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Mortality patterns among underserved groups: evidence from population-wide administrative data linkage in Northern Ireland
No full textObjectivesHealth inequalities among underserved groups (USGs) represent a significant public health concern. However, our understanding of these associations is limited by small sample sizes. This study uses population-wide administrative data linkage to examine mortality patterns across six USGs in Northern Ireland, aiming to inform targeted interventions and reduce health disparities.MethodsUsing the Northern Ireland Mortality Study (NIMS), we linked 2021 Census records to death registrations for 1.5 million individuals aged 16 and over. We examined mortality patterns among ethnic minorities, LGBTQIA+ individuals, religious minorities, Irish Travellers, migrants, and those with limited English language proficiency. Four mortality outcomes were examined: all-cause mortality, avoidable mortality, deaths of despair, and death by suicide. Cox proportional hazards models were used to quantify mortality risk for each USG compared to their respective reference populations, with stepwise adjustment for sociodemographic factors and health status.ResultsReligious minorities (17.9%) and LGBTQIA+ individuals (9.3%) formed the largest USGs in the cohort. Most groups showed significantly lower mortality risks compared to reference populations. In fully adjusted models, protective associations were observed for ethnic minorities (HR 0.59, 95% CI 0.50-0.68), migrants (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.76-0.90), and religious minorities (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.79-0.86). Initial elevated risks for LGBTQIA+ individuals were attenuated after adjustment. For deaths of despair, ethnic minorities maintained significantly lower risk after adjustment (HR 0.50, 95% CI 0.27-0.90), while elevated risks for LGBTQIA+ individuals were attenuated. Religious minorities showed initially elevated suicide risk which was attenuated after adjustment.ConclusionThis population-wide data linkage study demonstrates the value of administrative data in understanding health inequalities. Findings challenge previous research suggesting poorer outcomes among USGs and highlight the importance of adjusting for socioeconomic and health factors when examining mortality risks
Every nurse an AI nurse: a framework for integrating artificial intelligence across nursing practice, education, research and policy
No full textAs artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly embedded in healthcare, the nursing profession must embrace the imperative of ‘every nurse an AI nurse’. This commentary argues that nurses must not only adapt to AI technologies but actively shape their development, implementation, and governance to ensure alignment with nursing's core values of compassionate, patient-centred care. Drawing on a five-part APDDS framework: Aware, Prepare, Dare, Declare, Share; the article outlines a strategic approach for integrating AI across nursing practice, education, research, and policy. It emphasises the need for AI literacy, leadership, ethical engagement, and knowledge dissemination to empower nurses as innovators and advocates in the digital transformation of healthcare. By embracing this proactive stance, the nursing profession can ensure that AI enhances rather than diminishes the human elements of care.<br/
Introduction: France–China 60 years on
No full textThe Introduction to the special issue on 'France–China 60 Years On' opens with a section investigating the diplomatic and cultural milestones that have shaped Franco–Chinese relations since 1964. From de Gaulle's recognition of the PRC to the cultural fascination with Maoism, through periods of rapprochement, friction, and renewed dialogue, it provides the historical and political framework against which cultural exchange and artistic production can be understood. The next section builds on this contextual framework to examine the emergence of Franco–Chinese studies as a scholarly field in its own right. Beginning with the literary focus of the early 2000s, it delineates the field's expansion into visual arts, cinema, and intermedial practices, showing how anniversaries and landmark publications helped consolidate a body of research that remains vibrant and increasingly global in scope. Along with the conclusion, it also reflects on how this special issue offers an original intervention into the academic field. The third section shifts focus to the lived experiences of transnational mobility and creative exchange. It highlights how transcultural flows of people, languages, and creative works across France and China have generated unique forms of hybridity, reshaping identity and community in ways that extend well beyond state-led initiatives. The final section introduces the contributions to the special issue, organised thematically across history, visual and performing arts, and literature.<br/
Near-field SWIPT using XL-MIMO: Power allocation and subarray activation
No full textThis paper investigates the simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT) capability of a modular extremely large multiple-input multiple-output (XL-MIMO) system, in the context of power consumption (PC) efficiency. The network users are divided into two functional categories: information decoding (ID) users and energy harvesting (EH) users. Non-stationary near-field channels are considered whilst the users are located in spatially distinct visibility regions (VRs). We formulate a two-tier joint optimization problem to minimize the PC, taking into account the power allocation (PA) for ID and EH users, along with the activation of constituent XL-MIMO subarrays. This complicated mixed-integer problem is transformed into more tractable formulations and efficient algorithms are proposed for solving them. The numerical results demonstrate that the overall PC of the XL-MIMO system for the proposed method is reduced by more than 60% in comparison to the benchmark scheme of equal PA with full subarray activation (SA) and 30% against the case of optimized PA with full SA, while satisfying the quality-of-service (QoS) constraints on both the downlink rate of the ID users and harvested energy at the EH users
A review of supporting evidence, limitations and challenges of using cover crops in agricultural systems
No full textCover crops are becoming widely integrated into many farms as tools for improving sustainability. However, the decisions by growers for planting follow several objectives/criteria, many of which overlap. This review orders these sowing rationales into a practical framework for land management guidance. Prioritised by cover crop performance objectives, the optimal species and their environmental requirements are discussed. A key consideration of this review is that cover crops are used as part of a rotation strategy. Here, farmers’ primary objectives are to maintain or enhance biomass not of the cover plants themselves but for the following commercial crop. For example, a large cover crop biomass may be beneficial for reducing field-nutrient losses but are counterproductive if nutrient immobilisation or offtake then results in subsequent nutrition stresses and yield declines. Furthermore, species selection and management practices must be integrated if these negative impacts are to be mitigated. This review has found a strong research focus on cover crop nitrogen dynamics but limited research on nutrient recycling more broadly. Moreover, there is growing evidence that regionality plays a critical role in cover crop and land management partnering due to variations in edaphic and climatic influences, but there is a shortfall in research to inform strategies for many important agricultural centres such as Northern Ireland.<br/
A highly reliable dual-mode RRAM PUF with key concealment scheme
No full textPhysical Unclonable Function (PUF) has been widely used in the Internet of Things (IoT) as a promising hardware security primitive. In recent years, PUFs based on resistive random access memory (RRAM) have demonstrated excellent reliability and integration density. Most previous designs store PUF keys directly in RRAMs, increasing vulnerability to attacks. This paper proposes a dual-mode RRAM PUF, named differential mode and flexible mode, utilizing the difference in switching capability between RRAMs during parallel SET operations as the entropy source. The proposed PUF can reliably reproduce keys between cycles, so a key concealment scheme is used to protect PUF keys from being continuously exposed, improving the security of the RRAM PUF. The proposed RRAM PUF exhibits high reliability over ± 10% VDD and a wide temperature range from -25∘C to 125∘C through post-processing operations. The flexible mode can generate a significant number of keys for high-security applications. Since the PUF keys can be concealed, the proposed PUF is compatible with in-memory computing. It can be implemented using the same RRAM array as experimentally validated using a MAGIC operation, thus reducing the hardware overhead
Who owns the past? Archaeological sites and the question of land ownership in Palestine
No full textThis study examines the complex tensions between land commodification and archaeological preservation in Palestine by analysing the Palestinian National Spatial Plan (PNSP). Using a mixed-methods approach combining GIS analysis, ethnographic interviews, and case study research of Tell at-Tall archaeological site in Deir Dibwan, I investigate how the Palestinian Authority (PA) navigates competing demands between protecting cultural heritage and accommodating development pressures within Areas A and B under the Oslo Accords. The research reveals significant implementation challenges due to limited territorial jurisdiction, rising land values creating development pressure, technical limitations of current spatial planning tools, and competing interests between state agencies and private landowners. Through a detailed examination of the Tell at-Tall archaeological park project, the article demonstrates how these tensions manifest in practice and identify key barriers to effective heritage protection, including fragmented governance between multiple agencies, inadequate mechanisms for compensating private landowners, and limitations of two-dimensional GIS mapping for complex archaeological sites. The findings highlight the need for improved coordination between planning authorities and more robust frameworks for balancing preservation with development rights in the context of restricted territorial control and increasing land commodification.<br/
Freedom of belief, the right to withdrawal and Christian religious education in Northern Ireland
No full textParents of a seven-year-old child (JR87) in Northern Ireland took legal action against the Department of Education, arguing that the school’s religious education, including Christian collective worship during assemblies and a compulsory ‘Core Syllabus for Religious Education (RE)’ devised by Christian denominations, undermined their choice to raise their daughter in a non-religious way. Under judicial review, Justice Colton concluded that the laws on Collective Worship and RE breached European Human Rights articles, specifically Article 2 of the First Protocol ECHR read with Article 9 ECHR. Further, the RE syllabus was judged not to be compliant with the ‘objective, critical and plural’ standards of the European Court of Human Rights. On appeal, however, the court found that the parental right of withdrawal meant that the rights of the parents and child had not been breached. Nonetheless, the appeal judges agreed with the original critique of the syllabus. With consideration of similar European cases and, drawing on Benhabib’s concept of ‘jurisgenerative power’, we investigate the dominant narratives prominent in news media reports in the case of JR87. In conclusion, we argue that, in light of the legal judgements, pressure for change will continue and further ‘democratic iterations’ are likely to emerge. <br/