47011 research outputs found
Sort by
Progression of Academic Surgical Residents to Higher Academic Training and Associations With Protected Characteristics: A UK Cohort Study
Get PDFIntroduction: The Integrated Academic Training (IAT) pathway was introduced to support surgical academic careers encouraging research integration alongside clinical training. Success of the IAT pathway remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the progression of IAT surgical trainees from Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF) to Clinical Lecturship (CL) while exploring the impact of gender, age and COVID-19. Method and Materials: A retrospective cohort study (2016-2024) of 686 academic trainees across 10 surgical specialties was conducted using data from the Joint Committee on Surgical Training (JCST) and ISCP. Statistical analysis was performed using cox proportional hazards and logistic regression models to assess factors influencing progression from ACF to CL. Demographic variables and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (defined by training start year) were analysed. Results: Progression from ACF to CL was low (7.3%) with no significant gender differences observed in progression rates (7.62% for men vs 6.32% for women). COVID-19 had a significantly negative impact on progression, with an adjusted odds ratio of 0.09 (95% CI: 0.003-0.30, p < 0.001), indicating a markedly reduced likelihood of progressing during the pandemic era. Specialty had no effect (p = 0.94), and age under 30 showed a trend toward improved progression, though not statistically significant (p = 0.316). Trainees in Paediatric Surgery and Neurosurgery had the longest academic placements. Conclusion: The surgical IAT pathway has high attrition and unequal progression rates, especially post COVID-19. Despite gender parity in progression rates, systemic issues such as COVID-19, insufficient support and the inequalities in non-run-through training pathways hinder academic career development. Reforms are needed to address these challenges and improve the IAT pathway's effectiveness in developing a future surgical academic workforce
Experimental Validation of Manufacturable Edgewise Winding Solutions Considering Parallel Slot and Parallel Tooth Stator Structures
Get PDFHigh-power-density electric machines play a key role in decarbonising transportation technologies. A critical component of the movement towards high-performance machines is the structure and manufacture of the windings, as this is the dominant source of machine loss. Manufacturing time is important to the effectiveness of the production line, with equivalent importance to the electromagnetic and thermal characteristics. Edgewise windings are increasingly considered to have high potential to be quickly and automatically manufactured. However, they are rarely studied considering all the aspects, these being electromagnetic, thermal, and manufacturing characteristics. This paper will experimentally assess the performance of edgewise machines compared to a stranded winding machine, covering all the aforementioned aspects. Two edgewise winding types are considered, parallel slot and parallel tooth. Firstly, a baseline 11 kW stranded winding machine will be introduced, then two edgewise type machines are proposed to be compared to the baseline machine. These comparisons will initially be made based on simulated torque and thermal performance, then the manufacturing time and quality are assessed for each of the coil structures, showing the achievable time reduction by using edgewise coil structures. Motorettes are used to validate thermal performance of the structures, which are used to calibrate simulation models and evaluate the performance of a full machine equivalent model. Under the thermal limit condition, it is shown that the edgewise parallel tooth windings can achieve a torque increase of 27.8% compared to stranded and 24% compared to edgewise parallel slot
Thermal resonance-enhanced transparency in room-temperature Rydberg gases
Get PDFWe report the enhanced optical transmission in the coherent, off-resonant excitation of Rydberg atom gases at room temperature via a two-photon process. Here thermal resonance-enhanced transparency (TRET) is induced when the detuning of the two lasers is adjusted to compensate the atomic thermal-motion-induced energy shifts, i.e., single- and two-photon Doppler shifts. We show that the atomic velocity is mapped into the transmission of the probe fields, which can be altered by independently and selectively exciting different velocity groups through sweeping the detuning. The maximal transmission in TRET is about 8 times higher than that under electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). Utilizing the TRET effect, we enhance the sensitivity of a Rydberg microwave receiver to be 28.7 nV cm−1Hz−1/2, ultimately reaching a factor of 2.1 of the EIT case. When atoms of separate velocity groups are excited simultaneously by multiple laser sets of different detuning, the receiver sensitivity increases with the number of laser sets. Our study paves the way to exploit light-matter interaction via the TRET, and contributes to current efforts in developing quantum sensing, primary gas thermometry, and wireless communication with room-temperature atomic gases
Unraveling varying spatiotemporal patterns of Dengue Fever and associated exposure-response relationships with environmental variables in three Southeast Asian countries before and during COVID-19
Get PDFThe enforcement of COVID-19 interventions by diverse governmental bodies, coupled with the indirect impact of COVID-19 on short-term environmental changes (e.g., plant shutdowns lead to lower greenhouse gas emissions), influences the Dengue Fever (DF) vector. This provides a unique opportunity to investigate the indirect impact of COVID-19 on DF transmission and generate insights for targeted prevention measures. We aim to compare DF transmission patterns and the exposure-response relationship of environmental variables and DF incidence in the pre- and during-COVID-19 to identify variations and assess the indirect impact of COVID-19 on DF transmission. We initially visualized the overall trend of DF transmission from 2017-2022, then conducted two quantitative analyses to compare DF transmission pre-COVID-19 (2017–2019) and during-COVID-19 (2020–2022). These analyses included time series analysis to assess DF seasonality, and a Distributed Lag Non-linear Model (DLNM) to quantify the exposure-response relationship between environmental variables and DF incidence. We observed a notable surge in Singapore during-COVID-19, particularly from May to August in 2020 and 2022, with cases multiplying several times compared to pre-COVID-19. All subregions in Thailand exhibited remarkable synchrony with a similar annual trend except 2021. Cyclic patterns remained generally consistent, but seasonal variability in Singapore has become increasingly pronounced. Monthly DF incidence in three countries varied significantly. Exposure-response relationships of DF and environmental variables show varying degrees of change, notably in Northern Thailand, where the peak relative risk for the maximum temperature-DF relationship rose from about 3–17, and the max RR of overall cumulative association 0–3 months of relative humidity increased from around 4–40. Our study is the first to compare DF transmission patterns and their relationship with environmental variables before and during COVID-19, demonstrating that the pandemic has affected DF transmission and altered the exposure-response relationship at both national and regional levels
Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: Investigating the Role of Management Innovation through Marketing Intensity
Get PDFThis study investigates the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and firm performance using panel data from 716 Chinese firms listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock from 2013 to 2019. It further examines the role of management innovation, specifically marketing intensity, in moderating the CSR–financial performance relationship. The findings reveal that CSR has a positive and statistically significant impact on firm financial performance. Moreover, firms with higher marketing intensity derive greater financial benefits from their CSR activities. These results deepen the understanding of how CSR contributes to firm performance and highlight the strategic value of marketing in amplifying the returns from sustainability efforts. Marketing intensity appears to legitimise sustainability efforts in the eyes of stakeholders, thereby strengthening the financial returns from CSR. Our findings offer valuable practical and policy implications for firms and decision-makers aiming to integrate CSR into their strategic and operational frameworks
EU copyright harmonisation: An empirical analysis of national courts case law
No full textThis book provides the first comprehensive comparative and empirical analysis of the state of harmonisation in EU copyright law in the 27 Member States, and the UK, at the level of national courts.For 3 decades, the EU has harmonised many aspects of copyright law via EU legislation and the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU). However, it is not known whether national courts actually comply with it, as a comprehensive analysis of the national case law has not yet been done. This book addresses this major gap in the literature.In the book, a lawyer and a statistician analyse some of the most recent decisions on EU copyright law issued by the 27 Member States and the UK (pre- and post-Brexit), using doctrinal and quantitative methodologies. The main research question addressed is whether there is disharmony in the national case law and whether this is owed to Members States' misimplementing EU copyright legislation, lack of clarity of EU legislation and/or case law, or national courts being unaware, misinterpreting or resisting CJEU case law.The book provides detailed legal analyses and descriptive statistics per topic, per type of work, per country, across countries and over time supported by statistical analysis. Its findings and in-depth reflections on the law and how to improve it are of crucial relevance for policymakers and the judiciary at EU and national level and will interest scholarly audiences in the UK, EU, EEA and beyond
The Future of Professional Ethics in Computing
Get PDFA commitment to the public good is at the core of all professions. This is reflected in the principles and practices of the ACM and prominently displayed in the ACM code of ethics and professional conduct. In this opinion piece, which marks the transition of the ethics column of the CACM from Susan Winter to Bernd Stahl, we review key ethical questions linked to computing that have been covered in the past and that may be relevant in future. We want to encourage ACM members and other readers to become engaged and express their hopes, fears and expectations concerning current and expected ethical questions. Drawing on their professional expertise when reflecting on ethical questions and contributing to the public debate is an important way in which computing professionals can contribute to the public good
Experiences of Autistic People in Police Custody: The Need for Adjustments to Improve Participation in the Custody Process
Get PDFThe aim of this study was to understand what influences autistic people’s experiences of police custody and how their participation in the custody process may be affected. In addition, the study aimed to understand what strategies may mitigate any potential difficulties autistic people have in police custody. Twelve autistic people were interviewed about their experiences of being detained in police custody as suspects and their views on how to improve support in this setting. Participants described how the combined impact of not being able to understand their arrest and detention as suspects and having to cope with the demands associated with being detained in the custody environment, adversely affected their participation in the custody process. They referred to experiencing a desire to escape police custody which influenced the how they made key decisions and engaged in the police interview. Because of these negative experiences and potential consequences, participants also discussed the importance of making adjustments in order to mitigate the potential impact on their participation in the custody process. The findings illustrate how the overall experiences of autistic people are influenced by the combination of the difficulties experienced by autistic people understanding their arrest and detention, being able to cope with the custody environment and the detrimental impact this can have on their participation in the custody process. They also demonstrate the importance of making adjustments to support their participation in the custody process
A comparison of the costs and patterns of expenditure for care for severe mental illness in five countries with different levels of economic development
Get PDFAimsThe aim of the article is to undertake the first economic analysis exploring the costs of illness (COIs) and factors affecting COIs in people living with mental disorders using individual patient-level data across five countries with different national income levels. This is done by investigating diagnosis-related and sociodemographic factors for country-specific medical and psychosocial service use in these high, lower-middle and low-income countries.MethodsUsing data from the Using Peer Support In Developing Empowering Mental Health Services (UPSIDES) study, a pragmatic randomized controlled trial, costs for medical and psychosocial services have been estimated over 6 months in 615 people with severe mental illness from Germany (n = 171), Uganda (n = 138), Tanzania (n = 110), India (n = 93) and Israel (n = 103). The primary economic analysis included (1) total COI expressed in 2021 international dollars and (2) proportional cost-type expenditures. Generalized linear regression models were also used to estimate the impact of psychiatric diagnosis, social disability, age and gender on the total COI.ResultsOf the 615 participants (mean [SD] age 38.3 [11.2] years; 335 [54.5%] women), the total 6-month COI ranged from 10,493.19 [±13324.10] in Germany. High-income Germany and low-income Uganda both concentrated >70% of COIs on inpatient care. High-income Israel had the most balanced COI, with the lowest mean share (15.40%) on inpatient care, compared with community (35.12%) and primary care (33.01%). Female gender was associated with lower COI (eb = 0.215; p = 0.000) in Tanzania, while in India diagnosis of depression was associated with lower costs than schizophrenia (eb = 0.363; p = 0.017). Health of the Nation Outcome Scale scores (social disability) were not significantly associated with COIs in any country. In Tanzania, the total mean COI increased by 3.6% for every additional year of age. Compared to Germany, mean COIs were significantly lower by 90%, 99% and 86% in Uganda, Tanzania and India, respectively, and by 50% in Israel, although this difference was not significant.ConclusionsNational income is correlated with the total COI in people living with mental disorders but is a poor predictor of the sector-specific distribution of these expenditures
Access Repository Dashboard
Do you manage Open Research Online? Become a CORE Member to access insider analytics, issue reports and manage access to outputs from your repository in the CORE Repository Dashboard! 👇