Group recommender systems (GRSys) focus on the challenges of recommending to groups of users with possibly contradicting needs and preferences. Methodologically, we distinguish between approaches aiming to aggregate preferences of group members and aggregating per-user recommendations. In early GRSys research, this methodological duality did not affect the connected research objectives and evaluation methodology much. However, nowadays, we witness a gradual rift in the research induced by both algorithm classes. In this work, based on a survey of 110 recent GRSys papers, we aim to quantify this rift along several aspects, including involved communities, evaluation datasets, objectives, and baselines. We showcase how little both subtrees have in common nowadays and discuss missed opportunities this rift causes. In conclusion, we also highlight novel research avenues that may contribute towards bridging the rift to the benefit of both research areas.

Group Recommender Systems aim to support groups in making collective decisions, and research has consistently shown that the more we understand about group members and their interactions, the better support such systems can provide. In this work, we propose a conceptual framework for modeling group dynamics from group chat interactions, with a particular focus on decision-making scenarios. The framework is designed to support the development of intelligent agents that provide advanced forms of decision support to groups. It consists of modular, loosely coupled components that process and analyze textual and multimedia content, which is shared in group interactions, to extract user preferences, emotional states, interpersonal relationships, and behavioral patterns. By incorporating sentiment analysis, summarization, dialogue state tracking, and conflict resolution profiling, the framework captures both individual and collective aspects of group behavior. Unlike existing approaches, our model is intended to operate dynamically and adaptively during live group interactions, offering a novel foundation for group recommender and decision support systems.

Abstract Background/Objectives Molar-Incisor Hypomineralisation (MIH) affects 14% of the global population, often leading to compromised first permanent molars (FPM). Early extraction of severely affected FPMs may temporarily affect proper eruption and alignment of second permanent molars (SPM) and second premolars (SP). This study aimed to evaluate the eruption patterns of SPMs and SPs, and the overeruption of opposing FPMs, after early FPM extraction using panoramic radiographs in 11-year-old patients. A secondary aim was to assess radiographic quality for these evaluations. Subjects and Methods This split-mouth trial included patients aged 6–9 with severe MIH requiring FPM extraction. Panoramic radiographs were taken pre-extraction (T0) and at age 11 (T1) to measure eruption length and angulation of SPMs and SPs. Radiographs were analysed using Facad software, and imaging errors were recorded. Paired t-tests compared extraction and non-extraction sides. Results Among 47 patients, 31 had maxillary and 25 mandibular FPM extractions. At T0, eruption length and angulation of SPMs and SPs were similar between sides. At T1, maxillary SPMs erupted faster (13.5mm vs. 10.8mm, p < 0.001) and more upright (72.9° vs. 62.1°, p < 0.001) on the extraction side, while SPs showed increased mesial angulation (82.5° vs. 89.3°, p < 0.05). Mandibular SPMs and SPs showed no differences. No overeruption of opposing FPMs was observed. Measurement reliability was excellent (ICC: 0.997–0.999), despite 75 of 94 radiographic contained errors. Limitations The three-year follow-up limits long-term insights, and radiographic distortions may affect reliability. Conclusions Early FPM extraction impacts maxillary but not mandibular SPM and SP eruption patterns without causing overeruption of opposing FPMs by age 11. Radiographic techniques are essential to minimize incorrect patient positioning, as such factors may impact measurement reliability.

Among numerous global problems, one of the most significant is air pollution. In this paper, unwashed (U) and water-washed (W) needles of two conifers—European larch and Douglas fir—were used to assess their capacity for the retention and accumulation of heavy metals. The needle samples were used to represent the atmospheric deposition of heavy metals located on the surface of the needles. The sampled European larch and Douglas fir plantations were situated at three locations in Serbia: a least polluted (Kučevo), a moderately polluted (Avala), and a very polluted (Lazarevac) site. The content of five heavy metals (Ni, Cu, Co, Cd, Pb) was investigated in the study. The concentration of cadmium (Cd) was higher in the European larch needles compared to Douglas fir, while the differences in the content of the other heavy metals between the species studied were insignificant. For both species, the following trend applied with respect to the heavy metal content in their needles: Ni ˃ Cu ˃ Co ˃ Pb ˃ Cd. Based on the results obtained, we deduced that the concentrations of all investigated heavy metals at all three locations for both species were within the allowed limits, except for nickel (Ni) content, which was over the predicted limit values for both species in the highly polluted area (Lazarevac). A PCA (principal component analysis) undertaken suggests that European larch has a greater ability to accumulate Co than Douglas fir on sites contaminated with heavy metals. The predictive foliar metal accumulation index (MAI) value was slightly higher in Douglas fir (4.14) than in European larch (3.76); therefore, the results suggest that this species would be a good planting choice, particularly in urban and industrial environments.

Objectives The aims this research were to analyze self-reported oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and dental fear and anxiety (DFA) in 11-year-old patients after either restorative treatment or after extraction of first permanent molars (FPM) affected by severe molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH). The research question focused on whether these treatments lead to different outcomes of DFA and OHRQoL over time. Materials and methods GuREx-MIH, a multicenter trial, was conducted involving 83 children aged 6–9 years who were diagnosed with severe MIH in FPMs. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either restorative treatment with resin composite or extraction. Patient comfort was assessed through OHRQoL and DFA, using the Swedish version of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14) and the Children’s Fear Survey Schedule-Dental Subscale (CFSS-DS), which were administered before treatment (T0) and at follow-up when patients were 11 years old (T1). Descriptive statistical analyses were conducted and comparisons between the restorative and extraction groups were performed using T-tests. Results A total of 79 patients completed the study, with 43 allocated to restorative treatment and 36 to extraction. At follow-up, the mean OHRQoL score was 8.9 (standard deviation [SD] 7.3) for patients in the restorative group and 9.6 (SD 6.7) for those in the extraction group (p: 0.337, T-test). The mean DFA score was 21.5 (SD 5.5) for the restorative group and 23.1 (SD 6.8) for the extraction group (p: 0.130, T-test). Conclusions Restorative treatment and extraction of FPMs affected by MIH lead to similar impact on DFA and OHRQoL at 11 years of age.

Echinococcus multilocularis, the causative agent of alveolar echinococcosis (AE), is a parasitic zoonosis of increasing public health significance in Europe. Although previously confirmed in red foxes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, this study provides the first report of E. multilocularis in golden jackals (Canis aureus) in the country. Between December 2024 and March 2025, a total of 44 golden jackals were examined across 15 localities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with E. multilocularis detected in 6.8 % of the samples from three sites in Western and Central Bosnia and Herzegovina. Adult Echinococcus spp. worms were first detected using the intestinal scraping technique and identified by microscopy. To confirm these findings and differentiate between Echinococcus species, DNA extracted from adult worms was then subjected to species-specific PCR targeting a fragment of the mitochondrial 12S ribosomal RNA gene. PCR-positive samples for E. multilocularis were further validated by next-generation sequencing (NGS) of a 203 bp amplicon of the 12S rRNA gene. These findings indicate an expanding distribution of E. multilocularis in Bosnia and Herzegovina, highlighting the role of golden jackals as definitive hosts for the parasite. Given the growing jackal population in the country and the increasing public health concerns, enhanced surveillance and further research are warranted, particularly regarding human cases of E. multilocularis infection, to better understand the associated epidemiological risks.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a major threat for pig health and meat production in many countries. The development and commercialization of vaccine candidates are complicated by efficacy and safety concerns. Improved vaccine design requires further studies to identify factors that regulate immune responses to vaccines leading to protective immunity against a virulent challenge. In a previous study, we reported that infection with the moderately virulent ASFV field strain Estonia 2014 was less severe in specific pathogen-free (SPF) pigs than in conventional farm pigs, which differ in their gut microbiome and their basal immune activation status. As shown previously using intramuscular infection, SPF pigs were more resilient to oronasal infection with the ASFV Estonia 2014 strain compared to farm pigs, which showed increased fever and clinical signs. All SPF and farm pigs nevertheless survived the infection and remained viremic for approximately 4 months. When all animals had no detectable viremia, both groups were rechallenged with the virulent ASFV Armenia 2008 strain. SPF pigs were fully protected against disease and showed little or no viremia upon re-challenge. In contrast, farm pigs developed high viremia, high proinflammatory cytokine responses, severe clinical signs, and 40% (2 of 5 pigs) reached humane endpoints. Our findings suggest that limited prior immune exposure to other pathogens and/or the microbiome composition of SPF pigs promotes resilience to infection with a moderately virulent strain such as Estonia 2014, and importantly promotes the development of a strong protective immune response against a second challenge with a virulent ASFV strain. In conclusion, testing safety and efficacy of live attenuated vaccine candidates should take into account the specific hygiene conditions and the associated changes of general immune status of pigs in clinical trials.

The class \(\mathcal{S}^{\sharp \flat }(\sigma_0, \sigma_1)\) is a very broad class of \(L\) functions that contains the Selberg class, the class of all automorphic \(L\) functions and the Rankin–Selberg \(L\) functions, as well as products of suitable shifts of those functions. In this paper, we consider generalized Euler-Stieltjes constants \(\gamma_n(F)\) attached to functions \(F(s)\) from the class \(\mathcal{S}^{\sharp \flat }(\sigma_0, \sigma_1)\). These are coefficients in Laurent series expansion of function \(F(s)\) at its pole. We derive an integral representation and an upper bound for these constants. The application of the obtained results in the case of product of suitable shifts of the Riemann zeta function is presented.

The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Lumbar Degenerative Imaging Spine Classification (LumbarDISC) dataset is the largest publicly available dataset of adult MRI lumbar spine examinations annotated for degenerative changes. The dataset includes 2,697 patients with a total of 8,593 image series from 8 institutions across 6 countries and 5 continents. The dataset is available for free for non-commercial use via Kaggle and RSNA Medical Imaging Resource of AI (MIRA). The dataset was created for the RSNA 2024 Lumbar Spine Degenerative Classification competition where competitors developed deep learning models to grade degenerative changes in the lumbar spine. The degree of spinal canal, subarticular recess, and neural foraminal stenosis was graded at each intervertebral disc level in the lumbar spine. The images were annotated by expert volunteer neuroradiologists and musculoskeletal radiologists from the RSNA, American Society of Neuroradiology, and the American Society of Spine Radiology. This dataset aims to facilitate research and development in machine learning and lumbar spine imaging to lead to improved patient care and clinical efficiency.

The analysis of emotional speech has gained significant attention in the fields of s peech r ecognition a nd natural language processing. From emotion recognition to emotional text-to-speech synthesis, emotional speech plays a crucial role, particularly in areas such as human-computer interaction and intelligent robotics. However, this area remains underexplored. Recent research trends emphasize the use of multimodal data, such as emotional audio and video recordings. Although effective, these approaches require additional resources, which can be time-consuming and costly, especially for low-resource languages such as Serbian. On the other hand, a significant g ap exists in understanding cognitive processes involved in human emotional speech production. To address this, emotional speech from an information-theoretic perspective was explored. Specifically, surprisal values, estimated using five s tate-of-the-art language models were analyzed for their correlation with spoken word duration. The results indicated variations in Pearson's coefficient between these parameters in different emotional states, with general multilingual models outperforming Serbian-specific models in surprising estimation. These results can offer valuable insights into emotional speech production in other South Slavic languages as well, such as in Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin.

: This paper shows the preliminary results of an investigation into the possibility of using red mud slag (RMS) for phosphate sorption from aqueous solutions. The red mud slag was obtained from red mud treatment, specifically from carbothermal reduction at high temperatures. This process resulted in forming a metallic phase (iron) and slag enriched with other elements. The preliminary analysis of slag is performed to investigate its potential for use as a phosphate sorbent in wastewater treatment. The slag is divided into three categories. Two of them are obtained by sieving an original slag sample in the fine fraction and the coarse fraction (the slag residual after sieving). The third sample is the raw slag. After an experiment that included 24 h shaking of slag and phosphate solution, the results show potential for using red mud slag in phosphate sorption. It is an initial experiment that will be a starting point for further investigation of the sorption characteristics of red mud slag.

Legal systems shape not only the recognition of migrants and refugees but also the pace and stability of their integration. Refugees often shift between multiple legal classifications, a process we refer to as the"legal journey". This journey is frequently prolonged and uncertain. Using a network-based approach, we analyze legal transitions for over 350,000 migrants in Austria (2022 to 2024). Refugees face highly unequal pathways to stability, ranging from two months for Ukrainians to nine months for Syrians and 20 months for Afghans. Women, especially from these regions, are more likely to gain protection; Afghan men wait up to 30 months on average. We also find that those who cross the border without going through official border controls face higher exit rates and lower chances of securing stable status. We show that legal integration is not a uniform process, but one structured by institutional design, procedural entry points, and unequal timelines.