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The past decade has seen a blossoming of emotion research in applied linguistics, which led to a deeper understanding of the crucial role both positive and negative emotions play in the context of foreign language (FL) learning. In this paper, we will outline a research agenda arising from the rich knowledge gained so far, which we hope inspires researchers to pursue future directions which we consider highly relevant for both researchers and practitioners alike. Firstly, we review the development of foreign language learner emotion research and identify research gaps. This will be followed by a discussion of four broad areas in which we perceive the pressing need for future research to advance our understanding of the role of emotions in foreign language learning. These include 1) the diversification of emotions studied, 2) a better understanding of emotion dynamics, 3) the need to diversify research contexts, and 4) bridging the research-practice gap. For each of these areas, we will outline tasks, taking into account the latest developments in theory and methodology, which we hope will advance our knowledge gained from this dynamic, thriving field of study.
Learning has recently played a vital role in control engineering, producing numerous applications and facilitating easier control over systems; however, it has presented serious challenges in flight learning for unmanned platforms. Iterative learning control (ILC) is a practical method for cases needing repetition in control loops. This work focuses on the ILC of a quadrotor flight. An unstable flight might lead to a crash in the system and stop the iterations; hence, a base controller, the state-dependent Riccati equation (SDRE), is selected to stabilize the drone in the first loop. The ILC acts on top of the SDRE to increase the precision and force the system to learn to track trajectories better. The combination of ILC and SDRE was tested for stationary (fixed-base) systems without the risk of crashes; nonetheless, its implementation on a flying (mobile) system is reported for the first time. The gradient descent method shapes the training criteria for error reduction in the ILC. The proposed design is implemented on simulation and a real flight of a quadrotor in a series of tests, showing the effectiveness of the proposed input law. The nonlinear and optimal structure of the base controller and the complex iterative learning programming were challenges of this work, which were successfully addressed and demonstrated experimentally.
This study aimed to investigate whether seasonal epistaxis patterns differ between cases manageable in emergency departments versus those requiring hospital admission and to examine weather parameter correlations by severity category.
Methods
A retrospective severity-stratified analysis of 2,201 epistaxis presentations across two UK hospitals (January 2023–December 2024) with comprehensive weather correlation analysis was used.
Results
Emergency department cases (1,762 presentations, 80.1 per cent) peaked in winter (475 cases, 27.0 per cent), while hospital admissions (439 cases, 19.9 per cent) peaked in spring (130 cases, 29.6 per cent). A critical 10°C temperature threshold effectively separated severity categories with high predictive accuracy.
Conclusion
Epistaxis demonstrates opposing seasonal patterns by clinical severity with distinct weather correlation profiles. Emergency departments should prepare for winter volume surges during cold, humid periods, whilst specialist ENT services require enhanced spring capacity during moderate temperature conditions.
This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of Eustachian tube dysfunction and identify associated risk factors in a consecutive cohort of children undergoing adenotonsillectomy for sleep-disordered breathing.
Methods
This was a retrospective study of children with sleep-disordered breathing admitted for adenotonsillectomy in two tertiary public hospitals in South China from January 2019 to November 2023. The prevalence of Eustachian tube dysfunction was assessed based on tympanograms. Demographic information and clinical characteristics were collected for risk factors analysis.
Results
A total of 1,044 children aged 3 to 14 years were enrolled in the present study, 375 (35.92%) of whom had Eustachian tube dysfunction. Risk factors for Eustachian tube dysfunction included age less than or equal to six years, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, adenoid hypertrophy and hypoxemia. No significant association was found between Eustachian tube dysfunction and gender, disease duration, tonsillar hypertrophy, obesity or obstructive sleep apnoea.
Conclusion
Eustachian tube dysfunction is highly prevalent in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy for sleep-disordered breathing and, therefore, warrants further attention and intervention.
Electrocardiogram interpretation is critical in neonatal care, as artefacts may mimic life-threatening arrhythmias. We report the case of a preterm newborn girl, delivered at 31 weeks of gestation due to acute fetal distress, who developed tachycardia shortly after birth. The initial ECG showed chaotic electrical activity, initially raising suspicion of artifact; however, a subsequent tracing confirmed a life-threatening arrhythmia with wide QRS complexes, prolonged QTc, and torsades de pointes. As the patient remained haemodynamically stable, intravenous lidocaine and magnesium sulphate were administered, achieving pharmacological cardioversion. Propranolol was subsequently initiated, and the lidocaine infusion was tapered and replaced with oral mexiletine. Serial electrocardiograms showed QTc interval improvement, left ventricular function normalised, and the patient was discharged on the 39th postnatal day following stabilisation and supportive care for prematurity. Genetic testing identified a de novo SCN5A c.796C > G (p.L266V) mutation associated with Long QT syndrome type 3. At 1 year of age, the patient remains stable and asymptomatic while receiving combined therapy with propranolol and mexiletine.
In this editorial we set out the background to the advent and development of the concept of recovery in mental health care. We follow this with an overview of policy with specific reference to our own locale here in Wales where a recovery-focus is now written into national mental health legislation and policy directions. We briefly summarise our own research in this area and note positive relationships between recovery and social support and quality of life but also limited shared understanding of what recovery might mean alongside gaps in policy aspirations and everyday experiences of using services. The concept of recovery remains contested with concerns it has become a means for neoliberal thinking in services and in effect has been colonised by competing ideas. Despite this (sometimes) conflicting evidence and the polyvalent quality of the concept, recovery retains a sense of vitality and validity as evidenced by contributions to this special issue of the journal. Building on our reading of this growing literature we suggest that recovery necessitates social change, implies an understanding of systems and awareness of complexity and finally must account for and accommodate competing understandings. To achieve its foundational aims, it is imperative that research in this field directly engages and includes people with experience of using mental health services as co-researchers in generating new recovery-focused interventions to address the challenges of severe mental illness experiences.
This article introduces a fungal framework, both metaphorically and methodologically, for reimagining power, resistance, and world-making in International Relations (IR). Drawing on relational ontologies and ecological insights, it examines how fungal processes of decomposition and regeneration shed light on the entangled relations that constitute the pluriverse—a world of many worlds. By centering decay as a site of transformation, the framework proposes an ethic of research grounded in humility and care. It critiques the epistemic closures that structure dominant IR paradigms and offers tools for engaging ontological multiplicity beyond Eurocentric frames. In doing so, the article contributes to emerging debates on decolonial methodology, more-than-human agency, and pluriversal ethics, advocating for approaches that accompany, rather than assimilate, multiple worlds.
Considering the performance of the standard KF (Kalman filter)degrades significantly when subjected to a hybrid attack, this paper investigates the state estimation problem for a class of stochastic systems under randomly occurring hybrid cyber attacks, which involves denial-of-service (DoS) attack and deception attack obeying unknown Gaussian distribution. First, to consider the DoS attack and deception attack in a unified model, a categorical distributed vector is employed to establish a new measurement model including hybrid cyber attacks. Next, the conjugate prior distributions for the unknown attack parameters are determined, in which the attack probabilities are modeled as Dirichlet distribution, and the deception attack is described by Gaussian-inverse-Wishart distribution. Then, based on variational Bayesian (VB) inference, a RKF (robust Kalman filter) is designed to simultaneously estimate the state and unknown attack parameters. Finally, the estimation performance of the proposed filter is illustrated through a simulation example.
In tritrophic interactions, host plants could influence not only the population of insect pests but also that of their natural enemies. This study examined the effect of three wheat cultivars on demographic parameters of Schizaphis graminum Rondani (Hemiptera: Aphididae) and its predator, Hippodamia variegata (Goeze) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Furthermore, the secondary metabolites, photosynthetic pigments, and defence enzymes of wheat cultivars were evaluated at different times. According to the results, the highest and lowest developmental times of S. graminum were found on cultivar (cv.) Morvarid and cv. Ehsan, respectively. However, it was vice versa for the predator, being highest on cv. Ehsan and lowest on cv. Morvarid. Adults of S. graminum lived shorter on cv. Morvarid, while males and females of H. variegata lived longer on this cultivar. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) of S. graminum ranged from 0.347 to 0.456 day−1, and that of H. variegata from 0.118 to 0.176 day−1 on different cultivars. The value of this parameter was lowest for aphids but highest for their predator on cv. Morvarid. Based on the results, cv. Morvarid at 120 hours post-infestation by S. graminum contained the greatest concentrations of secondary metabolites and enzyme activities. The time-dependent loss of photosynthetic pigments occurred in each tested cultivar. The results revealed that cv. Morvarid had a suitable potential for reducing the population of S. graminum and enhancing the performance of H. variegata. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the complementary interactions of cv. Morvarid and H. variegata in controlling S. graminum population under natural conditions.
This Research Paper addresses the hypothesis that the use of a probiotic and the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action of curcumin will improve the use of buttermilk, which is a by-product of the dairy industry that is still little used, despite its nutritional and technological properties. The production of beverages using buttermilk as a basis will contribute to the development of foods that support sustainability, reduce waste and have high nutritional quality. The aim of this research is to develop a functional dairy beverage with high antioxidant potential, combining probiotic (Lactobacillus gasseri LG08) and bioactive compounds through buttermilk fermentation and curcumin addition. To this end, four formulations were prepared: (1) pasteurized buttermilk (BM), (2) pasteurized buttermilk + curcumin (CUR), (3) pasteurized fermented (L. gasseri LG08) buttermilk (FBM) and (4) pasteurized fermented (L. gasseri LG08) buttermilk + curcumin (FCUR). We evaluated proximal composition and physicochemical properties (pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids, colour and water-holding capacity), microbiological and antioxidant capacity over 28 days and in vitro cytotoxicity. For comparison among experimental formulations, ANOVA followed by the Tukey test was used for parametric variables, and for non-parametric variables, Kruskal–Wallis followed by Dunn’s, using BM as the control. For comparison over storage time, ANOVA was performed. The analyses show the effect of fermentation on beverages with added Lactobacillus, with a reduction in pH and an increase in acidity. The use of curcumin resulted in changes not only in colour but also in the antioxidant content of the beverages. At 100 μg/ml, all formulations were non-cytotoxic. Furthermore, in the evaluation of cell viability, the FCUR beverage at the highest concentration improved viability after stress with hydrogen peroxide. Fermentation using the lactose content in buttermilk was effective. Curcumin enhanced visual appeal and bioactivity without cytotoxic effects. Utilizing underused by-products reduces waste and supports sustainability.
We review the ambiguous legacy of Emil Kraepelin. He established an approach that secured psychiatry’s place as a medical specialty, and his methodology has dominated the profession and defined its long 20th century, 1899–2026. However, his eugenic views weigh heavily because of the catastrophes in which German psychiatry was implicated and to which it contributed actively during the Nazi era that followed. Furthermore, his project to establish mental illness in the form of discrete natural kinds has failed in the light of scientific progress. Psychiatry must embrace the complexity of mental illness and engage more deeply with the inherently fuzzy realms of language, culture, technological change and political power. This shift should bear more strongly on psychiatry’s curriculum, research priorities, continuing professional development, practice, ethics and public engagement.
The Roman occupation of England (AD 43–410), characterised by urbanisation and militarisation, is generally understood to have had a negative impact on population health. Yet our understanding of associated socioeconomic changes is hindered by the comparatively limited analysis of inhumations from the preceding Iron Age. Deploying the DOHaD hypothesis, this study examines negative health markers in the skeletons of 274 adult females of childbearing age and 372 non-adults aged below 3.5 years from Iron Age and Roman contexts, revealing the long-lasting negative influence of urbanisation but with a more limited impact in rural communities implying continuation of cultural norms.
Indigenous activists have increasingly asserted claims of ecocide in various international legal venues. While acting separately from each other, they reflect common concerns regarding destruction of the environment, particularly with respect to the impacts of environmental damage upon Indigenous communities. In doing so, they connect Indigenous interests in the environment to discourses over ecocide. The present analysis considers the appropriateness of ecocide discourse for Indigenous peoples in the light of the latter’s diverse interests in the environment. Specifically, the analysis seeks to explore the bases for Indigenous normative concerns regarding ecocide, both with respect to its meaning and its inclusion in international criminal law. The analysis draws upon Indigenous studies literature to develop a heuristic framework for organizing Indigenous perspectives, through which it is possible to clarify Indigenous arguments on ecocide. In doing so, the analysis furthers engagement with Indigenous approaches to ecocide in ways that assist descriptive understanding and prescriptive reflections addressing Indigenous concerns.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research has enabled the integration of world-leading science with clinical practice in the UK’s National Health Service, and has saved lives and improved lives as a result. However, this integration has not extended to mental health services. The case is made for a National Institute for Mental Health Research (NIMHR) to address this inequity.
Triage is an essential process used to adequately allocate resources and thus increase chances of survival in case of mass-casualty incidents (MCIs). Several triage scales are currently used, but data regarding their performance remain scarce. The objective was to compare the performance of two prehospital triage algorithms (Sieve versus SwissPre) using a validated physiological simulator.
Methods:
This was a web-based, randomized open-label study. A real-time evolutive simulator based on a heart-lung-brain interaction model embedding functional blocks was used to simulate the evolution of vital parameters. Participants, who were randomly allocated to either algorithm, were asked to triage 30 patients in random order. The primary outcome was the triage score (each correct decision was awarded one point). The “Immediate patients” were defined as those who would die within the first hour according to the physiological model. The secondary outcome was the duration of patient triage.
Results:
Out of 71 participants, 67 (94.4%) were included in the final analysis. The Sieve group achieved a mean score of 17.1 out of 30 (95%CI, 16.3 to 17.8). The SwissPre group scored 15.5 out of 30 (95%CI, 14.5 to 16.5). The mean difference between groups was 1.6 points (95%CI, 0.4 to 2.8; P = .011) in favor of the Sieve algorithm. Triage duration did not differ significantly between the Sieve (mean 43 minutes, SD = 10) and SwissPre (mean 46 minutes, SD = 23) groups, with a mean difference of three minutes (95%CI, −12 to 6; P = .507).
Conclusions:
The simpler Sieve algorithm may slightly outperform the more complex SwissPre in accurately categorizing critically injured patients who would likely die within 60 minutes if left untreated. No significant difference was observed in triage speed. However, these exploratory findings should be interpreted cautiously, considering the mean difference was modest and the controlled simulated setting, limiting generalizability.