bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Transcultural Cultivation
Authors: Banerjee Pallavi
Published: September 2022

Chapter 5 offers a close look at how the visa regime shaped parenting discourses and action in the families of Indian tech workers and nurses with children. The chapter focuses on what parenting means for dependent spouses. The author examines whether and to what extent dominant theories of class-based parenting, juxtaposed with approaches to parenting in middle-class Black families in the United States and immigrant transnational families, work in the context of Indian immigrant middle-class families in which one parent holds a professional job and the other parent stays at home because of visa restrictions. The chapter elucidates the way in which parenting in families with a dependent visa holder aligned more with notions of racialization and transnationalism in parenting that intersected with gender-intensive mothering because of the visa regime, rather than the prevalent explanations of class-based parenting in the United States The author calls this form of parenting “transcultural cultivation.”
Ali se zavedamo posledic dolgotrajnega razpad elektroenergetskega sistema?
Authors: MIHALIČ RAFAEL
Published: September 2022

Urad za oceno tehnologije nemškega Bundestaga jepred leti izdal poročilo z naslovom Kaj se zgodi med»blackoutom« (razpadom EE) in podnaslovom Posledice daljšegarazpada EES širših razsežnosti. V njem sistematično obdelarazlične vidike prekinitve oskrbe družbe z električno energijo.Sklep študije je, da pride do popolne degradacije vseh družbenihsistemov ali, z drugimi besedami, do popolnega kolapsa obstoječedružbe. Zanimivo je, da se nekaterih posledic in vidikov največkratne zavedamo niti tisti, ki se z elektrotehniko profesionalnoukvarjamo. V prispevku skušamo predstaviti nekatere vidike,vzroke, mehanizme in posledice takega dogodka.
Covid-19 okužbe in smrtnost ter omejevalni ukrepi: koliko so ogrožena manjšinska, obmejna in periferna območja in kakšen je položaj Pomurja?
Authors: JOSIPOVIČ DAMIR
Published: September 2022

Prispevek predstavlja analizo presežne smrtnosti vSloveniji v letu 2020 z vidika pričakovane smrtnosti kot posledicečedalje neugodnejše starostne strukture prebivalstva v Sloveniji.Ugotavlja, da je mogoče nepojasnjenim vzrokom smrti na novopripisati namesto 3.126 (po podatkih NIJZ) le 2.626 smrtnih žrtev,ki pa se lahko pripišejo prezgodnjim smrtnim primerom, ki solahko neposredna posledica bodisi bolezni COVID-19 bodisidrugih vzrokov smrti zaradi omejevalnih ukrepov. Povečanjeznaša 501 osebo ali kar petino. Tako visoka presežna smrtnostzato ni le posledica same nove bolezni, temveč tudi posledicadrugih dejavnikov. Domnevamo, da so poleg odpovedi rednegazdravljenja ključno vlogo odigrali prav sprejeti restriktivni ukrepiomejitev gibanja in šolanja na daljavo, ki so bili zgrešeno ciljanizaradi napačne interpretacije podatkov o obsegu in pogojihprenosa okužb, neproučenega razmerja med okužbami v DSOnapram lokalnemu prebivalstvu glede na velikost občin,primerjalno slabšega razmerja med vsemi Covid-19hospitalizacijami in razporeditvami v enote intenzivnegazdravljenja ter covid smrtnosti, v letu 2021 pa v upadajočiučinkovitosti cepljenj glede na čas in sev ter državo.
Brezšivna skrb: Nova farmacevtska storitev, ki spreminja dosedanje delo v zdravstvenem sistemu
Authors: ŠTUHEC MATEJ
Published: September 2022

Nova zakonodaja na področju lekarniške dejavnosti v Sloveniji prinaša tudi nove farmacevtske storitve. Med najpomembnejšimi storitvami je brezšivna skrb, ki bo leta 2023 obvezna v vseh slovenskih bolnišnicah. Z navedeno novo storitvijo je farmacevt zadolžen za izmenjavo informacij ob sprejemu in odpustu iz bolnišnice. V tem prispevku prikazujemo brezšivno skrb, pozitivne in negativne izkušnje ter povzemamo stanje na tem področju v Sloveniji. Ta prispevek lahko služi kot pomoč zdravnikom in farmacevtom ter predvsem vodilnim v zdravstvenih sistemih k vzpostavitvi ustreznih oblik sodelovanja, ki vodijo do optimalnih kliničnih in ekonomskih izidov.
Production of rare-earth oxides from Eskişehir-Beylikova complex ores
Authors: GÜNEŞ Haydar , OBUZ Hüseyin Eren , AKÇAY Hasan , KARA Çiğdem , ERDEM Ayşe
Published: September 2022

In this study, the production technology of rare-earth oxides from Eskişehir-Beylikova complex ore that contains barite, fluorite, rare-earth elements, and thorium were investigated. In this study, processes that can be used in production of thorium-free mixed rare earth oxides were tested. Roasting, leaching, solvent extraction and precipitation methods were used in this study, respectively. Roasting temperature and roasting duration were determined as 600 °C and 1 hour, respectively. The optimum leaching parameters were determined as 5 M HCl, 1 hour leaching duration, 1/3 solid/liquid ratio and 35 °C leaching temperature. In the obtained leach liquor, Adogen was 464 used for removal of iron and D2EHPA was used for the removal of thorium. As a result of solvent extraction stuies, the solution containing rare earth elements was precipitated under optimum conditions. After precipitation, the product contains 99.65% rare earth oxides.
Descriptif technique du bois d'essence tropicale – Niangon – Heritiera densiflora Kosterm. (Syn. Tarrietia densiflora) Heritiera utilis Kosterm. (Syn. Tarrietia utilis)
Authors: GÉRARD Jean , Trébuchon Jean-François
Published: September 2022

Version française et anglaise - Extrait de l’Atlas des bois tropicaux – Caractéristiques technologiques et utilisationsJ. Gérard (coord), D. Guibal (au.), J.-C. Cerre (au.), S. Paradis (au.), et 40 auteurs, 2016.Éditions Quæ, 1000 p.

 

https://www.quae.com/produit/1408/9782759225521/atlas-des-bois-tropicaux
Supraclavicular lymph node transplant: a focus on technique
Authors: Beederman Maureen , Chang David W.
Published: September 2022

Physiologic surgical options, including vascularized lymph node transplant and lymphovenous bypass are becoming increasingly popular interventions for the treatment of lymphedema of both the upper and lower extremities. Many different lymph node donor sites have been described, including submental, lateral thoracic, superficial groin, supraclavicular, and various intraabdominal sites. This paper describes a step-by-step approach to the harvest of vascularized lymph nodes from the supraclavicular area, which is the preferred donor site for most patients with both upper and lower extremity lymphedema.
Artificial intelligence HPB surgery - current problems, future solutions?
Authors: O’Reilly Derek A. , Pitt Henry A.
Published: September 2022

NO
Genealogía de la ciudad de 15 minutos: aproximación a los conceptos
Authors: Lamíquiz Daudén Patxi J. , Carpio Pinedo José , Benito Moreno Manuel
Published: September 2022

ResumenLa importancia de acceder a todos los servicios urbanos relevantes en menos de 15 minutos de viaje es fácil de entender, pero parece que, no por casualidad y debido a las restricciones de movilidad por la pandemia del COVID-19, ha cobrado por fin protagonismo en varias ciudades por todo el mundo. Si bien la idea de Carlos Moreno no es nueva, su reciente inclusión en la agenda política en un cierto número de ciudades sugiere que ha llegado a un punto de madurez en la discusión política, abarcando acciones para reducir las emisiones, cuestiones asociadas al tráfico, la reconquista del espacio público por parte de los peatones y la promoción de la interacción y participación, la defensa de estilos de vida más saludables y el envejecimiento activo.  Al ser un concepto en desarrollo, la ciudad de 15 minutos requeriría de su validación científica, como han empezado a hacer diversos equipos en ciudades como Barcelona o Nápoles y, ulteriormente e integración en la “caja de herramientas” profesional de planificadores urbanos y de transporte, para llegar a generalizarse. En ese sentido, parece imprescindible entender tanto sus antecedentes conceptuales como las claves de su puesta en práctica, tarea que venimos desarrollando dentro del Proyecto Accesibility Planning for the 15-Minute City (ACC15’) que cuenta con ayuda del Programa Estatal de I+D+i orientada a los retos de la sociedad del Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2017 – 2020 (PID2020-116584RB-100/AEI/10.13039/501100011033).  En esta ponencia, se exploran los principios y estrategias enunciados por Carlos Moreno y su equipo (Moreno et al. 2020) y se relacionan con antecedentes y conceptos más propios de la disciplina. Por ejemplo, el “Cronourbanisme” (la vinculación de ritmos y espacios cotidianos, al decir de Moreno), con la “Planificazione temporali” italiana o con el Urbanismo de género; la “Topo-philie” (apego al lugar) con el “Place-making” o el “New urbanism” o el de “Chronotopie (uso diferenciado de un lugar según la temporalidad) con los cierres temporales de calles o el Urbanismo táctico, a través del caso de Paris y también en otros menos conocidos pero muy similares, como Portland (20-minutes neigborhoods, 2012), Melbourne (20-minutes neigborhoods, 2017) y Ottawa (15-minutes neigborhoods, 2019).
Effect of Temperature in Zno and Related Computational Studies
Authors: BHATTACHARYYA ARNAB , Dash Ritambhara
Published: September 2022

ZnO was synthesized by Sol gel method using zinc nitrate as precursor at different calcination temperatures. Nucleation of ZnO crystallites and their growth with rise in temperature was observed. Exciton bands and lattice imperfections affected the absorption spectra. The decrease in band gap with temperature was due to the formation of defect energy levels. Phonon assisted non-radiative transitions caused broadening of the peaks. The possibility of tuning the band gap of ZnO by changing the temperature was explored. Simulation studies showed transition to single phase with rise in temperature.
Bioethanol Production from Sequential Acidic-Alkaline Pretreated Sorghum Straw Hydrolysate and Investigation of the Effects of Fermentation Parameters using Response Surface Methodology
Authors: Dube Abnet Mengesha , Gebriheta Fseha Gebremichael
Published: September 2022

The depletion and environmental problems associated with fossil fuels have encouraged us to look for alternative feedstock that do not compromise food security and the environment. Sorghum is a fast-growing crop that can be harvested twice a year and produces both food and straw that can be utilized in the production of bio-based fuels. In this study, the production of bioethanol and the effects of fermentation parameters on ethanol yield are presented. A sequential pretreatment method was employed, using dilute sulfuric acid (1%) at 125 °C in the first stage and dilute sodium hydroxide (1.25 %) at 90 °C in the second stage. The residues left after the sequential pretreatment stage were hydrolyzed using acid hydrolysis. The sugar concentration of the hydrolysates was determined using the phenol sulfuric acid method, and three hydrolysates having sugar levels of 30.42 g/L, 31.79 g/L, and 32.9875 g/L were selected for fermentation. The ethanol yield was determined after 72 hours of fermentation at 30 °C with varying inoculum sizes (5%, 10%, and 15%) and pH (4.5, 5, and 5.5). With a maximum ethanol yield of 0.617 mL/g (48.742%) produced at a sugar content of 32.9875 g/L, pH of 5, and inoculum size of 15%, statistical analysis showed that all three independent parameters affected ethanol yield. According to these findings, while raising sugar content, inoculum amount, and pH all initially result in higher ethanol yields, doing so further reduces yield. So, in order to increase ethanol yield, fermentation conditions must be carefully managed while producing ethanol from sequential acidic-alkaline pretreated sorghum straw. The strategy followed by using sequential acidic-alkaline pretreatment of sorghum straw provides prospects for efficient and effective production of biofuels from alternative feedstock.
Latent Growth Modeling of Item Process Data Derived From Eye-tracking Technology: An Experimental Study Investigating Reading Behavior of Examinees When Answering A Multiple-Choice Test Item
Authors: ÇORBACI Ergün Cihat , KAHRAMAN Nilüfer
Published: September 2022

This study illustrates how eye-tracking data can be translated to “item process data” for multiple-choice test items to study the relationship between subjects’ item responses and choice reading behavior. Several modes of analysis were used to test the hypothesized added value of using process data to identify choice reading patterns of subjects. In addition to the cross-sectional analises of agggregate measurements derived from the time series eye tracking data, Latent Growth Curve Model Analises were undertaken to test if the the shape of change observed in the sequential choice reading patterns differed for subjects depending on their responses to the item being correct or incorrect. Application data were from an experimental study and included seventy-one subjects’ responses to two multiple-choice test items measuring reading comprehension ability in English as a second language. Analyses were carried out for one item at a time. For each item, first, each subject’s recorded eye movements were coded into a set of Area of Interests (AOIs), segmenting the lines in the stem and the individual choices. Next, each subject’s fixation times on the AOIs were time stamped into seconds, indicating when and in what order each subject’s gaze had fixated on each AOI until a choice was marked as the correct answer, which ended the item encounter. A set of nested Latent Growth Curve models were considered for the choice-related AOIs to deliniate if distinct choice-process sequences were evident for correct and incorrect respoders. Model fit indices, random intercepts, slopes, and residuals were computed using the mean log fixation times over item encounter time. The results show that the LGM with the best model fit indicies, for both items, was the quadratic model using response variable as a covariate. Albeit limited due to the two-item – seventy-one subjects experimental setting of the study, the findings are promising and show that utilizing item-level process data can be very useful for defining distinct choice processing (task-oriented reading) patterns of examinees. Over all, the results warrant further study of choice derived AOIs using longitudinal statistical models. It is argued that, the screening methodology desribed in this study can be a useful tool to investigate speededness, distractor functioning, or even to flag subjects with irregular choice processing behavior, such as providing a direct mark on a choice, without any significant reading activity on any of the choices presented (i.e., whether cheating might have occurred.)
Marriage Rituals Practiced Among Tadvi Bhil Tribe of Jalgaon, Maharashtra
Authors:   Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune, Maharashtra 411007, India, Jagdish Gawai Mohini
Published: September 2022

This paper is based on Tadvi Bhil tribe’s marriage rituals practices in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra. This paper is an outcome of the fieldnotes like methodological notes, descriptive notes and analytical notes. It is an ethnographic study; an attempt has been made to understand and interpret the contextual and symbolic meanings of the Tadvi Bhil marriage rituals practiced. The methods like Boldhana, Futane, Nivtya, Bajarand lagnavidhiare pre-marriage practices which are described in details gives the idea and thought of the traditionalbelief system in Tadvi Bhil. The purpose of marriage in Tadvi culture is the creation of family. The central event in the Tadvi tribe is wedding the ‘nikah’. There is inclusion of some new rites in marriage method of Tadvi Bhil after conversion to Islam, once the tika method is over nikah a method starts which is done by Qazi.Tadvi’s marriage is a combination of Tribal rites and Islamic rites, which is found in this piece of research, explains various expressions of Tadvi Bhil towards marriage institution.
Incidence of Fetal Mortality and Abortion Among the Baiga Tribe of Chhattisgarh
Authors:   Associate Professor, Department of School of Studies in Anthropology, Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur, Chhattisgarh 492010, India., Kumar Premi Jitendra
Published: September 2022

It is a distinguishing human feature which separates man from the animal: just as use of contraception is found only in human society, abortion is also exclusive to it. It is the reason that human reproduction is not a bare biological process. Instead, biological process constitutes a fragmentary (though essential) part in the gamut of human reproductive system. The objectives of the study are to find out the incidences of fetal death and abortion and their associated bio-cultural factors. Objectives of the present study are to explore the incidence fetal death and abortion and to find out the associated causes of the incidence fetal death and abortion among the Baiga tribe of Chhattisgarh. Structured interview schedule and non-participant observation were used for collection and cross validation of data. The results were analyzed using the 16.0 SPSS package. 21.77% respondents, whose wives were pregnant in the past, had abortion. From the point of view of reproductive health, this figure is quite on a higher side and shows how serious is the situation regarding abortion in the Baiga tribe. Such a high rate of abortion is a pointer to stagnation in the population of the Baiga of Chhattisgarh. At least it can be said a major factor in its nonproliferation.75 abortion cases which actually come to 94.9% were the cases of miscarriage or what is called spontaneous abortion. The cases of induced or deliberate abortions were 4, which comes to 5.1%. On the basis of these facts, the possibilities mount up that malnutrition, anemia and morbidity among the Baiga women, are on an ascending scale. The gravity or seriousness of the prevailing condition makes the conjecture well- founded that the benefits of reproductive health facilities are perhaps not reaching the inmates directly and adequately.out of the group brought under study, one third respondents i.e. - 23.97%, whose wives had conception had delivered stillborn babies, such large number of stillbirths draws one attention to the seriousness of reproductive health problem in the Baiga. This also accounts for stagnation in their population growth. Keywords: Incidence; Fetal; Mortality; Abortion; Miscarriage; The baiga.
A Non-Intrusive Production Optimization Technology for Surveillance of Gas Lift Wells
Authors: Tyagi Himanshu , Peacock Larry
Published: September 2022

This paper outlines a strategy to address the complexities involve in well surveillance and production optimization of gas lifted wells which operators around the world face in the quest to maximize production. Recent enhanced software-based analysis, designing and optimization has proved to be an effective tool in enhancing rate of production from an existing gas lifted well.

This technology incorporates introduction of a small volume of CO2 into the injection line and then measuring CO2 concentration via a sensor connected to wellhead tree, flowline or well test separator. Injection pressure and injection rate during the trace integrate with the well and valve modeling to determine the depths of each injection observed.

A pilot project on twenty wells of a major operator in the middle east exhibited a significant improvement in well performance with an incremental gain of 2000 bopd. One of the greatest strengths of this approach is that there is no need to shut-in or run any type of well intervention, resulting in greatly reduced risks, not only to field personnel but also to the well itself. Typical surveillance approach in assessing the health of the gas lifted wells is to deploy flowing gradient survey in tandem with surface well test. However, this historical technology has limitations in investigating prolific wells due to its current well mechanical condition, slugging nature, slim-hole completion design and dual strings design well environment. Application of this technology has broken the barrier in evaluation of these wells. It provides an efficient means of snapshotting the downhole issues beyond the capability of standard pressure and temperature surveys.

This paper considers multiple scenarios that help revive and elevate a potential hydrocarbon source and recommends suitable actions which allow production engineers to analyze performance of an oil well. With the increased complexity of mature fields, each next step to improve recovery comes with increased cost. Therefore, novel horizons of affordable technology will play a pivotal role to maximize economic recovery and meet rising demand in the current business environment.
A Review on The Largest Polymer Flood Project in The World
Authors: Lu Xiaoguang , Li Wei , Wei Yunan , Xu John
Published: September 2022

This paper presents a systematical review on the largest polymer flood project in the world, applied to a giant field with muti-layered, heterogeneous sandstone reservoirs.

In this paper, we begin by talking about reservoir and fluid characteristics to provida basic understanding of reservoir heterogeneity. Next, the authors summarize the project history from laboratory studies, through pilot tests, commercial tests to field wide application. Then, we illustrate typical polymer flood performance and reservoir management for improving EOR process performance. Finally, key understandings and lessons learned based on over 50 years’ polymer flood practice are presented.

Three types of reservoir sandsare developed in this field: higher permeability sand (Type I), medium permeability sand (Type II) and relatively low permeability sand(Type III). Prior to the start of field wide polymer flood in Type I reservoir in 1996, more than ten pilot and commercial tests had been implemented. With Type II reservoir polymer flood coming on stream in 2003, the project achieved a peak production of 253,000 BOPD in 1993. Polymer flood reduced water-cut by 24.8%. Effective reservoir management activities include zonal polymer solution injection, profile modification, fracturing of low permeability sand, and injection slug size optimization. During fieldwide polymer flood, the water-cut performance is characterized by four stages:(1) initial declining, (2) sustained low value, (3) rebound and (4) high water-cut chase-water injection. Operators implemented fit-for-purpose measures in each stage to improve the EOR process performance. Key understandings and lessons learned include: (1) polymer flood improves both sweeping and displacing efficiencies; (2) high inter-layer permeability contrast leads to lower incremental recovery; (3) variable well spacing should be adopted on each type of the reservoir sands; (4) optimized high polymer MW and large polymer slug greatly improve recovery; and (5) salt-resistant polymer in particular is beneficial for produced water re-injection in Type II reservoir sand.

Compared with 6% to 8% incremental recovery by polymer flood in most pilots and partial application cases in the industry worldwide, this successful large-scale project improved recovery by 12% over water flood. The finding of improved displacing efficiency by polymer flood further expands the understanding of its oil-displacing mechanism. Effective fit-for-purpose reservoir management measures during life-cycle polymer flood process provide experiences and lessons learned.
Active Control and Measurement of Oil Vapor Pressure to Reduce Emissions and Increase Oil Volumes
Authors: Malone Ryan , Sarcletti Anthony , Baaren Sander
Published: September 2022

Facility optimization and control using continuous measurement of oil vapor pressure allows the oil and gas producer to reduce facility flaring and emissions while increasing oil production. By preventing over processing of oil, through vapor pressure process control of the facilty oil heaters, the producer sells more stabilized oil in the liquid phase instead of compressing or flaring in the vapor phase.

The novel vapor pressure monitoring and emission control system is installed on new or existing facilities and utilizes existing pressure and temperature instrumentation with added supplemental wireless instrumentation as necessary. The pressure and temperature process data arer outed to a proprietary process simulation algorithm which continuously calculates the oil vapor pressure and compares the result to the operator's allowable facility output oil vapor pressure. The system additionally provides the required facility output oil temperature and sends a process control signal to the facility conditioning equipment, such as heater treaters or oil coolers, and maintains a consistent, full-time traceable facility output oil vapor pressure.

The benefits of this oil vapor pressure control system include higher profitability and return on investment from higher oil sales volume, substantial reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, substantial reduction in tank venting and facility flaring, elimination of capital cost for vapor recovery towers, reduction in capital cost and operating cost for vapor recovery compression, reduction in fuel gas cost from heater treater burner optimization and control, and vapor pressure alarms provide immediate notification of operational upsets.

A six-month North Dakota Bakken case study is presented showing field data and performance across summer and winter operation at a 5,000 - 6,000 barrel of oil per day facility. The oil vapor pressure monitoring and control system provided a 55% reduction in low pressure flaring, increased the oil sales volume approximately 1%, and avoided 2,240 metric tons of green house gas emissions over a 6-month period.
Impact of Tailored Plunger Lift Solution on Unconventional Well – Middle East Case
Authors: Morillo Moraima D. , Machado Humberto J.
Published: September 2022

Plunger Lift systems (PLS) have been proven to be successful for decades in North America and extended into traditionally lower productivity well areas. As well production declines and the flowing bottomhole production increases, the velocity required to remove the accumulated liquids from the wellbore falls below critical velocity, therefore requiring the application of a deliquification method. This project aimed to study an unconventional well for plunger lift solution with challenging mechanical conditions and harsh downhole environment.

In unconventional areas, selecting the proper Artificial Lift System (ALS) needed to produce huge gas reserves comes with technical challenges. A field case study is provided to review the selected horizontal well for a plunger lift solution with mechanical ID restriction in a currently ongoing full field development for an unconventional reservoir in Middle East. For the operating company, the original plan was to operate it with rod lift system. However, when the liquid production is not too large (<200 Bbl/d) and there is sufficient gas volume and pressure, plunger lift should be evaluated first, therefore postponing the rod lift installation.

This paper will describe the process and results of installing a Tapered Progressive Plunger Lift (TPPL) solution in a horizontal with 5,000-ft lateral and downhole temperatures around 300°F. The existing completion design included a casing size reduced from 5-1/2″ to 4-1/2″ and subsequently designed with a reduced tubing string size as well, from 2-7/8″ to 2-3/8″, representing a mechanical restriction of the Internal Diameter (ID) profile. The tailored plunger lift solution was implemented allowing the packered well with a tapered tubing string design to unload liquids in the wellbore without having to pull the tubing. This was accomplished by adapting the PL installation with a tapered Intermediate landing assembly seating at the tubing crossover. This arrangement not only help counteracted the liquid accumulation of each tubing section but also extended the life of the well by minimizing the condensate to oil ratio and water to oil ratio. A secondary benefit was to fine tune the material selection of the downhole equipment for the harsh reservoir environment. The approach used to enable the adequate selection of the ALS will be described by detailing benefits and results of the TPPL application that have efficiently and economically added value to the unconventional well.

In a long-term perspective, the implementation of the Tailored Plunger Lift Solutions can adapt successfully to other wells within the area where these types of completions are commonly use thus helping the full development of green unconventional fields.
A non-entropy based optimal multilevel threshold selection technique forCOVID-19 X-ray images using chance based birds’ intelligence
Authors: Das Gyanesh , Swain Monorama , Panda Rutuparna , Naik Manoj K , Agrawal Sanjay
Published: September 2022

Recently, image thresholding methods based on various entropy functions have been found popularity. Nonetheless, entropic based methods depend on the spatial distribution of the grey level values in an image. Hence, the accuracy of these methods is limited due to the non-uniform distribution of the grey values. Further, the analysis of the COVID-19 X-ray images is evolved as an important area of research. Therefore, it is needed to develop an efficient method for the segmentation of the COVID-19 X-ray images. To address these issues, an efficient non-entropy based thresholding method is suggested. A novel fitness function in terms of the segmentation score (SS) is introduced, which is used to reduce the segmentation error. A soft computing approach is suggested. An efficient optimizer using the chance based birds’ intelligence is introduced to maximize the fitness values. The new optimizer is validated utilizing the benchmark test functions. The statistical parameters reveal that the suggested optimizer is efficient. It shows a quite significant improvement over its counterparts – optimization based on seagull/cuckoo birds. The paper also proposes a SS maximization-based optimal multilevel threshold selection technique called SS-SGCS. Precisely, the paper includes three novel contributions – i) fitness function, ii) chance based birds’ intelligence for optimization, iii) multiclass segmentation. The COVID-19 X-ray images are taken from the Kaggle Radiography database, to the experiment. Its results are compared with three different state-of-the-art entropy based techniques – Tsallis, Kapur’s, and Masi. For providing a statistical analysis, Friedman’s mean rank test is conducted and our method Ranked one. Its superiority is claimed in terms of PSNR, FSIM and SSIM. On the whole, an improvement of about 11% in PSNR values is achieved using our proposed method. This method would be helpful for medical image analysis.
Analysis on Resource Allocation at Edge using Federated Fuzzy Learning with Artificial Neural Network
Authors: K Praghash , N Yuvaraj , T Karthikeyan , Raja Arshath , Peter Geno , S Karthick , Stonier Albert Alexander
Published: September 2022

In recent times, edge computing offers new solutions to support intelligent decision making for better allocation of the resources. However, most of the distributed computing services fails in overcoming the bottleneck of the network in the form of complex memory computation and communication cost between the edge devices/edge nodes/cloud centers. To mitigate such challenges, it is essential to distribute the workload such that the issues associated with complex memory computations and communication cost can be eliminated further. The main objective of the work is to reduce the cost of storage and computations in cloud associated with neural networks as the computational complexity increases with increased number of hidden layers. Hence, the study designs a distributed modelling to make optimal decision making on resource allocation in unreliable or slow neworks, where edge node plays a major role in reducing the network constraints. In this paper, Federated Fuzzy Learning is modified to operate as a distributed Machine Learning model with distributed resource allocation settings. It ascends the ability to get trained with available data and allocates optimal workload based on the constrained resources available, slow network connection and increased number of edge devices. The optimization of workload prediction w.r.t to the resource allocation is effectively communicated via edge nodes from the cloud centers. The edge devices and edge nodes are allowed independently to update the current network status to the cloud center i.e. local data is updated frequently to compute the global data. The simulation shows that the distributed computing using Federated Fuzzy Learning with Artificial Neural Network algorithm as its base algorithm shows effective resource management and allocation than conventional methods. Extensive computation shows increased scalability, effectiveness and network performance in edge computing platform.
Novel Formulation and Evaluation of Poly Herbal Mosquito Repellent
Authors: Gupta Deepak Kumar , Gupta Revathi , Tiwari Akhilesh
Published: September 2022

Aromatic plants produce chemicals that they use to resist phytophagous attacks Mosquito with various pathways, such as repellents, protective eating, metabolites and development Controllers etc. Now, present-day conditions result in the burgeoning need for natural mosquito repellents that would have cheap, reliable, non-toxic, environmentally safe, and biodegradable attributes. Driven by the global need to move forward, mosquito repellent candle and Mosquito repellent gel formulation based on carbopol 934 was prepared from the Origanum Majorana, Tanacetum Cinerarifolium, Juniperus Communis, Scented Geranium, Thuja Occidentalis L., Tecoma Stans (L.), Artenmisia Arborescent, And Calamintha Acinos and They are further tested for their size, pH, viscosity, spread ability, extrudability, swelling index and accelerated tests. The prepared candle was tested for flammability and was burnt Performance with respect to burning time and consequently its efficacy Spotting operation. Candle in flammability check was performed to Checks its consistent laboratory combustibility. Basic Therefore, on performance, the time taken to light the candle and its Causal symptoms such as pain, coughing has been reported and recorded in identified mosquitoes vulnerable at night and in the field above. Throughout many developed countries, where most residents have little exposure to mosquito net, high-cost mosquito repellent creams, and miscellaneous physical approaches, this formulation of gel may be an efficient, affordable, and easily accessible way to deter mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue, etc. in the lower parts of society.
Effects of a one-week vacation with various activity programs on well-being, heart rate variability, and sleep quality in healthy vacationers - an open comparative study
Authors: Hübner Markus , Lechleitner Peter , Neumayr Günther
Published: September 2022

Objectives: This open comparative study aimed to analyze the effects of a one-week vacation with various activity programs on well-being, heart rate variability (HRV) and sleep quality in healthy vacationers.
Methods: 52 healthy untrained vacationers spent a one-week vacation with regular exercise in East Tyrol. Exercise was performed on six of seven days. The study participants were divided into a) Group 1, playing golf (G), and b) Group 2 performing Nordic walking or e-biking (NW&EB). Well-being was measured with the WHO-5 well-being-index; stress and recovery status was obtained with the EBF-24-questionnaire (recovery-stress questionnaire). HRV-parameters were measured with a 24-hour-ECG (electrocardiogram). Sleep quality was derived from the EBF-24 questionnaire and sleep architecture from HRV-analysis. Examinations were performed one day before and after the vacation.
Results:Well-being significantly improved in the G group (+40%, p < 0.001) and NW&EB group (+19%, p = 0.019). The stress and recovery profile also improved significantly in both groups (stress-decrease: -43.7% G group; -44.7% NW&EB group; recovery-increase: +23.6% G group; +21.5% NW&EB group). Except for the SDNN (standard deviation of the NN interval), no significant change was noted in HRV-parameters. SDNN improved significantly only in the NW&EB group (+9%, p < 0.05). Sleep quality (+21% G group, p = 0.029; +19% NW&EB group, p = 0.007) and architecture (-10% G group, p = 0.034; -23% NW&EB group, p = 0.012) significantly improved in both groups.
Conclusion: A short-term vacation with regular exercise was well tolerated by the study participants and improved well-being, sleep quality, HRV and autonomic regulation.
Trial registration: Registry and the registration no. of the study/trial: Approval was received from the ethics committee of the Leopold Franzens University of Innsbruck (AN2013-0059 332/4.8)
First insight into microplastic groundwater pollution in Latin America: the case of a coastal aquifer in Northwest Mexico
Authors: Alvarado-Zambrano Daniela , Rivera-Hernández José R. , Green-Ruiz Carlos
Published: September 2022

Microplastics have been studied on biota and other environmental domains, such as soils. Despite the importance of groundwater as a resource for millions of people worldwide as drinking water and personal hygiene, domestic, agricultural, mining, and industrial purposes, there are very few studies concerning MPs in this domain around the world. We present the first study in Latin America addressing this topic. Six capped boreholes were analyzed in terms of abundance, concentration, and chemical characterization, at three different depths, from a coastal aquifer in Northwest Mexico. This aquifer is highly permeable and affected by anthropogenic activities. A total of 221 MPs were found in the eighteen samples. In terms of concentration, the interval ranged from 4 to 29 particles/L, with an average of 12.3 particles/L. Four synthetic polymers were identified: isotactic polypropylene (iPP), hydroxyethylcellulose (HEC), carboxylated polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and low-density polyethylene (LDPE); with iPP being the most abundant (64.3%) in each borehole. Agriculture activities and septic outflows are considered the potential regional sources of these contaminants into the aquifer. Three possible transport pathways to the aquifer are suggested: (1) marine intrusion, (2) marsh intrusion, and (3) infiltration through the soil. More research about the occurrence, concentration, and distribution of the different kinds of MPs in groundwater is needed to have a better understanding of the behavior and health risks to organisms, including human beings.
Trans-ancestral genome-wide association studies of brain imaging phenotypes
Authors: Yu Chunshui , Fu Jilian , Zhang Quan , Wang Jianhua , Wang Meiyun , Zhang Bing , Zhu Wenzhen , Qiu Shijun , Geng Zuojun , Cui Guangbin , Yu Yongqiang , Liao Weihua , Zhang Hui , Gao Bo , Xu Xiaojun , Han Tong , Yao Zhengwei , Qin Wen , Liu Feng , Liang Meng , Wang Sijia , Xu Qiang , Xu Jiayuan , Zhang Peng , Li Wei , Shi Dapeng , Wang Caihong , Lui Su , Yan Zhihan , Chen Feng , Zhang Jing , Li Jiance , Shen Wen , Miao Yanwei , Wang Dawei , Xian Junfang , Gao Jia-Hong , Zhang Xiaochu , Xu Kai , Zuo Xi-Nian , Zhang Long Jiang , Ye Zhaoxiang , Chen Jingliang , Li Mulin Jun
Published: September 2022

Genome-wide association studies of brain imaging phenotypes are mainly performed in European populations, but other populations are severely under-represented. Here, we conducted Chinese-alone and trans-ancestral genome-wide association studies of 3,414 brain imaging phenotypes in 7,058 Chinese and 33,224 European individuals. We identified 37 novel variant-phenotype associations in Chinese-alone analyses and 459 additional novel associations in trans-ancestral meta-analyses under the thresholds of P < 1.46 × 10− 11 for discovery and P < 0.05 for replication. We pooled genome-wide significant associations for brain imaging phenotypes identified in either single-ancestral or trans-ancestral analyses into 6,361 independent significant associations. These associations were unevenly distributed in the genome and across the brain phenotypic subgroups and demonstrated significant enrichment for nervous system development and signal transduction. We further categorized the 4,890 pooled genome-wide significant associations whose index variants were included in both Chinese and European analyses into 43 ancestry-specific and 3,524 ancestry-shared associations. Loci of the 6,361 pooled genome-wide significant associations for brain imaging phenotypes were shared by 16 brain-related non-imaging traits including cognition, personality, risk behavior, addiction, and neuropsychiatric disorders. Our results provide a valuable catalog of genetic associations for brain imaging phenotypes in diverse populations.
Revised calculation of the coefficient of parentage in plant breeding
Authors: Hernandez-Suarez Carlos , Montesinos-López Osval
Published: September 2022

The knowledge of the genetic similarity between two individuals has been useful for animal breeders for a long time, and one of the most common measures of similarity is the Coefficient of Parentage (COP). For two individuals X and Y, it is defined as the probability that an allele taken from a particular locus in individual X is equal by descent to another allele taken from the same locus in individual Y, thus, the COP between two individuals is the same as the expected inbreeding of their offspring, and it is now a routine calculation among plant breeders as part of crop improvement programs. Nevertheless, plant breeders deal with the genealogy between strains or groups of individuals, and here we provide a mathematical proof that in this case the application of standard formulae replicated from animal breeding may result in overestimation of the true amount of inbreeding between two strains.
Enhancing the Protection of Influenza Virus Vaccines with BECC TLR4 Adjuvant in Aged Mice
Authors: Frieman Matthew , Haupt Robert , Baracco Lauren , Harberts Erin , Loganathan Madhumathi , Kerstetter Lucas , Krammer Florian , Coughlan Lynda , Ernst Robert
Published: September 2022

Influenza A virus (IAV) is a leading cause of respiratory disease worldwide often resulting in severe morbidity and mortality. We have previously shown that the Bacterial Enzymatic Combinatorial Chemistry (BECC) adjuvants, BECC438 and BECC470, formulated with an influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) protein vaccine, offer greater protection from influenza virus challenge in mouse respiratory models using adult mice than standard HA:adjuvant combinations. In this study, we determined that immunization with HA+BECC adjuvants also significantly broadened the epitopes targeted on HA as compared with other adjuvants, resulting in increased titers of antibodies directed against the highly conserved HA stalk domain. Importantly, we demonstrate that BECC470 combined with an influenza virus HA protein antigen in a prime-only immunization regimen was able to achieve complete protection from challenge in a ~12-month-old mouse aged model.
Together, this demonstrates the heightened protection provided by the BECC470 adjuvant in an influenza virus vaccine model and shows the enhanced immune response, as compared to other adjuvants elicited by the formulation of HA with BECC470.
Comparison of clinical outcomes of stoma reversal during versus after chemotherapy for rectal cancer patients
Authors: Tsai Kun-Yu , You Jeng-Fu , Huang Shu-Huan , Tsai Tzong-yun , Hsieh Pao-Shiu , Lai Cheng-Chou , Tsai Wen-Sy , Hung Hsin-Yuan
Published: September 2022

Purpose:
The optimal timing of stoma closure during or after adjuvant chemotherapy for rectal cancer patients undergoing sphincter-preserving surgery remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the influence of clinical and oncological outcomes depending on the timing of stoma closure.
Methods:
Between January 2006 and December 2015, we enrolled 244 consecutive rectal cancer patients who underwent curative-intent sphincter-preserving surgery with diverting colostomy and adjuvant chemotherapy. Patients with stoma closure during (During group) adjuvant chemotherapy were compared to those who had stoma closure after adjuvant chemotherapy (After group).
Results:
Parastomal hernia occurred more frequently in the after group than in the during group. (10% vs. 2.9%, p = 0.028). Overall, no significant difference was observed in overall survival (OS) or disease-free survival (DFS) between the two groups (p = 0.911 for OS, p = 0.505 for DFS). However, an inferior OS occurred if reopen surgery was performed within 30 days of stoma closure in the during group, as compared with the after group (p = 0.004). In addition, a marginally poor DFS was observed in the group of patients who received further operations due to 30-day stoma closure complications compared to the other patients (p = 0.07).
Conclusions:
For rectal cancer patients who underwent sphincter-preserving surgery, attention should be given to avoid 30-day major complications after stoma reversal because patients who require reoperation during adjuvant chemotherapy may have poor long-term survival.
A New and Advanced Method for Cloud Data Security
Authors: Gaur Mayanka , Jailia Manisha
Published: September 2022

We are introducing and implementing a novel method for cloud data security in this paper. In this novel method, five arithmetic operations which are basic (i.e. Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division and Modulo) are performed on ASCII digits of every cover text character and these values which are newly generated are used for encryption of plain text parallelly. These each new generated values and two plain text characters in ASCII code will be encrypted in parallel way from beginning and from end of plain text. One cover text character hides at most ten plain text characters in our proposed approach. Since only one cover text character is used therefore less memory is required for storing cover text on cloud storage. Since we are using basic arithmetic operations therefore execution time is reduced and due to our parallelism approach, performance of overall system is enhanced.
Information Services of Users of RUTM Unmanned Traffic Control System
Authors: Danzyuryun Buyan , Krotov Kirill
Published: September 2022

The priority task of the development of unmanned aviation is to create conditions for flight safety, which is impossible without the use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flight control system. One of such systems is the Russian unmanned aircraft system traffic management (RUTM), an important part of which is the flight service support system. Based on the analysis of typical actions of users of RUTM system, the article formulates the requirements for their user interfaces and provides a list of necessary services. The issues of organizing the operation of these services based on the database of aeronautical information (AI) intended for storage, processing and provision of up-to-date information to users of the system are also considered. The size of such a base largely depends on the choice of a system of spatial coordinates, with the help of which objects on the map are associated with real objects on the ground. The analysis of existing coordinate systems showed that for the database under consideration, the best option is to store AI in World Geodetic System (WGS) WGS 84 geographic coordinate system. At the same time, the provision to the end user is carried out after recalculating it into the appropriate projection, depending on the requirements for the nature of the distortions. When displaying AI on 3D map, it is proposed to use a cube or an octahedron as a base polyhedron, and a projection of a sphere onto an octahedron as a projection, which makes it possible to halve the redundancy of the initial AI.