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Multimodal respiratory muscle training and Tai Chi intervention with healthy older adults: A double-blind randomised placebo control trial
Full text linkBackground
The World Health Organization reported that one of the major challenges for all countries in the next few years will be the development of preventive approaches to care for older adults. After COVID-19, multimodal interventions have been created to enhance older health, especially targeting respiratory muscles (e.g., inspiratory muscle training [IMT]). The following research aims to explore the combination of two interventions (IMT and Tai Chi) using a randomised, double-blind placebo approach.
Methods
A total of 30 participants were recruited from the local community in Derby (UK) and underwent an experimental (IMT + Tai Chi) or placebo (sham-IMT + Tai Chi) training protocol. Measurements of balance (i.e., mini-BEST), inspiratory muscle strength (i.e., Maximal Inspiratory Pressure) and mobility (i.e., 6 Minutes Walking Test) were collected at baseline and after 8 weeks.
Results
The results show that a combination of IMT and Tai Chi significantly improves dynamic balance (P < 0.01) and mobility (P < 0.05) when compared to Tai Chi alone, with an additional positive correlation between balance, mobility and inspiratory muscle strength (P < 0.05).
Conclusion
The manuscript is the first to report the combined effects of IMT and Tai Chi in older adults following rigorous methods. The results highlight the relationship between inspiratory muscle and balance, as the results demonstrate a potential link between metaboreflex and balance control, fostering multimodal practices for healthy ageing interventions
Staff development for generative artificial intelligence and collaborative learning using Iterationism as a theoretical framework
Full text linkGenerative artificial intelligence has confronted academic developers with the challenge of understanding new technologies and simultaneously providing authentic pedagogical support for academics who are also struggling to adapt. This empirical study responds to these challenges by reviewing a staff development workshop for generative AI and collaborative learning delivered to academics from various disciplines at the University of Derby, UK. This is an example of online academic lecturers working in ‘third space’ roles, providing professional development support for other academics on campus. A focus group was used immediately after the experiential workshop as a means of gathering empirical data. Findings show lecturers are concerned about AI, but classroom-based staff development workshops can provide useful third spaces for discussion and sharing good practice. Interestingly, AI prompts emerged as a way of making cognitive effort visible, and the article responds to this finding with Iterationism as an emergent theory for learning with generative AI. This reflects a process-oriented view of learning with these technologies. Beyond developing theory for generative AI and learning, we make four contributions to the literature on third spaces. They are (1) that online lecturers occupy and create third spaces across different modes; (2) that collaboration on applications of AI technologies can address relational tensions highlighted in third space research (Daza, Gudmundsdottir and Lund, 2021); (3) that AI can be understood as a third space for the way it feeds into discussions across students, academics, and external organisations; and (4) that we have developed theory from cross-modal third space practice
Activation of proteolysis during oocyte in vitro maturation
Full text linkIn vitro maturation (IVM) is a form of assisted reproductive technology (ART) applied to obtain mature oocytes in culture. Decline in IVM success rates by age has led consideration of novel approaches based on cellular dynamics. Our aim was to achieve proteostasis in old bovine oocytes by removal of protein aggregates. Lysosomal activation was achieved through increasing concentrations of proton pump activators PIP2 (P1-P4), PMA (M1-M4) and DOG (D1-D4) at 6, 12, 18 and 24 hours of IVM in old bovine oocytes. Morphological analysis was performed and IVM rates were determined. DQ-Red BSA was applied to live oocytes to determine proteolytic activation while lysosome density was determined by Lysotracker probe. Protein carbonylation was detected through oxyblot analysis. PBE was observed in P1, P2-6h; P4-12h; M1-18h; P1, P2-24h groups. Oocyte diameter was the highest in D2-6h, M1-12h, P3-18h and P2-24h groups. Morphological scores of oocytes were higher in young and old control groups. Lower concentrations of activators resulted in similar oocyte scores to control groups at 6, 12 and 18h of culture. Proteolytic activation was achieved in all groups at 6h of culture. At all other time points PIP2 and PMA groups showed a better response to proteolytic activation. Lysosome density was increased in P4-6h; P1,P3-12h; P3, P4-18h as well as M1-6h; M2, M3-12h; M2-18h; D4-6h and D1-12h. Protein carbonylation was the lowest in P1 groups at 12h, 18h and 24h. PIP2, PMA and DOG affected oocyte quality and proteostasis through lysosome activation during IVM in a time and dose-dependent manner
Visual impairment prevention by early detection of diabetic retinopathy based on stacked auto-encoder
Full text linkDiabetic retinopathy (DR) presents a significant concern among diabetic patients, often leading to vision impairment or blindness if left untreated. Traditional diagnosis methods are prone to human error, necessitating accurate alternatives. While various computer-aided systems have been developed to assist in DR detection, there remains a need for accurate and efficient methods to classify its stages. In this study, we propose a novel approach utilizing enhanced stacked auto-encoders for the detection and classification of DR stages. The classification is performed across one healthy (normal) stage and four DR stages: mild, moderate, severe, and proliferative. Unlike traditional CNN approaches, our method offers improved reliability by reducing time complexity, minimizing errors, and enhancing noise reduction. Leveraging a comprehensive dataset from KAGGLE containing 35,126 retinal fundus images representing one healthy (normal) stage and four DR stages, our proposed model demonstrates superior accuracy compared to existing deep learning algorithms. Data augmentation techniques address class imbalance, while SAEs facilitate accurate classification through layer-wise unsupervised pre-training and supervised fine-tuning. We evaluate our model’s performance using rigorous quantitative measures, including accuracy, recall, precision, and F1-score, highlighting its effectiveness in early disease diagnosis and prevention of blindness. Experimental results across different training/testing ratios (50:50, 60:40, 70:30, and 75:25) showcase the model’s robustness. The highest accuracy achieved during training was 93%, while testing accuracy reached 88% on a training/testing ratio of 75:25. Comparative analysis underscores the model’s superiority over existing methods, positioning it as a promising tool for early-stage DR detection and blindness prevention
Vocational Education in European Regions. Lower Saxony and Lombardy in Comparison
Full text linkThis book summarises the research results of a collaborative project between researchers in vocational education and training (VET) from Osnabrück University, Germany, and the University of Bergamo, Italy, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). The edited collection analyses regional VET systems, focusing on Lombardy (Italy) and Lower Saxony (Germany). The study highlights the importance of regional characteristics in VET research, particularly in apprenticeship systems. The project aimed to provide insights that may be overlooked in traditional national typologies
Profiling the persistent and episodic nature of long COVID symptoms and the impact on quality of life and functional status: a cohort observation study
Full text linkBackground
Post-viral issues following acute infection with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), referred to widely as long COVID, are associated with episodic, persistent, and disabling symptoms affecting quality of life and functional status. Evidence demonstrates a significant impairment and long disease course, but there remains limited empirical data to profile and determine the fluctuating symptom profile of long COVID.
Methods
We devised a 16-week, multicentre prospective cohort observation study to profile changes in patient-reported outcomes, and biological, physiological, psychological, and cognitive parameters following diagnosis and/or referral to an established long COVID clinic. Following baseline assessments, participants completed four face-to-face visits interspersed with telephone consultations. Face-to-face visits included physiological assessment, patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), functional status, and respiratory function. Telephone consultations involved PROMs and symptom profiling.
Results
Patient-reported outcomes improved from baseline to week sixteen, but demonstrated between visit fluctuations in frequency and severity. Further findings highlight the severity and frequency of long COVID symptom profiles and the extent of quality of life and functional status impairment.
Conclusions
The data presented here highlight the episodic and relapsing nature and should be used to help characterise long COVID disability. They can inform the development of long COVID-specific guidelines and support services that can adequately respond to the reductions in patient well-being
Experiences of Autistic Individuals in UK Prison-based Sexual Offending Interventions
No full textResearch indicates that autistic people are no more likely to engage in crime than neurotypical people. However, in the minority of autistic people that do engage in crime, evidence has suggested that sexual crime is one of the more common forms of offending committed by those individuals, increasing evidence suggests that autistic individuals have qualitatively different experiences of prison compared to other neurotypes. Despite this, limited research has investigated how prison-based rehabilitation is experienced by autistic individuals, and how best to work with those
individuals during offending behaviour interventions. The present study (i) explored how prison-based interventions to address sexual offending are experienced by autistic
individuals with sexual offence convictions and the staff who work with them, and (ii) identified the features of prison-based sexual offending interventions that can be
challenging or beneficial for autistic individuals with sexual convictions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in the UK with 12 autistic men serving prison sentences for
sexual convictions, and 13 members of prison staff involved in prison-based rehabilitation of men with sexual convictions. This presentation will summarise the themes that were identified through a multi-perspective phenomenologically-informed thematic analysis of interviews. These themes highlight some of the key issues relating to the format and delivery of offending behaviour interventions, as well as the impact of the broader prison context on rehabilitation. Findings from this study have informed
practical recommendations for how best to work with autistic individuals with sexual offence convictions in prison-based interventions
Decolonising Global North terrorism studies in Southeast Asian Muslim-majority countries
Full text linkOver the past few decades, the call to decolonise academia has garnered significant momentum in some Global North and Global South countries and settler states. This shift reflects a growing recognition among scholars that academia perpetuates various forms of coloniality. However, terrorism studies scholars, particularly those in Global South countries, have largely refrained from addressing the need to decolonise the discipline and the broader terrorism industry. This situation is troubling given the role that ‘Global North terrorism studies' – and, by extension, the terrorism industry – plays in supplying Northern-centric intellectual frameworks that work to ‘civilise’ the ‘other,’ support settler colonial projects, and suppress Indigenous and alternative perspectives. This article draws theoretical and methodological insights from the Latin American School of Decoloniality and the Southeast Asian School of Autonomous Knowledge. It seeks to start a conversation among terrorism studies scholars in Southeast Asian Muslim-majority countries on the need to develop an ‘independent and alternative’ terrorism studies discipline based on epistemologies and methodologies from their region to what I call Global North terrorism studies
Career guidance in public employment services
Full text linkThis study explores the provision of career guidance by public employment services (PES) to service users worldwide. Undertaken by a partnership of WAPES, the ICCDPP and iCeGS, it provides insights into how PES are redesigning and delivering their career guidance services. It shows that career guidance has become an essential tool in addressing issues such as skills mismatches, labour shortages, and ensuring fairer access to employment opportunities
Unveiling the Dynamics of User Engagement: Exploring Factors Shaping User Intentions and Return Behaviour in Hotel Gamified Mobile Applications
Full text linkThe surge in mobile technologies has prompted extensive research, driven by the widespread adoption of mobile devices and advancements in related technologies. Within the hospitality industry, mobile applications have fundamentally altered consumer behaviour, highlighting the insufficiency of merely establishing a mobile presence for increased engagement. In contrast, the gaming industry has effectively explored factors influencing usage, achieving both engagement and profitability. The evolution of mobile gaming applications suggests ample opportunity for the proliferation of gamified applications. Utilizing quantitative data from 763 mobile users with hotel visitation experience, using CFA the study identifies six factors (i.e. perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment, interactivity), that collectively play a crucial role in influencing users' decisions not only to initially adopt but also to revisit and sustain their interaction with hotel gamified mobile apps. The research enriches theoretical understanding of mobile use behaviour in the hospitality sector, offering valuable insights for hotel marketers to optimize the design and promotion of gamified mobile applications, thereby shaping users' return behaviour