The increasing availability of wearable forehead EEG devices, such as the Hypnodyne ZMax, open-source DCM, CGX PatchEEG, and many others, has significantly expanded opportunities for convenient, at-home sleep monitoring. However, most publicly available sleep classifiers are trained on scalp EEG from traditional polysomnography (PSG) data, and thus generalize poorly to forehead EEG due to differences in electrode placement, referencing montages, and higher susceptibility to artifacts from user movements and electrode displacement. Conventional classifiers typically do not explicitly account for these artifacts, resulting in inaccurate and misleading sleep stage scoring. To address this gap, we developed a suite of artifact-aware sleep stage classifiers trained specifically using forehead EEG data, leveraging two comprehensive datasets—Wearanize+ and Donders2022—that contain concurrent forehead EEG and clinical PSG recordings. We further introduce two classifier variants: one optimized for real-time applications that operates directly on raw EEG amplitudes, and another optimized for offline analysis utilizing normalized EEG signals. Validation results indicate robust and reliable classification performance across standard sleep stages (Wake, N1, N2, N3, REM), along with effective identification of artifact epochs. Importantly, the developed classifiers generalize well to forehead EEG devices beyond the original training platform. These validated classifiers are freely available to the sleep research community through the open-source ezscore-f package, providing versatile and practical tools for forehead EEG-based sleep stage analysis. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, https://ror.org/029pp9z10 Swiss National Science Foundation, https://ror.org/00yjd3n13

This study expands previous work examining the effects on fishes from exposure to a single 4.5 kg underwater explosive detonation. Experiments were done in the field, with fish in cages at different distances from the source. Although our earlier work reported high acoustic dosage levels (e.g. based on peak pressure) correlating with severe injuries, dosage levels that result in moderate, or mild injuries were not clearly established. Thus, in this study, caged Pacific mackerel (Scomber japonicus) were placed at targeted ranges of 150-800 m from the source. All procedures were the same as in the earlier study except that animals were left at depth for similar to 3 hours post-exposure to determine immediate effects on survival. Fish were then retrieved and assessed for physical damage. The only statistically significant tissue injuries were swim bladder bruising and in a reduction in inner ear sensory hair cell density that lessened with distance from the source. Still, results must be taken with caution since they may vary with different source levels, water depths, location of the fish in the water column, and by species.

Abstract Introduction Previous studies have demonstrated that long-term opioid use alters sleep architecture and continuity. Long-term opioid therapy (LTOT) is common amongst people with chronic pain, yet the interrelations of sleep and pain among patients on LTOT are poorly understood. Methods We characterized sleep amongst people with chronic low back pain (CLBP) on LTOT (n=53) using wireless sleep-electroencephalography (EEG), and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) in a naturalistic remote study. The relationships amongst the duration and percentages of rapid eye movement (REM) and slow wave sleep (SWS), total sleep time (TST), sleep efficiency (SE), wake after sleep onset (WASO), pain, and opioid craving, measured using 14 days of EMA assessments were explored. Opioid craving was assessed through two questions which asked participants to rate how much they wanted to use opioids and the strength of their urge to use opioids. These items were averaged into one craving measure. Sleep-EEG data were averaged across two nights (when available) and separate linear regression analyses were used to determine the relationships between sleep predictors (architecture and continuity metrics) and 14-day averages of pain and opioid craving. Results Participants demonstrated poor sleep continuity, with substantial WASO (mean=148, SD=101 mins), short TSTs (mean=5.40, SD=2.16 hours), and low SE (mean=61.35%, SD=19.98%). However, REM% (mean=15.16%, SD=9.23%) and SWS% (mean=20.99%, SD=15.36%) were generally within normative ranges. Regression models demonstrated no significant relationship between the sleep architecture variables and pain or opioid craving. However, a strong positive correlation between pain and opioid craving (r=0.57, p< 0.01) was present. Conclusion Participants with CLBP on LTOT demonstrate poor sleep continuity, despite sleep architecture within normative ranges. Although we observed no relationship between sleep and pain or opioid craving, there was a strong relationship between pain and craving. Future studies should evaluate the temporal dynamics of sleep, pain, and opioid craving in this population, as well as the potential role of opioid dose and use patterns. Support (if any) NIH/NIDA R01DA048206

Before our era of high-speed computers scientists would often transform data from one metric into another to better visualise possible correlations and ease calculations. The most common transformation, still practised today, is to transform of one or both variables by a logarithmic function presenting data as a linear correlation. Transformation can mislead investigators into believing their results are more accurate than reality. Two of the most glaring mistakes when applying this transformation are the acts of discarding the origin, which is often the most accurate data pair, and improper estimation of the experimental errors. We first present the many reasons one should avoid transforming data, then illustrate the problem by demonstrating the pitfalls evaluating the Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker model with supernovae type Ia (SNe Ia) data. We analyse a publicly available data ensemble and repeatably determine a Hubble constant of 64 to 66 km s$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-1}$ not >70 as some currently claim. Values <70 were claimed previously by those analysing SNe Ia data and by cosmic microwave background and LIGO/Virgo investigators. Importantly, we also find our analysis supports concave spacetime geometry. The root cause for this "Hubble tension" is the misunderstanding by cosmologists of the properties of the K of Friedmann's equations and the k of the Robertson-Walker metric as we shall explain. We present several useful programs written in the Python 3 language along with the native and transformed data with standard deviations on GitHub to aid the reader in understanding our analyses.

Sound production capabilities and characteristics in Loricariidae, the largest catfish family, have not been well examined. Sounds produced by three loricariid catfish species, Otocinclus affinis, Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps, and Pterygoplichthys pardalis, were recorded. Each of these species produces pulses via pectoral-fin spine stridulation by rubbing the ridged condyle of the dorsal process of the pectoral-fin spine base against a matching groove-like socket in the pectoral girdle. Light and scanning electron microscopy were used to examine the dorsal process of the pectoral-fin spines of these species. Mean distances between dorsal process ridges of O. affinis, P. gibbiceps, and P. pardalis were 53, 161, and 329 μm, respectively. Stridulation sounds occurred during either abduction (type A) or adduction (type B). O. affinis produced sounds through adduction only and P. pardalis through abduction only, whereas P. gibbiceps often produced pulse trains alternating between abduction and adduction. In these species, dominant frequency was an inverse function of sound duration, fish total length, and inter-ridge distance on the dorsal process of the pectoral-fin spine and sound duration increased with fish total length. While stridulation sounds are used in many behavioral contexts in catfishes, the functional significance of sound production in Loricariidae is currently unknown.

Biotremors are vibrations, usually surface waves along the boundary of a medium, produced by an organism. While substrate-borne vibrations are utilized by different reptile species, true conspecific communication via biotremors has not yet been demonstrated in lizards. Recent research revealed that the veiled chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) produces biotremors. The prerequisites for any communication system are the ability of an organism to produce and detect a signal. We tested C. calyptratus behavioral responses to vibrations by placing them on a dowel attached to a shaker, emitting vibrations of 25, 50, 150, 300, and 600 Hz and compared their locomotory velocity before and after the stimulus. Adult chameleons exhibited a freeze response to 50 and 150 Hz, while juveniles exhibited a similar response to frequencies between 50 and 300 Hz. In a second experiment, chameleons were induced to produce biotremors via experimenter contact. These biotremors ranged in mean fundamental frequency from 106.4 to 170.3 Hz and in duration from 0.06 to 0.29 s. Overall, two classes of biotremors were identified, "hoots" and "mini-hoots," which differed significantly in mean relative signal intensity (-7.5 and -32.5 dB, respectively). Juvenile chameleons 2 months of age were able to produce biotremors, suggesting this behavior may serve a wide range of ecological functions throughout ontogeny. Overall, the data demonstrate that C. calyptratus can both produce and detect biotremors that could be used for intraspecific communication.

Sleep has a homeostatic role in the regulation of the immune system and serves to constrain activation of inflammatory signalling and expression of cellular inflammation. In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a misaligned inflammatory profile induces a dysregulation of sleep-wake activity, which leads to excessive inflammation and the induction of increased sensitivity to pain. Given that multiple biological mechanisms contribute to sleep disturbances (such as insomnia), and that the central nervous system communicates with the innate immune system via neuroendocrine and neural effector pathways, potential exists to develop prevention opportunities to mitigate the risk of insomnia in RA. Furthermore, understanding these risk mechanisms might inform additional insomnia treatment strategies directed towards steering and reducing the magnitude of the inflammatory response, which together could influence outcomes of pain and disease activity in RA.

Incorporating pressurized fluidic circuits into textiles can enable muscular support, thermoregulation, and haptic feedback in a convenient wearable form factor. However, conventional rigid pumps, with their associated noise and vibration, are unsuitable for most wearables. We report fluidic pumps in the form of stretchable fibers. This allows pressure sources to be integrated directly into textiles, enabling untethered wearable fluidics. Our pumps consist of continuous helical electrodes embedded within the walls of thin elastomer tubing and generate pressure silently through charge-injection electrohydrodynamics. Each meter of fiber generates 100 kilopascals of pressure, and flow rates approaching 55 milliliters per minute are possible, which is equivalent to a power density of 15 watts per kilogram. The benefits in design freedom are considerable, which we illustrate with demonstrations of wearable haptics, mechanically active fabrics, and thermoregulatory textiles.

Increasing the penetration of renewable energy sources into an existing power system reduces the system's inertia, which can result in stability issues. Consequently, monitoring the different oscillatory modes resulting from an inverter-based generation's integration to a grid is of great concern. Most renewable energy sources operate based on maximum power point tracking (MPPT), because of economic reasons, since they are strongly dependent on weather conditions, which are intermittent and fluctuate. Battery energy storage systems (BESS) can provide a solution to the stochastic nature of renewable energy sources, because of a BESS's capability to store energy, support bidirectional energy exchange, provide geographical independence, and support fast output response. In this paper, a BESS along with a photovoltaic (PV) system are connected to a power grid via grid following and grid forming control architectures to study the oscillatory modes. A subspace identification method is used to identify oscillatory modes and their damping ratios from the measured voltage dynamics are obtained for the test system.

Background:Adolescent births are associated with numerous challenges. While adolescent birth rates have declined across the U.S., disparities persist, and little is known about the extent to which broader declines are seen within Appalachia.Purpose:The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which adolescent birth rates have declined across the subregions of Appalachia relative to non-Appalachia.Methods:We conducted a retrospective study of adolescent birth rates between 2012 and 2018 using county-level vital records data. Differences were examined across the subregions of Appalachia and among non-Appalachian counties. Multiple regression models were used to examine changes in the rate of decline over time, adjusting for additional covariates of relevance.Results:About 13.4% of all counties in the U.S. are within the Appalachian region. The rate of adolescent births decreased by 12.6 adolescent births per 1,000 females between 2012 and 2018 across the U.S. While all regions experienced declines in the rate of adolescent births, Central Appalachia had the largest reduction in adolescent births (18.5 per 1,000 females), which was also noted in the adjusted models when compared to the counties of non-Appalachia (b= -5.78, CI: -9.58, -1.97). Rates of adolescent birth were markedly higher in counties considered among the most socially and economically vulnerable.Implications:This study demonstrates that the rates of adolescent births vary across the subregions of Appalachia but have declined proportional to rates in non-Appalachia. While adolescent birth rates remain higher in select subregions of Appalachia compared to non-Appalachia, the gap has narrowed considerably.

Describe the prevalence of insomnia in TBI patients, understand separate trajectories of patient populations who suffer Insomnia post-TBI and discuss how post-TBI insomnia might be targeted for therapeutic trials.

This study assesses cost savings associated with specific contraceptive methods provided to beneficiaries enrolled in South Carolina Medicaid between 2012 and 2018. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios, defined as the additional cost of contraception provision per live birth averted, were estimated for 4 contraceptive methods (intrauterine devices [IUDs], implants, injectable contraceptives, and pills), relative to no prescription method provision, and savings per dollar spent on method provision were calculated. Costs associated with publicly funded live births were derived from published sources. The analysis was conducted for the entire Medicaid sample and separately for individuals enrolled under low-income families (LIFs), family planning, and partners for healthy children (PHC) eligibility programs. Sensitivity analysis was performed on contraceptive method costs. IUDs and implants were the most cost-effective with cost savings of up to $14.4 and $7.2 for every dollar spent in method provision, respectively. Injectable contraceptives and pills each yielded up to $4.8 per dollar spent. However, IUDs and implants were less cost-effective than injectable contraceptives and pills if the average length of use was less than 2 years. Medicaid's savings varied across Medicaid eligibility programs, with the highest and lowest savings from contraceptive provision to women in the LIFs and PHC eligibility programs, respectively. The results suggest the need to account for unique needs and preferences of beneficiaries in different Medicaid eligibility categories during contraception provision. The findings also inform program administration and provide evidence to justify legislative appropriations for Medicaid reproductive health care services.