Although cognitive robotics is still a work in progress, the trend is to “free” robots from the assembly lines of the third industrial revolution and allow them to “enter human society” in large numbers and many forms, as forecasted by Industry 4.0 and beyond. Cognitive robots are expected to be intelligent, designed to learn from experience and adapt to real-world situations rather than being preprogrammed with specific actions for all possible stimuli and environmental conditions. Moreover, such robots are supposed to interact closely with human partners, cooperating with them, and this implies that robot cognition must incorporate, in a deep sense, ethical principles and evolve, in conflict situations, decision-making capabilities that can be perceived as wise. Intelligence (true vs. false), ethics (right vs. wrong), and wisdom (good vs. bad) are interrelated but independent features of human behavior, and a similar framework should also characterize the behavior of cognitive agents integrated in human society. The working hypothesis formulated in this paper is that the propensity to consolidate ethically guided behavior, possibly evolving to some kind of wisdom, is a cognitive architecture based on bio-inspired embodied cognition, educated through development and social interaction. In contrast, the problem with current AI foundation models applied to robotics (EAI) is that, although they can be super-intelligent, they are intrinsically disembodied and ethically agnostic, independent of how much information was absorbed during training. We suggest that the proposed alternative may facilitate social acceptance and thus make such robots civilized.
Mechanical engineering and machinery, Electronic computers. Computer science
Naresh Patnaik, Uttam Sarkar, Malathi Jojula
et al.
ABSTRACT Background Female infertility is a global health issue however, its link with genital infections is often overlooked due to asymptomatic nature of infections. Delayed diagnosis and treatment due to absence of reliable point‐of‐care (POC) tools result in long‐term pathological consequences and infertility. This pilot‐scale study aims to identify the most noteworthy prognostic symptoms of genital infections that exhibit a significant correlation with reproductive tract disorders and infertility. Methods We designed a detailed questionnaire and conducted a case‐control, observational study with 100 female patients, categorized into infertile (n1 = 62) and healthy groups (n2 = 38) followed by statistical analysis. Results This study highlights an early onset of infertility (18‐25 years). Approximately 27% of the infertile female patients are symptomatic for genital infections, and ~42% exhibit menstrual irregularities. Polycystic ovarian syndrome/disease (PCOS/PCOD, ~30%) appears to be the most predominant disorder, followed by endometrial disorders (~10%) and tubal damage (~8%) in infertile patients. A multivariate correlation analysis revealed a highly significant (p ≤ 0.05) and strong association (0.15 < Φ ≤ 1.0) between menstrual disorders, endometrial disorders, uterine/tubal blockage, and hormonal disruption with infection‐associated symptoms, e.g. vaginitis, cervicitis, pelvic inflammatory disorder (PID), dyspareunia or infections like tuberculosis (TB) & urinary tract infection (UTI). Conclusions Our study shows a significant contribution of genital infections to female infertility. Nevertheless, a substantial 73% of infertile patients are ineligible for confirmatory diagnosis due to the absence of classical infection symptoms. This underscores the pressing requirement for comprehensive screening strategies for timely management of reproductive health and fertility. Patient or Public Contribution This study was performed in line with the principles of the STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines (Supporting Information 1) [1]. The study was performed following an ethical approval of the Institutional Human Ethics Committee. All individuals who participated in the study were fully informed about various aspects, including the study's objectives, methodologies, sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest, institutional affiliations of the researcher, anticipated benefits, potential risks, and the discomfort they might experience. Their participation was contingent on obtaining their informed consent (See Supporting Information 2 for patient consent form). Furthermore, to safeguard patient confidentiality, we took measures to de‐identify patient information. This included the removal of exact ages, which were replaced with age ranges, and the omission of exact dates or photographs during presentation of the data.
Background:
Inappropriate use of antimicrobials is one of the important contributing factors for antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The role of the community in the development of AMR is very significant and needs to be understood. The study aimed to determine the level of awareness, perception, and behavior regarding antibiotic usage among the community members and to identify the association between sociodemographic factors and knowledge.
Materials and Methods:
A cross-sectional study was conducted among adults in an urban area of Pondicherry. Eligible study participants were selected by multistage random sampling and interviewed through a house-to-house survey using a structured questionnaire using Epicollect5 software. The study protocol was approved by the institutional ethics committee (RC/2022/07). Student’s t-test and ANOVA were used to calculate P values.
Results:
Among 440 study participants, 286 (65%) said that they had ever heard of a type of medicine called antibiotics. Among them, more than 70% of participants were aware that antibiotics are used for killing germs but almost all said that antibiotics are often needed for cold and flu illnesses. 83.2% opined that they should take antibiotics to prevent getting a serious illness. 42.3% of the study participants never completed a full course of antibiotic treatment after feeling better with a few doses. Participants with higher education and upper socioeconomic status had better knowledge than others.
Conclusion:
Overall knowledge of the study participants was found to be inadequate. Most of the study participants did not have a correct attitude toward the use of antibiotics. The majority of the study participants were not following appropriate practices toward the use of antibiotics.
İstanbul’un manevi fatihi olarak bilinen Akşemseddin (ö. 863/1459), tasavvufi kimliğinin yanı sıra hekimliği ile de oldukça meşhur olmuştur. O, tasavvuf alanında yazmış olduğu Risâletü’n-Nûriyye, Makāmât-ı Evliyâ ve Defʿu Meṭâʿini’ṣ-Ṣûfiyye isimli eserlerinin dışında tıp alanında da günümüzde hâlâ üzerinde çalışılması gereken Mâddetü’l-Hayât isimli eseri kaleme almıştır. Eserinde hastalığın ırsiliği, kanser gibi konulara değinmiş ayrıca mikrop ve bulaşma konusunda kesin bilgiler veren İtalyan hekim Fracastor’dan (ö.1553) en az bir asır önce mikroptan bahsetmiştir. Akşemseddin, gördüğü bir rüya üzerine eseriyle aynı adı taşıyan mâddetü’l-hayât ilacının diğer adıyla mübarek sıvının da her türlü hastalığa iyi geleceğini söylemiştir.
Yapılan araştırmalar sonucunda Akşemseddin’in her derde şifa olduğunu söylediği mâddetü’l-hayât isimli ilacın içeriğinde yer alan yakut, cıva ve kükürdün, geçmişte de birçok hekim tarafından kullanıldığı tespit edilmiştir. Bu hekimlerden birisi Akşemseddin’den dört asır önce yaşayan ve eş-Şifâ, en-Necât, Uyûnü’l-Ḥikme gibi musiki, felsefe, tıp alanlarında birçok önemli eseri kaleme alan İbn Sînâ’dır. Onun tıp alanında yazmış olduğu el-Kanun fi’t-Tıb isimli eseri ise yaşadığı döneme damgasını vurmuş, Batı’da yıllarca ders kitabı olarak okutulmuştur. İbn Sînâ tıp tarihinde önemli bir yeri bulunan bu eserinde Akşemseddin gibi her derde şifa olacak bir ilaçtan bahsetmemiştir. Ancak tedavilere dair vermiş olduğu reçetelerde yakut, cıva ve özelikle de kükürdü çok sık kullanmıştır. Bu çalışma, İbn Sînâ’nın el-Kanun fi’t-tıb isimli eserinin içeriği ile her derde şifa olduğu söylenen mâddetü’l-hayât’ın içeriğinin karşılaştırılarak kullanıldıkları yerlerdeki benzerliklerinin ve farklılıklarının tespit edilmesi amacıyla kaleme alınmıştır.
Sarah Lewis, Catherine Hewitt, David Torgerson
et al.
Introduction Smoking during pregnancy is harmful to unborn babies, infants and women. Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is offered as the usual stop-smoking support in the UK. However, this is often used in insufficient doses, intermittently or for too short a time to be effective. This randomised controlled trial (RCT) explores whether a bespoke intervention, delivered in pregnancy, improves adherence to NRT and is effective and cost-effective for promoting smoking cessation.Methods and analysis A two-arm parallel-group RCT was conducted for pregnant women aged ≥16 years and who smoke ≥1 daily cigarette (pre-pregnancy smoked ≥5) and who agree to use NRT in an attempt to quit. Recruitment is from antenatal care settings and via social media adverts. Participants are randomised using blocked randomisation with varying block sizes, stratified by gestational age (<14 or ≥14 weeks) to receive: (1) usual care (UC) for stop smoking support or (2) UC plus an intervention to increase adherence to NRT, called ‘Baby, Me and NRT’ (BMN), comprising adherence counselling, automated tailored text messages, a leaflet and website. The primary outcome is biochemically validated smoking abstinence at or around childbirth, measured from 36 weeks gestation. Secondary outcomes include NRT adherence, other smoking measures and birth outcomes. Questionnaires collect follow-up data augmented by medical record information. We anticipate quit rates of 10% and 16% in the control and intervention groups, respectively (risk ratio=1.6). By recruiting 1320 participants, the trial should have 90% power (alpha=5%) to detect this intervention effect. An economic analysis will use the Economics of Smoking in Pregnancy model to determine cost-effectiveness.Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval was granted by Bloomsbury National Health Service’s Research Ethics Committee (21/LO/0123). Written informed consent will be obtained from all participants. Findings will be disseminated to the public, funders, relevant practice/policy representatives, researchers and participants.Trial registration number ISRCTN16830506.Protocol version 5.0, 10 Oct 2023.
rahmita maulina mayang, Ibnu Rawandhy N. Hula, Mariaty Podungge
et al.
The goal of this study is to find out how the Koran and its interpretation describe the quality of Islamic education. The literature review incorporates the conducted search. This qualitative research is part of the kind of library research that uses analytical and descriptive methods. The qualitative descriptive method was analyzed in this study using a variety of approaches. The first step in this study is to examine everything in the Koran that ensures Islamic education quality. Second, examine all of the Hadith, Koran, and other verses that are comparable to education. Thirdly, investigate the verses of the Koran, the Hadith that describes the Prophet Muhammad SAW's daily activities, and the components of the quality of education. The fourth step is concentrating on science, which can be as an essential hypothesis or idea with respect to the nature of Islamic instruction from the stanzas of the Qur'an and hadith, or regular occasions. Fifth, make inferences based on the analysis's findings. The qualitative textual data used in this study combines primary, secondary, and complementary data. the kind of education that is well-liked by the community as well as schools, as well as the kind of education that can assist students in developing relative reasoning. Schools and quality are working to foster an environment where learning the Koran and its translation can be used as an educational experience, particularly in granting the best wishes.
Religious ethics, Religions. Mythology. Rationalism
This study examined the impact of superiors’ ethical leadership on subordinates’ unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) and the mediating effects of followership. The research subjects were officials from the ten central departments of the South Korean government, and a cross-sectional survey was conducted among them. Overall, 404 questionnaires were used in the empirical analysis. Multiple regression analysis and Hayes Process Macro were used to validate the research hypotheses, which examined the relationship among ethical leadership, followership, and UPB. The results are as follows: First, the relationship between ethical leadership and followership was statistically significant. Second, the study showed that followership had a statistically significant effect on UPB but not ethical leadership. Third, testing the hypotheses regarding the mediating effect of followership on the relationship between ethical leadership and UPB revealed statistically significant results. This study confirms that followership significantly influences UPB and suggests that ethical leadership is an important precedent factor of followership. The study concludes with the theoretical and practical implications of these findings, along with the study’s limitations.
[Purpose/Significance] The biomedical research field is suffering from reproducibility crisis, which has become one of important issues under the background of the rise of the data-intensive research paradigm. As one of the most important attributes of scientific research by empirical data study,reproducibility needs to be improved by good data practices of researchers. How to effectively improve the data literacy of researchers has become the key point to solve the crisis. However, the relevant research is basically in the blank condition. The paper aims to establish a new data literacy education system for reproducibility crisis, in order to fill the current research gap and provide reference for implementing the relevant education in our country. [Method/Process] Firstly, the paper clarifies the relationship between reproducibility crisis and data literacy by using content analysis: the inappropriate data behavior of researchers may bring serious problems in many respects, such as research data, methods, process, environments and results, which could eventually lead to the irreproducible research. Then, we redefine the concept of data literacy education. Secondly, based on the summarization of the existing foreign research results and practice, the paper builds the Reproducibility Data Literacy Education (Re-DLE) system from the perspective of educational goals and content, subjects and objects, teaching methods, implementation strategies, and evaluation. At last, it proposes the necessary guarantee factors for the operation of the system. [Results/Conclusions] The ultimate goal of Re-DLE is to improve research reproducibility, bulid the educational content framework on the theory of data life cycle, and divide the main content into three dimensions: re-data awareness, re-data skills, and re-data ethics, each of which includes some clear educational objectives, subject modules and detailed instructions Medical libraries have a wealth of teaching experience and should become the educational main body for the broader biomedical research community. the establishment of diversified training methods, diversified teaching strategies and evaluation methods, in other words, we need to strengthen the team building of teaching librarians, consolidate the educational resources foundation, promote educational exchanges, and improve the internal and external cooperative system, so as to push forward the building of the Re-DLE system. The research results of this paper not only can be seen as a theoretical breakthrough, but also provide the theory basis for the development and implementation of education. In addition, due to the limitation of methods, the paper can be used as a qualitative research, which still has some problems to be solved. In the future work, we need to build more scientific and effective Re-DLE system by using empirical research methods.
Bibliography. Library science. Information resources, Agriculture