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Same as it ever was: no room for talking heads! National security, free speech and judicial deference
No full textA number of domestic laws seek to protect national security from harmful speech and expression, and in doing so impinge on the values inherent in freedom of expression. This can be achieved by imposing criminal liability on persons who disclose sensitive information, penalising the speaker and dissuading them, and others, from communicating information to the press or to the public. Alternatively, the civil law can be employed against such persons, or those, including the press, who assist in the breaking of other's contractual or other duties of confidentiality. The latter method allows prior restraint, as well as post-speech sanctions, although internal security policies accommodate a system of prior authorisation, whereby a person can seek, and be refused, permission to publish specific material, allowing the authorities to restrict or ban publication, at least until that refusal is successfully challenged. Because such restrictions impinge on free speech and the public ‘right to know’, both the domestic courts and the law of the European Court of Human Rights must consider the legitimacy and proportionality of these restrictions. In particular, Article 10(2) of the Convention, as given effect to by the Human Rights Act 1998, insists that legal regulations are sufficiently clear to be prescribed by law, are being employed to secure a legitimate aim, and that any restriction, criminal or civil, does not impose a disproportionate interference on individual free speech. As we might expect, judicial deference from the domestic courts, and within the Strasbourg Court’s margin of appreciation, offer a great deal of discretion to the executive authorities in this balancing exercise, the judiciary being reluctant to interfere with administrative or legislative discretion where there is a tangible threat to national security and public safety. <br/
Dynamic Capabilities, Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices, and Resilience:Evidence from Chinese Construction Firms
Full text linkDespite the known importance of Supply Chain Dynamic Capabilities (SCDC) in the face of shocks and sustainability pressures in construction, its translation into resilience (SCR) and performance (SSCP) remains unclear. Thus, we examine Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) practices as a mediator and firm size as a moderator within this relationship. Drawing on the Dynamic Capabilities View, the study analyzed survey data from 525 construction industry professionals in China using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Bootstrapping techniques and multi-group analysis were employed to systematically test mediation and moderation hypotheses. The findings indicate that SCDC positively influences both SCR and SSCP. Mediation analysis confirms that SSCM serves as a significant partial mediator, suggesting that dynamic capabilities are most effective when operationalized through specific sustainable practices. Additionally, a strategic divergence was observed: large enterprises leverage internal dynamic capabilities to a greater extent to drive resilience, while small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) rely more heavily on the implementation of SSCM practices to navigate supply chain challenges. The study empirically validates the operational link between dynamic capabilities and sustainable performance. The findings offer a tailored framework for practitioners, highlighting that resilience strategies must align with organizational scale, particularly for resource-constrained SMEs relying on external collaboration
Pollen in the courtroom:enhancing forensic palynology with quantitative modelling
No full textPollen grains are tiny, widely dispersed, and can be recovered in large numbers from small samples of a variety of contexts from soils to human hair and clothing. Forensic palynology, the use of pollen assemblages recovered from samples associated with criminal investigations as a line of evidence, has been used since the 1950s, and largely uses the methods and interpretive frameworks developed by ecological and archaeological palynologists working mostly with samples taken from sediments accumulating in lakes/mires. In this paper, we explore whether recent methodological developments in those allied fields can contribute to improving the robustness and objectivity of assemblage interpretation in forensic palynology.We demonstrate that models of pollen dispersal and deposition can improve the interpretation of assemblages from some sample contexts and provide additional supporting evidence. We also propose an approach to incorporating quantitative estimates of post-depositional changes in assemblages into interpretations, since some forensic samples are taken from contexts which are not ideal for pollen preservation. Both methods are only appropriate for a subset of forensic palynological samples, and we present a workflow to identify suitable situations in which to apply these interpretive tools, if investigating budgets allow. We demonstrate the potential of these approaches and set out a research programme to both better define when these methods should be used and strengthen the underlying evidence base. Thoughtful incorporation of methodological developments in allied fields has the potential to improve interpretation of forensic palynology samples and strengthen the evidence presented as well as arguments made in court.<br/
Touch, agency and the interplay between dance, disability and robotics
Full text linkThe themes of touch, contact and consent in relation to disability generate a lot of discussion and are brought further into view in the context of performance, and specifically dance performance. Disabled dance artists develop expertise that is particular to their own body, and if they dance with an assistive technology, such as a prosthesis, crutch or wheelchair, the dancer has additional expertise in how their corporeal body interfaces with non-human agents. If the non-human agent is a robot, questions around touch and consent may take on a different force. This article discusses a recent project that brought together an interdisciplinary team to ask questions about how expert disabled dancers encounter robots, and how bodily contact with robots can be generative and reimagine contact as creative, expressive and trustworthy, rather than potentially harmful. The discussion also asks whether AI offers an opportunity to develop more inclusive research methodologies, or whether it calls into sharp focus the inequalities if lived experience of difference and diversity is overlooked
Reliability of Surface EMG During High-Risk Single-Leg Jump Landing and 90° Sidestep Cutting in Female Footballers
Full text linkNon-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries cause substantial time loss in female football. Although altered lower-limb muscle excitation is a modifiable risk factor, the reliability of surface electromyography (sEMG) during dynamic tasks in female players remains uncertain. This repeated-measures reliability study examined sEMG during a single-leg jump landing (LAND) and 90° sidestep cut (CUT) in 16 second-tier English female footballers. We evaluated reliability across: (1) within- versus between-session measures; (2) mean versus peak amplitudes; (3) pre-initial contact (PRE-IC) versus post-initial contact (POST-IC) phases; and (4) 10 ms versus 50 ms smoothing windows. Reliability was quantified using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC[2,k]) and absolute measurement error. Within-session ICCs were moderate to excellent (LAND 0.61 to 0.95; CUT 0.68 to 0.96), whereas between-session ICCs varied from poor to excellent (LAND −0.48 to 0.94; CUT −0.08 to 0.93). Mean amplitudes showed marginally higher ICCs and lower absolute error than peaks. Phase-specific patterns were task-dependent: PRE-IC was more reliable in LAND, whereas POST-IC was more reliable in CUT. Practitioners should prioritize within-session comparisons using mean amplitudes, and the most reliable task-specific phase is recommended. Between-day application warrants caution, as the consistently lower reliability demonstrated may reflect task variability and/or physiological fluctuations rather than the sEMG method alone
Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes and Health System Costs in Standard Public Maternity Care Compared to Private Obstetric‐Led Care:A Population‐Level Matched Cohort Study
Full text linkObjective We aimed to compare health outcomes and costs in standard public maternity care compared to private obstetric‐led maternity care. Design Observational study with linked administrative data. Setting Australian maternity care. Population 867 334 births, covering all births in three states of Australia between 2016 and 2019. Methods Standard public care involved mainly fragmented midwifery, obstetric and General Practitioner provider care, with birth in a public hospital. Private obstetric‐led care was led by a personally selected obstetrician, with midwifery involvement and birth in a private hospital. We analysed outcomes from pregnancy onset to 4 weeks post‐birth. Matching was utilised to account for demographic, socio‐economic and clinical characteristics. Main Outcome Measures Stillbirths or neonatal deaths; neonatal intensive care admissions; APGAR score < 7 at 5 min; 3rd or 4th degree perineal tears; maternal haemorrhages; mean cost per pregnancy episode. Results Higher adverse outcomes in standard public maternity care compared to private obstetric‐led care, including 778 more stillbirths or neonatal deaths (OR 2.0, 95% CI: 1.8–2.1), 2747 more APGAR score < 7 at 5 min (OR 2.0, 95% CI: 2.0–2.1), 3273 more 3rd or 4th degree perineal tears (OR 2.9, 95% CI: 2.7–3.1) and 10 627 additional maternal haemorrhages (OR 2.7, 95% CI: 2.6–2.8). Mode of birth correlated with neonatal death. Mean cost to all funders in Australian dollars per pregnancy episode was $5929 higher in standard public maternity care. Conclusion We have shown significantly lower adverse health outcomes and costs in private obstetric‐led care compared to standard public maternity care
HDFL: A Hierarchical Decentralized Federated Learning Framework for Dynamic and Heterogeneous IoV Environments
No full textTraditional federated learning (FL) approaches face significant challenges when applied to dynamic and heterogeneous Internet of Vehicles (IoV) environments, which are characterized by frequent node mobility, unstable communicationlinks, and highly non-independent and identically distributed (Non-IID) data. In particular, decentralized network to topologies exacerbate the difficulty of maintaining model consistency, thereby impairing overall learning performance. To address these challenges, we propose a new hierarchical decentralized federated learning (HDFL) framework. This framework combines the advantages of centralization and decentralization, builds a three-layer collaborative structure, and improves communication flexibility through an asynchronous model exchange mechanism between the edge and the client. Simultaneously, HDFL introduces a local fine-tuning strategy based on knowledge distillationto enhance the generalization ability and stability of the model. Experimental results using an urban traffic simulation platform show that HDFL consistently outperforms representative decentralized FL methods in terms of the achieved accuracy and convergence speed under heterogeneous IoV environments.Index Terms—decentralized federated learning, hierarchical federated learning, Internet of Vehicles, knowledge distillatio
Edinburgh Companion to Women’s Experimental Literature Since 1900
No full textA collection of essays showcasing the diversity of women’s experimental writing in and beyond the Anglo-American context, from 1900 to the present
Pyrolysis gas chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) method for analysis of phthalic acid esters and its application for screening e-waste materials
No full textThe increasing volume of electronic waste (e-waste) is a significant global environmental and public health concern. Phthalic acid esters (PAEs) are used as plasticisers in insulation coatings of electric materials, and if not effectively separated in preliminary recycling processes and enter pyrometallurgical processes, can lead to unintentional PAE emissions. Understanding these emissions is crucial for assessing potential environmental and health risks, as well as for developing effective recycling and emission control strategies. Most current analytical methods have limitations for estimating airborne PAE emissions during e-waste pyrolysis as they either rely on offline sampling and preparation potentially introducing uncertainties and contamination from ubiquitous environmental PAEs or employ online techniques that have relatively high limits of detection (LOD). In this work, we developed, validated, and applied a new quantitative online single-shot pyrolysis gas chromatography mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) method for analysis of PAEs, including di(2-ethylhexyl)adipate (DEHA), di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), and di-n-octyl phthalate (DOP) in e-waste matrices. The effect of pyrolysis settings, including temperature and sample residence time, on PAE chromatographic responses were assessed. The chromatographic responses of DEHA, DEHP, and DOP demonstrated good linearity (R2 > 0.990) over 0.1 ng to 20 ng, with LODs ranging from 0.56 to 0.68 ng. The method showed acceptable accuracy and precision (% coefficient of variation, CV and relative error, RE < 20%). Matrix effects showed a strong impact on the analysis, requiring the use of an increased split sample ratio, and correction strategies to minimise bias. The validated method was successfully applied to three representative electronic matrices: a thermocouple cable, an electrolytic capacitor, and a film capacitor, where DEHP and DOP emissions ranged from 3 to 30 mg kg−1. This study presents the development and application of a quantitative analytical method, for the first time, to estimate DEHA, DEHP, and DOP in representative e-waste matrices using a single-shot Py-GC-MS.<br/