Occupational Load Research Articles

Energy use intensity disaggregation in institutional buildings – A data analytics approach

This work addresses the issue of extracting device-level Energy Use Intensity (EUI) information for institutional buildings (IB) through an analytical non-intrusive load monitoring (NILM) where no sub-meter is employed at device-level. The proposed model urges the use of similar meteorological conditions in the building classification. We studied load profiles as energy footprint of six major load categories, and in accordance with some embodiments of peripheral parameters of ambient temperature, workday, time of day, daylight length, intensity of sunlight, number of occupants, and humidity. Among those major load categories, initially we disintegrated thermal loads through finding an equilibrium temperature from fitted cooling and heating functions. The contradiction of data and building occupancy renders disaggregation problem particularly challenging, so abiding to the definition of time equivalent occupancy (TEO), we deployed a k-means approach to categorize the daily load profile, where particular disaggregation approaches was selected for each individual load profile cluster to calculate the common and occupancy load categories. By imposing the daylight difference for equinox and solstice periods for non-working days, we estimated and extracted the exterior lighting. The remained accumulated energy casts alluded interior lighting with part of common and occupancy load categories, so a day light factor is proposed to offset the interior lighting from common and occupancy loads. We delineated an implementation of this framework using two case studies. The efficiency of our approach is demonstrated using a real data, where maximum EUI discrepancy errors of 4.84% in lighting, 3.85% for thermal, 1.6% in common and 3.24% in occupancy load categories were found between the proposed method and the sub-metered data.

Prevalence and determinants of secondary posttraumatic growth following trauma work among medical personnel: a cross sectional study

ABSTRACT Background: People helping trauma victims as a part of their work may experience positive results, known as Secondary Posttraumatic Growth (SPTG). Aim: The present study aimed to determine the prevalence and determinants of SPTG among medical personnel, considering occupational load, job satisfaction, social support, and cognitive processing of trauma, understood as cognitive coping strategies. Methods: Subjects comprised 419 representatives of the medical profession, including paramedics and nurses. The age of the subjects varied from 19 to 65 (M = 39.60; SD = 11.03). Four standard measurement tools were utilized: the Secondary Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, the Job Satisfaction Scale, the Social Support Scale, which measured four support sources, and the Cognitive Processing of Trauma Scale to assess five cognitive coping strategies. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were applied to analyse the connections between the variables. A linear stepwise regression analysis was used to identify the determinants of SPTG. Pearson’s correlation coefficients with confidence intervals were applied to analyse the connections between the variables. Results: As many as 40% of participants experienced high levels of growth, with only 27.4% indicating a low level. The obtained results showed positive links between job satisfaction, all social support dimensions (from supervisors, co-workers, family, friends), all cognitive coping strategies (positive cognitive restructuring, downward comparison, resolution/acceptance, denial, regret), and SPTG. No significant connection between workload and SPTG total was discovered. The primary determinant of SPTG in the examined group of medical personnel is the cognitive processing of trauma, chiefly the strategy of positive cognitive restructuring. Conclusions: Paramedics and nurses, despite their exposure to secondary trauma, experience positive posttraumatic consequences of the profession that entails helping the injured parties. It is advisable to encourage the medical personnel to apply positive coping strategies, find satisfaction in their work, and benefit from social support to promote posttraumatic growth.

Design of Optoelectronic Hybrid Switching High Performance Computing Internet

Optoelectronic hybrid network technology is mixed with pure electric packet switching network, which can improve network capacity and reduce power consumption. However, the long configuration time and complex management of optical circuit switch affect the performance of optoelectronic hybrid network. Therefore, a new optoelectronic hybrid network architecture (BET) is designed. The network architecture consists of Ethernet electric packet switching network and optical wavelength routing network. The signal receiving and dispatching of optical routing network is realized by circular arrayed waveguide grating router. Based on the characteristics of wavelength cycling routing, there is no need to adjust the routing of optical signals to the destination port, that is, there is no need to configure the optical wavelength routing network. At the same time, an intelligent node dynamic reconfiguration (RG) algorithm is designed to improve the resource utilization of optical nodes. In this method, the network link utilization, cache occupancy, and network load are taken into account to adjust the distribution of optical nodes in the optoelectronic hybrid network. In the process of the experiment, by changing the message length, it is found that the optical wavelength routing network can achieve large capacity and new-type transmission and effectively reduce the delay at the same time; on the optoelectronic hybrid network, with the help of Hadoop platform, distributed cluster is built and used to transmit an XML data encoding (ED code), solve the finite state transducers (FST) and encode them. Compared with the traditional electric packet switching network, the transmission delay of ED code is greatly reduced after the introduction of optical circuit switch, and the efficiency of FST solution and coding calculation is improved by at least 30%.

Community Health course load before clerkship in Brazilian medical schools

Abstract: Introduction: The limits of the Community Health (CH) course load (CL) before medical clerkship (MC) in undergraduate medical courses are not defined neither in the National Curriculum Guidelines nor in other documents, and have not been investigated in a comprehensive way in national studies. Objective: To analyze the community health course load before clerkship in Brazilian medical schools. Method: Cross-sectional study of schools acknowledged by the Ministry of Education, which started activities until December 31, 2017. The sites of the 323 existing schools were accessed and the schools that had their curricula available in the internet with details of the CH CL before MC were included. The variables were school geographic region and administration type, medical course CL and CH CL before MC, also including epidemiology, biostatistics and occupational health course loads. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square (Ӽ2) for categorical variables and Mann-Whitney-U (U) and Kruskal Wallis Ӽ2 tests for continuous variables. Results: Out of 323 existing medical schools, 222 were included (68.7%). Among the included schools, 83 were tuition-free (37.4%) and 139 were not (62.6%). The median of the CH CL before MC was 440.0 hours (P25-75 = 300.0 - 640.0), equivalent to 5.4% (P25-75 = 3.5 - 7.8) of the medical course CL. The median of the CH CL before MC in hours in private and municipal schools was, respectively, 480.0 (P25-75 = 330.7 - 679.2) and 576.0 (P25-75 = 360.0 - 766.0), and of state and federal schools, respectively, 337.0 (P25-75 = 281.2 - 524.2) and 370.0 (P25-75 = 300.0 - 480.0), Ӽ2(3) = 11.48, p = .009. The median of the total CH CL in non-tuition-free schools was 500.0 hours (P25-75 = 336.0 - 690.0) and in the tuition-free schools, it was 364.0 hours (P25-75 = 285.0 - 504.0), U = 4.259.0, z = -3.26, p = .001. The median of epidemiology and biostatistics CL in hours before MC in the 124 schools was 88.0 (P25-75 = 60.0 - 120.0), whereas the occupational health CL in 63 schools was 40.0 (P25-75 = 33.0 - 60.0). Conclusions: The CH CL before clerkship varies widely, being higher in non-tuition-free medical schools.

Community Health course load before clerkship in Brazilian medical schools

Abstract: Introduction: The limits of the Community Health (CH) course load (CL) before medical clerkship (MC) in undergraduate medical courses are not defined neither in the National Curriculum Guidelines nor in other documents, and have not been investigated in a comprehensive way in national studies. Objective: To analyze the community health course load before clerkship in Brazilian medical schools. Method: Cross-sectional study of schools acknowledged by the Ministry of Education, which started activities until December 31, 2017. The sites of the 323 existing schools were accessed and the schools that had their curricula available in the internet with details of the CH CL before MC were included. The variables were school geographic region and administration type, medical course CL and CH CL before MC, also including epidemiology, biostatistics and occupational health course loads. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square (Ӽ2) for categorical variables and Mann-Whitney-U (U) and Kruskal Wallis Ӽ2 tests for continuous variables. Results: Out of 323 existing medical schools, 222 were included (68.7%). Among the included schools, 83 were tuition-free (37.4%) and 139 were not (62.6%). The median of the CH CL before MC was 440.0 hours (P25-75 = 300.0 - 640.0), equivalent to 5.4% (P25-75 = 3.5 - 7.8) of the medical course CL. The median of the CH CL before MC in hours in private and municipal schools was, respectively, 480.0 (P25-75 = 330.7 - 679.2) and 576.0 (P25-75 = 360.0 - 766.0), and of state and federal schools, respectively, 337.0 (P25-75 = 281.2 - 524.2) and 370.0 (P25-75 = 300.0 - 480.0), Ӽ2(3) = 11.48, p = .009. The median of the total CH CL in non-tuition-free schools was 500.0 hours (P25-75 = 336.0 - 690.0) and in the tuition-free schools, it was 364.0 hours (P25-75 = 285.0 - 504.0), U = 4.259.0, z = -3.26, p = .001. The median of epidemiology and biostatistics CL in hours before MC in the 124 schools was 88.0 (P25-75 = 60.0 - 120.0), whereas the occupational health CL in 63 schools was 40.0 (P25-75 = 33.0 - 60.0). Conclusions: The CH CL before clerkship varies widely, being higher in non-tuition-free medical schools.

Improvement of Phased Evacuation Scenario based on Analyses of Pedestrian Flow in Stairwell during Drills in High-rise Office Building

In Japan, a standard on the minimum capacity of escape staircases according to occupant load is not regulated except for some building uses. Therefore, staircases can't contain all occupants in an emergency case. Even though they attempt to evacuate building, most of them must wait in staircases and/or corridors for a long time, which must cause heavy congestion. Thereby, the phased-evacuation method has been recommended for preventing it, but there is no specific method or standard related to the strategic plan. In order to improve a sequential evacuation plan, evacuation drills were conducted at a high-rise office building in Tokyo, and year by year the scenarios of evacuation guidance were advanced a lot better. However, having several unexpected reasons or behaviors; not following broadcasting order, walking slow for chatting and having disability, some drills hadn't been carried out as predicted. The purpose of this study is to consider the real-time control method of changing the scenario for providing guidance flexibly in a sequential evacuation using security device such as attendance management system and security cameras in the future.

Obciążenie pracą i przejawiana empatia a objawy wtórnego stresu traumatycznego u profesjonalistek pracujących z osobami po doświadczeniach przemocy

Introduction: Professionals working with trauma victims are exposed to secondary traumatic stress (STS). Factors determining its occurrence include various aspects of work, especially occupational load, as well as individual properties of helpers, including empathy. The aim of the study was to establish a relationship between workload, manifestation of empathy and symptoms of STS in professionals who, as part of their work, help people who have experienced trauma related to violence. Material and methods: The results of 154 women representing three professional groups (therapists, social workers and probation officers) aged 26–67 (M = 43.98, SD = 10.83) were analyzed. The study used a survey developed for the purpose of the study, containing questions about workload indicators and two standard measurement tools, i.e. a modified Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist and the Empathic Sensitiveness Scale, measuring three aspects of empathy, i.e. empathic concern, personal distress and perspective taking. Results: High severity of STS symptoms, meaning a high probability of diagnosis of secondary posttraumatic stress disorder was recorded in 14.3% of respondents. This risk was higher for social workers (26.7%) than for probation officers (14.5%) and therapists (8.7%). Positive correlations of STS with workload and all three aspects of empathy were revealed. Regression analysis showed that the main predictor of STS is personal stress, i.e. a tendency to experience anxiety and discomfort in response to strong negative experiences (suffering) of other people. Conclusions: There is a need to cover preventive actions for professionals working with victims of trauma, especially social workers.

Occupancy-aided ventilation for both airborne infection risk control and work productivity

Reducing airborne infectious risk is crucial for controlling infectious respiratory diseases (e.g., COVID-19). The airborne transmissibility of COVID-19 is high so that the common ventilation rate may be insufficient to dilute the airborne pathogens, particularly in public buildings with a relatively large occupancy density. Reducing occupancy can reduce the pathogen load thereby reducing airborne infection risk. However, reduced occupancy deteriorates work productivity due to the lost hours of work. This study proposes an occupancy-aided ventilation strategy for constraining the airborne infection risk and minimizing the loss of work productivity. Firstly, two mechanisms of occupancy schedule (alternative changeovers between normal occupancy and reduced occupancy) for reducing the airborne infection risk and loss of work productivity are revealed based on analyzing features of the indoor concentration profile of exhaled aerosols. Secondly, optimization of the occupancy schedule is developed to maximize the total time length of normal occupancy for the minimum loss in work productivity while satisfying the constraint on airborne infection risk (e.g., with the reproduction number less than one). The airborne infection risk is evaluated with the rebreathed fraction model. Case studies on COVID-19 in a classroom demonstrate that the proposed occupancy-aided ventilation is effective with an earning ratio of 1.67 (the ratio of the improvement in health outcome to the loss in work productivity) and is robust to the variable occupancy loads and occupancy flexibilities.

Efficiency of the concept of prevention and treatment of dental diseases in persons with occupational stressful loads

Workers in stressful industries include workers with hazardous working conditions (HWC), in particular, with a radiation production factor. Clinical and X-ray dental examination of workers with OUT was carried out, Hamburg testing of the chewing apparatus, electromyography of the masticatory muscles, computer analysis of occlusion were carried out. Based on the identified need for treatment and prosthetics, the Concept for the Prevention and Treatment of Dental Diseases in Persons with Occupational Stressful Stress was developed, which includes comprehensive dental rehabilitation of workers using electromyographic, occlusive control during treatment, followed by dispensary control at least twice a year. After a year of implementation of the Concept, re-examination showed a significant decrease in the prevalence of non-carious lesions, gingivitis, secondary deformities of the dentition; detectability of teeth affected by caries, unsatisfactory oral hygiene, inadequate quality of fillings and endodontic treatment, as well as normalization of the tone and symmetry of the activity of the masticatory muscles, indicators of the Hamburg express test of the masticatory apparatus and indicators of computer analysis of occlusion.

Simulation-based framework for evaluating the evacuation performance of the passenger terminal building in a Ro-Pax terminal

Particular care should be given to the evacuation performance of heavily crowed Passenger Terminal Building in a Roll on/Roll off-Passenger terminal (Ro-Pax PTB). However, the uncertainties, embodied in the fire incident, occupant load or passenger distribution make it difficult to identify the worst-case scenario. Therefore, a systematic simulation-based framework is proposed to find out the worst-case scenario and then evaluate the evacuation performance of the Ro-Pax PTB. The framework comprises Simulation Model for Passenger Terminal Operation (SM-PTO model) and Simulation Model for Passenger Evacuation (SM-PE model). The SM-PTO model is built to get the occupant load and passenger distributions by simulating the operation process and passenger movement s in the Ro-Pax PTB. And the SM-PE model simulates the passenger evacuation to determine the evacuation action time under the simulated occupant load and passenger distribution from the SM-PTO model. A Ro-Pax PTB in Dalian, China is taken as an example to testify the applicability of the proposed framework. The results prove that the feasibility and efficiency of the simulation-based framework in deal with the uncertainties, identifying the evacuation bottlenecks and evaluating the evacuation performance of the Ro-Pax PTB. And it also shows the capability of decision support for improving the internal layout and operation management of the Ro-Pax PTB from the viewpoint of the emergency evacuation performance.

Study on Establishing the Standard for Occupant Load Density in Domestic Bus Terminals

Occupant load density standards serve an important role when calculating evacuation capacities for fire safety designs and building safety evaluations. Domestic bus terminals are typical examples of buildings that are used by large numbers of people but do not have domestic occupant loaddensity standards despite their importance in terms of fire safety. Therefore, this work presents the results of a sample survey using the People Counting System (PCS) by surveying bus terminals in Seoul, Korea to build the basic data required to establish occupant load density standards for bus terminals. The survey categorized the space within the terminals into waiting and walking zones; the average occupant load density for the waiting zones was found to be 2.36 m²/person, whereas that for the walking zones was 9.48 m²/person. Furthermore, with reference to the Level of Standard (LOS) for domestic designs, the waiting zones should be at level B or higher and walking zones should be at level A or higher. Survey results based on domestic and international occupant load density standards also show that the observed results for both waiting and walking zones in this study are acceptable with respect to all available standards. However, further research and active discussions between experts are required before these standards can be applied practically.

Design of a Multigenerational System With Absorption Cooling for a Residential Community: A Case Study

Abstract In this paper, a multigeneration system is proposed, which utilizes geothermal energy and a lithium-bromide absorption cooling cycle. The proposed system is capable of providing electricity, heating, cooling, and domestic hot water to a small residential community in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The performance of the system's heating and cooling capabilities were evaluated energetically and exergetically. A case study is presented by considering human occupancy loads and the impact of building material conditions on heating and cooling. System performance was investigated using parametric studies, where the operating conditions and ambient conditions were varied. Similar systems in the open literature were found to have an energetic and exergetic coefficient of performance (COP) of 0.8 and 0.3 for heating, while the proposed multigeneration system resulted in an energetic and exergetic coefficient of performance of 1.14 and 0.63 for heating, an increase of 30–52%. Additionally, the literature revealed that some systems resulted in an energy and exergy efficiency of 26.2% and 36.6%. The proposed multigeneration system achieved an energy and exergy efficiency of 31.86% and 63.33%, an improvement of 5.66–26.73%. The study was able to utilize the existing recommendations made by British Columbia to determine the necessary heating and cooling loads while also being able to successfully generate four useful outputs with a smaller footprint than those in the literature.

Evaluating Age-related Cognitive performance; An Observational Pilot Study

Background: To the best of our knowledge, the general population of Pakistan has never been evaluated for age-related cognitive performance. We aimed to determine the decline in cognitive abilities using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Mini-Cognition (Mini-Cog) in the three age brackets, i.e. younger, middle-aged and older adults.Methodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted over a sample of 200 subjects (both male and female) divided into three different groups with respect to their age, i.e. younger, middle-aged and older adults. For cognitive assessment, MMSE and Mini-Cog were used with predetermined cut-off values. A point was scored for each correct answer based on the participant’s familiarization of environment, memory, speech, and ability to follow instructions to read or write. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.0.Results: Based on the study findings, MMSE suggested that 2.5% of participants had severe cognitive impairment, and 23% had mild cognitive impairment. Of these, 23 participants were in between 56 to 75 years of age, indicating increased cognitive decline among older adults. The mean MMSE score was 26.58 among young adults, which further decreased to 24.06 among older adults. The results of the regression analysis displayed that age, occupational load and educational levels were independent predictors of cognitive performances (higher MMSE score) (p<0.05). Besides for Mini-Cog scores, only education and occupation were the significant predictors.Conclusion: This pilot study determining the cognitive performance in different age groups yielded positive outcomes. Both MMSE and Mini-Cog findings were comparable and indicated that there was a significant age-related cognitive decline which was comparatively more pronounced among males than females. However, further descriptive studies might help in defining the appropriate and timely screening of cognitive abilities using MMSE and Mini-Cog.

Twenty Eight Days in the Life of a Vocal Pathology: A Case Study of Videolaryngostroboscopy, Acoustic, and Perceptual Variability

The purpose of this investigation was to observe laryngeal tissue and vocal function changes over the course of 28 days in a single participant diagnosed by a laryngologist with bilateral nodules. Laryngeal imaging, acoustic variables and perceptual assessments of voice quality, and perceived vocal effort were obtained every morning for 28 consecutive days. A daily journal of occupational and recreational voice use as well as menstruation and alcohol consumption was maintained each day. It was hypothesized that the laryngeal pathology would appear more extensive and the vocal function measures obtained would be worse following extensive voice use. Laryngeal imaging, acoustic variables, and perceptual measures quantified provided evidence to support the study hypotheses. The size, extent, and asymmetry of the bilateral vocal pathologies observed were more extensive on days following occupational and recreational vocal loading. Acoustic and perceptual measures obtained correlated with the laryngeal tissue changes observed. Study findings support a more holistic approach to laryngeal pathology diagnosis that is based on a more thorough understanding of vocal loading considerations up to 48 hours prior to laryngeal endoscopy to better understand the pathophysiology of the observed lesion(s) for most accurate clinical diagnosis.

Association Between Sleep Disturbances and Suicide Risk Among Firefighters: the Moderating Role of Mindfulness

Firefighters are at increased risk for suicide. The evaluation of correlates of suicide risk among firefighters is necessary to inform evidence-based prevention efforts. Firefighters are chronically exposed to traumatic events and sleep disturbances (e.g., shift work) given the nature of the occupation. Thus, the aims of this study were to examine (a) the association of sleep disturbances with suicide risk among firefighters after controlling for occupational stress, trauma load, anxiety symptoms, and depressive symptoms and (b) whether mindfulness moderates the association of sleep disturbances with suicide risk. Participants were 865 firefighters working for a fire department located in a large city in the southern USA. Hierarchical linear regression analyses were conducted. Findings indicated that firefighters who reported greater sleep disturbances reported increased risk of suicide (β = .19, p < .001), after controlling for covariates. Moderation analyses indicated that higher levels of the mindfulness facets of acting with awareness (β = − .15, p < .001) and nonjudging of inner experiences (β = − .23, p < .001) as well as overall mindfulness (β = − .10, p < .01) significantly reduced the magnitude of the association of sleep disturbances with suicide risk. Conversely, the observing facet of mindfulness (β = .17, p < .001) strengthened the association between sleep disturbances and suicide risk. Preventive interventions for suicide among firefighters might incorporate evidence-based sleep interventions and mindfulness-based practices with an emphasis on improving skills in acting with awareness and accepting without judgment.

Booster cushion design effects on child occupant kinematics and loading assessed using the PIPER 6-year-old HBM and the Q10 ATD in frontal impacts

Objective Our objective was to study the effect on child occupant kinematics and loading by differences in booster cushion designs and attachment in a frontal impact. Methods Three different booster cushion designs were exposed to a frontal impact in vehicle rear seat interiors. The boosters were selected based on their difference in shape, stiffness, and guiding loop design. Tests were run varying the shoulder belt routing above or under the guiding loop, in addition to with or without attachment of the booster cushion to the vehicle ISOFIX anchorages. Eighteen simulations with the finite element PIPER 6-year-old human body model (HBM) were run investigating all combinations of parameters, in addition to 3 sled tests with a Q10 anthropomorphic test dummy (ATD). Results Across 2 different child sizes, using an HBM and an ATD, respectively, consistent sensitivity to the booster design differences were seen. Boosters providing similar initial static belt fit can result in different occupant responses during a crash, due to the design of the boosters and their dynamic performance. Compression of the booster cushion resulted in a delayed pelvis restraint, influencing the upper body kinematics. The guiding loop design as well as the belt routing above or under the guide also influenced the upper body kinematics and shoulder belt interaction. Conclusions Early pelvis coupling to initiate torso pitch, and thereby an upper torso motion controlled by the shoulder belt, is the preferred occupant protection for booster-seated children. A stable mid-shoulder belt position centered over the chest initially is a prerequisite. Additionally, it was seen that the design of the guiding loops helps provide favorable interaction with the torso during the crash. The option to allow the shoulder belt to be placed above and under the guiding loops will accommodate a larger span of child sizes and adapt to more vehicle seat belt geometries. This study provides evidence that the design of the booster cushion plays an important role in creating an early pelvis coupling, as well as supporting favorable torso–shoulder belt interaction.

How dwell time affects the determination of occupant density in retail occupancies using footfall data

During the fire engineering design process, occupancy numbers are typically determined through the application of occupant load factors recommended by guidance documents or required by fire safety codes. It is often unclear how these factors have been derived or what upper bound of likely percentile of real-world values they represent. In retail occupancies the number of people using a space across a given time, referred to as footfall, is often recorded to set ground rents, etc. and the length of time that people remain within that space is often called the dwell time. This paper proposes a computational method to determine maximum occupant densities in retail spaces as part of a fire engineering design by combining measured footfall data with dwell time distributions. This method has then been applied to a case study of a large UK mall, using recently recorded footfall data. Simulations suggest that the maximum occupant density in common circulation spaces could be around 2.7 m2 per person and 5.2 m2 per person within the associated retail units whereas current design occupant load factors give 3.5 m2 per person for circulation spaces and 2–10 m2 per person for retail areas.

Snapshot Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Wellness in Nonphysician Otolaryngology Health Care Workers: A National Study.

ObjectiveNonphysician health care workers are involved in high-risk patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic, placing them at high risk of mental health burden. The mental health impact of COVID-19 in this crucial population has not been studied thus far. Thus, the objective of this study is to assess the psychosocial well-being of these providers.Study DesignNational cross-sectional online survey (no control group).SettingAcademic otolaryngology programs in the United States.Subjects and MethodsWe distributed a survey to nonphysician health care workers in otolaryngology departments across the United States. The survey incorporated a variety of validated mental health assessment tools to measure participant burnout (Mini-Z assessment), anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder–7), distress (Impact of Event Scale), and depression (Patient Health Questionnaire–2). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to determine predictive factors associated with these mental health outcomes.ResultsWe received 347 survey responses: 248 (71.5%) nurses, 63 (18.2%) administrative staff, and 36 (10.4%) advanced practice providers. A total of 104 (30.0%) respondents reported symptoms of burnout; 241 (69.5%), symptoms of anxiety; 292 (84.1%), symptoms of at least mild distress; and 79 (22.8%), symptoms of depression. Upon further analysis, development of these symptoms was associated with factors such as occupation, practice setting, and case load.ConclusionFrontline otolaryngology health care providers exhibit high rates of mental health complications, particularly anxiety and distress, in the wake of COVID-19. Adequate support systems must be put into place to address these issues.

Optoelectronic Hybrid Network Architecture and Its Performance Analysis

Optoelectrical hybrid network technology is introduced into a network based on pure electrical packet switching, which increases network capacity and reduces power consumption. However, the problems of long configuration time and complex management of optical circuit switches affect the performance of hybrid optoelectrical networks. A new type of hybrid optoelectronic network architecture (HOEP) cooperated by Ethernet packet switching network and optical wavelength routing network was designed in the study. The optical routing network transmitted and received optical signals by using a circular array waveguide grating router, and transmitted the optical signal carrying data to the target port based on the characteristics of wavelength cyclic routing. The entire process only needed to modulate the data signal, and did not need to configure the optical wavelength routing network. At the same time, in order to further improve the resource utilization of optical nodes, a kind of intelligent node dynamic reconstruction (RC) algorithm was designed. Combining with network link utilization, cache occupancy, and network load value, this method could dynamically adjust the usage distribution of optical nodes for reconstruction. During the experiment, the RC algorithm was applied to the HOEP network architecture. Compared with other typical network architectures, the HOEP network proposed in the study can effectively reduce the network cost, power consumption, and improve network throughput. Moreover, the introduction of RC algorithm and network equipment can make the cost remain within the controllable range, while it can further increase the network throughput and reduce the power consumption of the HOEP network, thereby meeting the dynamic demand for network bandwidth with larger data traffic.

Internal Heat Gains in a Lunar Base—A Contemporary Case Study

The Moon’s environmental conditions present limited opportunities for waste heat dissipation, so internal heat gains (IHG) are a key component of thermal balance in a lunar building. Despite the significant development in energy saving and energy storage technologies of the last thirty years, the issue of IHG in lunar buildings has not been readdressed since the early 1990s. This study is based on an inspection of internal heat sources conducted aboard LUNARES, the first European extraterrestrial analogue habitat. The equipment absent on LUNARES, but indispensable for an actual lunar base, was identified and accounted for, along with additional laboratory and maintenance equipment. Three main groups of internal heat sources were identified and studied in detail. Waste heat generated by electric devices was accounted for, along with occupational heat loads adjusted for lunar partial gravity conditions. Assuming a photovoltaic power source for the studied building, two alternative energy storage systems (ESS) were analysed as another source of waste heat. Depending on the time of lunar day and applied ESS, the nominal IHG were between 73 and 133 W/m2. The most significant internal heat sources in a lunar base are life support systems and potentially, regenerative fuel cells; thus, lithium–ion batteries were recommended for ESS. Within assumed parameter range, parametric study exhibited differences in IHG between 41.5 and 163 W/m2.