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Don't Tell Me What To Do: How Different Messaging Strategies In Shopping Reduction Campaigns Trigger Psychological Reactance Among Consumers
No full textOverconsumption in the fast fashion industry is a pressing issue, with 75% of clothing ending up in landfills or incinerators annually, and only 15% recycled. An experiment revealed that assertive shopping reduction messages evoke greater psychological reactance and anger than suggestive messages, leading to lower compliance with sustainable actions
The past, present and future of structural health monitoring: an overview of three ages
Get PDFThis paper presents an overview of the discipline of structural health monitoring (SHM), organised in terms of three proposed ages. The first age is delineated by the prehistory of SHM and the period where nondestructing testing methods evolved into an organised set of principles built upon physics-based models; this age ended when the model-based approaches reached an impasse in terms of their ability to properly deal with real-world problems. The second age of SHM began with a transition to data-based methods based on statistical pattern recognition, which provided a holistic approach to SHM problems for the first time. This age arguably ended when the methods foundered in situations where the necessary training data were scarce. It is argued here that the third age began with the development of population-based SHM, which has been designed to overcome the problem of data scarcity. As there is very limited space in a single article to provide a comprehensive overview, an appendix has been provided here that gives a very systematic bibliography of SHM reviews—a meta-bibliography
Field-based investigation of low adhesion leaf layers: assessing layer initiation and environmental influences
Get PDFChanging weather conditions are known to impact on adhesion at the railhead. However, the influence on actual leaf layer “seeding” (formation) and low adhesion has not been measured in the field. This paper presents findings from a field survey conducted in autumn 2023 on a narrow gauge railway in Wales, observing leaf layer initiation, development, and environmental influences on adhesion levels. Using friction testing, timelapse imagery, and chemical analysis, the study examines the impact of weather and layer characteristics on friction. Results show that moisture content in the layer has a significant impact on adhesion levels, with a linear relationship observed between moisture and friction. Leaf layer initiation and development were observed, with water playing a crucial role in layer formation. Chemical analysis revealed the presence of iron oxides and biopolymers in the leaf layers. The results give insight into the variation in adhesion levels in leaf layer that have been measured through indirect measures in the past
Mobilising the entrepreneurial self to manage the crisis: community group‐buying during the Shanghai lockdown
Get PDFThe COVID pandemic disrupted traditional entrepreneurial governance arrangements. When the state's action could not effectively govern society, the “entrepreneurial self” began to emerge and manage the crisis. Using Shanghai as a case study, this research examines the dynamics of “community group-buying” during its city-wide lockdown in 2022. It shows how a small group of residents, known as group-buying entrepreneurs (tuanzhang), mobilise community members and organise collective food purchases to address the resource shortage during the lockdown. We find that group-buying is not merely a rediscovery of the community in times of crisis. Despite its spontaneous formation, we demonstrate that group-buying is ultimately captured, endorsed, and instrumentalised by the local state for crisis management. Through this, we present a new manifestation of the “entrepreneurial self” and its paradoxical functions—exercising community self-organisation while simultaneously extending state power in territorial forms. We also highlight the state's central role in China's entrepreneurial governance, even in the crisis mode when its capacities were under pressure
Estimating the minimum important difference in the ALSFRS-R-instrument in people living with MND
Get PDFObjective: The Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) is a commonly used outcome measure in clinical trials for motor neuron disease (MND) therapies. As such, understanding how differences in scores relate to patient perception of their disease status is important when interpreting ALSFRS-R data. Our study sought to estimate the minimal important difference (MID) for the ALSFRS-R, the smallest difference in scores at which patients perceive a change in their quality of life.
Methods: Data were collected as part of a longitudinal, observational saliva management study, ProSec3. These included both the ALSFRS-R and a global rating of change question (GRoC), which asked participants to rate how their disease had progressed since the previous visit. Anchor-based and distribution-based methods have been used to estimate the MID of the ALSFRS-R. The MID was estimated using two methods of calculating the total ALSFRS-R score, the original summation scale method and the recently proposed interval scale method.
Results: A total of 145 people with MND had longitudinal ALSFRS-R and GRoC data. Different methods estimated the ALSFRS-R MID to be in the range of 2.02–5.43 for the summation scale and 1.23–3.31 for the interval scale method over a 3-month period, the time between study visits. Using anchor-based methods our MID estimates for the ALSFRS-R are 3.8 points and 2 points, respectively.
Conclusions: The results of this study can guide clinicians and researchers in the interpretation of ALSFRS-R data. However, further studies are required to more precisely estimate the ALSFRS-R MID
Exploring avocado consumption and health: a scoping review and evidence map
Get PDFObjective: This scoping review evaluates the breadth of research on avocado intake and health, considering all populations and health outcomes (registered on Open Science Foundation at https://osf.io/nq5hk).
Design: Any human intervention or observational study where effects could be isolated to consumption of avocado were included. A systematic literature search through April 2024 was conducted (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and CENTRAL) and supplemented by backwards citation screening. Dual screening, data extraction, and conflict resolution were performed by three reviewers and an interactive evidence map was created.
Results: After deduplication, 8,823 unique records were retrieved; 58 articles met inclusion criteria, comprising 45 unique studies (28 interventions, 17 observational studies). Studies were largely conducted in the United States or Latin America and generally included adults, with overweight/obesity, frequently with elevated lipid concentrations. Interventions assessed the impact of diets enriched in monounsaturated fatty acids, diets higher/lower in carbohydrates, or in free-feeding conditions. Larger amounts of avocados were used in interventions than commonly consumed in observational studies (60–300 vs. 0–10 g/d, respectively). Blood lipids, nutrient bioavailability, cardiovascular risk, glycemia, and anthropometric variables were the most common outcomes reported across all studies.
Conclusion: Future recommendations for novel research include the study of: European, Asian, adolescent or younger, and senior populations; dose–response designs and longer length interventions; dietary compensation; and the need for greater replication. The results have been made public and freely available, and a visual, interactive map was created to aid in science translation. This evidence map should enable future meta-analyses, enhance communication and transparency in avocado research, and serve as a resource for policy guidance
Heterogeneous Earth’s mantle drilled at an embryonic ocean
Get PDFMantle processes control plate tectonics and exert an influence on biogeochemical cycles. However, the proportion of mantle sampled in-situ is minimal, as it is buried beneath igneous crust and sediments. Here we report the lithological characteristics of two mantle sections from an embryonic ocean drilled by the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Contrary to the mantle drilled at Mid Ocean Ridges (MORs) and hyperextended passive margins, our findings reveal exceptionally heterogeneous and fertile mantle lithologies, ranging from fertile lherzolites to depleted harzburgites and dunites, interlayered with pyroxenites. Plagioclase- and clinopyroxene-rich layers, hydrous potassic magmatic veins, and mafic intrusions indicate substantial mantle refertilization and delayed inception of magmatic crust. We propose that magma-poor rifts do not require a chemically depleted mantle, too refractory to melt. Deep lithospheric processes such as mantle refertilization and prolonged lithospheric thinning delayed melt focusing and the formation of a steady-state spreading center
Controversies and scandals as an RRI teaching and learning tool: beyond inspiring
Get PDFThe transition from undergraduate to PhD student in STEM disciplines is a key point for introducing RRI, as we see a natural increase in responsibility and a shift to active research. In this study, one lecturer and eleven STEM PhD students reflect on our experiences of learning about RRI and explore how controversies and scandals can be used for teaching, through reflective essays and discussions of nine controversies and scandals. Thematic analysis was used to highlight key challenges in learning about RRI in our context, map the case studies against an RRI framework, and identify four ways to view RRI when learning as a PhD student in STEM: (1) starting point, (2) developing research identity, (3) communities of research and innovation, and (4) bigger picture. We suggest there are rich learning opportunities within studying such cases that go beyond the obvious ‘inspiring and eliciting interest’
A mixed methods exploration of the health and caregiving experiences of fathers of children with a life-limiting condition
Get PDFBackground: Fathers of children with a life-limiting condition are underrepresented in the literature. We know little about their experiences of caregiving, the impact of this on their health, and their support needs. Aim: To explore the health and caregiving experiences of fathers of children with a life-limiting condition, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Design: A convergent mixed methods design comprised of (1) a quantitative survey and (2) semi-structured qualitative interviews prioritising the qualitative data. Setting/participants: 32 fathers of children with a life-limiting condition took part in the survey. They were recruited via social media, three UK children's hospices, and one UK children's hospital. 12 of these fathers went on to take part in a qualitative semi-structured interview. Results: Thematic analysis resulted in three themes: (1) Everyday precarity; (2) cumulative distress; past, present and future; (3) the scope and severity of the impact of caregiving on fathers; a lack of understanding from others. In the survey, fathers reported high levels of carer strain and distress, alongside high levels of family wellbeing and positive appraisals of caregiving. Conclusion: Fathers' extensive and overwhelming daily routines are inflexible and unstable, leading to multidimensional precarity and a sense of overwhelm. Current care provision does not address the unique and fluctuating support needs of fathers, which are linked to those of their child, and need to be understood in the context of both parenting and caregiving. A process capable of identifying and addressing fathers’ support needs to be established
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