bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Food Security in Iraq in Light of the Repercussions of the Russian-Ukraine War Crisis
Authors: Al-Dujaili Dr. Jaafar Baqir
Published: April 2023

Any state or society must have a system of national security in all its dimensions, as it is part of the sovereignty of the state in protecting its citizens and the land and achieving the meanings and conditions of sovereignty. Food security is one of those important dimensions because it relates to the requirements of living and the sustainability of life. It is natural that countries integrate and exchange goods and services in proportion to the need and economic relations. There are many wars and battles that caused problems for the food crisis and economic stability, famine and killing people was part of it, But in fact, the occurrence of any crisis, disaster, or war will be reflected in the flow of goods and services, or may lead to their scarcity and consequently an increase in their prices will be noticed, which confuses the food security system, especially in a country whose needs are most imported, and the decline in the level of the agricultural and industrial sector is significant adding to that the Russian-Ukraine war, all those factors created a shock to the whole world about some products and energy, Iraq is one of those countries, especially after 2003. There is no longer an economic policy and no plans for the development of various sectors. Therefore, the study aims to analyze the reality of what war is and its roots, with a description of the dimensions of food security and how Iraq can promote the food security system and its dimensions and the development of related sectors. Therefore, the study reached a serious conclusion that Iraq is a country that lies in a gap and weakness in the agricultural and industrial sectors, and the lack of local production that enhances the political and economic capacity, which enables it to take decisions in development and running the country
Cognitive Bias in Determination of Tax Appeal Cases and Ways to debias: Focusing on the administrative appeal
Authors:   KOREAN SOCIETY OF TAX LAW, Kim Young Soon
Published: April 2023

Humans acquired heuristics for survival. Heuristics are mental shortcuts that save time by simplifying complex decisions into simple rules of thumb. Heuristics are useful in everyday life because they enable us to automatically make quick decisions with little effort. However, when making important decisions and legal judgments, heuristics can be dangerous. Before filing a lawsuit in an appeals proceeding against a taxation, it must be needed to file an administrative appeal. It is the procedure enforced by law. Administrative hearings is similar to the judicial proceedings. The evaluating of the weight of proof depends on the committee members just as the judge. The problem is that the judge could make wrong decision due to his or her cognitive bias. In the United States, many experimental studies have been conducted on jurors and judges to see if various heuristics actually occur. It is important for parties to accept the legal decision, so that the legal decision must not be biased.
The purpose of this research is to analyze the cases that had been shown heuristics in administrative trial decisions and to research on debiasing. This paper analyzes decisions in which representativeness heuristics, hindsight bias, and confirmation bias appeared. In order to debiase, there are several trials like the cognitive correction(thinking the opposite etc.), environmental correction(reducing cognitive losses etc.), and systemic correction(decision support systems etc.).
Collection Development in Academic Libraries: Challenges and Way Forward
Authors: Olubiyo Peter Olubunmi
Published: April 2023

The core of the library is the collection. Library, being an information bank, its pivotal role is enshrined in the basic mandate of stocking information materials to meet the needs of users. The quality of the collection remains the litmus test of service delivery effectiveness in the academic world. It is the functional domain of collection development to peg collection quality high. Well-conceived collection development encompasses a range of activities such as selection, acquisition, user studies, stock evaluation, weeding and interlibrary cooperation. None of these activities is inconsequential in the bid to achieve high quality collection as they all work in synergy. The collection development which composed of the information resources, constitutes the basic instrument of service delivery in the library. Thus, librarians involved in collection development roles must now reach as far as possible into the larger world of prints and web scholarly content to add, organize, promote and make quality material discoverable and accessible. Librarians need to expose the research materials housed in repositories and on the open web, even as these materials are often hidden from scholars due to lack of indexing, inadequate crawling by major search engines, existence of poor quality metadata, or a lack of librarian effort at marketing of material that might maximize usage and accessibility. Therefore, Collection development librarians and subject specialists are best poised to know which public domain materials might best be needed and made more accessible to institutional scholars and to local communities.
Information Resources Preservation in Academic Libraries: Challenges and Strategies
Authors: Olubiyo Peter Olubunmi
Published: April 2023

Natural disasters, human, chemical, biological and environmental factors were responsible for deterioration of information resources in the university libraries. Photocopying, re-binding, fumigation, microfilming, lamination, air conditioning and digitization techniques were adopted for preservation of information resources and books were mostly borrowed and consulted in the libraries in developing world. Based on literature, the study recommended that management of the universities should acquire a variety of information resources which should not be limited to books, serials, reference sources but to include e-resources with preservation consciousness. Thus, preservation of deteriorating information resources in libraries has become a global phenomenon to which academic libraries must aggressively respond if their mission of providing information needs to their patrons is to be achieved in this era of dwindling budgetary allocation to libraries couple with the present economic recession. It can therefore be said that the aim of information resources preservation programs is to maintain and preserve information materials according to their use and their significance. Thus, preservation of information resources is an important aspect of library and information management
Strategies for Preservation of Electronic Information Resources in Academic Libraries in Nigeria
Authors: Olubiyo Peter Olubunmi , Olubiyo Lydia Mercy
Published: April 2023

Modern academic libraries preserve collections that include not only printed materials such as, books, periodicals, newspapers, and magazines, but also electronic resources such as art reproductions, films, sound and video recordings, maps, photographs, microfiches, microfilms, CD-ROMs, computer software, online databases, and other media. In addition to preserving collections within library buildings, modern academic libraries often feature telecommunications links that provide users with access to information at remote sites. Digital preservation, in this context is the process of giving electronic information resources long life. Preservation of Electronic Information Resources is essentially a way of preserving the functionality of and access to digital information which might otherwise be lost due to technological obsolescence, therefore, migration and other methods of preserving electronic records can be adopted. Migration is a set of organized task designed to achieve periodic transfer of digital materials from one hardware/software configuration to another or from one generation of computer technology to a subsequent generation.
Substantial and procedural guarantees of the Sexual Rights of persons with diverse Sexual Orientation held in the La Vega de Sincelejo Prison.
Authors: Velásquez Margarita Jaimes , Martínez Medrano Tania Inés , Hernández-Florez Nubia , Klimenko Olena
Published: April 2023

Sexual and reproductive rights are also human rights because they respond to a fundamental aspect of the life project, even when people are deprived of their liberty.  It is the obligation of the State to guarantee substantial and procedural measures so that persons with diverse sexual orientations deprived of liberty in the La Vega Prison Establishment in Sincelejo can enjoy such rights. In view of the above, the objective was proposed to determine the substantial and procedural guarantees of the sexual rights of persons with diverse sexual orientations detained in the Medium Security Penitentiary and Prison Establishment La Vega in the year 2020. In order to comply with this objective, it was approached from the qualitative research tools.  The analysis resulted in the non-compliance with international and national regulations governing the matter, as well as the orders of the Constitutional Court in its rulings on the right to the enjoyment of intimate visits. Such non-compliance is associated with the inconvenient application of procedures that delay the right, as well as the prevention and disclosure measures that should be carried out inside the prison.
Paciente de 38 años con Aneurisma de Aorta Abdominal más resolución Quirúrgica Reporte de Caso
Authors: Peña Sotomayor Andrés Wilson , Sarmiento Herrera Stefany Carolina , Mena Torres Belén Isabel , Vallejo Paccha Tatiana Lizbeth , Alvarez Saltos Miguel David
Published: April 2023

Un aneurisma es una dilatación anormal o abombamiento irreversible de una porción de una arteria, debida a la debilidad y estiramiento localizada en la pared arterial. La aorta abdominal es el lugar donde con mayor frecuencia se desarrollan los aneurismas y su aparición suele ser debida a la degeneración de la pared arterial, relacionada con la arteriosclerosis y favorecida por factores de riesgo como el tabaquismo y la hipertensión arterial, entre otros. La evolución natural de un aneurisma de aorta abdominal (AAA) no tratado es hacia la rotura. Cuando mide 5 cm o más, se recomienda la intervención quirúrgica. El diagnóstico por exploración física tiene una sensibilidad del 39 % y mejora según aumenta el tamaño del aneurisma hasta el 76 %. La ecografía abdominal es un estudio accesible y muy útil para la detección del AAA con una sensibilidad del 87.4 % y una especificidad del 99.9 %. La tomografía axial computarizada (TAC) es el estándar de oro para el diagnóstico, así como para el plan quirúrgico con una sensibilidad y especificidad que rebasan el 95 %.

Se Reporta un caso de un paciente masculino de 38 años de con antecedentes de tabaquismo 2 cajetillas de cigarrillos por semana desde hace 5 años, acude por presentar masa palpable en mesogastrio de tipo pulsátil.
Determinación del área inundable ante posible colapso del depósito de relaves del Pasivo Ambiental Minero Quiulacocha en el tramo del Río Ragra, distrito de Simón Bolívar – Pasco
Authors: Uriarte Ortiz Alex Santiago , Rivera Evilson Jaco , Leaño Espinoza Liliana , Cuadros Oria Saida Margarita
Published: April 2023

El depósito de relave del pasivo ambiental minero denominado Quiulacocha se encuentra localizado en el distrito Simón Bolívar, provincia y departamento de Pasco e hidrográficamente se ubica en ámbito de la antigua Laguna Quiulacocha. El presente artículo está enfocado en determinar el área inundable ante un posible colapso del depósito de relave del pasivo ambiental minero Quiulacocha en el tramo del río Ragra aplicando Hec-Ras 6.3.1 y ArcGIS 10.5. El desarrollo metodológico de la investigación se determinó en tres fases. La primera fase se encuentra relacionada a las actividades de recopilación de datos de las variables de precipitación pluvial, caudal del área de estudio y el análisis de gráficos de la variación de las variables citadas. La segunda fase se encuentra vinculada a la descarga de las imágenes satelitales desde la plataforma digital de Copernicus Services Data Hub de la Agencia Espacial Europea (ESA) y el procesamiento de las imágenes satelitales mediante ArcMap 10.8 derivada del software ArcGIS 10.5. La tercera fase se encuentra emparentada con la elaboración del modelo hidrológico en el río Ragra. Finalmente, mediante la ejecución de las tres fases permitió determinar el área inundable ante un eventual colapso del depósito de relave del pasivo ambiental minero Quiulacocha, el cual comprende un área de 1 151 391.58 m2 que a su vez abarca las comunidades de Quiulacocha, Huandohuasi y Yarajhuanca
ON THE UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN SPEECH. IN SEARCH OF “DESIGN IDEAS” OF NATURE
Authors: ALEKSANDROVA N.SH.
Published: April 2023

Understanding of speech like probably the vast majority of other human cognitive functions is provided by the joint work of two differently directed brain mechanisms. During normal functioning these mechanisms coexist, complement each other, and it is extremely difficult to discern each of them one by one but in case of pathology when one of the mechanisms weakens and the second continues to work, this becomes possible. Also, when adults learn a new language in the language environment, one can observe the processes that a person experiences in early childhood when mastering their native language. Based on the data of linguistic pathology and bilingualism: one of the mechanisms of speech comprehension can be described as an involuntary understanding of the general meaning of addressed speech without relying on individual words. It can be observed and studied in isolation when mastering new languages in a language environment, i. e., during the formation of natural bilingualism. At its core, this process is the extraction of the general meaning of statements from a specific situation relying on the whole complex of non-verbal means of communication. The second mechanism of human comprehension of speech is arbitrary, conscious understanding based on known words and requiring the inclusion of voluntary attention. In isolation this mechanism can be observed when teaching languages to children with impressive (sensory) alalia, who are persistently impaired in their ability to master the language as a native one. The described mechanisms of speech comprehension are a manifestation in the language sphere of two global ways of human cognition.
LINGUOCOGNITIVE METHOD FOR ALGORITHMIZATION OF LOGICAL THINKING PROCESSES
Authors: FILIPENYA O. L. , TKACHENKO V.V.
Published: April 2023

Language, as a tool for consolidating knowledge, is compared with the logic of thinking. The interpretative representativeness of the symbolic representation of the term in thinking, due to the formation of the concept, is discussed. The paradigm of compact representation of knowledge is presented. The results of the work can be used in linguistics, philosophy, psychology, pedagogy, computer science.
SIGN PROCESS IN NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: SEMIOTIC IMPACT AND ALGORITHM
Authors: VDOVICHENKO A.V.
Published: April 2023

The article discusses the key difference between natural and artificial intelligences (NI and AI), which manifests itself when using signs by a machine and the owner of natural consciousness. Natural consciousness is free from the sign component, including the verbal one, experiencing the need for it only when trying to indirectly impose communicative influences on the imaginable owner of consciousness, in order to demonstrate their own actional (“influencing”) modes. In contrast, artificial intelligence identifies complexes of stimulus “bodies” according to the embedded algorithms and automatically perceives them as commands for constructing sign sequences. Machine thinking is identical to the process of executing algorithmic symbolic commands, while human thinking is devoid of symbolic forms. The traditional linguistic (modular) concept of the sign, in which the sign is actually perceived as a unity “form-meaning”, forces us to attribute the language algorithm to natural consciousness, in fact states the identity of NI and AI. In contrast to the language model, the communicative model describes a sign and a sign sequence as a hint (hints) to a specific actional mode of individual consciousness that needs to be recreated in order to find some meaning in the body of a sign. The sign and language, according to the dynamic communicative model, are not able to have autonomous semantics. Meaning in the body of a sign arises only under conditions of communicative reference, in the presence of a specific semiotic action, which is produced by the “signifying” owner of the NI. The article provides an illustrative example of the sign operations of NI and AI.
DATA VISUALIZATION IN EMOTIONAL ANALYSIS OF INTERNET-TEXTS IN RUSSIAN, BACKED BY THE MODEL OF EMOTIONS “CUBE OF LÖVHEIM”
Authors: KOLMOGOROVA A.V. , KALININ A. A.
Published: April 2023

In the paper, we discuss the problem of tools supposed to be effective for visualization of data achieved as result of running algorithms for emotional text analysis. We start by overviewing some technics used to visualize data in projects devoted to exploratory data analysis, sentiment-analysis and emotional text analysis. To continue, we suggest two variants of visualization for emotional representation in texts analyzed within the framework of the theoretical approach known as “Levheim's Cube”, in which emotion is represented as a combination of three neurotransmitters. Such a model makes it possible to operate with spatial coordinates for visualization, but, at the same time, it inevitably imposes a number of restrictions and difficulties.
A 3D View of Orion. I. Barnard's Loop
Authors: Foley Michael M. , Goodman Alyssa , Zucker Catherine , Forbes John C. , Konietzka Ralf , Swiggum Cameren , Alves João , Bally John , Soler Juan D. , Großschedl Josefa E. , Bialy Shmuel , Grudić Michael Y. , Leike Reimar , Enßlin Torsten
Published: April 2023

Barnard’s Loop is a famous arc of Hα emission located in the Orion star-forming region. Here, we provide evidence of a possible formation mechanism for Barnard’s Loop and compare our results with recent work suggesting a major feedback event occurred in the region around 6 Myr ago. We present a 3D model of the large-scale Orion region, indicating coherent, radial, 3D expansion of the OBP-Near/Briceño-1 (OBP-B1) cluster in the middle of a large dust cavity. The large-scale gas in the region also appears to be expanding from a central point, originally proposed to be Orion X. OBP-B1 appears to serve as another possible center, and we evaluate whether Orion X or OBP-B1 is more likely to have caused the expansion. We find that neither cluster served as the single expansion center, but rather a combination of feedback from both likely propelled the expansion. Recent 3D dust maps are used to characterize the 3D topology of the entire region, which shows Barnard’s Loop’s correspondence with a large dust cavity around the OPB-B1 cluster. The molecular clouds Orion A, Orion B, and Orion λ reside on the shell of this cavity. Simple estimates of gravitational effects from both stars and gas indicate that the expansion of this asymmetric cavity likely induced anisotropy in the kinematics of OBP-B1. We conclude that feedback from OBP-B1 has affected the structure of the Orion A, Orion B, and Orion λ molecular clouds and may have played a major role in the formation of Barnard’s Loop.
UV and Lyα Halos of Lyα Emitters across Environments at z = 2.84*
Authors: Kikuta Satoshi , Matsuda Yuichi , Inoue Shigeki , Steidel Charles C. , Cen Renyue , Zheng Zheng , Yajima Hidenobu , Momose Rieko , Imanishi Masatoshi , Komiyama Yutaka
Published: April 2023

We present UV and Lyα radial surface brightness (SB) profiles of Lyα emitters (LAEs) at z = 2.84 detected with the Hyper Suprime-Cam on the Subaru Telescope. The depth of our data, together with the wide-field coverage including a protocluster, enable us to study the dependence of Lyα halos (LAHs) on various galaxy properties, including Mpc scale environments. UV and Lyα images of 3490 LAEs are extracted, and stacking the images yields SB sensitivity of

∼
1
×

10

−
20

erg

s

−
1

cm

−
2

arcsec

−
2

in Lyα, reaching the expected level of optically thick gas illuminated by the UV background at z ∼ 3. Fitting of the two-component exponential function gives the scale-lengths of 1.56 ± 0.01 and 10.4 ± 0.3 pkpc. Dividing the sample according to their photometric properties, we find that, while the dependence of halo scale-length on environment outside of the protocluster core is not clear, LAEs in the central regions of protoclusters appear to have very large LAHs, which could be caused by combined effects of source overlapping and diffuse Lyα emission from cool intergalactic gas permeating the forming protocluster core irradiated by active members. For the first time, we identify UV halos around bright LAEs that are probably due to a few lower-mass satellite galaxies. Through comparison with recent numerical simulations, we conclude that, while scattered Lyα photons from the host galaxies are dominant, star formation in satellites evidently contributes to LAHs, and that fluorescent Lyα emission may be boosted within protocluster cores at cosmic noon and/or near bright QSOs.
Evidence for Multiple Shocks from the γ-Ray Emission of RS Ophiuchi
Authors: Diesing Rebecca , Metzger Brian D. , Aydi Elias , Chomiuk Laura , Vurm Indrek , Gupta Siddhartha , Caprioli Damiano
Published: April 2023

In 2021 August, the Fermi Large Area Telescope, H.E.S.S., and MAGIC detected GeV and TeV γ-ray emission from an outburst of recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi. This detection represents the first very high-energy γ-rays observed from a nova, and it opens a new window to study particle acceleration. Both H.E.S.S. and MAGIC described the observed γ-rays as arising from a single, external shock. In this paper, we perform detailed, multi-zone modeling of RS Ophiuchi’s 2021 outburst, including a self-consistent prescription for particle acceleration and magnetic field amplification. We demonstrate that, contrary to previous work, a single shock cannot simultaneously explain RS Ophiuchi’s GeV and TeV emission, in particular the spectral shape and distinct light-curve peaks. Instead, we put forward a model involving multiple shocks that reproduces the observed γ-ray spectrum and temporal evolution. The simultaneous appearance of multiple distinct velocity components in the nova optical spectrum over the first several days of the outburst supports the presence of distinct shocks, which may arise either from the strong latitudinal dependence of the density of the external circumbinary medium (e.g., in the binary equatorial plane versus the poles) or due to internal collisions within the white dwarf ejecta (which power the γ-ray emission in classical novae).
The Potential of the Wavelength-integrated Scattering Polarization of the Hydrogen Lyα Line for Probing the Solar Chromosphere
Authors: Alsina Ballester E. , Belluzzi L. , Trujillo Bueno J.
Published: April 2023

The intensity and the linear scattering polarization profiles of the hydrogen Lyα line encode valuable information on the thermodynamic and magnetic structure of the upper layers of the solar chromosphere. The Chromospheric Lyman-Alpha Spectro-Polarimeter (CLASP) sounding rocket experiment provided unprecedented spectropolarimetric data of this line, as well as two-dimensional broadband images in intensity and linear polarization. We theoretically investigate the potential of the Lyα broadband polarimetric signals for probing the solar chromosphere and its magnetic fields. We analyze the synthetic Stokes profiles obtained from a series of radiative transfer (RT) calculations out of local thermodynamic equilibrium, considering semi-empirical one-dimensional models of the solar atmosphere. The wavelength-integrated linear polarization signal is found to be dominated by the contribution from the wings when considering a Gaussian weighting function with a FWHM that corresponds to the CLASP slit-jaw broadband filter. These broadband linear polarization signals are strongly sensitive to magnetic fields of strengths on the order of 50 G, via the action of magneto-optical (MO) effects, and are expected to encode information on the middle–upper chromosphere. The two-dimensional broadband intensity and linear polarization images observed by CLASP can be suitably mimicked using synthetic wavelength-integrated signals obtained considering atmospheric models and magnetic fields that are representative of solar regions with different levels of activity, provided that the impact of MO effects is taken into account. Despite the limitations of a one-dimensional RT modeling, this work illustrates the diagnostic potential of filter-polarimetric Lyα signals for probing the solar chromosphere and its magnetism.
Whistler Wave Observations by Parker Solar Probe During Encounter 1: Counter-propagating Whistlers Collocated with Magnetic Field Inhomogeneities and their Application to Electric Field Measurement Calibration
Authors: Karbashewski S. , Agapitov O. V. , Kim H. Y. , Mozer F. S. , Bonnell J. W. , Froment C. , de Wit T. Dudok , Bale Stuart D. , Malaspina D. , Raouafi N. E.
Published: April 2023

Observations of the young solar wind by the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) mission reveal the existence of intense plasma wave bursts with frequencies between 0.05 and 0.20f
ce (tens of hertz up to ∼300 Hz) in the spacecraft frame. The wave bursts are often collocated with inhomogeneities in the solar wind magnetic field, such as local dips in magnitude or sudden directional changes. The observed waves are identified as electromagnetic whistler waves that propagate either sunward, anti-sunward, or in counter-propagating configurations during different burst events. Being generated in the solar wind flow, the waves experience significant Doppler downshift and upshift of wave frequency in the spacecraft frame for sunward and anti-sunward waves, respectively. Their peak amplitudes can be larger than 2 nT, where such values represent up to 10% of the background magnetic field during the interval of study. The amplitude is maximum for propagation parallel to the background magnetic field. We (i) evaluate the properties of these waves by reconstructing their parameters in the plasma frame, (ii) estimate the effective length of the PSP electric field antennas at whistler frequencies, and (iii) discuss the generation mechanism of these waves.
Value-added Catalog of M-giant Stars in LAMOST DR9
Authors: Li 李 Jing 静 , Long 龙 Lin 琳 , Zhong 钟 Jing 靖 , Tang 唐 Lin 琳 , Zhang 章 Bo 博 , Qin 秦松 Songmei 梅 , Chen 陈易 Yirong 容 , Yan 闫正 Zhengzhou 洲 , Chen 陈 Li 力 , Xue 薛香 Xiang-Xiang 香 , Hou 侯金 Jinliang 良 , Shi 施建荣 Jian-Rong
Published: April 2023

In this work, we update the catalog of M-giant stars from the low-resolution spectra of the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) Data Release 9. There are 58,076 M giants identified from the classification pipeline with seven temperature subtypes from M0 to M6. The 2471 misclassified non–M-giant stars are white dwarf binaries, early types, and M dwarfs. And the contamination rate is 4.2% in the M-giants sample. A total of 372 carbon stars were identified by CaH spectral indices, and were further confirmed by the LAMOST spectra. We update the correlation between the (W1 – W2)0 color and [M/H] from APOGEE DR17. We calculate the radial velocities of all M giants by applying cross-correlation to the spectra between 8000 and 8950 Å with synthetic spectra from ATLAS9. Taking star distances less than 4 kpc from Gaia EDR3 as the standard, we refitted the photometric distance relation of M giants. And based on our M-giant stars, we select a group of Sagittarius stream members, whose sky and 3D velocity distributions are well consistent with K-giant Saggitarius stream members found in Yang et al. With our M giants, we find that the disk is asymmetric out to R = 25 kpc, which is 5 kpc further out than detected using K giants.
Correlation between immune system activity and the susceptibility to Long COVID symptoms
Authors: Nguyen Dylan
Published: April 2023

With an alarmingly high rate of Long COVID, it is essential to address the lack of understanding of the pathogenesis and susceptibility to Long COVID. This study aims to investigate how symptoms and immunological markers of Long COVID are correlated in order to develop better biomarkers and inform strategies to accurately identify patients at high risk for developing Long COVID. It has been found that underlying health conditions increase the likelihood of developing Long COVID. Additionally, certain symptoms during COVID-19 infection have been linked to Long COVID. However, the immune system activity has not been well investigated for its correlation to the susceptibility and severity of Long COVID symptoms. In our study, human subjects from the United States and United Kingdom will be followed for a year, where they will be tested weekly for the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), draw blood for immune system activity analysis, and report symptoms bidaily. Reverse-transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) will be used to detect and quantify the presence of SARS-CoV-2. Qualitative information about participants will be collected via the ZOE Health Study app to enable the collection of clinical metadata such as symptoms. This study’s unique and sizeable prospective cohort will provide critical knowledge about the susceptibility of patients to Long COVID by pre-existing symptomatology and immune markers. Moreover, we will better understand the possible mechanisms and pathogenesis of the disease.
Enhancing DNA barcode reference libraries by harvesting terrestrial arthropods at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
Authors: Santos Bernardo , Miller Meredith , Miklasevskaja Margarita , McKeown Jaclyn , Redmond Niamh , Coddington Jonathan , Bird Jessica , Miller Scott , Smith Ashton , Brady Seán , Buffington Matthew , Chamorro M. Lourdes , Dikow Torsten , Gates Michael , Goldstein Paul , Konstantinov Alexander , Kula Robert , Silverson Nicholas , Solis M. Alma , deWaard Stephanie , Naik Suresh , Nikolova Nadya , Pentinsaari Mikko , Prosser Sean , Sones Jayme , Zakharov Evgeny , deWaard Jeremy
Published: April 2023

The use of DNA barcoding has revolutionised biodiversity science, but its application depends on the existence of comprehensive and reliable reference libraries. For many poorly known taxa, such reference sequences are missing even at higher-level taxonomic scales. We harvested the collections of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History (USNM) to generate DNA barcoding sequences for genera of terrestrial arthropods previously not recorded in one or more major public sequence databases. Our workflow used a mix of Sanger and Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) approaches to maximise sequence recovery while ensuring affordable cost. In total, COI sequences were obtained for 5,686 specimens belonging to 3,737 determined species in 3,886 genera and 205 families distributed in 137 countries. Success rates varied widely according to collection data and focal taxon. NGS helped recover sequences of specimens that failed a previous run of Sanger sequencing. Success rates and the optimal balance between Sanger and NGS are the most important drivers to maximise output and minimise cost in future projects. The corresponding sequence and taxonomic data can be accessed through the Barcode of Life Data System, GenBank, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, the Global Genome Biodiversity Network Data Portal and the NMNH data portal.
A note on the type of Harpalyce (Fabaceae, Brongniartieae), with description of two new local endemic species from Cuba
Authors: Rankin Rodríguez Rosa Gloria , González Gutiérrez Pedro Alejandro , Greuter Werner
Published: April 2023

Two new species of Harpalyce are described from Cuba, H. revolutasp. nov. from a serpentine area in the northern part of E. Cuba and H. marianensissp. nov. from calcareous areas in the southern part of E. Cuba. Both have relatively small flowers, with an up to 6 mm long standard, and 2–3 mm long wings. Harpalyce marianensis is further characterized by strongly suberous (corky) young branches of a spongy consistence, deeply furrowed longitudinally, and by leaflets covered with a particular type of orange, apparently disk-shaped, sessile glands abaxially. Harpalyce revoluta, moreover, has suborbicular or broadly elliptic leaflets with a strongly recurved or sometimes revolute margin, secondary veins inconspicuous on either side; the foliar glands, by their morphology and anatomy, are of a different type. An epitype is designated for the name Harpalyce and its type, H. formosa; the distribution of both new species and their close relatives is mapped, and an updated identification key is offered, to cater for all 16 currently recognised Cuban species.
Entre inexpérience esthétique et expérience non esthétique
Authors: Trentini Bruno
Published: April 2023

Profitant du double sens du mot expérience, de l’ordre de l’épreuve ou de l’acquisition, ce texte est l’occasion de réfléchir à ce qui serait accumulé lors d’expériences esthétiques aussi bien qu’à ce qui favoriserait l’expérience esthétique. Il en ressort que l’expérience esthétique est toujours plus ou moins liée à une inexpérience esthétique. Il n’est en effet pas possible de pondérer les expériences esthétiques pour décider en quoi les unes seraient meilleures que les autres ; même, certaines dispositions qui auraient pu favoriser l’expérience esthétique, comme une attention accrue à son corps sentant et percevant, auraient en fait tendance à inhiber l’expérience esthétique. Sont principalement abordés l’empirisme de David Hume et le pragmatisme de John Dewey.
Le droit et les enfants nés sous GPA
Authors: Mécary Caroline , Taïbi Nadia
Published: April 2023

Dans son ouvrage, LA GPA Données et plaidoyers (Dalloz 2019) Caroline Mecary dresse un état des lieux de la GPA en France et dans le monde et insiste sur les écueils juridiques auxquels sont confrontés les couples français qui décident de recourir à une GPA à l’étranger. Cet entretien questionne notamment ces écueils.
Occurrence of Dry Eye Disease in Patients With Concomitant Strabismus: A Preliminary Cross-sectional Analysis
Authors: Li Dan , Dong Nana , Lin Shibin
Published: April 2023

Purpose:

To determine the effects of strabismus on dry eye parameters.

Methods:

In this cross-sectional study, the preliminary assessment of ocular parameters related to dry eye disease was performed in patients with untreated concomitant strabismus. In total, 204 patients with concomitant strabismus and 125 volunteers without strabismus (4 to 30 years old, 170 male and 159 female) were enrolled. The Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire (OSDI) was administered, and ocular surface was examined using the Oculus Keratograph 5M (Oculus Optikgeräte GmbH) to collect data on tear film break-up time (TBUT), ocular redness index (based on bulbar conjunctival blood vessel engorgement), and meibomian gland atrophy. Subgroup analysis was performed based on strabismus type (concomitant exotropia, concomitant esotropia, and non-strabismus); age (juvenile versus adults age > 18 years); and 5- to 10-year and 10- to 20-year strabismus course, according to an age of 12 years.

Results:

Concomitant exotropia and esotropia were reported in 134 and 70 patients, respectively. A total of 125 healthy volunteers were recruited. The three groups showed significant differences in the ocular redness index (right eye:
P
= .012, left eye:
P
= .018). In contrast, other parameters were not significantly different. Similarly, no statistical differences in ocular surface indicators were observed when patients were divided by age (
P
> .05 for all) and the 5- to 10-year and 10- to 20-year strabismus course. The meibomian gland showed varying degrees of atrophy in both the strabismus and non-strabismus groups.

Conclusions:

Strabismus does not affect tear film stability with age in this cohort with constant strabismus up to 30 years, indicating that strabismus may not increase the risk of dry eye disease.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2024;61(1):30–37.]
Ophthalmic Manifestations of Heimler Syndrome in Two Siblings With
PEX1
Variants
Authors: Miranda Vítor , Cortez Liliana , Rosmaninho-Salgado Joana , Ramos Fabiana , Paiva Catarina
Published: April 2023

Purpose:

To report two new cases with confirmed diagnosis of Heimler syndrome and describe their systemic and ophthalmic phenotype and visual rehabilitation.

Methods:

Retrospective review of medical records.

Results:

Both siblings were diagnosed as having sensori-neural hearing loss and retinal dystrophy with exuberant intraretinal cystoid spaces and cone–rod dysfunction. The older sibling also had amelogenesis imperfecta and neither had nail abnormalities. Genetic analysis identified homozygosity for the pathogenic variant c.2528G>A p.(Gly843Asp) in the
PEX1
gene in both siblings. The parents were heterozygous carriers of the variant.

Conclusions:

The authors report a familial case of Heimler syndrome due to biallelic
PEX1
pathogenic variants that manifested as macular dystrophy characterized by cone–rod dysfunction and complicated by intraretinal cystoid spaces. Review of the literature shows that ocular phenotype is variable in patients with Heimler syndrome.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2024;61(1):59–66.]
Topography-Guided Photorefractive Keratectomy After Intacs Corneal Implantation for Keratoconus and Ectasia
Authors: Yu Austin S. , Hersh Peter S. , Gelles John D. , Greenstein Steven A.
Published: April 2023

Purpose:

To evaluate outcomes of topography-guided photorefractive keratectomy (TG-PRK) after Intacs (Addition Technology) implantation for eyes with keratoconus or ectasia.

Methods:

Three eyes of 3 patients with keratoconus or ectasia after laser in situ keratomileusis were treated with TG-PRK 6 months after simultaneous Intacs implantation and standard corneal cross-linking (CXL) was performed.

Results:

After Intacs implantation/CXL, uncorrected distance visual acuity improved four lines in 1 eye and did not change significantly in the other eyes. At 1 year of follow-up after TG-PRK, uncorrected distance visual acuity further improved more than two lines in all eyes. After Intacs implantation/CXL, corrected distance visual acuity did not change significantly in all eyes. One year after TG-PRK, corrected distance visual acuity improved more than two lines in all eyes. After both procedures, the inferior-superior value decreased and maximum keratometry flattened significantly in all eyes. The change in thinnest pachymetry was less than 32 µm.

Conclusions:

TG-PRK appears promising as a treatment modality to improve visual acuity and corneal topography in patients with keratoconus and ectasia with prior Intacs placement who may have previously required segment explantation after poor refractive outcomes.

[
Journal of Refractive Surgery Case Reports.
2023;3(2):e10–e13.]
Finger vein recognition method based on ant colony optimization and improved EfficientNetV2
Authors: Ma Xiao , Luo Xuemei
Published: April 2023

Deep learning is an important technology in the field of image recognition. Finger vein recognition based on deep learning is one of the research hotspots in the field of image recognition and has attracted a lot of attention. Among them, CNN is the most core part, which can be trained to get a model that can extract finger vein image features. In the existing research, some studies have used methods such as combination of multiple CNN models and joint loss function to improve the accuracy and robustness of finger vein recognition. However, in practical applications, finger vein recognition still faces some challenges, such as how to solve the interference and noise in finger vein images, how to improve the robustness of the model, and how to solve the cross-domain problem. In this paper, we propose a finger vein recognition method based on ant colony optimization and improved EfficientNetV2, using ACO to participate in ROI extraction, fusing dual attention fusion network (DANet) with EfficientNetV2, and conducting experiments on two publicly available databases, and the results show that the recognition rate using the proposed method on the FV-USM dataset reaches The results show that the proposed method achieves a recognition rate of 98.96% on the FV-USM dataset, which is better than other algorithmic models, proving that the method has good recognition rate and application prospects for finger vein recognition.
Phenotypic and molecular characterization of Staphylococcus aureus from mobile phones in Nigeria
Authors: Oluduro Anthonia O. , Adesiyan Yetunde M. , Omoboye Olumide O. , Odeyemi Adebowale T.
Published: April 2023

The presence of Staphylococcus aureus, a normal human flora on cellphones of different professionals in Ile-Ife was investigated with a view to determining their antibiotic susceptibility profile and nature of resistance and virulence genes. One hundred swab samples were collected aseptically from mobile phones of various users based on their profession. Surfaces of the mobile phones were swabbed and the streak plate method was used to isolate colonies showing characteristic golden yellow on mannitol salt agar plates. These isolates were further identified using standard microbiological methods. The antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates was determined using Kirby-Bauer's disk diffusion technique. Molecular detection of nuc, mecA and pvl genes in some isolates was carried out by polymerase chain reaction technique. All the 36 isolates obtained in this study were 100% resistant to amoxicillin and augmentin; the isolates also displayed 55.6%, 44.4% and 41.7% resistance to ceftriazone, erythromycin and chloramphenicol, respectively. Based on resistance to oxacillin, prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was 11.1%. Only one S. aureus was positive for plasmid analysis. MecA gene was genetically confirmed in four (4) out of the 16 suspected phenotypic MRSA strains, nuc gene was confirmed in all 28 isolates investigated, while there was no pvl gene in the strains investigated. Mobile phones harbor multiple antibiotics resistant S. aureus, which are responsible for important diseases in humans and could be difficult to manage with antibiotics thereby posing serious health risks.
Green Marketing Applications in Hospitality Businesses
Authors: Tekeli Mehmet , Kasap Gülsüm
Published: April 2023

Industrial activities significantly affect the environment, which makes environmental sensitivity one of the most critical issues in the national and international arenas. As in other areas, the green approaches adopted in the tourism sector aim to reduce the negative environmental impact. The current study discussed the meaning of green marketing practices for hospitality businesses, the green marketing practices adopted by these businesses, and the results. In addition, the study presented a holistic perspective by presenting examples from hospitality businesses and gave general information about the green marketing concept, its scope, the reasons to turn to green marketing, and the benefits of such practices. In the study, which deals with the elements of the green marketing mix in hospitality businesses and touches on the examples of green hotels, green marketing practices were evaluated in the tourism sector.
The Impact of Small Island Sports Events on Developing Sustainable Tourism
Authors: Arnott Ian
Published: April 2023

Small islands rely heavily on tourism as a way of an economic boost, as well as a way of growth for business development, in particular, hospitality. One of the ways that several islands around the world have excelled in this is through hosting sports events as a way of sustainable tourism and there are many examples of this such as Hawaii that have $200 million dollar source of revenue and 94% of inbound tourists coming to the island for this type of tourism. This is just one example that is discussed within the chapter along with others as such stakeholders as the International Island Games that takes place every two years on 24 small islands around the world. Key areas that will be discussed as how the community must be involved in any type of tourism development due to the number of potential tourists who may visit the island and its potential positive or negative impact that this might have.
The Role of Ecotourism in Sustainable Development
Authors: Yıldırım İrem , Tekeli Ezgi Kırıcı
Published: April 2023

As a concept, development was evaluated only as an economic goal until the 1970s, and its physical, social, and cultural environment elements were ignored and left in the background. The concept of development has turned into a sustainable development phenomenon, which includes physical, social, and cultural factors, as people notice environmental pollution over time. Sustainable development, which integrates the mission of many industries interacting with the environment, has also gained ground in the tourism industry and has led to sustainable tourism understanding. Therefore, destinations have developed different tourism types within the sustainable tourism framework. Ecotourism has come to the forefront as a tourism type that can minimize physical, social, and cultural damage of tourism to the environment. Therefore, the current study, aiming to reveal the impact of ecotourism on sustainable development, covered the subjects of sustainability, sustainable development, sustainable tourism, ecotourism, and the relationship between sustainable development and ecotourism.
Wastewater Treatment and Challenges
Authors: Ayedun Hassan , Oyedeji Abdulrasaq Olalekan , Ayadi Peter Odunayo
Published: April 2023

Water is very important for the survival of living organisms, which include both plants and animals. Sources of water available include rivers, oceans, seas, springs, groundwater, and rainwater. Increase in population, expanded urbanization, and establishment of industries put pressure on sources, quality, and quantity of available water; hence, demand for water increases. As water utilization increases, generation of wastewater increases. The wastewater treatments are described under the followings sub-heading, namely sources and types of wastewater, properties of wastewater, methods of treatment, and challenges of wastewater treatment methods. Information is sourced from the internet through Google search engine. The objective of this chapter is to compile information on emerging contaminants in wastewater, methods that can be adopted in the process of wastewater treatment that will minimize energy use and ensure safety of environment. Green methods of wastewater treatment and disposal are suggested.
Bio-Briquettes From Processed Cashew Nut Shell Waste
Authors: Srinivasan Gokul Raghavendra , Mahajan Aditya , Seth Rajiv , Mahajan Rakesh
Published: April 2023

Cashew nut shells (CNS) are the primary waste produced during the processing of cashew nuts and need constant attention to handle or valorize these wastes effectively. As a result, these CNS wastes are processed into solid briquettes citing their significant calorific content, thus making them a promising renewable biofuel for combustion-based applications. In most cases, these wastes are pre-treated either through de-oiling or carbonizing prior to compaction, thus removing the harmful hydrocarbons present in them in form of CNS liquids. Presently, this chapter focuses on summarising various data related to these CNS wastes and their briquettes in terms of their availability, chemical characteristics, pre-treatment, processing technique, and fuel and combustion properties as reported in various works of literature. Moreover, all the reported results and data included in this present study were in accordance with the international testing standards and ranged in between their permissible range.