Matrix derivatives and Kronecker products for the core and generalized core inverses

We first discuss the Moore-Penrose, Drazin, core and some generalized core inverses, and then use the matrix differential calculus to newly establish matrix derivatives for some of the important matrix functions involving these generalized inverses. We present the generalized inverses of the Kronecker product of two matrices as well.</p

A review of interconnected challenges in the water–energy–food nexus:Urban pollution perspective towards sustainable development

The swift growth of cities worldwide poses significant challenges in ensuring a sufficient water, energy, and food supply. The Nexus has innovated valuable systems to address these challenges. However, a crucial issue is the potential for pollution resulting from these systems, which directly and indirectly impacts public health and the overall quality of urban living. This study comprehensively reviews the interconnected challenges of the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus and various forms of pollution in cities. The primary focus of this review article is to showcase the findings of WEF nexus studies regarding various pollutions across different geographical regions and spatial scales. It aims to examine the problems resulting from these pollutions, specifically their effects on human health and urban life. It also delves into the sources of pollution as identified in these studies. Furthermore, the article will highlight the proposed solutions from the research aimed at effectively mitigating pollution in each sector studied. This article is a systematic review which analyses research sources from the Scopus database. It extensively reviewed 2463 peer-reviewed published articles and focused explicitly on articles related to the WEF nexus that discussed pollution. Our study emphasizes, firstly, raising awareness about the crucial link between the WEF nexus, pollution, urban environments, and human health among policymakers and key stakeholders, including urban planners, industry partners and municipalities. This is to promote the development of policies that encourage sustainable practices and key stakeholders. Secondly, it evaluates WEF nexus and pollution research methods and findings, aiding in identifying research gaps technological innovation and potential, as well as enhancing decision-making. Lastly, it outlines future research challenges, providing a roadmap for researchers and policymakers to advance understanding in this domain and identify opportunities for resource efficiency and collaboration between different sectors.</p

The intimate viewfinder:Poetic ekphrasis of photographs and the illusion of the real

As digital photography proliferates in the contemporary world, theorists and creative writers continue to debate what photographs signify and how the poetic ekphrasis of photographs should be understood. This has become a pressing issue in an age when new technologies allow the easy manipulation of digital images – which, depending on the context in which they are viewed, are increasingly being characterised as creative, imaginative, unreliable or deceptive. Yet nineteenth- and early to mid-twentieth-century theorists tended to assume that photographs had a direct, if complex, relationship to observable, external reality, something reiterated by Susan Sontag as late as 1977. This paper discusses how ekphrastic poems by Thomas Hardy and Philip Larkin enshrine assumptions about photography that are now shifting, and how contemporary ekphrastic poems about photographs increasingly challenge, sometimes subversively, photography’s link to the ‘real’. Such poetry continues to emphasise the way photographs connote a ‘chasm’ or ‘thickening’ of time but are more troubled than earlier authors by the idea that photographs may not represent anything clear or knowable. Eve Joseph’s and Leslie Scalapino’s poetry demonstrates ways in which photographs tend to juxtapose a sense of transience with a new sense of photography’s sometimes obdurate problematics

Current practice, guideline adherence, and barriers to implementation for Achilles tendinopathy rehabilitation:a survey of physical therapists and people with Achilles tendinopathy

OBJECTIVE: To explore clinical practice patterns of physical therapists (PTs) who treat people with Achilles tendinopathy (AT), and identify perceived barriers and facilitators for prescribing and engaging with therapeutic exercise among PTs and people with AT.METHODS: Two cross-sectional surveys were electronically distributed between November 2021 and May 2022; one survey was designed for PTs while the second was for people with AT. Survey respondents answered questions regarding their physical therapy training and current practice (PTs), injury history and management (people with AT), and perceived barriers and facilitators (PTs and people with AT).RESULTS: 341 PTs and 74 people with AT completed the surveys. In alignment with clinical practice guidelines, more than 94% of PTs surveyed (97% of whom had some form of advanced musculoskeletal training) prioritise patient education and therapeutic exercise. Patient compliance, patient knowledge, and the slow nature of recovery were barriers to prescribing therapeutic exercise reported by PTs, while time, physical resources, and a perceived lack of short-term treatment effectiveness were barriers for people with AT.CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with clinical practice guidelines, PTs with advanced training reported prioritising therapeutic exercise and education for managing AT. However, both PTs and people with AT identified many barriers to prescribing or engaging with therapeutic exercise. By addressing misconceptions about the time burden and ineffectiveness of exercise, and by overcoming access issues to exercise space and equipment, PTs may be able to improve intervention adherence and subsequently outcomes for people with AT.</p

The Impact of COVID-19 Visitor Restrictions on Clinical Cancer Nurses

Objectives: To explore the impact of visitor restrictions on clinical cancer nurses, their roles and duties, and the coping strategies used to address the impact. Data Sources: Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted through purposive sampling with nurses working in a clinical role within cancer services at the study site for at least 1 year. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Textual data transcribed from interviews were analyzed for themes using NVivo version 12 software, following Braun and Clarke's six phases of thematic analysis. Conclusion: Visitor restrictions implemented due to COVID-19 had a significant impact on clinical cancer nurses. The study found evidence of moral injury and conflict—within the role of the nurse, the implementation of organizational policies, and nurses' professional identity and personal beliefs. Despite this adversity, nurses remained committed to their clinical practice. Implications for Nursing Practice: Changes to nurses’ roles and the practice environment have potentially significant impact on well-being and retention. To ensure that nurses can continue to provide high-quality nursing care in challenging environments, organizations must minimize this impact. Consistent communication and support activities, including recognizing and responding appropriately to situations, may be used in the reduction of potential moral injury and stress.</p

The implications of national blockchain infrastructure for financial crime

Purpose: This paper aims to explain the implications of the impending establishment of national blockchain infrastructure by governments around the world, and how these structures can be integrated with existing legislation and assist in the prevention of financial crime. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology used is a literature review and analysis of progress being made to establish national blockchain infrastructure. It provides a discussion of the connection between blockchain and financial crime, and how this infrastructure will interact with existing regulatory frameworks, and particularly, financial crime legislation. Findings: This paper documents financial crime risks posed by digital currencies and smart contracts and the role that national blockchain infrastructure can potentially play in mitigating these risks. It highlights the need for governments to devote resources to developing this infrastructure and associated regulatory frameworks. Originality/value: There are few, if any, academic papers in the financial crime, or wider literature, that have examined the potential for national blockchain infrastructures prevent financial crime, including the implications for existing regulation in the field.</p

The intersection of big data and healthcare innovation: millennial perspectives on precision medicine technology

Precision medicine (PM) is an approach to healthcare that customizes treatment and prevention strategies based on individual characteristics such as genetics, environment, and lifestyle. By utilizing detailed data from diverse populations, precision medicine aims to provide accurate and effective medical care tailored to each person’s unique profile. This approach relies on the diversity of local populations which is increasingly captured through large-scale data sets, often referred to as Big Data. Due to the underrepresentation of non-European individuals in human genetic studies, many countries with diverse and underrepresented populations must build their own reference database due to a lack of holistic global perspective. This research investigated a population sub-group to better understand the factors shaping their attitudes of PM adoption in an Asian developed context. This research was based on the millennial generation in Singapore (born between 1981 and 1996). The study employed a quantitative online survey, based on the TAM theoretical framework. A total of 377 valid responses were received and the results were analysed using the structural equation modelling (SEM) technique. Results showed that perceived data security, subjective technical knowledge, trust in government, subjective norm and perceived usefulness influenced the attitude of millennials towards precision medicine and provided relevant insights for the successful implementation of PM approach in the future

Yamuna Harshavardhana, VIDYĀ: Re-rootingthe Beautiful Tree. The Core Meaning and Purposeof Education.

Yamuna Harshavardhana’s book, VIDYĀ: Re-rooting the Beautiful Tree, aims to provide a comparison of the traditional education system in India and the one introduced by the colonial masters and unfortunately continued by the post-independence leaders. For this purpose, she draws on the pre-colonial system as depicted in the book entitled The Beautiful Tree by Dharampal. The book is organized in four sections consisting of a total of eleven chapters. The first section describes the meaning of education. She contends that the primary aim of education is to help realize the full potential of an individual. This she argues is possible only when education is grounded in dharma. She asserts that India is the cradle of systematic education. In second section, she asks many searching and interesting questions and provides deeper insights into the pre-colonial education system in India and compares it with the colonial system. In section three, she establishes a connection between dharma and the education system. Section four focusses on the transformation required in the extant system to rid it of the serious lacunae she finds in the colonial system thrust on India. The aim of the colonial system she claims was to produce a class of servile “educated” Indians who would remain loyal to colonial power

A Multiobjective Optimization Algorithm for Safety and Optimality of 3-D Route Planning in UAV

Finding a feasible path for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in a complex environment is a crucial part of any UAV mission planning system. Many algorithms have been developed to identify optimal or nearly optimal pathways for UAVs; however, the vast majority of those algorithms do not deal with this problem as multiobjective. Therefore, this study is presented to propose a new multiobjective optimization technique, namely the hybrid slime mould algorithm (HSMA), based on hybridizing the slime mould algorithm with a new updating mechanism to strengthen its performance when applied to tackle the multiobjective path planning problem in 3-D space. This algorithm employs Pareto optimality to tradeoff between various objectives. Those objectives include path optimality for minimizing the fuel cost and consumed time to reach the target location, flying away from threats to ensure safe operation, and finally the smooth cost to assess the climbing and turning rates. HSMA was evaluated using six benchmarking scenarios with various difficulty levels and compared to several recently published and well-established algorithms to show its effectiveness for several performance metrics, such as the convergence curve, Wilcoxon rank-sum test, and inverted generational distance metric. The experimental findings expose that HSMA is more effective than all the compared optimizers in terms of all performance metrics. Hence, it is the best alternative for efficiently creating high-quality pathways for UAVs.</p