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Child penalties in labour market skills
Get PDFThis paper estimates child penalties in labour-market-relevant cognitive skills, such as numeracy but also literacy and problem-solving competencies. We use international PIAAC data and adapt a pseudo-panel approach to a single cross-section covering 29 countries. Numeracy scores, which are associated with the largest returns to skills and pronounced gender differences, decline by 0.11 standard deviations for fathers and an additional 0.07 for mothers. We find no evidence of a deterioration in the occupational skill match for either mothers or fathers. Our findings suggest that changes in general labour market skills such as numeracy competencies explain at most 10% of child penalties in earnings. We additionally show that cross-sectional estimates of child penalties can be sensitive to controlling for predetermined characteristics that vary across cohorts, in our case education
Virtual Assistant as a companion for stroke survivors post discharge: thematic analysis highlights
Get PDFIntroduction: Health-related information and support is scarcely available to stroke survivors following discharge from hospital, largely due to limited access to health professionals. Digital tools like Virtual Assistants (VAs) can address some of these needs on demand in a home environment, and there already is evidence of their effective deployment in health contexts. However, to maximise how individuals engage with such technological tools in or post development, it is integral that their design be grounded to the needs and associated expectations of the target user population. Methods: We conducted workshops where stroke survivors roleplayed as VAs and users and fed back on their expectations of a stroke-specific VA. In our one-to-one interviews with stroke survivors, we simulated VA interactions with two functions: administering PROMs and asking questions. Then, in testing sessions, stroke survivors, family, and caregivers responded to PROMs both on the VA and with a human, before sharing their thoughts about the VA. Results: Our thematic analysis yielded four themes with semantic and latent codes. Aligned with past research, we observed an unmet need for information and support on demand following discharge. Participants expected the VA to on demand provide information not typically available through healthcare interactions. Participants perceived the VA in our study as human or as a personable animate object, and the subsequent anthropomorphic expectations were the least addressable barrier to engaging with the VA. Conclusion: These qualitative findings validate that common expectations of digital tools in general adult populations extend to stroke survivors, emphasising the importance of participatory design to account for addressable barriers to initially and continuously engaging with a digital health tool
Conservative data-driven finite element framework with adaptive hp -refinement for diffusion problems with material uncertainty
Get PDFThis paper presents a new data-driven finite element framework that is applicable to a broad range of engineering simulation problems. In the data-driven approach, the conservation laws and boundary conditions are satisfied by means of the finite element method, while the experimental data is used directly in numerical simulations, avoiding material models. Critically, we introduce a “weaker” mixed finite element formulation, which relaxes the regularity requirements on the approximation space for the primary field. At the same time, the continuity of the normal flux component is enforced across inner boundaries, allowing the conservation law to be satisfied in the strong sense. The relaxed regularity of the approximation spaces makes it easier to observe how imperfections in the datasets, such as missing or noisy data, result in non-uniqueness of the solution. This can be quantified to predict the uncertainty of the results using methods such as Markov chain Monte Carlo. Furthermore, this formulation provides a posteriori error indicators tailored for the data-driven approach, providing confidence in the results and enabling efficient solution schemes via adaptive hp-refinement. The capabilities of the formulation are demonstrated on an example of the nonlinear heat transfer in nuclear graphite using synthetically generated material datasets. This work provides an essential component for numerical frameworks for complex engineering systems such as digital twins
Surface uplift of the Eastern Alps. Was it much faster than we thought?
Get PDFConstraining the surface uplift history of mountain belts is difficult because– due to erosion– the surface is made of ever-changing rock levels and changes in surface elevation over time can only be indirectly inferred. Here we present ²⁶Al/¹⁰Be burial ages of siliceous fluvial sediments that were deposited into karst caves as a proxy for surface uplift of the Eastern Alps. We present a consistent and homogenized dataset for the Eastern Alps that includes 31 new burial ages, together with 36 previously published burial ages that have been recalculated. Most of the sampled caves are now inactive and are located at between 600 and 2400 m a.s.l.. The cave sediments were deposited when they formed at the phreatic-vadose transition at base level, which we assume has remained at constant elevation through time. The samples are from regions that were variably affected by Pleistocene glaciation. Cosmogenic ²¹Ne concentrations in samples from 20 caves record prolonged and complicated Neogene exposure. Generally ²¹Ne/¹⁰Be burial ages cannot be used to determine cave level ages, but the ²¹Ne data preserve a record of denudation and burial since the Oligocene. The homogenized dataset of 67 ²⁶Al/¹⁰Be burial ages allows us to infer 1200–1500 m of surface uplift for the Northern Calcareous Alps and ~ 500 m in the transition zone towards the Pannonian Basin in the east during the last 3–5 Ma. The fastest surface uplift rate is estimated for the ranges around the Salzach valley (407 ± 34 m/ Ma), followed by the Ges¨ ause region (357 ± 19 m/Ma). For the Dachstein Massif, the Hochschwab and the Schneealm regions we interpret post-Miocene surface uplift rates of 224 ± 21 m/Ma, 272 ± 12 m/Ma and 283 ± 13 m/Ma, respectively. Uplift rates decrease to the east: the Mur valley and the Semmering uplifted at 137 ± 11 m/Ma and 125 ± 3m/Ma, respectively. The data support the notion that much of the topography of the Eastern Alps was created in the last 5 Ma rather than the 30 Ma timescale that previous studies have suggested. The long wavelength nature of the uplift over formerly glaciated and unglaciated regions implies that the surface uplift was caused by sub-lithospheric processes and that climatic factors played only a minor role
Generating Older Active Lives Digitally (GOALD): exploring older adults’ views of digital technology for physical activity
Get PDFBackground: The use of digital technology for supporting physical activity (PA) in older adults has increased recently despite the paucity of research exploring perceptions and age-appropriateness of these technologies.
Methods: Older adults (n = 120) residing in care homes (n = 45) and living independently (n = 75) in England and Scotland, as well as care home staff (n = 30) and young adults (n = 7) appraised a variety of different PA technologies (eg, online and digital platforms, exergames, and virtual reality headsets) through a multiphase approach. Technologies were presented as a “menu” to participants to select at interactive sessions. Feedback was collected through focus groups, interviews, codesign workshops, and field notes, all analyzed thematically. Participant characteristics including PA levels and familiarity with technology were collected via questionnaire at baseline and after appraising selected technologies.
Results: Qualitative findings explored 6 overarching themes: (1) recognizing the potential of technology, (2) suitability of PA technology, (3) barriers to using PA technology, (4) motivation to engage with digital technology, (5) content suggestions for future PA technology, and (6) preferences for PA technology delivery. PA engagement and prior experience with digital technologies varied greatly at baseline. Overall, participants’ perceptions and appraisal of the PA technologies varied according to their context and setting, prior experience with technology, and PA engagement. Quantitative data were challenging to gather, with complete data available from only 18% out of those consented.
Conclusions: Older adults in this study demonstrated a keen interest in digital technologies for PA, but context- and health-related barriers for engagement with these tools need addressing
Adenophages are an atypical macrophage population in exocrine glands sustained by ILC2-derived GM-CSF
No full textGranulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF, Csf2) is a potent proinflammatory cytokine1. At steady state, however, GM-CSF has a distinct homeostatic function, being essential for the differentiation and maintenance of alveolar macrophages2–5. Whether macrophage development in nonpulmonary tissues is similarly dependent on GM-CSF is unclear. Here we examine developing tissues of GM-CSF fate-mapping and reporter mice6. We show that type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) in the salivary glands produce GM-CSF and identify a macrophage subset that we refer to as ‘adenophages’. Adenophages are noncanonical macrophages that are derived from fetal monocytes and are progressively replaced by monocyte–dendritic cell progenitor-derived monocytes. These cells form a spatial niche triad with GM-CSF-producing ILC2s and myoepithelial cells and are required for efficient secretion of saliva. Importantly, adenophages are present throughout exocrine glands, including lacrimal glands and mammary glands, and are also present in humans, indicating a conserved role in exocrine glands across species
Atrial fibrillation and tricuspid regurgitation in patients undergoing mitral valve transcatheter edge-to-edge repair
No full textThe interplay between atrial fibrillation (AF) and tricuspid regurgitation (TR) has been recognized. However, it is not simple and has not been fully investigated. The aim of this study was to examine the association among AF, TR, and outcomes in patients undergoing mitral valve transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (M-TEER). Patients were divided into 4 groups according to the presence of AF and postprocedural significant TR (moderate or greater): no AF and no TR, no AF with significant TR, AF and no TR, and AF with significant TR. The primary outcome was cardiovascular death or heart failure (HF) hospitalization. Right heart structure and function were also evaluated according to AF and TR status. The numbers of patients in each group were 1,184 (no AF and no TR), 229 (no AF with significant TR), 1,423 (AF and no TR), and 830 (AF with significant TR). AF was associated with a higher prevalence of significant TR at baseline and more frequent TR progression and less common improvement during follow-up. Both AF and TR appeared to be independently associated with right-ventricular remodeling and dysfunction, with distinct patterns observed according to MR and TR pathologies. TR grade moderate or greater after M-TEER was associated with a higher adjusted risk for cardiovascular death or HF hospitalization, especially in patients with AF (P = 0.02). Patients with AF, compared with those without AF, experienced greater incidence and progression and less common improvement of TR after M-TEER. In addition, both AF and TR appeared to be independently associated with worse right ventricular status and an increased risk for HF outcomes
Where Are They? The Absence of Social Robots in Real-world Environments
No full textThe field of human-robot interaction frequently proclaims the inevitable coming of the social robot era, with claims that social robots are increasingly being deployed in the real world. However, in practice, social robots remain scarce in everyday environments. In addition, HRI research rarely explores robots through an organisational lens. This results in a lack of evidence-based understanding of the organisational conditions that are key to the presence--or absence--of social robots in the real world, which are often more decisive than technical sophistication. In this paper, we motivate why organisational context is crucial to the investigation of real-world social robots and provide examples of how this shapes robot acceptance. We detail the methodology of our ongoing empirical research with client organisations and robot developers. Through this critical organisational lens, we learn where social robots are, what they are doing, how they are designed, and why organisations are deploying them
Enhancing liquefaction analysis of the coastal area in Bengkulu City, Indonesia using data-driven techniques
No full textBengkulu City, located along the active Sumatra Subduction Zone, faces a high risk of liquefaction due to its geological formation, which consists of saturated Holocene coastal deposits. Although previous studies have advanced local hazard mapping, limited spatial coverage and conventional site investigation methods have constrained regional-scale assessments. This study developed data-driven techniques using a deep neural network (DNN) to enhance subsoil data derived from microtremor and borehole measurements to support spatially continuous liquefaction hazard mapping. The optimised DNN model, trained on microtremor-derived shear wave velocity profiles and topographical data, enabled the generation of high-resolution site classification, peak ground acceleration and liquefaction susceptibility assessment under the 2007 Bengkulu–Mentawai earthquake scenario. Liquefaction hazards were evaluated using the factor of safety and liquefaction potential index, while ground deformations were estimated through volumetric strain modelling and lateral displacement predictions based on the lateral displacement index. Results show a sandy-dominated stratigraphy with severe liquefaction risks concentrated in the southern parts of Bengkulu City. Ground settlements were generally shallow, while lateral displacements reached up to 3.8 metres in critical zones. Integrating DNN-based subsoil profiles with empirical hazard models enhances regional liquefaction assessments, offering a scalable and efficient tool to support seismic risk mitigation and infrastructure resilience in seismically active coastal environments
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