bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Verbal Responsiveness in Parents of Toddlers With and Without Autism During a Home Observation
Authors: Delehanty Abigail , Hooker Jessica L. , Wetherby Amy M.
Published: May 2023

This study examined patterns of verbal responsiveness in parents of toddlers (Mage = 20 months) later identified with autism (n = 121), developmental delay (n = 46), or typical development (n = 44) during an hourlong home observation. Parent verbal responsiveness (PVR) was compared using MANOVA across groups and by child expressive language phase. Multiple regression analyses controlling for child age and maternal education were employed to examine the extent to which PVR predicted variance in concurrent child social communication and prospective language skills. Parents provided synchronous responses approximately 90% of the time. Parents of children with autism and developmental delay used smaller proportions of responses that added linguistic information (i.e., expansions and follow-in directives for language) than those of children with typical development. Parents of children in the preverbal phase were more likely, on average, to affirm their children’s acts of intentional communication or provide a follow-in directive for action that did not necessitate a verbal response than to expand or elicit language. Regression results indicated that parental use of expansions and follow-in directives for language made significant contributions to child language outcomes. The patterns we observed may reflect parents’ attunement to their child’s developmental level. Responsiveness to a child’s focus of attention is vital in the earlier stages of language learning; however, results point to the potential importance of parental expansions and follow-in directives for promoting language development across groups in this sample. Directions for intervention research targeting PVR and language skills in toddlers with autism and developmental delays are discussed.
Caregivers’ Assessment of the Sensory Processing Patterns Exhibited by Children with Autism in the Gulf Region
Authors: Alsaedi Rehab H. , Carrington Suzanne , Watters James J.
Published: May 2023

This study explored the nature, prevalence, and developmental profiles of sensory processing disorders among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The participants comprised 119 children with ASD and 30 typically developing children and their parents. The Child Sensory Profile-2 was used to assess the children’s sensory processing characteristics. The children with ASD exhibited elevated sensory processing difficulties. Deficits were observed in all the sensory modalities among the children with ASD, except the visual processing modality. Age-related improvements were observed in most sensory processing domains, although non-significant differences were noted in three domains. These findings should enhance understanding of the sensory challenges faced by children with ASD and contribute to the development of individually tailored, targeted, and age-specific therapeutic interventions.
Predictors of Developmental and Adaptive Behaviour Outcomes in Response to Early Intensive Behavioural Intervention and the Early Start Denver Model
Authors: Bent Catherine , Glencross Susan , McKinnon Karen , Hudry Kristelle , Dissanayake Cheryl ,   The Victorian ASELCC Team, Vivanti Giacomo
Published: May 2023

Many autistic children require support to meet their learning needs. Given the heterogeneity within the autism spectrum it is plausible that different types of support might be better suited to different children. However, knowledge on what interventions work best for which children is limited. We examined the outcomes of autistic preschool-aged children receiving one of two community early intervention approaches. Our main objective was to understand which baseline child characteristics might be associated with the degree of individual response to intervention—whether prognostically (i.e., irrespective of intervention received) or predictively (i.e., specifically in the context of one or other EI approach). Participants comprised two matched groups of preschool-aged autistic children receiving either Group-based Early Start Denver Model (G-ESDM; n = 42) delivered in a 1:3–4 staff:child ratio or an Early Intensive Behavioural Intervention (EIBI; n = 40) delivered in combination of 1:1 and 1:2 staff:child ratio. Over an approximate one-year follow-up period, children in both groups made significant gains in Developmental Quotient (DQ) scores, and trend-level gains in adaptive behaviour composite scores. Higher attention to a playful adult measured via an eye-tracking task was prognostically indicative of better verbal DQ and adaptive behaviour outcomes for the cohort overall. Moderation analyses indicated a single predictive effect—of pre-program sustained attention for subsequent NVDQ outcomes specific to those children receiving G-ESDM. These findings suggest that fine-grained measures of learning skills offer promise towards the selection and tailoring of intervention approaches to meet individual children’s learning needs.
Effect of Chandler loop shear and tubing size on thrombus architecture
Authors: Zeng Ziqian , Nallan Chakravarthula Tanmaye , Christodoulides Alexei , Hall Abigail , Alves Nathan J.
Published: May 2023

Thrombosis can lead to a wide variety of life-threatening circumstances. As current thrombolytic drug screening models often poorly predict drug profiles, leading to failure of thrombolytic therapy or clinical translation, more representative clot substrates are necessary for drug evaluation. Utilizing a Chandler loop device to form clot analogs at high shear has gained popularity in stroke societies. However, shear-dependent clot microstructure has not been fully addressed and low shear conditions are often overlooked. We herein characterized the impact of wall shear rate (126 to 951 s−1) on clot properties in the Chandler loop. Different revolutions (20–60) per minute and tubing sizes (3.2 to 7.9 mm) were employed to create different sized clots to mimic various thrombosis applications. Increased shear resulted in decreased RBC counts (76.9 ± 4.3% to 17.6 ± 0.9%) and increased fibrin (10 to 60%) based on clot histology. Increased fibrin sheet morphology and platelet aggregates were observed at higher shear under scanning electron microscope. These results show the significant impact of shear and tubing size on resulting clot properties and demonstrate the capability of forming a variety of reproducible in-vivo-like clot analogs in the Chandler loop device controlling for simple parameters to tune clot characteristics.

Graphical Abstract
Degree of conversion and residual monomer elution of 3D-printed, milled and self-cured resin-based composite materials for temporary dental crowns and bridges
Authors: Berghaus Eva , Klocke Thorsten , Maletz Reinhard , Petersen Svea
Published: May 2023

The aim of this work was to investigate the elution of residual monomers as a function of the manufacturing process, which are CAD/CAM manufacturing, self-curing and 3D printing. The experimental materials used consisted of the base monomers TEGDMA, Bis-GMA and Bis-EMA and 50 wt.% fillers. Additionally, a 3D printing resin without fillers was tested. The elution of the base monomers into the different media (water, ethanol and ethanol/water (75/25 vol. %)) at 37 °C over a period of up to 120 d as well as the degree of conversion (DC) by FTIR were investigated. No monomer elution could be detected in water. Most residual monomers in both other media were released from the self-curing material whereas the 3D printing composite released relatively little. The CAD/CAM blanks released hardly any quantitatively detectable amounts of monomers. Relative to the base composition, TEGDMA eluted less than Bis-GMA and Bis-EMA. DC did not correlate with residual monomer release; thus, leaching was determined not only by the amount of residual monomers present but by further factors as possibly network density and structure. The CAD/CAM blanks and the 3D printing composite showed similar high DC but lower residual monomer release from the CAD/CAM blank, likewise the self-curing composite and the 3D printing resin exhibited similar DC but different monomer elution. In terms of residual monomer elution and DC, the 3D printing composite seems promising as a new material class for the use as temporary dental crowns and bridges.

Graphical Abstract
Thermophysical properties of n-alkyl-ammonium nitrate ionic liquids (n = 2,3,4) pure and water saturated for energy applications
Authors: Parajó J. J. , Vallet P. , Guimarey M. J. G. , Santiago A. , Teijera T. , Amigo A. , Varela L. M. , Salgado J. , Villanueva M.
Published: May 2023

Phase transition temperatures of three ionic liquids (ILs) with ammonium cations of different alkyl chain length and nitrate common anion were determined in this paper by differential scanning calorimetry. Thermal stability of these ILs in air and nitrogen atmosphere and the maximum operation temperatures of the compounds were also studied using a thermogravimetric analyser. Furthermore, thermophysical properties as density, viscosity, thermal conductivity, and heat capacity against temperature of these pure ionic liquids were determined and compared with the corresponding values for water saturated samples. For this purpose, different techniques were employed: for density and viscosity a rotational automated viscodensimeter; for thermal conductivity measurements a thermal conductimeter that follows the transient hot-wire method; and for heat capacity measurements a microdifferential scanning calorimeter. Different behaviours were observed depending on the analysed thermophysical properties. In case of dried samples, density and thermal conductivity decrease with alkyl chain; for saturated samples, same tendency is observed for density but is the opposite in case of thermal conductivity. Isobaric specific heat and viscosity increase with alkyl chain length in case of dried samples; for saturated samples same tendency is observed for the viscosity, whereas the tendency is the contrary in case of isobaric specific heat.
Entanglement entropy and hyperuniformity of Ginibre and Weyl–Heisenberg ensembles
Authors: Abreu Luís Daniel
Published: May 2023

We show that, for a class of planar determinantal point processes (DPP) $$ {\mathcal {X}}$$
X
, the growth of the entanglement entropy $$S({\mathcal {X}}(\Omega )) $$

S
(
X
(
Ω
)
)

of $${\mathcal {X}}\ $$

X

on a compact region $$\Omega \subset {\mathbb {R}}^{2d}$$

Ω
⊂

R

2
d

, is related to the variance $${\mathbb {V}}\left( {\mathcal {X}}(\Omega )\right) $$

V

X
(
Ω
)

as follows: $$\begin{aligned} {\mathbb {V}}\left( {\mathcal {X}}(\Omega )\right) \lesssim S\left( \mathcal {X(} \Omega \mathcal {)}\right) \lesssim {\mathbb {V}}\left( {\mathcal {X}}(\Omega )\right) . \end{aligned}$$

V

X
(
Ω
)

≲
S

X
(

Ω
)

≲
V

X
(
Ω
)

.

Therefore, such DPPs satisfy an area law$$S\left( {\mathcal {X}}_{g} \mathcal {(}\Omega \mathcal {)}\right) \lesssim \left| \partial {\Omega } \right| $$

S

X
g

(
Ω
)

≲

∂
Ω

, where $$\partial {\Omega }$$

∂
Ω

is the boundary of $$\Omega $$
Ω
if they are of Class I hyperuniformity ($${\mathbb {V}}\left( {\mathcal {X}} (\Omega )\right) \lesssim \left| \partial {\Omega }\right| $$

V

X
(
Ω
)

≲

∂
Ω

), while the area law is violated if they are of Class II hyperuniformity (as $$\ L\rightarrow \infty $$

L
→
∞

, $${\mathbb {V}}\left( {\mathcal {X}} (L\Omega )\right) \sim C_{\Omega }L^{d-1}\log L$$

V

X
(
L
Ω
)

∼

C
Ω

L

d
-
1

log
L

). As a result, the entanglement entropy of Weyl–Heisenberg ensembles (a family of DPPs containing the Ginibre ensemble and Ginibre-type ensembles in higher Landau levels), satisfies an area law, as a consequence of its hyperuniformity.
Beyond the mere present: Husserl on the temporality of human and animal consciousness
Authors: Venuta Yamina
Published: May 2023

My aim in this paper is to reconstruct Edmund Husserl’s views on the differences between human and animal consciousness, with particular attention to the experience of temporality.

In the first section, I situate the topic of animal consciousness in the broader context of Husserl’s philosophy. Whereas this connection has been often neglected, I argue that a phenomenological analysis of non-human subjectivities is not only justified, but also essential to the Husserlian project as a whole.

In the second section, I introduce two notions Husserl resorts to when describing the essential difference between human and animal subjectivities, namely “strata of consciousness” and “person.” Drawing on textual evidence, I argue that Husserl does not simply see animals as excluded from the sphere of personhood. Rather, he draws a distinction between two modes of personal life, one of which is said to be unique to human adults.

What holds these two modes apart, according to Husserl, is a subject’s relation to time. In the third section, I delve deeper into this topic, asking how we should understand Husserl’s claim that animals live in a “restricted temporality.” I argue that this has less to do with an inability to remember, imagine, or anticipate future events, and more with an inability to explore temporal horizons stretching before one’s birth or after one’s death. By contrast, humans gradually overcome these limitations during ontogeny, thanks to the practice of linguistic communication. This also has consequences for our capacity to engage in genuinely theoretical thought.
Relating to foetal persons: why women’s Voices come first and last, but not alone in Abortion debates
Authors: Milford Stephen
Published: May 2023

Abortion remains a controversial topic, with pro-life and pro-choice advocates clashing fiercely. However, public polling demonstrates that the vast majority of the Western public holds a middle position: being in favour of abortion but not in all circumstances nor at any time. The intuitions held by the majority seem to imply a contradiction: two early foetuses at the same point in development have different moral statuses. Providing coherent philosophical grounding for this intuition has proved challenging. Solutions given by philosophers such as Feinberg, Harman and Räsänen are complex and do not fully account for the lived experience of pregnancy loss. This article argues for a relational ontological construction of human personhood as the basis of foetal personhood. This approach takes seriously the literature of pregnancy loss and the lived experiences of pregnant persons. Focusing on the manner in which persons relate to early foetuses (especially pregnant persons), provides a coherent ground for distinct foetal value. Importantly, this approach is both simple and intuitive. Therefore, it can be more easily adopted by middle. To counter an implied equality of human relationality, the article argues for a clear hierarchy based on relational proximity that affirms pregnant persons? primary role in deciding the moral significance of foetal termination.
The Personalized Priority and Progress Questionnaire (PPPQ): A personalized instrument for quality of life and self-management for use in clinical trials and practice
Authors: Tommel Judith , Cardol Cinderella K. , Evers Andrea W. M. , Stuivenberg Rianne , van Dijk Sandra , van Middendorp Henriët
Published: May 2023

Purpose

The aim of this study was to develop and validate a brief personalized instrument that (1) defines patients’ priorities for improvement, (2) measures progress in prioritized quality of life (QoL) and self-management outcomes, and (3) is applicable in both clinical practice and clinical trials.

Methods

The instrument was developed based on the literature on personalized assessment and patient priorities, feedback by clinicians, and six cognitive interviews with patients with chronic kidney disease. The resulting questionnaire, the Personalized Priority and Progress Questionnaire (PPPQ), contains a baseline and follow-op measurement. The baseline measurement assesses functioning on QoL (8 items) and self-management (5 items). The final item evaluates patients’ priorities for improvement. The follow-up measurement assesses progress in QoL and self-management. A personalized progress score can be calculated indicating the amount of progress on the QoL or self-management domain that is prioritized by the individual patient. Psychometric properties of the PPPQ were evaluated among patients with chronic kidney disease (n = 121) and patients with kidney failure treated with dialysis (n = 22).

Results

The PPPQ showed to be a feasible instrument that is easy and quick to complete. Regarding the construct validity, small to large correlations were found between the items and existing validated questionnaires measuring related constructs.

Conclusion

The PPPQ proved to be a feasible and valid instrument. The PPPQ can be adapted to match diverse populations and could be a useful tool both in clinical practice (e.g., to identify priorities and tailor treatment) and clinical trials (e.g., to evaluate the effectiveness of personalized interventions).
Performance of a single slope solar still using different porous absorbing materials: an experimental approach
Authors: Ramzy Khaled , Abdelgaleel Mohamed , Kabeel Abd Elnaby , Mosalam Heba
Published: May 2023

Desalination is a critical process to address water scarcity in arid regions worldwide, and solar stills provide an economical solution despite their productivity limitations. This study aimed to enhance the performance and productivity of solar stills by constructing two stills with different natural and artificial absorbing materials such as black luffa, luffa, fine steel wool, and steel wool pads. The solar stills were tested in Egypt under comparable weather conditions, and their productivity, solar intensity, wind velocity, and temperature were measured to determine their thermal efficiency and exergo-economic analysis. Results showed that the choice of absorbing material significantly impacted solar still productivity, with steel wool pads achieving the highest yield of 4.384 l/m2. Moreover, steel wool pads also exhibited the highest thermal efficiency at 32.74%. The cost per liter (CPL) was the lowest with steel wool pads at 0.0034 $/l/m2. Finally, the payback period and exergo-economic analysis demonstrated that incorporating steel wool pads was the most promising modification for enhancing solar still performance compared to other modifications.
An innovative rheological approach for predicting the behaviour of critical zones in a railway track
Authors: Punetha Piyush , Nimbalkar Sanjay
Published: May 2023

The poor performance of critical zones along a railway line has long been a subject of concern for rail infrastructure managers. The rapid deterioration of track geometry in these zones is primarily ascribed to limited understanding of the underlying mechanism and scarcity of adequate tools to assess the severity of the potential issue. Therefore, a comprehensive evaluation of their behaviour is paramount to improve the design and ensure adequate service quality. With this objective, a novel methodology is introduced, which can predict the differential plastic deformations at the critical zones and assess the suitability of different countermeasures in improving the track performance. The proposed technique employs a three-dimensional geotechnical rheological track model that considers varied support conditions of the critical zone. The approach is successfully validated with published field data and predictions from finite element analysis. This methodology is then applied to a bridge-open track transition zone, where it is observed that an increase in axle load exacerbates the track geometry degradation problem. The results show that the performance of critical zones with weak subgrade can be improved by increasing the granular layer thickness. Interpretation of the predicted differential settlement for different countermeasures exemplifies the practical significance of the proposed methodology.
Uremic pruritus: prevalence, determinants, and its impact on health-related quality of life and sleep in Indian patients undergoing hemodialysis
Authors: Shetty Deeksha , Nayak Ajith M. , Datta Divya , Bhojaraja Mohan V. , Nagaraju Shankar Prasad , Prabhu Attur Ravindra , Rangaswamy Dharshan , Rao Indu Ramachandra , Shenoy Srinivas Vinayak , Joshi Dhruv
Published: May 2023

Background

Uremic pruritus has an impact on the quality of life and sleep of hemodialysis patients, but the majority of cases go unreported and untreated unless severe, due to a lack of awareness. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence, associated factors, and impact on health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) and sleep in hemodialysis patients.

Methodology

A single-center observational study of 3 months wherein 120 adults on maintenance hemodialysis were included. Baseline characteristics, dialysis-related factors, and lab parameters influencing uremic pruritus were recorded. Those with uremic pruritus completed “12-item pruritus severity scale (12-PSS)”, “SKINDEX10”, and “Itch-MOS” questionnaires to evaluate severity, impact on HR-QOL, and sleep respectively.

Results

Sixty seven over one hundred twenty (55.83%) patients had pruritus and majority were mild (40.83%) as per 12-PSS. Those with pruritus (n=67) had a mean age of 56.5±11.3 years, most were males (82%), chronic glomerulonephritis (29.1%) was the commonest cause of end-stage kidney disease, 3 active smokers, and 4 seropositive. 65(97%) patients were on twice-weekly dialysis, 36/67 had <5 years’ dialysis vintage and acceptable adequacy. There was no significant association between uremic pruritus and dialysis-related/laboratory parameters. Patients with uremic pruritus demonstrated significantly worse “HR-QOL” (p<0.001) on the “SKINDEX-10”, and patients' “Itch-MOS” scores demonstrated a significant decline in sleep quality with increasing pruritus severity (p<0.001).

Conclusion

The majority of patients on maintenance hemodialysis experience uremic pruritus. None of the clinical characteristics, dialysis-related factors, and laboratory parameters affected uremic pruritus. Uremic pruritus patients had the worst HR-QOL & their sleep quality significantly declined as pruritus severity escalated.

Trial registration number and date of registration

Study approval was obtained from Institutional Research Committee and Institutional Ethical Committee (IEC 642/2021). Clinical Trial Registry of India (CTRI) registration (CTRI/2022/01/039143) was also obtained.
Let the Chips Fall! Public Nudging Arrangements, Coercion, and the Role of Independent Shopkeepers
Authors: Häyry Matti , Ahola-Launonen Johanna , Takala Tuija
Published: May 2023

Nudging, according to its inventors and defenders, is supposed to provide a non-coercive way of changing human behavior for the better—a freedom-respecting form of “libertarian paternalism.” Its original point was to complement coercive modes of influence without any need of justification in liberal frameworks. This article shows, using the example of food-product placement in grocery stores, how this image is deceptive. Although nudging practices may not restrict the freedom of consumers, nudging arrangements by public health authorities do restrict the freedom of shopkeepers in standard liberal senses. Libertarianism cannot justify this coercion, and the creed is best left out of the equation as the ideological ruse that it, in this discussion, is. Other liberal theories can justify the coercion, but on grounds that can also be applied to other methods of public health promotion by subsidies and regulation. This result reaffirms that nudging should be seen to complement, not to replace, those other methods.
Kernels of categorical resolutions of nodal singularities
Authors: Cattani Warren , Giovenzana Franco , Liu Shengxuan , Magni Pablo , Martinelli Luigi , Pertusi Laura , Song Jieao
Published: May 2023

In this paper we study derived categories of nodal singularities. We show that for all nodal singularities there is a categorical resolution whose kernel is generated by a 2 or 3-spherical object, depending on the dimension. We apply this result to the case of nodal cubic fourfolds, where we describe the kernel generator of the categorical resolution as an object in the bounded derived category of the associated degree six K3 surface. This paper originated from one of the problem sessions at the Interactive Workshop and Hausdorff School “Hyperkähler Geometry”, Bonn, September 6–10, 2021.
A systematic literature review of economic evaluations and cost-of-illness studies of inherited cardiomyopathies
Authors: Wiethoff Isabell , Goversen Birgit , Michels Michelle , van der Velden Jolanda , Hiligsmann Mickaël , Kugener Tom , Evers Silvia M. A. A.
Published: May 2023

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) are commonly inherited heart conditions associated with a high risk of heart failure and sudden cardiac death. To understand the economic and societal disease burden, this study systematically identified and reviewed cost-of-illness (COI) studies and economic evaluations (EEs) of various interventions for HCM and DCM. A literature search was performed in MEDLINE, EMBASE, NHS EED, EconLit and Web of Science to identify COI studies and EEs published between 1 January 2010 and 28 April 2021. The selection of studies and their critical appraisal were performed jointly by two independent researchers. For the quality assessment, the ‘Consensus on Health Economic Criteria’ list was used. Two COI studies and 11 EEs were eligible for inclusion. Cost-effectiveness varied among interventions and depended on the targeted patient population. Both COI studies identified only hospitalisation costs in HCM. The mean study quality was high in EEs but low in COI studies. Most studies excluded costs for patients, caregivers and productivity losses. Overall, knowledge of the societal and economic burden of inherited cardiomyopathies is limited. Future research needs to include quality-adjusted life years and a broader range of costs to provide an information base for optimising care for affected patients.
An introduction to health technology assessment and health economic evaluation: an online self-learning course
Authors: Wiethoff Isabell , Evers Silvia M. A. A. , Michels Michelle , Hiligsmann Mickaël
Published: May 2023

Cardiovascular diseases impose an enormous burden on patients and society. New health technologies promise to lower this burden; however, novel treatments often come at a high cost. In the Netherlands, health technology assessment (HTA) is increasingly being used to inform policy bodies about the optimal distribution of scarce healthcare resources and to guide decision-making about financing and reimbursement. In particular, economic evaluations, as one pillar of HTA, are frequently used to compare the costs and effects of different interventions. This paper aims to define HTA and its relevance to healthcare policy as well as providing a comprehensive overview of the methodology of economic evaluations targeting health professionals and researchers with limited prior knowledge of this subject. Accordingly, different types of economic evaluations are introduced, together with their respective costs and outcomes. Further, the results of economic evaluations are explained, along with techniques for performing them and methods for coping with uncertainty. In addition to this paper-based learning format, each chapter is complemented by a video lecture with further information and practical examples, helping to better understand and analyse health economic studies.
Budget impact of endovascular treatment for acute ischaemic stroke patients in the Netherlands for 2015–2021
Authors: van den Berg Lucie A. , Berkhemer Olvert A. , Fransen Puck S. S. , Beumer Debbie , Majoie Charles B. L. , Dippel Diederik W. J. , van der Lugt Aad , van Oostenbrugge Robert J. , van Zwam Wim H. , Roos Yvo B. , Dijkgraaf Marcel G. W. ,   the MR CLEAN investigators
Published: May 2023

Introduction

Endovascular treatment (EVT) has been proven to be both effective and cost-effective for patients with acute ischaemic stroke. We investigated the budget impact of large-scale implementation of EVT for acute ischaemic stroke patients in the Netherlands for 2015–2021.

Methods

An analysis was performed from a healthcare perspective as a preplanned substudy of the Multicenter Randomized Clinical trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands (MR CLEAN). Estimated yearly costs during follow-up after stroke for patients who had or had not been treated with EVT as add-on to usual care were linked to numbers of new patients retrieved from 2 Dutch registries of EVT that started after the last inclusion in MR CLEAN (2014). Aggregated costs and costs per care sector were calculated based on prevalence using a population dynamic tool.

Results

From 2015, the yearly number of new acute ischaemic stroke patients receiving EVT increased almost threefold, from 812 in 2015 to 2,370 in 2021. The introduction of EVT plus usual care resulted in estimated net annual savings that increased from € 2.9 million in 2015 to € 58 million in 2021.

Conclusion

Offering EVT as add-on to usual care for acute ischaemic stroke patients was increasingly cost saving from a national healthcare perspective but affected distinct healthcare sectors differently.
Disentangling Human-AI Hybrids
Authors: Fabri Lukas , Häckel Björn , Oberländer Anna Maria , Rieg Marius , Stohr Alexander
Published: May 2023

Artificial intelligence (AI) offers great potential in organizations. The path to achieving this potential will involve human-AI interworking, as has been confirmed by numerous studies. However, it remains to be explored which direction this interworking of human agents and AI-enabled systems ought to take. To date, research still lacks a holistic understanding of the entangled interworking that characterizes human-AI hybrids, so-called because they form when human agents and AI-enabled systems closely collaborate. To enhance such understanding, this paper presents a taxonomy of human-AI hybrids, developed by reviewing the current literature as well as a sample of 101 human-AI hybrids. Leveraging weak sociomateriality as justificatory knowledge, this study provides a deeper understanding of the entanglement between human agents and AI-enabled systems. Furthermore, a cluster analysis is performed to derive archetypes of human-AI hybrids, identifying ideal–typical occurrences of human-AI hybrids in practice. While the taxonomy creates a solid foundation for the understanding and analysis of human-AI hybrids, the archetypes illustrate the range of roles that AI-enabled systems can play in those interworking scenarios.
Overexpression of the lncRNA HOTAIRM1 promotes lenvatinib resistance by downregulating miR-34a and activating autophagy in hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Gu Danyan , Tong Meng , Wang Jing , Zhang Bocheng , Liu Jinghua , Song Guoqiang , Zhu Biao
Published: May 2023

Background

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant cancers in humans and has a high fatality rate. Despite pharmacological advances such as sorafenib and lenvatinib approval, responses are seen only in a limited fraction of HCCs, and the majority of HCC patients do not benefit from this treatment. In recent years, researchers have verified that the long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) impact the efficiency of lenvatinib and the prognosis of patients with HCC.

Materials and methods

This work obtained gene expression profile from an Arraystar lncRNA microarray. Expression of HOTAIRM1, Beclin-1, and p62 in HCC was characterized in clinical HCC tissues of 24 patients with HCC. Overexpression and knockdown experiments were performed in HCC cells to examine the effects of the HOTAIRM1 on lenvatinib sensitivity. The interactions between HOTAIRM1, miR-34a and Beclin-1 were predicted according to GSEA and CNC network. The effects of HOTAIRM1, autophagy and lenvatinib on tumor inhibit were validated in orthotopic tumor-bearing nude mouse model.

Results

Lenvatinib-resistant HCC cell lines were established using the concentration gradient method. Data from an Arraystar lncRNA microarray indicated that HOTAIRM1, a specific lncRNA located in an evolutionarily highly conserved HOX gene cluster, was differentially expressed between lenvatinib-resistant HCC cells and their parental cells. Expression of HOTAIRM1 and Beclin-1 in HCC was characterized in clinical HCC tissues of 24 patients who have different sensitivity to lenvatinib. Knocking down of HOTAIRM1 decreased the autophagy level in lenvatinib-resistant HCC cells and increased their sensitivity to lenvatinib, especially when combined with autophagy inhibitors both in vitro and in vivo. Further study indicated that knocking down HOTAIRM1 in lenvatinib-resistant cell lines increased the level of miR-34a and inhibited the expression of Beclin-1 in Huh7-R and HepG2-R cells. Investigation according to GSEA and CNC network, lncRNA and nearby coding gene and lncRNA-miRNA analyses demonstrated that the resistance of HCC to lenvatinib was affected by the HOTAIRM1-miR-34a-Beclin-1 regulatory axis.

Conclusion

HOTAIRM1 is an independent drug resistance factor which significantly associated with the efficacy of lenvatinib in HCC. HOTAIRM1 may downregulation of miR-34a and upregulation of Beclin-1, leading to activation of autophagy, thereby inducing lenvatinib resistance in HCC.
Mixed norm spaces and RM(p, q) spaces
Authors: Aguilar-Hernández Tanausú
Published: May 2023

In this paper we present the containment relationship between the spaces of analytic functions with average radial integrability RM(p, q) and a family of mixed norm spaces.
DMBR-Net: deep multiple-resolution bilateral network for real-time and accurate semantic segmentation
Authors: Meng Pengfei , Jia Shuangcheng , Li Qian
Published: May 2023

It has been proved that the two-branch network architecture for real-time semantic segmentation is effectiveness. However, existing methods still can not obtain sufficient context information and sufficient detailed information, which limits the improvement of the accuracy of existed two-branch methods. In this paper, we proposed a real-time high-precision semantic segmentation network based on a novel multi-resolution feature fusion module, an auxiliary feature extracting module, an upsampling module and multi-ASPP(atrous spatial pyramid pooling) module. We designed a feature fusion module, which is integrated with sufficient features of different resolutions to help the network get both sufficient semantic information and sufficient detailed information. We also studied the effect of the side-branch architecture on the network, and made new discoveries that the role of the side-branch is more than regularization, it may either slow down the convergence or accelerate the convergence by influencing the gradient of different layers of the network, which is dependent on the parameters of the network and the input data. Based on the new discoveries about the side-branch architecture, we used a side-branch auxiliary feature extraction layer in the network to improve the performance of the network. We also designed an upsampling module, which can get better detailed information than the original upsampling module. In addition, we also re-considered the locations and number of atrous spatial pyramid pooling (ASPP) modules, and modified the network architecture according to the experimental results to further improve the performance of the network. We proposed a network based on the above study. We named this network Deep Multiple-resolution Bilateral Network for Real-time, referred to as DMBR-Net. The network proposed in the paper achieved 81.3% mIoU(Mean Intersection over Union) at 110FPS on the Cityscapes validation dataset, 80.7% mIoU at 104FPS on the CamVid test dataset, 32.2% mIoU at 78FPS on the COCO-Stuff test dataset.
Study of stress wave propagation across a non-persistent joint based on a boundary integral equation method
Authors: Li Jianchun , Nie Mengmeng , Li Xing
Published: May 2023

Studies on stress wave propagation across persistent joints have been conducted extensively. Nevertheless, there exists a consensus that non-persistent joints are widely and densely distributed, which have a profound impact on wave propagation in jointed rock masses. A boundary integral equation method is suggested in this paper to investigate the characteristics of transmitted wave field for the case of stress wave propagation across a single non-persistent joint. The displacement continuity and discontinuity boundaries are combined in the method. The method presented in the current study is applicable to the analysis of wave propagation across non-persistent joints with arbitrary incident angles. Then, taking a single non-persistent joint arranged with only one joint segment as an example, the applicability of the method in dealing with the problems of wave propagation is verified by comparing the results with those from the discrete element method and analytical methods. Subsequently, parametric studies are carried out, including the effects of joint-segment length, rock-bridge length, wave frequency and incident angle on the transmitted wave. The result indicates that the existence of non-persistent joint makes the transmitted displacement field different from that of persistent joint, because the scattered wave is produced during the process of wave propagation. The displacement amplitude may be amplified evidently in some regions and the spatial distribution pattern of the transmission coefficient is closely related to the joint-segment length, rock-bridge length and incident wavelength.
Using Immersive Virtual Reality in an Online Biology Course
Authors: Majewska Ania A. , Vereen Ethell
Published: May 2023

Interest in virtual reality (VR) for teaching and learning in higher education is growing, given its many potential applications. VR offers a socially interactive environment with novel ways to engage students with materials, objects, and activities and provide students with experiences such as “field trips” that would be otherwise very difficult. Preliminary work indicates overall positive gains in student learning across disciplines compared to other technology and traditional techniques, although more studies are needed to better our understanding of this tool. We employed an “immersive” VR (with a head-mounted display) in an online course which provided students with the opportunity to interact with peers and engage in activities. We asked about perceptions of the learning experience with the technology and how using VR impacts students’ performance. We also noted the benefits and challenges of VR in an online course. Students perceived VR as a helpful component of the course, although performance on the cardiovascular unit assessment did not differ compared to the previous semester without VR.
Linguistic Analysis of Generic-Generic Drug Name Pairs Prone to Wrong-Drug Errors for which Tall-Man Lettering is Recommended
Authors: Karet Gail B.
Published: May 2023

Objective

The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) disseminated widely used lists of drug name pairs involved in wrong-drug errors, for which they recommended tall-man lettering (TML). Linguistic similarity is believed responsible for confusion of these drugs. This study aims to quantify linguistic similarity and other linguistic properties of these generic-generic name pairs.

Methods

The FDA’s Phonetic and Orthographic Computer Analysis (POCA) software was used to generate numerical similarity scores for the generic-generic name pairs on these lists and to identify conflicts between these names and the names of other marketed products. Within each pair, differences in name length and the number of identical prefix (initial) letters and suffix (final) letters were determined.

Results

The selected pairs shared a mean of 2.5 (± 1.8) identical prefix letters and 3.2 (± 2.9) identical suffix letters. The mean POCA score 69.5 (± 9.7), indicated moderate-to-high similarity. POCA scores for individual pairs ranged from 90 (most similar) to 46 (least similar). Individual names averaged 11.2 (± 9.1) high-similarity conflicts with names of other marketed drugs.

Conclusions

POCA analysis could be a valuable tool in determining whether linguistic similarity contributes to specific wrong-drug errors. The finding of 11.2 (± 9.1) high-similarity conflicts with names of other marketed drugs is more than for candidate names USAN accepts and suggests the names on the FDA and ISMP lists are linguistically problematic.
Development of an Implementation Blueprint to Scale-Up Contraception Care for Adolescents with Psychiatric Conditions in a Pediatric Hospital
Authors: Hyzak Kathryn A. , Bunger Alicia C. , Herrmann Samantha A. , Kerlek Anna , Lauden Stephanie , Dudley Sam , Underwood Abigail , Berlan Elise D.
Published: May 2023

Implementation blueprints are comprehensive plans that describe implementation strategies, goals, timelines, and key personnel necessary for launching new interventions. Although blueprints are a foundational step in driving intervention rollout, little is known about how blueprints are developed, refined, and used in practice. The objective of this study was to describe a systematic, collaborative approach to developing, refining, and utilizing a formal implementation blueprint for scaling up the Contraception Care at Behavioral Health Pavilion (CC@BHP) intervention for adolescents hospitalized in psychiatric units within a pediatric hospital in the United States. In Stage 1 (Planning/Preparation), we assembled a Research Advisory Board (RAB) of 41 multidisciplinary members and conducted a formative evaluation to identify potential barriers to CC@BHP implementation. Barriers were mapped to implementation strategies using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) and Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) tool and used to create an initial blueprint. In Stage 2 (Development/Implementation), RAB members used activity logs to track implementation activities over the 18-month study period, which were then mapped to formal implementation strategies used to further develop the blueprint. About 30% of strategies were situated in the ‘Train and Educate Stakeholders’ ERIC category, 20% in ‘Use Evaluative and Iterative Strategies,’ and 16% in ‘Develop Stakeholder Interrelationships’ category. In Stage 3 (Synthesis/Refinement), the final blueprint was refined, consisting of 16 goals linked to 10 strategies for pre-implementation and 6 strategies for implementation. Feedback on the blueprint emphasized the role of the project champion in translating the blueprint into smaller, actionable steps for implementers.
SiNx Coating Deposition on CoCr by Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition
Authors: Zhou Huasi , Persson Cecilia , Xia Wei , Engqvist Håkan
Published: May 2023

Cobalt chromium alloys (CoCr) are commonly used as total disc replacement components. However, there are concerns about its long-term biological effects. Coating the CoCr with a ceramic could improve the implant’s biocompatibility and wear resistance. Silicon nitride (SiNx) coatings have emerged as a recent alternative to this end. While many have evaluated physical vapour deposition (PVD) techniques to deposit these coatings, plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) may provide certain advantages. For example, it may allow for low-temperature depositions as well as more uniform coatings of complex structures. In this study, silicon nitride (SiNx) coatings with different nitrogen-to-silicon (N/Si ratio) compositions (0.65, 1.16 and 1.42) were deposited onto CoCr substrates by PECVD. It was found that the SiNx coating deposited at an NH3 flow rate of 30 sccm (i.e., N/Si ratio of 1.42), had the highest hardness and elastic modulus, 13.19 ± 1.29 GPa and 132.76 ± 9.32 GPa, respectively. While a coating roughness adequate for the application could be measured, further optimization of the coating adhesion is needed to adequately evaluate its wear properties. It was concluded that the PECVD SiNx coating deposited at an NH3 flow rate of 30 sccm showed the highest potential for the intended application.
Exploring 3D spatial morphology using multilayered space syntax, network science and wi-fi log data
Authors: Zhang Junwei , Senousi Ahmad M. , Zhao Pengxiang , Law Stephen , Liu Xintao
Published: May 2023

Spatial morphology of 2D space has been well studied at the scales of building, community, and city in space syntax literature. Space syntax decomposes continuous geographic space into a set of unique axial lines and represents them as a spatial network to analyze spatial morphology. However, 3D spatial morphology remains largely unexplored, partially due to limited data access and methodological constraints. Motivated by the multilayered network literature in network science, this work extends the conventional 2D space syntax axial network into a multilayered axial network to explore the spatial morphology of a university campus. Scaling properties are discovered from several aspects of the constructed spatial network (e.g., degree, local integration). The relationship between spatial morphology and route-based pedestrian flow is evaluated using a large Wi-Fi log dataset and multiple regression analysis. We found a significant correlation between the two, with a correlation coefficient of 0.756 and r2 of 0.571. Four network features (i.e., local depth, geometric length, eigenvector, and betweenness), are found to significantly shape the pedestrian flow. The results of community detection show the effectiveness of multilayered space syntax analysis in depicting functional areas of campus, despite the complex nature of 3D space. Whilst a limitation of this research is the need to account for the 3D angular route preferences when characterizing the morphology of campus and the flow estimated based on the shortest routes using the Dijkstra algorithm.
A Rule of Law for Our New Age of Anxiety
Authors: Toope Stephen J
Published: May 2023

Taking Auden's Age of Anxiety as a leitmotiv and drawing on literature from law, philosophy, political theory, international relations, and sociology, Toope argues with passion that a renewed faith in the rule of law can address troubling developments in our own anxious times: populist nationalism; globalisation; and disruptive technologies with their dominating platforms.
We can address anxiety by bolstering social resilience, drawing upon a plural intellectual heritage. That heritage reveals a unique type of 'authority' in society, 'epistemic practical authority' built up continuously through social discourse and action, shifting focus from the state of 'being' to the dynamic of 'becoming.' What is law's role in this world? The modest, yet powerful, version of the rule of law advocated here is one that draws on a wellspring of practical wisdom - prudence gleaned from pragmatic experience. It chastens power, while not disconnecting law from other sources of social action and human agency.
The Welfare Cost of Beijing’s Lottery Policy: Evidence from a Contingent Valuation Survey
Authors: Qin Ping , Quan Yifei , Liu Antung A. , Linn Joshua , Yang Jun
Published: May 2023

Motivated by traffic congestion and air pollution, Beijing is one of several major cities to restrict vehicle ownership by requiring residents to win a lottery for the right to obtain an additional car. We examine the welfare cost of preventing people from owning cars because of misallocation: under a lottery, some individuals with low willingness to pay (WTP) for cars can obtain cars, while other individuals with high WTP cannot. We estimate welfare costs using a new contingent valuation method survey of Beijing lottery participants which we designed and conducted explicitly for this purpose. We find that restricting vehicle ownership reduced private welfare by 26 billion yuan. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the benefits of lower congestion and pollution roughly equal the costs. Our WTP estimates indicate a net welfare gain of approximately 32 billion yuan if Beijing’s lottery were replaced with an auction, which is similar to previous estimates.