Search Results (85)

Older adults with dementia in long-term care facilities often become lost, enter unintended rooms, and develop greater dependence on care staff as a result of visuospatial impairment. However, existing dementia-friendly design studies have rarely distinguished among residents with different cognitive impairment characteristics. This exploratory cross-sectional study investigated 76 older adults with dementia and visuospatial impairment in three long-term care facilities in Xi’an, China. Neuropsychological assessment, behavior mapping, BIM-based modeling, space syntax analysis, and statistical analysis were integrated to examine the associations between environmental factors and the spatial behaviors of older adults with different research-based visuospatial impairment profiles. The results showed that the sample could be classified into three profiles: visual construction impairment, spatial disorientation, and global spatial cognitive impairment. The three groups showed different sensitivities to visual cues, path structure, and environmental stability, and exhibited distinct patterns of getting lost and spatial use. Based on these exploratory findings, this study formulates three hypothesis-generating unit-based design concepts: feature-enhanced units, path-simplified units, and stable low-load units. These concepts provide a provisional framework for examining how dementia care environments might be adapted to cognitive abilities and require validation in larger, longitudinal, and intervention-based studies. Full article

Gliomas remain among the most treatment-resistant malignancies of the central nervous system. Glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive adult-type diffuse glioma, is associated with persistently poor survival despite maximal safe resection followed by chemoradiation. Gliomas do not grow in isolation. Work over the past twenty years has dismantled the older tumor-centric view of glioma biology, replacing it with a model in which malignant cells operate within a tumor microenvironment (TME) composed of immune, vascular, stromal, and neural elements that together govern disease behavior. What makes the glioma TME so difficult to treat is not just its composition of immune cells, vasculature, stroma, and neurons, but the fact that these elements are arranged unevenly across the tumor. Different regions harbor different cellular mixtures and signaling environments, and, as a result, different vulnerabilities to therapy. Cytoreduction has not lost its importance, far from it. However, the same surgical window now also serves a different purpose; it lets the surgeon see which tissue is biologically dangerous rather than just visually abnormal, locate the true edge of infiltration, and get therapeutics past a blood–brain barrier (BBB) that has historically locked them out of the brain. This review examines two technology domains, including: (1) optical theranostics (5-aminolevulinic acid fluorescence-guided surgery, fluorescein-guided visualization, Raman spectroscopy, and stimulated Raman histology); and (2) blood–brain barrier disrupting technologies. The direction they collectively point toward is a version of glioma surgery that is guided less by anatomy and more by the biology of the tumor itself. Full article

In a short 11 nt dye-labelled oligonucleotide hybrid, we investigated the oxidation of a single guanine, G, to 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanosine, 8oG, a reaction proceeding via two reaction pathways. In single-molecule fluorescence traces, we were able to detect the conversion of G to 8oG and assign different reaction pathways. Reactions are initiated by a photoinduced electron transfer to the dye, creating a G radical cation, G^•+, which is in equilibrium with the neutral G radical, G(−H)^•. Results demonstrate that 8oG formation via water addition to G^•+ proceeds within less than the time resolution of 150 ms. The reaction of G(−H)^• with superoxide is more than 1000 times slower due to the formation of an intermediate with a lifetime of minutes. The overall yield of 8oG formation is low but increases considerably upon addition of dithiothreitol, thus preferring water addition over reactions depending on the presence of oxygen. Our results highlight the advantages of single-molecule real-time technology for the investigation of chemical reactions and reaction pathways. The method enables the direct observation of product formation comparable to fast kinetic methods, including flash photolysis and laser spectroscopy, but on much longer timescales. Time-resolved measurements over minutes to hours not only allow monitoring of reaction sequences that show the formation and decay of products and intermediates, but also the order of their appearance, information that is lost in classical analysis. Product yields can be obtained by counting events, in contrast to ensemble measurements that require considerable manipulation, during which intermediates may get lost. Full article

Translation technology has become ubiquitous in multilingual classrooms without evidence-based implementation guidance. This mixed-methods study examined K-12 teachers’ translation practices (n = 88 survey; n = 3 district leader interviews), comparing ESL specialists and content teachers to synthesize principles for effective use. Translation use was widespread (81.8%) despite minimal guidance (88.6% lack policies). Common methods included translation applications (89.6%), peer translation (72.2%), and native language texts. ESL specialists reported higher confidence (M = 3.69 vs. 3.18, d = 0.61) and perceived effectiveness (M = 3.76 vs. 3.29, d = 0.56) than content teachers—differences probably attributable to second language acquisition training. Thematic analysis of leader interviews, validated through Structural Topic Modeling, revealed professional development gaps as the strongest convergence (75% alignment). A critical divergence emerged: content teachers rated translation moderately effective, while leaders observed counterproductive practices (11.6% of segments), creating dependency rather than supporting English development. Leaders distinguished productive translation (temporary scaffolding toward English independence) from problematic practices (wholesale content translation). Findings grounded in Contrastive Analysis and Common Underlying Proficiency theory yielded seven evidence-based principles addressing temporary scaffolding, L1 literacy verification, communication versus content contexts, and sustained professional development. The scaffold-versus-crutch framework contributes conceptual clarity for distinguishing productive from counterproductive translation in technology-enhanced multilingual education. Full article

Background/Objectives: Developmental Topographical Disorientation (DTD) refers to a condition in which individuals report getting lost in very familiar surroundings, since childhood, with no other cognitive complaints, and no brain injuries or neurological disorders. While the cognitive and neurological mechanisms underlying DTD are being investigated, to date, there is no tool available to the public and health practitioners for identifying this lifelong condition. Methods: Here, we used a decade of data (N = 3794) collected in healthy and DTD individuals to produce a short and reliable measure of self-reported sense of direction that could point to the presence of DTD. Results: We adopted a measure of internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) and identified four items of the well-known Santa Barbara Sense of Direction (SBSOD) Scale that retain its original strong internal consistency. These four items remain sensitive to the well-known effects of sex on spatial orientation and, importantly, to the presence of DTD, while maintaining the same pattern of association with a cognitive battery of computerized tasks measuring different spatial abilities. Conclusions: This four-item measure could be of practical use to obtain a rapid assessment of an individual’s self-reported sense of direction and help to identify the presence of DTD in the general population. Full article

Among the multiple zoomorphic and geometric images that dominate Upper Paleolithic decorated cave walls in Europe, some intriguing human hand stencils and finger flutings stand out. Dozens of these marks are attributed to toddlers and children aged 2–12. Accompanied by older group members, they entered these deep, oxygen-depleted and sensory-deprived spaces, climbing and crawling in dark, wet, difficult-to-navigate environments where one might easily get lost or separated from the group. So, why would anyone bring young children into such dangerous locations? Relevant archaeological and anthropological studies form the basis of our hypothesis that the journeys of Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers to the depths of deep caves along with their young children should be seen in the framework of active connection with the cosmos as practiced by many indigenous societies worldwide. Indigenous societies often view children as liminal agents with unique physical, cognitive, and mental qualities that allow them to return to the supernatural realm more easily than adults. This makes them especially adept mediators between the world of the living and that of the spirits. In this paper, we examine children’s contribution to the creation of Paleolithic cave art as active agents. Their presence in caves (liminal spaces in themselves) and their participation in the creation of rock art might thus reflect their unique role in early human cosmology and ontology. Full article

This study investigates how an increase in the quality of business ventures, measured as their success probability, affects trust and return on investment (ROI) in situations where the investor–entrepreneur interaction is affected by moral hazard and asymmetric information. We model a repeated trust problem between investors and entrepreneurs, featuring moral hazard and adverse selection. Hidden Markov techniques and computer simulations are used to derive the main results. We find that trust and ROI may decline as quality improves. Although lenders tend to reduce the requirements for granting initial credit, they nevertheless become less tolerant of current borrowers who fail to pay back. Additionally, we demonstrate a novel substitution effect, where lenders prefer new borrowers over existing borrowers that experienced early failures. The main conclusions of our study are that while impressing early on is effective in gaining first access to credit, it may nevertheless hurt the cause of getting credit in subsequent periods, following an early failure. In business environments plagued with ex post moral hazard, entrepreneurs might do better by gaining trust first and impressing later. Furthermore, our results imply that in a thriving economy, not only are bad loans made, but good loans are lost as well. Full article

The booming development of e-commerce has promoted the diversified development of logistics distribution services (LDS). For LDS, e-commerce retailers (e-retailers) often choose either the outsourced logistics distribution services strategy (OLDSS) or the self-built logistics distribution services strategy (SBLDSS). Although there are problems such as products getting lost and damaged during the logistics distribution process, the high transparency and traceability characteristics of blockchain technology (BT) can help solve the problem of products being lost and damaged in the logistics distribution process. However, due to the high cost of BT, e-retailers may encounter reduced sales, which causes the supply chain corporate profits to decrease. To encourage the BT investment enthusiasm of the e-retailers and regulate corporate profits, the government implements subsidies for e-retailers’ BT, namely, the government blockchain subsidy (GBS). In addition, in recent years, environmental degradation has become increasingly severe, causing negative impacts on people’s lives. To promote sustainable development, we use variational inequality to establish an e-commerce closed-loop supply chain (E-CLSC) network equilibrium model in which the network equilibrium decisions of e-retailers choosing the OLDSS and those choosing the SBLDSS are obtained. Then, we analyze the impact of the BT input cost and the GBS quota on equilibrium decisions by studying their properties and verifying the theoretical results by performing numerical examples. Finally, we analyze the profits of the e-retailers to obtain the impact of the BT input cost and the GBS quota on e-retailers’ choice of the optimal LDS strategy; in this way, we provide a scientific basis for e-retailers to choose the optimal LDS strategy. The results show that increasing the BT input costs reduces e-retailers’ product sales under the two LDS strategies, which decreases the production rate and the recovery rate of the products. When the BT input cost is low, SBLDSS is the best choice for e-retailers. When the BT input cost is high, OLDSS is the best choice for e-retailers. Moreover, there is a positive correlation between GBS and e-retailers’ product sales; thus, GBS is conducive to expanding market demand, regulating the profits of manufacturers, increasing the e-retailers’ profits, improving the enthusiasm of the e-retailers for BT investment, and promoting the overall development of supply chain enterprises. For e-retailers, choosing the OLDSS can lead to a better development of the E-CLSC. Full article

This paper presents the initial prototypes of solutions designed using plastic caps, seeking acoustic applications for both airborne sound insulation and the acoustic conditioning of rooms. Plastic caps are a waste product from the packaging sector and they constitute a major waste problem, given that, if they are not attached to the packaging, they get lost during the recycling cycle and end up in landfill. Finding an application for this waste that can provide acoustic improvements is a sustainable alternative. This paper shows the results of airborne sound insulation measurements obtained in a scaled transmission chamber and sound absorption measurements obtained in a scaled reverberation chamber for different combinations of single and double plastic caps and combinations with thin sheets of sustainable materials, such as jute weaving, textile waste, hemp felt and cork board. Tests have shown that obtaining sound reduction index values of up to 20 dB is possible with plastic cap configurations, or even up to 30 dB is possible at some frequencies with combinations of caps and certain eco-materials. With regard to the sound absorption coefficient tests, close to unity absorption values have been achieved with the appropriate configuration at frequencies that can also be selected. The results indicate that these panels can be eco-solutions for airborne sound insulation as lightweight elements, or they can be used for the conditioning of rooms, tailoring the sound absorption maximums to the desired frequencies. Full article

Background and aims: An excessive weight loss (EWL) of >10% after birth is associated with serious health outcomes. The aim of this study was to determine factors that can reduce weight loss in full-term, exclusively breastfed infants after birth. Methods: This is a retrospective, observational, single-center study. We included 642 healthy, full-term, exclusively breastfed neonates born in 2019 in a baby-friendly hospital, and their healthy mothers. The exclusion criteria were as follows: supplementation with formula, multiple pregnancies, and neonates or mothers with health issues. Results: The mean percentage of neonatal weight loss after 24 h of life was 5.13%, and that after 48 h was 6.34%. Neonates delivered via a caesarean section lost more weight after 24 and 48 h of life than those delivered via vaginal delivery (p < 0.01). There is a noticeable pattern that neonates tend to lose more weight if they do not get skin-to-skin contact (SSC) and breastfeeding within the first hour after birth (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Neonates born via a CS tend to lose more weight after 24 and 48 h of life. Immediate SSC and breastfeeding in the first hour after delivery may decrease the excessive weight loss. Full article

Meningitis is the inflammation of the membranes surrounding the central nervous system and is poorly described in water buffaloes. Five cases of meningitis in adults buffaloes of the Murrah and Mediterranean breads were studied. All buffaloes came from a farm located in the municipality of Castanhal, Pará, Brazil at different times. Clinical examination showed neurological clinical signs, such as apathy, reluctance to move, spastic paresis especially of the pelvic limbs, hypermetria, difficulty getting up, pressing of the head into obstacles and convulsion. In three buffaloes, a large part of the horn had been lost, exposing the corresponding frontal sinus, through which a bloody to purulent exudate flowed. The hemogram revealed neutrophilic leukocytosis. At necropsy, adherence of the dura mater to the periosteum and a purulent to fibrinopurulent exudate were observed in the sulci of the cerebral cortex and on the pia mater over almost the entire surface of the brain and throughout the spinal cord. The cerebrospinal fluid had a cloudy aspect with fibrin filaments. The histopathology of buffaloes confirmed the diagnosis of bacterial fibrinopurulent meningitis. Buffaloes are susceptible to bacterial inflammation of the meninges due to fractures of the base of the horn and mostly present with neurological manifestations. Full article

Trail running is a fast-growing sport, linked to improvements in both physical and psychological well-being. Despite its popularity, the preferences of trail runners are not well known. The objective of this study was to examine the environmental preferences and concerns of trail runners with respect to age and gender. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of recreational trail runners. A total of 548 people responded, of which 50.1% of respondents were women and 44.2% were men. The sample was distributed relatively evenly across age groups, up to 54 years; respondents over 55 represented only 9.4% of the sample. Comparisons of runner characteristics by gender indicated significant differences (p < 0.05) according to age, distance run per week, and number of days run per week. Certain runner preferences also differed significantly by gender, including importance of running around others, the type of trail races they seek, and whether or not they like to seek “vert” or elevation in their runs. Major concerns for both genders while running included lack of cell reception (Men: 33.8%; Women: 50.8%) and getting lost (Men: 26.8%; Women: 35.5%). Comparisons of the results of this study help to strengthen our understanding of trail runners’ environmental preferences and concerns and can be used to guide future design and maintenance of trail environments to encourage greater participation in the sport. Full article

Smartphones have become ubiquitous, allowing people to perform various tasks anytime and anywhere. As technology continues to advance, smartphones can now sense and connect to networks, providing context-awareness for different applications. Many individuals store sensitive data on their devices like financial credentials and personal information due to the convenience and accessibility. However, losing control of this data poses risks if the phone gets lost or stolen. While passwords, PINs, and pattern locks are common security methods, they can still be compromised through exploits like smudging residue from touching the screen. This research explored leveraging smartphone sensors to authenticate users based on behavioral patterns when operating the device. The proposed technique uses a deep learning model called DeepResNeXt, a type of deep residual network, to accurately identify smartphone owners through sensor data efficiently. Publicly available smartphone datasets were used to train the suggested model and other state-of-the-art networks to conduct user recognition. Multiple experiments validated the effectiveness of this framework, surpassing previous benchmark models in this area with a top F1-score of 98.96%. Full article

Effective waste management has become an urgent societal challenge. Food waste is made up of items meant for human consumption that are lost, polluted, disposed of, or deteriorated; the reutilization of shells from mollusk waste is a severe problem in terms of environmental protection and the development of the circular economy. The properties of waste shells are presented and discussed, including their biological–natural origin and high calcium carbonate content. This could add social and innovation focus on shell waste management, getting a non-toxic, eco-sustainable, low-cost, biodegradable supplement to invest in. Furthermore, it has the potential to support the circular economy approach by creating a closed system that minimizes the use of natural resources and environmental contamination. This review explores edible mollusk shell waste sources and functional properties of inorganic components of snail shell waste like minerals and active substances like chitin, chitosan, and calcium carbonate and attempts to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the scientific literature published over the last 20 years, elucidating prominent patterns in the utilization of shell waste in food application industry, as additives and supplements development to promote both human and animal health. Full article

The ability to navigate and orient in spatial surroundings is critical for effective daily functioning. Such ability is perturbed in clinically diagnosed mood and anxiety disorders, with patients exhibiting poor navigational skills. Here, we investigated the effects of depression and anxiety traits (not the clinical manifestation of the disorders) on the healthy population and hypothesized that greater levels of depression and anxiety traits would manifest in poorer spatial orientation skills and, in particular, with a poor ability to form mental representations of the environment, i.e., cognitive maps. We asked 1237 participants to perform a battery of spatial orientation tasks and complete two questionnaires assessing their anxiety and depression traits. Contrary to our hypothesis, we did not find any correlation between participants’ anxiety and depression traits and their ability to form cognitive maps. These findings may imply a significant difference between the clinical and non-clinical manifestations of anxiety and depression as affecting spatial orientation and navigational abilities. Full article