Enhancing Laboratory Education through Collaborative Online International Learning: A Case Study between USA and UK Students

Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) has emerged in recent years as an effective and viable alternative to increase the international opportunities within taught curricula. Through recent innovations in online collaboration tools, and elevated demand for international opportunities, there has been a global increase in the development of COIL opportunities across a range of health aligned disciplines. This style of learning has been described to positively develop student’s internationality and enhance their transferable skills. However, there have been no reported COIL opportunities described in the fields of laboratory medicine and biomedicine, likely due to the emphasis on practical techniques associated with the subjects making them difficult to disseminate virtually. This study therefore aimed to develop a COIL project that incorporates practical laboratory elements and evaluates the efficacy of this teaching and learning approach. A laboratory-based COIL was developed and delivered across two days between the University of Salford, United Kingdom, and Wayne State University, United States of America. Day one was composed of asynchronous livestreamed laboratory demonstrations, micro-teaching sessions of practical activities, with day two focused on the completion of a time-dependent team-based task. The pedagogical impact of this laboratory-based COIL was evaluated through 1) pre and post surveys and 2) an overall survey utilising Likert scales to evaluate experience, transferable skill enhancement and international development. The laboratory-based COIL was well received among students with most students stating they enjoyed the session (94.1%) and learnt a lot by participating in it (94.1%). COIL learning opportunity also produced highly positive benefits to student confidence (97.1%), teamworking (100%), and communication (97.1%). Pre and Post-analysis revealed significant enhancement of students’ international medical practice knowledge (p<0.0001), cultural intelligence (p<0.0001), social initiative (P=0.0373), and work-based flexibility (P=0.0047). Further stratification based on participants’ international institution revealed significant differences in questions relating to cultural intelligence (P=0.0062) and their confidence of working with cultures unfamiliar to themselves (P=0.0390). We are the first to report that implementation of laboratory-based COIL opportunities enhances students' international, cultural and transferable competencies within medical laboratory and biomedicine education. These data suggest that practical-based COIL is an effective method for preparing students to thrive in a globalized healthcare environment

BioTIME 2.0: Expanding and Improving a Database of Biodiversity Time Series

Motivation: Here, we make available a second version of the BioTIME database, which compiles records of abundance estimates for species in sample events of ecological assemblages through time. The updated version expands version 1.0 of the database by doubling the number of studies and includes substantial additional curation to the taxonomic accuracy of the records, as well as the metadata. Moreover, we now provide an R package (BioTIMEr) to facilitate use of the database. Main Types of Variables Included: The database is composed of one main data table containing the abundance records and 11 metadata tables. The data are organised in a hierarchy of scales where 11,989,233 records are nested in 1,603,067 sample events, from 553,253 sampling locations, which are nested in 708 studies. A study is defined as a sampling methodology applied to an assemblage for a minimum of 2 years. Spatial Location and Grain: Sampling locations in BioTIME are distributed across the planet, including marine, terrestrial and freshwater realms. Spatial grain size and extent vary across studies depending on sampling methodology. We recommend gridding of sampling locations into areas of consistent size. Time Period and Grain: The earliest time series in BioTIME start in 1874, and the most recent records are from 2023. Temporal grain and duration vary across studies. We recommend doing sample‐level rarefaction to ensure consistent sampling effort through time before calculating any diversity metric. Major Taxa and Level of Measurement: The database includes any eukaryotic taxa, with a combined total of 56,400 taxa. Software Format: csv and. SQL

Qualitative Meta-analysis of Economic Models of Climate Change: Informing Policy Development Strategies

Purpose: The livelihoods of agricultural communities are significantly impacted by the socioeconomic effects of climate change. Although numerous socioeconomic effects have been identified through the economic models of climate change (EMCC), it has focused on a narrow range of parameters. This paper aims to advance existing knowledge on EMCC to identify the parameters and effective use of models which prioritise and organise the socioeconomic factors pertaining to agricultural communities' livelihoods, thereby informing policy development. Methodology: The study conducts a qualitative meta-analysis following a systematic literature review (SLR) using three databases. Findings: A comprehensive review is conducted of 23 EMCC in agriculture, which are categorised into land-based, global integrated, crop, economic simulation, and policy-specific models. It identifies 26 socioeconomic parameters across agricultural, demographic, economic, and social dimensions. The outcomes of this paper identify various EMCC, elucidating multiple parameters that must be considered to assess the socioeconomic impacts of climate change. Additionally, the study highlights the limitations of current models, providing a foundation for the future development of a comprehensive framework that captures the multifaceted impacts of climate change on agriculture, demography, the economy, and social dimensions. Originality: The findings offer insights into, for example policy development and model improvements to bridge the gap between theoretical models and practical application. This practical orientation is valuable for translating research findings into real-world impacts. The alignment of the findings with SDGs underscores their contribution to international development goals and their potential to influence global climate adaptation strategies.Key words:Agriculture, Climate Change, Economic Models, Qualitative Meta-analysis, Systematic Literature Review (SLR), Socioeconomic Impact

Validity and Inter‐Device Reliability of an Artificial Intelligence App for Real‐Time Assessment of 505 Change of Direction Tests

The present study aimed to explore the validity and inter‐device reliability of a novel artificial intelligence app (Asstrapp) for real‐time measurement of the traditional (tra505) and modified‐505 (mod505) change of direction (COD) tests. Twenty‐five male Sports Science students (age, 23.5 ± 3.27 years; body height, 178 ± 9.76 cm; body mass, 79.4 ± 14.7 kg) completed 12 trials each, consisting of six tra505 and six mod505 trials. Completion times were simultaneously recorded via single‐beam electronic timing gates (ETG) and two different iPhones (APP1 and APP2). In total 300 trials were collected across the two tests, using all three devices, to establish the reliability and validity of the app. The coefficient of variation indicated a similar level of dispersion between the ETG (≤ 2.73%), APP1 (≤ 2.39%) and APP2 (≤ 2.52%). Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) revealed excellent reliability among the three timing devices (ICC ≥ 0.99) and Asstrapp relative reliability was excellent for both APP1 (ICC ≥ 0.91) and APP2 (ICC ≥ 0.91). There was a practically perfect correlation and agreement between ETG and Asstrapp (APP1: r = 0.97; APP2: r = 0.97) for both COD tests. However, small but significant differences were found between smartphones and ETG for tra505 (ES ≤ 0.33; p < 0.05). Collectively, these findings support the use of Asstrapp for real‐time assessment of both 505 COD tests

Optimizing the Temperature Sensitivity of the Isoprene Emission Model MEGAN in Different Ecosystems Using a Metropolis-Hastings Markov Chain Monte Carlo Method

Isoprene is a reactive hydrocarbon emitted to the atmosphere in large quantities by terrestrial vegetation. Annual total isoprene emissions exceed 300 Tg a−1, but emission rates vary widely among plant species and are sensitive to meteorological and environmental conditions including temperature, sunlight, and soil moisture. Due to its high reactivity, isoprene has a large impact on air quality and climate pollutants such as ozone and aerosols. It is also an important sink for the hydroxyl radical which impacts the lifetime of the important greenhouse gas methane along with many other trace gas species. Modeling the impacts of isoprene emissions on atmospheric chemistry and climate requires accurate isoprene emission estimates. These can be obtained using the empirical Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature (MEGAN), but the parameterization of this model is uncertain due in part to limited field observations. In this study, we use ground-based measurements of isoprene concentrations and fluxes from 11 field sites to assess the variability of the isoprene emission temperature response across ecosystems. We then use these observations in a Metropolis-Hastings Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MHMCMC) data assimilation framework to optimize the MEGAN temperature response function. We find that the performance of MEGAN can be significantly improved at several high-latitude field sites by increasing the modeled sensitivity of isoprene emissions to past temperatures. At some sites, the optimized model was nearly four times more sensitive to temperature than the unoptimized model. This has implications for air quality modeling in a warming climate

The Long Term Effects of a 12‐Session Community Exercise Program on Health Measures in Cancer Patients

Purpose: To assess the long‐term effects of a community cancer exercise program on quality of life, fatigue, weight, waist circumference, physical activity levels, lower extremity strength, body mass index (BMI), heart rate, and blood pressure, across non‐metastatic and metastatic patients. Methods: A total of 918 participants (F/M: 1.77; mean age = 61 years, SD = 13.233) diagnosed with cancer within the last five years completed a 12‐session guided physical activity program. Sessions included functional, aerobic, and resistance training aligned with ACSM guidelines for cancer patients. Blood pressure, quality of life, fatigue, BMI, lower extremity strength, body weight, and physical activity levels were measured at baseline, 12 sessions, and at 6 months, and 12 months during follow‐up. The Wilcoxon signed‐rank test was used to assess changes over time. Results: Significant improvements were observed in physical activity levels, health‐related quality of life, and overall quality of life, sustained at 6‐ and 12‐month follow‐ups. Waist circumference, fatigue, and blood pressure significantly decreased across all time points. Lower extremity strength improved up to 6 months but was not significant at 12 months. No significant changes were observed in body weight or BMI. Non‐metastatic patients experienced significant improvements in blood pressure, waist circumference, fatigue, and functional ability, while metastatic patients maintained their baseline health measures, suggesting a stabilizing effect. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that a community‐based exercise program benefits non‐metastatic cancer patients by improving quality of life, physical activity levels, and functional health, while helping metastatic patients maintain health outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of structured exercise programs in cancer care and support their implementation in real‐world settings

Dancing with Douyin: An Exploration of Content Marketing in Douyin’s Fashion Community.

Over the past six years, Douyin has become one of China’s most popular social media platforms (Zheng, 2023) yet academic work on it is still in its relative infancy. Many fashion brands have started marketing on Douyin, but there is a gap in knowledge on the extent to which traditional content marketing strategies are effective on this platform, not least given its unique content recommendation system (Su & Valdovinos Kaye, 2023). Previous research on content marketing has also lacked a focus on communication effects and customer perspectives. This thesis makes a contribution to the development of content marketing theory for Douyin by examining communication effects and customer motivations and, in the process, develops a new fashion brand content marketing model for Douyin. Using agenda-setting theory, it examines the impact of community content on customer engagement behaviour (CEB) to establish content marketing effectiveness. Thereafter, it employs uses and gratifications theory (Katz et al., 1973) to analyse the relationship between different levels of CEB and customer needs in the selected community. Finally, it develops a content marketing model for fashion brands on Douyin. The research contributes to the body of work on content marketing by developing its explanatory features in relation to Douyin as follows. First, the application of agenda-setting and uses and gratifications theories from communication scholarship confirms the effectiveness of content marketing and demonstrates the influence of community content perceptions on CEB. The research finds that different motivations drive different levels of CEB, and branded content can significantly influence user perceptions and brand engagement. Second, the research refines the brand content marketing strategy of De Plessis (2015) to establish the Douyin Content Marketing Loop Model (DCMLM) more precisely suited to Douyin’s fashion community. Third, in relation to commercial practice on Douyin, the research puts forward three models to assist fashion brands in: understanding Douyin’s characteristics as a content marketing platform; devising content strategies for different marketing objectives; and comprehending a holistic content marketing process within the Douyin fashion community.The research employs a mixed-method approach, including netnography and an online survey. The netnographic work includes generating observational data (popular video content and field notes) and conducting interviews with 12 Douyin content creation experts and 12 fashion community users. Qualitative data generated was analysed using a netnography-based method (Kozinets, 2019). Online survey data consisted of 607 questionnaire responses from community users and was analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Keywords: Douyin, Content Marketing, Agenda Setting, Uses and Gratifications, Customer Engagemen

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND ESG PRACTICES IN EMERGING ECONOMIES: EVIDENCE FROM ENERGY INDUSTRY

ABSTRACTThis study examines the impact of corporate governance variables on the ESG practices of energy firms from emerging economies. The study employs a sample of energy listed companies from Brasil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) to examine the relationship between corporate governance and the extent of ESG disclosure, ESG assurance and ESG assurance quality. All data for the study relating to corporate board characteristics, audit committee charachteristics, ownership structure, ESG disclosure, ESG assurance and ESG assurance quality were extracted from the Bloomberg database, annual reports and companies website over a period of fourteen years from (2010 to 2023). The first chapter investigate the impact of a set of CG variables that comprises board attirbutes, ownership structure and audit committee characteristics on the level of ESG disclosure while controlling for firm level charachteristics. The study utilised a sample of 1750 firm-year observations across five emerging BRICS economies over a period of fourteen years. The study finds positive and statistically significant relationship between board size, board independence, board gender diversity, foreign ownership, audit committee accounting and finance expertise, managerial ownership, audit committee meetings and frequency of board meetings with the level of ESG disclosure. Similarly, the finding indicates negative but insignificant relationship between audit committee size, institutional ownership, block holder ownership and the extent of ESG disclosure. The second empirical study examines the impact of corporate governance variables on ESG assurance, a topic that has attract attention in both literature and practice in recent years due to unregulated and voluntary nature of sustainability practice. The empirical findings from understudied and overlooked context characterised by paucity of empirical studies document that board independence, board gender diversity, foreign ownership, managerial ownership, block holder ownership, audit committee independence, audit committee accounting and finance expertise and frequency of board meetings have positive and significant relationship with the decision to obtain third-party ESG assurance. However, the study finds insignificant relationship between institutional ownership, audit committee size and audit committee meetings with the decision to obtain third-party ESG assurance.Due to the symbolic use of assurance practices, the final chapter empirically examine the impact of corporate governance variables on the ESG assurance quality. The quality of sustainability assurance reports has been a nascent but topical area in accounting and sustainability literature. The results show there is room for improvement regarding ESG assurance quality and provide empirical evidence of positive and statistically significant effect of board independence, board gender diversity, audit committee size, board meetings, managerial ownership, and audit committee accounting and finance expertise on the ESG assurance quality. However, the results indicate board size, foreign ownership and block holder ownership significantly impact ESGAQ negatively. The results of the study are robust to alternative measures, estimation methods, potential endogeneity problems such as sample selection bias, reverse causality/simultaneity, and unobserved heterogeneity. The findings of the thesis have important implications for the management, board of directors, investors and other stakeholders, standard setters, regulators, analysts, assurance providers and policy makers

Simulation-Based Design of a Cam-Driven Hydraulic Prosthetic Ankle

Background/Objectives: A cam-driven hydraulic prosthetic ankle was designed to overcome the weaknesses of commercial prostheses and research prototypes, which largely fail to mimic the energy-recycling behaviour of an intact ankle, resulting in poor walking performance for lower-limb prosthesis users. Methods: This novel device exploits miniature hydraulics to capture the negative work performed during stance, prior to push-off, in a hydraulic accumulator, and return positive work during push-off for forward body propulsion. Two cams are used to replicate intact ankle torque profiles based on experimental data. The design process for the new prosthesis used a design programme, implemented in MATLAB, based on a simulation of the main components of the prosthetic ankle. Results: In this paper, we present the design programme and explain how it is used to determine the cam profiles required to replicate intact ankle torque, as well as to size the cam follower return springs. Moreover, a constraint-based preliminary design investigation is described, which was conducted to size other key components affecting the device’s size, performance, and energy efficiency. Finally, the feasible design alternatives are compared in terms of their energy losses to determine the best design with regard to minimising both energy losses and device size. Conclusions: Such a design approach not only documents the design of a particular novel prosthetic ankle, but can also provide a systematic framework for decomposing complex design challenges into a series of sub-problems, providing a more effective alternative to heuristic approaches in prosthetic design