bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Lagrangian investigation of the correlation of helicity with coherent flow characteristics for turbulent transport
Authors: Pham Oanh L. , Papavassiliou Dimitrios V.
Published: January 2024

The correlation between helicity and turbulent transport in turbulent flows is probed with the use of direct numerical simulation and Lagrangian scalar tracking. Channel flow and plane Couette flow at friction Reynolds number 300 and Lagrangian data along the trajectories of fluid particles and passive particles with Schmidt numbers 0.7 and 6 are used. The goal is to identify characteristics of the flow that enhance turbulent transport from the wall, and how flow regions that exhibit these characteristics are related to helicity. The relationship between vorticity and relative helicity along particle trajectories is probed, and the relationship between the distribution of helicity conditioned on Reynolds stress quadrants is also evaluated. More importantly, the correlation between relative helicity density and the alignment of vorticity with velocity vectors and eigenvectors of the rate of strain tensor is presented. Separate computations for particles that disperse the farthest into the flow field and those that disperse the least are conducted to determine the flow structures that contribute to turbulent dispersion. The joint distribution of helicity and vertical velocity, and helicity and vertical vorticity depends on the location of particle release and the Schmidt number. The trajectories of particles that disperse the least are characterized by a correlation between the absolute value of the relative helicity density and the absolute value of the cosine between the vorticity vector and the eigenvectors of the rate of strain tensor, while the value of this correlation approaches zero for the particles that disperse the most.
Synaptic plasticity and memory mimicked in solution-processed K-doped CuI thin film transistors
Authors: Lei Jiangyun , Dou Wei , Hou Wei , Gan Xiaomin , Jiang Guanggang , Yin Yanling , Yang Jia , Deng Pufan , Tang Dongsheng
Published: January 2024

Low-voltage electric double layer p-type thin film transistors (TFTs) were fabricated on glass substrates with copper iodide doped with potassium iodide (Cu0.95K0.05Ix) as the channel and chitosan as the dielectric. Cu0.95K0.05Ix TFTs exhibited Ion/Ioff ratio of 2.5 × 104, subthreshold swing of 30 mV/dec, threshold voltage of 1.34 V, operating voltage of 2 V, and saturation field-effect mobility of 16.6 cm2 V−1 s−1. The relaxation phenomenon induced by ion migration was effectively utilized, enabling Cu0.95K0.05Ix TFTs to simulate various synaptic plasticity functions. When a pulse is applied, the drain current reaches a peak, but it takes more time for the current to return to its equilibrium position after the pulse is removed, demonstrating the short-term memory (STM) characteristics of Cu0.95K0.05Ix TFT. It was observed an increasing trend in excitatory postsynaptic current (EPSC) with enhanced pulse width and amplitude, and when the pulse amplitude increased to −10 V, the TFT transitioned from STM to long-term memory characteristics. Furthermore, the measurement of consecutive EPSC revealed the paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) characteristics, with a gradual decrease in the PPF coefficient as the time interval increased, and a selective stronger response to high-frequency signals. Based on the aforementioned research, by extending the device structure to a dual in-plane-gate structure configuration and applying different pulse voltage sequences on the dual gate, the NOR logic functionality was achieved. The study demonstrates the significant potential of p-type Cu0.95K0.05Ix TFTs in the field of synaptic bionics, simulating human learning and memory, and neural chips.
Assimilating experimental data of a mean three-dimensional separated flow using physics-informed neural networks
Authors: Steinfurth B. , Weiss J.
Published: January 2024

In this article, we address the capabilities of physics-informed neural networks (PINNs) in assimilating the experimentally acquired mean flow of a turbulent separation bubble occurring in a diffuser test section. The training database contains discrete mean pressure and wall shear-stress fields measured on the diffuser surface as well as three-component velocity vectors obtained with particle image velocimetry throughout the volumetric flow domain. Imperfections arise from the measurement uncertainty and the inability to acquire velocity data in the near-wall region. We show that the PINN methodology is suited to handle both of these issues thanks to the incorporation of the underlying physics that, in the present study, are taken into account by minimizing residuals of the three-dimensional incompressible Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations. As a result, measurement errors are rectified and near-wall velocity profiles are predicted reliably. The latter benefits from the incorporation of wall shear-stress data into the PINN training, which has not been attempted so far to the best of our knowledge. In addition to demonstrating the influence of this novel loss term, we provide a three-dimensional, highly resolved, and differentiable model of a separating and reattaching flow that can be readily used in future studies.
Generalized nonequilibrium Fermi’s golden rule and its semiclassical approximations for electronic transitions between multiple states
Authors: Sun Xiang , Zhang Xiaofang , Liu Zengkui
Published: January 2024

The nonequilibrium Fermi’s golden rule (NE-FGR) approach is developed to simulate the electronic transitions between multiple excited states in complex condensed-phase systems described by the recently proposed multi-state harmonic (MSH) model Hamiltonian. The MSH models were constructed to faithfully capture the photoinduced charge transfer dynamics in a prototypical organic photovoltaic carotenoid-porphyrin-C60 molecular triad dissolved in tetrahydrofuran. A general expression of the fully quantum-mechanical NE-FGR rate coefficients for transitions between all pairs of states in the MSH model is obtained. Besides, the linearized semiclassical NE-FGR formula and a series of semiclassical approximations featuring Wigner and classical nuclear sampling choices and different dynamics during the quantum coherence period for the MSH model are derived. The current approach enables all the possible population transfer pathways between the excited states of the triad, in contrast to the previous applications that only addressed the donor-to-acceptor transition. Our simulations for two triad conformations serve as a demonstration for benchmarking different NE-FGR approximations and show that the difference between all levels of approximation is small for the current system, especially at room temperature. By comparing with nonadiabatic semiclassical dynamics, we observe similar timescales for the electronic population transfer predicted by NE-FGR. It is believed that the general formulation of NE-FGR for the MSH Hamiltonian enables a variety of applications in realistic systems.
Isometry property and inversion of a spherical mean Radon transform with centers on a hyperplane
Authors: Kim Jeongmin , Moon Sunghwan
Published: January 2024

The spherical mean Radon transform maps a suitable function f to the integral of f over a sphere. This transform is used in photoacoustic tomography based on the wave equation. There have been studies on the spherical mean Radon transform, including a method that uses an isometry property. In this paper, we demonstrate that the spherical mean Radon transform can be expressed as a convolution with specific (generalized) functions. Additionally, we provide an inversion formula for the spherical mean Radon transform, which is derived from the isometry property of the spherical mean Radon transform.
Proper magnetic materials selection method for AC filter inductor design used in single phase PWM inverters
Authors: Yamaguchi Taisei , Matsumori Hiroaki
Published: January 2024

The use of wide-bandgap devices such as SiC and GaN has improved the efficiency and power density of power converters compared with conventional Si devices. However, a significant portion of the efficiency loss and volume in power converters is attributed to the magnetic components, particularly the challenges of miniaturization and loss reduction. This is due to the use of nonsinusoidal waveforms, with high-frequency switching of the PWM inverter introducing ripple components that exhibit complex loss characteristics. In this study, we propose a method for selecting magnetic materials for AC filter inductors based on loss and volume considerations. In addition, the effectiveness of the proposed method is validated through experiments.
Oscillation of interlayer coupling in epitaxial FePd|Ir|FePd(001) perpendicular synthetic antiferromagnet
Authors: Shoup Jenae E. , Gopman Daniel B
Published: January 2024

L10 FePd is a promising candidate material for spin memory devices, especially when paired with Ir as an interlayer coupling layer, leading to significant interlayer exchange coupling (IEC) energy between ferromagnetic layers and strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Synthetic antiferromagnets (SAFs) are emphasized for spintronic applications, offering advantages like quick magnetization switching and enhanced stability. This study presents findings on the influence of Ir spacer thickness on the structural and magnetic properties of FePd SAFs, highlighting lattice matching and coherence throughout the entire SAF structure and revealing a maximum interlayer exchange energy of 3 mJ/m2. We suggest the potential of this FePd|Ir|FePd system as a building block for future spintronic applications.
Pain in Sheep
Authors: McLennan Krista M.
Published: January 2024

Pain in sheep can occur for a variety of reasons, including disease, injury, and naturally through parturition. Sheep, as a prey species, do not overtly express pain making it challenging for owners and veterinarians to recognise and thus effectively treat pain. By observing facial expressions, it is possible to recognise and quantify the pain a sheep may be experiencing. This enables the provision of treatment and the prevention of any further suffering.

Information

© The Author 2024
Pulsed surface acoustic waves accelerate wound healing and reveal new parameter limits for cell stimulation in vitro
Authors: Baumgartner Kathrin , Täufer Paul , Lienhart Michelle , Lienhart Rainer , Westerhausen Christoph
Published: January 2024

The use of surface acoustic waves (SAW) in cell biology has gained high attention in the past years. Previous works show that SAW treatment of artificial wounds in vitro can accelerate wound healing by up to +135%. However, little is known about the mechanobiology behind these effects, and a stimulation has only been proven for continuous SAW signals so far. We here show that the stimulation efficacy observed in previous studies is preserved for pulsed stimuli applied to Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK-II) cells in wound healing assays on SAW chips at a resonance frequency f
SAW = 160 MHz. Moreover, for a reproducible and reliable image analysis, we present the SegFormer-based deep learning algorithm Neural Cell Edge Detector for the cell edge segmentation and image binarization, that allows an automated determination of the stimulation efficacy. With these tools, we explore a wider range of applicable SAW intensities up to P
in = 21 dBm (128 mW) with a maximum stimulation efficacy of E = 201%. We show that the order of magnitude of the stimulation effect is reproducible under the variation of SAW signal characteristics power P
in, duty cycle D and pulse width τ, while the mean energy over time is constant. Below a distinct pulse duration limit τ = 100 ms, no direct stimulation effect was observed. From a mechanobiological point of view, these findings and time scales could narrow down the potentially triggered cellular mechanisms during the stimulation.
Terahertz-frequency oscillator driven by spin–orbit torque in NiF2/Pt bilayers
Authors: Wang Zidong , Xu Hua , Shen Xiangyan , Liu Yan
Published: January 2024

Exploration and manipulation of terahertz signal generators are crucial steps in the creation of numerous applications. Antiferromagnets can boost output signal frequency to the terahertz range. We propose a nanometer-scale generating device that produces terahertz signals by DC-exciting in a bilayer structure. The structure comprises a heavy metal layer (Pt) and a non-collinear antiferromagnetic layer (NiF2), where the magnetic moments in NiF2 with single-ion anisotropy are excited by the spin current from the Pt layer through spin–orbit torque. The inhomogeneous dynamic behaviors of the magnetic moments of NiF2 are calculated by the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation. It is found that terahertz-frequency AC can be reliably output from the bilayer structure, with the frequency that can reach to 1.82 terahertz. The oscillator shows the best performance when the polarized direction of the spin current is along the hard-axis of NiF2. The frequency and the amplitude of the AC can be adjusted by the current density, thickness and damping constant of the NiF2 layer. The threshold currents for exciting and maintaining the stable oscillation increase with the thickness and damping constant of the NiF2.
Intrinsic high frequency permeability of magnetic nanocomposites: uncertainty principle
Authors: Han Mangui
Published: January 2024

The intrinsic high frequency permeability spectra of ferromagnetic conductive nanocomposites containing different volume fractions of nanoscale iron and cobalt have been simulated. A law is proposed to explain the simulated results by assuming that there are plenty of Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert (LLG) type natural resonances contributing to the intrinsic permeability spectra. The results clearly show that the spectra strongly depend on the distribution of local effective magnetic field, the interaction between the magnetic particles, the inhomogeneous damping constant of LLG precession, and the initial equilibrium states. Especially, the effect of particles shape distribution in each sampling on the local effective magnetic field. In view of this fact: it is absolutely impossible to have the same effect from these factors when someone prepares several measurement samples, an uncertainty principle is believed to hold for measuring the intrinsic permeability of an electromagnetic (EM) composite. Therefore, this law tells us that it should be cautious when comparing or evaluating the EM properties of composites (for instance, EM wave absorbing composites). Memory effect can be used to restore the intrinsic high frequency permeability for a specific defunct composite sample.
Pseudo-fermion functional renormalization group for spin models
Authors: Müller Tobias , Kiese Dominik , Niggemann Nils , Sbierski Björn , Reuther Johannes , Trebst Simon , Thomale Ronny , Iqbal Yasir
Published: January 2024

For decades, frustrated quantum magnets have been a seed for scientific progress and innovation in condensed matter. As much as the numerical tools for low-dimensional quantum magnetism have thrived and improved in recent years due to breakthroughs inspired by quantum information and quantum computation, higher-dimensional quantum magnetism can be considered as the final frontier, where strong quantum entanglement, multiple ordering channels, and manifold ways of paramagnetism culminate. At the same time, efforts in crystal synthesis have induced a significant increase in the number of tangible frustrated magnets which are generically three-dimensional in nature, creating an urgent need for quantitative theoretical modeling. We review the pseudo-fermion (PF) and pseudo-Majorana (PM) functional renormalization group (FRG) and their specific ability to address higher-dimensional frustrated quantum magnetism. First developed more than a decade ago, the PFFRG interprets a Heisenberg model Hamiltonian in terms of Abrikosov pseudofermions, which is then treated in a diagrammatic resummation scheme formulated as a renormalization group flow of m-particle pseudofermion vertices. The article reviews the state of the art of PFFRG and PMFRG and discusses their application to exemplary domains of frustrated magnetism, but most importantly, it makes the algorithmic and implementation details of these methods accessible to everyone. By thus lowering the entry barrier to their application, we hope that this review will contribute towards establishing PFFRG and PMFRG as the numerical methods for addressing frustrated quantum magnetism in higher spatial dimensions.
Beyond Kitaev physics in strong spin-orbit coupled magnets
Authors: Rousochatzakis Ioannis , Perkins Natalia B , Luo Qiang , Kee Hae-Young
Published: January 2024

We review the recent advances and current challenges in the field of strong spin-orbit coupled Kitaev materials, with a particular emphasis on the physics beyond the exactly-solvable Kitaev spin liquid point. To this end, we present a comprehensive overview of the key exchange interactions in candidate materials with a specific focus on systems featuring effective

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cobaltates. Our exploration covers the microscopic origins of these interactions, along with a systematic attempt to map out the most intriguing correlated regimes of the multi-dimensional parameter space. Our approach is guided by robust symmetry and duality transformations as well as insights from a wide spectrum of analytical and numerical studies. We also survey higher spin Kitaev models and recent exciting results on quasi-one-dimensional models and discuss their relevance to higher-dimensional models. Finally, we highlight some of the key questions in the field as well as future directions.
Design and development of Low Gain Avalanche Detectors using Teledyne e2v process
Authors: Giulio Villani E. , Allport P. , Ball K. , Bell R. , Bortoletto D. , Gazi M. , Gonella L. , Hynds D. , Jordan D. , Kopsalis I. , McMahon S. , Mulvey J. , Plackett R. , Weatherill D.
Published: January 2024

The Low Gain Avalanche Detectors (LGAD) has become the preferred technological choice for fast track timing detectors in High Energy Physics applications. Additional uses of such sensors are currently being investigated, ranging from Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) to Low Let particle dosimetry in medical and space applications. This paper describes the development and test of LGAD devices, fabricated using a commercial process from Teledyne e2v silicon foundry. Motivation behind the project, and details of the TCAD simulations of the manufacturing process and of the electrical performances of the devices will be provided. Test results on gain and time resolution using laser injection will also be shown.
Optimization study for RF cavity and beam dynamics simulation in the electron linear accelerator using the multi-objective genetic algorithm
Authors: Kim Chanmi , Park Chong Shik , Kim Eun-San , Shin Seung Hwan , Park Seong Hee , Min Chang-Ki , Byeon Woo Jun
Published: January 2024

This work presents an optimization study on the RF cavity
geometry design and beam dynamics of an electron injector linac for
the Korea Fourth-Generation Storage Ring (Korea-4GSR). It is
challenging to achieve an optimal design for a linac system due to
the nonlinear nature of accelerator system and the associated beam
dynamics with numerous knobs to control. To address this challenge,
we employed the Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA) for
efficient optimization. Through the utilization of MOGA, we
effectively optimized the electron linac for the Korea-4GSR. The
optimized design yielded a horizontal normalized rms emittance of
approximately 3.79 mm-mrad and an energy spread of about
307.37 keV, which met design requirements of the Korea-4GSR. This
approach facilitated the design of an electron linac tailored for
the Korea-4GSR with enhanced efficiency and effectiveness.
Surface and subsurface damage of fused quartz glass induced by shear-thickening polishing
Authors: Wang Jin-Hu , He Hong-Chen , Liu Meng-Qing , Wang Shu-Qi , Lyu Bing-Hai , Huang Feng-Li , Yuan Ju-Long
Published: January 2024

Fused quartz glass is widely used in the civil and national defense fields. Shear-thickening polishing (STP) technology is highly efficient for processing quartz glass. However, the surface and subsurface damage (SSD) caused by STP have yet to be studied. In this study, the SSD characteristics of quartz glass after STP were examined using chemical etching and nanoindentation tests. The Sa (average roughness) of the fused quartz glass after 30 min of STP was 1.6 nm and the embedded depth of impurities was approximately 30 nm. The 3D morphology of the Beilby layer was sensitive to the chemical etching time, disappearing when the etching time was 120 s (at which point the Beilby layer with a depth ranging from 97 to 144 nm was completely removed). From various analysis methods, it can be inferred that the SSD depth was between 4.8–6.7 μm. To confirm that the above SSD came from the grinding or STP process, the polished fused silica glass was etched for 150 min to remove the SSD, after which it was polished for 30 min to regain its smooth surface; the workpieces were then etched again and the Sa and 3D morphology were compared with the workpiece which had no damage removal. The results showed that STP did not introduce new SSD and was a near-lossless polishing technique under the conditions used in this study. STP can achieve an extremely low surface roughness, efficiently; however, the depth of material removal is insufficient, and the SSD caused by the grinding process remains.
Microstructure and mechanical properties of a newly developed Ti-6Al-2Mo-2Sn-2Zr-2Cr-2V alloy fabricated by laser directed energy deposition
Authors: Wang C , Yi J Z , Yang G , Wang J X , Wu J B , Zhu Z , Wang C X
Published: January 2024

With the rapid development of aviation industry, the study of novel titanium (Ti) alloy with superior mechanical properties is of great significance. In this paper, a newly developed Ti-6Al-2Mo-2Sn-2Zr-2Cr-2V alloy was fabricated by laser directed energy deposition (L-DED), which exhibits coarse β columnar grains containing the basket-weave structure knitted with α phases and β phases. After solution and aging heat-treatment, the fine secondary α phase precipitates, which leads to the increase in microhardness. The as-deposited sample exhibits the tensile strength of 1025 MPa and the elongation of 6.0%. With solution temperature increasing, the strength increases but the plasticity first increases and then decreases. The fracture mechanism shows a mixed of ductile and brittle fracture. The average impact toughness of as-deposited sample in building direction is 40.9 J cm−2 higher than that (23.4 J cm−2) in direction perpendicular to building direction. After solution and aging heat-treatment, the impact toughness improves significantly.
What Happens When Rural Modernity Ceases to be Modern?
Authors: Anderson Ben , Kelly Matthew
Published: January 2024

The legitimacy of the infrastructures, buildings and landscapes discussed elsewhere in this volume rested on their claim to modernity. The changes they wrought could only be tolerated or celebrated while they could be tacked onto contemporary imaginations of progress: they were allowed to be new landscapes only while they promised new lives. In this chapter, we investigate what happened when two such sites of modernity ceased to be modern: Chatterley Whitfield Colliery in North Staffordshire, and Fawley Power Station on Southampton Water, overlooking the Solent, both the subjects of the Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project ‘Decommissioning the Twentieth Century’. At Chatterley Whitfield, a long decline and eventual closure precipitated the opening of a museum, and what appeared a bright future in heritage, while at Fawley, the future of the station rapidly came to appear preordained by the circumstances in which it was built in the first place. We argue that despite their differing trajectories, these two case studies exemplify both the continued deep-seated cultural significance of rural modernism, and the vulnerability of such sites to renewed visions of what it might mean to be ‘modern’.
Building Equity in Theoretical Linguistics and the Classroom
Authors: Holliday Nicole , Fisher Sabriya
Published: January 2024

The contested status of particular languages and linguistic varieties in classrooms across the world is a subject of intense interest on the part of linguists, educators, and members of the public alike. This chapter discusses the way linguistic variation operates and/or breaks down in school settings as well as the wider social consequences of how language is seen in the classroom. The chapter examines the ways in which language practices that do not serve a diverse set of students may be addressed, as well as suggests a number of types of interventions that may begin to improve linguistic equity in school settings. In particular, it focuses on the role of linguistics as an arena for addressing issues of equality, diversity and inclusion in the pre-university classroom.
The Implementation of Linguistics in Norwegian National Curricula
Authors: Eiesland Eli Anne , Fløgstad Guro Nore
Published: January 2024

Norway is characterized by its rich linguistic diversity, both in terms of dialect usage and old and new multilingualism. This chapter asks how the linguistic variation present in Norway is reflected in legislation related to education and in national curricula. Several aspects of linguistic variation and tolerance are reflected in legislation, for instance in the explicit rights of pupils and teachers to use their dialect in the classroom, and in the rights of pupils with other first languages than Norwegian to adapted education. While curricula explicitly mention and value linguistic variation, we find that linguistic terminology is mostly used in connection with writing, and valued as a form of metalanguage. The chapter discusses how linguists can work within teacher training programs in order to strengthen the position of linguistics in Norwegian classrooms.
Scientia ex Machina: A Cross-Curricular Classroom Introduction to General Linguistics
Authors: Casadellà Marina , Martín Txuss , Marín Rafael
Published: January 2024

Education is changing, and experiences of pedagogic innovation are increasingly in demand in the market. At the same time, it is however not always easy to find ways to transfer higher academic knowledge into engaging materials that can be effectively used by the teachers and pupils in primary and secondary education, particularly materials that speak a language familiar to younger pupils. This chapter presents an attempt to fill that gap by means of a collection of comic books in paper and digital formats devoted to scientific topics. The initiative, funded by the Catalan Foundation for Research and Innovation, is in its initial stages, and dedicates its first series to linguistics, particularly to those topics where this field interacts with other sciences. Each comic book presents a concrete topic in the form of a fiction story based on research, combined with documentation content and learning activities to be developed in the classroom. Through those materials, pupils will get to know the state of the art in many of the topics the collection presents, and this will foster vocations and raise general interest for our field.
Truth, Territory, Terror
Authors: Whyte Jeffrey
Published: January 2024

This chapter details how, upon entry into World War II, the United States developed its own programs to wage psychological war. It shows how American psychological warfare heralded itself as an abstract and idealized ‘strategy of truth’ that could rise above the fray of territorial and geopolitical contests. Contrary to this anti-geopolitical framing, this chapter argues that American psychological warfare was in fact a deeply territorial project to advance Allied fronts, pacify the populations behind them, open new markets for US cultural exports, and establish the network of information outposts that would become the United States Information Agency (USIA). In addition, this chapter explores how American psychological warfare became tied and subordinated to strategies of aerial bombing. While on the American home front the ‘strategy of truth’ claimed to be a humane, social-scientific alternative to the violence of war, in the European and Pacific theatres it increasingly became a punitive strategy that provided both rationales and justifications for the bombing of civilian populations.
The Complex Picture of the Chibanian Hominin Record at the Crossroads of Europe and Asia
Authors: Roksandic Mirjana , Radović Predrag , Lindal Joshua
Published: January 2024

The Chibanian age (formerly the Middle Pleistocene) holds a special place in human evolution as the time which evidenced most of the morphological developments associated with the direct ancestors of modern humans. With the timing of the split between the ancestors of modern humans and Neanderthals being pushed to the Calabrian (Early Pleistocene), and the evidence for an in situ evolution of Neanderthals in Western Europe during the Chibanian, understanding the hominin populations and interactions in the Balkans in this critical period becomes paramount. The Balkan Peninsula occupies an important crossroads between Europe and Western Asia. Because of its geographic position, it holds the key to resolving several major questions about the evolution and migrations of ancient humans. In addition to being a potential route of population movement between the Levant, Anatolia and Western Europe, the Balkans are a hotspot of biodiversity which served as a biotic refugium during cold glacial periods. Throughout the Pleistocene, the Balkans provided ideal conditions for human settlement, at the contact of the Continental and the Mediterranean climate zones. This allowed human groups to establish themselves in the mountainous regions along the corridors, presenting opportunities for interaction with incoming migrating groups. Hominin fossil evidence from the Balkan Peninsula viewed in its regional context is starting to build a complex picture of human evolution in the region, which includes the simultaneous presence, and likely interaction, of multiple hominin groups.
Late Glacial Ceramic Innovation and Symbolism from the Balkans in its Wider Context
Authors: Farbstein Rebecca
Published: January 2024

Ceramic technologies are widely associated with Holocene-aged archaeological technocomplexes, and the term ‘ceramic’ is sometimes used interchangeably with ‘pottery’. However, thousands of ceramic artefacts excavated from early Gravettian (‘Pavlovian’) sites in Czech Republic demonstrate that ceramic technologies are more than 30,000 years old. Moreover, these earliest iterations were used to make symbolic material culture, rather than functional pottery. The discovery of a large assemblage of ceramic figurines in late Palaeolithic contexts at Vela Spila, Croatia, along with smaller, isolated ceramic assemblages from Eastern Europe and northern Africa, demonstrates the wide geographic scope of Palaeolithic symbolic ceramics. This chapter compares the ceramic records from Croatia to those found elsewhere in Eurasia, with special focus on the Pavlovian figurines. We consider both the technologies of production and the aesthetics of the ‘finished’ artefacts. Can these two geographically and chronologically disparate iterations be interpreted as the result of cultural continuity? What are the implications of these assemblages for our broader understanding of the scope of Upper Palaeolithic artistic and technological repertoires across Europe?
Refugial Foragers to Invasive Farmers: Socio-environmental Transitions During the Early Holocene in the Balkans
Authors: Linden Marc Vander
Published: January 2024

The early Holocene in the Balkans is synonymous with extensive transformations of both environments and human societies. The new climatic conditions indeed led to a spatial expansion of thermophilous (warmth-loving) plant and animal species that were previously confined to refugial areas, eventually reshaping the local biomes, while glacial species disappeared from the region. These processes were paralleled by profound transformations in the distribution of the foraging populations, the existing yet sparse documentation suggesting clustering in specific ecological niches (e.g., Iron Gates, shores of the Adriatic coast). It is upon this template that, towards the second half of the 9th millennium calBP, cultigens and animal domesticates appear in the local archaeological record, apparently under the impetus of an incoming population of eventual Near Eastern origins, as suggested by recent ancient DNA (aDNA) research. This contribution will review the available environmental and archaeological evidence for the early Holocene, focusing on the extent to which ecological factors drove variation in human behaviours, especially food acquisition techniques (either foraging or farming). Particular attention will also be devoted to the identification and characterisation of population history as inferred from multiple categories of evidence, such as the 14C record, settlement patterns and aDNA.
How Elections to the European Parliament Depress Turnout
Authors: Franklin Mark N. , Hobolt Sara B.
Published: January 2024

Why has turnout in European Parliament elections remained so low, despite attempts to expand the parliament’s powers? One possible answer is that because little is at stake in these second‐order elections only those with an established habit of voting, acquired in previous national elections, can be counted on to vote. Others argue that low turnout is an indication of apathy or even scepticism towards Europe. This chapter conducts a critical test of the ‘little at stake’ hypothesis by focusing on a testable implication: that turnout at these elections will be particularly low on the part of voters not yet socialized into habitual voting. This proposition is examined using both time‐series cross‐section analyses and a regression discontinuity design. The chapter's findings show that EP elections depress turnout as they inculcate habits of non‐voting, with long‐term implications for political participation in EU member states.
How European Elections Affect National Party Systems
Authors: Markowski Radosław
Published: January 2024

The aim of the chapter is to analyse the electoral fate of new parties established during the elections to the European Parliament. The analyses cover the 1999 through 2009 elections and distinguishes between party systems of the stable and fragile European democracies. A set of sociological and political factors are accounted for as potential determinants of the fate of those new parties. The results indicate that EP elections provide an ‘opportunity structure’ for new parties to emerge. And indeed some of these parties survive the first demanding test at the national elections that follow. However, such parties are in minority—out of forty‐two new parties identified in 1999, 2004, and 2009 elections only ten recorded success in forthcoming national elections. Successful parties are those that show higher coherence of their electoral base, higher quality of representation, more temporal electoral loyalty, and more political–attitudinal consistency of their followers.
Campaigning on or Downplaying European Union Integration?
Authors: Adam Silke , Maier Michaela
Published: January 2024

The chapter analyses parties’ public campaign communications in the run‐up to the 2009 European election. The chapter asks how much salience parties attach to issues with a European dimension, which parties do so, and which factors help us understand whether they do so. Empirically we combine a content analysis of parties’ televised campaign spots with secondary data on parties, citizens as well as electoral timing in eleven EU countries; seven of these Western countries (Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom) and four Eastern European countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland). Our findings show that salience regarding Europe varies among parties, issues, and countries, thereby communicating Europe turns out to be an evasion strategy of parties that are weak on the national level and to be shaped by co‐orientation towards the other parties in the same country.
From data to diagnosis: how machine learning is revolutionizing biomarker discovery in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies
Authors: McLeish Emily , Slater Nataliya , Mastaglia Frank L , Needham Merrilee , Coudert Jerome D
Published: January 2024

Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) are a heterogeneous group of muscle disorders including adult and juvenile dermatomyositis, polymyositis, immune-mediated necrotising myopathy and sporadic inclusion body myositis, all of which present with variable symptoms and disease progression. The identification of effective biomarkers for IIMs has been challenging due to the heterogeneity between IIMs and within IIM subgroups, but recent advances in machine learning (ML) techniques have shown promises in identifying novel biomarkers. This paper reviews recent studies on potential biomarkers for IIM and evaluates their clinical utility. We also explore how data analytic tools and ML algorithms have been used to identify biomarkers, highlighting their potential to advance our understanding and diagnosis of IIM and improve patient outcomes. Overall, ML techniques have great potential to revolutionize biomarker discovery in IIMs and lead to more effective diagnosis and treatment.
sRNAfrag: a pipeline and suite of tools to analyze fragmentation in small RNA sequencing data
Authors: Nakatsu Ken , Jijiwa Mayumi , Khadka Vedbar , Nasu Masaki , Deng Youping
Published: January 2024

Fragments derived from small RNAs such as small nucleolar RNAs are biologically relevant but remain poorly understood. To address this gap, we developed sRNAfrag, a modular and interoperable tool designed to standardize the quantification and analysis of small RNA fragmentation across various biotypes. The tool outputs a set of tables forming a relational database, allowing for an in-depth exploration of biologically complex events such as multi-mapping and RNA fragment stability across different cell types. In a benchmark test, sRNAfrag was able to identify established loci of mature microRNAs solely based on sequencing data. Furthermore, the 5’ seed sequence could be rediscovered by utilizing a visualization approach primarily applied in multi-sequence-alignments. Utilizing the relational database outputs, we detected 1411 snoRNA fragment conservation events between two out of four eukaryotic species, providing an opportunity to explore motifs through evolutionary time and conserved fragmentation patterns. Additionally, the tool’s interoperability with other bioinformatics tools like ViennaRNA amplifies its utility for customized analyses. We also introduce a novel loci-level variance-score which provides insights into the noise around peaks and demonstrates biological relevance by distinctly separating breast cancer and neuroblastoma cell lines after dimension reduction when applied to small nucleolar RNAs. Overall, sRNAfrag serves as a versatile foundation for advancing our understanding of small RNA fragments and offers a functional foundation to further small RNA research. Availability: https://github.com/kenminsoo/sRNAfrag.
MHCLMDA: multihypergraph contrastive learning for miRNA–disease association prediction
Authors: Peng Wei , He Zhichen , Dai Wei , Lan Wei
Published: January 2024

The correct prediction of disease-associated miRNAs plays an essential role in disease prevention and treatment. Current computational methods to predict disease-associated miRNAs construct different miRNA views and disease views based on various miRNA properties and disease properties and then integrate the multiviews to predict the relationship between miRNAs and diseases. However, most existing methods ignore the information interaction among the views and the consistency of miRNA features (disease features) across multiple views. This study proposes a computational method based on multiple hypergraph contrastive learning (MHCLMDA) to predict miRNA–disease associations. MHCLMDA first constructs multiple miRNA hypergraphs and disease hypergraphs based on various miRNA similarities and disease similarities and performs hypergraph convolution on each hypergraph to capture higher order interactions between nodes, followed by hypergraph contrastive learning to learn the consistent miRNA feature representation and disease feature representation under different views. Then, a variational auto-encoder is employed to extract the miRNA and disease features in known miRNA–disease association relationships. Finally, MHCLMDA fuses the miRNA and disease features from different views to predict miRNA–disease associations. The parameters of the model are optimized in an end-to-end way. We applied MHCLMDA to the prediction of human miRNA–disease association. The experimental results show that our method performs better than several other state-of-the-art methods in terms of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve and the area under the precision-recall curve.
scKWARN: Kernel-weighted-average robust normalization for single-cell RNA-seq data
Authors: Hsu Chih-Yuan , Chang Chia-Jung , Liu Qi , Shyr Yu
Published: January 2024

Motivation

Single-cell RNA-seq normalization is an essential step to correct unwanted biases caused by sequencing depth, capture efficiency, dropout, and other technical factors. Existing normalization methods primarily reduce biases arising from sequencing depth by modeling count-depth relationship and/or assuming a specific distribution for read counts. However, these methods may lead to over or under-correction due to presence of technical biases beyond sequencing depth and the restrictive assumption on models and distributions.

Results

We present scKWARN, a Kernel Weighted Average Robust Normalization designed to correct known or hidden technical confounders without assuming specific data distributions or count-depth relationships. scKWARN generates a pseudo expression profile for each cell by borrowing information from its fuzzy technical neighbors through a kernel smoother. It then compares this profile against the reference derived from cells with the same bimodality patterns to determine the normalization factor. As demonstrated in both simulated and real datasets, scKWARN outperforms existing methods in removing a variety of technical biases while preserving true biological heterogeneity.

Availability and Implementation

scKWARN is freely available at https://github.com/cyhsuTN/scKWARN.
Corrigendum to: Adaptive FEM with quasi-optimal overall cost for nonsymmetric linear elliptic PDEs
Authors: Brunner Maximilian , Innerberger Michael , Miraçi Ani , Praetorius Dirk , Streitberger Julian , Heid Pascal
Published: January 2024

Unfortunately, there is a flaw in the numerical analysis of the published version [IMA J. Numer. Anal., DOI:10.1093/imanum/drad039], which is corrected here. Neither the algorithm nor the results are affected, but constants have to be adjusted.
Ecological and morphological correlations in the setation patterns of Gammarus Fabricius, 1775 (Amphipoda) from the southern Zagros Mountains, Iran
Authors: Zamanpoore Mehrdad , Pöckl Manfred , Schiemer Friedrich
Published: January 2024

The southern limits of the Zagros Mountains (Iran) include various aquatic habitats ranging from cold purely fresh to warm saline springs, many of them in isolated watershed basins. Diverse habitats could be correlated with morphological variation in freshwater taxa, as in for example, highly variable patterns of setation in amphipods. We measured length and density of the setae on selected appendages in six species of Gammarus Fabricius, 1775 collected from 14 locations (two species being sympatric) and tested for correlation with seasonal mean water temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity, and pH of their respective habitats. The results were analyzed using analysis of variance, linear model, and correlation analysis. These regions showed significant variation in the selected ecological factors, and the species had significantly different patterns of setation. It may be supposed that increasing setation in gammarids can improve ventilating activity and hence their respiratory efficiency at higher temperatures and salinity conditions. This correlation may reflect selective pressure on the speciation of gammaridean amphipods in the southern Zagros region.
The relationship of pain catastrophizing with postoperative patient-reported outcome measures in adults with pre-arthritic hip disease
Authors: Pacheco-Brousseau Lissa , Poitras Stéphane , Ricard Marc-Antoine , Kashanian Koorosh , Carsen Sasha , Wilkin Geoffrey , Grammatopoulos George , Beaulé Paul E
Published: January 2024

The association between preoperative pain catastrophizing and postoperative patient-reported outcome measures of patients with pre-arthritic hip disease was evaluated. All patients scheduled for joint-preserving surgeries of the hip (JPSH) at our institution were approached. Patient demographics (age, sex, body mass index (BMI)), pain intensity (Numeric Pain Scale (NPS)) and pain catastrophizing (Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS)) were collected preoperatively. Patient function (12-Item International Hip Outcome Tool (iHot-12)) and physical and mental health (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS-10) mental/physical) were collected preoperatively, three-month and one-year postoperatively. The analysis consisted of multivariate linear regression models fitted for continuous scores of outcome measures at three-month and one-year. Correlation between preoperative PCS and iHot-12 was assessed using the Pearson correlation coefficient. A total of 274 patients completed the PCS and were included in the multivariate linear regression models. Most patients were females (66.8%), mean age was 33 (SD 9), mean BMI was 26.5 (SD 5.8) and most were diagnosed with femoro-acetabular impingement (46.0%) and underwent arthroscopy (77.0%). There were statistically significant correlations between PCS and iHot-12 (preoperatively −0.615, P < 0.001; three-month −0.242, P = 0.002). Statistically significant associations were found for function (three-month PCS P = 0.046, age P = 0.014, NPS P = 0.043; one-year BMI P = 0.005, NPS P = 0.014), physical health (three-month BMI, P = 0.002, NPS P = 0.008; one-year BMI P = 0.002, NPS P = 0.013) and mental health (three-month BMI P = 0.047; one-year BMI P = 0.030). There is an association between function and preoperative pain catastrophizing in patients with pre-arthritic hip disease undergoing JPSH. When considering confounding variables, preoperative pain catastrophizing is associated with short-term recovery.
Race Does Not Affect Rates of Surgical Complications at Military Treatment Facility
Authors: West Erin , Jackson Laurinda , Greene Howard , Lucas Donald J , Gadbois Kyle D , Choi Pamela M
Published: January 2024

Introduction

Racial minorities have been found to have worse health care outcomes, including perioperative adverse events. We hypothesized that these racial disparities may be mitigated in a military treatment facility, where all patients have a military service connection and are universally insured.

Materials and Methods

This is a single institution retrospective review of American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data for all procedures collected from 2017 to 2020. The primary outcome analyzed was risk-adjusted 30-day postoperative complications compared by race.

Results

There were 6,941 patients included. The overall surgical complication rate was 6.9%. The complication rate was 7.3% for White patients, 6.5% for Black patients, 12.6% for Asian patients, and 3.4% for other races. However, after performing patient and procedure level risk adjustment using multivariable logistic regression, race was not independently associated with surgical complications.

Conclusions

Risk-adjusted surgical complication rates do not vary by race at this military treatment facility. This suggests that postoperative racial disparities may be mitigated within a universal health care system.