bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Explaining the Reversed Gender Gap in Political Consumerism: Personality Traits as Significant Mediators
Authors: Gundelach Birte , Kalte Deborah
Published: January 2021

Research on political consumerism documents a persistent reversed gender gap, as women boycott and buycott products more often than men. Previous efforts to explain the reversed gender gap rely on classical theoretical models developed to illuminate gender differences in political participation in general. Accounting for socio‐economic and situational factors as well as socialization leaves a significant amount of the reversed gender gap unexplained, though. Adhering to recent empirical evidence of personality as an important factor influencing political behavior, we argue that gender differences in personality traits could provide an alternative explanation to account for gender disparities in political consumerism. We use original survey data specially designed to measure political consumerism in Switzerland, which also include the Big Five model of personality. We find empirical evidence that gender differences in personality traits, in particular agreeableness, explain a significant portion of the reversed gender gap in political consumerism.
Long‐term manure application for crop yield stability and carbon sequestration in subtropical region
Authors: Wankhede Madhuri , Dakhli Raja , Manna Madhab Chandra , Sirothia Pawan , Mahmudur Rahman Mohammad , Ghosh Avijit , Bhattacharyya Pratap , Singh Muneshwar , Jha Shankar , Patra Ashok Kumar
Published: January 2021

Yield stability and carbon sequestration of agricultural systems are impacted by nutrient management strategies. Major objectives of this study were to understand the effects of long‐term (43 years) manure application on a) environmental parameters such as soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, enzyme activities in surface and subsurface layers, and b) yield, and yield stability under a soybean–wheat cropping system in a Vertisol. For this, 100% recommended dose of nitrogen (N), N and phosphorus (NP), N, P and potassium (NPK), NPK + farmyard manure (NPKM) was compared with an unfertilized control (UC) and a fallow land. After 43 years, NPKM and NPK plots had ∼63 and 30% higher total SOC stock than UC, and 45 and 17% higher total SOC stock than fallow plots, respectively in the 0–30 cm layer. Acid hydrolysable C was ~ 42 and 57% higher for NPKM plots in those layers respectively than fallow land. The proportion of macroaggregates was less than 30% in both soil layers of cultivated plots. NPKM had 44 and 28% greater humic and fulvic acid‐associated C than fallow land in top layer. Enzyme activities improved in NPKM by ~ 60 and 61% as compared with fallow land. A steady decline in soybean productivity over the years might be due to residue effect. However, wheat yield increased steadily with manuring. Higher SOC accumulation (p < .001), greater enzyme activities (p < .05), improved structure (p < .05) could enhance wheat yield under NPKM. Thus, manure application could lead to yield stability and enhance SOC sequestration in subtropical region simultaneously.
Efficient Cas9 multiplex editing using unspaced sgRNA arrays engineering in a Potato virus X vector
Authors: Uranga Mireia , Aragonés Verónica , Selma Sara , Vázquez‐Vilar Marta , Orzáez Diego , Daròs José‐Antonio
Published: January 2021

Systems based on the clustered, regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeat (CRISPR) and CRISPR‐associated proteins (Cas) have revolutionized genome editing in many organisms, including plants. Most CRISPR‐Cas strategies in plants rely on genetic transformation using Agrobacterium tumefaciens to supply the gene editing reagents, such as Cas nucleases or the synthetic guide RNA (sgRNA). While Cas nucleases are constant elements in editing approaches, sgRNAs are target‐specific and a screening process is usually required to identify those most effective. Plant virus‐derived vectors are an alternative for the fast and efficient delivery of sgRNAs into adult plants, due to the virus capacity for genome amplification and systemic movement, a strategy known as virus‐induced genome editing. We engineered Potato virus X (PVX) to build a vector that easily expresses multiple sgRNAs in adult solanaceous plants. Using the PVX‐based vector, Nicotiana benthamiana genes were efficiently targeted, producing nearly 80% indels in a transformed line that constitutively expresses Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9. Interestingly, results showed that the PVX vector allows expression of arrays of unspaced sgRNAs, achieving highly efficient multiplex editing in a few days in adult plant tissues. Moreover, virus‐free edited progeny can be obtained from plants regenerated from infected tissues or infected plant seeds, which exhibit a high rate of heritable biallelic mutations. In conclusion, this new PVX vector allows easy, fast and efficient expression of sgRNA arrays for multiplex CRISPR‐Cas genome editing and will be a useful tool for functional gene analysis and precision breeding across diverse plant species, particularly in Solanaceae crops.
Quality of evidence‐based guidelines for platelet transfusion and use: A systematic review
Authors: Al‐Riyami Arwa Z. , Jug Rachel , La Rocca Ursula , Keshavarz Homa , Landry Denise , Shehata Nadine , Stanworth Simon J. , Nahirniak Susan
Published: January 2021

Background

Guidelines for platelet (PLT) transfusion are an important source of information for clinicians. Although guidelines intend to increase consistency and quality of care, variation in methodology and recommendations may exist that could impact the value of a guideline. We aimed to determine the quality of existing PLT transfusion guidelines using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE II) instrument and to describe the inconsistencies in recommendations.

Study Design and Methods

A systematic search was undertaken for evidence‐based guidelines from January 1, 2013, to January 25, 2019. Citations were reviewed in duplicate for inclusion and descriptive data extracted. Four physicians appraised the guideline using the AGREE II instrument and the scaled score for each item evaluated was calculated. The protocol was registered in PROSPERO.

Results

Of 6744 citations, 6740 records were screened. Seven of 28 full‐text studies met the inclusion criteria. The median scaled score (and the interquartile range of the scaled score) for the following items were as follows: scope and purpose, 94% (8%); stakeholder involvement, 63% (18%); rigor of development, 83% (14%); clarity of presentation, 94% (6%); applicability, 58% (20%); and editorial independence, 77% (4%). Overall quality ranged from 4 to 7 (7 is the maximum score). Inconsistent recommendations were on prophylactic PLT transfusion in hypoproliferative thrombocytopenia in the presence of risk factors and dose recommendations.

Conclusion

Inconsistencies between guidelines and variable quality highlight areas for future guideline writers to address. Areas of specific attention include issues of stakeholder involvement and applicability.
Introduction
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

HOW DID A RELATIVELY little-known nineteenth-century Livornese rabbi who argued for the universalism of Judaism and for unity among religions come to influence theological and political agendas across a spectrum of religious thinkers so varied that it includes proponents of the ecumenical Second Vatican Council, American evangelists, and right-wing Zionists in Israel? What does it say about interfaith encounters that his efforts to work toward unity among monotheisms have fueled such irreconcilable stances? And how can an idiosyncratic figure who sought a means of overcoming religious divisions—one based on Judaism and, more specifically, on a Jewish theology of Christianity—illuminate broader problems of Jewish modernity? And be coopted by a postmodern thinker like psychiatrist Jacques Lacan? These are a few of the questions raised by the life, work, and legacy of Elia Benamozegh (1823–1900)....
The Moroccan World of a Livornese Jew
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 1 explores how the fortunes of Livorno, Benamozegh’s place of birth and of lifelong residence, where his parents had settled after leaving Morocco, shaped his understanding of diversity, his assertive engagement with the Christian world, and his feeling of alienation from a place once vibrant, but by his time relegated to the commercial and intellectual margins of Europe. His Moroccan background exemplifies the importance of commercial and rabbinic networks in the Mediterranean and accounts for his view of Kabbalah as an essential part of the Jewish tradition in an age when it had generally fallen out of favor among the enlightened figures of Judaism.
Expanding His Readership
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 4 examines Benamozegh’s turn to a French audience and the affinities of his themes with the main French thinkers of this era, such as Renan, Leroux, or Michelet. The right tone for persuading his readers and the question of the audience he targeted turned out to be stumbling blocks as he tried to refashion himself as an intellectual but, sometimes bombastically, strove to convince secular readers of the need to reassess the significance of religion in order to confront the challenges of modernity. After penning a scathing Jewish and Christian Ethics, his apology for the universal values of Judaism culminated in his posthumous crowning achievement, Israel and Humanity.
The Afterlives of a Manuscript
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 5 is a study of the fate of Israel and Humanity, Benamozegh’s posthumous manuscript, and the controversies that surround the editorial changes made by Benamozegh’s Christian disciple, Aimé Pallière, who was entrusted with its publication by the Livornese rabbi’s family and turned the 1,900-page manuscript into the 735-page first edition published in 1914. Yet no previous scholarship had ever compared Benamozegh’s original manuscript to the one published by Pallière in 1914. This book fills this lacuna and provides further insights into the inner world of Benamozegh and his influences.
Normativity and Inclusivity in Modernity
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 7 turns to Benamozegh’s interpretation of the Noahide Laws, central to his system. Based on rational revelation but with edicts resembling natural law, they convey both internal and external normativity. This ancient legislation functions as a theological construct that sits well with one of modernity’s features: the imperative of locating normativity within itself. Additionally, Benamozegh contended, the legislation shows that Judaism is not ethnocentric in nature and manifests its inclusivism. Yet, in his defense of Noahism as a solution for the crisis of Christianity, he turned a blind eye to the laws’ arguably hierarchical nature which can be taken as indicating minimal universalism.
Kabbalah
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 10 describes how Benamozegh penned his defense of Kabbalah as a marker of modernity in a counterintuitive fashion: as both science and myth. First, he redefined Kabbalah as a form of knowledge: by calling it theosophy, and thus imbuing it with scientific overtones, he presented a version of Kabbalah compatible with reason--a far cry from what common enlightened views of it would have been. At the same time, by highlighting its mythical qualities as well, he also sought to show the need for human narratives that go beyond reason.
Kabbalah as Politics
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 12 examines Benamozegh’s reading of Kabbalah as capable of underwriting a political project that involved the remaking of a secretive, esoteric tradition into a public, exoteric conversation. Benamozegh claimed Kabbalah as a centerpiece of Jewish thought that should help to revisit Western culture in order to reform its materialistic tendencies, thus pushing against the Orientalism tropes of his time. This stance foreshadows one of the turning points in the reception of Kabbalah in the twentieth century, exemplified by the works of such thinkers as Yehuda Ashlag, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, and Léon Askénazi, in which its themes and concepts can be used as a political discourse.
Religious Enmity and Tolerance Reconsidered
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 13 examines Benamozegh’s theoretical constructs, by which he tried to neutralize the notion of religious enmity—a category, he argued, that was created by Christianity and which was bound to foster ontological hostility. In his quest for religious coexistence, he emphasized the concept of interdependence and rejected that of tolerance, which he viewed as an insufficient proposition; it was but a variation on pragmatism or utilitarianism. The chapter also probes Benamozegh’s Jewish theology of other religions, and its universalism predicated on the unifying quality of Judaism, against the typology of pluralism and inclusivism.
Self-Assertion and a Jewish Theology of Religions
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 15 details Benamozegh’s worldview and the inextricable link between theology and the politics of identity underlying it. The Jewish theology of other religions that he proposed mostly reimagined a relationship with Christianity, one where the tradition of a minority, namely Judaism, could be used to overcome the flaws of the dominant culture. But its tone also raises questions regarding the nature and purpose of religious dialogue: self-reformation or reformation of other religions. Because of its confident (and at times triumphant) tone, it is also a statement about Jewish self-perception in modernity and corresponds to a more assertive turn in Jewish thought at the turn of the century.
Legal Theory as a Discipline and the Trouble with Pluralism
Authors: Croce Mariano , Goldoni Marco
Published: January 2021

Chapter abstract: This chapter offers an account of the rise of legal theory as a discipline. It begins by expanding on how and why in the nineteenth century legal theorists felt the need to draw the borders of their discipline and what effects it had on the understanding of the relation between law, politics, and society. It then explores the most remarkable reactions to the outcome of legal theory becoming a specialized discipline, or rather, the identification of the general phenomenon of law with the law of the state. Based on this analysis, these pages go on to offer a short description of what pluralism looked like between the nineteenth and the twentieth century. The chapter concludes by explaining in what sense the relation between the specialization of legal theory and the conceptualization of pluralism provides the key to understanding Romano, Schmitt, and Mortati.
The Dangers of Poetry
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

Poetry has long dominated the cultural landscape of modern Iraq, simultaneously representing the literary pinnacle of high culture and giving voice to the popular discourses of mass culture. As the favored genre of culture expression for religious clerics, nationalist politicians, leftist dissidents, and avant-garde intellectuals, poetry critically shaped the social, political, and cultural debates that consumed the Iraqi public sphere in the twentieth century. The popularity of poetry in modern Iraq, however, made it a dangerous practice that carried serious political consequences and grave risks to dissident poets.
The Dangers of Poetry is the first book to narrate the social history of poetry in the modern Middle East. Moving beyond the analysis of poems as literary and intellectual texts, Kevin Jones shows how poems functioned as social acts that critically shaped the cultural politics of revolutionary Iraq. He narrates the history of three generations of Iraqi poets who navigated the fraught relationship between culture and politics in pursuit of their own ambitions and agendas. Through this historical analysis of thousands of poems published in newspapers, recited in popular demonstrations, and disseminated in secret whispers, this book reveals the overlooked contribution of these poets to the spirit of rebellion in modern Iraq.
Neoclassical Modernity
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

This chapter details the engagement of Iraqi poets with the Arab Nahda of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It provides a brief account of the social role of poetry in late Ottoman Iraq and a survey of the neoclassical poetry revival in Egypt and Syria. The chapter shows how Iraqi poets used the Nahda press to articulate their own relationship to modernity and reveals how new appreciations of the singularity of Iraq’s poetry tradition inspired proto-nationalist conceptions of Iraqi culture. Finally, the chapter examines the efforts of a new generation of young Najafi poets to promote the pioneering role of their own Najafi predecessors and reconstruct the historiography of the Arab Nahda for a broader Arab audience in the early twentieth century.
Cultural Hegemony
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

This chapter explores the collapse of national front politics and the violent cultural conflict that followed the revolution of July 14, 1958. It shows how relatively minor ideological disputes over the meaning of “Arab unity” evolved into a vicious cultural confrontation between communists and nationalists. The chapter documents the role of nationalist poets in constructing an anticommunist cultural discourse that emphasized the sexual immorality of their rivals. Their own vision of “muscular nationalism” portrayed the nationalist Baʿth Party as custodians of national honor and progressive advocates of women’s liberation. Communist poets struggled to combat these allegations by defending the progressive aspects of their agenda, but they remained hesitant to address questions of gender and sexuality directly. The poetry wars of this period critically shaped the cultural politics of national liberation and presaged the sectarian violence of the coming decades.
Heat Transfer Advancement From Horizontal Cylinder Using Passive Shroud−Chimney Configuration: Experimental and Numerical Analysis
Authors: Kahwaji Ghalib Y. , Ali Mohanad T. , Samaha Mohamed A.
Published: January 2021

In a prior study, the novel shroud−chimney configuration (SCC) (semicircular shrouds and expended chimney) has been numerically demonstrated to passively augment natural convection heat transfer from a horizontal cylinder. However, to implement such a configuration for practical utilizations, the heat flow properties must be experimentally observed and understood. In this work, a controlled experiment is carried out to validate the impact of SCC on heat transfer from a horizontal cylinder subjected to a constant measured heat flux at its inner surface. Circumferential temperature measurements at the cylinder surface, shrouds, and ambient are achieved using thermocouples. The emissivity of the cylinder is measured and utilized to estimate radiation heat loss from the cylinder surface. All presented cases are numerically simulated for validation. The measured and numerically predicted cylinder surface temperatures are within 2% agreement. Moreover, the experimentally and numerically estimated Nusselt numbers agree to within 4%, which verifies the developed correlations for enhanced convection. Finally, a parametric study is presented to show the optimum range of design parameters for the best SCC performance. A newly defined term “effective flow rate” is quantified and correlated to the optimum location of the shroud relative to the cylinder. Several SCC design correlations resulted from the analysis.
Entropy Generation Analysis and Cooling Time Estimation for a Rotating Vertical Hollow Tube in the Air Medium
Authors: Rana Basanta Kumar , Senapati Jnana Ranjan
Published: January 2021

An objective function combining the first and second laws of thermodynamics has been employed to delineate the thermodynamic performance on mixed convection around a vertical hollow, rotating cylinder within the laminar range with the variation of Rayleigh number (104 ≤ Ra ≤ 108), Reynolds number (ReD < 2100), and aspect ratio (1 ≤ L/D ≤ 20). Entropy generation in the system is predominantly triggered by heat transfer in comparison to fluid friction. The irreversibility incurred progressively increases with an increase in Ra and ReD. The variation pattern of (I/Q)Rotation/(I/Q)Non−Rotation has been demonstrated to find out the optimized regime where heat transfer is maximum within the laminar range. The contribution of fluid friction irreversibility toward total irreversibility rises abruptly with an increase in ReD for all cases of L/D and Ra. To demonstrate this study's thermodynamic characteristics, the static temperature contours as well as the contours of entropy generation have been represented pictorially. The estimation of cooling time has been reported by using the method of lumped capacitance.
Evolutionary Design Method for a Conducting Solid Cooled by Combined Free Convection and Radiation
Authors: Sevart Chadwick D. , Bergman Theodore L.
Published: January 2021

An iterative design algorithm is used to adjust the shape of a conducting solid body that is subjected to a surface heat flux and cooled simultaneously by free convection and radiation in order to reduce the overall thermal resistance. Parametric simulations are carried out over a range of domain dimensions and emissivity values to determine the sensitivity of (i) the predicted solid shape and (ii) the overall thermal resistance to the relative strength of convection or radiation. Results show that, for the conditions considered, surface radiation has a significant influence on the predicted optimal solid geometry and overall thermal resistance.
Microstructural Evaluation of Alloy 800H After SCWL Exposure
Authors: Marušáková D. , Aparicio C. , Fukač R.
Published: January 2021

Alloy 800H is a candidate material for supercritical water-cooled reactors (SCWR), specifically for in-core components in Canadian-type SCWR, that will operate at a pressure of 25 MPa and a core temperature from 350 °C to 625 °C. To evaluate this, several exposures to supercritical water took place at 395 °C and 25 MPa in a supercritical water loop (SCWL). The duration of each exposure was 500, 150, and 1000 h. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), in combination with Raman spectroscopy (RS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), was used to evaluate the microstructure of alloy 800H after the exposures to supercritical water. All these methods confirmed the presence of magnetite and trevorite/chromite crystals, with a thickness of less than 1 μm, on the surface after each exposure. No significant change occurred after the second and third exposures. The matrix crystallography did not change during the exposures and demonstrated grain twinning with a grain size of 100–400 μm.
Comparison Between the Effects of Zero and Non-Zero Flow Acceleration on the Entropy Wave Decay: An Experimental Study
Authors: Hosseinalipour S. M. , Rahmani E. , Fattahi A.
Published: January 2021

Entropy wave, as the convecting hot spot, is one of the sources of combustion instabilities, which is less explored through the literature. Convecting in a highly turbulent flow of a combustor, entropy waves may experience some levels of dissipation and deformation. In spite of some earlier investigations in the zero acceleration flow, the extent of the wave decay has not been clear yet. Further, there exist no results upon the wave decay in non-zero accelerated flows. This is of crucial importance, as the wave passes through the end nozzle of the combustor or gas turbine stages. The current experiment, therefore, compares the wave decay in both flow of constant and variable bulk velocity, meaning, respectively, a uniform pipe and a convergent nozzle. The comparison will aid the theoretical models to reduce complexity by simplifying the relations of non-zero acceleration flow to those of no acceleration, as followed by the earlier effective-length method. Reynolds number and inlet turbulence intensity are considered as the governing hydrodynamic parameters for both investigated flows. The entropy wave is generated by an electrical heater module and detected using fast-response thermocouples. The results show that the entropy wave variation is point-wise and frequency-dependent. The accelerated flow of the nozzle is generally found to be more dissipative in comparison with the zero acceleration flow.
Numerical Assessment of Density Ratio and Mainstream Turbulence Effects on Leading-Edge Film Cooling: Heat and Mass Transfer Methods
Authors: Ravelli S. , Abdeh H. , Barigozzi G.
Published: January 2021

Within the context of leading-edge film cooling in a high-pressure turbine vane, the present study is a step forward toward modeling showerhead performance for a baseline geometry (namely four staggered rows of cylindrical holes) at engine-like conditions, starting from a previous investigation, at low-speed flow (exit isentropic Mach number of Ma2is = 0.2), low inlet turbulence intensity of Tu1 = 1.6%, and density ratio of DR ∼ 1. Those operating conditions, dictated by experimental constraints, were essential to validate results from delayed detached-eddy simulation (DDES) against off-the-wall measurements of velocity, vorticity, and turbulent fluctuations, for the coolant-to-mainstream blowing ratio of BR = 3 (momentum flux ratio of I = 9). Here, the potential of DDES is exploited to predict the aerothermal features of the flow in the leading-edge region in the presence of a larger density ratio (DR ∼ 1.5) and turbulent mainstream (Tu1 = 13%), while matching either BR or I. The experimental database contains surface measurements of film cooling adiabatic effectiveness (η), obtained by using the pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) technique. DDES predictions of η were computed using the species transport model (i.e., mass transfer), for comparison against the conventional thermal method, based on creating a temperature differential between the mainstream and the coolant (i.e., heat transfer). The simulated film cooling performance was found to depend on the method used, thus suggesting that other parameters than DR, BR, I, and Tu1 should be taken into account when the goal is matching engine-like conditions.
A scanner for in situ X-ray radiography of large paintings: the case of “Paolo and Francesca” by G. Previati
Authors: Impallaria Anna , Petrucci Ferruccio , Chiozzi Stefano , Evangelisti Federico , Squerzanti Stefano
Published: January 2021

A scanner for digital radiography of large paintings has been designed and developed, aimed to in situ performances. We report here the application to “Paolo and Francesca” ($$260 \times 230 \,\hbox {cm}^{2}$$

260
×
230

cm
2

), masterpiece by the Italian divisionist painter Gaetano Previati (1909). The scanner has given the whole radiography in 1137 X-ray shots, which were corrected for X-ray inhomogeneities and finally processed, minimizing the visual impact of the frame structure. The original version of the painting has been brought to the light, and it appears to be a further step in the evolution of the theme frequently experienced by the artist.
A study on causality in f(R,ϕ,X) theory
Authors: Gonçalves J. S. , Santos A. F.
Published: January 2021

The [Formula: see text]-essence modified [Formula: see text] gravity model, i.e. [Formula: see text] theory is studied. The question of violation of causality, in the framework of Gödel-type universes, is investigated in this gravitational model. Causal and noncausal solutions are allowed. A critical radius for noncausal solution is calculated. It is shown that the violation of causality depends on the content of matter.
Neutrino masses in a supersymmetric model with exotic right-handed neutrinos in global 𝒵3 ⊗ (B − L) symmetry
Authors: Rodriguez M. C.
Published: January 2021

We build a supersymmetric model with [Formula: see text] gauge symmetry, with a global [Formula: see text] symmetry. The [Formula: see text] symmetry is necessary to keep the proton stable at least at tree level. There is also a global [Formula: see text] symmetry, where [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] are the usual baryonic and leptonic numbers, respectively. We introduce three nonidentical right-handed neutrinos plus new scalars fields. After symmetry breaking, the right-handed neutrinos together with one left-handed neutrino get Majorana masses via the seesaw mechanism. The other two left-handed neutrinos get their Majorana masses at 1-loop level. We will also explain the mixing angle in the neutrino sector in agreement with the experimental data and we get several interesting candidates to the observed dark matter.
ASSOUAD DIMENSIONS OF MORAN SETS WITH ZERO INFIMUM CONTRACTION
Authors: ZHU ZHIYONG
Published: January 2021

We obtain the Assouad dimensions of two Moran classes with zero infimum contraction under suitable conditions.
Electronic, molecular, and solid-state structural effects of strong electron withdrawing and donating groups in functionalized fluorophthalonitriles
Authors: Pelmuş Marius , Raab Jeffrey G. , Patel Hemantbhai H. , Colomier Christopher , Foglia Ralph , Kelty Stephen P. , Gorun Sergiu M.
Published: January 2021

Perfluoro phthalonitrile substituted separately with perfluoroalkyl (EWG) and NH2, NHMe, and NMe2 (EDG) groups generate a series of aromatic C-H bonds-free nitriles that can now lose electrons, whose HOMO–LUMO gap is narrowed by EDG beyond the level induced by EWG, and whose dipole moments double. Molecular parameters vary linearly with Hammett’s free-energy constants, their electronic underpinning being uncovered by DFT calculations. The phthalonitriles’ assembling in solid-state structures is determined by forces that transition from van der Waals, in the case of EWG, to H-bonding and/or [Formula: see text]-stacking interactions in the case of EDG, as revealed by their single-crystal X-ray structures.
New GSH-responsive amphiphilic zinc(II) phthalocyanine micelles as efficient drug carriers for combinatorial cancer therapy
Authors: Guo Shanlei , Gao Bo , Li Dongni
Published: January 2021

Combination therapies for the treatment of cancer have attracted wide attention. The poor selectivity and biocompatibility of photosensitizers (PS) limit the use of combination therapies in chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy (PDT) for cancer. In this work, the Gender PS (mPEG-[Formula: see text]-PLA-S-S-ZnPC), asymmetric zinc(II) phthalocyanine (ZnPC) and mono-methoxy oxygen-based polyethylene glycol-polylactic acid (mPEG-b-PLA) were designed and synthesized for PDT through disulfide bond (-S-S-). The amphipathic PS could be self-assembled into a micelle in aqueous solution, and paclitaxel (PTX) was encapsulated in the core of the micelle for chemotherapy (PTX/mPEG-[Formula: see text]-PLA-S-S-ZnPc). The PTX/mPEG-[Formula: see text]-PLA-S-S-ZnPc micelle was spherical with a uniform diameter of about 184 nm. At the first 48 h, the release behaviors of ZnPC and PTX at 10 mmol / L GSH were 30% and 75.2%, respectively. These results suggested that GSH-responsive PTX/mPEG-[Formula: see text]-PLA-S-S-ZnPc micelle was an active ingredient in combination therapies for cancer.
tert-Butyl substituted hexaazasubphthalocyanine: Synthesis, isolation of C1 and C3 regioisomers and their spectral-luminescence study
Authors: Panteleev Alexey S. , Skvortsov Ivan A. , Koifman Oskar I. , Stuzhin Pavel A.
Published: January 2021

By cyclotrimerization of tert-butyl substituted pyrazine-2,3-dicarbonitrile in the presence of boron trichloride, two positional isomers ([Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] symmetry) of the corresponding boron(III) tripyrazinosubporphyrazines were first obtained and efficiently separated by column chromatography. The new compounds were characterized by MALDI mass-spectrometry, UV-visible and 1H NMR spectroscopy. A Q-band in the electronic absorption spectra for both fractions was observed at [Formula: see text]530 nm, which is typical for tripyrazinosubporphyrazines. The fluorescence quantum yield for the regioisomer with lower symmetry ([Formula: see text] is 1.5 times higher than for the more symmerical [Formula: see text] species ([Formula: see text] = 0.37 and 0.28, respectively). Comparative spectrophotometric study of the basic properies reveals that hexaaza substitution in benzene rings of tert-butyl substituted subphthalocyanine decreases the basic properties of meso-nitrogen atoms.
Optimising Hand Surgery during COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Saha Shivangi , Dash Suvashis , Ansari Mohammed Tahir , Bichupuriya Ashish Dhanraj , Gupta Amit Kumar , Singhal Maneesh
Published: January 2021

Background: With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, most health-care personnel and resources are redirected to prioritize care for seriously-ill COVID patients. This situation may poorly impact our capacity to care for critically injured patients. We need to devise a strategy to provide rational and essential care to hand trauma victims whilst the access to theatres and anaesthetic support is limited. Our center is a level 1 trauma center, where the pandemic preparedness required reorganization of the trauma services. We aim to summarise the clinical profile and management of these patients and highlight, how we modified our practice to optimize their care.

Methods: This is a single-centre retrospective observational study of all patients with hand injuries visiting the Department of Plastic Surgery from 22nd March to 31st May 2020. Patient characteristics, management details, and outcomes were analysed.

Results: A total of 102 hand injuries were encountered. Five patients were COVID-19 positive. The mean age was 28.9 ± 14.8 years and eighty-two (80.4%) were males. Thirty-one injuries involved fractures/dislocations, of which 23 (74.2%) were managed non-operatively. Seventy-five (73.5%) patients underwent wound wash or procedure under local anaesthetic and were discharged as soon as they were comfortable. Seventeen cases performed under brachial-plexus block, were discharged within 24 hours except four cases of finger replantation/ revascularisation and one flap cover which were discharged after monitoring for four days. At mean follow-up of 54.4 ± 21.8 days, the rates of early complication and loss to follow-up were 6.9% and 12.7% respectively.

Conclusions: Essential trauma care needs to continue keeping in mind, rational use of resources while ensuring safety of the patients and health-care professionals. We need to be flexible and dynamic in our approach, by utilising teleconsultation, non-operative management, and regional anaesthesia wherever feasible.
The Malay Version of the Michigan Hand Outcomes Questionnaire: Cross-Cultural Adaptation, Validation and Reliability Testing
Authors: Lye Jun Xiong , Kow Ren Yi , Ismail Raffael , Khalid Kamarul Ariffin
Published: January 2021

Background: The Michigan Hand Outcomes Questionnaire (MHQ), a self-reported questionnaire for patients with hand disorders, has been widely used globally. It has been cross-culturally adapted into different languages across all continents. Aims of this study were to translate the MHQ into Malay language and to evaluate its reliability and validity compared with Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire in a Malay-speaking population.

Methods: The MHQ was cross-culturally adapted into a Malay version based on the guidelines. A pre-testing involving thirty patients with hand disorders was performed to assess whether it was comprehensible to the target population. One hundred patients with hand disorders were recruited in this study to answer the MHQ and DASH questionnaires. The MHQ was tested twice with an interval of two weeks in between. Statistical analysis was performed to assess the reproducibility and internal consistency via the test-retest method and Cronbach’s alpha calculation, respectively. The association between MHQ and DASH questionnaire was assessed with Spearman’s correlation calculation.

Results: In the pre-testing, twenty-six patients (86.7%) understood all the questions in the Malay version of MHQ. The test-retest analysis showed a good reliability across the duration of two weeks with the intraclass correlation coefficient of all subscales ranging from 0.925 to 0.984. Cronbach’s alpha values of the Malay version MHQ ranged from 0.82 to 0.97, indicating a good internal consistency. Spearman’s correlation factor of the MHQ in comparison with DASH showed a fair to moderately strong correlation with the values ranging from 0.513 to 0.757.

Conclusions: The Malay version of MHQ was successfully translated and culturally-adapted with excellent reliability (reproducibility and internal consistency) and good construct validity.
The Usefulness of the Two-Step Normality Transformation in Retesting Existing Theories
Authors: Templeton Gary F. , Brian Pope Michael , Burney Laurie L.
Published: January 2021

The Two-Step normality transformation has been shown to reliably transform continuous variables toward normality. The procedure offers researchers a capable alternative to more prominent methods, such as winsorization, ranking, and power transformations. We demonstrate its utility in the context of the Productivity Paradox literature stream, which is renowned for inconsistent results. This paper demonstrates that the Two-Step normality transformation, which has not been used in Productivity Paradox research, may produce greater goodness-of-fit and affect theoretical understandings on the topic. We use a classic Productivity Paradox dataset to show that compared to the prominent normality transformations, the Two-Step produces unique findings, including 1) regression coefficients more closely resembling the original data, 2) different effect sizes and significance levels, and 3) strengthening evidence for fundamental theories in Productivity Paradox literature. We demonstrate results that challenge uncertainties about the relationship between IT investment and firm performance. Our results imply that the Two-Step procedure should be considered a viable transformation option in future information systems research.
Toward a Unified View of Dynamic Information Security Behaviors
Authors: Lin Canchu , Luo Xin (Robert)
Published: January 2021

Extant information systems security research identified and examined a variety of individual as well as organizational factors influencing information security behaviors, but rarely offered sufficient theoretical insight into the interaction of the individual factors with the organizational context in impacting information security behaviors. To fill this gap, this study proposes a theoretical framework that builds on the concepts of organizational culture and sensemaking to show that: 1) information security behaviors are outcomes of sensemaking; and 2) sensemaking is enabled as well as constrained by organizational culture. This study further epitomizes that information security diagnosing, solving, and performing behaviors emerge as outcomes of sensemaking about information security during the organization's interactions with technology. Theoretical and pragmatic contributions of this framework and future research directions are also demonstrated.
Combinatorial Passivation Study in the Aluminium-Samarium System for Basic Property Mapping and Identification of Secondary Phase Influence
Authors: Yamamoto Yudai , Mardare Andrei Ionut , Kollender Jan Philipp , Mardare Cezarina Cela , Recktenwald Dominik , Fushimi Koji , Hassel Achim Walter
Published: January 2021

An aluminium-samarium binary library with a varying Sm concentration between 4 to 14 at.% was produced using a thermal co-evaporation technique. Morphological and crystallographic characterization of the parent metal alloys revealed compositionally dependent surface structure and atomic arrangements. Grains resembling pure Al on the surface slowly disappeared with increasing Sm content and above 8 at.% Sm nucleation of the AlSm2 intermetallic phase was observed. Scanning droplet cell microscopy was used for a comprehensive electrochemical characterization along the Al-Sm compositional gradient. Anodic oxide formation under high field conditions was discussed for alloys below the compositional threshold of 8 at.% Sm. Above this threshold a continuous increase of Sm dissolution during anodization with increasing Sm concentration was proven by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy. Coulometry followed by EIS allowed mapping of the oxide formation factors and oxide electrical permittivity as material constants for single Al-Sm alloys. A small increase of both material constants for alloys below the compositional threshold described the Sm contribution to the anodization process. An apparent enhancement of their values at alloys above the threshold was directly attributed to the increased Sm dissolution rates reaching values of 2 ng cm−2 s–1 at 12 at.% Sm.
Does Premedication with Mucolytic Agents Improve Mucosal Visualization during Oesophagogastroduodenoscopy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Burke Eoghan , Harkins Patricia , Moriarty Frank , Ahmed Ibrahim
Published: January 2021

Introduction. Gastric Cancer (GC) is the fourth most common malignancy worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality for both sexes. The gold standard for diagnosing GC is oesophagogastroduodenoscopy (OGD). Excess mucus on the gastric mucosa impairs the detection of early GC. Aim. To synthesize available evidence of the effect of premedication with a mucolytic agent among adults undergoing elective nontherapeutic OGD, compared to placebo or other mucolytic agents, on mucosal visibility during OGD. Methods. A systematic review was conducted. PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane central register of controlled trials (CENTRAL), and Web of Science were searched for relevant studies. A random-effects meta-analysis was performed to determine the mean difference in total mucosal visibility score (TMVS) between the pooled mucolytic agents and control. Subgroup analyses were performed to determine the mean TMVS difference for simethicone versus control and the impact of different timings and doses of mucolytic premedication. Results. 13 studies, involving 11,086 patients, including 6178 females (55.7%), with a mean age of 53.4 were identified and 6 of these were brought forward to meta-analysis. This revealed a mean difference of −2.69 (95% CI −3.5, −1.88) in total mucosal visibility scores (TMVS) between the pooled mucolytic agents and control. For simethicone, the mean difference was −2.68 (95% CI −4.94, −0.43). A simethicone dose of 133 mg was most effective with a mean difference of −4.22 (95% CI −5.11, −3.33). Assessing timing of administration across all mucolytic agents revealed a mean difference for the >20 minutes group of −3.68 (95% CI −4.77, −2.59). No adverse events were reported in any included trials. Conclusions. Regular use of premedication with mucolytic agents prior to routine OGD is associated with improved TMVS with no reported adverse events.
The Level of Unmet Need for Family Planning and Its Predictors among HIV‐Positive Women in Ethiopia: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Authors: Mekie Maru , Addisu Dagne , Taklual Wubet , Melkie Abenezer
Published: January 2021

Background. Studies indicated that the need for family planning appears to be greater for human immuno‐deficiency virus‐ (HIV‐) positive women than the general population to reduce the risk of pediatrics HIV infection and related consequences of unintended pregnancy. We aimed to assess the level of unmet need for family planning and its predictors among HIV‐positive women in Ethiopia. Methods. Online databases such as PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, HINARI, Google Scholar, and digital libraries of universities were used to search for studies to be included in this systematic review and meta‐analysis. Quality assessment of included studies was conducted using the Newcastle‐Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS). Data were extracted using the format prepared on Excel workbook and analyzed by the Stata 11 software. Cochran (Q test) and I2 test statistics were used to assess the heterogeneity of studies. Similarly, the funnel plot and Egger’s regression asymmetry test were used to assess publication bias. Result. This systematic review and meta‐analysis was conducted using nine primary studies with a total of 6,154 participants. The pooled prevalence of unmet need for family planning among HIV‐positive women was found to be 25.72% (95% CI: 21.63%, 29.81%). Participants age 15‐24 years ((OR = 3.12; 95% CI: 1.59, 6.11) I2 = 27.5%; p = 0.252), being illiterate ((OR = 2.69; 95% CI: 1.69, 4.26) I2 = 0.0%; p = 0.899), failure to discuss FP with partner ((OR = 3.38; 95% CI: 2.20, 5.18) I2 = 0.0%; p = 0.861), and no access to family planning information ((OR = 4.70; 95% CI: 2.83, 7.81) I2 = 0.0%; p = 0.993) were found to be a significant predictors of unmet need for family planning among HIV‐positive women. Conclusion. The level of unmet need for family planning among HIV‐positive women was found to be high in Ethiopia. Being young age, illiteracy, failed to discuss family planning issues with a partner, and no access to family planning information were found to be the significant predictors of unmet need for family planning among HIV‐positive women in Ethiopia. Improving information access and encouraging partners’ involvement in family planning counseling and services could reduce the level of unmet need for family planning.
Development of a Complex Network‐Based Integrated Multilayer Urban Growth and Optimisation Model for an Efficient Urban Traffic Network
Authors: Ding Rui , Zhang Yilin , Zhang Ting , Ma Can
Published: January 2021

Previous research studies of traffic networks are mainly based on planar networks and less considered the influence of multilayer networks, which illustrate and represent different appropriate urban traffic modes. Development of rail and road networks is inseparable from the development of a prosperous urban area; thus, research on multilayer networks has scientific potential and fulfils a real need. In this paper, a framework of complex network based integrated multilayer urban growth and optimisation model (CNIMUGOM) is proposed, to analyse the complex relationships between the traffic network structure, the population growth, and the urban land‐use. The innovation of this paper is the combination of the traffic complex multilayer networks and the “Four Step Model” (which stands for trip generation, trip distribution, model split, and traffic assignment steps). With the multiobjective, multilayer network coevolution and optimisation model, a more efficient traffic network layout was generated based on different land‐use, population density, and travel speed scenarios. Then, this paper has proved that the proposed CNIMUGOM can save the traffic network construction investment, reduce the travel cost, make the urban traffic network more efficient, and decrease the total traffic flow amount. This research has connected the recent complex multilayer network related study and traditional urban economic model based study. The findings of the study afford to improve the current land‐use and traffic integrated models and can provide traffic network planning suggestions for urban agglomeration development.