cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Towards Energy Efficient Control for Commercial Heavy-Duty Mobile Cranes: Modeling Hydraulic Pressures using Machine Learning
Creators: name: Taheri, Abdolreza
name: Pettersson, Robert
name: Gustafsson, Pelle
name: Pajarinen, Joni
name: Ghabcheloo, Reza
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Systems and Control (eess.SY)
subject: FOS: Electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering

description: A sizable part of the fleet of heavy-duty machinery in the construction equipment industry uses the conventional valve-controlled load-sensing hydraulics. Rigorous climate actions towards reducing CO$_{2}$ emissions has sparked the development of solutions to lower the energy consumption and increase the productivity of the machines. One promising solution to having a better balance between energy and performance is to build accurate models (digital twins) of the real systems using data together with recent advances in machine learning/model-based optimization to improve the control systems. With a particular focus on real-world machines with multiple flow-controlled actuators and shared variable-displacement pumps, this paper presents a generalized machine learning approach to modeling the working pressure of the actuators and the overall pump pressures. The procedures for deriving reaction forces and flow rates as important input variables to the surrogate models are described in detail. Using data from a real loader crane testbed, we demonstrate training and validation of individual models, and showcase the accuracy of pressure predictions in five different experiments under various utilizations and pressure levels.
description: Published in The 18th Scandinavian International Conference on Fluid Power, SICFP'23, May 30- June 1, 2023, Tampere, Finland
Gespräch als Verkündigung
Creators: name: Windisch, Hubert
name: Herbstrith, Waltraud
name: Bader, Günther
name: Spijker, Hermann Van De
name: Schmid, Peter F.
Publisher: name: Diakonia
Year: 1970

description: Diakonia, Bd. 24 Nr. 1 (1993): Diakonia, Band 24, Heft 1
Towards novel polymeric contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging
Creators: name: Martinelli, Jonathan
Publisher: name: Imperial College London
Year: 2023

description: This project centres on the exploration of novel contrast agents for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, with improved performances to signal specific objects in high- resolved images of the human body for medical and diagnostic purposes, and in particular for labelling and tracking stem cells after transplantation. The target agents are based on polymeric molecular architectures containing several MRI probes, thus being able to solve the sensitivity problems commonly known to affect this technique. The molecular structure was also designed to prevent those factors known to affect and limit the performances of contrast agents previously reported in the literature. Following a thorough literature research, complexes of gadolinium(III) were chosen, in particular with l,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-l,4,7,l0-tetraacetic acid (DOTA) as macrocyclic ligand due to its known ability to form highly stable (i.e. nontoxic) complexes. Furthermore, this ligand opens up the possibility for its modification and functionalisation in order to obtain a final molecular structure with desired well- defined properties. The synthetic strategy was then planned and carried out, leading first to compounds which represent intermediate structures needed for further development. Most of them are themselves new substances not reported before. The corresponding gadolinium(III)-complexes of some intermediates were prepared and tested on cell cultures for an evaluation of their biocompatibility and performances as contrast agents. The prepared monomers were then used in several attempts of polymerisation exploiting different principles and techniques (radical, metathesis, “click-chemistry”); when successful, such procedures led to products which were characterised by suitable analytical methods, and eventually tested as contrast agents for MRI in terms of their relaxation performances and biological safety.
Maternal HIV Infection and Spontaneous Versus Provider-Initiated Preterm Birth in an Urban Zambian Cohort
Creators: name: Kasaro, M.P.
name: Lubeya, M.K.
name: Rittenhouse, K.J.
name: Vwalika, B.
name: Cole, S.R.
name: Price, J.T.
name: Stringer, J.S.A.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Kumwenda, A.
Publisher: name: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
Year: 2021

description: Objective: We investigated the effect of maternal HIV and its treatment on spontaneous and provider-initiated preterm birth (PTB) in an urban African cohort. Methods: The Zambian Preterm Birth Prevention Study enrolled pregnant women at their first antenatal visit in Lusaka. Participants underwent ultrasound, laboratory testing, and clinical phenotyping of delivery outcomes. Key exposures were maternal HIV serostatus and timing of antiretroviral therapy initiation. We defined the primary outcome, PTB, as delivery between 16 and 37 weeks’ gestational age, and differentiated spontaneous from provider-initiated parturition. Results: Of 1450 pregnant women enrolled, 350 (24%) had HIV. About 1216 (84%) were retained at delivery, 3 of whom delivered,16 weeks. Of 181 (15%) preterm deliveries, 120 (66%) were spontaneous, 56 (31%) were provider-initiated, and 5 (3%) were unclassified. In standardized analyses using inverse probability weighting, maternal HIV increased the risk of spontaneous PTB [RR 1.68; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.12 to 2.52], but this effect was mitigated on overall PTB [risk ratio (RR) 1.31; 95% CI: 0.92 to 1.86] owing to a protective effect against provider-initiated PTB. HIV reduced the risk of preeclampsia (RR 0.32; 95% CI: 0.11 to 0.91), which strongly predicted provider-initiated PTB (RR 17.92; 95% CI: 8.13 to 39.53). The timing of antiretroviral therapy start did not affect the relationship between HIV and PTB. Conclusion: The risk of HIV on spontaneous PTB seems to be opposed by a protective effect of HIV on provider-initiated PTB. These findings support an inflammatory mechanism underlying HIV-related PTB and suggest that published estimates of PTB risk overall underestimate the risk of spontaneous PTB.
title: Resource procurement and management in Egyptian settlements of the Old Kingdom
Creators: name: Werschkun, Cordula
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: The first chapter discusses why the topic and general approach of thesis was chosen. It outlines some of the problems involved in the study of the different resources as expressed in the archaeological record, addressing each resource individually. Finally, a model for the analysis of resource management is introduced. The Heit el-Ghurab settlement and various other settlement sites on the Giza Plateau are discussed. Each site is examined individually according to its project history, general features and activities concerning resource procurement and management, followed by a brief discussion. An overall discussion of the Giza sites concludes this chapter. The next three chapters discuss the settlements of Kom el-Hisn, Elephantine and Ayn Asil according to the outline developed for the chapter on the Giza Plateau. The final chapter summarises the various forms of resource procurement and management for the individual resources, before turning to discuss the economic character of the settlements studied and their interconnection. Finally, there follows a short discussion of the nature of the Old Kingdom economy on the basis of the results of the previous chapters, including a brief examination of earlier studies of the ancient Egyptian economic system
Modeling Cash Plus Other Psychosocial and Structural Interventions to Prevent HIV Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa (HPTN 068)
Creators: name: Pettifor, A.
name: Kilburn, K.
name: Kahn, K.
name: Westreich, D.
name: Lippman, S.A.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Stoner, M.C.D.
name: Ahern, J.
name: Gómez-Olivé, F.X.
Publisher: name: Springer
Year: 2021

description: Poverty alleviation programs can reduce HIV incidence but may have greater impacts when combined with other psychosocial interventions. We modeled the change in HIV incidence among South African adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) associated with combining a cash transfer (the South African Child Support Grant (CSG)) with other structural and behavioral interventions. We modeled observational data from the HPTN 068 study where 2328 HIV negative AGYW (13–20 years) were followed for 4 years. In a Monte Carlo simulation based on this cohort (N = 10,000), CSG receipt was not independently associated with HIV incidence. Providing the CSG combined with increasing caregiver care and reducing adolescent depression had the largest reduction in HIV incidence with the fewest number of combined interventions (RD − 3.0%; (95% CI − 5.1%, − 0.9%). Combining a monthly grant with interventions to increase caregiver care and reduce adolescent depression could substantially reduce HIV incidence above the provision of cash alone.
title: Etude d’aménagements extérieurs accessibles d’un établissement médico-social
title: apports d’une vision ergothérapeutique dans un projet de conception d’un espace vert mené par l’établissement médico-social de Charmey
titleType: Subtitle
title: Etude d’aménagements extérieurs accessibles d’un établissement médico-social
titleType: AlternativeTitle
Creators: name: Jaquet, Estelle
name: Jungo, Margaux
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 0
Subjects: subject: Aménagements extérieurs
subject: Espace vert
subject: Etablissement médico-social
subject: Appartement protégé
subject: Bienfaits de la marche

description: Contexte : Le vieillissement de la population s’avère désormais une préoccupation de santé publique en Suisse. Cela impacte notamment les institutions pour personnes âgées telles que les établissements médico-sociaux (EMS) dont les besoins en soins et en accompagnement augmentent. Ceux-ci s’interrogent alors sur la qualité de vie de leurs résidents. A ce sujet, plusieurs études mettent en avant la nature et les espaces verts comme une ressource pour les personnes âgées. En effet, un environnement extérieur adéquatement aménagé permet à ses utilisateurs de bénéficier des nombreux bienfaits de la nature et des activités de plein air. Pour ce faire, un EMS fribourgeois souhaite mettre en place un projet d’espace vert accessible répondant aux besoins et souhaits de sa population. Cette étude en explore l’intérêt. But : Ce travail vise l’exploration des habitudes de vie liées à l‘espace extérieur actuel de l’EMS ainsi que les besoins, souhaits de la population de l’EMS pour un projet de nouvel espace vert. Méthodologie : Une étude de type qualitative incluant une démarche participative a été réalisée. A cette fin, deux entretiens sous forme de focus group ont été menés auprès de résidents et d’habitants des appartements protégés attenant à l’EMS, ainsi qu’un entretien semi-directif avec l’animatrice du home. Résultats : La récolte des données a permis, en fonction des habitudes et des souhaits des habitants, résidents ainsi que l’animatrice, de ressortir différentes propositions d’activités et d’aménagements telles que les lieux de partage, des possibilités de balade et d’autres activités récréatives. Conclusion : Divers aménagements extérieurs accessibles et adaptés sont mentionnés. Ceux-ci sont liés aux habitudes de vie, aux souhaits et aux besoins des résidents et habitants. Les normes et recommandations actuelles sont également prises en compte ainsi que les capacités des utilisateurs potentiels. Les aménagements proposés sont pour la plupart accessibles à la population de l’EMS, favorisent les sorties extérieures et permettent aux résidents de bénéficier des multiples bienfaits de l’espace vert et de la nature.
Differences in Access to HIV Services and Risky Sexual Behaviors Among Malawian Women at Social Venues Who Do and Do Not Engage in Sex Work
Creators: name: Pettifor, A.E.
name: Pence, B.W.
name: Maselko, J.
name: Frascino, N.Y.
name: Weir, S.S.
name: Mbeye, N.
name: Herce, M.E.
name: Edwards, J.K.
Publisher: name: Springer
Year: 2021

description: In the high HIV-burden country of Malawi, female sex workers (FSW) are one of the populations most profoundly affected by HIV. The Malawi Priorities for Local AIDS Control Efforts (PLACE) surveyed 1,004 self-identified FSW, 213 other FSW (OFSW), and 130 other high risk women (OHRW) at social venues. Analyses compared the three groups using survey-weighted log binomial regression models. Each group had a distinct pattern of usage and access to services: OFSW and FSW had greater access to condoms, while using a condom ever was greatest among FSW. Nearly all women knew where to get tested for HIV but very few used FSW drop-in centers. HIV prevalence was high in all three groups (35% FSW, 20% OFSW, 20% OHRW). Given these results, HIV services should be targeted to all women at social venues in Malawi, regardless of sex worker status to improve health outcomes and limit onward transmission of HIV.
Associations Between Key Psychosocial Stressors and Viral Suppression and Retention in Care Among Youth with HIV in Rural South Africa
Creators: name: Twine, R.
name: Filiatreau, L.M.
name: Kabudula, C.W.
name: Lippman, S.A.
name: Masilela, N.
name: Haberland, N.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Xavier Gómez-Olivé, F.
name: Pettifor, A.
name: Kahn, K.
Publisher: name: Springer
Year: 2021

description: Despite improvements in access to antiretroviral treatment over the past decade, sub-optimal HIV care outcomes persist among youth with HIV (YWH) in rural South Africa. Psychosocial stressors could impede improved HIV treatment outcomes within this population. We linked self-reported psychosocial health and demographic data from a cross-sectional survey conducted among YWH aged 12–24 in rural South Africa to individual medical record data, including facility visit history and viral load measurements. Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used to estimate the associations between five psychosocial stressors- heightened depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale scores ≥ 16), lower social support (Medical Outcomes Social Support Scale scores ≤ 38), lower resilience (Conner-Davidson Resilience Scale scores ≤ 73), lower self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale scores ≤ 21), and higher perceived stress (Sheldon Cohen Perceived Stress Scale scores ≥ 10)- and viral non-suppression (viral load ≥ 400 copies/mL) and loss to care (no documented clinic visits within the 90 days prior to survey), separately. A total of 359 YWH were included in this analysis. The median age of study participants was 21 (interquartile range: 16–23), and most were female (70.2%), single (82.4%), and attending school (54.7%). Over a quarter of participants (28.1%) had heightened depressive symptoms. Just 16.2% of all participants (n = 58) were lost to care at the time of survey, while 32.4% (n = 73) of the 225 participants with viral load data were non-suppressed. The prevalence of non-suppression in individuals with lower self-esteem was 1.71 (95% confidence interval: 1.12, 2.61) times the prevalence of non-suppression in those with higher self-esteem after adjustment. No meaningful association was observed between heightened depressive symptoms, lower social support, lower resilience, and higher perceived stress and viral non-suppression or loss to care in adjusted analyses. Retention in care and viral suppression among YWH in rural South Africa are below global targets. Interventions aimed at improving viral suppression among YWH should incorporate modules to improve participant’s self-esteem as low self-esteem is associated with viral non-suppression in this setting. Future studies should longitudinally explore the joint effects of co-occurring psychosocial stressors on HIV care outcomes in YWH and assess meaningful differences in these effects by age, gender, and route of transmission.
Clinical Effectiveness of Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor–Based Antiretroviral Regimens Among Adults With Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Collaboration of Cohort Studies in the United States and Canada
Creators: name: Sterling, T.R.
name: Buchacz, K.
name: Lima, V.D.
name: Althoff, K.N.
name: Li, J.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Silverberg, M.J.
name: Rebeiro, P.F.
name: Cole, S.R.
name: Adimora, A.A.
name: Westreich, D.
name: Lu, H.
name: Moore, R.D.
name: Hudgens, M.G.
name: Eron, J.J.
name: Kitahata, M.M.
name: Gill, M.J.
name: Horberg, M.A.
name: Marconi, V.C.
Publisher: name: Oxford University Press
Year: 2021

description: Background. Integrase strand transfer inhibitor (InSTI)–based regimens are now recommended as first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART) for adults with human immunodeficiency virus, but evidence on long-term clinical effectiveness of InSTI-based regimens remains limited. We examined whether InSTI-based regimens improved longer-term clinical outcomes. Methods. We included participants from clinical cohorts in the North American AIDS Cohort Collaboration on Research and Design who initiated their first ART regimen, containing either InSTI (ie, raltegravir, dolutegravir, and elvitegravir-cobicistat) or efavirenz (EFV) as an active comparator, between 2009 and 2016. We estimated observational analogs of 6-year intention-to-treat and per-protocol risks, risk differences (RDs), and hazard ratios (HRs) for the composite outcome of AIDS, acute myocardial infarction, stroke, end-stage renal disease, end-stage liver disease, or death. Results. Of 15 993 participants, 5824 (36%) initiated an InSTI-based and 10 169 (64%) initiated an EFV-based regimen. During the 6-year follow-up, 440 in the InSTI group and 1097 in the EFV group incurred the composite outcome. The estimated 6-year intention-to-treat risks were 14.6% and 14.3% for the InSTI and EFV groups, respectively, corresponding to a RD of 0.3% (95% confidence interval, −2.7% to 3.3%) and a HR of 1.08 (.97–1.19); the estimated 6-year per-protocol risks were 12.2% for the InSTI group and 11.9% for the EFV group, corresponding to a RD of 0.3% (−3.0% to 3.7%) and a HR of 1.09 (.96–1.25). Conclusions. InSTI- and EFV-based initial ART regimens had similar 6-year composite clinical outcomes. The risk of adverse clinical outcomes remains substantial even when initiating modern ART.
Exposure to Diverse Plasmodium falciparum Genotypes Shapes the Risk of Symptomatic Malaria in Incident and Persistent Infections: A Longitudinal Molecular Epidemiologic Study in Kenya
Creators: name: Mangeni, J.N.
name: Taylor, S.M.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Obala, A.A.
name: Sumner, K.M.
name: Emch, M.
name: Meshnick, S.R.
name: Pence, B.W.
name: Abel, L.
name: Freedman, E.
name: Prudhomme-O'Meara, W.
Publisher: name: Oxford University Press
Year: 2021

description: Background: Repeated exposure to malaria infections could protect against symptomatic progression as people develop adaptive immunity to infections acquired over time. Methods: We investigated how new, recurrent, and persistent Plasmodium falciparum infections were associated with the odds of developing symptomatic compared with asymptomatic malaria. Using a 14-month longitudinal cohort in Western Kenya, we used amplicon deep sequencing of 2 polymorphic genes (pfama1 and pfcsp) to assess overlap of parasite genotypes (represented by haplotypes) acquired within an individual's successive infections. We hypothesized infections with novel haplotypes would increase the odds of symptomatic malaria. Results: After excluding initial infections, we observed 534 asymptomatic and 88 symptomatic infections across 186 people. We detected 109 pfcsp haplotypes, and each infection was classified as harboring novel, recurrent, or persistent haplotypes. Incident infections with only new haplotypes had higher odds of symptomatic malaria when compared with infections with only recurrent haplotypes [odds ratio (OR): 3.24; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.20-8.78], but infections with both new and recurrent haplotypes (OR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.15-2.65) did not. Assessing persistent infections, those with mixed (persistent with new or recurrent) haplotypes (OR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.21-2.75) had no association with symptomatic malaria compared with infections with only persistent haplotypes. Results were similar for pfama1. Conclusions: These results confirm that incident infections with only novel haplotypes were associated with increased odds of symptomatic malaria compared with infections with only recurrent haplotypes but this relationship was not seen when haplotypes persisted over time in consecutive infections.
Modeling Combination Interventions to Prevent Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa (HIV Prevention Trials Network 068)
Creators: name: Gómez-Olivé, F.X.
name: Westreich, D.
name: Ahern, J.
name: Lippman, S.
name: Pettifor, A.
name: Tollman, S.M.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Kahn, K.
name: Stoner, M.C.D.
Publisher: name: Oxford University Press
Year: 2021

description: Background: Combination interventions may be an effective way to prevent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in adolescent girls and young women. However, current studies are not designed to understand which specific interventions and combinations will be most effective. We estimate the possible impacts of interventions on a combination of factors associated with HIV. Methods: We used the g-formula to model interventions on combinations of HIV risk factors to identify those that would prevent the most incident HIV infections, including low school attendance, intimate partner violence, depression, transactional sex, and age-disparate partnerships. We used data from the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 068 study in rural South Africa from 2011 to 2017. We estimated HIV incidence under a potential intervention that reduced each risk factor and compared this to HIV incidence under the current distribution of these risk factors. Results: Although many factors had strong associations with HIV, potential intervention estimates did not always suggest large reductions in HIV incidence because the prevalence of risk factors was low. When modeling combination effects, an intervention to increase schooling, decrease depression, and decease transactional sex showed the largest reduction in incident infection (risk difference,-1.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI],-2.7% to-.2%), but an intervention on only transactional sex and depression still reduced HIV incidence by-1.3% (95% CI,-2.6% to-.2%). Conclusions: To achieve the largest reductions in HIV, both prevalence of the risk factor and strength of association with HIV must be considered. Additionally, intervening on more risk factors may not necessarily result in larger reductions in HIV incidence.
title: Universities and the knowledge economy : Creating a vehicle for effective urban regeneration?
Creators: name: Lucy Barker, Jessica
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: This research uses a case study approach, looking at two smaller cities (Bolton, in North West England and Lowell in Massachusetts, USA) and their main universities, to assess the path cities can take in seeking to become knowledge cities, how we can judge where a particular city is on that path, and the role a university can play in contributing to local economic and social development. Globalisation and the knowledge economy are having a profound effect on the way in which higher education operates in society and the role it is perceived as playing in relation to local and regional economies. The policy arena in particular has embraced the concept of the knowledge economy and with it the concepts of the learning region and the knowledge city as means of regeneration, in turn placing much more emphasis on the relationship between universities and their localities. At the same time, we see greater prominence given to the role of partnerships, within processes of governance, in contributing to urban regeneration. , The processes a city can take to become a knowledge city, and the role of higher education therein, is an underdeveloped area of research, especially in relation to smaller cities. This research is aimed at exploring this area, by addressing the extent to which the knowledge economy can be used as a vehicle for the urban regeneration of smaller cities, and the role higher education can play within. Looking at smaller, post-industrial cities which are in close proximity to large metropolitan cities, this research takes into account the impact that being a `satellite' city can have on these processes. The research builds on an existing typology of knowledge cities before moving on to analyse processes of governance and the role of higher education within these processes. The research then focuses on what implications these changes have for higher education, in terms of both the internal and external functioning of universities. The research concludes by addressing implications for theory and making policy recommendations.
Immune function, cortisol, and cognitive decline & dementia in an aging latino population
Creators: name: Aiello, A.E.
name: Plassman, B.L.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Yang, Y.C.
name: Haan, M.
name: Noppert, G.A.
name: Stebbins, R.C.
Publisher: name: Elsevier Ltd
Year: 2021

description: Background: The etiology of dementias and cognitive decline remain largely unknown. It is widely accepted that inflammation in the central nervous system plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of dementia. However, less is known about the role of the peripheral immune system and interactions with cortisol, though evidence suggests that these, too, may play a role. Methods: Using data from 1337 participants aged 60+ years from the Sacramento Area Latino Study of Aging (observational cohort) we investigated variation in trajectories of cognitive decline by pathogen IgG and cytokine levels. Linear mixed effects models were used to examine the association between baseline Interleukin (IL)−6, C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and five persistent pathogens’ IgG response and trajectories of cognition over 10 years, and to examine interactions between immune biomarkers and cortisol. Stratified cumulative incidence functions were used to assess the relation between biomarkers and incident dementia. Inverse probability weights accounted for loss-to-follow-up and confounding. Results: IL-6, TNF-α, and CMV IgG were statistically significantly associated with a higher log of Modified Mini-Mental State Examination errors (IL-6, β = 0.0935 (95%CI: 0.055, 0.13), TNF-alpha β = 0.0944 (95%CI: 0.032, 0.157), and CMV, β = 0.0409 (95%CI: 0.013, 0.069)). Furthermore, cortisol interacted with HSV-1 and IL-6, and CRP for both cross-sectional cognitive function and rate of decline. No statistically significant relationship was detected between biomarkers and incidence of dementia. Conclusions: These findings support the theory that the peripheral immune system may play a role in cognitive decline but not incident dementia. Furthermore, they identify specific markers amenable for intervention for slowing decline.
Fusion designs and estimators for treatment effects
Creators: name: Adimora, A.A.
name: Breskin, A.
name: Brookmeyer, R.
name: Eron, J.J.
name: Cole, S.R.
name: Edwards, J.K.
Publisher: name: John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Year: 2021

description: While randomized trials remain the best evidence for treatment effectiveness, lack of generalizability often remains an important concern. Additionally, when new treatments are compared against existing standards of care, the potentially small benefit of the new treatment may be difficult to detect in a trial without extremely large sample sizes and long follow-up times. Recent advances in “data fusion” provide a framework to combine results across studies that are applicable to a given population of interest and allow treatment comparisons that may not be feasible with traditional study designs. We propose a data fusion-based estimator that can be used to combine information from two studies: (1) a study comparing a new treatment to the standard of care in the local population of interest, and (2) a study comparing the standard of care to placebo in a separate, distal population. We provide conditions under which the parameter of interest can be identified from the two studies described and explore properties of the estimator through simulation. Finally, we apply the estimator to estimate the effect of triple- vs monotherapy for the treatment of HIV using data from two randomized trials. The proposed estimator can account for underlying population structures that induce differences in case mix, adherence, and outcome prevalence between the local and distal populations, and the estimator can also account for potentially informative loss to follow-up. Approaches like those detailed here are increasingly important to speed the approval and adoption of effective new therapies by leveraging multiple sources of information.
title: Suppression of electrical discharges
Creators: name: Abumustafa, Nader
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: SF6 (Sulphur HexaFluoride) gas is exclusively used as a dielectric insulator and arc quenching medium in high voltage power networks. The electronegative properties of the gas and its ability to recombine after dissociation make it a gas of choice for high voltage equipment. However, SF 6 is a greenhouse gas and therefore research is needed to find an alternative. This thesis explores the potential of PolyTetraFluoroEthylene (PTFE) powder as a dielectric insulator. This has been deployed in a compacted form and when buoyant in air. This approach opens up new avenues for existing research related to gaseous dielectrics and current interruption through the utilisation of small particulates made from insulating materials. A detailed database, of breakdown voltage signals and high speed camera shots, has been compiled to facilitate comparative analysis of the effect of airborne polymer (e.g. PTFE) powders on breakdown voltage across different gap widths, relative to SF6. The breakdown voltage results which were obtained from experimental tests to demonstrate an effect on the voltage withstand that these airborne materials have comparable to that of SF6. Also, their ability to suppress electrical discharges between dielectric probe contacts is also demonstrated during the course of this thesis. In addition, a combined electrical/optical system has been constructed in order to investigate the relationship between airborne particle concentration and the resultant breakdown voltage between electrodes. The optical system was tested using smoke particles prior to its utilisation for powder particles. For both smoke and powder systems, chromaticity was utilised to assess changes in particle density. A model was used to interpret the optical signal and thereby estimate the concentration of airborne particles. This employs factors such as the refractive index, particle radius and essentially the ratio of the light source intensity as seen through the container with scattering particles to the intensity of the same light source seen through the same container without scattering particles.
Die Festung Dietikon im Zweiten Weltkrieg
Creators: name: Hummel, Oscar
Publisher: name: Buchdruckerei Oscar Hummel
Year: 1973
Subjects: subject: 355 Militärwissenschaft
subject: 949 Geschichte anderer Teile Europas
subject: Dietikon
subject: Zweiter Weltkrieg
subject: Verteidigung
subject: Festung

description: Inhalt: Zeittafel der schweizerischen und weltpolitischen Ereignisse im ersten Kriegswinter ; Die militärische Ausgangslage ; Der «Igel» im Limmattal ; Die psychologische Seite des Stellungsbaues ; Rekognoszierungsberichte ; Schanzzeug-Depot Dietikon ; Ortswehr Dietikon ; In Dietikon stationierte Einheiten ; Lokalnotizen aus der Zeit des ersten Kriegswinters ; Landerwerb für Festungsbauten ; Abbruch.
The Chemical Inventory of the Inner Regions of Planet-forming Disks -- The JWST/MINDS Program
Creators: name: Kamp, Inga
name: Henning, Thomas
name: Arabhavi, Aditya M.
name: Bettoni, Giulio
name: Christiaens, Valentin
name: Gasman, Danny
name: Grant, Sierra L.
name: Morales-Calderón, Maria
name: Tabone, Benoît
name: Abergel, Alain
name: Absil, Olivier
name: Argyriou, Ioannis
name: Barrado, David
name: Boccaletti, Anthony
name: Bouwman, Jeroen
name: Garatti, Alessio Caratti o
name: van Dishoeck, Ewine F.
name: Geers, Vincent
name: Glauser, Adrian M.
name: Güdel, Manuel
name: Guadarrama, Rodrigo
name: Jang, Hyerin
name: Kanwar, Jayatee
name: Lagage, Pierre-Olivier
name: Lahuis, Fred
name: Mueller, Michael
name: Nehmé, Cyrine
name: Olofsson, Göran
name: Pantin, Eric
name: Pawellek, Nicole
name: Perotti, Giulia
name: Ray, Tom P.
name: Rodgers-Lee, Donna
name: Samland, Matthias
name: Scheithauer, Silvia
name: Schreiber, Jürgen
name: Schwarz, Kamber
name: Temmink, Milou
name: Vandenbussche, Bart
name: Vlasblom, Marissa
name: Waelkens, Christoffel
name: Waters, L. B. F. M.
name: Wright, Gillian
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
subject: Solar and Stellar Astrophysics (astro-ph.SR)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The understanding of planet formation has changed recently, embracing the new idea of pebble accretion. This means that the influx of pebbles from the outer regions of planet-forming disks to their inner zones could determine the composition of planets and their atmospheres. The solid and molecular components delivered to the planet-forming region can be best characterized by mid-infrared spectroscopy. With Spitzer low-resolution (R=100, 600) spectroscopy, this approach was limited to the detection of abundant molecules such as H2O, C2H2, HCN and CO2. This contribution will present first results of the MINDS (MIRI mid-IR Disk Survey, PI: Th. Henning) project. Due do the sensitivity and spectral resolution (R~1500-3500) provided by JWST we now have a unique tool to obtain the full inventory of chemistry in the inner disks of solar-types stars and brown dwarfs, including also less abundant hydrocarbons and isotopologues. The Integral Field Unit (IFU) capabilities enable at the same time spatial studies of the continuum and line emission in extended sources such as debris disks, the flying saucer and also the search for mid-IR signatures of forming planets in systems such as PDS70. These JWST observations are complementary to ALMA and NOEMA observations of the outer disk chemistry; together these datasets provide an integral view of the processes occurring during the planet formation phase.
description: 14 pages, 8 figures, authors version of the manuscript submitted 22.1.2023 for the Faraday Discussion "Astrochemistry at high resolution", accepted 21.3.2023
title: Evaluating law and policy in the context of doctoral mobility in the European Union
Creators: name: Guth, Jessica
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: Doctoral candidates, particularly in the natural sciences, are often expected to spend time abroad as part of their doctorate or even to complete the entire qualification in a host country. However the law and policy surrounding scientific mobility on the one hand and student mobility on the other rarely consider doctoral candidates as a distinct group with specific issues and needs. As a result PhDs can fall between the gaps left by different legal and policy frameworks. Are they researchers or are they students? A more holistic approach would allow them to bridge the gaps creating a robust framework for mobility in European higher education and research. This thesis takes such a holistic approach examining in detail the legal provisions applying to doctoral candidates moving as EU migrant workers as well as those applying to EU migrant students. It considers whether using the EU citizenship provisions, a reconceptualisation of 'economic activity' as well as a different way of thinking about 'real links' with the host society might, in conjunction with the policies of the ERA as well as the EHEA, provide a rationale for extending rights to doctoral candidates as a distinct group of EU citizens. This would then allow them to genuinely bridge the gap between different policies and provisions, rather than falling between them and would build one coherent framework for mobility in higher education and research.
LLMediator: GPT-4 Assisted Online Dispute Resolution
Creators: name: Westermann, Hannes
name: Savelka, Jaromir
name: Benyekhlef, Karim
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Computation and Language (cs.CL)
subject: Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI)
subject: Computers and Society (cs.CY)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: In this article, we introduce LLMediator, an experimental platform designed to enhance online dispute resolution (ODR) by utilizing capabilities of state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs) such as GPT-4. In the context of high-volume, low-intensity legal disputes, alternative dispute resolution methods such as negotiation and mediation offer accessible and cooperative solutions for laypeople. These approaches can be carried out online on ODR platforms. LLMediator aims to improve the efficacy of such processes by leveraging GPT-4 to reformulate user messages, draft mediator responses, and potentially autonomously engage in the discussions. We present and discuss several features of LLMediator and conduct initial qualitative evaluations, demonstrating the potential for LLMs to support ODR and facilitate amicable settlements. The initial proof of concept is promising and opens up avenues for further research in AI-assisted negotiation and mediation.
Demographic Trends in US HIV Diagnoses, 2008–2017: Data Movies
Creators: name: Breger, T.L.
name: Johnson, A.S.
name: Hall, H.I.
name: Rudolph, J.E.
name: Virkud, A.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Zalla, L.C.
name: Cole, S.R.
Publisher: name: American Public Health Association Inc.
Year: 2021

description: In this editorial, we introduce the data movie as a tool for investigating and communicating changing patterns of disease using the example of HIV in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently tracks all new HIV diagnoses through the National HIV Surveillance System. Understanding what these data tell us is critical to the goal of ending the HIV epidemic in the United States.1 However, summarizing trends across multiple population characteristics simultaneously—for example, exploring how the age distribution of new diagnoses varies by geographic region and how that relationship has changed over time—can be difficult. Because data movies allow us to visualize complex relationships more easily than large tables or paneled figures, they can help us take full advantage of our increasingly rich national surveillance data.
title: Links between memory and the acquisition of English as a foreign language
Creators: name: Landau, Tamar
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: Relationships between (levels of) EFL performance and memory were explored in six EFL pupils aged between seventeen to eighteen years old in their last year of high school. The pupils were given multiple memory assessments to establish memory ability and multiple EFL assessments to establish levels of EFL performance in reading, listening comprehension and speech. The tests were first quantified and then the pupils' performance was analyzed qualitatively in a method of multiple cross case analysis. Qualitative analyses of six case studies suggest that phonological processing, phonological memory in general and phonological working memory in particular, have an underlying influence on EFL performance. The proposed explanatory link between the phonological aspects of memory and EFL ability is a theorized inner voice factor which facilitates the acquisition of EFL through processes of lexical and phonological priming. Lexical and phonological priming processes were seen to impact all aspects of EFL looked at in this research: vocabulary, syntax, sentence processing (perception and production) and reading. The impact of inner voice on vocabulary acquisition is twofold. First, it triggers appropriate collocates in a cumulative manner. Second, it facilitates intact decoding which enhances learning of new vocabulary provided in written form. The impact of inner voice on syntactic knowledge is by triggering appropriate sentential colligates. Inner voice, as underlying decoding processes, is also suggested as having a significant function in reading ability. Phonological processing is suggested as prerequisite for auditory verbal memory which was seen to have an impact on speech perception and production. The proposed explanatory link between auditory verbal memory and speech performance is auditory word recognition. Visual memory is seen to impact both vocabulary acquisition and reading separately. Two links between visual memory and vocabulary acquisition are suggested: visual spatial memory is proposed as facilitating memory for word configurations and visual sequential memory as underlying orthographic awareness. Importantly, it is proposed that visual memory itself is facilitated when supported by phonological memory in the process of reading. Visual memory is also suggested as facilitating reading comprehension processes by applying visual strategies. The central executive function is seen to enhance all aspects of EFL performance which require processing, control, attention switching and retrieval from long-term memory. However, intact central executive function cannot come into play effectively when the elements for integration are imperfect. Inappropriate learning strategies such as list learning and translation strategy were seen to inhibit EFL acquisition even when memory was intact. In the light of the above, it is suggested that the phonological aspects of processing and memory are the most significant factors underlying EFL performance.
Stewarding Our Resources: Building a Sustainable IPUMS Archival Document Access System
Creators: name: Magnuson, Diana
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Data management and archiving
IPUMS
Documentation

description: IPUMS International (IPUMS-I) is one of nine IPUMS data projects. Begun in 1999, IPUMS-I now contains 1.1-billion person records spanning over one hundred countries. The focus of IPUMS-I is collecting and preserving data and documentation, harmonizing, and disseminating data. As part of IPUMS-I harmonization work, tens of thousands of supporting ancillary materials came from United States Census Bureau (USCB), United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD), Latin American and Caribbean Demographic Center (CELADE), The East West Center, Centre Population et Développement (CEPED), and over one hundred statistical agencies. Archival staff have been preserving thousands of unique pieces of census and survey documentation, creating bibliographic records using an expanded Dublin Core profile that supports the use of controlled vocabularies to enhance findability for the project staff and users. Examples of this material include correspondence, maps, enumerator instructions, supervisor instructions, training materials, codebooks, publicity, reports, newspaper clippings, unpublished papers, census timetables, data processing materials, and technical manuals. Preservation and dissemination of our data products is already part of IPUMS workflows. IPUMS current document access system is static and limited to international census forms and enumerator instructions. Expanding and deepening this search and delivery system will provide findability and accessibility to a rich set of supporting archival documentation that will illuminate census development and implementation processes across the world. For example, access to materials documenting the development of enumeration forms and procedures over time supports researchers’ understanding of how statistical entities responded to the challenges of collecting demographic data on difficult to enumerate populations. Creating a sustainable, discoverable, and searchable access system for a broad range of archival census and survey materials will support the IPUMS mission to democratize access to the world’s social and economic data and support transformative scholarship.
title: Labour market dynamic of nurse workforce in Thailand
Creators: name: Muangyim, Kamolnat
Publisher: name: University of Liverpool Repository
Year: 2023

description: Difficulties in attracting and retaining health workers in disadvantaged areas are the main causes of inequitable distribution of health workers. This study aims to explore the dynamics of labour market of nurse workforce to improve the national nurse workforce planning in Thailand. Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE) analysis shows that the participants prefer jobs offered in rural areas, offering higher income, civil service scheme health benefit, provision of private accommodation at the workplace, short time to wait for promotion, supportive management, and fewer working hours/week respectively. The result also shows that a participant is ready to sacrifice 8413 THB/month in exchange for a civil service post. In addition, the availability of civil service post with "moderate" monthly income (25,000 THB), in a rural health facility near their family's place could increase rural job uptake by 85%. Factors significantly influencing job satisfaction are income, management, workload, and gender. Male nurses tend to have a higher level of job satisfaction than female nurses. Factors significantly affecting intention to move are job satisfaction, health benefit, and workload. A factor significantly determining movement is distance from home. The theoretical workforce mobility model developed from job search theory was tested by Structural Equation Modelling shows that job preference is a source of job satisfaction. It does not have significant direct effect on intention to move or movement. Thus job preference implication on retention strategy is questionable. Job satisfaction significantly influences intention to move rather than movement. It is only intention to move which is an independent predictor for the movement. The analysis of job history shows that the participants seem to move within the same sector, between the similar types of workplace. If the movement between sectors is the main concern, the movement from private sector to public sector is the dominant pattern. Nurses working in Bangkok tend to move out to other big cities or rural areas. The career pathway of nurses working in the public sector start in provincial hospitals, then moves to district hospital, and ends at community health centres. The majority of direction of movement direction is towards their families. Most of the planning assumptions adopted in the current National Nurse Workforce Plan in Thailand are in line with the current health labour situation, such as selective recruitment policy and financial incentives. Additional suggestion is that the Thai government should add job satisfaction, motivation strategy at institutional level using the same guideline and indicators identified in this study.
The burden of Malaria in the democratic Republic of the Congo
Creators: name: Keeler, C.
name: Kashamuka, M.
name: Tshefu, A.K.
name: Parr, J.B.
name: Emch, M.
name: Brazeau, N.F.
name: Deutsch-Feldman, M.
name: Goel, V.
name: Edwards, J.K.
name: Meshnick, S.R.
Publisher: name: Oxford University Press
Year: 2021

description: Despite evidence that older children and adolescents bear the highest burden of malaria, large malaria surveys focus on younger children. We used polymerase chain reaction data from the 2013-2014 Demographic and Health Survey in the Democratic Republic of Congo (including children aged <5 years and adults aged ≥15 years) and a longitudinal study in Kinshasa Province (participants aged 6 months to 98 years) to estimate malaria prevalence across age strata. We fit linear models and estimated prevalences for each age category; adolescents aged 10-14 years had the highest prevalence. We estimate approximately 26 million polymerase chain reaction-detectable infections nationally. Adolescents and older children should be included in surveillance studies.