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Correlating environmental DNA and hydroacoustic estimates of biomass and abundance to monitor the globally Endangered mulloway (Argyrosomus japonicus)
No full textMonitoring long-term spatiotemporal changes in populations of vulnerable species requires non-lethal methods. Here we investigate the utility of environmental DNA (eDNA) for estimating the relative biomass and abundance of the globally Endangered mulloway (Argyrosomus japonicus) in a southeastern Australian estuary. During minimal tidal movement, 10 parallel transects at each of 12 sites were surveyed, involving water samples being collected for determining eDNA concentrations of mulloway DNA prior to hydroacoustics being used to estimate their abundance and then biomass. There was no significant linear relationship between eDNA and abundance but there was for biomass, although the direction of differences varied seasonally, with positive and negative regressions observed during autumn and spring, respectively. As non-invasive survey methods, both eDNA and hydroacoustics require further validation, and such efforts should assess the influence of key environmental factors
Constitutional Mechanisms for Environmental Governance
No full textThis chapter examines constitutional mechanisms for environmental governance in response to the intensifying climate emergency and environmental crises. It explores structural, procedural, and substantive constitutional reforms designed to improve accountability, democratic participation, and environmental decision- making. The discussion categorizes these mechanisms into structural design and procedural commitments—such as deliberative democratic institutions and rights-based approaches—and substantive commitments, including constitutional environmental rights and fixed legal obligations. While these mechanisms vary in form and effectiveness, they reflect an ongoing global effort to integrate environ- mental priorities into constitutional frameworks, shaping governance beyond traditional legislative politics
Clinical decision-making:Cognitive biases and heuristics in triage decisions in the emergency department
Get PDFBackground: In emergency medicine, triage decisions are critical for ensuring patient safety and optimizing resource usage. Such decisions involve a complex interplay of rational and analytical thinking, combined with an intuitive and humanistic approach. However, the influence of cognitive biases on triage decisions remains poorly understood. Methods: Between February 20 and June 27, 2023, we conducted an online scenario-based survey with 78 triage-competent Registered Nurses in the emergency department at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Australia. Co-designed with nurse educators and nursing academics, the survey included domains covering demographic information, tailored diagnostic tests to capture the presence of cognitive biases and risk-taking behavior, and six vignettes requiring triage using the Australasian Triage Scale. Logistic mixed-effects and multivariate Poisson regression models were performed to identify the influence of cognitive biases and risk-taking behavior on triage decision accuracy. Results: We identified negative framing bias (82.5 %), anchoring bias (82 %), and availability bias (62.8 %) as the most prevalent cognitive biases among triage nurses. After adjusting for age, sex, education, and triage work experience, no statistically significant associations were observed between cognitive biases or risk-taking behavior and triage accuracy. This indicates that cognitive biases may have a limited influence on well-trained nurses. However, age, sex, and triage work experience were found to be significant predictors of inaccurate triaged decisions. Conclusion: Our study provides preliminary evidence that cognitive biases and risk-taking behavior are not associated with triage accuracy among well-experienced and trained emergency triage nurses. Further research is required to fully understand the impact of cognitive biases on emergency triage decisions.</p
Comparative effectiveness of active and reactive mattresses in pressure injury healing for older people in their own homes: A pragmatic randomised controlled study
No full textBackground: Pressure injuries are an ongoing problem commonly managed with the prescription of pressure mattresses. There is conflicting research about the comparable effectiveness of the two types of pressure mattresses, active and reactive. This, coupled with technological advances and an updated understanding of pressure aetiology, means decision-making when prescribing pressure mattresses is complicated. Objective/Design: A pragmatic approach was used to design an equivalence randomised-controlled trial investigating the comparative effectiveness of active and reactive pressure mattresses in a community setting from a wound healing perspective as well as from a user acceptability perspective. Methods: Participants with an existing pressure injury were provided with an active or reactive mattress for wound healing, with wound stages assessed using photography. Usual clinical care was provided based on the protocols of the health care service, including nursing and occupational therapy input. Participants were monitored for the healing of their existing pressure injuries, using the Revised Photographic Wound Assessment Tool. User acceptability feedback was provided through surveys, including impact on comfort, pain levels and bed mobility. An equivalence design was used for data analysis to determine if the surfaces were comparable. Results: Twelve participants completed the study, which found that people on active mattresses healed 11.71 days (95% CI −55.97–31.78 days) quicker than people on reactive mattresses; however, the small sample size meant that a definitive determination could not be made. Users found bed mobility more challenging, and pain levels decreased, regardless of mattress type.Conclusions: A pragmatic methodology is imperative for research in this field due to the complexity of pressure injury healing. Researchers exploring multi-faceted conditions should consider a pragmatic design to ensure transferability of results to the clinical setting. The results from this study were inconclusive when determining the equivalence of active and reactive mattresses due to the small sample size. When choosing a mattress, prescribers need to consider user preferences and mattress features to ensure user acceptability
Quantum Driven Dynamic Passivity Based Neuromechanical Control for Wrist Rehabilitation Robot
No full textRobotic-assisted rehabilitation for wrist movements demands adaptive systems capable of balancing patient autonomy with robotic support. The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into robotic-assisted rehabilitation offers transformative potential in delivering personalized, dynamic, and effective therapeutic interventions. This study introduces a novel neuromechanical control framework integrating a passivity observer with Quantum-Enhanced Deep Reinforcement Learning (QDRL) for adaptive impedance scaling in wrist rehabilitation robotics. The passivity observer continuously monitors energy exchanges to classify patient states into passive (patient requiring robotic assistance) and non-passive (patient actively participating) categories, dynamically guiding the robot’s impedance adjustments. Experiments were conducted with ten unimpaired human subjects (eight male and two female), who were instructed to simulate rehabilitation scenarios, focusing on three key wrist movements, flexion/extension (FL/EX), abduction/adduction (AB/AD), and pronation/supination (PR/SU). Experimental results showed high correlations ( > 0.83 ) between energy-based and electromyography (EMG)-based passivity classifications, confirming the reliability of the proposed approach. Furthermore, the designed QDRL model significantly outperformed traditional reinforcement learning methods, achieving superior adaptability, stability, and higher average rewards during robotic impedance control. The framework offers advancement in optimizing robotic assistance during motor recovery, promoting personalized rehabilitation by tailoring interventions to the specific needs of each patient
Hearing the bones of language:review of David Musgrave's Mishearing
No full textIn the essays that bookend the poetry, David Musgrave outlines the experiment that produced this collection of “misheard” poems: a mishearing that is broader than, say, the mondegreen phenomenon, because it seeks to accommodate voice, the “sonic distinctiveness” . He tests this out through a practice of both homophonic and heterophonic “translation”, in a project that builds on and adds to the corpus of knowledge in the field
Promoting adherence in couples-based lifestyle interventions: a pathway to intergenerational health equity
No full textEvidence of epigenetic risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) from both parents, and its increasing prevalence globally, underscores the necessity for effective lifestyle interventions preconception. Despite this, very few studies have examined couples-based interventions and those which are concerned with foetal health rarely monitor paternal health outcomes(1). This study evaluates the feasibility and adherence of a 10-week couples-based lifestyle intervention targeting diet and physical activity. Utilising an exploratory sequential mixed methods design, the study recruited 16 participants (8 couples) aged 18–44 years, living together with a BMI between 18.5 and 38 kg/m². Participants received personalised dietary and physical activity guidance aligned with national guidelines, with progress tracked via the Easy Diet Diary app and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). Quantitative data were
Shifting the focus of child and youth wellbeing programs from crisis to prevention:a mixed methods study of the role of First Nations’ community-controlled organisations
No full textBackground: Australian governments and the First Nations Coalition of Peaks, through the Closing the Gap reforms, have committed to build the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled sector and increase decision making by community-controlled services. This paper describes a First Nations-led place-based research program with community-controlled health and youth service partners in Far North Queensland to understand and map the regional child and youth wellbeing service system and co-design strategies to improve service provision. Methods: This mixed-method research was conducted through a First Nations-led approach that is both place-based and systems focused. Following research planning workshops with community-controlled health and youth service partners, 47 staff members from 27 Cairns and Yarrabah intersectoral child and youth-wellbeing organisations were interviewed in 2021-22 to map the characteristics of their services. Their responses were coded using a modified version of the internationally validated Description and Evaluation of Services and DirectoriEs for Long Term Care (DESDE-LTC) mapping tool to determine the characteristics of whole system intersectoral services. Forty-four participants then attended co-design workshops in each place to discuss the results and identify further priorities. Results: A high 68% of the main types of care were crisis-related services (focused on child protection, youth justice, mental illness, homelessness, illness/injury, and disengagement from education), with just a third (32%) focused on prevention/early intervention. Despite clear leadership from community-controlled services, only 23% of the main types of care were delivered by community-controlled organisations, with 51% delivered by mainstream non-government organisations, and 26% by government departments. Funding agreements drove the characteristics of services, with community-controlled organisations providing a higher proportion of the more complex crisis-oriented services, whilst non-government organisations received funding for preventive programs. Service providers prioritised a need for greater investment in prevention and early intervention, with community control of decision making considered critical to improving the appropriateness of care. Conclusions: These findings speak to the recent national commitment to increase decision making by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community-controlled services. The recommendations of north Queensland regional service providers can inform improvements in the Closing the Gap reforms, and hence in the systems that support the wellbeing of First Nations children, youth and families.</p
Charting a course for freshwater biomonitoring: The grand challenges identified by the global scientific community
No full textThe past 50 years have seen biomonitoring emerge as an essential means of generating the knowledge needed to inform protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems. Despite the successes of biomonitoring, most freshwater ecosystems remain unmonitored. Moreover, degradation of freshwaters continues at a rapid rate with new threats and novel stressors emerging that are difficult to assess using existing techniques. New technologies and techniques have been developed to improve biomonitoring, but application has been slow and integration with existing approaches is often problematic. Clearly, freshwater biomonitoring faces many important challenges that must be addressed to meet management needs of the coming decades. We identify Grand Challenges facing freshwater biomonitoring with the aim of encouraging research and practice to address these challenges. We asked 256 biomonitoring scientists from around the globe to identify what they considered the most important challenges. From their submissions we established five Grand Challenges and 18 associated subchallenges. For each Grand Challenge, we outline the current state of biomonitoring practice and suggest promising pathways and approaches to address them. By identifying and describing these challenges, we strive to position freshwater biomonitoring to take advantage of emerging opportunities and enhance its capacity to meet current and future management needs