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Student-reported relationships and sex education coverage and knowledge among a diverse population of early adolescents: a cross-sectional survey of students in England
Get PDFStudent-reported quality and coverage of school-based relationships and sex education (RSE) vary, with gender/sexual-minority and disadvantaged students reporting poorer provision. Experience of RSE among younger adolescents is under-explored. We examined student-reported RSE coverage and priorities and how coverage, and sexual-health knowledge and awareness of services, varies between students and schools. The data came from a pre-intervention survey of students aged 12–13 years within a trial of an RSE intervention involving 50 English schools. There was most coverage of basic information, such as puberty and safeguarding. There was least coverage of topics more appropriate for older students, such as sexual relationships, and topics teachers might find difficult to broach, e.g. pornography and masturbation. Girls, gay/lesbian students, students of bisexual/other sexual orientation, minority-ethnic students and students reporting lower academic commitment reported lower coverage than others. Knowledge of RSE-related topics and sexual-health services was generally low. Boys, students of bisexual/other orientation and students with higher school commitment had higher knowledge. Students of bisexual/other orientation and students of lower commitment reported lower awareness of services. Coverage and knowledge did not vary with school-level attainment or local deprivation. Future forms of RSE provision should ensure content and teaching methods meet the needs of all students
A survey on network slicing security: attacks, challenges, solutions and research directions
Get PDFThe dawn of softwarized networks enables Network Slicing (NS) as an important technology towards allocating end-to-end logical networks to facilitate diverse requirements of emerging applications in fifth-generation (5G) mobile networks. However, the emergence of NS also exposes novel security and privacy challenges, primarily related to aspects such as NS life-cycle security, inter-slice security, intra-slice security, slice broker security, zero-touch network and management security, and blockchain security. Hence, enhancing NS security, privacy, and trust has become a key research area toward realizing the true capabilities of 5G. This paper presents a comprehensive and up-to-date survey on NS security. The paper articulates a taxonomy for NS security and privacy, laying the structure for the survey. Accordingly, the paper presents key attack scenarios specific to NS-enabled networks. Furthermore, the paper explores NS security threats, challenges, and issues while elaborating on NS security solutions available in the literature. In addition, NS trust and privacy aspects, along with possible solutions, are explained. The paper also highlights future research directions in NS security and privacy. It is envisaged that this survey will concentrate on existing research work, highlight research gaps and shed light on future research, development, and standardization work to realize secure NS in 5G and beyond mobile communication networks
The effectiveness of structured sport and exercise interventions in enhancing the mental health of adolescents with mild to moderate mental health problems: a systematic review
Get PDFBetween 10% and 20% of adolescents globally have a diagnosed mental health disorder and a big proportion of individuals experience their first mental health problem during adolescence. However, limited research has investigated how an adult-led structured sport and exercise intervention can be used to support adolescents with mild to moderate mental health problems. A systematic review of the literature (five databases) was performed. Included studies (qualitative and quantitative) explored structured sport and exercise interventions aiming to help adolescents (aged 10–19 years) experiencing mild to moderate mental health problems. From 3506 studies screened, nine met the inclusion criteria (RCT = 6 and non-RCT = 3) following the PICOS, TIDieR frameworks and assessing quality of studies using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Activities included a group-based circuit training, high-intensity interval training, dance, group-based aerobic exercise, mindfulness-based Tai Chi Chuan and rugby. All included studies showed clinical improvements in adolescents’ anxiety or depression (anxiety, n = 5 and depression, n = 7). There is evidence that structured sport and exercise interventions can support adolescents with mild to moderate mental health problems. However, more research is needed to understand the mechanisms of how these outcomes are achieved, specifically using well-designed interventions tailored to specific exercises/sports, populations, and mental health outcomes
An innovative state-of-the-art health storytelling technique for better management of type 2 diabetes
Get PDFType 2 diabetes (T2D) is a chronic lifelong disease that requires long-term prevention and management strategies in a community setting. A health story is a novel technique that may be used as an effective tool for better prevention and management of T2D. The main objective of this study is to develop a story to be used as a social health technique based on contemporary scientific knowledge that may be used at a community level for better communication and management of T2D. A community-academic partnership was formed with a not-for-profit Nutrition Education, Awareness, and Training (NEAT) organization in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. We agreed to develop a story that may be used as a health and nutrition education communication tool for better management of patients with T2D. The following phases were followed during the story creation process: (1) the theory phase, (2) the modeling phase, and (3) the evaluation phase. Raters evaluated the story to determine its literary and scientific quality, comprehensiveness, and T2D specificity. The title of the story translated into English is "The Story of Diabetes-The Story of Success." It is text based and contains 86 pages in the local language, "Pashto," with an English translation. The story is divided into five chapters and describes the initial diagnosis, fear associated with the disease, issues related to referral to certified practitioners, the importance of a balanced diet, and related lifestyle habits. After story evaluation, the raters suggested its literary and scientific quality, comprehensiveness, and T2D specificity (Pearson correlation scores of >0.8). This unique story was created for T2D and found to be of significant quality in terms of its literary and scientific quality, as well as its comprehensiveness and diabetes specificity. As a result, it may be suggested that it can be used in subsequent studies to improve T2D management among adult patients
The prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in firefighters: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Get PDFPrevious studies consistently report a high prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors among firefighters. However, the clustering of CVD risk factors, defined as metabolic syndrome (MetSyn), has received little attention by comparison. Therefore, the aim of this study was to estimate the pooled prevalence of MetSyn among firefighters. Using combinations of free text for ‘firefighter’ and ‘metabolic syndrome’, databases were searched for eligible studies. Meta-analyses calculated weighted pooled prevalence estimates with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for MetSyn, its components and overweight/obesity. Univariate meta-regression was performed to explore sources of heterogeneity. Of 1440 articles screened, 25 studies were included in the final analysis. The pooled prevalence of MetSyn in 31,309 firefighters was 22.3% (95% CI: 17.7–27.0%). The prevalences of MetSyn components were hypertension: 39.1%; abdominal obesity: 37.9%; hypertriglyceridemia: 30.2%; dyslipidemia: 30.1%; and hyperglycemia: 21.1%. Overweight and obesity prevalence rates in firefighters were 44.1% and 35.6%, respectively. Meta-regression revealed that decreased risk of bias (RoB) score and increased body mass index (BMI) were positively associated with an increase in MetSyn prevalence. Since one in five firefighters may meet the criteria for MetSyn, novel interventions should be explored to both prevent MetSyn and reduce the onset of CVD risk factors
On the design and structural study of a rear swing arm for an electric bike
Get PDFAs electric bikes continue to grow in popularity, it is important to ensure that they are equipped with well-designed components. One such component is the rear swing arm (RSA). This study deals with the design and structural analysis of an RSA used for electric bikes. This RSA is composed of two swing arms (one on each side of the bikes), a yoke, a suspension block, and bolts or screws. First, an analytical approach was developed to calculate the initial values for the width and shape of the swing arm. Next, experimental data were used to analyze the response of the RSA and determine the final profile for the swing arms and yoke structure. Finally, the finite element approach was implemented to assess the stress, displacement, and fatigue responses of the RSA when subjected to realistic excitations and conditions. The initial results depicted the following characteristics for the RSA: C-channel profile, 43 mm height, and 2 mm wall thickness. These results implied that the maximum shear force would occur in a region representing approximately 15.5% of the total length of the RSA. Further analysis and calculations showed that this region would decrease to approximately 2.85% of the total length of the RSA. For the final design, the mechanical performance of the RSA was observed to remain acceptable despite the relatively high Von Mises stress values around these singularities. This study assumed the use of 7075 T651 aluminum alloy as the primary material for the RSA
The effect of high altitude on ephedrine content and metabolic variations in two species of Ephedra
Get PDFEphedra is an important plant in Chinese medicine; however, there are few reports on two species of Ephedra which are distributed at high altitudes from 3000 to 5200 meters. We collected a total of 84 individuals representing five Ephedra gerardiana and nine Ephedra saxatilis populations respectively located from 3158 to 5200 meters altitude, and determined the relative content of 213 metabolites using UHPLC-MS/MS (Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry). 37 Chemical compositions were annotated using the KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes) database. From the top five significant enrichments in metabolic KEGG pathway analysis, we found a total of 166 compounds belonging to phenylpropanoids, 123 flavonoids, 67 metabolites carried by ABC transporters, and 61 in purine metabolism. We identified the top 8 altitude-related compounds in two species. Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine were found to be associated with altitude in both E. saxatilis and E. gerardiana. To verify which environmental factors influenced the metabolic content, the soil moisture and temperature of each population site were collected, and quantitative analysis of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine was performed using UHPLC-MS (Ultra-High-Performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry). After detection, soil moisture ranged from 0.074 to 0.177 mm3/mm3, and temperature ranged from 9.7°C to 23.9°C. The content of ephedrine ranged from (0.84 ± 0.49)% to (2.01 ± 0.41)% in E. saxatilis, which was positively correlated with soil moisture; the content of pseudoephedrine ranged from (0.72 ± 0.45)% to (1.11 ± 0.57)% and was negatively correlated with soil moisture. In contrast to these results, in E. gerardiana, the content of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine was negatively correlated with soil moisture. Furthermore, the trends of alkaloid contents in two kinds of Ephedra were similar when the temperature was lower than 17°C even if the sum was various. With the increase in soil moisture and temperature, the total alkaloid content of E. saxatilis was higher than that of E. gerardiana. When the soil moisture was lower, the alkaloid content of the two Ephedra species was higher. These results provide useful data for the future separation of new compounds, and for seed homogeneous growth to determine artificial breeding of Ephedra located at high altitudes
Promoting a global culture of respectful maternity care
Get PDFRespectful maternity care (RMC) - a fundamental human right for all women - prioritizes autonomy and rights of pregnant and birthing women throughout the entire childbirth journey. Despite increasing acknowledgment of the importance of RMC for optimal maternal and new-born outcomes, women often experience disrespectful and abusive practices during pregnancy and childbirth. This Editorial points to the need for development of international guidelines for the implementation of RMC programs globally
Long-term outcomes for students who attend alternative provision schools: analysis of a national dataset at national, regional, local and institutional levels
Get PDFLittle is known about the long-term outcomes of students who attend alternative provision (AP) settings. This study set out to analyse data published by the Department for Education which presents long-term education and employment outcomes for school pupils in England. After making comparisons by type of setting at the national level, this analysis focused on alternative provision at regional, local and institutional levels. Findings identify considerable differences in rates of sustained education and employment destinations for students who have attended AP. This suggests an AP setting with over four in 10 of their ex-students in stable education or employment after three years is performing well. Findings also suggest an important role for expectations, extended transitions and local coordination. This study presents a benchmark against which future studies of AP can measure long-term outcomes and providers of AP can judge their work
Photorealistic true-dimensional visualization of remote panoramic views for VR headsets
Get PDFVirtual Reality headsets have evolved to include unprecedented display quality. Meantime, they have become light-weight, wireless and low-cost, which has opened to new applications and a much wider audience. Photo-based omnidirectional imaging has also developed, becoming directly exploitable for VR, with their combination proven suitable for: remote visits and realistic scene reconstruction, operator's training and control panels, surveillance and e-tourism. There is however a limited amount of scientific work assessing VR experience and user's performance in photo-based environment representations. This paper focuses on assessing the effect of photographic realism in VR when observing real places through a VR headset, for two different pixel-densities of the display, environment types and familiarity levels. Our comparison relies on the observation of static three-dimensional and omnidirectional photorealistic views of environments. The aim is to gain an insight about how photographic texture can affect perceived realness, sense of presence and provoked emotions, as well as perception of image-lighting and actual space dimension (true-dimension). Two user studies are conducted based on subjective rating and measurements given by users to a number of display and human factors. The display pixel-density affected the perceived image-lighting and prevailed over better lighting specs. The environment illumination and distance to objects generally played a stronger role than display. The environment affected the perceived image-lighting, spatial presence, depth impression and specific emotions. Distances to a set of objects were generally accurately estimated. Place familiarity enhanced perceived realism and presence. They confirmed some previous studies, but also introduced new elements
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