From the traditional and pragmatic perspective on European cooperation shared by the Dutch political establishment, the French initiative for the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) was initially met with scepticism. Yet, during the experiment, the Dutch government and parliament translated their initial reluctance into assertive involvement. Rapporteurs from the bicameral parliament of the Netherlands became actively involved in CoFoE. They used it as an opportunity structure to pursue their political interests, which came down to watering down too-ambitious text proposals and stressing that the active participation of the citizens should be taken seriously. This chapter shows how both Houses used a wide range of parliamentary instruments – rapporteurs, delegations, plenary debates, committee hearings, questions, and a parliamentary citizens’ consultation – to debate, scrutinise and influence the CoFoE. Representatives and staff actively engaged in inter-parliamentary information exchange. In preparation for the plenaries, a sense of ‘esprit de corps’ developed between Dutch government representatives, members of parliament (MPs), Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), and supporting staff. This resulted in a remarkably coherent all-Dutch positioning up until the closure of the Conference and shared disappointment on the lack of a follow-up.
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Artificial intelligence (AI) is a technology which is increasingly being utilised in society and the economy worldwide, but there is much disquiet over problematic and dangerous implementations of AI, or indeed even AI itself deciding to do dangerous and problematic actions. These developments have led to concerns about whether and how AI systems currently adhere to and will adhere to ethical standards, stimulating a global and multistakeholder conversation on AI ethics and the production of AI governance initiatives. Such developments form the basis for this chapter, where we give an insight into what is happening in Australia, China, the European Union, India and the United States. We commence with some background to the AI ethics and regulation debates, before proceedings to give an overview of what is happening in different countries and regions, namely Australia, China, the European Union (including national level activities in Germany), India and the United States. We provide an analysis of these country profiles, with particular emphasis on the relationship between ethics and law in each location. Overall we find that AI governance and ethics initiatives are most developed in China and the European Union, but the United States has been catching up in the last eighteen months.
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De afgelopen maanden is de Hongaarse overheid druk bezig geweest met bezoekjes aan Brussel om de Europese Commissie te overtuigen van de puike staat van de rechtsstaat in Hongarije. Reden voor deze bezoeken van de Hongaarse regering is het voorstel van de Europese Commissie om het uitkeren van EU-fondsen aan een lidstaat te blokkeren. Eurocommissaris Hahn stelt dat Hongarije mogelijk zo’n €7,5 miljard aan EU-fondsen misloopt als het niet snel 17 afgesproken hervormingen doorvoert die de rechtsstaat waarborgen. Het zou gaan om 65% van de voor Hongarije beschikbare middelen van de cohesiefondsen.
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Bij de Europese verkiezingen van 2019 werden namens Nederland nooit eerder zoveel eurosceptische Europarlementariërs verkozen. Hun geluid is voor kiezers van grote waarde: Europarlementariërs van middenpartijen hebben de neiging te praten over beleidsmatige details. Eurosceptici lichten eerder de grote keuzes in Brussel uit: moet er meer of minder Europese grensbewaking komen? Is Covid-19 een reden om de binnengrenzen te sluiten? Moet er verdere EU i-uitbreiding plaatsvinden? Moet de EU grote techbedrijven aanpakken? Voor herkenbare politiek zijn herkenbare partijen nodig en dat is waar het – nog geen twee jaar na de Europese verkiezingen – totaal misgaat. Bijna al deze Europarlementariërs, behalve die van SGP i en PVV i, zijn inmiddels van partij gewisseld. Op lokaal niveau waren afsplitsingen al een vertrouwd fenomeen, maar nu doet dit zich ook regelmatig in Brussel voor. Het komt de herkenbaarheid van Europese politiek niet ten goede. Laten we kijken naar drie gevallen: Dorien Rookmaker i stapte uit Forum voor Democratie i (FvD), Toine Manders i vertrok bij 50Plus i en onlangs vertrokken nog eens drie FvD-Europarlementariërs. Waar leidt dit toe?
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Are we defenseless against AI, deepfake, and the rapid spread of disinformation? Join the first episode in our podcast series part of the Jean Monnet Chair EU-ACT DIGITAL, an initiative spotlighting EU digital policy. Our very first guest, Member of European Parliament Bart Groothuis (part of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy), provides his expert insights on the state of digitalisation in the EU while being interviewed by European Impact’s Paul Schuchhard and European Studies students Francisco van Ruijven and Joana Pereira Grilo from The Hague University of Applied Sciences. Visit https://eu-act.digital/ to find out more about the Jean Monnet Chair EU-ACT DIGITAL.
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Ending subsidies for fossil fuel heating systems from 2025, and phasing out gas boilers and other fossil fuel heaters by 2040. These are just two of the outcomes of a political agreement between the EU Council and the European Parliament, which was reached on December 7, 2023. Which measures were agreed upon, and what will the implications be for the heating sector?
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BackgroundMechanical ventilation affects the respiratory muscles, but little is known about long-term recovery of respiratory muscle weakness (RMW) and potential associations with physical functioning in survivors of critical illness. The aim of this study was to investigate the course of recovery of RMW and its association with functional outcomes in patients who received mechanical ventilation.MethodsWe conducted a prospective cohort study with 6-month follow-up among survivors of critical illness who received ≥ 48 hours of invasive mechanical ventilation. Primary outcomes, measured at 3 timepoints, were maximal inspiratory and expiratory pressures (MIP/MEP). Secondary outcomes were functional exercise capacity (FEC) and handgrip strength (HGS). Longitudinal changes in outcomes and potential associations between MIP/MEP, predictor variables, and secondary outcomes were investigated through linear mixed model analysis.ResultsA total of 59 participants (male: 64%, median age [IQR]: 62 [53–66]) were included in this study with a median (IQR) ICU and hospital length of stay of 11 (8–21) and 35 (21–52) days respectively. While all measures were well below predicted values at hospital discharge (MIP: 68.4%, MEP 76.0%, HGS 73.3% of predicted and FEC 54.8 steps/2m), significant 6-month recovery was seen for all outcomes. Multivariate analyses showed longitudinal associations between older age and decreased MIP and FEC, and longer hospital length of stay and decreased MIP and HGS outcomes. In crude models, significant, longitudinal associations were found between MIP/MEP and FEC and HGS outcomes. While these associations remained in most adjusted models, an interaction effect was observed for sex.ConclusionRMW was observed directly after hospital discharge while 6-month recovery to predicted values was noted for all outcomes. Longitudinal associations were found between MIP and MEP and more commonly used measures for physical functioning, highlighting the need for continued assessment of respiratory muscle strength in deconditioned patients who are discharged from ICU. The potential of targeted training extending beyond ICU and hospital discharge should be further explored.
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Dealing with and maintaining high-quality standards in the design and construction phases is challenging, especially for on-site construction. Issues like improper implementation of building components and poor communication can widen the gap between design specifications and actual conditions. To prevent this, particularly for energy-efficient buildings, it is vital to develop resilient, sustainable strategies. These should optimize resource use, minimize environmental impact, and enhance livability, contributing to carbon neutrality by 2050 and climate change mitigation. Traditional post-occupancy evaluations, which identify defects after construction, are impractical for addressing energy performance gaps. A new, real-time inspection approach is necessary throughout the construction process. This paper suggests an innovative guideline for prefabricated buildings, emphasizing digital ‘self-instruction’ and ‘self-inspection’. These procedures ensure activities impacting quality adhere to specific instructions, drawings, and 3D models, incorporating the relevant acceptance criteria to verify completion. This methodology, promoting alignment with planned energy-efficient features, is supported by BIM-based software and Augmented Reality (AR) tools, embodying Industry 4.0 principles. BIM (Building Information Modeling) and AR bridge the gap between virtual design and actual construction, improving stakeholder communication and enabling real-time monitoring and adjustments. This integration fosters accuracy and efficiency, which are key for energy-efficient and nearly zero-energy buildings, marking a shift towards a more precise, collaborative, and environmentally sensible construction industry.
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OBJECTIVES: Expiratory muscle strength training (EMST) is a threshold based device-driven treatment for improving expiratory pressure. EMST proved to be effective in different patient groups to improve cough function. To date, EMST has not been tested in the total laryngectomy population (TL).METHODS: This prospective, randomized case-series study examined feasibility, safety, and compliance of EMST in a group of TL participants and its effects on pulmonary function, physical exertion, fatigue, and vocal functioning. Ten TL participants were included in the study to perform a 4 till 8 weeks of EMST. Objective and subjective outcome measures included manometry, spirometry, cardio pulmonary exercise testing (CPET), voice recordings, and patient reported outcome measures. Group means were reported and estimates of the effect are shown with a 95% confidence interval, using single sample t-tests.RESULTS: Nine participants completed the full study protocol. Compliance to the training program was high. All were able to perform the training, although it requires adjustments of the device and skills of the participants. Maximum expiratory pressure (MEP) and vocal functioning in loudness improved over time. After EMST no changes were seen in other objective and subjective outcomes.CONCLUSIONS: EMST appears to be feasible and safe after total laryngectomy. MEP improved over time but no improvement in the clinically relevant outcome measures were seen in this sample of relatively fit participants. Further investigation of the training in a larger group of participants who report specifically pulmonary complaints is recommended to investigate if the increase in MEP results in clinical benefits.LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4.
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The energy management systems industry in the built environment is currently an important topic. Buildings use about 40% of the total global energy worldwide. Therefore, the energy management system’s sector is one of the most influential sectors to realize changes and transformation of energy use. New data science technologies used in building energy management systems might not only bring many technical challenges, but also they raise significant educational challenges for professionals who work in the field of energy management systems. Learning and educational issues are mainly due to the transformation of professional practices and networks, emerging technologies, and a big shift in how people work, communicate, and share their knowledge across the professional and academic sectors. In this study, we have investigated three different companies active in the building services sector to identify the main motivation and barriers to knowledge adoption, transfer, and exchange between different professionals in the energy management sector and explore the technologies that have been used in this field using the boundary-crossing framework. The results of our study show the importance of understanding professional learning networks in the building services sector. Additionally, the role of learning culture, incentive structure, and technologies behind the educational system of each organization are explained. Boundary-crossing helps to analyze the barriers and challenges in the educational setting and how new educational technologies can be embedded. Based on our results, future studies with a bigger sample and deeper analysis of technologies are needed to have a better understanding of current educational problems.
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