bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ruggedness and child health outcomes: Evidence from Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Nigeria
Authors: Chisadza Carolyn , Clance Matthew , van der Merwe Fritz , Yitbarek Eleni
Published: August 2023

This paper examines the effect of terrain ruggedness on child stunting in Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Nigeria. Using a cross‐section analysis with data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and a measure that captures variation in the terrains of the countries, we find that the more difficult it is to traverse the terrain in Burundi, Cameroon and Nigeria, the higher the likelihood of child stunting. However, this association is not consistent for Ethiopia until we account for the Oromia region, which has the capital city Addis Ababa. These results remain robust with the inclusion of socio‐economic factors related to child health (e.g. maternal health, maternal education and household income), demographic factors (e.g. gender of child), other geographical factors (e.g. rainfall patterns and malaria prevalence) and survey and region effects. The results suggest that there are complementary factors to geography that may contribute to poor child health outcomes, such as the quality of infrastructure and the ability to access healthcare services. Given that child health is a key development outcome, understanding such spatial variations associated with child health inequalities can assist in designing effective intervention programmes and allocating resources where they are most needed.
Introduction to the special issue on relational autonomy and collective intentionality
Authors: Gallagher Shaun
Published: August 2023

This essay introduces the 40th Annual Spindel Conference special issue on relational autonomy and collective intentionality. Autonomy is often discussed in contexts of individual intention formation and moral decision making. When we consider collective intention formation and the decision‐making practices of institutions, a number of questions can be raised: How does the individual autonomy of participants affect the collective process? How do such collective processes modulate the autonomy of the individuals involved? How do institutional decisions and practices affect individual autonomy more generally—in what way do they enhance or undermine autonomy? Is there a significant difference in how we answer these questions if we already think of autonomy as relational rather than in a traditional individualistic way?
Discovering novel barriers to eBook implementation
Authors: Tuttle Alexander , Wendt Linder , Schultz Katherine
Published: August 2023

Background

Medical errors when managing inpatient paediatric patients with diabetes mellitus can lead to significant morbidity and mortality, necessitating improvement in training of medical trainees. Previous educational interventions have focused on time and resource intensive methods, restricting their applicability to teaching in time‐limited scenarios. We chose a blended learning approach to create and implement a novel eBook for use by trainees and then aimed to determine the efficacy and potential barriers to that implementation.

Approach

We grounded our work in complex adaptive systems theory and used the framework of complex adaptive blended learning system (CABLS) to shape both our implementation and evaluation. We utilised an embedded mixed methodology to quantitatively evaluate efficacy via knowledge acquisition and self‐reported confidence and to qualitatively evaluate barriers via open‐ended questions.

Evaluation

Between 2022 and 2023, the study enrolled 72 learners and 12 educators. There was no statistically significant difference in change in knowledge acquisition and self‐reported confidence between learners who did and did not have access to the eBook. Learners and educators identified several unique and novel barriers to eBook implementation, which were mapped to the CABLS framework.

Implications

Our results on the efficacy of implementation are inconclusive, possibly due to the small participant size and implying a need for multi‐institutional evaluation. Our qualitative results demonstrated previously unknown barriers to eBook implementation. This knowledge can assist other medical specialties as they implement their own eBooks. We also hope to use these barriers to improve implementation in our next iteration: the outpatient setting.
Se busca artista: feminización y precarización laboral de artistas jóvenes en Bogotá
Authors: Durán Jaramillo Paula Andrea
Published: August 2023

Este artículo surge de la pregunta por la forma en que la valoración social de ciertas labores que componen el campo artístico influye en el desarrollo de las trayectorias de las y los artistas jóvenes. A través de una serie de indagaciones desarrolladas en entornos digitales, pretende ofrecer una mirada de las diferentes condiciones que enfrentan las y los estudiantes de artes, pero también abrir nuevos espacios para pensar las metodologías con las que se trata este problema. La tesis fundamental es que la feminización de las labores, sostenida en procesos sociohistóricos y constataciones cotidianas, ha contribuido a precarizar el campo laboral de las artes. Para ello, se plantean conceptos y problemas fundamentales para los estudios de género, como la división sexual del trabajo entendida no como una asignación de trabajos a determinados grupos humanos, sino como un proceso de materialización de las desigualdades en la asignación y valorización de las actividades propias de un campo. Aquí la figura del genio artístico se posiciona como un significante maestro que contribuye a fijar significados devaluados para las labores que se considera están al margen de la creación de objetos artísticos y, por tanto, labores como la gestión cultural, la mediación artística y la pedagogía del arte (que constituyen mayoritariamente las opciones labores del arte) ocupan una posición subalternizada respecto de esta. Finalmente, se propone una articulación teórico-metodológica que da apertura a la continuación de estas reflexiones en nuevos campos investigativos.
A Novel Quasilinear Viscoelastic Model of the Bending of a Steerable Catheter
Authors: Ryu Jajun , Ahn Jung Hwan , Kim Hwa Young
Published: August 2023

The present study proposes a novel model that establishes the relationship between the bending moment and the curvature of a steerable catheter. The catheters exhibit a nonlinear viscoelastic tendency, so the moment-curvature relationship is modeled as a bending of a quasi-linear viscoelastic (QLV) cantilever beam. Stress relaxation tests with multiple magnitudes are performed on a catheter, and the parameter tuning is carried out with the test results to find out the coefficients of the model. The form of the instantaneous moment response, which is an important term within the QLV equation, is selected as a logarithmic form by analyzing the test results. This differentiates the accuracy of the model from using the commonly used exponential form. The performance of the logarithmic QLV model is compared to the conventional models by checking the curvature range each model can cover with a certain accuracy. The covering range for elastic, linear viscoelastic, and exponential QLV models are 22.1%, 64.4%, and 55.5%, respectively, whereas the covering range of the logarithmic QLV model is 100%.
Spatial Variation of the Coefficient of Restitution for Frictionless Impacts on Circular Beams
Authors: Khandelwal Aakash , Mukherjee Ranjan
Published: August 2023

The spatial variation of the coefficient of restitution for frictionless impacts along the length of a circular beam is investigated using a continuous impact model. The equations of motion are obtained using the finite element method, and direct time integration is used to simulate the collision on a fast time scale. For collision of a pinned beam with a fixed cylinder, the spatial variation of the coefficient of restitution, impulse magnitude, duration of collision, energetics, and the role of damping are investigated. In the absence of significant external damping, the kinematic and kinetic definitions of the coefficient of restitution provide identical results. Experiments validate the results from simulation which indicate that the coefficient of restitution is sensitive to the location of impact.
Turn-Taking Prediction for Human–Robot Collaborative Assembly Considering Human Uncertainty
Authors: Xu Wenjun , Feng Siqi , Yao Bitao , Ji Zhenrui , Liu Zhihao
Published: August 2023

Human–robot collaboration (HRC) combines the repeatability and strength of robots and human’s ability of cognition and planning to enable a flexible and efficient production mode. The ideal HRC process is that robots can smoothly assist workers in complex environments. This means that robots need to know the process’s turn-taking earlier, adapt to the operating habits of different workers, and make reasonable plans in advance to improve the fluency of HRC. However, many of the current HRC systems ignore the fluent turn-taking between robots and humans, which results in unsatisfactory HRC and affects productivity. Moreover, there are uncertainties in humans as different humans have different operating proficiency, resulting in different operating speeds. This requires the robots to be able to make early predictions of turn-taking even when human is uncertain. Therefore, in this paper, an early turn-taking prediction method in HRC assembly tasks with Izhi neuron model-based spiking neural networks (SNNs) is proposed. On this basis, dynamic motion primitives (DMP) are used to establish trajectory templates at different operating speeds. The length of the sequence sent to the SNN network is judged by the matching degree between the observed data and the template, so as to adjust to human uncertainty. The proposed method is verified by the gear assembly case. The results show that our method can shorten the human–robot turn-taking recognition time under human uncertainty.
Identifying and Leveraging Promising Design Heuristics for Multi-Objective Combinatorial Design Optimization
Authors: Suresh Kumar Roshan , Srivatsa Srikar , Baker Emilie , Silberstein Meredith , Selva Daniel
Published: August 2023

Design heuristics are traditionally used as qualitative principles to guide the design process, but they have also been used to improve the efficiency of design optimization. Using design heuristics as soft constraints or search operators has been shown for some problems to reduce the number of function evaluations needed to achieve a certain level of convergence. However, in other cases, enforcing heuristics can reduce diversity and slow down convergence. This paper studies the question of when and how a given set of design heuristics represented in different forms (soft constraints, repair operators, and biased sampling) can be utilized in an automated way to improve efficiency for a given design problem. An approach is presented for identifying promising heuristics for a given problem by estimating the overall impact of a heuristic based on an exploratory screening study. Two impact indices are formulated: weighted influence index and hypervolume difference index. Using this approach, the promising heuristics for four design problems are identified and the efficacy of selectively enforcing only these promising heuristics over both enforcement of all available heuristics and not enforcing any heuristics is benchmarked. In all problems, it is found that enforcing only the promising heuristics as repair operators enables finding good designs faster than by enforcing all available heuristics or not enforcing any heuristics. Enforcing heuristics as soft constraints or biased sampling functions results in improvements in efficiency for some of the problems. Based on these results, guidelines for designers to leverage heuristics effectively in design optimization are presented.
Energetic and informational masking place dissociable demands on listening effort: Evidence from simultaneous electroencephalography and pupillometry
Authors: Villard Sarah , Perrachione Tyler K. , Lim Sung-Joo , Alam Ayesha , Kidd Gerald
Published: August 2023

The task of processing speech masked by concurrent speech/noise can pose a substantial challenge to listeners. However, performance on such tasks may not directly reflect the amount of listening effort they elicit. Changes in pupil size and neural oscillatory power in the alpha range (8–12 Hz) are prominent neurophysiological signals known to reflect listening effort; however, measurements obtained through these two approaches are rarely correlated, suggesting that they may respond differently depending on the specific cognitive demands (and, by extension, the specific type of effort) elicited by specific tasks. This study aimed to compare changes in pupil size and alpha power elicited by different types of auditory maskers (highly confusable intelligible speech maskers, speech-envelope-modulated speech-shaped noise, and unmodulated speech-shaped noise maskers) in young, normal-hearing listeners. Within each condition, the target-to-masker ratio was set at the participant's individually estimated 75% correct point on the psychometric function. The speech masking condition elicited a significantly greater increase in pupil size than either of the noise masking conditions, whereas the unmodulated noise masking condition elicited a significantly greater increase in alpha oscillatory power than the speech masking condition, suggesting that the effort needed to solve these respective tasks may have different neural origins.
Communicating and Practicing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Finnish Esports Organizations: Challenges and Opportunities
Authors: Friman Usva , Ruotsalainen Maria , Ståhl Matilda
Published: August 2023

In this study, we explore how Finnish esports organizations are communicating and aiming to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in their activities. The study is based on a qualitative analysis on two sets of research material: public websites of 53 esports organizations and interviews with representatives of five esports organizations. We have analyzed the textual and visual contents on these websites to see how Finnish esports organizations communicate diversity, equity, and inclusion—or exclusion—to their audiences. Analyzing the interview material, we have examined how Finnish esports organizations understand equity, what kind of diversity, equity, and inclusion practices they have applied in their operations, and what kind of challenges they have experienced in this area. Overall, this study describes how Finnish esports organizations do and do not present and experience themselves as diverse, equal, and inclusive environments, and what measures could be taken to increase these aspects in the Finnish esports scene in the future. The results of the study can be applied to various gaming and esports organizations and cultural contexts globally.
Measuring utility with diffusion models
Authors: Berlinghieri Renato , Krajbich Ian , Maccheroni Fabio , Marinacci Massimo , Pirazzini Marco
Published: August 2023

The drift diffusion model (DDM) is a prominent account of how people make decisions. Many of these decisions involve comparing two alternatives based on differences of perceived stimulus magnitudes, such as economic values. Here, we propose a consistent estimator for the parameters of a DDM in such cases. This estimator allows us to derive decision thresholds, drift rates, and subjective percepts (i.e., utilities in economic choice) directly from the experimental data. This eliminates the need to measure these values separately or to assume specific functional forms for them. Our method also allows one to predict drift rates for comparisons that did not occur in the dataset. We apply the method to two datasets, one comparing probabilities of earning a fixed reward and one comparing objects of variable reward value. Our analysis indicates that both datasets conform well to the DDM. We find that utilities are linear in probability and slightly convex in reward.
Repeated independent origins of the placenta reveal convergent and divergent organ evolution within a single fish family (Poeciliidae)
Authors: Safian Diego , Ahmed Marwa , van Kruistum Henri , Furness Andrew I. , Reznick David N. , Wiegertjes Geert F. , Pollux Bart J.A.
Published: August 2023

An outstanding question in biology is to what extent convergent evolution produces similar, but not necessarily identical, complex phenotypic solutions. The placenta is a complex organ that repeatedly evolved in the livebearing fish family Poeciliidae. Here, we apply comparative approaches to test whether evolution has produced similar or different placental phenotypes in the Poeciliidae and to what extent these phenotypes correlate with convergence at the molecular level. We show the existence of two placental phenotypes characterized by distinctly different anatomical adaptations (divergent evolution). Furthermore, each placental phenotype independently evolved multiple times across the family, providing evidence for repeated convergence. Moreover, our comparative genomic analysis revealed that the genomes of species with different placentas are evolving at a different pace. Last, we show that the two placental phenotypes correlate with two previously described contrasting life-history optima. Our results argue for high evolvability (both divergent and convergent) of the placenta within a group of closely related species in a single family.
Experimental simulation of symmetry-protected higher-order exceptional points with single photons
Authors: Wang Kunkun , Xiao Lei , Lin Haiqing , Yi Wei , Bergholtz Emil J. , Xue Peng
Published: August 2023

Exceptional points (EPs) of non-Hermitian (NH) systems have recently attracted increasing attention due to their rich phenomenology and intriguing applications. Compared to the predominantly studied second-order EPs, higher-order EPs have been assumed to play a much less prominent role because they generically require the tuning of more parameters. Here, we experimentally simulate two-dimensional topological NH band structures using single-photon interferometry, and observe topologically stable third-order EPs obtained by tuning only two real parameters in the presence of symmetry. In particular, we explore how different symmetries stabilize qualitatively different third-order EPs: the parity-time symmetry leads to a generic cube-root dispersion, while a generalized chiral symmetry implies a square-root dispersion coexisting with a flat band. Additionally, we simulate fourfold degeneracies, composed of the non-defective twofold degeneracies and second-order EPs. Our work reveals the abundant and conceptually richer higher-order EPs protected by symmetries and offers a versatile platform for further research on topological NH systems.
Transcript accumulation rates in the early
Caenorhabditis elegans
embryo
Authors: Sivaramakrishnan Priya , Watkins Cameron , Murray John Isaac
Published: August 2023

Dynamic transcriptional changes are widespread in rapidly dividing developing embryos when cell fate decisions are made quickly. The
Caenorhabditis elegans
embryo overcomes these constraints partly through the rapid production of high levels of transcription factor mRNAs. Transcript accumulation rates for some developmental genes are known at single-cell resolution, but genome-scale measurements are lacking. We estimate zygotic mRNA accumulation rates from single-cell RNA sequencing data calibrated with single-molecule transcript imaging. Rapid transcription is common in the early
C. elegans
embryo with rates highest soon after zygotic transcription begins. High-rate genes are enriched for recently duplicated cell-fate regulators and share common genomic features. We identify core promoter elements associated with high rate and measure their contributions for two early endomesodermal genes,
ceh-51
and
sdz-31
. Individual motifs modestly affect accumulation rates, suggesting multifactorial control. These results are a step toward estimating absolute transcription kinetics and understanding how transcript dosage drives developmental decisions.
Comparison of BioLIFT versus LIFT for the treatment of trans-sphincteric anal fistula: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Ahn Hilalion (San) , Hu Richard , Gilbert Richard , Zwiep Terry , Moloo Husein , Williams Lara , Raiche Isabelle , Boushey Robin P , Friedlich Martin , Musselman Reilly P
Published: August 2023

Introduction

Identifying the optimal treatment for anal fistula has been challenging. Since first reported in 2007, the ligation of the intersphincteric fistula tract (LIFT) procedure has reported healing rates between 40% and 95% and is being increasingly adopted. The BioLIFT is an augmentation of the LIFT with an intersphincteric bioprosthetic mesh and has reported healing rates between 69% and 94%. Despite increased costs and potential complications associated with mesh, the evidence comparing healing rates between BioLIFT and LIFT is unknown. This study details the protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of BioLIFT and LIFT to compare outcomes associated with each procedure.

Methods and analysis

MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Database will be searched from inception using a search strategy designed by an information specialist. Randomised controlled trials, prospective and retrospective cohort studies, consecutive series, cross-sectional studies and case series with more than five patients will be included. Both comparative and single group studies will be included. The eligible population will be adult patients undergoing BioLIFT or LIFT for trans-sphincteric anal fistula. The primary outcome will be primary healing rate. Secondary outcomes will capture secondary healing rate and complications. Abstract, full text and data extraction will be completed independently and in duplicate by two reviewers. Study risk of bias will be assessed using Risk of Bias In Non-randomized Studies - of Interventions and the Risk of Bias (RoB 2.0) tool. Quality of evidence for outcomes will be evaluated using Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations criteria. A meta-analysis will be performed using a random-effects inverse variance model. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses will be explored in relation to complex fistula characteristics and patients who have undergone previous LIFT. Heterogeneity will be assessed using the I2statistic.

Ethics and dissemination

This review does not require research ethics board approval. This study will be completed in September 2022. The findings of this study will be disseminated through peer-reviewed international conferences and journals.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42020127996.
Know-do gap for sick child care and drivers of knowledge and practice among health extension workers in four regions of Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Daka Dawit Wolde , Wordofa Muluemebet Abera , Woldie Mirkuzie
Published: August 2023

Objective

Though efforts were made to expand community-based sick child healthcare in Ethiopia, the quality of care provided remained low. Improving quality of care requires understanding providers’ knowledge of appropriate care and their actual execution of tasks. This study examined gap between what health extension workers (HEWs) knew and did during the management of sick children in Ethiopia.

Design

Facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted.

Setting

The study was carried out in 52 districts across 4 regions in Ethiopia.

Participants

We interviewed 274 HEWs and performed observations of consultations done by 150 HEWs supplemented with facility assessment from December 2018 to February 2019.

Outcome

We compared providers’ knowledge and performance in the management of childhood pneumonia and diarrhoea. Know-do gap implies the difference in proportion between knowledge and actual practice of HEWs. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of knowledge and actual practice.

Results

Providers’ correct knowledge ranged from 27.8% to 76.0% for signs and symptoms of pneumonia, and 32.0% to 84% for dehydration signs. Their actual practices ranged from 15.1% to 47.3% for pneumonia and 27.0% to 42.6% for dehydration. The correct knowledge and actual practices for pneumonia and dehydration management were 88.3% vs 15.6% and 93.9% vs 51.3%, respectively. There was significant know-do gap in assessments (16.7%, p=0.002) and management of childhood conditions (68.5%, p<0.0001). Mentorships were associated with providers’ knowledge of clinical management, while medicines availability was associated with their actual management practice.

Conclusions

While knowledge and actual practice for assessment and management of pneumonia and dehydration ranged from very low to high, what is more concerning is the huge know-do gap among HEWs. Our findings suggest that knowledge-based training is necessary but not sufficient for ensuring correct assessment and management of sick children by HEWs. Continuous support through mentorships and the supply of commodities are critically needed.
Understanding how and why upskilling programmes for unregulated care providers can support health equity in underserved communities: a realist review protocol
Authors: Hassan Samah , Rac Valeria E , Hodges Brian David , Leake Patti , Cobbing Saul , Gray Catharine Marie , Bartley Nicola , Etherington Andrea , Abdulwasi Munira , Cheung Hei-Ching Kristy , Anderson Melanie , Woods Nicole N
Published: August 2023

Introduction

Foot ulcers are one of the most devastating complications of diabetes mellitus leading to leg amputations. In Canada, systematically marginalised and racialised populations are more prone to developing foot ulcers and at higher risk of limb amputations. Shortages of regulated healthcare have hindered efforts to provide foot care. Upskilling unregulated care providers (UCPs) to deliver foot screening seems a reasonable solution to reduce limb loss. UCPs can advocate for health equity and deliver appropriate care. There is a need, however, to understand how and why an educational intervention for UCPs providing foot screening for these high-risk groups may or may not work.

Methods and analysis

This realist review will follow the Realist And Meta-narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards standards. First, we will develop an initial programme theory (PrT) based on exploratory searches and discussions with experts and stakeholders. Then, we will search MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, ERIC, CINAHL and Scopus databases along with relevant sources of grey literature. The retrieved articles will be screened for studies focusing on planned educational interventions for UCPs related to diabetic foot assessment. Data regarding contexts, mechanisms and outcomes will be extracted and analysed using a realist analysis through an iterative process that includes data reviewing and consultation with our team. Finally, we will use these results to modify the initial PrT.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical approval is not required for this review. The main output of this research will be an evidence-based PrT for upskilling programmes for UCPs. We will share our final PrT using text, tables and infographics to summarise our results and draw insights across papers/reports. For academic, clinical, social care and educational audiences, we will produce peer-reviewed journal articles, including those detailing the process and findings of the realist review and establishing our suggestions for effective upskilling programmes.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42022369208.
General lifestyle factors explain young athletes’ mental health more than perceived coach autonomy support: a cross-sectional study on basketball players and gymnasts aged 10–22
Authors: Lundqvist Carolina , Asratian Anna , Dahlström Örjan
Published: August 2023

Objectives

This study described differences in lifestyle factors (sleeping problems/fatigue, pressure/activation), perceived coach autonomy support and indicators of mental health (well-being and poor general mental health) across various age groups (children ≤12 years, youths 13–15 years, junior to senior ≥16 years) and sports (basketball and gymnastics). Second, the relationships between lifestyle factors and mental health indicators were explored, hypothesising that the relationships would be mediated by perceived coach autonomy support.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was implemented by using an online survey which assessed lifestyle and environmental factors as well as mental health indicators. Participants were recruited through sports clubs in basketball and gymnastics. A total of 209 athletes (77 basketball players and 132 gymnasts) in the age range of 10–22 (median=13) years volunteered to complete the survey.

Results

Separate two-way analyses of variance showed significant main effects for age group on sleeping problems/fatigue, sleep quantity, pressure/activation, well-being and poor general mental health, with higher scores reported for older age groups of athletes. Path analysis displayed sleeping problems/fatigue and pressure/activation to significantly affect decreased well-being and poor general mental health; however, the relationships were not mediated by perceived coach autonomy support.

Conclusion

Lifestyle factors play a prominent role in mental health outcomes. Researchers studying athlete mental health should consider both general lifestyle and sports-related factors, considering developmental phases in the young athlete’s sporting context and overall life.
Perceived masculinity from Facebook photographs of candidates predicts electoral success
Authors: Park Kunwoo , Joo Jungseock
Published: August 2023

Politicians have used the web and social media to circumvent the gatekeeping behavior of traditional mass media by directly communicating with supporters in their accounts. This paper is aimed at understanding communication strategies used by politicians and campaigns, focusing on the role of gender cues in their visual self-presentation and their impact on election outcomes. Previous research has discussed the importance of visual portrayals of leaders in campaigns. These studies, however, have been mainly based on manual coding and are limited in scale and scope. This paper aims to fill the research gap by introducing a multi task method that infers perceived gender-stereotypical visual traits from social media images. We analyze 77,861 photographs collected from the Facebook accounts of 554 US politicians who ran in the 2018 elections. Regression analyses discover the positive association of the masculinity trait for electoral outcomes. We also identify an empirical evidence that the effect of gender stereotypes could vary according to the gender and party combinations of the candidates in a race. In the intersectional analysis, we found that the win of female democrats against the same gendered opponent was positively correlated with the femininity trait score. This study provides methodological foundations and empirical contributions to the understanding of politicians’ campaign behaviors via photographs shared on social media and their relation to electoral success.
Quantum theory of cold dark matter halos
Authors: Musielak Z. E.
Published: August 2023

A nonrelativistic quantum theory of dark matter particles in a spherical halo is developed by using a new asymmetric equation, which is complementary to the Schrödinger equation. The theory predicts that each dark matter halo has its core and envelope with very distinct physical properties. The core is free of any quantum structure and its dark matter particles are in random motion and frequently collide with each other. However, the envelope has a global quantum structure that contains quantized orbits populated by the particles. Applications of the theory to dark matter halos with given density profiles are described, and physical implications and predictions of the theory are discussed.
Gorenstein projective, injective and flat modules over trivial ring extensions
Authors: Mao Lixin
Published: August 2023

We introduce the concepts of generalized compatible and cocompatible bimodules in order to characterize Gorenstein projective, injective and flat modules over trivial ring extensions. Let [Formula: see text] be a trivial extension of a ring [Formula: see text] by an [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]-bimodule [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] is a generalized compatible [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]-bimodule and [Formula: see text] is a generalized compatible [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]-bimodule. We prove that [Formula: see text] is a Gorenstein projective left [Formula: see text]-module if and only if the sequence [Formula: see text] is exact and coker([Formula: see text]) is a Gorenstein projective left [Formula: see text]-module. Analogously, we explicitly characterize Gorenstein injective and flat modules over trivial ring extensions. As an application, we describe Gorenstein projective, injective and flat modules over Morita context rings with zero bimodule homomorphisms.
Dynamic Certification for Autonomous Systems
Authors: Bakirtzis Georgios , Carr Steven , Danks David , Topcu Ufuk
Published: August 2023

An attempt to provide a common language between formal models, simulations, real-world (testing) data, and regulatory mechanisms.
Can Crowdsourcing Rescue the Social Marketplace of Ideas?
Authors: Yasseri Taha , Menczer Filippo
Published: August 2023

How collaborative designs and community-based moderation could improve social media.
Dilemma of the Artificial Intelligence Regulatory Landscape
Authors: Wu Weiyue , Liu Shaoshan
Published: August 2023

Navigating the complex and varying AI regulatory landscape.
Faithful and Consistent Graph Neural Network Explanations with Rationale Alignment
Authors: Zhao Tianxiang , Luo Dongsheng , Zhang Xiang , Wang Suhang
Published: August 2023

Uncovering rationales behind predictions of graph neural networks (GNNs) has received increasing attention over recent years. Instance-level GNN explanation aims to discover critical input elements, such as nodes or edges, that the target GNN relies upon for making predictions. Though various algorithms are proposed, most of them formalize this task by searching the minimal subgraph, which can preserve original predictions. However, an inductive bias is deep-rooted in this framework: Several subgraphs can result in the same or similar outputs as the original graphs. Consequently, they have the danger of providing spurious explanations and failing to provide consistent explanations. Applying them to explain weakly performed GNNs would further amplify these issues. To address this problem, we theoretically examine the predictions of GNNs from the causality perspective. Two typical reasons for spurious explanations are identified: confounding effect of latent variables like distribution shift and causal factors distinct from the original input. Observing that both confounding effects and diverse causal rationales are encoded in internal representations,

we propose a new explanation framework with an auxiliary alignment loss, which is theoretically proven to be optimizing a more faithful explanation objective intrinsically. Concretely for this alignment loss, a set of different perspectives are explored: anchor-based alignment, distributional alignment based on Gaussian mixture models, mutual-information-based alignment, and so on. A comprehensive study is conducted both on the effectiveness of this new framework in terms of explanation faithfulness/consistency and on the advantages of these variants. For our codes, please refer to the following URL link:
https://github.com/TianxiangZhao/GraphNNExplanation
A First Look at On-device Models in iOS Apps
Authors: Hu Han , Huang Yujin , Chen Qiuyuan , Zhuo Terry Yue , Chen Chunyang
Published: August 2023

Powered by the rising popularity of deep learning techniques on smartphones, on-device deep learning models are being used in vital fields such as finance, social media, and driving assistance. Because of the transparency of the Android platform and the on-device models inside, on-device models on Android smartphones have been proven to be extremely vulnerable. However, due to the challenge in accessing and analyzing iOS app files, despite iOS being a mobile platform as popular as Android, there are no relevant works on on-device models in iOS apps. Since the functionalities of the same app on Android and iOS platforms are similar, the same vulnerabilities may exist on both platforms. In this article, we present the first empirical study about on-device models in iOS apps, including their adoption of deep learning frameworks, structure, functionality, and potential security issues. We study why current developers use different on-device models for one app between iOS and Android. We propose a more general attack against white-box models that does not rely on pre-trained models and a new adversarial attack approach based on our findings to target iOS’s gray-box on-device models. Our results show the effectiveness of our approaches. Finally, we successfully exploit the vulnerabilities of on-device models to attack real-world iOS apps.
Screening of Sugarcane Varieties for Tolerance to Water Deficiency Using Containers
Authors: Chandiposha Misheck , Zharare Godfrey E. , Nzima Muntubani D. S.
Published: August 2023

The negative effects of water deficiency in sugarcane production caused by climate change on the productivity of sugarcane can be mitigated by drought tolerant varieties. A 14 × 2 factorial arrangement in completely randomised design replicated three times was used to screen 14 varieties for drought tolerance at the Zimbabwe Sugar Experiment Station (ZSAES). The first factor was the sugarcane varieties viz ZN1, ZN2, ZN3, ZN4, ZN5, ZN6, ZN7, ZN8, ZN9, ZN10, CP72–1312, NCo376, N14, and CP72–2086. The second factor comprised of two levels of irrigation, namely, well-watered (100% by volume) and water-deficit stressed (30% by volume). The parameters measured in this study which included tiller count, leaf SPAD index, total plant dry mass, photosynthetic rate, and leaf temperature were found not suitable for screening sugarcane for tolerance to water-deficit stress. Water-deficit stressed varieties ZN1, ZN8, ZN10, and N14 had the tallest stalks. Varieties CP72–2086, ZN2, ZN5, CP72–1312, ZN4, ZN6, and ZN9 were stunted, indicating that they were probably drought-sensitive. Leaf vapour pressure deficits of varieties ZN8, ZN10 and N14 were higher in water-stressed plants than in the well-watered ones. The vapour pressure deficit of well-watered NCo376 plants was higher than that of water-stressed plants. Furthermore, the stomatal conductance of water-stressed NCo376 plants was greater than that of the other varieties tested, showing more tolerance to drought. Based on stem height, stomatal conductance, vapour pressure deficit, transpiration rate and dry matter parameters measured in the present study, sugarcane varieties that are recommended to cane farmers in Zimbabwe when faced with drought are NCo376, ZN1, ZN8, ZN10 and ZN14.
Forecasting Pollution Using Numerical Simulation Implementing Artificial Bee Colony Optimization
Authors: Arora Geeta , Kaur Harshdeep , Emadifar Homan , Roudgarnejad Samaneh , Emadifar Hesam
Published: August 2023

In this article, an optimization strategy is presented for the numerical solution of Burgers’ equations, which play an important role in estimating and forecasting pollution. The method involves the exponential B-spline basis function as the basis function in the differential quadrature method. Since exponential B-spline involves a parameter, the artificial bee colony optimization algorithm is implemented to find the unknown parameters that result in the minimum error. Among the metaheuristic optimization algorithms, the artificial bee colony (ABC) is one that has received the greatest attention from researchers and has been successfully implemented to solve various problems in engineering and sciences. The proposed work emphasizes the calculation of the parameter of exponential basis functions, a major factor that plays a role in the error calculation using the ABC optimization algorithm. The acquired findings are provided as tables, and the physical behaviour is showcased in the form of figures and tables. The results are in good conformity with the earlier studies.
Study on the Load Transfer Behaviour and Bond-Slip Model of Fully Grouted Rockbolt
Authors: Yu Shuisheng , Yang Honghao , Chen Jin , Wang Yawei , Lu Shucan
Published: August 2023

Rockbolts are often subjected to loads during service, and the load transfer behaviour of rockbolts is very important. Therefore, in this study, pullout tests were performed on two kinds of rockbolt systems, with and without defects, and the load transfer behaviour and failure modes were analysed. According to the load transfer process between the rockbolt and cement mortar interface, a bond-slip model considering the yield of the rockbolt was proposed, and the nonlinear behaviour in the softening stage was considered. The test results showed that the evolution of the interface load between the rockbolt and cement mortar in the grouted rockbolt systems without defects underwent four stages of gradual failure, namely, elasticity, yield, softening, and complete slip, and its failure mode involved the rockbolt being pulled out accompanied by splitting cracks and tensile cracks on the concrete surface. The proposed bond-slip models considering the nonyielding and yielding of the rockbolt can accurately reflect the actual load transfer behaviour of a fully grouted rockbolt.
TABLE 1 from A Pilot Study of Neoadjuvant Nivolumab, Ipilimumab, and Intralesional Oncolytic Virotherapy for HER2-negative Breast Cancer
Authors: Nguyen Vina P. , Campbell Katie M. , Nowicki Theodore S. , Elumalai Nila , Medina Egmidio , Baselga-Carretero Ignacio , DiNome Maggie L. , Chang Helena R. , Oseguera Denise K. , Ribas Antoni , Glaspy John A.
Published: August 2023

Baseline characteristics
Supplementary Table S1 from A Pilot Study of Neoadjuvant Nivolumab, Ipilimumab, and Intralesional Oncolytic Virotherapy for HER2-negative Breast Cancer
Authors: Nguyen Vina P. , Campbell Katie M. , Nowicki Theodore S. , Elumalai Nila , Medina Egmidio , Baselga-Carretero Ignacio , DiNome Maggie L. , Chang Helena R. , Oseguera Denise K. , Ribas Antoni , Glaspy John A.
Published: August 2023

Representativeness of Study Participants
FIGURE 2 from A Pilot Study of Neoadjuvant Nivolumab, Ipilimumab, and Intralesional Oncolytic Virotherapy for HER2-negative Breast Cancer
Authors: Nguyen Vina P. , Campbell Katie M. , Nowicki Theodore S. , Elumalai Nila , Medina Egmidio , Baselga-Carretero Ignacio , DiNome Maggie L. , Chang Helena R. , Oseguera Denise K. , Ribas Antoni , Glaspy John A.
Published: August 2023

Correlative analysis of tumor specimens. Representative baseline biopsy (A) and on-treatment surgical resection (B) of a patient who responded to treatment. Color scheme, Yellow: CD8, Red: IgG4, White: CK7, Green: PD-L1, Magenta: PD-1, Blue: DAPI. Baseline biopsy demonstrates PD-L1 signal and minimal CD8 infiltration, with no detectable PD-1 or IgG4 signal, while on-treatment biopsy demonstrated diffuse CD8 infiltration colocalized with strong IgG4 signal (double positive = orange), along with minimal PD-1 signal, consistent with the visualization of the IgG4 antibody nivolumab saturating the PD-1 receptor on infiltrating T cells.
FIGURE 1 from A Pilot Study of Neoadjuvant Nivolumab, Ipilimumab, and Intralesional Oncolytic Virotherapy for HER2-negative Breast Cancer
Authors: Nguyen Vina P. , Campbell Katie M. , Nowicki Theodore S. , Elumalai Nila , Medina Egmidio , Baselga-Carretero Ignacio , DiNome Maggie L. , Chang Helena R. , Oseguera Denise K. , Ribas Antoni , Glaspy John A.
Published: August 2023

Treatment response duration and follow-up of patients enrolled in the phase I trial. Swimmer lane plot of time on study, noting the period from prior neoadjuvant chemotherapy to study start in the 4 patients who had prior treatment, the period of time on study drugs, the pathologic response assessment, timing of surgery, and follow-up period with events of progression or death.
The role of pacas of captivity as a potential reservoir of zoonotic fungi in Acre, Western Amazon, Brazil
Authors: Oliveira Tallison Filipe Lima de , Silva Tamyres Izarelly Barbosa da , Ribeiro Vania Maria França , Costa Girclyhanne da Costa , Rocha Jhonatan Henrique Lima da , Campelo Marcos Bruno Zacarias , Nascimento Breno Kalyl Freitas , Ribeiro Sandra Albuquerque Lima
Published: August 2023

Wild animals can be natural reservoirs of different microorganisms, essential for monitoring these pathogens for the generation of knowledge and creation of tools aimed at programs for the prevention and control of infectious diseases, including zoonoses. The objective was to report the fungal diversity in the skin of pacas in captivity in Acre, Western Amazon, Brazil. Twenty-six animals were evaluated, from which skin samples were collected by superficial scraping, hair avulsion, and sterile plastic brush. The samples were seeded on Mycosel agar, and the phenotypic characteristics of the colonies were analyzed. In 80.8% of the samples, different fungi were isolated, from the genera Candida, Microsporum, and Trichophyton, among others. This is the first description of the identification of fungi in the skin of pacas and suggests that these animals can be considered essential reservoirs of saprophytic or pathogenic microorganisms with zoonotic potential in the Western Amazon.
La memoria sensorial intermedial y el audiolibro Exils d’Espagne de la narradora oral judeoargentina Susana Azquinezer
Authors: Gallo González Danae
Published: August 2023

Este artículo se propone analizar el audiolibro Exils d’Espagne. De la Retirada à aujourd’hui, de la narradora oral judeoargentina Susana Azquinezer y publicado por Oui’Dire Éditions en 2017, desde el punto de vista de los estudios de la memoria y de los afectos intermediales.  En primer lugar, se presentará a la autora, su biografía familiar y profesional, que se insertará en el contexto de la historia migratoria a y desde Argentina. En segundo lugar, se presentará el enclave sociohistórico que sirve de telón de fondo al relato Exils d’Espagne, lo que dará pie a una reflexión teórica sobre sobre la memoria, su carácter multidireccional, palimséstico y sensorial en este objeto intermedial. En tercer lugar, se hará una lectura atenta de los medios retóricos y las estrategias narrativas que utiliza Azquinezer en la composición del relato en profunda interrelación con el código semiótico musical y la modulación oral de la palabra para demostrar el funcionamiento de la memoria palimpséstica y multidireccional que destila el audiolibro a nivel diegético y como se argüirá, la memoria sensorial intermedial que emana de la experiencia sónica de la recepción.
Os estágios do desespero kierkegaardiano e o monstro em Jó
Authors: Bohrz Julian
Published: August 2023

Este trabalho examina a personagem Jó, presente no livro homônimo da Bíblia Sagrada. Será demonstrado como o desespero que a personagem expressa diante do aspecto aterrorizante da obra divina possui relação com o significante monstruoso e com o monstro em si (Beemote, ou o Eu). Para isso, serão analisadas as fases ética, estética e religiosa do desespero kierkegaardiano, a fim de verificar como elas são problematizadas por meio dos questionamentos de limites conceituais que o aparecimento de monstros na literatura costuma suscitar.
Say Banana! Deslizamento e contracultura na ficção de Mick Stern
Authors: Pait Heloisa
Published: August 2023

Resenha do livro de Mick Stern

Stern, Mick. Likely Stories. Ilustrações do autor. Nova York: Maria Flophaus, 2021. 130p.