bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Joint Rapid Airfield Construction (JRAC) Program 2004 Demonstration Project--Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Authors: Anderton Gary , Berney Ernest , Newman John , Mann Travis , Gartrell Chad , Miller Daniel
Published: March 2021

This report describes the demonstration of technologies and procedures developed during April 2002 and May 2004 under the Joint Rapid Airfield Construction (JRAC) Program. The demonstration took place at Sicily Landing Zone (LZ) at Fort Bragg, NC, in July of 2004. The objective of the exercise was to demonstrate the procedures and technologies developed under the JRAC Program by rapidly building two parking aprons capable of supporting C-130 transport aircraft taxiing and parking operations. The exercise was conducted under continuous 24-hr operations to simulate a real-world rapid construction environment. Apron 1 (north apron) was constructed using two technologies, one-half being ACE™ Matting and the other half being a cement-polymer stabilized soil surface. Apron 2 (south apron) was constructed solely of a fiber-cement-stabilized soil system. Both aprons were treated with a polymer emulsion surface application to form a sealed surface against abrasion and water infiltration. The entire construction of both aprons required 76 hr, with Apron 1 finished in 48 hr. The construction of Apron 1 was validated by operation of a C-130 aircraft approximately 31 hr after completion with success and high praises from the aircraft flight crew on the stability and surface of the apron, as well as its dust-abating characteristics.
Trend of Anti-SARS-COV-2 Seropositivity in Karachi
Authors:   Department of Laboratory Services, National Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan., Afzal Nayab , Tariq Naila ,   Department of Laboratory Services, National Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan., Shakeel Danish ,   Department of Laboratory Services, National Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan., Sultan Sadia ,   Department of Laboratory Services, National Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan.
Published: March 2021

Abstract: Objective: This study aims to determine the trend of seropositivity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (total including IgM, Ig G) in patients presenting at a private hospital in Karachi. Materials & Methods: A total of 2500 patients were included in the study. Informed consent was obtained and a questionnaire including patient’s age, gender, symptoms, history of traveling, contact with people who had travelled recently, contact with confirmed/suspected COVID-19 patient at home or work was filled. Samples were analyzed for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies on Roche Cobase601. Results: The mean age of the patients was 41.045±20.48 years. 674(26.96%) were reactive, while 1826(73.04%) were non-reactive. Mostly patients were males 1388(55.52%).The seroprevalence was higher in males 29.75% while females showed 23.47% seroprevalence. Commonest symptoms were found to be fever(88.73%) and dry cough(57.20%).The frequency of seropositive patients revealed an increasing trend with 20.5%and 27.8 % in first andlast 15 days of June respectively, 30.7% and 31.4% in first andlast 15 days of July 2020 respectively.Only221(32.79%) reactive patients reported recent symptoms while 453(67.21%)patients were completely asymptomatic.Odds Ratio(OR) for participants with recent history of travelling, contact with people who had travelled recently,exposure with COVID-19 patients at home or work was 11.50, 3.28, 8.45 and 0.72 respectively. Conclusion: The seropositivity has shown a definite gradual upward trend over the study period and approximately two thirds of the patients being completely asymptomatic pointing towards the fact that many people are silently exposed to the disease and develop antibodies through their natural immune mechanism. Keywords: COVID 19, Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, Trend, Seropositivity, Dry cough, Diarrhea.
Internal Root Resorption : A Review
Authors:   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India, Butool Syeda Asiya , Kararia Nitin ,   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India, Aggrawal Shyam ,   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India, Mathu Rachit ,   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India., Bajpai Manas ,   Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India., Sharma Ankit ,   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar Jaipur, India.
Published: March 2021

Abstract: Internal resorption is an asymptomatic condition in teeth seen with past history of injury. In the crown it has a clinical observation of pink mark. It is diagnosed by chance on an x-ray examination. Primal detection and resorption treatment improves prognosis of the condition. Resorption can be broadly classified into normal physiological or pathological process associated with extensive damage to hard structures of tooth such as dentin, cementum and bone. Proper diagnosis of resorption and differentiation of resorption from internal and external resorption by radiographic presentation and the correct diagnosis and treatment planning improves the prognosis of the condition. Untreated cases will cause loss or early exfoliation of the afflicted tooth [1].
Oral Spindle Cell Carcinoma –Diagnosis Based on Immunohistochemical Interpretation
Authors:   Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar, Jaipur, India., Butool Syeda Asiya , Natani Ankit ,   Department of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar, Jaipur, India., Chandolia Betina ,   Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Daswani Dental College, Kota, Rajasthan, India, Bajpai Manas ,   Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, NIMS University, Shoba Nagar, Jaipur, India
Published: March 2021

Abstract Spindle Cell Carcinoma (SpCC) is a biphasic tumor. They are proven to be monoclonal dedifferentiated forms of conventional squamous carcinomas. It is a rare tumor which is infrequently observed in head, neck and in the aerodigestive tract. The tumor is aggressive and shows high frequency of recurrence and metastasis. It is an aggressive variant of squamous cell carcinoma which resembles a true sarcoma. It is a proliferation of spindle cells and squamous cells. For confirmation of diagnosis, immunohistochemistry is used. A Rare case of spindle cell squamous cell carcinoma in a 61 years old male in the tongue.The patient reported of rapidly growing lesion from six months with pain severe pain, dysphagia and difficulty in swallowing patient had history of chewing tobacco from past 35 years. Keywords: Spindle Cell Variant, Biphasic tumor, Head and Neck, Pseudocarcinoma, Sqamous cell, Dysplastic.
LITHOLOGICAL AND PALEOCOMMUNITY VARIATION ON A MISSISSIPPIAN (TOURNAISIAN) CARBONATE RAMP, MONTANA, USA
Authors: BROWN GARETT M.
Published: March 2021

The ecological structure of ancient marine communities is impacted by the environmental gradients controlling assemblage compositions and the heterogeneous distribution of sediment types. Closely spaced, replicate sampling of fauna has been suggested to mitigate the effects of such heterogeneity and improve gradient analyses, but this technique has rarely been combined with similar sampling of lithologic data. This study analyses lithological and faunal data to determine the environmental gradients controlling the composition of Mississippian fossil assemblages of the lower Madison Group in Montana. Eighty-one lithological and faunal samples were collected from four stratigraphic columns in Montana, which represent the deep-subtidal, foreshoal, and ooid-shoal depositional environments within one third-order depositional sequence. Cluster analysis identifies three distinct lithological associations across all depositional environments—crinoid-dominated carbonates, peloidal-crinoidal carbonates, and micritic-crinoidal carbonates. Cluster analysis and nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMS) identifies a highly diverse brachiopod biofacies and a solitary coral-dominated biofacies along an onshore-offshore gradient. Carbonate point count data and orientation of solitary corals indicate that substrate and wave energy are two potential variables that covary with the onshore-offshore gradient. Overlaying lithological information on the NMS indicates a secondary gradient reflecting oxygen that is expressed by increasing bioturbation and gradation from brown to dark gray carbonates to medium-light gray carbonates. Taken together, these findings demonstrates how combining closely spaced, replicate sampling of lithologic and faunal data enhances multivariate analyses by uncovering underlying environmental gradients that control the variation in fossil assemblages.
SENTIMENT ANALYSIS OF ELECTRIC CARS USING RECURRENT NEURAL NETWORK METHOD IN INDONESIAN TWEETS
Authors: Handayani Felisia , Mustikasari Metty
Published: March 2021

Sentiment analysis is computational research of the opinions of many people who are textually expressed against a particular topic. Twitter is the most popular communication tool among Internet users today to express their opinions. Deep Learning is a solution to allow computers to learn from experience and understand the world in terms of the hierarchy concept. Deep Learning objectives replace manual assignments with learning. The development of deep learning has a set of algorithms that focus on learning data representation. The recurrent Neural Network is one of the machine learning methods included in Deep learning because the data is processed through multi-players. RNN is also an algorithm that can recall the input with internal memory, therefore it is suitable for machine learning problems involving sequential data. The study aims to test models that have been created from tweets that are positive, negative, and neutral sentiment to determine the accuracy of the models. The models have been created using the Recurrent Neural Network when applied to tweet classifications to mark the individual classes of Indonesian-language tweet data sentiment. From the experiments conducted, results on the built system showed that the best test results in the tweet data with the RNN method using Confusion Matrix are with Precision 0.618, Recall 0.507 and Accuracy 0.722 on the data amounted to 3000 data and comparative data training and data testing of ratio data 80:20
DEEP LEARNING-BASED OBJECT RECOGNITION ROBOT CONTROL VIA WEB AND MOBILE USING AN INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) CONNECTION
Authors: Rahmat Basuki , Nugroho Budi
Published: March 2021

The paper presents the intelligent surveillance robotic control techniques via web and mobile via an Internet of Things (IoT) connection. The robot is equipped with a Kinect Xbox 360 camera and a Deep Learning algorithm for recognizing objects in front of it. The Deep Learning algorithm used is OpenCV's Deep Neural Network (DNN). The intelligent surveillance robot in this study was named BNU 4.0. The brain controlling this robot is the NodeMCU V3 microcontroller. Electronic board based on the ESP8266 chip. With this chip, NodeMCU V3 can connect to the cloud Internet of Things (IoT). Cloud IoT used in this research is cloudmqtt (https://www.cloudmqtt.com). With the Arduino program embedded in the NodeMCU V3 microcontroller, it can then run the robot control program via web and mobile. The mobile robot control program uses the Android MQTT IoT Application Panel.
Hypothyroidism and AMH in Iraqi Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease
Authors: Luaibi Noori M. , Falhi Athraa K. , Alsaedi Ali J.
Published: March 2021

This study was conducted to investigate thyroid function and Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) in (Chronic kidney disease) CKD patients by evaluating their levels in CKD patients, 50 patients were diagnosed to have CKD stage-5, their ages ranged between 20-50 years (25 males and 25 females) who attended the Nephrology and Transplant Center in Medical City of Baghdad- Iraq, they were recruited from April 2018 to July 2018 and were enrolled into the study. The control group consisted of 20 healthy individuals, their ages ranged between 20-48 years (10 males and 10 females). The study showed non-significant (p>0.05) increase in AMH level in CKD patients compared to the control group. On the other hand, TSH was recorded a highly significant (P<0.01) increase in CKD patients in comparison with control. While T3 and T4 levels recorded highly significant (P<0.01) decrease in CKD patients in comparison with control.
Diversity Assessment by Molecular Barcoding and Seed Morphology in Ricinus communis L.
Authors: Soliman Elham R. S. , A. Soliman M. S.
Published: March 2021

Fourteen morphologically varied Ricinus communis L. seeds were collected from different localities in Egypt, El-Sudan and Saudi Arabia. Seed morphology and ITS barcoding analysis were performed to assess their diversity and phylogenetic relationship. Sequence’s alignment of nrITS region from different accessions display high levels of genetic similarities. Cluster analysis could not group different accessions according to their geographical distribution. Nevertheless, the genetic barcodes are interestingly matched with the morphological features of the Ricinus seeds. In conclusion, seed morphology proved to be a valuable tool in evaluating biodiversity and phylogenetic relationship in plant species with different locations having low levels of genetic diversity such as Ricinus. The molecular assessment of morphologically varied Ricinus seeds will help breeders for better utilization of germplasm for the variety development and would support the genetic resources management and conservation of castor beans.
Delivery Route Management based on Dijkstra Algorithm
Authors: Sheng Ng Lih , Arbaiy Nureize , Wen Chuah Chai Wen , Lin Pei-Chun
Published: March 2021

For businesses that provide delivery services, the efficiency of the delivery process in terms of punctuality is very important. In addition to increasing customer trust, efficient route management, and selection are required to reduce vehicle fuel costs and expedite delivery. Some small and medium businesses still use conventional methods to manage delivery routes. Decisions to manage delivery schedules and routes do not use any specific methods to expedite the delivery settlement process. This process is inefficient, takes a long time, increases costs and is prone to errors. Therefore, the Dijkstra algorithm has been used to improve the delivery management process. A delivery management system was developed to help managers and drivers schedule efficient ways to deliver product orders to recipients. Based on testing, the Dijkstra algorithm that has been included in the nearest route search function for the delivery process has worked well. This system is expected to improve the efficient management and delivery of orders.
User-Oriented Preference Toward a Recommender System
Authors: Lin Pei-Chun , Arbaiy Nureize
Published: March 2021

Nowadays, it is convenient for us to use a search engine to get our needed information. But sometimes it will misunderstand the information because of the different media reports. The Recommender System (RS) is popular to use for every business since it can provide information for users that will attract more revenues for companies. But also, sometimes the system will recommend unneeded information for users. Because of this, this paper provided an architecture of a recommender system that could base on user-oriented preference. This system is called UOP-RS. To make the UOP-RS significantly, this paper focused on movie theatre information and collect the movie database from the IMDb website that provides information related to movies, television programs, home videos, video games, and streaming content that also collects many ratings and reviews from users. This paper also analyzed individual user data to extract the user’s features. Based on user characteristics, movie ratings/scores, and movie results, a UOP-RS model was built. In our experiment, 5000 IMDb movie datasets were used and 5 recommended movies for users. The results show that the system could return results on 3.86 s and has a 14% error on recommended goods when training data as . At the end of this paper concluded that the system could quickly recommend users of the goods which they needed.  The proposed system will extend to connect with the Chatbot system that users can make queries faster and easier from their phones in the future.
Spectrophotometric and Spectrofluorimetric Determination of Terazosin in Tablets by Eosin Y
Authors: Al abdali Zeena Z. , Al Fakri Maysam H.
Published: March 2021

Simple, sensitive and accurate two methods were described for the determination of terazosin. The spectrophotometric method (A) is based on measuring the spectral absorption of the ion-pair complex formed between terazosin with eosin Y in the acetate buffer medium pH 3 at 545 nm. Method (B) is based on the quantitative quenching effect of terazosin on the native fluorescence of Eosin Y at the pH 3. The quenching of the fluorescence of Eosin Y was measured at 556 nm after excitation at 345 nm. The two methods obeyed Beer’s law over the concentration ranges of 0.1-8 and 0.05-7 µg/mL for method A and B respectively. Both methods succeeded in the determination of terazosin in its tablets
Future of Mathematical Modelling: A Review of COVID-19 Infected Cases Using S-I-R Model
Authors: Mohd Yunus Azrul Azim , Mohd Yunus Arif Asraf , Ibrahim Muhammad Safwan , Ismail Shahrina
Published: March 2021

The spread of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has resulted in chaos around the globe. The infected cases are still increasing, with many countries still showing a trend of growing daily cases. To forecast the trend of active cases, a mathematical model, namely the SIR model was used, to visualize the spread of COVID-19. For this article, the forecast of the spread of the virus in Malaysia has been made, assuming that all Malaysian will eventually be susceptible. With no vaccine and antiviral drug currently developed, the visualization of how the peak of infection (namely flattening the curve) can be reduced to minimize the effect of COVID-19 disease. For Malaysians, let’s ensure to follow the rules and obey the SOP to lower the R0 value from time to time, hoping that the virus will vanish one day.
How to plan urban green space in cold regions of China to achieve the best cooling efficiency
Authors: Pang Bo , Zhao Jingyuan , Zhang Jianxin , Yang Li
Published: March 2021

With the acceleration of urbanization, the urban heat island (UHI) effect has intensified. Urban green space can retard the UHI effectively. However, most existing work has only focused on hot regions, while little attention has been paid to cold regions. Furthermore, existing research does not classify urban green spaces according to the presence or absence of water, which will lead to inaccurate results. This paper takes four cities in cold regions of China as examples and studies the cooling effects of two different types of urban green space. The results indicate that for green spaces without water, the cooling intensity is related to the background temperature and area of the green spaces, while for green spaces containing water bodies, the area of the internal water body is the key influencing factor. Specifically, there is a threshold value of efficiency (TVoE) for the area of green spaces without water, while there is no TVoE for green spaces containing water bodies. Additionally, there is a TVoE for the water/land ratio of the green spaces containing water bodies in the four cities. The methods and results of this study can provide reference for future research and for urban planners designing urban green spaces.
Oxidative Stress and Cocaine Intoxication as Start Points in the Pathology of Cocaine-Induced Cardiotoxicity. A Systematic Review
Authors: Georgieva Ekaterina , Karamalakova Yanka , Nikolova Galina
Published: March 2021

Background: Psychomotor stimulants are the most commonly used prohibited substances after cannabis. Globally, their use reaching epidemiological proportions and is one of the most common causes of death in many countries. In recent years, more research, define drug use as the leading cause of serious cardiovascular pathologies ranging from abnormal heart rhythms to heart attack and sudden cardiac death. The reactive oxygen species generation, toxic metabolites formation and oxidative stress play a significant role in cocaine-induced cardiotoxicity. Main body: In the present review, we discuss various studies related to dopamine neurotransmission and oxidative stress, with a focus on the cardiotoxicity of the cocaine molecule and the cardiovascular complications that occur after cocaine use. Conclusion: Hypothetically, this study can serve as a basis for developing a rapid and effective method for determining oxidative stress levels by monitoring changes in the redox status of patients with cocaine intoxication.
Prognosis of COVID-19 Pneumonia Can Be Early Predicted Combining Age-Adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index, CRB Score and Baseline Oxygen Saturation.
Authors: Nuevo-Ortega Pilar , Reina-Artacho Carmen , Dominguez-Moreno Francisco , Becerra-Muñoz Victor Manuel , Ruiz-Del-Fresno Luis , Estecha-Foncea Maria Antonia
Published: March 2021

Background: In potentially severe diseases in general and COVID-19 in particular, it is vital to early identify those patients who are going to develop complications. The last update of a recent living systematic review dedicated to predictive models in COVID-19,[1] critically appraises 145 models, 8 of them focused on prediction of severe disease and 23 on mortality. Unfortunately, in all 145 models, they found a risk of bias significant enough to finally "not recommend any for clinical use". Authors suggest concentrating on avoiding biases in sampling and prioritising the study of already identified predictive factors, rather than the identification of new ones that are often dependent on the database. Our objective is to develop a model to predict which patients with COVID-19 pneumonia are at high risk of developing severe illness or dying, using basic and validated clinical tools.Methods: prospective cohort of consecutive patients admitted in a teaching hospital during the “first wave” of the COVID-19 pandemic. Follow-up to discharge from hospital. Multiple logistic regression selecting variables according to clinical and statistical criteria. Results: 404 consecutive patients were evaluated, 392 (97%) completed follow-up. Mean age was 61 years; 59% were men. The median burden of comorbidity was 2 points in the Age-adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index, CRB was abnormal in 18% of patients and basal oxygen saturation on admission lower than 90% in 18%. A model composed of Age-adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index, CRB score and basal oxygen saturation can predict unfavorable evolution or death with an area under the ROC curve of 0.85 (95% CI: 0.80-0.89), and 0.90 (95% CI: 0.86 to 0.94), respectively.Conclusion: prognosis of COVID-19 pneumonia can be predicted in the out-of-hospital environment using two classic prognostic scales and a pocket pulse oximeter.
Insilico identification of a ferroportin inhibitor for the management of iron-overload condition in Beta Thalassemia major patients.
Authors: Sharif Yasir , Irshad Saba , Tariq Muhammad Hamza , Asghar Muhammad Nadeem
Published: March 2021

The reason of high mortality rate in the patients of beta-thalassemia major is iron overload because it leads to many secondary complications. Condition of iron overload is known as hemochromatosis (HC). HC causes distorted formation of HFE protein that disturbs the whole pathway of HAMP protein synthesis which results in unbounded form of ferroportin and hence iron keeps absorbing in the body, leading to iron accumulation. The current study was conducted to identify a potential phytochemical that could bind to ferroportin and inhibits its iron absorbing activity within the body. The 3D structure of Ferroportin was unavailable in protein data bank PDB, therefore, it was developed by using different bioinformatics tools and best structure was identified through SAVES and RAMPAGE analysis. This best structure was docked with a library of 1010 bioactive phytochemicals by using MOE-2009 software. The top-ten ranked potential inhibitors were then evaluated for drug-like properties through molsoft and Molinspiration server followed by ADMET analysis. Our study demonstrated that “Taxifolin’ showed the maximum binding affinity with Ferroportin and also demonstrates maximum drug-like properties. Thus this compound could be used as a potential inhibitor of ferroportin. However, in-vitro and in-vivo studies must be conducted to validate the therapeutic potential of taxifolin against hemochromatosis.
Spike Architecture Traits Associated With Type II Resistance to Fusarium Head Blight in Bread Wheat
Authors: Franco Maria F , Lori Gladys , Cendoya Maria G , Alonso Maria P , Panelo Juan S , Malbrán Ismael , Mirabella Nadia E , Pontaroli Ana Clara
Published: March 2021

Fusarium head blight (FHB) remains a devastating disease in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and other small grains. Genetic resistance to FHB is a complex trait; in addition to active physiological resistance, plant developmental and morphological traits may indirectly affect disease progression and provide a passive mechanism of resistance. In this study, we investigated the relationship between FHB type II resistance and spike architecture traits in a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population of bread wheat. Disease resistance traits were FHB severity at 21 days post inoculation (dpi) and area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC). Spike architecture traits measured were rachis length, spike density, number of spikelets per spike, florets per spike and florets per spikelet. The RIL population showed significant variation for all traits. Heritability values were moderate to high for FHB severity (0.69) and AUDPC (0.63) and high for the spike architecture traits (0.74 - 0.92). FHB severity and AUDPC showed a moderate and significant association with the number of florets per spike (r = 0.38 and r = 0.31, respectively) and with the number of florets per spikelet (r = 0.28 and r = 0.27, respectively), reflecting a greater spread of the fungus in spikes with higher floret number. These results suggest that the number of florets per spike and the number of florets per spikelet should be considered in FHB resistance breeding efforts, because selection of lines with higher number of florets could lead to a correlated selection response towards increased FHB levels under field conditions.
The Brazilian lima bean landraces: conservation and breeding
Authors: Pires Carolline de Jesús , Costa Marcones Ferreira , Zucchi Maria Imaculada , Ferreira-Gomes Regina Lucia , Pinheiro José Baldin , Viana João Paulo Gomes , Bajay Miklos Maximiliano , Assunção-Filho José Ribamar , Lopes Angela Celis Almeida
Published: March 2021

Brazil is one of the countries with the greatest genetic diversity in lima beans ( Phaseolus lunatus L.), which has been maintained both on farm and in germplasm banks. The knowledge of this diversity in the country is extremely important for developing a strategy for use and conservation. The objective of this study was characterizing landraces lima bean accessions from different regions in Brazil . Twenty two accessions conserved in the Phaseolus Germplasm Bank from UFPI (Piauí-Brazil) were characterized with 37 agro-morphological descriptors and 15 microsatellite markers. In the agro-morphological characterization, the maximum value of genetic divergence was obtained for the pair UFPI-262 and UFPI-252 (D = 88.74). The UPGMA grouping made it possible to form four groups. Tocher's optimization method enabled the formation of 10 groups. Regarding molecular characterization, 10 loci presented polymorphism, and the number of alleles per locus varied from two to seven. The Polymorphic Information Content (PIC) varied from 0.0767 to 0.7240. The loci GATS91 and PVat001 were highly informative and can be indicate for further studies involving the lima bean. The genetic diversity found (He = 0.316) was higher than that reported in the Yucatán Peninsula, a region indicated as a center of diversity for lima bean. Thus, the agro-morphological and molecular characterization were efficient in quantifying the genetic divergence between the studied accessions. The data found in this research provide a valuable resource for geneticists to subsidize breeding programs involving the lima bean.
Convolutional neural network for identification of plastic solid waste using near infrared spectroscopy
Authors: Xia Jingjing , Huang Yue , Li Qianqian , Xiong Yanmei , Min Shungeng
Published: March 2021

Plastic waste is a relevant challenge for waste management sector and further technological means has to be urgently researched. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIR), as a non-destructive, cost-effective and mature technology, is currently operational in some waste-sorting facilities. However, NIR remains challenging to discriminate different black plastics because black targets have low reflectance in the its spectral region. Therefore, this study aimed to address the problem in black plastic classification. Seven kinds of plastics: High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polyamide 66 (PA66), Polycarbonate (PC) and Polypropylene (PP), were prepared for analysis, in which black plastic accounted for half of the total samples (84/159). Some methods such as partial least squares discrimination analysis (PLS-DA), soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA), linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and convolutional neural network (CNN) were used to classify the plastics. Coupling with proper preprocessing methods, PLS-DA and LDA could provide an accuracy of 57.00%, and SIMCA of 69.98%. Meanwhile, the NIR spectra fed into the CNN model as one-dimensional data, the accuracy of CNN model could reach 98.00%. Compared to the SIMCA, PLS-DA and LDA, the accuracy of CNN provided an average improvement of 28-41%. Results demonstrated that NIR spectra combined with CNN gave an excellent accuracy which was potential to solve the bottleneck problem of black plastic discrimination.
Effects of an educational intervention to strengthen humanistic practice on haemodialysis nurses’ caring attitudes and behaviours and quality of working life: a cluster randomised controlled trial
Authors: Antonini Matteo , Bellier-Teichmann Tanja , O'Reilly Louise , Cara Chantal , Brousseau Sylvain , Weidmann Jean , Roulet-Schwab Delphine , Ledoux Isabelle , Konishi Mario , Pasquier Jérôme , Delmas Philippe
Published: March 2021

Background. Nurses are trained to establish a trusting relationship with patients in order to create a salutogenic environment. However, in tech-heavy care settings, such as haemodialysis units, dehumanising practices tend to emerge and take root for various reasons to the potential detriment of both patients and nurses. For patients, this may lead to a deterioration of quality of life and, ultimately, of health status. For nurses, it may cause a deterioration of the work environment and, in turn, of quality of working life. Swiss researchers developed, based on Watson’s Theory of Human Caring, and tested, by way of an experimental design, a brief educational intervention for haemodialysis nurses to strengthen their humanistic practice in the aim of improving the nurse-patient relationship and nurse quality of working life.Methods. One hundred and one haemodialysis nurses recruited in ten hospitals in French-speaking Switzerland were randomised into an experimental group that received the intervention and a control group that did not. The nurse-patient relationship was measured with the Caring Nurse-Patient Interaction Scale (EIIP-70) and nurse quality of life at work was measured with the Quality of Work Life Questionnaire at four time points: pre-intervention, intervention completion, and six-month and one-year follow-ups. Random intercept regression analysis was used to evaluate change over time in the two variables under study.Results. The intervention appeared to reinforce nurse attitudes and behaviours geared to a more humanistic practice. The effect seemed to fade over time but was still present one year post-intervention, though limited to certain dimensions of the nurse-patient relationship. Nurse quality of working life, too, seemed positively impacted. The cultural dimension of nurse quality of working life, that is, the degree to which everyday work activities attune with personal and cultural values, recorded the most noticeable improvement.Conclusions. Results support a positive effect of the intervention over both the short term and the medium-to-long term. A brief intervention of the sort may constitute an effective means to improve the nurse-patient relationship by preventing or reducing dehumanising practices.Trial registration: NCT03283891
Streptomyces sp. promotes plant growth and confers resistance in Pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) against Fusarium wilt
Authors: Dave Anand M , Ingle Sanjay S
Published: March 2021

Streptomyces sp. strain S-9 was studied for its effect in inducing systemic resistance in pigeon pea against the plant pathogen Fusarium udum causing wilt. The strain was identified on the basis of 16S rRNA sequence analysis. The strain's morphological and chemotaxonomic characteristics also endorsed its identification as Streptomyces. As a biocontrol agent, Streptomyces sp. S-9 caused 70% inhibition of the pathogen and showed various attributes of plant growth promoting like production of IAA, siderophore, P-solubilization and, S-1, 3-Glucanase activity. Proline and malondialdehyde (MDA) content was significantly higher whereas the chlorophyll content decreased in the pathogen- infected plant when compared to S-9 treated pigeon pea plants. The anatomical research assisted the biocontrol-mediated stress tolerance findings in the Pigeon pea plant through increased root epidermis and enhanced stress-related xylem tissues. Fungus inoculation elevated the antioxidative enzymatic activities of superoxide-dismutase (SOD; 78%), catalase (CAT; 24–56%), and peroxidase (POX; 26–44%). A marked reduction in antioxidant enzymes were associated with the antagonistic effects of the different treatments. Antifungal compound was extracted from the culture broth by the results promise the use of plant growth-promoting actinomycetes (PGPA) for active induction of systemic resistance against Fusarium wilt in the plant pigeon pea. Conclusions showed that S-9 bioinocula applied as a seed coating enhanced soil availability of phosphate (P) and potassium (K), indicating their suitability for direct application invigorating plant growth and persuade resistance in the plant pigeon pea against Fusarium wilt.
Laser scanning based straightness measurement of precision bright steel rods
Authors: Schmid-Schirling Tobias , Kraft Lea , Carl Daniel
Published: March 2021

In industrial manufacturing of bright steel rods one important quality factor is the straightness or straightness deviation. Depending on the application, deviations of less than 0.1 mm per meter rod length are desired and can be reached with state of the art manufacturing equipment. Such high quality requirements can only be guaranteed with continuos quality control. Manual straightness measurements conducted offline using a dial gauge provide accurate results on single positions of the rod. We propose a contactless, optical measurment technique based on laser scanning which has the potential to be used inline during production to inspect all rods over the entire length. The method is based on evaluating the intensity signal of the reflected laser radiation against the scan angle. It is shown, that in combination with an accurate calibration this signal can be used to determine the rod’s deviation from a straight rod. We explain the measurement and calibration principle as well as data evaluation. We present the experimental setup and first measurement results on a single position on several samples. For a homogeneous sample surface and neglecting laser drift, accuracy and precision were determined to be in the range of 10 - 20 µm. We discuss the working principle of a potential inline system.
Study on the Staged Operation of a Multi-Purpose Reservoir in Flood Season and its Effect Evaluation
Authors: Mo Chongxun , Zhu Can , ruan yuli , Deng Juan , Jin Juliang
Published: March 2021

A reasonable analysis of flood season staging is significant to the utilization of flood and the alleviation of water shortage. For a case study of the Chengbi River reservoir in China. Based on fractal theory, the flood season is divided into several sub-seasons by using four indexes (multi-year average daily rainfall, multi-year maximum rainfall, multi-year average daily runoff, and multi-year maximum daily runoff) in this study. The Cubic spline interpolation function is then used to determine the flood limit water levels of each sub-season. And the Benefit-Risk theory is applied to evaluate the effects of staged dispatching. The results show that the flood season of Chengbi River basin should be divided into the pre-flood season (13 April-6 June), the main flood season (7 June-9 September) and the post-flood season (10 September-31 October). Adjustment of flood limit water level for sub-season and benefit evaluation. When the risk rate after reservoir flood season operation increases by 0.13×10 -5 , the average annual expected risk is 0.2264 million RMB, and the average annual benefit increases by 0.88-1.62 million RMB. The benefits obtained far outweigh the risks, indicating the importance of staging the flood season.
COVID-19 in the Brazilian Oil Capital: the successful experience of public and private engagement
Authors: Feitosa Natália Martins , Rodrigues Bruno da Costa , Petry Ana Cristina , Nocchi Keity Jaqueline Chagas Vilela , Brindeiro Rodrigo de Moraes , Zilberberg Carla , Monteiro-de-Barros Cintia , Mury Flavia Borges , Menezes Jackson de Souza , Nepomuceno-Silva José Luciano , Silva Manuela Leal da , Medeiros Marcio José de , Gestinari Raquel de Souza , Alvarenga Alessandra da Silva de , Pozzobon Allan Pierre Bonetti , Silva Carina Azevedo Oliveira , Santos Daniele das Graças dos , Silvestre Diego Henrique , Sousa Graziele Fonseca de , Almeida Janimayri Forastieri de , Silva Jhenifer Nascimento da , Brandão Layza Mendes , Drummond Leandro de Oliveira , Neto Lupis Ribeiro Gomes , Carpes Raphael de Mello , Santos Renata Coutinho dos , Portal Taynan Motta , Tanuri Amilcar , Nunes-da-Fonseca Rodrigo
Published: March 2021

Background

Brazilian strategy to overcome the spread of COVID-19 has been particularly criticized due to the lack of a national coordinating effort and an appropriate testing program. Here, a successful approach to control the spread of COVID-19 transmission is described by the engagement of public (university and governance) and private sectors (hospitals and oil companies) in Macaé, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a city known as the National Oil Capital.
Methods

Until the 38th epidemiological week, over two percent of the 206,728 citizens were subjected to symptom analysis and massive RT-qPCR testing by the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, with positive individuals being notified up to 48 hours after swab collection. Geocodification and spatial cluster analysis were used to limit COVID-19 spreading in Macaé.
Findings:

Within the first semester after the outbreak of COVID-19 in Brazil, Macaé recorded 1.8% of fatality associated to COVID-19 up to the 38th epidemiological week, which was at least five times lower than the state capital (10.92%). Overall, considering the successful experience of this joint effort of private and public engagement in Macaé, our data suggest that the development of a similar strategy country wise would have saved over 50,000 lives.
Interpretation:

Quarantine decree by the local government, molecular massive testing coupled to scientific analysis of COVID-19 spreading prevented the catastrophic consequences of the pandemic as seen in other populous cities within the state of Rio de Janeiro and elsewhere in Brazil.
Poor-quality embryos compared with available embryos at cleavage stage have similar outcomes in vitrified-thawed single blastocyst transfer
Authors: Liu Hanyan , Zhan Shaoquan , Long Xiaolin , Li Lei , Du Hongzi , Kang Xiangjin , Liu Jianqiao
Published: March 2021

Background

It was known that in patients with good prognosis, day 5 good-quality blastocysts formed by available cleavage embryos (AEs) or poor-quality cleavage embryos (PQEs) did not affect clinical outcomes. However, the clinical outcomes of day 5/6 expanded blastocysts cultured in patients who faced with PQEs was unclear.
Methods

Retrospective cohort study was conducted among women aged ≤ 38 who underwent vitrified-warmed single blastocyst transfers (SBTs) which originated from AEs (n = 382), PQEs with AEs (n = 99), or only PQEs without AEs (n = 101).
Results

The PQEs compared to the AEs showed lower CPR (38.38% in PQEs with AEs; 36.63% in PQEs without AEs; versus 57.07% in AEs) and lower LBR (28.28%; 29.70%; versus 44.50%), but there was no statistical difference in CPR (adjusted OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.46–1.31; adjusted OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.47–1.42) and LBR (adjusted OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.53–1.59; adjusted OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.50–1.78) after controlling for confounding variables. Better outcomes were associated with thicker endometrial thickness (CPR: adjusted OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.05–1.33; LBR: adjusted OR: 1.16, 95% CI 1.03–1.30) and blastocyst expansion on day 5 (CPR: adjusted OR 2.52 95% CI 1.62–3.94; LBR: adjusted OR: 2.28, 95% CI 1.43–3.65). ICM score C (CPR: adjusted OR 0.08, 95% CI 0.01–0.67; LBR: adjusted OR: 0.10, 95% CI 0.01–0.76) were associated with worse outcomes.
Conclusions

Once the blastocyst was available, endometrial thickness, ICM grade, and the day of blastocyst expansion were the factors affecting the outcome, while the quality of cleavage embryos (PQEs or AEs) had no effect on subsequent clinical outcomes.
Analysis of first four moderate geomagnetic storms of the 2015 year
Authors: Eroglu Emre
Published: March 2021

This essay investigates of first four moderate geomagnetic activities (04 January storm, 07 January storm, 17 February storm, and 24 February storm) of 2015 in the 24th solar cycle. It tries to understand these storms with the aid of the zonal geomagnetic indices. It predicts the zonal geomagnetic indices (Dst, ap, AE) of the storms by an artificial neural network model. The phenomena that occurred in January and February are discussed on the solar wind parameters (Bz, E, P, N, v, T) and the zonal geomagnetic indices obtained from NASA. In the study, after glancing at the 2015-year general appearance, binary correlations of the variables are indicated by the covariance matrix, and the hierarchical cluster of the variables are presented by the dendrogram. The artificial neural network model is governed by the physical principles in the paper. The model uses the solar wind parameters as inputs and the zonal geomagnetic indices as outputs. The causality principle forms the models by cause-effect association. Back propagation algorithm is specified as Levenberg–Marquardt (trainlm) and 35 neural numbers are utilized in the artificial neural network. The neural network model predicts the Dst, ap, and AE indices of January and February geomagnetic storms with an accuracy that deserves discussion. Estimating the geomagnetic activities may support interplanetary works.
Butterfly biodiversity in the city is driven by the interaction of the urban landscape and the species traits: a call for contextualised management
Authors: Pla-Narbona Clàudia , Stefanescu Constantí , Pino Joan , Cabrero-Sañudo Francisco J. , García-Barros Enrique , Munguira Miguel L. , Melero Yolanda
Published: March 2021

Context
Urbanisation is an environmental filter for many species that leads to community homogenisation, with a few species inhabiting isolated patches (gardens) embedded in the urban landscape. Promoting biodiversity in urban areas requires understanding which and how species traits allow species to survive the urban landscape.
Objectives
The objective of this study was to assess how species traits and landscape factors combine to allow species functional groups live in the city, by means of the use of suitable patches in the urban landscape.
Methods
We used butterfly count data collected by volunteers in 24 gardens of Barcelona city, for 2018 and 2019. Species were clustered in functional groups according to their traits. We applied a multinomial choice model to test the effect of the landscape on the different functional groups.
Results
Three functional groups appeared in the city while a fourth, containing most sedentary specialist species, was filtered out. Although the observed groups had similar species richness, abundances varied depending on urban landscape characteristics. Specialist sedentary and medium mobile species were all favoured by patch connectivity; while the presence of mobile generalist species was only enhanced by habitat quality. Our results indicate that butterfly communities are more diverse in highly connected gardens.
Conclusions
Our study highlights the need of contextualised management with actions accounting for the species functional groups, rather than a management focused on general species richness. It evidences that urban landscape planning must focus on improving connectivity inside the city in order to diversify the community composition.
The association between excess weight and body composition measurements in a pediatric population
Authors: Kostopoulou Eirini , Avgeri Aikaterini , Skiadopoulos Spyridon , Dimitriou Gabriel , Giannakopoulos Ioannis
Published: March 2021

Background: The prevalence of childhood obesity in Greece is among the highest in Europe. Body composition may be used as a screening tool to identify children with excess weight and those at risk for developing metabolic complications. The aim of the study was to provide data on body composition indices from a large Greek pediatric population and investigate the possible association between these indices and obesity.Methods: 1453 schoolchildren, 51.2% males, aged 10-12 years old, were recruited from the third in size city in Greece. Anthropometric and body composition indices (weight, height, body mass index (BMI), fat mass (FM), FM%, fat mass index (FMI), skeletal muscle mass (SMM), SMM%, skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) and muscle-to-fat ratio (MFR)), were assessed.Results: i) The rates of overweight and obesity were 25.9% (Males: 24.4%, females: 27.5%) and 12.6% (males: 13.4%, females: 11.7%), respectively. ii) Males had significantly higher SMM, SMM% and MFR, and lower FM% compared to females. iii) No differences were observed in body composition between younger (10-11-year-old) and older (11-12-year-old) children. iv) Higher FM, FM%, FMI, SMM, SMI and lower SMM% and MFR values were found in children with overweight or obesity.Conclusion: A direct association between excess weight and body composition measurements, such as FM, FM%, FMI, SMM, SMM%, SMI and MFR, was found in a large pediatric school-population. These body composition analysis measurements may potentially serve as a useful screening-tool with both research and clinical applications in assessing obesity, but also for predicting obesity-related complications.