bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A survey of water utilities’ digital transformation: drivers, impacts, and enabling technologies
Authors: Daniel Ivo , Ajami Newsha K. , Castelletti Andrea , Savic Dragan , Stewart Rodney A. , Cominola Andrea
Published: July 2023

Climate change and urbanization challenge utilities’ pursuit of water security worldwide. While water utilities are directly impacted by climate change, their operations also contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Digital technologies have proven effective in improving utilities’ operations, leading to a more sustainable urban water cycle. However, the global progress of digital water transformation remains largely understudied. Here, we present the results of an online survey involving 64 utilities from 28 countries investigating the impacts of digital transformation on the water utility sector, its drivers, and key-enabling technologies. We found that the water distribution system is the entry point to further adoption of digital technologies in the whole urban water cycle. Furthermore, technology adoption is driven primarily by economic benefits, followed by government regulation and hydroclimatic factors. Starting from the survey results, we point out avenues for further research targeting a better understanding of the influence of regulation, corporate mindset, and consumer involvement for successful digital transformation.
High-resolution gridded population datasets for Latin America and the Caribbean using official statistics
Authors: McKeen Tom , Bondarenko Maksym , Kerr David , Esch Thomas , Marconcini Mattia , Palacios-Lopez Daniela , Zeidler Julian , Valle R. Catalina , Juran Sabrina , Tatem Andrew J. , Sorichetta Alessandro
Published: July 2023

“Leaving no one behind” is the fundamental objective of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Latin America and the Caribbean is marked by social inequalities, whilst its total population is projected to increase to almost 760 million by 2050. In this context, contemporary and spatially detailed datasets that accurately capture the distribution of residential population are critical to appropriately inform and support environmental, health, and developmental applications at subnational levels. Existing datasets are under-utilised by governments due to the non-alignment with their own statistics. Therefore, official statistics at the finest level of administrative units available have been implemented to construct an open-access repository of high-resolution gridded population datasets for 40 countries in Latin American and the Caribbean. These datasets are detailed here, alongside the ‘top-down’ approach and methods to generate and validate them. Population distribution datasets for each country were created at a resolution of 3 arc-seconds (approximately 100 m at the equator), and are all available from the WorldPop Data Repository.
Application of error classification model using indices based on dose distribution for characteristics evaluation of multileaf collimator position errors
Authors: Sheen Heesoon , Shin Han-Back , Kim Hojae , Kim Changhwan , Kim Jihun , Kim Jin Sung , Hong Chae-Seon
Published: July 2023

This study aims to evaluate the specific characteristics of various multileaf collimator (MLC) position errors that are correlated with the indices using dose distribution. The dose distribution was investigated using the gamma, structural similarity, and dosiomics indices. Cases from the American Association of Physicists in Medicine Task Group 119 were planned, and systematic and random MLC position errors were simulated. The indices were obtained from distribution maps and statistically significant indices were selected. The final model was determined when all values of the area under the curve, accuracy, precision, sensitivity, and specificity were higher than 0.8 (p < 0.05). The dose–volume histogram (DVH) relative percentage difference between the error-free and error datasets was examined to investigate clinical relations. Seven multivariate predictive models were finalized. The common significant dosiomics indices (GLCM Energy and GLRLM_LRHGE) can characterize the MLC position error. In addition, the finalized logistic regression model for MLC position error prediction showed excellent performance with AUC > 0.9. Furthermore, the results of the DVH were related to dosiomics analysis in that it reflects the characteristics of the MLC position error. It was also shown that dosiomics analysis could provide important information on localized dose-distribution differences in addition to DVH information.
Nomogram for predicting the likelihood of liver metastases at initial diagnosis in patients with Siewert type II gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma
Authors: Zhang Min , Yang Wenwen , Yang Yanjiang , Cai Chengfeng , Zhao Dan , Han Biao
Published: July 2023

The liver is one of the most ordinary metastatic sites of gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma and significantly affects its prognosis. Therefore, this study tried to construct a nomogram that can be applied to predict the likelihood of liver metastases from gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma. 3001 eligible patients diagnosed with gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma between 2010 and 2015 in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database were involved in the analysis. Patients were randomly divided into a training cohort and an internal validation cohort using R software, with an allocation ratio of 7:3. According to the consequences of univariate and multivariate logistic regression, we constructed a nomogram for predicting the risk of liver metastases. The discrimination and calibration ability of the nomogram was appraised by the C-index, ROC curve, calibration plots, and decision curve analysis (DCA). We also used Kaplan–Meier survival curves to compare differences in overall survival in patients with gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with and without liver metastases. Liver metastases developed in 281 of 3001 eligible patients. The overall survival of patients with gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with liver metastases before and after propensity score matching (PSM) was obviously lower than that of patients without liver metastases. Six risk factors were finally recognized by multivariate logistic regression, and a nomogram was constructed. The C-index was 0.816 in the training cohort and 0.771 in the validation cohort, demonstrating the good predictive capacity of the nomogram. The ROC curve, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis further demonstrated the good performance of the predictive model. The nomogram can accurately predict the likelihood of liver metastases in gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma patients.
Phenotypic consequences of a nanophthalmos-associated TMEM98 variant in human and mouse
Authors: Hassall Mark M. , Javadiyan Shari , Klebe Sonja , Awadalla Mona S. , Sharma Shiwani , Qassim Ayub , White Melissa , Thomas Paul Q. , Craig Jamie E. , Siggs Owen M.
Published: July 2023

Nanophthalmos is characterised by shorter posterior and anterior segments of the eye, with a predisposition towards high hyperopia and primary angle-closure glaucoma. Variants in TMEM98 have been associated with autosomal dominant nanophthalmos in multiple kindreds, but definitive evidence for causation has been limited. Here we used CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis to recreate the human nanophthalmos-associated TMEM98 p.(Ala193Pro) variant in mice. The p.(Ala193Pro) variant was associated with ocular phenotypes in both mice and humans, with dominant inheritance in humans and recessive inheritance in mice. Unlike their human counterparts, p.(Ala193Pro) homozygous mutant mice had normal axial length, normal intraocular pressure, and structurally normal scleral collagen. However, in both homozygous mice and heterozygous humans, the p.(Ala193Pro) variant was associated with discrete white spots throughout the retinal fundus, with corresponding retinal folds on histology. This direct comparison of a TMEM98 variant in mouse and human suggests that certain nanophthalmos-associated phenotypes are not only a consequence of a smaller eye, but that TMEM98 may itself play a primary role in retinal and scleral structure and integrity.
Non-autonomous zinc–methylimidazole oscillator and the formation of layered precipitation structures in a hydrogel
Authors: Német Norbert , Lawson Hugh Shearer , Holló Gábor , Valletti Nadia , Rossi Federico , Schuszter Gábor , Lagzi István
Published: July 2023

Oscillations are one of the intrinsic features of many animate and inanimate systems. The oscillations manifest in the temporal periodic change of one or several physical quantities describing the systems. In chemistry and biology, this physical quantity is the concentration of the chemical species. In most chemical oscillatory systems operating in batch or open reactors, the oscillations persist because of the sophisticated chemical reaction networks incorporating autocatalysis and negative feedback. However, similar oscillations can be generated by periodically changing the environment providing non-autonomous oscillatory systems. Here we present a new strategy for designing a non-autonomous chemical oscillatory system for the zinc–methylimidazole. The oscillations manifested in the periodic change of the turbidity utilizing the precipitation reaction between the zinc ions and 2-methylimidazole (2-met) followed by a partial dissolution of the formed precipitate due to a synergetic effect governed by the ratio of the 2-met in the system. Extending our idea spatiotemporally, we also show that these precipitation and dissolution phenomena can be utilized to create layered precipitation structures in a solid agarose hydrogel.
Recurrence prediction in clear cell renal cell carcinoma using machine learning of quantitative nuclear features
Authors: Matsubara Shuya , Saito Akira , Tokuyama Naoto , Muraoka Ryu , Hashimoto Takeshi , Satake Naoya , Nagao Toshitaka , Kuroda Masahiko , Ohno Yoshio
Published: July 2023

The recurrence of non-metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) may occur early or late after surgery. This study aimed to develop a recurrence prediction machine learning model based on quantitative nuclear morphologic features of clear cell RCC (ccRCC). We investigated 131 ccRCC patients who underwent nephrectomy (T1-3N0M0). Forty had recurrence within 5 years and 22 between 5 and 10 years; thirty-seven were recurrence-free during 5–10 years and 32 were for more than 10 years. We extracted nuclear features from regions of interest (ROIs) using a digital pathology technique and used them to train 5- and 10-year Support Vector Machine models for recurrence prediction. The models predicted recurrence at 5/10 years after surgery with accuracies of 86.4%/74.1% for each ROI and 100%/100% for each case, respectively. By combining the two models, the accuracy of the recurrence prediction within 5 years was 100%. However, recurrence between 5 and 10 years was correctly predicted for only 5 of the 12 test cases. The machine learning models showed good accuracy for recurrence prediction within 5 years after surgery and may be useful for the design of follow-up protocols and patient selection for adjuvant therapy.
WormSwin: Instance segmentation of C. elegans using vision transformer
Authors: Deserno Maurice , Bozek Katarzyna
Published: July 2023

The possibility to extract motion of a single organism from video recordings at a large-scale provides means for the quantitative study of its behavior, both individual and collective. This task is particularly difficult for organisms that interact with one another, overlap, and occlude parts of their bodies in the recording. Here we propose WormSwin—an approach to extract single animal postures ofCaenorhabditis elegans(C. elegans) from recordings of many organisms in a single microscope well. Based on transformer neural network architecture our method segments individual worms across a range of videos and images generated in different labs. Our solutions offers accuracy of 0.990 average precision ($$\hbox {AP}_{0.50}$$AP0.50) and comparable results on the benchmark image dataset BBBC010. Finally, it allows to segment challenging overlapping postures of mating worms with an accuracy sufficient to track the organisms with a simple tracking heuristic. An accurate and efficient method forC. eleganssegmentation opens up new opportunities for studying of its behaviors previously inaccessible due to the difficulty in the worm extraction from the video frames.
Additive manufacturing in compact high-gain wideband antennas operating in mm-wave frequencies
Authors: Vaquero Álvaro F. , Rebollo Alejandro , Arrebola Manuel
Published: July 2023

A wideband dual-reflector 3D-printed antenna is proposed to operate in the mm-Wave band. The design is based on a Cassegrain reflector optics but including a dielectric piece for merging the feeding system and the support structure of the subreflector. The operational principle of this antenna is presented, as well as the design parameters. Then, a prototype to operate at Ka-band is manufactured combining a 3D-printed technique using PLA as printable material and a spray to coating the antenna, providing a low-cost affordable solution. The different pieces of the antenna are evaluated, and the antenna is also measured in a spherical compact range. An excellent agreement between simulations and measurements is obtained, resulting in a $$48.2\%$$

48.2
%

of operational bandwidth. These results validate the use of coating procedures and the design technique at these demanding frequencies. Its operation shows a stable gain in the entire Ka-band (including $$28$$

28

and $$39 \mathrm{GHz}$$

39
GHz

), which makes the antenna as a suitable light, low-cost, and broadband solution for mm-Wave applications.
ENSO-driven abrupt phase shift in North Atlantic oscillation in early January
Authors: Geng Xin , Zhao Jiuwei , Kug Jong-Seong
Published: July 2023

El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) teleconnections exhibit a strong dependency on seasonally and intraseasonally varying mean states, leading to impactful short-term variations in regional climate. The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)-ENSO relation is a typical example, in that its phase relationship reverses systematically between the early and late winter. Here based on observations and an ensemble of atmosphere-only climate model simulations, we reveal that this NAO phase reversal occurs synchronously in early January, showing strong abruptness. We demonstrate that this abrupt NAO phase reversal is caused by the change in ENSO-induced Rossby wave-propagating direction from northeastward to southeastward over the northeastern North American region, which is largely governed by a climatological alteration of the local jet meridional shear. We also provide evidence that the North Atlantic intrinsic eddy–low-frequency flow feedback further amplifies the NAO responses. This ENSO-related abrupt NAO change offers an avenue for intraseasonal climate forecasting in the Euro-Atlantic region.
Genome analysis of Parmales, the sister group of diatoms, reveals the evolutionary specialization of diatoms from phago-mixotrophs to photoautotrophs
Authors: Ban Hiroki , Sato Shinya , Yoshikawa Shinya , Yamada Kazumasa , Nakamura Yoji , Ichinomiya Mutsuo , Sato Naoki , Blanc-Mathieu Romain , Endo Hisashi , Kuwata Akira , Ogata Hiroyuki
Published: July 2023

The order Parmales (class Bolidophyceae) is a minor group of pico-sized eukaryotic marine phytoplankton that contains species with cells surrounded by silica plates. Previous studies revealed that Parmales is a member of ochrophytes and sister to diatoms (phylum Bacillariophyta), the most successful phytoplankton group in the modern ocean. Therefore, parmalean genomes can serve as a reference to elucidate both the evolutionary events that differentiated these two lineages and the genomic basis for the ecological success of diatoms vs. the more cryptic lifestyle of parmaleans. Here, we compare the genomes of eight parmaleans and five diatoms to explore their physiological and evolutionary differences. Parmaleans are predicted to be phago-mixotrophs. By contrast, diatoms have lost genes related to phagocytosis, indicating the ecological specialization from phago-mixotrophy to photoautotrophy in their early evolution. Furthermore, diatoms show significant enrichment in gene sets involved in nutrient uptake and metabolism, including iron and silica, in comparison with parmaleans. Overall, our results suggest a strong evolutionary link between the loss of phago-mixotrophy and specialization to a silicified photoautotrophic life stage early in diatom evolution after diverging from the Parmales lineage.
Current capabilities and future perspectives of FCS: super-resolution microscopy, machine learning, and in vivo applications
Authors: Sankaran Jagadish , Wohland Thorsten
Published: July 2023

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a single molecule sensitive tool for the quantitative measurement of biomolecular dynamics and interactions. Improvements in biology, computation, and detection technology enable real-time FCS experiments with multiplexed detection even in vivo. These new imaging modalities of FCS generate data at the rate of hundreds of MB/s requiring efficient data processing tools to extract information. Here, we briefly review FCS’s capabilities and limitations before discussing recent directions that address these limitations with a focus on imaging modalities of FCS, their combinations with super-resolution microscopy, new evaluation strategies, especially machine learning, and applications in vivo.
Order–order assembly transition-driven polyamines detection based on iron−sulfur complexes
Authors: Zhang Yahui , Zhao Xiangyu , Qin Yue , Li Xiaopei , Chang Yongxin , Shi Zhenqiang , Song Mengyuan , Sun Wenjing , Xiao Jie , Li Zan , Qing Guangyan
Published: July 2023

Innovative modes of response can greatly push forward chemical sensing processes and subsequently improve sensing performance. Classical chemical sensing modes seldom involve the transition of a delicate molecular assembly during the response. Here, we display a sensing mode for polyamine detection based on an order–order transition of iron–sulfur complexes upon their assembly. Strong validation proves that the unique order–order transition of the assemblies is the driving force of the response, in which the polyamine captures the metal ion of the iron–sulfur complex, leading it to decompose into a metal–polyamine product, accompanied by an order–order transition of the assemblies. This mechanism makes the detection process more intuitive and selective, and remarkably improves the detection efficiency, achieving excellent polyamines specificity, second-level response, convenient visual detection, and good recyclability of the sensing system. Furthermore, this paper also provides opportunities for the further application of the iron–sulfur platform in environment-related fields.
Ionic conductivity and disorder in calcium and barium nitrogen hydrogen phases
Authors: Irvine Gavin J. , Irvine John T. S.
Published: July 2023

The performance of the hydride ion conductor Ca2NH is negatively affected by the incorporation of secondary anion sites. BaH2 reacted with N2 at 650 °C producing barium imide which has good electronic properties up to a certain concentration.
A cross-linkable, organic down-converting material for white light emission from hybrid LEDs
Authors: Yang Hao , Bruckbauer Jochen , Kanibolotska Lyudmyla , Kanibolotsky Alexander L. , Cameron Joseph , Wallis David J. , Martin Robert W. , Skabara Peter J.
Published: July 2023

Cinnamate-functionalised organic green emissive molecules can be UV-cured to give physically stable polymer films for use in white light hybrid LEDs.
Increasing the redox switching capacity of Lindqvist-type hexavanadates by organogold post-functionalisation
Authors: Petrovskii Stanislav K. , Moors Marco , Schmitz Sebastian , Grachova Elena V. , Monakhov Kirill Yu.
Published: July 2023

The covalent attachment of organogold(i) moieties to the Lindqvist-type polyoxovanadate results in a measurable charge re-distribution across the formed Au–{V6}–Au linkages.
Chlorine-rich lithium argyrodite enables stable interfacial Li plating/stripping behavior in anode-free all-solid-state batteries
Authors: Gu Donghee , Kim Hyoungchul , Kim Byung-Kook , Lee Jong-Ho , Park Sangbaek
Published: July 2023

Reversible Li plating/stripping of anode-free all-solid-state batteries is enabled by the synergistic effect of superionic Li5.5PS4.5Cl1.5 and Li-alloying interlayer.
Stability of oxygen vacancies at metal/oxide interfaces
Authors: Zheng Xingwen , Yang Ying , Fang Changfeng , Liu Xiaohui
Published: July 2023

The influence of charge doping and work function on the formation of oxygen vacancies in metal and insulating perovskites SrTiO3 (STO) or a BaTiO3 (BTO) interface was investigated by first-principles calculations.
Synthesis of porous LaNiO3 thin films by chemical solution deposition for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction
Authors: Zhu Min , Sheng Zongqiang , Gao Juan , Li Yang , Zhang Chao , Zhu Xuebin
Published: July 2023

Porous LaNiO3 thin films, which are prepared by a facile chemical solution deposition method, exhibit an enhanced OER activity.
Catalyst-free mechanochemistry as a versatile tool in synthetic chemistry: a review
Authors: Naidu Bandameeda Ramesh , Sruthi Thondooru , Mitty Raghavender , Venkateswarlu Katta
Published: July 2023

This article presents a review of the reports on catalyst-free mechanochemical organic transformations and the ability to initiate reactions that are extremely difficult/impossible to occur is the notable advancement of mechanochemical process.
In situ infrared CO detection using silver loaded EMT zeolite films
Authors: Wang Yuda , He Haitao , Sun Jiao , Zhang Xinyao , Zulpya Mahmut , Zheng Xianhong , Xu Lin , Dong Biao
Published: July 2023

Ag-EMT nanozeolites-based in situ CO detection by oxidation of CO to CO2.
Broadband near unity absorption meta-structure for solar thermophotovoltaic systems and optical window applications
Authors: Soliman Md Mohiuddin , Islam Mohammad Tariqul , Alam Touhidul , Misran Norbahiah , Abdul Rahim Sharul Kamal , Alzamil Ahmed , Chowdhury Muhammad E. H. , Alshammari Ahmed S. , Alsaif Haitham , Soliman Mohamed S.
Published: July 2023

This research presents a four-layered (insulator–metal–insulator–metal) meta-structure unit cell that showed a peak absorbance of 99.99% at 288–300 nm and the average absorbance of 99.18% over the 250–2000 nm wavelength range.
Nanozyme: a rising star for cancer therapy
Authors: Wang Qingqing , Liu Jing , He Liangcan , Liu Shaoqin , Yang Piaoping
Published: July 2023

Tumor therapy by nanozymes.
Recent advances in interface engineering of thermoelectric nanomaterials
Authors: Lu Xiaoqing , Pan Guilong , Shi Zhan , Xu Biao , Lou Yue
Published: July 2023

Thermoelectric (TE) materials are auspicious candidates for direct thermal–electrical energy conversion applications.
MOFs meet membrane: application in water treatment and separation
Authors: Li Wenyang , Xu Piao , Wang Ziwei , He Yangzhuo , Qin Hong , Zeng Ying , Li Yicheng , Zhang Zhengyan , Gao Jing
Published: July 2023

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are solid crystalline materials formed by the self-assembly of organic ligands and metal ions or clusters. Combining the advantages of membrane separation and MOFs, MOFs-based membranes are used in water treatment.
A microfluidics vapor-membrane-valve generated by laser irradiation on carbon nanocoils
Authors: Liu Yuli , Li Chengwei , Zhao Ming , Shen Jian , Pan Lujun
Published: July 2023

The microfluidics vapor-membrane-valve generated by laser irradiation on carbon nanocoils can perform “close–reopen” cycles for microchannels on a microfluidic chip.
Efficient light-driven hydrogen evolution and azo dye degradation over the GdVO4@g-C3N4 heterostructure
Authors: Alharthi Fahad A. , El Marghany Adel , Abduh Naaser A. Y. , Hasan Imran
Published: July 2023

A straightforward hydrothermal technique was used for the synthesis of a g-C3N4/GdVO4 (CN/GdV) heterostructure as an alternate material for energy and environmental applications.
Bimetallic tandem catalysis-enabled enantioselective cycloisomerization/carbonyl–ene reaction for construction of 5-oxazoylmethyl α-silyl alcohol
Authors: Sang Xinpeng , Mo Yuhao , Li Shiya , Liu Xiaohua , Cao Weidi , Feng Xiaoming
Published: July 2023

A bimetallic tandem catalysis-enabled enantioselective cycloisomerization/carbonyl–ene reaction was developed.
Modification of Ti3C2Tx MXene with hyperbranched polyethylene ionomers: stable dispersions in nonpolar/low-polarity organic solvents, oxidation protection, and potential application in supercapacitors
Authors: Raisi Bahareh , Huang Lingqi , Ye Zhibin
Published: July 2023

Hydrophilic MXene nanosheets are intercalated with hydrophobic hyperbranched polyethylene ionomers containing quaternary ammonium ions to render ionomer-modified multi- or few-layer MXene sheets with marked changed physiochemical properties.
High thermoelectric performance in XAgSe2 (X = Sc, Y) from strong quartic anharmonicity and multi-valley band structure
Authors: Song Xuhao , Zhao Yinchang , Ni Jun , Meng Sheng , Dai Zhenhong
Published: July 2023

The thermal transport and thermoelectric characteristics of the chalcogenide XAgSe2 (X = Sc, Y) are comprehensively investigated through first-principles calculations.
Silvanite AuAgTe4: a rare case of gold superconducting material
Authors: Amiel Yehezkel , Kafle Gyanu P. , Komleva Evgenia V. , Greenberg Eran , Ponosov Yuri S. , Chariton Stella , Lavina Barbara , Zhang Dongzhou , Palevski Alexander , Ushakov Alexey V. , Mori Hitoshi , Khomskii Daniel I. , Mazin Igor I. , Streltsov Sergey V. , Margine Elena R. , Rozenberg Gregory Kh.
Published: July 2023

Gold is one of the most inert metals, forming very few compounds, and only a few of them are currently known to be superconducting. Here we have found yet another chemical compound of gold (and silver) that is superconducting.
Robust control for affine nonlinear system with unknown time‐varying uncertainty under reinforcement learning framework
Authors: Guo Wenxin , Qin Weiwei , Hu Chen , Liu Jieyu
Published: July 2023

This paper investigates the adaptive robust control problem based on reinforcement learning for an affine nonlinear system with unknown time‐varying uncertainty. Inspired by the ability to estimate uncertainty of neural network, a novel policy iteration algorithm is proposed which alternates between the value evaluation, uncertainty estimation, and policy update steps until the adaptive robust control law is obtained. Especially during the step of uncertainty estimation, the unknown time‐varying uncertainty is approximated by a radial basis function neural network and introduce it into the reinforcement learning framework. By designing an appropriate utility function, the algorithm improves both convergence rate and final approximate error comparing with existing reinforcement learning algorithm. The Lyapunov stability theorem provides theoretical demonstrations of the stability and convergence. Furthermore, the uniformly ultimately bounded stability of the affine nonlinear system is demonstrated with unknown time‐varying uncertainty. Finally, the performance of the proposed algorithm is demonstrated through a torsion pendulum system.
Design of variable frequency dual transponder system for fixed point ranging
Authors: Xiaoxu Guo , Zhaobin Xu , Jiacheng Dai , Zhonghe Jin
Published: July 2023

Aiming at the problems of high system cost, complex ranging process, low ranging accuracy, and limited measurement distance in commonly used methods for ground fixed point distance measurement journals, a variable frequency microwave ranging system based on a dual transponder architecture is proposed in this letter. The system uses carrier dual transponder as an active forwarding architecture, utilizing the digital phase‐locked loop to obtain the high‐precision phase difference between two signals, and resolving the ambiguity through microwave frequency sweep within a certain range. The simulation results show that the system can quickly obtain the unambiguous distance between two fixed points, besides, driven by a high‐stability crystal oscillator, submillimetre accuracy can be achieved in km‐level ranging.
Contextual information extraction in brain tumour segmentation
Authors: Zia Muhammad Sultan , Baig Usman Ali , Rehman Zaka Ur , Yaqub Muhammad , Ahmed Shahzad , Zhang Yudong , Wang Shuihua , Khan Rizwan
Published: July 2023

Automatic brain tumour segmentation in MRI scans aims to separate the brain tumour's endoscopic core, edema, non‐enhancing tumour core, peritumoral edema, and enhancing tumour core from three‐dimensional MR voxels. Due to the wide range of brain tumour intensity, shape, location, and size, it is challenging to segment these regions automatically. UNet is the prime three‐dimensional CNN network performance source for medical imaging applications like brain tumour segmentation. This research proposes a context aware 3D ARDUNet (Attentional Residual Dropout UNet) network, a modified version of UNet to take advantage of the ResNet and soft attention. A novel residual dropout block (RDB) is implemented in the analytical encoder path to replace traditional UNet convolutional blocks to extract more contextual information. A unique Attentional Residual Dropout Block (ARDB) in the decoder path utilizes skip connections and attention gates to retrieve local and global contextual information. The attention gate enabled the Network to focus on the relevant part of the input image and suppress irrelevant details. Finally, the proposed Network assessed BRATS2018, BRATS2019, and BRATS2020 to some best‐in‐class segmentation approaches. The proposed Network achieved dice scores of 0.90, 0.92, and 0.93 for the whole tumour. On BRATS2018, BRATS2019, and BRATS2020, tumour core is 0.90, 0.92, 0.93, and enhancing tumour is 0.92, 0.93, 0.94.
Demand‐side price‐responsive flexibility and baseline estimation through end‐to‐end learning
Authors: Shi Yuanyuan , Xu Bolun
Published: July 2023

Time‐varying electricity tariffs provide consumers the flexibility to adjust their consumption patterns in response to price variations to reduce the cost of electricity while at the same time contributing to grid operation. As more homes and buildings utilize time‐varying tariffs, utilities and regulators must seek ways to model demand‐side flexibilities to predict future demands and design new incentives. This paper proposes a novel end‐to‐end deep learning framework that simultaneously identifies demand baselines and the price‐response model from the net demand measurements and price signals. A gradient‐descent approach is then proposed that backpropagates the net demand forecast errors to update the weights of the price‐response model and the weights of the baseline demand forecast jointly. The effectiveness of the approach is demonstrated through computation experiments with synthetic demand response traces and a large‐scale real‐world DR dataset. The results show that the approach accurately identifies the DR model, even without prior knowledge about the baseline demand.
Proposed ethical framework for software requirements engineering
Authors: Biable Seblewongel E. , Garcia Nuno M. , Midekso Dida
Published: July 2023

Requirements engineering is a fundamental process in software development phases. At the same time, it is a difficult phase and exposed many ethical violations. The main purpose is proposing an ethical framework for software requirements engineering that addresses the identified concerns. These concerns include problems associated with a knowledge gap, requirements identification, quality‐related concerns, unwillingness to give requirements, and practicing forbidden activities. These concerns are grouped into a category as the proposed framework components. Each of the categories encompasses more than one problem domain. The proposed framework suggests resolving mechanisms as collections of clauses for each of those concerns. An expert evaluation technique is used to validate the proposed framework. The experts are purposefully selected from software industries and institutions. Questionnaires and focus group discussions were used as data‐gathering tools for the validation of the proposed framework. The validity (face validity, content validity, and construct validity) and the reliability of the proposed framework were checked. The evaluation results show that the proposed framework has an acceptable range of validity and reliability. The proposed framework can be used as a guideline for software engineers to minimise the occurrence of those identified concerns during the requirements engineering process.
An overdensity of Lyman break galaxies around the hot dust-obscured galaxy WISE J224607.56−052634.9
Authors: Zewdie Dejene , Assef Roberto J. , Mazzucchelli Chiara , Aravena Manuel , Blain Andrew W. , Díaz-Santos Tanio , Eisenhardt Peter R. M. , Jun Hyunsung D. , Stern Daniel , Tsai Chao-Wei , Wu Jingwen W.
Published: July 2023

We report the identification of Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates around the most luminous hot dust-Obscured galaxy (Hot DOG) known, WISE J224607.56−052634.9 (W2246−0526) at z = 4.601, using deep r-, i-, and z-band imaging from the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph South (GMOS-S). We used the surface density of LBGs to probe the megaparsec-scale environment of W2246−0526 to characterize its richness and evolutionary state. We identified LBG candidates in the vicinity of W2246−0526 using the selection criteria developed in the Subaru Deep Field and in the Subaru XMM-Newton Deep Field, slightly modified to account for the difference between the filters used, and we find 37 and 55 LBG candidates, respectively. Matching to the z-band depths of those studies, this corresponds to δ = 5.8−1.9+2.4 times the surface density of LBGs expected in the field. Interestingly, the Hot DOG itself, as well as a confirmed neighbor, do not satisfy either LBG selection criteria, suggesting we may be missing a large number of companion galaxies. Our analysis shows that we have mostly likely only found those with a higher than average intergalactic medium (IGM) optical depth or moderately high dust obscuration. The number density of LBG candidates is not concentrated around W2246−0526, suggesting an early evolutionary stage for the proto-cluster, that the Hot DOG may not be the most massive galaxy, or that the Hot DOG may be affecting the IGM transparency in its vicinity. The overdensity around W2246−0526 is comparable to overdensities found around other Hot DOGs and is somewhat higher than what is typically found for radio galaxies and luminous quasars at a similar redshift.
Spatiotemporal structure of narrow-barred Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus commerson) from the Red Sea and western Indian Ocean based on otolith micro-chemistry
Authors: Sougueh Mohamed A. , Labonne Maylis , Daher Abdourahman , Ali Ahmed , Kaplan David M.
Published: July 2023

Though the narrow-barred Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus commerson) is considered to be migratory, the species is nevertheless thought to be locally overexploited in the northwest Indian Ocean. At the regional level, this local depletion is a major concern for food security. As the population structure and connectivity between sub-populations are poorly understood for this species, we examined the spatio-temporal dynamics of narrow-barred Spanish mackerel via elemental concentrations (P, Mg, Sr and Ba) along otolith transects using LA-ICPMS for samples from 6 sites: Egypt, Djibouti North and South, Somalia, Mozambique and South Africa. For homogeneous size class samples (70–90 cm), otolith chemical signatures immediately preceding capture were used to accurately group individuals sharing a spatial proximity and/or season of capture. Notable differences in otolith edge signatures were found among individuals from north and south of the equator and contrasting cluster compositions from nearby sites in the Gulf of Aden of individuals captured in summer versus winter. Otolith core chemistry identified two spawning chemical compositions. The first common composition was characterized by relatively high concentrations of Sr and lower concentrations of P, Ba and Mg. The second less common spawning chemical composition was particularly rich in P, Ba and Mg and corresponded primarily to individuals caught off Mozambique, Somalia and Djibouti. These results are broadly consistent on one hand with patterns of water mass circulation in the Red Sea and western Indian Ocean and on the other hand with the observed spawning seasons. Though further research using, for example, archival tagging is needed to clarify the mechanisms behind these patterns, these results reveal the potential of otolith chemistry to provide insights into the spatio-temporal dynamics of narrow-barred Spanish mackerel.
Development of an Ishikawa diagram for the occurrence of extremely high sea levels
Authors: Gotal Dmitrovic Lovorka , Cerepinko Darijo , Jozic Nikola
Published: July 2023

A little more than 10,000 years ago, the so-called ice age, with the average temperature of the Earth about 10°lower than today. After the ice age, there was an increase in temperature and the melting of glaciers, and in the last 1,000 years the temperature trend has been slightly negative. The exception is the last 100 years, when there is a sudden increase in air temperature due to the increased emission of greenhouse gases of anthropogenic origin. The increase in temperature in the last hundred years was about 1°. Of co urse, these changes have an impact on the dynamics of the ocean, and a particular problem is the global rise in sea level. In the paper, an Ishikawa diagram was developed that analyzes the impacts of sea level rise. As the main causes of sea level change, both in time and in space, are included: tidal oscillations, meteorologically caused sea level changes, and changes on a seasonal and multi-year time scale. Each of these main causes is explained and sub-causes are found using the laws of physical chemistry and thermodynamics. Sub-causes have been identified that can be influenced most easily and quickly, acting preventively to save densely populated areas.
Preliminary study of natural fibers with various treatment processes on properties of fiber-reinforced cement
Authors: Siriput Piroon , Suwan Teewara , Thongchua Hemwadee , Thongchua Gunamon , Thammapradit Yanisa , Jitsakulchok Sarach
Published: July 2023

Natural fiber has remarkable engineering properties, especially tensile strength. It can be used as a fiber reinforcement in cement composites with some environmentally friendly with economic advantages. Recycling of natural wastes could reduce PM 2.5 pollution during the burning season. However, those natural fibers require any pre-treatment processes to achieve more bonding ability with the cement matrix. The main aim of this study is to investigate the effects of various pre-treatment processes on the properties of fiber-reinforced cement. This test used rice straw and hemp fibers to represent the natural fibers. The results show that even the presence of natural fiber causes density and mechanical strength reductions, the elasticity through the deflection test is evidently increased up to 40.5%. All tested pre-treatment processes, i.e., using NaOH, HCl, and boiled in water, provided quite similar results in density and mechanical properties. The usage of NaOH seems to achieve good properties with reasonable price and simple preparation method. Moreover, applying less NaOH concentration or alternative non-chemical method (i.e., boiled water) could provide acceptable results with much less environmental impacts and costs.
Experimental approach of producing biogas from fallen leaves with co-digestion
Authors: Khaled Mainuddin , Kamal Gias , Ahmed Porosh Kawsar , Mashfy Mohammad Muhtasim , Rahman Hamidur
Published: July 2023

The present study assessed the feasibility of producing biogas from fallen tree leaves. This study provides valuable insights into utilizing locally available organic waste materials for biogas production and contributes to developing sustainable biogas systems. Four species of tree leaves, namely Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), Mango (Mangifera indica), Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), and Teak (Tectona grandis) were selected for this experiment. The study employed co-digestion as a strategy, with cow-dung (Bos taurus) at 1% (w/v) added to the leaf mixture. Urea was used to control the pH of the mix, and the experiment was conducted in 2-litre digester bottles. The results revealed that the biogas yield from the tree leaves was highly dependent on the species used. Teak leaves had the highest methane yield at 64.3%, followed by Jackfruit leaves at 62.2%, and the lowest yield was observed from Mango leaves. Adding of cow-dung to the mixture of tree leaves enabled the biogas yield, confirming the significance of co-digestion for biogas production. The study also found that pH control was crucial in optimizing biogas yield, with urea effectively maintaining the pH within the desired range of 5.5 to 7.3.
Investigation of the electrochemical properties of a propylene carbonate-derived SEI in an ethylene carbonate-based solution
Authors: Lee Sangyup , Jeong Soon-Ki
Published: July 2023

Herein, we aim to explore and analyze the influence of electrolytes on the creation of a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) within ethylene carbonate (EC) and propylene carbonate (PC)-based electrolyte solutions. Our investigation reveals that despite variations in the charge consumption during SEI formation, a comparable SEI is generated in a high-concentration PC-based electrolyte as observed in an EC-based electrolyte. However, it is noteworthy that the SEI originating from the PC-based electrolyte exhibits a significantly higher resistance to lithium ion transport when compared to the SEI formed from the EC-based electrolyte. Moreover, an increase in the charge transfer resistance at the graphite/electrolyte interface is observed in the PC-based electrolyte. These significant findings strongly imply that the choice of electrolyte solvent is a critical factor that must be taken into consideration in order to achieve the formation of an effective SEI.
Study on energy conservation in experimental facilities by changing users’ behavior
Authors: Hane Yuho , Nagaya Taiki , Wakisaka Fumiya , Sano Kyosuke , Matsui Yasuto
Published: July 2023

In 2021, Japan announced its aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 46% in FY2030 than in FY2013, and universities were expected to contribute to the conservation of energy. The current study focused on ventilation systems in laboratories, which are among the most energy-intensive areas in universities, with the aim of reducing overall electricity consumption. The amount of electricity consumed by the draft chamber in a laboratory was determined based on the chamber opening. Result confirmed that the amount of electricity consumed by the 12 draft chambers to be 63,263 kWh/year. Using the relationship between chamber opening degree and power consumption by air conditioners and exhaust fans, we implemented a method to induce users of the draft chamber to take action toward controlling the chamber opening degree, using real-time information on chamber opening degree. A screen was set up to provide information to draft-chamber users in the laboratory using real-time monitors, and the induction of behavior was investigated over a 5-week period. Results confirmed that information displayed on the tablet device indeed reduced the chamber opening, the reduction rate being 21–48% compared to that before the information was displayed.
Digital transformation and digital literacy in the context of complexity within higher education institutions: a systematic literature review
Authors: Farias-Gaytan Silvia , Aguaded Ignacio , Ramirez-Montoya Maria-Soledad
Published: July 2023

The incessant changes in technology generate new products and services, presenting multiple opportunities for the complex educational environment. Consequently, higher education institutions must be attentive to these changes to ensure that students have the knowledge and skills necessary for the work environment. This research aimed to identify studies related to digital transformation and digital literacy in higher education institutions through a systematic study of literature. The search resulted in 830 articles published in the Scopus and Web of Science databases from 2015 to 2022. Quality questions, inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied where 202 articles were selected for the study. The results show (a) interest of educational institutions in empirical studies where technologies are incorporated for didactic purposes, (b) challenges of opportunity in training programs to develop digital competences of teachers and students, (c) little interest in the development of media literacy, (d) the methodological aspects of the studies allow exploring new perspectives of digital transformation in higher education. This article may be of interest to academics, decision-makers and trainers of future professionals to introduce educational technology into learning processes in line with the complex demands of the world of work and society.
Eye in outer space: satellite imageries of container ports can predict world stock returns
Authors: Yu Honghai , Hao Xianfeng , Wu Liangyu , Zhao Yuqi , Wang Yudong
Published: July 2023

Forecasting stock returns is challenging. Traditional economic data that are available to all investors are published with lags and suffer from the problem of frequent revisions. Consequently, they often fail to forecast stock returns. For this reason, investors are increasingly interested in seeking alternative data. This paper forecasts stock returns using satellite-based information on shipping containers, which can capture economic activity in real-time. The container coverage area in each port is identified from 83,672 satellite images via the U-Net method and used as a proxy for the number of containers. Forecast combination over univariate predictive regression is used to generate return forecasts. The results indicate that the number of containers in ports can significantly predict stock index returns in 27 out of 33 countries at a daily frequency for the 2019–2021 period. An investor making use of satellite data on marine ports can, on average, receive an annualized return of 16.38%. The predictability can be explained by the predictive relationship between port container numbers and economic activity. In future studies, satellite data can be applied to monitor and forecast other economic indicators.
Design of a beam line for simultaneous dual-beam ion implantation
Authors: Cai Shixian , Wang Kedong , Huang Wei , Wang Kai , Easton Matthew J. , Li Jie , Zhang Caijie , Zhu Tingru , Wang Hao , Ge Huilin , Xie Xicheng , Lan Haoyang , Li Yingjie , Wei Guohui , Zhu Kun , Yan Xueqing
Published: July 2023

For over 50 years, various ion beam facilities have been utilized to simulate the irradiation effect of neutrons on relevant nuclear materials. However, due to the limitation of single ion beam irradiation, the injection of H2+ and He+ into the sample coaxially is necessary to observe the synergy of hydrogen and helium displacement damage. This study presents a beam line design that is capable of separating ions with different charge mass ratios, screening out unwanted particles, and finally combining the separated beams again. Through this design, H+, H2+, and He+ beams can be completely separated with an axis deviation of less than 0.5 mm after beam combination. Furthermore, the proportion of H2+ and He+ can be adjusted by regulating the inlet air of the ion source, down to the accuracy of a single ion. An accelerating tube is employed to adjust the energy of implanted ions within 10–50 keV. This device also has the capability to efficiently transmit a single type of ion while filtering out extraneous ions (such as O+ beam). The fine-beam optical design not only makes it easy to adjust beam parameters but also eliminates the need for a high-precision power supply. The goal of this work is to have an analytical tool to understand the effect of each electromagnetic component on the ion trajectories.