bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Interaction of Combined Module Variances and Influence on the Overall System Behaviour
Authors: Goeing Jan , Friedrichs Jens
Published: September 2024

Within the Collaborative Research Centre 871, geometrical variances caused by repair procedures and deterioration are evaluated for the turbomachinery of a high-bypass aircraft engine. Part of this evaluation is the investigation of the influence of isolated and combined geometric variances on the overall aircraft engine performance. For this purpose, a virtual twin of a research aircraft engine is developed in sub-project D6. This virtual aircraft engine is based on the Pseudo Bond Graph approach, which allows for transient manoeuvres and the effects of interactions to be simulated with a higher degree of accuracy compared to conventional methods. After validation of the model, a design of experiments is performed to analyse the sensitivities between the variances of modules and engine performance. Within the sensitivity analysis, it is shown that the evaluated steady-state and transient performances are mainly influenced by the high-pressure modules, especially by the mass flow and efficiency variances. Furthermore, it is shown that the sensitivities strongly depend on the operating points. However, significant interactions are found which can be attributed to both the high-pressure and low-pressure modules.
Exhaust Jet Analysis
Authors: Armanidis Konstantinos , Kurth Sebastian , Nghiem Viet , Seume Joerg R.
Published: September 2024

The aim of project A3 of the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 871 is to develop a novel method for automated condition assessment of aircraft engines. The method is based on a combination of numerical simulations, Background Oriented Schlieren (BOS) measurements, and the use of pattern recognition algorithms. The density distribution in the exhaust gas stream of the engine is first measured using the BOS method and then compared with a damage library which was generated numerically through CFD. The automated classification of damage cases can be realized using pattern recognition algorithms. In the third funding period of the CRC, existing reconstruction algorithms used for the calculation of the density distribution in the exhaust gas were improved to increase the accuracy of the BOS measurements. Subsequently, the method was tested experimentally. First, experiments with a model combustion chamber show that 98.5% of all damage cases can be correctly classified by a suitable choice of integral parameters to describe the density distribution in the exhaust gas jet. In a second experimental test, the method was applied to a research engine in order to take realistic impacts into account.
The Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima Nuclear Accident
Authors: Inatsugu Hiroaki
Published: September 2024

With a magnitude of 9.0, the Great East Japan Earthquake of 11 March 2011 was the largest earthquake ever recorded in Japan. The subsequent tsunami caused extensive damage in the Tohoku region. Furthermore, the unforeseen Fukushima nuclear power plant accident was extremely devastating as well. Local governments and the central government, which had prepared for disaster response based on their experience with previous earthquakes, responded immediately and worked quickly to restore and rebuild afterwards. Reconstruction was largely completed ten years later. However, as there was no knowledge of the nuclear accident, the response was delayed, and subsequent recovery is still in the process of completion. Further efforts should be made from a long-term perspective.
The Welfare State in Japan
Authors: Kitayama Toshiya
Published: September 2024

Can Japan be classified as a welfare state? If so, why and how? Both experts on Japan and welfare state students have asked this question. In Varieties of Capitalism (VoC) literature, Japan is classified as one of firm-specific coordinated market economies. However, according to welfare state classification a la Esping-Andersen, locating Japan among the three worlds of welfare capitalism is difficult.

This chapter attempts to explore this ambiguity by examining the relevant historical developments in Japan. It demonstrates how Japan started to emulate German model but learned also from the Nordic approaches to construct eclectic and unique welfare state. This welfare state also complements the firm-specific coordinated market economy of Japan.

It also argues that one important characteristic of the Japanese welfare state is the general welfare provided through work and that welfare policies in a narrower sense are not sufficient to understand the overall welfare provided to the Japanese. We need to examine not only the welfare regime but also the employment regime. This chapter concludes by referring to the recent changes in employment regime and political institutions and how they affect the welfare regime.
Problemaufriss – Ethik in Pflegekammern: Warum und wie?
Authors: Kuhn Andrea
Published: September 2024

In deutschen Bundesländern entstehen in der letzten Dekade vermehrt Pflegekammern als Selbstverwaltungsorgane und beruflichen Vertretungen der Profession Pflege. Nachdem Pflegekammern über lange Jahre als fehlender Baustein zur Professionalisierung gehandelt wurden, um den es sich auf politischer Ebene zu kümmern gilt, wurden sie in einigen Bundesländern Wirklichkeit. Der Problemaufriss umreißt die rechtliche Konstitution, den Auftrag und das offene ethische Mandat von Pflegekammern mit dem Ziel einer theoriegenerierende Grundlegung für passgenaue Interventionen zur Bearbeitung dieses Mandats des Heilberufs Pflege.
Chaotic Dynamics at the Boundary of a Basin of Attraction via Non-transversal Intersections for a Non-global Smooth Diffeomorphism
Authors: Fontich Ernest , Garijo Antonio , Jarque Xavier
Published: September 2024

In this paper, we give analytic proofs of the existence of transversal homoclinic points for a family of non-globally smooth diffeomorphisms having the origin as a fixed point which come out as a truncated map governing the local dynamics near a critical period three-cycle associated with the Secant map. Using Moser’s version of Birkhoff–Smale’s theorem, we prove that the boundary of the basin of attraction of the origin contains a Cantor-like invariant subset such that the restricted dynamics to it is conjugate to the full shift of N-symbols for any integer $$N\ge 2$$

N
≥
2

or infinity.
Habitat trumps biogeography in structuring coral reef fishes
Authors: Bellwood David R. , Tebbett Sterling B.
Published: September 2024

As one of the world’s most diverse ecosystems, coral reefs have been the focus of numerous biogeographic analyses. With strong biodiversity gradients across the Indo-Pacific, coral reefs have shed light on the effects of evolutionary history, isolation, and human exploitation on local assemblages. However, there are also strong environmentally driven local gradients in faunal assemblages. We ask, does reef fish community composition and trait space vary to a greater extent across small scales (i.e. along habitat gradients) or across large scales (i.e. across geographic regions separated by up to 12,000 km)? Using a standardized survey method that explicitly includes habitats (i.e. the slope, crest, and flat), we surveyed a highly diverse family of reef fishes (Labridae) in nine regions across the Indo-Pacific, from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands to French Polynesia. We demonstrate that small-scale habitat gradients represent a greater axis of variation, in both the taxonomic and trait composition of fish assemblages, than large-scale biogeographic gradients. Indeed, fish assemblages just 10 m apart, along a habitat gradient, appear to differ more than assemblages in the same habitats separated by over 12,000 km along the world’s largest biodiversity gradient. Essentially, fish assemblages cluster by habitat regardless of their biogeographic region, with habitat associations trumping biogeographic affiliations. This emphasizes the primacy of local environmental factors, such as hydrodynamics, in shaping the ecology of reef fishes. It also raises serious concerns over the use of combined datasets, where data from different habitats are used, without explicit recognition, in global-scale analyses.
Molecular age prediction using skull bone samples from individuals with and without signs of decomposition: a multivariate approach combining analysis of posttranslational protein modifications and DNA methylation
Authors: Becker J. , Bühren V. , Schmelzer L. , Reckert A. , Eickhoff S. B. , Ritz S. , Naue J.
Published: September 2024

The prediction of the chronological age of a deceased individual at time of death can provide important information in case of unidentified bodies. The methodological possibilities in these cases depend on the availability of tissues, whereby bones are preserved for a long time due to their mineralization under normal environmental conditions. Age-dependent changes in DNA methylation (DNAm) as well as the accumulation of pentosidine (Pen) and D-aspartic acid (D-Asp) could be useful molecular markers for age prediction. A combination of such molecular clocks into one age prediction model seems favorable to minimize inter- and intra-individual variation. We therefore developed (I) age prediction models based on the three molecular clocks, (II) examined the improvement of age prediction by combination, and (III) investigated if samples with signs of decomposition can also be examined using these three molecular clocks. Skull bone from deceased individuals was collected to obtain a training dataset (n = 86), and two independent test sets (without signs of decomposition: n = 44, with signs of decomposition: n = 48). DNAm of 6 CpG sites in ELOVL2, KLF14, PDE4C, RPA2, TRIM59 and ZYG11A was analyzed using massive parallel sequencing (MPS). The D-Asp and Pen contents were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Age prediction models based on ridge regression were developed resulting in mean absolute errors (MAEs)/root mean square errors (RMSE) of 5.5years /6.6 years (DNAm), 7.7 years /9.3 years (Pen) and 11.7 years /14.6 years (D-Asp) in the test set. Unsurprisingly, a general lower accuracy for the DNAm, D-Asp, and Pen models was observed in samples from decomposed bodies (MAE: 7.4–11.8 years, RMSE: 10.4–15.4 years). This reduced accuracy could be caused by multiple factors with different impact on each molecular clock. To acknowledge general changes due to decomposition, a pilot model for a possible age prediction based on the decomposed samples as training set improved the accuracy evaluated by leave-one-out-cross validation (MAE: 6.6–12 years, RMSE: 8.1–15.9 years). The combination of all three molecular age clocks did reveal comparable MAE and RMSE results to the pure analysis of the DNA methylation for the test set without signs of decomposition. However, an improvement by the combination of all three clocks was possible for the decomposed samples, reducing especially the deviation in case of outliers in samples with very high decomposition and low DNA content. The results demonstrate the general potential in a combined analysis of different molecular clocks in specific cases.
Polypseudophakia: from “Piggyback” to supplementary sulcus-fixated IOLs
Authors: Khoramnia Ramin , Kahraman Guenal , Amon Michael , Łabuz Grzegorz , Baur Isabella D. , Auffarth Gerd U.
Published: September 2024

Polypseudophakia, the concept of using a second intraocular lens (IOL) to supplement an IOL that has already been placed in the capsular bag, was first used as a corrective measure where the power requirement was higher than that of available single IOLs. Subsequently, the technique was modified to compensate for post-operative residual refractive errors. In these early cases, an IOL designed for the capsular bag would be implanted in the sulcus.  Although these approaches were less than ideal, alternative means of correcting residual refractive errors were not without their limitations: IOL exchange can be traumatic to the eye and is not easily carried out once fibrosis has occurred, while corneal refractive surgical techniques are not suitable for all patients. Piggyback implantation was the term first coined to describe the use of two IOLs, placed together in the capsular bag. The term was later extended to include the procedure where an IOL designed for the capsular bag was placed in the sulcus. Unfortunately, the term piggyback has persisted even though these two approaches have been largely discredited. Intraocular lenses are now available which have been specifically designed for placement in the ciliary sulcus. As these newer IOLs avoid the many unacceptable complications brought about by both types of earlier piggyback implantation, it is time to employ a new terminology, such as supplementary IOL or secondary enhancement to distinguish between the placement of an unsuitable capsular bag IOL in the sulcus and the implantation of an IOL specifically designed for ciliary sulcus implantation. In addition to minimising possible complications, supplementary IOLs designed for the sulcus have expanded the options available to the ophthalmic surgeon. With these new IOLs it is possible to correct presbyopia and residual astigmatism, and to provide temporary correction of refractive errors in growing, or unstable, eyes. This article aims to review the literature available on supplementary IOL implantation in the ciliary sulcus and to summarise the evidence for the efficacy and safety of this intervention.

Key messages

What is known

Polypseudophakia has been used for over 30 years to correct hyperopia or residual refractive error, but early techniques were associated with significant complications.

What is new

The development of specially designed sulcus-fixated supplementary IOLs significantly reduces the risks associated with these procedures, and has also opened up new opportunities in patient care.

The reversibility of the procedure allows patients to experience multifocality, and to provide temporary and adjustable correction in unstable or growing eyes.

The terms “secondary enhancement” or “DUET” to describe supplementary IOL implantation are preferential to “piggyback”.
Identification of genetic association between mitochondrial dysfunction and knee osteoarthritis through integrating multi-omics: a summary data-based Mendelian randomization study
Authors: Xie Jiale , Ma Rui , Xu Xin , Yang Mingyi , Yu Hui , Wan Xianjie , Xu Ke , Guo Junfei , Xu Peng
Published: September 2024

Objective

Association between mitochondrial dysfunction and osteoarthritis (OA) has been consistently investigated, yet their genetic association remains obscure. In this study, mitochondrial-related genes were used as instrumental variables to proxy for mitochondrial dysfunction, and summary data of knee OA (KOA) were used as outcome to examine their genetic association.

Methods

We obtained 1136 mitochondrial-related genes from the human MitoCarta3.0 database. Genetic proxy instruments for mitochondrial-related genes from studies of corresponding gene expression (n = 31,684) and protein (n = 35,559) quantitative trait locus (eQTLs and pQTLs), respectively. Aggregated data for KOA (62,497 KOA cases and 333,557 controls) were extracted from the largest OA genome-wide association study (GWAS). We integrated QTL data with KOA GWAS data to estimate their genetic association using summary data-based Mendelian randomization analysis (SMR). Additionally, we implemented Bayesian colocalization analysis to reveal whether suggestive mitochondrial-related genes and KOA were driven by a same genetic variant. Finally, to validate the primary findings, replication study (24,955 cases and 378,169 controls) and multi-SNP-based SMR (SMR-multi) test was performed.

Results

Through SMR analysis, we found that the expression levels of 2 mitochondrial-related genes were associated with KOA risk. Specifically, elevated gene expression levels of the IMMP2L (odds ratio [OR] = 1.056; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.030–1.082; P-FDR = 0.004) increased the risk of KOA. Conversely, increased gene expression levels of AKAP10 decreased the risk of KOA (OR = 0.955; 95% CI, 0.934–0.977; P-FDR = 0.019). Colocalization analysis demonstrated that AKAP10 (PP.H4 = 0.84) and IMMP2L (PP.H4 = 0.91) shared the same genetic variant with KOA. In addition, consistent results were found in replication study and SMR-multi test, further demonstrating the reliability of our findings.

Conclusions

In summary, our analyses revealed the genetic association between mitochondrial dysfunction proxied by mitochondrial-related genes and KOA, providing new insight into potential pathogenesis of KOA. Furthermore, these identified candidate genes offer the possibility of clinical drug target development for KOA.

Key points

• This is the first SMR study to explore the genetic association between mitochondrial dysfunction proxied by mitochondrial-related genes and KOA.

• Sufficient evidence to support genetic association between the expression levels of AKAP10 and IMMP2L, and KOA

• Our MR analysis may provide novel new insight into potential pathogenesis of KOA.

• These identified candidate genes offer the possibility of clinical drug target development for KOA
Variability of Bile Baseline Excitation-emission Fluorescence of Two Tropical Freshwater Fish Species
Authors: Mora-Solarte Diego , Jimenez Rodrigo , Calderón-Delgado Ivonne , Duarte-Ruiz Alvaro , Brinkmann Markus , Velasco-Santamaría Yohana
Published: September 2024

The quantification of pollutant metabolites in fish bile is an efficient approach to xenobiotic pollution monitoring in freshwaters since these measurements directly address exposure. Fluorescence excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy (EEMS) has demonstrated to be a highly specific and cost-effective technique for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and PAH-metabolite identification and quantification. EEMS ability to quantify these compounds strongly depends on the intensity and variability of the bile baseline fluorescence (BBF). We found large differences in BBF among Aequidens metae (AME) individuals and of these with Piaractus orinoquensis (PIO). Moreover, BBF was large enough that solvent dilutions of over 1:400 were needed to avoid inner filter effects. We used parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) to model the intra- and inter-species BBF variability. PARAFAC successfully decomposed the EEMS set into three fluorophores present in all samples, although in concentrations spreading over ~ 3 orders of magnitude. One of the factors was identified as tryptophan. Tryptophan and Factor 2 were covariant and much more abundant in AME than in PIO, while Factor 3 was ~ 6 times more abundant in PIO than in AME. Also, tryptophan was ~ 10x more abundant in AME specimens immediately caught in rivers than in their laboratory-adapted peers. The PARAFAC decomposition effectiveness was confirmed by the positive proportionality of scores to dilution ratios. A large inner filter indicates that Factor 2 is as strong a light absorber as tryptophan. Our results stress the need to include bile matrix variable components for the detection and quantification of pollutant metabolites using PARAFAC.
A Transactions Cost Analysis of the Welfare and Output Effects of Rebates and Non-Linear Pricing
Authors: Kobayashi Bruce H. , Wright Joshua D.
Published: September 2024

Ronald Coase famously exposed the limitations of economic analyses that rely upon assumptions of frictionless markets. He highlighted the importance of including transaction costs in economic analyses and issued a challenge to economists to think seriously about how transaction costs affect economic systems. Harold Demsetz, extended Coase’s analysis to show how these costs alter the way firms price and market their products. Demsetz’s analysis underscored that the costs of providing a market sometimes exceed the benefits of creating one in the first place and examined conditions where transaction costs imply that zero amounts of explicit market pricing will be efficient. This article extends Demsetz’s insights with respect to non-linear pricing contracts that seem not to “price” key side effects of the economic exchange. In particular, we analyze the welfare and output effects of two examples of such contracts that are commonly used by firms that are frequently subject to antitrust scrutiny: metered pricing; and loyalty discounts. The analysis demonstrates how a firm’s choice to set prices for its products are influenced by transaction and information costs and examines whether changes in output that are caused by the use of these non-linear pricing schemes are positively correlated with changes in total and consumer welfare. The article then discusses conditions under which measuring output effects can reliably differentiate between welfare-increasing and welfare-reducing uses of non-linear pricing.
Detektions-PCR und Amplikon-Sequenzierung: ein Power-Paar
Authors: Schüler Miriam Antonia , Poehlein Anja , Daniel Rolf
Published: September 2024

We describe the development of a scheme to specifically detect the global pathogen Clostridioides difficile in environmental samples. A specific, sensitive PCR coupled with next-generation sequencing of the resulting PCR amplicons allows taxonomic assessment of diverse C. difficile strains in environmental DNA. The presumed bias of antibiotic-based C. difficile isolation was supported. The powerful combination of detection-PCR and amplicon NGS could also facilitate detection of other bacteria.
How to take down the terminator
Authors: Said Nelly , Artsimovitch Irina , Wahl Markus C.
Published: September 2024

In bacteria, production of aberrant RNAs and transcription of foreign genes, including those on phages, are readily terminated by a hexameric ATPase, Rho. However, to make necessary transcripts, particularly during stress, bacteria depend on mechanisms to temper Rho activity. Similarly, phages have evolved diverse Rho-inhibitory mechanisms to enable the expression of their own genomes. In recent years, the structural bases of many such anti-termination mechanisms have been elucidated.
Causal associations between frailty and low back pain: a bidirectional two-sample mendelian randomization study
Authors: Liu Zuying , Fan Jiaming , Bu Huilian , Fu Lijun , Li Cong , Ma Letian , Kong Cunlong , Lu Zhongyuan , Li Xinxin , Wang Jian , Liu Qingying , Yuan Jingjing , Fan Xiaochong
Published: September 2024

Background

Previous observational studies have revealed a potentially robust bidirectional relationship between frailty and low back pain (LBP). However, the precise causal relationship remains unclear.

Methods

To examine the potential causal association between frailty and LBP, we conducted bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis (MR) study. Genetic data on frailty index (FI) and LBP were acquired from publicly available genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Various MR methodologies were utilized, such as inverse variance weighting (IVW), weighted median, and MR-Egger, to evaluate causality. Additionally, sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate the robustness of the findings.

Results

Genetically predicted higher FI (IVW, odds ratio [OR] = 1.66, 95% CI 1.17–2.36, p = 4.92E-03) was associated with a higher risk of LBP. As for the reverse direction, genetic liability to LBP showed consistent associations with a higher FI (IVW, OR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.07–1.19, p = 2.67E-05). The outcomes from various MR techniques and sensitivity analyses indicate the robustness of our findings.

Conclusion

Our research findings provide additional evidence bolstering the bidirectional causal relationship between frailty and LBP.
Mental Health First Aid experiences: a qualitative investigation into the emotional impact of Mental Health First Aid responsibilities and the significance of self-compassion
Authors: Cook Amy , Keyte Rebecca , Sprawson Isabella , Matharu Amrita , Mantzios Michail
Published: September 2024

Mental illness is increasingly imposing significant economic burdens, manifesting in various ways such as elevated business expenses due to absenteeism and staff turnover, as well as heightened pressure on healthcare services. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an effective tool to support people with ill mental health. This study explored the experiences of MHFA volunteers with the aim of enhancing understanding of how best to provide support for them. Twelve students who had completed the two-day MHFA training course participated in a semi-structured interview. Results indicated that being a Mental Health First Aider (MHFAer) was a responsibility highly valued by participants; however, data highlighted that anxiety associated with this role was of utmost significance. The study revealed the inherent compassion of MHFA volunteers; however, it also underscored that for many participants, this compassion came at the cost of neglecting self-compassion. This study suggests a need to enhance the support materials for MHFA volunteers, alongside a model of compassionate self-care for enhancing personal coping, health and wellbeing.
Effects of the Western Pacific Subtropical High on the urban heat island characteristics in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, China
Authors: Deng Jie , Lai Geying , Fan Ao
Published: September 2024

The middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River are frequently affected by the Western Pacific Subtropical High (WPSH) in summer. This leads to phenomena including air subsidence, high temperatures, low rainfall, and weak winds, all of which affect the urban heat island (UHI) effect. Currently, there are few studies on the influence of WPSH on the UHI effect. In this study, we analysed the temporal and spatial distributions of the influence of WPSH on the UHI effect by establishing two scenarios: with and without WPSH. We calculated the UHI intensity and the urban heat island proportion index (UHPI) to analyse the temporal and spatial distributions of the UHI effect. The geographical detector method was then used to analyse the factors influencing UHI. The results indicate the strong heat island effect during the day in provincial capitals and some developed cities. The area of high UHI intensity was larger under the influence of WPSH than in the years without WPSH. WPSH affected UHPI at both day and night, although the effect was more pronounced at night. The factors affecting daytime UHI intensity are mainly POP and NTL, O3 plays a large role in the years with WPSH control. The main factors affecting the UHI intensity at night are AOD, POP and NTL were mainly factors in the years without WPSH control, POP and WPSH were mainly factors in the years with WPSH control. The interactions of the factors are mainly POP and multi-factors during the daytime, and DEM and multi-factors during the nighttime. It was found that the UHI intensity was enhanced under the control of the WPSH, and the influencing factors of the diurnal UHI differed with and without the WPSH control, which ultimately provides realistic suggestions for mitigating the intensity of the UHI in areas affected by the WPSH.
The issue that slips under the radar
Authors: Jackson Frank
Published: September 2024

Michael Pelczar is right that we need an explanation of the regularities in our experiences, and that this means we should reject traditional idealism. His version of phenomenalism might seem to offer the needed explanation, but what seems to be the case is not in fact the case.
Multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging of prostate cancer: correlation between Ktrans, Gleason score, and PI-RADS score
Authors: Nardacci Stefano , Biondi Tommaso , De Santis Domenico , Zerunian Marta , Polici Michela , Panvini Nicola , Rengo Marco , Bellini Davide , Ferrari Riccardo , Paolantonio Pasquale , Caruso Damiano , Laghi Andrea
Published: September 2024

Purpose

To measure Ktrans and correlate it with Gleason score (GS) and PI-RADS score in patients with prostate cancer.

Methods

This retrospective study included patients with pathologically proven prostate cancer who had undergone clinically indicated 1.5 Tesla multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination between February and December 2020. T2-weighted (T2w) images, diffusion-weighted images (DWI), and dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) sequences were obtained. PI-RADS score was calculated for all tumor lesions. From DCE-MRI dataset, Ktrans was computed and compared between patients with clinically insignificant (GS ≤ 6) and clinically significant (GS ≥ 7) prostate cancer. Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient (ρ) was used to assess the correlation strength between Ktrans and GS and between Ktrans and PI-RADS score.

Results

Twenty-one patients (age: 67 ± 12 years; BMI: 26.63 ± 4.04 kg/m2) with a PSA of 7.91 ± 3.01 were included in the study. Seven patients (33.3%) had clinically insignificant prostate cancer, while 14 patients (66.7%) were diagnosed with clinically significant prostate cancer. Mean Ktrans value was 0.42 ± 0.20 min−1 (range: 0.15–0.75). Ktrans was significantly higher (0.50 ± 0.17 min−1) in clinically significant prostate cancer compared to clinical insignificant prostate cancer (0.23 ± 0.15 min−1; P = 0.001). Ktrans showed moderate significant correlation with GS (ρ = 0.575, P = 0.006), but showed no significant correlation with PI-RADS (ρ = 0.386, P = 0.069).

Conclusion

Ktrans may discriminate between clinically insignificant and significant prostate cancer and shows moderate correlation with GS. Thus, MP-MRI may serve as an imaging biomarker in prostate cancer.
The Value of Life in the Social Cost of Carbon: A Critique and a Proposal
Authors: Broome John
Published: September 2024

In its 2023 revision of the social cost of carbon, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency values people’s lives on the basis of their willingness to pay for them, without applying any distributional weights. It justifies this proposal on grounds of the Kaldor–Hicks criterion, which avoids interpersonal comparisons of wellbeing. But this criterion was discredited 70 years ago. Interpersonal comparisons of wellbeing cannot truly be avoided, and they should be used to determine distributional weights. One way of doing so is to identify as a numeraire a good that brings equal wellbeing to each person. A healthy life year is a reasonable, though only approximate, candidate for such a good. This article presents the point of view of a philosopher, regarding the practice of economists from outside the discipline.
Foreign Relations Law of the People's Republic of China
Authors: Tang Zheng
Published: September 2024

On June 28, 2023, China took a significant step forward in its legislative domain with the enactment of the Foreign Relations Law (FRL). This pivotal legislation entered into effect on July 1, 2023, and serves as a comprehensive framework designed to guide and govern China's international interactions across various sectors. The FRL marks a crucial development in the way China manages its external affairs, aiming to assert itself robustly on the global stage. It endeavors to streamline and clarify the guiding principles of China's foreign engagements, ensuring these are in alignment with its national interests and resonate with its global obligations.
R (AAA (Syria) and Others) v. Secretary of State for the Home Dep't (UKSC)
Authors: Goodwin-Gill Guy S.
Published: September 2024

There have many developments since the publication in International Legal Materials of the initial United Kingdom–Rwanda Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2022, not the least being the unanimous judgment of the UK Supreme Court published below. In addition, the present government has secured the passage of several new laws, including the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024, intended to both buttress its policy of removing asylum seekers to Rwanda for processing of their claims and meet the objections of the Court. It has also “translated” the MoU into a binding treaty, since ratified by both parties, and Rwanda has enacted new asylum laws, as it had agreed.
Characterisation of bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia (L.) Willd) ecotypes: An ancient and promising legume
Authors: Boukrouh Soumaya , Noutfia Ali , Moula Nassim , Avril Claire , Louvieaux Julien , Hornick Jean-Luc , Chentouf Mouad , Cabaraux Jean-François
Published: September 2024

Bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia (L.) Willd) is a promising legume, drought tolerant, mainly used in the Mediterranean area for its grains as a source of proteins in animal feed. However, it is an underused crop cultivated in marginal soils. Ecological, agro-morphological, and bromatological diversity evaluations were conducted to study its reintroduction potential. Seeds of seventeen ecotypes were collected in seventeen farms located in Northern Morocco in 2018. The cultivation was realised during the 2019 and 2020 growing seasons using a randomised complete block design with three replicates. Agro-morphological data were collected at the start of flowering, full flowering, and pod setting phenological stages. Yield component assessment and grain and straw bromatological characterisation were performed at maturity. The results indicated significant variations between ecotypes for almost all parameters and interesting results about yield (1 t ha–1) but lower protein content (22.9% of dry matter) compared to other ecotypes of the Mediterranean region. The estimated genetic parameters could emphasise the possibility of selecting highly productive and nutritive cultivars. However, interannual variations were also detected, making the selection of the ecotypes harder. No significant correlations were observed between agro-morphological and bromatological traits of grains and geographical distances. Multivariate analyses (principal component analysis and heatmap) clustered ecotypes into five groups, where the ecotypes included in the second cluster were the most interesting candidates for developing high-yielding and nutritive varieties. That is why this plant could be considered of interest, especially in these times of climate change.
Lisdexamfetamine maintenance treatment for binge-eating disorder following successful treatments: randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial
Authors: Grilo Carlos M. , Ivezaj Valentina , Yurkow Sydney , Tek Cenk , Wiedemann Ashley A. , Gueorguieva Ralitza
Published: September 2024

Background

Controlled research examining maintenance treatments for responders to acute interventions for binge-eating disorder (BED) is limited. This study tested efficacy of lisdexamfetamine (LDX) maintenance treatment amongst acute responders.

Methods

This prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled single-site trial, conducted March 2019 to September 2023, tested LDX as maintenance treatment for responders to acute treatments with LDX-alone or with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT + LDX) for BED with obesity. Sixty-one (83.6% women, mean age 44.3, mean BMI 36.1 kg/m2) acute responders were randomized to LDX (N = 32) or placebo (N = 29) for 12 weeks; 95.1% completed posttreatment assessments. Mixed-models and generalized-estimating equations comparing maintenance LDX v. placebo included main/interactive effects of acute (LDX or CBT + LDX) treatments to examine their predictive/moderating effects.

Results

Relapse rates (to diagnosis-level binge-eating frequency) following maintenance treatments were 10.0% (N = 3/30) for LDX and 17.9% (N = 5/28) for placebo; intention-to-treat binge-eating remission rates were 59.4% (N = 19/32) and 65.5% (N = 19/29), respectively. Maintenance LDX and placebo did not differ significantly in binge-eating but differed in weight-loss and eating-disorder psychopathology. Maintenance LDX was associated with significant weight-loss (−2.3%) whereas placebo had significant weight-gain (+2.2%); LDX and placebo differed significantly in weight-change throughout treatment and at posttreatment. Eating-disorder psychopathology remained unchanged with LDX but increased significantly with placebo. Acute treatments did not significantly predict/moderate maintenance-treatment outcomes.

Conclusions

Adults with BED/obesity who respond to acute lisdexamfetamine treatment (regardless of additionally receiving CBT) had good maintenance during subsequent 12-weeks. Maintenance lisdexamfetamine, relative to placebo, did not provide further benefit for binge-eating but was associated with significantly better eating-disorder psychopathology outcomes and greater weight-loss.
Who deserves economic relief? Examining Twitter/X debates about Covid-19 economic relief for small businesses and the self-employed in Germany
Authors: Hilmar Till
Published: September 2024

The economic shock of the Covid-19 crisis has disproportionately impacted small businesses and the self-employed. Around the globe, their survival during the pandemic often relied heavily on government assistance. This article explores how economic relief to business is understood through the lens of deservingness in the public. It examines the case of Germany, where the government has responded to the pandemic by implementing an extensive support programme. Notably, in this context, the self-employed are typically outsiders to the state insurance system. Combining computational social science methods and a qualitative analysis, the article focuses on the debate about direct subsidies on the social media platform Twitter/X between March 2020 and June 2021. It traces variation in the patterns of claim making in what is a rich debate about pandemic state support, finding that this discourse is characterised by the concern that economic relief threatens to blur existing boundaries of worth in society. The reciprocity principle of deservingness theory is pivotal in asserting business identities in times of crisis, yet it also reveals a fundamentally ambiguous relationship with the principle of need. Additionally, the claim of justice-as-redress, as a novel dimension of reciprocity, surfaces as an important theme in this debate.
Constraints, suffering, and surfacing repertoires among Gambian migrants in Italy
Authors: Santello Marco
Published: September 2024

This article explores one underestimated aspect of language in migration settings, namely the experience of not being in full control of circumstances and doing. Recent research has indeed highlighted aspects such as transcendence of boundaries, hinting at a version of multilingualism among migrants that does not feature enough of their experience of constraints. In contrast, other scholars have emphasised structural inequalities often focusing on macro-social pressures that migrants have to navigate. Approaching lived experiences as they emerge while researcher and informant build rapport-in-talk, the study concentrates on a young Gambian in Italy. He speaks of a lack of institutional support and being in a position where certain languages cannot be used, despite concrete help from a local NGO and personal efforts. The data also show suffering beyond language-related constraints and the progressive mutual surfacing of linguistic repertoires in interaction, evidencing more broadly the merits of this type of qualitative study. (Migration, constraints, Gambia, Italy)*
THE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF POTTERY IN MYCENAEAN THEBES, BOEOTIA
Authors: Andrikou Eleni , Mommsen Hans , Maran Joseph
Published: September 2024

In the course of the project ‘Pottery Production and Distribution of Bronze Age Settlements of Mycenaean Greece and the Aegean’ in 1996, Mycenaean pottery from Boeotia in the Archaeological Museum of Thebes was sampled with a view to investigation by neutron activation analysis (NAA). The NAA results were published and analysed in 2002. Ongoing work with new samples and re-evaluation of pre-existing ones, in both cases deriving from several sites of the Mycenaean world, resulted in the reappraisal of the NAA results concerning the Theban material. The present work aims at the archaeological assessment of the sampled material (152 samples from 148 examples) organised into three sections according to their exact findspot: (a) the chamber tomb cemeteries at Agia Anna area (Kolonaki and Mikro Kolonaki hills) and at Ismenion Hill; (b) the House of Kadmos; and (c) habitation areas at the lower south-east and north-west part of Kadmeia Hill. This classification corresponds roughly to the chronology of the examples dated to Middle Helladic and Late Helladic II to Late Helladic IIIC Late. The bulk of the pottery sampled is Mycenaean. A few examples of Handmade Burnished Pottery are included as well as four fragments of rooftiles, an uninscribed fragment of a Linear B tablet and a clay lump intended for a tablet. Twenty-one chemical groups/subgroups/pairs have been identified. The groups assigned to Boeotia comprise numerous examples excavated mainly at the habitation areas and dated to the subphase Late Helladic IIIB2 Late. Imports from the Peloponnese, Euboea and Crete, as well as one from Corfu, have been recognised, as have pieces of unknown provenance and loners. In conclusion, five chemical groups of pottery (TheA, TanA, TheB, ThBC, TheF) are associated with varying degrees of certainty with Boeotian pottery production. Imports came mainly from the north-eastern Peloponnese in Early Mycenaean times and from Euboea in the late palatial and post-palatial periods.
Ceramides as the molecular link between impaired lipid metabolism, saturated fatty acid intake and insulin resistance: are all saturated fatty acids to be blamed for ceramide-mediated lipotoxicity?
Authors: Sergi Domenico , Zauli Enrico , Celeghini Claudio , Previati Maurizio , Zauli Giorgio
Published: September 2024

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a metabolic disorder that has reached epidemic proportions worldwide, posing a huge treat on people’s health and quality of life. From a pathogenetic prospective, T2DM is driven by insulin resistance defined as a blunted response of tissues to insulin which leads to chronic hyperglycaemia. Mechanistically, lipotoxicity and particularly the intracellular accumulation of ceramides in the skeletal muscle and the liver, is a primary metabolic aberration underpinning insulin resistance. Indeed, intracellular ceramide accumulation can hamper insulin signal transduction pathway thereby promoting insulin resistance. This review will provide an updated overview of the metabolic defects underlaying ceramide buildup and the molecular mechanism by which ceramides imping upon insulin signalling. Additionally, the role of specific ceramide subspecies as potential biomarkers for T2DM and the role of both long- and medium-chain saturated fatty acids as a modulator of ceramide metabolism will be discussed.
Rapids as compasses: the riverine environment, experiential knowledge, and steam navigation on the Upper Yangzi River
Authors: Pan Yiying
Published: September 2024

During the “steam century” between 1830 and 1930, major political and economic entities in Europe, Asia, and the Americas became increasingly connected by steam navigation and railway transportation. Against this global backdrop, steam navigation was established and became regular on the formidable Upper Yangzi River in China between the 1870s and the 1920s. This breakthrough hinged on developments in the methods of tackling rapids (tan) – fierce and unpredictable currents descending like small waterfalls. Previous studies have mostly focused on how agents of the British Empire and other imperial powers tried to solve such constraints in steam navigation through charts, sailing directions, and other initiatives to make the Upper Yangzi riverscape legible. Incorporating previously unused archives, this article highlights how local environmental and social conditions shaped the steam shipping system on the Upper Yangzi River. This article argues that rapids, as well as local boatmen's experiential knowledge of them, propelled British and other foreign agents to transform their ways of organizing steam shipping in terms of vessel design, crew recruitment, and infrastructure allocation. More broadly, this article exemplifies the need to look beyond imperial agents and employ more locally situated perspectives to explain the technological developments underlying the modern world.
Why so antisocial? Football ultras, crowd modalities, and atmospherics of discontent in public space
Authors: Jack Max
Published: September 2024

As some of the most intensively devoted football fans in Germany, ultras coordinate crowd atmosphere in the arena to support their respective clubs on the field while actively positioning themselves against sport’s governing bodies, whom they see as corrupted by the strategies used to transform professional football from a game into a capitalist industry. Focusing on travel and transportation as a key feature of hardcore fandom, I examine the relationship between ultras’ activities in transit to games and their congregation in public spaces (on the streets, on trains, at rest stops, in stadia), in which quotidian ambience is often hijacked and repurposed as an estranged form of public address. I focus on the dynamic ways that ultras move through space as a means of charting the stages in which fan scenes become crowds, and crowds are mobilized as a means of protesting against the alienating dynamics of modern football, the contrasting stylistics of which result in divergent outsider interpretations and reactions from the state, the German Football Association (DFB), the media, and onlookers confronted by ultras’ public transgressions. Through the fan scene’s ability to coordinate movement and heighten bodily capacity, varied expressions of antisocial behavior become a means of harnessing fans’ own disaffection in a way that reclaims public space as it conjures a heightened emotive environment.
Wie wirkt sich die Weiterbildung „Mit Kindern im Gespräch“ auf die Sprachentwicklung von Kindern in Kitas aus?
Authors: Horner Stefanie , Kammermeyer Gisela , Metz Astrid , Leber Anja
Published: September 2024

Zusammenfassung: Weiterbildungen gelten als ein zentrales Element zur Verbesserung der Effektivität von Sprachfördermaßnahmen in Kindertageseinrichtungen. Im deutschsprachigen Raum ist noch wenig darüber bekannt, wie sich Weiterbildungen auf die Sprachproduktion und das Sprachverständnis von Kindern auswirken. In einer experimentellen Prä-Post-Studie wurden die Effekte von zwei Weiterbildungsansätzen auf die Sprachkompetenzen von Kindern ( N = 230) untersucht, indem pädagogische Fachkräfte ( N = 50) per Zufall einem der beiden Ansätze zugewiesen wurden. Nach der einjährigen Qualifizierung wurden die Kinder ein Jahr lang gefördert. Die Entwicklung der Sprachkompetenzen wurde vor und nach der Förderung mit standardisierten Entwicklungstests untersucht. Mittels Mehrebenenanalysen konnte gezeigt werden, dass die Kinder von Fachkräften, die mit Mit Kindern im Gespräch ( Kammermeyer et al., 2017 ) weitergebildet wurden, größere Zuwächse im Satzverständnis, nicht aber in den expressiven Sprachkompetenzen aufwiesen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass es durch eine Weiterbildung mit Fokus auf Interaktionsqualität und Interaktionsstrategien gelingt, das Sprachverständnis von Kindern zu fördern.
Modeling the Impact of Seasonal Water Table Fluctuations on Ambient Noise Interferometry Using Acousto‐Elastic Effect
Authors: Wang Y. , Schmittbuhl J. , Azzola J. , Mattern F. , Zigone D. , Lengliné O. , Magnenet V. , Vergne J.
Published: September 2024

Ambient noise interferometry has become a common technique for monitoring slight changes in seismic velocity in a variety of contexts. However, the physical origin of the resolved small velocity fluctuations is not well established for long‐term seasonal effects. Here we propose a physical forward model of scattered waves in a deformable medium that includes acousto‐elastic effect, which refers to non‐linear elasticity with third‐order elastic constants. The model shows that small pressure perturbations of a few kPa due to seasonal variations in the water table can induce seismic velocity changes compatible with those measured at the surface by ambient noise interferometry. The results are consistent with field observations near the deep geothermal site of Rittershoffen (France). They illustrate the capability in modeling the diffuse wavefield from scattering synthetic waves to reproduce ambient noise signals for monitoring environmental and/or deep reservoir signals.