bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Splitting behavior of Janus drop impact on protrusion structure
Authors: Jung Hong Ju , Yun Sungchan
Published: June 2023

Handling tiny liquid volumes as drops is important for applications, including biochip or liquid spraying systems. Splitting of a compound drop is a challenging task in the industrial fields, but the underlying mechanism is not clearly revealed. Here, we demonstrate the dynamic characteristics of the bounce and separation of Janus drops on protrusions by using a numerical method. A regime map for the separation rate between low- and high-viscosity components is investigated for various viscosity ratios and Weber numbers, which is discussed in terms of the formation of a ring and the reduction in residence time. We predict off-centered drop impact on the protrusion structure under various offset distances and characterize the impact behavior into the ring and bifurcation bouncing. We investigate how the separation rate is affected by the protrusion's height and width. The rim dynamics occurring when a liquid film is punctured are discussed by quantifying the evolutions of the shapes and axial momenta of the drops. We expect that the splitting of the compound drop on a defect can create possibilities for the efficient control of drop manipulation and fluid purification.
Telicity judgments in L2 English by L1 Slovak speakers
Authors: Nadova Zuzana , García Mayo María del Pilar
Published: June 2023

The study investigates the acquisition of telicity in L2 English by L1 Slovak speakers as a function of L2 proficiency (measured by a cloze test score), exposure (operationalized as length of stay in an English-speaking country) and instruction type (monolingual vs. bilingual). Telicity judgments were collected from Slovak learners of L2 English (n = 50) and a control group of American English native speakers (n = 15) in two offline acceptability judgment tasks. Two types of telicity encoding were examined: (1) the contribution of the [±quantized] feature of the object argument to predicate telicity, which involves processes in narrow syntax; and (2) the contribution of adverbial modifiers to telicity interpretations, including coercion contexts, which involve processes of aspectual reinterpretation. Based on previous research, it was hypothesized that the contribution of the [±quantized] feature of the object argument to predicate telicity, which is a syntactic phenomenon, will be easier to acquire than aspectual coercion by means of adverbial modifiers, which relies on pragmatic cues. The results indicate that the most significant predictor of telicity judgments based on syntactic cues is L2 proficiency, while length of stay affects telicity judgments in predicate categories involving coercion contexts.
Dernières nouvelles
Authors: Ngadi Maïssa Laude
Published: June 2023

This article shows the relevance of “engaged” or “committed” literature for “post-colonial” African writers in the two collections of short stories called Dernières nouvelles. Through the analysis of narrative utterance, we argue that their position reflects the African fight against colonialism and neo-colonialism. The writers execute a kind of continuum by claiming a literary tradition inherited from the founders of the Negritude movement. However, inspired by the modern context, the writers distance themselves from the radical and racial engagement of their predecessors. This difference can be observed in the use of various literary means, such as on the pretext, “silent cry” and the oxymoron. The article finally argues that there is a contradiction between the criticism of neo-colonial practices and the writers’ collaboration with French publishing houses and different cultural associations.
Weight Gain is Not Associated with Antipsychotic Medication, Sociodemographic Factors, or Diagnosis in a Welsh Secure Mental Health Unit
Authors: Davies Joseph Lloyd , Watt Andrew , Bagshaw Ruth , Hill Charlotte , Seage Heidi
Published: June 2023

Many people treated in secure inpatient services have a serious mental illness and are obese. This study aimed to assess the predictive power of demographic, clinical and pharmacological factors on secure inpatient weight gain during the initial stages of treatment. Retrospective data pertaining to body weight, sex, diagnosis, and prescribed medication was collected for 209 secure psychiatric inpatients. Lower admission bodyweight and non-antipsychotic medication with a low risk of inducing weight gain were the only significant predictors of weight gain (R2 = .050). Clinical implications of these findings are discussed.
Type 2 inflammation and biological therapies in asthma: Targeted medicine taking flight
Authors: Howell Imran , Howell Aleksandra , Pavord Ian D.
Published: June 2023

The field of asthma has undergone a dramatic change in recent years. Advances in our understanding of type 2 airway inflammation have driven the discovery of monoclonal antibodies targeting specific aspects of the immune pathway. In landmark trials, these drugs have shown efficacy in reducing asthma attacks and exposure to oral corticosteroids, important causes of morbidity in people with asthma. Our review explores the key features of type 2 inflammation in asthma and summarizes the clinical trial evidence of the novel monoclonal antibody treatments and future avenues for treatment.
Key comparison BIPM.RI(I)-K1 of the air-kerma standards of the BFKH, Hungary and the BIPM in 60Co gamma radiation
Authors: Kessler C , Burns D , Finta V
Published: June 2023

Main text

A new key comparison of the standards for air kerma of the Budapest Főváros Kormányhivatala (BFKH), Hungary and the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) was carried out in the 60Co radiation beam of the BIPM in October 2021. The comparison result, based on the calibration coefficients for a transfer chamber and expressed as a ratio of the BFKH and the BIPM standards for air kerma, is 1.0029 with a combined standard uncertainty of 2.2 parts in 103. The result agrees within the uncertainties with the comparison carried out in 2016. The results are analysed and presented in terms of degrees of equivalence, suitable for entry in the BIPM key comparison database.

To reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database https://www.bipm.org/kcdb/.

The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCRI, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).
On the non-linear stability of the Cosmological region of the Schwarzschild-de Sitter spacetime
Authors: Minucci Marica , Valiente Kroon Juan A
Published: June 2023

The non-linear stability of the sub-extremal Schwarzschild-de Sitter spacetime in the stationary region near the conformal boundary is analysed using a technique based on the extended conformal Einstein field equations and a conformal Gaussian gauge. This strategy relies on the observation that the Cosmological stationary region of this exact solution can be covered by a non-intersecting congruence of conformal geodesics. Thus, the future domain of dependence of suitable spacelike hypersurfaces in the Cosmological region of the spacetime can be expressed in terms of a conformal Gaussian gauge. A perturbative argument then allows to prove existence and stability results close to the conformal boundary and away from the asymptotic points where the Cosmological horizon intersects the conformal boundary. In particular, we show that small enough perturbations of initial data for the sub-extremal Schwarzschild-de Sitter spacetime give rise to a solution to the Einstein field equations which is regular at the conformal boundary. The analysis in this article can be regarded as a first step towards a stability argument for perturbation data on the Cosmological horizons.
Fast iterative reconstruction for multi-spectral CT by a Schmidt orthogonal modification algorithm (SOMA)
Authors: Pan Huiying , Zhao Shusen , Zhang Weibin , Zhang Huitao , Zhao Xing
Published: June 2023

Multi-spectral CT (MSCT) is increasingly used in industrial non-destructive testing and medical diagnosis because of its outstanding performance like material distinguishability. The process of obtaining MSCT data can be modeled as a nonlinear system and the basis material decomposition comes down to the inverse problem of the nonlinear system. For different spectra data, geometric inconsistent parameters cause geometrical inconsistent rays, which will lead to the mismatched nonlinear system. How to solve the mismatched nonlinear equations accurately and quickly is a hot issue. This paper proposes a general iterative method (SOMA) to invert the mismatched nonlinear equations. The SOMA method gives different equations different confidence and searches along the more accurate hyperplane by Schmidt orthogonalization, which can get the optimal solution quickly. The validity of the SOMA method is verified by MSCT basis material decomposition experiments. The results show that the SOMA method can decompose the basis material images accurately and improve the convergence speed greatly.
Terahertz photocurrent spectrum analysis of AlGaAs/GaAs/GaAsBi multi-junction solar cells
Authors: Krotkus A , Nevinskas I , Norkus R , Geižutis A , Strazdienė V , Pačebutas V , Paulauskas T
Published: June 2023

Characterizing subcells in two-terminal multi-junction (M-J) solar cells is challenging due to the lack of direct electrical access. This work presents a novel contactless spectral characterization technique for analysing individual subcells. The technique involves probing terahertz (THz) radiation generated by femtosecond laser pulse excitation and varying the exciting wavelength to selectively absorb light in the desired subcell. The registered THz pulse integral is then proportional to the induced photocurrent in that subcell. The THz photocurrent spectroscopy technique is demonstrated on GaAs and AlGaAs single-junction solar cells, as well as on the triple-junction AlGaAs/GaAs/GaAsBi solar cell. The results show that the recently developed GaAsBi-based subcell, with a nominal energy bandgap of 1.0 eV, exhibits improved electron–hole separation efficiency and can enhance energy harvesting by M-J solar cells.
First-principles study on the half-metallic properties of the VA group atoms adsorbed on WS2 monolayer
Authors: Lei Yong , Peng Qiong , Zhou Ying , Deng Xiaohui , Deng Jiao , Li Jin , Wu Guang , Rehman Javed
Published: June 2023

Adsorption of atoms on the surface of two-dimensional (2D) materials is one of the most effective ways to induce magnetic properties. In this study, the atomic structure, electronic structure, magnetic properties, and strain effects of VA group atoms (N, P, As, Sb and Bi) adsorbed on a WS2 monolayer are systematically studied using a first-principles method. After calculating the adsorption energy, it was determined that all of the VA group atoms showed a preference for being directly adsorbed above the S atoms. Based on the analysis of the orbital projection density of states and charge transfer, it appears that the group VA atoms chemisorb onto the WS2 layer. The adsorption of the VA group atoms on a WS2 monolayer will introduce 1 μB
magnetic moment into the system. It is exciting that WS2 monolayer adsorbed with P, As, Sb or Bi is half-metallic with 100% spin polarization at the Fermi level. Furthermore, the magnetic properties are robust in the range of 10% strain and the magnetic moment of the system can be effectively controlled by tensile strain. In addition, when two or four atoms are adsorbed on a monolayer WS2 supercell, the adatoms show a tendency towards alignment in terms of their local magnetic moments, which may indicate a potential for ferromagnetic ordering in the system. After the adsorption of VA group atoms, monolayer WS2 exhibits structural stability, tunable magnetism under strain, 100% spin polarizability, and potential for ferromagnetism, making it a promising material for spintronic device applications.
Quark-antiquark states of the lightest scalar mesons within the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model with flavor-dependent coupling constants
Authors: Braghin Fabio L
Published: June 2023

The quark-antiquark components of the U(3) lightest scalar meson nonet are investigated by considering the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model with flavor-dependent coupling constants that were derived by considering (non-perturbative) gluon exchange. The strange quark effective mass (

M

s

*

) is varied such that the strangeness content of these scalar mesons can be analyzed further. The neutral states S
0, S
8, and S
3 are adopted as the most relevant quark-antiquark components, respectively, of the σ(500), f
0(980) and

A

0

0

(
980
)

mesons. As a result, the mass hierarchy between states S
0 and S
8, and

K

0

*

(
700
)
−

A

0

(
980
)

mesons, can be, respectively, inverted and corrected for quite low values of the strange quark constituent mass. In addition, for some particular values of

M

s

*

, the masses of σ(500) and f
0(980) can also be obtained by considering the mixing coupling constant G
08. However, the masses of all the nine mesons are not described simultaneously in a self-consistent procedure and this goes along with the need of non-quark-antiquark states to completely describe their masses. A neutral-meson mixing matrix is defined and the leading mixing angle is found by fitting a correct value of the σ(500) − f
0(980) mass difference. Two different estimates for the strengths of the mixings

A

0

0

→

f

0

and

f

0

→

A

0

0

are proposed, leading to somewhat different behaviors. First by assuming leading transitions to intermediary flavor eigenstates and second by considering a dynamical evolution. The results may be in good agreement with experimental values from BESS-III depending on the value of the strange quark effective mass.
BTCRSleep: a boundary temporal context refinement-based fully convolutional network for sleep staging with single-channel EEG
Authors: Zhao Caihong , Li Jinbao , Guo Yahong
Published: June 2023

Objective. Sleep staging studies on single-channel EEG mainly exploit deep learning methods that combine convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and recurrent neural networks. However, when typical brain waves (such as K-complexes or sleep spindles) that identify sleep stages span two epochs, the abstract process of a CNN extracting features from each sleep stage may cause the loss of boundary context information. This study attempts to capture the boundary context, which contains the characteristics of brain waves during sleep stage transition, to improve the performance of sleep staging. Approach. In this paper we propose a fully convolutional network with boundary temporal context refinement, called BTCRSleep (Boundary Temporal Context Refinement Sleep). The boundary temporal context refinement module refines the boundary information on sleep stages on the basis of extracting multi-scale temporal dependences between epochs and enhances the abstract capability of the boundary temporal context. In addition, we design a class-aware data augmentation method to effectively learn the boundary temporal context between the minority class and other sleep stages. Main results. We evaluate the performance of our proposed network using four public datasets: the 2013 version of Sleep-EDF Expanded (SEDF), the 2018 version of Sleep-EDF Expanded (SEDFX), the Sleep Heart Health Study (SHHS) and CAP Sleep Database (CAP). The evaluation results on the four datasets showed that our model obtains the best total accuracy and kappa score compared with state-of-the-art methods. On average, accuracies of 84.9% in SEDF, 82.9% in SEDFX, 85.2% in SHHS and 76.9% in CAP are obtained under subject-independent cross-validation. We demonstrate that the boundary temporal context contributes to the improvement in capturing the temporal dependences across different epochs.
Magnetic structure of α-U3O8: a DFT and experimental study
Authors: Lv Baijiang , Xia Yuanhua , Hu Shuanglin , Liu Benqiong
Published: June 2023

The magnetic ordering of α-U3O8 remains a puzzling question for a long time. Recent inelastic neutron scattering study exhibited magnetic peaks at (0.5,1,1) and (0.5,2,2) but without intensity at (0.5,0,0). The magnetic propagation vector could still be k = (0.5,0,0), as the probability that the magnetic moments are perpendicular to the reflection plane (0.5,0,0) leading to zero intensity should be not ruled out. Magnetic symmetry analysis leads to 4 distinct magnetic structures, and the first-principles calculations show that the possible ground state of U3O8 could be collinear antiferromagnetic (AFM) ordering (m∣∣a-axis). Only one paramagnetic-AFM phase transition at T
1 = 24 K in magnetization curves has been confirmed, which shifts to lower temperatures as the magnetic field increases. At T = 1.8 K, no hysteresis loop around zero field has been observed which could exclude ferromagnetic ground state in this compound. Neutron powder diffraction data have been collected at several temperatures (300, 40, 15 and 5 K), and the absence of visible magnetic reflections makes the unusual magnetic properties even more mysterious.
Effect of Neutrinos on Angular Momentum of Dark Matter Halo
Authors: Chen Yu , Lu Chang-Zhi , Lu Yu , Zhang Tingting , Zhang Tong-Jie
Published: June 2023

Massive neutrinos are expected to affect the large-scale structure formation, including the major component of solid substances, dark matter halos. How halos are influenced by neutrinos is vital and interesting, and angular momentum (AM) as a significant feature provides a statistical perspective for this issue. Exploring halos from TianNu N-body cosmological simulation with the co-evolving neutrino particles, we obtain some concrete conclusions. First, by comparing the same halos with and without neutrinos, in contrast to the neutrino-free case, over 89.71% of halos have smaller halo moduli, over 71.06% have smaller particle-mass-reduced (PMR) AM moduli, and over 95.44% change their orientations of less than 0.°65. Moreover, the relative variation of PMR modulus is more visible for low-mass halos. Second, to explore the PMR moduli of halos in dense or sparse areas, we divide the whole box into big cubes, and search for halos within a small spherical cell in a single cube. From the two-level divisions, we discover that in denser cubes, the variation of PMR moduli with massive neutrinos decreases more significantly. This distinction suggests that neutrinos exert heavier influence on halos’ moduli in compact regions. With massive neutrinos, most halos (86.60%) have lower masses than without neutrinos.
Existence of solutions for an optimal control problem in forestry management
Authors: Altamirano-Fernández A , Rojas-Palma A , Espinoza-Meza S
Published: June 2023

Physical, biological, and economic factors remain inexhaustible sources when determining silvicultural management strategies that maximize the net benefit of timber volume. The objective of this paper is to formulate an optimal control problem to maximize the net benefit of timber volume and to demonstrate the existence of optimal solutions to this problem. The optimal control theory will be used, through the formulation of a bioeconomic optimal control problem subjected to a system of three ordinary differential equations that describe the interactions between the living biomass, the intrinsic growth of the biomass, and the burned area. Four control variables are associated with these differential equations, which are reforestation, felling, thinning, and fire prevention. Assuming adequate conditions on the control variables, the existence of optimal solutions to the optimal control problem is obtained using Filippov’s theorem. In conclusion, the optimal control problem is well formulated and solutions exist. This will allow us to define forest management strategies that optimize the economic gain of the process, taking into consideration the physical, biological, and economic phenomena involved in the dynamics of forest plantations.
Characterization of variables for modeling agroclimatic and phytosanitary events in agricultural crops using deep learning models
Authors: Ramirez-Guerrero T , Hernández-Pérez M I , Tabares M S , Villanueva E
Published: June 2023

Digital transformation is increasingly present in the agricultural sector thanks to the development and availability of information technologies. However, the agricultural sector is one of the least digitized worldwide, including in countries with highly competitive and technologically advanced agricultural chains and processes. To optimize production using technological tools, it is necessary to combine variables associated with soil, climate, and plant type to estimate crop yields. Therefore, it is important to identify the physical variables that are of interest for the modeling of agroclimatic and phytosanitary events in agricultural crops. This study presents an exploratory type of documentary research to determine what variables are of interest for the modeling of agroclimatic and phytosanitary events in agricultural crops, using a critical analysis based on the results of related studies. Results show the characterization of (i) agroclimatic and biotic variables required to model the mentioned events, (ii) detection of physical evidence associated to biotic factors by means of the analysis of anomalies in the wavelengths of the spectral reflectance of the productive units, (iii) the computational model based on deep learning for the processing of these variables. Furthermore, a data pipeline is proposed that indicates the flow that the characterized variables must go through the analytical tasks.
Teaching mathematics in physics. a study of the mathematics programs of a Costa Rican university
Authors: Gaete-Peralta C , Fallas-Soto R
Published: June 2023

The objective of this research was to describe the mathematical contents that are part of the mathematics programs of a Physics course at a certain Costa Rican university. In order to respond to the proposed research objective, data were collected from the mathematics study programs of the bachelor’s degree in Physics at Universidad de Costa Rica, which were analyzed through a thematic analysis, braided with documentary analysis techniques, where the ATLAS.ti computational tool served as support to carry out such analysis. The results of this research allowed describing the mathematical contents studied in this career through ten topics. Based on these results, a discussion was held about modeling situations that can be implemented in mathematics courses of this major with the purpose of strengthening the link between mathematics and physics. Among the conclusions, the educational community is left with the task of incorporating different theoretical modeling perspectives into the mathematics programs of this career that will strengthen its link with physics.
Pneu-HTP based extrusion actuation in bio-inspired soft joint
Authors: Xu Ming , Ma Jin , Zhao Jindong , Zhang Yongfa , Zhang Di
Published: June 2023

Inspired by the joint structure and actuation mechanism of spider legs, a novel pneumatic soft joint actuator is designed, which achieves joint rotation by mutual compression of two hyperelastic sidewalls under inflation pressure. For this type of extrusion actuation, a pneumatic hyperelastic thin plate (Pneu-HTP) based actuation modeling method is proposed. The two actuating surfaces extruded mutually of the actuator are considered as Pneu-HTPs, and mathematical models for their parallel extrusion actuation and angular extrusion actuation are derived. The finite element analysis (FEA) simulations and experiments were also performed to evaluate the model accuracy of the Pneu-HTP extrusion actuation. The results for the parallel extrusion actuation show that the average relative error between the proposed model and the experiment is only 9.27%, and the goodness-of-fit is greater than 99%. For the angular extrusion actuation, the average relative error between the model and the experiment is 12.5%, and the goodness-of-fit is greater than 99%. The parallel extrusion actuating force and rotational extrusion actuating force of the Pneu-HTP are also highly consistent with the FEA simulation results, which provides a promising method for the accurate modeling of extrusion actuation in soft actuator.
An investigation of seafloor and oceanographic characteristics in deep-water of north Labuan Bajo, Indonesia
Authors: Haryanto D , Nugroho D , Febriawan H K , Harahap R J , Fawaiz A , Wiguna T , Muhtadi A , Dannari A , Haryadi Y , Irfan M , N A B , Fauzi A
Published: June 2023

On 12 December 1992, an earthquake, followed by a tsunami, occurred on Flores Islands, creating massive damage in the northern area and resulting in an early warning tsunami for the Labuan Bajo region. This area is a high-priority tourist designation in Indonesia with busy offshore activities and infrastructure development. Thus, earthquake and tsunami mitigation strategies are mandatory. Part of the mitigation effort is mapping the seafloor and characterizing oceanographic conditions in the deep-water north of this area. This paper describes the seafloor and oceanographic conditions using a multibeam echosounder (MBES) survey, conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) measurement, and current observation. Results show that the rough and complex seafloor topography is revealed in the study area. Seafloor topography consists of a steep slope on the nearshore, flat topography in the sublittoral and shelf, a steeper slope in the bathyal zone, and relatively flat in the abyssal zone found from the south to north in the area. In addition, physical oceanographic properties are observed in two locations with a maximum depth measurement of 3,029 m. The result indicates that the water column is divided into three layers based on gradient changes: surface layer, thermocline layer, and colder depth layer. Moreover, two single-point current measurements at the exact locations are carried out at water depths of 3,029 m and 1,880 m. Result also describes that both stations have current directions of 128.14° and 124.49°, with current magnitudes of 0.1693 m/s and 0.3724 m/s, respectively. This investigation could serve as primary data and information in the study area. Furthermore, it could support the government and other stakeholders related to the development of Labuan Bajo, e.g., infrastructure (submarine cable, port, etc.) and resilience program (e.g., tsunami early warning system) that region
Debris from plastic products in the beaches around Northern Ambon Island
Authors: Manullang C Y , Soamole A , Rehalat I , Barends W , Sudin A M
Published: June 2023

The exponential rise in plastic usage without adequate waste management has a detrimental effect on the ecosystem. This study estimated the density of plastic waste encountered, including: macroplastic (>25 mm); mesoplastic (5-25 mm) and microplastic (1-5 mm) in the coastal environments of northern Ambon Island. The samples were collected in April of 2018. Two quadrats were used for the sampling. On two beaches in northern Ambon Island, the average amount of marine plastic debris was 0.492 item.m−2 for macroplastic (>25 mm), 10.8 item.m−2 for mesoplastic (5-25 mm), and 29.8 item.m−2 for microplastic (1-5 mm). The dominance of plastic-type for macroplastics was a film that comes from food/beverage packaging and single-use plastic bags. Both coastlines were rated as moderate according by the the Clean Coast Index (CCI) evaluation for macroplastic, implying that a few pieces of trash can be spotted. We recommend more innovative waste management and implementing an effective pollution law system in Ambon Island. A routine beach clean-up activity at the lowest government level would be an excellent campaign to protect the coastal area.
Identification of Microdebris in Traditional Salts Processes from Sea Water in Woha-West Nusa Tenggara and Takalar Lama-South Sulawesi
Authors: Wahyuni N S , Rudianto R P , Sujarwadi R , Sinaga R Y H , Liza C , Zainuddin Z , Rusmana D
Published: June 2023

The process of making traditional salt generally uses sea water sources. The marine environment is currently a global concern due to the presence of microplastic contamination. Meanwhile, microplastics were also identified in table salt. In this work, sampling was carried out on the process of making traditional salt in the areas of Takalar Lama - South Sulawesi and Woha - West Nusa Tenggara which are famous for traditional salt making. Samples were taken starting from sea water as a source, saturated sea water and coarse salt. The identification of microdebris in salt was carried out using the filtering and drying method. Samples were observed using a digital microscope and continued with an FTIR microscope for microdebris identification. The amount of microdebris during the salt processed was more than in seawater sources. In Takalar Lama, there is one microdebris in the seawater source, after processing with the geomembrane there are 17 microdebris and without the geomembrane process there are 17 microdebris each in the form of fragments and fibers. Whereas in Woha, the seawater source contained 1 microdebris and the final product contained 7 microdebris.
Lipase-producing Marine Actinomycetes Having Potential to Degrade PET Film
Authors: Agustriana Eva , Rahmani Nanik , Rachmayati Rike , Nuryati  , Andriani Ade , Yulianti Siti Eka , Masruchin Nanang , Atikana Akhirta , Ratnakomala Shanti , Lisdiyanti Puspita , Yopi
Published: June 2023

Currently, the study and the development of plastic degradation are receiving great attention since it could potentially be applied to plastic degradation. Owing to its environmentally benign nature, the enzymatic process of plastic degradation is highly desired. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is one of the most common plastic materials. The degradation of PET was possible by the treatment of the three hydrolases, namely cutinase, lipase, and esterase. On the other hand, marine actinomycetes, which are commonly found to associate with other organisms such as a sponge or residing in a unique environment such as marine sediment, could be a great source of valuable metabolites and enzymes. For that reason, in this study, six isolates of marine actinomycetes showing lipase activity were tested for PET-film degradation. The PET-film degradation was performed by incubating the isolates in a liquid media supplemented with PET films for 14 days. The resulting PET films were then subjected to XRD, FTIR, and SEM analysis. Despite of the decrease in crystallinity of PET-film which was only observed in treatment with isolate BLC 17-1, the FTIR analysis revealed that all absorbances, which are related to PET functionalities, were reduced. Further analysis by SEM showed that the surface of PET films treated with isolates was damaged, indicating degradation of the films. According to the results, it is concluded that the six isolates of marine actinomycetes have the potential to be applied to PET-film degradation.
The characteristics of submarine landslide sediments in Eastern Indonesia with study case in Kai Archipelago Waters and Surrounding Area
Authors: Kurnio H , Tuakia M Z , Aryanto N C D , Pardiarto B , Tampubolon A , Kusnawan  , Widi B N , Widodo W
Published: June 2023

We review the characteristics of submarine landslide sediments as this phenomenon was observed during geological and geophysics systematic mapping in Eastern Indonesia especially surrounding Kai Archipelago using Geomarin 3 owned by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and operated by the Marine Geological Institute of Indonesia (MGI). In this survey was encountered seafloor sediment characteristics interpreted as submarine landslide products of a seismically active area. The landslide sediments were characterized by mixed up of gravel, sand, silt and clay fractions with percentages between 5.91 - 15.85, 60.1 - 72.68, 9.42 - 22.40 and 4.06 - 8.97 respectively. The seafloor where the landslide sediments were deposited is a slope with sea depths ranging from 200 up to 700 meters and spread offshore at the south, east and north of Kai Archipelago. Seismicity in this area is related to intense earthquakes that occurred in the subduction zone of the Banda Sea.
Reassessing smart city components: An overview of the dynamic nature of smart city concept
Authors: Sharma Charul , Sharma Sanjay Kumar , Gill Dharmendra
Published: June 2023

Cities all over the world are in search for a sustainable solution to address the problems associated with urbanization. Holistic smart cities have a multidimensional point of view for future cities. This paper pools components of smart cities and deconstructs the complicated holistic smart cities. The pooled data comes from 29 studies, consisting of 23 performance evaluation schemes and 6 indicator sets that cover 15 countries plus 6 broad geographic regions. On the basis of recurrent themes amongst smart city components, we categorize the components into 9 sub categories and 3 main categories. The results verify that the 6 predetermined components namely, Economy, People, Environment, Mobility, Living and Governance are inalienable from the holistic approach. Novel and unique components that emerge from the study, such as Technology, Infrastructure, Energy, Pandemic Resiliency, Legal, Demography and Propagation substantiate the dynamic nature of the holistic perspective. We recommend that for accurate and better holistic evaluation of smart cities, evaluation schemes need to assimilate varied smart city components from the 3 main categories in a balanced manner. This adds value to the holistic approach and allows diversity and context specificity to thrive in smart city components making them holistic in the true sense. The study is beneficial for policymakers and researchers for holistic measurement of smart city performance.
Aiming towards creative city: how Surakarta City government applied the Sustainability-Oriented Innovation (SOI) as a strategy to empower local small and medium creative industries
Authors: Mukaromah H , Permana C T , Astuti W
Published: June 2023

Sustainability-oriented innovations (SOI), defines as an integration of ecological and social aspects into products, processes, and organizational structures of economic activities. For Small-Medium Scaled Enterprises (SMEs), which engage in small scaled products and limited capital assets as well as human resources capacity, the aim of achieving sustainability becomes a great challenge. According to many cases, SMEs have been only reached the co-production level of sustainability. In this regard, interactions with external actor, such as the government institutions, larger private sectors, and other SMEs are one of the keys of SMEs in attaining sustainability. The role of the government in exhalating SMEs as a part of creative economy environment in the city is important. The government set the creative city vision and then synergizes the SMEs, especially those engaged in creative industries, into the broader organizational structure in the city development. The government also empowers the main actors of SMEs both in techniques, managerial, and financial capacities. The research aims at learning towards the Government-led Sustainability-oriented Innovation strategies in SMEs as a means of promoting the creative city image of Surakarta. Our research was supplemented by interviews and FGDs to explore relevant data and information. The findings revealed that the SOI strategies provided by the city government to empower SMEs to help the achievement of creative city image in Surakarta were undertaken through the introduction of advance information and communication technologies, capacity building to improve community networking, capital accessibility, and product standards and certifications.
Influence of wire-electric discharge machining process parameters on surface integrity of Ni-rich Ni-Ti-Hf alloys
Authors: V Balaji , S Narendranath
Published: June 2023

Ni-Ti-Hf Shape memory alloys (SMAs) have shown promising results in high-temperature applications in aviation, space and energy exploration, actuators, etc. In the past decade, extensive work has been carried out to understand the behavior of High-Temperature SMAs (HTSMAs). NiTi-based SMAs are grouped as hard-to-machine materials, and machining these materials through traditional methods leads to high tool wear, dimensional inaccuracy, degradation of Shape Memory properties, etc. Therefore, Non-Conventional machining processes are a better choice for machining these alloys. It is evident from previous studies that Wire Electric Discharge Machining (WEDM) yields better results compared to other processes. The current study investigates the effect of WEDM input variables such as servo gap voltage (SV), spark-ON duration (TON), wire electrode feed rate (WF), and spark-OFF duration (TOFF) on the machining of Ni-Ti-Hf HTMSAs. The surface integrity of the machined samples was analyzed by investigating characteristics like machined surface morphology, machined surface quality, subsurface microhardness, and recast layer thickness. TON emerged as the most critical parameter for surface roughness and Material Removal Rate. Various defects like micro-cracks, micro-pores, craters, and globules were found on the machined surfaces, and approximately 30% harder surface was found near the machined region. The average thickness of the recast layer observed for Hf-15 and Hf-20 samples was around 12 μm and 50 μm for samples with lower and higher discharge energies, respectively.
Does Concomitant Umbilical Hernia Repair Increase the Risk of Complications in Abdominoplasty? A Propensity Score Matched Analysis
Authors: McCarty Justin C , Lorenzi-Mendez Roberto , Fruge Seth , Hamaguchi Ryoko , Colwell Amy S
Published: June 2023

Background

Patients seeking cosmetic abdominoplasty often have umbilical hernias. Optimal management and safety of concomitant umbilical hernia repair with abdominoplasty is not well described.

Objectives

The goal of this study was to compare complication rates following abdominoplasty with or without umbilical hernia repair.

Methods

A retrospective propensity score matched cohort study of patients who underwent an abdominoplasty at Massachusetts General Hospital was performed. Direct umbilical hernia repair was performed by making a fascial slit inferior or superior to the umbilical stalk. The fascial edges were approximated with up to three 0-Ethibond sutures (Ethicon, Raritan, NJ) from the preperitoneal or peritoneal space. Propensity score matching was used to adjust for confounding variables.

Results

The authors identified 231 patients with a mean [standard deviation] age of 46.7 [9.7] years and a mean BMI of 25.9 [4.4] kg/m2. Nine (3.9%) had diabetes, 8 (3.5%) were active smokers, and the median number of previous pregnancies was 2. In total, 223 (96%) had a traditional abdominoplasty, whereas 8 (3.5%) underwent a fleur-de-lys approach. Liposuction was performed on 90%, and 45.4% underwent simultaneous breast or body contouring surgery. The overall complication rate was 6.9%. Propensity scores matched 61 pairs in each group (n = 122) with closely aligned covariates. There was no significant difference in total complication rates between abdominoplasty alone vs abdominoplasty with hernia repair. There were no cases of skin necrosis or umbilical necrosis in either group.

Conclusions

Performing umbilical hernia repair with abdominoplasty is safe when utilizing the technique reported in this series.

Level of Evidence: 3
Predicting chromosomal compartments directly from the nucleotide sequence with DNA-DDA
Authors: Lainscsek Xenia , Taher Leila
Published: June 2023

Three-dimensional (3D) genome architecture is characterized by multi-scale patterns and plays an essential role in gene regulation. Chromatin conformation capturing experiments have revealed many properties underlying 3D genome architecture, such as the compartmentalization of chromatin based on transcriptional states. However, they are complex, costly and time consuming, and therefore only a limited number of cell types have been examined using these techniques. Increasing effort is being directed towards deriving computational methods that can predict chromatin conformation and associated structures. Here we present DNA-delay differential analysis (DDA), a purely sequence-based method based on chaos theory to predict genome-wide A and B compartments. We show that DNA-DDA models derived from a 20 Mb sequence are sufficient to predict genome wide compartmentalization at the scale of 100 kb in four different cell types. Although this is a proof-of-concept study, our method shows promise in elucidating the mechanisms responsible for genome folding as well as modeling the impact of genetic variation on 3D genome architecture and the processes regulated thereby.
Memory reactivation and suppression modulate integration of the semantic features of related memories in hippocampus
Authors: Morton Neal W , Zippi Ellen L , Preston Alison R
Published: June 2023

Encoding an event that overlaps with a previous experience may involve reactivating an existing memory and integrating it with new information or suppressing the existing memory to promote formation of a distinct, new representation. We used fMRI during overlapping event encoding to track reactivation and suppression of individual, related memories. We further used a model of semantic knowledge based on Wikipedia to quantify both reactivation of semantic knowledge related to a previous event and formation of integrated memories containing semantic features of both events. Representational similarity analysis revealed that reactivation of semantic knowledge related to a prior event in posterior medial prefrontal cortex (pmPFC) supported memory integration during new learning. Moreover, anterior hippocampus (aHPC) formed integrated representations combining the semantic features of overlapping events. We further found evidence that aHPC integration may be modulated on a trial-by-trial basis by interactions between ventrolateral PFC and anterior mPFC, with suppression of item-specific memory representations in anterior mPFC inhibiting hippocampal integration. These results suggest that PFC-mediated control processes determine the availability of specific relevant memories during new learning, thus impacting hippocampal memory integration.
Expansive linguistic representations to predict interpretable odor mixture discriminability
Authors: Dhurandhar Amit , Li Hongyang , Cecchi Guillermo A , Meyer Pablo
Published: June 2023

Language is often thought as being poorly adapted to precisely describe or quantify smell and olfactory attributes. In this work, we show that semantic descriptors of odors can be implemented in a model to successfully predict odor mixture discriminability, an olfactory attribute. We achieved this by taking advantage of the structure-to-percept model we previously developed for monomolecular odorants, using chemical descriptors to predict pleasantness, intensity and 19 semantic descriptors such as “fish,” “cold,” “burnt,” “garlic,” “grass,” and “sweet” for odor mixtures, followed by a metric learning to obtain odor mixture discriminability. Through this expansion of the representation of olfactory mixtures, our Semantic model outperforms state of the art methods by taking advantage of the intermediary semantic representations learned from human perception data to enhance and generalize the odor discriminability/similarity predictions. As 10 of the semantic descriptors were selected to predict discriminability/similarity, our approach meets the need of rapidly obtaining interpretable attributes of odor mixtures as illustrated by the difficulty of finding olfactory metamers. More fundamentally, it also shows that language can be used to establish a metric of discriminability in the everyday olfactory space.
Radiation nephropathy is associated with a glomerular thrombotic microangiopathy and progression to end-stage kidney disease
Authors: Bertoni Isabela , Soares Maria F , Roberts Ian S D , Connor Thomas
Published: June 2023

Radiation nephropathy is a rare complication following total body irradiation (TBI) and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT). Yttrium 90-DOTATOC (Y90) is a somatostatin analogue labelled with Y90 used for somatostatin-positive neuroendocrine tumours. Y90 is renally excreted and has a cumulative effect in the renal parenchyma Despite fractionation and co-administration of renoprotective intravenous amino acids, targeted radionuclide therapy can still be nephrotoxic. Rising adoption of PRRT has led to the re-emergence of radiation nephropathy. We report on three recent cases of insidious onset of progressive kidney dysfunction and biopsy-proven thrombotic microangiopathy following PRRT and TBI.
Animal Tricksters from Japanese Folktales in Angela Carter’s Work
Authors: Cardi Luciana
Published: June 2023

This article explores the role of Japanese folktales in Angela Carter’s oeuvre, focusing especially on the figure of the Japanese fox trickster that appears in Fireworks, Love, and The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman. In these works, the shape-shifting body of the East-Asian fox becomes a site of conflict between contrasting categories (male/female, European/Asian, human/animal) and mirrors the process by which the characters are turned into commodified, fictionalized representations of gender and race. The trickster’s ability to shift across the animal–human border also provides Carter with a narrative device to interrogate the cultural boundaries that define both sexuality and humanity (as opposed to bestiality)—a topic that prefigures her critique of patriarchal and anthropocentric hierarchies in The Bloody Chamber.
Red meat consumption, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Shi Wenming , Huang Xin , Schooling C Mary , Zhao Jie V
Published: June 2023

Aims

Observational studies show inconsistent associations of red meat consumption with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes. Moreover, red meat consumption varies by sex and setting, however, whether the associations vary by sex and setting remains unclear.

Methods and results

This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to summarize the evidence concerning the associations of unprocessed and processed red meat consumption with CVD and its subtypes [coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, and heart failure], type two diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and to assess differences by sex and setting (western vs. eastern, categorized based on dietary pattern and geographic region). Two researchers independently screened studies from PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for observational studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published by 30 June 2022. Forty-three observational studies (N = 4 462 810, 61.7% women) for CVD and 27 observational studies (N = 1 760 774, 64.4% women) for diabetes were included. Red meat consumption was positively associated with CVD [hazard ratio (HR) 1.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05 to 1.16 for unprocessed red meat (per 100 g/day increment); 1.26, 95% CI 1.18 to 1.35 for processed red meat (per 50 g/day increment)], CVD subtypes, T2DM, and GDM. The associations with stroke and T2DM were higher in western settings, with no difference by sex.

Conclusion

Unprocessed and processed red meat consumption are both associated with higher risk of CVD, CVD subtypes, and diabetes, with a stronger association in western settings but no sex difference. Better understanding of the mechanisms is needed to facilitate improving cardiometabolic and planetary health.