bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Small-Scale Fisheries in New Caledonia: Towards a Fishers’ Perspective
Authors: Sabinot Catherine , Bouard Séverine , Fossier Camille , Mallet Julie , David Gilbert
Published: April 2024

Devoting a full chapter to the fishers of New Caledonia serves a dual purpose: firstly, to report on a practice driven by multiple rationales that are, for the most part, unknown or insufficiently understood in and outside the territory, and secondly, to show that the place that fishers occupy in the relationship between fish, ecosystems, fishing effort and consumption is much more complex than in other small-scale fisheries and management regimes. Drawing on anthropological and geographical research conducted since 2010, this chapter sketches a general picture of the main types of fishing practised in New Caledonia, focusing on presenting the fishers who undertake them. We discuss the place of fishing in the livelihood activities of Caledonians, irrespective of their social status, and examine the different purposes for which fishing is practised and that fishers assign to their practices. The conclusion focuses on ongoing efforts at the territorial and provincial levels to better incorporate the fishers’ diversity and functions in fisheries management policies.
Tensionless strings on AdS3 orbifolds
Authors: Gaberdiel Matthias R. , Guo Bin , Mathur Samir D.
Published: April 2024

Abstract

The bound state of one NS5 brane (wrapped on a 𝕋4) and N NS1-branes has two dual descriptions: its low-energy dynamics is described by the symmetric orbifold of 𝕋4, while the near horizon geometry is captured by string theory on AdS3 × S3 × 𝕋4 with one unit of NS flux. The latter theory is exactly solvable in the hybrid formalism, and this allows one to prove the equivalence of the two descriptions. In this paper we extend this duality to ℤk orbifolds of this AdS3 × S3 background. In particular, we show that the corresponding worldsheet spectrum reproduces exactly the perturbative excitations on top of a certain non-perturbative state in the dual symmetric orbifold theory. Since the AdS/CFT duality map is exact for these models, we obtain an interesting picture of how the duality relates boundary and bulk descriptions.
Non-resonant anomaly detection with background extrapolation
Authors: Bai Kehang , Mastandrea Radha , Nachman Benjamin
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Complete anomaly detection strategies that are both signal sensitive and compatible with background estimation have largely focused on resonant signals. Non-resonant new physics scenarios are relatively under-explored and may arise from off-shell effects or final states with significant missing energy. In this paper, we extend a class of weakly supervised anomaly detection strategies developed for resonant physics to the non-resonant case. Machine learning models are trained to reweight, generate, or morph the background, extrapolated from a control region. A classifier is then trained in a signal region to distinguish the estimated background from the data. The new methods are demonstrated using a semi-visible jet signature as a benchmark signal model, and are shown to automatically identify the anomalous events without specifying the signal ahead of time.
Python workflow for the selection and identification of marker peptides—proof-of-principle study with heated milk
Authors: Kuhnen Gesine , Class Lisa-Carina , Badekow Svenja , Hanisch Kim Lara , Rohn Sascha , Kuballa Jürgen
Published: April 2024

The analysis of almost holistic food profiles has developed considerably over the last years. This has also led to larger amounts of data and the ability to obtain more information about health-beneficial and adverse constituents in food than ever before. Especially in the field of proteomics, software is used for evaluation, and these do not provide specific approaches for unique monitoring questions. An additional and more comprehensive way of evaluation can be done with the programming language Python. It offers broad possibilities by a large ecosystem for mass spectrometric data analysis, but needs to be tailored for specific sets of features, the research questions behind. It also offers the applicability of various machine-learning approaches. The aim of the present study was to develop an algorithm for selecting and identifying potential marker peptides from mass spectrometric data. The workflow is divided into three steps: (I) feature engineering, (II) chemometric data analysis, and (III) feature identification. The first step is the transformation of the mass spectrometric data into a structure, which enables the application of existing data analysis packages in Python. The second step is the data analysis for selecting single features. These features are further processed in the third step, which is the feature identification. The data used exemplarily in this proof-of-principle approach was from a study on the influence of a heat treatment on the milk proteome/peptidome.

Graphical abstract
Comparison of 3T and 7T magnetic resonance imaging for direct visualization of finger flexor pulley rupture: an ex-vivo study
Authors: Bayer Thomas , Bächter Lilly , Lutter Christoph , Janka Rolf , Uder Michael , Schöffel Völker , Roemer Frank W. , Nagel Armin M. , Heiss Rafael
Published: April 2024

Objective

To compare image quality and diagnostic performance of 3T and 7T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for direct depiction of finger flexor pulleys A2, A3 and A4 before and after artificial pulley rupture in an ex-vivo model using anatomic preparation as reference.

Materials and Methods

30 fingers from 10 human cadavers were examined at 3T and 7T before and after being subjected to iatrogenic pulley rupture. MRI protocols were comparable in duration, both lasting less than 22 min. Two experienced radiologists evaluated the MRIs. Image quality was graded according to a 4-point Likert scale. Anatomic preparation was used as gold standard.

Results

In comparison, 7T versus 3T had a sensitivity and specificity for the detection of A2, A3 and A4 pulley lesions with 100% vs. 95%, respectively 98% vs. 100%. In the assessment of A3 pulley lesions sensitivity of 7T was superior to 3T MRI (100% vs. 83%), whereas specificity was lower (95% vs. 100%). Image quality assessed before and after iatrogenic rupture was comparable with 2.74 for 7T and 2.61 for 3T. Visualization of the A3 finger flexor pulley before rupture creation was significantly better for 7 T (p < 0.001). Interobserver variability showed substantial agreement at 3T (κ = 0.80) and almost perfect agreement at 7T (κ = 0.90).

Conclusion

MRI at 3T allows a comparable diagnostic performance to 7T for direct visualization and characterization of finger flexor pulleys before and after rupture, with superiority of 7T MRI in the visualization of the normal A3 pulley.
Crop coefficients of natural wetlands and riparian vegetation to compute ecosystem evapotranspiration and the water balance
Authors: Pereira Luis S. , Paredes Paula , Espírito-Santo Dalila
Published: April 2024

Wetlands, namely the riparian ones, play a major role in landscape and water resources functionalities and provide enormous opportunities for ecosystems services. However, their area at globe scale is continuously decreasing due to appropriation by the riverain communities or by allocation of water resources to other uses, namely irrigation, in prejudice of natural wetlands. Due to the high competition for water, namely for agricultural irrigation, the calculation of the vegetation evapotranspiration (ETc), i.e. the consumptive water use of the wetland ecosystems, is mandatory for determining water supply–demand balance at various scales. Providing for the basin and local levels the reason for this review study on ETc to be presented in an irrigation focused Journal. The review also aims to make available adequate Kc values relative to these ecosystems in an ongoing update of FAO guidelines on evapotranspiration. The review on ETc of natural wetlands focused on its computation adopting the classical FAO method, thus the product of the FAO-PM grass reference ETo by the vegetation specific Kc, i.e., ETc = Kc ETo. This approach is not only the most common in agriculture but is also well used in natural wetlands studies, with Kc values fully related with vegetation ecosystems characteristics. A distinction was made between riparian and non-riparian wetland ecosystems due to differences between main types of water sources and main vegetation types. The Kc values are tabulated through grouping wetlands according to the climate since the variability of Kc with vegetation, soil, and water availability would require data not commonly available from the selected studies. Tabulated values appear to be coherent and appropriate to support field estimation of Kc and ETc for use in wetlands water balance when not measured but weather data may be available to compute the grass reference ETo. ETc and the water balance could then be estimated since they are definitely required to further characterization and monitoring of wetlands, defining measures for their protection, and assessing ecosystems’ services.
Der Embryonenbegriff vor dem Hintergrund integrierter Embryomodelle
Authors: Röttger Sara
Published: April 2024

Die Forschung an stammzellbasierten Embryomodellen hat insbesondere in den letzten beiden Jahren große
Erfolge erzielt. Die anvisierte Abbildung der Embryogenese wirft das Problem auf, dass der ethische als
auch rechtliche Status dieser embryoähnlichen Entitäten diskutiert werden muss. Nationale Legaldefinitionen
von Embryonen sind oftmals Basis für fortführende Rechtsrahmen und müssen aus Gründen
der Rechtssicherheit konkretisiert werden.
Unmet supportive care needs among cancer patients: exploring cancer entity-specific needs and associated factors
Authors: Springer Franziska , Mehnert-Theuerkauf Anja , Gebhardt Claudia , Stolzenburg Jens-Uwe , Briest Susanne
Published: April 2024

Purpose

Recognizing unmet care needs among cancer patients is crucial for improving a person-centered and tailored approach to survivorship care. This study aimed to explore the prevalence of unmet supportive care needs, pinpointing entity-specific areas of burden, and to identify factors associated with unmet needs within a diverse sample of cancer patients.

Methods

In this cross-sectional sub-study of a large multicenter study, 944 adult cancer patients reported supportive care needs via the well-validated SCNS. Most frequent diagnoses included breast (n = 276), prostate (n = 237), hematological (n = 90) and gynecological cancer (n = 74), which were analyzed for entity-specific care needs.

Results

Across most cancer entities, health system and information, and psychological needs were most commonly reported, with fear of the cancer spreading and information regarding cancer control/diminishment ranking as the most prevalent individual concerns. Notable differences in entity-specific needs emerged for gynecological cancer patients, who exhibited more psychological (p = 0.007, OR = 2.01) and physical needs (p = 0.005, OR = 2.02), and prostate cancer patients, who showed higher sexuality needs (p < 0.001, OR = 2.95) but fewer psychological (p < 0.001, OR = 0.55), physical (p < 0.001, OR = 0.31) and patient care needs (p = 0.006, OR = 0.62). Non-distressed participants had fewer supportive care needs in each domain (all p < 0.001). Patients with functional impairments and female respondents reported increased unmet needs across most domains.

Conclusion

The high prevalence of patients feeling inadequately informed about their disease and care aspects, particularly among those with functional impairments, reflects a key challenge in the healthcare system. Specific interventions and improvements in patient-doctor communication are essential to address cancer entity-specific care needs.
Clinical outcomes of triclosan-coated barbed suture in open hernia repair: a retrospective cohort study
Authors: Berrevoet F. , van Cauteren L. , Gunja N. , Danker W. A. , Schmitz N.-D. , Tomaszewski J. , Stern L. , Chandak A.
Published: April 2024

Purpose

We assessed clinical outcomes of patients undergoing open hernia repair using STRATAFIX™ Symmetric, a barbed triclosan-coated suture (TCS; Ethicon), versus conventional polydioxanone suture (PDS) for abdominal wall closure.

Methods

This single-center retrospective cohort study identified patients undergoing hernia repair. The site used PDS from 2013 to 2016 and switched exclusively to barbed TCS in 2017. Outcomes were assessed at 30, 60, and 90 days. Multivariate regression analyses and Cox proportional hazards models were used.

Results

Of 821 hernia repairs, 446 used barbed TCS and 375 used conventional PDS. Surgical site infections (SSIs) were significantly less frequent with barbed TCS (60 days, 5.9% vs. 11.4%; P = 0.0083; 90 days, 5.9% vs. 11.7%; P = 0.006) and this remained consistent after multivariate adjustment (60 days, OR [95% CI]: 0.5 [0.3–0.9]; 90 days, 0.5 [0.3–0.9]). Among patients with SSI, deep SSIs were less frequent with barbed TCS (60 days, 9.1% vs. 35.7%; P = 0.022; 90 days, 9.1% vs. 34.9%; P = 0.0252). Barbed TCS significantly reduced the risk of perioperative complications (HR [95% CI]: 0.5[0.3–0.8]; P = 0.0058). Hospital length of stay was 2.5 days shorter with barbed TCS (mean [95% CI]: 5.7[4.9–6.6] vs. 8.2[7.3–9.1] days; P < 0.0001). No differences in reoperation rate over time were observed by type of suture (HR[95% CI]:1.3 [0.5–3.4]; P = 0.4793).

Conclusions

This study showed that patients who underwent open hernia repair appeared to recover equally well regardless of the suture type. In addition, the use of barbed TCS was associated with significantly reduced risk of perioperative complications and hospital length of stay.
Genetic alterations and allele frequency of BRAF V600E and TERT mutation in papillary thyroid carcinoma with intermediate-to-high recurrence risk: a retrospective study
Authors: Huang Jiayu , Wang Jiazhi , Xv Jingchao , Wang Jingran , Wang Guangzhi , Zhao Yongfu
Published: April 2024

The predictive value of allele frequency (AF) of BRAF V600E and TERT mutations in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) remains controversial. We aimed to investigate the AF of BRAF V600E and TERT mutations in intermediate-to-high risk PTC and their association between tumor invasiveness, prognosis, and other mutations. Probe hybridization capture and high-throughput sequencing were used to quantitatively test 40 gene loci in 94 intermediate-to-high recurrence risk PTC patients, combined with clinical characteristics and follow-up for retrospective analysis. BRAF V600E mutation AF was linked to a increased risk of thyroid capsule penetration, recurrence, and concurrent mutations. Concurrent mutations could lead to a worse prognosis and increased invasiveness. TERT promoter mutation frequently accompanied other mutations and resulted in a poorer prognosis. However, there was no clear association between the TERT mutation AF and tumor invasiveness or recurrence. The sensitivity and specificity of predicting recurrence in intermediate-to-high risk PTC with BRAF V600E mutation AF > 28.2% were 60 and 80%. Although genetic alterations in PTC can differ among different ethnicities, the AF of BRAF V600E and TERT mutations may be similar. The AF of BRAF V600E has the potential to be a novel indicator in predicting PTC invasiveness and prognosis.
Enhancing the Robustness of Hybrid Metal-Composite Connections Through 3D Printed Micro Penetrative Anchors
Authors: Raimondi Luca , Tomesani Luca , Zucchelli Andrea
Published: April 2024

This work proposes a novel solution for manufacturing hybrid metal-composite joints, in which different pin shapes are evaluated for their capability to penetrate long carbon fiber epoxy composites successfully and for the mechanical behavior determined by each configuration. On the metal side, pins are manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF), downsizing the currently adopted solutions and, at the same time, developing new blocking features aimed at enhancing the mechanical properties of the joint. The different configurations were evaluated in two distinct experiments: the first to evaluate the induced defects in the composite substrate and the second to characterize the mechanical behavior of the joint. It emerges that smaller pins produce much less damage and misalignments in the composite structure with respect to the conventional pin solution, whereas the new “blocking features” configurations consistently increase maximum pullout load and energy with respect to the conventional pin solution, with the same level of fiber damage.
Survey of automatic plankton image recognition: challenges, existing solutions and future perspectives
Authors: Eerola Tuomas , Batrakhanov Daniel , Barazandeh Nastaran Vatankhah , Kraft Kaisa , Haraguchi Lumi , Lensu Lasse , Suikkanen Sanna , Seppälä Jukka , Tamminen Timo , Kälviäinen Heikki
Published: April 2024

Planktonic organisms including phyto-, zoo-, and mixoplankton are key components of aquatic ecosystems and respond quickly to changes in the environment, therefore their monitoring is vital to follow and understand these changes. Advances in imaging technology have enabled novel possibilities to study plankton populations, but the manual classification of images is time consuming and expert-based, making such an approach unsuitable for large-scale application and urging for automatic solutions for the analysis, especially recognizing the plankton species from images. Despite the extensive research done on automatic plankton recognition, the latest cutting-edge methods have not been widely adopted for operational use. In this paper, a comprehensive survey on existing solutions for automatic plankton recognition is presented. First, we identify the most notable challenges that make the development of plankton recognition systems difficult and restrict the deployment of these systems for operational use. Then, we provide a detailed description of solutions found in plankton recognition literature. Finally, we propose a workflow to identify the specific challenges in new datasets and the recommended approaches to address them. Many important challenges remain unsolved including the following: (1) the domain shift between the datasets hindering the development of an imaging instrument independent plankton recognition system, (2) the difficulty to identify and process the images of previously unseen classes and non-plankton particles, and (3) the uncertainty in expert annotations that affects the training of the machine learning models. To build harmonized instrument and location agnostic methods for operational purposes these challenges should be addressed in future research.
Assessment of Laws of the Wall During Flame–Wall Interaction of Premixed Flames Within Turbulent Boundary Layers
Authors: Ahmed Umair , Ghai Sanjeev Kr. , Chakraborty Nilanjan
Published: April 2024

The validity of the usual laws of the wall for Favre mean values of the streamwise velocity component and temperature for non-reacting flows has been assessed for turbulent premixed flame-wall interaction using Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) data. Two different DNS databases corresponding to friction velocity-based Reynolds number of 110 and 180 representing unsteady head-on quenching of statistically planar flames within turbulent boundary layers have been considered. The usual log-law based expressions for the Favre mean values of the streamwise velocity and temperature for the inertial layer have been found to be inadequate at capturing the corresponding variations obtained from DNS data. The underlying assumptions of constant shear stress and the equilibrium of production and dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy underpinning the derivation of the usual log-law for the mean streamwise velocity have been found to be rendered invalid within the usual inertial layer during flame-wall interaction for both cases considered here. The heat flux does not remain constant within the usual inertial layer, and the turbulent flux of temperature exhibits counter-gradient transport within the so-called inertial layer for the cases considered in this work. These render the assumptions behind the derivation of the usual log-law for temperature to be invalid for application to turbulent flame-wall interaction. It has been found that previously proposed empirical modifications to the existing laws of the wall, which account for density and kinematic viscosity variations with temperature, do not significantly improve the agreement with the corresponding DNS data in the inertial layer and the inaccurate approximations for the kinematic viscosity compensated wall normal distance and the density compensated streamwise velocity component contribute to this disagreement. The DNS data has been utilised here to propose new expressions for the kinematic viscosity compensated wall normal distance and the density compensated streamwise velocity component, which upon using in the empirically modified law of wall expressions have been demonstrated to provide reasonable agreement with DNS data.
Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy as a novel tool for crystallographic analysis in cellulose: tracking lattice changes following physical treatments
Authors: Wang Han , Aoki Dan , Teramoto Yoshikuni , Tsuchikawa Satoru , Inagaki Tetsuya
Published: April 2024

The authors’ series of studies aimed to explore the potential of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) in cellulose crystallographic studies, since THz radiation can detect most intermolecular vibrations and respond to lattice phonons. In this study, we tracked changes in four types of cellulose after ball milling. As the planetary ball milling time increases, it is observed through electron microscopy that the four types of cellulose particles are gradually destroyed into finer particles, while gel permeation chromatography can prove that the molecular weight gradually decreases after ball milling and the dispersity gradually approaches one, which indicates that the dispersion of the material was reduced. The most fascinating observation was made by THz-TDS, that is we have confirmed that after ball milling, the absorption characteristics of cellulose I and II in cellulose I treated with 10% NaOH (crystalline partial transition from cellulose I to II) exhibited an opposite trend. Specifically, the absorption of cellulose II at 2.40THz and 2.77THz increased, while the absorption of cellulose I at 2.11THz and 3.04THz decreased after ball milling, which suggests an increased conversion rate of cellulose I to cellulose II post-milling. Cellulose with different crystalline allomorphs shows different characteristic absorption in the THz region, and the peak position will not change even after the ball milling, only the absorption intensity changes. Although it can be observed through the most traditional X-ray diffraction method that the crystallinity index of all cellulose samples gradually decreases after ball milling. However, different from the THz results, the change after ball milling of cellulose I treated with 10% NaOH is only reflected in very subtle pattern changes, that is, the peak close to the 200 crystalline plane position is slightly shifted after ball milling.
Almost optimal manipulation of pairwise comparisons of alternatives
Authors: Szybowski Jacek , Kułakowski Konrad , Ernst Sebastian
Published: April 2024

The role of an expert in the decision-making process is crucial. If we ask an expert to help us to make a decision we assume their honesty. But what if the expert is dishonest? Then, the answer on how difficult it is for an expert to provide manipulated data in a given case of decision-making process becomes essential. In the presented work, we consider manipulation of a ranking obtained by the Geometric Mean Method applied to a pairwise comparisons matrix. More specifically, we propose an algorithm for finding an almost optimal way to swap the positions of two selected alternatives in a ranking. We also define a new index which measures how difficult such manipulation is in a given case.
Co-designing a Physical Activity Service for Refugees and Asylum Seekers Using an Experience-Based Co-design Framework
Authors: McKeon Grace , Curtis Jackie , Rostami Reza , Sroba Monika , Farello Anna , Morell Rachel , Steel Zachary , Harris Mark , Silove Derrick , Parmenter Belinda , Matthews Evan , Jamaluddin Juliana , Rosenbaum Simon
Published: April 2024

People from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds resettling in Australia often experience intersecting risks for poor mental and physical health. Physical activity can promote better health outcomes, however there are limited programs tailored for this population. Therefore, understanding how to support refugees and asylum seekers to engage in physical activity is crucial. This paper aims to describe how the experience-based co-design (EBCD) process was used to identify priorities for a new physical activity service for refugees and asylum seekers. Using an EBCD framework we conducted qualitative interviews and co-design workshops with service users (refugees and asylum seekers living in the community) and service providers at a community Centre in Sydney, Australia. Sixteen participants, including eight service users and eight service providers engaged in the EBCD process over 12-months. The interviews revealed common themes or ‘touchpoints’ including barriers and enablers to physical activity participation such as access, safety and competing stressors. Subsequent co-design focus groups resulted in the establishment of five fundamental priorities and actionable strategies; ensuring cultural and psychological safety, promoting accessibility, facilitating support to access basic needs, enhancing physical activity literacy and fostering social connection. Using EBCD methodology, this study used the insights and lived experiences of both service users and providers to co-design a physical activity service for refugees and asylum seekers which is safe, supportive, social and accessible. The results of the implementation and evaluation of the program are ongoing.
Making the Unseen Seen: The Role of Signaling and Novelty in Rating Metaphors
Authors: Ahrens Kathleen , Burgers Christian , Zhong Yin
Published: April 2024

Comprehension of metaphorical expressions differs with their degree of novelty. Conventional metaphors are typically comprehended as easily as literal sentences, while novel metaphors are responded to less quickly than their conventional counterparts. However, the influence of metaphor signals on the interpretability and acceptability of sentences with metaphors, especially their potential interaction with novelty, remains an open question. We conducted six online experiments among 1,694 native speakers of American English to examine how interpretability and acceptability ratings of individually presented sentences were affected by metaphor novelty and different types of metaphor signals. Across all six experiments, we consistently found that novel metaphors decreased the interpretability and acceptability of sentences compared to both conventional metaphors and literal controls. Signals, on the contrary, did not impact the interpretability or acceptability of the sentences. Moreover, only in experiment 3b did we find an interaction between metaphor type and signals. Specifically, when a metaphor was marked by double signals (i.e., both lexical signals and a typographical signal were added around the metaphorical keywords) vs. no signals, acceptability of novel metaphors increased, but acceptability of conventional metaphors decreased. We hypothesize that the double signaling of novel metaphors marks their novelty, making them more acceptable. By contrast, the double signaling of conventional metaphors may have been perceived as redundant, leading to a lower acceptability.
Exploring the determinants of disaster and climate resilience building in Zimbabwe’s rural communities
Authors: Nyahunda Louis , Nemakonde Livhuwani David , Khoza Sizwile
Published: April 2024

With the burgeoning threats from natural hazards and extreme weather events driven by climate change in every section and sector of society, building resilience against disasters and risks posed by climate change has become an unescapable discourse. The study’s main thrust is to establish the determinants of resilience building in Zimbabwe’s rural communities. The study adopted the qualitative constructivist grounded theory approach in conjunction with participatory action research to gain insights from community members and traditional leaders. A total of forty-six participants from Chimanimani District, Zimbabwe participated in the study. The findings revealed that the availability of natural and human resources, collective efficacy, government and development agency support systems, indigenous knowledge systems, and livelihood diversification were crucial determinants of resilience building for rural communities in Zimbabwe. The identified determinants for resilience building signal that these determinants need to be harnessed to inform policy and practice interventions. Furthermore, the availability of the identified determinants implies that rural communities can minimise, and prevent losses, reduce exposure to natural hazards, disasters and climate change risks and manage the impacts of natural hazards whenever they emerge. The study recommends that these determinants be complemented by access to technology, resilient community infrastructures, robust social protection systems, and hazard risk assessment participatory processes by rural communities. In addition, effective emergency and health services, among other contingent measures essential to improve community resilience.
Parsimonious consensus hierarchies, partitions and fuzzy partitioning of a set of hierarchies
Authors: Bombelli Ilaria , Vichi Maurizio
Published: April 2024

Methodology is described for fitting a fuzzy partition and a parsimonious consensus hierarchy (ultrametric matrix) to a set of hierarchies of the same set of objects. A model defining a fuzzy partition of a set of hierarchical classifications, with every class of the partition synthesized by a parsimonious consensus hierarchy is described. Each consensus includes an optimal consensus hard partition of objects and all the hierarchical agglomerative aggregations among the clusters of the consensus partition. The performances of the methodology are illustrated by an extended simulation study and applications to real data. A discussion is provided on the new methodology and some interesting future developments are described.
Efficient processing of coverage centrality queries on road networks
Authors: Xu Yehong , Zhang Mengxuan , Wu Ruizhong , Li Lei , Zhou Xiaofang
Published: April 2024

Coverage Centrality is an important metric to evaluate vertex importance in road networks. However, current solutions have to compute the coverage centrality of all the vertices together, which is resource-wasting, especially when only some vertices centrality is required. In addition, they have poor adaption to the dynamic scenario because of the computation inefficiency. In this paper, we focus on the coverage centrality query problem and propose a method that efficiently computes the centrality of single vertices without relying on the underlying graph being static by employing the intra-region pruning, inter-region pruning, and top-down search. We further propose the bottom-up search and mixed search to improve efficiency. Experiments validate the efficiency and effectiveness of our algorithms compared with the state-of-the-art method.
Arrhythmogenesis in Fabry Disease
Authors: Roy Ashwin , Cumberland Max J. , O’Shea Christopher , Holmes Andrew , Kalla Manish , Gehmlich Katja , Geberhiwot Tarekegn , Steeds Richard P.
Published: April 2024

Purpose of Review

Fabry Disease (FD) is a rare lysosomal storage disorder characterised by multiorgan accumulation of glycosphingolipid due to deficiency in the enzyme α-galactosidase A. Cardiac sphingolipid accumulation triggers various types of arrhythmias, predominantly ventricular arrhythmia, bradyarrhythmia, and atrial fibrillation. Arrhythmia is likely the primary contributor to FD mortality with sudden cardiac death, the most frequent cardiac mode of death. Traditionally FD was seen as a storage cardiomyopathy triggering left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, and ultimately, systolic dysfunction in advanced disease. The purpose of this review is to outline the current evidence exploring novel mechanisms underlying the arrhythmia substrate.

Recent Findings

There is growing evidence that FD cardiomyopathy is a primary arrhythmic disease with each stage of cardiomyopathy (accumulation, hypertrophy, inflammation, and fibrosis) contributing to the arrhythmia substrate via various intracellular, extracellular, and environmental mechanisms. It is therefore important to understand how these mechanisms contribute to an individual’s risk of arrhythmia in FD.

In this review, we outline the epidemiology of arrhythmia, pathophysiology of arrhythmogenesis, risk stratification, and cardiac therapy in FD. We explore how advances in conventional cardiac investigations performed in FD patients including 12-lead electrocardiography, transthoracic echocardiography, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging have enabled early detection of pro-arrhythmic substrate. This has allowed for appropriate risk stratification of FD patients. This paves the way for future work exploring the development of therapeutic initiatives and risk prediction models to reduce the burden of arrhythmia.
A pilot feasibility and acceptability trial of an internet indicated prevention program for perfectionism to reduce eating disorder symptoms in adolescents
Authors: O’Brien Amy , Anderson Rebecca , Mazzucchelli Trevor G. , Ure Sarah , Egan Sarah J.
Published: April 2024

Purpose

Perfectionism is a transdiagnostic risk factor for eating disorders. Treating perfectionism can reduce symptoms of eating disorders. No research has examined an indicated prevention trial using internet-based Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for Perfectionism (ICBT-P) in adolescent girls at elevated risk for eating disorders. Our aim was to conduct a preliminary feasibility trial using a co-designed ICBT-P intervention. It was hypothesised that a higher proportion of participants in the ICBT-P condition would achieve reliable and clinically significant change on perfectionism, eating disorders, anxiety and depression, compared to waitlist control.

Methods

Twenty-one adolescent girls with elevated symptoms of eating disorders (M age = 16.14 years) were randomised to a 4-week online feasibility trial of a co-designed ICBT-P prevention program or waitlist control. Qualitative surveys were used to gain participant perspectives.

Results

The ICBT-P condition had a higher proportion of participants achieve reliable change and classified as recovered on perfectionism and symptoms of eating disorders and anxiety, compared to waitlist control. Qualitative findings indicated that 100% of participants found the program helpful.

Conclusion

The results indicate ICBT-P is a feasible and acceptable program for adolescent girls with elevated eating disorder symptoms. Future research is required to examine outcomes in a randomised controlled trial.

Level of evidence

Level III: Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case–control analytic studies.

Trial registration number

This trial was prospectively registered with Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12620000951954P) on 23/09/2020.
Optimization of nitrogen management reduce nitrogen stress and enhance productivity of super-seeder sown wheat under rice residue incorporation
Authors: Longshang Peace Raising , Singh Virendra Pratap , Chandra Subhash , Shukla Anil , Singh V. K. , Pareek Navneet , Zhiipao R. Rustum , Reddy Kadapa Sreenivas , Duo Hriipulou , Dorjee Lham , Rayapati Karthik
Published: April 2024

The in-situ management of rice straw incorporation has become an essential practice in the rice–wheat cropping system with the growing adoption of super-seeder among farmers. While this equipment facilitates straw incorporation, nutrient immobilization from organic residues during decomposition poses a challenge to production. This study investigates the effect of bio-decomposer, nitrogen (N) level, and N scheduling on on various parameters in super-seeder sown wheat over two consecutive years (2020–21 and 2021–22). The experiment was laid in split-split-plot design without (B0) and with (B1) bio-decomposer, two nitrogen levels 150 (N1) and 180 (N2) kg ha−1 and three N splits (%) viz., 50: 25:25 (S1), 40: 30: 30 (S2), and 30:35:35 (S3) and replicated thrice. Results indicate significantly higher N concentration and uptake at pre- and post-anthesis with N2 and S1 compared to N1, S2, and S3. Post-anthesis N accumulation (post-NA) and remobilization (NR) were notably higher with N2. Dry matter accumulation (DMA) at anthesis and harvest significantly increased with N2 and S1 compared to N1 and S3, leading to significantly improved grain yield by 8.3% and 10.9% (two years mean). Soil urease activity (UA) significantly increased with bio-decomposer, N2, and S1 compared to B0, N1, and S3 at 30 and 60 DAS. Moreover, bio-decomposer enhanced soil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC). These findings underscore the importance of higher N levels with a greater basal N proportion in mitigating N stress and promoting sustainable wheat productivity. It also highlight the significance of effectively utilizing and conserving rice residue in the rice–wheat system.
Data-driven rolling eco-speed optimization for autonomous vehicles
Authors: Yang Ying , Gao Kun , Cui Shaohua , Xue Yongjie , Najafi Arsalan , Andric Jelena
Published: April 2024

In urban settings, fluctuating traffic conditions and closely spaced signalized intersections lead to frequent emergency acceleration, deceleration, and idling in vehicles. These maneuvers contribute to elevated energy use and emissions. Advances in vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication technologies allow autonomous vehicles (AVs) to perceive signals over long distances and coordinate with other vehicles, thereby mitigating environmentally harmful maneuvers. This paper introduces a data-driven algorithm for rolling eco-speed optimization in AVs aimed at enhancing vehicle operation. The algorithm integrates a deep belief network with a back propagation neural network to formulate a traffic state perception mechanism for predicting feasible speed ranges. Fuel consumption data from the Argonne National Laboratory in the United States serves as the basis for establishing the quantitative correlation between the fuel consumption rate and speed. A spatiotemporal network is subsequently developed to achieve eco-speed optimization for AVs within the projected speed limits. The proposed algorithm results in a 12.2% reduction in energy consumption relative to standard driving practices, without a significant extension in travel time.
An overview of solutions to the bus bunching problem in urban bus systems
Authors: Yang Ying , Cheng Junchi , Liu Yang
Published: April 2024

Bus bunching has been a persistent issue in urban bus system since it first appeared, and it remains a challenge not fully resolved. This phenomenon may reduce the operational efficiency of the urban bus system, which is detrimental to the operation of fast-paced public transport in cities. Fortunately, extensive research has been undertaken in the long development and optimization of the urban bus system, and many solutions have emerged so far. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the existing solutions and serve as a guide for subsequent research in this area. Upon careful examination of current findings, it is found that, based on the different optimization objects, existing solutions to the bus bunching problem can be divided into five directions, i.e., operational strategy improvement, traffic control improvement, driver driving rules improvement, passenger habit improvement, and others. While numerous solutions to bus bunching are available, there remains a gap in research exploring the integrated application of methods from diverse directions. Furthermore, with the development of autonomous driving, it is expected that the use of modular autonomous vehicles could be the most potential solution to the issue of bus bunching in the future.
How to suppress the Kirkendall porosity within the Ti/Ni explosive welds?
Authors: Wojewoda-Budka Joanna , Kwiecien Izabella , Bigos Agnieszka , Terlicka Sylwia , Litynska-Dobrzynska Lidia , Petrzak Pawel , Wierzbicka-Miernik Anna , Szczerba Maciej , Szulc Zygmunt , Rabkin Eugen
Published: April 2024

Pure Ti (Grade 1) and Ni (type Ni201) were used to produce the Ti/Ni welds employing the explosive welding process. Thermal expansion of the welded plates was determined using dilatometric measurements from room temperature up to 600 °C. The results showed that the thermal expansion coefficient of Ti/Ni welded plates is closer to that of pure nickel than would be suggested by the Timoshenko’s model for bimetallic strip. The microstructure of the Ti/Ni interface after exposure to high temperatures revealed the presence of extensive interface porosity (Kirkendall porosity). This may cause a catastrophic disintegration of the weld during working or essential forming. The welded plates were annealed at the temperature of 650 °C under different applied compressive loads, and the applied load was shown to alter the microstructure of the NixTiy phases present at the Ti/Ni interface. Based on the obtained interface microstructural data, the strategy to suppress the Kirkendall porosity at the interface was proposed.
Key Factors Impacting a Medical Ventilator Supply Chain During the COVID- 19 Pandemic: Lessons for Pandemic Preparedness
Authors: Fox Frank , Hayes Jessica , Whelan Barbara , Casey Dympna , Connolly Máire
Published: April 2024

Objectives:

Future pandemics may cause more severe respiratory illness in younger age groups than COVID-19, requiring many more mechanical ventilators. This publication synthesizes the experiences of diverse contributors to Medtronic’s mechanical ventilator supply chain during the pandemic, serving as a record of what worked and what didn’t, while identifying key factors affecting production ramp-up in this healthcare crisis.

Method:

In-depth, one-on-one interviews (n = 17) were held with key Medtronic personnel and suppliers. Template analysis was used, and interview content was analyzed for signals, initiatives, actions, and outcomes, as well as influencing forces.

Results:

Key findings revealed many factors limiting ventilator production ramp-up. Supply chain strengths and weaknesses were identified. Political factors played a role in allocating ventilators and also supported production. Commercial considerations were not priority, but economic awareness was essential to support suppliers. Workers were motivated and flexible. Component shortages, space, production processes, and logistics were challenges. Legally based pressures were reported e.g., import and export restrictions.

Conclusion:

Crisis response alone is not enough; preparation is essential. Coordinated international strategies are more effective than individual country responses. Supply chain resilience based on visibility and flexibility is key. This research can help public health planners and the medical device industry prepare for future healthcare crises.
Broad, strong, and soft: Using geospatial analysis to understand folk-linguistic terminology
Authors: Dann Holly , Drummond Rob , Tasker Sarah , Montgomery Chris , Ryan Sadie Durkacz , Carrie Erin
Published: April 2024

This study uses a modified online version of the “draw-a-map” task and Garrett, Williams, and Evans’ (2005b) “keywords” methodology to explore the geospatial distribution of different accent and dialect labels and descriptors in Greater Manchester, UK. Specifically, we consider the distribution of the three most frequent labels related to “accentedness”: Broad, Strong, and Soft, as provided by 349 Greater Manchester residents. This analysis finds that these descriptors were clustered in separate areas of Greater Manchester, suggesting that they were being used to describe perceptually distinct varieties of English. In order to uncover the nuances in these folk-linguistic terms, we consider how they correlate with other concepts emerging from the dataset, finding that they are being used to differentiate between varieties with contrasting social associations. By combining innovative approaches, this study demonstrates how the subtleties of folk-linguistic modes of awareness can be uncovered through in-depth analysis of the terminology employed to describe linguistic variation on a very local scale. In so doing, it paves the way for further development of draw-a-map techniques that will enable similarly nuanced analysis in different regions, thus pushing the sub-discipline forward.
Discrimination Based on Genetic Information in South Asia: An Exploratory Study of Constitutions and Relevant Laws
Authors: Akash  , Sarker Shuvro Prosun
Published: April 2024

The progress in precision medicine has resulted in genomic technology spreading worldwide. This has raised concerns about the ethics of genetic data sharing and privacy. This article focuses on South Asia and first aims to identify, analyze, and understand the laws, regulations, and policies related to genetic data privacy and discrimination in that region. This is accomplished through a qualitative examination of existing laws and policies on privacy rights and a doctrinal analysis of legislation gathered from seven jurisdictions, viz. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Following the presentation of the country-specific study, the article turns to discussing the study's results, which suggest that the area lacks both national norms and a regional policy specific to the protection of personal genetic data. The article then offers possible reasons for this outcome and suggests that the countries must formulate culturally sensitive regulations and universally applicable legal principles for genetic privacy notwithstanding the existing challenges of poverty, non-uniform demographics, and an absence of political will.
The limiting spectral distribution of large random permutation matrices
Authors: Li Jianghao , Zhou Huanchao , Bai Zhidong , Hu Jiang
Published: April 2024

We explore the limiting spectral distribution of large-dimensional random permutation matrices, assuming the underlying population distribution possesses a general dependence structure. Let
$\textbf X = (\textbf x_1,\ldots,\textbf x_n)$

$\in \mathbb{C} ^{m \times n}$
be an
$m \times n$
data matrix after self-normalization (n samples and m features), where
$\textbf x_j = (x_{1j}^{*},\ldots, x_{mj}^{*} )^{*}$
. Specifically, we generate a permutation matrix
$\textbf X_\pi$
by permuting the entries of
$\textbf x_j$

$(j=1,\ldots,n)$
and demonstrate that the empirical spectral distribution of
$\textbf {B}_n = ({m}/{n})\textbf{U} _{n} \textbf{X} _\pi \textbf{X} _\pi^{*} \textbf{U} _{n}^{*}$
weakly converges to the generalized Marčenko–Pastur distribution with probability 1, where
$\textbf{U} _n$
is a sequence of
$p \times m$
non-random complex matrices. The conditions we require are
$p/n \to c >0$
and
$m/n \to \gamma > 0$
.