bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Joint Research Centre’s Expertise in Nuclear Safeguards Sample Analysis
Authors: Hernández Ana María Sánchez , Buda Razvan , Casteleyn Karin , Commin Lorelei , D’Amati Francesco , Horta Joan , Le Terrier Arnaud , Mühleisen Artur , Stohr Sarah , Schorlé Hélène , Toma Magdalena , Zuñiga Martin Vargas , Wojnowski Denis , Zsigrai Jozsef , Mayer Klaus
Published: January 2025

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Karlsruhe, in partnership with the Directorate General for Energy (DG ENER), plays a critical role in ensuring the accurate analysis of nuclear materials, as mandated by the EURATOM Treaty. The Analytical Service at JRC Karlsruhe is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of quality, accuracy, and traceability in its analytical measurements, with a focus on uranium and plutonium content and isotopic composition. Our laboratory is accredited according to ISO/IEC 17025 and has a proven track record of successful participation in numerous Inter-Laboratory Comparisons (ILCs), demonstrating our expertise and commitment to excellence in nuclear material analysis. We employ a range of analytical methods, including active and passive radiometric techniques and mass spectrometry, to ensure the lowest possible uncertainty in our results. Our laboratory has consistently achieved top performance in various ILCs, showcasing our ability to deliver high-quality results and our dedication to maintaining the highest standards of accuracy and reliability. This is a testament to our rigorous quality control processes and our commitment to staying at the forefront of nuclear material analysis. This paper provides insights into the factors that we believe have contributed to our top performance, including our rigorous quality control processes, our commitment to staff training and development, and our investment in state-of-the-art instrumentation. By sharing our experiences and best practices, we aim to contribute to the advancement of nuclear material accounting and control, safeguards verification, and non-proliferation efforts.
Selective Americium Separation: New Insights into the Complexation of Trivalent f-Elements with SO3-Ph-BTBP
Authors: Sauerwein Fynn S. , Sittel Thomas , Geist Andreas , Panak Petra J. , Wilden Andreas , Modolo Giuseppe
Published: January 2025

In the Americium selective (AmSEL) process, the N-donor ligand 3,3’,3’’,3’’’-([2,2’-bipyridine]-6,6’-diylbis(1,2,4-triazine-3,5,6-triyl))tetrabenzenesulfonate (SO3-Ph-BTBP) is used to selectively strip Am(III) from a N,N,N’,N’-tetraoctyl diglycolamide (TODGA) containing organic phase loaded with Am(III), Cm(III) and lanthanides (Ln(III)). Fundamental extraction mechanism studies revealed an unusual extraction behavior of heavy Ln(III) and Y(III), which provided the motivation to investigate their complexation with SO3-Ph-BTBP using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and solvent extraction. NMR spectroscopy indicated the formation of the same SO3-Ph-BTBP complex with Lu(III) in 10-3 mol L-1, 1 mol L-1 and 3 mol L-1 DNO3 solution. However, the complexation at high DNO3 concentration is subject to a slower than expected complexation kinetics leading to the conclusion that the unusual extraction behavior is probably related to a kinetics effect rather than an unknown complex species. Kinetics studies using solvent extraction show a slowly increasing extraction of heavy Ln(III) and Y(III) into the organic phase which is attributed to a kinetically inhibited decomplexation of the SO3-Ph-BTBP complexes. This effect is even more pronounced at higher HNO3 concentration. Additionally, combinations of monoand di-methylated TODGA derivatives with SO3-Ph-BTBP were tested, showing a decreasing performance regarding the actinide(III)/lanthanide(III) and Am(III)/Cm(III) separation with increasing degree of methylation.
Maxillary osteonecrosis linked to Pembrolizumab therapy: a case report
Authors: Gosselin-Rousselle Louise , Gaudimier Zoé , Pamelard Pierre-Olivier , Sader Paul , Moizan Hervé
Published: January 2025

Introduction: Osteonecrosis of the jaw is a serious condition often associated with the use of bone-modifying agents or antiangiogenics. Recent evidence suggests that immune checkpoint inhibitors, including Pembrolizumab, might also contribute to osteonecrosis of the jaw. Observation: An 83-year-old male with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer treated exclusively with Pembrolizumab developed osteonecrosis of the maxilla. Management included sequestrectomy, curettage, placement of Platelet-rich-Fibrin (PRF) and antibiotics. Despite initial improvement, symptoms recurred. The patient eventually stabilized but passed away a few months later. Discussion: A literature review was conducted supporting the hypothesis that the mechanism may involve disrupted bone remodeling due to enhanced immune activity. This highlights the need for further research to clarify the potential association between Pembrolizumab and osteonecrosis, and to develop preventive and management strategies. Conclusion: While definitive causality between Pembrolizumab and osteonecrosis of the jaw cannot be established with the current evidence, this case adds to the growing body of literature suggesting that immune checkpoint inhibitors may be implicated in the pathogenesis of osteonecrosis of the jaw. As the use of immunotherapy expands in oncology, further research is essential to elucidate this association and provide guidelines.
23andMe, ou la chute d’une licorne
Authors: Jordan Bertrand
Published: January 2025

23andMe, a company pioneering on-demand genetic profiling, has attracted much attention, millions of customers and very significant investments, as well as some lucrative collaborations with the pharmaceutical industry. Yet the company is now in deep trouble, with shares worth pennies, and may go bankrupt in the near future. This article describes the firm’s history and attempts to understand its problems.
Les humains ont-ils coévolué avec le microbiote intestinal ?
Authors: Mazel Florent
Published: January 2025

Le microbiote intestinal joue un rôle clef pour la santé. Alors que les mécanismes qui déterminent ses effets commencent à être élucidés, son évolution est peu connue. Des questions telles que « le microbiote évolue-t-il et à quel rythme ? », « quelle est son origine ? », ou « avons-nous coévolué avec nos bactéries intestinales ? », sont peu explorées. À court terme, les microbes évoluent en réponse à des modifications de l’environnement, comme le régime alimentaire de leur hôte. Sur une échelle de temps longue, l’évolution au sein d’un individu est contrebalancée par des échanges de microbes provenant d’autres individus. Ainsi, si les microbes intestinaux ont probablement évolué dans les populations, la plupart ont une longue histoire d’échanges entre populations. Savoir si l’évolution du microbiote depuis des dizaines de milliers d’années a facilité les adaptations humaines reste une question ouverte et fondamentale.
Une approche CRISPR/Cas pour traiter les β-hémoglobinopathies
Authors: Brusson Megane , Miccio Annarita
Published: January 2025

Les β-hémoglobinopathies sont des anémies génétiques graves dues à des mutations affectant l’hémoglobine adulte. Pour y remédier, le système CRISPR/Cas9 a été utilisé pour modifier génétiquement les cellules souches/progénitrices hématopoïétiques des patients ex vivo, et réactiver l’expression de l’hémoglobine fœtale dans la lignée érythroïde. Plus de 70 patients atteints de β-thalassémie ou de drépanocytose ont reçu la thérapie Casgevy®. La plupart de ces patients ont présenté une amélioration notable de leur phénotype clinique, avec une grande efficacité d’édition et des taux d’hémoglobine normaux ou presque. Bien que la sécurité et l’efficacité à long terme doivent encore être évaluées, des stratégies sont en développement pour améliorer les résultats, réduire la génotoxicité potentielle et diminuer les coûts.
Multifaceted taxonomy of two Dactylogyrus species on Enteromius paludinosus: Integrating light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and molecular approaches
Authors: Maduenyane Mpho , Dos Santos Quinton Marco , Avenant-Oldewage Annemariè
Published: January 2025

Dactylogyrus Diesing, 1850 is the most speciose genus of platyhelminths with more than 900 species, and over a hundred species recorded from Africa. Of the latter, six are from the straightfin barb, Enteromius paludinosus (Peters). Dactylogyrus teresae Mashego, 1983 and Dactylogyrus dominici Mashego, 1983 were collected from E. paludinosus in the Vaal River system, Gauteng, South Africa and their taxonomic data revised using standard protocols and modern approaches, alongside the type material. Whole worms were mounted on glass slides with glycerine ammonium picrate (GAP) and studied using light microscopy (LM). For scanning electron microscopy (SEM), whole worms were placed on concavity slides and the soft tissue digested to release the sclerotised copulatory organs and haptoral sclerites. A combination of these approaches (LM and SEM) was employed for the first time to study the sclerotised structures of GAP-mounted material. Soft tissues of SEM analysed specimens were genetically characterised using CO1 mtDNA, 18S-ITS1-5.8S rDNA and partial 28S rDNA fragments. Phylogenetic topologies were constructed using Bayesian inference. Results confirmed the morphologic and genetic distinctness of D. dominici and D. teresae, highlighting the importance of studying the varying orientations of specifically the vagina and transverse bar. This study presents a new locality record, the first SEM study of isolated sclerotised structures, as well as the first molecular data for the Dactylogyrus afrobarbae-like species. The multifaceted approaches applied to the same specimen in this study enabled improved resolution of individual specimens, showing promise for studies where limited specimens are available.
Histoire de l’évaluation des JO d’hiver – De la valorisation des bénéfices à la minimisation du coût d’opportunité
Authors: Barget Eric
Published: January 2025

Cet article vise à rendre compte, dans une perspective chronologique, de la manière dont les effets des Jeux Olympiques d’hiver ont été évalués. Les différents outils utilisés répondent à une problématique spécifique privilégiée à une période donnée. Du point de vue de la méthode, trois grands types d’approches sont distingués : l’analyse monocritère pouvant reposer sur l’étude d’impact économique ou l’analyse coûts-bénéfices, l’analyse multicritères dont la mise en œuvre peut être faite à court/moyen terme par le biais de tableaux de bords d’indicateurs, et à long terme au travers du concept d’héritage, et enfin l’analyse des coûts. Les différentes méthodes étudiées sont présentées dans leurs grandes lignes au travers de tableaux de synthèse, et illustrées par des exemples d’applications aux JO d’hiver. Finalement, l’article argumente que si la prise en compte des coûts, bien que récente, se développe fortement, le concept de coût d’opportunité est trop peu considéré. Il est pourtant crucial pour juger de la légitimité d’accueillir des événements aux investissements lourds tels que les JO d’hiver. L’auteur termine l’article en préfigurant un modèle d’analyse du coût d’opportunité de différentes catégories de dépenses associées aux Jeux, en investissement et en fonctionnement.
Méthodologie d’une conception d’une intervention d’éducation pour la santé orale : application aux apprentis en boulangerie-pâtisserie
Authors: Jaroof Sabah , David Soizic , Rharmaoui Salima , Craquelin Marie , Gagnayre Rémi , Soleymani Dagmar
Published: January 2025

Des interventions en population générale, à différents âges de la vie, visent à promouvoir des comportements favorables pour prévenir les maladies bucco-dentaires. Dans le contexte spécifique du secteur de la boulangerie-pâtisserie, un surrisque lié à la présence de sucre majore l’incidence carieuse et nécessite la conception d’une intervention adaptée au contexte professionnel pour prévenir la carie du boulanger. La contribution vise la modélisation d’une conception d’éducation pour la santé orale auprès d’apprentis boulangers-pâtissiers scolarisés en centre de formation des apprentis (CFA), et ce en coopération avec leurs formateurs en CFA et leurs maîtres d’apprentissage dans une approche globale de la personne et systémique. Cette triple focale a pour objectif la création d’environnements favorables soutenant l’adoption d’habitudes de vie favorables en milieu professionnel. Deux modèles – Health Belief Model (HBM) et Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) – ont été convoqués pour construire le diagnostic éducatif relatif à l’hygiène orale des apprentis et leurs besoins individuels et collectifs pour adopter des comportements favorables et prévenir la carie du boulanger. Dans le cadre de cette réflexion théorique, le référentiel des compétences éclaire ensuite les composantes essentielles des apprentissages critiques visés (compréhension, application, identification). Enfin, grâce au modèle micro-pédagogique en milieu scolaire, le choix des habitudes favorables à la santé orale a été opéré en prenant en compte leur contrôlabilité, leur valeur et leur exigence, toutes dépendantes d’une seule condition : pouvoir accéder à un robinet d’eau. L’auto-efficacité constitue l’élément central du croisement des modèles (modèle explicatif, modèle d’action planifiée, modèle pédagogique) qui permettent de vérifier la concordance entre compétences visées et faisabilités de la modélisation des apprentissages, notamment par l’action intersectorielle. En tant que limite cette modélisation théorique souffre du fait de sa non-réalisation sur le terrain. Cependant, la modélisation d’une conception d’intervention s’avère être une étape constitutive de l’élaboration des objectifs, la création d’outils et l’évaluation post-intervention.
Cathode-Induced C-H Functionalization of 1, 4-Quinones with Aryldiazonium Salts
Authors: Dai Yuyu , Niu Wei , Cui Miao , Dai Erling , Xia Yan , Li Xiaoqing , Xu Xiangsheng
Published: January 2025

A mild and green method was developed for the aryl-monosubstituted or aryl-disubstituted quinones compounds under electrochemical conditions. We found that the existence of O2 and trace water may be beneficial to the formation of product. This protocol exhibits a broad range of functional tolerance and satisfactory yields for accessing aryl-substituted quinones under ambient conditions at room temperature.
Deposition of high-T
c thin films and multilayers
Authors: Poppe G. , Stritzker B. , Heiden Ch.
Published: January 2025

High-quality thin films of high-Tc superconductors have been deposited on different substrates such as SrTiO3, MgO, ZrO2, and LiNbO3 without post-annealing. Different methods are used: dc-sputtering in pure O2 gas, dc-magnetron-sputtering in Ar/O2 mixture, and laser ablation. The particular features of each method are compared using a variety of data from the analysis of the prepared films.
Superconductivity, transport properties, and electronic structure of electron-doped cuprates Ln2–xCexCuO4–δ and Nd2CuO4–yFy
Authors: Saemann-lschenko G. S.
Published: January 2025

The structure of sintered Ln2–xCexCuO4–δ (Ln = Nd, Pr, Ce) and Nd2CuO4–yFy bulk samples was investigated by x-ray and neutron diffraction. Superconducting Nd2–xCexCuO4–δ films on single-crystalline SrTiO3 were prepared by ion beam and laser ablation. The c-axis-oriented films exhibit a strong anisotropy of Hc2(T).

Phase diagrams for different Ln and x, critical field Hc1 and Hc2 paramagnetic moments in the normal state, the negative Hall coefficient, and irreversible behavior of granular samples in a magnetic field are discussed. Photoemission experiments were performed to study the valence of the constituents, especially the trivalent state of Nd. The F-concentration was evaluated by core level spectroscopy. Measurements of crystal and magnetic structure using neutrons (Grenoble, Riso), synchrotron radiation (Hamburg), and specific heat are in progress.
High-temperature superconductors. Influence of substitutions on their structure, microstructure, and critical currents
Authors: Freyhardt H. C. , Wördenweber R. , Sastry G. V. , Heinemann K. , Ullmann B. , Bremert O.
Published: January 2025

Complementary methods—x-ray investigations, TEM and Mössbauer spectroscopy—are used to study the effect of substitutions on the structure and microstructure of (Y1–y, My)1Ba2 (Cu1–xMx)3O7–δ ceramic high-temperature superconductors, where M = R.E. and M = Fe, Ni, etc. For small concentrations, Fe predominantly replaces Cu I, whereas Ni is found on Cu II sites. Consequently, Tc changes differently in the two cases, also, because Fe increases the total oxygen content of the compound. Mdssbauer spectroscopy reveals that the surroundings of Fe (on Cu I sites) are enriched in oxygen. Simultaneously, the twin boundary spacing is reduced drastically from 120 nm (x = 0) to ≈ 25 nm at 1.5% Fe (not for Ni substitutions). Above about 2% Fe microdomains (5 nm) develop which lead to a “quasi-tetragonal” structure. Measurements of critical transport currents seem to indicate that both twin boundaries and microdomains do not represent strong pinning centers. The volume pinning force obeys a scaling law, Fv∝Bc2ab(1−b)2 (with α = 2 – 3), which is ascribed to a flux-shearing mechanism.
Oxygen subsystem in oxide HTSC: optical and Mössbauer studies
Authors: Eremenko V. V. , Beznosov A. B. , Galuza A. I. , Kaner N. E. , Ushakov V. A. , Checherskii V. D.
Published: January 2025

Optical and Mössbauer studies of polycrystalline superconducting samples YBa2Cu3O6.85 and YBa2Cu2.97Fe0.0357O6.8 have been carried out. Ellipsometry of optical funcitons in the spectral region 0.5 ≤ F ≤ 6 eV shows that the Cu ion states are close to univalent and, hence, that nearly neutral, weakly bonded oxygen is present in the lattice. Mössbauer data are also treated using assumptions about weakly boned oxygen. Common features in the tempeature behavior of both optical and Mössbauer spectra include the existence of strong temperature oscillations of the imaginary component of the permittivity ε″ (at 4.13 eV the optical oscillations are the most intense) and the mean-square shift of a Cu atom. The treatment of these oscillations is based on the assumption of phase modulations of one-site wave functions of oxygen by temperature-dependent local fields of the vector potential. Such modulation, affecting both optical dipole moments and intersite bond forces, is assumed to take place in superconducting microregions of ≤ 650 Å which appear below some temperature Tc∗>>Tc and form a continuous “glassy” medium at T ≤ Tc.
Electrical homeostasis of the inner mitochondrial membrane potential
Authors: Fahimi Peyman , Castanedo Lázaro A M , Vernier P Thomas , Matta Chérif F
Published: January 2025

The electric potential across the inner mitochondrial membrane must be maintained within certain bounds for the proper functioning of the cell. A feedback control mechanism for the homeostasis of this membrane potential is proposed whereby an increase in the electric field decreases the rate-limiting steps of the electron transport chain (ETC). An increase in trans-membrane electric field limits the rate of proton pumping to the inter-membrane gap by slowing the ETC reactions and by intrinsically induced electroporation that depolarizes the inner membrane. The proposed feedback mechanism is akin to a Le Chatelier’s-type principle of trans-membrane potential feedback control.
Beamforming based on DtN mapping
Authors: Qiu Yanping , Gao Siyu , Chen Qian , Zhang Gaoying , Zhang Yinquan
Published: January 2025

At present, the conventional beamforming is carried out by using the signal obtained from the pressure hydrophone, which is less than the vector hydrophone in the angular resolution. However, it is difficult for the vector hydrophone to make its application. Researchers have tried to use differential pressure hydrophones to increase the angular resolution, but it requires that the element spacing be much smaller than the wavelength. This paper proposes an idea to realize the reconstruction of acoustic pressure signals into the high-order gradient signal of acoustic pressure, which doesn’t require the element spacing to be much smaller than the wavelength. The method mainly uses the Rayleigh hypothesis, which considers that the elements are connected to each point. The establishment of DtN mapping matrix is for achieving high-order beamforming. The beamforming based on DtN mapping has a higher directivity index and orientation accuracy than conventional beamforming. It can also realize the superdirectivity of the end-direction.
Research on carbon dioxide power devices based on CFD
Authors: Cao Minglei , Chen Yanwei , Li Qi , Zhang Liang
Published: January 2025

A carbon dioxide power device is a high-potential gas power device. In order to study the effect of carbon dioxide pressure and flow state in the phase change chamber on the change law of load motion in a gas power device, the pressure before and after the load is read by the user-defined function in the simulation software. The motion change law of the load in the gun barrel is simulated by the dynamic grid technology to the initial pressure of different phase change chambers. The motion change law of the load with time and displacement is as follows: with the increase of the pressure in the phase change chamber, the exit velocity of the load approaches a linear change and gradually approaches the theoretical simulation calculation results. Afterwards, the feasibility of the calculation method and the correctness of the calculation results are verified by comparing the experimental and simulation results. Finally, the influence of the diameter of the phase change chamber on the work capacity of carbon dioxide is analyzed.
Comparative study on the effect of diffuser and semi-diffuser on energy loss for centrifugal pump
Authors: Duan Yongqiang , Wan Yang , Yan Yu , Li Guojun
Published: January 2025

Semi-diffusers are commonly employed for the compressor, but seldom for the pump. There is little research on the use of semi-diffusers for the pump and the effects of semi-diffusers have not been revealed. Entropy generation theory is for examining the effect of semi-diffusers on the energy loss characteristics of the pump in this paper. The findings demonstrate that semi-diffusers have a small impact on the entropy generation of semi-diffusers and impellers, but it can significantly reduce the energy losses of the volute as opposed to the diffusers. This is due to end clearance. End clearance increases the fluidity of the fluid between flow passage components. The ability of a semi-diffuser to reduce energy loss gradually increases as the flow rate increases. The semi-diffuser, relative to the diffuser, reduces the energy loss by a maximum of 1.1% under a low flow rate, by a maximum of 19.9% under a design flow rate, and by a maximum of 41.2% under a large flow rate.
Signal stability of high-Z sensors at synchrotron light sources
Authors: Greiffenberg D. , Paton K.A. , Mulvey J. , Bergamaschi A. , Brückner M. , Busca P. , Del Mar Carulla M. , Dinapoli R. , Ebner S. , Fröjdh E. , Gautam V. , Hasanaj S. , Heymes J. , Hinger V. , King T. , Ferjaoui K. , Kozlowski P. , Lopez-Cuenca C. , Mezza D. , Moustakas K. , Müller M. , Mozzanica A. , Ruder Ch. , Ruat M. , Schmitt B. , Sieberer P. , Thattil D. , Xie X. , Zhang J.
Published: January 2025

The use of high-Z sensors for scientific applications at
synchrotrons will gain more importance due to the upgrade of many
light sources around the world to diffraction limited light sources
for which the photon flux at high photon energies (above 30 keV)
will significantly increase. Especially when illuminated with high
photon fluxes, many established high-Z sensor materials like GaAs or
Cd(Zn)Te are known to suffer from charge (de-)trapping effects in
the bulk or at the contact interface which will ultimately lead to
polarization and afterglow effects in the sensor. Commercially
available high-Z sensors (Chromium-compensated GaAs, CdTe and
CdZnTe) have been investigated at the Material Science beamline of
the Swiss Light Source regarding their dynamic behavior when exposed
to photon fluxes between 106 ph/mm2·s and
≈ 5·1010 ph/mm2·s. In this work, the signal
stability during irradiation will be presented, and a follow-up
publication will discuss the afterglow.
Plant-inspired decentralized controller for robust orientation control of soft robotic manipulators
Authors: Pei Guanran , Hughes Josie
Published: January 2025

Due to the complexity of deformations in soft manipulators, achieving precise control of their orientation is particularly challenging, especially in the presence of external disturbances and human interactions. Inspired by the decentralized growth mechanism of plant gravitropism, which enables plants’ roots and stems to grow in the direction of gravity despite complex environmental interactions, this study proposes a decentralized control strategy for robust orientation control of multi-segment soft manipulators. This gravitropism-inspired decentralized controller was validated through simulations for convergence and robustness, and benchmarked against the traditional inverse Jacobian-based controller on a large-scale multi-segment soft manipulator. Experimental results demonstrate that the decentralized controller achieves comparable convergence and better control precision to the inverse Jacobian-based controller, while significantly outperforming it in disturbance rejection. Even in the presence of partial damage and human interaction, the decentralized controller provides robust control. This study provides a robust new approach for managing disturbances in complex environments, laying the foundation for further exploration of decentralized control strategies in soft robotics.
Soil moisture dominates the severe decline in gross primary productivity during a 2023–2024 compound heatwave-drought event over the Amazon
Authors: Yang Te , Chen Bin , Wang Shaoqiang , Xu Xiyan , Artaxo Paulo , Li Tingyu , Peng Haoyu , Yu Xin
Published: January 2025

The Amazon, the world’s largest tropical forest, plays a critical role in the global carbon cycle. It has a large carbon pool and acts as a major carbon sink. However, in 2023–2024, a compound heatwave-drought (CHWD) event (HD2023) hit the Amazon region, resulting in extreme temperatures and soil moisture deficits, threatening the region’s carbon sink capacity. Using advanced multisource satellite data and meteorological reanalysis, we quantified the impact of various climatic factors on vegetation productivity during HD2023 and analyzed its progression. Our findings showed that HD2023 led to a 530 Tg C decline in gross primary productivity (GPP) and 0.003 reduction in near-infrared reflectance of vegetation. The strongest phase of the event spanned 5 months, causing persistently high temperatures and reduced precipitation, leading to a continuous decline in soil moisture and marked reduction in GPP. The most severe decrease in GPP occurred in January 2024. The event originated in the northwest and gradually spread to the southeast. Soil moisture was the dominant factor in the decline of photosynthesis across vegetation types, whereas high solar radiation mitigated the impact of drought in evergreen broad forests and savannas. Moreover, the sensitivity of GPP to CHWD varied across vegetation types, ranking as grassland > savanna > evergreen broad forest. This study assessed the impact of HD2023 on regional carbon flux in the Amazon. As climate projections indicate future increases in climate extremes over the Amazon, it is important to identify the drivers of this impact on the carbon cycle of the Amazon.
Commitment Issues in the Naive Theory of Belief
Authors: Williams J Robert G
Published: January 2025

This paper investigates a puzzle about commitment. On the one hand, it is natural to hold that agents can be committed to propositions that they do not believe. On the other hand, because they are not logically omniscient, agents often have beliefs which are logically inconsistent. But then, since an inconsistent set of propositions entails every proposition, it seems that we have to hold that most or all agents are committed to every proposition. This consequence threatens to trivialize the idea of commitment. To resolve this puzzle about commitment, this paper draws on a structural similarity between theories of commitment and Robert Stalnaker’s account of belief. Stalnaker holds that agents can have fragmented beliefs: they can be related to multiple internally consistent but jointly incompatible belief states. When this happens, they can believe inconsistent propositions without believing every proposition as long as the inconsistent propositions are located in different fragments. the paper develops a similar strategy for thinking about commitment: beliefs can either be co-believed or not, and an agent is committed to the consequences of a set of beliefs only if those beliefs are co-believed.
Expressivism and Propositions
Authors: Stalnaker Robert
Published: January 2025

Expressivism is a theory about the status of evaluative judgments, including epistemic as well as ethical evaluation. The theory has long faced several technical problems, most prominently what has been called ‘the Frege-Geach problem’. Allan Gibbard gave what I thought was a definitive solution to those problems in his early work on what he called ‘normative logic’, but in later work he makes clear that his interpretation of this solution, and more generally his understanding of the commitments of expressivism, is different from what I was assuming. In this chapter I defend my interpretation of Gibbard’s expressivism against his, and then consider more briefly the application to epistemic norms.
Outline of an Object-Based Truthmaker Semantics for Modals and Propositional Attitudes
Authors: Moltmann Friederike
Published: January 2025

In this chapter, Friederike Moltmann describes and motivates an object-based truthmaker semantics for modals and propositional attitudes. Central to this approach is the idea of modal and attitudinal objects, like obligations and judgments, which have truth or satisfaction conditions. Moltmann envisions a truthmaker-type semantics compositionally assigning truth or satisfaction conditions to attitudinal objects. This allows her to assign truth conditions to modals and propositional attitudes which treat their prejacents (in the case of modals) or complementizer clauses (in the case of attitudes) as predicates of attitudinal objects. Moltmann describes several advantages of her framework as compared to traditional views like the relational analysis of propositional attitudes and the quantificational analysis of modals.
Unstructured Content
Authors: King Jeffrey C
Published: January 2025

In this chapter, Jeffrey C. King re-assesses the reasons for preferring a structured conception of content rather than an unstructured one. King surveys a number of objections to unstructured views, but he focuses his attention on the problem of unwanted equivalences—that on an unstructured view, propositions that are true in all the same possible worlds are identical. This seems to make bad predictions about the informativeness of utterances of sentences expressing necessary truths, such as “Hesperus is Phosphorus”, and about the differences in cognitive significance between sentences like “Hesperus is a planet” and “Phosphorus is a planet”. King surveys responses to these problems in the literature and argues that these responses are all beset with their own difficulties.
In Defence of Fregean That-Clause Semantics
Authors: Felka Katharina , Steinberg Alex
Published: January 2025

In this chapter, Katharina Felka and Alex Steinberg consider a problem for structured accounts of content articulated by Stephen Schiffer and Adam Pautz. The problem has to do with the idea of reference shift—that is, the idea that material embedded in the complementizer clauses of propositional attitude ascriptions must function semantically to refer to something other than what it refers to in unembedded contexts. Focusing in particular on Frege’s theory of content, Felka and Steinberg state the problem as follows: If ‘Hesperus’ in the sentence ‘Ben believes that Hesperus is a planet’ refers not to Venus but rather to the sense associated with the lexical item ‘Hesperus’, and if existential quantification works in the normal way, then the sentence ‘There is something such that Ben believes that it is a planet’ would seem to be true just in case there is a sense which Ben believes to be a planet. But, unless Ben is a peculiar individual indeed, he would never mistake a sense for a planet. So it seems that certain intuitively true sentences are predicted to be false by theories that posit reference shift. Felka and Steinberg suggest that the best response to this kind of argument for proponents of reference shift is to hold that the value of a variable relative to an assignment function shifts in propositional attitude ascriptions just like the value of any other kind of expression.
It’s Not All Roses and Defining and Measuring Community at Work
Authors: Boyd Neil
Published: January 2025

The chapter introduces the community experience framework and how scholars define and measure community at work. Community experiences are grounded in what organizations can give to employees (a need fulfillment notion) and what members of organizations can give to others and the workplace as a whole (a responsibility notion). A variety of metrics exist, and a few are starting to be used in organizational settings. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches can be employed: Qualitative approaches are useful toward understanding the deep meaning of community experiences, and quantitative techniques quickly reveal how a collective and its individuals experience community at work. By exploring these measures, one can develop a way to find out the current state of the community at work.
The Civic Movement and the Constitutionalist Turn
Authors: Argomaniz Javier
Published: January 2025

Chapter 4 focuses on the second Basque cycle of contention from the late 1990s. It describes the emergence of the civic (or “constitutionalist”) movement and examines how the catalyst for this new form of civil resistance was moral shocks caused by individual terrorist attacks. The civic movement constituted a new form of contentious politics that not only challenged ETA but also the ideology of Basque nationalism, which they regarded as the causal factor behind the violence. The chapter explores the constitutionalist use of diagnostic, motivational, and prognostic framing as they construct a new set of discourses to challenge ETA and bring coherence and identity to the movement. Their discursive work helped to introduce novel collective action frames such as the vigorous defence of liberal democratic values, the need to protect political freedoms and pluralism, and the dangers of nationalism as an ideology of division.
Intellectuals and the Crisis of Politics in the Interwar Period and Beyond
Authors: Trencsényi Balázs
Published: January 2025

This book offers a comprehensive analysis of modern European crisis discourses and focuses primarily on the interwar period, commonly described as a paradigmatic case of the crisis of modernity, and then follows through to the present day. It explores how the multiple crises of civilization, capitalism, social cohesion, liberalism, democracy, socialism, or the nation-state were conceptualized, how and to what extent these spheres were entangled, tracing also the multi-level dialogue of intellectuals, politicians, and experts who employed these discourses. The modern concept of crisis combines analytical and mobilizing functions and seeks to establish causal relationships, identify possible trajectories and alternative histories, and rearrange the discursive space by redefining the temporal and spatial coordinates of collective existence. Thus, discourses of crisis are rooted in various regimes of temporality and spatiality. Along these lines, the book provides a geographically and thematically inclusive re-narration of European intellectual history, weaving Eastern, Southeastern, Western, Northern, and Southwestern perspectives together. It de-centers the dominant narrative that takes Western European positions and developments as normative and adds the others as “exotic” peripheries. Within this broad canvas, the book pays special attention to two key contemporary contenders of liberal democracy: neoliberalism and populism. Drawing on, but also going beyond, the historical contextualization of these two streams, the book also explores how a reflective and self-critical liberal democratic political position might be delineated and defended in our current predicament, increasingly compared by observers to the interwar period, and often described as “polycrisis.”
New potency labelling of topical corticosteroids in the UK
Authors: Moss Celia , Ardern-Jones Michael
Published: January 2025

From June 2025 all topical steroids licensed in the UK will be labelled on the container and packaging as ‘Mild steroid’, ‘Moderate steroid’, ‘Strong steroid’ or ‘Very strong steroid’. The designation will match the legal pharmaceutical category. The British National Formulary has previously classified a few products differently and has now altered those designations to match the new labels.
Evolutionary adaptations in the limb morphology of tropidurid lizards in response to sandy environments
Authors: Tulli María J , Toyama Ken S
Published: January 2025

Different habitat types exert particular challenges to ecological performance, ultimately having a strong influence on the evolution of morphology. Although it is well known that external morphology can evolve under the selective pressure of habitat structure, the evolutionary response of internal morphological traits remains vastly unexplored. Here, we test for morphological divergence between arenicolous and nonarenicolous species in a clade of tropidurid lizards, considering external morphological proportions and limb muscle dimensions. We found that arenicolous species seem to have evolved internal and external morphological adaptations that separate them from other habitat specialists. Moreover, comparative analyses suggested that the traits that differed the most between arenicolous and nonarenicolous lizards might have evolved divergently towards different optima. Additionally, the axis of higher morphological divergence between arenicolous and nonarenicolous species represented an important proportion of the morphological diversity within our sample, indicating that the hypothetical adaptive divergence of internal and external traits has contributed significantly to phenotypic diversity. Our results show that evolutionary associations between morphology and habitat use can be detected on both external body proportions and muscle morphology. Moreover, they highlight the emergent importance of internal anatomical traits in ecomorphological studies, especially when such traits are directly involved in determining functional performance.
Confounding effects of socioeconomic status on the association between long-term PM2.5 exposure and mortality in Korea
Authors: Lim Hyungryul , Choi Jonghyuk , Bae Sanghyuk , Choi Kyung-Hwa , Han Xue , Ha Mina , Kim Jong-Hun , Kim Soontae , Kwon Ho-Jang
Published: January 2025

Background

This study assesses the national distribution of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure across socioeconomic status (SES) and its confounding on long-term PM2.5 mortality in Korea, aiming to minimize SES influence.

Methods

A nationwide cohort of 5% of Koreans, aged 30 or older, from 2007 to 2019, from the National Health Information Database, was analysed. PM2.5 exposure levels were estimated at the city level using the Community Multiscale Air Quality system. Mortality data were obtained from Statistics Korea. The study examined annual PM2.5 exposure by SES indicators and its confounding on mortality risks associated with PM2.5, using time-varying Cox proportional hazards models.

Results

The study followed 1 453 036 individuals from 2007 to 2019, totalling 17 760 227 person-years (PYs). The non-accidental (A00-R99), cardiovascular (I00-I99) and respiratory (J00-J99) mortality rates per 1000 PY were 7.6, 1.9 and 0.8, respectively. We observed a trend of decreasing PM2.5 exposure levels but increased mortality among medical aid beneficiaries, those with lower household incomes and those residing in neighbourhoods with a higher area deprivation index. When adjusting for these SES covariates, the long-term mortality effects of PM2.5 shifted in the direction of increased risk [hazard ratio (HR) for cardiovascular mortality in the unadjusted model = 0.968 (95% CI: 0.909–0.959); HR in the fully adjusted model = 1.053 (95% CI: 1.004–1.105)].

Conclusion

In regions where SES and PM2.5 concentrations are positively correlated, as in Korea, it is crucial to rigorously control for SES confounding to avoid underestimating the mortality effects associated with PM2.5.
The Transmission of Negative Nominal Interest Rates in Finland
Authors: Kwan Simon , Ulate Mauricio , Voutilainen Ville
Published: January 2025

Despite the implementation of negative nominal interest rates by several advanced economies in the last decade, there is still much we do not know about the effectiveness of this instrument. In this paper, we analyze the pass-through of the European Central Bank’s changes in the deposit facility rate to mortgage rates in Finland between 2005 and 2020. We use monthly data and three different empirical methodologies: event studies, high-frequency identification, and exposure-measure regressions. We provide robust evidence that there continues to be pass-through of a cut in the policy rate to mortgage rates even when the policy rate is in negative territory, but that this pass-through is smaller than when the policy rate is in positive territory.
Cardiovascular Trauma
Authors: Murphy Joseph G.
Published: January 2025

Cardiovascular trauma is an important cause of death in US society, particularly among young men. It is classified into 3 groups: penetrating injury, blunt nonpenetrating trauma, and medical injury to the heart sustained during an invasive cardiovascular procedure, medical device implantation, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Communicate with the Patient
Authors: Friedland Robert P.
Published: January 2025

Communication with the patient must consider the information transmitted in the context of the patient’s life.
Should You Think Out of the Box?
Authors: Friedland Robert P.
Published: January 2025

Do not accept outside limits on your imagination.
You Are Responsible for Your Actions; You Cannot Let Others Take Responsibility for You
Authors: Friedland Robert P.
Published: January 2025

Do not allow your work to be controlled by ethical decisions made by others.
Spectral difference method with a posteriori limiting: II – Application to low Mach number flows
Authors: Velasco-Romero David A , Teyssier Romain
Published: January 2025

Stellar convection poses two main gargantuan challenges for astrophysical fluid solvers: low-Mach number flows and minuscule perturbations over steeply stratified hydrostatic equilibria. Most methods exhibit excessive numerical diffusion and are unable to capture the correct solution due to large truncation errors. In this paper, we analyse the performance of the spectral difference (SD) method under these extreme conditions using an arbitrarily high-order shock capturing scheme with a posteriori limiting. We include both a modification to the HLLC Riemann solver adapted to low Mach number flows (L-HLLC) and a well-balanced scheme to properly evolve perturbations over steep equilibrium solutions. We evaluate the performance of our method using a series of test tailored specifically for stellar convection. We observe that our high-order SD method is capable of dealing with very subsonic flows without necessarily using the modified Riemann solver. We find however that the well-balanced framework is unavoidable if one wants to capture accurately small amplitude convective and acoustic modes. Analysing the temporal and spatial evolution of the turbulent kinetic energy, we show that our fourth-order SD scheme seems to emerge as an optimal variant to solve this difficult numerical problem.
A United Kingdom nationally representative survey of public attitudes towards pharmacogenomics
Authors: Magavern Emma F , Marengo Gabriel ,   Participant Panel at Genomics England, Sivathasan Chujan , Mezzanzanica Marta , Wright Alison J , Keen Jessica , Sharma Videha , McDermott John H , Duckett Claire , McCormick Dave , Simmonds Shelley , Walters Emma ,   The National Centre for Social Research Team, Weinman John , Parry Vivienne , Newman William G , Caulfield Mark J
Published: January 2025

Background

Variation in DNA is known to contribute to medication response, impacting both medicine effectiveness and incidence of adverse drug reactions (ADRs). However, clinical implementation of pharmacogenomics (PGx) has been slow, and the views of the public are not well understood.

Aim

To assess UK national public attitudes around pharmacogenetics.

Design and Methods

The survey was co-designed with the Participant Panel at Genomics England and the data were collected by the National Centre for Social Research, using its nationally representative panel of UK adults. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to analyse relationships between selected survey reported variables, controlled for age and sex.

Results

The survey response rate was 58%. Two thousand seven hundred and nineteen responses were obtained. Most respondents (59%) had experienced either no benefit or a side effect. Forty-five per cent of respondents reported having experienced no benefit and 46% of respondents reported having experienced a side effect, with female respondents more likely to be in both groups (P < 0.0001). Despite variability in interindividual medicine response being well understood (89%), the involvement of DNA in predicting benefit or risk of a side effect is not (understood by 52% and 48%, respectively). Eighty-nine per cent would complete a PGx test, with 91% wanting direct access to this information. Eighty-five per cent of UK adults think that the NHS should offer PGx to those regularly taking many medicines. Respondents were not more worried overall about misuse of PGx data compared with other routine medical data. Experience with prescription medication impacted on views with those who were prescribed medication almost twice as likely to want a PGx test for any reason.

Conclusion

Most respondents reported experience with either a medication not working for them or ADRs. There was a high level of understanding of variable medication response but a relatively low level of awareness of the role genetics plays in that variability. Most respondents would want a PGx test, to have direct access to results, and think the NHS should offer this form of testing. Importantly, respondents were not more concerned about PGx data use than that of any other routinely generated medical data. Notably, this study highlights a relationship between individuals’ experiences with prescription medications and their interest in PGx testing, underscoring the potential for personalized medicine to address public healthcare needs.