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This contribution takes up and discusses topology as a relational approach to better understand and empirically trace policy mobilities in federal education systems. While topology echoes other relational approaches in its simultaneous focus on ongoing change and the "making" of stabilized forms (e.g., policy scales), it also brings attention to facets of policy mobility research that other approaches have, at least so far, considered to a much lesser extent. Such facets include the systematic integration of a "temporal dimension" (e.g., rhythms of scale- or policy-making) as well as the consideration of "digital/data space-times." Equally, topology reminds us that policy itself is increasingly becoming "topological"--that is to say, policy-making is increasingly ruled by movement spaces, logics of connectedness, and capacities for change, instead of formal authority, position, or transmission. Integrating these different dimensions into a heuristic framework, we illuminate what we see differently when applying a topological lens to policy mobility analysis in federal education systems, using the example of German education policies since the 2000s, particularly transformations induced by the ongoing pandemic, as a case study.

Abstract Quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures are in high demand for their ability to manipulate and enhance light‐matter interactions at subwavelength scales, making them promising building blocks for diverse nanophotonic devices. Despite their potential, the integration of these nanostructures with optical sensors and imaging systems on a large scale poses challenges. Here, a robust technique for the rapid, scalable, and seamless replication of quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures is presented straight from their production wafers using a microbubble process. This approach not only simplifies the integration of quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures into a wide range of standard and custom optical imaging devices and sensors but also significantly enhances their imaging and sensing performance beyond the limits of conventional methods. This study encompasses experimental, computational, and theoretical investigations, and it fully elucidates the operational mechanism. Additionally, it explores a versatile set of options for outfitting nanophotonic devices with custom‐designed plasmonic nanostructures, thereby fulfilling specific operational criteria.

IntroductionNijmegen breakage syndrome (NBS) is an autosomal recessive disorder, characterized by microcephaly, immunodeficiency, and impaired DNA repair. NBS is most prevalent among Slavic populations, including Ukraine. Our study aimed to comprehensively assess the prevalence, diagnosis, clinical data, immunological parameters, and treatment of NBS patients in Ukraine.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective review that included 84 NBS patients from different regions of Ukraine who were diagnosed in 1999-2023. Data from the Ukrainian Registry of NBS and information from treating physicians, obtained using a developed questionnaire, were utilized for analysis.ResultsAmong 84 NBS patients, 55 (65.5%) were alive, 25 (29.8%) deceased, and 4 were lost to follow-up. The median age of patients was 11 years, ranging from 1 to 34 years. Most patients originate from western regions of Ukraine (57.8%), although in recent years, there has been an increase in diagnoses from central and southeastern regions, expanding our knowledge of NBS prevalence. The number of diagnosed patients per year averaged 3.4 and increased from 2.7 to 4.8 in recent years. The median age of NBS diagnosis was 4.0 years (range 0.1-16) in 1999-2007 and decreased to 2.7 in the past 6 years. Delayed physical development was observed in the majority of children up to the age of ten years. All children experienced infections, and 41.3% of them had recurrent infections. Severe infections were the cause of death in 12%. The second most common clinical manifestation of NBS was malignancies (37.5%), with the prevalence of lymphomas (63.3%). Malignancies have been the most common cause of death in NBS patients (72% of cases). Decreased levels of CD4+ and CD19+ were observed in 89.6%, followed by a reduction of CD3+ (81.8%) and CD8+ (62.5%). The level of NK cells was elevated at 62.5%. IgG concentration was decreased in 72.9%, and IgA - in 56.3%. Immunoglobulin replacement therapy was administered to 58.7% of patients. Regular immunoglobulin replacement therapy has helped reduce the frequency and severity of severe respiratory tract infections.ConclusionImprovements in diagnosis, including prenatal screening, newborn screening, monitoring, and expanding treatment options, will lead to better outcomes for NBS patients.

Abstract Linear gratings polarizers provide remarkable potential to customize the polarization properties and tailor device functionality via dimensional tuning of configurations. Here, we extensively investigate the polarization properties of single- and double-layer linear grating, mainly focusing on self-aligned bilayer linear grating (SABLG), serving as a wire grid polarizer in the mid-wavelength infrared (MWIR) region. Computational analyses revealed the polarization properties of SABLG, highlighting enhancement in TM transmission and reduction in TE transmission compared to single-layer linear gratings (SLG) due to optical cavity effects. As a result, the extinction ratio is enhanced by approximately 2724-fold in wavelength 3–6 μm. Furthermore, integrating the specially designed SABLG with an MWIR InAs/GaSb Type-II Superlattice (T2SL) photodetector yields a significantly enhanced spectral responsivity. The TM-spectral responsivity of SABLG is enhanced by around twofold than the bare device. The simulation methodology and analytical analysis presented herein provide a versatile route for designing optimized polarimetric structures integrated into infrared imaging devices, offering superior capabilities to resolve linear polarization signatures.

Лімфома - це група неопластичних захворювань, що характеризуються клональною проліферацією лімфоїдних клітин, яке проявляється відповіддю різних стадій диференціації нормальних В-лімфоцитів, рідше Т-лімфоцитів або природних кілерів. Етіологія більшості лімфом не відома. Одним із доказових причинно-наслідкових факторів є вірусні інфекції та імунодефіцитні стани. Мета - на підставі даних клінічного випадку привернути увагу лікарів не імунологів до особливостей виявлення первинних імунодефіцитів (ПІД) та проблеми їхньої пізньої діагностики. Клінічний випадок. Наведено клінічне спостереження тяжкого не диференційованого генетично ПІД. Виділено скринінгові ознаки ПІД у вигляді рецидивного інфекційного синдрому дихальних шляхів та частого тривалого застосування антибактеріальних препаратів, які мають насторожити лікарів щодо клініко-імунологічних маркерів первинного імунодефіциту. Наявність у хлопчика лімфоми Беркіта також не виключає можливості прояву імунодефіцитного стану, як вторинного на тлі медикаментозного лікування лімфоми, так і первинного, який може проявитись у пубертатному віці. Загальний варіабельний імунодефіцит є одним із тих ПІД, які «стартують» із лімфоми Беркіта. Висновки. Проблема низького виявлення ймовірного ПІД у дітей в Україні є актуальною. Лікарі первинної ланки є першими, які мають змогу частково вирішити цю проблему, дослідивши інфекційний анамнез та лабораторні скринінгові аналізи. Існує неповна обізнаність суміжних медичних спеціальностей щодо ознак ПІД при лімфопроліферативному синдромі в дітей. Цей клінічний випадок показує ознаки ПІД у ранньому віці. Низьке виявлення також пов’язане із задовільною спроможністю і якістю та/або відсутністю імунологічних лабораторних обстежень, особливо в державних закладах. Дослідження виконано відповідно до принципів Гельсінської декларації. На проведення досліджень отримано інформовану згоду батьків дитини. Автори заявляють про відсутність конфлікту інтересів.

Bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3)-based heterostructures have attracted considerable attention owing to their interesting anisotropic properties and expected higher thermoelectric performance. Therefore, exploring the nature of the carrier dynamics in these heterostructures has been an important subject in the design and optimization of advanced materials. In the present study, hot carrier injection and its subsequent spatiotemporal behavior in a multilayered crystalline Bi2Te3–Tellurium (Te) eutectic composite were studied using a laser terahertz (THz) emission microscopy (LTEM). The THz emission electric fields at the Bi2Te3–Te interface were polarized perpendicular to the interface. The polarities of these waveforms reveal the direction of the electric field between the Bi2Te3 and Te regions, indicating the carrier types of these components and the p–n junction formed at the interface. In addition, in the Te region, a strong THz emission with an electric field polarized parallel to the interface was observed. This unique THz emission can be qualitatively explained through hot photocarrier anisotropic transport by considering the effective mass of electrons and holes. LTEM clarified the local carrier dynamics in the microstructures and revealed the potential distribution and anisotropic transport properties. These findings contribute to the exploration of eutectic heterostructures as new functional materials and provide new avenues for cutting-edge thermoelectric and photovoltaic devices.

Quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures are in high demand for their ability to manipulate and enhance light‐matter interactions at subwavelength scales, making them promising building blocks for diverse nanophotonic devices. Despite their potential, the integration of these nanostructures with optical sensors and imaging systems on a large scale poses challenges. Here, a robust technique for the rapid, scalable, and seamless replication of quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures is presented straight from their production wafers using a microbubble process. This approach not only simplifies the integration of quasi‐3D plasmonic nanostructures into a wide range of standard and custom optical imaging devices and sensors but also significantly enhances their imaging and sensing performance beyond the limits of conventional methods. This study encompasses experimental, computational, and theoretical investigations, and it fully elucidates the operational mechanism. Additionally, it explores a versatile set of options for outfitting nanophotonic devices with custom‐designed plasmonic nanostructures, thereby fulfilling specific operational criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to previous research, in contemporary western societies health is seen as an increasingly non-political issue. Rather than being at the centre of collective decision-making and democratic politics, health is regarded as resting on individual responsibility. In this study we focus on, and explore an important and challenging socio-scientific issue through the concepts of politicization and the depoliticization. We address the question of health education in schools as well as the question of citizenship and democracy, which adds to research on scientific literacy and socio-scientific issues. The study consists of two parts: firstly, we analyse whether health--more precisely stress--is portrayed as a political or non-political issue in textbooks for secondary school; secondly, and informed by the results from our analysis, we dissect and problematise what kind of citizenship that is constructed in textbooks. From a theoretical framework of politics, the article explores how citizenship emerges. Our findings show that health, and more precisely stress, is depoliticized in the textbooks. Firstly, stress is regarded as an individual--not public or governmental--concern. Secondly, stress is depoliticized in a more rigorous manner by making its political dimensions invisible. A consequence is a displacement of stress, e.g., in school, from the democratic arena to the individual citizen. As an implication we recommend an education that emphasize a political and democratic perspective on health as a complement to the individual perspective.

The ability to recognize key causal models across situations is associated with expertise. The acquisition of schema-governed category knowledge of key causal models may underlie this ability. In an experimental study (n = 183), we investigated the effects of promoting the construction of schema-governed categories and how an enhanced ability to recognize the key causal models relates to performance in complex problem-solving tasks that are based on the key causal models. In a 2 × 2 design, we tested the effects of an adapted version of an intervention designed to build abstract mental representations of the key causal models and a tutorial designed to convey conceptual understanding of the key causal models and procedural knowledge. Participants who were enabled to recognize the underlying key causal models across situations as a result of the intervention and the tutorial (i.e., causal sorters) outperformed non-causal sorters in the subsequent complex problem-solving task. Causal sorters outperformed the control group, except for the subtask knowledge application in the experimental group that did not receive the tutorial and, hence, did not have the opportunity to elaborate their conceptual understanding of the key causal models. The findings highlight that being able to categorize novel situations according to their underlying key causal model alone is insufficient for enhancing the transfer of the according concept. Instead, for successful application, conceptual and procedural knowledge also seem to be necessary. By using a complex problem-solving task as the dependent variable for transfer, we extended the scope of the results to dynamic tasks that reflect some of the typical challenges of the 21st century.

Staphylococcus saprophyticus is the cause of uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) in 10%-20% of young women (1). Despite a greater successful treatment rate, S. saprophyticus UTI has a higher recurrent [...]

Introduction: Nijmegen breakage syndrome (NBS) is an autosomal recessive disorder, characterized by microcephaly, immunodeficiency, and impaired DNA repair. NBS is most prevalent among Slavic populations, including Ukraine. Our study aimed to comprehensively assess the prevalence, diagnosis, clinical data, immunological parameters, and treatment of NBS patients in Ukraine. Methods: We conducted a retrospective review that included 84 NBS patients from different regions of Ukraine who were diagnosed in 1999-2023. Data from the Ukrainian Registry of NBS and information from treating physicians, obtained using a developed questionnaire, were utilized for analysis. Results: Among 84 NBS patients, 55 (65.5%) were alive, 25 (29.8%) deceased, and 4 were lost to follow-up. The median age of patients was 11 years, ranging from 1 to 34 years. Most patients originate from western regions of Ukraine (57.8%), although in recent years, there has been an increase in diagnoses from central and southeastern regions, expanding our knowledge of NBS prevalence. The number of diagnosed patients per year averaged 3.4 and increased from 2.7 to 4.8 in recent years. The median age of NBS diagnosis was 4.0 years (range 0.1-16) in 1999-2007 and decreased to 2.7 in the past 6 years. Delayed physical development was observed in the majority of children up to the age of ten years. All children experienced infections, and 41.3% of them had recurrent infections. Severe infections were the cause of death in 12%. The second most common clinical manifestation of NBS was malignancies (37.5%), with the prevalence of lymphomas (63.3%). Malignancies have been the most common cause of death in NBS patients (72% of cases). Decreased levels of CD4+ and CD19+ were observed in 89.6%, followed by a reduction of CD3+ (81.8%) and CD8+ (62.5%). The level of NK cells was elevated at 62.5%. IgG concentration was decreased in 72.9%, and IgA - in 56.3%. Immunoglobulin replacement therapy was administered to 58.7% of patients. Regular immunoglobulin replacement therapy has helped reduce the frequency and severity of severe respiratory tract infections. Conclusion: Improvements in diagnosis, including prenatal screening, newborn screening, monitoring, and expanding treatment options, will lead to better outcomes for NBS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For precisely produced polymer gears with a fast turnaround, reliable and easy inspection is crucial. The research project includes determining geometrical parameters and proposes a new parameter, which includes the absolute deviation of the gear from the designed model. The new parameter can be used to determine the shrinkage of the polymer gears and is used as feedback to the design process through augmented reality aided inspection. The inspection process begins with acquiring an optical scan, which captures the geometry of the whole gear. It includes a comparison to the CAD model. Using model-based definition, the measures and tolerances from the design phase are transferred to the inspection through STEP AP 242. During the inspection, the gear is evaluated if it is in accordance with the prescribed tolerances. The results are used as feedback to the design process through augmented reality, which enables a clear presentation of the results on the actual object. The presentation gives a direction where big shrinkage occurs and shows how much the mould design needs to be changed. The results include the colour map of the deviation, standard geometrical parameters, the shrinkage parameter, and the measure/tolerance check.

Most psychological studies on the balance between stability and flexibility in decision making restrict their experiments to simplistic scenarios. These restrictions likely affect the decision process, and it is unclear which findings can be transferred to more naturalistic decision contexts. Therefore, the present study used a scenario that is inspired by the problem structure found in a particular domain: Adapt/Exchange decisions in modular chemical plants. In this setting, we investigated two findings from the decision making literature: whether participants refrain from a thorough comparison of options and whether they perseverate on previous choices. Forty-eight participants made Adapt/Exchange decisions and subsequently implemented them in specific parameter settings. Between four blocks of trials with sequential trial orders, we varied sequence direction (i.e., whether the costs of Adapt gradually increased or decreased) and sequence type (i.e., whether gradual changes were only present in the option ratio or also in absolute costs). We analyzed the percentage of Exchange choices, option switches, decision times, and parameter settings. The results suggest that instead of comparing options, participants used a satisficing strategy, checking whether Adapt was good enough and only considering Exchange if it was not. The direction of sequence effects was opposite to the predicted choice perseveration: In sequences initially favoring Adapt, participants started exploring the Exchange option early on, while in sequences initially demanding Exchange, they preferred Adapt as soon as it became possible. The results raise questions about the application of psychological theories to complex decisions between qualitatively different options.

Daniel Neureiter,1,2 Eckhard Klieser,1,2 Bettina Neumayer,1,2 Paul Winkelmann,1,2 Romana Urbas,1,2 Tobias Kiesslich3,4 1Institute of Pathology, Paracelsus Medical University/Salzburger Landeskliniken (SALK), Salzburg, Austria; 2Cancer Cluster Salzburg, Institute of Pathology, Paracelsus Medical University/Salzburger Landeskliniken (SALK), Salzburg, Austria; 3Department of Internal Medicine I, Paracelsus Medical University/Salzburger Landeskliniken (SALK), Salzburg, Austria; 4Institute of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, AustriaCorrespondence: Daniel NeureiterInstitute of Pathology, Paracelsus Medical University/Salzburger Landeskliniken (SALK), Salzburg, AustriaTel +43 (0)5 7255 29027Fax +43 (0)5 7255 29099Email d.neureiter@salk.atPurpose: New technologies like gamification are continuously integrated into medical education during the last years. However, the benefit and implementation of such gaming platforms are not clearly studied. This analysis assesses the feasibility of Kahoot! regarding simplicity and low-cost performance as a learning/teaching tool for medical education in (histo-)pathology.Materials and Methods: In this feasibility pilot study, we developed 36 modules for different benign and malignant tumors, covering four major topics: gastrointestinal tract, dermatology, urogenital tract, and hematology. Each module included histomorphological text-based questions for education of 2nd-year medical students. The online gaming-platform Kahoot! was anonymously implemented before and after “classical” medical education which included discussions of histological slides for each tumor entity using Microsoft PowerPoint-based presentations in combination with microscopical demonstrations. Participating students were invited to a seven-questions evaluation about the online educational approach.Results: Overall, 23 of 51 students of the study class completed the pre- and the post-evaluation of Kahoot! in one or more organ systems. The percentage of correct answers increased from the initial mean/median of 47.2/45% to 77.2/76.3%. Simultaneously, the time for answering questions decreased by roughly 50% (from mean/median time of 9.1/8.3 seconds to 5.1/4.3 seconds) from pre- to post-assessment. The results were independent of gender; however, there were scoring differences between the different organ systems. Students positively evaluated the routine implementation of the gaming-platform Kahoot! within medical education.Conclusion: Kahoot! is as a simple, direct, and low-cost application in medical teaching improving learning outcomes of pathomorphological topics with high acceptance by students. Kahoot!-based evaluations should be also performed in more advanced topics in the field of histopathology.Keywords: education assessment, medical education, online-tools, Kahoot!, pathology