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Hina Inam ( Aga khan University Hospital Karachi, Pakistan )
Fareed Ahmed Shaikh ( Aga khan University Hospital Karachi, Pakistan )
Nadeem Ahmed Siddiqui ( Aga khan University Hospital Karachi, Pakistan )
May-Thurner syndrome (MTS) is a rare disease common in middle aged females, characterised by left-sided lower limb Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) due to compression of the left iliac vein by the overriding right iliac artery. Pregnanc y and puerperal phases are one of the hypercoagulable states further predisposing towards th rombu s format io n. Treatme nt in c lu de s both conservative and interventional (venous thrombectomy with or without stenting). Here we report a case of a 34- year-old female in her early postpartum period who visited the Agha Khan University Hospital in July 2016, with the onset of acute pain and swelling in the left leg. Her workup revealed left-sided Acute DVT, secondary to MTS. Her case was su cces sfull y mana ged with conservative treatment. This case is an important addition to medical literature in the sense that DVT occurring on the onset of postpartum period should not always be attributed to the hypercoagulability, secondary to pregnancy. With early diagnosis and aggressive management, MT Scan be easily managed .
Keywords: May-Thurner syndrome, Hypercoagulability, Un-fractionated heparin.
May-Thurner syndrome (MTS) is a rare disease which occurs due to the compression of the left iliac vein by the overriding right iliac artery, subsequently resulting in obstructed venous return, and ultimately predisposing the patient to deep venous thrombosis.1 Its incidence is variable and ranges between 5% to 18% in patients with DVT involving lower limb. It usually manifests in middle aged females, especially those in their partum period. Here we present a case of a young female with MTS reported at the Agha Khan University Hospital in July 2016. The patient was successfully managed with conservative treatment. Written and verbal consent, as well as a declaration was obtained from the subject.
Our patient was a 34-years-old female who had a Caesarean section 10 days prior to the event. It was during her eighth month of gestation when she delivered a dead foetus. Ten days after the operation she presented in the emergency room with complaint of a sudden severe pain in the left leg involving the entire lower extremity. Pain was associated with the development of a swelling from the foot to the thigh. The pain and swelling would increase while walking and relieved when resting with limb elevation. Patient reported limited mobility in her post-operative period due to incisional pain. She did not have any family history for DVT. Besides this, she did not have any comorbid or addictions. On examination her vitals were stable without any evidence of dyspnea or cough. Local examination revealed tenderness in the left thigh and swelling of the lower left extremity up to mid-thigh. There were no visible enlarged veins and perfusion of the leg was adequate. Ultrasound Doppler showed distended and noncompressible left common femoral vein, superficial femoral and popliteal veins with no color-flow on color Doppler examination. Thrombus was seen extending into left external iliac vein, however IVC appeared unremarkable as seen in Figures-1
ACT scan was also performed which showed dilatation in the left external and common iliac veins, with evidence of a filling defect indicating presence of thrombus. The left common iliac vein was significantly attenuated in the segment behind the right iliac artery, and its communication with the IVC was not clearly visualised, suggesting MTS as seen in Figure-2.
She was managed conservatively within the hospital and was started on intravenous heparin and titrated with target activated thromboplastin time (APTT) of 60-90 seconds. On achieving the target APTT range, warfarin was administered. Once the international normalised heparin infusion was discontinued, and she was subsequently discharged home. On her follow up at the clinic, she remained symptom free and to date no evidence of post thrombotic syndrome has been found.
MTS or Iliocaval compression syndrome was first described in 1957 by May and Thurner. It results from extrinsic compression of left iliac vein by an anomalous overlying right iliac artery which predisposes to deep venous thrombosis. MTS is thought to represent between 2% to 5% of the lower-extremity venous thrombosis. It is three times more common in women than in men. It typically presents in the second to fourth decades of life. 3 Age of our patient corresponds with the age of other patients reported in literature. Pathophysiologically, a chronic stimulus is transmitted to the endothelial cells of left common iliac vein from the pulsating right common iliac vein. Bumps (Spurs) in the collagen are formed due to this stimulus leading to elastin accumulation, thus causing hyperplasia of endometrial blood vessels. This accompanied by Virchow's triad would lead to deep venous thrombosis. Hypercoaguable states, chronic trauma, obesity and immobilisation are common in such patients. 4 Our patient was a thin lean female with limited post-operative mobility having a recent history of C-section which supports the above mentioned findings. During pregnancy the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) increases 4 to 5 fold as compared to a non-pregnant state. 5,6In the postpartum period the risk of DVT is between 20 to 80 times higher than during pregnanc. 7 The risk is 100-fold higher in the first week of postpartum. 8 Hypercoagulability generated by pregnancy, along with obstruction of the left common iliac vein by an enlarged uterus is the cause for an increased risk of DVT during the third trimester and shortly after delivery. Swelling, pain or tenderness or enlarged veins or feeling of increased warmth in the leg or redness or discoloration of the skin, are the most common presenting complaints. Our patient had a history of a sudden severe pain in her left leg which was associated with swelling. Usually ultrasound is the first modality that is used for diagnosis. However, the gold standard for diagnosis is a contrast venogram which would show narrowing of iliac vein at the pelvic brim. Helical abdominal computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance venography (MRV) and intravenous ultrasound (IVUS) are some the other diagnostic modalities. With recent advances in CT scanning techniques, results of CT venogram are now comparable to that of conventional venogram. CT venogram offers the advantage of being noninvasive, rapidly performable providing comparable results in contrast to digital subtraction venogram. A recent study by Kuo YS et al9 also suggests similar findings based on which we performed a CT venogram of our patient rather than the conventional venogram. Treatment modalities include use of anticoagulant, catheter directed thrombolysis, stent placement, placement of filters, surgical approaches including vein patch angioplasty with excision of intraluminal bands, division of the right common iliac artery and relocation behind the left common iliac vein or inferior vena cava and saphenous vein graft bypass to the inferior vena cava or ipsilateral common femoral vein. 2 Reestablishment of vessel patency by removing the thrombus, relieving the acute symptoms in order to prevent recurrent thrombosis and pulmonary embolism and to reserve venous valve function, thus preventing post-thrombotic syndrome is the main purpose of treatment for postpartum DVT. A recent Cochrane review indicated that thrombolysis caused considerably less post thrombotic syndrome. 10 Inability to identify or optimally treat DVT can result in both, short and long term complications. Proximal DVT is responsible for pulmonary embolism and 5% to 10% of the patients with DVT suffer from post thrombotic syndrome. 10 To date, there has been no consensus regarding the optimal treatment of MTS. Several questions remain unanswered such as, wheth er the solitar y use unfractionated heparin/anti coagulation is adequate or not, or if some endovascular intervention can be instituted; should it be only balloon venoplasty or stent placement in the iliac vein? Nakajima et al in a case report suggested that the use of unfractionated heparin is adequate in patients with MTS and interventional options should be reserved for patients with persistent symptoms after the use of anticoagulation. 3 We managed our patient with only conservative treatment which showed immediate symptom relief and no evidence of post thrombotic syndrome to date. However, there are no guidelines for management of future pregnancies in women with May- Thurner and iliofemoral DV T. 2 However, use of anticoagulation throughout pregnanc y has been advocated for prevention and management of thromboembolic complications during pregnancy and postpartum period.
This report highlights the importance of early diagnosis when there is a high index of suspicion for MTS as a cause for DV T. This repor t also suppor ts the use of anticoagulation as a solitary treatment modality for MTS.
1. Alirhayim Z, El Atrache M, Rocco N, Drake S. Symptomatic ileofemoral deep vein thrombosis due to May-Thurner syndrome. BMJ Case Rep 2014; 2014: bcr2013201167.
2. Zander KD, Staat B, Galan H. May-Thurner Syndrome resulting in acute iliofemoral deep vein thrombosis in the postpartum period. Obstet Gynecol 2008; 111: 565-9.
3. Nakajima Y, Masaoka N, Tsuzuki Y, Morooka M, Sakai M. May?Thurner syndrome resulting in acute iliofemoral deep vein thrombosis during the second trimester of pregnancy. J Obstet Gynaecol Res 2012; 38: 1106-10.
4. Mathur M, Cohen M, Bashir R. May-Thurner Syndrome. Circulation 2014; 129: 824-5.
5. Demirtürk OS, Oguzkurt L, Coskun I, Gülcan Ö. Endovascular treatment and the long-term results of postpartum deep vein thrombosis in 18 patients. Diagn Interv Radiol 2012; 18: 587-93.
6. Pomp E, Lenselink AM, Rosendaal FR, Doggen CJ. Pregnancy, the postpartum period and prothrombotic defects: risk of venous thrombosis in the MEGA study. J Thromb Haemost 2008; 6: 632-7.
7. Duran C, Rohatgi S, Wake N, Rybicki FJ, Steigner M. May-Thurner Syndrome: A Case Report. Eurasian J Med 2011; 43: 129-31.
8. James AH. Pregnancy-associated thrombosis. ASH Education Program Book 2009; 2009: 277-85.
9. Kuo YS, Chen CJ, Chen JJ, Lin CH, Ku JW, Hsu HL, et al. May-Thurner syndrome: Correlation between digital subtraction and computed tomography venography. J Formos Med Assoc 2015; 114: 363-8.
10. Watson L, Armon MP. Thrombolysis for acute deep vein thrombosis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2004;4: CD002783.


Elizabeth Barbara Hudak Suich, 93, passed away in the early morning hours of Saturday, June 28, 2008, at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, MA following a short illness.
Her husband of 41 years, Joseph John Suich, a Navy veteran, died in 1980. She leaves her sons, Joseph S. Suich of Thompson, CT and Robert Lewis Suich of Phoenix, AZ; three grandchildren, Joseph S. Suich of Seymour, CT, Debra Beth Suich of Shelton, CT and David Suich of Newton, New Hampshire. She was predeceased by her brother, Gilbert Hudak, born in Fairfield, CT.


Borstein provided the co-invest equity required to develop the former Howard Hughes defense site in 2002 as well as debt financing for an additional 115 single family lots in 2011 on the remainder parcel. Two million square feet of concrete and steel buildings were demolished, with most materials recycled or salvaged. Amerige Heights is pedestrian friendly and has been honored with several design awards. Residential types include luxury estate homes, traditional single-family residences, apartments, alley-loaded residences and attached homes. Trails and paseos link homes to shopping, schools, parks and open space, including a 10-acre sports park and community activities building. An 82.5-acre mixed-use district holds 1.28 million square feet of development, including retail, office and light industrial uses. It was recognized as the 2004 Project of the Year by the Orange County branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers.


The "Numero UNO" nickname had a few inspirations. It was our first Restaurant to open in Omaha and, when it opened, it was the most successful grand opening ever for Raising Cane's®. Plus, we are located next to The University of Nebraska Omaha, a.k.a. UNO.


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Personal data will be kept for the length of time necessary to perform the process for which it was collected. This applies to data held both electronically and on paper.
Your personal data for marketing communications will be retained indefinitely unless you tell us that you no longer wish to receive marketing messages from us and our services. In these circumstances, we will keep this information about you to ensure that we don't send you any further marketing communications in error.


A wonderful law that makes the Islamic law superior over the common law. This judgement can be used in all the countries that are following both Islamic Law and Common Law Systems.
Constitution of Pakistan 1973 --- Art. 2A---Entorcement of Shariah Act (31 of 1991), S.4---Injunctions of Islam---General and common law of land---Comparison---Islamic Injunctions are not in any way subservient to the general and common law of the land--Article 2A of the Constitution read with Objectives 'Resolution and S.4 of Enforcement of Shariah Act, 1991, have always kept the Islamic law s at a higher level than other general law s of the country.


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Home / Houston Astros / Carlos Correa is still projecting to be a Hall of Fame, Historic player
Carlos Correa is still projecting to be a Hall of Fame, Historic player
By TheNaturalMevs on August 5, 2016
So I ran across a Fangraphs article from just last month that talks about Carlos Correa still appearing to be on a historic track. You read this article, and you realize Correa is going to be just fine despite a slow and steady 2016.
From FG:
Correa's ZiPS projections over the next five years, starting at 7.9 WAR next season and totaling more than 40 wins from ages 22 to 26.
Uh, wow. That can't be right, can it?
I was shocked by the Correa forecast myself, and asked Dan to double check that there wasn't an error in the code or something, given how bullish it is on Correa's future. But Dan said the system just loves Correa, as the history of guys who can hit like this at 20/21 in the big leagues is almost universally fantastic. The age really is the key thing to keep in mind here; it's easy to forget how big of a leap guys can make early on, and at 21, there's still a lot of room for growth.
Carlos Correa is historically good, is approaching a number of plate appearances before age 22 that many Hall of Famers have already; and is on track to be A-Rod at age 22 and an inner-circle Hall of Famer possibly when it's all said and done.
That said, he's just been pretty good in his age-21 season. So you know, just projections and stuff. And injuries can happen. But it's fun to watch him pile up the fWAR along the way.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Margery M. Thorp, PLLC is a unique law firm catering to individuals, insurance customers, consumers, small businesses owners, and other lawyers.
The firm assists in protecting insurance customers from financial injury by helping them receive fair and equitable treatment from their insurer during the insurer's handling of their claim. While consumers who purchase insurance often assume that their insurer is working diligently on their behalf and in their best interest while attempting to settle a claim, unfortunately this is not always the case. When an insurance company chooses its financial interests over your interests as the insured while handling a claim, the insurer has acted in bad faith and you may be entitled to damages and attorney's fees under Florida law.
While the firm's goal is always settlement of a dispute without needing to resort to litigation, Margery M. Thorp, PLLC practices Florida bad faith insurance litigation in both Florida federal and state courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Margery M. Thorp, PLLC also works with other insurance bad faith attorneys and firms and assists with the litigation phase of their bad faith cases. This includes the researching, preparation and drafting of all types of motions, responses, replies, and memoranda filed in Federal and State Courts during litigation.
In addition to bad faith insurance, Margery M. Thorp, PLLC assists small businesses and individuals with a variety of matters involving risk management, insurance contract review, drafting and review of contracts, lease agreements, purchase-sale agreements, employer-employee agreements, consent and release agreements, and copyright issues.
Margery Thorp founded her own firm of Margery M. Thorp, PLLC in 2016 after practicing extensively in the area of consumer insurance bad faith in various Florida State Circuit Courts, Federal Courts in the Florida's Middle and Northern Districts, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Margery's practice includes representing insureds in both first-party and third-party insurance claims, and includes all types of insurance.
Margery attended The University of Texas and Chicago's John Marshall Law School where she graduated with honors. Margery is licensed to practice law in both Illinois and Florida. In addition to being admitted to all Illinois and Florida State Courts, Margery is admitted to practice in U.S. Federal Courts for the Northern District and Middle District of Florida as well as the U.S. Appellate Court for the Eleventh Circuit. Margery has been practicing law in Florida for approximately 10 years.


text:
Bebo Experiences Growing Pains
By Nick O'Neill
Launching a social platform can be a daunting task especially if you build it in less than a year. That's exactly what Bebo did when it launched its platform last month. Since then thousands of developers have contributed close to 1,300 applications on the site and it has become the second largest platform (then again it's the only other alternative platform to Facebook currently). As a result of their platform launch, the site suffered increasing downtime.
Nick O'Neill
MJV's Design Thinking Book Serves As A Top Resource for Brand Managers in 2022
Leadership & Talent
Teads Promotes Monique Pintarelli to Chief Revenue Officer to Lead US Operations
By Stephen Lepitak
By Brittaney Kiefer
Invention Is Not Innovation: How to Properly Plan for Change
By Phil Rowley


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discounted 14.4 €
Deerhunter, one of the key bands in contemporary indie rock, led by the provocative singer and guitarist Bradford Cox, is finally coming to Slovenia – bearing a new album! Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared?, released in January via the acclaimed 4AD label, is already garnering praise from reviewers – NME, Pitchfork and The Independent gave it a high mark of 8/10, Exclaim! an even higher 9, and The Skinny no less than 10/10.
During a career spanning nearly 20 years and many a tragedy, Deerhunter have crossbred their indie rock foundation with more or less everything: psychedelia, experimental, ambient, garage, noise, post-rock, shoegaze, pop and more. The common thread that runs through their unique body of work are curiosity and boldness – as well as success, of course. Their discography contains well-received release after well-received release, including the crown jewel, Halcyon Digest, one of the 1001 albums you must hear before you die, which made numerous end-of-year best-of lists in 2010.
Their January release Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared? is another example of the band, notorious also for the unbridled sincerity of frontman Bradford Cox (Atlas Sound), hitting the mark. The album, a response to the contemporary disappearance of culture, humanity, nature, logic and emotions, is again exciting and unpredictable, as befits Deerhunter. "The slow, crumbling decline of civilisation has rarely sounded so good," salivated The Skinny. The decline of civilisation in Šiška starts in April.
Tickets on sale online and at mojekarte.si outlets.
Organisation: Kino Šiška.
29. 07. / Mon / 20:00


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Hospitalization Trends for Acute Appendicitis in Spain, 1998 to 2017
Occupational Exposure to Ultrafine Particles and Placental Histopathological Lesions: A Retrospective Study about 130 Cases
Towards a Comprehensive Strategy for the Management of Rare Diseases in Slovenia: Outlining an IT-Enabled Ecosystemic Approach
Moreno, A.
Sanz, G.
Garcia-Zapirain, B.
hGLUTEN Tool: Measuring Its Social Impact Indicators
Antonia Moreno
Guillermo Sanz
Begonya Garcia-Zapirain
eVIDA Research Group, University of Deusto, Avd. de las Universidades, 24, 48007 Bilbao, Spain
Received: 18 October 2021 / Revised: 23 November 2021 / Accepted: 30 November 2021 / Published: 2 December 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Technologies in Health Informatics and Management)
hGLUTEN is a technological solution capable of detecting gluten and spoiled food. We measured the social impact of the hGLUTEN tool using two Likert scale surveys with two groups: professionals (engineers/chefs) and end-users. These data have been assessed in accordance with the social impact indicators defined for the Key Impact Pathways introduced by the European Commission for Horizon Europe and the criteria of the Social Impact Open Repository (SIOR). A total of 85% of users, 100% of engineers and 68% of professional chefs consider it very relevant to participate and give their opinion in research projects, which shows the increasingly high level of involvement of the general population. A total of 88% of users were unaware of other applications that detect gluten and were more dependent on guidelines provided by allergy associations and expiry dates of foodstuffs. In addition, only 5% of professional chefs said they were aware of other technology capable of detecting gluten in food, which may indicate a large economic market and good commercialisation possibilities for the tool in the future. Finally, the inclusion of tools to motivate users to promote it has been identified as an area for improvement, which could mean that it should be made more visible in the media to increase its impact and influence.
social impact; artificial intelligence; embedded system; sensor NIR; ODS
Food allergies and intolerances affect an increasing number of people. For this reason, the eVIDA research group has developed a technological solution called hGLUTEN (Figure 1), which detects the presence of gluten and spoiled food with an accuracy of 88% and 100%, respectively. The tool offers real-time measurements without having to send samples to the laboratory, using artificial intelligence or NIR spectroscopy. By modifying the analysis process, the use of this easy, fast, reliable and low-cost method would reduce costs for the user, the food industry and the health sector. This article analyzes the social impact that this tool could have, following the indicators established by the European Commission.
Food security has evolved over the years. The most comprehensive understanding of food security is continuously having enough safe, healthful food at an affordable cost to meet nutritional and caloric needs and the preferences of the individual or household [1].
Food allergy is known to negatively impact the psychosocial aspects of the health-related quality of life (HRQL) [2,3,4,5,6,7]. It affects nearly 5% of adults and 8% of children, with evidence of an increasing prevalence. It concerns not only individuals but also their families, with higher levels of stress and anxiety described in families living with the risk of anaphylaxis [8,9,10]. QoL is described as individuals' perception of their position in life in the context of their culture and values, in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns [11]. Whilst patients may carry the diagnosis of food allergy into adulthood, Kamdar et al. have recently reported that at least 15% of patients show adult onset develop of food allergies [12].
Food ingredient labels must be read every time before food is served, and simple tasks such as grocery shopping become time-consuming and often expensive endeavours for families who have a member with a food allergy [13]. Despite the best attempts of families to maintain a safe diet, accidental ingestions of food have been reported to occur in about half of these patients [14]. As there is no cure, the management of the condition consists of strict avoidance of allergen exposure and prompt treatment with epinephrine in the event of an allergic reaction [15].
Providing information about the presence of an allergen in a food is an important tool for risk management, as consumers with food allergies often rely on labelling (i.e., ingredients list; advisory and precautionary labelling) to assess the safety of pre-packed foods [16,17]. This information is used in conjunction with other risk management strategies, such as reliance on past experiences of consuming a food product, sensory appreciation of risk and assessment of product qualities [18].
On 1 April 2016 the UN General Assembly declared the Decade of Action on Nutrition programme, which would run from 2016 to 2025, as part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals initiative [19]. As the world moves towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, goals 2 (end hunger), 3 (improve health), 8 (decent work and economic growth), 12 (responsible consumption and production), 13 (climate action), 14 (life below water) and 15 (life on land), are all deeply interlinked with the global food system [20].
Food is considered a basic human right—as echoed by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, "people have a right to freedom from hunger, and everyone has a right to have access to adequate food" [21,22]. A right to food is a claim that is accepted and acknowledged by individuals and all of society, without which individuals would not survive or maintain their well-being [23].
Access to healthy food, which is adapted to each individual's needs, is increasingly sought after by society as a whole and is practised at home. From that perspective, while more frequent home cooking is associated with better diet quality and is generally perceived to be healthier and more affordable, low-income and food insecure households still face multiple barriers to preparing healthy meals [24].
In this sense, people now demand higher quality products, ranging from the latest technologies to the most widely consumed goods in supermarkets. However, product quality is not only a consumer concern. Producers are equally interested in high quality to ensure their position on the market or their reputation, which are vital to their business profits.
Spectroscopy has been an alternative to traditional chemical and biochemical techniques since the 1960s at the international level, demonstrating good potential to obtain accurate and swift assessments of the chemical composition of some biological systems. The interaction of luminescence with atoms is controlled by measuring the reflectance within the visible (VIS) and infrared (IR) spectrum.
The purpose of this project was to carry out a technique capable of examining the properties of solid and liquid foods and the allergens they contain by studying absorption and reflection of the different wavelengths of the foods in the near infrared spectrum range between 900 and 1700 nm. Other sensors will be used to analyse the quality of foods and food spoilage.
The hGLUTEN project provides a technology solution that can analyse food fingerprints using absorbance, reflectance and sample signal values. It also employs an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of detecting gluten-free foods that contain less than 20 ppm of gluten as well as some spoiled foods. The system design includes a near-infrared spectrometer, a pH meter and an infrared temperature sensor, which we use to monitor milk lactic acid fermentation and the consequent pH reduction. All of the above form an integrated technology solution, using a Raspberry Pi. By pressing a button, we began the test and obtain the results on a web server or an app. These tests reduce sampling time and the amount of material used in the laboratory. A total of seven gluten-free samples, six samples containing gluten, five types of milk and four types of fruit were validated with the use of artificial intelligence, reaching 88% accuracy in the detection of gluten allergy, together with laboratory instruments such as a digital microscope or reactive tests. We hope to enlarge this database in the future and carry out an analyser for other allergens such as lactose or nut traces.
1.1. Social Impact of Research
The social impact of a project takes place when the scientific knowledge has been produced, published and transferred to society and its institutions, prompting positive effects in them. However, this social impact can be analysed from various perspectives, rather than only the economic one. It is people, society as a whole, who know their needs and how social impact can satisfy such needs [25].
The way in which research is organised and funded in every scientific domain is subject to growing scrutiny. Economic investment in health research is used by policymakers, health care providers and doctors to make key decisions based on evidence pursuing the patient's benefit. They also focus on ensuring that limited medical resources are used to the best advantage to provide effective and sustainable services [26].
Governments, funding agencies and research organisations across the world increasingly seek to maximise social and economic returns from research investments, shaping policies and research practices. For instance, in the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, excellent science, industrial leadership and societal challenges are three mutually reinforcing priorities [27].
The pathways to identifying how scientific research impacts society and improves policy and practice are diverse. Some highlight the need to focus on how a research project generates productive interactions, which are understood to be exchanges between researchers and stakeholders that constitute the framework wherein robust scientific knowledge is produced and assessed [28]. Permanent dialogue between researchers and non-researchers is strengthened in these interactions from the start of the research to the final presentation of the findings [28].
We therefore believe that it is important and necessary to measure, in the short term, the social impact of this research, which makes use of the hGLUTEN tool to analyse the presence of gluten in food and detect possible food spoilage. It is also necessary to improve the mechanisms that evaluate the impact that this scientific research is already producing. Accordingly, with a view of providing a permanent system of indicators for impact evaluation and contributing towards ensuring the social impact of research, the European Commission selected the FP7 EU Project IMPACT-EV. This project designed the first global open-access repository on science social impact called SIOR (Social Impact Open Repository). Van den Besselaar, Flecha and Radauer (2018) [29] elaborated a set of indicators, sources and methodologies to measure social impact in the short, medium and long term for each of the Key Impact Pathways, which we will follow in this study.
1.2. hGLUTEN Technological Solution Description
The project consists of different technological parts that will be described in the following subsections.
1.2.1. Absorption/Transmission/Reflection Spectroscopy
Ultraviolet–visible–near-IR spectroscopy (UV-Vis-NIR) is used to measure the absorption, transmission and reflectivity of a variety of technologically important materials such as pigments, coating, windows and filters. This more qualitative application generally requires registering at least part of the spectrum to specify the optic or electronic properties of the materials.
Transmission spectroscopy is closely related to absorption spectroscopy. This technique is used for sampling solid, liquid and gas. Here, light passes through the sample and is compared with light that does not. The resulting spectrum depends on the length or thickness of the sample's path, absorption coefficient and reflectivity, the incidence angle, the polarisation of incident radiation and, in the case of the particles, their size and orientation. In the Beer–Lambert law (Equation (1)), the term IT/Io is called transmittance. The configuration of this form of spectroscopy is similar to the one used for absorption.
Einnt = Eel + Evib + Erot
Eint = Internal energy
Eel = Electronic energy
Evib = Vibrational energy
Erot = Rotational energy
Reflectance spectroscopy is the study of light based on the wavelength that has reflected or dispersed in a solid, liquid or gas. When photons enter a mineral, some are reflected off grain surfaces, and others pass through the grain or are absorbed. Photons that are reflected off grain surfaces or are refracted through a particle are said to be scattered. Scattered photons may find another grain or scatter off the surface so that they can be detected and measured. All materials have a complex refractive index (Equation (2)):
m = n − jK
m = complex index of refraction
n = real part of the index
j = (−1) × 1/2 K is the imaginary part of the refractive index, sometimes called the extinction coefficient.
1.2.2. DLP NIR Nano Scan by Texas Instruments
Spectral signatures in the 780–2500 nm range are dominated by the presence of hydrogen bonds such as OH, CH, Nh and SH. The NIR frequency band is therefore particularly suitable for use in food and agricultural control and health diagnoses as well as the petrochemical processing and pharmaceutical industries.
Within the NIR frequency band, each spectroscopic application has unique requirements in terms of wavelength and chemometric analysis. For example, the DLP NanoscanNIR (900–1700 nm) can provide information on water (H20) and sucrose (C12H24O12) content. Extending the instrument's wavelength range to 2500 nm enables it to discover additional organic compound signatures and may improve results in pharmaceutical process supervision.
The DLP NIR Nano Scan (Figure 2) is a compact battery-operated spectrometer evaluation module for portable near-infrared solutions. With the digital micromirror device (DMD) DLP2010NIR, the NIRscan Nano supports Bluetooth low energy to enable mobile lab measurements for hand-held spectrometers.
The EVM incorporates the DLP2010NIR DMD, a diffraction grating, and a single element detector to replace expensive GaAs linear array-based detector design. With its TI Tiva™ TM4C1297NCZAD processor, databases in the cloud can be leveraged through cellular networks for real-time lab equivalent analytics, which allow food or skin analysis and wearable health monitor solutions. Developers can also create their own data collection and analysis through innovative iOS and Android applications.
1.2.3. Block Diagram of the Proposed Solution
As regards the system architecture (Figure 3), a Raspberry PI 4B microprocessor was used in order to link all the sensors and integrate it with the system to connect to the web server or app to obtain the results.
The following sensors were used:
pH meter: to measure the acidity level of foods and analyse its change in them;
NIR spectrometer to measure the gluten level in foods;
Temperature sensor: to observe how temperature can affect changes in the condition of foods.
To explore and measure the social impact that the hGLUTEN tool has had, an online survey was conducted using a Likert scale with two groups: professionals (engineers/chefs) and end-users. This data has been assessed in accordance with the social impact indicators defined for the Key Impact Pathways introduced by the European Commission for Horizon Europe, and the criteria of the Social Impact Open Repository (SIOR). In the following we will explain the method used, the data collection, the description of the participants and the data analysis.
Data collection took place through an online Likert-type scale survey in which eleven questions were asked to professional cooks and engineers (Q11P), and another 14 questions were asked to users of the hGLUTEN tool (Q14U). The survey was active for a period of two months from 23 February 2020 at the link (https://forms.gle/xobpmyuvkTRV82pr9). An invitation to participate in the survey was sent by email to students and professors of the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Deusto (Engineers) and the School of Hostelry Management of Leioa at the University of the Basque Country (Professional Chefs). In the case of standard users, an e-mail was also sent to the university community of Deusto. Together with these mails, the user's guide on how the hGLUTEN tool works and an infographic of its design were attached. In order to carry out the calculus operations, Microsoft Excel was used. The survey questions were grouped into eight social impact indicators:
From the point of view of professional chefs and engineers, the indicators include:
Change in behaviour and practices;
Change in the improvement of work practices;
Evaluation and impact on professionals;
Satisfaction with follow-up and treatment.
From the users' point of view, the indicators include:
Social improvement, health and quality of life;
Improvements in the person's experience;
Improvement in the environment;
Improvement in services provided by professional chefs for better monitoring and treatment of pathology.
Description of Interviewees
A total of 62 respondents participated in this survey: 17 engineers, 19 professional chefs and 26 standard users, of whom were 35 men and 27 women. Participants ranged in age from 18 to 60 years old. For the analysis of the impact indicators of the hGLUTEN tool, we considered on the one hand the co-creation process involved in its technological development, in which engineers and professional chefs participated. On the other hand, we included the more general vision of the standard users, although not all of them were celiacs or had gluten intolerance.
Although the non-response rate was high, the survey can be regarded as representative at least of an academic environment. For all three groups the results can be regarded as significant with a confidence level of 90% and an error margin below 20%. The specific values are as follows:
Standard users: error margin 16.71%, confidence level 90%, 26 of 15992 responded;
Engineers: error margin 19.91%, confidence level 90%, 17 of 1580 responded;
Professional chefs: error margin 18.63%, confidence level 90%, 19 of 573 responded.
As interviewees tend to take part in surveys which they regard as important and represent their own issues or interests, the survey is likely to contain a bias, but on the other hand participants tend to choose midpoint while filling forms [30,31,32].
2.2. Data Analysis Method
Categorical Data
This survey was divided into two different surveys according to the profiles which they focused on: the first one was answered by engineers and professional chefs and the second one was answered by standard users without any specified occupation.
All questions of the survey can be classified by the answer possibilities, e.g., yes/no questions and multiple-choice questions. The multiple-choice questions have two different 1 of n answer scales. The first one (Ch1) contains answers on a scale beginning with a zero value, e.g., never, rarely, sometimes, often and always, while the answers of the second type (Ch2) have a central value with 4 symmetrically placed relations, e.g., totally disagree, disagree, neither agree nor disagree, agree and totally agree.
All answers were encoded as follows, and yes and no were replaced by 1 and 0, respectively. Labels from scales beginning with a zero value were encoded as 0 to 4, and labels from symmetric scales were encoded as −2 to 2. All calculus operations were performed with this encoding. The descriptive results are noted in Table 1 for Engineers/Professionals chefs and Table 2 for standard users The nearest number to the mean can be decoded with the above explanation and interpreted as a general answer to the question with a tendency to the next (resp. previous) value on the scale if it was rounded up (resp. rounded down).
2.3. Social Impact Analysis
Van den Besselaar, Flecha and Radauer (2018) established the social impact indicators that were collected in the Monitoring the Impact of EU Framework Programmes [29] and that we will use for our research. For each Key Impact Pathway, indicators are defined that measure the expected progress in social impact and that we will take into account for the present study. For the purpose of our study, the data collected were analysed under this framework, which includes the four Key Impact Pathways: (a) achieving R&I missions, (b) addressing global challenges, (c) engaging EU citizens and (d) supporting policymaking [29]. Consequentially, this paper reports quantitative and qualitative data as a result of measuring the social impact of the hGLUTEN tool.
Although the research impact assessment (RIA) has gained recent interest, it is not new [27,33,34,35,36,37,38]. RIA uses a multitude of methods from social science disciplines to examine the research process with to the aim of maximising its societal and economic impacts such as intellectual property, spin-out companies, health outcomes, public understanding and acceptance, policymaking, sustainable development, social cohesion, gender equity, cultural enrichment and other benefits [27].
The creation of the Social Impact Open Repository (SIOR) was based on the concept of social impact defined by the European Commission, which refers to economic impact, social impact, environmental impact and, in addition, impact on human rights. SIOR is also the world's first open-access repository [39,40,41]. Social and policy impact repositories are likely to become fundamental tools for the evaluation of social and policy impact, such as journal rankings in the Scopus or Web of Science currently are for the evaluation of scientific impact [27]. The idea of impact and its measurement are important tools to formulate and evaluate science, technology and innovation policies. As can be seen, we grouped the results obtained in the online survey into eight social impact indicators.
In order to carry out the evaluation to measure the progress of the social impact of the hGLUTEN tool, the indicators defined by the European Commission were taken into account, in which the target groups of the research are decisive. In this case, a standard user was considered to determine whether the use of the designed technology would be useful for him/her and professional chefs, who could use it on a daily basis in their jobs (restaurants, catering, hotels, etc.). Progress is currently being made on improving the tool with the Euskadi-EZE Coeliac Association. The vision that the engineers would have when developing this technology would also be important in assessing its social need and technological possibilities.
3.1. Social Impact and Its Measurement through an Online Survey
Below we show the social impact indicators, which are derived both from the online survey of engineers and chefs on the one hand and standard users on the other.
3.1.1. From the Point of View of Professional Chefs and Engineers
Indicators of change in behaviour and practice include:
Q1P: The new application would help to avoid anaphylactic incidents in people allergic to gluten or spoiled food.
Q2P: Authorities could improve their policies and programmes with the data that the app provides.
Q3P: This information has been shared with family, friends, etc.
As can be observed in Table 3, most of the engineers and professional chefs agreed (41% and 58%) or totally agreed (30% and 21%), respectively, that developing this tool could lead to the avoidance anaphylactic incidents due to the ingestion of gluten or other problems caused by the consumption of spoiled food. Furthermore, many of them believe (engineers, 59% and professional chefs, 53%) that its use could bring about changes in health programmes to encourage prevention policies. Nevertheless, 18% of the engineers have not shared information or remarked to other people about this tool, 24% have shared little information, and 5% professional chefs have not shared any information, while 26% have shared little information. This could mean that the message of sharing the experience with other users or with the media is necessary to improve its impact. In general terms, these percentages indicate the positive perspective about the usefulness of hGLUTEN and prove the need for it, as well as concern about these food-related problems.
Change indicators in the improvement in work practices include:
Q4P: The use of this tool could lead to changes in work practices;
Q5P: It would improve the detection of allergens and enable more personalised treatment than with other tools that people knew or used;
It may seem contradictory that professional chefs (53%) and engineers (82%) think that this tool would not result in any changes in their work although, as previously mentioned, they have a positive opinion of the tools. This may be explained by their failure to understand its use protocol and therefore, it would be advisable to find a way to demonstrate this to them. It is also worth mentioning that the reasons for which 47% of professional chefs would note changes in their work would range from their being capable of creating new dishes to providing their customers with greater convenience, security and service. It would also enable decision making on whether to use certain ingredients. All of the above could lead to a more personalised approach to the detection of other allergens, which the respondents particularly agree with (engineers 65% and professional chefs 42%) or totally agree with (29% and 21%, respectively) (Figure 4).
Indicators of evaluation and impact on professionals include:
Q6P: I knew about some type of scientific tool to enable people to detect allergens (gluten) or spoiled foods.
Q7P: The tool should be replicated for the detection of other types of non-gluten allergens.
Q8P: We consider it necessary and important to give our opinion on research processes such as this one.
A large majority of the professionals surveyed are in favour of replicating the tool to include detection of other allergens. A total of 53% of engineers totally agree and 41% agree, and 26% of professional chefs totally agree (Figure 5). Both engineers (100%) and professional chefs (68%) believe it is important to give their opinion in research projects for various reasons. Some of the reasons stated were as follows: (a) to gain knowledge and experience to share (b) raise awareness that science and technology should advance to help society (c) the need to gather more information from different viewpoints that would improve the app (d) the suitability of promoting feedback on societal needs e) interest in knowing that this research is being conducted. Only 5% of the professional chefs stated that they knew another technology capable of detecting gluten in food, which may indicate there would be a large market and good possibilities for commercialising the hGLUTEN tool in the future.
Satisfaction indicators of follow-up and treatment include:
Q9P: Compared to other existing options, this new application could be used to customise data collection and processing.
Q10P: The hGLUTEN tool could be more involved in the treatment process.
Q11P: With this app, I could do a better job monitoring my customers' allergy problems related to allergens and spoiled food.
This tool could improve data gathering and personalised treatment for people who suffer from allergies to gluten or spoiled food. The majority of engineers (71%) and professional chefs (63%) agree. It is also noteworthy that hGLUTEN would give them a bigger role in these persons' treatment (82% of engineers agree, 63% of professional chefs agree), and therefore, it would be possible to monitor consumers' food allergies more closely (53% of engineers agree, 41% totally agree and 68% of professional chefs agree and 11% totally agree) (Table 4). Professionals think that this is a "simple, fast, effective, easy to carry app that anyone could use, which would make it possible to reach a large number of users and that it is also capable of creating alerts". In addition, the following remarks were made: "as professionals lacking knowledge of other tools that can detect gluten, this is a good option" and "it could improve the quality of the diet of risk groups" and "its use could be applied on a large scale in food companies; compiling a great deal of information in very little time and without the need for chemical treatments" indicate that this is a very saleable technology.
3.1.2. From the Users' Point of View
Indicators of social improvement, health and quality of life include:
Q1U: Patients with pathologies caused by allergy to gluten, allergic reactions to spoiled food and even healthy people should have easy access to such services.
Q2U: This app would be effective for treating people with allergies to gluten or spoiled food.
Q3U: This app would prevent possible complications in pathologies caused by allergens that we are exposed to.
Q4U: In research processes such as this one, I consider it important to give my opinion.
As can be observed in Table 5, possible users of this app totally agree (73%) that people with pathologies caused by allergy to gluten and those who are allergic to spoiled food should have easy access to the tool. This would substantially improve their quality of life as well as making their treatment more efficient (58%). Users are also very aware (42% totally agree and 31% agree) that the application could prevent the complications caused by risk situations. Therefore, 85% of these respondents clearly think that it is vital to give their opinion as potential hGLUTEN users. Some of the reasons they stated were (a) the user is the ultimate recipient of the product and could influence the co-creation process, (b) to provide an external point of view to the research team, (c) their help can make the app easier to use, (d) because they have family members with food allergies and (e) due to the lack of information on how to obtain gluten-free food or simply to help science advance. All of the above show the general population's high level of involvement.
Indicators of improvements in the person's experience:
Q5U: Access to data processing and the usefulness of tool portability.
Q6U: I would have instant access to the data whenever I needed it during the processing process.
Q7U: The tool's interface must be easy to use to be effective.
Q8U: I know about another tool that people use to measure allergens in food or detect spoiled food.
Q9U: With hGLUTEN I could make as many measurements as I wanted or needed.
The users surveyed stated (Table 6) that they found the easy portability of the tool very useful (38%) or quite useful (38%). It gives access to information on gluten or spoiled food anywhere very quickly, which the users deemed very important, always (38%) or often (38%). Based on the user guide, the respondents found that the application interface is simple to use, and only 4% did not agree. In addition, 88% did not know other applications that detect gluten, and they mainly depended on information supplied by allergy organisations. In relation to the detection of spoiled food, they stated that they read expiry dates. Lastly, it is important to highlight that users can take as many measurements as they wish, which enhances the user's experience, always (39%), often (42%) and sometimes (19%).
Indicators of improvements in the environment include:
Q10U: This new app would increase the quality of life of people allergic to gluten and improve the service they receive in cafés, restaurants, schools, hospitals, etc. for example, by reducing travel time, leaving them more available time, using other alternative technologies or ways to save on other tools or treatments.
In this indicator the users seem to have a high level of awareness of environmental issues and the energy savings that the use of this new tool can provide, with much awareness 65%, a lot of awareness (23%) and not much or less awareness (12%). It seems evident that health costs could be reduced through hospitalisation prevention with the tool; fewer health care workers would be devoted to monitoring and treating these patients, and savings on prescriptions, lower costs for future industrial food production and shorter working times for staff concerned could be achieved.
Indicators of improvements in services provided by professional chefs for better monitoring and treatment of the pathology:
Q11U: Food services staff would monitor and handle risk situations more easily with this app.
Q12U: In order to understand how hGLUTEN works, the data provided by the engineers is important.
Q13U: I have commented and shared with others (friends, family, etc.) the knowledge and advantages that this application provides.
Q14U: If there was no medical or family support, the adaptation of this application would be good for the person using it in terms of complexity and knowledge of their disease.
The users who responded to the survey believe that use of the app by professional chefs would mean better control of risk situations related to the food they serve. In this respect, it should be noted that nobody disagreed or totally disagreed (Table 7), which again implies a positive opinion of the tool's use and efficacy. In turn, only 8% stated that the user guide with technical information on the tool provided by the engineers was little relevant or nothing relevant (0%). This confirms that it is a user-friendly app. It also appears that it is easy to use hGLUTEN (62% agree and 38% totally agree) without the help of doctors or family members, as it is not complex. Some respondents have not shared knowledge of this tool with others (19% have shared nothing about the app, and 15% have shared little information). This may mean that it should be made more visible in the media so as to extend its use and improve its impact.
3.2. Social Impact Assessment
Based on the results obtained from the online survey on the use of the hGLUTEN tool by end-users, professional chefs and engineers, social impact indicators have been applied to measure the progress related to the three Key Impact Pathways (1) "Addressing global challenges" (2) "Achieving R&I missions" and (3) "Engaging EU Citizens".
3.2.1. Addressing Global Challenges
The use of the term Social Impact is limited only to those cases in which the application of scientific results in a given social reality achieves its social improvement; that is to say, when a society reaches some of the social goals [42]. In this case, the SDGs: 3—Health and well-being, 9—Industry, innovation and infrastructure, 10—Reducing inequality, and 11—Sustainable cities and communities. This contribution covers some of the global challenges according to the short-, medium- and long-term indicators which have been identified:
Short-term indicators: (a) The creation of a database which contains personalised information on each patient's possible exposure to allergens and spoiled food and predictability of risk situations by using artificial intelligence (SDG: 3); (b) Increased knowledge among engineers, professional chefs and end users about when food allergens affects us personally (SGDs: 3, 9, 10 and 11) and recording said information in alarm moments; and (c) High replicability, as it can be adapted to detect any type of allergen (SDGs: 3, 9 10 and 11).
Medium-term indicators: (a) Technology transfer and adoption of new knowledge: a system to methodically inform on the number of changes in professional chefs' protocols, practices and work; (b) Technology transfer and the adoption of new knowledge for users/consumers, who will have alarms to warn them of immediate risks; (c) Technology transfer in engineering studies, other research groups, restaurants and institutional bodies that can include and improve this knowledge when handling information on gluten or spoiled food and how they can affect citizens (SDGs: 3, 7, 11); (d) Information that is easy for users/consumers to monitor and access with their mobile telephones (SDGs: 3 and 9); and (e) Foreseeing changes in chefs' protocols and work practices: early detection and innovation with use of other products to replace those that contain gluten or evidence spoilage (SDGs: 9 and 11).
Long-term indicators: (a) Social impact: the number of qualitative and quantitative tests on improved techniques and assistance as a result of knowledge transfer related to gluten content and spoiled food and the consequences for users, which will be carried out by research groups, restaurants, or food companies interested in new projects; (b) The number of improvements regarding previous situations and protocols for users who are allergic to gluten or may consume spoiled foods in different places: the home, restaurants, dining rooms in schools, hospitals, etc. (SDGs: 3, 9, 10 and 11); (c) The possible replicability and sustainability of these improvements by manufacturing new portable devices, using other recognition sensors for different allergens and conducting other more personalised tests and improve portability; and (d) There is emerging evidence of potential and real social impact on social media networks. The results indicate that scientists need to include the aim of sharing the social impact of their results in their dissemination and communication endeavours [43]. Check the social impact of the research on social media sites Twitter, Facebook, The Conversation, number of articles downloaded from databases, number of citations, etc.
3.2.2. Achieving R&I Missions
A better understanding of how scientific and technological knowledge development affects society will open new avenues for reflection on strengthening beneficial changes or correcting unfavourable ones. This enables assessment of the pertinence of funding science and innovation [44]. The use of the hGLUTEN tool is in line with the approach of European research and innovation missions, whose objective is to provide solutions to issues that are socially relevant, for instance, the capacity to improve health, nutrition or living environments [45]. The contribution of hGLUTEN to achieving some of these missions in the short, medium and long term has been assessed as follows:
Short-term indicators: (a) hGLUTEN is a tool based on knowledge transfer and the adoption of new knowledge that arose from the HealthyAIR project, which detects pollution risk in real life. In this sense, funds have been obtained from the Elkartek call of the Basque Government in Spain with the TECAM project to develop another tool to detect the presence of pathogens in dairy and gluten and soy intolerance with cross-validation of NIR to traditional PCR.
Medium-term indicators: (a) Registration of the hGLUTEN utility model to resolve the legal aspects of its technological development; and (b) In the future, the information can also be stored in the cloud and be more accessible to patients, doctors and professionals who work as cooks in restaurants, hotels, school canteens, etc.
Long-term indicators: (a) Development of new funded research to detect other types of allergens found in food, achieved thanks to the success and usefulness of HealthyAIR, which was the project that preceded the idea on which hGLUTEN was based; and (b) An increase in the number of impacts produced in the society, be it celiac associations, hotels, restaurants, etc., contacted to develop the tool and improve their quality of life. This will be achieved with the increased number of funded projects and the increased number of end users reached as a result of the expansion of hGLUTEN in the detection of other allergens.
3.2.3. Engaging EU Citizens
In view of European states' difficulties to meet the social demands of goods and services, there is a growing need for society, together with the concept of social innovation, to play a leading role [46]. So far, food samples have had to be taken to a laboratory to detect the presence of allergens in them, but with the hGLUTEN tool, this can be done in real time. We are currently working locally (Celiac Association of Euskadi-EZE and Leartiker S.Coop. Technology Center), but we are in talks with different partners in Spain and Europe to submit to calls that would fit this research, such as: HORIZON-HLTH-2022-DISEASE-03-01: European partnership fostering a European Research Area (ERA) for health research or HORIZON-HLTH-2022-IND-13-04: Setting up a European Smart Health Innovation. In the case of testing the hGLUTEN tool, participants are engaged, and progress has been assessed in the short, medium and long term:
Short-term indicators: (a) Users and professionals (engineers and professional chefs) have participated in the process and been involved in the co-creation of different activities related to health and wellbeing, innovation, reducing inequality and achieving sustainability of cities. All the participants, engineers, users and chefs received the user guide, which explains how the tool works. They were later given an online survey on its ease of use and social impact indicators. This co-creation process is necessary to improve the tool and pursue its future replicability.
Medium-term indicators: four types of publications or events were held to boost citizen participation in the scientific tests to improve the projection of the initiative and promote detection of allergens and spoiled food.
Long-term indicators: (a) Dissemination through eight types of publications focusing on boosting citizen participation in the creation and use of scientific tests to improve projection and promote the detection of gluten and spoiled food; and (b) A measurement of citizen participation on social media sites regarding activities, programmes, products and innovation based on the project.
There are several limitations in the research, although a clear contribution to the analysis of social impact is apparent. First of all, the number of participants was limited to 62 responses. In this sense, the results of the study cannot be generalised to a larger population.
The hGLUTEN tool has an emerging social impact. The research and development process is still in its initial stages, with the execution of the first two prototypes. The tool is expected to be marketed in the near future with the collaboration of other research groups and food industry firms that may inject liquidity in the project. Co-creation activities have formed part of every stage of the process to improve users' quality of life, in this case, persons who are allergic and intolerant to gluten and spoiled food.
The hGLUTEN tool has awakened users, engineers and professional chefs to the positive idea of its usefulness and necessity (Q1P, Q7U). They believe that it can be used to prevent many risk situations caused by ingestion of certain foods, which will enable closer and more personalised monitoring (Q5P, Q11U). This improvement is aligned with the social impact indicators (Addressing global challenges) established for the European Commission. Accordingly, it is a short-term improvement indicator in line with some of the targets set out in SGDs 3, 9, 10 and 11.
It would be wrong to think that the use of this tool would not involve considerable changes in professional chefs' work practices. This seems to indicate that this group is not capable of visualising the changes that the tool could bring to their daily work. They would therefore have to be guided in this aspect. Only 47% believe they could create new dishes and offer customers more convenience, security and service (Q4P).
Applied research pursues the production of new scientific knowledge with a business objective. It seeks practical solutions to problems that arise in invention of products that could be patented. An invention is the first creation of knowledge [47]. As regards the knowledge created by this device, there would be a clear impact on the entire food services industry (cafés, cafeterias, restaurants, catering, school dining rooms, hotels fast food, etc.) This impact could also be noticed in users' homes. This would involve achieving the medium-term indicators of addressing global challenges and short-term indicators of R&I missions.
Food allergies rank fourth among the main public health problems according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). They affect 6 to 8% of children and 2.4% of adults [48]. Taking this into account, we can determine the scope of efficacy that large-scale replicability of this device would mean. A large majority of the professionals surveyed (41% of engineers agree-and 53% totally agree, 53% of professional chefs agree, and 26% totally agree) would be in favour of adapting the detector to other types of allergens (Q7P). This indicator would comply with one of the social impact criteria found in SIOR, the short-term indicators of Engaging EU Citizens.
The co-creation process was highly considered, and potential users were asked to take part in development of the device and make suggestions. All of the actors involved were very receptive. A total of 85% of users, 100% of engineers and 68% of professional chefs believe it is very important to give their opinion, which shows a growing level of involvement among the general population (Q8P, Q4U). Science is increasingly important in our worldview and closer than ever to society. Our appreciation of science and scientists is particularly evident in today's exceptional situation. We are grateful for the different vaccines that have been designed to fight COVID-19. In this case, and in the short term (indicators of Engaging EU Citizens and R&I missions), the necessary collaboration between society and scientists will help to improve future hGLUTEN prototypes and will also bring technology transfer and adoption of new knowledge.
One limitation of this study is that the knowledge of this tool has not been shared with more people, as certain weaknesses in this aspect were detected during the research stage (Q3P, Q13U). This means that emphasis must be placed on dissemination in the media to increase its impact. The economic impact of an innovation largely depends on the dissemination process. Not all innovations are successfully disseminated [49], and therefore, this aspect should be highlighted. The dissemination of the results of a project is the first step to achieving social impact, and the next is transfer. Once people have found out the results of research, they must use them [25].
This study has demonstrated that this is a simple, fast, efficient and user-friendly application (Q1U, Q5U, Q7U, Q9U, Q14U). In this paper, the social impact indicators have focused on making progress towards the following Sustainable Development Goals 3—Health and well-being, 9—Industry, innovation and infrastructure, 10—Reducing inequality and 11—Sustainable cities and communities. Funding has already been obtained from the Basque Government for the TECAM project that analyses the presence of pathogens in dairy products and intolerance to gluten and soy with cross-validation of NIR to traditional PCR. In the long term, efforts will made to improve the tool's artificial intelligence, and the impact indicators for the new version will again be verified. Once this step has been completed, the commercialisation stage is expected to begin.
Conceptualization, B.G.-Z. and A.M.; Methodology, A.M. and B.G.-Z.; Software, G.S.; Software validation, G.S. and B.G.-Z.; Formal analysis, A.M., G.S.; Investigation, A.M., G.S. and B.G.-Z.; Data curation, G.S.; Writing—Original, Review—Editing, A.M., B.G.-Z., G.S.; Supervision and Project administration, B.G.-Z.; Funding acquisition, B.G.-Z., G.S., A.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
eVIDA Group IT-905-16 and "TECAM" project funded by Elkartek Program of Basque Country Government.
My thanks to the members of the eVIDA team at the University of Deusto, especially to Hanna Helene Gloyna, a Computer Science student.
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Figure 1. hGLUTEN device, exterior and interior.
Figure 2. DLP NIR Nano Scan Source: Texas Instruments.
Figure 3. Diagram of system blocks.
Figure 4. Change indicator of improvement in work practices.
Figure 5. Indicator of evaluation and impact on professionals.
Table 1. Engineers'/ Professional chefs' data.
Q1P The new application would help people allergic to gluten or spoiled food avoid anaphylactic incidents in spoiled. 0.97 0.60
Q2P Authorities could improve their policies and programmes with the data that the app provides. 1.11 0.44
Q3P This information has been shared with family, friends, etc. 1.94 1.31
Q4P The use of this tool could lead to changes in work practices. 0.33 0.23
Q5P It would improve the detection of allergens and enable more personalised treatment than other tools that people know or use. 1.03 0.48
Q6P I know about a type of scientific tool that enables people to detect allergens (gluten) or spoiled foods. 0.03 0.03
Q7P The tool should be replicated for detection of other types of non-gluten allergens. 1.25 0.48
Q8P We consider it necessary and important to give our opinion on research processes such as this one. 0.83 0.14
Q9P Compared to other existing options, this new application could be used to customise data collection and processing. 0.67 0.23
Q10P The hGLUTEN tool could be more involved in the treatment process. 1.06 0.28
Q11P With this app, I could do a better job monitoring my customers' allergy problems related to allergens and spoiled food. 1.11 0.39
Table 2. Standard users' data.
Q1U Patients with pathologies caused by an allergy to gluten, allergic reactions to spoiled food and even healthy people should have easy access to such services. 1.69 0.30
Q2U This app would be effective for treating people with allergies to gluten or spoiled food. 3.31 0.86
Q3U This app would prevent possible complications in pathologies caused by allergens that we are exposed to. 1.12 0.83
Q4U In research processes such as this one, I consider it important to give my opinion. 0.85 0.14
Q5U Access to data processing and the usefulness of tool portability. 3.08 0.87
Q6U I would have instant access to the data whenever I needed it during the processing process. 3.08 0.87
Q7U The tool's interface must be easy to use to be effective. 1 0.72
Q8U I know about another tool that people use to measure allergens in food or detect spoiled food. 0.12 0.11
Q9U With hGLUTEN I could make as many measurements as I wanted or needed. 3.19 0.56
Q10U This new app would increase the quality of life of people allergic to gluten and improve the service they receive in cafés, restaurants, schools, hospitals, etc., for example, by reducing travel time, leaving them more available time, using other alternative technologies or ways to save on other tools or treatments. 3.54 0.50
Q11U Food services staff would monitor and handle risk situations more easily with this app. 1.08 0.63
Q12U In order to understand how hGLUTEN works, the data provided by the engineers is important. 3 0.8
Q13U I have commented and shared with others (friends, family, etc.) the knowledge and advantages that this application provides. 1.85 1.42
Q14U If there was no medical or family support, the adaptation of this application would be good for the person using it in terms of complexity and knowledge of their disease. 1.36 0.24
Table 3. Indicator of change in behaviour and practices.
Q1P
Totally agree Agree Neither agree nor disagree Disagree Totally disagree
Engineers 30% 41% 29% 0% 0%
P. Chefs 21% 58% 16% 0% 5%
Engineers 35% 59% 6% 0% 0%
Nothing Little Not much or less A lot of Much
Engineers 18% 24% 24% 28% 6%
P. Chefs 5% 26% 37% 21% 11%
Table 4. Satisfaction indicator of follow-up and treatment.
Q10P
Table 5. Indicator of social improvement, health and quality of life.
Standard Users
Q1U
73% 23% 4% 0% 0%
Very effectively Quite effectively Effective Little Effective Nothing Effective
58% 19% 19% 4% 0%
Table 6. Indicators of improvements in the person's experience.
Very useful Quite useful Useful Little useful Not useful
Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never
Table 7. Indicators of improvement in services provided by health personnel for better monitoring and treatment of the pathology.
Very relevant Quite relevant Relevant Little relevant Nothing relevant
Much A lot of Not much or less Little Nothing
Moreno, A.; Sanz, G.; Garcia-Zapirain, B. hGLUTEN Tool: Measuring Its Social Impact Indicators. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 12722. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312722
Moreno A, Sanz G, Garcia-Zapirain B. hGLUTEN Tool: Measuring Its Social Impact Indicators. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(23):12722. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312722
Moreno, Antonia, Guillermo Sanz, and Begonya Garcia-Zapirain. 2021. "hGLUTEN Tool: Measuring Its Social Impact Indicators" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 23: 12722. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312722


In this tutorial we will see the most critical topic in hibernate, differences between update() vs merge() methods.
As we discussed in the previous tutorials, hibernate object has different states that are transient, persistent and detached.
Both update() and merge() methods are used to change the state of an object. That means we can call either update() or merge() to transfer an object from detached state to persistent state.
A detached state object can be made to persist by reattaching to a session. If the previous session has already been closed, it is also possible to create a new session and can attach to that session.
To reattach we can use update() or merge() methods. Both are doing the same functionality, but there are few differences internally.
When we call update() method on the session, if that session doesn't contain the same object (provided in the update()) in the cache then update() method successfully executed and the object been converted detached state to persistent state.
When we call update() method on any object, it intern checks, if that object is already existed in session cache or not — if currently updating object is already there in session cache then it throws an exception called NonUniqueObjectException. Otherwise, it will update the object.
When we call update() method, if already a session cache containing the same object then the update() method throws an exception called NonUniqueObjectException.
On the above example student2 object with Id '111' is already available in session2, if we try to update with the old object (student object) then update() will throw NonUniqueObjectException.
Like update() method merge is also used to transfer an object from detached stated to persistent state.
If we call merge() method, then it verifies whether the same object has existed in the session cache or not. If the object has lived in the cache, then the current changes are copied into the cache; otherwise, it will load the values to cache.
When we call update() method, if the object already existed in cache update() method will throw an exception whereas merge() method copies the changes into the cache.
Best explanation I have ever read..
Very clearly explained the difference.
Very detailed and neat explanation. I can able to understand concepts clearly. Thanks for your wonderful explanation.
best explanation..it resolve all of my confusion.
Hi I have exeuted this code for both update and merge. but in both of the cases record is getting updated?
you are updating the same object on different sessions, there is no much difference on this.
For more information you can see the difference between load() and get() methods in hibernate.


text:
The Panasonic Lumix Dmc-gh4: The Unofficial Quintessential Guide
Author Brian Matsumoto
File size 131.5 MB
File format PDF, EPUB, MOBI
Category Photo
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4: The Unofficial Quintessential Guide provides a wealth of information and professional insights for owners of this powerful HD camera.
With its electronic viewfinder and interchangeable lenses, the GH4 is capable of not only recording professional-quality still images, but has the added ability to record HD video as well. The mirrorless design enhances the camera's versatility beyond that of most digital single lens reflex (DSLR) cameras. With the appropriate adapters, it can use virtually any manufacturer's manual focus, legacy lens. It is smaller than a typical DSLR in both size and weight, and retains automatic focusing while recording videos-a capability that is missing in many DSLR cameras.
With the GH4, Panasonic has significantly expanded the video capabilities beyond those of previous models. Among the improvements is the camera's ability to record 4K video and save the movie to the internal memory card.
Along with these powerful functions comes complexity, and that is where this essential guide comes in. Authors Brian Matsumoto and Carol Roullard explore and explain the features and capabilities of the GH4 in detail, as they cover everything from the basic features of the camera to numerous advanced photographic applications. The informative text is illustrated with example images throughout.
Readers will learn how to:
Control the most basic camera functions-focus and exposure
Navigate the camera's menu system
Achieve a range of artistic effects using various camera settings
Use the camera's automated controls, and override those controls to obtain better exposure
Use the GH4 in its video mode to obtain 4K and HD videos
Expand the camera's use by mounting it on a telescope or microscope
Dr. Brian Matsumoto is a retired research scientist who has worked for 30 years documenting experiments with technologically advanced cameras. He now spends his time photographing with a variety of cameras and lenses, and enjoys expanding a camera's potential by pairing it with specialized optics such as microscopes and telescopes. He enjoys spending time outdoors and carries his camera on all of his hikes to photograph nature.In addition to the seven books he has written for Rocky Nook, Dr. Matsumoto has published several articles and has had his photographs published in numerous periodicals. His photographs have also appeared on the covers of American Laboratory, BioTechniques, and BioPhotonics. He is experienced in the technical aspects of photography and has taught courses on recording scientific experiments with digital cameras. Dr. Matsumoto recently served as a judge for the Olympus BioScapes International Digital Imaging Competition.
Carol F. Roullard has been an avid photographer since her high school years, where she first experimented with black-and-white artistic composition. Since then, she has continued photographing mainly nature and architecture. Ms. Roullard has used a variety of cameras covering a wide range of makes and models, from simple point-and-shoot to complex professional-level cameras.In addition to co-authoring six books for Rocky Nook, Ms. Roullard produces award-winning fine art photography and utilizes her previous art business experience to manage her online gallery and present her work at art shows. As a former Project Management Quality and Compliance Engineer, she spent a number of years developing procedural and quality control methodology for IT projects. In addition, she has developed and conducted training sessions covering best practices for procedural and quality control, breaking down complex subjects into easy-to-use approaches to learning.
Download (131.5 MB)
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2: The Unofficial Quintessential Guide
Panasonic Lumix FZ300k: A Beginner's Guide
The Sony A7 And A7r: The Unofficial Quintessential Guide
Panasonic Lumix GX8: A Beginner's Guide
Canon Powershop G16 – The Expanded Guide
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National Agreement on Closing the Gap
The objective of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (the National Agreement) is to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and governments to work together to overcome the inequa
Follow this link when instructed by ICT.
Analysing aggregate clinical data to support evaluation of the Tackling Indigenous Smoking program, 2014–16 - Australian Health Review
Australian Health Review - Journal of Australian Health care and Hospitals Association
The latest paper from a supervised student: Wright, Alyson, Cameron, Helen, Ro
To close the health gap, we need programs that work. Here are three of them - The Conversation
The tenth Closing the Gap report to be tabled in Parliament today is expected to show progress in the two health targets – to close the gap in life expectancy by 2031 and halve the child mortality
The Indigenous Birthing in an Urban Setting study: the IBUS study
'Dark days of old Don Dale': Human rights groups condemn NT's new youth justice laws
'Dark days of old Don Dale': Human rights groups condemn NT's new youth justice…
NT families minister says changes made to manage security risks but Amnesty says they are 'dangerous'.
Photograph: STRINGER/Reuters
Danila Dilba Deadly Choices Facebook Competition
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How did we let this happen?: In a first-world country like Australia, wholly pr…
In a first-world country like Australia, wholly preventable sexually transmitted diseases are rampant in indigenous communities.
This article published in The Australian, gives an insight
How socioeconomic disadvantage varies area-by-area in Australia
https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/ng-interactive/2018/mar/27/how-socio-…
New data from the 2016 census shows the relative socioeconomic advantage and disadvantage for every region. This shows how most of the NT is classified as being in the lowest ca
Aboriginal Interpreter Service
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The Aboriginal Interpreter Service in the Northern Territory (NT) has about 30 interpreters on staff covering the major languages of the NT


text:
Lars Ulrich Recalls Why Metallica Was Founded, Reveals The Tracks That Defines Metallica
BySami Altintas Last updated Aug 3, 2020 August 3, 2020
In a new interview with Sirius XM's Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk, Lars Ulrich talked about Metallica, Metallica's early day's musical style, and remembered the day that why James Hetfield and he formed Metallica during those days.
While he was talking about the issue, Lars Ulrich said that there were two paths when they started their career. He explained why he thought like that and touched that two paths.
"You have to remember that, for all intents and purposes, Metallica started as a cover band. So when we got together, and we were there in Southern California in February or March of '82, there were kind of two paths at the time.
"One was that you basically were sort of like a cover band and you would play bar favorites – you'd go out and play 'Smoke On The Water' or 'Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love' or 'Rock And Roll All Nite' or 'Black Dog'; that was kind of one thing.
"The other thing was you would play all, it was called 'originals' at the time – you would play your originals. We weren't particularly interested in going out and playing a Led Zeppelin evening, and we didn't have any songs that were, quote, originals, but at the same time, we were full of spunk and full of piss and full of vinegar and ready to go and wanted to go out and play and interact and sweat and the whole thing."
When he continued to his words, Lars mentioned the songs they played at the time. He said that they played different cover songs besides what was expected. He stated with his words that it was a great feeling.
"So we basically came up with another way, which was a combination of the two, which was we'll play a bunch of cover songs, but they were all songs that basically nobody knew.
"So we didn't go out and say, 'Now we're playing an hour's worth of material and they're all our own songs,' and we didn't go out and play an hour's worth of Led Zeppelin songs – we went out and played Diamond Head songs and Blitzkrieg songs and Savage songs and all these different cover songs. Then we had an hour's worth of material and we played shows all over Southern California, and it was super fun.
"So we played four or five Diamond Head songs, and all these other things, and it sort of got us out, got us playing, and we were playing gigs. And then, back in the rehearsal studio, we were writing and working on our new material, and, obviously, gradually, our own material replaced the cover songs. But all those songs, whether it's the 'Am I Evil's of the world or the 'Helpless's or the 'Let It Loose' or songs like 'Blitzkrieg' or whatever, obviously, those songs have remained a pretty big part of who we are."
Elsewhere in the conversation, Lars Ulrich said that playing other people's material will always be a part of the DNA of the heavy metal band Metallica.
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Sami Altintas
Hello dear readers, I'm Sami. I'm the social media coordinator/editor of MetalCastle, which is a number one source for rock and metal music news. I am a huge fan of Mötley Crüe. Out of music, I also love taking photos, writing stuff and seeing new places. If you have any problems or questions, contact me: sami@metalcastle.net
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