bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Facing life-threat during youth: a qualitative study on challenges, coping, and needs among adolescents and young adults with cancer
Authors: Wilharm Carolin , Pralong Anne , Weiss Mara , Hallek Michael , Voltz Raymond , Tuchscherer Armin , Simon Steffen T.
Published: February 2024

Purpose

While the unique situation of adolescents and young adults with cancer (AYAs) has become the focus of research and clinical practice, little is known about how they deal with the threat to life at a curative stage. The aim of this study was to obtain insight into the challenges, coping strategies, and needs of AYAs regarding the life-threatening nature of their diseases.

Methods

Face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted with patients who were 18–39 years old at diagnosis. The interviews took place 2–5 years after their diagnosis. Patients who were still undergoing treatment or who were suspected of recurrence were excluded. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using qualitative content analysis.

Results

Fifteen patients (mean age 27.33 years, nine females) were interviewed in a large comprehensive cancer center in Germany. Before diagnosis, AYAs had not faced their own mortality and had little experience with cancer. The sudden confrontation with a life-threatening disease and therapy, as well as experiencing the death of other AYAs, challenged them. Fear, particularly regarding recurrence and death, and the loss of trust in their own bodies were the major emotions that continued to limit them even after the end of treatment. For mothers, concern of leaving their young children alone was paramount. Coping strategies frequently mentioned were hope, avoidance, self-soothing, and valuing the experience as a chance. Health care professionals were expected to be reassuring, motivating, and open and to provide honest information based on individual and current needs.

Conclusion

AYAs appear to cope with life-threats similarly to older patients but have additional unique challenges, including inexperience with life-threatening diseases and responsibility for young children. More research is needed in this area, although it is already evident that AYAs need honest and reassuring communication regarding the life-threat during any curable phases of their disease.

Trial registration number DRKS00030277; September 27, 2022 (German Clinical Trials Register).
Unmet non-medical needs of cancer patients in Poland: a quantitative and qualitative study
Authors: Osowiecka Karolina , Szwiec Marek , Dolińska Anna , Gwara Anna , Kurowicki Marcin , Kołb-Sielecki Jarosław , Działach Eliza , Radecka Weronika , Nawrocki Sergiusz , Rucińska Monika
Published: February 2024

Purpose

Cancer itself and its treatment have a multifaceted impact on patients’ daily lives. The aim of the study was to determine unmet non-medical needs among Polish cancer patients.

Methods

Survey research using a 23-item Needs Evaluation Questionnaire (NEQ) was carried out among 1062 cancer patients from different regions of Poland. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were performed.

Results

The quantitative analysis showed that 48% of the NEQ items (11/23) were expressed as unmet needs by at least half of patients. Unmet information needs were indicated by patients most often: information about their diagnosis, exams, treatment, future condition, funding and economic support. Cancer patients would like to get more attention from medical staff. Unmet needs were most frequently expressed by respondents who were men, with a lower level of education, living in village, pensioners. Qualitative analysis showed that each need may be understood in a variety of different ways across the cohort. Some patients added comments that the completing NEQ helped them to notice their non-medical needs.

Conclusion

Polish cancer patients have some unmet non-medical needs, especially informative needs.
The value of collision feedback in robotic surgical skills training
Authors: Postema Roelf , Hardon Hidde , Rahimi A. Masie , Horeman Roel , Nickel Felix , Dankelman Jenny , Bloemendaal Alexander L. A. , van der Elst Maarten , van der Peet Donald L. , Daams Freek , Hardon Sem F. , Horeman Tim
Published: February 2024

Collision feedback about instrument and environment interaction is often lacking in robotic surgery training devices. The PoLaRS virtual reality simulator is a newly developed desk trainer that overcomes drawbacks of existing robot trainers for advanced laparoscopy. This study aimed to assess the effect of haptic and visual feedback during training on the performance of a robotic surgical task. Robotic surgery-naïve participants were randomized and equally divided into two training groups: Haptic and Visual Feedback (HVF) and No Haptic and Visual Feedback. Participants performed two basic virtual reality training tasks on the PoLaRS system as a pre- and post-test. The measurement parameters Time, Tip-to-tip distance, Path length Left/Right and Collisions Left/Right were used to analyze the learning curves and statistically compare the pre- and post-tests performances. In total, 198 trials performed by 22 participants were included. The visual and haptic feedback did not negatively influence the time to complete the tasks. Although no improvement in skill was observed between pre- and post-tests, the mean rank of the number of collisions of the right grasper (dominant hand) was significantly lower in the HVF feedback group during the second post-test (Mean Rank = 8.73 versus Mean Rank = 14.27, U = 30.00, p = 0.045). Haptic and visual feedback during the training on the PoLaRS system resulted in fewer instrument collisions. These results warrant the introduction of haptic feedback in subjects with no experience in robotic surgery. The PoLaRS system can be utilized to remotely optimize instrument handling before commencing robotic surgery in the operating room.
Social VR design features and experiential outcomes: narrative review and relationship map for dyadic agent conversations
Authors: Mulvaney Pat , Rooney Brendan , Friehs Maximilian A. , Leader John Francis
Published: February 2024

The application of virtual reality to the study of conversation and social interaction is a relatively new field of study. While the affordances of VR in the domain compared to traditional methods are promising, the current state of the field is plagued by a lack of methodological standards and shared understanding of how design features of the immersive experience impact participants. In order to address this, this paper develops a relationship map between design features and experiential outcomes, along with expectations for how those features interact with each other. Based on the results of a narrative review drawing from diverse fields, this relationship map focuses on dyadic conversations with agents. The experiential outcomes chosen include presence & engagement, psychological discomfort, and simulator sickness. The relevant design features contained in the framework include scenario agency, visual fidelity, agent automation, environmental context, and audio features. We conclude by discussing the findings of the review and framework, such as the multimodal nature of social VR being highlighted, and the importance of environmental context, and lastly provide recommendations for future research in social VR.
Sensorimotor adaptation in virtual reality: Do instructions and body representation influence aftereffects?
Authors: Wähnert Svetlana , Schäfer Ulrike
Published: February 2024

Perturbations in virtual reality (VR) lead to sensorimotor adaptation during exposure, but also to aftereffects once the perturbation is no longer present. An experiment was conducted to investigate the impact of different task instructions and body representation on the magnitude and the persistence of these aftereffects. Participants completed the paradigm of sensorimotor adaptation in VR. They were assigned to one of three groups: control group, misinformation group or arrow group. The misinformation group and the arrow group were each compared to the control group to examine the effects of instruction and body representation. The misinformation group was given the incorrect instruction that in addition to the perturbation, a random error component was also built into the movement. The arrow group was presented a virtual arrow instead of a virtual hand. It was hypothesised that both would lead to a lower magnitude and persistence of the aftereffect because the object identity between hand and virtual representation would be reduced, and errors would be more strongly attributed to external causes. Misinformation led to lower persistence, while the arrow group showed no significant differences compared to the control group. The results suggest that information about the accuracy of the VR system can influence the aftereffects, which should be considered when developing VR instructions. No effects of body representation were found. One possible explanation is that the manipulated difference between abstract and realistic body representation was too small in terms of object identity.
Towards an EKG for SBO: A Neural Network for Detection and Characterization of Bowel Obstruction on CT
Authors: Murphy Paul M.
Published: February 2024

A neural network was developed to detect and characterize bowel obstruction, a common cause of acute abdominal pain. In this retrospective study, 202 CT scans of 165 patients with bowel obstruction from March to June 2022 were included and partitioned into training and test data sets. A multi-channel neural network was trained to segment the gastrointestinal tract, and to predict the diameter and the longitudinal position (“longitude”) along the gastrointestinal tract using a novel embedding. Its performance was compared to manual segmentations using the Dice score, and to manual measurements of the diameter and longitude using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). ROC curves as well as sensitivity and specificity were calculated for diameters above a clinical threshold for obstruction, and for longitudes corresponding to small bowel. In the test data set, Dice score for segmentation of the gastrointestinal tract was 78 ± 8%. ICC between measured and predicted diameters was 0.72, indicating moderate agreement. ICC between measured and predicted longitude was 0.85, indicating good agreement. AUROC was 0.90 for detection of dilated bowel, and was 0.95 and 0.90 for differentiation of the proximal and distal gastrointestinal tract respectively. Overall sensitivity and specificity for dilated small bowel were 0.83 and 0.90. Since obstruction is diagnosed based on the diameter and longitude of the bowel, this neural network and embedding may enable detection and characterization of this important disease on CT.
Impact of prolonged storage time on homograft ultrastructures: an attempt to find optimal guidelines for homograft processing
Authors: von Konow Ida , Eliasson Angeline , Nilsson Johan , Malm Torsten
Published: February 2024

According to guidelines, total ischemic time for homografts at processing must be kept short to avoid degeneration. Many homografts are discarded due to practical inability to finish all steps from procurement to cryopreservation within the time limit. Although, several studies have shown that homografts with prolonged ischemic time show adequate quality and performance. Twenty aortic and 12 pulmonary homografts were collected and biopsies were retrieved at preparation (day 0) and after 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 14, 21, 28, and 60 days in antibiotic decontamination at 4 °C. Biopsies were prepared for light microscopy (LM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Assessment generated scores for cells, elastin, and collagen. Relative differences between times were compared with Wilcoxon signed rank test. Bonferroni corrected p value of 0.0056 was considered significant. LM could only reveal decrease in cell count at 60 days in aortic homografts, no other differences was detected. TEM showed affected cell appearance in day 3 and day 4 and beyond for aortic and pulmonary homografts respectively. Elastin appearance was affected at day 60 for aortic and day 21 for pulmonary homografts. Collagen appearance was affected at day 28 for aortic homografts, with no significant differences in pulmonary homografts. Cell degeneration starts early after homograft procurement, but elastic and collagen fibers are more resistant to degeneration. Overall structure integrity as seen in LM was not affected at all, while TEM could reveal small degeneration signs in individual elastic fibers and collagen bundles at 21 and 28 days respectively.
eDNA metabarcoding reveals a rich but threatened and declining elasmobranch community in West Africa’s largest marine protected area, the Banc d’Arguin
Authors: de la Hoz Schilling Carolina , Jabado Rima W. , Veríssimo Ana , Caminiti Luca , Sidina Ebaye , Gandega Cheikhna Yero , Serrão Ester A.
Published: February 2024

Elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) are the most threatened marine vertebrates, particularly in tropical and subtropical areas. Their population status is often poorly understood due to insufficient information. Despite reportedly harbouring critical elasmobranch habitats, the Banc d’Arguin National Park (PNBA) in Mauritania lacks comprehensive and updated information on the diversity of elasmobranch species in the area. We developed a baseline inventory based on morphological and molecular identification and metabarcoding. DNA barcoding of tissue samples from elasmobranch processing sites and freshly sampled specimens was used to build a genetic reference database of local elasmobranch species. The richness and diversity of species in the PNBA were described via metabarcoding of seawater eDNA samples using an elasmobranch-specific assay and our reference database. We detected 27 species, including 12 new species records for the PNBA. We further uncover potentially undescribed species of Gymnura and Torpedo, while taxonomic corrections are noted for previously reported species. In particular, the reportedly abundant Mustelus mustelus was absent from tissue and eDNA samples, while M. punctulatus was detected instead. Taxa that have anecdotally become regionally extinct or rare (e.g., sawfishes, wedgefishes, lemon sharks) were not detected, highlighting local species diversity shifts within the last few decades. Results show that 67.9% of elasmobranch species in the PNBA are threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This study emphasises the importance of taxonomic identification in support of species management and provides a baseline to inform future studies and conservation measures to avoid further species losses.
Analyzing source code vulnerabilities in the D2A dataset with ML ensembles and C-BERT
Authors: Pujar Saurabh , Zheng Yunhui , Buratti Luca , Lewis Burn , Chen Yunchung , Laredo Jim , Morari Alessandro , Epstein Edward , Lin Tsungnan , Yang Bo , Su Zhong
Published: February 2024

Static analysis tools are widely used for vulnerability detection as they can analyze programs with complex behavior and millions of lines of code. Despite their popularity, static analysis tools are known to generate an excess of false positives. The recent ability of Machine Learning models to learn from programming language data opens new possibilities of reducing false positives when applied to static analysis. However, existing datasets to train models for vulnerability identification suffer from multiple limitations such as limited bug context, limited size, and synthetic and unrealistic source code. We propose Differential Dataset Analysis or D2A, a differential analysis based approach to label issues reported by static analysis tools. The dataset built with this approach is called the D2A dataset. The D2A dataset is built by analyzing version pairs from multiple open source projects. From each project, we select bug fixing commits and we run static analysis on the versions before and after such commits. If some issues detected in a before-commit version disappear in the corresponding after-commit version, they are very likely to be real bugs that got fixed by the commit. We use D2A to generate a large labeled dataset. We then train both classic machine learning models and deep learning models for vulnerability identification using the D2A dataset. We show that the dataset can be used to build a classifier to identify possible false alarms among the issues reported by static analysis, hence helping developers prioritize and investigate potential true positives first. To facilitate future research and contribute to the community, we make the dataset generation pipeline and the dataset publicly available. We have also created a leaderboard based on the D2A dataset, which has already attracted attention and participation from the community.
On Compulsive Talkers
Authors: Kirkpatrick James Ravi
Published: February 2024

This paper reevaluates Kaplan’s (Themes from Kaplan, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 481–563, 1989b) infamous ‘compulsive talker’ objection to Reichenbach’s (Elements of symbolic logic,
AQ1 Macmillan, New York, 1947 )
token-reflexive theory of indexicals. It argues that Kaplan’s objection depends on the modal status of Reichenbachian tokens. On one interpretation, Kaplan’s objection stands. But on another, equally plausible interpretation, the following points hold: (i) Reichenbach’s theory effectively preempts contemporary discussion of rigid definite descriptions, (ii) Kaplan’s own analysis of indexicals in terms of dthat-terms comes extremely close to Reichenbach’s own analysis, and (iii) Kaplan’s ‘compulsive talker’ objection should be rejected.
Are increasing roosting waterbird numbers responsible for eutrophication of shallow lakes? Examples from a Danish Ramsar site
Authors: Clausen Preben , Lauridsen Torben L. , Pedersen Claus Lunde , Nielsen Henrik Haaning , Jeppesen Erik , Søndergaard Martin , Schreven Kees H. T. , Nolet Bart A. , Madsen Jesper , Fox Anthony David
Published: February 2024

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires actions from European Union Member States to reduce external nutrient loading in lakes of moderate/poor/bad ecological status and restore their good ecological status. Several poor-quality Danish lakes have been exempted from WFD criteria (and more proposed), due to suspected major imported nutrient contributions from waterbirds, without supporting evidence. Here, we estimated relative nutrient contributions from increasing numbers of roosting waterbirds compared to total nutrient loadings in four brackish lakes (43–491 ha) at an internationally important Ramsar site/EU Birds Directive Special Protection Area. Combining night- and daytime counts of roosting numbers of the most numerous species with intake and faecal output models, we estimated roosting birds (mostly geese) contributed 0.2–0.4% of all N inputs (0.3–1.2 kg N/ha/year) and 0.6–2.0% of all P inputs (0.04–0.12 kg P/ha/year) in three lakes (one of which has been proposed exempted from WFD criteria), but potentially as high as 14% and 76%, respectively, at a fourth clearwater lake without direct inflow or outlets. These results confirm the need for case-by-case assessments of avian nutrient import relative to total nutrient balance before exempting lakes from WFD conditions due to supposed natural loading from waterbirds.
Aviation Safety for Urban Air Mobility: Pilot Licensing and Fatigue Management
Authors: Shi Yuran
Published: February 2024

Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is an emerging air traffic system designed for passengers and cargo in and around urban environments. Both the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency endorse a phased development approach for UAM, commencing with manned aviation and subsequently transitioning to remotely piloted and autonomous operations. This article focuses on legal considerations related to aviation safety, with a specific focus on pilot licensing and crew fatigue management. An analysis of existing aviation law provisions suggests that the International Civil Aviation Organization can work with local authorities to create regulations governing both on-board and remote pilots involved in UAM operations. Safety standards in air law can apply mutatis mutandis to on-board pilots until specific regulations are developed. In the longer term, there shall be domestic laws on both on-board and remote UAM pilots.
EPTAS for parallel identical machine scheduling with time restrictions
Authors: Jaykrishnan G. , Levin Asaf
Published: February 2024

We consider the non-preemptive scheduling problem on identical machines where there is a parameter B and each machine in every unit length time interval can process up to B different jobs. The goal function we consider is the makespan minimization and we develop an EPTAS for this problem. Prior to our work a PTAS was known only for the case of one machine and constant values of B, and even the case of non-constant values of B on one machine was not known to admit a PTAS.
The Processing of Lexical Ambiguity: Evidence from Child and Adult Greek
Authors: Kaltsa Maria , Papadopoulou Despina
Published: February 2024

The aim of the study is to examine the effect of sentential context on lexical ambiguity resolution in Greek adults and typically developing children. Context and word frequency are factors that can affect lexical processing, however, the role of them has not been thoroughly examined in Greek. To this aim, we assessed sentence context effects in homonym meaning activation in monolingual speakers of Greek, children and adults, using a cross-modal priming paradigm. Additionally, all participants conducted a verbal working memory task and an inhibition task so as to examine whether the use of sentential context for lexical ambiguity resolution relates to age and/or cognitive processing capacity. The data analysis showed (a) major processing differences between adults and children due to ambiguity and sentential context, (b) children’s processing times affected by cognitive skills while adults’ processing unaffected, and (c) visual word recognition intact for all participants.
Evaluation Practices of Doctoral Examination Committees: Boundary-Work Under Pressure
Authors: Elmgren Maja , Lindberg-Sand Åsa , Sonesson Anders
Published: February 2024

The doctorate forms the basis for academic careers and the regeneration of academia, and has increasingly become important for other sectors of society. The latter is reflected in efforts on institutional, national as well as supranational levels to change and adapt the doctoral degree to new expectations. As doctoral education is embedded in research, changes in governance and funding of research further affect the doctorate. The evaluation of the doctoral thesis appears, however, to have remained true to the academic tradition: an examination committee exercising their gatekeeping in a ceremonial setting. This study sets out to explore doctoral examination committees’ evaluation practices. Insights were gained through six focus group interviews with experienced examination committee members at three large research-intensive universities in Sweden. Of particular interest is how the object of evaluation is formed, the nature of the boundary-work conducted, and variations in examination practices related to different and changing conditions for research and doctoral education. Our results show how the object of evaluation emerges through a gradual interpretation of the thesis and defence, becoming more complex and nuanced as the process of evaluation progresses from its initial stages to the final closed discussions of the committee. The finalised object of evaluation, only fully present at the conclusion of the closed meeting and hence transient in nature, encompasses the research contribution, educational achievement, and academic competence of the candidate. Furthermore, the boundary-work conducted in this process often transcends the object of evaluation to include also supervision and the local context for doctoral education and research, and hence contributes to upholding, and potential changing, norms in research fields, educational contexts, and academia at large. This extended boundary-work intensified as problems and inconsistencies were discovered during the evaluation process. The ceremonial staging underscored the gravity of the decision and the extended boundary-work. Despite changing conditions for the doctorate, our findings highlight the importance of the practice of evaluation committees, and the disciplinary communities to which they belong, for upholding and negotiating norms in academia.
Pragmatic realism: towards a reconciliation of enactivism and realism
Authors: Legg Catherine , Sant’Anna André
Published: February 2024

This paper addresses some apparent philosophical tensions between realism and enactivism by means of Charles Peirce’s pragmatism. Enactivism’s Mind-Life Continuity thesis has been taken to commit it to some form of anti-realist ‘world-construction’ which has been considered controversial. Accordingly, a new realist enactivism is proposed by Zahidi (Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences,
13(3), 461–475, 2014), drawing on Ian Hacking’s ‘entity realism’, which places subjects in worlds comprised of the things that they can successfully manipulate. We review this attempt, and argue that whilst Zahidi rightly urges enactivists towards ‘internal realism’, he cannot sustain a non-negotiable aspect of realism that is crucial for scientific progress – the claim that multiple subjects inhabit the same world. We explore Peirce’s pragmatism as an alternative solution, foregrounding his distinction between existence and reality, and his inquiry-based account of cognition. These theoretical innovations, we argue, fruitfully generalize Zahidi’s manipulation-based enactivist realism to a richer, inquiry-based enactivist realism. We explore how this realism’s pan-species monism about truth encourages and supports the investigation of non-human animal cognition, and conclude by considering some implications of our discussion for long-standing realism debates within pragmatism.
Comparative analysis of soft-error sensitivity in LU decomposition algorithms on diverse GPUs
Authors: Leon German , Badia Jose M. , Belloch Jose A. , Lindoso Almudena , Entrena Luis
Published: February 2024

Graphics processing units (GPUs) have become integral to embedded systems and supercomputing centres due to their large memory, cutting-edge technology and high performance per watt. However, their susceptibility to transient errors requires a comprehensive analysis of error sensitivity, as well as the development of error mitigation techniques and fault-tolerant algorithms. This study focuses on evaluating the soft-error sensitivity of two distinct versions of LU decomposition algorithms implemented on two very different GPUs—a low-power SoC embedded GPU and a high-performance massively parallel GPU. Through extensive fault injection campaigns on both GPUs, we examine the vulnerability of the algorithms, identify error causes, and determine critical code components requiring enhanced protection. The experiments reveal that most single bit flip fault injections in the instruction results lead to erroneous outcomes or unrecoverable errors. Notably, efficient GPU resource utilisation can increase the number of masked errors, thereby enhancing error resilience. Additionally, while different parts of the code exhibit similar error occurrence types and rates, the propagation of errors to elements within the result matrix differs significantly.
Rapid screening of riot control agents using DART-TD-HRMS
Authors: Mörén Lina , Östin Anders , Larsson Andreas , Forsberg Julia , Wiktelius Daniel , Lindén Pernilla
Published: February 2024

Purpose

Riot Control Agents (RCAs) are chemicals used in law enforcement for non-lethal riot control and use in conflicts between states that violates the Chemical Weapons Convention. OPCW's Scientific Advisory Board has identified sixteen potential RCAs including capsaicinoids, CS, and CR. RCAs may be misused for criminal purposes, so methods for detecting such misuse are needed. This study therefore evaluates the feasibility of a rapid, high throughput screening method of RCAs on surfaces (particularly clothing surfaces) by Direct Analysis in Real Time with a thermal desorption unit coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (DART-TD-HRMS).

Methods

A broadly applicable method for detecting potential RCAs was developed and tested on cotton fabric samples sprayed with self-defence sprays from an in-house reference stock. The feasibility of detecting RCAs by direct analysis of surface wipe samples placed in the DART source was also investigated.

Results

The method detected all sixteen RCAs and contaminated clothing were successfully screened for active agents in a reference collection of self-defence sprays. A pilot study also showed that RCAs can be detected by holding a sample directly in front of the DART source.

Conclusion

DART-TD-HRMS enables rapid and simple screening of RCAs on fabric samples enabling a high sample throughput.
A New Method for Selective Extraction of Torularhodin from Red Yeast Using CO2-SFE Technique
Authors: Ambrico Alfredo , Larocca Vincenzo , Trupo Mario , Martino Maria , Magarelli Rosaria Alessandra , Spagnoletta Anna , Balducchi Roberto
Published: February 2024

Torularhodin is a dark pink colored carotenoid belonging to the xanthophylls group that can be biologically synthesized by red yeasts, especially by Rhodotorula and Sporobolomyces genera. The growing interest in this molecule is due to its biological activities such as antioxidant, anticholesterolemic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer. To satisfy potential commercial markets, numerous methods have been proposed to develop a cost-effective and environmentally friendly downstream process for the purification of torularhodin. However, obtaining high purity products without resorting to the use of toxic solvents, which can leave residues in the final preparations, remains a major challenge. In this context, the present study aimed to develop a new efficient method for the isolation of torularhodin from the red yeast Rhodotorula strain ELP2022 by applying the extraction technique with supercritical CO2 (CO2-SFE) in two sequential steps. In particular, in the first step, the dried lysed biomass of yeast was subjected to the action of CO2 in supercritical conditions (CO2SC) as sole solvent for extraction of apolar carotenoids. In the second step, the residual biomass was subjected to the action of CO2SC using ethanol as a polar co-solvent for the extraction of torularhodin. Both steps were carried out at different operating parameters of temperature (40 and 60 °C) and pressure (from 300 to 500 bar) with a constant CO2 flow of 6 L min−1. Regardless of the operating conditions used, this method allowed to obtain an orange-colored oily extract and a red-colored extract after the first and second step, respectively. In all trials, torularhodin represented no less than 95.2% ± 0.70 of the total carotenoids in the red extracts obtained from the second step. In particular, the best results were obtained by performing both steps at 40 °C and 300 bar, and the maximum percentage of torularhodin achieved was 97.9% ± 0.88. Since there are no data on the selective recovery of torularhodin from red yeast using the SFE technique, this study may be a good starting point to optimize and support the development of industrial production of torularhodin by microbial synthesis. This new method can significantly reduce the environmental impact of torularhodin recovery and can be considered an innovation for which an Italian patent application has been filed. In a circular bioeconomy approach, this method will be validated up to a pilot scale, culturing the strain Rhodotorula spp. ELP2022 on low-cost media derived from agri-food wastes.

Graphical Abstract
Anti-inflammatory effects of α-humulene on the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharide-induced THP-1 cells
Authors: Becker Lucas , Holtmann Dirk
Published: February 2024

While acute inflammation is an essential physical response to harmful external influences, the transition to chronic inflammation is problematic and associated with the development and worsening of many deadly diseases. Until now, established pharmaceutical agents have had many side effects when used for long periods. In this study, a possible anti-inflammatory effect of the sesquiterpene α-humulene on lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induction was tested. Herein, human THP-1-derived macrophages were used and their pro-inflammatory interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) cytokine release was measured by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A dose-dependent effect of α-humulene on IL-6 release was observed at 0.5 and 100 µM α-humulene, with a maximum IL-6 inhibition of 60% compared to the LPS reference value after the addition of 100 µM α-humulene. TNF-α as well as IL-1β cytokine concentrations were not reduced by the addition of 0.5 and 100 µM α-humulene. This study suggests that α-humulene has potential as a promising natural alternative to established pharmaceuticals for the treatment of elevated IL-6 levels and chronic inflammation in humans.
How can procedural flowcharts support the development of mathematics problem-solving skills?
Authors: Chinofunga Musarurwa David , Chigeza Philemon , Taylor Subhashni
Published: February 2024

Supporting students’ problem-solving skills, solution planning and sequencing of different stages that are involved in successfully developing a meaningful solution to a problem has been a challenge for teachers. This case study was informed by reflective investigation methodology which explored how procedural flowcharts can support student mathematics problem solving in a senior Mathematical Methods subject in Queensland. The paper used thematic analysis to analyse and report on teachers’ perceptions of the utility of procedural flowcharts during problem solving as well as content analysis on how student-developed flowcharts can support their problem-solving skills. Results show that development of procedural flowcharts can support problem solving as it helps with integration of problem-solving stages.
Negative Consequences Experienced by Individuals with Gaming Disorder Symptoms: A Systematic Review of Available Longitudinal Studies
Authors: Düll Luca , Müller Astrid , Steins-Loeber Sabine
Published: February 2024

Purpose of Review

Gaming disorder (GD) is a growing concern for health policies worldwide. The aim of the research presented here was to review systematically negative consequences of symptoms of GD by focusing on longitudinal studies that considered the temporal order of the effects.

Recent Findings

A total of 48 longitudinal studies met the inclusion criteria. The analysis indicated that so far negative consequences of symptoms of GD pertaining to mental health, behavioural problems, social and interpersonal factors, psychological factors, and physical health have been investigated.

The most consistent finding is an association between symptoms of GD and depression. In addition, symptoms of GD are an important predictor for symptoms of GD in the future. For other domains, there are few studies and findings are mixed with several studies reporting no association with negative consequences. Future studies should further investigate negative consequences of gaming as well as moderating factors. Regarding prevention and intervention strategies, negative consequences can be addressed in motivational interventions to drive behaviour change.
A modified evolutionary reinforcement learning for multi-agent region protection with fewer defenders
Authors: Sun Siqing , Dong Huachao , Li Tianbo
Published: February 2024

Autonomous region protection is a significant research area in multi-agent systems, aiming to empower defenders in preventing intruders from accessing specific regions. This paper presents a Multi-agent Region Protection Environment (MRPE) featuring fewer defenders, defender damages, and intruder evasion strategies targeting defenders. MRPE poses challenges for traditional protection methods due to its high nonstationarity and limited interception time window. To surmount these hurdles, we modify evolutionary reinforcement learning, giving rise to the corresponding multi-agent region protection method (MRPM). MRPM amalgamates the merits of evolutionary algorithms and deep reinforcement learning, specifically leveraging Differential Evolution (DE) and Multi-Agent Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (MADDPG). DE facilitates diverse sample exploration and overcomes sparse rewards, while MADDPG trains defenders and expedites the DE convergence process. Additionally, an elite selection strategy tailored for multi-agent systems is devised to enhance defender collaboration. The paper also presents ingenious designs for the fitness and reward functions to effectively drive policy optimizations. Finally, extensive numerical simulations are conducted to validate the effectiveness of MRPM.
Differential degradation dynamics of λ-cyhalothrin in mineral and peat soils: a comparative study under laboratory condition
Authors: Ngaini Zainab , Rudy Cynthia , Farooq Saba , Henry Michelle Crystals , Chai Alvin
Published: February 2024

Dissipation kinetics of λ-cyhalothrin in mineral and peat soils of Semongok (mineral soil) and Sibu (peat soil) farms was investigated in a laboratory incubation experiment under different temperature and moisture conditions at normal and double application dosages. The soil was spiked with λ-cyhalothrin at 5 and 25 µg/g soil, respectively. The soil moisture content was adjusted to 20, 40, and 60% of field capacity and then incubated in three climatic chambers at 15, 25, and 35 °C. Samples were collected at 0, 7, 21, 42, 70, and 105 days and analysed by Gas Chromatography-Electron Capture Detector (GC-ECD). Pesticides from the soil were extracted via a facile-modified QuEChERS method. Recovery studies of λ-cyhalothrin in mineral and peat soils were carried out at 0.05, 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 µg/g fortification levels. The percentage of recovered amount was in the range of 81.4–95.0% and 81.3–86.5% for mineral and peat soils, respectively which falls within the acceptable recovery range of 70.0–120.0%. Factors i.e., soil carbon content, moisture, temperature, and applied dosage that render the degradation of λ-cyhalothrin in mineral and peat soils were evaluated. Findings showed that faster λ-cyhalothrin degradation took place in soil that contained low organic carbon content (< 12%), low soil moisture (≤ 20%) and incubated under higher temperatures (≤ 35 °C). Degradation of λ-cyhalothrin was described by first-order kinetics in both mineral and peat soils at various conditions. Half-lives of λ-cyhalothrin in mineral soil were shorter compared to peat soil. This is due to its lower carbon content and lower soil organic matter availability. This study provides significant information to the agriculture industry and farmers on the important factors such as soil properties, environmental conditions and application dosage that will influence the fate of pesticides in soil.

Graphical abstract
Influence of compacting pressure on the electrical properties of ZnO and ZnO:Mn ceramics
Authors: Korsunska N. , Markevich I. , Stara T. , Polishchuk Yu. , Ponomaryov S. , Kozoriz K. , Tsybrii Z. , Melnichuk O. , Melnichuk L. , Venger E. , Khomenkova L.
Published: February 2024

Undoped and Mn-doped ZnO ceramics were prepared from the powders compacted at different pressures and sintered in air at high temperature. Their structural, optical, light emitting and electrical characteristics as well as the distribution of chemical elements were studied. It was found that an increase in compacting pressure stimulates an increase in direct current conductivity in both undoped and doped samples. In the case of doped samples, this effect was accompanied by a decrease in the height of potential barriers at the grain boundaries. It is found that electron concentration in ceramic grains, estimated from the modelling of infrared reflection spectra, remained relatively constant. The analysis of luminescence spectra and spatial zinc distribution revealed that the increase in compacting pressure results in the accumulation of interstitial zinc at the grain boundaries forming channels with enhanced conductivity. These findings provide an explanation for the evolution of electrical properties of ceramic samples with compacting pressure.
Preliminary assessment of volatile organic compounds and hazardous gases dispersion at low winds: case study of Mellitah Gas Complex, Libya
Authors: Danna Abdulhamid B. M. , Haddar Mohamed , Djemel Hassene , Kallel Amjad , Baccar Mounir
Published: February 2024

Air pollution from industrial areas has become really worrying especially for city dwellers. The plume dispersion emitted from industrial sources is subject to several factors: temperature and emission rate velocity, wind speed and direction, source height, and atmospheric stability. This study aimed to evaluate the applicability of the dispersion coefficients correlated within a Gaussian plume approach to an industrial source in Libya (Mellitah Gas Complex) under low and moderate wind speeds. To this end, we have developed a specific code based on the Gaussian method to study the dispersion of (1) Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from oil storage tanks and condensate storage tanks, and (2) sulfur oxides (SOx) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emitted by the flaring process through three stacks of 80 m height. The emissions from multisource points and their dispersion have been predicted at calm wind conditions and the flammability and danger-prone toxic zones have been delimited around the studied site. The obtained results reveal that the emissions, particularly generated at low and moderate wind speeds, induce a dispersion with high concentration levels in the area surrounding the industrial site. The VOCs critical concentration region indicates a real risk of flammability at low-speed wind and stable atmospheric condition, from a height of 5 m above the ground. In fact, the VOCs concentration reach the Flammability Inferior Limit value of 0.018 m3 VOCs/m3 and these concentrations, appearing in the form of a plume, extend downstream to approximately 1000 m. The dispersion of NOx and SOx emissions downwind from the stacks are enhanced by wind speed; nevertheless, at 2 m height from the ground, the levels could exceed the limit value of 0.125 mg/m3, especially under the condition of unstable and very unstable atmospheric classes. From our findings, we recommend continuous monitoring campaigns inside and around the complex of Mellitah to ensure an environmentally secure zone that respects safety and health guidelines. Furthermore, enhanced simulations based on hourly weather conditions for extended area would be of great interest to accurately assess the air quality index in the region.
STEMM unveiled: Female undergraduates’ journey through gendered stereotypes – A qualitative exploration
Authors: Phillips Matthew J.
Published: February 2024

Despite significant progress in gender equality, pervasive gender stereotypes and discrimination persist worldwide. These ingrained perceptions, based on gender, contribute to the disadvantage experienced by women in multiple areas of their lives. This is especially evident in female professionals studying and working within male-dominated fields like Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Medicine (STEMM), where the representation of women collectively amounts to less than 17% in Australia. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate how female undergraduate students in STEMM fields conceptualised gender-based stereotypes within their academic programs, and how these experiences shaped their outlook on being women in a field that defies traditional gender norms. Employing an exploratory qualitative approach grounded in the social constructionist, and feminist, perspectives, face-to-face semi-structured interviews were carried out with 13 female undergraduates in STEMM disciplines, aged between 19 and 43, from Australian universities. An inductive reflexive thematic analysis of the data led to the construction of four themes that contribute to the comprehension of how female undergraduates recognise and manage prevalent gender-based stereotypes during the early stages of their professional journeys. Participants recognised their gender and its related traits as a drawback to their presence in STEMM, and felt that these attributes did not align, leading to a sense of academic disadvantage. The prevalence of male supremacy within STEMM was acknowledged as originating from the embedded patriarchal system within these fields, granting undeserved advantages to male undergraduates, enabling them to perpetuate a narrative that solely favours them.
State-level differentials in COVID-19 fatality: exploring age and sex disparities in Malaysia’s pandemic experience
Authors: Teh Jane K. L. , Teo Kok Lay , Bradley David A. , Chook Jack Bee , Ang Woo Teck , Peh Suat-Cheng
Published: February 2024

Issue

COVID-19 has resulted in mortality worldwide and exposed vulnerabilities in public health systems. Although countries have since transitioned to the endemic phase, it is nonetheless important to identify inequities within populations to improve public health strategies in light of another health crisis.

Purpose

This study aims to offer deeper insights into the sex and age differentials in COVID-19 fatality across different states in Malaysia, from the pandemic’s start to the country’s transition to the endemic phase.

Methodology

Analyses utilized data on the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Malaysia from January 2020 until April 2022. Case fatality rate (CFR) was computed for each state based on sex and age groups, for four periods (January–December 2020, January–June 2021, July–December 2021, and January–April 2022). Principal component analysis (PCA) uncovered patterns in the data and produced a multivariate visualization of the COVID-19 fatality within Malaysia.

Findings

Findings revealed heterogeneity in fatality and identified several vulnerable states, notably in the northern region (Kelantan, Perlis) and on the East Coast (Sabah, Sarawak). A sex disparity was apparent in Kelantan as the CFR among older females was higher than their male counterparts. Sabah exhibited relatively higher CFR among the child population from 2020 to 2021.

Implication

The findings deepened our understanding of COVID-19 fatality complexity, providing recommendations for Malaysia’s government in preparing for future health crises. Malaysia’s case study offers lessons on the need to address regional disparities and implement targeted strategies to protect vulnerable subgroups.