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Dark patterns on social media:Case note on Amsterdam District Court, 2 October 2025, ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2025:7253
No full textDe rechtbank Amsterdam heeft op 2 oktober een heuse primeur door artikel 25 DSA toe te passen in een zaak tussen Bits of Freedom (hierna: BoF) en Meta: de onderneming achter Instagram en Facebook. De centrale vraag is of de wijze waarop Facebook en Instagram zijn ingericht, in het bijzonder hoe de aanbevelingssystemen worden gepresenteerd, in strijd is met de DSA. De rechtbank oordeelt dat de wijze waarop Facebook en Instagram gebruikers de mogelijkheid biedt om te kiezen tussen een een geprofileerd en een niet-geprofileerd aanbevelingssysteem op een aantal onderdelen in strijd is met de verplichtingen uit de DSA. De platforms moeten op die onderdelen worden aangepast.The Amsterdam District Court created a genuine precedent on 2 October by applying Article 25 of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in a case between Bits of Freedom and Meta, the company behind Instagram and Facebook. The central question is whether the way Facebook and Instagram are designed, particularly how their recommendation systems are presented, is contrary to the DSA. The court held that, in several respects, the manner in which Facebook and Instagram offer users the option to choose a between a profiled and non-profiled recommendation system is inconsistent with the obligations under the DSA. The platforms must be adjusted on those points
Cost Comparison of Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy With and Without Intraoperative Cone-beam Computed Tomography:18-month Postoperative Analysis
No full textBACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Residual fragments (RFs) after percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) increase the risk of stone-related events (SREs) such as reinterventions and emergency department (ED) visits. Intraoperative cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) facilitates detection and removal of RFs to improve stone-free rates and potentially reduce SREs. To determine whether the initial increase in surgical costs for CBCT in a hybrid operating room (OR) is offset by a reduction in overall expenses by minimizing SREs, we compared the total in-hospital health care costs of standard PCNL versus CBCT-PCNL over an 18-mo period.METHODS: Data from a previous randomized controlled trial including 80 patients undergoing CBCT-PCNL and 80 undergoing conventional PCNL were analyzed. Procedural costs were calculated by multiplying operative duration by the Dutch reference price per minute, and adding disposable costs. Follow-up costs included costs for complications, SREs (reinterventions, ED visits, drainage, admissions), imaging, and consultations during 18 mo.KEY FINDINGS AND LIMITATIONS: Assuming utilization rates of 42% for a hybrid OR and 92% for a conventional OR and following reference prices, we calculated mean total costs per patient of €8725 for the CBCT group and €8564 for the control group, with a difference of €167. The 40.2% higher procedural costs for hybrid-OR PCNL were nearly offset by 38.3% lower follow-up, complication, and SRE costs. Limitations include the single-center design, incomplete cost standardization, and the exclusion of non-hospital costs such as productivity loss.CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: While PCNL with CBCT in a hybrid OR increases operative costs, it lowers SREs and unplanned care expenses. Even at a significantly lower hybrid OR utilization rate, total health care costs remain comparable, so PCNL-CBCT can facilitate predictable resource use and efficient care, with potential benefits for patients and health care systems.PATIENT SUMMARY: A new technique using CT (computed tomography) scans during surgery may help in more complete extraction of kidney stone fragments. Our study shows that even though this procedure is more expensive, it reduces the need for postoperative appointments, scans, emergency department visits and additional operations.</p
Impact of positive surgical margins on biochemical recurrence and metastases after radical prostatectomy
No full textInsight into the recent situation of metronidazole resistance and nim gene positivity in Bacteroides fragilis group isolates from Germany, Hungary, Italy and Slovenia
No full textWe investigated metronidazole resistance mechanism in Bacteroides fragilis group strains isolated from four European countries. Among 581 isolates we identified 10 nim-positive (nimACDEH) isolates that had the genes on various plasmids or on the chromosome. The nim-positive strains harbored more cfiA genes than it could usually be detected among B. fragilis strains.</p
Reducing Transaction Costs Through Digitalization:Challenges in the Order to Cash Process of Logistics Service Providers
No full textLogistics Service Providers (LSPs) face specific challenges in their Order-to-Cash (O2C) processes due to complex pricing structures and relatively low profit margins. In this chapter, using a multiple case study approach, we apply Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) to examine the factors leading to inefficiencies in LSPs’ O2C processes. Our research is based on four in-depth case studies of LSPs in the Netherlands, combining 19 semi-structured interviews with employees from different departments and secondary data on orders, invoices, and payments. The findings reveal that the main O2C inefficiencies stem from a lack of an integrated vision of the process as a whole, insufficient internal coordination and collaboration between departments, and challenges related to digitalization and automation, including limitations in employees’ IT skills. These insights highlight the need for LSPs to optimize their O2C processes to improve financial performance and operational efficiency.</p
Single-molecule identification of full-length proteins with single-amino-acid resolution using nanopores
No full textNanopore-based technologies show promise in single-molecule protein sequencing. By using an unfoldase and a nanopore with enhanced electroosmotic flow, here we show the continuous identification of generic proteins during single nanopore passes. This approach enables the recording of differences in charge and size from single amino acid substitutions compared to reference signals, paving the way for single-molecule protein sequencing and high-throughput proteomics.</p
A validated finite element model for designing a multistage forming process to enhance annealing-induced shape change in AISI 420 sheet
No full textHeat treatment of metallic components, while crucial for achieving desired material properties, often inducesshape changes that compromise dimensional accuracy. For components manufactured from AISI 420 sheet, thisshape change is minor yet critical, presenting significant challenges for experimental measurement and parametricinvestigation. This work develops and validates a finite element-based constitutive model suite to not onlypredict this phenomenon but also to design a novel multistage forming process that deliberately amplifies theshape change for measurability. The model, which incorporates mechanical and thermal effects, was implementedin a staged workflow preserving state variables across simulations. Validation against an existing processdemonstrated excellent agreement in predicting both earing and annealing-induced shape change. Subsequently,this validated model was employed to design a new process. Among five tooling variants assessed, the optimizeddesign successfully amplifies the shape change to 47.3 µm, a tenfold increase over an existing process. Ouranalysis reveals that shape change is governed by the magnitude and components of residual stress inconjunction with product geometry. This study contributes a validated constitutive model suite, a systematicworkflow for FEM-based process design, and a novel multistage forming process engineered to amplifyannealing-induced shape change and enhance measurability
International guidelines for the delineation of the postoperative clinical target volumes (CTV) for parotid and submandibular gland cancers
No full textBackground and purpose: Post-operative radiotherapy (PORT) for major salivary gland cancers increasingly relies on highly conformal techniques, making rigorous and reproducible clinical target volume (CTV) delineation essential. There are currently limited data to guide radiation oncologists with CTV delineation for PORT of parotid and submandibular gland cancers in the era of IMRT or IMPT. Materials and methods: We formed an international panel to develop practical, consensus-based guidelines for peritumoral CTVs around the primary site (CTV-P) and for low-risk nodal CTVs (CTV-N-LR) in parotid and submandibular gland cancers. These guidelines are based on the natural history and extension pathways of these cancers, including local tumor spread, perineural invasion (PNI) risks and regional spread. We reviewed radiographic anatomy, natural history, and routes of tumor extension, including PNI. Agreement levels were categorized as high (≥85 %), moderate (70–84 %), or low (<70 %). Results: Areas of variation and uncertainty in postoperative CTV delineation for parotid and submandibular gland cancers were identified. Through structured discussion and iterative voting, the panel converged on consensus statements that translate available evidence and expert practice into practical, harmonized recommendations. Conclusion: These consensus guidelines offer a pragmatic framework for PORT CTV selection in parotid and submandibular gland cancers. They should be implemented with careful imaging-pathology correlation and multidisciplinary judgment, and adapted to patient-specific risk factors; areas of uncertainty warrant further study.</p