A comparison study of sheltered work versus supported employment within community-based rehabilitation facilities

Includes bibliographical references

Supramolecular and molecular capsules, cages and containers

Stemming from early seminal notions of molecular recognition and encapsulation, three-dimensional, cavity-containing capsular compounds and assemblies have attracted intense interest due to the ability to modulate chemical and physical properties of species encapsulated within these confined spaces compared to bulk environments. With such a diverse range of covalent motifs and non-covalent (supramolecular) interactions available to assemble building blocks, an incredibly wide-range of capsular-type architectures have been developed. Furthermore, synthetic tunability of the internal environments gives chemists the opportunity to engineer systems for uses in sensing, sequestration, catalysis and transport of molecules, just to name a few. In this tutorial review, an overview is provided into the design principles, synthesis, characterisation, structural facets and properties of coordination cages, porous organic cages, supramolecular capsules, foldamers and mechanically interlocked molecules. Using seminal and recent examples, the advantages and limitations of each system are explored, highlighting their application in various tasks and functions

Proceedings of the Tenth Annual Conference on Advances in Cognitive Systems

We hope you will enjoy these proceedings of the Tenth Annual Conference on Advances in Cognitive Systems (ACS). The event was the first hybrid meeting of ACS in is history. It took place virtually via Zoom and physically at George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia, from Saturday, November 19, to Tuesday, November 22, 2022. We are so delighted to be part of continuing this important venue that focuses on the original long-standing goals and challenges of artificial intelligence research. The conference program consisted of 37 papers consisting of ten 30-minute long talks, fifteen 20-minute short talks, twelve posters, three invited talks, two workshops, and a community panel discussion. This year’s Simon Prize Lecture was delivered by Anthony Cohn, Professor of Automated Reasoning at the University of Leeds. More than 200 people attended both in person and virtually. We were fortunate to have the organizational contributions of our local chair, Mihai Boicu of George Mason University, and of the members of the ACS Organizing Committee: Paul Bello, Pat Langley, Sergei Nirenburg, and Matt Klenk. We also thank Mark Burstein, Ken Forbus, Henry Lieberman, Marge McShane, John Laird, and Alexis Kilayko for their many suggestions and contributions. Finally we thank our sponsors, Smart Information Flow Technologies (SIFT) and George Mason University\u27s Institute for Digital Innovation. The latter provided space and technical support that allowed us to produce a high-quality in-person and virtual event. We invite you to visit the Advances in Cognitive Systems YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/ @advancesincognitivesystems4184) which has videos of the presentations, invited talks, tutorials, and the panel discussion. -- Jamie C. Macbeth, Leilani Gilpin and Michael T. Cox 13 January 202

Dazai\u27s Women: Dazai Osamu and his Female Narrators

Dazai Osamu (born Tsushima Shûji) was a post-WWII writer who wrote a number of works using a female narrator. This thesis research focused on the reasons as to why Dazai may have written using female narratives, taking into consideration the time period and social milieu in which he was writing, as well as his own personal history with women. In addition, the history of male authors utilizing female narratives was explored, as well as the ideas of gender in the Japanese arts. Dazai works were also compared with Tankizaki Junichirô\u27s to see how the roles of women in their works differ. The four main Dazai works analyzed were Magic Lanterns ( Tôrô ), The Schoolgirl ( Joseito ), December 8th ( Jûnigatsu yôka ), and Villon\u27s Wife ( Biyon no tsuma ). The conclusion was that Dazai was using female narrators as a different approach to further critiquing himself, with the female narrator being used to critique a Dazai-like persona in the works

Impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the nature of attempts to stop smoking and to reduce alcohol consumption in Great Britain: A representative population survey, 2021-2022

BACKGROUND: Smoking and excessive drinking place a strain on household budgets. We aimed to examine the impact of the cost-of-living crisis in Great Britain on the nature of smoking cessation and alcohol reduction attempts, and explore changes in health professionals offering support. METHODS: Data were from 14,567 past-year smokers and high-risk drinkers (AUDIT-C ≥5) participating in monthly representative surveys, January-2021 through December-2022. We estimated time trends in cost as a motive driving the most recent (smoking cessation/alcohol reduction) attempt, use of paid or evidence-based support, and receipt of GP offer of support for smoking cessation or alcohol reduction, and tested for moderation by occupational social grade. RESULTS: The proportion of attempts motivated by cost did not change significantly over time among smokers (25.4% [95%CI = 23.8-26.9%]), but increased between December-2021 and December-2022 among high-risk drinkers from less advantaged social grades (from 15.3% [95%CI 12.1-19.3] to 29.7% [20.1-44.1]). The only change in support use was an increase in smokers using paid support, specifically e-cigarettes (from 28.1% [23.7-33.3] to 38.2% [33.0-44.4]). Among those visiting their GP, the proportion who received an offer of support was similar over time among smokers (27.0% [25.7-28.2]) and high-risk drinkers (1.4% [1.1-1.6%]). CONCLUSIONS: There is limited evidence that the 2021/22 cost-of-living crisis affected the nature of attempts to stop smoking and reduce alcohol consumption, or receipt of GP offer of support. It is encouraging that use of evidence-based support has not declined and that use of e-cigarettes in quit attempts has increased. However, cost is increasingly motivating alcohol reduction attempts among less advantaged drinkers, and rates of GPs offering support, especially for alcohol reduction, remain very low

Trust in Private and Common Property Experiments

We report the results from a series of experiments designed to investigate behavior in two settings that are frequently posited in the policy literature as generating different outcomes: private property and common property. The experimental settings closely parallel earlier experimental studies of the investment or trust game. The primary research question relates to the effect of the initial allocation of property rights on the level of trust that subjects will extend to others with whom they are linked. We find that assigning the initial endowments as common property of each of N pairs of a first mover and second mover leads to marginally greater cooperation or trust than when the initial endowments are fully owned by the two individual movers as their, respective, private property. Subjectsâ?? decisions are also shown to be correlated with attitudes toward trust and fairness that are measured in post-experiment questionnaires.

Trust in Private and Common Property Experiments

We report the results from a series of experiments designed to investigate behavior in two settings that are frequently posited in the policy literature as generating different outcomes: private property and common property. The experimental settings closely parallel earlier experimental studies of the investment or trust game. The primary research question relates to the effect of the initial allocation of property rights on the level of trust that subjects will extend to others with whom they are linked. We find that assigning the initial endowments as common property of each of N pairs of a first mover and second mover leads to marginally greater cooperation or trust than when the initial endowments are fully owned by the two individual movers as their, respective, private property. Subjects’ decisions are also shown to be correlated with attitudes toward trust and fairness that are measured in post-experiment questionnaires

Nicotine strength of e-liquids used by adult vapers in Great Britain:a population survey 2016 to 2024

Background and aims: In March 2024, the UK government announced plans to introduce a Vaping Products Duty that will tax e-liquids based on their nicotine strength. This study examined trends in the nicotine strength of e-liquids used by adult vapers and differences in those currently used across relevant subgroups.Design: Nationally-representative, cross-sectional household survey, July 2016 to January 2024.Setting: Great Britain.Participants: 7,981 adult vapers.Measurements: Participants were asked whether the e-cigarette they mainly use contains nicotine (yes/no) and the e-liquid strength (no nicotine/&gt;0-≤6/7-11/12-19/≥20 mg/ml). We also collected information on the main device type used (disposable/refillable/pod), age, gender, occupational social grade, history of ≥1 mental health conditions, smoking status, and (among past-year smokers) level of cigarette addiction.Findings: The proportion of vapers in England using high-strength (≥20mg/ml) e-liquids increased from an average of 3.8% [95% confidence interval [CI] 2.9-5.0%] up to June 2021 to 32.5% [27.9-37.4%] in January 2024 (the vast majority of whom (93.3% in January 2024) reported using exactly 20mg/ml; the legal limit). This rise was most pronounced among those using disposable e-cigarettes, those aged 18-24y, and all smoking statuses (including never smokers) except long-term (≥1y) ex-smokers. Of those surveyed in 2022-24 in Great Britain, overall, 89.5% [88.1-90.8%] said they usually used e-cigarettes containing nicotine, 8.7% [7.5-10.0%] used nicotine-free e-cigarettes, and 1.8% [1.2-2.4%] were unsure. The proportion using ≥20mg/ml was higher among those mainly using disposable (47.9%) compared with pod (16.3%) or refillable (11.5%) devices; never smokers (36.0%), current smokers (28.8%), or recent (&lt;1y) ex-smokers (27.4%), compared with long-term ex-smokers (13.9%); and younger (16-24y; 44.2%) compared with older (≥25y; range 9.4-25.1%) age groups. There were no notable differences across other subgroups of interest.Conclusions: Use of high-strength nicotine e-liquids in England appears to have increased sharply in recent years. Most adult vapers in Great Britain appear to use e-cigarettes that contain nicotine but different subgroups use different strengths: nicotine strengths tend to be higher among those who mainly use disposable devices and those aged 16-24y, and lower among long-term ex-smokers.<br/