Search Results (1,107)

(1) Background: Psychological distress causes increased smoking frequency. Thus, financial distress (FD), a type of psychological distress, during the COVID-19 pandemic recession is possibly associated with increased smoking frequency. We studied the association between disrupted employment or earnings-associated FD and the number of cigarettes smoked daily, as well as the effects of pre-pandemic regular monthly incomes on the association. (2) Methods: We retrieved the collected data from a former nationwide and community-based study regarding the psycho-socio-economic characteristics of Thai people during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand in 2021. The participants for this study were current smokers aged ≥ 18 years. General demographics, perceived FD, and pre-pandemic regular monthly incomes were analyzed. Descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression with sampling weight adjustments were the analyses used (p < 0.05). (3) Results: 849 current smokers were suitable for statistical analyses. We found that 664 (12.9%) of participants experienced FD, but it did not significantly affect smoking frequency. However, those who had FD and regularly earning ≥ THB 10,000 ($271.11 US) per month was significantly associated with increased daily cigarette use, after adjusting for age and sex (adjusted OR = 2.74; 95% CI = 1.18, 6.37, p = 0.020). (4) Conclusion: FD alone did not affect daily smoking frequency. Understanding the psycho-socio-economic factors is necessary for smoking control during the COVID-19 economic recession. Full article

Ungual disorders can impact quality of life, with onychomycosis and nail psoriasis being the most prevalent disorders among the general population. In humans, the main functions of the nail apparatus comprise protection against trauma, improvement of tactile sensations, and allowing precision gripping. In order to perform such functions, the nail plate has a hard structure formed by dead keratinized corneocytes tightly bound to each other, giving the nail plate a “barrier-like” character. Due to this property of the nail plate, drug delivery to the region is hindered, making the treatment of ungual disorders difficult, either by systemic or topical drug administration. Many strategies have been developed in the last few decades in an attempt to increase the bioavailability of drugs in the nail. Interest in the employment of nanostructured drug delivery systems aiming to increase the bioavailability of drugs in the nail plate upon topical administration has increased. Moreover, the association of the nanotechnological approaches with other methods may be a beneficial strategy when aiming to increase drug permeation through the nail barrier. In this sense, the present review has the intention of presenting the panorama of the current technological development of nanostructured systems designed for the local treatment of ungual disorders. Through this extensive literature review, it was possible to recognize, among the studies, a lack of standardization regarding the methodology of nail permeation assessment, which imposes an obstacle to comparison. Full article

Space-borne gravitational wave (GW) detection is poised to significantly advance the frontiers of astrophysics, gravitation, and cosmology, which might make it possible to measure the fundamental symmetries of space-time. A critical component in GW detection is the employment of ultra-stable oscillators (USOs) on each satellite, serving as precision timing references to drive analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) for digital sampling of GW signals. Achieving the required sensitivity in GW detection hinges on highly accurate clock timing. However, the challenges posed by ADC aperture jitter and sampling clock jitter cannot be overlooked. They disrupt sampling timing, introduce clock noise, and distort the digitized signal, thus limiting the effectiveness of GW detection in space. To overcome this problem, researchers have developed pilot tone correction techniques and proposed innovative clock noise calibrated time-delay interferometry (TDI), optical comb TDI techniques, and sideband arm locking techniques that effectively suppress the effects of clock noise. This study provides an in-depth and comprehensive summary of the current status of clock noise and its suppression techniques in the space-borne GW detection. Through a systematic review and analysis, the aim is to provide theoretical and experimental technical support and optimization suggestions for the implementation of China’s space-borne GW detection mission. Full article

Preventive maintenance efforts for bridge infrastructure have proven to mitigate early deterioration and reduce the probability of severe damage. Modern research has focused on the employment of online data directly collected within the structures, provided by several novel devices that feed machine learning approaches that continuously measure structural health. However, several issues remain within the related fields. The constant evolution of ML techniques, for example, provides new potential lines of research. Furthermore, widespread validation through real-world test cases and the use of diverse bridge typologies (which can be interesting considering their distinct behaviors) remain limited. This article seeks to examine the advancements in structural health monitoring (SHM) employing machine learning methods for identifying structural damage in bridges over a 7-year period, with a particular focus on studies employing real bridge data. Present challenges and future research directions are assessed. This study offers valuable insights to researchers and academics conducting research in this field, providing a thorough summary of current developments and combining ML methods with the four most-investigated bridge types in case studies. Full article

Care-experienced young people often face considerable challenges due to a personal history of trauma and disruption and have a higher risk of homelessness, mental ill health, and involvement with the criminal justice system. A stubborn trend of achieving fewer qualifications than non-care-experienced peers persists, with greater likelihood of becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training). Accessible and sustainable pre-employment programmes should be a priority for national initiatives designed to generate improved outcomes for vulnerable youth. The I-CAN (Initiating and Supporting Care Leavers into Apprenticeships in Nursing) programme offers young people in England (aged 18–30) a person-focussed pathway to training and employment. However, robust research is needed to evidence the effectiveness of this type of small-scale and short-term funded programme. The current paper reports qualitative findings from a pilot study exploring the perceptions and experiences of (N = 27) young people who attended the 8-week I-CAN programme delivered at a Higher Education Institution. Data were collected from four focus groups and thematically analysed. The findings captured young people’s personal trajectories and exposed underpinning processes as well as unique, shared, and intersectional factors that can either facilitate or impede progression to education, employment and training. Crucially, care-experienced young people are not a homogenous group and capturing their authentic, diverse voices in evaluation research is essential for not only assessing if a programme works but for whom, and why. Furthermore, findings can help to inform meaningful strategies and socially valid interventions to support care-experienced young people navigate the transition ‘cliff edge’. Full article

Urban health planning requires a multi-scalar understanding of the territory, capable of capturing socio-economic inequalities and health needs at the local level. In the case of Rome, current administrative subdivisions—Urban Zones (Zone Urbanistiche)—are too large and internally heterogeneous to serve as effective units for equitable health planning. This study presents a methodology for the territorial redefinition of Rome’s Municipality III, aimed at supporting healthcare planning through an integrated analysis of census sections. These were grouped using a combination of census-based socio-demographic indicators (educational attainment, employment status, single-person households) and real estate values (OMI data), alongside administrative and road network data. The resulting territorial units—21 newly defined Mesoareas—are smaller than Urban Zones but larger than individual census sections and correspond to socio-territorially homogeneous neighborhoods; this structure enables a more nuanced spatial understanding of health-related inequalities. The proposed model is replicable, adaptable to other urban contexts, and offers a solid analytical basis for more equitable and targeted health planning, as well as for broader urban policy interventions aimed at promoting spatial justice. Full article

Solid biomass (agro-residue) is the most important source of renewable energy. The accelerating impacts of climate change and global population growth contribute to air pollution through the use of fossil fuels. These processes increase the demand for energy. The European Union has adopted a climate action plan to address the above challenges. The main aim of this study was to assess the economic performance of the producers of biomass for energy generation in Poland. The detailed objectives were to determine land resources in the studied agricultural farms and to determine the value of fixed and current assets in the analyzed farms. We used questionnaires as the main method to collect data. Purposive sampling was used to choose the farms. We conducted various tests to analyze the revenues from biomass sales and their normality, such as the Dornik–Hansen test, the Shapiro–Wilk test, the Liliefors test, and the Jargue–Berra statistical test. Moreover, we conducted regression analysis to find factors that are the basis for the economic performance (incomes) of farms that sell biomass. Results: This study demonstrated that biomass sales had a minor impact on the performance of agricultural farms, but they enabled farmers to maintain their position on the market. The economic analysis was carried out on a representative group of Polish agricultural farms, taking into account fixed and current assets, land use, production structure, and employment. The findings indicate that a higher income from biomass sales was generally associated with better economic results per farm and per employee, although not always per hectare of land. This suggests that capital intensity and strategic resource management play a crucial role in the profitability of bioenergy-oriented agricultural production. Conclusions: We concluded that biomass sales had a negligible influence on farm income. But a small income from biomass sales could affect a farm’s economic viability. Full article

Background/Objectives: Misperception of body weight might be associated with the likelihood of being in a pre-contemplation phase and with a limited intention to initiate a healthy behavioral change toward weight management. The current study investigates factors associated with the misperception of body weight, body weight satisfaction, and intentions for body weight modifications. Methods: This study utilized a cross-sectional design to reach adults from Jazan, in the southwest of Saudi Arabia. The data collection tool measured demographics, the participants’ latest height and weight, body weight perception, satisfaction, and intentions concerning body weight modification. Chi-squared tests were used to compare the demographic characteristics between those who had correct perception and those who had a wrong one. Results: A sample of 685 adult participants was included in the current analysis. The mean age of the participants was 31.3 years (standard deviation: 11.1). The proportion of female participants was 52%. Fifty-four percent of the participants had a wrong perception of their body weight. Gender, employment, smoking, khat chewing, having a diagnosed condition, and BMI levels were statistically associated with the perception of body weight (p-values < 0.05). Conclusions: The detected misestimating, especially underestimation, might be associated with the likelihood of participants being in a precontemplation phase and with a limited intention to initiate a healthy behavioral change toward weight management. The practical implications of these findings indicate the importance of incorporating the assessment of weight perception alongside actual BMI measurement in clinical settings. Full article

This study investigates the critical link between child care accessibility and local labor force participation, addressing a gap in current research that often lacks local spatial granularity. While over half of the U.S. population resides in child care deserts, disproportionately affecting rural, low-income, and minority communities, the economic implications for local labor markets remain underexplored. Leveraging Michigan child care license data and Census tract-level demographic and employment characteristics, this research employs a spatial econometric approach to estimate the impact of geographic distance to child care facilities on labor supply using descriptive data. Our findings consistently demonstrate that increased distance to child care is significantly associated with reduced labor force participation. While female labor force participation is lower in areas with constrained access to child care, we also found that households with two parents are also less likely to have full labor force participation when access to child care is constrained. The cost-effective framework used here can be replicated to identify specific communities most impacted by child care-related employment disruptions. The analytical findings can be instrumental in targeting and prioritizing child care policy interventions. Full article

Given the significant shifts in rural labor mobility patterns and their continuous influence on the transformation of the land factor market, it is crucial to understand the relationship between labor factor prices and land factor prices. This understanding is essential to keep land factor prices within a reasonable range. This study establishes a theoretical framework to investigate how migrant workers’ return shapes land price formation mechanisms. Using 2023 micro-level survey data from eight counties in Jiangsu Province, China, this study empirically examines how migrant workers’ return affects land transfer prices and its underlying mechanisms through OLS regression and instrumental variable approaches. The findings show that under the current pattern of labor mobility, the outflow factor alone is no longer sufficient to exert substantial downward pressure on land transfer prices. Instead, the localized return of labor has emerged as a key driver behind the rise in land transfer prices. This upward mechanism is primarily realized through the following pathways. First, factor substitution effect: this effect lowers labor prices and increases the relative marginal output value of land factors. Second, supply–demand effect: migrant workers’ return simultaneously increases land demand and reduces supply, intensifying market shortages and driving up transfer prices. Lastly, the results demonstrate that enhancing the stability of land tenure security or increasing local non-agricultural employment opportunities can mitigate the effect of rising land transfer prices caused by the migrant workers’ return. According to the study’s findings, stabilizing land factor prices depends on full non-agricultural employment for migrant workers. This underscores the significance of policies that encourage employment for returning rural labor. Full article

In this research paper, we study symmetry groups, soliton solutions, and the dynamical behavior of the Ivancevic Option Pricing Model (IOPM). First, we find the Lie symmetries of the considered model; next, we use them to determine the corresponding symmetry groups. Then, we attempt to solve IOPM by means of two methods. We provide some wave solutions and give further details of the solution using 2D and 3D graphs. These results are interpreted as important clarifications in financial mathematics and deepen our understanding of the dynamics involved during the pricing of options. Secondly, the quasi-periodic behavior of the two-dimensional dynamical system and its perturbed system are plotted using Python software (Python 3.13.5 version). Various frequencies and amplitudes are considered to confirm the quasi-periodic behavior via the Lyapunov exponent, bifurcation diagram, and multistability analysis. These findings are particularly in consonance with current research that investigates IOPM as a nonlinear wave alternate for normal models and the importance of graphical representations in the understanding of financial derivative dynamics. We, therefore, hope to fill in the gaps in the literature that currently exist about the use of multi-solution methods and their effects on financial modeling through the employment of sophisticated graphical techniques. This will be helpful in discussing matters in the field of financial mathematics and open up new directions of investigation. Full article

The future of marine sustainability depends on public understanding and trust in the policy recommendations that emerge from scientific research. For common pool marine resource decisions made by the people who depend on these resources for their food, employment, and economic future, understanding the current status of these marine systems and change is essential to ensure these resources will persist into the future. As such, the informal learning infrastructure is essential to increasing marine science literacy in a changing world. This mixed-methods research study analyzed the distribution and accessibility of marine science education and research across Alaska’s five geographic regions. Using the PRISMA framework, we synthesized data from 198 institutions and analyzed peer-reviewed literature on marine ecosystems to identify geographic and thematic gaps in access to informal science learning and research focus. In parallel, we undertook geospatial analysis and resource availability to describe the distribution of resources, types of informal learning infrastructure present across the state, regional presence, and resources to support informal marine science learning opportunities. Findings from this multifactor research revealed a concentration of resources in urban hubs and a lack of consistent access to learning resources for rural and Indigenous communities. The configurative literature review of 9549 publications identified topical underrepresentation of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands, as well as a lack of research on seabirds across all regions. Considered together, these results recommend targeted investments in rural engagement with marine science programming, culturally grounded partnerships, and research diversification. This review concludes that disparities in learning resource support and government-funded priorities in marine wildlife research have created conditions that undermine the local people’s participation in the sustainability of sensitive resources and are likely exacerbating declines driven by rapid change in Arctic and sub-Arctic waters. Full article

This study examines the employment of persons with disabilities in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in rural Japan. An online survey of 40 SME owners was conducted to assess their understanding, experiences, and challenges in employing persons with disabilities. The results indicate that many SMEs lack awareness of employment systems, but those with prior contact experience demonstrate greater understanding. Key challenges include difficulties in job creation, workplace acceptance, and inadequate environments. To address these issues, it is essential to enhance information on job creation, share successful cases, and establish mentoring systems for knowledge exchange between SMEs. These findings provide insights for policy development and practical strategies to promote the employment of persons with disabilities in SMEs. Full article

Background: Endometriosis is a chronic, inflammatory, estrogen-dependent gynecological disease in which endometrial-like tissue grows in areas outside the uterus. This condition may significantly influence women’s life course and mental health. Personal, behavioral, social, and environmental factors play a crucial role in predicting these outcomes. The current study aimed to compare the Perceived Life Course Impact (PLCI) and mental health of women with Endometriosis to those without the disease, as well as to explore the factors associated with PLCI and mental health. Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed 543 Israeli women (270 with Endometriosis, 273 without). Participants completed a validated questionnaire assessing perceptions of life course impact in several life domains (intimacy and relationships, employment, education) and mental health. Multiple regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with PLCI and mental health among participants. Results: Women with Endometriosis reported a significantly greater negative perceived impact on intimacy and relationships, employment, and education, with poorer mental health, as compared to the control group. Women with Endometriosis also experienced higher social negativity and lower social support. Multiple regression analyses indicated social negativity as a strong predictor of negative PLCI. Additionally, menstrual pain, social support, and healthcare accessibility were found to be significant predictors of both PLCI and mental health. Conclusions: Comprehensive care for women with Endometriosis requires a multidisciplinary approach, with interventions focused on improving healthcare accessibility, enhancing social support networks, and mitigating social negativity within interpersonal environments. Full article

Background and Objectives: Chronic pain (CP), defined as pain persisting for over 3 months, is a significant cause of global disability and affects more than 20% of individuals in Western countries, including Italy. Substantial evidence indicates a higher prevalence of CP among women, who also experience greater sensitivity, increased frequency, and a longer duration of pain. The impact of CP on quality of life, daily functioning, and employment is profound, particularly for women. However, chronic pain research has insufficiently addressed sex and gender differences, contributing to suboptimal and inequitable care. This neglect limits the development of personalized treatment strategies and, when combined with an aging population and women’s longer life expectancy, highlights an increasing societal and economic burden. Materials and Methods: The authors conducted a narrative review of studies examining biological, psychological, or social determinants of sex-related differences in CP perception or treatment. Each thematic area was reviewed by at least two authors, who critically appraised the literature. Their analyses were refined through iterative group discussions to develop concise, evidence-informed recommendations for personalized and equitable pain management. Results: Sex differences in CP arise from a range of factors, including biological mechanisms such as hormonal and genetic influences, psycho-social factors such as depression and anxiety, and socio-economic determinants, such as income and education levels. These factors also affect sex-specific outcomes of analgesic treatments currently available. Identifying these risk factors and tailoring treatment strategies to sex differences can significantly improve CP management. Such a personalized approach is essential for advancing precision medicine in CP management. Even in the absence of molecular or genomic biomarkers, adopting a biopsychosocial model that considers sex and gender differences, symptoms, physiological indicators, medical history, lifestyle, and psychological aspects may substantially enhance patient outcomes. Conclusions: This review provides a comprehensive analysis of sex differences in CP perception, stressing the importance of individualized, interdisciplinary approaches in pain management. Addressing both the biological and psycho-social contributors to pain in men and women is critical for guiding healthcare professionals in implementing precision pain medicine strategies, ultimately fostering more equitable and effective care. Full article