COST Annual Report 2020
With a challenging year and many initiatives taking place, this COST Annual Report 2020 highlights the positive developments that occurred as part of the Programme, as well as how COST Actions have acted and collaborated on COVID-19 research.
Inside are key facts and figures from the year, as well as success stories demonstrating the importance of COST for careers and scientific networks.
50 years of research networks
The European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) celebrates its 50-year anniversary.
This publication offers an extensive overview of COST in the last half century. It is a unique opportunity
to channel the voices of researchers and innovators both past and present through success stories,
testimonials and key milestones.
Understanding and combatting African Swine Fever - A European perspective
- Editor(s): Laura Iacolina, Mary-Louise Penrith, Silvia Bellini, Erika Chenais, Ferran Jori, Maria Montoya, Karl Ståhl and Dolores Gavier-Widén
- Publisher(s): Wageningen Academic Publishers
- Download from external website
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ISBN: 978-90-8686-357-0
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e-ISBN: 978-90-8686-910-7
The recent introduction and spread of African swine fever (ASF) into Europe and Asia has shown that an integrated, multidisciplinary effort is needed to tackle this disease and the complex challenges it poses. This book presents practical guidelines on surveillance for detection of ASF virus, how to prevent outbreaks in the domestic pig sector through biosecurity and cleaning and disinfection routines, including in backyard holdings, and how to control and eradicate this disease in wild boar. Information on pathological lesions and diagnostic practices are provided to support practitioners. Virus infection mechanisms and the consequent host immune response are reported together with an overview on the status of vaccine and treatment development. Information on ASF epidemiology and the European wild boar and domestic pig populations is presented to assist breeders, wildlife managers and policy makers in designing practices aimed at preventing, or controlling and eradicating, this disease. The book provides currently available knowledge in a single place, and identifies knowledge gaps, prompting policy makers and funding bodies to support the scientific community in investigating the gaps.
Learning to deal with problematic usage of the internet
Ever since its development in the early 1990’s, the Internet has become highly pervasive across most of the civilised world. While the majority of Internet users take advantage of its many positive uses (including professional and recreational ones), some individuals can develop Problematic Use of the Internet (which we will refer to as PUI). This term encompasses a wide range of repetitive disabling behaviors characterized by compulsivity and addiction. These include, but are not limited to, Internet gaming, compulsive online sexual behaviors/ cyberpornography, Internet-related buying or shopping disorder, Internet-related gambling disorder, cyberbullying, cyberchondria, and social media/network forum use, among others.
Although PUI affects a minority of individuals who routinely use the Internet, several reports have documented a series of unhealthy lifestyles and medical disturbances which are thought to represent the consequences of severe forms of PUI, especially when it comes to youth. People affected by PUI and their family members often do not know about the signs and symptoms of this condition. For example, they do not know how to recognize PUI, or whom to go to for help, and often they do not know whether this is a treatable condition and/or how to manage it. Because of this, National Health Authorities around the World are concerned about the health and societal costs that PUI may have. Some researchers are starting to consider particular forms of PUI as a serious and disabling form of behavioral addiction.
Edited by the COST Action CA16207
In collaboration with the International College of Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS) and the International Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders Research Network of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (OCRN-ECNP)
Communicating science in times of COVID-19
The COST Cross-Cutting Activity (CCA) on Science Communication brings together outstanding expertise
from over 50 organisations across EU Member States and beyond. Working to raise awareness of science communication and develop best practices for policy makers to stimulate research on science communication in Europe.
For this report a selective group of CCA Members were invited to provide their perspective on the role and relevance of science communication during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Common for the contributions are their focus on new approaches to science-based communication as an essential prerequisite for addressing contemporary health challenges as they cut across disciplines and stakeholders.
The Science of Citizen Science
- Editor(s): Katrin Vohland, Anne Land-Zandstra, Luigi Ceccaroni, Rob Lemmens, Josep Perelló, Marisa Ponti, Roeland Samson, Katherin Wagenknecht
- Publisher(s): Springer International Publishing
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- ISBN: 978-3-030-58277-7 and 978-3-030-58278-4 (eBook)
COST Action ‘Citizen Science to Promote Creativity, Scientific Literacy, and Innovation throughout Europe‘. This open access book discusses how the involvement of citizens into scientific endeavors is expected to contribute to solve the big challenges of our time, such as climate change and the loss of biodiversity, growing inequalities within and between societies, and the sustainability turn. The field of citizen science has been growing in recent decades. Many different stakeholders from scientists to citizens and from policy makers to environmental organisations have been involved in its practice. In addition, many scientists also study citizen science as a research approach and as a way for science and society to interact and collaborate. This book provides a representation of the practices as well as scientific and societal outcomes in different disciplines. It reflects the contribution of citizen science to societal development, education, or innovation and provides and overview of the field of actors as well as on tools and guidelines. It serves as an introduction for anyone who wants to get involved in and learn more about the science of citizen science.
Policy Implications of Autonomous Vehicles (Volume 5 in the Advances in Transport Policy and Planning series)
- Editor(s): Dimitris Milakis, Nikolas Thomopoulos, Bert van Wee
- Publisher(s): Elsevier Inc.
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- ISBN: 978-0-12-820191-6
- ISSN: 2543-0009
The book has been initiated within the COST Action CA16222 entitled Wider Impacts and Scenario Evaluation of Autonomous and Connected Transport (WISE-ACT).
Policy Implications of Autonomous Vehicles, Volume Five in the Advances in Transport Policy and Planning series, systematically reviews policy relevant implications of AVs and the associated possible policy responses, and discusses future avenues for policy making and research. It comprises 13 chapters discussing: (a) short-term implications of AVs for traffic flow, human-automated bus systems interaction, cyber-security and safety, cybersecurity certification and auditing, non-commuting journeys; (b) long-term implications of AVs for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and energy, health and well-being, data protection, ethics, governance; (c) implications of AVs for the maritime industry and urban deliveries; and (d) overall synthesis and conclusions.
Good Practices in Perinatal Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Report from Task-Force RISEUP-PPD COVID-19
Author(s): Emma Motrico, Vera Mateus, Rena Bina, Ethel Felice, Alessandra Bramante, Goce Kalcev, Mauro Mauri, Sara Martins y Ana Mesquita
Publisher: CLÍNICA Y SALUD Investigación Empírica en Psicología
https://doi.org/10.5093/clysa2020a26
Due to the changes that occur to the immunity and physiological state of women during pregnancy, they are at increased risk of suffering issues with both their physical and mental health (Liu et al., 2020). It is estimated that 1 in 5 women develop a mental health problem in the perinatal period (Hahn-Holbrook et al., 2018; World Health Organization, 2015), with depression and anxiety among the most prevalent conditions (Shorey et al., 2018). Importantly, these conditions have long lasting adverse effects on women and their babies, and place a heavy burden on families and society as a whole (Bauer et al., 2014; Gavin et al., 2005). Conditions such as extreme stress, conflict situations, emergencies, and natural disasters can increase the risk of developing specific mental illnesses (World Health Organization, 2016).
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), declared a global pandemic on March 11 by the World Health Organization, is currently cited as a significant cause of stress and anxiety for pregnant and postpartum women (PPW) around the world (Chen et al., 2020), taking into account that these women constitute one of the most vulnerable populations in the world. Although formal evidence about the perinatal aspects of COVID-19 remains scarce, recent clinical data suggest that the impact on physical health is not as negative as previously thought (Mullins et al., 2020). Pregnant women and newborns are not at increased risk of getting infected or having worse symptoms or consequences than the general population (Chen et al., 2020).
However, the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak and the imposed social confinement measures are particularly challenging for PPW and may impact their psychological well-being. In addition to the expected concerns about their own health, risk of infection and transmission of the virus to the baby, sudden changes in perinatal healthcare (e.g., modifications of scheduled appointments, restrictions on the partner’s presence during childbirth and postnatal visitation) would likely contribute to increased psychological distress.
Taking into account the aforementioned reasons, the Riseup-PPD project “Research Innovation and Sustainable Pan-European Network in Peripartum Depression Disorder” (Cost Action 18138), founded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union, decided to create the “Perinatal Mental Health and COVID-19 epidemic” task force to promote best practices in maternal mental health that may mitigate the impact of COVID-19 management on women’s mental health. Within this framework, we provide a brief review on a) impacts of the pandemic and confinement during COVID-19 lockdown on PPW and b) characteristics of the women who are most vulnerable to the psychological impact of COVID-19. Based on this review, we recommend good psychological practices and points to consider in conducting research that could be implemented to mitigate the negative consequences of such a pandemic.
Modeling Desert Dust Exposures in Epidemiologic Short-term Health Effects Studies
- Author(s): Tobías, Aurelio; Stafoggia, Massimo
- Publisher(s): Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.
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- doi: 10.1097/EDE.0000000000001255
Desert dust is assumed to have substantial adverse effects on human health. However, the epidemiologic evidence is still inconsistent, mainly because previous studies used different metrics for dust exposure and its corresponding epidemiologic analysis. We aim to provide a standardized approach to the methodology for evaluating the short-term health effects of desert dust.