bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pathology of Urinary Bladder in Pearsonema spp. Infected Wildlife from Central Italy
Authors: Eleni Claudia , Mariacher Alessia , Grifoni Goffredo , Cardini Elena , Tonon Sara , Lombardo Andrea , Barone Antonino , Fichi Gianluca
Published: April 2021

The genus Pearsonema, in the nematode family Capillariidae, includes several species that parasitize the urinary bladders of wild and domestic carnivores. The infection has been reported worldwide from several wildlife species, including canids, mustelids, and felids, but the pathological aspects have seldom been investigated. In order to assess the presence and severity of the lesions in Pearsonema-infected wildlife, we performed a parasitological and pathological examination of urinary bladders from 72 animals, belonging to the families Canidae (red fox Vulpes vulpes, n = 28, and wolf Canis lupus, n = 29) and Mustelidae (beech marten Martes foina, n = 3; pine marten Martes martes, n = 2; and European badger Meles meles, n = 10). A greater prevalence of infection for canids (64.91%; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 52.52–77.30%) than for mustelids (13.33%) (p < 0.001) was recorded. The prevalence of infection in red foxes was 75.0% (95% CI, 58.96–91.04%), in accordance with other reports from European countries, supporting the role of this species as a reservoir for infection. Eosinophilic cystitis was observed in 34 out of the 72 examined animals (47.22%). The influence of Pearsonema sp. infection on the occurrence of eosinophilic cystitis was statistically significant in wolves (p < 0.01), which were also affected by more severe histological lesions compared to foxes.
Medication Experiences
Authors: Schommer Jon C.
Published: April 2021

Welcome to the “Medication Experiences” Special Issue in the journal—Pharmacy—an open access journal focused on pharmacy education and practice [...]
AI Ethics and Value Alignment for Nonhuman Animals
Authors: Ziesche Soenke
Published: April 2021

This article is about a specific, but so far neglected peril of AI, which is that AI systems may become existential as well as causing suffering risks for nonhuman animals. The AI value alignment problem has now been acknowledged as critical for AI safety as well as very hard. However, currently it has only been attempted to align the values of AI systems with human values. It is argued here that this ought to be extended to the values of nonhuman animals since it would be speciesism not to do so. The article focuses on the two subproblems—value extraction and value aggregation—discusses challenges for the integration of values of nonhuman animals and explores approaches to how AI systems could address them.
Femtosecond Laser Fabrication of Hybrid Metal-Dielectric Structures with Nonlinear Photoluminescence
Authors: Ponkratova Ekaterina , Ageev Eduard , Komissarenko Filipp , Koromyslov Sergei , Kudryashov Dmitry , Mukhin Ivan , Veiko Vadim , Kuchmizhak Aleksandr , Zuev Dmitry
Published: April 2021

Fabrication of hybrid micro- and nanostructures with a strong nonlinear response is challenging and represents a great interest due to a wide range of photonic applications. Usually, such structures are produced by quite complicated and time-consuming techniques. This work demonstrates laser-induced hybrid metal-dielectric structures with strong nonlinear properties obtained by a single-step fabrication process. We determine the influence of several incident femtosecond pulses on the Au/Si bi-layer film on produced structure morphology. The created hybrid systems represent isolated nanoparticles with a height of 250–500 nm exceeding the total thickness of the Au-Si bi-layer. It is shown that fabricated hybrid nanostructures demonstrate enhancement of the SHG signal (up to two orders of magnitude) compared to the initial planar sample and a broadband photoluminescence signal (more than 200 nm in width) in the visible spectral region. We establish the correlation between nonlinear signal and phase composition provided by Raman scattering measurements. Such laser-induced structures have significant potential in optical sensing applications and can be used as components for different nanophotonic devices.
Novel Broadband Slot-Spiral Antenna for Terahertz Applications
Authors: Huang Zhen , Li Zhaofeng , Dong Hui , Yang Fuhua , Yan Wei , Wang Xiaodong
Published: April 2021

We report a novel broadband slot-spiral antenna that can be integrated with high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) terahertz (THz) detectors. The effect of various antenna parameters on the transmission efficiency of the slot-spiral structure at 150–450 GHz is investigated systematically. The performances of the slot-spiral antenna and the spiral antenna both integrated with HEMTs are compared. The results show that the slot-spiral structure has a better transmission and miniaturization capability than the spiral structure. A formula for the responsivity is derived based on the transmission line principle and antenna theory, and results show that the detector responsivity is correlated with the antenna absorptivity. Additionally, guidelines for HEMT THz detector design are proposed. The results of this study indicate the excellent application prospects of the slot-spiral antenna in THz detection and imaging.
Berry Quality and Anthocyanin Content of ‘Consort’ Black Currants Grown under Artificial Shade
Authors: Wolske Eric , Chatham Laura , Juvik John , Branham Bruce
Published: April 2021

The effect of artificial shade on berry quality parameters for the field-grown black currant cultivar ‘Consort’ were investigated over two growing seasons in Urbana, Illinois. Four shade treatments reduced photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) from 37 to 83%. Shade had no effect on soluble solids in up to 65% PAR reduction but decreased 11% in 83% shade in one of two years. Shade increased titratable acidity up to 23% in both years. The effect of shade on anthocyanin content revealed greater variation between years than treatments. Shade influence on anthocyanin content was only observed in 2017, when cyanidin derivatives decreased 13–14% from open-sun to 83% shade. Shade did not affect delphinidin derivatives in either year. Environmental factors other than artificial shade may impact black currant berry quality in an understory environment. The results of our study indicate that black currants can maintain berry quality with PAR reductions up to 65%, but some berry quality parameters may decrease when PAR reductions exceed 65% of full sun.
Silicon Enhances Plant Resistance of Rice against Submergence Stress
Authors: Pan Taowen , Zhang Jian , He Lanmengqi , Hafeez Abdul , Ning Chuanchuan , Cai Kunzheng
Published: April 2021

Flooding is an important natural disaster limiting rice production. Silicon (Si) has been shown to have an important role in alleviating varied environmental stress. However, very few studies have investigated the effects and mechanisms of Si in alleviating flood stress in rice. In the present study, wild type rice (cv. Oochikara, WT) and Si-defective mutant (lsi1) were chosen to examine the impacts of Si application on plant growth, photosynthesis, cell structure, and antioxidant enzyme activity of rice exposed to submergence stress at tillering stage. Our results showed that Si application improved root morphological traits, and increased Si uptake and plant biomass of WT under submergence stress, but non-significantly influenced lsi1 mutant. Under submergence stress, leaf photosynthesis of WT was significantly inhibited, and Si application had no significant effects on photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, and intercellular carbon dioxide concentration for both of WT and lsi1 mutant, but the photochemical quenching of WT was increased and the integrity of cell structure was improved. In addition, Si application significantly reduced malondialdehyde concentration and increased the activity of peroxidase and catalase in WT leaves under submergence stress. These results suggested that Si could increase rice plant resistance against submergence stress by improving root morphological traits and chloroplast ultrastructure and enhancing antioxidant defense.
The Influences of 1-Butyl-3-Methylimidazolium Tetrafluoroborate on Electrochemical, Thermal and Structural Studies as Ionic Liquid Gel Polymer Electrolyte
Authors: Dzulkipli Mariah Zuliana , Karim Jamilah , Ahmad Azizan , Dzulkurnain Nurul Akmaliah , Su’ait Mohd Sukor , Yoshizawa-Fujita Masahiro , Tian Khoon Lee , Hassan Nur Hasyareeda
Published: April 2021

After decades of development, ionic liquid gel polymer electrolytes (ILGPEs) are currently experiencing a renaissance as a promising electrolyte to be used in electrochemical devices. Their inherent tendency towards poor electrochemical properties have limited their applications and commercialization activities. Henceforth, gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) is being introduced to alleviate the abovementioned issues. In this work, the assessment of the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [BMIM][BF4] in poly (vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) to form ILGPE was done. The relationship of [BMIM][BF4] towards the dielectric properties at different wt. % ratios and temperature was ascertained. The results indicated that [BMIM]BF4 is able to facilitate fast conduction. Moreover, it was found that [BMIM][BF4] could serve as an effective agent in reducing crystallinity and glass transition temperature of the polymer and thus enhanced the ionic conductivity of the samples. Notwithstanding, the ILGPE sample possessed a high thermal stability up to 300 °C and good electrochemical stability of 4.2 V which are beneficial for operation in electrochemical devices. All in all, the correlation between the ionic liquid chemistry and electrochemical performances could provide a valuable insight to rational selection and design for ILGPE electrolytes.
Citrus Pomace Biomass as a Source of Pectin and Lignocellulose Fibers: From Waste to Upgraded Biocomposites for Mulching Applications
Authors: Zannini Domenico , Dal Poggetto Giovanni , Malinconico Mario , Santagata Gabriella , Immirzi Barbara
Published: April 2021

Citrus pomace derived from the industrial processing of juice and essential oils mostly consists of pectin, cellulose, hemicellulose, and simple sugars. In this work, citrus pomace waste from an agricultural company in South Italy was used as source of pectin. The extraction conditions of the polysaccharide were optimized using a suitable combination of time and a concentration of a mild organic solvent, such as acetic acid; thus recovering high Mw pectin and bioactive molecules (flavonoids and polyphenols). The pectin was structurally (GPC, FTIR), morphologically (SEM), thermally (TGA/DTG), and mechanically characterized, while bioactive molecules were separated and the total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoids content (TFC) were evaluated. With the aim to develop novel biocomposite-based materials, the pectin extracted from citrus waste was reinforced with different amounts of lignocellulose fractions also recovered from citrus waste after polysaccharide extraction, according to a “zero waste” circular economy approach. The prepared biocomposites were morphologically and mechanically characterized to be used as biodegradable mulching systems for crop protection. Thus, the citrus waste biomass was recovered, fractionated into its main raw materials, and these were recombined to develop novel upgraded biocomposites for mulching applications, by means of a cost-effective and eco-sustainable approach.
Anaerobic Degradation of Individual Components from 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural Process-Wastewater in Continuously Operated Fixed Bed Reactors
Authors: Khan Muhammad Tahir , Krümpel Johannes , Wüst Dominik , Lemmer Andreas
Published: April 2021

Production of bio-based materials in biorefineries is coupled with the generation of organic-rich process-wastewater that requires further management. Anaerobic technologies can be employed as a tool for the rectification of such hazardous by-products. Therefore, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural process-wastewater and its components were investigated for their biodegradability in a continuous anaerobic process. The test components included 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, furfural, levulinic acid, and the full process-wastewater. Each component was injected individually into a continuously operating anaerobic filter at a concentration of 0.5 gCOD. On the basis of large discrepancies within the replicates for each component, we classified their degradation into the categories of “delayed”, “retarded”, and “inhibitory”. Inhibitory represented the replicates for all the test components that hampered the process. For the retarded degradation, their mean methane yield per 0.5 gCOD was between 21.31 ± 13.04 mL and 28.98 ± 25.38 mL. Delayed digestion was considered adequate for further assessments in which the order of conversion to methane according to specific methane yield for each component from highest to lowest was as follows: levulinic acid > furfural > 5-hydroxymethylfurfural > process-wastewater. Disparities and inconsistencies in the degradation of process-wastewater and its components can compromise process stability as a whole. Hence, the provision of energy with such feedstock is questionable.
Performance of Commercially Open Refrigerated Showcases with and without Ice Storage—A Case Study
Authors: Yang Kai-Shing , Chao Yun-Sheng , Hsieh Chia-Hsing , Chai Min-Lun , Wang Chi-Chuan
Published: April 2021

This study examines the applicability of the ice storage systems in the small commercial refrigerated showcases through experimental analysis. R-404A is used as the working fluid and various influence of parameter settings and improvements, are discussed in details. In the ice storage system, the condenser is changed from air-cooling (refrigeration mode) to an immersion type that is placed in an ice storage tank, the corresponding condensing temperature and pressure are reduced appreciably. This increased the efficiency and can effectively reduce the peak power consumption. The reduction of the condensing temperature and pressure increased the coefficient of performance (COP) from 3.6 (refrigeration mode) to 6.35 (melting mode), effectively enhancing the refrigeration efficiency. The results indicated that the ice storage system could effectively increase the coefficient of performance from 3.6 to 6.35 during ice melting when compared to the conventional refrigeration system. It also can shift approximately 35% of the power during peak hours and lower the energy cost by USD$ 17.13 per month.
A Multimodal Approach to Improve Performance Evaluation of Call Center Agent
Authors: Ahmed Abdelrahman , Shaalan Khaled , Toral Sergio , Hifny Yasser
Published: April 2021

The paper proposes three modeling techniques to improve the performance evaluation of the call center agent. The first technique is speech processing supported by an attention layer for the agent’s recorded calls. The speech comprises 65 features for the ultimate determination of the context of the call using the Open-Smile toolkit. The second technique uses the Max Weights Similarity (MWS) approach instead of the Softmax function in the attention layer to improve the classification accuracy. MWS function replaces the Softmax function for fine-tuning the output of the attention layer for processing text. It is formed by determining the similarity in the distance of input weights of the attention layer to the weights of the max vectors. The third technique combines the agent’s recorded call speech with the corresponding transcribed text for binary classification. The speech modeling and text modeling are based on combinations of the Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and Bi-directional Long-Short Term Memory (BiLSTMs). In this paper, the classification results for each model (text versus speech) are proposed and compared with the multimodal approach’s results. The multimodal classification provided an improvement of (0.22%) compared with acoustic model and (1.7%) compared with text model.
Transmissive Single-Pixel Microscopic Imaging through Scattering Media
Authors: Deng Huaxia , Wang Guan , Li Qiang , Sun Qianzhen , Ma Mengchao , Zhong Xiang
Published: April 2021

Microscopic imaging is of great significance for medical diagnosis. However, due to the strong scattering and absorption of tissue, the implementation of non-invasive microscopic imaging is very difficult. Traditional single-pixel microscopes, based on reflective optical systems, provide an alternative solution for scattering media imaging. Here, the single-pixel microscope with transmissive liquid crystal modulation is proposed. The microscopic ability of the proposed microscope is calibrated. The multi-spectral microscopic imaging of the object is demonstrated. The transmissive imaging of the object behind the scattering media is analyzed. The proposed prototype of the transmissive single-pixel microscope is expected to be applied in microscopic imaging through scattering media and medical imaging.
SPARE: A Spectral Peak Recovery Algorithm for PPG Signals Pulsewave Reconstruction in Multimodal Wearable Devices
Authors: Masinelli Giulio , Dell’Agnola Fabio , Valdés Adriana Arza , Atienza David
Published: April 2021

The photoplethysmographic (PPG) signal is an unobtrusive blood pulsewave measure that has recently gained popularity in the context of the Internet of Things. Even though it is commonly used for heart rate detection, it has been lately employed on multimodal health and wellness monitoring applications. Unfortunately, this signal is prone to motion artifacts, making it almost useless in all situations where a person is not entirely at rest. To overcome this issue, we propose SPARE, a spectral peak recovery algorithm for PPG signals pulsewave reconstruction. Our solution exploits the local semiperiodicity of the pulsewave signal, together with the information about the cardiac rhythm provided by an available simultaneous ECG, to reconstruct its full waveform, even when affected by strong artifacts. The developed algorithm builds on state-of-the-art signal decomposition methods, and integrates novel techniques for signal reconstruction. Experimental results are reported both in the case of PPG signals acquired during physical activity and at rest, but corrupted in a systematic way by synthetic noise. The full PPG waveform reconstruction enables the identification of several health-related features from the signal, showing an improvement of up to 65% in the detection of different biomarkers from PPG signals affected by noise.
Wireless Sensor Networks Using Sub-Pixel Optical Camera Communications: Advances in Experimental Channel Evaluation
Authors: Matus Vicente , Guerra Victor , Jurado-Verdu Cristo , Zvanovec Stanislav , Perez-Jimenez Rafael
Published: April 2021

Optical wireless communications in outdoor scenarios are challenged by uncontrollable atmospheric conditions that impair the channel quality. In this paper, different optical camera communications (OCC) equipment are experimentally studied in the laboratory and the field, and a sub-pixel architecture is raised as a potential solution for outdoor wireless sensor networks (WSN) applications, considering its achievable data throughput, the spatial division of sources, and the ability of cameras to overcome the attenuation caused by different atmospheric conditions such as rain, turbulence and the presence of aerosols. Sub-pixel OCC shows particularly adequate capabilities for some of the WSN applications presented, also in terms of cost-effectiveness and scalability. The novel topology of sub-pixel projection of multiple transmitters over the receiver using small optical devices is presented as a solution using OCC that re-uses camera equipment for communication purposes on top of video-monitoring.
Viscosity Measurement Sensor: A Prototype for a Novel Medical Diagnostic Method Based on Quartz Crystal Resonator
Authors: Miranda-Martínez Andrés , Rivera-González Marco Xavier , Zeinoun Michael , Carvajal-Ahumada Luis Armando , Serrano-Olmedo José Javier
Published: April 2021

Viscosity variation in human fluids, such as Synovial Fluid (SF) or Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF), can be used as a diagnostic factor; however, the sample volume obtained for analysis is usually small, making it difficult to measure its viscosity. On the other hand, Quartz Crystal Resonators (QCR) have been used widely in sensing applications due to their accuracy, cost, and size. This work provides the design and validation of a new viscosity measurement system based on quartz crystal resonators for low volume fluids, leading to the development of a sensor called “ViSQCT” as a prototype for a new medical diagnostic tool. The proposed method is based on measuring the resonance frequency at the crystal’s maximum conductance point through a frequency sweep, where crystals with 10 MHz fundamental resonance frequency were used. For validation purposes, artificial fluids were developed to simulate SFs and CFs in healthy and pathological conditions as experiment phantoms. A commercial QCR based system was also used for validation since its methodology differs from ours. A conventional rotational viscometer was used as a reference for calibration purposes. ViSQCT demonstrates the capability to measure the sample’s viscosity differentiation between healthy and pathological fluid phantoms and shows that it can be used as a basis for a diagnostic method of several pathologies related to the studied biological fluids. However, some performance differences between both QCR-based systems compared to the reference system deserves further investigation.
On the Functional and Extra-Functional Properties of IMU Fusion Algorithms for Body-Worn Smart Sensors
Authors: Büscher Nils , Gis Daniel , Kühn Volker , Haubelt Christian
Published: April 2021

In this work, four sensor fusion algorithms for inertial measurement unit data to determine the orientation of a device are assessed regarding their usability in a hardware restricted environment such as body-worn sensor nodes. The assessment is done for both the functional and the extra-functional properties in the context of human operated devices. The four algorithms are implemented in three data formats: 32-bit floating-point, 32-bit fixed-point and 16-bit fixed-point and compared regarding code size, computational effort, and fusion quality. Code size and computational effort are evaluated on an ARM Cortex M0+. For the assessment of the functional properties, the sensor fusion output is compared to a camera generated reference and analyzed in an extensive statistical analysis to determine how data format, algorithm, and human interaction influence the quality of the sensor fusion. Our experiments show that using fixed-point arithmetic can significantly decrease the computational complexity while still maintaining a high fusion quality and all four algorithms are applicable for applications with human interaction.
Structural Damage Classification in a Jacket-Type Wind-Turbine Foundation Using Principal Component Analysis and Extreme Gradient Boosting
Authors: Leon-Medina Jersson X. , Anaya Maribel , Parés Núria , Tibaduiza Diego A. , Pozo Francesc
Published: April 2021

Damage classification is an important topic in the development of structural health monitoring systems. When applied to wind-turbine foundations, it provides information about the state of the structure, helps in maintenance, and prevents catastrophic failures. A data-driven pattern-recognition methodology for structural damage classification was developed in this study. The proposed methodology involves several stages: (1) data acquisition, (2) data arrangement, (3) data normalization through the mean-centered unitary group-scaling method, (4) linear feature extraction, (5) classification using the extreme gradient boosting machine learning classifier, and (6) validation applying a 5-fold cross-validation technique. The linear feature extraction capabilities of principal component analysis are employed; the original data of 58,008 features is reduced to only 21 features. The methodology is validated with an experimental test performed in a small-scale wind-turbine foundation structure that simulates the perturbation effects caused by wind and marine waves by applying an unknown white noise signal excitation to the structure. A vibration-response methodology is selected for collecting accelerometer data from both the healthy structure and the structure subjected to four different damage scenarios. The datasets are satisfactorily classified, with performance measures over 99.9% after using the proposed damage classification methodology.
Factors Influencing Urban Livability in Seoul, Korea: Urban Environmental Satisfaction and Neighborhood Relations
Authors: Lee Kyung-Young
Published: April 2021

This study examines the correlations between urban environmental satisfaction, neighborhood relations, and livability. Previous studies on livability have insufficiently dealt with urban environments and neighborhood relations and have failed to conduct an integrated analysis that considers the causal relationships between these factors. To fill these knowledge gaps, this study includes urban environmental satisfaction and neighborhood relations as factors affecting livability. Moreover, this study verified the mediating effect of neighborhood relations between urban environmental satisfaction and livability. Online surveys were carried out with 750 residents in Seoul, South Korea, and the structural equation model (SEM) was employed. The results indicated that a higher level of urban environmental satisfaction affected livability positively. In particular, the accessibility had the greatest effect on livability. In addition, neighborhood relations had a mediating effect on the pleasantness and safety of urban environments. Today, many developing countries are undergoing rapid urbanization, as Seoul has experienced in the past. However, this can cause a number of simultaneous side effects, which lower livability. Furthermore, this leads to population decline which might hinder urban sustainability. Therefore, this study suggests important policy implications for achieving urban sustainability by improving livability.
A Critical Review of Social Justice Theories in Public Transit Planning
Authors: Adli Saeid Nazari , Chowdhury Subeh
Published: April 2021

One of the most common areas in public transit planning that has been under investigation is the inclusion of “social justice”. In its simplest form, social justice demands more equitable access for all residents to resources that are provided by a city. However, public transit plans are typically guided by maximising tangible measures such as economic growth and efficiency. Concerns about discriminatory geographies which have led to low-income neighbourhoods with higher unemployment rates, social exclusion, lower political engagement, and participation in urban activities have brought attention to the re-assessment of transit planning. Limitations of the current methods and frameworks make it difficult to measure the outcomes of transit planning strategies and policies with respect to social justice, and to determine if the policies will produce a just transit system. This review provides a critical examination of transit policies in relation to social justice. It gives a summary of key transportation just theories, and their limitations in evaluating a transit system. A social justice framework, which incorporates just theories, is provided to assess a transit system’s accessibility for disadvantaged (low-income) population groups. The framework enhances the sustainable relationship between the accessibility a commuter requires and services provided by the transit system. The review concludes with knowledge gaps and directions for future research.
Report of the 1st International Electronic Conference on Toxins (IECT2021), 16–31 January 2021
Authors: Fox Jay W.
Published: April 2021

The 1st International Electronic Conference on Toxins (IECT2021) was successfully held online by https://sciforum [...]
Research Updates for Influenza Virus and Vaccine Development
Authors: Plant Ewan P. , Xie Hang
Published: April 2021

While the scientific community has been focusing on combating novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is responsible for the current COVID-19 pandemic, we also want to draw your attention to this Special Issue of Vaccines entitled “Influenza Virus and Vaccine Development” [...]
Distribution of Vascular Plant Communities in Slovenian Watercourses
Authors: Zelnik Igor , Kuhar Urška , Holcar Matej , Germ Mateja , Gaberščik Alenka
Published: April 2021

Rivers and streams are heterogenous ecosystems that host a great number of vascular plant communities. The territory of Slovenia is highly diverse regarding geomorphologic, geologic, climatic, and edaphic conditions. We presumed that environmental variability will also affect the distribution of hygrophilous vascular plants in running waters and consequently the structure of plant communities they form. We analyzed macrophyte, spatial, and environmental parameters in 906 stretches of the watercourses occurring in the Dinaric, Pannonian, and Po lowland hydro-ecoregions. We determined 87 vascular plant taxa. The most abundant were Myriophyllum spicatum, Phalaris arundinacea, and Potamogeton nodosus. Submerged macrophytes presented about one third of total species abundance, while amphiphytes were somewhat less abundant. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that distance from the source explained 15.1% of the growth form type variability, and current velocity and latitude explained 4.1% each. With the assessed parameters, we explained 31.6% of the variability. When CCA was run with taxa, only 20.9% of their variability was explained with statistically significant parameters. We distinguished 25 different plant associations belonging to five classes and nine alliances. The majority of defined plant communities were distributed in different watercourses belonging to different hydro-ecoregions. Only seven communities had a narrower distribution range, three of them on karst poljes. Among them, the new association Mentho aquaticae-Oenanthetum fistulosae from the river Mali Obrh on the Loško polje was described in this contribution.
Numerical Investigation on the Kinetic Characteristics of the Yigong Debris Flow in Tibet, China
Authors: Dai Zili , Xu Kai , Wang Fawu , Yang Hufeng , Qin Shiwei
Published: April 2021

To analyze the kinetic characteristics of a debris flow that occurred on 9 April 2000 in Tibet, China, a meshfree numerical method named smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) is introduced, and two-dimensional and three-dimensional models are established in this work. Based on the numerical simulation, the motion process of this debris flow is reproduced, and the kinetic characteristics are analyzed combining with the field investigation data. In the kinetic analysis, the flow velocity, runout distance, deposition, and energy features are discussed. Simulation results show that the debris flow mass undergoes an acceleration stage after failure, then the kinetic energy gradually dissipates due to the friction and collision during debris flow propagation. Finally, the debris flow mass blocks the Yigong river and forms a huge dam and an extensive barrier lake. The peak velocity is calculated to be about 100 m/s, and the runout distance is approximately 8000 m. The simulation results basically match the data measured in field, thus verifying the good performance of the presented SPH model. This approach can predict hazardous areas and estimate the hazard intensity of catastrophic debris flow.
Statistical Validation of MODIS-Based Sea Surface Temperature in Shallow Semi-Enclosed Marginal Sea: A Comparison between Direct Matchup and Triple Collocation
Authors: Saleh Ali K. , Al-Anzi Bader S.
Published: April 2021

Validating remotely sensed sea surface temperature (SST) is a fundamental step in establishing reliable biological/physical models that can be used in different marine applications. Mapping SST using accurate models would assess in understanding critical mechanisms of marine and coastal zones, such as water circulations and biotic activities. This study set out to validate MODIS SSTs with a spatial resolution of 1-km in the Arabian Gulf (24–30° N, 48–57° E) and to assess how well direct comparison of dual matchups and triple collocation analyses perform. For the matchup process, three data sets, MODIS-Aqua, MODIS-Terra, and iQuam, were co-located and extracted for 1-pixel box centered at each actual in situ measurement location with a time difference window restricted to a maximum of ±3 h of the satellite overpass. Over the period July 2002 to May 2020, the MODIS SSTs (N = 3786 triplets) exhibited a slight cool night-time bias compared to iQuam SSTs, with a mean ± SD of −0.36 ± 0.77 °C for Aqua and −0.27 ± 0.83 °C for Terra. Daytime MODIS SST observations (N = 5186 triplets) had a lower negative bias for both Aqua (Bias = −0.052 °C, SD = 0.93 °C) and Terra (Bias = −0.24 °C, SD = 0.90 °C). Using extended triple collocation analysis, the statistical validation of system- and model-based products against in situ-based product indicated the highest ETC-based determination coefficients (ρt,X2 ≥ 0.98) with the lowest error variances (σε2 ≤ 0.32), whereas direct comparison underestimated the determination coefficients and overestimated the error estimates for all MODIS algorithms. The ETC-based error variances for MODIS Aqua/Terra NLSSTs were 0.25/0.19 and 0.26/0.32 in daytime and night-time, respectively. In addition, MODIS-Aqua was relatively more sensitive to the SST signal than MODIS-Terra at night and vice versa as seen in the unbiased signal-to-noise ratios for all observation types.
Laboratory Investigations of the Bending Rheology of Floating Saline Ice and Physical Mechanisms of Wave Damping in the HSVA Hamburg Ship Model Basin Ice Tank
Authors: Marchenko Aleksey , Haase Andrea , Jensen Atle , Lishman Ben , Rabault Jean , Evers Karl-Ulrich , Shortt Mark , Thiel Torsten
Published: April 2021

An experimental investigation of flexural-gravity waves was performed in the Hamburg Ship Model Basin HSVA ice tank. Physical characteristics of the water-ice system were measured in several locations of the tank with a few sensors deployed in the water and on the ice during the tests. The three-dimensional motion of ice was measured with the optical system Qualisys; water pressure was measured by several pressure sensors mounted on the tank wall, in-plane deformations of the ice and the temperatures of the ice and water were measured by fiber optic sensors; and acoustic emissions were recorded with compressional crystal sensors. The experimental setup and selected results of the tests are discussed in this paper. Viscous-elastic model (Burgers material) is adopted to describe the dispersion and attenuation of waves propagating below the ice. The elastic modulus and the coefficient of viscosity are calculated using the experimental data. The results of the measurements demonstrated the dependence of wave characteristics from the variability of ice properties during the experiment caused by the brine drainage. We showed that the cyclic motion of the ice along the tank, imitating ice drift, and the generation of under ice turbulence cause an increase of wave damping. Recorded acoustic emissions demonstrated cyclic microcracking occurring with wave frequencies and accompanying bending deformations of the ice. This explains the viscous and anelastic rheology of the model ice.
FORMATION OF A SYSTEM OF PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL VALUES OF THE FUTURE MANAGER IN THE CONDITIONS OF A MAGISTRACY
Authors: ZHDANOVA-NEDILKO O.
Published: April 2021

The purpose of the article is to find ways to improve the humanitarian training of the future manager, namely - the axiological support of his activities as a basis for productive relationships in the team. The formation of the axiological basis of the manager's activity is considered as one of the important tasks of his master's degree. Professional, humanistic and personal values are the basis of his management style and determine the degree of efficiency.

The author analyzes the essence of managerial activity as natural for human society, clarifies the points of contact between the professional values of the manager and universal and social values, substantiates the axiological aspects of managerial training. The author's method of formation of personal and professional values of the future manager is considered. The main directions of its implementation are a) the inclusion in the classroom and independent work of practical tasks that involve the analysis of ready-made and the creation of their own communicative samples; b) their empathic evaluation and analysis on a reflexive basis.

The application of the methodology not only expands the communicative experience of the future manager, which is also important for his professional development, but first of all actualizes both for the direct performer and for the audience axiological aspects of interaction with colleagues and subordinates, helps the teacher to identify errors means for its adjustment.
TECHNOLOGY OF COMPETENCE FORMATION IN THE FIELD OF PROTECTION AND PROTECTION OF TEACHERS 'INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN THE PROCESS OF QUALIFICATION IMPROVEMENT
Authors: KRAVCHUK N.
Published: April 2021

The paper presents a theoretical justification of the technology of competence formation in the field of protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights of teachers of general secondary education in the process of professional development. This technology is aimed at forming a base of knowledge, skills and abilities in the field of intellectual property, which will teach teachers to perceive the results of their own innovative activities as an economic product that can benefit, promote compliance with the rules and regulations of academic integrity in teaching.The outlined technology involves the implementation of five stages: preparatory-diagnostic, motivational-target, cognitive-orientational, activity-operational and control-evaluation.The preparatory and diagnostic stage of the technology consists in carrying out a set of diagnostic actions to determine the state of formation of competence in the field of intellectual property at different stages of professional development to ensure its effective formation.Motivational and target stage of teacher training technology in the field of protection and protection of intellectual property rights is based on information obtained at the preparatory and diagnostic stage, and is to develop a hierarchy of objectives and presentation of learning outcomes aimed at developing teacher competence in the field of protection and protection of rights intellectual property.During the cognitive-substantive stage of in-service teacher training in the field of protection and protection of intellectual property rights, a meaningful part of the process of forming competence in the field of protection and protection of intellectual property rights of teachers in the process of in-service training is realized. courses according to our goals and objectives.The activity-operational stage of the technology of advanced training of teachers in the field of protection and defense of intellectual property rights aims at the direct formation of knowledge, skills, abilities and professional qualities in the field of intellectual property of teachers of general secondary education. The control and evaluation stage of the technology of in-service training of teachers in the field of intellectual property involves the creation of a system for assessing the degree of formation of competence in the field of intellectual property of teachers based on the results of in-service training.
PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL FEATURES OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE APPLIED ORIENTATION OF TEACHING MATHEMATICS TO MODERN STUDENTS OF 5-6 GRADES
Authors: NASADYUK T.
Published: April 2021

The article is devoted to the problem of finding effective  ways and means of organization  teaching mathematics process to modern students grades 5-6. On the basis of the researched psychological and pedagogical features of digital generation Z representatives to which modern schoolboys belong, the ways of realization of the applied orientation of teaching mathematics to students of 5-6 grades are considered. According to Theory of Generations, the generations of modern students are strikingly different from all previous ones. To organize effective cooperation, a modern school must respond to the changes that have taken place in the psychology and behavior of children and take them into account when organizing the learning process.

The analysis of the psychological scientific literature shows that modern students have an active life position, unlimited opportunities to search for information, mainly visual perception, clip thinking. They perceive information quickly, but find it more difficult to memorize and quickly switch their attention, prefer an activity-based approach to learning, and depend on their own performance. The effectiveness of teaching mathematics to students in grades 5-6 is influenced by the level of development of their thinking, and such mental processes as perception, memory, attention, thinking, imagination. The specifics of the content of the subject "mathematics" requires increased attention and cognitive activity of students, so in the learning process it is important to encourage them to consciously and thoughtfully immerse themselves in learning, self-control, responsibility and independence by involving them in practice-oriented learning activities. By offering students tasks whose plots resonate with the modern life of students and their interests, the teacher has the opportunity to awaken students' interest in learning, encourage them to feel the need for new knowledge, organize purposeful learning activities and thus build a comfortable relationship between participants in the educational process. , which are most likely representatives of different generations.
CREATION OF A COMFORT ZONE FOR A TEACHER IN A NEW UKRAINIAN SCHOOL
Authors: SAGAIDAK V. , GRYNOVA V.
Published: April 2021

The modern teacher of the New Ukrainian School is constantly immersed in his work, and thus forgets about the priority personal needs. From here we can say that the comfort zone is extremely important, because it performs many functions, and, above all: reduces psychological and mental fatigue, helps the teacher to relieve stress and renew their emotional and physical resources; prevents professional burnout. We considered the teacher's room as a comfort zone for teachers in the New Ukrainian School. The modern requirements for the arrangement of the teacher's room as a place of work and rest are analyzed. The author's project "Equipment of a teacher's room as a comfort zone for teachers in the New Ukrainian School" was developed in compliance with all standards and recommendations. In the process of creating the author’s project, the technique of “zoning” and “flow of space” was used, which promotes the preservation of health and prevents the professional burnout of teachers of the New Ukrainian School.
Features of the prevention of intentional homicide by criminal police units
Authors: Khyzhniak Yevhen , Khankevych Andrii , Shapovalenko Yevhen , Shkelebei Viktoriia , Yatsyk Tetiana
Published: April 2021

The purpose of the article is to characterize the features of prevention of intentional homicide in terms of its implementation by criminal police units. Subject of research: The subject of research is the prevention of intentional homicide by criminal police units. Methodology: epistemological and legal method, methods of generalization and analysis, method of grouping, statistical, documentary and social survey methods, logical method are used in the course of the research. The results of the research: The article considers the main problems of determining the place and role of the victim in intentional encroachments on human life. Typical situations that lead to encroachment on life are analyzed, the role of the victim in each specific situation is determined. Practical implications: The main preventive measures to prevent intentional homicide by the police in general and criminal police units in particular are identified. Value / originality: The exceptional importance of intentional homicide preventing under modern conditions is substantiated.
Physiological and psychophysiological indicators in the diagnosis of occupational maladaptation of doctors from oncology hospital
Authors: Zasyadko Konstantin , Shinkarev Sergey , Dankovtsev Oleg , Tafintseva Lilia , Maskalyanova Svetlana
Published: April 2021

Objectives: To study the development of professional deformity in oncological hospital doctors under the influence of professional activity factors. To consider the issues of professional adaptation of medical workers from the perspective of their development of psychoemotional burnout in combination with the problem of physiological and psychophysiological aspects of professional maladaptation. Methods: The analysis of the features of maladaptive reactions of the cardiovascular system of oncological hospital doctors that occur in the course of their professional activities is based on the analysis of changes in three groups of indicators of adaptive response of the cardiovascular system of oncologists, characteristics of blood pressure, heart activity indicators, and the state of peripheral vascular tone. Calculations of the values of psychophysiological indices that integrally characterize the functional state of their body are made. All of the doctors participating in the survey gave informed consent on the acquisition and processing of data. Results: It was found that a significant number (75%) of the tested oncologists have reduced adaptive capabilities of the circulatory system. A significant number of individuals with low stroke (40%) and minute blood volume (30%) were identified. In most cases (up to 68.4%) the examined specialists of the oncological hospital are in a state of impaired professional adaptation according to psychophysiological criteria. Conclusions: It is proposed to use the physiological and psychophysiological indicators used in the study as psychophysiological correlates of the formation and development of professional maladaptation in doctors of different specialties, as well as to control the dynamics of their condition during medical and social rehabilitation of medical institutions.
The Role of Thymoquinone in Mitigating Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Rats: Targeting the CHOP-1/JNK/P38 MAPK, NFκB/TNF-α/IL-10, and Bax/Bcl-2/Caspase-3 Signalling Pathways
Authors: Hussein Rania Elsayed , Rashed Laila Ahmed , Aboulhoda Basma Emad , Abdelaziz Ghada Mahmoud , Abdelhady Ebtehal Gamal , Abd El-Aal Sarah A. , ShamsEldeen Asmaa , Khalifa Mohamed Mansour , Morsi Heba
Published: April 2021

The present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of thymoquinone (TQ) on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in rats. Our study has reported that TQ treatment of experimentally-induced HCC results in the up-regulation of the Jun-N-terminal kinase and p38 mitogen activated protein kinase
pathway (JNK/p38 MAPK) and the enhancement of anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and pro-apoptotic machineries. TQ resulted in a significant decrease in the levels of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B-cells (NFκB), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and
a significant increase in the anti-inflammatory interleukin-10 (IL-10). The pro-apoptotic effect of TQ was demonstrated through stimulating the apoptotic Bcl-2-associated X (Bax) gene and inhibiting the anti-apoptotic B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) gene together with increasing the level of caspase
3 and up-regulating the C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP-1) gene expression. TQ treatment also enhanced the activity of the ROS scavenger, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and decreased the level of the lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde (MDA). TQ-dependent suppression of HCC was associated
with the up-regulation of JNK/p38 MAPK, enhanced CHOP-1 expression, and subsequently increased Bax gene expression.