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"We're Here, We've Got Changed, We're Going Out":Wild swimming groups as ecologies of care
Get PDFGreen/blue wellbeing is increasingly a focus of mental and physical healthcare in the United Kingdom, with green/blue space "prescribing"touted as providing a range of benefits. Attempts to explore the "how"and "why"of potential mental health improvements through these activities to date are primarily quantitative, and/or utilize medical/individualized models. Such approaches are situated within and can reinscribe a humanist, extractivist, one-way relationship with the natural world. Here, we draw on ecofeminist approaches to care to explore findings from our fieldwork with two wild swimming communities in Scotland, enabling us to consider human-nature interactions as relational. The wild swimming focus groups presented a complex picture in which the mental health benefits of swimming are entangled with relationships between group members, and embodied, sensory experiences of and relationships with blue spaces. By conceptualizing these groups as "ecologies of care,"we seek to embrace that intricacy, considering how wild swimming is a political act engaged with through deviant bodies or in deviant temporal/weather conditions, and how care is engendered through mutuality, space, and cold water. In conjunction with this complexity, the emergent nature of these groups has transformative implications for futurity, justice-to-come, and hyper-local ways of living within and alongside blue spaces.</p
Recent advances in the recycling of precious metals using sustainable chemistry
Get PDFPrecious metals (PMs) such as silver, gold, palladium, platinum, and rhodium are used not just in traditional industries like jewelry, but also in modern electronics, medicine, catalysis and others. Their scarcity, as well as the environmental impact of current extraction procedures that frequently include harmful compounds such as cyanide and mercury, provide substantial global issues. With a growing interest in sustainable chemistry, researchers are developing eco-benign ways to extract PMs from secondary sources, like electronic waste, spent catalysts which frequently have greater PM concentrations. This review presents a contemporary analysis of PM recovery with focus on underexplored and emergent avenues, such as bio-based leaching, mechanochemistry, photocatalysis, ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents, and computationally driven ligand design, in addition to reviewing conventional procedures. Sustainability criteria including toxicity, energy use, recyclability, and life-cycle assessment (LCA) are prioritized. Comparative tables and cross-cutting studies reveal which techniques are industrially scalable, which are still in proof-of-concept stage, and where knowledge gaps persist. This review gives a unique perspective on chemical innovation and sustainability evaluation, complementing existing surveys and providing actionable information for academics and industries seeking greener PM recovery.</p
Highly Stable Heterometallic Catalysts for Polyester Depolymerization and Polymerization at High Temperatures
Get PDFChemical depolymerization to monomer is a valuable tool in the quest to prevent the accumulation of single-use plastic, especially poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, in the environment. However, the protic nucleophiles and high temperatures usually required in this process make the development of rationally designed, stable catalysts very challenging. Herein, we report a series of heterobimetallic catalysts, combining Zn(II) and Mg(II) with K(I) and Na(I) to form "ate" complexes that are stable in air and at high temperatures, which can be applied in the depolymerization of PET and poly(lactide), PLA. The catalysts present outstanding stability and remain active after 4 successive PET additions over several days on the bench. Reaction studies reveal the influence of the metal coordinated in the inner pocket of the ligand upon the activity of the metal coordinated in the outer pocket, with different heterobimetallic catalysts being found to be optimal for the depolymerization of PET and PLA respectively. Their potential for application in industrially relevant bulk polymerization of rac-lactide is also demonstrated and provides key insights for rational heterometallic catalyst design in the (de)polymerization of PET and PLA.</p
Imaging a light-induced molecular elimination reaction with an X-ray free-electron laser
Get PDFTracking the motion of individual atoms during chemical reactions represents a severe experimental challenge, especially if several competing reaction pathways exist or if the reaction is governed by the correlated motion of more than two molecular constituents. Here we demonstrate how ultrashort X-ray pulses combined with coincident ion imaging can be used to trace molecular iodine elimination from laser-irradiated diiodomethane (CH2I2), a reaction channel of fundamental importance but small relative yield that involves the breaking of two molecular bonds and the formation of a new one. We map bending vibrations of the bound molecule, disentangle different dissociation pathways, image the correlated motion of the iodine atoms and the methylene group leading to molecular iodine ejection, and trace the vibrational motion of the formed product. Our results provide a quantitative mechanistic picture behind previously suggested reaction mechanisms and prove that a variety of geometries are involved in the molecular bond formation.</p
Why is narrative inquiry suitable to study motivation? Insights from two empirical studies
Get PDFNarrative Inquiry (NI) is increasingly recognised in language education research because it offers profound means of exploring learners' and educators' lived experiences through storytelling and/or story-making. Specifically, this article explores NI's suitability for studying motivation in language learning, highlighting its ability to capture the dynamic and multifaceted nature of motivational trajectories. Grounded in postmodernist perspectives, NI emphasises individuality and the complexities of human experiences, thereby bridging gaps in more traditional and established motivation research approaches. The innovations of this research perspective include a nuanced exploration of motivation as a temporal, contextual, and personal construct. The article showcases two empirical studies employing NI: the longitudinal examination of Chinese postgraduate students' motivational shifts in the UK, and the lifelong motivational journeys of older adult language learners in France. These studies illustrate how NI captures evolving motivational dynamics influenced by personal, social, and institutional factors. Through co-constructed narratives, NI fosters deep participant-researcher relationships, which emphasises reflexivity and participant agency, while revealing intricate motivational patterns. Furthermore, NI addresses methodological gaps in existing motivation research and offers analytical versatility. Ultimately, this article argues that NI transcends traditional research boundaries by providing a more holistic, person-centred lens to understand motivation's complexities. By celebrating the richness of individual narratives, NI emerges as an empowering approach to investigate and represent the interplay between context, personal trajectories and motivation in language learning
Editorial:Evidencing the impact of human-animal interaction for those living with mental health problems
Get PDFCueTip:An Interactive and Explainable Physics-aware Pool Assistant
Get PDFWe present an interactive and explainable automated coaching assistant called CueTip for a variant of pool/billiards. CueTip’s novelty lies in its combination of three features: a natural-language interface, an ability to perform contextual, physics-aware reasoning, and that its explanations are rooted in a set of predetermined guidelines developed by domain experts. We instrument a physics simulator so that it generates event traces in natural language alongside traditional state traces. Event traces lend themselves to interpretation by language models, which serve as the interface to our assistant. We design and train a neural adaptor that decouples tactical choices made by CueTip from its interactivity and explainability allowing it to be reconfigured to mimic any pool playing agent. Our experiments show that CueTip enables contextual query-based assistance and explanations while maintaining the strength of the agent in terms of win rate (improving it in some situations). The explanations generated by CueTip are physically-aware and grounded in the expert rules and are therefore more reliable
Clinical impact of double-faecal immunochemical testing following implementation into standard triage and investigation of primary care referrals in patients with lower gastrointestinal symptoms
Get PDFBackgroundFaecal immunochemical testing has rapidly been established as the first-line triage for patients with symptoms suspicious for colorectal cancer. However, the reported low compliance of test returns issued from primary care is concerning. This article reports the real-world impact of implementation of a double-faecal immunochemical testing pathway for symptomatic referrals into routine clinical practice.MethodsAll eligible referrals between November 2021 and October 2022 were sent two faecal immunochemical tests via the faecal immunochemical testing interface office. Colorectal investigations were instigated if either test result was ≥10 µg haemoglobin per g. Referrals with double-negative results were reviewed by consultants who decided whether symptoms merited further investigation. Cancer registry follow-up data were cross-checked, and a further electronic registry allowed capture of re-referrals.ResultsSome 5425 patients were triaged using double-faecal immunochemical testing, with 5116 (94.3%) completing at least 1 and 4607 (84.9%) both faecal immunochemical tests. The positivity of one test was 20.8%, rising to 27.8% where both tests were completed. The number of referred patients undergoing colorectal investigation fell from 90% before faecal immunochemical testing-directed pathways to 56.6% owing to a reduction in investigating patients with double-negative results. The double-faecal immunochemical testing pathway had a sensitivity of 94.3% for the detection of colorectal cancer, with 37.5% of cancers with a negative first test being detected by the second. Only 3.3% of patients triaged through the double-faecal immunochemical testing pathway were re-referred.ConclusionThe double-faecal immunochemical testing pathway demonstrated high test return rates, a reduction in unnecessary investigations, and colorectal cancer detection rates similar to preimplementation rates
Combining quantum and classical control:syntax, semantics and adequacy
Get PDFThe two main notions of control in quantum programminglanguages are often referred to as “quantum” control and “classical” con-trol. With the latter, the control flow is based on classical information,potentially resulting from a quantum measurement, and this paradigmis well-suited to mixed state quantum computation. Whereas with quan-tum control, we are primarily focused on pure quantum computation andthere the “control” is based on superposition. The two paradigms have notmixed well traditionally and they are almost always treated separately.In this work, we show that the paradigms may be combined within thesame system. The key ingredients for achieving this are: (1) syntacti-cally: a modality for incorporating pure quantum types into a mixedstate quantum type system; (2) operationally: an adaptation of the no-tion of “quantum configuration” from quantum lambda-calculi, where thequantum data is replaced with pure quantum primitives; (3) denotation-ally: suitable (sub)categories of Hilbert spaces, for pure computation andvon Neumann algebras, for mixed state computation in the Heisenbergpicture of quantum mechanics
Study protocol for an open-label, single-arm, mixed methods feasibility study of the MWIQ AI-powered decision support tool for diabetes management in GP practices
Get PDFIntroduction Diabetes affects ~10% of the world’s population and is rising. Treatment costs in the UK are ~15% of the NHS budget. Diabetes-related complications can be lowered through better evidence-based clinician management and patient self-management. MyWay intelligence quotient (MWIQ) is an electronic platform that will provide clinical decision support around the diagnosis and treatment of patients with diabetes. This study evaluates the safety and clinical performance (clinical appropriateness/applicability, clinical impact and clinical usability) of MWIQ.Methods and analysis The system will be implemented in real time in four to seven general practitioner (GP) practices. Clinicians with diabetes expertise will be recruited as validators, who will inspect records to ensure system robustness before use, and up to 14 healthcare professionals will use and evaluate the system.Quantitative and qualitative analyses will be triangulated to assess the MWIQ system. Assessment of clinical outcomes will be made using pseudonymised routinely collected clinical data, including adherence to quality performance indicators, diabetes diagnosis, diabetes investigations (eg, genetic testing), HbA1c, blood pressure, body mass index, cholesterol and foot risk score for the diabetes population concerned. Clinical and validator participants will also submit a weekly questionnaire, and these, along with interviews, which are scheduled during the testing process, will be analysed to provide data on the utility, safety and usability of the system.Ethics and dissemination This study was approved, 08/01/2024, by the North of Scotland Research Ethics Committee (REC), IRAS project ID: 305267, REC, reference 23/NS/0134. The study has gained confidentiality advisory group (CAG) support (reference: 24/CAG/0002), medicines and healthcare products regulatory agency (MHRA) and health research authority (27/08/2024) approvals.Findings will be reported to (1) The funding body, (2) The participating GP practices, (3) The study PPIE group, (4) The MHRA to support a submission for recognition as a class 2 CE/UKCA marked device, (5) Presented at local, national and international conferences and (6) Disseminated by peer-reviewed publications.Trial registration number ISRCTN17422256
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