Freedom of Religion and Exceptions in Anti-Discrimination Law: A Loose Canon

University of Technology Sydney. Faculty of Law.Concern about religious freedom rights has emerged as one of the most prominent social and political issues of the early 21st Century in Australia. Much consternation has followed the introduction, over the past 40 years, of laws prohibiting discrimination on various grounds across all jurisdictions in Australia. The civil rights movements of the 1960s and 70s yielded positive results in prohibiting racial and gender discrimination in public life. Further developments in the past 20 years have led to the recognition of the need for prohibiting further types of discrimination, such as on the grounds of disability, age, relationship status, family responsibilities and sexual orientation. Religious bodies have enjoyed substantial conditional exceptions to a range of forms of discrimination, particularly on grounds of sex, sexual orientation and relationship status. The protection of religious freedom for organisations established for a religious purpose by way of permissibility to discriminate outstrips individual entitlements to the same freedom despite international laws stating that ‘everyone’ has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. Since Australia’s change to marriage laws permitting legal same-sex marriage following the 2017 Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey. there have been increasing concerns about what anti-discrimination laws mean for religious adherents and many people believe their religious rights are being threatened. When prominent footballer, Israel Folau, had his contract terminated after making disparaging comments about homosexuality on social media, the restriction on rights to observe, practise and speak publicly about religious beliefs has been questioned. Having received the final report of the Prime Minister’s Expert Panel, the Religious Freedom Review in 2018, the parliament is now expected to take action to provide clarity through law reform. This thesis seeks to analyse the tension between freedom of religion and the right to be free from discrimination by gaining an understanding of the principles behind religious exceptions to anti-discrimination laws. By uncovering a range of interpretive constructions about religion and religious freedom, it is possible to gain a better understanding of exactly who and what is to be protected. This process leads to a suggested framework for anti-discrimination laws that accounts for the human right to freedom of religion while protecting vulnerable groups from the most harmful forms of discrimination

CNS Drugs

BACKGROUND: Hepatotoxicity may be a concern when prescribing antidepressants. Nevertheless, this risk remains poorly understood for serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs: venlafaxine, milnacipran, duloxetine) and 'other antidepressants' (mianserin, mirtazapine, tianeptine and agomelatine), particularly in comparison with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs: fluoxetine, citalopram, paroxetine, sertraline, fluvoxamine, escitalopram), which are by far the most commonly prescribed antidepressants. OBJECTIVE: We quantified the risk of serious liver injury associated with new use of SNRIs and 'other antidepressants' compared with SSRIs in real-life practice. METHODS: Based on the French national health insurance database, this cohort study included 4,966,825 individuals aged 25 years and older with a first reimbursement of SSRIs, SNRIs or 'other antidepressants' between January 2010 and June 2015. We compared the risk of serious liver injury within the 6 months following antidepressant initiation according to antidepressant class, with SSRIs as the reference, using an inverse probability-of-treatment-weighted Cox proportional hazard model adjusted for demographic characteristics and risk factors of liver injury. RESULTS: We identified 382 serious liver injuries overall (none for milnacipran initiators). Age and gender standardized incidence rates per 100,000 person-years were 19.2 for SSRIs, 22.2 for venlafaxine, 12.6 for duloxetine, 21.5 for mianserin, 32.8 for mirtazapine, 31.6 for tianeptine and 24.6 for agomelatine initiators. Initiation of antidepressants of interest versus SSRIs was not associated with an increased risk of serious liver injury [adjusted hazard ratios (95% confidence interval): venlafaxine 1.17 (0.83-1.64), duloxetine 0.54 (0.28-1.02), mianserin 0.90 (0.58-1.41), mirtazapine 1.17 (0.67-2.02), tianeptine 1.35 (0.82-2.23) and agomelatine 1.07 (0.51-2.23)]. This finding was confirmed by the results of an additional study using a case-time-control design. CONCLUSION: These results do not provide evidence of an increased risk of serious liver injury following initiation of SNRIs or 'other antidepressants' compared with SSRIs in real-life practice. This could reflect an inherent lack of difference in risk between the drug classes, or the fact that individuals with higher susceptibility to drug-induced liver injury are not prescribed drugs considered to be more hepatotoxic

Compact Dual-Band Dual-Polarized Antenna for MIMO LTE Applications

A system of two dual-band dual-polarized antennas is proposed. It operates in two bands, 700 to 862 MHz and 2.5 to 2.69 GHz, thereby making it suitable for LTE applications. The design is composed of two compact orthogonal monopoles printed close to each other to perform diversity in mobile terminals such as tablets or laptops. For each band, two orthogonal polarizations are available and an isolation higher than 15 dB is achieved between the two monopoles spaced by λ0/10 (where λ0 the central wavelength in free space of the lower band). A good agreement is observed between simulated and experimental results. The antenna diversity capability is highlighted with the calculation of envelope correlation and mean effective gain for several antennas' positions in different environment scenarios

A compact dual-band dual-port diversity antenna for LTE

The design of a compact dual-band dual-port antenna system is presented. It operates in two frequency bands, 790-862 MHz and 2500-2690 MHz, thereby making it suitable for Long Term Evolution (LTE) handheld devices. The proposed system is composed of two orthogonal inverted-F antennas (IFA) to perform diversity in mobile terminals. A good agreement is observed between simulated and experimental results. The high antenna diversity capability of the proposed system is highlighted with the calculation of envelope correlation coefficient, mean effective and diversity gains for different environment scenarii

TWEETHER project for W-band wireless networks

The European Horizon 2020 project TWEETHER aims to make a breakthrough in wireless networks to overcome the congestion of the actual mobile networks and foster the new 5G networks. A European Consortium including four universities and five companies from four European countries is devoting a relevant effort to realize novel terminals and transmission hubs to operate in the W-band (93 – 95 GHz). This paper will describe the advancement of the project

Clin Ther

Purpose Although quantitative benefit–risk models (qBRms) are indisputably valuable tools for gaining comprehensive assessments of health care interventions, they are not systematically used, probably because they lack an integrated framework that provides methodologic structure and harmonization. An alternative that allows all stakeholders to design operational models starting from a standardized framework was recently developed: the discretely integrated condition event (DICE) simulation. The aim of the present work was to assess the feasibility of implementing a qBRm in DICE, using the example of rotavirus vaccination. Methods A model of rotavirus vaccination was designed using DICE and implemented in spreadsheet software with 3 worksheets: Conditions, Events, and Outputs. Conditions held the information in the model; this information changed at Events, and Outputs were special Conditions that stored the results collected during the analysis. A hypothetical French birth cohort was simulated for the assessment of rotavirus vaccination over time. The benefits were estimated for up to 5 years, and the risks in the 7 days following rotavirus vaccination versus no vaccination were assessed, with the results expressed as benefit–risk ratios. Findings This qBRm model required 8 Events, 38 Conditions, and 9 Outputs. Two Events cyclically updated the rates of rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) and intussusception (IS) according to age. Vaccination occurred at 2 additional Events, according to the vaccination scheme applied in France, and affected the occurrence of the other Events. Outputs were the numbers of hospitalizations related to RVGE and to IS, and related deaths. The entire model was specified in a small set of tables contained in a 445-KB electronic workbook. Analyses showed that for each IS-related hospitalization or death caused, 1613 (95% credible interval, 1001–2800) RVGE-related hospitalizations and 787 (95% credible interval, 246–2691) RVGE-related deaths would be prevented by vaccination. These results are consistent with those from a published French study using similar inputs but a very different modeling approach. Implications A limitation of the DICE approach was the extended run time needed for completing the sensitivity analyses when implemented in the electronic worksheets. DICE provided a user-friendly integrated framework for developing qBRms and should be considered in the development of structured approaches to facilitate benefit–risk assessment

Microstrip Antenna Array Design for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Detection Radar

This work presents the design and realization of four linear arrays of microstrip rectangular patch antennas. This linear array is one of the elements of a passive radar using signals from 4G base stations for UAV detection. The arrays have been validated and operate from 2.62 GHz to 2.69 GHz, with a HPBW of 82° in H-plane and a maximal gain going from 11.1 dB to 12.2 dB in the required bandwidth, with a cosecant squared pattern in the E-plane

Benchmarking clinical management of spinal and non-spinal disorders using quality of life: results from the EPI3-LASER survey in primary care

Concerns have been raised regarding sub-optimal utilization of analgesics and psychotropic drugs in the treatment of patients with chronic musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and their associated co-morbidities. The objective of this study was to describe drug prescriptions for the management of spinal and non-spinal MSDs contrasted against a standardized measure of quality of life. A representative population sample of 1,756 MSDs patients [38.5% with spinal disorder (SD) and 61.5% with non-spinal MSDs (NS-MSD)] was drawn from the EPI3-LASER survey of 825 general practitioners (GPs) in France. Physicians recorded their diagnoses and prescriptions on that day. Patients provided information on socio-demographics, lifestyle and quality of life using the Short Form 12 (SF-12) questionnaire. Chronicity of MSDs was defined as more than 12 weeks duration of the current episode. Chronic SD and NS-MSD patients were prescribed less analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs than their non-chronic counterpart [odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), respectively: 0.4, 0.2–0.7 and 0.5, 0.3–0.6]. They also had more anxio-depressive co-morbidities reported by their physicians (SD: 16.1 vs.7.4%; NS-MSD: 21.6 vs. 9.5%) who prescribed more antidepressants and anxiolytics with a difference that was statistically significant only for spinal disorder patients (OR, 95% CI: 2.0, 1.1–3.6). Psychotropic drugs were more often prescribed in patients in the lower quartile of SF-12 mental score and prescriptions of analgesics in the lower quartile of SF-12 physical score (P < 0.001). In conclusion, anxiety and depressive disorders were commonly reported by GPs among chronic MSD patients. Their prescriptions of psychotropic and analgesic drugs were consistent with patients’ self-rated mental and physical health

Drug Saf

Introduction Quantitative benefit-risk models (qBRm) applied to vaccines are increasingly used by public health authorities and pharmaceutical companies as an important tool to help decision makers with supporting benefit-risk assessment (BRA). However, many publications on vaccine qBRm provide insufficient details on the methodological approaches used. Incomplete and/or inadequate qBRm reporting may affect result interpretation and confidence in BRA, highlighting a need for the development of standard reporting guidance. Objectives Our objective was to provide an operational checklist for improved reporting of vaccine qBRm. Methods The consolidated standards of reporting quantitative Benefit-RIsk models applied to VACcines (BRIVAC) were designed as a checklist of key information to report in qBRm scientific publications regarding the assessed vaccines, the methodological considerations and the results and their interpretation. Results In total, 22 items and accompanying definitions, recommendations, explanations and examples were provided and divided into six main sections corresponding to the classic subdivisions of a scientific publication: title and abstract (items 1–2), introduction (items 3–4), methods (items 5–15), results (items 16–17), discussion (items 18–20) and other (items 21–22). Conclusions The BRIVAC checklist is the first initiative providing an operational checklist for improved reporting of qBRm applied to vaccines in scientific articles. It is intended to assist authors, peer-reviewers, editors and readers in their critical appraisal. Future initiatives are needed to provide methodological guidance to perform qBRm while taking into account the vaccine specificities