Search Results (120)

Background: Preterm infants and their families face a challenging experience during their stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Family-centered care emphasizes the importance of welcoming parents, involving them in their baby’s daily care, and supporting the development of parenting skills. NICU staff should support parents in understanding their baby’s needs and in strengthening the parent–infant bond. Although many tools outline what parents should learn, there is a limited structured framework to monitor their involvement in the infant’s care. Tracking parental participation in daily caregiving activities could support professionals in effectively guiding families, ensuring a smoother transition to discharge. Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the adherence to and effectiveness of a structured tool for parental involvement in the NICU. This tool serves several key purposes: to track the progression and timing of parents’ autonomy in caring for their baby, to support parents in building caregiving competencies before discharge, and to standardize the approach of NICU professionals in promoting both infant care and family engagement. Methods: A structured template form for documenting parental involvement (“together TO-CARE template”, TTCT) was integrated into the computerized chart adopted in the NICU of Modena. Nurses were asked to complete the TTCT at each shift. The template included the following assessment items: parental presence; type of contact with the baby (touch; voice; skin-to-skin); parental involvement in care activities (diaper changing; gavage feeding; bottle feeding; breast feeding); and level of autonomy in care (observer; supported by nurse; autonomous). We evaluated TTCT uploaded data for very low birth weight (VLBW) preterm infants admitted in the Modena NICU between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2024. Staff compliance in filling out the TTCT was assessed. The timing at which parents achieved autonomy in different care tasks was also measured. Results: The TTCT was completed with an average of one entry per day, during the NICU stay. Parents reached full autonomy in diaper changing at a mean of 21.1 ± 15.3 days and in bottle feeding at a mean of 48.0 ± 22.4 days after admission. The mean length of hospitalization was 53 ± 38 days. Conclusions: The adoption of the TTCT in the NICU is feasible and should become a central component of care for preterm infants. It promotes family-centered care by addressing the needs of both the baby and the family. Encouraging early and progressive parental involvement enhances parenting skills, builds confidence, and may help reduce post-discharge complications and readmissions. Furthermore, the use of a standardized template aims to foster consistency among NICU staff, reduce disparities in care delivery, and strengthen the support provided to families of preterm infants. Full article

The wave spectrum, as a key statistical feature describing wave energy distribution, is crucial for understanding wave propagation mechanisms and supporting ocean engineering applications. This study, based on ERA5 reanalysis spectrum data, proposes a model combining CNN and xLSTM for rapid gridded wave spectrum prediction over the Bohai and Yellow Seas domain. It uses 2D gridded spectrum data rather than a spectrum at specific points as input and analyzes the impact of various input factors at different time lags on wave development. The results show that incorporating water depth and mean sea level pressure significantly reduces errors. The model performs well across seasons with the seasonal spatial average root mean square error (SARMSE) of spectral energy remaining below 0.040 m²·s and RMSEs for significant wave height (SWH) and mean wave period (MWP) of 0.138 m and 1.331 s, respectively. At individual points, the spectral density bias is near zero, correlation coefficients range from 0.95 to 0.98, and the peak frequency RMSE is between 0.03 and 0.04 Hz. During a typical cold wave event, the model accurately reproduces the energy evolution and peak frequency shift. Buoy observations confirm that the model effectively tracks significant wave height trends under varying conditions. Moreover, applying a frequency-weighted loss function enhances the model’s ability to capture high-frequency spectral components, further improving prediction accuracy. Overall, the proposed method shows strong performance in spectrum prediction and provides a valuable approach for regional wave spectrum modeling. Full article

This paper presents a novel design for precise vertical landing of drones based on the detection of three phase shifts in the range of ±180°. The design has three inputs to which the signal transmitted from an oscillator located at the landing point arrives with different delays. The circuit increases the aerial tracking volume relative to that achieved by detectors with theoretical unambiguous detection ranges of ±90°. The phase shift measurement circuit uses an analog phase detector (mixer), detecting a maximum range of ±90°and a double multiplication of the input signals, in phase and phase-shifted, without the need to fulfill the quadrature condition. The calibration procedure, phase detector curve modeling, and calculation of the input signal phase shift are significantly simplified by the use of an automatic gain control on each branch, dwhich keeps input amplitudes to the analog phase detectors constant. A simple program to determine phase shifts and guidance instructions is proposed, which could be integrated into the same flight control platform, thus avoiding the need to add additional processing components. A prototype has been manufactured in C band to explain the details of the procedure design. The circuit uses commercial circuits and microstrip technology, avoiding the crossing of lines by means of switches, which allows the design topology to be extrapolated to much higher frequencies. Calibration and measurements at 5.3 GHz show a dynamic range greater than 50 dB and a non-ambiguous detection range of ±180°. These specifications would allow one to track the drone during the landing maneuver in an inverted cone formed by a surface with an 11 m radius at 10 m high and the landing point, when 4 cm between RF inputs is considered. The errors of the phase shifts used in the landing maneuver are less than ±3°, which translates into 1.7% losses over the detector theoretical range in the worst case. The circuit has a frequency bandwidth of 4.8 GHz to 5.6 GHz, considering a 3 dB variation in the input power when the AGC is limiting the output signal to 0 dBm at the circuit reference point of each branch. In addition, the evolution of phases in the landing maneuver is shown by means of a small simulation program in which the drone trajectory is inside and outside the tracking range of ±180°. Full article

As streaming platforms adopt artificial intelligence (AI)-powered subtitle systems to satisfy global demand for instant localization, the cognitive impact of these automated translations on viewers remains largely unexplored. This study used a web-based eye-tracking protocol to compare the cognitive load that GPT-4o-generated Arabic subtitles impose with that of professional human translations among 82 native Arabic speakers who viewed a 10 min episode (“Syria”) from the BBC comedy drama series State of the Union. Participants were randomly assigned to view the same episode with either professionally produced Arabic subtitles (Amazon Prime’s human translations) or machine-generated GPT-4o Arabic subtitles. In a between-subjects design, with English proficiency entered as a moderator, we collected fixation count, mean fixation duration, gaze distribution, and attention concentration (K-coefficient) as indices of cognitive processing. GPT-4o subtitles raised cognitive load on every metric; viewers produced 48% more fixations in the subtitle area, recorded 56% longer fixation durations, and spent 81.5% more time reading the automated subtitles than the professional subtitles. The subtitle area K-coefficient tripled (0.10 to 0.30), a shift from ambient scanning to focal processing. Viewers with advanced English proficiency showed the largest disruptions, which indicates that higher linguistic competence increases sensitivity to subtle translation shortcomings. These results challenge claims that large language models (LLMs) lighten viewer burden; despite fluent surface quality, GPT-4o subtitles demand far more cognitive resources than expert human subtitles and therefore reinforce the need for human oversight in audiovisual translation (AVT) and media accessibility. Full article

Understanding morphological descriptions of plants documented by ancient peoples over 1000 years ago and identifying the species they described are critical for reconstructing the natural geographic distribution of plant taxa, tracking taxonomic variations, and inferring historical climate dynamics. Analyzing shifts in plant communities and climatic conditions during this period is essential to unravel the interplay among floristic composition, climate fluctuations, and anthropogenic impacts. However, research in this field remains limited, with greater emphasis placed on plant taxa from hundreds of millions of years ago. Investigations into flora and climate during the last two millennia are sparse, and pre-millennial climatic conditions remain poorly characterized. In this study, a historical text written 1475 years ago was analyzed to compile plant names and morphological features, followed by taxonomic identification. The research identified three gymnosperm species (one in Pinaceae, two in Cupressaceae), 1 Tamaricaceae species (dicotyledon), and 19 dicotyledon species. However, three plant groups could only be identified at the genus level. Using textual analysis and woody plant coexistence methods, the climate of 1475 years ago in western Henan Province, located in the middle-lower Yellow River basin in East Asia, was reconstructed. Results indicate that the mean temperature of the coldest month (MTCM) was approximately 1.3 °C higher than modern values. In comparison, the mean temperature of the warmest month (MTWM) and mean annual temperature (MAT) were lower than present-day levels. This suggests slightly cooler overall conditions with milder seasonal extremes in ancient Luoyang—a finding supported by contemporaneous studies. Furthermore, annual precipitation (AP), precipitation of the warmest quarter (PWQ), and precipitation of the coldest quarter (PCQ) in the Luoyang region 1475 years ago exceeded modern measurements, despite the area’s monsoonal climate. This suggests significantly higher atmospheric moisture content in ancient air masses compared to today. This study provides floristic and climatic baseline data for advancing our understanding of global climate variability at millennial scales. Full article

The heart rate variability (HRV), influenced by female sex hormone fluctuations, is an indicator of athletes’ adaptation. This case study explores HRV responses over 18 months across a natural menstrual cycle (MC) and during oral contraceptive (OC) use in two Olympic female swimmers. HRV measurements—including mean heart rate (HR); root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD); and frequency-domain indices—were collected at rest in supine (SU) and standing (ST) positions across two competitive seasons. Nocturnal HR and RMSSD were assessed using the Ōura^® ring. MC and OC phases were identified through specific tracking, and training load was controlled. In both athletes, resting HR was lower during bleeding phases, increasing from menstruation to the luteal phase (MC) and from withdrawal to active pill phases (OC). In the ST position, RMSSD was higher but decreased throughout the phases. Nocturnal measurements confirmed these trends. Overall, findings suggest a phase-related parasympathetic overactivity shift. This study provides novel insights into HRV responses across hormonal cycles in elite female athletes, which present unique characteristics. Such monitoring tools may support a data-informed approach to guide and periodize training more effectively. Full article

Understanding the characteristics of the Northeast China Cold Vortex (NCCV) during the warm season (May to September) is essential for enhancing the forecast skills in Northeast China. This study employed ERA5 reanalysis data over 2012–2022 and the optimized K-means clustering algorithm to classify NCCV tracks into five types: (A) eastward-moving dissipative, (B) eastward-moving retrogressive, (C) short-range eastward-moving offshore, (D) long-range eastward-moving offshore, and (E) long-range southeastward-moving offshore. The results demonstrated that variations in circulation configurations governed the tracks of the NCCVs, bringing about the diversity in the center intensity, lifespan, movement speed, and rainstorm probability results. Specifically, the blocking high (BH) over the Sea of Okhotsk served as the primary control system, favoring slow-moving, long-lived NCCVs (type A and type B), which were associated with a higher probability of cold vortex (CV) rainstorms. However, fast-moving, the short-lived NCCVs (type C) had a weaker impact on precipitation. A spatiotemporal analysis further revealed obvious inter-monthly variation in NCCV tracks. From May to August, under the influence of the northward-moving subtropical high and the strengthening of the BH, the occurrence of types A and B increased, while the occurrence of other types decreased. This synoptic shift promoted moisture transport into Northeast China, increasing the frequency of CV rainstorms in July and August. Full article

Certain fixed-income securities, such as callable bonds and mortgage-backed securities subject to prepayment, typically exhibit negative convexity at low yields and cannot be adequately immunized through duration and convexity-matching alone. To address this residual risk, we examine the concepts of bond tilt and bond agility. We provide explicit calculations and derive several approximation formulas that incorporate higher-order terms. With the help of these methods, we are able to track the price-yield dynamics of callable bonds remarkably well, achieving mean absolute errors below 2.5% across a wide variety of callable bonds for parallel yield shifts of up to ±200 basis points. Full article

Background/Objectives: Donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) is a marker of graft injury that increases in acute rejection and has excellent negative predictive value. Left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LVGLS) and strain-derived myocardial work indices are novel echocardiographic parameters with growing applications. Still, they have been poorly investigated in heart transplant (HTx) recipients so far. We sought to examine the diagnostic impact of left ventricular longitudinal strain-derived indices in diagnosing myocardial injury as assessed by dd-cfDNA after HTx. Methods: Since October 2022, HTx recipients have been shifted from our endomyocardial biopsy (EMB)-based rejection surveillance protocol to a monthly dd-cfDNA-led rejection assessment. We analysed the percentage of donor-derived to total cell-free DNA. For echocardiographic analysis, patient selection was restricted to those transplanted ≥ 6 months. We used 2D speckle-tracking echocardiography to assess LVGLS and strain-derived myocardial work parameters. Results: We analysed four hundred and forty-nine dd-cfDNA samples from seventy-one patients until November 2024. The mean dd-cfDNA fraction remained very low (0.13 ± 0.06%). Eighty-eight percent of surveillance EMBs that would have otherwise been performed were avoided. The mean LVGLS was lower than the literature reference values. We found no correlation between dd-cfDNA and LVGLS. Transplanted hearts had different myocardial work indices than the reference values reported in the literature. Conclusions: dd-cfDNA effectively rules out clinically significant acute rejection and decreases the need for invasive surveillance EMBs. LVGLS seems less sensitive than dd-cfDNA for the identification of myocardial injury in the early stages of HTx rejection in patients at low risk for rejection. Full article

Compared to conventional pulse-limited altimeters (i.e., low-resolution mode, LRM), the synthetic aperture radar (SAR, i.e., high-resolution mode, HRM) altimeter offers superior precision and along-track resolution abilities. However, because the SAR altimeter relies on Doppler shifts caused by the relative movement between radar scattering points and the altimeter antenna, the geophysical parameters obtained by the SAR altimeter are sensitive to the direction of ocean wave movements driven by the wind and waves. Both practice and theory have shown that the wind and wave effects have a greater impact on HRM data than LRM. LRM values of range and significant wave height (SWH) from modern retracking are the best representations there are of these quantities, and this study aims to bring HRM data into line with them. In this study, wind and wave effects in SAR altimeter measurements were analyzed and corrected. The radar altimeter onboard the Sentinel-6 satellite is the first SAR altimeter to operate in an interleaved open burst mode. It has the capability of simultaneous generation of both LRM and HRM data. This study utilizes Sentinel-6 altimetry data and ERA5 re-analysis data to identify the influence of ocean waves. The analysis is based on the altimeter range and SWH differences between the HRM and LRM measurements with respect to different geophysical parameters derived from model data. Results show that both HRM range and SWH measurements are impacted by SWH and wind speed, and the HRM SWH measurements are also significantly impacted by vertical velocity. An upwave/downwave bias between HRM and LRM range is observed. To reduce wave impact on the SAR altimeter measurements, a back-propagation neural network (BPNN) method is proposed to correct the HRM range and SWH measurements. Based on Sentinel-6 measurements and ERA5 re-analysis data, our corrections significantly reduce biases between LRM and HRM range and SWH values. Finally, the accuracies of the sea surface height (SSH) and SWH measurements after correction are assessed using crossover analysis and compared against NDBC buoy data. The standard deviation (STD) of the HRM SSH differences at crossovers has no significant changes before (3.97 cm) and after (3.94 cm) correction. In comparison to the NDBC data, the root mean square error (RMSE) of the corrected HRM SWH data is 0.187 m, which is significantly better than that with no correction (0.265 m). Full article

Traditional text classification models predominantly rely on static text representations, failing to capture temporal variations in language usage and evolving semantic meanings. This limitation reduces their ability to accurately classify time-sensitive texts, where understanding context, detecting trends, and addressing semantic shifts over time are critical. This paper introduces a novel time-aware short text classification model incorporating temporal information, enabling tracking of and adaptation to evolving language semantics. The proposed model enhances contextual understanding by leveraging timestamps and significantly improves classification accuracy, particularly for time-sensitive applications such as News topic classification. The model employs a hybrid architecture combining Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) networks, enriched with attention mechanisms to capture both local and global dependencies. To further refine semantic representation and mitigate the effects of semantic drift, the model fine-tunes GloVe embeddings and employs synonym-based data augmentation. The proposed approach is evaluated on three benchmark dynamic datasets, achieving superior performance with classification accuracy reaching 92% for the first two datasets and 85% for the third dataset. Furthermore, the model is applied to a different-fields categorization and trend analysis task, demonstrating its capability to capture temporal patterns and perform detailed trend analysis of domain-agnostic textual content. These results underscore the potential of the proposed framework to provide deeper insights into the evolving nature of language and its impact on short-text classification. This work advances natural language processing by offering a comprehensive time-aware classification framework, addressing the challenges of temporal dynamics in language semantics. Full article

The Statistical Process Control (SPC) approach using mathematical modeling proves effective for correlated data, with applications in healthcare, finance, and technology to enhance quality and efficiency. Here, we provide a novel SPC method using mathematical modeling and discuss its use in simulation tests to assess its applicability for tracking processes containing correlated data operating on sophisticated control charts. Particularly, an approach for detecting small shifts in the mean of a process running on the double-modified exponentially weighted moving average (DMEWMA) control chart, which is symmetric about the center line with upper and lower control limits, is of special interest. The computations showed exceptional accuracy, with ARL from the explicit formula closely matching that from the NIE method. Simulation tests assess its applicability in detecting small mean shifts and compare its performance with exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) and modified exponentially weighted moving average (MEWMA) control charts across various scenarios. For several values of the design parameters, the performances of these three control charts are also compared in terms of the relative average index and relative standard deviation index. The results show that the DMEWMA chart outperforms others for several process mean shifts. The method’s practical use is demonstrated with stock data, highlighting its superior effectiveness in enhancing process monitoring. Full article

Background: This study investigated the interdependent relationships among older adults’ daily engagement in physical activity (PA), sedentary time (ST), sleep, and their well-being, cognition, and body mass index (BMI). Method: Forty healthy older adults (31 females; Mean [age] = 70.8 ± 5.58) were included in the analysis. Participants wore a Fitbit tracker for an average of 23 h a day, five days a week, over six months. The Fitbit device tracked lightly active time, active time, ST, and sleep durations. Quality of life and cognitive flexibility were assessed using validated instruments. BMI was calculated using participants’ self-reported height and weight. A compositional analysis (CODA) investigated the codependent associations among these variables and model time reallocation between behaviors. Results: Regression models utilizing CODA indicated significant associations between the outcomes of BMI (p = 0.05; Adj. R² = 0.20), while cognitive flexibility and quality of life revealed no association (p > 0.05). Shifting 10 min from ST to active time is associated with a theoretical decrease of −0.76 (95% CI, −1.49 to −0.04) units in BMI. Similarly, reallocating 10 min from active time to ST is associated with a theoretical increase of 1.17 (95% CI, 0.03 to 2.3) units in BMI. Reallocating 10 min between other movement behaviors yielded no statistical significance. Conclusions: Our study highlights the importance of promoting active time to improve BMI in this population. Encouraging 10 min bouts of PA among older adults, in place of ST, is vital for improving national PA guideline adherence. Full article

In order to solve the problem of detecting, tracking and estimating the size of “low, slow and small” targets (such as UAVs) in the air, this paper designs a single-photon LiDAR imaging system based on Geiger-mode Avalanche Photodiode (Gm-APD). It improves the Mean-Shift algorithm and proposes an automatic tracking method that combines the weighted centroid method to realize target extraction, and the principal component analysis (PCA) method of the adaptive rotating rectangle is realized to fit the flight attitude of the target. This method uses the target intensity and distance information provided by Gm-APD LiDAR. It addresses the problem of automatic calibration and size estimation under multiple flight attitudes. The experimental results show that the improved algorithm can automatically track the targets in different flight attitudes in real time and accurately calculate their sizes. The improved algorithm is stable in the 1250-frame tracking experiment of DJI Elf 4 UAV with a flying speed of 5 m/s and a flying distance of 100 m. Among them, the fitting error of the target is always less than 2 pixels, while the size calculation error of the target is less than 2.5 cm. This shows the remarkable advantages of Gm-APD LiDAR in detecting “low, slow and small” targets. It is of practical significance to comprehensively improve the ability of UAV detection and C-UAS systems. However, the application of this technology in complex backgrounds, especially in occlusion or multi-target tracking, still faces certain challenges. In order to realize long-distance detection, further optimizing the field of view of the Gm-APD single-photon LiDAR is still a future research direction. Full article

We detail the use of the University of Tasmania’s (UTAS) optical and radio telescopes to conduct observations of near-Earth asteroids from 2021 to 2024. The Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex transmitted a radio signal at 7159.45 MHz, with the radar echo detected by the UTAS radio telescopes. The method of accounting for the Doppler shift between the stations and the near-Earth object is described so that others can implement a similar program. We present our results, with confirmed detections of 1994 PC1 and 2003 UC20 asteroids using the Hobart and Katherine 12-m antennas, demonstrating the feasibility of using small radio telescopes for these observations. Additionally, the recently upgraded Ceduna 30 m antenna was used to detect 2024 MK. Data collected from other observatories, such as Tidbinbilla, as well as the UTAS radar tracking of the moon are also presented in the context of demonstrating the means of applying these Doppler corrections and the accuracy of each method. Optical observations conducted in this period are also detailed as they complement radar observations and aid in refining the orbit parameters. Full article