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Abstract Does competition increase cheating? This question has been investigated by both psychologists and economists in the past and received conflicting answers. Notably, prior experimental work compared how people behaved under competitive and non-competitive tasks that were associated with different levels of uncertainty about the reward that people would receive. We aim to experimentally disentangle the effect of competition from the effects of uncertain rewards. We conducted an incentivized, pre-registered study featuring real-time interaction between participants (N = 765). We introduce an uncertain non-competitive incentive scheme along with the certain non-competitive scheme and the (uncertain) competitive scheme. We find that competition significantly increases the magnitude (but not the prevalence) of cheating relative to both non-competitive schemes, with the effect of competition being larger when the level of uncertainty is held constant across schemes.

Monitoring rare or endangered species is vital for biodiversity conservation, but it is particularly challenging for hidden or elusive species. The subterranean Eurasian blind mole rats are such species. The newly identified endemic species of this group found in the Pannonian Basin (Central Europe) are highly threatened by extinction. Their concealed lifestyle complicates population monitoring, yet such data are crucial for their conservation. To address this problem, a new methodology called HRAMN was introduced, utilizing complex aerial cartographic surveys. The method was tested in two protected areas in Eastern Hungary, home of the endangered Hungarian blind mole rat (Nannospalax hungaricus hungaricus). HRAMN involves collecting data through aerial surveys and producing high-resolution orthophoto mosaics and digital surface models. These data allowed the identification of blind mole rat mounds and the monitoring of population trends. The HRAMN methodology proved to be a highly effective replacement for traditional full-field surveys of blind mole rat habitats. It is particularly useful for monitoring large areas, which had been previously unfeasible. However, certain limiting factors occurred in blind mole rat habitats that require field presence and control, even with the aerial imagery-based HRAMN method. Recommendations have been made to address those limiting factors that have been identified. HRAMN methodology not only enhances survey accuracy but also allows for frequent monitoring, providing unprecedented detail on the population dynamics of these rodents. Additionally, the study explored the relationship between the spatial patterns of the blind mole rat mounds and their habitats, offering deeper insights into their ecology and potentially aiding in the development of more effective conservation strategies.

Background: Tinnitus is a sound precepted without an external sound stimulus. Its background can be categorised into primary and secondary cases. The secondary cases include pathologies of the external, middle and inner ear. Tinnitus can be objective or subjective; the latter can only identified by the sufferer. Previous research results have shown that tinnitus significantly affects the quality of life and daily functioning. Objectives: To analyse the impact of tinnitus on the daily functioning and the possible influence of demographical data and tinnitus duration on it. Methods: 630 patients (265 males and 365 females, 25–85 years of age) suffering from primary tinnitus were enrolled. In the Hungarian language, these patients completed the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) questionnaire and underwent a complete otorhinolaryngological examination. IBM SPSS V24 software was used for data processing; correlation tests, the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric tests were used. Results: According to the THI questionnaires outcomes, most patients (62.5%) were presented with a mild handicap. Based on statistical analysis, no significant correlation was observed between the total THI points and the age of the patients, along with the duration and localisation of the symptoms. However, the total THI scores of male and female patients significantly differed, indicating higher THI values in the female group (p = 0.00052∗). Conclusions: The tinnitus severity was not affected by the duration, localisation of the symptoms and age but by gender, indicating higher values in the case of females.

Background and Objectives: Increasing evidence points to the significant role of the angiogenic factor levels in screening for pregnancy outcome. To examine the potential relationship between concentrations of placental protein 13 (PP13) and soluble human leukocyte antigen-G (sHLA-G) in maternal serum and amniotic fluid at 16–23 weeks of gestation and the sonographic features of pregnancy as well as pregnancy outcome. Materials and Methods: PP13 and sHLA-G in serum and amniotic fluid, fetal biometrical data, and placental volume and perfusion indices were determined in 71 euploid, singleton pregnancies. Results: The serum sHLA-G level exhibits a negative correlation with the serum PP13 level (r = −0.186, p < 0.001) and a positive correlation with the sHLA-G level in amniotic fluid (r = 0.662, p < 0.001). A significant correlation was found between serum sHLA-G level and placental volume (r = 0.142, p < 0.05) and between amniotic sHLA-G level and placental perfusion (r = −0.450, p < 0.001). A low amniotic PP13 level significantly predicted the birth weight (r = −0.102, p < 0.05), the duration of pregnancy (r = −0.155, p < 0.05), and the fetal abdominal circumference (r = −0.098, p < 0.05). Conclusions: PP13 assayed in amniotic fluid might be a potential marker of fetal growth, and sHLA-G can be an adjunct modality reflecting placental sonographic parameters.

Objectives: Stance and gait unsteadiness along with vertigo contribute to a central vestibular disorder. For objective analysis ultrasound-computer-craniocorpography (US-COMP-CCG) can be used. Aim of the study was to characterize the unsteadiness in central vestibular disorders and discuss the possible diagnostic usage of US-COMP-CCG. Methods and results: Hundred-and-ninety patients (70 male and 120 female, mean age ± SD, 58.94 ± 15.27) suffering from central vestibular disorder and 230 healthy control patients (78 male and 152 female, mean age ± SD, 50.94 ± 15.27) were enrolled. Stance and gait analysis was according to vestibulospinal tests of US-COMPCCG. IBM SPSS V24 software was used for statistical analysis. Mann-WhitneyU test and Chi-square test were used, along with sensitivity and specificity categorization. The significance level was p

Background: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is characterized by vertigo lasting from seconds to minutes, induced by head movements. Objectives: Our study aimed to investigate the clinical significance of the caloric vestibular and video head-impulse tests (vHIT) diagnosing the disorder. Methods: 68 patients suffering from posterior canal BPPV (25 male, 43 females, mean age ± SD, 54.5 ± 13.2 years) and 56 patients with a normal functioning vestibular system as control were investigated. Bithermal caloric test and vHIT was performed during the same medical check-up. Canal paresis (CP%), gain (GA) and asymmetry (GA%) parameters were calculated. Results: The Dix-Hallpike manoeuvre was only positive in 4% of this population. The CP% parameter was only pathologic in two patients, and there was no significant difference between control and BPPV patients (p = 0.76). The GA value was never under 0.8 in this population, but GA% was abnormal in 63.2%. A significant difference comparing the GA% values to the control group was seen (p = 0.034). There was no correlation detected between the CP% and GA% values in BPPV. Regarding the GA% value, 61% sensitivity and 76% specificity was seen. Conclusion: The Dix-Hallpike manoeuvre was not often positive in the non-acute phase of BPPV; therefore, objective testing is essential. The caloric test does not have clinical significance in BPPV, but vHIT can be helpful based on the GA% parameter.

Kétségkívüli, hogy a természeti katasztrófák egyenlőtlenül sújtják a szegény és a gazdag embereket, s ez a különböző országok gazdasági teljesítményétől függetlenül mindenhol megfigyelhető. A fizikai veszélyekre és válaszadásra koncentráló megközelítés mindezt nehezen tudja figyelembe venni, miközben az egyes katasztrófaeseményekkel kapcsolatos párbeszédben a társadalmi, politikai vagy kulturális okokról gyakorlatilag szó sem esik. Könnyen belátható, hogy az alacsonyabb jövedelmű, vagy valamilyen oknál fogva marginalizált emberek és közösségek érintettsége súlyosabb. Hazánk településállományának jelentős hányada társadalmi-gazdasági szempontból depriváltnak, marginalizáltnak tekinthető, ami szükségessé teszi, hogy a katasztrófákkal kapcsolatban szociális és gazdasági kérdéseket tegyünk fel, és azokat a térbeliség szemszögéből vizsgáljuk. Jelen tanulmány öt katasztrófát átélt hazai település esettanulmányát mutatja be a társadalmi sérülékenység szemszögéből. Kutatásom során az érintett beavatkozókkal készített interjúk mellett kísérletet tettem az Interperszonális Támogatást Értékelő Lista (Interpersonal Support Evaluation List – ISEL, magyar rövidítése: ITÉL) felhasználására a közösségi reziliencia vizsgálata céljából. Az ITÉL teszt alkalmas arra, hogy felmérjük, az egyének hogyan értékelik helyüket saját közösségükben, illetve azt, hogy milyen mértékben támaszkodhatnak környezetükre. A 103 fő részvételén alapuló kutatás a társas támogatás szintjében és struktúrájában felfedezhető eltéréseket tárt fel, amely a támogatás megnyilvánulási formájában is kézzel fogható.

The procedure is practically an optimization method, during which it is assumed that the gamma dose values detected at different points above the area come from the background radiation and from a single source found in the area. Accordingly, the procedure searches within the area for a geographical coordinate for which the distance law for the spatial propagation of radiation will be true. In order to validate the procedure, we performed measurements in a test area in such a way that all parameters of the source, including its location, were well defined. However, these data were not taken into account during the processing, i.e., the search procedure did not have these data. We can estimate the radiation position without a positional parameter. The exact coordinate and the intensity of the radiating sample were only used when checking the results. We have also applied the method to the raw data of our experiments carried out in the past if we used one source for them. The results confirmed our assumptions. The method is suitable for determining the starting parameters of more complex processes that can even detect multiple sources, but assuming one source, it has proven to be a reliable analytical method on its own.

We classify the different ways in which matrix product states (MPSs) can stay invariant under the action of matrix product operator (MPO) symmetries. This is achieved through a local characterization of how the MPSs, that generate a ground space, remain invariant under a global MPO symmetry. This characterization yields a set of quantities satisfying the coupled pentagon equations, associated with a module category over the fusion category that describes the MPO symmetry. Equivalence classes of these quantities provide complete invariants for an MPO symmetry protected phase: they are robust under continuous deformations of the MPS tensor, and two phases with the same equivalence class can be connected by a symmetric gapped path. Our techniques match and extend the known renormalization fixed point classifications and facilitate the numerical study of these systems. For MPO symmetries described by a group, we recover the symmetry protected topological order classification for unique and degenerate ground states. Moreover, we study the interplay between time reversal symmetry and an MPO symmetry and we also provide examples of our classification, together with explicit constructions based on groups. Finally, we elaborate on the connection between our setup and gapped boundaries of two-dimensional topological systems, where MPO symmetries also play a key role.

Several dose distribution maps were obtained using a gamma radiation detector mounted to a drone. Based on the results and experience of the experiments, the shortcomings of the system and the possibilities for further development were identified. The primary goal of the development was to create a more compact, easy-to-carry, and easy-to-install system with increased sensitivity, which was achieved by several different methods and their combinations. During the discrete measurement procedure, the aim was to decrease the detection threshold, +0.005 to +0.007 μS/h measured above the background radiation. The increase in sensitivity was based on the characteristic energy spectrum of radiative materials. We took advantage of the fact that the radiating samples do not evenly increase the amount of gamma radiation over the entire energy spectrum. During the processing of the measurement data, we performed a comparison with the background radiation in the vicinity of the energy peaks characteristic of the sample and its decay products. This provides a better signal-to-noise ratio, thus enabling a more sensitive detection procedure. An important feature of our method is that in the traditional intensity curve displayed as a function of flight time only noise is visible, therefore one cannot directly conclude the presence of the sample. However, our method is clearly able to identify the location of the searched source at a height of 8 m with a continuous flight speed of 2 m/s using a 500 μS/h activity sample (as measured at a distance of 0.1 m from the sample). The increase in sensitivity allows either a higher scanning height (approximately +1 to 2 m) or, in the case of the same aircraft at the same altitude, a larger area from one take-off. Of course, the scan height or scan speed can increase significantly if the activity of the source being sought is high. In our experiments, we used a natural uranium mineral (Autunite) with activity far below that of artificially produced isotopes. In the series of our experiments, we also covered the detection of several sources, which modeled the possibility of mapping scattered active sources. The main advantages of the system developed and presented by us over the survey procedures used in practice is that a large area can be mobilized easily, without the risk of a human operator in the field, and the survey of a large area can be carried out at a low cost. The purpose of the system is to detect the presence of the source and to localize it to such an extent that the localization can then be easily refined by manual or other ground procedures. As we do not aim for positioning accuracy by centimeter, standard GPS localization is sufficient for the measurements. During the measurements, the geographical coordinates are interpreted in the GWS’84 system. The coordinates of the latitude and longitude circles are also shown in this system in the figures presented.

This study aimed to analyse the thickness of the adipose tissue (AT) around the upper airways with anthropometric parameters in the prediction and pathogenesis of OSA and obstruction of the upper airways using artificial intelligence. One hundred patients were enrolled in this prospective investigation, who were divided into control (non-OSA) and mild, moderately severe, and severe OSA according to polysomnography. All participants underwent drug-induced sleep endoscopy, anthropometric measurements, and neck MRI. The statistical analyses were based on artificial intelligence. The midsagittal SAT, the parapharyngeal fat, and the midsagittal tongue fat were significantly correlated with BMI; however, no correlation with AHI was observed. Upper-airway obstruction was correctly categorised in 80% in the case of the soft palate, including parapharyngeal AT, sex, and neck circumference parameters. Oropharyngeal obstruction was correctly predicted in 77% using BMI, parapharyngeal AT, and abdominal circumferences, while tongue-based obstruction was correctly predicted in 79% using BMI. OSA could be predicted with 99% precision using anthropometric parameters and AT values from the MRI. Age, neck circumference, midsagittal and parapharyngeal tongue fat values, and BMI were the most vital parameters in the prediction. Basic anthropometric parameters and AT values based on MRI are helpful in predicting OSA and obstruction location using artificial intelligence.

To examine the geometrical parameters of the tongue in obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) based on sex, age and BMI parameters and ultrasound (US) and MRI. The presence of OSA and tongue-based obstruction can be predicted using these parameters. Of 100 patients, 64% were diagnosed with OSA according to overnight polysomnography. MRI and US devices were used to measure tongue parameters. The location of the obstruction was identified using drug-induced sleep endoscopy. Statistical analysis was performed using the quadratic discriminant analysis. Men presented higher tongue volumes and axial diameter during Müller’s maneuver (MM) of US and coronal diameter of the MRI. In women, all examined MRI parameters were significantly correlated with apnoea-hypopnea index (AHI). A stronger correlation between BMI and AHI parameters was observed in women than in men. Using our algorithm, which includes tongue parameters and anthropometric values, the presence of OSA could be predicted in 91% with US and 82% with MRI. The detection of tongue-based obstruction was successful in 89% using US and 87% using MRI, whereas tongue-based obstruction was successful in 70% using US. Using MRI and US of the tongue combined with basic anthropometric parameters, the presence of OSA and tongue-based obstruction can be identified with high precision.

Introduction: Our aim was to investigate the applicability of artificial intelligence in predicting obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and upper airway obstruction using ultrasound (US) measurements of subcutaneous adipose tissues (SAT) in the regions of the neck, chest and abdomen. Methods: One hundred patients were divided into mild (32), moderately severe-severe (32) OSA and non-OSA (36), according to the results of the polysomnography. These patients were examined using anthropometric measurements and US of SAT and drug-induced sleep endoscopy. Results: Using SAT US and anthropometric parameters, oropharyngeal obstruction could be predicted in 64% and tongue-based obstruction in 72%. In predicting oropharyngeal obstruction, BMI, abdominal and hip circumferences, submental SAT and SAT above the second intercostal space on the left were identified as essential parameters. Furthermore, tongue-based obstruction was predicted mainly by height, SAT measured 2 cm above the umbilicus and submental SAT. The OSA prediction was successful in 97% using the parameters mentioned above. Moreover, other parameters, such as US-based SAT, with SAT measured 2 cm above the umbilicus and both-sided SAT above the second intercostal spaces as the most important ones. Discussion: Based on our results, several categories of OSA can be predicted using artificial intelligence with high precision by using SAT and anthropometric parameters.