bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determination of the Level of Heavy Metals in the Selected Cereals from Debre Markos Local Market, Amhara Region, Ethiopia
Authors: Getu Amsalu , Seid Yimer , Asrade Biset
Published: December 2022

Background. Environmental contamination by heavy metals has become a worldwide problem in recent years because of industrial and agricultural development which causes cereal crop contamination via their wastes. The presence of toxic heavy metals in cereal crops accumulate in the body for a prolonged period of time which poses acute and chronic health risks. The aim of the study was to assess the level of heavy metals in selected cereals sold at Debre Markos local market, in Ethiopia. Methods. The samples were prepared for analysis by using the dry ashing method, and their cadmium, lead, chromium, and copper contents were analyzed by using microwave-induced plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (MP-AES) and were expressed in mgkg−1 dry weight. The accuracy of the method was analyzed by the spike recovery test. Results. The percentage recovery for Cr, Cu, Pb, and Cd in each sample ranged from 85.6 to 112.8%. The levels of heavy metals (mean ± SD) were as follows: chromium, 2.20 ± 0.072, 2.22 ± 0.061, 1.57 ± 0.48, and 1.84 ± 0.26; copper, 2.94 ± 0.19, 2.31 ± 0.06, 1.28 ± 0.13, 1.52 ± 0.035, and 2.31 ± 0.06; lead, 0.49 ± 0.031, 0.34 ± 0.121, 0.52 ± 0.029, and 0.37 ± 0.15; and cadmium, 2.01 ± 1.73, 1.84 ± 1.60, 1.95 ± 1.69, and 1.93 ± 1.67 for barley, teff, wheat, and maize, respectively. This study revealed that the levels of Cr and Cu are generally below the permissible limit. However, the levels of Pb and Cd in all cereal samples were found to be above the permissible limit set by FAO/WHO, 0.2 and 0.1 mg kg−1, respectively. Conclusion. The findings of the study suggest that most of the analyzed crops contained unsafe levels of lead and cadmium that exceeded the WHO permissible limits. Therefore, regular monitoring of these toxic metals in cereal crops should be carried out to prevent heavy metal toxicity associated with the consumption of some cereal crops marketed in the Debre Markos local market, Ethiopia.
Utilization of Waste Incineration Bottom Ash to Enhance Engineering Properties of Expansive Subgrade Soils
Authors: Melese Damtew Tsige
Published: December 2022

Expansive soils are a type of soil that exhibits the ability to swell and shrink with the variation of moisture content. Lightweight structures such as pavements, sidewalks, and driveways face failures due to the swelling and shrinkage behavior of expansive soils. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of waste incineration bottom ash on the engineering properties of expansive subgrade soils. To investigate the waste incineration bottom ash, tests such as specific gravity, Atterberg limit, free swell test, compaction characteristics, unconfined compression strength, and Californian bearing ratio (CBR) were conducted. The soil was stabilized by waste incineration bottom ash with proportions of 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, and 30% by dry weight. From the laboratory test results, the soil under this category has poor engineering properties which include high plastic index, high free swell index, low UCS, and low CBR. The performance of soil improved as waste incineration bottom ash content increased with respect to curing time. The curing time of the sample has a significant effect on the performance of the weak subgrade soil.
A Small-Amplitude Control Method of the Nonlinear Energy Sink Vibration Absorption System
Authors: Yang Qingchao , Li Shuang , Lou Jingjun
Published: December 2022

The nonlinear energy sink (NES) is an effective method to weaken or eliminate the line spectra feature of ship machinery equipment. However, due to the strong nonlinearity of the NES, there are multistable attractors in the NES vibration absorption system. Moreover, when the excitation characteristics or working conditions of the mechanical equipment change, the NES may migrate from the small-amplitude motion state to the large-amplitude motion state, resulting in a high-amplitude solitary branch response and thereby lowering its vibration absorption efficiency. In this study, the small-amplitude control of the NES nonlinear vibration absorption system has been studied by using the open-loop-plus-nonlinear-closed-loop (OLPNCL) method. First, the dynamic equation of the NES nonlinear vibration-absorbing system was formulated, and its global behavior was analyzed. The regulations of global features and coexisting attractors were found out. Second, the migration between different attractors was carried out under the OLPNCL control, which can ensure that the system always works at the lowest line spectrum intensity and the best overall vibration absorption performance. Finally, the simulation results verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the OLPNCL method and achieve effective vibration absorption in the low-frequency range and line spectrum control under variable operating conditions.
Comparison of the Hook Plate versus TightRope System in the Treatment of Acute Type III Acromioclavicular Dislocation
Authors: Dündar Abdulrahim , İpek Deniz
Published: December 2022

Introduction. The objective of this study is to compare the effectiveness of the clavicular hook plate (HP) technique and the minimally invasive coracoclavicular (CC) fixation with a TightRope (MITR) procedure in treating acute unstable distal clavicle dislocation. Method. MITR (minimally invasive TightRope) group had 21 patients, and the open reduction and internal fixation (HP) group included 23 patients. Researchers compared MITR and HP (hook plate) outcomes for the treatment of acute type III AC joint dislocation in a retrospective analysis. The patients were followed up at 1 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Complications were analyzed such as redislocation, fractures, implant-related complications, or subacromial erosion. For the clinical outcomes, the visual analog scale (VAS) (0: no pain, 10: worst possible pain), Constant-Murley score (CMS) (100: no pain, 0: maximum pain), the average satisfaction score with their current shoulder function (range: 0–10), and the University of California at Los Angeles Shoulder score (UCLA) (>27 good/excellent <27 fair/poor) were recorded at the last follow-up. Result. There were 21 sufferers in the MITR group, which comprises 19 males and 2 females and 23 individuals in the HP group (20 men and 3 women), with average ages of 43.9 and 39.2, respectively. Age, sex, laterality, and the interval between injury and surgery did not significantly differ between the two groups (0.357, 0.792, 0.432, and 0.55, respectively). No statistically significant difference was found between the groups in terms of the VAS score and CMS score at one year postoperatively. The mean CCD at the initial trauma and last follow-up was not significantly different between the MITR and HP groups (

p
=
0.365

,

p
=
0.412

respectively). Conclusion. For treating acute type III AC dislocations, the minimally invasive TightRope (MITR) system and the hook plate technique were great options. However, the minimally invasive TightRope system showed further benefits such as reduced reoperation for implant removal and reduced risk of subacromial distal clavicle osteolysis.
Siamese Network‐Based Feature Transformation for Improved Automated Epileptic Seizure Detection
Authors: Iloon Tayebeh , Barati Ramin , Azad Hamid
Published: December 2022

Epilepsy is a common electrophysiological disorder of the brain, detected mainly by electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Since correctly diagnosing epilepsy seizures by monitoring the EEG signal is very tedious and time‐consuming for a neurologist, a growing number of studies have been conducted on developing automated epileptic seizure detection (AESD). In this work, a novel supervised model is proposed for AESD. Initially, the EEG signals are collected from Bonn University EEG (BU‐EEG) database. Then, empirical mode decomposition and feature extraction (combination of entropy, frequency, and statistical features) are applied to extract the features. Furthermore, Siamese network is utilized to lessen the number of extracted features and obtain the most discriminative features. Then, these features are exploited to classify seizure and non‐seizure EEG signals by using a support vector machine classifier. This paper examines the Siamese network’s contribution as a learning‐based feature transformation in improving seizure detection performance. The numerical results confirm that the proposed framework can achieve a perfect classification performance (100% accuracy). This approach can constructively help doctors to detect epileptic seizure activity and reduce their workload.
Determinants of Maternal Satisfaction with the Quality of Childbirth Services in a University Hospital in Kumasi, Ghana: A Cross‐Sectional Study
Authors: Amoah Victoria , Opoku Douglas Aninng , Ayisi-Boateng Nana Kwame , Osarfo Joseph , Apenteng Georgina , Amponsah Obed Kwabena Offe , Owusu-Dabo Ellis , Issah Shamwill , Mohammed Aliyu
Published: December 2022

Introduction. Rendering quality childbirth services that lead to higher levels of maternal satisfaction is an important goal of every health institution. Despite efforts at enhanced client satisfaction over the years, there are still some quality concerns for health policymakers and managers to address. This study sought to assess maternal satisfaction with childbirth services at a university hospital in Kumasi, Ghana. Methods. We conducted a facility‐based cross‐sectional study among women in postnatal wards after delivery at the University Hospital, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. They were recruited using a systematic sampling method, and their perspective about the quality of childbirth services was assessed using a service quality (SERVQUAL) tool. Linear regression analysis was performed to identify the relationship between SERVQUAL attributes and maternal satisfaction. Statistical significance was set at p value < 0.05 at a 95% confidence interval. Results. Of the 277 participants interviewed, 79.8% (221) were satisfied with the childbirth services. Delays (49.5%), unprofessional conduct from health workers (7.2%), poor facilities (10.8%), and an inadequate number of skilled staff (15.5%) were identified as the challenges mothers encountered at the facility. After adjusting for all the components of the SERVQUAL model, reliability (adjusted β = −3.28, p = 0.001) and empathy (adjusted β = 2.21, p = 0.028) were the most significant predictors of maternal satisfaction with childbirth services. Conclusion. Majority of postnatal women were generally satisfied with the overall childbirth services they received at the University Hospital. The service quality components that significantly predicted maternal satisfaction with childbirth services were “reliability” and “empathy.”
The Great Immune Escape: Understanding the Divergent Immune Response in Breast Cancer Subtypes
Authors: Onkar Sayali S. , Carleton Neil M. , Lucas Peter C. , Bruno Tullia C. , Lee Adrian V. , Vignali Dario A.A. , Oesterreich Steffi
Published: December 2022

Breast cancer, the most common type of cancer affecting women, encompasses a collection of histologic (mainly ductal and lobular) and molecular subtypes exhibiting diverse clinical presentation, disease trajectories, treatment options, and outcomes. Immunotherapy has revolutionized treatment for some solid tumors but has shown limited promise for breast cancers. In this review, we summarize recent advances in our understanding of the complex interactions between tumor and immune cells in subtypes of breast cancer at the cellular and microenvironmental levels. We aim to provide a perspective on opportunities for future immunotherapy agents tailored to specific features of each subtype of breast cancer.

Significance:

Although there are currently over 200 ongoing clinical trials testing immunotherapeutics, such as immune-checkpoint blockade agents, these are largely restricted to the triple-negative and HER2+ subtypes and primarily focus on T cells. With the rapid expansion of new in vitro, in vivo, and clinical data, it is critical to identify and highlight the challenges and opportunities unique for each breast cancer subtype to drive the next generation of treatments that harness the immune system.
Bromocriptine Improves Central Aortic Stiffness in Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes: Arterial Health Results From the BCQR-T1D Study
Authors: Schäfer Michal , Browne Lorna P. , Truong Uyen , Bjornstad Petter , Tell Shoshana , Snell-Bergeon Janet , Baumgartner Amy , Hunter Kendall S. , Reusch Jane E.B. , Barker Alex J. , Nadeau Kristen J. , Schauer Irene E.
Published: December 2022

Background:

The presence of vascular dysfunction is a well-recognized feature in youth with type 1 diabetes (T1D), accentuating their lifetime risk of cardiovascular events. Therapeutic strategies to mitigate vascular dysfunction are a high clinical priority. In the bromocriptine quick release T1D study (BCQR-T1D), we tested the hypothesis that BCQR would improve vascular health in youth with T1D.

Methods:

BCQR-T1D was a placebo-controlled, random-order, double-blinded, cross-over study investigating the cardiovascular and metabolic impact of BCQR in T1D. Adolescents in the BCQR-T1D study were randomized 1:1 to phase-1: 4 weeks of BCQR or placebo after which blood pressure and central aortic stiffness measurements by pulse wave velocity, relative area change, and distensibility from phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging were performed. Following a 4-week washout period, phase 2 was performed in identical fashion with the alternate treatment.

Results:

Thirty-four adolescents (mean age 15.9±2.6 years, hemoglobin A1c 8.6±1.1%, body mass index percentile 71.4±26.1, median T1D duration 5.8 years) with T1D were enrolled and had magnetic resonance imaging data available. Compared with placebo, BCQR therapy decreased systolic (∆=−5 mmHg [95% CI, −3 to −7];
P
<0.001) and diastolic blood pressure (∆=−2 mmHg [95% CI, −4 to 0];
P
=0.039). BCQR reduced ascending aortic pulse wave velocity (∆=−0.4 m/s;
P
=0.018) and increased relative area change (∆=−2.6%,
P
=0.083) and distensibility (∆=0.08%/mmHg;
P
=0.017). In the thoraco-abdominal aorta, BCQR decreased pulse wave velocity (∆=−0.2 m/s;
P
=0.007) and increased distensibility (∆=0.05 %/mmHg;
P
=0.013).

Conclusions:

BCQR improved blood pressure and central and peripheral aortic stiffness and pressure hemodynamics in adolescents with T1D over 4 weeks versus placebo. BCQR may improve aortic stiffness in youth with T1D, supporting future longer-term studies.
Radiomics Analysis of Diffusion-Weighted Imaging and Long-Term Unfavorable Outcomes Risk for Acute Stroke
Authors: Jiang Liang , Miao Zhengfei , Chen Huiyou , Geng Wen , Yong Wei , Chen Yu-Chen , Zhang Hong , Duan Shaofeng , Yin Xindao , Zhang Zhiqiang
Published: December 2022

Background:

Diffusion-weighted imaging radiomics could be used as prognostic biomarkers in acute ischemic stroke. We aimed to identify a clinical and diffusion-weighted imaging radiomics model for individual unfavorable outcomes risk assessment in acute ischemic stroke.

Methods:

A total of 1716 patients with acute ischemic stroke from 2 centers were divided into a training cohort and a validation cohort. Patient outcomes were measured with the modified Rankin Scale score. An unfavorable outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score greater than 2. The primary end point was all-cause mortality or outcomes 1 year after stroke. The MRI-DRAGON score was calculated based on previous publications. We extracted and selected the infarct features on diffusion-weighted imaging to construct a radiomic signature. The clinic-radiomics signature was built by measuring the Cox proportional risk regression score (CrrScore) and compared with the MRI-DRAGON score and the ClinicScore. CrrScore model performance was estimated by 1-year unfavorable outcomes prediction.

Results:

A high radiomic signature predicted a higher probability of unfavorable outcomes than a low radiomic signature in the training (hazard ratio, 3.19 [95% CI, 2.51–4.05];
P
<0.0001) and validation (hazard ratio, 3.25 [95% CI, 2.20–4.80];
P
<0.0001) cohorts. The diffusion-weighted imaging Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score, age, glucose level before therapy, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score on admission, glycated hemoglobin‚ radiomic signature, hemorrhagic infarction, and malignant cerebral edema were associated with an unfavorable outcomes risk after multivariable adjustment. A CrrScore nomogram was developed to predict outcomes and had the best performance in the training (area under the curve, 0.862) and validation cohorts (area under the curve, 0.858). The CrrScore model time-dependent areas under the curve of the probability of unfavorable outcomes at 1 year in the training and validation cohorts were 0.811 and 0.801, respectively.

Conclusions:

The CrrScore model allows the accurate prediction of patients with acute ischemic stroke outcomes and can potentially guide rehabilitation therapies for patients with different risks of unfavorable outcomes.
1 Introduction
Authors: Jan Steven
Published: December 2022

Chapter 1: begins with a rationale for the book, arguing for the power of evolutionary thought to illuminate the origins and practices of music. It surveys evolutionary theory, explaining how the Darwinian ‘Variation-Replication-Selection’ algorithm operates in a substrate-neutral way, covering a number of key cross-substrate commonalities that allow Darwinism in biology to be related to Darwinism in other realms, including (musical) culture. This integration of biological and cultural Darwinism allows for the exploration in later chapters of the evolution of musicality (the human urge and capacity for making music) and the evolution of music (the internal, systemic evolution of musical style and structure in human cultures).
2 The Evolution of Human Musicality
Authors: Jan Steven
Published: December 2022

Chapter 2: explores the evolution of the human capacity for music, looking at what is known of the physical, cognitive and social development of our species from our early hominin ancestors (starting with Australopithecus) and the role music may have played in this process (as cause and/or effect). In this sense, music is discussed as an adaptation (or potentially an exaptation), and its various survival-enhancing roles – in the enhancement of social cohesion, in sexual selection, and in infant nurture – are explored. Key to this chapter is its consideration of the relationship between music and language and the structural marking, in brain function and hemispheric localisation, of this relationship. This topic forms a six-section thread running through Chapters 2–7, and the basic position taken (after Steven Brown and Steven Mithen) is that mu-sic and language arose from a common ‘musilinguistic’ ancestor – this made up of increasingly discrete, replicated (memetic) sound particles – that bifurcated into spoken language and expressive music around 200,000 years ago. Structural correspondences between music and language, explored here in and in Chapter 3, are taken as evidence of this common ancestor.
3 Music-Cultural Evolution in the Light of Memetics
Authors: Jan Steven
Published: December 2022

Chapter 3: revisits memetics (theorised in my The Memetics of Music: A Neo-Darwinian View of Musical Structure and Culture (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007)) and its antecedent theories in order to explore further how biological and cultural Darwinism relate to each other and how they can illuminate our understanding of musicality and music. The discussion covers, among other issues, the question of taxonomy (how approaches to biological classification discussed in Chapter 1 (particularly cladism) can be applied to musico-cultural types) and the possible co-evolutionary effect of musical memes, or ‘musemes’, on human genetic evolution (what Susan Blackmore terms ‘memetic drive’). The structural correspondences between music and language discussed in Chapter 2 are used as the basis of an exploration of the syntactic and semantic homologies between the two substrates, developing the work of Peter Carruthers.
7 Conclusion
Authors: Jan Steven
Published: December 2022

Chapter 7: explores the relationships between evolution and consciousness, and the role of music (traditionally understood and also conceived in its new incarnations in digital media) in this relationship. The widely supported theory of consciousness as driven by Darwinian processes (hypothesised, among others, by William Calvin, Daniel Dennett, and Henry Plotkin) allows evolution to be conceived, conversely, as a form of slow-motion consciousness. In this sense, the evolution of large-scale systemic structures in music – such as the much theorised issue of tonal-system evolution in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries – is a form of high-level musical consciousness running in parallel with (indeed, driven by) the lower-level variation, replication and selection of particulate musemes.
The Role of the Circulation Patterns in Projected Changes in Spring and Summer Precipitation Extremes in the U.S. Midwest
Authors: Chen Liang , Ford Trent W. , Swenson Erik
Published: December 2022

Recent studies suggest springtime wet extremes and summertime dry extremes will occur more frequently in the U.S. Midwest, potentially leading to devastating agricultural consequences. To understand the role of circulation patterns in the projected changes in seasonal precipitation extremes, the k-means clustering approach is applied to the large-ensemble experiments of Community Earth System Model, version 2 (CESM2-LE), and ensemble projections of CMIP6. We identify two key atmospheric circulation patterns that are associated with the extremely wet spring and extremely dry summer in the U.S. Midwest. The springtime wet extremes are typically linked to baroclinic waves with a northward shift of the North American westerly jet and positive anomalies in sea level pressure over the western Atlantic, which favor the development of the Great Plains low-level jet. The summertime dry extremes are associated with the development of an anomalous ridge with suppressed storm tracks over the central United States. The projected increase in springtime wet extremes and summertime dry extremes can be attributed to significantly more frequent occurrences of the associated atmospheric regimes. Particularly, the intensity of wet extremes is expected to increase mainly due to the enhanced moisture flux from the Gulf of Mexico. The moisture budget analysis suggests that the precipitation extremes are mainly associated with the dynamic component of atmospheric circulation. CESM2-LE and CMIP6 exhibit good agreement in the projected changes in circulation patterns and precipitation extremes. Our results explain the mechanism of the projected changes in the Midwest seasonal precipitation and highlight the contribution of circulation patterns to hydroclimatic extremes.
Capturing and Attributing the Rainfall Regime Intensification in the West African Sahel with CMIP6 Models
Authors: Chagnaud G. , Panthou G. , Vischel T. , Lebel T.
Published: December 2022

Rainfall in the Sahel is extremely variable on daily to multidecadal time scales, challenging climate models to realistically simulate its past and future evolution and questioning their relevance for defining suitable climate change adaptation strategies. Improving confidence in climate models may be achieved by (i) evaluating their capacity for reproducing observed climatic evolution and (ii) attributing these evolutions. Moreover, there is a need to consider relevant climatic indicators, from an end-user point of view. Fully coupled (CMIP6-AOGCM) models with idealized detection and attribution forcings (DAMIP) as well as atmosphere-only simulations (AMIP) are used to investigate the respective roles of external forcing factors and internal climate variability in the observed intensification of the Sahelian rainfall regime. We show that CMIP6 models contain signs of the intensification of the rainfall regime as detected over the past 35 years from a regional daily observations network. Both the increase in intensity and occurrence of wet days, as well as that of extreme daily rainfall, are remarkably well reproduced by historical simulations incorporating anthropogenic forcing factors, with anthropogenic aerosols contributing the largest share of this trend. Though more strongly affected by model structure uncertainty, the greenhouse gas forcing also displays noticeably robust features. Models are shown to fail at simulating the observed dry extreme evolution. These findings give incentive for further investigating the underlying physical mechanisms that drive the Sahelian rainfall regime evolution at regional to subregional scales. Furthermore, future hydroclimatic trajectories in the Sahel should be explored, though particular caution is required as to which rainfall indicator to consider.

Significance Statement

The rainfall regime at a particular location is crucial to human and ecosystem livelihoods. Changes in rainfall regime characteristics on multidecadal time scales result from both the effects of external forcing factors on the climate and of its internal variability, with this latter aspect becoming more prominent on small spatial scales. In this study, several state-of-the-art climate simulations are used to document the rainfall regime evolution of the past 65 years in the Sahel, in terms of amplitude, timing, and causes. It is shown that large-scale anthropogenic factors have a substantial imprint, modulated to some extent by internal variability. These findings demonstrate that coarse-resolution climate models are a well-suited tool to investigate the recent intensification of rainfall in the Sahel, and may provide valuable information for climate change adaptation planning.
Multitasking While Driving: Central Bottleneck or Problem State Interference?
Authors: Held Moritz , Rieger Jochem W. , Borst Jelmer P.
Published: December 2022

Objective

The objective of this work was to investigate if visuospatial attention and working memory load interact at a central control resource or at a task-specific, information processing resource during driving.

Background

In previous multitasking driving experiments, interactions between different cognitive concepts (e.g., attention and working memory) have been found. These interactions have been attributed to a central bottleneck or to the so-called problem-state bottleneck, related to working memory usage.

Method

We developed two different cognitive models in the cognitive architecture ACT-R, which implement the central vs. problem-state bottleneck. The models performed a driving task, during which we varied visuospatial attention and working memory load. We evaluated the model by conducting an experiment with human participants and compared the behavioral data to the model’s behavior.

Results

The problem-state-bottleneck model could account for decreased driving performance due to working memory load as well as increased visuospatial attentional demands as compared to the central-bottleneck model, which could not account for effects of increased working memory load.

Conclusion

The interaction between working memory and visuospatial attention in our dual tasking experiment can be best characterized by a bottleneck in the working memory. The model results suggest that as working memory load becomes higher, drivers manage to perform fewer control actions, which leads to decreasing driving performance.

Application

Predictions about the effect of different mental loads can be used to quantify the contribution of each subtask allowing for precise assessments of the current overall mental load, which automated driving systems may adapt to.
Effects of void content on the moisture uptake and mechanical strength of a glass/epoxy composite
Authors: Ayanoglu Mustafa O , Carlsson Leif A , Du E
Published: December 2022

The effect of voids on the moisture uptake and transverse modulus and strength of a unidirectional glass/epoxy composite has been examined. To create voids, a foaming agent was mixed with the liquid epoxy resin prior to infusion. Micrographs of polished cross-sections indicate that voids are close to spherical in shape appearing in the matrix and at the fiber/matrix interface. The fiber, matrix, and void contents were analyzed by micrograph, burn-off, and density (Archimedes) methods. The void contents in the void-free and void-containing composites were respectively close to zero and 21%. Specimens were immersed in distilled water at 40°C until saturation. The weight gain was monitored periodically. For the void-free specimens, saturation moisture contents of about 0.60%. The void-containing specimens absorbed much more water, about 5%. The Fickian diffusion model provided good fits to experimental data although the transport mechanism for the void-containing composite appeared non-Fickian. Young’s modulus of the void-free composite was slightly affected by water absorption, although, the transverse tensile strength dropped significantly. Voids were found to substantially reduce transverse modulus and strength about 70%, for both dry and water saturated specimens. Moisture content analysis was in good agreement with experiments for the void-free composite but over-predicted the moisture content for the voidcontaining composite. Micromechanics predictions of the transverse modulus were within 21% of the experimental results for void-free and void containing composites at dry and water saturated conditions.
Helping Those That Hide: Anticipated Stigmatization Drives Concealment and a Destructive Cycle of Debt
Authors: Moorhouse Michael , Goode Miranda , Cotte June , Widney Jennifer
Published: December 2022

Debt accumulation has been linked to materialism, impulsivity, shortsightedness, self-control, and lifestyle preferences. However, applying stigma theory allows novel insights into debt accumulation for middle-class individuals who access a variety of credit-related products. The authors define anticipated stigmatization of debt as the negative judgment and discrimination an individual expects to experience because of their consumer indebtedness. Results from a series of studies demonstrate that although financial stress motivates behaviors designed to reduce debt, debtors who anticipate stigmatization perform a variety of concealment behaviors (secrecy, social spending, and help avoidance) that hinder debt reduction and have negative effects on well-being. To understand how to help these individuals, the authors collaborated with a financial education company, designing a field experiment to examine the efficacy of a behavior change course. Individuals who anticipated stigmatization and formed new social connections in a community-based condition reduced their consumer debt. Although the emotional effect of community-based support has been examined in other stigma contexts, this study is the first to investigate the effect on well-being in a debt context and link social benefits to actual behavior change in terms of debt reduction behaviors and debt repayment.
Analysis of the Effect of Emotional Intelligence and Coping Strategies on the Anxiety, Stress and Depression Levels of University Students
Authors: Augusto-Landa José María , García-Martínez Inmaculada , León Samuel P.
Published: December 2022

The present study examines the direct and indirect effects of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI) on levels of stress, anxiety and depression, and whether these are moderated by coping strategies. To this end, the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, Coping Strategies Inventory and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales were administered to 567 university students. The findings point to a direct relationship between EI and the levels of anxiety, depression and stress. EI directly explained the university students’ levels of anxiety, depression and stress, and it indirectly explained such levels through coping strategies. The article concludes by pointing out practical implications for university education and the improvement of students’ socio-emotional well-being.
Factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination for patients in an inpatient forensic psychiatric hospital
Authors: McCulley Lauren N. , Lang Shelby E. , Kriz Carrie R. , Iuppa Courtney A. , Nelson Leigh Anne , Gramlich Nicole A. , Elliott Ellie S. R. , Sommi Roger W.
Published: December 2022

Objective

The aim of this study was to assess factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) vaccination in patients in 2 inpatient forensic psychiatric hospitals.

Methods

This was a retrospective chart review evaluating factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination for patients residing in two inpatient forensic psychiatric hospitals between January 1, 2021 and February 28, 2022. Data was collected through electronic medical records utilizing MetaCare Enterprise™ and secure facility computer drives, individual patient paper charts, and Missouri’s vaccination records database, ShowMeVax. Several variables were collected to assess factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination. Additionally, COVID-19 vaccination rates were compared to the influenza vaccination rates at these hospitals.

Results

Overall, 229 patients (84.5%) were vaccinated against COVID-19 during or before the study period and 42 (15.5%) were unvaccinated. Patients who were deemed incompetent to stand trial were less likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Those that had a higher body mass index (BMI), were diagnosed with multiple comorbid conditions, not prescribed involuntary medications, were offered incentives, and received the influenza vaccine were more likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Education level, race, sex, age, and being prescribed psychiatric medications did not affect vaccination status.

Conclusions

Patient specific factors should be used when educating and offering COVID-19 vaccines to patients in an inpatient forensic psychiatric unit. Awareness of these results can facilitate targeted interventions for optimal care in a psychiatric population.
Epoxidized natural rubber composites containing K0.15Cr0.02Ni0.83O nanoparticles: Curing characteristics, dynamic mechanical, mechanical, morphological, and dielectric properties
Authors: Khumpaitool Bualan , Jantachum Punyarat , Utara Songkot
Published: December 2022

Many researchers have been trying to improve rubber composites because they are commonly used in a wide range of applications. Incorporation of nano-fillers in a rubber matrix is the most acceptable way to improve the mechanical and electrical properties of rubber composites. A nanometer-sized filler, such as K0.15Cr0.02Ni0.83O (KCNO), has rarely been used to improve the properties of rubber composites. Epoxidized natural rubber (ENR) was chosen for blending with KCNO nanoparticles based on its polarity and chemical resistance. The aim of this work is to investigate the effects of filler loading (0.5, 1.5, and 5 phr) on the curing characteristics, dynamic mechanical, mechanical, morphological, and dielectric properties of rubber composites. From the results, rubber vulcanizates with 1.5 phr of KCNO as filler exhibit better tensile strength and 500% modulus compared to other ENR specimens containing KCNO. ENR containing 1.5 phr of KCNO also has a higher storage modulus (E′) and glass transition temperature (Tg). The results of a microstructural characterization on a sample containing 1.5 phr of KCNO show that the natural rubber matrix and KCNO are effectively dispersed, indicating that the rubber and KCNO are likely well-matched, therefore curing simultaneously and forming a continuous phase. Furthermore, ENR containing 1.5 phr of KCNO has a greater dielectric constant (12.87 at 5 kHz) than other samples.
Fatigue life prediction and fracture mechanism of styrene-butadiene-styrene thermoplastic elastomer under uniaxial tension
Authors: Liu Yuxin , Wu Rulong , Liao Liangyan
Published: December 2022

The fatigue life and prediction of styrene-butadiene-styrene thermoplastic elastomer (SBS) under the action of uniaxial tension was investigated, and the fatigue fracture mechanism was analyzed. With the increases of amplitude and frequency, the fatigue life of SBS decreases. The fatigue life of SBS under the amplitude and frequency was predicted, and the shift factor was applied to predict the fatigue life of SBS at the other frequency and amplitude. With the increase of temperature, the fatigue life decreases first and then increases. The fatigue fracture surface presents crack source region, crack propagation region, and instantaneous fracture region. At – 40°C, the crack source region is rough, and the crack propagation region and instantaneous fracture region are rough with the rib morphology. With the increase of temperature at 23°C, the crack source region is relatively flat, and the crack propagation region presents the undulant surface. With the temperature further increased up to 50°C, the fracture surface is very flat, and the shell lines could be clearly seen. The crack growth rate of SBS increases with the increase of temperature. The gel structure of SBS is formed at high temperature through the chemical crosslinking.
Mediating and Representing the Slum: An Introduction
Authors: Finch Jason , Woods Maxwell
Published: December 2022

As a lexical concept, slum has been widely criticized by twenty-first-century researchers, but the formulation and spread of the concept have profoundly altered actual cities in many parts of the world since the early twentieth century. Examining the discursive history of the slum concept demonstrates the contribution literary studies focused on the city can make to urban history. Urban historians concerned with areas labeled as slums would benefit from problematizing the concept of slum as well as from establishing comparative histories of stigmatized urban zones in a planetary context. Such work leads to a definitional challenge in which undesirable conditions do need labeling in some way, but the challenges and materialities of different cities on different continents are also all unique and potentially damaged by the application of an overarching tag such as slum. In various ways, the contributions to this special feature all address the foregoing issues.
Forgone, Not Forgotten: “DNA Fingerprinting,” Migration Control and Britain’s DNA Profiling Pilot Project
Authors: Bivins Roberta
Published: December 2022

DNA profiling has become a culturally ubiquitous technology. Its use, whether in forensic investigations, genetic databases, biomedical research, international border-making, or popular genealogy, has been familiarized through political debates, media and cultural representations and commercialization. DNA profiling has also attracted considerable scholarly attention across this terrain. However, scant attention has been paid to the key role played by legal migration in driving DNA profiling’s initial translation from lab bench discovery to “truth machine” and identity token. Here, I discuss the first state-sponsored use of DNA profiling as a tool for establishing kinship relations among legal but racialized migrants on Britain’s borders in the mid-1980s. I argue that this early “experiment” conditioned the commercialization and future uses of the technology at and beyond border zones. Reinstating migration as the origin context for DNA profiling, and retracing the postcolonial routes by which it entered the biopolitical sphere, sheds light on the conjoined naturalization and racialization of genetic technologies of identity and identification, whether at or beyond national borders.
Innovation in Technology Instead of Thinking? Assetization and Its Epistemic Consequences in Academia
Authors: Falkenberg Ruth , Fochler Maximilian
Published: December 2022

This paper draws on the notion of the asset to better understand the role of innovative research technologies in researchers’ practices and decisions. Faced with both the need to accumulate academic capital to make a living in academia and with many uncertainties about the future, researchers must find ways to anticipate future academic revenues. We illustrate that innovative research technologies provide a suitable means for doing so: First, because they promise productivity through generating interesting data and hence publications. Second, because they allow a signaling of innovativeness in contexts where research is evaluated, even across disciplinary boundaries. As such, enrolling innovative research technologies as assets allows researchers to bridge partly conflicting valuations of productivity and innovativeness they are confronted with. However, the employment of innovative technologies in anticipation of future academic revenues is not always aligned with what researchers value epistemically. Nevertheless, considerations about potential future academic revenues derived from innovative research technologies sometimes seem to override particular epistemic valuations. Illustrating these dynamics, we show that processes of assetization in academia can have significant epistemic consequences which are important to unpack.
Sociology of organizations in the twenty-first century
Authors: Reed Michael
Published: December 2022

This review article analyses six texts within the sociology of organizations published in the early decades of the twenty-first century with a view to exploring what they tell us about the key issues and developmental trajectories the former will follow as this century unfolds. It suggests that the sociology of organizations is in good intellectual shape and continues to speak to issues which are central to our lives today and tomorrow. However, it also indicates that intellectual rejuvenation through contestation must be sustained within the field – particularly in the face of pressures towards intellectual closure and conformity – if it is to retain its relevance at a time when instability and uncertainty seem to be pervasive.
Exploring Heterogeneous Structural Relationships Between E-Shopping, Local Accessibility, and Car-Based Travel: An Application of Enriched National Household Travel Survey Add-on Data
Authors: Kim Sung Hoo , Mokhtarian Patricia L. , Choo Sangho , Circella Giovanni
Published: December 2022

This study analyzes structural relationships between information and communication technology (ICT), e-shopping, local accessibility, and travel intensity in the U.S. state of Georgia. Beginning with the 2017 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS), we enriched the data by exploiting the add-on program. After obtaining contact information for the Georgia NHTS participants who expressed willingness to take a follow-up survey, we conducted another survey with those participants. In addition, we appended land use characteristics associated with respondents’ home locations. To test the hypothesis of possible heterogeneity in structural relationships, we applied a mixed structural equation model. We corroborated our hypotheses that the use of ICT has a positive impact on e-shopping frequency, whereas local accessibility reduces e-shopping frequency. In addition, we identified two meaningful segments exhibiting different structural relationships. The smaller segment (12.7%) showed complementary effects of e-shopping on car-based travel intensity, but local accessibility did not have a significant impact on car-based travel intensity. The dominant segment (87.3%) presented a negative impact of local accessibility but no meaningful effect of e-shopping frequency on car-based travel intensity. A post-hoc analysis revealed meaningful differences in demographics between the two classes. The study suggests that an assumption of homogeneous structural relationships between e-shopping and car-based travel intensity and between local accessibility and car-based travel intensity may not hold. The paper discusses benefits and practical issues concerning fusion of the NHTS data with other data sources. In addition, it stresses the potential of the NHTS add-on program and notes some recommendations.
Statistical Comparison of the Performance of Alternative Contracting Methods in Florida
Authors: Zhang Yuanxin , Minchin R. Edward , Chini Abdol , Ptschelinzew Lourdes
Published: December 2022

This study empirically examines the performance of alternative contracting methods using data from 2,721 highway projects gathered from a Florida Department of Transportation database. Contracting methods can significantly influence the cost and time of highway projects, so it is essential to use appropriate contracting methods in highway projects, especially considering the huge current volume of work and great need for more lane miles and new bridges. The most widely used alternative contracting methods in horizontal construction include Design–Build Major, Design–Build Minor, Cost Plus Time, Incentive/Disincentive, Lump Sum, and No Excuse Bonus. These have been devised to overcome shortcomings of the conventional Design–Bid–Build (DBB) method; however, their actual performance in practice has not previously been rigorously studied. To fill this gap, we statistically analyze our sample of highway projects using the Shapiro–Wilk test, Levene’s test, Kruskal–Wallis test, Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney test, and Dunn’s test for unequal sample sizes. Another unique contribution of this research is the analytical techniques employed, which led to more reliable results based on the large quantity of data gathered. We find that some contracting methods performed better than others in each cost category for cost and time, and based on average cost and time savings, but not all were confirmed statistically. All seven contracting methods performed better in achieving time reductions than cost reductions, and all methods were more effective in reducing the cost and time of projects worth less $20 million than those worth over $20 million.
National Economic Benefits of Railway Transportation Analyzed Using Data Mining
Authors: Xue Xiaojuan , Jia Yuanhua , Tang Yuanjie
Published: December 2022

This study focuses on the economic benefits of railway transportation from the aspect of data mining using convolution neural network (CNN), long short-term memory (LSTM), and multiple linear regression (MLRA) models. Improved CNN and LSTM (CNN-LSTM), and CNN and bidirectional LSTM (CNN-Bi-LSTM) models have been developed to enhance learning. The case data sets include operating mileage, and passenger and freight turnover for four transportation modes (railway, highway, aviation, and water transportation) from 1952 to 2020 in China; various evaluation indexes are used to verify model effectiveness. The CNN and LSTM model prediction error rates are 29% and 22%, respectively, verifying the role of an integrated transportation system in railway transportation and the time effect as a national economic benefit of railway transportation, respectively. The CNN-LSTM model prediction error rate is 12%, indicating that the economic benefits of railway transportation depend on the structure of various transportation modes and the time stage of transportation resource allocation. The prediction error rate of the CNN-Bi-LSTM model is 14%, suggesting the irreversibility of the impact of railway transportation resources on economic benefits. The MLRA model error rate is lower than those of the CNN and LSTM models, at 19%, but higher than those of the other models. The CNN-LSTM model is recommended to quantify the economic benefits of railway transportation. This study illustrates the systematic nature, periodicity, time lag, and irreversibility of railway transportation and economic development, providing a theoretical basis for the formulation of transportation development and investment plans.