bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Signaling Theory: State of the Theory and Its Future
Authors: Connelly Brian L. , Certo S. Trevis , Reutzel Christopher R. , DesJardine Mark R. , Zhou Yi Shi
Published: September 2024

Signaling theory is about decision-making and communication. It describes scenarios where signalers send observable signals that carry credible information about unobservable qualities. When decision-makers have incomplete or imperfect information, signals can help them make better decisions. The power of a signal, though, lies in its cost, with the best signals being highly costly for low-quality signalers and less costly for high-quality signalers. Given the centrality of these ideas in the organizational sciences, we examine management studies that use signaling theory to help explain phenomena that occur within and among organizations. Our review draws attention to how signaling theorists have introduced important complexities to the signaling process, uncovered theoretical boundary conditions of signaling, described new actors within signaling systems, and demonstrated novel ways to apply signaling theory to understand behavior in an array of research contexts involving a wide range of organizational stakeholders. We also offer ideas about how scholars can account for costs when they apply the theory, extend the theory in more organizational settings, and create abstract extensions of the theory’s major concepts. Our intent is to provide researchers with a panoramic perspective on the state of signaling theory and inspire further development so that we can collectively advance signaling theory as much in the next decade as it has advanced in the last.
The Africa we Want: Family and Youth Ministry, Inequality, and Poverty
Authors: Knoetze Johannes J.
Published: September 2024

This contribution draws on the Agenda 2063 document to engage the role of family and youth ministry in relation to inequality and poverty. The question this paper addresses is, how can we read Agenda 2063 with a specific lens on ‘The Africa we want’, in conjunction with the challenges faced by unemployed youth? Many of them have given up on their aspirations because of traditional cultural views, while others have foregone their education to engage in a struggle for liberation – not only political liberation but also socio-economic liberation – and now face an uncertain future. Furthermore, how does youth ministry collaborate with the poor and the marginalised in their struggles for survival, liberation, and life, to live in the Africa ‘they’ want? This article makes intra- and interdisciplinary contributions by engaging the theological disciplines of missiology and practical theology as well as social and economic policy documents.
Banking on ignorance: A spatial inquiry into the truncated politics of charter school teachers
Authors: Cahen Claire
Published: September 2024

Over the past 30 years in the US, the teaching profession has been radically transformed as publicly-funded, but privately managed charter schools have created a workforce of less experienced, less unionized, less credentialed and more transient educators. This paper argues that a primary effect of these labour practices is to reduce the charter school project’s ideological exposure. Charter school teachers are recruited from a national pool and for transient positions. They are disconnected from the low-income and racialized places where they are brought to teach and, on the job, face speed-up, heavy-handed management, deskilling and job insecurity. Charter school teachers in this study are not, as previous research has argued, cheerleaders for the privatization of education, let alone the virtues of flexible, non-union work. Rather, they express frustration that their work conditions are degraded. But unlike their counterparts in traditional public schools, who are more anchored in the politics of place and education, charter school teachers are unfamiliar with the policy changes that have brought them to the current moment. The neo-Taylorist labour practices of charter schools make it difficult for teachers to analyse or parse the power dynamics of which they are a part as subjects if not victims. The study makes a case that the working conditions and workforce composition of frontline workers are key to understanding how these workers engage in battles over welfare provision in the neoliberal city.
An excess-work approach to assessing channel instability potential within urban streams of Chicago, Illinois: Relative importance of spatial variability in hydraulic conditions and stormwater mitigation
Authors: Meem Tasneem Haq , Rhoads Bruce L , Fouts Leo , Schmidt Arthur , Byard Gregory
Published: September 2024

Stormwater management in urban environments typically involves regulation of release rates of stored water from control structures to mitigate enhanced peak flows that can cause damaging flooding. The extent to which this mitigation influences stream geomorphic stability remains largely unexplored. Moreover, few, if any, studies have examined how instability is related to hydraulic effects of in-channel structures within urban stream systems. This paper assesses the potential for channel instability under existing conditions in two urban streams in Cook County, Illinois using a stream-power modeling approach. It also evaluates the impact of watershed-specific release rates intended to mitigate flooding from future development on instability potential. The analysis utilizes hydrologic and hydraulic modeling to estimate stream power per unit area for 2-year and 50-year storm events for both the existing base condition and for four release-rate scenarios. Stream power exceeding the critical power required to mobilize channel bed material is integrated over time to determine excess work. Results show that the spatial distribution of excess work for the base condition varies by more than nine orders of magnitude within individual reaches, confirming high potential for instability. Release-rate scenarios both increase and decrease the magnitude of excess work relative to the base conditions within specific reaches of the two streams but do not alter substantially the high variability in excess work. The results demonstrate that instability potential in these urban fluvial systems is governed primarily by spatial variability in hydraulic properties associated with fragmentation of the streams by multiple in-channel structures.
Experience of Being Fall-Prone and Participating in Research: Fallers’ Perspectives
Authors: O’Brien Jessica , Dollard Marie , Cleary May , Trace Anna , Chan Jason , Setti Annalisa
Published: September 2024

The importance of giving a voice to groups considered hard-to-reach for research purposes is becoming increasingly apparent, with insights into their experience having the potential to improve research participation. Fall-prone older adults are a cohort underrepresented in research, often excluded in large-scale research and considered difficult to recruit. This study aims to explore older fallers’ experiences of being fall-prone and participating in research. Seven older fallers (4 males, aged 69–88) participated in semi-structured telephone interviews following participation in an experimental research project. Interviews explored participants’ personal experience of being fall-prone and participating in research. The resulting data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Three primary themes emerged: “Research through the eyes of older fallers”, “Living with falls”, and “It’s all in the mind is it?”. Our study gives voice to older fallers who have recently participated in experimental research to learn of their personal views on research participation.
Promoting Letter-Naming and Initial-Phoneme Detection Abilities Among Preschoolers at Risk for Specific Learning Disorder Using Technological Intervention With Two Types of Mats: With and Without Target Letter Forms
Authors: Apelboim-Dushnitzky Gila , Tova Oren
Published: September 2024

This study tested the potential of a technological intervention procedure for promoting letter-naming and initial-phoneme detection skills among preschoolers at risk for Specific Learning Disorder. The study rational is based on evidence for paired associated learning of visual-verbal stimuli, integrated with the use of a tangible technological device (educational floor robot) as means for promoting letter knowledge. Two intervention groups ( N = 60) participated. The intervention lasted for eight sessions of phonological training; each dedicated to one target letter. Participants were asked to navigate the robot’s path from a current stopping point to the next according to phonological information processing. Both groups went through the same procedure, but using a different type of mat (one with and one without a visual form of the letter). A control group ( N = 30) of at-risk preschoolers received no intervention except for their preschool educational routine. We found that children who participated in phonological training with linkage to the visual form of the letter scored higher in post-intervention tests. Among other proposed explanations, we mention the advantages of using a tangible robot and seemingly three-dimensional letters, along with the tendency to consider visual features while processing language stimulus among children with dyslexia.
Children and Adolescents With Sickle Cell Disease and Skull Infarction: A Systematic Review
Authors: Perez Alexia M. , Garcia-Guaqueta Danna P. , Setty Bindu N. , Neri Caitlin , Torres Alcy R.
Published: September 2024

Introduction

Skull infarction is an uncommonly reported complication of sickle cell disease. We aimed to characterize the clinical and imaging features of skull infarction in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease.

Methods

We searched the PubMed database for case reports on skull bone infarction in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease. Out of 67 records retrieved, 15 met inclusion criteria, and a 16th case reported by the senior author was included. We extracted and analyzed clinical and imaging data.

Results

The most common symptom at onset was headache (88%). Bilateral skull infarction (50%) and parietal bone involvement (82%) were frequent imaging findings. Epidural hematoma developed in 65% of the cases, 30% of patients required drainage, and exchange infusion was reported in 18%. No fatal outcomes were reported.

Conclusions

Skull infarction is a potentially severe complication of sickle cell disease presenting unique clinical challenges. Acute headaches should raise suspicion for this condition and may require additional investigation.
Effects of Online Tiered Training to Increase Teachers’ Use of Positive Behavior Supports
Authors: Torelli Jessica N. , Miller Anna H. , Granger Kristen L. , Noel Christina R. , Gross Thomas J.
Published: September 2024

To develop and support teachers’ skills in classroom management, resource-efficient teacher training approaches are needed. This study evaluated the effects of an online tiered training intervention on teachers’ use of class-wide positive behavior supports, either behavior-specific praise (BSP) or opportunities to respond (OTRs), using a randomized controlled trial conducted in an online graduate course in classroom management. Fifty-nine participants (52 teachers, 6 paraprofessionals, and 1 after-school instructor) completed the study. We randomly assigned 29 teachers to receive tiered training for BSP and 30 teachers to receive tiered training for OTRs. We found tiered training increased participants’ use of the target practice, BSP or OTR, with medium to large effect sizes, and most teachers required support beyond universal training. Teachers rated the training they received as highly acceptable, feasible, and useful.
Allomilk: An Anthropogeny-Based Framework for Human Milk as a Climate Solution
Authors: Little Emily E.
Published: September 2024

Climate change is an urgent threat to perinatal and infant health, with the greatest effects of climate change exposures being felt disproportionately by global majority communities who have been most harmed by systems of oppression. Human milk feeding is one recognized solution to bolster climate resilience. Yet, policies and practices to support human milk as a climate solution are inconsistent and under-prioritized, which is unsurprising given the lack of alignment between human history and current cultural context with regard to lactation and human milk access. This paper presents a new framework on lactation as a climate solution, which is unique in its incorporation of the critical history of cooperative breastfeeding in our species. Rooted in anthropogeny, or the study of human origins, and antiracist principles of lactation, the Allomilk Framework highlights five concepts of the ideal application of human milk as a climate solution, bridging ancient allonursing with present-day lactation and human milk access. These ideal applications—and the proposed development of measures to operationalize them—will advance the field through a shared understanding of the qualities that should be prioritized in the assessment of policies and practices at the intersection of climate resilience and human milk access. Application of the Allomilk Framework to assess and design future policies and practices will advance the field by increasing the potential for climate resilience and climate mitigation while working with—rather than against—the importance of cooperative breastfeeding in human history.
To Follow or Not to Follow: Estimating Political Opinion From Twitter Data Using a Network-Based Machine Learning Approach
Authors: Brandenstein Nils , Montag Christian , Sindermann Cornelia
Published: September 2024

Studying political opinions of citizens stands as a fundamental pursuit for both policymakers and researchers. While traditional surveys remain the primary method to investigate individual political opinions, the advent of social media data (SMD) offers novel prospects. However, the number of studies using SMD to extract individuals’ political opinions are limited and differ greatly in their methodological approaches and levels of success. Recent studies highlight the benefits of analyzing individuals’ social media network structure to estimate political opinions. Nevertheless, current methodologies exhibit limitations, including the use of simplistic linear models and a predominant focus on samples from the United States. Addressing these issues, we employ an unsupervised Variational Autoencoder (VAE) machine learning model to extract individual opinion estimates from SMD of N = 276 008 German Twitter (now called ’X’) users, compare its performance to a linear model and validate model estimates on self-reported opinion measures. Our findings suggest that the VAE captures Twitter users’ network structure more precisely, leading to higher accuracy in following decision predictions and associations with self-reported political ideology and voting intentions. Our study emphasizes the need for advanced analytical approaches capable to capture complex relationships in social media networks when studying political opinion, at least in non-US contexts.
A novel static model of planetary roller screw mechanisms based on an energy method
Authors: Zhang Bohong , Xing Mingcai , Cui Yi , Huang Qiangqiang , Li Bin , Liu Shuo
Published: September 2024

A novel static model of planetary roller screw mechanisms (PRSMs) is proposed to obtain the load distribution over threads by an energy method. The energy method consists of the structural potential energy and an optimization problem. The potential energy is calculated by structural discretization. And the optimization problem, whose objective is the structural potential energy, is obtained by combining the principle of minimum potential energy with the forces balance constraints. The load distribution is the result of the optimization problem. A finite element model is established for validation. Compared with previous models, the proposed model has lower complexity and higher precision. To further verify the reliability and practicability of the proposed model, effects of the nut position, shaft diameter, and number of roller threads on the load distribution are analyzed based on the proposed model. The results show that the nut position has little influence on the load distribution. The shaft diameter and number of roller threads significantly impact the load distribution.
Experimental study on the friction and wear of the scraper and groove side friction pair under variable factors
Authors: Xia Rui , Liu Bei , Li Bo , Wang Xuewen
Published: September 2024

To investigate the wear characteristics and mechanisms of the scraper and groove side friction pair under various factors, this study utilizes the scraper conveyor SGZ1000/2 × 1200 as the prototype and designs a test bench with a similarity ratio of 1:6. The Plackett–Burman experiment is used to examine the significant effects of five key factors (running speed, normal load, particle size, gangue content, and groove side clearance) on the groove side wear. It reveals that gangue content exerts the most significant impact, while the normal load is relatively minor. The interaction between factors is studied through the Box–Behnken experimental design. By analyzing the interaction through the obtained second-order regression model, it can be concluded that the interaction between running speed and groove side clearance, as well as the interaction between running speed and particle size, exacerbates groove side wear. The significant factors are validated through single-factor experiments. To further analyze the variations in wear under each factor, the changes from the second to the fourth level of each single factor are selected and compared with other factors. The running speed increasing from 0.06 m/s to 0.12 m/s results in a 102.67% wear amount increase. A 95.21% increase occurs when the particle size increases from 1.5 mm to 2.5 mm. Gangue content exhibits the most significant impact, where the content increases from 8% to 25%, marking a 205.73% rise. The wear morphology shifts from shallow pits and furrows to deeper ones, accompanied by a noticeable increase in quantity. Conversely, the wear amount and morphology changes least in groove side clearance, when the groove side clearance increases from 0 mm to +1 mm, a decline of 63.47%. The morphology shifts from numerous deep pits and furrows to shallower and smaller ones, indicating the mildest abrasive wear phenomenon.
Irreversibility analysis on a radiative hybrid nanofluid flow across an exponentially stretching sheet with multiple slips and variable thermal conductivity
Authors: Kandukoori Rajesh Chary , Janapatla Pranitha , Chakraborty Anomitra
Published: September 2024

The entropy analysis and flow behavior of a mixed convective hybrid nanofluid [Formula: see text] across an exponentially stretching sheet were examined in this article using Tiwari-Das model in presence of thermal radiation, Joule heating, viscous dissipation, velocity slip, and thermal slip at the boundary with the idea of variable thermal conductivity which was yet to be studied by any researcher. This attests to the novelty of our study. The non-linear partial differential equations have been transformed into non-dimensional ordinary differential equations using similarity transformations, and the MATLAB bvp4c algorithm is used to solve it numerically. Comparisons were made with previously published studies which were found to be in great agreement. The temperature profile increases with increasing Eckert number [Formula: see text], variable thermal conductivity parameter [Formula: see text], buoyancy parameter [Formula: see text], volume fraction of nanoparticle parameter [Formula: see text], and radiation parameter [Formula: see text]. However, the opposite trend is observed when suction parameter [Formula: see text] is increased. It was observed that the fluid motion decreases as velocity slip [Formula: see text] increases and thermal slip [Formula: see text] behaves in the same manner on temperature profile. It is observed that, for differing values of Eckert number and radiation parameter, the skin friction coefficient leads to increase while the Nusselt number values decrease. An increased by 9.39% is observed for entropy production [Formula: see text] for a change in Brinkmann number [Formula: see text] from 0.5 to 2.0 while entropy production profile reduced by [Formula: see text] for changing the variable thermal conductivity parameter from [Formula: see text] to 1.5. Similarly, an increased by [Formula: see text] is observed for temperature profile for a change in radiation parameter from Rd = 0.10 to 1.50. The current study discovered use for it in glass fiber production, wire drawing stretching, aerodynamic plastic sheet extrusion, metallic plate cooling, etc.
Assessing novel partner antimicrobials to protect ceftriaxone against gonococcal resistance: An in vitro evaluation
Authors: Abdellati Saïd , Gestels Zina , Baranchyk Yuliia , de Block Tessa , Van Den Bossche Dorien , De Baetselier Irith , Manoharan-Basil Sheeba Santhini , Kenyon Chris
Published: September 2024

Background

The emergence of ceftriaxone-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae poses a significant threat to existing treatment regimens. Our study aimed to assess the efficacy of antimicrobials that could be combined with ceftriaxone to reduce the probability of ceftriaxone resistance emerging and spreading in N. gonorrhoeae.

Methods and Results

Broth microdilution was used to determine the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for a panel of ceftriaxone-resistant (WHO X, Y, Z) and ceftriaxone-susceptible (WHO L, N, P) N. gonorrhoeae WHO reference strains for the following antimicrobials: ceftriaxone, doxycycline, azithromycin, zoliflodacin, fosfomycin, pristinamycin, ramoplanin, gentamicin and NAI-107. The MICs for zoliflodacin and pristinamycin for all strains were lower than or equal to the available breakpoints. A checkerboard assay was used to determine the drug-drug combination effect, which showed either an indifferent or an additive effect for all the combinations tested with ceftriaxone.

Conclusions

The low MICs of zoliflodacin and pristinamycin for the three ceftriaxone-resistant strains suggest that these antimicrobials could be used as partner drugs with ceftriaxone to reduce the probability of ceftriaxone resistance spreading in areas with a high prevalence of ceftriaxone resistance.
Constraints on verse form and syntactic well-formedness in the cywyddau of Dafydd ap Gwilym
Authors: Quick Calvin
Published: September 2024

Poetry is often described as having ‘unusual syntax’. Based on a close study of nine cywydd poems by the fourteenth century Welsh poet Dafydd ap Gwilym, I identify attributive adjectives and preverbal particles as the loci of substantial departures in poetic language from the ordinary grammar of contemporary Welsh, providing an optimality theoretic analysis of the interaction between the linguistic and poetic grammars in Welsh cywyddau. I conclude that abnormally frequent noncanonical adjective ordering and omission of certain preverbal particles in poetry is a result of the domination of certain constraints on syntactic well-formedness by verse constraints.
Evaluating the Usefulness of Microlearning to Adult Students in Higher Education: An Empirical Study in Singapore
Authors: Yao Shih-Ying , Ho Yan Yin
Published: September 2024

Adults at different life phases have become an important part of the student body in higher education. Helping adult students overcome challenges and improve their learning is thus a critical consideration for universities and colleges. Microlearning is an emerging approach in adult education in recent years. The core concept of microlearning is to chunk learning materials into bite-sized units. Although research has discussed the potential of using microlearning to help adult students in the higher education setting, this area is insufficiently studied. This study empirically evaluated the usefulness of microlearning for adult students’ academic learning in the higher education setting. In this study, a microlearning module was designed for a research methods course at a local university in Singapore. Students taking this course were primarily adult learners who were enrolled in part-time undergraduate programs. The microlearning module was intended to be a supplementary resource to help adult students learn about critical considerations in writing a research proposal at their own pace. The final sample consisted of 98 adult students from various backgrounds. Participants were asked to complete a set of tests and surveys before and after they completed the microlearning module. Survey responses were also collected from participants during their learning process. All research activities could be completed online at each participant’s own pace. Results from the study suggested that microlearning is an effective, efficient, and appealing approach for adult students in the higher education context. Overall, most adult learners in this study would recommend microlearning.
Use of a Head-Worn Display for Approach and Landing in a Transport Category Aircraft: Does Monocular Viewing Impact Pilot Performance and Workload?
Authors: Newton David C. , Greenlee Eric T. , Mofle Theodore C. , Shahini Farzaneh , DiDomenica Rebecca , Choi Inchul
Published: September 2024

When manually flying an approach and landing, pilots can use a Head-Up Display (HUD), binocular Head-Worn Display (HWD), or monocular HWD to view flight symbology that is superimposed onto their view of the runway environment. There are design differences across these displays that could impact pilots’ performance and workload while flying. Based on these concerns, an experiment was conducted where 18 Airline Transport Pilot Captains flew approach, landing, and rollout scenarios with varying visibility levels in a Level D-equivalent Boeing 737 flight simulator. Pilots manually flew each scenario while using flight symbology presented on a HUD, binocular HWD, or monocular HWD. Pilots rated their workload during each scenario using the NASA-TLX. While flightpath tracking and energy management performance was not impacted by display type, pilot workload was highest when flying with a Monocular HWD and lowest when flying with a HUD. The operational takeaways and theoretical implications are discussed.
A Framework for the Design of Risk-Adjustment Models in Health care Provider Payment Systems
Authors: Panturu Andreea , van Kleef Richard , Eijkenaar Frank , Cattel Daniëlle
Published: September 2024

Prospective payments for health care providers require adequate risk adjustment (RA) to address systematic variation in patients’ health care needs. However, the design of RA for provider payment involves many choices and difficult trade-offs between incentives for risk selection, incentives for cost control, and feasibility. Despite a growing literature, a comprehensive framework of these choices and trade-offs is lacking. This article aims to develop such a framework. Using literature review and expert consultation, we identify key design choices for RA in the context of provider payment and subsequently categorize these choices along two dimensions: (a) the choice of risk adjusters and (b) the choice of payment weights. For each design choice, we provide an overview of options, trade-offs, and key references. By making design choices and associated trade-offs explicit, our framework facilitates customizing RA design to provider payment systems, given the objectives and other characteristics of the context of interest.
A novel integrated forming strategy based on chemical vapor infiltration for C/C honeycomb with variable stiffness
Authors: Du Donghai , Liang Xiaoyan , Li Weijie , Wang Yalei , Zhang Zhongwei
Published: September 2024

Variable stiffness Carbon/Carbon (C/C) honeycomb can be designed to exhibit varying stiffness based on the structural load gradient, facilitating a high degree of alignment between structural performance and function. The elimination of mass redundancy and achievement of extreme light-weighting confer promising applications in the aerospace sector. However, the universal preparation approach for variable stiffness honeycomb faces challenges related to material mass redundancy and susceptibility to cracking at the bonds. Consequently, addressing the integrated forming issues associated with variable stiffness honeycomb becomes urgent. In this study, firstly, the conventional honeycomb densification method and the CVI domain-limited reactor design approach for integrated forming of variable-stiffness honeycombs are discussed. Subsequently, a multi-physics field coupling model for C/C honeycomb forming is developed, and its accuracy is validated through honeycomb forming experiments. The influence of three key process parameters, gas residence time, temperature, and pressure, on the quality of honeycomb forming were explored. Following the influence laws, the study applies specific process parameters to the three distinct regions of the reactor. Through this meticulously regulated process, the final variable stiffness honeycomb attains a 17.6 % reduction in weight compared to a constant density honeycomb of the same volume.
Development of Prediction Model for 5-year Survival of Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Nopour Raoof
Published: September 2024

Objectives:

This study aims to introduce a prediction model based on a machine learning approach as an efficient solution for prediction purposes to better prognosis and increase CRC survival.

Methods:

In the current retrospective study, we used the data of 1062 CRC cases to analyse and establish a prediction model for the 5-year CRC survival. The machine learning algorithms were used to develop prediction models, including random Forest, XG-Boost, bagging, logistic regression, support vector machine, artificial neural network, decision tree, and K-nearest neighbours.

Results:

The current study revealed that the XG-Boost with AU-ROC of 0.906 and 0.813 for internal and external conditions gave us better insight into predictability and generalizability than other algorithms.

Conclusion:

XG-Boost can be utilised as a knowledge source for implementing intelligent systems as an assistive tool for clinical decision-making in healthcare settings to improve prognosis and increase CRC survival through various clinical solutions that doctors can achieve.
Computational approach in presentation a parametric method to construct hybrid girihs (hybrid Islamic geometric patterns)
Authors: Azizi Naserabad Ali , Ghanbaran Abdulhamid
Published: September 2024

Hybrid girihs refer to Islamic geometric patterns that include various stars/rosettes in their final pattern. In this paper, we first identified historical hybrid girihs and then categorized them based on symmetry groups and the number of stars/rosettes folds. In the next step, we analyzed the existing hybrid girihs to identify the generative parameters and present a method for generating historical and novel systematic and non-systematic hybrid girihs. The proposed method of this paper is a computational and parametric approach based on the symmetry groups theory. Its general steps include generating the minimal essential information (template motif) within the fundamental region, applying appropriate symmetry operations on the content of the fundamental region to create the content of the unit girih, and replicating the content of the unit girih in a suitable network according to the symmetry group to create the whole pattern. Our method is used to generate hybrid girih for adorning surfaces in digital spaces and for constructing facade modules (adorned with Islamic geometric patterns) and interior decorative partitions and furniture in physical spaces according to the aesthetic judgment of users.
What do Climate Change, Nutrition, and the Environment Have to do With Mental Health?
Authors: Sugden Steven G. , Merlo Gia
Published: September 2024

Climate change is becoming the most significant global challenge and must be addressed on a global scale. At the time that this article is being written, the planetary heat in 2023 was the hottest on record. Similarly, the World Health Organization reports that 99% of the world’s population lives in regions of unhealthy air pollution. Similarly, depression has become one of the leading causes of global mental and physical disabilities, and the impact of depression is predicted to only worsen over the next 25 years. It is interesting to note that climate experts often overlook the adoption of nutrition via a whole plant-based diet as a solution to both mental illness and climate change. In this review, we will touch upon the role of nutrition in gut microbiota and mental health, the impact diet has on greenhouse gases, the role of ultra-processed food, and environmental factors such as air pollution and increasing planetary heat and their growing impacts on mental health. In the end, the promotion of plant-based foods has the potential to improve personal mental and physical health while improving planetary health.
Cemeteries are active urban resonant places, or are they not?
Authors: Christidis Yiannis
Published: September 2024

A cemetery is usually an integral part of the urban environment, constituting a landmark, where a city buries its deceased, while providing places of remembrance and memory. Therefore, it establishes wide, usually car-free areas, where trees and small animals dominate the environmental space among the graves, within its urban plan. These seemingly empty areas, also host sparse human activity by mourners, visitors, death professionals or cleaners; it is their resonances, along with an ambient city soundscape from the background, that a listener experiences when visiting. Considering listening as multisensory experience, imaginary sounds often seem to integrate in this soundscape. What can sounds of the cemetery reveal? And which sound qualities define the relation between actual and imaginary sounds? By employing sound ethnography, including observation, recordings, listening tests and interviews, the article traces the qualities of Limassol's urban cemeteries through their everyday sound, from an experiential perspective.
Applications of lignin-based foam as a load-bearing component in engineered laminates
Authors: Hussein Rafaat
Published: September 2024

Lignin is the second most abundant sustainable material, yet it is not used in load-bearing wooden stressed-skin panels such as the sandwich type. Thus, the literature lacks technical guides for professionals to engineer lignin-based load-bearing panels. This shortcoming hinders the promising application of the new sustainable material and product. The key objectives of this paper are to introduce lignin-based engineered laminates and devise a pertinent engineering mechanic-based model and a series-type closed-form solution, including the weak bonding stiffness in panels under transverse and in-plane loads, and thermal gradient. The paper validated the finding using independent analytical solutions and experimental measurements. It also ascertained the effect of bonding stiffness on the performance of the panels. All the results indicated satisfactory agreements. Because of the mathematical complexity of the solution, a knowledge-based toolkit was coined to bring design applications into everyday practice. The numerical results indicated that bonding stiffness must not be underestimated when engineering design code mandatory serviceability is considered. What constitutes perfectly rigid bonding is also quantified by professionals to balance the design constituents. These findings establish a strong technical foundation to not only accept the novel introduction of lignin-based panels in real-world applications but also contribute to tackling unprecedented environmental, energy, and economic challenges.
Time and being awkward
Authors: Rose Gillian
Published: September 2024

The commentary focusses on the techno-cultural mediation of temporality. While lauding the paper's tracing of continuities between colonial pasts and smart futures, it asks how ‘distant time’ spans two such different forms of temporal organisation.
The ‘doings’ behind data: An ethnography of police data construction
Authors: Donatz-Fest Isabelle
Published: September 2024

Public organisations, like the Netherlands Police, increasingly rely on data. Despite its importance, there has been limited empirical attention to how data is created and how its situated context impacts algorithmic interpretation of data. Using the Netherlands Police as a research focus, this study aims to fill this gap by studying datafication from an interpretivist perspective, emphasising the importance of material factors and human actors engaging in ‘data work’. The main research question is: How do material factors and human actors interact in ‘data work’ to enable datafication of street-level situated contexts at the Netherlands Police? The study builds on nearly 200 h of ethnographic fieldwork with street-level employees at the Netherlands Police. It finds that data work is deeply embedded in daily policing and is shaped by personal values, organisational context, and practical considerations. The findings highlight challenges posed by structured and unstructured data entry in the registration software for police reports. Structured data limit discretion with predefined labels, often conflicting with employees’ own perceptions. Unstructured data offer more flexibility but pose challenges such as linguistic nuance, inconsistencies, and the presence of ‘voice’ in police reports that complicate data interpretation. The study unearths various patterns of the interplay between human actors and material factors in relation to their situated contexts, which impact how police reports are constructed through a registration system. This approach, emphasising the interplay between material factors, human actors, organisational dynamics, and contextual factors, can help public sector organisations take steps towards responsible algorithmic interpretation of data.
Building a strategy for the recruitment and retention of nurses in healthcare: A contemporary issue
Authors: Simonsen Mette Kildevæld , Fleischer Marlene
Published: September 2024

The global nursing shortage is a critical issue in healthcare. In this brief contemporary issue, we will present insights originating from a quality improvement project. The project included the planning and execution of a comprehensive strategy designed to recruit and retain nurses. Our aim with this issue is to inspire and guide other healthcare leaders. The quality improvement project sought to reduce vacancies, lower turnover rates, boost job satisfaction, and improve patient care assessments. Addressing the nursing shortage requires healthcare leaders to develop effective strategies for both recruitment and retention. The project, conducted in a Danish Neurological Department between October 2021 and June 2023, supported us to assess the potential impacts of our developed strategy. Although we could observe positive trends, the design limitations of a quality improvement project prevent us from definitively attributing these outcomes to our developed strategy alone. However, by sharing our experiences, we hope to inspire and provide actionable insights for other healthcare leaders facing similar challenges.
Intensity of Seasonal Migration and Its Impact on Household Consumption: Analysis of East Indian Villages
Authors: Basoya Ayushi , Pal Rama
Published: September 2024

In developing countries, such as India, the seasonal nature of agriculture becomes a primary cause of economic distress. In response, households engage in migration as a coping mechanism to diversify the risk as well as for maximising household income during agricultural slack season. Thus, households collectively decide to send one or more members away with the assurance that the migrant will send a part of their urban income, enabling the household to improve living standards through increased consumption expenditures. In this light, this study focuses on seasonal out-migration from the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa in India. Using the International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics East-India panel data set for 2011–2014, the study attempts to analyse the determinants of intensity of migration for the panel data. Second, we try to evaluate the impact of migration on the consumption expenditure of left-behind households using inverse probability-weighted regression. The analysis of the determinants of migration suggests the presence of distress migration where external shocks in the form of climate change-related losses increase the migration intensity of the households, highlighting migration as a coping mechanism. The second part of the study reveals higher per-capita food as well as non-food expenditure for the migrant households as compared to the non-migrants based on the yearly cross-section analysis. These findings suggest the positive effects of seasonal migration on left-behind families.
Improving Language Comprehension via Hand Gestures in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and/or Language Impairment in Rural Montana
Authors: Modyanova Nadezhda (Nadya) N. , Bolton Addy P. , Storrusten Carter , McCrory Bernadette
Published: September 2024

Background: Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are lifelong challenges, dramatically impairing communicative abilities with long term impacts on outcomes. Children with DLD and/or ASD benefit from interventions to improve language skills, but those are hard to reach in rural areas. Caregiver hand gestures can improve comprehension of content words in DLD/ASD via multimodal processing. However, little is known about how gestures affect comprehension of grammatical determiners (e.g., “ the” or “ an”). Methods: We investigate whether combining determiner phrases (e.g., “ the apple” or “ another apple”) with specific gestures (signs for [same] or [different] from American Sign Language) can improve language comprehension in hearing children with DLD/ASD, compared to TD controls. Operating Gazepoint or Tobii eye tracking at participants’ homes or a university space, we use a constrained act-out task presented via a custom-made interactive computer game with pre-recorded video prompts, or a toy and paper version, using a pretest-training-test-posttest protocol. Results: After evaluating 35 participants with ASD, DLD, and TD, ages 2-31, we identified three subgroups (across diagnoses) based on their knowledge of determiners at pretest. 51% of participants showed good (adult-like) knowledge across determiners and tests. 26% of participants were unable to complete our interactive game. However, 23% of participants showed initial poor knowledge of “ the”, followed by improvements in the comprehension of “ the” with gestures in the test, which were mostly retained in the posttest. Eye tracking demonstrated consistency between children’s attention to gestures and answers and their behavioral responses. Conclusion: Hand gestures can improve language comprehension in some children with DLD/ASD and TD. Our findings may lead to designing an inclusive intervention, for both children and their caregivers, to improve communication using multiple modalities – both speech and simple gestures which emphasize the main points of the spoken message, thereby supporting rural & underserved families.
Characterizing Physical Strain in Non-Routinized Clinical Work Through Observation: An Example of Oral Healthcare Providers
Authors: Fang Yiyang , Kapellusch Jay M. , Baker Nancy A. , Roll Shawn C.
Published: September 2024

The Revised Strain Index (RSI), despite its prevalence in ergonomics field practice, is designed to assess jobs with cyclic and predictable physical and behavioral patterns. The quantification of exertion force, posture, and work task duration is substantially more challenging for non-routinized work in clinical and hospital environments. Using dental hygiene work as an exemplar, we proposed a consolidated method to characterize physical exertion for non-routinized work. We conducted the RSI adaptation process in two phases. In phase one, we characterized exertion in non-routinized work and identified representative intensity and posture patterns. In phase two, we validated the consolidated method using a small subset of dental hygiene video recordings and compared the results to the conventional sampling method.
A Tale of Two Trays: Comparing the Information Processing Approach and the Ecological Approach in Anesthesia Tray Design
Authors: Nystrom Daniel , Leslie Russell , Dengg Rob , Shakespeare Will
Published: September 2024

Medication selection and administration are high-risk settings in healthcare surgical services. We have completed a work analysis anchored in an ecological approach to design an anesthesia tray that improves efficiency and accuracy of medication selection, in an effort to design a standard tray that can serve operating rooms across Intermountain Health. Previous work by Shultz et al. (2010) utilized human factors principles from an information processing perspective to guide the redesign of an anesthesia medication drawer. This work provides an interesting opportunity to compare differences in the resulting designs of anesthesia trays wrought from an information processing approach and an ecological approach. Similarities between the tray layout designs include: grouping medications by function; placing frequently used medications at the front of the tray; placing medication groups in chronologic order of use; and isolating potent/hazardous medications to the back of the tray. Notable differences from each design include: use of color coding and patterns; vial/syringe orientation; and alignment of the tray with other parts of the anesthesiologist’s workspace. Differences between these approaches and the anesthesia trays they have produced are discussed.
I, Doctor: Patient Preference for Medical Diagnostic Artificial Intelligence
Authors: Charette Autumn , Wickens Chris , Clegg Benjamin
Published: September 2024

Background: Artificial intelligence and automation have the ability to positively alter the practice of medicine through streamlined diagnostic timelines, increased diagnostic accuracy, and reducing employee workload. However, patients and providers alike may feel wary of implementing these technologies into their care. This study aims to evaluate four factors that may influence an individual’s preference for the use of these technologies: Accuracy, Efficiency, Invasiveness, and Risk. Methodology: We implemented a survey which presented hypothetical medical scenarios followed by questions relating to preference for an automated medical intervention against a traditional, non-automated human intervention among 60 psychology undergraduate students. Results: The study found that the accuracy and efficiency of the intervention greatly influenced participant preference for it, with higher accuracy or efficiency of the automation relating to a higher preference for the automation. It was also found that invasiveness did not significantly influence preference for an automated method, with participants failing to significantly choose the automated intervention even when it presented a less physically invasive option compared to the traditional method. Finally, it was found that participants significantly preferred the human over the automated intervention in higher-risk medical scenarios. Conclusion: By discussing the benefits of accuracy and efficiency in using automated healthcare tools, such as their ability to reduce wait times and diagnostic timelines, and implementing these technologies starting in low-risk scenarios, patients and providers alike may be more likely and willing to see the benefits these tools have to offer.