Embedding Decision Heuristics in Discrete Choice Models: Assessing the MERITS of Majority of Confirming Dimensions, Extremeness Aversion, and Reference Revision

Contrary to the usual assumption of fixed, well-defined preferences, it is increasingly evident that individuals are likely to approach a choice task using decision heuristics that depend on the choice environment. These include heuristics defined by the local choice context, such as the gains or losses of an attribute value relative to the other attributes. Recent empirical findings also demonstrate that previous choices and previously encountered choice tasks can affect the current choice outcome, indicating a form of inter-dependence across choice sets. A number of these heuristics, namely the majority of confirming dimensions (MCD), the extremeness aversion and the reference revision heuristics, are analysed. These heuristics are not new, but their application, using the discrete choice modelling framework, to the transportation field has only barely begun. In particular, arising from the extremeness aversion heuristic, three models are discussed. The first is a recently developed model of context dependence known as the random regret minimisation (RRM) model. The second model is a non-linear utility model that makes reference to the worst attribute level in a choice set. The third model is a “relative advantage maximisation” (RAM) model, with an updated version of the existing RAM model introduced in this thesis. All these models are compared against one another and with the standard random utility maximisation (RUM) model. The results strongly indicate that incorporating context dependency into existing models should be a key consideration for the practitioner. Moreover, having identified some heuristics of special interest, the role of multiple heuristics in choice behaviour is also analysed. Interestingly, the heuristics themselves can be embedded directly into the utility functions by means of heuristic weighting functions, which weight the contribution of each heuristic to overall utility. The thesis examines the validity of such an approach

Land Enhancement and Intensification Benefits of Investing in an Urban Rail Network

Authorities around the world are looking for new approaches to justify the implementation of capital intensive transport infrastructure such as urban rail solutions. Traditionally, the benefits of an urban rail line include conventional user benefits such as savings in travel time, vehicle operating costs, accident costs and environmental costs, and more recently wider economic benefits. An alternative approach that is sometimes used is to consider the appreciation of property prices along a rail corridor, and the intensification of land development surrounding a rail station. Using the development of new rail lines in Singapore as a case study, this paper will first apply the hedonic regression method to obtain estimates of elasticity between property price and transport accessibility. Secondly, using historical land use masterplans, the paper will discuss how the density of land use adjacent to rail stations has intensified over the past 15 years, through a comparative analysis of the land use density with respect to the distance to a rail station. Finally, with the North East Line as an example, the alternative approach comprising the land value enhancement of existing properties and the land intensification due to proximity to the line will be compared against the conventional user benefits.Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies. Faculty of Economics and Business. The University of Sydne

First Ground Observations of OI5577 Green Line Emission over the Taiwan Area

Worldwide ground observations of upper atmospheric airglow with particular emphasis on the OI 557.7 and 630 nm emissions have been conducted since 1960s. This study reports the first ground observations of OI 557.7 nm green line emission over the Taiwan area. For comparison, the background continuum at 530 nm was also measured by the same system. The experiments were conducted during the period of Aug - Dec, 2004 at various locations in Taiwan using a self-developed photometer instrument. Daily height integrated intensity of the night-time green line emission may vary in the range of 80 - 210 Rayleighs and twilight enhancement is also identified. The observational results may serve as a useful reference for follow-up sounding rocket measurements of OI 557.7 nm airglow emission over the Taiwan area

Estimation of New Monetary Valuations of Travel Time, Quality of Travel, and Safety for Singapore

A large-scale study in Singapore estimated new monetary valuations for travel time, quality of travel, and safety covering different modes and journey components. A wide-ranging stated-choice survey was conducted on a large, representative sample. The empirical work pushed the boundaries of the international state of the practice in choice modeling by relying on mixed logit models with all model components being random and a full covariance matrix being estimated. Detailed results are presented, and the values are contrasted with those from the previous study, conducted in 2008

In Vitro Antibacterial Effect of Lactobacillus plantarum Postbiotics Against Fish Bacterial Pathogens

The intensification of aquaculture farms leads to stressful conditions for fish. This causes the outbreak of bacterial diseases and lowers production in aquaculture. Probiotics and chemical treatments are effective, but it possesses a risk to the environment and human health. Postbiotics emerged to become one of the treatments for bacterial diseases. In this study, Lactobacillus plantarum GS12 and GS13 strains were used to determine the antibacterial effect of postbiotics on different pathogenic bacteria. The postbiotics were extracted and both strains show positive inhibition in the screening test. The postbiotics from both strains of L. plantarum were then used for further testing on minimum inhibitory concentration. Postbiotic from GS12 showed no inhibition activity, whereas GS13 has the lowest inhibition concentration of 8.0 µg ml⁻¹ when tested on Aeromonas hydrohila and Vibrio harveyi, and 16.7 µg ml⁻¹ when tested on A. salmonicida and V. parahaemolyticus. Postbiotic produced by L. plantarum GS13 had better capacity in terms of antibacterial effect compared to L. plantarum GS12. L. plantarum GS13 postbiotics may be useful against bacterial disease in the future. This study shows a potential alternative control measure for bacterial disease often occurring in aquaculture

Contribution of discourse and morphosyntax skills to reading comprehension in Chinese dyslexic and typically developing children

This study aimed at identifying important skills for reading comprehension in Chinese dyslexic children and their typically developing counterparts matched on age (CA controls) or reading level (RL controls). The children were assessed on Chinese reading comprehension, cognitive, and reading-related skills. Results showed that the dyslexic children performed significantly less well than the CA controls but similarly to RL controls in most measures. Results of multiple regression analyses showed that word-level reading-related skills like oral vocabulary and word semantics were found to be strong predictors of reading comprehension among typically developing junior graders and dyslexic readers of senior grades, whereas morphosyntax, a text-level skill, was most predictive for typically developing senior graders. It was concluded that discourse and morphosyntax skills are particularly important for reading comprehension in the non-inflectional and topic-prominent Chinese system

Dependency of NELF-E-SLUG-KAT2B epigenetic axis in breast cancer carcinogenesis.

Cancer cells undergo transcriptional reprogramming to drive tumor progression and metastasis. Using cancer cell lines and patient-derived tumor organoids, we demonstrate that loss of the negative elongation factor (NELF) complex inhibits breast cancer development through downregulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and stemness-associated genes. Quantitative multiplexed Rapid Immunoprecipitation Mass spectrometry of Endogenous proteins (qPLEX-RIME) further reveals a significant rewiring of NELF-E-associated chromatin partners as a function of EMT and a co-option of NELF-E with the key EMT transcription factor SLUG. Accordingly, loss of NELF-E leads to impaired SLUG binding on chromatin. Through integrative transcriptomic and genomic analyses, we identify the histone acetyltransferase, KAT2B, as a key functional target of NELF-E-SLUG. Genetic and pharmacological inactivation of KAT2B ameliorate the expression of EMT markers, phenocopying NELF ablation. Elevated expression of NELF-E and KAT2B is associated with poorer prognosis in breast cancer patients, highlighting the clinical relevance of our findings. Taken together, we uncover a crucial role of the NELF-E-SLUG-KAT2B epigenetic axis in breast cancer carcinogenesis

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries: a prospective, international, multicentre cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common infections associated with health care, but its importance as a global health priority is not fully understood. We quantified the burden of SSI after gastrointestinal surgery in countries in all parts of the world. Methods: This international, prospective, multicentre cohort study included consecutive patients undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection within 2-week time periods at any health-care facility in any country. Countries with participating centres were stratified into high-income, middle-income, and low-income groups according to the UN's Human Development Index (HDI). Data variables from the GlobalSurg 1 study and other studies that have been found to affect the likelihood of SSI were entered into risk adjustment models. The primary outcome measure was the 30-day SSI incidence (defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for superficial and deep incisional SSI). Relationships with explanatory variables were examined using Bayesian multilevel logistic regression models. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02662231. Findings: Between Jan 4, 2016, and July 31, 2016, 13 265 records were submitted for analysis. 12 539 patients from 343 hospitals in 66 countries were included. 7339 (58·5%) patient were from high-HDI countries (193 hospitals in 30 countries), 3918 (31·2%) patients were from middle-HDI countries (82 hospitals in 18 countries), and 1282 (10·2%) patients were from low-HDI countries (68 hospitals in 18 countries). In total, 1538 (12·3%) patients had SSI within 30 days of surgery. The incidence of SSI varied between countries with high (691 [9·4%] of 7339 patients), middle (549 [14·0%] of 3918 patients), and low (298 [23·2%] of 1282) HDI (p < 0·001). The highest SSI incidence in each HDI group was after dirty surgery (102 [17·8%] of 574 patients in high-HDI countries; 74 [31·4%] of 236 patients in middle-HDI countries; 72 [39·8%] of 181 patients in low-HDI countries). Following risk factor adjustment, patients in low-HDI countries were at greatest risk of SSI (adjusted odds ratio 1·60, 95% credible interval 1·05–2·37; p=0·030). 132 (21·6%) of 610 patients with an SSI and a microbiology culture result had an infection that was resistant to the prophylactic antibiotic used. Resistant infections were detected in 49 (16·6%) of 295 patients in high-HDI countries, in 37 (19·8%) of 187 patients in middle-HDI countries, and in 46 (35·9%) of 128 patients in low-HDI countries (p < 0·001). Interpretation: Countries with a low HDI carry a disproportionately greater burden of SSI than countries with a middle or high HDI and might have higher rates of antibiotic resistance. In view of WHO recommendations on SSI prevention that highlight the absence of high-quality interventional research, urgent, pragmatic, randomised trials based in LMICs are needed to assess measures aiming to reduce this preventable complication