Simplicity, consistency, universality, flexibility and familiarity: the SCUFF principles for developing user interfaces for ambient computer systems

This paper describes the user interface design, and subsequent usability evaluation of the EU FP6 funded Easyline+ project, which involved the development of ambient assistive technology to support elderly and disabled people in their interaction with kitchen appliances. During this process, established usability design guidelines and principles were considered. The authors’ analysis of the applicability of these has led to the development of a new set of principles, specifically for the design of ambient computer systems. This set of principles is referred to as SCUFF, an acronym for simplicity, consistency, universality, flexibility and familiarity. These evaluations suggest that adoption of the SCUFF principles was successful for the Easyline+ project, and that they can be used for other ambient technology projects, either as complementary to, or as an alternative to more generic and partially relevant principles

Cutibacterium acnes biofilm forming clinical isolates modify the formation and structure of Staphylococcus aureus biofilms, increasing their susceptibility to antibiotics

Cutibacterium acnes (formally Propionibacterium acnes) is frequently identified within surgical device related infections. It is often co-isolated from infection sites with other opportunistic pathogens. Recent studies have demonstrated that C. acnes is able to form biofilms and when co-cultured with Staphylococcus spp. both inhibitory and stimulatory effects have been reported across several studies. Here, we investigated the biofilm-forming ability of 100 clinical C. acnes isolates from various infection sites in human patients, both deep tissue and superficial, followed by an investigation of how the supernatants of C. acnes cultures influenced the attachment and maturation of S. aureus NCTC 6571 biofilms. All of the C. acnes isolates were able to form biofilms in vitro, although biofilm biomass varied between isolates. Nineteen isolates were weakly adherent, 33 were moderately adherent and the majority (48) showed strong adherence. The presence of C. acnes sterile supernatants reduced the biomass of S. aureus cultures, with a > 90% reduction observed in the presence of several of the C. acnes isolates. We observed that this decrease was not due to C. acnes affecting S. aureus viability, nor due to the presence of propionic acid. Biofilm maturation was however delayed over a 24-hour period as was biofilm surface structure, although initial (up to 8 h) surface attachment was not affected. We hypothesis that this defective biofilm maturation is the cause of the observed biomass decrease. In turn, these altered biofilms showed a greater susceptibility to antibiotic treatments. In contrast the presence of C. acnes supernatant in planktonic (defined as a free moving, non-surface attached population within the liquid column) S. aureus cultures increased antibiotic tolerance, via a currently undefined mechanism. This study suggests that complex interactions between C. acnes and other opportunistic pathogens are likely to exist during colonisation and infection events. Further investigation of these interactions may lead to increased treatment options and a better prognosis for patients

CASRAI-UK: Using the CASRAI approach to develop standards for communicating and sharing research information in the UK

This paper explains how the Consortia Advancing Standards in Research Administration Information (CASRAI) might be used to share research information in an open and sustainably governed approach, led by research organisations. CASRAI is an international non-profit organisation dedicated to reducing administrative burden and improving outcomes and impact reporting through good stewardship of information requirements by research organisations (universities, colleges, teaching hospitals and other research centres). The objective is to improve the flow of information within and between research stakeholders. The approach sees the ‘user-led’ development and maintenance of standard information agreements. These agreements include (a) specifications defining what data elements (entities) are needed for various key business processes in the research lifecycle and (b) definitions for all the terms appearing in these specifications. The open and standardised definitions are curated and maintained in an open online dictionary that can then be used by system providers and others to exchange information in a standard, agreed format e.g.by using CERIF-XML as the transfer mechanism

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements