Standard Time Research Articles

A Time Study Analysis of Fluoride Varnish Application in Pediatric Well Visits to Address Health Disparities among Children.

Dental decay is the most common chronic disease in children. Fluoride varnish (FV) is a preventive oral health service with proven effectiveness at reducing dental caries in dental and primary care settings. The objective of this study was to determine how long it takes to apply FV treatments during primary care well visits to address one of the most common barriers as reported by pediatricians - lack of time. FV treatment videos were collected at six clinics in Georgia with rigorous time studies conducted on each video to determine the Standard Time for the FV treatment process as well as the FV Application Component of the process and reasons for delays. Median Standard Times varied by clinic, ranging from 67.7 seconds to 166.9 seconds with an overall median of 109.7 seconds. This results in per FV application labor costs of approximately $2.38 for pediatricians, $1.16 for registered nurses, and $0.53 for medical assistants. Findings from this study support the inclusion of FV applications as a common practice during primary care well visits.

Safety and feasibility analysis of rapid daratumumab infusion in Chinese patients with multiple myeloma.

With the increasing use of daratumumab (DARA)-containing regimens for multiple myeloma (MM) patients in China, the standard infusion time of DARA is long, with the potential for infusion-related reactions (IRRs) and increased hospitalization and use of resources. Shortening the duration of DARA infusion helps to optimize the hospital stay and enhance the patient treatment experience. The current, commonly used 90-min rapid DARA infusion regimen may not be applicable to Chinese MM patients, and therefore, we explored a new 110-min rapid DARA infusion regimen aimed at reducing the treatment burden on patients to guarantee therapeutic safety. MM inpatients treated with the DARA regimen were divided into two groups according to the number of times the DARA regimen was used: a standard infusion regimen for patients treated with the first two doses of DARA and a 110-min rapid infusion regimen for patients treated with more than two doses of DARA. Anti-allergy medications were routinely administered prior to the start of DARA infusion, patient consent, and authorization was obtained for all treatments, and statistical evaluation of the results was conducted via descriptive analyses, one-way ANOVA and chi-square tests. A total of 129 patients were included in this study: 68 in the standard infusion group, with 121 DARA infusions, and 129 in the rapid infusion group (patients who participated in the standard infusion subsequently participated in the rapid infusion), with 738 DARA infusions. The incidence of IRRs was 27.27% (36/121) in the standard infusion group and 1.35% (10/738) in the rapid infusion group, which were significantly different (p < 0.001). The incidence of IRRs after rapid infusion in other studies was <6%. The incidence of grade 1 IRRs in the rapid infusion group was 0.81% (6/738), the incidence of grade 2 IRRs was 0.54% (4/738), and there were no IRRs above grade 3; age, sex, and underlying disease had no effect on the choice of infusion method (p > 0.05). The mean infusion time after the occurrence of IRRs was also shorter in the rapid infusion group than in the standard infusion group (F = 24.781, p < 0.001). The 110-min rapid infusion DARA regimen is feasible and safe for use in Chinese MM patients.

Patients undergoing reverse total shoulder arthroplasty have less pain and require fewer opioid pain medications compared to anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty in the early postoperative period: a retrospective review

Recovery after anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (aTSA) and reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (rTSA) has many similarities; however, recently surgeons have suggested patients undergoing rTSA have a less difficult postoperative course with less pain compared with aTSA patients. Given the heightened awareness to postoperative pain control and opioid consumption, as well as the expanding indications for rTSA, we sought to determine the differences in pain and opioid consumption between aTSA and rTSA patients in a 12-week postoperative period. A retrospective chart review was performed to identify all patients who underwent a primary aTSA or rTSA from January 2013 to April 2018 at a single institution. Patients with recorded visual analog scale (VAS) and American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons scores were included for analysis. Revision arthroplasties were excluded. VAS scores were recorded preoperatively and at standard 2-week, 6-week, and 12-week postoperative time points. P values < .05 were considered statistically significant, except where Bonferroni corrections were applied. A total of 690 patients underwent TSA (278 aTSA, 412 rTSA). Preoperatively, aTSA and rTSA patient groups had similar VAS scores (6 vs. 6, P=.38). Postoperatively, the aTSA group had a higher VAS at the 6-week visit, compared with rTSA patients (2.8 vs. 2.2, P=.003). aTSA patients remained on opioids at a higher rate at the 2-week (62.4% vs. 45.6%, P ≤ .001) time period. aTSA patients needed more opioid prescription refills before the 2-week (61.7% vs. 45.5%, P ≤ .001) and 6-week (40.4% vs. 30.7%, P=.01) follow-up visits. Despite similar preoperative VAS and rates of preoperative opioid use, aTSA patients required more opioid medication refills and remained on opioids for a longer duration in the early postoperative period to achieve similar postoperative pain control as indicated by similar VAS. This study suggests that the recovery from rTSA is less difficult compared with aTSA as indicated by VAS and opioid consumption.

Model Prediction XGBoost for Perspective of Closing Cernavoda Reactor 1 and the Impact on the Romanian Energy System

Abstract Employing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies to analyze the progression of energy markets is imperative, as these methodologies facilitate the modeling of diverse domain-specific data to forecast developments in an exceedingly volatile market. Utilizing machine learning algorithms to model data concerning the Romanian energy sector proves beneficial, particularly in circumstances where significant changes necessitate adaptation to internal consumption demands, while mitigating substantial fluctuations in electricity prices. Such fluctuations can profoundly impact crucial national economic indicators.. In this paper, we aim to simulate such a situation for the moment when Romania will be obliged to shut down and modernize Reactor 1 at Cernavodă due to reaching the standard operating time for the CANDU model. We will use an XGBoost for Regression algorithm in which we will input data about the national energy system (consumption, energy quantities according to the energy system's production structure by resource types) from the period 2020-2023, and then we will simulate the shutdown of the reactor to analyze how the national energy market is influenced. Our findings not only reveal the indispensable role of predictive analysis through ML/AI models in anticipating market changes, but also provide practical insights for decision-makers aiming to optimize the national energy system so that when Reactor 1 at Cernavodă is shut down, the domestic market is affected as little as possible, considering that this reactor has supplied the national system with approximately 700 MWe/h over the past 20 years.

Enhancing productivity through work study - A case of electric power pole cross arm fabrication

In the area of globalization any manufacturing industry must be competent in terms of productivity, quality, cost and delivery. A fundamental improvement in production is necessary to succeed in the international markets. Work study is one of the earliest scientific management methods used to determine the best way to perform production tasks in order to reduce idle time and worker fatigue as a result, increase productivity. Kombolcha Steel Products Industry, the member of MIDROC Ethiopia Technology Group, producing a variety of metal and engineering products, such as steel poles, steel structures, structural hot dip galvanization, corrugated sheet metal, etc. The company's main focus was meeting the delivery deadlines, with little attention to implementing standard working method and procedures during the production. The inefficient method of piercing the holes in the u-channels to fabricate the electric pole cross arms is causing a drop in productivity.The primary objective of the current study is to identify the bottlneck in the process of electric power poles cross arms fabrication, to set standard time for the process and reduce the cycle time. Time and method studies were used to identify the flaws in the current fabrication process and layout design. The efficient technique to manufacture the product has been replaced by redesigning and implementing a new layout. This arrangement accelerated the process by reducing the idle time for the three punching machines that undertake the piercing operations. The modified layout raised production from the target daily production of 420 pieces to 720 pieces in 8 h, resulting in a 71 % reduction in the previous work cycle from 65 to 39 s. After a time and method study, a simple change in the layout with no capital investment not only increased the company's productivity and profitability, but it also reduced worker fatigue due to extra material handling operations of raw materials and intermediate products.

Dependence of rain attenuation on rain rate and drop size distribution for Ka-band satellite communication over India

The Raindrop size distribution (DSD) is the most effective parameter to calculate rain-induced attenuation, which can be severe at Ka-band and higher frequencies. The authors have investigated the impact of rain rate and DSD on rain-induced specific attenuation over a tropical location Kolkata, India. DSD data from disdrometer has been used to calculate the specific rain attenuation with the help of Mie scattering theorem. Low to medium drop diameters (up to 3 mm) are the largest contributors to the various classes of rain rate and attenuation. Double peaks of drop sizes are significant for medium rain rate. The contribution of smaller drop diameters decrease, whereas the contribution of higher drop diameters increase with increasing rain attenuation. At lower rain attenuation, (up to 1.5 dB), complementary cumulative distribution function (CCDF) shows higher value for stratiform rain, with respect to convective rain. The higher attenuation occurrences are mostly observed during 12–18 Indian standard time (IST), i.e., in the afternoon. The results will be helpful for Ka-band (GSAT-14) and higher frequency satellite communication channel modeling over India.

Bone turnover prediction in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) undergoing hemodialysis using shortened dynamic 18F-NaF PET/CT Ki–Patlak

This study investigated whether Ki–Patlak derived from a shortened scan time for dynamic 18F-NaF PET/CT in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients undergoing hemodialysis can provide predictive accuracy comparable to that obtained from a longer scan. Twenty-seven patients on chronic hemodialysis, involving a total of 42 scans between December 2021 and August 2023 were recruited. Dynamic 18F-NaF PET/CT scans, lasting 60–90 min, were immediately acquired post-injection, covering the mid-twelfth thoracic vertebra to the pelvis region. Ki–Patlak analysis was performed on bone time–activity curves at 15, 30, 45, 60, and 90 min in the lumbar spine (L1–L4) and both anterior iliac crests. Spearman’s rank correlation (rs) and interclass correlation coefficient were used to assess the correlation and agreement of Ki–Patlak between shortened and standard scan times. Bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BsAP) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase isoform 5b (TRAP5b) were tested for their correlation with individual Ki–Patlak. Strong correlations and good agreement were observed between Ki–Patlak values from shortened 30-min scans and longer 60–90-min scans in both lumbar spine (rs = 0.858, p < 0.001) and anterior iliac crest regions (rs = 0.850, p < 0.001). The correlation between BsAP and Ki–Patlak in the anterior iliac crests was weak and statistically insignificant. This finding suggests that a proposed shortened dynamic 18F-NaF PET/CT scan is effective in assessing bone metabolic flux in CKD patients undergoing hemodialysis, offering a non-invasive alternative approach for bone turnover prediction.

Investigation of the pathogen-specific antibody response in periprosthetic joint infection.

Periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs) are a very demanding complication of arthroplasty. Diagnosis of PJI and pathogen identification pose considerable challenges in clinical practice. We hypothesized that the pathogen-specific immune response to PJI reflects the infection process, provides clinically relevant information on disease course, and has the potential to further optimize antimicrobial therapy. We conducted a prospective matched cohort pilot study with 13 patients undergoing two-stage septic revision arthroplasty (PJI patients) between 06/2020 and 06/2021, as well as 11 control patients undergoing one-stage aseptic revision arthroplasty (Non-PJI patients). Pre-, intra- and postoperative serum samples were collected at standardized time points. We developed a custom Luminex®-based quantitative bead-based suspension array (Infection Array; IA), and used it for simultaneous measurement of antibody specificities against 32 pathogens commonly associated with PJI in 267 serum samples. The IA was able to trace the dynamics of the pathogen-specific humoral immune response in all patients against PJI-related pathogens, prominently coagulase-negative staphylococci and streptococci. Pathogen-specific serum antibody titers declined in 62% of PJI patients over the course of treatment, while no changes in antibody titers were observed in 82% of Non-PJI patients during this study. Our serological data strongly suggested that antibody signatures reflect an immune response to microbial invasion. Our results provide insights into the pathophysiology of PJI and information on the individual disease courses. The IA is therefore a promising and novel serological tool of high resolution for monitoring the immunoproteomic footprints of infectious pathogens in the course of PJI.

PCA-ICA-LSTM: A Hybrid Deep Learning Model Based on Dimension Reduction Methods to Predict S&amp;P 500 Index Price

AbstractIn this paper, we propose a new hybrid model based on a deep learning network to predict the prices of financial assets. The study addresses two key limitations in existing research: (1) the lack of standardized datasets, time scales, and evaluation metrics, and (2) the focus on prediction return. The proposed model employs a two-stage preprocessing approach utilizing Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for dimensionality reduction and de-noising, followed by Independent Component Analysis (ICA) for feature extraction. A Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network with five layers is fed with this preprocessed data to predict the price of the next day using a 5 day time horizon. To ensure comparability with existing literature, experiments employ an 18 year dataset of the Standard &amp; Poor's 500 (S&amp;P500) index and include over 40 technical indicators. Performance evaluation encompasses six metrics, highlighting the model's superiority in accuracy and return rates. Comparative analyses demonstrate the superiority of the proposed PCA-ICA-LSTM model over single-stage statistical methods and other deep learning architectures, achieving notable improvements in evaluation metrics. Evaluation against previous studies using similar datasets corroborates the model's superior performance. Moreover, extensions to the study include adjustments to dataset parameters to account for the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in improved return rates surpassing traditional trading strategies. PCA-ICA-LSTM achieves a 220% higher return compared to the “hold and wait” strategy in the extended S&amp;P500 dataset, along with a 260% higher return than its closest competitor in the comparison. Furthermore, it outperformed other models in additional case studies. Graphical Abstract

Analysis of labor productivity in reinforced concrete structures using time study methods

The source of the success of a project in fulfilling the three aspects namely cost, quality, and time from one of the existing resources is the productivity of its workforce. The time study method is the right method used to determine the standard time of a job. The average value of productivity on column formwork is 10.65 m2/OH, beam formwork is 46.89 m2/OH, and plate formwork is 73.29 m2/OH. Column reinforcement work 204.51 kg/OH, beam reinforcement work 349.93 kg/OH, plate reinforcement work 287.57 kg/OH. Column casting work 7.96 m3/OH, beam casting work 25.31 m3/OH, plate casting work 15.81 m3/OH. Several factors greatly affect labor productivity. Comparison of the work productivity of reinforced concrete structures in the Ubud Market project based on the calculation results obtained the average productivity coefficient in the field of labor.

Patient Utilization of Weekend and Evening Appointments for Screening Mammography: An 8-Year Observational Cohort Study

ObjectiveTo characterize the patient population using weekend and evening appointments for screening mammography versus standard appointment times across four outpatient facilities in our academic health system. MethodsIn this institutional review board–approved retrospective cohort study, there were 203,101 screening mammograms from 67,323 patients who had a screening mammogram performed at outpatient centers at a multisite academic institution from January 1, 2015, to December 31, 2022. Screening appointments were defined as “standard appointment time” (between 8 am and 5 pm on Monday through Friday) or “weekend or evening appointment time” (scheduled after 5 pm on Monday through Friday or at any time on a Saturday or Sunday). Associations between appointment group and patient characteristics were analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression. ResultsMost screening mammograms (n = 185,436, 91.3%) were performed at standard times. The remainder (n = 17,665, 8.7%) were performed during weekends or evenings. As we created additional weekend and evening appointments after the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the annual percentage of all screening mammograms performed on evenings and weekends increased. On multivariate analysis, when compared with standard appointment times, we found that patients who were younger than age 50 (P < .001), a race other than non-Hispanic White (P < .001), non-English speakers (P < .001), and from less advantaged zip codes (P < .03) were more likely to use weekend and evening appointment times compared with those aged 70 and above, non-Hispanic White patients, English speakers, and those from the most advantaged zip codes. ConclusionsWeekend and evening appointment availability for screening mammograms might improve screening access for all patients, particularly for those younger than age 50, those of races other than non-Hispanic White, and those from less advantaged zip codes.

Outcome Trajectories after Intracerebral Hemorrhage.

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is the most morbid of all stroke types with a high early mortality and significant early disability burden. Traditionally, outcome assessments after ICH have mirrored those of acute ischemic stroke, with 3 months post-ICH being considered a standard time point in most clinical trials, observational studies, and clinical practice. At this time point, the majority of ICH survivors remain with moderate to severe functional disability. However, emerging data suggest that recovery after ICH occurs over a more protracted course and requires longer periods of follow-up, with more than 40% of ICH survivors with initial severe disability improving to partial or complete functional independence over 1 year. Multiple other domains of recovery impact ICH survivors including cognition, mood, and health-related quality of life, all of which remain under studied in ICH. To further complicate the picture, the most important driver of mortality after ICH is early withdrawal of life-sustaining therapies, before initiation of treatment and evaluating effects of prolonged supportive care, influenced by early pessimistic prognostication based on baseline severity factors and prognostication biases. Thus, our understanding of the true natural history of ICH recovery remains limited. This review summarizes the existing literature on outcome trajectories in functional and nonfunctional domains, describes limitations in current prognostication practices, and highlights areas of uncertainty that warrant further research.

Demographic and Metabolic Risk Factors Associated with Development of Diabetic Macular Edema among Persons with Diabetes Mellitus

PurposeDiabetic macular edema (DME), a leading cause of visual impairment, can occur regardless of diabetic retinopathy (DR) stage. Poor metabolic control is hypothesized to contribute to DME development though large-scale studies have yet to identify such an association. This study aims to determine whether measurable markers of dysmetabolism associate with DME development in persons with diabetes. DesignRetrospective cohort study ParticipantsUsing data from the Sight Outcomes Research Collaborative (SOURCE) repository, patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and no pre-existing DME were identified and followed over time to see what factors associated with DME development. MethodsCox proportional hazard modeling was used to assess the relationship between demographic variables, diabetes type, smoking history, baseline DR status, blood pressure (BP), lipid profile, body mass index (BMI), hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C) and new onset of DME. Main Outcome MeasuredAdjusted Hazard Ratio (HR) of developing DME with 95% confidence intervals. ResultsOf 47,509 eligible patients from 10 SOURCE sites (mean age 63±12 years, 58% female sex, 48% white race), 3633 (7.6%) developed DME in the study period. The mean±standard deviation time to DME was 875±684 days (∼2.4 years) with those with baseline NPDR (HR 3.67 95% [confidence interval (CI]):3.41-3.95) and PDR (HR 5.19 95% [CI]:4.61-5.85) more likely to develop DME. There was no difference in DME risk between type 1 and type 2 patients, however Black race was associated with a 40% increase in DME risk (HR 1.40 95% [CI]:1.30-1.51). Every one unit increase in HbA1C had a 15% increased risk of DME (HR 1.15 95% [CI]:1.13-1.17) and each 10 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure associated with a 6% increased DME risk (HR 1.06 95% [CI]:1.02-1.09). No association was identified between DME development and BMI, triglyceride levels, or high-density lipoprotein levels. ConclusionsThese findings suggest that in patients with diabetes modifiable risk factors such as elevated HbA1C and blood pressure confer a higher risk for DME development, however other modifiable systemic markers of dysmetabolism such as obesity and dyslipidemia did not. Further work is needed to identify the underlying contributions of race in DME.

Early Removal of Indwelling Catheter and Vaginal Pack After Vaginal Prolapse Surgery: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

After vaginal pelvic organ prolapse (POP) surgery a vaginal pack and indwelling bladder catheter are inserted to reduce blood loss and bladder overdistension. The ideal timing of removal remains unclear. In this study we compared removal of vaginal pack and indwelling catheter 3 h post-surgery with removal the next day. This retrospective cohort study performed in the Netherlands included patients undergoing POP surgery between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2020. Patients in whom the vaginal pack and catheter were removed the day after surgery (group A) were compared with patients in which the vaginal pack and catheter were removed 3h post-surgery (group B). Both groups were compared regarding urinary retention and the need for re-intervention owing to active blood loss within 6weeks postoperatively. Baseline characteristics, such as age, type of operation and type of anaesthesia in group A (n = 280) and group B (n = 207) were comparable. No significant differences were found regarding complications such as urinary retention (17.2 versus 23.2%; p = 0.255). The rates of re-intervention because of active blood loss and occurrence of infection were also comparable. Removal of the indwelling catheter and vaginal pack 3h after vaginal POP surgery does not lead to more postoperative complications than removal the 1st day after surgery. Therefore, early removal is a feasible and safe alternative to the standard timing of removal the morning after surgery of women undergoing POP surgery. In the future this could help with introducing same-day discharge.

Circadian serum progesterone variations on the day of frozen embryo transfer in a modified natural cycle protocol.

Is there a circadian variation of serum progesterone (P) on the day of frozen embryo transfer (FET) in a modified natural cycle (mNC)? There is a statistically significant diurnal variation of serum P on the day of a FET in an mNC protocol. In recent years, the proportion of FET cycles has increased dramatically. To further optimize pregnancy outcomes after FET, recent studies have focused on serum luteal P levels in both natural and artificially prepared FET cycles. Despite the different cut-off values proposed to define low serum P in the NC, it is generally accepted that lower serum P values (<10 ng/ml) around the day of FET are associated with negative reproductive outcomes. However, a single serum P measurement is not reliable given that P levels are prone to diurnal fluctuations and are impacted by patients' characteristics. A prospective cohort study was conducted in a single university-affiliated fertility center, including 22 patients performing a single blastocyst mNC-FET from August 2022 to August 2023. Serum P levels were measured on the day of transfer at 08:00h, 12:00h, 16:00h, and 20:00h. Differences between P levels were compared using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The sample size was calculated to detect a difference of 15% between the first and last P measurements with a 5% false-positive rate and a 95% CI. Patients with a normal BMI, between 18 and 40 years old, without uterine diseases were eligible. Patients utilizing donated oocytes were excluded. The mNC-FET protocol involved monitoring the normal ovarian cycle and triggering ovulation with an injection of 250 μg of choriogonadotropin alfa when a pre-ovulatory follicle (16-20 mm diameter) was visualized. The blastocyst was transferred seven days later. The patients were not supplemented with exogenous P at any time before the day of the FET. The mean age and BMI of the study population were 33.6 ± 3.8 years and 22.7 ± 1.8 kg/m2, respectively. Mean P values at 08:00h, 12:00h, 16:00h, and 20:00h were 14.6 ± 4.5, 14.7 ± 4.1, 12.9 ± 3.5, and 14.6 ± 4.3 ng/ml, respectively. The mean P levels at 16:00h were significantly lower compared to all other time points (P < 0.05: P = 0.007 between P at 8:00h and 16:00h; P = 0.003 between P at 12:00h and 16:00h; P = 0.007 between P at 16:00h and 20:00h). No statistically significant difference was observed between P values at the other time points (P > 0.05: P = 0.88 between P at 8:00h and 12:00h; P = 0.96 between P at 8:00h and 20:00h; P = 0.83 between P at 12:00h and 20:00h). The study's limitations include the small sample size that may cause a bias when the results are extrapolated to a larger subfertile population undergoing mNC-FET. Ideally, larger prospective trials including a more heterogeneous patient population would be necessary to validate our findings. The current study demonstrates the existence of a diurnal fluctuation of serum P on the day of mNC-FET highlighting the importance of a standardized time point for its measurement. This is especially important for considering clinical actions, such as additional exogenous P supplementation, when encountering P values lower than 10 ng/ml on the day of FET. No funding was obtained for the study. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare regarding the content of the study. NCT05511272.

Optimization of parameters affecting the recovery in the analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in natural waters by HPLC-fluorescence

To improve the recovery percentages in the analysis of PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) in natural waters, parameters such as standard stability, filtration, storage time and matrix effect were optimized for five PAH by HPLC-FD. For aqueous standards, with the addition of 10% acetonitrile, good linearity was found for naphthalene, acenaphthene, anthracene, pyrene, and chrysene curves up to the second day of standards preparation. In filtration, the best results were obtained using the AP10 and Nylon filters with 10% acetonitrile, with recovery ranges of 98-72% and 93-56%, respectively. In contrast, lower values were obtained with cellulose filters in a polyethylene holder without the addition of 10% acetonitrile with recoveries of 52-0%. A 23 factorial design established, for natural water, that the most important factors were: storage time for naphthalene and acenaphthene, with area losses at 48 hours and the use of organic solvent for anthracene, pyrene and chrysene, with area gain for 20 % acetonitrile. For liquid-liquid extraction in standards, recoveries of 62-45% were found in aqueous matrix without acetonitrile and 98-35% with 20% acetonitrile + 2.5% NaCl, at 24 hours of preparation.

Teaching Eye Tracking: Challenges and Perspectives

Eye tracking studies are more complicated to design, conduct, and to evaluate than traditional studies solely based on performance measures like error rates and response times. This is typically due to the more complex hardware setup, the calibration procedures, and the spatio-temporal nature of the recorded data that must be analyzed, visualized, or statistically evaluated. As a benefit, eye movement data contains patterns of visual attention over space and time that are not observable in standard error rates, completion times, and qualitative feedback. Students in the field of visualization, human-computer interaction, and user experience represent an interest group that would benefit from the application of eye tracking during their studies and in their future careers. Consequently, instructing them how to design, setup, conduct, and evaluate an eye tracking study is of special interest to current researchers involved in teaching. We describe education in eye tracking in five courses with 79 students from bachelor, master, and PhD levels. We outline our concept and discuss the challenges to raise people with no experience in eye tracking to a level of knowledge that allows them to apply this emerging technology to different scenarios including visual stimuli and related research questions. We discuss our teaching strategy in two course setups (summer school and traditional university lecture), the results of the students' eye tracking studies, and which challenges they and the teachers faced during the course.

Implementation of Label Cutting Workstations Improvement in The Jago Jaya Shuttlecock Industry to Increase Productivity Based on Ergonomic Aspects

Jago Jaya Shuttlecock Industry is an MSME in Jagalan, Surakarta, that produces shuttlecocks. Based on these conditions, a study was conducted in 2020 by Sherlinta Kaban, which produced a label cutting tool tested on a label cutting workstation. However, in the trial, there are several obstacles found in using the label cutting tool, so follow-up study to analyze and improve the label cutting tools in previous studies to produce a new design that can be re-implemented. Ergonomics aspects used in this study are analysis of work posture using REBA, measurement of standard time with Westinghouse adjustments, the study of left and right-hand map movements, and tool redesign using the Reverse Engineering method. The improvements include implementing a new label cutting tool that can improve the operator's work posture, reduce standard time, increase the number of standard outputs, and improve operator hand movements to increase productivity at label cutting work stations.

Implementation and testing of single point positioning on IRNSS/NavIC receiver data

SummaryIndia has developed its own regional navigation satellite system called the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), also known as Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC). IRNSS/NavIC provides standard positioning and timing services for civilians and restricted services for authorized users. In this paper, single point positioning is implemented on the NavIC receiver data. Estimation techniques of the least squares method and extended Kalman filter are implemented after applying broadcast‐based clock corrections, orbit computation, relative time correction, and ionosphere delay correction for single and dual frequency. A data extraction and storage module is developed to store computed parameters at every intermediate stage in separate files. This is followed by an error plotter module to plot the extracted parameters for each satellite and to separately analyze their performance and the obtained errors. The estimated receiver position is visualized on Google Earth. The absolute error in both estimation techniques ranges between 5 and 15 m throughout the period.

Allopregnanolone in the peripartum: Correlates, concentrations, and challenges – A systematic review

BackgroundAllopregnanolone (ALLO) is a metabolite of progesterone and a neuroactive steroid hormone. As a positive allosteric modulator of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors, ALLO seems to have antidepressant and anxiolytic effects, and was therefore approved as a specific medication for the treatment of postpartum depression in 2019. Despite the growing number of publications investigating ALLO levels, results on the biological and psychological correlates in the peripartum period remain inconsistent, possibly due to methodological challenges regarding measurement. To date, however, there is no systematic review examining the correlates, concentrations, and challenges in measuring ALLO in peripartum women. MethodA systematic literature search of PubMed and PsycINFO was conducted in August 2023. Original research articles that measured ALLO concentrations in peripartum women were included. Reports were excluded if they were not original research, included non-human subjects, did not include peripartum women, did not include ALLO measurement as an outcome, included (pharmacological) interventions, constituted method validations, or used the same cohort as another study. ResultsThe literature search yielded 234 articles, and two articles were identified from other sources. After full-text screening, 19 articles (N = 1401) met the inclusion criteria, of which seven focused on biological correlates of ALLO and 12 on mood correlates. Of the latter, six found no association between ALLO and mood, four found a negative association, and two found a positive association. Overall, the results show an increase in ALLO levels during pregnancy and a decrease after birth, with levels then remaining low until six months postpartum. ALLO was most commonly measured in blood plasma and by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). A significant matrix effect was found for blood serum and a significant method effect for radioimmunoassays (RIAs). A significant effect of time of measurement was found. ConclusionALLO measurement shows method and matrix effects. ALLO levels are higher when measured in serum compared to in plasma, and when measured using RIA compared to other methods. Time of measurement, study design, and standardization of measurement also influence the reliability of measurement and the interpretation of results.