Exploring cultural factors in human-robot interaction: A matter of personality?

This paper proposes an experimental study to investigate task-dependence and cultural-background dependence of the personality trait attribution on humanoid robots. In Human-Robot Interaction, as well as in Human-Agent Interaction research, the attribution of personality traits towards intelligent agents has already been researched intensively in terms of the social similarity or complementary rule. These two rules imply that humans either tend to like others with similar personality traits or complementary personality traits more. Even though state of the art literature suggests that similarity attraction happens for virtual agents, and complementary attraction for robots, there are many contradictions in the findings. We assume that searching the explanation for personality trait attribution in the similarity and complementary rule does not take into account important contextual factors. Just like people equate certain personality types to certain professions, we expect that people may have certain personality expectations depending on the context of the task the robot carries out. Because professions have different social meaning in different national culture, we also expect that these task-dependent personality preferences differ across cultures. Therefore suggest an experiment that considers the task-context and the cultural background of users

Transaktivierung des EGF-Rezeptors in Abhängigkeit von Disintegrin-ähnlichen Metalloproteasen (ADAMs)

Der EGF-Rezeptor ist sowohl während der Embryonalentwicklung als auch im adulten Organismus einer der wichtigsten Rezeptoren auf der Oberfläche vieler Zellen. Er reguliert durch die Bindung von Wachstumsfaktoren wie HB-EGF oder TGFα hauptsächlich Prozesse wie Migration, Differenzierung und Wachstum von Zellen. Die Liganden werden als membrangebundene Vorläuferproteine synthetisiert und erst durch die proteolytische Spaltung durch spezifische Proteasen aktiviert. Frühere Untersuchungen haben gezeigt, dass der EGFR nicht nur direkt, sondern auch indirekt nach Stimulationen von einigen anderen Rezeptoren wie G-Proteingekoppelten Rezeptoren oder dem VEGFR aktiviert werden kann. Dieser Vorgang wird als „EGFR-Transaktivierung“ bezeichnet und wird maßgeblich durch die membranständige Metalloprotease ADAM17 beeinflusst, da diese u. a. die Freisetzung von fast allen EGFR-Liganden vermittelt. In dieser Arbeit wurde gezeigt, dass auch die keratinocytenspezifische Isoform des FGF-Rezeptors -FGFR 2b- nach der Bindung seines Liganden FGF7 ADAM17 aktiviert, was eine Transaktivierung des EGFR zur Folge hat. Bei den anderen zuvor in der Literatur beschriebenen Rezeptoren, die in der Lage sind den EGFR zu transaktivieren, war der EGFR-vermittelte Signalweg als zusätzlicher, zweiter Signalweg zu betrachten. Der in dieser Arbeit untersuchte FGFR2b ist das erste bekannte Beispiel für einen EGFR-transaktivierenden Rezeptor, bei dem im Gegensatz zu früheren Annahmen keine direkte, ADAM17-unabhängige Signaltransduktion stattfindet. Dies und vor allem die Rolle von ADAM17 in diesem Prozess wurden in dieser Arbeit in in vitro- sowie in ex vivo-Versuchen nachgewiesen. Es wurde ebenfalls untersucht, ob eine solche Signalüberleitung auf den EGFR auch von Toll-like-Rezeptoren (TLRs) ausgehen kann, da kontrovers diskutiert wird, ob MAPKinasen, welche für die EGFR-vermittelte Signalkaskade charakteristisch sind, direkt durch TLRs aktiviert werden können oder nicht. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit deuten darauf hin, dass TLRs nach Stimulation mit ihren spezifischen Liganden ebenfalls den EGFR transaktivieren, da die Phosphorylierung der MAP-Kinasen ERK1/2 in diesem Kontext sowohl Metalloprotease- als auch EGFR-abhängig war. Durch siRNAExperimente sowie den Einsatz von spezifischen Inhibitoren konnte ADAM17 auch in diesem Zusammenhang als verantwortliche Protease identifiziert werden. Der Mechanismus, der der Regulation der proteolytischen Aktivität von ADAMs im Allgemeinen und von ADAM17 im Speziellen zu Grunde liegt, ist bislang kaum verstanden und wurde in dieser Arbeit ebenfalls untersucht. Die Beteiligung der cytoplasmatischen Domäne an der Regulation der stimulierten Aktivität ist ebenso wie die Rolle der Transmembran (TM)-Domäne dabei noch nicht eindeutig geklärt. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit deuten darauf hin, dass nicht die cytoplasmatische Domäne sondern die TM-Domäne essentiell für die stimulierte Aktivität von ADAM17 ist. Es wurden daher bestimmte Motive in der Aminosäuresequenz der TM-Domäne mutiert, welche in α-Helices generell mit Konformationsänderungen in Verbindung gebracht werden, da diese zu einer Regulation der Aktivität beitragen könnten. Da diese Mutationen keinen Effekt auf die Aktivierbarkeit von ADAM17 hatten, konnten diese Analysen jedoch keine Antwort auf die Frage liefern, wie die Aktivität von ADAM17 reguliert wird und welcher molekulare Mechanismus der Aktivierung zu Grunde liegt. Zusammenfassend hat diese Arbeit neue Erkenntnisse über die Aktivierung des EGFRSignaltransduktionsweges geliefert und die Bedeutung von ADAM17 an diesem essentiellen Signalweg unterstrichen. Das genaue Verständnis dieses Signalweges und seiner Regulation ist wichtig, da er sowohl in physiologischen Prozessen wie der Entwicklung als auch bei der Entstehung von Krankheiten wie Krebs eine Rolle spielt und deshalb einen Ansatz zur Entwicklung therapeutischer Strategien darstellt

Cost-effectiveness and Cost-utility of the Adherence Improving Self-management Strategy in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Care : A Trial-based Economic Evaluation

This study was funded by ZonMw (the Netherlands), program Doelmatigheidsonderzoek (grant number 171002208). This funding source had no role in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, or writing of the report. All authors declare that they have no competing interests. We thank the HIV-nurses and physicians from the seven HIV-clinics who were involved in the AIMSstudy (Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam; Slotervaart Hospital, Amsterdam; St. Lucas-Andreas Hospital, Amsterdam; the Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden; Haga Teaching Hospital, Den Haag; Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam; Isala Clinics, Zwolle) for their input and collaboration. We also would like to express our gratitude to the study participants. Written informed consent was obtained from each patient. The study has been approved by the ethics committee of each participating center.Peer reviewedPostprin

Effect of Hydrocortisone on Mortality and Organ Support in Patients With Severe COVID-19: The REMAP-CAP COVID-19 Corticosteroid Domain Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Evidence regarding corticosteroid use for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is limited. Objective: To determine whether hydrocortisone improves outcome for patients with severe COVID-19. Design, Setting, and Participants: An ongoing adaptive platform trial testing multiple interventions within multiple therapeutic domains, for example, antiviral agents, corticosteroids, or immunoglobulin. Between March 9 and June 17, 2020, 614 adult patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 were enrolled and randomized within at least 1 domain following admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) for respiratory or cardiovascular organ support at 121 sites in 8 countries. Of these, 403 were randomized to open-label interventions within the corticosteroid domain. The domain was halted after results from another trial were released. Follow-up ended August 12, 2020. Interventions: The corticosteroid domain randomized participants to a fixed 7-day course of intravenous hydrocortisone (50 mg or 100 mg every 6 hours) (n = 143), a shock-dependent course (50 mg every 6 hours when shock was clinically evident) (n = 152), or no hydrocortisone (n = 108). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was organ support-free days (days alive and free of ICU-based respiratory or cardiovascular support) within 21 days, where patients who died were assigned -1 day. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model that included all patients enrolled with severe COVID-19, adjusting for age, sex, site, region, time, assignment to interventions within other domains, and domain and intervention eligibility. Superiority was defined as the posterior probability of an odds ratio greater than 1 (threshold for trial conclusion of superiority >99%). Results: After excluding 19 participants who withdrew consent, there were 384 patients (mean age, 60 years; 29% female) randomized to the fixed-dose (n = 137), shock-dependent (n = 146), and no (n = 101) hydrocortisone groups; 379 (99%) completed the study and were included in the analysis. The mean age for the 3 groups ranged between 59.5 and 60.4 years; most patients were male (range, 70.6%-71.5%); mean body mass index ranged between 29.7 and 30.9; and patients receiving mechanical ventilation ranged between 50.0% and 63.5%. For the fixed-dose, shock-dependent, and no hydrocortisone groups, respectively, the median organ support-free days were 0 (IQR, -1 to 15), 0 (IQR, -1 to 13), and 0 (-1 to 11) days (composed of 30%, 26%, and 33% mortality rates and 11.5, 9.5, and 6 median organ support-free days among survivors). The median adjusted odds ratio and bayesian probability of superiority were 1.43 (95% credible interval, 0.91-2.27) and 93% for fixed-dose hydrocortisone, respectively, and were 1.22 (95% credible interval, 0.76-1.94) and 80% for shock-dependent hydrocortisone compared with no hydrocortisone. Serious adverse events were reported in 4 (3%), 5 (3%), and 1 (1%) patients in the fixed-dose, shock-dependent, and no hydrocortisone groups, respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: Among patients with severe COVID-19, treatment with a 7-day fixed-dose course of hydrocortisone or shock-dependent dosing of hydrocortisone, compared with no hydrocortisone, resulted in 93% and 80% probabilities of superiority with regard to the odds of improvement in organ support-free days within 21 days. However, the trial was stopped early and no treatment strategy met prespecified criteria for statistical superiority, precluding definitive conclusions. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02735707

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Medidas tipográficas: un recuento

Breve repaso al desarrollo de la concepción métrica en la tipografía en plomo, alternativa y complemento de la visión habitual en lo que conocemos como 'tipometría'. Se parte de una noción amplia de medida: el factor cuantitativo se dilata con la articulación de relaciones proporcionales e integra la dimensión cualitativa de los sistemas métricos tradicionales. La tipografía se considera bajo presupuestos similares: como sistema articulado de piezas materiales cuyas magnitudes contienen usos y valores específicos, más allá de su simple expresión numérica. Con tales premisas, se revisan fuentes documentales significativas del 'período de la imprenta manual'. Su examen, vinculado a los usos y costumbres de oficio, desvela la distinta aproximación métrica, que puede resumirse en tres fases evolutivas: hermética, intensiva, expansiva como recogen las referencias de los cuerpos tipográficos: adjetivas, sustantivas, numéricas. Se proporciona así un marco para apreciar el cambio de sentido en las medidas tipográficas hasta nuestros días

Feeling bad or feeling good, does emotion affect your consumption of food? A meta-analysis of the experimental evidence

Whether emotions affect eating, and in whom, has remained unclear. This meta-analysis assessed the effect of emotions on eating in both healthy and eating disordered individuals. Fifty-six experimental studies investigating the causal effect of emotions on eating behavior were selected including 3670 participants. Separate meta-analyses (random models) were performed for negative and positive emotions. Among healthy people the moderating impact of individual differences in restrained and emotional eating and of being overweight or obese was assessed for negative emotions. Results: Restrained eaters showed increased eating in response to negative emotions. Negative emotions did not affect eating in overweight or obese people, people with eating disorders or in self-assessed emotional eaters. Positive emotion resulted in increased eating across groups. Heterogeneity was high and could be explained by differences in emotion induction procedures, eating measures, and age of participants. These findings indicate that particularly restrained eaters are vulnerable to emotion-induced eating. Additional qualitatively good experiments are called for in combination with studies assessing emotion-eating links in people's naturalistic environment