19683 research outputs found
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Cold idle vs hot idle: Gaseous and particulate emissions using a third-generation oxygenated biofuel
No full textEngine idling is a significant contributor to vehicle emissions, however, it is often unaccounted for. Presented in this study is a comprehensive analysis of gaseous and particulate emissions during cold idle compared to hot idle operations. Fuels used in this study were B20 (20 %) and B10 (10 %) (%v/v) blends of di-octyl phthalate (a third-generation microalgae-based biofuel) and ultra-low sulphur diesel (B00), used as a reference fuel. Compared to cold idle operation, hydrocarbon (HC) emissions during hot idle showed marginal variation (±10 %) using blended fuels, and a significant increase (+55 %) using B00. Compared to cold idle operation, hot idle showed increased oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions, using all fuels (with a more significant increase shown using B00). During cold idle, particle concentrations (PNT) were 50–65 % higher using the blended fuels, compared to B00; however, during hot idle, the (PNT) using the blended fuels were one order of magnitude lower than B00. During cold idle operation, the average particle count mean diameter (CMD) in the Lower Aitken and Aitken modes was 5–10 % and 20–30 % higher using blended fuels, compared to B00, respectively. Higher CMD with the blended fuels during the cold idle operation caused a higher percentage increase in the particle mass (PMT), compared to B00. Sub-23 particles (</p
Betulonic Acid Inhibits Type-2 Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Replication by Downregulating Cellular ATP Production
No full textPorcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), caused by PRRS virus (PRRSV) infection, has been a serious threat to the pork industry worldwide and continues to bring significant economic loss. Current vaccination strategies offer limited protection against PRRSV transmission, highlighting the urgent need for novel antiviral approaches. In the present study, we reported for the first time that betulonic acid (BA), a widely available pentacyclic triterpenoids throughout the plant kingdom, exhibited potent inhibition on PRRSV infections in both Marc-145 cells and primary porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs), with IC50 values ranging from 3.3 µM to 3.7 µM against three different type-2 PRRSV strains. Mechanistically, we showed that PRRSV replication relies on energy supply from cellular ATP production, and BA inhibits PRRSV infection by reducing cellular ATP production. Our findings indicate that controlling host ATP production could be a potential strategy to combat PRRSV infections, and that BA might be a promising therapeutic agent against PRRSV epidemics.</p
Understanding what drives adolescent social media behaviours: Informing approaches for interventions
No full textNo description supplied</p
Outcomes of Best-Practice Guided Digital Mental Health Interventions for Youth and Young Adults with Emerging Symptoms: Part I. A Systematic Review of Socioemotional Outcomes and Recommendations.
No full textYouth-specific digital mental health interventions (DMHI) represent an emerging field of study, and aim to increase access, improve socioemotional outcomes, and, where required, support triage to targeted interventions. However, prior reviews have reported inconsistent findings on the clinical effectiveness of such interventions in young adults (12–25 years). Further, shortfalls remain for the impact of guided interventions based on the mode of delivery and the type of human support personnel (e.g., professional or peer) guiding the intervention. In response, this systematic review, co-designed with Australia’s leading mental health organization, aims to assess the effectiveness of guided digital programs in improving youth socioemotional outcomes. Included studies involve young people experiencing mental ill-health, receiving brief (i.e., 1–12 sessions), digitally delivered (at least partially) psychological interventions that were guided or partially guided, tested in a type of experimental study, with a socioemotional outcome. Specific socioemotional outcomes examined were depression, anxiety, stress, wellbeing, mindfulness, and quality of life. A systematic search of the contemporary published and grey literature identified 22,482 records with 32 relevant records published between 2018 and 2023. A narrative synthesis guided integration of findings. Results demonstrated strong evidence for the effectiveness of guided interventions on socioemotional outcomes (i.e., depression, anxiety, stress) yet these effects were short-lived. When factoring in the use of different control groups (i.e., active vs. inactive), inconsistent effects were observed for the socioemotional outcomes of depression, anxiety, and stress. The mode of delivery (i.e., asynchronous, synchronous, combined) and the type of human support personnel did not appear to impact socioemotional outcomes. Results indicate efficacious brief digital interventions for depression and anxiety include refresher/follow-up content, goal setting content, and relapse prevention content. In contrast, poor efficacy is associated with interventions that include homework tasks, self-monitoring, and log-keeping content. PROSPERO, ID CRD42023405812.</p
Wellbeing Predictors in Animal Shelter Workers: Exploring the Roles of Job Demands, Job Resources, and Job Crafting
No full textAnimal shelter workers are at risk of poor wellbeing resulting from their work, with this potentially impacting employee performance and attrition. Using the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model as a theoretical framework, the study explored relationships between job demands, job resources, workplace wellbeing (exhaustion and engagement), performance, and intentions to leave. Use of job-crafting behaviors, and the extent that these behaviors predict wellbeing after controlling for the impact of job demands and resources, were also explored. Among the 142 participants surveyed, a range of job-crafting behaviors were reported. Consistent with the JD-R model, hierarchical regressions revealed job demands and resources accounted for 36.4% of the variance in work engagement and 36.2% of the variance in exhaustion. Job crafting predicted wellbeing in animal shelter workers after controlling for demands and resources and explained an additional 7.8% of the variance in work engagement and 5.9% of the variance in exhaustion. Work engagement, but not exhaustion, was related to performance, while both engagement and exhaustion were related to intentions to leave. The results suggest that job demands and resources impact wellbeing in animal shelter workers, affecting their performance and contributing to intentions to leave. Broad workplace interventions that build resources and minimize demands may, therefore, be effective in promoting wellbeing and performance in animal-shelter environments, which could potentially increase retention rates. Animal shelter workers make active adjustments to their work environment through job crafting, and these are linked to workplace wellbeing. Interventions that offer flexibility and encourage job crafting, particularly those that involve finding opportunities for growth and seeking feedback on performance, offer a useful bottom-up approach to complement top-down interventions.</p
Understanding the Health Literacy Experiences and Practices of Australian-Resettled Myanmar Refugees: Relevance for Nutrition and Dietetics Practice
No full textBackground/Objectives: Refugees typically experience poorer health compared with people from non-refugee backgrounds, and health literacy may play a part in this discrepancy. Using the WHO’s revised health literacy definitions as a framework, this qualitative study sought to examine the health literacy experiences and practices of Australian resettled refugees from Myanmar from refugee and service provider perspectives. Methods: Four refugee participant focus groups (n = 27) along with one focus group and four interviews with service providers (n = 7) were conducted in Melbourne, Australia, and analysed using deductive content analysis. Results: Our study found that in addition to individual health literacy, community literacy was practiced by Myanmar refugees, thus highlighting the relevance of social support to health literacy. Furthermore, our study found gaps in healthcare service provision and resourcing related to health literacy development and responsiveness by the healthcare system. Conclusions: Our study confirms the relevance of WHO’s revised health literacy definitions to Myanmar refugees while also discussing, in the context of nutrition and dietetics practice, the importance of understanding the different aspects of health literacy and how this relates to working with those who are most marginalised to improve their health and wellbeing.</p
Delusions: Seeking epistemic justice for the most unusual of stories
No full textAbstract: The label of delusion can be so powerful that people so labelled are no longer believed or supported in preferred ways by those around them. This leads to a lack of meaningful and non-pathologising support for their significant, and at times unusual, beliefs. This phenomenon constitutes a form of epistemic injustice. To address this issue, this paper outlines specific approaches practitioners can adopt to better respond to such beliefs, illustrating these strategies with real-world examples from practice. By doing so, it aims to foster a form of epistemic justice that respects the knowledge and experience of people labelled as delusional and supports them to understand and lessen the impact of these often-distressing experiences. This paper is informed by research undertaken with people who had been labelled by psychiatry as “delusional”.</p
Vietnam's Online Platform Workers
No full texthttps://www.latrobe.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/1585148/LTAB11.pdf </p
Towards a theory of linguistic curiosity: applying linguistic frameworks to lingcomm and scicomm
No full textNo description supplied</p
Deep Learning Analysis of Group Activity Dynamics in Sports
No full textSubmitted in total fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia.</p