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A systematic review of the impacts of extreme heat on health and wellbeing in the United Kingdom
Get PDFClimate change poses a concern globally, as it adversely affects planetary and population health. Extreme heat is one of the largest weather-related causes of mortality, projected to cause severe heatwaves and droughts globally. Current research has focused on the effects of outdoor heat exposure on population health risks, leaving a gap in knowledge regarding indoor exposure to extreme heat. This paper presents evidence for the effects of extreme heat, both indoors and outdoors, on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the United Kingdom. This study applies a systematic review methodology to identify, quality appraise, extract, and summarize findings from studies reporting on the associations between extreme heat and population health risk of NCDs. The literature search was conducted across six electronic databases. `There were 244 studies identified. Twenty-three studies met the inclusion criteria, of these 16 studies met the quality benchmark. Fourteen studies examined the links between heat exposure and mortality, while the remaining studies focused on emergency hospital admissions and years of life lost. The review highlights a consistent association between exposure to extreme heat and increased risk of mortality. Further research is needed to explore the effects of indoor extreme heat on the incidence of NCDs and related outcomes
Establishing the financial burden of alopecia areata and its predictors
Get PDFBackground: Alopecia areata (AA) can have a significant impact on wellbeing. Consequently, individuals with AA often seek treatments or products to promote hair regrowth or camouflage their hair loss that incur a financial cost to the individual. Objectives: The current study aimed to examine the direct financial burden of AA to understand the wider impact of the condition and the factors which influence spending on products and services. Methods: A total of 829 United Kingdom based participants completed an online survey. Demographic and condition-specific data were collected, alongside spending on AA-related products and services. Participants were asked about their use of products and services, the associated costs, how they financed these costs, and their household income to determine what percentage of income they spent on products and services. Results: Participants predominantly identified as female (85.9%), white (92.7%) with a mean age of 42.7years and a median AA duration of 10.94years. Female gender, Asian ethnicity, lower income, and worse AA symptoms predicted higher spend from income. Wigs were the most common product used and incurred the greatest cost (median £700). The highest cost for men was private dermatology services (median=£550). On average people spent 3% of their disposable income (prior to housing costs) on AA-related products and services. Conclusions: This study outlines the risk factors associated with higher financial burden from managing AA which require consideration by health providers, commissioners, and policy makers when designing services to support the wellbeing of people living with AA
Evaluating the effectiveness of CHIRPS data for hydroclimatic studies
Get PDFLong-term gridded precipitation products (GPPs) are crucial for climatology and hydrological research to overcome the limitations of gauge observations. Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS) provides long-term daily precipitation data over the globe from 1981 to near-present, but its reliability varies across regions. This review aims to summarize the performance of CHIRPS from 123 research articles that published between 2015 and 2021.The findings show that the number of CHIRPS validation studies has been increased dramatically in the past two to three years. The studies were primarily conducted in China, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and India, while a relatively few studies in North America, Central Asia, and Europe. The performance of CHIRPS varied depending on geographical location and climate condition, with better performance in Africa. In contrast to other GPPs, CHIRPS is always not the best product, but it is considerablely well in capturing monthly precipitation and is suitable for assessing drought. There are also shortcomings such as inaccurate estimation of sparse sites in complex terrain areas and inaccurate capture of extreme precipitation events. Future research directions on this topic should focus on: (1) enhancing CHIPRS through the integration of gauges, satellite and reanalysis data; (2) validating CHIRPS for extreme indices calculations and relate to large-scale atmospheric circulations like ENSO; (3) evaluating the capability of CHIRPS in hydrological modelling; and (4) further validating CHIRPS under various topographical and climate conditions. This review can act as a reference to scientists who wish to apply CHIRPS in their climatology analysis and hydro-climatic modelling as well as the CHIRPS developers to further improve the product
Conceptual (Re)Constructions of International Law edited by Kostiantyn GORBETS, Andreas HADJIGEORGIOU, and Pauline WESTERMAN. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2022. x + 260 pp. Hardcover: AUD 49.08. doi: 10.4337/9781800373006
Get PDFEvaluación de la vulnerabilidad sísmica de edificios históricos de mampostería usando modelos semánticos apoyados en evidencias empíricas: Aprendizajes en México
Get PDFLa evaluación de la vulnerabilidad sísmica asociada a las construcciones históricas representa diversos retos metodológicos y de escala. La no linealidad en el comportamiento estructural en edificios de mampostería no reforzada, la variedad de soluciones constructivas y las incertidumbres inherentes al período de vida de estos edificios dificultan enormemente la aplicación de métodos de análisis generalizadores y representativos. Sin embargo, existen métodos paramétricos que ofrecen la posibilidad de evaluar (de manera semicuantitativa) el nivel de seguridad de un edificio ante ciertas demandas sísmicas. Tales métodos han sido diseñados y calibrados sobre la evidencia empírica (daños y colapsos) recogida tras sismos de gran magnitud, destacando una serie de parámetros que influyen significativamente el comportamiento sísmico de edificios históricos. Los modelos semánticos apoyados en estos parámetros son lo suficientemente fáciles de construir como para considerar su aplicación a escala urbana, a través del uso de herramientas como las bases de datos geográficas, métodos de visualización remota e, incluso, catálogos existentes. Este trabajo presenta una serie de experiencias realizadas en ciudades históricas mexicanas para discutir la conveniencia, limitaciones y oportunidades que estas estrategias pueden significar para una gestión y mitigación más eficaz del riesgo sísmico
Drag reduction of lift-type vertical axis wind turbine with slit modified gurney flap
Get PDFThis study examines aerodynamic performance enhancement of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) blades with Gurney flap (GF) modified by slits. A quasi-3D computational fluid dynamics solution based on Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model is employed to evaluate the effectiveness of slit GF blades, in particular the lift-to-drag ratio. The computational domain includes three pairs of GFs and slits combination along the blade span-wise direction to allow quasi-3D flow development while applying translational periodic boundary condition on the two end-wall boundaries. The inlet velocity is 9 m/s for a VAWT configuration with Tip Speed Ratios (TSRs) of 1.44, 2.64, and 3.3, respectively and each of these TSRs represents low, medium, and high regimes of TSRs. Simulation results have shown a significant 8% drag reduction for blades with slit GFs at medium range of TSRs, albeit with a 2% decrease in lift compared to blades with clean GFs. This improves the lift-to-drag ratio and enhances moment production. The power generation also shows increases of 1.5%, 6.5%, and 11.3% at low, medium, and high TSR regimes, respectively, for the analysed slit GF blades. The drag reduction is primarily attributed to the generation of small-scale vortices by the slit, dissipating large coherent flow structures more rapidly in the near wake-field
School inspections in England: Ofsted
Get PDFThis briefing covers:• Recent developments, including changes to complaints procedures, and speedier re-visits for schools judged inadequate on safeguarding grounds only• Possible future reform to how Ofsted inspects schools, including around the use of one-word summary judgements• Practicalities of inspections – their frequency, focus, and their consequences for schoolsIt applies to England. Separate school inspection arrangements apply in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland
Lessons learned from developing a sustainability awareness framework for software engineering using design science
Get PDF[Context and Motivation] To foster a sustainable society within a sustainable environment, we must dramatically reshape our work and consumption activities, most of which are facilitated through software. Yet, most software engineers hardly consider the effects on the sustainability of the IT products and services they deliver. This issue is exacerbated by a lack of methods and tools for this purpose. [Question/Problem] Despite the practical need for methods and tools that explicitly support consideration of the effects that IT products and services have on the sustainability of their intended environments, such methods and tools remain largely unavailable. Thus, urgent research is needed to understand how to design such tools for the IT community properly. [Principal Ideas/Results] In this paper, we describe our experience using design science to create the Sustainability Awareness Framework (SusAF), which supports software engineers in anticipating and mitigating the potential sustainability effects during system development. More specifically, we identify and present the challenges faced during this process. [Contribution] The challenges that we have faced and addressed in the development of the SusAF are likely to be relevant to others who aim to create methods and tools to integrate sustainability analysis into their IT Products and Service development. Thus, the lessons learned in SusAF development are shared for the benefit of researchers and other professionals who design tools for that end
Examining the feasibility of advanced practice radiation therapy roles within the Singaporean healthcare arena: A joint UK-Singapore study
Get PDFAdvanced clinical practice in UK healthcare has matured over recent years. The field now promotes multi-professional working and flexibility in patient care, which are significant factors of the modern healthcare workforce, due to the ongoing shortage of clinicians nationwide. In radiation oncology, the advanced practitioner radiographer role has been pivotal. Observing a rising necessity for similar roles in Singapore, officials from the National University Health System, Singapore, conducted a scientific visit to the UK to explore the implementation of UK advanced practice radiation therapist roles. Aims: The objective of the trip was to explore and learn about the infrastructure of the advanced practitioner radiographer role in the UK, with a view to establish similar positions in Singapore and improve service delivery within its healthcare system. Methods: During the scientific visit, Singaporean experts engaged in collaborative discussions with UK expert practitioners. These interactions centred on legislative frameworks, their applications and the educational aspects associated with the advanced practitioner radiographer role. The specialists visited various hospitals and a university to gain deeper insights. Following the visit, a survey was conducted among the Singaporean experts to gather comprehensive feedback regarding the visit. Findings: Active participation in the visit led to the researchers gaining a nuanced understanding of the UK's advanced practitioner radiographer role, and whether an equivalent advanced practice radiation therapist framework could be feasibly implemented in Singapore. The insights garnered will be instrumental for strategic planning, addressing service gaps and fostering advancements in Singapore's healthcare system. Conclusion: Adaptive governance of advanced practice is essential. Learning from the UK's intricate models can guide robust policy formulation and professional role development in Singapore. This can help to facilitate the national establishment of advanced practice radiation therapist roles, supported by suitable education and accreditation structures
Video gaming and sleep in adults: A systematic review
Get PDFVideo games (VGs) are one of the most common forms of entertainment and their diffusion is constantly increasing. Although largely studied in the framework of their relationship with mental and physical health, the relationship of VGs with sleep are not yet fully understood. This review provides a systematic assessment of the studies that investigated the relationships between video gaming and sleep in adults. The review search included both online databases (PubMed, Scopus, and PsycInfo) and citation tracking. Twenty-six studies were included in the final qualitative analysis. Findings are described separately for subjective and objective sleep measures and then discussed considering exposure levels and VG typology. Observational studies showed an association between excessive video gaming, poor sleep quality, and delayed sleep timing, whereas habitual and/or casual use was not associated with poor sleep and some studies even showed a beneficial effect on daytime functioning. Experimental evidence shows that playing an arousing VG before sleep delays sleep onset with possible alteration of sleep structure, whereas non-arousing cognitively challenging video gaming resulted in improved sleep continuity, stability, and organization. Overall, these findings show that the effect of VGs on sleep depends on the level of arousal associated with gaming, gaming sessions’ duration, and frequency of gaming