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Systematic review with qualitative meta-synthesis of parents’ experiences and needs in relation to having a child or young person with a mental health difficulty
Get PDFQuestion What are the experiences and needs of parents of children and young people (CYP) aged 5–18 with diagnosed mental health difficulties, particularly in relation to the parents’ own well-being?Study selection and analysis A systematic review with thematic meta-synthesis was conducted, including qualitative studies published in English. Seven databases were searched (MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL Ultimate, AMED, EMBASE, Web of Science and Cochrane Library) from inception to September 2024. Studies focused on parents of CYP aged 5–18 years, where the CYP had a confirmed mental health diagnosis.Findings Of 75 862 screened studies, 46 met inclusion criteria. Six overarching themes were identified: support needs and gaps; impact on everyday life; altered family dynamics; parental worries and fears; emotional experience of caregivers and self-care paradox. Parents face significant challenges, including unmet support needs from healthcare and education systems, substantial impacts on daily life and altered family dynamics. Emotional experiences such as worry, guilt and stigma were pervasive, compounded by systemic gaps in information and resources. Parents often prioritise their child’s needs over their own, creating barriers to self-care. These challenges were consistent across diagnoses but heightened in cases of life-threatening conditions like eating disorders and depression.Conclusions The findings highlight support needs for parents of CYP with mental health difficulties. Tailored interventions, better professional training and family centred care are needed. Future research should focus on developing theoretical models of parental distress to guide interventions and inform support mechanisms that mitigate these broad impacts on parents’ well-being
Electrochemical Signal Amplification for Pathogen Nucleic Acid Detection Utilizing a Cobalt-Based DNA-Binding Metallo-Intercalator
Get PDFThis paper reports the development of a highly sensitive and rapid electrochemical biosensor for the detection of pathogen nucleic acids. The primary objective was to enhance the detection sensitivity of DNA biosensors for pathogen nucleic acids commonly found in fresh and wastewaters, the food industry, and clinical samples. This enhanced sensitivity was achieved through the addition of a [Co(GA)2(aqphen)]Cl intercalating complex to increase the electrostatic field at the sensor surface/solution interface. Voltammetric and impedance-based detection techniques were employed to characterize the intercalation and redox-active properties of the compound. Additionally, non-Faradaic impedance and voltammetric methods were characterized as appropriate techniques for electrochemical detection. Implementing the [Co(GA)2(aqphen)]Cl intercalator led to increased voltammetric signal output using DPV, facilitating the rapid and sensitive detection of target DNA sequences. Notably, the [Co(GA)2(aqphen)]Cl permitted detection using non-Faradaic impedance in the absence of [Fe(CN)6]3-/4-. Characterization by cyclic voltammetric measurements revealed a surface-controlled redox mechanism and reversible electrochemistry of the compound intercalated with double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). Upon binding of 1 µM target DNA and 200 µM [Co(GA)2(aqphen)]Cl, a 2250% current peak increase was achieved. This increase enabled the sensitive detection of a target DNA sequence representative of E. coli DNA in buffer with an LOD of 67.5 pM, 100-fold more sensitive than the standard unlabeled assay while maintaining assay simplicity, low cost, and quick response. The use of [Co(GA)2(aqphen)]Cl among similar compounds in DNA biosensors offers a cost-effective and sensitive method for detecting waterborne pathogens such as E. coli. This approach could significantly improve environmental monitoring and pollution control by enabling more reliable and rapid monitoring of pathogens in water sources. Additionally, it has the potential to be of great use within the food industry and in point-of-care clinical settings
Relayed Regeneration of Multiple Metals-Poisoned Catalysts for Elimination of NO<sub>x</sub> from Flue Gases
Get PDFAmmonia selective catalytic reduction (NH3-SCR) technology is an essential method for reducing NOx emissions from flue gases, but catalyst deactivation due to poisoning remains a significant challenge, leading to reduced lifespans and increased hazardous waste. To address this issue, we propose a novel relayed regeneration strategy combining “liquid” and “gas” phase treatments to restore V2O5-WO3/TiO2 (VWTi) catalysts copoisoned by alkaline and heavy metals. The “liquid” phase employs formic acid, chosen for its acid ionization constant similar to that of vanadic acid, to remove soluble alkaline metals while preserving active vanadium oxide (VOx). The subsequent “gas” phase uses NO-mediated SO2 as a regenerant to neutralize insoluble heavy metals, restore acidity, and promote the formation of highly active polymeric VOx species, as revealed by in situ Raman spectroscopy. These processes work together to eliminate alkaline poisons, mask heavy metals, and reconstruct active catalytic sites, generating new high-activity components. This regeneration strategy fully restores the performance of copoisoned VWTi catalysts and even surpasses the activity of fresh catalysts. This study presents a sustainable and effective pathway for extending catalyst lifespans, reducing hazardous waste, and advancing the NH3-SCR technology.</p
Accelerating Task Generalisation with Multi-Level Skill Hierarchies
Get PDFDeveloping reinforcement learning agents that can generalise effectively to new tasks is one of the main challenges in AI research. This paper introduces Fracture Cluster Options (FraCOs), a multi-level hierarchical reinforcement learning method designed to improve generalisation performance. FraCOs identifies patterns in agent behaviour and forms temporally-extended actions (options) based on the expected future usefulness of those patterns, enabling rapid adaptation to new tasks. In tabular settings, FraCOs demonstrates effective transfer and improves performance as the depth of the hierarchy increases. In several complex procedurally-generated environments, FraCOs consistently outperforms state-of-the-art deep reinforcement learning algorithms, achieving superior results in both in-distribution and out-of-distribution scenarios.<br/
Topological gap solitons in equidistant lithium niobate waveguide arrays
Get PDFEquidistant 1D arrays of thin film lithium niobate waveguides can exhibit non-trivial topology due to a specific interplay between inter- and intra-modal couplings of two families of guided modes [A. V. Gorbach etal., Opt. Lett. 48, 1982 (2023)]. In this work, we analyze two-color spatial solitons, emerging due to χ2 nonlinear interactions between the modes of non-trivial topology in the fundamental harmonic field, and modes of trivial topology in the second harmonic field. We discuss solitons localized in the bulk of the array (bulk solitons), and at an edge of a finite-size array (edge solitons). The latter emerge due to the nonlinear interactions between a topological edge mode in the fundamental harmonic and bulk modes in the second harmonic. We reveal that for each type of soliton, bulk or edge, there generally exist two families of solutions with different internal structures and ranges of propagation constants. All bulk solitons can only be excited above a certain power threshold dictated by the coupling strength in the second harmonic field and the phase matching between the fundamental and second harmonics. The power threshold for edge solitons generally appears to be much lower, and, by tuning the phase matching, it can be reduced to zero.</p
Modulation of Graphene Oxidation Using Substrate-Induced Electron-Hole Puddles for Advancing Molecular Separation
Get PDFTuning the reactivity of graphene enables molecular-level engineering of the lattice, achieving desired chemical and structural properties through functionalization, doping, and etching. Atom-thin graphene film hosting Å-scale pores, with capability to differentiate molecules with sub-Å resolution, is ideal to advance performance for challenging molecular separation. Control over pore formation is needed to improve pore size distribution (PSD), in particular, to increase the percentage of molecular selective pores. An attractive approach is to modulate the energy barriers involved in the pore formation to control PSD. In this study, it is shown that electron-hole puddles induced in graphene by the underlying Cu substrate increase its reactivity toward O 3. These puddles promote electron transfer during O 3 chemisorption and reduce the energy barrier for lattice gasification. This strategy is implemented to increase the density of molecular-selective pores by expanding small non-permeable pores. The resulting porous graphene membranes demonstrate highly promising separation performance for the CO 2/N 2 gas pair. This approach provides a new pathway to finely control pore formation for advanced applications in molecular separation and beyond.</p
Accounting for ceiling effects in gender equality endorsement. A zero inflated modeling approach.
Get PDFGender equality endorsement is an intergroup measure present in various survey-based studies and is a prominent indicator among the Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDG) (Sandoval-Hernández et al., 2020). To this end, countries can rely on the gender equality endorsement scale included in the International Civic and Citizenship Study (ICCS), which provides probabilistic samples of 8th-grade students from different countries and assesses gender equality endorsement between men and women. Traditional methods for generating scores with this scale rely on the partial credit model (PCM), a response model that utilizes a normally distributed latent variable to represent students' propensity to respond to the various items included in the instrument. Moreover, researchers rely on regression models to address research questions about related factors and the effects of program evaluation. However, the scale scores of this instrument are highly skewed. This skewness is desirable. It means a noticeable portion of students endorse gender equality at the scale ceiling. Nevertheless, traditional regression models may produce distorted estimates in the presence of ceiling effects on the total scores. We propose a method that relies on the monotonicity property of the PCM scores and creates a reverse sum score. We use zero-inflated models to separate ceiling cases from the rest of the scores, allowing us to make inferences on both sides: the students at the ceiling and those in the remainder of the distribution. This method is a helpful tool for program evaluations dealing with ceiling effects in their attribute of interest
Multiscale analysis on anisotropic heat conduction behaviors of multi-walled carbon nanotubes modification carbon fiber composites:random distribution and modified interface
Get PDFCarbon fiber fabric composites (CFFCs) are widely used in aerospace and energy systems, but their anisotropic thermal conductivity (ATC) remains challenging to predict due to hierarchical structures and non-uniform nanofiller distributions. Existing models often oversimplify nanoscale filler randomness or ignore interfacial effects, limiting accuracy. This study addresses these gaps by developing a three-scale finite element framework integrating microscale random multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) dispersion, mesoscale interfacial layers, and macroscale fabric architecture. MWCNTs (0–0.6 % mass fraction) were experimentally incorporated into CFFCs to enhance thermal performance. Key findings include a 56.6 % in-plane thermal conductivity improvement and an 18.5 % through-thickness reduction at 0.6 % MWCNT mass fraction, driven by directional heat flux redistribution. The three-scale model predicted ATC with <9 % error compared to Hot-Disk experiments, demonstrating its reliability. This work provides critical insights into hierarchical heat transfer mechanisms, enabling tailored thermal management in advanced composites.</p
Boosting synergistic catalytic abatement of NO<sub>x</sub> and chlorobenzene via bidirectional promotion of Nb within asymmetrical Ce-O-Nb sites
Get PDFThe synergistic catalytic abatement of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and chlorinated aromatic pollutants remains a significant challenge. The matching of the active temperature window and the trade-off between catalytic activity and selectivity are two principal issues to be concerned with. In this context, adding niobium oxide into the titania-supported cerium oxide (CeNbTi) catalyst markedly enhanced the synergistic catalytic activity and stability. The asymmetrical Ce-O-Nb structure was verified to be constructed on the CeNbTi catalyst. Nb demonstrated a dual modulation of redox and acidity, enabling a balance of dual sites for two cycles. This led to a simultaneous improvement in NH3-SCR and chlorobenzene oxidation performance. In situ DRIFTS indicated a synergistic promotion mechanism that chlorobenzene oxidation utilizes highly reactive oxidizing species, reducing NH3 excessive oxidation and lowering N2O production from the NH3-SCR pathway. This study offers a strategy via designing asymmetrical sites to develop catalysts for controlling multiple pollutants.</p
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