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Unlocking Patient Preferences:The Potential of Stated-Preference Methods in Clinical Decision Making
No full textStated-preference (SP) methods are gaining attention as tools to support patient-centered clinical decision making by quantifying individual preferences through structured tradeoffs. These methods may improve shared decision making by helping patients and clinicians better understand the relative importance of treatment attributes and the trade-offs patients are willing to make. However, integrating SP methods into clinical settings poses practical challenges, including concerns about complexity, patient burden, and relevance of hypothetical scenarios. Successful application will require thoughtful design, attention to accessibility, and collaboration across disciplines. Despite current limitations, SP methods hold promise for enhancing the quality and alignment of medical decisions with patient values.</p
Chamoli Glacial Burst:Investigating the vulnerability of the Himalayan geology with the support of Forensic Analysis
No full textCan a positive psychology intervention cultivating self-compassion enhance mental health by fostering self-compassion and adaptive capacities? Results from a randomized controlled trial
Get PDFMindful self-compassion is increasingly recognized as a critical element in positive psychological interventions, serving as a protective factor for mental health. This study investigates the mechanisms behind a multi-component positive psychology intervention designed to enhance mental well-being and reduce mental illness. Using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design, the study involved 60 participants in the intervention group and 76 in the control group. Participants completed pre- and post-assessments measuring self-compassion, adaptability, anxiety, depression, and well-being. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to analyze the mediating roles of self-compassion and adaptability. Results indicated that the intervention significantly improved mental well-being, and that this improvement was mediated by increases in self-compassion and adaptability. However, these factors did not mediate reductions in participants’ symptoms of depression and anxiety. Findings suggest that the intervention effectively enhances well-being through self-compassion and adaptability, while other mechanisms may account for reductions in mental symptoms
Rethinking Platform Technologies:Moral Values, Politics, and Radical Technologies
Get PDFDigital platforms have transformed the way we share, rent, lend, and access goods and services. While corporate mainstream platforms present themselves as drivers of sustainability, community building, and economic growth, they are often criticized for exploitative labor practices, their negative impact on local communities, and the promotion of a neoliberal agenda. But there’s another way: platform cooperatives, built on shared ownership and democratic decision-making, offer an alternative vision for the digital economy.The dissertation examines the politics of the platform and sharing economy and asks what moral and political values are built into digital platforms. It shows that platforms are not neutral tools: their design embodies moral and political values that shape the social and economic interactions they facilitate, as well as their impacts beyond direct platform use. By combining approaches from the philosophy of technology—especially the embedded values approach and the politics of technology—with insights from empirical investigations of different platforms as case studies, the dissertation research uncovers how mainstream and cooperative platforms embody struggles over values and competing visions for the digital economy, and how each platform model relates to platform capitalism as a social order. Through the example of platform cooperatives, the dissertation also conceptualizes the political character of “radical technologies”: technologies that not only operate within particular social and political conditions but actively resist and strive to undermine them. In this case, the conditions of platform capitalism
Development of a Vibration-Free Sorption-based J-T Cryochain for the Gravitational Wave Detectors of ETpathfinder
Get PDFFuture gravitational-wave observatories such as the Einstein Telescope require cryogenic operation in the 10 to 20 K range with ultra-low vibration. This thesis develops a sorption-driven Joule-Thomson cooling chain for the pilot ETpathfinder and advances the underlying sorption-compressor technology while establishing quantitative methods to assess fluid-induced vibrations in JT cold-stage components.At the system level, a three-stage sorption JT cryochain concept is put forward with neon at 40 K, hydrogen at 15 K, and helium at 8 K. Operating conditions are selected by thermodynamic optimization to maximize the coefficient of performance. A one-dimensional finite-volume sorption-compressor model is used to size the compressor unit, yielding a baseline near 364 W input power with twenty-six sorption cells that meet the ETpathfinder cooling targets.At the component level, a multi-physics finite-element framework is developed for sorption compressor cells. The modeling framework couples the modified Dubinin-Astakhov adsorption model with Brinkman porous flow and the conservation of mass and energy. Three spatial representations of a legacy central-heater cell design are implemented and show satisfactory agreement with experimental data. The framework extends naturally to accommodate multi-heater cell concept. To manage the more involved operation of multi-heater cells and their design, a global optimization workflow that combines a Genetic Algorithm with a Random Forest regressor is developed to explore the design space efficiently. The resulting cylindrical multi-heater designs improve performance and increase design flexibility. Flatter cell geometries are examined as well. A comparative analysis between an obround multi-heater cell and the baseline cylindrical design shows size reductions up to forty percent while maintaining performance.A prototype cylindrical neon multi-heater sorption-compressor cell is fabricated and characterized near 70 K. Measured pressures, temperatures, and mass-flow-derived figures of merit confirm the predicted improvements over a single-heater design across relevant operating settings.Fluid-induced vibrations are quantified through complementary numerical and experimental pathways. Fluid-structure-interaction simulations are conducted and successfully predict displacement spectra for representative JT components. Room-temperature with an atomic force microscope are performed, to measure nanoscale vibrations on a U-shaped tube and on two JT valve types, a porous plug and an orifice plate. Overall, this work establishes a coherent framework for ultra-low-vibration cryogenic cooling that links system design, advanced modeling with optimization, and quantitative vibration metrology. The results provide validated tools and practical guidelines for deploying sorption-based JT coolers in precision experiments. <br/
Ethics In/Of/For Design
No full textAs design increasingly positions itself as a discipline that can help address pressing societal challenges (e.g., migration, climate crisis, the impact of AI), revitalizing the scholarly discussion on design ethics becomes inevitable. Surprisingly though, the scholarly discussion on design ethics remains rather vague, scattered, and theoretically underdeveloped (Chan, 2018). This is partially due to the broadness and complexity of the field and partially due to a lack of discourse on the normative orientations of design that originates from within the discipline (vs. through the gaze of other disciplines).In the context of this topical issue, we frame design ethics as an invitation to care and argue against reducing it to a methodology, framework, checklist, toolkit, or an afterthought. This broad framing highlights that ‘ethics’ can carry multiple meanings in different contexts (e.g. responsible, critical, democratic) and can be approached from various theoretical perspectives (e.g. historical, cultural, speculative). Consequently, we recognize the need for a nuanced and reflexive discussion on how design and ethics are intertwined. For this, we aim to look back on design, as a discipline and profession, with critical historical awareness, while also looking forward with cautious optimism. We welcome both theoretical papers that unpack specific conceptual perspectives and practice-based explorations (e.g. in communities, organizations, policy-making)
Additive Manufacturing of An Sn-Based Alloy on Silicon Wafer by Laser Powder Bed Fusion for Advanced Cooling of Electronic Circuits
No full textThe constant growth of interest in miniaturization of power sources for electronic circuitries necessitates utilizing high-performance cooling to fulfil their thermal management requirements. Unlike conventional cooling methods that rely on heat sinks mounted on conventional thermal interface materials (TIM), which create thermal resistance and reduce heat extraction efficiency at their interfaces, we are, hereby, proposing an additive manufacturing approach using Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) to realize wafer-scale printing of an Sn-based interlayer material on which a heat sink can be fabricated. The alloy's low melting point (~250 °C) mitigates thermal stresses during solidification and cooling that occur in the LPBF process. The thermal conductivity of this Sn-based alloy, estimated at 39.4 ± 6.7 W/mK, surpasses those of common thermal interface materials (1-10 W/mK), making it a competitive option for heat management applications. Microstructural analysis of the printed layers on Si wafer confirms the alloy’s uniformity and compatibility with silicon, proposing its effectiveness as a thermal interface material for cooling applications. By optimizing the volumetric energy density exerted during the LPBF print process, we could realize structures that are fully dense and free of cracks. The successful formation of the Sn-based alloy on Si wafer by LPBF is a stepstone for the realization of wafer-scale full additive manufacturing of heat sinks onto it
Exploring the UAV-Based Ground-Penetrating Radar for Historical Site Detection: A WWII Hiding Place Case Study near Bornerbroekseweg
Get PDFThis study evaluates the potential of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-based Ground-Penetrating Radar (UAV-GPR) for identifying buried features related to a suspected World War II (WWII) hiding place near Bornerbroekseweg, the Netherlands. The survey area is an active farmland field with limited surface indicators and partially documented historical significance. A total of six UAV flight lines and four ground-based GPR paths were conducted to cover the site. Subsurface anomalies were identified at depths between approximately 0.2 and 1.5 m. In particular, Flight 6 revealed a near-surface reflection at 0.2–0.4 m, whereas Flight 4 showed a deeper horizontal anomaly at around 1.2–1.5 m. Ground-based Path 3 supported these findings with continuous horizontal reflections distinct from natural stratigraphy. The integration of UAV and ground-based data enabled full-site coverage and localized resolution, supporting the identification of areas warranting further archaeological investigation. The results demonstrate the applicability of UAV-GPR for non-invasive prospection in rural historical sites with uncertain spatial records and suggest its value for informing targeted excavations
Privacy challenges of automated vehicles:Merging contextual integrity and responsible innovation frameworks
Get PDFPrivacy has become a central issue in automated vehicles (AVs). Questions around who owns data, who manages data, and how to access data are some of the key concerns around AVs, mobility data justice. This study broadens the understanding of privacy challenges for AVs by introducing a multilevel contextual integrity (MCI) model. MCI considers contextual integrity (CI) in tandem with societal preferences and individual level preferences, which is captured using demographic data. Therefore, it captures the individual-level, group-level, and societal-level factors that drive peoples’ preferences regarding AV privacy. Empirical insights into the relationships among the social forces captured at these three levels are drawn from survey data collected in South Korea. The findings reveal that although social goals and demographic variables initially show some association, the introduction of CI parameters significantly diminishes this relationship, highlighting the primacy of informational contexts in shaping AV privacy attitudes. This paper nuances current understandings of AV privacy by linking informational norms with overarching societal values and goals. By advancing the CI framework to include social goals, this study contributes to the broader discourse on responsible innovation, offering a robust approach to managing privacy challenges in emerging technologies.</p