bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Perceived usefulness of trauma audit filters in urban India: a mixed-methods multicentre Delphi study comparing filters from the WHO and low and middle-income countries
Authors: Berg Johanna , Alvesson Helle Molsted , Roy Nobhojit , Ekelund Ulf , Bains Lovenish , Chatterjee Shamita , Bhattacharjee Prosanta Kumar , David Siddarth , Gupta Swati , Kamble Jyoti , Khajanchi Monty , Lal Pawanindra , Malhotra Vikas , Meher Ravi , Mishra Anurag , Mohan Lakshmeswar Nagaraj , Petzold Max , Saxena Ritu , Shrivastava Prabhat , Singh Rajdeep , Soni Kapil Dev , Sural Sumit , Gerdin Wärnberg Martin
Published: June 2022

Objective

To compare experts’ perceived usefulness of audit filters from Ghana, Cameroon, WHO and those locally developed; generate context-appropriate audit filters for trauma care in selected hospitals in urban India; and explore characteristics of audit filters that correlate to perceived usefulness.

Design

A mixed-methods approach using a multicentre online Delphi technique.

Setting

Two large tertiary hospitals in urban India.

Methods

Filters were rated on a scale from 1 to 10 in terms of perceived usefulness, with the option to add new filters and comments. The filters were categorised into three groups depending on their origin: low and middle-income countries (LMIC), WHO and New (locally developed), and their scores compared. Significance was determined using Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Wilcoxon rank-sum test. We performed a content analysis of the comments.

Results

26 predefined and 15 new filter suggestions were evaluated. The filters had high usefulness scores (mean overall score 9.01 of 10), with the LMIC filters having significantly higher scores compared with those from WHO and those newly added. Three themes were identified in the content analysis relating to medical relevance, feasibility and specificity.

Conclusions

Audit filters from other LMICs were deemed highly useful in the urban India context. This may indicate that the transferability of defined trauma audit filters between similar contexts is high and that these can provide a starting point when implemented as part of trauma quality improvement programmes in low-resource settings.
Association between hospital volume, processes of care and outcomes after acute ischaemic stroke: a prospective observational study
Authors: Zhang Runhua , Liu Gaifen , Pan Yuesong , Zhou Maigeng , Wang Yongjun
Published: June 2022

Objectives

There is uncertainty with respect to the hospital volume and clinical outcomes for patients with stroke. This study aimed to assess the association between hospital volume, processes of care and outcomes after ischaemic stroke.

Design

A multicentre prospective cohort study.

Setting

Two hundred and seventeen secondary or tertiary public hospitals from China.

Participants

A total of 17 550 patients within 7 days of acute ischaemic stroke were included.

Main outcome measures

The outcomes included all-cause mortality, poor outcome, recurrent stroke, and combined vascular events at 3 months and 1 year. The patients were divided into four groups based on quartiles of the hospital volume. We compared the difference in the process of care across the groups and estimated the effects of hospital volume on mortality, poor outcome, recurrent stroke, and combined vascular events at 3 months and 1 year. Restricted cubic splines were used to illustrate the association between hospital volume and clinical outcomes.

Results

There were no significant differences in the process of care across the four groups. When adjusted for confounders, the effect of hospital volume on mortality, recurrent stroke and combined vascular events was not significant. However, compared with the highest quartile, the patients in the lowest quartile of hospital volume tend to have poor outcome at 1 year (OR=1.29, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.64, p=0.0393). The restricted cubic spline analyses suggested a non-linear relationship between hospital volume and 1-year combined vascular events and poor outcome at 3 months and 1 year.

Conclusions

We found no significant associations between hospital volume, processes of care at the hospital, and mortality, recurrent stroke, and combined vascular events in patients with ischaemic stroke. However, hospital volume may be associated with poor outcome at 1 year.
Protocol for a feasibility study and process evaluation of a psychosocially modelled diabetes education programme for young people with type 1 diabetes: the Youth Empowerment Skills (YES) programme
Authors: Kariyawasam Dulmini , Soukup Tayana , Parsons Judith , Sevdalis Nick , Baldellou Lopez Maria , Forde Rita , Ismail Khalida , Jones Marie , Ford-Adams Martha , Yemane Nardos , Pender Siobhan , Thomas Stephen , Murrells Trevor , Silverstien Alex , Forbes Angus
Published: June 2022

Introduction

Adolescence is a challenging period for young people with type 1 diabetes, associated with worsening glycaemia and care disengagement. Educational interventions in this period tend to focus on diabetes-specific skills, with less emphasis on the psychosocial challenges associated with diabetes experienced by young people. To address this limitation, we codesigned with young people a psychosocially modelled programme of diabetes education, named ‘Youth Empowerment Skills’ (YES). The programme aims to facilitate a positive adaptation to life with diabetes and engagement with diabetes care through peer-based learning, immersive simulations and support from an outreach youth worker. Here, we present a protocol for a feasibility study of the YES programme.

Methods and analysis

The study was designed following the Medical Research Council Complex Intervention Evaluation Framework to: test the feasibility (acceptance, implementability, recruitment and completion) of the YES programme; and estimate its efficacy in relation to metabolic and psychosocial outcomes. The study will take place in diabetes centres serving socioculturally diverse populations. We will conduct a feasibility randomised controlled trial (waiting-list design) with integrated process evaluation. Fifty young people with type 1 diabetes (aged 14–19 years) will be randomly allocated to either the YES intervention or a waiting-list control. Randomisation acceptability will be assessed with provision for a preference allocation. Outcomes will be evaluated at 6 months, at which point the waiting list participants will be exposed to the YES programme with further follow-up to 12 months. A simultaneous process evaluation will use a mixed-methods approach collecting qualitative and quantitative data. Study findings will be used to optimise the intervention components, outcome measures and recruitment methods to inform a subsequent definitive trial.

Ethics and dissemination

The protocol has ethical approval from the UK Health Research Authority (approval IRAS project ID: 279877). Findings will be disseminated in multiple formats for lay and professional audiences.

Protocol date and version

7 April 2021, V.1.1.

Trial registration number

NCT04670198.
Randomised, pragmatic, waitlist controlled trial of cannabis added to prescription opioid support on opioid dose reduction and pain in adults with chronic non-cancer pain: study protocol
Authors: Jashinski Julia , Grossman Ellie , Quaye Aurora , Cather Corinne , Potter Kevin , Schoenfeld David A , Evins A Eden , Gilman Jodi M
Published: June 2022

Introduction

Chronic, non-cancer pain impacts approximately 50 million adults in the USA (20%), approximately 25% of whom receive chronic prescription opioids for pain despite limited empirical efficacy data and strong dose-related risk for opioid use disorder and opioid overdose. Also despite lack of efficacy data, there are many reports of people using cannabis products to manage chronic pain and replace or reduce chronic opioids. Here we describe the protocol for a randomised trial of the effect of cannabis, when added to a behavioural pain management and prescription opioid taper support programme, on opioid utilisation, pain intensity and pain interference.

Methods

This is a pragmatic, single-blind, randomised, wait-list controlled trial that aims to enrol 250 adults taking prescription opioids at stable doses of ≥25 morphine milligram equivalents per day for chronic non-cancer pain who express interest in using cannabis to reduce their pain, their opioid dose or both. All participants will be offered a weekly, 24-session Prescription Opioid Taper Support group behavioural pain management intervention. Participants will be randomly assigned in 1:1 ratio to use cannabis products, primarily from commercial cannabis dispensaries or to abstain from cannabis use for 6 months. Coprimary outcomes are change in prescription monitoring programme-verified opioid dose and change in Pain, Enjoyment, General Activity scale scores. Secondary outcomes include quality of life, depression, anxiety, self-reported opioid dose and opioid and cannabis use disorder symptoms. All other outcomes will be exploratory. We will record adverse events.

Ethics and dissemination

This study has ethical approval by the Massachusetts General Brigham Institutional Review Board (#2021P000871). Results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at national conferences.

Trial registration number

NCT04827992.
Enhanced antitumor activity of combined methotrexate and histone deacetylase inhibitor valproic acid on mammary cancer in vitro and in vivo
Authors: El Said Hadia H. , Badary Osama A. , Shouman Samia A. , Elmazar Mohamed M. , El-Khatib Aiman S.
Published: June 2022

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) act as antiproliferative agents by promoting differentiation and inducing apoptosis. Valproic acid (VPA) is a HDACI that shows promising chemotherapeutic effect in a number of tumor cells. The present study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effect of VPA on the viability of mammary cancer cells and its enhancing effect with methotrexate (MTX) in vitro and in vivo. Treatment with VPA or MTX alone induced concentration-dependent cytotoxic effects in two breast cancer cell lines. Valproic acid increased significantly the cytotoxicity of MTX three times against MCF7. Valproic acid addition to MTX, however, did not produce any significant changes on MTX cytotoxicity against MDA-MB231. VPA (150 and 200 mg/kg) significantly inhibited the growth of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) and solid Ehrlich carcinoma (SEC) tumor mouse models and improved results were achieved for tumor inhibition when VPA was combined with MTX (1 and 2 mg/kg) in vivo. The antitumor activity was not associated with a significant increase in toxicity or mice mortality rate. All these findings suggest that the combination of MTX and VPA may have clinical and (or) adjuvant therapeutic application in the treatment of mammary cancer.
Commutators of local bilinear maximal operator with Sobolev symbols
Authors: Wang Guoru , Liu Feng
Published: June 2022

In the present paper, we introduce the commutators of local bilinear maximal operator, local bilinear maximal commutators and their fractional variants. Under the conditions that the symbol function belongs to the first-order Sobolev spaces, the bounds for the above commutators on the Sobolev spaces are established. These results are based on several new pointwise estimates for the weak gradients of the above commutators.
Gradient Guided Dual-Branch Network for Image Dehazing
Authors: Gao Mingliang , Mao Qingyu , Li Qilei , Guo Xiangyu , Jeon Gwanggil , Liu Lina
Published: June 2022

Recently, massive deep learning-based image dehazing methods have sprung up. These methods can effectively remove most of the haze and obtain far better results than the traditional methods. With the removal of the haze, however, edge details of the image are also lost, which is usually more noticeable in the gradient space. This paper proposes a gradient guided dual-branch network (GGDB-Net) for image dehazing. Specifically, we explore the hazy image gradient map to guide our model to focus on the hazy regions and edge restoration. We implement two parallel branches with a comprehensive loss function, which collaborate to dehaze and repair the lost edges in haze images. Moreover, the gradient-guided approach can potentially be applied to existing learning-based image dehazing models to boost their performance. Experimental results indicate that our results have good visual perceptions and are comparable to state-of-the-art methods in quantitative metrics.
Medical Text Classification Based on an Optimized Machine Learning and External Semantic Resource
Authors: Gasmi Karim
Published: June 2022

Automatic classification of texts is a well-known topic in natural language processing (NLP), and it involves categorizing unstructured texts into specific groups. Classification algorithms for a given problem are searched for, as well as the appropriate features to use as input. These models have been used for analysis of data with a large number of sparse dimensions. In medical field, categorization of medical texts is a difficult task because these types of texts contain several terminologies that define medical ideas and words. Medical data also lack proper sentence structure and do not adhere to the standard rules of natural language grammar. The main problem in this classification task is to choose an appropriate representation as input. To solve the representation problem, we propose a new extension model for medical text personification. Our model starts with the preprocessing of medical text. Then, we use external terminology resources to expand the text. After that, we use a combination of different text vector representations. To speed up the process, we try to increase the accuracy while selecting the optimal classification parameters. In this topic, we use an adaptive particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm to select the best parameters of a machine learning model. The PubMed, Hallmarks and AIM dataset were used to test our model. Our categorization text model outperforms the competition and provides much higher retrieval accuracy than previous models.
Signed heights of knotoids
Authors: Linov Larsen
Published: June 2022

The height of a knotoid is a measure of how far it is from being a knot. Here, we define the positive and negative parts of the height, and we prove that they determine the unsigned height. Some polynomial invariants provide lower bounds for the signed heights. We also study a set of sequences associated to a knotoid.
Embedding tangles and the Kauffman bracket polynomials
Authors: Jeong Myeong-Ju , Kim Yunjae
Published: June 2022

We give a necessary condition for a 4-tangle T to be embedded in a link by using a common divisor of two integers obtained from the Kauffman bracket polynomials of the numerator N(T) and the denominator D(T) of the tangle T. The Kauffman bracket polynomial [Formula: see text] of a link L is a regular isotopy invariant of links taking values in the Laurent polynomial ring [Formula: see text]. For each integer i, we associate an integer [Formula: see text], which is obtained from the Kauffman bracket polynomial [Formula: see text] of L. Let d be the greatest common divisor of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] for a 4-tangle T. We will show that there exists a natural number n such that d divides [Formula: see text] if the tangle T is embedded in a link L.
Thermal properties of the superheavy nucleus of 292120172
Authors: Belabbas Mohamed , Boutami Kenza
Published: June 2022

The nuclear structure and thermal quantities of the superheavy nucleus of [Formula: see text] are studied in a recent developed framework of the Finite-Temperature Hartree–Fock–Bogoliubov (FT-HFB) by using a zero-range pairing and including the continuum effects. Analyzing the shell structure of this nucleus at both zero and finite temperature shows a dependence on the various Skyrme-type forces used and a shell closure occurrence at Z = 120 for protons and N = 172 for neutrons with a large gap energy where the pseudo-spin-orbit effects play a primordial role in the shell sequence at finite temperature which confirm the double magicity of [Formula: see text]. Thermodynamic quantities are also studied in the same framework where the results are qualitatively similar to what are obtained in case of the hot ordinary nuclei.
ECCENTRIC STEINER DISTANCE SUM OF VICSEK NETWORKS
Authors: MA WENJIA , JIA QI , LEI LEI , XI LIFENG
Published: June 2022

The topological indexes, such as the Wiener sum and the eccentric distance sum, play important roles in Chemical Graph Theory, where the eccentric distance sum characterizes the geodesic distance of two nodes. In this paper, for a family of self-similar Vicsek networks, we discuss their eccentric distance sums related to the Steiner distance of four nodes.
ROCK JOINT ROUGHNESS QUANTIFICATION USING 2D AND 3D FRACTAL METHODS
Authors: ANKAH MAWUKO LUKE YAW , KULATILAKE PINNADUWA H. S. W. , SUNKPAL DESMOND TALAMWIN , ZHAO XIAOKANG
Published: June 2022

In this study, two-dimensional (2D) fractal parameters ([Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] as well as [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] calculated through the roughness length, and variogram methods, and a three-dimensional (3D) fractal parameter, [Formula: see text] calculated through the 3D modified divider method were used to investigate some important factors that could influence the accurate quantification of rock joint roughness. The results showed that nonstationarity resulting from a linear trend did not have any effect on [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] (variogram method). A significant effect of heterogeneity was found on all the computed 2D and 3D fractal roughness metrics; irrespective of the [Formula: see text] value, the [Formula: see text](0–500[Formula: see text]mm) section of the joint surface was found to be relatively homogeneous with a low level of roughness while the [Formula: see text](750–1000[Formula: see text]mm) section of the joint surface had a higher level of roughness. For the relatively homogeneous section, the 2D fractal parameters indicated no joint size effect. For the whole rock joint, which is somewhat heterogeneous, the results showed negligible joint size effect on [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] for all investigated profiles while [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] values showed negligible joint size effect and small joint size effect for profiles in the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] directions, respectively. Also, the results showed a significant reduction in roughness variability with an increase in joint size. A negligible effect of joint size was found on [Formula: see text] for the joint surface. These findings indicated that the roughness heterogeneity is most likely the reason for the conflicting observations in the literature regarding the effect of scale on joint roughness. The studied joint surface exhibited anisotropy resulting from a shear joint.
CHARACTERIZATION OF FRACTAL-LIKE FRACTURE NETWORK USING TRACER FLOWBACK TESTS FOR A MULTIFRACTURED HORIZONTAL WELL IN A TIGHT FORMATION
Authors: LIU JINJU , JIANG LIWU , LIU TONGJING , YANG DAOYONG
Published: June 2022

Horizontal drilling in combination with hydraulic fracturing has been successfully used to efficiently and effectively exploit tight oil/ gas reservoirs where a multibranched fracture network may be generated near a horizontal well which has been confirmed with microseismic events (MSE). Due to their inherent constraints, limited attempts have been made to characterize such complex fracture networks at an individual fracturing stage using tracer flowback tests. In this work, numerical models have been developed, validated, and applied to describe the tracer flowback behavior and characterize the complex fractal-like discrete fracture networks in a tight formation. To be specific, the embedded discrete fracture model (EDFM) is employed to accurately capture the fracture geometry by first discretizing the fractures into various segments and then incorporating such discretized fractures into the matrix. The perpendicular bisector (PEBI) grids are then generated to flexibly conform to the fractures and reduce the grid orientation effects. Subsequently, a reservoir with complex fracture networks is discretized into two separate domains (i.e. matrix and fracture), while nonneighboring connections (NNCs) which can provide fluid communications between the two domains are applied to couple the matrix and embedded fractures. Furthermore, the tracer flowback profiles, which can reveal the complexity of fractal-like discrete fracture networks, are quantified by considering tracer advection, dispersion, and adsorption. Sensitivity analysis has been conducted to examine the effects of iteration number, branch number, deviation angle, scale factor, and the ratio of permeabilities of two cluster fractures on the tracer flowback concentration curves. It is found that the iteration number will greatly affect the tracer flowback concentration, while the deviation angle imposes a minor effect on tracer flowback behavior. An increase in both the branch number and scale factor will decrease the tracer flowback concentration. Two concentration peaks will appear when the permeabilities of the two cluster fractures are different. The larger the difference between the permeabilities of the two cluster fractures is, the greater the difference in the peak arrival time and the peak amplitude will be. In addition, the newly proposed model was verified and then applied to a field case to characterize the complex fractal-like fracture networks, which are confirmed with the microseismic events.
ON MIXED TRIANGULAR LABYRINTHIC FRACTALS
Authors: CRISTEA LIGIA L. , SURER PAUL
Published: June 2022

We introduce and study mixed triangular labyrinthic fractals, which can be seen as an extension of (generalized) Sierpiński gaskets. This is a new class of fractal dendrites that generalize the self-similar triangular labyrinth fractals studied recently by the authors. A mixed triangular labyrinthic fractal is defined by a triangular labyrinthic pattern and an infinite sequence of triangular labyrinth patterns systems, whereas one triangular labyrinth patterns system is sufficient for generating a self-similar triangular labyrinth fractal. Moreover, a labyrinthic pattern is more general than a labyrinth pattern, and the idea is that the use of many different patterns provides objects with a “richer” structure. After proving that these non-self-similar fractals are dendrites, we study the growth of path lengths in graphs associated with iterations. We prove geometric properties of the fractals, some of which have rather “local” character and on the other hand occur at sites distributed “all over” the fractals.
Parameter-dependent multiplicity results of sign-changing solutions for quasilinear elliptic equations
Authors: Jing Yongtao , Liu Zhaoli , Wang Zhi-Qiang
Published: June 2022

Existence of sign-changing solutions to quasilinear elliptic equations of the form [Formula: see text] under the Dirichlet boundary condition, where [Formula: see text] ([Formula: see text]) is a bounded domain with smooth boundary and [Formula: see text] is a parameter, is studied. In particular, we examine how the number of sign-changing solutions depends on the parameter [Formula: see text]. In the case considered here, there exists no nontrivial solution for [Formula: see text] sufficiently small. We prove that, as [Formula: see text] becomes large, there exist both arbitrarily many sign-changing solutions with negative energy and arbitrarily many sign-changing solutions with positive energy. The results are proved via a variational perturbation method. We construct new invariant sets of descending flow so that sign-changing solutions to the perturbed equations outside of these sets are obtained, and then we take limits to obtain sign-changing solutions to the original equation.
Brain Network Analysis Through Span Integrity of Fuzzy Graphs
Authors: Sujatha R. , Saravanan M. , Sundareswaran R.
Published: June 2022

Spanness of fuzzy graph is introduced. By spanness, a new vulnerability parameter, span integrity is defined in fuzzy graph. The span integrity values are found for path, cycle, complete fuzzy graph, complete bipartite fuzzy graphs. Path and cycle with node strength sequence are discussed. Brain network is modeled as a fuzzy graph and Span integrity is applied to the brain network. Span integrity of fuzzy brain network is calculated for before and after meditation models. The results are compared and the improvement in the stability of the brain network is shown.
Line-set domination in graphs
Authors: Gupta Purnima , Goyal Alka , Arumugam S.
Published: June 2022

Let [Formula: see text] be a graph. A subset [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text] is called a line-set dominating set (LSD-set) if for each subset [Formula: see text], there exists an edge [Formula: see text] such that the edge-induced subgraph [Formula: see text] is connected. The minimum cardinality of an LSD-set of [Formula: see text] is called the line-set domination number of [Formula: see text] and is denoted by [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we obtain a sharp upper bound on the diameter of [Formula: see text] which has an independent LSD-set and on the diameter of graph [Formula: see text] satisfying [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is the line domination number of [Formula: see text].
Domination in edge cycle graphs
Authors: Murugan E. , Sivaprakash G. R.
Published: June 2022

Let [Formula: see text] be a graph. A subset [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text] is called a dominating set of [Formula: see text] if every vertex not in [Formula: see text] is adjacent to some vertex in [Formula: see text] The domination number [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text] is the minimum cardinality taken over all dominating sets of [Formula: see text] A dominating set [Formula: see text] is called a connected dominating set if the induced subgraph [Formula: see text] is connected. The minimum cardinality taken over all connected dominating sets of [Formula: see text] is called the connected domination number of [Formula: see text] and is denoted by [Formula: see text] In this paper, we give the exact values of domination parameters for edge cycle graphs [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] Also, we obtain bounds for the domination parameters of edge cycle graphs [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is an arbitrary graph and [Formula: see text] and characterize the extremal graphs. Moreover, Nordhaus–Gaddum-type results are presented for the domination parameters of edge cycle graphs.
On the computational power of the light: An optical method for the subgraph isomorphism problem
Authors: Sartakhti Javad Salimi , Nahari Mohammad Khodizadeh
Published: June 2022

NP-complete and NP-hard problems, such as subgraph isomorphism, are well-known benchmarks to evaluate computation power of unconventional computing approaches. Optical computing, as one of the most important unconventional approaches, has determinant features such as massive parallelism that allows us to solve hard computational problems in an efficient time, while in the similar situations conventional computers require exponential time. In this paper, we solve subgraph isomorphism, as an NP-complete problem, using optical computing in a polynomial time after a polynomial preprocessing time. The proposed method has two main steps: first, possible solution space of the problem is generated using an optical manner and then all invalid solutions are eliminated from the space by several designed optical filters. The filters are made in the preprocessing phase in a polynomial time while the space of each filter is exponential. In this study, we have provided a solution to the YES/NO decision version of the problem.
Finite element analysis of fracture mechanics in micromorphic theory
Authors: Li Jiaoyan , Thiesen Jacob , Robert Kerlin P. , Yang Xianyang , Lee James D.
Published: June 2022

In this work, the kinematics and basic laws of micromorphic theory are briefly introduced. Then, constitutive equations for micromorphic thermo-visco-elastoplastic solids are rigorously derived. Finite element equations for the displacement, micromotion and temperature fields are formulated based on the principle of virtual work. As examples, three-dimensional, dynamic, finite strain, mixed mode fracture mechanics problems have been solved by a general purpose in-house developed code. Numerical results, including temperature, [Formula: see text] norms of stresses, plastic strains and micromotions, are presented and the physical meanings are discussed. This paper provides theoretical fundamentals to study the thermo-visco-elastic-plastic behaviors of micromorphic solids and constructs a numerical framework to study fracture mechanics of edge-crack problems.
Editorial: Conceptualizing and Using Theory in Computing Education Research
Authors: Tenenberg Josh , Malmi Lauri
Published: June 2022

There has been considerable recent interest in a number of questions related to theory within computing education research. In this editorial, we summarize some of this recent interest, discuss the process in which this special issue came to be, and how papers were selected for inclusion. We end with a brief summary of each of the six papers appearing in this special issue, highlighting the relevance of each to this issue's theme.
An Energy-efficient And Trustworthy Unsupervised Anomaly Detection Framework (EATU) for IIoT
Authors: Huang Zijie , Wu Yulei , Tempini Niccolò , Lin Hui , Yin Hao
Published: June 2022

Many anomaly detection techniques have been adopted by Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) for improving self-diagnosing efficiency and infrastructures security. However, they are usually associated with the issues of computational-hungry and “black box.” Thus, it becomes important to ensure that the detection is not only accurate but also energy-efficient and trustworthy. In this article, we propose an Energy-efficient And Trustworthy Unsupervised anomaly detection framework (EATU) for IIoT. The framework consists of two levels of feature extraction: (1) Autoencoder-based feature extraction and (2) Efficient DeepExplainer-based explainable feature selection. We propose an Efficient DeepExplainer model based on perturbation-focused sampling, which demonstrates the most computational efficiency among state-of-the-art explainable models. With the important features selected by Efficient DeepExplainer, the rationale of why an anomaly detection decision was made is given, enhancing the trustworthiness of the detection as well as improving the accuracy of anomaly detection. Three real-world IIoT datasets with high-dimensional features are used to validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework. Extensive experimental results demonstrate that in comparison with the state-of-the-art, our framework has the attributes of improved accuracy, trustworthiness (in terms of correctness and stability of the explanation), and energy-efficiency (in terms of wall-clock-time and resource usage).
An Adaptive Combination Resolution Algorithm for Moving Object Vector Graphics Based on Automatic Programming Optimization Algorithm
Authors: Zhang Xinyu , Alexandrovich Morozov Sergey , Qiu Guopeng , Yang Dong
Published: June 2022

A new moving target adaptive image segmentation algorithm is proposed. On the basis of setting the adaptive tracking wave gate to track the moving target, the adjustment coefficient is adaptively calculated according to the criterion of maximum interclass variance function, and then, the adaptive segmentation of the image is completed by setting the threshold segmentation method. Compared with algorithm, iteration method, and maximum entropy method, the proposed algorithm can not only adapt to a variety of complex backgrounds but also has high precision and high speed. Therefore, it is a practical and effective image segmentation method. As a kind of nonparametric density estimation algorithm, automatic programming optimization algorithm of moving target vector graphic combination and resolution has been widely used in video moving target tracking. The algorithm has fast calculation efficiency and is not sensitive to target deformation and rotation; in the case of a partial shade, it has certain robustness. However, the algorithm moves too fast under clear conditions without considering the direction and speed of the target information, so it is easy to lose tracking when tracking fast moving targets. To solve this problem, a new method based on motion vector analysis and automatic programming optimization of moving target vector graphics combination resolution tracking algorithm is proposed. Firstly, the probability and statistics analysis of motion vectors generated in the process of video coding is carried out to obtain the estimated value of target motion direction and speed. Then, the center position of the candidate region can be split by correcting the combination of moving object vector graphics optimized by automatic programming so that the candidate center position is closer to the actual target center position at the beginning of each search. Compared with the traditional automatic programming optimization algorithm, the new algorithm not only improves the tracking accuracy of the fast-moving target but also reduces the number of search iterations, thus improving the operation efficiency. The algorithm can be applied to the case that video coding and target tracking are calculated simultaneously in the intelligent video surveillance equipment, and the experimental results show that the algorithm is effective and feasible.
Experimental Investigations on Static, Dynamic, and Morphological Characteristics of Bamboo Fiber-Reinforced Polyester Composites
Authors: Santhosh N. , Praveena B. A. , Srikanth H. V. , Angadi Santosh , Gunge Amaresh , Rudra Naik M. , Shankar G. , Ramesha K. , Ravichandran G.
Published: June 2022

The use of natural fiber-reinforced polymer composites has increased over a period of time, majorly due to the ecosustainability and biodegradability of the composites. Among several grades of natural fibers, bamboo fibers offer numerous environmental and cost benefits and possess excellent mechanical characteristics. The superior properties of the bamboo fibers have triggered the research interests in the domain of bamboo fiber-reinforced polymer composites. Among the polymers, polyesters are long chain molecules made up of atoms arranged in various ways with other elements to form the basic building blocks of a polymeric chain. Polyester is being increasingly employed in today’s industrial products due to its inherent advantages. As a result, based on the potential properties of bamboo fibers as reinforcing materials and polyester resin as matrix material, the biocomposites are synthesized by hand lay-up technique and the specimens cut as per the standard dimensions and subjected to mechanical investigations, vibration, and morphological characterization as per the ASTM test methods. The increase in fiber weight content has enhanced flexural, tensile, and impact characteristics and improved the damping characteristics of the composite specimens. The microstructural evaluations have revealed the uniform distribution of the bamboo fibers in the resin, and the morphological studies of the fractured specimens have revealed that the fracture is majorly due to the matrix cracks rather than the fiber debonding, which is a major attribute ascertaining the strong coherent strengthening mechanism brought about by the inclusion of bamboo fiber in the polyester resin.
Dynamic Recognition and Analysis of Gait Contour of Dance Movements Based on Generative Adversarial Networks
Authors: Ren Junlin , Park Jae-Keun
Published: June 2022

With the generation of images, videos, and other data, how to identify the gait of the action in the video has gradually become the focus of research. Aiming at the problems of complex and changeable movements, strong coherence, and serious occlusion in dance video images, this paper proposes a dynamic recognition model of gait contour of dance movements based on GAN (generative adversarial networks). GAN method is used to convert the gait diagrams in any state into a group of gait diagrams in normal state with multiple angles, which are arranged in turn. In order to retain as much original feature information as possible, multiple loss strategy is adopted to optimize the network, increase the distance between classes, and reduce the distance within classes. Experimental results show that the average recognition rates of this model at 50°, 90°, and 120°are 93.24, 98.24, and 97.93, respectively, which shows that the recognition accuracy of dance movement recognition method is high. And this method can effectively improve the dynamic recognition of gait contour of dance movements.
Finding Optimal Solutions for the Placement of Reactive and Active Power Generation Components in Distribution Networks Using a High-Performance Metaheuristic Algorithm
Authors: Chi Kien Le , Yen Tuyet Nguyen Thi , Phan Tan Minh , Nguyen Thang Trung
Published: June 2022

This paper proposes a modified slime mold algorithm (MSMA) for finding optimal site and size of both photovoltaic generators (PGs) and shunt capacitors (SCs) in radial distribution power systems (RDPSs). The most suitable site together with the most effective size of PGs and SCs can reduce currents of conductors effectively, resulting in the significant reduction of active power loss on all conductors. MSMA and two other applied algorithms, slime mold algorithm (SMA) and equilibrium optimizer (EO), are implemented for three study cases of IEEE 33, 69, and 85 RDPSs including Case (1) place only PGs with both active and reactive power generations; Case (2) place both SCs and PGs with only active power generation; and Case (3) place both SCs and PGs with both active and reactive power generations. Comparisons with SMA and EO, MSMA can reach either the same loss or much smaller loss for study cases. Furthermore, MSMA also outperforms other previously published methods for the three study cases, and it can reach significantly smaller loss for the three cases by 1.5%, 30.55%, and 19.64% for system 1, 7.59%, 0.26%, and 0.32% for system 2, and 7.51%, 34.2%, and 22.65% for system 3. As comparing the loss among three study cases obtained by MSMA, Case 3 can reach less loss than Case 1 and Case 2 by 11.71% and 11.64% for system 1, 26.27% and 26.13% for system 2, and the same 26.6% for system 3. Thus, it is recommended that MSMA is the most effective algorithm and the placement of both SCs and PGs with active and reactive power generations is the most optimal.
Calciphylaxis: A Long Road to Cure with a Multidisciplinary and Multimodal Approach
Authors: Zoi Vasiliki , Bacharaki Dimitra , Sardeli Aggeliki , Karagiannis Minas , Lionaki Sophia
Published: June 2022

Calciphylaxis is a rare yet potentially fatal condition, resulting from ectopic calcification of the small arterioles of the dermis with resulting necrotic lesions infection, sepsis, and death. In hemodialysis patients, its prevalence ranges between 1 and 4%, while mortality amounts to 30–80%. We present in here a 45-year-old female on chronic dialysis with morbid obesity, who was admitted for painful nodules in the lower abdomen and necrotic lesions at the lower extremities. Severe uremia and uncontrolled secondary hyperparathyroidism were the main characteristics in this patient, and thus, a clinical diagnosis of calciphylaxis was made. Treatment modalities included wound care plus antibiotics and analgesics, daily hemodialysis, and strategies targeting calcification with sodium thiosulfate, cinacalcet, and non-calcium-containing binders. A crucial factor for overcoming the infection-lesion vicious circle is thorough and daily care of the lesions. Nursing attention was focused on the motivation of her self-care, for the prevention of institutionalization and the psychological support of the patient and her family. The most intriguing feature was the fact that she experienced several exacerbations during the follow-up time. During the final relapse, she was prescribed hyperbaric oxygen sessions that actually put the disease under control thereafter. The good outcome for this patient was probably related to the combination of close follow-up along with a multidisciplinary approach.
High Precision Height Control for Wing-in-Ground Crafts
Authors: Mei Yihan , Su Shanfei , Shan Xiaowen , Yu Peng , Wang Hao
Published: June 2022

The wing-in-ground effect craft (WIG craft) is a kind of vehicle that flies close to the ground to achieve a flight with low aerodynamic drag and high lift. A robust and precise height control system is essential to ensure small WIG crafts fly safely in ground effect. In this paper, the performance of different high precision height control systems based on PID controllers is investigated numerically with different altitude disturbances. The results show that a control system that operates throttle, elevators, and flaps to control the altitude of the aircraft (TPF control system) results in the minimum overshoot, undershoot, rising tine, and settling time recovering from a disturbed altitude, with fluctuation in pitch angle. Compared to the TPF control system, even though the control system that operates throttle and flaps (TF control system) has a longer settling time and a higher overshoot, it has a smaller oscillation in pitch angle during a disturbed altitude. In addition, operating the throttle helps reduce the change of flight velocity during altitude disturbance. Furthermore, simulation results based on the TPF control system, show that the ground effect has little influence on the performance of control systems.
VIASCKDE Index: A Novel Internal Cluster Validity Index for Arbitrary-Shaped Clusters Based on the Kernel Density Estimation
Authors: Şenol Ali
Published: June 2022

The cluster evaluation process is of great importance in areas of machine learning and data mining. Evaluating the clustering quality of clusters shows how much any proposed approach or algorithm is competent. Nevertheless, evaluating the quality of any cluster is still an issue. Although many cluster validity indices have been proposed, there is a need for new approaches that can measure the clustering quality more accurately because most of the existing approaches measure the cluster quality correctly when the shape of the cluster is spherical. However, very few clusters in the real world are spherical. Therefore, a new Validity Index for Arbitrary-Shaped Clusters based on the kernel density estimation (the VIASCKDE Index) to overcome the mentioned issue was proposed in the study. In the VIASCKDE Index, we used separation and compactness of each data to support arbitrary-shaped clusters and utilized the kernel density estimation (KDE) to give more weight to the denser areas in the clusters to support cluster compactness. To evaluate the performance of our approach, we compared it to the state-of-the-art cluster validity indices. Experimental results have demonstrated that the VIASCKDE Index outperforms the compared indices.
[Retracted] Dynamic Data Infrastructure Security for Interoperable e‐Healthcare Systems: A Semantic Feature‐Driven NoSQL Intrusion Attack Detection Model
Authors: Sreejith R. , Senthil S.
Published: June 2022

The exponential rise in advanced software computing and low‐cost hardware has broadened the horizon for the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), interoperable e‐Healthcare systems serving varied purposes including electronic healthcare records (EHRs) and telemedicine. However, being heterogeneous and dynamic in nature, their database security remains a challenge forever. Numerous intrusion attacks including bot‐attack and malware have confined major classical databases towards e‐Healthcare. Despite the robustness of NoSQL over the structured query language databases, the dynamic data nature over a heterogeneous environment makes it vulnerable to intrusion attacks, especially over interoperable e‐Healthcare systems. Considering these challenges, this work proposed a first of its kind semantic feature‐driven NoSQL intrusion attack (NoSQL‐IA) detection model for interoperable e‐Healthcare systems. This work assessed the efficacy of the different semantic feature‐extraction methods like Word2Vec, Continuous Bag of Words, N‐Skip Gram (SKG), Count Vectorizer, TF‐IDF, and GLOVE towards NoSQL‐IA prediction. Subsequently, to minimize computational exhaustion, different feature selection methods including Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test (WRST), significant predictor test, principal component analysis, Select K‐Best, and variance threshold feature selection algorithms were employed. To alleviate the data imbalance problem, it applied different resampling methods including upsampling, downsampling, and synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) over the selected features. Later, Min–Max normalization was performed over the input feature vectors to alleviate any possibility of overfitting. Towards NoSQL‐IA prediction, different machine learning methods like Multinomial Naïve Bayes, decision tree, logistic regression, support vector machine, k‐NN, AdaBoost, Extra Tree Classifier, random forest ensemble, and XG‐Boost were applied, which classified each input query as the regular query or the NoSQL‐IA attack query. The depth performance assessment revealed that the use of Word2Vec features SKG in sync with VTFS feature selection and SMOTE resampling processed with the bootstrapped random forest classifier can provide the best performance in terms of high accuracy (98.86%), F‐Measure (0.974), and area under the curve (AUC) (0.981), thus enabling it suitable for interoperable e‐Healthcare database security.
Improved Watershed Algorithm-Based Microscopic Images Combined with Meibomian Gland Microprobe in the Treatment of Demodectic Blepharitis
Authors: Liu Lanying , Yang Shengfu , Zhu Min , Wang Min , Wei Xin
Published: June 2022

The objective of the study was to explore microscopic images under a watershed segmentation algorithm combined with meibomian gland microprobe in the treatment of demodectic blepharitis. For segmenting the connected target objects in the image, the watershed algorithm was utilized first to obtain the target region in the image, and then, the fuzzy

C

-means (FCM) clustering algorithm was used to cluster the targets. The different grayscale regions in the microscopic images were segmented. 90 patients with demodectic blepharitis-related dry eyes were selected, and they were divided into experimental group 1 (group E1,

n
=
30

), experimental group 2 (group E2,

n
=
30

), and control group (group CG,

n
=
30

). The breakup time (BUT) of the tear film, the subjective score of clinical symptoms, and the number of mites were compared among the three groups before and after treatment. The results showed that after treatment, the indicators of group E1 and group E2 were significantly lower than those before treatment, and the differences were statistically significant (

P
<
0.05

). The treatment effect of group E1 was significantly better than that of the other two groups (

P
<
0.05

). The subjective clinical symptom scores of groups E1, E2, and CG were

13.43
±
1.41

,

13.51
±
1.41

, and

13.64
±
0.84

, respectively, before treatment, and those after treatment were

3.1
±
1.841

,

5.4
±
0.661

, and

13.4
±
0.841

, respectively. The clinical sign scores of the groups E1 and E2 after treatment were remarkably different from those before treatment (

P
<
0.05

). Compared with the scores of clinical signs and clinical symptoms after treatment, those of group E1 showed the largest differences, indicating the best treatment effect. In conclusion, the treatment effect of blepharitis could be promoted with the improved watershed algorithm, and the microscopic images combined with meibomian gland microprobe gave the better effect in the treatment of demodectic blepharitis than the conventional drug heat compress.