bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
“Who can I ring? Where can I go?” Living with advanced cancer whilst navigating the health system: a qualitative study
Authors: Newton Jade C. , O’Connor Moira , Saunders Christobel , Ali Sayed , Nowak Anna K. , Halkett Georgia K. B.
Published: May 2022

Background

People with advanced cancer often experience greater physical and psychosocial morbidity compared to those with early disease. Limited research has focused on their experiences within the Australian health system. The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of adults receiving care for advanced cancer.

Methods

A qualitative design with a descriptive phenomenological approach was used to explore the lived experiences of people with advanced cancer following their diagnosis. Twenty-three people living with an advanced solid malignancy receiving care were referred by their oncologists to take part in an interview conducted at their home, the hospital, or over the phone.

Results

Three key themes emerged relating to participants’ experiences of living with advanced cancer: (1) living with a life-limiting diagnosis and uncertainty, (2) living with symptom burden and side effects, and (3) living within the health system, with two subthemes, the patient-clinician relationship, and care coordination. Participant relationships with their health professionals were particularly important and had a defining impact on whether patient experiences living with cancer were positive or negative.

Conclusion

People with advanced cancer experienced broad variation in their experiences navigating the health system, and their relationships with clinicians and other health professionals were important factors affecting their perceptions of their experiences. Attention to the coordination of care for people with advanced cancer is necessary to improve their experiences and improve symptom control and the management of their psychosocial burden.
A systematic mapping study on automated analysis of privacy policies
Authors: Del Alamo Jose M. , Guaman Danny S. , García Boni , Diez Ana
Published: May 2022

A privacy policy describes the operations an organization carries out on its users’ personal data and how it applies data protection principles. The automated analysis of privacy policies is a multidisciplinary research topic producing a growing but scattered body of knowledge. We address this gap by conducting a systematic mapping study which provides an overview of the field, identifies research opportunities, and suggests future research lines. Our study analyzed 39 papers from the 1097 publications found on the topic, to find what information can be automatically extracted from policies presented as textual documents, what this information is applied to, and what analysis techniques are being used. We observe that the techniques found can identify individual pieces of information from the policies with good results. However, further advances are needed to put them in context and provide valuable insight to end-users, organizations dealing with data protection laws and data protection authorities.
The role of toothbrush in the transmission of corona- and influenza viruses — results of an in vitro study
Authors: Schmalz Gerhard , Feindt Laura , Tanneberger Franziska , Haak Rainer , El Wahed Ahmed Abd , Truyen Uwe , Ziebolz Dirk
Published: May 2022

Objectives

The aim of this in vitro study was to investigate viruses’ stabilities on manual toothbrushes using feline coronavirus (FeCoV) as representative of coronaviruses and an Avian influenza A virus H1N1 for influenza viruses.

Material and methods

Two viruses, FeCoV (Strain Munich; titer 107.5 TCID50/ml) and H1N1 (RE 230/90; titer 106.5 TCID50/ml), were used in this study. Manual toothbrushes were disassembled into bristles, bristle fixation, and back of the toothbrush head, contaminated with the viruses and air-dried for 24 h. In a second experiment, whole toothbrush heads were contaminated, rinsed with water (5 ml for 15 s) and then air-dried.

Results

For FeCoV, immediately after contamination, the following average titers were recovered: fixation: 106.41, back of head: 106.81 and bristles: 106.63 TCID50/ml. Following air-drying of 12 (fixation) and 24 h, titers of ≤ 102.5, 103.75, and 102.72 TCID50/ml were found in the respective groups, with a detection limit of 102.5 TCID50/ml. For H1N1, immediately after contamination, the following average titers could be recovered: fixation: 105.53, back of head: 105.97 and bristles: 105.75 TCID50/ml. Following air-drying of 8 (fixation) and 24 h, titers were ≤ 102.5, 103.63, and 103.53 TCID50/ml in the respective group, again with 102.5 TCID50/ml being the detection limit. In case of water rinse, no infectious virus could be recovered after 12 h.

Conclusion

Viral load of both viruses is reduced by air-drying, especially following water rinsing.

Clinical relevance

The toothbrush itself plays an insignificant role in the self-transmission of coronavirus and influenza virus.
Seafloor Terrain Shapes the Three-dimensional Nursery Value of Mangrove and Seagrass Habitats
Authors: Borland Hayden P. , Gilby Ben L. , Henderson Christopher J. , Connolly Rod M. , Gorissen Bob , Ortodossi Nicholas L. , Rummell Ashley J. , Nagelkerken Ivan , Pittman Simon J. , Sheaves Marcus , Olds Andrew D.
Published: May 2022

Mangroves and seagrasses are important nurseries for many marine species, and this function is linked to the complexity and context of these habitats in coastal seascapes. It is also connected to bathymetric features that influence habitat availability, and the accessibility of refuge habitats, but the significance of terrain variation for nursery function is unknown. To test whether seafloor terrain influences nursery function, we surveyed fish assemblages from mangrove and seagrass habitats in 29 estuaries in eastern Australia with unbaited underwater cameras and quantified the surrounding three-dimensional terrain with a set of complementary surface metrics (that is, depth, aspect, curvature, slope, roughness) applied to sonar-derived bathymetric maps. Terrain metrics explained variability in assemblages in both mangroves and seagrasses, with differing effects for the entire fish assemblage and nursery species composition, and between habitats. Higher depth, plan curvature (concavity or convexity) and roughness (backscatter) were negatively correlated with abundance and diversity in mangroves and positively linked to abundance and diversity in seagrass. Mangrove nursery species (6 species) were most abundant in forests adjacent to flats with concave holes, rough substrates and low-moderate depths, whereas seagrass nursery species (3 species) were most abundant in meadows adjacent to deep channels with soft mounds and ledges. These findings indicate that seafloor terrain influences nursery function and demonstrate contrasting effects of terrain variation in mangroves and seagrass. We suggest that incorporating three-dimensional terrain into coastal conservation and restoration plans could help to improve outcomes for fisheries management, but contrasting strategies might be needed for different nursery habitats.
Saving soil carbon, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity and the economy: paludiculture as sustainable land use option in German fen peatlands
Authors: Tanneberger Franziska , Birr Friedrich , Couwenberg John , Kaiser Moritz , Luthardt Vera , Nerger Monique , Pfister Sonja , Oppermann Rainer , Zeitz Jutta , Beyer Colja , van der Linden Sebastian , Wichtmann Wendelin , Närmann Felix
Published: May 2022

Peatlands in the European Union are largely drained for agriculture and emit 25% of the total agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. Drainage-based peatland use has also negative impacts on water quality, drinking water provision and biodiversity. Consequently, key EU environmental policy objectives include the rewetting of all drained peatlands as an essential nature-based solution. Rewetting of peatlands can be combined with site-adapted land use, so-called paludiculture. Paludiculture produces biomass from wet and rewetted peatlands under conditions that maintain the peat body, facilitate peat accumulation and can provide many of the ecosystem services associated with natural, undrained peatlands. The biomass can be used for a wide range of traditional and innovative food, feed, fibre and fuel products. Based on examples in Germany, we have analysed emerging paludiculture options for temperate Europe with respect to greenhouse gas fluxes, biodiversity and indicative business economics. Best estimates of site emission factors vary between 0 and 8 t CO2eq ha−1y−1. Suitability maps for four peatland-rich federal states (76% of total German peatland area) indicate that most of the drained, agriculturally used peatland area could be used for paludiculture, about one-third of the fen area for any paludiculture type. Fen-specific biodiversity benefits from rewetting and paludiculture, if compared to the drained state. Under favourable conditions, paludiculture can be economically viable, but costs and revenues vary considerably. Key recommendations for large-scale implementation are providing planning security by paludiculture spatial planning, establishing best practice sites and strengthening research into crops, water tables and management options.
Assessing potential impacts of sea level rise on mangrove ecosystems in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam
Authors: Dang An T. N. , Reid Michael , Kumar Lalit
Published: May 2022

Sea level rise (SLR) due to global climate change negatively impacts coastal zones, in particular wetland and mangrove ecosystems. Mangroves in the Mekong Delta (MD) in Vietnam provide critical ecosystem services in the region; however, escalated relative SLR is likely to affect all ecosystems in the region, with mangroves probably more vulnerable than others. Given the fact that documented information and studies on SLR impacts on mangroves are limited for the region, this study aims to investigate potential changes in mangrove distribution in response to future SLR scenarios in the coastal area in the south of the MD using the Sea Level Affects Marshes Model (SLAMM). Wetland maps for 2013 derived from Landsat 8 OLI sensor, digital elevation model (DEM), and localized site-specific parameters (i.e., subsidence/accretion, erosion, historic trend of SLR, and over-wash) were used as input for the SLAMM to simulate spatial distribution of mangroves under different relative SLR scenarios (i.e., RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP8.5, more extreme SLR), and surface elevation change (i.e., subsidence, stable, and accretion) scenarios by the year 2100. Simulation results show that the average annual mangrove losses are likely to be 0.54% and 0.22% for subsidence and stable scenarios, respectively. The findings demonstrate the considerable impacts of SLR on MD mangrove ecosystems and the strong influence of subsidence processes. Inundation was also identified as a main driver responsible for the mangrove loss by the end of this century. Our results are in agreement with findings of other studies at global scales and observed data at regional scales. The results also demonstrate the potential of the approach developed herein for simulating mangrove dynamics under future relative SLR scenarios in the region with acceptable accuracy. The findings from the present study are useful sources for development of proper strategies for minimizing the impacts of SLR on mangrove ecosystems and their vital associated services, to protect and conserve the mangrove ecosystems in the region.
Decompression only versus fusion in octogenarians with spinal epidural abscesses: early complications, clinical and radiological outcome with 2-year follow-up
Authors: Lenga Pavlina , Gülec Gelo , Bajwa Awais Akbar , Issa Mohammed , Oskouian Rod J. , Chapman Jens R. , Kiening Karl , Unterberg Andreas W. , Ishak Basem
Published: May 2022

Despite increased life expectancy due to health care quality improvements globally, pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis (PVO) treatment with a spinal epidural abscess (SEA) remains challenging in patients older than 80 years. We aimed to assess octogenarians for PVO prevalence with SEA and compare after-surgery clinical outcomes of decompression and decompression and instrumentation. A retrospective review of electronic medical records at a single institution was conducted between September 2005 and December 2020. Patient demographics, surgical characteristics, complications, hospital course, and 90-day mortality were collected. Comorbidities were assessed using the age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (CCI). Over 16 years, 35 patients aged ≥80 years with PVO and SEA were identified. Eighteen patients underwent surgical decompression (“decompression group”), and 17 underwent surgical decompression with instrumentation (“instrumentation group”). Both groups had a CCI >6 (mean±SD, 8.9±2.1 vs. 9.6±2.7, respectively; p=0.065). Instrumentation group patients had a significantly longer hospital stay but no ICU stay. In-hospital and 90-days mortality rates were similar in both groups. The mean follow-up was 26.6±12.4 months. No further surgeries were performed. Infection levels and neurological status were improved in both groups at discharge. At the second-stage analysis, significant improvements in the blood infection parameters and the neurological status were detected in the decompression group. Octogenarians with PVO and SEA have a high adverse events risk after surgical procedures. Surgical decompression might contribute to earlier clinical recovery in older patients. Thus, the surgical approach should be discussed with patients and their relatives and be carefully weighed.
Overexpression of miR-17 predicts adverse prognosis and disease recurrence for acute myeloid leukemia
Authors: Cao Yang , Liu Yue , Shang Limei , Chen Huijuan , Yue Yanhua , Dong Weimin , Guo Yanting , Yang Haonan , Yang Xiaojun , Liu Yan , Gu Weiying , Zhang Xiaoying
Published: May 2022

Background

The clinical significance of miR-17 in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains unknown.

Methods

Real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was performed to detect the miR-17 expression in 115 de novo AML patients, 31 patients at complete remission (CR) time, 8 patients at relapse time and 30 normal controls.

Results

MiR-17 was upregulated in de novo AML compared with normal controls. Patients with high expression of miR-17 had less CEBPA double mutation, less favorable ELN-risk and lower CR rate. The level of miR-17 was significantly decreased at CR phase and was returned to primary level even higher when in relapse phase. In addition, Cox regression analysis revealed that miR-17 expression retained independent prognostic significance for overall survival (OS). Moreover, the gene-expression profile analysis of miR-17 in AML obtained from TCGA database was involved in multiple biological functions and signal pathways. Among the differential expressed genes (DEGs), we identified FGL2, PLAUR, SLC2A3, GPR65, CTSS, TLR7, S1PR3, OGFRL1, LILRB1, IL17RA, SIGLEC10, SLAMF7, PLXDC2, HPSE, TCF7 and MYCL as potential direct targets of miR-17 according to in silico analysis.

Conclusions

High expression of miR-17 in de novo AML patients pointed to dismal clinical outcome and disease recurrence, which could serve as novel prognostic biomarker for AML patients.
Loving truly: An epistemic approach to the doxastic norms of love
Authors: Dormandy Katherine
Published: May 2022

If you love someone, is it good to believe better of her than epistemic norms allow? The partiality view says that it is: love, on this view, issues norms of belief that clash with epistemic norms. The partiality view is supposedly supported by an analogy between beliefs and actions, by the phenomenology of love, and by the idea that love commits us to the loved one’s good character. I argue that the partiality view is false, and defend what I call the epistemic view. On the epistemic view, love also issues norms of belief. But these say simply (and perhaps surprisingly) that you should adhere to epistemic norms in forming and maintaining beliefs about loved ones. I offer two arguments for the epistemic view. The first appeals to the emotional responses of love, which, when sensitive to what the loved one is really like, can make love great and be morally transformative. The second is a new argument for why caring for a loved one requires true beliefs about him. We see that there may be some boundaries, such as stuffy traditions, that love is right to defy, but that epistemic boundaries are not among them.
CupMar: A deep learning model for personalized news recommendation based on contextual user-profile and multi-aspect article representation
Authors: Tran Dai Hoang , Sheng Quan Z. , Zhang Wei Emma , Tran Nguyen H. , Khoa Nguyen Lu Dang
Published: May 2022

In modern days, making recommendation for news articles poses a great challenge due to vast amount of online information. However, providing personalized recommendations from news articles, which are the sources of condense textual information is not a trivial task. A recommendation system needs to understand both the textual information of a news article, and the user contexts in terms of long-term and temporary preferences via the user’s historic records. Unfortunately, many existing methods do not possess the capability to meet such need. In this work, we propose a neural deep news recommendation model called CupMar, that not only is able to learn the user-profile representation in different contexts, but also is able to leverage the multi-aspects properties of a news article to provide accurate, personalized news recommendations to users. The main components of our CupMar approach include the News Encoder and the User-Profile Encoder. Specifically, the News Encoder uses multiple properties such as news category, knowledge entity, title and body content with advanced neural network layers to derive informative news representation, while the User-Profile Encoder looks through a user’s browsed news, infers both of her long-term and recent preference contexts to encode a user representation, and finds the most relevant candidate news for her. We evaluate our CupMar model with extensive experiments on the popular Microsoft News Dataset (MIND), and demonstrate the strong performance of our approach.
Mobilizing against the odds. Solidarity in action in the platform economy
Authors: della Porta Donatella , Chesta Riccardo Emilio , Cini Lorenzo
Published: May 2022

The relationship between working conditions and the development of collective solidarity has been much debated in sociology over the past century. The article contributes to this debate by exploring two recent cases of worker mobilization in the context of the Italian platform economy, concerning Amazon delivery drivers and food delivery couriers. Both groups developed specific identity frames in the course of their mobilizations in four Italian cities between 2018 and 2019, which differed significantly. The article explains those differences through a theoretical framework that bridges social movement and labor studies. While Amazon delivery drivers adopted a mobilizing strategy aimed narrowly at improving their conditions as Amazon workers, food delivery couriers elaborated a broader identity framing as precarious platform workers. The difference can be connected to specific features of labor organization, in particular regarding the diverse conditions met by digital innovation in the two sectors: While Amazon drivers belong to a technologically advanced segment (e-commerce) of a traditional sector (logistics), food delivery couriers are part of a new, platform-based sector. The article shows how such sectoral variation affected ways of collectively organizing, forms of solidarity and identity framing.
A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Basket or Balloon Catheter for the Retrieval of Choledocholithiasis
Authors: Elsnhory Ahmed Bostamy , Mandour Omar Amgad , Montaser Ahmed Gamal , kereet Ibrahim Mahmoud , Rezk Hazem Salah , Madhoon Hossam Waleed , Rabea Randa Kamal , Ragab Khaled Mohamed , Gbreel Mohamed Ibrahim
Published: May 2022

Choledocholithiasis means the presence of gallstone inside the common bile duct (CBD). Removing the bile duct stones can be done surgically using endoscopic catheters. In this study, we aim to assess the safety and efficacy of basket catheters compared to balloon catheters at bile duct stone clearance. We searched four databases for clinical trial and cohort studies that compare basket catheter and balloon catheter in bile duct stone extraction. We extracted data from the included studies. These data were pooled as mean difference (MD) or risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) using Review Manager software (version 5.3) and OpenMetaAnalyst software for zero-event outcomes. In a total of 728 patients, we find that the balloon catheter was better than the basket catheter regarding incomplete bile duct stone clearance (RR = 0.91, 95% CI [0.85, 0.98], P = 0.01). Regarding the number of the extracted stones by both catchers, the analysis favored the balloon catheter over the basket for clearance when less than four stones (RR = 0.91, 95% CI [0.85, 0.99], P = 0.02) but no significant difference for more than four stones (RR = 0.77, 95% CI [0.48, 1.24], P = 0.29). There was no significant difference between the two groups. The analysis revealed that the balloon catheter is better than the basket catheter for choledocholithiasis regarding the complete clearance of the stone. However, there was no significant difference regarding the safety outcome.
Moti-55: alcoholpreventie bij 55-plussers
Authors: Dupont Hans
Published: May 2022

Samenvatting

In dit artikel wordt de interventie Moti-55 en haar doorontwikkeling en implementatie kort beschreven. Ook komen een beperkt pilotonderzoek, een onderzoek naar sociale norm en de inbedding daarvan in Moti-55 aan bod. Inmiddels zijn in heel Nederland professionals in Moti-55 opgeleid. Voor verdere implementatie is er in de nabije toekomst behoefte aan een robuustere onderbouwing van de effectiviteit van deze interventie.
Alcohol-, drugs- en medicijnbeleid op het werk
Authors: Blokland Maddy A , Spronk Desirée B , Frijstein Gerard
Published: May 2022

Samenvatting

De werksetting biedt kansen voor preventie van (problematisch) alcohol-, drugs- en medicijngebruik. Deze bijdrage informeert over de omvang van het alcohol-, drugs- en medicijngebruik onder werkenden in Nederland en de risico’s daarvan voor de werksituatie. We introduceren de werkgroep werkgevers/werknemers van het Samenwerkingsverband Vroegsignalering Alcoholproblematiek (SVA). Deze werkgroep stimuleert en ondersteunt bedrijven bij preventie en vroegsignalering van alcoholproblematiek in de werksituatie. Vervolgens bespreken we de mogelijkheden van preventie door alcohol,- drugs- en medicijnbeleid (ADM-beleid). We zetten uiteen hoe ADM-beleid een oplossing kan bieden voor verschillende belemmeringen die spelen bij de implementatie van preventie op de werkvloer. We sluiten het artikel af met een korte vooruitblik.
E-healthketen van online alcohol interventies
Authors: de Bruijn Tamara , Hoogervorst Jitske
Published: May 2022

Samenvatting

In dit artikel is overmatig drinkgedrag van Nederlanders het vertrekpunt. Het laat het belang van preventie zien, bijvoorbeeld via online interventies, die bij uitstek geschikt zijn om vroegtijdig in te grijpen. We beschrijven de ontwikkeling van de online keten, een samenhangend systeem van vroegsignalering en (preventieve) interventies, het verkennende onderzoek hiervoor en de aanbevelingen voor het landelijke alcoholportaal in ontwikkeling: allesoverdrinken.nl. De drijvende kracht achter dit project is Verslavingskunde Nederland, een netwerkorganisatie van instellingen voor verslavingszorg, cliëntenvertegenwoordigers en kenniscentra.
Fris Verder: een verkennend onderzoek naar groepsbehandelingen voor ouderen met alcoholproblemen
Authors: Roodbeen Ruud , van de Mheen Dike , Bovens Rob
Published: May 2022

Samenvatting

Inleiding

Hoewel overmatig alcoholgebruik onder ouderen voorkomt, zijn de groepsbehandelprogramma’s niet gestandaardiseerd. In dit onderzoek staan vier programma’s voor ouderen met alcoholproblematiek centraal, met als koepelnaam Fris Verder. Het doel is een verkenning uit te voeren naar kenmerken en overeenkomsten/verschillen, mogelijkheden voor standaardisatie en evidente/werkzame elementen uit de literatuur, die we vergelijken met de kenmerken van de programma’s.

Methode

We voerden een documentanalyse, interviews met professionals en een vergelijking met literatuur uit.

Resultaten

Prominente overeenkomsten waren de volgende: de doelen die deelnemers en therapeuten/trainers nastreven (aanvaardbaar gebruik, waaronder abstinentie), de groepsgerichtheid van de programma’s, de programma’s waren gebaseerd op leefstijltraining/cognitieve gedragstherapie (CGT), ze werden uitgevoerd binnen de gespecialiseerde ggz door vooral verpleegkundigen, een spreiding van acht tot twaalf deelnemers, verwijzingen verliepen vooral via de eerstelijnszorg, en er was aandacht voor psycho-educatie en levensfaseproblematiek. Er waren ook verschillen: in groepsstructuur (open/gesloten), duur en theoretische uitgangspunten (leefstijltraining, CGT en/of acceptatie en toewijdingstherapie (ACT)). De volgende werkzame elementen uit de literatuur sluiten aan: geen betutteling, aandacht voor het vergroten van de individuele vaardigheden en informatieoverdracht, het beïnvloeden van sociale normen en het leveren van gepersonaliseerde feedback.

Conclusie

De huidige programma’s bevatten alle effectieve elementen. Voor standaardisering wordt doorgevoerd en landelijk effectonderzoek wordt gedaan, is een evaluatie nodig om de effectiviteit van de programma’s te bepalen met alcoholgebruik als uitkomstmaat, en met aandacht voor een inventarisatie van Fris Verder in een eerdere fase in de zorgketen.
Evaluation of seismo-acoustic hazards from cement quarry blasts on the New Administrative Capital, Egypt
Authors: Abdelhafiez Hesham Eid , Khalil Amin , El-Hady Sherif
Published: May 2022

Cement industry is one of the strategic sectors in Egypt. In most cases, cement factories are using explosives to obtain the materials needed for the industry. Such activities pose threats to the surrounding environment. The threats are more serious when the quarries are located near to a strategic site. The New Administrative Capital (NAC) is one of the leading development projects in Egypt that happen to occur close to some cement quarries that use explosions to obtain the raw materials. Possible unfavorable effects are expected on the buildings and projects at NAC. To evaluate these effects and to propose measures to ensure the safety of NAC structures, the present work was carried out. Threats expected are due to both ground motion and air over pressure. The methodology adopted in the study was based on monitoring the explosions, ground motions, and air over pressure. The monitoring was conducted using temporary arrays that were deployed in the explosion day. The time period required is almost 2 years. Furthermore, the collected data were processed to reject low quality data. The processed data were modeled in terms of the international standards to determine the threshold level of hazards for both ground motion and air over pressure. The work is finally summarized in terms of model equations in terms of the scaled distances. The choice of the scaled distances was to simplify the model by eliminating the effect of the charge per delay parameter. The final results showed that keeping the charge weight per delay under 45 kg, threats at a distance of 7 km is vanished. The model showed also that the effect of air over pressure is higher with scaled distances than the ground motion. To the best of our knowledge, the present work is the first of its kind in Egypt. Also, it is recommended to study the frequency effect of both parameters and to account for the effects of the site on the ground motion.
Modelling topo-bathymetric surface using a triangulation irregular network (TIN) of Tunga Dam in Nigeria
Authors: Ibrahim Pius Onoja , Sternberg Harald , Samaila-Ija Hassan A. , Adgidzi Donald , Nwadialor I. J.
Published: May 2022

Dams are built to store the water flowing from upstream to downstream. Sedimentation and siltation are some of the major problems affecting the storage capacity of dams. For effective management, bathymetric and topographic data are used to assess this challenge. In the Mambila Plateau of Taraba, Nigeria, the Tunga Dam is a multifunctional reservoir that serves as a small hydropower, irrigation and domestic use dam. Nonetheless, it is not operating to its full potential, leading to issues such as frequent stoppage of the turbine, low irrigation activities and a shortage of water supply for domestic use. To determine the basin’s approximate present volume, a topographic and bathymetric survey was conducted using a differential global positioning system (DGPS)-Hi-Target V30 and a single beam echosounder to acquire the real-time data. The data were processed, and the digital elevation model (DEM) of the study area was modelled using a triangulation irregular network algorithm (TIN). The deepest point of the dam was found to be 21.25 m, and the volumetric capacity was assessed based on the elevations. The tessellation data format adequately represents the reservoir DEM for future purposes to better enhance the reservoir capacity. Hence, the research suggested that dredging should be carried out to boost the basin’s capacity. Likewise, an embankment can be constructed around the dam to enhance the basin’s storage capacity. The dredged material can be used to achieve the barrier’s building, which will reduce the overall cost.
Extreme Value Estimation of Beaufort Sea Ice Dynamics Driven by Global Wind Effects
Authors: Sinsabvarodom Chana , Næss Arvid , Leira Bernt J. , Chai Wei
Published: May 2022

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the extreme values of the ice drift speed, which are also considered in the light of the magnitude of the simultaneous wind speed. The relationship between wind speed and ice drift speed is studied. The long-term ice drift data is collected by using local subsurface measurements based on acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) in the Beaufort Sea during the period of 2006–2017. Upward-looking sonars (ULS) are deployed in order to observe the ice thickness as well as to identify events that correspond to open water conditions. The relationship between the ice drift speed and the wind speed is also investigated. It is found that the magnitude of the average ice drift speed is approximately 2.5% of the wind speed during the winter season. Estimation of the extreme values of the ice drift speed is studied by application of the average conditional exceedance rate (ACER) method. It is found that the extreme ice drift speed during the ice melt season (i.e. the summer season) is approximately 20%–30% higher than that during the ice growth season (i.e. the winter season). The extreme ice drift speed can be effectively estimated based on the 2.5% wind speed. Moreover, the extreme ice drift speed can be obtained based on the extreme values of 2.5% of the wind speed based on multiplying with an amplification factor which varies in the range from 1.7 to 2.0 during the growth season, corresponding to increasing return periods of 10, 25, 50 and 100 years.
Enterococcus faecalis bacteremia, cardiac implantable electronic device, extraction, and the risk of recurrence
Authors: Berge Andreas , Arkel Ludvig , Nilson Bo , Rasmussen Magnus
Published: May 2022

Purpose

In all patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) and Enterococcus faecalis bacteremia (EfsB), endocarditis (IE) and CIED infection should be suspected. Guidelines recommend extraction of the CIED when CIED infection or IE is diagnosed. Whether extraction of the CIED should be done in other situations with EfsB is not known. We aimed to describe the management and outcome of patients with CIED and monomicrobial EfsB, in relation to extraction and recurrent EfsB.

Methods

A population-based cohort of patients with monomicrobial EfsB from January 2014 to November 2020 was identified through microbiology registers in the Region Skåne, Sweden. Data on CIED and other clinical features were collected from medical records.

Results

Among 1087 episodes of EfsB, 72 patients with CIED and monomicrobial EfsB were identified. Five of these patients were diagnosed with IE (7%), three of whom had echocardiographic changes on the CIED. Four CIED were extracted (6%). Recurrences were found in seven of 68 patients (10%) not subjected to extraction and in none of the extracted. In the group of patients without extraction, community acquisition and predisposition for IE were significantly associated with recurrent infection in univariate analyses. No infections involving the CIED were diagnosed during the recurrences.

Conclusions

In patient with monomicrobial EfsB, it seems safe to omit extraction if no structural changes are found on the CIED.
Communication now and then: analyzing the Republic of Letters as a communication network
Authors: Ureña-Carrion Javier , Leskinen Petri , Tuominen Jouni , van den Heuvel Charles , Hyvönen Eero , Kivelä Mikko
Published: May 2022

Huge advances in understanding patterns of human communication, and the underlying social networks where it takes place, have been made recently using massive automatically recorded data sets from digital communication, such as emails and phone calls. However, it is not clear to what extent these results on human behaviour are artefacts of contemporary communication technology and culture and if the fundamental patterns in communication have changed over history. This paper presents an analysis of historical epistolary metadata with the aim of comparing the underlying historical communication patterns with those of contemporary communication. Our work uses a new epistolary dataset containing metadata on over 150,000 letters sent between the 16th and 19th centuries. The analyses indicate striking resemblances between contemporary and epistolary communication network patterns, including dyadic interactions and ego-level behaviour. Certain aspects of the letter datasets are insufficient to corroborate other similarities or differences for these communication networks. Despite these drawbacks, our work helps confirm that several features of human communication are not artefacts of contemporary mediums or culture, but are likely elements of human behaviour.
Combining p-multigrid and Multigrid Reduction in Time methods to obtain a scalable solver for Isogeometric Analysis
Authors: Tielen Roel , Möller Matthias , Vuik Cornelis
Published: May 2022

The use of sequential time integration schemes becomes more and more the bottleneck within large-scale computations due to a stagnation of processor’s clock speeds. In this study, we combine the parallel-in-time Multigrid Reduction in Time method with ap-multigrid method to obtain a scalable solver specifically designed for Isogeometric Analysis. Numerical results obtained for two- and three-dimensional benchmark problems show the overall scalability of the proposed method on modern computer architectures and a significant improvement in terms of CPU timings compared to the use of standard spatial solvers.
On the structure of spectral and tiling subsets of cyclic groups
Authors: Malikiosis Romanos Diogenes
Published: May 2022

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the properties of spectral and tiling subsets of cyclic groups, with an eye towards the spectral set conjecture [9] in one dimension, which states that a bounded measurable subset of$\mathbb {R}$accepts an orthogonal basis of exponentials if and only if it tiles$\mathbb {R}$by translations. This conjecture is strongly connected to its discrete counterpart, namely that, in every finite cyclic group, a subset is spectral if and only if it is a tile. The tools presented herein are refinements of recent ones used in the setting of cyclic groups; the structure of vanishing sums of roots of unity [20] is a prevalent notion throughout the text, as well as the structure of tiling subsets of integers [1]. We manage to prove the conjecture for cyclic groups of order$p^{m}q^{n}$, when one of the exponents is$\leq 6$or when$p^{m-2}<q^{4}$, and also prove that a tiling subset of a cyclic group of order$p_{1}^{m}p_{2}\dotsm p_{n}$is spectral.
Responding to Sanist Microaggressions with Acts of Epistemic Resistance
Authors: Gosselin Abigail
Published: May 2022

People who have mental health diagnoses are often subject to sanist microaggressions in which pejorative terms to describe mental illness are used to represent that which is discreditable. Such microaggressions reflect and perpetrate stigma against severe mental illness, often held unconsciously as implicit bias. In this article, I examine the sanist attitudes that underlie sanist microaggressions, analyzing some of the cognitive biases that support mental illness stigma. Then I consider what responsibility we have with respect to microaggressions. I argue that all people share in a collective responsibility to engage in acts of epistemic resistance that challenge sanist attitudes so that it is easier for bystanders who witness microaggressions, and targets of microaggressions in particular, to identify microaggressions and to point out biased behavior. The act of pointing out bias is best understood as an act of epistemic resistance that is more effective and meaningful in the context of other acts of epistemic resistance. Ultimately, whether to point out bias is an individual decision that one must make after weighing the risks involved; engaging in a range of acts of epistemic resistance, on the other hand, is a moral responsibility everyone shares.
Analysis of four carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii outbreaks using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy
Authors: Kon Hadas , Temkin Elizabeth , Elmalih Polet , Keren-Paz Alona , Ben-David Debby , Najjar-Debbiny Ronza , Gottesman Tamar , Carmeli Yehuda
Published: May 2022

We used Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to analyze 4 carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii outbreaks. FTIR distinguished between isolates from different hospitals and uncovered the relatedness between isolates from acute-care hospitals and a post–acute-care hospital. Using higher cutoffs reveals more distant relationships and lower cutoffs support analyses of recent events.
Stability of flow in a channel with repeated flow-facing wedge-shaped protrusions
Authors: Murali Sneha , Ng Zhi Y. , Sheard Gregory J.
Published: May 2022

Motivated by an interest in inciting instabilities and mixing for heat transfer enhancement in ducts, flow in a channel with repeated wedge-shaped protrusions is considered for various blockage ratios (wedge height to duct height), pitch (distance between wedges) and wedge angles. The stability of the two-dimensional base flow and its dependence on the geometric parameters is elucidated through a global linear stability analysis. A linearly unstable two-dimensional mode was found, contrasting similar confined flow set-ups. However, the primary instability is a three-dimensional mode manifesting as counter-rotating streamwise vortices over the wedge tip. Analysis of the kinetic energy budget indicates a lift-up mechanism leading to instability, with the dominant energy gain of the global three-dimensional mode due to shear in the base flow. Structural sensitivity and receptivity of the instability to momentum forcing identifies the core of the instability and locations important for flow control. An endogeneity approach is used to show that the local perturbation pressure gradient component dominates the distribution of the local contribution to the growth rate of the linear global eigenmode in most cases considered, despite its net contribution being identically zero. Weakly nonlinear Stuart–Landau analysis reveals that the primary bifurcation is supercritical across all tested geometric parameter combinations. This is consistent with the finding of low linear transient growth amplifications at subcritical Reynolds numbers, being orders of magnitude lower than in similar channel flow set-ups.
Axisymmetric instability of elastic tubes conveying power-law fluids
Authors: Podoprosvetova Anastasia , Vedeneev Vasily
Published: May 2022

Instability of collapsible tubes is studied theoretically and experimentally in many papers in the context of biological applications. Up to the present day, only Newtonian fluid flows in elastic tubes have been studied. However, there are circumstances when blood, bile and other biological fluids show essentially non-Newtonian behaviour. In this paper, we re-investigate theoretically axisymmetric stability of elastic tubes conveying power-law fluids. It is shown that for the power-law index$n=1$, i.e. for the Newtonian case, axisymmetric disturbances in infinite-length tubes are damped, which is in accordance with experimental and theoretical observations, where the oscillations always involve non-axisymmetric motion of the tube walls. However, for$n<0.611$, the axisymmetric disturbances can be growing, which predicts a new type of instability of elastic tubes conveying pseudoplastic (shear-thinning) fluids. For$n<1/3$, local instability of axisymmetric perturbations becomes absolute in infinite tubes, while finite-length tubes become globally unstable. The effects of the axial tension, elastic tube length and, if present, lengths of inlet and outlet rigid tubes on the stability of finite-length tubes are analysed.
Practical obstacles and structural legal constraints in the adoption of ‘defensive’ policies: comparing the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and the US Proposal for a Border Carbon Adjustment
Authors: Leonelli Giulia Claudia
Published: May 2022

This paper analyses the EU proposal for a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) and a recent US proposal for the establishment of a border carbon adjustment (BCA) as examples of ‘defensive’ policies, broadly informed by an economic level playing field and an environmental level playing field rationale. From an environmental law perspective, the CBAM's narrow focus on price-based policies, distortions of competition and trade intensity is unsatisfactory; however, the EU CBAM is more feasible in practical terms and overall more likely to be WTO law compatible than the US proposal for a BCA. An environmental level playing field perspective is associated with several practical problems: these relate to the determination of environmental equivalence, the identification of appropriate remedies, and the demarcation of the scope of application of the relevant regulatory arrangements. Further, measures informed by an economic level playing field rationale can be easier to justify under WTO law. Taking stock of these findings, the paper concludes that practical obstacles and structural legal constraints push towards a narrower focus on an economic level playing field, as a matter of regulatory design.
The relation between the radio emission of the core and host galaxy properties in Fanaroff–Riley type II radio galaxies
Authors: Mazoochi F. , Miraghaei H. , Riazi N.
Published: May 2022

We study the radio power of the core and its relation to the optical properties of the host galaxy in samples of high-excitation (HERG) and low-excitation (LERG) Fanaroff–Riley type II (FRII) radio galaxies. The radio galaxy sample is divided into two groups of core/non-core FRII, based on the existence of strong, weak or lack of single radio core component. We show that FRII LERGs with radio emission of the core have significantly higher [O III] line luminosities compared to the non-core LERG FRIIs. There is no significant difference between the hosts of the core and non-core FRIIs of LERG type in galaxy sizes, concentration indices, star formation rates, 4000-Å break strengths, colours, black hole masses, and black hole to stellar masses. We show that the results are not biased by the stellar masses, redshifts, and angular sizes of the radio galaxies. We argue that the detection of higher [O III] luminosities in the core FRIIs may indicate the presence of higher amounts of gas, very close to the active galactic nuclei (AGN) nucleus in the core FRIIs compared to the non-core FRIIs or may result from the interaction of the radio jets with this gas. The core and non-core FRIIs of the HERG type show no significant differences perhaps due to our small sample size. The effect of relativistic beaming on the radio luminosities and the contribution of restating AGN activity have also been considered.
Hydroclimate change and its controlling factors during the middle to late Holocene and possible 3.7-ka climatic shift over East Asia
Authors: Lim Jaesoo , Um In-Kwon , Yi Sangheon , Jun Chang-Pyo
Published: May 2022

The history of past hydroclimatic extreme events, essential information for predicting future changes, is preserved in fluvial sediments. Here, we reconstruct changes in decadal-scale extreme flooding events over the period 7700–1700 cal yr BP from floodplain sediments in the middle reach of the Nakdong River, Korea, based on lithogenic elemental ratios (e.g., Zr/Ti and Sr/Si). For example, Nakdong extreme flooding (NEF) events frequently occurred at 7700, 7200, 6000, 5000, 3800, 3200, 2900, 2600, 2300, 2000, and 1700 cal yr BP, and were associated with higher sea-surface temperatures and strong El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) activity. Notably, we found a significant change in the frequency of extreme events ca. 3700 cal yr BP over East Asia. The hydroclimate fluctuated with dominant periodicities of 950 and 540 years in 7700–3700 cal yr BP and shorter centennial to decadal cycles (320, 110–120, and 60–75 years) in 3700–1700 cal yr BP. This 3.7-ka climatic shift is consistent with a marked southward shift of the intertropical convergence zone, intensified ENSO activity, increased frequency of recurving typhoons, and deep-ocean circulation changes in both the northern and southern hemispheres, demonstrating the urgent need for investigating the critical role of past deep-water circulation in hydroclimate changes.
USING RADIOCARBON AGES ON ORGANICS AFFECTED BY FRESHWATER—A GEOLOGIC AND ARCHAEOLOGIC UPDATE ON THE FRESHWATER RESERVOIR AGES AND FRESHWATER DIET EFFECT IN MANITOBA, CANADA
Authors: Gauthier Michelle S
Published: May 2022

Freshwater reservoir ages and a potential freshwater diet effect are examined for Manitoba (Canada), using paired samples of contemporaneous terrestrial, freshwater, and omnivore-diet species (Homo sapiens, Gavia sp.). The freshwater diet effect (n=4) varies from 220 to 370 14C years. The FRE (n=12) is temporally variable, with a median of 230 14C years and values up to 880 14C years (or more). Understanding the FRE is important for geologists who reconstruct the postglacial history of an area. It is also important for archaeologists who rely on 14C dating to develop cultural histories, as inhabitants of the Canadian boreal forest have relied upon freshwater resources as a part of their diet. An analysis of the δ13C on 93 freshwater mollusk samples from 11 species demonstrates significant variability, which highlights the difficulty in assigning an “assumed” fractionation correction.