bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diffusion tensor imaging versus intraoperative subcortical mapping for glioma resection: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Li Yiming , Guo Jiahe , Zhang Kai , Wei Huijie , Fan Jikang , Yu Shengping , Li Tao , Yang Xuejun
Published: June 2023

Maintaining the integrity of crucial fiber tracts allows functional preservation and improved recovery in patients with glioma resection. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and intraoperative subcortical mapping (ISM) are commonly required for pre- and intraoperative assessment of white matter fibers. This study investigated differences of clinical outcomes in glioma resection aided by DTI or ISM. A comprehensive literature retrieval of the PubMed and Embase databases identified several DTI or ISM studies in 2000–2022. Clinical data, including extent of resection (EOR) and postoperative neurological deficits, was collected and statistically analyzed. Heterogeneity was regressed by a random effect model and the Mann–Whitney U test was used to test statistical significance. Publication bias was assessed by Egger test. A total of 14 studies with a pooled cohort of 1837 patients were included. Patients undergoing DTI-navigated glioma surgery showed a higher rate of gross total resection (GTR) than ISM-assisted surgical resection (67.88%, [95% CI 0.55—0.79] vs. 45.73%, [95% CI 0.29—0.63], P = 0.032). The occurrence of early postoperative functional deficit (35.45%, [95% CI 0.13—0.61] vs. 35.60% [95% CI 0.20—0.53], P = 1.000), late postoperative functional deficit (6.00%, [95% CI 0.02—0.11] vs. 4.91% [95% CI 0.03—0.08], P = 1.000) and severe postoperative functional deficit (2.21%, [95% CI 0—0.08] vs. 5.93% [95% CI 0.01—0.16], P = 0.393) were similar between the DTI and ISM group, respectively. While DTI-navigation resulted in a higher rate of GTR, the occurrence of postoperative neurological deficits between DTI and ISM groups was comparable. Together, these data indicate that both techniques could safely facilitate glioma resection.
Irruptions of Bohemian Waxwings in relation to population density and food availability
Authors: Dale Svein
Published: June 2023

Bird irruptions are thought to be triggered by a combination of lack of food in the regular distribution range and high population density (push factors). Recent studies have also suggested that irruptions may be drawn towards areas with high food availability (pull factor). The Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus) is an irruptive species with large annual variation in the numbers reaching southern areas during winter. I used long-term (up to 41 years) data on annual number of waxwings observed during breeding in Finland and Sweden, during winter in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, UK and Poland, and data on their main winter food, Rowanberries (Sorbus aucuparia; masting occurs at 2–3 year intervals) from Norway (southern areas) and Finland (overlapping with northern breeding areas) to test the push and pull hypotheses. Winter numbers fluctuated in synchrony over large parts of northern Europe. In years with low food availability in Finland waxwings arrived to southern areas early, and early arrival to southern areas was linked to larger winter numbers in some countries. However, controlling for arrival time to southern areas, numbers were larger when there were more rowanberries in Finland. Thus, irruptions generally occurred with high rowanberry abundance, but sometimes occurred with the combination of low rowanberry abundance and early arrival. There was mixed evidence that irruptions were linked to high breeding population density. There was no support that irruptions were drawn towards high rowanberry abundance in southern areas. In conclusion, waxwing irruptions had complex relationships with food availability, but most irruptions occurred in years with high rowanberry abundance in autumn in northern areas. This is opposite to expectations from the current view that irruptions are triggered by lack of food, but irruptions departing late may still have been triggered by abundant food finally becoming depleted late in winter.
Calcified plaque harboring lipidic materials associates with no-reflow phenomenon after PCI in stable CAD
Authors: Hosoda Hayato , Kataoka Yu , Nicholls Stephen J. , Puri Rishi , Murai Kota , Kitahara Satoshi , Mitsui Kentaro , Sugane Hiroki , Sawada Kenichiro , Iwai Takamasa , Matama Hideo , Honda Satoshi , Takagi Kensuke , Fujino Masashi , Yoneda Shuichi , Otsuka Fumiyuki , Takamisawa Itaru , Nishihira Kensaku , Asaumi Yasuhide , Kawai Kazuya , Noguchi Teruo
Published: June 2023

Calcified atheroma has been viewed conventionally as stable lesion which less likely increases no-reflow phenomenon. Given that lipidic materials triggers the formation of calcification, lipidic materials could exist within calcified lesion, which may cause no-reflow phenomenon after PCI. The REASSURE-NIRS registry (NCT04864171) employed near-infrared spectroscopy and intravascular ultrasound imaging to evaluate maximum 4-mm lipid-core burden index (maxLCBI4mm) at target lesions containing small (maximum calcification arc < 180°: n = 272) and large calcification (maximum calcification arc ≥ 180°: n = 189) in stable CAD patients. The associations of maxLCBI4mm with corrected TIMI frame count (CTFC) and no-reflow phenomenon after PCI were analyzed in patients with target lesions containing small and large calcification, respectively. No-reflow phenomenon occurred in 8.0% of study population. Receiver-operating characteristics curve analyses revealed that optimal cut-off values of maxLCBI4mm for predicting no-reflow phenomenon were 585 at small calcification (AUC = 0.72, p < 0.001) and 679 at large calcification (AUC = 0.76, p = 0.001). Target lesions containing small calcification with maxLCBI4mm ≥ 585 more likely exhibited a greater CTFC (p < 0.001). In those with large calcification, 55.6% of them had maxLCBI4mm ≥ 400 [vs. 56.2% (small calcification), p = 0.82]. Furthermore, a higher CTFC (p < 0.001) was observed in association with maxLCBI4mm ≥ 679 at large calcification. On multivariable analysis, maxLCBI4mm at large calcification still independently predicted no-reflow phenomenon (OR = 1.60, 95%CI = 1.32–1.94, p < 0.001). MaxLCBI4mm at target lesions exhibiting large calcification elevated a risk of no-reflow phenomenon after PCI. Calcified plaque containing lipidic materials is not necessarily stable lesion, but could be active and high-risk one causing no-reflow phenomenon.
Improved baselines for causal structure learning on interventional data
Authors: Richter Robin , Bhamidi Shankar , Mukherjee Sach
Published: June 2023

Causal structure learning (CSL) refers to the estimation of causal graphs from data. Causal versions of tools such as ROC curves play a prominent role in empirical assessment of CSL methods and performance is often compared with “random” baselines (such as the diagonal in an ROC analysis). However, such baselines do not take account of constraints arising from the graph context and hence may represent a “low bar”. In this paper, motivated by examples in systems biology, we focus on assessment of CSL methods for multivariate data where part of the graph structure is known via interventional experiments. For this setting, we put forward a new class of baselines called graph-based predictors (GBPs). In contrast to the “random” baseline, GBPs leverage the known graph structure, exploiting simple graph properties to provide improved baselines against which to compare CSL methods. We discuss GBPs in general and provide a detailed study in the context of transitively closed graphs, introducing two conceptually simple baselines for this setting, the observed in-degree predictor (OIP) and the transitivity assuming predictor (TAP). While the former is straightforward to compute, for the latter we propose several simulation strategies. Moreover, we study and compare the proposed predictors theoretically, including a result showing that the OIP outperforms in expectation the “random” baseline on a subclass of latent network models featuring positive correlation among edge probabilities. Using both simulated and real biological data, we show that the proposed GBPs outperform random baselines in practice, often substantially. Some GBPs even outperform standard CSL methods (whilst being computationally cheap in practice). Our results provide a new way to assess CSL methods for interventional data.
Investigating the Influence of Growth Arrest Mechanisms on Tumour Responses to Radiotherapy
Authors: Colson Chloé , Maini Philip K. , Byrne Helen M.
Published: June 2023

Cancer is a heterogeneous disease and tumours of the same type can differ greatly at the genetic and phenotypic levels. Understanding how these differences impact sensitivity to treatment is an essential step towards patient-specific treatment design. In this paper, we investigate how two different mechanisms for growth control may affect tumour cell responses to fractionated radiotherapy (RT) by extending an existing ordinary differential equation model of tumour growth. In the absence of treatment, this model distinguishes between growth arrest due to nutrient insufficiency and competition for space and exhibits three growth regimes: nutrient limited, space limited (SL) and bistable (BS), where both mechanisms for growth arrest coexist. We study the effect of RT for tumours in each regime, finding that tumours in the SL regime typically respond best to RT, while tumours in the BS regime typically respond worst to RT. For tumours in each regime, we also identify the biological processes that may explain positive and negative treatment outcomes and the dosing regimen which maximises the reduction in tumour burden.
Swiss-AL: Plattform für Sprachdaten zur Analyse öffentlicher Kommunikation in der Schweiz
Authors: Dreesen Philipp , Krasselt Julia
Published: June 2023

Der Beitrag stellt Swiss-AL (= Swiss-Applied Linguistics) vor, eine Plattform für die Forschung zu öffentlicher Kommunikation in der Schweiz, die an der Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW) entwickelt und bereitgestellt wird. Swiss-AL enthält rund 4,5 Mrd. Wörter in vier Sprachen (Deutsch, Französisch, Italienisch, Rätoromanisch). Es umfasst online publizierte Texte aus Politik und Verwaltung, Wirtschaft, Wissenschaft und Zivilgesellschaft sowie journalistischen Medien. Swiss-AL ist für diskursanalytische Forschungen entwickelt worden, stellt jedoch ebenso eine wichtige Datenbasis für die Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaft dar, beispielsweise für quantitativ ausgerichtete/standardisierte Medieninhaltsforschung. Swiss-AL wird gegenwärtig zu einer Open-Research-Data-Ressource für die Angewandten Wissenschaften weiterentwickelt. Dazu gehört die Weiterentwicklung einer browserbasierten Workbench (Zugang:www.swiss-al.linguistik.zhaw.ch), die Zugang zu den Daten ermöglicht und den Anforderungen des Daten- und Urheberrechtsschutzes der Schweiz und der EU entspricht. Im Beitrag werden aggregierende Analysemöglichkeiten präsentiert, die diese Workbench gegenwärtig bereitstellt und die insbesondere für inhaltsanalytische Fragestellungen anwendbar sind. Der Beitrag schließt mit einem Ausblick auf zukünftige Entwicklungen im Bereich Open Research Data und skizziert geplante Implementierungen von FAIR-Prinzipien.
Plattformforschung mit Instagram-Daten – Eine Übersicht über analytische Zugänge, digitale Erhebungsverfahren und forschungsethische Perspektiven in Zeiten der APIcalypse
Authors: Peters Yannik , Nehls Patrick , Thimm Caja
Published: June 2023

Die Foto- und Video-Sharing-Plattform Instagram hat sich in den vergangenen Jahren zu einem der meistgenutzten sozialen Medien weltweit entwickelt. Auf Grund der forschungspraktischen Hürden, die mit der Erhebung von Instagram-Daten einhergehen, scheint Instagram in der (empirischen) Plattformforschung noch unterrepräsentiert zu sein. In diesem Artikel werden daher einige der verschiedenen Möglichkeiten aufgezeigt, Instagram-Daten zu erheben. Zunächst führen wir jedoch in die Mediengrammatik der Plattform Instagram ein. Dieser Ansatz hilft die im Anschluss vorgestellten Möglichkeiten der Erhebung von Instagram-Daten zu differenzieren und theoretisch zu rahmen. In Bezug auf die Datenerhebung unterscheiden wir zwischen fünf verschiedenen Erhebungsstrategien: a) der manuellen Erhebung, b) den freien Programmiersprachen, c) den Tools des Meta-Konzerns, d) den kommerziellen Tools und e) der Datenspende. Diese werden anhand relevanter Kriterien (unter anderem Mediengrammatik, Erhebungsform, Beitragsebenen, Vollständigkeit, Programmierkenntnisse) gegenübergestellt. Es zeigt sich, dass je nach Forschungsfrage und Methode unterschiedliche Datenerhebungsstrategien angemessen sein können. Zuletzt werden auch die forschungsethischen Implikationen der Erhebung von Instagram-Daten diskutiert.
Operationalising a large research programme tackling complex urban and planetary health problems: a case study approach to critical reflection
Authors: Black Daniel , Bates Geoff , Ayres Sarah , Bondy Krista , Callway Rosalie , Carhart Neil , Coggon John , Gibson Andy , Hunt Alistair , Rosenberg Ges
Published: June 2023

Addressing increasingly urgent global challenges requires the rapid mobilisation of new research groups that are large in scale, co-produced and focussed explicitly on investigating root causes at a systemic level. This requires new ways of operationalising and funding research programmes to better support effective interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary (ID/TD) partnerships between a wide range of academic disciplines and stakeholder groups. Understanding the challenges and approaches that teams can follow to overcome them can come through critical reflection on experiences initiating new research programmes of this nature and sharing of these reflections. We aimed to offer a framework for critical reflection and an overview of how we developed it and to share our reflections on operationalising a newly formed large-scale ID/TD research programme. We present a framework of 10 areas for critical reflection: systems, unknowns and imperfection, ID/TD understanding, values, societal impact, context and stakeholder knowledge, project understanding and direction, team cohesion, decision-making, communications and method development. We reflect on our experience of operationalising the research programme in these areas. Based on this critical examination of our experiences and the processes we adopted, we make recommendations for teams seeking to tackle important and highly complex global challenges, and for those who fund or support such research groups. Our reflections point to an overarching challenge of the structural and institutional barriers to cross-disciplinary research of this nature.
Advancing sustainable development goals: embedding resilience assessment
Authors: Assarkhaniki Zahra , Sabri Soheil , Rajabifard Abbas , Kahalimoghadam Masoud
Published: June 2023

Accelerating challenges to cities and communities have triggered a growing interest in the assessment of resilience and sustainability of future developments. For this purpose, many countries have adopted the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for sustainable development goals (SDGs), in which resilience has been incorporated as a component of sustainability. However, the framework has been criticised for not undertaking a comprehensive evaluation of resilience. This study, in an analytical scheme, examines the extent to which the SDGs incorporate measurement of resilience. Here, the SDGs indicators have been compared with the most recent comprehensive baseline resilience framework (BRF) through three stages: (a) thematic coding of the SDGs and BRF indicators; (b) developing matrices of coding for each resilience dimension; and (c) evaluating resilience measurement in terms of coverage by the SDGs. Results showed that although the SDGs indicators have a high level of coverage for resilience measurement through all 17 goals, some aspects are nonetheless overlooked. In this study, by categorising the goals into five groups based on their coverage of each resilience dimension, a guideline is created, demonstrating the goals relevant to each resilience dimension. Furthermore, a systematic framework of resilience indicators is also proposed to integrate the overlooked aspects of resilience into the SDGs and the post-2030 agenda. The advanced SDGs can serve as a joint framework to measure resilience and sustainability.
Embodied competencies and smart home technology in energy use: three ways users integrate smart heating systems in everyday practices
Authors: Madsen Line Valdorff , Hansen Anders Rhiger , Larsen Simon Peter Aslak Kondrup
Published: June 2023

Smart heating systems are increasingly entering the domestic sphere. Such smart home technology (SHT) intends to provide comfort, control, and convenience in the home as well as energy efficiency and energy flexibility. However, the success of these promises depends on users’ ability to implement the SHT in everyday practices. In previous research, the importance of embodied competences acquired through previous experiences has gotten little attention. In this paper, we argue that broad scale implementation of SHT requires more knowledge on the interaction between previous experience in the formation of new competences and domestic heating practices.

In this paper, we explore how users integrate new smart technologies into their everyday heating practices in different ways by focusing on embodied competences. Based on 24 qualitative household interviews with SHT users, conducted through two Danish case studies, we identified three ways of approaching and integrating SHT in heating practices. First, the reluctant appears hesitant when adopting SHT and loses interest quickly. Second, the compliant follows orders and does what is expected by the new setup. Third, the committed encompasses a playful approach and shows strong interest in SHT design.

From this background, we find that embodied competences and previous experience are essential for how users adopt and integrate SHT in everyday life. For example, some users’ previous experience, here younger and technically interested individuals, may match well with the logics of SHT, and for some users, here older and less tech-interested individuals, previous experience may not match well with SHT.
Outcomes of a Residential Program After Successful Graduation: A Pilot Quality Improvement Study
Authors: Pierro John G. , Sutter Alison , Shaak Kyle , Barninger Bradley , Messa Megan , Norris Edward R.
Published: June 2023

Residential treatment is an effective way to provide care to individuals who struggle with core life skills, have a mental illness, and/or have trouble adhering to treatment plans. The environment of residential care offers alternatives to typical treatment methods and a network of support to help foster independence. This pilot study assesses the impact of one residential care program from the perspective of those who were successfully discharged. The WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0, the Outcome Rating Scale, and a homelessness screening tool were used to gather data from a small sample (N = 6) of former residents who completed the program. Results indicated that half of the discharges remained at stable functioning throughout the study duration, while the other half had difficulties in multiple domains of functioning. Insights obtained about instability following discharge will inform future research on quality of care with progress data collected throughout a client’s stay.
Piloting the Acceptability, Practicality and Potential Benefits of Telehealth Dignity Therapy for Community-dwelling Older Adults
Authors: Fallon John , Bhar Sunil , Elphinstone Brad
Published: June 2023

Older adults appear to experience high levels of sub-clinical emotional distress. Past literature has predominantly focussed on ameliorating suffering in individuals with diagnosed mental illnesses, while neglecting research investigating online therapies for enhancing wellbeing in community-dwelling older adults. A potential therapy might be Dignity Therapy, a brief psychotherapy originally designed to be delivered face-to-face for terminally ill patients. We piloted a Telehealth Dignity Therapy (TDT) program and tested its acceptability (e.g., satisfaction), practicality (e.g., time spent completing TDT), and the potential benefits for participants. Five community-dwelling older adults were recruited and completed TDT. Participants completed surveys on their satisfaction with TDT. Time spent completing TDT was recorded. We interviewed participants to identify the potential benefits of TDT; their responses were analysed with qualitative methods. All five participants successfully completed the study and reported high levels of satisfaction with TDT. Levels of acceptability and practicality were similar to another online Dignity Therapy study. Participants reported several benefits including: a chance to inscribe their legacy, a deeper connection with others, triggering new self-insight, a strengthened view of self, and heightened acceptance and self-compassion. TDT appears to be acceptable and practical, and provided numerous qualitative benefits for participants. These findings suggest that Dignity Therapy is suitable is suitable to be conducted online and advantageous for community-dwelling older adults without life-limiting illnesses. Further larger-scale, quantitative research on TDT needs to be completed to better ascertain its effectiveness and feasibility.
Eating Disorders and Our Youth: Aggressive Action Must be Taken to Ensure Parity
Authors: Reyes Madeline
Published: June 2023

Eating disorders are one of the most common chronic illnesses among adolescents. Yet, our current framework for mental health care provides limited education, access to care, and support for adolescents suffering from this disease. The enactment of key legislation and federal guidance such as the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) is evidence that there are steps being taken to ensure the removal of barriers to care. However, eating disorders are often overlooked as a category of behavioral disorders. This paper analyzes the current legal and social framework for providing care and support to adolescents suffering from eating disorders. In doing so, it offers recommendations to develop stronger protective and responsive measures to ensure access, support, and care to these individuals.
Legitimacy of Cost Concern for Health Insurance Coverage of Gender-Affirming Surgeries: Comparison of the Interest in Keeping Insurance Cost Down versus the Cost-Effectiveness of Including Gender-Affirming Surgeries in Employer Health Insurance Plans
Authors: Atangan Angelo
Published: June 2023

This RCD discusses the recent development in Lange v Houston County. In this case, the United States District Court for The Middle District Of Georgia Macon Division found that an Exclusion Policy, prohibiting health insurance coverage of gender-affirming surgery for an employee, Anna Lange, violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. On appeal, the Defendants argued that the District Court erred in its decision and relied on the cost burden of gender-affirming surgery as one of their defenses. This RCD highlights that cost is a common defense tactic used by defendants in these cases. However, the author argues that these concerns are unfounded and meritless given the cost-effectiveness of including gender-affirming surgeries in health insurance plans, as highlighted in the RCD.
Braidwood Mgmt. v. Becerra & a Texas District Court’s Decision to Stop Enforcement of Preventive Care Coverage Requirements under the ACA
Authors: Geisler Sabrina
Published: June 2023

This article discusses how in March of 2023 a District Court in Texas enjoined the U.S. government from enforcing certain preventive care requirements under the ACA for private health insurers. The current order by the Court enjoined enforcement of the ACA preventive care requirements based on those recommendations made on or after the date of March 23, 2010, by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. This article discusses the Court’s analysis and the remedy the Court decided on after finding violations under the RFRA and Appointments Clause. The article also discusses the implications and effects of this decision on whether previously covered services that the ACA didn’t allow cost sharing for will now have cost sharing by private health insurers and how that will affect consumers. The article concludes that despite lack of enforcement, private health insurers should not require cost sharing for previously covered services that the ACA didn’t allow cost sharing for before this most recent decision. Cost sharing for previously covered services would increase costs for those enrolled in private health insurance plans and could lead to a reduction in access to preventive services and healthcare.
CVS Health’s Acquisition of Oak Street Health Reconfirms Market Viability of Private Equity Investment in Value-Based Payment Models for Primary Care
Authors: Grant Andrew
Published: June 2023

For over a decade and for the foreseeable future, federal agencies have made efforts to promote value-based care through various incentive schemes, such as the recent “Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care.” Federal incentive schemes and other “macro tailwinds” have brought in private equity investors, especially in the context of primary care for Medicare beneficiaries. Oak Street Health and its private equity backers were pioneers in this space, applying buy-and-build strategies to create “next-generation” primary care networks “that focus largely or entirely on Medicare Advantage enrollees.” Although Oak Street Health persuasively established a workable “playbook” for private equity investment in value-based care, and forecasts have been favorable, the ultimate market viability of this value-based playbook hinges on whether or not private equity investors can locate corporate buyers. The market viability of such a strategy has now been reconfirmed by the acquisition of Oak Street Health by CVS Health (“CVS”), announced February 8, 2023, and closed May 2, 2023, especially given that the incentives and the efficiencies associated with this deal are likely to be applicable to large-scale vertically integrated “payvider” corporations more generally. This Recent Transaction Comment examines CVS’s acquisition of Oak Street Health to consider what factors might lead vertically integrated health care corporations to acquire value-based primary care networks in the future, and what knock on effects such acquisitions might have on future private equity buyouts in health care.
One new species and three new records in the genus Porpidia from China
Authors: Zuo Qi-Jia , Wang Lei , Zhang Lu-Lu
Published: June 2023

Four species of Porpidia are newly reported from China, including one species new to science (Porpidia crystallina) and three records (Porpidia umbonifera, P. seakensis and P. cf. contraponenda) new to China. Porpidia crystallina is characterized by a macrocarpa-type exciple containing crystals, a Cinereorufa-green epihymenium, large ascospores and a lack of secondary metabolites. Morpho-anatomical, chemical and phylogenetic analyses were carried out to elucidate the placement of the species and to support the delimitation of the new taxon. Detailed taxonomic descriptions, ecological and chemical characters, and illustrations are provided for each species. A key to all known Chinese Porpidia species is also provided.
„Ich kann nicht, was die sagt“ – Partizipation aus Kindersicht
Authors: Limberger Janina , Pult Gesa , Pasquale Denise , Lorenzen Annika , Rönnau-Böse Maike
Published: June 2023

Zusammenfassung: Die vorliegende rekonstruktive Analyse ging der Frage nach, wie Kinder Handlungsmacht als Teil von Partizipation innerhalb der Kita erleben und beschreiben. Hierfür wurden einzelne Passagen aus dialoggestützten Kinderinterviews ( N = 62), welche bereits inhaltsanalytisch nach Mayring (2015) zum übergeordneten Themenbereich des Wohlbefindens ausgewertet wurden, ausgewählt und zusätzlich mikrosprachlich analysiert. Dies erfolgte mithilfe des integrativen Basisverfahrens (iBV) nach Kruse (2015) . Innerhalb der und durch die Interviewsituation erlebten sich die Kinder als selbstwirksam bzw. in ihrer Expert_innen-Position erkannt. Die Analyse brachte als zentrale Erkenntnisse die Herstellung interner Hierarchien unter den Kindern, den Wunsch nach bedürfnisorientierter Gleichbehandlung, nach liebevollen und wenig autoritären Beziehungen sowie des Gesehen-Werdens hervor. Überdies bestärken die deutliche Hörer_innenorientierung und die stellenweise interaktionistische Inszenierung der Kinder die Forderung, sie als selbstständige Akteure ihrer Lebenswelt anzuerkennen. Wie die Ergebnisse zeigen, scheint das iBV als bislang unterrepräsentiertes Auswertungsverfahren einen ertragreichen Ansatz darzustellen, sich den kindlichen Perspektiven und Deutungsmustern schrittweise anzunähern.
Algorithms for Detecting Sub‐Pixel Elevated Temperature Features for the NASA Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) Designated Observable
Authors: Shreevastava Anamika , Hulley Glynn , Thompson James
Published: June 2023

One of the top priorities of the Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) Earth Observing System is the detection and retrieval of elevated temperature features (ETF) usually found in the vicinity of active fires and volcanic activity. We test the ability of currently proposed midwave (MIR: 3–5 μm) and thermal infrared (TIR: 8–12 μm) bands to detect ETF within the 400–1200 K range. Specifically, our investigation aims to compare and contrast the use of the 4 and 4.8 μm MIR bands. We use land surface temperature data obtained by the airborne Hyperspectral Thermal Emission Spectrometer (HyTES) instrument over active fire and lava flows to model at‐sensor SBG radiances in the 3–12 μm range. This is achieved using the Temperature Emissivity Uncertainty Simulator (TEUSim) with the designated/proposed SBG MIR and TIR band characteristics. For ETF detection, we applied the Normalized Thermal Index (NTI) and Enhanced Thermal Index (ETI) to determine a suitable threshold for a wide range of ETF sizes and temperatures. We find that combining an NTI threshold of −0.7 followed by an ETI threshold of 0.02 accurately identifies ETFs at a 97% rate. Sensor noise up to 0.5 K has negligible effects on ETF detection in the 400–1200 K range. The currently proposed SBG MIR and TIR bands are sufficient to detect unsaturated ETFs caused by wildfire and volcanic activities at a ∼3 day revisit and subpixel ETF area of ∼9 m2 (at 500 K) that is unattainable by current satellite TIR instruments.
Probing Gravity Waves in the Middle Atmosphere Using Infrasound From Explosions
Authors: Vorobeva Ekaterina , Assink Jelle , Espy Patrick Joseph , Renkwitz Toralf , Chunchuzov Igor , Näsholm Sven Peter
Published: June 2023

This study uses low‐frequency, inaudible acoustic waves (infrasound) to probe wind and temperature fluctuations associated with breaking gravity waves (GWs) in the middle atmosphere. Building on an approach introduced by Chunchuzov et al., infrasound recordings are used to retrieve effective sound‐speed fluctuations in an inhomogeneous atmospheric layer that causes infrasound backscattering. The infrasound was generated by controlled blasts at Hukkakero, Finland, and recorded at the IS37 infrasound station, Norway in the late summers 2014–2017. Our findings indicate that the analyzed infrasound scattering occurs at mesospheric altitudes of 50–75 km, a region where GWs interact under non‐linearity, forming thin layers of strong wind shear. The retrieved fluctuations were analyzed in terms of vertical wave number spectra, resulting in an approximate power law that corresponds to the “universal” saturated spectrum of atmospheric GWs. The power law wavenumber range corresponds to vertical atmospheric scales of 33–625 m. The fluctuation spectra were compared to theoretical GW saturation theories as well as to independent wind measurements by the Saura medium‐frequency radar near Andøya Space Center around 100 km west of IS37, yielding a good agreement in terms of vertical wavenumber spectrum amplitudes and slopes. This suggests that the radar and infrasound‐based effective sound‐speed profiles represent low‐ and high‐wavenumber regimes of the same “universal” GW spectrum. The results illustrate that infrasound allows for probing fine‐scale dynamics not well captured by other techniques, suggesting that infrasound can provide a complementary technique to probe atmospheric GWs.
Linewidth narrowing in self-injection-locked on-chip lasers
Authors: Alkhazraji Emad , Chow Weng W. , Grillot Frédéric , Bowers John E. , Wan Yating
Published: June 2023

Stable laser emission with narrow linewidth is of critical importance in many applications, including coherent communications, LIDAR, and remote sensing. In this work, the physics underlying spectral narrowing of self-injection-locked on-chip lasers to Hz-level lasing linewidth is investigated using a composite-cavity structure. Heterogeneously integrated III–V/SiN lasers operating with quantum-dot and quantum-well active regions are analyzed with a focus on the effects of carrier quantum confinement. The intrinsic differences are associated with gain saturation and carrier-induced refractive index, which are directly connected with 0- and 2-dimensional carrier densities of states. Results from parametric studies are presented for tradeoffs involved with tailoring the linewidth, output power, and injection current for different device configurations. Though both quantum-well and quantum-dot devices show similar linewidth-narrowing capabilities, the former emits at a higher optical power in the self-injection-locked state, while the latter is more energy-efficient. Lastly, a multi-objective optimization analysis is provided to optimize the operation and design parameters. For the quantum-well laser, minimizing the number of quantum-well layers is found to decrease the threshold current without significantly reducing the output power. For the quantum-dot laser, increasing the quantum-dot layers or density in each layer increases the output power without significantly increasing the threshold current. These findings serve to guide more detailed parametric studies to produce timely results for engineering design.
Functional convergence in slow-growing microbial communities arises from thermodynamic constraints
Authors: George Ashish B , Wang Tong , Maslov Sergei
Published: June 2023

The dynamics of microbial communities is complex, determined by competition for metabolic substrates and cross-feeding of byproducts. Species in the community grow by harvesting energy from chemical reactions that transform substrates to products. In many anoxic environments, these reactions are close to thermodynamic equilibrium and growth is slow. To understand the community structure in these energy-limited environments, we developed a microbial community consumer-resource model incorporating energetic and thermodynamic constraints on an interconnected metabolic network. The central element of the model is product inhibition, meaning that microbial growth may be limited not only by depletion of metabolic substrates but also by accumulation of products. We demonstrate that these additional constraints on microbial growth cause a convergence in the structure and function of the community metabolic network—independent of species composition and biochemical details—providing a possible explanation for convergence of community function despite taxonomic variation observed in many natural and industrial environments. Furthermore, we discovered that the structure of community metabolic network is governed by the thermodynamic principle of maximum free energy dissipation. Our results predict the decrease of functional convergence in faster growing communities, which we validate by analyzing experimental data from anaerobic digesters. Overall, the work demonstrates how universal thermodynamic principles may constrain community metabolism and explain observed functional convergence in microbial communities.
Next generation of astronauts or ESA astronaut 2.0 concept and spotlight on immunity
Authors: Jacob Pauline , Oertlin Christian , Baselet Bjorn , Westerberg Lisa S. , Frippiat Jean-Pol , Baatout Sarah
Published: June 2023

Although we have sent humans into space for more than 50 years, crucial questions regarding immune response in space conditions remain unanswered. There are many complex interactions between the immune system and other physiological systems in the human body. This makes it difficult to study the combined long-term effects of space stressors such as radiation and microgravity. In particular, exposure to microgravity and cosmic radiation may produce changes in the performance of the immune system at the cellular and molecular levels and in the major physiological systems of the body. Consequently, abnormal immune responses induced in the space environment may have serious health consequences, especially in future long-term space missions. In particular, radiation-induced immune effects pose significant health challenges for long-duration space exploration missions with potential risks to reduce the organism’s ability to respond to injuries, infections, and vaccines, and predispose astronauts to the onset of chronic diseases (e.g., immunosuppression, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, gut dysbiosis). Other deleterious effects encountered by radiation may include cancer and premature aging, induced by dysregulated redox and metabolic processes, microbiota, immune cell function, endotoxin, and pro-inflammatory signal production1,2. In this review, we summarize and highlight the current understanding of the effects of microgravity and radiation on the immune system and discuss knowledge gaps that future studies should address.
Neutral buoyancy and the static perception of upright
Authors: Jenkin Heather , Jenkin Michael , Harris Laurence R. , Herpers Rainer
Published: June 2023

The perceptual upright results from the multisensory integration of the directions indicated by vision and gravity as well as a prior assumption that upright is towards the head. The direction of gravity is signalled by multiple cues, the predominant of which are the otoliths of the vestibular system and somatosensory information from contact with the support surface. Here, we used neutral buoyancy to remove somatosensory information while retaining vestibular cues, thus “splitting the gravity vector” leaving only the vestibular component. In this way, neutral buoyancy can be used as a microgravity analogue. We assessed spatial orientation using the oriented character recognition test (OChaRT, which yields the perceptual upright, PU) under both neutrally buoyant and terrestrial conditions. The effect of visual cues to upright (the visual effect) was reduced under neutral buoyancy compared to on land but the influence of gravity was unaffected. We found no significant change in the relative weighting of vision, gravity, or body cues, in contrast to results found both in long-duration microgravity and during head-down bed rest. These results indicate a relatively minor role for somatosensation in determining the perceptual upright in the presence of vestibular cues. Short-duration neutral buoyancy is a weak analogue for microgravity exposure in terms of its perceptual consequences compared to long-duration head-down bed rest.
Identification of ecdysone receptor target genes in the worker honey bee brains during foraging behavior
Authors: Iino Shiori , Oya Satoyo , Kakutani Tetsuji , Kohno Hiroki , Kubo Takeo
Published: June 2023

Ecdysone signaling plays central roles in morphogenesis and female ovarian development in holometabolous insects. In the European honey bee (Apis mellifera L.), however, ecdysone receptor (EcR) is expressed in the brains of adult workers, which have already undergone metamorphosis and are sterile with shrunken ovaries, during foraging behavior. Aiming at unveiling the significance of EcR signaling in the worker brain, we performed chromatin-immunoprecipitation sequencing of EcR to search for its target genes using the brains of nurse bees and foragers. The majority of the EcR targets were common between the nurse bee and forager brains and some of them were known ecdysone signaling-related genes. RNA-sequencing analysis revealed that some EcR target genes were upregulated in forager brains during foraging behavior and some were implicated in the repression of metabolic processes. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis revealed that EcR and its target genes were expressed mostly in neurons and partly in glial cells in the optic lobes of the forager brain. These findings suggest that in addition to its role during development, EcR transcriptionally represses metabolic processes during foraging behavior in the adult worker honey bee brain.
Interaction of various-sized particles in river flow
Authors: Fan Niannian , Zhong Qiang , Nie Ruihua , Liu Xingnian
Published: June 2023

Sediment transport is essential to the source-sink systems; however, the interaction between two complex multiscale nonlinear systems, turbulence of the river flow and wide size sediment, has heretofore restricted our understanding of sediment motion. We have conducted flume experiments deploying a video-based technique that records sediment transport rate of each particle size at 1 s resolution. The observations reveal detailed interactions between flow and particles of sizes ranging from 0.5 to 32 mm, such that small suspended particles (< ~ 5 mm) keep swirling in the wake vortices of the keystones (larger than 20 mm) until large to very-large-scale coherent structures destroy the wake vortices and bring the small particles downstream. Keystones destabilize consequently as the surrounding small and intermediate particles move, and in turn, a group of sheltered particles is entrained following the dislodging of the keystones. This heuristic model highlights the interactions of turbulence and different-sized particles.
The effect of combined drought and trace metal elements stress on the physiological response of three Miscanthus hybrids
Authors: Krzyżak Jacek , Rusinowski Szymon , Sitko Krzysztof , Szada-Borzyszkowska Alicja , Stec Radosław , Janota Paulina , Jensen Elaine , Kiesel Andreas , Pogrzeba Marta
Published: June 2023

Drought is a serious threat worldwide and has a significant impact on agricultural production and soil health. It can pose an even greater threat when it involves land contaminated with trace metal element (TMEs). To prevent desertification, such land should be properly managed and growing Miscanthus for energy or raw material purposes could be a solution. The effects of drought and TMEs were studied in a pot experiment on three different Miscanthus hybrids (conventional Miscanthus × giganteus, TV1 and GNT10) considering growth parameters, photosynthetic parameters and elemental composition of roots, rhizomes and shoots. GNT10 was characterised by the weakest gas exchange among the hybrids, which was compensated by the highest number of leaves and biomass. The strongest correlations between the studied parameters were found for TV1, which might indicate a high sensitivity to TME stress. For M × g and GNT10, the main mechanisms for coping with stress seem to be biomass management through number of shoots and leaves and gas exchange. The main factor determining the extent of accumulation of TMEs was the amount of water applied in the experimental treatment, which was related to the location of the plant in the aniso-isohydric continuum. GNT10 was the most resistant plant to combined stress, while it responded similarly to TV1 when drought and trace metal elements were applied separately.
First-principles demonstration of band filling-induced significant improvement in thermodynamic stability and mechanical properties of Sc$$_{1-x}$$Ta$$_{x}$$B$$_{2}$$ solid solutions
Authors: Mopoung Kunpot , Ektarawong Annop , Bovornratanaraks Thiti , Alling Björn
Published: June 2023

Mixtures of different metal diborides in the form of solid solutions are promising materials for hard-coating applications. Herein, we study the mixing thermodynamics and the mechanical properties of AlB$$_{2}$$

2

-structured Sc$$_{1-x}$$

1
-
x

Ta$$_{x}$$

x

B$$_{2}$$

2

solid solutions using the first-principles method, based on the density functional theory, and the cluster-expansion formalism. Our thermodynamic investigation reveals that the two diborides readily mix with one another to form a continuous series of stable solid solutions in the pseudo-binary TaB$$_{2}$$

2

$$-$$
-
ScB$$_{2}$$

2

system even at absolute zero. Interestingly, the elastic moduli as well as the hardness of the solid solutions show significant positive deviations from the linear Vegard’s rule evaluated between those of ScB$$_{2}$$

2

and TaB$$_{2}$$

2

. In case of Sc$$_{1-x}$$

1
-
x

Ta$$_{x}$$

x

B$$_{2}$$

2

, the degrees of deviation from such linear trends can be as large as 25, 20, and 40% for the shear modulus, the Young’s modulus, and the hardness, respectively. The improvement in the stability as well as the mechanical properties of Sc$$_{1-x}$$

1
-
x

Ta$$_{x}$$

x

B$$_{2}$$

2

solid solutions relative to their constituent compounds is found to be related to the effect of electronic band filling, induced upon mixing TaB$$_{2}$$

2

with ScB$$_{2}$$

2

. These findings not only demonstrate the prominent role of band filling in enhancing the stability and the mechanical properties of Sc$$_{1-x}$$

1
-
x

Ta$$_{x}$$

x

B$$_{2}$$

2

, but also it can potentially open up a possibility for designing stable/metastable metal diboride-based solid solutions with superior and widely tunable mechanical properties for hard-coating applications.
Metals (Ga, In) decorated fullerenes as nanosensors for the adsorption of 2,2-dichlorovinyldimethylphosphate agrochemical based pollutant
Authors: Akpe Michael A. , Okon Gideon A. , Louis Hitler , Benjamin Innocent , Akem Martilda U. , Brown Onyebuenyi I. , Adalikwu Stephen A. , Adeyinka Adedapo S.
Published: June 2023

Owing to the fact that the use of 2,2-dichlorovinyldimethylphosphate (DDVP) as an agrochemical has become a matter of concern due to its persistence and potential harm to the environment and human health. Detecting and addressing DDVP contamination is crucial to protect human health and mitigate ecological impacts. Hence, this study focuses on harnessing the properties of fullerene (C60) carbon materials, known for their biological activities and high importance, to develop an efficient sensor for DDVP. Additionally, the sensor's performance is enhanced by doping it with gallium (Ga) and indium (In) metals to investigate the sensing and trapping capabilities of DDVP molecules. The detection of DDVP is carefully examined using first-principles density functional theory (DFT) at the Def2svp/B3LYP-GD3(BJ) level of theory, specifically analyzing the adsorption of DDVP at the chlorine (Cl) and oxygen (O) sites. The adsorption energies at the Cl site were determined as − 57.894 kJ/mol, − 78.107 kJ/mol, and − 99.901 kJ/mol for Cl_DDVP@C60, Cl_DDVP@Ga@C60, and Cl_DDVP@In@C60 interactions, respectively. At the O site, the adsorption energies were found to be − 54.400 kJ/mol, − 114.060 kJ/mol, and − 114.056 kJ/mol for O_DDVP@C60, O_DDVP@Ga@C60, and O_DDVP@In@C60, respectively. The adsorption energy analysis highlights the chemisorption strength between the surfaces and the DDVP molecule at the Cl and O sites of adsorption, indicating that the O adsorption site exhibits higher adsorption energy, which is more favorable according to the thermodynamics analysis. Thermodynamic parameters (∆H and ∆G) obtained from this adsorption site suggest considerable stability and indicate a spontaneous reaction in the order O_DDVP@Ga@C60 > O_DDVP@In@C60 > O_DDVP@C60. These findings demonstrate that the metal-decorated surfaces adsorbed on the oxygen (O) site of the biomolecule offer high sensitivity for detecting the organophosphate molecule DDVP.