MICFuzzy : a maximal information content based fuzzy approach for reconstructing genetic networks
- Gamage, Hasini, Chetty, Madhu, Lim, Suryani, Hallinan, Jennifer
- Authors: Gamage, Hasini , Chetty, Madhu , Lim, Suryani , Hallinan, Jennifer
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 18, no. 7 July (2023), p.
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- Description: In systems biology, the accurate reconstruction of Gene Regulatory Networks (GRNs) is crucial since these networks can facilitate the solving of complex biological problems. Amongst the plethora of methods available for GRN reconstruction, information theory and fuzzy concepts-based methods have abiding popularity. However, most of these methods are not only complex, incurring a high computational burden, but they may also produce a high number of false positives, leading to inaccurate inferred networks. In this paper, we propose a novel hybrid fuzzy GRN inference model called MICFuzzy which involves the aggregation of the effects of Maximal Information Coefficient (MIC). This model has an information theory-based pre-processing stage, the output of which is applied as an input to the novel fuzzy model. In this preprocessing stage, the MIC component filters relevant genes for each target gene to significantly reduce the computational burden of the fuzzy model when selecting the regulatory genes from these filtered gene lists. The novel fuzzy model uses the regulatory effect of the identified activator-repressor gene pairs to determine target gene expression levels. This approach facilitates accurate network inference by generating a high number of true regulatory interactions while significantly reducing false regulatory predictions. The performance of MICFuzzy was evaluated using DREAM3 and DREAM4 challenge data, and the SOS real gene expression dataset. MICFuzzy outperformed the other state-of-the-art methods in terms of F-score, Matthews Correlation Coefficient, Structural Accuracy, and SS_mean, and outperformed most of them in terms of efficiency. MICFuzzy also had improved efficiency compared with the classical fuzzy model since the design of MICFuzzy leads to a reduction in combinatorial computation. Copyright: © 2023 Nakulugamuwa Gamage et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Authors: Gamage, Hasini , Chetty, Madhu , Lim, Suryani , Hallinan, Jennifer
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 18, no. 7 July (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: In systems biology, the accurate reconstruction of Gene Regulatory Networks (GRNs) is crucial since these networks can facilitate the solving of complex biological problems. Amongst the plethora of methods available for GRN reconstruction, information theory and fuzzy concepts-based methods have abiding popularity. However, most of these methods are not only complex, incurring a high computational burden, but they may also produce a high number of false positives, leading to inaccurate inferred networks. In this paper, we propose a novel hybrid fuzzy GRN inference model called MICFuzzy which involves the aggregation of the effects of Maximal Information Coefficient (MIC). This model has an information theory-based pre-processing stage, the output of which is applied as an input to the novel fuzzy model. In this preprocessing stage, the MIC component filters relevant genes for each target gene to significantly reduce the computational burden of the fuzzy model when selecting the regulatory genes from these filtered gene lists. The novel fuzzy model uses the regulatory effect of the identified activator-repressor gene pairs to determine target gene expression levels. This approach facilitates accurate network inference by generating a high number of true regulatory interactions while significantly reducing false regulatory predictions. The performance of MICFuzzy was evaluated using DREAM3 and DREAM4 challenge data, and the SOS real gene expression dataset. MICFuzzy outperformed the other state-of-the-art methods in terms of F-score, Matthews Correlation Coefficient, Structural Accuracy, and SS_mean, and outperformed most of them in terms of efficiency. MICFuzzy also had improved efficiency compared with the classical fuzzy model since the design of MICFuzzy leads to a reduction in combinatorial computation. Copyright: © 2023 Nakulugamuwa Gamage et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Microbiota of little penguins and short-tailed shearwaters during development
- Dewar, Meagan, Arnould, John, Allnutt, Theo, Crowley, Tamsyn, Krause, Lutz, Reynolds, John, Dann, Peter, Smith, Stuart
- Authors: Dewar, Meagan , Arnould, John , Allnutt, Theo , Crowley, Tamsyn , Krause, Lutz , Reynolds, John , Dann, Peter , Smith, Stuart
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 12, no. 8 (2017), p.
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- Description: The establishment and early colonisation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract has been recognised as a crucial stage in chick development, with pioneering microbial species responsible for influencing the development of the GI tract and influencing host health, fitness and disease status throughout life. Development of the microbiota in long lived seabirds is poorly understood. This study characterised the microbial composition of little penguin and short-tailed shearwater chicks throughout development, using Quantitative Real Time PCR (qPCR) and 16S rRNA sequencing. The results indicated that microbial development differed between the two seabird species with the short-tailed shearwater microbiota being relatively stable throughout development whilst significant fluctuations in the microbial composition and an upward trend in the abundance of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were observed in the little penguin. When the microbial composition of adults and chicks was compared, both species showed low similarity in microbial composition, indicating that the adult microbiota may have a negligible influence over the chick’s microbiota.
- Authors: Dewar, Meagan , Arnould, John , Allnutt, Theo , Crowley, Tamsyn , Krause, Lutz , Reynolds, John , Dann, Peter , Smith, Stuart
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 12, no. 8 (2017), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: The establishment and early colonisation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract has been recognised as a crucial stage in chick development, with pioneering microbial species responsible for influencing the development of the GI tract and influencing host health, fitness and disease status throughout life. Development of the microbiota in long lived seabirds is poorly understood. This study characterised the microbial composition of little penguin and short-tailed shearwater chicks throughout development, using Quantitative Real Time PCR (qPCR) and 16S rRNA sequencing. The results indicated that microbial development differed between the two seabird species with the short-tailed shearwater microbiota being relatively stable throughout development whilst significant fluctuations in the microbial composition and an upward trend in the abundance of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were observed in the little penguin. When the microbial composition of adults and chicks was compared, both species showed low similarity in microbial composition, indicating that the adult microbiota may have a negligible influence over the chick’s microbiota.
Mineral texture identification using local binary patterns equipped with a Classification and Recognition Updating System (CARUS)
- Aligholi, Saeed, Khajavi, Reza, Khandelwal, Manoj, Armaghani, Danial
- Authors: Aligholi, Saeed , Khajavi, Reza , Khandelwal, Manoj , Armaghani, Danial
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol. 14, no. 18 (2022), p.
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- Description: In this paper, a rotation-invariant local binary pattern operator equipped with a local contrast measure (riLBPc) is employed to characterize the type of mineral twinning by inspecting the texture properties of crystals. The proposed method uses photomicrographs of minerals and produces LBP histograms, which might be compared with those included in a predefined database using the Kullback–Leibler divergence-based metric. The paper proposes a new LBP-based scheme for concurrent classification and recognition tasks, followed by a novel online updating routine to enhance the locally developed mineral LBP database. The discriminatory power of the proposed Classification and Recognition Updating System (CARUS) for texture identification scheme is verified for plagioclase, orthoclase, microcline, and quartz minerals with sensitivity (TPR) near 99.9%, 87%, 99.9%, and 96%, and accuracy (ACC) equal to about 99%, 97%, 99%, and 99%, respectively. According to the results, the introduced CARUS system is a promising approach that can be applied in a variety of different fields dealing with classification and feature recognition tasks. © 2022 by the authors.
- Authors: Aligholi, Saeed , Khajavi, Reza , Khandelwal, Manoj , Armaghani, Danial
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol. 14, no. 18 (2022), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: In this paper, a rotation-invariant local binary pattern operator equipped with a local contrast measure (riLBPc) is employed to characterize the type of mineral twinning by inspecting the texture properties of crystals. The proposed method uses photomicrographs of minerals and produces LBP histograms, which might be compared with those included in a predefined database using the Kullback–Leibler divergence-based metric. The paper proposes a new LBP-based scheme for concurrent classification and recognition tasks, followed by a novel online updating routine to enhance the locally developed mineral LBP database. The discriminatory power of the proposed Classification and Recognition Updating System (CARUS) for texture identification scheme is verified for plagioclase, orthoclase, microcline, and quartz minerals with sensitivity (TPR) near 99.9%, 87%, 99.9%, and 96%, and accuracy (ACC) equal to about 99%, 97%, 99%, and 99%, respectively. According to the results, the introduced CARUS system is a promising approach that can be applied in a variety of different fields dealing with classification and feature recognition tasks. © 2022 by the authors.
Modeling the effects of particle shape on damping ratio of dry sand by simple shear testing and artificial intelligence
- Baghbani, Abolfazl, Costa, Susanga, Faradonbeh, Roohoollah, Soltani, Amin, Baghbani, Hasan
- Authors: Baghbani, Abolfazl , Costa, Susanga , Faradonbeh, Roohoollah , Soltani, Amin , Baghbani, Hasan
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Applied Sciences (Switzerland) Vol. 13, no. 7 (2023), p.
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- Description: This study investigates the effects of sand particle shape, in terms of roundness, sphericity and regularity, on the damping ratio of a dry sand material. Twelve different cyclic simple shear testing scenarios were considered and applied using vertical stresses of 50, 150 and 250 kPa and cyclic stress ratios (CSR) of 0.2, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 in both constant- and controlled-stress modes. Each testing scenario involved five tests, using the same sand that was reconstructed from its previous cyclic test. On completion of the cyclic tests, corresponding hysteresis loops were established to determine the damping ratio. The results indicated that the minimum and maximum damping ratios for this sand material were 6.9 and 25.5, respectively. It was observed that the shape of the sand particles changed during cyclic loading, becoming progressively more rounded and spherical with an increasing number of loading cycles, thereby resulting in an increase in the damping ratio. The second part of this investigation involved the development of artificial intelligence models, namely an artificial neural network (ANN) and a support vector machine (SVM), to predict the effects of sand particle shape on the damping ratio. The proposed ANN and SVM models were found to be effective in predicting the damping ratio as a function of the particle shape descriptors (i.e., roundness, sphericity and regularity), vertical stress, CSR and number of loading cycles. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify the importance of the input variables; the vertical stress and regularity were, respectively, ranked as first and second in terms of importance, while the CSR was found to be the least important parameter. © 2023 by the authors.
- Authors: Baghbani, Abolfazl , Costa, Susanga , Faradonbeh, Roohoollah , Soltani, Amin , Baghbani, Hasan
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Applied Sciences (Switzerland) Vol. 13, no. 7 (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: This study investigates the effects of sand particle shape, in terms of roundness, sphericity and regularity, on the damping ratio of a dry sand material. Twelve different cyclic simple shear testing scenarios were considered and applied using vertical stresses of 50, 150 and 250 kPa and cyclic stress ratios (CSR) of 0.2, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 in both constant- and controlled-stress modes. Each testing scenario involved five tests, using the same sand that was reconstructed from its previous cyclic test. On completion of the cyclic tests, corresponding hysteresis loops were established to determine the damping ratio. The results indicated that the minimum and maximum damping ratios for this sand material were 6.9 and 25.5, respectively. It was observed that the shape of the sand particles changed during cyclic loading, becoming progressively more rounded and spherical with an increasing number of loading cycles, thereby resulting in an increase in the damping ratio. The second part of this investigation involved the development of artificial intelligence models, namely an artificial neural network (ANN) and a support vector machine (SVM), to predict the effects of sand particle shape on the damping ratio. The proposed ANN and SVM models were found to be effective in predicting the damping ratio as a function of the particle shape descriptors (i.e., roundness, sphericity and regularity), vertical stress, CSR and number of loading cycles. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify the importance of the input variables; the vertical stress and regularity were, respectively, ranked as first and second in terms of importance, while the CSR was found to be the least important parameter. © 2023 by the authors.
Modelling hydrological performance of a bauxite residue profile for deposition management of a storage facility
- Shaygan, Mandana, Usher, Brent, Baumgartl, Thomas
- Authors: Shaygan, Mandana , Usher, Brent , Baumgartl, Thomas
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Water (Switzerland) Vol. 12, no. 7 (2020), p.
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- Description: Accurate scheduling of bauxite residue (red mud) deposition time is required in order to prevent the risk of storage facility failure. This study was conducted to precisely determine the hydraulic parameters of bauxite residue and investigate the capability of HYDRUS to accurately estimate the residue moisture profile and the timing for its deposition. The hydraulic properties of the bauxite residue profile were determined by solving an inverse problem. A one-dimensional hydrological model (HYDRUS-1D) was validated using a 300 mm long column filled with bauxite residue and exposed to a dynamic lower boundary condition. After numerical validation, the model was used to simulate the moisture profile of bauxite residue under the climatic conditions of an alumina refinery site in Queensland, Australia, as well as other scenarios (i.e., high (300 mm) and small (1.7 mm) rainfall events of the site). This study showed that the HYDRUS model can be used as a predictive tool to precisely estimate the moisture profile of the bauxite residue and that the timing for the re-deposition of the bauxite residue can be estimated by understanding the moisture profile and desired shear strength of the residue. This study revealed that the examined bauxite residue approaches field capacity (water potential-10 kPa) after three days from a low rainfall event (<1.7 mm) and after eight days from an intense rainfall event (300 mm) at the time of disposal. This suggests that the bauxite residue can be deposited every four days after low rainfall events (as low as 1.7 mm) and every nine days after high rainfall events (as high as 300 mm) at the time of deposition, if bauxite residue experiences an initial drying period following deposition. © 2020 by the authors.
- Authors: Shaygan, Mandana , Usher, Brent , Baumgartl, Thomas
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Water (Switzerland) Vol. 12, no. 7 (2020), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Accurate scheduling of bauxite residue (red mud) deposition time is required in order to prevent the risk of storage facility failure. This study was conducted to precisely determine the hydraulic parameters of bauxite residue and investigate the capability of HYDRUS to accurately estimate the residue moisture profile and the timing for its deposition. The hydraulic properties of the bauxite residue profile were determined by solving an inverse problem. A one-dimensional hydrological model (HYDRUS-1D) was validated using a 300 mm long column filled with bauxite residue and exposed to a dynamic lower boundary condition. After numerical validation, the model was used to simulate the moisture profile of bauxite residue under the climatic conditions of an alumina refinery site in Queensland, Australia, as well as other scenarios (i.e., high (300 mm) and small (1.7 mm) rainfall events of the site). This study showed that the HYDRUS model can be used as a predictive tool to precisely estimate the moisture profile of the bauxite residue and that the timing for the re-deposition of the bauxite residue can be estimated by understanding the moisture profile and desired shear strength of the residue. This study revealed that the examined bauxite residue approaches field capacity (water potential-10 kPa) after three days from a low rainfall event (<1.7 mm) and after eight days from an intense rainfall event (300 mm) at the time of disposal. This suggests that the bauxite residue can be deposited every four days after low rainfall events (as low as 1.7 mm) and every nine days after high rainfall events (as high as 300 mm) at the time of deposition, if bauxite residue experiences an initial drying period following deposition. © 2020 by the authors.
Modulation of TCR signalling components occurs prior to positive selection and lineage commitment in iNKT cells
- Dinh, Xuyen, Stanley, Dragana, Smith, Letitia, Moreau, Morgane, Berzins, Stuart
- Authors: Dinh, Xuyen , Stanley, Dragana , Smith, Letitia , Moreau, Morgane , Berzins, Stuart
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Scientific Reports Vol. 11, no. 1 (2021), p.
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- Description: iNKT cells play a critical role in controlling the strength and character of adaptive and innate immune responses. Their unique functional characteristics are induced by a transcriptional program initiated by positive selection mediated by CD1d expressed by CD4+CD8+ (double positive, DP) thymocytes. Here, using a novel Vα14 TCR transgenic strain bearing greatly expanded numbers of CD24hiCD44loNKT cells, we examined transcriptional events in four immature thymic iNKT cell subsets. A transcriptional regulatory network approach identified transcriptional changes in proximal components of the TCR signalling cascade in DP NKT cells. Subsequently, positive and negative selection, and lineage commitment, occurred at the transition from DP NKT to CD4 NKT. Thus, this study introduces previously unrecognised steps in early NKT cell development, and separates the events associated with modulation of the T cell signalling cascade prior to changes associated with positive selection and lineage commitment. © 2021, The Author(s). **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Stuart Berzins” is provided in this record**
- Authors: Dinh, Xuyen , Stanley, Dragana , Smith, Letitia , Moreau, Morgane , Berzins, Stuart
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Scientific Reports Vol. 11, no. 1 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: iNKT cells play a critical role in controlling the strength and character of adaptive and innate immune responses. Their unique functional characteristics are induced by a transcriptional program initiated by positive selection mediated by CD1d expressed by CD4+CD8+ (double positive, DP) thymocytes. Here, using a novel Vα14 TCR transgenic strain bearing greatly expanded numbers of CD24hiCD44loNKT cells, we examined transcriptional events in four immature thymic iNKT cell subsets. A transcriptional regulatory network approach identified transcriptional changes in proximal components of the TCR signalling cascade in DP NKT cells. Subsequently, positive and negative selection, and lineage commitment, occurred at the transition from DP NKT to CD4 NKT. Thus, this study introduces previously unrecognised steps in early NKT cell development, and separates the events associated with modulation of the T cell signalling cascade prior to changes associated with positive selection and lineage commitment. © 2021, The Author(s). **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Stuart Berzins” is provided in this record**
Molecular insights into genome-wide association studies of chronic kidney disease-defining traits
- Xu, Xiaoguang, Eales, James, Akbarov, Artur, Guo, Hui, Becker, Lorenz, Talavera, David, Ashraf, Fehzan, Nawaz, Jabran, Pramanik, Sanjeev, Bowes, John, Jiang, Xiao, Dormer, John, Denniff, Matthew, Antczak, Andrzej, Szulinska, Monika, Wise, Ingrid, Prestes, Priscilla, Glyda, Maciej, Bogdanski, Pawel, Zukowska-Szczechowska, Ewa, Berzuini, Carlo, Woolf, Adrian, Samani, Nilesh, Charchar, Fadi, Tomaszewski, Maciej
- Authors: Xu, Xiaoguang , Eales, James , Akbarov, Artur , Guo, Hui , Becker, Lorenz , Talavera, David , Ashraf, Fehzan , Nawaz, Jabran , Pramanik, Sanjeev , Bowes, John , Jiang, Xiao , Dormer, John , Denniff, Matthew , Antczak, Andrzej , Szulinska, Monika , Wise, Ingrid , Prestes, Priscilla , Glyda, Maciej , Bogdanski, Pawel , Zukowska-Szczechowska, Ewa , Berzuini, Carlo , Woolf, Adrian , Samani, Nilesh , Charchar, Fadi , Tomaszewski, Maciej
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nature communications Vol. 9, no. 1 (2018), p. 1-12
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- Description: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified >100 loci of chronic kidney disease-defining traits (CKD-dt). Molecular mechanisms underlying these associations remain elusive. Using 280 kidney transcriptomes and 9958 gene expression profiles from 44 non-renal tissues we uncover gene expression partners (eGenes) for 88.9% of CKD-dt GWAS loci. Through epigenomic chromatin segmentation analysis and variant effect prediction we annotate functional consequences to 74% of these loci. Our colocalisation analysis and Mendelian randomisation in >130,000 subjects demonstrate causal effects of three eGenes (NAT8B, CASP9 and MUC1) on estimated glomerular filtration rate. We identify a common alternative splice variant in MUC1 (a gene responsible for rare Mendelian form of kidney disease) and observe increased renal expression of a specific MUC1 mRNA isoform as a plausible molecular mechanism of the GWAS association signal. These data highlight the variants and genes underpinning the associations uncovered in GWAS of CKD-dt.
- Authors: Xu, Xiaoguang , Eales, James , Akbarov, Artur , Guo, Hui , Becker, Lorenz , Talavera, David , Ashraf, Fehzan , Nawaz, Jabran , Pramanik, Sanjeev , Bowes, John , Jiang, Xiao , Dormer, John , Denniff, Matthew , Antczak, Andrzej , Szulinska, Monika , Wise, Ingrid , Prestes, Priscilla , Glyda, Maciej , Bogdanski, Pawel , Zukowska-Szczechowska, Ewa , Berzuini, Carlo , Woolf, Adrian , Samani, Nilesh , Charchar, Fadi , Tomaszewski, Maciej
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nature communications Vol. 9, no. 1 (2018), p. 1-12
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified >100 loci of chronic kidney disease-defining traits (CKD-dt). Molecular mechanisms underlying these associations remain elusive. Using 280 kidney transcriptomes and 9958 gene expression profiles from 44 non-renal tissues we uncover gene expression partners (eGenes) for 88.9% of CKD-dt GWAS loci. Through epigenomic chromatin segmentation analysis and variant effect prediction we annotate functional consequences to 74% of these loci. Our colocalisation analysis and Mendelian randomisation in >130,000 subjects demonstrate causal effects of three eGenes (NAT8B, CASP9 and MUC1) on estimated glomerular filtration rate. We identify a common alternative splice variant in MUC1 (a gene responsible for rare Mendelian form of kidney disease) and observe increased renal expression of a specific MUC1 mRNA isoform as a plausible molecular mechanism of the GWAS association signal. These data highlight the variants and genes underpinning the associations uncovered in GWAS of CKD-dt.
Molecular phylogeny of Burkholderia pseudomallei from a remote region of Papua New Guinea
- Baker, Anthony, Pearson, Talima, Price, Erin, Dale, Julia, Keim, Paul, Hornstra, Heidie, Greenhill, Andrew, Padilla, Gabriel, Warner, Jeffrey
- Authors: Baker, Anthony , Pearson, Talima , Price, Erin , Dale, Julia , Keim, Paul , Hornstra, Heidie , Greenhill, Andrew , Padilla, Gabriel , Warner, Jeffrey
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 6, no. 3 (2011), p.
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- Description: Background: The island of New Guinea is located midway between the world's two major melioidosis endemic regions of Australia and Southeast Asia. Previous studies in Papua New Guinea have demonstrated autochthonous melioidosis in Balimo, Western province. In contrast to other regions of endemicity, isolates recovered from both environmental and clinical sources demonstrate narrow genetic diversity over large spatial and temporal scales. Methodology/Principal Findings: We employed molecular typing techniques to determine the phylogenetic relationships of these isolates to each other and to others worldwide to aid in understanding the origins of the Papua New Guinean isolates. Multi-locus sequence typing of the 39 isolates resolved three unique sequence types. Phylogenetic reconstruction and Structure analysis determined that all isolates were genetically closer to those from Australia than those from Southeast Asia. Gene cluster analysis however, identified a Yersinia-like fimbrial gene cluster predominantly found among Burkholderia pseudomallei derived from Southeast Asia. Higher resolution VNTR typing and phylogenetic reconstruction of the Balimo isolates resolved 24 genotypes with long branch lengths. These findings are congruent with long term persistence in the region and a high level of environmental stability. Conclusions/Significance: Given that anthropogenic influence has been hypothesized as a mechanism for the dispersal of B. pseudomallei, these findings correlate with limited movement of the indigenous people in the region. The palaeogeographical and anthropogenic history of Australasia and the results from this study indicate that New Guinea is an important region for the further study of B. pseudomallei origins and dissemination.
- Authors: Baker, Anthony , Pearson, Talima , Price, Erin , Dale, Julia , Keim, Paul , Hornstra, Heidie , Greenhill, Andrew , Padilla, Gabriel , Warner, Jeffrey
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 6, no. 3 (2011), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: The island of New Guinea is located midway between the world's two major melioidosis endemic regions of Australia and Southeast Asia. Previous studies in Papua New Guinea have demonstrated autochthonous melioidosis in Balimo, Western province. In contrast to other regions of endemicity, isolates recovered from both environmental and clinical sources demonstrate narrow genetic diversity over large spatial and temporal scales. Methodology/Principal Findings: We employed molecular typing techniques to determine the phylogenetic relationships of these isolates to each other and to others worldwide to aid in understanding the origins of the Papua New Guinean isolates. Multi-locus sequence typing of the 39 isolates resolved three unique sequence types. Phylogenetic reconstruction and Structure analysis determined that all isolates were genetically closer to those from Australia than those from Southeast Asia. Gene cluster analysis however, identified a Yersinia-like fimbrial gene cluster predominantly found among Burkholderia pseudomallei derived from Southeast Asia. Higher resolution VNTR typing and phylogenetic reconstruction of the Balimo isolates resolved 24 genotypes with long branch lengths. These findings are congruent with long term persistence in the region and a high level of environmental stability. Conclusions/Significance: Given that anthropogenic influence has been hypothesized as a mechanism for the dispersal of B. pseudomallei, these findings correlate with limited movement of the indigenous people in the region. The palaeogeographical and anthropogenic history of Australasia and the results from this study indicate that New Guinea is an important region for the further study of B. pseudomallei origins and dissemination.
Morally excused but socially excluded : denying agency through the defense of mental impairment
- De Vel-Palumbo, Melissa, Ferguson, Rose, Schein, Chelsea, Chang, Melissa, Bastian, Brock
- Authors: De Vel-Palumbo, Melissa , Ferguson, Rose , Schein, Chelsea , Chang, Melissa , Bastian, Brock
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 17, no. 7 July (2022), p.
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- Description: Defendants can deny they have agency, and thus responsibility, for a crime by using a defense of mental impairment. We argue that although this strategy may help defendants evade blame, it may carry longer-term social costs, as lay people's perceptions of a person's agency might determine some of the moral rights they grant them. Three randomized between-group experiments (N = 1601) used online vignettes to examine lay perceptions of a hypothetical defendant using a defense of mental impairment (versus a guilty plea). We find that using a defense of mental impairment significantly reduces responsibility, blame, and punitiveness relative to a guilty plea, and these judgments are mediated by perceptions of reduced moral agency. However, after serving their respective sentences, those using the defense are sometimes conferred fewer rights, as reduced agency corresponds to an increase in perceived dangerousness. Our findings were found to be robust across different types of mental impairment, offences/sentences, and using both manipulated and measured agency. The findings have implications for defendants claiming reduced agency through legal defenses, as well as for the broader study of moral rights and mind perception. © 2022 de Vel-Palumbo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Authors: De Vel-Palumbo, Melissa , Ferguson, Rose , Schein, Chelsea , Chang, Melissa , Bastian, Brock
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 17, no. 7 July (2022), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Defendants can deny they have agency, and thus responsibility, for a crime by using a defense of mental impairment. We argue that although this strategy may help defendants evade blame, it may carry longer-term social costs, as lay people's perceptions of a person's agency might determine some of the moral rights they grant them. Three randomized between-group experiments (N = 1601) used online vignettes to examine lay perceptions of a hypothetical defendant using a defense of mental impairment (versus a guilty plea). We find that using a defense of mental impairment significantly reduces responsibility, blame, and punitiveness relative to a guilty plea, and these judgments are mediated by perceptions of reduced moral agency. However, after serving their respective sentences, those using the defense are sometimes conferred fewer rights, as reduced agency corresponds to an increase in perceived dangerousness. Our findings were found to be robust across different types of mental impairment, offences/sentences, and using both manipulated and measured agency. The findings have implications for defendants claiming reduced agency through legal defenses, as well as for the broader study of moral rights and mind perception. © 2022 de Vel-Palumbo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Morally excused but socially excluded: Denying agency through the defense of mental impairment
- de Vel-Palumbo, Melissa, Schein, Chelsea, Ferguson, Rose, Chang, Melissa, Bastian, Brock
- Authors: de Vel-Palumbo, Melissa , Schein, Chelsea , Ferguson, Rose , Chang, Melissa , Bastian, Brock
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PloS one Vol. 16, no. 6 (2021), p. e0252586-e0252586
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Defendants can deny they have agency, and thus responsibility, for a crime by using a defense of mental impairment. We argue that although this strategy may help defendants evade blame, it may carry longer-term social costs, as lay people's perceptions of a person's agency might determine some of the moral rights they grant them. In this registered report protocol, we seek to expand upon preliminary findings from two pilot studies to examine how and why those using the defense of mental impairment are seen as less deserving of certain rights. The proposed study uses a hypothetical vignette design, varying the type of mental impairment, type of crime, and type of sentence. Our design for the registered study improves on various aspects of our pilot studies and aims to rigorously test the reliability and credibility of our model. The findings have implications for defendants claiming reduced agency through legal defenses, as well as for the broader study of moral rights and mind perception.
- Authors: de Vel-Palumbo, Melissa , Schein, Chelsea , Ferguson, Rose , Chang, Melissa , Bastian, Brock
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PloS one Vol. 16, no. 6 (2021), p. e0252586-e0252586
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Defendants can deny they have agency, and thus responsibility, for a crime by using a defense of mental impairment. We argue that although this strategy may help defendants evade blame, it may carry longer-term social costs, as lay people's perceptions of a person's agency might determine some of the moral rights they grant them. In this registered report protocol, we seek to expand upon preliminary findings from two pilot studies to examine how and why those using the defense of mental impairment are seen as less deserving of certain rights. The proposed study uses a hypothetical vignette design, varying the type of mental impairment, type of crime, and type of sentence. Our design for the registered study improves on various aspects of our pilot studies and aims to rigorously test the reliability and credibility of our model. The findings have implications for defendants claiming reduced agency through legal defenses, as well as for the broader study of moral rights and mind perception.
Multiple-points fault signature's dynamics modeling for bearing defect frequencies
- Yaqub, Muhammad, Gondal, Iqbal, Kamruzzaman, Joarder
- Authors: Yaqub, Muhammad , Gondal, Iqbal , Kamruzzaman, Joarder
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: 2011 International Conference on Control, Automation, Robotics and Vision (ICCARV); Venice, Italy; 23rd-25th November 2011; published in Proceedings of the World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, International Journal of Mechanical, Aerospace, Industrial, Mechatronic and Manufacturing Engineering Vol. 5, p. 2548-2553
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- Description: Occurrence of a multiple-points fault in machine operations could result in exhibiting complex fault signatures, which could result in lowering fault diagnosis accuracy. In this study, a multiple-points defect model (MPDM) is proposed which can simulate fault signature-s dynamics for n-points bearing faults. Furthermore, this study identifies that in case of multiple-points fault in the rotary machine, the location of the dominant component of defect frequency shifts depending upon the relative location of the fault points which could mislead the fault diagnostic model to inaccurate detections. Analytical and experimental results are presented to characterize and validate the variation in the dominant component of defect frequency. Based on envelop detection analysis, a modification is recommended in the existing fault diagnostic models to consider the multiples of defect frequency rather than only considering the frequency spectrum at the defect frequency in order to incorporate the impact of multiple points fault.
- Authors: Yaqub, Muhammad , Gondal, Iqbal , Kamruzzaman, Joarder
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: 2011 International Conference on Control, Automation, Robotics and Vision (ICCARV); Venice, Italy; 23rd-25th November 2011; published in Proceedings of the World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, International Journal of Mechanical, Aerospace, Industrial, Mechatronic and Manufacturing Engineering Vol. 5, p. 2548-2553
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Occurrence of a multiple-points fault in machine operations could result in exhibiting complex fault signatures, which could result in lowering fault diagnosis accuracy. In this study, a multiple-points defect model (MPDM) is proposed which can simulate fault signature-s dynamics for n-points bearing faults. Furthermore, this study identifies that in case of multiple-points fault in the rotary machine, the location of the dominant component of defect frequency shifts depending upon the relative location of the fault points which could mislead the fault diagnostic model to inaccurate detections. Analytical and experimental results are presented to characterize and validate the variation in the dominant component of defect frequency. Based on envelop detection analysis, a modification is recommended in the existing fault diagnostic models to consider the multiples of defect frequency rather than only considering the frequency spectrum at the defect frequency in order to incorporate the impact of multiple points fault.
Multiproxy approach to track changes in the ecological condition of wetlands in the Gunbower Forest, a Ramsar site
- Mall, Neeraj, Gell, Peter, Kattel, Giri, Gadd, Patricia, Zawadzki, Atun
- Authors: Mall, Neeraj , Gell, Peter , Kattel, Giri , Gadd, Patricia , Zawadzki, Atun
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Marine and Freshwater Research Vol. 73, no. 10 (2022), p. 1196-1211
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- Description: Gunbower Forest is bordered by the Murray River and Gunbower Creek and hosts several floodplain wetlands listed under the Ramsar Convention. Sediment cores were retrieved from three wetlands to trace changes to their ecological state over time. The basal sediments of the wetlands date back to the beginning of river regulation in the 1930s, suggesting that only after then were they inundated sufficiently often to allow for net sediment accumulation. The diatoms preserved in the lower levels of all cores suggest clear, freshwater conditions prevailed during that period. Increased sediment and nutrient loads are inferred by increased epiphytic forms and nutrient indicators. Over recent decades the wetlands have transitioned to plankton dominance, reflecting greater connectivity to the river and distributary, and a reduced light environment. This pattern resembles to that recorded both upstream and downstream, suggesting a regional-scale change in the wetlands of the southern Murray-Darling Basin. © CSIRO 2022.
- Authors: Mall, Neeraj , Gell, Peter , Kattel, Giri , Gadd, Patricia , Zawadzki, Atun
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Marine and Freshwater Research Vol. 73, no. 10 (2022), p. 1196-1211
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Gunbower Forest is bordered by the Murray River and Gunbower Creek and hosts several floodplain wetlands listed under the Ramsar Convention. Sediment cores were retrieved from three wetlands to trace changes to their ecological state over time. The basal sediments of the wetlands date back to the beginning of river regulation in the 1930s, suggesting that only after then were they inundated sufficiently often to allow for net sediment accumulation. The diatoms preserved in the lower levels of all cores suggest clear, freshwater conditions prevailed during that period. Increased sediment and nutrient loads are inferred by increased epiphytic forms and nutrient indicators. Over recent decades the wetlands have transitioned to plankton dominance, reflecting greater connectivity to the river and distributary, and a reduced light environment. This pattern resembles to that recorded both upstream and downstream, suggesting a regional-scale change in the wetlands of the southern Murray-Darling Basin. © CSIRO 2022.
National income inequality predicts cultural variation in mouth to mouth kissing
- Watkins, Christopher, Leongómez, Juan, Bovet, Jeanne, Żelaźniewicz, Agnieszka, Korbmacher, Max, Varella, Marco, Fernandez, Ana, Wagstaff, Danielle, Bolgan, Samuela
- Authors: Watkins, Christopher , Leongómez, Juan , Bovet, Jeanne , Żelaźniewicz, Agnieszka , Korbmacher, Max , Varella, Marco , Fernandez, Ana , Wagstaff, Danielle , Bolgan, Samuela
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Scientific Reports Vol. 9, no. 1 (2019), p. 1-9
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- Description: Romantic mouth-to-mouth kissing is culturally widespread, although not a human universal, and may play a functional role in assessing partner health and maintaining long-term pair bonds. Use and appreciation of kissing may therefore vary according to whether the environment places a premium on good health and partner investment. Here, we test for cultural variation (13 countries from six continents) in these behaviours/attitudes according to national health (historical pathogen prevalence) and both absolute (GDP) and relative wealth (GINI). Our data reveal that kissing is valued more in established relationships than it is valued during courtship. Also, consistent with the pair bonding hypothesis of the function of romantic kissing, relative poverty (income inequality) predicts frequency of kissing across romantic relationships. When aggregated, the predicted relationship between income inequality and kissing frequency (r = 0.67, BCa 95% CI[0.32,0.89]) was over five times the size of the null correlations between income inequality and frequency of hugging/cuddling and sex. As social complexity requires monitoring resource competition among large groups and predicts kissing prevalence in remote societies, this gesture may be important in the maintenance of long-term pair bonds in specific environments.
- Authors: Watkins, Christopher , Leongómez, Juan , Bovet, Jeanne , Żelaźniewicz, Agnieszka , Korbmacher, Max , Varella, Marco , Fernandez, Ana , Wagstaff, Danielle , Bolgan, Samuela
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Scientific Reports Vol. 9, no. 1 (2019), p. 1-9
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Romantic mouth-to-mouth kissing is culturally widespread, although not a human universal, and may play a functional role in assessing partner health and maintaining long-term pair bonds. Use and appreciation of kissing may therefore vary according to whether the environment places a premium on good health and partner investment. Here, we test for cultural variation (13 countries from six continents) in these behaviours/attitudes according to national health (historical pathogen prevalence) and both absolute (GDP) and relative wealth (GINI). Our data reveal that kissing is valued more in established relationships than it is valued during courtship. Also, consistent with the pair bonding hypothesis of the function of romantic kissing, relative poverty (income inequality) predicts frequency of kissing across romantic relationships. When aggregated, the predicted relationship between income inequality and kissing frequency (r = 0.67, BCa 95% CI[0.32,0.89]) was over five times the size of the null correlations between income inequality and frequency of hugging/cuddling and sex. As social complexity requires monitoring resource competition among large groups and predicts kissing prevalence in remote societies, this gesture may be important in the maintenance of long-term pair bonds in specific environments.
Nights at the airport
- Authors: Mills, Alice
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nebula Vol. 6, no. 2 p. 174-176
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- Description: A personal narrative is presented in which the author explains her experiences while waiting for a plane at the airport at night.
- Description: 2003008013
- Authors: Mills, Alice
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nebula Vol. 6, no. 2 p. 174-176
- Full Text:
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- Description: A personal narrative is presented in which the author explains her experiences while waiting for a plane at the airport at night.
- Description: 2003008013
Not a pivot, but a pirouette : a panel presentation about the Arts Academy online in a time of pandemic
- Beddie, Melanie, Crowley, Anthony, Durban, Kim, Hall, Ross
- Authors: Beddie, Melanie , Crowley, Anthony , Durban, Kim , Hall, Ross
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Contemporary Humanities Vol. 5, no. 1 (2021), p. 1
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- Authors: Beddie, Melanie , Crowley, Anthony , Durban, Kim , Hall, Ross
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Contemporary Humanities Vol. 5, no. 1 (2021), p. 1
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On gambling research, social science and the consequences of commercial gambling
- Livingstone, Charles, Adams, Peter, Cassidy, Rebecca, Markham, Francis, Rintoul, Angela
- Authors: Livingstone, Charles , Adams, Peter , Cassidy, Rebecca , Markham, Francis , Rintoul, Angela
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Gambling Studies Vol. 18, no. 1 (2018), p. 56-68
- Full Text:
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- Description: Social, political, economic, geographic and cultural processes related to the significant growth of the gambling industries have, in recent years, been the subject of a growing body of research. This body of research has highlighted relationships between social class and gambling expenditure, as well as the design, marketing and location of gambling products and businesses. It has also demonstrated the regressive nature of much gambling revenue, illuminating the influence that large gambling businesses have had on government policy and on researchers, including research priorities, agendas and outcomes. Recently, critics have contended that although such scholarship has produced important insights about the operations and effects of gambling businesses, it is ideologically motivated and lacks scientific rigour. This response explains some basic theoretical and disciplinary concepts that such critique misunderstands, and argues for the value of social, political, economic, geographic and cultural perspectives to the broader, interdisciplinary field of gambling research. © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Angela Rintoul” is provided in this record**
- Authors: Livingstone, Charles , Adams, Peter , Cassidy, Rebecca , Markham, Francis , Rintoul, Angela
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Gambling Studies Vol. 18, no. 1 (2018), p. 56-68
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Social, political, economic, geographic and cultural processes related to the significant growth of the gambling industries have, in recent years, been the subject of a growing body of research. This body of research has highlighted relationships between social class and gambling expenditure, as well as the design, marketing and location of gambling products and businesses. It has also demonstrated the regressive nature of much gambling revenue, illuminating the influence that large gambling businesses have had on government policy and on researchers, including research priorities, agendas and outcomes. Recently, critics have contended that although such scholarship has produced important insights about the operations and effects of gambling businesses, it is ideologically motivated and lacks scientific rigour. This response explains some basic theoretical and disciplinary concepts that such critique misunderstands, and argues for the value of social, political, economic, geographic and cultural perspectives to the broader, interdisciplinary field of gambling research. © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Angela Rintoul” is provided in this record**
Order of intermittent rock fractured surfaces
- Aligholi, Saeed, Khandelwal, Manoj
- Authors: Aligholi, Saeed , Khandelwal, Manoj
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol. 15, no. 1 (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: According to chaos theory, some underlying patterns can disclose the order of disordered systems. Here, it has been discussed that intermittency of rough rock fractured surfaces is an orderable disorder at intermediate length scales. However, this kind of disorder is more complicated than simple fractal or even multi-scaling behaviours. It is planned to deal with some multifractal spectra that systematically change as a function of the analysed domain. Accordingly, some parameters are introduced that can perfectly take into account such systematic behaviour and quantify the intermittency of the studied surfaces. This framework can be used to quantify and model the roughness of fractured surfaces as a prerequisite factor for the analysis of fluid flow in rock media as well as the shear strength of rock joints. Ultimately, the presented framework can be used for analysing the intermittency of time series and developing new models for predicting, for instance, seismic or flood events in a short time with higher accuracy. © 2022 by the authors.
- Authors: Aligholi, Saeed , Khandelwal, Manoj
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol. 15, no. 1 (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: According to chaos theory, some underlying patterns can disclose the order of disordered systems. Here, it has been discussed that intermittency of rough rock fractured surfaces is an orderable disorder at intermediate length scales. However, this kind of disorder is more complicated than simple fractal or even multi-scaling behaviours. It is planned to deal with some multifractal spectra that systematically change as a function of the analysed domain. Accordingly, some parameters are introduced that can perfectly take into account such systematic behaviour and quantify the intermittency of the studied surfaces. This framework can be used to quantify and model the roughness of fractured surfaces as a prerequisite factor for the analysis of fluid flow in rock media as well as the shear strength of rock joints. Ultimately, the presented framework can be used for analysing the intermittency of time series and developing new models for predicting, for instance, seismic or flood events in a short time with higher accuracy. © 2022 by the authors.
Perceived change in tobacco use and its associated factors among older adults residing in rohingya refugee camps during the covid-19 pandemic in Bangladesh
- Mistry, Sabuj, Ali, Arm Mehrab, Yadav, Uday, Huda, Md Nazmul, Rahman, Muhammad Aziz
- Authors: Mistry, Sabuj , Ali, Arm Mehrab , Yadav, Uday , Huda, Md Nazmul , Rahman, Muhammad Aziz
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Vol. 18, no. 23 (2021), p.
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- Description: This study explored the perceived change in tobacco use during the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated factors among older adults residing in Rohingya refugee camps, also referred to as Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals in Bangladesh. The study followed a cross-sectional design and was conducted in October 2020 among 416 older adults aged 60 years and above. A purposive sampling technique was applied to identify eligible participants, and face-to-face interviews were conducted using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire to collect the data. Participants were asked if they noted any change in their tobacco use patterns (smoking or smokeless tobacco) during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to pre-pandemic. Binary logistic regression models determined the factors associated with the perceived change in tobacco use. More than one in five participants (22.4%) were current tobacco users, of whom 40.8% reported a perceived increase in tobacco use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adjusted analysis revealed that participants who were concerned about COVID-19 had significantly (p < 0.05) lower odds of perceived increase in tobacco use (aOR = 0.22, 95% CI: 0.06–0.73), while older adults who were overwhelmed by COVID-19 (aOR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.06–1.18) and communicated less frequently with others during the pandemic than before (aOR = 0.19, 95% CI: 0.03–1.20) had marginally significantly (p < 0.1) lower odds of perceived increase in tobacco use during this pandemic. Relevant stakeholders, policymakers, and practitioners need to focus on strengthening awareness-raising initiatives as part of an emergency preparedness plan to control tobacco use during such a crisis period. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Muhammad Aziz Rahman” is provided in this record**
- Authors: Mistry, Sabuj , Ali, Arm Mehrab , Yadav, Uday , Huda, Md Nazmul , Rahman, Muhammad Aziz
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Vol. 18, no. 23 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: This study explored the perceived change in tobacco use during the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated factors among older adults residing in Rohingya refugee camps, also referred to as Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals in Bangladesh. The study followed a cross-sectional design and was conducted in October 2020 among 416 older adults aged 60 years and above. A purposive sampling technique was applied to identify eligible participants, and face-to-face interviews were conducted using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire to collect the data. Participants were asked if they noted any change in their tobacco use patterns (smoking or smokeless tobacco) during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to pre-pandemic. Binary logistic regression models determined the factors associated with the perceived change in tobacco use. More than one in five participants (22.4%) were current tobacco users, of whom 40.8% reported a perceived increase in tobacco use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adjusted analysis revealed that participants who were concerned about COVID-19 had significantly (p < 0.05) lower odds of perceived increase in tobacco use (aOR = 0.22, 95% CI: 0.06–0.73), while older adults who were overwhelmed by COVID-19 (aOR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.06–1.18) and communicated less frequently with others during the pandemic than before (aOR = 0.19, 95% CI: 0.03–1.20) had marginally significantly (p < 0.1) lower odds of perceived increase in tobacco use during this pandemic. Relevant stakeholders, policymakers, and practitioners need to focus on strengthening awareness-raising initiatives as part of an emergency preparedness plan to control tobacco use during such a crisis period. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Muhammad Aziz Rahman” is provided in this record**
Perceived injury risk among junior cricketers : A cross sectional survey
- Gamage, Prasanna, Fortington, Lauren, Finch, Caroline
- Authors: Gamage, Prasanna , Fortington, Lauren , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Vol. 14, no. 8 (2017), p. 1-11
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Understanding how junior athletes perceive injury risks when participating in sport and the environment they play in is an important component of injury prevention. This study investigates how Sri Lankan junior cricketers (n = 365, aged 11–14 years, boys) perceive injury risks associated with playing cricket. The study used a Sri Lankan modification of an Australian junior cricket injury risk perception survey that considered playing cricket versus other sports, different cricket playing positions and roles, and different ground conditions. The risk of playing cricket was considered to be greater than that for cycling, but lower than that for rugby and soccer. Fast-bowlers, batters facing fast-bowlers, fielding close in the field, and wicket-keeping without a helmet were perceived to pose greater risks of injury than other scenarios. Playing on hard, bumpy and/or wet ground conditions were perceived to have a high risk opposed to playing on a grass field. Fielding in the outfield and wicket-keeping to fast-bowlers whilst wearing a helmet were perceived as low risk actions. The risk perceptions of junior cricketers identified in this study, do not necessarily reflect the true injury risk in some instances. This information will inform the development of injury prevention education interventions to address these risk perceptions in junior cricketers. © 2017 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
- Authors: Gamage, Prasanna , Fortington, Lauren , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Vol. 14, no. 8 (2017), p. 1-11
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Understanding how junior athletes perceive injury risks when participating in sport and the environment they play in is an important component of injury prevention. This study investigates how Sri Lankan junior cricketers (n = 365, aged 11–14 years, boys) perceive injury risks associated with playing cricket. The study used a Sri Lankan modification of an Australian junior cricket injury risk perception survey that considered playing cricket versus other sports, different cricket playing positions and roles, and different ground conditions. The risk of playing cricket was considered to be greater than that for cycling, but lower than that for rugby and soccer. Fast-bowlers, batters facing fast-bowlers, fielding close in the field, and wicket-keeping without a helmet were perceived to pose greater risks of injury than other scenarios. Playing on hard, bumpy and/or wet ground conditions were perceived to have a high risk opposed to playing on a grass field. Fielding in the outfield and wicket-keeping to fast-bowlers whilst wearing a helmet were perceived as low risk actions. The risk perceptions of junior cricketers identified in this study, do not necessarily reflect the true injury risk in some instances. This information will inform the development of injury prevention education interventions to address these risk perceptions in junior cricketers. © 2017 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
Performing the bounds of responsibility
- Authors: Berger, Karen
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Humanities Vol. 10, no. 4 (2021), p. 112
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: This paper investigates border-making dynamics in the two political arenas where my subjectivity is most acutely implicated across time—the Jewish Holocaust (as an intergenerational victim) and the Aboriginal genocide (as an unwitting beneficiary). Albeit that there are many differences between the drivers of antisemitism and racism against Indigenous Australians, I investigate both of these racist structures through the lens of border-thinking as theorised by Walter Mignolo as a method of decolonisation (2006). The article has been formatted as an example of discursive border-crossing by juxtaposing theoretical ideas (particularly inspired by Zygmunt Bauman and Deborah Bird Rose) with interjections from my personal journal. I explore my own performative storytelling as a means for me to take responsibility to question power structures, acknowledge injustice, and to enact the potential for ethical dialogue between myself and others. This responsibility gestures to the possibility of border crossing as an ‘act of liberation’ that resides in the acknowledgement of historical injustices and their continued impact on both the beneficiaries and the victims of coloniality in the present.
- Authors: Berger, Karen
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Humanities Vol. 10, no. 4 (2021), p. 112
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: This paper investigates border-making dynamics in the two political arenas where my subjectivity is most acutely implicated across time—the Jewish Holocaust (as an intergenerational victim) and the Aboriginal genocide (as an unwitting beneficiary). Albeit that there are many differences between the drivers of antisemitism and racism against Indigenous Australians, I investigate both of these racist structures through the lens of border-thinking as theorised by Walter Mignolo as a method of decolonisation (2006). The article has been formatted as an example of discursive border-crossing by juxtaposing theoretical ideas (particularly inspired by Zygmunt Bauman and Deborah Bird Rose) with interjections from my personal journal. I explore my own performative storytelling as a means for me to take responsibility to question power structures, acknowledge injustice, and to enact the potential for ethical dialogue between myself and others. This responsibility gestures to the possibility of border crossing as an ‘act of liberation’ that resides in the acknowledgement of historical injustices and their continued impact on both the beneficiaries and the victims of coloniality in the present.