bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hypothesis testing for varying coefficient models in tail index regression
Authors: Momoki Koki , Yoshida Takuma
Published: April 2024

This study examines the varying coefficient model in tail index regression. The varying coefficient model is an efficient semiparametric model that avoids the curse of dimensionality when including large covariates in the model. In fact, the varying coefficient model is useful in mean, quantile, and other regressions. The tail index regression is not an exception. However, the varying coefficient model is flexible, but leaner and simpler models are preferred for applications. Therefore, it is important to evaluate whether the estimated coefficient function varies significantly with covariates. If the effect of the non-linearity of the model is weak, the varying coefficient structure is reduced to a simpler model, such as a constant or zero. Accordingly, the hypothesis test for model assessment in the varying coefficient model has been discussed in mean and quantile regression. However, there are no results in tail index regression. In this study, we investigate the asymptotic properties of an estimator and provide a hypothesis testing method for varying coefficient models for tail index regression.
Goal-adaptive Meshing of Isogeometric Kirchhoff–Love Shells
Authors: Verhelst H. M. , Mantzaflaris A. , Möller M. , Den Besten J. H.
Published: March 2024

Mesh adaptivity is a technique to provide detail in numerical solutions without the need to refine the mesh over the whole domain. Mesh adaptivity in isogeometric analysis can be driven by Truncated Hierarchical B-splines (THB-splines) which add degrees of freedom locally based on finer B-spline bases. Labeling of elements for refinement is typically done using residual-based error estimators. In this paper, an adaptive meshing workflow for isogeometric Kirchhoff–Love shell analysis is developed. This framework includes THB-splines, mesh admissibility for combined refinement and coarsening and the Dual-Weighted Residual (DWR) method for computing element-wise error contributions. The DWR can be used in several structural analysis problems, allowing the user to specify a goal quantity of interest which is used to mark elements and refine the mesh. This goal functional can involve, for example, displacements, stresses, eigenfrequencies etc. The proposed framework is evaluated through a set of different benchmark problems, including modal analysis, buckling analysis and non-linear snap-through and bifurcation problems, showing high accuracy of the DWR estimator and efficient allocation of degrees of freedom for advanced shell computations.
Microglial phagolysosome dysfunction and altered neural communication amplify phenotypic severity in Prader-Willi Syndrome with larger deletion
Authors: Correa-da-Silva Felipe , Carter Jenny , Wang Xin-Yuan , Sun Rui , Pathak Ekta , Kuhn José Manuel Monroy , Schriever Sonja C. , Maya-Monteiro Clarissa M. , Jiao Han , Kalsbeek Martin J. , Moraes-Vieira Pedro M. M. , Gille Johan J. P. , Sinnema Margje , Stumpel Constance T. R. M. , Curfs Leopold M. G. , Stenvers Dirk Jan , Pfluger Paul T. , Lutter Dominik , Pereira Alberto M. , Kalsbeek Andries , Fliers Eric , Swaab Dick F. , Wilkinson Lawrence , Gao Yuanqing , Yi Chun-Xia
Published: March 2024

Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder of genetic etiology, characterized by paternal deletion of genes located at chromosome 15 in 70% of cases. Two distinct genetic subtypes of PWS deletions are characterized, where type I (PWS T1) carries four extra haploinsufficient genes compared to type II (PWS T2). PWS T1 individuals display more pronounced physiological and cognitive abnormalities than PWS T2, yet the exact neuropathological mechanisms behind these differences remain unclear. Our study employed postmortem hypothalamic tissues from PWS T1 and T2 individuals, conducting transcriptomic analyses and cell-specific protein profiling in white matter, neurons, and glial cells to unravel the cellular and molecular basis of phenotypic severity in PWS sub-genotypes. In PWS T1, key pathways for cell structure, integrity, and neuronal communication are notably diminished, while glymphatic system activity is heightened compared to PWS T2. The microglial defect in PWS T1 appears to stem from gene haploinsufficiency, as global and myeloid-specific Cyfip1 haploinsufficiency in murine models demonstrated. Our findings emphasize microglial phagolysosome dysfunction and altered neural communication as crucial contributors to the severity of PWS T1’s phenotype.
Prenatal and postnatal development of New Zealand white rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) teeth: histological and computed tomography aspects
Authors: Haddad Seham S. , Abdel-Megeed Nazema , Abumandour Mohamed
Published: April 2024

The study reveals a lack of histomorphogenesis in New Zealand white rabbit teeth. The teeth development was examined through sequential histological segments in 24 rabbits from prenatal ages (E19, E21, E23, E25, and E28), neonates (E30), and postnatal age (1 week and 2 weeks); (three animal specimens at each age stage). Rabbit teeth first appeared at 19 days of prenatal life (E19) as an ectodermal epithelial thickening on each side of the mouth opening. At E21, the bud of upper incisor tooth appeared as an epithelial bud, which composed of many condensed epithelium cells, was simply identified from the larger with less condensed vestibular lamina, and was surrounded by mesenchymal connective tissue while the lower incisor took the cap stage. At (E23), tooth regular construction is formed from enamel, dentine, and pulp cavity. Peg incisor appearance (supplementary and assistant incisors) is visible at the lingual surface of the upper major incisor. Teeth prenatal development went through successive stages like initiation, bud, cap, late bell, maturation, and crown stages. The first initiation phase of tooth formation was seen as ectodermal epithelial cell collection at (E19). Bud stage saw on upper incisor tooth, while in cap structure in lower incisor teeth at (E19). A cap-formed tooth is composed of the enamel organ and fundamentally dense mesenchymal tissue. Enamel organs are segmented into three distinct layers: the external tooth enamel epithelial, the internal tooth enamel epithelial, and finally the stellate reticular layer. The cement layer covered teeth all around on enamel on both the labial and lingual sides while not contacting the dentine on the lateral side, forming enamel space. Teeth develop consistently all through life; they have expanded enamel thickness; they are diphyodont teeth; they have two continuous dentitions; they are deciduous and perpetual, with long crown teeth and an open root.
A dual telescoping lag screw nailing system for intertrochanteric fractures: retrospective analysis of clinical and radiologic outcomes
Authors: Innocenti Matteo , Leggieri Filippo , Secci Gregorio , Carulli Christian , Del Prete Armando , Civinini Roberto
Published: March 2024

Background and purpose

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether this system is associated with a reduced rate of failure and complications in patients treated for proximal femoral fractures with intramedullary nailing.

Materials and methods

742 Patients with AO-OTA 31-A intertrochanteric fractures were enrolled at a single Institution. Functional evaluation was assessed through the Functional Independence Measure (FIM™) instrument and Parker’s New Mobility Score (NMS). Radiological follow-up included the degree of the reduction according to the Baumgartner criteria, the Tip-Apex Distance, and the shortening of the telescoping screws and its lateral protrusion.

Results

Pre-operative mean FIM™ and NMS were 4.3 (range 1–9) and 98.7 (range 22–126), respectively. At the 12-month follow-up the average FIM™ and NMS were 95.3 (range 22–126) and 3.7 (range 1–9), respectively. Mean shortening of the lag screws was 4.3 mm (range 1–8) and mean lateral protrusion was 1.7 mm (range 0–3). 3 Cases (0.70%) of non-consolidation requiring reoperation were recorded. 1 Case (0.24%) of these cases was also characterized by nail breakage. No case of cut-out has been reported at our follow-up.

Conclusions

This dual telescoping nail system is effective and safe. The sliding of the telescoping screws within the barrel is able to decrease strain from the femoral head during weight bearing reducing the risk of cut-out.
The effects of gaze-display feedback on medical students’ self-monitoring and learning in radiology
Authors: Kok Ellen M. , Niehorster Diederick C. , van der Gijp Anouk , Rutgers Dirk R. , Auffermann William F. , van der Schaaf Marieke , Kester Liesbeth , van Gog Tamara
Published: March 2024

Self-monitoring is essential for effectively regulating learning, but difficult in visual diagnostic tasks such as radiograph interpretation. Eye-tracking technology can visualize viewing behavior in gaze displays, thereby providing information about visual search and decision-making. We hypothesized that individually adaptive gaze-display feedback improves posttest performance and self-monitoring of medical students who learn to detect nodules in radiographs. We investigated the effects of: (1) Search displays, showing which part of the image was searched by the participant; and (2) Decision displays, showing which parts of the image received prolonged attention in 78 medical students. After a pretest and instruction, participants practiced identifying nodules in 16 cases under search-display, decision-display, or no feedback conditions (n = 26 per condition). A 10-case posttest, without feedback, was administered to assess learning outcomes. After each case, participants provided self-monitoring and confidence judgments. Afterward, participants reported on self-efficacy, perceived competence, feedback use, and perceived usefulness of the feedback. Bayesian analyses showed no benefits of gaze displays for post-test performance, monitoring accuracy (absolute difference between participants’ estimated and their actual test performance), completeness of viewing behavior, self-efficacy, and perceived competence. Participants receiving search-displays reported greater feedback utilization than participants receiving decision-displays, and also found the feedback more useful when the gaze data displayed was precise and accurate. As the completeness of search was not related to posttest performance, search displays might not have been sufficiently informative to improve self-monitoring. Information from decision displays was rarely used to inform self-monitoring. Further research should address if and when gaze displays can support learning.
On the computational complexity of ethics: moral tractability for minds and machines
Authors: Stenseke Jakob
Published: March 2024

Why should moral philosophers, moral psychologists, and machine ethicists care about computational complexity? Debates on whether artificial intelligence (AI) can or should be used to solve problems in ethical domains have mainly been driven by what AI can or cannot do in terms of human capacities. In this paper, we tackle the problem from the other end by exploring what kind of moral machines are possible based on what computational systems can or cannot do. To do so, we analyze normative ethics through the lens of computational complexity. First, we introduce computational complexity for the uninitiated reader and discuss how the complexity of ethical problems can be framed within Marr’s three levels of analysis. We then study a range of ethical problems based on consequentialism, deontology, and virtue ethics, with the aim of elucidating the complexity associated with the problems themselves (e.g., due to combinatorics, uncertainty, strategic dynamics), the computational methods employed (e.g., probability, logic, learning), and the available resources (e.g., time, knowledge, learning). The results indicate that most problems the normative frameworks pose lead to tractability issues in every category analyzed. Our investigation also provides several insights about the computational nature of normative ethics, including the differences between rule- and outcome-based moral strategies, and the implementation-variance with regard to moral resources. We then discuss the consequences complexity results have for the prospect of moral machines in virtue of the trade-off between optimality and efficiency. Finally, we elucidate how computational complexity can be used to inform both philosophical and cognitive-psychological research on human morality by advancing the moral tractability thesis.
Autophagy and exosomes; inter-connected maestros in Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Atya Hanaa B. , Sharaf Nadia Mohamed , Abdelghany Ragwa Mansour , El-Helaly Sara Nageeb , Taha Heba
Published: April 2024

Autophagy is a crucial process involved in the degradation and recycling of cytoplasmic components which are transported to the lysosomal compartment by autophagosomes. Exosomes are an important means of communication and signaling in both normal and diseased states, and they have a significant role in the transmission and propagation of proteins, especially proteins implicated in neurodegenerative disorders. Autophagy may affect exosomal processing, but whether autophagy controls the release of aggregated β-amyloid and tau proteins in exosomes of Alzheimer disease (AD) is unclear. Therefore, our study aimed to investigate how modulating autophagy affects the exosomal release of these proteins in animal models of AD. Isolated exosomes from brain tissues of 48 male albino mice were divided into four groups (Negative control, LPS, rapamycin (RAPA), and chloroquine (CQ). LC3 I and LC3 II as well as Aβ and Tau proteins levels were determined. All mice undergone Neuro-behavioral tests (Morris Water maze test, Y-maze test, and Novel Object Recognition). Both LPS and CQ groups showed reduced expression levels of LC3 II and LC3 II/LC3 I ratio. In contrast, RAPA group showed a significant increase in both LC3-II expression and LC3-II/LC3-I ratio. The levels of both Aβ & Tau in exosomes of CQ & LPS groups were higher. While RAPA group showed a significant diminished levels of tau & Aβ proteins. In conclusion, our findings suggest that autophagy alterations in AD can influence the release of Aβ and tau proteins through exosomes, which may impact the spread of misfolded proteins in AD. These results highlight a potential innovative therapeutic approach for combating AD.
Love of Work or Love and Work: Does a Business Owner’s Compulsion to Work Pay Off?
Authors: Wiatt Renee D. , Marshall Maria I. , Lee Yoon G.
Published: March 2024

A business owner’s compulsion to work is a condition that can have jarring effects on business-owning families. A compulsion to work has been defined as a component of workaholism. A random sample of 478 small business owners in the United States were classified as “compulsive” and “non-compulsive” owners using cluster analysis. A probit regression was used to determine the characteristics associated with being a compulsive owner. The probability of being a compulsive owner was lower for female owners, was higher as the number of children in the house increased, and was inversely related to family-business functioning. Further analysis found that compulsive owners did not have higher business incomes than non-compulsive owners. Thus, a compulsion to work did not appear to pay off for small business owners. We contribute to the literature by identifying factors associated with compulsive owner tendencies and if those tendencies lead to higher business income.
Incorporation of Magnetic Filler (Co0.2Zn0.2Cd0.6Fe2O4) in PVA Matrix and Studying the Structural, Optical and Mechanical Properties of Nanocomposite Films
Authors: Mostafa M. , Abdelhakim Nermin A. , Hemeda O. M. , Shalaby Rizk M. , Salem B. I.
Published: March 2024

The goal of this study is to synthesize nanocomposite PVA/ Co0.2Zn0.2Cd0.6Fe2O4 films with varying contents of Co0.2Zn0.2Cd0.6Fe2O4 nanoparticles (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) to improve the structural, optical, and mechanical characteristics of the examined materials. Casting technique is used to prepare PVA/ Co0.2Zn0.2Cd0.6Fe2O4 films. X-ray diffraction, FTIR, UV–Vis spectroscopy, and Vickers Hardness were used to examine the effect of magnetic nanoparticle content on the structural, optical, and mechanical characteristics of PVA nanocomposite films. The refractive index rises from 1.4967 for pure PVA to 7.6511 for PVA + 0.8Co0.2Zn0.2Cd0.6Fe2O4, allowing it to be employed in a variety of applications such as solar cell construction. Because of the presence of ferrite in the glass matrix, the average hardness values enhanced and increased from 90.7 to 114.2 MPa. The stress exponent (n) varies from 1.12 to 3.33, with grain boundary sliding as the deformation mechanism for x = 0, viscous glid for x = 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6, and dislocation climb for x = 0.8 nanocomposite thin films.
Authorship conflicts in academia: an international cross-discipline survey
Authors: Savchenko Elizaveta , Rosenfeld Ariel
Published: March 2024

Collaboration among scholars has emerged as a significant characteristic of contemporary science. As a result, the number of authors listed in publications continues to rise steadily. Unfortunately, determining the authors to be included in the byline and their respective order entails multiple difficulties which often lead to conflicts. Despite the large volume of literature about conflicts in academia, it remains unclear how exactly these are distributed over the main socio-demographic properties, as well as the different types of interactions academics experience. To address this gap, we conducted an international and cross-disciplinary survey answered by 752 academics from 41 fields of research and 93 countries that statistically well-represent the overall academic workforce. Our findings are concerning and suggest that conflicts over authorship credit arise very early in one’s academic career, even at the level of Master and Ph.D., and become increasingly common over time.
One-year morbidity and mortality in patients treated with standard-dose and low-dose apixaban after acute large vessel occlusion stroke
Authors: Murakami Yasutaka , Todo Kenichi , Uchida Kazutaka , Yamagami Hiroshi , Sakai Nobuyuki , Gon Yasufumi , Okazaki Shuhei , Sasaki Tsutomu , Yoshimura Shinichi , Morimoto Takeshi , Mochizuki Hideki
Published: March 2024

Although low-dose direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) are recommended for patients at high risk of bleeding complications, it remains unclear whether the dose reduction in real-world setting is also appropriate in patients after large-vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke. This study hypothesized that patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and LVO receiving low-dose DOACs have an increased risk of ischemic and hemorrhagic events. The study aimed to assess 1 year morbidity and mortality in patients treated with standard-dose and low-dose apixaban after LVO stroke. A post hoc analysis was performed using the acute LVO registry data, which enrolled patients with AF and LVO who received apixaban within 14 days of stroke onset. The incidences of ischemic events (ischemic stroke, acute coronary syndrome, acute myocardial infarction, and systemic embolism), major bleeding events, and death from any cause were compared between patients receiving standard- and low-dose apixaban. Of 643 patients diagnosed with LVO, 307 (47.7%) received low-dose apixaban. After adjustment for clinically relevant variables, no significant differences were observed in the incidence of ischemic events (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR]: 2.12, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.75–6.02), major bleeding events (aHR: 1.17, 95% CI 0.50–2.73), and death from any cause (aHR: 1.95, 95% CI 0.78–4.89) between patients receiving standard- and low-dose apixaban. No significant differences were observed in the incidence of ischemic events, major bleeding events, or death from any cause between patients with AF and LVO receiving standard- and low-dose apixaban.
Enhanced removal of rare earth elements from aqueous media: exploring the potential of AM-3 and AM-4 titanosilicates
Authors: Almeida Joana C. , Sousa Cátia , Tavares Daniela S. , Pinto João , Henriques Bruno , Lin Zhi , Rocha João , Pereira Eduarda
Published: April 2024

This study investigates the impact of three key variables on the performance of nanoporous AM-3 and layered AM-4 titanosilicates in removing nine REEs (Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Eu, Gd, Tb, and Dy) from natural mineral water and identifies optimal operational conditions using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The experimental conditions were determined by a Box-Behnken Design of 3 factors-3 levels (pH 4, 6, and 8; sorbent dose 20, 100, and 180 mg/L; and element concentration 1, 3, and 5 μmol/L). Three-dimensional response surfaces were used to assess the linear, quadratic, and interaction influences of each factor on the REEs’ removal percentage. The pH was the most significant factor in the removal process using AM-3, while the sorbent dose was more important for AM-4. The results highlighted the sorbents’ strong capacity for REE removal. The optimal operating conditions obtained by RSM were applied to aqueous solutions with salinity 10 (common in coastal and transitional systems) and 30 (average seawater salinity). The results showed that AM-3 has a strong potential for removing REEs in solutions with salinity 10 and 30, while AM-4 was less efficient due to competition between REEs and other ions present in the solution.
An evaluation of a hepatotoxicity risk induced by the microplastic polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) using HepG2/THP-1 co-culture model
Authors: Boran Tugce , Zengin Ozge Sultan , Seker Zehra , Akyildiz Aysenur Gunaydin , Kara Mehtap , Oztas Ezgi , Özhan Gül
Published: April 2024

Inappropriate disposal of plastic wastes and their durability in nature cause uncontrolled accumulation of plastic in land/marine ecosystems, also causing destructive effects by bioaccumulating along the food chain. Microplastics may cause chronic inflammation in relation to their permanent structures, especially through oxidative stress and cytotoxic cellular damage, which could increase the risk of cancer development. The accumulation of microplastics in the liver is a major concern, and therefore, the identification of the mechanisms of their hepatotoxic effects is of great importance. Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is a widely used thermoplastic. It has been determined that PMMA disrupts lipid metabolism in the liver in various aquatic organisms and causes reproductive and developmental toxicity. PMMA-induced hepatotoxic effects in humans have not yet been clarified. In our study, the toxic effects of PMMA (in the range of 3–10 μm) on the human liver were investigated using the HepG2/THP-1 macrophage co-culture model, which is a sensitive immune-mediated liver injury model. Cellular uptake of micro-sized PMMA in the cells was done by transmission electron microscopy. Determination of its effects on cell viability and inflammatory response, oxidative stress, along with gene and protein expression levels that play a role in the mechanism pathways underlying the effects were investigated. The results concluded that inflammation, oxidative stress, and disruptions in lipid metabolism should be the focus of attention as important underlying causes of PMMA-induced hepatotoxicity. Our study, which points out the potential adverse effects of microplastics on human health, supports the literature information on the subject.
Accounting for nutrition-related health impacts in food life cycle assessment: insights from an expert workshop
Authors: Scherer Laura , Blackstone Nicole Tichenor , Conrad Zach , Fulgoni, III Victor L. , Mathers John C. , van der Pols Jolieke C. , Willett Walter , Fantke Peter , Pfister Stephan , Stylianou Katerina S. , Weidema Bo P. , Milà i Canals Llorenç , Jolliet Olivier
Published: April 2024

Sub-optimal dietary patterns make major contributions to the Global Burden of Disease and are among the most pressing issues affecting human health. Consequently, they are key to consider when assessing the human health and other environmental impacts of foods and diets within life cycle assessments. The UN Environment Life Cycle Initiative convened a task force on nutrition-related human health impacts as part of the Global Life Cycle Impact Assessment Method (GLAM) project. The health impacts of dietary patterns can be expressed in disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), in line with reporting human health impacts of other impact categories within the life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) framework. The task force held a workshop with nutrition experts to receive guidance in its process to develop a consensus-based impact assessment framework for addressing nutrition-related health impacts in LCIA. The workshop aimed to (1) evaluate the general assessment framework, (2) discuss scientific questions for quantifying human health impacts from nutrition for food items and diets, and (3) provide initial guidance for further development. The proposed framework based on the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) risk ratios was regarded as a good starting point to assess the relative health risks of the general population, provided that the dietary context is considered and several limitations, such as incomplete disease coverage, are acknowledged. The experts advised against a potentially misleading use of adult-derived dietary risk factors for children. To improve global coverage of the GLAM framework, it is important to consider a wider range of dietary patterns. The experts also recommended using a metric complementary to DALYs, such as nutrient adequacy, also considering, e.g., vitamin A and iron, to complement the assessment.
Estimation of Potato Water Footprint Using Machine Learning Algorithm Models in Arid Regions
Authors: Abdel-Hameed Amal Mohamed , Abuarab Mohamed , Al-Ansari Nadhir , Sayed Hazem , Kassem Mohamed A. , Elbeltagi Ahmed , Mokhtar Ali
Published: April 2024

Precise assessment of water footprint to improve the water consumption and crop yield for irrigated agricultural efficiency is required in order to achieve water management sustainability. Although Penman-Monteith is more successful than other methods and it is the most frequently used technique to calculate water footprint, however, it requires a significant number of meteorological parameters at different spatio-temporal scales, which are sometimes inaccessible in many of the developing countries such as Egypt. Machine learning models are widely used to represent complicated phenomena because of their high performance in the non-linear relations of inputs and outputs. Therefore, the objectives of this research were to (1) develop and compare four machine learning models: support vector regression (SVR), random forest (RF), extreme gradient boost (XGB), and artificial neural network (ANN) over three potato governorates (Al-Gharbia, Al-Dakahlia, and Al-Beheira) in the Nile Delta of Egypt and (2) select the best model in the best combination of climate input variables. The available variables used for this study were maximum temperature (Tmax), minimum temperature (Tmin), average temperature (Tave), wind speed (WS), relative humidity (RH), precipitation (P), vapor pressure deficit (VPD), solar radiation (SR), sown area (SA), and crop coefficient (Kc) to predict the potato blue water footprint (BWF) during 1990–2016. Six scenarios (Sc1–Sc6) of input variables were used to test the weight of each variable in four applied models. The results demonstrated that Sc5 with the XGB and ANN model gave the most promising results to predict BWF in this arid region based on vapor pressure deficit, precipitation, solar radiation, crop coefficient data, followed by Sc1. The created models produced comparatively superior outcomes and can contribute to the decision-making process for water management and development planners.
From Data to Cure: A Comprehensive Exploration of Multi-omics Data Analysis for Targeted Therapies
Authors: Mukherjee Arnab , Abraham Suzanna , Singh Akshita , Balaji S. , Mukunthan K. S.
Published: April 2024

In the dynamic landscape of targeted therapeutics, drug discovery has pivoted towards understanding underlying disease mechanisms, placing a strong emphasis on molecular perturbations and target identification. This paradigm shift, crucial for drug discovery, is underpinned by big data, a transformative force in the current era. Omics data, characterized by its heterogeneity and enormity, has ushered biological and biomedical research into the big data domain. Acknowledging the significance of integrating diverse omics data strata, known as multi-omics studies, researchers delve into the intricate interrelationships among various omics layers. This review navigates the expansive omics landscape, showcasing tailored assays for each molecular layer through genomes to metabolomes. The sheer volume of data generated necessitates sophisticated informatics techniques, with machine-learning (ML) algorithms emerging as robust tools. These datasets not only refine disease classification but also enhance diagnostics and foster the development of targeted therapeutic strategies. Through the integration of high-throughput data, the review focuses on targeting and modeling multiple disease-regulated networks, validating interactions with multiple targets, and enhancing therapeutic potential using network pharmacology approaches. Ultimately, this exploration aims to illuminate the transformative impact of multi-omics in the big data era, shaping the future of biological research.
The predictive value of NLR, PLR and MLR in the differential diagnosis of benign uterine diseases and endometrial malignant tumors
Authors: Qin Lin
Published: March 2024

Objective

To explore the application of neutrophils to lymphocytes ratio (NLR), platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and monocyte to lymphocyte ratio (MLR) in the differential diagnosis of benign uterine diseases and endometrial malignant tumors.

Methods

80 patients with endometrial malignant tumor diagnosed in our hospital from January 2019 to December 2022 were selected as the study group, and 74 patients with benign uterine diseases confirmed by pathology in our hospital during the same period were randomly selected as the control group. The differences of NLR, PLR and MLR in the peripheral blood of patients in each group were compared, and the value of individual indicators in the diagnosis of endometrial malignant tumor was evaluated using the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve.

Results

In peripheral blood, the NLR, PLR and MLR value in patients with endometrial cancer (EC) were significantly higher than those in patients with benign uterine diseases (P < 0.05). The area under the curve (AUC) of NLR, PLR, MLR in peripheral blood were 0.777, 0. 675 and 0.698. The best cutoff values were 2.02, 132.06 and 0.166. The sensitivity and specificity were 62.5% and 79.7%, 62.5% and 63.5%, 81 3% and 47.3%. The combination of these three indicators can significantly improved the diagnostic efficiency in endometrial cancer (AUC = 0.780), and the sensitivity and specificity were 60% and 83.8%.

Conclusions

In peripheral blood, NLR, PLR and MLR have certain diagnostic value in the differential diagnosis of endometrial cancer. When NLR, PLR and MLR are elevated, we should be alert to the occurrence of endometrial malignant tumors, and the combined diagnostic efficiency is high.
Center-injected Polishing for Efficient Slurry Utilization
Authors: Kim Dong-Ryul , Yoon Hae-Sung , Kim Ji-Hwan , Ahn Semin , Kim Jisoo , Ahn Sung-Hoon
Published: April 2024

Polishing is one of the most crucial finishing processes and usually consumes a sufficient slurry to achieve an ultra-fine surface. However, excess slurry consumption is environmentally costly, as it generates a large amount of wastewater. Given the growing environmental concerns, it is essential to improve the process efficiency and minimize the environmental burdens. Considering this, a novel polishing system, herein referred to as center-injected polishing, is proposed by injecting slurry into the center of the polishing pad. Here, it is aimed to utilize the centrifugal force of the rotating pad, with the aim of efficient slurry utilization. The slurry is directly introduced between the pad and the workpiece, then dispersed across the pad by centrifugal force. A simple experiment was conducted with computational analysis using the specially designed polishing tool to prove the concept; slurry was distributed more uniformly in center-injected polishing when compared to the conventional process. The polishing system was then constructed to evaluate polishing performances. Based on sets of experiments in the polishing of silicon carbide (SiC), slurry efficiencies and productivity were analyzed with respect to different rotational speeds and slurry supply rates. The material removal rate (MRR) was more than twice the rate achieved by conventional polishing at the same processing conditions; whereas the slurry consumption was approximately 60% less at the same MRR. The extended Preston equation was used to predict the MRR of the new process. It is expected that efficient slurry utilization will reduce the environmental footprint of abrasive processes.
Predicting popularity trend in social media networks with multi-layer temporal graph neural networks
Authors: Jin Ruidong , Liu Xin , Murata Tsuyoshi
Published: April 2024

Predicting what becomes popular on social media is crucial because it helps us understand future topics and public interests based on massive social data. Previous studies mainly focused on picking specific features and checking past statistic numbers, ignoring the hidden impact of messages passing along the complex relationships among different entities. People talk and connect with others on social media; thus, it is essential to consider how information spreads when studying social media networks. This work proposes a multi-layer temporal graph neural network (GNN) framework for predicting what will be popular on social media networks. This framework takes into account the way information spreads among different entities. The proposed method involves multi-layer relations and temporal information within a sequence of social media network snapshots. It learns the temporal representations of target entities in each snapshot and predicts how the popularity of a particular entity will change in future snapshots. The proposed method is evaluated with real-world data across four popularity trend prediction tasks. The experimental results prove that the proposed method performs better than various baselines, including traditional machine learning regression approaches, prior methods for popularity trend prediction, and other GNN models.
Green perspective of N-CDs towards energy crisis and photodegradation of toxic dyes
Authors: Sheikh Mohd Abdullah , Chandok R. S. , Abida Khan
Published: March 2024

Here we have presented a general overview of an environmental friendly, one-step, cost-effective, and efficient microwave irradiation method for the preparation of self heteroatom doped Nitrogen doped carbon dots (N-CDs) which demonstrated an average size of less than 10 nm and an interplaner distance of 0.334 nm. These N-CDs possess 2.35 eV energy gap with 65.5% fluorescence quantum yield. The surfaces of these graphitic-like structures are doped with (S, P, K, Mg, Zn) = 1% along with the extra passivating agent nitrogen (N). They have demonstrated wider absorption (between 300 and 550 nm) and emission (between 400 and 600 nm) bands and also managed enormous active surface sites and defects, that further extend its usage in energy harvesting, storage and photo catalysis owing to their unique property of electron transport and collection system. In addition, we have prepared, tested, and optimised new TiO2/N-CDs composite as photo anode and N-CDs/CB composite as photo cathode for application in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). The achieved power conversion efficiency of the DSSC employed photoanode N-CDs/TiO2 and counter electrode carbon black/N-CDs, demonstrated a substantial improvement, in photo current and photo voltage owing to their multiple factor visible light absorption, effective electron separation, and longer recombination time resulted a Jsc. of 22.90 mA cm2, Voc. of 0.780 V, FF. of 74% and an overall PCE of about 13.22% approximating 2.5-fold increase in power conversion efficiency as compared to that of pure TiO2 and platinum based DSSC, where Jsc. (= 10 mA cm2), Voc. (= 0.750 V) and a total of 5.42% power efficiency. Furthermore, TiO2 was modified with Heteroatom-doped N-CDs using a novel ultrasonic immersion technique, and demonstrated greater photocatalytic activity for the degradation of methylene blue (85%) with a rate constant of 0.1068 in accordance with the pure TiO2 film and N-CDs which have showed only 20% and 30% photodegradation with lower rate constants under short UV irradiation, demonstrating the formation of reactive oxygen species and H+ ions in the sample solution resulting enhanced effective mobility of electrons and holes between TiO2/N-CDs composite nanomaterial, resulted greater photo degradation.
First Cities
Authors: Saitta Dean
Published: April 2024

This Element describes and synthesizes archaeological knowledge of humankind's first cities for the purpose of strengthening a comparative understanding of urbanism across space and time. Case studies are drawn from ancient Mesopotamia, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. They cover over 9000 years of city building. Cases exemplify the 'deep history' of urbanism in the classic heartlands of civilization, as well as lesser-known urban phenomena in other areas and time periods. The Element discusses the relevance of this knowledge to a number of contemporary urban challenges around food security, service provision, housing, ethnic co-existence, governance, and sustainability. This study seeks to enrich scholarly debates about the urban condition, and inspire new ideas for urban policy, planning, and placemaking in the twenty first century.
Permissive Divergence
Authors: Graf Simon
Published: April 2024

Within collective epistemology, there is a class of theories that understand the epistemic status of collective attitude ascriptions, such as “the college union knows that the industrial action is going to plan” as saying that a sufficient subset of group member attitudes has the relevant epistemic status. I will demonstrate that these summativist approaches to collective epistemology are incompatible with epistemic permissivism, the doctrine that a single body of evidence may rationalize multiple doxastic attitudes. In particular, we can use epistemic permissivism to generate so-called divergence cases, which demonstrate situations in which rationality requires group-level and member-level attitudes to diverge.
Ideology from topic mixture statistics: inference method and example application to carbon tax public opinion
Authors: Puelma Touzel Maximilian , Lachapelle Erick
Published: April 2024

Political opposition to fiscal climate policy, such as a carbon tax, typically appeals to fiscal conservative ideology. Here, we ask to what extent public opposition to the carbon tax in Canada is, in fact, ideological in origin. As an object of study, ideology is a latent belief structure over a set of issue topics—and in particular their relationships—as revealed through stated opinions. Ideology is thus amenable to a generative modeling approach within the text-as-data paradigm. We use the Structural Topic Model, which generates word content from a set of latent topics and mixture weights placed on them. We fit the model to open-ended survey responses of Canadians elaborating on their support of or opposition to a carbon tax, then use it to infer the set of mixture weights used by each response. We demonstrate this set, moreso than the observed word use, serves efficient discrimination of opposition from support, with near-perfect accuracy on held-out data. We then operationalize ideology as the empirical distribution of inferred topic mixture weights. We propose and use an evaluation of ideology-driven beliefs based on four statistics of this distribution capturing the specificity, variability, expressivity, and alignment of the underlying ideology. We find that the ideology behind responses from respondents who opposed the carbon tax is more specific and aligned, much less expressive, and of similar variability as compared with those who support the tax. We discuss the implications of our results for climate policy and of broad application of our approach in social science.
The Falling-Out of Nuclear Suppliers: US–France–Canada Negotiations and Debates on the ROK Nuclear Program
Authors: Choi Lyong , Lee Jooyoung
Published: April 2024

This article traces ROK–US negotiations for the termination of the ROK's nuclear weapons program. It was not solely an issue of ROK–US relations; France and Canada, other allies of the United States, were also involved in the ROK's nuclear weapons development. When an ally (ROK) attempted to develop nuclear weapons and another ally (France) pursued commercial interests by exporting nuclear technology, the US-led non-proliferation regime was put at risk. Therefore, the US had to coordinate the interests of its allies. In particular, it attempted to dissuade France from exporting nuclear technology with the support of another ally (Canada). By examining how the US endeavored to coordinate diverse interests, this study ultimately demonstrates that one of the prerequisites for establishing a successful non-proliferation regime led by the US was how to dissuade its ally from seeking financial gain through the export of nuclear technology and instead persuade them to support US-led non-proliferation regime building.
Are schematic diagrams valid visual representations of concepts? Evidence from mental imagery in online processing of English prepositions
Authors: Wang Menghan , Zhao Helen
Published: April 2024

Embodied imagery hypothesis proposes the activation of perceptual-motor systems during language processing. Previous studies primarily used concrete visual stimuli to investigate mental imagery in language processing by native speakers (NSs) and second language (L2) learners, but few studies employed schematic diagrams. The study aims to investigate mental imagery in processing prepositional phrases by English NSs and L2 learners. Using image-schematic diagrams as primes, we examine whether any mental imagery effect is modulated by target preposition (over, in), the abstractness of meaning (spatial, extended), and stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA; 1,040 ms, 2,040 ms). A total of 79 adult L2 learners and 100 NSs of English completed diagram–picture matching and semantic priming phrasal decision tasks. Results revealed interference effects on L2 processing of over phrases and under 2,040 ms SOA, but no such effects were observed in the NS group. The selective interference effects in L2 suggest different mental imagery patterns between L1 and L2 processing, and processing schematic diagram primes requires high cognitive demands, potentially leading to difficulties in integrating visual and linguistic information and making grammaticality judgments. The findings partially validate schematic diagrams as visual representations of concepts and suggest the need for further examination of schematic diagrams with varying degrees of complexity.
1881, a singularly uneventful year: Everyday death, destruction, and disaster in the Spanish Philippines
Authors: Bankoff Greg
Published: April 2024

While 1880 is remembered in the Philippines for a great earthquake that struck Manila and 1882 for a highly destructive typhoon that caused untold damage, the everyday disasters that happen all too often across the archipelago are soon forgotten. The interest is in the ‘big’ event, and historiography rarely focuses on less spectacular occurrences. 1881 was one such year when ‘nothing really much’ happened. And yet, a closer examination of the archival record reveals 12 months of earthquake, volcanic eruption, typhoon, storm, flood, and fire that afflicted people across the archipelago. These everyday calamities are historically such an integral part of Filipinos’ lives that they have shaped both their histories and their customs. More than the severity of the event, it is the frequency with which people have had to deal with calamity as an everyday event that has engendered socio-economic adaptation and cultural change. By examining the full range of disasters that people in the Philippines faced in 1881, this article examines the significant impact that geophysical and meteorological forces have had in influencing the daily lives of Filipinos in the past as they continue to do so in the present.
Age-atypical brain functional networks in autism spectrum disorder: a normative modeling approach
Authors: Jiang Anhang , Ma Xuefeng , Li Shuang , Wang Lingxiao , Yang Bo , Wang Shizhen , Li Mei , Dong Guangheng
Published: April 2024

Background

Despite extensive research into the neural basis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the presence of substantial biological and clinical heterogeneity among diagnosed individuals remains a major barrier. Commonly used case‒control designs assume homogeneity among subjects, which limits their ability to identify biological heterogeneity, while normative modeling pinpoints deviations from typical functional network development at individual level.

Methods

Using a world-wide multi-site database known as Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange, we analyzed individuals with ASD and typically developed (TD) controls (total n = 1218) aged 5–40 years, generating individualized whole-brain network functional connectivity (FC) maps of age-related atypicality in ASD. We then used local polynomial regression to estimate a networkwise normative model of development and explored correlations between ASD symptoms and brain networks.

Results

We identified a subset exhibiting highly atypical individual-level FC, exceeding 2 standard deviation from the normative value. We also identified clinically relevant networks (mainly default mode network) at cohort level, since the outlier rates decreased with age in TD participants, but increased in those with autism. Moreover, deviations were linked to severity of repetitive behaviors and social communication symptoms.

Conclusions

Individuals with ASD exhibit distinct, highly individualized trajectories of brain functional network development. In addition, distinct developmental trajectories were observed among ASD and TD individuals, suggesting that it may be challenging to identify true differences in network characteristics by comparing young children with ASD to their TD peers. This study enhances understanding of the biological heterogeneity of the disorder and can inform precision medicine.