Digital Commons Network^™

Editorial: Bacteriocins And Other Ribosomally Synthesised And Post-Translationally Modified Peptides (Ripps) As Modulators Of The Microbiome, Harsh Mathur, Des Field, Caitriona Guinane, Maire Begley, Mathew Upton, Hilario C. Mantovani, Paul D. Cotter

School of Biomedical Sciences

No abstract provided.

Perioperative Oxygenation—What's The Stress?, Joseph Larvin, Mark Edwards, Daniel S. Martin, Martin Feelisch, Michael P.W. Grocott, Andrew F. Cumpstey

Peninsula Medical School

Oxygen is the most used drug in anaesthesia. Despite such widespread use, optimal perioperative oxygen administration remains highly controversial because of concerns about the competing harms of both hyperoxia and hypoxia. Notwithstanding a Cochrane review concluding that routinely administering a fractional inspired oxygen concentration (FiO₂) >0.6 intraoperatively might increase postoperative morbidity and mortality, the World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends all anaesthetised patients receive 0.8 FiO₂ during and immediately after surgery to reduce surgical site infections. Results from the largest trial available at the time of these two reviews (suggesting long-term survival may be worse with high …

Protecting The Mental Health Of People Seeking Sanctuary In The Uk's Evolving Legislative Landscape, Rohit Shankar

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

Facial First Impressions Following A Prison Sentence: Negative Shift In Trait Ratings But The Same Underlying Structure, Coral M. Coutts, Chris Longmore, Mila Mileva

School of Psychology

The first impressions we form of unfamiliar others can often guide many important decisions such as whether someone is guilty of a crime or the severity of their sentence, even in the presence of more relevant information. While most of the current work in this context has focused on their impact during trial proceedings and sentencing, little is known about the potential impact of first impressions following a guilty sentence and the success of the subsequent reintegration into society. Here, we used a data-driven approach to address this question by first collecting unconstrained spontaneous impressions from two groups of perceivers …

A Global Systematic Review Of The Cultural Ecosystem Services Provided By Wetlands, Kevin A. Wood, Lucy L. Jupe, Francisca C. Aguiar, Alexandra M. Collins, Scott J. Davidson, Will Freeman, Liam Kirkpatrick, Tatiana Lobato-De Magalhães, Emma Mckinley, Ana Nuno, Jordi F. Pagès, Antonella Petruzzella, Dave Pritchard, Jonathan P. Reeves, Sidinei Magela Thomaz, Sara A. Thornton, Hiromi Yamashita, Julia L. Newth

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Wetlands make a disproportionately large contribution to global biodiversity and provide critical ecosystem services for humanity. Yet, our understanding of the cultural ecosystem services (CES) provided by wetlands remains limited, with benefits often only recognised at local scales. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a global systematic review of wetland CES. Our synthesis addressed key questions related to the provision of CES by different types of wetlands, their economic value, their co-occurrence and associations with other ecosystem services, threats to the provision of CES by wetlands, as well as the availability and use of CES information. Based on 861 …

Aesthetic Experience Of Metabolic Processes: By Desiree Förster, Hannah Drayson

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

Creatures Who Advocate: An Ecocritical Reading Of Jubilate Agno, Min Wild

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

For I pray God for the ostriches of Salisbury Plain, the beavers of the Medway and silver fish of Thames"(Jubilate Agno, B153): species extinction in Christopher Smart s unique poem is the focal point of this essay. That the poem s ecstatic scope offers a leveling care for the nonhuman has been acknowledged, but here I argue that it speaks out of abjection: The poet is the supplicant, asking all Earth s creatures to advocate for him before God. Additionally, focusing particularly on the figure of the beaver, I highlight the medieval animal fable as a valid mode of understanding …

Digital Seascapes: Digital Technologies For Building Resilience Of Coastal Environments: Coastal Regions And Territorial Policies: Track (7) Environment And Climate, Ashita Gupta, Katharine Willis

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

Best Practice Recommendations For Coaching Gymnasts To Avoid Burnout And Reframe Performance Anxiety, Clare A. Mccall

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Gymnastics is deemed a psychologically demanding sport, with associated risk factors of burnout and performance anxiety. To date, relatively little research has explored the specific goal and perfectionistic processes of gymnasts, despite these risks. This body of work identified the specific goal-related constructs and perfectionistic orientation of young athletes and examined how these associated with burnout and performance anxiety. It comprised of two studies with a mixed methods design. The first study aimed to systematically review literature investigating how goal-related constructs and perfectionism associate with burnout and performance anxiety in young athletes. This review focused on summer and winter Olympic …

Searching For Equity In Positivity: A Two-Year Case Study Of The Effectiveness Of The Implementation Of Positive Education In A West Australian Public Secondary School Following A Year 7 Cohort To Year 8, Veronica J. Sutton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research evaluated the effectiveness of explicitly teaching Positive Education to early adolescent learners transitioning into a metropolitan, secondary public school in Western Australia and to understand the source of their stress and where they felt supported. Based on teacher feedback, a model for embedding the development of social and emotional competencies (Equity in Positivity) in the Western Australian secondary metropolitan public-school context, in a sustainable and cost-effective way, was developed over a six year period and linked to the Australian Wellbeing Hub (2020).

The researcher adopted a mixed method, instrumental bounded case study methodology, longitudinally applied through the lens …

Understanding Mental Wellbeing Of Family Day Care Educators In Australia: A Mixed Methods Study, Theresa Rayfield

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Family Day Care (FDC) is an essential service within the Australian early childhood education and care sector. FDC educators support Australian families who require convenience, flexibility, and versatility in the education and care of their children. FDC educators’ mental wellbeing (MWB) is vital to ensure optimal education and care is provided, however this is often overlooked by educators. This research aimed to gauge Australian FDC educators’ MWB, identify factors positively or negatively affecting MWB and strategies employed to maintain and support MWB.

Primarily, a cross-sectional quantitative questionnaire measuring MWB and ten predictor variables determining relationship with food, food insecurity, alcohol …

Exploring Treatment Burden In People With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2dm) In Primary Care Settings, Kai Lin

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Introduction

Treatment burden is the perceived workload of care by individuals. The treatment burden experienced by individuals with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is a major obstacle to achieving effective healthcare outcomes. The aim of this research is to facilitate better management of treatment burden in people with T2DM in primary care settings.

Methods

A systematic review, encompassing narrative analysis was used to characterise the treatment burden of T2DM and critical appraisal was used to identify the appropriate patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for measuring this burden. The selected instruments were employed with subsequent questionnaires, followed by patient focus groups. A …

The Physiological And Performance Consequences Of The Australian Special Forces Selection Course, Angela Uphill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Special Forces (SF) soldiers are the most elite element of military forces, who have undergone rigorous training in order to prepare them for a wide array of specialised missions. In Australia, entry into the SF is determined through the highly competitive SF Selection Course (SF-SC), which is a gruelling program involving extreme physical demands, psychological stress, and restricted access to sleep and nutrition. The stressors involved in arduous military training events such as the SF-SC can result in significant losses of fat mass and lean mass, disruption to hormonal homeostasis, and significant decreases in neuromuscular capacity, which can potentially increase …

Shifting Soil Fungal Communities In Response To Fire And Weed Management In Urban Banksia Woodlands, Aaron Justin Brace

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research aims to fill the knowledge gap in soil fungi in the Banksia woodland and emphasizes considering holistic ecosystem dynamics in invasive species management strategies. This is accomplished by surveying soil fungi under different fire regime across the Swan Coastal Plain, and within both in and ex situ herbicide application trials. This is the first such study to investigate the fungal component of the Banksia woodland so thoroughly. Chapter 2 quantified and analysed changes in soil fungal community composition and functional groups over a 50-year fire chronosequence in fire-prone Banksia woodland in southwestern Australia. Effects were variable, but fungal …

Crop Yield Using Novel Parametric L-System Plant Modelling, Christopher Cameron Napier

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research considers a system for the recognition of real plant parts through image analysis based upon synthetic plant modelling. It aims to use data pipelines and synthetic datasets to define recognizable features that assist in the efficient analysis of real plants and plant images. This research asks about the efficacy of L-systems in accurately simulating wheat crop characteristics. It specifically focusses on readable, understandable, accurate, and complex L-system algorithms. The research examines wheat crops in terms of phenotypes and examines the accuracy of a dataset in support of real image annotation. The methodology used was experimental in nature and …

Developing A Framework For Musical Ekphrasis In Jazz Composition, Jessica Carlton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Musical ekphrasis, as defined by musicologist Siglind Bruhn (2001), refers to musical compositions that transform, re-create, or ‘re-present’ a work of visual art or poetry. Though there exists a significant body of musical works that are based on visual art and poetry, there is a distinct lack of research and documentation on musical ekphrasis, particularly in the field of jazz and improvised music. Further, a formalised process framework for practitioners approaching ekphrastic composition has yet to be developed. This research project investigated musical ekphrasis through qualitative interviews with key practitioners, and a combination of practice-led research and research-led practice methodologies, …

Taking Sides? Aspect Has Limited Influence On Soil Environment Or Litter Decomposition In Pan-European Study Of Roadside Verges, A. Amstutz, L. B. Firth, J. I. Spicer, P. De Frenne, L. Gómez-Aparicio, B. J. Graae, S. Kuś, S. Lindmo, A. Orczewska, F. Rodríguez-Sánchez, P. Vangansbeke, T. Vanneste, M. E. Hanley

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

In addition to well-known effects on species ecophysiology, phenology, and distributions, climate change is widely predicted to impact essential ecosystem services such as decomposition and nutrient cycling. While temperature and soil moisture are thought to influence litter decomposition, elucidating consistent soil process responses to observed or predicted shifts in climate have proven difficult to evidence. Here we investigated how aspect (i.e., north-south orientation), a natural model for variation in soil temperature, influenced soil physico-chemical conditions and decomposition of two standardised litter types (Green tea and Rooibos teabags) in Pole-facing (PF) and Equator-facing (EF) roadside verges spanning a 3000 km and …

Federated Learning For Efficient Spectrum Allocation In Open Ran, Muhammad Asad, Safa Otoum

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

In the evolving landscape of Open Radio Access Networks (Open RAN), the dynamic and unpredictable nature of network conditions presents significant challenges for traditional spectrum allocation strategies. This paper introduces an innovative framework that leverages Federated Learning (FL) to refine and enhance spectrum allocation within Open RAN. Utilizing the decentralized architecture of FL, our model introduces a system that is not only more adaptive to real-time changes but also offers enhanced robustness for spectrum management. We delve into the advantages of this approach, such as significant improvements in data traffic management, latency reduction, and overall network capacity enhancement. Additionally, we …

Sediment Sorting Within A Relatively Wave-Exposed And Sandy Subtidal Seagrass (Zostera Marina) Meadow, Gerd Masselink, Tom Brown, Tim Scott, Liane Brodie

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Seagrasses impact on sedimentary intertidal and subtidal ecosystems by affecting local hydrodynamics, geomorphology and sediment properties. Their influence on hydrodynamics is to reduce flow velocities in their canopies, and this leads to increased net sedimentation rates and reduction of the grain size. Most investigations of the seagrass-hydrodynamics-sediment feedback system has been carried out over silt and fine-sand beds under tide-dominated conditions, mostly in the intertidal zone. Here, we use sedimentological data from a relatively wave-exposed and subtidal seagrass (Zostera marina) meadow in the Isles of Scilly with a fine-to-medium sand bed and show that the sand within the seagrass meadow …

Permafrost Carbon: Progress On Understanding Stocks And Fluxes Across Northern Terrestrial Ecosystems, Claire C. Treat, Anna-Maria Virkkala, Eleanor Burke, Lori Bruhwiler, Abhishek Chatterjee, Joshua B. Fisher, Josh Hashemi, Frans-Jan W. Parmentier, Brendan M. Rogers, Sebastian Westermann, Jennifer D. Watts, Elena Blanc-Betes, Matthias Fuchs, Stefan Kruse, Avni Malhotra, Kimberley Miner, Jens Strauss, Amanda Armstrong, Howard E. Epstein, Bradley Gay, Mathias Goeckede, Aram Kalhori, Dan Kou, Charles E. Miller, Susan M. Natali, Youmi Oh, Sarah Shakil, Oliver Sonnentag, Ruth K. Varner, Scott Zolkos, Edward A.G. Schuur, Gustaf Hugelius

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Significant progress in permafrost carbon science made over the past decades include the identification of vast permafrost carbon stocks, the development of new pan-Arctic permafrost maps, an increase in terrestrial measurement sites for CO₂ and methane fluxes, and important factors affecting carbon cycling, including vegetation changes, periods of soil freezing and thawing, wildfire, and other disturbance events. Process-based modeling studies now include key elements of permafrost carbon cycling and advances in statistical modeling and inverse modeling enhance understanding of permafrost region C budgets. By combining existing data syntheses and model outputs, the permafrost region is likely a wetland methane …

Evidence Of A Thick Heliopause Boundary Layer Resulting From Active Magnetic Reconnection With The Interstellar Medium, Drew L. Turner, Adam Michael, Elena Provornikova, Marc Kornbleuth, Merav Opher, Stefan Eriksson, Benoit Lavraud, Parisa Mostafavi, Matthew E. Hill, Pontus Brandt, Ian J. Cohen, Joseph Westlake, John D. Richardson, Nathan A. Schwadron, David J. Mccomas

Faculty Publications

Voyager 1 and 2 data from the vicinity of the heliopause and very local interstellar medium are reexamined to better understand the confounding lack of rotation in the magnetic field (B-field) across the heliopause observed by both Voyagers, despite their very large spatial separations (>100 au). Using three estimates for the orientation of the B-field in the pristine interstellar medium and four models of the heliosphere, we calculate draped interstellar B-field orientations along the model heliopauses and compare those estimates to the Voyager observations. At both Voyagers, expected draped B-fields are inconsistent with the observed B-field orientations after the boundary …

Ai-Based Evidence In Criminal Trials?, Sabine Gless, Fredric I. Lederer, Thomas Weigend

Faculty Publications

Smart devices are increasingly the origin of critical criminal case data. The importance of such data, especially data generated when using modern automobiles, is likely to become even more important as increasingly complex methods of machine learning lead to AI-based evidence being autonomously generated by devices. This article reviews the admissibility of such evidence from both American and German perspectives. As a result of this comparative approach, the authors conclude that American evidence law could be improved by borrowing aspects of the expert testimony approaches used in Germany’s “inquisitorial” court system.

Foia-Flooded Elections, Rebecca Green

Faculty Publications

After the 2020 election, the United States has witnessed a crisis in confidence in election outcomes. The crisis has fueled massive public pressure on election offices to release election records via state 'freedom of information act" (FOIA) requests. This deluge of records requests places enormous strain on already overburdened and underfunded state and local election offices. Operating under strict statutory FOIA response deadlines, election officials spend hundreds of hours on records requests to the detriment of election preparedness potentially further exacerbating criticism of their offices. Making matters worse, election officials often lack guidance on which records may and may not …

Symposium Introduction: The Effect Of Dobbs On Work Law, Nicole Buonocore Porter

Faculty Publications

In March 2023, Chicago-Kent College of Law hosted a symposium—The Effect of Dobbs on Work Law—to explore the ways that the Dobbs abortion decision has affected the workplace. The presenters at that live symposium wrote articles that are being published in this journal. As the host of the symposium and the Editor of this Journal, I use this Article to introduce the articles in this symposium issue and to provide my reflections on them. I also briefly address the topic that I presented at the symposium—the effect of Dobbs on people with disabilities.

Public Protest And Government Immunities, Timothy Zick

Faculty Publications

This Article presents the findings of a quantitative and qualitative study of the application of qualified immunity and other governmental immunities in the context of public protest. Relying on three unique datasets of federal court decisions examining First Amendment and Fourth Amendment claims, the Article concludes that public protester plaintiffs face an array of obstacles when suing state, local, and federal officials for constitutional injuries. Quantitative findings show that protesters’ claims are frequently dismissed under qualified immunity doctrines and that plaintiffs also face strict limits on municipal liability, new restrictions on First Amendment retaliation claims, and the possible extinction of …

Naming, Expressive Interests, And The Law: The Implications Of Governmental Form Design, Laura A. Heymann

Faculty Publications

The design of governmental forms can result in restrictions on the ability of individuals to submit truthful personal naming choices, such as when a form field has character limitations or does not accept diacritics. In some instances, form design operationalizes government policy. But in other instances, form design can itself create law by limiting the ability to submit accurate names on the front end. Awareness of the legal implications of form design is critically important. A more inclusive and accurate approach toward the legal documentation of naming choices means that forms should adapt to people, not the other way around.

The Broken Token Problem: Why Crypto Classification Remains Elusive, Lev E. Breydo

Faculty Publications

Crypto is at a crossroads. After trillions in value destruction, a cascade of bankruptcies and millions of defrauded believers, many are wondering whether the sector has a future. Regulators, meanwhile, are not taking chances, “carpet bombing” crypto with legal actions. Notwithstanding the stakes, consensus remains elusive regarding first-order questions—including, what is crypto?

Part of the problem, this Article posits, is that we have largely been thinking about crypto incorrectly. Rather than a simple, uniform asset, crypto represents a highly heterogenous ten-thousand-instrument universe. One size cannot possibly fit all.

This Article introduces a novel unifying taxonomy for the sector based …

Numerical Analysis Of Dual-Fuel Diesel Engines In Compression Ignition Engines: A Review, Mahmoud A. Awaga, Gomaa A. A, Ahmed O. Moaaz, Nouby M. Ghazaly

Babylonian Journal of Mechanical Engineering

Hydrogen gas is currently used in many daily uses because of its chemical properties that help in combustion and energy generation processes. Hydrogen can be easily used in diesel engines without major design modifications. In additions, its high flame velocity and calorific value make it a desirable option for dual-fuel mode in diesel engines. The trend in developing car engines has become to use alternative fuels to diesel and gasoline. The types of injections currently used, their development technology in diesel engines, and the advantages of using them to develop and raise engine efficiency are discussed. A complete study is …

Heat Transfer Investigation Inside Heated Pipes Of Different Cross-Sections, Faik Hamad, Kayser A. Ameen

Babylonian Journal of Mechanical Engineering

This research examines the thermal transfer efficiency in pipes including various cross-sectional geometries, such as circular, square, and triangular shapes. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology was used to model flow conditions and examine heat transfer and turbulence intensities under consistent boundary conditions. The results indicate substantial variations in thermal and flow characteristics across the geometries. Circular pipes provide greater convective heat transfer efficiency and minimum temperature gradients, but square and triangular pipes show more turbulence accompanied by a higher pressure drop. These insights may guide the design of efficient piping systems for many technical applications, including HVAC, chemical processing, …

‘Routines’ And ‘Formulaic Language’ In Conversation Analysis, Danielle Pillet-Shore

Faculty Publications

Though the field of conversation analysis (CA) was founded upon examinations of interactional “routines” such as conversation openings and closings, conceptualizing and categorizing communicative phenomena as “formulaic” is anathema to CA. This chapter details how, since its inception, CA work has empirically elucidated how participants to recorded episodes of naturally occurring social interaction actively and collaboratively accomplish conversational activities as ‘routine’ or not by selecting from available action alternatives, spontaneously coordinating their selections vis-à-vis one another. Taking a multimodal CA approach, this chapter reviews state-of-the art literature on how people open and close in-person and telephone conversations, showing the immense …