Simple Form Research Articles

Driving quality in delirium care through a patient-centered monitoring system in palliative care: Protocol for the two-staged exploratory sequential mixed methods MODEL-PC study

Introduction Delirium is a serious acute neurocognitive condition that is common in palliative care units and yet under-addressed. To improve delirium care in this setting, we will develop and pilot a monitoring system that integrates the Delirium Clinical Care Standard, Palliative Care Outcomes Collaboration (PCOC) methods, and perspectives of patients, carers and staff. Methods This paper reports the protocol for a two-stage, exploratory, sequential mixed-methods implementation study. Stage 1 data collection includes Delirium Standard-aligned process mapping and clinical audits, and Critical Incident Technique interviews with patients, carers and staff with a recent experience of delirium. We will present integrated stage 1 findings to stakeholders then collaboratively develop a delirium monitoring system that aligns with the Delirium Standard and PCOC methods. In stage 2, we will pilot the new system and repeat stage 1 data collection and analyses, adding PCOC and adverse event measures. Implementation principles and strategies such as audit and feedback and education will be applied. We developed simplified participants information sheets and consent forms for interview and process mapping participants, who will provide written informed consent; and waiver of consent to collect clinical audit, PCOC and adverse event data from patients’ medical records is approved. At study end, we will report implementation, effectiveness and safety outcomes, including systemic utility of the delirium monitoring system for wider testing and use to meet the Delirium Standard in palliative care units. Quantitative data analyses will include descriptive and inferential statistics and qualitative analyses will incorporate thematic content analysis aligned to the Critical Incident Technique. Mixed methods data integration will be at the end of each stage. Discussion This protocol paper describes the mixed methods, systems integration, and innovative measures and study processes of the MODEL-PC study. We also share data collection tools and a simplified information sheet and consent form for patients.

Facile, inexpensive, and reliable morphological characterization of microplastics using Optical Microscopy images

A morphological classification method was developed and applied to model contaminants of polyethylene microplastics (MPs) obtained in the laboratory by simple procedures. Primary MPs were produced by pump-assisted aqueous isolation from a commercial cosmetic cream, and secondary MPs were obtained by mechanical abrasion from a domestic plastic can. The MPs were investigated by optical microscopy and their images were analyzed according to forms and types of edge by means of a self-written Python-based script. Four simple geometrical forms were employed to classify the MPs, i.e., fiber, ellipse, triangle, and quadrilateral shapes, while their edges were defined as plain, wavy, lobed, and filiform, quantifying each type of edge on every MP. In addition, the numerical results provided by the computational analysis were employed to develop two complimentary indexes, R and I, associated to the degree of surface roughness and smoothness, ranging from 0 to 1 for the quantitative morphological characterization of the regularity and irregularity, respectively, of the particles. Thus, an inexpensive and simple but rigorous detailed physical characterization for MPs is provided, which can be particularly helpful for monitoring the changes that these particles may undergo in the environment.

Numerical Tools For Wave Overtopping At Rubble Mound Breakwaters With Submerged Berms

In the era of climate change, the adaptation of existing coastal structures as a response to potential increasing loads, has become a trending topic in coastal engineering. The combination of sea level rise, storm surge, tides and waves is going to dramatically increase the wave overtopping. In this context, this research is focused on the evaluation of wave overtopping for conventional rubble mound breakwaters, modified by the introduction of a submerged berm. Recent studies illustrated how the introduction of emerged berms on the seaward slope reduces the wave overtopping. The goal then becomes to turn the spotlight on the submerged berms, whose effectiveness has yet to be attested, although it has proven useful in reducing wave loads on the armour layer and seabed pressure under the structure. Therefore, the reliability of two different numerical models in detecting overtopping phenomenon have been assessed. IHFOAM and SWASH have been used (see Figure 1). The first one can solve both Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes and the Volume Averaged Reynolds Averaged Navier–Stokes equations. The second one solves the non-linear shallow water equations with a non-hydrostatic pressure term, representing a simplified form of the Navier-Stokes equations, with associated limited computational cost. The numerical models have been validated based on experimental tests carried out in a wave flume at the University of L’Aquila.

Revolutionizing Student Accommodation: A MERN-Based Rental System For Seamless Property Management

This web application facilitates the registration of individual homes or apartments to streamline the process of finding ideal rental properties. Users can conveniently search for their next rental in targeted areas through a user-friendly interface. The platform is designed to cater to diverse real estate needs in India, including property buying, selling, and leasing. It serves as a valuable tool for investment by maintaining a comprehensive database of various properties and agent information. Not only does it assist users in accessing updated property information globally, but it also enables agents to manage and update their listings. The platform alleviates the complexities associated with traditional property search methods by offering a simplified online form, minimizing the need for individual agent communication, appointment scheduling, and time coordination

Simulations of exact explicit solutions of simplified modified form of Camassa–Holm equation

Simulations of exact explicit solutions of simplified modified form of Camassa–Holm equation

A Web-Based Assessment and Evaluation System for Architectural Design Studio Modules

Architectural design studio modules are known to be difficult to teach and/or assess. To acquire design skills, typically, students have several design modules during their program and several projects for each module. However, traditional project assessment and evaluation lacks consistency, objectivity and fairness. Furthermore, monitoring student progress over the different projects and over the different modules and different semesters is very difficult and needs much time and effort. This work presents a web-based system developed to support fair rubrics-based assessment and evaluation of design projects and to provide in-depth analysis of students' results. It also links between the results over the different projects and the different modules and provides feedback about students' skills and weaknesses in a simple form thus allowing progressive learning. The system has been tested and evaluated and the results show its simplicity, reliability and effectiveness.

An approach to calculate Franck-Condon factors involving anharmonic potentials using harmonic oscillator bases

In this contribution a discrete variable representation (DVR) approach to calculate Franck-Condon factors (FCFs) is presented. The method is illustrated using a harmonic oscillator basis. The advantage of this approach is that it is possible to calculate FCFs associated with general potentials based on the knowledge of the harmonic oscillator theory. First the coordinate and momentum representations are introduced. Based on this concept, the DVR is proposed, which allows the Franck-Condon factors to be calculated in a simple form. This method takes advantage of the momentum as generator of translations to include the displacement of the potentials. The calculation of the FCFs is exemplified for transitions involving the ground state X1Σg+ and the excited state a 1Π g of the diatomic molecule 14N2 both modelled with Morse potentials.

Explanatory and numerical examination of the fractional conditions of blood stream in a limit, slanted supply route utilizing the Akbari Ganji technique

This paper investigates the flow of blood through a slanted stenosed artery beneath the impact of a magnetism field. The equations that control the behavior of blood use a type of derivative called Caputo Fabrizio time fractional derivatives. These equations explain that blood acts like a non-Newtonian Casson fluid. The objective of this study is to explore the governing equations of blood flow in a narrow artery by utilizing Caputo Fabrizio fractional derivatives. Using the Laplace and limited Hankel changes of arrange zero, expository arrangements for the overseeing conditions have been inferred. Using the Akbari Ganji method, simple math problems have been solved and transformed into simpler forms. Answers have been found using this method. This article introduces a new approach by applying the AGM analytical and numerical method to address dimensionless fractional equations related to velocity and pressure, in conjunction with the Capato method, marking a significant innovation. Generally, the velocity of the particles is slower than the velocity of the blood. Anyway, the Reynolds number and Casson's liquid parameters are incrementing in both blood and molecule velocities. However, blood velocity diminishes with an increment within the Hartmann number. These discoveries hold noteworthy suggestions for the progress of atherosclerosis treatment. The narrowing of the diameter of the blood vessel with a radius of 45° and a relative percentage of 35 increases the flow resistance and height of the stenosis.

Simplified Sample Size Formulas for Detecting a Medically Important Effect.

The sample size is just about the most common question in the minds of many medical researchers. This size determines the reliability of the results and helps to detect a medically important effect when present. Some studies miss an important effect due to inappropriate sample size. Many postgraduate students and established researchers often contact a statistician to help them determine an appropriate sample size for their study. More than 80 formulas are available to calculate sample size for different settings and the choice requires some expertise. Their use is even more difficult because most exact formulas are quite complex. An added difficulty is that different books, software, and websites use different formulas for the same problem. Such discrepancy in the published formulas confounds a biostatistician also. The objective of this communication is to present uniformly looking formulas for many situations together at one place in their simple but correct form, along with the setting where they are applicable. This will help in choosing an appropriate formula for the kind of research one is proposing to do and use it with confidence. This communication is restricted to the sample size required to detect a medically important effect when present - known to the statisticians as the test of hypothesis situation. Such a collection is not available anywhere, not even in any book. The sample size formulas for estimation are different and not discussed here.

A simple, accurate, and explicit form of the Green–Ampt model to estimate infiltration, sorptivity, and hydraulic conductivity

AbstractFinding an explicit solution to the widely used Green–Ampt (G–A) one‐dimensional infiltration model has been subject of efforts for more than half a century. We derived an explicit semiempirical approach that combines accuracy with simplicity, a concept that has been generally neglected in previous studies. The equation is , with F (L), Ks (L/T), S (L/T0.5) and t (T) being cumulative infiltration, saturated hydraulic conductivity, sorptivity, and time, respectively. Relative errors (ɛ) by the application of this equation generally do not exceed ±0.3% in most applied infiltration problems faced by water resources engineering today. We show both numerically and mathematically that │ɛ│> 0.3% could only occur if Kst/F > 0.904, a criterion that could apply to sand and loamy sand soils (i.e., coarse texture) and if they experience infiltration rates for over 6 h and 19 h, respectively. Hence, we also derived a simple linear adjustment in the model as Fadj ≅ 0.9796 F + 0.335 S2/Ks to address these longer infiltration rates, and to assure that ɛ remains within the expected ±0.3% range of uncertainty. A linearized regression technique was also developed to accurately estimate S and Ks when the G–A model is used. We numerically demonstrated that our fitting method could be used even when the G–A approach is less valid (diffusive soils), provided that the actual value of the capillary length (λ) is initially known. An added benefit of our approach is that by setting λ equal to 1/3 and 2/3, it can significantly limit the range of initializing, unknown, a priori values of S and Ks, as these two parameters are estimated through the inverse solution of implicit infiltration models. Due to the model's simplicity and accuracy, our solution should find application among hydrologists, natural resource scientists, and engineers who wish to easily derive accurate estimations from the G–A infiltration approach and/or estimate sorptivity and hydraulic conductivity without encountering divergence problems.

Modelling the rate-dependent mechanical behaviour of the brain tissue

A new modelling approach is employed in this work for application to the rate-dependent mechanical behaviour of the brain tissue, as an incompressible isotropic material. Extant datasets encompassing single- and multi-mode compression, tension and simple shear deformation(s) are considered, across a wide range of deformation rates from quasi-static to rates akin to blast loading conditions, in the order of 1000 s−1 . With a simple functional form and a reduced number of parameters, the model is shown to capture the considered rate-dependent behaviours favourably, including in both single- and multi-mode deformation fits, and over all range of deformation rates. The provided modelling results here are obtained from either first fitting the model to the quasi-static data, or/and predicting the behaviour at a different rate than those used for calibrating the model parameters. Given its simplicity, versatility, predictive capability and accuracy, the application of the utilised modelling framework in this work to the rate-dependent mechanical behaviour of the brain tissue is proposed.

Optimal cut-off frequency and controller gain of an integrated skyhook active isolation

Vibration isolation is a crucial technology in precision manufacturing. With the rapid development of smart sensors, smart actuators, and microprocessors, active vibration isolation has emerged as a viable approach to improve the performance of manufacturing equipment. In integrated skyhook active vibration isolation, the cut-off frequency limits the controller gain. Base on the repeated poles technique, this paper reveals the simple analytical forms of the optimal cut-off frequency and controller gain of the integrated skyhook active isolation. The analytical formula is useful in the design of active isolation. Numerical calculations are performed to show the good performance of the optimal design. An experiment is carried out to show the existence of the optimal controller gain.

Cognitive limits of larval Drosophila: testing for conditioned inhibition, sensory preconditioning, and second-order conditioning.

Drosophila larvae are an established model system for studying the mechanisms of innate and simple forms of learned behavior. They have about 10 times fewer neurons than adult flies, and it was the low total number of their neurons that allowed for an electron microscopic reconstruction of their brain at synaptic resolution. Regarding the mushroom body, a central brain structure for many forms of associative learning in insects, it turned out that more than half of the classes of synaptic connection had previously escaped attention. Understanding the function of these circuit motifs, subsequently confirmed in adult flies, is an important current research topic. In this context, we test larval Drosophila for their cognitive abilities in three tasks that are characteristically more complex than those previously studied. Our data provide evidence for (i) conditioned inhibition, as has previously been reported for adult flies and honeybees. Unlike what is described for adult flies and honeybees, however, our data do not provide evidence for (ii) sensory preconditioning or (iii) second-order conditioning in Drosophila larvae. We discuss the methodological features of our experiments as well as four specific aspects of the organization of the larval brain that may explain why these two forms of learning are observed in adult flies and honeybees, but not in larval Drosophila.

Processionary Caterpillars at the Edge of Complexity.

This article deals with individuals moving in procession in real and artificial societies. A procession is a minimal form of society in which individual behavior is to go in a given direction and the organization is structured by the knowledge of the one ahead. This simple form of grouping is common in the living world, and, among humans, procession is a very circumscribed social activity whose origins are certainly very remote. This type of organization falls under microsociology, where the focus is on the study of direct interactions between individuals within small groups. In this article, we focus on the particular case of pine tree processionary caterpillars (Thaumetopoea pityocampa). In the first part, we propose a formal definition of the concept of procession and compare field experiments conducted by entomologists with agent-based simulations to study real caterpillars' processionaries as they are. In the second part, we explore the life of caterpillars as they could be. First, by extending the model beyond reality, we can explain why real processionary caterpillars behave as they do. Then we report on field experiments on the behavior of real caterpillars artificially forced to follow a circular procession; these experiments confirm that each caterpillar can either be the leader of the procession or follow the one in front of it. In the third part, by allowing variations in the speed of movement on an artificial circular procession, computational simulations allow us to observe the emergence of unexpected mobile spatial structures built from regular polygonal shapes where chaotic movements and well-ordered forms are intimately linked. This confirms once again that simple rules can have complex consequences.

Experimental investigation of the total flow resistance in emergent and submerged rigid canopy flows

In canopy flows, flow resistance mainly originates from vegetation drag and depends on vegetation characteristics and flow conditions. In the present study, a series of experiments were performed in various hydraulic scenarios with high stem Reynolds numbers (2641 ≤ Red≤ 17333) using relatively sparse rigid canopies, represented with four different dimensionless vegetation densities (0.0044, 0.0098, 0.0174 and 0.0392), on a smooth bed. A novel drag plate mechanism was developed to measure the total flow resistance due to the emergent and submerged vegetation arrays in a staggered pattern under subcritical flow conditions. Manning’s roughness coefficient and Darcy–Weisbach friction factor were adopted to represent the total flow resistance in the analyses. Simple empirical relationships based on roughness concentration and submergence ratio were derived to determine the total flow resistance parameters within a broad range of stem Reynolds numbers. Although relationships were proposed in a simple form to be used for direct practical applications, they show similar or better performance in the prediction of total flow resistance parameters than the existing equations in the literature, which require considerable computational effort. Additionally, analyses demonstrated that the results of the present study and those of similar studies regarding canopy flow resistance are in good agreement. Accordingly, the novel drag plate looks promising for measuring flow resistance due to vegetation and bed conditions similar to those in nature.

Optimization of Fermented White Glutinous Rice Tape for Ethanol Content Using the Gas Chromatography Method

One of the traditional foods that have health-preserving properties is tape which can prevent an increase in cholesterol and prevent a shortage of red blood cells. Tape products are the result of the fermentation of processed raw materials that contain starch, that is, these food ingredients become simple forms such as sugar with the addition of microbes such as yeast or yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) which work to break down carbohydrate foods into alcohol and carbon dioxide by settling to form compounds. namely ethanol. The test was carried out to determine the fermentation time of the ethanol content in white sticky rice tape. The test used the gas chromatography method. The location of the testing carried out at the Pharmacy and Food Analysis Campus was obtained. The results obtained for the system suitability test analysis consisted of precision, column efficiency, and accompanying factors that met the requirements. Meanwhile, the ethanol content in samples carried out continuously for five days on days I, II, III, IV, and V respectively was 2.94%; 3.03%; 3.12%; 3.14%, and 3.28%. The greatest ethanol content obtained on day V was 3.28%, and the smallest content on day I was 2.94%. So it can be concluded that the ethanol content resulting from fermentation in white sticky rice tape increases every day and the quality of the tape decreases

Coupling Effects of a Top-Hinged Buoyancy Can on the Vortex-Induced Vibration of a Riser Model in Currents and Waves

In order to investigate the effects of the top-end dynamic boundary of risers caused by floater motions on their vortex-induced vibration (VIV) characteristics, a combined model comprising a buoyancy can with a relatively simple structural form and a riser is taken as the research object in the present study. The aspect ratios of the buoyancy can and the riser model are 5.37 and 250, respectively. A set of experimental devices is designed to support the VIV test of the riser with a dynamic boundary stimulating the vortex-induced motion (VIM) of the buoyancy can under different uniform flow and regular wave conditions. Several data processing methods are applied in the model test, i.e., mode superposition, Euler angle conversion, band pass filter, fast Fourier transform, and wavelet transform. Based on the testing results, the effect of low-frequency VIM on the high-frequency VIV of the riser is discussed in relation to a single current, a single wave, and a combined wave and current. It is found that the coupling effect of VIM on the riser VIV presents certain orthogonal features at low current velocities. The effect of the cross-flow VIM component on VIV is far more prominent than that of its counterpart, the in-line VIM, with increasing flow velocity. The VIM in the combined wave–current condition significantly enhances the modulation of vibration amplitude and frequency, resulting in larger fluctuation peaks of vibration response and further increasing the risk of VIV fatigue.

Stability of boulders on cobble streambeds

The placement of boulders in streams enhances aquatic habitat by increasing the heterogeneity of flow conditions. Practical design must ensure the stability of individual boulders, requiring calculation of their incipient movement conditions. The stability of a boulder on a cobble bed is shown experimentally to depend on its size, the bed material size, the degree of embedment of the boulder, the slope of the bed and the flow velocity and depth. An equation is derived through a pivoting analysis for predicting the relationship between the critical ambient depth-averaged velocity and the critical flow depth; this, together with a resistance equation, can be used to predict the flow conditions for boulder stability. The equation is used to develop a simpler form for unsubmerged spherical boulders and cobbles. The stability equation is tested against the experimental data, using an experimentally determined drag coefficient relationship.

Possibilities and limits of political humour in a hybrid regime

This article focuses on the Hungarian Two-Tailed Dog Party (MKKP), which can be defined as a joke party. MKKP uses humour to criticise the corruption flourishing around the governing party Fidesz as well as its simplified and racist form of political communication. However, MKKP’s critical stance extends to Hungarian politicians and the political system in general. This visual ethnographic research focuses on the activities that MKKP organised during national days in Hungary between 2017 and 2022, which included a space launch, a peace march and an alternative national day celebration on 20 August. The events can be defined as parody performances. The field material is complemented by a semi-structured interview with the party activists. MKKP’s humour is critical and revealing in nature, aiming to expose the powerholders’ agenda. However, instead of ridiculing, MKKP’s humour is primarily corrective and supportive. As such, it has the potential to alleviate polarisation. In MKKP’s activism, creativity and cynicism exist in close proximity to one another. Humour also functions as a powerful antidote against simplified populist truths that rely on fearmongering and enemy images. In a hybrid regime, absurd humour can be used to reveal the inherent absurdities of the political reality. MKKP has occasionally succeeded in entering the state-controlled public sphere. During recent years, the party has started to address societal matters more seriously, without abandoning its roots as a humour party.

“Grump Mountain”: Viewers’ Attributions of Agency to a Climate Fiction Film

Environmental narratives—such as the genre of climate fiction—have been the topic of much theorization and discussion for their potential to enrich human ways of thinking about the nonhuman environment. In this paper, we discuss the responses of a small sample of participants who watched a short climate fiction narrative, the trailer to a documentary called Not Ok: A Little Movie about a Small Glacier at the End of the World. Using discourse analysis, we focus on how participants construct agency for the nonhuman narrator of the story—a mountain and former volcano named Ok that was once the site of Okjökull (Ok glacier). Participants’ responses reveal how simple nonhuman agency becomes woven into more complex constructions when the narrative form is discussed. Our analysis shows that only participants who took the perspective of the mountain narrator were able to attribute complex forms of agency to the figure of the mountain and the story it told. Participants who did not relate to Ok mountain as narrator relayed simpler forms of nonhuman agency. Representing nonhuman agency in the subject of the mountain and animating that figure with a human voice (of narration) is a particular narrative strategy; in this study, we were interested in understanding how such a figure might challenge simple tropes of nature’s agency and invite more complex ways of conceiving of nonhuman agency. The climate fiction/documentary trailer also led viewers to ponder the destructive anthropogenic impacts on nonhuman environments. Some participants took the material to be merely an environmental message without engaging the nonhuman narrative aspects. The anthropomorphizing of Ok mountain’s story, as in the video material in our case study, may, we argue, limit interaction-oriented accounts of the entanglement of (non)human agencies. Finally, we conclude, many participants’ tendency to understand environmental stories as (solely) moral messages presents a challenge to both climate fiction and narrative communications.