bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Enhancing Efficiency in Electric Arc Furnace Steelmaking: A Multi‐Objective Optimization Approach Using the Non‐Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II
Authors: Yi Xiaoyu , Yue Qiang , Dou Zhihe , Bu Qingcai
Published: September 2024

To realize the overall optimization of electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking system, a multi‐objective optimization model including smelting cost, energy consumption per ton of steel, and carbon emission per ton of steel is established. The model is optimized by multi‐objective genetic algorithm to improve the charging structure. At the same time, the data in the optimal solution set are used to analyze the influence of the change of scrap ratio on smelting cost, carbon emission per ton of steel, and smelting cycle. According to the actual working conditions and the demand of steel plant, the optimized results are selected. Compared with the actual production data, the proportion of scrap steel increases to 50.9%, the ratio of molten iron decreases to 38.8%, the smelting cost per ton of steel decreases by 12 Yuan, the energy consumption per ton of steel decreases by 4%, the carbon emission per ton of steel significantly decreases by 13%, and the smelting cycle is shortened by 2 min, but at the cost of increasing the power consumption per ton of steel. The optimized results and the analysis of the change of scrap ratio provide reference for the optimization of EAF steelmaking system.
Ultra‐Thin 3.5%Si Steel with Both Magnetic Properties and Mechanical Properties Produced by Different Process Routes of Large‐Scale Production
Authors: Lin Yuan , Pei Xiao‐Ge , Wei Hui , Wang Hong‐Xia , Lu Hui‐Hu , Zhao Jian‐Xiang , Chen Xiang , Gu Xiang‐Yu , Wang Shi‐Jia , Xue Li‐Qiang , Zhang Wen‐Kang , Wang Yi‐De
Published: September 2024

The microstructural and textural evolution, as well as the recrystallization kinetics under different cold‐rolling methods and their influencing mechanism on the properties of the thin‐gauge 3.5%Si nonoriented silicon steel, are investigated by electron backscattering diffraction, X‐ray diffractometer, tensile, and magnetic properties test. The results indicate that compared with the primary cold‐rolling process, the reduction rate of secondary cold‐rolling process is lower (58.3%), and many shear bands are formed in the coarse cold‐rolled sheet, which leads to the formation of strong Goss and cube texture after recrystallization annealing. Owing to the high annealing temperature, the average grain size of finished annealed sheet is little different under different cold‐rolling processes, so the mechanical properties and high‐frequency iron loss are basically the same. The iron loss of the secondary cold‐rolled products decreases with an increase in frequency, and the improvement in the iron loss of the high field (1.5 T) becomes larger than that of the low field (1.0 T). Given the high anisotropy index of the Goss texture, the iron loss anisotropy of the secondary cold‐rolled sheet is higher. Considering the magnetic and mechanical properties, the optimum process is the secondary cold rolling with the intermediate annealing temperature of 900 °C.
An Overview on Additive Manufacturing of Duplex Stainless Steels: Microstructure, Mechanical Properties, Corrosion Resistance, Postheat Treatment, and Future Perspectives
Authors: Karunanithi Sanjeevi Prakash , Arasappan Rajesh Kannan , Nallathambi Siva Shanmugam
Published: September 2024

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a cutting‐edge technique for constructing intricate components with unique microstructural features and strength comparable to wrought alloys. Due to their exceptional corrosion resistance and mechanical properties, duplex stainless steels (DSS) are used in a wide range of critical applications. Over the past several years, a substantial body of research has been conducted on the AM of DSS. In‐depth knowledge is required to understand the complete benefits of the AM process. This review overviews the AM‐processed DSS parts based on process‐specific microstructural changes, mechanical behavior, electrochemical performance, and postheat treatment processes based on the classifications of directed energy deposition and powder bed fusion AM techniques along with future perspectives. Major challenges in AM of DSS are optimizing the austenite–ferrite fractions and controlling the formations of deleterious phases. This review will be extensively useful to researchers and industries working in the AM of DSS.
Investigation of P2O5 on the Break Temperature and Phase Composition of Slag from the Double Slag Converter Steelmaking Process
Authors: Yang Gao , Meng Xiangning , Yang Rui , Zeng Ruiqi , Li Wei
Published: September 2024

Herein, the influence of P2O5 on the break temperature and phase composition of slag from the double slag converter steelmaking process is investigated comprehensively. The composition and micromorphology of crystallized phase are analyzed by X‐Ray diffractometer and scanning electron microscope equipped with energy dispersive spectrometer. The results reveal that the break temperature of slag increases owing to an increase of P2O5 content. When the P2O5 content is 2%, the break temperature is 1198 °C, and it increases to 1209 °C for the slag with 4% P2O5. With the increase of P2O5 content from 2% to 8%, the activation energy for viscous flow shows an upward trend. The crystallized phase at the same temperature with different P2O5 contents remains nearly unchanged, but the diffraction peak intensity is different. When the P2O5 content remains constant, a decrease in temperature results in significant changes in the micromorphology of crystallized phases. The present results improve the knowledge about the P‐rich slag, and are also significant in optimizing the double slag converter steelmaking process.
High‐Temperature Oxidation of Fe–Si Alloys in Atmospheres Containing 2.0% SO2 + 5.0% O2
Authors: Cao Guangming , Song Wentao , Yu Hengxiang , Bi Yongcheng , Liu Zhenyu
Published: September 2024

The microstructure and composition of the scales formed are examined after being exposed to atmosphere containing 2.0% SO2 + 5.0% O2 for 60 min in the temperature range of 900–1200 °C. The composition of the scale post‐oxidation primarily varies with temperature rather than silicon content. FeS exhibits a melting temperature of 950 °C, whereas FeSi2O4 melts at 1150 °C. Two mechanisms for FeS formation are proposed. Eutectoid transformation of molten FeS occurs during subsequent cooling, resulting in lamellar FeS + Fe–S–O compounds. Above 1150 °C, the melt of Fe2SiO4 further increases the Fe diffusion rate. This dual‐liquefaction mechanism involving FeS and Fe2SiO4 accounts for the anomalous oxidative mass gain observed in Fe–Si alloys exposed to a sulfur‐containing atmosphere.
Consumerist discourses on social media and language teacher educator identity tensions
Authors: Song Juyoung , Nejadghanbar Hassan
Published: September 2024

This study investigates the impact of social media discourses, espoused by neoliberal and consumerist ideologies, on a language teacher educator's (LTE) identity negotiation. Through a collaborative case study, it examines Hassan's (the second author) experiences with social media in the Iranian English language teaching (ELT) context over three years. The data consist of extensive email discussions and four online meetings between the authors over one year. The analysis of Hassan's narratives reveals dominant social media discourses emphasizing sameness, omniscience, and commercialized luxurious lifestyles. These discourses often equate social media visibility with professional qualifications, pressuring Hassan to conform to trends that conflict with his sense of professionalism and authenticity. Hassan's emotional struggles and identity tensions led to critical reflection and ongoing negotiation of his professional identity. The findings underscore the need for professional development programs that support LTEs in navigating the pressures of self‐branding while maintaining their professionalism. Additionally, the study calls for further research into the long‐term effects of social media on professional identity and well‐being across diverse cultural and institutional contexts.
The (im)possible mission of language teacher educators in Germany: Identity formation, development, and practice in institutionalised settings
Authors: Gerlach David
Published: September 2024

Research on language teacher identity and its development has shown that it can be crucial for teacher education to understand how identity development takes place. The few findings to date on language teacher educators and their identities show individual negotiation processes and antinomies, particularly due to transitions from teacher to teacher educator, the parallel roles of researcher and teacher educator, and so on. The project presented here examines the language teacher educator identities of 12 professionals within a highly structured training program in Germany through narrative inquiry as a means to allow for the reconstruction of biographies, identities, and practices. The narratives illustrate the normative settings of the structured system, such as set curricular guidelines, which can rarely be fulfilled by the teacher trainees, a lack of trust and professional relationship, or the struggle of the teacher educators between advisor on the one hand and evaluator on the other. The results provide implications and recommendations for other institutionalised settings in which language teacher educators work.
Home–school connection framework: Elevating multilingual familial engagement capital to build bridges
Authors: Pratt Kristen L. , Emerson Andrea M. , Caires‐Hurley Jaclyn , Dantas‐Whitney Maria
Published: September 2024

School readiness research points to familial assets as tools for enriching home–literacy and home–school partnerships. This research informs an urgent call for reimagining educator preparedness relative to bridging students' lived experiences at home and school. Developing a multidimensional approach to effectively partnering with multilingual families that centers families as knowledge holders has potential to interrupt persistent opportunity gaps for ethnoracially and linguistically diverse learners. This conceptual paper presents a reconceptualizing of educator preparedness through what we call a home–school connection framework. This framework situates seven principal tenets—asset‐based culturally sustaining foundations, bilingual and bicultural mirrors, authentic cariño (Curry, 2021; Kwon, 2020; Martínez‐Álvarez, 2020; Valenzuela, 1999), reciprocal collaboration, anti‐bias awareness, community valuing of multicultural literature, and familial capital. This framework is applied in practice across each tenet. Preliminary findings suggest the importance of shifting dispositional stance away from educators serving families and toward educators purposefully partnering with families honoring familial engagement capital to inform multilingual multiliteracies in educational spaces.
English in Displacement: Language Learning and Test Preparation Experiences of Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Authors: Séguis Brigita , Miu Heidi , Goldstone Ross
Published: September 2024

In an effort to better support adult and refugee English language learners, this paper aims to focus on understanding the needs and experiences of one specific group, that is, refugee and asylum seeker healthcare professionals (RASHPs), based in the United Kingdom. RASHPs tend to be highly educated and experienced learners. One of their main objectives is to acquire high levels of English language proficiency and possibly return to clinical practice in their new host country. The data for the study come from an online survey that was completed by 106 respondents, followed by interviews conducted with three nurses and nine doctors. Additionally, two language test preparation teachers were also interviewed. The findings show that RASHPs represent a very diverse group of learners, with a range of linguistic backgrounds, age groups, and proficiency levels. Results further reveal that RASHPs often face a range of situational, technological and psycho‐social barriers that may prevent them from fully engaging with their English language and test preparation classes. The study concludes with a series of classroom and policy‐level recommendations that could help ensure better outcomes for refugee and asylum seeker learners.
Exploring Development of EMI Teacher Identities and Emotions During a Collaborative Teaching Practice: A Sociocultural Perspective
Authors: Zhang Shanshan , Xu Jinfen
Published: September 2024

The burgeoning English‐medium instruction (EMI) programs have aroused worldwide scholarly interest in giving language support for EMI subject teachers and their identity‐informed professional development. This study explored how an EMI subject teacher's identities and emotions were intricately interlinked before and after his co‐teaching practice with an English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher at a university in Midwestern China. Ethnographic tools including interviews, observations, and small talks were used over a 10‐month collaborative program. The findings show that the participant teacher's identities and emotions were interdependent with each other and mediated by collaborative teaching practice. Futhermore, emotional attachment to English enhancement and deep engagement in co‐teaching contributed to (re)construction of teacher identities as a content teacher, a competent English user, and an English learning facilitator. The participant's emotional attachment was explicated by his perezhivanie, or the emotional experience of his previous English learning and the emergent EMI teaching contexts. The study highlights the primacy of reconstructing teacher identities and supporting teacher emotional experiences in EMI teacher training and education programs.
A comparative study on the mechanical and flammability properties of aluminum hydroxide and hollow glass beads‐filled polypropylene composites
Authors: Zheng Yitao , Gu Fu , Wang Zheng , Zhou Yun , Xu Liqiang , Hall Philip
Published: September 2024

Lightweight polypropylene (PP) composites with high flame retardancy and high thermal stability were required for automobile, electrical and electronic applications. Aluminum hydroxide (Al(OH)3) and two hollow glass beads (HGB) were selected as fillers for polypropylene composite fabrication. The incorporation of 10 wt% HGB (iM30K) into the PP matrix leads to a 3.5% density reduction, and 10 wt% Al(OH)3 increased the density by 5.4%. The cone calorimeter test (CCT) showed the lowest PHRR of 536.6 kW/m2 and peak smoke production rate of 0.061 m2/s was recorded for 10 wt% HGB (iM30K) loading. The formulation with 10 wt% Al(OH)3 loading had the lowest flammability; however, the Al(OH)3 content was not sufficient for a consistent flame‐resistant performance. The incorporation of HGB and Al(OH)3 resulted in an enhancement of both tensile and flexural modulus; however, it was observed that the tensile, flexural, and impact strengths exhibited a decrement with an increase in the concentration of HGB or Al(OH)3. Moreover, the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) results indicated that at the same filler content, HGB (S60HS) filled PP composites have the highest thermal stability among the prepared composites.

Highlights

Effects of HGB and Al(OH)3 on flame retardancy and thermal stability of PP.

Small size HGB (iM30K) exhibited superior smoke suppression performance.

Effects of HGB on density reduction of PP based composites.

Mechanical properties of HGB or Al(OH)3 filled PP were investigated.

The SEM images revealed the breakage and dispersion of HGB in the composites.
Wissen zu und Umsetzung von institutionellen Schutzkonzepten in deutschen Krankenhäusern als Teil des medizinischen Kinderschutzes
Authors: Eberhardt Anna , Sterz-Burdack Verena , König Elisa , Fegert Jörg M. , Hoffmann Ulrike
Published: September 2024

Hintergrund

Aktuelle Studien zeigen die hohe Prävalenz von Kindesmisshandlung in Deutschland und dass Übergriffe durch Krankenhauspersonal ebenfalls ein Problem darstellen. Seit 2020 fordert der Gemeinsame Bundesausschuss institutionelle Schutzkonzepte (ISK) zum Schutz und zur Unterstützung von Betroffenen in Kliniken. Diese Untersuchung hat zum Ziel, zu analysieren, wie hoch Wissen und Handlungskompetenzen zu Kindesmisshandlungen bei Krankenhausmitarbeitenden sind und inwiefern ISK in Krankenhäusern umgesetzt werden.

Methoden

Es wurden 1011 Teilnehmende vor dem Belegen zweier Online-Kurse zu Kinderschutz und Schutzmaßnahmen in Krankenhäusern zu selbsteingeschätztem Wissens- und Kompetenzstand im Kinderschutz und Auftreten von Misshandlungsfällen und Schutzmaßnahmen in der eigenen Einrichtung befragt. Die Daten wurden mittels deskriptiver Verfahren ausgewertet.

Ergebnisse

Es zeigt sich, dass Wissen und Kompetenzen von Krankenhausmitarbeitenden zu Kinderschutz im Mittelfeld liegen. Besonders häufig werden in Krankenhäusern Misshandlungsfälle wahrgenommen, die außerhalb der Institution begangen werden, aber auch Gewalt durch Mitarbeitende bzw. gleichaltrige Mitpatient*innen spielt eine bedeutende Rolle. 93,6 % der Befragten gaben an, dass ihre Einrichtung bereits mindestens ein Element eines ISK entwickelt habe, allerdings berichteten nur 1,0 % der Befragten, dass bereits alle abgefragten Elemente vollständig entwickelt wurden.

Diskussion

Krankenhäuser in Deutschland scheinen sich überwiegend auf den Weg gemacht zu haben, Kinder und Jugendliche besser vor Misshandlung zu schützen und Betroffene zu unterstützen. Allerdings bestehen nach wie vor noch Defizite bei den Kompetenzen der Mitarbeitenden und der Umsetzung der ISK-Elemente. Hierfür müssen mehr Ressourcen von den Trägern der Krankenhäuser und von der öffentlichen Hand zur Verfügung gestellt werden.
Radiological features of pancreatic desmoid-type fibromatosis: a case series and systematic review
Authors: Tanishima Tomoya , Kurokawa Ryo , Sone Miyuki , Nakai Yudai , Kusumoto Masahiko
Published: September 2024

Purpose

This retrospective study aimed to investigate the radiological features of pancreatic desmoid-type fibromatosis (PDF) and systematically review the previous publications and two new cases.

Methods

We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science Core Collection and included 31 patients with pathologically proven PDFs with analyzable preoperative computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging, including two patients from our institution and 29 patients from 28 publications. Two board-certified radiologists reviewed all images.

Results

The median age of the patients was 39 years, with a male dominance observed (male, 54.8% vs. female, 45.2%). Abdominal pain was the most frequent symptom, occurring in 58.1% of cases. Surgical resection was performed in all cases of PDFs, resulting in a recurrence rate of 8.3% (2/24). The tumors were most commonly located in the pancreatic tail (23/31, 74.2%). In terms of morphology, a “solid” shape was most prevalent (14/31, 45.2%), followed by a “solid and cystic” shape (9/31, 29.0%) and a “cystic” shape (8/31, 25.8%). Characteristic radiological features included heterogeneous enhancement of the solid portion of the tumors on CT scans (13/20, 65%), moderate-to-weak enhancement in the late phase on CT (16/17, 94.1%), and a presence of cystic components in the tumors (17/31, 54.8%). In 16.1% (5/31) of PDFs, the cystic component was pathologically confirmed to be a dilated pancreatic duct.

Conclusion

We summarized the clinical and imaging characteristics of PDF. Although the incidence may not be high, cystic components suggesting a dilated pancreatic duct within the tumor are unique imaging features in PDF.
Open plate fixation in displaced pediatric proximal humerus fractures is safe and leads to very good functional outcomes
Authors: Oenning Sebastian , Michel Philipp A. , Vehring Imke , Heilmann Lukas , Katthagen J. Christoph , Raschke Michael J.
Published: September 2024

Introduction

In displaced pediatric proximal humerus fractures (PHF), surgical treatment ranges from closed to open procedures. Soft tissue interposition can impede closed reduction, making open techniques necessary. While K-wire fixation and elastic stable intramedullary nailing (ESIN) lead to good results, plate fixation could be an alternative in patients with limited growth potential and highly unstable or insufficiently retained fractures. Only few studies with low sample sizes have assessed plate fixation, yet. In this study, the outcome of pediatric PHFs treated with plate fixation was evaluated.

Materials and methods

We present a retrospective case series of 18 patients with open growth plates and unilateral, displaced PHFs, treated with plate fixation. The mean age at trauma was 12.1 years (± 2.4), the mean follow-up was 6.52 years (± 4.37). A mean fracture angulation of 32.3° (± 10.89°) was seen. Postoperative assessments included range of motion, clinical scores [Simple Shoulder Test (SST), Subjective Shoulder Value (SSV), American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) Shoulder Score, Pediatric/Adolescent Shoulder Score (PASS), Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) Score], radiological parameters and subjective satisfaction.

Results

All patients showed excellent results in SST (99.4% ± 0.02), SSV (98.3% ± 0.04), ASES-score (100% ± 0) and PASS (0.99 ± 0.01). In the DASH-score, 17 patients had excellent results, one patient showed a good outcome. Fracture healing occurred in all patients without complications. Eight patients complained about bothering scars. Age, gender and fracture morphology did not affect the outcome. Revision surgery after secondary fracture dislocation did not show a worsened outcome compared to primary plate fixation. Physeal growth plate bridging implants did not worsen the outcome. The timing of implant removal within the first 6 months postoperatively did not affect long-term function.

Conclusion

Plate fixation is a safe option in pediatric patients with limited growth potential and highly displaced PHFs. Plate fixation led to a good to excellent functional outcome, regardless of fracture morphology and implant positioning. A higher invasiveness and the need for implant removal must be considered.
Measuring public relative importance for agricultural and rural multifunctionality: an application of case 1 best–worst scaling
Authors: Aizaki Hideo , Akahori Hirokazu , Yamamoto Yasutaka
Published: September 2024

The concept of agricultural and rural multifunctionality expands the public’s understanding of the diverse roles of agriculture and rural areas. However, the establishment of the concept burdens governments with a complicated issue related to formulating an agricultural and rural policy, as the public could have diverse views on the functions that should be promoted via the policy. This study applies case 1 best–worst scaling to measure the relative importance of agricultural and rural multifunctionality in Japan. Sixteen functions, including the primary function of agriculture (agricultural commodity output), were addressed. The results show that, on average, agricultural commodity output was prioritized most, followed by disaster prevention-related, water-related, and biological conservation functions. The clustering results demonstrate that the individuals were divided into seven classes and that the relative importance of functions among the seven classes differed significantly. The heterogeneity in the relative importance of functions among the public indicates that social consensus on weighting multifunctional roles in agricultural and rural policies cannot be reached easily.
Interplay of acoustophoresis and dielectrophoresis in a standing surface acoustic wave field: from spherical to non-spherical particles
Authors: Sachs Sebastian , Schreier David , Brand Felix , Drese Klaus Stefan , Cierpka Christian , König Jörg
Published: September 2024

Standing surface acoustic waves (sSAW) emerged as a flexible tool for precise manipulation of spherical and non-spherical objects in Lab-on-a-Chip devices. While the manipulation of suspended particles and cells in acoustofluidic devices is mostly dominated by acoustic forces due to acoustic scattering and the acoustically induced fluid flow, surface acoustic waves are inherently linked to an inhomogeneous electric field. The superimposed effects of dielectrophoretic forces and torques on polarizable particles are less explored in microfluidics using sSAW. In this study, a thorough analysis of the physical interplay of acoustophoresis and dielectrophoresis aims to bridge this gap. In comprehensive experiments, the dielectrophoretic impact on the behavior of spherical and non-spherical particles is distinguished by screening the electric field of the sSAW inside the micro channel locally. As a result, particles are forced into trapping locations across the entire channel height. However, the height position close to the bottom differs between the screened and non-screened region. Regardless of the shape of the particles used in this study, particles are forced towards the bottom at the region with screening, while being levitated at regions without screening. This indicates clearly the influence of the electric field in close vicinity to the substrate surface. Furthermore, the unintuitive preferred orientation of prolate spheroids perpendicular to the pressure nodes of the sSAW recently reported, is confirmed in both region regardless of the presence of the electric field. Based on a three-dimensional numerical model, this orientation results not only due to the acoustic torque but is also caused by the dielectrophoretic torque, which complement each other. The experimental and numerical findings are in excellent agreement and provide deep insights into the underlying physical mechanisms responsible for patterning and orientation of the particles.
Explainable Generative AI (GenXAI): a survey, conceptualization, and research agenda
Authors: Schneider Johannes
Published: September 2024

Generative AI (GenAI) represents a shift from AI’s ability to “recognize” to its ability to “generate” solutions for a wide range of tasks. As generated solutions and applications grow more complex and multi-faceted, new needs, objectives, and possibilities for explainability (XAI) have emerged. This work elaborates on why XAI has gained importance with the rise of GenAI and the challenges it poses for explainability research. We also highlight new and emerging criteria that explanations should meet, such as verifiability, interactivity, security, and cost considerations. To achieve this, we focus on surveying existing literature. Additionally, we provide a taxonomy of relevant dimensions to better characterize existing XAI mechanisms and methods for GenAI. We explore various approaches to ensure XAI, ranging from training data to prompting. Our paper provides a concise technical background of GenAI for non-technical readers, focusing on text and images to help them understand new or adapted XAI techniques for GenAI. However, due to the extensive body of work on GenAI, we chose not to delve into detailed aspects of XAI related to the evaluation and usage of explanations. Consequently, the manuscript appeals to both technical experts and professionals from other fields, such as social scientists and information systems researchers. Our research roadmap outlines over ten directions for future investigation.
On the hyperbolic group and subordinated integrals as operators on sequence Banach spaces
Authors: Abadias L. , Galé J. E. , Miana P. J. , Oliva-Maza J.
Published: September 2024

We show that the composition hyperbolic group in the unit disc, once transferred to act on sequence spaces, is bounded on $$\ell^p$$

ℓ
p

if and only if $${p=2}$$

p
=
2

. We introduce some integral operators subordinated to that group which are natural generalizations of classical operators on sequences. For the description of such operators, we use some combinatorial identities which look interesting in their own.
Plant invasion down under: exploring the below-ground impact of invasive plant species on soil properties and invertebrate communities in the Central Plateau of New Zealand
Authors: Pearson Benjamin M. , Minor Maria A. , Robertson Alastair W. , Clavijo McCormick Andrea L.
Published: September 2024

The impacts of invasive plants on arthropod communities are often reported to be negative and have predominantly been explored aboveground, but there is a paucity of information regarding what happens belowground. To address this gap, we compared soil properties and soil fauna communities associated with two native plant species (Leptospermum scoparium—mānuka and Chionochloa rubra—red tussock) and two invasive species (non-N-fixing Calluna vulgaris—European heather and N-fixing Cytisus scoparius—Scotch broom) in the Central Plateau of New Zealand. We expected that (1) at individual plant level soil properties would be different under invasive and native plant species, with higher soil nutrient concentrations under invasive species, especially N-fixing broom; (2) total abundance of soil fauna would be higher under invasive plant species, as generally positive impact of invasive plants on soil invertebrates is indicated in the literature; (3) invasive plants, and especially N-fixing broom, will be associated with greater abundances of soil decomposer groups. We found that soil properties and soil fauna assemblages did not cluster by plant invasive status as initially predicted. At individual plant level, there was similarity in soil conditions between mānuka and broom, and between red tussock and heather. The invasive N-fixer (broom) had positive effects on soil N availability, with higher N pool and lower C/N ratio in soil under this species. There were no consistent differences in total soil fauna abundance between invasive and native plants. Broom and mānuka were associated with higher abundances of Collembola, Oligochaeta and Diplopoda; heather and red tussock had higher abundances of Hymenoptera and Hemiptera. Significantly more Oligochaeta and Collembola under broom matched the prediction of invasive plants (and especially N-fixing invasives) being associated with greater abundances of decomposers. However, another important decomposer group—oribatid mites—did not show the same tendency. These results evidence that simplified generalizations regarding the impacts of invasive plants are unlikely to be justified, since the ecological effects of plant invasions are complex and do not always follow the same pattern. Therefore, we need to take into consideration the ecological context and the traits of individual plant species and target organisms in an unbiased manner to fully understand the impacts of plant invasions.
Discordance between peritumoral and subareolar injections for mapping sentinel lymph nodes in the breast
Authors: Situ Josephine , Walker Cameron , Jayathungage Don Tharanga D. , Suami Hiroo , Chung David K. V. , Reynolds Hayley M.
Published: September 2024

Purpose

Sentinel node biopsy (SNB) is a common staging tool for breast cancer. Initially, peritumoral (PT) injections were used, however subareolar (SA) injections were later introduced to simplify the technique. Controversy remains regarding whether PT and SA injections map the same sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs). This study aimed to determine whether the regional location of breast SLNs differs when using PT versus SA injections using a large dataset from a single institution.

Methods

A total of 1035 patients who underwent breast SNB (PT injections: n = 858 and SA injections: n = 177) with lymphoscintigraphy and SPECT/CT were included. The identified SLN locations using SA injections were compared with those using PT injections. Differences in drainage proportions and odds ratios (ORs) for each clockface breast region and the whole breast were calculated using a two-proportion z-test and Fisher’s Exact Test.

Results

A higher proportion of internal mammary SLNs were identified using PT injections for the whole breast (0.30 versus 0.09) and for all breast regions, with all regions showing statistical significance except the upper outer quadrant. Similarly, ORs showed identification of internal mammary SLNs was significantly higher when using PT injections (4.35, 95% CI 2.53 to 7.95). There were no significant differences in identifying axillary SLNs between injection sites.

Conclusion

This is the largest cohort study to compare the regional location of breast SLNs identified using PT injections versus SA injections. Discordance was shown in the SLNs identified between injection techniques, with PT injections more frequently identifying internal mammary SLNs.
Measuring Mathematical Skills in Early Childhood: a Systematic Review of the Psychometric Properties of Early Maths Assessments and Screeners
Authors: Outhwaite Laura A. , Aunio Pirjo , Leung Jaimie Ka Yu , Van Herwegen Jo
Published: September 2024

Successful early mathematical development is vital to children’s later education, employment, and wellbeing outcomes. However, established measurement tools are infrequently used to (i) assess children’s mathematical skills and (ii) identify children with or at-risk of mathematical learning difficulties. In response, this pre-registered systematic review aimed to provide an overview of measurement tools that have been evaluated for their psychometric properties for measuring the mathematical skills of children aged 0–8 years. The reliability and validity evidence reported for the identified measurement tools were then synthesised, including in relation to common acceptability thresholds. Overall, 41 mathematical assessments and 25 screeners were identified. Our study revealed five main findings. Firstly, most measurement tools were categorised as child-direct measures delivered individually with a trained assessor in a paper-based format. Secondly, the majority of the identified measurement tools have not been evaluated for aspects of reliability and validity most relevant to education measures, and only 15 measurement tools met the common acceptability thresholds for more than two areas of psychometric evidence. Thirdly, only four screeners demonstrated an acceptable ability to distinguish between typically developing children and those with or at-risk of mathematical learning difficulties. Fourthly, only one mathematical assessment and one screener met the common acceptability threshold for predictive validity. Finally, only 11 mathematical assessments and one screener were found to concurrently align with other validated measurement tools. Building on this current evidence and improving measurement quality is vital for raising methodological standards in mathematical learning and development research.
Reevaluating the fraction of cancer attributable to excess weight: overcoming the hidden impact of prediagnostic weight loss
Authors: Safizadeh Fatemeh , Mandic Marko , Hoffmeister Michael , Brenner Hermann
Published: September 2024

Objective

To evaluate the magnitude of the potential underestimation of the proportion of cancer cases attributable to excess weight, known as population attributable fraction (PAF), due to potential bias from prediagnostic weight loss already present at baseline of cohort studies and to overcome it as much as possible.

Methods

Data from the UK Biobank cohort participants aged 40–69 without prior cancer diagnosis were analyzed. We assessed the magnitude of associations of excess weight with the incidence of obesity-related cancers combined, and separately for gastrointestinal (GI) and other cancers. Using multivariable Cox proportional hazards models, hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI), and PAFs for excess weight at baseline were estimated for various periods of time after weight measurements.

Findings

Of 458,660 participants, 20,218 individuals developed obesity-related cancers during a median 11.0-year follow-up, comprising 8,460 GI, and 11,765 non-GI cancers. PAFs were much higher for cancers occurring more than four years after recruitment than for cancers occurring within the initial four years: 17.7% versus 7.2%, 21.4% versus 11.7% for GI, non-GI and all obesity-related cancers combined, respectively. With respect to total cancer (including cancers with no established relationship with excess weight), PAFs were estimated as 5.1% and 8.8% for the 0–4 and 4-14-year periods of follow-up.

Conclusion

The proportion of cancers attributable to excess weight is likely substantially larger than previously estimated based on cohort studies with short follow-up time or no or only limited exclusion of the early years of follow-up from the analyses.
The Ortholog Receptor Or67d in Drosophila Bipectinata is able to Detect Two Different Pheromones
Authors: Díaz-Morales Melissa , Khallaf Mohammed A. , Stieber Regina , Alali Ibrahim , Hansson Bill S. , Knaden Markus
Published: September 2024

Sex pheromones play a crucial role in species recognition and reproductive isolation. Despite being largely species-specific in drosophilids, the mechanisms underlying pheromone detection, production, and their influence on mating behavior remain poorly understood. Here, we compare the chemical profiles of Drosophila bipectinata and D. melanogaster, the mating behaviors in both species, as well as the tuning properties of Or67d receptors, which are expressed by neurons in antennal trichoid sensilla at1. Through single sensillum recordings, we demonstrate that the D. bipectinata Or67d-ortholog exhibits similar sensitivity to cis-vaccenyl acetate (cVA) as compared to D. melanogaster but in addition also responds uniquely to (Z)-11-eicosen-1-yl-acetate (Z11-20:Ac), a compound exclusively produced by D. bipectinata males. Through courtship behavior assays we found that, surprisingly, perfuming the flies with Z11-20:Ac did not reveal any aphrodisiacal or anti-aphrodisiacal effects in mating assays. The behavioral relevance of at1 neuron channels in D. bipectinata compared to D. melanogaster seems to be restricted to its formerly shown function as an aggregation pheromone. Moreover, the non-specific compound cVA affected copulation negatively in D. bipectinata and could potentially act as a premating isolation barrier. As both ligands of Or67d seem to govern different behaviors in D. bipectinata, additional neurons detecting at least one of those compounds might be involved. These results underscore the complexity of chemical signaling in species recognition and raise intriguing questions about the evolutionary implications of pheromone detection pathways in Drosophila species.
The status of History in the subject-selection ‘marketplace’: Insights from Australian students
Authors: Cairns Rebecca , Garrard Kerri Anne
Published: September 2024

Concern about declining enrollments in senior school History subjects has been a regular feature of history education discourse in Australia for at least 30 years. This concern is also evident in international discourse about History being a subject “in crisis”. In Australia and elsewhere, there has been increased speculation about the reasons History enrollments are contracting. However, students are not often included in these discussions, and the external conditions affecting their subject choices tend to be overlooked. Our mixed methods research draws on descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of data from an online survey of 293 students in years 10, 11, and 12 from across Australia. This article examines influences on History’s status in the subject ‘marketplace’ from the perspective of students and conceptualizes three sets of influences: instrumental, subject status, and local context. We position this work in the context of history education, subject selection, careers education research literature, and policy. The dominance of instrumental influences on the decisions of participants to choose or reject History as a senior secondary subject also leads us to examine how, in uncertain times, the forces of neoliberalism are shaping young people’s perceptions of the alignment of school and future work.
Automatic gender detection: a methodological procedure and recommendations to computationally infer the gender from names with ChatGPT and gender APIs
Authors: Goyanes Manuel , de-Marcos Luis , Domínguez-Díaz Adrián
Published: September 2024

Both computational social scientists and scientometric scholars alike, interested in gender-related research questions, need to classify the gender of observations. However, in most public and private databases, this information is typically unavailable, making it difficult to design studies aimed at understanding the role of gender in influencing citizens’ perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors. Against this backdrop, it is essential to design methodological procedures to infer the gender automatically and computationally from data already provided, thus facilitating the exploration and examination of gender-related research questions or hypotheses. Researchers can use automatic gender detection tools like Namsor or Gender-API, which are already on the market. However, recent developments in conversational bots offer a new, still relatively underexplored, alternative. This study offers a step-by-step research guide, with relevant examples and detailed clarifications, to automatically classify the gender from names through ChatGPT and two partially free gender detection tool (Namsor and Gender-API). In addition, the study provides methodological suggestions and recommendations on how to gather, interpret, and report results coming from both platforms. The study methodologically contributes to the scientometric literature by describing an easy-to-execute methodological procedure that enables the computational codification of gender from names. This procedure could be implemented by scholars without advanced computing skills.
Building capacity in institutional research: collaboration and complementarity?
Authors: Botha Jan , Webber Karen , Williams James , Woodfield Steve
Published: September 2024

Institutional Research associations across the world are re-imagining and redesigning their professional development and capacity building activities. This paper outlines the professional development activities of the Association for Institutional Research (AIR) in the United States (est. 1966), the European Association for Institutional Research (EAIR) (est. 1978), the Southern African Association for Institutional Research (SAAIR) (est. 1994) and the United Kingdom and Ireland Higher Education Institutional Research Network (HEIR) (est. 2008) and argues that a more sophisticated approach to IR is needed, informed by systems thinking, aimed at proactive engagement with policy-makers and managers, organisational learning, direct links to institutional strategy (‘a seat at the table’), and the analysis and use of larger volumes of data.
Evaluation of ballistics euthanasia applied to stranded cetaceans using ethological and post-mortem computed tomography assessment
Authors: Boys Rebecca M. , Kot Brian C. W. , Lye Gordon , Beausoleil Ngaio J. , Hunter Stuart , Stockin Karen A.
Published: September 2024

Debilitated stranded cetaceans with low survival likelihood, may require euthanasia to avoid further suffering. Euthanasia can involve chemical or physical methods, including ballistics. Ballistics should cause instantaneous, permanent insensibility through brainstem disruption. Despite wide application, there is limited understanding of ballistics-related welfare outcomes. We opportunistically examined behaviour of three maternally-dependent cetaceans following shooting and the related cranial disruption post-mortem using computed tomography (PMCT). Our aim was to understand whether a ‘humane death’, i.e., euthanasia, was achieved. Each animal was shot using different projectile types: soft non-bonded, solid, and soft bonded. In two animals, insensibility was not immediately assessed following shooting, although both were reported as ‘instantaneously insensible’. From our analysis, all animals displayed musculoskeletal responses to shooting, including peduncle stiffening and slack lower jaw, followed by musculature relaxation 24-, 10.3- and 20.8-seconds post-ballistics, respectively. The animal shot with a soft non-bonded projectile also displayed agonal convulsions and tail-lifting for 16-seconds post-shot; these were not observed for solid or soft bonded projectiles. PMCT findings indicated projectile disruption to the brainstem and/or spinal cord likely to cause near-instantaneous insensibility. However, extra-cranial wounding was also evident for the soft non-bonded projectile, highlighting potential for additional welfare compromise. Our results demonstrate that ballistics can achieve a relatively rapid death in young, stranded cetaceans, but careful equipment selection is required. To ensure a humane death, verification of insensibility must be undertaken immediately following shooting. Further studies should be undertaken to improve knowledge of appropriate procedures and equipment for euthanasia, ensuring humane deaths for compromised cetaceans.
In Search of Lost Online Test-Time Adaptation: A Survey
Authors: Wang Zixin , Luo Yadan , Zheng Liang , Chen Zhuoxiao , Wang Sen , Huang Zi
Published: September 2024

This article presents a comprehensive survey of online test-time adaptation (OTTA), focusing on effectively adapting machine learning models to distributionally different target data upon batch arrival. Despite the recent proliferation of OTTA methods, conclusions from previous studies are inconsistent due to ambiguous settings, outdated backbones, and inconsistent hyperparameter tuning, which obscure core challenges and hinder reproducibility. To enhance clarity and enable rigorous comparison, we classify OTTA techniques into three primary categories and benchmark them using a modern backbone, the Vision Transformer. Our benchmarks cover conventional corrupted datasets such as CIFAR-10/100-C and ImageNet-C, as well as real-world shifts represented by CIFAR-10.1, OfficeHome, and CIFAR-10-Warehouse. The CIFAR-10-Warehouse dataset includes a variety of variations from different search engines and synthesized data generated through diffusion models. To measure efficiency in online scenarios, we introduce novel evaluation metrics, including GFLOPs, wall clock time, and GPU memory usage, providing a clearer picture of the trade-offs between adaptation accuracy and computational overhead. Our findings diverge from existing literature, revealing that (1) transformers demonstrate heightened resilience to diverse domain shifts, (2) the efficacy of many OTTA methods relies on large batch sizes, and (3) stability in optimization and resistance to perturbations are crucial during adaptation, particularly when the batch size is 1. Based on these insights, we highlight promising directions for future research. Our benchmarking toolkit and source code are available at https://github.com/Jo-wang/OTTA_ViT_survey.