bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in clinical trial reporting for metastatic spine tumors: An exploration of North American studies
Authors: Bangash Ali Haider , Fluss Rose , Eleswarapu Ananth S , Fourman Mitchell S , Gelfand Yaroslav , Murthy Saikiran G , Yassari Reza , De la Garza Ramos Rafael
Published: February 2025

Purpose

The objective of this study was to evaluate the reporting of racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic data in clinical trials exploring the management of metastatic spine disease (MSD).

Methods

We undertook a cross-sectional analysis of North American completed and published clinical trials registered on ClinicalTrials.gov exploring the management of patients with MSD. Data on patient demographics, trial characteristics, reporting of race and ethnicity, distribution of racial and ethnic groups, and reporting of socioeconomic measures was extracted from ClinicalTrials.gov and related publications identified through PubMed and Google Scholar searches. An exploratory data analysis was performed, followed by Pearson’s Chi-square and binary logistic regression analyses to explore associations of covariates with racioethnic reporting.

Results

Out of 158 completed trials, only 8% (12 of 158) met inclusion criteria with published results. These 12 trials included a total of 1,568 patients with a mean age of 61 years. Almost half (42%; (5 of 12)) of trials did not report race, while only 17% (2 of 12) of trials reported ethnicity. In trials reporting complete racial data (n = 5), 77% (377 of 493) patients were White, 15% (n = 73) Black or African American, and 4% (n = 19) Asian. American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander patients were severely underrepresented (0.4% and 0.2%, respectively). Of the two trials reporting ethnicity, 94% (479 of 514) patients were Not Hispanic or Latino. Sponsoring body of the trial, trial phase, intervention type, number of trial patients, or mean age of patients were not significantly associated with racioethnic reporting. Notably, no trial reported any measures of socioeconomic status.

Conclusion

Our review revealed significant gaps in the reporting of racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic data in MSD clinical trials, with substantial underrepresentation of minority groups. This underrepresentation limits the generalizability of trial findings and may perpetuate health disparities. Coordinated efforts from researchers, clinicians, policymakers, and funding bodies are needed to improve diversity in future trials. Strategies such as targeted outreach, community engagement, and more inclusive eligibility criteria should be implemented to ensure that trial populations better reflect the diversity of MSD patients in the general population.
Childhood adversities and home atmosphere as determinants of resilience in old age: findings from the Helsinki birth cohort study
Authors: Siltanen Sini , Pynnönen Katja , Stenroth Sini M. , Kokko Katja , Haapanen Markus J. , Wasenius Niko S. , Laine Merja K. , Mikkola Tuija M. , Eriksson Johan G. , von Bonsdorff Mikaela B.
Published: February 2025

Early life stress has far-reaching effects on various aspects of well-being in later life, but whether it impacts resilience, i.e., the ability to tolerate hardship, in old age remains unclear. We investigated whether childhood adversities and childhood home atmosphere are associated with resilience in old age directly or indirectly through poorer physical and psychological functioning in late middle age. The data comprised 1176 persons born in 1934–1944 and were collected over a 17-year follow-up in 2001–2018. Childhood adversities (greater score indicates more adversities) and home atmosphere (greater score indicates better atmosphere) were assessed retrospectively. Resilience in old age was measured with the Hardy-Gill Resilience Scale, depressive symptoms in late middle age with the Beck Depression Inventory, and hand grip strength in late middle age with a dynamometer. Data were analyzed with path modeling with depressive symptoms and grip strength set as mediators. We found that a greater number of childhood adversities and a poorer home atmosphere were associated with poorer resilience in old age (β =  − .13; p < .001 and β = .11, p < .001, respectively). These associations were fully mediated by depressive symptoms, but not hand grip strength, in late middle age. The findings indicate that adverse childhood exposures may decrease psychological functioning in middle age, and subsequently, lessen resilience in old age. Future studies should assess whether this pathway can be intervened.
The effect of web 2.0 tools on primary school students’ writing motivation and their role in developing creative writing skills
Authors: KIZILTAŞ Yusuf , KULTAS Emrah
Published: February 2025

Web 2.0 tools for teaching purposes in schools are quite common. With Web 2.0 tools, students have the opportunity to both have fun and learn. Thus, students’ willingness and motivation towards writing increases. Students whose writing motivation increases can write creatively in the process. The main purpose of this research is to reveal the effects of Web 2.0 tools on primary school students’ writing motivation and their role in developing their creative writing skills. For these purposes, a quasi-experimental design model with a pretest-posttest control group was applied in the current study. Storyboard That and Storyjumper Web 2.0 tools were used in the research. During the research, creative writing activities were carried out in digital environments in the experimental group. In contrast, creative writing activities were carried out with paper and pencil in the control group. The research revealed that Web 2.0 tools improved creative writing skills. In addition, there was a significant difference in students’ post-test scores and writing motivation compared to the pre-test. It was concluded that Web 2.0 tools were effective in writing motivation. The development of students’ creative writing skills was another important result.
Hyperdeterminism? Spacetime ‘Analyzed’
Authors: Chen Lu , Fritz Tobias
Published: February 2025

When modelling spacetime and classical physical fields, one typically assumes smoothness (infinite differentiability). But this assumption and its philosophical implications have not been sufficiently scrutinized. For example, we can appeal to analytic functions instead, which are also often used by physicists. Doing so leads to very different philosophical interpretations of a theory. For instance, our world would be ‘hyperdeterministic’ with analytic functions, in the sense that every field configuration is uniquely determined by its restriction to an arbitrarily small region. Relatedly, the hole argument of general relativity does not get off the ground. We argue that such an appeal to analytic functions is technically feasible and, conceptually, not obviously objectionable. The moral is to warn against rushing to draw philosophical conclusions from physical theories, given their drastic sensitivity to mathematical formalisms.
Enhancing Trustworthiness in Real Time Single Object Detection
Authors: Tarkasis Konstantinos , Kaparis Konstantinos , Georgiou Andreas C.
Published: February 2025

We propose a method for the dynamic evaluation of the output provided by any Real Time Object Detection Algorithm. This work focuses on single object detection from video streams and the main objective is the enhancement of the process with regard to its so-called trustworthiness based on the spatial consideration of the sequence of video frames that are fed as inputs on a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). To this end, we propose a method that systematically tests the differences between the consecutive values returned by the employed neural network. The process identifies patterns that flag potential false positive predictions based on classic similarity metrics and evaluates the quality of the CNN results in a methodologically agnostic fashion. An extended computational illustration demonstrates the effectiveness and the potentials of the proposed approach.
Influence of pre-service primary school teachers’ prior knowledge of measurement and measurement estimation in solving modelling problems
Authors: Segura C. , Gallart C. , Ferrando I.
Published: February 2025

Modelling is an important mathematical competence in many curricula worldwide, in Secondary education but even in Primary Education. Fermi problems (FPs) are suitable activities for introducing mathematical modelling in Primary Education, as they present a real situation, without data, and ask for an estimate of an unattainable quantity. However, implementing such tasks is challenging for primary school teachers, partly due to some gaps in modelling-specific teacher knowledge. Previous studies show a relationship between pre-service teachers’ performance and flexibility in solving FPs. Still, the impact of other factors that may affect performance, particularly prior knowledge of measurement and measurement estimation (M&ME), has not been studied. We aim to characterise pre-service teachers’ prior M&ME knowledge and to find out what are the relationships between this knowledge, flexibility and performance in solving FPss. To address this, we present the design and validation of a test on M&ME knowledge that pre-service teachers (PSTs) subsequently took. A cluster analysis based on their answers allowed us to characterise three levels of prior knowledge. In addition, PSTs’ flexibility and performance in solving a sequence of FPs was analysed, finding that there are significant differences in performance according to their level of prior M&ME knowledge. However, prior knowledge does not influence flexibility. We further find that PSTs’ flexibility and prior M&ME knowledge explain an important part of their performance in solving FPs. The results may help to improve PSTs’ instruction on modelling problem-solving.
Top-Down and Bottom-Up Work Design: A Multilevel Perspective on How Job Crafting and Work Characteristics Interrelate
Authors: Parker Sharon K. , Tims Maria , Sonnentag Sabine
Published: February 2025

To date, there is surprisingly little empirical attention investigating how job crafting and work characteristics influence each other over time. But this matters because we know how powerful both work characteristics and the process of job crafting can be for important outcomes like job performance, engagement, and burnout. We propose a multilevel approach to understanding the interlinking of job crafting behaviors and cognitions with work characteristics. Specifically, we suggest that work characteristics operate in a top-down process to constrain or enable job crafting behaviors and cognitions, whereas job crafting behaviors and cognitions emerge over time via a bottom-up process to achieve a change in work characteristics. We review existing empirical evidence on these pathways but, since such research is scarce, we focus especially on identifying unanswered questions and future directions. To conclude, we recommend ways that these processes might be empirically captured, and advocate for attention to the possibility of virtuous spirals, or debilitating negative spirals, of these two powerful sets of variables.
Integrating mechanistic models of landscape change and animal behavior to measure functional connectivity
Authors: Day Casey C. , Zollner Patrick A. , Gilbert Jonathan H. , Gustafson Eric J.
Published: February 2025

Context

As land-use change and climate change transform landscapes globally, increases in habitat fragmentation and shifts in habitat composition present challenges for the conservation of wildlife. Behavioral approaches to landscape ecology can explore how animal movement across complex landscapes can drive ecological processes like functional connectivity. By integrating mechanisms that link landscape change to animal behavior, simulation models can project how individuals and populations will respond to novel landscapes.

Objectives

To understand how dispersal behavior and functional connectivity between populations of American martens respond to changes to the landscape due to land-use and climate. We also seek to demonstrate the explanatory power of integrating mechanistic models of landscape transformation and animal dispersal.

Methods

We present a novel investigation of behavioral responses to land-use and climate change by linking a landscape-level simulation of forest succession (LANDIS-II) with an individual-based model of animal behavior (SEARCH).

Results

Climate change caused an increase in suitable cover types for martens, but forest diversity is likely to decline. Both land-use and climate change impacted dispersal behavior of martens and functional connectivity between populations. These effects were not consistent across simulations, as dispersal behavior and success were affected by the direction of dispersal (i.e., source population) due to asymmetry in landscape configuration and its interaction with climate and land-use change.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates how the integration of behavioral and landscape models can inform conservation in ways that classical modeling cannot and how the use of mechanistic simulation models can produce robust projections about species responses to novel conservation challenges in an uncertain future.
UAV hyperspectral-thermal-lidar fusion in phenotyping: genetic trait differences among Fremont cottonwood populations
Authors: Sankey Temuulen Tsagaan
Published: February 2025

Context

Climate change is causing landscape shifts and locally-adapted plants are becoming increasingly maladapted. As a foundation species, Fremont cottonwood facilitates adaptation to changing climate for the whole community. Populations within this species, however, have varying adaptive responses and facilitative capacity due to genetic variation. It is important to identify these differences to inform landscape restoration and management.

Objectives

UAV hyperspectral, thermal, and lidar images might reveal genetic trait differences within a single tree species. This study tests and demonstrates: (1) UAV hyperspectral images in detecting differences among populations in canopy leaf area, water content, carbon, and nitrogen content as indicators of population-level productivity, fitness, adaptability, and biodiversity they can support, and (2) UAV hyperspectral-thermal-lidar fusion in detecting and classifying 16 populations sourced from different environments across Arizona, USA.

Methods

UAV hyperspectral, thermal, and lidar images were acquired from a common garden with 16 different Fremont cottonwood populations growing together. The UAV hyperspectral image was used to calculate spectral indices for canopy leaf area (LAI), canopy water content, nitrogen, carbon, and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N). The hyperspectral indices (EVI, LAI, PRI, MSI, NDWI, NDNI, NDLI, and C:N) were also examined with the UAV thermal image-derived canopy temperature data for potential correlations. Finally, all hyperspectral bands (n = 487 bands), thermal image-derived canopy temperature, and lidar-derived maximum canopy height estimates were stacked into a single image and then classified to detect 16 different populations of Fremont cottonwood using a random forest classification.

Results

The UAV hyperspectral indices and canopy temperature were significantly different among populations suggesting that the productivity, fitness, and adaptability of varying populations are significantly different. Many of the UAV hyperspectral indices were strongly correlated with canopy temperature. Populations with greater canopy cover, lower canopy temperature, and greater canopy height were well detected in the UAV hyperspectral-thermal-lidar fusion-based classification (producer’s accuracies of > 75%), whereas populations at low abundance were poorly classified (producer’s accuracies of < 41–65%).

Conclusions

This study demonstrates the first application of UAV hyperspectral-thermal-lidar data fusion in phenotyping. The machine learning-based classification detects various populations within a single tree species. Future studies can use similar UAV data sources, derived variables, and data fusion to detect populations that have better fitness and adaptability to changing environments. Such populations can be strategically managed to sustain healthy landscapes that support diverse communities and species.
Creditor control rights and executive bonus plans
Authors: Armstrong Christopher S. , Kepler John D. , Kim Chongho , Tsui David
Published: February 2025

We study the extent to which creditors shape the executive bonus plans of their financially distressed borrowers. Financial distress can exacerbate agency conflicts between creditors and borrowers as concerns with underinvestment become more acute due to managerial myopia and debt overhang. Consequently, we expect creditors to exert their influence to ensure that these managers’ incentive-compensation plans encourage longer-term investments and directly reward outcomes that benefit creditors without exposing managers to unnecessary risk. We argue that bonus plans are an especially important way to provide these incentives because their flexibility allows creditors to more precisely target specific investment objectives. We find that borrowers’ bonus plans tend to have longer horizons and more convex payouts following covenant violations, especially when bonus plans can be a particularly effective way to address distress-related agency conflicts. Our evidence suggests that creditors protect their interests by exercising their control rights to shape their borrowers’ incentive-compensation plans.
High-leverage sociological concepts and the progress of theory, part one
Authors: Brint Steven
Published: February 2025

Sociological theory, as represented in the two main U.S. theory journals, has been diverted from the project of generalized explanation by a propensity for over-refinement, a preference for small-scale conceptual innovations linked to specific and sometimes quite obscure cases, a tendency to focus on heroes of theory rather than their generalizable ideas, and too much attention to the flux and instability of social life. These conclusions are based on a content analysis of 445 journal articles over a recent 11-year period. As an alternative, I propose focusing on high-leverage sociological concepts, those that have explanatory power across multiple settings, subfields, and levels of analysis, as well as the variables that are most important for conditioning their explanatory force. I connect the project with a recessive theme in the work of the mid-20th century sociologist and theorist Robert K. Merton.
“A Recipe for Disaster?”: Female-Breadwinner Relationships Threaten Heterosexual Scripts
Authors: Fisher Alexandra N. , Stinson Danu Anthony , Kalajdzic Anastasija , Dupuis Hannah E. , Lowey Erin E. , Desgrosseilliers Elysia , MacIntosh Annie
Published: February 2025

Female breadwinner relationships (FBRs) occur when a woman earns more money than her male romantic partner. In four studies, we used diverse methods to document the threat that FBRs pose to heterosexual scripts (i.e., social conventions for heterosexual romance). First, a reflexive thematic analysis of 94 newspaper and magazine articles about FBRs identified themes concerning social stigma and feelings of gender threat (i.e., co-occurring feelings of gender nonconformity and inadequacy) that undermine well-being for FBRs, alongside themes concerning hope for a more egalitarian future. Next, two pre-registered experiments (Ns = 880 and 1612) revealed stigmatizing attitudes towards FBRs, which were perceived to be less desirable, worse quality, and less stable than male-breadwinner relationships. Finally, a cross-sectional study of married women and men (N = 511) affirmed that feelings of gender threat partially explained FBRs’ poor relationship outcomes. Across all four studies, and consistent with theories of fragile masculinity, men suffered worse gender threat than women in FBRs. These findings offer novel insight into heterosexual scripts and the punishing social consequences for people who violate those scripts and suggest that social stigma about FBRs may pose a barrier to gender equality in close relationships and in society.
Does the CAPM drive misvaluations in M&As?
Authors: Hark Paul F. , Schneider Christoph
Published: February 2025

This paper confirms the positive empirical relationship between CAPM-implied target asset betas and bidder announcement returns originally documented by Dessaint et al. (Rev Financ Stud 34(1):1–66, 2021) for U.S. takeover bids. We successfully replicate the main regression results qualitatively for the original and an extended sample period. However, the relationship is statistically insignificant in the European market for corporate control, although it appears to be economically meaningful. Additional tests indicate that bidder announcement returns are only related to target asset betas during merger waves and in horizontal mergers and acquisitions. These findings suggest that the relationship between target asset betas and bidder announcement returns is not driven by a CAPM-induced misvaluation of target firms. Therefore, recommendations to abandon the CAPM for capital budgeting decisions do not seem warranted.
Anti-inflammatory Therapies for Ischemic Heart Disease
Authors: Muhs Tillmann , Ljubojevic-Holzer Senka , Sattler Susanne
Published: February 2025

Purpose of Review

The inclusion of immunomodulatory strategies as supportive therapies in ischemic heart disease (IHD) has garnered significant support over recent years. Several such approaches appear to be unified through their ultimate target, the NLRP3 inflammasome. This review presents a brief update on immunomodulatory strategies in the continuum of conditions constituting ischemic heart disease and emphasising on the seemingly unifying mechanism of NLRP3 activation as well as modulation across these conditions.

Recent Findings

The NLRP3 inflammasome is a multiprotein complex assembled upon inflammatory stimulation, causing the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and initiating pyroptosis. The NLRP3 pathway is relevant in inflammatory signalling of cardiac immune cells as well as non-immune cells in the myocardium, including cardiomyocytes, fibroblasts and endothelial cells. In addition to a focus on clinical outcome and efficacy trials of targeting NLRP3-related pathways, the potential connection between immunomodulation in cardiology and the NLRP3 pathway is currently being explored in preclinical trials. Colchicine, cytokine-based approaches and SGLT2 inhibitors have emerged as promising agents. However, the conditions comprising IHD including atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease (CAD), myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic cardiomyopathy/heart failure (iCMP/HF) are not equally amenable to immunomodulation with the respective drugs. Atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease and ischemic cardiomyopathy are affected by chronic inflammation, but the immunomodulatory approach to acute inflammation in the post-MI setting remains a pharmacological challenge, as detrimental and regenerative effects of myocardial inflammation are initiated in unison.

The NLRP3 inflammasome lies at the center of cell mediated inflammation in IHD. Recent trial evidence has highlighted anti-inflammatory effects of colchicine, interleukin-based therapy as well as SGLT2i in IHD and that the respective drugs modulate the NLRP3 inflammasome.
An Overview of Prosopagnosia as a Symptom of Migraine: A Literature Review
Authors: Ley Sidney
Published: February 2025

Purpose of Review

Prosopagnosia is a neurological phenotype, characterized by the inability to recognize faces, typically resulting from damage or dysfunction in specific brain regions such as the fusiform gyrus. In contrast, migraine is a disease process, a complex neurological disorder with a range of symptoms including severe headache and visual disturbances.

Recent Findings

The brain regions involved in migraine and prosopagnosia are located in close proximity to each other, and perhaps as an unsurprising yet rarely reported result of this, there have been several cases of migraineurs, the majority presenting with aura, who manifested prosopagnosia as a symptom during an attack. While rarely reported, the fact that prosopagnosia can occasionally manifest during migraine episodes, particularly during the aura phase, emphasizes the importance of exploring the cortical processes involved in both conditions.

This review discusses migraine and prosopagnosia in the context of comorbidity, explores and summarizes current and key historical knowledge on the reported occurrences of prosopagnosia manifesting as a symptom of migraine, and emphasizes the importance of reporting this phenomenon.
Negative Validity Test Results are Overlooked in Feigning Determinations
Authors: Niesten Isabella J. M. , Faber Nathalie , Papenfuss Marie , Fuermaier Anselm B. M.
Published: February 2025

The present study examined whether antisocial personality features in a case vignette raise initial suspicion of feigning and serve as an anchor so that subsequent corrective information is not integrated into the final conclusion. Psychologists (N = 106) were randomly allocated to an antisocial, hysterical, or neutral case vignette. In consecutive steps, they received new information, including corrective information in the form of passes on Symptom Validity Tests (SVTs) and Performance Validity Tests (PVTs). Right after the case vignette and each step, they rated the likelihood of feigning and their confidence in this judgment. Finally, participants indicated whether they would mention suspicion of feigning in their report. Our main findings show that baseline likelihood estimates of feigning were elevated across conditions and were higher for the antisocial case vignette than the neutral but not the hysterical case vignette. Furthermore, regardless of case vignette, psychologists did not adjust initial estimates to a meaningful degree in response to SVT/PVT passes. The proportion of psychologists endorsing suspicion of feigning in their report was comparable across conditions, with 58% of the sample endorsing this option. Taken together, although psychologists’ initial likelihood estimates of feigning may be slightly elevated in cases in which the patient fits an antisocial typology, our findings more so suggest that psychologists have a tendency to anchor subsequent estimates to their first judgment. Additionally, psychologists’ failure to integrate SVT/PVT passes into their judgment may indicate insufficient knowledge about the informational value of such scores, an issue that may be countered with education and training.
Fathers’ Self-Compassion and Child Attachment Quality: Testing a Sequential Indirect Effect via Emotion Regulation Difficulties, Loneliness, and Psychological Distress in Two Paternal Samples
Authors: van Heerden Daniel , Mazzucchelli Trevor G. , Kirby James N. , Brett Jack D. , Mancini Vincent O.
Published: February 2025

Objectives

Self-compassion has emerged as a promising treatment target to promote healthy parent–child relationships, though mostly in maternal samples. The mechanisms through which self-compassion may optimise the father-child relationships are not yet well-established. This study integrated previous findings to test a conceptual model that hypothesised a sequential indirect effect of fathers’ self-compassion on father-child relationship quality via emotion regulation difficulties, loneliness, and psychological distress.

Method

The hypothesised model was tested in two different samples of fathers recruited using convenience sampling procedures. Sample 1 comprised an international sample of 320 fathers with children aged 3 to 18 years; Sample 2 comprised a more concentrated sample of 361 fathers residing in the USA and with children aged 5 to 12 years. All participants completed an online survey examining the psychosocial determinants of father-child closeness and conflict.

Results

Fathers’ self-compassion was indirectly associated with father-child closeness and conflict in both samples. In combination with emotion regulation difficulties, loneliness, and psychological distress, the variables explained more variance in conflict (up to 22%) compared to closeness (up to 13%). The model was largely invariant across both groups, though emotion regulation difficulties were notably higher for Sample 1.

Conclusions

The findings highlight a potential process model for self-compassion and the father-child relationship. Subject to further longitudinal or intervention studies, enhancing fathers’ self-compassion may help them to better regulate emotions, in turn reducing feelings of loneliness and psychological distress that could ultimately result in greater closeness and fewer conflicts in their relationships with their child.

Preregistration

This work was preregistered on the Open Science Framework. Protocol registration: https://osf.io/3k6x8
“If I Start [Primary Prevention] Now, I Can Prevent [Cancer]”: College Students Endorse Cancer Prevention Education
Authors: Wilt Jacqueline Knight , Thomson Maria D.
Published: February 2025

Early onset colorectal cancer has been linked to lifestyle-related risk factors. Emerging adulthood (ages 18–25) has the greatest changes to lifestyle health behaviors with implications for health outcomes. College students have moderate consideration of future cancer risk (CFC-CA) when navigating current health behavior choices. This study explored cancer prevention knowledge, attitudes and behavioral intentions in a subset of students with low, medium and high CFC-CA. Qualitative interviews were used to explore cancer prevention among a sample of college students. We identified a stratified sample (N = 43) of high CFC-CA (n = 16), medium CFC-CA (n = 14), and low CFC-CA (n = 13) students who agreed to complete a 60-min interview on Zoom. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, and transcripts were coded using an iterative, line-by-line approach. Group comparisons were completed after coding was complete. Students exhibited greatest awareness of highly publicized cancers including the lung, breast, and skin. Fifty-four percent of those with low CFC-CA and 87% with high CFC-CA believe that their current health behavioral intentions are protective against cancer. Most students want more cancer education regardless of CFC-CA level to know how they can reduce their cancer risk. Differences in preferred information sources (indirect vs direct) were identified for low versus higher CFC-CA, respectively. Students’ preferences for cancer education were related to their CFC-CA scores. This could be used to tailor information content and delivery modality. Delivering cancer prevention education through means that facilitate internal reflection may be more effective for improving risk reduction behaviors.
Radiation Oncology Active Learning in Undergraduate Medical Education: The Usefulness of Kahoot and TikTok
Authors: Zapata-Martínez Irene , Rius-Diaz Francisca , Lorenzo-Álvarez Rocío , De la Peña-Fernández Lourdes
Published: February 2025

Gamification and social networking can be used as active learning tools, as they have been shown to increase learner motivation. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether they impact students’ knowledge acquisition. This study aimed to share an educational experience for medical students using Kahoot and TikTok as active teaching/learning tools and assessed whether they improve academic performance. A retrospective quasi-experimental study was conducted with 176 students enrolled in radiation oncology in the 2021/22 academic year (control group), who received traditional teaching, and 166 students in the 2022/23 academic year (experimental group), where Kahoot and TikTok were added to traditional teaching. Final exam results of both groups were compared to assess learning differences, as well as those of the experimental group in terms of participation in Kahoot and TikTok and their relationship with the final grade. Comparing the average exam scores of the experimental group to the control group showed an increase of 12.9% in the first group compared to the traditional group (6.02 vs. 7.31 points, p = 0.0001). In the experimental group, students who participated in Kahoot or TikTok increased their mean score by 0.54 points (p = 0.021) and 1.57 points (p = 0.040), respectively, compared to those who did not. A correlated increase in mean test scores was observed based on tool usage: none, Kahoot or TikTok, or both (6.19, 6.88 ± 1.48, and 7.51 ± 1.20 points, p = 0.019). Using Kahoot and TikTok as active learning tools for medical students improved academic performance when integrated with traditional methodology.
Synergistic application of Welan gum and polysaccharides for enhanced oil recovery
Authors: Serikov Galymzhan , Zhuniskenov Yermukhan , Hashim Abbas Azza , Pourafshary Peyman
Published: February 2025

The use of natural polymers for Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) offers an eco-friendly alternative to synthetic polymers. This study introduces a novel approach by utilizing Beta vulgaris polymer and exploring its modification with Welan gum to enhance rheological performance. The polymers were characterized through SEM, FTIR, XRD, and TGA to assess their structural, thermal, and morphological properties. The study evaluates the effects of concentration, temperature, and salinity on rheological behavior along with core flooding. Beta vulgaris exhibited varying particle sizes with moderate viscosity (10 cP), which decreased by 80% at 55 °C in saline conditions, indicating poor thermal stability. Welan gum, with its rod-like structure, demonstrated superior thermal resistance. The composite blend of Beta vulgaris and Welan gum significantly improved viscosity (30 cP) and flow stability. All polymers followed the Ostwald–de Waele power law, with the composite blend enhancing the flow behavior index and stability by 75% and 10%, respectively. Core flooding experiments confirmed a 60% increase in oil fractional flow with natural polymers and 26% incremental oil recovery with a composite material injection. This study demonstrates the potential of combining Beta vulgaris and Welan gum as a sustainable, efficient solution for EOR, particularly in challenging reservoir conditions.

Graphical abstract
Public Goods Games in Disease Evolution and Spread
Authors: Morison Christo , Fic Małgorzata , Marcou Thomas , Mohamadichamgavi Javad , Redondo Antón Javier , Sayyar Golsa , Stein Alexander , Bastian Frank , Krakovská Hana , Krishnan Nandakishor , L. Pires Diogo , Satouri Mohammadreza , J. Thomsen Frederik , Tjikundi Kausutua , Ali Wajid
Published: February 2025

Cooperation arises in nature at every scale, from within cells to entire ecosystems. Public goods games (PGGs) are used to represent scenarios characterised by the conflict/dilemma between choosing cooperation as a socially optimal strategy and defection as an individually optimal strategy. Evolutionary game theory is often used to analyse the dynamics of behaviour emergence in this context. Here, we focus on PGGs arising in the disease modelling of cancer evolution and the spread of infectious diseases. We use these two systems as case studies for the development of the theory and applications of PGGs, which we succinctly review. We also posit that applications of evolutionary game theory to decision-making in cancer, such as interactions between a clinician and a tumour, can learn from the PGGs studied in epidemiology, where cooperative behaviours such as quarantine and vaccination compliance have been more thoroughly investigated. Furthermore, instances of cellular-level cooperation observed in cancers point to a corresponding area of potential interest for modellers of other diseases, be they viral, bacterial or otherwise. We aim to demonstrate the breadth of applicability of PGGs in disease modelling while providing a starting point for those interested in quantifying cooperation arising in healthcare.
De toekomst van de uro-oncologische zorg: minder is meer?
Authors: Rutten Vera C. , Penninx Bart M. F. , Westgeest Hans M. , Boormans Joost L.
Published: February 2025

Samenvatting

De gezondheidszorg staat onder druk door een toenemende zorgvraag, vergrijzing, personeelstekort en hoge kosten. Daarnaast draagt de gezondheidszorg bij aan de milieubelasting. Om de zorg toekomstbestendig en duurzaam te maken en toegankelijk te houden, zijn drastische veranderingen noodzakelijk. Binnen de uro-oncologische zorg zijn er succesvolle voorbeelden beschikbaar van de-escalatie van zorg, zoals active surveillance bij laagrisicoprostaatkanker en T1a-niertumoren. Hypofractionering bij bestraling en alternatieve follow-upschema’s, zoals urinetests bij blaaskanker, verminderen het aantal ziekenhuisbezoeken per patiënt en hebben een positief effect op de beschikbare zorgcapaciteit en het milieu. Nieuwe systeemtherapieën voor blaas- en nierkanker, zoals immunotherapie, laten in onderzoeken een langere overleving zien. Doordat de resultaten in de dagelijkse praktijk minder zijn dan in de onderzoeken is het noodzakelijk om kritisch te blijven op de manier waarop deze onderzoeken zijn uitgevoerd. Patiënten moeten toegang hebben tot middelen die bewezen effectief zijn, terwijl de bijwerkingen en kosten zo beperkt mogelijk zijn. Dat betekent soms afzien van nieuwe behandelingen en bestaande behandelingen gepaster inzetten. Er lopen verschillende onderzoeken die nagaan hoe we bestaande systeemtherapieën efficiënter kunnen inzetten. Naast een slimme inzet van de beschikbare middelen in de zorg is preventie essentieel, met een focus op stoppen met roken en een gezonde leefstijl. Door onze behandelingen doelmatig en duurzaam in te richten, dragen we bij aan een toekomstbestendige zorg.
Discounting and precautionary behavior with an application to economic epidemiology
Authors: Popov Latchezar
Published: February 2025

I develop a simple model of precautionary behavior in the context of avoiding an infectious disease. I show that in an infinite horizon model, the degree of caution is always nonmonotone in the discount factor; in extensions with finite number of periods or stochastic termination, the degree of caution is nonmonotone with sufficient number of periods or sufficiently low termination probability. I extend the model to allow interaction between agents using the SIR approach. I find that again, precautionary behavior is not monotone in the discount factor. With high discount factors, individual precautionary behaviors are strategic complements.
Interpolation in higher codimension
Authors: Chiantini Luca
Published: February 2025

Following the suggestions contained in [5], I will discuss constructions that generalizes the interpolation problems for divisors to the case of varieties of higher codimension, with emphasis on the case of curves arising as 0-loci of vector bundles of rank 2 in

$$\mathbb {P}^3$$

P

3

.
High-Performance Gate-All-Around Field Effect Transistors Based on Orderly Arrays of Catalytic Si Nanowire Channels
Authors: Liao Wei , Qian Wentao , An Junyang , Liang Lei , Hu Zhiyan , Wang Junzhuan , Yu Linwei
Published: February 2025

Gate-all-around field-effect transistors (GAA-FETs) represent the leading-edge channel architecture for constructing state-of-the-art high-performance FETs. Despite the advantages offered by the GAA configuration, its application to catalytic silicon nanowire (SiNW) channels, known for facile low-temperature fabrication and high yield, has faced challenges primarily due to issues with precise positioning and alignment. In exploring this promising avenue, we employed an in-plane solid–liquid-solid (IPSLS) growth technique to batch-fabricate orderly arrays of ultrathin SiNWs, with diameters of D
NW = 22.4 ± 2.4 nm and interwire spacing of 90 nm. An in situ channel-releasing technique has been developed to well preserve the geometry integrity of suspended SiNW arrays. By optimizing the source/drain contacts, high-performance GAA-FET devices have been successfully fabricated, based on these catalytic SiNW channels for the first time, yielding a high on/off current ratio of 107 and a steep subthreshold swing of 66 mV dec−1, closing the performance gap between the catalytic SiNW-FETs and state-of-the-art GAA-FETs fabricated by using advanced top-down EBL and EUV lithography. These results indicate that catalytic IPSLS SiNWs can also serve as the ideal 1D channels for scalable fabrication of high-performance GAA-FETs, well suited for monolithic 3D integrations.
Recent advances in wearable electrochemical sensors for in situ detection of biochemical markers
Authors: Jiao Yanli , Yu Xinge
Published: February 2025

In recent years, wearable electrochemical sensors have been widely used for biochemical analysis. These sensors, which incorporate flexible electrodes and sensitive recognition elements on a flexible substrate, facilitate the noninvasive, in-situ, real-time, and continuous monitoring of target biochemical molecules in biofluids while maintaining high selectivity and sensitivity. This review provides a comprehensive examination of the principles guiding the selection of core components and the recent advances in wearable electrochemical sensors for biochemical markers in recent years. Initially, we outline the essential considerations in designing wearable sensors to detect biomarkers in biofluids, including sampling techniques, material selection, design parameters, recognition elements, sensing strategies, power requirements, data processing, and sensor integration. We emphasize the improved efficacy of recognition elements, which has been significantly enhanced by biotechnology and materials science developments, facilitating selective and sensitive detection of target components within complex matrices. Concurrently, incorporating nanomaterials and conductive polymers (CPs) has markedly improved the sensing capabilities of flexible electronics. Subsequently, we investigate recent progress in situ detection of biochemical markers utilizing wearable electrochemical sensors that employ advanced materials, optimized mechanical structures, and various conduction mechanisms. The notable applications stemming from these technological innovations illustrate significant improvements in sensitivity, reliability, and monitoring capabilities of wearable electrochemical sensors while enhancing user comfort. Finally, we address the current challenges and future perspectives regarding implementing clinically oriented wearable electrochemical sensors for disease monitoring and personalized medicine.
Exploring the Relationship between Anxiety Sensitivity, Interoceptive Sensibility and Psychopathology: A Network Analysis Approach
Authors: Gualtieri Ida , Parisi Irene , Bortolini Tiago , Porciello Giuseppina , Panasiti Maria Serena
Published: February 2025

Interoceptive sensitivity (IS) –the beliefs related to noticing, appraising and regulating bodily signals – and Anxiety Sensitivity (AS) – the tendency to interpret anxiety-related symptoms negatively –have been frequently associated with psychopathology. Our goal was to evaluate the associations between these constructs and psychopathological symptoms using network analysis. Data from 438 participants were collected online, assessing psychopathology with the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90), IS with the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA-2), and AS with the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3). We found inter-dimensional connections between: i) the Cognitive AS and the psychoticism and obsession-compulsion traits of the SCL-90; ii) the Social AS and the Trust component of the MAIA-2 and the Interpersonal Sensitivity dimension of the SCL-90. These findings suggest that AS may be more closely linked to psychopathological symptoms than IS, suggesting that catastrophic interpretations of anxiety could significantly contribute to the development and maintenance of psychopathology.
Employee and Managerial Approaches to Cyber Mistreatment—Implications for Human Resource Management
Authors: Forssell Rebecka Cowen , Jönsson Sandra , Berthelsen Hanne
Published: February 2025

The emergence of cyber mistreatment among frontline workers in their digital interactions with customers, clients and patients represents a significant but relatively new work environment risk within the service sector. Human resource management has a key role in digital transformation, which includes securing safe and healthy workplaces and fostering sustainable practices for handling cyber mistreatment. Departing from the context of the educational sector, the aim of this study is to analyse how cyber mistreatment is managed in workplaces and to explore the approaches employed to prevent and mitigate its negative impact. By identifying existing approaches, gaps in sustainable HRM practices can be identified. Qualitative methods were used to explore teachers’ and principals’ experiences of cyber mistreatment and their approaches to handling and preventing such exposure. The empirical data are based on in-depth interviews with 31 informants (16 teachers and 15 principals) using a cross-sectional design. The data were analysed using a qualitative content analysis framework. The study clearly shows that the approaches utilised to address cyber mistreatment are predominantly reactive and individual-centred, with few proactive and organisationally anchored approaches identified. These findings implicate the need for HRM to develop ethical organisational approaches that do not force service workers to resort to individual coping strategies. We suggest sustainable and ethical approaches that target the problems rather than the symptoms, and that work against a normalisation of cyber mistreatment within the service sector.
QRLaXAI: quantum representation learning and explainable AI
Authors: Kottahachchi Kankanamge Don Asitha , Khalil Ibrahim
Published: February 2025

As machine learning grows increasingly complex due to big data and deep learning, model explainability has become essential to fostering user trust. Quantum machine learning (QML) has emerged as a promising field, leveraging quantum computing to enhance classical machine learning methods, particularly through quantum representation learning (QRL). QRL aims to provide more efficient and powerful machine learning capabilities on noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) devices. However, interpreting QRL models poses significant challenges due to the reliance on quantum gate-based parameterized circuits, which, while analogous to classical neural network layers, operate in the quantum domain. To address these challenges, we propose an explainable QRL framework combining a quantum autoencoder (QAE) with a variational quantum classifier (VQC) and incorporating theoretical and empirical explainability for image data. Our dual approach enhances model interpretability by integrating visual explanations via local interpretable model-agnostic explanations (LIME) and analytical insights using Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP). These complementary methods provide a deeper understanding of the model’s decision-making process based on prediction outcomes. Experimental evaluations on simulators and superconducting quantum hardware validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework for classification tasks, underscoring the importance of explainable representation learning in advancing QML towards more transparent and reliable applications.