to Δ-01 and Δ-02 scores, respectively. However, an inverse, marginally significant association was detected between the TEEDM and Δ-01 scores for the AVF (p = 0.041, against an αadjusted = 0.025).

Conclusions

In conclusion, the present reports provide preliminary evidence that TEED may not be responsible or only slightly responsible for the decline in VF performance after STN-DBS in PD.
Evidence-based treatment for schizophrenia: a personal perspective
Authors: Yeiser Bethany
Published: October 2024

My name is Bethany Yeiser, and I am an individual living with schizophrenia. My schizophrenia has been in full remission since 2008, thanks to treatment with clozapine, the vastly underutilized medication for refractory schizophrenia.
Effect of vitamin D status and vitamin D supplementation on immune function and prevention of acute respiratory tract infections in dark-skinned individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Bournot Abigail R , Darling Andrea L , Givens Ian D , Lovegrove Julie A , Lanham-New Susan A , Hart Kathryn H
Published: October 2024

Objective:

This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the evidence for a potential relationship between vitamin D status and vitamin D supplementation on immune function biomarkers and prevention of acute respiratory tract infections (ARTI) in dark-skinned individuals.

Design:

Six databases were searched (inception to December 2021) for randomised controlled trials (RCT) and observational studies. A narrative synthesis and random-effects meta-analysis were used to synthesise the findings.

Setting:

Not applicable.

Participants:

Ethnic groups other than white, with or without a white comparator.

Results:

After duplicates were removed, 2077 articles were identified for screening. A total of eighteen studies (n 36 707), including seven RCT and 11 observational studies, met the inclusion criteria, and three RCT (n 5778) provided sufficient data of high enough quality to be included in a meta-analysis. An inverse association between vitamin D status and at least one inflammatory biomarker in black adults was found in three studies, and vitamin D status was inversely associated with ARTI incidence in black and Indigenous groups in two studies. There was no significant effect of vitamin D supplementation on differences in ARTI incidence in ethnic minority groups (OR, 1·40; 95 % CI: 0·70, 2·79; P = 0·34), nor African American (OR, 1·77; 95 % CI: 0·51, 6·19; P = 0·37) or Asian/Pacific (OR, 1·08; 95 % CI: 0·77, 2·68; P = 0·66) subgroups.

Conclusions:

There is a lack of conclusive evidence supporting an association between vitamin D status and immune function or ARTI incidence in dark-skinned individuals. Further RCT in diverse ethnic populations are urgently needed.
Practical Reasoning in DatalogMTL
Authors: WANG DINGMIN , CUENCA GRAU BERNARDO , WAŁȨGA PRZEMYSŁAW A. , HU PAN
Published: October 2024

DatalogMTL is an extension of Datalog with metric temporal operators that has found an increasing number of applications in recent years. Reasoning in DatalogMTL is, however, of high computational complexity, which makes reasoning in modern data-intensive applications challenging. In this paper we present a practical reasoning algorithm for the full DatalogMTL language, which we have implemented in a system called MeTeoR. Our approach effectively combines an optimised (but generally non-terminating) materialisation (a.k.a. forward chaining) procedure, which provides scalable behaviour, with an automata-based component that guarantees termination and completeness. To ensure favourable scalability of the materialisation component, we propose a novel seminaïve materialisation procedure for DatalogMTL enjoying the non-repetition property, which ensures that each rule instance will be applied at most once throughout its entire execution. Moreover, our materialisation procedure is enhanced with additional optimisations which further reduce the number of redundant computations performed during materialisation by disregarding rules as soon as it is certain that they cannot derive new facts in subsequent materialisation steps. Our extensive evaluation supports the practicality of our approach.
Establishing the impact of luminous AGN with multi-wavelength observations and simulations
Authors: Harrison C. M. , Girdhar A. , Ward S. R.
Published: October 2024

Cosmological simulations fail to reproduce realistic galaxy populations without energy injection from active galactic nuclei (AGN) into the interstellar medium (ISM) and circumgalactic medium (CGM); a process called ‘AGN feedback’. Consequently, observational work searches for evidence that luminous AGN impact their host galaxies. Here, we review some of this work. Multi-phase AGN outflows are common, some with potential for significant impact. Additionally, multiple feedback channels can be observed simultaneously; e.g., radio jets from ‘radio quiet’ quasars can inject turbulence on ISM scales, and displace CGM-scale molecular gas. However, caution must be taken comparing outflows to simulations (e.g., kinetic coupling efficiencies) to infer feedback potential, due to a lack of comparable predictions. Furthermore, some work claims limited evidence for feedback because AGN live in gas-rich, star-forming galaxies. However, simulations do not predict instantaneous, global impact on molecular gas or star formation. The impact is expected to be cumulative, over multiple episodes.