Effect of Preparation Technologies on Properties of Reactive Powder Concrete with Nano-zirconia

Reactive powder concrete filled with 3% content of nano-zirconia (NZ) are fabricated to investigate the effect of preparation technologies on the mechanical strength. The preparation technologies involve internal (NZ is added in RPC and replaced cement )/external mixing(NZ is added in RPC but not replaced cement), ultrasonic time, high mixing speed, saturated lime water/high temperature curing media(curing in water at 90℃). The influencing mechanisms of processing method are revealed through X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetry (TG) analysis, scanning electron microscope observation. Experiment results showed that high mixing speed and high temperature curing media can improve the mechanical strength obviously. The compressive strength of NZ filled reactive powder concrete with high mixing speed increase 49.9%. The compressive strength, flexural strength and splitting strength of reactive powder concrete with NZ under high temperature curing media increase 35%, 15% and 17% respectively compared with control concrete

Highly reversible transition metal migration in superstructure-free Li-rich oxide boosting voltage stability and redox symmetry

The further practical applications of Li-rich layered oxides are impeded by voltage decay and redox asymmetry, which are closely related to the structural degradation involving irreversible transition metal migration. It has been demonstrated that the superstructure ordering in O2-type materials can effectively suppress voltage decay and redox asymmetry. Herein, we elucidate that the absence of this superstructure ordering arrangement in a Ru-based O2-type oxide can still facilitate the highly reversible transition metal migration. We certify that Ru in superstructure-free O2-type structure can unlock a quite different migration path from Mn in mostly studied cases. The highly reversible migration of Ru helps the cathode maintain the structural robustness, thus realizing terrific capacity retention with neglectable voltage decay and inhibited oxygen redox asymmetry. We untie the knot that the absence of superstructure ordering fails to enable a high-performance Li-rich layered oxide cathode material with suppressed voltage decay and redox asymmetry

Protocol for a scoping review of the use of information and communication technology platforms for the delivery and utilisation of transgender healthcare

Introduction In recent years, there has been strong interest in making digital health and social tools more accessible, particularly among vulnerable and stigmatised groups such as transgender people. While transgender people experience unique physical, mental and sexual health needs, not much is currently known about the extent to which they use information and communication technologies such as short messaging service and videoconferencing to access health services. In this paper, we discuss our protocol for a scoping review of the literature about the delivery and utilisation of digitally mediated health services for transgender populations. Methods and analysis This scoping review of the provision and experience of telemedicine among transgender people will follow the methodological framework developed by Arksey and O’Malley. The search will be conducted using three online databases, namely PubMed, CINAHL and Scopus, with additional literature explored using Google Scholar to identify grey literature. Relevant English-language studies will be shortlisted after completing a title and abstract review based on defined inclusion criteria. Following that, a final list of included studies will be compiled after a full-text review of the shortlisted articles has been completed. To enable the screening process, a team of researchers will be assigned refereed publications explicitly referring to the provision and experience of transgender healthcare through telemedicine. Screening performed independently will then collaboratively be reviewed to maintain consistency. Ethics and dissemination The research is exempt from ethics approval since our analysis is based on extant research into the use of digital technologies in providing healthcare to transgender people. The results of this study will be disseminated through peer-reviewed academic publications and presentations. Our analysis will guide the design of further research and practice relating to the use of digital communication technologies to deliver healthcare services to transgender people

Information and communication technology-based health interventions for transgender people: A scoping review

In the recent past, there has been a strong interest in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) to deliver healthcare to ‘hard-to-reach’ populations. This scoping review aims to explore the types of ICT-based health interventions for transgender people, and the concerns on using these interventions and ways to address these concerns. Guided by the scoping review frameworks offered by Arksey & O’Malley and the PRISMA-ScR checklist, literature search was conducted in May 2021 and January 2022 in three databases (PubMed, CINAHL and Scopus). The two searches yielded a total of 889 non-duplicated articles, with 47 of them meeting the inclusion criteria. The 47 articles described 39 unique health projects/programs, covering 8 types of ICT-based interventions: videoconferencing, smartphone applications, messaging, e-coaching, self-learning platforms, telephone, social media, and e-consultation platforms. Over 80% of the health projects identified were conducted in North America, and 62% focused on HIV/sexual health. The findings of this review suggest that transgender people had often been regarded as a small subsample in ICT-based health projects that target other population groups (such as ‘men who have sex with men’ or ‘sexual minority’). Many projects did not indicate whether transgender people were included in the development or evaluation of the project. Relatively little is known about the implementation of ICT-based trans health interventions outside the context of HIV/sexual health, in resource limiting settings, and among transgender people of Asian, Indigenous or other non-White/Black/Hispanic backgrounds. While the range of interventions identified demonstrate the huge potentials of ICT to improve healthcare access for transgender people, the current body of literature is still far from adequate for making comprehensive recommendations on the best practice of ICT-based interventions for transgender people. Future ICT-based interventions need to be more inclusive and specified, in order to ensure the interventions are safe, accessible and effective for transgender people

A new score system for predicting response to cardiac resynchronization therapy

Background: The aim of this study was to establish a score system derived from clinical, echocardiographic and electrocardiographic indexes and evaluate its clinical value for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) patient selection. Methods: Ninety-three patients receiving CRT were enrolled. A patient selection score system was generated by the clinical, echocardiographic and electrocardiographic parameters achieving a significant level by univariate and multivariate Cox regression model. The positive response to CRT was a left ventricular end systolic volume decrease of ≥ 15% and not reaching primary clinical endpoint (death or re-hospitalization for heart failure) at the end of follow-up. Results: Thirty-nine patients were CRT non-responders (41.94%) and 54 were responders (58.06%). A 4-point score system was generated based on tricuspid annular plane systolic ex­cursion (TAPSE), longitudinal strain (LS), and complete left bundle branch block (CLBBB) combined with a wide QRS duration (QRSd). The sensitivity and specificity for prediction of a positive response to CRT at a score > 2 were 0.823 and 0.850, respectively (AUC: 0.92295% CI 0.691–0.916, p< 0.001). Conclusions: A patient selection score system based on the integration of TAPSE, LS and CLBBB combined with a wide QRSd can help to predict positive response to CRT effectively and reliably

COVID-19 IDD: A global survey exploring the impact of COVID-19 on individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caregivers

Background: This protocol outlines research to explore the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caregivers. Evidence suggests that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities experience disparities in healthcare access and utilisation. This disparity was evident early in the pandemic when discussions arose regarding the potential exclusion of this population to critical care. Methods: An anonymous online survey will be conducted with caregivers, both family members and paid staff, to explore the impact of COVID-19 on this population in terms of demographics, living arrangements, access to services, the impact of social distancing, and also carer wellbeing. The survey will be developed by the research team, many of whom are experts in intellectual disability within their own jurisdictions. Using back-translation our team will translate the survey for distribution in 16 countries worldwide for international comparison. The survey team have extensive personal and professional networks in intellectual disability and will promote the survey widely on social media with the support of local disability and advocacy agencies. Statistical descriptive and comparative analyses will be conducted. Ethical approval has been obtained for this study from University College Dublin’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HS-20-28-Linehan). Dissemination: Study findings will be prepared in a number of formats in order to meet the needs of different audiences. Outputs will include academic papers, lessons learned paper, practice guidelines, reports, infographics and video content. These outputs will be directed to families, frontline and management delivering disability services, national-level policy makers, healthcare quality and delivery authorities, national pandemic organisations and international bodies

A Lightweight Model for Bearing Fault Diagnosis Based on Gramian Angular Field and Coordinate Attention

The key to ensuring rotating machinery’s safe and reliable operation is efficient and accurate faults diagnosis. Intelligent fault diagnosis technology based on deep learning (DL) has gained increasing attention. A critical challenge is how to embed the characteristics of time series into DL to obtain stable features that correlate with equipment conditions. This study proposes a lightweight rolling bearing fault diagnosis method based on Gramian angular field (GAF) and coordinated attention (CA) to improve rolling bearing recognition performance and diagnosis efficiency. Firstly, the time domain signal is encoded into GAF images after downsampling and segmentation. This method retains the temporal relation of the time series and provides valuable features for DL. Secondly, a lightweight convolution neural network (CNN) model is constructed through depthwise separable convolution, inverse residual block, and linear bottleneck layer to learn advanced features. After that, CA is employed to capture the long-range dependencies and identify the precise position information of the GAF images with nearly no additional computational overhead. The proposed method is tested and evaluated by CWRU bearing dataset and experimental dataset. The results demonstrate that the CNN based on GAF and CA (GAF-CA-CNN) model can effectively reduce the calculation overhead of the model and achieve high diagnostic accuracy

Research on the modeling of the impedance match bond at station track circuit in Chinese high-speed railway

Frequency-shift keying audio jointless track circuit is used in high-speed railway in China. However, within the station, track circuit with mechanical insulation is applied. In complex circuit network of electrified railway station, impedance match bond is designed to ensure the normal operation of the track circuit and the protection of strong traction current interference. As a combination of strong and weak electricity components of track circuit, impedance match bond is both the part of the loop of the traction current and the part of the transmission line of track circuit, playing a very critical role in the electrified railway. The structure of impedance match bond is more complex than traditional impedance transformer, including the transformer with larger air-gap, LC resonance circuit for power frequency filtering, and components to enhance the signal frequency. Modeling on impedance match bond and study about the four-terminal network parameters of impedance match bond are in favor of the following two aspects: modeling of the overall traction current and calculation of track circuit working condition. By applying the transformer equivalent circuit model and combination of testing and calculation, the accurate model of impedance match bond is constructed and verified. Finally, for ease of track circuit calculation, four-terminal network model of impedance match bond under different signal carrier frequencies is presented

Advancements in engineered mesenchymal stem cell exosomes for chronic lung disease treatment

Abstract Chronic lung diseases include an array of conditions that impact airways and lung structures, leading to considerable societal burdens. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and their exosomes (MSC-exos) can be used for cell therapy and exhibit a diverse spectrum of anti-inflammatory, antifibrotic, and immunomodulatory properties. Engineered MSC-exos possesses enhanced capabilities for targeted drug delivery, resulting in more potent targeting effects. Through various engineering modifications, these exosomes can exert many biological effects, resulting in specific therapeutic outcomes for many diseases. Moreover, engineered stem cell exosomes may exhibit an increased capacity to traverse physiological barriers and infiltrate protected lesions, thereby exerting their therapeutic effects. These characteristics render them a promising therapeutic agent for chronic pulmonary diseases. This article discusses and reviews the strategies and mechanisms of engineered MSC-exos in the treatment of chronic respiratory diseases based on many studies to provide new solutions for these diseases

Understanding the empowerment of people with severe mental illness in the community through the eyes of social work practitioners in Sydney and Hong Kong

Since the 1960s, the concept of ‘empowerment’ has featured across anti-discrimination legislation, human rights campaigns and community development and has become increasingly influential in both social work practice and mental health service design and delivery. Despite these developments, this concept is often still considered a ‘buzzword’, and the ambiguity and complexity involved in conceptualising and operationalising empowerment in practice has been highlighted in research. However, this body of literature is mainly contextualised in anglophone and European settings and lacks practitioner accounts of transferring the concept into practice. This thesis presents a mixed methods cross-cultural study undertaken in Hong Kong and Sydney to address this gap. Informed by Systems Theory, methods comprised a critical policy analysis of recent mental health policy in Hong Kong and Sydney, a quantitative e-survey of 83 social work practitioners in Sydney and 80 in Hong Kong, and semi-structured interviews with 26 practitioners and six other key informants (e.g., social work educators) in the two settings. Findings suggest that practitioners’ understandings of empowerment often undergo a process of interacting with key concepts that unpin the contemporary organisation of mental health care. Further, the various influences of policy discourses such as recovery were emphasised across the findings, which cautions against the tokenistic use of emancipatory discourse in policymaking and highlights the importance of a critical assessment of policy problematisations and effects. Participant accounts suggest that more attention should be directed to managing interpersonal dynamics beyond client–practitioner relationships in empowerment-oriented practice. The cross-cultural analysis highlights the importance of cultural reflexivity, focusing on the influences of individuals’ own cultural assumptions in shaping the ways practitioners negotiate challenges in front line practice. Based on these findings, a new framework for understanding interactive empowerment praxis is proposed that highlights several professional abilities which may support practitioners in navigating the challenging process of mobilising social work knowledge in the increasingly complex and uncertain health and social care context. This thesis provides critical insights and recommendations for social work education and research which aim to enhance the creativity and adaptability of social work practice in different mental health settings