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Abstract Understanding pedestrian movement remains crucial for designing efficient and safe transportation structures such as terminals, stations, or airports. The significance of conducting a granular analysis in pedestrian mobility dynamics research is evident in refining crowd behavior modeling. It is essential for gaining insights into potential terminal layouts, crowd management strategies, and evacuation procedures, all of which enhance safety and efficiency. In this context, we offer an original empirical dataset of 24,000,000 samples of trajectory spatial movement at traffic terminals in Havlíčkův Brod and Pardubice, Czech Republic. The dataset was collected using a high-resolution camera system installed at the railway station. Subsequently, algorithmic post-processing was applied to extract anonymous data on the spatial movement of recorded pedestrians. Thanks to this dataset, researchers can delve into the distances between pedestrians in a transportation terminal, considering factors such as group composition, group-to-group distances, and movement speed.

Abstract Early identification of cognitive or physical overload is critical in fields where human decision making matters when preventing threats to safety and property. Pilots, drivers, surgeons, and operators of nuclear plants are among those affected by this challenge, as acute stress can impair their cognition. In this context, the significance of paralinguistic automatic speech processing increases for early stress detection. The intensity, intonation, and cadence of an utterance are examples of paralinguistic traits that determine the meaning of a sentence and are often lost in the verbatim transcript. To address this issue, tools are being developed to recognize paralinguistic traits effectively. However, a data bottleneck still exists in the training of paralinguistic speech traits, and the lack of high-quality reference data for the training of artificial systems persists. Regarding this, we present an original empirical dataset collected using the BESST experimental protocol for capturing speech signals under induced stress. With this data, our aim is to promote the development of pre-emptive intervention systems based on stress estimation from speech.

Immersive Virtual Reality (iVR) presents a promising avenue for treating acrophobia through Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET). This paper explores the current state of VRET for acrophobia, identifying significant technological and practical barriers that limit its effectiveness and hinder widespread adoption. Key challenges include the need for more advanced and realistic user experiences, and for the integration of biofeedback mechanisms. Additionally, the role of therapists remains crucial, as therapist-led VRET sessions demonstrate better outcomes compared to automated interventions. The potential of Collaborative Immersive Virtual Environments (CIVEs) to enhance VRET by simulating real-life interactions and improving patient-therapist engagement is also discussed. Future research should focus on developing comprehensive guidelines for CIVE design and evaluating integrated VRET and CIVE systems for treating phobias, including acrophobia. Addressing these issues will enhance the therapeutic experience, making VRET a more effective and accessible tool for treating acrophobia.

This article delves into the dynamics of human interaction with artificial intelligence (AI), emphasizing the optimization of these interactions to enhance human productivity. Employing a Grounded Theory Literature Review (GTLR) methodology, the study systematically identifies and analyzes themes from literature published between 2018 and 2023. Data were collected primarily from the Scopus database, with the Web of Science used to corroborate findings and include additional sources identified through a snowball effect. At the heart of this exploration is the pivotal role of socio-emotional attributes such as trust, empathy, rapport, user engagement, and anthropomorphization—elements crucial for the successful integration of AI into human activities. By conducting a comprehensive review of existing literature and incorporating case studies, this study illuminates how AI systems can be designed and employed to foster deeper trust and empathetic understanding between humans and machines. The analysis reveals that when AI systems are attuned to human emotional and cognitive needs, there is a marked improvement in collaborative efficiency and productivity. Furthermore, the paper discusses the ethical implications and potential societal impacts of fostering such human-AI relationships. It argues for a paradigm shift in AI development—from focusing predominantly on technical proficiency to embracing a more holistic approach that values the socio-emotional aspects of human-AI interaction. This shift could pave the way for more meaningful and productive collaborations between humans and AI, ultimately leading to advancements that are both technologically innovative and human-centric.

IntroductionAltered subjective visual sensitivity manifests as feelings of discomfort or overload elicited by intense and irritative visual stimuli. This can result in a host of visual aberrations including visual distortions, elementary visual hallucinations and visceral responses like dizziness and nausea, collectively referred to as “pattern glare.” Current knowledge of the underlying neural mechanisms has focused on overall excitability of the visual cortex, but the individual contribution of excitatory and inhibitory systems has not yet been quantified.MethodsIn this study, we focus on the role of glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as potential mediators of individual differences in subjective visual sensitivity, measured by a computerized Pattern Glare Test—a series of monochromatic square-wave gratings with three different spatial frequencies, while controlling for psychological variables related to sensory sensitivity with multiple questionnaires. Resting neurotransmitter concentrations in primary visual cortex (V1) and right anterior insula were studied in 160 healthy participants using magnetic resonance spectroscopy.ResultsData showed significant differences in the perception of visual distortions (VD) and comfort scores between men and women, with women generally reporting more VD, and therefore the modulatory effect of sex was considered in a further examination. A general linear model analysis showed a negative effect of occipital glutamate on a number of reported visual distortions, but also a significant role of several background psychological traits. When assessing comfort scores in women, an important intervening variable was the menstrual cycle.DiscussionOur findings do not support that baseline neurotransmitter levels have a significant role in overreactivity to aversive stimuli in neurotypical population. However, we demonstrated that biological sex can have a significant impact on subjective responses. Based on this additional finding, we suggest that future studies investigate aversive visual stimuli while examining the role of biological sex.

This paper brings together two very topical and important themes. The first is the issue of the environmental footprint of transport consumption and the second is the current educational challenges of Generation Z representatives. The paper focuses on a combination of both topics, respectively addressing the education of Generation Z on the topic of the environmental footprint of transport consumption. The paper is prepared using a primary representative survey method based on an online questionnaire survey of representatives of Generation Z (secondary school students in the Czech Republic). The aim of the paper is to identify the educational challenges of the generation Z (studying at secondary schools in the Czech Republic) in the thematic area of the environmental footprint of transport consumption. The results clearly show the necessity of using audio-visual educational content and linking theory and practice, for example in the form of case studies. Generation Z wants quick, concise, up-to-date, interesting, and interactive information. Generation Z representatives clearly confirm the need to address human environmental impacts in education, adding that not enough time is devoted to them. They also confirm that there is a lack of study materials in this subject area and that they are not developed in a user-friendly way. Representatives of Generation Z are interested in further education on the environmental footprint of transport consumption. The findings of this paper can help both secondary school teachers, as well as school and curriculum developers and educational policy and strategy makers.

Safety characteristics are widely used in industrial processes to avoid explosive atmospheres (primary explosion protection) or to mitigate the consequences of an explosion (constructive explosion protection). Several laboratory parameters influence the determined values when performing the test series such as the beginning pressure and the pre-ignition pressure rise, the ignition source, the ignition energy, the burning duration and volume or the concentration of the combustible substance. In the different standards for the determination of safety characteristics of dusts there is no statement about the scattering or the deviation when parameters are chosen or occur on the borders of their allowed range. Thus, two laboratories might determine values that are hardly comparable for the same given substance. This article summarizes some of the influential factors that cause a deviation and shows the inherent scattering of dust tests when all other parameters are kept constant. It also provides some advice how to minimize the deviation and the scattering with little effort.

Voices about the need to build a joint European Union army have been appearing on the European scene for several years, but recently these voices have become stronger, especially after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Therefore, in the article, the authors deal with the issue of the possibility of creating a common European army. They draw on from socio-scientific political science approaches to current security frameworks, examine the current state, and at the same time point out that, despite the threats Europe is facing, there is still no clear plan for how such an army should be created. Considering the facts mentioned in the article, the authors state that the creation of a common European army, at least for now, seems unlikely, as a supranational model of the European army would require the transfer of sensitive national competences from the member states to the EU level.

Abstract The building design is a crucial factor that can be actively adjusted and optimized to prevent human and property threats in emergency scenarios. Previous research suggests that specific building layouts may significantly influence human behaviour during evacuation. However, detailed empirical data about human behaviour in various types of buildings with different layouts are still missing and only marginal recommendations from this field are reflected in actual construction practice. In this study, desktop VR technologies were employed to study human decision-making in problematic T-intersections in the context of an emergency evacuation. More specifically, we studied fundamental attributes of buildings such as the width and length of the corridors and the presence of stairs to explore how they influence the choice of the evacuation route. The space-syntax isovist method was used to describe spatial parameters of corridors, which makes the results applicable to all buildings. Behavioural data from 208 respondents were analysed using multilevel regression models. Our results support previous claims concerning the importance of specific spatial layouts of evacuation corridors because respondents systematically chose wider and shorter corridors with visible staircases as the preferred evacuation route. The present findings further promote the ongoing discussion on the design of marked evacuation routes and building design that takes human factors into consideration.

The vibroacoustic and chemical alarm communication in the wood roach Cryptocercus and in 20 termite species are studied to reveal that the Neoisoptera species have developed the most sophisticated communication system, which could contribute towards their ecological success.

Although Europe was not a primary centre of cattle domestication, its expansion from the Middle East and subsequent development created a complex pattern of cattle breed diversity. Many isolated populations of local historical breeds still carry the message about the physical and genetic traits of ancient populations. Since the way of life of human communities starting from the eleventh millennium BP was strongly determined by livestock husbandry, the knowledge of cattle diversity through the ages is helpful in the interpretation of many archaeological findings. Historical cattle diversity is currently at the intersection of two leading directions of genetic research. Firstly, it is archaeogenetics attempting to recover and interpret the preserved genetic information directly from archaeological finds. The advanced archaeogenetic approaches meet with the population genomics of extant cattle populations. The immense amount of genetic information collected from living cattle, due to its key economic role, allows for reconstructing the genetic profiles of the ancient populations backwards. The present paper aims to place selected archaeogenetic, genetic, and genomic findings in the picture of cattle history in Central Europe, as suggested by archaeozoological and historical records. Perspectives of the methodical connection between the genetic approaches and the approaches of traditional archaeozoology, such as osteomorphology and osteometry, are discussed. The importance, actuality, and effectiveness of combining different approaches to each archaeological find, such as morphological characterization, interpretation of the historical context, and molecular data, are stressed.

Agent-based evacuation modeling represents an effective tool for making predictions about evacuation aspects of buildings such as evacuation times, congestions, and maximum safe building capacity. Collection of real behavioral data for calibrating agent-based evacuation models is time-consuming, costly, and completely impossible in the case of buildings in the design phase, where predictions about evacuation behavior are especially needed. In recent years evacuation experiments conducted in virtual reality (VR) have been frequently proposed in the literature as an effective tool for collecting data about human behavior. However, empirical studies which would assess validity of VR-based data for such purposes are still rare and considerably lacking in the agent-based evacuation modeling domain. This study explores opportunities that the VR behavioral data may bring for refining outputs of agent evacuation models. To this end, this study employed multiple input settings of agent-based evacuation models (ABEMs), including those based on the data gathered from the VR evacuation experiment that mapped out evacuation behaviors of individuals within the building. Calibration and evaluation of models was based on empirical data gathered from an original evacuation exercise conducted in a real building (N = 35) and its virtual twin (N = 38). This study found that the resulting predictions of single agent models using data collected in the VR environment after proposed corrections have the potential to better predict real-world evacuation behavior while offering desirable variance in the data outputs necessary for practical applications.

Cognitive styles are commonly studied constructs in cognitive psychology. The theory of field dependence-independence was one of the most important cognitive styles. Yet in the past, its measurement had significant shortcomings in validity and reliability. The theory of analytic and holistic cognitive styles attempted to extend this theory and overcome its shortcomings. Unfortunately, the psychometric properties of its measurement methods were not properly verified. Furthermore, new statistical approaches, such as analysis of reaction times, have been overlooked by current research. The aim of this pre-registered study was to verify the psychometric properties (i.e., factor structure, split-half reliability, test-retest reliability, discriminant validity with intelligence and personality, and divergent, concurrent and predictive validity) of several methods routinely applied in the field. We developed/adapted six methods based on self-report questionnaires, rod-and-frame principles, embedded figures, and hierarchical figures. The analysis was conducted on 392 Czech participants, with two data collection waves. The results indicate that the use of methods based on the rod-and-frame principle may be unreliable, demonstrating no absence of association with intelligence. The use of embedded and hierarchical figures is recommended. The self-report questionnaire used in this study showed an unsatisfactory factor structure and also cannot be recommended without futher validation on independent samples. The findings also did not correspond with the original two-dimensional theory.

The title compound, C35H57NO3·0.25H2O, was synthesized from deoxycholic acid followed by a protection, a Mitsonobu substitution, a Staudinger reduction, formation of an amide and final reduction in the lateral chain. The compound crystallizes in the P1 space group with four steroid molecules and one water molecule in the triclinic cell unit. The crystal structure features O—H...O hydrogen bonding. The crystal studied was refined as a non-merohedral twin.

There are several standardized ignition sources in use for the determination of explosion characteristics of gases, vapors and dusts. In the standards the ignition source is stated, but they vary in stating other characteristics like burning duration, energy or burning volume. Since heat is not visible under normal circumstances a Schlieren-Technique was used to make the full heating volume and not just the flames visible. While an earlier paper of the authors focused on the ignition energy and burning duration of four standardized ignition sources, this paper focuses on the initial igniting volume, the ratio between initial igniting volume and the test-vessel size and other phenomena that were observed with the Schlieren Technique.

The submitted paper analyses the thermal load of pressure cylinders with LPG and acetylene in case of fire. In the fire condition, pressure cylinders with flammable gases pose an increased risk to their surroundings. Due to the thermal load, the temperature and consequently the pressure inside the cylinder increases, which ultimately leads to a loss of compactness of the shell and its rupture. As a part of the experimental measurements, the LPG and acetylene cylinders were exposed to the effects of fire. The fire was simulated using a pre-validated woodpile. The results show the range of thermal load on the surface of pressure cylinders when they are exposed to a defined heat source. During the burning of the bonfire, there was a progressive increase in temperature and a gradual decrease in the weight of the fuel. Experimental measurements served as an opportunity to examine in detail the thermal load on a defined type of pressure cylinders used for filling LPG and acetylene. At the same time, it was possible to verify the actual ability of the prepared woodpile for the possibility of fire simulation. Based on the experimentally determined temperature values, it is possible to estimate the time resistance of the cylinders in the fire condit

The article summarizes a short review of the literature focused on safety in the field of alternative energy sources. With an increasing orientation towards sustainable and renewable energy sources, new technologies will come to the fore. These facts must be demonstrated in occupational health and safety. Several studies focused on alternative energy sources are mentioned and show the trends for the future. Especially in the area of hydrogen and battery technologies, systems should pay attention to acquisitions as a normal part of our lives. Safety research is essential for the acceptance of cleaner, efficient, and sustainable future.