bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Syndecan-4 is required for early-stage repair responses during zebrafish heart regeneration
Authors: Lai Zih-Yin , Yang Chung-Chi , Chen Po-Hsun , Chen Wei-Chen , Lai Ting-Yu , Lu Guan-Yun , Yang Chiao-Yu , Wang Ko-Ying , Liu Wei-Cen , Chen Yu-Chieh , Liu Lawrence Yu-Min , Chuang Yung-Jen
Published: May 2024

Background

The healing process after a myocardial infarction (MI) in humans involves complex events that replace damaged tissue with a fibrotic scar. The affected cardiac tissue may lose its function permanently. In contrast, zebrafish display a remarkable capacity for scar-free heart regeneration. Previous studies have revealed that syndecan-4 (SDC4) regulates inflammatory response and fibroblast activity following cardiac injury in higher vertebrates. However, whether and how Sdc4 regulates heart regeneration in highly regenerative zebrafish remains unknown.

Methods and Results

This study showed that sdc4 expression was differentially regulated during zebrafish heart regeneration by transcriptional analysis. Specifically, sdc4 expression increased rapidly and transiently in the early regeneration phase upon ventricular cryoinjury. Moreover, the knockdown of sdc4 led to a significant reduction in extracellular matrix protein deposition, immune cell accumulation, and cell proliferation at the lesion site. The expression of tgfb1a and col1a1a, as well as the protein expression of Fibronectin, were all down-regulated under sdc4 knockdown. In addition, we verified that sdc4 expression was required for cardiac repair in zebrafish via in vivo electrocardiogram analysis. Loss of sdc4 expression caused an apparent pathological Q wave and ST elevation, which are signs of human MI patients.

Conclusions

Our findings support that Sdc4 is required to mediate pleiotropic repair responses in the early stage of zebrafish heart regeneration.
A new version of trial equation method for a complex nonlinear system arising in optical fibers
Authors: Kirci Ozlem , Pandir Yusuf , Latifa Agamalieva , Bulut Hasan
Published: May 2024

In this study, the dissipation problem of nonlinear pulse in mono mode optical fibers which is governed by the Fokas system (FS) is considered. The solutions of this system have an important role in comprehending the different wave structures in physical settings. Therefore, a new version of the trial equation method (NVTEM) is employed to present the new exact wave solutions of the FS. The advantage of the NVTEM is to use different root possibilities of a polynomial which shape the solutions of the related model. Primarily this system is converted to a nonlinear ordinary differential equation (NODE) via the traveling wave transform to apply the proposed method. Various exact wave solutions to the FS are obtained such as rational function, exponential function, hyperbolic function, and Jacobi elliptic function solutions. Thus, we have revealed solutions featly which are unlike the wave solutions previously found by other analytical methods. The present results depict the formation and development of such waves and their interactions. The exhibition of the solutions is given by 3D plots together with the corresponding 2D plots. The outcomes have shown that the proposed technique is abundant in achieving different wave solutions of many nonlinear differential equations in the field of optics.
Assessment of Native Myocardial T1 Mapping for Early Detection of Anthracycline-Induced Cardiotoxicity in Patients with Cancer: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Authors: Mohamed Amira A. , Elmancy Layla Y. , Abulola Sara M. , Al-Qattan Sara A. , Mohamed Ibrahim Mohamed Izham , Maayah Zaid H.
Published: May 2024

Anthracycline antibiotic is one of the most effective anti-tumor drugs used to manage certain types of breast cancers, lymphomas, and leukemias. However, anthracyclines induce a dose-dependent cardiotoxicity that may progress to heart failure. Thus, using a sensitive predictor of early cardiac dysfunction in patients treated with anthracyclines can help detect subclinical cardiac dysfunction early and help initiate interventions to protect these patients. Among parameters of myocardial measure, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR)-measured native myocardial T1 mapping is considered a sensitive and accurate quantitative measure of early subclinical cardiac changes, particularly cardiac inflammation and fibrosis. However, to understand the quality and the validity of the current evidence supporting the use of these measures in patients treated with anthracyclines, we aimed to conduct a systematic review of clinical studies of this measure to detect early myocardial changes in cancer patients treated with anthracyclines. The primary outcome was the level of native T1 mapping. We performed fixed-effects meta-analyses and assessed certainty in effect estimates. Of the 1780 publications reviewed (till 2022), 23 were retrieved, and 9 articles met the inclusion criteria. Our study showed that exposure to anthracycline was associated with a significant elevation of native myocardial T1 mapping from baseline (95% CI 0.1121 to 0.5802; p = 0.0037) as well as compared to healthy control patients (95% CI 0.2925 to 0.7448; p < 0.0001). No significant publication bias was noted on the assessment of the funnel plot and Egger’s test. According to the Q test, there was no significant heterogeneity in the included studies (I2 = 0.0000% versus healthy controls and I2 = 14.0666% versus baseline). Overall, our study suggests that native myocardial T1 mapping is useful for detecting anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity in patients with cancer.
Hazardous Elements in Road Dust from Petrol Stations in Rzeszów (Podkarpackie, Poland): Toxicological Assessment Using Field Portable X-ray Fluorescence (FP-XRF) as ‘White Analytical Technique’
Authors: Frydrych Adrian , Jurowski Kamil
Published: May 2024

Samples of road dust (RD) from petrol stations (n = 20) located in Rzeszów (Podkarpackie, Poland) were analysed to find potential markers of traffic-related pollution. The level (μg/g) of: Mo, U, As, Hg, Th, Pb, Ni, Cu, Cr, Be, Sr, Zr, Zn, Mn and Fe were measured using field portable X-ray spectroscopy (FP-XRF) as a direct, rapid and ‘white analytical technique’. Our research demonstrated for the first time the utility of using FP-XRF for environmental toxicological assessment of RD from petrol stations. The qualitative and quantitative composition of the dust samples tested provides valuable research material for creating and updating regulations and finding pollution hotspots such as petrol stations. It was possible to find potential markers of traffic-related pollution (e.g., Zr and Fe forms of disk brakes or brake pads). Certain elements of the study give ambiguous signals related to fuel distribution and road traffic. They can come from various sources of environmental contamination. The adoption of evidence-based policies to minimise pollution, conserve the environment, and protect the well-being of people living or working near gas stations is anticipated to be aided by these findings for policymakers, regulatory authorities, and stakeholders. Incorporating toxicological risk assessment framework, this study pioneers the investigation of human exposure to hazardous elements in RD, an in-depth evaluation of both carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risks associated with such exposure including lifetime average daily dose. Our findings contribute novel insights into the environmental toxicology of urban areas, emphasising the need for tailored interventions to mitigate these risks.
Voice, access, and ownership: enabling environments for nutrition advocacy in India and Nigeria
Authors: Resnick Danielle , Anigo Kola Matthew , Anjorin Olufolakemi , Deshpande Shilpa
Published: May 2024

What constitutes an enabling environment for nutrition advocacy in low- and middle-income countries? While a sizeable body of scholarship considers the enabling environment for nutrition policy, we focus specifically on the necessary conditions for advocacy. We argue that three factors—voice, access, and ownership—provide a useful lens into the advocacy enabling environment. These are operationalized, respectively, as the space to articulate and frame policy positions, entry points to interact with policy decision makers, and the existence of committed decision makers rather than those responding to pressures from external actors. These three factors are explored vis-à-vis a comparative analysis of two federal democracies—India and Nigeria—that each have vibrant advocacy communities confronting persistent malnutrition. Drawing on more than 100 structured interviews with nutrition advocates, government actors, donors, and researchers in the two countries, we highlight the ways in which voice, access, and ownership interactively shape advocacy efforts. In doing so, we find that Nigeria has a less ideological approach to certain nutrition issues than in India but also perceived to be more beholden to external actors in defining its nutrition actions. Recent restrictions on freedom of speech and association shrunk the civic space in India but these were less problematic in Nigeria. In both countries, the multi-tiered, multi-party system offers many different points of access into the policy arena, with sometimes negative implications for coordination. Overall, the paper contributes more broadly to the literature on enabling environments by highlighting potential indicators to guide nutrition advocates in other settings.
Caffeine intake enhances bowel recovery after colorectal surgery: a meta-analysis of randomized and non-randomized studies
Authors: Vaghiri Sascha , Prassas Dimitrios , David Stephan Oliver , Knoefel Wolfram Trudo , Krieg Andreas
Published: May 2024

Postoperative ileus (POI) after colorectal surgery is a major problem that affects both patient recovery and hospital costs highlighting the importance of preventive strategies. Therefore, we aimed to perform a systematic analysis of the effects of postoperative caffeine consumption on bowel recovery and surgical morbidity after colorectal surgery. A comprehensive literature search was conducted through September 2023 for randomized and non-randomized trials comparing the effect of caffeinated versus non-caffeinated drinks on POI by evaluating bowel movement resumption, time to first flatus and solid food intake, and length of hospital stay (LOS). Secondary outcome analysis included postoperative morbidity in both groups. After data extraction and inclusion in a meta-analysis, odds ratios (ORs) for dichotomous variables and standardized mean differences (SMDs) for continuous outcomes with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Subgroup analyses were performed in cases of substantial heterogeneity. Six randomized and two non-randomized trials with a total of 610 patients were included in the meta-analysis. Caffeine intake significantly reduced time to first bowel movement [SMD −0.39, (95% CI −0.66 to −0.12), p = 0.005] and time to first solid food intake [SMD −0.41, (95% CI −0.79 to −0.04), p = 0.03] in elective laparoscopic colorectal surgery, while time to first flatus, LOS, and the secondary outcomes did not differ significantly. Postoperative caffeine consumption may be a reasonable strategy to prevent POI after elective colorectal surgery. However, larger randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with homogeneous study protocols, especially regarding the dosage form of caffeine and coffee, are needed.
Exploring the Impact of Online Teaching Factors on International Students’ Control-Value Appraisals and Achievement Emotions in a Foreign Language Context
Authors: Kaiqi Shao , Kutuk Gulsah
Published: May 2024

Drawing upon Pekrun’s (2006) control–value theory of achievement emotions, the present study explores the relations between online teaching factors (i.e., teachers’ information and communications technology (ICT) competence and provision of structure) and students’ control–value appraisals and achievement emotions (i.e., enjoyment, boredom, and anxiety) in an online foreign language learning context. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 12 international students and 6 teachers who were involved in a Chinese foreign language course delivered online during the coronavirus pandemic. Results from the thematic analysis showed that both students’ and teachers’ positive evaluations of teachers’ ICT competence and provision of structure were associated with students’ increased control beliefs and intrinsic value, but not necessarily with utility value. According to the participants, the two increased appraisals related to students’ greater enjoyment and reduced feelings of boredom and anxiety during the online language learning process. Findings are discussed in light of the role of online teaching factors in shaping students’ appraisals and emotional experiences in online environments, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic.
COVID-19 Prevention and Mitigation Decision-Making Processes While Navigating Chronic Disease Care: Perspectives of Black Adults with Heart Failure and Diabetes
Authors: Johnson Leslie C. M. , Josiah Willock Robina , Simmons Sierra , Moyd Sarahna , Geiger Demetrius , Ghali Jalal K. , Quarells Rakale C.
Published: May 2024

Background

Heart failure and diabetes are comorbidities that disproportionately contribute to high morbidity and mortality among Blacks. Further compounding the racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 health outcomes, Blacks with cardiometabolic diseases are at high risk of experiencing serious complications or mortality from COVID-19. This study aimed to assess how Blacks with heart failure and diabetes navigated chronic care management during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

A mixed methods study including in-depth interviews and surveys with adults diagnosed with heart failure and diabetes (n = 17) was conducted in 2021–2022. Verbatim transcripts were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach.

Results

Participants reported that while the pandemic initially caused delays in access to health services, shifts to telemedicine allowed for continued care despite preferences for in-person appointments. Various sources of information were used in different ways to make decisions on how to best reduce health risks due to COVID-19, but individuals and institutions affiliated with science and medicine, or who promoted information from these sources, were considered to be the most trusted sources of information among those who relied on outside guidance when making health-related decisions. Individuals’ self-awareness of their own high-risk status and perceived control over their exposure levels to the virus informed what COVID-19 prevention and mitigation strategies people used.

Conclusion

Information backed by scientific data was an important health communication tool that alongside other factors, such as fear of mortality due to COVID-19, encouraged individuals to get vaccinated and adopt other COVID-19 prevention and mitigation behaviors.
Subjektiv eingeschätzter Beanspruchungszustand von im Schichtdienst tätigen Bus- und Straßenbahnfahrer*innen sowie Verwaltungsangestellten eines Verkehrsunternehmens
Authors: Darius Sabine , Böckelmann Irina
Published: May 2024

Hintergrund

Berufskraftfahrer*innen im Personenverkehr sind bei ihrer Arbeit diversen Belastungen ausgesetzt. Dazu gehören neben dem Schichtdienst unter anderem die hohe Verantwortung gegenüber den Fahrgästen oder auch die Gewährleistung von Pünktlichkeit mit der Einhaltung von Fahrplänen. Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es, psychische Beanspruchungsfolgen bei Bus- und Straßenbahnfahrer*innen mit Schichtdienst zu identifizieren und deren Beanspruchungszustand und Schlafverhalten dem von Beschäftigten aus der Verwaltung des gleichen Unternehmens, jedoch ohne Schichtdienst, gegenüberzustellen.

Methodik

An der Studie nahmen 24 Bus- und Straßenbahnfahrer*innen mit Schichtdienst (Alter 46,3 ± 11,0 Jahre) und 29 Verwaltungsangestellte des gleichen Unternehmens ohne Schichtdienst (Alter 46,5 ± 10,5 Jahre) teil. Die subjektive Beanspruchung wurde mit Fragebögen (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI], General-Health-Questionnaire [GHQ-12], Epworth Sleepiness Scale [ESS] und Erholungsunfähigkeit) erfasst.

Ergebnisse

Bus- und Straßenbahnfahrer*innen klagten über eine signifikant schlechtere Schlafqualität im Vergleich zu Verwaltungsangestellten (PSQI-Gesamtpunktzahl 7,0 ± 2,2 vs. 5,6 ± 3,3 Punkte; p = 0,038). Von den Fahrer*innen wurden 69 % als schlechte Schläfer im Vergleich zu 41 % der Verwaltungsangestellten eingestuft ($$p_{\text{Chi}^2}$$

p

Chi
2

 = 0,037). Die subjektiv eingeschätzte psychische Gesundheit, die Tagesschläfrigkeit und auch die Erholungsunfähigkeit unterschieden sich in beiden Gruppen nicht.

Diskussion

Aufgrund des hohen Anteils von Bus- und Straßenbahnfahrer*innen mit eingeschränkter Schlafqualität besteht in diesem Verkehrsunternehmen Handlungsbedarf zur Verbesserung des Schlafes in dieser Berufsgruppe.
Multi-attribute decision-making problem in career determination using single-valued neutrosophic distance measure
Authors: Dasan M. Arockia , Bementa E. , Aslam Muhammad , Flower V. F. Little
Published: May 2024

In this paper, we introduce a distance measure on single-valued neutrosophic sets by sine function which is a generalization of intuitionistic fuzzy sine distance measure. The axiom of metric on single-valued neutrosophic sets is verified and shows that the difference of distance measure from unity is a similarity measure. A new methodology for multi-attribute decision-making problems (MADM) is developed for the most common decision by the smallest measure value of the proposed single-valued neutrosophic distance measure. We further apply this distance measure to a multi-attribute decision-making problem (MADM) for student career determination in a neutrosophic environment to find the best career for suitable students. Finally, the comparison is made between the proposed distance measure and the other distance measures for the final decision chosen from the most common decisions of them.
Developing Functional Thinking: from Concrete to Abstract Through an Embodied Design
Authors: Wei Hang , Bos Rogier , Drijvers Paul
Published: May 2024

In addressing the challenge of fostering functional thinking (FT) in secondary school students, our research centered on the question of how an embodied design can enhance FT’s different aspects, including input–output, covariation, and correspondence views. Drawing from embodied cognition theory and focusing on an action- and perception-based task design that uses light ray contexts and different function representations, we developed a digital-embodied learning environment, using the nomogram as a central representation. Our pilot study involving four eighth-grade students provided insights into their physical interactions with these modules through a multi-touch digital interface. Analysis of video and audio recordings from the pilots, including students’ hand gestures and verbal expressions, was guided by comparing hypothetical learning activities with the actual learning activities. The results show that (1) a concrete light ray context enables students to ground the abstract mathematical function concept; (2) the bimanual coordinating motion tasks, incorporating the covariation aspect of FT, allow students to connect their bodily experience with function properties; and (3) our embodied and dragging tasks support insight in the conversion between nomograms and graphs of functions, encouraging students’ correspondence thinking by providing multiple perspectives to understand, reason about, and manipulate the function. In conclusion, our findings suggest the potential of digital-embodied tasks in fostering FT, evident in students’ diverse strategies and reasoning.
Supporting the Wellbeing of Those Left Behind: The Impact of Youth Development Programmes on Children in Highly Transient Schools
Authors: Bullen Pat , Williamson-Dean Rachel A. , Brown Gavin T. L.
Published: May 2024

Schools are important in nurturing social skills and behaviours. Research consistently demonstrates that movement into/out of school (transience/mobility) disrupts positive social skill development, especially for students who frequently move. The impact of attending a highly transient school on non-mobile students is not as well-known. The current study explored the impact of values and life skill-based programme, Kiwi Can, on social development and the classroom climate for non-mobile children. Researchers administered surveys to students attending 15 intervention (i.e. Kiwi Can programme; n = 763) and 9 control (n = 456) schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. We examined the impact of programme participation by school transience level (high, middle, low) and length of school participation (new, experienced). The results indicate that students attending highly transient schools struggled to build social relationships, feel connected, demonstrate care and compassion to others, and behave in prosocial ways. They also felt less safe at their schools. Students participating in Kiwi Can for more than two years (experienced schools) showed fewer negative effects of transience on social development than less experienced schools. This research highlights the plight of students who are ‘left behind.’
Predicting the compressive strength of tight sandstone based on the low field NMR and pseudo-triaxial compression measurements
Authors: Ge Xinmin , Zhang Renxia , Liu Jianyu , Fan Yiren , Myers Michael , Hathon Lori
Published: May 2024

The compressive strength is very important for petroleum and other engineering studies. However, the effect of pore size and fluid distribution on the rock’s strength is not fully understood. We developed comprehensive research to study the controlling factors of the compressive strength based on low field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements and pseudo-triaxial compression test for tight sandstones. The relationship between the compressive strength and the NMR obtained parameters are investigated completely, aiming for a better estimation of the compressive strength using the NMR data. The result shows that the rock’s strength is strongly controlled by the pore size distribution and the fluid existing state. Generally, the compressive strength is negatively correlated with the average transversal relaxation time, the movable water saturation, and the porosity, but positively correlated with the irreducible water saturation. The result reveals that the rock with larger pore radius and higher percentage of movable fluid is easier to reach the failure state. Further, the precision of the empirical model by multiple regression of the geometric mean of the relaxation time and the porosity is greatly improved compared with the model established by the brittle minerals, which is potentially to be use for geophysical prospecting when the NMR logging data is available.
Influence of emotions on coping behaviors in crisis: a computational analysis of the COVID-19 outbreak
Authors: Xu Hao , Muthya Sudheendra Smitha , Huh Jisu , Salecha Aadesh , Srivastava Jaideep
Published: May 2024

Widespread public crises often give rise to the proliferation of sensationalized rumors and conspiracy theories, which can evoke a variety of public emotions. Despite the growing importance of research on the relationship between emotions and coping behaviors in crisis, a dearth of natural observation-based investigation has been limiting theory development. To address this gap, this study conducted computational research to study the U.S. public’s discrete emotions and coping behaviors during the COVID-19 outbreak crisis, analyzing Twitter data, Google Trends data, and Google Community Mobility data. The results revealed that anger and fear were relatively more prominent emotions experienced by the public than other discrete emotions. Regarding the impacts of emotions on coping behaviors, it was found that the prevalence of low-certainty and retreat emotions was related to increased information-seeking and information-transmitting behaviors. Also, the prevalence of both high-certainty and low-certainty emotions during the COVID-19 outbreak was positively related to the public’s compliance with public health recommendations.
Bridging Cree knowledge and Western science to understand the decline in hunting success of migratory Canada geese
Authors: Giroux Jean-François , Idrobo C. Julián , Sorais Manon
Published: May 2024

Canada goose (Branta canadensis) is one of the main waterfowl species harvested by Cree hunters in James Bay, Canada. Land users who hunt geese along coastal Eeyou Istchee (Eastern James Bay, Quebec) report that they are now much less successful in harvesting sub-arctic breeding geese (B. c. interior) than in the 1980s, especially during the fall hunting season. We followed a mixed-methods triangulation design in which we simultaneously gathered Indigenous and scientific knowledge. For the Indigenous knowledge, we conducted semi-structured interviews with Cree land users who shared their knowledge about how the goose populations that stage in Eeyou Istchee have changed within living memory. They attributed their reduced hunting success to fewer migrating geese and modification of their behavior. They also identified many environmental changes, especially the decline of eelgrass (Zostera marina), that may have affected the number, distribution, and migration patterns of Canada geese along the coastal Eeyou Istchee in the past 50 years. We complemented this information using waterfowl study techniques including aerial surveys, band recovery analyses, and GPS tracking of individually marked geese. Habitat changes both at the local scale in Eeyou Istchee and in other parts of the staging and wintering ranges of Canada geese, natural and human disturbances along the coast, and a gradual increase in molt migrant temperate breeding Canada geese (B. c. maxima) likely resulted in changes in habitat use and migration patterns of sub-arctic breeding Canada geese along the James Bay east coast. By bridging Cree knowledge and Western science, we identified the various factors that affect the harvest success of Eeyou Istchee goose hunters. Such an approach should be encouraged when Indigenous peoples rely upon migratory bird or mammal species that spend only a portion of their annual cycle within the hunting territories of land users.
Renewable Energy Support Through Feed-in Tariffs: A Retrospective Stakeholder Analysis
Authors: Hashemi Majid , Jenkins Glenn , Milne Frank
Published: May 2024

This study develops a generalized evaluation framework that can be used to quantify the financial, economic, stakeholder, and environmental impacts of renewable energy support programs. The application of this framework is demonstrated by evaluating the feed-in tariff (FIT) program for solar distributed energy resources (DER) in Ontario, Canada. Our analysis reveals that Ontario’s FIT program has successfully promoted the adoption of solar DER across communities. However, the program has caused inequitable societal outcomes through a cross-subsidization with a present value of 9 CAD billion, paid for by the electricity consumer base for the benefit of only the 0.06 percent of electricity consumers who could install solar systems. The cost imposed on the Canadian economy ranges from 2.86 to 5.37 CAD billion, depending on the discount rate applied. The sensitivity analysis results indicate that the burden of this program on the Canadian economy would have been reduced by 50 percent if the program had been delayed and implemented in 2016 instead of 2010 due to the declining trend in solar system investment costs. The lessons from this analysis provide insights for designing future environmental and emission reduction policies.
Specific and shared biological functions of PARP2 – is PARP2 really a lil’ brother of PARP1?
Authors: Szántó Magdolna , Yélamos José , Bai Péter
Published: May 2024

PARP2, that belongs to the family of ADP-ribosyl transferase enzymes (ART), is a discovery of the millennium, as it was identified in 1999. Although PARP2 was described initially as a DNA repair factor, it is now evident that PARP2 partakes in the regulation or execution of multiple biological processes as inflammation, carcinogenesis and cancer progression, metabolism or oxidative stress-related diseases. Hereby, we review the involvement of PARP2 in these processes with the aim of understanding which processes are specific for PARP2, but not for other members of the ART family. A better understanding of the specific functions of PARP2 in all of these biological processes is crucial for the development of new PARP-centred selective therapies.
A 3-D minimum-enstrophy vortex in stratified quasi-geostrophic flows
Authors: Barabinot Yan , Reinaud Jean N. , Carton Xavier J. , de Marez Charly , Meunier Thomas
Published: May 2024

Applying a variational analysis, a minimum-enstrophy vortex in three-dimensional (3-D) fluids with continuous stratification is found, under the quasi-geostrophic hypothesis. The buoyancy frequency is held constant. This vortex is an ideal limiting state in a flow with an enstrophy decay while energy and generalized angular momentum remain fixed. The variational method used to obtain two-dimensional (2-D) minimum-enstrophy vortices is applied here to 3-D integral quantities. The solution from the first-order variation is expanded on a basis of orthogonal spherical Bessel functions. By computing second-order variations, the solution is found to be a true minimum in enstrophy. This solution is weakly unstable when inserted in a numerical code of the quasi-geostrophic equations. After a stage of linear instability, nonlinear wave interaction leads to the reorganization of this vortex into a tripolar vortex. Further work will relate our solution with maximal entropy 3-D vortices.
Who Believes in Fraud in the 2006 Mexican Presidential Election? Election Denialism, Partisan Motivated Reasoning, and Affective Polarization
Authors: Castro Cornejo Rodrigo
Published: May 2024

Why do some voters believe that there is electoral fraud when this belief contradicts the best available evidence? While the literature on public opinion has explored misperceptions’ pervasiveness and the factors that contribute to them in advanced industrial democracies, the present study analyzes motivated reasoning among voters in a young democracy, Mexico. This study highlights the important role that partisanship plays in voters’ likelihood to believe the allegations of electoral fraud in the 2006 presidential election in Mexico, which continues polarizing both political elites and the electorate even today. To understand the mechanisms at work, this research finds that it is not voters lacking information but rather voters with high levels of affective polarization and conspiratorial thinking who are more likely to believe that there was electoral fraud. The study also includes a survey experiment that fact-checked the belief in the alleged electoral fraud. Consistent with motivated reasoning theory, MORENA partisans resisted efforts to reduce their misperception. The findings of this study contribute to our understanding of the conditions that make some voters hold misperceptions in young democracies.
Re-Primarization All Over Again? Extraction and Resistance in Twenty-First-Century Latin America
Authors: Lane Kris
Published: May 2024

This essay reviews the following works:

Community of Peace: Performing Geographies of Ecological Dignity in Colombia. By Christopher Courtheyn. Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh University Press, 2022. Pp. xx + 284. $55.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780822947141.

Latin American Extractivism: Dependency, Resource Nationalism, and Resistance in Broad Perspective. Edited by Steve Ellner. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2021. Pp. ix + 292. $41.00 paperback, $94.00 hardcover, $39.00 eBook. ISBN: 9781538141564.

Things with a History: Transcultural Materialism and the Literatures of Extraction in Contemporary Latin America. By Héctor Hoyos. New York: Columbia University Press, 2019. Pp. xiii + 302. $30.00 paperback, $90.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780231193054.

Planetary Longings. By Mary Louise Pratt. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2022. Pp. viii + 340. $28.95 paperback, $104.95 cloth. ISBN: 9781478018292.

Life without Lead: Contamination, Crisis, and Hope in Uruguay. By Daniel Renfrew. Oakland: University of California Press, 2019. Pp. xv + 308. $29.95 paperback, $85.00 hardcover, $29.95 e-book. ISBN: 9780520295476.

Mourning El Dorado: Literature and Extractivism in the Contemporary American Tropics. By Charlotte Rogers. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2019. Pp. xv + 340. $39.50 paperback, $79.50 cloth. ISBN 9780813942667.

The Small Matter of Suing Chevron. By Suzana Sawyer. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2022. Pp. xv + 400. $29.95 paperback, $109.95 cloth. ISBN: 9781478017950.

Breaking Ground: From Extraction Booms to Mining Bans in Latin America. By Rose J. Spalding. New York: Oxford University Press, 2023. Pp. xvii + 308. $83.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780197643150.

The Three Deaths of Cerro San Pedro: Four Centuries of Extractivism in a Small Mexican Mining Town. By Daviken Studnicki-Gizbert. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2022. Pp. xiii + 307. $34.95 paperback. ISBN: 9781469671109.
Influence of Underperformance Duration on Firms’ Responses to Performance Feedback: Evidence from the Chinese Manufacturing Industry
Authors: Liu Xuefeng , Song Lanlan , Lai Guowei , Xie Yuying
Published: May 2024

The management literature has extensively explored how firms respond to underperformance through innovation, with prior studies based on the behavioral theory of the firm and the threat-rigidity thesis producing inconsistent results. The shifting focus of attention model provides crucial insights to reconcile this contradiction. We extend this model by highlighting the temporal dimension of performance shortfall. Specifically, we argue that underperformance duration flattens the inverted U-shaped relationship by attenuating both the problemistic search and threat rigidity mechanisms. The empirical results from a sample of Chinese listed manufacturing firms between 2010 and 2019 support our predicted inverted U-relationship between underperformance intensity and research and development (R&D) investment, and the moderating effect of underperformance duration. Interestingly, the inverted U-shape flips to a U-shape if underperformance extends into the long term. We contribute to the literature on performance feedback by considering both underperformance intensity and duration, which conceptualizes their interaction and reconciles extant contradictory findings from a new perspective. We also add new insights into innovation research by theorizing and examining the overlooked boundary condition for the curvilinear relationship between performance shortfalls and R&D investments, which calls for future research to explore the dynamics of the relationship and account for temporal effects.
Religious Institutional Environment and Executive Pay Dispersion
Authors: Zhang Ying , Ruan Hongfei , Tong Li
Published: May 2024

This study extends the extant literature on executive pay dispersion by exploring the cultural-cognitive social determinants. We investigate how religious institutional environments, including Buddhism- and Confucianism-based institutions, shape vertical executive pay dispersion. We theorize that a Buddhism-based institutional environment is negatively related to vertical executive pay dispersion. In contrast, we propose competing hypotheses regarding how a Confucianism-based institutional environment affects vertical executive pay dispersion. With a sample of Chinese public firms, we find that both Buddhism- and Confucianism-based institutional environments are negatively associated with a firm's vertical executive pay dispersion. Supplementary analyses show that the aforementioned main effects are attenuated when a firm is embedded by a communist party branch and has a younger CEO.
Firms’ Rhetorical Nationalism: Theory, Measurement, and Evidence from a Computational Analysis of Chinese Public Firms
Authors: Yue Lori Qingyuan , Zheng Jiexin , Mao Kaixian
Published: May 2024

In this article, we develop a computational measure of firm-level rhetorical nationalism. We first review the literature and develop a four-dimensional theoretical framework of nationalism relevant to firms: national pride, anti-foreign, dominant agenda (national revival), and corporate role. We then use machine-learning-based text analysis of over 41,000 annual reports of Chinese public firms from 2000 to 2020 and identify a dictionary of words for each dimension. Using a weighted ratio of nationalism-related words, we describe the overall picture of Chinese public firms’ rhetorical nationalism and provide the first empirical evidence regarding rising rhetorical nationalism among Chinese firms. Firms’ demonstration of rhetorical nationalism is related to both strategic and socialization factors; firms that are state-owned enterprises, older, larger, more profitable, consumer-facing, with more individual investors, and lower sales from overseas demonstrate a higher level of nationalism. Firms that demonstrate more rhetorical nationalism also have a better future financial return. Our study provides a theoretical framework for the organizational study of nationalism and a new measure for firms’ rhetorical nationalism, and demonstrates that rising rhetorical nationalism among Chinese firms is more strongly driven by firms’ motivations to appeal to domestic investors and consumers than to obtain government subsidies. Our dataset is publicly available at: https://sites.google.com/view/firms-rhetorical-nationalism
Responses of sweet cherry trees to regulated deficit irrigation applied before and after harvesting
Authors: Küçükyumuk Cenk
Published: May 2024

The current study was conducted over four years between 2016 and 2019 to determine the effects of regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) before and after harvesting of sweet cherry on yield, physiological, vegetative and fruit quality parameters. The current study used the 0900 Ziraat sweet cherry cultivar grafted onto Gisela 6 rootstock. There were six different treatments: IC, (Control) where soil moisture was kept at field capacity for each irrigation, I25, with 25% deficit irrigation of IC after harvesting, I50, with 50% deficit irrigation of IC after harvesting, I25BH, with no-deficit irrigation 30 days after full bloom and 25% deficit irrigation after this period, I50BH, with no-deficit irrigation 30 days after full bloom and 50% deficit irrigation after this period, and IFRM, with farmer's treatment of excessive irrigation (150% of ET) from colouring of fruit till harvest and 50% deficit irrigation after harvesting. When compared to IC, water saving ranged from 20.2–45.6%. The fruit yield obtained under I25 was increased by 21.8% in the last year of the current study than the yield obtained under IC treatment. Trunk and shoot growth increased for all treatments. Leaf water potential (Ψmd) and stomata conductance (gsw) were affected by RDI. IFRM and I25 had a positive effect on fruit size, the same as IC. Water deficit (IBH50) applied before harvesting increased fruit flesh firmness. I25 treatment (25% water deficit after harvesting) can be applied by sweet cherry growers because it leads to high yield, better fruit quality and water saving.
Who Took the Fall in 1408, and Why? Vienna's Elites in Alliances and Conflicts with Habsburg Dukes
Authors: Lutter Christina
Published: May 2024

This article focuses on the involvement of Viennese elites in wide-reaching political conflicts around 1400. Central European princes often held positions as city lords, which resulted in ambivalent relations between them and urban elites, as well as with their kin residing in the countryside. Setting aside grand categories of institutional history in favor of the interactions and relations of concrete actors, their social networks, and their involvement in shaping politics, the article follows six urban actors through a major conflict that involved the city lords, urban authorities, and individual actors and eventually resulted in the beheading of three of them. The article adopts a prosopographical approach to find out more about patterns of social costs and benefits in these conflicts. It argues that considering polyvalent and relational dimensions of belonging can help us better understand constellations of conflict and alliance and the modes and mechanisms of late medieval politics. It eventually establishes the boundaries of social network approaches when it comes to assessing individual motives and their alleged resonance in contemporary narratives of community.
La societas Sisaponensis, los lingotes de Doña Rama-Belmez y la explotación minera de los montes de Corduba
Authors: Monterroso-Checa Antonio , Domergue Claude , Rico Christian , Zarzalejos-Prieto Mar , Palero-Fernández Fernando , Klein Sabine , García-Magdaleno Isabel María , Trincherini Pier Renato , Gasparini Massimo , Marchegiani Francesca , Moreno-Escribano Juan Carlos , Nisi Stefano , Ruiz-Arrebola José Rafael
Published: May 2024

El objetivo principal de este trabajo es presentar importantes novedades sobre el marco histórico y productivo de la explotación minera de la sierra de Corduba en época romana, así como de la gestión de sus recursos. Desde hace años y a partir de la documentación epigráfica disponible, se ha venido apuntando una posible presencia en este territorio de la societas Sisaponensis y de la explotación de plomo y plata por su parte, a pesar de la afamada vinculación con el beneficio del cinabrio que recoge un conocido pasaje de Plinio. Nuestras investigaciones en el norte de Córdoba y los análisis arqueométricos realizados sobre tres lingotes de plomo recuperados en el paraje de Los Escoriales de Doña Rama, situado en la Sierra de Gata (Belmez-Córdoba), suponen una superación de la frontera del conocimiento sobre los aspectos reseñados, ya que permiten contrastar estas dos hipótesis tradicionales y proponer nuevas cuestiones sobre la explotación de estos parajes y la actividad de esta societas. Estos lingotes fueron encontrados en una instalación minero-metalúrgica romana, algo que es excepcional, y conservan una inscripción, S S, que los vincula sin duda con la societas Sisaponensis.
Did a workplace sugar-sweetened beverage sales ban reduce anxiety-related sugar-sweetened beverage consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Authors: Jacobs Laurie M , Schmidt Laura A , Schillinger Dean , Schmidt Jamey M , Alegria Katie E , Parrett Bethany , Pickett Amanda , Epel Elissa S
Published: May 2024

Objective:

Workplace sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) sales bans can reduce SSB consumption. Because stress and anxiety can promote sugar consumption, we examined whether anxiety among hospital employees during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with changes in SSB consumption and explored whether this relationship varied by exposure to a workplace SSB sales ban.

Design:

In a prospective, controlled trial of workplace SSB sales bans, we examined self-reported anxiety (generalised anxiety disorder-7) and self-reported SSB consumption (fluid ounces/d) before (July 2019) and during (May 2020) the COVID-19 pandemic.

Setting:

Hospital sites in two conditions (four with SSB sales bans and three without sales bans) in Northern California.

Participants:

We sampled 580 participants (hospital employees) from a larger trial of sales bans; all were regular consumers of SSB (minimum 3/week at main trial enrollment). This subsample was chosen based on having appropriately timed data for our study questions.

Results:

Across conditions, participants reduced SSB consumption over the study period. However, participants with higher pandemic-era anxiety scores experienced smaller reductions in SSB consumption after 9 months compared with those with lower anxiety scores (β = 0·65, P < 0·05). When the sample was disaggregated by sales ban condition, this relationship held for participants in the control group (access to SSB at work, β = 0·82, P < 0·05), but not for those exposed to an SSB sales ban (β = 0·42, P = 0·25).

Conclusions:

SSB sales bans likely reduce SSB consumption through multiple pathways; buffering stress-related consumption may be one mechanism.
Response of stevia to reduced-risk synthetic and nonsynthetic herbicides applied post-transplant
Authors: Ippolito Stephen J. , Jennings Katherine M. , Monks David W. , Chaudhari Sushila , Jordan David , Moore Levi D. , Blankenship Colton D.
Published: May 2024

Greenhouse trials were conducted to determine the response of stevia to reduced-risk synthetic and nonsynthetic herbicides applied over-the-top post-transplant. In addition, field trials were conducted with stevia grown in a polyethylene mulch production system to determine crop response and weed control in planting holes to reduced-risk synthetic and nonsynthetic herbicides applied post-transplant directed. Treatments included caprylic acid plus capric acid, clove oil plus cinnamon oil, d-limonene, acetic acid (200 grain), citric acid, pelargonic acid, eugenol, ammonium nonanoate, and ammoniated soap of fatty acids. Stevia yield (dry aboveground biomass) in the greenhouse was reduced by all herbicide treatments. Citric acid and clove oil plus cinnamon oil were the least injurious, reducing yield by 16% to 20%, respectively. In field studies, d-limonene, pelargonic acid, ammonium nonanoate, and ammoniated soap of fatty acids controlled Palmer amaranth (>90% 1 wk after treatment (WAT). In field studies caprylic acid plus capric acid, pelargonic acid, and ammonium nonanoate caused >30% injury to stevia plants at 2 WAT, and d-limonene, citric acid, acetic acid, and ammoniated soap of fatty acids caused 18% to 25% injury 2 WAT. Clove oil plus cinnamon oil and eugenol caused <10% injury. Despite being injurious, herbicides applied in the field did not reduce yield compared to the nontreated check. Based upon yield data, these herbicides have potential for use in stevia; however, these products could delay harvest if applied to established stevia. In particular, clove oil plus cinnamon oil has potential for use for early-season weed management for organic production systems. The application of clove oil plus cinnamon oil over-the-top resulted in <10% injury 28 d after treatment (DAT) in the greenhouse and 3% injury 6 WAT postemergence-directed in the field. In addition, this treatment provided 95% control of Palmer amaranth 4 WAT.
Reduction of Drag Coefficient Due To Misaligned Wind‐Waves
Authors: Manzella Emma , Hara Tetsu , Sullivan Peter P.
Published: May 2024

Recent field observations suggest that the air‐sea momentum flux (or the drag coefficient) is significantly reduced when the dominant wind‐forced surface waves are misaligned from local wind. Such conditions may occur under rapidly changing strong winds (such as under tropical cyclones) or in coastal shallow waters where waves are refracted by bottom topography. A recent Large Eddy Simulation (LES) study also shows that the drag coefficient is reduced by a misaligned strongly forced wave train (with a small wave age of 1.37). In order to investigate more realistic field conditions, this study employs LES to examine the effect of a misaligned (up to 90°) surface wave train over a wide range of wave age up to 10.95. For all wave ages examined, the drag coefficient is reduced compared to the flat surface condition when the misalignment angle exceeds around 22.5°–45°. The drag reduction may occur even if the form drag of the wave train is positive.