bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessing the utility of CASP14 models for molecular replacement
Authors: Millán Claudia , Keegan Ronan M. , Pereira Joana , Sammito Massimo D. , Simpkin Adam J. , McCoy Airlie J. , Lupas Andrei N. , Hartmann Marcus D. , Rigden Daniel J. , Read Randy J.
Published: August 2021

The assessment of CASP models for utility in molecular replacement is a measure of their use in a valuable real‐world application. In CASP7, the metric for molecular replacement assessment involved full likelihood‐based molecular replacement searches; however, this restricted the assessable targets to crystal structures with only one copy of the target in the asymmetric unit, and to those where the search found the correct pose. In CASP10, full molecular replacement searches were replaced by likelihood‐based rigid‐body refinement of models superimposed on the target using the LGA algorithm, with the metric being the refined log‐likelihood‐gain (LLG) score. This enabled multi‐copy targets and very poor models to be evaluated, but a significant further issue remained: the requirement of diffraction data for assessment. We introduce here the relative‐expected‐LLG (reLLG), which is independent of diffraction data. This reLLG is also independent of any crystal form, and can be calculated regardless of the source of the target, be it X‐ray, NMR or cryo‐EM. We calibrate the reLLG against the LLG for targets in CASP14, showing that it is a robust measure of both model and group ranking. Like the LLG, the reLLG shows that accurate coordinate error estimates add substantial value to predicted models. We find that refinement by CASP groups can often convert an inadequate initial model into a successful MR search model. Consistent with findings from others, we show that the AlphaFold2 models are sufficiently good, and reliably so, to surpass other current model generation strategies for attempting molecular replacement phasing.
Solid‐State Fabrication of Cu2O/CuO Hydroxide Nanoelectrode Array onto Graphene Paper by Thermal Dewetting for High‐Sensitive Detection of Glucose
Authors: Scandurra Antonino , Censabella Maria , Boscarino Stefano , Grimaldi Maria Grazia , Ruffino Francesco , Condorelli Guglielmo Guido , Malandrino Graziella
Published: August 2021

Nanostructures of Cu2O/CuO hydroxide suitable for the electrochemical determination of glucose are obtained by solid‐state dewetting of CuO layers 6, 8, and 31 nm thin deposited by sputtering onto 240 μm‐thick graphene paper. Solid‐state dewetting in nitrogen produces a partial decomposition of CuO into Cu2O and Cu. X‐ray diffraction patterns reveal the presence of high‐index crystallographic facets, which are reactive and useful toward glucose oxidation to gluconolactone. Typically, morphology studied by scanning electron microscopy reveals faceted nanoparticles with an average size below 200 nm. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that the nanostructure surfaces of Cu2O and metallic copper exposed to natural ambient are promptly reoxidized and hydroxidized to a mixture of CuO and Cu(OH)2. Electrochemical characterization in amperometric mode reveals linear response to glucose concentration in the range from 50 to 10 × 10−3 m, sensitivity up to 83 μA cm−2 mm
−1, and limit of detection up to 3.6 × 10−6 m. Good combination of low cost and simplicity of preparation with low limit of detection, high sensitivity, and wide linear range makes the proposed electrodes suitable for a variety of applications ranging from health to food and beverage industries.
Forecasting the research octane number in a Continuous Catalyst Regeneration (CCR) reformer
Authors: Dias Tiago , Oliveira Rodolfo , Saraiva Pedro , Reis Marco S.
Published: August 2021

Gasoline is still one of the most consumed crude oil derivatives in the global market. Its grade is established by the Research Octane Number (RON), which is measured by laboratorial analysis at a lower rate in comparison to process variables. This delay represents a bottleneck to process operation (monitoring, control, and optimization) and quality (less consistency due to poor process control), with impact in the company's bottom line results. In order to mitigate the effects of such delay, we address the problem of predicting RON using real industrial data from a refinery located in Portugal. The dataset was collected at Matosinhos Refinery of Petrogal, SA, during an extended period of operation (2 years). We report the performance of a wide range of state‐of‐the‐art linear and non‐linear methods able to cope with high‐dimensional data, which are assessed through a framework based on Monte Carlo Double Cross‐Validation. Overall, 25 methods and their variants were tested which, to the best of authors’ knowledge, is the largest number of methods ever considered in studies dedicated to the prediction of RON. Furthermore, a ranking system for efficiently comparing the methods is also proposed, facilitating the identification of the top performing ones. According to this methodology, kernel partial least squares and tree‐based ensemble methods stand out among the methods tested, signalling the presence of non‐linear relationships in the datasets.
Process Parameter Development for the Scaled Generation of Stem Cell-Derived Pancreatic Endocrine Cells
Authors: Iworima Diepiriye G. , Rieck Sebastian , Kieffer Timothy J.
Published: August 2021

Diabetes is a debilitating disease characterized by high blood glucose levels. The global prevalence of this disease has been projected to reach 700 million adults by the year 2045. Type 1 diabetes represents about 10% of the reported cases of diabetes. Although islet transplantation can be a highly effective method to treat type 1 diabetes, its widespread application is limited by the paucity of cadaveric donor islets. The use of pluripotent stem cells as an unlimited cell source to generate insulin-producing cells for implant is a promising alternative for treating diabetes. However, to be clinically relevant, it is necessary to manufacture these stem cell-derived cells at sufficient scales. Significant advances have been made in differentiation protocols used to generate stem cell-derived cells capable of reversing diabetes in animal models and for testing in clinical trials. We discuss the potential of both stem cell-derived pancreatic progenitors and more matured insulin-producing cells to treat diabetes. We discuss the need for rigorous bioprocess parameter optimization and identify some critical process parameters and strategies that may influence the critical quality attributes of the cells with the goal of facilitating scalable manufacturing of human pluripotent stem cell-derived pancreatic endocrine cells.
Integrated Assembly and Photopreservation of Topographical Micropatterns
Authors: Zhang Shuailong , Li Weizhen , Elsayed Mohamed , Peng Jiaxi , Chen Yujie , Zhang Yanfeng , Zhang Yibo , Shayegannia Moein , Dou Wenkun , Wang Tiancong , Sun Yu , Kherani Nazir P. , Neale Steven L. , Wheeler Aaron R.
Published: August 2021

Micromanipulation techniques that are capable of assembling nano/micromaterials into usable structures such as topographical micropatterns (TMPs) have proliferated rapidly in recent years, holding great promise in building artificial electronic and photonic microstructures. Here, a method is reported for forming TMPs based on optoelectronic tweezers in either “bottom‐up” or “top‐down” modes, combined with in situ photopolymerization to form permanent structures. This work demonstrates that the assembled/cured TMPs can be harvested and transferred to alternate substrates, and illustrates that how permanent conductive traces and capacitive circuits can be formed, paving the way toward applications in microelectronics. The integrated, optical assembly/preservation method described here is accessible, versatile, and applicable for a wide range of materials and structures, suggesting utility for myriad microassembly and microfabrication applications in the future.
Damage of bond in reinforced concrete: A detailed finite element analysis
Authors: Jakubovskis Ronaldas , Kaklauskas Gintaris
Published: August 2021

Numerical simulation of the bond is a powerful and versatile tool to analyze different aspects of reinforcement and concrete interaction, such as the formation of internal cracks, damage of concrete around the bar or bond degradation near the cracks. In the present study, a three‐dimensional rib‐scale finite element modeling technique was employed to study the latter phenomena. Numerical models were calibrated using the experimentally measured reinforcement strain profiles in the short tensile reinforced concrete elements reported herein and elsewhere. The selected experimental programs cover a wide range of bar diameters (10–29 mm) that are commonly used in the engineering practice. A parametric analysis was performed to identify the key parameters affecting the bond stress distribution in the vicinity of cracks. Based on the results of the parametric analysis, a simple bond damage model was proposed. Unlike the existing models, which take into account a single parameter, namely, bar diameter, the proposed bond damage model also considers the effect of concrete grade and reinforcement strain in the cracked section.
Implications of climate change for railway infrastructure
Authors: Palin Erika J. , Stipanovic Oslakovic Irina , Gavin Kenneth , Quinn Andrew
Published: August 2021

Weather phenomena can result in severe impacts on railway infrastructure. In future, projected changes to the frequency and/or intensity of extreme weather events could change weather–infrastructure risk profiles. Infrastructure owners and operators need to manage current weather impacts and put in place adequate plans to anticipate and adapt to changes in future weather risks, or mitigate the impacts arising from those risks. The assessment of the risk posed to railway infrastructure from current and future weather is dependent on a good understanding of the constituent components of risk: hazard, vulnerability, and exposure. A good understanding of the baseline and projected future risk is needed in order to understand the potential benefits of various climate change adaptation actions. Traditional risk assessment methods need some modification in order to be applied to climate change timescales, for which decisions need to be made under deep uncertainty. This review paper highlights some key challenges for assessing the risk, including: managing uncertainties; understanding weather‐impact relationships and how they could change with climate change; assessing the costs of current and future weather impacts and the potential cost versus benefit of adaptation; and understanding practices and tools for adapting railway infrastructure. The literature reveals examples of progress and good practice in all these areas, providing scope for effective knowledge‐sharing—across the railway infrastructure and other sectors—in support of infrastructure resilience and adaptation.

This article is categorized under:

Assessing Impacts of Climate Change > Evaluating Future Impacts of Climate Change
Magnetized bioconvection flow of Sutterby fluid characterized by the suspension of nanoparticles across a wedge with activation energy
Authors: Waqas Hassan , Farooq Umar , Bhatti Muhammad Mubashir , Hussain Sajjad
Published: August 2021

Nanofluids are playing a vital part in advancing practical life. The potential application of nanomaterials in a multitude of scenarios, such oil recovery, the melting of electronic systems in computers, cooling systems, the construction of fluid, cooling spirals, engineering and manufacturing, heat storage devices, and bioengineering. The microorganisms have a vital role to play in numerous applications, such as biological sciences, drugs, and biotechnology, biofuels processing, wastewater treatment, and food production. The current investigation exhibits a numerical model for Sutterby fluid with activation energy, thermal radiation, and bioconvection flowing past a stretching/shrinking wedge. The set of conservative governing partial differential equations (PDEs) is converted into a dimensionless ODEs system by using suitable similarity variables. The obtained new system of the model with dimensionless relative boundary conditions is tackled numerically by manipulating the famous shooting method through bvp4c solver in MATLAB coding. The physical and mathematical findings for profiles of velocity, temperature, concentration, and microbe dispersion owing to various controlling parameter inputs are displayed in tables and graphs. Flow velocity is shown to decrease as the bioconvection Rayleigh number increases. Moreover, the Prandtl number increases, the thermal field of the fluid decreases while it increases for the temperature ratio parameter. Furthermore, it is determined from this situation that the concentration field decreases as the Brownian motion parameter increases. The field of the microorganism decreases as the Peclet number increases.
Deep scoping: a breeding strategy to preserve, reintroduce and exploit genetic variation
Authors: Vanavermaete David , Fostier Jan , Maenhout Steven , De Baets Bernard
Published: August 2021

Key message

The deep scoping method incorporates the use of a gene bank together with different population layers to reintroduce genetic variation into the breeding population, thus maximizing the long-term genetic gain without reducing the short-term genetic gain or increasing the total financial cost.

Genomic prediction is often combined with truncation selection to identify superior parental individuals that can pass on favorable quantitative trait locus (QTL) alleles to their offspring. However, truncation selection reduces genetic variation within the breeding population, causing a premature convergence to a sub-optimal genetic value. In order to also increase genetic gain in the long term, different methods have been proposed that better preserve genetic variation. However, when the genetic variation of the breeding population has already been reduced as a result of prior intensive selection, even those methods will not be able to avert such premature convergence. Pre-breeding provides a solution for this problem by reintroducing genetic variation into the breeding population. Unfortunately, as pre-breeding often relies on a separate breeding population to increase the genetic value of wild specimens before introducing them in the elite population, it comes with an increased financial cost. In this paper, on the basis of a simulation study, we propose a new method that reintroduces genetic variation in the breeding population on a continuous basis without the need for a separate pre-breeding program or a larger population size. This way, we are able to introduce favorable QTL alleles into an elite population and maximize the genetic gain in the short as well as in the long term without increasing the financial cost.
Banks’ risk culture and management control systems: A systematic literature review
Authors: Kunz Jennifer , Heitz Mathias
Published: August 2021

Over ten years of a debate about the best ways to make banks safer have led to the conclusion that improving their risk culture is one venue to achieve this goal. Consequently, different disciplines discuss topics related to risk culture from varying methodological angles. This effort of many scholars provides a rich basis of theoretical and empirical evidence to guide business practice and improve regulation. However, the application of many approaches and methods can result in fragmentation and loss of a comprehensive perspective. This paper strives to counteract this fragmentation by providing a comprehensive perspective focusing particularly on the embeddedness of risk culture into banks’ management control systems. In order to achieve this goal, we apply a systematic literature review and interpret the identified findings through the theoretical lens of management control research. This review identifies 103 articles, which can be structured along three categories:Assessment of risk culture,relation between risk culture and management controls(with the subcategories embeddedness of risk culture in overall management control packages, risk culture and cultural controls, risk culture and action controls, risk culture and results controls, as well as risk culture and personnel controls) anddevelopment of banks’ risk culture over time. Along these categories the identified findings are interpreted and synthesized to a comprehensive model and consequences for theory, business practice and regulation are derived.
The collapse of cooperation: the endogeneity of institutional break-up and its asymmetry with emergence
Authors: Cordes Christian , Elsner Wolfram , Graebner Claudius , Heinrich Torsten , Henkel Joshua , Schwardt Henning , Schwesinger Georg , Su Tong-Yaa
Published: August 2021

Decline and break-up of institutionalized cooperation, at all levels, has occurred frequently. Some of its concomitants, such as international migration, have become topical in the globalized world. Aspects of the phenomenon have also become known as failing states. However, the focus in most social sciences has been on institutional emergence and persistence, not collapse. We develop an endogenous explanation of collapsing institutions. Collapse may be an implication of the very economic success of institutionalized cooperation and of increasing system complexity, when cognitive conditions for effective collective decision-making do not proportionately evolve. Moreover, we show that collapse is not a simple logical reverse of emergence. Rather, institutions break up at different factor constellations than the ones prevailing at emergence. We approach endogenous institutional break-up and its asymmetry from various paradigmatic and disciplinary perspectives, employing psychology, anthropology, network analysis, and institutional economics. These perspectives cover individuals, groups, interaction-arenas, populations, and social networks.
Have (R)-[11C]PK11195 challengers fulfilled the promise? A scoping review of clinical TSPO PET studies
Authors: Chauveau Fabien , Becker Guillaume , Boutin Hervé
Published: August 2021

Purpose

The prototypical TSPO radiotracer (R)-[11C]PK11195 has been used in humans for more than thirty years to visualize neuroinflammation in several pathologies. Alternative radiotracers have been developed to improve signal-to-noise ratio and started to be tested clinically in 2008. Here we examined the scientific value of these “(R)-[11C]PK11195 challengers” in clinical research to determine if they could supersede (R)-[11C]PK11195.

Methods

A systematic MEDLINE (PubMed) search was performed (up to end of year 2020) to extract publications reporting TSPO PET in patients with identified pathologies, excluding studies in healthy subjects and methodological studies.

Results

Of the 288 publications selected, 152 used 13 challengers, and 142 used (R)-[11C]PK11195. Over the last 20 years, the number of (R)-[11C]PK11195 studies remained stable (6 ± 3 per year), but was surpassed by the total number of challenger studies for the last 6 years. In total, 3914 patients underwent a TSPO PET scan, and 47% (1851 patients) received (R)-[11C]PK11195. The 2 main challengers were [11C]PBR28 (24%—938 patients) and [18F]FEPPA (11%—429 patients). Only one-in-ten patients (11%—447) underwent 2 TSPO scans, among whom 40 (1%) were scanned with 2 different TSPO radiotracers.

Conclusions

Generally, challengers confirmed disease-specific initial (R)-[11C]PK11195 findings. However, while their better signal-to-noise ratio seems particularly useful in diseases with moderate and widespread neuroinflammation, most challengers present an allelic-dependent (Ala147Thr polymorphism) TSPO binding and genetic stratification is hindering their clinical implementation. As new challengers, insensitive to TSPO human polymorphism, are about to enter clinical evaluation, we propose this systematic review to be regularly updated (living review).
Mind the gap: smoothing the transition to higher education fostering time management skills
Authors: Tabuenca Bernardo , Greller Wolfgang , Verpoorten Dominique
Published: August 2021

Freshmen in Higher Education are required to exhibit a strong inclination to taking ownership of their own learning. It entails well-developed self-regulated learning competences. This demand is further exacerbated in purely online settings such as open distant learning, MOOCs, or disruptive circumstances like the COVID pandemic. Time management skills are an essential component in this process and the target of this study, wherein 348 students covered a course through two conditions: the control group attended the semester in an unchanged way, while students in the experimental group were weekly invited to estimate and log their workload and time allocations, via “reflection amplifiers” provided on their mobile devices. While no major difference in time management and learning performance was observable, data reveals that perceived time allocation and prescribed study-time differ substantially. These results raise questions, on the students’ side, about the potential of qualitative (self-inputted) learning analytics to raise awareness on where time investments go. On the teachers’ side, the results highlight the need to better plan the curricula workload specifically for first-year students.
Emergency ambulance speed characteristics: a case study of Lesser Poland voivodeship, southern Poland
Authors: Lupa Michał , Chuchro Monika , Sarlej Wojciech , Adamek Katarzyna
Published: August 2021

The correct estimation of ambulance travel time is an extremely important issue from the perspective of healthcare and the security of citizens. In some events, the threat to the health or life of an injured person increases with each minute of waiting for an ambulance. The authors of this article analyzed how ambulances travel throughout the entire Lesser Poland voivodeship in southern Poland. Based on the analysis of 300 million GPS records that were collected over several years from 300 ambulances, real ambulance speed characteristics were compiled for the most important cities in the region. The obtained results regarding ambulance speed characteristics were used to understand the correlation between ambulance speed, the density of the road network, and the built-up areas of a given city. Furthermore, the impact on the speed of ambulances of traffic, time of day, day of the week, or the season was also examined. The influence of the use of ambulances’ lights/sirens on travel time was also examined. The culmination of the research was the presentation of the theoretical foundations of coverage maps and a method of implementing them based on the determined speed characteristics. The presented studies show that the speed at which ambulances move is a very local phenomenon. Also, a relatively constant average speed of ambulances throughout the whole week was found. Moreover, a difference in speed between signaled and non-signaled ambulance trips was observed. The speed characteristics that were obtained were used as input data for the development of dynamic coverage maps, which are an invaluable tool for supporting the decisions of ambulance dispatchers.
Assessing Organizational Users’ Intentions and Behavior to AI Integrated CRM Systems: a Meta-UTAUT Approach
Authors: Chatterjee Sheshadri , Rana Nripendra P. , Khorana Sangeeta , Mikalef Patrick , Sharma Anuj
Published: August 2021

This paper tests the meta-analysis based unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (meta-UTAUT) model to predict the behavioral intentions of organizational users and their use behavior to artificial intelligence (AI) integrated customer relationship management (CRM) systems. Data was collected from 315 organizational users in India. The hypotheses draw on the theoretical underpinnings which have been statistically validated. Results show that CRM quality and satisfaction significantly influences an organization’s employees attitudes and intentions to use AI integrated CRM systems. The compatibility of CRM systems has, however, a limited impact on employees attitudes. The findings, which are aligned with the extended UTAUT model, provide useful insights into organizations and decision-makers for designing AI integrated CRM systems.
Adopting Learning Analytics to Inform Postgraduate Curriculum Design: Recommendations and Research Agenda
Authors: Dennehy Denis , Conboy Kieran , Babu Jaganath
Published: August 2021

Understanding student sentiment plays a vital role in understanding the changes that could or should be made in curriculum design at university. Learning Analytics (LA) has shown potential for improving student learning experiences and supporting teacher inquiry. Yet, there is limited research that reports on the adoption and actual use of LA to support teacher inquiry. This four-year longitudinal study captures sentiment of postgraduate students at a university in Ireland, by integrating LA with the steps of teacher inquiry. This study makes three important contributions to teaching and learning literature. First, it reports on the use of LA to support teacher inquiry over four one-year cycles of a Master of Science in Business Analytics programme between 2016 and 2020. Second, it provides evidence-based recommendations on how to optimise LA to support teacher inquiry, with specific attention as to how these can improve the assimilation of LA into the curriculum design and delivery. Third, the paper concludes with a research agenda to help improve the adoption and integration of LA in the future.
Forest area predicts all dimensions of small mammal and lizard diversity in Amazonian insular forest fragments
Authors: Palmeirim Ana Filipa , Farneda Fábio Z. , Vieira Marcus Vinícius , Peres Carlos A.
Published: August 2021

Context

Although hydropower development is one of the primary drivers of habitat loss and insular fragmentation, its impacts on species identity and their functional and phylogenetic roles have often been overlooked.

Objectives

Here we use an integrative approach, considering taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic dimensions at multiple scales, to understand the processes underlying species (dis)assembly of two taxa exhibiting relatively low dispersal ability: small mammals and lizards.

Methods

We surveyed 26 islands within the Balbina Hydroelectric Reservoir, and adjacent continuous forest, in Central Amazonia. Each dimension of diversity was related to spatial and habitat variables. We also examined functional composition using community-weighted mean trait values, and community redundancy using functional uniqueness. β-diversity was partitioned into their richness (βrich) and replacement (βrepl) components.

Results

Functional and phylogenetic α-diversities of both taxa mirrored the taxonomic dimension, all of which increased with forest area. Individual small mammal (body mass and matrix tolerance), and lizard traits (body length, heliothermic mode and habitat type) were also predicted by forest area. For both groups, functional uniqueness decreased with forest area, and all dimensions of β-diversity were predominantly partitioned in βrich.

Conclusions

The environmental filter created by forest area resulted in the low conservation value associated with small forest islands, only occupied by a small set of species comprised by generalist lizards and matrix-tolerant small mammals. On the other side, large forest sites ensured ecosystem resilience to disturbance. To maintain ecosystem integrity, creating myriad small islands over large expanses of floodwaters should be avoided in future hydropower development.
A Puzzle about Logical Analysis
Authors: Rinner Stefan
Published: August 2021

In this paper, I will present a puzzle for logical analyses, such as Russell’s analysis of definite descriptions and Recanati’s analysis of ‘that’-clauses. I will argue that together with Kripke’s disquotational principles connecting sincere assent and belief such non-trivial logical analyses lead to contradictions. Following this, I will compare the puzzle about logical analysis with Frege’s puzzle about belief ascriptions. We will see that although the two puzzles do have similarities, the solutions to Frege’s puzzle cannot be applied mutatis mutandis to the puzzle about logical analysis. Hence, to say it with Kripke, the main thesis of this paper is that the puzzle is a puzzle. A complete solution to the puzzle promises a better understanding of both logical analyses and belief ascriptions.
Interferierende Praktiken
Authors: Breidenstein Georg
Published: August 2021

Die qualitative Unterrichtsforschung konturiert ihren Untersuchungsgegenstand zunehmend in Referenz auf soziologische Praxistheorien; Unterricht wird dann als Zusammenhang sozialer Praktiken verstanden. Der Beitrag greift diese Entwicklung auf und möchte sie weiter profilieren; so sollen Anschlüsse insbesondere zur fachdidaktischen Unterrichtsforschung markiert werden. Mit einer praxistheoretischen Ausrichtung kommen die soziale und die materielle Dimension der Unterrichtspraxis deutlicher in den Blick. Dabei scheinen Praktiken der Organisation des Unterrichts und Praktiken fachlichen Lernens je eigenen Logiken zu folgen und stehen nicht selten in einer gewissen Spannung zueinander. Mit der Metapher der ‚Interferenzen‘ soll eine Heuristik entwickelt werden, um das prekäre Verhältnis zwischen Unterrichtsordnung und den Möglichkeiten fachlichen Lernens zu untersuchen. Die Referenzen und Beispiele des Beitrags entstammen überwiegend der Grundschulforschung, und hier insbesondere der Mathematikdidaktik und der Deutschdidaktik, aber der Anspruch der konzeptionellen Überlegungen geht darüber hinaus.
Multiple myeloma: my highlights at ASH 2020
Authors: Gunsilius Eberhard
Published: August 2021

The meeting focused in particular on new strategies such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells and bispecific antibodies. Updates of clinical trials regarding induction treatment in transplantable and non-transplantable status were presented. Furthermore, minimal residual disease negativity (MRD) or, in other words, a status characterized by no measurable disease, using standardized multicolor-flow cytometry or next-generation sequencing techniques becomes increasingly important as an endpoint in clinical trials. A subjectively assessed overview of the current contributions to the treatment of multiple myeloma is given here.
Patterns of Adults with Low Literacy Skills Interacting with an Intelligent Tutoring System
Authors: Fang Ying , Lippert Anne , Cai Zhiqiang , Chen Su , Frijters Jan C. , Greenberg Daphne , Graesser Arthur C.
Published: August 2021

A common goal of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) is to provide learning environments that adapt to the varying abilities and characteristics of users. This type of adaptivity is possible only if the ITS has information that characterizes the learning behaviors of its users and can adjust its pedagogy accordingly. This study investigated an intelligent tutoring system with computer agents (AutoTutor) designed to improve comprehension skills in adults with low reading literacy. One goal of this study was to classify adults into different clusters based on their behavioral patterns (accuracy and response time to answer questions) while they interacted with AutoTutor to help them improve their reading comprehension skills. A second goal was to investigate whether adults’ behaviors were associated with different reading components. A third goal was to assess improvements in reading comprehension skills, based on psychometric tests, of different clusters of readers. Performance on AutoTutor was collected in a targeted 100-hour hybrid intervention for adult readers (n= 252) that included both human teachers and the AutoTutor system. The adults’ average accuracy and response time in AutoTutor were used to cluster the adults into four categories: higher performers (comparatively fast and accurate), conscientious readers (slow but accurate), under-engaged readers (fast at the expense of somewhat lower accuracy) and struggling readers (slow and inaccurate). Two psychometric tests of comprehension were used to assess comprehension. Gains in comprehension scores were highest for conscientious readers, lowest for struggling readers, with higher performing readers and under-engaged readers in between. The results provide guidance to enhance the adaptivity of AutoTutor.
Less-Lethal Weapons under International Law
Authors: Hoffberger-Pippan Elisabeth
Published: August 2021

Hitherto 'less-lethal' weapons, in contrast to classical firearms and other highly destructive weapons, have literally slipped under the radar of public international law. This book is the first monograph addressing and analysing all international legal regimes applicable to less-lethal weapons, ranging from arms control treaties, international humanitarian, criminal and human rights law. In doing so the different scenarios in which less-lethal weapons come to use will be taken into account, such as law enforcement, armed conflict and law enforcement scenarios during armed conflict. The relationships between the different legal regimes will be elaborated thoroughly with a view to examining how international law responds to less-lethal weapons. The final chapter provides guidelines as well as recommendations on appropriate use and regulation of less-lethal weapons, where the different scenarios of application, such as in armed conflict and law enforcement, will be given due account.
Enhancing community engagement in Patient-Centered Outcomes Research: Equipping learners to thrive in translational efforts
Authors: Poger Jennifer M. , Murray Andrea E. , Schoettler Emily A. , Marin Evelyn S. , Aumiller Betsy B. , Kraschnewski Jennifer L.
Published: August 2021

Community engagement is a critical component of translational research. Innovative educational approaches to support meaningful involvement of stakeholders in clinical research allows for bidirectional learning and greater engagement in translational efforts. Our Penn State Community-Engaged Research Core (CeRC) team has developed an innovative research curriculum for a variety of stakeholders, including patient partners, organizational representatives, and Community Health Workers (CHWs). This brief report will outline unique curricular approaches, guided by adult learning principles, to enhance stakeholder education and engagement in activities. Initial evidence of impact on learning is also reported.
Feasibility and acceptability of a structured quality by design approach to enhancing the rigor of clinical studies at an academic health center
Authors: Moradi Hamid , Schneider Margaret , Streja Elani , Cooper Dan
Published: August 2021

Introduction:

Clinical trials are a critical step in the meaningful translation of biomedical discoveries into effective diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. Quality by design (QbD) is a framework for embedding quality into the design, conduct, and monitoring of clinical trials. Here we report the feasibility and acceptability of a process for implementing QbD in clinical research at an academic health center via multidisciplinary design studios aimed at identifying and prioritizing critical to quality (CTQ) factors.

Methods:

The Clinical Trial Transformation Initiative’s Principles Document served as a guide to identify and categorize key CTQ factors, defined as elements of a clinical trial that are critical to patient safety and data integrity. Individual trials were reviewed in CTQ design studios (CTQ-DS) and the feasibility and acceptability of this intervention was examined through post-meeting interviews and surveys.

Results:

Eight clinical research protocols underwent the QbD evaluation process. The protocols ranged from multicenter randomized clinical trials to nonrandomized investigator-initiated studies. A developmental evaluation informed the iterative refinement of the CTQ-DS process, and post-meeting surveys revealed that CTQ-DS were highly valued by principal investigators (PIs) and resulted in multiple protocol changes.

Conclusions:

The present study demonstrated that QbD principles can be implemented to inform the design and conduct of clinical research at an academic health center using multidisciplinary design studios aimed at identifying and prioritizing CTQ elements. This approach was well received by the participants including study PIs. Future research will need to evaluate the effectiveness of this approach in improving the quality of clinical research.
Enabling Readiness of a School to Reopen During a Pandemic – A Field Experience
Authors: Baskaran Pritish , Raghav Pankaja , Naveen K. H. , Saurabh Suman
Published: August 2021

Modeling studies indicate that the closure of schools during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic may not be well grounded for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, as evidences indicate that children are less affected by this virus, and the clinical attack rates in the 0–19 age group are low. Experts also opine that school closures might have negative effects on the scholastic abilities of children and also an adverse impact on the economy and health care system, considering the responsibilities conferred upon the parents. Also, in a developing country like India, it is difficult for the rural population to afford distance online learning, which brings into importance the reopening of schools in a safe environment to avoid adversities such as increased drop-outs in the upcoming academic year, loss of in-person benefits such as mid-day meal scheme. This study highlights a field experience in relation to readiness assessment of a rural school in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan, India, for a safe reopening to accept students in a safe and conducive atmosphere, which shall help prevent transmission of the virus in the schools among the children. In this regard, an indigenous readiness checklist has been developed to achieve the purpose, which assesses the readiness in 3 domains: (1) procedural readiness; (2) supplies, sanitation, and infrastructure-related; and (3) education and training.
A meta-analysis of the impact of open innovation on performance
Authors: Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao , Huang Fang , Tian Xiaowen
Published: August 2021

Using the meta-analysis technique, this research comprehensively reviews the existing open innovation (OI) literature, systematically aggregates empirical findings on the impact of OI on performance to identify key moderators and statistically tests the significance of these moderators in influencing the OI–performance relationship. Based on a comprehensive dataset of 2,377,123 firms and sub-firm units in 171 studies published from 2003 to 2018, this research demonstrates that the OI–performance relationship is significantly moderated by three key factors: performance measure, OI approach, and level of analysis. This research helps explain the conflicting findings regarding the OI–performance relationship in the existing literature, and contributes to the understanding of the effectiveness of OI practice.
A new alligatoroid (Eusuchia, Crocodylia) from the Eocene of China and its implications for the relationships of Orientalosuchina
Authors: Shan Hsi-yin , Wu Xiao-Chun , Sato Tamaki , Cheng Yen-nien , Rufolo Scott
Published: August 2021

A new crocodylian, Dongnanosuchus hsui n. gen. n. sp., is described mainly based on four well-preserved skulls from the Eocene Youganwo Formation of the Maoming Basin, southeastern China. It is an alligatoroid and phylogenetically nested within the Orientalosuchina. Dongnanosuchus hsui n. gen. n. sp. differs from all other orientalosuchines primarily in certain features of the skull: (1) a preorbital ridge connects posteriorly with the dorsal orbital rim and a ridge around the anteroventral margin of the orbit, (2) the palatine is short and does not reach the posterior border of the suborbital fenestra, (3) the external mandibular fenestra is closed, and (4) the splenial joins the formation of the mandibular symphysis. The discovery of Dongnanosuchus hsui n. gen. n. sp. confirms the monophyly and North American origin of the Orientalosuchina but suggests that the clade dispersed to Asia via Beringia after diverging from the mainline rather than a sub-lineage of the Alligatoroidea in the Late Cretaceous.

UUID: http://zoobank.org/f8ca22f1-6323-462e-bf32-03c6a164c82e.
Revisitando las exploraciones arqueológicas en el sitio de Tingambato, Michoacán: Nuevos datos, nuevas tecnologías
Authors: Punzo Díaz José Luis
Published: August 2021

El presente artículo presenta una revisión de los hallazgos hechos en el sitio de Tingambato, en el centro sur de Michoacán, México, a la luz de los últimos trabajos realizados en los pasados siete años, haciendo uso de tecnologías recientes. En este trabajo se hace un estudio completo de la arquitectura, los materiales y especialmente los fechamientos que nos permiten finalmente poder establecer la ocupación de este importante sitio arqueológico durante los primeros 900 años de nuestra era. Finalmente se presenta un estudio apoyado en el uso de reconstrucciones virtuales, trabajos fotogramétricos y lidar de los contextos de dos impresionantes tumbas halladas en el sitio arqueológico, que nos permiten entender de mejor manera las costumbres funerarias de los sectores de élite de este grupo.
Last step to the throne: the conflict between rulers and their successors
Authors: Zhou Congyi
Published: August 2021

I model the dynamic between ruler and successor. The ruler cultivates a successor for a smooth power transition but fears being ousted by him, while the successor fears being removed by the ruler. The successor accumulates power while not threatening the ruler, and he prolongs their relationship by maintaining a low profile. The ruler gradually becomes more intolerant of the successor's growing power but, as his life nears its end, has less incentive to replace the successor. Thus conflict is most probable in the middle of their relationship; moreover, a predetermined succession order could increase its likelihood by restricting the ruler's choice. In the multi-candidate case, the strong candidate has some advantage but conflict is more likely to occur.
‘Yet another guitar recital filled the Wigmore Hall’: The Popularization of the Classical Guitar in Britain,c.1950–c.1970
Authors: RUSSELL DAVE
Published: August 2021

The popularity of the classical guitar in Britain surged between 1950 and 1970. The virtuosity of elite professionals led by the pioneering Andrés Segovia and the new stars Julian Bream and John Williams earned the classical instrument considerable purchase within the wider culture. Above all, it inspired thousands of largely middle-class, male, relatively young and urban amateur players, attracted not simply by the instrument’s intrinsic appeal but also by the opportunity offered to display a fashionable modernity and sophisticated connoisseurship. However, although securing for the classical guitar a much-enhanced musical role, these enthusiasts also created an often inward-looking specialist culture.
Coalitional Lobbying and Intersectional Representation in American Rulemaking
Authors: DWIDAR MARAAM A.
Published: August 2021

Interest groups representing the marginalized regularly neglect advocacy on behalf of their most vulnerable constituents—those with intersectional disadvantage. Yet, they claim that such advocacy is central to their missions. I argue that interest groups representing women, people of color, Native nations, and the poor strategically conduct intersectional advocacy through coalitional lobbying. I test this claim using a new dataset of cosignature patterns within public comments on proposed federal agency rules submitted by a set of such groups between 2004 and 2014. I find that these groups are significantly more likely to pursue intersectional advocacy in coalitions but that coalition work, alone, does not relate to influential intersectional advocacy. Rather, it is particular coalition characteristics, including organizational diversity and financial capacity, that predict such influence. I conclude that collaborative lobbying is an effective tactic for mediating representational bias in interest group advocacy and promoting more pluralistic administrative policy making.
Prescribing intranasal steroids in HIV-positive patients: systematic review of the literature
Authors: Seymour N , Robinson M , Richardson D , Mohammed H , Williams D , McGilligan J A
Published: August 2021

Background

There are significant drug–drug interactions between human immunodeficiency virus antiretroviral therapy and intranasal steroids, leading to high serum concentrations of iatrogenic steroids and subsequently Cushing's syndrome.

Method

All articles in the literature on cases of intranasal steroid and antiretroviral therapy interactions were reviewed. Full-length manuscripts were analysed and the relevant data were extracted.

Results

A literature search and further cross-referencing yielded a total of seven reports on drug–drug interactions of intranasal corticosteroids and human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors, published between 1999 and 2019.

Conclusion

The use of potent steroids metabolised via CYP3A4, such as fluticasone and budesonide, are not recommended for patients taking ritonavir or cobicistat. Mometasone should be used cautiously with ritonavir because of pharmacokinetic similarities to fluticasone. There was a delayed onset of symptoms in many cases, most likely due to the relatively lower systemic bioavailability of intranasal fluticasone.
Treatment outcomes in patients with laryngotracheal lesions and compromised airway during and prior to the coronovirus disease 2019 pandemic: a tertiary institution's experience
Authors: Gombert E , Ishii A , Guilcher P , Gorostidi F , Cantarella G , Pignataro L , Sandu K
Published: August 2021

Objective

This study aimed to compare treatment outcomes in patients with laryngeal and tracheal stenosis treated during and prior to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic period.

Method

Patients treated for laryngotracheal lesions with impending airway compromise during the active pandemic period were matched with those treated for similar lesions in the preceding years in a monocentric tertiary hospital setting.

Results

During the pandemic period of 55 days, 31 patients underwent 47 procedures. Seven patients (2 children, 5 adults) had open airway surgery, and one had an operation-specific complication. Twenty-four patients (10 children, 14 adults) underwent 40 endoscopic interventions without any complications. Operation specific results during and prior to the pandemic were comparable.

Conclusion

The management strategy in patients with laryngotracheal lesions and impending airway compromise should not be altered during periods of risk from coronavirus disease 2019. Avoiding a tracheostomy by performing primary corrective surgery or proceeding with a definitive decannulation would be beneficial in these patients to reduce the risk of contagion.
Cooperation For Survival: Western Interests v. SADCC
Authors: Thompson Carol B.
Published: August 2021

Every year statistics seem to demonstrate another decline in the quality of life in Southern Africa. The annual growth rate per capita of agricultural production in the region deteriorated to -1.04 percent from 1978-85. In March 1987, UNICEF reported that every four minutes a child under 5 years dies in Angola and Mozambique, the highest death rate among children in the world. International agencies like UNICEF now cite the major cause of this devastation: war waged by South Africa against its neighbors.
African Studies: A New Tradition?
Authors: Guyer Jane I.
Published: August 2021

Christopher Waterman quotes a Yoruba popular performer: “Our tradition is a very modern tradition.” The Study of Africa in the U.S. is a very modern tradition in several senses. In the great scale of things, it is very recent. During the presentation of a National Academy of Sciences project on The Population Dynamics of Sub-Saharan Africa last year, it was pointed out that only ten years ago the Academy had postponed work on this topic simply because the data were judged insufficient for a scientific synthesis. And it is a modern tradition in the sense of lively expansion and mutation. Most notably, over those same ten years or so the participants in both academic and non-academic study, and in popular culture, have become far more diverse.