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The Correlation Between Ankle Somatosensory Acuity and Sensory Organisation in Postural Stability
No full textThe sensory organisation test (SOT) and active movement extent discrimination assessment (AMEDA) are commonly used tools to assess postural stability and somatosensory acuity. Research on the relationship between these assessments is limited. This study aimed to explore the relationship between ankle somatosensation and postural stability in healthy adults. Participants completed one assessment of ankle somatosensory acuity (AMEDA) and one assessment of postural stability (SOT). Ankle somatosensory acuity was assessed on the non-dominant foot and measured their ability to detected small changes in joint movement within the inversion/eversion plane. The SOT involved both feet upon the testing platform and six “conditions” which distorted the sensory systems and assessed the ability to use visual, somatosensory, and vestibular feedback to maintain postural control. A Spearman’s Rank-Order Correlation was run to assess the relationship between AMEDA and SOT measures. We hypothesised that AMEDA scores would positively correlate with SOT conditions 4–6 (sway-referenced platform for all) and the somatosensory (SOM) sensory score. 54 participants (28 females, 26 males; mean age 40 ± 14 years) completed the study. Positive correlations were found between the AMEDA score and SOT conditions 5 (eyes closed, sway-reference platform) and 6 scores (sway-referenced visual surround and platform) (p =.041 and p =.006) but not with SOT condition 4 (eyes open, sway-referenced platform) or the SOM sensory score (p >.05). There were positive correlations between the AMEDA score, and SOT composite score and vestibular (VEST) sensory score (p <.001 and p =.007). Somatosensation and postural stability scores were related during the most challenging balance tasks, highlighting the role of somatosensory acuity in postural control. However, AMEDA score did not relate to the SOM scores in the SOT, suggesting different factors influence these measures of somatosensation. This highlights the unique contributions of the AMEDA and SOT in assessing sensory function and its impact on balance.</p
Parametric design in construction:a new paradigm for quality management and defect reduction
No full textIn the realm of construction, the iterative occurrence of design defects during the latter stages frequently jeopardizes building quality, leading to considerable repercussions. Despite extensive research into the causation of design and construction defects and methods to enhance quality outcomes, a noticeable gap persists in comprehensively understanding how parametric design influences building quality. Hence, this study probes the intricate relationship between parametric design and building quality, aiming to forge a conceptual framework that encapsulates their interplay and collective impact on construction excellence. Through a meticulous literature review, the pivotal elements such as design defects, documentation errors, construction technologies, building performance, defect management, cost and time efficiencies, and quality control mechanisms were investigated. The research delineates the pivotal factors that bolster building quality and curtail defects, with a spotlight on integrating parametric design into the fabric of construction quality management. By weaving together current literature insights and focusing on a symbiotic integration of parametric design, this study contributes a novel conceptual framework that stands to advance architectural practices and elevate the paradigm of building quality.</p
Estimating the Replicability of Sports and Exercise Science Research
No full textBackground: The replicability of sports and exercise research has not been assessed previously despite concerns about scientific practices within the field. Aim: This study aims to provide an initial estimate of the replicability of applied sports and exercise science research published in quartile 1 journals (SCImago journal ranking for 2019 in the Sports Science subject category; www.scimagojr.com) between 2016 and 2021. Methods: A formalised selection protocol for this replication project was previously published. Voluntary collaborators were recruited, and studies were allocated in a stratified and randomised manner on the basis of equipment and expertise. Original authors were contacted to provide deidentified raw data, to review preregistrations and to provide methodological clarifications. A multiple inferential strategy was employed to analyse the replication data. The same analysis (i.e. F test or t test) was used to determine whether the replication effect size was statistically significant and in the same direction as the original effect size. Z-tests were used to determine whether the original and replication effect size estimates were compatible or significantly different in magnitude. Results: In total, 25 replication studies were included for analysis. Of the 25, 10 replications used paired t tests, 1 used an independent t test and 14 used an analysis of variance (ANOVA) for the statistical analyses. In all, 7 (28%) studies demonstrated robust replicability, meeting all three validation criteria: achieving statistical significance (p < 0.05) in the same direction as the original study and showing compatible effect size magnitudes as per the Z test (p > 0.05). Conclusion: There was a substantial decrease in the published effect size estimate magnitudes when replicated; therefore, sports and exercise science researchers should consider effect size uncertainty when conducting subsequent power analyses. Additionally, there were many barriers to conducting the replication studies, e.g., original author communication and poor data and reporting transparency.</p
Democratic Resilience: Moving from Theoretical Frameworks to a Practical Measurement Agenda
No full textGlobal indices and media narratives indicate a decline in democratic institutions, values, and practices. Simultaneously, democratic innovators are experimenting with new ways to strengthen democracy at local and national levels. These both suggest democracies are not static; they evolve as society, technology and the environment change. This paper examines democracy as a resilient system, emphasizing the role of applied analysis in shaping effective policy and programs, particularly in Australia. Grounded in adaptive processes, democratic resilience is the capacity of a democracy to identify problems, and collectively respond to changing conditions, balancing institutional stability with transformative. It outlines the ambition of a national network of scholars, civil society leaders, and policymakers to equip democratic innovators with practical insights and foresight underpinning new ideas. These insights are essential for strengthening both public institutions, public narratives and community programs. We review current literature on resilient democracies and highlight a critical gap: current measurement efforts focus heavily on composite indices—especially trust—while neglecting dynamic flows and causal drivers. They focus on the descriptive features and identify weaknesses, they do not focus on the diagnostics or evidence to what strengths democracies. This is reflected in the lack of cross-sector networked, living evidence systems to track what works and why across the intersecting dynamics of democratic practices. To address this, we propose a practical agenda centred on three core strengthening flows of democratic resilience: trusted institutions, credible information, and social inclusion.The paper reviews six key data sources and several analytic methods for continuously monitoring democratic institutions, diagnosing causal drivers, and building an adaptive evidence system to inform innovation and reform. By integrating resilience frameworks and policy analysis, we demonstrate how real-time monitoring and analysis can enable innovation, experimentation and cross-sector ingenuity. This article presents a practical research agenda connecting a national network of scholars and civil society leaders. We suggest this agenda be problem-driven, facilitated by participatory approaches to asking and prioritising the questions that matter most. We propose a connected approach to collectively posing key questions that matter most, expanding data sources, and fostering applied ideation between communities, civil society, government, and academia— ensuring democracy remains resilient in an evolving global and national context.<br/
Pilot of a multicomponent program for people with dementia and their care partners: Health services staff expectations, experiences and observations
No full textThere is increased recognition of the need to improve post-diagnostic pathways for people with dementia and their care partners living in the community to access rehabilitation services to support independence and wellbeing. However, there is minimal evidence on implementing rehabilitation services for this population. The study aimed to present the expectations and experiences of allied health staff involved in piloting the Sustainable Personalised Interventions for Cognition, Care and Engagement (SPICE) program based at an outpatient clinic of a public rehabilitation hospital. Over twelve weeks, the program combines small group and dyadic evidence-based interventions including cognitive stimulation therapy, occupational therapy, physical activity, care partner education, and dietetics. A qualitative exploratory methodology was used with pre- and post-program interviews conducted with ten allied health staff. Questions were designed to elicit the expected and actual benefits and challenges of the initial implementation of the multicomponent program. The multidisciplinary team were motivated by the potential for the SPICE program to meet an important service gap, and confident people with dementia and their care partners would benefit. Staff reported enjoyment, satisfaction, and confidence in delivering the program, and believed the multiple components had synergistic effects on participants, particularly regarding social connection and functional engagement. While staff had pre-program concerns regarding retention, participant fatigue, and managing challenging situations, these were not realised. At times, staff observed program intensity to cause unintended stress for some care partners. Resourcing and strategies to ensure sustainability were identified as important by staff, as well as the need for ongoing support to participants post-program. Overall, the SPICE program exceeded expectations and was rewarding for staff. Further work to refine and evaluate the program is necessary to support its potential to continue providing dementia rehabilitation to promote the independence and wellbeing of people with dementia and care partners living in the community.</p
Sustainable Food Security and Nutritional Challenges
No full textFood security is an immensely complex issue connected to global food production and supply systems. One of the key challenges is to provide sufficient, safe, and nutritionally balanced food for everyone on the planet. It is closely linked to many factors including population growth, poverty, economic stability, and environmental sustainability. Currently, the world population is growing at an unprecedented rate, placing immense pressure on food production systems. Thus, meeting the increasing demand for food presents a significant challenge for the current global agriculture and food systems. The World Food Program reported that over 345 million people faced high levels of food insecurity in 2023. Additionally, 2 billion people are living with micronutrient deficiencies (such as vitamin A, iron, and iodine). Over time, a severely restricted food intake can cause malnutrition and reduce the lifespan. On the other hand, nearly 2 billion adults worldwide are overweight or obese. Global emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic and war zones have complicated the situation and resulted in increased hunger, lower immunity, increased infectious disease, and increased rates of early mortality. Furthermore, climate changes are disrupting traditional growing seasons, increasing the frequency of extreme weather events, and posing a serious threat to crop yields. This scenario warrants adaptation of sustainable and resilient agriculture and food systems is crucial for improved and sustainable food security
Assessing the impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions against COVID-19 on 64 notifiable infectious diseases in Australia:A Bayesian Structural Time Series model
No full textBACKGROUND: Several studies have examined the effect of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) on COVID-19 and other infectious diseases in Australia and globally. However, to our knowledge none have sufficiently explored their impact on other infectious diseases with robust time series model. In this study, we aimed to use Bayesian Structural Time Series model (BSTS) to systematically assess the impact of NPIs on 64 National Notifiable Infectious Diseases (NNIDs) by conducting a comprehensive and comparative analysis across eight disease categories within each Australian state and territory, as well as nationally.METHODS: Monthly data on 64 NNIDs from eight categories were obtained from the Australian National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System. The incidence rates for each infectious disease in 2020 were compared with the 2015-2019 average and then with the expected rates in 2020 using a BSTS model. The study investigated the causal effects of 2020 interventions and analysed the impact of government policy restrictions at the national level from January 2020 to December 2022.RESULTS: During the COVID-19 pandemic interventions in Australia, there was a 38 % (95 % Credible Interval [CI] [9 %, 54 %]) overall relative reduction in incidence reported across all disease categories compared to the 2015-2019 average. Significant reductions were observed in bloodborne diseases: 20 % (95 % CI [10 %, 29 %]), respiratory diseases: 79 % (95 % CI [52 %, 91 %]), and zoonoses: 8 % (95 % CI [1 %, 17 %]). Conversely, vector-borne diseases increased by 9 % over the same period. Reductions and intervention effects varied by state and territory, with higher policy stringency linked to fewer cases for some diseases.CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 NPIs also impacted the transmission of other infectious diseases, with varying effects across regions reflecting diverse outcomes in response strategies throughout Australia. The findings could inform public health strategies and provide scientific evidence to support the development of early warning systems for future disease outbreaks.</p
The WHO is finished: Step away, Mr Dutton!
Get PDFThe World Health Organisation (WHO) is a horse that’s been flogged to death. Then it’s been turned over and flogged again. Twice. Now it is time for Mr Dutton to put down the whip and step away. The WHO’s situation is a result of the United Nations system being exhausted. Like the League of Nations before it, the UN has lost its way. Whereas the League was unable to stand up to Mussolini and Hitler, dictators and other anti-democratic leaders have managed to white-ant the UN from the inside
Graph Coarsening Approach to the Vehicle Routing Problem: An Approximation Strategy
No full textIn the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era of quantum computing, solving complex optimization problems such as the Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) remains a formidable challenge. To overcome this obstacle, we introduce a novel method in this paper that focuses on reducing the number of edges in a graph based on Euclidean distances between vertices while preserving the crucial characteristics needed for solving the VRP. Our graph coarsening approach combined with the inflation method enables the reduced graph to be processed efficiently by classical, quantum or hybrid (quantum-classical) solvers, resulting in a faster computation time. When using the proposed method with hybrid algorithms, we have demonstrated an improvement of approximately 50% in the solution found by the hybrid solver. The practicality of our method on quantum hardware highlights its potential to contribute to the advancement of quantum and hybrid algorithms and applications during the NISQ era