bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cultural differences in vocal emotion recognition: a behavioural and skin conductance study in Portugal and Guinea-Bissau
Authors: Cosme Gonçalo , Tavares Vânia , Nobre Guilherme , Lima César , Sá Rui , Rosa Pedro , Prata Diana
Published: March 2021

Cross-cultural studies of emotion recognition in nonverbal vocalizations not only support the universality hypothesis for its innate features, but also an in-group advantage for culture-dependent features. Nevertheless, in such studies, differences in socio-economic-educational status have not always been accounted for, with idiomatic translation of emotional concepts being a limitation, and the underlying psychophysiological mechanisms still un-researched. We set out to investigate whether native residents from Guinea-Bissau (West African culture) and Portugal (Western European culture)—matched for socio-economic-educational status, sex and language—varied in behavioural and autonomic system response during emotion recognition of nonverbal vocalizations from Portuguese individuals. Overall, Guinea–Bissauans (as out-group) responded significantly less accurately (corrected p < .05), slower, and showed a trend for higher concomitant skin conductance, compared to Portuguese (as in-group)—findings which may indicate a higher cognitive effort stemming from higher difficulty in discerning emotions from another culture. Specifically, accuracy differences were particularly found for pleasure, amusement, and anger, rather than for sadness, relief or fear. Nevertheless, both cultures recognized all emotions above-chance level. The perceived authenticity, measured for the first time in nonverbal cross-cultural research, in the same vocalizations, retrieved no difference between cultures in accuracy, but still a slower response from the out-group. Lastly, we provide—to our knowledge—a first account of how skin conductance response varies between nonverbally vocalized emotions, with significant differences (p < .05). In sum, we provide behavioural and psychophysiological data, demographically and language-matched, that supports cultural and emotion effects on vocal emotion recognition and perceived authenticity, as well as the universality hypothesis.
The impact of lockdown on pediatric ED visits and hospital admissions during the COVID19 pandemic: a multicenter analysis and review of the literature
Authors: Kruizinga Matthijs D. , Peeters Daphne , van Veen Mirjam , van Houten Marlies , Wieringa Jantien , Noordzij Jeroen G. , Bekhof Jolita , Tramper-Stranders Gerdien , Vet Nienke J. , Driessen Gertjan J. A.
Published: March 2021

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has enormous impact on society and healthcare. Countries imposed lockdowns, which were followed by a reduction in care utilization. The aims of this study were to quantify the effects of lockdown on pediatric care in the Netherlands, to elucidate the cause of the observed reduction in pediatric emergency department (ED) visits and hospital admissions, and to summarize the literature regarding the effects of lockdown on pediatric care worldwide. ED visits and hospital admission data of 8 general hospitals in the Netherlands between January 2016 and June 2020 were summarized per diagnosis group (communicable infections, noncommunicable infections, (probable) infection-related, and noninfectious). The effects of lockdown were quantified with a linear mixed effects model. A literature review regarding the effect of lockdowns on pediatric clinical care was performed. In total, 126,198 ED visits and 47,648 admissions were registered in the study period. The estimated reduction in general pediatric care was 59% and 56% for ED visits and admissions, respectively. The largest reduction was observed for communicable infections (ED visits: 76%; admissions: 77%), whereas the reduction in noninfectious diagnoses was smaller (ED visits 36%; admissions: 37%). Similar reductions were reported worldwide, with decreases of 30–89% for ED visits and 19–73% for admissions.

Conclusion: Pediatric ED utilization and hospitalization during lockdown were decreased in the Netherlands and other countries, which can largely be attributed to a decrease in communicable infectious diseases. Care utilization for other conditions was decreased as well, which may indicate that care avoidance during a pandemic is significant.

What is Known:• The COVID-19 pandemic had enormous impact on society.• Countries imposed lockdowns to curb transmission rates, which were followed by a reduction in care utilization worldwide.

What is New:• The Dutch lockdown caused a significant decrease in pediatric ED utilization and hospitalization, especially in ED visits and hospital admissions because of infections that were not caused by SARS-CoV-2.• Care utilization for noninfectious diagnoses was decreased as well, which may indicate that pediatric care avoidance during a pandemic is significant.
Local stationarity in exponential last-passage percolation
Authors: Balázs Márton , Busani Ofer , Seppäläinen Timo
Published: March 2021

We consider point-to-point last-passage times to every vertex in a neighbourhood of size $$\delta N^{\nicefrac {2}{3}}$$

δ

N

2
3

at distance N from the starting point. The increments of the last-passage times in this neighbourhood are shown to be jointly equal to their stationary versions with high probability that depends only on $$\delta $$
δ
. Through this result we show that (1) the $$\text {Airy}_2$$

Airy
2

process is locally close to a Brownian motion in total variation; (2) the tree of point-to-point geodesics from every vertex in a box of side length $$\delta N^{\nicefrac {2}{3}}$$

δ

N

2
3

going to a point at distance N agrees inside the box with the tree of semi-infinite geodesics going in the same direction; (3) two point-to-point geodesics started at distance $$N^{\nicefrac {2}{3}}$$

N

2
3

from each other, to a point at distance N, will not coalesce close to either endpoint on the scale N. Our main results rely on probabilistic methods only.
Correction to: Annular Flow in the Upper Esophageal Sphincter Demonstrated with Dynamic 320-row Area Detector Computed Tomography
Authors: Inamoto Yoko , Saitoh Eiichi , Palmer Jefrey B.
Published: March 2021

A correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00455-021-10282-8
Prehabilitation with wearables versus standard of care before major abdominal cancer surgery: a randomised controlled pilot study (trial registration: NCT04047524)
Authors: Waller Ellen , Sutton Paul , Rahman Seema , Allen Jonathan , Saxton John , Aziz Omer
Published: March 2021

Background

Prehabilitation aims to improve post-operative outcomes by enhancing pre-operative fitness but is labour-intensive. This pilot study aimed to assess the efficacy of a tri-modal prehabilitation programme delivered by smartwatches for improving functional fitness prior to major abdominal cancer surgery.

Methods

A single-centre, randomised controlled pilot study, in which 22 patients were randomised to: (a) a prehabilitation group (n = 11), comprising of home-based exercise, nutritional, and dietary advice delivered using a wrist-worn smartwatch connected to a smartphone application; or (b) a control group (n = 11) receiving usual care, with patients given a smartwatch as a placebo. Eligible participants had over two weeks until planned surgery. The primary outcome was pre-operative physical activity including 6-min walk test (6MWT) distance, with secondary outcomes including change in body weight and hospital anxiety and depression score (HADS).

Results

Recruitment was 67% of eligible patients, with groups matched for baseline characteristics. The prehabilitation group engaged in more daily minutes of moderate [25.1 min (95% CI 9.79–40.44) vs 13.1 min (95% CI 5.97–20.31), p = 0.063] and vigorous physical activity [36.1 min (95% CI 21.24–50.90) vs 17.5 min (95% CI 5.18–29.73), p = 0.022] compared to controls. They also had significantly greater improvements in 6MWT distance compared to controls [+ 85.6 m (95% CI, + 18.06 to + 153.21) vs + 13.23 m (95% CI − 6.78 to 33.23), p = 0.014]. HADS scores remained unchanged from baseline in both groups.

Conclusion

Prehabilitation in the colorectal cancer care setting can be delivered using smartwatches and mobile applications. Furthermore, this study provides early indicative evidence that such technologies can improve functional capacity prior to surgery

Trial registration

NCT04047524.
Comparison between Abbott m2000 RealTime and Alinity m STI systems for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Mycoplasma genitalium
Authors: Herrmann Björn , Malm Karin
Published: March 2021

The new Abbott Alinity m STI Assay was compared with Abbott m2000 RealTime PCR. For Chlamydia trachomatis, 26 (7.5%) of 347 samples were positive in the Alinity assay and 24 (6.9%) in the m2000 assay. Corresponding figures for Neisseria gonorrhoeae were 23 (6.6%) and 17 (4.9%). For Mycoplasma genitalium, 22 (7.9%) of 279 samples were positive in the Alinity assay and 18 (6.5%) in the m2000 assay, for which DNA extraction was performed on an m2000sp instrument combined with in-house real-time PCR. The Alinity assay has at least the same sensitivity as the m2000 assay. The specificity was evaluated by discrepancy analysis.
Stigma mastery in people living with HIV: gender similarities and theory
Authors: Namisi Charles Patrick , Munene John C. , Wanyenze Rhoda K. , Katahoire Anne R. , Parkes-Ratanshi Rosalinda M. , Kentutsi Stella , Nannyonga Maria M. , Ssentongo Robina N. , Ogola Mabel K. , Nabaggala Maria Sarah , Amanya Geofrey , Kiragga Agnes N. , Batamwita Richard , Tumwesigye Nazarius M.
Published: March 2021

Aims

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of, factors associated with, and to build a theoretical framework for understanding Internalsed HIV-related Stigma Mastery (IHSM).

Methods

A cross-sectional study nested within a 2014 Stigma Reduction Cohort in Uganda was used. The PLHIV Stigma Index version 2008, was used to collect data from a random sample of 666 people living with HIV (PLHIV) stratified by gender and age. SPSS24 with Amos27 softwares were used to build a sequential-mediation model.

Results

The majority of participants were women (65%), aged ≥ 40 years (57%). Overall, IHSM was 45.5% among PLHIV, that increased with age. Specifically, higher IHSM correlated with men and older women “masculine identities” self-disclosure of HIV-diagnosis to family, sharing experiences with peers. However, lower IHSM correlated with feminine gender, the experience of social exclusion stress, fear of future rejection, and fear of social intimacy. Thus, IHSM social exclusion with its negative effects and age-related cognition are integrated into a multidimensional IHSM theoretical framework with a good model-to-data fit.

Conclusion

Internalised HIV-related Stigma Mastery is common among men and older women. Specificially, “masculine identities” self-disclose their own HIV-positive diagnosis to their family, share experiences with peers to create good relationships for actualising or empowerment in stigma mastery. However, social exclusion exacerbates series of negative effects that finally undermine stigma mastery by young feminine identities. Thus, stigma mastery is best explained by an integrated empowerment framework, that has implications for future practice, policy, and stigma-related research that we discuss.
Strategies Towards Improving Clinical Outcomes of Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy
Authors: Minczeles N.S. , Hofland J. , de Herder W.W. , Brabander T.
Published: March 2021

Purpose of Review

Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) with [177Lu-DOTA0,Tyr3] octreotate is an effective and safe second- or third-line treatment option for patients with low-grade advanced gastroenteropancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN). In this review, we will focus on possible extensions of the current use of PRRT and on new approaches which could further improve its treatment efficacy and safety.

Recent Findings

Promising results were published regarding PRRT in other NENs, including lung NENs or high-grade NENs, and applying PRRT as neoadjuvant or salvage therapy. Furthermore, a diversity of strategic approaches, including dosimetry, somatostatin receptor antagonists, somatostatin receptor upregulation, radiosensitization, different radionuclides, albumin binding, alternative renal protection, and liver-directed therapy in combination with PRRT, have the potential to improve the outcome of PRRT. Also, novel biomarkers are presented that could predict response to PRRT.

Multiple preclinical and early clinical studies have shown encouraging potential to advance the clinical outcome of PRRT in NEN patients. However, at this moment, most of these strategies have not yet reached the clinical setting of randomized phase III trials.
Politics and the Academic Social Scientist; The Record of Talcott Parsons
Authors: Lidz Victor
Published: March 2021

The decline of interest among sociologists in the works of Talcott Parsons over the last several decades has been driven in substantial respects by a belief that he was personally conservative in his political views and that his theoretical formulations were rigidly tied to a conservative view of social order. The present paper reviews Parsons’ major political involvements through the course of his career from his student days through the last decade of his life. The review demonstrates that Parsons was a typical academic liberal of his time and that his liberalism was expressed especially in several major applied essays. In the 1930s, he was an early and active opponent of Nazism. During World War II, he taught professionals to administer occupied territories and nations effectively. After the war, he advocated for government support of the social sciences, citing the important contributions they had made to the war effort. In the 1950s, he wrote a famous critical analysis of the Joseph McCarthy movement in American politics. In the 1960s, he contributed supportive essays to the Civil Rights movement. Later in the decade and in the 1970s, he contributed to the protection of academic freedoms while also proposing accommodations to the demands of the student movement for more “relevant” teaching and greater participation in university governance. Throughout his career, he taught and worked closely with students of various political views and sought to protect their rights of freedom of political expression.
Thrombocytopenia Complicating Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation: Differences Between Two New-Generation Devices
Authors: Corcione Nicola , Romano Simona , Morello Alberto , Ferraro Paolo , Cimmino Michele , Albanese Michele , Tufano Martina , Capasso Daniela , Buonpane Salvatore , Giordano Salvatore , Pepe Martino , Biondi-Zoccai Giuseppe , Romano Maria Fiammetta , Giordano Arturo
Published: March 2021

Thrombocytopenia after TAVI is common and clinically detrimental. Retrospectively, we observed Portico recipients had a more profound platelet drop than Evolut recipients. We thus investigated periprocedural platelet damage and/orpro-inflammatory state in 64 TAVI recipients at baseline and after implantation. Platelet damage was assessed by annexin V staining and monocyte-phagocytic phenotype was assessed according to CD14/CD36 expression. Serum cytokines were measured in 20 patients. The formaldehyde-based storage solution altered platelets. When, before being loaded onto the delivery system, Portico underwent one additional flushing to those recommended, the receiving patients showed thrombocytopenia, platelet damage, and CD36-monocyte count were mitigated. A general increase in IL-6 was recorded in overall TAVI recipients, but a high serum level of IL-8, a potent thrombocytopenia inducer, was measured in Portico recipients only, including those with extra-rinsed valve. Our study suggests a platelet-injury effect by storage-solution and generates the hypothesis of a role for the biomaterial in stimulating innate-immunity. Larger prospective studies are needed.
Rediscovering Lutra lutra from Grotta Romanelli (southern Italy) in the framework of the puzzling evolutionary history of Eurasian otter
Authors: Mecozzi Beniamino , Iannucci Alessio , Bona Fabio , Mazzini Ilaria , Pieruccini Pierluigi , Sardella Raffaele
Published: March 2021

A river otter hemimandible has been rediscovered during the revision of the historical collections of G.A. Blanc from Grotta Romanelli, complementing the ongoing multidisciplinary research fieldwork on the site. The specimen, recovered from the level G (“terre rosse”; early Late Pleistocene or late Middle Pleistocene), is here assigned toLutra lutra. Indeed, morphological and morphometric comparisons with other Quaternary Lutrinae fossils from Europe allow to exclude an attribution to the relatively widespread and olderLutra simplicidens, characterized by distinctive carnassial proportions. Differences withCyrnaonyx antiqua, which possessed a more robust, shellfish-feeding dentition, support the view of a successful niche repartition between the two species during the late Middle to Late Pleistocene of Europe. The occurrence ofLutra lutrafrom the “terre rosse” of Grotta Romanelli suggests deep modifications of the landscapes due to the ecological adaptation of the taxon, and indicates that the Eurasian otter spread into Europe at the Middle–Late Pleistocene transition.
Erfahrungen mit kombinierten digitalen Lernhilfen bei Datenbank-Vorlesungen
Authors: Lenz Richard , Haller David , Probst Dominik , Wahl Andreas
Published: March 2021

Im vorliegenden Beitrag berichten wir über die Erfahrungen mit digitalen Lernhilfen und Selbsttests zur Verständnisprüfung am Beispiel einer einführenden Datenbankvorlesung mit weitgehend traditionellen Lehrinhalten. Basierend auf den Rückmeldungen der Studierenden wurde das Angebot an kombinierten digitalen Lernhilfen mit Hilfe der Lernplattform StudOn schrittweise erweitert. Um nicht nur auswendig gelerntes Wissen, sondern auch das Verständnis von Modellen und Konzepten mit automatisch korrigierbaren Fragen prüfen zu können, wurden spezielle Fragetypen entwickelt, die im Wesentlichen auf einfachen kombinatorischen Schlussfolgerungen basieren. Zum Selbsttest für SQL wurde zusätzlich eine Browserübung mit integrierter Datenbank und automatischer Korrektur entwickelt. Die Nutzung der automatisierten Selbsttests konnte deutlich gesteigert werden, indem die Selbsttests zur Zulassungsvoraussetzung für eine freiwillige Probeklausur gemacht wurden. In der Folge konnten hohe Durchfallquoten in der Klausur substantiell gesenkt werden. Im Sommersemester 2020 wurde die Vorlesung auf der Basis der bereits verfügbaren digitalen Lernhilfen vollständig online angeboten und durch virtuelle Vorlesungsbesprechungen im Sinne des Flipped Classroom Modells ergänzt. Aus dem breiten Spektrum der angebotenen digitalen Lernhilfen wurden vor allem die automatisierten Selbsttests stark genutzt und sehr gut bewertet. Die Vorlesungsbesprechungen wurden zwar auch gut bewertet, aber vergleichsweise wenig genutzt. Trotz fehlender Präsenzveranstaltungen haben sich die Klausurergebnisse nicht verschlechtert.
Honeybee workers with higher reproductive potential have a greater learning ability
Authors: Kuszewska Karolina , Rojek Wiktoria
Published: March 2021

Learning ability, which allows individuals to adjust their behaviour to changing environmental conditions, has a considerable positive impact on individual fitness. However, in addition to benefits, learning also incurs a cost, which means that investment in learning and maintaining learned skills can lead to trade-offs impacting other biological functions. Here, we tested whether a trade-off exists between learning skills and reproductive potential in honeybee workers. For this purpose, we compared learning ability between two groups of workers that differed in reproductive potential—normal and rebel workers. The results showed that workers with high reproductive potential (rebels), measured according to the number of ovarioles in the ovary, learned faster than normal workers with low reproductive potential. Moreover, by performing separate regression analyses within the rebel and non-rebel worker groups, we found that the reproductive potential of workers was positively correlated with their learning ability. The results show that in honeybees, there is no trade-off in resource allocation between two costly biological functions, learning and reproduction.
Elevated recapping behaviour and reduced Varroa destructor reproduction in natural Varroa resistant Apis mellifera honey bees from the UK
Authors: Hawkins George Peter , Martin Stephen John
Published: March 2021

Abstract

Varroa destructor mites remain a major threat to Apis mellifera honey bees, yet many populations across the world have naturally evolved survivorship to infestation. Here, we investigated the roles of recapping and mite reproduction in natural Varroa resistant (NVR) colonies in the UK. Recapping frequency was higher in NVR colonies and targeted mite-infested cells in which the recapped diameters were larger. Mite reproduction was lower in NVR colonies due to increased offspring mortality, although recapping is unlikely the primary mechanism responsible. In an additional small experiment, infested brood removal was immediately present in naïve colonies, and recapping increased rapidly following initial mite exposure. Targeted recapping behaviour is a common trait in NVR colonies and may provide a useful indicator for mite resistance. In addition, reduced mite reproduction is a key resistance mechanism in NVR colonies in the UK, as also found in Europe, S. Africa, Brazil and Mexico.
Akutversorgung psychisch kranker Kinder und Jugendlicher: Eine Pilotstudie an 257 PatientInnen
Authors: Eichinger Teresa , Marte Elisabeth , Thun-Hohenstein Leonhard , Santner Franz , Plattner Belinda
Published: March 2021

Fragestellung

Nicht bewältigte Entwicklungsaufgaben, schwierige soziale Rahmenbedingungen, aber auch psychische Erkrankungen können in Krisen münden, die zu einer Akutvorstellung an der Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie (KJP) führen. Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war es eine repräsentative Inanspruchnahmepopulation akut vorstelliger Patienten zu untersuchen, um einen Überblick über die Nutzung des akutpsychiatrischen Angebotes in der Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie zu erhalten.

Methodik

Es handelt sich um eine retrospektive Analyse der aus dem Ersteinschätzungsblatt und aus dem Krankenhaus internen Datenverarbeitungssystem erhobenen Daten. Untersucht wurden akut vorstellige Kinder und Jugendliche an Salzburgs einzigem Akutspital mit Unterbringungsbereich für diese Altersgruppe.

Ergebnisse

Von den 257 vorstelligen Patienten waren 53,7 % weiblich. Signifikant häufiger werden Jungen wegen externalisierender Symptome oder Außenfaktoren, Mädchen hingegen wegen suizidaler Symptome vorstellig. Zumeist bestehen die Symptome länger als eine Woche, bei einem Teil der Patienten sogar länger als 6 Monate. 51 % der Kinder und Jugendlichen wurden stationär aufgenommen, 43,2 % aller Vorgestellten nach Unterbringungsgesetz. Im Unterbringungsbereich betrug die Aufenthaltsdauer im Mittel drei Nächte.

Schlussfolgerung

Viele Kinder und Jugendliche zeigen bei Akutvorstellung eine chronifizierte Symptomatik. Suizidalität war ein häufiger Vorstellungsgrund, weshalb eine Unterbringung oftmals indiziert war. Die Erarbeitung von Akutkonzepten, insbesondere primäre, sekundäre und tertiäre Suizidprävention aber auch der Ausbau von niederschwelligen Anlaufstellen zeigen sich als wesentliche Zukunftsherausforderungen für die Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie in Österreich.
Disturbed families or families disturbed: a reconsideration
Authors: Giles Emma M. , Cross Anastasia S. , Matthews Rachel V. , Lacey J. Hubert
Published: March 2021

Background

The relationship between anorexia nervosa (AN) and family disturbance has been a subject of debate since its first description. What began as a clear view of the pathologically disturbed family causing AN has become ever more complex over the decades.

Objective

The aim of this review is to explore the literature to examine the changes and evolution of clinical opinion around family dysfunction and AN over the last 20 years.

Methods

A narrative review of heterogeneous studies in peer-reviewed publications sourced from the major databases, including PubMed and ScienceDirect, to illuminate the topic of family distress and AN by highlighting the conflicting and complementary ways it has been studied.

Results

This review has highlighted the complexity of the relationship between anorectic sufferers and their families. It has explored the literature about parental burden, emotions and cognitive mechanisms together with parental attitudes about weight and shape. It is clear that there is no consistent psycho-social pathology in families which has been shown to be causative. However, over the last twenty years, research has highlighted the distress and family dysfunction caused by having to look after an anoretic child with poor mentalisation skills, insecure attachment and emotion dysregulation.

Conclusion

The area has become clearer over the last 20 years; research suggests a bi-directional relationship between AN and family dysfunction, with difficult dynamics becoming entrenched within the family. This is best addressed, the consensus suggests, by specialist family therapy and carer skills interventions. Longitudinal research is needed to definitively answer the question with rigorous scientific certainty.

EMB rating

Level V.

Level of evidence

Level I: Evidence obtained from: at least one properly designed randomized controlled trials; systematic reviews and meta-analyses; experimental studies.

Level II: Evidence obtained from well-designed controlled trials without randomization.

Level III: Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-control analytic studies.

Level IV: Evidence obtained from with multiple time series analysis such as case studies. Dramatic results in uncontrolled trials might also be regarded as this type of evidence.

Level V: Opinions of respected authorities, based on descriptive studies, narrative reviews, clinical experience, or reports of expert committees.
Conceptions of Learning and Teaching for Faculty Who Teach Basic Science
Authors: Carvalho Helena , Dane Francis C. , Whicker Shari A.
Published: March 2021

Introduction

Conceptions of learning and teaching refer to what faculty think about teaching effectiveness. Approaches to teaching refer to the methods they use to teach. Both conceptions and approaches range from student-centered/learning-focused (active learner engagement) to teaching-centered/content-focused (passive learner engagement). This study explored how faculty teaching experience influenced faculty conceptions and their approaches to teaching. The authors hypothesized that more experienced educators appreciate and apply active learning approaches.

Methods

The authors used a cross-sectional survey to collect anonymous data from the Basic Science faculty at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (VTCSOM). The survey included the Conceptions of Learning and Teaching scale (COLT; Jacobs et al. 2012) and demographic information. They assessed instrument reliability with Cronbach’s alpha and examined relationships between variables with correlation and chi-square and group differences with ANOVA.

Results

Thirty-eight percent (50/130) of faculty responded to the survey. COLT scores for student-centered (4.06 ± 0.41) were significantly higher (p < 0.001) than teacher-centered (3.12 ± 0.6). Teacher-centered scores were lower (p < 0.05) for younger (30–39, 2.65 ± 0.48) than older faculty (50–59, 3.57 ± 0.71) and were negatively correlated with using multiple teaching methods (p = 0.022). However, 83% (39/50) reported using both traditional lectures and active approaches.

Discussion

Faculty conceptions about teaching showed appreciation for active learning, but a tendency to use traditional teaching methods interspersed with student-centered ones. Teaching experience was not related to faculty conceptions but was related to their teaching approaches. The amount of time dedicated to teaching was related to the appreciation of active learning, and young teachers were more student-oriented.
Software-guided microscale flow calorimeter for efficient acquisition of thermokinetic data
Authors: Frede Timothy Aljoscha , Dietz Marlene , Kockmann Norbert
Published: March 2021

Fast chemical process development is inevitably linked to an optimized determination of thermokinetic data of chemical reactions. A miniaturized flow calorimeter enables increased sensitivity when examining small amounts of reactants in a short time compared to traditional batch equipment. Therefore, a methodology to determine optimal reaction conditions for calorimetric measurement experiments was developed and is presented in this contribution. Within the methodology, short-cut calculations are supplemented by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations for a better representation of the hydrodynamics within the microreactor. This approach leads to the effective design of experiments. Unfavourable experimental conditions for kinetics experiments are determined in advance and therefore, need not to be considered during design of experiments. The methodology is tested for an instantaneous acid-base reaction. Good agreement of simulations was obtained with experimental data. Thus, the prediction of the hydrodynamics is enabled and the first steps towards a digital twin of the calorimeter are performed. The flow rates proposed by the methodology are tested for the determination of reaction enthalpy and showed that reasonable experimental settings resulted.

Graphical abstract

A methodology is suggested to evaluate optimal reaction conditions for efficientacquisition of kinetic data. The experimental design space is limited by thestepwise determination of important time scales based on specified input data.
Depression, antidepressants and fall risk: therapeutic dilemmas—a clinical review
Authors: van Poelgeest E. P. , Pronk A. C. , Rhebergen D. , van der Velde N.
Published: March 2021

Purpose

The aim of this clinical review was to summarize the existing knowledge on fall risk associated with antidepressant use in older adults, describe underlying mechanisms, and assist clinicians in decision-making with regard to (de-) prescribing antidepressants in older persons.

Methodology

We comprehensively examined the literature based on a literature search in Pubmed and Google Scholar, and identified additional relevant articles from reference lists, with an emphasis on the most commonly prescribed drugs in depression in geriatric patients. We discuss use of antidepressants, potential fall-related side effects, and deprescribing of antidepressants in older persons.

Results

Untreated depression and antidepressant use both contribute to fall risk. Antidepressants are equally effective, but differ in fall-related side effect profile. They contribute to (or cause) falling through orthostatic hypotension, sedation/impaired attention, hyponatremia, movement disorder and cardiac toxicity. Falling is an important driver of morbidity and mortality and, therefore, requires prevention. If clinical condition allows, withdrawal of antidepressants is recommended in fall-prone elderly persons. An important barrier is reluctance of prescribers to deprescribe antidepressants resulting from fear of withdrawal symptoms or disease relapse/recurrence, and the level of complexity of deprescribing antidepressants in older persons with multiple comorbidities and medications. Practical resources and algorithms are available that guide and assist clinicians in deprescribing antidepressants.

Conclusions

(De-) prescribing antidepressants in fall-prone older adults is often challenging, but detailed insight in fall-related side effect profile of the different antidepressants and a recently developed expert-based decision aid STOPPFalls assists prescribers in clinical decision-making.
Re-living a Common Future in the Face of Ecological Disaster: Exploring (Elements of) Guarani and Kaiowá Collective Memories, Political Imagination, and Critiques
Authors: Normann Susanne
Published: March 2021

How to re-member a fragmented world while climate change escalates, and green growth models reproduce coloniality, particularly in Indigenous territories? What can be the concrete contributions from different scholarly disciplines to a broader decolonial project? These questions are debated by decolonial scholars who call to re-think our practices within academic institutions and in the fields that we study. This article contributes with a decolonial perspective to sociocultural psychology and studies on Indigenous knowledges about climate change. Through ethnographic methods and individual and group interviews, I engage with indigenous Guarani and Kaiowá participants’ knowledges and practices of resilience opposing green growth models in the Brazilian state Mato Grosso do Sul. Their collective memory of a different past, enacted through narratives, rituals, and social practices, was fundamental to imagine different possible futures, which put in motion transformation processes. Their example opens a reflection about the possibilities in connecting sociocultural psychology’s work on collective memory and political imagination to the broader decolonial project, in supporting people’s processes of re-membering in contexts of adverse conditions caused by coloniality and ecological disaster.
Molecular characterization of bacteria and archaea in a bioaugmented zero-water exchange shrimp pond
Authors: Joseph Valsamma , Chellappan Geethu , Aparajitha S. , Ramya R. N. , Vrinda S. , Rejish Kumar V. J. , Bright Singh I. S.
Published: March 2021

In the zero-water exchange shrimp culture pond maintained with the application of indigenous bioaugmentor, low levels of total ammonia–nitrogen were reported, indicating the relevance of indigenous microbial communities. Sediments (0–5 cm layer) were sampled from the pond (85th day) and the bacterial and archaeal communities; specifically, the ammonia oxidizers (ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, ammonia-oxidizing archaea, and anaerobic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria) in the sediment metagenome of the pond were analysed using the 16S rRNA and functional genes. Bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA genes showed the relative abundance of Delta-Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes groups performing sulphur respiration and organic matter degradation, archaeal groups of anaerobic sulphur respiring Crenarchaeotae, and chemolithoautotrophic ammonia oxidizers belonging to Thaumarchaeota. The presence of these diverse bacterial and archaeal communities denotes their significant roles in the cycling the carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur thereby bringing out efficient bioremediation in the bioaugmented zero-water exchange shrimp culture pond. Similarly, the functional gene-specific study showed the predominance of Nitrosomonas sp. (ammonia-oxidizing bacteria), Nitrosopumilus maritimus (ammonia-oxidizing archaea), and Candidatus Kuenenia (anaerobic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria) in the system, which points to their importance in the removal of accumulated ammonia. Thus, this study paves the way for understanding the microbial communities, specifically the ammonia oxidizers responsible for maintaining healthy and optimal environmental conditions in the bioaugmented zero-water exchange shrimp culture pond.
China and the International Human Rights Regime
Authors: Inboden Rana Siu
Published: March 2021

Rana Siu Inboden examines China's role in the international human rights regime between 1982 and 2017 and, through this lens, explores China's rising position in the world. Focusing on three major case studies – the drafting and adoption of the Convention against Torture and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, the establishment of the UN Human Rights Council, and the International Labour Organization's Conference Committee on the Application of Standards – Inboden shows China's subtle yet persistent efforts to constrain the international human rights regime. Based on a range of documentary and archival research, as well as extensive interview data, Inboden provides fresh insights into the motivations and influences driving China's conduct and explores China's rising position as a global power.
Rigid automorphisms of linking systems
Authors: Glauberman George , Lynd Justin
Published: March 2021

A rigid automorphism of a linking system is an automorphism that restricts to the identity on the Sylow subgroup. A rigid inner automorphism is conjugation by an element in the center of the Sylow subgroup. At odd primes, it is known that each rigid automorphism of a centric linking system is inner. We prove that the group of rigid outer automorphisms of a linking system at the prime

$2$

is elementary abelian and that it splits over the subgroup of rigid inner automorphisms. In a second result, we show that if an automorphism of a finite group G restricts to the identity on the centric linking system for G, then it is of

$p'$

-order modulo the group of inner automorphisms, provided G has no nontrivial normal

$p'$

-subgroups. We present two applications of this last result, one to tame fusion systems.
The Curious Case of Carles Puigdemont—The European Arrest Warrant as an Inadequate Means with Regard to Political Offenses
Authors: König Julia , Meichelbeck Paulina , Puchta Miriam
Published: March 2021

In contrast to traditional extradition law, the political offense exemption has been abolished within the framework of the European Arrest Warrant (EAW). Notwithstanding its overall success, the EAW does not constitute an adequate instrument with regard to political offenses. In light of the recent case of the former Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, the abolition has proven to be too hasty and the justificatory force behind the principles of mutual trust and recognition is, with respect hereto, rather limited. The damage caused to these principles by upholding the exemption would be negligible, given the small number of cases—Puigdemont being the first political offender requested under the aegis of the EAW. However, the potential benefits are substantial, given that the exemption provides for a higher level of human rights protection—analogous to the values of European Union (EU). Solely relying on the double criminality requirement in order to properly take into account the specificities of the Member States’ legal systems essentially positions the judges at the forefront of where mutual trust and constitutional identity collide. Moreover, the exemption prevents states from intervening in other states’ internal political conflicts, through the medium of criminal law.
Antimicrobial efficacy and durability of copper formulations over one year of hospital use
Authors: Bryce Elizabeth Ann , Velapatino Billie , Donnelly-Pierce Tysha , Khorami Hamed Akbari , Wong Titus , Dixon Richard , Asselin Edouard , McGeer Allison , Srigley Jocelyn A. , Katz Kevin
Published: March 2021

Objective:

To evaluate 3 formulations of copper (Cu)-based self-sanitizing surfaces for antimicrobial efficacy and durability over 1 year in inpatient clinical areas and laboratories.

Design:

Randomized control trial.

Setting:

We assessed 3 copper formulations: (1) solid alloy 80% Cu–20% Ni (integral copper), (2) spray-on 80% Cu–20% Ni (spray-on) and (3) 16% composite copper-impregnated surface (CIS). In total, 480 coupons (1 cm2) of the 3 products and control surgical grade (AISI 316) stainless steel were inserted into gaskets and affixed to clinical carts used in patient care areas (including emergency and maternity units) and on microbiology laboratory bench work spaces (n = 240). The microbial burden and assessment of resistance to wear, corrosion, and material compatibility were determined every 3 months. Participants included 3 tertiary-care Canadian adult hospital and 1 pediatric-maternity hospital.

Results:

Copper formulations used on inpatient units statistically significantly reduced bacterial bioburden compared to stainless steel at months 3 and 6. Only the integral copper product had significantly less bacteria than stainless steel at month 12. No statistically significant differences were detected in microbial burden between copper formulations and stainless-steel coupons on microbiology laboratory benches where bacterial counts were low overall. All mass changes and corrosion rates of the formulations were acceptable by engineering standards.

Conclusions:

Copper surfaces vary in their antimicrobial efficacy after 1 year of hospital use. Frequency of cleaning and disinfection influence the impact of copper; the greatest reduction in microbial bioburden occurred in clinical areas compared to the microbiology laboratory where cleaning and disinfection were performed multiple times daily.
Composition of Prehispanic Diets from Stable Isotope Analysis in Human Remains of the Southern Calchaquíes Valleys, Northwest Argentina (3600–1300 BP)
Authors: Killian Galván Violeta A. , Cortés Leticia I. , Rabuffetti Nadia
Published: March 2021

This article discusses the composition of prehispanic diets based on the isotopic composition (δ13C, δ15N) of 10 human samples dated between 3600 and 1300 BP from the Cajón Valley in Northwest Argentina. The sample is the only one available for the time and region considered and covers a 2,300-year range. It shows long-term tendencies in the consumption of food resources during a time when people were experimenting with and eventually domesticating plants and animals in the high-altitude Southern Calchaquíes valleys. Results indicate that animals contributed more to the diet than was expected and plants correspondingly less than expected. This proportion was maintained even during the human occupations associated with the agropastoral villages of Cardonal and Bordo Marcial (ca. 2000 BP) when a greater contribution of plant resources—in particular maize—would be expected. This new evidence demonstrates the diversity of productive strategies used by the societies of Northwest Argentina at the beginning of the Formative period. A variety of resources contributed to daily food intake, minimizing the importance of maize in the diet.
Cooperative Capacities of the Rational: Revising Rawls’s Account of Prudential Reasoning
Authors: BASU JACQUELINE
Published: March 2021

John Rawls characterizes political rationality as narrowly self-regarding and therefore incapable of motivating political other-regard, self-moderation, or cooperative behavior. He ascribes these cooperative properties solely to reasonable, or principled, reasoning. This article evaluates Rawls’s account of rationality by investigating his characterization of the democratic modus vivendi, which builds upon this account: Rawls asserts that the democratic modus vivendi is inherently unstable because it lacks the cooperative properties of the reasonable. These critiques entail positive claims about rational democratic equilibrium that are contradicted by formal accounts of self-enforcing democracy. The article demonstrates that the democratic modus vivendi can achieve robust stability because the rational can express the cooperative properties that Rawls reserves to the reasonable. By working within Rawls’s seminal account of political reasoning to revise the properties he ascribes to rationality, this article offers a novel motivation for theoretical engagement with the rational and its role in political cooperation.
Post-conflict initiatives and the exclusion of conflict-affected young people in northern Uganda
Authors: Dixon Alina
Published: March 2021

Young people are among the most severely impacted by conflict and as such many post-conflict initiatives are aimed at assisting them. Yet the impacts of these initiatives on young people's ability to successfully overcome the adversity they faced during conflict are not fully understood. This paper attempts to examine these impacts by conceptualising post-conflict initiatives as enmeshed within young people's social environments. It argues that post-conflict initiatives are intimately connected to broader processes of exclusion from social systems such as the family. While these systems had previously served to protect young people against adversity, conflict and post-conflict initiatives have disrupted their ability to continue this mission. In particular, the structure and function of the family system are examined to demonstrate the types of disruptions that have taken place that have ultimately negatively impacted the landscape in which young people develop.
Intimate crimes: heroin and the rise of amaphara in South Africa
Authors: Hunter Mark
Published: March 2021

The term ‘amaphara’, possibly derived from ‘parasites’, burst into South African public culture in the 2010s to refer to petty thieves addicted to a heroin-based drug locally called whoonga/nyaope. Drawing on ethnography and media sources to interrogate the rise of ‘amaphara’, this paper argues that South Africa's heroin epidemic magnifies the attention – criticism but also sympathy – directed toward marginalised black men who have few prospects for social mobility. It locates amaphara in the national context where drug policy is largely punitive and youth unemployment rates are painfully high, but gives particular attention to families’ and communities’ experiences with intimate crimes, especially petty thefts. It further shows that amaphara is a contested term: heroin users are brothers, sons and grandchildren and they gain most of their income not from crime but by undertaking useful piece work in communities.
The Pentecostal prosperity gospel in Nigeria: paradoxes of corruption and inequality
Authors: Smith Daniel Jordan
Published: March 2021

Preachers of the prosperity gospel in Nigeria criticise politicians’ greed and government corruption, even as many church leaders amass great wealth themselves. Drawing on ethnographic research, this article explores the relationship between Pentecostalism's prosperity gospel and political culture in Nigeria, especially as it pertains to problems of inequality and corruption. The analysis builds on a case study of one particular prosperity church in the city of Umuahia. It addresses the paradox that this brand of Pentecostalism articulates widespread discontent with the venality plaguing national political culture, while at the same time offering divine justification for the pursuit and accumulation of wealth. Examining not only Pentecostals’ interpretations of corruption, but also people's responses to scandals within these churches, the paper attempts to understand why Nigerians who are so aggrieved about corruption and inequality are at the same time drawn to churches that appear to reproduce many of the same dynamics.
Recite the last bylaw: chiefs and child marriage reform in Malawi
Authors: Maiden Emily
Published: March 2021

In the study of modern chieftaincy in Africa, scholars have identified chiefs as important intermediaries for promoting increased voter turnout, new health policies and development initiatives. I add to this literature the importance of chiefs as cultural intermediaries. Using recent child marriage reform efforts in Malawi as a case study, I find that chiefs are key actors needed to implement culturally embedded policy changes. Drawing on descriptive evidence from 12 months of fieldwork across all three regions of Malawi, I find that chiefs are responsible for shifting cultural practices related to child marriage. Using a unique blend of democratic and non-democratic powers, chiefs in Malawi are defying expectations and using their position to promote girls’ rights. These findings contribute to our broader understanding of the political and cultural power of modern chiefs.