bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Research and Implementation of Choreographer Technique Based on Music Feature Extraction
Authors: Zhang Dongqi
Published: February 2022

With the deepening of China’s reform and opening up, people’s living standards have been continuously improved, which has promoted the rapid development of our country’s culture and arts, such as music. As an important part of music, dance plays an important role in the culture and art of our country. People can use dance gestures to express moods or inner feelings that cannot be expressed in words. In order for the dance to be received and favored by people, it is necessary to have better ideas to express emotions, which is related to the choreographer of the dance. This article takes choreographer as the research object, uses the music feature extraction technology in machine learning to the choreographer, applies the extracted music feature information to the choreographer, and synchronizes the audio and video to achieve better dance effect, which has important research value.
Application from South Korea on the decomposition of the strategic procedure of IPO proceeds
Authors: Khan Yousaf Ali , Ahmad Muneeb
Published: February 2022

The study’s key aim is to decide what South Korean initial public offering (IPO) issuers indicate as their intended usage of IPO proceeds, as well as the use with the highest amount of allocation, and whether the allocation of IPO proceeds to each intended use varies across industries. In order to fulfil the study’s target, a manual material review of prospectuses from 235 IPO issuers was conducted between 2005 and 2015. Descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance, Independent Sample [Formula: see text]-test, and Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test were used to evaluate the results. The findings reveal that issuers plan to use IPO proceeds for a range of purposes. Capital investment, on the other hand, earned the largest volume and proportion of IPO proceeds, followed by debt restructuring and company growth. The trend of allocation of IPO proceeds for a particular purpose is affected by the industry classifications of issuers, according to further research using the Independent Sample [Formula: see text]-test and Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test, since there is a statistically relevant discrepancy between the mean values of allocation of IPO proceeds across industries. The technology sector, for example, has a statistically higher mean research and development (R&D) score than other sectors. As a result, future research into how the expected usage of IPO proceeds impacts subsequent IPO results will be important.
Low-Temperature Aqueous Batteries: Challenges and Opportunities
Authors: Sui Yiming , Yu Mingliang , Xu Yunkai , Ji Xiulei
Published: February 2022

Aqueous batteries represent promising candidates to address the grand challenge of energy storage. Ideally, a battery ought to deliver performance at low temperatures. Unfortunately, pure water has a high freezing point of 0 °C at 101 KPa, where the limited low-temperature performance of aqueous batteries is usually expected. However, significant progress has been made recently in suppressing the freezing point of aqueous electrolytes, which leads to the demonstration of some low-temperature aqueous batteries. This article summarizes the challenges in low-temperature aqueous batteries as well as the reported strategies in promoting the low-temperature performance of these batteries.
Short-Term Daily Univariate Streamflow Forecasting Using Deep Learning Models
Authors: Wegayehu Eyob Betru , Muluneh Fiseha Behulu
Published: February 2022

Hydrological forecasting is one of the key research areas in hydrology. Innovative forecasting tools will reform water resources management systems, flood early warning mechanisms, and agricultural and hydropower management schemes. Hence, in this study, we compared Stacked Long Short-Term Memory (S-LSTM), Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (Bi-LSTM), and Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) with the classical Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) network for one-step daily streamflow forecasting. The analysis used daily time series data collected from Borkena (in Awash river basin) and Gummera (in Abay river basin) streamflow stations. All data sets passed through rigorous quality control processes, and null values were filled using linear interpolation. A partial autocorrelation was also applied to select the appropriate time lag for input series generation. Then, the data is split into training and testing datasets using a ratio of 80 : 20, respectively. Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), and coefficient of determination (R2) were used to evaluate the performance of the proposed models. Finally, the findings are summarized in model variability, lag time variability, and time series characteristic themes. As a result, time series characteristics (climatic variability) had a more significant impact on streamflow forecasting performance than input lagged time steps and deep learning model architecture variations. Thus, Borkena’s river catchment forecasting result is more accurate than Gummera’s catchment forecasting result, with RMSE, MAE, MAPE, and R2 values ranging between (0.81 to 1.53, 0.29 to 0.96, 0.16 to 1.72, 0.96 to 0.99) and (17.43 to 17.99, 7.76 to 10.54, 0.16 to 1.03, 0.89 to 0.90) for both catchments, respectively. Although the performance is dependent on lag time variations, MLP and GRU outperform S-LSTM and Bi-LSTM on a nearly equal basis.
Improved SiamFC Target Tracking Algorithm Based on Anti-Interference Module
Authors: Yan Yejin , Huo Wenxiao , Ou Jiayu , Liu Zhifeng , Li Tianping
Published: February 2022

The SiamFC target tracking algorithm has attracted extensive attention because of its good balance between speed and performance, but the tracking effect of the SiamFC algorithm is not satisfactory in complex background scenes. When SiamFC algorithm uses deep semantic features for tracking, it has good recognition ability for different types of objects, but it has insufficient discrimination for the same types of objects. Therefore, we propose an effective anti-interference module to improve the discrimination ability of the algorithm. The anti-interference module uses another feature extraction network to extract the features of the candidate target images generated by the SiamFC main network. In addition, we set up the feature vector set to save the feature vectors of the tracking target and the template image. Finally, the tracking target is selected by calculating the minimum cosine distance between the feature vector of the candidate target and the vector in the feature vector set. A large number of experiments show that our anti-interference module can effectively improve the performance of SiamFC algorithm, and the performance of this algorithm can be comparable to the popular algorithms.
A Data-Driven Approach for Electric Energy Equipment Using Wireless Sensing Technology in the Context of Carbon Neutrality
Authors: Hu Zichen , Zhou Lixing
Published: February 2022

In this paper, we use wireless sensing technology to conduct an in-depth study and analysis of data-driven power energy equipment in the context of carbon neutrality. For the high-order uncertainty of renewable energy power generation and the nonlinearity of the tidal equation, a set of orthogonal bases under arbitrary probability space can be constructed by itself using the high-order information of renewable energy power generation statistics, and then, polynomials fit the state variables such as voltage in the tidal equation using the orthogonal bases and calculate the fitting parameters using the stochastic Gallatin integration method. Based on the analysis of the online monitoring project of the main power equipment in the substation, a substation power equipment condition monitoring system is designed to realize the real-time monitoring of the temperature status of power equipment, substation smoke and temperature, and humidity environment, and the feasibility and advanced of the system are verified by elaborating the analysis. Using wireless transmission to send real-time temperature information to the monitoring background, the infrared thermal imaging online monitoring system is designed around the front-end data acquisition system, transmission network, background data processing, and display module. Saving-investment equilibrium means that total investment equals total savings; government budget balance can be achieved through government savings or deficits. When both supply chain approaches enter into the same environmental competition, the added value that consumers value the product because of the carbon-neutral approach becomes smaller in the coefficient constraint of green effort investment cost due to the competition between the two supply chains, which in turn increases the green investment cost of the supply chain with the green effort carbon-neutral approach, indicating that in the case of competition, consumers, when faced with two products produced by two supply chains, are interested in the product with the carbon-neutral approach has less value-added, and some of the demand is shifted to the product not produced with the carbon-neutral approach.
Valproic Acid Inhibits Glioma and Its Mechanisms
Authors: Yang Zhao-Yu , Wang Xiao-Hong
Published: February 2022

Glioma is one of the most common intracranial tumors worldwide, and metastasis and chemoresistance remain a challenge in glioma treatment. This study aims to investigate the effect of sodium valproate on the invasion and metastasis of glioma cells and its mechanism. Glioma cell lines were stimulated with VPA at different concentrations and for different durations of action. U87 glioma cells were transfected with Smad4 plasmid and small interfering RNA, and the changes of EMT-related protein indexes in U87 cells after up- or downregulation of Smad4 were detected by Western blotting. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the differences in the expression of Smad4, TIF1-γ, and TGF-β proteins in 39 glioma clinical specimens from the Department of Pathology of our hospital. Based on the regulation of EMT-related transcription factors by VPA, our study indicates that VPA inhibits the EMT process of glioma by altering the expression level of Smad4, which is induced by TGF-β1 to form a Smad3/4 complex, thus inducing the EMT process of the tumor and acting as an antitumor target to inhibit the invasive ability of glioma cells. Sodium valproate inhibits glioma invasion and metastasis through the regulation of Smad4 expression.
Mediating Role of Time Pressure on the Relationship between Organizational Psychology Safety and Motivation of Learning from Failure in Large‐Scale Construction Project
Authors: Lin Lingna , Luo Xiaowei , Cheng Sainan , Xu Min , Zhu Lianbo
Published: February 2022

Large‐scale construction projects are characterized by the temporary cooperation of different parties with objectives, making it challenging to learn from failure under great time pressures. Learning from failure in such multiparties projects must overcome the fear of speaking out the “failure,” reflected by organizational psychology safety. This study aims to explore the impact of organizational psychology safety on the motivation of learning from failure under the mediating role of time pressure by a cross‐sectional study. Data was collected by a questionnaire survey of 189 construction practitioners and analyzed by applying regression analysis. Results show that organizational psychology safety was negatively associated with time pressure and positively with the motivation of learning from failure. Time pressure was detrimental to the motivation of learning from failure, and it partially mediated the relationship between organizational psychology safety and motivation of learning from failure. Insights from the analysis could help the managers of organizations or projects to attach importance to the influence and role of learning from failure and could provide them with guides to implement lessons‐learned systems.
Insight into the Advances in Clinical Trials of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines
Authors: Basheeruddin Asdaq Syed Mohammed , Jomah Shahamah , Rabbani Syed Imam , Alamri Ali Musharraf , Salem Alshammari Salman Khalaf , Duwaidi Badr Sami , Alshammari Majed Sadun , Alamri Abdulhakeem S. , Alsanie Walaa F. , Alhomrani Majid , Sreeharsha Nagaraja , Imran Mohd.
Published: February 2022

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has thrown a challenge to the scientific community. Several interventions to stop or limit the spread of infection have failed, and every time the virus emerges, it becomes more contagious and more deadly. Vaccinating a significant proportion of the population is one of the established methods to achieve herd immunity. More than 100 COVID-19 vaccines have been designed and tested against the virus. The development of a new vaccine takes years of testing, but due to the pandemic, healthcare authorities have given emergency use authorization for a few vaccines. Among them are BioNTech and Moderna vaccines (mRNA based); ChAdOx1, Gam-COVID-Vac, Janssen vaccines (vector-based); CoronaVac, COVAXIN (virus inactivated); and EpiVacCorona vaccine (viral peptide). Mixtures of vaccines are also being tested to evaluate their efficacy against mutant strains of SARS-CoV-2. All these vaccines in clinical trials have shown robust production of neutralizing antibodies sufficient to prevent infection. Some of the vaccinated people reported serious complications. However, no definitive relationship could be established between vaccination administration and the occurrence of these complications. None of the COVID-19 vaccines approved to date have been found to be effective against all of the SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Bioinformatics Analysis Reveals the Related Role of miR-511-5p in the Progression of Breast Cancer
Authors: Wang Teng , Liu Jinquan , Zhong Rui , Zhang Yidan , Sun Zhenxuan , Li Jutao , Hu Gang , Sun Li , Liu Jintao
Published: February 2022

Breast cancer remains a dangerous disease, and delving the molecular mechanism of breast cancer is still necessary. To illustrate the role of miR-511-5p, TCGA database was used to excavate the abundance of miR-511-5p, and the miR-511-5p level was measured in the pathological tissues and tumor cell lines. Moreover, the targets of miR-511-5p were identified with miRDIP and GEPIA and then were used for functional enrichment analysis. Besides, the targets of miR-511-5p were analyzed with the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network for the hub nodes, and then the expression levels of the hub nodes were visualized with the GEPIA database. The results showed that miR-511-5p was significantly downregulated in multiple types of tumor samples in the online database, and the downregulated miR-511-5p was also found in pathological tissues and tumor cell lines. Moreover, 48 genes were identified as the potential targets of miR-511-5p by miRDIP and GEPIA databases and enriched in cell cycle, PI3K/AKT, and P53 pathways. Besides, seven genes including BRCA1, FN1, CCNE1, CCND1, CHEK1, BUB3, and CDC25A were identified as the hub nodes by the PPI network, and CCNE1 and CHEK1 were confirmed to be related with the prognostic survival of the patients with breast cancer. In conclusion, the proofs in this study suggest that reduced miR-511-5p was a biomarker event for breast cancer, and CCNE1 and CHEK1 served as potential targets of miR-511-5p to involve the progression of breast cancer.
Antibacterial Effect of Red Laser Therapy on Enterococcus faecalis Using Different Photosensitizers: An In Vitro Study
Authors: Torres Franz , Mallma Adrian , Munayco Americo , Sotomayor Oscar , Mauricio Franco , Mayta-Tovalino Frank
Published: February 2022

Objective. To assess the antibacterial effect of red laser using different photosensitizers such as methylene blue and malachite green on monoradicular premolars contaminated with E. faecalis ATCC 29212. Methods. This was an in vitro experimental study. Monoradicular premolars (44, 45, 34, and 35) were used, which were treated with ProTaper Next. After instrument change, irrigation, disinfection, and aspiration were performed with 2 ml of 4% NaOCl with a NaviTip 30°G needle (Ultradent, South Jordan, UT, USA). Group 1: RL + MB (red laser associated with methylene blue photosensitizer), group 2: RL + MG (red laser associated with malachite green photosensitizer), and group 3: control (no treatment). The E. faecalis strain was cultured on trypticase soy agar (TSB) (Difco, Detroit, MI, USA) and incubated at 37°C for 24 h. After the incubation period, colony-forming units (CFU/ml) of each group were counted using the plate count method. The ANOVA test was used with a significance level of

p
<
0.05

. Results. Group 1 had the lowest antibacterial contamination as it averaged only 530 ± 581.3 CFU/ml, while group 2 had the highest contamination with an average of 1990 ± 542.5 CFU/ml. Comparison revealed that there were statistically significant differences between the RL + MB and RL + MG groups (

p
<
0.001

). Conclusions. Group 1 had the best antimicrobial potential because it presented the lowest contamination in CFU/ml of E. faecalis compared to group 2 and group 3.
Effects of Nalbuphine Combined with Anterior Serratus Plane Block in Elderly Patients Undergoing Thoracoscopic Surgery
Authors: Liu Ying , Li Yunpeng , Wu Chao , Li Hang
Published: February 2022

Postoperative pain in elderly patients with lung cancer after thoracoscopic surgery is still an important factor affecting the prognosis of patients. In this study, 200 elderly patients with lung cancer who were positive and planned to undergo video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery were randomly divided into four groups: control group, SAPB (serratus anterior plane block) group, Nalbuphine group and Nalbuphine + SAPB group. The effects of drugs and nerve block on the perioperative indexes of elderly patients were observed. The results showed that ① The VAS and SAS scores of postoperative analgesia in the Nalbuphine + SAPB group were lower than those in the single group and the control group. ② The postoperative spontaneous respiratory recovery time, extubation time, resuscitation room stay time, extubation cough, restlessness and respiratory depression in the Nalbuphine + SAPB group were lower than those in the single group and the control group. ③ The heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) of patients in Nalbuphine + SAPB group before induction, T2 after intubation, T3 before skin incision, T4 after skin incision, T5 after chest closure and T6 after extubation were lower than those in single group and control group. Therefore, this study concluded that Nabufine combined with SAPB can make the vital signs of intraoperative patients more stable, which is worthy of clinical promotion.
A Novel Recognition Model of University Students’ Psychological Crisis Based on DM
Authors: Cai Lihuang
Published: February 2022

The research on identifying college students’ psychological crises can assist college administrators in better understanding of students’ psychological changes and planning of intervention measures ahead of time to ensure college students’ mental health. When confronted with unexpected events or major setbacks and difficulties, people experience psychological crises, which they can neither avoid nor solve using their own resources and stress methods. This paper proposes a method of college students’ psychological crisis identification based on data mining technology to solve the problems that exist in the process of identifying psychological crises in college students and to improve the correct rate of identifying psychological crises in college students. In comparison to other technologies, data mining can uncover the link between students’ psychological problems and their basic information, as well as the main causes of psychological problems, using statistical data.
Construction and Analysis of Governance Evaluation Index System of Beijing Urban Subcenter Based on System Theory and Information Theory
Authors: Wang Liexuan , Wang Kunsheng , Huang Huajin
Published: February 2022

The construction of subcenters is considered an effective measure to solve the diseases in big cities and improve urban competitiveness. China takes the planning and construction of the Beijing urban subcenter as a major national decision-making deployment. Therefore, the establishment of a scientific and reliable evaluation index system for the urban subcenter is of great significance to the public sector to diagnose urban problems and improve urban performance management. Under the guidance of system theory, this paper establishes the governance evaluation index system of the Beijing subcenter based on the five subsystems: economic subsystem, social subsystem, cultural subsystem, ecological subsystem, and administrative subsystem, and 29 secondary indicators. After comprehensively examining the panel data of the overall Beijing urban system during the construction of the subcenter (2010–2019), the entropy method is used to objectively assign the value of the Beijing urban subcenter (Tongzhou District), and it is compared with other 15 municipal districts. The derivation of the development dynamic evolution of the Beijing urban subcenter is completed through the geospatial visualization and the linear regression fitting. It is found that the comprehensive index of urban subcenter governance in Beijing shows an upward trend year by year and has developed by leaps and bounds under the promotion of the central policy. Driven by Beijing’s subcenter strategy, the development model of the whole of Beijing has moved from a typical center diffusion model to a dual center to a subcenter and even a diversified development pattern. This paper proposes to lead urban development with the concept of high-quality development, adhere to innovation-driven, improve urban comprehensive carrying capacity through urban software and hardware construction, and realize regional coordinated development on a larger spatial scale.
AXL and MET in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Systematic Literature Review
Authors: Hsu Chih-Hung , Huang Yi-Hsiang , Lin Shi-Ming , Hsu Chiun
Published: February 2022

Background: Multikinase inhibitors (MKIs) have been shown to improve survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) compared with placebo. Distinct from other MKIs, cabozantinib has inhibitory activity for both AXL and MET. This review considers the literature elucidating the role of AXL and MET in HCC progression, treatment resistance, and immunomodulation. A systematic search of the PubMed database was conducted on November 16, 2020, and identified a total of 174 search results. A further 36 potentially relevant articles were identified based on the authors’ knowledge. After initial screening by title/abstract, 159 underwent full-text screening and we identified 69 original research articles reporting empirical data from in vitro or in vivo models of HCC evaluating the effects of manipulating AXL or MET signaling on tumorigenic behavior. Summary: AXL expression is highly correlated with HCC progression and outcomes and has been reported to be involved in transforming growth factor-β and the regulation of PI3K/AKT, ERK/MAPK, and CCN proteins. MET protein expression is increased in HCC with the highest histological grade and has been reported to be involved in the regulation of PI3K/AKT, PLCγ/DAG/PKC, and MAPK/ERK signaling. Both AXL and MET are key regulators of sorafenib resistance in HCC. In terms of immunomodulation, there are data to indicate that AXL and MET interact with the immune components of the tumor microenvironment and promote tumorigenesis and treatment resistance. In addition, AXL was found to play a potential role in the development of a protumorigenic neutrophil phenotype in HCC. Combined inhibition of MET and programmed cell death protein resulted in additive reduction of HCC cell growth. Key Messages: AXL and MET play key roles in HCC progression, treatment resistance, and immunomodulation. Continued development of drugs that target these receptor tyrosine kinases appears likely to represent a useful strategy to improve outcomes for patients with HCC.
Relationship between Obstetric Mode of Delivery and Risk of Overweight/Obesity in 1- to 4-Year-Old Children
Authors: Huang Peiying , Shi Xiulin , Xiao Fangsen , Wang Liying , Liu Wei , Zeng Jinyang , Lin Mingzhu , Li Xuejun
Published: February 2022

Introduction: Childhood obesity is an important public health problem, which may lead to increased risk of obesity in adulthood. The relationship between the incidence of obesity and the mode of delivery is not clear. Cesarean section (CS) may be one of the risk factors of obesity in children. We investigated the relationship between the mode of delivery of pregnant women and the risk of overweight/obesity in children of all ages from 1 to 4 years. Methods: Registered in the maternal and child registration system of Xiamen city, newborns born between January 2011 and December 2012 were followed up to 4 years old. Results: 9,964 cases were included in the study, of which 3,462 cases (34.7%) were cesarean deliveries. From 1 to 4 years of age, BMI Z-scores and the risk for overweight/obesity of children delivered by CS were higher than by the vagina. Longitudinal analysis of anthropometric outcomes assessed during study visits in 1- to 4-year-old offspring exposed to CS showed that after adjustment for kinds of effect factors, the changes in BMI Z-scores were 0.04 (95% CI: 0.01–0.09, p = 0.003), significantly higher than vaginal delivery, and the risk incidence of overweight/obesity by increased 8% in CS offspring; OR = 1.08 (1.01–1.21, p< 0.05). Conclusion: The mode of cesarean delivery is related to the risk of overweight and obesity in children aged 1–4 years. When pregnant women choose cesarean delivery without medical indications, they should be concerned that their offspring may have a higher risk of obesity.
All in all it’s just another branch in the tree: A new species of Acanthocercus Fitzinger, 1843 (Squamata: Agamidae), from Angola
Authors: MARQUES MARIANA P. , PARRINHA DIOGO , SANTOS BRUNA S. , BANDEIRA SUZANA , BUTLER BRETT O. , SOUSA ANA CAROLINA A. , BAUER AARON M. , WAGNER PHILIPP
Published: February 2022

Recent integrative taxonomic studies of the agamid genus Acanthocercus Fitzinger, 1843 have shown that Angola harbors three different taxa, all within the Acanthocercus atricollis (Smith, 1849) species complex—A. cyanocephalus (Falk, 1925) in the northeastern parts of the country, A. margaritae Wagner et al. 2021 in the southern regions, and an unnamed species in the central and northwestern parts of Angola. Using the previously published molecular data as evidence of phylogenetic support and newly collected morphological, meristic and coloration data, we here describe this unnamed lineage as a new species. The new species is morphologically very similar to A. cyanocephalus, but it can easily be differentiated from the latter by the coloration pattern of displaying males, with a blue coloration restricted to the head region, and by its inferior scale counts compared to other species of the A. atricollis complex group. As reported in other studies in this group, male breeding coloration is an effective trait for diagnosing these morphologically conserved species. This description raises the number of Acanthocercus species recognized to 15 and is another contribution revealing the rich but still incompletely described herpetological diversity of Angola.
Discovery of the genus Pseudonagoda Holloway, 1990 (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) from China, with description of a new species and notes on the immature stages
Authors: WU JUN , YANG XIAO-FENG , HAN HUI-LIN
Published: February 2022

The third species of Pseudonagoda Holloway, 1990, P. zhejiangensis sp. nov., is described from Zhejiang Province, China, and this little-known genus is reported for the first time from China. The new species is compared with its congeners P. siniaevi Solovyev, 2009 in morphological features. The male adult and genitalia are illustrated, as well as the COI sequences data are provided. The immature stages of the genus are also described firstly in this study.
A CT-Derived Measurement of Sarcopenia Fails to Predict Falls
Authors: Dalal Setu , Tucker Scarlett , Zielonka Tania , Kinney JacqueLyn , Magdich Andrew , Parr David , Parulekar Manisha , Blatt Melissa , Hawkins Samuel , Kuo Yen-Hong , Cohn Stephen M.
Published: February 2022

Sarcopenia and frailty have both emerged as risk factors for elderly falls. We investigated whether radiologic sarcopenia or frailty are associated with falls in a high-risk geriatric outpatient population. We reviewed 114 patients followed at the Center for Healthy Senior Living who had undergone a computerized tomography (CT) of the abdomen and pelvis for any reason from 2013 to 2019. Sarcopenia was determined by psoas muscle cross-sectional area at L3 on CT scan. Their individual frailty score was calculated. The primary outcome was admission to hospital for falls. There were no statistical differences in frailty score or sarcopenia between the 2 groups (left/right psoas muscle: no hospital admission = 6.8 ± 2.4/6.4 ± 2.5 vs falls requiring hospital admission 6.5 ± 2.3/6.5 ± 2.3 cm2). We concluded that neither frailty score nor sarcopenia predicted the occurrence of falls in our high-risk geriatric outpatient population.
Comparison of sex determination using three methods applied to the greater sciatic notch of os coxae in a Thai population: Dry bone morphology, 2-dimensional photograph morphometry, and deep learning artificial neural network
Authors: Intasuwan Pittayarat , Palee Patison , Sinthubua Apichat , Mahakkanukrauh Pasuk
Published: February 2022

The os coxa is commonly used for sex and age estimation with a high degree of accuracy. Our study aimed to compare the accuracy among three methods, which include a deep learning approach to increase the accuracy of sex prediction. A total sample of 250 left os coxae from a Thai population was divided into a ‘training’ set of 200 samples and a ‘test’ set of 50 samples. The age of the samples ranged from 26 to 94 years. Three methods of sex determination were assessed in this experiment: a dry bone method, an image-based method and deep learning method. The intra- and inter-observer reliabilities were also assessed in the dry bone and photo methods. Our results showed that the accuracies were 80.65%, 90.3%, and 91.95% for the dry bone, image-based, and deep learning methods, respectively. The greater sciatic notch shape was wide and symmetrical in females while narrow and asymmetrical in males. The intra- and inter-observer agreements were moderate to almost perfect level (Kappa = 0.67−0.93, ICC = 0.74−0.94). Conclusion: The image-based and deep learning methods were efficient in sex determination. However, the deep learning technique performed the best among the three methods due to its high accuracy and rapid analysis. In this study, deep learning technology was found to be a viable option for remote consultations regarding sex determination in the Thai population.
Dwelling as politics: An emancipatory praxis of/through care and space in everyday life
Authors: Gutiérrez Sánchez Isabel
Published: February 2022

Drawing on the theory of the Paradigm of Governing and the Paradigm of Dwelling by the philosopher Fernández-Savater , this paper attempts to theorise a spatial politics of care through an ethnographic analysis of three grassroots initiatives – a social kitchen, an accommodation centre with refugees and a community centre – set up in Athens (Greece) as a counter-response to the crisis politics via austerity enforced in the country (2010–2018), as well as to the renewed EU border system (2016). The everyday politics of these self-organised groups is conceptualised as a Politics of Dwelling. The concept refers to a form of political praxis and capacity forged within the sphere of social reproduction and everyday life. It is argued that Dwelling as politics holds an emancipatory potentiality beyond capitalist relationships, which lies in (1) its situated/embodied nature, which marks collective processes of decision-making and organisation with an ethics of care, (2) the central role that space and material resources play in those processes.
Consumer Attitudes Towards Imported Organic Food in China and Germany: The Key Importance of Trust
Authors: Pedersen Susanne , Zhang Ting , Zhou Yanfeng , Aschemann-Witzel Jessica , Thøgersen John
Published: February 2022

Imports are necessary to satisfy consumer demand for a varied organic food assortment. In developed economies, consumers generally prefer domestic products, while consumers in developing and emerging economies tend to prefer imported. Underlying reasons for these organic food preferences are explored in an emerging and a developed economy, China and Germany, employing a comparative mixed-methods approach consisting of in-store interviews, focus groups, and an online survey. Contrary to prior research, we find a domestic country bias for organic foods in China, but smaller than in Germany, and Chinese consumers trust the organic standards of developed countries more than their own. Chinese consumers’ primary reasons for preferring organic foods are food quality and safety concerns. German consumers prefer domestic products and imports from geographically close countries and environmental concerns are the primary reasons for this and for preferring organic foods. Results suggest that higher consumer trust in institutions in developed (“WEIRD”) countries is a competitive advantage for producers in these countries, not only on the domestic market, but also in the world market for organic food.
The Use of an Incentive to Improve Breastfeeding Outcomes: The Effectiveness of Offering a Free Family YMCA Membership to Increase Support Group Participation
Authors: Miller Lisa Russell
Published: February 2022

Background:

Suboptimal breastfeeding can result in negative health consequences for mother and infant and economic consequences for families and communities. Breastfeeding outcomes improve when multifaceted interventions spanning the perinatal period are implemented. Incentives to increase participation in effective, existing community-based breastfeeding support programs have the potential to create behavioral change and improve breastfeeding outcomes but results to date are inconclusive.

Research Aim:

The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the effectiveness of offering a Young Men’s Christian Association membership as an incentive to increase attendance at an existing breastfeeding support program to improve breastfeeding duration and exclusivity.

Method:

This was a two-group, quasi-experimental study using demographic information and pre- and post-intervention participant surveys. Attendance at a breastfeeding support program was incentivized with an offer of a free family Young Men’s Christian Association membership. Surveys and demographic information were used to compare attendance, maternal interest, and perceived significant other and family support for attendance with a non-incentivized control group in an adjacent city.

Results:

The groups differed demographically and socioeconomically. Significantly more at-risk participants both attended the incentivized group and perceived support from their families to attend. There was a significant increase in the incentivized group’s attendance: 62% ( n = 26) of participants in the incentivized group attended three or more times compared to 36% ( n = 50) of participants in the control group ( p = .03). Both groups exceeded national breastfeeding averages for exclusive breastfeeding at six months.

Conclusion:

Offering an incentive increased breastfeeding support group attendance by participants at risk for suboptimal breastfeeding and improved their breastfeeding outcomes, thus closing the breastfeeding disparity gap in this population.
Measuring Demand and Supply Shocks From COVID-19: An Industry-Level Analysis for India
Authors: Patnaik Anuradha
Published: February 2022

The present article attempts to decompose the COVID-19-induced shock to output and inflation of the Indian economy at the aggregate and disaggregate levels into demand and supply shocks for the period March 2020 to June 2020, using a structural Bayesian VAR model following Baumeister and Hamilton (2015, 2019). The results of the empirical analysis reveal that while the negative supply shocks dominate at the aggregate and disaggregate levels, their magnitude varies across industries. Demand shocks to output were positive in some industries like the manufacture of food products (10), textiles (13), chemicals and chemical products (20), and electrical equipment (27), but were outweighed by the negative supply shocks. In response to the COVID-19 shock the government announced the three pronged Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (ABA), which is a blend of demand management, supply management and structural policies. It not only promises to address the short-term distress caused to the industries due to the COVID-19 shock but also attempts to make them self-reliant and resilient to such shocks in future.

JEL Classification: E10, C32, C40, E30
Controlling the Uncontrollable: Stress, Burnout, and Parenting During a Pandemic
Authors: Joyce Amanda
Published: February 2022

Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, many parents have struggled to maintain work-life balance. This investigation examines contributors to and protective factors from parental stress during the pandemic. As expected, perceived stress increased with burnout and decreased with parental inhibitory control, mindfulness in parenting, and perceived competence. Interestingly, it showed no association with child age nor the number of children in the home. Similarly, it investigated parental well-being as a function of childcare during COVID. Parents who did not feel that their childcare needs were being met were more stressed, experienced more work and personal burnout, and felt less mindful and competent in their parenting than did parents whose childcare needs were met. The results underscore the importance of providing supports to parents as they emerge from the pandemic, and demonstrate the need to proactively support families should similar crises arise in the future.
A cost-minimization analysis comparing teledermoscopy and face-to-face evaluations of suspicious skin lesions in Southern Denmark
Authors: Vestergaard Tine , Andersen Merethe Kirstine , Kidholm Kristian
Published: February 2022

Introduction

Skin cancers are common in European populations and generate considerable costs. In Denmark, patients with suspicious skin lesions will usually consult their general practitioner who may refer the patient to a dermatologist or plastic surgeon if necessary. However, it is also possible for the general practitioner to take and send dermoscopic and macroscopic photographs of the suspicious skin lesion for evaluation by a dermatologist, so-called teledermoscopy. This study aims to calculate and compare costs of teledermoscopy and standard care in the form of face-to-face evaluation by a dermatologist of suspicious skin lesions referred by general practitioners in the Region of Southern Denmark.

Methods

A cost-minimization study was performed. Investment costs, costs in general practice, hospital-associated costs and patient costs were included to calculate the average cost per patient episode.

Results

The overall cost of teledermoscopy was €17.2–€23.1 higher than that of standard care. However, hospital-associated costs and patient costs were reduced.

Discussion

The total cost of teledermoscopy was slightly higher than the cost of standard care. Sensitivity analyses indicated that the number of preventable face-to-face evaluations and the distance to the dermatologist were the two factors that influenced costs the most.
Is Finnish early childhood education going private? – Legislative steps and local policy actors’ representations of privatisation
Authors: Laiho Anne , Pihlaja Päivi
Published: February 2022

In this article, we contribute to the research on the process of privatisation of Finnish early childhood education (ECE), describe how the privatisation has proceeded within the legal framework and how profit making has become possible in ECE. Furthermore, we analyse how local key policy actors justify the privatisation of ECE and what the problems represented to be in local privatisation policy are. The data for the first part of this research were chosen from critical legislative changes concerning private daycare/ECE from a period 1973 to 2018. The second part of our research data consists of in-depth interviews with two leading managers in ECE administration and two politicians in one Finnish municipality. The findings reveal that privatisation has become part of Finnish ECE through tacit and invisible steps, both in legislation and in municipal services illustrating hidden privatisation. At the national level, the process towards private ECE has been a part of social and health care reforms without a deep analysis of daycare/ECE and the needs of this service. At the local level, the privatisation of ECE was seen as an attempt to address economic problems as well as challenges in the balance between the supply of and the demand for ECE services.
A Survey of Canadian Pharmacists’ Knowledge and Comfort in the Management of Epilepsy and Antiepileptic Drugs
Authors: Chandok Akshita , Mahmoud Sherif Hanafy
Published: February 2022

Background: As antiepileptic drugs (AED) remain the mainstay of epilepsy management, pharmacists have the potential to play an integral role in the management. Objective: The goal of our study was to characterize Canadian pharmacists’ knowledge and comfort in managing epilepsy and AED and identify areas of need for the development of support tools. Methods: An electronic survey was designed and distributed to Canadian pharmacists through professional organizations. The survey consisted of 4 sections, including demographics, knowledge, comfort, and needs assessment around epilepsy management. Results: A total of 605 complete responses were included. Nearly two-thirds of the participants were females (61.6%) and most reported more than 10 years of practice experience (61.6%). For comfort, a majority of the participants responded agree or strongly agree to the statement inquiring about the comfort in checking prescriptions, answering questions about drug interactions, and counseling on AED. Conversely, more than 50% of the participants selected disagree or strongly disagree when asked about their comfort regarding interpreting therapeutic drug monitoring and assisting patients withdraw from AED. For the knowledge section, the overall average score was 57.6% ± 19.1%. Hospital practice, recent graduation, and neurology experience were independent predictors of high scores. Many participants indicated a need for tools addressing newer AED and monitoring of therapy. Conclusion: Although Canadian pharmacists displayed knowledge and comfort in certain aspects of epilepsy management, some clear knowledge and comfort gaps are prevalent. These findings indicate a need for the development of epilepsy educational support tools.
High male specific contribution of the X-chromosome to individual global recombination rate in dairy cattle
Authors: Kadri N. K. , Zhang J. , Oget-Ebrad C. , Wang Y. , Couldrey C. , Spelman R. , Charlier C. , Georges M. , Druet T.
Published: February 2022

Background

Meiotic recombination plays an important role in reproduction and evolution. The individual global recombination rate (GRR), measured as the number of crossovers (CO) per gametes, is a complex trait that has been shown to be heritable. The sex chromosomes play an important role in reproduction and fertility related traits. Therefore, variants present on the X-chromosome might have a high contribution to the genetic variation of GRR that is related to meiosis and to reproduction.

Results

We herein used genotyping data from 58,474 New Zealand dairy cattle to estimate the contribution of the X-chromosome to male and female GRR levels. Based on the pedigree-based relationships, we first estimated that the X-chromosome accounted for 30% of the total additive genetic variance for male GRR. This percentage was equal to 19.9% when the estimation relied on a SNP-BLUP approach assuming each SNP has a small contribution. We then carried out a haplotype-based association study to map X-linked QTL, and subsequently fine-mapped the identified QTL with imputed sequence variants. With this approach we identified three QTL with large effect accounting for 7.7% of the additive genetic variance of male GRR. The associated effects were equal to + 0.79, − 1.16 and + 1.18 CO for the alternate alleles. In females, the estimated contribution of the X-chromosome to GRR was null and no significant association with X-linked loci was found. Interestingly, two of the male GRR QTL were associated with candidate genes preferentially expressed in testis, in agreement with a male-specific effect. Finally, the most significant QTL was associated with PPP4R3C, further supporting the important role of protein phosphatase in double-strand break repair by homologous recombination.

Conclusions

Our study illustrates the important role the X-chromosome can have on traits such as individual recombination rate, associated with testis in males. We also show that contribution of the X-chromosome to such a trait might be sex dependent.
Genome-wide identification of the NLR gene family in Haynaldia villosa by SMRT-RenSeq
Authors: Huang Zhenpu , Qiao Fangyuan , Yang Boming , Liu Jiaqian , Liu Yangqi , Wulff Brande B. H. , Hu Ping , Lv Zengshuai , Zhang Ruiqi , Chen Peidu , Xing Liping , Cao Aizhong
Published: February 2022

Background

Nucleotide-binding and leucine-rich repeat (NLR) genes have attracted wide attention due to their crucial role in protecting plants from pathogens. SMRT-RenSeq, combining PacBio sequencing after resistance gene enrichment sequencing (RenSeq), is a powerful method for selectively capturing and sequencing full-length NLRs. Haynaldia villosa, a wild grass species with a proven potential for wheat improvement, confers resistance to multiple diseases. So, genome-wide identification of the NLR gene family in Haynaldia villosa by SMRT-RenSeq can facilitate disease resistance genes exploration.

Results

In this study, SMRT-RenSeq was performed to identify the genome-wide NLR complement of H. villosa. In total, 1320 NLRs were annotated in 1169 contigs, including 772 complete NLRs. All the complete NLRs were phylogenetically analyzed and 11 main clades with special characteristics were derived. NLRs could be captured with high efficiency when aligned with cloned R genes, and cluster expansion in some specific gene loci was observed. The physical location of NLRs to individual chromosomes in H. villosa showed a perfect homoeologous relationship with group 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 of other Triticeae species, however, NLRs physically located on 4VL were largely in silico predicted to be located on the homoeologous group 7. Fifteen types of integrated domains (IDs) were integrated in 52 NLRs, and Kelch and B3 NLR-IDs were found to have expanded in H. villosa, while DUF948, NAM-associated and PRT_C were detected as unique integrated domains implying the new emergence of NLR-IDs after H. villosa diverged from other species.

Conclusion

SMRT-RenSeq is a powerful tool to identify NLR genes from wild species using the baits of the evolutionary related species with reference sequences. The availability of the NLRs from H. villosa provide a valuable library for R gene mining and transfer of disease resistance into wheat.