bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Efficacy of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299 and 299v against nosocomial oropharyngeal pathogens in vitro and as an oral prophylactic treatment in a randomized, controlled clinical trial
Authors: Tranberg Anna , Klarin Bengt , Johansson Julia , Påhlman Lisa I.
Published: December 2020

Background

Disturbance in the oropharyngeal microbiota is common in hospitalized patients and contributes to the development of nosocomial pneumonia. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299 and 299v (Lp299 and Lp299v) are probiotic bacteria with beneficial effects on the human microbiome.

Aim

To investigate how Lp299 and Lp299v affect the growth of nosocomial oropharyngeal pathogens in vitro and to evaluate the efficacy in vivo when these probiotics are administered prophylactically in hospitalized patients.

Methods

The in vitro effect of Lp299 and Lp299v on nosocomial respiratory tract pathogens was evaluated using two methods, the co‐culture and agar overlay. In the clinical study, patients were randomized to orally receive either probiotics or placebo twice daily during their hospital stay. Oropharyngeal swabs were analyzed at inclusion and every fourth day throughout hospitalization.

Findings

All tested pathogens were completely inhibited by both Lp299 and Lp299v using the agar‐overlay method. In the co‐culture experiment, Lp299 and Lp299v significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the growth of all pathogens except for Enterococcus faecalis co‐incubated with Lp299. In the clinical study, daily oral treatment with Lp299 and Lp299v did not influence the development of disturbed oropharyngeal microbiota or nosocomial infection. Proton pump inhibitors, antibiotics, and steroid treatment were identified as risk factors for developing disturbed oropharyngeal microbiota.

Conclusions

Lp299 and Lp299v inhibited pathogen growth in vitro but did not affect the oropharyngeal microbiota in vivo. The ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier for this study is NCT02303301.
A quest of G‐continuity in neutrosophic spaces
Authors: Açikgöz Ahu , Çakallı H. , Esenbel Ferhat , Kočinac Ljubiša D. R.
Published: December 2020

Continuity, in particular sequential continuity, is an important subject of investigation not only in topology but also in some other branches of mathematics. Connor and Grosse‐Erdmann remodelled its definition for real functions by replacing lim with an arbitrary linear functional G defined on a linear subspace of the vector space of all real sequences. Then, this definition was extended to a topological group X by replacing a linear functional G with an arbitrary additive function defined on a subgroup of the group of all X‐valued sequences. Also, some new theorems in generalized setting were given, and some other theorems that had not been obtained for real functions were presented. In this study, we introduce neutrosophic G‐continuity and investigate its properties in neutrosophic topological spaces.
Weight loss with or without intragastric balloon causes divergent effects on ghrelin cell expression
Authors: Mathus‐Vliegen Elisabeth , Spångeus Anna , Walter Susanna , Ericson Ann‐Charlott
Published: December 2020

Objective

The mechanism of action of intragastric balloons in the treatment of obesity is not fully understood. One of the hypotheses is that balloons might have an effect on the fundus, the area of ghrelin production.

Methods

Participants were randomized to a 13‐week period of sham or balloon treatment followed by a 13‐week period of balloon therapy in everyone. Blood samples for ghrelin levels were taken in the fasting state and after a breakfast at the start, after 13 and 26 weeks. Biopsies for ghrelin cell immunohistochemistry were taken from the fundus at endoscopy.

Results

Seven participants entered the balloon–balloon (BB) group and 11 the sham–balloon (SB) group. Despite a considerable weight loss, a median −17.9 kg (interquartile ranges −23.8 to −0.5) in the BB group and −18.3 kg (−22.7 to −14.7) in the SB group, fasting ghrelin and meal‐induced ghrelin response did not change. In the SB group, the number of ghrelin cells increased significantly (p 0.001) from 110.6 (83.6–118.9) to 160.2 (128.5–223.0) while on sham treatment and returned to initial levels, 116.3 (91.7–146.9) (p 0.001), when they received their first balloon. No significant changes in ghrelin cell numbers were observed in the BB group.

Conclusion

In participants without a balloon, weight loss induced an increase in ghrelin cell numbers in the fundus, which was annulled by the subsequent placement of a balloon. The effect of a balloon might be explained by effects on ghrelin cell numbers or ghrelin cell activity.
Prenatal biochemical diagnosis of two forms of congenital diarrheal disorders (congenital chloride diarrhea and congenital sodium diarrhea): A series of 12 cases
Authors: Macraigne Laure , Allaf Bichr , Buffat Christophe , Spaggiari Emmanuel , Dimitrov Georges , Fabre Alexandre , Rosenblatt Jonathan , Dreux Sophie
Published: December 2020

Objective

Congenital diarrheal disorders (CDDs) are a group of rare diseases among which some present as inherited disorders of intestinal electrolyte transportation: congenital chloride diarrhea (CCD) and congenital sodium diarrhea (CSD) with prenatal manifestations, mainly polyhydramnios, leading to premature delivery. Affected neonates present with watery stools, sometimes mistaken as urine, leading to a misdiagnosis of Bartter syndrome. The aim of this study was to study the value of a prenatal biochemical pattern in the case of suspected CDD.

Methods

We retrospectively studied 12 amniotic fluids of CDD‐affected fetuses prenatally suspected and confirmed after birth. Digestive enzymes, proteins, and electrolytes were assayed and showed abnormal biochemical patterns.

Results

The 12 infants (eight CCD‐ and four CSD‐affected) were born prematurely with a normal birth weight. Electrolytes and the Bartter index were normal for all cases. Amniotic fluid enzyme patterns were abnormal: anal leakage for nine, as expected, but vomiting of bile was observed for three infants, for whom an occlusive syndrome required surgery, and thereafter severe complications appeared with a poor prognosis.

Conclusion

Amniotic fluid biochemical patterns differentiate CDD from Bartter syndrome. If a vomiting bile pattern is observed, postnatal management should take into account the hypothesis of a most severe complication.
A network to understand the changing socio‐ecology of the southern African woodlands (SEOSAW): Challenges, benefits, and methods
Authors:   The SEOSAW partnership
Published: December 2020

Societal Impact Statement

The sustainable management of the southern African woodlands is closely linked to the livelihoods of over 150 M people. Findings from the Socio‐Ecological Observatory for the Southern African Woodlands (SEOSAW) will underpin the sustainability of two of the largest industries on the continent: woodfuels and timber. SEOSAW will also improve our understanding of how human use shapes the biogeography and functioning of these ecosystems.

Here we describe a new network of researchers and long‐term,in situ, measurements that will characterize the changing socio‐ecology of the woodlands of southern Africa. These woodlands encompass the largest savanna in the world, but are chronically understudied, with few long‐term measurements.

A network of permanent sample plots (PSPs) is required to: (a) address management issues, particularly related to sustainable harvesting for energy and timber; (b) understand how the woodlands are responding to a range of global and local drivers, such as climate change, CO2fertilization, and harvesting; and (c) answer basic questions about biogeography, ecosystem function, and the role humans play in shaping the ecology of the region.

We draw on other successful networks of PSPs and adapt their methods to the specific challenges of working in southern African woodlands. In particular we suggest divergences from established forest monitoring protocols that are needed to (a) adapt to a high level of ecosystem structural diversity (from open savanna to dry forest); (b) quantify the chronic disturbances by people, fire, and herbivores; (c) quantify the diversity and function of the understory of grasses, forbs, and shrubs; (d) understand the life histories of resprouting trees; and (e) conduct work in highly utilized, human‐dominated landscapes.

We conclude by discussing how the SEOSAW network will integrate with remote sensing and modeling approaches. Throughout, we highlight the challenges inherent to integrating work by forest and savanna ecologists, and the wide range of skills needed to fully understand the socio‐ecology of the southern African woodlands.
Long cycle of random permutations with polynomially growing cycle weights
Authors: Zeindler Dirk
Published: December 2020

We study random permutations ofnobjects with respect to multiplicative measures with polynomial growing cycle weights. We determine in this paper the asymptotic behavior of the long cycles under this measure and also prove that the cumulative cycle numbers converge in the region of the long cycles to a Poisson process.
The structure and resistance characteristic of reduced graphene oxide paper under atomic oxygen exposure
Authors: Jiang HaiFu , Zhang HanYu , Li Tao , Jiang LiXiang , Tian DongBo
Published: December 2020

To study the effects of low earth orbit (LEO) environment on film surface structure and resistance characteristics, reduced graphene oxide paper (rGOP) was irradiated by atomic oxygen (AO) in ground‐based simulation facility. A rough pits surface, chemical oxidation, and change in lamina thickness were found after AO exposure. The erosion yield under AO attack changed from 3.56 × 10−25 to 4.04 × 10−25 cm3/atom. The resistance data exhibited a linear relationship between R0/R and AO fluence, and the maximum AO detect fluence reached to 5 × 1019 atom/cm3 when rGOP thickness was 0.8 μm, which implies that greater thickness is expected to improve space service life of rGOP.
Light pollution, sleep deprivation, and infant health at birth
Authors: Argys Laura M. , Averett Susan L. , Yang Muzhe
Published: December 2020

We conduct the first study to examine the fetal health impact of light pollution based on a direct measure of skyglow, an important aspect of light pollution. Using an empirical regularity discovered in physics (called Walker's law) as an instrumental variable, we address the potential endogeneity problem associated with the skyglow variable. We find evidence of reduced birth weight, shortened gestational length, and increases in preterm births. Specifically, increased nighttime brightness, characterized by being able to see only one‐fourth to one‐third of the stars that are visible in the natural unpolluted night sky, is associated with an increase of 1.48 percentage points in the likelihood of a preterm birth. Our study adds to the literature on the impact of early‐life exposure to pollution, which so far has focused primarily on air pollution. Our study has important policy implications regarding the necessity of minimizing skyglow that is, for example, contributed by streetlights.
Absolute and Relative Gravity Measurements at Volcanoes: Current State and New Developments Under the NEWTON-g Project
Authors: Greco F. , Carbone D. , Cannavò F. , Messina A. A. , Siligato G.
Published: December 2020

Gravity changes associated with volcanic processes occur over a wide range of time scales, from minutes to years and with magnitudes between a few and a few hundred microGal. High-precision instruments are needed to detect such small signals and both time-lapse surveys along networks of stations, and continuous measurements at single points, are accomplished. Continuous volcano gravimetry is mostly carried out through relative gravimeters, either superconducting instruments, providing higher quality data, or the more widely used spring meters. On the other hand, time-lapse surveys can be carried out with relative (spring) gravimeters, that measure gravity differences between pairs of stations, or by absolute gravimeters, capable of measuring the absolute value of the gravitational acceleration at the observation point. Here we present the state-of-the-art of terrestrial gravity measurements to monitor and study active volcanoes and the possibilities of new gravimeters that are under development. In particular, we present data from a mini array of three iGrav superconducting gravimeters (SGs) at Mount Etna (the first network of SGs ever installed on an active volcano). A comparison between continuous gravity measurements recorded through the iGrav#016 superconducting gravimeter at Serra La Nave station (1730 m a.s.l.) and absolute gravity data collected with the Microg LaCoste FG5#238 gravimeter in the framework of repeated campaigns is also presented. Furthermore, we introduce the Horizon 2020 NEWTON-g project (New Tools for Terrain Gravimetry), funded under the FET-OPEN Research and Innovation Actions call, Work Programme 2016–2017 (Grant Agreement No 801221). In the framework of this project, we aim to develop a field-compatible gravity imager, including an array of low-costs Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS)-based relative gravimeters, anchored on an absolute quantum gravimeter. After the design and production phases, the gravity imager will be field-tested at Mt. Etna (Italy) during the last 2 years of the project.
Machine learning for reconstruction of highly porous structures from FIB-SEM nano-tomographic data
Authors: Fend Chiara , Moghiseh Ali , Redenbach Claudia , Schladitz Katja
Published: December 2020

Reconstruction of highly porous structures from FIB-SEM image stacks is a difficult segmentation task. Supervised machine learning approaches demand large amounts of labeled data for training, that are hard to get in this case. A way to circumvent this problem is to train on simulated images. Here, we report on segmentation results derived by training a convolutional neural network solely on simulated FIB-SEM image stacks of realizations of a variety of stochastic geometry models.
Proposal for requirements on industrial AI solutions
Authors: Hoffmann Martin W , Drath Rainer , Ganz Christopher
Published: December 2020

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) promises productivity gains in industrial practice. While IT technology offers a variety of technological advances, plant owners strive for stability and robustness of the production process. To overcome this tension field, we propose a set of 16 requirements for the development of industrial AI solutions to foster i) the adaptation process, ii) support the solution engineering and iii) ease the embedding into the existing system landscape while respecting iv) safety aspects to build up v) trust into industrial AI solutions. The proposed requirements can guide industrial stakeholders to focus on the right solution approach for specific production challenges and support them in voicing their own needs towards novel AI solutions. This will help AI developers to speed up time-to-market as well as to increase market acceptance of industrial AI solutions. Overall, specifying requirements on industrial AI will foster the acceptance and utilization rates of AI solutions in industrial practice.
Symmetric spectral synthesis
Authors: Gselmann Eszter , Székelyhidi László
Published: December 2020

According to the famous and pioneering result of Laurent Schwartz, any closed translation invariant linear space of continuous functions on the reals is synthesizable from its exponential monomials. Due to a result of D. I. Gurevič there is no straightforward extension of this result to higher dimensions. Following Székelyhidi (Acta Math Hungar 153(1):120–142, 2017), with the aid of Gelfand pairs and K-spherical functions, K-synthesizability of K-varieties can be described. In this paper we contribute to this direction in the special case when K is the symmetric group of order d.
Deep learning methods for drill wear classification based on images of holes drilled in melamine faced chipboard
Authors: Jegorowa Albina , Kurek Jarosław , Antoniuk Izabella , Dołowa Wioleta , Bukowski Michał , Czarniak Paweł
Published: December 2020

In this paper, a set of improvements made in drill wear recognition algorithm obtained during previous work is presented. Images of the drilled holes made on melamine faced particleboard were used as its input values. During the presented experiments, three classes were recognized: green, yellow and red, which directly correspond to a tool that is in good shape, shape that needs to be confirmed by an operator, and which should be immediately replaced, since its further use in production process can result in losses due to low product quality. During the experiments, and as a direct result of a dialog with a manufacturer it was noted that while overall accuracy is important, it is far more crucial that the used algorithm can properly distinguish red and green classes and make no (or as little as possible) misclassifications between them. The proposed algorithm is based on an ensemble of possibly diverse models, which performed best under the above conditions. The model has relatively high overall accuracy, with close to none misclassifications between indicated classes. Final classification accuracy reached 80.49% for biggest used window, while making only 7 critical errors (misclassifications between red and green classes).
Three dimensional flows beneath a thin layer of 2D turbulence induced by Faraday waves
Authors: Colombi Raffaele , Schlüter Michael , Kameke Alexandra von
Published: December 2020

Faraday waves occur on a fluid being subject to vertical shaking. Although it is well known that form and shape of the wave pattern depend on driving amplitude and frequency, only recent studies discovered the existence of a horizontal velocity field at the surface, called Faraday flow. This flow exhibits attributes of two-dimensional turbulence and is replicated in this study. Despite the increasing attention towards the inverse energy flux in the Faraday flow and other not strictly two-dimensional (2D) systems, little is known about the velocity fields developing beneath the fluid surface. In this study, planar velocity fields are measured by means of particle image velocimetry with high spatio-temporal resolution on the water surface and at different depths below it. A sudden drop in velocity and turbulent kinetic energy is observed at half a Faraday wavelength below the surface revealing that the surface flow is the main source of turbulent fluid motion. The flow structures below the surface comprise much larger spatial scales than those on the surface leading to very long-tailed temporal and spatial velocity (auto-) correlation functions. The three-dimensionality of the flow is estimated by the compressibility, which increases strongly with depth while the divergence changes its appearance from intermittent and single events to a large scale pattern resembling 2D cut-planes of convection rolls. Our findings demonstrate that the overall fluid flow beneath the surface is highly three-dimensional and that an inverse cascade and aspects of a confined 2D turbulence can coexist with a three-dimensional flow.

Graphic abstract
Kidney re-transplantation in a child across the barrier of persisting angiotensin II type I receptor antibodies
Authors: Gold Annika , Fichtner Alexander , Choukair Daniela , Schmitt Claus Peter , Süsal Caner , Dragun Duska , Tönshoff Burkhard
Published: December 2020

Background

Approximately 20% of antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR) episodes in the absence of donor-specific antibodies against human leucocyte antigens (HLA-DSA) in pediatric and adult kidney transplant recipients are associated with, and presumably caused by, antibodies against the angiotensin type 1 receptor (AT1R-Ab). While the role of AT1R-Ab for ABMR and graft failure is increasingly recognized, there is little information available on the management of these patients for re-transplantation over the barrier of persisting AT1R-Ab.

Case

We report on a male patient with kidney failure in infancy due to obstructive uropathy who had lost his first kidney transplant due to AT1R-Ab-mediated chronic ABMR. Because this antibody persisted during 4 years of hemodialysis, for the 2nd kidney transplantation (living-related transplantation from his mother), he underwent a desensitization regimen consisting of 15 plasmapheresis sessions, infusions of intravenous immunoglobulin G and thymoglobulin, as well as pharmacological blockade of the Angiotensin II (AT II) pathway by candesartan. This intense desensitization regimen transiently decreased elevated AT1R-Ab titers, resulting in stable short-term kidney allograft function. The subsequent clinical course, however, was complicated by acute cellular rejection and chronic ABMR due to persistent AT1R-Ab and de novo HLA-DSA, which shortened allograft survival to a period of only 4 years.

Conclusion

This case highlights the difficulty of persistently decreasing elevated AT1R-Ab titers by a desensitization regimen for re-transplantation and the detrimental effect of the interplay between AT1R-Ab and HLA-DSA on kidney transplant survival.
Can cavity-based pedicle screw augmentation decrease screw loosening? A biomechanical in vitro study
Authors: Riesner Hans-Joachim , Blattert Thomas R. , Krezdorn Renate , Schädler Simone , Wilke Hans-Joachim
Published: December 2020

Purpose

In an osteoporotic vertebral body, cement-augmented pedicle screw fixation could possibly be optimized by the creation of an initial cavity. The aim of this study is to compare three test groups with regard to their loosening characteristics under cyclic loading.

Methods

Eighteen human, osteoporotic spine segments were divided in three groups. Flexibility tests and cyclic loading tests were performed with an internal fixator. The screws were fixed after creation a cavity and with cement (cavity-augmented group), without cavity and with cement (augmented group), and without cavity and without cement(control group). Cyclic loading up to 100,000 cycles was applied with a complex loading protocol. Screw loosening was measured with flexibility tests after implantation and after cyclic loading. Cement distribution was visualized from CT scans.

Results

In all groups, range of motion increased during cyclic loading, representing significant screw loosening after 100,000 cycles. In both augmented groups, screw loosening was less pronounced than in the control group. The cavity-augmented group showed only a slight tendency of screw loosening, but with smaller variations compared to both other groups. This may be explained with a trend for a more equal and homogeneous cement volume around each tip for the cavity-augmented group.

Conclusion

This study demonstrated that creating a cavity may allow a more equal fixation of all pedicle screws with slight reduction of loosening. However, augmentation only through a cannulated screw is almost equivalent, if care is taken that enough cement volume can be pushed out around the tip of the screw.
The influence of a slider gap in the beam–slider structure with an MFC element on energy harvesting from the system: experimental case
Authors: Koszewnik A.
Published: December 2020

A passively self-tuning resonator configuration is presented in this study. Under certain operating conditions, a self-resonating system has the capability to passively adjust dynamical characteristics until the whole system becomes resonant. A clamped–clamped beam with an attached mass sliding along the beam and a slight gap that, under a harmonic input excitation and well-defined operating regime, can lead to the increase in voltage amplitude generated by the piezo-harvester attached to this structure may be an example of such a system. Taking into account such behavior of the system, the paper is focused on determining the distributed-parameters of the electromechanical system versus a different slider position on the beam in modal coordinates. The obtained simulation results, considering the homogenous model of an MFC element for the desired slider locations, showed how the width of the gap between the slider and the beam additionally influences the voltage generated by the piezo-harvester. Experimental tests carried out on the real stand with an EHE301 module and the designed SSHI interface circuit allowed to verify the numerical results and also showed the influence on the resistive load connected to the system for an improvement of the considered energy harvesting system parameters.
Scanning integer points with lex-inequalities: a finite cutting plane algorithm for integer programming with linear objective
Authors: Conforti Michele , De Santis Marianna , Di Summa Marco , Rinaldi Francesco
Published: December 2020

We consider the integer points in a unimodular coneKordered by a lexicographic rule defined by a lattice basis. To each integer pointxinKwe associate a family of inequalities (lex-inequalities) that define the convex hull of the integer points inKthat are not lexicographically smaller thanx. The family of lex-inequalities contains the Chvátal–Gomory cuts, but does not contain and is not contained in the family of split cuts. This provides a finite cutting plane method to solve the integer program$$\min \{cx: x\in S\cap \mathbb {Z}^n\}$$min{cx:x∈S∩Zn}, where$$S\subset \mathbb {R}^n$$S⊂Rnis a compact set and$$c\in \mathbb {Z}^n$$c∈Zn. We analyze the number of iterations of our algorithm.
Towards a framework for certification of reliable autonomous systems
Authors: Fisher Michael , Mascardi Viviana , Rozier Kristin Yvonne , Schlingloff Bernd-Holger , Winikoff Michael , Yorke-Smith Neil
Published: December 2020

A computational system is called autonomous if it is able to make its own decisions, or take its own actions, without human supervision or control. The capability and spread of such systems have reached the point where they are beginning to touch much of everyday life. However, regulators grapple with how to deal with autonomous systems, for example how could we certify an Unmanned Aerial System for autonomous use in civilian airspace? We here analyse what is needed in order to provide verified reliable behaviour of an autonomous system, analyse what can be done as the state-of-the-art in automated verification, and propose a roadmap towards developing regulatory guidelines, including articulating challenges to researchers, to engineers, and to regulators. Case studies in seven distinct domains illustrate the article.
Less Illusion of a Just World in People with Formally Diagnosed Autism and Higher Autistic Traits
Authors: Bertrams Alex
Published: December 2020

People differ in how strongly they believe that, in general, one gets what (s)he deserves (i.e., individual differences in the general belief in a just world). In this study (N = 588; n = 60 with a formal autism diagnosis), whether or not autistic people and those with high autistic traits have a relatively low general belief in a just world is examined. The results revealed the expected relationship between autism/higher autistic traits and a lower general belief in a just world. In a subsample (n = 388), personal belief in a just world, external locus of control, and self-deception mediated this relationship. These findings are discussed in terms of autistic strengths (less biased information processing) and problems (lowered well-being).
The Netherlands Sports Cardiology Map: a step towards sports cardiology network medicine for patient and athlete care
Authors: van Hattum J. C. , Verwijs S. M. , Rienks R. , Bijsterveld N. R. , de Vries S. T. , Pinto Y. M. , Wilde A. A. M. , Jørstad H. T.
Published: December 2020

Sports cardiology is a rapidly evolving subspecialty of cardiology, with a growing demand for expertise. To improve patient care, clinicians, patients, and athletes (recreational to elite) should be able to easily identify specialised care pathways, expertise centres and clinicians with sports cardiology expertise. To this purpose, several international societies and organisations recommend establishing a local and national sports cardiology infrastructure. We therefore aimed to establish The Netherlands Sports Cardiology Map. We conducted a web-based survey, which was published on the Netherlands Society of Cardiology home page (2019–2020) and in which each cardiology department or clinic was asked to provide information on sports cardiology expertise and the current infrastructure. Of the 46 respondent centres, 28 (61%) reported that they had expertise in sports cardiology, of which 22 (79%) had specific expertise in one or more specific types of sports. Integrated multidisciplinary meetings were reported by 43% of the centres (n = 12/28). Only two centres reported ongoing research projects that had been approved by an institutional review board. The Netherlands Sports Cardiology Map is an important step towards improving the existing infrastructure and developing network medicine for sports cardiology.
The social and environmental drivers of corporate credit ratings: international evidence
Authors: Dorfleitner Gregor , Grebler Johannes
Published: December 2020

We provide evidence of the exogenous impact of environmental and social performance components on credit ratings in North America, Europe, and Asia. In particular, the product innovation dimension is clearly identified as being the dominating driver of credit ratings within the environmental performance in every subsample region. In the social performance dimension, the extent of diversity is a main driver for firms in North America and Europe, but due to cultural reasons, not in Asia. Our results show that the risk mitigation view holds for all significant corporate social or environmental performance variables, but the magnitude of impact differs regionally.
Asset Specificity and the Secondary Market for Productive Assets
Authors: Boccaletti Simone
Published: December 2020

The aim of this paper is to explore how debt contracts are affected by investment in asset specialization and by the dynamics of the secondary market for collateralized productive assets. Before applying for a loan, financially constrained firms face a specificity trade-off: asset specialization increases firms’ project returns, but decreases the liquidation value of assets in the secondary market if the firm is in financial distress. To study this trade-off, the paper uses a theoretical model in which the choice of asset specificity and the outcome of the secondary market for distressed firms’ assets are endogenous. High redeployability costs and a small number of participants in the secondary market are associated to low recovery values and to a high cost of debt. The paper shows the conditions under which financial constraints reduce firms’ incentive to invest in asset specificity.
Gameplay Analysis of Multiplayer Games with Verified Action-Costs
Authors: Kavanagh William , Miller Alice
Published: December 2020

Measuring player skill cannot be done by considering their historical success alone as the relative skill of their opponents must be considered along with confounding factors such as luck and circumstance. With a specifically designed game, every possible player action can be attributed a cost, the value by which a player reduces their maximum probability of winning. By considering the costs of the actions made by a player we can obtain a more accurate representation of how skilful they are. We developed such a game, the mobile game RPGLite, and compared the actions players made with the cost values we had calculated. Through this analysis we made several observations about RPGLite which we share here to demonstrate the utility of action-costs for gameplay analysis. We show how they can be used to identify game states which players have difficulty making the best moves from, to measure how players learn over time and to compare the strengths and complexity of the characters of RPGLite. Commercial titles could benefit from similar tools—we discuss the feasibility of applying our approach to more complex games.
Operations supported by ketamine anesthesia in resource-limited settings: Surgeons’ perceptions and recommendations – Qualitative Study
Authors: Makin Jennifer , Suarez-Rebling Daniela , Suarez Sebastian , Leone Anna , Burke Thomas F.
Published: December 2020

ABSTRACT

Background:

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, ketamine's wide safety margin led to its use as a sole anesthetic agent in resource-limited settings when no anesthetist was available. During this time of the pandemic the use of ketamine has increased, however there are few recommendations on approaches to intraoperative challenges associated with ketamine's unique properties. The objective of this study was to gain surgeons' perceptions on performing operations supported by ketamine and to recommend best practices and techniques.

Methods:

A qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews of surgeons experienced with performing operations supported with ketamine as the sole anesthetic agent. Interviews continued until thematic saturation. Open-response data was analyzed using thematic analysis as well as iterative group discussions about emergent themes.

Results:

Sixteen surgeons were interviewed regarding their operative experiences supported by ketamine across 12 countries. Surgeons universally felt that ketamine is safe, saves lives, and that they would administer it to a loved one in support of an operation if no anesthetist was available. Although lack of muscle relaxation with ketamine may require additional strategies to gain exposure, few surgical technical changes are necessary. While ketamine side effects are manageable, a single provider must always be dedicated to ketamine administration and patient monitoring. Surgeons should advocate for global policies, training and access.

Conclusion:

Ketamine is safe, can provide increased access to emergency and essential surgery, and requires few operative technical changes. Global standards on ketamine training and use should be established.

Highlights
Old Books and Digital Publishing: Eighteenth-Century Collections Online
Authors: Gregg Stephen H.
Published: December 2020

This is a history of Eighteenth-Century Collections Online, a database of over 180,000 titles. Published by Gale in 2003 it has had an enormous impact of the study of the eighteenth century. Like many commercial digital archives, ECCO's continuing development obscures its precedents. This Element examines its prehistory as, first, a computer catalogue of eighteenth-century print, and then as a commercial microfilm collection, before moving to the digitisation and development of the interfaces to ECCO, as well as Gale's various partnerships and licensing deals. An essential aspect of this Element is how it explores the socio-cultural and technological debates around the access to old books from the 1930s to the present day: Stephen Gregg demonstrates how these contexts powerfully shape the way ECCO works to this day. The Element's aim is to make us better users and better readers of digital archives.
Vanadium Isotopes
Authors: Nielsen Sune G.
Published: December 2020

Vanadium isotope ratios (51V/50V) have potential to provide information about changes in past ocean oxygen contents. In particular, V isotopes may find utility in tracing variations at non-zero oxygen concentrations because the redox couple that controls V elemental and isotopic abundances in seawater (vanadate-vanadyl) appears to operate around 10M O2. This characteristic sets V isotopes apart from many other metal isotope redox proxies that require more reducing conditions to register significant changes in their isotope budgets. The oxygen abundance sensitivity range of V isotopes suggests that this paleoproxy could be particularly useful in tracing marine oxygenation changes throughout the Phanerozoic and potentially beyond.
Crafting Poetry Anthologies in Renaissance England
Authors: O'Callaghan Michelle
Published: December 2020

The printed poetry anthologies first produced in sixteenth-century England have long been understood as instrumental in shaping the history of English poetry. This book offers a fresh approach to this history by turning attention to the recreative properties of these books, both in the sense of making again, of crafting and recrafting, and of poetry as a pleasurable pastime. The model of materiality employed extends from books-as-artefacts to their embodiedness - their crafted, performative, and expressive capacities. Publishers invariably advertised the recreational uses of anthologies, locating these books in early modern performance cultures in which poetry was read, silently and in company, sometimes set to music, and re-crafted into other forms. Engaging with studies of material cultures, including work on craft, households, and soundscapes, Crafting Poetry Anthologies argues for a domestic Renaissance in which anthologies travelled across social classes, shaping recreational cultures that incorporated men and women in literary culture.
The Prospects for Collaborative Research in Business History
Authors: BALLEISEN EDWARD J.
Published: December 2020

After reflecting on the thematic evolution of business history as a field over the past 50 years, this revised presidential address invites readers to consider the potential payoffs of expanding the contexts in which business historians work together on research projects, as well as with colleagues from cognate fields and with students. In addition to charting the steady growth in collaborative research among business historians since 2000, the essay also identifies areas that especially lend themselves to this mode of historical inquiry, including comparative or transnational analysis that requires detailed knowledge of multiple societies, the development of oral history projects, and the use of data science techniques. It concludes by exploring the advantages of incorporating interdisciplinary research teams into curricular structures, using the example of the Bass Connections program at Duke University.
Mothers: The Invisible Instruments of Health Promotion
Authors: MacKay Kathryn L.
Published: December 2020

In this article, I focus on two problematic aspects of British health-promotion campaigns regarding feeding children, particularly regarding breastfeeding and obesity. The first of these is that health-promotion campaigns around “lifestyle” issues dehumanize mothers with their imagery or text, stemming from the ongoing undervaluing and objectification of mothers and women. Public health-promotion instrumentalizes mothers as necessary components in achieving its aims, while at the same time undermining their agency as persons and interlocutors by tying “mother” to particular images. This has a double effect: first, it excludes mothers who do not fit the campaign picture of a mother; second, it encloses those who do (even vaguely) fit the picture into an objectified image of motherhood that is defined by and subject to the dominant white, heteropatriarchal gaze. The second problem is that campaigns place unjustified demands on mothers, which stem from a misinterpretation of the maternal duty to benefit. I argue that nutrition-related health concerns regarding children are improperly framed as individual failures of maternal duty, rather than as failures of a system to function correctly. These arguments ultimately support shifting the focus of responsibility for issues around childhood nutrition away from mothers and back toward policymakers.
Comparison of historical and recent accumulation rates on Abramov Glacier, Pamir Alay
Authors: Kronenberg Marlene , Machguth Horst , Eichler Anja , Schwikowski Margit , Hoelzle Martin
Published: December 2020

Glaciers located in western High Mountain Asia (HMA) have shown mass gain or limited mass losses compared to other mountain regions since ~2000. Increases in accumulation may be responsible. Although no contemporary measurements exist to explore this hypothesis, extensive historic measurements including firn density, stratigraphy and accumulation rates at ~4400 m a.s.l. on Abramov Glacier, Pamir Alay, provide valuable indications of accumulation changes. Abramov Glacier is located at the northern margin of western HMA. In this study, we assess unique historical firn data of Abramov Glacier from the 1970s to evaluate past firn conditions in this data sparse region. The current firn state is investigated based on a series of in situ measurements including firn cores and ground-penetrating radar measurements performed in 2018. We compare the legacy data with contemporary firn characteristics. Our results indicate a high year-to-year variability, but generally increasing net accumulation during the last 60 years on Abramov Glacier, with 0.84 ± 0.22 m w.e. for 2011–18 compared to 0.68 ± 0.32 m w.e. for 1965–72 and 0.59 ± 0.22 m w.e. for 1970–97. These results from in situ data provide ground truth for the data-sparse western HMA.
Application of an improved surface energy balance model to two large valley glaciers in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon
Authors: Hill Tim , Dow Christine F. , Bash Eleanor A. , Copland Luke
Published: December 2020

Glacier surficial melt rates are commonly modelled using surface energy balance (SEB) models, with outputs applied to extend point-based mass-balance measurements to regional scales, assess water resource availability, examine supraglacial hydrology and to investigate the relationship between surface melt and ice dynamics. We present an improved SEB model that addresses the primary limitations of existing models by: (1) deriving high-resolution (30 m) surface albedo from Landsat 8 imagery, (2) calculating shadows cast onto the glacier surface by high-relief topography to model incident shortwave radiation, (3) developing an algorithm to map debris sufficiently thick to insulate the glacier surface and (4) presenting a formulation of the SEB model coupled to a subsurface heat conduction model. We drive the model with 6 years of in situ meteorological data from Kaskawulsh Glacier and Nàłùdäy (Lowell) Glacier in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, Canada, and validate outputs against in situ measurements. Modelled seasonal melt agrees with observations within 9% across a range of elevations on both glaciers in years with high-quality in situ observations. We recommend applying the model to investigate the impacts of surface melt for individual glaciers when sufficient input data are available.
A new, giant ricinuleid (Arachnida, Ricinulei), from the Pennsylvanian of Illinois, and the identification of a new, ontogenetically stable, diagnostic character
Authors: Whalen Niall , Selden Paul
Published: December 2020

A new fossil ricinuleid,Curculioides bohemondin. sp., from the Pennsylvanian Energy Shale of Illinois is described from a single specimen. It is the largest ricinuleid species yet described, living or extinct. The Energy Shale represents a new geographic locale for fossil ricinuleids, a sparsely distributed group. The species is distinguished from other members within the genus by the possession of very large (0.09 mm) carapace tubercles at a very low (30 mm-2) density. Statistical analyses are performed on extant and fossil ricinuleids to determine how their tubercles change throughout ontogeny, culminating in the recovery of a new ontogenetically stable diagnostic character: the tubercle coefficient (a measure of the size of the tubercles relative to body size).

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Sealing with Stone: Assessing an Assemblage of Lithic Debitage from a Funerary Context at the Lowland Maya City of Caracol, Belize
Authors: Johnson Lisa M. , Martindale Johnson Lucas R.
Published: December 2020

Excavators working in a ceremonial plaza group in the Classic period Lowland Maya city of Caracol, Belize, encountered thousands of pieces of chert and obsidian scattered above a royal tomb. A recent analysis of the chert from this context confirms that the assemblage included pieces from each stage of reduction in the production of blades. Taken together, the quantity of both chert and obsidian makes it the largest reported collection of lithic debitage found at the site and provides insight into the techniques of lithic crafters at Caracol. In this article, we consider the sequence of actions involved in the burial of a high-ranking individual and suggest that the layering of flaked stone above the tomb is reminiscent of other reported above-tomb contexts in the Maya Lowlands. Further, a technological analysis of this collection produced results similar to analyses of assemblages typically found in crafting-intensive residential groups. This finding suggests that lithic crafters throughout the city of Caracol donated flaked stone material for funerary events, providing a protective layer and sealing the grave below.
Black Africans’ Freedom Litigation Suits to Define Just War and Just Slavery in the Early Spanish Empire
Authors: Ireton Chloe L.
Published: December 2020

This article explores how some enslaved Black Africans litigated for their freedom in Spanish royal courts in the sixteenth century on the basis that—as Christians—they had been unjustly enslaved in Africa. With a focus on the port cities of Seville and Cartagena, I explore how freedom litigation suits illuminate how individuals from starkly different social worlds and intellectual milieus—who inhabited the same urban sites—affected and shaped one another's intellectual landscapes. I trace how enslaved Africans’ epistemologies of just slavery shaped broader discourses on the just enslavement of Africans in the Spanish Empire.
Associations of carbohydrates and carbohydrate-rich foods with incidence of type 2 diabetes
Authors: Olsson Kjell , Ramne Stina , González-Padilla Esther , Ericson Ulrika , Sonestedt Emily
Published: December 2020

Dietary carbohydrates have long been expected to be associated with risk of type 2 diabetes; however, the associations for many carbohydrates and carbohydrate-rich foods remain inconclusive. This study analysed associations between intakes of six types of carbohydrates and thirteen carbohydrate-rich foods with incident type 2 diabetes in 26 622 participants (61 % women) in the Malmö Diet and Cancer Study in southern Sweden. Dietary intake was assessed at baseline (1991–1996) by using a modified diet history method. During mean follow-up of 18 years, 4046 cases were identified. Adjusting for potential confounders (including lifestyle, BMI and dietary factors), comparing highest v. lowest quintile of intake, monosaccharides (hazard ratio (HR) 0·88; 95 % CI 0·79, 0·98; Ptrend = 0·02) and fruits (HR 0·91; 95 % CI 0·82, 1·01; Ptrend = 0·03) were inversely associated with incident type 2 diabetes, while disaccharides (HR 1·17; 95 % CI 1·04, 1·30; Ptrend = 0·002) and sweets (HR 1·09; 95 % CI 1·00, 1·19; Ptrend = 0·02) were positively associated. After stratification by sex, marmalade/honey/jam (HR 0·82; 95 % CI 0·72, 0·94; Ptrend < 0·001) and vegetables (HR 0·85; 95 % CI 0·73, 0·98; Ptrend = 0·06) were inversely associated with incident type 2 diabetes in men and chocolate (HR 1·26; 95 % CI 1·09, 1·46; Ptrend < 0·001) was positively associated in women. In conclusion, we identified inverse associations for intake of monosaccharides and fruits with type 2 diabetes risk, and positive associations for disaccharides and sweets. Additional sex-specific associations were also identified. Future studies are needed to explore these associations further.