Give it a rest: a systematic review with Bayesian meta-analysis on the effect of inter-set rest interval duration on muscle hypertrophy.

We systematically searched the literature for studies with a randomized design that compared different inter-set rest interval durations for estimates of pre-/post-study changes in lean/muscle mass in healthy adults while controlling all other training variables. Meta-analyses on non-controlled effect sizes using hierarchical models of all 19 measurements (thigh: 10; arm: 6; whole body: 3) from 9 studies meeting inclusion criteria analyses showed substantial overlap of standardized mean differences across the different inter-set rest periods (binary: short: 0.48 [95%CrI: 0.19 to 0.81], longer: 0.56 [95%CrI: 0.24 to 0.86]; Four categories: short: 0.47 [95%CrI: 0.19 to 0.80], intermediate: 0.65 [95%CrI: 0.18 to 1.1], long: 0.55 [95%CrI: 0.15 to 0.90], very long: 0.50 [95%CrI: 0.14 to 0.89]), with substantial heterogeneity in results. Univariate and multivariate pairwise meta-analyses of controlled binary (short vs longer) effect sizes showed similar results for the arm and thigh with central estimates tending to favor longer rest periods (arm: 0.13 [95%CrI: -0.27 to 0.51]; thigh: 0.17 [95%CrI: -0.13 to 0.43]). In contrast, central estimates closer to zero but marginally favoring shorter rest periods were estimated for the whole body (whole body: -0.08 [95%CrI: -0.45 to 0.29]). Subanalysis of set end-point data indicated that training to failure or stopping short of failure did not meaningfully influence the interaction between rest interval duration and muscle hypertrophy. In conclusion, results suggest a small hypertrophic benefit to employing inter-set rest interval durations >60 seconds, perhaps mediated by reductions in volume load. However, our analysis did not detect appreciable differences in hypertrophy when resting >90 seconds between sets, consistent with evidence that detrimental effects on volume load tend to plateau beyond this time-frame

Distal-extremity cryotherapy in preventing chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy from paclitaxel administration in people affected by breast cancer: a systematic review.

To explore the experiences of utilising distal-extremity cryotherapy in reducing chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy during Paclitaxel treatment on physical functioning, clinical and patient-reported outcomes, compared to standard care in people affected by breast cancer. Four databases and one register were searched on 11 April 2023 to identify all relevant studies meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria. These were CINAHL (via EBSCOhost), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline (via EBSCOhost), Scopus, and Web of Science Core Collection, with no limiters placed on any of the searches. Additionally, relevant systematic reviews were scrutinised for potentially relevant studies for screening. Distal-extremity cryotherapy is a safe intervention with minimal risk for serious adverse events. However, insufficient data supports the mainstay clinical use of cryotherapy in reducing chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy from Paclitaxel use within the breast cancer population. Heterogeneity in study design, cryotherapy mode, and measurement tools underscore the need for additional research. Despite limited data on the impact of distal-extremity cryotherapy in preventing chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, there are valuable implications for nursing practice arising from this review. Nurses play a vital role in the clinical and experiential journey of people with breast cancer, it is important that they understand the available evidence and act as patient advocates. Assisting patients in understanding current research and encouraging participation in future studies, thereby enhancing our knowledge, and strengthening the available evidence base

Optimized common features selection and deep-autoencoder (OCFSDA) for lightweight intrusion detection in Internet of things.

Embedded systems, including the Internet of Things (IoT), play a crucial role in the functioning of critical infrastructure. However, these devices face significant challenges such as memory footprint, technical challenges, privacy concerns, performance trade-offs and vulnerability to cyber-attacks. One approach to address these concerns is minimising computational overhead and adopting lightweight intrusion detection techniques. In this study, we propose a highly efficient model called Optimized Common Features Selection and Deep-Autoencoder (OCFSDA) for lightweight intrusion detection in IoT environments. The proposed OCFSDA model incorporates feature selection, data compression, pruning and deparameterization. We deployed the model on a Raspberry Pi4 using the TFLite interpreter by leveraging optimisation and inferencing with semi-supervised learning. Using the MQTT-IoT-IDS2020 and CICIDS2017 datasets, our experimental results demonstrate a remarkable reduction in the computation cost in terms of time and memory use. Notably, the model achieved an overall average accuracies of 99% and 97%, along with comparable performance on other important metrics such as precision, recall and F1-score. Moreover, the model accomplished the classification tasks within 0.30 and 0.12s using only 2KB of memory

Advancing AI with green practices and adaptable solutions for the future. [Article summary]

Despite AI's achievements, how can its limitations be addressed to reduce computational costs, enhance transparency and pioneer eco-friendly practices

Comparative effect size distributions in strength and conditioning and implications for future research: a meta-analysis.

Controlled experimental designs are frequently used in strength and conditioning (S&C) to determine which interventions are most effective. The purpose of this large meta-analysis was to quantify the distribution of comparative effect sizes in S&C to determine likely magnitudes and inform future research regarding sample sizes and inference methods. Baseline and follow-up data were extracted from a large database of studies comparing at least two active S&C interventions. Pairwise comparative standardised mean difference effect sizes were calculated and categorised according to the outcome domain measured. Hierarchical Bayesian meta-analyses and meta-regressions were used to model overall comparative effect size distributions and correlations, respectively. The direction of comparative effect sizes within a study were assigned arbitrarily (e.g. A vs. B, or B vs. A), with bootstrapping performed to ensure effect size distributions were symmetric and centred on zero. The middle 25, 50, and 75% of distributions were used to define small, medium, and large thresholds, respectively. A total of 3874 pairwise effect sizes were obtained from 417 studies comprising 958 active interventions. Threshold values were estimated as: small = 0.14 [95%CrI: 0.12 to 0.15]; medium: = 0.29 [95%CrI: 0.28 to 0.30]; and large = 0.51 [95%CrI: 0.50 to 0.53]. No differences were identified in the threshold values across different outcome domains. Correlations ranged widely (0.06 ≤ r ≤0.36), but were larger when outcomes within the same outcome domain were considered. The finding that comparative effect sizes in S&C are typically below 0.30 and can be moderately correlated has important implications for future research. Sample sizes should be substantively increased to appropriately power controlled trials with pre-post intervention data. Alpha adjustment approaches used to control for multiple testing should account for correlations between outcomes and not assume independence

A novel multi-factor fuzzy membership function- adaptive extended Kalman filter algorithm for the state of charge and energy joint estimation of electric-vehicle lithium-ion batteries.

In view of the unmeasurable state parameters of electric-vehicle lithium-ion batteries, this paper investigates a novel multi-factor fuzzy membership function - adaptive extended Kalman filter (MFMF-AEKF) algorithm for the online joint estimation of the state of charge and energy. Strong nonlinear characteristics of model parameters are characterized by considering multiple processing factors of electrochemical and diffusion effects for lithium-ion batteries and constructing an optimized multifactor coupling model. In the proposed MFMF-AEKF method, multi-space-scale factors are introduced to realize the numerical analysis of the multi-factor coupled model parameters and state estimation under dynamic working conditions of electric-vehicle lithium-ion batteries. The proposed MFMF-AEKF algorithm estimates the state of charge (SOC) with the overall best mean absolute error (MAE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), root mean square error (RMSE), and maximum error (ME) values of 1.822%, 4.322%, 1.947%, and 2.954%, respectively, under challenging working conditions. And The MAE, MAPE, RMSE, and ME values for the state of energy (SOE) are 0.617%, 1.711%, 0.695%, and 1.011%, respectively. Both state estimation results are better than the traditional method. The proposed MFMF-AEKF algorithm has higher estimation accuracy which provides a feasible estimation algorithm for the joint SOC and SOE of lithium-ion batteries

Extraterritoriality in East Asia: extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction in China, Japan, and South Korea.

Extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction is a seemingly novel, arcane subject. Belgium's efforts in relatively recent years to try and punish persons accused of some of the most serious crimes may help create this impression. It is, however, only partially true. Jurisprudentially and academically the topic is arguably approaching its centenary, whereas the subject's practical importance and relevance have today never been greater. Together, these facts underlie Danielle Ireland-Piper's book on extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction in East Asia

"Doing" is never enough, if "being" is neglected: exploring midwives' perspectives on the influence of an emotional intelligence education programme: a qualitative study. [Article]

The role of the midwife is emotionally demanding, with many midwives experiencing high levels of stress and burnout, and a great number considering leaving the profession. This has serious implications for the delivery of high-quality, safe maternity care. One of the major factors leading to job dissatisfaction is the conflict between midwives' aspiration of truly 'being' with the woman and the institutional expectations of the role, which focuses on the 'doing' aspects of the job. 'Being' present to a woman's psychological needs, whilst meeting the institutional demands, requires high levels of emotional intelligence (EI) in the midwife. Therefore, enhancing midwives' EI could be beneficial. An EI programme was made available to midwives with the intention to promote their emotional intelligence and enable them to utilise relaxation techniques for those in their care. The aim of this study was to explore midwives' perspectives on the influence of the EI education programme on their emotional wellbeing and experiences of practice. The study took a descriptive qualitative approach. Thirteen midwives participated in focus group interviews. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. The overarching theme of 'The Ripple Effect' included three themes of 'Me and my relationships', 'A different approach to practice', and 'Confidence and empowerment'. The programme was seen to create a positive ripple effect, influencing midwives personally, their approach to practice, and feelings of confidence in their role. The study concluded that EI education can reduce emotional stress in midwives, enhance their empathy and feelings of confidence, and thereby improve the quality of care that they provide

Hybrid renewable-hydrogen energy systems and their role in the energy transition.

Global energy-related CO2 emissions grew by 1.1% in 2023, increasing 410 Mt to reach a new record of 37.4 Gt. Emissions from coal accounted for more than 65% of the increase in 2023. The global shortfall in hydropower generation due to droughts drove up emissions by around 170 Mt. Between 2019 and 2023, total energy-related emissions increased around 900 Mt. These emissions cause environmental concerns of air pollution (causing health issues), water contamination (affecting humans, animals and plants using it, land degradation or destruction from human activities (this lessens the quality and/or productivity of the land for agriculture, forestation, construction, etc.), climate change (destructive impacts include, but are not limited to, melting of polar ice, change in seasons, new illnesses, and change in the general climate situation), global warming (this results from the fossil fuel GHG emissions), effect on marine life (affecting shellfish and microscopic fish) and depletion of the ozone layer (loss of earth protection from the sun unsafe beams)

Eco-friendly thick and wear-resistant nanodiamond composite hard coatings deposited on WC–Co substrates.

Nanodiamond composite (NDC) films, synthesized using an environmentally friendly PVD coaxial arc plasma deposition technique on commercial cemented carbide (Co6 wt%) substrates without the need for substrate heating, chemical etching of Co, and chemical gases. These NDC coatings, crafted under specific discharge power conditions (5.2 J/pulse, 120 V, and 1 Hz), with or without a substrate biasing (−100V, 40kHz, and 35% duty cycle), exhibit a distinctive nanostructure characterized by nanodiamond grains embedded in an amorphous carbon (a-C) matrix. Highlighting remarkable mechanical characteristics attributed to highly energetic ejected carbon ion. The coatings boast high hardness (H = 65–82 GPa), Young's modulus (E = 688–780 GPa), plasticity index (H/E = 0.094–0.105), and brittle fracture resistance (H3/E2 = 0.58–0.9 GPa). Additionally, these NDC films manifest a substantial thickness of 7 μm due to low internal stress, along with superior adhesion, anti-wear resistance, and a low friction coefficient (0.1–0.09) through dry sliding against an Al2O3 counterpart. Raman analysis substantiates the nanocomposite structure of the film, underscoring the influential role of biasing in enhancing the characteristics of these environmentally friendly and wear-resistant NDC coatings. Nevertheless, the application of a negative bias led to increased internal stress levels (1.28 to 4.53 GPa), adversely impacting the adhesion between the film and substrate, resulting in a decrease from HF3 to HF6 as per Rockwell C indentation. NDC coatings hold significant potential for extending the lifespan of cutting tools and improving overall machining performance