bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Direct Synthesis of CuPd Icosahedra Supercrystals Studied by In Situ X‐Ray Scattering
Authors: Derelli Davide , Frank Kilian , Grote Lukas , Mancini Federica , Dippel Ann‐Christin , Gutowski Olof , Nickel Bert , Koziej Dorota
Published: March 2024

Nanocrystal self‐assembly into supercrystals provides a versatile platform for creating novel materials and devices with tailored properties. While common self‐assembly strategies imply the use of purified nanoparticles after synthesis, conversion of chemical precursors directly into nanocrystals and then supercrystals in simple procedures has been rarely reported. Here, the nucleation and growth of CuPd icosahedra and their consecutive assembly into large closed‐packed face‐centered cubic (fcc) supercrystals are studied. To this end, the study simultaneously and in situ measures X‐ray total scattering with pair distribution function analysis (TS‐PDF) and small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS). It is found that the supercrystals' formation is preceded by an intermediate dense phase of nanocrystals displaying short‐range order (SRO). It is further shown that the organization of oleic acid/oleylamine surfactants into lamellar structures likely drives the emergence of the SRO phase and later of the supercrystals by reducing the volume accessible to particle diffusion. The supercrystals' formation as well as their disassembly are triggered by temperature. The study demonstrates that ordering of solvent molecules can be crucial in the direct synthesis of supercrystals. The study also provides a general approach to investigate novel preparation routes of supercrystals in situ and across several length scales via X‐ray scattering.
Enhancing Ultraviolet Stability and Performance of Wide Bandgap Perovskite Solar Cells Through Ultraviolet Light‐Absorbing Passivator
Authors: Dai Yao , Ge Xin , Shi Biao , Wang Pengyang , Zhao Ying , Zhang Xiaodan
Published: March 2024

Ultraviolet light (UV) has caused tremendous damage to perovskite solar cells (PSCs), degrading the perovskite and shortening their lifetime. Defects act as non‐radiative recombination sites, accelerate the degradation process, reduce the efficiency of the device and weaken the stability of solar cell. In this work, to realize efficient and stable p–i–n wide bandgap solar cells under UV, a synergetic strategy utilizing UV light‐absorbing passivator, (Trifluoroacetyl) benzotriazole (TFABI), enhance UV photostability and regulate the defect passivation is proposed. By using TFABI, the degradation of the perovskite absorption layer under UV light is suppressed, spectral response is enhanced and the Pb vacancy defects are passivated. As a result, the target device achieves an efficiency of 21.54%, exhibiting excellent long‐term stability under 365 nm UV irradiation. After 60 h of irradiation, it retains 85% of its initial value (60 mW cm−2, RH 25–30%, 25 °C).
2D Perovskite Capping Layer Enabling Stable Perovskite Photovoltaics
Authors: Zhu Xiao‐Zhao , Wang Kai‐Li , Wang Jun‐Gan , Hao Yi‐Hong , Chen Jin‐Hui , Nizamani Namatullah , Liu Yuan , Wang Zhao‐Kui , Liao Liang‐Sheng
Published: March 2024

Interfacial passivation plays a pivotal role in achieving efficient and stable perovskite solar cells. Meanwhile, the introduction of 2D perovskites has also been widely reported to be beneficial for enhancing the performance and stability of devices. Herein, DEAI is used as an ammonium salt, which is spin coated onto the surface of the perovskite film, resulting in the formation of a 2D perovskite phase. This alteration increases the film's hydrophobicity, holding the promise of enhancing its humidity stability. Furthermore, DEAI effectively reduces trap density in the perovskite layer, suppressing nonradiative recombination and optimizing the surface potential, thereby improving the efficiency of devices. As a result, the inverted perovskite devices passivated with DEAI achieve a champion power conversion efficiency of 24.26%. Additionally, the unencapsulated DEAI‐passivated perovskite solar cells demonstrate enhanced stability.
Four-Color ImmunoSpot® Assays Requiring Only 1–3 mL of Blood Permit Precise Frequency Measurements of Antigen-Specific B Cells-Secreting Immunoglobulins of All Four Classes and Subclasses
Authors: Yao Lingling , Becza Noémi , Maul-Pavicic Andrea , Chepke Jack , Kirchenbaum Greg A. , Lehmann Paul V.
Published: March 2024

The B lymphocyte response can encompass four immunoglobulin (Ig) classes and four IgG subclasses, each contributing fundamentally different effector functions. Production of the appropriate Ig class/subclass is critical for both successful host defense and avoidance of immunopathology. The assessment of an antigen-specific B cell response, including its magnitude and Ig class/subclass composition, is most often confined to the antibodies present in serum and other biological fluids and neglects monitoring of the memory B cell (Bmem) compartment capable of mounting a faster and more efficient antibody response following antigen reencounter. Here, we describe how the frequency and Ig class and IgG subclass use of an antigen-specific Bmem repertoire can be determined with relatively little labor and cost, requiring only 8 × 105 freshly isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), or if additional cryopreservation and polyclonal stimulation is necessary, 3 × 106 PBMC per antigen. To experimentally validate such cell saving assays, we have documented that frequency measurements of antibody-secreting cells (ASC) yield results indistinguishable from those of enzymatic (ELISPOT) or fluorescent (FluoroSpot) versions of the ImmunoSpot® assay, including when the latter are detected in alternative fluorescent channels. Moreover, we have shown that frequency calculations that are based on linear regression analysis of serial PBMC dilutions using a single well per dilution step are as accurate as those performed using replicate wells. Collectively, our data highlight the capacity of multiplexed B cell FluoroSpot assays in conjunction with serial dilutions to significantly reduce the PBMC requirement for detailed assessment of antigen-specific B cells. The protocols presented here allow GLP-compliant high-throughput measurements which should help to introduce high-dimensional Bmem characterization into the standard immune monitoring repertoire.
Toward a Restorative Planning Ethic: Race, History, and Food Planning in Albany, Georgia
Authors: Hall Enjoli , Sherrod Shirley , Raja Samina
Published: March 2024

Contemporary discussions of equity in planning for urban agriculture remains incomplete when decoupled from the history of racialized food systems in the United States. This chapter documents the decades-long experiences and practices of community-based food systems actors in the small southern city of Albany, Georgia. Through a case study of the Southwest Georgia Project for Community Education. a nonprofit organization that focuses on food systems and community empowerment, we explore the practices of community actors against a complex history of racial dispossession and discrimination that they resist and strive to transform. Community food actors engage in transformative work in order to improve the city’s food system and promote self-determination. The experiences of community actors in Albany, Georgia offer insights into Black people in the United States as producers of food and makers of place. Additionally, the example of Albany examines the potential for urban agriculture as a tool for racial justice, and offers a paradigm for local government public policy to support racial healing in deeply divided communities. The longer history of community-led food planning presented here illuminates the thin line between the past and the present and surfaces a restorative planning ethic, a planning framework that is simultaneously future-oriented and historically-informed and demands that planners engage with and enhance the self-determination of communities that act as storehouses of history and memory in order to acknowledge and account for past harms and wrongs.
The Relational Infrastructure of Food System Policy Development
Authors: Irish Aiden , Clark Jill , Hodgson Kimberley , Raja Samina
Published: March 2024

The process of developing food system policies (FSP) that comprehensively address systemic issues requires the inclusion of a diverse array of actors from all parts of the food system. Drawing on literature on collaborative governance, we argue that interpersonal relationships, and the factors that facilitate their development and maintenance, are essential to FSP development. Based on this assertion, we ask: how do interpersonal relationships shape collaborative food systems policy processes? Specifically, we explore: (1) what motivates the emergence of interpersonal relationships in FSP; (2) what are the characteristics of social environments that foster such interpersonal relationships; and (3) what traits/activities foster interpersonal relationships in food systems policy processes.

This research draws on qualitative analysis of 26 semi-structured interviews in four preeminent examples of FSP development in the United States identified by Growing Food Connections (GFC), an FSP research group: Seattle, WA; Lawrence/Douglas County, KS; a five-county region in Minnesota; and Marquette County, MI. Following an inductive description of key cross-case themes responding to the previous questions, we discuss the implications of these findings for equity and ethics in FSP development. This discussion highlights that, while equity did not appear as an explicit motivation for developing interpersonal relationships, practices of humble listening by policy practitioners foster inclusive engagement as a basis for equitable collaboration.
Fertile Ground: Reflections on the Impacts and Implications of an Early University Food System Plan
Authors: Born Branden , Herbach Geoff , Allan Majid
Published: March 2024

Since the mid-1990s, food systems planning has gone from virtually nonexistent as a concept in the field to an accepted component of the planning field. The third-ever community food systems plan done by a university was conducted in 1997 by graduate students in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, under the direction of professors Jerry Kaufman and Kami Pothukuchi. This chapter, written by the three compiling editors/writers of the final document, Fertile Ground: Planning for the Madison/Dane County Food System (1997), is a deliberation on the history and creation of the document, and offers personal reflections on the impact of an early food systems planning class. Using a semi-structured interview as a tool to elicit both memories and current personal and professional impacts, the authors look backward and forward to contextualize the relevance and importance of the class and final report almost 25 years after it was written.
“Farming Inside Cities” – A Look Back After Two Decades
Authors: Bailkey Martin , Greenstein Rosalind
Published: March 2024

Farming Inside Cities: Entrepreneurial Urban Agriculture in the United States (2000) by Jerry Kaufman and Martin Bailkey, was one of three concurrent research studies on for-market urban agriculture as a viable reuse of vacant land in major US cities. It was commissioned by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and its Land Markets program director, Rosalind Greenstein. For Greenstein, the report was part of an effort to direct Lincoln Institute resources into formerly industrial cities. For Kaufman, it represented a late-career integration of his commitment to social justice, his interest in central city revitalization, and a new belief in food systems planning as a legitimate area of professional practice. Farming Inside Cities did advance a domestic urban agenda within the Lincoln Institute, and was welcomed by urban farmers and representatives of the then-new community food movement as an academic recognition of their actions as change agents. Today, the report’s practical nature, a result of Kaufman’s influence, and its description of the opportunities and challenges of urban agriculture still hold up. In its practicality, however, it does not make explicit the value of farming as a symbolic and often-effective vehicle for social equity and food justice in urban communities of color.
Practical Ethics: Urban Agriculture in US Cities
Authors: DeMarsh Nick , Morales Alfonso
Published: March 2024

Urban agriculture provides the opportunity to challenge the status quo within our current urban and food systems. The increased number and density of people in a city creates opportunities and challenges for urban agriculture. Howe and Kaufman’s ethical framework of means and ends is one way to frame urban agriculture. An emphasis on both means and ends is useful given the tendency for ethical ends (or outcomes, economic or otherwise) to preempt considerations for ethical means or processes. Using this framework, we suggest three key ideas to frame ethics of urban agriculture: a place-based historical perspective, a bridge between cities and regions, and a nested approach to reimagining healthy socio-ecological systems. Urban agriculture practitioners must understand the broader history of urban places and agricultural processes as both consequences of national historical processes, in contemporary place specific contexts, and with respect to future goals and orientations to society. The contribution of urban agriculture to environmentally sustainable futures recognizes that food production and consumption is an essential component of human life. The transformative potential of urban agriculture stems from its significant role in two systems that affect everyday life: urban and food systems. This potential for change does not imply that change through urban agriculture practice is inevitable. In this case, change requires that urban agriculture participants and stakeholders critically examine their own practices and expectations. We illustrate how this ethical framework provides an important perspective on the past, present, and future of urban agriculture.
Codification and Inclusivity of Landmark Urban Agriculture Initiatives in Madison and Dane County, Wisconsin
Authors: Lipman Micaela F. , Caton Campbell Marcia
Published: March 2024

Madison and Dane County, Wisconsin, are known for progressive politics and early support for community gardening, urban agriculture, and agricultural land preservation. Despite this history of regulatory innovation, the city and county have been slow to address food injustices in local food systems planning and policy development. This chapter covers the local government food systems policy and planning landscape, highlighting local government collaboration with the nonprofit sector to achieve food systems goals, and examining how codification of those goals supports or hinders urban agriculture. The COVID-19 pandemic presented both local governments with a unique opportunity to further collaborations that are more deeply inclusive of community food sovereignty.
Conclusion: Social Accountability Initiatives as Sites of Relational Power
Authors: Vloeberghs Ward , Bergh Sylvia I.
Published: March 2024

In this chapter, we first summarise the findings from the country chapters on the multiple meanings of SA, documenting terms, translations and contrasting understandings between citizens and public officials. Second, we highlight how civil mobilisation tends to be cyclical over time and is often mediated by brokers. Strategies to spur stakeholders into action rely on a delicate balance of both collaboration and confrontation. Third, we examine the responses from authorities to SAIs, finding that reactions are uneven and that all civic innovators fear appropriation or co-optation by officials. Fourth, we assess overall outcomes of Arab SAIs and highlight that the transformative potential of SAIs exists especially at municipal level, if four conditions for success are present (trust, proximity, endorsement, evaluation). We also point out that the actual outcomes of SAIs in Arab societies have, so far, been limited due to design deficiencies (emphasising short-term objectives and limited context sensitivity) or because of officials’ resistance in active or passive forms. We characterise SAIs as a discursive action format that is best understood with a relational approach to power. In a final section, we formulate recommendations for activists, officials and donors on how to make SAIs more effective.
Assessing the Effectiveness of Building Renovation Policies and Decarbonization Progress: A Review of European Legislation
Authors: López-Mesa Belinda , Hernández-Minguillón Rufino J. , Gómez-Gil Marta , Arbulu Markel
Published: March 2024

Indicators to evaluate the progress and effectiveness of building renovation policies prove essential for evidence-based decision-making, accountability, and achieving long-term goals towards the decarbonization of the building sector, while also promoting public awareness and engagement. This chapter studies the efforts over time in European legislation relating to building decarbonization and the evolution of requirements for monitoring the effectiveness of building renovation policies and decarbonization progress. The results show that the use of indicators for monitoring building renovation policies is a newly legislated activity in Europe that commenced in 2019 and is expected to become more demanding with the approval of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive revision. This will require significant efforts from European Union Member States to monitor and evaluate their national building renovation policies. Additionally, this underscores the need for new research directions, such as data source evaluation, open big data technologies, and advanced data collection methods, among others.
Analysis of Institutional Frameworks of Indicators to Measure the Effectiveness of Building Renovation Policy and Decarbonization Progress in Europe
Authors: Beltrán-Velamazán Carlos , Gómez-Gil Marta , López-Mesa Belinda
Published: March 2024

The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) establishes that Member States (MSs) should define a long-term renovation strategy (LTRS) which shall set out a roadmap with measures and measurable indicators, with a view to the long-term 2050 goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union by 80–95% compared to 1990. The EPBD is currently under review and the European Commission suggests strengthening the LTRSs towards National building renovation plans (NBRPs). NBRPs will be much more complete than LTRSs and will make easier to compare the national decarbonization targets and their progress between MSs since a set of mandatory indicators is being established. On the contrary, this will involve important amount of policy monitoring and evaluation work for MSs. The objective of this chapter is to analyze the indicator frameworks included in the currently in force EPBD and in its on-going revision, in order to identify the most important subjects the MSs should focus their data collection on, so that they can get prepared for the important monitoring and evaluation work they will have to do.
Indicators and Data in Spain for an Overview of Deep Renovation of Buildings
Authors: Arbulu Markel , Gómez-Gil Marta , González-González Francisco J. , Espinosa-Fernández Almudena
Published: March 2024

Indicators are necessary to measure whether the European Union Member States’ long-term renovation strategies deliver the necessary progress towards the transformation of the building stock into a decarbonized one. Deep renovation of buildings has been identified as a key issue to be addressed in the decarbonization of the building sector. In this chapter, we propose progress indicators to measure the evolution in Spain of the deep renovation of buildings following the European Commission recommendations and directives. We also studied the sources of information available in Spain for the development of these indicators and developed them when there were data. This study allowed us to conclude that in this country, there are not enough sources of data to develop an overview of deep renovation of buildings. The consulted data sources do not categorize renovations based on energy savings depth, creating challenges in distinguishing between deep renovations and other types. Moreover, there is a need to centralize data collection to prevent discrepancies among sources.
Indicators and Data in Spain Regarding an Overview of the Capacities in the Construction, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Sector
Authors: Gómez-Gil Marta , Arbulu Markel , Rueda-Esteban Markel , Monzón-Chavarrías Marta , Beltrán-Velamazán Carlos , González-González Francisco J.
Published: March 2024

Capacities of the construction sector are an important vector for a transition towards improving energy efficiency and the broader use of renewable energy in buildings. This affects not only the conventional renovation activity, but also the design and maintenance of buildings with advanced digital features to control their energy behavior. The present study aims to assess the data available on this topic in Spain at the national and regional scales (taking the regions of Aragon and the Basque Country as case studies) in order to be able to develop indicators to assess the building renovation policies effectiveness. The results show that Spain possesses ample data to assess the professional capacity of its sector, and the rough estimates shows existing skills are aligned with requirements, although it is crucial to ensure that university studies adapt to evolving sector needs. Yet emphasis on gathering data on smart technology adoption, engagement with energy communities, and administrative capacity is needed.
Indicators and Data in Spain for an Overview of Actual Energy Savings and Wider Benefits of Renovation of Buildings
Authors: Gómez-Gil Marta , Arbulu Markel , Oregi Xabat , Monzón-Chavarrías Marta , Beltrán-Velamazán Carlos , González-González Francisco J.
Published: March 2024

The renovation of buildings brings about energy savings and various other benefits, encompassing not only reductions in energy consumption expenditure but also improvements in living conditions. Those ‘other benefits’ include quantifiable aspects derived from health savings, the use of materials that extend the life cycle of buildings, avoiding the consequences derived from energy poverty or improving the productivity of workers. This study aims to review the indicators proposed in the European Commission Recommendation (EU) 2019/786 and in the latest version of the ongoing revision of the Energy Performance of Building Directive, in order to propose a set of indicators and analyze their possibilities of being collected at national and regional levels, depending on the available data sources. The results show that while there are some data on benefits from renovation activity at both the national and regional levels that are partially available, a comprehensive and precise understanding of savings and benefits remains unavailable at this time. It is essential to emphasize the advantages of commencing a harmonization process for data collection across the European Union member states in this subject.
Indicators and Data in Spain Regarding Evidence-Based Estimate of Expected Energy Savings and of Reduction of Costs for Health Systems from Buildings Renovation
Authors: Gómez-Gil Marta , Etxebarria-Mallea Matxalen , Arbulu Markel , Grijalba-Aseguinolaza Olatz , Espinosa-Fernández Almudena , Monzón-Chavarrías Marta
Published: March 2024

Europe is setting ambitious targets for decarbonization by the year 2050. These goals are essential for mitigating the impact of climate change and transitioning towards a more sustainable future. Setting realistic and binding targets is a key component of this strategy, so the evidence-based approach ensures that these goals are rooted in a solid foundation of expected energy savings. Moreover, the energy renovation of buildings entails a series of benefits that go beyond energy savings, such as improvement in people's health and, consequently, economic expenditure in health systems reduction. In this chapter, we propose indicators regarding evidence-based estimate of expected energy savings and of reduction of costs for health systems from buildings renovation. We also studied the sources of information available in Spain for the development of these indicators, at national and regional scales, and developed them when there were data for the case of the whole country and two regions, Aragon and the Basque Country. Based on our study, it can be inferred that in Spain, although the current data sources provide trustworthy information regarding expected energy savings, they fall short in providing sufficient details to set targets concerning the reduction in health costs attributed to energy efficiency measures and improved air quality. At the regional level, there is room for improvement in both aspects.
Sicht der Bürgerinnen und Bürger auf Tierwohl: Wahrnehmung, Bewertung, Vorstellung und Finanzierung einer verbesserten Nutztierhaltung
Authors: Faletar Ivica , von Meyer-Höfer Marie , Christoph-Schulz Inken
Published: March 2024

Die vorliegende Arbeit hatte das Ziel, die Ansichten der Öffentlichkeit zur Haltung von wichtigen Nutztierarten wie Milchkühen, Mastschweinen, Masthähnchen und Legehennen zu untersuchen. Dabei wurde sowohl die konventionelle als auch die ökologische Tierhaltung in den Blick genommen. Die Umfragen wurden in drei Wellen durchgeführt, und ein erheblicher Teil der Befragten äußerte Unzufriedenheit mit den Unterbringungsbedingungen aller Tierarten. Besonders hervorgehoben wurde die Unzufriedenheit mit der Haltung von Mastschweinen und Masthühnchen, sowohl in konventionellen als auch ökologischen Betrieben. Viele Befragte betrachten Landwirtinnen und Landwirte als Schlüsselakteure bei der Förderung des Tierschutzes und sind der Ansicht, dass sie eine zentrale Rolle bei der Verbesserung der Tierhaltungsbedingungen spielen sollten. Ein weiteres interessantes Ergebnis der Umfragen war auch, dass zwischen 62 % und 71 % der Befragten bereit wären, finanzielle Mittel aus anderen Haushaltsausgaben zur Verfügung zu stellen, um die Bedingungen in der Nutztierhaltung zu verbessern. Dies deutet auf eine gewisse Bereitschaft der Öffentlichkeit hin, in Maßnahmen zur Förderung des Tierwohls zu investieren. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit können für verschiedene Interessengruppen von Nutzen sein, einschließlich Landwirtinnen und Landwirte, die Veränderungen in der Tierhaltung umsetzen möchten. Auch Gesetzgeber könnten diese Ergebnisse als Grundlage für die Entwicklung neuer Vorschriften und Richtlinien zur Verbesserung der Tierhaltung nutzen. Insgesamt zeigt die Arbeit, dass die Meinungen der Öffentlichkeit zur Nutztierhaltung und zum Tierschutz eine wichtige Rolle bei der Gestaltung der Zukunft dieser Branche spielen können. Sie betont die Bedeutung eines umfassenden Dialogs und einer verstärkten Zusammenarbeit zwischen verschiedenen Interessengruppen, um die Tierhaltung in eine nachhaltigere und tierfreundlichere Richtung zu lenken.
Optimization of a tetrahedron compliant spherical joint via computer-aided engineering tools
Authors: Kargar Seyyed Masoud , Parmiggiani Alberto , Baggetta Mario , Ottonello Emilio , Hao Guangbo , Berselli Giovanni
Published: March 2024

This article focuses on enhancing the range of motion (ROM) of the Tetra II joint, a spherical compliant joint consisting of three internally interconnected tetrahedron-shaped elements that achieve motion through elastic deformation. Despite its excellent precision, this specific design is constrained in terms of ROM due to internal contacts among the tetrahedral elements. To overcome this limitation, this study utilizes a computer-aided engineering (CAE) framework to optimize the configuration of the Tetra II joint and enhance its ROM. The resultant optimized joint, referred to as Tetra III, is subsequently compared to Tetra II in terms of both ROM and center shift. Finite element models (FEM) are employed to validate the optimization results and examine how various tetrahedron-shaped geometries impact the joint’s performance. The newly optimized joint exhibits a significantly higher ROM compared to the previous version, while maintaining excellent precision and overall smaller dimensions. Finally, to demonstrate its manufacturability, the Tetra III joint is produced using selective laser sintering (SLS) technology, with Duraform PA serving as the construction material. The successful fabrication serves as a demonstrative example of the improved design of the Tetra III joint.
Utilizing large language models in breast cancer management: systematic review
Authors: Sorin Vera , Glicksberg Benjamin S. , Artsi Yaara , Barash Yiftach , Konen Eli , Nadkarni Girish N. , Klang Eyal
Published: March 2024

Purpose

Despite advanced technologies in breast cancer management, challenges remain in efficiently interpreting vast clinical data for patient-specific insights. We reviewed the literature on how large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT might offer solutions in this field.

Methods

We searched MEDLINE for relevant studies published before December 22, 2023. Keywords included: “large language models”, “LLM”, “GPT”, “ChatGPT”, “OpenAI”, and “breast”. The risk bias was evaluated using the QUADAS-2 tool.

Results

Six studies evaluating either ChatGPT-3.5 or GPT-4, met our inclusion criteria. They explored clinical notes analysis, guideline-based question-answering, and patient management recommendations. Accuracy varied between studies, ranging from 50 to 98%. Higher accuracy was seen in structured tasks like information retrieval. Half of the studies used real patient data, adding practical clinical value. Challenges included inconsistent accuracy, dependency on the way questions are posed (prompt-dependency), and in some cases, missing critical clinical information.

Conclusion

LLMs hold potential in breast cancer care, especially in textual information extraction and guideline-driven clinical question-answering. Yet, their inconsistent accuracy underscores the need for careful validation of these models, and the importance of ongoing supervision.
Bounds on Polarization Problems on Compact Sets via Mixed Integer Programming
Authors: Rolfes Jan , Schüler Robert , Zimmermann Marc Christian
Published: March 2024

Finding point configurations, that yield the maximum polarization (Chebyshev constant) is gaining interest in the field of geometric optimization. In the present article, we study the problem of unconstrained maximum polarization on compact sets. In particular, we discuss necessary conditions for local optimality, such as that a locally optimal configuration is always contained in the convex hull of the respective darkest points. Building on this, we propose two sequences of mixed-integer linear programs in order to compute lower and upper bounds on the maximal polarization, where the lower bound is constructive. Moreover, we prove the convergence of these sequences towards the maximal polarization.
MLSTL-WSN: machine learning-based intrusion detection using SMOTETomek in WSNs
Authors: Talukder Md. Alamin , Sharmin Selina , Uddin Md Ashraf , Islam Md Manowarul , Aryal Sunil
Published: March 2024

In the domain of cyber-physical systems, wireless sensor networks (WSNs) play a pivotal role as infrastructures, encompassing both stationary and mobile sensors. These sensors self-organize and establish multi-hop connections for communication, collectively sensing, gathering, processing, and transmitting data about their surroundings. Despite their significance, WSNs face rapid and detrimental attacks that can disrupt functionality. Existing intrusion detection methods for WSNs encounter challenges such as low detection rates, computational overhead, and false alarms. These issues stem from sensor node resource constraints, data redundancy, and high correlation within the network. To address these challenges, we propose an innovative intrusion detection approach that integrates machine learning (ML) techniques with the Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique Tomek Link (SMOTE-TomekLink) algorithm. This blend synthesizes minority instances and eliminates Tomek links, resulting in a balanced dataset that significantly enhances detection accuracy in WSNs. Additionally, we incorporate feature scaling through standardization to render input features consistent and scalable, facilitating more precise training and detection. To counteract imbalanced WSN datasets, we employ the SMOTE-Tomek resampling technique, mitigating overfitting and underfitting issues. Our comprehensive evaluation, using the wireless sensor network dataset (WSN-DS) containing 374,661 records, identifies the optimal model for intrusion detection in WSNs. The standout outcome of our research is the remarkable performance of our model. In binary classification scenarios, it achieves an accuracy rate of 99.78%, and in multiclass classification scenarios, it attains an exceptional accuracy rate of 99.92%. These findings underscore the efficiency and superiority of our proposal in the context of WSN intrusion detection, showcasing its effectiveness in detecting and mitigating intrusions in WSNs.
The formation of cariogenic plaque to contemporary adhesive restorative materials: an in vitro study
Authors: Lehrkinder Anna , Rydholm Olivia , Wänström Anna , Nakamura Keisuke , Örtengren Ulf
Published: March 2024

The research exploiting the ability of dental materials to induce or prevent secondary caries (SC) development still seems inconclusive. Controlling bacterial adhesion by releasing bacteriostatic ions and improving the surface structure has been suggested to reduce the occurrence of SC. This paper analyses the impact of five distinctively composed dental materials on cariogenic biofilm formation. Forty-five specimens of three composites (CeramX Spectra ST, Admira Fusion, Beautifil II) and two glass–ionomers (Fuji II LC, Caredyne Restore), respectively, were incubated in bacterial suspension composed of Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus sanguinis, and Streptococcus salivarius at pH 7.0 and 5.5. Coverslips were used as a control. Adhered bacteria were collected after 2, 4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h and analyzed using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Fluoride leakage was measured at each collection. The specimens’ surface topography was assessed using interferometry. In the present study, surface roughness seemed to have a partial role in bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation, together with chemical composition of the materials tested. Despite differences in fluoride leakage, biofilm accumulation was similar across materials, but the number of adhered bacteria differed significantly. A release of other ions may also affect adhesion. These variations suggest that certain materials may be more prone to initiating secondary caries.
Detecting implicit and explicit facial emotions at different ages
Authors: Prete Giulia , Ceccato Irene , Bartolini Emanuela , Di Crosta Adolfo , La Malva Pasquale , Palumbo Rocco , Laeng Bruno , Tommasi Luca , Mammarella Nicola , Di Domenico Alberto
Published: March 2024

Emotions are processed in the brain through a cortical route, responsible for detailed-conscious recognition and mainly based on image High Spatial Frequencies (HSF), and a subcortical route, responsible for coarse-unconscious processing and based on Low SF (LSF). However, little is known about possible changes in the functioning of the two routes in ageing. In the present go/no-go online task, 112 younger adults and 111 older adults were asked to press a button when a happy or angry face appeared (go) and to inhibit responses for neutral faces (no-go). Facial stimuli were presented unfiltered (broadband image), filtered at HSF and LSF, and hybrids (LSF of an emotional expression superimposed to the HSF of the same face with a neutral expression). All stimuli were also presented rotated on the vertical axis (upside-down) to investigate the global analysis of faces in ageing. Results showed an overall better performance of younger compared to older participants for all conditions except for hybrid stimuli. The expected face-inversion effect was confirmed in both age groups. We conclude that, besides an overall worsening of the perceptual skill with ageing, no specific impairment in the functioning of both the cortical and the subcortical route emerged.
Locally protected forests: status, character and challenges a case study of Inhambane Province, southern Mozambique
Authors: Gota Pascoal , Ekblom Anneli
Published: March 2024

Mozambique has undocumented forest patches that are cultural landscapes and locally protected as heritage sites. Using the case of Inhambane Province, in this paper, we present the status and purposes of forest patches protected by local communities and discuss threats working against local protection. Findings point out that these heritage forests are reservoirs for biodiversity conservation and the local system of conservation is effective, but there are challenges local custodians face to safeguard heritage forests, ranging from illegal logging, misrecognition of customary protection and lack of legislation enforcement. We argue that the existence of heritage forests requires collaboration between entities dealing with forests, heritage and conservation. We suggest strategies to increase protection in the Inhambane Province and the Mozambique context. This will support local institutions in the protection of heritage forests, as biodiversity reservoirs and in keeping heritage practices and the customary protection of heritage forests alive.
Designing and modeling an IoT-based software system for land suitability assessment use case
Authors: Mohammad El-Basioni Basma M. , Abd El-Kader Sherine M.
Published: March 2024

Assessing the quality of land is a very important step that precedes the planning of land use and taking management decisions; for example, in the agricultural field, it can be used to evaluate the suitability of the land for planting crops, determine the suitable irrigation system type, or adjust the agricultural inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides according to the requirements of each zone in the land. The spatial–temporal dynamic nature of land characteristics entails also updated evaluation process and updated management plan. The present paper tries to exploit the advances in information and communication technologies to develop a conceptual design of a dynamic system that accommodates the spatial–temporal dynamics of the agricultural soil characteristics to realize a land suitability assessment (LSA) based on a factor analysis method. The proposed design combines IoT technologies, web development, database, and digital mapping and tries to consolidate the system with other functionalities useful for decision support and suitable for different cases. The paper conducted a survey and made comparisons to select the best technologies that fit the current use case implementation and presents its reproducible conceptual modeling by developing the static and dynamic views through schemas, diagrams, message sequence charts, IoT messaging topic tree, pseudocode, etc. The functionality of the design was validated with a simple implementation of the system model. To our knowledge, there is no previous significant contribution that has addressed a LSA IoT use case. The proposed design automates the LSA process for more accurate decision-making, saving cost, time, and effort consumed in repeated field trips. It is characterized by flexibility and centralization in its offered services of spatial analysis, detection, visualizations, and status monitoring. The design also allows for remote control of field machinery.
Organisational Expertise in Hollywood: How the Government, Social Movements, and Think Tanks Consult TV and Film Makers
Authors: Khitrov Arsenii
Published: March 2024

Existing studies show that when Hollywood professionals develop and produce films and television series, they consult experts in social and political issues. These experts may be private individuals or representatives of various governmental, social movement, or research organisations. Drawing on ethnography and interviews, I focus on organisational experts and explore how they provide their expertise to Hollywood. I argue that these organisations form a peculiar social space surrounding Hollywood, which I refer to as ‘the relational space of organisational expertise provision’, which demonstrates some field effects like similar practices and habitus, but does not show overt competition. I argue that the provision of organisational expertise in Hollywood is undertaken by organisational boundary spanners who operate within this relational space through the enactment of expertise networks, the construction of connecting interfaces, and the trading of expertise as short-lived, or proxy, capital. These findings contribute to the Bourdieusian field analysis and sociology of expertise by elucidating how social spaces interact, how social agents gain power through the inter-field exchange of expertise, and what happens in the field of power.
Oral docetaxel plus encequidar – A pharmacokinetic model and evaluation against IV docetaxel
Authors: Wang David , Jackson Chris , Hung Noelyn , Hung Tak , Kwan Rudolf , Chan Wing-Kai , Qin Albert , Hughes-Medlicott Natalie J. , Glue Paul , Duffull Stephen
Published: March 2024

The development of optimized dosing regimens plays a crucial role in oncology drug development. This study focused on the population pharmacokinetic modelling and simulation of docetaxel, comparing the pharmacokinetic exposure of oral docetaxel plus encequidar (oDox + E) with the standard of care intravenous (IV) docetaxel regimen. The aim was to evaluate the feasibility of oDox + E as a potential alternative to IV docetaxel. The article demonstrates an approach which aligns with the FDA’s Project Optimus which aims to improve oncology drug development through model informed drug development (MIDD). The key question answered by this study was whether a feasible regimen of oDox + E existed. The purpose of this question was to provide an early GO / NO-GO decision point to guide drug development and improve development efficiency. Methods: A stepwise approach was employed to develop a population pharmacokinetic model for total and unbound docetaxel plasma concentrations after IV docetaxel and oDox + E administration. Simulations were performed from the final model to assess the probability of target attainment (PTA) for different oDox + E dose regimens (including multiple dose regimens) in relation to IV docetaxel using AUC over effective concentration (AUCOEC) metric across a range of effective concentrations (EC). A Go / No-Go framework was defined—the first part of the framework assessed whether a feasible oDox + E regimen existed (i.e., a PTA ≥ 80%), and the second part defined the conditions to proceed with a Go decision. Results: The overall population pharmacokinetic model consisted of a 3-compartment model with linear elimination, constant bioavailability, constant binding mechanics, and a combined error model. Simulations revealed that single dose oDox + E regimens did not achieve a PTA greater than 80%. However, two- and three-dose regimens at 600 mg achieved PTAs exceeding 80% for certain EC levels. Conclusion: The study demonstrates the benefits of MIDD using oDox + E as a motivating example. A population pharmacokinetic model was developed for the total and unbound concentration in plasma of docetaxel after administration of IV docetaxel and oDox + E. The model was used to simulate oDox + E dose regimens which were compared to the current standard of care IV docetaxel regimen. A GO / NO-GO framework was applied to determine whether oDox + E should progress to the next phase of drug development and whether any conditions should apply. A two or three-dose regimen of oDox + E at 600 mg was able to achieve non-inferior pharmacokinetic exposure to current standard of care IV docetaxel in simulations. A Conditional GO decision was made based on this result and further quantification of the “effective concentration” would improve the ability to optimise the dose regimen.
Experimental validation for the combination of funnel control with a feedforward control strategy
Authors: Drücker Svenja , Lanza Lukas , Berger Thomas , Reis Timo , Seifried Robert
Published: March 2024

Current engineering design trends, such as lightweight machines and human–machine interaction, often lead to underactuated systems. Output trajectory tracking of such systems is a challenging control problem. Here, we use a two-design-degree of freedom control approach by combining funnel feedback control with feedforward control based on servo-constraints. We present experimental results to verify the approach and demonstrate that the addition of a feedforward controller mitigates drawbacks of the funnel controller. We also present new experimental results for the real-time implementation of a feedforward controller based on servo-constraints on a minimum phase system.
Improving model choice in classification: an approach based on clustering of covariance matrices
Authors: Rodríguez-Vítores David , Matrán Carlos
Published: March 2024

This work introduces a refinement of the Parsimonious Model for fitting a Gaussian Mixture. The improvement is based on the consideration of clusters of the involved covariance matrices according to a criterion, such as sharing Principal Directions. This and other similarity criteria that arise from the spectral decomposition of a matrix are the bases of the Parsimonious Model. We show that such groupings of covariance matrices can be achieved through simple modifications of the CEM (Classification Expectation Maximization) algorithm. Our approach leads to propose Gaussian Mixture Models for model-based clustering and discriminant analysis, in which covariance matrices are clustered according to a parsimonious criterion, creating intermediate steps between the fourteen widely known parsimonious models. The added versatility not only allows us to obtain models with fewer parameters for fitting the data, but also provides greater interpretability. We show its usefulness for model-based clustering and discriminant analysis, providing algorithms to find approximate solutions verifying suitable size, shape and orientation constraints, and applying them to both simulation and real data examples.
Adaptive quadtree splitting parallelization (AQSP) algorithm for the VVC standard
Authors: González-Ruiz Alberto , Díaz-Honrubia Antonio Jesús , Tapia-Fernández Santiago , García-Lucas David , Cebrián-Márquez Gabriel , Mengual-Galán Luis
Published: March 2024

The Versatile Video Coding (VVC) standard, also known as H.266, was released in 2020 as the natural successor to the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard. Among its innovative coding tools, VVC extended the concept of quadtree (QT) splitting to the multi-type tree (MTT) structure, introducing binary and ternary partitions to enhance HEVC’s coding efficiency. While this brought significant compression improvements, it also resulted in a substantial increase in encoding time, primarily due to VVC’s larger Coding Tree Unit (CTU) size of 128$$\times $$
×
128 pixels. To mitigate this, this work introduces a flexible parallel approach for the QT traversal and splitting scheme of the VVC encoder, called adaptive quadtree splitting parallelization (AQSP) algorithm. This approach is based on the distribution of coding units (CUs) among different threads using the current depth level of the QT as a basis to minimize the number of broken dependencies. In this way, the algorithm achieves a good trade-off between time savings and coding efficiency. Experimental results show that, when compared with the original VVC encoder, AQSP achieves an acceleration factor of 2.04$$\times $$
×
with 4 threads at the expense of a low impact in terms of BD rate. These outcomes position AQSP competitively in comparison with other state-of-the-art approaches.