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Friedel oscillations and chiral superconductivity in monolayer NbSe2
No full textThe nature of the dominant pairing mechanism in some two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides is still debated. Focusing on monolayer 1H-NbSe2, we show that superconductivity can be induced by the Coulomb interaction when accounting for screening effects on the trigonal lattice with multiple orbitals. Using ab initio based tight-binding parametrizations for the relevant low-energy d-bands, we evaluate the screened interaction microscopically. In the direct space, we find pronounced Friedel oscillations, a key to the Kohn-Luttinger mechanism for superconductivity. The momentum-resolved gap equations predict at the critical temperature Tc two degenerate solutions of symmetry, signalling the unconventional nature of the pairing. Their complex linear combination, i.e., a chiral gap with p-like symmetry, provides the ground state of the model. Our prediction of a fully gapped chiral phase well below Tc is in good agreement with the spectral function extracted from tunnelling spectroscopy measurements
Demokratiebildung mit literarischen Strategien? Narrative durchschauen lernen
No full textDer vorliegende Beitrag untersucht die Rolle von Narrativen in der gesellschaftlichen und politischen Kommunikation, gerade auch im Kontext der Digitalität und zeigt, wie diese unsere Wahrnehmung sowie Denken und Handeln beeinflussen. Anhand von Beispielen wie Propagandamedien und Wahlplakaten wird analysiert, wie visuelle und sprachliche Mittel genutzt werden, um gesellschaftliche Ängste und Schutzinstinkte zu mobilisieren. Dabei wird aufgezeigt, dass literarische Strategien nicht nur für die Analyse von literarischen Texten geeignet sind, sondern auch auf andere kulturelle Artefakte angewendet werden können und damit zu einer Reflexion und Erweiterung medialer Praktiken beitragen (vgl. Maiwald 2022). Sie können im Literaturunterricht genutzt werden, um Schüler*innen narrative Kompetenz zu vermitteln – eine entscheidende Fähigkeit, um (politische) Manipulationen zu durchschauen und sich aktiv in gesellschaftliche Debatten einzubringen. Der Beitrag plädiert für einen kontinuierlichen und kumulativen narrativen Kompetenzaufbau als Teil literarischer und medialer Kompetenz, auch um eine kritische Auseinandersetzung mit politischen Narrativen zu ermöglichen
Models-Meet-Data: A Hybrid Query Language for Digital Twins
No full textThe full potential of Digital Twins (DTs) is hindered by the challenge of integrating complex engineering models with high-frequency runtime data from disparate sources. Existing approaches lack a unified mechanism to query across the boundary of static models and dynamic data, leading to fragmented and inconsistent DT systems. We introduce a hybrid query language that unifies model and data retrieval, translating queries into SPARQL for model access and SQL for data access within a single declarative statement. Our evaluation demonstrates that this approach overcomes the models-meet-data challenge by enabling scalable, near real-time queries, thereby paving the way for more robust and integrated DT applications
Exploring the links between bodily and psychological health dimensions in primary school children
No full textThis cross-sectional study examined associations between physical and psychological health indicators in primary school children, focusing on constructs that have received less attention in previous models. In addition to muscular fitness, physical self-concept, and mental health—represented by self-compassion and psychological wellbeing—posture was included as an additional health variable to explore its potential relevance within this framework. A total of 174 children aged 6–11 years participated in the observational study. Standardized measures were used to assess muscular fitness, posture, psychological wellbeing, physical self-concept, and self-compassion. Associations between variables were examined using structural equation modeling with 12 manifest variables. The hypotheses targeted positive correlations within and between the physical and psychological domains. The results confirmed a strong association between muscular fitness and posture. However, no significant links were found between posture or muscular fitness and psychological wellbeing, self-compassion, or physical self-concept. In contrast, positive associations emerged between psychological wellbeing, positive self-compassion, and physical self-concept. These findings suggest that psychophysical relationships may not yet be fully established or measurable at this developmental stage. Future research should investigate the developmental trajectories of these relationships in more diverse populations. However, the present findings must be interpreted with caution due to the high parental educational level in the sample
Competing Risks and Their Impact on Treatment Efficacy Assessment in Fractionated Stereotactic Radiotherapy for Brain Metastases: A Retrospective Study
No full textBackground and Aims
The Kaplan-Meier (KM) method and competing risk analysis are two statistical approaches for analyzing time-to-event data. These methods differ in their treatment of competing events, such as deaths occurring before the event of interest, which can impact the interpretation of treatment efficacy in oncology.
Methods
This retrospective study included 73 patients who underwent fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (six fractions of 5 Gy) for brain metastases at the University Hospital Regensburg between January 2017 and December 2021. The events of interest were the cumulative incidences of local failure within the planning target volume and the development of new brain metastases. Premature deaths occurring before the events of interest were treated as competing events. The complement of the KM method (1-KM), which censors patients who die prematurely, was compared to the cumulative incidence function (CIF), which accounts for the fact that patients who die without experiencing the event of interest are no longer at risk for that event.
Results
The median follow-up was 56 months. The most common cancer types were non-small cell lung cancer (n = 26, 35.6%) and malignant melanoma (n = 25, 34.2%). Using CIF, the cumulative incidences of local failure and new brain metastases were 27% and 55% at 24 months, respectively. The 1-KM method overestimated the cumulative incidence of local failure by 9% at 24 months and 14% at 36 months, and new brain metastases by 13% at both 24 and 36 months. Survival curves for 1-KM and CIF showed simultaneous increases for each event, with 1-KM consistently higher, reflecting differing approaches to competing risks.
Conclusion
This study highlights the impact of statistical method selection on clinical data interpretation and underscores the bias inherent in studies that fail to account for competing risks. Recognizing these differences is crucial for accurately assessing treatment outcomes
Photo-Catalyzed Synthesis of Indanones from Aromatic Aldehydes and Terminal Alkynes
Get PDFIndanones are key structural motifs in pharmaceuticals and bioactive natural products, making their efficient synthesis a subject of continued interest. Conventional methods typically rely on transition-metal catalysis, prefunctionalized substrates, and multiple redox steps. Herein, we report a photochemical C–H annulation strategy for the direct synthesis of indanones from simple, unmodified aromatic aldehydes and terminal alkynes. The reaction proceeds under 365 nm light using tetrabutylphosphonium decatungstate ([Bu4P]4W10O32, TBPDT) as a hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) photocatalyst. This prefunctionalization-free protocol tolerates a broad range of substrates, eliminates the need for additional redox steps, and expands the toolbox for sustainable indanone synthesis
Artificial Intelligence Augmentation: Performance of GPT-4 and GPT-3.5 on the Plastic Surgery In-service Examination
No full textBackground: ChatGPT-3.5 scored in the 52nd percentile of the Plastic Surgery
In-service Examination, making its knowledge equivalent to a first-year integrated resident. The updated GPT-4 may have improved performance given its more expansive training set. We hypothesized that GPT-4 would outperform its predecessor, making it a more valuable potential asset to surgical education.
Methods: Questions from the 2022 Plastic Surgery In-service Examination were
given to GPT-4 and GPT-3.5. Both were prompted using 3 different structures. The 2022 American Society of Plastic Surgeons Norm Tables were used to compare the performance of the chatbot to national metrics from plastic surgery residents. Results: GPT-4 answered a total of 237 questions with an overall accuracy of 63% across all 3 strategies. The accuracy was as follows for the prompting schemes: 54% for open ended, 67% for multiple choice (MC), and 68% for MC with explanation. The section with the highest accuracy (74%) among all strategies was Section 4: Breast and Cosmetic. GPT-4’s highest scoring methodology (MC with explanation, 68%) placed it in the following national integrated percentiles: 93rd percentile for the first year, 76th percentile for the second year, 52nd percentile for the third year, 34th percentile for the fourth year, 17th percentile for the fifth year, and 15th percentile for the sixth year. GPT-3.5 scored 58% overall. Conclusions: GPT-4 outperformed its predecessor but only scored in the 15th percentile compared with postgraduate year-6 residents. More refinement is needed to achieve performance metrics equivalent to an attending plastic surgeon and become a valuable tool for surgical education
Pop-Up Participatory Exhibitions: Combining Ideation, User Research, and Outreach in an Interactive Format
No full textWe present an exploratory reflection on the role of pop-up participatory exhibitions in the design process of an upstream technology. To involve the public in the design of novel projected user interfaces for tabletops, we combined ideas from design fiction, participatory design, and user-centered design with a pop-up science shop concept. The resulting approach aims to engage a broad audience in ideation, user research, and outreach via an exhibition of functional prototypes in a highly-frequented location. In four one-week exhibitions, over 400 visitors were guided through the exhibition in small groups and involved in small design and evaluation activities. Through ethnographic field research we gathered insights from different perspectives, ideas for new use cases and applications, and feedback on the presented prototypes. In this paper, we describe concept, methods, and properties of pop-up participatory exhibitions and their relation to other participatory approaches. We share our experiences, discuss design choices, and provide practical suggestions for implementing such exhibitions
Sustainable supplier evaluation under due diligence acts
Get PDFThe enactment of due diligence legislation, such as the German Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains, in German Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz (LkSG), is reshaping global supply chain management by compelling companies to tackle heightened human rights and environmental risks in their supply chain. This study addresses the need for a comprehensive sustainability supplier evaluation framework by employing a systematic literature review with an expert survey of practitioners from German companies subject to LkSG. This methodology aligns academic findings with real-world practice and legal requirements, enriching the literature with practical insights. The results reveal that business practice prioritizes economic and social dimensions, whereas the literature focuses on economic and environmental dimensions. Although the most relevant economic and environmental criteria are consistent across both domains, the key social criteria show a notable misalignment. Managers can utilize the most relevant sustainability supplier evaluation criteria identified in this study to promote sustainable supply chains and ensure compliance with due diligence requirements. This research also highlights the high relevance of human rights as a social criterion, a dimension that has been historically under-recognized or implicitly addressed in the literature
Assessing the impact of numerical precision on statistical fine-mapping and developing a comprehensive gene prioritisation tool for kidney function using genome-wide association meta-analyses
Get PDFImpaired kidney function represents a major global health burden. However, therapeutic options are still limited. The understanding of kidney physiology and its influencing genetic factors is important for the development of new therapeutic targets. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) can highlight the connections between complex traits and genetic polymorphisms. Nevertheless, GWAS do not identify single causal variants, but regions of highly correlated variants, which are all statistically associated with the trait. Thus, additional statistical and bioinformatic analyses are necessary to determine likely causal polymorphisms and genes.
One sign of impaired kidney function is a reduced glomerular filtration rate (GFR), which can be estimated from the blood serum biomarker creatinine (eGFR). Previous GWAS meta-analyses identified 424 genetic loci and 634 independent signals associated with eGFR. In this thesis, this GWAS meta-analysis was replicated with more decimal digits for effect estimate and standard error than the standard software provides by default to analyse the impact on the identification of independent signals and the subsequent statistical fine-mapping to determine the most likely causal variants. Secondary signal identification with 6 and 7 decimal digits for effect estimate and standard error instead of 4 revealed 52 novel independent signals while 542 signals were replicated. The number of credible set variants, which are the result of fine-mapping, was reduced from 38,306 to 35,885. A replication with 8 decimal digits showed no relevant changes, which implies 4 telling digits to be sufficient for stable secondary signal identification and fine-mapping.
The credible set variants from the statistical fine-mapping pinpoint to the effector variants which may act on the causal genes. Therefore, publicly available functional and regulatory data from Combined Annotation Dependent Depletion (CADD) database, NEPTUNE study, Susztak lab and GTEx platform was used to annotate the credible set variants. Data from Mouse Genome Informatics (MGI), Online Mendelian Inheritance in Men (OMIM), Groopman et al., Wopperer et al. and Therapeutic Drug Database was used to identify genes in eGFR associated loci that are already described in the context of kidney function or drug development.
KidneyGPS was developed as a web application based on this comprehensive data. It enables easy access to the statistical and functional data for individual variants, genes or genetic regions. In addition, various filters can be used to prioritize genes that could be suitable as candidates for further functional studies. In two prioritization examples, the 8 genes UMOD, GP2, GALNTL5, TPPP, CACNA1S, POR, PKHD1 and NPHS1 were highlighted. KidneyGPS is available under https://kidneygps.ur.de/gps/