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The influence of cold temperature exposure on markers of bone health in humans: A scoping review.
No full textBackground
Studies of cold-dwelling humans show lower bone mineral density (BMD) and greater age-related bone loss. While cold exposure is regularly used for analgesic purposes, prolonged use may unintentionally exacerbate symptoms it aims to treat.
Objective
To evaluate human evidence on the effects of cold exposure upon markers of bone health.
Methods
This scoping review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. OVID (MEDLINE, EMBASE), Elsevier (ScienceDirect, Scopus), and PubMED databases were searched using the terms (“Cold temperature” OR “cryotherapy” OR “Hydrotherapy” OR “Cold stress”) AND (“Bone Matrix” OR “Bone mineral density” OR “bone formation” OR “bone remodelling” OR Osteogenesis). Inclusion criteria were: (1) cold exposure or application in humans; (2) measurement of bone health or turnover markers; and (3) original research or case reports.
Results
Searches resulted in 2,372 articles, yielding a final pool of 13 articles for inclusion after screening. Several cooling methods were used, predominantly cold air (n=6), cooling vests (n=4), sleeping in cold rooms (n=1), β3 agonist coupled with cooling pads (n=1) and ice water swimming (n=3). Markers of bone health were assessed, with BMD shown to increase following cryotherapy, and having a positive correlation with brown adipose tissue. Papers returned suggest a neutral or positive response in factors that enhance osteoblast differentiation (irisin, insulin-like growth factor-1 [IGF-1], meteorin-like protein [METRNL]), which fails to translate directly into improved bone formation (procollagen 1 N-terminal propeptide [P1NP], osteocalcin).
Conclusion
Cold exposure might dampen bone resorption mechanisms (beta isomerised C terminal telopeptide of type 1 collagen [β-CTX]) but not others (receptor activator of nuclear factor κ B [RANK], RANK ligand [RANKL], interleukin-6 [IL-6]). Hormonal markers of bone remodelling (thyroid stimulating hormone [TSH], parathyroid hormone [PTH], triiodothyronine [T3]) also showed contrasting effects. As such, the limited data does not allow for clear conclusions
Dietary Micronutrient Supplements and Epigenetic Regulation in Obesity
No full textNutritional factors such as micronutrients play major physiological roles in maintaining good health in the population globally. Recent studies indicate that intake of dietary nutrients can also impact metabolism and epigenetics. Food additives may interact, causing epigenetic changes in histone deacetylation, DNA methylation, and chromatin-transforming factors, thereby regulating gene expression and controlling the cell phenotype. These changes may contribute to gene reprogramming during development, even though most phenotypic changes occur during the perinatal period. Modern lifestyle habits and metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hypertension, atherosclerosis, obesity predisposition, and weight changes can result in the alteration of epigenetic styles, indicating the impact of certain diets, especially those with micronutrient deficiency, on human epigenetics throughout maturity and adulthood. Presently, the three important targets in epigenetic studies with regard to obesity include (1) a search for novel epigenetic biomarkers, (2) an understanding of the obesity-associated environmental factors and (3) identification of curative techniques based on either dietary or pharmacological proxies to regulate epigenetic marks. This review addresses many important aspects such as ascertaining the impact of dietary micronutrient supplements and their doses in modifying the epigenome, identifying those epigenetic marks that predispose people to nutritional exposures, evaluating the significance of obesity on epigenetic regulation, and describing genetic markers of weight-related issues
The Journey of Self-Actualization of Ebla in From A Crooked Rib by Nurruddin Farah
No full textThe current research is an attempt to examine the protagonist Ebla’s quest for searching meaning for her existence in From A Crooked Rib (1970) by Nurruddin Farah, a Somalia novelist whose main subject is African Women. She is fetched with all her basic needs (food, clothes, shelter), but there are certain needs of every person that are beyond basic needs. She has been through thick and thin throughout her life, and she has been struggling for searching an anchor to place her meaning of existence. Unable to find any meaning in her being, she keeps on searching, and experimenting with new things in her life. The study is qualitative and the data is collected from the text (primary source) while secondary sources such as books, journals, articles, blogs, etc. are also used for assistance through the close reading method. Ebla's journey of self-actualization is explored by applying Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (1943). The results show that Ebla actualizes herself and devises meaning of her existence in the world
Shared Minds: The Cognitive Parallels Between Humans and Artificial Intelligence
No full textThis narrative review integrates evidence from cognitive science and AI research to challenge commonly accepted dichotomies between human and artificial cognition, such as the assumed divide between genuine human understanding and mere machine pattern matching. Instead, we propose a view that recognises similarities in their cognitive architectures and processes. Human and artificial cognition seem to operate through comparable mechanisms, as both rely on statistical processing, associative pattern recognition and approximation rather than perfect logic. Through a systematic comparison of core cognitive domains across 363 articles, we highlight parallels in capabilities and limitations, including shared vulnerabilities to biases, memory distortions and decision‐making opacity. We critically examine popular narratives such as the stochastic parrot argument and the myth of human rationality. These positions often rely on idealised views of human cognition that are contradicted by cognitive and neuroscientific evidence. This review calibrates expectations of both human and artificial systems by moving beyond both AI alarmism and human exceptionalism towards a more empirically grounded perspective on cognition. Our comparative review acknowledges both the shared statistical foundations of intelligence and differences in embodiment, intentionality and phenomenological aspects of cognition. This perspective has implications for human–AI collaboration, cognitive performance benchmarking and research on AI transparency
Cooperatives and Business Schools: Why the Disconnect?
Get PDFBusiness schools are not neutral purveyors of teaching and research about how to organise. More often than not, they sell a very particular form of knowledge and act as outlets for a form of life in which a cooperative economy is ignored. Using international evidence, our paper shows that cooperatives lack adequate intellectual support from academia in terms of research or education. We explore the disconnect between academia and the cooperative economy in a search for explanations and justifications. Our analysis suggests that this state of affairs denies the cooperative sector an opportunity to both address its skill shortages and acquire the organisational capabilities needed to boost the impact of cooperative enterprises. Equally important, this normalises the situation where business schools can continue to ignore alternative business models. We conclude by suggesting that there would be societal and scholarly gains from accepting the cooperative sector as a legitimate and valuable constituent of any modern economy, and that this should be reflected in the teaching and research of business schools
Contributing Factors to Aggressive Incidents in Correctional and Forensic Psychiatric Care: A Rapid Evidence Assessment
Get PDFPurpose: Aggression within secure settings poses considerable concern. This paper aims to offer more recent considerations of factors, such as cultural and environmental, that contribute to the prediction of aggressive security incidents, focusing on a rapid evidence assessment (REA) of available literature since 2018.
Design/methodology/approach: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA; Moher et al., 2009) guidelines were utilised for this REA, taking guidance from a previous study (Ireland et al, 2019) for the development of search terms.
Findings: Twenty-three final studies were included in the REA. All studies were conducted in either prison (n = 8), psychiatric in-patient facility with involuntary or compulsory treatment (n = 7), and forensic secure services (n = 7), with one study looking at both general in-patient psychiatric hospital and forensic services. Thematic analysis noted 4 main themes that were predictive of aggressive security incidents, these were: (1) Inadequate living facilities and poor physical environment, (2) Institutional security levels predicting aggression, (3) Restricted movement and the lack of meaningful activities, (4) Ward atmosphere and staff factors impacting staff-client relationships and consequent aggression.
Practical implications: This REA adds value to understanding the current interplay between the living facilities, wider forensic environment and interaction of staff in a forensic client’s aggressive behaviours.
Originality/value: This REA offers an updated reflection and understanding on the presentation of aggression in secure forensic environments
Pinch-guided heat integration for hydrogen production from mixed plastic waste
No full textThe conversion of plastic waste into hydrogen offers a promising waste-to-value pathway, but its industrial viability is constrained by high external energy demand associated with thermochemical processing. This study evaluates the energy performance of hydrogen production from mixed plastic waste via pyrolysis and in-line steam reforming, with a focus on reducing utility consumption through systematic heat integration. A steady-state process model was developed in Aspen Plus for a representative mixture of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene, followed by detailed energy analysis and pinch-based heat integration using Aspen Energy Analyser. Baseline utility requirements were quantified and compared against optimised configurations incorporating targeted heat exchanger network modifications. The base-case analysis identified significant recoverable heat, enabling a reduction in total external utilities from 7.14 to 2.88 GJ h−1, corresponding to a 59.6% decrease in utility demand. Sequential heat integration scenarios further reduced heating and cooling duties while maintaining process operability, demonstrating the effectiveness of iterative, pinch-guided design. The results show that high-temperature waste-plastic-to-hydrogen systems need not be utility-dominated when energy integration is embedded at the design stage. These findings highlight heat integration as a critical enabler for improving the energy efficiency and sustainability of pyrolysis–reforming routes and provide a robust framework for developing scalable, low-carbon hydrogen production from plastic waste
The Impact of a Standardised Family Constellation Exercise on Parentified Individuals- A Qualitative Study
No full textBackground: Family Constellations are widely recognised for their experiential impact but face challenges regarding empirical validation, standardisation and replication. The practice’s subjective nature often limits its integration into evidence-based clinical frameworks.
Aims: This study aimed to explore the effects of a Standardised Family Constellation Exercise within a virtual setting, focusing on adults who had experienced parentification. The goal was to assess whether a structured and replicable approach could elicit therapeutic effects and meaningful personal insights.
Method: Ten Greek-speaking adults aged 18–45, with no prior exposure to constellation work, participated in the process through the Delightex Edu platform. The intervention included structured resolution sentences and symbolic visualisations targeting the systemic burden of parentification. A qualitative design with Thematic Analysis was used to examine participant experiences.
Results: Six core themes emerged: (1) the Burden of Responsibility as a Psychosomatic Experience, (2) Revival of the Child Role, (3) the Power of Resolution Sentences, (4) Ambivalence – Guilt – Letting go, (5) Identity and Role Renegotiation, and (6) the Therapeutic Value of Visualisation.
Conclusion: Findings suggest that a Standardised Family Constellation Exercise can reliably evoke profound emotional reactions, facilitate the symbolic resolution of the parentification burden, and support shifts in participants’ self-concept and family role dynamics. Despite limitations such as sample size and the researcher’s dual role, there is therapeutic potential of structured constellation methods as accessible, trauma-informed interventions within clinical settings
Lost in Translation, Found in Connection
No full textThis reflective narrative traces my personal journey from growing up in communist Poland to building a new life in the UK. From navigating bureaucratic hurdles to filling cultural gaps, I look back at how embracing a new identity while staying connected to my Polish roots enabled me to make Britain my home. Interweaving political context with my personal experiences, I highlight the interplay between personal identity and political history, underscoring the duality of loss and growth
Routledge Handbook of Dark Events: Celebrations, Heritage, and Customs of Death and the Macabre
No full textThis handbook explores and critically evaluates key debates and controversies in the emerging field of Dark Events. It brings together leading specialists from a range of disciplinary backgrounds and geographical regions to provide state-of-the-art theoretical reflection and empirical research on celebrations, heritage and customs of death (events) and the macabre.
Divided into ten parts, the book explores traditions of dark festivals and events; the display of the dead; commemoration and authenticity within the context of dark events; dark events from the past; dark events in popular culture; controversial dark events; grief and memory; managing dark event experiences; decolonisation and equality for the dead; and dark event futures. This significant volume offers the reader a comprehensive synthesis of this emerging field, conveying the latest thinking and research. The text is international in focus, encouraging dialogue across disciplinary boundaries and areas of study, providing an invaluable resource for all those with an interest in Dark Events.
This is essential reading for students, researchers and academics of Dark Events, as well as those of related studies such as tourism, cultural studies, leisure, geography, sociology, death studies and museums