1,720,976 research outputs found
Sex-specific considerations in thermal physiology
No full textMales and females differ somewhat in their responses to heat stress, largely due to females having a reduced sweating capacity, specifically during periods of high heat loss requirements. Furthermore, hormonal fluctuations associated with the menstrual cycle modify responses to heat strain. For example, elevated progesterone concentrations during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle increases resting body temperature, the onset threshold for sweating, and cutaneous vasodilation for heat dissipation. Furthermore, perimenopausal and menopausal females experience additional heat sensitives, with the occurrence of hot flushes and night sweats which elevate their thermal discomfort. Interestingly, females report feeling less prepared for a heat wave than males, experience more heat illness symptoms during a heat wave (Mee et al., manuscript in preparation), are more commonly diagnosed with heat illnesses, and there are more excess deaths reported in females during heat waves.
Despite compelling evidence of sex differences in responses to heat strain, detailed audits of research designed to reduce physiological strain and susceptibility to exertional heat illness reveal a substantial under-representation of females as study participants. Of that data that is available, females have been shown to differ in their heat adaptive responses, with females typically requiring additional thermal stimuli to achieve the same magnitude of adaptation compared to males. Furthermore, most studies evaluating acute heat mitigation strategies in female participants, have failed to establish a reduction in physiological strain, thus, the efficacy of acute heat mitigation strategies in females is limited. The lack of robust thermal research on female-specific considerations ultimately hinders consensus on female bespoke guidance. For example, heat mitigation guidelines, which aim to reduce physiological strain and susceptibility to exertional heat illness, are underpinned almost exclusively by research conducted in males, without consideration of issues associated with the biological and phenotypical sex differences, despite females likely being at greater risk.
Heat illnesses are largely avoidable with the implementation of appropriate, effective, accessible, and sustainable heat mitigation strategies combined with appropriate education. Very few individuals receive any heat mitigation guidance from their employer or access public guidance on how to stay safe during heat waves (Mee et al., manuscript in preparation). Despite this lack of education, females have reported a greater willingness (compared to males) to engage with educational resources to enable them to optimise their preparation for a heat wave and reduce the impact the extreme heat has on their health and wellbeing (Mee et al., manuscript in preparation). As such, furthering our understanding of how females respond to heat strain and heat mitigation strategies whilst enhancing the translation of research informed strategies to the lay public is of urgent priority
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
Author-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.
No full textAuthor-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.</p
Hot Yoga: A Systematic Review of the Physiological, Functional and Psychological Responses and Adaptations
Full text linkBackground Hot yoga is a collective term used to classify any form of yoga undertaken in warm to hot ambient conditions (≥25°C). This study systematically reviewed the literature concerning hot yoga, with particular focus on acute responses to a single session and identifying prospective health benefits associated with physiological, functional and psychology adaptations following chronic practice.
Methods The review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), with searches performed across two main databases (PubMed and SCOPUS). Studies were included if they met the Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome (PICO) criteria, were of English language, peer-reviewed, full-text original articles, and using human participants.
Results Forty-three studies investigated the effects of hot yoga (both acute and/or chronic), totalling 942 participants (76% female). The most common method of yoga performed in hot conditions was Bikram (74%), followed by generalised hot yoga (19%), Hatha (5%) and then Vinyasa (2%). Typical session duration ranged 20–90 min and occurred within 30–52°C and 20–60% relative humidity. Hot yoga training interventions consisted of 6–36 sessions, that were completed 2–6 times per week, over 1–16 weeks. Acute hot yoga increased body temperature and heart rate, but not the energetic demands when compared to other forms of non-heated yoga. Chronic hot yoga appeared to elicit cardiometabolic (e.g. body composition, lipid profiles and macrovascular function) and functional adaptations applicable for health (e.g., bone mineral density, balance and flexibility) as well as physical performance (e.g., submaximal exercise thresholds). Adaptations appear to occur without negatively impacting kidney function, nor sleep quality across healthy, sedentary and athletic populations. Hot yoga also presents promising, albeit inconclusive findings concerning the alleviation of psychological and affective disorders, and optimising markers of cognitive function. However, caution is advised as case studies report ill-health following hot yoga practice. Some literature lacks rigorous, high-quality experimental designs and sophisticated measurements that allow for mechanistic investigation.
Conclusion Investigations into hot yoga demonstrate intriguing health and functional benefits. However, claims that hot yoga provides greater health benefits than other forms of yoga or traditional exercise are at present, unsubstantiated. Literature describing beneficial effects of hot yoga are often do not utilise robust experimental designs or methods that facilitate mechanistic insights. Hot yoga warrants further investigation as a tool to improve health and wellbeing. Researchers should consider the highlighted methodological limitations and recommendations to strengthen experimental work within future research
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