bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experimental longitudinal evidence for causal role of social media use and physical activity in COVID-19 burden and mental health
Authors: Brailovskaia Julia , Swarlik Verena J. , Grethe Georg A. , Schillack Holger , Margraf Jürgen
Published: September 2022

Aim

The COVID-19 outbreak has severely impacted people’s mental health. The present experimental study investigated how to reduce this negative effect by a combination of two interventions.

Subject and methods

Participants (Ntotal = 642) were users of social media in Germany. For two weeks, the social media group (N = 162) reduced its social media use (SMU) by 30 minutes daily, the physical activity group (N = 161) increased its physical activity by 30 minutes daily, the combination group (N = 159) followed both instructions, and the control group (N = 160) did not get specific instructions. Online surveys assessed variables of SMU, physical activity, mental health, COVID-19 burden, and lifestyle at six measurement time points up to six months after the intervention.

Results

In the experimental groups, (addictive) SMU, depression symptoms, and COVID-19 burden decreased, while physical activity, life satisfaction, and subjective happiness increased. All effects were stronger and more stable in the combination group in the longer-term. Smoking behavior decreased in the social media group only.

Conclusion

Thus, the conscious combination of less SMU and more physical activity leads causally to more psychological resilience against negative pandemic impacts and to higher levels of mental health over six months. Prevention programs could improve their effectiveness by integrating the time- and cost-efficient interventions – separately or in combination.
Graded hypoellipticity of BGG sequences
Authors: Dave Shantanu , Haller Stefan
Published: September 2022

This article studies hypoellipticity on general filtered manifolds. We extend the Rockland criterion to a pseudodifferential calculus on filtered manifolds, construct a parametrix and describe its precise analytic structure. We use this result to study Rockland sequences, a notion generalizing elliptic sequences to filtered manifolds. The main application that we present is to the analysis of the Bernstein–Gelfand–Gelfand (BGG) sequences over regular parabolic geometries. We do this by generalizing the BGG machinery to more general filtered manifolds (in a non-canonical way) and show that the generalized BGG sequences are Rockland in a graded sense.
Dynamic analysis and regulation of the flexible pipe conveying fluid with a hard-magnetic soft segment
Authors: Guo Zilong , Ni Qiao , Chen Wei , Dai Huliang , Wang Lin
Published: September 2022

The recently developed hard-magnetic soft (HMS) materials can play a significant role in the actuation and control of medical devices, soft robots, flexible electronics, etc. To regulate the mechanical behaviors of the cantilevered pipe conveying fluid, the present work introduces a segment made of the HMS material located somewhere along the pipe length. Based on the absolute node coordinate formulation (ANCF), the governing equations of the pipe conveying fluid with an HMS segment are derived by the generalized Lagrange equation. By solving the derived equations with numerical methods, the static deformation, linear vibration characteristic, and nonlinear dynamic response of the pipe are analyzed. The result of the static deformation of the pipe shows that when the HMS segment is located in the middle of the pipe, the downstream portion of the pipe centerline will keep a straight shape, providing that the pipe is stable with a relatively low flow velocity. Therefore, it is possible to precisely regulate the ejection direction of the fluid flow by changing the magnetic and fluid parameters. It is also found that the intensity and direction of the external magnetic field greatly affect the stability and dynamic response of the pipe with an HMS segment. In most cases, the magnetic actuation increases the critical flow velocity for the flutter instability of the pipe system and suppresses the vibration amplitude of the pipe.
Nudge Me If You Can! Why Order Ethicists Should Embrace the Nudge Approach
Authors: Mukerji Nikil , Mannino Adriano
Published: September 2022

Order ethicists favour incentives as a means for making moral progress but largely ignore an alternative method, namely, nudging, which has come to prominence through the work of behavioural scientists in recent years. In this paper, we suggest that this is a mistake. Order ethicists have no reason to ignore nudging as an alternative method. Arguments they might press against it include worries about paternalism, manipulation, autonomy, and unintended bad consequences. These are, we argue, largely unfounded insofar as they involve misconceptions or affect incentives as well. In particular, we contend that only some, but not all, nudges are paternalistic, manipulative, and autonomy-reducing. The same is true of incentives. Also, both nudges and incentives can have unintended bad consequences. Therefore, order ethicists cannot endorse arguments against nudges without undermining their favourable view of incentives. In addition, there might be positive reasons to prefer nudges to incentives, for instance, when they are more freedom-preserving, more effective, cheaper, easier to implement, or less inequality-inducing than the latter.
Hybrid films from cellulose nanomaterials—properties and defined optical patterns
Authors: Leppänen Ilona , Hokkanen Ari , Österberg Monika , Vähä-Nissi Mika , Harlin Ali , Orelma Hannes
Published: September 2022

Polymer composites with nanocellulose as the reinforcing agent often lack good compatibility between the two components. In this study, we have combined cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) in different ratios to create all-cellulose films consisting of entirely discrete nanocellulose objects that complement each other. Then further, by applying the controlled dissolution concept we were able to create defined optical patterns on the films. The films consisting of 50% CNCs showed equivalent mechanical and barrier properties when compared to the pure CNF film. In addition, the incorporation of CNCs enabled tuning of the films’ optical properties. To modify this film further, we prepared specific patterns on the film by controlled dissolution by impregnating the films with N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) followed by heat treatment and pressure. Mechanical testing and optical measurements of the patterned films showed the effect of the dissolved cellulose regions on the film properties. The controlled dissolution of the films increased the tensile strength of the films, however, the strain was decreased quite significantly. Altogether, the CNF/CNC hybrid films combine both nanomaterials’ good properties. Cellulose nanofibrils have film-forming ability and incorporation of CNCs can further tune the optical, mechanical, and barrier properties, to optimize the films for varying applications such as optical sensors and packaging materials.

Graphical abstract
Extreme heat in New Zealand: a synthesis
Authors: Harrington Luke J. , Frame Dave
Published: September 2022

Extreme heatwaves are among the fastest-changing meteorological hazards in a warming world. While likely also true for New Zealand, significant knowledge gaps exist relating to the current and future risks associated with extreme heat. Using high-quality station observations dating back to at least 1972, this study presents the first detailed synthesis of the severity, frequency, and persistence of extreme heat experienced by local communities in New Zealand. Results show the hottest days of the year have warmed by more than 0.5 °C over the last 20 years for many populated regions, a rate which exceeds average annual changes across the country. When evaluating the risks associated with unusually extreme events, complex regional differences emerge. While the East Coast of both islands witness higher absolute temperatures during local heatwaves, lower levels of day-to-day temperature variability in the northern half of the North Island will translate to larger risks with further warming over the twenty-first century.
On the applicability of the RETAS model for forecasting aftershock probability in underground mines (Kiirunavaara Mine, Sweden)
Authors: Gospodinov Dragomir , Dineva Savka , Dahnér-Lindkvist Christina
Published: September 2022

Aftershock series of even comparatively small seismic events can pose a risk to the mining operation or the personnel in deep underground mines as the main shocks and some of the aftershocks can cause damage in the rock mass. Stochastic modeling was applied in this study for the analysis of the temporal evolution of aftershock occurrence probability during a M1.85 aftershock sequence in Kiirunavaara Mine, Sweden. The Restricted Epidemic-Type Aftershock Sequence (RETAS) model was chosen for estimation of the aftershock occurrence probability. This model considers all events with magnitude above the magnitude of completeness M0 and has the advantage of including the Modified Omori Formula (MOF) model and Epidemic-Type Aftershock Sequence (ETAS) model as its end versions, considering also all intermediate models. The model was applied sequentially to data samples covering cumulative periods of time, starting from the first 2 h after the main event and increasing them by 2 h until the period covered the entire 72-h sequence. For each sample, the best-fit RETAS version was identified and the probability of a M ≥ 0.5 aftershock for every next 2 h was determined through Monte Carlo simulation. The feasibility of the resulting probability evolution for suspension and re-starting of the mining operations was discussed together with possible prospects for future development of the methodology.
Detecting nestedness in city parks for urban biodiversity conservation
Authors: Chen Rui-Qi , Cheng Su-Ting
Published: September 2022

Urbanization has been a global phenomenon producing great environmental and ecological challenges including species composition shifts in urban areas. To evaluate the interaction networks of the inhabitant metacommunities in urban parks, we applied the nestedness analysis using ecological survey data of birds, reptiles, frogs, and butterflies among 16 parks in Taipei City of Taiwan and identified critical environmental factors for biodiversity conservation. Results found significant nestedness of the metacommunities among these parks, which indicated strong interaction networks and the importance of urban parks for sustaining these metacommunities. In addition, various types of land use had different effects on the species incidence of birds, reptiles, frogs, and butterflies. It demonstrates that landscape design should consider the taxonomic differences in the development of conservation guidelines. Results also showed that the area of parks and the area of woodlot in the park were critical elements for the nested structure. Nonetheless, abundant bird generalists were found to be highly related to the area of buildings within parks, distance to forests, rivers, and the neighbouring parks. Moreover, exotic species were found to affect the interaction networks of native species. However, based on the current information, we cannot confirm the actual effects of the exotic species on the native assemblages. Reptiles and frogs appeared to be more easily threatened by land development and habitat fragmentation due to their lower vagility. In this regard, we suggest that conservation action should focus on preserving green space with large areas and constructing green corridors, creating crucial elements, and increasing the vertical complexity in the parks for species with various vagilities. We believe these strategies can help reduce the impact of urbanization to retain healthy interactions and connections of metacommunities among habitats for effective biodiversity conservation in urban areas.
Interpretation of field tests using geo-statistics and Kriging to assess the deep vibratory compaction of the Dike A21, Diavik Diamond Mine
Authors: Schorr Joshua , Cudmani Roberto , Nübel Konrad
Published: September 2022

This article presents an interpretation and statistical analysis of heavy dynamic probing (DPH) tests carried out on the compacted core of Dike A21, of the Diavik Diamond Mine. Due to the inhomogeneous and inherently random nature of soil and the uncertainties associated with even well controlled field tests such as DPH tests, the evaluation of in situ properties (such as density) should take into consideration the natural variability of the soil. Aided by the large amount of relatively concentrated field data, this paper presents a methodology for not only evaluating the field tests statistically through Kriging, but also for judging the compaction effort, taking into consideration the variability. This paper documents the necessary normalization procedure, analyzing a number of external factors such as the temperature, time since compaction (aging) and the presence of nearby works that may affect the field data. It was shown that the appraisal of soil improvement measures should consider the presence of natural and unavoidable fluctuations of the fill material. The Kriging estimate combined with an averaging procedure and subsequent comparison with the expected variability, quantified by the variogram, was applied which enabled the assessment of areas with insufficient compaction. Additionally, the influence of aging of the fill was demonstrated, where a clear increase in the DPH tests between 0 and 14 days since compaction was observed. It was also found that over-compaction leads typically to a lower relative density. The authors note that this statistical analysis was performed following the control and acceptance of the compaction of the dike and as such had no impact on the acceptance of the dike construction.
Cyborg Encounters: Three Art-Science Interactions
Authors: Okay Ayşe Melis , Taşdizen Burak , McKinnon Bell Charles John , Topdal Beyza Dilem , Şahinol Melike
Published: September 2022

This contribution includes three selected works from an exhibition on Cyborg Encounters. These works deal with hybrid connections of human and non-human species that (might) emerge as a result of enhancement technologies and bio-technological developments. They offer not only an artistic exploration of contemporary but also futuristic aspects of the subject. Followed by an introduction by Melike Şahinol, Critically Endangered Artwork (by Ayşe Melis Okay) highlights Turkey’s ongoing problems of food poverty and the amount of decreasing agricultural lands. It displays seeds of a promising endemic plant to mitigate these problems using the seeds of the Thermopsis Turcica, a herbaceous perennial endemic plant. Ecomasculinist Pregnancy (by Burak Taşdizen and Charles John McKinnon Bell) follows the design fiction methodology and illustrates a future scenario through a patient’s diary and the medical letters he receives during his pregnancy with an extinct sea-lion. Polluted Homes (by Beyza Dilem Topdal) is a fictional art installation consisting of polychaete species evolved in time under the ecological circumstances prevalent in the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara today. These works show, that manufacturing life has consequences, not only for the human body and its physical appearance, but also, for example, for gender orders, the social structure of society, and even the environment, and thus for (re)shaping (non)living matter and their environments. This Art-Science Collection intends to provide an impetus for debate about the extent to which cyborg encounters should be taken seriously.
Nonparametric regression and classification with functional, categorical, and mixed covariates
Authors: Selk Leonie , Gertheiss Jan
Published: September 2022

We consider nonparametric prediction with multiple covariates, in particular categorical or functional predictors, or a mixture of both. The method proposed bases on an extension of the Nadaraya-Watson estimator where a kernel function is applied on a linear combination of distance measures each calculated on single covariates, with weights being estimated from the training data. The dependent variable can be categorical (binary or multi-class) or continuous, thus we consider both classification and regression problems. The methodology presented is illustrated and evaluated on artificial and real world data. Particularly it is observed that prediction accuracy can be increased, and irrelevant, noise variables can be identified/removed by ‘downgrading’ the corresponding distance measures in a completely data-driven way.
Mathematical optimization models for reallocating and sharing health equipment in pandemic situations
Authors: Blanco Víctor , Gázquez Ricardo , Leal Marina
Published: September 2022

In this paper we provide a mathematical programming based decision tool to optimally reallocate and share equipment between different units to efficiently equip hospitals in pandemic emergency situations under lack of resources. The approach is motivated by the COVID-19 pandemic in which many Heath National Systems were not able to satisfy the demand of ventilators, sanitary individual protection equipment or different human resources. Our tool is based in two main principles: (1) Part of the stock of equipment at a unit that is not needed (in near future) could be shared to other units; and (2) extra stock to be shared among the units in a region can be efficiently distributed taking into account the demand of the units. The decisions are taken with the aim of minimizing certain measures of the non-covered demand in a region where units are structured in a given network. The mathematical programming models that we provide are stochastic and multiperiod with different robust objective functions. Since the proposed models are computationally hard to solve, we provide adivide-et-conquermath-heuristic approach. We report the results of applying our approach to the COVID-19 case in different regions of Spain, highlighting some interesting conclusions of our analysis, such as the great increase of treated patients if the proposed redistribution tool is applied.
The relationship between familiarity, gender, disagreement, and status and bouts of solitary and joint laughter
Authors: McLachlan Angus
Published: September 2022

The current research treated laughter as an indexical with two closely allied properties: to designate talk as non-serious and to serve as a mode of address signalling a preference for solidarity. These properties gave rise to four discrete forms of laughter bout, solitary speaker, solitary listener, speaker-initiated joint, and listener-initiated joint laughter, which were examined using 55 same-gender pairs discussing three choice dilemma items. By exploring the associations between the wider contextual factors of familiarity, gender, disagreement and status, and the frequencies of each form of bout within the dyad, it was hoped to establish whether laughter was related to how participants modulated their social relationships. Neither familiarity nor disagreement had any effect on any of the forms of laughter bout, while females were found to demonstrate higher frequencies of joint speaker laughter than males. In unequal status pairs, high status female staff joined in the laughter of their low status female student interlocutors less often than the reverse, a finding comparable with the exchange of other terms of address, such as second person pronouns in European languages. It was concluded that joint laughter was a signal of solidarity and solitary speaker laughter was a declared preference for solidarity, but the significance of solitary listener laughter, beyond an acknowledgement of the speaker’s non-serious talk, remained less clear. It was also noted that norms associated with the setting and topic of interaction were influential in determining the extent to which laughter would be used to modulate the relationships between interlocutors.
Hollow-Fiber Liquid-Phase Micro-Extraction Method for the Simultaneous Derivatization, Extraction, and Pre-concentration of Organotin Compounds from Packed Fruit Juices
Authors: González-Domínguez Raúl , Sayago Ana , Santos-Martín María , Fernández-Recamales Ángeles
Published: September 2022

Organotin compounds are widely employed as pesticides and fungicides in agriculture and as stabilizers for the industrial manufacture of polyvinyl chloride and other polymers. Accordingly, these endocrine disruptors can be found in a variety of foods and beverages. In the present study, we describe the optimization of a hollow-fiber liquid-phase micro-extraction approach for the simultaneous derivatization, extraction, and pre-concentration of butyltin species from commercial fruit juices with the aim of investigating their migration from the packaging. The best extraction efficiencies were achieved by using hexane as the acceptor solvent and a polypropylene fiber length of 2 cm, whereas the agitation speed, extraction temperature, and total extraction time were set at 1100 rpm, 25 ºC, and 10 min, respectively. Using these optimal conditions, the method was satisfactorily validated in terms of linearity (5–1000 µg L−1), limits of detection (0.8–1.8 µg L−1), recovery (80.5–92.1%), intraday precision (10.2–13.1%), inter-day precision (11.0–15.5%), matrix effect (83.2–91.8%), accuracy (85.2–95.2%), specificity, and carryover. The application of this technique to commercial samples obtained from a local market demonstrated that levels of organotin species in packed fruit juices are negligible, in agreement with the limits established by the European Food Safety Authority (0.14 mg of total organotin compounds per kg of food).
Green method for improving performance attributes of wool fibres using immobilized proteolytic thermozyme
Authors: Gomaa Sanaa K. , Zaki Rania A. , Wahba Marwa I. , Taleb Marwa Abou , El-Refai Heba A. , El-Fiky Asmaa F. , El-Sayed Hosam
Published: September 2022

Wool has the tendency to turn into felt during agitation in washing machines. Thus, a benign non-polluting method for the production of machine-washable wool was developed herein. Initially, a proteolytic bacteria was isolated from hot region soil. The bacterial isolate was identified as Bacillus safensis FO-36bMZ836779 according to the 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Afterwards, the extracellular protease produced by this isolate was covalently immobilized in order to enhance its stability under non-ambient conditions which are usually adopted in industrial sectors like textile industries. Sericin, which is usually discharged into degumming effluent of natural silk, was utilized to prepare the immobilization carrier. Box–Behnken design was adopted in order to hone the preparation of the sericin–polyethylene–imine–glutaraldehyde activated agar carrier. The pH and temperature profiles of the free and immobilized proteases were compared. Later, wool fibres were bio-treated with both the free and the immobilized enzymes. The effect of process conditions on the resistance of the bio-finished wool to felting was investigated. The alteration in the fibre morphology was monitored using SEM. Amino acid analysis and alkali solubility tests were adopted to assign any change in the chemical structure of the bio-treated wool. The influence of bio-treatment of wool on its inherent properties was assigned. Results revealed that bio-treatment of wool with the said enzyme led to production of machine-washable wool without severe deterioration in the fibres’ properties. In an energy- and water-consuming process, the hot solution from bio-treatment bath was used successfully in dyeing of wool.
Chronotype and Sleep Quality in Obesity: How Do They Change After Menopause?
Authors: Verde Ludovica , Barrea Luigi , Vetrani Claudia , Frias-Toral Evelyn , Chapela Sebastián Pablo , Jayawardena Ranil , de Alteriis Giulia , Docimo Annamaria , Savastano Silvia , Colao Annamaria , Muscogiuri Giovanna
Published: September 2022

Purpose of Review

This review primarily provides an overview of the current evidence on chronotype (which reflects an individual’s preference for the timing of sleeping, eating, and activity in a 24-h period) and sleep quality changes in obesity in postmenopausal women. It also explores possible nutritional strategies to manage these changes in this phase of a woman’s life.

Recent Findings

Menopause is a life stage frequently associated with sleep disturbances and changes in circadian rhythms. Sleep disturbances are one of the main symptoms of menopause and are caused by several factors such as hormonal changes, obesity, and melatonin reduction. In addition, the chronotype also changes following menopause. Nutritional strategies are essential because they could help manage menopausal sleep disturbances and circadian misalignment, particularly by tackling obesity and overweight.

In the management of postmenopausal women, especially those experiencing obesity, careful assessment of sleep disturbances and chronotype and subsequent development of the most appropriate treatment, including nutritional management, should be part of the treatment routine.
Comparison of dense optical flow and PIV techniques for mapping surface current flow in tidal stream energy sites
Authors: McIlvenny J. , Williamson B. J. , Fairley I. A. , Lewis M. , Neill S. , Masters I. , Reeve D. E.
Published: September 2022

Marine renewable energy site and resource characterisation, in particular tidal stream energy, require detailed flow measurements which often rely on high-cost in situ instrumentation which is limited in spatial extent. We hypothesise uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAV) offer a low-cost and low-risk data collection method for tidal stream environments, as recently techniques have been developed to derive flow from optical videography. This may benefit tidal and floating renewable energy developments, providing additional insight into flow conditions and complement traditional instrumentation. Benefits to existing data collection methods include capturing flow over a large spatial extent synchronously, which could be used to analyse flow around structures or for site characterisation; however, uncertainty and method application to tidal energy sites is unclear. Here, two algorithms are tested: large-scale particle image velocimetry using PIVlab and dense optical flow. The methods are applied on video data collected at two tidal stream energy sites (Pentland Firth, Scotland, and Ramsey Sound, Wales) for a range of flow and environmental conditions. Although average validation measures were similar (~ 20–30% error), we recommend PIVlab processed velocity data at tidal energy sites because we find bias (underprediction) in optical flow for higher velocities (> 1 m/s).
Effect of die coating on surface crack depth of hot extruded 7075 aluminum alloy
Authors: Funazuka Tatsuya , Dohda Kuniaki , Takatsuji Norio , Hu Chengliang , Sukunthakan Ngernbamrung
Published: September 2022

The aluminum alloys belonging to the 7000 series are high-strength alloys used in a wide variety of products for weight reduction. They are primarily used in the field of transportation and aerospace. Among these, the A7075 alloy has the highest strength and is expected to be applicable in a wide range of fields, such as aircraft components and sports equipment. However, it has high deformation resistance and is prone to surface defects, which is called tearing. Tearing typically occurs at high temperatures and high ram speeds, and adversely affects productivity. The localized melting of Zn and additive compounds, due to the heat generated during the process, is considered to cause tearing. In this study, the effect of friction, heat, and tearing at the tool—metal interface was mitigated by improving the die surface quality. The reduced friction eliminated recrystallization by preventing the temperature from increasing to recrystallization temperature. In addition, an AlCrN coating was adopted instead of nitriding to improve the die surface quality. The tearing size and heat generated when using the AlCrN coating were found to be limited. Moreover, the grain size observed in the tearing region on the extruded surface was small. The simulations using the shear friction coefficient m observed from friction tests indicate that the use of the AlCrN coating improved the material flow. Thus, the AlCrN coating is considered effective for reducing friction at the interface and preventing the recrystallization of the extruded surface. From the aforementioned results, it can be inferred that a die coating can reduce the tearing sensitivity and increase the productivity of the A7075 alloy.
Electrocatalytic Oxygen Reduction to Produce Hydrogen Peroxide: Rational Design from Single-Atom Catalysts to Devices
Authors: Tong Yueyu , Wang Liqun , Hou Feng , Dou Shi Xue , Liang Ji
Published: September 2022

Electrocatalytic production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) via the 2e−transfer route of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) offers a promising alternative to the energy-intensive anthraquinone process, which dominates current industrial-scale production of H2O2. The availability of cost-effective electrocatalysts exhibiting high activity, selectivity, and stability is imperative for the practical deployment of this process. Single-atom catalysts (SACs) featuring the characteristics of both homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts are particularly well suited for H2O2synthesis and thus, have been intensively investigated in the last few years. Herein, we present an in-depth review of the current trends for designing SACs for H2O2production via the 2e−ORR route. We start from the electronic and geometric structures of SACs. Then, strategies for regulating these isolated metal sites and their coordination environments are presented in detail, since these fundamentally determine electrocatalytic performance. Subsequently, correlations between electronic structures and electrocatalytic performance of the materials are discussed. Furthermore, the factors that potentially impact the performance of SACs in H2O2production are summarized. Finally, the challenges and opportunities for rational design of more targeted H2O2-producing SACs are highlighted. We hope this review will present the latest developments in this area and shed light on the design of advanced materials for electrochemical energy conversion.

Graphical abstract
Discussion on: “Programmable money: next generation blockchain-based conditional payments” by Ingo Weber and Mark Staples
Authors: Burda Michael C.
Published: September 2022

My comment on Weber and Staples (Digit Financ, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42521-022-00064-8, 2022) elaborates an economic perspective of their “programmable money” proposal. While claims issued and tendered for goods and services resemble money, a number of issues must be resolved before this innovation is feasible as money in analog trade or digital finance. These include secondary tradability, permissioned access, standardization and transparency. Programmable money is an important step towards the implementation of contingent commodities in the sense of Arrow and Debreu (Econometrica, 22(3):265–290, 1954) and Debreu (1959).
Public Perception on the Sustainable Energy Transition in Rural Finland: A Multi-criteria Approach
Authors: KC Raghu , Föhr Jarno , Ranta Tapio
Published: September 2022

Heating is the most energy-intensive sector worldwide as well as in Europe and Finland. About 37% of the heat produced in Finland is still produced with fossil fuels, including 5.5% with fossil fuel oil (FFO). Phasing out FFO from the energy mix in compliance to Finnish carbon neutrality target is complicated because of the decentralized use all over the country, especially in rural Finland. There have been policies and financial instruments targeted for replacement of FFO-fired heating systems, but the rate of heating system renovation has been slow as there are still about 300,000 FFO and gas-fired heating systems nationwide. In this study, we conducted a survey of homeowners with FFO heating systems and asked about their willingness to renovate their heating system. In addition, we asked them to prioritize their sustainability criteria and we ranked them using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP). The first part of the results show that younger homeowners are more interested in more sustainable modes of heating. Further, the results also show that the willingness to undergo an FFO heating system renovation is higher among respondents with university degrees compared to respondents with high-school and upper secondary educations. The second part of the results show that the economy and environment were given the equally highest priority ratings compared to technological and social criteria. However, older and university degree-educated respondents emphasized environmental criteria, climate change and renewable energy indicators more than their younger and high-school graduate counterparts.
Gut mutualists can persist in host populations despite low fidelity of vertical transmission
Authors: Xiong Xiyan , Loo Sara L. , Tanaka Mark M.
Published: September 2022

Humans harbour diverse microbial communities, and this interaction has fitness consequences for hosts and symbionts. Understanding the mechanisms that preserve host–symbiont association is an important step in studying co-evolution between humans and their mutualist microbial partners. This association is promoted by vertical transmission, which is known to be imperfect. It is unclear whether host–microbial associations can generally be maintained despite ‘leaky’ vertical transmission. Cultural practices of the host are expected to be important in bacterial transmission as they influence the host's interaction with other individuals and with the environment. There is a need to understand whether and how cultural practices affect host–microbial associations. Here, we develop a mathematical model to identify the conditions under which the mutualist can persist in a population where vertical transmission is imperfect. We show with this model that several factors compensate for imperfect vertical transmission, namely, a selective advantage to the host conferred by the mutualist, horizontal transmission of the mutualist through an environmental reservoir and transmission of a cultural practice that promotes microbial transmission. By making the host–microbe association more likely to persist in the face of leaky vertical transmission, these factors strengthen the association which in turn enables host–mutualist co-evolution.
The emerging role of NOTCH3 receptor signalling in human lung diseases
Authors: Bodas Manish , Subramaniyan Bharathiraja , Karmouty-Quintana Harry , Vitiello Peter F. , Walters Matthew S.
Published: September 2022

The mammalian respiratory system or lung is a tree-like branching structure, and the main site of gas exchange with the external environment. Structurally, the lung is broadly classified into the proximal (or conducting) airways and the distal alveolar region, where the gas exchange occurs. In parallel with the respiratory tree, the pulmonary vasculature starts with large pulmonary arteries that subdivide rapidly ending in capillaries adjacent to alveolar structures to enable gas exchange. The NOTCH signalling pathway plays an important role in lung development, differentiation and regeneration post-injury. Signalling via the NOTCH pathway is mediated through activation of four NOTCH receptors (NOTCH1-4), with each receptor capable of regulating unique biological processes. Dysregulation of the NOTCH pathway has been associated with development and pathophysiology of multiple adult acute and chronic lung diseases. This includes accumulating evidence that alteration of NOTCH3 signalling plays an important role in the development and pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, asthma, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and pulmonary arterial hypertension. Herein, we provide a comprehensive summary of the role of NOTCH3 signalling in regulating repair/regeneration of the adult lung, its association with development of lung disease and potential therapeutic strategies to target its signalling activity.
The Gaussian structure of the singular stochastic Burgers equation
Authors: Mattingly Jonathan C. , Romito Marco , Su Langxuan
Published: September 2022

We consider the stochastically forced Burgers equation with an emphasis on spatially rough driving noise. We show that the law of the process at a fixed timet, conditioned on no explosions, is absolutely continuous with respect to the stochastic heat equation obtained by removing the nonlinearity from the equation. This establishes a form of ellipticity in this infinite-dimensional setting. The results follow from a recasting of the Girsanov Theorem to handle less spatially regular solutions while only proving absolute continuity at a fixed time and not on path-space. The results are proven by decomposing the solution into the sum of auxiliary processes, which are then shown to be absolutely continuous in law to a stochastic heat equation. The number of levels in this decomposition diverges to infinite as we move to the stochastically forced Burgers equation associated to the KPZ equation, which we conjecture is just beyond the validity of our results (and certainly the current proof). The analysis provides insights into the structure of the solution as we approach the regularity of KPZ. A number of techniques from singular SPDEs are employed, as we are beyond the regime of classical solutions for much of the paper.
Clogged corners
Authors: Hewitt Duncan R.
Published: September 2022

Viscoplastic materials cannot flow if the local stress falls below the yield stress of the material. Such materials tend to ‘clog up’ geometrical features like corners or side branches by forming rigid plugs, because the stress becomes insufficient to yield them. In this volume, Taylor-West and Hogg (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 941, 2022, A64) consider the problem of flow of an idealised viscoplastic fluid in a wedge forced by a disturbance far from the corner; this is the viscoplastic analogue of Moffatt's famous corner eddies. They demonstrate and describe the details of how the fluid clogs up the corner of the wedge with a rigid plug bounded by a viscoplastic eddy. More generally, this study provides a way to explain some of the details of cloggings in different geometries that have previously been observed in viscoplastic materials.
An adjacent-swap Markov chain on coalescent trees
Authors: Simper Mackenzie , Palacios Julia A.
Published: September 2022

The standard coalescent is widely used in evolutionary biology and population genetics to model the ancestral history of a sample of molecular sequences as a rooted and ranked binary tree. In this paper we present a representation of the space of ranked trees as a space of constrained ordered matched pairs. We use this representation to define ergodic Markov chains on labeled and unlabeled ranked tree shapes analogously to transposition chains on the space of permutations. We show that an adjacent-swap chain on labeled and unlabeled ranked tree shapes has a mixing time at least of order
$n^3$
, and at most of order
$n^{4}$
. Bayesian inference methods rely on Markov chain Monte Carlo methods on the space of trees. Thus it is important to define good Markov chains which are easy to simulate and for which rates of convergence can be studied.
Renewal theory for iterated perturbed random walks on a general branching process tree: Early generations
Authors: Iksanov Alexander , Rashytov Bohdan , Samoilenko Igor
Published: September 2022

Let
$(\xi_k,\eta_k)_{k\in\mathbb{N}}$
be independent identically distributed random vectors with arbitrarily dependent positive components. We call a (globally) perturbed random walk a random sequence
$T\,{:\!=}\, (T_k)_{k\in\mathbb{N}}$
defined by
$T_k\,{:\!=}\, \xi_1+\cdots+\xi_{k-1}+\eta_k$
for
$k\in\mathbb{N}$
. Consider a general branching process generated by T and let
$N_j(t)$
denote the number of the jth generation individuals with birth times
$\leq t$
. We treat early generations, that is, fixed generations j which do not depend on t. In this setting we prove counterparts for
$\mathbb{E}N_j$
of the Blackwell theorem and the key renewal theorem, prove a strong law of large numbers for
$N_j$
, and find the first-order asymptotics for the variance of
$N_j$
. Also, we prove a functional limit theorem for the vector-valued process
$(N_1(ut),\ldots, N_j(ut))_{u\geq0}$
, properly normalized and centered, as
$t\to\infty$
. The limit is a vector-valued Gaussian process whose components are integrated Brownian motions.
TIME AND HUMAN FRAGILITY IN THE LANDSCAPE SIMILES OF THE ILIAD
Authors: Bray Chloe
Published: September 2022

This article explores the propensity of Iliadic landscape similes to encourage reflections on human fragility. Landscape in the similes is usually interpreted as a medium which conveys a consistent symbolic value (for example storms as the hostility of nature); however, landscape is often a more flexible medium. By offering close readings of three Iliadic similes (winter torrents at 4.452–6, snowfall at 12.279–89 and clear night at 8.555–9), this article argues that landscape allowed the poet to frame the main narrative in various ways, both helping the listener to imagine described events and interrupting the listener's immersion in the main narrative. While many have analysed how similes offer analogies to the main narrative, the ways in which the same simile can also disrupt and reframe the narrative are less understood. This article observes that shifts in narrative space and time played a key role in changing the perspective of the listener. Taking a broadly phenomenological approach, it proposes that embodied descriptions of space, which recreate the experience of the moving body in landscape, invite the listener to consider the temporal scale of the natural world. By looking at how landscape in select similes shifts the listener's spatial and temporal experience, this article argues that landscape contributes to the wider Iliadic theme of human fragility. In particular, it identifies the potential for landscape similes to minimize the scale of human experience, question the possibility of human agency, and reveal the limitations of human perspectives and knowledge.
The Iconic Paths of La Verge de Montserrat in Catalonia and Beyond: A Comparative Approach from History and Anthropology
Authors: Canals Roger , Muñoz Celeste
Published: September 2022

La Verge de Montserrat is a statue of the Virgin Mary and her son found in Catalonia in the eleventh century in which both characters are depicted as “Black.” This female figure occupies a particular position in current Catalonia since she is considered the patron saint of the country and constitutes one of the symbolic cornerstones of Catalan nationalism. Through the concept of “iconic path,” this article tracks the formation and evolution of this image in Catalonia from its inception until the present day, bringing special attention to the roles and significances that it has acquired within the context of the current pro-independence movement. We also draw a comparison between the “lives” of this image in Catalonia and its development in other countries, namely Puerto Rico, Equatorial Guinea and Sardinia. In each of these places, the image of the goddess has been reinterpreted according to local viewpoints. Yet these conceptualizations are not fixed or homogeneous, but radically dynamic and problematic. The iconic paths of images diverge and converge across time giving birth to new creative exercises. Through this approach, our aim is to propose a relational and processual model for the study of religious images, and images in general, as historical objects.
Doing ageing research in pandemic times: a reflexive approach towards research ethics during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Galčanová Batista Lucie , Urbaniak Anna , Wanka Anna
Published: September 2022

The outbreak of COVID-19 has had a significant impact on societies and individual lives across the globe. In this paper, we address the impact of the pandemic and the protective measures on empirical social scientific ageing research through the lens of ‘ethically important moments’. One of the most crucial measures for preventing the spread of the virus includes social distancing; therefore, empirical research methods based on person-to-person direct contact (as in interviews) and first-hand observation have been scaled back since 2020. For ageing research, the challenges are particularly pronounced due to the ongoing discussion regarding vulnerabilities associated with higher age and age-based discrimination. Hence, many researchers focusing on ageing are facing some difficult questions: How and under what conditions can we carry on with empirical research without putting our research participants and ourselves at risk? Firstly, we systematically identify the key dimensions and challenges that have shaped social scientific research during the lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic: fragmentation, fluidity, ambiguity and uncertainty. Then, using insights from two international research projects, we illustrate and critically reflect on the ethically important moments and practical dilemmas that have resulted from these pandemic challenges when researching with and about older adults.
More than a Free Lunch: A Content Analysis of the Controversies Surrounding Universal Basic Income on Dutch Twitter
Authors: Gielens Erwin , Roosma Femke , Achterberg Peter
Published: September 2022

Universal Basic Income (UBI) reached political agendas as a proposal to radically reform welfare systems, followed by scholarly interest in its public legitimacy. While surveys find UBI support to be mostly redistribution-driven, the discussion in science and media suggests a more nuanced understanding. To comprehensively grasp the public response to UBI policy, this article explores the controversies surrounding UBI policy through a content analysis of Dutch tweets. In addition to identifying established controversies, our analysis points to two avenues for the study of UBI legitimacy. First, a multidimensional measure of UBI support should include redistributive, conditionality, and efficiency aspects. Second, dissatisfaction with targeted activation policy and ‘post-productivist’ attitudes should receive greater attention as drivers of UBI support. Overall, we find the pressure to reform welfare is more than the promise of a ‘free lunch’: it is anchored in fundamental critiques of economic and welfare institutions.
To what extent do Socratic seminar activities encourage engagement in Classical Civilisation lessons?
Authors: Robinson Lois
Published: September 2022

Classroom dialogue provides significant opportunity for students to build on their understanding of a subject. It is also a vector through which the educator can assess progress in their lessons (Alexander, 2008). The purpose of this study was to explore what effect a specific form of classroom dialogue (the Socratic seminar) has on student engagement, and consequently, their learning.