Improved acoustics for semi-enclosed spaces in the proximity of residential buildings

Continuous urban densification exacerbates acoustic challenges for residents of housing complexes. They are confronted with higher noise immission from railway, road traffic, construction, as well as louder neighborhood acoustic environments. Thereby, not only noise immission indoors is associated with stress, annoyance, and sleep disturbance, but also the immediate outdoor living environment (e.g., courtyards, private gardens and playgrounds, etc.) can be acoustically unpleasant and annoying. This non-exhaustive narrative review paper elaborates on the role of a number of design parameters on improving the quality of the outdoor soundscape of housing complexes: architectural and morphological design, facade material characteristics, balconies, greenery, ground, background sounds, and several factors concerning quality of sounds (e.g., multisensory perception, holistic design, the relevance of space, context, social factors, co-creation, etc.). It mainly covers literature including both acoustical (e.g., sound pressure level and room acoustical parameters) and human/perceptual (e.g., comfort and annoyance) factors. A series of recommendations are presented here as to how the semi-enclosed outdoor spaces in the proximity of residential complexes can be acoustically improved

Neurophysiological evidence for rapid processing of verbal and gestural information in understanding communicative actions

During everyday social interaction, gestures are a fundamental part of human communication. The communicative pragmatic role of hand gestures and their interaction with spoken language has been documented at the earliest stage of language development, in which two types of indexical gestures are most prominent: the pointing gesture for directing attention to objects and the give-me gesture for making requests. Here we study, in adult human participants, the neurophysiological signatures of gestural-linguistic acts of communicating the pragmatic intentions of naming and requesting by simultaneously presenting written words and gestures. Already at ~150 ms, brain responses diverged between naming and request actions expressed by word-gesture combination, whereas the same gestures presented in isolation elicited their earliest neurophysiological dissociations significantly later (at ~210 ms). There was an early enhancement of request-evoked brain activity as compared with naming, which was due to sources in the frontocentral cortex, consistent with access to action knowledge in request understanding. In addition, an enhanced N400-like response indicated late semantic integration of gesture-language interaction. The present study demonstrates that word-gesture combinations used to express communicative pragmatic intentions speed up the brain correlates of comprehension processes – compared with gesture-only understanding – thereby calling into question current serial linguistic models viewing pragmatic function decoding at the end of a language comprehension cascade. Instead, information about the social-interactive role of communicative acts is processed instantaneously

High-latitude dust in the Earth system

Natural dust is often associated with hot, subtropical deserts, but significant dust events have been reported from cold, high latitudes. This review synthesizes current understanding of high-latitude (≥50°N and ≥40°S) dust source geography and dynamics and provides a prospectus for future research on the topic. Although the fundamental processes controlling aeolian dust emissions in high latitudes are essentially the same as in temperate regions, there are additional processes specific to or enhanced in cold regions. These include low temperatures, humidity, strong winds, permafrost and niveo-aeolian processes all of which can affect the efficiency of dust emission and distribution of sediments. Dust deposition at high latitudes can provide nutrients to the marine system, specifically by contributing iron to high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll oceans; it also affects ice albedo and melt rates. There have been no attempts to quantify systematically the expanse, characteristics, or dynamics of high-latitude dust sources. To address this, we identify and compare the main sources and drivers of dust emissions in the Northern (Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Iceland) and Southern (Antarctica, New Zealand, and Patagonia) Hemispheres. The scarcity of year-round observations and limitations of satellite remote sensing data at high latitudes are discussed. It is estimated that under contemporary conditions high-latitude sources cover >500,000 km2 and contribute at least 80–100 Tg yr−1 of dust to the Earth system (~5% of the global dust budget); both are projected to increase under future climate change scenarios

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

Objectives (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6–18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. Methods This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of PHysical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test–retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. Results A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu). Conclusion This study discusses the major implications of fitness assessment in youth from health, educational and sport perspectives, and how the FitBack reference values and interactive web-based platform contribute to it. Fitness testing can be conducted in school and/or sport settings, and the interpreted results be integrated in the healthcare systems across Europe

Population-level deficit of homozygosity unveils CPSF3 as an intellectual disability syndrome gene.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked DownloadPredicting the pathogenicity of biallelic missense variants can be challenging. Here, we use a deficit of observed homozygous carriers of missense variants, versus an expected number in a set of 153,054 chip-genotyped Icelanders, to identify potentially pathogenic genotypes. We follow three missense variants with a complete deficit of homozygosity and find that their pathogenic effect in homozygous state ranges from severe childhood disease to early embryonic lethality. One of these variants is in CPSF3, a gene not previously linked to disease. From a set of clinically sequenced Icelanders, and by sequencing archival samples targeted through the Icelandic genealogy, we find four homozygous carriers. Additionally, we find two homozygous carriers of Mexican descent of another missense variant in CPSF3. All six homozygous carriers of missense variants in CPSF3 show severe intellectual disability, seizures, microcephaly, and abnormal muscle tone. Here, we show how the absence of certain homozygous genotypes from a large population set can elucidate causes of previously unexplained recessive diseases and early miscarriage.Sacchi Foundatio

Physical and cognitive impact following SARS-CoV-2 infection in a large population-based case-control study

© 2023. The Author(s).BACKGROUND: Persistent symptoms are common after SARS-CoV-2 infection but correlation with objective measures is unclear. METHODS: We invited all 3098 adults who tested SARS-CoV-2 positive in Iceland before October 2020 to the deCODE Health Study. We compared multiple symptoms and physical measures between 1706 Icelanders with confirmed prior infection (cases) who participated, and 619 contemporary and 13,779 historical controls. Cases participated in the study 5-18 months after infection. RESULTS: Here we report that 41 of 88 symptoms are associated with prior infection, most significantly disturbed smell and taste, memory disturbance, and dyspnea. Measured objectively, cases had poorer smell and taste results, less grip strength, and poorer memory recall. Differences in grip strength and memory recall were small. No other objective measure associated with prior infection including heart rate, blood pressure, postural orthostatic tachycardia, oxygen saturation, exercise tolerance, hearing, and traditional inflammatory, cardiac, liver, and kidney blood biomarkers. There was no evidence of more anxiety or depression among cases. We estimate the prevalence of long Covid to be 7% at a median of 8 months after infection. CONCLUSIONS: We confirm that diverse symptoms are common months after SARS-CoV-2 infection but find few differences between cases and controls in objective parameters measured. These discrepancies between symptoms and physical measures suggest a more complicated contribution to symptoms related to prior infection than is captured with conventional tests. Traditional clinical assessment is not expected to be particularly informative in relating symptoms to a past SARS-CoV-2 infection.Peer reviewe

Increased attendance rates and altered characteristics of sexual violence.

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field.OBJECTIVE: To study the attendance rates and characteristics of sexual violence presented at emergency services for rape victims, over a 10-year period. DESIGN: Incidence study. SETTING: Rape Trauma Service, within an emergency department at a tertiary referral university hospital. POPULATION. The total female population in Iceland. METHODS: Medical records on visits were reviewed and systematically coded. Annual attendance rates were calculated over time as number of visits per 10 000 female inhabitants aged 13-49 years. Characteristics of sexual violence, perpetrators and victims were compared between 1998-2002 and 2003-2007. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Annual attendance rates and characteristics of sexual violence. RESULTS: Of 1153 visits, 828 (71.8%) were due to severe sexual violence (penetration). Annual attendance rates of all sexual violence increased from 12.5 to 16.9 per 10 000 women aged 13-49 (p<0.01). Attendance rates due to severe sexual violence increased specifically among women aged 18-25 (p<0.01). The proportion of assaults involving multiple perpetrators increased from 13.9% in 1998-2002 to 18.9% in 2003-2007 (p=0.05). With time, a higher proportion of victims had seriously impaired consciousness due to alcohol consumption (p<0.01) and had used illegal drugs prior to assault (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The findings point towards an increase in women's visits to specialized emergency services for rape victims, particularly in the age group 18-25 years. The increased role of multiple perpetrators, alcohol and illicit drugs in sexual violence calls for further attention.Landspitali University Hospital, Mar Kristjansson Science Project Fund, University of Iceland, Icelandic Nurses Association

Risk factors and health during pregnancy among women previously exposed to sexual violence.

To access publisher's full text version of this article click on the hyperlink at the bottom of the pageTo determine whether women exposed to sexual violence in adolescence or adulthood are at increased risk of adverse maternal characteristics during subsequent pregnancies.Register-based cohort study.Iceland.We identified 586 women who attended a Rape Trauma Service (RTS) between 1993 and 2008 and all subsequent births of these women up to April 2011 (n = 915). These pregnancies were compared with 1641 randomly selected pregnancies of women who had not attended the RTS and who gave birth during the same calendar month.Information on maternal smoking, body mass index and illicit drug use was obtained from maternal charts. We used Poisson regression to obtain multivariable adjusted relative risks (aRR) with 95% CI contrasting prevalence of outcomes in the two groups.Characteristics and risk factors during pregnancy, including maternal smoking, body mass index, weight gain during pregnancy, illicit drug use.Compared with unexposed women, sexually assaulted women were younger and more often primiparous in subsequent pregnancy, more likely not to be employed (7.8% vs. 4.3%; aRR 2.42, 95% CI 1.49-3.94), not cohabiting (45.6% vs. 14.2%; aRR 2.15, 95% CI 1.75-2.65), smokers (45.4% vs. 13.5%; aRR 2.68, 95% CI 2.25-3.20), and more likely to have used illicit drugs during pregnancy (3.4% vs. 0.4%; aRR 6.27, 95% CI 2.13-18.43). Exposed primiparas were more likely to be obese (15.5% vs. 12.3%; aRR 1.56, 95% CI 1.15-2.12).Women with a history of sexual violence are more likely to have risk factors during pregnancy that may affect maternal health and fetal development.Icelandic Research Fund for Graduate Students (Rannis) Landspitali University Hospital Research Fun

Obstetric Outcomes of Mothers Previously Exposed to Sexual Violence

Background: There is a scarcity of data on the association of sexual violence and women's subsequent obstetric outcomes. Our aim was to investigate whether women exposed to sexual violence as teenagers (12–19 years of age) or adults present with different obstetric outcomes than women with no record of such violence. Methods: We linked detailed prospectively collected information on women attending a Rape Trauma Service (RTS) to the Icelandic Medical Birth Registry (IBR). Women who attended the RTS in 1993–2010 and delivered (on average 5.8 years later) at least one singleton infant in Iceland through 2012 formed our exposed cohort (n = 1068). For each exposed woman's delivery, nine deliveries by women with no RTS attendance were randomly selected from the IBR (n = 9126) matched on age, parity, and year and season of delivery. Information on smoking and Body mass index (BMI) was available for a sub-sample (n = 792 exposed and n = 1416 non-exposed women). Poisson regression models were used to estimate Relative Risks (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: Compared with non-exposed women, exposed women presented with increased risks of maternal distress during labor and delivery (RR 1.68, 95% CI 1.01–2.79), prolonged first stage of labor (RR 1.40, 95% CI 1.03–1.88), antepartum bleeding (RR 1.95, 95% CI 1.22–3.07) and emergency instrumental delivery (RR 1.16, 95% CI 1.00–1.34). Slightly higher risks were seen for women assaulted as teenagers. Overall, we did not observe differences between the groups regarding the risk of elective cesarean section (RR 0.86, 95% CI 0.61–1.21), except for a reduced risk among those assaulted as teenagers (RR 0.56, 95% CI 0.34–0.93). Adjusting for maternal smoking and BMI in a sub-sample did not substantially affect point estimates. Conclusion: Our prospective data suggest that women with a history of sexual assault, particularly as teenagers, are at increased risks of some adverse obstetric outcomes