bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
New Materials for Colloidal Nanochemistry/Trendbericht Physikalische Chemie 2024 (2/3)
Authors: Boldt Klaus
Published: April 2024

Zeitversetzte Laserpulse auf Moleküle verraten, wie photochemische Prozesse ablaufen – dabei sind konische Durchschneidungen entscheidend. Die kolloidale Nanochemie hat neue Materialklassen erschlossen, wie Nickelboride und frühe Übergangsmetalloxid‐Katalysatoren, sowie Synthesen zu photolumineszenten III–V‐Halbleitern verbessert. Mit maschinellem Lernen lassen sich am Rechner Proteine nicht mehr nur falten, sondern solche entwerfen, die nicht mit natürlichen Proteinen verwandt sind.
Test performance and clinical utility of expanded non‐invasive prenatal test: Experience on 71,883 unselected routine cases from one single center
Authors: Faieta Monica , Falcone Rossella , Duca Sara , Corsetti Elena , Giannico Riccardo , Gigante Laura , Diano Laura , Calugi Graziella , Spinella Francesca , Pizzuti Francesca
Published: April 2024

Objective

The balance between benefits and risks of discordant outcomes makes the Genome‐Wide Non‐Invasive Prenatal Test (GW‐NIPT) controversial. This study aims to evaluate performance and clinical utility in a wide cohort of unselected clinical cases from a single center when a standardized protocol is applied and integrated with a secondary algorithm for data interpretation.

Method

In 2 years, over 70,000 pregnant patients underwent GW‐NIPT for fetal common trisomies, sex chromosome aneuploidies, rare autosomal aneuploidies, segmental abnormalities (CNVs ≥ 7 Mb) and microdeletions (CNVs < 7 Mb). All samples were uniformly processed with Veriseq NIPT Solution v2 and analyzed using all data metrics along with a home‐made algorithm for sequencing data analysis. Results were retrospectively reviewed for clinical outcomes.

Results

Among 71,883 eligible cases including twin pregnancies, 1011 (1.4%) received a positive result and 781 were confirmed by invasive prenatal diagnosis. Clinical sensitivity ranged from 99.65% for common trisomy (T21, T18, T13) to 83.33% for microdeletions, while specificity remained high (99.98%) for each class of fetal abnormalities detected.

Conclusions

Integrating a standardized protocol with an internal algorithm allowed discordant results to be reduced, yielding high accuracy. Observed reliability in detecting genome‐wide chromosomal conditions reinforced the expanded NIPT utility in clinical practice.
Validation of new medication use algorithms as proxies for worsening disease activity in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis
Authors: Saito Kyoko , Gabbeta Avinash , Mulvihill Evan , Al‐Jaberi Lina , Beukelman Timothy , Lewis James D. , Rose Carlos D. , Strom Brian L. , Horton Daniel B.
Published: April 2024

Purpose

To facilitate claims‐based research on populations with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), we sought to validate an algorithm of new medication use as a proxy for worsening JIA disease activity.

Methods

Using electronic health record data from three pediatric centers, we defined new JIA medication use as (re)initiation of disease‐modifying antirheumatic drugs or glucocorticoids (oral or intra‐articular). Data were collected from 201 randomly selected subjects with (101) or without (100) new medication use. We assessed the positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) based on a reference standard of documented worsening of JIA disease activity. The algorithm was refined to optimize test characteristics.

Results

Overall, the medication‐based algorithm had suboptimal performance in representing worsening JIA disease activity (PPV 69.3%, NPV 77.1%). However, algorithm performance improved for definitions specifying longer times after JIA diagnosis (≥1‐year post‐diagnosis: PPV 82.9%, NPV 80.0%) or after initiation of prior JIA treatment (≥1‐year post‐treatment: PPV 89.7%, NPV 80.0%).

Conclusion

An algorithm for new JIA medication use appears to be a reasonable proxy for worsening JIA disease activity, particularly when specifying new use ≥1 year since initiating a prior JIA medication. This algorithm will be valuable for conducting research on JIA populations within administrative claims databases.
Imitating the “breeder's eye”: Predicting grain yield from measurements of non‐yield traits
Authors: Jin Hongyu , Tross Michael C. , Tan Ruijuan , Newton Linsey , Mural Ravi V. , Yang Jinliang , Thompson Addie M. , Schnable James C.
Published: April 2024

Plant breeding relies on information gathered from field trials to select promising new crop varieties for release to farmers and to develop genomic prediction models that can enhance the efficiency of genetic improvement in future breeding cycles. However, generating the genetic marker data required to apply genomic prediction at the early stages of a breeding program remains costly for many public‐sector breeding programs as well as for many plant breeders operating in developing countries. As the pace of climate change intensifies, the time lag of developing and deploying new crop varieties requires plant breeders to make selection decisions without knowing the future environments those crop varieties will encounter in farmers’ fields. Therefore, both lower cost and higher accuracy methods for prediction of crop performance are essential for creating and maintaining resilient agricultural systems in the latter half of the 21st century. To address this challenge, we conducted linked yield trials of 752 public maize (Zea mays) genotypes in two distinct environments. We developed and trained a phenotypic prediction model to predict yield from manually scored plant traits. The phenotypic prediction approach we employed outperformed genomic prediction in predicting yields in a second environment, with 8.7%–63% higher R2 and 4%–13% less root mean square error than the genomic prediction. The phenotypic prediction has the potential to be applied to a wider range of breeding programs, including those that lack the resources to genotype large populations, such as programs in the developing world, breeding programs for specialty crops, and public sector programs.
Dynamically driven correlations in elastic net models reveal sequence of events and causality in proteins
Authors: Erkip Albert , Erman Burak
Published: April 2024

An explicit analytic solution is given for the Langevin equation applied to the Gaussian Network Model of a protein subjected to both a random and a deterministic periodic force. Synchronous and asynchronous components of time correlation functions are derived and an expression for phase differences in the time correlations of residue pairs is obtained. The synchronous component enables the determination of dynamic communities within the protein structure. The asynchronous component reveals causality, where the time correlation function between residues i and j differs depending on whether i is observed before j or vice versa, resulting in directional information flow. Driver and driven residues in the allosteric process of cyclophilin A and human NAD‐dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase are determined by a perturbation‐scanning technique. Factors affecting phase differences between fluctuations of residues, such as network topology, connectivity, and residue centrality, are identified. Within the constraints of the isotropic Gaussian Network Model, our results show that asynchronicity increases with viscosity and distance between residues, decreases with increasing connectivity, and decreases with increasing levels of eigenvector centrality.
7‐Hydroxyflavone improves nonalcoholic fatty liver disease by acting on STK24
Authors: Qi Xinyi , Zhang Yurou , Liao Qichao , Xiao Yang , Jiang Tianyu , Liu Siqi , Zhou Lei , Li Yixing
Published: April 2024

The escalating incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is closely associated with a high‐fat diet, leading to a decline in quality of life and significant health impairment. 7‐Hydroxyflavone (7‐HY) is a flavonoid known for its anti‐inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, and antioxidant effects. This study aims to assess the ameliorative effects of 7‐HY on NAFLD induced by a high‐fat diet and elucidate underlying mechanisms. Oleic acid/palmitic acid‐induced HepG2 cells and C57BL/6 mice on a high‐fat diet were utilized as in vitro and in vivo models. In animal experiments, 7‐HY was utilized as a dietary supplement. The 15‐week in vivo experiment monitored body weight, body fat percentage, glucose tolerance, insulin tolerance, and metabolic indexes. Commercial kits assessed triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol levels in cells, liver tissue, and blood. Discovery Studio identified potential targets of 7‐HY, compared with NAFLD‐associated targets in the GeneCards database. Results indicated 7‐HY mitigated fat accumulation, hepatic steatosis, and oxidative stress induced by a high‐fat diet. Furthermore, 7‐HY showed potential efficacy in ameliorating abnormal glucose metabolism and promoting energy metabolism. Reverse target finding and molecular docking demonstrated a robust interaction between 7‐HY and serine/threonine kinase 24 (STK24). Subsequent experimental results confirmed 7‐HY's ability to inhibit TG deposition in HepG2 cells through interaction with STK24. In conclusion, 7‐HY demonstrated the capacity to alleviate high‐fat diet‐induced NAFLD, presenting a novel strategy for the prevention and treatment of NAFLD.
Quantum Parallel Training of a Boltzmann Machine on an Adiabatic Quantum Computer
Authors: Noè Davide , Rocutto Lorenzo , Moro Lorenzo , Prati Enrico
Published: April 2024

Despite the anticipated speed‐up of quantum computing, the achievement of a measurable advantage remains subject to ongoing debate. Adiabatic Quantum Computers (AQCs) are quantum devices designed to solve quadratic uncostrained binary optimization (QUBO) problems, but their intrinsic thermal noise can be leveraged to train computationally demanding machine learning algorithms such as the Boltzmann Machine (BM). Despite an asymptotic advantage is expected only for large networks, a limited quantum speed up can be already achieved on a small BM is shown, by exploiting parallel adiabatic computation. This approach exhibits a 8.6‐fold improvement in wall time on the Bars and Stripes dataset when compared to a parallelized classical Gibbs sampling method, which has never been outperformed before by quantum approaches.
Improved Real‐Time Post‐Processing for Quantum Random Number Generators
Authors: Li Qian , Sun Xiaoming , Zhang Xingjian , Zhou Hongyi
Published: April 2024

Randomness extraction is a key problem in cryptography and theoretical computer science. With the recent rapid development of quantum cryptography, quantum‐proof randomness extraction has also been widely studied, addressing the security issues in the presence of a quantum adversary. In contrast with conventional quantum‐proof randomness extractors characterizing the input raw data as min‐entropy sources, it is found that the input raw data generated by a large class of trusted‐device quantum random number generators can be characterized as the so‐called reverse block source. This fact enables us to design improved extractors. Two novel quantum‐proof randomness extractors for reverse block sources that realize real‐time block‐wise extraction are proposed specifically. In comparison with the general min‐entropy randomness extractors, the designs achieve a significantly higher extraction speed and a longer output data length with the same seed length. In addition, they enjoy the property of online algorithms, which process the raw data on the fly without waiting for the entire input raw data to be available. These features make the design an adequate choice for the real‐time post‐processing of practical quantum random number generators. Applying the extractors to the raw data generated by a widely used quantum random number generator, a simulated extraction speed as high as 300 Gbps is achieved.
Spillover effects and influencing factors of tourism eco‐efficiency for sustainable development: A case study of cities in the Yangtze River Delta
Authors: Wang Yuewei , An Lidan , Chen Hang
Published: April 2024

Tourism often brings about negative environmental impacts. Tourism eco‐efficiency (TEE) and its spatial coordination are of great significance for sustainable tourism development and environmental protection in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD). TEE index system was established and applied in this study. The inter‐city TEE spatial correlation network is established by the modified gravity model and analyzed by social network analysis (SNA). Spatial Durbin model (SDM) was used to analyze the spatial spillover effects of the two centrality indicators of the network. Based on fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis, we analyzed TEE enhancement configuration. The results show that: TEE in 26 cities in the study area has improved overall; the phenomenon of unbalanced development within the region still exists. In addition, the TEE of each city in the spatial correlation network of TEE in the YRD urban agglomeration is connected with each other, and there is a significant negative spillover effect. TEE is mainly affected by the level of economic development, industrial status of the tourism industry, tourism industry concentration, tourism investment level, tourism resource endowment, urban landscaping, and information development level. The combination of these factors and TEE can form five configuration patterns for TEE enhancement. This study combines SNA and SDM for the first time, and the conclusions obtained can more deeply describe the spatial correlation between different urban eco‐efficiency in the YRD. Aiming at the sustainable development of regional tourism, this study provides help for strengthening the protection of tourism ecological environment in the YRD.
Practice and Community Nurses’ Views and Experiences of Helping People Manage Risk Factors for Recurrent Lower Limb Cellulitis: A Qualitative Interview Study
Authors: Muller Ingrid , Teasdale Emma , Cowdell Fiona , Smart Peter , Santer Miriam , Francis Nick
Published: April 2024

Background

Cellulitis is a painful infection of the skin and underlying tissues, commonly affecting the lower leg. Approximately one-third of people experience recurrence. Nurses who work in general practice (practice nurses) and see people at home (community or district nurses) could have an important role in managing risk factors for cellulitis, such as long-term leg swelling, wound care and skin care.

Objective

To explore practice and community nurses’ views and experiences of helping people to manage risk factors for recurrent lower limb cellulitis.

Methods

Semi-structured, telephone interviews with 21 practice and community nurses in England from October 2020 to March 2021. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Results

Nurses face multiple challenges when supporting people to manage risk factors for recurrent lower limb cellulitis. Key challenges include limited time and access to resources such as Doppler equipment, and the physical and psychosocial capabilities of patients to self-manage. Nurses identified potential strategies to overcome these challenges, such as placing greater emphasis on prevention and supporting self-management by providing resources for patients and support networks (paid and unpaid carers) to reinforce knowledge post-consultation and develop skills to self-care.

Conclusions

We identified a need to develop and evaluate resources, such as support materials, for nurses to use to help patients reduce their risk of recurrent cellulitis.
Simulation‐Guided Rational Design of DNA Walker‐Based Theranostic Platform
Authors: Mou Jingyan , Zhang Haoping , Zhang Linghao , Zhang Beibei , Liu Jiajia , Zheng Shasha , Kou Qiaoni , Wang Hong , Su Xin , Guo Shaojun , Ke Yonggang , Zhang Yingwei
Published: April 2024

Biomolecule‐functionalized nanoparticles represent a type of promising biomaterials in biomedical applications owing to their excellent biocompatibility and versatility. DNA‐based reactions on nanoparticles have enabled emerging applications including intelligent biosensors, drug delivery, and biomimetic devices. Among the reactions, strand hybridization is the critical step to control the sensitivity and specificity of biosensing, and the efficiency of drug delivery. However, a comprehensive understanding of DNA hybridization on nanoparticles is still lacking, which may differ from the process in homogeneous solutions. To address this limitation, coarse‐grained model‐based molecular dynamic simulation is harnessed to disclose the critical factors involved in intermolecular hybridization. Based on simulation guidance, DNA walker‐based smart theranostic platform (DWTP) based on “on‐particle” hybridization is developed, showing excellent consistency with simulation. DWTP is successfully applied for highly sensitive miRNA 21 detection and tumor‐specific miRNA 21 imaging, driven by tumor‐endogenous APE 1 enzyme. It enables the precise release of antisense oligonucleotide triggered by tumor‐endogenous dual‐switch miRNA 21 and APE 1, facilitating effective gene silencing therapy with high biosafety. The simulation of “on‐particle” DNA hybridization has improved the corresponding biosensing performance and the release efficiency of therapeutic agents, representing a conceptually new approach for DNA‐based device design.
Suppressing Structure Delamination for Enhanced Electrochemical Performance of Solid Oxide Cells
Authors: Cui Jingzeng , Zhang Yuxuan , Hu Zhiwei , Kuo Chang‐Yang , Chang Chun‐Fu , Ku Yu‐Chieh , Liu Ze , Xia Ziting , Zhu Jianqiu , Zhang Jichao , He Yan , Ma Jingyuan , Li Aiguo , Lin Xiao , Chen Chien‐Te , Kim Guntae , Wang Jian‐Qiang , Zhang Linjuan
Published: April 2024

Reversible solid oxide cells (rSOCs) have significant potential as efficient energy conversion and storage systems. Nevertheless, the practical application of their conventional air electrodes, such as La0.8Sr0.2MnO3−δ (LSM), Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3‐δ (BSCF), and PrBa0.8Ca0.2Co2O5+δ (PBCC), remains unsatisfactory due to interface delamination during prolonged electrochemical operation. Using micro‐focusing X‐ray absorption spectroscopy (µ‐XAS), a decrease (increase) in the co‐valence state from the electrode surface to the electrode/electrolyte interface is observed, leading to the above delamination. Utilizing the one‐pot method to incorporate an oxygen‐vacancy‐enriched CeO2 electrode into these air electrodes, the uniform distribution of the Co valence state is observed, alleviating the structural delamination. PBCC–CeO2 electrodes exhibited a degradation rate of 0.095 mV h−1 at 650 °C during a nearly 500‐h test as compared with 0.907 mV h−1 observed during the 135‐h test for PBCC. Additionally, a remarkable increase in electrolysis current density from 636 to 934 mA cm−2 under 1.3 V and a maximum power density from 912 to 989 mW cm−2 upon incorporating CeO2 into PBCC is also observed. BSCF–CeO2 and LSM–CeO2 also show enhanced electrochemical performance and prolonged stability as compared to BSCF and LSM. This work offers a strategy to mitigate the structural delamination of conventional electrodes to boost the performance of rSOCs.
An Analytical Model for Describing Transient Photocurrents in Bias‐Assisted Charge Extraction for Low‐Mobility Organic Solar Cells
Authors: Sun Bowen , Gerber Benno , Shoaee Safa , Neher Dieter
Published: April 2024

Bias‐assisted charge extraction (BACE) is a powerful technique for measuring the carrier density in organic solar cells under operational conditions and to deduce information on the charge recombination properties. Hereby, the carrier density in the active layer device is determined by integrating the transient extraction current, while nongeminate recombination during the charge extraction processes is generally neglected. This assumption becomes questionable for low mobilities, for example, at low temperatures and in case of high energetic disorder. Herein, the extraction process in BACE measurement is investigated by incorporating both drift and bimolecular recombination of charges during charge extraction into a unified framework. An explicit analytical model is proposed to describe the time dependence of the transient photocurrent in BACE measurement and excellent agreement is found with drift‐diffusion simulations. It is shown that global fitting of transient photocurrents measured at various collection biases with this analytical model allows to determine the carrier density in the device with high accuracy. Furthermore, the analytical model is demonstrated to provide accurate mobilities for both the fast and slow carriers within the device, rendering it a valuable supplement to other mobility measurement techniques such as resistance‐dependent photovoltage and space–charge‐limited current.
Report of the General Committee: 30
Authors: Wilson Karen L.
Published: April 2024

Decisions of the General Committee are reported on proposals and requests in Report 25 of the Nomenclature Committee (NC) for Algae, Reports 22 and 23 of the NC for Fungi, Report 15 of the NC for Bryophytes and Report 17 of the NC for Fossils. Report 23 of the NC for Fungi also included five lists of protected fungal names for formal approval.
Preparation and ammonium adsorption behavior of interpenetrating polymer networks hydrogel of chitosan‐g‐poly(acrylic acid)/bentonite and chitosan‐glutaraldehyde
Authors: Duong Nguyen Binh , Trang Quan Thi Thu , Bich Phan Thi Ngoc , Lam Pham Van
Published: April 2024

In this article, new interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) hydrogel as an efficient adsorbent for ammonium was prepared by a two‐step process. First, semi‐IPN hydrogel of chitosan‐g‐poly(acrylic acid)/bentonite (CAB) and chitosan (CTS) was synthesized by grafting polymerization in the presence of exfoliated bentonite as both cross‐linking agent and nanoscale inorganic filler. Second, cross‐linking polymer network of chitosan‐glutaraldehyde (CGA) was formed by reaction of CTS with glutaraldehyde (GA). The obtained IPN hydrogel (CAB/CGA) was characterized by Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and its swelling degree and PZC value were also measured. These results demonstrate that copolymerized graft reaction was occurred between CTS, AA and bentonite forming CAB, and CGA presented as a cross‐linker in CAB/CGA polymer network. CAB/CGA has a moderate swelling degree of 7.8. CAB/CGA exhibits high adsorption capacity and fast adsorption rate for ammonium. Adsorption process reaches equilibrium in 30 min and fits well to Langmuir adsorption model with a fairly high maximum adsorption capacity of 41.06 mg g−1. The material has a good regeneration ability. After five times of adsorption–desorption, there was almost no decrease in ammonium adsorption capacity. Moreover, the low swelling degree leads to an improvement in material strength and a reduction of equipment cost.
Cytotoxic steroidal compounds, enriched fraction and extract of Trillium govanianum against HCT‐116 cell line
Authors: Kumar Dinesh , Kapoor Smita , Padwad Yogendra S. , Kumar Dinesh
Published: April 2024

Trillium govanianum is a source of steroidal compounds and is used for the treatment of sexual disorders, dysentery, cancer, and inflammation. In the current investigation, steroidal compounds 1‐5 (20‐hydroxyecdysone [1], pennogenin‐3‐O‐β‐chacotrioside [2], dioscin [3], trillin [4], diosgenin [5]) were isolated, including dioscin and trillin, as a new report from this species. Further, extract (TGE), steroids enriched fraction (TGEF) and 1–5 were evaluated for cytotoxicity against the HCT‐116 cell line. Cytotoxicity activity was found to be significant in samples and might be due to the generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species production. TGE and TGEF showed maximum inhibition (>92%) at 25 and 5 µg/mL in 72 h, while 2 and 3 showed better activity (>95%) at 5.65 and 11.51 µM in 72 h than the vinblastine drug (20 µM). Furthermore, the ultra‐performance liquid chromatography‐photo diode array method was validated for a determination of 1–5. Compounds 1–3, and 5 were quantified in TGE and TGEF while 4 was only identified. The findings revealed that activity of TGE and TGEF, might be due to compounds 2 (49.04 ± 2.22 and 77.40 ± 0.72 mg/g) and 3 (230.88 ± 7.07 and 584.67 ± 5.34 mg/g), respectively. The study also suggested that 2 and 3 can be a drug molecule as vinblastine while TGEF may be developed as a phytopharmaceutical drug for colon cancer treatment.
Toolpath generation for automated wind turbine blade finishing operations
Authors: Huth Hunter , Nichols Casey , Lambert Scott , Sindler Petr , Berry Derek , Barnes David , Beach Ryan , Sabet Sahand , Snowberg David
Published: April 2024

Incorporating automation into wind turbine blade manufacturing is important for reducing costs to meet current offshore wind energy production goals in the United States. This work proposes a process for automating three operations in wind blade manufacturing: trimming to remove flashing left over after bonding two blade skins together, grinding to produce a desired leading‐edge shape, and sanding to prepare the blade for bonding overlamination or adding paint to the surface. The majority of this work focuses on the toolpath generation. The algorithms were tested on a 5‐m blade section, and the results were analyzed in terms of operation speed and accuracy. Finally, future work is discussed to improve the performance of the system.
Spatial difference on nitrogen removal in the water based on different resolutions for Sanhuanpao wetland, Northeast China
Authors: Wang Xiao‐Dong , Ma Jin‐Feng , Jiang Hao‐Rui , An Yu , Zhang Mei
Published: April 2024

The research on the deviations caused by different resolutions is relevant to the study of spatial scale effects. In 2018, spatial interpolations were performed using the removal ratios of the TN, NH4‐N, and NO3‐N of the layers of different resolutions, respectively. Based on the mean and the standard deviation, the area, shape, and position were obtained for four levels related to the removal ratios of the three nitrogen forms. The linear and 6th function fitting methods were used to reveal the differences in nitrogen removal in wetland water at different spatial resolutions. The results showed that a resolution of 25 times the original was the key scale of the spatial effects. Due to the fact that 52 of the 72 functions did not reach a significant level (P < 0.05), the spatial scale effect of the nitrogen removal was mainly characterized by disorderly fluctuations. The results have a certain extrapolation value for the analysis of spatial scale effects.

Practitioner Points

The resolution difference was not sufficient to change the spatial pattern of the geographic phenomena.

The resolution of 25 times the original was the important scale for determining spatial effects.

When studying the spatial scale effects caused by differences in resolution, it was necessary to comprehensively consider various resolutions.
Compound-Specific Isotope Analyses to Investigate Pesticide Transformation in Soil and Water
Authors: Gilevska T. , Imfeld G.
Published: April 2024

This chapter provides an overview of approaches employed in tracking pesticide degradation within agricultural catchments, focusing on the existing challenges and burgeonic prospects afforded by pesticide compound-specific isotope analyses (CSIA). The discussion centers on the development of CSIA for low concentrations of pesticides in environmental matrices. Additionally, the chapter explores the viability of implementing pesticide CSIA in field applications for tasks such as for source apportionment, discerning transformation reactions, and quantifying the extent of degradation on a catchment scale.
Stable Oxygen Isotope Composition of Phosphates to Investigate Phosphorus Cycling in the Soil–Plant Continuum
Authors: Pfahler V. , Adu-Gyamfi J. , Pistocchi Ch. , Tamburini F. , Bauke S.
Published: April 2024

This chapter provides an overview of how the stable isotope composition of oxygen bond to phosphorus, δ(18O)PO4, in phosphate can be used to investigate P cycling in the soil–plant continuum. In recent years, several books and articles about different aspects of P cycling have been published. This chapter provides summary information about P cycling in the soil–plant continuum focusing on the current methods in P research. It also provides an overview of the pitfalls of the δ(18O)PO4 method, especially regarding sampling and sample handling. The chapter concludes with the way forward and prospects of the δ(18O)PO4 method to investigate P cycling in the soil–plant continuum.
International Development: Systemic Change Over Time
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

Sustained economic growth is both cause and consequence of many different changes in society. This chapter introduces how a country’s national income and total expenditure relates to other aspects of social and economic development. We begin by introducing the role of capital accumulation, as public and private investment drives a growing stock of physical and technological resources as well as education and health. We then trace four main shifts associated with these developments over time: a demographic transition in population growth and longevity; a structural transformation of the economy towards urbanization and fewer farmers with more land per farmer; a food system transformation to more input use and more animal source foods; and a nutrition transition in dietary patterns including more packaged food and meals away from home. Each community, country and region experience these transitions in different ways and at different times, creating opportunities for people to guide the pace and direction of change through their own private and public choices.
The Future of Food: Meeting Human Needs with Systemic Change
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

The final chapter of this book invites you to imagine and shape the food system to meet each population’s need for healthy diets, decent work, environmental sustainability and resilience. To improve outcomes we must anticipate the impacts of climate change and resource constraints, demographic shifts in age structure and location of population growth, and the opportunities created by innovation and new investment. Change occurs at every scale, from individual choices and local initiatives to national policies and international relations. A major challenge for the future of food is continued disparities in access to resources for production and earnings, as well as disparities in food environments, nutrition and health. Food can be a great unifier, with opportunities for households, organizations and governments to build community and achieve equitable growth, but food can also be used to divide and limit each community’s ability to achieve its full potential. The many different ways that people can obtain a healthy diet create options and ensure an ongoing need to anticipate how each choice might alter the future of food.
Individual Choices: Explaining Food Consumption and Production
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

Every person sometimes chooses different foods, based in part on preferences developed over time in their family, cultural and community context. Similarly, each farmer has their own way of helping crops and livestock grow, and every food producer transforms ingredients into final products in a unique manner. Individual actions by millions of consumers and producers underpin the food systems we observe. In this chapter, we use analytical diagrams with indifference curves and budget lines to explain food consumption choices and predict how food consumption might change in response to different prices, incomes and preferences. Then we explain production choices using a set of three different analytical diagrams, explaining what is produced using a production possibilities frontier and its revenue line, as well as an input response curve and its profit line, and explaining how each thing is produced using an isoquant and its cost line. Together, these diagrams reveal how changes in prices, natural resources and technology affect agriculture and food production. Finally, we show how consumption and production together explain the choices of family farmers, allowing us to describe a variety of current events in the agricultural sector using economics principles.
Societal Outcomes: Predicting Food Market Prices and Quantities
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

This chapter explains how societal outcomes can be seen as the result of individuals interacting with each other. Markets are physical places or online environments where interactions occur, as people exchange goods and services in pursuit of their individual goals, given their own production possibilities, income or wealth, and their own preferences for consumption. To explain and predict observed prices and total quantities, we proceed graphically in two dimensions to derive supply curves from production possibilities, derive demand curves from incomes and preferences, and then show how interactions among many sellers and buyers lead to observed outcomes for each group of people with and without the possibility of trade with others. We explain how supply, demand and trade diagrams provide qualitative explanations and predictions, and show how a population’s food consumption response to policy or other changes can be measured using elasticities of demand with respect to price and income. Measuring change in elasticity terms allows us to classify goods as more or less responsive to policy intervention, and discuss factors that influence the supply or demand response of different populations to interventions for each kind of food.
Collective Action: Government Policies and Programs
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

People often engage in collective actions undertaken by a group as a whole. This chapter introduces the toolkit of economics used to analyze government policies and programs, aiming to understand the political economy of collective actions at all scales from local to global. Governments are important actors in agriculture and food systems, providing public-sector goods and services through programs financed with tax revenue and by expanding the money supply. Governments also regulate private activity through public policies, legislation and law enforcement. Non-governmental organizations also take collective actions, but their membership is voluntary whereas governments have sovereignty over people within their borders. The first section of this chapter shows how the analytical diagrams developed for individual choices are adapted to understand collective actions, and then applied to real-world problems of governing agriculture and the food system. The second section explains how analysts obtain data on the social, environmental or health-related aspects of food as well as market production and consumption, to guide decisions that take account of how much people value those nonmarket aspects of life. Nonmarket values are a major driver of collective action, as people seek policies and programs that not only deliver higher economic surplus from production and consumption, but also use government policies and programs to address externalities and provide public goods.
Food in the Macroeconomy: The Whole is More Than the Sum of its Parts
Authors: Masters William A. , Finaret Amelia B.
Published: April 2024

This chapter shows how the food system interacts with society and the economy as a whole. That larger macroeconomy involves the circular flow of goods and services exchanged among people within each country, including their trade and investment with other people in the rest of the world. The exchange of goods and services among households and businesses is facilitated by a supply of money from the government’s central bank, and a set of public services and goods provided through the government using tax revenue and additions to the money supply issued by the central bank. The government’s monetary and fiscal policies influence the pace of economic growth and development, by helping people save and invest to improve their living standards during periods of economic expansion, and by influencing the depth and duration of recessions when people cut back on investment and spending. Growth and fluctuations both have large impacts on agriculture, food and health.
The Exclusion of Vulnerable Populations from Research
Authors: Schroeder Doris , Chatfield Kate , Chennells Roger , Partington Hazel , Kimani Joshua , Thomson Gillian , Odhiambo Joyce Adhiambo , Snyders Leana , Louw Collin
Published: April 2024

What do ethics codes and guidelines tell us about who is vulnerable in research? To what are they vulnerable? And how might this vulnerability be addressed? These questions guided our analysis of 57 research ethics codes and guidelines that mention the involvement of vulnerable persons in research. The chapter draws upon the findings from this analysis to help explain how and why some people might be excluded from research unnecessarily. The investigation is also informed by the findings from an empirical study into the perspectives of 22 researchers who have extensive experience of undertaking research with vulnerable individuals. Their encounters with research governance measures, including research ethics approval and research ethics codes, expose challenges that can exacerbate unnecessary exclusion from research. We learn from the researchers and the research ethics codes that governance measures intended to protect the vulnerable from exploitation in research can lead to unfair exclusion when applied in a blanket fashion. Research governance guidelines and processes must encourage a more nuanced understanding of what it means to be vulnerable in research to ensure that people are not left behind unnecessarily.
Citizen Innovation in Fab Cities
Authors: Schnier Johanna , Pacuku David , Raasch Christina , Moritz Manuel
Published: April 2024

Past innovation research points to various motives of why individuals participate in innovation contests, ranging from pecuniary rewards to the joy of innovation. At the same time, it is unclear how these motives are associated with the quality of the generated ideas. Yet, understanding this relationship is key for organizations that wish to design prizes effectively. Using data from the Fab City Hamburg Maker challenge, an innovation challenge that took place in summer 2022, we provide evidence that altruistic (rather than financial) participation motives are related to a superior innovation performance: those who indicated altruistic participation motives submitted ideas that were judged most favorably by an external audience. This finding suggests that, to attract the most able individuals, organizations should support participants in disseminating their solutions and sharing their knowledge with potential users.
Exploring Open-Source Software Ecosystems for Hardware Development
Authors: Mariscal-Melgar J. C. , Hijma Pieter , Häuer Martin , Schott Martin , Stirling Julian , Wille Timm , Moritz Manuel , Redlich Tobias
Published: April 2024

Open-Source Hardware (OSH) and software ecosystems enable a collaborative development and manufacturing of physical artifacts. As we move towards new paradigms of production and consumption – libre software toolchains for hardware development warrant special attention. This chapter explores libre software, OSH, and software ecosystems to exemplify, illustrate, and provide food for thought to the curious reader to understand current trends in the Open-Source Hardware movement.
On the Usability of Open-Source Machine Tools
Authors: Lange Luisa , Buxbaum-Conradi Sonja , Moritz Manuel , Bertlich Jacqueline , Redlich Tobias , Wulfsberg Jens P.
Published: April 2024

In the last decade, the technological developments of open-source machine tools (OSMTs) have reached a very high standard, sometimes up to being compatible with proprietary products from industry. However, the aspect of usability is often neglected over the development of functionality, which leaves the user friendliness of many OSMTs still lagging behind those of industrial machines. In an explorative qualitative research approach, this chapter deals with the elaboration of the basic problems and challenges which users face when they use and familiarize themselves with OSMTs. Interviews with OSMT developers, users, and educators provided insights into the status quo of OSMT development and education. Key factors with an influence on the usability of OSMTs were identified. In this chapter, the identified key factors, process understanding, machine complexity and atmosphere/prevailing mood, are described, and their influence on the usability of OSMTs and the fab city community is presented.
Enabling Technology Diffusion with the Open Lab Starter Kit
Authors: Omer Mohammed , Kaiser Melina , Moritz Manuel , Redlich Tobias , Ingrassia Daniele
Published: April 2024

In recent years, fabrication laboratories or Fab Labs have challenged the dominant position of conventional large-scale manufacturing by offering low-threshold opportunities to engage with production. Fab Labs are therefore catalysts to the emancipation of manufacturing from primarily industrial to personal and communal contexts. However, various bureaucratic and resource-related challenges make the set-up of Fab Labs difficult and hinder an equitable spatial distribution of Fab Labs; there exists, for example, a great difference in the number of labs between industrialized and developing countries. This is contrary to the Fab Lab idea as it hurts the egalitarian access to digital fabrication machines. In response to this, efforts such as the Open Lab Starter Kit (OLSK) make use of Open-Source Hardware (OSH) and specifically Open-Source Machine Tools (OSMT) to facilitate the establishing of labs. The costs and thresholds of these so-called open labs are significantly lower compared to conventional Fab Labs because the machine tools used in them can be manufactured and replicated locally, using local resources. This chapter presents the OLSK approach to open-sourcing the design and documentation of machine tools, and furthermore examines its scope as an enabling technology for a more inclusive and equitable fab city concept.
The Fab City Full Stack
Authors: Ladera Tomas Diez , Niaros Vasilis , Ferro Carolina
Published: April 2024

This chapter presents the Fab City Full Stack framework, a conceptual model to guide the transition towards locally productive and globally connected cities and regions. The Full Stack is composed of seven layers, serving as an analytical, design, and implementation tool which ensures that projects align with the values and principles of the Fab City philosophy. The Full Stack provides a framework for navigating the complexity of implementing a transition to regenerative local economies. Future directions for research on the Fab City Full Stack are discussed, highlighting the need for more in-depth case studies, a focus on the social and political dimensions of the framework, as well as the development of metrics to measure progress towards self-sufficient and sustainable cities.
Open and Circular Value Creation in the Open Microfactory
Authors: Langhammer Michel , Hildebrandt Lennart , Seeber Henrik , Moritz Manuel , Redlich Tobias
Published: April 2024

The transition to a Fab City in which almost everything can be produced requires reconfiguration of the existing global production network. Open workspaces like Open Labs or Fab Labs offer an important contribution in terms of innovation and knowledge transfer, but due to the currently limited availability of machine capabilities as well as capacities, they cannot fully cover the current demand of products and their local production. In this article, the concept of an Open Microfactory (OMF) is introduced as a local and highly flexible production facility. OMFs work as a circular manufacturing space and manufacturing-as-a-service provider. The OMF fulfills the local demand in products in small and medium-sized production volumes and acts as a complementary element to the existing makerspace and industry infrastructure. By integrating state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies from the field of flexible machine units, factory automation and digitalization, we explore how OMFs strengthen local value creation systems and make them more sustainable and resilient.
Lokale Produktion als Beitrag zu einer nachhaltigen Wertschöpfung
Authors: Krenz Pascal , Stoltenberg Lisa , Saubke Dominik , Markert Julia
Published: April 2024

Neuartige Formen lokaler Produktion bieten vielfältige Potenziale, den gegenwärtigen gesellschaftlichen Herausforderungen zu begegnen. So z. B. die Reduzierung von Treibhausgasen durch die Verkleinerung von Wertschöpfungskreisläufen, die Förderung lokaler Akteure und die Stärkung der Resilienz der Produktionswirtschaft durch veränderungsfähige Wertschöpfungsansätze. Um dies perspektivisch zu ermöglichen, bedarf es eines konkreten Verständnisses für die Systematiken lokaler Produktion. Um dieses Verständnis zu vertiefen, wird im Folgenden das Phänomen lokale Produktion in seinen verschiedenen Ausprägungsformen für die Dimensionen Bedarf, Ressourcen und Raum sowie deren zentrale Schlüsselfaktoren beschrieben. Dabei wird der Einfluss verschiedener gesellschaftlicher Subsysteme auf eben jene Schlüsselfaktoren nachgezeichnet. Zuletzt werden systemspezifische, zentrale Handlungsfelder zur Förderung einer lokalen Produktion sowie ihre Wirkung auf die drei Säulen der Nachhaltigkeit abgeleitet.
The Fab City Index
Authors: Boeing Niels
Published: April 2024

The Fab City approach means that an urban economy is gradually developing into a fully circular economy until 2054, where local demand is met by local production. However, it is unclear at which point a Fab City currently is in this transition. The concept of the Fab City Index is a measure that could somehow quantify its state. It was first developed in France in 2018. The Fab City Index toolkit aims to capture how different economic sectors are performing with regards to the Fab City goal of a fully circular economy and to make this self-sufficiency comparable among existing Fab Cities. However, the French approach is closed source. Thus, we describe an alternative approach based on publicly available data taking Hamburg as an example, and we identify 16 macro-sectors whose development could inform a Fab City strategy. Preliminary results show that Hamburg still has a long way to go, though there is potential for self-sufficiency in some sectors. Measuring consumption and recycling thoroughly should be a high priority. A visual tool like the Fab City Dashboard could document the progress being made. The insights can inform both city administrations in deciding which sectors should be strengthened and statistical offices in expanding their future data collection.
Das Narrativ der Circular Economy und Bioökonomie
Authors: Marzi Thomas , Renner Manfred
Published: April 2024

Geschichten und Erzählungen vermitteln Inhalte auf anschauliche Weise. Sie stellen eine emotionale Verbindung her, formen Identität, schaffen Gemeinsamkeiten, vermitteln Werte und unterhalten. Auch in den Wissenschaften, deren Sprache meist mit Fakten, Daten und analytischem Denken assoziiert wird, haben sie eine wichtige Funktion, da sie komplexe Inhalte anschaulich machen. Es überrascht deshalb nicht, dass auch in der Kommunikation der Circular Economy und Bioökonomie narrative Elemente eingesetzt werden. Ihr erzählerisches Konzept untersuchen wir im folgenden Kapitel. Eine wichtige Rolle spielt darin die Natur.
Metaphern, Analogien und Modellübertragungen
Authors: Marzi Thomas , Renner Manfred
Published: April 2024

In den Erzählungen der Circular Economy und Bioökonomie werden durch Metaphern Analogien zwischen der Biosphäre und dem menschlichen Wirtschaftssystem hergestellt. Manche Konzepte nehmen darüber hinaus noch eine Modellübertragung vor, bei der die Struktur von Ökosystemen als Kreislaufmodell auf die Wirtschaft übertragen werden soll. Das Kapitel befasst sich deshalb damit, welche Rolle Metaphern und Analogien im Alltag und in den Wissenschaften spielen und welche Voraussetzungen für eine Modellübertragung erfüllt sein müssen.