bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optical aberrations and modulation transfer function of a thermal lens for use in imaging
Authors: Dobek Krzysztof
Published: January 2021

The optical aberrations of the thermal lens formed in a liquid are reported for the first time as expressed in terms of the Zernike polynomials coefficients. Convection of the liquid in which the thermal lens is formed is shown to strongly modify the lens imaging properties, even for the case of vertical heating laser illumination, as studied herein. The time evolution of the optical properties of the thermal lens is investigated. The direction from which the heating laser beam illuminates the thermo-optical liquid, in which the thermal lens is formed, has been found to be crucial for the lens optical power, type, and level of aberrations observed and the way these lens properties change in time.
Stabilizing a laser frequency by the Pound–Drever–Hall technique with an acousto-optic modulator
Authors: Zeng Yong , Fu Zhuo , Liu Yang-Yang , He Xiao-Dong , Liu Min , Xu Peng , Sun Xiao-Hong , Wang Jin
Published: January 2021

We develop and demonstrate a method of optical phase modulation in the Pound–Drever–Hall (PDH) technique. The phase modulation in this paper is realized by an acousto-optic modulator (AOM) operating in the Bragg diffraction regime. In this process, a light beam separated from a laser (780 nm) is sent through the AOM twice and coupled to a high finesse Fabry–Perot cavity. Then, the light power coupling into the cavity is stabilized by modulating the optical amplitude with this AOM. The coupling light power is stabilized to a level of

10

−
3

. In the meantime, the PDH error signal is obtained by modulating the optical phase with the same AOM. After the error signal is fed back to the laser current, the laser linewidth is suppressed to approximately 907.91 Hz. This method of phase modulation is simple and convenient, and we believe it can be widely used in modulation transfer spectroscopy and frequency-modulation sideband spectroscopy.
Preventing forgery attacks in computational ghost imaging or disabling ghost imaging in a “spatiotemporal” scattering medium with weighted multiplicative signals
Authors: Ye Zhiyuan , Huang Tianyu , Pan Jingyu , Zhang Tiantian , Cui Yi , Wang Hai-Bo , Xiong Jun
Published: January 2021

The ghost imaging (GI) approach is an intriguing and promising image acquisition technique that can transmit high-quality image information in a scattering environment. In this paper, we focus on two concerns recently emerged in the GI modality: one is the vulnerability to forgery attacks in GI-based optical encryption [Opt. Lett. 45, 3917 (2020)OPLEDP0146-959210.1364/OL.392424], and the other is the potential threat of GI to personal privacy regarding non-invasive imaging [Opt. Express 28, 17232 (2020)OPEXFF1094-408710.1364/OE.391788]. The core idea is to recommend introducing weighted multiplicative signals [Opt. Express 27, 36505 (2019)OPEXFF1094-408710.1364/OE.27.036505] into the computational GI system, whether on the transmitting end or the receiving end. At the transmitting end, the random multiplicative signal can be used as an additional key that can reduce the possibility of forgery attacks, thereby increasing image transmission security. On the receiving end, the introduction of a random multiplicative signal to a spatial scattering medium makes it a “spatiotemporal” scattering medium, whose transmittance changes with time. Further, the spatiotemporal scattering medium can disable direct imaging and GI at the same time with low cost, thereby having great potential in privacy protection in daily lives.
Anisotropic scattering characteristics of nanoparticles in different morphologies: improving the temperature uniformity of tumors during thermal therapy using forward scattering
Authors: Chen Qin , Ren Yatao , Yin Yanmei , Qi Hong
Published: January 2021

Precise control of the thermal damage area is the key issue during thermal therapy, which can be achieved by manipulating the light propagation in biological tissue. In the present work, a method is proposed to increase the uniformity of the specific absorption rate (SAR) distribution in tumors during laser-induced thermal therapy, which is proved to be effective in reducing the thermal damage of healthy tissue. In addition, a better way of manipulating light propagation in biological tissue is explored. It is found that the anisotropic scattering characteristics of nanoparticles are strongly dependent on their shapes, sizes, orientations, and incident wavelengths, which will strongly affect the light propagation in nanoparticle embedded biological tissue. Therefore, to obtain a better outcome from photothermal therapy, the scattering properties of nanoparticles are very important factors that need to be taken into consideration, along with the absorption efficiency. Further investigation finds that nanoparticles that predominantly scatter to the forward direction are favorable in obtaining a larger penetration depth of light, which will improve the uniformity of SAR and temperature distributions. This paper is meaningful for the application of nanoparticle-assisted laser-induced thermal therapy.
Electro-optic coefficient measurement of a K(H1−xDx)2PO4 crystal based on χ(2) nonlinear optical technology
Authors: Sun Ziming , Cui Zijian , Sun Mingying , Yuan Yimeng , Li Qinghui , Liu De’an , Zhu Jianqiang
Published: January 2021

We present a novel method utilizing the χ(2) nonlinear optical technology, which can realize high precision measurement of linear electro-optic (EO) coefficients of nonlinear materials. By applying the linear EO effect to the nonlinear optical process, the theoretical model of this measurement method was established, and the calculation formula of the linear EO coefficient was given. In the proof-of-principle experiment, by introducing an external electric field into the fourth harmonic generation (FHG) process, we comprehensively obtained the linear EO coefficients of K(H1−xD
x
)2PO4 crystals and revealed the relationship between deuterium content (x) and EO coefficient (γ63): γ63 = −9.789 − 16.53x. Meanwhile, the stability of FHG was greatly improved, and the angular range of efficiency stability was increased to 4.4 times in maximum. This work not only systematically demonstrates the FHG characteristics of KDP-family crystals, which provides a good reference for the deep ultraviolet laser generation, but also offers a new way to measure the basic parameters of nonlinear optical materials.
Design study of a compact ultra-wide-angle high-spatial-resolution high-spectral-resolution snapshot imaging spectrometer
Authors: Yang Qinghua
Published: January 2021

An ultra-wide-angle high-spatial-resolution high-spectral-resolution snapshot imaging spectrometer (UWA-2HSR-SIS) is presented, which comprises a microlens array (MLA), multiple fiber bundles, a micro-cylindrical-lens array (MCLA), a cylindrical lens, a static grating interferometer (SGI), and an area-array detector. The MLA is arranged in a circular arc of 120° or more. The MCLA is arranged in a straight line. The SGI includes a fixed reflection grating in Littrow configuration, a beam splitter, and a fixed plane mirror. Each fiber bundle containing multiple optical fibers is coupled to a separate microlens of the MLA, subdividing the field angle of each microlens into multiple smaller field angles. The light passing through each subdivided smaller field angle of each microlens of the MLA is received by a separate part of the detector. The UWA-2HSR-SIS is a new concept that not only obtains both high spatial resolution and high spectral resolution based on a single sensor for the first time, but also has an ultra-wide field angle in the horizontal plane, can obtain spectral information covering the full spectral range of interest in real time, and is very stable against various disturbances. The UWA-2HSR-SIS has great potential for remote sensing electro-optical reconnaissance sensors in the visible and near-infrared region.
In-situ digital image correlation and thermal monitoring in directed energy deposition additive manufacturing
Authors: Haley James , Leach Clay , Jordan Brian , Dehoff Ryan , Paquit Vincent
Published: January 2021

As in welding, directed energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing (AM) generates complex residual stresses and distortions commensurate with the complexity of the scan pattern used for deposition. To date, measuring DED distortions on complex geometries has only been achieved post process, discarding the complex thermomechanical history that leads to that final material state. In this work, surround stereo digital image correlation (DIC) is used to 3D map surfaces and strain tensors in-situ in a powder-blown laser DED system. Infrared thermography is then projected onto these surfaces to record the full thermomechanical history of printed parts. DIC presents a unique challenge to DED AM, as no part exists at the beginning of deposition, which (a) prevents application of an appropriate speckle pattern and (b) denies the user a zero strain reference frame. Solutions to these problems are proposed and their limitations explored herein. In sum, this work presents a relatively low-cost solution to monitoring and optimizing the unique temporal artifacts induced by complex scan strategies that was previously unobtainable.
Learning to autofocus in whole slide imaging via physics-guided deep cascade networks
Authors: Li Qiang , Liu Xianming , Han Kaige , Guo Cheng , Jiang Junjun , Ji Xiangyang , Wu Xiaolin
Published: January 2021

Whole slide imaging (WSI), is an essential technology for digital pathology, the performance of which is primarily affected by the autofocusing process. Conventional autofocusing methods either are time-consuming or require additional hardware and thus are not compatible with the current WSI systems. In this paper, we propose an effective learning-based method for autofocusing in WSI, which can realize accurate autofocusing at high speed as well as without any optical hardware modifications. Our method is inspired by an observation that sample images captured by WSI have distinctive characteristics with respect to positive / negative defocus offsets, due to the asymmetry effect of optical aberrations. Based on this physical knowledge, we develop novel deep cascade networks to enhance autofocusing quality. Specifically, to handle the effect of optical aberrations, a binary classification network is tailored to distinguish sample images with positive / negative defocus. As such, samples within the same category share similar characteristics. It facilitates the followed refocusing network, which is designed to learn the mapping between the defocus image and defocus distance. Experimental results demonstrate that our method achieves superior autofocusing performance to other related methods.
Two-octave-wide (3–12  µm) subharmonic produced in a minimally dispersive optical parametric oscillator cavity
Authors: Ru Q. , Kawamori T. , Schunemann P. G. , Vasilyev S. , Mirov S. B. , Vodopyanov K. L.
Published: January 2021

We report a subharmonic (frequency-divide-by-2) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) with a continuous wavelength span of 3 to 12 µm (

−

37

d
B

level) that covers most of the molecular rovibrational “signature” region. The key to obtaining such a wide spectral span is the use of an OPO with a minimal dispersion—through the choice of intracavity elements, the use of all gold-coated mirrors, and a special “injector” mirror. The system delivers up to 245 mW of the average power with the conversion efficiency exceeding 20% from a 2.35 µm Kerr-lens mode-locked pump laser.
Generation of cylindrical vector vortex beams using a biconical glass rod
Authors: Lin Jiun-You , Xie Han-Sheng
Published: January 2021

This Letter proposes a biconical glass rod for generating a cylindrical vector vortex (CVV) beam. Based on the principle of total internal reflection and the cylindrical symmetry structure of the glass rod, a circularly polarized incident beam with a constant phase distribution can be converted into a CVV beam, which possesses both a spatially inhomogeneous polarization and a helical phase distribution. The polarization azimuth of the CVV beam can be tuned with the aid of a polarization rotator composed of two cascade half-wave plates. The design theory is presented, and the feasibility of the design is demonstrated experimentally.
Optical phasing method based on scanning white-light interferometry for multi-aperture optical telescopes
Authors: Li Yang , Wang Sheng-Qian
Published: January 2021

A novel, to the best of our knowledge, sensing approach based on scanning white-light interferometry (SWLI) is proposed to detect piston errors of the multi-aperture optical telescope. The scanning white-light interferometer is composed of a Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) and an optical path modulator (OPM). A lenslet array is used to image the interferometric wavefront between the reference and the other individual apertures. The piston errors can be estimated from these SWLI signals focused by the lenslet array. The measurement range of the proposed method depends on the modulation range of the OPM and can reach millimeter order, and its accuracy is better than a 1/20 wavelength. In addition, the proposed method’s amplitude-splitting interferometry of the MZI makes it fit for a multi-aperture optical telescope. We demonstrate a proof of concept and validate the feasibility of our proposed phasing method.
Young’s interference experiment for generating light with non-uniform coherence states
Authors: Lv Han , Zhou Tong , Wang Fei , Chen Yahong , Cai Yangjian , Korotkova Olga
Published: January 2021

Up to now, methods for generating non-uniformly correlated light have been of two kinds: one is based on the use of specially designed random phase screens, and the other relies on the coherent-mode superposition, both being very complex experimental procedures. In this Letter, we show both theoretically and experimentally that in Young’s interference experiment with light having a sufficiently large transverse coherence width, as compared with the width of the slits, the initially uniformly correlated partially coherent light converts to a non-uniformly correlated light. Such a non-uniform correlation is induced by the interference of light fields originating from the two slits. Our results point to the possibility of using diffraction by specially tailored deterministic aperture arrays for generating light with exotic coherence states.
Pseudo-gray-scale halftone gratings for shearing and Hartmann wavefront sensors
Authors: Goldberg Kenneth A.
Published: January 2021

Now in use on x-ray beamlines worldwide, shearing interferometry and Hartmann wavefront sensing provide effective feedback for measuring and optimizing high-quality beams. Conventionally, both approaches spatially modulate the beam properties (amplitude or phase) using two-tone, binary patterns, leading to deleterious diffraction effects that must be mitigated. In shearing, the presence of multiple diffraction orders affects measurement near boundaries. In Hartmann, diffraction limits the measurement point density. We demonstrate that the use of pseudo-gray-scale halftone patterns in the diffracting elements can improve the performance of both techniques.
Hologram generation of light-in-flight recording by holography applying the 2D-FDTD method to simulate the behavior of ultrashort pulsed light
Authors: Kakue Takashi , Takada Naoki , Shimobaba Tomoyoshi , Ito Tomoyoshi
Published: January 2021

In this study, we proposed a hologram calculation method for light-in-flight recording by holography (LIF holography). First, we simulated the behavior of ultrashort pulsed light on the diffuser plate using the two-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method. Second, we calculated the light propagation from the diffuser plate to the recording material and generated a hologram based on the calculation model of LIF holography. We reconstructed moving pictures of pulsed-light propagation from the calculated hologram. Because the behavior of the pulsed light in the moving pictures agreed well with that obtained from the reported optical experiment, the proposed method was successfully validated.
All-dielectric metasurface for fully resolving arbitrary beams on a higher-order Poincaré sphere
Authors: Yang Hui , Xie Zhenwei , Li Guanhai , Ou Kai , Yu Feilong , He Hairong , Wang Hong , Yuan Xiaocong
Published: January 2021

Characterizing the amplitude, phase profile, and polarization of optical beams is critical in modern optics. With a series of cascaded optical components, one can accurately resolve the optical singularity and polarization state in traditional polarimetry systems. However, complicated optical setups and bulky configurations inevitably hinder future applications for integration. Here, we demonstrate a metadevice that fully resolves arbitrary beams on a higher-order Poincaré sphere (HOPS) via a single-layer all-silicon metasurface. The device is compact and capable of detecting optical singularities and higher-order Stokes parameters simultaneously through a single intensity measurement. To verify the validity of the proposed metadevice, different beams on

HOPS

0
,
0

and

HOPS

1
,
−
1

are illuminated on the metadevices. The beams are fully resolved, and the reconstructed higher-order Stokes parameters show good agreement with the original ones. Taking the signal-to-noise ratio into account, the numerical simulations indicate that the design strategy can be extended to fully resolve arbitrary beams on HOPS with order up to 4. Because of the advantages of compact configuration and compatibility with current semiconductor technology, the metadevice will facilitate potential applications in information processing and optical communications.
Persistent thermal input controls steering behavior in Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Ikeda Muneki , Matsumoto Hirotaka , Izquierdo Eduardo J.
Published: January 2021

Motile organisms actively detect environmental signals and migrate to a preferable environment. Especially, small animals convert subtle spatial difference in sensory input into orientation behavioral output for directly steering toward a destination, but the neural mechanisms underlying steering behavior remain elusive. Here, we analyze a C. elegans thermotactic behavior in which a small number of neurons are shown to mediate steering toward a destination temperature. We construct a neuroanatomical model and use an evolutionary algorithm to find configurations of the model that reproduce empirical thermotactic behavior. We find that, in all the evolved models, steering curvature are modulated by temporally persistent thermal signals sensed beyond the time scale of sinusoidal locomotion of C. elegans. Persistent rise in temperature decreases steering curvature resulting in straight movement of model worms, whereas fall in temperature increases curvature resulting in crooked movement. This relation between temperature change and steering curvature reproduces the empirical thermotactic migration up thermal gradients and steering bias toward higher temperature. Further, spectrum decomposition of neural activities in model worms show that thermal signals are transmitted from a sensory neuron to motor neurons on the longer time scale than sinusoidal locomotion of C. elegans. Our results suggest that employments of temporally persistent sensory signals enable small animals to steer toward a destination in natural environment with variable, noisy, and subtle cues.
On the role of transcription in positioning nucleosomes
Authors: Jiang Zhongling , Zhang Bin
Published: January 2021

Nucleosome positioning is crucial for the genome’s function. Though the role of DNA sequence in positioning nucleosomes is well understood, a detailed mechanistic understanding on the impact of transcription remains lacking. Using numerical simulations, we investigated the dependence of nucleosome density profiles on transcription level across multiple species. We found that the low nucleosome affinity of yeast, but not mouse, promoters contributes to the formation of phased nucleosomes arrays for inactive genes. For the active genes, a heterogeneous distribution of +1 nucleosomes, caused by a tug-of-war between two types of remodeling enzymes, is essential for reproducing their density profiles. In particular, while positioning enzymes are known to remodel the +1 nucleosome and align it toward the transcription start site (TSS), spacer enzymes that use a pair of nucleosomes as their substrate can shift the nucleosome array away from the TSS. Competition between these enzymes results in two types of nucleosome density profiles with well- and ill-positioned +1 nucleosome. Finally, we showed that Pol II assisted histone exchange, if occurring at a fast speed, can abolish the impact of remodeling enzymes. By elucidating the role of individual factors, our study reconciles the seemingly conflicting results on the overall impact of transcription in positioning nucleosomes across species.
On the performance improvement of Butterfly Optimization approaches for global optimization and Feature Selection
Authors: Assiri Adel Saad
Published: January 2021

Butterfly Optimization Algorithm (BOA) is a recent metaheuristics algorithm that mimics the behavior of butterflies in mating and foraging. In this paper, three improved versions of BOA have been developed to prevent the original algorithm from getting trapped in local optima and have a good balance between exploration and exploitation abilities. In the first version, Opposition-Based Strategy has been embedded in BOA while in the second Chaotic Local Search has been embedded. Both strategies: Opposition-based & Chaotic Local Search have been integrated to get the most optimal/near-optimal results. The proposed versions are compared against original Butterfly Optimization Algorithm (BOA), Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO), Moth-flame Optimization (MFO), Particle warm Optimization (PSO), Sine Cosine Algorithm (SCA), and Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA) using CEC 2014 benchmark functions and 4 different real-world engineering problems namely: welded beam engineering design, tension/compression spring, pressure vessel design, and Speed reducer design problem. Furthermore, the proposed approches have been applied to feature selection problem using 5 UCI datasets. The results show the superiority of the third version (CLSOBBOA) in achieving the best results in terms of speed and accuracy.
Automatic clustering method to segment COVID-19 CT images
Authors: Abd Elaziz Mohamed , A. A. Al-qaness Mohammed , Abo Zaid Esraa Osama , Lu Songfeng , Ali Ibrahim Rehab , A. Ewees Ahmed
Published: January 2021

Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has infected more than ten million persons worldwide. Therefore, researchers are trying to address various aspects that may help in diagnosis this pneumonia. Image segmentation is a necessary pr-processing step that implemented in image analysis and classification applications. Therefore, in this study, our goal is to present an efficient image segmentation method for COVID-19 Computed Tomography (CT) images. The proposed image segmentation method depends on improving the density peaks clustering (DPC) using generalized extreme value (GEV) distribution. The DPC is faster than other clustering methods, and it provides more stable results. However, it is difficult to determine the optimal number of clustering centers automatically without visualization. So, GEV is used to determine the suitable threshold value to find the optimal number of clustering centers that lead to improving the segmentation process. The proposed model is applied for a set of twelve COVID-19 CT images. Also, it was compared with traditional k-means and DPC algorithms, and it has better performance using several measures, such as PSNR, SSIM, and Entropy.
A sound coding strategy based on a temporal masking model for cochlear implants
Authors: Kludt Eugen , Nogueira Waldo , Lenarz Thomas , Buechner Andreas
Published: January 2021

Auditory masking occurs when one sound is perceptually altered by the presence of another sound. Auditory masking in the frequency domain is known as simultaneous masking and in the time domain is known as temporal masking or non-simultaneous masking. This works presents a sound coding strategy that incorporates a temporal masking model to select the most relevant channels for stimulation in a cochlear implant (CI). A previous version of the strategy, termed psychoacoustic advanced combination encoder (PACE), only used a simultaneous masking model for the same purpose, for this reason the new strategy has been termed temporal-PACE (TPACE). We hypothesized that a sound coding strategy that focuses on stimulating the auditory nerve with pulses that are as masked as possible can improve speech intelligibility for CI users. The temporal masking model used within TPACE attenuates the simultaneous masking thresholds estimated by PACE over time. The attenuation is designed to fall exponentially with a strength determined by a single parameter, the temporal masking half-life T½. This parameter gives the time interval at which the simultaneous masking threshold is halved. The study group consisted of 24 postlingually deaf subjects with a minimum of six months experience after CI activation. A crossover design was used to compare four variants of the new temporal masking strategy TPACE (T½ ranging between 0.4 and 1.1 ms) with respect to the clinical MP3000 strategy, a commercial implementation of the PACE strategy, in two prospective, within-subject, repeated-measure experiments. The outcome measure was speech intelligibility in noise at 15 to 5 dB SNR. In two consecutive experiments, the TPACE with T½ of 0.5 ms obtained a speech performance increase of 11% and 10% with respect to the MP3000 (T½ = 0 ms), respectively. The improved speech test scores correlated with the clinical performance of the subjects: CI users with above-average outcome in their routine speech tests showed higher benefit with TPACE. It seems that the consideration of short-acting temporal masking can improve speech intelligibility in CI users. The half-live with the highest average speech perception benefit (0.5 ms) corresponds to time scales that are typical for neuronal refractory behavior.
Cohort research analysis of disaster experience, preparedness, and competency-based training among nurses
Authors: Goniewicz Krzysztof , Goniewicz Mariusz , Burkle Frederick M. , Khorram-Manesh Amir
Published: January 2021

Introduction

It is expected that in unforeseen situations, nurses will provide appropriate medical interventions, using their expertise and skills to reduce the risks associated with the consequences of disasters. Consequently, it is crucial that they are properly prepared to respond to such difficult circumstances. This study aimed to identify the factors influencing the basic competences of nurses in disasters.

Materials and methods

The survey was directed to 468 nurses from all medical centres in Lublin. IBM SPSS Statistics version 23 was used for statistical analyses, frequency analysis, basic descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis. The classical statistical significance level was adopted as α = 0.05.

Results

Based on the logistic regression analysis, it was found that work experience, workplace preparedness, as well as training and experience in disaster response are important predictors of preparedness.

Conclusions

These findings indicate that the nurses' core competencies for these incidents can be improved through education and training programmes which increase their preparedness for disasters. Nurses are among the most important groups of healthcare professionals facing a disaster and should be involved in all phases of disaster management, such as risk assessment and pre-disaster planning, response during crisis situations and risks’ mitigation throughout the reconstruction period.
Dynamics of the impact of COVID-19 on the economic activity of Peru
Authors: Varona Luis , Gonzales Jorge R.
Published: January 2021

Background

The COVID-19 virus impacts human health and the world economy, causing in Peru, more than 800 thousand infected and a strong recession expressed in a drop of -12% in its economic growth rate for 2020. In this context, the objective of the study is to analyze the dynamics of the short-term behavior of economic activity, as well as to explain the causal relationships in a Pandemic context based on the basic number of spread (Re) of COVID-19 per day.

Methods

An Autoregressive Distributed Lags (ARDL) model was used.

Results

A negative and statistically significant impact of the COVID-19 shock was found on the level of economic activity and a long-term Cointegration relationship with an error correction model (CEM), with the expected sign and statistically significant at 1%.

Conclusion

The Pandemic has behaved as a systemic shock of supply and aggregate demand at the macroeconomic level, which together have an impact on the recession or level of economic activity. The authors propose changing public health policy from an indiscriminate suppression strategy to a targeted, effective and intelligent mitigation strategy that minimizes the risk of human life costs and socioeconomic costs, in a context of uncertainty about the end of the Pandemic and complemented by economic, fiscal and monetary policies that mitigate the economic recession, considering the underlying structural characteristics of the Peruvian economy.
Reduced social distancing early in the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with antisocial behaviors in an online United States sample
Authors: O’Connell Katherine , Berluti Kathryn , Rhoads Shawn A. , Marsh Abigail A.
Published: January 2021

Antisocial behaviors cause harm, directly or indirectly, to others’ welfare. The novel coronavirus pandemic has increased the urgency of understanding a specific form of antisociality: behaviors that increase risk of disease transmission. Because disease transmission-linked behaviors tend to be interpreted and responded to differently than other antisocial behaviors, it is unclear whether general indices of antisociality predict contamination-relevant behaviors. In a pre-registered study using an online U.S. sample, we found that individuals reporting high levels of antisociality engage in fewer social distancing measures: they report leaving their homes more frequently (p = .024) and standing closer to others while outside (p < .001). These relationships were observed after controlling for sociodemographic variables, illness risk, and use of protective equipment. Independently, higher education and leaving home for work were also associated with reduced distancing behavior. Antisociality was not significantly associated with level of worry about the coronavirus. These findings suggest that more antisocial individuals may pose health risks to themselves and their community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Molecular analysis of blaSHV, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M in extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing Enterobacteriaceae recovered from fecal specimens of animals
Authors: Ejaz Hasan , Younas Sonia , Abosalif Khalid O. A. , Junaid Kashaf , Alzahrani Badr , Alsrhani Abdullah , Abdalla Abualgasim Elgaili , Ullah Muhammad Ikram , Qamar Muhammad Usman , Hamam Sanaa S. M.
Published: January 2021

Colonization of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae as animal gut microbiota is a substantial global threat. This study aimed to determine the molecular characterization of blaSHV, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M variants in animals, as well as to evaluate the antimicrobial resistance conferred by these genes. We prospectively analyzed 1273 fecal specimens of farm and domestic animals for the isolation of enterobacteria that had the ESBL phenotype by using biochemical methods. The extracted genes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction and sequenced for the characterization of blaSHV, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M variants. The drug-resistance spectrum and hierarchical clusters were analyzed against 19 antibacterial agents. Out of 245 (19.2%) ESBL enterobacteria, 180 (75.5%) Escherichia coli and 34 (13.9%) Klebsiella pneumoniae were prevalent species. A total of 73.9% blaCTX-M, 26.1% blaTEM, and 14.2% blaSHV were found among the enterobacteria; however, their association with farm or domestic animals was not statistically significant. The distribution of bla gene variants showed the highest number of blaCTX-M-1 (133; 54.3%), followed by blaCTX-M-15 (28; 11.4%), blaTEM-52 (40; 16.3%), and blaSHV-12 (22; 9%). In addition, 84.5% of the enterobacteria had the integrons intI1. We observed ±100% enterobacteria resistant to cephalosporin, 7 (2.9%) to colistin (minimum inhibitory concentration breakpoint ≥4 μg/mL), 9 (3.7%) to piperacillin-tazobactam, 11 (4.5%) to imipenem, 14 (5.7%) to meropenem, and 18 (7.3%) to cefoperazone-sulbactam, without statistically significant association. Animal gut microbiota contain a considerable number of blaCTX-M, blaTEM, blaSHV, and integrons, which are a potential source of acquired extensive drug resistance in human strains and leaves fewer therapeutic substitutes.
Cross-cultural adaptation of the Fresno Test for Turkish language
Authors: Cakmakkaya Ozlem Serpil , Bati Ayse Hilal , Kolodzie Kerstin
Published: January 2021

Objective

National and international medical organizations and boards have recognized the importance of Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) and emphasized that EBM training should be included in medical education programs. Although some Turkish medical schools have developed and implemented EBM training programs, no validated Turkish language assessment tool has been available to compare the effectiveness of these training programs to national or international standards. The aim of this study is to cross-culturally adapt the Fresno Test, which is a validated English language tool utilized worldwide in the assessment of EBM training.

Methods

This study is a cross-sectional validation study, which was performed in two stages: Cross-cultural adaptation of the Fresno Test into Turkish; and evaluation of the psychometric properties, validity, reliability and responsiveness, of the Turkish version of the Fresno Test.

Results

The content validity of the test was evaluated by experienced physicians in the field of Evidence-Based Medicine, and the content validity index was 1.00. The Cronbach α coefficient was 0.78 on the post-test results. The intraclass correlation (ICC) coefficient and the kappa analysis were calculated to evaluate inter-rater reliability. The ICC coefficients ranged from 0.66 to 0.97 for pre- and post-test results. The Kappa coefficients were 1.00 for all pre-test and post-test questions except one post-test question which was 0.89.

The change score of the Fresno Test was used to evaluate responsiveness. The students' score of the Turkish Fresno Test was 49.9 ±18.2 pre-training and 118.9 ±26.3 post-training with a change of 69 points (95% CI, 63.9–74.2). The Cohen’s effect size was 3.04 (95% CI, 2.6–3.5) indicating a very large change in scores.

Conclusions

The Turkish adapted Fresno Test used to evaluate students’ success and program effectiveness is a valid and reliable measurement tool. It will be of great benefit for the comparison of the effectiveness of Turkish education programs nationally and cross-culturally.
Metabolic reprogramming of the myeloid lineage by Schistosoma mansoni infection persists independently of antigen exposure
Authors: Cortes-Selva Diana , Gibbs Lisa , Maschek J. Alan , Nascimento Marcia , Van Ry Tyler , Cox James E. , Amiel Eyal , Fairfax Keke C.
Published: January 2021

Macrophages have a defined role in the pathogenesis of metabolic disease and cholesterol metabolism where alternative activation of macrophages is thought to be beneficial to both glucose and cholesterol metabolism during high fat diet induced disease. It is well established that helminth infection protects from metabolic disease, but the mechanisms underlying protection are not well understood. Here, we investigated the effects ofSchistosoma mansoniinfection and cytokine activation in the metabolic signatures of bone marrow derived macrophages using an approach that integrated transcriptomics, metabolomics, and lipidomics in a metabolic disease prone mouse model. We demonstrate that bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDM) fromS.mansoniinfected male ApoE-/-mice have dramatically increased mitochondrial respiration compared to those from uninfected mice. This change is associated with increased glucose and palmitate shuttling into TCA cycle intermediates, increased accumulation of free fatty acids, and decreased accumulation of cellular cholesterol esters, tri and diglycerides, and is dependent on mgll activity. Systemic injection of IL-4 complexes is unable to recapitulate either reductions in systemic glucose AUC or the re-programing of BMDM mitochondrial respiration seen in infected males. Importantly, the metabolic reprogramming of male myeloid cells is transferrable via bone marrow transplantation to an uninfected host, indicating maintenance of reprogramming in the absence of sustained antigen exposure. Finally, schistosome induced metabolic and bone marrow modulation is sex-dependent, with infection protecting male, but not female mice from glucose intolerance and obesity. Our findings identify a transferable, long-lasting sex-dependent reprograming of the metabolic signature of macrophages by helminth infection, providing key mechanistic insight into the factors regulating the beneficial roles of helminth infection in metabolic disease.
‘What is a mouth’: Joyce Wieland’s Pierre Vallières (1972) and the politics of the film portrait
Authors: Brunner Bettina
Published: January 2021

Focusing on Joyce Wieland’s film portrait Pierre Vallières (1972), this article follows the Canadian artist and filmmaker’s practice as it evolved through her engagement with the New York film avant-garde of the 1960s. Through an analysis of Wieland’s collaboration with Shirley Clarke, I will also discuss Pierre Vallières in relation to US-American documentary practices from the same period. Referring to Clarke’s Portrait of Jason (1967) with its focus on the spoken word as well as Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests, I will place Wieland’s film within this line of film portraits engaging with identity and a performative notion of subjectivity. Drawing on Gilles Deleuze, this article concludes with a close reading of Wieland’s film, discussing her use of the close-up as a means of thwarting the linear narrative and logic of its subject’s political speech. Pierre Vallières’ politics thus emerges within an aesthetics that crosses the boundaries of documentary and avant-garde, communicating with audiences beyond the film’s original context of French-Canadian emancipation.
Aboriginal Biocultural Knowledge in South-eastern Australia: Perspectives of Early Colonists. By Fred Cahir, Ian D. Clark, and Philip A. Clarke. 2018. Csiro Publishing, Clayton, Australia. 334 pp.
Authors: Svanberg Ingvar
Published: January 2021

N/A
Mechanical flexural properties of concrete with melt-extract stainless steel fibres
Authors: Lakusic Stjepan
Published: January 2021

An experimental study is performed to evaluate the effect of melt-extract stainless steel fibres on mechanical and flexural properties of concrete. A total of seventy-two specimens are used to determine an optimum fibre dosage and mechanical properties of plain and steel fibre reinforced concrete. Twelve full-scale beam specimens are then exposed to four-point bending tests. The effect of melt-extract stainless steel fibres on flexural behaviour of beams is quantified in this testing. A beam specimen is exposed to four-point bending, after being subjected to 15000 cycles of fatigue load. Pre- and post-fatigue flexural properties of beams with melt-extract steel fibres are compared and discussed.
A SWARA APPROACH FOR INVESTIGATING THE RISK AND INFOR-MATION PREFERENCES OF USERS OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION WHILE FORMING DECISIONS
Authors: CAGLE Melissa N. , YILMAZ Kevser , ÖZDAĞOĞLU Aşkın
Published: January 2021

Although the selection of accounting information sources has been investigated across finan-cial information user groups, few studies have explored the risk tolerance behavior of inves-tors and its influence on source selection. This is unfortunate as it is notably acknowledged that risk tolerance level plays an important role in the decision-making behavior of an indi-vidual. This study makes use of the Step-Wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA) approach, one of the newest criteria weight assessment method proposed for multi-criteria decision making. Twenty-four information sources (such as; financial reports, profit an-nouncements, company presentations and CSR reports etc.) usage are evaluated under SWARA. The sample is divided into; risk averse, neutral and seeking investors. The results of the study indicate that information source selection differs between risk groups.
Effects of Tourism Development on Land Use in the Coastal Area of Surabaya City
Authors: Sari Kartika Eka , Sari N
Published: January 2021

Surabaya is the capital city of East Java Province that develops coastal tourism activities. Based on Surabaya City RTRW for 2014-2034, the development of coastal tourism in Surabaya is in Bulak District. The district is designated as a development unit III of Tambak Wedi that directed as marine beach tourism. Kenjeran Tourism has a number of tourist destinations including Kenjeran Beach, THP Kenjeran, Kenjeran Park, Bulak Park, Surabaya Park, and Kenjeran Bridge.he development of coastal tourism resulted in many changes in land use and building’s function, mainly affecting the type of land use settlement because people tend to use the front of the house for trading activities and services. This study aims to determine the effect of tourism development on land use in the Kenjeran Area. This study uses overlay analysis and PLS (Partial Least Square) analysis. The results of this study found that tourism development variables affect land use change by 92.2%. Changes in land use are dominated by vacant land and supporting facilities for tourism activities such as trade and services, recreation, tourism, and green open space
Rumuńska terminologia religijna a podziały wyznaniowe
Authors: Klimkowski Tomasz
Published: January 2021

Artykuł przedstawia wybrane różnice terminologiczne między różnymi odłamami chrześcijaństwa występującymi na terenie Rumunii, głównie między większościowym w Rumunii prawosławiem a katolicyzmem obrządku greckiego (unici) i łacińskiego (rzymscy katolicy). Różnice te są najczęściej wynikiem świadomej polityki językowej obu odmian katolicyzmu oraz różnych denominacji protestanckich i neoprotestanckich. Przejawiają się one również w użyciu różnych form imienia ‘Jezus Chrystus’, funkcjonującego w trzech przynajmniej wersjach. Nawet w przypadku tych samych, wspólnych pojęć nowsze wyznania wprowadzają często odmienne terminy, na ogół neologizmy łacińsko-romańskie, aby w ten sposób odróżnić się również zewnętrznie i formalnie od prawosławia, stosującego terminologię głównie grecko-słowiańskiego pochodzenia.
O cesarzowych Cesarstwa Łacińskiego (1204–1261) (1). Maria hrabina Szampanii
Authors: Pentek Zdzisław
Published: January 2021

Artykuł jest pierwszym z planowanego cyklu „O cesarzowych Cesarstwa Łacińskiego (1204-1261)”. Ten jest poświęcony Marii hr. Szampani, która wyruszywszy na krucjatę, dotarła do Akki, i tam dowiedziała się o wyborze jej męża Baldwina hr. Flandrii na pierwszego cesarza łacińskiego. W tekście przybliżono jej życiorys i naświetlono udział w krucjatach jej krewnych.
Postać hospodara mołdawskiego Piotra Rareşa we współczesnej mu korespondencji dyplomatycznej
Authors: Niemczyk Katarzyna
Published: January 2021

Celem artykułu jest omówienie w jaki sposób hospodar mołdawski Piotr Rareş był przedstawiany w źródłach mu współczesnych, tak by móc ocenić, jak postrzegali hospodara władcy Europy i Turcji. Kolejno przeanalizowano źródła ukazujące stanowisko króla polskiego Zygmunta Starego, sułtana Sulejmana Wspaniałego, Ferdynanda Habsburga oraz Wenecjan wobec Piotra Rareşa. Z analizy źródeł wynika, że władcy mu współcześni odnosili się do hospodara z dużą dozą nieufności, podkreślali jego wiarołomność i nielojalność. Taka opinia zaważyła niewątpliwie na ostatecznej klęsce hospodara i braku poparcia którejkolwiek ze stron.
LES REPRÉSENTATIONS DE LA LANGUE FRANÇAISE CHEZ DES ÉLÈVES POLONOPHONES. QUEL IMPACT SUR LE CHOIX DE LA LANGUE ÉTRANGÈRE À L’ÉCOLE ?
Authors: Kucharczyk Radosław , Szymankiewicz Krystyna
Published: January 2021

The aim of our article is to present a study of representations of the French language among Polish high school students. Given the small percentage of pupils learning French as Foreign Language (FFL) in Poland compared to the European average (33.17% of middle school students and 23.0% of high school students in Europe against 3.3% of middle school students and 10.8% of high school students in Poland (Eurydice 2017, GUS 2018), we wondered about the role that impressions relating to French can play in the choice or rejection of FFL by young Poles. Before presenting our research results relating to this problem, we give a brief description of the Polish sociolinguistic and educational context, then we approach the notion of representation / image of languages. Next, we move to the description of the methodological framework of the empirical study that we conducted with Polish-speaking high school students (learners and non-learners in FFL) before presenting the discussion of the results. On the one hand, we examined the impressions relating to French (defined as linguistic, aesthetic, cultural, social and political phenomenon), on the other representations relating to its usefulness.
PROBLEMATYKA BADAŃ DOTYCZĄCYCH POSTAW WOBEC UCZENIA SIĘ JĘZYKÓW OBCYCH NA PRZYKŁADZIE JĘZYKA HISZPAŃSKIEGO
Authors: Spychała-Wawrzyniak Małgorzata
Published: January 2021

Attitudes, including beliefs, values, and motivation are within the scope of interest of numerous fields of study such as psychology, philosophy, sociology, and anthropology. In psychology, attitudes related to affective, cognitive and, in particular, behavioral reactions are studied. It is believed that attitudes do not only affect the behavior of the individual, but also their ways of evaluating specific actions. At the same time, empirical research in this area is extremely problematic and conditioned by many individual differences (e.g. age, gender, place of residence, personality traits, etc.). On the other hand, in glottodidactics, the common trend in this type of research is analysis of students' attitudes (including motivation) towards a foreign language and its culture(s). The purpose of the article is to briefly present the methodology of research on attitudes towards learning different languages. First, we review the concepts of attitudes, beliefs, values, and motivation from a psychological and didactic perspective. We also focus our attention on the types of attitude measurement used (which include motivation). Finally, we present some results of research conducted for the first time in Poland in the field of attitudes and motivation of secondary school students towards learning Spanish.
CZY KULTURA WŁASNA JEST POTRZEBNA DO ROZWIJANIA KOMPETENCJI (INTER)KULTUROWEJ? O UWZGLĘDNIANIU KULTURY OJCZYSTEJ W PROCESIE NAUCZANIA/UCZENIA SIĘ JĘZYKA OBCEGO
Authors: Waszau Anna
Published: January 2021

The purpose of the present article to reflect on the possibilities of developing (inter)cultural competence in the context  of glottodidactics by resorting to elements of the source culture, which helps to build (meta)cultural awareness. By analyzing  from a diachronic perspective, together with  some traditional approaches and modern concepts, it is shown that the evolution of glottodidactic models indicates the need to develop a reflective attitude which is built upon the (meta)cultural awareness. This progress, in turn, requires reflection on one’s cultural identity and on the system of one’s own culture which influences the socialization and enculturation processes. Therefore, awareness thus conceptualized can help in determining and understanding the organizational and generative principles of cultures, as well as their functioning and mechanisms.