bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Forest management scenarios drive future dynamics of Mediterranean planted pine forests under climate change
Authors: Suárez-Muñoz M. , Bonet-García F. J. , Navarro-Cerrillo R. , Herrero J. , Mina M.
Published: May 2023

Context

Planted pine forests are highly abundant communities in the Mediterranean Basin. Being the result of past reforestation, these forests show high species and structural homogeneity. Diversification to conifer-broadleaved mixed forests is recommended to promote adaptation to climate change and increase their resilience to perturbations.

Objectives

This study aims at evaluating how these planted pine forests will develop in the future as a result of the combined impacts of management and climate.

Methods

We applied a forest landscape model (LANDIS-II) to simulate different climate scenarios and management strategies designed in cooperation with forest managers to assess their effects on the performance of planted pine forests and their change in terms of forest composition.

Results

Climate change scenarios caused a shift in the phenological growth pattern of planted pine forests by reducing forest growth during summer and increasing photosynthetic productivity in spring and fall, particularly under high emission scenarios. Biomass increased through time and more strongly under climate change, but this increase differs among species, resulting in changes of forest types across the landscape. Our results portray natural succession as the main driver of forest change, but intensive management accelerated this process by limiting pine growth and promoting growth of oak species.

Conclusions

Our results highlight the importance of active management on planted pine forests to favour mixed and climate-adapted ecosystems in shorter time scales than offered by succession alone. Moreover, our spatially explicit modelling approach helps to identify areas where lack of seed dispersal and/or competitive exclusion prevent natural diversification, providing useful recommendations for interventions. However, the modelling approach has some limitations since it does not consider natural disturbances.

Graphical abstract
On the single partial Caputo derivatives for functions of two variables
Authors: Kamocki Rafał , Obczyński Cezary
Published: May 2023

In this work we propose definitions (distinguishable from the standard ones) of single partial derivatives in a Caputo sense of functions of two variables on the rectangle $$P=[0,a]\times [0,b]$$

P
=
[
0
,
a
]
×
[
0
,
b
]

. Next, we give an integral representation of functions possessing such derivatives. Finally, we apply these derivatives to the study of the existence and uniqueness of solutions and the continuous dependence of solutions on controls to a fractional counterpart of a nonlinear continuous Roesser type model.
Deep learning techniques for detection and prediction of pandemic diseases: a systematic literature review
Authors: Ajagbe Sunday Adeola , Adigun Matthew O.
Published: May 2023

Deep learning (DL) is becoming a fast-growing field in the medical domain and it helps in the timely detection of any infectious disease (IDs) and is essential to the management of diseases and the prediction of future occurrences. Many scientists and scholars have implemented DL techniques for the detection and prediction of pandemics, IDs and other healthcare-related purposes, these outcomes are with various limitations and research gaps. For the purpose of achieving an accurate, efficient and less complicated DL-based system for the detection and prediction of pandemics, therefore, this study carried out a systematic literature review (SLR) on the detection and prediction of pandemics using DL techniques. The survey is anchored by four objectives and a state-of-the-art review of forty-five papers out of seven hundred and ninety papers retrieved from different scholarly databases was carried out in this study to analyze and evaluate the trend of DL techniques application areas in the detection and prediction of pandemics. This study used various tables and graphs to analyze the extracted related articles from various online scholarly repositories and the analysis showed that DL techniques have a good tool in pandemic detection and prediction. Scopus and Web of Science repositories are given attention in this current because they contain suitable scientific findings in the subject area. Finally, the state-of-the-art review presents forty-four (44) studies of various DL technique performances. The challenges identified from the literature include the low performance of the model due to computational complexities, improper labeling and the absence of a high-quality dataset among others. This survey suggests possible solutions such as the development of improved DL-based techniques or the reduction of the output layer of DL-based architecture for the detection and prediction of pandemic-prone diseases as future considerations.
Do intangible assets help SMEs in underdeveloped markets gain access to external finance?—the case of Vietnam
Authors: Le Chau , Nguyen Bach , Vo Vinh
Published: May 2023

The credit frictions encountered by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have been widely examined in the entrepreneurship literature. Although theory suggests that asset tangibility helps increase firms’ borrowing capacity because it allows creditors to take possession of a firm’s assets more easily, this paper provides new evidence about the role of intangible assets in reducing credit frictions for SMEs. Using an extensive dataset of more than 155,852 SMEs in Vietnam and a multivariate probit model, we find that identifiable intangible assets improve firm access to debt and equity finance. Interestingly, it is found that the friction-reducing effect of intangibles is stronger on debt finance than on equity finance, suggesting non-equivalent distributional effects of intangible assets on firm capital structure. Moreover, firm age and size can moderate the association between intangibles and access to the two sources of external finance.
Situation-Based Connexive Logic
Authors: Giordani Alessandro
Published: May 2023

The aim of this paper is to present a system of modal connexive logic based on a situation semantics. In general, modal connexive logics are extensions of standard modal logics that incorporate Aristotle’s and Boethius’ theses, that is the thesis that a sentence cannot imply its negation and the thesis that a sentence cannot imply a pair of contradictory sentences. A key problem in devising a connexive logic is to come up with a system that is both sufficiently strong to fulfill some specific connexive theses and sufficiently well-motivated from a semantical point of view. The approach proposed here tries to address this problem by defining an appropriate connexive relation in terms of more basic notions. The result is a well-motivated system of modal connexive logic that nicely fits in both with the traditional ideas concerning the connexive conditional and with the current developments in connexive logic.
The potential oncogenic effect of tissue-specific expression of JC polyoma T antigen in digestive epithelial cells
Authors: Zheng Hua-chuan , Xue Hang , Sun Hong-zhi , Yun Wen-jing , Cui Zheng-guo
Published: May 2023

JC polyoma virus (JCPyV), a ubiquitous polyoma virus that commonly infects people, is identified as the etiologic factor for progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy and has been closely linked to various human cancers. Transgenic mice of CAG-loxp-Laz-loxp T antigen were established. T-antigen expression was specifically activated in gastroenterological target cells with a LacZ deletion using a cre-loxp system. Gastric poorly-differentiated carcinoma was observed in T antigen-activated mice using K19-cre (stem-like cells) and PGC-cre (chief cells), but not Atp4b-cre (parietal cells) or Capn8-cre (pit cells) mice. Spontaneous hepatocellular and colorectal cancers developed in Alb-cre (hepatocytes)/T antigen and villin-cre (intestinal cells)/T antigen transgenic mice respectively. Gastric, colorectal, and breast cancers were observed in PGC-cre/T antigen mice. Pancreatic insulinoma and ductal adenocarcinoma, gastric adenoma, and duodenal cancer were detected in Pdx1-cre/T antigen mice. Alternative splicing of T antigen mRNA occurred in all target organs of these transgenic mice. Our findings suggest that JCPyV T antigen might contribute to gastroenterological carcinogenesis with respect to cell specificity. Such spontaneous tumor models provide good tools for investigating the oncogenic roles of T antigen in cancers of the digestive system.
Short-term residential exposure to air pollution and risk of acute myocardial infarction deaths at home in China
Authors: Cheng Jian , Zheng Hao , Wei Jing , Huang Cunrui , Ho Hung Chak , Sun Shengzhi , Phung Dung , Kim Ho , Wang Xiling , Bai Zhongliang , Hossain Mohammad Zahid , Tong Shilu , Su Hong , Xu Zhiwei
Published: May 2023

Air pollution remains a major threat to cardiovascular health and most acute myocardial infarction (AMI) deaths occur at home. However, currently established knowledge on the deleterious effect of air pollution on AMI has been limited to routinely monitored air pollutants and overlooked the place of death. In this study, we examined the association between short-term residential exposure to China’s routinely monitored and unmonitored air pollutants and the risk of AMI deaths at home. A time-stratified case-crossover analysis was undertaken to associate short-term residential exposure to air pollution with 0.1 million AMI deaths at home in Jiangsu Province (China) during 2016–2019. Individual-level residential exposure to five unmonitored and monitored air pollutants including PM1 (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 1 μm) and PM2.5 (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm), SO2 (sulfur dioxide), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), and O3 (ozone) was estimated from satellite remote sensing and machine learning technique. We found that exposure to five air pollutants, even below the recently released stricter air quality standards of the World Health Organization (WHO), was all associated with increased odds of AMI deaths at home. The odds of AMI deaths increased by 20% (95% confidence interval: 8 to 33%), 22% (12 to 33%), 14% (2 to 27%), 13% (3 to 25%), and 7% (3 to 12%) for an interquartile range increase in PM1, PM2.5, SO2, NO2, and O3, respectively. A greater magnitude of association between NO2 or O3 and AMI deaths was observed in females and in the warm season. The greatest association between PM1 and AMI deaths was found in individuals aged ≤ 64 years. This study for the first time suggests that residential exposure to routinely monitored and unmonitored air pollutants, even below the newest WHO air quality standards, is still associated with higher odds of AMI deaths at home. Future studies are warranted to understand the biological mechanisms behind the triggering of AMI deaths by air pollution exposure, to develop intervention strategies to reduce AMI deaths triggered by air pollution exposure, and to evaluate the cost-effectiveness, accessibility, and sustainability of these intervention strategies.

Graphical abstract
Reduction of Pain After Laparoscopic Bariatric Surgery by Personalized Checkpoint Acupuncture—Data of a STRICTA Conform Pilot Study
Authors: Ghanad Erfan , Staff Sophie , Weiß Christel , Goncalves Mario , Santos Maria Joao , Correia Nuno , Vassilev Georgi , Herrle Florian , Reissfelder Christoph , Greten Henry Johannes , Otto Mirko , Yang Cui
Published: May 2023

Background

It
remains challenging in clinical practice to perform optimal pain management following bariatric surgeries. Acupuncture (AC) is an effective method of postoperative pain management, but its clinical efficacy depends on the rationale used to select AC points.

Methods

We developed a method to identify individual patterns of pain and a corresponding set of acupoints (corrAC) based on the relative pressure sensitivity of six abdominal visceral pressure points, i.e., the gastrointestinal (GI) checkpoints (G1–G6). Patients with moderate to severe pain were included and received a single AC treatment following surgery. The visual analog scale (VAS) score, pain threshold, and skin temperature were assessed before AC and at 5 min, 1 h, and 24 h following AC. AC was performed with 1-mm-deep permanent needles.

Results

From April 2021 to March 2022, 72 patients were included in the analysis. Fifty-nine patients received corrAC, whereas 13 received a noncorresponding AC (nonAC) as an internal control. Patients receiving corrAC showed a significant reduction (74%) in pain at 5 min after treatment (p < 0.0001) and a significant increase (37%) in the pain threshold (p < 0.0001). In this group, a significant increase in skin temperature above G1, G3, G4, and G5 was observed. Patients receiving nonAC showed neither significant pain reduction nor significant changes in pain threshold. The skin above G3 and G4 did not reveal temperature changes.

Conclusion

Checkpoint AC may be an effective tool in postoperative pain therapy after bariatric surgery. Vegetative functional involvement might be associated with pain relief.

Graphical Abstract
The Care-Dependent are Less Averse to Care Robots: An Empirical Comparison of Attitudes
Authors: Schönmann Manuela , Bodenschatz Anja , Uhl Matthias , Walkowitz Gari
Published: May 2023

A growing gap is emerging between the supply of and demand for professional caregivers, not least because of the ever-increasing average age of the world’s population. One strategy to address this growing gap in many regions is the use of care robots. Although there have been numerous ethical debates about the use of robots in nursing and elderly care, an important question remains unexamined: how do the potential recipients of such care perceive situations with care robots compared to situations with human caregivers? Using a large-scale experimental vignette study, we investigated people’s affective attitudes toward care robots. Specifically, we studied the influence of the caregiver’s nature on participants’ perceived comfort levels when confronted with different care scenarios in nursing homes. Our results show that the care-robot-related views of actual care recipients (i.e., people who are already affected by care dependency) differ substantially from the views of people who are not affected by care dependency. Those who do not (yet) rely on care placed care robots’ value far below that of human caregivers, especially in a service-oriented care scenario. This devaluation was not found among care recipients, whose perceived level of comfort was not influenced by the caregiver’s nature. These findings also proved robust when controlled for people’s gender, age, and general attitudes toward robots.
BDNF and KISS-1 Levels in Maternal Serum, Umbilical Cord, and Placenta: The Potential Role of Maternal Levels as Effect Biomarker
Authors: Granitzer Sebastian , Widhalm Raimund , Atteneder Simon , Fernandez Mariana F. , Mustieles Vicente , Zeisler Harald , Hengstschläger Markus , Gundacker Claudia
Published: May 2023

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and kisspeptin-1 (KISS-1) regulate placental development and fetal growth. The predictive value of maternal serum BDNF and KISS-1 concentrations for placental and umbilical cord levels has not yet been explored. The influence of prenatal lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) exposure and maternal iron status on BDNF and KISS-1 levels is also unclarified and of concern. In a pilot cross-sectional study with 65 mother–newborn pairs, we analyzed maternal and cord serum levels of pro-BDNF, mature BDNF, and KISS-1, BDNF, and KISS-1 gene expression in placenta, Pb and Cd in maternal and umbilical cord blood (erythrocytes), and placenta. We conducted a series of in vitro experiments using human primary trophoblast cells (hTCs) and BeWo cells to verify main findings of the epidemiological analysis. Strong and consistent correlations were observed between maternal serum levels of pro-BDNF, mature BDNF, and KISS-1 and corresponding levels in umbilical serum and placental tissue. Maternal red blood cell Pb levels were inversely correlated with serum and placental KISS-1 levels. Lower expression and release of KISS-1 was also observed in Pb-exposed BeWo cells. In vitro Pb exposure also reduced cellular BDNF levels. Cd-treated BeWo cells showed increased pro-BDNF levels. Low maternal iron status was positively associated with low BDNF levels. Iron-deficient hTCs and BeWo cells showed a consistent decrease in the release of mature BDNF. The correlations between maternal BDNF and KISS-1 levels, placental gene expression, and umbilical cord serum levels, respectively, indicate the strong potential of maternal serum as predictive matrix for BDNF and KISS-1 levels in placentas and fetal sera. Pb exposure and iron status modulate BDNF and KISS-1 levels, but a clear direction of modulations was not evident. The associations need to be confirmed in a larger sample and validated in terms of placental and neurodevelopmental function.
Boundary resource management in innovation ecosystems: The case of e-commerce
Authors: Wulfert Tobias
Published: May 2023

Major challenges in contemporary information systems development demand new development approaches, such as innovation ecosystems, consisting of a focal innovation platform surrounded by independent developers. The attraction of third-party developers and the amplification of generativity in extension development call for sophisticated boundary resources. As demarcation points between an innovation platform and external developers, boundary resources entail a strategic value and need to be managed carefully. However, existing research does not provide an approach for the holistic management of boundary resources from design to retirement. We apply a design science research approach consisting of two design cycles involving a literature review identifying 26 application lifecycles and the analysis of eight innovation platforms in e-commerce. We evaluated the model for boundary resource management in interviews with nine domain experts. We develop an integrated boundary resource management lifecycle as a specialization of application lifecycle management for the holistic management of boundary resources in innovation ecosystems addressing third-party developers. The boundary resource management lifecycle consists of four layers: boundary resource governance, continuous communication, technical boundary resources, and supplementary boundary resources. It decouples technical and supplementary boundary resources while emphasizing their intertwined nature for ecosystem participants. Owners of innovation platforms can instantiate the reference procedure model for attracting developers.
Effect of aluminum nanoparticle size on phase transitions: a molecular dynamics study
Authors: Arellano-Ramírez I. D. , Ladino E. A. Hincapie , Restrepo-Parra E.
Published: May 2023

Isothermal molecular dynamics simulations were carried out with the embedded-atom method as a potential to predict the melting and crystallization temperatures of nanometric sized aluminum particles in the range of $$2$$

2

–$$4 \mathrm{nm}$$

4
nm

. Simulated data predicted a decrease in the melting point $${T}_{m}$$

T
m

of aluminum nanoparticles with an increase in their inverse radius $${r}^{-1}$$

r

-
1

according to an almost linear law. The data obtained predicted a higher value of melting temperature compared to crystallization by $$\Delta T=272 \mathrm{K}$$

Δ
T
=
272
K

for a size of $$4\mathrm{ nm}$$

4
nm

and, $$\Delta T=193 K$$

Δ
T
=
193
K

for $$2\mathrm{ nm}$$

2
nm

. The $${T}_{m}$$

T
m

of the nanoparticles augmented with increasing size, from $$720 K$$

720
K

for $$2 \mathrm{nm}$$

2
nm

to $$827 \mathrm{K}$$

827
K

for $$4\mathrm{ nm}$$

4
nm

. Furthermore, a linear extrapolation of the $${T}_{m}$$

T
m

as a function of the inverse of the cubic root of the number of atoms yielded a melting temperature of aluminum of $$947 \pm 8 \mathrm{K}$$

947
±
8
K

, which is similar to previous estimations. Finally, when the number of atoms increased the number of face-centered cubic (FCC) structural units also increased, and the amorphous structure decreased.
Mindfulness in Politics: A Qualitative Study on Mindfulness Training in the UK Parliament
Authors: Simonsson Otto , Bergljottsdotter Christine , Narayanan Jayanth , Fisher Stephen , Bristow Jamie , Ormston Ruth , Chambers Richard
Published: May 2023

Objectives

While mindfulness in the workplace has received substantial scientific attention in the past decades, it is not yet well-understood if, under what circumstances, and in what ways mindfulness training may be helpful for individuals working in political environments. The aim of this study was to explore the experience of mindfulness training among British politicians, as well as mindfulness facilitators who had taught mindfulness to politicians in the UK Parliament.

Method

Between September and November 2021, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with British politicians (n = 18) who had experience of mindfulness training and mindfulness facilitators (n = 4) who had taught mindfulness to politicians in the UK Parliament. The interview material was analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Results

Two main themes related to the experience of mindfulness training in politics were developed during the analytic process: (1) mindfulness approaches addressing particular challenges in political work, and (2) mindfulness sessions and group dynamics. Taken together, mindfulness training helped the politicians to better deal with the demands and stresses of political work, to reconnect with themselves and be more grounded, and – especially when taught in a group setting – to relate to other politicians and their viewpoints in a more humane and constructive way.

Conclusions

The results suggest that mindfulness training can be beneficial at both the personal and professional level for individuals working in political contexts, which can provide a rationale for governments to introduce mindfulness-based programs to politicians.
Study on the Propagation and Focusing Mechanism of Long Waves over A Submerged Atoll
Authors: Fu Dan-juan , Liu Bi-jin , Zheng Jin-hai , Wang Gang , Chen Bi-qin
Published: May 2023

An analytical solution for long waves propagating over a submerged atoll is established. The atolls involved in this study are annular coral reefs with large lagoons in the middle, and the expression of the cross section is a trinomial function of the radial distance, i.e., h=ar2s−brs+h0, where s is the positive rational number. This analytical solution extends the theory by Wang et al. (2018) as s is no longer limited to s=2/m, where m is the positive integer. In addition, by adjusting the terrain parameters properly, the analytic solution can be degenerated to describe the wave propagation over topography with a hump or pit. According to the relationship between wave rays and wave energy, the distribution characteristics and formation mechanism of energy over the topography are expounded. When the lagoon is non-existent, all wave rays converge at the x-axis, which results in an abrupt amplification of the wave amplitude around the convergence point. When a lagoon is mounted on the top of the atoll, the rays are scattered due to the refraction of the lagoon, and only some rays converge at the symmetrical axis and the ridges on both sides, which results in the amplification of wave amplitudes in these areas.
Multi-functional auto-fluorescent nanogels for theranostics
Authors: Vashist Arti , Raymond Andrea D. , Chapagain Prem , Vashist Atul , Arias Adriana Yndart , Kolishetti Nagesh , Nair Madhavan
Published: May 2023

Here in the present article, the state of art for nanotechnology-enabled nanogel theranostics and the upcoming concepts in nanogel-based therapeutics are summarized. The benefits, innovation, and prospects of nanogel technology are also briefly presented.
Bacterial cell-free metabolites-based zinc oxide nanoparticles for combating skin-causing bacterial infections
Authors: Hemdan Bahaa A. , El-Naggar Mehrez E. , Abd-Elgawad Sh. E. , El Zawawy Nessma A. , Mahmoud Yehia A.-G.
Published: May 2023

Recently, the development of skin barrier depend on wound healing, which is one of the most complicated biological processes. As an alternative to conventional antibiotics, nanoparticles (NPs) have become more utilized generally to attack bacteria. Due to their distinct characteristics, potential microbicidal action, and ability to speed up the wound healing process, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) have attracted much attention. Biological techniques can solve the restrictions of both physical and chemical approaches for nanoparticles synthesis. Because it does not require expensive chemicals, high temperatures, or a lot of time, biological synthesis is relatively easy, inexpensive, and environmentally benign. The secondary metabolic extract from Escherichia coli was used in this study to biologically synthesize three distinct quantities of ZnO-NPs, which were then assessed for their effectiveness in wound healing and bacterial infection prevention. The biofabricated ZnO-NPs were fully characterized in terms of particle shape, morphology, and stability against aggregation. Depending on the concentration of the utilized zinc salt, three different samples were fabricated biologically, nominated as ZnO-NPs-1, ZnO-NPs-2, and ZnO-NPs-3. The findings of Uv-vis absorption peaks were obtained at 352 nm, demonstrating the preparation of ZnO-NPs. The results demonstrated the formation of ZnO-NPs with an average particle size of 79.19, 79.83 and 91.57 nm for the three prepared samples (ZnO-NPs-1, ZnO-NPs-2, and ZnO-NPs-3), respectively. Additionally, these samples of ZnO-NPs exhibited zeta potential values around −34.3, −33.7, and −33.4 mV, respectively. Energy dispersive X-ray confirmed the successful formation of ZnO-NPs. It was also observed from the obtained results that, ZnO-NP-3 showed superior antimicrobial potential against selected skin infectious microbes. The effective killing dosage of ZnO-NPs-3 was recorded to be 40 mg/L which can eliminate microbial growth. The dysregulation of skin flora significantly influences the etiology of inflammatory skin disorders.
Modelling as a process
Authors: Vieira Kritz Maurício
Published: May 2023

Broadly speaking, models are representations of something concrete or not. In science, models have always a purpose related to understanding and explaining phenomena. This requires focus and selecting what to represent and what not to represent and how to represent, among other things. Thus, a side effect of developing the scientific method is the development of a well-structured modelling paradigm. Starting from phenomena and objects, I discuss many decision-abstraction steps in the modelling process that leads to models of phenomena expressed mathematically or computationally, highlighting underlining contexts and procedures. This discourse is undertaken centred on a cross- and trans-disciplinary system science perspective. It grounds on a personal perspective and may be considered as a model of the modelling process.
Swarming Responsive Photonic Nanorobots for Motile-Targeting Microenvironmental Mapping and Mapping-Guided Photothermal Treatment
Authors: Li Luolin , Yu Zheng , Liu Jianfeng , Yang Manyi , Shi Gongpu , Feng Ziqi , Luo Wei , Ma Huiru , Guan Jianguo , Mou Fangzhi
Published: May 2023

Micro/nanorobots can propel and navigate in many hard-to-reach biological environments, and thus may bring revolutionary changes to biomedical research and applications. However, current MNRs lack the capability to collectively perceive and report physicochemical changes in unknown microenvironments. Here we propose to develop swarming responsive photonic nanorobots that can map local physicochemical conditions on the fly and further guide localized photothermal treatment. The RPNRs consist of a photonic nanochain of periodically-assembled magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles encapsulated in a responsive hydrogel shell, and show multiple integrated functions, including energetic magnetically-driven swarming motions, bright stimuli-responsive structural colors, and photothermal conversion. Thus, they can actively navigate in complex environments utilizing their controllable swarming motions, then visualize unknown targets (e.g., tumor lesion) by collectively mapping out local abnormal physicochemical conditions (e.g., pH, temperature, or glucose concentration) via their responsive structural colors, and further guide external light irradiation to initiate localized photothermal treatment. This work facilitates the development of intelligent motile nanosensors and versatile multifunctional nanotheranostics for cancer and inflammatory diseases.
Grounding force-directed network layouts with latent space models
Authors: Gaisbauer Felix , Pournaki Armin , Banisch Sven , Olbrich Eckehard
Published: May 2023

Force-directed layout algorithms are ubiquitously used tools for network visualization. However, existing algorithms either lack clear interpretation, or they are based on techniques of dimensionality reduction which simply seek to preserve network-immanent topological features, such as geodesic distance. We propose an alternative layout algorithm. The forces of the algorithm are derived from latent space models, which assume that the probability of nodes forming a tie depends on their distance in an unobserved latent space. As opposed to previous approaches, this grounds the algorithm in a plausible interaction mechanism. The forces infer positions which maximise the likelihood of the given network under the latent space model. We implement these forces for unweighted, multi-tie, and weighted networks. We then showcase the algorithm by applying it to Facebook friendship, and Twitter follower and retweet networks; we also explore the possibility of visualizing data traditionally not seen as network data, such as survey data. Comparison to existing layout algorithms reveals that node groups are placed in similar configurations, while said algorithms show a stronger intra-cluster separation of nodes, as well as a tendency to separate clusters more strongly in multi-tie networks, such as Twitter retweet networks.
Titanium (IV) oxide composite hollow nanofibres with silver oxide outgrowth by combined sol–gel and electrospinning techniques and their potential applications in energy and environment
Authors: Sirimekanont Tanatchporn , Supaphol Pitt , Sombatmankhong Korakot
Published: May 2023

A two-dimensional nanostructure composed of Ag2O nanobranches attached to TiO2 hollow nanofibres (denoted as 2D Ag2O/TiO2) was successfully prepared via sol–gel and coaxial electrospinning techniques. The Ag/TiO2 hollow nanofibres were fabricated and calcined in ambient air at 500 °C. By calcination, the removal of organic materials and the formation of anatase TiO2 were achieved with a well-retained hollow structure. The embedded Ag nanoparticles functioned as seeds for the Ag2O outgrowth on the TiO2 surface using a hydrothermal treatment at different times and temperatures, which caused the change in physical appearance, surface area, and electrical conductivity of 2D Ag2O/TiO2. A high quantity of Ag2O nanobranches on TiO2 nanofibres were obtained with increasing the temperature from 110 to 115 °C and the reaction time to 60 min. Consequently, the electrochemical active surface area (EASA) value was maximised to 65.25 cm2 per cm2 with an enhanced electrical conductivity of 91.3 ± 3.9 × 10−2 S cm−1. Further studies on the depth-profiles of Ag, Ti, and O revealed the presence of Ag2O attached to the core structure of TiO2. The photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic tests confirmed the excellent physical and electrochemical properties of 2D Ag2O/TiO2 (@115 °C, 60 min) for use in energy and environmental applications.

Graphical Abstract
Morphological and molecular examination of the ciliate family Lagynusidae (Protista, Ciliophora, Prostomatea) with descriptions of two new genera and two new species from China
Authors: Jiang Limin , Wang Congcong , Al-Farraj Saleh A. , Hines Hunter N. , Hu Xiaozhong
Published: May 2023

Ciliates in the class Prostomatea play an important role in the global microbial loop due to their significant abundances and broad feeding strategies at the foundation of food webs. Despite their importance in ecosystems, the taxonomy and systematics of this group of ciliates has long been poorly understood, with this being especially true for members of the family Lagynusidae. Here we examine four lagynusids collected from sandy beaches in China, using silver-staining and 18S rRNA gene sequencing techniques. These investigations revealed two new genera and two new species and provided details for two little known forms: Penardella marina gen. nov., sp. nov., Apolagynus cucumis (as reported by Penard. Études sur les infusoires d’eau douce. Georg and Cie, Genève, 1922) gen. nov., comb. nov., Lagynus minutus sp. nov., and Lagynus elegans (Engelmann in Z Wiss Zool 11:347–393, 1862) Quennerstedt (Acta Univ Lund 4:1–48, 1867). Penardella gen. nov. can be morphologically distinguished by having more than three dikinetidal perioral kineties. Apolagynus gen. nov. differs from the closely related genus Lagynus in the absence of a conspicuous neck-like region. The ciliature of Apolagynus cucumis is revealed here for the first time, which demonstrates the classification of this species within Lagynusidae. Furthermore, Apolagynus binucleatus (Jiang et al., 2021) comb. nov. is established according to the new finding. The results of our phylogenetic analyses based on the 18S rRNA gene support the establishment of two new genera and indicate that Lagynusidae is monophyletic, which further strengthens its valid taxonomic status.
Gas sensing performance of Nb2CTx synthesized by hydrothermal assisted in-situ HF generation etching method
Authors: Okawa Ayahisa , Yang Mingyang , Hasegawa Takuya , Ueda Tadaharu , Cho Sunghun , Sekino Tohru , Yin Shu
Published: May 2023

The Nb2CTx prepared by hydrothermal-assisted in-situ HF generation etching was investigated in terms of its gas sensor performance. The Nb2CTx was obtained by mixing Nb2AlC with pure water, hydrochloric acid, and fluoride (LiF or NH4F) and then hydrothermally treated at 180 °C for 24 h. This in-situ HF generation etching by hydrothermal treatment was more efficient and safer in the synthesis of the Nb2CTx than the direct HF etching. The Nb2CTx etched with LiF had relatively wide interlayer spacing because the hydration radius of Li+ was larger than that of NH4+. The results also suggest that Nb2O5 is formed during the synthesis process. These results suggest that interlayer spacing, surface termination, and secondary phases formation can be controlled by the etchant, and that hydrothermal treatment extended the applicability of insoluble etchants. The Nb2CTx synthesized with LiF was evaluated as a gas sensor at room temperature in air in the presence of designated concentrations of 6 different gases, which exhibited good sensitivity and repeatability and fast recovery time, except for NH3. Hydrothermal-assisted etching contributed to providing sufficient interlayer spacing for the gas response without an exfoliation process.
Urgency through education: Futures learning through children’s literature
Authors: Auld Glenn , O’Mara Joanne , White Peta J.
Published: May 2023

The purpose of this communication is to explore possibilities for children’s literature to enable futures learning. It introduces the ways in which two different frameworks might be used to analyse children’s literature. The first framework draws upon the Earth Charter Principles (ECP) (Auld et al., 2021). The second framework brings together the pillars of sustainability with the principles of Education for Sustainability (EfS) in a framework for ecological sustainability of children’s literature (White et al., 2020). The communication starts by introducing a text – a recent example of ‘awarded’ and therefore high-quality children’s literature. We then outline the two frameworks and explore the possibilities of applying these frames for analysing this text. We conclude that the sustainability frameworks are useful tools and resources for analysing children’s literature to determine the quality of the text and how the experience of reading the text may impact children, their learning and their environmental consciousness and practices.
Give what is required and take only what you need! The effect of framing on rule-breaking in social dilemmas
Authors: Wyszynski Marc , Bauer Alexander Max
Published: May 2023

To investigate the impact of framing on rule-breaking in social dilemmas, we incorporated a rule in a 1-shot resource game with 2 framing treatments: in one frame, we offered a give-some dilemma (i.e., a variant of a public goods game), and in the other frame, a take-some dilemma (i.e., a variant of a commons dilemma game). In each frame, all participants were part of 1 single collective sharing a common good. Each participant was initially equipped with 1 of 5 different endowments of points from which they must give/were allowed to take amounts to/from the common good. The rule established outcome equality between participants by prescribing the exact amounts of what to give/take to/from the common good, which was finally divided equally among participants. Participants decided whether to cooperate and comply with the rule or to break the rule to their own advantage and to the detriment of the collective (i.e., giving lower/taking higher amounts). The results of an online experiment with 202 participants showed a significantly higher proportion of individuals breaking the rule in the take-some dilemma than in the give-some dilemma. In addition, endowment size influenced the proportion of rule-breaking behavior in the take-some dilemma. However, the average amounts of points not given/taken too much were not different between the 2 dilemma types.
Detection of crevassed areas with minimum geometric information: Vernagtferner case study
Authors: Dobler Theresa , Hagg Wilfried , Mayer Christoph
Published: May 2023

Crevasses pose severe risks for mountaineers and field glaciologists. Smaller cracks between 0.5 and 2 m are still dangerous, but often not visible in medium resolution satellite imagery. If they are snow covered, they are completely undetectable by optical sensors. We set out to develop an approach to detect potentially crevassed areas by a minimum of geometric data, and to make the method generally applicable to glacier regions. On Vernagtferner, we compared a reference dataset of crevasses observed in high-resolution optical imagery with the curvature of the ice surface and the spatial gradients in driving stress. Both parameters can be derived from a digital surface model and a bedrock model, derived from ice thickness measurements. The correlation patterns show that crevasses preferably form in convex areas and in areas where the driving stress rapidly increases. This corresponds with the theory of crevasse formation. Although the method still misclassifies larger parts, the approach has the potential to define probable non-crevassed areas as well as to aid the planning of safe routes.
Sensitivity to syntactic dependency formation in child second language processing: a study of numeral quantifiers in Korean
Authors: Kim Hyunwoo , Kim Kitaek , Jo Kyuhee , Hwang Haerim
Published: May 2023

This study investigates whether child second language (L2) learners can use syntactic information during the processing of sentences involving unbounded dependencies and how their processing patterns compare to those of child monolinguals and adult L2 learners. Through a self-paced reading experiment involving the numeral quantifier (NQ) construction in Korean, we tested participants’ sensitivity to agreement violations between a noun phrase (NP) and an NQ in local and nonlocal conditions. The results showed that a subset of child L2 learners who demonstrated target-like knowledge of NP-NQ agreement in an offline task spent a longer processing time in the NP-NQ mismatch than in the NP-NQ match condition, in both local and nonlocal contexts. These child L2 learners’ processing patterns were comparable to those observed in child monolinguals and adult L2 learners. These findings suggest that child and adult L2 learners rely on the same system of syntactic representations and processing mechanisms that guide first language processing.
Relative oversampling of carbonate rocks in the North American marine fossil record
Authors: Balseiro Diego , Powell Matthew G.
Published: May 2023

Paleontologists have long stressed the need to know how sampling the fossil record might influence our knowledge of the evolution of life. Here, we combine fossil occurrences of North American marine invertebrates from the Paleobiology Database with lithologic data from Macrostrat to identify sampling patterns in carbonate and siliciclastic rocks. We aim to quantify temporal trends in sampling effort within and between lithologies, focusing on the proportion of total available volume that has been sampled (sampled fossiliferous proportion, here called κ). Results indicate that the sampled fossiliferous proportion was stable during the Paleozoic, and variable during the post-Paleozoic, but showed no systematic increase through time. Fossiliferous carbonate rocks are proportionally more sampled than siliciclastic rocks, with intervals where the carbonate κ is double the siliciclastic κ. Among possible explanations for the apparent oversampling of fossiliferous carbonate rocks, analyses suggest that barren units, taphonomic dissolution, or data entry errors cannot completely explain sampling patterns. Our results suggest that one of the important drivers might be that paleontologists publish taxonomic descriptions from carbonate rocks more frequently. The higher diversity in carbonate rocks might account for an ease in the description of unknown species and therefore a higher rate of published fossils. Finally, a strong effect in favor of carbonate rocks might distort our perception of diversity through time, even under commonly used standardization methods. Our results also confirm that previous descriptions of an increase in the proportion of sampled fossiliferous rocks over time were driven by the sampling of the nonmarine fossil record.
Selenium deficiency-induced high concentration of reactive oxygen species restricts hypertrophic growth of skeletal muscle in juvenile zebrafish by suppressing TORC1-mediated protein synthesis
Authors: Wang Li , Yin Jiaojiao , Liao Chenlei , Cheng Rui , Chen Feifei , Yu Haodong , Zhang Xuezhen
Published: May 2023

Se deficiency causes impaired growth of fish skeletal muscle due to the retarded hypertrophy of muscle fibres. However, the inner mechanisms remain unclear. According to our previous researches, we infer this phenomenon is associated with Se deficiency-induced high concentration of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which could suppress the target of rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1) pathway-mediated protein synthesis by inhibiting protein kinase B (Akt), an upstream protein of TORC1. To test this hypothesis, juvenile zebrafish (45 d post-fertilisation) were fed a basal Se-adequate diet or a basal Se-deficient diet or them supplemented with an antioxidant (DL-α-tocopherol acetate, designed as VE) or a TOR activator (MHY1485) for 30 d. Zebrafish fed Se-deficient diets exhibited a clear Se-deficient status in skeletal muscle, which was not influenced by dietary VE and MHY1485. Se deficiency significantly elevated ROS concentrations, inhibited Akt activity and TORC1 pathway, suppressed protein synthesis in skeletal muscle, and impaired hypertrophy of skeletal muscle fibres. However, these negative effects of Se deficiency were partly (except that on ROS concentration) alleviated by dietary MHY1485 and completely alleviated by dietary VE. These data strongly support our speculation that Se deficiency-induced high concentration of ROS exerts a clear inhibiting effect on TORC1 pathway-mediated protein synthesis by regulating Akt activity, thereby restricting the hypertrophy of skeletal muscle fibres in fish. Our findings provide a mechanistic explanation for Se deficiency-caused retardation of fish skeletal muscle growth, contributing to a better understanding of the nutritional necessity and regulatory mechanisms of Se in fish muscle physiology.
Modal raising and focus marking in Chinese
Authors: HSU YU-YIN
Published: May 2023

This paper presents several new empirical observations regarding some interpretive effects and structural restrictions of modals that occur in sentence-initial positions in Chinese. It provides a new analysis of sentence-initial modal sentences in terms of the overt head-movement of a modal to the sentence periphery to value strong focus features and to focus-mark either the proposition or the subject of a sentence. This new proposal helps explain the markedness exhibited by such sentences, correctly predicts the structural and semantic restrictions of modal sentences, and directly explains the scopal interactions observed between modals and various types of focus constructions. It also shows that changes in word order in Chinese are not ascribable simply to an optional or free derivation in syntax but are related to an understudied mechanism in that language, i.e. T-to-C movement, and that the roles of information structure are represented as formal features in syntax. The results shed new light on how Chinese – though profoundly different from Germanic and Romance languages typologically – exemplifies a similarly fine structure in the sentence-internal domain, parallel associations of scope-bearing units with sentences’ left peripheries, and a neat interaction of syntax with discourse configurations.
A ‘One Health’ perspective of Africa-wide distribution and prevalence of Giardia species in humans, animals and waterbodies: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Tawana Mpho , Onyiche ThankGod E. , Ramatla Tsepo , Thekisoe Oriel
Published: May 2023

Giardiasis, caused byGiardia duodenalis, is a leading cause of diarrhoea in resource-poor countries. To gain a better insight into the epidemiology ofGiardiain Africa, we undertook a robust study to comprehend the distribution and prevalence ofGiardiainfection in humans, animals and their dispersal in the environment. Our protocol was registered with PROSPERO (registration number CRD42022317653). Deep literature search from 5 electronic databases, namely, AJOL, Google scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect and Springer Link was performed using relevant keywords. Meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects model and heterogeneity among studies was evaluated using Cochran's Q and theI2-statistic. More than 500 eligible studies published from 1 January 1980 until 22 March 2022 were retrieved. In humans, exactly 48 124Giardiaspp. infection cases were registered from the 494 014 stool samples examined resulting in a pooled prevalence estimate (PPE) of 8.8% using microscopy. Whereas copro-antigen tests and molecular diagnostic methods generated PPE of 14.3 and 19.5%, respectively, with HIV+ subjects and those with diarrhoeatic stool having infection rates of 5.0 and 12.3%, respectively. The PPE ofGiardiaspp. infection in animals using molecular methods was 15.6%, which was most prevalent in pigs (25.2%) with Nigeria registering the highest prevalence at 20.1%. The PPE ofGiardiaspp. contamination from waterbodies was 11.9% from a total of 7950 samples which were detected using microscopy, with Tunisia documenting the highest infection rate of 37.3%. This meta-analysis highlights the necessity of ‘One Health’ approach for consolidated epidemiological studies and control of giardiasis in the African continent.