bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Solid particle erosion wear behavior of severe plastically deformed AA7075 alloys
Authors: Kaya Hasan
Published: August 2018

In this study, severe plastic deformation (SPD) and wear behavior of AA 7075 allosy widely used in aerospace, automotive and defence industries, has been investigated. The equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) process was applied to achieve an ultra-fine grain structure of homogenized AA 7075 materials. Solid particle abrasion behavior was impressed into homogenized and ECAP' ed materials via a variable particle impingement angle (PIA) and acceleration pressure. Microstructure and wear behavior of the tested materials were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and a surface profilometer. In the studies conducted, it was observed that an increase in the number of ECAP passes with the effect of SPD, reduced the solid particle wear behavior.
Application of the grey based Taguchi method and Deform-3D for optimizing multiple responses in turning of Inconel 718
Authors: Rajaparthiban Jeevanandam , Sait Abdullah Naveen
Published: August 2018

The austenitic nickel-chromium based super alloy Inconel 718 is considered a difficult material to machine due to a combination of nickel, iron and cobalt. The material exhibits mechanical strength and resistance to surface degradation under extreme pressure and heat. It employed widely in aerospace, jet engines, gas turbine etc. This research work focuses on the optimization of cutting variables for each performance measure obtained by employing grey-Taguchi techniques. The orthogonal array, grey relation analysis and analysis of variance are employed to study the performance characteristics in turning Inconel 718 using a carbide cutting tool insert. Further, a simulation model based on an finite element approach is proposed using DEFORM-3D software for the prediction of tool wear through Usui's tool wear model. The study highlights the optimum cutting conditions and a favorable range of the machining variable values. Finite element method results show that predicted tool wear values according to DEFORM-3D produce a useful and adequate level of accuracy.
Avaliação da assistência farmacêutica no Município de Ibiapina-CE
Authors: Meneses Andressa Fernandes Rodrigues Vieira de , Lima Renan Pereira de , Romeu Geysa Aguiar , De Morais Arlandia Crisitna Lima Nobre
Published: August 2018

Objetivo: avaliar a Assistência Farmacêutica no município de Ibiapina-CE. Métodos: o estudo é retrospectivo, observacional, transversal e descritivo. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida em Unidades Básicas de Saúde do Sistema Único de Saúde, no Município de Ibiapina, situada no Estado do Ceará, baseando-se na aplicação de um questionário que considerou indicadores de estrutura, processo e resultado. Resultados: a infraestrutura demostra alguns aspectos com grau crítico, contudo apresenta-se satisfatório quanto ao processo de armazenamento e estocagem. Conclusão: partindo de tal premissa, constata-se que a Assistência Farmacêutica na atenção primária em Ibiapina esbarra em dificulda­des relacionadas à falta de apoio estrutural para o trabalho.
INSTITUTIONAL BASIS FOR THE FORMATION OF THE REGION�S INVESTMENT POTENTIAL
Authors: Kukosh M.S.
Published: August 2018

The article considers the institutional framework for the formation of the country and the region investment potential. The state and prospects of Ukrainian legislation in the field of investment, as well as the organization of attraction and support of investments at the state and regional level are investigated. The necessity of systematization of investment legislation of Ukraine, the outcome of which should be the adoption of the Investment Code. It is also grounded that the process of attracting and supporting investments, namely the creation of a separate body for which it would be assigned the task of promoting foreign investment both at the state and at the regional level, also needs to be improved.
It is determined that the necessary conditions for increasing the investment activity of domestic enterprises at the state level are the formation and implementation of a well-balanced investment policy, ensuring favorable business climate in the country, development of investment and infrastructure provision of investment processes, etc. At the level of regions and certain sectors of the economy, the development and implementation of regional and sectoral investment development programs should contribute to the effective implementation of investment activities.
It is expedient to create a special body that would engage in investment and support of investment projects at the state level, and also had its representative offices in all regions of Ukraine, which would be engaged in supporting local investment projects. This will enable the creation of an effective regional policy, the formation of investment attractiveness, and, thus, to ensure the receipt of investment resources.
INVESTMENT MODEL OF DEVELOPMENT UNDER UNCERTAINTY
Authors: Grimalyuk A.V. , Kvach I.Y. , Boiko O.V.
Published: August 2018

Uncertainty today is becoming a major factor hampering investment and economic development in Ukraine. Meanwhile, economic theory actually replaces the immeasurable uncertainty with measurable risk, assuming knowledge of probabilities. More complete consideration of the uncertainty factor can become the theoretical basis for the development of entirely other practical recommendations for economic policy at the national and regional levels. Therefore, the purpose of the article is to reveal the possibility of more fully taking into account the uncertainty factor in economic theory and to justify, from these theoretical positions, an alternative approach to managing the process of economic development.
The essence of the problem lies in the fact that investment requires a surplus profit, designed to compensate for the uncertainty of investment expectations. Only in the case of such expected compensation, the investment project is able to become the limit, closing, and therefore, the one that determines the total investment. Compensatory superprofit is the most important regulator of economic growth, since investing in a business project occurs only when at least one entrepreneur expects such profits from him. Without it, monetary capital will remain in the banks, and economic development can stop.
An important conclusion about the merits of the proposed investment system is that it can be involved not only at the national level, but also at the regional or even city levels. This model is well aligned with other variants of institutional reforms proposed in the literature, for example, with the proposal to create agencies for regional development. Thus, the practical conclusion is the possibility of using the system of redistribution of uncertainty in the specific conditions of the modern Ukrainian economy.
CARBON FIBER REINFORCED CONCRETE COLUMNS UNDER STATIC AND DYNAMIC LOADS
Authors: Nevskii A. V.
Published: August 2018

Many new developments in the field of creating promising building materials relate to polymer fiber composites for reinforcing concrete constructions. The most effective use of such composites is provided by carbon fiber reinforcement. To date, the issues related to design, calculation and use of concrete constructions with carbon composite reinforcement under dynamic compressive loading have not been well studied. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to determine strength of dynamically loaded concrete constructions reinforced with carbon fiber using different methods of modification of deformation properties of concrete. Methodology: Experimental studies include testing two concrete columns with steel rod reinforcement and six concrete columns modified by carbon fiber and carbon composite reinforcement. The columns are tested under axial static and dynamic compressive loads. Research findings: The resulting longitudinal deformations of concrete and carbon-composite reinforcement and the limiting compressive force are determined. Value: New experimental data are obtained for the concrete column strength reinforced with carbon composite rods. The experimental results indicate the effective resistance to compression of carbon composite reinforcement. This phenomenon is observed in the case of carbon fiber and carbon composite reinforcement of compressed concrete constructions under the dynamic load. Practical implications: Resistance of carbon composite reinforcement to the dynamic compression affects the concrete strength, especially when its deformation properties are modified by carbon fiber and carbon composite reinforcement. The obtained results can be used in strength calculations of concrete constructions under the dynamic load.
THERMOFILLER EFFECT ON HEAT-STRESSED MULTILAYERED ENCLOSING STRUCTURES
Authors: Kozlobrodov A. N. , Ivanova E. A. , Golovko A. V.
Published: August 2018

The article deals with spatial heat-stressed elements that influence the thermal properties of multilayered enclosing structures. Using the ANSYS finite element program, the effect of thermofiller location on heat transfer processes is studied nearby the heat-stressed elements. A quantitative assessment is given to thermal conditions of heat-stressed elements of enclosing structure under extreme heat exchange conditions. Specific conditions are created to raise the temperature nearby the heat-stressed elements and reduce their negative effect.
DYNAMIC STRESS IN AUTOMOBILE BRIDGEWORKS
Authors: Semukhin B. S.
Published: August 2018

The article considers and solves the problem of determining dynamic characteristics of automobile steel bridges. In the laboratory conditions, possible loads are simulated and stress diagrams are constructed. By measuring stresses in a real bridge, experimental loading diagrams are constructed for all possible loads. By comparison with the model diagrams, the stress effect in permanent joints is shown. The stress evolution is shown depending on the traffic flow.
RAILROAD SPACE-PLANNING FORMATION IN A LARGE CITY (ZLOBINO, KRASNOYARSK CASE STUDIES)
Authors: Kapralova S. A. , Unagaeva N. A.
Published: August 2018

The article presents research results on space-planning links formed by the railroad. The typology and main characteristics are described. The approach to the comprehensive analysis is shown on the example of Zlobino railroad in Krasnoyarsk. The approach is used for restoration of town-planning structure by means of the building-bridge model.
Tracking Jianghuai Cyclones in China and Their Climate Characteristics
Authors: Xia Lan , Zhou Yue
Published: August 2018

A Jianghuai cyclone is an extratropical cyclone, which influences the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and Huai River basins in China. According to the definition of Jianghuai cyclones, statistics of their climate characteristics from 1979 to 2010 are obtained by an objective detection and tracking algorithm using ERA-Interim reanalysis data. The results show that the frequency of Jianghuai cyclones has a strong year-to-year variability but no obvious trend. Jianghuai cyclones are most frequent in May but fewest in December. As the cold air is active in spring, which interacts with the warm air from the southwest of the subtropical high at the Yangtze-Huai River region, it makes Jianghuai cyclones occur more frequently in this season. The main origins of Jianghuai cyclones are located in the Poyang Lake region, Dongting Lake region, and Dabie Mountain area. The maximum deepening rate of 0–2 hPa/6h is featured in 66.4% of Jianghuai cyclones. Over 40% of Jianghuai cyclones have a mean deepening rate of 0–1 hPa/6h. The lifetime of Jianghuai cyclones is short, mainly lasting for one to two days. In addition, background characteristics are compared between the formation, climax, and decaying periods of Jianghuai cyclones.
Hardware-Based Run-Time Code Integrity in Embedded Devices
Authors: Wehbe Taimour , Mooney Vincent , Keezer David
Published: August 2018

Attacks on embedded devices are becoming more and more prevalent, primarily due to the extensively increasing plethora of software vulnerabilities. One of the most dangerous types of these attacks targets application code at run-time. Techniques to detect such attacks typically rely on software due to the ease of implementation and integration. However, these techniques are still vulnerable to the same attacks due to their software nature. In this work, we present a novel hardware-assisted run-time code integrity checking technique where we aim to detect if executable code resident in memory is modified at run-time by an adversary. Specifically, a hardware monitor is designed and attached to the device’s main memory system. The monitor creates page-based signatures (hashes) of the code running on the system at compile-time and stores them in a secure database. It then checks for the integrity of the code pages at run-time by regenerating the page-based hashes (with data segments zeroed out) and comparing them to the legitimate hashes. The goal is for any modification to the binary of a user-level or kernel-level process that is resident in memory to cause a comparison failure and lead to a kernel interrupt which allows the affected application to halt safely.
Microcanonical Entropy, Partitions of a Natural Number into Squares and the Bose–Einstein Gas in a Box
Authors: De Gregorio Paolo , Rondoni Lamberto
Published: August 2018

From basic principles, we review some fundamentals of entropy calculations, some of which are implicit in the literature. We mainly deal with microcanonical ensembles to effectively compare the counting of states in continuous and discrete settings. When dealing with non-interacting elements, this effectively reduces the calculation of the microcanonical entropy to counting the number of certain partitions, or compositions of a number. This is true in the literal sense, when quantization is assumed, even in the classical limit. Thus, we build on a moderately dated, ingenuous mathematical work of Haselgrove and Temperley on counting the partitions of an arbitrarily large positive integer into a fixed (but still large) number of summands, and show that it allows us to exactly calculate the low energy/temperature entropy of a one-dimensional Bose–Einstein gas in a box. Next, aided by the asymptotic analysis of the number of compositions of an integer as the sum of three squares, we estimate the entropy of the three-dimensional problem. For each selection of the total energy, there is a very sharp optimal number of particles to realize that energy. Therefore, the entropy is ‘large’ and almost independent of the particles, when the particles exceed that number. This number scales as the energy to the power of ( 2 / 3 ) -rds in one dimension, and ( 3 / 5 ) -ths in three dimensions. In the one-dimensional case, the threshold approaches zero temperature in the thermodynamic limit, but it is finite for mesoscopic systems. Below that value, we studied the intermediate stage, before the number of particles becomes a strong limiting factor for entropy optimization. We apply the results of moments of partitions of Coons and Kirsten to calculate the relative fluctuations of the ground state and excited states occupation numbers. At much lower temperatures than threshold, they vanish in all dimensions. We briefly review some of the same results in the grand canonical ensemble to show to what extents they differ.
Entropy Determination of Single-Phase High Entropy Alloys with Different Crystal Structures over a Wide Temperature Range
Authors: Haas Sebastian , Mosbacher Mike , Senkov Oleg , Feuerbacher Michael , Freudenberger Jens , Gezgin Senol , Völkl Rainer , Glatzel Uwe
Published: August 2018

We determined the entropy of high entropy alloys by investigating single-crystalline nickel and five high entropy alloys: two fcc-alloys, two bcc-alloys and one hcp-alloy. Since the configurational entropy of these single-phase alloys differs from alloys using a base element, it is important to quantify the entropy. Using differential scanning calorimetry, cp-measurements are carried out from −170 °C to the materials’ solidus temperatures TS. From these experiments, we determined the thermal entropy and compared it to the configurational entropy for each of the studied alloys. We applied the rule of mixture to predict molar heat capacities of the alloys at room temperature, which were in good agreement with the Dulong-Petit law. The molar heat capacity of the studied alloys was about three times the universal gas constant, hence the thermal entropy was the major contribution to total entropy. The configurational entropy, due to the chemical composition and number of components, contributes less on the absolute scale. Thermal entropy has approximately equal values for all alloys tested by DSC, while the crystal structure shows a small effect in their order. Finally, the contributions of entropy and enthalpy to the Gibbs free energy was calculated and examined and it was found that the stabilization of the solid solution phase in high entropy alloys was mostly caused by increased configurational entropy.
A Hybrid DA-PSO Optimization Algorithm for Multiobjective Optimal Power Flow Problems
Authors: Khunkitti Sirote , Siritaratiwat Apirat , Premrudeepreechacharn Suttichai , Chatthaworn Rongrit , Watson Neville R.
Published: August 2018

In this paper, a hybrid optimization algorithm is proposed to solve multiobjective optimal power flow problems (MO-OPF) in a power system. The hybrid algorithm, named DA-PSO, combines the frameworks of the dragonfly algorithm (DA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO) to find the optimized solutions for the power system. The hybrid algorithm adopts the exploration and exploitation phases of the DA and PSO algorithms, respectively, and was implemented to solve the MO-OPF problem. The objective functions of the OPF were minimization of fuel cost, emissions, and transmission losses. The standard IEEE 30-bus and 57-bus systems were employed to investigate the performance of the proposed algorithm. The simulation results were compared with those in the literature to show the superiority of the proposed algorithm over several other algorithms; however, the time computation of DA-PSO is slower than DA and PSO due to the sequential computation of DA and PSO.
Effect of Temperature on Space Charge Distribution of Oil–Paper Insulation under DC and Polarity Reversal Voltage
Authors: Chen Qingguo , Zhang Jinfeng , Chi Minghe , Tan Peng , Sun Wenxin
Published: August 2018

The electric field distortion caused by space charge is an important factor affecting the operation reliability of oil–paper insulation in a converter transformer. To study the accumulation and decay characteristics of the space charge within oil-impregnated pressboard under DC and polarity reversal voltage, and consider the possible operating conditions of the converter transformer, the space charge behavior of oil-impregnated pressboard was measured by the pulsed electro-acoustic (PEA) method in the temperature range from −20 °C to 60 °C. The effect of temperature on the accumulation and decay characteristics of space charge is also analyzed. The space charge accumulated within the pressboard at low temperature is mainly homocharge injected by the electrode, while heterocharge formed by ion dissociation counteracts some of the homocharge at high temperature. Thus, the space charge of pressboard first increases, then decreases, with an increase in temperature. However, slow decay of the space charge causes severe distortion of the electric field distribution in the pressboard during voltage polarity reversal.
Resilience Assessment and Its Enhancement in Tackling Adverse Impact of Ice Disasters for Power Transmission Systems
Authors: Lu Jiazheng , Guo Jun , Jian Zhou , Yang Yihao , Tang Wenhu
Published: August 2018

Ice disasters have frequently occurred worldwide in recent years, which seriously affected power transmission system operations. To improve the resilience of power grids and minimize economic losses, this paper proposes a framework for assessing the influence of ice disasters on the resilience of power transmission systems. This method considers the spatial–temporal impact of ice disasters on the resilience of power transmission systems, and the contingence set for risk assessment is established according to contingency probabilities. Based on meteorological data, the outage models of power transmission components are developed in the form of generic fragility curves, and the ice load is given by a simplified freezing rain ice model. A cell partition method is adopted to analyze the way ice disasters affect the operation of power transmission systems. The sequential Monte Carlo simulation method is used to assess resilience for capturing the stochastic impact of ice disasters and deriving the contingency set. Finally, the IEEE RTS-79 system is employed to investigate the impact of ice disasters by two case studies, which demonstrate the viability and effectiveness of the proposed framework. In turn, the results help recognize the resilience of the system under such disasters and the effects of different resilience enhancement measures.
Lyapunov-Based Large Signal Stability Assessment for VSG Controlled Inverter-Interfaced Distributed Generators
Authors: Li Meiyi , Huang Wentao , Tai Nengling , Yu Moduo
Published: August 2018

Inverter-interfaced distributed generators (IIDGs) have been widely applied due to their control flexibility. The stability problems of IIDGs under large signal disturbances, such as large load variations and feeder faults, will cause serious impacts on the system. The virtual synchronous generator (VSG) control is an effective scheme for IIDGs to increase transient stability. However, the existing linearized stability models of IIDGs are limited to small disturbances. Hence, this paper proposes a Lyapunov approach based on non-linearized models to assess the large signal stability of VSG-IIDG. The electrostatic machine model is introduced to establish the equivalent nonlinear model. On the basis of Popov’s theory, a Lyapunov function is derived to calculate the transient stability domain. The stability mechanism is revealed by depicting the stability domain using the locus of the angle and the angular frequency. Large signal stability of the VSG-IIDG is quantified according to the boundary of the stability domain. Effects and sensitivity analysis of the key parameters including the cable impedance, the load power, and the virtual inertia on the stability of the VSG-IIDG are also presented. The simulations are performed in PSCAD/EMTDC and the results demonstrate the proposed large signal stability assessment method.
Numerical Modeling and Validation of a Novel 2D Compositional Flooding Simulator Using a Second-Order TVD Scheme
Authors: Druetta Pablo , Picchioni Francesco
Published: August 2018

The aim of this paper is to present the latter and develop a numerical simulator aimed at solving a 2D domain porous medium, using the compositional approach to simulate chemical flooding processes. The simulator consists in a two-phase, multicomponent system solved by the IMplicit in Pressure, Explicit in Concentration (IMPEC) approach, which can be operated under an iterative/non-iterative condition on each time-step. The discretization of the differential equations is done using a fully second order of accuracy, along with a Total Variation Diminishing (TVD) scheme with a flux limiter function. This allowed reducing the artificial diffusion and dispersion on the transport equation, improving the chemical species front tracking, decreasing the numerical influence on the recovery results. The new model was validated against both commercial and academic simulators and moreover, the robustness and stability were also tested, showing that the iterative IMPEC is fully stable, behaving as an implicit numerical scheme. The non-iterative IMPEC is conditionally stable, with a critical time-step above which numerical spurious oscillations begin to appear until the system numerically crashes. The results showed a good correspondence in different grid sizes, being largely affected by the time-step, with caused a decrease in the recovery efficiency in the iterative scheme, and the occurrence of numerical oscillations in the non-iterative one. Numerically speaking, the second-order scheme using a flux splitting TVD discretization proved to be a good approach for compositional reservoir simulation, decreasing the influence of numerical truncation errors on the results when compared to traditional, first-order linear schemes. Along with these studies, secondary recoveries in constant and random permeability fields are simulated before employing them in tertiary recovery processes.
Investigation of Puffing and Micro-Explosion of Water-in-Diesel Emulsion Spray Using Shadow Imaging
Authors: A. Ismael Mhadi , Heikal Morgan R. , A. Aziz A. Rashid , Crua Cyril , El-Adawy Mohmmed , Nissar Zuhaib , Baharom Masri B. , Zainal A. Ezrann Z. , Firmansyah
Published: August 2018

Water-in-diesel emulsions potentially favor the occurrence of micro-explosions when exposed to elevated temperatures, thereby improving the mixing of fuels with the ambient gas. The distributions and sizes of both spray and dispersed water droplets have a significant effect on puffing and micro-explosion behavior. Although the injection pressure is likely to alter the properties of emulsions, this effect on the spray flow puffing and micro-explosion has not been reported. To investigate this, we injected a fuel spray using a microsyringe needle into a high-temperature environment to investigate the droplets’ behavior. Injection pressures were varied at 10% v/v water content, the samples were imaged using a digital microscope, and the dispersed droplet size distributions were extracted using a purpose-built image processing algorithm. A high-speed camera coupled with a long-distance microscope objective was then used to capture the emulsion spray droplets. Our measurements indicated that the secondary atomization was significantly affected by the injection pressure which reduced the dispersed droplet size and hence caused a delay in puffing. At high injection pressure (500, 1000, and 1500 bar), the water was evaporated during the spray and although there was not enough droplet residence time, puffing and micro-explosion were clearly observed. This study suggests that high injection pressures have a detrimental effect on the secondary atomization of water-in-diesel emulsions.
Experimental Investigation of the Steam Ejector in a Single-Effect Thermal Vapor Compression Desalination System Driven by a Low-Temperature Heat Source
Authors: Dong Jingming , Wang Weining , Han Zhitao , Ma Hongbin , Deng Yangbo , Su Fengmin , Pan Xinxiang
Published: August 2018

The paper presents an experimental investigation of a steam ejector in a single-effect thermal vapor compression (S-TVC) desalination system driven by a low-temperature (below 100 °C) heat source. To investigate the performance of the steam ejector in the S-TVC desalination system, an experimental steam ejector system was designed and built. The influences of the nozzle exit position (NXP), operating temperatures, and the area ratio of the ejector (AR) on the steam ejector performance were investigated at primary steam temperatures ranging from 40 °C to 70 °C, and at secondary steam temperatures ranging from 10 °C to 25 °C. The experimental results showed that the steam ejector can work well in the S-TVC desalination system driven by a low-temperature heat source below 100 °C. The steam ejector could achieve a higher coefficient of performance (COP) by decreasing the primary steam temperature, increasing the secondary steam temperature, and increasing the AR. The steam ejector could also be operated at a higher critical condensation temperature by increasing the primary steam temperature and secondary steam temperature, and decreasing the AR. This study will allow S-TVC desalination to compete with adsorption desalination (AD).
Dynamic Optimization of Combined Cooling, Heating, and Power Systems with Energy Storage Units
Authors: Kuang Jiyuan , Zhang Chenghui , Li Fan , Sun Bo
Published: August 2018

In this paper, a combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) system with thermal storage tanks is introduced. Considering the plants’ off-design performance, an efficient methodology is introduced to determine the most economical operation schedule. The complex CCHP system’s state transition equation is extracted by selecting the stored cooling and heating energy as the discretized state variables. Referring to the concept of variable cost and constant cost, repeated computations are saved in phase operating cost calculations. Therefore, the most economical operation schedule is obtained by employing a dynamic solving framework in an extremely short time. The simulation results indicated that the optimized operating cost is reduced by 40.8% compared to the traditional energy supply system.
Detecting the Competition between Moso Bamboos and Broad-Leaved Trees in Mixed Forests Using a Terrestrial Laser Scanner
Authors: Yan Yingjie , Xia Mingpeng , Fan Shaohui , Zhan Meichun , Guan Fengying
Published: August 2018

The growth of individual trees in a forest is affected by many factors, a crucial one being the intensity of competition among trees, because it affects the spatial structure of the forest and is in turn influenced by silvicultural practices. In a mixed forest in particular, the growth of trees is affected by multiple interactions. To analyse the competition between moso bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens (Pradelle) Mazel ex J.Houz.) and broad-leaved trees in a mixed forest, data were extracted by sampling six spots within such a forest using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS). The convex hull algorithm was used for calculating the overlap volume between the crowns of the broad-leaved trees and the bamboo canopy. Bamboos growing at least 3 m away from any of the broad-leaved trees were the most numerous and the diameter at breast height (DBH) is larger than those growing closer than that, which suggests that broad-leaved trees suppressed the growth of bamboo if they are closer but promote it beyond 3 m up to a point at which the distance is too great for any such effect. The modified Hegyi’s competition index was constructed based on the canopy factor, which may better describe the competitive interaction among the trees and bamboos. Using TLS can enhance our understanding of the competition among trees in mixed forests and help in planning the spatial structure of such forests in general and provide a benchmark for choosing planting distances in particular.
Drought Influence on Forest Plantations in Zululand, South Africa, Using MODIS Time Series and Climate Data
Authors: Xulu Sifiso , Peerbhay Kabir , Gebreslasie Michael , Ismail Riyad
Published: August 2018

South Africa has a long history of recurrent droughts that have adversely affected its economic performance. The recent 2015 drought has been declared the most serious in 26 years and impaired key agricultural sectors including the forestry sector. Research on the forests’ responses to drought is therefore essential for management planning and monitoring. The effects of the latest drought on the forests in South Africa have not been studied and are uncertain. The study reported here addresses this gap by using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and precipitation data retrieved and processed using the JavaScript code editor in the Google Earth Engine (GEE) and the corresponding normalized difference infrared index (NDII), Palmer drought severity index (PDSI), and El Niño time series data for KwaMbonambi, northern Zululand, between 2002 and 2016. The NDVI and NDII time series were decomposed using the Breaks for Additive Seasonal and Trend (BFAST) method to establish the trend and seasonal variation. Multiple linear regression and Mann–Kendall tests were applied to determine the association of the NDVI and NDII with the climate variables. Plantation trees displayed high NDVI values (0.74–0.78) from 2002 to 2013; then, they decreased sharply to 0.64 in 2015. The Mann–Kendall trend test confirmed a negative significant (p = 0.000353) trend between 2014 and 2015. This pattern was associated with a precipitation deficit and low NDII values during a strong El Niño phase. The PDSI (−2.6) values indicated severe drought conditions. The greening decreased in 2015, with some forest remnants showing resistance, implying that the tree species had varying sensitivity to drought. We found that the plantation trees suffered drought stress during 2015, although it seems that the trees began to recover, as the NDVI signals rose in 2016. Overall, these results demonstrated the effective use of the NDVI- and NDII-derived MODIS data coupled with climatic variables to provide insights into the influence of drought on plantation trees in the study area.
Specific LTR-Retrotransposons Show Copy Number Variations between Wild and Cultivated Sunflowers
Authors: Mascagni Flavia , Vangelisti Alberto , Giordani Tommaso , Cavallini Andrea , Natali Lucia
Published: August 2018

The relationship between variation of the repetitive component of the genome and domestication in plant species is not fully understood. In previous work, variations in the abundance and proximity to genes of long terminal repeats (LTR)-retrotransposons of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) were investigated by Illumina DNA sequencingtocompare cultivars and wild accessions. In this study, we annotated and characterized 22 specific retrotransposon families whose abundance varies between domesticated and wild genotypes. These families mostly belonged to the Chromovirus lineage of the Gypsy superfamily and were distributed overall chromosomes. They were also analyzed in respect to their proximity to genes. Genes close to retrotransposon were classified according to biochemical pathways, and differences between domesticated and wild genotypes are shown. These data suggest that structural variations related to retrotransposons might have occurred to produce phenotypic variation between wild and domesticated genotypes, possibly by affecting the expression of genes that lie close to inserted or deleted retrotransposons and belong to specific biochemical pathways as those involved in plant stress responses.
New Developments in the Synthesis of EMICORON
Authors: Pitorri Massimo , Franceschin Marco , Serafini Ilaria , Ciccòla Alessandro , Frezza Claudio , Bianco Armandodoriano
Published: August 2018

This paper reports on the modification of two synthetic steps in the usual protocol used for obtaining EMICORON. EMICORON is a benzo[ghi]perylen-diimide, which was synthesized for the first time in our laboratory in 2012, and has shown to have in vivo antitumor activities that interferes with the tumor growth and development using a multi-target mechanism of action. The provided modifications, which involved the reaction times, the reaction conditions, and the work-up procedures, allowed the global yield of the process to be increased from 28% to about 40%. Thus, this new procedure may be more suitable for recovering higher amounts of EMICORON to be used in further preclinical studies.
Loneliness at Universities: Determinants of Emotional and Social Loneliness among Students
Authors: Diehl Katharina , Jansen Charlotte , Ishchanova Kamila , Hilger-Kolb Jennifer
Published: August 2018

The transition from school to university is associated with social, structural, and behavioral changes. These changes may be related to feelings of loneliness, which are in turn related to morbidity. The authors’ aim was to quantify loneliness among students and to identify its determinants and its relation to transition-related variables (e.g., changes in weight, diet, or physical activity since the transition from high school to university). Coming from across Germany, 689 students participated in the Nutrition and Physical Activity in Adolescence (NuPhA) survey (16–29 years; 69.5% female). Associations of loneliness with the above-mentioned aspects were analyzed using descriptive statistics and linear regressions. Altogether, 32.4% felt moderately lonely and 3.2%, severely lonely. Emotional loneliness was more common than social loneliness (severe loneliness: 7.7% vs. 3.2%). Both were positively associated with feelings of depression and anxiety. Being married or in a committed relationship seemed to be protective factors for emotional loneliness. Physical inactivity, an immigrant background, and studying social sciences were related to higher social loneliness. Transition-related variables produced mixed results. In conclusion, this study’s findings indicated that loneliness seemed to be prevalent in university students. The authors identified important starting points for interventions to prevent loneliness. Such interventions may help reduce the disease burden in the students’ future professional life.
The Role of Psychosocial Stress on a Family-Based Treatment for Adolescents with Problematic Behaviors
Authors: Maya Jesús , Lorence Bárbara , Hidalgo Victoria , Jiménez Lucía
Published: August 2018

The stressful life events experienced by adolescents with problematic behaviors, should be considered for implementing effective interventions. This study aimed to examine the adjustment of adolescents with problematic behaviors, and to assess the effectiveness of a family-based treatment, namely Scene-Based Psychodramatic Family Therapy (SB-PFT), according to different stress profiles. Ten SB-PFT sessions, over 17 trials were implemented. Stressful life events and adolescent adjustment were evaluated at pretest and posttest, for the SB-PFT participants (n = 104 adolescents) and a control group (n = 106). The adolescents were categorized into three profiles depending on the nature of the stressors: family stress profile, individual and family stress profile, and low stress profile. The individual and family stress group showed worse adjustment. Effectiveness analyses revealed improvements in SB-PFT participants’ emotional intelligence, but not in anger and hostility. Furthermore, adolescents with low and family-related stress profiles showed enhancements in parent attachment. In conclusion, interventions involving adolescents with problematic behaviors must be tailored to the stressful life events experienced. Specific treatments should be used alongside SB-PFT, when adolescents are met with individual-related stress. Nevertheless, SB-PFT seemed to promote emotional intelligence and parent attachment, particularly in adolescents with problematic behaviors that experienced only family stressors.
Relationship between Problematic Internet Use, Sleep Problems, and Oral Health in Korean Adolescents: A National Survey
Authors: Do Kyung-Yi , Lee Kang-Sook
Published: August 2018

We examined the relationship between Problematic Internet Use (PIU), sleep (sleep satisfaction, sleep duration), and experience of oral disease symptoms in Korean adolescents by gender. This cross-sectional study utilized the 6th (2010) Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. Participants comprised 74,980 students from 400 middle schools and 400 high schools nationwide. Among these, 73,238 students from 799 schools (38,391 boys, 34,847 girls, aged 13–18 years) were included in the analysis (inclusion rate = 97.7%). Multiple logistic regression and analysis of moment structures (AMOS) analyses were performed to identify meaningful relationships between the three factors. The “high risk group” of problematic internet usage had increased experience of oral disease symptoms (boys: adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.92, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.63–2.28, girls: AOR = 1.98, 95% CI = 1.50–2.63) compared to the general group. Boys who used the Internet for “5–6 h” had a higher risk of oral disease symptoms compared to those who used it for “less than 1 h” (OR = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.01–1.53); however, this difference was not significant in Models II and III. For girls, the risk of 5–6 h of use (Model I: OR = 1.69, 95% CI = 1.40–2.04) was higher than that of the boys. In addition, the difference was significant in Models II and III for girl students who used the Internet for 5–6 h. In subgroup analysis, the high-risk group had a higher odds ratio for mild symptoms of bad breath to severe symptoms such as sore and bleeding gums. In addition, in the path analysis, PIU affected sleep and indirectly affected oral health. Direct and indirect causal relationships between the three factors were confirmed. Therefore, it is important to recognize that PIU can have a detrimental effect on mental, physical, and oral health.
The Potential Implications of Autonomous Vehicles in and around the Workplace
Authors: Pettigrew Simone , Fritschi Lin , Norman Richard
Published: August 2018

The advent of autonomous vehicles is forecast to bring enormous changes to the workplace as positions primarily involving driving become progressively redundant. Little is known about public awareness of these impending changes and the potential impacts on society and individuals. This study involved a national survey of Australians and interviews with key stakeholders across multiple countries to identify major potential issues associated with vehicle automation, including in and around the workplace. Most survey respondents had concerns relating to job losses in driving occupations, while almost half anticipated increased employment in technology-related areas. Three primary themes were evident in the data from the stakeholder interviews: (1) the inevitability of the universal use of AVs and hence the immediate need for labour market planning, (2) associated potential effects on occupations that are not primarily structured around driving, and (3) the possibility of increased worker safety and enhanced commuting opportunities.
Mining Facebook Data of People with Rare Diseases: A Content-Based and Temporal Analysis
Authors: Subirats Laia , Reguera Natalia , Bañón Antonio Miguel , Gómez-Zúñiga Beni , Minguillón Julià , Armayones Manuel
Published: August 2018

This research characterized how Facebook deals with rare diseases. This characterization included a content-based and temporal analysis, and its purpose was to help users interested in rare diseases to maximize the engagement of their posts and to help rare diseases organizations to align their priorities with the interests expressed in social networks. This research used Netvizz to download Facebook data, word clouds in R for text mining, a log-likelihood measure in R to compare texts and TextBlob Python library for sentiment analysis. The Facebook analysis shows that posts with photos and positive comments have the highest engagement. We also observed that words related to diseases, attention, disability and services have a lot of presence in the decalogue of priorities (which serves for all associations to work on the same objectives and provides the lines of action to be followed by political decision makers) and little on Facebook, and words of gratitude are more present on Facebook than in the decalogue. Finally, the temporal analysis shows that there is a high variation between the polarity average and the hour of the day.
A Systematic Review of Access to General Healthcare Services for People with Disabilities in Low and Middle Income Countries
Authors: Bright Tess , Kuper Hannah
Published: August 2018

Background: A systematic review was undertaken to explore access to general healthcare services for people with disabilities in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: Six electronic databases were searched in February 2017. Studies comparing access to general healthcare services by people with disabilities to those without disabilities from LMICs were included. Eligible measures of healthcare access included: utilisation, coverage, adherence, expenditure, and quality. Studies measuring disability using self-reported or clinical assessments were eligible. Title, abstract and full-text screening and data extraction was undertaken by the two authors. Results: Searches returned 13,048 studies, of which 50 studies were eligible. Studies were predominantly conducted in sub-Saharan Africa (30%), Latin America (24%), and East Asia/Pacific (12%). 74% of studies used cross-sectional designs and the remaining used case-control designs. There was evidence that utilisation of healthcare services was higher for people with disabilities, and healthcare expenditure was higher. There were less consistent differences between people with and without disabilities in other access measures. However, the wide variation in type and measurement of disability, and access outcomes, made comparisons across studies difficult. Conclusions: Developing common metrics for measuring disability and healthcare access will improve the availability of high quality, comparable data, so that healthcare access for people with disabilities can be monitored and improved.
Water Quality of Inflows to the Everglades National Park over Three Decades (1985–2014) Analyzed by Multivariate Statistical Methods
Authors: Wan Lei , Fan Xiaohui
Published: August 2018

The Everglades, a vast subtropical wetland, dominates the landscape of south Florida and is widely recognized as an ecosystem of great ecological importance. Data from seven inflow sites to the Everglades National Park (ENP) were analyzed over three decades (1985–2014) for temporal trends by the STL (integrated seasonal-trend decomposition using LOESS) method. A cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) were applied for the evaluation of spatial variation. The results indicate that the water quality change trend is closely associated with rainfall. Increasing rainfall results in increasing flow and thus, decreasing concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus. Based on 10 variables, the seven sampling stations were classified by CA into four distinct clusters: A, B, C, and D. The PCA analysis indicated that total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) are the main pollution factors, especially TN. The results suggest that non-point sources are the main pollution sources and best management practices (BMPs) effectively reduce organic nitrogen. However, TN and TP control is still the focus of future work in this area. Increasing the transfer water quantity can improve the water quality temporarily and planting submersed macrophytes can absorb nitrogen and phosphorus and increase the dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration in water, continuously improving the water quality.
The Role of Midkine in Arteriogenesis, Involving Mechanosensing, Endothelial Cell Proliferation, and Vasodilation
Authors: Weckbach Ludwig , Preissner Klaus , Deindl Elisabeth
Published: August 2018

Mechanical forces in blood circulation such as shear stress play a predominant role in many physiological and pathophysiological processes related to vascular responses or vessel remodeling. Arteriogenesis, defined as the growth of pre-existing arterioles into functional collateral arteries compensating for stenosed or occluded arteries, is such a process. Midkine, a pleiotropic protein and growth factor, has originally been identified to orchestrate embryonic development. In the adult organism its expression is restricted to distinct tissues (including tumors), whereby midkine is strongly expressed in inflamed tissue and has been shown to promote inflammation. Recent investigations conferred midkine an important function in vascular remodeling and growth. In this review, we introduce the midkine gene and protein along with its cognate receptors, and highlight its role in inflammation and the vascular system with special emphasis on arteriogenesis, particularly focusing on shear stress-mediated vascular cell proliferation and vasodilatation.