bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A rapid assessment of the illegal otter trade in Vietnam
Authors: Gomez Lalita , Nguyen Minh D. T.
Published: July 2023

Vietnam is home to four species of otters, and while population numbers are unknown, they are thought to be rare and in decline. Studies on the illegal otter trade in Asia have shown Vietnam to be a key end use destination for illegally sourced live otters for the pet trade and otter fur for the fashion industry. This study focused on the otter trade in Vietnam through seizure data analysis and an online survey, revealing the persistent trade of otters in Vietnam in violation of national wildlife laws and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). We found a substantial quantity of otter fur products for sale though CITES permits for such products were lacking, indicating illegal origins. Similarly, all four species of otters are protected in Vietnam, yet they were openly available for sale online in violation of national wildlife laws. Clearly, the online trade of wildlife and wildlife products in Vietnam requires greater monitoring, regulation, and enforcement to prevent the advertising and trade of illicit wildlife. In-depth scrutiny of online sellers and product sourcing is particularly warranted. To support enforcement efforts, revision of policies and laws is needed to hold social media and other online advertising companies accountable for enabling the illegal trade of wildlife.
Voellmy-type mixture rheologies for dilatant, two-layer debris flow models
Authors: Meyrat G. , McArdell B. , Müller C. R. , Munch J. , Bartelt P.
Published: July 2023

We formulate and test different Voellmy-type mixture rheologies that can be introduced into two-layer debris flow models. The formulations are based on experimental data from the Swiss Illgraben test site as well as on mathematical constraints in steady flow conditions. In agreement with the ideas of Iverson, we show that the uniform, fixed rheological models cannot accurately represent the changing frictional resistance when debris flows undergo spatial and temporal changes in solid–fluid composition. Indeed, the experimental results of Illgraben indicate that flow friction decreases with increasing volumetric fluid concentration; however, the degree of reduction depends on both the pore pressure and the solid particle agitation. The interplay between these processes makes friction in debris flows highly nonlinear and difficult to quantify. Changing the friction according to the flow composition must be carefully executed, because it can lead to numerical instabilities, which is a recurrent problem in two-layer debris flow models. We test the different rheological formulations using a real event documented with differential topographic data collected using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The model is able to reproduce the correct erosion pattern and exhibit the right density profile. The event includes de-watering at the front and deposition of sediment, which causes a change from debris flow to debris flood or hyperconcentrated flow, which indicates that two completely different flow states can be modeled with a single Voellmy-type mixture rheology.
How the social dignity of recipients is violated and protected across various forms of food aid in high-income countries: a scoping review
Authors: Andriessen Thirza , van der Velde Laura A.
Published: July 2023

Scholars have demonstrated that common ways of performing charitable food aid in high-income countries maintain a powerless and alienated status of recipients. Aiming to protect the dignity of recipients, alternative forms of food aid have taken shape. However, an in-depth understanding of dignity in the context of food aid is missing. We undertook a scoping review to outline ways in which the dignity of recipients is violated or protected across various forms of food aid in high-income countries. By bringing scientific results together through a social dignity lens, this paper offers a complex understanding of dignity in the context of food aid. The online database Scopus was used to identify scientific literature addressing food aid in relation to the dignity of recipients in high-income countries. The final selection included 37 articles representing eight forms of food aid in twelve countries. Across diverse forms of food aid, the selected studies report signs of (in)dignity concerning five dimensions: access to food aid, social interactions, the food, the physical space, and needs beyond food. Research gaps are found in the diversity of forms of food aid studied, and the identification of social standards important for recipients. Bringing the results of 37 articles together through a social dignity lens articulates the complex and plural ways in which the dignity of recipients is violated or protected. In addition, this review has demonstrated the usefulness of a social dignity lens to understand dignity across and in particular food aid contexts.
Minimizing the impact of geographical basis risk on weather derivatives
Authors: D’Aversa Mina , Mainini Alessandra , Moretto Enrico , Stefani Silvana , Uberti Pierpaolo
Published: July 2023

In the last decade, the index-based weather products (also called weather derivatives) have been gaining attention in the climate resilience discussion. Weather derivatives are designed to help companies hedging against climate variability. These products, that can be market-traded or over-the-counter, compensate individuals based on a pre-defined weather index. Thus, pay-offs of a weather derivative depend on a weather index and not, as with traditional types of insurance, on the actual amount of money lost due to adverse weather. One of the major drawbacks that may prevent weather derivatives to catch on is the impact of the Geographical Basis Risk (GBR), that is the deviation of weather conditions at different locations. In fact, when the reference weather station is not located in the immediate vicinity of the site of interest the hedging effectiveness may be reduced. In this paper, we contribute to the existing literature on GBR by proposing an optimization method that may help in offering a tailored solution, while at the same time keeping a standardized instrument as a reference. Using a historical record of Italian temperatures, strikes for temperatures are the choice variables of a penalty function containing pay-offs of a reference station and all other stations. Further, altitude and latitude of meteorological stations are shown to be relevant predictors to explain GBR. This can be an interesting starting point for the design of weather derivatives, since, from a unique station where the “reference” derivative is priced, all the other stations may be easily settled.
Complex dynamics in a nonlinear duopoly model with heuristic expectation formation and learning behavior
Authors: Mignot Sarah , Tramontana Fabio , Westerhoff Frank
Published: July 2023

We develop a nonlinear duopoly model in which the heuristic expectation formation and learning behavior of two boundedly rational firms may engender complex dynamics. Most importantly, we assume that the firms employ different forecasting models to predict the behavior of their opponent. Moreover, the firms learn by leaning more strongly on forecasting models that yield more precise predictions. An eight-dimensional nonlinear map drives the dynamics of our approach. We analytically derive the conditions under which its unique steady state is locally stable and numerically study its out-of-equilibrium behavior. In doing so, we detect multiple scenarios with coexisting attractors at which the firms’ behavior yields distinctively different market outcomes.
Normative Intercorrelations Between EEG Microstate Characteristics
Authors: Kleinert Tobias , Nash Kyle , Koenig Thomas , Wascher Edmund
Published: July 2023

EEG microstates are brief, recurring periods of stable brain activity that reflect the activation of large-scale neural networks. The temporal characteristics of these microstates, including their average duration, number of occurrences, and percentage contribution have been shown to serve as biomarkers of mental and neurological disorders. However, little is known about how microstate characteristics of prototypical network types relate to each other. Normative intercorrelations among these parameters are necessary to help researchers better understand the functions and interactions of underlying networks, interpret and relate results, and generate new hypotheses. Here, we present a systematic analysis of intercorrelations between EEG microstate characteristics in a large sample representative of western working populations (n = 583). Notably, we find that microstate duration is a general characteristic that varies across microstate types. Further, microstate A and B show mutual reinforcement, indicating a relationship between auditory and visual sensory processing at rest. Microstate C appears to play a special role, as it is associated with longer durations of all other microstate types and increased global field power, suggesting a relationship of these parameters with the anterior default mode network. All findings could be confirmed using independent EEG recordings from a retest-session (n = 542).
S100A8 gene copy number and protein expression in breast cancer: associations with proliferation, histopathological grade and molecular subtypes
Authors: Børkja Mathieu Le Boulvais , Giambelluca Miriam S. , Ytterhus Borgny , Prestvik Wenche S. , Bjørkøy Geir , Bofin Anna M
Published: July 2023

Background and aims

Amplification of S100A8 occurs in 10–30% of all breast cancers and has been linked to poorer prognosis. Similarly, the protein S100A8 is overexpressed in a roughly comparable proportion of breast cancers and is also found in infiltrating myeloid-lineage cells, again linked to poorer prognosis. We explore the relationship between these findings.

Methods

We examined S100A8 copy number (CN) alterations using fluorescence in situ hybridization in 475 primary breast cancers and 117 corresponding lymph nodes. In addition, we studied S100A8 protein expression using immunohistochemistry in 498 primary breast cancers from the same cohort.

Results

We found increased S100A8 CN (≥ 4) in tumor epithelial cells in 20% of the tumors, increased S100A8 protein expression in 15%, and ≥ 10 infiltrating S100A8 + polymorphonuclear cells in 19%. Both increased S100A8 CN and protein expression in cancer cells were associated with high Ki67 status, high mitotic count and high histopathological grade. We observed no association between increased S100A8 CN and S100A8 protein expression, and only a weak association (p = 0.09) between increased CN and number of infiltrating S100A8 + immune cells. Only S100A8 protein expression in cancer cells was associated with significantly worse prognosis.

Conclusions

Amplification of S100A8 does not appear to be associated with S100A8 protein expression in breast cancer. S100A8 protein expression in tumor epithelial cells identifies a subgroup of predominantly non-luminal tumors with a high mean age at diagnosis and significantly worse prognosis. Finally, S100A8 alone is not a sufficient marker to identify infiltrating immune cells linked to worse prognosis.
Strategy for learning microcontroller programming—a graphical or a textual start?
Authors: Vrbančič Franc , Kocijančič Slavko
Published: July 2023

Microcontroller programming competencies contribute to the sustainable employability of engineering graduates of both higher and secondary education. To develop the required programming skills, one of the challenges for educators is to determine which programming environments should be implemented in introductory programming courses. Conceptually, graphical (e.g. iconic or diagrammatic) environments appear to be very different from textual environments. Our study focused on a programming course in a mechatronics vocational training programme at the secondary school level in Slovenia. To investigate the expectations of potential employers towards our graduates, we surveyed local companies. Out of 104 respondents, 90 (86.5%) expected graduates to be able to use various programming environments, including upcoming ones. In our study, we divided 114 students into two groups of equal prior knowledge. Group A started the course with a textual programming environment and switched to a graphical one in the second sequence, while group B followed a reverse sequence. Group A achieved better test results after both sequences. Knowledge transfer, as measured by normalised learning gains, was also in favour of group A. We concluded that it is more efficient to start with the textual environment and then continue with the graphical environment. The results of this study open up some challenges for further research to investigate the effectiveness of introductory programming courses based on programmable electronics with students of similar ages. Further research should consider the specific requirements of the different courses but should also the effectiveness of knowledge transfer between different programming environments.
Interaction Quality Among Children, Staff and Parents in German ECEC Centres in the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Neuberger Franz , Grgic Mariana , Fackler Sina
Published: July 2023

During the COVID-19 pandemic, early childhood education and care (ECEC) centres implemented various protective and hygiene measures. Some of these, such as maintaining distance or wearing face masks, temporarily restricted interactions between pedagogical staff, children, and parents. This may have made it difficult for staff to provide high-quality interactions with positive and sensitive attitudes towards children and parents. The long-term effects of these distancing measures on the quality of daily interactions in ECEC centres have been largely unexplored. Based on a panel survey of German ECEC centre leaders conducted over a period of one and a half years, we used random-effect-within-between models to provide a long-term assessment of the effects of specific protective measures on different levels of interactions within ECEC centres. These levels include staff-child interactions, interactions between children, and cooperation between staff and parents. Our findings indicate that child-child interactions were largely unaffected by the measures, while staff-parent interactions suffered the most. Communication with parents and regular implementation of pedagogical practices had a stabilizing effect, while keeping distance from children, wearing face masks, and (pandemic-related) staff shortages worsened staff-child interactions. Additionally, our findings revealed that adopting a stricter group concept was associated with improved staff-child interactions. Centers that had previously used an open group concept reported lower quality interactions during the pandemic. This study provides valuable insights into the effects of protective measures on daily interactions in ECEC centres, highlighting the importance of considering both short-term and long-term effects when implementing protective measures.
Program transformation landscapes for automated program modification using Gin
Authors: Petke Justyna , Alexander Brad , Barr Earl T. , Brownlee Alexander E. I. , Wagner Markus , White David R.
Published: July 2023

Automated program modification underlies two successful research areas — genetic improvement and program repair. Under the generate-and-validate strategy, automated program modification transforms a program, then validates the result against a test suite. Much work has focused on the search space of application of single fine-grained operators — copy, delete, replace, and swap at both line and statement granularity. This work explores the limits of this strategy. We scale up existing findings an order of magnitude from small corpora to 10 real-world Java programs comprising up to 500k LoC. We decisively show that the grammar-specificity of statement granular edits pays off: its pass rate triples that of line edits and uses 10% less computational resources. We confirm previous findings that delete is the most effective operator for creating test-suite equivalent program variants. We go farther than prior work by exploring the limits of delete ’s effectiveness by exhaustively applying it. We show this strategy is too costly in practice to be used to search for improved software variants. We further find that pass rates drop from 12–34% for single statement edits to 2–6% for 5-edit sequences, which implies that further progress will need human-inspired operators that target specific faults or improvements. A program is amenable to automated modification to the extent to which automatically editing it is likely to produce test-suite passing variants. We are the first to systematically search for a code measure that correlates with a program’s amenability to automated modification. We found no strong correlations, leaving the question open.
On Design and Assessment of Tail Void Grouting Material in Mechanized Tunneling: A Review
Authors: Mohammadzamani Danial , Alimardani Lavasan Arash , Wichtmann Torsten
Published: July 2023

The utilization of tail void grout as a stabilizing and sealing agent in mechanized tunneling procedures is of paramount significance, given the geological and engineering conditions inherent to tunneling projects. Prior to its application within a tunnel, a detailed evaluation of the fresh-state characteristics of the grout, as well as the time-dependent evolution of its hydro-mechanical properties, becomes imperative. This review paper aims to provide a comprehensive introduction to the various types of tail void grouting materials used in mechanized tunneling. The potential for behavior enhancement of the grout through the utilization of different additives, considering diverse mixing ratios in varying ground conditions, is discussed. Moreover, an in-depth analysis of the fresh- and hardened-state properties of different grout types, along with the cross-effects induced by additives in the grout mixture, is presented and reviewed. The paper also delves into the testing methodologies and property investigations employed to assess different grout types using experimental approaches. Additionally, a detailed overview of the numerical simulation of mechanized tunneling is provided, with a particular emphasis on the role of grout. Finally, the coupled hydro-mechanical effects of typical grout additives are explored, and the applicability of various grouting material according to the ground conditions is presented and discussed.
“Why are we learning this?!” — Investigating students’ subjective study values across different disciplines
Authors: Breetzke Jonas , Özbagci Derya , Bohndick Carla
Published: July 2023

Differences between academic disciplines have been a well-studied theme in higher education research. But even though students’ subjective study values are a key factor for successful studying, research examining their disciplinary differences in the higher education context is lacking. To address this, this study draws on expectancy-value theory, investigates students’ subjective study values across nine different disciplines, and analyses its discipline-specific relation to study success. For this, we used a large-scale data sample of N = 6.321 university students from the German National Educational Panel Study. Subjective study values were assessed in terms of intrinsic values, utility values, attainment values, and costs, while study success was captured by students’ grade and dropout intention. Data were analysed through multi-group structural equation modelling. Our findings suggest that (1) students’ subjective study values differ markedly across academic disciplines and (2) study disciplines moderate the relation between study values and study success. On a research level, our findings contribute to a more differentiated view on subjective study values in the higher education context. On a practical level, our findings can help to uncover motivational problems of students from different disciplines, which might ultimately help to reduce dropouts and improve grades.
What strategies do students use when they are programming a robot to follow a curved line?
Authors: Anderhag Per , Salomonsson Niklas , Bürgers Andre , Estay Espinola Cesar , Fahrman Birgit , Seifeddine Ehdwall Dana , Sundler Maria
Published: July 2023

During a relatively short period of time, programming has been implemented in the national curriculum of the compulsory school in Sweden. Since 2018, programming is a new content in the technology subject and the research field has discussed some of the challenges teachers and students, who generally have little experiences of programming, face when programming is introduced in teaching. In this study, we have explored what strategies lower secondary school students (ages 13–15) use when they are programming a robot to follow a curved line in technology education class. Data consists of screen recorded films when students are pair programming a robot. Student talks were transcribed verbatim and analysed using Practical Epistemological Analysis. The analysis revealed three different strategies that the students used when programming the robot: (1) sensor—follow the line, searching for a code that automatically would make the robot to follow the route, (2) sensor—wheels, using codes to create a feedback system between sensor and wheels, and (3) rotations—degrees–wheels, using the position of the robot to stepwise fine tune the movement of the wheels. In line with previous research, the students in our study spent much time discussing, testing, and debugging their code, and our findings contribute by showing how these discussions were aligned with the strategy used. Depending on the strategy, students actively looked for and tested codes affecting different aspects of the sensor-wheel system, such as for example sensor input, power, rotations or turning. Implications for teaching is discussed.
The effect of low concentrations of polypyrrole on the structural, thermal, and dielectric characteristics of CMC/PPy blends
Authors: Salem Amira M. , Mohamed A. Raouf , Yassin A. Y.
Published: July 2023

The current work aims to synthesize carboxymethyl cellulose/polypyrrole (CMC/PPy) blends with different PPy concentrations as promising blends for energy storage devices with low cost and excellent chemical and physical characteristics. The structural and dielectric characteristics of CMC/PPy blends were studied. FT-IR spectroscopy is utilized to study the structural properties of the present blends, whereas the dielectric properties are explored at frequency range of 0.1 Hz−20 MHz. The structural study of CMC/PPy blends showed good homogeneity between the CMC matrix and PPy as a conductive filler. The thermal behavior of the present blends was also investigated using DSC, where the thermal stability of the blends was improved after incorporating PPy into the host matrix. The dielectric characteristics results indicated a rise in the dielectric parameters of CMC with an increase in the PPy content up to 8 wt%. The dielectric parameters of CMC/PPy blends are frequency dependents. The dielectric constant (ε′) and AC electrical conductivity of the blends under study enhanced by about 33% with a rise in the PPy content to 8 wt%. The dielectric loss (ε″) values decreased from 3.4938 to 0.93071 at 10 kHz; this performance means that the CMC/PPy blends have an excellent possibility for energy storage devices with low dielectric loss in various applications, such as sensors, batteries, and capacitors.
Bactericidal and Cytotoxic Study of Hybrid Films Based on NiO and NiFe2O4 Nanoparticles in Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate
Authors: Rincon-Granados Karen L. , Vázquez-Olmos América R. , Rodríguez-Hernández Adriana-Patricia , Prado-Prone Gina , Garibay-Febles Vicente , Almanza-Arjona Yara C. , Sato-Berrú Roberto Y. , Mata-Zamora Esther , Silva-Bermúdez Phaedra S. , Vega-Jiménez Alejandro
Published: July 2023

This work focuses on the obtaining and the bactericidal properties study, in vitro, of hybrid films as potential coating materials to inhibit bacteria proliferation. In consequence, hybrid films from nickel oxide (NiO) and nickel ferrite (NiFe2O4) nanoparticles (NPs) embedded in poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (P3HB) were obtained by the solvent casting method. P3HB@NiO and P3HB@NiFe2O4 hybrid films and P3HB film were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman scattering, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The XRD of the hybrid films showed that NiO and NiFe2O4 NPs incorporated in the P3HB conserved their nanometric size, and by Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were observed that NPs are homogeneously distributed in the films. The bactericidal effect of the obtained films was evaluated in vitro from the broth surface method against two opportunistic and nosocomial pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The results showed that P3HB film, P3HB@NiO, and P3HB@NiFe2O4 hybrid films reduced 90%, 98%, and 97% of the growth of S. aureus, respectively. For P. aeruginosa, their growth was reduced by 90%, 94%, and 96%, respectively. In addition, the cytotoxic effect of NiO and NiFe2O4 NPs, as well as P3HB film, and P3HB@NiO, and P3HB@NiFe2O4 hybrid films was evaluated using human skin cells; keratinocytes and fibroblast, being the NPs less cytotoxic than films. Although P3HB is known as a biocompatible polymer, here is demonstrated that in our work conditions, their films have bactericidal properties and are cytotoxic to keratinocytes and fibroblasts, the first barrier of the human skin. However, the P3HB@NiO and P3HB@NiFe2O4 hybrid films synergize the bactericidal effect between the P3HB and the NPs. On the other hand, the NPs decrease the P3HB cytotoxicity to keratinocytes. The methodology used in this work is particularly suitable for producing hybrid films with antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains.
The balanced maximally diverse grouping problem with integer attribute values
Authors: Schulz Arne
Published: July 2023

The paper considers the assignment of items to groups according to their attribute values such that the groups are as balanced as possible. Although the problem is in general NP-hard, we prove that it can be solved in pseudo-polynomial time if attribute values are integer. We point out a relation to partition and more general to multi-way number partitioning. Furthermore, we introduce a mixed-integer programming (MIP) formulation, a variable reduction technique, and an efficient lower bound for the objective value. Our computational results show that the lower bound meets the optimal objective value in the most of our instances of realistic size. Hence, the MIP solves instances with several thousand items within seconds to optimality.
Luminescence Thermometry Based on the Upconversion Luminescence from the Stark Sublevels of BaY2F8:Yb3+, Tm3+ Phosphor
Authors: Sharma Ashwini K. , Nair Govind B. , Dhoble S. J. , Kroon Robin E. , Terblans J. J. , Swart H. C.
Published: July 2023

Visible and near-infrared (NIR) upconversion luminescence (UCL) emissions originating from the BaY2F8: Yb3+, Tm3+ systems were investigated under a laser excitation at 980 nm. The BaY2F8:20 mol% Yb3+, x mol% Tm3+ and BaY2F8: y mol% Yb3+, 0.5 mol% Tm3+ phosphors showed prominent UCL at 800 and 810 nm. The optimized doping concentrations of Yb3+ and Tm3+ in the BaY2F8 host matrix were evaluated, their spectroscopic properties were determined, and studies on their temperature-dependent behaviour were carried out. The temperature-sensing properties were studied by generating the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) of the UCL peaks originating from the thermally-coupled energy levels of the Tm3+ ions. The Stark sublevels of 1G4 level of Tm3+ ions were utilized to estimate the temperature-sensing abilities of the phosphor.

Graphical Abstract
Imagine beyond: recent breakthroughs and next challenges in mammary gland biology and breast cancer research
Authors: van Amerongen Renée , Bentires-Alj Mohamed , van Boxtel Antonius L. , Clarke Robert B. , Fre Silvia , Suarez Eva Gonzalez , Iggo Richard , Jechlinger Martin , Jonkers Jos , Mikkola Marja L. , Koledova Zuzana Sumbalova , Sørlie Therese , Vivanco Maria dM.
Published: July 2023

On 8 December 2022 the organizing committee of the European Network for Breast Development and Cancer labs (ENBDC) held its fifth annual Think Tank meeting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Here, we embraced the opportunity to look back to identify the most prominent breakthroughs of the past ten years and to reflect on the main challenges that lie ahead for our field in the years to come. The outcomes of these discussions are presented in this position paper, in the hope that it will serve as a summary of the current state of affairs in mammary gland biology and breast cancer research for early career researchers and other newcomers in the field, and as inspiration for scientists and clinicians to move the field forward.
The Lorentz Gas with a Nearly Periodic Distribution of Scatterers
Authors: Wennberg Bernt
Published: July 2023

We consider the Lorentz gas in a distribution of scatterers which microscopically converges to a periodic distribution, and prove that the Lorentz gas in the low density limit satisfies a linear Boltzmann equation. This is in contrast with the periodic Lorentz gas, which does not satisfy the Boltzmann equation in the limit.
A3T: accuracy aware adversarial training
Authors: Altinisik Enes , Messaoud Safa , Sencar Husrev Taha , Chawla Sanjay
Published: July 2023

Adversarial training has been empirically shown to be more prone to overfitting than standard training. The exact underlying reasons are still not fully understood. In this paper, we identify one cause of overfitting related to current practices of generating adversarial examples from misclassified samples. We show that, following current practice, adversarial examples from misclassified samples results in harder-to-classify samples than the original ones. This leads to a complex adjustment of the decision boundary during training and hence overfitting. To mitigate this issue, we propose A3T, an accuracy aware AT method that generate adversarial example differently for misclassified and correctly classified samples. We show that our approach achieves better generalization while maintaining comparable robustness to state-of-the-art AT methods on a wide range of computer vision, natural language processing, and tabular tasks.
A novel approximation method for the solution of weakly nonlinear coupled systems
Authors: Johnston Daniel , Cartmell Matthew
Published: July 2023

In this paper, we describe and illustrate the application of a novel approximation technique for coupled, nonlinear dynamic systems. The technique begins by obtaining the analytical (or approximate analytical) solutions to the uncoupled system. Then, these solutions are used to approximate particular terms in the fully-coupled, nonlinear system in such a way that the target system is amenable to (approximate) analytical solution algorithms. This work forms part of a larger effort to develop robust control systems for large-scale industrial manipulators. To this end, the final example examined in this work considers the FutureForge manipulator: a state-of-the-art manipulator which forms part of a next-generation forging platform under development at the Advanced Forming Research Centre in Glasgow. To show the breadth of applications of our approach, we also apply it to more widely-recognised models like the Rayleigh and Van der Pol oscillators. In both of these cases, we consider a system of two oscillators each having dynamic behaviour described by Rayleigh/Van der Pol oscillators and coupled together through the resulting damping matrices.
Legislating to Control Online Hate Speech: A Corpus-Assisted Semantic Analysis of French Parliamentary Debates
Authors: Makouar Nadia , Devine Lauren , Parker Stephen
Published: July 2023

This corpus analysis of linguistic and semantic features in French parliamentary debates concerning online hate speech regulation, highlights tensions between state powers and private rights. Two key themes are identified: first, the problem of definition: how such online content is defined in the debates, and second, the problem of regulation: how the debates negotiate the supra-jurisdictional and individual jurisdiction issues involved, in regulating both the global online content and the responsibilities of the owners of the platforms who manage the content. For this analysis, the authors created a corpus of French National Assembly Examination Committee discussions and public sessions between July 2019 to January 2020 discussing the Loi Avia (Avia Law). The corpus was analysed using quali-quantitative methods. Overall, the study combines a top-down (global) and a bottom-up (local) analysis of the data, applying corpus semantic approaches (Lecolle et al. in Langages 210(2):35–54, 2018; Rastier in The Routledge handbook of semantics, Routledge, pp 507–522, 2015) to contextualize the analysis of the meta-discourse (Hyland in Meta-discourse: exploring interaction in writing, 1st ed. Bloomsbury Academic, Bloomsbury Collections, 2018. https://doi.org/10.5040/9781350063617). The analysis highlights the linguistic features revealing the power dynamics inherent within the discourse and counter-discourse of the dominant and opposition political parties respectively.
Deagrarisation as a Determinant of Living Standards in Rural Areas of European Union Countries
Authors: Cyrek Magdalena , Cyrek Piotr
Published: July 2023

The paper deals with the issue of living standards being compared in spatial layouts across the EU countries in 2010–2019. The situation in rural areas is related to urban ones allowing for analysis of spatial inequality in terms of standard of living across the member states. The aim of the paper includes not only comparisons of standard of living, but also identification of reasons of differences between the countries and verification of a role of agriculture in shaping the rural standard of living. The EU economies are clustered based on Ward method and ranked according to aggregate measures of the relative living standards created with a usage of Hellwig method. In addition to a compound measure of the living standards, they have been assessed in two dimensions: income (ID), and housing and environment (HED). Furthermore, the study searches for an explanation of differences in the relative living standards and tests whether deagrarisation may be identified as their determinant. It uses ANOVA and estimates linear OLS regression models. It is concluded that the standard of living appears to be more favourable for rural inhabitants than for city dwellers, especially with respect to the features of surroundings, while it is decreased by the income characteristics. Furthermore, the results indicate that the relative living standards of rural inhabitants are lower in more agrarian economies. The observed deagrarisation appears as a factor positively influencing the standard of living in its income dimension.
Characteristics of hospitalized elderly patients with CKD: a comparison between elderly and non-elderly CKD based on a multicenter cross-sectional study
Authors: Liang Shuang , Wang Yong , Wang Wen-Ling , Guo Xin-Ru , Zhang Chun , Yang Chen , Wang Che , Cai Guang-Yan , Chen Xiang-Mei
Published: July 2023

Purpose

We undertook a multicenter epidemiological survey among hospitalized patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), aiming to reveal the characteristics of elderly CKD by comparing it with non-elderly CKD.

Methods

Medical records were obtained from 18 military hospitals across China from 1 January 2009 to 31 December 2011. The characteristics of chronic kidney disease in the elderly were analyzed through comparing with those in younger patients with chronic kidney disease.

Results

A total of 380,461 hospitalized patients were included in the database, with 25,826 (6.8%) diagnosed with CKD. Unlike non-elderly, the top-three causes of chronic kidney disease among elderly patients were diabetic nephropathy (24.1%), hypertension-related renal impairment (20.9%), and primary glomerular disease (11.1%). 71.6% of the elderly patients with CKD had more than one comorbidities and the number of morbidities increased with age. In-hospital mortality of the elderly was significantly higher than those of younger patients (3.3% vs. 1.0%). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that age, CKD 5 stage, acidosis, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, infection disease, neoplasm, and dementia were independent risk factors for death from CKD in the elderly. The median length of stay (LOS) was similar between elderly and younger CKD patients. The median cost was higher for elderly CKD patients than for younger CKD patients. Among elderly individuals with CKD, LOS, and hospitalization costs also increased with an increase in the number of coexisting diseases.

Conclusions

Diabetic nephropathy,  and hypertension-related kidney injury were the leading causes of chronic kidney disease in elderly patients, which is different from the non-elderly. Elderly patients with chronic kidney disease were more likely to have a higher burden of comorbidities, which were associated with worse in-hospital outcomes.
Past and future changes in the start, end, and duration of the growing season in Poland
Authors: Szyga-Pluta Katarzyna , Tomczyk Arkadiusz Marek , Piniewski Mikołaj , Eini Mohammad Reza
Published: July 2023

The aim of the study was to determine the direction and rate of the projected changes of the start, end, and duration of the growing season in Poland in two-time horizons: 2021–2050 and 2071–2100. The main part of the paper was preceded by an analysis of changes in the start and end dates and the duration of the growing season in Poland in the period 1966–2020. The growing season in Poland is projected to be the shortest in mountain areas and in the north-eastern regions of Poland, where the date of growing season start is the latest and the date of the growing season end is the earliest. Whereas the longest growing season due to the projected earliest start and latest end dates is expected in the southwestern Poland. In the case of the coast, its late end will be of the greatest importance for its duration as a result of the warming effect of the sea in the autumn–winter period. The most intensive changes are forecasted in the long-term perspective in the case of the scenario regarding a high level of greenhouse gas emissions. The forecasts show that outside mountain areas, the growing season duration will vary from less than 255 days in the northeastern regions to more than 290 days in southwest and western Poland. In the duration of the mountains, the growing season will vary from 180 days on Kasprowy Wierch to 188 days on Śnieżka. This suggests significant changes in agroclimatic conditions in Poland.
Recent Development in Advance Ceramic Materials and Understanding the Mechanisms of Thermal Barrier Coatings Degradation
Authors: Iqbal Amjad , Moskal Grzegorz
Published: July 2023

Metallic alloys' behavior at high temperatures, especially their response to corrosion and formation of protective surface layers, has long been a focus of scientific inquiry. Although certain alloy compositions require an initiation period before hot corrosion advances to the propagation stage, no combination of alloys can be considered impervious to hot corrosion indefinitely. The capacity of nickel-based materials to tolerate extreme circumstances such high temperatures, acidity, corrosion, and scratching is highly valued. However, they are unable to satisfy the strict demands of today's high-temperature applications. The durability of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs), which are prone to oxidation, rust, and degradation from sulphates and foreign object damage, has been the subject of recent study. For sophisticated ceramic materials exposed to high temperatures, hot rust degradation poses a considerable challenge. The main objective of this study is to investigate the effects of severe degradation on several advanced ceramic material types and their level of advancement. The purpose of the inquiry is to comprehend the deteriorating processes at the long term working condition, including the function of oxidation and liquid salts. Additionally, we investigate the effects of temperature, environment, and contact duration on the heated weathering behavior of earthenware. Finally, we discuss strategies for mitigating hot corrosion degradation in ceramics, such as protective coatings like new design of TBCs, doping, and composition optimization. This paper aims to offer a thorough understanding of the hot corrosion behavior of ceramics, which is crucial for developing durable materials suitable for high-temperature applications. Additionally, it explores the fabrication of protective coatings and addresses the challenges faced in this regard. The insights gained from this research can contribute to the advancement of resilient ceramic fabrics and the development of effective protective coatings.
Sympathetic Neural Mechanisms in Hypertension: Recent Insights
Authors: Grassi Guido , Dell’Oro Raffaella , Quarti-Trevano Fosca , Vanoli Jennifer , Oparil Suzanne
Published: July 2023

Purpose of Review

To examine published and unpublished data documenting the role of sympathetic neural factors in the pathogenesis of different hypertensive phenotypes. These phenotypes relate to attended or unattended blood pressure measurements, to nighttime blood pressure profile alterations, and to resistant, pseudoresistant, and refractory hypertension. Results of original clinical studies as well as of recent meta-analyses based on the behavior of different sympathetic biomarkers in various hypertensive forms will be also discussed.

Recent Findings

Studies performed in the past decade have shown that office blood pressure measurements, including in recent years those characterizing unattended or attended blood pressure assessment, are associated with profound changes in the behavior of different sympathetic biomarkers. This is the case for the clinical hypertensive phenotypes characterized by alterations in the nocturnal blood pressure profile and by sleep duration abnormalities. This is also the case for the clinical conditions defined as resistant, refractory, and pseudoresistant hypertension.

Data reviewed in the present paper highlight the relevance of sympathetic neural factors in the development and progression of different clinical hypertensive phenotypes. This suggests that a common hallmark of the majority of the essential hypertensive states detectable in current clinical practice is represented by the alteration in the sympathetic blood pressure control.
Backshoring, offshoring and staying at home: evidence from the UK textile and apparel industry
Authors: Casadei Patrizia , Iammarino Simona
Published: July 2023

Despite the rising interest for backshoring strategies by mass media, policy makers and public debates, academic research on the topic is relatively recent and still characterised by significant research gaps. Empirical evidence is scarce and often anecdotal, with a lack of studies focusing on specific industries and small-sized firms. Theoretical explanations are also fragmented with many unanswered questions. In particular, much of the existing literature has explored backshoring as a stand-alone phenomenon, independently from other production location strategies. In an attempt to fill these research gaps, we rely upon data from an original survey with around 700 firms from the UK textile and apparel industry to investigate different interrelated factors that influence backshoring strategies relative to offshoring and staying at home choices, within an analytical framework drawn from different international business perspectives, including operations and supply chain management. The paper contributes to the extant literature on backshoring by providing new empirical evidence based on originally collected firm-level data and focused on a single country and industry where smaller (and less studied) firms tend to prevail. Moreover, it helps strengthen the understanding of the phenomenon from a perspective which takes into consideration internationalisation as a non-linear process where firms adjust production location strategies based on a variety of changing conditions.
Attachment Style, Emotion Dysregulation and Sexual Satisfaction Among Polyamorous and Non-polyamorous Individuals
Authors: Rogier Guyonne , Cisario Giulia , Juris Lucrezia , Velotti Patrizia
Published: July 2023

To date, little is known about the psychological functioning of polyamorous individuals about the variables explaining positive attitudes towards polyamory. This study aims to investigate the constructs of attachment, emotion regulation and sexual satisfaction in polyamory. Self-report questionnaires were administered to a sample of adults reporting to be polylovers (n = 76) and to a sample of non-polylovers (n = 102). Polyamorous individuals, compared to controls, scored significantly higher on sexual satisfaction and dysregulation of positive emotions. Moreover, positive attitudes towards polyamory correlated with higher levels of sexual satisfaction. However, this relationship was moderated by the dimension of avoidant attachment.
Microcirculatory Monitoring in Children with Congenital Heart Disease Before and After Cardiac Surgery
Authors: Erdem Özge , de Graaff Jurgen C. , Hilty Matthias P. , Kraemer Ulrike S. , de Liefde Inge I. , van Rosmalen Joost , Ince Can , Tibboel Dick , Kuiper Jan Willem
Published: July 2023

In this prospective observational study, we investigated whether congenital heart disease (CHD) affects the microcirculation and whether the microcirculation is altered following cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Thirty-eight children with CHD undergoing cardiac surgery with CPB and 35 children undergoing elective, non-cardiac surgery were included. Repeated non-invasive sublingual microcirculatory measurements were performed with handheld vital microscopy. Before surgery, children with CHD showed similar perfused vessel densities and red blood cell velocities (RBCv) but less perfused vessels (p < 0.001), lower perfusion quality (p < 0.001), and higher small vessel densities (p = 0.039) than children without CHD. After cardiac surgery, perfused vessel densities and perfusion quality of small vessels declined (p = 0.025 and p = 0.032), while RBCv increased (p = 0.032). We demonstrated that CHD was associated with decreased microcirculatory perfusion and increased capillary recruitment. The microcirculation was further impaired after cardiac surgery. Decreased microcirculatory perfusion could be a warning sign for altered tissue oxygenation and requires further exploration.

Graphical abstract
Social Science and Consensus in Estimates of the US Jewish Population: Response to Sasson and DellaPergola
Authors: Saxe Leonard , Tighe Elizabeth , Magidin de Kramer Raquel , Nussbaum Daniel , Parmer Daniel
Published: July 2023

In response to Isaac Sasson and Sergio DellaPergola’s commentaries on our assessment of the validity of the Pew Research Center's 2020 estimate of 7.5 million US Jewish adults and children (Tighe et al. 2022), we address key points of agreement and contention in the validity of the estimate; in particular, how the Jewish population is identified and defined. We argue that Pew’s definition of the Jewish population is consistent with major studies of American Jewry, from NJPS 1990 to recent local Jewish community studies. Applying a consistent definition that includes the growing group of “Jews of no religion” with one Jewish parent, as Pew Research Center does, allows for a faithful comparison across national and local studies and a more accurate understanding of levels of Jewish engagement and expressions of Jewish identity.