Crowdsourcing in cultural heritage

The aims of this study, within the framework of the Europeana Common Culture project are to: 1. Determine current and planned approaches and practices within the Europeana aggregation ecosystem in relation to crowdsourced metadata and content. 2. Investigate, as comprehensively as possible, past and existing DCH crowdsourcing initiatives across Europe, systematically describing their status and gaining a sound understanding of current practices. 3. Assess the feasibility, desirability and challenges faced in any effort to strengthen the pipeline from such initiatives to enable ingestion of their metadata or access to their content through Europeana. 4. Provide recommendations and guidelines for consideration by Europeana, aggregators and Cultural Heritage Institutions. 5. Support the creation of training materials for the Europeana ecosystem in terms of any agreed interaction with Europeana around crowdsourced assets and deliver this by suitable means (e.g. webinars, Europeana Pro). The work carried out has involved a 9 month programme (April-December 2020) consisting of desk research, , three online questionnaire surveys (to national aggregators; thematic/domain aggregators and external crowdsourcing initiatives respectively), a series of interviews and three consultative on-line events. The survey data are summarised in extensive annexes

Bacterial Adaptation to Venom in Snakes and Arachnida

Animal venoms are considered sterile sources of antimicrobial compounds with strong membrane-disrupting activity against multidrug-resistant bacteria. However, venomous bite wound infections are common in developing nations. Investigating the envenomation organ and venom microbiota of five snake and two spider species, we observed venom community structures that depend on the host venomous animal species and evidenced recovery of viable microorganisms from black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) and Indian ornamental tarantula (Poecilotheria regalis) venoms. Among the bacterial isolates recovered from , we identified two venom-resistant, novel sequence types of Enterococcus faecalis whose genomes feature 16 virulence genes, indicating infectious potential, and 45 additional genes, nearly half of which improve bacterial membrane integrity. Our findings challenge the dogma of venom sterility and indicate an increased primary infection risk in the clinical management of venomous animal bite wounds. Notwithstanding their 3 to 5% mortality, the 2.7 million envenomation-related injuries occurring annually-predominantly across Africa, Asia, and Latin America-are also major causes of morbidity. Venom toxin-damaged tissue will develop infections in some 75% of envenomation victims, with E. faecalis being a common culprit of disease; however, such infections are generally considered to be independent of envenomation. Here, we provide evidence on venom microbiota across snakes and arachnida and report on the convergent evolution mechanisms that can facilitate adaptation to black-necked cobra venom in two independent E. faecalis strains, easily misidentified by biochemical diagnostics. Therefore, since inoculation with viable and virulence gene-harboring bacteria can occur during envenomation, acute infection risk management following envenomation is warranted, particularly for immunocompromised and malnourished victims in resource-limited settings. These results shed light on how bacteria evolve for survival in one of the most extreme environments on Earth and how venomous bites must be also treated for infections

Bacterial adaptation to venom in snakes and arachnida

Animal venoms are considered sterile sources of antimicrobial compounds with strong membrane-disrupting activity against multidrug-resistant bacteria. However, venomous bite wound infections are common in developing nations. Investigating the envenomation organ and venom microbiota of five snake and two spider species, we observed venom community structures that depend on the host venomous animal species and evidenced recovery of viable microorganisms from black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) and Indian ornamental tarantula (Poecilotheria regalis) venoms. Among the bacterial isolates recovered from N. nigricollis, we identified two venom-resistant, novel sequence types of Enterococcus faecalis whose genomes feature 16 virulence genes, indicating infectious potential, and 45 additional genes, nearly half of which improve bacterial membrane integrity. Our findings challenge the dogma of venom sterility and indicate an increased primary infection risk in the clinical management of venomous animal bite wounds. IMPORTANCE Notwithstanding their 3 to 5% mortality, the 2.7 million envenomation-related injuries occurring annually—predominantly across Africa, Asia, and Latin America—are also major causes of morbidity. Venom toxin-damaged tissue will develop infections in some 75% of envenomation victims, with E. faecalis being a common culprit of disease; however, such infections are generally considered to be independent of envenomation. Here, we provide evidence on venom microbiota across snakes and arachnida and report on the convergent evolution mechanisms that can facilitate adaptation to black-necked cobra venom in two independent E. faecalis strains, easily misidentified by biochemical diagnostics. Therefore, since inoculation with viable and virulence gene-harboring bacteria can occur during envenomation, acute infection risk management following envenomation is warranted, particularly for immunocompromised and malnourished victims in resource-limited settings. These results shed light on how bacteria evolve for survival in one of the most extreme environments on Earth and how venomous bites must be also treated for infections

D5.2 Project web environment

This deliverable presents a snapshot of the project web environment in July 2011. The project website http://www.digcur-education.org/eng was launched in month one of the project. The aim of this site is to provide information about the project to stakeholders and to related projects, as well as provide an Intranet for members of the project consortium. The website includes a ‘Join Us’ page to encourage interested parties to register as members of the DigCurV network, to receive the project newsletter or to follow the project on one of the social networks. Section 2 of this report provides a snapshot of the main public pages of the website. Section 3 describes the project presence on social networking sites including Twitter and Slideshare. Section 4 provides some initial statistics showing visits to the project website in the first six months of the project

Spheres of community influence

Draws on case studies of community leaders in Big Local areas, analysing the difference that leadership training has made

Work-based learning at higher education level: value, practice and critique

Since the 1980s there has been significant growth in the engagement of higher education with workforce development, with among other things the emergence of a distinct if varied area of provision commonly referred to as work-based learning. Recent examination of practice and literature indicates a growing sophistication in the way that work-based learning is being theorised and facilitated in higher education, with its gradual emergence as a distinct field of practice and study supported by relevant pedagogies and concepts of curriculum. Tensions continue to exist between the demands and opportunities provided by the workplace and the need to develop capable practice, support personal development and maintain academic validity; however, universities are beginning to engage with these issues at a deeper level than that suggested by simple notions of employer engagement and skills development, and the evidence indicates that well-designed work-based programmes are both effective and robust

Risk models for recurrence and survival after kidney cancer: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically identify and compare the performance of prognostic models providing estimates of survival or recurrence of localized renal cell cancer (RCC) in patients treated with surgery with curative intent. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a systematic review (PROSPERO CRD42019162349). We searched Medline, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library from 1 January 2000 to 12 December 2019 to identify studies reporting the performance of one or more prognostic model(s) that predict recurrence-free survival (RFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS) or overall survival (OS) in patients who have undergone surgical resection for localized RCC. For each outcome we summarized the discrimination of each model using the C-statistic and performed multivariate random-effects meta-analysis of the logit transformed C-statistic to rank the models. RESULTS: Of a total of 13 549 articles, 57 included data on the performance of 22 models in external populations. C-statistics ranged from 0.59 to 0.90. Several risk models were assessed in two or more external populations and had similarly high discriminative performance. For RFS, these were the Sorbellini, Karakiewicz, Leibovich and Kattan models, with the UCLA Integrated Staging System model also having similar performance in European/US populations. All had C-statistics ≥0.75 in at least half of the validations. For CSS, they the models with the highest discriminative performance in two or more external validation studies were the Zisman, Stage, Size, Grade and Necrosis (SSIGN), Karakiewicz, Leibovich and Sorbellini models (C-statistic ≥0.80 in at least half of the validations), and for OS they were the Leibovich, Karakiewicz, Sorbellini and SSIGN models. For all outcomes, the models based on clinical features at presentation alone (Cindolo and Yaycioglu) had consistently lower discrimination. Estimates of model calibration were only infrequently included but most underestimated survival. CONCLUSION: Several models had good discriminative ability, with there being no single 'best' model. The choice from these models for each setting should be informed by both the comparative performance and availability of factors included in the models. All would need recalibration if used to provide absolute survival estimates.JUS was funded by a Cancer Research UK Prevention Fellowship (C55650/A21464). The University of Cambridge has received salary support in respect of SJG from the NHS in the East of England through the Clinical Academic Reserve. SHR is funded by a Cancer Research UK Clinical PhD Fellowship. GDS is supported by the Renal Cancer Research Fund, The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research, the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre [C9685/A25177] and NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (BRC-1215-20014). The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care. HH was supported by a National Institute of Health Research Methods Fellowship (RM-SR-2017-09-009) and is now supported by a National Institute of Health Research Development and Skills Enhancement Award (NIHR301182). SJS is funded by the Medical Research Council (MC_UU_00006/6)

I did it my way: Voice, visuality and identity in doctoral students’ reflexive videonarratives on their doctoral research journeys

This paper presents four accounts of UK doctoral students’ engagement in a Higher Education Academy project which used digital video to promote participants’ reflexivity on their doctoral journeys. It focuses on the relations between doctoral research, reflexivity and the use of digital video, and how these relations are articulated in different ways by the project participants in the production of, and reflection on, their own videonarrative. As an ‘assemblage’, the written form of the paper aims to evoke both the collaborative design of the project, in that the paper is constructed as a multivocality, a series of ‘plateaus’ (Deleuze and Guattari, 1987, p22), and also the multiple, shifting and always in-process nature of identity, immanent in each individual’s account. In different ways, the accounts address how epistemological, ontological and ethical considerations are articulated within a visual and vocal re-presentation of the self in the form of individual videonarratives. Each narrative both does (and doesn’t) resonate with the others’ narratives and each offers unique insights into the specificities of a particular doctoral journey. In experimenting with this form of presentation, the aim is to bypass traditional accounts of research ‘findings’ as a form of transparent knowledge production and, instead, work within a mode of representation which seeks to acknowledge what Lather (2007, p119) calls the ‘masks of methodology’. Keywords: voice, visuality, identity, doctoral students, reflexivity, videonarrativ

Risk models for recurrence and survival after kidney cancer: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically identify and compare the performance of prognostic models providing estimates of survival or recurrence of localized renal cell cancer (RCC) in patients treated with surgery with curative intent. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a systematic review (PROSPERO CRD42019162349). We searched Medline, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library from 1 January 2000 to 12 December 2019 to identify studies reporting the performance of one or more prognostic model(s) that predict recurrence-free survival (RFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS) or overall survival (OS) in patients who have undergone surgical resection for localized RCC. For each outcome we summarized the discrimination of each model using the C-statistic and performed multivariate random-effects meta-analysis of the logit transformed C-statistic to rank the models. RESULTS: Of a total of 13 549 articles, 57 included data on the performance of 22 models in external populations. C-statistics ranged from 0.59 to 0.90. Several risk models were assessed in two or more external populations and had similarly high discriminative performance. For RFS, these were the Sorbellini, Karakiewicz, Leibovich and Kattan models, with the UCLA Integrated Staging System model also having similar performance in European/US populations. All had C-statistics ≥0.75 in at least half of the validations. For CSS, they the models with the highest discriminative performance in two or more external validation studies were the Zisman, Stage, Size, Grade and Necrosis (SSIGN), Karakiewicz, Leibovich and Sorbellini models (C-statistic ≥0.80 in at least half of the validations), and for OS they were the Leibovich, Karakiewicz, Sorbellini and SSIGN models. For all outcomes, the models based on clinical features at presentation alone (Cindolo and Yaycioglu) had consistently lower discrimination. Estimates of model calibration were only infrequently included but most underestimated survival. CONCLUSION: Several models had good discriminative ability, with there being no single 'best' model. The choice from these models for each setting should be informed by both the comparative performance and availability of factors included in the models. All would need recalibration if used to provide absolute survival estimates.JUS was funded by a Cancer Research UK Prevention Fellowship (C55650/A21464). The University of Cambridge has received salary support in respect of SJG from the NHS in the East of England through the Clinical Academic Reserve. SHR is funded by a Cancer Research UK Clinical PhD Fellowship. GDS is supported by the Renal Cancer Research Fund, The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research, the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre [C9685/A25177] and NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (BRC-1215-20014). The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care. HH was supported by a National Institute of Health Research Methods Fellowship (RM-SR-2017-09-009) and is now supported by a National Institute of Health Research Development and Skills Enhancement Award (NIHR301182). SJS is funded by the Medical Research Council (MC_UU_00006/6)