Interrelationships between spinal and pelvic angles and hip muscle indices and their implications for workspace design

The shape of the lumbar and thoracic spinal curves in healthy subjects, when standing and when adopting a variety of working positions, was investigated using angular measures. The hypothesis that spinal and pelvic posture is determined by body position was supported. The mechanism by which body position influences spinal and pelvic posture was investigated using angular indices of the lengths of the hip flexors and extensors. The hypothesis that hamstring stretch determines postural adaptation to sitting positions was not supported. A multivariate analysis revealed that an index of iliopsoas length was the best predictor of posterior pelvic tilt in a variety of sitting positions. A supplementary investigation was carried out using data on the range of motion of the pelvis in the different body positions and its relationship to the muscle length indices. The role of the hamstring muscles in sitting posture was clarified. Some electromyographic data is presented to further illustrate the effect of body position on the role of the hip and trunk muscles in posture. A replication of the main findings and an investigation of some of the practical implications of the work were carried out drawing attention to some mechanisms of postural stress, potential problems of increased lumbar lordosis and their cost-effective alleviation through workspace design. The provision of a footrest, for example, was found to have significant effects on lumbar and pelvic angles in standing as well as in sitting. Further research into standing posture in the workplace is indicated by these findings. Some hypotheses for future investigation are presented

Scanning apertureless microscopy below the diffraction limit: Comparisons between theory and experiment

The exact nature of the signal in scanning apertureless microscopy techniques is the subject of much debate. We have sought to resolve this controversy by carrying out simulations and experiments on the same structures. Simulations of a model of tip–sample coupling are shown to exhibit features that are in agreement with experimental observations at dimensions below the diffraction limit. The simulation of the optical imaging process is carried out using atomic force microscope data as a topographical template and a tip–sample dipole coupling model as the source of optical signal. The simulations show a number of key fingerprints including a dependence on the polarization of the external laser source, the size of the tip, and index of refraction of the sample being imaged. The experimental results are found to be in agreement with many of the features of the simulations. We conclude that the results of the dipole coupling theory agree qualitatively with experimental data and that apertureless microscopy measures optical properties, not just topography

Retrospective and prospective evaluations of mammography screening narratives: The role of own experience

We investigated the role of previous experience when providing summary judgments of mammography narratives. A total of 807 women who either did or did not have previous experience of a mammogram were presented with a written description of a mammography visit. We manipulated the presentation position of a negative element within the narrative to alter its accessibility in memory and determine whether the latter impacted equally on two types of summary judgments. After the narrative presentation, participants were asked to provide both retrospective and prospective evaluations, that is, summary judgments about the described event and an appraisal of the likelihood of participating in future instances of such event, respectively. A recency effect was observed only for retrospective but not for prospective evaluations. When examined only for the subset of women who had undergone a mammography visit themselves, prospective evaluations were shown to be predicted by the reported quality of the mammography participants experienced themselves. The findings support and extend the accessibility model of emotional self-report and suggest that own experience leaks into evaluations of hypothetical scenarios by selectively impacting on prospective evaluations

Determinants of UK students’ financial anxiety amidst Covid-19: Financial literacy and attitudes towards debt

Due to the increased financial pressure—exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic—that students in higher education need to endure, considerable attention is being drawn towards the determinants of student financial anxiety. A conflicting picture has been captured about financial literacy, which has been shown to either be associated with better financial well-being or to be unrelated to financial stress. While discerning between financial knowledge (‘objective’ financial literacy) and perceived ability to manage personal finances (‘subjective’ financial literacy), this study also explores the impact that students' attitudes towards debt may exert on their financial anxiety. In a sample of 174 university students from the UK, we measured students' financial anxiety, objective and subjective financial literacy, attitudes towards debt and perceived impact of COVID-19 on financial behaviour. Bayesian analyses revealed that only attitudes towards debt and perception of the impact of the pandemic predicted students' financial anxiety. While the evidence in regard to financial literacy was inconclusive, mediation analyses showed that objective financial literacy indirectly impacted financial anxiety by increasing fear of debt. The findings suggest that students' financial anxiety may be reduced by adopting strategies that focus on the subjective perception of debt and of economic circumstances

Step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trials: An application to the study of the impact of community health insurance

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.BACKGROUND: We describe a step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trial which has been conducted since 2003 to accompany the implementation of a community health insurance (CHI) scheme in West Africa. The trial aims at overcoming the paucity of evidence-based information on the impact of CHI. Impact is defined in terms of changes in health service utilisation and household protection against the cost of illness. Our exclusive focus on the description and discussion of the methods is justified by the fact that the study relies on a methodology previously applied in the field of disease control, but never in the field of health financing. METHODS: First, we clarify how clusters were defined both in respect of statistical considerations and of local geographical and socio-cultural concerns. Second, we illustrate how households within clusters were sampled. Third, we expound the data collection process and the survey instruments. Finally, we outline the statistical tools to be applied to estimate the impact of CHI. CONCLUSION: We discuss all design choices both in relation to methodological considerations and to specific ethical and organisational concerns faced in the field. On the basis of the appraisal of our experience, we postulate that conducting relatively sophisticated trials (such as our step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trial) aimed at generating sound public health evidence, is both feasible and valuable also in low income settings. Our work shows that if accurately designed in conjunction with local health authorities, such trials have the potential to generate sound scientific evidence and do not hinder, but at times even facilitate, the implementation of complex health interventions such as CHI

Connecting Communities: Third Generation Community Network Projects

This article discuss the evolution of the community network movement and provides practical advice about how Extension educators can work with local leaders and community residents to initiate projects that increase diffusion and adoption of information technologies in their communities. Experience in Pennsylvania shows that the community development processes used to develop third generation community network projects increases the diffusion and adoption of information technologies and builds human and organizational capacity useful for addressing a wide variety of community issues. Readers are introduced to Connecting Rural Communities, a guide to enhancing adoption of technology tools and infrastructure in rural communities

Genomic imbalances are confined to non-proliferating cells in paediatric patients with acute myeloid leukaemia and a normal or incomplete karyotype

Copyright @ 2011 Ballabio et al.Leukaemia is often associated with genetic alterations such as translocations, amplifications and deletions, and recurrent chromosome abnormalities are used as markers of diagnostic and prognostic relevance. However, a proportion of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) cases have an apparently normal karyotype despite comprehensive cytogenetic analysis. Based on conventional cytogenetic analysis of banded chromosomes, we selected a series of 23 paediatric patients with acute myeloid leukaemia and performed whole genome array comparative genome hybridization (aCGH) using DNA samples derived from the same patients. Imbalances involving large chromosomal regions or entire chromosomes were detected by aCGH in seven of the patients studied. Results were validated by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to both interphase nuclei and metaphase chromosomes using appropriate bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) probes. The majority of these copy number alterations (CNAs) were confirmed by FISH and found to localize to the interphase rather than metaphase nuclei. Furthermore, the proliferative states of the cells analyzed by FISH were tested by immunofluorescence using an antibody against the proliferation marker pKi67. Interestingly, these experiments showed that, in the vast majority of cases, the changes appeared to be confined to interphase nuclei in a non-proliferative status.This work was supported by a grant from Leukaemia Research UK (grant no. 0253). SJLK and RR were supported by the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, with funding from the Department of Health’s NIHR Biomedical Research Centres funding schemeThis article is available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund