bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Boulders as a lithologic control on river and landscape response to tectonic forcing at the Mendocino triple junction
Authors: Shobe Charles M. , Bennett Georgina L. , Tucker Gregory E. , Roback Kevin , Miller Scott R. , Roering Joshua J.
Published: July 2020

Constraining Earth’s sediment mass balance over geologic time requires a quantitative understanding of how landscapes respond to transient tectonic perturbations. However, the mechanisms by which bedrock lithology governs landscape response remain poorly understood. Rock type influences the size of sediment delivered to river channels, which controls how efficiently rivers respond to tectonic forcing. The Mendocino triple junction region of northern California, USA, is one landscape in which large boulders, delivered by hillslope failures to channels, may alter the pace of landscape response to a pulse of rock uplift. Boulders frequently delivered by earthflows in one lithology, the Franciscan mélange, have been hypothesized to steepen channels and slow river response to rock uplift, helping to preserve high-elevation, low-relief topography. Channels in other units (the Coastal Belt and the Franciscan schist) may experience little or no erosion inhibition due to boulder delivery. Here we investigate spatial patterns in channel steepness, an indicator of erosion resistance, and how it varies between mélange and non-mélange channels. We then ask whether lithologically controlled boulder delivery to rivers is a possible cause of steepness variations. We find that mélange channels are steeper than Coastal Belt channels but not steeper than schist channels. Though channels in all units steepen with increasing proximity to mapped hillslope failures, absolute steepness values near failures are much higher (∼2×) in the mélange and schist than in Coastal Belt units. This could reflect reduced rock erodibility or increased erosion rates in the mélange and schist, or disproportionate steepening due to enhanced boulder delivery by hillslope failures in those units. To investigate the possible influence of lithology-dependent boulder delivery, we map boulders at failure toes in the three units. We find that boulder size, frequency, and concentration are greatest in mélange channels and that Coastal Belt channels have the lowest concentrations. Using our field data to parameterize a mathematical model for channel slope response to boulder delivery, we find that the modeled influence of boulders in the mélange could be strong enough to account for some observed differences in channel steepness between lithologies. At the landscape scale, we lack the data to fully disentangle boulder-induced steepening from that due to spatially varying erosion rates and in situ rock erodibility. However, our boulder mapping and modeling results suggest that lithology-dependent boulder delivery to channels could retard landscape adjustment to tectonic forcing in the mélange and potentially also in the schist. Boulder delivery may modulate landscape response to tectonics and help preserve high-elevation, low-relief topography at the Mendocino triple junction and elsewhere.
Association of visceral adiposity and clinical outcome among patients with aldosterone producing adenoma
Authors: Er Leay Kiaw , Lin Meng-Chun , Tsai Yao-Chou , Hsiao Jong-Kai , Yang Chung-Yi , Chang Chin-Chen , Peng Kang-Yung , Chueh Jeff S , Wu Vin-Cent
Published: July 2020

Introduction

Primary aldosteronism (PA) is a common form of secondary hypertension that has significant cardiovascular events and increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome and diabetics. Although plasma aldosterone concentration is positively correlated with visceral fat area (VFA) in non-PA individuals, the role of visceral adiposity associated with clinical success after surgery is not known.

Research design and methods

We analyzed patients who underwent adrenalectomy for aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA) at the Taiwan PA Investigator group. VFA was calculated from the abdominal CT scan at APA diagnosis, and all patients received adrenalectomy.

Results

The study involved 100 consecutive patients with APA (42 males; mean age 49.3 years) matched with 41 essential hypertension (EH) patients. Patients with APA had smaller VFA (p=0.010) than their EH counterparts. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the duration of hypertension (p=0.007), but not plasma aldosterone, was negatively correlated with VFA in patients with APA. Logistic regression analysis showed that log VFA (OR=0.065, p<0.001) and duration of hypertension before PA diagnosis (OR=0.919, p=0.011) can predict complete clinical success after adrenalectomy. Multifactor-adjusted generalized additive model demonstrated that log VFA <9.2 was associated with complete cure of hypertension. Furthermore, VFA was increased at 6 months after adrenalectomy (p=0.045).

Conclusions

Patients with APA had smaller VFA than their EH counterparts, and VFA increased after adrenalectomy. Clinical complete cure of hypertension after surgery was associated with smaller VFA and shorter duration of hypertension at PA diagnosis, suggesting a potential interplay of visceral adiposity and aldosterone of the patients with APA.
Building capacity: getting evidence-based practice into healthcare professional curricula
Authors: Lehane Elaine , Agreli Heloise , O' Connor Simone , Hegarty Josephine , Leahy Warren Patricia , Bennett Deirdre , Blake Catherine , Burke Frank , Corrigan Mark , Drennan Jonathan , Hayes Martina , Heffernan Elizabeth , Horgan Frances , Lynch Helen , McVeigh Joseph , Müller Nicole , O'Keeffe Elizabeth , O'Rourke Niamh , O'Toole Eve , O'Tuathaigh Colm , Sahm Laura , Savage Eileen
Published: July 2020

Fostering a culture of clinical effectiveness in healthcare is crucial to achieving optimum outcomes for patients. Evidence-based practice (EBP) is a cornerstone of clinical effectiveness. An EBP capacity-building project commenced in Ireland in 2016, in collaboration with the Centre of Evidence-Based Medicine in Oxford. A key part of this project, reported here, was the development of a competency framework for education in EBP and clinical effectiveness to ensure responsiveness of education standards and curricula of healthcare professionals in this area.

Methods

Following a review of national and international reports, professional guidance documents and empirical literature pertaining to clinical effectiveness education (CEE), a preliminary competency framework was developed. Stakeholder consultations were conducted over a 6-month period, which consisted of 13 focus groups (n=45) and included representatives from clinical practice, higher education and professional training sectors, regulator/accrediting bodies, the Department of Health (Ireland) and patient/service user groups.

Results

An overarching interprofessional competency framework for CEE was proposed and included the following domains: EBP, quality improvement processes, implementation strategies and collaborative practice: a total of 16 competencies and 60 indicators.

Conclusion

A competency framework for CEE for health and social care professionals is presented. It is intended that this framework will provide guidance to healthcare educators and regulators in the construction and revision of curricula, learning outcomes, teaching and assessment strategies, and graduate/clinician attributes.
Preferences for different diagnostic modalities to follow up abnormal colorectal cancer screening results: a hypothetical vignette study
Authors: Kaushal Aradhna , Stoffel Sandro Tiziano , Kerrison Robert , von Wagner Christian
Published: July 2020

Objectives

In England, a significant proportion of people who take part in the national bowel cancer screening programme (BCSP) and have a positive faecal occult blood test (FOBt) result, do not attend follow-up colonoscopy (CC). The aim of this study was to investigate differences in intended participation in a follow-up investigation by diagnostic modality offered including CC, CT colonography (CTC) or capsule endoscopy (CE).

Setting

We performed a randomised online experiment with individuals who had previously completed an FOBt as part of the English BCSP.

Methods

Participants (n=953) were randomly allocated to receive one of three online vignettes asking participants to imagine they had received an abnormal FOBt result, and that they had been invited for a follow-up test. The follow-up test offered was either: CC (n=346), CTC (n=302) or CE (n=305). Participants were then asked how likely they were to have their allocated test or if they refused, either of the other tests. Respondents were also asked to cite possible emotional and practical barriers to follow up testing. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to investigate intentions.

Results

Intention to have the test was higher in the CTC group (96.7%) compared with the CC group (91.8%; OR 2.64; 95% CI 1.22 to 5.73). CTC was considered less ‘off-putting’ (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.47 to 0.94) and less uncomfortable compared with CC (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.77). For those who did not intend to have the test they were offered, CE (39.7%) or no investigation (34.5%) was preferable to CC (8.6%) or CTC (17.2%).

Conclusions

Alternative tests have the potential to increase attendance at diagnostic follow-up appointments.
Evaluation of the teaching recovery techniques community-based intervention for accompanied refugee children experiencing post-traumatic stress symptoms (Accompanied refugeeS In Sweden Trial; ASsIST): study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial
Authors: Warner Georgina , Durbeej Natalie , Salari Raziye , Fängström Karin , Lampa Elin , Baghdasaryan Zaruhi , Osman Fatumo , Gupta Löfving Sandra , Perez Aronsson Anna , Feldman Inna , Sampaio Filipa , Ssegonja Richard , Bjärtå Anna , Rondung Elisabet , Leiler Anna , Wasteson Elisabet , Calam Rachel , Oppedal Brit , Keeshin Brooks , Sarkadi Anna
Published: July 2020

Background

Refugee children have often experienced traumas and are at significant risk of developing mental health problems, such as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety, which can continue for years after resettlement. The Accompanied refugeeS In Sweden Trial (ASsIST) aims to evaluate a community-based intervention, called ‘Teaching Recovery Techniques’ (TRT), for accompanied refugee minors experiencing PTSD symptoms.

Methods/design

A cluster randomised controlled trial will be conducted in which participants will be randomly allocated to one of the two possible arms: the intervention arm (n=113) will be offered the TRT programme and the waitlist-control arm (n=113) will receive services as usual, followed by the TRT programme around 20 weeks later. Outcome data will be collected at three points: pre-intervention (T1), post-intervention (T2; c.8 weeks after randomisation) and follow-up (T3; c.20 weeks after randomisation).

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical approval was granted by the Regional Ethical Review Board in Uppsala (Ref. 2018/382) (24th February 2019). Results will be published in scientific journals.

Trial registration details

ISRCTN17754931. Prospectively registered on 4th June 2019.
Healthy brain, healthy life: a review of diet and exercise interventions to promote brain health and reduce Alzheimer’s disease risk
Authors: Baranowski Bradley J. , Marko Daniel M. , Fenech Rachel K. , Yang Alex J.T. , MacPherson Rebecca E.K.
Published: July 2020

With the world’s population aging at a rapid rate, the prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has significantly increased. These statistics are alarming given recent evidence that a third of dementia cases may be preventable. The role of lifestyle factors, such as diet and exercise, can directly alter the risk of disease development. However, an understanding of the effectiveness of dietary patterns and exercise strategies to reduce AD risk or improve brain function is not fully understood. The aim of this review is to discuss the effects of diet and exercise on AD risk. Key components of the Western and Mediterranean diets are discussed in relation to AD progression, as well as how physical activity promotes brain health. Components of the Western diet (saturated fatty acids and simple carbohydrates) are detrimental to the brain, impair cognition, and increase AD pathologies. While components of the Mediterranean diet (polyunsaturated fatty acids, polyphenols, and antioxidants) are considered to be neuroprotective. Exercise can significantly reduce the risk of AD; however, specific exercise recommendations for older adults are limited and optimal intensity, duration, and type remains unknown. This review highlights important modifiable risk factors for AD and points out potential avenues for future research.

Novelty Diet and exercise are modifiable factors that can improve brain health and reduce the risk of AD. Polyunsaturated fatty acids, polyphenols, and antioxidants are neuroprotective. Exercise reduces neuroinflammation, improves brain insulin sensitivity, and increases brain derived neurotrophic factor.
Functional potential differences between Firmicutes and Proteobacteria in response to manure amendment in a reclaimed soil
Authors: Li Wenxi , Zhang Yueping , Mao Wei , Wang Changsong , Yin Shixue
Published: July 2020

Manure amendment generally bolsters soil organisms but not all bacteria equally. To understand why different taxa respond differently, we used shotgun metagenomic approaches to profile functional potentials and correlate them with taxon abundances. A soil originally unproductive was reclaimed using commercial manure and finally became productive. The abundance of Firmicutes in the soil decreased, whereas that of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria increased after manure addition. Thirty-nine KEGG modules were significantly different across fertilizer treatments. These modules were mainly associated with the phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS), ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, and two-component signal transduction systems. The Proteobacteria and Firmicutes mainly contributed to these modules. Correlation between the abundances of phyla and orthologs showed two distinctive patterns. One linked the Firmicutes to cell wall biosynthesis, PTS, and ABC transporters, and the other linked the Betaproteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Verrucomicrobia to lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis, bacterial motility, and carbon metabolism. Correlation between the abundances of phyla and Carbohydrate-Active Enzyme Database families also showed two distinctive patterns, one of them linking the Betaproteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Verrucomicrobia to very high abundances of glycosyltransferases and glycoside hydrolases. Overall, the Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were main drivers of functional potential differences across fertilizer treatments. The Firmicutes were enriched with genes associated with cell wall biosynthesis and membrane transports, while Proteobacteria with lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and carbohydrate metabolism, which supports our hypothesis that the Firmicutes have a lower potential for utilizing manure-derived carbohydrates, while Proteobacteria have a higher potential. This explains why the Proteobacteria and Firmicutes responded to manure differently.
Nitrogen rate and source effects on foliar sugar, glycoalkaloid, and amino acid composition of potato Russet Burbank
Authors: Wen Guoqi , Cambouris Athyna N. , Ziadi Noura , Bertrand Annick , Khelifi Mohamed
Published: July 2020

The foliar chemicals in potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) could affect the growth and development of agricultural pests, such as Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) and aphid Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas). Thus, altering the chemical composition of potato leaves could potentially supplement integrated pest management (IPM). In this study, field experiments were conducted in Quebec, Canada, to investigate the effects of nitrogen (N) rate and source on foliar sugar, glycoalkaloid, and amino acid concentrations and tuber yield of potato cultivar Russet Burbank. Three N fertilizer sources of ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, and polymer-coated urea were used at four rates of 60, 120, 200, and 280 kg N ha−1 plus an unfertilized control in a randomized complete block design. The fourth leaves from the top of 20 randomly selected plants in each plot were collected at 54, 68, and 82 d after planting for sugar, glycoalkaloid, and amino acid analysis. Tubers were collected at harvest, and the total and marketable yields were determined. Results showed that N fertilization linearly decreased sugar concentrations and these reduced sugars were conveyed and stored in tubers as starch. Glycoalkaloid concentrations in leaves were influenced by N source and rate. Both total and marketable yields quadratically varied with increasing N rates regardless of N sources, with average values of 36.4 and 28.3 Mg ha−1, respectively. As N rate affected potato foliar chemical composition and tuber yield, N fertilization could be considered as a supplemental tool to the IPM strategy for potato pest control.
Double parton correlations in mesons within AdS/QCD soft-wall models: a first comparison with lattice data
Authors: Rinaldi Matteo
Published: July 2020

Double parton distribution functions (dPDFs), entering the double parton scattering (DPS) cross section, are unknown fundamental quantities encoding new interesting properties of hadrons. Here, the pion dPDFs are investigated within different holographic QCD quark models in order to access their basic features. Results of the calculations obtained within the AdS/QCD soft-wall approach, have been compared with predictions of lattice QCD evaluations of the pion two-current correlation functions. The present analysis confirms that double parton correlations, affecting dPDFs, are very important and not direct accessible from generalised parton distribution functions and electromagnetic form factors. The comparison between lattice data and quark model calculations unveils the relevance of the contributions of high partonic Fock states in the pion. Nevertheless, by using a complete general procedure, results of lattice QCD have been used, for the first time, to estimate the mean value of the so called $$\sigma _{eff}$$σeff, a relevant experimental observable for DPS processes. In addition, the results of the first calculations of the $$\rho $$ρ meson dPDFs are discussed in order to make predictions.
Optimal control, signal flow graph, and system electronic circuit realization for nonlinear Anopheles mosquito model
Authors: Gepreel K. A. , Higazy M. , Mahdy A. M. S.
Published: July 2020

We study the estimated investigative answers for one of the popular models in biomathematics, in particular, the nonlinear Anopheles mosquito model numerically. The optimal control (OC) for nonlinear Anopheles mosquito model is examined. Important and adequate conditions to ensure the presence and singularity of the arrangements of the control issue are assumed. Two control factors are suggested to limit the normal measure of eggs laid per treated female every day. The signal stream chart and Simulink[Formula: see text]Matlab of this model are constructed. The framework is designed utilizing the MULTISIM simulation program. We utilize the homotopy disruption strategy (HPM) to examine the logical surmised answer for the nonlinear control issue. We utilize the mathematical programming bundles, for example, Maple, to emphasize while ascertaining the rough arrangement. Results are displayed graphically and introduced to delineate the conduct of obtained inexact arrangements.
Gas-phase synthesis of single crystals of Ge–Si system
Authors: Hashimova Aynur I.
Published: July 2020

In this study, the synthesis of single crystals of solid solutions Ge[Formula: see text]Si[Formula: see text] from the gas phase was performed in two different variants. Here, the vapor phase is created in a closed volume. A special ampoule has been made for this purpose. Ge–Si is placed near one end of the ampoule. A temperature gradient is created along the ampoule. The temperature of the hot zone was chosen to be [Formula: see text]C and the temperature of the cold zone to be [Formula: see text]C. It has been found that single crystals can form not only on the polycrystalline layer, but also from separate centers on the walls of the ampoule.
Optical soliton solutions for nonlinear complex Ginzburg–Landau dynamical equation with laws of nonlinearity Kerr law media
Authors: Seadawy Aly R. , Iqbal Mujahid
Published: July 2020

In this research article, our aim is to construct new optical soliton solutions for nonlinear complex Ginzburg–Landau equation with the help of modified mathematical technique. In this work, we studied both laws of nonlinearity (Kerr and power laws). The obtained solutions represent dark and bright solitons, singular and combined bright-dark solitons, traveling wave, and periodic solitary wave. The determined solutions provide help in the development of optical fibers, soliton dynamics, and nonlinear optics. The constructed solitonic solutions prove that the applicable technique is more reliable, efficient, fruitful and powerful to investigate higher order complex nonlinear partial differential equations (PDEs) involved in mathematical physics, quantum plasma, geophysics, mechanics, fiber optics, field of engineering, and many other kinds of applied sciences.
A Novel Steganography Algorithm Based on Quantization Table Modification and Image Scrambling in DCT Domain
Authors: Dai Hongzhu , Cheng Jie , Li Yafeng
Published: July 2020

In this paper, a steganography algorithm has been proposed which is based on quantization table modification and image scrambling in the DCT domain. First, the algorithm homogenizes the energy by scrambling the cover image to improve the number of DCT coefficients suitable for information embedding. Second, the embedding capacity of the DCT block is determined by the value of the quantization table in the algorithm, different quantization tables get different embedding effects. In addition, this paper proposes an optimized modified quantization table. Extensive experiments show that the proposed algorithm achieves a great potential for confidential data and indiscernible image quality.
Intensity Factor Method for Segmenting Human Body Region in Gray-scale Infrared Image
Authors: Liu Jia , Duan Miyi , Gao Hongqi
Published: July 2020

The normalized intensity factor based on statistical first-order moment of gray-scale image is defined in this paper. The intensity factor can be used to distinguish the brightness level of a gray-scale image and to determine a threshold value for image segmentation. According to the intensity factor and the characteristic of human body in the gray-scale infrared image, a new algorithm of calculating the intensity-level threshold is designed which can be used for segmenting human body area in an infrared image. In the algorithm, based on the concept of intensity factor, a histogram of low brightness gray-scale image (LGIRI) is divided into three parts: a low-intensity region (0.25[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]), a medium-intensity region (0.25–0.75[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]), and a high-intensity region (0.75–1[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]), and then the intensity [Formula: see text] which satisfies the [Formula: see text] is selected as an intensity-level value [Formula: see text], and the intensity [Formula: see text] which satisfies [Formula: see text] is selected as an intensity-level value [Formula: see text], at last [Formula: see text] is the pixel classification threshold (the intensity-level threshold). It is noted that there is no preprocessing for image noise filtering and/or processing, and all images come from OTCBVS. Compared with the method of selecting trough points of the histogram as the intensity-level threshold, this algorithm avoids the problem of nonexistence of evident trough point at the high-intensity level of a histogram. Also, the experimental results show that the segmenting results of LGIRI processed by the algorithm are better than those of Otsu method.
KMPH: Key Management Scheme Based on Pool-Hash for WSN
Authors: Helali Abdelhamid , Msolli Amina , Maaref Hassen , Mghaieth Ridha
Published: July 2020

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have attracted a lot of interests over last years in security to ensure integrity, authenticity and data confidentiality. WSN applications are numerous, which range from smart home in indoor deployment offices to smart agriculture in outdoor deployments. Due to the deployment of nodes in remote areas, the solution brought to the wireless sensor network to increase the information security consists in protecting the messages exchanged between nodes. In the paper, modifications in the key management scheme are presented. Due to resource constraints in the sensor nodes, the proposed scheme ensures a distribution of the secured keys between nodes. New session keys transmitted between sensor nodes are defined during the discovery and path key phases. The experimental results prove that the proposed scheme is adapted to the WSN applications in terms of connectivity and resiliency.
A system of Schrödinger equations with general quadratic-type nonlinearities
Authors: Noguera Norman , Pastor Ademir
Published: July 2020

In this work, we study a system of Schrödinger equations involving nonlinearities with quadratic growth. We establish sharp criterion concerned with the dichotomy global existence versus blow-up in finite time. Such a criterion is given in terms of the ground state solutions associated with the corresponding elliptic system, which in turn are obtained by applying variational methods. By using the concentration-compactness method we also investigate the nonlinear stability/instability of the ground states.
Uniqueness of bubbling solutions of mean field equations with non-quantized singularities
Authors: Wu Lina , Zhang Lei
Published: July 2020

For singular mean field equations defined on a compact Riemann surface, we prove the uniqueness of bubbling solutions if some blowup points coincide with the singularities of the Dirac data. If the strength of the Dirac mass at each blowup point is not a multiple of [Formula: see text], we prove that bubbling solutions are unique. This paper extends previous results of Lin-Yan [C. S. Lin and S. S. Yan, On the mean field type bubbling solutions for Chern–Simons–Higgs equation, Adv. Math. 338 (2018) 1141–1188] and Bartolucci et al. [D. Bartolucci, A. Jevnikar, Y. Lee and W. Yang, Uniqueness of bubbling solutions of mean field equations, J. Math. Pures Appl. (9) 123 (2019) 78–126].
An infinitesimal approach to the study of cycles on abelian varieties
Authors: Marini Giambattista
Published: July 2020

This paper is a work in progress on Bloch’s conjecture asserting the vanishing of the Pontryagin product of a [Formula: see text] codimensional cycle on an abelian variety by [Formula: see text] zero cycles of degree zero. We prove an infinitesimal version of the conjecture and we discuss in particular, the case of [Formula: see text]-dimensional cycles.
Rethinking Autonomy of Humans and Robots
Authors: Asada Minoru
Published: July 2020

In the field of artificial intelligence, autonomy is defined as an expected capacity for systems to behave without human control, and there are currently many items with such capabilities. However, the mechanisms for how autonomous behavior is generated in these systems are different than those in humans, thus machine autonomy is often misunderstood. In this paper, we rethink the autonomy of artificial systems, including how they should function, what autonomy truly means, and how society might accept such systems. First, we review the general meaning of autonomy within an ideological background of the relations between human beings and objects. We also discuss how machine autonomy can be realized, and how it differs from human autonomy. Based on these premises, we consider this as a relative difference, not a deficiency of machines, and seek any means by which the concept of autonomy can be fully extended to machines. We begin with a key aspect of autonomy, an early concept of the self. Then, the pain nervous system, which is expected to produce empathy, morality, and ethics, is introduced and compared with human autonomic nervous systems. Finally, a hierarchy of autonomous machines is introduced and discussed in the context of responsibility. This may cause social impacts on how to treat the artificial systems when they cause fatal errors. All stake holders should consider such cases together for the healthy development of science and technology that have important roles in our future symbiotic society.
Interview with John Barber
Authors: Atzenbeck Claus
Published: July 2020

John F. Barber convenes with The Creative Media & Digital Culture Program at Washington State University Vancouver, USA. His scholarship, teaching, and creative endeavors arise from intersections of art, humanities, and technology and manifests as literary media art where he feels that practice-based research discovers and puts into action new knowledge. His radio and sound art are broadcast and exhibited internationally. His publications appear in
Digital Humanities Quarterly, Digital Studies, ebr, Hyperrhiz: New Media Cultures, Leonardo, MATLIT (Materialities of Literature), Scholarly Research and Communication
, and elsewhere. Barber curates
The Brautigan Library
, a collection of unpublished manuscripts, and was featured on This American Life.
Relationship search over knowledge graphs
Authors: Cheng Gong
Published: July 2020

The recent explosive growth of knowledge graphs (KGs) has enhanced a wide range of Web applications. Among others, the established task of relationship search benefits from KGs since complex relationships that were hidden and distributed in multiple webpages are now explicitly available as subgraphs of an integrated KG. However, new challenges arose as to the efficiency of search over large KGs. In this article, we introduce our recent studies on relationship search, including search algorithms based on novel index structures, methods for relationship clustering to support result exploration, and query relaxation techniques to provide alternative results for failed searches. We also present emerging applications and discuss future research directions.
Knowledge graph exploration
Authors: Lissandrini Matteo , Pedersen Torben Bach , Hose Katja , Mottin Davide
Published: July 2020

Knowledge graphs (KGs) represent facts in the form of subject-predicate-object triples and are widely used to represent and share knowledge on the Web. Their ability to represent data in complex domains augmented with semantic annotations has attracted the attention of both research and industry. Yet, their widespread adoption in various domains and their generation processes have made the contents of these resources complicated. We speak of
knowledge graph exploration
as of the gradual discovery and understanding of the contents of a large and unfamiliar KG. In this paper, we present an overview of the state-of-the-art approaches for KG exploration. We divide them into three areas: profiling, search, and analysis and we argue that, while KG profiling and KG exploratory search received considerable attention, exploratory KG analytics is still in its infancy. We conclude with an overview of promising future research directions towards the design of more advanced KG exploration techniques.
Evaluating preprocessing and interpolation strategies to create moving regions from real-world observations
Authors: Costa Rogério Luís C. , Miranda Enrico , Dias Paulo , Moreira José
Published: July 2020

Spatio-temporal data may be used to represent the evolution of real-world objects and phenomena. Such data can be represented in discrete time, which associates spatial information (like position and shape) to time instants, or in continuous time, in which the representation of the evolution of the phenomena is decomposed into slices and interpolation functions are used to estimate the intermediate position and shape at any time. The use of a discrete model may seem more straightforward, but a continuous representation provides potential gains in terms of data management, including in compression and spatio-temporal operations.

In this work, we study the use of the continuous model to represent deformable moving regions captured at discrete snapshots. We use a dissimilarity distance-based strategy to select the observations that should be used to define the time slices of the continuous representation, thus transforming data acquired at discrete steps into a continuous model. We also study how the use of geometry simplification algorithms and simplification levels may impact on moving regions interpolation quality.

We evaluate our proposals using a dataset composed by thousands of aerial bush-fires images. After applying object simplification and slice decomposition, we use two region interpolation algorithms to generate in-between observations and compare them with geometries representing real images. The results prove the effectiveness of our proposals and their importance in terms of interpolation accuracy.
Energy scheduling for task execution on intermittently-powered devices
Authors: Karimi Mohsen , Kim Hyoseung
Published: July 2020

Intermittently-powered embedded devices (IPDs) are getting wide-spread attention these days. However, running periodic real-time tasks on these devices remains a challenging problem due to the lack of support for data freshness guarantees, timekeeping, and schedulability analysis. Especially, while many sensing tasks require long atomic operations for data acquisition from sensors, most prior work on IPDs assumes compute-only workloads and disregards such sensor operations. In this paper, we present a new energy scheduling scheme to execute periodic real-time tasks with atomic sensing operations. Our scheme keeps track of time and ensures the periodic execution of sensing tasks while efficiently utilizing intermittent power sources. We provide schedulability analysis to determine if a task is schedulable in a given charging setup, and extend this idea for scheduling multiple tasks. As a proof-of-concept, we design a custom programmable RFID tag device, called R'tag, and demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed techniques in a realistic sensing application. We compare the baseline approach and the proposed scheme in both simulation and real platforms. Experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms the baseline approach in terms of task scheduling, timekeeping, and periodic sensing.
Power consumption management under a low-level performance constraint in the Xen hypervisor
Authors: Brondolin Rolando , Arnaboldi Marco , Santambrogio Marco D.
Published: July 2020

Virtualization is the main building block of many architectures and systems from embedded computing to large scale data-centers. Managing efficiently computing resources and their power consumption becomes fundamental to optimize the performance of the workloads running on those systems, however, hardware tools like Intel RAPL can only introduce power caps without considering performance. This paper presents a performance-aware power capping orchestrator for the Xen hypervisor. The tool exploits hybrid power management techniques to minimize power consumption respecting a given SLA, leveraging RAPL and overcoming its limitations. Experimental evaluation shows that the proposed approach guarantees good results for almost all the analyzed benchmarks (e.g. CPU-, memory- and IO-bound).
Quatros
Authors: Sun Wei-Fang , Chan Shih-Hsien , Liu Zhe-Ting , Yeh Yu-Hung , Chou Pai H.
Published: July 2020

Hands-on experience is crucial to truly understanding the principles of operating systems (OS). This paper describes a preemptive, multithreaded embedded OS assigned as a project in a junior-level OS course. It targets the popular 8051 instruction set architecture (ISA) and can run with as little as 128 bytes of RAM and 1 KB of program memory with preemption and synchronization primitives such as semaphores. It is written in C and assembly and compiled using the open-source Small Device C Compiler (SDCC). It runs on the free EdSim51 simulator, which simulates common peripherals such as LCD, keypads, 7-segment LEDs, ADC, and UART all in high fidelity. This course project has received positive feedback from students who took the course.
Visceral adiposity and liver fat as mediators of the association between cardiorespiratory fitness and plasma glucose-insulin homeostasis
Authors: Chartrand Dominic J. , Larose Eric , Poirier Paul , Mathieu Patrick , Alméras Natalie , Pibarot Philippe , Lamarche Benoît , Rhéaume Caroline , Després Jean-Pierre
Published: July 2020

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is positively associated with insulin sensitivity, whereas excessive levels of visceral adipose tissue (AT) and liver fat (LF) are both associated with insulin resistance and impaired plasma glucose-insulin homeostasis. To what extent levels of visceral AT and LF content contribute to the relationship between CRF and indices of plasma glucose-insulin homeostasis is uncertain. Our objective was to explore the interactions among CRF, visceral AT, and LF with glucose tolerance/insulin levels in asymptomatic and apparently healthy individuals. CRF was measured in 135 women and 177 men with a maximal treadmill graded exercise test. Indices of plasma glucose-insulin homeostasis were derived from a 3-h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) performed in the morning after a 12-h fast. Visceral AT levels and LF content were measured using magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy. For any given CRF level, women presented significantly lower visceral AT and LF than men as well as lower homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and plasma glucose-insulin levels during the OGTT compared with men. In both sexes, there were significant negative correlations between CRF and HOMA-IR as well as glucose and insulin levels measured during the OGTT. Both glucose and insulin levels during the OGTT correlated positively with visceral AT and LF. In women and men, being in the top CRF tertile was associated with low levels of visceral AT and LF. Multivariable linear regression analyses suggested that visceral AT and LF were plausible mediators of the association between CRF and indices of plasma glucose-insulin homeostasis.
Virtual measurements of paracellular permeability and chronic inflammation via color coded pixel-wise T1 mapping
Authors: Singh Nishant , Zabbarova Irina , Ikeda Youko , Maranchie Jodi , Chermansky Christopher , Foley Lesley , Hitchens T. Kevin , Yoshimura Naoki , Kanai Anthony , Kaufman Jonathan , Tyagi Pradeep
Published: July 2020

To assess whether quantitative T1 relaxometry can measure permeability, chronic inflammation and mural thickening of mouse bladder wall. Adult female C57BL6 mice unexposed to radiation (controls) or 40 wk postirradiation of 10 Gy were scanned at 9.4 T before and after instillation (0.1 mL) of aqueous, novel contrast mixture (NCM) containing 4 mM gadobutrol and 5 mM ferumoxytol. Rapid acquisition with refocused echo (RARE) sequence was used with variable repetition times (TR). Pixel-wise maps of T1 relaxation times for the segmented bladder wall layers were generated from voxel-wise, nonlinear least square data fitting of TR-dependent signal intensity acquired with TR array of 0.4–10 s followed by the histology of harvested bladder. Significant differences between precontrast and postcontrast T1 (ΔT1) were noted in urothelium and lamina propria of both groups but only in detrusor of irradiated group ( P < 0.001; 2-way ANOVA). Nearly twofold higher gadobutrol permeability (550 ± 73 vs. 294 ± 160 μM; P < 0.01) derived as per 1/ΔT1 = r1. [C] in urothelium of irradiated group. Inflammation and bladder wall thickening (0.75 ± 0. vs. 0.44 ± 0.08 mm; P < 0.001) predicted by MRI was subsequently confirmed by histology and altered expression of CD45 and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) relative to controls. NCM enhanced MRI relies on the retention of large molecular weight ferumoxytol in lumen for negative contrast, while permeation of the non-ionic, small molecular weight gadobutrol through ZO-1 generates positive contrast in bladder wall for virtual measurement of paracellular permeability and assessment of chronic inflammation in thin and distensible bladder wall, which is also defined by its variable shape and location within pelvis.
PGF2α stimulates the 10-pS Cl− channel and thiazide-sensitive Na+-Cl− cotransporter in the distal convoluted tubule
Authors: Wang Li-Jun , Xiao Yu , Fang Jing , Wang Jun-Lin , Zhang Hao , Meng Xin-Xin , Gong Rui-Lan , Gu Ruimin
Published: July 2020

We used patch-clamp and Western blot analysis to test whether PGF2α stimulates the basolateral 10-pS Cl− channel and thiazide-sensitive Na+-Cl− cotransporter (NCC) in the distal convoluted tubule (DCT) via a prostaglandin F receptor (FP-R). Single channel and whole cell recordings demonstrated that PGF2α stimulated the 10-pS Cl− channel in the DCT. The stimulatory effect of PGF2α on the Cl− channel was mimicked by a FP-R agonist, latanoprost, but was abrogated by blocking FP-R with AL8810. Also, the effect of PGF2α on the Cl− channel in the DCT was recapitulated by stimulating PKC but was blocked by inhibiting PKC. Furthermore, inhibition of p38 MAPK but not ERK blocked the effect of PGF2α on the 10-pS Cl− channel. Inhibition of NADPH oxidase also abrogated the stimulatory effect of PGF2α on the 10-pS Cl− channel, while the addition of 10 μM H2O2 mimicked the stimulatory effect of PGF2α on the 10-pS Cl− channel. Moreover, superoxide-related species may mediate the stimulatory effect of PGF2α on the 10-pS Cl− channel because the stimulatory effect of PGF2α and H2O2 was not additive. Western blot analysis showed that infusion of PGF2α in vivo not only increased the expression of FP-R but also increased the expression of total NCC and phosphorylated NCC. We conclude that PGF2α stimulates the basolateral 10-pS Cl− channel in the DCT by activating FP-R through PKC/p38 MAPK and NADPH oxidase-dependent pathways. The stimulatory effects of PGF2α on the Cl− channel and NCC may contribute to PGF2α-induced increases in NaCl reabsorption in the DCT.
Systemic inhibition of miR-451 increases fibrotic signaling and diminishes autophagic response to exacerbate renal damage in Tallyho/Jng mice
Authors: Fluitt Maurice B. , Shivapurkar Narayan , Kumari Manju , Singh Sarojini , Li Lijun , Tiwari Swasti , Ecelbarger Carolyn M.
Published: July 2020

miRNAs provide fine tuning of gene expression via inhibition of translation. miR-451 has a modulatory role in cell cycling via downregulation of mechanistic target of rapamycin. We aimed to test whether chronic systemic inhibition of miR-451 would enhance renal fibrosis (associated with deranged autophagy). Adult TallyHo/Jng mice (obese insulin resistant) were randomized to two treatment groups to receive either miR-451 inhibition [via a locked nucleic acid construct] or a similar scrambled locked nucleic acid control for 8 wk. All mice were fed a high-fat diet (60% kcal from fat) ad libitum and humanely euthanized after 12 wk. Kidneys and blood were collected for analysis. Renal expression of miR-451 was sixfold lower in inhibitor-treated mice compared with control mice. miR-451 inhibition increased kidney weight and collagen and glycogen deposition. Blood chemistry revealed significantly higher Na+ and anion gap (relative metabolic acidosis) in inhibitor-treated mice. Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry of the kidney revealed that the inhibitor increased markers of renal injury and fibrosis, e.g., kidney injury molecule 1, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin, transforming growth factor-β, 14-3-3 protein-ζ, mechanistic target of rapamycin, AMP-activated protein kinase-α, calcium-binding protein 39, matrix metallopeptidase-9, and the autophagy receptor sequestosome 1. In contrast, the inhibitor reduced the epithelial cell integrity marker collagen type IV and the autophagy markers microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B light chain 3B and beclin-1. Taken together, these results support a protective role for miR-451 in reducing renal fibrosis by enhancing autophagy in obese mice.
On Generalized Arakawa–Kaneko Zeta Functions with Parameters a,b,c
Authors: Acala Nestor G. , Aleluya Edward Rowe M.
Published: July 2020

For k∈ℤ, the generalized Arakawa–Kaneko zeta functions with a, b, c parameters are given by the Laplace-Mellin integral ξks,x;a,b,c=1/Γs∫0∞Lik1−ab−t/bt−a−tc−xtts−1dt, where ℜs>0 and x>0 if k≥1, and ℜs>0 and x>k+1 if k≤0. In this paper, an interpolation formula between these generalized zeta functions and the poly-Bernoulli polynomials with a,b,c parameters is obtained. Moreover, explicit, difference, and Raabe’s formulas for ξks,x;a,b,c are derived.
From the Performance to the Essence: The Biological Mechanisms of How Tantalum Contributes to Osteogenesis
Authors: Qian Hu , Lei Ting , Ye Zhimin , Hu Yihe , Lei Pengfei
Published: July 2020

Despite the brilliant bioactive performance of tantalum as an orthopedic biomaterial verified through laboratory researches and clinical practice in the past decades, scarce evidences about the essential mechanisms of how tantalum contributes to osteogenesis were systematically discussed. Up to now, a few studies have uncovered preliminarily the biological mechanism of tantalum in osteogenic differentiation and osteogenesis; it is of great necessity to map out the panorama through which tantalum contributes to new bone formation. This minireview summarized current advances to demonstrate the probable signaling pathways and underlying molecular cascades through which tantalum orchestrates osteogenesis, which mainly contain Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway, BMP signaling pathway, TGF‐β signaling pathway, and integrin signaling pathway. Limits of subsistent studies and further work are also discussed, providing a novel vision for the study and application of tantalum.
Genome-Wide Association Study towards Genomic Predictive Power for High Production and Quality of Milk in American Alpine Goats
Authors: Tilahun Y. , Gipson T. A. , Alexander T. , McCallum M. L. , Hoyt P. R.
Published: July 2020

This paper reports an exploratory study based on quantitative genomic analysis in dairy traits of American Alpine goats. The dairy traits are quality-determining components in goat milk, cheese, ice cream, etc. Alpine goat phenotypes for quality components have been routinely recorded for many years and deposited in the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB) repository. The data collected were used to conduct an exploratory genome-wide association study (GWAS) from 72 female Alpine goats originating from locations throughout the U.S. Genotypes were identified with the Illumina Goat 50K single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) BeadChip. The analysis used a polygenic model where the dropping criterion was a call rate≥0.95. The initial dataset was composed of ~60,000 rows of SNPs and 21 columns of phenotypic traits and composed of 53,384 scaffolds containing other informative data points used for genomic predictive power. Phenotypic association with the 50K BeadChip revealed 26,074 reads of candidate genes. These candidate genes segregated as separate novel SNPs and were identified as statistically significant regions for genome and chromosome level trait associations. Candidate genes associated differently for each of the following phenotypic traits: test day milk yield (13,469 candidate genes), test day protein yield (25,690 candidate genes), test day fat yield (25,690 candidate genes), percentage protein (25,690 candidate genes), percentage fat (25,690 candidate genes), and percentage lactose content (25,690 candidate genes). The outcome of this study supports elucidation of novel genes that are important for livestock species in association to key phenotypic traits. Validation towards the development of marker-based selection that provides precision breeding methods will thereby increase the breeding value.