How do systematic reviews incorporate risk of bias assessments into the synthesis of evidence? A methodological study

Background: Systematic reviews (SRs) are expected to critically appraise included studies and privilege those at lowest risk of bias (RoB) in the synthesis. This study examines if and how critical appraisals inform the synthesis and interpretation of evidence in SRs.<p></p> Methods: All SRs published in March–May 2012 in 14 high-ranked medical journals and a sample from the Cochrane library were systematically assessed by two reviewers to determine if and how: critical appraisal was conducted; RoB was summarised at study, domain and review levels; and RoB appraisals informed the synthesis process.<p></p> Results: Of the 59 SRs studied, all except six (90%) conducted a critical appraisal of the included studies, with most using or adapting existing tools. Almost half of the SRs reported critical appraisal in a manner that did not allow readers to determine which studies included in a review were most robust. RoB assessments were not incorporated into synthesis in one-third (20) of the SRs, with their consideration more likely when reviews focused on randomised controlled trials. Common methods for incorporating critical appraisals into the synthesis process were sensitivity analysis, narrative discussion and exclusion of studies at high RoB. Nearly half of the reviews which investigated multiple outcomes and carried out study-level RoB summaries did not consider the potential for RoB to vary across outcomes.<p></p> Conclusions: The conclusions of the SRs, published in major journals, are frequently uninformed by the critical appraisal process, even when conducted. This may be particularly problematic for SRs of public health topics that often draw on diverse study designs

Unveiling quantum entanglement degradation near a Schwarzschild black hole

We analyze the entanglement degradation provoked by the Hawking effect in a bipartite system Alice-Rob when Rob is in the proximities of a Schwarzschild black hole while Alice is free falling into it. We will obtain the limit in which the tools imported from the Unruh entanglement degradation phenomenon can be used properly, keeping control on the approximation. As a result, we will be able to determine the degree of entanglement as a function of the distance of Rob to the event horizon, the mass of the black hole, and the frequency of Rob's entangled modes. By means of this analysis we will show that all the interesting phenomena occur in the vicinity of the event horizon and that the presence of event horizons do not effectively degrade the entanglement when Rob is far off the black hole. The universality of the phenomenon is presented: There are not fundamental differences for different masses when working in the natural unit system adapted to each black hole. We also discuss some aspects of the localization of Alice and Rob states. All this study is done without using the single mode approximation.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, revtex4. Added Journal referenc

Blockade

Poetry by Rob B. Budd

Community Resilience in Overcoming Untidiness Due to the Flood in Kemijen Village Semarang

Reduction targets slum area in Indonesia today, leaving 12% of urban areas or the equivalent of 7.2 million households alleviation of untidiness. Whereas national goal is 0% urban slums will be gone in 2019. When referring to the World Habitat Day (World Habitat Agenda, 2014), said that the organized settlement of, for and by the people themselves. Rob disasters often occur in the city, where from April to May of 2011, Rob has been flooded several coastal areas of Semarang and rob a height between 50 cm to 100 cm. This research aims to identify the role of the community in addressing slum housing. Using qualitative and quantitative analysis methods and conduct an in-dept interview through direct observation, questionnaires and interviews to the population in Kemijen Semarang City. This study found a form of structuring a slum by the ability of the community that is the power of social, economic and physical called ‗Tri-Daya‘ Concept, through the action plan stage of necessary community development stage

Book review: Undercover: the true story of Britain’s secret police

"Undercover: The True Story of Britain’s Secret Police." Rob Evans and Paul Lewis. Faber and Faber. June 2013. --- Undercover, written by Guardian journalists Rob Evans and Paul Lewis, aims to reveal the truth about secret police operations – the emotional turmoil, the psychological challenges and the human cost of a lifetime of deception – and asks whether such tactics can ever be justified. An important account of police cover-ups, finds Tim Newburn, with heavy implications for public trust in the police

Review of Rob Wilson’s Boundaries of the Mind: The Individual in the Fragile Sciences: Cognition

Review of Rob Wilson’s Boundaries of the Mind: The Individual in the Fragile Sciences: Cognitio

Digging into Disaster Relief

Professor Rob Gardner returns to the Gulf Coast to continue his research and to help rebuild the devastated area

SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND MISPERCEPTION VIEWED THROUGH MARXISM THEORY IN FLIPPED(2010) BY ROB REINER

SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND MISPERCEPTION VIEWED THROUGH MARXISM THEORY IN FLIPPED(2010) BY ROB REINER