bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A void in the Hubble tension? The end of the line for the Hubble bubble
Authors: Camarena David , Marra Valerio , Sakr Ziad , Clarkson Chris
Published: August 2022

The Universe may feature large-scale inhomogeneities beyond the standard paradigm, implying that statistical homogeneity and isotropy may be reached only on much larger scales than the usually assumed ∼100 Mpc. This means that we are not necessarily typical observers and that the Copernican principle could be recovered only on super-Hubble scales. Here, we do not assume the validity of the Copernican principle and let cosmic microwave background, baryon acoustic oscillations, type Ia supernovae, local H
0, cosmic chronometers, Compton y-distortion and kinetic Sunyaev–Zeldovich observations constrain the geometrical degrees of freedom of the local structure, which we parametrize via the ΛLTB model—basically a non-linear radial perturbation of a FLRW metric. In order to quantify if a non-Copernican structure could explain away the Hubble tension, we pay careful attention to computing the Hubble constant in an inhomogeneous Universe, and we adopt model selection via both the Bayes factor and the Akaike information criterion. Our results show that, while the ΛLTB model can successfully explain away the H
0 tension, it is favored with respect to the ΛCDM model only if one solely considers supernovae in the redshift range that is used to fit the Hubble constant, that is, 0.023 < z < 0.15. If one considers all the supernova sample, then the H
0 tension is not solved and the support for the ΛLTB model vanishes. Combined with other data sets, this solution to the Hubble tension barely helps. Finally, we have reconstructed our local spacetime. We have found that data are best fit by a shallow void with δ
L ≈ −0.04 and

r

L

out

≈
300

Mpc, which, interestingly, lies on the border of the 95% credible region relative to the standard model expectation.
An alternative approach to extract diode parameters from metal–semiconductor–metal asymmetric Schottky diodes
Authors: Bhattacharya Gourab , Venimadhav A
Published: August 2022

Back-to-back connected asymmetric Schottky diodes having metal–semiconductor–metal (MSM) configuration are often encountered practically in solid state devices and, if the intended ohmic contact exhibits rectifying characteristics, then the extraction of diode parameters such as ideality factor and barrier height from forward current–voltage (I–V) plots using conventional methods becomes problematic. In this study, a new approach, which predicts extremums in measured current–voltage (I–V) graph assuming the dominant transport mechanism to be thermionic emission model, have been proposed. Using the proposed method, the first and second derivatives of the voltage- current function in combination to another previously established theoretical approach resulted in significantly accurate extraction of individual barrier heights of a MSM junction from single experimental I–V measurement. On the other hand, if individual barrier heights are known, using the proposed method the individual ideality factors for the two back-to-back junctions can be calculated. The proposed method has been validated by analyzing experimentally fabricated FeGa/n-Si/Ag and Co/n-Si/Ni MSM Schottky diodes. The obtained results from this approach have been compared with other established methods and the values were found out to be in good agreement with each other.
Emergence of low-temperature glassy dynamics in Ru substituted non-magnetic insulator CaHfO3
Authors: Kaur Gurpreet , Mukherjee K
Published: August 2022

Non-magnetic insulators/semiconductors with induced magnetism introduced via transition metal substitution are one of the promising materials in the field of spintronics, magnetoelectronics and magneto-optical devices. In this context, here, we focus on magnetism induced in a non-magnetic insulator CaHfO3, by the substitution of 4d element Ru, at Hf-site. Structural investigations indicate that substitution of Ru4+ (up to 50%) does not affect the original crystal structure of the parent compound. Magnetic studies divulge a crossover from a diamagnetic to paramagnetic state with 20% Ru substitution. Further replacement of Hf results in a glassy magnetic state in CaHf1−x
Ru
x
O3 (0.3 ⩽ x ⩽ 0.5). The nature of the low temperature glassiness (below 20 K) in these compositions is confirmed through Vogel–Fulcher and Power law, along with, magnetic memory effect and relaxation dynamics. The observed glassiness is explained through the phenomenological ‘hierarchical model’. Our studies indicate that the presence of competing short range interactions among randomly arranged Ru cations in non-magnetic insulator CaHfO3 are responsible for the observed low temperature magnetic state in this series with compositions >0.25.
Variations in size-specific effective dose with patient stature and beam width for kV cone beam CT imaging in radiotherapy
Authors: Martin C J , Abuhaimed A
Published: August 2022

The facilities now available on linear accelerators for external beam radiotherapy enable radiation fields to be conformed to the shapes of tumours with a high level of precision. However, in order for the treatment delivered to take advantage of this, the patient must be positioned on the couch with the same degree of accuracy. Kilovoltage cone beam computed tomography systems are now incorporated into radiotherapy linear accelerators to allow imaging to be performed at the time of treatment, and image-guided radiation therapy is now standard in most radiotherapy departments throughout the world. However, because doses from imaging are much lower than therapy doses, less effort has been put into optimising radiological protection of imaging protocols. Standard imaging protocols supplied by the equipment vendor are often used with little adaptation to the stature of individual patients, and exposure factors and field sizes are frequently larger than necessary. In this study, the impact of using standard protocols for imaging anatomical phantoms of varying size from a library of 193 adult phantoms has been evaluated. Monte Carlo simulations were used to calculate doses for organs and tissues for each phantom, and results combined in terms of size-specific effective dose (SED). Values of SED from pelvic scans ranged from 11 mSv to 22 mSv for male phantoms and 8 mSv to 18 mSv for female phantoms, and for chest scans from 3.8 mSv to 7.6 mSv for male phantoms and 4.6 mSv to 9.5 mSv for female phantoms. Analysis of the results showed that if the same exposure parameters and field sizes are used, a person who is 5 cm shorter will receive a size SED that is 3%–10% greater, while a person who is 10 kg lighter will receive a dose that is 10%–14% greater compared with the average size.
Nanoparticles-based delivery system and its potentials in treating central nervous system disorders
Authors: Liu Tianyou , Xie Qinglian , Dong Zaiquan , Peng Qiang
Published: August 2022

Central nervous system (CNS) disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), have become severe health concern worldwide. The treatment of the CNS diseases is of great challenges due largely to the presence of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). On the one hand, BBB protects brain from the harmful exogenous molecules via inhibiting their entry into the brain. On the other hand, it also hampers the transport of therapeutic drugs into the brain, resulting in the difficulties in treating the CNS diseases. In the past decades, nanoparticles-based drug delivery systems have shown great potentials in overcoming the BBB owing to their unique physicochemical properties, such as small size and specific morphology. In addition, functionalization of nanomaterials confers these nanocarriers controlled drug release features and targeting capacities. These properties make nanocarriers the potent delivery systems for treating the CNS disorders. Herein, we summarize the recent progress in nanoparticles-based systems for the CNS delivery, including the conventional and innovative systems. The prerequisites, drawbacks and challenges of nanocarriers (such as protein corona formation) in the CNS delivery are also discussed.
Polyethylene glycol—modified nanoscale conjugated polymer for the photothermal therapy of lung cancer
Authors: Ren Zhentai , Cui Jing , Sun Qiang , Qin Dehua , Tan Haisong , Li Minjie
Published: August 2022

Killing tumor cells efficiently with photothermal therapy remains a huge challenge. In this study, we successfully prepared a novel polymer with photothermal conversion capability via a condensation reaction, and then subjected it to Polyethylene glycol (PEG) modification and ultrasonic nanocrystalline treatment to make it suitable for in vivo photothermal therapy applications. The conjugated polymer demonstrated good biocompatibility and photothermal conversion ability and was shown in cell experiments to be effective in killing tumor cells after laser irradiation. In addition, the conjugated polymer-based photothermal therapy, guided by photoacoustic real-time imaging and mediated by laser irradiation, of a tumor-bearing mouse model could effectively inhibit the growth of tumor tissue and demonstrated good in vivo biosafety. Thus, photothermal therapy based on the conjugated polymer synthesized in this study provides a new idea and strategy for the treatment of lung cancer.
Gas permeation through nanoporous single-walled carbon nanotubes: the confinement effect
Authors: Li Yu , Cui Chuan-Xin , Jiang Jin-Wu
Published: August 2022

The gas permeation through nanoscale membranes like graphene has been extensively studied by experiments and empirical models. In contrast to planar membranes, the single-walled carbon nanotube has a natural confined hollow structure, which shall affect the gas permeation process. We perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the effect of the nanotube diameter on the gas permeation process. It is found that the permeance constant increases with the increase of the nanotube diameter, which can not be explained by existing empirical models. We generalize the three-state model to describe the diameter dependence for the permeance constant, which discloses a distinctive confinement-induced adsorption phenomenon for the gas molecule on the nanotube’s inner surface. This adsorption phenomenon effectively reduces the pressure of the bulk gas, leading to the decrease of the permeance constant. These results illustrate the importance of the adsorption within the confined space on the gas permeation process.
Kinetic ballooning modes as a constraint on plasma triangularity in commercial spherical tokamaks
Authors: Davies R , Dickinson D , Wilson H
Published: August 2022

To be economically competitive, spherical tokamak (ST) power plant designs require a high β (plasma pressure/magnetic pressure) and sufficiently low turbulent transport to enable steady-state operation. A novel approach to tokamak optimisation is for the plasma to have negative triangularity, with experimental results indicating this reduces transport. However, negative triangularity is known to close access to the ‘second stability’ region for ballooning modes, and thus impose a hard β limit. Second stability access is particularly important in ST power plant design, and this raises the question as to whether negative triangularity is feasible. A linear gyrokinetic study of three hypothetical high β ST equilibria is performed, with similar size and fusion power in the range 500–800 MW. By closing the second stability window, the negative triangularity case becomes strongly unstable to long-wavelength kinetic ballooning modes (KBMs) across the plasma, likely driving unacceptably high transport. By contrast, positive triangularity can completely avoid the ideal ballooning unstable region whilst having reactor-relevant β, provided the on-axis safety factor is sufficiently high. Nevertheless, the dominant instability at long wavelength still appears to be the KBM, though it could be stabilised by flow shear.
A FAIR based approach to data sharing in Europe
Authors: Strand P , Coster D P , Plociennik M , de Witt S , Klampanos I A , Decker J , Imbeaux F , Artaud J F , Bosak B , Cummings N , Fleury L , Ikonomopoulos A , Konstantopoulos S , Ludvig-Osipov A , Maini P , Morales J , Owsiak M
Published: August 2022

The European fusion research activities have, over recent decades, generated a vast and varied set of data. The volume and diversity of the data that need to be catalogued and annotated make the task of organising and making the data available within a broader environment very challenging. Nevertheless, there are strong scientific drivers as well as incentives and mandates from national research agencies suggesting that a more coherent approach to data referencing, dissemination and sharing would provide strong benefits to the fusion research community and beyond. Here, we discuss the technical requirements and developments needed to transition the current, and future, range of fusion research data to an open and Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable data sharing structure guided by the principle ‘as open as possible, as closed as necessary’. Here we propose a set of recommendations and technical implementations needed to form a European data sharing environment for the fusion research programmes. Consistency with the emerging IMAS (ITER Integrated Modelling and Analysis Suite) infrastructure is considered to facilitate future deployments.
Improvement of radial confinement of plasma via applying rotating magnetic fields
Authors: Ren Baoming , Li Qing , Ying Jiacheng , Liao Hui , Yang Zhida , Sun Xuan
Published: August 2022

We report a novel method to control the plasma radial transport, namely, applying a rotating magnetic field (RMF) to create azimuthal shear flow, which is found to change the transport from Bohm to classical diffusion if the ratio of magnetization parameter

γ

to penetration parameter

λ

is greater than 1.5. Upon application of the RMF, the peak density is observed to increase by 33% above the normal value. Specifically, the ratio increases from 4 × 1018 m−3 to 6 × 1018 m−3, and the corresponding density gradient length changes from 11 cm to 6 cm, or the steepness increases by about a factor of 2. Further increasing the RMF strength cannot steepen the density further. The results suggest the RMF can be a non-intrusive method to control the radial transport and hence the plasma density profile.
Ridge waveguide lasers with vertically stacked quantum wells and tunnel junctions
Authors: Fricke J , Wenzel H , Maaßdorf A , Zink C , Matalla M , Unger R , Knigge A
Published: August 2022

We report on the fabrication and electro-optical performance of ridge waveguide (RW) lasers emitting near 905 nm based on a vertical layer structure consisting of three single quantum wells (SQWs) as active regions separated by two tunnel junctions (TJs). The single waveguide core is designed in such a way that the third vertical mode is lasing. The width of the ridge is varied between 3 µm and 200 µm. Deep- and shallow-etched ridges were fabricated. The shallow etching stopped slightly above the topmost SQW, whereas the deep etch went through all TJs and stopped slightly above the lowest SQW. For comparison, we also fabricated conventional shallow-etched RW lasers based on a similar vertical structure having only one SQW and no TJs. The TJ RW lasers with deep-etched ridges provide the highest output power, lowest threshold current and best slope efficiency of 2.4 W A−1 for a ridge width of 6 µm. The performance of shallow-etched TJ RW lasers is lowest for small ridge widths but surpasses the performance of the conventional RW lasers when the ridge width is increased. The lateral far field angle of deep-etched TJ RW lasers is about 2° larger compared to the shallow etched ones.
Development of a new magnetorheological impact damper with low velocity sensitivity
Authors: Deng Lei , Sun Shuaishuai , Jin Shida , Li Zhixiong , Du Haiping , Zhang Shiwu , Li Weihua
Published: August 2022

The velocity sensitive characteristic of the conventional linear magnetorheological (MR) damper is undesirable in the application of impact protection. It will induce large damping forces when the damper suffers high velocity impacts, whilst comprising the energy dissipation efficiency of the damper and posing a serious threat to occupants and mechanical structures. This work reports a new MR impact damper (NMRID) with low velocity sensitivity. Unlike the conventional MR impact damper (CMRID) in which MR fluids (MRFs) flow from one chamber to the other through a small annular gap between the piston and cylinder, the NMRID has a whole annular gap between the shaft and cylinder that is filled with MRFs, and the MRFs work in a pure shear mode without any liquid flow. In this work, a NMRID and a CMRID were prototyped. The velocity sensitivities of these two impact dampers were compared via numerical analysis and experimental impact tests. The analysis and test results indicate that NMRID possesses a much lower velocity sensitivity than the CMRID; the dynamic range of the NMRID decreases less than CMRID with the increase of nominal impact velocity. Then, to demonstrate the controllability of NMRID, impact tests with a bang–bang control were implemented, and the peak force of NMRID was successfully controlled around a target force under different levels of nominal impact velocity. This research proves that the designed NMRID is less sensitive to velocity than the CMRID and the NMRID has good controllability, demonstrating that the NMRID can serve as a better candidate than CMRID in applications with high impact velocity.
Novel electron and photon recording concepts in noble-liquid detectors
Authors: Breskin A.
Published: August 2022

We present several novel ionization-electron and
scintillation-photon recording concepts in noble-liquid detectors,
for future applications in particle and astroparticle physics and in
other fields. These involve both single- and dual-phase detector
configurations with combined electroluminescence and small charge
multiplication in gas and liquid media.
Piled-up neutron-gamma discrimination system for CLLB using convolutional neural network
Authors: Peng S. , Hua Z.H. , Wu Q. , Han J.F. , Qian S. , Wang Z.G. , Wei Q.H. , Qin L.S. , Ma L.S. , Yan M. , Song R.Q.
Published: August 2022

A piled-up neutron-gamma discrimination system is designed
to discriminate single and piled-up events under high counting
rate. The data acquired by a Cs2LiLaBr6:Ce (CLLB) detector
and an Am-Be neutron source are used to train and test the model in
the n-γ discrimination system. The charge comparison method
is applied to discriminate the non-piled-up events in the
experimental data and label the dataset of single events. As a
result of the method, the figure-of-merit (FOM) value is 1.10, which
indicates that the wrong labeling ratio is about 0.248%. A dataset
of piled-up events is created by adding up waveforms and labels of
the events in the single-pulse dataset. The discrimination system
consists of three convolutional models, called Model_PulseNum,
Model_OnePulse and Model_TwoPulses. All the models are trained and
tested by the created dataset. Model_PulseNum is created and
trained to define the number of pulses in the waveform of the event,
with an accuracy of 99.94%. The other two models (Model_OnePulse
and Model_TwoPulses) are created and trained to discriminate the
particle types for non-piled-up and two-fold piled-up events with
the accuracy of 99.5% and 98.6%, respectively. For the whole
discrimination system, the accurcy for the particle identification
is over 97% for each class (γ, n, γ + γ,
γ + n, n + γ and n + n). These results indicate that CNN model can
improve the performance of particle detection systems by effectively
discriminate neutron and gamma for both piled-up and non-piled-up
events under high counting rates.
Controlled fabrication of functional liver spheroids with microfluidic flow cytometric printing
Authors: Zhang Pengfei , Li Xiangpeng , Chen Jennifer Y , Abate Adam R
Published: August 2022

Multicellular liver spheroids are 3D culture models useful in the development of therapies for liver fibrosis. While these models can recapitulate fibrotic disease, current methods for generating them via random aggregation are uncontrolled, yielding spheroids of variable size, function, and utility. Here, we report fabrication of precision liver spheroids with microfluidic flow cytometric printing. Our approach fabricates spheroids cell-by-cell, yielding structures with exact numbers of different cell types. Because spheroid function depends on composition, our precision spheroids have superior functional uniformity, allowing more accurate and statistically significant screens compared to randomly generated spheroids. The approach produces thousands of spheroids per hour, and thus affords a scalable platform by which to manufacture single-cell precision spheroids for disease modeling and high throughput drug testing.
Tribological characterization of cortical bone against 316 stainless steel during dry sliding
Authors: Han Ying , Lv Qinjing , Song Yixuan , Bi Jianping , Zhang Qinhe
Published: August 2022

In surgery, the friction between the cortical bone and the metal instruments cause bone cells damage, which would affect the stability of intraosseous implants. In the present work, the tribological characterization of cortical bone against 316 stainless steel during dry sliding condition was investigated by pin-on-disk tests. Finite element method was used to monitor the change of friction temperature with vibration assistance. The wear mechanism of the bone sample and the 316 stainless steel had been analyzed and discussed. The results show that the friction coefficient decrease with the increasing of load, the wear rate and the friction temperature increase. While, the friction coefficient, the wear rate and the friction temperature are increased with the increase of sliding speed, respectively. Moreover, the friction temperature with vibration assisted is lower than that in the normal friction process. Adhesive and abrasive wear behavior are the main wear mechanisms of the cortical bone against 316 stainless steel during the test. The results in this paper provide guidance for the selection of parameters during bone cutting, which has great significance for the improvement of implant stability.
Recent progress in clean-surface formation of topological Kondo insulators and topological surface states observed there
Authors: Ohtsubo Yoshiyuki , Kimura Shin-ichi , Iga Fumitoshi
Published: August 2022

The peculiar metallic electronic states proposed and observed in Kondo insulators (KIs), whose bandgap opens at low temperature derived from the Kondo effect between itinerant and localized electrons, have attracted considerable attention in this decade, because it suggests the coexistence of strong electron correlation and non-trivial topological order (TO) in such KIs, namely topological Kondo insulators (TKIs). However, experimental studies of these states have led to controversial conclusions mainly owing to the difficulty and inhomogeneity of the single crystal surfaces of the TKI candidates, samarium hexaboride (SmB6) and ytterbium dodecaboride (YbB12). In this article, we review studies focused on the surface atomic and electronic structures of TKI candidates and recent progress to form homogeneous, well-defined clean surfaces of them. Due to the homogeneous surface formation, the surface electronic states and their non-trivial TO are elucidated well in SmB6 and YbB12, by using spin- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy.
Welding investigation on penetration and mechanical property of AISI 201 during A-TIG welding
Authors: Deep Akash , Singh Vivek , Ashutosh Som , Singh Ajay Pratap , Gupta Abhishek
Published: August 2022

Austenitic Stainless Steel has improved mechanical properties and great corrosion resistance thereby it is extensively used in fabrication industries. The aim of our work is to compare the mechanical property and macrostructural of TIG and A-TIG welding process on Nitrogen alloyed stainless steel and find out the best oxide flux to be used before welding to improve the macrostructure, penetration, weld width, and tensile strength of butt joint. Five dissimilar fluxes i.e. SiO2, MnO2, TiO2, ZnO and CaO were used during A-TIG welding. Experiments were performed at same welding speed but at different welding current in both TIG and A-TIG welding. In the whole process SiO2 and TiO2 helps to get full penetration of 5 mm at 200 A welding current while least penetration of 3.16 mm obtained during TIG method. Welding parameters giving the best penetration profile was chosen to perform welding on butt joint for assessment of strength. Test coupon of TiO2 had greater strength (698 N mm−2) as well as percentage elongation (34.5).
Health-system specialty pharmacy role and outcomes: A review of current literature
Authors: Zuckerman Autumn D , Whelchel Kristen , Kozlicki Miranda , Simonyan Anahit R , Donovan Jennifer L , Gazda Nicholas P , Mourani Jessica , Smith Amy Metcalfe , Young Lauren , Ortega Melissa , Kelley Tara N
Published: August 2022

Purpose

Specialty medications can have life-altering outcomes for patients with complex diseases. However, their benefit relies on appropriate treatment selection, patients’ ability to afford and initiate treatment, and ongoing treatment optimization based on patient response to therapy. Mounting research demonstrates the benefits of the health-system specialty pharmacies (HSSPs) in improving specialty medication access, affordability, and outcomes. The purpose of this rapid review is to describe the currently reported role and function of HSSP pharmacists and outcomes reported with use of the HSSP model, and to identify gaps in the literature where more information is needed to better understand the HSSP model and outcomes.

Current literature describes the role of HSSP pharmacists in facilitating patient access, affordability, and initiation and maintenance of specialty medications. Though it is clear HSSP pharmacists are involved in treatment monitoring, often through utilizing the electronic health record, more information is needed to elucidate the frequency, method, and extent of monitoring. Despite several valuable continuity of care services reported to be provided by HSSPs, the breadth and degree of standardization of these services remains unclear. There is minimal literature describing HSSP education and research involvement. HSSPs have reported significant benefits of this patient care model, as demonstrated by higher adherence and persistence; better clinical outcomes; financial benefits to patients, payers, and the health system; better quality of care; higher patient and provider satisfaction with services, and highly efficient specialty pharmacy services. More literature comparing clinical and diagnosis-related outcomes in HSSP versus non-HSSP patients is needed.

Conclusion

HSSPs provide comprehensive, patient-centered specialty medication management that result in improved care across the continuum of the specialty patient journey and act as a valuable resource for specialty clinics and patients beyond medication management. Future research should build on the current description of HSSP services, how services affect patient outcomes, and the impact HSSP network restrictions.
Learning discriminative and structural samples for rare cell types with deep generative model
Authors: Wang Haiyue , Ma Xiaoke
Published: August 2022

Cell types (subpopulations) serve as bio-markers for the diagnosis and therapy of complex diseases, and single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) measures expression of genes at cell level, paving the way for the identification of cell types. Although great efforts have been devoted to this issue, it remains challenging to identify rare cell types in scRNA-seq data because of the few-shot problem, lack of interpretability and separation of generating samples and clustering of cells. To attack these issues, a novel deep generative model for leveraging the small samples of cells (aka scLDS2) is proposed by precisely estimating the distribution of different cells, which discriminate the rare and non-rare cell types with adversarial learning. Specifically, to enhance interpretability of samples, scLDS2 generates the sparse faked samples of cells with $\ell _1$-norm, where the relations among cells are learned, facilitating the identification of cell types. Furthermore, scLDS2 directly obtains cell types from the generated samples by learning the block structure such that cells belonging to the same types are similar to each other with the nuclear-norm. scLDS2 joins the generation of samples, classification of the generated and truth samples for cells and feature extraction into a unified generative framework, which transforms the rare cell types detection problem into a classification problem, paving the way for the identification of cell types with joint learning. The experimental results on 20 datasets demonstrate that scLDS2 significantly outperforms 17 state-of-the-art methods in terms of various measurements with 25.12% improvement in adjusted rand index on average, providing an effective strategy for scRNA-seq data with rare cell types. (The software is coded using python, and is freely available for academic https://github.com/xkmaxidian/scLDS2).
The manufactured crisis of COVID-Keynesianism in Britain, Germany and the USA
Authors: Wood James D G , Ausserladscheider Valentina , Sparkes Matthew
Published: August 2022

Economic policymaking shifted away from neoliberal ideals towards ‘crisis’ Keynesianism during the COVID-19 pandemic. We use a comparative process tracing approach to examine how political and economic actors in Britain, Germany and the USA attempt to legitimise a potential return to neoliberalism to voters. We show that pro-neoliberal actors discursively construct a ‘crisis’ of COVID-Keynesianism by associating it with rising inflation and ‘unsustainable’ levels of government spending. Whilst emphasising key neoliberal policies of maintaining low inflation and fiscal conservativism to establish a return to ‘normal’ neoliberal policymaking. Therefore, we explain how the neoliberal policy paradigm reasserts itself when challenged.
Duration of extracorporeal life support bridging delineates differences in the outcome between awake and sedated bridge-to-transplant patients
Authors: Ponholzer Florian , Schwarz Stefan , Jaksch Peter , Benazzo Alberto , Kifjak Daria , Hoetzenecker Konrad , Schweiger Thomas
Published: August 2022

OBJECTIVES

Traditionally, patients on bridge-to-transplant extracorporeal membrane oxygenation were kept sedated and intubated. However, awake bridging strategies have evolved during recent years. This study aims to elaborate differences in physical activity and postoperative outcomes after lung transplantation (LTx), depending on bridging strategy and duration.

METHODS

Bridged patients receiving LTx between March 2013 and April 2021 were analysed. Awake bridging was defined as a Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale score of ≥−1 until 24 h before transplantation. Patients were grouped in awake and sedated cohorts.

RESULTS

A total of 88 patients (35 awake, 53 sedated bridging) were included. After LTx, mobilization to standing position was achieved earlier in awake bridged patients (7 vs 15 days, P < 0.001). Postoperative ventilation time (247 vs 88 h, P = 0.005) and intensive care unit stay (30 vs 16 days, P = 0.004) were longer in the sedated cohort. Awake patients with bridging duration >6 days showed shorter postoperative ventilation time (108 vs 383 h, P = 0.003), less intensive care unit days (23 vs 36, P = 0.003) and earlier mobilization to standing position (9 vs 17 days, P < 0.001). In contrast, postoperative ventilation time and days in intensive care unit in patients with bridge-to-transplant duration ≤6 days were comparable between cohorts. Mobilization to standing position was achieved faster in the awake (≤6 days) bridged cohort (5 vs 9 days, P = 0.024).

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the complex management of bridged patients, excellent survival rates after LTx can be achieved. Especially in patients with more than 1 week on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, awake bridging concepts are associated with significantly faster recovery.
Evidence-based insights on ideal blanking period duration following atrial fibrillation catheter ablation
Authors: Saglietto Andrea , Ballatore Andrea , Xhakupi Henri , Rubat Baleuri Federico , Magnano Massimo , Gaita Fiorenzo , De Ferrari Gaetano Maria , Anselmino Matteo
Published: August 2022

Aims

Despite the general adoption of a 3-month blanking period (BP), increasing scientific evidence suggests an association between early recurrences of atrial tachyarrhythmias (ERAT) and failure of atrial fibrillation catheter ablation (AFCA). The aim of the present study was to perform a diagnostic meta-analysis to derive the ideal BP cut-off following AFCA.

Methods and results

PubMed/MEDLINE databases were screened for articles reporting late recurrences of atrial tachyarrhythmias (LRAT) in AFCA patients experiencing an ERAT (with at least one time cut-off). Seventeen studies were finally included in the analysis, encompassing 5837 AF patients experiencing ERAT after AFCA. A random-effect meta-analysis of diagnostic test accuracy studies with multiple cut-offs was performed. The day at which the ERAT occurred was considered the diagnostic ‘test’, whereas the different time cut-offs reported in the singular studies were treated as cut-offs of interest in the meta-analysis. Overall, a 27.7 day (95% confidence interval: 10.4–45.1 days) cut-off was identified as the optimal BP duration [area under the summary receiver operating characteristic (AUC-SROC) curve: 0.66, 95% CI: 0.56–0.75]. Specificity (95% CI: 63–85%) and positive predictive value were 76%. At subgroup analysis, the optimal BP cut-off was 39.0 days (95% CI: 26.8–51.2 days, AUC-SROC: 0.63) following radiofrequency AFCA and 30.1 days (95% CI: 0–63.4 days, AUC-SROC: 0.76) after cryoballoon ablation.

Conclusion

The present meta-analysis indicates that a 4-week BP represents the optimal cut-off following AFCA. Altogether, these meta-analytic insights support the need of a revision of the actual 3-month BP duration.
Effects of humidity and temperature on the non-linear elasticity of rocks
Authors: Feng Xuan , Fehler Michael , Burns Daniel , Brown Stephen , Szabo Thomas L
Published: July 2022

Small velocity changes, associated with the non-linear response of rocks within the Earth, have been measured from dense arrays of seismometers to observe crustal deformation, the influence of solar heating and in situ pore pressure changes. Characterization of the non-linear elastic response of rocks provides new insight into rock microstructure and possibly new ways to determine the presence and type of fluid in the pore space. We conducted a long-term experiment to understand the influence of humidity and temperature on the non-linear elastic properties (NEPs) of rocks. The relative velocity change (dv/v), a NEP, is computed from the time of flight delay caused by the presence of a superposed high amplitude ultrasonic signal in a sandstone sample within a controlled environmental chamber. Our phenomenological model for diffusion of humidity into the pore space fits the dv/v data exceptionally well, showing the dv/v is a linear function of humidity. We subtract the dv/v predicted by the humidity diffusion model from the measured dv/v to get a residual dv/v. This residual dv/v can be well fit by a temperature diffusion model in which the dv/v is a linear function of temperature. We suggest that dv/v is a sensitive indicator of moisture in pore spaces of rock and the temperature of the rock.
Characterizing the cover across South Australia: a simple passive-seismic method for estimating sedimentary thickness
Authors: Agrawal Shubham , Eakin Caroline M , O’Donnell John
Published: July 2022

A blanket of sedimentary and regolith material covers approximately three-quarters of the Australian continent, obscuring the crustal geology below and potential mineral resources within. Sedimentary basins also trap seismic energy increasing seismic hazard and generating noisy seismograms that make determining deeper crustal and lithospheric structure more challenging. The most fundamental question that can first be asked in addressing these challenges is how thick are the sediments? Borehole drilling and active seismic experiments using a controlled seismic source (e.g. vibroseis) provide excellent constraints, but they are limited in geographical coverage due to their expense, especially when operating in remote areas. On the other hand, passive-seismic experiments that involve the deployment of seismic receivers only (i.e. seismometers) are relatively low-cost and portable, providing a practical alternative for initial surveys. Here we utilize receiver functions obtained for both temporary and permanent seismic stations in South Australia, covering regions with a diverse sediment distribution. We present a straightforward method to determine the basement depth based on the arrival time of the P-converted-to-S phase generated at the boundary between the crustal basement and sedimentary strata above. Utilizing the available borehole data, we establish a simple predictive relationship between Ps arrival time and the basement depth, which could then be applied to other sedimentary basins with some consideration. The method is found to work best for Phanerozoic sediments and offers a way to determine the sediment–basement interface in unexplored areas requiring only temporary seismic stations deployed for < 6 months.
Estimation of fracture normal stiffness using wellbore pressure recovery
Authors: Cheng Yan , Renner Joerg
Published: August 2022

Fractures are ubiquitous in Earth’s upper crust and strongly affect its physical properties. Their visibility for elastic waves hinges on their stiffness, a measure of the relation between changes in fracture aperture and applied stress, which itself significantly increases with increasing stress according to laboratory data. We constrained normal stiffness (and its stress dependence) of two fractures intersecting a borehole in the research mine ‘Reiche Zeche’ in Freiberg, Saxony, Germany, from pressure-recovery behaviour observed when the pressure in a double-packer interval enclosing them was briefly released during shut-in sequences. For the evaluation of the pressure recovery, we developed a generic model that accounts for the inherent convolution of mechanical closing of the fracture, fluid flow in the fracture, fluid exchange between fracture and the surrounding rock, here addressed as fracture leakage, and effects associated with finite borehole storage. We address the hydraulic system by considering three different ‘storage containers’, described by non-dimensionless storage parameters: the wellbore with a fixed storage capacity, the fracture with storage capacities related to fluid compressibility and fracture stiffness, and the surrounding rock constituting a container with unlimited storage capacity. To examine the model’s characteristics, we investigated pressure transients predicted for specific cases, such as negligible fracture leakage, and subsequently numerically determined the sensitivity of the model predictions to the involved model parameters. The model’s application to the field data yield estimates of properties of the fractures (length, aperture and stiffness) and of the surrounding rock mass (product of permeability and specific storage capacity). The parameters derived from the modelling compare well with independent constraints. An analysis of currently available fracture-stiffness data shows that the lack of knowledge of the stress dependence of stiffness severely hampers firm conclusions on scale dependence and the bias between methods.
Ustekinumab Tissue and Serum Levels in Patients With Crohn’s Disease Are Closely Correlated Though Not Consistently Associated With Objective Response After Induction
Authors: Proietti Elisa , Pauwels Renske W M , van der Woude Christien J , Doukas Michael , Oudijk Lindsey , Peppelenbosch Maikel P , Grohmann Ursula , Crombag Marie-Rose B S , de Vries Annemarie C , Fuhler Gwenny M
Published: August 2022

Background

Ustekinumab (UST), which targets p40/interleukin (IL)-23 and IL-12, is an effective treatment for Crohn’s disease (CD). Therapeutic drug monitoring may optimize UST posology. The aim of this study was to investigate UST and IL-23 serum and tissue concentrations in relation to mucosal inflammation and treatment response at an early time point.

Methods

CD patients starting UST between December 2016 and November 2018 were prospectively enrolled. Endoscopies were performed at baseline and week 16. UST and IL-23 serum and tissue concentrations were measured at week 16. Clinical and biochemical response were defined as decline of ≥3 points in Harvey-Bradshaw Index and reduction of ≥50% in fecal calprotectin levels. Endoscopic response was defined as a ≥50% decline in Simple Endoscopic Score or a decline of ≥1 points in Rutgeerts score. Histological remission was defined as Global Histologic Disease Activity Score ≤4.

Results

Of 56 included patients, 17 (30%) of 56 showed clinical response, 16 (30%) of 53 showed biochemical response, and 20 (36%) of 56 showed endoscopic response. UST, but not IL-23, concentration in biopsies was correlated to levels in corresponding sera (P < .0001). No correlation was found between UST tissue levels and treatment response. Patients achieving biochemical response showed significantly higher UST serum levels (3.12 µg/mL vs 1.41 µg/mL; P = .01). Tissue IL-23-to-UST ratio correlated with mucosal inflammation (P = .01).

Conclusions

This is the first study to demonstrate a correlation between serum and tissue UST levels. While tissue IL-23-to-UST ratio correlated with mucosal inflammation, UST serum levels were more indicative for biochemical response. The role of UST levels for therapeutic drug monitoring in inflammatory bowel disease needs further research.
(Re)Appraising Remission in Ulcerative Colitis
Authors: Sood Ajit , Singh Arshdeep , Mahajan Ramit , Midha Vandana , Bernstein Charles N , Rubin David T
Published: August 2022

As the therapeutic targets in ulcerative colitis (UC) shift from control of symptoms to mucosal healing and prevention of disease complications like disability, colectomy, and cancer, the definition of remission has evolved. The current definition of clinical remission is variable and is determined by the clinical context in which it is being used. This results in skepticism and uncertainty about the true meaning of the term “clinical remission.” In this review, the authors reexamine the definition of clinical remission and propose a novel approach to define remission in UC.
Ethnographic approaches and international refugee law
Authors: Janmyr Maja
Published: August 2022

International refugee law permeates a plethora of international, national and local arenas and is developed, interpreted and applied by a wide range of very different actors. In this diversity of contexts, how do we best study the role and place of this body of law? This article advocates for the application of ethnographic approaches in the study of international refugee law, where the positivist legal approach heavily dominates the field. It argues that ethnography’s contribution to knowledge on international refugee law lies not only in its methods, but also in its perspectives on questions of power, knowledge, reflexivity and subjectivity. The article illustrates the value of the ethnographic approach through three vignettes focusing on (i) the concept of ‘refugee’; (ii) refugee rights-claiming and rights-mobilization; and (iii) actors and processes in the creation and spread of international refugee law norms.
THE REQUIREMENT FOR TRANS AND GENDER DIVERSE YOUTH TO SEEK COURT APPROVAL FOR THE COMMENCEMENT OF HORMONE TREATMENT: A COMPARISON OF AUSTRALIAN JURISPRUDENCE WITH THE ENGLISH DECISION IN BELL
Authors: Smith Malcolm K
Published: August 2022

This article outlines the Australian legal position relevant to minors and the commencement of hormone treatment for Gender Dysphoria (GD). It traces the significant Australian legal developments in this field and compares the Australian jurisprudence with recent English caselaw. In Quincy Bell and Mrs A v The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust and Ors, the English High Court held that minors below 16 years are not likely to have the requisite competency to lawfully consent to the commencement of puberty suppressing drugs. The Court of Appeal subsequently overturned this decision, but there are important aspects of the High Court’s reasoning that warrant further analysis, particularly some of the underlying reasoning about the nature of GD as a condition and its treatment. This article highlights several common themes when comparing the High Court’s reasoning in Bell with Australian jurisprudence and highlights how the Australian position has advanced significantly since the first Australian cases in this field were decided. This comparison shows that the Australian perspective is important in demonstrating how judicial views can advance over time alongside a deeper understanding of GD, its treatment, and the broader impact of a requirement to involve the court in such cases. It is concluded that the Australian perspective should be considered in future English cases.
AGN accretion and black hole growth across compact and extended galaxy evolution phases
Authors: Aird James , Coil Alison L , Kocevski Dale D
Published: August 2022

The extent of black hole growth during different galaxy evolution phases and the connection between galaxy compactness and active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity remain poorly understood. We use Hubble Space Telescope imaging of the CANDELS fields to identify star-forming and quiescent galaxies at z = 0.5–3 in both compact and extended phases and use Chandra X-ray imaging to measure the distribution of AGN accretion rates and track black hole growth within these galaxies. We show that accounting for the impact of AGN light changes ∼20 per cent of the X-ray sources from compact to extended galaxy classifications. We find that ∼10–25 per cent of compact star-forming galaxies host an AGN, a mild enhancement (by a factor ∼2) compared to extended star-forming galaxies or compact quiescent galaxies of equivalent stellar mass and redshift. However, AGNs are not ubiquitous in compact star-forming galaxies and this is not the evolutionary phase, given its relatively short time-scale, where the bulk of black hole mass growth takes place. Conversely, we measure the highest AGN fractions (∼10–30 per cent) within the relatively rare population of extended quiescent galaxies. For massive galaxies that quench at early cosmic epochs, substantial black hole growth in this extended phase is crucial to produce the elevated black hole mass-to-galaxy stellar mass scaling relation observed for quiescent galaxies at z ∼ 0. We also show that AGN fraction increases with compactness in star-forming galaxies and decreases in quiescent galaxies within both the compact and extended subpopulations, demonstrating that AGN activity depends closely on the structural properties of galaxies.