Modelling the Network Effects of Road User Charging: Results from a SATURN Study.

The aim of this research has been to investigate the modelled effects of alternative road user charging systems upon an existing road network using the congested assignment models SATURN and CONTRAM applied to the city of Cambridge. Four road user charging systems which are being considered for practical application have been tested. These are toll cordons, time-based charging, a congestion charging system similar to that proposed in Cambridge and distance-based charging. Tests have been conducted using current morning peak travel demand patterns both with a fixed trip matrix, to isolate rerouteing issues and using the SATURN elastic assignment program, SATEASY, in order to address the effects of charging upon the frequency, timing and distribution of trips. Network impacts have been assessed using a series global indicators, in particular effects on vehicle-km, vehicle-hours and the resulting average network speeds. In addition, results have been obtained for total delay times, cordon crossing flows and revenues generated from charging. These results are presented and their implications discussed

Implementing Road User Charging in SATURN

This working paper details modifications carried out to the congested assignment traffic network model SATURN in order to represent mad user charging. The work was undertaken as part of an SERC funded study to investigate the network effects of a series of alternative road user charging systems upon an existing road network. Four road user charging systems which were tested during the study have been represented in SATURN. These are toll cordons, time-based charging, congestion charging and distance-based charging

Household Air Pollution Exposures and Respiratory Health Among Women in Rural Ghana

Approximately 3 billion people in developing countries rely on solid fuels for their cooking, heating and lighting needs (Smith 2000). Household air pollution (HAP) from the incomplete combustion of these fuels constitutes the fourth leading risk factor for death and morbidity worldwide, and the number one risk factor for disease burden in some developing nations, including Ghana (Lim et al. 2013; Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation 2016). While research shows biomass fuel combustion presents a significant global health and environmental burden, no regional, national or global policies have been enacted to reduce fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and black carbon (BC) emissions from cooking with biomass fuels. More data on personal exposures to particulate matter and BC from cooking with biomass are needed across geographic areas to assess whether exposure is mediated by (cultural) cooking customs, practices and behaviors. These data are critical in informing improved cookstove design as well as policies aimed at reducing harmful emissions and exposures from biomass smoke. The overall objective of this proposal is to examine personal exposures to cooking and non-cooking sources of HAP, characterize the elemental composition of the fine particulate matter across two common biomass fuels (charcoal and wood), and assess acute respiratory symptoms in pregnant women cooking with biomass fuels in rural Ghana. Through aerosol monitoring of PM2.5, our goal is to identify and apportion sources of personal exposures borne by cooks in rural Ghana, in order to inform mitigation policies and intervention design to alleviate health burden associated with cooking with biomass fuels. Specifically, in Aim 1 we propose to measure personal exposures and kitchen air concentrations of PM2.5 and BC across cooking locations, (i.e. enclosed, semi-enclosed, outdoor) and assess cooking characteristics (e.g. fuel, kitchen type, ethnicity) as possible determinants of exposure. In Aim 2, we will characterize the elemental composition of personal and kitchen air samples across fuel and kitchen types. These two aims will allow us to assess cooking and non-cooking sources of personal HAP exposure based on air monitoring data, composition of the filters, and survey-based cooking characteristics/demographics. In Aim 3, we propose to characterize the prevalence of adult respiratory symptoms in 1183 pregnant women in the region, and assess associations between personal exposure, measured by personal carbon monoxide (CO), and other cooking and non-cooking determinants of personal exposure, including fuel type, years cooked, kerosene lamp, mosquito coils, and charcoal production

IguideME: Supporting Self-Regulated Learning and Academic Achievement with Personalized Peer-Comparison Feedback in Higher Education

Personalized feedback is important for the learning process, but it is time consuming and particularly problematic in large-scale courses. While automatic feedback may help for self-regulated learning, not all forms of feedback are effective. Social comparison offers powerful feedback but is often loosely designed. We propose that intertwining meaningful feedback with well-designed peer comparison using a learning analytics dashboard provides a solution. Third-year bachelor students were randomly assigned to have access to the learning analytics dashboard IguideME (treatment, n=31) or no access (control, n=31). Dashboard users were asked to indicate their desired grade, which was used to construct peer-comparison groups. Personalized peer-comparison feedback was provided via the dashboard. The effects were studied using quantitative and qualitative data, including the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and the Achievement Goal Questionnaire (AGQ). Compared to the control group, the treatment group achieved higher scores for the MSLQ components “metacognitive self-regulation” and “peer learning,” and for the AGQ component “other-approach” (do better than others). The treatment group performed better on reading assignments and achieved higher grades for high-level Bloom exam questions. These data support the hypothesis that personalized peer-comparison feedback can be used to improve self-regulated learning and academic achievement

Explaining placebo effects in an online survey study: does ‘Pavlov’ ring a bell?

Development Psychopathology in context: clinical setting

Meta-analysis of type 2 Diabetes in African Americans Consortium

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is more prevalent in African Americans than in Europeans. However, little is known about the genetic risk in African Americans despite the recent identification of more than 70 T2D loci primarily by genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in individuals of European ancestry. In order to investigate the genetic architecture of T2D in African Americans, the MEta-analysis of type 2 DIabetes in African Americans (MEDIA) Consortium examined 17 GWAS on T2D comprising 8,284 cases and 15,543 controls in African Americans in stage 1 analysis. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) association analysis was conducted in each study under the additive model after adjustment for age, sex, study site, and principal components. Meta-analysis of approximately 2.6 million genotyped and imputed SNPs in all studies was conducted using an inverse variance-weighted fixed effect model. Replications were performed to follow up 21 loci in up to 6,061 cases and 5,483 controls in African Americans, and 8,130 cases and 38,987 controls of European ancestry. We identified three known loci (TCF7L2, HMGA2 and KCNQ1) and two novel loci (HLA-B and INS-IGF2) at genome-wide significance (4.15 × 10(-94)<P<5 × 10(-8), odds ratio (OR)  = 1.09 to 1.36). Fine-mapping revealed that 88 of 158 previously identified T2D or glucose homeostasis loci demonstrated nominal to highly significant association (2.2 × 10(-23) < locus-wide P<0.05). These novel and previously identified loci yielded a sibling relative risk of 1.19, explaining 17.5% of the phenotypic variance of T2D on the liability scale in African Americans. Overall, this study identified two novel susceptibility loci for T2D in African Americans. A substantial number of previously reported loci are transferable to African Americans after accounting for linkage disequilibrium, enabling fine mapping of causal variants in trans-ethnic meta-analysis studies.Peer reviewe

Novel Loci for Adiponectin Levels and Their Influence on Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Traits : A Multi-Ethnic Meta-Analysis of 45,891 Individuals

J. Kaprio, S. Ripatti ja M.-L. Lokki työryhmien jäseniä.Peer reviewe

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