bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
State Repression and Opposition Survival in Pinochet’s Chile
Authors: Amat Consuelo
Published: May 2023

Why do some groups survive government repression while others get eliminated? This paper offers a corrective to the widely held theory that locally embedded opposition organizations with large and interconnected networks of civilian supporters are better adapted to survive. It argues that extreme and selective violent repression from a capable state requires strict compartmentalization and social detachment. These measures slow the speed and reach of repression. I test these propositions by examining the top targets of the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile. Cross-checking individuals on the Pinochet’s target lists against the victims lists, the article shows that the Revolutionary Leftist Movement (MIR) had a significantly lower rate of victimization than the other top targets. Archival and interview data demonstrate that MIR’s higher survival rate is due to the mechanisms proposed. This study renders intended repression observable and offers implications for the survival of a wide range of actors.
Ethnicity and Policing in the Global South: Descriptive Representation and Expectations of Police Bias
Authors: Lyon Nicholas , Malik Mashail
Published: May 2023

City residents in the Global South commonly encounter the police. Yet, outside of established democracies, we know little about how ethnicity shapes everyday policing in diverse urban contexts. Existing approaches generate competing expectations, with some arguing that officers are more rather than less discriminatory towards coethnics. We test these theories through a survey experiment conducted in Karachi, Pakistan—one of the world’s largest megacities. We find that civilians are only marginally less likely to expect procedural justice from non-coethnic officers, even in a context where ethnicity is highly salient. However, suggestive evidence indicates that this small effect is significantly magnified for respondents who perceive their group to be underrepresented in the police. Descriptive representation is therefore a powerful moderator of the relationship between ethnicity and expectations of police bias. These results have implications for the development of effective and legitimate police institutions in weakly institutionalized contexts.
The Next Giant Leap for Space Human Factors: The Opportunities
Authors: Marquez Jessica J. , Landon Lauren Blackwell , Salas Eduardo
Published: May 2023

Objective

Propose areas of future space human factors research.

Background

Deep space, long-duration human spaceflight missions to the Moon and Mars still require advances in space human factors research. Key drivers relate to astronauts living and working in isolation, new novel technologies required to accomplish exploration missions, and the longer durations of these.

Results

Three areas of research are proposed for methods and techniques: (1) to enable more autonomous astronauts; (2) to monitor crew and improve ground team situation awareness; and (3) to detect and support changes in long-duration team coordination.

Conclusions

Future human exploration missions will benefit from advances in space human factors research.

Application

Human factors researchers can contribute to human spaceflight by prioritizing these research topics.
Populism and international affairs: The case of Spain
Authors: Giurlando Philip
Published: May 2023

Populists in southern Europe and potentially beyond display a distinctive understanding of international relations, such as the belief that national or the “people's” sovereignty must be the main organizing principle of international affairs, a preference for a multipolar world, suspicion of multilateral governance institutions, and sympathy toward Russia and/or China. This phenomenon represents a potentially fruitful domain for scholarly inquiry to answer questions such as: what are some of the ontological features of populism and how are these elements connected to patterns of foreign policy preferences? This essay aims to provide tentative answers to these questions with a focus on Spain.
Analyzing Multi-Lingual Discussions of the Standard Gauge Railway Project in Kenya Using Natural Language Processing and Social Media Analysis
Authors: Sauer Jeffery , Overos Henry , Newlands Juan , Morrison Michelle , Stewart Kathleen , Wood Tess
Published: May 2023

Development of infrastructure in Kenya, especially transportation infrastructure, began receiving partial financing investments by the Chinese government in 2014 as part of China’s broader Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). While there has been significant journalistic, academic, and governmental exploration of China’s new global investment strategies, less analysis has focused on local reactions to these new development relationships. In this study, we gather publicly available social media data centered around a large Kenya-Chinese infrastructure project, the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway (SGR). We used automated natural language processing strategies as well as manual analysis of social media data from Twitter to understand discussion topics, attitudes, and sentiments of Kenyans toward domestic Kenya-China infrastructure projects. We advance research on multilingual digital expression through the analysis of social media data in both English and Swahili.
PD-1 Carried on Small Extracellular Vesicles Leads to OSCC Metastasis
Authors: Zhang L.-Z. , Yang J.-G. , Xia H.-F. , Huang J. , Liu H.-M. , Wu M. , Liu B. , Wang W.-M. , Chen G.
Published: May 2023

Immune checkpoint molecule PD-1, expressed on the cell surface, impairs antigen-driven activation of T cells and thus plays a critical role in tumorigenesis, progression, and the poor prognosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). In addition, increasing evidence indicates that PD-1 carried on small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) also mediates tumor immunity, although their contributions to OSCC are yet unclear. Here, we investigated the biological functions of sEV PD-1 in patients with OSCC. The cell cycle, proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion of CAL27 cell lines treated with or without sEV PD-1 were examined in vitro. We performed mass spectrometry to investigate the underlying biological process, combined with an immunohistochemical study of SCC7-bearing mice models and OSCC patient samples. In vitro data demonstrated that sEV PD-1 induced senescence and subsequent epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in CAL27 cells by ligating with tumor cell surface PD-L1 and activating the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. Comprehensive immunohistochemical analysis of the xenograft mice models and OSCC patient samples revealed a very close correlation between the level of circulating sEV PD-1 and lymph node metastasis. These results demonstrate that circulating sEV PD-1 triggers senescence-initiated EMT in a PD-L1-p38 MAPK-dependent manner, contributing to tumor metastasis. It also suggests that the inhibition of sEV PD-1 may be a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of OSCC.
HOCl Rapidly Kills Corona, Flu, and Herpes to Prevent Aerosol Spread
Authors: Guan H. , Nuth M. , Weiss S.R. , Fausto A. , Liu Y. , Koo H. , Wolff M.S. , Ricciardi R.P.
Published: May 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic has escalated the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the dental practice, especially as droplet-aerosol particles are generated by high-speed instruments. This has heightened awareness of other orally transmitted viruses, including influenza and herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV1), which are capable of threatening life and impairing health. While current disinfection procedures commonly use surface wipe-downs to reduce viral transmission, they are not fully effective. Consequently, this provides the opportunity for a spectrum of emitted viruses to reside airborne for hours and upon surfaces for days. The objective of this study was to develop an experimental platform to identify a safe and effective virucide with the ability to rapidly destroy oral viruses transported within droplets and aerosols. Our test method employed mixing viruses and virucides in a fine-mist bottle atomizer to mimic the generation of oral droplet-aerosols. The results revealed that human betacoronavirus OC43 (related to SARS-CoV-2), human influenza virus (H1N1), and HSV1 from atomizer-produced droplet-aerosols were each fully destroyed by only 100 ppm of hypochlorous acid (HOCl) within 30 s, which was the shortest time point of exposure to the virucide. Importantly, 100 ppm HOCl introduced into the oral cavity is known to be safe for humans. In conclusion, this frontline approach establishes the potential of using 100 ppm HOCl in waterlines to continuously irrigate the oral cavity during dental procedures to expeditiously destroy harmful viruses transmitted within aerosols and droplets to protect practitioners, staff, and other patients.
Early Childhood Predictors for Dental Caries: A Machine Learning Approach
Authors: Toledo Reyes L. , Knorst J.K. , Ortiz F.R. , Brondani B. , Emmanuelli B. , Saraiva Guedes R. , Mendes F.M. , Ardenghi T.M.
Published: May 2023

We aimed to develop and validate caries prognosis models in primary and permanent teeth after 2 and 10 y of follow-up through a machine learning (ML) approach, using predictors collected in early childhood. Data from a 10-y prospective cohort study conducted in southern Brazil were analyzed. Children aged 1 to 5 y were first examined in 2010 and reassessed in 2012 and 2020 regarding caries development. Dental caries was assessed using the Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) criteria. Demographic, socioeconomic, psychosocial, behavioral, and clinical factors were collected. ML algorithms decision tree, random forest, and extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) were employed, along with logistic regression. The discrimination and calibration of models were verified in independent sets. From 639 children included at the baseline, we reassessed 467 (73.3%) and 428 (66.9%) children in 2012 and 2020, respectively. For all models, the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) at training and testing was above 0.70 for predicting caries in primary teeth after 2-y follow-up, with caries severity at the baseline being the strongest predictor. After 10 y, the SHAP algorithm based on XGBoost achieved an AUC higher than 0.70 in the testing set and indicated caries experience, nonuse of fluoridated toothpaste, parent education, higher frequency of sugar consumption, low frequency of visits to the relatives, and poor parents’ perception of their children’s oral health as top predictors for caries in permanent teeth. In conclusion, the implementation of ML shows potential for determining caries development in both primary and permanent teeth using easy-to-collect predictors in early childhood.
Alcohol Use Disorder Among Textile Workers: Evidence from Ethiopia
Authors: Belete Habte , Belete Tilahun , Bacharach Samuel , Briggs Kathleen Ann , Bamberger Peter
Published: May 2023

Little is known about its prevalence of Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) and its work-based etiology among employed adults in developing countries. To address this knowledge gap, we surveyed a total of 423 Ethiopian textile workers (of whom 313 were non-abstaining) assessing AUD. Using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test or “AUDIT” and categorizing an AUD as any AUDIT score of 16 or greater, the prevalence of AUD was estimated at 4.3% among overall participants and 5.8% among non-abstainers. Logistic regression analysis identified younger age, work-related disability, and stress as significantly associated with AUD. Given the link between these potential work-related risk factors and AUD, the findings suggest that alcohol use prevention programs such as peer-led counseling and/or Employment Assistance Programs, along with brief interventions, may be useful in addressing potential AUD risk factors, reducing AUD prevalence and associated sequaelae, and treating workers with AUD in developing countries.
Prevalence of Suicidal Behaviors in Residents of Long-Term Care Facilities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Bareeqa Syeda Beenish , Samar Syeda Sana , Masood Yasir , Husain Mustafa M.
Published: May 2023

Background

Long-term care facilities (LTC) plays a pivotal role in caring for geriatric population. However, the risk of suicide in long-term care institutions among older individuals is little understood (e.g., nursing homes, assisted living facilities).

Objective

The purpose of this systematic review is to pool and meta-analyze the data on prevalence of suicidal behaviors in geriatric population residing in long-term care facilities.

Methods

We have conducted the systematic review in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. The utilized databases are Pubmed, Medline, Google scholar and Scopus. The Meta-analysis was done using OpenMeta [analyst] software. Subgroup analysis was also performed.

Results

After running an analysis on pooled data from twenty cross-sectional studies with 3,023,224 participants, the prevalence of suicidal behavior is 6.4% (95% CI = 5.7–7) in LTC.

Conclusion

This meta-analysis shows pooled prevalence of suicidal behavior among geriatric residents of LTC was found to be moderately high all over the world.
Spatial changes to climatic suitability and availability of agropastoral farming systems across Kenya (1980–2020)
Authors: Lawrence Ted J , Vilbig Justin M , Kangogo Geoffrey , Fèvre Eric M , Deem Sharon L , Gluecks Ilona , Sagan Vasit , Shacham Enbal
Published: May 2023

Productive global agriculture is under a convergence of pressures, and particularly climate change and population growth. The impact is especially stark in East Africa where crop production is mostly rain-fed and population growth rates are among the highest in the world. Our objective for this study was to understand how climate change and population growth have impacted the size of agropastoral areas across Kenya over 40 years. Climate-suitable areas for all primary crops decreased 28% over the study period. Climate-suitable areas for primary crops increased 3% in highly productive counties, decreased 25% in moderately productive counties, and decreased 62% in low productive counties. Climate-suitable areas over the study period decreased 13% for ranching areas, 21% for dairying areas, 24% for mixed crop and ranching areas, and 28% for mixed crop and dairying areas, while climate-suitable areas for pastoralism increased 12%. Population across Kenya more than tripled over the study period, while population relative to climate-suitable areas for crops increased nearly fourfold, and population relative to climate-suitable areas for pastoralism nearly tripled. Population relative to available climate-suitable areas for crops more than doubled in highly productive counties, increased more than four-fold in moderately productive counties, and was nearly 15 times higher in low productive counties. Examining the cumulative effects of climate change and population growth on agricultural sectors across Kenya can help to develop policies and strategies to reach the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Democratizing the Corporation: The Bicameral Firm as Real Utopia
Authors: Ferreras Isabelle
Published: May 2023

In the context of capitalist democracies, the contradiction between people's expectations of equality and the subordination they experience at work is intense. I argue that it is the defining experience of the contradiction between capitalism and democracy. Capitalism grants political rights to property owners, while democracy grants political rights to the citizens recognized as equals. They are thus regimes of government that distribute rights in dramatically different ways. This essay is grounded in the understanding that firms are best analyzed as “political entities,” and workers as “labor investors,” and have thus a legitimate right to bear on the government of their work life. Examining the history of how political entities have become democratic through the innovation of bicameralism provides a “real utopia”: economic bicameralism, that is, a set of patterns that may be applied to democratize and transition the corporate firm beyond capitalism.
Discharge Disposition After Limb Amputation in a Publicly Funded Health Care System
Authors: Essien Samuel Kwaku , Zucker-Levin Audrey
Published: May 2023

Understanding discharge disposition (DD) after limb amputation (LA) surgery allows health care providers and policy makers to adapt resources based on need. Studying independent prognostic factors for DD after LA in Canada eliminates the significant influence of payor source, as reported by researchers in the United States. We hypothesize disparities exist among DDs after LA in a publicly funded health care system. Retrospective review of Saskatchewan’s linked administrative health data from 2006 to 2019 was used to identify independent socio-demographic factors, amputation levels, amputation predisposing factors (APF), and surgical specialty on 5 DD’s: inpatient, continuing care, home with support services (H/W), home with no support services (H/WO), and those who died at the hospital after LA. We found age, amputation level, and APF play a significant role in determining discharge to all dispositions; gender was significantly associated with discharge to continuing care and H/WO; place of residence was associated with discharge to inpatient facilities, continuing care, and H/W; income was not associated with any DD other than H/W; surgical specialty was associated with discharge to all dispositions except death. The findings suggest that disparities in DD following LA exist even after eliminating the influence of payor source. Health care providers and policy makers should consider these findings in preparation for future needs.
The Last 20 Years of Empirical Research on Government Utilization of Academic Social Science Research: A State-of-the-Art Literature Review
Authors: Nelson John P. , Lindsay Spencer , Bozeman Barry
Published: May 2023

We organize and critique the last 20 years of empirical research on policy utilization of academic social science, offering eight recommendations for future research: (1) improvement in utilization measures; (2) greater alignment on constructs of interest; (3) greater address of different national contexts; 4) study of mechanisms connecting academic research to policymakers; (5) incorporation of knowledge on information search; (6) attention to differences between utilization of policy, social, and physical science in different sectors; (7) evaluative inquiry on the effects of research utilization; and (8) investigation of the value of research in addressing different classes of societal problems.
Spindle Epithelial Tumor With Thymus-Like Differentiation of Thyroid (SETTLE): A Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Lu Dan , Zhang Yi , Zhao Runyu , Zhou Enhui , Xue Xiaocheng , Li Can , Huang Shuixian , Chen Xiaoping
Published: May 2023

Spindle epithelial tumor with thymus-like differentiation of thyroid (SETTLE) is very rare neoplasm with 2 cellular forms, epithelial cell and spindle cell, and most reported cases have been in young people. An 11-year-old boy presented with painless swelling of the right neck lasting for more than 2 months. A tumor size measuring approximately 3 × 3 cm was resected, and intraoperative frozen pathology suggested a spindle cell tumor, which was confirmed as SETTLE by immunohistochemical staining and external hospital consultation. The immunohistochemical staining profile of the resected tumor tissue was as follows: cytokeratin (CK) (+), smooth muscle actin (weak+), vimentin (+), CK7 (focal+), B-cell lymphoma 2 (partial+), CD99 (−), calcitonin (+), galectin-3 (+), CK19 (+), and Ki-67 (10%+). Ultrasound at 1-year postoperative follow-up revealed no local recurrence of the lesion or lymph node metastasis in the thyroid gland. We summarized the disease characteristics of SETTLE among 6 cases reported to date and found that SETTLE is associated with a good prognosis and low postoperative recurrence rate. Thus, for this type of malignant thyroid tumor, diagnosis depends mainly on postoperative pathology and immunohistochemical staining and simple surgical resection is recommended.
Transport Infrastructure, Intra-Regional Inequality and Urban-Rural Divide: Evidence From China’s High-Speed Rail Construction
Authors: Xu Yan , Zhu Shengjun
Published: May 2023

While the impact of transport infrastructure on regional disparity has been widely examined, its effect on intra-regional inequality has received less attention. Based on panel data at China’s prefecture-city level during 2007–2018, we adopt the Difference-in-Differences model to investigate whether high-speed rail affects one type of intra-regional inequality, the urban-rural income gap. The results show that high-speed rail operation has widened the urban-rural income gap by boosting the agglomeration of population, financial capital, and economic activities in urban areas adjacent to high-speed rail stations. Furthermore, the effect varies across cities. The impact of high-speed rail on the urban-rural income gap is more evident in small and less developed cities due to the polarization effect. In contrast, this is not observed in large and developed cities. One possible reason is that, in the latter, the diffusion effect is much stronger.
Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation With or Without Advanced Intervention for Massive Pulmonary Embolism
Authors: Cardona Stephanie , Downing Jessica V , Witting Michael D , Haase Daniel J , Powell Elizabeth K , Dahi Siamak , Pasrija Chetan , Tran Quincy K
Published: May 2023

Introduction

Massive pulmonary embolism (MPE) is a rare but highly fatal condition. Our study’s objective was to evaluate the association between advanced interventions and survival among patients with MPE treated with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO).

Methods

This is a retrospective review of the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) registry data. We included adult patients with MPE who were treated with VA-ECMO during 2010–2020. Our Primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge; secondary outcomes were ECMO duration among survivors and rates of ECMO-related complications. Clinical variables were compared using the Pearson chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis H tests.

Results

We included 802 patients; 80 (10%) received SPE and 18 (2%) received CDT. Overall, 426 (53%) survived to discharge; survival was not significantly different among those treated with SPE or CDT on VA-ECMO (70%) versus VA-ECMO alone (52%) or SPE or CDT before VA-ECMO (52%). Multivariable regression found a trend towards increased survival among those treated with SPE or CDT while on ECMO (AOR 1.8, 95% CI 0.9–3.6), but no significant correlation. There was no association between advanced interventions and ECMO duration among survivors, or rates of ECMO-related complications.

Conclusion

Our study found no difference in survival in patients with MPE who received advanced interventions prior to ECMO, and a slight non-significant benefit in those who received advanced interventions while on ECMO.
Constructions of migrant victims of labor exploitation in Nordic court cases
Authors: Schoultz Isabel , Spanger Marlene , Jokinen Anniina , Økland Jahnsen Synnøve , Muhire Heraclitos , Pekkarinen Anna-Greta
Published: May 2023

The aim of this article is to explore how courts produce certain representations of victims of labor exploitation in the Nordic context based on court judgments from Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. To achieve this, we analyze and compare criminal court judgments focused on the exploitation of migrant workers by asking: How are ‘victims’ of labor exploitation represented in Nordic court judgments? What is left unproblematic and silenced? In each country, we have identified criminal court cases that have legally examined aspects of the exploitation of migrant workers, in total, 91 court judgments. Drawing on Bacchi’s ‘What’s the problem represented to be?’ (WPR) approach, we can show that the representations of victims apparent in the court judgments involve a legal construction of vulnerability that is reserved for the most marginalized migrant workers. The narrow representation silences the broader socio-economic context in which migrant workers exist. Our results also indicate that the threshold for being defined as a victim of labor exploitation is lower in some of the Nordic countries and higher in others. Thus, while there is a normative consensus that the exploitation of migrant workers should be prosecuted, in practice, the court judgments reflect substantial differences in the legal interpretations applied across the Nordic countries.
Patagonian Ethnopedology and Its Role in Food Security: A Case Study of Rural Communities in Arid Environments of Argentina
Authors: Morales D. , Molares S. , Ladio A.
Published: May 2023

Local knowledge of horticultural soils was analysed from an ethnobiological perspective in a rural population of arid Patagonian, in order to gain a deeper understanding of how the farmers classify, use and value the soil. In this large but sparsely populated territory, a group of 27 participants was selected. The farmers use an ethnoclassification system that distinguishes nine different soil types according to their horticultural aptitude. The classification criteria are based on the morphological attributes of the soil and certain ethnoindicators (i.e., texture, structure, colour and plant species present). All these aspects, evaluated within the framework of local symbolic and cultural precepts, proved to be key to the management of soils with pronounced edaphic and climatic limitations in terms of farming. Recognition of local knowledge and its contribution to dealing with current socioenvironmental challenges and crises may favour the design of more sustainable farming production in communities that are socio-environmentally vulnerable, considering the populations, soil, and culture as components of a complex integrated system, and not as isolated elements.
Traditional Knowledge on the use of Turtles in a Protected Area of the Amazon in Maranhão (Brazil): A Conservation Proposal
Authors: Medeiros Almerinda M. , de Araújo Lorena S. R. , Mesquita Samuel L. , Aragão Natália R. C. , Rodrigues Carlos A. L. , Chaves Elba P. , Carvalho-Neta Raimunda N. F. , de Sousa Alana L.
Published: May 2023

The use of turtles for food or breeding is a traditional practice in the Baixada Maranhense Environmental Protection Area (EPA), which is composed of wetlands of high conservation value. However, species such as Kinosternon scorpioides, a semi-aquatic Amazon turtle , are threatened by direct harvesting and habitat loss. Local knowledge of biodiversity has been used to understand these practices and to control these problems as a theoretical basis in research on the use and management of natural resources and conservation. This work aimed to analyze the traditional knowledge of riverside communities on the biology, habitat, capture methods, forms of use, and conservation of turtles in the Baixada Maranhense. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with inhabitants of riverside communities. Based on our results, turtle species are commonly caught in fishing activities (54.71 percent of the interviewees) or by burning (32.35 percent), a practice with great environmental impacts. 41.77 percent of respondents capture these animals for consumption and prefer the K scorpioides, which also has cultural and medicinal importance for the riverside communities. 89 percent of the interviewees report no knowledge of either the structure and function of an EPA or how resource management works, compromising the sustainability principles and operation of this Conservation Unit (C.U.). It is concluded that capture of turtles is one of the reasons for the decrease in natural stocks of K scorpioides. Strategies for management and conservation of the Baixada Maranhense EPA resources are proposed.
Kinematic Characterization of Risky Riding Behavior of On-Demand Food-Delivery Motorcyclists in Taiwan
Authors: Hsu Cheng-Kai , Lee Tzu-Chang , Wong Ka Io
Published: May 2023

The rising on-demand food-delivery (ODFD) industry has raised road safety concerns because of the often aggressive and risky driving behavior among ODFD drivers, especially those on motorcycles. This study aims to characterize their aggressive and risky driving behavior with respect to microscopic kinematic characteristics and vehicular interactions. We employed traffic videos collected by unmanned aerial vehicles at two intersections in Taipei, Taiwan, with a 0.1 s time resolution. We extracted vehicular trajectory data using artificial intelligence-based video recognition algorithms to obtain microscopic kinematic variables. We compared microscopic traffic flow characteristics (i.e., speed, lateral velocity, and acceleration) and microscopic interactions (i.e., weaving maneuver frequency, safety gap, and time-to-collision) presented by ODFD and non-ODFD drivers. In addition, we compared the difference in their driving behaviors between non-meal-peak hours and meal-peak hours, hypothetically caused by the platform-employed incentive program. We found that, compared to non-ODFD drivers, ODFD drivers could be more likely to perform aggressive and risky driving, indicated by their faster longitudinal and lateral speed, harsher acceleration/deceleration, more frequent weaving maneuvers, shorter safety gaps, and shorter time-to-collision. Also, their aggressive and risky driving behavior could more likely occur during meal-peak hours. To our knowledge, this research is the first study using naturalistic traffic data to investigate the revealed driving behavior of ODFD drivers, contributing to kinematic/quantitative understandings of ODFD drivers’ aggressive and risky driving. Based on these findings, policymakers and platform companies can prescribe countermeasures and devise training programs to improve public road safety and the occupational safety of ODFD drivers, a vulnerable occupational group emerging worldwide.
Systemic inflammation factors as survival prognosis markers in ovarian neoplasm and the relationship with cancer-associated inflammatory mediators—a review
Authors: Dinca Alexandra-Ligia , Diaconu Adriana , Birla Rodica Daniela , Coculescu Bogdan-Ioan , Dinca Valeriu-Gabi , Manole Gheorghe , Marica Cristian , Tudorache Ioan Sorin , Panaitescu Eugenia , Constantinoiu Silviu Marian , Coculescu Elena Claudia
Published: May 2023

At the level of the genital system, ovarian neoplasm is the most frequent cause of morbidity and mortality. In the specialized literature, the coexistence of an inflammatory process is admitted from the early stages of the evolution of this pathology. Starting from the importance of this process, both in determinism and in the evolution of carcinogenesis and summarizing the field of knowledge, for this study we considered two objectives: the first was the presentation of the pathogenic mechanism, through which chronic +ovarian inflammation is involved in the process of carcinogenesis, and the second is the justification of the clinical utility of the three parameters, accepted as biomarkers of systemic inflammation: neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, platelet lymphocyte ratio, and lymphocyte-monocyte ratio in the assessment of prognosis. The study highlights the acceptance of these hematological parameters, with practical utility, as prognostic biomarkers in ovarian cancer, based on the intrinsic link with cancer-associated inflammatory mediators. Based on the data from the specialized literature, the conclusion is that in ovarian cancer, the inflammatory process induced by the presence of the tumor, induces changes in the types of circulating leukocytes, with immediate effects on the markers of systemic inflammation.
Seeded Sequential LDA: A Semi-Supervised Algorithm for Topic-Specific Analysis of Sentences
Authors: Watanabe Kohei , Baturo Alexander
Published: May 2023

Topic models have been widely used by researchers across disciplines to automatically analyze large textual data. However, they often fail to automate content analysis, because the algorithms cannot accurately classify individual sentences into pre-defined topics. Aiming to make topic classification more theoretically grounded and content analysis in general more topic-specific, we have developed Seeded Sequential Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA), extending the existing LDA algorithm, and implementing it in a widely accessible open-source package. Taking a large corpus of speeches delivered by delegates at the United Nations General Assembly as an example, we explain how our algorithm differs from the original algorithm; why it can classify sentences more accurately; how it accepts pre-defined topics in deductive or semi-deductive analysis; how such ex-ante topic mapping differs from ex-post topic mapping; how it enables topic-specific framing analysis in applied research. We also offer practical guidance on how to determine the optimal number of topics and select seed words for the algorithm.
Associations of Subjective Memory with Life Space and Neighborhood Built Environment in Older Adults in the ACTIVE Study
Authors: Wallace Gail , Bell Tyler , Black Sheila , Crowe Michael , Thorpe Roland J. , Pope Caitlin , Rebok George W.
Published: May 2023

Objectives: To investigate the longitudinal association of life space and neighborhood and built environment (NBE) with subjective memory among individuals 65 and older, and the mediating role of depressive symptoms, a major correlate of life space mobility, NBE, and subjective memory. Methods: We examined community-dwelling participants in the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly study ( N = 2,622, Mean age = 73.7 years, 24.9% Black) across annual assessments of up to 3 years. Results: Baseline life space and NBE were positively associated with subjective memory, and these associations were partly mediated by depressive symptoms. Over time, higher baseline life space predicted a better subjective memory as one aged. Life space was concurrently associated with subjective memory across time, mediated by concurrent depressive symptoms. Discussion: Potentially modifiable environmental factors such as life space and NBE appear to influence level and change in subjective memory as we age. Interventions supporting movement in our environments may help offset subjective memory problems, a potential early sign of dementia.
Novel variational mode decomposition method for rotating machinery fault diagnosis based on weighted correlated kurtosis and salp swarm algorithm
Authors: Ge Chao , Lu Bao-chun
Published: May 2023

The mechanical vibration response in engineering is the superimposition of multi-frequency characteristic information. Therefore, it is of great necessity to utilize signal decomposition methods to extract fault characteristics for ultimate diagnosis. In the traditional variational mode decomposition (VMD) methods, the decomposition parameters (i.e. the mode number and quadratic penalty factor) are determined according to the principle of convenience and experience. This behavior reduces the performance of VMD methods to a great extent, and limits their decomposition accuracy and feature extraction capability. To resolve this problem, a novel VMD method for rotating machinery fault diagnosis is developed in this article. Firstly, a measurement index called weighted correlated kurtosis ( WCK) is constructed by combining correlated kurtosis and Pearson correlation coefficient. Secondly, taking the maximum WCK as the goal function, salp swarm algorithm is utilized to find the optimum parameters. Lastly, the feature extraction is performed according to the selected sensitive mode possessing the maximum WCK. Two experimental examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed VMD method on mechanical vibration signal processing and fault diagnosis. Furthermore, by comparing with other two typical VMD methods, the superiority of the developed method is verified.
The regulatory path to healthcare systems’ financialization
Authors: Benoît Cyril
Published: May 2023

The literature has often presented European healthcare systems as being less exposed to the growing dependencies on global finance observed in other areas of social policy. This article explores the sources and dynamics of a regulatory path to healthcare systems’ financialization that challenges this depiction. Building on analogies with the case of pension policy, we show that the integration of the private health insurance sector into the European Union financial regulation framework has resulted in perceptible processes of financialization. Notably this manifested in the growing role of financial firms, in non-profit health insurers’ adoption of ‘financialized’ business practices and eventually in a noticeable change of these actors' positioning in domestic healthcare reform. After having discussed the theoretical implications, the article provides an empirical illustration of this argument by documenting the implementation of the Solvency II insurance directive by health insurers in France, and describes its more general consequences and implications beyond this case study.
The poetics of attention in Old English verse: A cognitive stylistic approach to the depiction of Grendel in Beowulf
Authors: Gunn Nikolas
Published: May 2023

In this article, I apply Stockwell’s framework of attentional phenomena in language to Old English literature. I outline the special attentional features that we find in Old English poetry, encompassing alliteration, poetic vocabulary and apposition. I then move on to provide an analysis of the figure of Grendel through an attentional lens, arguing that the Beowulf-poet consistently pulls our attention towards his demonic or monstrous aspects rather than his residual humanity. In my discussion, I argue that alliterative patterning and its intersection with lexical content is central to how the poet filters our perception of Grendel. I then move on to examine how the poet uses stock poetic lexis to define him, drawing on the Cognitive Grammar concept of reference points, suggesting that the various synonyms for ‘man’ or ‘warrior’ applied to Grendel are consistently decentred from his overall description. Finally, drawing on Nuttall, I conclude with some observations on how the narrator controls our perception of Grendel’s mind.
Perception and experience of altruism in graduate nursing students
Authors: Gu Xinyu , Yang Yanxia , Gong Hao , Zhou Luojing
Published: May 2023

Background

Altruism is the core of nursing professionalism. Graduate nursing education in China started late and is still developing, exploring the current state of altruistic behavior and the perceived experience of altruism among graduate nursing students may have important implications for nursing education.

Objective

Explore the current state of altruistic behavior and the perceived experience of altruism among graduate nursing students in China.

Research design

This is a descriptive phenomenological qualitative research study, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted. Seventeen graduate nursing students from three schools were selected to participate in the study. Colaizzi’s analysis method was performed with NVivo software to develop common themes from the data.

Ethical considerations

The research proposal was approved by the Research Ethic Committee of Yangzhou University, China.

Results

Four themes emerged from the analysis of the interviews of the 17 participants: “Definition of altruism,” “Altruism in the nursing profession,” “Altruism applied in practice,” and “Factors influencing altruistic behavior.”

Conclusions

Although participants indicated that the concept of “altruism” was relatively new to them, altruistic behavior is common in both their work and life. Many factors influence the altruistic behavior of graduate nursing students, including the environment, personal factors, education, recipient factors, occupational factors, and gains and losses. Families, schools, and hospitals should create favorable environments to foster altruistic tendencies in students.
Influence of miR-142-3p on Pulmonary Fibrosis Through Regulation of p53/NF-κB
Authors: Shen Ye , Li Heng-Jie , Zhang Ke , Li Sheng-Qin , Xu Ying-Ge
Published: May 2023

Objectives

To investigate the role of miR-142-3p in the bleomycin-induced idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) mouse model and elucidate its targets.

Methods

In vitro model: Alveolar epithelial cells (AECs) were isolated and treated with bleomycin (50 µg/mL) or PBS for 12 h. In vivo model: Bleomycin (5 mg/kg) was injected into the trachea under anesthesia and aseptic conditions, and controls were treated with equal saline. After the completion of modeling, proteins and RNA were extracted. p53/NF-κB signaling factors were evaluated by western blot or immunohistochemistry. IL-1β and MMP-9 levels were measured by ELISA. The lentiviral transfection technique was used to overexpress miR-142-3p.

Results

In IPF, miR-142-3p was identified to play a negative regulatory role in lung epithelial cell senescence. Bleomycin treatment significantly reduced miR-142-3p expression in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. miR-142-3p overexpression inhibited bleomycin-induced cellular senescence in vivo. In particular, miR-142-3p negatively regulated collagen deposition in pulmonary fibrosis by regulating p53/NF-κB expression.

Conclusion

MiR-142-3p plays an important role in the development of IPF by negatively regulating the p53/NF-κB network.
Patient Reported Outcome Following the Skoog Unilateral Cleft Lip Repair among Adults- a Long-Term Cohort Study and Comparison to a Non-cleft Population
Authors: Peroz Roshan , Hakelius Malin , Falk-Delgado Alberto , Phua Yun , Mani Maria
Published: May 2023

Objective

The study primarily aimed to compare satisfaction with lip appearance among adults treated for unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) with Skoog's primary lip repair procedure to those without clefts. The secondary aim was to determine whether satisfaction with lip appearance and the desire to change the lip/face appearance correlated with the number of secondary lip revisions performed.

Design

Long-term follow-up

Patients/settings

All UCLP patients treated at the Uppsala University Hospital born between 1960- and 1987 (n  =  109) were invited. At an average of 37 years following the primary lip repair, the participation rate was 76% (n  =  83). A control group of adults without cleft (n  =  67) completed the same study protocol for comparison.

Main Outcome Measures

Satisfaction with appearance was measured with The Satisfaction with Appearance Questionnaire (SWA) and a modified version of the Body Cathexis -Scale was used to assess the desire to change the lip and facial appearance.

Results

UCLP patients were less satisfied with their lip, face, and overall appearance and reported a greater desire to change the appearance of their lips and face than non-cleft controls (p < 0.001). Dissatisfaction with lip appearance correlated to a greater willingness to change the appearance of the lip and face. No correlation was found between satisfaction with appearance and the number of the previously performed secondary lip revisions.

Conclusion

Adults treated for UCLP are less satisfied with the appearance of their lips compared to the non-cleft population. The number of secondary revisions does not necessarily correlate to greater satisfaction with lip appearance.
Elements of Schwartz’s Model in the WVS: How Do They Relate to Other Cultural Models?
Authors: Kaasa Anneli , Welzel Chris
Published: May 2023

Recently Kaasa (2021) has developed a Cultural Models Synthesis Scheme (CMSS) merging together the cultural models of Hofstede, Schwartz and Inglehart. However, this theoretical framework still needs to be complemented by an empirical analysis. This exploratory study focuses on the Schwartz’s model using the ten-item battery in the World Values Survey (WVS) inspired by his questionnaire. We empirically position Schwartz’s items into the theoretical CMSS by the means of the empirical framework of Kaasa and Minkov (2022) that already includes Inglehart’s dimensions and Minkov’s (2018) revision of Hofstede’s model. The results support the placements of Schwartz’s dimensions in the CMSS. However, the results also show serious inconsistencies and contradictions regarding the keywords associated to some Schwartz’s dimensions. We highlight the need to be careful about which keywords and question wordings capture the core of those dimensions and to consider the accuracy of the names of dimension. We show that some keywords previously associated with a particular pole of the mastery versus harmony and hierarchy versus egalitarianism, might, in fact, tap aspects of the opposite pole. We also propose using the term ‘conformity’ instead of ‘harmony’. We conclude from these insights that cross-mapping different cultural models is an exercise with significant intellectual payoff.
A Human Rights-Based Evaluation Approach for Inclusive Education
Authors: Johnstone Christopher J. , Hayes Anne , Cohen Elisheva , Niad Hayley , Laryea-Adjei George , Letshabo Kathleen , Shikwe Adrian , Agu Augustine
Published: May 2023

This article reports on ways in which United Nations human rights treaties can be used as a normative framework for evaluating program outcomes. In this article, we conceptualize a human rights-based approach to program evaluation and locate this approach within the broader evaluation literature. The article describes how a rights-based framework can be used as an aspirational set of indicators for program evaluations to promote activities that align with internationally agreed-upon human rights norms. We then describe a case study of the evaluation through which this method was developed, including its sampling design, methodology, and findings. The United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) inclusive education evaluation described highlighted the need for conceptual clarity around what inclusive education is, and the importance of contextualized innovation toward meeting the educational rights of children with disabilities. Human rights perspectives and evaluation designs can help create such clarity, but should also be used with care.
Apelin and Visfatin Expression in Placental Tissue in Women With Preeclampsia and Overweight/Obesity
Authors: Braga Ana Paula dos Santos Xavier , Silva Diana Matos , de Farias Lelis Deborah , Farias Rogério Estevam , Paraíso Alanna Fernandes , Santos Sérgio Henrique Sousa , Martins Andrea Maria Eleutério de Barros Lima , Andrade João Marcus Oliveira
Published: May 2023

Background

Preeclampsia (PE) is a multifunctional and multisystem disorder. Several factors favor the development of PE, including obesity. Cytokines are also expressed in the placenta, predisposing to local alterations that favor the development of distinct pathological processes, including PE. This study aimed to evaluate the apelin and visfatin mRNA expression in the placental tissue of women with preeclampsia and overweight/obesity and correlates with maternal and fetal variables.

Methods

A cross-sectional analytical study was performed with 60 pregnant women and their newborns. Clinical, anthropometric, and laboratory variables were collected. Placental tissue samples were obtained, and the apelin and visfatin mRNA expression levels were assessed by qRT-PCR.

Results

The main findings evidenced lower levels of apelin expression in overweight/obese women, accompanied by a negative correlation with BMI and pre-pregnancy weight; a higher expression of apelin was also observed in women with late PE and no personal history of PE. For visfatin levels, higher expression levels were observed in women with late PE and term delivery. Furthermore, a positive correlation was observed between visfatin levels and fetal anthropometric parameters, such as weight, length, and head circumference.

Conclusion

Apelin levels were less expressed in overweight/obese women. Apelin and visfatin levels were correlated/associated with maternal-fetal variables.