Scholarly publishing depends on peer reviewers

The peer-review crisis is posing a risk to the scholarly peer-reviewed journal system. Journals have to ask many potential peer reviewers to obtain a minimum acceptable number of peers accepting reviewing a manuscript. Several solutions have been suggested to overcome this shortage. From reimbursing for the job, to eliminating pre-publication reviews, one cannot predict which is more dangerous for the future of scholarly publishing. And, why not acknowledging their contribution to the final version of the article published? PubMed created two categories of contributors: authors [AU] and collaborators [IR]. Why not a third category for the peer-reviewer?Scopu

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A new methodology for assessment of railway infrastructure condition

AbstractThe majority of the railway infrastructure in Croatia is over one hundred years old. In common with many other EU member states, a lack of investment in maintenance and renewal projects in over the last 30 years has resulted in generally poor track conditions. As a result traffic speeds are often restricted with some important operating with speeds limited up to only 20km/h.This work describes a joint initiative between researchers and infrastructure managers (IM's) to revitalize risk assessment associated on ageing infrastructure, with the aim of increasing safety and reducing the costs of remediation. In order to achieve this, a new methodology for assessment of railway condition is developed. In this paper the use of phased investigation involving electromagnetic ground penetrating radar (GPR), seismic refraction, drones and in-situ geotechnical investigation to determine parameters affecting the track performance are presented. The features considered include ballast fouling, anomalies in railway embankments (including burrows), boundaries between layers, substructure condition, the water content of the soil, the slope geometry and drainage condition. The work constitutes the first step in a Decision Support Framework for IM's, being developed through the Horizon 2020 Project Destination Rail which will help to identify potential hot-spots on the rail network. By early identification of these locations low-cost remediation can be applied and thus costs can be reduced and failures avoided.In this paper the use of custom-made cart which allows acquisition of data along the three axes of railway rail cross-section and an innovative interpretation methodology is described. Based on GPR data, visual assessment and on photogrammetry images made using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a categorization of critical infrastructure data is collected to a quantitative risk assessment procedure. This provides a basis for preliminary design solutions as well as for establishment of detailed programme of investigation works and monitoring on sections where it was shown as necessary. A next step is implementation of this methodology into geographic information system (GIS) which would additionally fulfil the needs of decision-makers in railway sector

Risk based life-cycle planning for flood-resilient critical infrastructure

The paper presents a risk assessment model, developed in the project oVERFLOw and further implemented in the project CROSScade, for determining the direct and indirect impacts of flooding hazards. As a consequence of flooding, transport infrastructure and flood protection systems can be significantly damaged and cause cascading effects on other infrastructure. To achieve flood resilient infrastructure, it is necessary to assess the vulnerability of critical assets in the affected area. The model uses novel vulnerability assessment methods for embankments and bridges exposed to different flood hazard scenarios allowing the asset owners to understand risk and performance of their infrastructure. Scarce financial resources are allocated on the critical assets allowing significant cost savings and avoiding the waste of non-renewable resources in strengthening large sections which have sufficient resilience. The consequence analysis is based on an improved quantification model for direct and indirect impacts of different flood hazard scenarios used for risk mapping of the affected area.Geo-engineerin