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Based on the ongoing large climatic and environmental changes and the history of science coordination in Svalbard leading to the development of Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS), we present an overview of the current gaps in knowledge and infrastructure based on a synthesis of the recommendations presented in the annual State of Environmental Science in Svalbard (SESS) reporting of SIOS. Recommendations from the first 4 years of SESS reporting represent the point of view of the wide scientific community operating the large observing system implemented in Svalbard (SIOS) since 2018 and aim to identify the scientific potential to further develop the observing system. The recommendations are bottom-up inputs for a continuous process that aims to accomplish the vision and mission of SIOS: optimizing, integrating and further developing the observing system in an Earth system science (ESS) perspective. The primary outcome of the synthesis work is the evidence that ESS in SIOS has, during the first 4 years of operation, naturally developed from individual scientists or smaller groups of scientists to larger disciplinary international groups of scientists working together within the different environments (the atmosphere, the cryosphere, and marine and terrestrial environments). It is clear that strategic efforts towards interdisciplinarity are necessary for operating fully at ESS scale in Svalbard. As Svalbard is experiencing the largest ongoing warming in the Arctic and worldwide, SIOS is in a unique position to perform a full-scale study of all processes impacting ESS dynamics and controlling the water cycle using all parts of the SIOS observation network, with a large potential for increasing the understanding of key mechanisms in the Earth system. We also identify the potential to upscale Svalbard-based observations collected in SIOS to pan-Arctic and global scales, contributing to full-scale ESS.

Abstract Background Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in remote Australia have initiated bold policies for health-enabling stores. Benchmarking, a data-driven and facilitated ‘audit and feedback’ with action planning process, provides a potential strategy to strengthen and scale health-enabling best-practice adoption by remote community store directors/owners. We aim to co-design a benchmarking model with five partner organisations and test its effectiveness with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community stores in remote Australia. Methods Study design is a pragmatic randomised controlled trial with consenting eligible stores (located in very remote Northern Territory (NT) of Australia, primary grocery store for an Aboriginal community, and serviced by a Nutrition Practitioner with a study partner organisation). The Benchmarking model is informed by research evidence, purpose-built best-practice audit and feedback tools, and co-designed with partner organisation and community representatives. The intervention comprises two full benchmarking cycles (one per year, 2022/23 and 2023/24) of assessment, feedback, action planning and action implementation. Assessment of stores includes i adoption status of 21 evidence-and industry-informed health-enabling policies for remote stores, ii implementation of health-enabling best-practice using a purpose-built Store Scout App, iii price of a standardised healthy diet using the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Healthy Diets ASAP protocol; and, iv healthiness of food purchasing using sales data indicators. Partner organisations feedback reports and co-design action plans with stores. Control stores receive assessments and continue with usual retail practice. All stores provide weekly electronic sales data to assess the primary outcome, change in free sugars (g) to energy (MJ) from all food and drinks purchased, baseline (July-December 2021) vs July-December 2023. Discussion We hypothesise that the benchmarking intervention can improve the adoption of health-enabling store policy and practice and reduce sales of unhealthy foods and drinks in remote community stores of Australia. This innovative research with remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities can inform effective implementation strategies for healthy food retail more broadly. Trial registration ACTRN12622000596707, Protocol version 1.

The Kjell Henriksen Observatory (KHO) is the world's largest optical observatory for auroral and airglow measurements, operated by the University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS). KHO is a unique site that lies underneath the dayside cusp, a funnel-shaped region where particles from the Sun can directly enter the Earth's upper atmosphere, including the ionosphere. Building on the pioneering observations of its predecessor --- the Auroral Station in Adventdalen, Svalbard --- KHO has played a pivotal role in advancing our understanding of phenomena in the polar atmosphere. The Auroral Station and KHO have amassed climatological measurements over Svalbard for an impressive 40-year period. KHO's diverse instrumentation, combined with other co-located optical and radar infrastructure and in-situ measurements from satellites and sounding rockets, has paved the way for impactful multi-instrument studies. Serving as an accessible testbed for instrument development, new types of instruments have recently been installed, both at KHO and on satellites. Beyond its scientific contributions, KHO has become an integral part of the Longyearbyen community, with students, visitors, and locals participating in tours and educational initiatives. This connection underscores KHO's multi-functional role, not only as a centre for excellent research but also as a vital hub for public outreach and engagement.

Introduction Huntington’s disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disease causing progressive cognitive and motor decline, largely due to basal ganglia (BG) atrophy. Rhythmic training offers promise as therapy to counteract BG-regulated deficits. We have developed HD-DRUM, a tablet-based app to enhance movement synchronisation skills and improve cognitive and motor abilities in people with HD. This paper outlines a randomised controlled unblinded trial protocol to determine the feasibility of a larger effectiveness trial for HD-DRUM. Additionally, the trial investigates cognitive and motor function measures, along with brain microstructure, aiming to advance our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying training effects.Methods, design and analysis 50 individuals with HD, confirmed by genetic testing, and a Total Functional Capacity (TFC) score of 9–13, will be recruited into a two-arm randomised controlled feasibility trial. Consenting individuals with HD will be randomised to the intervention group, which entails 8 weeks of at-home usage of HD-DRUM or a usual-activity control group. All participants will undergo cognitive and motor assessments, alongside ultra-strong gradient (300 mT/m) brain microstructural MRI before and after the 8-week period. The feasibility assessment will encompass recruitment, retention, adherence and acceptability of HD-DRUM following prespecified criteria. The study will also evaluate variations in cognitive and motor performance and brain microstructure changes resulting from the intervention to determine effect size estimates for future sample size calculations.Ethics and dissemination The study has received favourable ethical opinion from the Wales Research Ethics Committee 2 (REC reference: 22/WA/0147) and is sponsored by Cardiff University (SPON1895-22) (Research Integrity, Governance and Ethics Team, Research & Innovation Services, Cardiff University, second Floor, Lakeside Building, University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, CF14 4XW). Findings will be disseminated to researchers and clinicians in peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations, and to participants, carers and the general public via newsletters and public engagement activities. Data will be shared with the research community via the Enroll-HD platform.Trial registration number ISRCTN11906973.

BackgroundThe WHO-recommended tuberculosis screening and diagnostic algorithm in ambulatory people living with HIV is a four-symptom screen (known as the WHO-recommended four symptom screen [W4SS]) followed by a WHO-recommended molecular rapid diagnostic test (eg Xpert MTB/RIF [hereafter referred to as Xpert]) if W4SS is positive. To inform updated WHO guidelines, we aimed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of alternative screening tests and strategies for tuberculosis in this population.MethodsIn this systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis, we updated a search of PubMed (MEDLINE), Embase, the Cochrane Library, and conference abstracts for publications from Jan 1, 2011, to March 12, 2018, done in a previous systematic review to include the period up to Aug 2, 2019. We screened the reference lists of identified pieces and contacted experts in the field. We included prospective cross-sectional, observational studies and randomised trials among adult and adolescent (age ≥10 years) ambulatory people living with HIV, irrespective of signs and symptoms of tuberculosis. We extracted study-level data using a standardised data extraction form, and we requested individual participant data from study authors. We aimed to compare the W4SS with alternative screening tests and strategies and the WHO-recommended algorithm (ie, W4SS followed by Xpert) with Xpert for all in terms of diagnostic accuracy (sensitivity and specificity), overall and in key subgroups (eg, by antiretroviral therapy [ART] status). The reference standard was culture. This study is registered with PROSPERO, CRD42020155895.FindingsWe identified 25 studies, and obtained data from 22 studies (including 15 666 participants; 4347 [27·7%] of 15 663 participants with data were on ART). W4SS sensitivity was 82% (95% CI 72-89) and specificity was 42% (29-57). C-reactive protein (≥10 mg/L) had similar sensitivity to (77% [61-88]), but higher specificity (74% [61-83]; n=3571) than, W4SS. Cough (lasting ≥2 weeks), haemoglobin (

Abstract Incoherent scatter radars (ISRs) represent the only instrument (both ground and space based) capable of making high temporal and spatial resolution measurements of multiple atmospheric parameters—such as densities, temperatures, particle velocities, mass flux—over an altitude range covering the entire mesosphere/lower thermosphere/ionosphere (MLTI) system on a quasi-continuous basis. The EISCAT Svalbard incoherent scatter radar (ESR), located just outside Longyearbyen (78.15 $$^\circ$$ ∘ N) on Svalbard, is the only currently operating facility capable of making such measurements inside the polar cusp—an area of significant energy input into the atmosphere and characterized by heating instabilities and turbulence. The ESR was built in the mid-1990s and has provided valuable data for the international experimental and modelling communities. New radar technologies are now available, in the form of phased array systems, which offer new data products and operational flexibility. This paper outlines the achievements and current research focus of the ESR and provides scientific arguments, compiled from inputs across the international scientific community, for a new phased array ISR facility on Svalbard. In addition to the fundamental scientific arguments, the paper discusses additional benefits of continued ISR observations on Svalbard, building on the key findings of the ESR. Svalbard has a large network of complementary instrumentation both focused on the MLTI system (e.g. the Kjell Henriksen auroral Observatory, the Svalbard SuperDARN radar and the Svalrak sounding rocket launch facility) with synergies to other research fields, such as meteorology and oceanography. As a further holistic system science view of the Earth becomes more important, a new ISR on Svalbard will be important also in this respect with its ability to provide datasets with a wide range of scientific applications. Increased activity in space has highlighted problematic issues such as space debris. A changing Arctic has also seen increased human activity via the opening up of new shipping routes, which are reliant on GNSS technology that is effected by severe turbulence in the MLTI system. As such, societal applications of a future ISR are also presented. The accessibility and logistical support for such a facility is also briefly discussed.

Aging leads to response slowing but the underpinning cognitive and neural mechanisms remain elusive. We modelled older and younger adults’ response times (RT) from a flanker task with a diffusion drift model (DDM) and employed diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy to study neurobiological predictors of DDM components (drift-rate, boundary separation, non-decision time). Microstructural indices were derived from white matter pathways involved in visuo-perceptual and attention processing [optic radiation, inferior and superior longitudinal fasciculi (ILF, SLF), fornix]. Estimates of metabolite concentrations [N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), glutamate (Glx), and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), creatine (Cr), choline (Cho), myoinositol (mI)] were measured from occipital (OCC), anterior cingulate (ACC) and posterior parietal cortices (PPC). Age-related increases in RT, boundary separation, and non-decision time were observed with response conservatism acounting for RT slowing. Aging was associated with reductions in white matter microstructure (lower fractional anisotropy and restricted signal fraction, larger diffusivities) and in metabolites (NAA in ACC and PPC, Glx in ACC). Regression analyses identified brain regions involved in top-down (fornix, SLF, ACC, PPC) and bottom-up (ILF, optic radiation OCC) processing as predictors for DDM parameters and RT. Fornix FA was the strongest predictor for increases in boundary separation (beta = −0.8) and mediated the effects of age on RT. These findings demonstrate that response slowing in visual discrimination is driven by the adoption of a more conservative response strategy. Age-related fornix decline may result in noisier communication of contextual information from the hippocampus to anterior decision-making regions and thus contribute to the conservative response strategy shift.

We investigated the morphology of poleward moving auroral forms (PMAFs) qualitatively by visual inspection of all-sky camera (ASC) images and quantitatively using the arciness index. The PMAFs in this study were initially identified with a meridian scanning photometer (MSP) located at the Kjell Henriksen Observatory (KHO), Svalbard, and analyzed using ASC images taken by cameras at the KHO and in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard. We present a detailed six-step evolution of PMAF morphology in two dimensions. This evolution includes (1) an equatorward expansion of the auroral oval and an intensification of auroral brightness at the open–closed boundary (OCB), (2) the appearance of an arc-like structure in the oval, (3) poleward and possible west/eastward propagation, (4) azimuthal expansion events, (5) re-brightening of the PMAF and eventual (6) fading away. This is the first work dedicated to the morphological evolution of PMAFs and it includes more detailed discussion and novel aspects, such as the observation of initial merging of 557.7 nm auroral patches to form a PMAF. Moreover, the morphology of PMAFs is quantified using the arciness index, which is a number describing how arc-like auroral forms appear in ASC images. This allows an unbiased statistical investigation of auroral morphology. We present the results of a superposed epoch analysis of arciness in relation to PMAF occurrence. This analysis uncovered that arciness increases suddenly during the onset of a PMAF event and decreases over the PMAF lifetime to return to its baseline value once the event has concluded. This behavior may be understood based on changes in the morphology of PMAFs and validates our understanding of PMAF morphology. Furthermore, our findings relating to arciness may enable automatic identification of PMAFs, which has been found to be notoriously difficult.

BackgroundHuntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative condition that leads to progressive loss of cognitive-executive and motor functions, largely due to basal ganglia (BG) atrophy. Currently, there are no therapeutic interventions tailored to address executive and motor dysfunction in people with HD. Music-based interventions may aid executive abilities by compensating for impaired BG-reliant timing and rhythm generation using external rhythmic beats. Here, we applied an integrated knowledge translation (IKT) framework to co-design a tablet-based rhythmic drumming training app (HD-DRUM) to stimulate executive and motor abilities in people with HD. ObjectiveThe primary aim was to develop the HD-DRUM app for at-home use that addressed the accessibility needs of people with HD and allowed for the quantification of performance improvements and adherence for controlled clinical evaluation. MethodsThe IKT framework was applied to iteratively refine the design of HD-DRUM. This process involved 3 phases of knowledge user engagement and co-design: a web-based survey of people with HD (n=29) to inform about their accessibility needs, usability testing of tablet-based touch screens as hardware solutions, and usability testing of the design and build of HD-DRUM to meet the identified accessibility needs of people affected by HD and their clinicians (n=12). ResultsThe survey identified accessibility problems due to cognitive and motor control impairments such as difficulties in finding and navigating through information and using PC keyboards and mouses to interact with apps. Tablet-based touch screens were identified as feasible and accessible solutions for app delivery. Key elements to ensure that the app design and build met the needs of people with HD were identified and implemented. These included the facilitation of intuitive navigation through the app using large and visually distinctive buttons; the use of audio and visual cues as training guides; and gamification, positive feedback, and drumming to background music as a means to increase motivation and engagement. The co-design development process resulted in the proof-of-concept HD-DRUM app that is described here according to the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist. HD-DRUM can be used at home, allowing the quantification of performance improvements and adherence for clinical evaluation, matching of training difficulty to users’ performance levels using gamification, and future scale-up to reach a wide range of interested users. ConclusionsApplying an IKT-based co-design framework involving knowledge user engagement allowed for the iterative refinement of the design and build of the tablet-based HD-DRUM app intervention, with the aim of stimulating BG-reliant cognitive and motor functions. Mapping the intervention against the Template for Intervention Description and Replication framework to describe complex interventions allowed for the detailed description of the HD-DRUM intervention and identification of areas that required refinement before finalizing the intervention protocol.