bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Growth, Biomass Production and Root Development of Chinese fir in Relation to Initial Planting Density
Authors: Farooq Taimoor Hassan , Wu Wenjing , Tigabu Mulualem , Ma Xiangqing , He Zongming , Rashid Muhammad Haroon U. , Gilani Matoor Mohsin , Wu Pengfei
Published: March 2019

Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb) Hook) is a commercially valuable timber species that is widely planted in southern China and accounts for 6.1% of the global plantation forests. However, appropriate planting density that ensures high plantation productivity is largely unexplored in this species. The aim of the study was to examine tree growth, biomass production, and its allocation among different organs in relation to initial planting density, and to examine whether planting density has an impact on root development. Mortality, diameter at breast height and tree-height of all trees were determined and measured in wider (2.36 × 2.36 m), intermediate (1.83 × 1.83 m) and narrow (1.44 × 1.44 m) spacing with stand density of 1450 trees ha−1, 2460 trees ha−1 and 3950 trees ha−1, respectively. In each stand, three plots of 20 × 20 m at a distance of 500 m were delineated as the sampling unit. Biomass was determined by destructive sampling of trees in each stand and developing allometric equations. Root morphological traits and their spatial distribution were also determined by carefully excavating the root systems. The results showed an increase in diameter of trees with decreasing stand density while tree height was independent of stand density. Biomass production of individual trees was significantly (p < 0.05) less in high-density stand (32.35 ± 2.98 kg tree−1) compared to low-density stand (44.72 ± 4.96 kg tree−1) and intermediate-density stand (61.35 ± 4.78 kg tree−1) while stand biomass production differed significantly in the order of intermediate (67.63 ± 5.14 t ha−1) > high (57.08 ± 3.13 t ha−1) > low (27.39 ± 3.42 t ha−1) stand density. Both average root length and root volume were significantly (p < 0.05) lower in the high-density stand than stands with low and intermediate density. Analysis of spatial distribution of root systems revealed no overlap between roots of neighboring trees in the competition zone in low-density stand, a subtle overlap in the intermediate density stand and larger overlap in the high-density stand. It can be concluded that better growth and biomass production in intermediate density stand could be explained by better root structural development coupled with minimal competition with understory vegetation and between trees; thus intermediate stand density can be optimal for sustaining long-term productivity and may reduce the management cost in the early phase of the plantation.
Open Access Publishing Trends in the Forest Sciences
Authors: O’Hara Kevin L.
Published: March 2019

Open access models for academic publishing offer an alternative to traditional subscription-based journals. In the open access model, the author generally retains the copyright and the published articles are available free on the internet. Publication costs are either borne by the author as article processing charges, or are free for some journals published by societies or institutions. Traditional subscription-based journals are funded by subscription costs to libraries and individuals, the publisher retains the copyright, and these journals are generally not freely available to the public. This traditional model has created two problems: (1) many for-profit publishers control access in a form of oligopoly and impose high costs to subscribers; and (2) it limits access of scientific information to the public which disproportionately affects poorly funded research institutions and developing countries. Other subscription-based journals are published by scientific and professional societies but are not “for-profit”. In the forest sciences, several open access journals emerged in the last 10–15 years. These open access journals are published by for-profit publishing companies, research institutions, and professional societies. Some of these journals have been successful at attracting manuscript submissions, becoming indexed by various indexation services, and have seen metrics representing their importance increase over time. This paper documents these trends and assesses the viability of the open access model in the forest sciences and compares them to other types of journals.
Bayesian Mapping Reveals Large-Effect Pleiotropic QTLs for Wood Density and Slenderness Index in 17-Year-Old Trees of Eucalyptus cladocalyx
Authors: Valenzuela Camilo E. , Ballesta Paulina , Maldonado Carlos , Baettig Ricardo , Arriagada Osvin , Sousa Mafra Gabrielle , Mora Freddy
Published: March 2019

Eucalyptus cladocalyx F. Muell is a tree species suitable for low-rainfall sites, even with annual average precipitation as low as 150 mm per year. Its wood is classified as highly durable and its permanence in soil is longer than 25 years, so it can be used for multiple applications. Given that about 41% of the world’s land area is classified as drylands, added to the impact of climate change on the availability of water resources, it becomes necessary to use plant species that can tolerate environments with low water availability. In this study, a Bayesian analysis of genetic parameters showed that wood density (WD) was moderately heritable, with a posterior mean of h2 = 0.29 and a Bayesian credibility region (90%) of 0.06–0.74, while the slenderness coefficient (SC) was highly heritable, with a posterior mean of h2 = 0.48 and a Bayesian credibility region (90%) of 0.11–0.87. Through Bayesian regression analysis, we identified four and three significant associations for WD and SC, respectively. Another important finding of the bi-trait Bayesian analysis was the detection of three large-effect pleiotropic QTLs located on LG4 at 52 cM, on LG2 at 125 cM, and on LG6 at 81 cM. Bayesian bi-trait regression and the posterior probability of association indicated that three QTLs presented strong evidence of association with WD and SC. This provides convincing evidence that the loci qtlWD130/qtlSC130, qtlWD195/qtlSC195, and qtlWD196/qtlSC196 have a significant pleiotropic effect. The association mapping based on multivariate Bayesian regression was useful for the identification of genomic regions with pleiotropic effects. These loci can be used in molecular marker-assisted breeding to select trees with better wood density.
Snack Texture Estimation System Using a Simple Equipment and Neural Network Model
Authors: Kato Shigeru , Wada Naoki , Ito Ryuji , Shiozaki Takaya , Nishiyama Yudai , Kagawa Tomomichi
Published: March 2019

Texture evaluation is manually performed in general, and such analytical tasks can get cumbersome. In this regard, a neural network model is employed in this study. This paper describes a system that can estimate the food texture of snacks. The system comprises a simple equipment unit and an artificial neural network model. The equipment simultaneously examines the load and sound when a snack is pressed. The neural network model analyzes the load change and sound signals and then outputs a numerical value within the range (0,1) to express the level of textures such as “crunchiness” and “crispness”. Experimental results validate the model’s capacity to output moderate texture values of the snacks. In addition, we applied the convolutional neural network (CNN) model to classify snacks and the capability of the CNN model for texture estimation is discussed.
Predicting the Dynamic Parameters of Multiphase Flow in CFD (Dam-Break Simulation) Using Artificial Intelligence-(Cascading Deployment)
Authors: Hosseini Boosari S. Sina
Published: March 2019

Multiphase flow of oil, gas, and water occurs in a reservoir’s underground formation and also within the associated downstream pipeline and structures. Computer simulations of such phenomena are essential in order to achieve the behavior of parameters including but not limited to evolution of phase fractions, temperature, velocity, pressure, and flow regimes. However, within the oil and gas industry, due to the highly complex nature of such phenomena seen in unconventional assets, an accurate and fast calculation of the aforementioned parameters has not been successful using numerical simulation techniques, i.e., computational fluid dynamic (CFD). In this study, a fast-track data-driven method based on artificial intelligence (AI) is designed, applied, and investigated in one of the most well-known multiphase flow problems. This problem is a two-dimensional dam-break that consists of a rectangular tank with the fluid column at the left side of the tank behind the gate. Initially, the gate is opened, which leads to the collapse of the column of fluid and generates a complex flow structure, including water and captured bubbles. The necessary data were obtained from the experience and partially used in our fast-track data-driven model. We built our models using Levenberg Marquardt algorithm in a feed-forward back propagation technique. We combined our model with stochastic optimization in a way that it decreased the absolute error accumulated in following time-steps compared to numerical computation. First, we observed that our models predicted the dynamic behavior of multiphase flow at each time-step with higher speed, and hence lowered the run time when compared to the CFD numerical simulation. To be exact, the computations of our models were more than one hundred times faster than the CFD model, an order of 8 h to minutes using our models. Second, the accuracy of our predictions was within the limit of 10% in cascading condition compared to the numerical simulation. This was acceptable considering its application in underground formations with highly complex fluid flow phenomena. Our models help all engineering aspects of the oil and gas industry from drilling and well design to the future prediction of an efficient production.
Residual Power Series Method for Fractional Swift–Hohenberg Equation
Authors: Prakasha D. G. , Veeresha P. , Baskonus Haci Mehmet
Published: March 2019

In this paper, the approximated analytical solution for the fractional Swift–Hohenberg (S–H) equation has been investigated with the help of the residual power series method (RPSM). To ensure the applicability and efficiency of the proposed technique, we consider a non-linear fractional order Swift–Hohenberg equation in the presence and absence of dispersive terms. The effect of bifurcation and dispersive parameters with physical importance on the probability density function for distinct fractional Brownian and standard motions are studied and presented through plots. The results obtained show that the proposed technique is simple to implement and very effective for analyzing the complex problems that arise in connected areas of science and technology.
Classifying Breast Cancer Subtypes Using Multiple Kernel Learning Based on Omics Data
Authors: Tao Mingxin , Song Tianci , Du Wei , Han Siyu , Zuo Chunman , Li Ying , Wang Yan , Yang Zekun
Published: March 2019

It is very significant to explore the intrinsic differences in breast cancer subtypes. These intrinsic differences are closely related to clinical diagnosis and designation of treatment plans. With the accumulation of biological and medicine datasets, there are many different omics data that can be viewed in different aspects. Combining these multiple omics data can improve the accuracy of prediction. Meanwhile; there are also many different databases available for us to download different types of omics data. In this article, we use estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) to define breast cancer subtypes and classify any two breast cancer subtypes using SMO-MKL algorithm. We collected mRNA data, methylation data and copy number variation (CNV) data from TCGA to classify breast cancer subtypes. Multiple Kernel Learning (MKL) is employed to use these omics data distinctly. The result of using three omics data with multiple kernels is better than that of using single omics data with multiple kernels. Furthermore; these significant genes and pathways discovered in the feature selection process are also analyzed. In experiments; the proposed method outperforms other state-of-the-art methods and has abundant biological interpretations.
Identification of Novel Interaction Partners of Ets-1: Focus on DNA Repair
Authors: Brysbaert Guillaume , de Ruyck Jérôme , Aumercier Marc , Lensink Marc F.
Published: March 2019

The transcription factor Ets-1 (ETS proto-oncogene 1) shows low expression levels except in specific biological processes like haematopoiesis or angiogenesis. Elevated levels of expression are observed in tumor progression, resulting in Ets-1 being named an oncoprotein. It has recently been shown that Ets-1 interacts with two DNA repair enzymes, PARP-1 (poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1) and DNA-PK (DNA-dependent protein kinase), through two different domains and that these interactions play a role in cancer. Considering that Ets-1 can bind to distinctly different domains of two DNA repair enzymes, we hypothesized that the interaction can be transposed onto homologs of the respective domains. We have searched for sequence and structure homologs of the interacting ETS(Ets-1), BRCT(PARP-1) and SAP(DNA-PK) domains, and have identified several candidate binding pairs that are currently not annotated as such. Many of the Ets-1 partners are associated to DNA repair mechanisms. We have applied protein-protein docking to establish putative interaction poses and investigated these using centrality analyses at the protein residue level. Most of the identified poses are virtually similar to our recently established interaction model for Ets-1/PARP-1 and Ets-1/DNA-PK. Our work illustrates the potentially high number of interactors of Ets-1, in particular involved in DNA repair mechanisms, which shows the oncoprotein as a potential important regulator of the mechanism.
Hydrologic Trends in the Upper Nueces River Basin of Texas—Implications for Water Resource Management and Ecological Health
Authors: Thomas E. Dave , Venkataraman Kartik , Chraibi Victoria , Kannan Narayanan
Published: March 2019

Reliable water sources are central to human and environmental health. In south Texas, USA, the Nueces River Basin (NRB) directly or indirectly plays that important role for many counties. Several NRB stream segments are designated as ecologically significant because they serve crucial hydrologic, ecologic, and biologic functions. The hydrologically significant streams recharge the Edwards Aquifer, an essential water source for the region’s agricultural, industrial, and residential activities. Unfortunately, the semiarid to arid south Texas climate leads to large inter-annual precipitation variability which impacts streamflow, and as a consequence, the aquifer’s recharge. In this study, we used a suite of hydrologic metrics to evaluate the NRB’s hydroclimatic trends and assess their potential impacts on the watershed’s ecologically significant stream segments using precipitation and streamflow data from the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) and Hydroclimatic Data Network (HCDN) respectively from 1970 to 2014. The results consistently showed statistically significant decreasing streamflow for certain low-flow indicators over various temporal scales, likely due to water rights diversions and minimal land use changes. This research could help decision-makers develop the necessary tools to manage water resources in south Texas, given the NRB’s significance as a source of water for domestic consumption and ecological health.
Parental Perceived Travel Time to and Reported Use of Food Retailers in Association with School Children’s Dietary Patterns
Authors: Alves Mariane , Pinho Maria , Corrêa Elizabeth , das Neves Janaina , de Assis Guedes de Vasconcelos Francisco
Published: March 2019

Considering the association between the neighborhood food environment and individual eating behaviors, this study aimed to assess the association between parents’ reported use of food facilities by their children, and parental perceived travel time to food facilities, with their children’s dietary patterns. Parents reported the use of supermarkets, full-service and fast-food restaurants, and perceived travel time to these food retailers. To assess school children’s food consumption, a previous day dietary recall was applied. Factor analysis was conducted to identify dietary patterns. To test the association between reported use and perceived travel time to food retailers and school children’s dietary patterns, we performed multilevel linear regression analyses. Parents’ reported use of supermarkets was associated with children’s higher score in the “Morning/Evening Meal” pattern. The use of full-service and fast-food restaurants was associated with children’s higher score in the “Fast Food” pattern. Higher parental perceived travel time to full-service and fast-food restaurants was associated with children’s lower score in the “Fast Food” pattern. Although the use of full-service and fast-food restaurants was associated with a less healthy dietary pattern, the perception of living further away from these food retailers may pose a barrier for the use of these facilities.
Pulmonary Fibrosis among World Trade Center Responders: Results from the WTC Health Registry Cohort
Authors: Li Jiehui , Cone James E. , Brackbill Robert M. , Giesinger Ingrid , Yung Janette , Farfel Mark R.
Published: March 2019

Dust created by the collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC) towers on 9/11 included metals and toxicants that have been linked to an increased risk of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) in the literature. Little has been reported on PF among WTC responders. This report used self-reported physician diagnosis of PF with an unknown sub-type to explore the association between levels of WTC dust exposure and PF. We included 19,300 WTC responders, enrolled in the WTC Health Registry in 2003–2004, who were followed for 11 years from 2004 to 2015. Exposure was defined primarily by intensity and duration of exposure to WTC dust/debris and work on the debris pile. Stratified Cox regression was used to assess the association. We observed 73 self-reported physician-diagnosed PF cases, with a PF incidence rate of 36.7/100,000 person-years. The adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) of PF was higher in those with a medium (AHR = 2.5, 95% CI = 1.1–5.8) and very high level of exposure (AHR = 4.5, 95% CI = 2.0–10.4), compared to those with low exposure. A test for exposure—response trend was statistically significant (Ptrend = 0.004). Future research on WTC dust exposure and PF would benefit from using data from multiple WTC Health Program responder cohorts for increased statistical power and clinically confirmed cases.
Environmental, Ecological, and Economic Benefits of Biofuel Production Using a Constructed Wetland: A Case Study in China
Authors: Liu Dong , Zou Changxin , Xu Mengjia
Published: March 2019

Here we show a constructed wetland (CW), a viable alternative wastewater treatment system, be used to produce biofuels from biomass by using nitrogen contained in domestic wastewater. We summarize the potential biomass yield evaluated as cellulosic ethanol bioenergy production, and combine the life cycle analysis with a mass balance approach to estimate the energetic, environmental, and economic performance of a CW biofuel system. The results showed that the annual aboveground biomass yield of a CW in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, China, averaged 37,813 kg ha−1 year−1 as the by-product of treating waste N, which is about one order of magnitude larger than traditional biofuel production systems. The biomass yield in the Zhoushan CW system had life cycle environment benefits of 8.8 Mg (1 Mg = 106 g) CO2 equivalent ha−1 year−1 of greenhouse gas emission reduction. The CW in Zhoushan had a net energy gain of 249.9 GJ (1 GJ = 109 J) ha−1 year−1 while the wastewater treatment plant (WTP) consumes 7442.5 GJ ha−1 year−1. Moreover, the CW reduced greenhouse gas emissions to 2714 times less than that of the WTP. The CW also provided various ecosystem services, such as regional climate regulation and habitat conservation. We suggest that the potential use of a CW as biofuel production and carbon sequestration via nitrogen-negative input can be explored more widely in the future.
Does Community-Level Social Capital Predict Decline in Instrumental Activities of Daily Living? A JAGES Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Fujihara Satoko , Tsuji Taishi , Miyaguni Yasuhiro , Aida Jun , Saito Masashige , Koyama Shihoko , Kondo Katsunori
Published: March 2019

Instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) represent the most relevant action capacity in older people with regard to independent living. Previous studies have reported that there are geographical disparities in IADL decline. This study examined the associations between each element of community-level social capital (SC) and IADL disability. This prospective cohort study conducted between 2010 and 2013 by the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) surveyed 30,587 people aged 65 years or older without long-term care requirements in 380 communities throughout Japan. Multilevel logistic-regression analyses were used to determine whether association exists between community-level SC (i.e., civic participation, social cohesion, and reciprocity) and IADL disability, with adjustment for individual-level SC and covariates such as demographic variables, socioeconomic status, health status, and behavior. At three-year follow-up, 2886 respondents (9.4%) had suffered IADL disability. Residents in a community with higher civic participation showed significantly lower IADL disability (odds ratio: 0.90 per 1 standard deviation increase in civic participation score, 95% confidence interval: 0.84–0.96) after adjustment for covariates. Two other community-level SC elements showed no significant associations with IADL disability. Our findings suggest that community-based interventions to promote community-level civic participation could help prevent or reduce IADL disability in older people.
Conventional versus Digital Impressions for Full Arch Screw-Retained Maxillary Rehabilitations: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Cappare Paolo , Sannino Gianpaolo , Minoli Margherita , Montemezzi Pietro , Ferrini Francesco
Published: March 2019

Background: The objective of this study was to compare conventional versus digital impressions for Full-Arch maxillary rehabilitations. Methods: Patients selected for this study were treated with full-arch screw-retained rehabilitations supported by six immediately loaded dental implants. Patients have been scheduled randomly into control (conventional impression group, CIG) and test (digital impression group, DIG) groups respectively for a fully conventional workflow and a fully digital workflow. In both groups, within 24 h, temporary prostheses were delivered. Four months after the implant positioning, the two groups dealt with the fabrication of definitive restorations: conventional pick-up was performed in the control group, and definitive digital impressions were carried out in the test group. The time involved following these two procedures was recorded. Patients underwent intraoral digital radiographs to evaluate the accuracy of the framework-implant connection, check for the presence of voids at the bar-implant connection and measure bone level. Criteria used to assess success at the prosthetic level were the occurrence of prosthetic maintenance, the absence of fractures of the acrylic resin superstructure and voids. Results: A total of 50 patients received immediately loaded prostheses supported by six implants (total 300 implants). A fixture and prosthetic survival rate of 100% was observed. All digital X-ray examinations revealed a bar-implant connection accuracy and no voids. Differences that were not statistically significant (p > 0.05) in marginal bone loss were found between control and test groups. Significantly less time was spent to perform digital impression procedure (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Clinical and radiological results of the test group advocate a satisfactory accuracy and predictability of the intraoral scanner (IOS) to be a reliable alternative in clinical practice for implant full-arch rehabilitations and suggest fabrication of definitive restorations with a successful marginal fit precision.
Assessing the Geographic Context of Risk Perception and Behavioral Response to Potential Ebola Exposure
Authors: Shook Eric , Curtis Andrew , Curtis Jacqueline , Gibson Gregory , Vander Horst Anthony , Little Virginia , Woolverton Christopher
Published: March 2019

The 2014–2016 Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) epidemic outbreak reached over 28,000 cases and totaled over 11,000 deaths with 4 confirmed cases in the United States, which sparked widespread public concern about nationwide spread of EVD. Concern was elevated in locations connected to the infected people, which included Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. This threat of exposure enabled a unique opportunity to assess self-reported knowledge about EVD, risk perception, and behavior response to EVD. Unlike existing studies, which often survey one point in time across geographically coarse scales, this work offers insights into the geographic context of risk perception and behavior at finer-grained spatial and temporal scales. We report results from 3138 respondents comprised of faculty, staff, and students at two time periods. Results reveal increased EVD knowledge, decreased risk perception, and reduction in protective actions during this time. Faculty had the lowest perceived risk, followed by staff and then students, suggesting the role of education in this outcome. However, the most impactful result is the proof-of-concept for this study design to be deployed in the midst of a disease outbreak. Such geographically targeted and temporally dynamic surveys distributed during an outbreak can show where and when risk perception and behaviors change, which can provide policy-makers with rapid results that can shape intervention practices.
Knowledge Domain and Emerging Trends on Echinococcosis Research: A Scientometric Analysis
Authors: Ma Xingming , Zhang Lifeng , Wang Jingqiu , Luo Yanping
Published: March 2019

The echinococcosis of humans and animals is a chronic helminthic disease caused by the larva of genus Echinococcus tapeworms. It is a globally distributed disease which is an important socioeconomic and public health problem in many low and middle-income countries. This research aimed to firstly quantitatively analyze the publications with bibliometrics software and evaluated the hot topics and emerging trends of echinococcosis research from 1980 to 2017. A total of 7688 references on echinococcosis research were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database. Then the reference was analyzed with CiteSpace software to make the knowledge network maps. The largest cluster (#0) with 83 members was cystic echinococcosis, and cystic echinococcosis, mebendazole, antibody and transmission were the four keywords with the strongest citation bursts in the echinococcosis research field. Furthermore, cystic echinococcosis, chemotherapy and immunodiagnosis, management of definitive and intermediate host are the top four research hot topics and emerging trends in the echinococcosis field. This research presents an insight into the echinococcosis field and valuable visualizing information for echinococcosis researchers to detect new viewpoints on cooperative countries/institutions, potential co-workers and research frontiers.
Effects of Ticket-Checking Failure on Dynamics of Pedestrians at Multi-Exit Inspection Points with Various Layouts
Authors: Jiang Meiying , Jin Qibing , Cheng Lisheng
Published: March 2019

It is of great significance to understand the dynamics and risk level of pedestrians at the multi-exit inspection points, since they are the bottlenecks of pedestrian flow leaving public places, such as subway and railway stations. Microscopic simulations were carried out with a cellular automata model to investigate the effects of ticket-checking failure on pedestrian dynamics when passing through the multi-exit inspection points with parallel, convex and concave layouts. It was found that although ticket-checking failure could reduce the passing efficiency, it also lowers the competitive level between pedestrians and enhances passing safety in the range of medium and high pedestrian density. The competitive level decreases when increasing the probability of ticket-checking failure and the corresponding delay. The probability of ticket-checking failure and the corresponding delay have equivalent effects on passing efficiency and safety, and can be integrated as average delay. A fitted equation was proposed for the dependence of passing efficiency and safety on average delay. With the existence of ticket-checking failure in reality, the concave layout of the multi-exit inspection points gives rise to a much lower competitive level compared with the parallel and convex ones, which would enhance the safety of pedestrians at the exits.
Does the “Miracle Drug” of Environmental Governance Really Improve Air Quality? Evidence from China’s System of Central Environmental Protection Inspections
Authors: Wu Ruxin , Hu Piao
Published: March 2019

Central environmental protection inspections have completed their goal of full coverage of 31 provinces in China, and more than 17,000 officials have been held accountable. The media has evaluated the effectiveness of central environmental protection inspections using the notions of “instant results” and the “miracle drug of environmental governance.” Can this approach effectively promote local environmental governance? This paper takes the treatment effect of central environmental protection inspections on air pollution as an example. Using the method of regression discontinuity, central environmental protection inspections are found to have a positive effect on the air quality index (AQI), but this effect is only short term and unsustainable. Additionally, there are inter-provincial differences. Judging from the research results on sub-contaminants, the treatment effect of central environmental protection inspections on air pollution is mainly reflected in PM10, PM2.5 and CO. Under the current situation in which PM10 and PM2.5 are the main assessment indexes, this phenomenon indicates that due to the political achievements and promotion of local officials and for reasons of accountability, it is more effective for the central government to conduct specific environmental assessments through local governments than to conduct central environmental protection inspections.
Is It Possible to Change from a Linear to a Circular Economy? An Overview of Opportunities and Barriers for European Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Companies
Authors: Garcés-Ayerbe Concepción , Rivera-Torres Pilar , Suárez-Perales Inés , Leyva-de la Hiz Dante I.
Published: March 2019

The Circular Economy is a paradigm shift attempting to replace the end-of-life concept with reducing, reusing, recycling and recovering materials and to slow down, close and narrow material and power loops. This concept is much discussed in the academic literature, but limited progress has been accomplished so far regarding its empirical analysis. The objective of this work is to study circular economy practices and analyze in depth the circular economy behavior in European firms. We find that firms’ circular economy behavior is a gradual process where measures are implemented gradually, starting with activities involving control measures and ending with putting preventive practices in place. We discovered also that the most proactive companies in implementing circular economy measures generally come across certain common barriers such as administrative processes, regulations and a lack of human resources to perform these practices, while firms that have not implemented circular economy measures view financing, investment and cost–benefit barriers as the most significant. Significant efforts need to be undertaken by firms to accomplished circular economy. Also circular economy regulation should be improved to make it easier for companies to implement strategies that will make them more sustainable.
Spatiotemporal Contextual Uncertainties in Green Space Exposure Measures: Exploring a Time Series of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Indices
Authors: Helbich Marco
Published: March 2019

Environmental health studies on green space may be affected by contextual uncertainties originating from the temporality of environmental exposures and by how the spatial context is delimitated. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is frequently used as an outdoor green space metric capturing the chlorophyll content in the vegetation canopy. This study assessed (1) whether residential NDVI exposures vary over time, and (2) how these time series of NDVI scores vary across spatial context delimitations. Multi-temporal NDVI data for the period 2006–2017 for the Netherlands were obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite platform. Annual NDVI exposures were determined across multiple buffer sizes (i.e., 300, 600, and 1000 m) centered on a random sample of 10,000 Dutch residential addresses. Besides the descriptive statistics, pairwise Wilcoxon tests and Fligner–Killeen tests were used to determine mean and variance differences in annual NDVI scores across buffer widths. Heat maps visualized the correlation matrices. Significance levels were adjusted for multiple hypotheses testing. The results indicated that annual NDVI metrics were significantly correlated but their magnitude varied notably between 0.60 to 0.97. Numerous mean and variance differences in annual NDVI exposures were significant. It seems that the disparate buffers (i.e., 300 and 1000 m) were less strongly correlated, possibly because variance heterogeneity is reduced in larger buffers. These results have been largely consistent over the years and have passed Monte Carlo-based sensitivity tests. In conclusion, besides assessing green space exposures along different buffer sizes, our findings suggest that green space–health studies should employ NDVI data that are well-aligned with epidemiological data. Even an annual temporal incompatibility may obscure or distort green space–health associations. Both strategies may diminish contextual uncertainties in environmental exposure assessments.
Mediterranean Built Environment and Precipitation as Modulator Factors on Physical Activity in Obese Mid-Age and Old-Age Adults with Metabolic Syndrome: Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Colom Antoni , Ruiz Maurici , Wärnberg Julia , Compa Montserrat , Muncunill Josep , Barón-López Francisco Javier , Benavente-Marín Juan Carlos , Cabeza Elena , Morey Marga , Fitó Montserrat , Salas-Salvadó Jordi , Romaguera Dora
Published: March 2019

When promoting physical activity (PA) participation, it is important to consider the plausible environmental determinants that may affect this practice. The impact of objectively-measured public open spaces (POS) and walk-friendly routes on objectively-measured and self-reported PA was explored alongside the influence of rainy conditions on this association, in a Mediterranean sample of overweight or obese senior adults with metabolic syndrome. Cross-sectional analyses were undertaken on 218 PREDIMED-Plus trial participants aged 55–75 years, from the city of Palma, in Mallorca (Spain). Indicators of access to POS and walk-friendly routes were assessed in a 1.0 and 0.5 km sausage network walkable buffers around each participant’s residence using geographic information systems. Mean daily minutes of self-reported leisure-time brisk walking, and accelerometer objectively-measured moderate-to-vigorous PA in bouts of at least 10 min (OM-MVPA) were measured. To investigate the association between access to POS and walk-friendly routes with PA, generalized additive models with a Gaussian link function were used. Interaction of rainy conditions with the association between access to POS and walk-friendly routes with OM-MVPA was also examined. Better access to POS was not statistically significantly associated with self-reported leisure-time brisk walking or OM-MVPA. A positive significant association was observed only between distance of walk-friendly routes contained or intersected by buffer and OM-MVPA, and was solely evident on non-rainy days. In this elderly Mediterranean population, only access to walk-friendly routes had an influence on accelerometer-measured PA. Rainy conditions during the accelerometer wear period did appear to modify this association.
Factors Forming the Consumers’ Willingness to Pay a Price Premium for Ecological Goods in Ukraine
Authors: Kucher Anatolii , Hełdak Maria , Kucher Lesia , Raszka Beata
Published: March 2019

This study discusses the identification of factors affecting consumers’ willingness to pay a price premium for ecological goods. The study was carried out in selected regions of Ukraine, in the cities of Kharkiv and Kyiv. The study applied various research methods, in particular public opinion analysis based on conducted surveys and the statistical inference method. The conducted research may constitute the scientific basis for the assessment of this market segment development. The comparison of consumer attitudes, presented by the residents of major Ukrainian cities regarding environmental goods, revealed their willingness to pay a price premium depending primarily on the purchasing power of the population, but also on gender, age, and social status. The analysis of differences in the cross-tabulation of quality characteristics was performed using Pearson’s chi-square test, which showed that, for example, men were more willing than women to choose environmental products due to their environmental safety and their selection was more often than in case of women based on environmental goods’ price. The collected research results can be used to assess the development prospects of environmental goods’ market, to construct the set of measures increasing the willingness level of domestic consumers to pay a price premium for ecological products, and to take up decisions about the production of ecological goods.
A Hybrid Algorithm for Forecasting Financial Time Series Data Based on DBSCAN and SVR
Authors: Huang Mengxing , Bao Qili , Zhang Yu , Feng Wenlong
Published: March 2019

Financial prediction is an important research field in financial data time series mining. There has always been a problem of clustering massive financial time series data. Conventional clustering algorithms are not practical for time series data because they are essentially designed for static data. This impracticality results in poor clustering accuracy in several financial forecasting models. In this paper, a new hybrid algorithm is proposed based on Optimization of Initial Points and Variable-Parameter Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise (OVDBCSAN) and support vector regression (SVR). At the initial point of optimization, ε and MinPts, which are global parameters in DBSCAN, mainly deal with datasets of different densities. According to different densities, appropriate parameters are selected for clustering through optimization. This algorithm can find a large number of similar classes and then establish regression prediction models. It was tested extensively using real-world time series datasets from Ping An Bank, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange to evaluate accuracy. The evaluation showed that our approach has major potential in clustering massive financial time series data, therefore improving the accuracy of the prediction of stock prices and financial indexes.
Discrete Wavelet Packet Transform-Based Industrial Digital Wireless Communication Systems
Authors: Saadaoui Safa , Tabaa Mohamed , Monteiro Fabrice , Chehaitly Mouhamad , Dandache Abbas
Published: March 2019

The industrial internet of things (IIoT) known as industry 4.0, is the use of internet of things technologies, via the Wireless Sensor Network (WSN), to enhance manufacturing and industrial processes. It incorporates machine learning and big data technologies, to allow machine-to-machine communication that have existed for years in the industrial world. Therefore, it is necessary to propose a robust and functional communication architecture that is based on WSNs, inside factories, in order to show the great interest in the connectivity of things in the industrial environment. In such environment, propagation differs from other conventional indoor mediums, in its large dimensions, and the nature of objects and obstacles inside. Thus, the industrial medium is modeled as a fading channel affected by an impulsive and Gaussian noise. The objective of this paper is to improve robustness and performances of multi-user WSN architecture, based on Discrete Wavelet Transform, under an industrial environment using conventional channel coding and an optimal thresholding receiver.
SDN-Based Intrusion Detection System for Early Detection and Mitigation of DDoS Attacks
Authors: Manso Pedro , Moura José , Serrão Carlos
Published: March 2019

The current paper addresses relevant network security vulnerabilities introduced by network devices within the emerging paradigm of Internet of Things (IoT) as well as the urgent need to mitigate the negative effects of some types of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks that try to explore those security weaknesses. We design and implement a Software-Defined Intrusion Detection System (IDS) that reactively impairs the attacks at its origin, ensuring the “normal operation” of the network infrastructure. Our proposal includes an IDS that automatically detects several DDoS attacks, and then as an attack is detected, it notifies a Software Defined Networking (SDN) controller. The current proposal also downloads some convenient traffic forwarding decisions from the SDN controller to network devices. The evaluation results suggest that our proposal timely detects several types of cyber-attacks based on DDoS, mitigates their negative impacts on the network performance, and ensures the correct data delivery of normal traffic. Our work sheds light on the programming relevance over an abstracted view of the network infrastructure to timely detect a Botnet exploitation, mitigate malicious traffic at its source, and protect benign traffic.
What Is the Carcass-Usage Mode of the Collembola? A Case Study of Entomobrya proxima in the Laboratory
Authors: Feng Lichao , Chang Liang , Zhang Shaoqing , Zhu Xinyu , Adl Sina , Wu Donghui
Published: March 2019

Collembola display a variety of feeding habits, and prey on many types of food at different trophic levels in the soil. In most cases, their feeding selections are widely varied. In the interest of the food preferences of E. proxima, we attempted to confirm how the Collembola utilize food when feeding on carrion (unusual sources). Four different soil animals (with different stable isotope values and increasing trophic levels) were used to examine whether collembolans can use dead insects as a food resource in specific manners, depending on food preference. Our results demonstrated that the food preference of a collembolan changed significantly after feeding on insects with different feeding habits for 60 days. We found that stable isotope values (δ13C) of Entomobrya proxima approached those of the food sources. A large proportion of the diet (more than 50%) should directly consist of insect body parts, with the remainder consisting of indirectly used, mixed microorganisms naturally growing on animal food, such as fungi (Rhizopus sp., Alternaria sp., Penicillium sp., and Aspergillus sp.) and bacteria (Bacillus sp1. and Bacillus sp2.). Based on this research, the food preference of collembolans is more focused on carcasses (dead insect bodies) than microorganisms during the animal-food decomposition process.
Textured Sr2Sc0.1Nb0.1Co1.5Fe0.3O6−2δ Thin Film Cathodes for IT-SOFCs
Authors: Zhu Zhaoxin , Zhou Chuan , Zhou Wei , Yang Nan
Published: March 2019

Reducing the operating temperature of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) to intermediate (650–850 °C) or even lower levels (400–650 °C) is an important practical requirement. However, the main obstacle to lowering the operating temperature is the poor oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity on the cathode side and, therefore, it is essential to explore cathode materials with good ORR activity in these temperature ranges. In this work, we investigated the possibility of using Sr2Sc0.1Nb0.1Co1.5Fe0.3O6−2δ (SSNCF) as a suitable intermediate temperature cathode material. SSNCF thin films with different orientations were prepared using the pulsed laser deposition technique, and the relationship of the surface chemical states and ORR activity was discussed in terms of crystallographic orientation. The results showed that the SSNCF/YSZ grown along the [110] direction exhibited superior ORR activity compared to the SSNCF/SDC/YSZ thin film electrode grown along the [100] direction. This was explained by the variation in the Sr-surface enrichment and cobalt ion oxidation state using X-ray photoemission spectroscopy.
Development of a High-Efficiency Z-Form Selector for Single Crystal Blades and Corresponding Grain Selection Mechanism
Authors: Zhu Xintao , Wang Fu , Ma Dexin , Bührig-Polaczek Andreas
Published: March 2019

Single crystal (SX) is widely used in modern turbine blades to improve the creep fracture, fatigue, oxidation, and coating properties of the turbine, so that the turbine engine has excellent performance and durability. In this paper, the single crystal super alloy MM247LC is used as the research material. The evolution of grain structure in a two-dimensional grain selector was studied by directional experiments, and the mechanism of grain selection in the two-dimensional channel during directional solidification was clarified. In order to optimize the production process of single crystal turbine blades, the effects of the geometrical structure of a Z-type separator (i.e., wire diameter and take-off angle) on the crystal orientation, microstructure, and grain efficiency of blades were discussed.
Effect of Macro-, Micro- and Nano-Calcium Carbonate on Properties of Cementitious Composites—A Review
Authors: Cao Mingli , Ming Xing , He Kaiyu , Li Li , Shen Shirley
Published: March 2019

Calcium carbonate is wildly used in cementitious composites at different scales and can affect the properties of cementitious composites through physical effects (such as the filler effect, dilution effect and nucleation effect) and chemical effects. The effects of macro (>1 mm)-, micro (1 μm–1 mm)- and nano (<1 μm)-sizes of calcium carbonate on the hydration process, workability, mechanical properties and durability are reviewed. Macro-calcium carbonate mainly acts as an inert filler and can be involved in building the skeletons of hardened cementitious composites to provide part of the strength. Micro-calcium carbonate not only fills the voids between cement grains, but also accelerates the hydration process and affects the workability, mechanical properties and durability through the dilution, nucleation and even chemical effects. Nano-calcium carbonate also has both physical and chemical effects on the properties of cementitious composites, and these effects behave even more effectively than those of micro-calcium carbonate. However, agglomeration of nano-calcium carbonate reduces its enhancement effects remarkably.