Shift Happens: Pressure on Foreign Attorney-Fee Paradigms From Class Actions

This thesis presents a framework for categorisation and risk assessment of non-traditional payment methods used for illicit purchases. The non-profit organisation Financial Coalition is working to prevent such transactions for child abusive material, and has expressed a desire to involve non- traditional payment methods in its operations. In order to do this, it has been necessary to understand the available options on this market, and what alternatives to include. An investigation of desirable properties for commercial and illicit use of payment methods was done using a qualitative approach, involving primarily interviews and online content reviewing. The findings and the framework have successfully been validated during a workshop with knowledgeable actors, as well as during a seminar presentation at the Riksdag of Sweden. On a mainly commercial basis, observations have been made that authentication and privacy in payments will be important factors henceforth. There is also a never-before-seen pace of new payment solutions trying to address this. When aligning this commercial perspective with an illicit one, four principal properties emerge that together describe the most essential aspects of payments in criminal environments: anonymity, regionality, transaction speed, and regulatory possibilities. These principal properties are segmented and combined into a framework for categorisation and risk assessment by assigning risk values to each segment. The risk assessment indicates that payment schemes offering possibilities to anonymity, a large geographical reach, fast transactions, and are based on virtual currencies, are associated with the highest risk in terms of complicating law enforcement work. It is concluded that payment service providers receiving high risk values should be approached by organisation like the Financial Coalition and thus included in the knowledge sharing that takes place. Some schemes however operate without central control functions, which complicates an inclusion. Targeting supporting functions or developing communities could thus be suitable means for such cases instead. If the suggested framework is accepted as a working tool for organisations like the Financial Coalition, more research should be put into quantifying the risk values more thoroughly. Uppsatsen  presenterar  ett  ramverk  för  kategorisering  och  riskbedömning  av  icke-traditionella betalningsmetoder som används vid illegala köp. Samarbetsorganet Finanskoalitionen arbetar idag för att förhindra transaktioner för barnpornografiskt material, och har uttryckt ett behov av att kunna inkludera sådana icke-traditionella betalningsmetoder i sin verksamhet. För att lyckas med detta är det avgörande att förstå vilka alternativ marknaden erbjuder samt vilka typer av lösningar som bör involveras. Eftertraktade   egenskaper   hos   betalningsmetoder  för   både   kommersiell   och   illegal   handel undersöktes med en kvalitativ ansats, huvudsakligen genom intervjuer och analys av material online. Resultatet och det framtagna ramverket har framgångsrikt validerats under en workshop med inom ämnet kunniga personer samt genom en seminariepresentation i Sveriges Riksdag. För den kommersiella handeln kommer bland annat integritet och autentisering vara två betydande faktorer för betalningar framöver. Samtidigt pågår en snabb utveckling av betalningslösningar som försöker adressera dessa behov. När detta kommersiella perspektiv sammanställs med ett illegalt framträder fyra huvudsakliga egenskaper som tillsammans beskriver de viktigaste aspekterna för betalningar i kriminella miljöer: anonymitet, regionalitet, transaktionshastighet samt möjlighet för reglering. Dessa egenskaper har segmenterats och kombinerats till ett ramverk för kategorisering och riskbedömning  av  icke-traditionella  betalningsmetoder,  där  riskvärden  har  tilldelats  respektive segment. Resultatet indikerar att betalningslösningar som erbjuder anonymitet, har stor geografisk räckvidd, möjliggör snabba transaktioner samt är baserade på virtuella valutor är de lösningar med högst risk att komplicera det rättsliga arbetet, och därmed attraktiva för illegalt användande. Det har konstaterats att betalningsleverantörer med höga riskvärden bör inkluderas i organisationer likt Finanskoalitionen, och därmed få tillgång till den kunskapsspridning som sker inom ämnet. Vissa  lösningar  är  dock  uppbyggda  utan  centrala  styr-  eller  kontrollfunktioner vilket försvårar samarbetet. I dessa fall är det istället mer lämpligt att samverka med angränsande funktioner eller utvecklarnätverk.  Om  det  föreslagna  ramverket  godtas  som  arbetsverktyg  bör  vidare  studier framförallt fokusera på att kvantifiera tilldelade riskvärden mer utförligt

Constraint-handling techniques for generative product design systems in the mass customization context

Generative product design systems used in the context of mass customization are required to generate diverse solutions quickly and reliably without necessitating modification or tuning during use. When such systems are employed to allow for the mass customization of product form, they must be able to handle mass production and engineering constraints that can be time-consuming to evaluate and difficult to fulfill. These issues are related to how the constraints are handled in the generative design system. This article evaluates two promising sequential constraint-handling techniques and the often used weighted sum technique with regard to convergence time, convergence rate, and diversity of the design solutions. The application used for this purpose was a design system aimed at generating a table with an advanced form: a Voronoi diagram based structure. The design problem was constrained in terms of production as well as stability, requiring a timeconsuming finite element evaluation. Regarding convergence time and rate, one of the sequential constraint-handling techniques performed significantly better than the weighted sum technique. Nevertheless, the weighted sum technique presented respectable results and therefore remains a relevant technique. Regarding diversity, none of the techniques could generate diverse solutions in a single search run. In contrast, the solutions from different searches were always diverse. Solution diversity is thus gained at the cost of more runs, but no evaluation of the diversity of the solutions is needed. This result is important, because a diversity evaluation function would otherwise have to be developed for every new type of design. Efficient handling of complex constraints is an important step toward mass customization of nontrivial product forms

The Role of Long-Term Physical Activity in Relation to Cancer-Related Health Outcomes: A 12-Month Follow-up of the Phys-Can RCT

Purpose: While moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) is associated with various health improvements shortly after completion of exercise interventions, it remains unclear which health benefits can be expected when MVPA levels are maintained in the long term in cancer survivors. We aimed to assess the associations of (1) MVPA level at 12-month follow-up and (2) long-term MVPA patterns (from immediately post-intervention to 12-month follow-up) with different cancer-related health outcomes. Methods: In the Physical training and Cancer (Phys-Can) RCT, 577 participants diagnosed with breast (78%), prostate (19%), or colorectal (3%) cancer were randomized to 6 months of exercise during curative cancer treatment. Accelerometer-assessed physical activity and outcome data (ie, cancer-related fatigue, health-related quality of life [HRQoL], anxiety and depression, functioning in daily life, cardiorespiratory fitness, sedentary time and sleep) were collected immediately post-intervention and at 12-month follow-up. Based on the sample’s median of MVPA immediately post-intervention (65 minutes/day) and the changes between the 2 measurement points, 4 categories with different long-term MVPA patterns were created: High & Increasing, High & Decreasing, Low & Increasing, and Low & Decreasing. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed for the analyses. Results: A total of 353 participants were included in the analyses. At 12-month follow-up, a higher MVPA level was significantly associated with lower fatigue in 3 domains (general fatigue [β = −.33], physical fatigue [β = −.53] and reduced activity [β = −.37]), higher cardiorespiratory fitness (β = .34) and less sedentary time (β = −.35). For long-term MVPA patterns, compared to the participants in the “Low & Decreasing” category, those in the “High & Increasing” category reported significantly lower fatigue in 3 domains (general fatigue [β = −1.77], physical fatigue [β = −3.36] and reduced activity [β = −1.58]), higher HRQoL (β = 6.84) and had less sedentary time (β = −1.23). Conclusion: Our results suggest that long-term physical activity is essential for improving health outcomes post-intervention in cancer survivors. Cancer survivors, including those who reach recommended MVPA levels, should be encouraged to maintain or increase MVPA post-intervention for additional health benefits.publishedVersio

Elevated [11C]-D-Deprenyl Uptake in Chronic Whiplash Associated Disorder Suggests Persistent Musculoskeletal Inflammation

There are few diagnostic tools for chronic musculoskeletal pain as structural imaging methods seldom reveal pathological alterations. This is especially true for Whiplash Associated Disorder, for which physical signs of persistent injuries to the neck have yet to be established. Here, we sought to visualize inflammatory processes in the neck region by means Positron Emission Tomography using the tracer 11C-D-deprenyl, a potential marker for inflammation. Twenty-two patients with enduring pain after a rear impact car accident (Whiplash Associated Disorder grade II) and 14 healthy controls were investigated. Patients displayed significantly elevated tracer uptake in the neck, particularly in regions around the spineous process of the second cervical vertebra. This suggests that whiplash patients have signs of local persistent peripheral tissue inflammation, which may potentially serve as a diagnostic biomarker. The present investigation demonstrates that painful processes in the periphery can be objectively visualized and quantified with PET and that 11C-D-deprenyl is a promising tracer for these purposes

3066 consecutive Gamma Nails. 12 years experience at a single centre

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Fixation of trochanteric hip fractures using the Gamma Nail has been performed since 1988 and is today well established and wide-spread. However, a number of reports have raised serious concerns about the implant's complication rate. The main focus has been the increased risk of a subsequent femoral shaft fracture and some authors have argued against its use despite other obvious advantages, when this implant is employed.</p> <p>Through access to a uniquely large patient data base available, which is available for analysis of trochanteric fractures; we have been able to evaluate the performance of the Gamma Nail over a twelve year period.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>3066 consecutive patients were treated for trochanteric fractures using Gamma Nails between 1990 and 2002 at the Centre de Traumatologie et de l'Orthopedie (CTO), Strasbourg, France. These patients were retrospectively analysed. Information on epidemiological data, intra- and postoperative complications and patients' outcome was retrieved from patient notes. All available radiographs were assessed by a single reviewer (AJB).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The results showed a low complication rate with the use of the Gamma Nail. There were 137 (4.5%) intraoperative fracture-related complications. Moreover 189 (6.2%) complications were detected postoperatively and during follow-up. Cut-out of the lag screw from the femoral head was the most frequent mechanical complication (57 patients, 1.85%), whereas a postoperative femoral shaft fracture occurred in 19 patients (0.6%). Other complications, such as infection, delayed healing/non-union, avascular femoral head necrosis and distal locking problems occurred in 113 patients (3.7%).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The use of the Gamma Nail in trochanteric hip fractures is a safe method with a low complication rate. In particular, a low rate of femoral shaft fractures was reported. The low complication rate reported in this series can probably be explained by strict adherence to a proper surgical technique.</p

Financial and Psychological Risk Attitudes Associated with Two Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in the Nicotine Receptor (CHRNA4) Gene

With recent advances in understanding of the neuroscience of risk taking, attention is now turning to genetic factors that may contribute to individual heterogeneity in risk attitudes. In this paper we test for genetic associations with risk attitude measures derived from both the psychology and economics literature. To develop a long-term prospective study, we first evaluate both types of risk attitudes and find that the economic and psychological measures are poorly correlated, suggesting that different genetic factors may underlie human response to risk faced in different behavioral domains. We then examine polymorphisms in a spectrum of candidate genes that affect neurotransmitter systems influencing dopamine regulation or are thought to be associated with risk attitudes or impulsive disorders. Analysis of the genotyping data identified two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the gene encoding the alpha 4 nicotine receptor (CHRNA4, rs4603829 and rs4522666) that are significantly associated with harm avoidance, a risk attitude measurement drawn from the psychology literature. Novelty seeking, another risk attitude measure from the psychology literature, is associated with several COMT (catechol-O-methyl transferase) SNPs while economic risk attitude measures are associated with several VMAT2 (vesicular monoamine transporter) SNPs, but the significance of these associations did not withstand statistical adjustment for multiple testing and requires larger cohorts. These exploratory results provide a starting point for understanding the genetic basis of risk attitudes by considering the range of methods available for measuring risk attitudes and by searching beyond the traditional direct focus on dopamine and serotonin receptor and transporter genes

A united statement of the global chiropractic research community against the pseudoscientific claim that chiropractic care boosts immunity.

BACKGROUND: In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) posted reports claiming that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. These claims clash with recommendations from the World Health Organization and World Federation of Chiropractic. We discuss the scientific validity of the claims made in these ICA reports. MAIN BODY: We reviewed the two reports posted by the ICA on their website on March 20 and March 28, 2020. We explored the method used to develop the claim that chiropractic adjustments impact the immune system and discuss the scientific merit of that claim. We provide a response to the ICA reports and explain why this claim lacks scientific credibility and is dangerous to the public. More than 150 researchers from 11 countries reviewed and endorsed our response. CONCLUSION: In their reports, the ICA provided no valid clinical scientific evidence that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. We call on regulatory authorities and professional leaders to take robust political and regulatory action against those claiming that chiropractic adjustments have a clinical impact on the immune system