The Benefits and Harms of Transmitting Into Space

Deliberate and unintentional radio transmissions from Earth propagate into space. These transmissions could be detected by extraterrestrial watchers over interstellar distances. Here, we analyze the harms and benefits of deliberate and unintentional transmissions relevant to Earth and humanity. Comparing the magnitude of deliberate radio broadcasts intended for messaging to extraterrestrial intelligence (METI) with the background radio spectrum of Earth, we find that METI attempts to date have much lower detectability than emissions from current radio communication technologies on Earth. METI broadcasts are usually transient and several orders of magnitude less powerful than other terrestrial sources such as astronomical and military radars, which provide the strongest detectable signals. The benefits of radio communication on Earth likely outweigh the potential harms of detection by extraterrestrial watchers; however, the uncertainty regarding the outcome of contact with extraterrestrial beings creates difficulty in assessing whether or not to engage in long-term and large-scale METI.Comment: Published in Space Polic

Perspectives in Fundamental Physics in Space

We discuss the fundamental principles underlying the current physical theories and the prospects of further improving their knowledge through experiments in space.Comment: Gravitational waves, gravitomagnetism, Equivalence Principle, Antimatter, Pioneer Anomaly, Lorentz invariance. To appear in IAA - Acta Astronautica Journal (2006

'You Still Need to Care for the patient':Experiences of Forensic Mental Health Professionals with Inpatient Aggression

Forensic mental health professionals are frequently exposed to inpatient aggression, which may negatively affect their physical and mental health. Current studies offer limited insight into how this may affect staff-patient interactions in the aftermath of aggression. A qualitative study was conducted to explore professionals' experiences with exposure to aggression. Thirteen semi-structured interviews and three focus groups were conducted with 25 professionals working in a high secure forensic mental health unit. A thematic analysis was conducted in consensus among three researchers. Five main themes were generated in the analysis: exposure to different forms of aggression, factors that shape the impact of aggression, emotional reactions, managing emotional reactions, and managing relationships with patients. These themes form a complex interplay. Feelings of anger and fear, intrusive memories, and avoidant or agitated behavior toward patients are frequently reported, affecting both the personal and professional lives of participants. Interpersonal relationships between team members can promote or hinder adequate management of feelings that arise after exposure to aggressive incidents. The tremendous impact that exposure to inpatient aggression may have on professionals, and the way that they care for their patients requires more attention

A falls prevention programme to improve quality of life, physical function and falls efficacy in older people receiving home help services: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Falls and fall-related injuries in older adults are associated with great burdens, both for the individuals, the health care system and the society. Previous research has shown evidence for the efficiency of exercise as falls prevention. An understudied group are older adults receiving home help services, and the effect of a falls prevention programme on health-related quality of life is unclear. The primary aim of this randomised controlled trial is to examine the effect of a falls prevention programme on quality of life, physical function and falls efficacy in older adults receiving home help services. A secondary aim is to explore the mediating factors between falls prevention and health-related quality of life. METHODS: The study is a single-blinded randomised controlled trial. Participants are older adults, aged 67 or older, receiving home help services, who are able to walk with or without walking aids, who have experienced at least one fall during the last 12 months and who have a Mini Mental State Examination of 23 or above. The intervention group receives a programme, based on the Otago Exercise Programme, lasting 12 weeks including home visits and motivational telephone calls. The control group receives usual care. The primary outcome is health-related quality of life (SF-36). Secondary outcomes are leg strength, balance, walking speed, walking habits, activities of daily living, nutritional status and falls efficacy. All measurements are performed at baseline, following intervention at 3 months and at 6 months' follow-up. Sample size, based on the primary outcome, is set to 150 participants randomised into the two arms, including an estimated 15-20% drop out. Participants are recruited from six municipalities in Norway. DISCUSSION: This trial will generate new knowledge on the effects of an exercise falls prevention programme among older fallers receiving home help services. This knowledge will be useful for clinicians, for health managers in the primary health care service and for policy makers

Dragon-kings: mechanisms, statistical methods and empirical evidence

This introductory article presents the special Discussion and Debate volume "From black swans to dragon-kings, is there life beyond power laws?" published in Eur. Phys. J. Special Topics in May 2012. We summarize and put in perspective the contributions into three main themes: (i) mechanisms for dragon-kings, (ii) detection of dragon-kings and statistical tests and (iii) empirical evidence in a large variety of natural and social systems. Overall, we are pleased to witness significant advances both in the introduction and clarification of underlying mechanisms and in the development of novel efficient tests that demonstrate clear evidence for the presence of dragon-kings in many systems. However, this positive view should be balanced by the fact that this remains a very delicate and difficult field, if only due to the scarcity of data as well as the extraordinary important implications with respect to hazard assessment, risk control and predictability.Comment: 20 page

Overcoming bortezomib resistance in human B cells by anti-CD20/rituximab-mediated complement-dependent cytotoxicity and epoxyketone-based irreversible proteasome inhibitors

UNLABELLED: BACKGROUND: In clinical and experimental settings, antibody-based anti-CD20/rituximab and small molecule proteasome inhibitor (PI) bortezomib (BTZ) treatment proved effective modalities for B cell depletion in lymphoproliferative disorders as well as autoimmune diseases. However, the chronic nature of these diseases requires either prolonged or re-treatment, often with acquired resistance as a consequence. METHODS: Here we studied the molecular basis of acquired resistance to BTZ in JY human B lymphoblastic cells following prolonged exposure to this drug and examined possibilities to overcome resistance by next generation PIs and anti-CD20/rituximab-mediated complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC). RESULTS: Characterization of BTZ-resistant JY/BTZ cells compared to parental JY/WT cells revealed the following features: (a) 10-12 fold resistance to BTZ associated with the acquisition of a mutation in the PSMB5 gene (encoding the constitutive $β$5 proteasome subunit) introducing an amino acid substitution (Met45Ile) in the BTZ-binding pocket, (b) a significant 2-4 fold increase in the mRNA and protein levels of the constitutive $β$5 proteasome subunit along with unaltered immunoproteasome expression, (c) full sensitivity to the irreversible epoxyketone-based PIs carfilzomib and (to a lesser extent) the immunoproteasome inhibitor ONX 0914. Finally, in association with impaired ubiquitination and attenuated breakdown of CD20, JY/BTZ cells harbored a net 3-fold increase in CD20 cell surface expression, which was functionally implicated in conferring a significantly increased anti-CD20/rituximab-mediated CDC. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that acquired resistance to BTZ in B cells can be overcome by next generation PIs and by anti-CD20/rituximab-induced CDC, thereby paving the way for salvage therapy in BTZ-resistant disease

Ecosystem thresholds, tipping points, and critical transitions

An organized session at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, December 201

Effectiveness of Active Support on the quality of life and well-being of people with moderate to mild intellectual disabilities

Active Support is a support model designed to enhance quality of life through activity engagement in people with intellectual disabilities. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether implementation of Active Support affected quality of life, well-being, and activity engagement of residents with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, using a cluster randomised controlled design. Fourteen services were recruited, and Active Support was implemented after conducting baseline assessments. Residents in both the intervention group (n = 47) and the control group (n = 38) reported on their Quality of Life, eudaimonic well-being, and activity engagement at pretest and at follow-up 9 months after pretest. Level of Active Support implementation was monitored by observing the quality of support and practice leadership. Active Support had a significant effect on independence and well-being, two subscales of quality of life. Residents in the intervention group showed a significantly larger increase on social activity engagement compared to the control group. There were no significant interaction terms for other resident outcomes. For the intervention group, there was a significant increase in quality of support. Findings indicated significant impact on some aspects of quality of life, though not all. Suggestions for future research are therefore discussed. What this paper adds?: Active Support is a support model that is increasingly adopted across several countries. Although there is considerable evidence that Active Support increases activity engagement for people with an intellectual disability, there are very few randomised controlled trials to test effectiveness, and the impact of Active Support on overall quality of life has never been examined. To address these gaps, the current study therefore evaluated the impact of Active Support on quality of life and resident well-being using a randomised controlled trial. This evaluation of Active Support contributes to the existing body of knowledge on the support model, strengthening its evidence base for people with moderate to mild intellectual disability

Statistically reinforced machine learning for nonlinear patterns and variable interactions

Most statistical models assume linearity and few variable interactions, even though real‐world ecological patterns often result from nonlinear and highly interactive processes. We here introduce a set of novel empirical modeling techniques which can address this mismatch: statistically reinforced machine learning. We demonstrate the behaviors of three techniques (conditional inference tree, model‐based tree, and permutation‐based random forest) by analyzing an artificially generated example dataset that contains patterns based on nonlinearity and variable interactions. The results show the potential of statistically reinforced machine learning algorithms to detect nonlinear relationships and higher‐order interactions. Estimation reliability for any technique, however, depended on sample size. The applications of statistically reinforced machine learning approaches would be particularly beneficial for investigating (1) novel patterns for which shapes cannot be assumed a priori, (2) higher‐order interactions which are often overlooked in parametric statistics, (3) context dependency where patterns change depending on other conditions, (4) significance and effect sizes of variables while taking nonlinearity and variable interactions into account, and (5) a hypothesis using parametric statistics after identifying patterns using statistically reinforced machine learning techniques

Psychomotor therapy for individuals with mild intellectual disabilities or borderline intellectual functioning presenting anger regulation problems and/or aggressive behaviour:A qualitative study on clients' experiences

Background Psychomotor therapy (PMT) is often applied in Dutch clinical practice to address aggressive behaviour in individuals with mild intellectual disabilities or borderline intellectual functioning. However, the literature on clients' experiences is lacking. Methods An interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the semi-structured interviews of seven participants (19-60 years; four male, three female) who completed PMT targeting anger regulation problems. Results According to the participants, becoming aware of increasing tension and/or learning to downregulate the tension were the main goals of PMT. They emphasised both the possibility to learn by doing and the therapeutic alliance as essential to create a safe context, where participants can experiment with alternative behaviour. After completing PMT, participants perceived fewer aggressive outbursts and an increased self-esteem. Conclusions Participants in our sample experienced PMT as being helpful in targeting anger regulation problems and aggressive behaviour. The experiential nature of the program was perceived as a valuable aspect of PMT