bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Family Perspectives on the Complexities of Pursuing Integrated Employment for Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Authors: Carter Erik W. , Lanchak Emily R. , Guest Laura , McMillan Elise D. , Taylor Julie Lounds , Fleming Laurie P. , Dao Anh
Published: April 2023

The road to employment is not often easy for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Families know firsthand the complexities and challenges of obtaining employment for their members with extensive support needs. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the critical barriers they encounter in this important pursuit. We interviewed 60 parents (and other caregivers) whose family members with intellectual disability and/or autism had sought and/or obtained paid work. The difficulties they described were extensive and multifaceted. Specifically, participants identified 64 different barriers attributed to six primary areas: individuals, families, schools, service systems, workplaces, and communities. Their unique insights amplify the need for new approaches for promoting integrated employment. We offer recommendations for research and practice aimed at better understanding and ameliorating barriers to meaningful work for adults with IDD.
Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire in Children and Adults With Rett Syndrome: Psychometric Characterization and Revised Factor Structure
Authors: Oberman Lindsay M. , Leonard Helen , Downs Jenny , Cianfaglione Rina , Stahlhut Michelle , Larsen Jane L. , Madden Katherine V. , Kaufmann Walter E.
Published: April 2023

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder associated with multiple neurobehavioral abnormalities. The Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire (RSBQ) was developed for pediatric RTT observational studies. Because its application has expanded to adult and interventional studies, we evaluated the RSBQ's psychometric properties in six pediatric (n = 323) and five adult (n = 309) datasets. Total and General Mood subscale scores had good reliability. Clinical severity had no influence on RSBQ scores. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses yielded 6 pediatric and 7 adult clinically relevant and psychometrically strong factors including the original Breathing Problems and Fear/Anxiety subscales and the novel Emotional and Disruptive Behavior subscale composed of items from the original General Mood and Nighttime Behaviours subscales. The present findings support additional evaluations and improvements of an important RTT behavioral measure.
Distributed temperature sensors operating at 840  nm for short-range sensing applications
Authors: Silva Luís C. B. , Segatto Marcelo E. V.
Published: April 2023

Raman-based distributed temperature sensor (RDTS) devices have grown
dramatically over the past two decades, partially driving the optical
sensor industry. Over nearly four decades, most academic
investigations about RDTS have focused on developing distributed
sensor devices operating at the wavelength of 1550 nm, given
the low loss of standard single-mode fibers in this spectral region.
Certainly, the wavelength of 1550 nm is ideal for long-range
sensing applications. However, at this wavelength, the signal-to-noise
ratio (SNR) of RDTS systems is degraded, given the low intensity of
the measured signals. Looking for simple solutions to improve the SNR
of this sensing technology, we discuss in this paper an RDTS operating
at the spectral region of 840 nm as an alternative for
short-range distributed temperature sensing applications delivering an
improved SNR.
Practical guide for setting up a Fourier light-field microscope
Authors: Yun H. , Saavedra G. , Garcia-Sucerquia J. , Tolosa A. , Martinez-Corral M. , Sanchez-Ortiga E.
Published: April 2023

A practical guide for the easy implementation of a Fourier light-field
microscope is reported. The Fourier light-field concept applied to
microscopy allows the capture in real time of a series of 2D
orthographic images of microscopic thick dynamic samples. Such
perspective images contain spatial and angular information of the
light-field emitted by the sample. A feature of this technology is the
tight requirement of a double optical conjugation relationship, and
also the requirement of NA matching. For these reasons, the Fourier
light-field microscope being a non-complex optical system, a clear
protocol on how to set up the optical elements accurately is needed.
In this sense, this guide is aimed to simplify the implementation
process, with an optical bench and off-the-shelf components. This will
help the widespread use of this recent technology.
Temporal focusing multiphoton microscopy with cross-modality multi-stage 3D U-Net for fast and clear bioimaging
Authors: Hu Yvonne Yuling , Hsu Chia-Wei , Tseng Yu-Hao , Lin Chun-Yu , Chiang Hsueh-Cheng , Chiang Ann-Shyn , Chang Shin-Tsu , Chen Shean-Jen
Published: April 2023

Temporal focusing multiphoton excitation microscopy (TFMPEM) enables fast widefield biotissue imaging with optical sectioning. However, under widefield illumination, the imaging performance is severely degraded by scattering effects, which induce signal crosstalk and a low signal-to-noise ratio in the detection process, particularly when imaging deep layers. Accordingly, the present study proposes a cross-modality learning-based neural network method for performing image registration and restoration. In the proposed method, the point-scanning multiphoton excitation microscopy images are registered to the TFMPEM images by an unsupervised U-Net model based on a global linear affine transformation process and local VoxelMorph registration network. A multi-stage 3D U-Net model with a cross-stage feature fusion mechanism and self-supervised attention module is then used to infer in-vitro fixed TFMPEM volumetric images. The experimental results obtained for in-vitro drosophila mushroom body (MB) images show that the proposed method improves the structure similarity index measures (SSIMs) of the TFMPEM images acquired with a 10-ms exposure time from 0.38 to 0.93 and 0.80 for shallow- and deep-layer images, respectively. A 3D U-Net model, pretrained on in-vitro images, is further trained using a small in-vivo MB image dataset. The transfer learning network improves the SSIMs of in-vivo drosophila MB images captured with a 1-ms exposure time to 0.97 and 0.94 for shallow and deep layers, respectively.
Functional visual tests to evaluate the effect of small astigmatism correction with toric contact lenses
Authors: Gil Pedro , Farcas Alexandra , Benito Antonio , Tabernero Juan
Published: April 2023

The prescription of daily contact lenses does not often include a full astigmatic correction. We question here whether this full astigmatic correction (for low to moderate astigmatism) provides a substantial improvement in the overall visual performance compared to a more conservative approach based only on the prescription of spherical contact lenses. The visual performance of 56 contact lens neophytes divided in two contact lens fitting groups (toric versus spherical lens fit) was assessed using standard visual acuity and contrast sensitivity tests. A new set of functional tests simulating everyday tasks was also used. Results showed that subjects with toric lenses had significantly better visual acuity and contrast sensitivity than those with spherical lenses. Functional tests did not render significant differences between groups, which was explained by several factors like i) the visual demand of the functional tests, ii) the dynamic blur due to misalignments and iii) small misfits between the available and measured axis of the astigmatic contact lens.
Study of transient behaviors of wavefront error caused by natural convection for improving mirror seeing
Authors: Huang Shanjie , Wang Lingxue , Hu Xu , Yuan Shouzhang , Xu Fangyu , Zhao Jinsong , Cai Yi
Published: April 2023

Astronomical seeing parameters calculated based on the Kolmogorov turbulence model cannot fully evaluate the effect of the natural convection (NC) above a solar telescope mirror on the image quality, as the convective air motions and temperature variations of the NC are significantly different from the Kolmogorov turbulence. In this work, a new method based on the transient behaviors and frequency characteristics of NC-related wavefront error (WFE) are investigated in detail and used to evaluate the image quality degradation caused by a heated telescope mirror, aiming to make up for the deficiency of astronomical seeing parameters with the conventional method in evaluating the image quality degradation. Transient computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations and WFE calculations based on discrete sampling and ray segmentation are performed to quantitatively evaluate the transient behaviors of the NC-related WFE. It clearly exhibits apparent oscillatory characteristics, which are coupled by main oscillation with low frequencies and minor oscillation with high frequencies. Moreover, the generation mechanisms of two types of oscillations are studied. The conspicuous oscillation frequencies of the main oscillation caused by heated telescope mirrors with varying dimensions are primarily lower than 1 Hz, suggesting that active optics may be adopted to correct the main oscillation of NC-related WFE while the adaptive optics may correct the minor oscillation. Furthermore, a mathematical relationship between WFE, temperature rise, and mirror diameter is derived, revealing a significant correlation between WFE and mirror diameter. Our work suggests the transient NC-related WFE should be considered as one of the critical supplements to the mirror seeing evaluation.
Hybrid-integrated wideband tunable optoelectronic oscillator
Authors: Zhang Guojie , Hao Tengfei , Cen Qizhuang , Li Mingjian , Shi Nuannuan , Li Wei , Xiao Xi , Qi Nan , Dong Jianji , Dai Yitang , Zhu Ninghua , Li Ming
Published: April 2023

As a photonic-based microwave signal generation method, the optoelectronic oscillator (OEO) has the potential of meeting the increasing demand of practical applications for high frequency, broadband tunability and ultra-low phase noise. However, conventional OEO systems implemented with discrete optoelectronic devices have a bulky size and low reliability, which extremely limits their practical applications. In this paper, a hybrid-integrated wideband tunable OEO with low phase noise is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The proposed hybrid integrated OEO achieves a high integration level by first integrating a laser chip with a silicon photonic chip, and then connecting the silicon photonic chip with electronic chips through wire-bonding to microstrip lines. A compact fiber ring and an yttrium iron garnet filter are also adopted for high-Q factor and frequency tuning, respectively. The integrated OEO exhibits a low phase noise of -128.04 dBc/Hz @ 10 kHz for an oscillation frequency of 10 GHz. A wideband tuning range from 3 GHz to 18 GHz is also obtained, covering the entire C, X, and Ku bands. Our work demonstrates an effective way to achieve compact high-performance OEO based on hybrid integration, and has great potential in a wide range of applications such as modern radar, wireless communication, and electronic warfare systems.
Estimation of chromophoric dissolved organic matter and non-algal particulate absorption coefficients of seawater in the ultraviolet by extrapolation from the visible spectral region
Authors: Kehrli Matthew D. , Stramski Dariusz , Reynolds Rick A. , Joshi Ishan D.
Published: April 2023

Extending the capabilities of optical remote sensing and inverse optical algorithms, which have been commonly focused on the visible (VIS) range of the electromagnetic spectrum, to derive the optical properties of seawater in the ultraviolet (UV) range is important to advancing the understanding of various optical, biological, and photochemical processes in the ocean. In particular, existing remote-sensing reflectance models that derive the total spectral absorption coefficient of seawater, a(λ), and absorption partitioning models that partition a(λ) into the component absorption coefficients of phytoplankton, aph(λ), non-algal (depigmented) particles, ad(λ), and chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM), ag(λ), are restricted to the VIS range. We assembled a quality-controlled development dataset of hyperspectral measurements of ag(λ) (N = 1294) and ad(λ) (N = 409) spanning a wide range of values across various ocean basins, and evaluated several extrapolation methods to extend ag(λ), ad(λ), and adg(λ) ≡ ag(λ) + ad(λ) into the near-UV spectral region by examining different sections of the VIS as a basis for extrapolation, different extrapolation functions, and different spectral sampling intervals of input data in the VIS. Our analysis determined the optimal method to estimate ag(λ) and adg(λ) at near-UV wavelengths (350 to 400 nm) which relies on an exponential extrapolation of data from the 400–450 nm range. The initial ad(λ) is obtained as a difference between the extrapolated estimates of adg(λ) and ag(λ). Additional correction functions based on the analysis of differences between the extrapolated and measured values in the near-UV were defined to obtain improved final estimates of ag(λ) and ad(λ) and then the final estimates of adg(λ) as a sum of final ag(λ) and ad(λ). The extrapolation model provides very good agreement between the extrapolated and measured data in the near-UV when the input data in the blue spectral region are available at 1 or 5 nm spectral sampling intervals. There is negligible bias between the modeled and measured values of all three absorption coefficients and the median absolute percent difference (MdAPD) is small, e.g., < 5.2% for ag(λ) and < 10.5% for ad(λ) at all near-UV wavelengths when evaluated with the development dataset. Assessment of the model on an independent dataset of concurrent ag(λ) and ad(λ) measurements (N = 149) yielded similar findings with only slight reduction of performance and MdAPD remaining below 6.7% for ag(λ) and 11% for ad(λ). These results are promising for integration of the extrapolation method with absorption partitioning models operating in the VIS.
Development of periodically concentric rings within microcavity upon femtosecond laser irradiation
Authors: Li Ruiyan , Zou Tingting , Li Xiuyun , Yu Zhi , Yang Jianjun
Published: April 2023

Understanding the formation mechanisms of the nanostructures and their designs has important implications for both the fundamental science and application prospects. In this study, we proposed a strategy for femtosecond laser-induced high regularity concentric rings within silicon microcavity. The morphology of the concentric rings can be flexibly modulated by the pre-fabricated structures and the laser parameters. The physics involved is deeply explored by the Finite-Difference-Time-Domain simulations, which reveals that the formation mechanism can be attributed to the near-field interference of the incident laser and the scattering light from the pre-fabricated structures. Our results provide a new method for creating the designable periodic surface structures.
420 Gbit/s optical signal reception enabled by an inductive gain peaking Ge-Si photodetector with 80 GHz bandwidth
Authors: Hu Xiao , Wu Dingyi , Liu Ye , Liu Min , Chen Daigao , Wang Lei , Xiao Xi , Yu Shaohua
Published: April 2023

Based on the commercial silicon photonics (SiPh) process platform, a flat 3 dB bandwidth of 80 GHz germanium-silicon (Ge-Si) photodetector (PD) is experimentally demonstrated at a photocurrent of 0.8 mA. This outstanding bandwidth performance is achieved by using the gain peaking technique. It permits an 95% improvement in bandwidth without sacrificing responsivity and undesired effects. The peaked Ge-Si PD shows the external responsivity of 0.5 A/W and internal responsivity of 1.0 A/W at a wavelength of 1550 nm under -4 V bias voltage. The high-speed large signal reception capability of the peaked PD is comprehensively explored. Under the same transmitter state, the transmitter dispersion eye closure quaternary (TDECQ) penalties of the 60 and 90 Gbaud four-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM-4) eye diagrams are about 2.33 and 2.76 dB, 1.68 and 2.45 dB for the un-peaked and peaked Ge-Si PD, respectively. When the reception speed increase to 100 and 120 Gbaud PAM-4, the TDECQ penalties are approximatively 2.53 and 3.99 dB. However, for the un-peaked PD, its TDECQ penalties cannot be calculated by oscilloscope. We also measure the bit error rate (BER) performances of the un-peaked and peaked Ge-Si PDs under different speed and optical power. For the peaked PD, the eye diagrams quality of 156 Gbit/s nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ), 145 Gbaud PAM-4, and 140 Gbaud eight-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM-8) are as good as the 70 GHz Finisar PD. To the best of our knowledge, we report for the first-time a peaked Ge-Si PD operating at 420 Gbit/s per lane in an intensity modulation direct-detection (IM/DD) system. It might be also a potential solution to support the 800 G coherent optical receivers.
Detecting the steerability through an optimized steering criterion in two-photon systems
Authors: Fan Xiao-Gang , Zhao Fa , Yang Huan , Ding Zhi-Yong , Wang Dong , Ye Liu
Published: April 2023

The steerability of a quantum state can be detected by steering inequalities. The linear steering inequalities show that more steerable states can be discovered with the increase of measurements. In order to detect more steerable states in two-photon systems, we first theoretically derive an optimized steering criterion based on infinity measurements for an arbitrary two-qubit state. The steering criterion is only determined by the spin correlation matrix of the state, and do not require infinity measurements. Then, we prepared the Werner-like states in two-photon systems, and measure their spin correlation matrices. Finally, we apply three steering criteria, which include our steering criterion, the three-measurement steering criterion and the geometric Bell-like inequality, to distinguish the steerability of these states. The results show that our steering criterion can detect the most steerable states under the same experimental conditions. Thus, our work provides a valuable reference for detecting the steerability of quantum states.
Freestanding narrowband terahertz filters based on aluminum foil
Authors: Shi Lili , Chi Tianyuan , Su Runfeng , Zang Siming , Yao Shiyi , Fan Kebin , Tu Xuecou , Zhang Caihong , Wu Jingbo , Jin Biaobing , Chen Jian , Wu Peiheng
Published: April 2023

Terahertz (THz) filters with high transmission coefficient (T) in the passband and frequency selectivity are critical in numerous applications such as astronomical detection and next-generation wireless communication. Freestanding bandpass filters eliminate the Fabry–Pérot effect of substrate, thus providing a promising choice for cascaded THz metasurfaces. However, the freestanding bandpass filters (BPFs) using the traditional fabrication process are costly and fragile. Here, we demonstrate a methodology to fabricate THz BPFs using aluminum (Al) foils. We designed a series of filters with center frequencies below 2 THz and manufacture them on 2-inch Al foils with various thicknesses. By optimizing the geometry, T of the filter at the center frequency is over 92%, and the relative full-width half maxima (FWHM) is as narrow as 9%. The responses of BPFs show that “cross-shaped” structures are insensitive to the polarization direction. The simple and low-cost fabrication process of the freestanding BPFs promise their widespread applications in THz systems.
Fixed-time observer-based tracking controller for a hysteretic piezoelectric deformable mirror of an adaptive optic system
Authors: Mahzounieh Ali , Koofigar Hamid reza , Fallah Hamidreza
Published: April 2023

Piezoelectric deformable mirrors (DM) are benefited from the high accuracy and swift dynamics. The hysteresis phenomenon, which inherently exists in piezoelectric materials, degrades the capability and precision of the adaptive optics (AO) systems. Also, the dynamics of piezoelectric DMs make the controller design more complicated. This research aims to design a fixed-time observer-based tracking controller (FTOTC), which estimates the dynamics, compensates the hysteresis, and ensures tracking to the actuator displacement reference, in the fixed time. Unlike the existing inverse hysteresis operator-based methods, the proposed observer-based controller overcomes the computational burdens and estimates the hysteresis in real-time. The proposed controller tracks the reference displacements, while the tracking error converges in the fixed time. The stability proof is presented by two consecutive theorems. Numerical simulations demonstrate superior tracking and hysteresis compensation by the presented method, from a comparison viewpoint.
Enhancing underwater VLC with spatial division transmission and pairwise coding
Authors: Wang Jiwei , Chen Chen , Deng Bohua , Wang Zhaoming , Liu Min , Fu H. Y.
Published: April 2023

In this paper, we propose and evaluate two spatial division transmission (SDT) schemes, including spatial division diversity (SDD) and spatial division multiplexing (SDM), for underwater visible light communication (UVLC) systems. Moreover, three pairwise coding (PWC) schemes, including two one-dimensional PWC (1D-PWC) schemes, i.e., subcarrier PWC (SC-PWC) and spatial channel PWC (SCH-PWC), and one two-dimensional PWC (2D-PWC) scheme are further applied for signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) imbalance mitigation in the UVLC systems using SDD and SDM with orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) modulation. The feasibility and superiority of applying SDD and SDM with various PWC schemes in a practical bandlimited two-channel OFDM-based UVLC system have been verified through both numerical simulations and hardware experiments. The obtained results show that the performance of SDD and SDM schemes are largely determined by both the overall SNR imbalance and the system spectral efficiency. Moreover, the experimental results demonstrate the robustness of SDM with 2D-PWC against bubble turbulence. Specifically, SDM with 2D-PWC can obtain bit error rates (BERs) under the 7% forward error correction (FEC) coding limit of 3.8 × 10−3 with a probability higher than 96% for a signal bandwidth of 70 MHz and a spectral efficiency of 8 bits/s/Hz, achieving an overall data rate of 560 Mbits/s.
Dissipative soliton resonance in a figure-eight multimode fiber laser
Authors: Zhao Bang , Zhao Tian-Xu , Liu Guang-Xin , Zhao Nan , Cui Hu , Luo Zhi-Chao , Xu Wen-Cheng , Luo Ai-Ping
Published: April 2023

We report, for the first time to the best of our knowledge, a spatiotemporal mode-locked (STML) multimode fiber laser based on nonlinear amplifying loop mirror (NALM), generating dissipative soliton resonance (DSR) pulses. Due to the complex filtering characteristics caused by the inherent multimode interference filtering structure and NALM in the cavity, the STML DSR pulse has wavelength tunable function. What’s more, kinds of DSR pulses are also achieved, including multiple DSR pulses, and the period doubling bifurcations of single DSR pulse and multiple DSR pulses. These results contribute to further understand the nonlinear properties of STML lasers and may shed some light on improving the performance of the multimode fiber lasers.
Unmanned-aerial-vehicle based optical camera communication system using light-diffusing fiber and rolling-shutter image-sensor
Authors: Chang Yun-Han , Tsai Shang-Yen , Chow Chi-Wai , Wang Chih-Chun , Tsai Deng-Cheng , Liu Yang , Yeh Chien-Hung
Published: April 2023

We put forward and demonstrate a light-diffusing fiber equipped unmanned-aerial-vehicle (UAV) to provide a large field-of-view (FOV) optical camera communication (OCC) system. The light-diffusing fiber can act as a bendable, lightweight, extended and large FOV light source for the UAV-assisted optical wireless communication (OWC). During UAV flying, the light-diffusing fiber light source could be tilted or bended; hence, offering large FOV as well as supporting large receiver (Rx) tilting angle are particularly important for the UAV-assisted OWC systems. To improve the transmission capacity of the OCC system, one method based on the camera shutter mechanism, which is known as rolling-shuttering is utilized. The rolling-shuttering method makes use of the feature of complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to extract signal pixel-row by pixel-row. The data rate can be significantly increased since the capture start time for each pixel-row is different. As the light-diffusing fiber is thin and occupies only a few pixels in the CMOS image frame, Long-short-term-memory neural-network (LSTM-NN) is used to enhance the rolling-shutter decoding. Experimental results show that the light-diffusing fiber can satisfactorily act as an “omnidirectional optical antenna” providing wide FOVs and 3.6 kbit/s can be achieved, accomplishing the pre-forward error correction bit-error-rate (pre-FEC BER = 3.8 × 10−3).
Discrete frequency-bin entanglement generation via cascaded second-order nonlinear processes in Sagnac interferometer
Authors: Li Jiarui , Yuan Chenzhi , Shen Si , Zhang Zichang , Zhang Ruiming , Li Hao , Wang You , Deng Guangwei , You Lixing , Wang Zhen , Song Haizhi , Fan Yunru , Guo Guangcan , Zhou Qiang
Published: April 2023

Discrete frequency-bin entanglement is an essential resource for applications in quantum information processing. In this Letter, we propose and demonstrate a scheme to generate discrete frequency-bin entanglement with a single piece of periodically poled lithium niobate waveguide in a modified Sagnac interferometer. Correlated two-photon states in both directions of the Sagnac interferometer are generated through cascaded second-order optical nonlinear processes. A relative phase difference between the two states is introduced by changing the polarization state of pump light, thus manipulating the two-photon state at the output of the Sagnac interferometer. The generated two-photon state is sent into a fiber polarization splitter, and then a pure discrete frequency-bin entangled two-photon state is obtained by setting the pump light. The frequency entanglement property is measured by a spatial quantum beating with a visibility of 96.0±6.1%. The density matrix is further obtained with a fidelity of 98.0±3.0% to the ideal state. Our demonstration provides a promising method for the generation of pure discrete frequency-bin entanglement at the telecom band, which is desired in quantum photonics.
Opto-thermoelectric trapping of fluorescent nanodiamonds on plasmonic nanostructures
Authors: Shukla Ashutosh , Tiwari Sunny , Majumder Ayan , Saha Kasturi , Pavan Kumar G. V.
Published: April 2023

Deterministic optical manipulation of fluorescent nanodiamonds (FNDs) in fluids has emerged as an experimental challenge in multimodal biological imaging. Designing and developing nano-optical trapping strategies to serve this purpose is an important task. In this Letter, we show how chemically prepared gold nanoparticles and silver nanowires can facilitate an opto-thermoelectric force to trap individual entities of FNDs using a long working distance lens, low power-density illumination (532-nm laser, 12 µW/µm2). Our trapping configuration combines the thermoplasmonic fields generated by individual plasmonic nanoparticles and the opto-thermoelectric effect facilitated by the surfactant to realize a nano-optical trap down to a single FND that is 120 nm in diameter. We use the same trapping excitation source to capture the spectral signatures of single FNDs and track their position. By tracking the FND, we observe the differences in the dynamics of the FND around different plasmonic structures. We envisage that our drop-casting platform can be extrapolated to perform targeted, low-power trapping, manipulation, and multimodal imaging of FNDs inside biological systems such as cells.
High-performance long-distance discrete-modulation continuous-variable quantum key distribution
Authors: Tian Yan , Zhang Yu , Liu Shuaishuai , Wang Pu , Lu Zhenguo , Wang Xuyang , Li Yongmin
Published: April 2023

We experimentally demonstrate a high-rate discretely modulated continuous-variable quantum key distribution over 80-km standard single-mode fiber with a 2.5 Gbaud, 16-symbol, two-ring constellation. With the help of well-designed digital signal processing algorithms, the excess noise of the system can be effectively suppressed. The achieved secret key rates are 49.02 Mbits/s, 11.86 Mbits/s, and 2.11 Mbits/s over 25-km, 50-km, and 80-km optical fiber, respectively, and achieve 67.4%, 70.0%, and 66.5% of the secret key rate performance of a Gaussian-modulated protocol. Our work shows that it is feasible to build a high-performance, long-distance continuous-variable quantum key distribution system with only a small constellation size.
Near-unity broadband infrared absorption in a graphene-black phosphorus bimodal triple-layer structure
Authors: Feng Naixing , Wang Xuan , Zhang Yuxian , Hong Binbin , Yang Lixia , Huang Zhixiang , Joines William T.
Published: April 2023

It is well known that both graphene and monolayer black phosphorus (BP) can excite and generate surface plasmonic resonances in the infrared spectrum, providing suitable conditions for strong light-matter interactions. To take full advantage of this benefit, a three-layered infrared absorbing structure with broadband absorption effect based on a hybrid graphene-BP metamaterial was developed. Using numerical research methods, the absorption effect of the structure could be well modulated by adjusting the geometrical parameters of the structure and the doping levels of graphene and BP. In addition, the sensitivity of the structure to the angle of incidence is also investigated. By optimizing the previous parameters, the structure achieves an absorption of more than 87.5% in the wavelength range from 10.1 to 24.5 um and a maximum absorption of 99.97%. The proposed broadband infrared structure could have many potential applications in infrared sensing, bio-imaging and environmental monitoring.
Personalized prediction of the secondary oocytes number after ovarian stimulation: A machine learning model based on clinical and genetic data
Authors: Zieliński Krystian , Pukszta Sebastian , Mickiewicz Małgorzata , Kotlarz Marta , Wygocki Piotr , Zieleń Marcin , Drzewiecka Dominika , Drzyzga Damian , Kloska Anna , Jakóbkiewicz-Banecka Joanna
Published: April 2023

Controlled ovarian stimulation is tailored to the patient based on clinical parameters but estimating the number of retrieved metaphase II (MII) oocytes is a challenge. Here, we have developed a model that takes advantage of the patient’s genetic and clinical characteristics simultaneously for predicting the stimulation outcome. Sequence variants in reproduction-related genes identified by next-generation sequencing were matched to groups of various MII oocyte counts using ranking, correspondence analysis, and self-organizing map methods. The gradient boosting machine technique was used to train models on a clinical dataset of 8,574 or a clinical-genetic dataset of 516 ovarian stimulations. The clinical-genetic model predicted the number of MII oocytes better than that based on clinical data. Anti-Müllerian hormone level and antral follicle count were the two most important predictors while a genetic feature consisting of sequence variants in the GDF9, LHCGR, FSHB, ESR1, and ESR2 genes was the third. The combined contribution of genetic features important for the prediction was over one-third of that revealed for anti-Müllerian hormone. Predictions of our clinical-genetic model accurately matched individuals’ actual outcomes preventing over- or underestimation. The genetic data upgrades the personalized prediction of ovarian stimulation outcomes, thus improving the in vitro fertilization procedure.
A high-frequency mobility big-data reveals how COVID-19 spread across professions, locations and age groups
Authors: Zhao Chen , Zhang Jialu , Hou Xiaoyue , Yeung Chi Ho , Zeng An
Published: April 2023

As infected and vaccinated population increases, some countries decided not to impose non-pharmaceutical intervention measures anymore and to coexist with COVID-19. However, we do not have a comprehensive understanding of its consequence, especially for China where most population has not been infected and most Omicron transmissions are silent. This paper aims to reveal the complete silent transmission dynamics of COVID-19 by agent-based simulations overlaying a big data of more than 0.7 million real individual mobility tracks without any intervention measures throughout a week in a Chinese city, with an extent of completeness and realism not attained in existing studies. Together with the empirically inferred transmission rate of COVID-19, we find surprisingly that with only 70 citizens to be infected initially, 0.33 million becomes infected silently at last. We also reveal a characteristic daily periodic pattern of the transmission dynamics, with peaks in mornings and afternoons. In addition, by inferring individual professions, visited locations and age group, we found that retailing, catering and hotel staff are more likely to get infected than other professions, and elderly and retirees are more likely to get infected at home than outside home.
A taxonomic review of the genus Paracoccidioides, with focus on the uncultivable species
Authors: Vilela Raquel , de Hoog Sybren , Bensch Konstanze , Bagagli Eduardo , Mendoza Leonel
Published: April 2023

Paracoccidioides species have always been surrounded by taxonomic uncertainties. The continuing nomenclatoral muddle was caused in part by the failure of Adolfo Lutz and Jorge Lôbo to name the etiologic agents of human paracoccidioidomycosis and Jorge Lôbo’s diseases, respectively. Early in their history, it was postulated that the cultivable species causing systemic infections belonged in the genus Paracoccidioides, whereas the uncultivable species, causing skin disease, were not part of the genus. The taxonomy of these pathogens was further complicated when a similar skin disease with numerous yeast-like cells in infected dolphins was also reported. Due to its phenotypic similarities with that described by Jorge Lôbo in human and its uncultivable nature, it was assumed that the disease in dolphins was caused by the same fungus. Recent molecular and population genetic analysis, however, found the DNA extracted from the uncultivable yeast-like cells affecting dolphins shared common phylogenetic traits with cultivable Paracoccidioides species. The study revealed that the uncultivable pathogens comprised 2 different Paracoccidioides species, now known as P. ceti and P. loboi, correspondingly. To validate P. loboi binomial, a comprehensive historical critical review of Jorge Lôbo etiology was performed. This review showed the proposed binomial P. loboi was previously used, and, thus, a replacement name is introduced, Paracoccidioides lobogeorgii nom. nov. In addition, in this review, several cultivable human Paracoccidioides species are validated, and the generic type species, P. brasiliensis, is neotypified as the original material could not be traced.
Polygynous marriage union among Ghanaian Christian women: Socio-demographic predictors
Authors: Alhassan Abdul Rauf
Published: April 2023

Introduction

Polygamy has declined in the last decade, but it is still prevalent in West African nations including Ghana even with the arrival of Christianity and colonists, which came to be recognized as a form of slavery that needed to be abolished.

Aim

To analyze the determinants of polygyny among married Christian women in Ghana.

Methods

Ghana Maternal Health Survey data was used for this study to do an analytic cross-section study. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 20. The association between dependent and independent variables was explored using chi-square and logistic regression. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.

Results

The prevalence of Ghanaian Christian women’s involvement in polygyny marriage union was 12.2%, the prevalence was higher (15.0%) among women of Anglican denomination, catholic denomination (13.9%), and the lowest (8.4%) prevalence recorded among those of Methodist denominations. The predictor factors identified include the age of the woman, history of education, type of place of residence, region, ethnicity, early sex initiation, and history of multiple unions.

Conclusion

The prevalence of polygyny in this present study is high given the strict position the Christian religion has against polygyny. This study recommends that the pros and cons of polygyny are objectively looked at from a scientific point rather than a religious point of view.
Too much is too much: Influence of former stress levels on food craving and weight gain during the COVID-19 period
Authors: Granger Rachel , Kubis Hans P.
Published: April 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated social restrictions had an extensive effect on peoples’ lives. Increased rates of weight gain were widely reported, as were declines in the general populations’ mental health, including increases in perceived stress. This study investigated whether higher perceived levels of stress during the pandemic were associated with greater levels of weight gain, and whether poor prior levels of mental health were a factor in higher levels of both stress and weight gain during the pandemic. Underlying changes in eating behaviours and dietary consumption were also investigated. During January-February 2021, UK adults (n = 179) completed a self-report online questionnaire to measure perceived levels of stress and changes (current versus pre-COVID-19 restrictions) in weight, eating behaviours, dietary consumption, and physical activity. Participants also reported on how COVID-19 had impacted their lives and their level of mental health prior to the pandemic. Participants with higher levels of stress were significantly more likely to report weight gain and twice as likely to report increased food cravings and comfort food consumption (OR = 2.3 and 1.9–2.5, respectively). Participants reporting an increase in food cravings were 6–11 times more likely to snack and to have increased consumption of high sugar or processed foods (OR = 6.3, 11.2 and 6.3, respectively). Females reported a far greater number of COVID-19 enforced lifestyle changes and both being female and having poor mental health prior to the pandemic were significant predictors of higher stress and weight gain during the pandemic. Although COVID-19 and the pandemic restrictions were unprecedented, this study suggests that understanding and addressing the disparity of higher perceived stress in females and individuals’ previous levels of mental health, as well as the key role of food cravings, is key for successfully addressing the continuing societal issue of weight gain and obesity.
Convergence or dispersion? The impact of China’s innovative city pilot policy on regional innovation differences
Authors: Haodong Yang , Chen Wang , Gaofeng Wang
Published: April 2023

Although constructing innovative cities stimulates innovation, it may further widen regional innovation differences. Based on panel data from 275 cities in China from 2003 to 2020, the difference-in-differences method was used to examine the impact of the innovative city pilot policy on urban innovation convergence. The study finds that the pilot policy not only improves the innovation level of cities (basic effect) but also promotes innovation convergence among pilot cities (convergence effect). However, in the short-term, the policy slows the innovation convergence of the entire region. The results reveal the innovative city policy’s multiple effects and dual character and capture the spatial spillover and regional heterogeneity of policy impact, highlighting the risk of further marginalizing some cities. This study supplements the evidence that government intervention affects regional innovation patterns based on the place-based innovation policy in China, providing theoretical support for expanding the follow-up pilot scope and the coordinated development of regional innovation.
Women’s perception about the discovery of breast cancer amid the covid-19 pandemic
Authors: Carvalho Simone Meira , Andrade Camilla de Abrahão , Ferreira Mariana Barbosa Leite Sérgio , de Souza Karine Soriana Silva , Grincenkov Fabiane Rossi dos Santos
Published: April 2023

Background

Breast cancer is considered a health problem at a worldwide level. In Brazil, the South and Southeast regions have the highest mortality rates. Understanding how they dealt with the diagnostic of a stigmatized disease amid the COVID-19 pandemic and its potential repercussions, may enable healthcare professionals to of life. Thus, this study is aimed at understanding the perception of women about the discovery of breast cancer and the impact of the disease on their lives.

Methods

A qualitative study, with the participation of forty women with breast cancer, under chemotherapy treatment. It was performed in a hospital specialized in oncology, in Juiz de Fora, Brazil, in 2020 and 2021. Data collection was carried out with semi-structured interviews, which were analyzed with Bardin Content Analysis.

Results

Based on the central theme "Discovery of the disease", these categories were developed: "Discovery" and "Impact of the disease". A large part of women noticed a change in the breast, even before routine checks. Upon the impact of cancer diagnosis, negative feelings arise, then going through a process of acceptance and coping. Some barriers were faced due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused delays in the diagnostic and impact caused by social isolation. Family, friends, and healthcare professionals integrated an important supporting network in order to help coping with the disease.

Conclusion

The consequences of a breast cancer diagnosis can be devastating. It is necessary that healthcare professionals know and embrace the feelings, beliefs, and values as a part of the aspects related to health. Valuing the supporting network of women suffering from the disease may favor the process of accepting and coping with the neoplasm. The COVID-19 pandemic is highlighted as an obstacle to be overcome specially when it comes to diagnostic assistance and availability of a support network. In that sense, it is worth mentioning the importance of a healthcare team able to offer full assistance, with quality. The need of further studies to determine the impact of the pandemic in the long run.
COVID-19 stigmatization after the development of effective vaccines: Vaccination behavior, attitudes, and news sources
Authors: Des Jarlais Don C. , Lieff Sarah , Grivel Margaux , Meltzer Gabriella , Choi Jasmin , Weng Chenziheng Allen , Feelemyer Jonathan P. , Chang Virginia W. , Yang Lawrence
Published: April 2023

Objective

To compare COVID-19 stigmatization at two pandemic time points (1) August 2020—during lockdowns and prior to vaccine rollout, and (2) May 2021—during vaccine rollout, when approximately half of U.S. adults were vaccinated.

Methods

Comparison of COVID19-related stigmatization and associated factors in two national internet surveys conducted in August 2020 (N = 517) and May 2021 (N = 812). Factors associated with endorsing stigmatization were identified using regression analysis. The main outcomes included endorsement of stigmatization and behavioral restrictions towards persons with COVID-19 and towards persons of Chinese descent. A previously developed “stigmatizing attitudes and behavioral restrictions” scale was adapted to measure the intersection of negative attitudes toward COVID-19 disease and negative attitudes toward persons of Chinese descent.

Results

COVID-19 related stigmatization declined significantly from August 2020 to May 2021. Many factors were associated with stigmatizing in both surveys: full time employment, Black race, Hispanic ethnicity, worry about contracting COVID-19, probable depression, and Fox News and social media as sources of information (all positively associated), and self-assessed knowledge about COVID-19, contact with Chinese individuals, and publicly funded news as sources (all negatively associated). Positive attitudes toward vaccination were associated with stigmatization.

Conclusions

COVID-19 related stigmatization reduced substantially over these two points in the pandemic, with many continuities in the factors associated with stigmatizing. Despite the reduction in stigmatizing, however, some stigmatizing attitudes for both COVID-19 and Chinese individuals remained.
A novel performance scoring quantification framework for stress test set-ups
Authors: Kozlovski Tal , Hausdorff Jeffrey M. , Davidov Ori , Giladi Nir , Mirelman Anat , Benjamini Yoav
Published: April 2023

Stress tests, e.g., the cardiac stress test, are standard clinical screening tools aimed to unmask clinical pathology. As such stress tests indirectly measure physiological reserves. The term reserve has been developed to account for the dis-junction, often observed, between pathology and clinical manifestation. It describes a physiological capacity that is utilized in demanding situations. However, developing a new and reliable stress test based screening tool is complex, prolonged, and relies extensively on domain knowledge. We propose a novel distributional-free machine–learning framework, the Stress Test Performance Scoring (STEPS) framework, to model expected performance in a stress test. A performance scoring function is trained with measures taken during the performance in a given task while exploiting information regarding the stress test set-up and subjects’ medical state. Multiple ways of aggregating performance scores at different stress levels are suggested and are examined with an extensive simulation study. When applied to a real-world data example, an AUC of 84.35[95%CI: 70.68 − 95.13] was obtained for the STEPS framework to distinguish subjects with neurodegeneration from controls. In summary, STEPS improved screening by exploiting existing domain knowledge and state-of-the-art clinical measures. The STEPS framework can ease and speed up the production of new stress tests.
Effect of total population, population density and weighted population density on the spread of Covid-19 in Malaysia
Authors: Wong Hui Shan , Hasan Md Zobaer , Sharif Omar , Rahman Azizur
Published: April 2023

Since November 2019, most countries across the globe have suffered from the disastrous consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic which redefined every aspect of human life. Given the inevitable spread and transmission of the virus, it is critical to acknowledge the factors that catalyse transmission of the disease. This research investigates the relation of the external demographic parameters such as total population, population density and weighted population density on the spread of Covid-19 in Malaysia. Pearson correlation and simple linear regression were utilized to identify the relation between the population-related variables and the spread of Covid-19 in Malaysia using data from 15th March 2020 to 31st March 2021. As a result, a strong positive significant correlation between the total population and Covid-19 cases was found. However, a weak positive relationship was found between the density variable (population density and weighted population density) and the spread of Covid-19. Our findings suggest that the transmission of Covid-19 during lockdown (Movement Control Order, MCO) in Malaysia was more readily explained by the demographic variable population size, than population density or weighted population density. Thus, this study could be helpful in intervention planning and managing future virus outbreaks in Malaysia.