bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Measuring the mediating effect of satisfaction and compatibility on the relationship between podcast features and users’ intention of continuous usage and word of mouth
Authors: Yang Feng-Chao , Tasi Po-Wen
Published: October 2023

Amid the expanding podcast market, a myriad of podcasters and advertisers have ventured into hosting and endorsements. The paramount objective of this research was to ascertain the moderating roles of satisfaction (SAT) and Compatibility (COM) in the relationship between podcast characteristics and the Continued Use Intention (CUI) of users. To assess the ramifications of podcast attributes—technology affinity (TA), perceived playfulness (PP), multitasking (MT), social presence (SP), SAT, and COM—on Word of Mouth Intention (WOMI) and CUI, a questionnaire was disseminated among seasoned podcast users. From an aggregate of 250 returned questionnaires, 227 were adjudged as valid post invalidation scrutiny, yielding a 90% retention quotient. Employing the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach for data analysis, the findings revealed the following: TA positively influenced both SAT and COM; PP favorably influenced SAT; MT cast a positive impact on COM; SP constructively affected both SAT and COM; COM positively influenced SAT; and WOMI constructively impacted CUI. This research propounds that podcast platforms might metamorphose into voice-anchored social platforms by curating compelling content, interweaving interactive constituents such as inducements or contests, and galvanizing listener engagement. We advocate for listeners’ indulgence in classical or ambient music during engagements, without requiring excessive focus on the host’s content.
When ‘Enough and as Good’ is Not Good Enough
Authors: Spafford Jesse
Published: October 2023

Under what circumstances can people convert natural resources into private property? John Locke famously answered this question by positing what has become known as the Lockean proviso: a person has the power to unilaterally appropriate natural resources ‘at least where there is enough and as good left in common for others’. This Lockean proviso has been widely embraced by right-libertarians who maintain that a relevant act appropriates only if others are not left worse off. However, this proviso is multiply ambiguous with there being various ways of specifying its distinct elements. Daniel Attas has argued that all proposed specifications render the proviso either implausible or unsatisfied. However, there are three seemingly plausible specifications that he either fails to consider or does not adequately address. This paper attempts to show that these specifications are either unacceptable, go unsatisfied, or fail to support right-libertarianism.
In the Eye of Transformer: Global–Local Correlation for Egocentric Gaze Estimation and Beyond
Authors: Lai Bolin , Liu Miao , Ryan Fiona , Rehg James M.
Published: October 2023

Predicting human’s gaze from egocentric videos serves as a critical role for human intention understanding in daily activities. In this paper, we present the first transformer-based model to address the challenging problem of egocentric gaze estimation. We observe that the connection between the global scene context and local visual information is vital for localizing the gaze fixation from egocentric video frames. To this end, we design the transformer encoder to embed the global context as one additional visual token and further propose a novel global–local correlation module to explicitly model the correlation of the global token and each local token. We validate our model on two egocentric video datasets – EGTEA Gaze + and Ego4D. Our detailed ablation studies demonstrate the benefits of our method. In addition, our approach exceeds the previous state-of-the-art model by a large margin. We also apply our model to a novel gaze saccade/fixation prediction task and the traditional action recognition problem. The consistent gains suggest the strong generalization capability of our model. We also provide additional visualizations to support our claim that global–local correlation serves a key representation for predicting gaze fixation from egocentric videos. More details can be found in our website (https://bolinlai.github.io/GLC-EgoGazeEst).
3D Adversarial Augmentations for Robust Out-of-Domain Predictions
Authors: Lehner Alexander , Gasperini Stefano , Marcos-Ramiro Alvaro , Schmidt Michael , Navab Nassir , Busam Benjamin , Tombari Federico
Published: October 2023

Since real-world training datasets cannot properly sample the long tail of the underlying data distribution, corner cases and rare out-of-domain samples can severely hinder the performance of state-of-the-art models. This problem becomes even more severe for dense tasks, such as 3D semantic segmentation, where points of non-standard objects can be confidently associated to the wrong class. In this work, we focus on improving the generalization to out-of-domain data. We achieve this by augmenting the training set with adversarial examples. First, we learn a set of vectors that deform the objects in an adversarial fashion. To prevent the adversarial examples from being too far from the existing data distribution, we preserve their plausibility through a series of constraints, ensuring sensor-awareness and shapes smoothness. Then, we perform adversarial augmentation by applying the learned sample-independent vectors to the available objects when training a model. We conduct extensive experiments across a variety of scenarios on data from KITTI, Waymo, and CrashD for 3D object detection, and on data from SemanticKITTI, Waymo, and nuScenes for 3D semantic segmentation. Despite training on a standard single dataset, our approach substantially improves the robustness and generalization of both 3D object detection and 3D semantic segmentation methods to out-of-domain data.
The effect of glycine administration on the characteristics of physiological systems in human adults: A systematic review
Authors: Soh Janjira , Raventhiran Shivaanishaa , Lee Jasinda H. , Lim Zi Xiang , Goh Jorming , Kennedy Brian K. , Maier Andrea B.
Published: October 2023

Functional decline of physiological systems during ageing leads to age-related diseases. Dietary glycine increases healthy lifespan in model organisms and might decrease inflammation in humans, suggesting its geroprotective potential. This review summarises the evidence of glycine administration on the characteristics of eleven physiological systems in adult humans. Databases were searched using key search terms: ‘glycine’, ‘adult’, ‘supplementation’/ ‘administration’/ ‘ingestion’/ ‘treatment’. Glycine was administered to healthy and diseased populations (18 and 34 studies) for up to 14 days and 4 months, respectively. The nervous system demonstrated the most positive effects, including improved psychiatric symptoms from longer-term glycine administration in psychiatric populations. While longer-term glycine administration improved sleep in healthy populations, these studies had small sample sizes with a high risk of bias. Larger and long-term studies with more robust study designs in healthy populations to examine the effects of glycine administration on preventing, delaying or reversing the ageing process are warranted.
Umstieg auf öffentliche Verkehrsmittel und finanzielle Entlastung durch das 9-Euro-Ticket
Authors: Auspurg Katrin , Schmiedeberg Claudia , Bozoyan Christiane , Diekmann Andreas , Thiel Fabian , Best Henning
Published: October 2023

Die Einführung des 9‑Euro-Tickets (9ET) im Sommer 2022 stellte für Politik und Forschung ein aufschlussreiches Realexperiment dar. Wir untersuchen auf Basis von Daten aus einer bundesweiten Online-Befragung im Juli 2022 (1347 Befragte, quotiert), wer das Ticket nachgefragt und wie sich die Mobilität gruppenspezifisch verändert hat. Dabei legen wir den Fokus auf Einkommens- und Stadt-Land-Unterschiede: Wurden insbesondere niedrige Einkommensgruppen durch das 9ET finanziell entlastet? Welche regionalen Unterschiede sind in der Nutzung allgemein und für den Umstieg von motorisiertem Individualverkehr auf den ÖPNV zu beobachten? Inwieweit sind diese Unterschiede durch die in städtischen und ländlichen Regionen unterschiedliche ÖPNV-Infrastruktur bedingt? Unsere Daten zeigen, dass das 9ET von niedrigen Einkommensgruppen etwas und von Bewohnern von Großstädten deutlich häufiger genutzt wurde als von anderen Gruppen. Auch von der Umwandlung von ÖPNV-Zeitkarten in ein günstigeres 9ET und der entsprechenden Kostenerstattung profitierten diese beiden Bevölkerungsgruppen besonders. Der Effekt der Wohnlage bleibt unter statistischer Kontrolle soziodemografischer Variablen bestehen, schwächt sich aber mit Berücksichtigung der Qualität der ÖPNV-Infrastruktur deutlich ab. Neben zusätzlichen Fahrten kam es auch zur Substitution von Autofahrten: Etwa 10 % der Befragten in unserem Sample gaben an, die Pendelstrecke vom Auto (als Verkehrsmittel der Wahl im Mai) mit Gültigkeit des 9ET im Juni auf den ÖPNV umgestellt zu haben. Auch dies betrifft vornehmlich Stadtbewohner, während im ländlichen Raum der schlechtere Ausbau der ÖPNV-Infrastruktur eine Barriere darstellte.
Profile-based latent class distance association analyses for sparse tables:application to the attitude of European citizens towards sustainable tourism
Authors: Bassi Francesca , Vera José Fernando , Marmolejo Martín Juan Antonio
Published: October 2023

Social and behavioural sciences often deal with the analysis of associations for cross-classified data. This paper focuses on the study of the patterns observed on European citizens regarding their attitude towards sustainable tourism, specifically their willingness to change travel and tourism habits to be more sustainable. The data collected the intention to comply with nine sustainable actions; answers to these questions generated individual profiles; moreover, European country belonging is reported. Therefore, unlike a variable-oriented approach, here we are interested in a person-oriented approach through profiles. Some traditional methods are limited in their performance when using profiles, for example, by sparseness of the contingency table. We removed many of these limitations by using a latent class distance association model, clustering the row profiles into classes and representing these together with the categories of the response variable in a low-dimensional space. We showed, furthermore, that an easy interpretation of associations between clusters’ centres and categories of a response variable can be incorporated in this framework in an intuitive way using unfolding. Results of the analyses outlined that citizens mostly committed to an environmentally friendly behavior live in Sweden and Romania; citizens less willing to change their habits towards a more sustainable behavior live in Belgium, Cyprus, France, Lithuania and the Netherlands. Citizens preparedness to change habits however depends also on their socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, age, occupation, type of community where living, household size, and the frequency of travelling before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The use of cameras on commercial deep-water trawls to investigate habitat associations and scampi trawl efficiency in New Zealand scampi Metanephrops challengeri
Authors: McCarthy Alaric , Jeffs Andrew , Ogilvie Shaun , Taylor Dave , Radford John , Tuck Ian
Published: October 2023

This study assessed the effectiveness of using video cameras mounted on commercial trawls for a deep-sea lobster, the New Zealand scampi Metanephrops challengeri, for acquiring information on habitat associations of demersal species and fishing efficiency. Randomly selected frames from 1 h of recording replicated over 12 trawls and conducted over three fisheries management areas (FMA), were analysed for counts of visible scampi, scampi burrows, visible topographical features and visible epifauna and fish taxa. Poisson regression analysis indicated a positive relationship between the distribution of scampi burrows (a proxy of scampi abundance) and conical mounds (formed by bioturbators), but a negative relationship with smooth topography. Counts of scampi burrows were also positively associated with counts of visible scampi for four trawls, while significant relationships were seldom found between counts of scampi burrows and other commonly observed individual taxa. Scampi trawl efficiency was low, with only 56 of the 186 observed scampi (30%) passing over the footrope and into the trawl net. The results confirm the effectiveness of video sampling from commercial trawls to improve our understanding of habitats and fishing efficiency in deep-sea fisheries.
Reaction microkinetic model of xylose dehydration to furfural over beta zeolite catalyst
Authors: Rakić Emilija , Kostyniuk Andrii , Nikačević Nikola , Likozar Blaž
Published: October 2023

In recent decades, there has been a growing interest in bio-refineries as a crucial element in transitioning to a low-carbon economy. One specific aspect of this interest is the conversion of carbohydrates into separate platform chemicals, such as furfural (FUR), which play a significant functional role in various daily life processes. This research paper focuses on investigating the use of a H-beta catalyst with SiO2/Al2O3 = 28 for producing furfural from xylose in water. Various conditions, such as temperature and initial solution concentration, are studied to determine their effect on FUR yield. The highest FUR yield (40 mol.%) is obtained when FUR is the only product species. We also report that about 90% yield from reaction with fresh catalyst can be achieved after catalyst regeneration. The activation energies for the reaction on the catalyst surface are found to be in the range of 38–75 kJ/mol. A mathematical kinetic model with three irreversible steps is derived to estimate the reaction sequence at 160, 180, and 200 °C. The model takes into account mechanisms such as adsorption, desorption, and transport (internal or external). Our results suggest that the H-beta catalyst shows high activity toward FUR yield and could be a promising alternative for mass-scale production of the latter.
Predicting mortality and re-hospitalization for heart failure: a machine-learning and cluster analysis on frailty and comorbidity
Authors: Okoye Chukwuma , Mazzarone Tessa , Niccolai Filippo , Bencivenga Leonardo , Pescatore Giulia , Bianco Maria Giovanna , Guerrini Cinzia , Giusti Andrea , Guarino Daniela , Virdis Agostino
Published: October 2023

Background

Machine-learning techniques have been recently utilized to predict the probability of unfavorable outcomes among elderly patients suffering from heart failure (HF); yet none has integrated an assessment for frailty and comorbidity. This research seeks to determine which machine-learning-based phenogroups that incorporate frailty and comorbidity are most strongly correlated with death or readmission at hospital for HF within six months following discharge from hospital.

Methods

In this single-center, prospective study of a tertiary care center, we included all patients aged 65 and older discharged for acute decompensated heart failure. Random forest analysis and a Cox multivariable regression were performed to determine the predictors of the composite endpoint. By k-means and hierarchical clustering, those predictors were utilized to phenomapping the cohort in four different clusters.

Results

A total of 571 patients were included in the study. Cluster analysis identified four different clusters according to frailty, burden of comorbidities and BNP. As compared with Cluster 4, we found an increased 6-month risk of poor outcomes patients in Cluster 1 (very frail and comorbid; HR 3.53 [95% CI 2.30–5.39]), Cluster 2 (pre-frail with low levels of BNP; HR 2.59 [95% CI 1.66–4.07], and in Cluster 3 (pre-frail and comorbid with high levels of BNP; HR 3.75 [95% CI 2.25–6.27])).

Conclusions

In older patients discharged for ADHF, the cluster analysis identified four distinct phenotypes according to frailty degree, comorbidity, and BNP levels. Further studies are warranted to validate these phenogroups and to guide an appropriate selection of personalized, model of care.
A Novel Approach to Addiction Medicine Education for Undergraduate Medical Students
Authors: Malinowski Robert , Poland Cara , Alan Jamie K. , Walsh Madison O.
Published: October 2023

A virtual addiction medicine elective was developed using interactive multimedia modules, active learning strategies, and patient-based cases. Student had opportunities for professional networking and interacting with physicians and patients. The elective was successful in boosting Year-1 medical students’ confidence to screen, manage, and treat patients with substance abuse disorder.
Multi-criteria decision support system for bridge construction system selection utilizing value engineering and TOPSIS
Authors: ElMarkaby Alaa , Sanad Abdelmonem , Elyamany Ahmed , Yehia Ebtisam
Published: October 2023

When selecting the appropriate bridge deck construction system, it is essential to consider many criteria such as the span length, geographical location, construction speed, cost, site conditions, resource availability, technology, ease of construction, and service life. The objective of this study is to optimize the decision-making process for selecting a bridge deck construction system in the preliminary design and planning stage. The proposed model allows designers or decision-makers to make an informed choice of an appropriate construction system according to project criteria through a decision support system. The model employs value engineering methodology and a multi-criteria decision-making method and utilizes the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), a multi-criteria decision-making method. To gather modeling data from a focus group consisting of professional bridge engineers, a semi-structured interview and two questionnaires are conducted. When applying the proposed model to two active bridge construction projects in Egypt, it reveals that "Span by Span using launching girder" and "precast post tension girder" are better suited to cases one and two, respectively. The study makes a contribution by presenting a decision support system that combines value engineering methodology and a multi-criteria decision-making method (TOPSIS). This system empowers designers and decision-makers to make project decisions considering specific criteria and constraints.
The role of connection with nature in empirical studies with physiological measurements: a systematic literature review
Authors: Gál Vera , Dömötör Zsuzsanna
Published: October 2023

It is well described that exposure to nature reduces physiological stress, and connectedness to nature can have a moderating effect. However, few studies have so far examined the construction of the connection with nature in relation to physiological processes. In this systematic review, we collected studies that used a physiological measure and included a scale to measure connectedness to nature. Our aim was to assess the role of nature relatedness at the level of physiological processes and to summarize the results published so far. Our review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. A literature search was conducted in 3 different databases (PubMed, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar). As keywords, we used all the different questionnaires that measure connectedness to nature, combined with terms related to physiological measures. After final screening, 28 articles met the inclusion criteria for the review. The studies were very diverse in terms of purpose, intervention and methods, so narrative synthesis was conducted without measures of effect. We found evidence for a mediating effect of nature connectedness on the associations between nature exposure and cognitive function, brain activity, blood pressure, cortisol level and mental health. Studies investigating nature relatedness as state-like characteristics have shown that exposure to nature increases the level of connection to nature. Eye-tracking studies have confirmed that this measurement method can be used to investigate nature relatedness at a physiological level, which could be a useful complement to self-report questionnaires in future studies.
Relationship Between Steroid Hormone Profile and Premenstrual Syndrome in Women Consulting for Infertility or Recurrent Miscarriage
Authors: Turner Joseph V. , McLindon Lucas A. , Turner Damien V. , Alefsen Yolaine , Ecochard René
Published: October 2023

To determine the relationships between luteal-phase steroidal hormonal profile and PMS for a large number of women attending a dedicated fertility clinic. This was a retrospective cross-sectional study on women attending a hospital-based clinic for fertility concerns and/or recurrent miscarriage. All participants were assessed with a women’s health questionnaire which also included evaluation of premenstrual symptoms. Day of ovulation was identified based on the peak mucus symptom assessed by the woman after instruction in a fertility awareness-based method (FABM). This enabled reliable timing of luteal-phase serum hormone levels to be taken and analysed. Between 2011 and 2021, 894 of the 2666 women undertaking the women’s health assessment had at least one evaluable serum luteal hormone test. Serum progesterone levels were up to 10 nmol/L lower for symptomatic women compared with asymptomatic women. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05) for the majority of PMS symptoms at ≥ 9 days after the peak mucus symptom. A similar trend was observed for oestradiol but differences were generally not statistically significant. ROC curves demonstrated that steroid levels during the luteal phase were not discriminating in identifying the presence of PMS symptoms. Blood levels for progesterone were lower throughout the luteal phase in women with PMS, with the greatest effect seen late in the luteal phase.
Failure analysis of Incoloy 800 water immersion heating element
Authors: Ibrahim Abdulwahab , MacIntyre Scott
Published: October 2023

Driven by regulations and restrictions of using fossil fuels and reducing carbon dioxide emissions, electrical heating is becoming a good choice for many domestic and industrial applications. High temperature oxidation along with corrosivity of the service environment bring many challenges to heating element designers and service engineers. Many factors, including design, overheating, sheath tube failure, corrosion, and overheating, cause heating elements to fail in use. Failure analysis is one method for enhancing a product's performance, reliability, and design.

In this paper, a metallurgical failure analysis of Incoloy 800 water immersion heating element was conducted. Optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Vickers microhardness (Hv), and X-Ray radiography were used to analyze the different components of the failed item.

Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) was identified as the cause of the failure. The chloride containing water caused the failure to begin by pitting on the Inconel 800 sheath material's outer surface, and then propagated as stress corrosion cracking (SCC).
Numerical modelling of Lamb wave propagation in 2D plate structures
Authors: Pollock L. , Wild G.
Published: October 2023

Lamb waves are a growing method for the Non-Destructive Testing and Evaluation (NDT&E) and structural health monitoring (SHM) of aerospace vehicles. These guided waves can propagate over large distances and have a strong tendency to interact with damage. Whilst several methods exist for the modelling of Lamb wave propagation, this paper is the first to introduce a first principles numerical model that can efficiently and accurately predict the behaviour of Lamb waves. The numerical model is easier to understand and implement compared with analytical solutions and significantly faster than discretised numerical methods. The numerical model is presented in detail for an isotropic and homogenous plate, along with validation against the industry accepted, WaveForm Revealer 3 (WFR3) software. The results show a mean correlation across all assessed parameters of 90.4% and 96.6% for the symmetric and antisymmetric modes, respectively. Further discussion is provided on future developments to the model, including on the topic of high temperature effects, anisotropic materials and edge reflections.
Sex Differences in Obstructive Sleep Apnea after Stroke
Authors: Dharmakulaseelan Laavanya , Black Sandra E. , Swartz Richard H. , Murray Brian J. , Boulos Mark I.
Published: October 2023

Background and Objectives:

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is prevalent after stroke and associated with recurrent stroke, prolonged hospitalization, and decreased functional recovery. Sex differences in post-stroke OSA remain underexplored. The objective of this study was to evaluate sex differences in functional outcomes, stroke and OSA severity, and clinical manifestations of OSA in stroke patients with OSA.

Methods:

We retrospectively evaluated data from three previously conducted studies. Study patients had an imaging-confirmed stroke and had been found to have OSA (apnea–hypopnea index [AHI] ≥ 5) on either in-laboratory polysomnography or home sleep apnea testing performed within 1 year of their stroke. Linear regression models were used to evaluate study outcomes.

Results:

In total, 171 participants with post-stroke OSA (117 males [68.4%] and 54 females [31.6%]) were included. Female sex was an independent predictor for greater functional impairment (β = 0.37, 95% CI 0.029–0.71, p = 0.03), increased stroke severity (β = 1.009, 95% CI 0.032–1.99, p = 0.04), and greater post-stroke depressive symptoms (β = 3.73, 95% CI 0.16–7.29, p = 0.04). Female sex was associated with lower OSA severity, as measured by the AHI (β = –5.93, 95% CI –11.21– –0.66). Sex was not an independent predictor of specific symptoms of OSA such as daytime sleepiness, snoring, tiredness, and observed apneas.

Conclusion:

Females with post-stroke OSA had poorer functional outcomes and more severe strokes compared to males, despite having lower OSA severity. Females with post-stroke OSA also exhibited more depressive symptoms. Understanding sex differences in patients with post-stroke OSA will likely facilitate better recognition of OSA and potentially improve clinical outcomes.
The Foreign Trade of Tabriz: 1800-1900
Authors: Floor Willem
Published: October 2023

Under the early Qajars, Tabriz rose from being a provincial backwater in ruins to the foremost commercial entrepôt of Iran. Initially, its insignificant foreign trade was limited to Turkey (mostly raw Gilani silk), but, when the major commercial southern and western supply routes of Iran became unsafe and costly, trade moved to the northern route. Moreover, after Russia opened its territory to European goods in 1821, these also flowed via Tiflis to Tabriz. When ten years later Russia revoked this permission, the Tiflis trade moved to Tabriz via Trabzon, gradually replacing not only the Tiflis route but also the Istanbul-Erzerum route. This turned Trabzon into a quasi-“Iranian” port, as initially most of its imports were destined for or coming from Iran. Four-fifths of imports to Tabriz were European fabrics. Initially these had come from Russia, but, as of the 1820s, such were replaced by British, German, French, and Swiss fabrics. By mid-century, Manchester fabrics dominated the import trade of Tabriz. Thus, Great Britain took Russia's place as its primary trading partner, although by 1900 the tables had turned. During the majority of the nineteenth century, Caucasian Armenian merchants dominated Tabriz's foreign trade, with European merchants playing an important but limited role in the import of Manchester goods and the export of raw silk. After 1870, the importance of Tabriz as the commercial hub of N.W. Iran decreased, due to various reasons such as the outbreak of the Gilan silk disease, Russia stopping the transit of non-Russian goods, and the opening of the Suez Canal, but also because it became cheaper to import goods via Bushehr and Baghdad-Kermanshah. Nevertheless, even with a diminished role as a financial center and less foreign trade, Tabriz continued to be Iran's major commercial center until WW I.
Thermocapillary dynamics of a surfactant-laden droplet with internal thermal singularity
Authors: Basak Arindam , Lakkaraju Rajaram , Raja Sekhar G.P.
Published: October 2023

Thermocapillary droplets with internal thermal singularities have potential applications in drug delivery and cell analysis. Inspired by the work of Pak et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 753, 2014, pp. 535–552), which was investigated for a surfactant-laden non-deformable droplet in an isothermal Poiseuille flow, we have explored the droplet dynamics by taking account of additional internal thermal singularities, namely monopole and dipole. A generalized mathematical model is developed, which is solved by using the solenoidal decomposition to describe the flow field in any arbitrary Stokes flow, and results are shown extensively for the case of a non-isothermal Poiseuille flow. Under small Péclet number (

$Pe_s$

) limit, the droplet with an off-centred monopole or a dipole oriented along the flow direction shows cross-stream migration at

$O(Pe_s^2)$

. However, a dipole oriented perpendicular to the flow direction results in an

$O(1)$

effect due to thermocapillarity, and from

$O(Pe_s)$

onwards, we observe the combined impact of thermocapillary and surfactant-induced Marangoni stresses. As a surprise, we see cross-stream migration of the droplet from the Poiseuille flow centreline in a non-isothermal field, in contrast to existing findings which rule out any cross-stream migration. We show the trade-off between thermal Marangoni number (

$Ma_T$

) and surfactant Marangoni number (

$Ma_\varGamma$

). Our findings on droplet dynamics inspire new possibilities for microfluidics-based design.
Holocene hydroclimate and dust activity, as reconstructed from the sediments of Lake Bayanchagan, on the northern margin of the East Asian summer monsoon
Authors: Li Wubiao , Jiang Wenying , Yang Shiling , Lin Jie , Wang Yujie
Published: October 2023

The sediments of closed-basin lakes on the margin of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) are valuable archives of past changes in hydroclimate and dust activity and thus potentially can help us to understand future climate changes. We present high-resolution, well-dated records of the grain size and carbonate mineralogy from Lake Bayanchagan, northern China, spanning the last 11.5 ka. Grain-size endmember (EM) analysis distinguished four EMs, each linked to different sediment transport processes. EM1 (0.4–0.6 μm) and EM3 (14–102 μm) reflect the strength of regional dust activity, whereas EM2 (1.3–31 μm) represents variations in local hydrodynamic conditions related to lake-level changes and EM4 (68–500 μm) is associated with local dust activity. Our results show that a high lake level and weakened dust activity occurred during 10–5.8 ka, as indicated by increased EM2 and decreased EM3, respectively. After 5.8 ka, EM2 decreased as the three other EMs increased, and dolomite appeared in the sediments while calcite decreased—indicating both a decline in lake level and strengthened dust activity. The fluctuations in lake level and dust activity are in good agreement with precipitation variations reconstructed from other records, which are in turn correlated to movement of the EASM rainfall belt, in response to temperature changes.
Directors: Older and Wiser, or Too Old to Govern?
Authors: Masulis Ronald , Wang Cong , Xie Fei , Zhang Shuran
Published: October 2023

An unintended consequence of recent governance reforms in the United States is firms’ greater reliance on older director candidates, resulting in noticeable board aging. We investigate this phenomenon’s implications for corporate governance. We document that older independent directors exhibit poorer board meeting attendance, are less likely to serve on or chair key board committees, and receive less shareholder support in annual elections. These directors are associated with weaker board oversight in acquisitions, CEO turnovers, executive compensation, and financial reporting. However, they can also provide particularly valuable advice when they have specialized experience or when firms have greater advisory needs.
Care home co-worker relationships: a key ingredient for care home quality
Authors: Haunch Kirsty , Spilsbury Karen
Published: October 2023

The relationships that care home staff have with their co-workers are a key influence on the way they feel about their work and how they perform in their roles. This has a direct influence on quality of care and life as experienced by residents. However, care home providers face a challenge to promote co-worker relationships because: (a) the care home workforce often lack human resource oversight; (b) registered managers (and nurses), who often lack leadership training, are tasked with managing the working relationships of staff, the majority of whom are care workers of different ages, ethnicity and cultural beliefs; and (c) most (care workers) do not have any formal qualifications and are not routinely provided with the communication skills to facilitate collaborative working in dynamic and pressured climates. In this forum article, we consider these challenges and their implications for collaborative co-worker relationships, before highlighting opportunities for research, policy and practice. An important starting point is to focus on developing the leadership skills of staff at all levels and provide care workers with the skills they require to manage their working relationships and support them in their everyday work for the benefit of residents.
Phenotypes and genotypes in a cohort of children with single-ventricle CHD
Authors: Baker Elizabeth K. , Shikany Amy , Winlaw David S. , Weaver K. Nicole
Published: October 2023

Objective:

CHD is known to be associated with increased risk for neurodevelopmental disorders. The combination of CHD with neurodevelopmental disorders and/or extra-cardiac anomalies increases the chance for an underlying genetic diagnosis. Over the last 15 years, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of broad-scale genetic testing. We sought to determine if neurodevelopmental disorders in children with single-ventricle CHD born prior to the genetic testing revolution are associated with genetic diagnosis.

Methods:

We identified 74 5–12-year-old patients with single-ventricle CHD post-Fontan procedure. We retrospectively evaluated genetic testing performed and neurodevelopmental status of these patients.

Results:

In this cohort, there was an overall higher rate of neurodevelopmental disorders (80%) compared to the literature (50%). More of the younger (5–7-year-old) patients were seen by genetic counsellors compared to the older (8–12-year-old) cohort (46% versus 19% p value = 0.01). In the younger cohort, the average age of initial consultation was 7.7 days compared to 251 days in the older cohort. The overall rate of achieving a molecular diagnosis was 12% and 8% in the younger and older cohorts, respectively; however, the vast majority of did not have broad genetic testing.

Conclusion:

The minority of patients in our cohort achieved a genetic diagnosis. Given a large increase in the number of genes associated with monogenic CHD and neurodevelopmental disorders in the last decade, comprehensive testing and consultation with clinical genetics should be considered in this age range, since current testing standards did not exist during their infancy.
The interaction between the community food environment and cooking skills in association with diet-related outcomes in Dutch adults
Authors: Siddiqui Noreen Z , Pinho Maria GM , Rutters Femke , Beulens Joline WJ , Mackenbach Joreintje D
Published: October 2023

Objective:

We examined whether associations between the food environment, frequency of home cooking, diet quality and BMI were modified by the level of cooking skills.

Design:

Cross-sectional study using linear and modified Poisson regression models adjusted for age, sex, energy intake, education, income, household size and urbanisation. The frequency of home cooking was categorised into <6 and 6–7 d. Diet quality was based on a validated Dutch healthy diet index (0–150 points). Count of restaurants and food stores were determined by their count in a 1000m buffer around home and work. Cooking skills (score 1–5) were assessed using a validated questionnaire and added as interaction term.

Setting:

The Netherlands.

Participants:

1461 adults aged 18–65 years.

Results:

Count of restaurants and food stores were not associated with the frequency of home cooking. A 10-unit higher count of food stores was associated with a higher diet quality (β: 0·58 (95 % CI (0·04, 1·12)), and a 10-unit higher count of restaurants was associated with a lower BMI kg/m2 (β: −0·02 (95 % CI (-0·04, −0·004)). Better cooking skills were associated with a higher likelihood of cooking 6–7 d compared with <6 d (risk ratio: 1·24 (95 % CI (1·16, 1·31)) and a higher diet quality (β: 4·45 (95 % CI (3·27, 5·63)) but not with BMI. We observed no interaction between the food environment and cooking skills (P-for-interaction > 0·1).

Conclusions:

Exposure to food stores was associated with a higher diet quality and exposure to restaurants with a lower BMI. Better cooking skills were associated with a higher frequency of home cooking and better diet quality but did not modify associations with the food environment. Future studies should explore different approaches to understand how individuals interact with their food environment.
In-hospital mortality and cardiovascular treatment during hospitalization for heart failure among patients with schizophrenia: a nationwide cohort study
Authors: Nishi Masahiro , Shikuma Akira , Seki Tomotsugu , Horiguchi Go , Matoba Satoaki
Published: October 2023

Aims

Schizophrenia is associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, and patients with schizophrenia are more likely to receive suboptimal care for CVD. However, there is limited knowledge regarding in-hospital prognosis and quality of care for patients with schizophrenia hospitalized for heart failure (HF). This study sought to elucidate the association between schizophrenia and in-hospital mortality, as well as cardiovascular treatment in patients hospitalized with HF.

Methods

Using the nationwide cardiovascular registry data in Japan, a total of 704,193 patients hospitalized with HF from 2012 to 2019 were included and stratified by age: young age, > 18 to 45 years (n = 20,289); middle age, >45 to 65 years (n = 114,947); and old age, >65 to 85 years (n = 568,957). All and 30-day in-hospital mortality as well as prescription of cardiovascular medications were assessed. After multiple imputation for missing values, mixed-effect multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed using patient and hospital characteristics with hospital identifier as a variable with random effects.

Results

Patients with schizophrenia were more likely to experience prolonged hospital stays, and incur higher hospitalization costs. In-hospital mortality for non-elderly patients with schizophrenia was significantly worse than for those without schizophrenia: the mortality rate was 7.6% vs 3.5% and the adjusted odds ratio (OR) was 1.96 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.24–3.10, P = 0.0037) in young adult patients; 6.2% vs 4.0% and 1.49 (95% CI: 1.17–1.88, P < 0.001) in middle-aged patients. Thirty-day in-hospital mortality was significantly worse in middle-aged patients: the mortality rate was 4.7% vs 3.0% and an adjusted OR was 1.40 (95% CI: 1.07–1.83, P = 0.012). In-hospital mortality in elderly patients did not differ between those with and without schizophrenia. Prescriptions of beta-blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers were significantly lower in patients with schizophrenia across all age groups.

Conclusion

Schizophrenia was identified as a risk factor for in-hospital mortality and reduced prescription of cardioprotective medications in non-elderly patients hospitalized with HF. These findings highlight the necessity for differentiated care and management of HF in patients with severe mental illnesses.
Bewegung als Neuromodulator: Wie körperliche Aktivität die Physiologie der adoleszenten Depression reguliert
Authors: Wunram Heidrun Lioba , Kasparbauer Anna-Maria , Oberste Max , Bender Stephan
Published: October 2023

Zusammenfassung: In der Behandlung der adoleszenten Depression gewinnt körperliche Aktivität aufgrund der Auswirkungen auf die Neuropathologie an Bedeutung. Aktuelle wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnisse zeigen, dass körperliches Training auf die biologischen Auswirkungen von Depression im Jugendalter einwirkt. Neben psychosozialen und genetischen Einflüssen werden verschiedene neurobiologische Faktoren diskutiert. Eine Störung der Hypothalamus-Hypophysen-Nebennieren-Achse (HHN-Achse) mit einer anhaltend erhöhten Konzentration von Kortisol gehört zu den Erklärungsmodellen. Neuere Studien sehen neuroimmunologische Prozesse und eine verminderte Konzentration an Wachstumsfaktoren als ursächlich. Diese Veränderungen könnten sowohl zu einem Ungleichgewicht in der Erregungs- und Hemmungsbalance der Hirnrinde führen als auch hirnmorphologische Veränderungen bedingen. Regelmäßiges körperliches Training scheint der Dysregulation der HHN-Achse entgegenzuwirken und die Kortisolspiegel zu normalisieren. Die Freisetzung von pro-inflammatorischen Zytokinen wird gehemmt und die Expression von Wachstumsfaktoren zur Neurogenese im adulten Gehirn angeregt. Mit der Gestaltung des sportlichen Trainings (Ausdauer- oder Kraftsport, Gruppen- oder Einzelsport, Häufigkeit, Dauer, Intensität), sollte erreicht werden, dass biologische und psychosoziale Faktoren synergistisch zusammenwirken. Diese offenen Fragen gilt es zu lösen, wenn es um die Integration sportlicher Aktivität in die Leitlinien zur Behandlung depressiver Störungen bei Kindern und Jugendlichen geht.
Frontiers in Satellite‐Based Estimates of Cloud‐Mediated Aerosol Forcing
Authors: Rosenfeld Daniel , Kokhanovsky Alexander , Goren Tom , Gryspeerdt Edward , Hasekamp Otto , Jia Hailing , Lopatin Anton , Quaas Johannes , Pan Zengxin , Sourdeval Odran
Published: October 2023

Atmospheric aerosols affect the Earth's climate in many ways, including acting as the seeds on which cloud droplets form. Since a large fraction of these particles is anthropogenic, the clouds' microphysical and radiative characteristics are influenced by human activity on a global scale leading to important climatic effects. The respective change in the energy budget at the top of the atmosphere is defined as the effective radiative forcing due to aerosol‐cloud interaction (ERFaci). It is estimated that the ERFaci offsets presently nearly 1/4 of the greenhouse‐induced warming, but the uncertainty is within a factor of two. A common method to calculate the ERFaci is by the multiplication of the susceptibility of the cloud radiative effect to changes in aerosols by the anthropogenic change of the aerosol concentration. This has to be done by integrating it over all cloud regimes. Here we review the various methods of the ERFaci estimation. Global measurements require satellites' global coverage. The challenge of quantifying aerosol amounts in cloudy atmospheres are met with the rapid development of novel methodologies reviewed here. The aerosol characteristics can be retrieved from space based on their optical properties, including polarization. The concentrations of the aerosols that serve as cloud drop condensation nuclei can be also estimated from their impact on the satellite‐retrieved cloud drop number concentrations. These observations are critical for reducing the uncertainty in the ERFaci calculated from global climate models (GCMs), but further development is required to allow GCMs to properly simulate and benefit these novel observables.
The Ethics of Volcano Geoengineering
Authors: Cassidy Michael , Sandberg Anders , Mani Lara
Published: October 2023

Volcano geoengineering is the practice of altering the state of volcanic systems and/or volcanic eruptions to exploit them or mitigate their risk. Although many in the field insist there is little that can be done to mitigate the hazard, past examples of both intentional and inadvertent volcano interventions demonstrate that it is technically feasible to reach volcano plumbing systems or alter atmospheric processes following eruptions. Furthermore, we suggest that economical, political, and environmental pressures may make such interventions more common in the future. If volcano geoengineering ever becomes a discipline, it will need to overcome many safety and ethical concerns, including dealing with uncertainty, deciding on philosophical approaches such as a consequentialism or precautionary principle, justice and inequality, military uses, cultural values, and communication. We highlight that while volcano geoengineering has significant potential benefits, the risks and uncertainties are too great to justify its use in the short term. Despite this, because of the potential large benefits to society, we believe there is a strong ethical case to support research into the efficacy and safety of volcano geoengineering for its potential future use. We propose that rigorous governance and regulation of any volcano geoengineering is required to protect against potential risks, to enable potentially valuable and publicly available research (e.g., quantification of efficacy and safety), to ensure that any future policy must be co‐created through community engagement, and that volcano geoengineering should only be considered as part of larger mitigation practices.
Computing Geographical Networks Generated by Air‐Mass Movement
Authors: Richard H. , Martinetti D. , Lercier D. , Fouillat Y. , Hadi B. , Elkahky M. , Ding J. , Michel L. , Morris C. E. , Berthier K. , Maupas F. , Soubeyrand S.
Published: October 2023

As air masses move within the troposphere, they transport a multitude of components including gases and particles such as pollen and microorganisms. These movements generate atmospheric highways that connect geographic areas at distant, local, and global scales that particles can ride depending on their aerodynamic properties and their reaction to environmental conditions. In this article we present an approach and an accompanying web application called tropolink for measuring the extent to which distant locations are potentially connected by air‐mass movement. This approach is based on the computation of trajectories of air masses with the HYSPLIT atmospheric transport and dispersion model, and on the computation of connection frequencies, called connectivities, in the purpose of building trajectory‐based geographical networks. It is illustrated for different spatial and temporal scales with three case studies related to plant epidemiology. The web application that we designed allows the user to easily perform intensive computation and mobilize massive archived gridded meteorological data to build weighted directed networks. The analysis of such networks allowed us for example, to describe the potential of invasion of a migratory pest beyond its actual distribution. Our approach could also be used to compute geographical networks generated by air‐mass movement for diverse application domains, for example, to assess long‐term risk of spread from persistent or recurrent sources of pollutants, including wildfire smoke.