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Concepts' Information Bottleneck Models
No full textConcept Bottleneck Models (CBMs) aim to deliver interpretable predictions by routing decisions through a human-understandable concept layer, yet they often suffer reduced accuracy and concept leakage that undermines faithfulness. We introduce an explicit Information Bottleneck regularizer on the concept layer that penalizes I(X;C) while preserving task-relevant information in I(C;Y ), encouraging minimal-sufficient concept representations. We derive two practical variants (a variational objective and an entropy-based surrogate) and integrate them into standard CBM training without architectural changes or additional supervision. Evaluated across six CBM families and three benchmarks, the IB-regularized models consistently outperform their vanilla counterparts. Information-plane analyses further corroborate the intended behavior. These results indicate that enforcing a minimal-sufficient concept bottleneck improves both predictive performance and the reliability of concept-level interventions. The proposed regularizer offers a theoretic-grounded, architecture-agnostic path to more faithful and intervenable CBMs, resolving prior evaluation inconsistencies by aligning training protocols and demonstrating robust gains across model families and datasets
The utility of machine learning in the management of patients with peripheral arterial disease
No full textEncounters and Values: Understanding the Human-Elasmobranch Relationship through Culture and Tourism
No full textSpatial factors predict variation in reports of human-wildlife interactions but not public attitudes towards a widespread urban carnivore, the red fox
No full textDespite growing recognition that spatial factors such as urbanisation and geographic region shape human-wildlife interactions, few studies have examined – on a large geographic scale – how spatial factors reflect the subjective human dimensions to those interactions, including public attitudes and self-reported encounters with wildlife. Understanding how spatial factors shape these dimensions may have implications for urban rewilding because they can reflect local tolerance of animals and may potentially predict human-wildlife interactions. We examined how urbanisation type and geographic region are related to people’s attitudes, reported encounters (public feeding and bin-raiding), and reported use of control measures towards the world’s most urbanised terrestrial carnivore, the red fox, Vulpes vulpes. Online survey data were obtained from 1,275 participants in the United Kingdom. Reports of fox bin-raiding were associated with increased reports of wildlife feeding, more negative attitudes towards foxes, and greater reported use of professional and do-it-yourself control measures. However, the role of spatial factors varied among these relationships. Specifically, urbanisation and geographic region significantly predicted reports of fox bin-raiding, with urban residents – particularly from London – more likely to report such behaviour. Urbanisation predicted reports of wildlife feeding and use of professional pest control of foxes within their area. Geographic region predicted reports of do-it-yourself control measures. Neither urbanisation nor geographic region significantly predicted public attitudes towards foxes. Together, these findings highlight the complex interactions between spatial context and the subjective human dimensions of wildlife interactions, underscoring the importance of nuanced, context-specific strategies to support human-wildlife coexistence and urban rewilding initiatives
“We’re All in It Together”: Student Perspectives on Compassionate Pedagogy in Higher Education
No full textThe value of compassion in promoting student wellbeing is being increasingly recognised by higher education institutions. Integrating compassion within pedagogic practice to develop a compassionate learning environment is important for wider student benefit. This qualitative study explores healthcare student perspectives and experiences regarding compassionate pedagogy. Four activity-oriented focus groups were conducted with undergraduate students. Thematic analysis identified five themes: connection, recognising the student as a whole person, cultivating compassion together, physical environment, and processes and systems. Findings suggest that students view compassion as extending far beyond classroom activities. They see it as a reciprocal process involving all individuals within an institution, requiring a change in institutional culture that prioritises students and staff as whole people. The insights provided by the students in this study are important in shaping a more compassionate higher education environment that minimises distress and maximises flourishing. Recommendations to enhance compassionate pedagogy are provided
The multifaceted implications of mental fatigue on women’s football players’ performance in small-sided games
Full text linkResearch shows that mental fatigue (MF) can negatively impact physical performance. However, the effects of MF during football match-play are not well understood, particularly in women, and its impact on psychological factors is less known (e.g., attentional focus). This study explored the physical and psychological effects of MF in women's football during 7 vs. 7 small-sided games (SSGs). 14 Women's National League players (M age = 25.9 ± 5.9 years) participated. A counterbalanced cross-over design was implemented involving a MF (30-min social media use), and a control condition (30-min sitting with teammates with no phone access) prior to 3 × 7-min SSGs, interspersed with 2-min rest. GPS was used to monitor work output. Participants had microphones attached and were asked to ‘think aloud’ (TA) during SSGs; content analysis was used to examine players' attentional focus and communication. MF (visual analogue scale) and fatigue (BRUMS) increased pre-to post-MF (+1.95 ± 1.45, p 0.05). Total TA was lower (p = .046) and there was less positive performance-related TA (p = .022) in MF (22.53 ± 13.11; 0.15 ± 0.38) vs. control (30.00 ± 17.84; 1.54 ± 2.11). There was more negative non-performance related communication (p = .031), and less joking with teammates (p = .020) with MF (0.85 ± 1.07; 1.69 ± 1.80) vs. control (0.08 ± 0.28; 4.39 ± 3.78). In sum, 30-min social media use was associated with reduced happiness, vigour and heightened perceptions of fatigue, and effected how able participants were to engage in TA, how positive their thoughts were, and how they communicated with teammates. Avoiding phone use prior to training and match-play may be worth considering. Further team-sport research could incorporate TA methods which the present study showed to be feasible, to understand more on players' cognitive processing in match-play
Reconstructing prehistoric land cover and landuse in complex ‘blue-green’ landscapes
Full text linkEnvironmental context is vital when analysing archaeological sites and interpreting past human activity. Pollen, being widely dispersed and readily preserved in wetland sediments, is frequently used to investigate past land cover, especially in wetland-rich ‘blue-green’ lowland landscapes (landscapes formed in locations where hydrology is an important determinant of natural vegetation, geomorphology and land use, such as river valleys and estuaries; landscapes which are transitional between aquatic-dominated and terrestrial-dominated). Recent developments in quantitative landcover reconstruction from pollen diagrams, such as the Multiple Scenario Approach (MSA), improve interpretations by taking into account variations in pollen production, dispersal, and sedimentary basin properties. We apply the MSA to derive quantitative, spatially-informed land cover reconstructions for four prehistoric periods in a major UK blue-green lowland landscape, the Humberhead Levels. Reconstructed quantified land cover broadly confirms inferences from previous studies, showing the spread of wet woodland and development of raised mires in the middle Holocene, whilst highlighting the spatial complexity of this dynamic blue-green landscape. The reconstruction process highlights gaps in available data and shows, for example, that the complex interplay of freshwater and marine systems in the later Holocene is only partially understood; thus reconstructions can inform the development of future research agendas in this and other blue-green landscapes. The spatially referenced MSA outputs offer a powerful means of enhancing the integration of pollen analysis with other disciplines, including archaeology, and for developing clear hypotheses for future research
Juvenile Gadoid Distributions Are Driven by Patch Boundaries and Habitat Combinations
Full text linkFish nursery areas need to be determined at the appropriate spatial scale with an understanding of how juvenile fish are distributed across combinations and arrangements of habitat types within seascapes. A seascape approach allows the influence of seabed type, patch sizes, boundaries, and habitat combinations on species distributions to be understood. This study investigated the influence of seascape ecology and species co-occurrence patterns on the distribution of three juvenile gadoids, Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus), and whiting (Merlangius merlangus), while also accounting for the interactions between species as latent variables. We used 757 stereo baited remote underwater video (SBRUV) deployments between 2021 and 2023 across two sea lochs and adjacent bays on the north and west coasts of Scotland to gather relative abundance data. A joint species distribution model was used to determine the seascape drivers of 10 fish species as well as using an unobserved random variable to understand how species co-occurrences influence individual species distributions. Atlantic cod, haddock, and whiting distributions were driven by distinct ecological factors yet had limited areas of overlap. Atlantic cod and haddock were most abundant in areas with a diverse mix of habitats. However, whiting were most abundant in areas with lower habitat diversity. Consistently higher relative abundance of all species near habitat patch boundaries indicates that edge effects and access to multiple habitat types are critical determinants of nursery habitat. Despite their distinct distributions explained by environmental variables, species-to-species co-occurrence patterns were very similar across the three species. This may be indicative of similar ecological roles and biological interactions or similar response to an unrecorded variable. The inclusion of how species respond to seascape structures is valuable because it gives a greater level of understanding of what juvenile fish need in nursery areas at the relevant spatial scale
Micro‐Refuges or Ecological Traps: Context‐Dependent Effects of Rock Pools on Intertidal Biodiversity Across Latitudes
Full text linkAimWe investigated how local-scale environmental heterogeneity influences biodiversity patterns across broad biogeographic gradients, using intertidal microhabitats as a model system within one of the most environmentally stressful ecosystems on Earth.LocationIntertidal habitats at 26 locations (two rocky shore sites per location) across six continents, spanning 98° of latitude (38°S to 60°N).Time Period2019–2022.Major Taxa StudiedAlgae, sessile and mobile invertebrates.MethodsWe compared biodiversity and thermal environments across contrasting microhabitats (rock pools and adjacent emergent rock) along a latitudinal gradient, sampling during environmentally ‘milder’ and ‘harsher’ periods. Biodiversity was quantified using multiple richness metrics (mean, total, unique taxa) and functional diversity.ResultsMicrohabitat differences strongly influenced biodiversity patterns across latitude. Rock pools consistently supported higher taxonomic and functional diversity than emergent rock, irrespective of sampling period, reflecting their ability to buffer thermal extremes, particularly under harsher conditions. Mean species richness exhibited a non-linear, s-shaped latitudinal pattern, with lowest values near the equator and higher richness at mid-latitudes, diverging from classical Latitudinal Diversity Gradient expectations. Biodiversity differences between microhabitats were greatest in temperate regions and diminished at low latitudes, where extreme conditions constrained diversity across habitats.Main ConclusionsLocal environmental heterogeneity can substantially modify, and in some cases obscure large-scale biodiversity patterns. By mediating exposure to environmental stress, intertidal microhabitats provide insight into how fine-scale variability interacts with latitudinal stress gradients to shape biodiversity distributions. Incorporating microhabitat variability into biogeographic frameworks is important for understanding global biodiversity patterns and predicting ecological responses to climate change
Who knows their brain? Brain health and wellness quiz
Full text linkThis resource was designed as a starter activity to be delivered in secondary schools. The quiz is intended as a teacher-led activity that promotes discussion and collaboration between small groups of children to select the knowledge they feel answers the quiz questions, in a fun interactive way. The quiz is multiple choice and rewards students for their discussion and group contribution using a point scoring system. The resource supports knowledge retrieval, knowledge co-construction, and addresses misconceptions pupils may have about brain health and mental wellness.The quiz is not suitable on individual devices and pupils cannot select answers. They can write on paper, whiteboards, or equivalent scribing devices a response e.g., Q1 A, Q2 B etc. and then the teacher clicks the slides forwards on the presentation to reveal the correct answer and points scored. The pupils can self-mark and total their points at the end. It is intended as a fun, interactive, small group or whole class challenge