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{
"title": "Power Quality Enhancement Based on a Recursive Digital Filter by Using Cascaded Distributed Grid-Solar PV System",
"abstract": "Grid integrated renewable energy sources plays a significant role in Distributed Generation scheme. The available solar-PV energy is integrated to utility-grid or standalone load system with proper utility grid-code limitations. The power-quality issues at common intersection point are raised during integration of solar-PV energy sources. The power-quality issues in system are enhanced by incorporating the novel control methodology to drive the inverter in DG scheme. This proposed cascaded-integral consists of recursive digital filters which processes the load currents to extract active power and enhances the harmonic current distortions in grid-current. The recursive digital filter controlled compensation device provides the active power transfer between the loads and the utility-grid system. The performance evaluation of proposed cascaded-integral recursive filter is verified during unusual grid circumstances by using MATLAB/Simulink tool, results are illustrated.",
"corpus_id": 251847753
} | {
"title": "Single-Layer Decoupled Multiple-Order Generalized Integral Control for Single-Stage Solar Energy Grid Integrator With Maximum Power Extraction",
"abstract": "In this article, a novel single-layer decoupled multiple-order generalized integral-based control algorithm is used for a single-stage solar energy grid integrator (SEGI) with maximum power extraction. The single-layer decoupled structure is used to extract the fundamental component of load current. Moreover, the online grid frequency estimation is carried out for an accurate band-pass filtering. The single-layer architecture of the control for the three-phase load current estimation, reduces the control complexity, and improves the response time. Moreover, the single-stage system is operated with the maximum power point tracking based on the residual incremental conductance algorithm. Hence, the cost of a new conversion stage and additional control are saved. This system is operated under three operating modes. In “normal-mode,” it feeds power to the load and the grid. Wherein the “sharing mode,” SEGI and grid supply the load power. During the night, SEGI functions as an active filter, which is termed as “filter-mode.” The steady-state and dynamic performances of SEGI during each operating mode and transition between the modes due to irradiation variation as well as load fluctuation are verified experimentally on a developed prototype. Moreover, test results under dynamic load variations such as nonlinear and unbalanced load conditions are presented to validate the theoretical claims.",
"corpus_id": 215859125
} | {
"title": "Residual Incremental Conductance Based Nonparametric MPPT Control for Solar Photovoltaic Energy Conversion System",
"abstract": "Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms have become key elements in improving solar photovoltaic (PV) energy conversion systems. Numerous algorithms have been developed and implemented successfully in recent technology. This paper intended to introduce an improved incremental conductance (IC) algorithm based on the mathematical residue theorem. The major difference introduced in this paper is in considering the residual value of the IC to ensure MPPT achievement. Ensuring the minimal residue in IC improves the operation and eliminates the fluctuation around the operation points. Improved energy conversion efficiency has been achieved and the system has been proved mathematically and by simulations. One of the advantages that the system is free of parameters affect and atmospheric condition data are not required. The controller gain is based on sliding mode compensator to improve the uncertainty handling ability of the developed control approach.",
"corpus_id": 198145161
} |
{
"title": "Studying the impact of cell age on the yeast growth behaviour of Saccharomyces pastorianus var. carlsbergensis by magnetic separation",
"abstract": "Despite the fact that yeast is a widely used microorganism in the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries, the impact of viability and age distribution on cultivation performance has yet to be fully understood. For a detailed analysis of fermentation performance and physiological state, we introduced a method of magnetic batch separation to isolate daughter and mother cells from a heterogeneous culture. By binding functionalised iron oxide nanoparticles, it is possible to separate the chitin‐enriched bud scars by way of a linker protein. This reveals that low viability cultures with a high daughter cell content perform similarly to a high viability culture with a low daughter cell content. Magnetic separation results in the daughter cell fraction (>95%) showing a 21% higher growth rate in aerobic conditions than mother cells and a 52% higher rate under anaerobic conditions. These findings emphasise the importance of viability and age during cultivation and are the first step towards improving the efficiency of yeast‐based processes.",
"corpus_id": 257923786
} | {
"title": "Quantification methods of determining brewer’s and pharmaceutical yeast cell viability: accuracy and impact of nanoparticles",
"abstract": "For industrial processes, a fast, precise, and reliable method of determining the physiological state of yeast cells, especially viability, is essential. However, an increasing number of processes use magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) for yeast cell manipulation, but their impact on yeast cell viability and the assay itself is unclear. This study tested the viability of Saccharomyces pastorianus ssp. carlsbergensis and Pichia pastoris by comparing traditional colourimetric, high-throughput, and growth assays with membrane fluidity. Results showed that methylene blue staining is only reliable for S. pastorianus cells with good viability, being erroneous in low viability (R2 = 0.945; σ^\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\widehat{\\sigma }$$\\end{document} = 5.78%). In comparison, the fluorescence microscopy–based assay of S. pastorianus demonstrated a coefficient of determination of R2 = 0.991 at α=0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\alpha =0$$\\end{document} (σ^\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\widehat{\\sigma }$$\\end{document} = 2.50%) and flow cytometric viability determination using carboxyfluorescein diacetate (CFDA), enabling high-throughput analysis of representative cell numbers; R2 = 0.972 (α=0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\alpha =0$$\\end{document}; σ^\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\widehat{\\sigma }$$\\end{document} = 3.89%). Membrane fluidity resulted in a non-linear relationship with the viability of the yeast cells (α≠0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\alpha \\ne 0$$\\end{document}). We also determined similar results using P. pastoris yeast. In addition, we demonstrated that MNPs affected methylene blue staining by overestimating viability. The random forest model has been shown to be a precise method for classifying nanoparticles and yeast cells and viability differentiation in flow cytometry by using CFDA. Moreover, CFDA and membrane fluidity revealed precise results for both yeasts, also in the presence of nanoparticles, enabling fast and reliable determination of viability in many experiments using MNPs for yeast cell manipulation or separation.",
"corpus_id": 258257016
} | {
"title": "Deficiency of the RNA-binding protein Cth2 extends yeast replicative lifespan by alleviating its repressive effects on mitochondrial function",
"abstract": "Iron dyshomeostasis contributes to aging, but little information is available about the molecular mechanisms. Here, we provide evidence that, in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, aging is associated with altered expression of genes involved in iron homeostasis. We further demonstrate that defects in the conserved mRNA-binding protein Cth2, which controls stability and translation of mRNAs encoding iron-containing proteins, increase lifespan by alleviating its repressive effects on mitochondrial function. Mutation of the conserved cysteine residue in Cth2 that inhibits its RNA-binding activity is sufficient to confer longevity, whereas Cth2 gain-of-function shortens replicative lifespan. Consistent with its function in RNA degradation, we demonstrate that Cth2 deficiency relieves Cth2-mediated post-transcriptional repression of nuclear-encoded components of the electron transport chain. Our findings uncover a major role of the RNA-binding protein Cth2 in the regulation of lifespan and suggest that modulation of iron starvation signaling can serve as a target for potential aging interventions.",
"corpus_id": 247159741
} |
{
"title": "Method for Prediction and Optimization of a Stratospheric Balloon Ascent Trajectory",
"abstract": "DOI: 10.2514/1.39469 In this paper, we propose a methodology for the prediction and optimization of the ascent trajectory of a stratospheric balloon to target a specified three-dimensional area. The methodology relies mainly on the Analysis Code for High-Altitude Balloons, a simulation tool for the prediction of flight trajectory and thermal behavior of high-altitude,zero-pressureballoons,andonastatisticalanalysisforestimatingthetrajectorypredictionerrors.The paperalsodescribesthealgorithmsusedforballoonparameteroptimizationtoobtaina flighttrajectorythatreaches apredefinedtargetareawithoutanyballastdroporgasventingcontrol.Theproposedmethodologywassuccessfully used during the first Dropped Transonic Flight Test of the Flying Test Bed 1 demonstrator accomplished on 24February2007bytheItalianAerospaceResearchCenter.Thereportedpostflightanalysisofallthetestcampaign demonstratesthattheproposedmethodologyfortrajectorypredictionandoptimizationguaranteesverysatisfactory and reliable results for both the selection of the best day to perform such a mission and the definition of the correct balloon parameters to be used for targeting a predefined three-dimensional area.",
"corpus_id": 122996128
} | {
"title": "Flight performance simulation and station-keeping endurance analysis for stratospheric super-pressure balloon in real wind field",
"abstract": "Abstract For the absence of the propeller system to resist wind load, the balloon will float everywhere with unstable position. In order to fix the balloon within a specific district and extend the station-keeping endurance, an effective approach that utilizes the wind from different directions by altering the float altitude was proposed. A program was developed to simulate the flight performance and the station-keeping endurance of the stratospheric super-pressure balloon in the real wind field. The influences of the initial Helium volume ratio and the float altitude on the traveled horizontal distance of the balloon were analyzed. The results indicate that the altitude of the balloon fluctuates with the change of the volume of the balloon during the day-night cycle, providing the possibility to catch the wind from different directions. By choosing the appropriate Helium volume ratio and float altitude, the traveled horizontal distance of the balloon can be shortened greatly. Our study can provide guidance for investigation on active control algorithm for station-keeping of the balloon that can fix the balloon within the desired district for months and years.",
"corpus_id": 116780205
} | {
"title": "Method for Prediction and Optimization of a Stratospheric Balloon Ascent Trajectory",
"abstract": "DOI: 10.2514/1.39469 In this paper, we propose a methodology for the prediction and optimization of the ascent trajectory of a stratospheric balloon to target a specified three-dimensional area. The methodology relies mainly on the Analysis Code for High-Altitude Balloons, a simulation tool for the prediction of flight trajectory and thermal behavior of high-altitude,zero-pressureballoons,andonastatisticalanalysisforestimatingthetrajectorypredictionerrors.The paperalsodescribesthealgorithmsusedforballoonparameteroptimizationtoobtaina flighttrajectorythatreaches apredefinedtargetareawithoutanyballastdroporgasventingcontrol.Theproposedmethodologywassuccessfully used during the first Dropped Transonic Flight Test of the Flying Test Bed 1 demonstrator accomplished on 24February2007bytheItalianAerospaceResearchCenter.Thereportedpostflightanalysisofallthetestcampaign demonstratesthattheproposedmethodologyfortrajectorypredictionandoptimizationguaranteesverysatisfactory and reliable results for both the selection of the best day to perform such a mission and the definition of the correct balloon parameters to be used for targeting a predefined three-dimensional area.",
"corpus_id": 122996128
} |
{
"title": "Detecting phylodiversity-dependent diversification with a general phylogenetic inference framework",
"abstract": "Diversity-dependent diversification models have been extensively used to study the effect of ecological limits and feedback of community structure on species diversification processes, such as speciation and extinction. Current diversity-dependent diversification models characterise ecological limits by carrying capacities for species richness. Such ecological limits have been justified by niche filling arguments: as species diversity increases, the number of available niches for diversification decreases. However, as species diversify they may diverge from one another phenotypically, which may open new niches for new species. Alternatively, this phenotypic divergence may not affect the species diversification process or even inhibit further diversification. Hence, it seems natural to explore the consequences of phylogenetic diversity-dependent (or phylodiversity-dependent) diversification. Current likelihood methods for estimating diversity-dependent diversification parameters cannot be used for this, as phylodiversity is continuously changing as time progresses and species form and become extinct. Here, we present a new method based on Monte Carlo Expectation-Maximization (MCEM), designed to perform statistical inference on a general class of species diversification models and implemented in the R package emphasis. We use the method to fit phylodiversity-dependent diversification models to 14 phylogenies, and compare the results to the fit of a richness-dependent diversification model. We find that in a number of phylogenies, phylogenetic divergence indeed spurs speciation even though species richness reduces it. Not only do we thus shine a new light on diversity-dependent diversification, we also argue that our inference framework can handle a large class of diversification models for which currently no inference method exists.",
"corpus_id": 235736231
} | {
"title": "Diversity begets diversity in mammal species and human cultures",
"abstract": "Across the planet the biogeographic distribution of human cultural diversity tends to correlate positively with biodiversity. In this paper we focus on the biogeographic distribution of mammal species and human cultural diversity. We show that not only are these forms of diversity similarly distributed in space, but they both scale superlinearly with environmental production. We develop theory that explains that as environmental productivity increases the ecological kinetics of diversity increases faster than expected because more complex environments are also more interactive. Using biogeographic databases of the global distributions of mammal species and human cultures we test a series of hypotheses derived from this theory and find support for each. For both mammals and cultures, we show that (1) both forms of diversity increase exponentially with ecological kinetics; (2) the kinetics of diversity is faster than the kinetics of productivity; (3) diversity scales superlinearly with environmental productivity; and (4) the kinetics of diversity is faster in increasingly productive environments. This biogeographic convergence is particularly striking because while the dynamics of biological and cultural evolution may be similar in principle the underlying mechanisms and time scales are very different. However, a common currency underlying all forms of diversity is ecological kinetics; the temperature-dependent fluxes of energy and biotic interactions that sustain all forms of life at all levels of organization. Diversity begets diversity in mammal species and human cultures because ecological kinetics drives superlinear scaling with environmental productivity.",
"corpus_id": 226390257
} | {
"title": "The Multi-species Coalescent Model and Species Tree Inference",
"abstract": "The multispecies coalescent (MSC) is an extension of the single-population coalescent model of population genetics to the case of multiple species. The MSC naturally accommodates speciation events (with subsequent genetic isolation between species) and the coalescent process within each species. It provides a framework for analysis of multilocus genomic sequence data from multiple species in a number of inference problems including species tree estimation, accounting for ancestral polymorphism and deep coalescence. Within this framework, the genealogical fluctuations across genes or genomic regions (and the gene tree/species tree conflicts that may result) are not seen as a problem but rather as a source of information for estimating important parameters such as species divergence times, ancestral population sizes, and the timings, directions, and intensities of cross-species introgression or hybridisation events. This chapter outlines the basic theory of the MSC and its important applications in analysis of genomic sequence data, describing the most widely-used full-likelihood and heuristic methods of species tree estimation. We discuss several active areas of research in which we predict future developments will occur, including inference of introgression events on a species phylogeny.",
"corpus_id": 209379918
} |
{
"title": "Homogenate Extraction of Crocins from Saffron Optimized by Response Surface Methodology",
"abstract": "Saffron, which has many kinds of biological activities, has been widely used in medicine, cosmetics, food, and other fields of health promotion industries. Crocins are the main component of saffron (Crocus sativus L.). At present, most of the extraction methods for crocins require long time or special instruments to complete the process and some of them are not suitable for industrial production at present. In this article, homogenate extraction technology which is a convenient and efficient method was developed for crocins extraction from saffron. Firstly, the influences of extraction voltage, extraction time, ethanol concentration, and temperature on crocins yield were studied by single factor experiments; and then response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize levels of four variables based on the result of single factor experiments. Results showed that the optimum extraction process conditions for crocins were as follows: extraction voltage, 110 V; ethanol concentration, 70%; extraction temperature, 57°C; and extraction time, 40 s. Based on these conditions, the extraction yield of crocins can reach 22.76% which is higher than ultrasonic extraction method. Therefore, homogenate extraction is an effective way to extract crocins from saffron with higher extraction yield and shorter extraction time.",
"corpus_id": 73635077
} | {
"title": "Response surface optimization of Safranal and Crocin extraction from Crocus sativus L. via supercritical fluid technology",
"abstract": "Abstract Safranal (2,3-Dihydro-2,2,6-trimethylbenzaldehyde) and Crocin (Crocetin digentoboisyl ester) were experimentally extracted from saffron (Crocus sativus L.) via supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) and modified SC-CO2 with methanol as entrainer, respectively. The extracted samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to evaluate the effects of four independent variables (temperature, pressure, SC-CO2 flow rate, and dynamic extraction time) on the recovery of Safranal and Crocin. The recovery results indicated that the data adequately fitted into a second-order polynomial model. The optimal values of variables for Safranal extraction were determined by RSM to be 92 °C, 21.3 MPa, 0.9 cm3 min−1 and 122.0 min for the optimum predicted recovery of 91.76 w/w%. Optimum Recovery of Crocin (32.67 w/w%) was obtained at 44 °C, 19.3 MPa, 1.0 cm3 min−1 and 110.0 min. The accuracy of the modeling optimal Safranal and Crocin recovery was validated with triplicate experiments giving the average extraction recovery of 90.03 and 33.05 respectively.",
"corpus_id": 93154096
} | {
"title": "Detection of saffron adulteration with gardenia extracts through the determination of geniposide by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry",
"abstract": "Abstract A new and sophisticated saffron adulteration method with gardenia was recently discovered in the European saffron market. In this work, an analytical methodology using liquid chromatography-(quadrupole-time of flight)-mass spectrometry has been developed for the detection of the adulteration of saffron samples with gardenia through the determination of geniposide as an adulteration marker. A fused-core C18 column was employed using an isocratic elution with water:acetonitrile (85:15 v/v) containing 0.1% formic acid. After optimization of the mass spectrometry conditions, the analytical characteristics related to the determination of geniposide in negative electrospray ionization mode were evaluated. Then, it was possible to detect up to 10 ng/mL geniposide after a dilution step of 50-fold of the saffron extract (LOD of 41.7 μg of geniposide per gram of sample analysed (i.e up to 0.004%)). The developed LC–MS methodology was applied to the analysis of different authentic and suspicious saffron samples.",
"corpus_id": 99061063
} |
{
"title": "Haitian/Vilokan Idealism, Lakouism, and the Vodou Ethic and the Spirit of Communism",
"abstract": "The demystification of the Vodou religion or ontology as practiced in Haiti, epistemologically reveals a form of transcendental idealism and realism, Haitian/Vilokan Idealism, which produces a hermeneutical phenomenology, materialism, and an antidialectical process to history enframed by a reciprocal justice as its normative ethics. This work posits and concludes, that Haitian ontology, Vodou/Vilokan, gave rise to its epistemology, Haitian/Vilokan Idealism, which subsequently gave rise to the Vodou Ethic and the spirit of communism and the lakou system as its form of social and system integration, respectively.",
"corpus_id": 171745703
} | {
"title": "The Spirits and the Law: Vodou and Power in Haiti",
"abstract": "The Spirits and the Law: Vodou and Power in Haiti, by Kate Ramsey. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2011. ISBN-13: 978-0226703794-4. 425 pp. $45.00 hardcover.The relationship between religion and law has been a source of growing interest and continuous debate among scholars, professionals, and the general public. Arguably, religion has played a significant role in the establishment of postcolonial Haiti and in the formation of Haitian cultural identity; its impact on the public life and Haitian politics is of paramount importance. In the same line of thought, Haitian laws have substantially influenced the religious life and practices of the Haitian people. This fascinating and intelligent study, The Spirits and the Law, focuses on the intersection of these two dynamic aspects in Haiti's cultural and intellectual tradition and history. The book seeks to show precisely how these important factors have defined and transformed Haiti's civil society and the legal system. Kate Ramsey investigates the role the Haitian Penal Code played in the production of false representations of Vodou and the ways that these misrepresentations further influenced Haitian elites to criminalize popular ritual practices in Haiti.Both Haitians and foreigners have often wrongly depicted Haiti's popular religion, Vodou, as the source of Haiti's troubles-from political disturbances to natural disasters. The Spirits and the Law is an inquiry into the institutional and social histories of the legal prohibition of certain popular ritual practices (i.e., spells, superstitious practices) in Haiti. It studies \"the long history of Euro-American denigration of African and African diasporic spiritual and healing practices\" (1) and \"the extent to which different Haitian governments relied upon the penal prohibition of le vaudoux to repudiate foreign charges that 'civilization' was regressing in independent Haiti\" (2). Ramsey pays particular attention to the power of the French-dominated Roman Catholic Church hierarchy in Haiti after its 1860 Concordat. This focus makes perfect sense since the Church has been one of the most active forces and institutions in fostering religious violence and in suppressing these popular religious performances and beliefs in the country. This ambitious book is divided into four chapters followed by an epilogue; its detailed conclusion delineates the genealogy of the word \"Vodou\" and the cultural understanding of the term Iwa (spirit/spirits).Chapter one examines the official criminalization of African-based rituals and the magico-religious practices in colonial Saint-Domingue four decades prior (roughly 1685) to the period surrounding the Haitian Revolution. It also discusses the scholarship surrounding the role Vodou played in overthrowing slavery and French colonialism. Additionally, Ramsey examines the post-colonial Haitian state's legal policies toward the popular religious practice and organization during the administration of Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, and Henry Christophe. The importance of this chapter is that it traces the legislative history of those laws, the connection within their larger social, cultural, and political contexts, their evolution within the cultural milieu in which they emerged, and finally their effects on the Haitian experience.Chapter two moves the conversation forward by studying exactly \"the legal categorization and prohibition of Vodou as a form of sortilege (spell) in the 1835 and 1864 Haitian penal codes\" (14). Ramsey argues that the legal discourse or the juridical sense of the concept of \"civilization\" in modernity-conveying the idea of a progressive historical process and equally the end result of that process-had shaped considerably the judicial repression of Vodou or vaudoux, a constituted term in the period that encompassed \"the whole of Haitian sorcery\" (56). Furthermore, sh articulates that \"the disparity between how this word was constructed through penal and ecclesiastical laws and how it was popularly understood thus became. …",
"corpus_id": 141018534
} | {
"title": "Markets without Symbolic Limits*",
"abstract": "Semiotic objections to commodification hold that buying and selling certain goods and services is wrong because of what market exchange communicates or because it violates the meaning of certain goods, services, and relationships. We argue that such objections fail. The meaning of markets and of money is a contingent, socially constructed fact. Cultures often impute meaning to markets in harmful, socially destructive, or costly ways. Rather than semiotic objections giving us reason to judge certain markets as immoral, the usefulness of certain markets gives us reason to judge certain semiotic codes as immoral.",
"corpus_id": 142830957
} |
{
"title": "Family Dynamics in Cross-National Families With Young Children in Singapore",
"abstract": "Transnational marriages between Singaporeans and non-Singaporeans have increased significantly in the 21st century, peaking at 41% among citizen marriages in 2009. About three-quarters of these couples are Singaporean grooms marrying foreign brides originating from lower income countries in Asia. We use a new nationally representative study—Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study (SG LEADS)—to examine gender relations between spouses with young children and their family dynamics. Results show that compared to native-born mothers, foreign-born mothers have a more traditional gender ideology, bear heavier responsibility for housework, and are less likely to take primary responsibility for financial matters in the family. Data also reveal that there are more disagreements about childrearing between spouses and a higher level of family conflicts in these cross-national families. These differences can partly be accounted for by the age gap between spouses, mother’s education, family income, mother’s employment status, and family composition.",
"corpus_id": 256816104
} | {
"title": "The Place of Vietnamese Marriage Migrants in Singapore: social reproduction, social ‘problems’ and social protection",
"abstract": "Abstract While the literature on ‘global care chains’ has focused on the international transfer of paid reproductive labour in the form of domestic service and care work, a parallel trend takes the form of women marriage migrants, who perform unpaid labour to maintain households and reproduce the next generation. Drawing on our work with commercially matched Vietnamese marriage migrants in Singapore, we analyse the existing immigration–citizenship regime to examine how these marriage migrants are positioned within the family and nation-state as dependants of Singaporean men with no rights to work, residency or citizenship of their own. Incipient discussions on marriage migrants in civil society discourse have tended to follow a ‘social problems’ template, requiring legislative support and service provisioning to assist vulnerable women. We argue for the need to adopt an expansive approach to social protection issues, depending not on any one single source—the state, civil society and the family—but on government action to ensure that these complement one another and strengthen safety nets for the marriage migrant.",
"corpus_id": 153978740
} | {
"title": "The development and psychometric testing of East Asian Acculturation Scale among Asian immigrant women in Taiwan",
"abstract": "Objective. This is a report of development and psychometric testing of the East Asian Acculturation Measure-Chinese version (EAAM-C) scale. Design. An instrument validation design with a cross-sectional survey was conducted. The process was carried in two phases. In Phase 1, Barry's East Asian Acculturation Measure was translated and back translated to evaluate its content, face validity, and feasibility validity. In Phase 2, the 16-item EAAM-C was pilot-tested among 485 female immigrants for test-retest reliability, internal consistency, theoretically-supported construct validity and concurrent validity. Results. The pilot work and the survey results indicated the tools possessed adequate content and face validity. The Cronbach's Alphas for the EAAM-C was 0.72, and 0.76–0.79 for its subscales, and the correlation of test-retest reliability (at 3 weeks) was 0.75. After dropping one item, four theoretically-supported factors which explained 61.82% of the variance were abstracted using exploratory factor analysis: assimilation, integration, separation, and marginalization. Based on the underlying four-factor theoretical structures of the EAAM, the confirmatory factor analysis of the EAAM-C was further examined. The analysis revealed that the four-factor model was an acceptable fit for the data which demonstrated adequate finding in its construct validity. These factors were inter-correlated, and showed statistically significant correlation with the Chinese Health Questionnaire, indicating adequate concurrent validity. Conclusions. The scale shows acceptable validity and consistency, and suggests that immigrant acculturation is a complex construct. This quick evaluation instrument can be applied to assess clients’ acculturation and in further developing certain interventions to improve their health.",
"corpus_id": 13130201
} |
{
"title": "Endotipsitis: a rare case of endovascular infection with ESBL Klebsiella pneumoniae",
"abstract": "Endotipsitis is a vegetative endovascular infection of a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). There is currently no uniformly accepted diagnostic criterion, and most cases are diagnosed by clinical diagnosis of recurrent bacteraemia in patients with TIPS and no identifiable source after appropriate investigation. We present a case of 62-year-old man in whom endotipsitis was suspected clinically after emergent TIPS placement complicated by TIPS thrombosis, need for TIPS revision and recurrent bacteraemia. The diagnosis was confirmed using an Indium-111-labelled leucocyte scan (tagged white blood cell scan). This case highlights the potential risks of endotipsitis with TIPS procedures and provides insight into the utilisation of an old diagnostic tool in a new diagnostic role.",
"corpus_id": 216647831
} | {
"title": "Biliary‐Venous Fistula Complicating Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt Presenting With Recurrent Bacteremia, Jaundice, Anemia and Fever",
"abstract": "A 50‐year‐old White man with noncirrhotic portal hypertension presented with bleeding from gastric varices. Bleeding was initially managed with band ligation and subsequent transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). Over the next few months, the patient had recurrent episodes of anemia, jaundice, fever and polymicrobial bacteremia. Computed tomography (CT) of the abdomen and chest, upper and lower endoscopy, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), and echocardiography failed to explain the bacteremia and anemia. Follow‐up CT scan and Doppler sonography 9 months after placement showed TIPS was occluded. Repeat ERCP showed a bile leak with free run‐off of contrast from the left hepatic duct into a vascular structure. The patient's status was upgraded for liver transplantation with Regional Review Board agreement and subsequently received a liver transplant. Gross examination of the native liver demonstrated a fistula between the left bile duct and the middle hepatic vein. Pathologic evaluation confirmed focal necrosis of the left hepatic duct communicating with an occluded TIPS and nodular regenerative hyperplasia consistent with noncirrhotic portal hypertension. Infection is rarely reported in a totally occluded TIPS. Biliary fistulas in patent TIPS have been treated by endoluminal stent graft and endoscopic sphincterotomy with biliary stent placement. Liver transplantation may be the preferred treatment if TIPS becomes infected following its complete occlusion.",
"corpus_id": 27000734
} | {
"title": "Giant choledochal cyst in infancy--A rare entity.",
"abstract": "1. Sanyal AJ, Reddy KR. Vegetative infection of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts. Gastroenterology . 1998;115:110–5. 2. Paterson DL, Doi Y. A step closer to extreme drug resistance (XDR) in gram-negative bacilli. Clin Infect Dis. 2007;45:1179–81. 3. Armstrong PK, MacLeod C. Infection of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt devices: three cases and a review of the literature. Clin Infect Dis. 2003;36:407–12. 4. Mizrahi M, Adar T, Shouval D, Bloom AI, Shibolet O. Endotipsitis-persistent infection of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt: pathogenesis, clinical features and management. Liver Int. 2010;30:175–83. 5. Dobbins BM, Kite P, Catton JA, Wilcox MH, McMahon MJ. In situ endoluminal brushing: a safe technique for the diagnosis of catheter-related bloodstream infection. J Hosp Infect . 2004;58:233–7. 6. DeSimone JA, Beavis KG, Eschelman DJ, Henning KJ. Sustained bacteremia associated with transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). Clin Infect Dis. 2000;30:384–6.",
"corpus_id": 31207023
} |
{
"title": "Estimation and Assessment of the Root Zone Soil Moisture from Near-Surface Measurements over Huai River Basin",
"abstract": "Root zone soil moisture (RZSM) is a vital variable for agricultural production, water resource management and runoff prediction. Satellites provide large-scale and long-term near-surface soil moisture retrievals, which can be used to estimate RZSM through various methods. In this study, we tested the utility of an exponential filter (ExpF) using in situ soil moisture by optimizing the optimal characteristic time length T_opt for different soil depths. Furthermore, the parameter analysis showed that T_opt correlated negatively with precipitation and had no significant correlation with selected soil properties. Two approaches were taken to obtain T_opt: (1) optimization of the Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient (NSE); (2) calculation based on annual average precipitation. The precipitation-based T_pre outperformed the station-specific T_opt and stations-averaged T_opt. To apply the ExpF on grid scale, the precipitation-based T_pre considering spatial variability was adopted in the ExpF to obtain RZSM from a new soil moisture dataset RF_SMAP_L3_P (Random Forest Soil Moisture Active Passive_L3_Passive) continuous in time and space over Huai River Basin. Finally, the performance of RF_SMAP_L3_P RZSM (0–100 cm) was evaluated using in situ measurements and compared with mainstream products, for instance, Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) and Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity Level 4 (SMOS L4) RZSM. The results indicated that RF_SMAP_L3_P RZSM could captured the temporal variation of measured RZSM best with R value of 0.586, followed by SMAP L4, which had the lowest bias value of 0.03, and SMOS L4 significantly underestimated the measured RZSM with bias value of −0.048 in the basin. Higher accuracy of RF_SMAP_L3_P RZSM was found in the flood period compared with the non-flood period, which indicates a better application for ExpF in wetter weather conditions.",
"corpus_id": 255725030
} | {
"title": "Root zone soil moisture estimation with Random Forest",
"abstract": "Abstract Accurate estimates of root zone soil moisture (RZSM) at relevant spatio-temporal scales are essential for many agricultural and hydrological applications. Applications of machine learning (ML) techniques to estimate root zone soil moisture are limited compared to commonly used process-based models based on flow and transport equations in the vadose zone. However, data-driven ML techniques present unique opportunities to develop quantitative models without having assumptions on the processes operating within the system being investigated. In this study, the Random Forest (RF) ensemble learning algorithm, is tested to demonstrate the capabilities and advantages of ML for RZSM estimation. Interpolation and extrapolation of RZSM on a daily timescale was carried out using RF over a small agricultural catchment from 2016 to 2018 using in situ measurements. Results show that RF predictions have slightly higher accuracy for interpolation and similar accuracy for extrapolation in comparison with RZSM simulated from a process-based model combined with data assimilation. RF predictions for extreme wet and dry conditions were, however, less accurate. This was inferred to be due to infrequent sampling of such conditions that led to poor learning in the trained RF model and to incomplete representation of relevant subsurface processes at the study sites in the RF covariates. Since RF does not depend on parameters required to estimate subsurface water flow, it is more advantageous than a process-based model in data-poor regions where soil hydraulic parameters are incomplete or missing, especially when the primary goal is only the estimation of soil moisture states.",
"corpus_id": 230571994
} | {
"title": "Crop production variability in North and South America forced by life-cycles of the El Niño Southern Oscillation",
"abstract": "Abstract In this analysis we show how globally coherent teleconnections from life-cycles of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) lead to correlated crop production anomalies in North and South America. We estimate the magnitude of ENSO-induced Pan-American production anomalies and discuss how increasing crop harvesting frequency may affect Pan-American production variability. We find that ENSO accounts for ∼72%, 30% and 57% of Pan-American maize, soybean and wheat production variability, respectively. ENSO-induced production anomalies are greatest for maize, with median anomalies of ∼5% of Pan-American production. ENSO-induced yield anomalies for maize and soybeans tend to be of the same sign in North America and southeast South America but of an opposite sign in northeast Brazil. Teleconnections for wheat are more complicated because ENSO affects wheat yields via lagged soil moisture teleconnections in the US and an increased probability of disease in South America, but anomalies tend to be of the same sign in North America and southeast South America. After broadly characterizing ENSO-induced production anomalies, we demonstrate that they are not static in time. Increasing crop harvesting frequency has affected the correlated risks posed by ENSO. We use a soil water balance to show that in Brazil changing to a safrinha cropping cycle increases both the mean water stress and the ENSO-induced soil water content anomalies during flowering in both the maize and soybean seasons, which is a result of increasing evaporative demand during times of lower precipitation and moving the flowering seasons into months with strong ENSO teleconnections. Increasing crop harvesting frequency in Brazil has therefore increased ENSO-induced production variability of soybeans and maize.",
"corpus_id": 12624246
} |
{
"title": "Effect of an Educational Program on the Nurses' Performance and Health Outcomes for Patients with Traumatic Head Injury",
"abstract": "Background: Traumatic Head Injury (THI) is a disruption in the normal function of the brain that caused by a blow or jolt to the head. The role of critical care nurses is a vital at the acute care by giving priority of the immediate assessment, stabilization of the airway and circulation and prevention of secondary injury. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an educational program on the nurses' performance and health outcomes for patients with traumatic head injury. Study design: A quasi-experimental design was used. Settings: This study was conducted in the emergency unit and the emergency intensive care unit at Banha University Hospital. Subject: A convenient sample of (50) registered nurses caring for patients with THI and (50) patients with THI were included in the study. Tools: Three tools were used for data collection; I-self-administered questionnaire tool, IIthe nurses’ practice observational checklist and III-patients' health outcomes assessment. Results: All of the nurses had unsatisfactory knowledge and practice regarding caring for patients with THI pre-program implementation which improved immediately post program implementation (30% and 24%), respectively. The mean of the studied patients regarding total trauma scale pre-program implementation was 16.89 10.61 that improved immediately post program implementation 13.24 12.08. Conclusion: There was a highly statistical significant improvement in the level of nurses’ performance and health outcomes for patients with THI after implementation of the educational program. Recommendations: The importance of continuous in-service training programs about THI for refreshing and updating the nurses’ knowledge and practice regarding THI.",
"corpus_id": 245849260
} | {
"title": "Impact of an Educational Program on Nurses' Knowledge and Practice Regarding Care of Traumatic Brain İnjury Patients at Intensive Care Unit at Suez Canal University Hospital",
"abstract": "Background: Aim of this study : This study was aiming to evaluate Impact of an Edu cational Program on Nurses' Knowledge and practice Regarding Care of Tr aumatic brain injury Patients at Intensive Care Uni t at Suez Canal University Hospital. Research design: quasi experimental study design was used. Setting: The study was conducted at intensive care unit at Suez canal university hospital at Ismailia city. Subject: The study involved all available nurses' worked in intensive care unit at Suez canal university hospi tal at Ismailia city about 30 nurse. Tool of data collection: part (1):Structured Interview Questionnaire tool it includes demographic data, part (2) Nurse's Knowledge regarding care of traumatic brain injury patients, part (3) observational checklist about care of traumatic brain injury patients . Results: Total mean knowledge score regarding care of trauma tic brain injury patients were un satisfactory befo r the program implementation and satisfied post progr am implementation. Conclusion: Nurse’s level of knowledge and practice in caring of traumatic brain injury patients was un satisfactory before the program implementation and satisfied post program implementation in all items. Recommendation: The study recommended continuous educational progr ams should be planned on regular basis to nurses' caring of traumatic brain injury patient s for enhancing nurses' knowledge and practice to a chieve high quality of care.",
"corpus_id": 208222723
} | {
"title": "Post-acute care for stroke – a retrospective cohort study in Taiwan",
"abstract": "Background Stroke often causes functional decline in patients. Therefore, after the acute phase, many patients require post-acute care (PAC) to maximize their functional progress, reduce disability, and make it possible for them to return to their home and community. PAC can be provided in different settings. Taiwan’s National Health Insurance (NHI) proposed a PAC pilot program, effective since 2014, for stroke patients that allowed patients with the potential for functional improvement to receive PAC rehabilitation in regional or community hospitals. The purpose of this study was to explore the initial achievements and clinical impact of this program in Taiwan. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study that mainly analyzed basic hospitalization data and scores for function and quality of life, as recorded immediately after admission and before discharge, for stroke patients in the PAC program in a hospital in Taiwan. Results This study collected complete data from a total of 168 patients. After an average of 43.57 days in the program, patients showed significant improvement in the Modified Rankin Scale (MRS), the Barthel Activity Daily Living Index (B-ADL), the Lawton–Brody Instrumental Activity Daily Living Scale (LB-IADL), the Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS), and the Mini Nutrition Assessment (MNA), in mobility, self-care, and usual activity, as well as on anxiety/depression in the EuroQol Five Dimensions Questionnaire (EQ-5D) and in the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). After discharge, 76.8% of the patients could return to their home and community. Conclusion This study showed that the pilot PAC program significantly promoted recovery of function in stroke patients and helped them to return to their home and community. Patients with the potential for functional recovery should consider receiving PAC service in a hospital after discharge from acute stroke care.",
"corpus_id": 22155366
} |
{
"title": "Bacopa monnieri , a Nootropic Drug",
"abstract": "Bacopa monnieri L. Pennell (family: Scrophulariaceae) is a reputed drug of Ayurveda. It is used in traditional medicine to treat various nervous disorders; it is also used as a stomachic, a digestive, rejuvenate, for promoting memory and intellect, for skin disorders, and as an antiepileptic, antipyretic, and analgesic. In a sector study by the Export–Import Bank of India, B. monnieri was placed second in a priority list of the most important medicinal plants, evaluated on the basis of their medicinal importance, commercial value, and potential for further research and development. Based on the traditional claims on B. monnieri as a memory enhancer, many classical and proprietary preparations are now available on the market. In the last two decades, B. monnieri has been studied extensively for its chemical constituents, its efficacy has been established in several in vivo and in vitro models, and randomized clinical trials have also been carried out. This article reviews the work carried out on the chemical, pharmacological, clinical, and biotechnological aspects of this plant.",
"corpus_id": 74684765
} | {
"title": "Triterpene saponins from Bacopa monnieri and their antidepressant effects in two mice models.",
"abstract": "Three new triterpene glycosides, bacopasides VI-VIII (1-3), together with three known analogues, bacopaside I (4), bacopaside II (5), and bacopasaponsin C (6), were isolated from the whole plant of Bacopa monnieri. Compounds 4, 5, and 6 showed antidepressant activity when tested on forced swimming and tail suspension in mice, respectively.",
"corpus_id": 42923960
} | {
"title": "Neurobiological basis of depression: an update.",
"abstract": "The past 5 years have seen unprecedented advances in our knowledge about the neurobiology of depression. Significant breakthroughs have been made in genomics, imaging, and the identification of key neural systems involved in cognition, emotion, and behavior. In addition, novel targets have been identified for the development of new pharmacological and behavioral treatments. Genetic variations associated with most mental disorders are being identified, and reliable tests for early detection of risk and disease are now on the horizon. New neurobiological concepts have emerged, as they relate to these advances in mental health research such as the serotonin transporter receptor, a genetic variant of which doubles the risk of depression. Brain neurochemicals, including neurotropic factors (implicated in several mental disorders), and anatomical studies involving imaging of the amygdala and the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex are now at the forefront. Several brain neurotransmitters systems: glutamate, gamma -aminobutyric acid, serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine have been implicated in depression and mania. These transmitter systems, as well as other neurochemical systems such as membrane-bound signal transduction systems and intracellular signaling systems that modulate gene transcription and protein synthesis, play an important role in the etiology of depression. This new knowledge is expected to provide important clues for the development of selective pharmacological interventions. Neuroimaging studies of depressed patients have shown several abnormalities of regional cerebral blood flow and glucose metabolism--a surrogate of neuronal function--in various brain regions, including the limbic cortex, the prefrontal cortex, the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the anterior cingulate cortex. At this time, a considerable amount of new information is converging--derived from animal models of mood disorders, genetics, basic behavioral research, and neuroscience. It is inevitable that the next step in this progression will be the integration of these basic advances in clinical management and the application of this new information in the context of the depressed patient.",
"corpus_id": 1793162
} |
{
"title": "Data-driven discovery of governing equations for fluid dynamics based on molecular simulation",
"abstract": "The discovery of governing equations from data is revolutionizing the development of some research fields, where the scientific data are abundant but the well-characterized quantitative descriptions are probably scarce. In this work, we propose to combine the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method, which is a popular molecular simulation tool for gas flows, and machine learning to discover the governing equations for fluid dynamics. The DSMC method does not assume any macroscopic governing equations a priori but just relies on the model of molecular interactions at the microscopic level. The data generated by DSMC are utilized to derive the underlying governing equations using a sparse regression method proposed recently. We demonstrate that this strategy is capable of deriving a variety of equations in fluid dynamics, such as the momentum equation, diffusion equation, Fokker–Planck equation and vorticity transport equation. The data-driven discovery not only provides the right forms of the governing equations, but also determines accurate values of the transport coefficients such as viscosity and diffusivity. This work proves that data-driven discovery combined with molecular simulations is a promising and alternative method to derive governing equations in fluid dynamics, and it is expected to pave a new way to establish the governing equations of non-equilibrium flows and complex fluids.",
"corpus_id": 216253839
} | {
"title": "Langevin equation elucidates the mechanism of the Rayleigh-Bénard instability by coupling molecular motions and macroscopic fluctuations.",
"abstract": "It is well known that Brownian motion can be described using Langevin equation. In this paper we extend the application of the Langevin equation to the Rayleigh-Bénard (RB) flow, assuming that each molecule in the system is a Brownian particle colliding with its surrounding molecules. The phenomenon of thermal instability, changing from a conductive to a convective state, is well reproduced by Langevin dynamics simulations. The roles of the drag force and the random force terms in the Langevin equation in triggering thermal instability are elucidated via numerical tests. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the strength of the fluctuation correlations increases as the Rayleigh number approaches the critical value, and the characteristics of the fluctuation correlations below the onset of instability foreshadow the form of the convective patterns emerging above the critical point. The Langevin equation, together with the form of the fluctuation correlations, sheds new light on the mechanism of the RB instability.",
"corpus_id": 8966641
} | {
"title": "Deep Hidden Physics Models: Deep Learning of Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations",
"abstract": "A long-standing problem at the interface of artificial intelligence and applied mathematics is to devise an algorithm capable of achieving human level or even superhuman proficiency in transforming observed data into predictive mathematical models of the physical world. In the current era of abundance of data and advanced machine learning capabilities, the natural question arises: How can we automatically uncover the underlying laws of physics from high-dimensional data generated from experiments? In this work, we put forth a deep learning approach for discovering nonlinear partial differential equations from scattered and potentially noisy observations in space and time. Specifically, we approximate the unknown solution as well as the nonlinear dynamics by two deep neural networks. The first network acts as a prior on the unknown solution and essentially enables us to avoid numerical differentiations which are inherently ill-conditioned and unstable. The second network represents the nonlinear dynamics and helps us distill the mechanisms that govern the evolution of a given spatiotemporal data-set. We test the effectiveness of our approach for several benchmark problems spanning a number of scientific domains and demonstrate how the proposed framework can help us accurately learn the underlying dynamics and forecast future states of the system. In particular, we study the Burgers', Korteweg-de Vries (KdV), Kuramoto-Sivashinsky, nonlinear Schr\\\"{o}dinger, and Navier-Stokes equations.",
"corpus_id": 523487
} |
{
"title": "Management of Iatrogenic Aortic Dissections During Percutaneous Right Coronary Artery Interventions",
"abstract": "Iatrogenic acute aortic dissections during percutaneous coronary interventions are an extremely rare but potentially life-threatening complication, occurring in less than 0.02% of transcatheter procedures. We report three patients with different characteristics suffering from iatrogenic aortic dissection during percutaneous coronary intervention successfully treated with an emergency open-heart surgery. A conservative strategy should be pursuit only in small, localized lesions.",
"corpus_id": 251622712
} | {
"title": "Favorable outcome of mechanical support for iatrogenic aortic dissection",
"abstract": "A 64-year-old woman with inferior myocardial infarction underwent a coronary intervention, but iatrogenic aortic dissection was detected (Figure 1). Urgent computed tomography confirmed iatrogenic type A dissection from the right coronary sinus to the iliac bifurcation (Figure 2). Emergency surgery was performed via sternotomy and peripheral (common femoral artery and vein) institution of cardiopulmonary bypass with Maquet (Maquet, Rastatt, Germany) arterial and venous cannulae. The ascending aorta and right coronary sinus were replaced with a 28-mm Dacron prosthesis (Terumo, UK), and singlevessel coronary bypass grafting was performed. Transesophageal echocardiography showed low ventricular contractility and moderate aortic insufficiency. On failure to wean the patient from cardiopulmonary bypass despite optimal medical support, we decided to start peripheral venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. After 4 days, we were able to wean the patient from the machine. Computed tomography one year later showed persistence of the dissection (Figure 3) but no target organ damage. Figure 1. (a) Coronary angiography showing right coronary artery lesions (arrows), (b) treated by balloon angioplasty and stents. (c, d, e) Evidence of aortic dissection at the end of the procedure.",
"corpus_id": 53751539
} | {
"title": "Conservative treatment of iatrogenic left main coronary artery dissection: report of two cases.",
"abstract": "Revascularization treatment is mostly recommended for iatrogenic left main coronary artery dissection because of potential for catastrophic sequel, even in case of initial TIMI 3 flow and hemodynamic stability. However, conservative treatment seems to be feasible in asymptomatic and hemodinamically stable patient with low-grade dissection. We report two cases of iatrogenic left main coronary dissection managed conservatively.",
"corpus_id": 9682750
} |
{
"title": "Endorsement of a single-item measure of sleep disturbance during pregnancy and risk for postpartum depression: a retrospective cohort study",
"abstract": "Poor prenatal sleep quality is associated with increased risk for depressive symptoms but may go undetected in brief, busy prenatal care visits. Among non-depressed pregnant participants, we evaluated whether 1) the endorsement of sleep disturbance on a depression questionnaire predicted postpartum depressive symptoms, 2) the strength of these associations was higher than other somatic symptoms of pregnancy and depression (i.e., fatigue, appetite disturbance), and 3) the endorsement of prenatal sleep disturbance varied by participant characteristics. In this retrospective cohort study, participants had a live birth and completed Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) during pregnancy and within 8 weeks postpartum between 2012 and 2017. Participants who were non-depressed during pregnancy (PHQ-9 < 10) were included ( n = 3619). We operationalized sleep disturbance, fatigue, and appetite disturbance as endorsement of item 3, 4, and 5 on the PHQ-9, respectively, and postpartum depressive symptoms as PHQ-9 total score ≥ 10. Participant characteristic variables included age, race, ethnicity, parity, gestational age at delivery, and preterm birth. Prenatal sleep disturbance was associated with higher odds of postpartum depressive symptoms (aORs 1.9, 95% CI 1.2–3.1 for first trimester; 3.7, 95% CI 1.5–11.5 for second trimester; 3.4, 95% CI 1.9–6.8 for third trimester). Fatigue and appetite disturbance in the first and third trimesters were associated with higher odds of postpartum depressive symptoms. Sleep disturbance varied by race during the first and second trimesters ( p < 0.05) and was highest among Black or African American participants (61.8–65.1%). A routinely administered single-item measure of sleep disturbance could identify otherwise lower-risk pregnant individuals who may benefit from depression prevention efforts.",
"corpus_id": 255748229
} | {
"title": "Managing Pregnancy and Nursing Affecting African American Women with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Clinical Outcomes and Parenthood",
"abstract": "Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a term for two autoimmune diseases encompassing Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) which are lifelong diseases affecting more than 3 million adults (1.3%) in the United States. IBD is characterized by chronic inflammation of the whole digestive system which results in damage to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. IBD often emerges during adolescence and young adulthood. Maternal morbidity includes physical and psychological conditions that result from or are aggravated by pregnancy and have an adverse effect on a woman’s health, the baby’s health or both. Some women have health challenges that arise before or during pregnancy that could lead to complications. It is recommended for women to receive health care counseling before and during pregnancy. Compared to other developed countries, the United States has the highest rate of women dying of pregnancy related complications. During the past 25 years maternal mortality has been getting worse. African American women (AAW) with and/or without IBD are dying at significantly higher rates than other groups. This is linked to several factors, i.e., systemic, institutionalized, and structural racism in health-care delivery and subsequent toxic stress from people’s lived experiences of racism, limited knowledge about healthcare system function, lack of access to healthcare, (inclusiveness and insurance policies) all of which negatively impact these patients. African Americans (AAs) are also up to three times as likely to experience severe maternal morbidity: unexpected outcomes of labor and delivery, deficient or lacking prenatal care and social determinants of health like lack of transportation, adequate employment, limited literacy, and limited healthcare access contribute to poor health outcomes. Studies on IBD patients indicate Medicaid expansion is associated with reduced rates of maternal morbidity, particularly for African American Women (AAW) and increased access to preconception and prenatal services that make pregnancy and childbirth safer for parent and baby. Herein we examine the physiological changes of pregnancy in patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease and their relationship perinatal outcomes and parenthood.",
"corpus_id": 259582169
} | {
"title": "The impact of El Niño southern oscillation and Indian Ocean Dipole on the burned area in Indonesia",
"abstract": "Land and forest fire have been identified as one of the main problems contributing to forest biodiversity and Global Warming and well known as the phenomenon affected by El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD). The total burned area becomes higher when either El Niño or positive IOD occur. This research aims to analyze and quantify the direct correlation of the Niño 3.4 and difference between west and east pole of IOD sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) to the burned area in Indonesia and the impact of ENSO and IOD of each category on the burned area. The correlation between spatial location with Niño 3.4 and difference IOD SST's will be analyzed using a heterogeneous correlation map. Meanwhile, the quantitative impact will be calculated based on the singular value decomposition analysis result to each year categories. The most significant impact of El Niño has occurred on Merauke following Kalimantan shows the strongest correlation between burned area and Niño 3.4 SST. However, the significant increase of burned area only occurred during very strong El Niño. Both areas can have double amount of burned area during peak fire in very strong El Niño. Moderate El Niño have the most diverse impact with the stronger one occurs on Kalimantan and Merauke. Weak El Niño can have a significant impact if occurred simultaneously with positive IOD. Even more, it can surpass the effect of a single Moderate El Niño. Meanwhile, the strongest IOD impact happened in the southern part of Sumatra. Correlation map analysis between ENSO and IOD’s sea surface temperature with burned area. Behaviour analysis of burned area in Indonesia in response to ENSO and IOD. Identify and quantify the impact of ENSO-IOD’s teleconnection in Indonesia. Correlation map analysis between ENSO and IOD’s sea surface temperature with burned area. Behaviour analysis of burned area in Indonesia in response to ENSO and IOD. Identify and quantify the impact of ENSO-IOD’s teleconnection in Indonesia.",
"corpus_id": 248587646
} |
{
"title": "An exploratory analysis of continuing professional development perspectives of Turkish architects according to career stages",
"abstract": "ABSTRACT Continuing professional development (CPD) can be more successful if professional learning is matched with current knowledge, goals and career stages of architects. This is because a distinct set of motivations, drivers and barriers come into play in each career stage. CPD for architects in Turkey is not structured to address the diverse needs of professionals throughout their career life cycle. This study reports the findings of a descriptive–exploratory research which aimed to explore the CPD-related perceptions of the architects who are in their early, mid- and late-career stages. Data from an opinion survey of 120 architects, following a convenience sampling process, were analyzed both statistically and qualitatively. Outputs of the analyses of variance, multiple regression analyses and content analyses of qualitative data suggest that there are differences between the CPD perceptions and orientations of early, mid- and late-career architects according to their demographic characteristics, such as age, gender, marital status and job experience. Findings appear consistent with the socioemotional selectivity theory of psychology, which asserts that individuals tend to prioritize short-term over long-term goals; and pursue less new information when they become aware of their limited time perspective. Findings support the role of contextual factors on learning, such as the traditional role of project delivery processes, informal relationships with colleagues and the problem-based nature of professional learning in architecture. Establishing a stronger link between individual and organizational motivations for CPD is likely to result in more successful policies. Designers of CPD training programs can benefit from the outputs of this research.",
"corpus_id": 111850845
} | {
"title": "Differentiating CPE from Training: Reconsidering Terms, Boundaries, and Economic Factors",
"abstract": "The differences between continuing professional education (CPE) and training are examined by presenting a systems view of the factors that make CPE different from training. The authors analyze these differences by discussing scope, stakeholders, control, and occupational mobility. These factors provide a framework for examining differences between CPE and training from an economic perspective. The authors review economic rationales for CPE and discuss how existing training evaluation concepts, such as cost-benefit analysis and return on investment may be adapted to the specific characteristics of CPE. They end by reflecting on the possibilities that the proposed approach offers and list a number of recommendations for further research.",
"corpus_id": 145453603
} | {
"title": "Prevalence and risk factors for vitamin D insufficiency among children with epilepsy.",
"abstract": "This cross-sectional study was designed to determine the prevalence of, and risk factors for, vitamin D insufficiency among children treated for epilepsy in a general pediatric neurology clinic. Included were 78 children with epilepsy, aged 3-17 years, treated by the authors between September 2008 and March 2009. Vitamin D levels and relevant risk factors were evaluated using multiple logistic regression. Of the 78 children, 41% were male and 81% were of European origin; the mean age was 11.64 + or - 4.37 years. 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels of <20 ng/mL were observed in 25% of the children and levels considered to be normal (>32 ng/mL) were observed in only 25%. Girls and children with elevated body mass index were at increased risk for low 25-hydroxyvitamin D. The odds ratio for low 25-hydroxyvitamin D was 4.07 for girls versus boys, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.18-13.97; for each 1-unit increase in body mass index, the odds ratio was 1.179, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.047-1.329. Use of newer antiepileptic drugs was not associated with altered risk, compared with older enzyme-inducing drugs. Vitamin D insufficiency was highly prevalent in this unselected population of children with epilepsy. Female sex and increased body mass index were significant risk factors for low vitamin D levels, but antiepileptic drug regimen was not.",
"corpus_id": 24787904
} |
{
"title": "A mixed method study exploring patient satisfaction and feasibility of two exercise programmes in systemic sclerosis-associated microstomia",
"abstract": "Abstract Objective SSc often leads to fibrotic cutaneous involvement of the face and reduced oral aperture, with impaired food intake and oral hygiene. Oral exercises can increase oral aperture but are often hampered by low adherence rates. The aim of this mixed method study was to explore the feasibility, patient satisfaction and effectiveness of two exercise programmes in SSc-associated microstomia. Methods Adult patients suffering from SSc and microstomia (maximal oral aperture <40 mm) were randomized to two groups. Group A exercised with a jaw motion device (Therabite), whereas group B performed mouth-stretching exercises. Patients were expected to exercise for 10 min, three times per day for 3 months. Patients were evaluated at baseline, 3 months (period without intervention), 6 months (after 3 months of intervention) and 9 months (post-intervention). At month 6, semi-structured one‐to‐one interviews were conducted. Results We included six women and three men, median age 60 years and median disease duration 8 years. At 6 months, all patients in group A (n = 4) and four in group B (n = 5) improved, with a median of 9 and 7 mm, respectively. The adherence ranged between 63.7 and 98.9% in group A and between 48.5 and 97.4% in group B. The interview revealed three themes: drivers, challenges and perceived improvement. Conclusion Both interventions improved maximal oral aperture. The adherence to therapy was high, but none of the patients considered it feasible to continue practising three times per day. Future studies are needed in order to define feasible long-term exercise programmes.",
"corpus_id": 233849877
} | {
"title": "Effect of orofacial exercises on oral aperture in adults with systemic sclerosis",
"abstract": "Purpose: To examine the effect of a home orofacial exercise program on increasing oral aperture among adults with systemic sclerosis (SSc). Method: Forty-eight adults with SSc were assigned randomly to the multifaceted oral-health intervention or usual dental care control group. Participants with an oral aperture of <40 mm in the intervention group received an orofacial exercise program, which included daily manual mouth-stretching and oral-augmentation exercises twice a day with a total of 6 minutes for 6 months. The outcome measure was oral aperture which was measured at baseline, 3-months, and 6-months intervals. Results: A significantly larger increase in oral aperture for participants received the orofacial exercise program was found when compared to those in the usual care at 3 months (P = 0.01), but not at 6-months evaluation. Participants’ adherence rate to the exercise program was low (48.9%). Conclusions: The orofacial exercise program intervention for adults with SSc and microstomia did not show significant improvement at 6 months. In addition to the low exercise adherence rate, insufficient frequencies, repetitions, and durations of the orofacial exercises may contribute to these results. Implications for Rehabilitation Microstomia in adults with systemic sclerosis (SSc) has profound impacts on their quality of life. Orofacial exercise programs have the potential to improve the size of oral aperture. Brief daily orofacial home exercises for 6 months did not result in a significant increase in the size of oral aperture.",
"corpus_id": 37303716
} | {
"title": "Diagnosis, evaluation, and management of ascites and hepatorenal syndrome.",
"abstract": "This is a comprehensive guidance on the diagnosis, evaluation, and management of ascites and hepatorenal syndrome in patients with chronic liver disease from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). It replaces the prior AASLD guideline on the same topic published in 2012 (1).",
"corpus_id": 233721521
} |
{
"title": "An empirical examination of repeated auctions for biodiversity conservation contracts",
"abstract": "The European Union’s Council Regulation on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development has introduced auctioning as a new instrument for granting agri-environmental payments and awarding conservation contracts for the recent multi-annual budgetary plan. This paper therefore deals with the conception and results of two case study auctions for conservation contracts. Results of two field experiments show much differentiated bid prices in the model-region and budgetary cost-effectiveness gains of up to 21% in the first auction and up to 36% in the repeated auction. Besides these promising results, some critical aspects as well as lessons to be learned will also be discussed in this paper to improve the design and performance of upcoming conservation auctions.",
"corpus_id": 152502951
} | {
"title": "Which instruments to preserve forest biodiversity",
"abstract": "In general, neither the social norms nor market dynamics stimulate spontaneously activities and practices conducive to biodiversity. The nature of public good of biodiversity leads to its rapid erosion. Even if it can respond positively to social expectations and improve welfare in the long term2, taking into account biodiversity often leads to changes in the way we produce or how to exercise its property right. The consideration of biodiversity may determine production losses and income decreases.[...]",
"corpus_id": 150710691
} | {
"title": "How Did Air Quality Standards Affect Employment at US Power Plants? The Importance of Timing, Geography, and Stringency",
"abstract": "We examine fossil-fuel power plant employment impacts of new nitrogen oxides (NOx) provisions under Title I of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAAs). These provisions required installation of reasonably available control technology (RACT) for NOx emissions for major stationary sources in the Ozone Transport Region and in more stringently classified ozone nonattainment areas. Standard approaches using nonattainment designation to identify regulatory impacts abstract from important implementation aspects such as when regulatory changes occur, where regulations are in effect, and which specific regulations apply. Omitting these factors can introduce bias by contaminating the control group, leading to underestimation of historical employment impacts and overestimation of projected impacts from tightening regulations. Our results indicate that the new NOx RACT requirements negatively impacted power plant employment. We find no significant impacts on generation, suggesting that installation of pollution controls may have contributed to labor-saving technical change at affected units.",
"corpus_id": 145821396
} |
{
"title": "Impact of calcified nodule on target lesion failure after stent implantation in hemodialysis patients",
"abstract": "Little is known about intravascular imaging predictors of cardiac events after drug‐eluting stent (DES) implantation in hemodialysis (HD) patients. We aimed to reveal the association between calcified nodules (CN) and target lesion failure (TLF) in HD patients after DES implantation.",
"corpus_id": 257153808
} | {
"title": "Cause of Stent Failure in Patients on Hemodialysis",
"abstract": "Cardiovascular disease is the dominant cause of death in patients on maintenance hemodialysis, with reports of 10 to 20 times higher than in the general population.1 The association between chronic kidney disease and higher cardiovascular event rates following coronary intervention has been well documented.2 Several studies have established that worse clinical outcomes following coronary revascularization track with the severity of renal dysfunction, with subjects on maintenance hemodialysis showing the worst clinical outcomes.3 Patients on hemodialysis tend to have greater calcification of their coronary arteries, which hampers optimization of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) results4,5 and leads to inappropriate vascular healing.6 Both factors contribute to the poorer outcomes after coronary stent implantation in patients on hemodialysis.7,8",
"corpus_id": 221862204
} | {
"title": "First real-time isotopic characterisation of N2O from chemodenitrification",
"abstract": "Abstract Chemodenitrification can be a substantial abiotic source of nitrous oxide (N2O) in soil. The isotopic signature of N2O from this process could support source partitioning, but it is currently unknown in sufficient detail. In this study, we determined the isotopic composition of N2O, produced by the reaction of nitrite (NO2−) with lignin, four lignin derivatives, and three types of soils, online with a quantum cascade laser absorption spectrometer (QCLAS). We present the first dataset of continuous measurements of δ15Nbulk (δ15Nbulk ≡ (δ15Nα + δ15Nβ)/2), δ18O, and site preference (SPN2O, SPN2O ≡ δ15Nα − δ15Nβ) of N2O from chemodenitrification in both chemical assays and soils. Considerable amounts of N2O were produced by chemical reduction of NO2−, indicating that chemodenitrification could dominate N2O emission in NO2−-rich environments. The values of SPN2O varied by more than 20‰ in the reactions of sodium nitrite with organic substances. Contrary to the common assumption that SPN2O values are constant for a distinct N2O source process, our results reveal a considerable shift in SPN2O over time for most experiments. The large SPN2O variability might be explained by the multiple pathways with hyponitrous acid or nitramide as N2O precursors. These findings provide important new information to improve our understanding about the dependency of N2O isotopic signatures on N2O production processes.",
"corpus_id": 203946788
} |
{
"title": "A Digital Twin for Decision Making on Livestock Feeding",
"abstract": "Looking for an accurate and cost-effective solution to measure feed inventories, forecast the feed demand and allow feed suppliers to optimize inventories, production batches, and delivery routes.",
"corpus_id": 245610373
} | {
"title": "Electric vehicle routing with flexible time windows: a column generation solution approach",
"abstract": "ABSTRACT In this paper, we introduce the Electric Vehicle Routing Problem with Flexible Time Windows (EVRPFTW) in which vehicles are allowed to serve customers before and after the earliest and latest time window bounds, respectively. The objective of this problem is to assign electric vehicles to feasible routes and make schedules with minimum total cost that includes the traveling costs, the costs of using electric vehicles and the penalty costs incurred for earliness and lateness. The proposed mathematical model is solved by a column generation procedure. To generate an integer solution, we solve an integer programming problem using the routes constructed by the column generation algorithm. We further develop a linear programming model to compute the optimal times to start service at each customer for the selected routes. A number of well-known benchmark instances is solved by our solution procedure to evaluate the operational gains obtained by employing flexible time windows.",
"corpus_id": 212908685
} | {
"title": "A hybrid method of exponential smoothing and recurrent neural networks for time series forecasting",
"abstract": "Abstract This paper presents the winning submission of the M4 forecasting competition. The submission utilizes a dynamic computational graph neural network system that enables a standard exponential smoothing model to be mixed with advanced long short term memory networks into a common framework. The result is a hybrid and hierarchical forecasting method.",
"corpus_id": 200081236
} |
{
"title": "Cut Query Algorithms with Star Contraction",
"abstract": "We study the complexity of determining the edge connectivity of a simple graph with cut queries. We show that (i) there is a bounded-error randomized algorithm that computes edge connectivity with $O(n)$ cut queries, and (ii) there is a bounded-error quantum algorithm that computes edge connectivity with $\\tilde{O}(\\sqrt{}$n) cut queries. To prove these results we introduce a new technique, called star contraction, to randomly contract edges of a graph while preserving non-trivial minimum cuts. In star contraction vertices randomly contract an edge incident on a small set of randomly chosen “center” vertices. In contrast to the related 2-out contraction technique of Ghaffari, Nowicki, and Thorup [SODA’20], star contraction only contracts vertex-disjoint star subgraphs, which allows it to be efficiently implemented via cut queries. The $O(n)$ bound from item (i) was not known even for the simpler problem of connectivity, and it improves the $O(n\\log^{3}n)$ upper bound by Rubinstein, Schramm, and Weinberg [ITCS’18]. The bound is tight under the reasonable conjecture that the randomized communication complexity of connectivity is $\\Omega(n\\log n)$, an open question since the seminal work of Babai, Frankl, and Simon [FOCS’86]. The bound also excludes using edge connectivity on simple graphs to prove a superlinear randomized query lower bound for minimizing a symmetric submodular function. The quantum algorithm from item (ii) gives a nearlyquadratic separation with the randomized complexity, and addresses an open question of Lee, Santha, and Zhang [SODA’21]. The algorithm can alternatively be viewed as computing the edge connectivity of a simple graph with $\\tilde{O}(\\sqrt{}$n) matrix-vector multiplication queries to its adjacency matrix. Finally, we demonstrate the use of star contraction outside of the cut query setting by designing a one-pass semi-streaming algorithm for computing edge connectivity in the complete vertex arrival setting. This contrasts with the edge arrival setting where two passes are required.",
"corpus_id": 246015815
} | {
"title": "A Note on Isolating Cut Lemma for Submodular Function Minimization",
"abstract": "It has been observed independently by many researchers that the isolating cut lemma of Li and Panigrahi [FOCS 2020] can be easily extended to obtain new algorithms for finding the non-trivial minimizer of a symmetric submodular function and solving the hypergraph minimum cut problem. This note contains these observations.",
"corpus_id": 232417209
} | {
"title": "Minimum cost flows, MDPs, and ℓ1-regression in nearly linear time for dense instances",
"abstract": "In this paper we provide new randomized algorithms with improved runtimes for solving linear programs with two-sided constraints. In the special case of the minimum cost flow problem on n-vertex m-edge graphs with integer polynomially-bounded costs and capacities we obtain a randomized method which solves the problem in Õ(m + n1.5) time. This improves upon the previous best runtime of Õ(m √n) [Lee-Sidford’14] and, in the special case of unit-capacity maximum flow, improves upon the previous best runtimes of m4/3 + o(1) [Liu-Sidford’20, Kathuria’20] and Õ(m √n) [Lee-Sidford’14] for sufficiently dense graphs. In the case of ℓ1-regression in a matrix with n-columns and m-rows we obtain a randomized method which computes an є-approximate solution in Õ(mn + n2.5) time. This yields a randomized method which computes an є-optimal policy of a discounted Markov Decision Process with S states and, A actions per state in time Õ(S2 A + S2.5). These methods improve upon the previous best runtimes of methods which depend polylogarithmically on problem parameters, which were Õ(mn1.5) [Lee-Sidford’15] and Õ(S2.5 A) [Lee-Sidford’14, Sidford-Wang-Wu-Ye’18] respectively. To obtain this result we introduce two new algorithmic tools of possible independent interest. First, we design a new general interior point method for solving linear programs with two sided constraints which combines techniques from [Lee-Song-Zhang’19, Brand et al.’20] to obtain a robust stochastic method with iteration count nearly the square root of the smaller dimension. Second, to implement this method we provide dynamic data structures for efficiently maintaining approximations to variants of Lewis-weights, a fundamental importance measure for matrices which generalize leverage scores and effective resistances.",
"corpus_id": 231602934
} |
{
"title": "Hot compression deformation behavior and constitutive model of 2050 Al-Li alloy",
"abstract": "Isothermal compression experiments of 2050 AL-Li alloy were carried out by Gleeble-3800 thermal-mechanical simulator. Hot compression deformation behavior of the alloy under the conditions of deformation temperature of 300~500 °C and strain rate of 0.01~10 s-1 was studied. The constitutive model of thermal deformation was established. Results indicate that there is an obvious rheological steady state in the isothermal compression process of 2050 aluminum alloy. The microstructure shows that the alloy has recrystallization. 2050 aluminum alloy is a positive strain rate sensitive material. At constant temperature, the steady state flow stress increases with the increase of strain rate. Arrhenius constitutive model can accurately predict the rheological behavior of 2050 aluminum alloy. The average absolute relative error (AARE) of the relative error between the experimental value and the predicted value is 8.59%.",
"corpus_id": 240149876
} | {
"title": "Constitutive behavior and microstructural evolution in hot deformed 2297 Al-Li alloy",
"abstract": "Abstract The microstructural evolution mechanism and constitutive behavior of 2297 Al-Li alloy were studied via thermal compression test with the constant strain rates of 0.001–1 s−1 and the deformation temperatures ranging from 623 to 773 K. To verify the predictable ability of diverse constitutive models under different stress states, the hot compression experiments with stress triaxiality varying from −0.33 to 0.46 were conducted. The microstructures of the deformed specimens under diverse deformation conditions are probed to reveal the mechanism of hot deformation behavior. The experimental results indicate that the work-hardening and dynamic softening are competitive during the hot compression process, and the dynamic softening is more obvious under low deformation temperature and high strain rate. The microstructural analysis manifests that the dynamic recovery gets predominant at high deformation temperature to produce fine grains. Meanwhile, the dynamic recrystallization becomes more dominant as the strain rate decreases, which is sensitive to the stress triaxiality. In addition, both the modified Johnson-Cook model and strain-compensated Arrhenius-type function are suitable for describing the flow behavior of 2297 alloy, while the latter reveals a more accurate prediction. However, the predictability of the two kinds of models is worsened with the transformation of stress triaxiality, and the validity of the Arrhenius-type model is restricted by high stress triaxiality.",
"corpus_id": 191135373
} | {
"title": "Relational Subjectivity: Sasha Marianna Salzmann’s Novel Außer Sich",
"abstract": "Sasha Marianna Salzmann’s debut novel, published in 2017, covers the experience of antisemitism, migration, queerness and political struggle during a 100-year time span. Its structure is anything but straightforward and features homo- as well as heterodiegetic narrators. Structurally, the novel can be related to Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari’s Kafka: Toward a Minor Literature, with its analysis of the logic of Kafka’s writings. Rosi Braidotti’s work on nomadic ethics and on the posthuman supplements the framework given by Deleuze and Guattari. Drawing on these writings, my analysis foregrounds the concept of the relational subject as developed in the novel as well as the link between its narrative structure and the exploration of time and anxiety. Taking into consideration its opening James Baldwin citation, I relate these issues to the novel’s of multidirectional memory of oppression. Tweetable abstract: This article explores how Sasha Marianna Salzmann connects queer subjectivity, multidirectional memory, time and narrative structure.",
"corpus_id": 219906727
} |
{
"title": "Influence of Modeling Approaches on the Response of a Retaining Wall",
"abstract": "In this article, the evaluation of the behavior of a gravity retaining wall is analyzed by considering different modeling approaches. The influence of taking into account the spatial variability of soil parameters in modeling approaches on the response of a retaining wall, assessed through horizontal displacements behind the wall and vertical displacements at the base of the wall. The displacements were evaluated with the finite element software CESAR, developed by the Central Laboratory of Bridges and Roads in France (LCPC), and the statistical analysis of the results was performed with Microsoft Excel. The results indicated that the effects of modeling the soil as a heterogeneous case on the wall displacements were much more significant than when the soil is modeled considering the statistically homogeneous case or the analysis case of a multilayer. This influence of the modeling of the soil as being totally heterogeneous is expressed through the lower standard deviations of the displacements, and also through the narrowness of the band defined by the maximums and the minimums of the results of the displacements, with respect to the two other modeling cases. This result leads towards a gain in terms of accuracy of the results, considering the spatial variability of the soil parameters in both directions, horizontal and vertical.",
"corpus_id": 259021402
} | {
"title": "A simple estimation model for 3D braced excavation wall deflection",
"abstract": "Abstract A series of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) finite element analyses using the Hardening Soil (HS) model were carried out to investigate the influences of soil properties, wall stiffness, excavation length, excavation depth, clay thickness at the base of the excavation and wall embedment depth, on the maximum wall deflection induced by braced-excavation. The results show that the 3D maximum wall deflections are generally much smaller than those for 2D. Comparisons were also made with other commonly used semi-empirical charts. Based on the finite element results in this study, a simple wall deflection equation was developed for estimating the maximum wall deflection that takes the 3D effects into consideration through different ratios of excavation length over excavation width.",
"corpus_id": 125298870
} | {
"title": "Probabilistic seismic slope stability analysis and design",
"abstract": "Deterministic seismic slope stability design charts for cohesive–frictional ( ) soils are traditionally used by geotechnical engineers to include the effects of earthquakes on slopes. These charts ...",
"corpus_id": 134695019
} |
{
"title": "Neuroglobin protects against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats by suppressing mitochondrial dysfunction and endoplasmic reticulum stress‐mediated neuronal apoptosis through synaptotagmin‐1",
"abstract": "Cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury remains a grievous health threat, and herein effective therapy is urgently needed. This study explored the protection of neuroglobin (Ngb) in rats with cerebral I/R injury. The focal cerebral I/R rat models were established by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and neuronal injury models were established by oxygen–glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) treatment. The brain injury of rats was assessed. Levels of Ngb, Bcl‐2, Bax, endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)‐related markers, and Syt1 were measured by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting. The cytotoxicity in neurons was assessed by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release assay. Levels of intracellular Ca2+ and mitochondrial function‐related indicators were determined. The binding between Ngb and Syt1 was detected by co‐immunoprecipitation. Ngb was upregulated in cerebral I/R rats and its overexpression alleviated brain injury. In OGD/R‐induced neurons, Ngb overexpression decreased LDH level and neuronal apoptosis, decreased Ca2+ content, and mitigated mitochondrial dysfunction and ERS‐related apoptosis. However, Ngb silencing imposed the opposite effects. Importantly, Ngb could bind to Syt1. Syt1 knockdown partially counteracted the alleviation of Ngb on OGD/R‐induced injury in neurons and cerebral I/R injury in rats. Briefly, Ngb extenuated cerebral I/R injury by repressing mitochondrial dysfunction and endoplasmic reticulum stress‐mediated neuronal apoptosis through Syt1.",
"corpus_id": 258763777
} | {
"title": "2,4‐dichlorophenoxyacetic acid induces ROS activation in NLRP3 inflammatory body‐induced autophagy disorder in microglia and the protective effect of Lycium barbarum polysaccharide",
"abstract": "The pesticide 2,4‐dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4‐D) exerts neurotoxic effects; however, its action mechanism remains unclear. Here, we used BV2 cells as a model and divided them into six groups: control group (serum‐free medium), lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (1 μg/mL), 2,4‐D (1.2 μmol/mL), Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP; 300 μg/mL LBP), LPS (1 μg/mL) + LBP (300 μg/mL), and 2,4‐D (1.2 μmol/mL) + LBP (300 μg/mL) with dimethyl sulfoxide as the solvent. Our results showed that 2,4‐D treatment decreased superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities and increased malondialdehyde content. The percentage of microglial activation (co‐expression of ionized calcium‐binding adaptor protein‐1 + CD68) in the LPS and 2,4‐D groups and the levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin (IL) 1 beta, IL‐6, and IL‐18 in the cell supernatant were increased. The protein and mRNA levels of Nod‐like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3), apoptosis‐associated speck‐like protein, caspase‐1, IL‐1β, IL‐18, and p62 increased, whereas those of LC3II/I and Beclin‐1 decreased in the 2,4‐D group. The protein expression and mRNA levels of NLRP3, cleaved caspase‐1, IL‐1β, IL‐18, and p62 decreased significantly, whereas the protein expression and mRNA levels of LC3II/I and Beclin‐1 increased in small interfering RNA of NLRP3‐treated BV2 cells stimulated with 2,4‐D and LPS. In conclusion, 2,4‐D enhanced cell migration, promoted oxidative stress, induced excessive release of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species, promoted microglial cell activation, released inflammatory factors, activated NLRP3 inflammasomes, and inhibited autophagy. Meanwhile, LBP reduced inflammation and the release of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species, inhibited NLRP3 inflammasome activation, and regulated autophagy, thereby playing a neuroprotective role.",
"corpus_id": 246429085
} | {
"title": "‘Men at risk’: sex work, tourism, and STI/HIV risk in Jamaica",
"abstract": "Abstract Female sex tourism has become an accepted income generator for many underemployed men in Jamaica who seek to reap economic benefits from relationships with visiting tourist women. This issue provides contexts to explore the numerous ways in which health intersects with issues of masculinity, sexuality and marginality. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in a popular Jamaican resort town, this paper examines the health implications of female sex tourism for the local population and tourist visitors. Data from this project indicate the need for improved sexually transmitted infection education and HIV outreach work towards men who are involved in transactional sex with tourist women. Due to prevalent perceptions of masculinity and gendered notions of sexuality, men who engage in sex tourism constitute a population that rarely receives the attention of local and national health authorities. Data from this qualitative study suggest that engaging this particular vulnerable population could potentially decrease the risk of STI and HIV infection in the country’s most popular resort areas. Research of this kind is urgently needed to better understand the risk factors and challenges for Caribbean populations, as well as to inform future prevention efforts in the region.",
"corpus_id": 46376082
} |
{
"title": "Plasmodesmata: symplastic transport of herbicides within the plant",
"abstract": "When studying herbicide absorption, translocation, metabolism, and mode of action, transport pathways are usually referred to as apoplast (dead cells) and symplast (living cells) as simple synonyms of xylem and phloem. However, the behavior of an herbicide within a plant greatly depends upon several factors and its movement accomplished by different routes and processes. If an herbicide takes too long to be absorbed after application, it will be more available for processes that would greatly reduce its absorption – rain, hot sun, and wind, among others. After the herbicide is absorbed, it needs to be quickly translocated from the point it was absorbed to the site of action. If it is not, chemical processes will take care of transforming the herbicide into non-toxic or less-toxic metabolites. For a quick and efficient translocation, several pathways act together in a relatively dependent manner – everything is connected at different degrees of the plant’s metabolic rate by the time reactions occur. For example, when a plant is under water stress, it may react differently to the same dose of herbicide usually applied to that species. In addition, phloem will only translocate an herbicide quickly if this compound is efficiently loaded into the phloem. From the leaf surface to the site of action, herbicide movement involves passage through the apoplast and symplast by several pathways, one of which is via plasmodesmata. In the classical concept of Munch (1930), plasmodesmata are considered to form simple cytoplasmic bridges between neighboring plant cells in order to create the symplasm. This concept has dominated, if not monopolized, the thinking of plant biologists and, in particular, plant physiologists over the last few decades. Recent advances in ultra-structural, physiological, and molecular studies on plasmodesmata indicate that this simple view is in need of revision (Lucas, 1993). Plasmodesmata are plasma channels connecting neighboring cells that allow the exchange of informational, functional, and structural molecules and xenobiotics among cells of the same \"group\" (domain) , both apoplastically and symplastically. Cells of the same domain behave as functional units, and substances are able to move between them at rates above the observed for trans-membrane movement. Plasmodesmata participate symplastically in long-distance movement, both by association with phloem and interchange between neighboring domains. When the plant is under stress, and xylem and phloem flux is slower, plasmodesmata could be more participative in",
"corpus_id": 207917899
} | {
"title": "Expanding the horizons of nanotechnology in agriculture: recent advances, challenges and future perspectives",
"abstract": "The speedy progress towards the utilization of nanomaterials (NMs) is being extensively carried out in the fields of agriculture and food industry due to their varied properties. In recent years, a number of studies have been accomplished to interrogate intricate mechanism by which nanoparticles (NPs) influence plant growth, metabolism and development. Both positive and negative impacts of NMs on the growth of plant at various developmental stages are well documented. The effect of NMs on plant growth and development differ greatly depending on the concentration, composition, size and various important physicochemical properties of NMs. Synthesis as well as utilization of nano-fertilizers is one of the promising approaches regarding significant enhancement in the agricultural yield across the world. Application of biosynthesized NMs in the field of agriculture has progressed in sustainable development. The biological synthesis of NMs consisting of natural reducing agents without the use of toxic chemicals and the consumption of high energy has attracted the focus of scientists towards biological methods. This review summarizes the application of NMs on plant growth and development, uptake and translocation of NMs within plant tissues. This evaluation also attempts to examine the biological synthesis of NMs and their antimicrobial activity as well as their roles in agricultural sector could prove to be a boon for the society in the coming future.",
"corpus_id": 257163649
} | {
"title": "A Resource Utilization Prediction Model for Cloud Data Centers Using Evolutionary Algorithms and Machine Learning Techniques",
"abstract": "Cloud computing has revolutionized the modes of computing. With huge success and diverse benefits, the paradigm faces several challenges as well. Power consumption, dynamic resource scaling, and over- and under-provisioning issues are challenges for the cloud computing paradigm. The research has been carried out in cloud computing for resource utilization prediction to overcome over- and under-provisioning issues. Over-provisioning of resources consumes more energy and leads to high costs. However, under-provisioning induces Service Level Agreement (SLA) violation and Quality of Service (QoS) degradation. Most of the existing mechanisms focus on single resource utilization prediction, such as memory, CPU, storage, network, or servers allocated to cloud applications but overlook the correlation among resources. This research focuses on multi-resource utilization prediction using Functional Link Neural Network (FLNN) with hybrid Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). The proposed technique is evaluated on Google cluster traces data. Experimental results show that the proposed model yields better accuracy as compared to traditional techniques.",
"corpus_id": 247044007
} |
{
"title": "Development and validation of the high-pressure liquid chromatographic method for the quantitative determination of propylthiohinothiadiazole",
"abstract": "Background : Propylthiohinothiadiazole is a thiadiazole derivative with pronounced antimycobacterial action. Substance is researched in order to develop methods of analysis and standardization, analytical documents regulating quality for use as an active principle in the development of pharmaceutical forms. Material and methods: 3 series of propylthiohinothiadiazole, internal reference standard of 2-(propylthio)-5H-[1,3,4]-thiadiazole[2,3-b]-quinazolin- 5-one substance with concentration 99.98%, chromatographic system Shimadzu LC-20AD high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV-VIS detector, acetonitrile and dimethylsulfoxide of purity grade “pro HPLC analysis” (Sigma Aldrih and Merck), bidistilled purified water. Results: Linearity is proved for concentrations of 5-30 µg/ml, the linear regression equation is y=36472x-44580, R²=0.9999. The limit of detection is 0.729 µg/ml and the limit of quantification is 2.210 µg/ml. It was established that the method is accurate (mean recovery values at 80%, 100% and 120% concentration levels were close to 100%). The accuracy of the method was expressed by repeatability and intermediate accuracy. The variation of the chromatographic conditions established that the method is robust. For all validation parameters, relative standard deviation was less than 1. Conclusions: The validation results show that the developed HPLC method is simple, fast, accurate and reproducible.",
"corpus_id": 250213308
} | {
"title": "Development and Validation of an Assay Method for Ciprofloxacin Hydrochloride Determination in Combination Ear Drops",
"abstract": "Development and validation of an assay method for ciprofloxacin hydrochloride determination in combination ear drops Uncu Livia, Donici Elena, Valica Vladimir, Vîslouh Oxana, Gonciar Veaceslav, Parii Sergiu ”Nicolae Testemițanu” State University of Medicine and Pharmacy Chemistry Journal of Moldova Nr. 2(14) / 2019 / ISSN 1857-1727 / ISSNe 2345-1688 Disponibil online 1 January, 2020. Descarcări-1. Vizualizări-23 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Development, physical-chemical characterization and in vitro antibacterial activity evaluation of a fixed-dose combination isohydrafural-methyluracil hydrophilic ointment Rus Lucia Maria1, Donici Elena2, Valica Vladimir2, Prisacari Viorel2, Tomuta Ioan1, Shepel Diana3, Heghes Simona Codruta1, Iuga Cristina Adela1, Uncu Livia2 1 Iuliu Haţieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cluj-Napoca, 2 ”Nicolae Testemițanu” State University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 3 Institute of Chemistry",
"corpus_id": 208752977
} | {
"title": "An Efficient Structural Optimization Method for the Hinge Beam of a Cubic Press",
"abstract": "This study proposes a novel approach to optimize the structure of the hinge beam in cubic presses, aiming to enhance the safety and reduce costs. The finite element method is used to analyze the stress distribution of the hinge beam under operating conditions, revealing a significant stress concentration at the oil inlet edge. To optimize the structure, the Taguchi method, the NSGA-II multi-objective optimization algorithm, and the entropy-TOPSIS method are combined to consider both the maximum stress and total weight. The results demonstrate a reduction of 199.121 kg and 11.97 MPa in the total weight and maximum stress of the hinge beam, respectively, representing a decrease of 4.12% and 1.72%. Furthermore, the simulation results of the optimal structure demonstrate a high degree of accuracy, with only 0.27% difference between the algorithm-optimized and simulation values. The proposed optimization method not only improves the efficiency of the optimization, but also avoids the mutual exclusion between the maximum stress and total weight. It significantly improves the reliability of the hinge beam and reduces its manufacturing costs, thereby shortening the development cycle of the new hinge beam.",
"corpus_id": 258321854
} |
{
"title": "What Role do Androgens Play in Endometrial Cancer?",
"abstract": "The role of estrogens and progesterone in the development and progression of endometrial cancer is well-established, but there are very little data about the role of androgens. There are five different androgens produced in women: dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), androstenedione (A4), testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT). The most potent hormones are T and DHT, the latter being mainly produced from T in peripheral tissues, including endometrium. Although they are considered to exert antiproliferative effects in many settings and the expression of their receptors is more often associated with a good prognosis in EC, it is still unknown in which specific settings androgens have carcinogenic or protective effects in EC.",
"corpus_id": 256977403
} | {
"title": "Effects of Obesity and Calorie Restriction on Cancer Development",
"abstract": "The risk of malignant tumor development is increasing in the world. Obesity is an established risk factor for various malignancies. There are many metabolic alterations associated with obesity which promote cancerogenesis. Excessive body weight leads to increased levels of estrogens, chronic inflammation and hypoxia, which can play an important role in the development of malignancies. It is proved that calorie restriction can improve the state of patients with various diseases. Decreased calorie uptake influences lipid, carbohydrate and protein metabolism, hormone levels and cell processes. Many investigations have been devoted to the effects of calorie restriction on cancer development in vitro and in vivo. It was revealed that fasting can regulate the activity of the signal cascades including AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), p53, mTOR, insulin/ insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) and JAK-STAT. Up- or down-regulation of the pathways results in the decrease of cancer cell proliferation, migration and survival and the increase of apoptosis and effects of chemotherapy. The aim of this review is to discuss the connection between obesity and cancer development and the mechanisms of calorie restriction influence on cancerogenesis that stress the importance of further research of calorie restriction effects for the inclusion of this approach in clinical practice.",
"corpus_id": 259039580
} | {
"title": "Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Colorectal Cancer: Challenges and Future Prospects",
"abstract": "Immunotherapy is a new pillar of cancer therapy that provides novel opportunities to treat solid tumors. In this context, the development of new drugs targeting immune checkpoints is considered a promising approach in colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment because it can be induce specific and durable anti-cancer effects. Despite many advances in the immunotherapy of CRC, there are still limitations and obstacles to successful treatment. The immunosuppressive function of the tumor microenvironment (TME) is one of the causes of poor response to treatment in CRC patients. For this reason, checkpoint-blocking antibodies have shown promising outcomes in CRC patients by blocking inhibitory immune checkpoints and enhancing immune responses against tumors. This review summarizes recent advances in immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), such as CTLA-4, PD-1, PD-L1, LAG-3, and TIM-3 in CRC, and it discusses various therapeutic strategies with ICIs, including the double blockade of ICIs, combination therapy of ICIs with other immunotherapies, and conventional treatments. This review also delineates a new hopeful path in the combination of anti-PD-1/anti-PD-L1 with other ICIs such as anti-CTLA-4, anti-LAG-3, and anti-TIM-3 for CRC treatment.",
"corpus_id": 237936220
} |
{
"title": "Analysis of physiological and non-contact signals for the assessment of emotional components in consumer preference",
"abstract": "In this paper, we designed an experimental protocol to assess whether the emotional component plays a role in selecting a product as the preferred one in a request for choice. We asked 25 subjects what beverage preferred between Coca-Cola and a similar one while drinking them in a blind and not blind condition. Both traditional contact measurements (skin conductance, SC) and noncontact ones (heart rate variability computed from video recording, HRV) were employed to measure physiological reactions elicited by the product experience. Both SC-related and HRV parameters showed significant differences between the blind and not blind trials. Moreover, 44 % of the subjects changed their preference between the 2 conditions. These results point at distinct emotional responses, supporting the drive towards using noncontact monitoring for non-invasive distance consumer behavior analysis.",
"corpus_id": 225562781
} | {
"title": "Analysis of physiological and non-contact signals to evaluate the emotional component in consumer preferences",
"abstract": "Emotions are an essential drive in decision making and may influence consumer preference. In this study we assessed the influence of brands in product preference after tasting 2 soft-drinks (Coca Cola vs. Cola beverage), by using physiological measurements, namely the skin conductance, the respiratory rate and heart rate variability (HRV) extracted using contactless sensors. The experimental protocol enrolled twenty-five young subjects which were asked to taste 2 soft drinks in random order, without knowing the brand (blind condition) and then knowing the brand (not blind condition). After each phase the subject was asked to choose the preferred beverage. Our main hypothesis is that if the subject knows the brand there is an arousal effect, independently from the absolute appreciation of the product. In order to evaluate the emotional components, the skin conductance, respiratory and Video-Photoplethysmographic (PPG) signals were continuously recorded throughout the experiment. The Video-PPG was then processed to extract HRV parameters. We observed that the arousal levels changed among beverages and conditions, going from higher arousal for Coca-Cola in the blind condition, to higher arousal for Cola in the not blind condition. Moreover, 44% of the subjects changed their preference when the brand was uncovered: from blind to not blind conditions, 6 subjects went from Cola to Coca-Cola as preferred drink and 5 went from Coca-Cola to Cola. Opposite results were found for the two beverages when comparing the physiological response when the beverage was/was not preferred. Finally, differences were found also between consumers and not consumers of Coca-Cola and the blind/not blind comparison. We conclude that the brand is a fundamental element in a request for choice and it can affect the first emotional response of a subject.",
"corpus_id": 248774935
} | {
"title": "Depressive symptoms, fear of emotional expression, and less favorable attitudes toward palliative care",
"abstract": "Many patients with cancer are reluctant to consider palliative care services due to fears and misconceptions regarding the goals of palliative care. Depressive symptoms also predict less preferential attitudes toward palliative care. Individuals often respond to stressful events including serious illness and depression with defensiveness, withdrawal, and avoidance of otherwise supportive relationships, particularly if they fear that others will judge their emotional reactions. Thus, patients experiencing depressive symptoms may be reluctant to consider palliative care because they fear the consequences of accepting their vulnerable emotions and expressing them to others—potentially because they have been previously criticized for expressing their emotions. Depression is a heterogeneous disorder. Loss of interest, low mood, difficulty concentrating, and pessimistic beliefs may make it difficult for some patients to accurately assess the potential benefits of palliative care, while physiological symptoms such as fatigue, sleep, and psychomotor disturbances may create barriers to adjusting routines. Patients who inhibit their emotions tend to experience higher levels of distress and, for reasons poorly understood, tend to have poorer cancer outcomes. Patients with depression may adopt a decision-making style that prioritizes the short-term relief of avoiding emotional distress over the possible long-term benefits of addressing their palliative care needs. Another possibility is that fears of expressing emotion could also lead these patients to avoid upsetting healthcare consultations, and procedures such as palliative care that may enhance emotional and physical well-being, if not subtle increases in survival 5,6 This study investigated the potential role that fear of emotional expression may play in shaping preferences for palliative care. Understanding these fears could potentially help to enhance palliative care utilization in at-risk and acutely distressed patients. A mediation model was computed to test the hypothesis that the association of depression with less preferential attitudes toward palliative care would be mediated by fears of emotional expression.",
"corpus_id": 216083911
} |
{
"title": "Immune Response of an Oral Enterococcus faecalis Phage Cocktail in a Mouse Model of Ethanol-Induced Liver Disease",
"abstract": "Cytolysin-positive Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) cause more severe alcohol-associated hepatitis, and phages might be used to specifically target these bacteria in a clinical trial. Using a humanized mouse model of ethanol-induced liver disease, the effect of cytolytic E. faecalis phage treatment on the intestinal and liver immune response was evaluated. The observed immune response was predominantly anti-inflammatory and tissue-restoring. Besides, live phages could be readily recovered from the serum, spleen, and liver following oral gavage in ethanol-fed mice. We also isolated 20 new phages from the sewage water; six of them exhibited a relatively broad host range. Taken together, the oral administration of cytolytic E. faecalis phages leads to the translocation of phages to the systemic circulation and appears to be safe, following chronic-binge ethanol administration. A cocktail of three phages covers the majority of tested cytolysin-positive E. faecalis strains and could be tested in a clinical trial.",
"corpus_id": 247180994
} | {
"title": "Phage therapy as a potential solution in the fight against AMR: obstacles and possible futures",
"abstract": "Phage therapy, the use of bacteriophage viruses to treat bacterial infections, has existed for more than a hundred years. However, the practice is struggling to develop, despite growing support over the past 15 years from researchers and doctors, who see it as a promising therapy in the context of the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). While the reasons for these developmental difficulties are complex, in this article we wish to address the effects of pharmaceutical regulations on phage therapy. By showing how phages are assimilated to an umpteenth antibiotic in legal texts, but also in certain medical practices, this article proposes to analyze the consequences of such regulatory categorization both for their production and the logistics of administration of proof of their efficacy in randomized controlled trials (RCTs), as well as the underlying concepts of infection and treatment. This paper follows Chandler’s work on the concept of antibiotics as infrastructure and its inversion presented by antimicrobial resistance. Phages as living, dynamic, evolving, and specific entities, do not lend themselves easily to current categories, norms, and development models. In this sense, they act as disruptors, revealing the limitations imposed by the existing infrastructure. More precisely here, and to continue Chandler’s initial thought process, this paper aims to show that antibiotics also form a kind of epistemological infrastructure, which acts as a powerful inhibitor to the development of phage therapy. In this sense antibiotics prevent the development of solutions to the problem they contribute to create. But the difficulties phage therapy faces, as highlighted in this article, can be interpreted as entry points for thinking of another medicine and imagining other possible futures. This analysis is based on a 3-year fieldwork study (2016–2019) in Europe (France, Belgium, and Switzerland), during which we conducted semi-directed interviews with various phage therapy stakeholders (physicians, researchers, pharmacists, regulators, patients, and patient associations), participatory observation in labs and observations during symposia and workshops on phages and phage therapy.",
"corpus_id": 218693888
} | {
"title": "Nonnegative matrix factorization with -divergence",
"abstract": "Nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) is a popular technique for pattern recogni- tion, data analysis, and dimensionality reduction, the goal of which is to decompose nonnegative data matrix X into a product of basis matrix A and encoding variable matrix S with both A and S allowed to have only nonnegative elements. In this paper we consider Amari's �-divergence as a discrepancy measure and rigorously derive a multiplicative updating algorithm (proposed in our recent work) which it- eratively minimizes the �-divergence between X and AS. We analyze and prove the monotonic convergence of the algorithm using auxiliary functions. In addition, we show that the same algorithm can be also derived using Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) conditions as well as the projected gradient. We provide two empirical study for image denoising and EEG classification, showing the interesting and useful be- havior of the algorithm in cases where different values of � (� = 0.5,1,2) are used.",
"corpus_id": 871770
} |
{
"title": "Health-care waste management practices: The case of Ho Teaching Hospital in Ghana",
"abstract": "Approximately 15% of wastes generated in hospitals is hazardous. Improper handling of this waste renders the remaining fraction infectious which is perilous to the health of hospital workers, patients, visitors and even communities. Sufficient data on medical waste management practices particularly in low-income countries such as Ghana is required for effective monitoring and policy making. This study sought to assess the waste generation rates, waste management practices, frequency of sharp injuries and the knowledge of health-care workers on waste management guidelines in Ho Teaching Hospital in Ghana. Data was collected through observations and questionnaire administration from 100 health-care workers. The results revealed that the total amount of wastes generated was 1.70kg/patient/day (490.62 kg/day) comprising of 57.48%, 33.98% and 8.54% of general, infectious and hazardous wastes respectively. Further investigations showed that 52% of the health-care workers knew about the existence of a hospital waste management policy and 89% attested that they had received training on medical waste management. The existing waste management committee was however, non-functional. Waste segregation at source and the use of color-coded waste receptacles were not strictly followed. Contaminated general wastes were landfilled whiles hazardous wastes were either incinerated or buried. Only 11% of the waste handlers were always completely dressed in personal protective equipment and about 77% of the waste handlers always sustained sharp injuries. Incentivizing the waste management team to ensure strict adherence to a waste management plan would improve waste management at the hospital.",
"corpus_id": 258235258
} | {
"title": "A Review of Medical Waste Management Systems in the Republic of Korea for Hospital and Medical Waste Generated from the COVID-19 Pandemic",
"abstract": "With the increasing generation of medical waste worldwide, managing medical waste has become crucial, given its potential environmental and public health risks. Previously in the Republic of Korea, medical waste was often mixed with municipal waste and disposed of in residential landfills or unsuitable treatment facilities (e.g., improperly managed incinerators). Environmental regulators and waste producers have made extensive efforts in recent years to improve waste management at healthcare facilities. This study presents an overview of the status of medical waste management in Korea and discusses information on the generation, composition, separation, transportation, and treatment of medical waste. Incineration was confirmed to be the most preferred treatment method for medical waste and was the only one used until late 2005. Large-scale medical waste incinerators are used for treating medical waste from most medical facilities in Korea; however, with increasing regulations on toxic air emissions (e.g., dioxins and furans), air emission standards are being tightened for all existing small-scale incineration facilities without air pollution control. Since medical waste usually contains various plastic materials such as polyvinyl chloride, these incinerators are highly likely to emit toxic air pollutants if improperly operated and managed. Waste minimization and recycling, control of toxic air emissions from medical waste incinerators, and alternative treatment methods to incineration are seen as major challenges. Incineration capacity cannot be expanded as quickly as the rising quantities of medical waste in Korea; thus, there is a growing need to reconsider the overall management system. Accordingly, we examined various medical waste treatment policies and methods that are being implemented in other countries, in addition to the main strategy of waste management. To determine preferable directions for the improvement of the medical waste management system, we investigated and compared the status of domestic and foreign waste management and proposed directions for improvement, focusing on several issues related to the current medical waste management system in Korea.",
"corpus_id": 247640229
} | {
"title": "Enhancing the performance of Indian micro, small and medium enterprises by implementing supply chain finance: challenges emerging from COVID-19 pandemic",
"abstract": "PurposeThe already scarce financial resources coupled with the current COVID-19 pandemic have created the worst scenario for Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The application of supply chain finance (SCF) solutions to MSMEs can enhance the performance and growth of the sector. But, the implementation of SCF solutions faces various obstacles which restrict the MSMEs' ability to meet their financial requirements. The purpose of this paper is to explore and prioritize the various important barriers hindering SCF application in Indian MSMEs.Design/methodology/approachLiterature on SCF and MSMEs are critically reviewed and barriers affecting the SCF application in Indian MSMEs are scrutinized with the consultation of the experts. The present study applies intuitionistic fuzzy-analytic hierarchy process (IF-AHP) methodology to prioritize the identified barriers and thereafter, the sensitivity analysis is also done to observe the identified barriers under different situations.FindingsThe results of the study have revealed that poor cash flow management and working capital management disruption are acting as the most prioritized barriers of SCF. The external factor of cultural challenges has been prioritized as the minimum-influence factor that has least negative influence on the operations of SCF in MSMEs.Practical implicationsThe present study bears an important practical and managerial implication to solve real world problems of financial constraints of MSMEs. The managers should emphasize upon the importance smooth flow of cash and working capital management across the supply chains by which better SCF solution can be implemented in MSMEs.Originality/valueThe study conducted is an effort to address the barriers of SCF in Indian MSMEs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The implementation of IF-AHP and sensitivity analysis would help managers and policymakers to comprehend and resolve the prioritized barriers and sub-barriers of SCF in the MSMEs.",
"corpus_id": 248094539
} |
{
"title": "A Wavelength‐Tunable Multi‐Functional Transistor with Visible‐Light Detection and Inverse Photomemory for Logic Gate and Retina Emulation",
"abstract": "The multi‐functional phototransistor is essential for the realization of highly‐integrated multi‐functional electronics. Herein, inverse photomemory is discovered from the organic phototransistor based on dinaphtho[2,3‐b:2′,3′‐f]thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene (DNTT)/diarylethene (DAE) bilayer structure. With the incorporation of the photoactive DAE dielectric layer, the integration of high‐performance photodetection and photomemory in one device is realized. The function of the device can be switched by changing the wavelength of the incident light. The devices exhibit positive photosensing performances under the stimulation of 450 nm monochromatic light, can be switched to inverse photomemory transistors under the stimulation of 365 nm monochromatic light, and recover to the pristine state when applying a positive gate voltage and 600 nm illumination. The I450/Idark ratio of positive photosensing and the Idark/I365 ratio of inverse photomemory are high up to the order of 106 and 107, respectively. In addition, the photonic logic gate and the retina emulation have been successfully demonstrated. In addition, the device can be operated as a light‐stimulated synaptic transistor. The typical synaptic behaviors (excitatory postsynaptic current, paired pulse facilitation, memory, and learning behaviors) have been successfully demonstrated. The development of multi‐functionalized phototransistors provides a promising configuration for multi‐functional and highly‐integrated systems.",
"corpus_id": 238681833
} | {
"title": "Contributions of Light to Novel Logic Concepts Using Optoelectronic Materials.",
"abstract": "Instead of the current method of transmitting voltage or current signals in electronic circuit operation, light offers an alternative to conventional logic, allowing for the implementation of new logic concepts through interaction with light. This manuscript examines the use of light in implementing new logic concepts as an alternative to traditional logic circuits and as a future technology. This article provides an overview of how to implement logic operations using light rather than voltage or current signals using optoelectronic materials such as 2D materials, metal-oxides, carbon structures, polymers, small molecules, and perovskites. This review covers the various technologies and applications of using light to dope devices, implement logic gates, control logic circuits, and generate light as an output signal. Recent research on logic and the use of light to implement new functions is summarized. This review also highlights the potential of optoelectronic logic for future technological advancements.",
"corpus_id": 258907791
} | {
"title": "Quantitative determination of the non-entrapped chlorothiazide in the presence of liposomes using differential pulse polarography.",
"abstract": "Differential Pulse Polarography (DPP) was used for the quantitative determination of the free and adsorbed (non-entrapped) chlorothiazide (CHT) in the presence of liposomes. It was found that CHT polarographic signal depends both on the concentration of multilamelar (MLV) liposomes, due to its adsorption on the liposomal surface, and on their size. Calibration plots of CHT concentration versus current density, at pH 7.4, in the presence of different liposomes concentrations were constructed. Based on these curves the non-entrapped chlorothiazide was determined. Results were compared to those obtained from the application of conventional procedure i.e. chromatographic separation of CHT from liposomes followed by UV spectrophotometric determination. Both techniques were found to be comparable with respect to their accuracy, with a relative error of 0.47%. Determination of the drug using DPP was faster.",
"corpus_id": 40546697
} |
{
"title": "Antiviral and Immunomodulatory Effects of Phytochemicals from Honey against COVID-19: Potential Mechanisms of Action and Future Directions",
"abstract": "The new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has recently put the world under stress, resulting in a global pandemic. Currently, there are no approved treatments or vaccines, and this severe respiratory illness has cost many lives. Despite the established antimicrobial and immune-boosting potency described for honey, to date there is still a lack of evidence about its potential role amid COVID-19 outbreak. Based on the previously explored antiviral effects and phytochemical components of honey, we review here evidence for its role as a potentially effective natural product against COVID-19. Although some bioactive compounds in honey have shown potential antiviral effects (i.e., methylglyoxal, chrysin, caffeic acid, galangin and hesperidinin) or enhancing antiviral immune responses (i.e., levan and ascorbic acid), the mechanisms of action for these compounds are still ambiguous. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work exclusively summarizing all these bioactive compounds with their probable mechanisms of action as antiviral agents, specifically against SARS-CoV-2.",
"corpus_id": 226243895
} | {
"title": "Exploring Consumers’ Preferences and Attitudes to Honey: Generation Approach in Slovakia",
"abstract": "Honey is popular among consumers for its composition and healing properties. The aim of the paper is to study the differences in honey preferences across various age generations in Slovakia. The study is based on primary data obtained by conducting an online questionnaire survey on a sample of 1850 Slovak consumers of honey in 2022. Multiple correspondence analyses and non-parametric tests were applied to study the differences in preferences across selected age cohorts (Generation Z, Generation Y, Generation X and Silver Generation). The results show that Silver Generation tends to consume honey due to its nutritional values and prefers to consume monofloral honey of a dark colour, while Generation Z does not use honey in cosmetics or consume it due to its nutritional values and are inclined to prefer polyfloral honey. The utilisation of honey in cosmetics was associated mostly with Generation X. Younger consumers (Generation Z and Generation Y) have a very low awareness of creamed honey and honey with additions in comparison to Silver Generation or Generation X. In addition, the results reveal that propolis, royal jelly and bee pollen were the most attractive additions for honey across all age cohorts in Slovakia, while spirulina and chilli were the least attractive additions.",
"corpus_id": 258642711
} | {
"title": "Language, race or place? Influential factors in determining young “Coloured” individuals’ attitudes towards Afrikaans accents in English",
"abstract": "Abstract In South Africa, current social dynamics are still largely determined by the heavy legacy of apartheid. In this context, the term “Coloured” is widely used to delineate a social group that is generally not considered white or black in the old senses. This study focuses on the implicit language attitudes of 84 young Coloured English and Afrikaans speaking participants towards Cape Flats English, largely associated with Coloured communities of the greater Cape Town area, and Afrikaner English, largely associated with the White group. Implicit Association Test results show an overall statistically significant implicit positive bias towards Cape Flats English among participants, although a small subgroup reversed this tendency. A post-IAT survey was used to investigate the contribution of a number of social variables in determining the biases associated with each accent. A regression analysis detected that participants’ L1, language repertoire and other community language practices play a significant role in predicting such language biases. Furthermore, a correlation analysis also showed a trend regarding both the language distribution in their place of residence and social distance levels with the White group. Finally, a qualitative analysis based on the comparison of context-relevant cases underlined the complex in-group dynamics of the studied sample.",
"corpus_id": 234116794
} |
{
"title": "Recreational Skydiving—Really That Dangerous? A Systematic Review",
"abstract": "Skydiving have gained mainstream popularity over the past decades. However, limited data exist on the injury risk or type associated with skydiving. This systematic review evaluated the injuries and fatalities of civilian skydivers. A PRISMA-guided literature search was performed in MEDLINE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Embase using the following MeSH terms: “skydiving” or “parachute” alone or in combination with “injury” or “trauma” was performed including all studies through June 2022 in both English and German. Additionally, injury reports from the German, American, and British Parachute Associations were reviewed. Of the 277 articles matching the selected search terms, 10 original articles and 34 non-scientific reports from various skydiving associations were included. More than 62 million jumps were evaluated, with an average of 3,200,000 jumps per year, which showed an average injury rate of 0.044% and an average fatality rate of 0.0011%. The most common injuries sustained by recreational skydivers involved the lumbar spine and lower extremities. Injuries were most commonly reported during the landing sequence. With modern equipment and training methods, fatalities occur in less than 1 per 100,000 cases, and serious injuries requiring hospitalization in less than 2 per 10,000 cases. This puts the assessment of skydiving as a high-risk sport into perspective.",
"corpus_id": 255768856
} | {
"title": "Epidemiology of injuries in amateur boxing: A systematic review and meta-analysis.",
"abstract": "OBJECTIVES\nTo synthesise competition and training injury data in amateur boxing.\n\n\nDESIGN\nSystematic review and meta-analysis. Pooled estimates of competition injury incidence rates per 1000 athlete-exposures (IIRAE) and per 1000 min of exposure (IIRME), and training injury incidence rates per 1000 h of exposure (IIRHE) were obtained by fitting random-effects models.\n\n\nMETHODS\nMEDLINE, Embase, AMED, AUSPORT, and SPORTDiscus databases were searched from inception to 27 May 2022. Cohort studies with prospectively collected injury and exposure data from amateur boxing competition or training published in peer-reviewed journals were eligible for inclusion.\n\n\nRESULTS\nSeventeen studies were eligible for inclusion. The competition IIRAE and IIRME summary estimates were 54.7 (95 % CI 33.8-88.4) and 6.8 (95 % CI 4.2-10.9), respectively. The training IIRHE summary estimate was 1.3 (95 % CI 0.2-7.0). The most commonly injured body regions in the competition and training settings were the head and neck (median: 72 %; range: 46 % to 100 %) and upper limb (median: 49 %; range: 40 % to 53 %), respectively. The predominant types of injury were contusions (median: 35 %; range: 5 % to 100 %) and lacerations and abrasions (median: 20 %; range: 0 % to 69 %) in the competition setting, and sprains and strains (median: 60 %; range: 50 % to 81 %) in the training setting.\n\n\nCONCLUSIONS\nAmateur boxing athletes sustain, on average, 1 injury every 2.5 h of competition and every 772 h of training. There is a need for identifying injury mechanisms and modifiable risk factors that can be targeted by preventive measures to reduce the burden of injury in amateur boxing.",
"corpus_id": 240319887
} | {
"title": "Sport Medicine Diagnostic Coding System (SMDCS) and the Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System (OSIICS): revised 2020 consensus versions",
"abstract": "Coding in sports medicine generally uses sports-specific coding systems rather than the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), because of superior applicability to the profile of injury and illness presentations in sport. New categories for coding were agreed on in the ‘International Olympic Committee (IOC) consensus statement: Methods for recording and reporting of epidemiological data on injury and illness in sports 2020.’ We explain the process for determining the new categories and update both the Sport Medicine Diagnostic Coding System (SMDCS) and the Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System (OSIICS) with new versions that operationalise the new consensus categories. The author group included members from an expert group attending the IOC consensus conference. The primary authors of the SMDCS (WM) and OSIICS (JO) produced new versions that were then agreed on by the remaining authors using expert consensus methodology. The SMDCS and OSIICS systems have been adjusted and confirmed through a consensus process to align with the IOC consensus statement to facilitate translation between the two systems. Problematic areas for defining body part categories included the groin and ankle regions. For illness codes, in contrast to the ICD, we elected to have a taxonomy of ‘organ system/region’ (eg, cardiovascular and respiratory), followed by an ‘aetiology/pathology’ (eg, environmental, infectious disease and allergy). Companion data files have been produced that provide translations between the coding systems. The similar structure of coding underpinning the OSIICS and SMDCS systems aligns the new versions of these systems with the IOC consensus statement and also facilitates easier translation between the two systems. These coding systems are freely available to the sport and exercise research community.",
"corpus_id": 211724559
} |
{
"title": "Preprocessing Strategies for Sparse Infrared Spectroscopy: A Case Study on Cartilage Diagnostics",
"abstract": "The aim of the study was to optimize preprocessing of sparse infrared spectral data. The sparse data were obtained by reducing broadband Fourier transform infrared attenuated total reflectance spectra of bovine and human cartilage, as well as of simulated spectral data, comprising several thousand spectral variables into datasets comprising only seven spectral variables. Different preprocessing approaches were compared, including simple baseline correction and normalization procedures, and model-based preprocessing, such as multiplicative signal correction (MSC). The optimal preprocessing was selected based on the quality of classification models established by partial least squares discriminant analysis for discriminating healthy and damaged cartilage samples. The best results for the sparse data were obtained by preprocessing using a baseline offset correction at 1800 cm−1, followed by peak normalization at 850 cm−1 and preprocessing by MSC.",
"corpus_id": 246399665
} | {
"title": "Applications of Vibrational Spectroscopy for Analysis of Connective Tissues",
"abstract": "Advances in vibrational spectroscopy have propelled new insights into the molecular composition and structure of biological tissues. In this review, we discuss common modalities and techniques of vibrational spectroscopy, and present key examples to illustrate how they have been applied to enrich the assessment of connective tissues. In particular, we focus on applications of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), near infrared (NIR) and Raman spectroscopy to assess cartilage and bone properties. We present strengths and limitations of each approach and discuss how the combination of spectrometers with microscopes (hyperspectral imaging) and fiber optic probes have greatly advanced their biomedical applications. We show how these modalities may be used to evaluate virtually any type of sample (ex vivo, in situ or in vivo) and how “spectral fingerprints” can be interpreted to quantify outcomes related to tissue composition and quality. We highlight the unparalleled advantage of vibrational spectroscopy as a label-free and often nondestructive approach to assess properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) associated with normal, developing, aging, pathological and treated tissues. We believe this review will assist readers not only in better understanding applications of FTIR, NIR and Raman spectroscopy, but also in implementing these approaches for their own research projects.",
"corpus_id": 231898393
} | {
"title": "Preprocessing Strategies for Sparse Infrared Spectroscopy: A Case Study on Cartilage Diagnostics",
"abstract": "The aim of the study was to optimize preprocessing of sparse infrared spectral data. The sparse data were obtained by reducing broadband Fourier transform infrared attenuated total reflectance spectra of bovine and human cartilage, as well as of simulated spectral data, comprising several thousand spectral variables into datasets comprising only seven spectral variables. Different preprocessing approaches were compared, including simple baseline correction and normalization procedures, and model-based preprocessing, such as multiplicative signal correction (MSC). The optimal preprocessing was selected based on the quality of classification models established by partial least squares discriminant analysis for discriminating healthy and damaged cartilage samples. The best results for the sparse data were obtained by preprocessing using a baseline offset correction at 1800 cm−1, followed by peak normalization at 850 cm−1 and preprocessing by MSC.",
"corpus_id": 246399665
} |
{
"title": "Iberian summer precipitation modes of variability and extreme events",
"abstract": "Summer precipitation variability in the Iberian Peninsula is not a very common issue in the scientific literature. In general, Iberian precipitation variability is more frequently studied for the coldest seasons (autumn and winter). Summer is often related with the absence of precipitation and sunny days, especially in the southern regions. However, Summer precipitation it’s a non-neglectable phenomenon, not only on the northern Iberian mountains but also on the southern plains. Variability over the 20 Century of summer precipitation in the Iberian Peninsula is studied using a high resolution data set. Rotated Principal Component Analysis (RPCA) was applied on summer monthly means to retain the main spatiotemporal modes for each summer month (June, July and August). The principal component (PC) of each spatial mode is analyzed to search for extreme events. Since low values of precipitation in summer are very common, an extreme event is defined as unusual positive anomalies. Results show that precipitation variability is more complex in summer months, due to the larger number of significant modes and less explained variance. Local factors seem to play a more significant role, explaining larger amounts of variance in summer. Three sets of precipitation spatial patterns could be indentified related with their geographical location: the Atlantic patterns (Western Iberia), the Mediterranean Patterns (Eastern Iberia), and the interior patterns (interior regions in northern or southern Iberia). The more intense summer precipitation events are associated with the interior patterns. The atmospheric context shows that these precipitation extreme events are associated with an unusual continental warming linked with an upper-level trough. Therefore, heavy summer precipitation events are recurrently related to thermodynamic processes. Rainfall is concentrated both in space and in time that is to say, in small regions and in short periods of time. In some cases the monthly total amount of precipitation could be registered in only one episode with the duration of a few hours. These catastrophic rains can cause flash floods and severe erosion problems. Some case studies are analyzed to illustrate the intensity of these events.",
"corpus_id": 135393936
} | {
"title": "Circulation weather types and cloud‐to‐ground flash density over the Iberian Peninsula",
"abstract": "Based on the use of an objective classification method for the general atmospheric circulation observed over the Iberian Peninsula for the 1990–98 period, we have characterized the daily circulation by means of a set of indices associated with the direction and vorticity of the geostrophic flow.",
"corpus_id": 128854434
} | {
"title": "Assessment and mitigation of toddlers’ personal exposure to black carbon before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A case study in Singapore",
"abstract": "Black carbon (BC), an important indicator of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) in urban environments, is receiving increased attention because of its adverse health effects. Personal exposure (PE) of adults to BC has been widely studied, but little is known about the exposure of young children (toddlers) to BC in cities. We carried out a pilot study to investigate the integrated daily PE of toddlers to BC in a city-state with a high population density (Singapore). We studied the impact of urban traffic on the PE of toddlers to BC by comparing and contrasting on-road traffic flow (i.e., volume and composition) in Singapore in 2019 (before the COVID-19 pandemic) and in 2020 (during the COVID-19 pandemic). Our observations indicate that the daily BC exposure levels and inhaled doses increased by about 25% in 2020 (2.9 ± 0.3 μg m−3 and 35.5 μg day−1) compared to that in 2019 (2.3 ± 0.4 μg m−3 and 28.5 μg day−1 for exposure concentration and inhaled dose, respectively). The increased BC levels were associated with the increased traffic volume on both weekdays and weekends in 2020 compared to the same time period in 2019. Specifically, we observed an increase in the number of trucks as well as cars/taxis and motorcycles (private transport) and a decline in the number of buses (public transport) in 2020. The implementation of lockdown measures in 2020 resulted in significant changes in the time, place and duration of PE of toddlers to BC. The recorded daily time-activity patterns indicated that toddlers spent almost all the time in indoor environments during the measurement period in 2020. When we compared different ventilation options (natural ventilation (NV), air conditioning (AC), and portable air cleaner (PAC)) for mitigation of PE to BC in the home environment, we found a significant decrease (>30%) in daily BC exposure levels while using the PAC compared to the NV scenario. Our case study shows that the PE of toddlers to BC is of health concern in indoor environments in 2020 because of the migration of the increased TRAP into naturally ventilated residential homes and more time spent indoors than outdoors. Since toddlers’ immune system is weak, technological intervention is necessary to protect their health against inhalation exposure to air pollutants.",
"corpus_id": 236141228
} |
{
"title": "Venous Thromboembolism in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: The Role of Pharmacological Therapy and Surgery",
"abstract": "Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Alongside the traditional acquired and genetic risk factors for VTE, patients with IBD have pathogenic and clinical peculiarities that are responsible for the increased number of thromboembolic events occurring during their life. A relevant role in modifying this risk in a pro or antithrombotic manner is played by pharmacological therapies and surgery. The availability of several biological agents and small-molecule drugs with different mechanisms of action allows us to also tailor the treatment based on the individual prothrombotic risk to reduce the occurrence of VTE. Available review articles did not provide sufficient and updated knowledge on this topic. Therefore, we assessed the role of each single treatment, including surgery, in modifying the risk of VTE in patients with IBD to provide physicians with recommendations to minimize VTE occurrence. We found that the use of steroids, particularly if prolonged, increased VTE risk, whereas the use of infliximab seemed to reduce such risk. The data relating to the hypothesized prothrombotic risk of tofacitinib were insufficient to draw definitive conclusions. Moreover, surgery has an increased prothrombotic risk. Therefore, implementing measures to prevent VTE, not only with pharmacological prophylaxis but also by reducing patient- and surgery-specific risk factors, is necessary. Our findings confirm the importance of the knowledge of the effect of each single drug or surgery on the overall VTE risk in patients with IBD, even if further data, particularly regarding newer drugs, are needed.",
"corpus_id": 220411200
} | {
"title": "Venous thromboembolism in chronic gastrointestinal disorders",
"abstract": "ABSTRACT Introduction Chronic gastrointestinal disorders (including autoimmune gastritis, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and diverticular disease) are highly prevalent disorders, that may be associated with unpredictable, life-threatening complications, such as thromboembolic events. Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Several conditions, including cancer, major trauma, surgery, prolonged immobilization, are well-established risk factors for VTE. Over the past decade, chronic inflammation has also been identified as an independent risk factor for VTE due to the prothrombotic effects of inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress on the coagulation cascade. Other several mechanisms were shown to be associated with a higher incidence of VTE in patients with gastrointestinal disorders. Areas covered We critically discuss the latest insights into the mechanisms responsible for thromboembolic manifestations in chronic gastrointestinal disorders, also focusing on the recognition of risk factors and treatment. Expert opinion The occurrence of thrombotic complications is underestimated in patients with chronic gastrointestinal disorders. Identifying potential risk factors and concomitant predisposing conditions and to prevent VTE and guide treatment require a multidisciplinary approach, and this is critically important for clinicians, in order to provide the best care for such patients.",
"corpus_id": 248503858
} | {
"title": "FRI0689 EFFECT OF AIR POLLUTION EXPOSURE ON DISEASE ACTIVITY IN RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS",
"abstract": "Background Environmental exposure (e.g. tobacco smoking, pollution) has been accepted to contribute in autoimmune diseases. Air pollution has been described to be a risk factor for developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Currently, RA disease remission is considered an achievable target in a significant proportion of patients. Nevertheless, diseases flares, that significantly contributes to damage progression and disability, remain unpredictable. Thus, factors able to potentially interfere on disease activity should be considered and assessed. Objectives The aim of our study is to evaluate the influence of particulate matter (PM) on disease activity and general health (GH) in patients with RA. Methods Consecutive patients with RA (ACR/EULAR Criteria 2010) resident in Lombardy (Italy) were enrolled. In each patient Disease Activity Score on 28 joints (DAS28), Simple Disease Activity Index (SDAI) and patients’ GH were assessed. Daily PM concentrations, estimated by Regional Environmental Protection Agency at municipality resolution, were used to assign short-term exposure from day of visit back to 14 days. Continuous variables are expressed as mean±SD. Categorical variables are presented as absolute numbers and frequencies. Multivariable linear regression models were performed to identify the day of PM10 and PM2.5 independently associated with DAS28, GH and SDAI indices, adjusting for the variables significant at the univariate analysis. GH was log transformed to achieve normality of residuals. β coefficients were reported for 10 μg/m3 increments of PM concentrations. All statistical analyses were performed using SAS 9.4. Results 258 patients (age at visit 57.4±13.5 years, disease duration 16.2±12.1, female 80.2%, rheumatoid factor and/or anti-citrullinated peptide antibodies positivity 60.5%, smokers 15.5%, radiographic damage 41.5%) were enrolled in the study. Multivariable linear regression models were adjusted for radiographic damage, disease duration and age. Increases of PM2.5 and PM10 exposure (9 day before the visit) were significantly associated with worsening of DAS28, SDAI and GH (table below). PM concentrations in days other than 9 days before were significantly associated with disease activity and GH. Conclusion In our cohort, PM10 and PM2.5 exposure seems to influence RA disease activity with a lag period that can last until 9 days before the visit. Nevertheless, the association between day-to-day PM changes and disease activity do not confirm causation. Further studied are required to evaluate the influence of air pollution on RA activity. Disclosure of Interests None declared",
"corpus_id": 196517274
} |
{
"title": "A Study on the Applicability of the Impact-Echo Test Using Semi-Supervised Learning Based on Dynamic Preconditions",
"abstract": "The Impact-Echo (IE) test is an effective method for determining the presence, depth, and area of cracks in concrete as well as the dimensions of the sound concrete without defects. In addition, shallow delamination can be measured by confirming a flexural mode in the low-frequency region. Owing to the advancement of non-contact sensors and automated measurement equipment, the IE test can be measured at multiple points in a short period. To analyze and distinguish a large volume of data, applying supervised learning (SL) associated with various contemporary algorithms is necessary. However, SL has limitations due to the difficulty in accurate labeling for increased volumes of test data, and reflection of new specimen characteristics, and it is necessary to apply semi-supervised learning (SSL) to overcome them. This study analyzes the accuracy and evaluates the applicability of a model trained with SSL rather than SL using the data from the air-coupled IE test based on dynamic preconditions. For the detection of delamination defects, the dynamic behavior-based flexural mode was identified, and 21 features were extracted in the time and frequency domains. Three principal components (PCs) such as the real moment, real RMS, and imaginary moment were derived through principal component analysis (PCA). PCs were identical in slab, pavement, and deck. In the case of SSL considering a dynamic behavior, the accuracy increased by 7–8% compared with SL, and it could categorize good, fair, and poor status to a higher level for actual structures. The applicability of SSL to the IE test was confirmed, and because the crack progress varies under field conditions, other parameters must be considered in the future to reflect this.",
"corpus_id": 251074216
} | {
"title": "Development of sustainable concrete incorporating seawater: A critical review on cement hydration, microstructure and mechanical strength",
"abstract": "Abstract Many countries are experiencing freshwater crises due to the increasing growth of the population together with the infrastructure construction that is aligned with the needs of freshwater for concrete production. There are also deficiencies in freshwater in many coastal areas where seawater is more accessible. To reduce unnecessary resource-wasting and meanwhile drive sustainable development in the construction industry, great efforts have been made to utilize seawater as the alternative mixing water for concrete casting, which presents potential economical and environmental benefits in the coastal and island regions. This paper comprehensively reviews the current studies on the predominant performance differences between seawater-mixed and conventional concretes with freshwater. Particular attention is paid to the chloride-induced hydration mechanism due to the chloride ions in seawater. The main findings of this review reveal that although harmful ingredients in seawater may weaken some of the concrete performances, applying proper curing conditions and adding moderate additives and admixtures could significantly and effectively mitigate these defects in properties. However, the unstable chloride binding ability in cement hydrates cannot eliminate the risk of rebar corrosion caused by chlorides in seawater, resulting in a limited scope of practical application. Finally, some trade-offs are recommended in using seawater in concrete, suggesting prospects of applications in the future construction industry. This study guides for the safer use of seawater in sustainable concrete through reviewing the advanced research progress.",
"corpus_id": 236252883
} | {
"title": "Structural damage identification based on fast S-transform and convolutional neural networks",
"abstract": "Abstract Measured signals from installed sensors on structures cannot solely provide beneficial information about the presence of damage. Many signal processing methods have been developed to extract useful data from raw signals. However, each method has its advantages and disadvantages. In the present study, the fast S-transform signal processing method has been used for the damage detection of structures. Fast S-transform outperforms traditional S-Transform since it filters out unusable data using a scaling method. The method’s performance in obtaining correct natural frequencies of a structure has been evaluated using a 2 Degrees of Freedom (DOF) mass-spring dynamic system. Additionally, the ability of the method to detect damages in structural systems has been demonstrated using a 6 DOF structure subjected to Northridge earthquake record. The results of the mentioned numerical studies show that the fast S-transform can extract the accurate resonance frequencies of a structure, and also can detect the presence and the time of damage occurrence. In the experimental study, a 3 story plexi frame has been excited by a chirp sinusoidal signal. Furthermore, four different damage scenarios have been defined in the experimental study. To classify the four damage types, Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) has been used. The results of the experimental study show that fast S-transform can detect damages in real-time monitoring of structures, and the classification using CNN can identify the severity of damage.",
"corpus_id": 234012468
} |
{
"title": "Application of improved ELM algorithm in the prediction of earthquake casualties",
"abstract": "Background Earthquake casualties prediction is a basic work of the emergency response. Traditional forecasting methods have strict requirements on sample data and lots of parameters are required to be set manually, which can result in poor results with low prediction accuracy and slow learning speed. Method In this paper, the Extreme Leaning Machine (ELM) is introduced into the earthquake disaster casualty predictions with the purpose of improving the prediction accuracy. However, traditional ELM model still has the problems of poor network structure stability and low prediction accuracy. So an Adaptive Chaos Particle Swarm Optimization (ACPSO) is proposed to the optimize traditional ELM’s network parameters to enhance network stability and prediction accuracy, and the improved ELM model is applied to earthquake disaster casualty prediction. Results The experimental results show that the earthquake disaster casualty prediction model based on ACPSO-ELM algorithm has better stability and prediction accuracy. Conclusion ACPSO-ELM algorithm has better practicality and generalization in earthquake disaster casualty prediction.",
"corpus_id": 220073624
} | {
"title": "The casualty prediction of earthquake disaster based on Extreme Learning Machine method",
"abstract": "In the prediction of casualties of earthquake disaster, the traditional prediction method requires strict sample data, and it is necessary to manually set a large number of parameters, resulting in poor prediction accuracy and slow learning speed. This paper introduces the Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) into the earthquake casualty prediction, aiming to improve the prediction accuracy. Through the data training, the ELM network structure of earthquake victims’ casualty prediction is established, and the number of hidden layer nodes and the excitation function are determined, which ensures the reliability of the ELM network prediction results. Based on the data of 84 groups of earthquake victims from China in 1970–2017, the ELM algorithm, BP neural network, SVM and modified partial Gaussian curve were compared and verified. The results show that the average relative error of ELM algorithm for earthquake disaster prediction is 3.37%, the coefficient of determination R -square is 0.96, the average relative error of injury prediction is 1.04%, and the coefficient of determination R -square is 0.97, which indicates that the ELM algorithm has good robustness and generalization ability.",
"corpus_id": 217191808
} | {
"title": "Will the Assistant Become the Driver, and the Driver Become the Assistant?",
"abstract": "Current conversational and hierarchical structures between Personal Assistants (PAs) and drivers are clearly and explicitly defined, in that users are either hierarchically superordinate or on par with their PAs. Simultaneously, technological advances around intelligence, personalization and proactivity have gained momentum in the most recent past. The exponential development of intelligence-based technologies will soon enable PAs to take over large parts of the driving process. PAs will convince drivers to trust in their capabilities, by explaining themselves and their decision-making processes. They will consider drivers’ knowledge, experience, and needs to transform interactions into deeply personal experiences. Furthermore, proactive PAs will provide context-sensitive content in adequate situations. These developments may just tip the scale and challenge currently valid PA-driver-relations. We envision roles to undergo a reversal: where conversations are now driven by users and assisted by assistants, intelligent, personalized, and proactive PAs will take over the lead and, figuratively, the driver seat.",
"corpus_id": 259938677
} |
{
"title": "Establishment, Maintenance, and Performance of the Cooperative Osteosarcoma Study Group (COSS)",
"abstract": "Simple Summary The Cooperative Osteosarcoma Study Group (COSS), active since the late 1970s, is a multi-institutional consortium representing Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Its goals are to cure as many osteosarcoma patients as possible with as few late effects as achievable. Over the decades, COSS has amassed and followed more than 5000 affected patients into trials and its registry. This has allowed the group to perform many meaningful analyses. These have focused on specific trials as well as on particular patient-, tumor-, or treatment-related variables. Intergroup cooperation has further expanded knowledge generation about this rare disease, its variants, and some closely related malignancies. The present paper presents an overview over more than four decades of fruitful collaboration. Abstract Introduction: Osteosarcoma treatment has benefitted greatly from collaborative research. This paper describes the history and accomplishments of the Cooperative Osteosarcoma Study Group (COSS), mainly dedicated to clinical questions, as well as remaining challenges. Materials and Methods: Narrative review of over four decades of uninterrupted collaboration within the multi-national German–Austrian–Swiss COSS group. Results: Since its very first prospective osteosarcoma trial starting in 1977, COSS has continuously been able to provide high-level evidence on various tumor- and treatment-related questions. This includes both the cohort of patients enrolled into prospective trials as well as those patients excluded from them for various reasons, followed in a prospective registry. Well over one hundred disease-related publications attest to the group’s impact on the field. Despite these accomplishments, challenging problems remain. Discussion: Collaborative research within a multi-national study group resulted in better definitions of important aspects of the most common bone tumor, osteosarcoma, and its treatments. Important challenges continue to persist.",
"corpus_id": 257266225
} | {
"title": "Childhood cancer survivorship care: A qualitative study of healthcare providers’ professional preferences",
"abstract": "Purpose Childhood cancer survivorship care is a complex specialty, though it is increasingly being integrated into the general practitioner’s (GP) remit. Establishing the essential components of tertiary- and primary-led care, to maximize the benefits and overcome the challenges inherent to each, is essential to inform the development of survivor-centered, sustainable care models. Methods We used the qualitative principles of semi-structured interviewing, verbatim transcription, coding (supported by NVivo12) and thematic analysis, to collect and evaluate the views and preferences of pediatric oncologists, survivorship nurse coordinators, and GPs currently caring for childhood cancer survivors. Results Seventy healthcare providers (19 oncology staff and 51 GPs) from 11 tertiary hospitals and 51 primary practices across Australia and New Zealand participated. Participants reported specialist expertise and holistic family-centered care as the key benefits of tertiary and primary care respectively. Participants reported that tertiary-led survivorship care was significantly challenged by a lack of dedicated funding and costs/travel burden incurred by the survivor, whereas primary-led survivorship care was challenged by insufficient GP training and GPs’ reliance on oncologist-developed action plans to deliver guideline-based care. GPs also reported a need for ongoing access to survivorship expertise/consultants to support care decisions at critical times. The discharge of survivors into primary care limited late-effects data collection and the rapid implementation of novel research findings. Conclusions Healthcare professionals report that while a risk-stratified, collaborative model of survivor-centered care is optimal, to be implemented successfully, greater provisions for the ongoing engagement of GPs and further access to GP education/training are needed.",
"corpus_id": 252686141
} | {
"title": "Outcomes of Liver Transplantation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Beyond the University of California San Francisco Criteria: A Single-center Experience",
"abstract": "Background. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary malignant liver tumor. Currently, liver transplantation may be the optimal treatment for HCC in cirrhotic patients. Patient selection is currently based on tumor size. We developed a program to offer liver transplantation to selected patients with HCC outside of traditional criteria. Methods. Retrospective review for patients transplanted with HCC between April 2008 and June 2017. Patients were grouped by tumor size according to Milan, University of California San Francisco (UCSF), and outside UCSF criteria. Patient demographics, laboratory values, and outcomes were compared. Patients radiographically outside Milan criteria were selected based on tumor control with locoregional therapy (LRT) and 9 months of stability from LRT. α-fetoprotein values were not exclusionary. Results. Two hundred twenty HCC patients were transplanted, 138 inside Milan, 23 inside UCSF, and 59 beyond UCSF criteria. Patient survival was equivalent at 1, 3, or 5 years despite pathologic tumor size. Waiting time to transplantation was not significantly different at an average of 344 days. In patients outside UCSF, tumor recurrence was equivalent to Milan and UCSF criteria recipients who waited >9 months from LRT. Although tumor recurrence was more likely in outside of UCSF patients (3% versus 9% versus 15%; P = 0.02), recurrence-free survival only trended toward significance among the groups (P = 0.053). Conclusions. Selective patients outside of traditional size criteria can be effectively transplanted with equivalent survival to patients with smaller tumors, even when pathologic tumor burden is considered. Tumor stability over time can be used to help select patients for transplantation.",
"corpus_id": 195354691
} |
{
"title": "Echocardiographic parameters differentiating heart failure with preserved ejection fraction from asymptomatic left ventricular diastolic dysfunction",
"abstract": "(LVDD) either remains latent or manifests as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Little is known about echocardiographic parameters associated with symptomatic phenotype.",
"corpus_id": 210331467
} | {
"title": "Echocardiographic Features Beyond Ejection Fraction and Associated Outcomes in Patients With Heart Failure With Mildly Reduced or Preserved Ejection Fraction",
"abstract": "Background: Heart failure (HF) guidelines recommend assessment of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) to classify patients and guide therapy implementation. However, LVEF alone may be insufficient to adequately characterize patients with HF, especially those with mildly reduced or preserved LVEF. Recommendations on additional testing are lacking, and there are limited data on use of echocardiographic features beyond LVEF in patients with heart failure with mildly reduced or preserved LVEF. Methods: In patients with HF with mildly reduced or preserved LVEF identified in a large US health care system, the association of the following metrics with mortality was evaluated: LV global longitudinal strain (LV GLS>–16), left atrial volume index (>28 mL/m2), left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), and E/e´>13 and e´<9. A multivariable model for mortality was constructed including age, sex, and key comorbidities followed by stepwise selection of echocardiographic features. Characteristics and outcomes of subgroups with normal versus abnormal LV GLS and LVEF were evaluated. Results: Among 2337 patients with complete echocardiographic data assessed between 2017 and 2020, the following features were associated with all-cause mortality on univariate analysis over 3 years of follow-up: E/e´+e´, LV GLS, left atrial volume index (all P<0.01). In the multivariable model (C-index=0.65), only abnormal LV GLS was independently associated with all-cause mortality (HR, 1.35 [95% CI, 1.11–1.63]; P=0.002). Among patients with LVEF>55%, 498/1255 (40%) demonstrated abnormal LV GLS. Regardless of specific LVEF, patients with abnormal LV GLS demonstrated a higher burden of multiple comorbidities and higher event rates compared with patients with normal LV GLS. Conclusions: In a large, real-world HF with mildly reduced or preserved LVEF population, echocardiographic features, led by LV GLS, were associated with adverse outcomes irrespective of LVEF. A large proportion of patients demonstrate adverse myocardial function by LV GLS despite preserved LVEF and may represent a key cohort of interest for HF medical therapies and future clinical studies.",
"corpus_id": 258620343
} | {
"title": "Cause-specific mortality in patients with psoriatic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis",
"abstract": "Objective\nThe objective of this study was to examine cause-specific mortality in patients with PsA compared with the general population and compared with patients with RA.\n\n\nMethods\nA cohort study was performed using The Health Improvement Network among patients aged 18-89 years with data from 1994 to 2010. PsA and RA were defined by medical codes, and up to 10 unexposed controls were matched on practice and start date within the practice. Cause of death was classified using categories from UK death statistics. Each death was manually reviewed to ensure appropriate classification. Age- and sex-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and multivariable adjusted HRs were calculated using competing risks survival regression.\n\n\nResults\nAmong patients with PsA (8706), RA (41 752) and unexposed controls (81 573), 470, 7004 and 5269 deaths were observed, respectively. The most common causes of death among all patients were cardiovascular disease, followed by malignancy, respiratory deaths and infection. Cause of death was unknown in ∼25%. Among PsA patients, cardiovascular (1.09, 0.91-1.32), respiratory (0.97, 0.79-1.20), malignancy (1.03, 0.86-1.25) and infection deaths (1.05, 0.79-1.39) were not elevated. Among patients with RA, cardiovascular (1.55, 1.44-1.66), respiratory (1.85, 1.72-2.01), malignancy (1.18, 1.08-1.28) and infection deaths (2.21, 2.00-2.44) were significantly elevated compared with population controls. Although less common, suicide deaths were elevated in PsA and RA (HR 3.03 and 2.47, respectively).\n\n\nConclusion\nOverall mortality and cause-specific mortality risk were not elevated among patients with PsA except for suicide deaths. Patients with RA were at increased risk of deaths from cardiovascular, respiratory, cancer and infectious diseases.",
"corpus_id": 3714140
} |
{
"title": "Spatiotemporal Evolution and Determinants of the Geography of Chinese Patents Abroad: A Case Study of Strategic Emerging Industries",
"abstract": "China’s rapid technological growth and aggressive globalization policies have led to an increasing interest in Chinese patents abroad. This study uses strategic emerging industries (SEIs) that are important for the future development of the world as examples and constructs a novel dataset of Chinese SEI patents abroad (1993–2017) to explore the spatiotemporal evolution and determinants of the geography of these patents. Our results show that the number of Chinese SEI patents abroad is growing rapidly, and the new-generation information technology industry is increasingly dominating, accounting for approximately 50% of all SEI patents abroad. Chinese SEI patents abroad are highly concentrated in the United States, Western Europe, and East Asia, and their influence is gradually spreading from African countries to developed countries. The host country’s intellectual property rights (IPR) protection level, technology market size and imitation risk have significant positive effects on Chinese SEI patents abroad, while the host country’s high-tech product market size and competition risk have negative effects on Chinese patents abroad. The conclusions provide new information for understanding Chinese patents abroad activities and the motivation of China’s technology globalization and provide evidence from an emerging country for research of the international diffusion of technology innovation.",
"corpus_id": 255637267
} | {
"title": "Measurement and Comparison of the Innovation Spatial Spillover Effect: A Study Based on the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta, China",
"abstract": "Innovation is an important factor to improve the quality of economic growth, and amplifying the innovation spatial spillover effect is an important measure to support the development of innovation. Scholars have carried out diversified research on the innovation spatial spillover effect, but there is still practical significance for deepening the research on the spatial spillover effect. In particular, the multi-angle comparative study in different regions still has research value, especially for the field of urban agglomeration integration. The spatial econometric model is a common method to measure spatial spillover effect. In order to carry out a multi-angle comparative study of innovation spatial spillover effects in different regions, this study takes two typical integrated urban agglomerations of the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta in China as the object, and conducts a comparative study of the evolutionary characteristics of innovation spatial spillover effects based on urban scale data and the spatial econometric model. Differently from previous studies, invention patents are adopted to characterize the innovation level. The results show that there are significant positive innovation spatial spillover effects in the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta, and the spatial spillover effect in the Yangtze River Delta is stronger. The spatial spillover effect exhibits significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity. For example, the spatial spillover effect in the core region and the fringe region of the urban agglomeration exhibits a positive effect, but the Yangtze River Delta is stronger than the Pearl River Delta. As an important innovation, the spatial spillover effects both exhibit the evolutionary characteristics of “inverted U-shape” based on the changes in geographical distance, and the spatial spillover effect of the Yangtze River Delta is always larger. Based on the empirical research, we propose promoting high-quality development by strengthening urban agglomeration cooperation, realizing urban agglomeration expansion in an orderly way, and improving the macro-political system.",
"corpus_id": 256759036
} | {
"title": "Neither at the cutting edge nor in a patent-friendly environment: Appropriating the returns from innovation in a less developed economy",
"abstract": "Abstract Despite increased focus on understanding how firms appropriate the returns from innovation, our knowledge regarding firms' behaviour in less developed economies (LDEs) is still scant. This paper provides a nuanced view as to how firms that are not at the technological frontier attempt to capture value when they encounter fragile patenting conditions. I analyse a unique dataset on innovative activities in Brazil. My findings reveal the effects (if any) of a number of factors on the use of a wide range of appropriability mechanisms. These factors include measures of knowledge intensity, novelty of products and processes, firm size, degree of competition, innovation cooperation, government support for innovation, and type of ownership. In addition, my empirical exercise provides evidence of the extent to which firms in an LDE adopt different appropriability mechanisms in pairs. Overall, this paper indicates that even in the absence of an effective patent system, firms do use patents. However, there are other patterns of appropriability in which firms use design (being registered or not registered accordingly), lead-time or trademarks in association with other means of appropriation.",
"corpus_id": 224868791
} |
{
"title": "Enhanced antibacterial activity and photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes under visible light using cesium lead iodide perovskite nanostructures prepared by hydrothermal method",
"abstract": "Abstract Perovskite nanostructures with various morphologies have designated encouraging shape-dependent characteristics. Metal-halide perovskite nanostructures have appeared as cost-effective, efficient, light-active substances for photocatalytic purposes. The photocatalytic process is an environmentally-friendly procedure that became known as an encouraging option for the destruction of various toxic contaminants. The shortcomings of the current photocatalytic system, which restricts their technical applications incorporate fast charge recombination, low-utilization of visible radiation, and low immigration capability of the photo-induced electron-hole. In this research, Cesium lead iodide (CsPbI3) perovskite nanostructures have been prepared via the hydrothermal method. The impact of multiple factors, including molar ratios of precursors, different types of capping agents, reaction time, and reaction temperature was studied on purity, morphology, and particle size of nanostructures. The photocatalytic behavior of the CsPbI3 nanostructures was studied for the destruction of organic dyes under visible light and indicated that these nanoparticles could remove and degrade organic pollutants in high value. The highest efficiency was observed in the presence of methyl violet, with a decolorization percentage of 81.7%. The results indicated that the CsPbI3 perovskite nanostructures could be used as high-performance catalysts for water pollution removal. Besides, the antibacterial results showed that the maximum antibacterial activity was against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli and Streptococcus pyogenes.",
"corpus_id": 225037698
} | {
"title": "Antibacterial Activity of Metallic Nanoparticles against Multidrug-Resistant Pathogens Isolated from Environmental Samples: Nanoparticles/Antibiotic Combination Therapy and Cytotoxicity Study.",
"abstract": "Multidrug-resistant organisms have increased the prevalence of infectious diseases and have become the leading source of death globally. The adverse effects associated with conventional antibiotics cannot be underestimated, and as a result, the quest for antibacterial agents has received great attention over the years. Therefore, the current research was designed to synthesize and examine the antibacterial properties of two metallic nanoparticles, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs), as well as their antibiotic combination therapy against multidrug-resistant bacteria. AgNPs and ZnONPs were synthesized by the coprecipitation method and characterized. Thereafter, their antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant bacteria was investigated using the microdilution technique. Subsequently, the interactions between the synthesized nanoparticles and antibiotics were evaluated by checkerboard assay. Time-kill assays were carried out to assess bacteriostatic or bactericidal effects, and the cytotoxicity study was carried out by MTT assay. The SEM analysis of AgNPs and ZnONPs were spherical with an average size of 21.03 and 43.37 nm, respectively. FTIR analysis showed the characteristics of the metal-oxygen vibrational band for both materials around 450 cm-1, which indicated the successful synthesis of these antibacterial agents. The EDX characterization revealed Zn and O with 77.89% and 18.24% abundance in ZnONPs and Ag with 95.65% abundance in AgNPs. UV-vis absorption spectra of AgNPs was obtained around 400 nm. ZnONPs showed a moderate antibacterial effect against Enterococcus species with a MIC range of 2.5-5 mg/mL, while AgNPs demonstrated a strong antibacterial effect against the tested bacterial strains with a MIC range of 0.078-0.039 mg/mL. The ZnONPs were found to be cytotoxic against Vero cell lines at the tested concentrations, whereas AgNPs had no cytotoxic effect at lower concentrations. Their combination activities showed synergetic and additive effects. These findings revealed that these synthesized materials could serve as alternate antibacterial agents against multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumanni and Enterococcus species.",
"corpus_id": 252543157
} | {
"title": "Boosting Electrochemical CO2 Reduction on Metal-Organic Frameworks via Ligand Doping.",
"abstract": "Electrochemical CO2 reduction relies on the availability of highly efficient and selective catalysts. Herein, we report a general strategy to boost the activity of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) towards CO2 reduction via ligand doping. A strong electron-donating molecule of 1,10-phenanthroline was doped into Zn-based MOFs of zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) as CO2 reduction electrocatalyst. Experimental and theoretical evidences reveal that the electron-donating nature of phenanthroline enables a charge transfer, which induces adjacent active sites at the sp2 C atoms in the imidazole ligand possessing more electrons, and facilitates the generation of *COOH, hence leading to improved activity and Faradaic efficiency towards CO production.",
"corpus_id": 59306879
} |
{
"title": "One-pot synthesis of Polyindole–Au nanocomposite and its nanoscale electrical properties",
"abstract": "Abstract Nanosized gold (Au) and polyindole (PIn) composite was prepared via in-situ polymerization of indole, using metal salt chloro-auric acid as an oxidant, in a microemulsion system. The oxidization of indole and the reduction of Au 3+ ions occurred simultaneously in a single step, which resulted in a core shell structure having a coating of polyindole over monodispersed, size-controlled, highly populated, and stable gold nanoparticles. Indole polymerization governed by chloro-auric acid, was monitored using UV–vis absorption spectroscopy. Nanoscale electrical characterization of polyindole nanocomposite was performed using current-sensing atomic force microscopy. The investigated properties of the composite proved its enormous potential in electronic applications and fabrication of nanoscale organic devices.",
"corpus_id": 96579342
} | {
"title": "Preparation and Characterization of a Novel Activated Carbon@Polyindole Composite for the Effective Removal of Ionic Dye from Water",
"abstract": "The present study is aimed at the synthesis and exploring the efficiency of a novel activated carbon incorporated polyindole (AC@PIN) composite for adsorptive removal of Malachite Green (MG) dye from aqueous solution. An AC@PIN hybrid material was prepared by in situ chemical oxidative polymerization. The physico-chemical characteristics of the AC@PIN composite were assessed using Fourier-transform infrared spectrometer, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, ultraviolet visible spectroscopy, and determination of point of zero charge (pHPZC). A series of adsorption studies was conducted to evaluate the influence of operational parameters such as pH, contact time, initial dye concentration, AC@PIN dosage, and temperature on dye adsorption behavior of developed composite. A maximum dye removal percentage (97.3%) was achieved at the pH = 10, AC@PIN dosage = 6.0 mg, initial dye concentration 150 mg L−1, and temperature = 20 °C. The kinetic studies demonstrated that the adsorption of MG on AC@PIN followed pseudo-second-order model (R2 ≥ 0.99). Meanwhile, Langmuir isotherm model was founded to be the best isotherm model to describe the adsorption process. Finally, the recyclability test revealed that the composite exhibits good recycle efficiency and is stable after 5 cycles. The obtained results suggest that AC@PIN composite could be a potential candidate for the removal of MG from wastewater.",
"corpus_id": 245410849
} | {
"title": "Interfacial synthesis of long polyindole fibers",
"abstract": "Polyindole fibers upto a length of 1000 μm and ∼ 25 μm in diameter have been reproducibly synthesized by interfacial polymerization, which was performed at a stationary interface of aqueous (FeCl3 solution)/organic (indole in dichloromethane) biphasic system. On the other hand, disturbing the aqueous/organic interface by constant stirring of solution—termed as bulk polymerization—resulted in globular (average size ∼ 2 μm) polyindole. The results of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that polymerization takes place at carbon atoms located at positions 2 and 3 in indole monomer, and this has explained origin of different polyindole morphology obtained in interfacial and bulk polymerization. Cyclic voltammograms recorded as a function of scan rate indicated a high electroactivity of the synthesized polyindole. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 103: 595–599, 2007",
"corpus_id": 97047911
} |
{
"title": "Bismuth, esomeprazole, metronidazole, and minocycline or tetracycline as a first-line regimen for Helicobacter pylori eradication: A randomized controlled trial",
"abstract": "Abstract Background: Given the general unavailability, common adverse effects, and complicated administration of tetracycline, the clinical application of classic bismuth quadruple therapy (BQT) is greatly limited. Whether minocycline can replace tetracycline for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication is unknown. We aimed to compare the eradication rate, safety, and compliance between minocycline- and tetracycline-containing BQT as first-line regimens. Methods: This randomized controlled trial was conducted on 434 naïve patients with H. pylori infection. The participants were randomly assigned to 14-day minocycline-containing BQT group (bismuth potassium citrate 110 mg q.i.d., esomeprazole 20 mg b.i.d., metronidazole 400 mg q.i.d., and minocycline 100 mg b.i.d.) and tetracycline-containing BQT group (bismuth potassium citrate/esomeprazole/metronidazole with doses same as above and tetracycline 500 mg q.i.d.). Safety and compliance were assessed within 3 days after eradication. Urea breath test was performed at 4–8 weeks after eradication to evaluate outcome. We used a noninferiority test to compare the eradication rates of the two groups. The intergroup differences were evaluated using Pearson chi-squared or Fisher's exact test for categorical variables and Student's t-test for continuous variables. Results: As for the eradication rates of minocycline- and tetracycline-containing BQT, the results of both intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) analyses showed that the difference rate of lower limit of 95% confidence interval (CI) was >-10.0% (ITT analysis: 181/217 [83.4%] vs. 180/217 [82.9%], with a rate difference of 0.5% [-6.9% to 7.9%]; PP analysis: 177/193 [91.7%] vs. 176/191 [92.1%], with a rate difference of -0.4% [-5.6% to 6.4%]). Except for dizziness more common (35/215 [16.3%] vs. 13/214 [6.1%], P = 0.001) in minocycline-containing therapy groups, the incidences of adverse events (75/215 [34.9%] vs. 88/214 [41.1%]) and compliance (195/215 [90.7%] vs. 192/214 [89.7%]) were similar between the two groups. Conclusion: The eradication efficacy of minocycline-containing BQT was noninferior to tetracycline-containing BQT as first-line regimen for H. pylori eradication with similar safety and compliance. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, ChiCTR 1900023646.",
"corpus_id": 257911355
} | {
"title": "Recent progress in Helicobacter pylori treatment",
"abstract": "Abstract The main challenge in the field of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is antibiotic resistance, which influences the efficacy of eradication regimens. Bismuth-containing quadruple therapy has been confirmed as an effective regimen for eradicating H. pylori, especially in strains with antibiotic resistance. High-dose proton-pump inhibitor-amoxicillin dual therapy could decrease the use of unnecessary antibiotics, which is a promising alternative approach. Adjuvant therapy (specific probiotic or vitamin) also showed good results, although more evidence is needed. Novel anti-H. pylori drugs are needed, and the establishment of the H. pylori database is an effective way to acknowledge the real-time information of H. pylori management. This review provides the recent progress of H. pylori treatment, and further studies are needed to address the role of different regimens in improving H. pylori eradication rate, especially in strains with antibiotics resistance.",
"corpus_id": 210192546
} | {
"title": "Bilateral Multiple Mammary Myofibroblastomas in an Adult Male",
"abstract": "In 2007, a 74-year-old male resident of New Mexico presented with bilateral breast masses. Notable history included cutaneous melanoma (status-post wide resection, in 1987) and prostatic adenocarcinoma (status-post radical prostatectomy, in 1992); without evidence of recurrence or metastases from either malignancy. Mammography showed 3 well-circumscribed, round, and homogeneous masses in the right (R) breast (largest 1.4 cm), and 2 similar masses in the left (L, largest 1.7 cm) (Figure 1A and B). These tumors were present in different quadrants, at variable distances from the respective nipples. Ultrasound examination revealed all 5 masses to be solid (Figure 1C and D). Needle core biopsies of the bilateral masses showed histologically similar spindle cell neoplasms. The lesional spindle cells displayed pale cytoplasm and elongated nuclei with micronucleoli, and were arranged in fascicles amid wispy straps of collagen. Neither nuclear atypia nor mitotic activity was evident (Figure 2). The spindle cells were immunoreactive for CD34, desmin, estrogen receptor, and Bcl-2 (Figure 3). Based on these findings, the diagnosis of bilateral multiple mammary myofibroblastomas (MM) was rendered. Clinical observation, and not surgical excision, was opted for. The subsequent 8 years were uneventful. In 2015, the patient was diagnosed to have mantle cell lymphoma. Computed tomography, performed as part of 735895 IJSXXX10.1177/1066896917735895International Journal of Surgical PathologyViswanathan et al research-article2017",
"corpus_id": 206651420
} |
{
"title": "Development and Validation of Online Nutrition Education Video EMPIRE (Emotion and Mind Power in Relationship with Eating) For Millennials with Overweight and Obesity",
"abstract": "Overweight and obesity are still the biggest health problem in Indonesia, especially for the current millennial generation. The concept of mindfulness and mindful eating can be one of the intervention strategies to overcome overweight and obesity in this modern era. The study aimed to develop and validate the online nutrition education video EMPIE (Emotion and Mind Power in Relationship with Eating) for millennials with overweight and obesity. This study uses a 3-step method, namely, development (development of EMPIRE online nutrition education video materials), validation (validating content and constructs by 10 experts and 3 millennial respondents with overweight/obesity), evaluation (evaluation stage is not carried out by researchers due to time constraints). For construct validation using Pearson correlation and content validation using Content Validity Ratio (CVR) and Item-Level Content Validity Index (I-CVI) ?0,80. Validation consists of content, objective, relevant, motivational and construct components such as language and writing, illustrations, and quality. The content and construct validation of the EMPIRE nutrition education video (1,2,3,4,5) by experts and millennial respondents with overweight was declared valid with an overall average value of CVI ? 0.80. The content and construct components in the EMPIRE online nutrition education video are valid, so they are suitable to help overcome overweight and obesity among millennials",
"corpus_id": 238702464
} | {
"title": "Effects of Educational Videos to Increase Knowledge, Attitudes, and Sleep Quality of Pregnant Women with Chronic Energy Deficiency",
"abstract": "Lack of knowledge and attitudes is factor in the unresolved problem malnutrition pregnant women. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of nutritional education media and sleep quality to increase knowledge and attitudes of chronic energy deficiency pregnant women towards nutrition and sleep quality. The research used is quantitative, while the design uses a combination of research and development and quasi-experimental methods with pre-posttest design controls. The sample was 63 pregnant women who experienced chronic energy deficiency (CED). Sampling technique by means of total sampling. Data analysis showed that knowledge increased significantly after being given the video intervention (mean=57, SD=14.53), the control group was lower, namely mean=9.1, SD=20.24, attitudes increased in the intervention group (mean=65.0, SD=20.47), control group (mean=2.96, SD=20.56), sleep quality in the intervention group increased with an average mean=0.68, SD=1.69, control group mean=0.000, SD=0.894. The p-value of the Mann-Whitney test results for the variables of knowledge, attitudes, and sleep quality is 0.000 < (0.005), this shows that there are differences in knowledge and attitudes before and after the educational animated video. In Conclusions, education using animated videos on nutrition and sleep quality is effective in improving the nutritional status of pregnant women. These results imply the need for educational media designs with more attractive models and innovations with more intensive promotion methods. It is hoped that future research can examine more deeply the relationship between other factors that influence chronic energy deficiency in pregnant women, such as sleep patterns and family support.",
"corpus_id": 259458955
} | {
"title": "Opinion Shift and Stability: The Information Environment and Long-Lasting Opposition to Trump’s Muslim Ban",
"abstract": "On January 27, 2017, President Trump signed executive order 13769, which denied citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries entry into the United States. Opposition to what was termed the “Muslim ban” quickly amassed, producing sudden shifts to the information environment and to individual-level preferences. The present study examines whether within-subject shifts against the ban lasted over an extended period of time. Evidence from a three-wave panel study indicates that individual-level opinions, once they shifted against the ban, remained fairly stable one year later. Analysis of a large corpus of cable broadcast transcripts and newspaper articles further demonstrates that coverage of the ban from February 2017 to January 2018 did not dissipate, remained largely critical, and lacked any significant counter-narratives to potentially alter citizens’ preferences once again. Our study underscores the potential of capturing the dynamics of rapid attitudinal shifts with timely panel data, and of assessing the durability of such changes over time. It also highlights how mass movements and political communication may alter and stabilize citizens’ policy preferences, even those that target stigmatized groups.",
"corpus_id": 189912783
} |
{
"title": "Research progress on the proteins involved in African swine fever virus infection and replication",
"abstract": "African swine fever (ASF) is an acute, hemorrhagic and highly contagious infectious disease caused by African swine fever virus (ASFV), which infects domestic pigs or wild boars. It is characterized by short course of disease, high fever and hemorrhagic lesions, with mortality of up to 100% from acute infection. Up to now, the lack of commercial vaccines and effective drugs has seriously threatened the healthy economic development of the global pig industry. ASFV is a double-stranded DNA virus and genome varies between about 170-194 kb, which encodes 150-200 viral proteins, including 68 structural proteins and more than 100 non-structural proteins. In recent years, although the research on structure and function of ASFV-encoded proteins has been deepened, the structure and infection process of ASFV are still not clear. This review summarizes the main process of ASFV infection, replication and functions of related viral proteins to provide scientific basis and theoretical basis for ASFV research and vaccine development.",
"corpus_id": 250929048
} | {
"title": "Antagonisms of ASFV towards Host Defense Mechanisms: Knowledge Gaps in Viral Immune Evasion and Pathogenesis",
"abstract": "African swine fever (ASF) causes high morbidity and mortality of both domestic pigs and wild boars and severely impacts the swine industry worldwide. ASF virus (ASFV), the etiologic agent of ASF epidemics, mainly infects myeloid cells in swine mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS), including blood-circulating monocytes, tissue-resident macrophages, and dendritic cells (DCs). Since their significant roles in bridging host innate and adaptive immunity, these cells provide ASFV with favorable targets to manipulate and block their antiviral activities, leading to immune escape and immunosuppression. To date, vaccines are still being regarded as the most promising measure to prevent and control ASF outbreaks. However, ASF vaccine development is delayed and limited by existing knowledge gaps in viral immune evasion, pathogenesis, etc. Recent studies have revealed that ASFV can employ diverse strategies to interrupt the host defense mechanisms via abundant self-encoded proteins. Thus, this review mainly focuses on the antagonisms of ASFV-encoded proteins towards IFN-I production, IFN-induced antiviral response, NLRP3 inflammasome activation, and GSDMD-mediated pyroptosis. Additionally, we also make a brief discussion concerning the potential challenges in future development of ASF vaccine.",
"corpus_id": 257064519
} | {
"title": "Pathogenicity and Genetic Characterization of Vietnamese Classical Swine Fever Virus: 2014–2018",
"abstract": "Here, we examined the pathogenicity and genetic differences between classical swine fever viruses (CSFV) isolated on pig farms in North Vietnam from 2014–2018. Twenty CSFV strains from 16 pig farms were classified as genotype 2 (sub-genotypes 2.1b, 2.1c, and 2.2). The main sub-genotype, 2.1c, was classified phylogenetically as belonging to the same cluster as viruses isolated from the Guangdong region in South China. Strain HY58 (sub-genotype 2.1c), isolated from pigs in Vietnam, caused higher mortality (60%) than the Vietnamese ND20 strain (sub-genotype 2.2). The Vietnamese strain of sub-genotype 2.1b was estimated to have moderate virulence; indeed, genetic analysis revealed that it belongs to the same cluster as Korean CSFV sub-genotype 2.1b. Most CSFVs circulating in North Vietnam belong to sub-genotype 2.1c. Geographical proximity means that this genotype might continue to circulate in both North Vietnam and Southern China (Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hunan).",
"corpus_id": 211832854
} |
{
"title": "Transglutaminase Participates in the Incorporation of Latent TGFβ into the Extracellular Matrix of Aging Articular Chondrocytes",
"abstract": "TGFβ1 is a multifunctional peptide growth factor that promotes processes associated with age-related degenerative diseases in articular cartilage. Large quantities of TGFβ1 are stored in cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) in a latent form (LTGFβ1), and yet little is known about the factors that participate in the incorporation of LTGFβ1 into the highly specialized cartilage ECM. We previously demonstrated high levels of the protein cross-linking enzyme transglutaminase (TGase) in aging articular chondrocytes and showed that this enzyme participated in LTGFf31 activation. This work explores the hypothesis that extracellular TGase participates in LTGFβ1 incorporation into ECM in aging chondrocytes. We studied the effects of Tease inhibitors on TGFβ1 levels in ECM of old and young porcine articular chondrocytes. TGase inhibitors decreased the quantity of LTGFβ1 in the ECM in old but not in young chondrocytes to 60-70% of control values (p<.05). Fibronectin, an extracellular TGase competitive substrate, also decreased LTGFβ1 levels in ECM (p<.01). Levels of activated TGF131 also decreased in the presence of TGase inhibitors, as did levels of latent TGF13 binding protein l in the cell layer. Extracellular TGase activity was present in old but not young chondrocyte cultures. These findings support a role for extracellular TGase in the incorporation of LTGFβ1 in the ECM of aging chondrocytes.",
"corpus_id": 34504551
} | {
"title": "Accumulation of exogenous activated TGF-β in the superficial zone of articular cartilage.",
"abstract": "It was recently demonstrated that mechanical shearing of synovial fluid (SF), induced during joint motion, rapidly activates latent transforming growth factor β (TGF-β). This discovery raised the possibility of a physiological process consisting of latent TGF-β supply to SF, activation via shearing, and transport of TGF-β into the cartilage matrix. Therefore, the two primary objectives of this investigation were to characterize the secretion rate of latent TGF-β into SF, and the transport of active TGF-β across the articular surface and into the cartilage layer. Experiments on tissue explants demonstrate that high levels of latent TGF-β1 are secreted from both the synovium and all three articular cartilage zones (superficial, middle, and deep), suggesting that these tissues are capable of continuously replenishing latent TGF-β to SF. Furthermore, upon exposure of cartilage to active TGF-β1, the peptide accumulates in the superficial zone (SZ) due to the presence of an overwhelming concentration of nonspecific TGF-β binding sites in the extracellular matrix. Although this response leads to high levels of active TGF-β in the SZ, the active peptide is unable to penetrate deeper into the middle and deep zones of cartilage. These results provide strong evidence for a sequential physiologic mechanism through which SZ chondrocytes gain access to active TGF-β: the synovium and articular cartilage secrete latent TGF-β into the SF and, upon activation, TGF-β transports back into the cartilage layer, binding exclusively to the SZ.",
"corpus_id": 206299353
} | {
"title": "Defining the biological basis of radiomic phenotypes in lung cancer",
"abstract": "Medical imaging can visualize characteristics of human cancer noninvasively. Radiomics is an emerging field that translates these medical images into quantitative data to enable phenotypic profiling of tumors. While radiomics has been associated with several clinical endpoints, the complex relationships of radiomics, clinical factors, and tumor biology are largely unknown. To this end, we analyzed two independent cohorts of respectively 262 North American and 89 European patients with lung cancer, and consistently identified previously undescribed associations between radiomic imaging features, molecular pathways, and clinical factors. In particular, we found a relationship between imaging features, immune response, inflammation, and survival, which was further validated by immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, a number of imaging features showed predictive value for specific pathways; for example, intra-tumor heterogeneity features predicted activity of RNA polymerase transcription (AUC = 0.62, p=0.03) and intensity dispersion was predictive of the autodegration pathway of a ubiquitin ligase (AUC = 0.69, p<10-4). Finally, we observed that prognostic biomarkers performed highest when combining radiomic, genetic, and clinical information (CI = 0.73, p<10-9) indicating complementary value of these data. In conclusion, we demonstrate that radiomic approaches permit noninvasive assessment of both molecular and clinical characteristics of tumors, and therefore have the potential to advance clinical decision-making by systematically analyzing standard-of-care medical images. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.23421.001",
"corpus_id": 32296835
} |
{
"title": "Multiscale Topology Optimization Considering Local and Global Buckling Response",
"abstract": "Much work has been done in multiscale topology optimization for maximum sti ff ness or minimum compliance design. Such approaches date back to the original homogenization-based work by Bendsøe and Kikuchi from 1988, which lately has been revived due to advances in manufacturing methods like additive manufacturing. Orthotropic microstructures locally oriented in principal stress directions provide for highly e ffi cient sti ff ness optimal designs, whereas for the pure sti ff ness objective, porous isotropic microstructures are sub-optimal and hence not useful. It has, however, been postulated and exemplified that isotropic microstructures (infill) may enhance structural buckling stability but this has yet to be directly proven and optimized. In this work, we optimize buckling stability of multiscale structures with isotropic porous infill. To do this, we establish local density dependent Willam-Warnke yield surfaces based on buckling estimates from Bloch-Floquet-based cell analysis to predict local instability of the homogenized materials. These local buckling-based stress constraints are combined with a global buckling criterion to obtain topology optimized designs that take both local and global buckling stability into account. De-homogenized structures with small and large cell sizes confirm validity of the approach and demonstrate huge structural gains as well as time savings compared to standard singlescale approaches.",
"corpus_id": 253080599
} | {
"title": "Optimization of graded filleted lattice structures subject to yield and buckling constraints",
"abstract": "Abstract To reduce the stress concentration and ensure structural safety for lattice structure designs, in this paper, a new optimization framework is developed for the optimal design of graded lattice structures, innovatively integrating fillet designs as well as yield and buckling constraints. Both relative strut radii and fillet parameters are defined as design variables, for BCC and PC lattices. Numerical homogenization is employed to characterize the effective elastic constants and yield stresses of the lattice metamaterials. Metamaterial models are developed to represent the relationships between the metamaterial effective properties and lattice geometric variables. Yield and buckling constraints, based on modified Hill’s yield criterion as well as Euler and Johnson buckling formulae respectively, are developed as functions of lattice geometric variables. A new optimization framework is proposed with both yield and buckling constraints integrated. A case study on minimizing the compliance of a Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm beam, composed of either BCC or PC lattices, is conducted. The yield and buckling constraints guarantee the structural safety of the optimized lattice beams. The optimized beams composed of filleted lattices, compared with non-filleted lattices in the corresponding type, show reduced proportions subject to high modified Hill’s stress ( σ Hill ≥ 0.95 ) with 6∼7% reductions in compliance.",
"corpus_id": 232135326
} | {
"title": "Topology Modeling and Design of a Novel Magnetic Coupling Fault Current Limiter for VSC DC Grids",
"abstract": "In a voltage-source converter dc grid, a dc fault current limiter (FCL) is a key apparatus. When faults occur, it is supposed to effectively and immediately suppress transient short-circuit current to protect other equipment, e.g., converters. Additionally, it is required to bring as little negative effect as possible under normal operation. Although the respective advantages are highlighted in different FCLs, one or two key disadvantages can significantly decrease the overall performance. In this article, a novel magnetic coupling FCL (MCFCL) is proposed and achieves a good balance among its advantages and disadvantages. An MCFCL consists of a mutual inductor and some power electronic switch modules. The mutual inductor metallic primary winding is connected in series to the transmission line and magnetically coupled with the secondary winding. The secondary side impedance is controlled by the power electronic switch modules. The novel 4-segment model is proposed to demonstrate the current-limiting physics, formulate the current-limiting effect, and support the design. One medium voltage (10 kV) case study is carried out based on the numerical simulation. The MCFCL shows a better current-suppressing effect and a lower impedance under normal operation than the benchmark Reactor FCL. Finally, this article is validated on a scaled-down experimental facility.",
"corpus_id": 226725338
} |
{
"title": "Characterization of a static expansion standard for calibrating medium and high vacuum pressure gauges",
"abstract": "The Centro de Desarrollo Tecnológico del Gas developed a static expansion system to enable the calibration of medium and high vacuum pressure gauges in Colombia. The system can generate pressures between 0.1 Pa and 100 kPa. The characterization tests included the evaluation of pressure stability and desorption rate, a trueness test, and the analysis of the uncertainty budget of the calibration result. The pressure stability test was successfully completed and showed the positive effect of baking on the final pressure in the system. The trueness test allowed concluding that the calibration results with the system are comparable with those obtained with a reference meter traceable to a national metrology institute. The uncertainty budget analysis indicated the dominance of the pressure of the unit under calibration and of the initial pressure in the small tank in different pressure ranges on the uncertainty of the result. A comparison with a Monte Carlo simulation led to the conclusion that in this situation, the GUM (Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement) method is not ideal for estimating the uncertainty of the results.",
"corpus_id": 245139675
} | {
"title": "The KRISS Primary Vacuum Gauge Calibration Standards: A Review",
"abstract": "The calibration of vacuum gauges is mainly carried out in two ways; i) using the primary standards in which the readings of a test gauge are compared with the pressures generated by the standard, and ii) by comparison method in which the readings of the gauge under test are compared with the output signal of a secondary standard. The former type of standards are, usually, large and complicated systems comprising of vacuum pumps, chambers, valves, and gauges etc. while the later type are simply vacuum gauges, with superior qualities, which are attached to a properly designed calibration system. The Vacuum Measurement Lab at Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS), Rep. of Korea, maintains primary standards as well as systems for calibration by comparison method. The KRISS primary standards can be used for the calibration purpose in the pressure range from ~10-7 Pa to 133 kPa. For bilateral as well as key comparison of these standards, KRISS has participated in the past where its standards have good degree of equivalence and hence international recognition, with other national standards like that of NIST, PTB, NPL(UK), etc. Besides, the KRISS Vacuum Measurement Lab also has comparison system which can be used for calibration by comparison method. However, here the KRISS primary vacuum gauge calibration standards are discussed brie‰y with the aim to provide enough information to the readers in a single paper.",
"corpus_id": 99273482
} | {
"title": "Development and performance analysis of a standard orifice flow calibration system.",
"abstract": "An orifice flow system has been developed indigenously which is a primary standard for the calibration of high vacuum gauges in the range of 10(-3)-10(-6) mbar. It consists of a constant-volume flow meter, designed to generate a known flow rate of a particular gas to the vacuum chamber. This chamber is partitioned into two parts by a plate with an orifice of calculable conductance. The pressures, generated by this standard system, are compared with those of secondary standard, namely, spinning rotor gauge. Different uncertainties and correction factors are calculated. The maximum percentage deviation is from 1.16% to 0.97%. The combined uncertainties over the entire calibration range of the standard system are in the range of 4.0 x 10(-6) mbar.",
"corpus_id": 23830964
} |
{
"title": "A systematic review on emperor penguin optimizer",
"abstract": "Emperor Penguin Optimizer (EPO) is a recently developed metaheuristic algorithm to solve general optimization problems. The main strength of EPO is twofold. Firstly, EPO has low learning curve (i.e., based on the simple analogy of huddling behavior of emperor penguins in nature (i.e., surviving strategy during Antarctic winter). Secondly, EPO offers straightforward implementation. In the EPO, the emperor penguins represent the candidate solution, huddle denotes the search space that comprises a two-dimensional L-shape polygon plane, and randomly positioned of the emperor penguins represents the feasible solution. Among all the emperor penguins, the focus is to locate an effective mover representing the global optimal solution. To-date, EPO has slowly gaining considerable momentum owing to its successful adoption in many broad range of optimization problems, that is, from medical data classification, economic load dispatch problem, engineering design problems, face recognition, multilevel thresholding for color image segmentation, high-dimensional biomedical data analysis for microarray cancer classification, automatic feature selection, event recognition and summarization, smart grid system, and traffic management system to name a few. Reflecting on recent progress, this paper thoroughly presents an in-depth study related to the current EPO’s adoption in the scientific literature. In addition to highlighting new potential areas for improvements (and omission), the finding of this study can serve as guidelines for researchers and practitioners to improve the current state-of-the-arts and state-of-practices on general adoption of EPO while highlighting its new emerging areas of applications.",
"corpus_id": 239277534
} | {
"title": "An Efficient Improved Greedy Harris Hawks Optimizer and Its Application to Feature Selection",
"abstract": "To overcome the lack of flexibility of Harris Hawks Optimization (HHO) in switching between exploration and exploitation, and the low efficiency of its exploitation phase, an efficient improved greedy Harris Hawks Optimizer (IGHHO) is proposed and applied to the feature selection (FS) problem. IGHHO uses a new transformation strategy that enables flexible switching between search and development, enabling it to jump out of local optima. We replace the original HHO exploitation process with improved differential perturbation and a greedy strategy to improve its global search capability. We tested it in experiments against seven algorithms using single-peaked, multi-peaked, hybrid, and composite CEC2017 benchmark functions, and IGHHO outperformed them on optimization problems with different feature functions. We propose new objective functions for the problem of data imbalance in FS and apply IGHHO to it. IGHHO outperformed comparison algorithms in terms of classification accuracy and feature subset length. The results show that IGHHO applies not only to global optimization of different feature functions but also to practical optimization problems.",
"corpus_id": 251335993
} | {
"title": "hBOSOS: An Ensemble of Butterfly Optimization Algorithm and Symbiosis Organisms Search for Global Optimization",
"abstract": "The present study proposes a hybrid metaheuristic algorithm, viz. hBOSOS with the help of two popular metaheuristics, viz. BOA and SOS. The global search ability of BOA and the local search ability of SOS are combined here to make the proposed algorithm robust and efficient. The proposed algorithm is tested with 26 classical benchmark functions and also to compare, several metaheuristics are taken from the literature. From the comparison, it can be observed that the hBOSOS is superior to the other compared algorithms.",
"corpus_id": 215918993
} |
{
"title": "Characterisation of populations at risk of sub-optimal dosing of artemisinin-based combination therapy in Africa",
"abstract": "Introduction: Selection of resistant malaria strains occurs when parasites are exposed to inadequate antimalarial drug concentrations. The proportion of uncomplicated falciparum malaria patients at risk of being sub-optimally dosed with the current World Health Organization (WHO) recommended artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) is unknown. This study aims to estimate this proportion and the excess number of treatment failures (recrudescences) associated with sub-optimal dosing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Methods: Sub-populations at risk of sub-optimal dosing include wasted children <5 years of age; patients with hyperparasitaemia; pregnant women; people living with HIV; and overweight adults. Country-level data on population structure were extracted from openly accessible data sources. Pooled adjusted Hazard Ratios for PCR-confirmed recrudescence were estimated for each risk group from published meta-analyses using fixed-effect meta-analysis. Results: In 2020, of 153.1 million uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria patients in Africa, the largest risk groups were the hyperparasitaemic patients (13.2 million, 8.6% of uncomplicated malaria cases) and overweight adults (10.3 million, 6.7% of uncomplicated cases). The excess total number of treatment failures ranged from 323,247 for a 98% baseline ACT efficacy to 1,292,987 for a 92% baseline ACT efficacy. Conclusion: An estimated 1 in nearly 4 people with uncomplicated confirmed P. falciparum malaria in Africa are at risk of receiving a sub-optimal antimalarial drug dosing. This increases the risk of antimalarial drug resistance and poses a serious threat to malaria control and elimination efforts. Changes in antimalarial dosing or treatment duration of current antimalarials may be needed and new antimalarials development should ensure sufficient drug concentration levels in these sub-populations that carry a high malaria burden.",
"corpus_id": 258969073
} | {
"title": "Impacts of COVID-19 on childhood malnutrition and nutrition-related mortality",
"abstract": "The unprecedented global social and economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic poses grave risks to the nutritional status and survival of young children in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Of particular concern is an expected increase in child malnutrition, including wasting, due to steep declines in household incomes, changes in the availability and affordability of nutritious foods, and interruptions to health, nutrition, and social protection services. One in ten deaths among children younger than 5 years in LMICs is attributable to severe wasting because wasted children are at increased risk of mortality from infectious diseases. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, an estimated 47 million children younger than 5 years were moderately or severely wasted, most living in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia. The economic, food, and health systems disruptions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic are expected to continue to exacerbate all forms of malnutrition. Estimates from the International Food Policy Research Institute suggest that because of the pandemic an additional 140 million people will be thrown into living in extreme poverty on less than US$1·90 per day in 2020. According to the World Food Programme, the number of people in LMICs facing acute food insecurity will nearly double to 265 million by the end of 2020. Sharp declines are expected in access to child health and nutrition services, similar to those seen during the 2014–16 outbreak of Ebola virus disease in sub-Saharan Africa. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF estimated a 30% overall reduction in essential nutrition services coverage, reaching 75–100% in lockdown contexts, including in fragile countries where there are humanitarian crises. The accompanying call to action on child malnutrition and COVID-19 from leaders of four UN agencies in The Lancet is an important first step for the international community. Alongside these efforts, the Standing Together for Nutrition consortium, a multidisciplinary consortium of nutrition, economics, food, and health systems researchers, is working to estimate the scale and reach of nutrition challenges related to COVID-19. These efforts link three approaches to model the combined economic and health systems impacts from COVID-19 on malnutrition and mortality: MIRAGRODEP’s macroeconomic projections of impacts on per capita gross national income (GNI); microeconomic estimates of how predicted GNI shocks impact child wasting using data on 1·26 million children from 177 Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) conducted in 52 LMICs between 1990–2018; and the Lives Saved Tool (LiST), which links country-specific health services disruptions and predicted increases in wasting to child mortality. What do our initial analyses and estimates suggest? First, the MIRAGRODEP projections suggest that even fairly short lockdown measures, combined with severe mobility disruptions and comparatively moderate food systems disruptions, result in most LMICs having an estimated average 7·9% (SD 2·4%) decrease in GNI per capita relative to pre-COVID-19 projections. Second, the microeconomic model projections indicate that decreases in GNI per capita are associated with large increases in child wasting. Our own analyses, based on these estimates applied to 118 LMICs, suggest there could be a 14·3% increase in the prevalence of moderate or severe wasting among children younger than 5 years due to COVID-19-related predicted Published Online July 27, 2020 https://doi.org/10.1016/ S0140-6736(20)31647-0",
"corpus_id": 220794346
} | {
"title": "Elimination of interferences in determination of platinum and palladium in environmental samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry",
"abstract": "Abstract Various approaches were evaluated in order to eliminate the spectral interferences noted when Pt and Pd has to be determined in environmental dust samples by ICP-MS. The chemical separation of Pt and Pd from the matrix components on ion-exchange resins was applied. The performance of cation-exchange resins (Dowex 50 WX-8, Dowex 50 WX-2, Dowex HCR-S, Varion KS, Cellex-P) for the separation of interfering ions was then examined. It was found that Dowex 50 WX-8 shows best performance. The effects of mass, mesh number of resin and concentration of Cl − ions on matrix separation were also studied. Another approach was to use the anion-exchange sorbent Cellex-T, which allows almost total retention of both analytes followed by their elution with 0.1 mol L −1 thiourea in 1 mol L −1 HCl. This procedure however can be used only for platinum determination by ICP-MS. The accuracy of proposed procedures was confirmed by the analysis of certified material BCR-723, and then it was used for determination Pt and Pd in samples of road dust.",
"corpus_id": 97366846
} |
{
"title": "A portable device for single point strain analysis in sheet metal forming processes",
"abstract": "Graphical abstract",
"corpus_id": 253136322
} | {
"title": "Evaluation of a low-cost approach to 2-D digital image correlation vs. a commercial stereo-DIC system in Brazilian testing of soil specimens",
"abstract": "Due to their cost, high-end commercial 3D-DIC (digital image correlation) systems are still inaccessible for many laboratories or small factories interested in lab testing materials. These professional systems can provide reliable and rapid full-field measurements that are essential in some laboratory tests with high-strain rate events or high dynamic loading. However, in many stress-controlled experiments, such as the Brazilian tensile strength (BTS) test of compacted soils, samples are usually large and fail within a timeframe of several minutes. In those cases, alternative low-cost methods could be successfully used instead of commercial systems. This paper proposes a methodology to apply 2D-DIC techniques using consumer-grade cameras and the open-source image processing software DICe (Sandia National Lab) for monitoring the standardized BTS test. Unlike most previous studies that theoretically estimate systematic errors or use local measures from strain gauges for accuracy assessment, we propose a contrast methodology with independent full-field measures. The displacement fields obtained with the low-cost system are benchmarked with the professional stereo-DIC system Aramis-3D (GOM GmbH) in four BTS experiments using compacted soil specimens. Both approaches proved to be valid tools for obtaining full-field measurements and showing the sequence of crack initiation, propagation and termination in the BTS, constituting reliable alternatives to traditional strain gauges. Mean deviations obtained between the low-cost 2D-DIC approach and Aramis-3D in measuring in-plane components were 0.08 mm in the perpendicular direction of loading (ΔX) and 0.06 mm in the loading direction (ΔY). The proposed low-cost approach implies considerable savings compared to commercial systems.",
"corpus_id": 243816743
} | {
"title": "On the benefits of correcting brightness and contrast in global digital image correlation: Monitoring cracks during curing and drying of a refractory castable",
"abstract": "Abstract The gray level conservation is the underlying hypothesis of Digital Image Correlation (DIC). However, it may be challenging to enforce in some experimental configurations. Brightness and contrast corrections (BCCs) may be added to the registration procedure. Different types of BCCs were implemented for global DIC, and their benefits were analyzed for localized and diffuse sources of brightness changes. As a case study to apply BCCs, a refractory castable was placed inside a climatic chamber, and cracks were generated due to localized expansions during its curing and drying. To choose the best BCC for this case, two sets of images were considered. The first one allowed the noise floor levels to be evaluated. The second one dealt with the development of a crack network. The BCCs significantly reduced gray level residuals enabling cracks with small openings to be detected. The coarse discretization was effective in correcting lighting changes and avoided its coupling with the measured kinematic fields and other local phenomena.",
"corpus_id": 224888127
} |
{
"title": "Effect of vacuum heat treatment on tribological properties of metal-doped CuS/MoS2 coating",
"abstract": "The tribological properties of metal-CuS/MoS2 composite coatings were improved by selecting the metal materials and optimizing the heat treatment process. The composite coatings were prepared by magnetron cosputtering of copper or aluminum metals, CuS, and MoS2. Then, the prepared Cu-CuS/MoS2 and Al-CuS/MoS2 were subjected to vacuum heat treatment at 220, 320, and 420 °C. The structure and tribological properties of the composite coatings were analyzed by scanning electron microscope, energy spectrum, x-ray diffraction, Raman spectrum, and multifunction friction tester. The results showed an island-like growth and a dense noncylindrical cross-sectional morphology of the metal-CuS/MoS2 composite coating. Metal- and CuS-doped MoS2 solid solution is a practical component in composite coatings. The wear scar of the composite coatings showed different color layers at different annealing temperatures due to composition deviation. After heat treatment at 320 °C, the friction coefficient of Cu-CuS/MoS2 coating was reduced to a minimum of 0.08. After heat treatment at 420 °C, the Al-CuS/MoS2 coating showed three different color layers of wear scar, and good tribological properties were obtained. The friction coefficient of the Al-CuS/MoS2 coating was as low as 0.06, and the adhesion of the Al-CuS/MoS2 coating was expressed in the HF1 level. The results show that the vacuum heat treatment can stimulate the action of CuS by forming a solid solution with MoS2, complementing the missing S atom during the sputtering deposition of MoS2 and improving the lubrication of the composite coating. In addition, although the action mechanisms are different, Cu and Al doping are all conducive to obtaining composite coatings with better tribological properties.",
"corpus_id": 257574185
} | {
"title": "The Effect of Additive Chemical Structure on the Tribofilms Derived from Varying Molybdenum-Sulfur Chemistries",
"abstract": "Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is an effective friction modifier that can be formed on surfaces from oil-soluble lubricant additives. Different additive chemistries can be used to form MoS2 on a surface. The tribofilms formed from three different molybdenum additives (MoDTC Dimer, MoDTC Trimer, and molybdate ester) were studied in additive monoblends and fully formulated systems. The resulting tribofilms were then characterized by Raman spectroscopic spatial mapping, XPS, and FIB-TEM. The distribution of MoS2 on the surface was much more sparse for the molybdate ester than the other additives. No crystalline molybdenum oxides were observed by Raman spectroscopy, but their presence was inferred from XPS analysis. XPS analysis showed very similar distributions of Mo oxidation states from each additive, such that the chemical nature of the films formed from all of the additives is likely similar. Each of the additive tribofilms was observed to have MoS3 vibrations in Raman and persulfide XPS peaks associated with amorphous MoS3, as such this species is presented as a common frictional decomposition product for all the additives. The MoDTC trimer is more able to produce this amorphous species on the contacting surfaces due to its structural similarities to the co-ordination polymer MoS3.",
"corpus_id": 237508983
} | {
"title": "A Novel Strategy for Selective Thyroid Hormone Determination Based on an Electrochemical Biosensor with Graphene Nanocomposite",
"abstract": "This article presents a novel and selective electrochemical bioassay with antibody and laccase for the determination of free thyroid hormone (free triiodothyronine, fT3). The biosensor was based on a glassy carbon electrode modified with a Fe3O4@graphene nanocomposite with semiconducting properties, an antibody (anti-PDIA3) with high affinity for fT3, and laccase, which was responsible for catalyzing the redox reaction of fT3. The electrode modification procedure was investigated using a cyclic voltammetry technique, based on the response of the peak current after modifications. All characteristic working parameters of the developed biosensor were analyzed using differential pulse voltammetry. Obtained experimental results showed that the biosensor revealed a sensitive response to fT3 in a concentration range of 10–200 µM, a detection limit equal to 27 nM, and a limit of quantification equal to 45.9 nM. Additionally, the constructed biosensor was selective towards fT3, even in the presence of interference substances: ascorbic acid, tyrosine, and levothyroxine, and was applied for the analysis of fT3 in synthetic serum samples with excellent recovery results. The designed biosensor also exhibited good stability and can find application in future medical diagnostics.",
"corpus_id": 255722604
} |
{
"title": "Prevalence of refractive error in Portugal estimated from ophthalmic lens manufacturing data: Ten-years analysis",
"abstract": "Purpose To investigate the prevalence, distribution and trends of refractive error from ophthalmic lens manufacturing data over a ten-year period. Methods Fully anonymized data from ophthalmic lenses, for the years between 2010 and 2020, provided by the leading ophthalmic lens manufacturer operating in Portugal were analysed (no human participants were involved in the research). Prescriptions delivered were divided in single vision prescriptions and progressive/multifocal prescriptions and categorized into 14 spherical equivalent ranges. Given the lack of absolute values, indirect estimates and a qualitative analysis of the current situation and trends on refractive error epidemiology was carried out. Results Dataset from manufacturer comprises percentage values of ophthalmic lenses dispensed in Portugal. The distribution of ophthalmic prescriptions for single vision prescriptions presents most of the observations in the range [-1.49, -0.50] diopters, in every year from 2010 to 2020. For the progressive prescription’s lenses, most of the observations is in an interval of two ranges, [0.50, 1.49] and [1.50, 2.99] diopters. From 2010 to 2020 the proportion of single vision ophthalmic lens prescriptions for myopia increased from 38.13% to 46.21%; the proportion for high myopia increased from 2.76% to 4.45%; and the proportion for hyperopia decreased from 40.85% to 31.36%. Conclusions Ophthalmic lens manufacturing data can be a valuable source for long-term analysis of refractive error prescription and trends over time. It was possible to observe a trend of increasing prevalence of myopia and high myopia from 40.89% in 2010 to 50.66% in 2020. That increase trend has important implications for public health and in the planning of services.",
"corpus_id": 258258836
} | {
"title": "Application of big-data for epidemiological studies of refractive error",
"abstract": "Purpose To examine whether data sourced from electronic medical records (EMR) and a large industrial spectacle lens manufacturing database can estimate refractive error distribution within large populations as an alternative to typical population surveys of refractive error. Subjects A total of 555,528 patient visits from 28 Irish primary care optometry practices between the years 1980 and 2019 and 141,547,436 spectacle lens sales records from an international European lens manufacturer between the years 1998 and 2016. Methods Anonymized EMR data included demographic, refractive and visual acuity values. Anonymized spectacle lens data included refractive data. Spectacle lens data was separated into lenses containing an addition (ADD) and those without an addition (SV). The proportions of refractive errors from the EMR data and ADD lenses were compared to published results from the European Eye Epidemiology (E3) Consortium and the Gutenberg Health Study (GHS). Results Age and gender matched proportions of refractive error were comparable in the E3 data and the EMR data, with no significant difference in the overall refractive error distribution (χ2 = 527, p = 0.29, DoF = 510). EMR data provided a closer match to the E3 refractive error distribution by age than the ADD lens data. The ADD lens data, however, provided a closer approximation to the E3 data for total myopia prevalence than the GHS data, up to age 64. Conclusions The prevalence of refractive error within a population can be estimated using EMR data in the absence of population surveys. Industry derived sales data can also provide insights on the epidemiology of refractive errors in a population over certain age ranges. EMR and industrial data may therefore provide a fast and cost-effective surrogate measure of refractive error distribution that can be used for future health service planning purposes.",
"corpus_id": 233383197
} | {
"title": "The integration of mixed methods data to develop the quality of life – aged care consumers (QOL-ACC) instrument",
"abstract": "Background This paper describes the collection and integration of mixed methods data to facilitate the final selection of items for the Quality of Life – Aged Care Consumers (QOL-ACC) instrument. The aim of the wider project is to develop a preference-based quality of life instrument that can be used for quality assessment and economic evaluation. Older people have been involved at every stage of the development of the QOL-ACC to ensure that the final instrument captures their perspectives and preferences. Methods Mixed methods data was collected on draft items for the QOL-ACC instrument across six key quality of life dimensions (mobility, pain management, emotional well-being, independence, social connections, and activities). Qualitative face validity data was collected from older people (aged 66 to 100 years) living in the community and in residential aged care via semi-structured interviews ( n = 59). Quantitative data was collected from older people (aged 65 to 91 years) receiving aged care services in the community via an online survey ( n = 313). A traffic light pictorial approach was adopted as a practical and systematic way to categorise and present data in a meaningful way that was easy for non-academic workshop members to understand and to be able to discuss the relative merits of each draft item. Results The traffic light approach supported the involvement of consumer and aged care provider representatives in the selection of the final items. Six items were selected for the QOL-ACC instrument with one item representing each of the six dimensions. Conclusions This methodological approach has ensured that the final instrument is psychometrically robust as well as meaningful, relevant and acceptable to aged care consumers and providers.",
"corpus_id": 245134457
} |
{
"title": "Guidance for the assessment of the megabenthos bycatch in the bottom trawl in the course of research surveys",
"abstract": "This study presents a sampling manual of megabenthos bycatch, based on long-term monitoring programms of bottom communities in North Atlantic and Arctic. The present guidance will provide high-quality, reliable, and complete data about benthic communities for conservation and protection of their habitats. This manual will help to optimize sampling and processing of megabenthos by-catches on board a research or fishing vessel and standardize information about megabenthos bycatches for the analysis. The results of the application of this guidance in domestic and foreign studies are discussed.",
"corpus_id": 254618117
} | {
"title": "Barents Sea megabenthos: Spatial and temporal distribution and production",
"abstract": "This long-term observation of the faunal composition within the Barents Sea provides a benchmark for monitoring community changes caused by oceanographic variability, fishery activities, and crab predators (Chionoecetes opilio, Paralithodes camtschaticus), whose populations have been rapidly growing and spreading in recent years. In the Arctic systems, megabenthic communities comprise a significant part of benthic biomass and play an important role in carbon cycling on continental shelves. The gradual accumulation of knowledge on megabenthos may make it possible to assess their role in the ecosystem and ultimately contribute to a more rational management of the Barents Sea resources. This article represents an important series of long-term megabenthic observations in the Barents Sea. The main goal of our research is to identify spatial patterns and temporal trends in the megabenthic part of communities, including changes in the biomass and production values. As a part of the joint Norwegian-Russian ecosystem surveys, benthic experts have been identifying the invertebrates (megafauna) collected by bottom trawls during annual assessments of commercial stocks, such as Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) and northern shrimp (Pandalus borealis). The sampling equipment used was a Campelen 1800 bottom trawl, rigged with rockhopper ground gear and towed on double warps, and standardized to a fixed sampling effort (equivalent to a towing distance of 0.75 nautical miles (nm), or 1.4 km). The processing of the biological material was conducted in accordance with standardized procedures, following the retrieval of each trawl. This work represents data from 5016 stations from 2005 to 2017, with a total sampled biomass of 238.4 tons and 14.9 million individual organisms. In total, 694 megabenthic species (1058 taxa) have been recorded, with the greatest diversity observed in the depth range of 100–400 m, while the largest mean catches were taken between depths of 600–800 m. The biomass (B) and production (P) values of the benthic megafauna were approximately stable during the 9 years of investigation, although there was a decreasing trend after 2014. The annual production P/B ratio of megabenthos was calculated to be at 0.3. The distribution, contribution to production, and gross biomass values of the megabenthos had been underestimated in the previous studies of zoobenthos. The results from this research show that, in the current warm period, the majority of the Barents Sea is in an intermediate state between the Arctic and boreal regions due to the wide distribution of boreal species toward the north. The dynamics of the mean biogeographical index (the border between areas of the dominance of boreal and Arctic species) within the central-southern part of the Barents Sea suggests that a large part of the area can be characterized as predominantly boreal intermediate since 2013.",
"corpus_id": 221697073
} | {
"title": "Recurrent heart failure hospitalizations are associated with increased cardiovascular mortality in patients with heart failure in Clinical Practice Research Datalink",
"abstract": "Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of hospitalization and is associated with high morbidity and mortality post‐diagnosis. Here, we examined the impact of recurrent HF hospitalization (HFH) on cardiovascular (CV) and all‐cause mortality among HF patients.",
"corpus_id": 218556205
} |
{
"title": "Mapping a slum: learning from participatory mapping and digital innovation in Cotonou (Benin)",
"abstract": "This paper aims to analyse an experience of participatory mapping and digital innovation launched in 2018 in a slum in Cotonou (economic capital-city of the Benin Republic). Carried out with a Beninese FabLab and the OpenStreetMap Benin community, the Map & Jerry project made it possible to map a precarious neighbourhood that had hitherto been missing from the official map of the city. The paper focuses on the production of this map, its legitimacy and its impacts, primarily social and political, on inhabitants and local authorities unfamiliar with cartographic tools. Moreover, it sheds light on the digital innovation process, and its implementation in a city located in the Global South. Finally, it offers a critical reflection on the sustainability aspects of the project and the potential empowerment of urban poor and their recognition for the right to the city.cartography, citizen participation, digital innovation, digital divide, Subsaharian Africa",
"corpus_id": 203443847
} | {
"title": "FRUGAL INNOVATION CORE COMPETENCIES TO ADDRESS GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY",
"abstract": "The call for global sustainability is echoed by societal, environmental, and economic needs across the globe. In answering this call, a design innovation process that properly considers the needs and context of citizens in the developing world is necessary in order to develop appropriate, adaptable, affordable, and accessible solutions, products and services. This process, called “Frugal Innovation,” is rapidly becoming a standard against which sustainable solutions are assessed. Through an exploration of Frugal Innovation Core Competencies (Frugal Innovation Lab, Santa Clara University), and corresponding case studies of field solutions, a model is presented to begin sustainably addressing global human needs.",
"corpus_id": 109051482
} | {
"title": "Urban Livelihoods: A People-centred Approach to Reducing Poverty",
"abstract": "Foreword by Clare Short * Preface: the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach and the Department for International Development * Introduction * Part 1: Livelihoods and the Poverty Context * Part 2: Understanding the Situations and Strategies of Poor People* Part 3: The Policy Implications of Urban Livelihoods Analysis * Part 4: Urban Poverty Reduction: Lessons from Experience * Part 5: Conclusions * Index",
"corpus_id": 129064193
} |
{
"title": "Outcomes within a year following first ever stroke in Tanzania.",
"abstract": "BACKGROUND\nStroke contributes to a significant proportion of deaths and disability worldwide, with a high fatality rate within 30 days following a first ever stroke. We describe the outcomes within one year among patients who succumbed a first ever stroke and survived the first 30 days.\n\n\nMETHODS\nParticipants were patients who survived after 30 days from succumbing a first ever stroke admitted at the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences Academic Medical Center. Stroke survivors or their next of kin were contacted at one year after succumbing a first stroke to determine the outcomes. We assessed participants' vital status and level of disability using the modified Rankin scale. Assessment on utilization of stroke secondary preventive measures among survivors was done by an interviewer-based questionnaire that assessed the number of times participants attended follow up clinics, medication refill and adherence. Participants were examined for waist-hip ratio, body mass index and blood pressure. Cholesterol levels were assessed at one year post first stroke for survivors. Outcomes were summarized as proportions, survival at one year was estimated by using the Kaplan Meier analysis and Cox regression analysis was performed to determine for predictors of mortality.\n\n\nRESULTS\nWe recruited 130 first stroke survivors. Mortality within one year was 53/130 (40.8%) and disability rate measured by Modified Rankin Scale with scores of 3-5 was 29/77 (37.7%) among survivors. Factors associated with mortality were residual disability HR = 8.60, {95% CI (1.16-63.96)}, severe stroke, HR = 2.67 {95% CI (1.44-4.95)} and residing in Dar-es-Salaam HR = 2.15 {95% (CI 1.06-4.36)}. Non-adherence rates to antihypertensives, antiplatelets and statins was 11/73 (15.1%), 9/23 (39.1%) and 18/22 (81.8%) respectively. Attendance rates of follow-up clinics among all survivors and physiotherapy among survivors with disability are 45/77 (58.4%) and 16/29 (55.2%) respectively.\n\n\nCONCLUSIONS\nThe mortality and disability rates within a year following a first ever stroke among 30 days stroke survivors is high. Secondary stroke preventive measures should be enhanced to mitigate stroke adverse outcomes. Community outreach programs could be useful interventions in preventing the adverse outcomes of stroke.",
"corpus_id": 231901119
} | {
"title": "A reliability and validity study of the electronic health literacy scale among stroke patients in China",
"abstract": "ABSTRACT Background Patients with stroke usually use smartphones to obtain online information to maintain their health. But their ability to identify, evaluate and apply this information is still unknown. Aim This study was designed to examine the reliability and validity of the electronic Health Literacy Scale among patients with stroke in China. Design This is a cross-sectional survey. Methods A demographic questionnaire, the electronic Health Literacy Scale (e-HLS) and the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) were administered to a sample of 648 patients with ischemic stroke recruited from December 2020 to March 2021 in a tertiary hospital. Results The Cronbach’α coefficient on the e-HLS-CHI was 0.907. Kappa consistency coefficient of test-retest reliability was 0.691 (p < .05). Three factors were extracted by Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), accounting for 90.84% of the total variance. Confirmatory Factory Analysis (CFA) revealed that three factors of e-HLS-CHI fit well (NFI = 0.979, RFI = 0.955, IFI = 0.987, TLI = 0.972, CFI = 0.987, RMSEA = 0.070, CMIN/DF = 2.586). Good simultaneous validity was suggested by the positive correlation of 0.94 (p < .001) between the e-HLS-CHI and eHEALS. When using eHEALS as the standard, the area under the ROC curve of e-HLS-CHI was 0.896 (95% CI: 0.831–0.960, p < .001). The sensitivity and specificity were 97.8% and 70.4% respectively. Conclusions The e-HLS can be used to evaluate electronic health literacy of patients with stroke in China after translation and cultural adaption.",
"corpus_id": 238828709
} | {
"title": "Centrally inserted central catheters in preterm neonates with weight below 1500 g by ultrasound-guided access to the brachio-cephalic vein",
"abstract": "Objective: Central venous access in critically ill newborns can be challenging. Ultrasound-guided brachio-cephalic vein catheterization is a relatively new procedure, recently introduced in several neonatal intensive care units. The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and feasibility of such a technique in preterm babies. Design: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data on ultrasound-guided central venous catheter insertion in preterm neonates. Setting: Neonatal intensive care unit. Patients: Critically ill preterm neonates with weight below 1500 g requiring a central access. Interventions: Ultrasound-guided brachio-cephalic vein catheterization. Main Results: Thirty centrally inserted catheters were placed in 30 neonates. The success rate of the procedure was 100%. No case of accidental arterial or pleural puncture was registered during the study period. Conclusion: The brachio-cephalic vein can be safely catheterized in preterm newborns requiring intensive care after appropriate training.",
"corpus_id": 220472782
} |
{
"title": "Recognizing Human Activities by Key Frame in Video Sequences",
"abstract": "This paper presents a new method of human activity recognition, which is based on R transform and dynamic time warping (DTW) after the key frame is extracted from a cycle. For a key binary human silhouette, R transform is employed to represent low-level features. The advantage of the R transform lies in its low computational complexity and geometric invariance. The DTW distance based on the extracted features are calculated and compared similarities to recognize activities. Compared with other methods, ours is superior because the descriptor is robust to frame loss in the video sequence, disjoint silhouettes and holes in the shape, and thus achieves better performance in similar activities recognition, simple representation, computational complexity and template generalization. Sufficient experiments have proved the efficiency.",
"corpus_id": 18287281
} | {
"title": "Histogram of oriented rectangles: A new pose descriptor for human action recognition",
"abstract": "Most of the approaches to human action recognition tend to form complex models which require lots of parameter estimation and computation time. In this study, we show that, human actions can be simply represented by pose without dealing with the complex representation of dynamics. Based on this idea, we propose a novel pose descriptor which we name as Histogram-of-Oriented-Rectangles (HOR) for representing and recognizing human actions in videos. We represent each human pose in an action sequence by oriented rectangular patches extracted over the human silhouette. We then form spatial oriented histograms to represent the distribution of these rectangular patches. We make use of several matching strategies to carry the information from the spatial domain described by the HOR descriptor to temporal domain. These are (i) nearest neighbor classification, which recognizes the actions by matching the descriptors of each frame, (ii) global histogramming, which extends the idea of Motion Energy Image proposed by Bobick and Davis to rectangular patches, (iii) a classifier-based approach using Support Vector Machines, and (iv) adaptation of Dynamic Time Warping on the temporal representation of the HOR descriptor. For the cases when pose descriptor is not sufficiently strong alone, such as to differentiate actions ''jogging'' and ''running'', we also incorporate a simple velocity descriptor as a prior to the pose based classification step. We test our system with different configurations and experiment on two commonly used action datasets: the Weizmann dataset and the KTH dataset. Results show that our method is superior to other methods on Weizmann dataset with a perfect accuracy rate of 100%, and is comparable to the other methods on KTH dataset with a very high success rate close to 90%. These results prove that with a simple and compact representation, we can achieve robust recognition of human actions, compared to complex representations.",
"corpus_id": 34106895
} | {
"title": "Binary butterfly optimization approaches for feature selection",
"abstract": "Abstract In this paper, binary variants of the Butterfly Optimization Algorithm (BOA) are proposed and used to select the optimal feature subset for classification purposes in a wrapper-mode. BOA is a recently proposed algorithm that has not been systematically applied to feature selection problems yet. BOA can efficiently explore the feature space for optimal or near-optimal feature subset minimizing a given fitness function. The two proposed binary variants of BOA are applied to select the optimal feature combination that maximizes classification accuracy while minimizing the number of selected features. In these variants, the native BOA is utilized while its continuous steps are bounded in a threshold using a suitable threshold function after squashing them. The proposed binary algorithms are compared with five state-of-the-art approaches and four latest high performing optimization algorithms. A number of assessment indicators are utilized to properly assess and compare the performance of these algorithms over 21 datasets from the UCI repository. The experimental results confirm the efficiency of the proposed approaches in improving the classification accuracy compared to other wrapper-based algorithms, which proves the ability of BOA algorithm in searching the feature space and selecting the most informative attributes for classification tasks.",
"corpus_id": 53116117
} |
{
"title": "On the Performance of IRS-Assisted Relay Systems",
"abstract": "This paper investigates the performance of intelligence reflective surface (IRS)-assisted relay systems. To this end, we quantify the optimal signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) attained by smartly controlling the phase-shifts of impinging electromagnetic waves upon an IRS. Thereby, a tightly approximated cumulative distribution function is derived to probabilistically characterize this optimal SNR. Then, we derive tight approximations/bounds for the achievable rate, outage probability, and average symbol error rate. Monte-Carlo simulations are used to validate our performance analysis. We present numerical results to reveal that the IRS-assisted relay system can boost the performance of end-to-end wireless transmissions.",
"corpus_id": 246479641
} | {
"title": "Performance Analysis of Discrete-Phase-Shifter IRS-aided Amplify-and-Forward Relay Network",
"abstract": "As a new technology to reconfigure wireless communication environment by signal reflection controlled by software, intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) has attracted lots of attention in recent years. Compared with conventional relay system, the relay system aided by IRS can effectively reduce the cost and energy consumption, and significantly enhance the system performance. However, the phase quantization error generated by IRS with discrete phase shifter may degrade the receiving performance of the receiver. To analyze the performance loss caused by IRS phase quantization error, based on the law of large numbers and Rayleigh distribution, the closed-form expressions for the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) performance loss and achievable rate of the IRS-aided amplify-and-forward (AF) relay network, which are related to the number of phase shifter quantization bits, are derived under the line-of-sight (LoS) channels and Rayleigh channels, respectively. Moreover, their approximate performance loss closed-form expressions are also derived based on the Taylor series expansion. Simulation results show that the performance losses of SNR and achievable rate decrease with the number of quantization bits increases gradually. When the number of quantization bits is larger than or equal to 3, the SNR performance loss of the system is smaller than 0.23dB, and the achievable rate loss is less than 0.04bits/s/Hz, regardless of the LoS channels or Rayleigh channels.",
"corpus_id": 258960315
} | {
"title": "Arbitrarily Accurate Spline Based Approximations for the Hyperbolic Tangent Function and Applications",
"abstract": "Two point spline based approximations for tanh(x)\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{tanh}(x)$$\\end{document}, valid over the interval [0,∞]\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$[0,\\infty ]$$\\end{document}, which can be made arbitrarily accurate, have uniform convergence, and which have better convergence than existing series, are detailed. Explicit formulas for the errors in the approximations are specified. Applications are detailed and these include, first, upper and lower bound functions for tanh(x)\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{tanh}(x)$$\\end{document} with arbitrary accuracy. Second, a rapidly convergent series for Catalan’s constant. Third, approximations for sech(x)\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{sech}(x)$$\\end{document}, sechx2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${\\mathrm{sech}}\\left(x\\right)^{2}$$\\end{document}, tanhx2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${\\mathrm{tanh}\\left(x\\right)}^{2}$$\\end{document}, ln[cosh(x)]\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{ln}[\\mathrm{cosh}(x)]$$\\end{document}, lnsechx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{ln}\\left[\\mathrm{sech}\\left(x\\right)\\right]$$\\end{document} and approximations for the unknown integrals of lncoshx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{ln}\\left[\\mathrm{cosh}\\left(x\\right)\\right]$$\\end{document} and lnsechx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{ln}\\left[\\mathrm{sech}\\left(x\\right)\\right]$$\\end{document}, coshkoxtanhx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{cosh}\\left({k}_{o}x\\right)\\mathrm{tanh}\\left(x\\right)$$\\end{document} and sechkox2tanhx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm{sech}{\\left({k}_{o}x\\right)}^{2}\\mathrm{tanh}\\left(x\\right)$$\\end{document} which are valid, with arbitrary accuracy, over the positive real line. Fourth, approximations for the integral of xtanhx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$x\\mathrm{tanh}\\left(x\\right)$$\\end{document} which have better convergence properties than the standard series approximation that is used. Fifth, an approximation to the response of a damped second order system to a hyperbolic tangent function input signal. Sixth, simple approximations for the Laplace transform of the hyperbolic tangent function and approximations for the response of a linear filter to a hyperbolic tangent function input signal. Seventh, a structure for a comb filter that extracts the odd harmonics and suppresses the even harmonics of a signal. Finally, explicit approximate analytical expressions for the output power and harmonic distortion arising, for the sinusoidal case, from a hyperbolic tangent function nonlinearity.",
"corpus_id": 241628988
} |
{
"title": "The gut microbiome-metabolome dataset collection: a curated resource for integrative meta-analysis",
"abstract": "Integrative analysis of microbiome and metabolome data obtained from human fecal samples is a promising avenue for better understanding the interplay between bacteria and metabolites in the human gut, in both health and disease. However, acquiring, processing, and unifying such datasets from multiple sources is a daunting and challenging task. Here we present a publicly available, simple-to-use, curated dataset collection of paired fecal microbiome-metabolome data from multiple cohorts. This data resource allows researchers to easily obtain multiple fully processed and integrated microbiome-metabolome datasets, facilitating the discovery of universal microbe-metabolite links, benchmark various microbiome-metabolome integration tools, and compare newly identified microbe-metabolite findings to other published datasets.",
"corpus_id": 252899703
} | {
"title": "A systematic review of associations between gut microbiota composition and growth failure in preterm neonates",
"abstract": "ABSTRACT Growth failure is among the most prevalent and devastating consequences of prematurity. Up to half of all extremely preterm neonates struggle to grow despite modern nutrition practices. Although elegant preclinical models suggest causal roles for the gut microbiome, these insights have not yet translated into biomarkers that identify at-risk neonates or therapies that prevent or treat growth failure. This systematic review aims to identify features of the neonatal gut microbiota that are positively or negatively associated with early postnatal growth. We identified 860 articles, of which 14 were eligible for inclusion. No two studies used the same definitions of growth, ages at stool collection, and statistical methods linking microbiota to metadata. In all, 58 different taxa were associated with growth, with little consensus among studies. Two or more studies reported positive associations with Enterobacteriaceae, Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Enterococcus, and Veillonella, and negative associations with Citrobacter, Klebsiella, and Staphylococcus. Streptococcus was positively associated with growth in five studies and negatively associated with growth in three studies. To gain insight into how the various definitions of growth could impact results, we performed an exploratory secondary analysis of 245 longitudinally sampled preterm infant stools, linking microbiota composition to multiple clinically relevant definitions of neonatal growth. Within this cohort, every definition of growth was associated with a different combination of microbiota features. Together, these results suggest that the lack of consensus in defining neonatal growth may limit our capacity to detect consistent, meaningful clinical associations that could be leveraged into improved care for preterm neonates.",
"corpus_id": 257580694
} | {
"title": "Doing Meta-Analysis with R - A Hands-On Guide",
"abstract": "Scientific synthesis is a diverse field of contemporary science. Syntheses advance knowledge in many domains and can include data compilation, theory syntheses, methods contrasts, and systematic reviews with meta-analyses through an integrated and big-picture view of evidence (Halpern et al. 2020). All these knowledge tools are typically strongly supported by statistical software including the open-source programming language R. Within this environment, there are nearly 100 packages to support meta-analyses each with different functions and specific capabilities (Lortie and Filazzola 2020). Meta-analyses are defined in most domains as the calculation of effect sizes or a weighted relative strength of evidence from a set of studies or trials to then subsequently examine high-level statistical patterns and variance (Gurevitch, Koricheva, Nakagawa, and Stewart 2018). They are increasingly used in many fields of science to examine consilience in hypotheses (Lortie 2014) and have been proposed as the gold or even platinum standard of evidence when there is statistical agreement in the efficacy of an intervention across studies (Stegenga 2011). Consequently, there is a critical need for accessible, pragmatic publications, resources, and texts that enable scientists with varying levels of expertise to engage in scientific syntheses using meta-analysis.",
"corpus_id": 249074108
} |
{
"title": "Effects of benralizumab in a population of patients affected by severe eosinophilic asthma and chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps: a real-life study",
"abstract": "Background and aim: Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) is a frequent comorbidity in severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA), which may contribute to the loss of asthma control. CRSwNP and SEA share a T2-mediated mechanism and the use of some anti-asthma monoclonal antibodies has recently been extended to CRSwNP. Unlike dupilumab and omalizumab, benralizumab approval for CRSwNP is ongoing. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of benralizumab efficacy on SEA and on CRSwNP in patients affected by both pathologies in a real-life setting. Methods: 17 patients affected by both SEA and CRSwNP participated to our study. At baseline (T0) and at one year after benralizumab initiation (T1), all participants underwent spirometry, exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), Asthma Control Test (ACT), nasal endoscopy with Nasal Polyp Score (NPS), nasal cytology and Sino-Nasal Outcome Test 22 (SNOT 22). The continuous oral corticosteroid therapy (OCS), the number of year exacerbations and the need for sinus surgery were also evaluated for each patient. Results: At T1, a marked reduction of SNOT-22, NPS, nasal eosinophils and neutrophils count were shown compared to T0. Moreover, at T1 ACT was significantly increased and FeNO, exacerbations/year and mean OCS dosage were significantly reduced compared to T0. Conclusions: Our real-life study demonstrates the efficacy of benralizumab not only on SEA but also on nasal cytology and on nasal polyposis, confirming that patients affected by both SEA and CRSwNP may receive a considerable benefit from anti-IL5 receptor, treating both the comorbidities at once. (www.actabiomedica.it)",
"corpus_id": 256846022
} | {
"title": "Real World Effectiveness of Benralizumab in Severe Eosinophilic Asthma.",
"abstract": "BACKGROUND\nBenralizumab is an IL5-receptor monoclonal antibody licensed for the treatment of severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA). It has demonstrated efficacy in clinical trials in reducing asthma exacerbation rates and maintenance oral corticosteroids (mOCS).\n\n\nRESEARCH QUESTION\nOur aim was to evaluate the real-world effectiveness of benralizumab and identify any baseline characteristics associated with response to therapy.\n\n\nSTUDY DESIGN\n& Methods: We assessed outcomes in all SEA patients commenced on benralizumab at our specialist centre. At each dosing visit, exacerbation history, mOCS dose, spirometry, Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ6) and mini-Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (mAQLQ) scores were recorded. Response to treatment was defined as a reduction of ≥50% in annualised exacerbation rate (AER) or in mOCS dose after 48 weeks of treatment. Super-response was defined as zero exacerbations and no mOCS for asthma.\n\n\nRESULTS\n130 patients were included in the analysis. At 48 weeks there was a 72.8% reduction in AER, from 4.92±3.35 in the year preceding biologic treatment to 1.34±1.71 (p<0.001), including 57(43.8%) patients who were exacerbation-free on benralizumab. In those on mOCS (n=74; 56.9%), the median daily prednisolone dose fell from 10mg (5-20) to 0mg (0-5) (p<0.001), and 38/74(51.4%) were able to discontinue mOCS. There were clinically and statistically significant improvements in ACQ6, mAQLQ and FEV1. Overall, 51 (39%) met the super-responder definition, and 112(86%) the responder definition. The optimal regression model of super-responders versus other responders included baseline characteristics associated with a strongly eosinophilic phenotype and less severe disease. Eighteen (13.8%) patients were non-responders to benralizumab. Evidence of chronic airway infection was observed in 6/18 and an increase in the blood eosinophil count consistent with the development of anti-drug antibodies in 5/18.\n\n\nINTERPRETATION\nIn a large real-world SEA cohort, benralizumab led to significant improvements in all clinical outcome measures. A lack of response was seen in a minority and should be a focus for future investigation.",
"corpus_id": 221497861
} | {
"title": "Piperacillin–tazobactam versus meropenem for treatment of bloodstream infections caused by third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae: a study protocol for a non-inferiority open-label randomised controlled trial (PeterPen)",
"abstract": "Introduction The optimal treatment for extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae bloodstream infections has yet to be defined. Retrospective studies have shown conflicting results, with most data suggesting the non-inferiority of beta-lactam–beta-lactamase inhibitor combinations compared with carbapenems. However, the recently published MERINO trial failed to demonstrate the non-inferiority of piperacillin–tazobactam to meropenem. The potential implications of the MERINO trial are profound, as widespread adoption of carbapenem treatment will have detrimental effects on antimicrobial stewardship in areas endemic for ESBL and carbapenem-resistant bacteria. Therefore, we believe that it is justified to re-examine the comparison in a second randomised controlled trial prior to changing clinical practice. Methods and analysis PeterPen is a multicentre, investigator-initiated, open-label, randomised controlled non-inferiority trial, comparing piperacillin–tazobactam with meropenem for third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli and Klebsiella bloodstream infections. The study is currently being conducted in six centres in Israel and one in Canada with other centres from Israel, Italy and Canada expected to join. The two primary outcomes are all-cause mortality at day 30 from enrolment and treatment failure at day seven (death, fever above 38°C in the last 48 hours, continuous symptoms, increasing Sequential Organ Failure Assessment Score or persistent blood cultures with the index pathogen). A sample size of 1084 patients was calculated for the mortality endpoint assuming a 12.5% mortality rate in the control group with a 5% non-inferiority margin and assuming 100% follow-up for this outcome. Ethics and dissemination The study is approved by local and national ethics committees as required. Results will be published, and trial data will be made available. Trial registration numbers ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT03671967); Israeli Ministry of Health Trials Registry (MOH_2018-12-25_004857).",
"corpus_id": 231864019
} |
{
"title": "Noble Metal Nanoparticles Decorated Boron Nitride Nanotubes for Efficient and Selective Low-Temperature Catalytic Reduction of Nitric Oxide with Carbon Monoxide.",
"abstract": "Parallel to CO2 emission, NOx emission has become one of the menacing problems that seek a simple, durable, and high-efficiency deNOx catalyst. Herein, we demonstrated simple syntheses of platinum group metal nanoparticle-decorated f-BNNT (PGM = Pd, Pt, and Rh, and f-BNNT stands for -OH-functionalized boron nitride nanotubes) as a catalyst for efficient and selective reduction of NO by CO at low-temperature conditions. PGM/f-BNNT with a low amount of noble metal nanoparticles (0.7-0.8 wt %) presents very efficient catalytic activity for NO reduction as well as CO oxidation during their removal process. The removal efficiencies of NO and CO with Pd/f-BNNT, Pt/f-BNNT, and Rh/f-BNNT catalysts were investigated under various temperatures, flow rates, and reaction times, respectively. For most cases, NO catalytic reduction with CO reaction was >99% at a temperature as low as ∼200 °C. The catalyst robustness and efficiency were also verified by presenting almost 100% conversion of NO using a Rh/f-BNNT catalyst, which was aged under humid air at 600 and 700 °C for 24 h, respectively. The synergic effect of the catalytic efficacy of the well-dispersed noble metal nanoparticles and the excellent surface properties of BNNT are reasons for the high selectivity and catalytic property at a low temperature. On the basis of this investigation, we demonstrated that the noble metal nanoparticle-decorated f-BNNT catalysts are possible to save expensive PGM catalysts, such as Pt, Pd, and Rd, as much as 100 times while presenting similar or better catalytic performance for simultaneous NO and CO removals.",
"corpus_id": 256845257
} | {
"title": "Catalytic Activity of the Transition-Metal Atom Doped Platinum Surface for NO Reduction by CO",
"abstract": "The formation of bimetallic surface alloy catalysts is one of the most promising methods to improve the NO reduction activity of three-way catalysts. Here, the reduction of NO by CO on (100) and (1...",
"corpus_id": 235537623
} | {
"title": "LncRNA SNHG1 contributes to the cisplatin resistance and progression of NSCLC via miR-330-5p/DCLK1 axis.",
"abstract": "BACKGROUND\nLong non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in the occurrence and progression of multiple cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Herein, we explored the exact role and underlying mechanism of lncRNA small nucleolar RNA host gene 1 (SNHG1) in NSCLC.\n\n\nMETHODS\nThe levels of SNHG1, microRNA-330-5p (miR-330-5p) and doublecortin-like kinase 1 (DCLK1) were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was carried out to measure the chemoresistance and proliferation of NSCLC cells. The metastasis and apoptosis of NSCLC cells were examined by transwell migration and invasion assays and flow cytometry. Western blot assay was conducted to detect the levels of proliferation-associated proteins and DCLK1. The interaction between miR-330-5p and SNHG1 or DCLK1 was predicted by StarBase and microT_CDS databases. Dual-luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay were performed to validate these interactions. In vivo chemosensitivity experiment was conducted to assess the function of SNHG1 in the chemoresistance of NSCLC in vivo.\n\n\nRESULTS\nSNHG1 was dramatically up-regulated in cisplatin (DDP)-resistant NSCLC tissues and cells. SNHG1 promoted the DDP resistance and malignant behaviors of NSCLC cells. SNHG1 functioned through targeting miR-330-5p, and si-SNHG1-mediated effects in NSCLC cells were attenuated by the addition of in-miR-330-5p. DCLK1 messenger RNA (mRNA) could directly bind to miR-330-5p, and miR-330-5p acted as a tumor suppressor in NSCLC through down-regulating DCLK1. SNHG1 silencing elevated the DDP sensitivity of NSCLC cells in vivo.\n\n\nCONCLUSION\nSNHG1 elevated DDP resistance and malignant potential of NSCLC cells through elevating the level of DCLK1 via sponging miR-330-5p.",
"corpus_id": 232323733
} |
{
"title": "Drivers and barriers to a green economy. A review of selected balkan countries",
"abstract": "Abstract Balkan countries typically share remarkable similarities in culture and history. However, this specific region received little academic attention and produced fewer scholarly deals with the green economy. Our intended purpose is to gather the most recent literature on the green economy about Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are also produced in local Universities and show that these countries possess the potential for an easy green conversion despite barriers and lack of sufficient motivation; The first two countries as mentioned above are members of the EU, while the other two have an EU candidate status. We obtained national experts' opinions and policy recommendations through a Scopus database search (mostly) 2015–2020. Through a SWOT analysis matrix, we gather evidence of both internal and external pushes. The first push is the role of national institutions and consumers; the latter is the EU's considerable influence, which provides essential incentives to carefully foster alignment with European regulatory standards. The internal push typically bears more social responsibility in shaping domestic policies and going green. In Croatia and Slovenia, the transition towards a greener economy goes ahead positively; in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Slovenia, the lack of adequate policies and awareness (among people and companies) and the inefficient allocation of external resources remain barriers to such a greener transition. These Balkan countries deserve more attention in the academic literature, both theoretical and empirical, thanks to their unexploited green potential, which could help policymakers make their countries greener.",
"corpus_id": 238668072
} | {
"title": "Balkan financial development and its impact on economic growth: Granger causality",
"abstract": "This paper examines the relationship between financial development and economic growth for the six countries of the Western Balkan (Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia) for the period 2005–2019. To determine the direction of the causality between economic growth and financial development, we employed the vector autoregression VAR approach. Findings indicate evidence for the supply leading theory (Hurlin & Venet, 2008; McKinnon, 1973; Patrick, 1966; Shaw, 1973): financial development causes economic growth overall, especially when private credit was used as the proxy for it. Yet, we observed bi-directional links when financial development was proxied by broad money. Furthermore, interest spread affected economic growth. The findings also indicate a positive relationship between broad money and private credit taken together to GDP growth, but only in the first lag; in the second lag, the inverse effect of broad money and private credit on GDP growth became evident. On a comparative scale, private credit was found to have a bigger impact on GDP than broad money. We also observe that the banking system intermediaries have a significant role in spurring economic growth in the region.",
"corpus_id": 252246859
} | {
"title": "United Nations Sustainable Development Goals",
"abstract": "The article attempts to define issues related to sustainable development (SD) in the context of the mining industry. the purpose of this publication is to analyze the implementation of sustainable development goals by mining companies in Poland, including Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka SA, KGHM Polska Miedź SA and the Górażdże HeidelbergCement Group. The work is based on a review of previous research, formulating the activities of the mining industry in accordance with each of the seventeen goals presented in the Agenda 2030. Non-financial reports were used to analyze the scope of implementation of SD goals in Poland, an expert assessment was used, which allowed the strengths and weaknesses of the industry in this particular area of interest to be formulated. A change in awareness towards SD in environmental, social and economic domains has undeniably taken place. Reports published by the companies inform about activities consistent with the particular SD objectives. the scope of their implementation varies across the analyzed entities. Increasing the exposure of the discussed topic improves the image of companies",
"corpus_id": 169299505
} |
{
"title": "Asymptotics of the s-fractional Gaussian perimeter as $$s\\rightarrow 0^+$$",
"abstract": "We study the asymptotic behaviour of the renormalised s-fractional Gaussian perimeter of a set E inside a domain $$\\Omega $$\n Ω\n as $$s\\rightarrow 0^+$$\n \n s\n →\n \n 0\n +\n \n \n . Contrary to the Euclidean case, as the Gaussian measure is finite, the shape of the set at infinity does not matter, but, surprisingly, the limit set function is never additive.",
"corpus_id": 251355914
} | {
"title": "Fractional Perimeters from a Fractal Perspective",
"abstract": "Abstract The purpose of this paper consists in a better understanding of the fractional nature of the nonlocal perimeters introduced in [L. Caffarelli, J.-M. Roquejoffre and O. Savin, Nonlocal minimal surfaces, Comm. Pure Appl. Math. 63 2010, 9, 1111–1144]. Following [A. Visintin, Generalized coarea formula and fractal sets, Japan J. Indust. Appl. Math. 8 1991, 2, 175–201], we exploit these fractional perimeters to introduce a definition of fractal dimension for the measure theoretic boundary of a set. We calculate the fractal dimension of sets which can be defined in a recursive way, and we give some examples of this kind of sets, explaining how to construct them starting from well-known self-similar fractals. In particular, we show that in the case of the von Koch snowflake S⊆ℝ2{S\\subseteq\\mathbb{R}^{2}} this fractal dimension coincides with the Minkowski dimension. We also obtain an optimal result for the asymptotics as s→1-{s\\to 1^{-}} of the fractional perimeter of a set having locally finite (classical) perimeter.",
"corpus_id": 123691722
} | {
"title": "Local minimizers and gamma-convergence for nonlocal perimeters in Carnot groups",
"abstract": "We prove the local minimality of halfspaces in Carnot groups for a class of nonlocal functionals usually addressed as nonlocal perimeters. Moreover, in a class of Carnot groups in which the De Giorgi’s rectifiability theorem holds, we provide a lower bound for the Γ-liminf of the rescaled energy in terms of the horizontal perimeter.",
"corpus_id": 214802108
} |
{
"title": "Comparison of trunk muscle thickness according to the type of feedback during spinal stabilization exercise in standing posture",
"abstract": "Corresponding author: Dae-Sung Park (ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4258-0878) Department of Physical Therapy, College of Medical Science, Konyang University, 158 Gwanjeodong-ro, Seo-gu, Daejeon 35365, Republic of Korea Tel: 82-42-600-6419 Fax: 82-42-600-6565 E-mail: daeric@konyang.ac.kr This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Copyright © 2020 Korean Academy of Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science https://doi.org/10.14474/ptrs.2020.9.3.184 pISSN 2287-7576 eISSN 2287-7584 Phys Ther Rehabil Sci 2020, 9 (3), 184-190 www.jptrs.org",
"corpus_id": 224814948
} | {
"title": "Influence of the ultrasound transducer tilt on muscle thickness and echo intensity of the rectus femoris muscle of healthy subjects",
"abstract": "[Purpose] This study aimed to assess the influence of ultrasound (US) transducer tilt on muscle thickness and echo intensity of the rectus femoris muscle (RF) in healthy subjects. [Subjects and Methods] Fourteen healthy male subjects (20.8 ± 0.8 years) participated in this study. Transducer tilt was measured during US, with a digital angle gauge. Muscle thickness and echo intensity were measured in 4 transducer tilt conditions: reference angle; +3°; +6°; and +9° cranial from the reference angle. [Results] All differences in transducer tilt relative to the reference condition were larger than the minimal detectable change (MDC) of the reference condition. All differences in muscle thickness relative to the reference condition were not larger than the MDC of the reference condition. All differences in the echo intensity relative to the reference condition, except between the reference and the +3° condition, were larger than the MDC of the reference condition. [Conclusion] Our results indicated that an examiner should maintain a precise transducer tilt during repeated US measurements to quantify the minimal change in the echo intensity of the RF.",
"corpus_id": 4711755
} | {
"title": "[Idiopathic multicentric Castleman's disease].",
"abstract": "Idiopathic multicentric Castlemans disease is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder that has many similar laboratory, radiological, clinical and pathological manifestations with various conditions, including IgG4-related disease. Increased activity of cytokines, especially interleukin-6, leads to systemic inflammatory symptoms with the development of lymphadenopathy and rarely extranodal lesions. Histological changes in the lymph nodesin hyaline vascular and plasma cell variants of Castlemans disease are hardly distinguishable from the pattern of reactive, tumor and IgG4-related lymphadenopathy. Idiopathic multicentric Castlemans disease can be diagnosed only when infection with human herpesvirus-8 type and human immunodeficiency virus is excluded. In the article, the authors describe two cases of idiopathic multicentric Castlemans disease, including the first world literature description of extranodal damage of the hip muscle in this disorder. In addition, the authors gave a review of the literature on the main clinical, laboratory and morphological manifestations, which allow confirming the diagnosis of Castlemans disease.",
"corpus_id": 220270544
} |
{
"title": "Salient visual foci on human faces in viewers’ engagement with advertisements: Eye-tracking evidence and theoretical implications",
"abstract": "Multimodal theories informed by Systemic Functional Linguistics involve postulations on users’ interactions with multimodal artifacts which need to be tested with behavioral data. Studies empirically testing the postulations are of great theoretical and methodological significance for multimodal research but have so far remained nascent. To open up new avenues of research in this area, findings from an eye-tracking experiment designed to test social semiotic postulations are reported and discussed. Specifically, the experiment adopted a between-group matched design and involved 44 viewers and 10 trials in each of which a print advertisement was randomly presented to the viewers who were instructed to perform a group-specific ad viewing task. Eye movement metrics obtained from the experiment were analyzed by descriptive statistics based on Areas of Interest and the Scanpath Trending Algorithm to link fixation metrics to semantic components of the ads and to calculate the common viewing path per group and trial, respectively. Data analysis results revealed, among others, a concentration of visual attention on human faces placed at various regions of the ads. The findings are then channeled into discussions on information value theory in the grammar of visual design to explicate its implications for theorizing multimodal communication.",
"corpus_id": 246764848
} | {
"title": "‘Doing critical discourse studies with multimodality: from metafunctions to materiality’ by Per Ledin and David Machin",
"abstract": "Ledin and Machin (2018) discuss perceived problems with the notions of ‘text’ and ‘context’ in systemic theory and suggest ways to deal with the ‘materiality’ of multimodal communication. The focus on SF approaches to multimodality is timely, given that systemic functional theory and the forms of multimodality built around it are ‘hugely inspiring’ and have ‘transformed the landscape of visual communication analysis’ (Ledin & Machin, 2018). Beyond this, systemic functional theory provides the foundations for major theoretical, methodological and analytical trends in multimodality (Tan, O’Halloran, & Wignell, 2019). It is possible that these and other research efforts (including those in CDS) might, through collaboration, lead to the establishment of the discipline of multimodality (O’Halloran et al., 2019). In this context, Ledin and Machin’s (2018) concerns are understandable, given the research trajectory of multimodality where systemic theory is expected to continue to play a major role for the reasons provided in this response. Before addressing Ledin and Machin’s (2018) concerns, we clarify some issues of terminology.",
"corpus_id": 149757035
} | {
"title": "The COVID-19 social media infodemic",
"abstract": "We address the diffusion of information about the COVID-19 with a massive data analysis on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit and Gab. We analyze engagement and interest in the COVID-19 topic and provide a differential assessment on the evolution of the discourse on a global scale for each platform and their users. We fit information spreading with epidemic models characterizing the basic reproduction number R0\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$R_0$$\\end{document} for each social media platform. Moreover, we identify information spreading from questionable sources, finding different volumes of misinformation in each platform. However, information from both reliable and questionable sources do not present different spreading patterns. Finally, we provide platform-dependent numerical estimates of rumors’ amplification.",
"corpus_id": 212657717
} |
{
"title": "Simulation and Research of Railway Foreign Body Invasion System Based on Single Chip Microcomputer",
"abstract": "With the accelerating growth of railway operating mileage in China, ensuring the safety of railway operations has become a critical problem. According to some previous studies, the railway foreign body invasion limit is a major threat to the safe operation of the railway. As the current stage mainly adopts the combination of manual inspection and video monitoring, it has some disadvantages, such as being time-consuming, laborious, and inefficient. Meanwhile, it cannot timely detect potential danger. Therefore, the research on the simulation of railway foreign body intrusion systems based on single-chip microcomputers is carried out. The program is compiled in C language and uses the microcontroller to achieve real-time foreign object detection and alarm for encroachment. This paper mainly introduces the principle of the system and uses Proteus software to design and simulate the circuit. Last but not least, welding is carried out according to the circuit diagram, and the physical test is carried out to verify the feasibility of the design.",
"corpus_id": 259328407
} | {
"title": "Weighing System Design Based on Single Chip Microcomputer",
"abstract": "As the living standards of people improve continually, commercial behavior is becoming more and more modernized, people also put forward new requirements for the speed and accuracy of goods measurement. This paper designs a weighing system of digital electronic scale which is similar to the MCU simulation, and gives the design diagram, hardware composition and software system. This system takes the 51 single chip microcomputer as the core, the main components are the dedicated 24 bits serial A/D conversion chip HX711, cantilever type resistance strain sensor, the four digital tube display. This design uses the dedicated 24 bits serial A/D conversion chip HX711, which has high resolution, simple peripheral interface, and occupies less I/O port, etc.",
"corpus_id": 109586175
} | {
"title": "Humidity monitoring system for oyster mushroom cultivation room by web based AVR ATmega328P-PU",
"abstract": "Monitoring of humidity for Oyster Mushroom cultivation room in Bali especially in Oka Jamur Bali still monitor their Oyster Mushroom cultivation room using thermohygrometer which is placed in their cultivation room. It is not efficient because operator only can monitor the humidity of mushroom cultivation when they are stay at the cultivation room. Monitoring system for oyster mushroom cultivation room by web can be used to make farmer work more efficient because they can monitor the humidity of the cultivation room anywhere by accessing the website. The proposed system is able to monitoring humidity of oyster mushroom cultivation room and present the data of humidity on website for every 3 minutes in the form of tables and graphs. ATmega328P-PU as the main controller of the system is sending the data of humidity to database of server via SIM800L. Calibration of DHT11 done at BBMKG region III Denpasar resulting compatibility of instrument designed in system with reference instrument that obtained from calibration is equal to 99,81%. System tested in one of oyster mushroom cultivation space belong to Oka Jamur Bali, obtained that range of humidity of oyster mushroom space is equal to 83%-85%.",
"corpus_id": 135390976
} |
{
"title": "How can social jetlag affect health?",
"abstract": "Our lives are governed by three clocks: the social clock that organizes our lives with others (local time), the biological clock that controls our physiology (circadian time) and the sun clock that defines natural light and darkness. The more misaligned these clocks are, the higher our odds of developing certain diseases. ‘Social jetlag’ quantifies the difference between local and circadian time.",
"corpus_id": 258863744
} | {
"title": "COVID-19-mandated social restrictions unveil the impact of social time pressure on sleep and body clock",
"abstract": "In humans, sleep regulation is tightly linked to social times that assign local time to events, such as school, work, or meals. The impact of these social times, collectively—social time pressure, on sleep has been studied epidemiologically via quantification of the discrepancy between sleep times on workdays and those on work-free days. This discrepancy is known as the social jetlag (SJL). COVID-19-mandated social restrictions (SR) constituted a global intervention by affecting social times worldwide. We launched a Global Chrono Corona Survey (GCCS) that queried sleep–wake times before and during SR (preSR and inSR). 11,431 adults from 40 countries responded between April 4 and May 6, 2020. The final sample consisted of 7517 respondents (68.2% females), who had been 32.7 ± 9.1 (mean ± sd) days under SR. SR led to robust changes: mid-sleep time on workdays and free days was delayed by 50 and 22 min, respectively; sleep duration increased on workdays by 26 min but shortened by 9 min on free days; SJL decreased by ~ 30 min. On workdays inSR, sleep–wake times in most people approached those of their preSR free days. Changes in sleep duration and SJL correlated with inSR-use of alarm clocks and were larger in young adults. The data indicate a massive sleep deficit under pre-pandemic social time pressure, provide insights to the actual sleep need of different age-groups and suggest that tolerable SJL is about 20 min. Relaxed social time pressure promotes more sleep, smaller SJL and reduced use of alarm clocks.",
"corpus_id": 229315048
} | {
"title": "The role of insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment in obesity",
"abstract": "Traditional risk factors for obesity and the metabolic syndrome, such as excess energy intake and lack of physical activity, cannot fully explain the high prevalence of these conditions. Insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment predispose individuals to poor metabolic health and promote weight gain and have received increased research attention in the past 10 years. Insufficient sleep is defined as sleeping less than recommended for health benefits, whereas circadian misalignment is defined as wakefulness and food intake occurring when the internal circadian system is promoting sleep. This Review discusses the impact of insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment in humans on appetite hormones (focusing on ghrelin, leptin and peptide-YY), energy expenditure, food intake and choice, and risk of obesity. Some potential strategies to reduce the adverse effects of sleep disruption on metabolic health are provided and future research priorities are highlighted. Millions of individuals worldwide do not obtain sufficient sleep for healthy metabolic functions. Furthermore, modern working patterns, lifestyles and technologies are often not conducive to adequate sleep at times when the internal physiological clock is promoting it (for example, late-night screen time, shift work and nocturnal social activities). Efforts are needed to highlight the importance of optimal sleep and circadian health in the maintenance of metabolic health and body weight regulation. Insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment contribute to obesity risk. This Review discusses how modern society disrupts sleep, it considers evidence from human studies on how sleep disruption affects energy expenditure, appetite hormones and food intake, and discusses some potential strategies to reduce the adverse effects of sleep disruption. Insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment are common in modern society. Insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment are important metabolic stressors and are associated with weight gain and obesity. Insufficient sleep increases energy expenditure by ~100 kcal per day but also increases energy intake by >250 kcal per day, resulting in a positive energy balance and weight gain. Sleep restriction increases the drive to eat, and excess food intake resulting from not sleeping enough is more related to cognitive control and reward mechanisms than to appetite hormones. Circadian misalignment reduces 24-h energy expenditure by ~3% (~55 kcal per day), alters the levels of appetite hormones and promotes unhealthier food choices than conditions of adequate sleep.",
"corpus_id": 253108776
} |
{
"title": "Multi-level Relational Knowledge Distillation for Low Resolution Image Recognition",
"abstract": "In spite of great success in many visual recognition tasks achieved by recent deep models, they performed poorly at low resolution conditions. low-resolution image recognition is still a challenging problem. The massive loss of image detail information is the ultimate cause of this problem. However, the loss of individual instance details has little effect on the relationship between instances.Therefore, we propose a multi-level relational distillation method to solve the low resolution identification problem. Based on the teacher student framework of knowledge distillation, It transfer knowledge from teacher to student in two steps. The first step is to train the auxiliary network through the teacher network to remove the redundancy of the model structure. In the second step, the auxiliary network as a new teacher guided low-resolution student network. In order to better learn the behavior of the teacher network, we propose a multi-level instance relationship loss function. It is divided into three different levels: central angle relationship, inter-class angle relationship, and intra-class angle relationship. Respectively it transfer the relationship between instances on different scales, so as to minimize the loss of the image caused by the loss of detailed information. Finally, we carry out experiments on the low resolution image recognition data set CIFAR100 and CIFAR10. The results of experiments have proved that our method can effectively deal with low resolution recognition problems.",
"corpus_id": 246531837
} | {
"title": "Relational Knowledge Distillation",
"abstract": "Knowledge distillation aims at transferring knowledge acquired in one model (a teacher) to another model (a student) that is typically smaller. Previous approaches can be expressed as a form of training the student to mimic output activations of individual data examples represented by the teacher. We introduce a novel approach, dubbed relational knowledge distillation (RKD), that transfers mutual relations of data examples instead. For concrete realizations of RKD, we propose distance-wise and angle-wise distillation losses that penalize structural differences in relations. Experiments conducted on different tasks show that the proposed method improves educated student models with a significant margin. In particular for metric learning, it allows students to outperform their teachers' performance, achieving the state of the arts on standard benchmark datasets.",
"corpus_id": 131765296
} | {
"title": "Compact Representation of Graphs of Small Clique-Width",
"abstract": "The notion of clique-width for graphs offers many research topics and has received considerable attention in the past decade. A graph has clique-width k if it can be represented as an algebraic expression on k labels associated with its vertices. Many computationally hard problems can be solved in polynomial time for graphs of bounded clique-width. Interestingly also, many graph families have bounded clique-width. In this paper, we consider the problem of preprocessing a graph of size n and clique-width k to build space-efficient data structures that support basic graph navigation queries. First, by way of a counting argument, which is of interest in its own right, we prove the space requirement of any representation is $$\\varOmega (kn)$$Ω(kn). Then we present a navigation oracle which answers adjacency query in constant time and neighborhood queries in constant time per neighbor. This oracle uses O(kn) space (i.e., O(kn) bits). We also present a degree query which reports the degree of each given vertex in $$O(k\\log ^*(n))$$O(klog∗(n)) time using $$O(kn \\log ^*(n))$$O(knlog∗(n)) bits.",
"corpus_id": 7428181
} |
{
"title": "Use of sexual stimuli in research and clinical settings: expert opinion and recommendations",
"abstract": "Abstract Background Sexual stimuli, such as sexual videos, images, and narratives describing sexual interactions, are one of many tools used by clinicians and researchers to elicit or augment sexual response. Given the wide variability within sexual stimuli and their effects on sexual response, we provide guidance on when and how to use sexual stimuli, selecting sexual stimuli, and standardizing the use and reporting of sexual stimuli in research and clinical practice. Aim This expert opinion review article discusses standard operating procedures when using sexual stimuli in clinical and research applications, addressing 3 broad areas: settings in which sexual stimuli are used, characteristics and contexts of the stimuli, and practical and ethical considerations when using the stimuli. Methods This article is based on an expert opinion review of the sexual psychophysiology literature. Results First, we discuss the settings in which sexual stimuli are typically used and evaluate the ecological validity of each setting. Second, we review the types of sexual stimuli used in sexual response research, including physical characteristics, depicted sexual activity, and context, and the impacts of these characteristics on sexual response. Last, we discuss the practical and ethical considerations that come with the choice and use of sexual stimuli in clinical and research settings. We address potential limitations of certain sexual stimuli, including practical and ethical considerations such as participant vs experimenter choice, diversity and representation, and proper sourcing of sexual stimuli for use in clinical and research applications. Discussions on the future applications of sexual stimuli, such as the use of virtual reality, and ethical considerations in terms of user-generated Internet sexual stimuli are also explored. Conclusion We provide an expert opinion review of the literature regarding use of sexual stimuli for clinical and research applications and offer best use practices and recommendations.",
"corpus_id": 258967080
} | {
"title": "Gender-specific genital and subjective sexual arousal to prepotent sexual stimuli in androphilic men and gynephilic women",
"abstract": "Abstract:Marked differences have been found in men's and women's sexual response patterns, contingent upon their sexual orientation; androphilic (attracted to men) and gynephilic (attracted to women) men demonstrate greatest genital and self-reported arousal to their preferred stimulus type (a \"gender-specific\" response), whereas androphilic women do not, and findings for gynephilic women have been mixed. While there have been many investigations into gynephilic men's and androphilic women's (i.e., heterosexual men/ women) sexual response, there has been less investigation into the specificity of sexual response of androphilic men and gynephilic women. Given the complex nature of sexual stimuli that are used in sexual response research, it is often unclear to what extent contextual cues (e.g., cues other than the sexual actor's primary and secondary sex characteristics, such as physical attractiveness, sexual activity, etc.) influence participants' sexual response patterns. As such, the current study examined genital, discrete self-reported, and continuous self-reported responses of androphilic men (n = 22) and gynephilic women (n = 10) to prepotent sexual features (stimuli thought to elicit automatic sexual arousal: erect penises and exposed vulvas), non-prepotent sexual features (flaccid penises and pubic triangles) and neutral stimuli (clothed men and women). Both samples exhibited a gender-specific pattern of genital, self-reported, and continuous self-reported sexual arousal. Similarly, all measures of sexual arousal were generally found to be greatest to \"prepotent\" sexual cues. Implications for understanding gender specificity of sexual response are discussed.",
"corpus_id": 240546672
} | {
"title": "The Situation-Specific Theory of Heart Failure Self-care",
"abstract": "Many studies of heart failure (HF) self-care have been conducted since the last update of the situation-specific theory of HF self-care. Objective The aim of this study was to describe the manner in which characteristics of the problem, person, and environment interact to influence decisions about self-care made by adults with chronic HF. Methods This study is a theoretical update. Literature on the influence of the problem, person, and environment on HF self-care is summarized. Results Consistent with naturalistic decision making, the interaction of the problem, person, and environment creates a situation in which a self-care decision is needed. Problem factors influencing decisions about HF self-care include specific conditions such as cognitive impairment, diabetes mellitus, sleep disorders, depression, and symptoms. Comorbid conditions make HF self-care difficult for a variety of reasons. Person factors influencing HF self-care include age, knowledge, skill, health literacy, attitudes, perceived control, values, social norms, cultural beliefs, habits, motivation, activation, self-efficacy, and coping. Environmental factors include weather, crime, violence, access to the Internet, the built environment, social support, and public policy. Conclusions A robust body of knowledge has accumulated on the person-related factors influencing HF self-care. More research on the contribution of problem-related factors to HF self-care is needed because very few people have only HF and no other chronic conditions. The research on environment-related factors is particularly sparse. Seven new propositions are included in this update. We strongly encourage investigators to consider the interactions of problem, person, and environmental factors affecting self-care decisions in future studies.",
"corpus_id": 248414759
} |
{
"title": "Sampling and preliminary analysis of the extra- and intracellular material involved in the attachment of human oral epithelium in vitro.",
"abstract": "To simulate the environmental relationships of the junctional epithelium of gingiva, epithelial cells (epibolus) from explants of human oral mucosa were let to grow between the connective tissue of the explant and an underlying non-collagenous substrate (Millipore® filter) for 9 days. The epithelial cells in contact with the filter attained a basal cell-like morphology and secreted electron dense material eventually resembling a morphological basement membrane onto the filter. Short epithelial projections and disconnected vesicular structures were seen within the filter pores. After the establishment of the epithelium-substratum junction, the explants were detached with alkali treatment. The accumulated proteins associated with epithelial attachment were now left within the filter. The electrophoretic analysis of these extra- and intracellular “filter” proteins revealed about 20 distinguishable polypeptide bands. The immunoreactions of the protein blots allowed to identify 4–4 cytokeratins and laminin. No specific polypeptides were discovered with the anti-type IV collagen antibodies. However, a minor, proline-rich band of epithelial origin was identified in the fluorography. The described in vitro method provides a way of sampling of the components involved in the epithelial attachment for a further biochemical analysis.",
"corpus_id": 19274748
} | {
"title": "In vitro synthesis of laminin and entactin polypeptides.",
"abstract": "Total RNA and poly(A+) RNA, isolated from 13.5-day-old mouse embryo parietal endoderm cells and from differentiated F9 teratocarcinoma cells that synthesize laminin and entactin, were translated in the reticulocyte lysate. Antiserum raised against purified and denatured laminin B chains specifically immunoprecipitated from the translation reaction polypeptides of Mr = 205,000, 200,000, and 185,000. Antiserum against the native complex of laminin and entactin also immunoprecipitated these polypeptides, although less efficiently. In addition, this antiserum immunoprecipitated polypeptides of Mr = 300,000, 270,000, and 140,000. Antiserum against purified and denatured entactin immunoprecipitated only the Mr = 140,000 polypeptide. In contrast, no polypeptides were immunoprecipitated from translation reactions programmed with RNA from undifferentiated F9 cells that produce only small amounts of laminin and entactin. The in vitro synthesized polypeptides migrate on NaDodSO4-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis slower than the respective unglycosylated laminin and entactin chains isolated from cells treated with tunicamycin. Supplementing the reticulocyte lysate with dog pancreas microsomal membranes yields in vitro translation products which co-migrate with the respective glycosylated laminin and entactin chains of control cells. Taken together, these results suggest that the polypeptides described represent in vitro synthesized laminin and entactin chains.",
"corpus_id": 2016801
} | {
"title": "Oleuropein Attenuates Oxidative Stress in Human Trophoblast Cells",
"abstract": "Olive-derived bioactive compound oleuropein was evaluated against damage induced by hydrogen peroxide in human trophoblast cells in vitro, by examining the changes in several markers implicated in oxidative stress interactions in the placenta. Trophoblast HTR-8/SVneo cells were preincubated with OLE at 10 and 100 µM and exposed to H2O2, as a model of oxidative stress. Protein and lipid peroxidation, as well as antioxidant enzymes’ activity, were determined spectrophotometrically, and DNA damage was evaluated by comet assay. iNOS protein expression was assessed by Western blot, while the mRNA expression of pro- and anti-apoptotic genes BAX and BCL2 and transcription factor NFE2L2, as well as cytokines IL-6 and TNF α were determined by qPCR. Oleuropein demonstrated cytoprotective effects against H2O2 in trophoblast cells by significantly improving the antioxidant status and preventing protein and lipid damage, as well as reducing the iNOS levels. OLE reduced the mRNA expression of IL-6 and TNF α, however, it did not influence the expression of NFE2L2 or the BAX/BCL2 ratio after H2O2 exposure. Oleuropein per se did not lead to any adverse effects in HTR-8/SVneo cells under the described conditions, confirming its safety in vitro. In conclusion, it significantly attenuated oxidative damage and restored antioxidant functioning, confirming its protective role in trophoblast.",
"corpus_id": 256054448
} |
{
"title": "A novel heterozygous mutation of the NPHS1 gene in a Chinese child with congenital nephrotic syndrome: A case report",
"abstract": "Rationale: Congenital nephrotic syndrome (CNS) is a heterogeneous disorder in which massive proteinuria, hypoproteinemia, and hyperlipidemia and marked edema are the main manifestations before 3 months-of-age. Here, we present a case involving the genetic diagnosis of a child with CNS. Patient concerns: A 31-day-old male infant with diarrhea for 25 days and generalized edema for more than 10 days. There was no family history of kidney disease. On proband whole exome sequencing, a compound heterozygous mutation of the NPHS1 gene was identified, including a novel in-frame mutation in exon 14 (c.1864_1866dupACC p. T622dup) and a missense mutation in exon 8 (c.928G>A p. D310N). Diagnoses: Based on the clinical and genetic findings, this patient was finally diagnosed with CNS. Interventions: The main treatment options for the patient were 2-fold: anti-infective treatment and symptomatic treatment. Outcomes: The patient died in follow-up 2 months later; the specific reason for death was unclear. Lessons: Whole exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing confirmed that the infant had CNS. Our study identified a novel mutation in an infant, thus expanding the gene-mutation spectrum of the NPHS1 gene, thus providing an efficient prenatal screening strategy and early genetic counseling.",
"corpus_id": 256983650
} | {
"title": "Case Report: CMV-Associated Congenital Nephrotic Syndrome",
"abstract": "Background: Congenital nephrotic syndrome, historically defined by the onset of large proteinuria during the first 3 months of life, is a rare clinical disorder, generally with poor outcome. It is caused by pathogenic variants in genes associated with this syndrome or by fetal infections disrupting podocyte and/or glomerular basement membrane integrity. Here we describe an infant with congenital CMV infection and nephrotic syndrome that failed to respond to targeted antiviral therapy. Case and literature survey highlight the importance of the “tetrad” of clinical, virologic, histologic, and genetic workup to better understand the pathogenesis of CMV-associated congenital and infantile nephrotic syndromes. Case Presentation: A male infant was referred at 9 weeks of life with progressive abdominal distention, scrotal edema, and vomiting. Pregnancy was complicated by oligohydramnios and pre-maturity (34 weeks). He was found to have nephrotic syndrome and anemia, normal platelet and white blood cell count, no splenomegaly, and no syndromic features. Diagnostic workup revealed active CMV infection (positive CMV IgM/PCR in plasma) and decreased C3 and C4. Maternal anti-CMV IgG was positive, IgM negative. Kidney biopsy demonstrated focal mesangial proliferative and sclerosing glomerulonephritis with few fibrocellular crescents, interstitial T- and B-lymphocyte infiltrates, and fibrosis/tubular atrophy. Immunofluorescence was negative. Electron microscopy showed diffuse podocyte effacement, but no cytomegalic inclusions or endothelial tubuloreticular arrays. After 4 weeks of treatment with valganciclovir, plasma and urine CMV PCR were negative, without improvement of the proteinuria. Unfortunately, the patient succumbed to fulminant pneumococcal infection at 7 months of age. Whole exome sequencing and targeted gene analysis identified a novel homozygous, pathogenic variant (2071+1G>T) in NPHS1. Literature Review and Discussion: The role of CMV infection in isolated congenital nephrotic syndrome and the corresponding pathological changes are still debated. A search of the literature identified only three previous reports of infants with congenital nephrotic syndrome and evidence of CMV infection, who also underwent kidney biopsy and genetic studies. Conclusion: Complete workup of congenital infections associated with nephrotic syndrome is warranted for a better understanding of their pathogenesis (“diagnostic triad” of viral, biopsy, and genetic studies). Molecular testing is essential for acute and long-term prognosis and treatment plan.",
"corpus_id": 227172456
} | {
"title": "Alternating subgroups of exceptional groups of Lie type",
"abstract": "In this paper, we examine embeddings of alternating and symmetric groups into almost simple groups of exceptional type. In particular, we prove that if the alternating or symmetric group has degree equal to 5, or 8 or more, then it cannot appear as the maximal subgroup of any almost simple exceptional group of Lie type. Furthermore, in the remaining open cases of degrees 6 and 7 we give considerable information about the possible embeddings. Note that no maximal alternating or symmetric subgroups are known in the remaining cases.",
"corpus_id": 119160653
} |
{
"title": "Determination of GaAsSb/GaAs heterojunction band offset by photoluminescence spectroscopy",
"abstract": "Photoluminescence spectroscopy was observed for a set of Al/sub 0.5/Ga0.5As/Al/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/As/GaAs/sub 0.643/Sb/sub 0.357//Al/sub x/ Ga/sub 1-x/As/Al/sub 0.5/Ga/sub 0.5/As 5-layer quantum wells with different Al mole fraction x (different conduction band barrier heights E/sub x/= E/sub c/(Al/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/As) - E/sub c/(GaAs)). The theoretical calculation and the data fitting for the experimental data show the conduction band offset of GaAs/sub 0.643/Sb/sub 0.357//GaAs heterojunction is almost flat (weak type I), /spl Delta/E/sub c/ = E/sub c/(GaAs) - E/sub c/(GaAsSb) = 13 /spl plusmn/ 13 meV and the bandgap bowing parameter for strained GaAsSb is -1.58 /spl plusmn/ 0.01 eV.",
"corpus_id": 135801707
} | {
"title": "Long wavelength GaAsP/GaAs/GaAsSb VCSELs on GaAs substrates for communications applications",
"abstract": "Room-temperature continuous-wave operation of antimonide-based long wavelength VCSELs is demonstrated, with 1.2 mW power output at 1266 nm, the highest figure reported so far using this material system. Singlemode powers of 0.3 mW at 10/spl deg/C and 0.1 mW at 70/spl deg/C and sidemode suppression ratios up to 42 dB are also achieved.",
"corpus_id": 109846318
} | {
"title": "Taylor hypothesis applied to direct measurement of skin friction using data from Temperature Sensitive Paint",
"abstract": "Abstract We report about the feasibility of two criteria for the direct measurement of the skin friction τ which are based on the investigation of the passive transport of temperature fluctuations, as obtained from Temperature-Sensitive Paint (TSP) data. The first criterion represents a proof-of-concept about the reliability of the use of the passive transport of temperature fluctuations T w for the estimation of u τ . It relies on the identification of the time lag corresponding to the correlation peak between temperature time histories taken at points separated by fixed streamwise distance from the investigated location. The second criterion expands the former to check the feasibility of the skin friction measurement by means of T w propagation celerity in a wider range of flow conditions. It is derived by minimizing the deviation from the Taylor hypothesis of the equation of transport of temperature fluctuations, which corresponds to the energy equation for incompressible flows at the investigated conditions. Firstly, a common rule about the relationships between propagation celerity U T of the temperature disturbances at the wall beneath a turbulent boundary layer and friction velocity u τ is assessed from literature. Starting from this theoretical basis, the focus is placed on the flow over the suction side of a NACA 0015 hydrofoil model and in particular on the laminar separation bubble developing on this model surface, investigated experimentally at a chord Reynolds number of Re = 1.8 × 10 5 and angles of attack AoA = [ 1 ° , 3 ° , 5 ° , 7 ° , 10 ° ] . The profiles of time- and spanwise-averaged U T ( x ) and C f ( x ) (friction coefficient) are proposed and critically analyzed. Time averaged maps of the same quantities are then reported and commented as well. Paper topics are focused on: • The relationship between the propagation celerity of the velocity disturbances U U and the friction velocity u τ • The relationship between the propagation celerity of the temperature disturbances U T and U U • The algorithms for the extraction of the propagation celerity of temperature perturbations U T based on both the time lag of the correlation peak occurrence and the minimization of the deviation of transport equation for temperature fluctuations from the Taylor’s hypothesis. • The resulting profiles and maps of friction quantities u τ and C f .",
"corpus_id": 203110917
} |
{
"title": "Physiological and Transcriptomic Analyses Revealed That Humic Acids Improve Low-Temperature Stress Tolerance in Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo L.) Seedlings",
"abstract": "Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo L.) is one of the main vegetable crops grown under protected cultivation in northern China. Low-temperature (LT) stress severely inhibits the growth of zucchini seedlings, resulting in reductions in yield and quality. Here, using three kinds of different humic acids, including coal-based humic acid (CHA), fulvic acid (FA), and biochemical humic acid (BHA), we investigated the effects of humic acids against LT stress (5 °C) in zucchini seedlings. Treatment with all three kinds of humic acids improves LT stress tolerance by decreasing oxidative damage through increases in antioxidative enzyme activities and the contents of soluble sugar and proline in zucchini seedlings, especially after BHA application. Comparative transcriptomic analysis revealed that a total of 17 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were commonly induced in the leaves of FA-, CHA-, and BHA-treated zucchini seedlings under LT stress, including calmodulin, ethylene-responsive transcription factors (TFs), peroxidases, and 10 TFs, including two NAC and seven WRKY genes. Altogether, these results indicated that supplementation with humic acids reprograms plant metabolism and modulates the expression of genes involved in ROS scavenging, phytohormone metabolism, or signaling pathways, finally improving LT stress tolerance in zucchini seedlings.",
"corpus_id": 256312184
} | {
"title": "Brassinosteroid signaling positively regulates abscisic acid biosynthesis in response to chilling stress in tomato.",
"abstract": "Brassinosteroids (BRs) and abscisic acid (ABA) are essential regulators of plant growth and stress tolerance. Although the antagonistic interaction of BRs and ABA is proposed to ensure the balance between growth and defense in model plants, the crosstalk between BRs and ABA in response to chilling in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), a warm-climate horticultural crop, is unclear. Here, we determined that overexpression of the BR biosynthesis gene DWARF (DWF) or the key BR signaling gene BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT1 (BZR1) increases ABA levels in response to chilling stress via positively regulating the expression of the ABA biosynthesis gene 9-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE1 (NCED1). BR-induced chilling tolerance was mostly dependent on ABA biosynthesis. Chilling stress or high BR levels decreased the abundance of BRASSINOSTEROID-INSENSITIVE2 (BIN2), a negative regulator of BR signaling. Moreover, we observed that chilling stress increases BR levels and results in the accumulation of BZR1. BIN2 negatively regulated both the accumulation of BZR1 protein and chilling tolerance by suppressing ABA biosynthesis. Our results demonstrate that BR signaling positively regulates chilling tolerance via ABA biosynthesis in tomato. The study has implications in production of warm-climate crops in horticulture. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.",
"corpus_id": 252009007
} | {
"title": "Integration of light and temperature signaling pathways in plants.",
"abstract": "As two of the most important environmental factors, light and temperature regulate almost all aspects of plant growth and development. Under natural conditions, light is accompanied by warm temperatures and darkness by cooler temperatures, suggesting that light and temperature are tightly-associated signals for plants. Indeed, accumulating evidence shows that plants have evolved a wide range of mechanisms to simultaneously perceive and respond to dynamic changes in light and temperature. Notably, the photoreceptor phytochrome B (phyB) was recently shown to function as a thermosensor, thus reinforcing the notion that light and temperature signaling pathways are tightly associated in plants. In this review, we summarize and discuss the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms integrating light and temperature signaling pathways in plants, with the emphasis on recent progress in temperature sensing, light control of plant freezing tolerance, and thermomorphogenesis. We also discuss the questions that are crucial for a further understanding of the interactions between light and temperature signaling pathways in plants. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.",
"corpus_id": 245704127
} |
{
"title": "An Efficient Phase Unwrapping Method Based on Unscented Kalman Filter",
"abstract": "In this article, we proposed a phase unwrapping (PU) method which combines with unscented Kalman filter, pixel classification, and an efficient path-following strategy. The characteristics of the proposed method are summarized as: 1) the path-following strategy speeds up the process of PU without decreasing the accuracy; 2) the reliability of each pixel will be graded according to the position of residue and pixel classification strategy; and 3) different from the traditional methods, the proposed method can perform filtering and PU at the same time to prevent global propagation of error. In addition, we also introduce a signal model which can obtain a similar correlation map by only using a wrapped phase image when without the primary-secondary image. The results on synthetic data and real data show that the proposed method can obtain better results.",
"corpus_id": 256686086
} | {
"title": "CANet: An Unsupervised Deep Convolutional Neural Network for Efficient Cluster-Analysis-Based Multibaseline InSAR Phase Unwrapping",
"abstract": "Multibaseline (MB) phase unwrapping (PU) is a vital processing procedure for MB synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR) signal processing and can improve the traditional InSAR by changing the ill-posed problem to the well-posed problem. The existing research has shown that the MB PU problem can be successfully converted into an unsupervised cluster analysis problem. Using the high feature descriptiveness of the deep learning technique, an unsupervised deep convolutional neural network, referred to as CANet, is proposed to cluster all the pixels into different groups according to the input’s recognizable pattern of the ambiguity number of the MB interferometric phase. Subsequently, we extend our previous two-stage programming-based MB processing approach (TSPA) to processing MB PU on a sparse irregular network, which is established from the clustering result of CANet. Both theoretical analysis and experimental results show that the proposed method is an effective MB PU method, and its execution time is drastically lower than those of many classical MB PU methods.",
"corpus_id": 239064470
} | {
"title": "Knowledge-Aided InSAR Phase Unwrapping Approach",
"abstract": "2-D phase unwrapping (PU) is one of the biggest challenges in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry (InSAR) processing. As an ill-posed problem, the performance of the traditional algorithmic model-based 2-D PU algorithms is not guaranteed to be correct with rapid ground deformation or topographic changes. An increasing number of remote sensing observations collected by different sensors (e.g., LiDAR and GPS) provides new opportunities to assist the traditional 2-D InSAR PU by reducing the nondeterminacy. In this article, we propose a novel knowledge-aided PU (KAPU) approach. KAPU compiles different prior knowledge from different sources with InSAR observations simultaneously through an integer programming model. More importantly, the mathematical proof demonstrates that the constraint of the optimization model of KAPU is totally unimodular, so KAPU can be efficiently solved without having to have the constraint that the ambiguity number is an integer. Theoretical analysis and extensive experimental results illustrate that KAPU outperforms the existing model-based 2-D InSAR PU algorithms on digital elevation model (DEM) generation and surface deformation estimation.",
"corpus_id": 236679571
} |
{
"title": "Stem Diameter Decrement in Holm Oak (Quercus rotundifolia Lam.): Insights into Tree Decline Pathways in Endangered Woodlands of Southern Portugal",
"abstract": "Stem diameter growth in living trees refers to the invariably increase in dimension over a given period. However, reversible stem diameter decrease could occur, related to water movement in the vessels within the wood (on a daily basis) and to tree water deficit and depletion of stored water (on a seasonal basis). Recently, the perennial decrement in stem diameter size has been related to a tree decline pathway, and eventually resulting in tree death. In this study, we analysed stem diameter intra-annual growth dynamics of holm oak (Quercus rotundifolia Lam.) trees for two full growing seasons in distinct woodlands, Laborela and Aldeia dos Fernandes, in southern Portugal (Ourique district). Our focus was to assess stem diameter growth patterns and trends in holm oak trees in endangered woodlands with high tree mortality and to question if perennial decrement. Holm oaks in Laborela were much more sensitive in their stem diameter variations than in Aldeia dos Fernandes and, on average, their stem diameter decreased continuously by 1.0 mm along the 2-year study period, with a slightly higher annual decrease in the first study year (0.6 mm.yr−1). In addition, on average, trees had a higher decrease in stem sectional area of 5.8 cm2 in Laborela against a decrease of 3.7 cm2 in Aldeia dos Fernandes, where the stem diameter of holm oaks only decreased in the first study year (0.1 mm.yr−1). In each study area, the repeated- measures ANOVA showed that tree size effect influenced the stem diameter variations in contrast to tree crown defoliation. Trees were, on average, relatively smaller in Laborela, with DBH = 35.5 cm against DBH = 40.6 cm in Aldeia dos Fernandes, and were highly sensitive in their stem diameter decrement along two consecutives full growing seasons. This is the first exploratory study on assessing the stem diameter fluctuations on holm oaks to address a decline pathway. Our results revealed that holm oaks can survive during two consecutive growing seasons, with a continuous decrease in their stem diameters, which might indicate one tree’s decline pathway.",
"corpus_id": 257930461
} | {
"title": "Dehesas as high nature value farming systems: a social-ecological synthesis of drivers, pressures, state, impacts, and responses",
"abstract": "Dehesas and montados are Mediterranean agroforestry systems characterized by scattered oak trees with an understory grazed extensively by livestock and, in some cases, periodically cropped. A long history of traditional management practices has created an open woodland widely recognized for rich biodiversity and multiple ecosystem services. Concerns about challenges to their longterm viability have motivated many disparate scientific studies in recent decades. We provide a synthesis of this growing body of international literature, focusing on the links between land use and management practices, biodiversity, and policy, from a “high nature value farming systems” perspective. The present review comprises 128 empirical studies carried out in Spain and Portugal. Conservation trends were assessed according to categories adapted from the DPSIR (Drivers Pressures State Impacts Responses) framework. Socio-cultural factors, economic dynamics, and agricultural policies were found to be key drivers of change, resulting in intensification of livestock production and land use simplification, among other effects. Insufficient tree regeneration and a broad range of other factors were identified as pressures that have often negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services, moving the system away from its archetypical ecological state. A variety of management and policy responses were suggested, ranging from specific conservation techniques to landscape-level initiatives. Ecosystem components and management practices were typically studied separately, and mainly from an ecological science perspective, while interand transdisciplinary approaches including examination of the role of people were less common. This points to a need to move from single-topic to landscape-level approaches with a broader integration of different disciplines and perspectives.",
"corpus_id": 237602042
} | {
"title": "Balancing urban development and endangered species: The coachella valley habitat conservation plan",
"abstract": "Habitat conservation plans (HCPs) permitted under Section 10(A) of the federal Endangered Species Act, have been increasingly used to overcome conflicts between urban development and species conservation. This article profiles one such HCP, the Coachella Valley (CA) Fringe-Toed Lizard Habitat Conservation Plan. The second HCP officially approved by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the Coachella Valley case is frequently cited as a model for resolving conservation and development conflicts. The article begins with a discussion of the use of HCPs, and then provides a detailed discussion of Coachella Valley experience, its history, specific provisions, and success to date. A final section examines whether Coachella Valley does in fact represent a positive model. It is argued that the HCP has been less than fully successful and leaves unresolved a series of fundamental ethical and policy questions concerning the protection of endangered species.",
"corpus_id": 153681842
} |
{
"title": "Mindfulness Meditation for the Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain: A Preliminary Quasi-randomized Controlled Pilot Study",
"abstract": "Objective: To investigate the effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Pain Therapy (MBPT) a treatment combining mindfulness meditation and several interventions taken from cognitive therapy within the frame of the multimodal pain therapy program, in patients suffering from chronic low back pain (CLBP).Design: A quasi-randomized case-control study. Subjects: The study included 20 subjects with chronic low back pain were recruited and quasi-randomly allocated to a standard multimodal pain therapy (n=10) or to a multimodal pain therapy group with MBPT (n=10). The intervention was identical for both groups except for the mindfulness meditation program.Methods. Both groups participated in a 4-week training, 5 times/week. All subjects underwent the same measurement protocol before and after the intervention. The program was evaluated on the basis of measure of pain, quality of life, disability, pain catastrophizing and depression. Results: The trial group displayed significant reduction in pain intensity, improvement in the quality of life, reduction in pain disability, in depression and pain catastrophizing. Conclusion: The study indicated that mindfulness meditation can influence the treatments and lead to a significant improvement in the overall result of the multimodal pain therapy.",
"corpus_id": 245037855
} | {
"title": "A Brief Mindfulness Intervention for Parents and Children before Pediatric Venipuncture: A Randomized Controlled Trial",
"abstract": "Background: Routine needle procedures can be distressing for parents and children. Mindfulness interventions may be helpful for parents and children but have not been examined for pediatric needle procedures despite showing benefits in the context of pediatric chronic pain and in lab-based pain tasks. Methods: This preregistered (NCT03941717) two-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial examined the effects of a 5 min mindfulness intervention before pediatric venipuncture for parents and children (aged 7–12) compared to a control group on primary outcomes of child pain and fear, secondary outcomes of parent distress, and tertiary outcomes of parent ratings of child pain and fear. Moderators of parent and children’s responses to the intervention were examined: state catastrophizing, trait mindfulness, and experiential avoidance. Results: Sixty-one parent–child dyads were randomized (31 mindfulness; 30 control). Parents and children completed measures, listened to a 5 min audio recording (mindfulness or control), and parents accompanied their child during routine venipuncture. The mindfulness intervention involved breathing and encouraging nonjudgmental attention to one’s experiences, while the control condition involved an unfocused attention task. Three between-subject MANCOVAs assessed for group differences. Child pain and fear rated by children and their parents did not differ between groups. Parents in the mindfulness group were less distressed during the venipuncture than the controls. Parent state catastrophizing may have moderated the intervention effects, such that parents with moderate and high catastrophizing levels had lower distress following the mindfulness intervention versus control. Conclusions: The intervention did not reduce child pain or fear but reduced parent distress. It appeared most helpful for parents catastrophizing about their child’s pain, which is noteworthy as these children are prone to worse outcomes.",
"corpus_id": 254335341
} | {
"title": "Mindfulness",
"abstract": "Mindfulness, which is best understood as nonjudgmental, present-centered awareness, originated in ancient Eastern traditions but has been adapted for use in Western, secular settings. The present article reviews the quickly burgeoning field of mindfulness research for teachers of psychology, including the most common mindfulness-based treatments and exercises. It also includes an overview of settings outside of traditional mental health treatment in which mindfulness has been used. Because mindfulness is appropriate within the context of a variety of courses, we have also included recommendations for teaching psychology students about mindfulness.",
"corpus_id": 219960290
} |
{
"title": "Asymptotic distribution of the jump change-point estimator",
"abstract": "The asymptotic distribution of the change-point estimator in a jump changepoint model is considered. For the jump change-point model Xi = a + θI{[nτ0] < i ≤ n} + ɛi, where ɛi (i = 1, ..., n) are independent identically distributed random variables with Eɛi = 0 and Var(ɛi) < ∞, with the help of the slip window method, the asymptotic distribution of the jump change-point estimator \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\hat \\tau$$\\end{document} is studied under the condition of the local alternative hypothesis.",
"corpus_id": 255157425
} | {
"title": "Estimation of a change-point in the mean function of functional data",
"abstract": "The paper develops a comprehensive asymptotic theory for the estimation of a change-point in the mean function of functional observations. We consider both the case of a constant change size, and the case of a change whose size approaches zero, as the sample size tends to infinity. We show how the limit distribution of a suitably defined change-point estimator depends on the size and location of the change. The theoretical insights are confirmed by a simulation study which illustrates the behavior of the estimator in finite samples.",
"corpus_id": 17447788
} | {
"title": "Testing for lack of dependence in the functional linear model",
"abstract": "The authors consider the linear model Yn = ψXn + ϵn relating a functional response with explanatory variables. They propose a simple test of the nullity of ψ based on the principal component decomposition. The limiting distribution of their test statistic is chi‐squared, but this distribution is also an excellent approximation in finite samples. The authors illustrate their method using data from terrestrial magnetic observatories.",
"corpus_id": 54638302
} |
{
"title": "Modelling of water flow and prediction of water depth on runways",
"abstract": "Runway friction capability may be greatly reduced in the presence of water. High water depth can cause aquaplaning, reducing friction to near-zero. To ensure safe aircraft landing or take-off, information about runway surface condition has to be delivered to flight crews, in terms relevant for aircraft performances. Aircraft braking performances when water is present on the runway are assessed through water depth and surface covered. However, assessing depth and percentage coverage of water on the whole length and width of a runway is a huge issue due to the lack of tools and methods, and the rapidity of rain evolution and water flow. This paper presents a method and a tool developed for optimising the runway condition monitoring. Based on road experience, the project aims at modelling the water flow on runway from its geometric and surface characteristics and to predict water depth during rainy events. The developed tool is designed to alert runway inspectors about the time and place where water accumulation becomes dangerous.",
"corpus_id": 111154509
} | {
"title": "A Global Approach to Warn the Drivers Before a Curve by Considering the Decrease of Skid Resistance Due to the Rain",
"abstract": "This paper presents the results of a research project called IRCAD, which aimed at developing a global system to warn drivers in real time, when their behaviour is not adapted to infrastructure characteristics. The warning system is based on the comparison between the speed of a vehicle before a curve and a safety speed. This safety speed is defined as the maximum speed value before crash all along the curve (safety speed profile). These thresholds values of speed are calculated in real time depending both on constant parameters like infrastructure geometry (radius of curvature, cross and longitudinal slopes) and changing parameters like skid resistance, which is evolving with the weather conditions (wind, rain). This study is divided into three parts. In a first step, a water-depth model was developed to predict the water film thickness in the curve taking into account the road geometry and the rainfall intensity. On a second step, the skid resistance decrease due to the water film is evaluated. Then, the maximum speed is calculated by considering these corrected friction values. In a third step, experimentation is realized on two sites located on French secondary roads. To conclude, this system is proved to be very efficient and useful considering the fact that the models use data easy to obtain for road managers and that the warning sign only starts when the situation presents a real risk.",
"corpus_id": 106752298
} | {
"title": "Generation of Sinusoidal Voltage (Current)-Controlled Oscillators for Integrated Circuits",
"abstract": "Sinusoidal oscillators with large tuning range and small harmonic distortion offer various applications in integrated electronics. In this paper a method of generating sinusoidal voltage-controlled oscillators (VCO) and/or current-controlled oscillators suitable for integrated circuits is presented. Each oscillator circuit contains two fixed resistances, two fixed capacitances, and amplifiers. It is shown that one amplifier can be used to confine the natural frequencies of the circuit on the j axis of the complex frequency plane, and the other amplifier (or amplifiers) can be used to effectively increase or decrease the RC time constant and hence change the oscillation frequencies.",
"corpus_id": 111245262
} |
{
"title": "Cytokines and chemokines orchestrate atopic skin inflammation.",
"abstract": "Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common pruritic and chronically relapsing inflammatory skin disease. The pathophysiology of AD includes disturbed skin barrier functions, frequent allergic responses against allergens, defects in the antimicrobial immune defense, and a genetic predisposition. In this review we summarize advances in our understanding of the complex interdependent network of members of the rapidly growing protein superfamilies of cytokines and chemokines that lead to the development of AD.",
"corpus_id": 32737609
} | {
"title": "IL-31: a new link between T cells and pruritus in atopic skin inflammation.",
"abstract": "BACKGROUND\nIL-31 is a novel T-cell-derived cytokine that induces severe pruritus and dermatitis in transgenic mice, and signals through a heterodimeric receptor composed of IL-31 receptor A and oncostatin M receptor.\n\n\nOBJECTIVE\nTo investigate the role of human IL-31 in pruritic and nonpruritic inflammatory skin diseases.\n\n\nMETHODS\nThe expression of IL-31 was analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR in skin samples of healthy individuals and patients with chronic inflammatory skin diseases. Moreover, IL-31 expression was analyzed in nonlesional skin of atopic dermatitis patients after allergen or superantigen exposure, as well as in stimulated leukocytes. The tissue distribution of the IL-31 receptor heterodimer was investigated by DNA microarray analysis.\n\n\nRESULTS\nIL-31 was significantly overexpressed in pruritic atopic compared with nonpruritic psoriatic skin inflammation. Highest IL-31 levels were detected in prurigo nodularis, one of the most pruritic forms of chronic skin inflammation. In vivo, staphylococcal superantigen rapidly induced IL-31 expression in atopic individuals. In vitro, staphylococcal enterotoxin B but not viruses or T(H)1 and T(H)2 cytokines induced IL-31 in leukocytes. In patients with atopic dermatitis, activated leukocytes expressed significantly higher IL-31 levels compared with control subjects. IL-31 receptor A showed most abundant expression in dorsal root ganglia representing the site where the cell bodies of cutaneous sensory neurons reside.\n\n\nCONCLUSION\nOur findings provide a new link among staphylococcal colonization, subsequent T-cell recruitment/activation, and pruritus induction in patients with atopic dermatitis. Taken together, these findings show that IL-31 may represent a novel target for antipruritic drug development.",
"corpus_id": 42090760
} | {
"title": "Household consumption of electricity in Brazil between 1985 and 2013",
"abstract": "This article describes the electricity consumption in Brazilian residences between 1985 and 2013 through linear regressions. The explanatory variables considered were the number of households, effective consumption of families as a proxy for family income, and electricity tariff for households. To deal with the power generation crisis of 2001 we have introduced a dummy variable in the form of a step function. With such explanatory variables, we were able to account for the reduction of household electricity consumption caused by the policies conducted in 2001 and their permanent consequences. The regression presented coefficient of determination of 0.9892, and the several statistic tests conducted assured the existence of long-term relation between the electricity consumption in residences and the explanatory variables. The obtained elasticities for the household consumption of electricity with respect to number of residences, family income and residential tariff of electricity were 1.534±0.095, 0.189±0.049, and −0.230±0.060, respectively. These results allowed understanding the evolution over time of the household consumption of electricity in Brazil. They suggest that the electric sector in Brazil should pursue an active policy to manage demand of residential electricity using tariffs as a means to control it.",
"corpus_id": 156635235
} |
{
"title": "Lightweight and High Impact Toughness PP/PET/POE Composite Foams Fabricated by In Situ Nanofibrillation and Microcellular Injection Molding",
"abstract": "Polypropylene (PP) has become the most promising and candidate material for fabricating lightweight products. Microcellular injection molding (MIM) is a cost-effective technology for manufacturing porous plastic products. However, it is still challenging to fabricate high-performance PP microcellular components. Herein, we reported an efficient strategy to produce lightweight and high impact toughness foamed PP/polyethylene terephthalate (PET)/polyolefin-based elastomer (POE) components by combining in situ fibrillation (INF) and MIM technologies. First, the INF composite was prepared by integrating twin-screw compounding with melt spinning. SEM analysis showed PET nanofibrils with a diameter of 258 nm were achieved and distributed uniformly in the PP due to the POE’s inducing elaboration effect. Rheological and DSC analysis demonstrated PET nanofibrils pronouncedly improved PP’s viscoelasticity and crystal nucleation rate, respectively. Compared with PP foam, INF composite foam showed more stretched cells in the skin layer and refined spherical cells in the core layer. Due to the synergistic toughening effect of PET nanofibrils and POE elastic particles, the impact strength of INF composite foams was 295.3% higher than that of PP foam and 191.2% higher than that of melt-blended PP/PET foam. The results gathered in this study reveal potential applications for PP based INF composite foams in the manufacturing of lightweight automotive products with enhanced impact properties.",
"corpus_id": 255521419
} | {
"title": "A New Strategy for Achieving Shape Memory Effects in 4D Printed Two-Layer Composite Structures",
"abstract": "In this study, a new strategy and design for achieving a shape memory effect (SME) and 4D printed two-layer composite structures is unveiled, thanks to fused deposition modeling (FDM) biomaterial printing of commercial filaments, which do not have an SME. We used ABS and PCL as two well-known thermoplastics, and TPU as elastomer filaments that were printed in a two-layer structure. The thermoplastic layer plays the role of constraint for the elastomeric layer. A rubber-to-glass transition of the thermoplastic layer acts as a switching phenomenon that provides the capability of stabilizing the temporary shape, as well as storing the deformation stress for the subsequent recovery of the permanent shape by phase changing the thermoplastic layer in the opposite direction. The results show that ABS–TPU had fixity and recovery ratios above 90%. The PCL–TPU composite structure also demonstrated complete recovery, but its fixity was 77.42%. The difference in the SME of the two composite structures is related to the transition for each thermoplastic and programming temperature. Additionally, in the early cycles, the shape-memory performance decreased, and in the fourth and fifth cycles, it almost stabilized. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) photographs illustrated superior interfacial bonding and part integrity in the case of multi-material 3D printing.",
"corpus_id": 254659054
} | {
"title": "Fabrication of hierarchical core-shell AlPO4@Al(OH)3 with high flame-retardant performance",
"abstract": "Abstract A high-efficient composite of flame retardant (CFR) composed of an aluminum hydroxide (ATH) core and an aluminum phosphate (AP) flower-like shell was synthesized by an in-situ growth method, which is low cost and easy-to-handle. It has been demonstrated that flame retardancy and smoke suppression of (ethylene-vinyl acetate) EVA/CFR were enhanced compared to EVA/ATH attributed to the high-efficiency heat barrier and gas isolation of ceramic char residues mainly composed of Al2O3 porcelain agents and AlPO4 sintering aids. Thus, the novel hierarchical core-shell AlPO4@Al(OH)3 might supersede the ATH as flame retardants.",
"corpus_id": 225022618
} |
{
"title": "Cytoplasmic Domain of Rhodopsin Is Essential for Post-Golgi Vesicle Formation in a Retinal Cell-free System (*)",
"abstract": "In retinal photoreceptors, highly polarized organization of the light-sensitive organelle, the rod outer segment, is maintained by the sorting of rhodopsin and its associated proteins into distinct post-Golgi vesicles that bud from the trans-Golgi network (TGN) and by their vectorial transport toward the rod outer segment. We have developed an assay that reconstitutes the formation of these vesicles in a retinal cell-free system. Vesicle formation in this cell-free assay is ATP-, GTP-, and cytosol-dependent. In frog retinas vesicle budding also proceeds at 0°C, both in vivo and in vitro. Vesicles formed in vitro are indistinguishable from the vesicles formed in vivo by their buoyant density, protein composition, topology, and morphology. In addition to the previously identified G-proteins, these vesicles also contain rab11. Concurrently with vesicle budding, resident proteins are retained in the TGN. Collectively these data suggest that rhodopsin and its associated proteins are sorted upon exit from the TGN in this cell-free system. Removal of membrane-bound GTP-binding proteins of the rab family by rab GDP dissociation inhibitor completely abolishes formation of these vesicles and results in the retention of rhodopsin in the Golgi. A monoclonal antibody to the cytoplasmic (carboxyl-terminal) domain of rhodopsin and its Fab fragments strongly inhibit vesicle formation and arrest newly synthesized rhodopsin in the TGN rather than the Golgi. Therefore rhodopsin sorting at the exit from the TGN is mediated by the interaction of its cytoplasmic domain with the intracellular sorting machinery.",
"corpus_id": 29407355
} | {
"title": "CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutation in Xenopus laevis to study the cell biology of hereditary forms of blindness",
"abstract": "................................................................................................................................................ ii Lay Summary ...................................................................................................................................... iv Preface ................................................................................................................................................... v Table of",
"corpus_id": 90633522
} | {
"title": "Cases where the Penrose limit theorem does not hold",
"abstract": "Abstract Penrose's limit theorem (PLT, really a conjecture) states that the relative power measure of two voters tends asymptotically to their relative voting weight (number of votes). This property approximately holds in most of real life and in randomly generated WVGs for various measures of voting power. Lindner and Machover prove it for some special cases; amongst others they give a condition for this theorem to hold for the Banzhaf–Coleman index for a quota of 50%. We show here, by counterexamples, that the conclusion need not hold for other values of the quota. In doing this, we present an analytic proof of a counterexample recently given by Chang et al. using simulation techniques.",
"corpus_id": 19400042
} |
{
"title": "Association of Body Mass Index with Hypertension in Patients with Healthy Weight",
"abstract": "Objective: To determine the association between body mass index (BMI) and hypertension in the healthy weight group (BMI: >18.5-<25.0) stratified by age, sex, and race. Methods: Patient age, sex, race, BMI, and a diagnosis of hypertension for 51,435 adult patients (>18 years old) seen since 2015 at either the family medicine clinic or general internal medicine clinics were obtained from the electronic health record using ICD-10 codes for hypertension. This analysis was implemented on the 14,443 of these patients whose BMI values were between 18.5 and <25. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between BMI and hypertension with and without adjusting for the impact of age, race, and sex. Odds ratios were calculated for both the adjusted and unadjusted models. Results: Hypertension rates for healthy weight individuals steadily increased with BMI and age, which were independently associated with hypertension. The percentage of patients with hypertension by race was 20.9%, 18.1%, 13.1%, 11.7%, and 9.5% for Black, White, Asian, Other, and Hispanic/Latino, respectively. Fewer women had hypertension compared with men (15.5% vs 20.4%). Tests of odds ratios (both adjusted and unadjusted) indicated that individuals with greater BMI measurements in the healthy weight group are at significantly greater risk for hypertension. Conclusions: Patients in the healthy weight group with higher BMI within that group are at greater risk for hypertension. Patients who are male, Black, or older are also at greater risk of hypertension relative to the rest of the patient population.",
"corpus_id": 246665201
} | {
"title": "Body Mass Index and Risk of Incident Hypertension Over the Life Course: The Johns Hopkins Precursors Study",
"abstract": "Background— The obesity-hypertension link over the life course has not been well characterized, although the prevalence of obesity and hypertension is increasing in the United States. Methods and Results— We studied the association of body mass index (BMI) in young adulthood, into middle age, and through late life with risk of developing hypertension in 1132 white men of The Johns Hopkins Precursors Study, a prospective cohort study. Over a median follow-up period of 46 years, 508 men developed hypertension. Obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) in young adulthood was strongly associated with incident hypertension (hazard ratio, 4.17; 95% confidence interval, 2.34–7.42). Overweight (BMI 25 to <30 kg/m2) also signaled increased risk (hazard ratio, 1.58; 95% confidence interval, 1.28–1.96). Men of normal weight at age 25 years who became overweight or obese at age 45 years were at increased risk compared with men of normal weight at both times (hazard ratio, 1.57; 95% confidence interval, 1.20–2.07), but not men who were overweight or obese at age 25 years who returned to normal weight at age 45 years (hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.43–1.92). After adjustment for time-dependent number of cigarettes smoked, cups of coffee taken, alcohol intake, physical activity, parental premature hypertension, and baseline BMI, the rate of change in BMI over the life course increased the risk of incident hypertension in a dose-response fashion, with the highest risk among men with the greatest increase in BMI (hazard ratio, 2.52; 95% confidence interval, 1.82–3.49). Conclusions— Our findings underscore the importance of higher weight and weight gain in increasing the risk of hypertension from young adulthood through middle age and into late life.",
"corpus_id": 1142258
} | {
"title": "Cardiac Computed Tomography Radiomics-Based Approach for the Detection of Left Ventricular Remodeling in Patients with Arterial Hypertension",
"abstract": "The aim of the study is to verify the feasibility of a radiomics based approach for the detection of LV remodeling in patients with arterial hypertension. Cardiac Computed Tomography (CCT) and clinical data of patients with and without history of arterial hypertension were collected. In one image per patient, on a 4-chamber view, left ventricle (LV) was segmented using a polygonal region of interest by two radiologists in consensus. A total of 377 radiomics features per region of interest were extracted. After dataset splitting (70:30 ratio), eleven classification models were tested for the discrimination of patients with and without arterial hypertension based on radiomics data. An Ensemble Machine Learning (EML) score was calculated from models with an accuracy >60%. Boruta algorithm was used to extract radiomic features discriminating between patients with and without history of hypertension. Pearson correlation coefficient was used to assess correlation between EML score and septum width in patients included in the test set. EML showed an accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of 0.7. Correlation between EML score and LV septum width was 0.53 (p-value < 0.0001). We considered LV septum width as a surrogate of myocardial remodeling in our population, and this is the reason why we can consider the EML score as a possible tool to evaluate myocardial remodeling. A CCT-based radiomic approach for the identification of LV remodeling is possible in patients with past medical history of arterial hypertension.",
"corpus_id": 246400080
} |
{
"title": "A Conceptual Framework for Industrial Digital Transformation in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era",
"abstract": "Manufacturing has been hugely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with many critical global value chains either halted or seriously interrupted. Most interactions with customers and employees have to take place in a contactless or virtual way. As such, digital operation is the way to remain in business through mandatory shutdowns and restricted activity. To that end, this paper presents a literature review on the acceleration of the digital transformation triggered by COVID-19 as a catalyst in the utilization of Industry 4.0 technologies. Furthermore, a conceptual framework for digital transformation and Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) business models change is proposed.",
"corpus_id": 252407149
} | {
"title": "Applying Industry 4.0 technologies in the COVID–19 sustainable chains",
"abstract": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is 1) to investigate the effects on the crucial Industry 4 0 technological innovations that interact between the real and virtual worlds and that are applied in the sustainable supply chain process;2) to contribute to the identification of the opportunities, the challenges and the gaps that will support the new research study developments and 3) to analyze the impact of the Industry 4 0 technologies as facilitators of the sustainable supply chain performance in the midst of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Design/methodology/approach: This research is performed through a bibliographic review in the electronic databases of the Emerald Insight, the Scopus and the Web of Science, considering the main scientific publications on the subject Findings: The bibliographic search results in 526 articles, followed by two sequential filters for deleting the duplicate articles (resulting in 487 articles) and for selecting the most relevant articles (resulting in 150 articles) Practical implications: This article identifies the opportunities and the challenges focused on the emerging Industry 4 0 theme The opportunities can contribute to the sustainable performance of the supply chains and their territories The Industry 4 0 can also generate challenges like the social inequalities related to the position of the man in the labor market by replacing the human workforce with the machines Therefore, the man-machine relationship in the Industry 4 0 era is analyzed as a gap in the literature Therefore, as a way to fill this gap, the authors of this article suggest the exploration of the research focused on the Society 5 0 Also known as “super-smart society,” this recent theme appeared in Japan in April 2016 According to Fukuda (2020), in addition to the focus on the technological development, the Society 5 0 also aims at the quality of life and the social challenge resolutions Originality/value: This article contributes to the analysis of the Industry 4 0 technologies as facilitators in the sustainable supply chain performance It addresses the impacts of the Industry 4 0 technologies applied to the supply chains in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it analyzes the research gaps and limitations found in the literature The result of this study can add value and stimulate new research studies related to the application of the Industry 4 0 technologies as facilitators in the supply chain sustainable performance It can encourage the studies related to the COVID-19 impacts on the sustainable supply chains, and it can promote the research development on the relationship among the man, the machine and the labor in the Fourth Industrial Revolution © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited",
"corpus_id": 234052876
} | {
"title": "The Effect of Compensation, Organizational Culture and Islamic Work Ethic Towards the Job Satisfaction and the Impact on the Permanent Lecturers",
"abstract": "This study examines the effect of compensation, organizational culture and Islamic work ethic directly towards the job satisfaction and performance of the lecturers and the effect of compensation, organizational culture and Islamic work ethic towards the performance of lecturers through job satisfaction. This study was conducted at the Private Islamic University in Indonesia. The population of the study is 295 lecturers. The data were analyzed using The Structural Equation Modeling with LISREL 8.80 applications. The results showed that compensation, organizational culture and Islamic work ethic have a positive and significant effect on job satisfaction. Job satisfaction has a positive effect on the performance. Compensation, organizational culture and Islamic work ethic have a positive effect on the performance of lecturers significantly. Compensation and organizational culture have a significant effect on the performance through job satisfaction while Islamic work ethic does not significantly influence the performance of lecturers through job satisfaction.",
"corpus_id": 240361368
} |
{
"title": "A split green fluorescent protein system to enhance spatial and temporal sensitivity of translating ribosome affinity purification",
"abstract": "SUMMARY Translating ribosome affinity purification (TRAP) utilizes transgenic plants expressing a ribosomal protein fused to a tag for affinity co‐purification of ribosomes and the mRNAs that they are translating. This population of actively translated mRNAs (translatome) can be interrogated by quantitative PCR or RNA sequencing. Condition‐ or cell‐specific promoters can be utilized to isolate the translatome of specific cell types, at different growth stages and/or in response to environmental variables. While advantageous for revealing differential expression, this approach may not provide sufficient sensitivity when activity of the condition/cell‐specific promoter is weak, when ribosome turnover is low in the cells of interest, or when the targeted cells are ephemeral. In these situations, expressing tagged ribosomes under the control of these specific promoters may not yield sufficient polysomes for downstream analysis. Here, we describe a new TRAP system that employs two transgenes: One is constitutively expressed and encodes a ribosomal protein fused to one fragment of a split green fluorescent protein (GFP); the second is controlled by a stimulus‐specific promoter and encodes the second GFP fragment fused to an affinity purification tag. In cells where both transgenes are active, the purification tag is attached to ribosomes by bi‐molecular folding and assembly of the split GFP fragments. This approach provides increased sensitivity and better temporal resolution because it labels pre‐existing ribosomes and does not depend on rapid ribosome turnover. We describe the optimization and key parameters of this system, and then apply it to a plant–pathogen interaction in which spatial and temporal resolution are difficult to achieve with current technologies.",
"corpus_id": 248242154
} | {
"title": "Differential Regulation of the Ribosomal Association of mRNA Transcripts in an Arabidopsis Mutant Defective in Jasmonate-Dependent Wound Response",
"abstract": "Jasmonoyl-L-isoleucine (JA-Ile) is a powerful oxylipin responsible for the genome-wide transcriptional reprogramming in plants that results in major physiological shifts from growth to defense. The double T-DNA insertion Arabidopsis mutant, cyp94b1cyp94b3 (b1b3), defective in cytochrome p450s, CYP94B1 and CYP94B3, which are responsible for oxidizing JA-Ile, accumulates several fold higher levels of JA-Ile yet displays dampened JA-Ile–dependent wound responses—the opposite of what is expected. Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses showed that while the transcriptional response to wounding was largely unchanged in b1b3 compared to wild type (WT), many proteins were found to be significantly reduced in the mutant, which was verified by immunoblot analyses of marker proteins. To understand this protein phenotype and their hypothesized contribution to the b1b3 phenotypes, wounded rosette leaf samples from both WT and b1b3 were subject to a translating ribosome affinity purification RNA sequencing analysis. More than 1,600 genes whose transcripts do not change in abundance by wounding changed their association with the ribosomes after wounding in WT leaves. Consistent with previous observations, the total pool of mRNA transcripts was similar between WT and b1b3; however, the ribosome-associated pool of transcripts was changed significantly. Most notably, fewer transcripts were associated with the ribosome pool in b1b3 than in WT, potentially explaining the reduction of many proteins in the mutant. Among those genes with fewer ribosome-associated transcripts in b1b3 were genes relating to stress response, specialized metabolism, protein metabolism, ribosomal subunits, and transcription factors, consistent with the biochemical phenotypes of the mutant. These results show previously unrecognized regulations at the translational level that are affected by misregulation of JA homeostasis during the wound response in plants.",
"corpus_id": 232172202
} | {
"title": "MRI Spectrum of Japanese Encephalitis in Northeast India: A Cross-Sectional Study",
"abstract": "Abstract Objective Japanese encephalitis (JE) is an arthropod-borne flavivirus infection having high mortality and morbidity. This study was performed to evaluate the conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in JE and to find out any difference between pediatric and adult JE. Materials and Methods This retrospective study was performed on serologically positive 54 JE patients presented to a tertiary care hospital with acute encephalitic symptoms between April 2016 and October 2019. Relevant neurological examination, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and MRI scan of the brain were performed. Results Fifty-four JE patients (n = 31 males and n = 23 females) having 32 pediatric and 22 adult JE were included in the study sample. Group 1 JE (n = 16) patients had encephalitic symptoms with duration less than 15 days up to the day of MRI scan and group 2 JE (n = 38) had symptoms more than 15 days. Group 1 JE had mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value of 0.563 ± 0.109 (standard deviation [SD]) × 10–3 mm2/sec and group 2 JE had 1.095 ± 0.206 (SD) × 10–3 mm2/sec. The mean ADC value of pediatric JE was 0.907 ± 0.336 (SD) × 10–3 mm2/sec and adult JE was 0.982 ± 0.253 (SD) × 10–3 mm2/sec. Conclusion The majority of the JE patient shows abnormal signal alterations in bilateral thalami and substantia nigra. Diffusion-weighted imaging with ADC mapping helps in evaluating the stage of the JE. No statistical significance of the various conventional MRI findings was found between the pediatric JE and adult JE.",
"corpus_id": 233456077
} |
{
"title": "Key aspects of the production of modern armaments and military equipment systems",
"abstract": "The relevance of scientific research on the production of modern armaments and military equipment systems obeys to the prevalence of high geopolitical tensions in several zones of the globe, often leading to armed conflicts and thereby increasing the use of armaments and military equipment. The purpose of this article is to examine key aspects of the production, use, and operational reliability of armaments and military equipment used in real-world combat situations. The methodological approach is a combination of a systemic analysis of the current state of the military and industrial complex in a range of countries around the world with ananalytical study of the specifics of using weapons and military equipment in actual combat and the related trends in the development of the military and industrial complex. The results highlight various aspects of the practical use of armaments and military equipment in the defense strategy of individual states and the role of armaments and military equipment in today’s global social and economic system. These results are of significant practical importance to the employees of the military and industrial complex, whose direct responsibilities include the design and development of the latest weapons and military equipment, to the members of the various branches of the military who operate such equipment, and to the representatives of the military and industrial complex of individual states, whose direct tasks include bidding in international markets for armaments and military equipment.",
"corpus_id": 258627544
} | {
"title": "Advances in military textiles and personal equipment",
"abstract": "Part 1 Design issues in military clothing and equipment: Key issues in body armour: Threats, materials and design Assessing military equipment requirements and capability: the Australian experience Anthropometric methods for the successful design of military clothing and equipment Psychological issues in military uniform design Colour and camouflage design issues in military clothing Materials and design issues for military helmets Design issues in military footwear and hand wear. Part 2 Applications to particular types of military clothing and equipment: Customization of a lightweight bullet proof vest for the female form Optimisation of body armour design parameters: Vulnerability and survivability assessment High performance ballistic protection using polymer nanocomposites Modelling the comfort and protection qualities of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) protective clothing Advances in materials for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) protective clothing Designing load carriage systems for military personnel Advanced hydration systems for soldiers: the example of the US army.",
"corpus_id": 107864618
} | {
"title": "Global Politics and Empty Signifiers: The Political Construction of High-Technology",
"abstract": "This article argues for the usefulness of the concept of the empty signifier for the analysis of international policy processes. First, it emphasizes the importance of considering references to general public interest in global politics and the way such interest is constructed. Second, it opens up the possibility of examining political strategies in the process of developing policy programs. Third, it provides a foil for scrutinizing the interplay between universal and particular interests. Finally, it offers a framework for analysis that can be used to explain the process by which a term comes to both identify and propel a whole policy field or development. In an examination of U.S. technology policies during the 1990s until mid 2000s, the article investigates the political process leading to the development of the term nanotechnology. In so doing, it argues that nanotechnology is not a particular technology or a specific field of research, but rather a broader political project encompassing a wide array of technological areas that are unified in name only. It is the term nanotechnology that brings them together under one cover, giving them a common identification.",
"corpus_id": 237526875
} |
{
"title": "A characterization of Drazin monotonicity of operators over ordered Banach space",
"abstract": "Let A be a bounded linear operator over ordered Banach space which is ordered by a cone K . Then A is said to be cone nonnegative if $$AK \\subseteq K.$$ A K ⊆ K . The objective of this article is to characterize the cone nonnegativity of Drazin inverses of bounded linear operators over ordered real Banach space by using methods of Index splitting. The results of this article are motivated by the results of Berman and Plemmons (SIAM J Numer Anal 11(1):145–154, 1974) and are used in the convergence analysis of iterative methods for solving the operator equation $$Ax=b$$ A x = b .",
"corpus_id": 257997716
} | {
"title": "Cones and Iterative Methods for Best Least Squares Solutions of Linear Systems",
"abstract": "The concept of a regular splitting of a real nonsingular matrix, introduced by R. Varga, is used in iterative methods for solving linear systems. The purpose of this paper is to extend this concept to rectangular linear systems \\[ ( * )\\qquad Ax = b, \\] in two directions. Firstly, this is accomplished by replacing $A^{ - 1} $ by $A^\\dag $, the Moore–Penrose inverse of A, and, secondly, by considering matrices that leave a cone invariant.Let $A \\in R^{m \\times n} $. The splitting $A = M - N$ is called proper if $R(A) = R(M)$ and $N(A) = N(M)$. Such is the case when A and M are nonsingular. Consider the iteration \\[ ( * * )\\qquad x^{i + 1} = M^ \\dag Nx^i + M^ \\dag b. \\] It is shown that for a proper splitting, $\\rho (M^ \\dag N)$ (the spectral radius of $M^ \\dag N$) is less than l, if and only if the iteration (**) converges to $A^ \\dag b$, the best least squares approximate solution of the system (*). This approach has the advantage of avoiding the normal system $A^T Ax = A^T b$ in solving (*). Necessary an...",
"corpus_id": 121370372
} | {
"title": "Convergence analysis of an energy based discontinuous Galerkin method for the wave equation in second-order form: hp version",
"abstract": "Abstract In this paper we study the error estimates of the h p -version of a spatial discontinuous Galerkin method proposed in Appelo and Hagstrom (2015) for the wave equation. For different degrees of the approximation spaces we give the error estimates depending on the flux parameters in the energy norm and prove that optimal convergence rates can be obtained for some special flux parameters, which is an improvement of the existing work of Appelo and Hagstrom (2015). Finally we provide numerical experiments to verify our theoretical findings.",
"corpus_id": 214086933
} |
{
"title": "Clinical study of the management of scrotal swelling in adult patients at a rural medical college and research hospital",
"abstract": "Background: Scrotal swellings are commonest clinical entities in surgical practice. Hydrocele is abnormal collection of serous fluid in the tunica vaginalis or any part of the processus vaginalis, which needs to be differentiated from other conditions and surgically managed. Methods: This prospective, observational study was carried out on 90 adult male patients between January 2021 to August 2021 diagnosed with scrotal swelling, admitted, treated at MVJMC and RH. Inclusion criteria were male patients of age >18 years. Exclusion criteria were patients with paediatric scrotal swellings. Routine blood investigations, COVID test and ultrasound of the scrotum was done. The patients underwent one of the standard surgical procedures and were observed for post-operative complications during their stay at the hospital and were followed up for 3 months. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS-21 software.Results: Collected data was analysed using SPSS-21. In our study hydrocele was seen in 48 (53.33%), epididymo-orchitis 5 (5.56%). 3 (3.33%) cases of varicocele, 2 (2.22%) cases of epididymal cyst and 1 (1.11%) each of sebaceous cyst, spermatocele, hematocele, sebaceous cyst, Fournier’s gangrene, infected encysted hydrocele, pyocele, scrotal abscess and filarial hydrocele. 2 (2.22%) testicular tumour and 21 (23.86%) testicular torsion. Of 90 patients 81 (90%) underwent surgery, while 9 (10%) patients were managed conservatively.Conclusions: Primary vaginal hydrocele was the commonest scrotal swelling. Ultrasound of the scrotum is diagnostic tool in differentiating from other swellings in the scrotum especially in testicular torsion when the testis can be saved. Jaboulay’s procedure was the commonest surgery performed with least complications.",
"corpus_id": 251890448
} | {
"title": "Sonological Evaluation of Scrotal Pathology by High Resolution Ultrasound and Color Doppler",
"abstract": "Gallstone ileus is an uncommon complication of cholelithiasis, with a high morbidity and mortality rate, usually related to the delayed diagnosis of intestinal obstruction. Diagnosing gallstone ileus needs a high index of suspicion. A case of a gallstone ileus is reported. The clinical presentation, radiological features, intra-operative findings, operative procedure and literature review are presented.",
"corpus_id": 75153874
} | {
"title": "Malignant tumors of testis in Ajmer region",
"abstract": "Background: Testicular tumor is the most general solid tumor of young men but only accountable for about 1% of all cancers in men. The peak incidence is between 15 and 34 years age group. Testicular tumors are divided into two categories: germ cell tumors and nongerm cell tumors. Germ cell tumors consist of about 95% of all testicular tumors. \n \nObjective: To study the burden, incidence, and morphological and clinicopathological correlation of testicular tumors in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. \n \nMaterials and Methods: This retrospective and prospective 16-year study was performed in Department of Pathology, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Ajmer, Rajasthan, India, from January 1999 to December 2014. The diagnosis was confirmed by histopathology with Hematoxylin and Eosin. Special stains and immunohistochemistry were done whenever needed. \n \nResult: Of 115 cases of testicular tumors, the germ cell tumors [101 (87.82%) cases] were the commonest tumors. Highest incidence of testicular tumors was between 31 and 40 years age group (29.56%). Scrotal swelling was the commonest mode of presentation seen in 103 (89.56%) patients. Right-sided scrotal swelling [66 (57.39%) cases] was more common. \n \nConclusion: This study provides a description of the current trends in testicular tumors incidence and histopathological types.",
"corpus_id": 45397553
} |
{
"title": "Global Prioritizing Disease Candidate lncRNAs via a Multi-level Composite Network",
"abstract": "LncRNAs play pivotal roles in many important biological processes, but research on the functions of lncRNAs in human disease is still in its infancy. Therefore, it is urgent to prioritize lncRNAs that are potentially associated with diseases. In this work, we developed a novel algorithm, LncPriCNet, that uses a multi-level composite network to prioritize candidate lncRNAs associated with diseases. By integrating genes, lncRNAs, phenotypes and their associations, LncPriCNet achieves an overall performance superior to that of previous methods, with high AUC values of up to 0.93. Notably, LncPriCNet still performs well when information on known disease lncRNAs is lacking. When applied to breast cancer, LncPriCNet identified known breast cancer-related lncRNAs, revealed novel lncRNA candidates and inferred their functions via pathway analysis. We further constructed the human disease-lncRNA landscape, revealed the modularity of the disease-lncRNA network and identified several lncRNA hotspots. In summary, LncPriCNet is a useful tool for prioritizing disease-related lncRNAs and may facilitate understanding of the molecular mechanisms of human disease at the lncRNA level.",
"corpus_id": 18510503
} | {
"title": "Methods of integrating data to uncover genotype–phenotype interactions",
"abstract": "Recent technological advances have expanded the breadth of available omic data, from whole-genome sequencing data, to extensive transcriptomic, methylomic and metabolomic data. A key goal of analyses of these data is the identification of effective models that predict phenotypic traits and outcomes, elucidating important biomarkers and generating important insights into the genetic underpinnings of the heritability of complex traits. There is still a need for powerful and advanced analysis strategies to fully harness the utility of these comprehensive high-throughput data, identifying true associations and reducing the number of false associations. In this Review, we explore the emerging approaches for data integration — including meta-dimensional and multi-staged analyses — which aim to deepen our understanding of the role of genetics and genomics in complex outcomes. With the use and further development of these approaches, an improved understanding of the relationship between genomic variation and human phenotypes may be revealed.",
"corpus_id": 18003714
} | {
"title": "Sirt3 ameliorates mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress through regulating mitochondrial biogenesis and dynamics in cardiomyoblast.",
"abstract": "Sirtuins are the endogenously present anti-aging protein deacetylases that regulate the mitochondrial biogenesis and function. Especially Sirt3, a mitochondrial sirtuin, is well known for maintaining mitochondrial function and health. In the present study, we have explored the novel role of Sirt3 in mitochondrial biogenesis and shown the role of Sirt3 in mito-nuclear communication through AMPK-α in Sirt3 knockdown and Sirt3 overexpressed H9c2 cells. The study found that impaired mitochondrial function in Sirt3-knockdown H9c2 cells was associated with decreased expression of mitochondrial DNA encoded genes, reduced SOD2 expression and activity. The study also revealed that Sirt3 knockdown affects mitochondrial biogenesis and dynamics. To further confirm the role of Sirt3 on mitochondrial biogenesis and health, we did Sirt3 overexpression in H9c2 cells. Sirt3 overexpression enhanced the expression of mitochondrial DNA encoded genes, increased SOD2 activity and altered mitochondrial dynamics. Sirt3 overexpression also caused an increase in mitochondrial biogenesis gene and protein (PGC-1α and TFAM) expression. All these changes were confirmed with mitochondrial functional parameters like basal respiration, maximal respiratory capacity, spare respiratory capacity and ATP production. We found decreased mitochondrial function in Sirt3-knockdown H9c2 cells when compared to control H9c2 cells. Together our data conclude that Sirt3 regulates cardiac mitochondrial health and function through the Sirt3-AMPKα-PGC-1α axis.",
"corpus_id": 247515345
} |
{
"title": "Modelling the influence of prey switching and optimal foraging on the control of banana weevil Cosmopolites Sordidus(Germar)",
"abstract": "A mathematical model for the control of the banana weevil Cosmopolites Sordidus (Germar) by predatory ant species is formulated and analyzed. The model incorporates predator switching to a non-dynamic alternative food source, optimal foraging theory and self regulation in both the banana weevil and predatory-ant species! Using Lyapunov's first method, the local stability of the equilibria is established. Furthermore, conditions for the existence of the interior equilibrium are derived and its global stability established by the Bendixson--Dulac criterion with periodic orbits ruled out by the Poincare--Bendixson theorem. It is determined that intrinsic growth rates and carrying capacities rather than handling time and nutritional value have significant impact on the banana weevils-- predatory ant interaction. Numerical simulations confirm the theoretical results.",
"corpus_id": 244210701
} | {
"title": "A generalized functional response for predators that switch between multiple prey species.",
"abstract": "We develop a theory for the food intake of a predator that can switch between multiple prey species. The theory addresses empirical observations of prey switching and is based on the behavioural assumption that a predator tends to continue feeding on prey that are similar to the prey it has consumed last, in terms of, e.g., their morphology, defences, location, habitat choice, or behaviour. From a predator's dietary history and the assumed similarity relationship among prey species, we derive a general closed-form multi-species functional response for describing predators switching between multiple prey species. Our theory includes the Holling type II functional response as a special case and makes consistent predictions when populations of equivalent prey are aggregated or split. An analysis of the derived functional response enables us to highlight the following five main findings. (1) Prey switching leads to an approximate power-law relationship between ratios of prey abundance and prey intake, consistent with experimental data. (2) In agreement with empirical observations, the theory predicts an upper limit of 2 for the exponent of such power laws. (3) Our theory predicts deviations from power-law switching at very low and very high prey-abundance ratios. (4) The theory can predict the diet composition of a predator feeding on multiple prey species from diet observations for predators feeding only on pairs of prey species. (5) Predators foraging on more prey species will show less pronounced prey switching than predators foraging on fewer prey species, thus providing a natural explanation for the known difficulties of observing prey switching in the field.",
"corpus_id": 8697613
} | {
"title": "Graph Stream Sketch: Summarizing Graph Streams With High Speed and Accuracy",
"abstract": "A graph stream is a continuous sequence of data items, in which each item indicates an edge, including its two endpoints and edge weight. It forms a dynamic graph that changes with every item. Graph streams play important roles in cyber security, social networks, cloud troubleshooting systems and more. Due to the vast volume and high update speed of graph streams, traditional data structures for graph storage such as the adjacency matrix and the adjacency list are no longer sufficient. However, prior art of graph stream summarization either supports limited kinds of queries or suffers from poor accuracy of query results. In this paper, we propose a novel <italic>G</italic>raph <italic>S</italic>tream <italic>S</italic>ketch (GSS for short) to summarize the graph streams, which has linear space cost <inline-formula><tex-math notation=\"LaTeX\">$O(|E|)$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mrow><mml:mi>O</mml:mi><mml:mo>(</mml:mo><mml:mo>|</mml:mo><mml:mi>E</mml:mi><mml:mo>|</mml:mo><mml:mo>)</mml:mo></mml:mrow></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href=\"zou-ieq1-3174570.gif\"/></alternatives></inline-formula> (E is the edge set of the graph) and high update speed, and supports most kinds of queries over graph streams with controllable errors. Experimental results show that our solution is up to 142 times faster than the adjacency list when processing updates in graph streams, and its memory consumption is as small as <inline-formula><tex-math notation=\"LaTeX\">$30\\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mrow><mml:mn>30</mml:mn><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:mrow></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href=\"zou-ieq3-3174570.gif\"/></alternatives></inline-formula> of the adjacency list. Though error is introduced as a trade off in our solution, both theoretical analysis and experiment results confirm that such error is small and controllable. The relative error is below <inline-formula><tex-math notation=\"LaTeX\">$10^{-2}$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mn>10</mml:mn><mml:mrow><mml:mo>-</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href=\"zou-ieq4-3174570.gif\"/></alternatives></inline-formula> in edge weight query, and the precision is above <inline-formula><tex-math notation=\"LaTeX\">$90\\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mrow><mml:mn>90</mml:mn><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:mrow></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href=\"zou-ieq5-3174570.gif\"/></alternatives></inline-formula> is 1-hop precursor/successor queries.",
"corpus_id": 248757816
} |
{
"title": "Characteristics, secondary transformation and odor activity evaluation of VOCs emitted from municipal solid waste incineration power plant.",
"abstract": "Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from municipal solid waste incineration power plant (MSWIPP) plays a significant role in the formation of O3 and PM2.5 and odor pollution. Field test was performed on four MSWIPPs in an area of the North China Plain. Nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHCs) and 102 VOCs were identified and quantified. Ozone formation potential (OFP), secondary organic aerosol formation potential (SOAFP), and odor activity of the detected VOCs were evaluated. Results showed that the average concentration of NMHCs and VOCs were 1648.6 ± 1290.4 μg/m3 and 635.3 ± 588.8 μg/m3, respectively. Aromatics (62.1%), O-VOCs (16.0%), and halo hydrocarbons (10.0%) were the main VOCs groups in the MSWIPP exhaust gas. VOCs emission factor of MSWIPP was 2.43 × 103 ± 2.27 × 103 ng/g-waste. The OFP and SOAFP of MSWIPP were 960.18 ± 2158.17 μg/m3 and 1.57 ± 3.38 μg/m3, respectively. Acrolein as the dominant VOC species was the major odor contributor with a percentage of odor contribution of 65.9%. Benzene and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene as the dominant VOC species were the main contributors of O3 formation potentials, in which 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene was also the main contributors of SOA formation potential.",
"corpus_id": 253614822
} | {
"title": "Heavy ozone pollution episodes in urban Beijing during the early summertime from 2014 to 2017: Implications for control strategy.",
"abstract": "Ground-level ozone (O3) has become the principal air pollutant in Beijing during recent summers. In this context, an investigation of ambient concentrations and variation characteristics of O3 and its precursors in May and June from 2014 to 2017 in a typical urban area of Beijing was carried out, and the formation sensitivity and different causes of heavy O3 pollution (HOP, daily maximum 8-h O3 (MDA8h O3)>124 ppbv) were analyzed. The results showed that the monthly assessment values of the O3 concentrations (the 90th percentile MDA8h O3 within one month) were highest in May or June from 2014 to 2017, and the values presented an overall increasing trend. During this period, the number of O3 pollution days (MDA8h O3 > 75 ppbv) also showed an increasing trend. During the HOP episodes, the concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOX), and carbon monoxide (CO) were higher than their respective mean values in May and June, and the meteorological conditions were more conducive to atmospheric photochemical reactions. The HOP episodes were mainly caused by local photochemical formation. From 2014 to 2017, O3 formation during the HOP episodes shifted from VOC and NOX mixed-limited to VOC-limited conditions, and O3 formation was most sensitive to anthropogenic VOCs. Six categories of VOC sources were identified, among which vehicular exhaust contributed the most to anthropogenic VOCs. The VOC concentrations and OFPs of anthropogenic sources have decreased significantly in recent years, indicating that VOC control measures have been effective in Beijing. Nevertheless, NOX concentrations did not show an evident decreasing trend in the same period. Therefore, more attention should be devoted to O3 pollution control in May and June; control measure adjustments are needed according to the changes in O3 precursors, and coordinated control of VOCs and NOX should be strengthened in long-term planning.",
"corpus_id": 234346104
} | {
"title": "GEOMETRY ASSOCIATED WITH THE COLLISION MANIFOLD",
"abstract": "Neighborhoods of the Lagrange points control phase space transport at low energies in the circular restricted three-body problem because of the geometry of the forbidden region. At high energies, the forbidden region vanishes and the linearized dynamics about the Lagrange points no longer controls transit. ”Arches of chaos” spanning solar system phase space were recently discovered which induce marked phase space stretching. We demonstrate numerically that the arches are the intersections of the stable and unstable manifolds to the singularities at the primaries with a specific surface of section. We explore how trajectories near these manifolds evolve and show how they connect to patched conics theory",
"corpus_id": 259367402
} |
{
"title": "Caesalpinia bonducella Counteracts Paracetamol-Instigated Hepatic Toxicity via Modulating TNF-α and IL-6/10 Expression and Bcl-2 and Caspase-8/3 Signalling.",
"abstract": "Paracetamol is the most predominantly used antipyretic and analgesic drug. As paracetamol is metabolised mostly in the liver, both deliberate and unintentional overdoses of paracetamol are reported to provoke severe hepatotoxicity, including liver failure. Caesalpinia bonducella seed is well known for its medicinal and therapeutic properties. However, there is no report on its potential protective effects against paracetamol-instigated hepatotoxicity. Therefore, we studied the protective effects of aqueous seed extract of Caesalpinia bonducella (ASECB) on paracetamol-instigated hepatotoxicity in rats. Thirty female albino rats were divided into five groups: control, paracetamol-intoxicated, ASECB + paracetamol, silymarin + paracetamol, and ASECB alone. The rats were assessed for liver enzyme markers (alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase), antioxidant activity (superoxide dismutase, catalase, reduced glutathione, glutathione peroxidase), lipid peroxidation (malondialdehyde), histopathological, cytokine levels (pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6, and anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10), and protein expression (pro-apoptotic markers caspase 3 and caspase 8 and anti-apoptotic marker Bcl-2) after the 8-day study period. Repercussions of paracetamol intoxication induced upregulation of liver enzyme markers, antioxidant depletion, malondialdehyde production, decreased expression of Bcl-2 and IL-10, and overexpression of apoptotic and pro-inflammatory mediators, which were attenuated by pre-treatment with ASECB. ASECB markedly mitigated paracetamol-instigated liver injury by suppressing caspase-8/3 signalling and inflammatory infiltration in liver tissue by significantly reducing TNF-α and IL-6. In conclusion, ASECB pre-treatment exerts potent liver protection against paracetamol-instigated hepatotoxicity evidenced by mitigation of oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, inflammation, and apoptosis.",
"corpus_id": 257231549
} | {
"title": "Caesalpinia bonducella mitigates oxidative damage by paracetamol intoxication in the kidney and intestine via modulating pro/anti-inflammatory and apoptotic signaling: an In vivo mechanistic insight",
"abstract": "Protracted use of paracetamol at therapeutic/toxic doses readily induces major organ toxicity and poor clinical efficacy. Caesalpinia bonducella seeds possess a diverse range of biological and therapeutic activities. Thus, our study aimed to scrutinize the toxic effects of paracetamol and the potential renal and intestinal protective effects of Caesalpinia bonducella seed extract (CBSE). To Wistar rats, CBSE was administered for 8 days (300 mg/kg, p.o.) with or without paracetamol (2000 mg/kg, p.o.) on the 8th day. Pertinent toxicity assessments in the kidney and intestine were analyzed at the end of the study. The CBASE’s phytochemical components were examined using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). After the study period, study findings evidenced that paracetamol intoxication induced elevation of renal enzyme indicators, oxidative damage, imbalance with the pro/anti-inflammatory production and pro/anti-apoptotic mediators, and tissue injury; all repercussions were alleviated by pre-treatment with CBASE. CBASE considerably reduced (P < 0.05) paracetamol-induced kidney and intestine injury by limiting caspase-8/3 signaling and amplification of inflammation in renal and intestinal tissue by significantly reducing pro-inflammatory cytokine production. As per the GC–MS report, three main bioactive components—Piperine, Isocaryophyllene, and Tetradec-13-en-11-yn-1-ol were predominant and have protective activities. Our study ascertains that CBSE pre-treatment exerts potent renal and intestine protection against paracetamol intoxication. Thus, CBSE could be a prospective therapeutic candidate for protecting the kidney and intestine from the severity of paracetamol intoxication.",
"corpus_id": 258592072
} | {
"title": "Synthesis of 1H,3H‐imidazo[1,5‐c]thiazole‐5,7‐[6H,7aH]‐dione and 7,8‐dihydro‐5‐H‐imidazo[1,5‐c][1,3]thiazine‐1,3‐[2H,8aH]‐dione and derivatives",
"abstract": "1H,3H-Imidazo[1,5-c]thiazole-5,7-[6H,7aH]-dione and the corresponding 7-thione derivatives as well as 7,8-dihydro-5H-imidazo[1,5-c][1,3]thiazine-1,3-[2H,8aH]-dione and the corresponding 3-thione derivatives were synthesized starting from L-cysteine and DL-homocysteine thiolactone, respectively. The second group of bicyclic compounds represents a new heterocyclic ring system. The structures of the compounds were confirmed by spectroscopic studies and elemental analyses.",
"corpus_id": 95195375
} |
{
"title": "Ventilatory ratio as a predictor for extubation failure in critical ill patients based on MIMIC-IV database (from 2008 to 2019)",
"abstract": "Background: The predictive ability of the ventilatory ratio (VR) for extubation failure risk in critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation is unclear. This study aims to examine the predictive ability of VR for extubation failure risk. Methods: This retrospective study was based on the MIMIC-IV database. The MIMIC-IV database consists of the clinical information of patients who were admitted to the intensive care unit at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center between 2008 and 2019. With extubation failure as the primary outcome and in-hospital mortality as the secondary outcome, we assessed the predictive value of VR 4 hours before extubation using a multivariate logistic regression model. Results: Of 3,569 ventilated patients who were included, the rate of extubation-failure was 12.7% and the median Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score was 6 before extubation. Increased VR, elevated heart rate, greater positive end-expiratory pressure, higher blood urea nitrogen level, higher platelet count, greater SOFA score, decreased pH, decreased tidal volume, presence of chronic pulmonary disease, paraplegia, and metastatic solid tumor were independent predictors for extubation failure. A threshold of 1.595 of VR was associated with prolonged intensive care unit length of stay, higher risk of mortality and extubation failure. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) for VR was 0.669 [0.635–0.703], which was significantly larger than the rapid shallow breathing index [0.510 (0.476–0.545)] and the partial pressure of oxygen to the fraction of inspired oxygen [0.586 (0.551–0.621)]. Conclusion: VR 4 hours before extubation was associated with extubation failure, mortality, and prolonged length of stay in the intensive care unit. VR provides good predictive performance for extubation failure (measured by ROC) than the rapid shallow breathing index. Further prospective studies are warranted to confirm these findings.",
"corpus_id": 258991539
} | {
"title": "Dead space estimates may not be independently associated with 28-day mortality in COVID-19 ARDS",
"abstract": "Background Estimates for dead space ventilation have been shown to be independently associated with an increased risk of mortality in the acute respiratory distress syndrome and small case series of COVID-19-related ARDS. Methods Secondary analysis from the PRoVENT-COVID study. The PRoVENT-COVID is a national, multicenter, retrospective observational study done at 22 intensive care units in the Netherlands. Consecutive patients aged at least 18 years were eligible for participation if they had received invasive ventilation for COVID-19 at a participating ICU during the first month of the national outbreak in the Netherlands. The aim was to quantify the dynamics and determine the prognostic value of surrogate markers of wasted ventilation in patients with COVID-19-related ARDS. Results A total of 927 consecutive patients admitted with COVID-19-related ARDS were included in this study. Estimations of wasted ventilation such as the estimated dead space fraction (by Harris–Benedict and direct method) and ventilatory ratio were significantly higher in non-survivors than survivors at baseline and during the following days of mechanical ventilation ( p < 0.001). The end-tidal-to-arterial PCO 2 ratio was lower in non-survivors than in survivors ( p < 0.001). As ARDS severity increased, mortality increased with successive tertiles of dead space fraction by Harris–Benedict and by direct estimation, and with an increase in the VR. The same trend was observed with decreased levels in the tertiles for the end-tidal-to-arterial PCO 2 ratio. After adjustment for a base risk model that included chronic comorbidities and ventilation- and oxygenation-parameters, none of the dead space estimates measured at the start of ventilation or the following days were significantly associated with 28-day mortality. Conclusions There is significant impairment of ventilation in the early course of COVID-19-related ARDS but quantification of this impairment does not add prognostic information when added to a baseline risk model. Trial registration : ISRCTN04346342. Registered 15 April 2020. Retrospectively registered.",
"corpus_id": 234684166
} | {
"title": "Infectious disease and sickness behaviour: tumour progression affects interaction patterns and social network structure in wild Tasmanian devils",
"abstract": "Infectious diseases, including transmissible cancers, can have a broad range of impacts on host behaviour, particularly in the latter stages of disease progression. However, the difficulty of early diagnoses makes the study of behavioural influences of disease in wild animals a challenging task. Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) are affected by a transmissible cancer, devil facial tumour disease (DFTD), in which tumours are externally visible as they progress. Using telemetry and mark–recapture datasets, we quantify the impacts of cancer progression on the behaviour of wild devils by assessing how interaction patterns within the social network of a population change with increasing tumour load. The progression of DFTD negatively influences devils' likelihood of interaction within their network. Infected devils were more active within their network late in the mating season, a pattern with repercussions for DFTD transmission. Our study provides a rare opportunity to quantify and understand the behavioural feedbacks of disease in wildlife and how they may affect transmission and population dynamics in general.",
"corpus_id": 227904571
} |
{
"title": "Subfemtosecond, coherent, relativistic, and ballistic electron bunches generated at ω0 and 2ω0 in high intensity laser-matter interaction",
"abstract": "Harmonics of the laser light have been observed from the rear side of solid targets irradiated by a laser beam at relativistic intensities. This emission evidences the acceleration of subfemtosecond electron bunches by the laser pulse in front of the target. These bunches emit coherent transition radiation (CTR) when passing through the back surface of the target. The spectral features of the signal recorded for targets of thicknesses up to several hundred microns are consistent with the electrons being accelerated by both the laser electric field—via vacuum heating and/or resonance absorption,—and the v×B component of the Lorentz force. The spatial study of the radiation shows that the relativistic electrons causing the CTR radiation are coherent and propagate ballistically through the target, originating from a source with a size of the order of the laser focal spot.",
"corpus_id": 123436624
} | {
"title": "Multi-MeV proton source investigations in ultraintense laser-foil interactions.",
"abstract": "A study of the properties of multi-MeV proton emission from thin foils following ultraintense laser irradiation has been carried out. It has been shown that the protons are emitted, in a quasilaminar fashion, from a region of transverse size of the order of 100-200 microm. The imaging properties of the proton source are equivalent to those of a much smaller source located several hundred microm in front of the foil. This finding has been obtained by analyzing proton radiographs of periodically structured test objects, and is corroborated by observations of proton emission from laser-heated thick targets.",
"corpus_id": 8942514
} | {
"title": "Predicting stock returns of Tehran exchange using LSTM neural network and feature engineering technique",
"abstract": "Prediction is defined as the expression of events that will occur in the future, before they occur, based on scientific and logical principles and rules. Due to the importance of financial markets for economic activists, prediction in this field has received much attention from scholars. Prediction of the stock market, as one of the largest financial markets can be very profitable to the predictors. The dynamic and complexity of the market has added to its appeal to researchers. To date, many researchers have reported good returns for prediction in this market using neural network methods. In this paper, we attempted to obtain better results on Tehran Stock Exchange by using their findings and by applying the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) deep neural network. In the area of feature engineering, we have tried to reduce the number of features using AutoEncoder-based feature selection to improve stock returns and reduce prediction error. To evaluate the proposed method, a return measure that is closer to the real world of stock trading was used. Experimental results showed that using the proposed method yielded a better output with a lower error mean.",
"corpus_id": 233776661
} |
{
"title": "A model for the catalytic oxidation of CO on fractal lattices",
"abstract": "Abstract A simple model for the catalytic oxidation of CO on fractal lattices is studied via Monte Carlo simulations. We observe a strong influence of the lattice structure on the system behaviour. In the case of extremely fast particle diffusion the structure of the lattice becomes unimportant. We are able to explain these effects qualitatively by the aspect of particle segregation. It is shown that this reaction model belongs to the universality class of the Reggeon field theory.",
"corpus_id": 94491276
} | {
"title": "Simulations of a monomer-dimer catalysis model on a Sierpinski gasket.",
"abstract": "We report results of numerical simulations for a generalized monomer-dimer catalysis model on a Sierpinski gasket. We indicate the existence of a steady-state region, which is much thinner than in the case of the two-dimensional square lattice, although the shape of the phase diagram is the same. In the adsorption-limited case the critical exponents are in good agreement with those obtained for two dimensions. The critical dimension for the monomer-dimer catalysis model is inferred to be 1.",
"corpus_id": 37778494
} | {
"title": "Long-term drying of Mars by sequestration of ocean-scale volumes of water in the crust",
"abstract": "Burying Mars' ancient water in the crust Mars once had oceans of liquid water on its surface but little of that water remains today in the planet's ice caps and atmosphere. This discrepancy is usually interpreted as loss of water to space, supported by the atmospheric deuterium/hydrogen (D/H) ratio, but this has been difficult to reconcile with other constraints. Scheller et al. propose that water could instead have been incorporated into minerals in the planet's crust, which were later buried (see the Perspective by Kurokawa). They simulated the evolution of the D/H ratio and atmospheric loss rates for a range of plausible conditions, finding that 30 to 99% of Mars' initial water was buried in the crust. Science, this issue p. 56; see also p. 27 Much of the water in Mars’ ancient oceans was incorporated into minerals and buried in the planet’s crust, not lost to space. Geological evidence shows that ancient Mars had large volumes of liquid water. Models of past hydrogen escape to space, calibrated with observations of the current escape rate, cannot explain the present-day deuterium-to-hydrogen isotope ratio (D/H). We simulated volcanic degassing, atmospheric escape, and crustal hydration on Mars, incorporating observational constraints from spacecraft, rovers, and meteorites. We found that ancient water volumes equivalent to a 100 to 1500 meter global layer are simultaneously compatible with the geological evidence, loss rate estimates, and D/H measurements. In our model, the volume of water participating in the hydrological cycle decreased by 40 to 95% over the Noachian period (~3.7 billion to 4.1 billion years ago), reaching present-day values by ~3.0 billion years ago. Between 30 and 99% of martian water was sequestered through crustal hydration, demonstrating that irreversible chemical weathering can increase the aridity of terrestrial planets.",
"corpus_id": 232263357
} |
{
"title": "Do I build or do I move? Adaptation by habitat construction versus habitat choice*",
"abstract": "Trait adaptation to a heterogeneous environment can occur through six modes: genetic differentiation of those traits, a jack‐of‐all‐trades phenotypic uniformity, diversified bet‐hedging, phenotypic plasticity, habitat choice, and habitat construction. A key question is what circumstances favor one mode over another, and how they might interact if a system can express more than one mode at a time. We examined the joint evolution of habitat choice and habitat construction using individual‐based simulations. We manipulated when during the life cycle construction occurred and the fitness value of construction. We found that for our model habitat construction was nearly always favored over habitat choice, especially if construction happened after dispersal. Because of the ways that the various modes of adaptation interact with each other, there is no simple answer as to which will be favored; it depends on details of the biology and ecology of a given system.",
"corpus_id": 237556349
} | {
"title": "Digest: Better constructing the future than choosing a new habitat",
"abstract": "What strategy should an individual follow in a heterogeneous environment when its phenotype is not optimized for its current environment: make changes to the environment (habitat construction), move to a different place (habitat choice), or both? Scheiner et al. used an individual‐based model to investigate the interaction of habitat choice and habitat construction. In most situations, habitat construction was superior to either habitat selection or a mixed strategy.",
"corpus_id": 247319614
} | {
"title": "Spatiotemporal variations of extreme precipitation events at multi-time scales in the Qinling-Daba mountains region, China",
"abstract": "Abstract Global climate change has contributed to frequent occurrence of extreme precipitation events, resulting in more severe natural disasters and restricting regional development. The Qinling-Daba mountains region (Qinba) is a transitional zone in central China with high ecological vulnerability and sensitivity. It is therefore essential to investigate the dynamics of precipitation extremes in the region. In this study, spatiotemporal variations of extreme precipitation events were analyzed at the monthly, seasonal and annual timescales based on long-term daily precipitation dataset at 30 meteorological stations over the Qinba during 1961–2017. The results indicated all of the selected ten extreme precipitation indices exhibited non-significant trends at the annual scales. Seasonally, most of extreme precipitation indices decreased in spring, autumn and winter, and increased in summer, whereas consecutive dry days (CDD) increased in all seasons. At the monthly scales, wet precipitation extremes mostly occurred in July, and upward trends of extreme precipitation events dominated in February, June, July and August except for CDD. Spatially, regionwide increases in extreme precipitation events mainly distributed in the eastern and southern Qinba, whereas the north and west were dominated by decreasing trends. Most of atmospheric circulation indices, especially Arctic Oscillation (AO), Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) and Western Pacific Index (WP) were associated with extreme precipitation events at monthly and annual scales. East Asian Summer Monsoon Index (EASMI) and South China Sea Summer Monsoon Index (SCSSMI) strongly influenced extreme precipitation events in summer over the Qinba. Our results are conducive to understanding the variations of extreme precipitation events at the monthly, seasonal and annual scales, and these will be valuable for formulating the corresponding countermeasures at different timescales over the Qinba.",
"corpus_id": 201313700
} |
{
"title": "Racial justice allyship requires civil courage: A behavioral prescription for moral growth and change.",
"abstract": "In racialized societies, race divides people, prioritizes some groups over others, and directly impacts opportunities and outcomes in life. These missed opportunities and altered outcomes can be rectified only through the deliberate dismantling of explicit, implicit, and systemic patterns of injustice. Racial problems cannot be corrected merely by the good wishes of individuals-purposeful actions and interventions are required. To create equitable systems, civil courage is vital. Civil courage differs from other forms of courage, as it is directed at social change. People who demonstrate civil courage are aware of the negative consequences and social costs but choose to persist based on a moral imperative. After defining allyship and providing contemporary and historical examples of civil courage, this paper explains the difficulties and impediments inherent in implementing racial justice. To enable growth and change, we introduce ten practical exercises based on cognitive-behavioral approaches to help individuals increase their awareness and ability to demonstrate racial justice allyship in alignment with valued behaviors. We explain how these exercises can be utilized to change thinking patterns, why the exercises can be difficult, and how psychologists and others might make use of them to expand the capacity for civil courage in the service of racial justice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).",
"corpus_id": 246750767
} | {
"title": "Racism and censorship in the editorial and peer review process",
"abstract": "Psychology aims to capture the diversity of our human experience, yet racial inequity ensures only specific experiences are studied, peer-reviewed, and eventually published. Despite recent publications on racial bias in research topics, study samples, academic teams, and publication trends, bias in the peer review process remains largely unexamined. Drawing on compelling case study examples from APA and other leading international journals, this article proposes key mechanisms underlying racial bias and censorship in the editorial and peer review process, including bias in reviewer selection, devaluing racialized expertise, censorship of critical perspectives, minimal consideration of harm to racialized people, and the publication of unscientific and racist studies. The field of psychology needs more diverse researchers, perspectives, and topics to reach its full potential and meet the mental health needs of communities of colour. Several recommendations are called for to ensure the APA can centre racial equity throughout the editorial and review process.",
"corpus_id": 258787744
} | {
"title": "Professional Noticing of Children's Mathematical Thinking.",
"abstract": "The construct professional noticing of children’s mathematical thinking is introduced as a way to begin to unpack the in-the-moment decision making that is foundational to the complex view of teaching endorsed in national reform documents. We define this expertise as a set of interrelated skills including (a) attending to children’s strategies, (b) interpreting children’s understandings, and (c) deciding how to respond on the basis of children’s understandings. This construct was assessed in a cross-sectional study of 131 prospective and practicing teachers, differing in the amount of experience they had with children’s mathematical thinking. The findings help to characterize what this expertise entails; provide snapshots of those with varied levels of expertise; and document that, given time, this expertise can be learned.",
"corpus_id": 7885817
} |
{
"title": "Rural Sustainability in the Face of Climate Change: Consultation and Adaptation in Australia’s South West Corner",
"abstract": "The Margaret River region is within a biodiversity ‘hot spot’ and is an agricultural region famous for its premium wine production and wine, gastronomic and ecotourism. These activities are vulnerable to climate change, especially to reductions in rainfall and runoff. The region has experienced demographic growth as the wine and tourism industries have expanded, and as an educated and affluent population of retirees, second home owners, ‘electronic cottagers’ and alternative lifestylers has moved into the area. Two projects, a local study as part of a national evaluation of the adaptation of tourist areas to climate change and a more focused identification of vulnerable locations and activities were supported by local government, business and community organisations and several adaptive strategies were identified. The success of these projects can in part be attributed to the relatively high levels of both education and environmental awareness possessed by the local population as a matter of happenstance. Nevertheless, the original contention of this paper is that these initiatives also allow communities like Margaret River to take on the role of front-runners, providing demonstrations and learning opportunities on how to manage the transition to sustainability and guidance on how such methods might be adapted in other rural areas facing the challenges of climate change.",
"corpus_id": 181727523
} | {
"title": "A creativity-led rural renaissance? Amenity-led migration, the creative turn and the uneven development of rural Australia",
"abstract": "This paper explores the relationships between amenity, creativity, internal migration processes and economic development in a significant proportion of rural Australia. In developing a predictive and synoptic model of migration attractiveness, we explore the extent to which rural regions and localities have been able to attract ‘creative’ human capital since 2001, the geographic distribution of such gains, and the extent to which ‘creative class’ presence is positively associated with business and employment growth. We find that ‘creative industry’ members find high amenity and high socio-economic status areas of rural Australia attractive places in which to live and work, yet this group's presence is not readily attributable to rural migration processes. Presence of the creative class, together with select rural amenity indicators, are powerful predictors of firm numbers but appear to have little influence over employment creation in rural Australia. Given these findings, the paper argues that building regional development policies around the attraction of the creative class is unlikely to yield major economic development gains.",
"corpus_id": 129656823
} | {
"title": "Bright spots as climate‐smart marine spatial planning tools for conservation and blue growth",
"abstract": "Marine spatial planning that addresses ocean climate‐driven change (‘climate‐smart MSP’) is a global aspiration to support economic growth, food security and ecosystem sustainability. Ocean climate change (‘CC’) modelling may become a key decision‐support tool for MSP, but traditional modelling analysis and communication challenges prevent their broad uptake. We employed MSP‐specific ocean climate modelling analyses to inform a real‐life MSP process; addressing how nature conservation and fisheries could be adapted to CC. We found that the currently planned distribution of these activities may become unsustainable during the policy's implementation due to CC, leading to a shortfall in its sustainability and blue growth targets. Significant, climate‐driven ecosystem‐level shifts in ocean components underpinning designated sites and fishing activity were estimated, reflecting different magnitudes of shifts in benthic versus pelagic, and inshore versus offshore habitats. Supporting adaptation, we then identified: CC refugia (areas where the ecosystem remains within the boundaries of its present state); CC hotspots (where climate drives the ecosystem towards a new state, inconsistent with each sectors’ present use distribution); and for the first time, identified bright spots (areas where oceanographic processes drive range expansion opportunities that may support sustainable growth in the medium term). We thus create the means to: identify where sector‐relevant ecosystem change is attributable to CC; incorporate resilient delivery of conservation and sustainable ecosystem management aims into MSP; and to harness opportunities for blue growth where they exist. Capturing CC bright spots alongside refugia within protected areas may present important opportunities to meet sustainability targets while helping support the fishing sector in a changing climate. By capitalizing on the natural distribution of climate resilience within ocean ecosystems, such climate‐adaptive spatial management strategies could be seen as nature‐based solutions to limit the impact of CC on ocean ecosystems and dependent blue economy sectors, paving the way for climate‐smart MSP.",
"corpus_id": 237421851
} |
{
"title": "Transmissive Mode Laser Micro-Ablation Performance of Ammonium Dinitramide-Based Liquid Propellant for Laser Micro-Thruster",
"abstract": "The transmissive mode laser micro-ablation performance of near-infrared (NIR) dye-optimized ammonium dinitramide (ADN)-based liquid propellant was investigated in laser plasma propulsion using a pulse YAG laser with 5 ns pulse width and 1064 nm wavelength. Miniature fiber optic near-infrared spectrometer, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and high-speed camera were used to study laser energy deposition, thermal analysis of ADN-based liquid propellants and the flow field evolution process, respectively. Experimental results indicate that two important factors, laser energy deposition efficiency and heat release from energetic liquid propellants, obviously affect the ablation performance. The results showed that the best ablation effect of 0.4 mL ADN solution dissolved in 0.6 mL dye solution (40%-AAD) liquid propellant was obtained with the ADN liquid propellant content increasing in the combustion chamber. Furthermore, adding 2% ammonium perchlorate (AP) solid powder gave rise to variations in the ablation volume and energetic properties of propellants, which enhanced the propellant enthalpy variable and burn rate. Based on the AP optimized laser ablation, the optimal single-pulse impulse (I)~9.8 μN·s, specific impulse (Isp)~234.9 s, impulse coupling coefficient (Cm)~62.43 dyne/W and energy factor (η)~71.2% were obtained in 200 µm scale combustion chamber. This work would enable further improvements in the small volume and high integration of liquid propellant laser micro-thruster.",
"corpus_id": 259170076
} | {
"title": "Actualization of an efficient throttleable laser propulsion mode",
"abstract": "Abstract Conventional propulsion systems are difficult to change between propelling and non-propelling modes. Throttleable propulsion that results from the control of the input energy is a significant further step toward application in various space missions. We present our work on a novel propulsion mode producing throttleable thrust under the control of our low power CW laser. This photosensitive propellant is fully capable of repeated ignition and interruption, while generating gases that are more environmentally friendly with decreased solid residues. Laser ignition and combustion performance of such modes are characterized. Laser-controlled combustion behavior examples are shown and discussed. These results show potential applications in many aspects of space missions, such as maneuvers in space, attitude control, orbit raising and microsatellite deorbiting.",
"corpus_id": 233582239
} | {
"title": "Experimental investigation into unstable two phase flow phenomena during flow boiling in multi-microchannels",
"abstract": "Abstract Experiments of unstable vapor liquid two phase flow phenomena during flow boiling with HFE-7100 in two parallel rectangular multi-microchannels with aspect ratios of 0.2364 and 0.3182 were conducted under a wide range of test conditions: the mass flux from 380 to 3500 kg/m2s, the heat flux from 0 to 1080 kW/m2 and the compressive volumes of 0, 5, 10 and 20 ml, respectively. First, characteristics of flow boiling heat transfer and two-phase pressure drop in the two parallel multi-microchannels are compared with each other. It shows that the maximum dissipated heat flux in the microchannels with the aspect ratio of 0.3182 is 34.4% larger than that in the microchannels with the aspect ratio of 0.2364 while the pressure drop in the microchannels with higher aspect ratio is up to 80% less than that in the microchannels with lower aspect ratio under the test conditions. Then, experimental results of unstable vapor liquid two phase processes in the two parallel multi-microchannels are compared with each other. It shows that the minimum heat flux decreases with decreasing the aspect ratio at the same compressive volumes. Finally, the physical mechanisms of unstable vapor liquid two phase phenomena in the parallel multi-microchannels have been analyzed according to a simplified mathematical model based on the mass and momentum conservation. It is concluded that a wide flat regime in the hydrodynamic curves may decrease the unstable vapor liquid two phase flow phenomena.",
"corpus_id": 234819019
} |
{
"title": "Aggressive or Moderate Fluid Resuscitation in Acute Pancreatitis.",
"abstract": "BACKGROUND\nEarly aggressive hydration is widely recommended for the management of acute pancreatitis, but evidence for this practice is limited.\n\n\nMETHODS\nAt 18 centers, we randomly assigned patients who presented with acute pancreatitis to receive goal-directed aggressive or moderate resuscitation with lactated Ringer's solution. Aggressive fluid resuscitation consisted of a bolus of 20 ml per kilogram of body weight, followed by 3 ml per kilogram per hour. Moderate fluid resuscitation consisted of a bolus of 10 ml per kilogram in patients with hypovolemia or no bolus in patients with normovolemia, followed by 1.5 ml per kilogram per hour in all patients in this group. Patients were assessed at 12, 24, 48, and 72 hours, and fluid resuscitation was adjusted according to the patient's clinical status. The primary outcome was the development of moderately severe or severe pancreatitis during the hospitalization. The main safety outcome was fluid overload. The planned sample size was 744, with a first planned interim analysis after the enrollment of 248 patients.\n\n\nRESULTS\nA total of 249 patients were included in the interim analysis. The trial was halted owing to between-group differences in the safety outcomes without a significant difference in the incidence of moderately severe or severe pancreatitis (22.1% in the aggressive-resuscitation group and 17.3% in the moderate-resuscitation group; adjusted relative risk, 1.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78 to 2.18; P = 0.32). Fluid overload developed in 20.5% of the patients who received aggressive resuscitation and in 6.3% of those who received moderate resuscitation (adjusted relative risk, 2.85; 95% CI, 1.36 to 5.94, P = 0.004). The median duration of hospitalization was 6 days (interquartile range, 4 to 8) in the aggressive-resuscitation group and 5 days (interquartile range, 3 to 7) in the moderate-resuscitation group.\n\n\nCONCLUSIONS\nIn this randomized trial involving patients with acute pancreatitis, early aggressive fluid resuscitation resulted in a higher incidence of fluid overload without improvement in clinical outcomes. (Funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III and others; WATERFALL ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04381169.).",
"corpus_id": 252220826
} | {
"title": "Update on the strategy for intravenous fluid treatment in acute pancreatitis",
"abstract": "Fluid therapy/resuscitation is mandatory in acute pancreatitis due to the pathophysiology of fluid loss as a consequence of the inflammatory process. For many years, without clear evidence, early and aggressive fluid resuscitation with crystalloid solutions (normal saline solution or Ringer lactate solution) was recommended. Recently, many randomized control trials and meta-analyses on fluid therapy have revealed that high fluid rate infusion is associated with increased mortality and severe adverse events compared to those resulting from moderate fluid rates, and this has triggered a paradigm shift in fluid management strategies. Meanwhile, there is evidence to show that Ringer lactate solution is superior to normal saline solutions in this context. The purpose of this review is to provide an update on the strategies for intravenous fluid treatment in acute pancreatitis, including the type, optimal amount, rate of infusion, and monitoring guides. Recommendations from recent guidelines are critically evaluated for this review in order to reach the authors' recommendations based on the available evidence.",
"corpus_id": 258390046
} | {
"title": "Genome-Wide Polygenic Score, Clinical Risk Factors, and Long-Term Trajectories of Coronary Artery Disease",
"abstract": "Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Objective: To determine the relationship of a genome-wide polygenic score for coronary artery disease (GPSCAD) with lifetime trajectories of CAD risk, directly compare its predictive capacity to traditional risk factors, and assess its interplay with the Pooled Cohort Equations (PCE) clinical risk estimator. Approach and Results: We studied GPSCAD in 28 556 middle-aged participants of the Malmö Diet and Cancer Study, of whom 4122 (14.4%) developed CAD over a median follow-up of 21.3 years. A pronounced gradient in lifetime risk of CAD was observed—16% for those in the lowest GPSCAD decile to 48% in the highest. We evaluated the discriminative capacity of the GPSCAD—as assessed by change in the C-statistic from a baseline model including age and sex—among 5685 individuals with PCE risk estimates available. The increment for the GPSCAD (+0.045, P<0.001) was higher than for any of 11 traditional risk factors (range +0.007 to +0.032). Minimal correlation was observed between GPSCAD and 10-year risk defined by the PCE (r=0.03), and addition of GPSCAD improved the C-statistic of the PCE model by 0.026. A significant gradient in lifetime risk was observed for the GPSCAD, even among individuals within a given PCE clinical risk stratum. We replicated key findings—noting strikingly consistent results—in 325 003 participants of the UK Biobank. Conclusions: GPSCAD—a risk estimator available from birth—stratifies individuals into varying trajectories of clinical risk for CAD. Implementation of GPSCAD may enable identification of high-risk individuals early in life, decades in advance of manifest risk factors or disease.",
"corpus_id": 221844233
} |
{
"title": "Conceptualization of Digital Opportunities for Incumbents",
"abstract": "Digital technologies are driving socio-technical change on an individual, organizational, and societal level. Examples include changes to the nature of products – an ever-increasing number of which are connected to the Internet of Things (IoT) – and the sharing of digital data across industry boundaries, enabling companies to deliver an increasingly diverse range of services and develop new business models. However, incumbents often struggle to identify and leverage digital opportunities – i.e., action possibilities leading to new products, services, or business models – and current literature fails to provide the necessary guidance. To address this need, the central question in this thesis relates to the identification and leveraging of digital opportunities for incumbents, in general, and digital opportunities enabled by the IoT, in particular. In addition, the thesis involves a method deep-dive on taxonomy design, a method that supports the understanding of novel phenomena such as digital opportunities. In taking a generalized view of digital opportunities for incumbents, the thesis offers two conceptual perspectives that help to structure and clarify the solution space for identifying and leveraging such opportunities. Research article #1 presents a novel design theory comprising a taxonomy of digital opportunities for incumbents and related heuristic mechanisms for opportunity-led ideation. Building on and extending the resource-based view of the firm as justificatory knowledge, the thesis contributes to descriptive and prescriptive knowledge on digital innovation. Research article #2 complements this theory-focused approach by providing empirical evidence from an exploratory case study of an Australian utility provider, which proactively developed a strong opportunity focus despite operating in a low-competition and regulated environment. As a result, two facets of opportunity exploration are distinguished (i.e., core and new business opportunities) that require diverging capabilities. This thesis goes on to present detailed perspectives on the structure and value of digital opportunities enabled by the IoT. Research article #3 proposes a taxonomy of business-to-thing (B2T) interaction patterns which accounts for smart things that transform the relationship a firm has with its products and customers. Drawing on weak and strong sociomateriality theory as justificatory knowledge, the B2T interaction patterns provide support to academics and practitioners making theory-led design decisions related to IoT-enabled opportunities. As the commercialization of IoT-solutions remains a critical barrier to market success, research article #4 develops and evaluates a model for assessing the customer value of IoT-solutions, which needs to be understood as a crucial pre-requisite for effective monetization. The model consists of a framework and corresponding value levers that support practical applicability, emphasizing the need to include both the frontstage and backstage value of processes and products and services. Research article #5 also takes an economic perspective, in this case with an internal focus, presenting a model that supports algorithm selection for predictive maintenance by full-service providers in industrial contexts. Fast-changing environments require support for analysing and understanding novel phenomena, such as digital opportunities. Hence, this thesis concludes by contributing a close examination of taxonomy design, a method that aims at conceptualizing phenomena based on the classification of objects. After identifying and analysing taxonomy articles from leading IS journals, research article #6 finds that the taxonomy design process often lacks transparency and that taxonomies are hardly evaluated. To address these shortcomings, an outlook to the article’s prescriptive extension is provided in the form of an extended taxonomy design process that specifically covers the evaluation phase and that is complemented by corresponding taxonomy design recommendations. In summary, this thesis contributes a conceptualization of digital opportunities for incumbents relying on a broad portfolio of qualitative and quantitative research methods (i.e., taxonomies, explorative case study research, Design Science Research, and data analytics) and different forms of empirical evidence (i.e., primary and secondary data sources). Further, this thesis builds upon and extends relevant theory, such as the resourcebased view of the firm, organizational ambidexterity, dynamic capabilities, and sociomateriality.",
"corpus_id": 214635026
} | {
"title": "Digital innovation: A review and synthesis",
"abstract": "Organizations are under increasing pressure to apply digital technologies to renew and transform their business models. A great deal of research has examined specific phenomena, such as adoption antecedents and design methods. However, it is unclear what we know in totality, including what research streams exist, how they fit together, and fruitful opportunities for new knowledge development. We combine scientometric and systematic literature review methodologies to examine 7 dimensions of an adapted theoretical framework: initiation; development; implementation; exploitation; the role of the external competitive environment; role of internal organizational environment; and product, service, and process outcomes. From a macro perspective, we find vastly uneven coverage of research streams, diversity and diffusiveness of research, and knowledge and learning as an underlying conceptual pillar. Combined with our summary of each of the 7 research streams, these findings suggest several areas of future research, which we develop by identifying oppositions and tensions.",
"corpus_id": 57764800
} | {
"title": "Reconfigurable Smart Factory for Drug Packing in Healthcare Industry 4.0",
"abstract": "Industry 4.0, which exploits cyber-physical systems and represents digital transformation of manufacturing, is deeply affecting healthcare as well as other traditional production sector. To accommodate the increasing demand of agility, flexibility, and low cost in healthcare sector, a data-driven reconfigurable production mode of Smart Factory for pharmaceutical manufacturing is proposed in this paper. The architecture of the Smart Factory is consisted of three primary layers, namely perception layer, deployment layer, and executing layer. A Manufacturing's Semantics Ontology based knowledgebase is introduced in the perception layer, which is responsible for plan scheduling of pharmaceutical production. The reconfigurable plans are generated from the production demand of drugs as well as the information statement of low-level machine resources. To further functionality reconfiguration and low-level controlling, the IEC 61499 standard is also introduced for functionality modeling and machine controlling. We verify the proposed method with an experiment of demand-based drug packing production, which reflects the feasibility and adequate flexibility of the proposed method.",
"corpus_id": 57753725
} |