Search

Attendees at the IPAF Summit 2023, held in Berlin, Germany, on 20 April, enjoyed presentations on the theme The Future. Matt Brereton reports. The IPAF Summit in partnership with Access [...]

Abstract Superior blocked prepolymers have been developed based on the use of low free (LF) isocyanate urethane prepolymers and 0-Caprolactam (CAP). Low free isocyanate technology, which can achieve prepolymers with [...]

Abstract: When conducting a systematic literature review, researchers usually determine the relevance of primary studies on the basis of the title and abstract. However, experience indicates that the abstracts for many software engineering papers are of too poor a quality to be used for this purpose. A solution adopted in other domains is to employ structured abstracts to improve the quality of information provided. This study consists of a formal experiment to investigate whether structured abstracts are more complete and easier to understand than non-structured abstracts for papers that describe software engineering experiments. We constructed structured versions of the abstracts for a random selection of 25 papers describing software engineering experiments. The 64 participants were each presented with one abstract in its original unstructured form and one in a structured form, and for each one were asked to assess its clarity (measured on a scale of 1 to 10) and completeness (measured with a questionnaire that used 18 items). Based on a regression analysis that adjusted for participant, abstract, type of abstract seen first, knowledge of structured abstracts, software engineering role, and preference for conventional or structured abstracts, the use of structured abstracts increased the completeness score by 6.65 (SE 0.37, p < 0.001) and the clarity score by 2.98 (SE 0.23, p < 0.001). 57 participants reported their preferences regarding structured abstracts: 13 (23%) had no preference; 40 (70%) preferred structured abstracts; four preferred conventional abstracts. Many conventional software engineering abstracts omit important information. Our study is consistent with studies from other disciplines and confirms that structured abstracts can improve both information content and readability. Although care must be taken to develop appropriate structures for different types of article, we recommend that Software Engineering journals and conferences adopt structured abstracts.

ABSTRACT:War tends to polarise national and global conflicts as encapsulated by the phrase, 'you are either with us or against us'. There is further danger of knee jerk reactions at such times, including the present, towards unconditionally funding long-term military security hardware and dedicating scarce resources that are badly needed for more benevolent projects, including equitable redistribution of resources, not to mention the challenge to move away from fossil fuels in our climate crisis. These tensions are evident on recognising European dependence on Russian oil and gas, which unfortunately is helping to fund the ongoing Ukrainian war. This paper will explore how a sample of more contemporary wars and national conflicts have been dramatised on film since the pandemic. Focusing specifically on three contrasting approaches to the tragedy of war and its effects on citizens and soldiers: from an insider's personal response to the massacre in the Balkans during the 1990s in Quo Vadis, Aida? (2020), to the reworked conventional World War One classic All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), before finally coming full circle with the big budget Hollywood celebration of aerial war heroics in the sequel Top Gun: Maverick (2022). Sample textual and contextual analysis will be used to explore how such war narratives have become repurposed, both from an insider soldier's perspective and also through a rejuvenated cinematic war framework, as contemporary audiences strive to cope with ever-increasing crises and conflicts facing the planet, having recently endured a global pandemic.

Objective: Building on our previous study, showing a correlation between ferritin in serum and urine, we conducted a feasibility evaluation, measuring urinary ferritin as a potential noninvasive screening test for iron deficiency among NICU patients. Study design: This was a prospective analysis of paired serum/urine ferritin levels. We defined iron-limited erythropoiesis by a RET-He &lt;5th percentile lower reference interval (&lt;28 pg). Results: We obtained 49 paired serum/urine samples from neonates judged as at-risk for iron deficiency. Urine ferritin (“corrected” for urine creatinine and specific gravity) correlated with serum ferritin (correlation coefficient of log10-transformed values 0.44). A corrected urine ferritin &lt;12 ng/mL had a sensitivity of 82% (95% CI, 67–93%) and a specificity of 100% (CI, 66–100%) for detecting iron-limited erythropoiesis, with a positive predictive value of 100% (CI, 89–100%). Conclusions: Measuring urinary ferritin in NICU patients is feasible. Since low values identify iron-limitation, this could become a useful noninvasive screen.

Called Walls of Welcome, Philip Cote—an Anishinaabe-Algonquin artist and spiritual elder—created a large-scale panorama inside the interior walls of the Roncesvalles United Church’s sanctuary in late 2021. Located in the west end of Tkaronto/Toronto—and believed to be the first Indigenous art mural inside a church in Turtle Island/North America (if not globally)—the wall painting visually narrates the Ojibway creation story and alludes to “The Eighth Fire.” The latter stems from an Anishinaabe prophecy that we (human beings) can unite in our shared humanity. Walls of Welcomegives us all a message from the pluriverse and a spiritually fluid lens for seeing our foundational stories. My paper explores how this mural brings communities together through the power of art and builds a new world for trust-building and healing that epitomizes truth and reconciliation.

MEWP rental markets have recovered better than predicted in 2020, with most countries seeing markets on course to recover to 2019 levels by early in 2022, according to the latest [...]

Accidents can teach us a lot about how to safely operate powered access equipment. That's why, nearly ten years ago, IPAF launched its dedicated reporting portal. As its latest Global [...]

The cellular milieu is a solution crowded with a significant concentration of different components (proteins, nucleic acids, metabolites, etc.). Such a crowded environment affects protein conformations, dynamics, and interactions. Intrinsically disordered proteins and regions are particularly sensitive to these effects. Here, we investigate the impact on an intrinsically disordered tail that flanks a folded domain, the N-terminal domain, and the RNA-binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein. We mimic the crowded environment of the cell using polyethylene glycol (PEG) and study its impact on protein conformations using single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer. We found that high-molecular-weight PEG induces a collapse of the disordered N-terminal tail, whereas low-molecular-weight PEG induces a chain expansion. Our data can be explained by accounting for two opposing contributions: favorable interactions between the protein and crowder molecules and screening of excluded volume interactions. We further characterized the interaction between protein and RNA in the presence of crowding agents. While for all PEG molecules tested, we observed an increase in the binding affinity, the trend is not monotonic as a function of the degree of PEG polymerization. This points to the role of nonspecific protein–PEG interactions on binding in addition to the entropic effects due to crowding. To separate the enthalpic and entropic components of the effects, we investigated the temperature dependence of the association constants in the absence and presence of crowders. Finally, we compared the effects of crowding across mutations in the disordered region and found that the threefold difference in association constants for two naturally occurring variants of the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein is reduced to almost identical affinities in the presence of crowders. Overall, our data provide new insights into understanding and modeling the contribution of crowding effects on disordered regions, including the impact of interactions between proteins and crowders and their interplay when binding a ligand.

Cyber attacks on the U.S. electric grid are increasing in number and sophistication. Cyber security experts warn that the consequences of a successful attack would be crippling. Public safety would [...]

In the sci-fi sitcom 'Futurama,' the protagonist Fry is blasted forward in time to New Year 2999 where he finds he is still, alas, a humble pizza delivery boy. Recent [...]

AUTHOR CATHERINE BRERETON ILLUSTRATOR KATE MCLELLAND PUBLISHER BLOOMSBURY PRICE [pounds sterling]8.99/$15.35 RELEASE OUT NOW From woodlice and wildflowers to polecats and pike, this field guide covers all kinds of potential [...]

illus map bibliog

ObjectiveColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most diagnosed cancer, and requires surgical resection and reconnection, or anastomosis, of the remaining bowel to re-establish intestinal continuity. Anastomotic leak (AL) is a major complication that increases mortality and cancer recurrence. Our objective is to assess the causal role of gut microbiota in anastomotic healing.DesignThe causal role of gut microbiota was assessed in a murine AL model receiving faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from patients with CRC collected before surgery and who later developed or not, AL. Anastomotic healing and gut barrier integrity were assessed after surgery. Bacterial candidates implicated in anastomotic healing were identified using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and were isolated from faecal samples to be tested both in vitroand in vivo.ResultsMice receiving FMT from patients that developed AL displayed poor anastomotic healing. Profiling of gut microbiota of patients and mice after FMT revealed correlations between healing parameters and the relative abundance of Alistipes onderdonkiiand Parabacteroides goldsteinii. Oral supplementation with A. onderdonkiiresulted in a higher rate of leaks in mice, while gavage with P. goldsteiniiimproved healing by exerting an anti-inflammatory effect. Patients with AL and mice receiving FMT from AL patients presented upregulation of mucosal MIP-1α, MIP-2, MCP-1 and IL-17A/F before surgery. Retrospective analysis revealed that patients with AL present higher circulating neutrophil and monocyte counts before surgery.ConclusionGut microbiota plays an important role in surgical colonic healing in patients with CRC. The impact of these findings may extend to a vast array of invasive gastrointestinal procedures.

Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and regions (IDRs) have emerged as key players across many biological functions and diseases. Differently from structured proteins, disordered proteins lack stable structure and are particularly sensitive to changes in the surrounding environment. Investigation of disordered ensembles requires new approaches and concepts for quantifying conformations, dynamics, and interactions. Here, we provide a short description of the fundamental biophysical properties of disordered proteins as understood through the lens of single-molecule fluorescence observations. Single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) provides an extensive and versatile toolbox for quantifying the characteristics of conformational distributions and the dynamics of disordered proteins across many different solution conditions, both in vitro and in living cells.

por

Matrix stiffening by lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2)-mediated collagen cross-linking is proposed as a core feedforward mechanism that promotes fibrogenesis. Failure in clinical trials of simtuzumab (the humanized version of AB0023, a monoclonal antibody against human LOXL2) suggested that targeting LOXL2 may not have disease relevance; however, target engagement was not directly evaluated. We compare the spatial transcriptome of active human lung fibrogenesis sites with different human cell culture models to identify a disease-relevant model. Within the selected model, we then evaluate AB0023, identifying that it does not inhibit collagen cross-linking or reduce tissue stiffness, nor does it inhibit LOXL2 catalytic activity. In contrast, it does potently inhibit angiogenesis consistent with an alternative, non-enzymatic mechanism of action. Thus, AB0023 is anti-angiogenic but does not inhibit LOXL2 catalytic activity, collagen cross-linking, or tissue stiffening. These findings have implications for the interpretation of the lack of efficacy of simtuzumab in clinical trials of fibrotic diseases.

Loss-of-function mutations in the [K.sub.ATP] channel genes KCNJ11 and ABCC8 cause neonatal hyperinsulinism in humans. Dominantly inherited mutations cause less severe disease, which may progress to glucose intolerance and diabetes in later life (e.g., SUR1-E1506K). We generated a mouse expressing SUR1-E1506K in place of SUR1. [K.sub.ATP] channel inhibition by MgATP was enhanced in both homozygous (homE1506K) and heterozygous (hetE 1506K) mutant mice, due to impaired channel activation by MgADP. As a consequence, mutant β-cells showed less on-cell [K.sub.ATP] channel activity and fired action potentials in glucose-free solution. HomE1506K mice exhibited enhanced insulin secretion and lower fasting blood glucose within 8 weeks of birth, but reduced insulin secretion and impaired glucose tolerance at 6 months of age. These changes correlated with a lower insulin content; unlike wild-type or hetE1506K mice, insulin content did not increase with age in homE1506K mice. There was no difference in the number and size of islets or β-cells in the three types of mice, or evidence of β-cell proliferation. We conclude that the gradual development of glucose intolerance in patients with the SUR1-E1506K mutation might, as in the mouse model, result from impaired insulin secretion due a failure of insulin content to increase with age. Diabetes 62:3797-3806, 2013, Congenital hyperinsulinism of infancy (HI) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by enhanced insulin secretion that leads to persistent hypoglycemia soon after birth (1,2). It occurs in ~1 in 50,000 [...]

OBJECTIVE--Activating mutations in the KCNJ11 gene, encoding the Kir6.2 subunit of the KATe channel, result in permanent neonatal diabetes mellitus. They also may cause neurologic symptoms such as mental retardation [...]

AbstractDisaster victim identification (DVI) entails a protracted process of evidence collection and data matching to reconcile physical remains with victim identity. Technology is critical to DVI by enabling the linkage of physical evidence to information. However, labelling physical remains and collecting data at the scene are dominated by low-technology paper-based practices. We ask, how can technology help us tag and track the victims of disaster? Our response to this question has two parts. First, we conducted a human–computer interaction led investigation into the systematic factors impacting DVI tagging and tracking processes. Through interviews with Australian DVI practitioners, we explored how technologies to improve linkage might fit with prevailing work practices and preferences; practical and social considerations; and existing systems and processes. We focused on tagging and tracking activities throughout the DVI process. Using insights from these interviews and relevant literature, we identified four critical themes: protocols and training; stress and stressors; the plurality of information capture and management systems; and practicalities and constraints. Second, these findings were iteratively discussed by the authors, who have combined expertise across electronics, data science, cybersecurity, human–computer interaction and forensic pathology. We applied the themes identified in the first part of the investigation to critically review technologies that could support DVI practitioners by enhancing DVI processes that link physical evidence to information. This resulted in an overview of candidate technologies matched with consideration of their key attributes. This study recognises the importance of considering human factors that can affect technology adoption into existing practices. Consequently, we provide a searchable table (as Supplementary information) that relates technologies to the key considerations and attributes relevant to DVI practice, for readers to apply to their own context. While this research directly contributes to DVI, it also has applications to other domains in which a physical/digital linkage is required, and particularly within high stress environments with little room for error.Key points:Disaster victim identification (DVI) processes require us to link physical evidence and digital information. While technology could improve this linkage, experience shows that technological “solutions” are not always adopted in practice.Our study of the practices, preferences and contexts of Australian DVI practitioners suggests 10 critical considerations for these technologies.We review and evaluate 44 candidate technologies against these considerations and highlight the role of human factors in adoption.

abstract:This paper explores three films with very different narratives to help map out and frame British colonial representations of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland conflict in particular, over several decades: from a fatalistic, film noir evocation of a troubled urban landscape in Odd Man Out (1947) to a video-game-like struggle for survival in an urban maze in '71 (2014), culminating in a romantic and ahistorical evocation of a memorialised city-space in Belfast (2021). Much has been written about the long history of struggle and violence in Northern Ireland that is outside the purview of this paper, yet readers need to grapple with this history if they are to fully appreciate and contextualise such complex political, religious, economic and cultural tensions.

Background: Development of the cow-calf bond post-partum and passive immunity of calves from spring-calving beef × beef (B×B) and beef × dairy (B×D) cow genotypes was determined using primiparous and multiparous (Experiment 1), and primiparous and second-parity (Experiment 2) animals. In Experiment 1, calves either suckled colostrum naturally (‘natural-suckling’) (n= 126), or were fed colostrum, using an oesophageal-tube (‘artificially-fed’) (n= 26), from their dam within 1-h post-partum. In Experiment 2, all calves (n= 60) were artificially-fed colostrum from their dam. Prior to colostrum suckling/feeding, colostrum was sampled for IgG analysis. The cow-calf bond was assessed using CCTV recordings during the first 4-h post-partum. Calves were blood sampled at 48-h post-partum to determine IgG and total protein (TP) concentrations, and zinc sulphate turbidity (ZST) units. Results: There was no difference (P> 0.05) in cow licking behaviours and calf standing and suckling behaviours between the genotypes, except in Experiment 2 where B×D calves had more attempts to suckle before suckling occurred (P≤ 0.05) compared to B×B calves. In Experiment 1, multiparous cows licked their calves sooner (P≤ 0.05) and for longer (P&lt; 0.01), and their calves had fewer attempts to stand (P&lt; 0.001), stood for longer (P= 0.05), and had fewer attempts to suckle before suckling occurred (P&lt; 0.001) than primiparous cows; there was no parity effect on cow-calf behaviour in Experiment 2. Colostrum IgG concentrations and measures of calf passive immunity did not differ (P> 0.05) between the genotypes in either Experiment. In Experiment 1, colostrum IgG concentrations were greater (P≤ 0.05) in multiparous compared to primiparous cows and their calves had superior (P≤ 0.05) passive immunity; no effect of parity was found in Experiment 2. Passive immunity did not differ (P> 0.05) between suckled and artificially-fed calves in Experiment 1. Conclusions: Cow genotype had little effect on cow-calf behaviours, but under ‘natural-suckling’ conditions primiparous cows expressed maternal inexperience and their calves were less vigorous than multiparous cows. Colostrum IgG concentration and calf passive immunity measures were unaffected by genotype, but under ‘natural-suckling’ conditions calves from primiparous cows had lower passive immunity.

illus bibliog