PE International (Germany)

Background: Dementia is a progressive neurocognitive disorder marked by progressive decline in memory, thinking, behavior, and the ability to carry out daily activities. It is highly prevalent among low and middle income countries like Nepal, multiple factors are associated with prevalence of dementia. Objectives: To identify level of cognitive function and factors associated with dementia. Method: This study employed a descriptive cross-sectional design. A total of 360 participants were selected using a purposive sampling technique. Questionnaire related to Socio-demographic information, Standard valid tool community Screening Instrument of Dementia (CSID). Results: The study among 360 senior citizens of Mahalaxmi municipality ward no. 4 revealed that slightly female were more (51.7%) with the majority belong to age 60-70 years age group and average age of 70.28 years. Clinically majority of (90.0%) had at least one co-morbidity condition, with hypertension (48.6%) and diabetes (24.7%) being the most prevalent. Analysis revealed that dementia increase significantly with increasing age (p<0.001), male gender (p<0.001) and types family (p=0.004), where those who are living in joint families showed higher cognitive decline. similarly sleep duration (p<0.001), smoking habit (p<0.001) and co-morbidities (p=0.001) were significantly associated with dementia. Respondents with poor sleep, chronic disease and smoking habit had lower cognitive score. Conclusion: Dementia is prevalent in community, one of the growing public health concerns of cognitive impairment in elderly population. Age, gender, and smoking habit alcohol taking behavior, sleeping hour all have an impact on the prevalence of cognitive impairment.

This study proposes a data-driven optimization framework for designing efficient bus routes in Manhattan under the new congestion toll policy. Using origin-destination data from the New York City Yellow Taxi Trip Records, urban mobility is modeled as a directed graph, and a HybridScore function is defined to integrate congestion surcharges, Central Business District (CBD) fees, and trip frequency. Three metaheuristic algorithms, Genetic Algorithm (GA), Simulated Annealing (SA), and Ant Colony Optimization (ACO), are applied to maximize the weighted sum over a single K-cycle, representing a feasible bus loop. Comparative experiments at K = 10, 25, and 50 show that ACO consistently achieves the best performance, balancing solution quality, convergence speed, and stability, while SA rapidly produces feasible initial solutions. Beyond algorithmic performance, the results demonstrate the framework’s potential to inform real-world transit design by identifying corridors where expanded bus services could reduce congestion within Manhattan’s toll zone. This approach links computational optimization to sustainable policy implementation, offering a scalable method for building adaptive public transportation networks in dense urban environments.

Through the sustainable design practice of the Wuhan Citizen's Home project, we explore design strategies and methods for achieving sustainable development in architecture, accumulating experience for research on sustainable design in architecture.

Spontaneous structural deformation of a MoS 2 ribbon on two Au electrodes.

Abstract Tropical forests are rich in biodiversity but face the rapid loss of their wildlife due to increasing anthropogenic pressure, underscoring the urgent need for effective monitoring. Remote‐sensing tools such as camera traps offer faster, less invasive alternatives to human observations. These technologies can provide complementary insights into elusive species, especially in habitats that are difficult to access through direct observation. However, analysing the large volumes of data they produce is labour‐intensive, often leaving datasets underutilised due to limited human resources. Deep learning algorithms can automate aspects of data analysis, but their value to research and conservation efforts depends on their ability to reliably identify target species and be easily deployed in field conditions. To improve wildlife monitoring in African forests using camera trap data, we develop DeepForestVision, the first deep learning algorithm tailored to these challenging habitats that can be used in the field to process both photographs and videos. DeepForestVision was trained on an unprecedented dataset of 2,775,671 photographs and 221,982 videos gathered from camera traps from more than 63 research sites across 11 African countries. It identifies 33 non‐human vertebrate taxa, including 31 mammal taxa, from the most common to the most threatened ones observed on ground‐level camera traps, as well as humans, vehicles and blank photographs or videos. Classification tests demonstrate that DeepForestVision achieves an accuracy of 87.7% on the video test set with 23 taxa. It outperforms the three existing species identification algorithms applicable to these environments: Zamba by 13.1%, Mbaza by 45.0% and SpeciesNet by 37.7%. We provide the model weights for researchers and developers and offer DeepForestVision through a free offline interface. The interface is designed to function in the field in a low‐resource setting and requires no programming expertise. Solution : DeepForestVision is a reliable field tool for monitoring species observed on camera trap photos and videos in African tropical forests. Used by research, conservation, private or political actors, it can guide conservation strategies inside and outside of protected areas, and thus contribute to reducing the loss of biodiversity in African tropical forests.

Abstract Ceratocystis Canker and Wilt Disease (CCWD), caused by the fungal pathogen Ceratocystis manginecans, poses a significant threat to Acacia and Eucalyptus plantations in Indonesia. Infections typically occur through wounds on the main stems of trees, and infected trees, particularly Acacia, are often co‐infested by various wood‐associated beetles. The aim of this study was to identify the beetle species associated with Ceratocystis‐infected trees and to assess their potential role in dispersing C. manginecans. Beetle and frass samples were collected from Ceratocystis‐infected compartments of Acacia and Eucalyptus propagated as monocultures in Riau, Indonesia, either by using traps or by direct collection from infected trees. The samples were screened for the presence and viability of Ceratocystis propagules using a quantitative polymerase chain reaction‐high‐resolution melting analysis (qPCR‐HRMA) diagnostic tool and a carrot baiting technique, respectively. Fourteen beetle species, predominantly collected from traps, representing nine genera of the Scolytinae and Nitidulidae, were identified from the two plantation types. The qPCR tool detected the presence of Ceratocystis DNA on 13 of the 14 beetle species at concentrations as low as 0.015–0.0019 ng. However, viable Ceratocystis propagules could not be recovered from these beetles using culture‐based methods. Of the 105 frass samples screened, qPCR detected Ceratocystis DNA in 67 samples; however, only one Ceratocystis isolate was obtained using the carrot baiting method. The results of this study suggest that the beetles and beetle frass can harbour Ceratocystis propagules, as indicated by the detection of fungal DNA. However, the viability of the propagules and the ability of the beetles and/or beetle frass to spread C. manginecans requires further investigation.

In this report, 30 patients in Mali with untreated multibacillary leprosy were treated with bedaquiline for 8 weeks, followed by standard multidrug therapy. Cultures were cleared in all the patients with bedaquiline therapy.

Abstract User stories are the main vehicle to describe user needs in Agile projects and Agile project developments. But being this concept universally agreed, we may find that not all work increments have a clear user-centric view. In this paper, we focus on the distinction between user-centric “user stories” and other type of simple narratives, which may be simply called “stories”, which can be at the same level of abstraction. We propose a conceptual model in the form of UML diagram, and associated definitions, to clarify this distinction. The model also makes clearer the distinction among (user) story and (user) story template, which is not always kept clear.

Der russische Angriff auf die Ukraine hat zu nachvollziehbaren Anpassungen in der deutschen Sicherheitspolitik geführt. Das Gerede von der „Kriegstüchtigkeit“ ist allerdings überzogen und trifft nicht den richtigen Ton. Der Verteidigungshaushalt ist in den vergangenen Jahren deutlich erhöht worden, und fast alle haben verstanden, dass Sicherheitspolitik in Deutschland in der Vergangenheit allzu stiefmütterlich behandelt wurde. Diese Erkenntnis sollte nicht durch Rabulistik konterkariert werden.