bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Together for better health in Germany. Towards a public health strategy
Authors: Matusall S
Published: October 2022

In Germany, the responsibility for public health is divided both between federal levels and between sectors, and there is no national or general strategy for public health. However, a strategy is essential for achieving the overarching goal of ensuring the best possible health for all people, including preventing and addressing significant health challenges such as pandemics and climate change.

In 2016, Zukunftsforum Public Health (Future Forum Public Health) was established with the primary goal to enhance coherence and collaboration between public health stakeholders from academia, policy and practice. According to the principle of health in all policies, it also aims to promote collaboration across federal levels and political sectors. Within the platform provided by Future Forum, the public health community agreed that a strategy was necessary for strengthening and uniting the disparate field of German public health even though no official mandate for developing a strategy existed. Thus, Future Forum launched a grassroots process to identify key elements for a strong and resilient public health system, based on the essential public health operations (EPHOs), as defined by WHO Europe. For each of the ten EPHOs, the key issues paper “Towards a Public Health Strategy - Together for Better Health in Germany” presents a description of the current situation and challenges, an introduction to the key players, a definition of the aims and objectives, and concrete proposals on how to achieve these. Through its participative nature, the process of developing the key issues itself was an important factor for strengthening the public health community. This process highlights that even where national public health strategies and structures are missing, grassroots public health movements can be effective in strengthening the public health community as well as producing a visible set of recommendations for a resilient public health system.

Key messages

• Based on WHO’s essential public health operations, Future Forum Public Health developed a key issues paper with guidelines for a resilient public health system.

• The participative process leading to the key issues paper was itself an important factor for networking and strengthening Germany’s public health community.
Problems of communication skills of GPs in Bulgaria
Authors: Vasileva B , Karcheva M
Published: October 2022

Problem

The effective communication between a doctor and a patient is considered to be essential, for providing high-quality medical care. A new model of cooperation and partnership which focuses on the patient is being established in the modern healthcare.

Description of the problem

Data collected by empirical study on the doctor-patient communication has been presented and analyzed based on an overview analysis of the phenomenon communication. An anonymous survey among respondents was taken in the period September 1st-30th 2018 in the region of Pleven, Bulgaria. The respondents were patients who visited their GPs during that period. The results were processed with Microsoft Office Excel 2007. The quantitative analysis was done with statistical software programs - SPSS 17.0.

Results

The respondents in the region of Pleven were 1053. It was found that the patients’ satisfaction was poor in the matter of two crucial issues: 481 (46 %) of the respondents were dissatisfied with the time that was spent for a conversation with each patient and 470 (45 %) - with the information given by the GP regarding their health condition. According to 345 of the respondents (32,8 %) GPs do not practice informed consent and it is rarely required from patients according to 317 of the respondents (30,3 %).

Lessons

The analysis shows that there are a number of flaws and unsolved problems in the doctor-patient communication. The verbal communication of the doctor is a serious problem: the ability to ask and to listen. The need of communication training for the doctors in their gradiate study and postgraduate education is evident. It is recommended that a specific training programs for communication in the primary health care should be developed and evaluated.

Key messages

• At the present time the communication skills of the general practitioner should be acknowledged and regulated as priority criteria for their overall assessment.

• It is necessary that a profound study on the barriers for effective communication between a doctor and a patient is conducted.
Understanding how organisational culture supports patient involvement in a national research agency
Authors: Cleemput I , Dauvrin M , Kohn L , Mistiaen P , Christiaens W , Léonard C
Published: October 2022

Background

The Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) formally involves stakeholders in its researches since 2012. Patients are treated as one stakeholder amongst others, but it is recognized that patient involvement (PI) requires a different approach. The success of implementing PI depends, however, on the organizational culture towards PI.

Objectives

The objective of this study was to map the PI culture at KCE in the context of the development of organization-wide supported position statements about PI.

Methods

A nominal group technique was used to measure the PI culture at KCE. Arguments for and against PI and conditions for PI in different phases of the research process were collected. A literature review and interviews fed the draft position statements, for which support was assessed by means of a two-round Delphi process.

Results

Arguments in favour of PI in research related to the relevance of the scope, expertise with data collection, bringing in fresh ideas for study design, access to survey participants, validation of data analyses, adherence to recommendations. Disadvantages and risks included the lack of scientific knowledge of involved patients, resources requirements, conflicts of interest, and heterogeneity within patient populations. Conditions for meaningful PI referred to measures mitigating the identified disadvantages. Eighteen position statements supported by KCE could be formulated.

Conclusions

The KCE culture seems predominantly positive towards PI, although attitudes vary between researchers. KCE recognizes the potential value of PI in research, but considers the level of involvement to be contingent on the topic and phase in the research process.

Key messages

• Organizational culture towards patient involvement is a driver of successful researches.

• 18 position statements supported implementation of patient involvement in a national health agency.
Citizen engagement in health policymaking: challenges and recommended solutions
Authors: Nakkash R , Abla R , Saleh R , El Jardali F
Published: October 2022

Background

Involving citizens in health policymaking leads to the development of policies that are tailored to their needs and enables them to exercise their right as citizens. Citizen engagement in health policymaking in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) is rarely practiced and so understanding barriers and facilitators to engagement and the factors that impede effective participation is crucial. This study aims to understand views from policy stakeholders and citizens on citizen participation in health policy making and solicit recommendations on how to improve this process in the context of Lebanon.

Methods

We conducted 29 individual in-depth interviews with stakeholders who work in fields relevant to health policy and/or have had experience in engaging citizens and four focus groups (average 8 to 10 participants each) with citizens from four municipalities in different governorates across Lebanon. Participants were purposively sampled through local Primary Healthcare Centers and municipality networks.

Results

Barriers to engagement were seen as a manifestation of a dysfunctional and top-down political system, weak culture of participation, and lack of formal processes and platforms for engagement. Citizens’ attributed lack of participation to mistrust with the political system while on the other hand, stakeholders thought that citizens lacked the needed skills for active engagement. Recommendations for improvement focused on the importance of implementing system level changes, developing contextualized citizen engagement processes, and ensuring its adoption and implementation.

Conclusions

Although participants identified many challenges to engagement, they acknowledged its value and were able to propose concrete solutions and recommendations for change. Those recommendations are useful for other LMICs of similar contexts whose mandates require participation.

Key messages

• By identifying and understanding barriers to citizen participation in health policymaking, public health professionals can work towards improving engagement.

• Strategies and methods such as implementing system level changes and developing contextualized citizen engagement processes can be applied to improve citizen participation were needed.
Political consciousness, agency and mental health. Students in the Covid 19-Pandemic
Authors: Niephaus Y , Nink T
Published: October 2022

Introduction

The influence of social crises in their objective quality as well as their subjective processing on health well-being has been researched many times. The loss of agency that can be observed in the course of social crises is considered to be a negative mediating factor between both variables. The Corona pandemic was also associated with a loss of options and routines for action for most of the population.

Methods

We conducted two quantitative surveys on mental health in the pandemic in spring 2020 and autumn 2021. While the first international comparative survey was conducted under the auspices of the University of Antwerp, the second was carried out at five German universities.

Results

The quantitative data show the negative impact of the pandemic on students’ mental health - CES-D 8 (0 to 24) (x¯2020=9.22, x¯2021=9.38). They also show a negative correlation between whether students’ concerns are sufficiently considered by policy makers in the pandemic and depressive symptomatology (r=-0.146, p < 0.01). That is, the less satisfied students are with political measures, the lower the depressive symptomatology.

Conlusion

Against the background of the socio-psychological inequality study ‘Die Arbeitslosen von Marienthal', which is considered a classic, this connection is far less paradoxical than might initially be assumed if one interprets political awareness as a correlate of a subjectively perceived power to act, which has a positive effect on mental health. Based on this thesis, we have opted for a mixed-methods design and are conducting qualitative interviews on subjective crisis processing, the results of which we will be able to present at the conference.

Key messages

• Subjectively perceived agency reduces the health-reducing effect of social crises.

• Students are a relevant group to learn from for capacity building.
Sentinel monitoring of COVID-related daily activity in primary care practices of the canton of Vaud
Authors: Mueller Y , Auderset D , Maeder M , Schwarz J , Masserey E
Published: October 2022

Introduction

During the COVID pandemic, COVID-related data collected in family medicine were scarce. We aimed to monitor cantonal trends of COVID-related activity in family medicine and paediatric practices during the year 2021.

Methods

Family physicians and paediatricians established in the canton of Vaud were invited to join an ad hoc sentinel surveillance system. Online data collection was based on daily activity reports and monthly questionnaires. In particular, participants categorized daily counts of consultations and phone calls into predefined COVID-related categories.

Results

Thirty-seven practices contributed regularly to the system between March 20th and December 31st 2021. Out of 81'407 medical consultations, 4'950 (6.1%) were related to new COVID suspicions as defined by the Federal Office of Public Health, and 5'252 (6.4%) otherwise related to COVID. Depending on the week and the practice, between 5.6% and 26.5% of face-to-face consultations were COVID-related. In paediatrics, COVID-related activity corresponded mostly to new COVID suspicions (11.2% of on-site consultations), whereas among family physicians other COVID topics predominated (9.8% of face-to-face consultations), mainly questions about vaccination. Consultations for persisting COVID-related symptoms were stable at a low level throughout the year, and constituted less than 1% of all consultations. Most practices swabbed patients for SARS-CoV-2 tests, and an increasing proportion performed rapid antigenic tests over the year. In paediatrics, COVID-suspicions were not systematically tested.

Conclusions

Throughout 2021, COVID-related consultations constituted an important part of family medicine and paediatric practices’ activity in the canton of Vaud. Monitoring COVID-related activity in primary care during a pandemic documents how physicians translate recommendations into practice and provides health authorities with valuable information to guide public health action.

Key messages

• Throughout 2021, COVID-related consultations constituted an important part of family medicine and paediatric practices’ activity in the canton of Vaud.

• Monitoring COVID-related activity in primary care during a pandemic documents how physicians translate recommendations into daily practice.
Multi-drug and β-lactam resistance in Escherichia coli and food-borne pathogens
Authors: Costa M , Cardo M , Soares P , Cara d'Anjo M , Leite A
Published: October 2022

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top ten global public health threats facing humanity by menacing the effective use of available antimicrobials for treatment of an ever-increasing range of infections caused by bacteria. Its potential recognize the transmission to humans by contact with commensal and zoonotic resistant bacteria from animal and food sources. The aim of this study is to describe multi-drug resistance (MDR) profile in Campylobacter (n = 541), Salmonella (n = 919) and commensal Escherichia coli (n = 2777) isolated from animal and food samples between 2014 and 2019 in Portugal. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing results to fluoroquinolones/quinolones, macrolides, 3rd generation cephalosporins, polymyxins, carbapenems, penicillins, aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, sulphonamides, trimethoprim and chloramphenicol were clustered using k-modes. Clusters were described by population (broilers, broilers meat, turkeys, pigs, pig meat), AMR classification (mono/dual-resistance, MDR to 3-4, 5-6 and ≥7), β-lactamases production, sample stage (farm, slaughterhouse, processing plant, retail), season, and year. Overall, the results suggest an escalating MDR behavior from farm to post-farm stages in all bacteria, including E. coli MDR to critically important antimicrobials, and that Salmonella (fluoro)quinolones resistance may be associated with broilers. Most ESBL/AmpC producing E. coli were resistant to both C3G and C4G in isolates from animal and food samples (respectively, 77%; n = 846; and 74%; n = 188). The statistical method, K-modes, offers an overall visualization of the data with the identification of AMR profiles that have been further described using surveillance variables. Our results provide relevant information to support policy and decision making to tackle MDR in farm and post-farm stages.

Key messages

• An escalating multi drug resistance behavior from farm to post-farm stages.

• Escherichia coli multi drug resistance to critically important antimicrobials.
Burden of road traffic injuries in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina – fifteen-year survey
Authors: Cilović-Lagarija Š , Skočibušić S , Musa S , Jogunčić A
Published: October 2022

Introduction

Road traffic injuries (RTI) are among the ten leading causes of death worldwide, and they are the leading cause of death among young adults aged 15-29 years. In Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), with population of 2,1 million, around 380 people die every year and additional 11.000 get seriously injured in RTI.

Aim

The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and fatality rate of RTI in FBiH in the period of 2006 until the end of 2020.

Methods

Data source of RTI (ICD-X) incidence and fatality rate was Statistical book for Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which includes all injuries and deaths reported through Ministry of internal affairs. Fatality rate was calculated as number of confirmed deaths in total number of reported RTI. To compare frequencies of reported deaths Chi square test was used. YLD were calculated based on information on injury that was caused in road traffic accidents.

Results

In the last 15 years, in FBiH, total 39,455 injuries related to road traffic were reported. According to the official data, over the period 2006-2020 the peak of fatality rate (8.52% deaths among all cases with RTI) was in 2016, while it had a statistically significant decline in 2018: 6.51%; 2019: 6.35%; and 2020: 6.32% (x2=7728,584; p < 0,0001). It is estimated that young adults (in the age group 30 to 39 years) injured in the road traffic accidents have 197.01 patient-years of total 881.17 years to live with disabilities just based on serious RTI in 2020.

Conclusions

RTI pose a significant burden on the health of the population in FBiH. After implementing strict laws in the year 2017, and 2018, a significant decrease of RTI was registered, including the number of deaths due to RTI (fatality rate).

This abstract is support and sponsorship by ‘BoCO-19 - The Burden of Disease due to COVID-19'. Project is coordinated/led by Robert Koch Institute and supported by the WHO Regional Office for Europe.

Key messages

• RTI are significant burden for health of population in FBH. Strict laws and stronger punishments and fees are decreasing number of RTI.

• This abstract is support and sponsorship by ‘BoCO-19 - The Burden of Disease due to COVID-19'. Project is coordinated/led by Robert Koch Institute and supported by the WHO Regional Office for Europe.
Transcriptomic analysis of lignocellulose degradation by Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) and elicitation of secondary metabolites production
Authors: Besaury Ludovic , Fromentin Jean , Detain Julian , Rodrigues Carine Machado , Harakat Dominique , Rémond Caroline
Published: October 2022

Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) is considered as the model strain among the Streptomyces and has the capacity to produce several natural molecules. Our hypothesis was that cultivation of the strain onto a complex carbon source such as wheat bran (WB) would induce the production of various secondary metabolites due to the presence of complex polysaccharides. A multiapproach has been performed in order to investigate: (1) whether that strain could degrade lignocellulose; (2) which enzymatic and metabolic pathways secondary were over-expressed when grown on WB. The transcriptomic approach showed the expression of several CAZymes significantly expressed when grown on WB such as endoglucanases (encoding for GH74, GH5_8, and GH12) and xylanases (GH11 and CE4 encoding for respectively endo-1,4-beta-xylanase and an acetyl-xylan esterase). Enzymatic activities showed an expression of xylanase (115.3 ± 32.2 mUI/ml) and laccase–peroxidase (101.5 ± 10.9 mUI/ml) during WB degradation by S. coelicolor A3(2). Metabolomics showed that the production of secondary metabolites differed between growth on either glucose or WB as carbon source, which may be correlated to the complexity of carbon compounds within WB, which are similar to the ones encountered in soils and should represent more the in situ carbon conditions which Streptomyces might face off. This opens opportunities for the bioproduction of molecules of interest from WB.
Stability for Serrin’s Problem and Alexandroff’s Theorem in Warped Product Manifolds
Authors: Scheuer Julian , Xia Chao
Published: October 2022

We prove quantitative versions for several results from geometric partial differential equations. Firstly, we obtain a double stability theorem for Serrin’s overdetermined problem in spaceforms. Secondly, we prove stability theorems for Brendle’s Heintze–Karcher inequality respectively constant mean curvature classification in a class of warped product spaces. The key tool is the first author’s recent development of stability for level sets of a function under smallness of the traceless Hessian thereof.
Abdominal surgical trajectories associated with failure to rescue. A nationwide analysis
Authors: Skyrud Katrine , Helgeland Jon , Lindahl Anne Karin , Augestad Knut Magne
Published: October 2022

Objective

The ability to detect and treat complications of surgery early is essential for optimal patient outcomes. The failure-to-rescue (FTR) rate is defined as the death rate among patients who develop at least one complication after the surgical procedure and may be used to monitor a hospital’s quality of surgical care. The aim of this observational study was to explore FTR in Norway and to see if we could identify surgical trajectories associated with high FTR.

Method

Data on all abdominal surgeries in Norwegian hospitals from 2011 to 2017 were obtained from the Norwegian Patient Registry and linked with the National Population Register. Surgical and other postoperative complication rates and FTR within 30 days (deaths occurring in and out of the hospital) were assessed. We identified surgical trajectories (type of procedures—type of complication—dead/alive at 30 days after operation) associated with the highest volume of deaths (high volume of FTR [FTR-V]) and highest risk of death after a postoperative complication.

Results

Of the total 626 052 primary abdominal procedures, 224 871 (35.8%) had at least one complication, which includes 83 037 patients. The most common postoperative complications were sepsis (N = 14 331) and respiratory failure (N = 7970). The high-volume trajectories (FTR-V) were endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography—sepsis—death (N = 294, 13.8%); open colon resections—sepsis—death (N = 279, 28.1%) and procedures with stoma formation—sepsis—death (N = 272, 27%). Similarly, patients operated with embolectomy of the visceral arteries and experiencing postoperative sepsis were associated with an extremely high risk of 30-day FTR of 81.5%. In general, an FTR patient had a higher mean age, an increased rate of emergency surgery and more comorbidity. Hospital size was not associated with FTR.

Conclusion

At a national level, there exist high-volume and high-risk surgical trajectories associated with FTR. These trajectories represent major targets for quality improvement initiatives.
Accelerating improvement: The Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology Collaborative data timeliness project
Authors: Graupe Margaret , Tignor Ashlin , Veneziale Kelly , Jensen Megan , Khadr Lara , Beckstrom Heather , Gister Martin , Hendricks Karen , Madsen Nicolas L , Roberts Frederick , Youngberg Sarah , Schachtner Susan
Published: October 2022

Background

The Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology Collaborative (PAC3) is a learning network focused on improving acute care cardiology patient outcomes. Data submission timeliness is a vulnerability for PAC3 and most clinical registries, directly affecting collaborative benchmarking, quality improvement (QI) and research projects.

Objective

PAC3 conducted a collaborative-wide QI project addressing data timeliness and efficiency. Data analysis of submitted cases from September 2019 to February 2020 revealed nine ‘High Performer’ centers who submitted cases within 67 days of hospital discharge (the limit for timeliness) >90% of the time and eight ‘High Potential’ sites who submitted timely cases <75% of the time. The primary aim was to increase case submission timeliness in ‘High Potential’ centers from 41% to 80% by December 2020. The secondary aim was to maintain timeliness in ‘High Performer’ sites.

Method

During the intervention phase (March–December 2020), plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycles included webinars, facilitated exploratory conversations, data review and development of a best practice guide (‘Getting Started Toolkit’). On-boarded ‘New Centers’ starting in 2020 were also invited to test intervention effectiveness. Balancing measures included data collector job satisfaction and stress and resubmission rates.

Results

‘High Performer’ and ‘High Potential’ centers submitted 11 358 cases from November 2019 to December 2020. Timely submission rates for ‘High Potential’ centers improved from 40.6% to 74.6% and were maintained at >90% for ‘High Performer’ centers. ‘New Centers’ averaged 92.6% timely case submissions during their first 6 months. Data collector job satisfaction and stress were not impacted, and the resubmission rates did not increase.

Conclusion

PAC3’s multicenter QI project increased data submission timeliness in a large pediatric subspecialty registry. The lessons learned and the Toolkit developed can be applied in other registries to improve data submission efficiency, with resultant improvement in benchmarking, QI, research, length of stay and outcomes.
The Potential of Meta-ethnography in the Study of Public Administration: A Worked Example on Social Security Encounters in Advanced Liberal Democracies
Authors: Boswell John , Smedley Stuart
Published: October 2022

The purpose of this article is to highlight meta-ethnography—the interpretive synthesis of ethnographic studies on a given theme—as a useful tool in the study of social policy and public administration. We claim this approach can maximize the impact of rich idiographic research to enable theory-refining and evidence-building efforts in the field. We illustrate these benefits through reference to a worked example focused on public encounters with social security in advanced liberal democracies. We show how we drew together 49 ethnographic studies from a variety of disciplines to identify repertoires of response that citizens exercise in their encounters with the contemporary welfare state. Through this analysis, we demonstrate how meta-ethnography can shed new light on topical contemporary debates about administrative burden. We conclude by reflecting on the prospects and limits of this technique for broader use in the field.
Successful functional salvage of a hindfoot injury with isolated soft tissue reconstruction: a case report
Authors: Alammar Alwaleed K , Alqumber Nedhal A , Alsahabi Abdulrahman , Almadani Jamal , Alsubhi Fatema , Alfaqeeh Faisal A
Published: October 2022

Calcaneus has an important functional role in walking, running, gait and transferring 80% of total weight. Due to the paramount role of the calcaneus in function, there is a trend toward ‘below knee amputation’ for such heel injuries, associated with complete loss of calcaneus. Complex calcaneal defects represent a reconstructive challenge, due to few reported cases in the literatures, limited surgical options, and lack of long-term outcomes. We present a young patient regaining near normal function, weight bearing and independent walking after sustaining complex hindfoot defect that resulted in total loss of the calcaneus secondary to a landmine blast injury managed by soft tissue reconstruction only without skeletal reconstruction.
Avoiding Pragmatic Oddity: a bottom-up Defeasible Deontic Logic
Authors: Governatori Guido , Colombo Tosatto Silvano , Rotolo Antonino
Published: October 2022

This paper presents an extension of Defeasible Deontic Logic to deal with the Pragmatic Oddity problem. The logic applies three general principles: (i) the Pragmatic Oddity problem must be solved within a general logical treatment of contrary-to-duty (CTD) reasoning; (ii) non-monotonic methods must be adopted to handle CTD reasoning; (iii) logical models of CTD reasoning must be computationally feasible and, if possible, efficient. The proposed extension of Defeasible Deontic Logic elaborates a preliminary version of the model proposed by Governatori and Rotolo [15]. The previous solution was based on particular characteristics of the (constructive, top-down) proof theory of the logic. However, that method introduces some degree of non-determinism. To avoid the problem, we provide a bottom-up characterization of the logic. The new characterization offers insights for the efficient implementation of the logic and allows us to establish the computational complexity of the problem.
A massive, energetic model for the luminous transitional Type Ib/IIb SN 2020cpg
Authors: Teffs J , Mazzali P A , Medler K , Hachinger S
Published: October 2022

Using a combined spectral and light-curve modelling approach, we fit a massive and energetic explosion model to the luminous Type Ib/IIb SN 2020cpg. This model has an ejected mass of ∼(7 ± 2) M⊙ with a final explosion energy of ∼(6 ± 1) × 1051 erg with MNi = 0.27 ± 0.05 M⊙. The early spectra are hot and blue with weak He i lines, and a complicated Hα region suggested to be a multicomponent feature. Modelling the spectra required ∼0.08 M⊙ of H at velocities >11 000 km s−1 and a total He mass of ∼1.0 M⊙ at velocities >9500 km s−1 above CO-rich ejecta. This model has a ratio of kinetic energy and ejected mass of 0.85$_{-0.3}^{+0.5}$ foe M⊙−1. The high luminosity and explosion energy results in a broadened Hα line that is blended with Si ii, C ii, and He i, which led to the initial classification of SN 2020cpg as a Type Ib. We instead classify SN 2020cpg as a bright transitional event between the Type Ib and Type IIb classes. Comparing our model parameters to stellar evolution models, a progenitor mass of 25–30 M⊙, i.e. stripped of most of the hydrogen shell and of some of the helium shell prior to collapse produces a He core of comparable mass. The excess 56Ni production in SN 2020cpg as compared to objects of similar ejected mass may suggest evidence of additional energy sources such as a failed GRB or weak magnetar energy injection, or a smaller remnant mass.
United States Capitol and Campus
Authors: Helfrich Kurt
Published: October 2022

The United States Capitol, located in Washington, DC, houses the US Congress. Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government whose job is to pass laws and serve as the voice of the people and states within the national government. The history of the Capitol building is richly complex, straddling construction, destruction, reconstruction, expansion, preservation, and security. The Capitol consists of meeting chambers for the Senate and the House of Representatives, respectively, linked by a central domed Great Rotunda. Commissioned in 1792 through the nation’s first architectural competition, construction began in 1793 and was not completed until 1866. Its design has undergone a series of transformations spearheaded by European and American designers, including William Thornton, Benjamin Henry Latrobe, Charles Bulfinch, and Thomas Ustick Walter, with important contributions from Stephen Hallet, George Hadfield, James Hoban, Robert Mills, and Montgomery C. Meigs. These changes were prompted by its destruction in 1814 as a result of the British occupation of Washington, DC, and by growth in the country’s size and population, which saw Senate and House of Representative members quadruple in number along with increases in staffing and congressional committee needs requiring additional office and meeting space. The Capitol is situated on a prominent hilltop site in Washington, DC, originally in direct view with the White House, which is the symbolic home of the federal government’s executive branch. Since 1897 monumental civic buildings, including the Library of Congress and Supreme Court (originally housed within the Capitol) as well as a series of office buildings for congressional members and staff linked by underground tunnels, surround the structure. Today the Capitol campus comprises over 570 acres and includes landscaped grounds, the United States Botanic Garden, office buildings, a residence hall for Capitol pages, parking garages, and a power plant. Enshrined within American popular imagination as the “People’s House” or “Temple of Liberty,” the Capitol remains a powerful symbol of unity and national governance. The building and its interiors embody democratic ideals and challenges inherent in American culture, including its construction by enslaved African Americans and the enshrinement of problematic “heroes” through its sculpture and artwork. Recent events in January 2021 have focused renewed attention on the fragility of the Capitol as a symbol of national consensus. Despite its air of timelessness, changes continue to be made to the building and, much like America, the Capitol remains a work in progress.
Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī
Authors: Sardella Ferdinando
Published: October 2022

Swami Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhupāda (b. 1874–d. 1937) was a Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava guru and preceptor of the Bengali school of Kṛṣṇa Caitanya (1486–1534). He was born as Bimalā Prasāda Dutta in the city of Jagannath Puri (located in present day Odisha). Over the course of his life he managed to build an influential religious institution, the Gaudiya Math (1920) and the Gaudiya Mission (1919), which strove to respond to the social, political, and religious challenges of India’s late colonial period. Bhaktisiddhānta’s institution gradually reached an international platform, with centers in Rangoon, London, and Berlin. Later, through offshoots such as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), popularly known as the Hare Krishna movement, Bhaktisiddhānta’s mission spread to most parts of the world, giving new momentum to Caitanya Vaiṣṇavism in Bengal, and it is now a well-established feature of the unfolding layers of modern global Hinduism. Following the work of his father, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, a colonial judge and Vaiṣṇava writer, Bhaktisiddhānta published a large number of philosophical texts and journals, all of which were highly complex and detailed. Scholars have researched his contribution to the fields of sociology and religion, particularly with respect to colonial Bengal’s social and intellectual elite. Most of Bhaktisiddhānta’s published works and journals were written in the Bengali language, although some were written in English as well; several of these texts will be mentioned in this article. The global spread of Bhaktisiddhānta’s teachings in English, largely through disciples like Swami Bhaktivedānta, gradually enabled Western academics to gain access to his thought. The Journal of Vaishnava Studies is an example of one such English-language publication. Between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Vivekānanda (b. 1863–d. 1902), a contemporary of Bhaktisiddhānta, was responsible for popularizing the philosophies of Vedānta and Yoga in the West. Bhaktisiddhānta’s institution followed a similar pattern, the difference being that it was based on the philosophy, traditions, and practices of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), founded in New York in 1966 by his disciple, Swami A. C. Bhaktivedānta, enabled Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism to be spread throughout the world. Today a number of independent institutions have followed ISKCON’s example in contributing to the global spread of the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava tradition.
Seville
Authors: Lazure Guy
Published: October 2022

With the opening of the New World and the monopoly on trade granted to the city starting in 1503, early modern Seville went from a relatively important regional commercial center to a major continental and even international metropolis whose population nearly doubled every fifty years. This newfound prosperity had a transformative impact not only on the local economy but on internal social dynamics as well, given the number of migrants the city attracted, the diversity of their origins, and the social mobility this sudden influx of capital facilitated. In a place where stories of rags to riches (and riches to rags) abounded and living conditions varied significantly, scholars have naturally paid considerable attention to the social and economic disparities between and within groups or classes of residents. Religion was also at the heart of early modern Sevillian life with the presence of significant communities of converted Jews and Muslims, as well as the discovery of one the largest Protestant “flare-ups” in Spain, that set off the combined repressive efforts of the Spanish state and the Inquisition. But 16th- and 17th-century Seville was not only the “gateway to the Indies” or the “great Babylon” that poets, playwrights, and travelers have described for centuries. It was also one of the greatest and most vibrant centers of art, learning, letters, and print culture on the Iberian Peninsula, home to some of Golden Age Spain’s most illustrious writers, humanists, and painters.
Infant and Toddler Pedagogy
Authors: Degotardi Sheila , Davis Belinda , Fordham Loraine
Published: October 2022

The development and learning that occurs during the first three years of life is widely accepted to form a foundation for lifelong learning and well-being. While infants are born with powerful innate social and learning dispositions, over fifty years of observational and experimental research now demonstrates the critical role played by the social and physical environment in fostering early learning. Recently, due to a recognition that families are increasingly sharing the care of their infants and toddlers with early childhood (EC) educators, this research attention has been expanded to include early childhood education and care (ECEC) contexts. Research about the characteristics and consequences of infant-toddler pedagogies is itself still in infancy, but a robust evidence base is emerging to demonstrate the importance of infant-toddler early education pedagogies. There is a developing appreciation that the efforts of infant-toddler educators complement those of families to shape early learning and development. In a context where infant-toddler education and care suffers from societal attitudes about the low status of care and ‘women’s work,’ this evidence base challenges early childhood professionals, leaders, and policymakers to recognize and support the specialized nature of infant-toddler pedagogies. This article outlines international research about infant-toddler pedagogies across nine sections. The first provides some key Textbooks and Reference Works which collectively present and synthesize the research evidence for pre- and in-service educators and academic readers. The second section, Conceptualizing Quality in Infant-Toddler Pedagogies, examines evidence about the characteristics, contributors, and consequences of high-quality pedagogies. This bibliography then progresses to detail research into pedagogies that have been shown to foster specific areas of learning and development. Across three sections, cited articles identify particular teaching strategies that have been associated with infant-toddler social and emotional development, cognitive and language development, and physical health and development. The sixth section, Infant-Toddler Pedagogies That Support Inclusion, presents research and practitioner articles about the inclusion of infants and toddlers with disabilities, and sociocultural and linguistic backgrounds. The final two sections, The Infant-Toddler Workforce and Pre-service Education and Professional Learning, show that the capacity of educators to deliver high quality infant-toddler pedagogies is constrained by workforce conditions and professional learning opportunities. The evidence detailed in these sections provides a sobering reminder that effective infant-toddler pedagogies are reliant on the knowledge, capabilities, and well-being of educators, and that, internationally, leadership is needed to make meaningful improvements to infant-toddler educators’ preparation, working conditions, and status.
Advocacy Journalism
Authors: Thomas Ryan
Published: October 2022

Broadly defined, advocacy journalism is a label applied to any journalistic genre or output that advocates; that is, journalism that explicitly takes a point of view. This is in contrast to journalism that is studiously neutral. Advocacy journalism thus derives its meaning and its potency from this contrast. Because of the broad way it has been defined, and the variety of journalistic specialisms it consequently encompasses, the term has some conceptual elasticity. At the level of the media system, there are many press systems where the mainstream press is characterized by adherence to an advocacy-driven style of reporting, as demonstrated by journalism in many Latin American contexts. This is unlike press systems where advocacy is sectioned away into specific genres or outputs and where “objective” reporting is the defining characteristic of the journalistic mainstream, of which the United States of America is the likely exemplar. At the level of journalistic output, one can identify a variety of journalistic “products” that operate from a presumption of advocacy, namely, newspaper opinion sections, letters pages, partisan political magazines, and the activist and radical press. The dominance of objectivity as a journalistic norm means that insufficient attention has been given to the contribution of advocacy journalism (and opinion-driven journalism more generally) to democracy and public life. By piecing together disparate literatures and taking a holistic view of both “advocacy” and “journalism,” one can start to get an understanding of the unique functions of advocacy journalism as a genre of journalism within a democracy.
Wind Bands
Authors: Herbert Trevor
Published: October 2022

“Band” was used liberally in the English language in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to mean an orchestra of the type that accompanied oratorio and opera. This changed by the opening decades of the nineteenth century when “band,” “orchestra,” and “ensemble” acquired separate, if not entirely precise and consistent, meanings. The delineations were prompted by both cultural and pragmatic factors. “Orchestra” became reserved for large instrumental forces in which instruments, often from different families, were deployed to perform “orchestral” music: by this time the modern form of the symphony orchestra was taking a standard shape. “Ensemble” loosely inferred smaller groupings that played art music repertoires. So, for example, a string quartet and a wind octet might both be described as types of ensemble, but “ensemble” would not be used without irony to describe a group of busking street musicians—it would be called a band. It follows that the residual meaning of “band” is difficult to summarize because bands exist in so many forms: some have precise formations with dedicated repertoires and distinctive idioms, others have less uniformity and are formed expediently. So “band” has also developed into a catchall phrase for any group of instrumentalists for which a different descriptor is inappropriate. This leads to the need for descriptive adjectives: military band, brass band, jazz band, pipe band, and so on. To complicate matters further, modern retrospective labelling is often applied to historical groups, such as the Alta band, and modern pop groups are ubiquitously referred to as “bands.” A pragmatic approach is taken in this article. While literature about earlier groupings is cited, the emphasis is on bands that emerged from the early nineteenth century, most having their origin, directly or indirectly, in military bands. It was the rise of the military band in its modern form that probably created the need for the new semantic distinction between “band” and “orchestra.” As well as being primarily formed of wind instruments, these bands often had, and continue to have, a public role, sometimes in outdoor settings. While these points explain the scope of this article its limitations are determined by the organization of Oxford Bibliographies. Put simply, while there is some overlap with other parts of Oxford Bibliographies, this article is primarily devoted to bands that are not the subject of detailed attention elsewhere. So, for example, see the separate Oxford Bibliographies in Music entries on Street Music and Jazz and other entries devoted to individual bands such as Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington.
Cormac McCarthy
Authors: Frye Steven
Published: October 2022

Cormac McCarthy (b. 1933) was born Charles Joseph McCarthy Jr. in Providence, Rhode Island, and moved as young child to Knoxville, Tennessee, where he grew up attending private Catholic schools. He enrolled at the University of Tennessee but left to join the US Air Force. After being stationed in Alaska, he returned home to complete his college education, majoring in liberal arts, but he left before earning his degree to become a writer. His first novel, The Orchard Keeper (1965), was set in mountain regions around Knoxville and dealt with the traumatic effects of modernization on rural environments. The novel was edited by Albert Erskine, William Faulkner’s former editor, and received generally positive reviews. It was followed by Outer Dark (1968), a novel set in an unnamed southern dreamscape that follows the tortured journey of a poverty-stricken brother and sister as they seek redemption from transgression and guilt. Another novel, Child of God (1973), followed in the vein of the Southern gothic and Southern grotesque, as a degraded and arguably victimized young man succumbs to perverse depths of necrophilia and murder. A subsequent novel, Suttree (1979), is partly autobiographical and deals with the experience of a privileged but alienated young man who lives and works among the destitute in Knoxville. This long novel is notable for its engagement with the exterior city and rural environments and the interior mindscapes of its central protagonist. McCarthy then moved to the West and took the area as a setting for five later works. His most studied novel, Blood Meridian; or, The Evening Redness in the West (1985), is based on an actual historical account and contends with the violence that attended westward expansion. The three novels of the Border Trilogy are All the Pretty Horses (1992), The Crossing (1994), and Cities of the Plain (1998). These neo-Westerns explore the trauma of two young men as they deal with a West that is changing under the influence of modernity. The West remains the setting for No Country for Old Men (2005), which deals with the question of endemic violence in the context of the drug trade. McCarthy’s last published novel to date is the very personal and post-apocalyptic parable The Road (2006), which won the Pulitzer Prize. He is also known for plays and screenplays. In 2003 the literary critic Harold Bloom named McCarthy, along with Don DeLillo, Thomas Pynchon, and Philip Roth, as one of the four major living American novelists.
Nonergodicity in Psychology and Neuroscience
Authors: Mangalam Madhur
Published: October 2022

Inference concerning cause-and-effect linkages in modern psychology and neuroscience follows the ergodic premise, which states that the mean response of representative samples allows predictions about the characteristics of specific sample members. However, emerging evidence suggests that empirical data in these fields often violate ergodic assumptions. In these cases, theoretical results for ensemble averages cannot be used to understand and interpret data acquired from time averages. As a result, a large corpus of research in psychology and neuroscience fails to meet the fundamental requirements of scientific inquiry, from the inability to replicate study findings to the inability to test hypotheses concerning nonlinear far-from-equilibrium dynamics that characterize the emergence and creativity of biological and psychological behavior. Ongoing work attempts to identify relevant ergodic observables for studying nonergodic processes.