bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Characterization of the novel HLA‐DPB1*1584:01 allele, identified by next‐generation sequencing
Authors: Nørgaard Maja , Drechsler Louise Ørnskov , Møller Bjarne Kuno
Published: March 2024

HLA‐DPB1*1584:01 differs from HLA‐DPB1*104:01:01:03 by one nucleotide substitution in exon 2.
Identification of the HLA‐A*11:463 allele in a Chinese patient and his father
Authors: Zhao Mu‐Nan , Shi Xiu‐Min , Gao Su‐Jun
Published: March 2024

HLA‐A*11:463 has one nucleotide change from HLA‐A*11:01:01:01 at nucleotide 508 changing Lysine (146) to Glutamine.
Effect of letermovir initiation on tacrolimus concentrations among lung transplant recipients receiving concomitant azole antifungal prophylaxis
Authors: Goodlet Kellie J. , Garcia Rhiannon
Published: March 2024

Background

The antiviral letermovir has been increasingly used as off‐label cytomegalovirus prophylaxis in solid organ transplant recipients. Observational studies have reported notable increases in tacrolimus (FK) exposure following letermovir; however, whether a significant interaction occurs in the setting of existing moderate‐to‐strong CYP3A4 inhibition is unknown. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate FK trough changes before and after letermovir among lung transplant recipients receiving azole antifungal prophylaxis.

Methods

This retrospective cohort study included lung transplant recipients newly initiated on letermovir between 2019–2022 following valganciclovir intolerance. Tacrolimus doses and concentrations were collected up to 30 days before and after the letermovir start date. No pre‐emptive FK dose adjustments occurred prior to letermovir initiation. Patients admitted to the hospital or lacking an appropriately timed trough in the pre‐ or post‐period were excluded.

Results

A total of 78 lung transplant recipients receiving FK (1.5 mg median total daily dose) and itraconazole (56.4%), isavuconazole (25.6%) or posaconazole (17.9%) prophylaxis were included. Letermovir was started at a median of 8.4 months post‐transplant. The pre‐/post‐letermovir median FK trough was 9.6/9.0 ng/mL (p = .151), median dose‐corrected trough was 4.2/4.7 ng/mL/mg (+11.9%, p = .032), and median weight‐based dose‐corrected trough was 362/326 [ng/mL]/[mg/kg/day] (‐9.9%, p = .036). There was no significant difference in the proportion of patients within their goal trough range before and after letermovir initiation (62% vs. 72%, p = .229).

Conclusion

Empiric FK dose adjustments do not appear warranted before letermovir initiation in lung transplant recipients receiving antifungal prophylaxis with moderate‐to‐strong CYP3A4 inhibitors.

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Hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) in the management of ovarian cancer
Authors: Graham Radha , MacDonald Nicola D , Mould Tim A , Kotsopoulos Ioannis C
Published: March 2024

Key content

Hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) at the time of cytoreductive surgery is a proposed additional treatment in the management of advanced tubo‐ovarian cancer.

Additional organisational approvals, costs, changes to theatre infrastructure and pre‐, intra‐, and post‐operative management considerations are required to implement HIPEC in a clinical setting.

Current meta‐analysis data suggest that in the setting of interval cytoreductive surgery, HIPEC prolongs overall survival and progression‐free survival. There is currently no evidence of benefit in the setting of primary surgery or recurrent disease, but results of ongoing clinical trials are pending.

Learning objectives

To understand the mechanism of action, safety and efficacy of HIPEC as an adjuvant treatment in tubo‐ovarian cancer.

Ethical issues

Because of variation in treatment protocols and heterogeneity of reported outcomes, HIPEC has not yet been adopted into standard practice. Further studies assessing its benefit, mainly in the setting of primary cytoreduction, are ongoing.
Gibberellins regulate masculinization through the SpGAI‐SpSTM module in dioecious spinach
Authors: Zhang Yu‐Lan , Wang Li‐Ying , Yang Yi , Zhao Xu , Zhu Hong‐Wei , You Chen , Chen Ning , Wei Shuai‐Jie , Li Shu‐Fen , Gao Wu‐Jun
Published: March 2024

The sex of dioecious plants is mainly determined by genetic factors, but it can also be converted by environmental cues such as exogenous phytohormones. Gibberellic acids (GAs) are well‐known inducers of flowering and sexual development, yet the pathway of gibberellin‐induced sex conversion in dioecious spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) remains elusive. Based on sex detection before and after GA3 application using T11A and SSR19 molecular markers, we confirmed and elevated the masculinization effect of GA on a single female plant through exogenous applications of GA3, showing complete conversion and functional stamens. Silencing of GIBBERELLIC ACID INSENSITIVE (SpGAI), a single DELLA family protein that is a central GA signaling repressor, results in similar masculinization. We also show that SpGAI can physically interact with the spinach KNOX transcription factor SHOOT MERISTEMLESS (SpSTM), which is a homolog of the flower meristem identity regulator STM in Arabidopsis. The silencing of SpSTM also masculinized female flowers in spinach. Furthermore, SpSTM could directly bind the intron of SpPI to repress SpPI expression in developing female flowers. Overall, our results suggest that GA induces a female masculinization process through the SpGAI‐SpSTM‐SpPI regulatory module in spinach. These insights may help to clarify the molecular mechanism underlying the sex conversion system in dioecious plants while also elucidating the physiological basis for the generation of unisexual flowers so as to establish dioecy in plants.
MaC2H2‐IDD regulates fruit softening and involved in softening disorder induced by cold stress in banana
Authors: Song Zunyang , Li Wenhui , Lai Xiuhua , Chen Hangcong , Wang Lihua , Chen Weixin , Li Xueping , Zhu Xiaoyang
Published: March 2024

Chilling stress causes banana fruit softening disorder and severely impairs fruit quality. Various factors, such as transcription factors, regulate fruit softening. Herein, we identified a novel regulator, MaC2H2‐IDD, whose expression is closely associated with fruit ripening and softening disorder. MaC2H2‐IDD is a transcriptional activator located in the nucleus. The transient and ectopic overexpression of MaC2H2‐IDD promoted “Fenjiao” banana and tomato fruit ripening. However, transient silencing of MaC2H2‐IDD repressed “Fenjiao” banana fruit ripening. MaC2H2‐IDD modulates fruit softening by activating the promoter activity of starch (MaBAM3, MaBAM6, MaBAM8, MaAMY3, and MaISA2) and cell wall (MaEXP‐A2, MaEXP‐A8, MaSUR14‐like, and MaGLU22‐like) degradation genes. DLR, Y1H, EMSA, and ChIP‐qPCR assays validated the expression regulation. MaC2H2‐IDD interacts with MaEBF1, enhancing the regulation of MaC2H2‐IDD to MaAMY3, MaEXP‐A2, and MaGLU22‐like. Overexpressing/silencing MaC2H2‐IDD in banana and tomato fruit altered the transcript levels of the cell wall and starch (CWS) degradation genes. Several differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were authenticated between the overexpression and control fruit. The DEGs mainly enriched biosynthesis of secondary metabolism, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism, fructose and mannose metabolism, starch and sucrose metabolism, and plant hormones signal transduction. Overexpressing MaC2H2‐IDD also upregulated protein levels of MaEBF1. MaEBF1 does not ubiquitinate or degrade MaC2H2‐IDD. These data indicate that MaC2H2‐IDD is a new regulator of CWS degradation in “Fenjiao” banana and cooperates with MaEBF1 to modulate fruit softening, which also involves the cold softening disorder.
Comparative and functional analysis unveils the contribution of photoperiod to DNA methylation, sRNA accumulation, and gene expression variations in short‐day and long‐day grasses
Authors: Wu Xia , Chen Siyi , Lin Feng , Muhammad Fahad , Xu Haiming , Wu Liang
Published: March 2024

Photoperiod employs complicated networks to regulate various developmental processes in plants, including flowering transition. However, the specific mechanisms by which photoperiod affects epigenetic modifications and gene expression variations in plants remain elusive. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of DNA methylation, small RNA (sRNA) accumulation, and gene expressions under different daylengths in facultative long‐day (LD) grass Brachypodium distachyon and short‐day (SD) grass rice. Our results showed that while overall DNA methylation levels were minimally affected by different photoperiods, CHH methylation levels were repressed under their favorable light conditions, particularly in rice. We identified numerous differentially methylated regions (DMRs) that were influenced by photoperiod in both plant species. Apart from differential sRNA clusters, we observed alterations in the expression of key components of the RNA‐directed DNA methylation pathway, DNA methyltransferases, and demethylases, which may contribute to the identified photoperiod‐influenced CHH DMRs. Furthermore, we identified many differentially expressed genes in response to different daylengths, some of which were associated with the DMRs. Notably, we discovered a photoperiod‐responsive gene MYB11 in the transcriptome of B. distachyon, and further demonstrated its role as a flowering inhibitor by repressing FT1 transcription. Together, our comparative and functional analysis sheds light on the effects of daylength on DNA methylation, sRNA accumulation, and gene expression variations in LD and SD plants, thereby facilitating better designing breeding programs aimed at developing high‐yield crops that can adapt to local growing seasons.
Voice Leading and Disruption in Brahms's Intermezzo in E Major, Op.116 No.6
Authors: Hoag Melissa
Published: March 2024

The opening bars of Brahms's Intermezzo in E major, Op.116 No. 6, feature a series of descending motions countered by rising chromatic lines in the inner voice, and disrup tions of varying degrees of subtlety accrue significance as the Intermezzo unfolds. This article examines the multiple
disruptions occurring throughout Op.116 No. 6 through voice-leading analysis and the identification of several melodic disjunctions. Two disruptions arise in the A section, both of which result in the implication of 5 in the upper voice; despite the intensity of this impulse toward 5,
resolution is purposefully avoided The first disruption is initiated by neighbor motion in the upper voice that fails to resolve as a typical neighbor tone would. The second disruption results in an even stronger implication of 5 in the upper voice. These abandoned trajectories resonate
be yond the boundaries of the otherwise tonally closed A section, and through enlargement of a foreground motive from the Intermezzo's opening, the work's coda not only fulfills the basic requirement of tonal closure, but also completes the linear trajectories begun in the A section.
Intrinsic ankle stiffness is associated with paradoxical calf muscle movement but not postural sway or age
Authors: Reynolds Raymond F. , Liedtke Anna M. , Lakie Martin
Published: March 2024

Due to Achilles tendon compliance, passive ankle stiffness is insufficient to stabilise the body when standing. This results in ‘paradoxical’ muscle movement, whereby calf muscles tend to shorten during forward body sway. Natural variation in stiffness may affect this movement. This may have consequences for postural control, with compliant ankles placing greater reliance upon active neural control rather than stretch reflexes. Previous research also suggests ageing reduces ankle stiffness, possibly contributing to reduced postural stability. Here we determine the relationship between ankle stiffness and calf muscle movement during standing, and whether this is associated with postural stability or age. Passive ankle stiffness was measured during quiet stance in 40 healthy volunteers ranging from 18 to 88 years of age. Medial gastrocnemius muscle length was also recorded using ultrasound. We found a significant inverse relationship between ankle stiffness and paradoxical muscle movement, that is, more compliant ankles were associated with greater muscle shortening during forward sway (r ≥ 0.33). This was seen during both quiet stance as well as voluntary sway. However, we found no significant effects of age upon stiffness, paradoxical motion or postural sway. Furthermore, neither paradoxical muscle motion nor ankle stiffness was associated with postural sway. These results show that natural variation in ankle stiffness alters the extent of paradoxical calf muscle movement during stance. However, the absence of a clear relationship to postural sway suggests that neural control mechanisms are more than capable of compensating for a lack of inherent joint stiffness.
Correlation Study on Voiding in Underfill of Large Quantity Ball Grid Array Chip Using Machine Learning
Authors: Ling Calvin , Azahari Muhammad Taufik , Abas Mohamad Aizat , Ng Fei Chong
Published: March 2024

This paper investigates voiding issues in the underfilling process of ball grid array (BGA) chip packages under various parameter settings such as chip conveyor speed, valve pressure, temperature, and dispense pattern complicate. The study identifies valve pressure as the primary cause of voiding in large quantity BGA chips, achieving 88.9% in accuracy, supported with the deformation of the valve nozzle. Additionally, the findings reveal that racing effects occurs due to asymmetry of the solder ball array arrangement with percentage difference between the TSAM BGA chips experiments and its simulation counterparts in the range of 0.089–3.65%.
Tracing the Academic Lineage of Richard J. Goldstein
Authors: Shadid John , Madanan Umesh
Published: March 2024

Richard J. Goldstein was a distinguished figure in both scientific and engineering research, who served in several important professional societies and was honored with fellowships and appointments to numerous domestic and international academies. His global impact is further felt through the distinguished students he mentored during his highly productive academic career and who have subsequently achieved success in academia, research, and industry. However, to many, Goldstein's most profound and personal impact was as an esteemed educator, thesis advisor, and mentor. The heartfelt gratitude expressed by these students and colleagues attests to his profound influence in their lives. This brief article endeavors to delve into Goldstein's academic genealogy, a history of groundbreaking contributors spanning over six centuries, which also bears witness to the evolution of the present-day fields of thermodynamics and heat and mass transfer. Richard J. Goldstein's academic lineage traces back through two primary branches: (i) an astronomy/physics branch and (ii) a mathematics/physics branch. The astronomy/physics branch commences its journey from the venerable Nicolaus Copernicus, whose revolutionary contributions laid the foundation for seminal research in the field of astronomy. The mathematics/physics branch is anchored by eminent figures such as the Bernoulli brothers, Leonhard Euler, Jean d'Alembert, and Pierre-Simon Laplace. Presented in this article predominantly in the form of a directed graph, this succinct academic lineage illustrates the historical roots of Goldstein's intellectual heritage, a journey incorporating key figures greatly revered by the contemporary thermodynamics and heat transfer research community.
Numerical Analysis of the Drag Reduction Performance of a Double M-Ship Boat With Stepped Planning-Air Coupling
Authors: Ya Yu , Zhang Ziji , Wang Shuai , Li Shujiang
Published: March 2024

In this paper, analyze the influence of the stepped planning structure on the drag performance by observing waveform diagrams at the stern of the double M-ship and water–air and pressure distribution diagrams at the bottom of the ship. This study uses the combined stepped planning-air drag reduction technology to improve the sailing characteristics of the double M-ship. Research findings: The stepped planning contributes to a reduction in bottom pressure, enhances water–air distribution, and augments the amplitude of hull movement. Within the design speed range, the maximum drag reduction rate achieved by the stepped planning is 7.574%. However, this enhancement comes at the expense of increased viscous pressure resistance, which becomes the predominant resistance when sailing at full speed; Injecting air at the stepped planning can effectively reduce the viscous pressure resistance increased by the stepped planning. The combined drag reduction technology of stepped planning and air successfully realizes the total drag reduction at the double-M ship's high speed. The total resistance experienced when air is injected at the stepped planning is reduced by up to 20.981% compared to the original hull.
Kinematic Performance of a Customizable Single Degree-of-Freedom Gait Trainer for Cost-Effective Therapy Aimed at Neuromuscular Impairments
Authors: Jadav Shail , Karvaje Karthik Subramanya , Kadam Sujay D. , Vashista Vineet , Sulzer James , Deshpande Ashish , Palanthandalam-Madapusi Harish J.
Published: March 2024

A majority of robotic gait trainers to facilitate physical therapy for gait rehabilitation in humans are based on multidegree-of-freedom exoskeleton-based systems with sophisticated electro-mechanical hardware and software, and consequently remain inaccessible to vast sections of the populations around the world. This study seeks to advance the development of a single degree-of-freedom (DOF) gait trainer for gait therapy for individuals with neuromuscular impairments. The goal is to offer a cost-effective, accessible solution to cater to the global need for gait rehabilitation. We build upon the previous gait trainer design based on Jansen mechanism and provide an in-depth analysis and experimental validation of its kinematic performance. The device's performance is also tested and successfully demonstrated through trials involving two healthy individuals to examine its kinematic behavior under human-induced load conditions. The gait trainer demonstrates satisfactory performance under both no load conditions and a 2 kg load, exhibiting an area difference of 1% and 7%, respectively. However, when subjected to a 5 kg loading condition, a significant area difference of 27% is observed, primarily attributed to the cantilever loading at the driving shaft. A method to adjust link lengths based on specific human gait trajectories is proposed and validated. Additionally, a cost-effective tool for ankle trajectory measurement is introduced to establish a ground truth. The study demonstrates the potential of an affordable, single DOF gait trainer in facilitating high-volume therapy for those with walking disorders. This research represents a step toward making gait therapy more accessible worldwide.
Evaluation on Data Transmission in Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Computer Technology
Authors: Gao Yongli , Wang Gang
Published: March 2024

Traditional network data transmission (DT) has certain limitations in terms of processing, storage, and communication capabilities. Moreover, DT is easily affected by the network environment, which can reduce the real-time performance of DT. In severe cases, network transmission failures, DT interruptions, and other issues may even occur. As a new network, wireless sensor networks (WSN) have been widely used in military, industrial, agricultural, medical and other fields. In this paper, WSN was regarded as an important research method, and in-depth research was carried out around the real-time and energy consumption (for the convenience of the following text, the abbreviation for energy consumption is EC) of WSN DT. This paper focused on the issues of real-time performance, EC, and real-time transmission. It balanced EC and improved real-time performance through the low energy adaptive clustering hierarchy (LEACH) protocol and the power-efficient gathering in sensor information systems (PEGASIS) protocol. The experimental results showed that the real-time rates of LEACH under single reaction nodes were 45.5% and 48.6%, respectively. The lowest and highest real-time rates of PEGASIS were 86.2% and 89.5%, respectively. The real-time rate of PEGASIS was much higher than that of LEACH, proving that the proposed PEGASIS had high real-time performance and reduced DT delay.
Quercetin Limits Tumor Immune Escape through PDK1/CD47 Axis in Melanoma
Authors: Li Xin , He Xue , Lin Bing , Li Li , Deng Qifeng , Wang Chengzhi , Zhang Jing , Chen Ying , Zhao Jingyi , Li Xinrui , Li Yan , Xi Qing , Zhang Rongxin
Published: March 2024

Quercetin (3,3[Formula: see text],4[Formula: see text],5,7-pentahydroxyflavone) is a bioactive plant-derived flavonoid, abundant in fruits and vegetables, that can effectively inhibit the growth of many types of tumors without toxicity. Nevertheless, the effect of quercetin on melanoma immunology has yet to be determined. This study aimed to investigate the role and mechanism of the antitumor immunity action of quercetin in melanoma through both in vivo and in vitro methods. Our research revealed that quercetin has the ability to boost antitumor immunity by modulating the tumor immune microenvironment through increasing the percentages of M1 macrophages, CD8[Formula: see text] T lymphocytes, and CD4[Formula: see text] T lymphocytes and promoting the secretion of IL-2 and IFN-[Formula: see text] from CD8[Formula: see text] T cells, consequently suppressing the growth of melanoma. Furthermore, we revealed that quercetin can inhibit cell proliferation and migration of B16 cells in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, down-regulating PDK1 can inhibit the mRNA and protein expression levels of CD47. In the rescue experiment, we overexpressed PDK1 and found that the protein and mRNA expression levels of CD47 increased correspondingly, while the addition of quercetin reversed this effect. Moreover, quercetin could stimulate the proliferation and enhance the function of CD8[Formula: see text] T cells. Therefore, our results identified a novel mechanism through which CD47 is regulated by quercetin to promote phagocytosis, and elucidated the regulation of quercetin on macrophages and CD8[Formula: see text] T cells in the tumor immune microenvironment. The use of quercetin as a therapeutic drug holds potential benefits for immunotherapy, enhancing the efficacy of existing treatments for melanoma.
Luminescence of some lanthanides in synthetic yttrium gagarinite (NaCaYF6)
Authors: Dhale Shruti , Ugemuge Nilesh S. , Nafdey Renuka , Singh Vartika S. , Moharil Sanjiv V.
Published: March 2024

NaCaYF6 is the formula for gagarinite. Noting the lack of luminescence studies in this material, we synthesized it using the hydrothermal method and investigated the luminescence of several lanthanides. Characteristic luminescence of Eu[Formula: see text], Dy[Formula: see text], Sm[Formula: see text] and Tb[Formula: see text] was observed. Detailed results on photoluminescence emission and excitation spectra, lifetime, chromaticity coordinates and concentration dependence of emission intensity are presented. Except for Tb[Formula: see text], which exhibits f-d excitation, the luminescence of other activators got quenched at 1[Formula: see text]mol % concentration. Eu[Formula: see text] emission in this host was peculiar, in that the emissions from higher 5D states were observed. Luminescence characteristics are explained using the known energy level diagrams for the lanthanide activators.
The Efficacy of Grounded Theory as a Methodology to Map the Strategic Behaviour of Small Organisations: A Reflexive Practitioner Evaluation
Authors: Rizzo Alex , Aquilina Ronald , Falzon Rose
Published: March 2024

This collaborative paper aims to reflexively evaluate the versatile and comprehensive application of grounded theory, comparatively using two studies researching the strategic behaviour of small organisations within a small island state. The methodological stance adopted is that of practitioner researchers, critically analysing the research positioning and processes in two large grounded theory studies that mapped the competitive behaviours of some 100 small businesses in the small island EU state of Malta. The study evaluates grounded theory processes and actions taken in the two studies, depicting the systematic collection, comparison and analysis of the data gathered, concept generation, continuous interaction between actions and context, use of in-depth interviews combined with quantitative data, coding, mapping and categorisation of the data collected, and the use of MAXQDA as a viable software tool to carry out grounded theory. This practitioner research study comprises detailed practice-related implications for the use of grounded theory in researching small organisations, in a manner that a novice grounded theory practitioner can adopt and a manager in a small business can appreciate.
ESG Performance and State Ownership in Firm Valuation: Perspectives from Singapore Companies
Authors: Tan Gayle , Chang Youngho
Published: March 2024

This study examines how Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance and state ownership affect firm valuation in Singapore and determines if the effects of ESG on firm valuation are more pronounced in state-owned companies. The data comprises 51 companies listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange with complete ESG and financial information during the five-year period from 2018 to 2022. This study finds that only social practices positively and statistically significantly affect stock prices. Overall ESG values, and the other two dimensions of ESG appear not to be statistically significant. State ownership appears to positively and significantly affect the stock price. The finding suggests that the Singapore government’s substantial influence over corporate practices could accentuate the difference in market perception of ESG efforts between SOEs and companies. The study provides useful and practical implications to policymakers, managers and investors, which affect firm financial and operational performance.
CNN Classifier Parameter Optimization with Genetic Algorithms: A Case Study of Indonesian Batik Patterns
Authors: Roland Roland , Angelica Cheryl , Diputra Julian Andhika , Azizul Zati Hakim , Fitrianah Devi
Published: March 2024

Batik is one of Indonesia’s most famous and commonly encountered cultural heritage sites. Batik is a type of Indonesian specialty cloth where the pattern is drawn on the cloth using wax. The number of batik pattern varieties produced by Indonesia introduces challenges in recognizing and differentiating between batik patterns. Various previous works have been done to research how to use computer vision to recognize and differentiate between batik patterns. Some of the methods used in previous works involve convolutional neural networks; previous studies use pre-trained models or manually design the model, which may not be suitable for recognizing batik patterns. This study focuses on developing a convolutional neural network model optimized and designed automatically using genetic algorithms using more unique images than previous works. Genetic algorithms have been proven in previous works from other fields to produce better models compared to pre-trained and manually designed models. The experiment results show that a model design using genetic algorithms outperforms pre-trained models by a significant margin. The model automatically achieved an accuracy of 0.8654 with a parameter ∼1% of the VGG-19 model, whereas the VGG-19 model achieved an accuracy of 0.7596.
Decentralized Scheduling for Data-Parallel Tasks in the Cloud
Authors: Li Ziyang , Li Dongsheng , Chen Yingwen , Chen Kai , Zhang Yiming
Published: March 2024

For latency-sensitive data processing applications in the cloud, concurrent data-parallel tasks need to be scheduled and processed quickly. A data-parallel task usually consists of a set of sub-tasks, generating a set of flows that are collectively referred to as
coflows
. The state-of-the-art schedulers collect coflow information in the cloud to optimize coflow-level performance. However, most of the coflows, classified as
small coflows
because they consist of only short flows, have been largely overlooked. This article presents
OptaX
, a decentralized network scheduling service that collaboratively schedules data-parallel tasks’ small coflows.
OptaX
adopts a cross-layer, commercial off-the-shelf switch-compatible design that leverages the
sendbuffer
information in the kernel to adaptively optimize flow scheduling in the network. Specifically,
OptaX
(i) monitors the system calls (syscalls) in the hosts to obtain their
sendbuffer
footprints, and (ii) recognizes small coflows and assigns high priorities to their flows.
OptaX
transfers these flows in a FIFO manner by adjusting TCP’s two attributes: window size and round-trip time. We have implemented
OptaX
as a Linux kernel module. The evaluation shows that
OptaX
is at least 2.2× faster than fair sharing and 1.2× faster than only assigning small coflows with the highest priority. We further apply
OptaX
to improve the small I/O performance of
Ursa
, a distributed block storage system that provides virtual disks where small I/O is dominant.
Ursa
with
OptaX
achieves significant improvement compared to the original
Ursa
for small I/O latency.
AMSPM: Adaptive Model Selection and Partition Mechanism for Edge Intelligence-driven 5G Smart City with Dynamic Computing Resources
Authors: Niu Xin , Cao Xuejiao , Yu Chen , Jin Hai
Published: March 2024

With the help of 5G network, edge intelligence (EI) can not only provide distributed, low-latency, and high-reliable intelligent services, but also enable intelligent maintenance and management of smart city. However, the constantly changing available computing resources of end devices and edge servers cannot continuously guarantee the performance of intelligent inference. In order to guarantee the sustainability of intelligent services in smart city, we propose the Adaptive Model Selection and Partition Mechanism (AMSPM) in 5G smart city where EI provides services, which mainly consists of Adaptive Model Selection (AMS) and Adaptive Model Partition (AMP). In AMSPM, the model selection and partition of deep neural network (DNN) are formulated as an optimization problem. Firstly, we propose a recursive-based algorithm named AMS based on the computing resources of edge devices to derive an appropriate DNN model that satisfies the latency demand of intelligent services. Then, we adaptively partition the selected DNN model according to the computing resources of edge devices. The experimental results demonstrate that, when compared with state-of-the-art model selection and partition mechanisms, AMSPM not only reduces latency but also enhances computing resource utilization.
Data Discretion: Screen-Level Bureaucrats and Municipal Decision-Making
Authors: Gordon Eric , Harlow John , Whitman Samantha A. , Lee Myeong
Published: March 2024

Public servants tasked with implementing rules or policies on the street level often make discretionary decisions based on local context. Lipsky has labeled them street-level bureaucrats. During the COVID-19 pandemic, as most face-to-face interactions facilitated by local government moved online, many street-level decisions were moved to screens, representing the actions of whom Bouvins and Zouridis refer to as screen-level bureaucrats. Discretionary decision making among public servants continued, but much of it centered on the collection, analysis, and use of data. This article reports on research conducted in 2021 with municipal employees in a large northeastern city in the United States, and examines their changing relationship with data in determining how and to whom they deliver services. In the context of a public health crisis, public servants exercised “data discretion” to rapidly alter services and to internally advocate for underserved populations. The specific practices of discretionary decision making are explored through candid interviews with public servants. The discussion explores how these emergent practices might persist post crisis, how discretion is counterintuitively used to build trust in government, and how data discretion is not limited only to the progressive values manifested in the example of a northeastern city.
A Survey on Cyber-Resilience Approaches for Cyber-Physical Systems
Authors: Segovia-Ferreira Mariana , Rubio-Hernan Jose , Cavalli Ana , Garcia-Alfaro Joaquin
Published: March 2024

Concerns for the resilience of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS)s in critical infrastructure are growing. CPS integrate sensing, computation, control, and networking into physical objects and mission-critical services, connecting traditional infrastructure to internet technologies. While this integration increases service efficiency, it has to face the possibility of new threats posed by the new functionalities. This leads to cyber-threats, such as denial-of-service, modification of data, information leakage, spreading of malware, and many others. Cyber-resilience refers to the ability of a CPS to prepare, absorb, recover, and adapt to the adverse effects associated with cyber-threats, e.g., physical degradation of the CPS performance resulting from a cyber-attack. Cyber-resilience aims at ensuring CPS survival by keeping the core functionalities of the CPS in case of extreme events. The literature on cyber-resilience is rapidly increasing, leading to a broad variety of research works addressing this new topic. In this article, we create a systematization of knowledge about existing scientific efforts of making CPSs cyber-resilient. We systematically survey recent literature addressing cyber-resilience with a focus on techniques that may be used on CPSs. We first provide preliminaries and background on CPSs and threats, and subsequently survey state-of-the-art approaches that have been proposed by recent research work applicable to CPSs. In particular, we aim at differentiating research work from traditional risk management approaches based on the general acceptance that it is unfeasible to prevent and mitigate all possible risks threatening a CPS. We also discuss questions and research challenges, with a focus on the practical aspects of cyber-resilience, such as the use of metrics and evaluation methods as well as testing and validation environments.
Audio-Visual Event Localization using Multi-task Hybrid Attention Networks for Smart Healthcare Systems
Authors: Liang Han , Chen Jincai , Khan Fazlullah , Srivastava Gautam , Zeng Jiangfeng
Published: March 2024

Human perception heavily relies on two primary senses: vision and hearing, which are closely inter-connected and capable of complementing each other. Consequently, various multimodal learning tasks have emerged, with audio-visual event localization (AVEL) being a prominent example. AVEL is a popular task within the realm of multimodal learning, with the primary objective of identifying the presence of events within each video segment and predicting their respective categories. This task holds significant utility in domains such as healthcare monitoring and surveillance, among others. Generally speaking, audio-visual co-learning offers a more comprehensive information landscape compared to single-modal learning, as it allows for a more holistic perception of ambient information, aligning with real-world applications. Nevertheless, the inherent heterogeneity of audio and visual data can introduce challenges related to event semantics inconsistency, potentially leading to incorrect predictions. To track these challenges, we propose a multi-task hybrid attention network (MHAN) to acquire high-quality representation for multimodal data. Specifically, our network incorporates hybrid attention of uni- and parallel cross-modal (HAUC) modules, which consists of a uni-modal attention block and a parallel cross-modal attention block, leveraging multimodal complementary and hidden information for better representation. Furthermore, we advocate for the use of a uni-modal visual task as auxiliary supervision to enhance the performance of multimodal tasks employing a multi-task learning strategy. Our proposed model has been proven to outperform the state-of-the-art results based on extensive experiments conducted on the AVE dataset.
Screening and Optimization of α-Glucosidase Inhibitor Production by Potent Strain of Bacillus subtilis Isolated from Peruyaan, Fermented Soy-Food of Northeast India
Authors: Kabir Mir Ekbal , Borah Anupriya , Barman Hiranmoy , Sharmah Bhaben , Afzal Nazim Uddin , Phukan Tridip , Kalita Jatin , Manna Prasenjit
Published: March 2024

Background. Fermented soy foods exhibit the capability to inhibit the α-glucosidase enzyme. The bacteria isolated from these fermented soy foods may contribute to the production of a higher quantity of α-glucosidase inhibitor (α-GI) in optimized condition. Aim. The present study aims to isolate α-glucosidase inhibitor producing bacterial strain from peruyaan, a traditional fermented soy food of Arunachal Pradesh, optimize the production of α-GI for maximum yield, and assess the compounds. Result. Bacillus subtilis PM NEIST_4 (identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing) was isolated as a potential strain that exhibit maximum α-glucosidase inhibition. This strain showed maximum α-GI productivity in Mueller Hinton Broth (MHB). The cultivation parameters for fermentation of MHB were optimized in order to maximize the yield of α-GIs. The α-GI productivity of 1616.613 ± 84.54 U/mL was observed before optimization, which increased by almost three times after optimization (4808.324 ± 13 U/mL). In vitro assays against α-glucosidase enzyme revealed a significant IC50 value of 596.532 ± 44.80 μg/mL after the optimized study compared to that before optimization (IC50 1705.617 ± 43.95 ug/mL). Besides, α-glucosidase enzyme inhibitory property of fermented MHB (FMHB) was found to be unaffected at varied range of pH and temperature. Oral gavaging of FMHB in sucrose-loaded Wistar rat exhibited maximum reduction in postprandial blood glucose at 400 mg/kg body weight. Furthermore, FMHB was fractionated using solvents of increasing polarity including n-hexane, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol. Ethyl acetate fraction that exhibited the strongest inhibitory action against the α-glucosidase enzyme (IC50 value of 251.55 ± 19.65 μg/mL), showed the presence of pyrrolopyrazine derivatives through GC-MS and LC-MS analyses. Conclusion. The present study demonstrated the isolation of a potent α-GI producing bacterial strain from traditional fermented soy food, and the optimization of the bacterial fermentation process was achieved to maximize the yield of α-GI. These findings underscore promising industrial potential of B. subtilis PM NEIST_4, advocating the use of indigenous microbial resources for the production of α-GI.
Fast Force Estimation of Cable Structures Using Smartphone‐Captured Video and Template Matching Algorithm
Authors: Ye Xiao-Wei , Que Wei-Ming , Ding Yang , Jin Tao
Published: March 2024

Cables are important components of long‐span bridge structures, whose operation is significantly affected by cable force changes. Nowadays, cable force testing is performed by physical methods; that is, sensors are installed on the cable structure to monitor its force changes. Obviously, this strategy requires an extensive amount of time to achieve cable force calculation, which makes it impossible to monitor the force of the cable structure in real time. Meanwhile, smartphones have attracted extensive attention in the field of structural health monitoring (SHM) because of their higher cost‐effectiveness than accelerometers, which include price and lifespan. Besides, many people own a smartphone, which leads to the possibility of a wider range of applications. Therefore, this paper presents a framework for the rapid estimation of the cable force of long‐span bridges based on smartphones‐captured video and a template matching algorithm. First, the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) method with wavelet decomposition (WD) method, that is, the EMDWD model, is constructed to extract the vibration signal of the bridge cable by eliminating the effects of smartphone vibration and environmental noise on the measured dynamic displacement, thus effectively improving the accuracy of data processing. In addition, the vibration identification model of bridge cable based on a template matching algorithm is established, and the deformation curve of cable is obtained. Finally, the frequency of bridge suspender is calculated by the Fourier transform method (FFT), and the cable force is estimated based on the smartphone‐captured video.
Norms of Composition Operators from Weighted Harmonic Bloch Spaces into Weighted Harmonic Zygmund Spaces
Authors: Aljuaid Munirah , Bakhit M. A.
Published: March 2024

This article examines the norms of composition operators from the weighted harmonic Bloch space BHλ,0<λ<∞ to the weighted harmonic Zygmund space ZHβ,0<β<∞. The critical norm is on the open unit disk. We first give necessary and sufficient conditions where the composition operator between BHλ and ZHβ is bounded. Secondly, we will study the compactness case of the composition operator between BHλ and ZHβ. Finally, we will estimate the essential norms of the composition operator between BHλ and ZHβ.
Development of a Bioaerosol Sampling Method for Airborne Pathogen Detection with Focus on SARS‐CoV‐2
Authors: Paralovo Sarah L. , Vanden Driessche Koen , Cartuyvels Reinoud , Lazarov Borislav , Vlieghe Erika , Vanstraelen Laura , Smets Rita , Spruyt Maarten , Kreps Sabine , Hufkens Nady , Stranger Marianne
Published: March 2024

As worldwide evidence shows that the predominant transmission route of SARS‐CoV‐2 and other respiratory pathogens is airborne, the need for suitable methods for the sampling of bioparticles directly from the air is more urgent than ever. The present paper describes the development of a method for the collection of biological aerosols, using a preexisting cyclonic impinger, the Coriolis μ, combined with a lysis buffer and subsequent qPCR analysis of the generated samples in lab. Four phases of method development are described: exploratory, validation, blank tests, and application. The application phase consisted of a field experiment in which the method was simultaneously applied at two daycare facilities. The method achieved a good level of accuracy and reliability in detecting different types of infectious agents in the air, with a global uncertainty of 19.6%. Furthermore, our method allows the simultaneous detection of 26 different respiratory pathogens in air samples, it is relatively simple, and the equipment is easy to use. Additionally, the time to collect a representative sample is short compared to other methods. The method does not cause significant disturbance to those present in the sampled rooms, and it is safe for operators and flexible, meaning it can be used in virtually any environment regardless of use, size, or occupancy. Further research is being developed to allow quantitative analysis of the collected samples and to test the methods’ ability to assess the viability of the microorganisms collected in the sample.
Real-time smart driver sleepiness detection by eye aspect ratio using computer vision
Authors: Kai Yuen Simon Chong , Zakaria Noor Hidayah Binti , Eg Su Goh , Hassan Rohayanti , Kasim Shahreen , Sutikno Tole
Published: March 2024

The purpose of this study is to determine the optimal eye aspect ratio (EAR) for a prototype capable of using computer vision techniques to detect driver sleepiness based on eyelid size changes. The prototype, developed with Raspberry Pi and OpenCV, provides a real-time evaluation of the driver's level of alertness. The prototype can accurately determine the onset of sleepiness by monitoring and detecting instances of prolonged eyelid closure. Due to the fact that the eye aspect ratios of different individuals vary in size, the system's accuracy may be compromised. For the first experiment, the research focuses on determining the optimal EAR threshold of the proposed prototype using a sample of 20 participants ranging in age from 20 to 30, 31 to 40, and 41 to 50 years old. The study also examines the effects of various environmental conditions, such as dark or nighttime settings and the use of spectacle. The optimal EAR threshold value, as dedicated by the first experiment, is 0.225 after testing 20 participants with and without eyeglasses in low and bright lighting and 7 participants with a 0.225 EAR threshold in dark and bright lighting environments. The result shows 100% precision.
New Literature from the Paris Disputation against the Talmud
Authors: Lampurlanés Isaac
Published: March 2024

In 1239, the convert Nicholas Donin submitted thirty-five articles against the Talmud to Pope Gregory IX. As a result, Christendom became aware of how Jews observed an oral law that was allegedly plagued with folly, blasphemy, and heresy. This triggered the infamous trial against the Talmud and resulted in the production of several Latin translations of rabbinical texts, including the compilation of the Extractiones de Talmud (1245). The present article mainly focusses on a short text taken from the manuscript Vatican City, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, MS Vat. lat. 822 (folios 204ra–205ra), which includes a series of Talmudic passages that derive from texts which emerged from the Paris Disputation against the Talmud (1240–1245). From it, we are able to infer new information regarding the genesis of subsequent anti-Jewish works, including the Errores Iudaeorum by Thibaud de Sézanne and Passau Anonymous anti-Jewish sections. Additionally, we also provide the edition and translation of the text of the Vatican manuscript at the end of the article.
“I Wish to God That My Request Will Be Successful! It Would Be the Greatest Joy of My Life”
Authors: Link Daniela , Hansson Nils
Published: March 2024

Following the lead of historiography on credit and prestige in literature, this article considers reputation and recognition not as inherent qualities of an author, but as the result of the process of attribution. In particular, drawing on nomination letters and evaluations by the Swedish Academy, it focusses on the staging of brilliance and impact in Nobel Prize nominations. Using the examples of the German authors Georg Bonne, Hermann Türck and Arno Holz, we reconstruct and discuss ‘Nobel nomination campaigns’. The dossiers reveal what the Nobel Prize nomination process looked like behind the scenes, how their nominators enacted them, and why they ultimately did not receive the award. One a more general level, we discuss the influence Nobel campaigns have and what literary and social fields they affect.
Honor among Crooks: The Role of Trust in Obfuscated Disreputable Exchange
Authors: Schilke Oliver , Rossman Gabriel
Published: March 2024

When people want to conduct a transaction, but doing so would be morally disreputable, they can obfuscate the fact that they are engaging in an exchange while still arranging for a set of transfers that are effectively equivalent to an exchange. Obfuscation through structures such as gift-giving and brokerage is pervasive across a wide range of disreputable exchanges, such as bribery and sex work. In this article, we develop a theoretical account that sheds light on when actors are more versus less likely to obfuscate. Specifically, we report a series of experiments addressing the effect of trust on the decision to engage in obfuscated disreputable exchange. We find that actors obfuscate more often with exchange partners high in loyalty-based trustworthiness, with expected reciprocity and moral discomfort mediating this effect. However, the effect is highly contingent on the type of trust; trust facilitates obfuscation when it is loyalty-based, but this effect flips when trust is ethics-based. Our findings not only offer insights into the important role of relational context in shaping moral understandings and choices about disreputable exchange, but they also contribute to scholarship on trust by demonstrating that distinct forms of trust can have diametrically opposed effects.