Conflicting evidence exists on whether physical activity (PA) levels of humans have changed over the last quarter-century. The main objective of this study was to determine if there is evidence of ...time trends in PA, from cross-sectional studies that assessed PA at different time points using wearable devices (e.g., pedometers and accelerometers). A secondary objective was to quantify the rate of change in PA.
A systematic literature review was conducted of English-language studies indexed in PubMed, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science (1960-2020) using search terms (time OR temporal OR secular) AND trends AND (steps per day OR pedometer OR accelerometer OR MVPA). Subsequently, a meta-analytic approach was used to aggregate data from multiple studies and to examine specific factors (i.e., sex, age-group, sex and age-group, and PA metric).
Based on 16 peer-reviewed scientific studies conducted between 1995 and 2017, levels of ambulatory PA are trending downward in developed countries. Significant declines were seen in both males and females (P < 0.001) as well as in children (P = 0.020), adolescents (P < 0.001), and adults (P = 0.004). The average study duration was 9.4 yr (accelerometer studies, 5.3 yr; pedometer studies, 10.8 yr). For studies that assessed steps, the average change in PA was -1118 steps per day over the course of the study (P < 0.001), and adolescents had the greatest change in PA at -2278 steps per day (P < 0.001). Adolescents also had the steepest rate of change over time, expressed in steps per day per decade.
Evidence from studies conducted in eight developed nations over a 22-yr period indicates that PA levels have declined overall, especially in adolescents. This study emphasizes the need for continued research tracking time trends in PA using wearable devices.
The food sector is increasingly turning toward sustainability issues. A sustainable food system should provide sufficient, nutritious food for all within limited natural resources. Plant-based food ...and proteins are a recent, growing trend setting out to contribute to this challenge. However, food industry stakeholders need to be aware of the challenges and opportunities. This paper reviews the trend from a business perspective. It outlines the global drivers, market trends, market data observations, and consumer behavior factors of relevance, and pinpoints the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) for food sector companies. Findings suggest that the policy and market context is favorable in the near future, but that consumer beliefs, perception and understanding has to change further for the business opportunity to grow on a larger scale. More innovations are needed, in particular in the direction of meat-replacements that are healthy as well as clean label.
Life expectancy has been increasing steadily over the past century in most countries, with only a few exceptions such as during wartimes.
Marked reversal of life expectancy has been linked to ...substance use and related policies. Three such examples are discussed herein, namely the double reversal of life expectancy trends (first to positive, then to negative) associated with reducing alcohol supply in the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), followed by a rapid increase in availability; the impact of the rapid increase of prescription opioids on white non-Hispanics in the US; and the systemic impact of the violence accompanying the drug war in Mexico on the life expectancy of men. Alcohol policies were crucial to initiate the positive reversal in the USSR, and different substance use policies could have avoided the negative impacts on life expectancy of the described large groups or nations. Substance use policies can be responsible for abrupt negative changes in life expectancies. An orientation of such policies towards the goals of public health and societal well-being can help avoid such changes.
This paper systematically reviews 150 (VR/AR)-supporting language learning articles from 2008 to 2019 and summarizes the development trends. The definition of VR/AR is given firstly, and then the ...model of VR/AR supporting learning is proposed. This model's language types, research participants, learning devices, learning goals, research issues, research methods, research domains and learning strategies act as a coding scheme here. Meanwhile, through review and analysis, empirical study has been proven to be in its peak period; the VR/AR is increasingly applied, and larger numbers of immersive devices are being used. Under such circumstances, higher education is the principal of research, and speaking/expressing and words are still the most significant learning goals. As for research issues, the first period (2008-2013), which focuses more on learners' opinions, learning behaviours, learning attitudes and learning performance, is still the main scheme even though the second period (2014-2019) has more research issues and wider research scale. Right now, research about teaching and learning has already drawn the most attention, and task-based learning, situated learning, and game-based learning are the most commonly used learning strategies. Finally, this paper analyses VR/AR used in language learning through SWOT analysis to provide more profound suggestions and further discussion.
The main purpose of this study is to detect trends in the mean surface air temperature over the southern parts of Ontario and Quebec, Canada, for the period of 1967–2006. This is accomplished by ...determining the most dominant periodic components that affect trends in different temperature data categories (monthly, seasonally-based, seasonal, and annual), which were obtained from a total of five stations. The discrete wavelet transform (DWT) technique, the Mann–Kendall (MK) trend test, and sequential Mann–Kendall analysis were used in this study — co-utilizing these techniques in temperature trend studies has not been explored extensively. The mother wavelet, number of decomposition levels, and boundary condition were determined using a newly proposed criterion based on the relative error of the MK Z-values between the original data and the approximation component of the last decomposition level. This study found that all stations experienced positive trends: significant trends were observed in all of the monthly, seasonally-based, and annual data. For the different seasons, although the trend values were all positive, not all stations experienced significant trends. It was found that high-frequency components ranging from 2 to 12months were more prominent for trends in the higher resolution data (i.e. monthly and seasonally based). The positive trends observed for the annual data are thought to be mostly attributable to warming during winter and summer seasons, which are manifested in the form of multiyear to decadal events (mostly between 8 and 16years).
•Temperature trends were assessed in southern Quebec and Ontario, Canada.•Monthly, seasonally-based, and annual data were used.•Periodicities in the dataset were identified using the discrete wavelet transform.•The Mann-Kendall (MK) test was used to determine important periodicities for trends.•Different versions of the MK tests were used depending on the data characteristics.
Precipitation is one of the most significant components for the basin’s hydrological cycle. Numerous features of a basin’s water circulation may be affected by the chronological, geographical, and ...seasonal fluctuation of precipitation. It could be an important factor that influences hydrometeorological phenomena including floods and droughts. In this research, the innovative trend risk analysis (ITRA), innovative trend pivot analysis (ITPAM), and trend polygon star (TPS) methodologies of visualizing precipitation data are used to detect precipitation changes at six stations in Algeria’s Wadi Ouahrane basin from 1972 to 2018. ITRA graphs show the direction of the precipitation trend (increasing–decreasing) and the trend risk class. Disparities in the polygons generated by the arithmetic mean and standard deviation ITPAM graphs demonstrate variations in precipitation seasonally and in the seasonal precipitation trends (increasing or decreasing) between sites. The TPS maps depict monthly variations in precipitation and highlight the autumn and spring transitions between the dry and wet seasons.
The issue of detection of hydrometeorological trends remains relevant because of the importance of climate change in design, operation, and management studies related to water resources. This study ...examines the effects of changes in climate and land use on monthly flows (1962-2018) in the Eastern Black Sea basin, Turkey, using innovative trend analysis methods. In this context, innovative polygon trend analysis (IPTA) and innovative trend significance test (ITST) were used to detect the trends and compared with Mann-Kendall test. Only stations with homogeneous data that did not experience non-climatic changes are used in the analysis. IPTA and ITST approaches are much more sensitive than Mann-Kendall in detecting trends. Although the innovative methods are mostly compatible with each other (90%), IPTA presents additional information about trend transitions between successive parts of time series. Results indicate significant decreasing trends in summer months, likely due to diminishing precipitation and effective evaporation.
This study aims to investigate the trend of water-level changes in lakes (Lake Tuz and Lake Beyşehir) and sinkholes (Timraş and Kızören) in the Konya Closed Basin located in Turkey. Water-level ...changes in these lakes and sinkholes were investigated along with changes in meteorological parameters (precipitation, temperature, and evaporation) and groundwater trends that indicate the climate in the region. Several statistical tests can be used to determine the significance of hydrological trends over time. These tests are divided into two categories: parametric and nonparametric. In this study, the nonparametric Innovate Sen trend test, the Modified Mann–Kendall trend test, and the parametric Linear trend test were used. According to the trend analysis, the water levels of Kızören and Timraş sinkholes decreased over time, while the water levels of lakes Tuz and Beyşehir increased. These results are supported by the trends in the meteorological data and groundwater level data of the stations determined with the Thiessen polygons and sub-basin boundaries.
Abstract Total hip arthroplasty (THA) implant usage has evolved as experience has been gained with newer implant designs. The purpose of this study was to characterize trends in THA implant usage ...between 2001 and 2012. The Orthopedic Research Network, which includes 174 hospitals and ~ 105,000 THA, was used to evaluate trends in fixation, bearings, acetabular cup and liner, and femoral head usage. In 2012, 93% of THAs were cementless; 56% of THA bearings were metal-HXLPE; and 35% were ceramic-HXLPE. 99% of acetabular cups were modular. 61% of femoral heads were metal, 39% were ceramic, 51% were 36 mm, and 28% were 32 mm. THA implant usage trends favor cementless fixation, metal-on-polyethylene or ceramic-on-polyethylene bearings, modular acetabular cups, and large diameter femoral heads.
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