bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recursive filtering adaptive fault‐tolerant tracking control for uncertain switched multivariable nonlinear systems
Authors: Ma Tong
Published: June 2020

This article synthesizes a recursive filtering adaptive fault‐tolerant tracking control method for uncertain switched multivariable nonlinear systems. The multivariable nonlinear systems under consideration have both matched and mismatched uncertainties, which satisfy the semiglobal Lipschitz condition. A piecewise constant adaptive law generates adaptive parameters by solving the error dynamics with the neglection of unknowns, and the recursive least squares is employed to minimize the residual error by categorizing the total uncertainty estimates into matched and mismatched components. A filtering control law is designed to compensate the actuator faults and nonlinear uncertainties such that a good tracking performance is delivered with guaranteed robustness. The matched component is canceled directly by adopting their opposite in the control signal, whereas a dynamic inversion of the system is performed to eliminate the effect of the mismatched component on the output. By exploiting the average dwell time principle, the error bounds are derived for the states and control inputs compared with the virtual reference system which defines the best performance that can be achieved by the closed‐loop system. Both numerical and practical examples are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed switching recursive filtering adaptive fault‐tolerant tracking control architecture, comparisons with model reference adaptive control are also carried out.
Decentralized filtering adaptive constrained tracking control for interconnected nonlinear systems
Authors: Ma Tong
Published: June 2020

This paper presents a novel decentralized filtering adaptive constrained tracking control framework for uncertain interconnected nonlinear systems. Each subsystem has its own decentralized controller based on the established decentralized state predictor. For each subsystem, a piecewise constant adaptive law will generate total uncertainty estimates by solving the error dynamics between the host system and decentralized state predictor with the neglection of unknowns, whereas a decentralized filtering control law is designed to compensate both local and mismatched uncertainties from other subsystems, as well as achieve the local objective tracking of the host system. The achievement of global objective depends on the achievement of local objective for each subsystem. In the control scheme, the nonlinear uncertainties are compensated for within the bandwidth of low‐pass filters, while the trade‐off between tracking and constraints violation avoidance is formulated as a numerical constrained optimization problem which is solved periodically. Priority is given to constraints violation avoidance at the cost of deteriorated tracking performance. The uniform performance bounds are derived for the system states and control inputs as compared to the corresponding signals of a bounded closed‐loop reference system, which assumes partial cancelation of uncertainties within the bandwidth of the control signal. Compared with model predictive control (MPC) and unconstrained controller, the proposed control architecture is capable of solving the tracking control problems for interconnected nonlinear systems subject to constraints and uncertainties.
Objective identification of local spatial structure for material characterization
Authors: Yu Youjiao , Gorman Brian P. , Hering Amanda S.
Published: June 2020

Objective tools for characterizing materials at the atomic level are often difficult to develop because of the size or structure of the data. Atom probe tomography (APT) is a measurement tool that maps the location and type of atoms in materials in three‐dimensions (3D), producing data sets with potentially billions of observations. In this work, we present a set of spatial statistics methods developed to test the null hypotheses of no global spatial association; no local spatial association; and no local spatial cross‐correlation and apply these for the first time to APT data. The empirical and modeled covariogram and Moran's I can be used to study the global structure of a spatially referenced atomic element. The local indicator of spatial association (LISA) identifies volumes where high levels of values (hot spots) or low levels of values (cold spots) of elemental clustering exist. The local indicator of spatial cross‐correlation (LISC) reports where simultaneously high levels or low levels of two atomic elements occur. For each test statistic at each location, an associatedp‐value is produced that can be used to weigh the evidence in favor of spatial clustering. The size of APT data sets presents some challenges, so the effect of weight functions and neighborhood selection on the computation and significance of the test statistics are discussed, and the issue of multiple statistical testing is also considered. These methods are illustrated using an APT data set with atomic percentages reported in voxels binned to 1 nm3.
Ultrathin and Small‐Size Graphene Oxide as an Electron Mediator for Perovskite‐Based Z‐Scheme System to Significantly Enhance Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction
Authors: Mu Yan‐Fei , Zhang Wen , Dong Guang‐Xing , Su Ke , Zhang Min , Lu Tong‐Bu
Published: June 2020

The judicious design of efficient electron mediators to accelerate the interfacial charge transfer in a Z‐scheme system is one of the viable strategies to improve the performance of photocatalysts for artificial photosynthesis. Herein, ultrathin and small‐size graphene oxide (USGO) nanosheets are constructed and employed as the electron mediator to elaborately exploit an efficient CsPbBr3‐based all‐solid‐state Z‐scheme system in combination with α‐Fe2O3 for visible‐light‐driven CO2 reduction with water as the electron source. CsPbBr3 and α‐Fe2O3 can be closely anchored on USGO nanosheets, owing to the existence of interfacial strong chemical bonding behaviors, which can significantly accelerate the photogenerated carrier transfer between CsPbBr3 and α‐Fe2O3. The resultant improved charge separation efficiency endows the Z‐scheme system exhibiting a record‐high electron consumption rate of 147.6 µmol g−1 h−1 for photocatalytic CO2‐to‐CO conversion concomitant with stoichiometric O2 from water oxidation, which is over 19 and 12 times higher than that of pristine CsPbBr3 nanocrystals and the mixture of CsPbBr3 and α‐Fe2O3, respectively. This work provides a novel and effective strategy for improving the catalytic activity of halide‐perovskite‐based photocatalysts, promoting their practical applications in the field of artificial photosynthesis.
Model based IoT security framework using multiclass adaptive boosting with SMOTE
Authors: Dash Pandit Byomakesha , Nayak Janmenjoy , Naik Bighnaraj , Oram Etuari , Islam SK Hafizul
Published: June 2020

Security and threats are growing immensely due to the higher usage of internet of things applications in all aspects. Due to imbalanced nature of IoT security data, the designing of model‐based anomaly detection in IoT network poses a challenge for machine learning model as most of the machine learning model assumes the equal number of samples for each class. Approximately, 2.79% of IoT network profiles are of anomaly types which impose severe imbalance where there are three samples in the anomaly types for hundreds of samples in the majority normal class. This results in poor predictive performance for identification of anomaly type, which is essentially a problem because the anomaly type is more sensitive than the normal activity type. This work proposes a multiclass adaptive boosting ensemble learning‐based model with the synthetic minority oversampling technique for prediction of an anomaly in IoT network. The proposed approaches are simulated with DS2OS data and the performance is compared with other machine learning approaches. The evaluation metrics such as sensitivity, F1‐score, and receiver operating characteristic‐AUC imply the efficiency of the proposed approach in handling the imbalanced nature of the data and found efficient to identify both anomaly types and normal activity.
Numerical conformal mapping method vs. geometrical separation attitude: Combustion motor chamber internal flow simulation
Authors: Nagler Jacob
Published: June 2020

This paper describes the numerical solution of flow analysis in a two‐dimensional combustion chamber with two parallel inlets aided for propellants entrance, addressing a number of different problems that depend on each other: the flow affected by a discrete point in‐cell vortex, the velocity affected by the flow regime in the cell, and the combustion problem affected by the oxygen and fuel entries from the cell walls. The shape geometry of the combustion chamber is made from a square section connected with a semi‐circular one. The mathematical model of the problem consists of an inhomogeneous stream function Laplace equation coupled to partial differential mass conservation equation subjected to a wall non‐intrusion condition and known mass values in the wall openings. Algebraic conformal mapping transformation has been used for modeling the complex cell geometry. The solution was obtained by using the iterative Gauss–Seidel method for both the current function and the mass calculation. Comparison with another modeling method for calibration purpose was performed; considering each geometrical component separately whereas continuous conditions were applied between the two sections. The grid types are: (1) a uniform grid in Cartesian coordinates in the square part, and (2) a uniform circular grid in polar coordinates. It was found that different initial guesses have not effect on the final solution, but an informed initial guess affects the solution time convergence iterations number to solve the problem. Finally, the effect of the mixing vortex on the location of the flame front in the chamber was investigated.
GenTag: a package to improve animal color tagging protocol
Authors: Biagolini Carlos , Macedo Regina H.
Published: June 2020

The individual identification of animals by means of tagging is a common methodological approach in ornithology. However, several studies suggest that specific colors may affect animal behavior and disrupt sexual selection processes. Thus, methods to choose color tagging combinations should be carefully evaluated. However, reporting of this information is usually neglected. Here, we introduce the GenTag, an R package developed to support biologists in creating color tag sequence combinations using a random process. First, a single-color tag sequence is created from an algorithm selected by the user, followed by verification of the combination. We provide three methods to produce color tag sequences. GenTag provides accessible and simple methods to generate color tag sequences. The use of a random process to define the color tags to be applied to each animal is the best way to deal with the influence of tag color upon behavior and life history parameters.
Ground nesting birds in roadside borders of the Argentine Pampas: habitat use and predation risk of artificial nests
Authors: Depalma Daniela María , Mermoz Myriam Emilia
Published: June 2020

Habitat loss and fragmentation have led to grassland bird declines, with ground nesters particularly vulnerable. Roadsides could provide habitat, although their suitability depends on several roadside and field characteristics. Vegetation structure determines foraging and nesting site availability. In addition, road delimits sharp edges where the activity of nest predators is usually higher, whereas herbaceous vegetation determines ground nest concealment. Trees could provide lookouts to predators, and modified habitat and woodlands in surrounding fields could offer additional resources to predators. Our objective was to assess habitat suitability for ground nester birds in roadsides belonging to one modified grassland of the Argentine Pampas. We surveyed birds (90 plots) and monitored artificial nests (60 plots) in different road types: unpaved, paved of one-lane per side, and paved of two-lanes per side. Within each road type, we evaluated the relationship that ground nesters abundance had with vegetation structure of roadsides and surrounding fields. In addition, we related predation of artificial nests with the proximity to the road, roadside vegetation, and modified land and woodlands of surrounding fields. We made 2832 records of 84 species using roadsides, including 1083 records of 13 ground nesting species. Abundance of ground nesters increased with tall grass cover of roadsides and decreased with the number of native trees within roadsides. Roughly half (31/60) of the artificial nests were predated and 82.6% of the identified egg-marks were of mammal teeth. Nest predation decreased with nest proximity to the road. Our results emphasize the importance of tall grass cover of roadsides for the conservation of ground nesting species, and the necessity of monitoring natural nests in order to clarify the effect of trees, proximity to the road, and other environmental variables on nest success.
„Resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta“ (REBOA)
Authors: Wortmann M. , Engelhart M. , Elias K. , Popp E. , Zerwes S. , Hyhlik-Dürr Alexander
Published: June 2020

Hintergrund

„Resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta“ (REBOA) stellt ein endovaskuläres Verfahren dar, bei dem ein Blockballon in die Aorta eingeführt wird, um eine distal des Ballons gelegene Blutung zu verringern und gleichzeitig die kardiale und zerebrale Oxygenierung zu verbessern.

Ziel der Arbeit

Vorstellung der REBOA-Technik, der möglichen Indikationen, der benötigen Materialien und der möglichen Komplikationen des Verfahrens.

Material und Methoden

Nichtsystematischer Übersichtsartikel über die aktuelle Literatur.

Ergebnisse

REBOA stellt gerade bei traumatisch bedingten Blutungen und rupturierten Aortenaneurysmen ein mögliches additives Verfahren zur hämodynamischen Stabilisierung dar. Die Komplikationsrate des Verfahrens liegt bei ungefähr 5 %, wobei Zugangskomplikationen im Vordergrund stehen, jedoch auch letale Komplikationen möglich sind.

Diskussion

Eine aortale Ballonblockade wird bei der Versorgung rupturierter Aortenaneurysmen standardmäßig eingesetzt. Es gibt wachsende Evidenz, dass REBOA bei der Versorgung polytraumatisierter Patienten mit einem hämorrhagischen Schock aufgrund einer abdominellen oder viszeralen Blutung eine vergleichsweise minimal-invasive Alternative zur offen chirurgischen Aortenklemmung mittels Thorakotomie darstellt. Mit der Entwicklung neuer Ballonkatheter, die ohne Führungsdraht und mit geringeren Schleusendurchmessern auskommen, wird auch ein Einsatz bei anderen Krankheitsbildern wie postoperativen abdominellen Nachblutungen, gynäkologischen Blutungen oder als additives Verfahren bei der kardiopulmonalen Reanimation diskutiert.
Management von Patienten mit Tracheostoma während der COVID-19-Pandemie: Literaturüberblick und Demonstration
Authors: Kempfle J. S. , Löwenheim H. , Huebner M. J. , Iro H. , Mueller S. K.
Published: June 2020

Hintergrund

Seit dem Auftreten des neuen Coronavirus im Dezember 2019 in China haben viele Länder Schwierigkeiten, die ansteigende Zahl der Infektionen, auch innerhalb des medizinischen Personals, zu kontrollieren. Es hat sich mittlerweile deutlich gezeigt, dass das neue SARS-CoV-2-Virus insbesondere über Aerosole und Tröpfchen der oberen Atemwege übertragen wird und die Infektionsgefahr bei oberen Atemwegsprozeduren deutlich erhöht ist. Ein Anteil der schwererkrankten beatmungspflichtigen Patienten benötigt ab einem gewissen Zeitpunkt eine Tracheotomie zur langfristigen Beatmung und einfacheren Entwöhnung von der Beatmungsmaschine. Diese Patienten erfordern jedoch im Anschluss eine nicht unerhebliche Betreuung durch medizinisches Pflegepersonal, und es ist bislang unklar, inwieweit die Tracheostomapflege ein Risiko für sekundäre Infektionen darstellt.

Fragestellung

Evaluierung der Gefahr der Tröpfchenbildung bei Trachealkanülenwechsel, Überblick zum Kanülenwechsel bei COVID-19-Patienten.

Material und Methoden

Literaturrecherche, quantitative und qualitative Analyse der Tröpfchenfreisetzung bei Kanülenwechsel an n = 8 Patienten, Übersicht und Checkliste für Kanülenwechsel.

Ergebnisse

Diese Studie demonstriert, dass beim Kanülenwechsel, insbesondere bei Einführen der neuen Kanüle, eine nicht unbeträchtliche Menge an Tröpfchen entstehen kann. Eine Aerosolbildung von Partikeln kleiner als 5 µm wurde nicht untersucht.

Schlussfolgerung

Unsere Ergebnisse im Zusammenhang mit der aktuellen Literatur verdeutlichen, dass die Pflege nach Tracheotomie eine hoch risikoreiche Prozedur darstellt und nur von einer kleinen Gruppe von geschultem und gut geschütztem Personal durchgeführt werden sollte.
Exotic $$G_2$$-manifolds
Authors: Crowley Diarmuid , Nordström Johannes
Published: June 2020

We exhibit the first examples of closed 7-dimensional Riemannian manifolds with holonomy$$G_2$$G2that are homeomorphic but not diffeomorphic. These are also the first examples of closed Ricci-flat manifolds that are homeomorphic but not diffeomorphic. The examples are generated by applying the twisted connected sum construction to Fano 3-folds of Picard rank 1 and 2. The smooth structures are distinguished by the generalised Eells–Kuiper invariant introduced by the authors in a previous paper.
Hepatotoxicity in patients with solid tumors treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors alone, PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors plus chemotherapy, or chemotherapy alone: systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Guo Xiaodi , Li Wendong , Hu Jiexuan , Zhu Emily C. , Su Qiang
Published: June 2020

Background

This meta-analysis examined the risk of hepatotoxicity in patients with solid tumors who received a PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor alone, a PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor plus chemotherapy, or chemotherapy alone.

Methods

Potentially eligible studies were identified by searches of Embase and PubMed. All included studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that examined patients with solid tumors who received a PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor and/or chemotherapy.

Results

We included 20 clinical trials (11,634 patients). Thirteen trials compared PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor monotherapy with chemotherapy. These two groups had similar risk for elevated markers of hepatotoxicity (based on analysis of all marker grades and high marker grades), although the PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor group had an elevated relative risk (RR) of elevated aspartate aminotransferase (AST; RR = 2.13, 95% CI = 1.04 to 4.36, P = 0.04) when considering high grades alone; however, this disparity was not significant for comparisons of the pembrolizumab and nivolumab subgroups with the chemotherapy group. Compared with chemotherapy, PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors increased the risk of all-grade hepatitis (RR = 5.85, 95% CI = 1.85 to 18.46, P < 0.01), and high-grade hepatitis (RR = 5.66, 95% CI = 1.58 to 20.27, P < 0.01). Seven other studies compared PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor plus chemotherapy with chemotherapy alone. The combined treatment led to a higher risk for all-grade hepatitis (RR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.29 to 3.55, P < 0.01) and high-grade hepatitis (RR = 5.24, 95%CI = 1.89 to 14.52, P < 0.01), but these groups had similar risk for all-grade and high-grade elevated markers of hepatotoxicity.

Conclusions

Relative to chemotherapy alone, PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors with or without chemotherapy increased the risk of all-grade and high-grade hepatitis, but generally did not increase the risk of elevated blood markers of hepatotoxicity.
Antifungal prophylaxis and novel drugs in acute myeloid leukemia: the midostaurin and posaconazole dilemma
Authors: Stemler Jannik , Koehler Philipp , Maurer Christian , Müller Carsten , Cornely Oliver A.
Published: June 2020

With the advent of new targeted drugs in hematology and oncology patient prognosis is improved. Combination with antifungal prophylaxis challenges clinicians due to pharmacological profiles prone to drug–drug interactions (DDI). Midostaurin is a novel agent for FLT3-TKD/-ITDmut-acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and metabolized via cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4). Posaconazole is a standard of care antifungal agent used for prophylaxis during induction treatment of AML and a strong CYP3A4 inhibitor. Concomitant administration of both drugs leads to elevated midostaurin exposure. Both drugs improve overall survival at low numbers needed to treat. The impact of CYP3A4-related DDI remains to be determined. Severe adverse events have been observed; however, it remains unclear if they can be directly linked to DDI. The lack of prospective clinical studies assessing incidence of invasive fungal infections and clinical impact of DDI contributes to neglecting live-saving antifungal prophylaxis. Management strategies to combine both drugs have been proposed, but evidence on which approach to use is scarce. In this review, we discuss several approaches in the specific clinical setting of concomitant administration of midostaurin and posaconazole and give examples from everyday clinical practice. Therapeutic drug monitoring will become increasingly important to individualize and personalize antineoplastic concomitant and antifungal treatment in the context of DDI. Pharmaceutical companies addressing the issue in clinical trials may take a pioneer role in this field. Other recently developed and approved drugs for the treatment of AML likely inhere potential of DDI marking a foreseeable issue in future treatment of this life-threatening disease.
Predictability of the early winter Arctic oscillation from autumn Eurasian snowcover in subseasonal forecast models
Authors: Garfinkel Chaim I. , Schwartz Chen , White Ian P. , Rao Jian
Published: June 2020

The response of the early winter Northern Hemisphere stratospheric polar vortex and tropospheric Arctic Oscillation to anomalous autumn snow cover in Eurasia is evaluated in four operational subseasonal forecasting models. Of these four models, the two with finer stratospheric resolution simulate a weakened vortex for hindcasts initialized with more extensive snow as compared to those with less extensive snow, consistent with the observed effect, though the modeled effect is significantly weaker than that observed. The other two models fail to capture the local Western Eurasian ridge in response to enhanced snow, and hence their failure to simulate a stratospheric response may be due to biases in representing surface–atmosphere coupling rather than their coarser stratospheric resolution per se. There is no evidence of a tropospheric Arctic Oscillation response in early winter in any of these models, which may be related to the weakness of the stratospheric response or (in one model) to too-weak coupling from the stratosphere down to the surface. Overall, the possible contribution of autumn snowcover over Eurasia to improved predictability of the winter Arctic Oscillation in subseasonal forecast models has not yet been realized even in a probabilistic sense.
Frequency of cataract surgery and its impact on visual function—results from the German Gutenberg Health Study
Authors: Schuster Alexander K. , Nickels S. , Pfeiffer N. , Schmidtmann I. , Wild P. S. , Münzel T. , Beutel M. E. , Lackner K. J. , Vossmerbaeumer U.
Published: June 2020

Purpose

To determine the frequency of cataract surgery in Germany and to evaluate its impact on visual function in an adult population.

Methods

The population-based Gutenberg Health Study was conducted in Germany with its baseline examination between 2007 and 2012 and a 5-year follow-up examiantion. An ophthalmological examination including slit-lamp examination, ocular biometry, and Scheimpflug imaging was carried out. Overall and age-specific frequencies of unilateral and bilateral cataract surgery within 5 years were computed including the 95% confidential intervals [95%-CI]. Association analyses were conducted to determine social and ocular associated factors using multivariable logistic regression analysis. Vision-related quality of life was assessed using NEI VFQ-25.

Results

A total of 10,544 people aged 35 to 74 years were bilateral phakic at baseline and had information on lens status at the 5-year examination. Of these, 168 had unilateral cataract surgery (1.6% [1.4–1.9%]), and 448 had bilateral cataract surgery (4.2% [3.9–4.7%]) in the following 5 years. The frequency of cataract surgery increased with age: 45–54-year-old subjects had twice as often cataract surgery (in at least on eye: OR = 2.32) than at age 35–44 years. The frequency further strongly increases with age (55–64 years: OR = 10.5; 65–74 years: OR = 43.8, p < 0.001). Subjects with glaucoma were more likely to have cataract surgery (OR = 2.52, p < 0.001). Visual function increased when undergoing bilateral cataract surgery.

Conclusions

The frequency of cataract surgery is low at younger ages and increases up to 26% at age 70–74 years. Persons with glaucoma are more likely to undergo cataract surgery at population-based level in Germany.
Prospective observational data informs understanding and future management of Lynch syndrome: insights from the Prospective Lynch Syndrome Database (PLSD)
Authors: Seppälä Toni T. , Dominguez-Valentin Mev , Sampson Julian R. , Møller Pål
Published: June 2020

The Prospective Lynch Syndrome Database (PLSD) has been developed as an international, multicentre, prospective, observational study that aims to provide age and organ-specific cancer risks according to gene and gender, estimates of survival after cancer and information on the effects of interventions. Recent reports from PLSD provided improved estimates of cancer risks and survival and showed that different time intervals between surveillance colonoscopies did not affect the incidence, stage or prognosis of colorectal cancer. The PLSD reports suggest that current management guidelines for Lynch syndrome should be revised in light of the different gene and gender-specific cancer risks and the good prognosis for the most commonly associated cancers.

In this review, we describe the discrepancies between the current management guidelines for Lynch Syndrome and the most recent prospective observational studies, indicating the areas of further research.
Optical Properties of Highly Conductive SrMoO3 Oxide Thin Films in the THz Band and Beyond
Authors: Regensburger Stefan , Mohammadi Mahdad , Khawaja Arslan A. , Radetinac Aldin , Komissinskiy Philipp , Alff Lambert , Preu Sascha
Published: June 2020

Strontium molybdate (SrMoO3) thin films are grown epitaxially by pulsed laser deposition onto gadolinium scandate (GdScO3) substrates and characterized in the terahertz (THz) and visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum. X-ray diffraction measurements prove a high crystallinity and phase-pure growth of the thin films. The high-quality SrMoO3 thin films feature a room temperature DC conductivity of around $3{\frac {1}{\mu {\Omega } m}}$
3

1

μ
Ω
m

. SrMoO3 is characterized in the THz frequency range by time domain spectroscopy. The resulting AC conductivity is in excellent agreement with the DC value. A Lorentz-Drude oscillator approach models the THz and visible conductivity of SrMoO3 very well. We compare the results of the SrMoO3 thin films to a standard, sputtered gold film, with a resulting THz conductivity of $8{\frac {1}{\mu {\Omega } m}}$
8

1

μ
Ω
m

. The comparison demonstrates that oxide thin film–based devices can play an important role in future THz technology.
Parsing written language with non-standard grammar
Authors: Hallberg Andreas , Niehorster Diederick C.
Published: June 2020

Morphologically marked case is in Arabic a feature exclusive to the variety of Standard Arabic, with no parallel in the spoken varieties, and it is orthographically marked only on some word classes in specific grammatical situations. In this study we test the hypothesis that readers of Arabic do not parse sentences for case and that orthographically marked case can therefore be removed with no effect on reading. Twenty-nine participants read sentences in which one of the two most frequent types of orthographically marked case was either retained or omitted, while their eye-movements were monitored. The removal of case marking from subjects in the sound masculine plural declension (changing the suffix

‑ūn ـون to ‑īn ـين) had no negative effect on gaze duration, regressions out, or go-past time. The removal of case marking form direct objects in the triptote declension (omitting the suffix -an ـاً) did however resulted in an increase in these measures. These results indicate that only some forms of case marking are required in the grammar used by readers for parsing written text.
A systematic literature review of crowdfunding and sustainability: highlighting what really matters
Authors: Böckel Alexa , Hörisch Jacob , Tenner Isabell
Published: June 2020

This article systematically reviews literature at the intersection of crowdfunding and sustainability. It analyzes the extent to which the current research foci in crowdfunding and sustainability contribute to unleashing the potential of crowdfunding for sustainable development. The findings highlight that the research field has a relatively short history but already shows signs of growing maturity. With regard to the research foci, the results reveal misbalances between the relevance ascribed to various aspects in research and in practice. For example, the research primarily deals with the types of crowdfunding that make up the smallest shares of the crowdfunding volume. Likewise, a research gap related to the post-funding phase as well as to environmental oriented projects is identified. On this basis, it is recommended to focus future research on the impact of crowdfunding projects on staying within the planetary boundaries and on crowdfunding projects dealing with environmental issues or integrating the social and environmental dimension of sustainability. Additionally, the potential of crowdfunding as a legitimizing function for sustainable ventures needs to be researched.
Pre-hospital point-of-care troponin measurement: a clinical example of its additional value
Authors: Aarts G. W. A. , van der Wulp K. , Camaro C.
Published: June 2020

In the majority of patients with chest pain, an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) can be ruled out. However, early recognition of an ACS is required in order to start treatment as soon as possible and reduce risks associated with myocardial ischaemia. Because of the lack of pre-hospital protocols to rule out an ACS, patients with a suspected ACS are transported to the emergency department, where the HEART score can be used to estimate the risk of major adverse cardiac events (MACE). Patients with a low HEART score have a low risk of MACE. A point-of-care (POC) troponin measurement enables ambulance paramedics to calculate the HEART score in the pre-hospital setting. POC troponin measurement and HEART score assessment have several potential advantages, including early recognition of an ACS and identification of high-risk patients before hospital arrival. Moreover, pre-hospital rule-out of an ACS could prevent unnecessary emergency department visits. The safety and cost-effectiveness of referring low-risk patients with a normal POC troponin value to the general practitioner are currently being investigated in the ARTICA randomised trial. This point-of-view article demonstrates one of the potential advantages of early detection of an ACS.
Renin-angiotensin system inhibition in COVID-19 patients
Authors: de Vries A. A. F.
Published: June 2020

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin II type‑1 receptor blockers (ARBs) are among the most widely prescribed drugs for the treatment of arterial hypertension, heart failure and chronic kidney disease. A number of studies, mainly in animals and not involving the lungs, have indicated that these drugs can increase expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). ACE2 is the cell entry receptor of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that is currently battering the globe. This has led to the hypothesis that use of ACEIs and ARBs may increase the risk of developing severe COVID-19. In this point of view paper, possible scenarios regarding the impact of ACEI/ARB pharmacotherapy on COVID-19 are discussed in relation to the currently available evidence. Although further research on the influence of blood-pressure-lowering drugs, including those not targeting the renin-angiotensin system, is warranted, there are presently no compelling clinical data showing that ACEIs and ARBs increase the likelihood of contracting COVID-19 or worsen the outcome of SARS-CoV‑2 infections. Thus, unless contraindicated, use of ACEIs/ARBs in COVID-19 patients should be continued in line with the recent recommendations of medical societies.
Cladonia subturgida (Cladoniaceae, Lecanoromycetes), an overlooked, but common species in the Mediterranean region
Authors: Pino-Bodas Raquel , Araujo Elena , Gutiérrez-Larruga Blanca , Burgaz Ana Rosa
Published: June 2020

Cladonia subturgidais a Mediterranean species that has been overlooked. Apparently it was restricted to the Iberian Peninsula and Canary Islands. However, during the study of the genusCladoniain the Mediterranean region, new populations from 44 localities were found in: south France, Sardinia, south Italian peninsula, Crete and continental Greece. Distribution models based on MaxEnt, GLM, GAM and MARS algorithms were used to estimate the potential distribution ofC. subturgida.Sicily, Corsica and the north of Africa were regions with suitable climatic conditions forC. subturgidawhere it has not been reported yet. The climatic variables with greatest relative influence in theC. subturgidadistribution were the Precipitation of Warmest Quarter and the Annual Precipitation. Additionally, the ITS rDNA region was used to study the genetic variation of this species across its distribution area. Eleven haplotypes were found, one of them widely distributed through its geographical range. AMOVA analyses indicated lack of geographical structure.
The Mostela: an adjusted camera trapping device as a promising non-invasive tool to study and monitor small mustelids
Authors: Mos Jeroen , Hofmeester Tim Ragnvald
Published: June 2020

In spite of their potential important role in shaping small mammal population dynamics, weasel (Mustela nivalis) and stoat (Mustela erminea) are understudied due to the difficulty of detecting these species. Furthermore, their conservation status in many countries is unknown due to lack of monitoring techniques. There is thus an important need for a method to detect these small mustelids. In this study, we tested the efficiency of a recently developed camera trapping device, the Mostela, as a new technique to detect mustelids in a study area near Dieren, the Netherlands. We placed Mostelas in linear landscape features, and other microhabitats thought to be frequently visited by weasels, from March to October 2017 and February to October 2018. We tested for yearly and monthly differences in site use and detectability, as well as the effect of entrance tube size, using an occupancy modelling framework. We found large seasonal differences in site use and detectability of weasels with the highest site use in June to October and highest detection probability in August and September. Detection probability was approximately two times higher for Mostelas with a 10-cm entrance tube compared with 8-cm. Furthermore, we were able to estimate activity patterns based on the time of detection, identify the sex in most detections (69.5%), and distinguish several individuals. Concluding, the Mostela seems promising as a non-invasive monitoring tool to study the occurrence and ecology of small mustelids. Further development of individual recognition from images would enable using the Mostela for density estimates applying capture-recapture models.
Effect of the operating conditions on the anaerobic digestion of wheatgrass for chemicals and energy production
Authors: Silva Igor M. O. , Dionisi Davide
Published: June 2020

The aim of this study was to investigate anaerobic digestion of wheatgrass in the absence of hydrolytic pre-treatments. The effect of solids retention time (SRT) (1–64 days), inoculum acclimation (0–80 days acclimation), temperature (40–70 °C) and buffer capacity (20–200 mM phosphate buffer) on conversion of the feedstock, yield and composition of liquid-phase products (ethanol and short-chain organic acids, SCOAs) and COD removal was investigated in semi-continuous (intermittent feed) completely mixed reactors. SRT had the most important effect on process performance. Biodegradation of the feedstock was favoured at high SRT, with 61% removal of volatile suspended solids and 84% removal of total carbohydrates at SRT 64 days. However, low yield of liquid-phase products was observed at high SRT because of strong methanogenic activity (57% removal of the total COD). The highest yield of liquid-phase products was 20% (COD basis) at SRT 8 days. Although high biodegradation of the feedstock was observed after long-term batch acclimation (30 and 80 days), once the digestion conditions were switched to semi-continuous at short SRT (2 days), the biodegradation of the feedstock decreased considerably. The best process performance was observed at 40 °C.
Concurrent service access and management framework for user-centric future internet of things in smart cities
Authors: Gomathi P. , Baskar S. , Shakeel P. Mohamed
Published: June 2020

Future Internet of Things (FIoT) is a service concentric distributed architecture that is used by the smart city users for information sharing and access. The design of FIoT focuses in achieving reliable service and response to the growing user demands through different interoperability features. In this manuscript, concurrent service access and management framework is introduced to improve the swiftness in user concentric request processing. Based on the availability of the services and the density of the users, the concurrency in information access is provided to the users in a reliable manner. The framework incorporates convolution neural learning process in linear and differential manner for improving the access and service usage rates of the requesting users. The access sessions are differentiated for the accessible and offloaded requests to the available service providers based on the learning instances. The proposed framework is assessed using the metrics access rate, service usage rate, access delay, time lag, and failure ratio.
The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic and global value chains
Authors: Strange Roger
Published: June 2020

This paper considers the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on firm strategies and, in particular, the configuration of firms’ global value chains (GVCs) once the pandemic has been brought under control. The merits of alternative location strategies (international diversification vs reshoring) are compared, as are the merits of different governance arrangements (internalization vs externalization) for GVC activities. The possibility of fire-sale foreign direct investment is raised, and the wider geopolitical context is emphasized. The widespread human tragedy is noted, as is the dilemma facing national governments around the world in balancing lives and livelihoods.
NiCo2O4 Nano-/Microstructures as High-Performance Biosensors: A Review
Authors: Kumar Rajesh
Published: June 2020

Non-enzymatic biosensors based on mixed transition metal oxides are deemed as the most promising devices due to their high sensitivity, selectivity, wide concentration range, low detection limits, and excellent recyclability. Spinel NiCo2O4 mixed oxides have drawn considerable attention recently due to their outstanding advantages including large specific surface area, high permeability, short electron, and ion diffusion pathways. Because of the rapid development of non-enzyme biosensors, the current state of methods for synthesis of pure and composite/hybrid NiCo2O4 materials and their subsequent electrochemical biosensing applications are systematically and comprehensively reviewed herein. Comparative analysis reveals better electrochemical sensing of bioanalytes by one-dimensional and two-dimensional NiCo2O4 nano-/microstructures than other morphologies. Better biosensing efficiency of NiCo2O4 as compared to corresponding individual metal oxides, viz. NiO and Co3O4, is attributed to the close intrinsic-state redox couples of Ni3+/Ni2+ (0.58 V/0.49 V) and Co3+/Co2+ (0.53 V/0.51 V). Biosensing performance of NiCo2O4 is also significantly improved by making the composites of NiCo2O4 with conducting carbonaceous materials like graphene, reduced graphene oxide, carbon nanotubes (single and multi-walled), carbon nanofibers; conducting polymers like polypyrrole (PPy), polyaniline (PANI); metal oxides NiO, Co3O4, SnO2, MnO2; and metals like Au, Pd, etc. Various factors affecting the morphologies and biosensing parameters of the nano-/micro-structured NiCo2O4 are also highlighted. Finally, some drawbacks and future perspectives related to this promising field are outlined.
The Role of Linguistic Impression Management: The Case of Hungarian Courtroom Discourses
Authors: Varga Marianna
Published: June 2020

This paper aims to present various linguistic strategies of impression management used by Hungarian judges, defendants and witnesses, taking into consideration the characteristics of Hungarian culture, language and legal system. In courtroom proceedings the way the participants construct an impression depends greatly on their institutional roles. Hungarian law belongs to the family of continental systems and the judge has an active role in the questioning. In contrary to the expansively investigated Anglo-American cross-examination where witnesses are questioned by the opposing parties, in Hungarian courtroom proceedings the judge is the first to ask questions from the witnesses and the defendants in an unbiased way. The judges are able to motivate the witnesses to cooperate with them by defending their positive impression construction. In addition, the witnesses can be placed in a more advantageous position as a result of an impression management strategy applied by the judges. The research is based on a corpus collected by the author. It consists of ten Hungarian trials recorded using a voice recorder. Based on the corpus, five types of linguistic impression management strategies were investigated: raising or conveying interest, emotional identification with another’s assertion or attitude, highlighting socially approved values, self-superiority and protection, as well as repair work. This research aims to demonstrate the key roles of linguistic impression management strategies in Hungarian courtroom questioning where the judge questions the participants unbiasedly.
Face markings in Northern chamois: cues of dominance?
Authors: Corlatti Luca , Sivieri Stefano
Published: June 2020

Black and white face markings in Artiodactyls are thought to be broadly associated with intraspecific communication. Evidence-based studies on the fine-scale mechanisms of signaling, however, are scant. The occurrence of black and white face markings is one of the most distinctive features of the Northern chamoisRupicapra rupicapra. Although their function is unknown, they might possibly signal fighting abilities: if so, the intensity of face color contrast should positively correlate with traits involved in aggressive contests, i.e. body mass and horn size. We collected data on face marking ‘blackness’ as a proxy of color contrast, dressed body mass and horn length on 103 chamois of either sex harvested during the hunting season of 2019 in the central Italian Alps. To investigate the relationship between color contrast and sex-specific body mass and horn length, we fitted an ordinal multilevel regression model in a Bayesian framework. Contrast score positively associated with increasing body mass in both sexes, but this relationship was much stronger in females than in males. Contrast score positively related with horn length in males but not in females. Our results offer some first insights into the potential correlates of chamois facial mask, suggesting that face markings might provide age-specific cues of mass-based dominance in females, while their role in males appears more uncertain. Behavioral studies on marked or hunted individuals in different environmental settings are necessary to confirm these findings, and provide further understandings of face color patterns in chamois.
Smale endomorphisms over graph-directed Markov systems
Authors: MIHAILESCU EUGEN , URBAŃSKI MARIUSZ
Published: June 2020

We study Smale skew product endomorphisms (introduced in Mihailescu and Urbański [Skew product Smale endomorphisms over countable shifts of finite type. Ergod. Th. & Dynam. Sys. doi: 10.1017/etds.2019.31. Published online June 2019]) now over countable graph-directed Markov systems, and we prove the exact dimensionality of conditional measures in fibers, and then the global exact dimensionality of the equilibrium measure itself. Our results apply to large classes of systems and have many applications. They apply, for instance, to natural extensions of graph-directed Markov systems. Another application is to skew products over parabolic systems. We also give applications in ergodic number theory, for example to the continued fraction expansion, and the backward fraction expansion. In the end we obtain a general formula for the Hausdorff (and pointwise) dimension of equilibrium measures with respect to the induced maps of natural extensions ${\mathcal{T}}_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}}$ of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$-maps $T_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}}$, for arbitrary $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}>1$.
Approximating integrals with respect to stationary probability measures of iterated function systems
Authors: CIPRIANO ITALO , JURGA NATALIA
Published: June 2020

We study fast approximation of integrals with respect to stationary probability measures associated to iterated function systems on the unit interval. We provide an algorithm for approximating the integrals under certain conditions on the iterated function system and on the function that is being integrated. We apply this technique to estimate Hausdorff moments, Wasserstein distances and Lyapunov exponents of stationary probability measures.
Repurposing antimicrobial stewardship tools in the electronic medical record for the management of COVID-19 patients
Authors: Davis Matthew W. , McManus Dayna , Koff Alan , Jaszczur Gregory R. , Malinis Maricar , Dela Cruz Charles , Britto Clemente J. , Price Christina , Azmy Veronica , Kaman Kelsey , Gaston David , Early Kevin , DeWitt Michelle , Song Ju-Sung , Ortiz Claudia , Juthani-Mehta Manisha , Topal Jeffrey E.
Published: June 2020

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the antimicrobial stewardship module in our electronic medical record was reconfigured for the management of COVID-19 patients. This change allowed our subspecialist providers to review charts quickly to optimize potential therapy and management during the patient surge.
DEGENERATING 0 IN TRIANGULATED CATEGORIES
Authors: SAORÍN MANUEL , ZIMMERMANN ALEXANDER
Published: June 2020

In previous work, based on the work of Zwara and Yoshino, we defined and studied degenerations of objects in triangulated categories analogous to the degeneration of modules. In triangulated categories${\mathcal{T}}$, it is surprising that the zero object may degenerate. We show that the triangulated subcategory of${\mathcal{T}}$generated by the objects that are degenerations of zero coincides with the triangulated subcategory of${\mathcal{T}}$consisting of the objects with a vanishing image in the Grothendieck group$K_{0}({\mathcal{T}})$of${\mathcal{T}}$.
Australian settler bush huts and Indigenous bark-strippers
Authors: Kerkhove Ray , Keys Cathy
Published: June 2020

This article considers the history of the Australian bush hut and its common building material: bark sheeting. It compares this with traditional Aboriginal bark sheeting and cladding, and considers the role of Aboriginal ‘bark strippers’ and Aboriginal builders in establishing salient features of the bush hut. The main focus is the Queensland region up to the 1870s.