Unreliable Information Research Articles

‘The witness is lying!’: the impact of a defendant countering a jailhouse informant’s testimony

ABSTRACT The present study investigated the impact of a defendant explicitly countering the claim of a jailhouse informant that the defendant confessed to a murder. Jury-eligible community members (N = 127) recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk read (via Qualtrics) a fictional trial summary in which a defendant was accused of murder. The trial was presented in one of four conditions: jailhouse informant only, defendant explicitly countered the jailhouse informant’s testimony (said he did not talk to the jailhouse informant or they talked but not about the case), defendant testified but did not explicitly counter the jailhouse informant’s testimony (simply said he was innocent), and no jailhouse informant testimony. As predicted, when the defendant explicitly countered the jailhouse informant’s testimony the number of guilty verdicts was lower than that when the jailhouse informant only testified. In addition, there was significant mediation, such that explicitly countering the jailhouse informant led to lower jailhouse informant credibility and fewer guilty verdicts. Finally, cognitive network analyses showed that countering the jailhouse informant’s testimony was critical to participants representing the jailhouse informant’s testimony in a negative light. We discuss these results in terms of the importance of countering what is often unreliable jailhouse informant testimony.

COVID-19, Medical Care, and Data Sovereignty

Abstract During the COVID-19 pandemic, Native American communities were not only heavily impacted by the virus but other socioeconomic factors as well. The Navajo Nation was at the forefront, setting an example for the United States and general public on establishing policies and ground efforts to minimize the spread of the virus through Navajo land. However, as the virus spread, it also revealed the interconnectedness surrounding Indigenous communities and Indigenous women. Through the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Movement, researchers found a lack of data as reports present unreliable and underreported information involving racial misclassification and data genocide. Data regarding Indigenous community COVID-19 statistics reflect historical trauma, especially in the exclusion of Indigenous communities from data sets and analyses used to make health policy decisions. I conclude this article by emphasizing the necessity of including Indigenous sovereign bodies in the dispersal of gathered data sets and establishing an amicable relationship promoting the well-being of Indigenous communities between social scientists and Native communities.

Respiratory symptoms of Swiss people with primary ciliary dyskinesia.

BackgroundMostly derived from chart reviews, where symptoms are recorded in a nonstandardised manner, clinical data about primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) are inconsistent, which leads to missing and unreliable information. We assessed the prevalence and frequency of respiratory and ear symptoms and studied differences by age and sex among an unselected population of Swiss people with PCD.MethodsWe sent a questionnaire that included items from the FOLLOW-PCD standardised questionnaire to all Swiss PCD registry participants.ResultsWe received questionnaires from 74 (86%) out of 86 invited persons or their caregivers (median age 23 years, range 3–73 years), including 68% adults (≥18 years) and 51% females. Among participants, 70 (94%) reported chronic nasal symptoms; most frequently runny nose (65%), blocked nose (55%) or anosmia (38%). Ear pain and hearing problems were reported by 58% of the participants. Almost all (99%) reported cough and sputum production. The most common chronic cough complications were gastro-oesophageal reflux (n=11; 15%), vomiting (n=8; 11%) and urinary incontinence (n=6; 8%). Only nine (12%) participants reported frequent wheeze, which occurred mainly during infection or exercise, while 49 (66%) reported shortness of breath, and 9% even at rest or during daily activities. Older patients reported more frequent nasal symptoms and shortness of breath. We found no difference by sex or ultrastructural ciliary defect.ConclusionThis is the first study to describe patient-reported PCD symptoms. The consistent collection of standardised clinical data will allow us to better characterise the phenotypic variability of the disease and study disease course and prognosis.

Professionalism: COVID-19 made me do it!

COVID-19 pandemic has created profound ethical challenges, not only for clinical decision-making but also for defining physician professional conduct. Multiple ethical questions arose as the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged globally, including physician obligations in a pandemic, allotment of personal protective equipment, care of unvaccinated patients, discern between evidence-based and unreliable information, addressing end-of-life wishes, implications of involving medical students in a public health crisis, and finally physician burnout aggravated by a pandemic. There is a need to redefine existing medical professionalism standards so that future healthcare professionals are well prepared to deal with similar public health crisis.

Cross-sectional and comparative analysis of videos on erectile dysfunction treatment on YouTube and TikTok.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of information regarding erectile dysfunction (ED) treatment on YouTube and TikTok. The term "erectile dysfunction" was searched on YouTube and TikTok in July 2021. The first 50 videos on each platform that met inclusion were included. Videos were sorted as reliable or unreliable based on accuracy of video content. Quality of information was evaluated using Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT) and 5-point modified DISCERN. TikTok videos were shorter (0.4minutes vs. 5.2minutes, p<0.001) and had more likes (2294 vs. 1000, p=0.005), views per month (17,281 vs. 3521, p<0.001) and subscribers/followers (97,500 vs. 23,000, p=0.016) than YouTube videos. TikTok videos were less reliable than YouTube videos (TikTok 5/50 [10%] vs. YouTube 21/50 [42%], p<0.001). YouTube mentioned more about phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (32% vs. 10%, p=0.007), while TikTok mentioned more about alternative supplements (36% vs. 4%, p<0.001). YouTube had a higher DISCERN (1.99 vs. 0.98, p<0.001) and PEMAT actionability scores (64.2% vs. 54.0%, p=0.039) when compared to TikTok. YouTube videos were of higher quality than TikTok videos. Nevertheless, YouTube had a considerable amount of unreliable information. We recommend a collaborative effort from the medical community to improve information regarding ED treatment on YouTube and TikTok.

The concept of deliberately unreliable information disseminated under the guise of reliable communications in law

The article raises the problem of the content of the concept of deliberately unreliable information disseminated under the guise of reliable messages, applied in the norms of administrative law establishing responsibility for the illegal dissemination of various types of socially significant information. By a detailed analysis of the elements that make up the studied concept, its meaning is revealed. The author analyzes the main theoretical approaches to the content of these elements in various branches of legal science. The article outlines the problems of applying the norms of administrative law that establish responsibility for the illegal dissemination of various types of socially significant information. These problems are related to the lack of a legal definition of the concept of deliberately unreliable information distributed under the guise of reliable messages. The author has established the absence in science and judicial practice of a unified approach to the content of the sign of obviously unreliable information disseminated under the guise of reliable messages. The author distinguishes the concept of obviously unreliable information from other related categories. Conclusions are formulated about the need to disclose in the law the content of the concept of unreliable information, which is a fundamental element of administrative offenses that establish responsibility for the illegal dissemination of various types of socially significant information, as well as the need to fix in the law the content of the construction "obviously unreliable information disseminated under the guise of reliable messages". The article presents the author's approach to the formulation of the content of the concept of deliberately unreliable information disseminated under the guise of reliable messages.

Predicting Dishonesty When the Stakes Are High: Physiologic Responses During Face-to-Face Interactions Identifies Who Reneges on Promises to Cooperate.

Trust is risky. The mere perception of strategically deceptive behavior that disguises intent or conveys unreliable information can inhibit cooperation. As gregariously social creatures, human beings would have evolved physiologic mechanisms to identify likely defectors in cooperative tasks, though these mechanisms may not cross into conscious awareness. We examined trust and trustworthiness in an ecological valid manner by (i) studying working-age adults, (ii) who make decisions with meaningful stakes, and (iii) permitting participants to discuss their intentions face-to-face prior to making private decisions. In order to identify why people fulfill or renege on their commitments, we measured neurophysiologic responses in blood and with electrodermal activity while participants interacted. Participants (mean age 32) made decisions in a trust game in which they could earn up to $530. Nearly all interactions produced promises to cooperate, although first decision-makers in the trust game reneged on 30.7% of their promises while second decision-makers reneged on 28%. First decision-makers who reneged on a promise had elevated physiologic stress using two measures (the change in adrenocorticotropin hormone and the change in skin conductance levels) during pre-decision communication compared to those who fulfilled their promises and had increased negative affect after their decisions. Neurophysiologic reactivity predicted who would cooperate or defect with 86% accuracy. While self-serving behavior is not rare, those who exhibit it are stressed and unhappy.

Data mining applications in university information management system development

Abstract Nowadays, the modern management is promoted to resolve the issue of unreliable information transmission and to provide work efficiency. The basic aim of the modern management is to be more effective in the role of the school to train talents and serve the society. This article focuses on the application of data mining (DM) in the development of information management system (IMS) in universities and colleges. DM provides powerful approaches for a variety of educational areas. Due to the large amount of student information that can be used to design valuable patterns relevant to student learning behavior, research in the field of education is continuously expanding. Educational data mining can be used by educational institutions to assess student performance, assisting the institution in recognizing the student’s accomplishments. In DM, classification is a well-known technique that has been regularly used to determine student achievement. In this study, the process of DM and the application research of association rules is introduced in the development of IMS in universities and colleges. The results show that the curriculum covers the whole field and the minimum transaction support count be 2, minconf = 70%. The results also suggested that students who choose one course also tend to choose the other course. The application of DM theory in university information will greatly upsurge the data analysis capability of administrators and improve the management level.

The effects of web-based inquiry learning mode with the support of collaborative digital reading annotation system on information literacy instruction

Past studies have indicated that primary schools' students have difficulty in filtering out incorrect or unreliable information from the Internet when facing a large amount of information due to the lack of basic digital literacy and sensitivity. Therefore, the establishment of a mechanism for information judgment and evaluation to promote primary schools' students digital reading skills and information literacy has become a more and more important research issue in recent years. This study thus developed a web-based inquiry learning mode with collaborative digital reading annotation system support (WILM-CDRASS) aiming to provide innovative teaching mode of effectively enhancing information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students. A quasi-experimental design was conducted in this study to examine the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of using WILM-CDRASS to enhance information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students compared to a web-based inquiry learning mode with general discussion board support (WILM-GDBS). A total of 50 Grade 5 students from two classes of an elementary school in New Taipei City of Taiwan participated in a collaborative inquiry-based learning course, “Internet information judgment and evaluation,” in this study. A total of 25 students from a class was assigned as the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS to enhance their information evaluation abilities, and a total of 25 students from the remaining class was assigned as the control group using WILM-GDBS. The learning outcomes of WILM-CDRASS and WILM-GDBS in the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance were also compared between students with different prior knowledge levels and cognitive styles from both groups. The analytical results revealed that the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of learners in the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS for an information literacy course are significantly superior to those of learners in the control group using WILM-GDBS. The research findings also showed that the use of WILM-CDRASS was more beneficial to the students with low prior knowledge and field-independent cognitive style than those of using WILM-GDBS. As for technology acceptance, students with low prior knowledge perceived the use of WILM-CDRASS more helpful than WILM-GDBS for their learning. Based on the research results, several suggestions for the implementation of WILM-CDRASS to support information literacy courses were proposed. Besides, it is suggested to investigate students' effective learning behaviors and the relationship between the learning behaviors and learning performance in inquiry-based information literacy courses with WILM-CDRASS support in future study.

The cognitive discourse analysis of evidentiality category in Russian exclamatory sentences

The aims of the article are to examine the meanings of indirect evidentiality: inference, goal, desire and to search the manifestation of direct evidentiality in Russian exclamatory sentences. We attempt to prove that this category of evidentiality can be found in exclamatory sentences to express the speaker’s emotional attitude to the described situation, and, also, by using the cognitive discourse analysis, we are going to search the ways of realization of the speaker’s and his interlocutor’s intentions in any statement. In our study we analyzed the exclamatory sentences containing certain lexical or grammatical language tools used to express the meanings of direct and indirect evidentiality. The relevance of this work is determined by the necessity of studying the reliable and unreliable sources of information expressed in Russian exclamatory sentences. By means of cognitive discourse analysis, we revealed that the availability of some of introductory words, particles, exclamatory pronouns and etc. according to the context, can contextually point to the personal experience of the speaker or to the unreliable and incomplete information he gets. In these situations the subject of the speech act in relation to what he sees or hears, renders feelings of wonder, happiness and sadness.

Investigation of Blockchain Technology by Using the Innovative Concepts of Complex Pythagorean Fuzzy Soft Information

A blockchain is a valuable and proficient type of digital ledger technology that involves of expanding list of records, called blocks, that are strongly connected simultaneously using cryptography. Further, complex Pythagorean fuzzy sets (CPFSs) are the generalized form of the intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IFSs), Pythagorean fuzzy sets (PyFSs), and complex intuitionistic fuzzy sets (CIFSs), used for evaluating the awkward and unreliable information in genuine life problems. In this analysis, we aim to diagnose the innovative idea of complex Pythagorean fuzzy soft relations (CPyFSRs) by using the Cartesian product (CP) of two complex Pythagorean fuzzy soft sets (CPyFSSs), which are computed with the help of two different ideas, called complex Pythagorean fuzzy relation and soft sets. Additionally, using the presented approaches, we examined different kinds of relations and also justified them with the help of some suitable examples. The CPyFSRs has a comprehensive structure because it is discussing both degrees of membership and non‐membership with multidimensional variable. Further, includes the CPyFSR‐based modeling techniques that use the score function to choose the best blockchain technology (BCT) to enhance the worth of the evaluated information. Using a good BCT, the transaction may be simply transferred record between users. Finally, the benefit of this proposed framework is demonstrated by comparing it to other frameworks to show the supremacy and feasibility of the diagnosed approaches.

ДЕЗІНФОРМАЦІЯ: ПОНЯТТЯ ТА СУТНІСТЬ

The purpose of the study is to clarify the essence of disinformation as a threat to the rights and legitimate interests of a person, society, and the state, to identify its main features, and to formulate a clear definition of this concept. Methods. To achieve this goal, the following methods were used: analysis, synthesis, comparative law, abstraction, and generalization. Results. Different approaches to the definition of “disinformation” are considered. The main features of this phenomenon are singled out and generalized. The difference between the terms “disinformation”, “unreliable information” and “misinformation” is established. It is determined that the obligatory signs of disinformation are: intent to create, modify, and/or disseminate inaccurate information, intent to mislead, pre-determined purpose, and violation or the possibility of violation of legal rights and interests of a person or state as a result of such activities. The own approach to the understanding of disinformation in a narrow and wide sense is formulated. It is proposed to enshrine at the legal level the definition of this concept as a purposeful process of creating, modifying, and disseminating information, both inaccurate and reliable, to mislead individuals (groups of persons) to achieve political, economic, or ideological goals, which violate or human and civil rights and/or society and the state may be violated, and take it as a basis for the activities of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation and other public authorities in the performance of tasks related to counteracting and preventing the negative consequences of disinformation. Conclusions. In the digital age, disinformation has reached a “new level” and has certainly become one of the main challenges for both individual, states and the entire international community. Therefore, the development of legal mechanisms to combat this phenomenon has become more urgent than ever. In Ukraine, there is an understanding of the danger of this phenomenon, as evidenced by the definition of disinformation as one of the challenges and threats to national interests at the level of strategic regulations and the creation of a special working body of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine – Disinformation Center. At the same time, there is no definition of “disinformation” in national legislation. The key to the effective implementation of information policy to prevent and counteract the negative consequences of disinformation, protection of national security and interests in the information sphere, and the activities of the Center for Countering Disinformation is to consolidate the concept of “disinformation” at the regulatory level.

The usefulness of a checklist approach-based confirmation scheme in identifying unreliable COVID-19-related health information: a case study in Japan

Consumers are increasingly able to easily access health information online about food products. However, consumers have difficulty identifying reliable health information from diverse sources along with information about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic because the inundation of information (both true and false) overwhelm consumers. We investigated the usefulness of a checklist confirmation scheme for identifying unreliable COVID-19-related health information. Data were collected from June 30–July 1, 2021. First, we measured 700 participants’ baseline health literacy levels by having them read unreliable health information about the efficacy of green tea intake in preventing COVID-19 based on the results of animal experimentation. Second, participants read an explanation with a five-step flowchart of how to identify reliable health information. Thereafter, we remeasured participants’ health literacy levels. To identify the factors hindering the effect of the confirmation scheme, a logistic regression analysis was performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Overall, 77.9% (293/376) of those with low health literacy levels at baseline still had low literacy after the intervention. The factor that hindered the confirmation scheme’s usefulness was benefit perceptions of food ingredients (OR: 0.493; 95% CI: 0.252–0.966). Consumers with higher benefit perceptions of a target product faced more difficulties using the confirmation scheme effectively. Therefore, the most effective strategies involve filtering information at the organizational level rather than the individual level, which should help consumers correctly identify misinformation concerning food and health and promote accurate decision-making.

Исследование временных характеристик аварийных ситуаций в угольных шахтах

The problems directly related to ensuring safety of work in the coal mines are considered. Statistical, technical, and expert analyses was carried out using available research data on the causes and conditions of various underground accidents (methane and coal dust explosions, blockages and collapses, endogenous fires, etc.) at the coal mines in Russia and other coal-producing countries over the past 15 years. The results of studies of natural, technical, and organizational factors of accidents showed that there is a tendency to preserving their number. Possible reasons for a rather high accident rate in the mines, including fatal injuries to personnel, are as follows: insufficient time reserve to escape from the accidents, which, moreover, is not used to the full extent by the mine personnel and management dealing with safety issues during accidents; decisions on establishing the nature and causes of accidents are made on the basis of unreliable information; the development of accidents is influenced by the uncontrollable and beyond control factors. Temporary model of the accident development is proposed. In six different accidents, the structural pattern is established, which is expressed as a golden wurf. This fact shows that there is an optimal dependence between the available time margin and the time to recover from an accident of any complexity. Natural, technical, and organizational factors influencing the margin of time for recovery from the accidents are considered. The importance is shown concerning careful filtration of the digital and voice messages content for the mine personnel when analyzing accidents. The concept of filtration procedure is formulated.

МЕТОД ПОВЫШЕНИЯ ИНФОРМАЦИОННОЙ БЕЗОПАСНОСТИ ОРГАНИЗАЦИОННЫХ СИСТЕМ

Introduction. In modern conditions, there is a widespread intro duction of digital information technologies into all spheres of society and, as a result, into organizational systems. In order to analyze incoming information and respond to unreliable information in a timely manner, it requires the use of a large number of capacities, both informational and technical, and the use of information technologies. The article proposes a method of interaction of technical support and personnel of the organizational system. The proposed method helps to overcome the negative effects of information. The article formulates recommendations for countering emerging threats in the system. In the process of functioning of complex systems, web technologies and other software modules are introduced, which are involved in the process of managing them in order to achieve the management goal, through information flows and processes involving technical means that directly affect the management process of the system in question. In such systems, the importance is given to the rapid interaction of human and technical means for timely finding weaknesses and timely decision making for preventive measures. The issue of interaction with the available reserves of the decision maker is being considered. Results. The research method is proposed in the form of a network model and is part of an integrated approach that should be used to counter emerging issues in the management system. To solve the management issue, it is proposed to use modeling methods as part of a set of measures aimed at implementing the regular operation of the system.

Assessment of factors influencing vaccine hesitancy for coronavirus disease-19 vaccines among the population of National Capital Region, India

Background: Acceptance of vaccine for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among general population is the most important step in combating coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In India, there is a lack of studies that recorded and assess the factors affecting the motivation of general public toward vaccination against COVID-19. Aim and Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the acceptance and/or hesitancy about the COVID-19 vaccine and the association of various demographic indicators in the population of the National Capital Region, India. Material and Methods: Cross-sectional study was conducted between March 15, 2021 and April 15, 2021, using pre-validated questionnaire containing 20 items. Data obtained was analyzed using the Microsoft excel platform using descriptive statistics. Results: Majority of 438 (45.5%) participants in our study agreed that the COVID-19 vaccine is important for their health. In this study, 323 participants said “yes,” 179 said “No,” 201 (20.9%) said “May be” regarding the key question about opinion of getting COVID-19 vaccination. About 395 (40.9%) agreed that they have concerns about the serious adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccines. A considerable portion of 316 (32.89%) of participants also thought newer vaccines carry more risks. Substantial population 286 (29.6%) also thinks the current COVID-19 vaccines are not useful against all existing variants of the CoV-2 virus. Conclusion: Vaccine hesitancy in this study reflects the concerns about the serious adverse effects, exposure to unreliable information, and probes towards vaccine infectiveness. Dissemination of the evidence-based information about the necessity, effectiveness, and safety of COVID-19 vaccines is required to enable the general population to make the right informed decision.

Rzetelność zawodowa dziennikarza a bezprawność

Despite a difference in opinions held by the jurisdiction and the doctrine, the criterion of special care and reliability should be recognized as one of the circumstances resulting in finding a journalist’s activity lawful or unlawful. We could support the opinion according to which failure to maintain special care belongs to the sphere of unlawfulness (not guilt) since a valid legal system obliges a journalist to act with particularly special care. It is ofmost importance to create some rules of conduct, objective criteria, and more or less precise model of a journalist’s profession. By far a point of reference is necessary which would serve as a comparative scale for those accused of violation so that they could be formally charged. An action will be found blameworthy if a required level of care has not beenmaintained. If a journalist observed the rules of special care while collecting, verifying and publishing information, even though their conduct violated personal interests of a person described in the publication, such conduct will not be considered unlawful. A model of careful and diligent action is formulated by legal provisions, decorum or deontological principles. Journalists are required to be better prepared for their duties, which include not only proving subjective circumstances but also showing objective elements according to which someone’s behavior was consistent with the state of special knowledge and life experience. Such a person is obliged to constantly broaden their knowledge and professional skills. Journalists are obliged to perform all possible actions requiring specialist professional qualifications connected with seeking the truth reliably and conscientiously, with due criticism and care of details. Journalists may not disseminate false, unreliable or unverified information; otherwise their actions will be consider edunlawful. A duty of reliability means the obligation to seek for the truth and rational argumentation while making a negative evaluation. The above actions generally refer to the factual and legal state as well as the form of working. Remissness of due care and professional reliability may constitute the grounds for professional or civil liability (including criminal liability). The introduction of this requirement, which results from a journalist duty to seek for the truth, is justified by the protection of the object of special importance, which personal interests undeniably are. The obligation to maintain special care generally takes effect in truthfulness of presented facts. If the news appeared to be false, there is a possibility of applying a circumstance excluding liability if a journalist proved that in that case he had verified the authenticity of the news which was published. Thus liability is avoided and the proof of the news’ authenticity is replaced by the duty of its thorough verification, i.e. maintenance of the rule of special care. The resolution of the Supreme Court of 18th February 2005, which was criticized by the doctrine, abandoned a theory according to which an “objectively untrue” statement is unlawful. Nevertheless, this attitude is in line with the European Court of Human Rights’ way of thinking. Maintenance of special care and reliability while collecting and using press materials by journalists (Art. 12 par. 1 of the media law) excludes the feature of unlawfulness of a journalist action. Moreover, it should be noticed that proving that charges are right is not always a necessary and independent prerequisite to exclude liability of a person violating personal interests (e.g. in the sphere of privacy).

Barriers to Institutional Investment in Rental Housing: A Systematic Review of Market Risks

Housing practitioners and policy experts are advocating for an expansion in rental housing supply in contemporary cities around the world. The objective is to convince institutional investors to include rental housing investment in their investment portfolio to contribute to boosting housing supply. Unfortunately, the rental sector is characterized by numerous uncertainties and challenges, making it unattractive to institutional investors. With the growing attention to institutional investors in various housing market contexts, an understanding of the market risks (also known as barriers), is useful to inform future research and policymaking. Using a systematic literature review methodology, this paper synthesizes the extant literature on the market risks inhibiting institutional investment in rental housing. Findings reveal the following barriers: low profitability, non-progressive rent control policies, unclear target group for rented projects, poor landlord-tenant relations, inadequate property management and unreliable property market information. Among all the barriers identified, low profitability and inadequate property management had great influence on their investment decision. Firstly, institutional investors perceive rental housing investment as less profitable and unattractive in terms of project performance. Secondly, the lack of supporting structures for the property management sector contributes to derailing rental yields. The review also finds that the target group for rental projects are often vague especially for projects under government assistance. The rental sectors in many countries are confronted with numerous problems, some of which greatly inhibit institutional investors from investing in the rental asset. This paper concludes that, although the idea of expanding rental housing supply seems laudable, ignoring these problems may be detrimental to housing markets in the long run. Rental markets in many countries are volatile, and thus not ready to receive institutional investors fully into the sector. An expanded rental sector could be advanced if policy makers take the appropriate steps to resolve the identified challenges. Adequate structural preparations must also be made for large scale rental housing supply.

Joint image denoising with gradient direction and edge-preserving regularization

Joint image denoising algorithms use the structures of the guidance image as a prior to restore the noisy target image. While the provided guidance images are helpful to improve the denoising performance, the denoised edges are most likely to be blurred especially when the edges of the guidance image are weak or inexistent. To address this weakness, this paper proposes a new gradient-direction-based joint image denoising method in which the absolute cosine value of the angle between two gradient vectors of the guidance image and those of the image to recover is employed as the parallel measurement to ensure that the gradient directions of the denoised image are approximately the same as or opposite to those of the guidance image. Besides, a new edge-preserving regularization term is developed to alleviate the effects of the unreliable prior information from guidance image. To simplify the resultant complex nonconvex and nonlinear fractional model, the logarithm function is employed to convert the multiplication operation into addition operation. Then, we construct the surrogate function for the logarithmic term of l2-norm, and separate the variables to transform the objective function into convex one with high numerical stability while retaining high efficiency. Finally, the optimal solutions can be obtained by directly minimizing the convex functions. Experimental results on public datasets and from nine benchmark methods consistently demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method both visually and quantitatively.

Online urological educational material for medical students: can search engines be trusted?

To determine the credibility of online urological information that medical students are likely to encounter, determine possible discrepancies between the credibility of information pertaining to different areas within urology (especially those less relevant to patients), and assess trends in the sponsorship of online urological educational material. Health on the Net (HON) principles were used as a validated benchmark to assess the reliability of websites that appeared in the first 150 results of a search using the Google search engine. A variety of urological search terms were used, grouped into three broad categories with varying relevance to patients and medical students. Further analysis focussed on the sponsorship of assessed websites. A total of 5400 websites were assessed for validation over a set of 36 search terms. Only 843/5400 (15.6%) of these were HONcode accredited, indicating a large proportion of unverified and potentially unreliable information. Search engine rankings usually favoured accredited websites (P = 0.009), and accreditation peaked at 51.1% (184/360) in the first page of results, but sorting became weaker outside the highest search results. The percentage of accredited websites varied significantly between different subcategories of search terms such as conditions (18.3% [329/1800], P = 0.003) and procedures (13.5% [243/1800], P = 0.043). Governmental/educational and commercial sources supported the majority of websites assessed for sponsorship (21% [31/150] and 33% [49/150], respectively), and the former were more likely to rank highly in search results. Online urological information frequently lacks validation and is often of indeterminate credibility. There is a marked decrease in the proportion of accredited websites beyond the highest-ranked results and when considering search categories more relevant to students and less relevant to patients. Students cannot necessarily rely on free online sources for accurate information and could benefit from the development of more rigorous novel tools and platforms.