bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Violence and Jihad in Islam: From the War of Words to the Clashes of Definitions
Authors: Mostfa Ali
Published: November 2021

This article explores the phenomena of violence and jihad in three parts: their emergence and trajectory in the Qur’anic text, their meanings, and their entanglement with the religious cause. The objective was to examine the interactions between violence and jihad, highlighting the variations in their usage and interpretation. Based on intensive literal interpretations of the jihad verses, radical Islamist movements have distorted their historical memory by sanctifying and reducing them to an argument of war (harb, qital) and combat, thus seeking a military solution to their political agendas. This article also aimed to address the issue of the transition of Islam from a meta-narrative of emancipation and rationality to one of violence by examining the question of war in Islam, as well as its definition and legitimisation. In this rather complex transition, we draw in some sections on Ibn Khaldun’s modelling to highlight the political component related to violence. The aim was to attempt to disentangle the threads of violence, politics, and power within the Islamic tradition. This study will allow assessment of the tension—in the context of the Qur’an—between order (islah) and disorder/injustice (fasad). The transition from one to the other implies a legitimisation of violence; its appropriateness must, therefore, be studied.
It Takes Two to Tango: Estimation of the Zero-Risk Premium Strike of a Call Option via Joint Physical and Pricing Density Modeling
Authors: Höcht Stephan , Madan Dilip B. , Schoutens Wim , Verschueren Eva
Published: November 2021

It is generally said that out-of-the-money call options are expensive and one can ask the question from which moneyness level this is the case. Expensive actually means that the price one pays for the option is more than the discounted average payoff one receives. If so, the option bears a negative risk premium. The objective of this paper is to investigate the zero-risk premium moneyness level of a European call option, i.e., the strike where expectations on the option’s payoff in both the P- and Q-world are equal. To fully exploit the insights of the option market we deploy the Tilted Bilateral Gamma pricing model to jointly estimate the physical and pricing measure from option prices. We illustrate the proposed pricing strategy on the option surface of stock indices, assessing the stability and position of the zero-risk premium strike of a European call option. With small fluctuations around a slightly in-the-money level, on average, the zero-risk premium strike appears to follow a rather stable pattern over time.
Supply Chain Management and Risk Management in an Environment of Stochastic Uncertainty (Retail)
Authors: Lochan Sergey A. , Rozanova Tatiana P. , Bezpalov Valery V. , Fedyunin Dmitry V.
Published: November 2021

In the context of stochastic uncertainty and the increasing complexity of logistics processes in the retail sector, managers face a problem in obtaining accurate forecasts for the dynamics of changes in key business performance indicators. The purpose of the present work is to assess the impact of risk events and unstable conditions on the level of quality of supply chain services and economic indicators of the retail trade network. Using the anyLogistix software tool, a simulation model was constructed that allows assessing operational risks and their impact on key indicators of the supply chain using the bullwhip effect. Besides, a statistical model of the impact of the ripple effect in the event of failures caused by the occurrence of a man-made risk event and the shutdown of production of one of the suppliers on the financial, customer, and operational performance indicators of the supply chain of grocery retail. The results obtained show that the main factors of changes in the supply chain are operational risks associated with fluctuations in demand and order execution time by the distribution center. With a sufficiently high level of occurrence, their impact on productivity and quality of service is low because they can be eliminated in a short time. The simulation results show that the most tangible risks for the food retail supply chain are supply chain failures, whose consequences require significant coordinating efforts and longer recovery times, as well as additional investments. For example, events, such as a fire in one distribution center and the shutdown of production for 1 week of one of the suppliers of dairy products will lead to the loss of USD 181.75 million by the grocery retailer, which is 3% of the expected revenue. We believe that risk management in supply chains is becoming increasingly complex, and to make effective managerial decisions, it is necessary to constantly improve the tools that combine analytical and optimization methods, as well as simulation modeling.
Deep Dehazing Network for Remote Sensing Image with Non-Uniform Haze
Authors: Jiang Bo , Chen Guanting , Wang Jinshuai , Ma Hang , Wang Lin , Wang Yuxuan , Chen Xiaoxuan
Published: November 2021

The haze in remote sensing images can cause the decline of image quality and bring many obstacles to the applications of remote sensing images. Considering the non-uniform distribution of haze in remote sensing images, we propose a single remote sensing image dehazing method based on the encoder–decoder architecture, which combines both wavelet transform and deep learning technology. To address the clarity issue of remote sensing images with non-uniform haze, we preliminary process the input image by the dehazing method based on the atmospheric scattering model, and extract the first-order low-frequency sub-band information of its 2D stationary wavelet transform as an additional channel. Meanwhile, we establish a large-scale hazy remote sensing image dataset to train and test the proposed method. Extensive experiments show that the proposed method obtains greater advantages over typical traditional methods and deep learning methods qualitatively. For the quantitative aspects, we take the average of four typical deep learning methods with superior performance as a comparison object using 500 random test images, and the peak-signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) value using the proposed method is improved by 3.5029 dB, and the structural similarity (SSIM) value is improved by 0.0295, respectively. Based on the above, the effectiveness of the proposed method for the problem of remote sensing non-uniform dehazing is verified comprehensively.
Identification of Block-Structured Covariance Matrix on an Example of Metabolomic Data
Authors: Mieldzioc Adam , Mokrzycka Monika , Sawikowska Aneta
Published: November 2021

Modern investigation techniques (e.g., metabolomic, proteomic, lipidomic, genomic, transcriptomic, phenotypic), allow to collect high-dimensional data, where the number of observations is smaller than the number of features. In such cases, for statistical analyzing, standard methods cannot be applied or lead to ill-conditioned estimators of the covariance matrix. To analyze the data, we need an estimator of the covariance matrix with good properties (e.g., positive definiteness), and therefore covariance matrix identification is crucial. The paper presents an approach to determine the block-structured estimator of the covariance matrix based on an example of metabolomic data on the drought resistance of barley. This method can be used in many fields of science, e.g., in agriculture, medicine, food and nutritional sciences, toxicology, functional genomics and nutrigenomics.
Isolation and Identification of Non-Conjugated Linoleic Acid from Processed Panax ginseng Using LC-MS/MS and 1H-NMR
Authors: Kim Tae-Kyung , Lee Changsuk , Nam Taek-Hee , Seo Yong-Ki , Kim Kyeong-Soo , Kang Kimoon , Yun Seok-Hun , Yoon Seok-Hwan , Jeong Jaeho
Published: November 2021

Black ginseng exhibits numerous pharmacological activities due to higher and more diverse ginsenosides than unprocessed white ginseng. The ginsenoside derivatives have been investigated in order to determine their chemical structures and pharmacological activities. We found a peak which was increased 10-fold but unidentified in the methanol extracts of a black ginseng product. The unknown peak was tracked and identified as linoleic acid rather than a ginsenoside derivative using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. NMR analysis confirmed no presence of conjugated linoleic acids. Ginsenoside profiles and linoleic acid contents in black ginseng products were quantified using LC-MS/MS. Linoleic acid content was more directly proportional to the number of applied thermal cycles in the manufacturing process than any ginsenosides.
On the Classification of a Greenhouse Environment for a Rose Crop Based on AI-Based Surrogate Models
Authors: Bhat Showkat Ahmad , Huang Nen-Fu , Hussain Imtiyaz , Bibi Farzana , Sajjad Uzair , Sultan Muhammad , Alsubaie Abdullah Saad , Mahmoud Khaled H.
Published: November 2021

A precise microclimate control for dynamic climate changes in greenhouses allows the industry and researchers to develop a simple, robust, reliable, and intelligent model. Accordingly, the objective of this investigation was to develop a method that can accurately define the most suitable environment in the greenhouse for an optimal yield of roses. Herein, an optimal and highly accurate BO-DNN surrogate model was developed (based on 300 experimental data points) for a quick and reliable classification of the rose yield environment considering some of the most influential variables including soil humidity, temperature and humidity of air, CO2 concentration, and light intensity (lux) into its architecture. Initially, two BO techniques (GP and GBRT) are used for the tuning process of the hyper-parameters (such as learning rate, batch size, number of dense nodes, number of dense neurons, number of input nodes, activation function, etc.). After that, an optimal and simple combination of the hyper-parameters was selected to develop a DNN algorithm based on 300 data points, which was further used to classify the rose yield environment (the rose yield environments were classified into four classes such as soil without water, correct environment, too hot, and very cold environments). The very high accuracy of the proposed surrogate model (0.98) originated from the introduction of the most vital soil and meteorological parameters as the inputs of the model. The proposed method can help in identifying intelligent greenhouse environments for efficient crop yields.
Integration of Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Program and Project Management Tool to Support Sustainable Cost-Optimal Construction Scheduling
Authors: Dasović Borna , Klanšek Uroš
Published: November 2021

This paper presents the integration of mixed-integer nonlinear program (MINLP) and project management tool (PMT) to support sustainable cost-optimal construction scheduling. An integrated structure of a high-level system for exact optimization and PMT was created. To ensure data compatibility between the optimization system and PMT and to automate the process of obtaining a cost-optimal schedule, a data transformation tool (DTT) was developed within a spreadsheet application. The suggested system can determine: (i) an optimal project schedule with associated network diagram and Gantt chart in continuous or discrete time units; (ii) optimal critical and non-critical activities, including their early start, late start, early finish, late finish along with total and free slack times; and (iii) minimum total project cost along with the allocation of direct and indirect costs. The system provides functionalities such as: (i) MINLP can be updated, and schedules can be re-optimized; (ii) the optimal schedule can be saved as a baseline to track changes; (iii) different optimization algorithms can be engaged whereby switching between them does not require model changes; (iv) PMT can be used to track task completion in the optimized schedule; (v) calendar settings can be changed; and (vi) visual reports can be generated to support efficient project management. Results of cost-optimal project scheduling are given in a conventional PMT environment, which raises the possibility that the proposed system will be more widely used in practice. Integration of MINLP and PMT allows each software to be used for what it was initially designed. Their combination leads to additional information and features of optimized construction schedules that would be significantly more difficult to achieve if used separately. Application examples are given in the paper to show the advantages of the proposed approach.
On Transforming Unused Urban Spaces to Social Housing for Self-Employed People in Ho Chi Minh City: An Architectural Space Design Proposal
Authors: Ngo Le-Minh , Nguyen Hai-Binh , Nguyen Thi-Phuong Uyen , Nguyen Thi-Minh Dieu
Published: November 2021

As with many metropolitan areas, social housing (SH) provision, which can improve living standards and social welfare, is crucial for urban socio-economic development strategies in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). However, there have been issues relating to promoting social housing in the Vietnamese context resulting from the property market and the design. The former is a failure to attract investors. The latter relates to lacking housing models for the mid- and low-income communities. Currently, many low-income families who have low access to the general job market in HCMC have to make a living by running their own business at home. This situation leads to low-income housing establishments in some residential areas. Thus, the planning approach in social housing needs to solve both the demand for low-cost housing and promoting self-employed activities. In this paper, mixed methods, including observation, questionnaires, interviews, data aggregation, and comparison, were conducted with supporting legal conditions and corresponding operating conditions to propose appropriate designs for the SH for self-employed people in HCMC. First, observing and analyzing urban spaces helped identify the unused urban areas that solve the investment issue. Then, after studying the development of social housing in different contexts via the questionnaire and in-depth interviews, self-employed households’ basic information and their business needs in using SH spaces were identified in some districts. Then, based on the legal framework and practical projects, optimal space designs were formed.
Management Strategies and Stakeholders Analysis to Strengthen the Management and Use of Biosolids in a Colombian Municipality
Authors: Venegas Camilo , Sánchez-Alfonso Andrea C. , Celis Crispín , Vesga Fidson-Juarismy , Mendez Mauricio González
Published: November 2021

The difficulties in the management and use of biosolids in Colombia make it necessary to evaluate and analyze the factors involved through various methodologies to achieve the effective management and recycling of this type of waste. The objective of this study was to evaluate the management of sludge and biosolids from a WWTP in a Colombian municipality through the application of three methodologies (SWOT/TOWS, surveys, and stakeholder (player) weighing) for their subsequent use in agriculture. As a result, strategies were proposed at the regulatory, organizational policy, and entity integration levels, among others. It was identified that about 93.6% of the people surveyed had a positive attitude towards the use of biosolids in agriculture, despite recognizing the existence of a risk (27.3%) in this type of practice. On the other hand, regarding the communication of WWTP management of these wastes, they perceived that it to be absent (65%) and the lack of knowledge regarding the destination of these wastes was even greater (72.7%). Through the weighting of actors, 16 players were classified with whom it is necessary to work closely, regularly, or occasionally. The methodologies proposed will allow similar WWTPs to optimize their processes through continuous improvement and joint work between the different entities and communities. It is recommended that other methodologies be used to evaluate player position level in relation to planned strategies, as well as the level of associations of one player with another, independent of power and influence.
Non-Face-to-Face Public Services and Perceptions of Public Organizations
Authors: Lim Da-Hee , Lee Dae-Woong
Published: November 2021

Public services are the primary channels and government activities in which citizens contact public organizations. In turn, public services provided by the government are critical for citizens to recognize public organizations and governments according to their content and procedure. With the onset of COVID-19, the existing face-to-face public service delivery system has shown limitations in meeting citizens’ needs for public services (fastness, transparency, and safety); as a result, a shift to non-face-to-face public services is required. The study proposes the question: “How does citizens’ satisfaction with non-face-to-face public services affect public organizations (response and transparency) and government satisfaction?”. The purpose of this study is to verify the effect of satisfaction (content and procedural) with non-face-to-face public services on the perception (responsiveness and transparency) of public organizations and governments’ satisfaction. Specifically, non-face-to-face public services are divided into content and procedural aspects to analyze the responsiveness and transparency of public organizations and their impact on government satisfaction. This study used a structural equations model for analysis and used data collected in 2019 by the Korea Institute of Public Administration, a representative public research institute in Korea. The main analysis results are as follows: the responsiveness and transparency of public organizations increased alongside satisfaction with content and procedural satisfaction with non-face-to-face public services, and government satisfaction increased with responsiveness to and transparency toward public organizations.
Traffic Flow Online Prediction Based on a Generative Adversarial Network with Multi-Source Data
Authors: Sun Tuo , Sun Bo , Jiang Zehao , Hao Ruochen , Xie Jiemin
Published: November 2021

Traffic prediction is essential for advanced traffic planning, design, management, and network sustainability. Current prediction methods are mostly offline, which fail to capture the real-time variation of traffic flows. This paper establishes a sustainable online generative adversarial network (GAN) by combining bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) and a convolutional neural network (CNN) as the generative model and discriminative model, respectively, to keep learning with continuous feedback. BiLSTM constantly generates temporal candidate flows based on valuable memory units, and CNN screens out the best spatial prediction by returning the feedback gradient to BiLSTM. Multi-dimensional indicators are selected to map the multi-view fusion local trend for accurate prediction. To balance computing efficiency and accuracy, different batch sizes are pre-tested and allocated to different lanes. The models are trained with rectified adaptive moment estimation (RAdam) by dividing the dataset into the training and testing sets with a rolling time-domain scheme. In comparison with the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA), BiLSTM, generating adversarial network for traffic flow (GAN-TF), and generating adversarial network for non-signal traffic (GAN-NST), the proposed improved generating adversarial network for traffic flow (IGAN-TF) successfully generates more accurate and stable flows and performs better.
MgO-Based Board Materials for Dry Construction Are a Tool for More Sustainable Constructions—Literature Study and Thermal Analysis of Different Wall Compositions
Authors: Švajlenka Jozef , Kozlovská Mária , Mokrenko Daria
Published: November 2021

Growing global environmental problems force us to think about their impact and search for ways to protect the environment. While the construction industry and the production of construction materials contribute to environmental pollution, they also offer great potential for addressing many environmental problems. Important opportunities exist in the use and processing of a whole host of industrial and construction waste and in the use of mineral resources. Among such mineral resources is magnesite, whose deposits in Slovakia are abundant. The current sustainability trends impose strict requirements on construction materials and products, favoring solutions with sufficient ecological and efficiency performance characteristics. With this focus on efficient and sustainable solutions in mind, the objective of this research was to analyze magnesium oxide construction boards, as they are the most commonly used construction product based on MgO. The specific MgO-based boards that were studied were applied in selected constructions built using the so-called dry method of construction and were compared with traditional material solutions. The research methodology is based on an analysis of computational models of the proposed variants to determine selected thermal-technical parameters. The analyses of external and interior structures presented in this work suggest that when boards based on MgO and traditional materials are used for coating constructions built using the dry method of construction, the former provide certain benefits in terms of energy accumulation, improving living comfort, and in terms of the fire resistance of constructions, improving overall safety. The conclusion of the presented article is devoted to discussions with works that addressed various perspectives on the application of MgO in the field of materials research. The findings from this analysis are beneficial especially in terms of expanding the knowledge in the area.
Forecasting Spatiotemporal Boundary of Emergency-Event-Based Traffic Congestion in Expressway Network Considering Highway Node Acceptance Capacity
Authors: Liu Xingliang , Wang Jian , Liu Tangzhi , Xu Jin
Published: November 2021

Emergency events can induce serious traffic congestions in a local area which may propagate to the upstream roads, and even the whole network. Until now, the methodology forecasting spatiotemporal boundary propagation of emergency-event-based traffic congestions, with both explicitness and road network availability, has not been found. This study develops a new method for predicting spatiotemporal boundary of the congestion caused by emergency events, which is more applicable and practical than cell transmission model (CTM)-derived methods. This method divides the expressway network into different sections based on their functions and the shockwave direction caused by the emergency events. It characterizes the velocity of the moving congestion boundary based on kinetic wave theory and volume–density relationship. After determining whether the congestion will spread into the network level through an interchange using a new concept, highway node acceptance capacity (HNAC), we can predict the spatiotemporal boundary and corresponding traffic condition within the boundary. The proposed method is tested under four traffic incident cases with corresponding traffic data collected through field observations. We also compare its prediction performances with other methods used in the literature.
Solvability Analysis of a Mixed Boundary Value Problem for Stationary Magnetohydrodynamic Equations of a Viscous Incompressible Fluid
Authors: Alekseev Gennadii , Brizitskii Roman V.
Published: November 2021

We investigate the boundary value problem for steady-state magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations with inhomogeneous mixed boundary conditions for a velocity vector, given the tangential component of a magnetic field. The problem represents the flow of electrically conducting viscous fluid in a 3D-bounded domain, which has the boundary comprising several parts with different physical properties. The global solvability of the boundary value problem is proved, a priori estimates of the solutions are obtained, and the sufficient conditions on data, which guarantee a solution’s local uniqueness, are determined.
Adaptive Walking Control for a Quadruped Robot on Irregular Terrain Using the Complex-Valued CPG Network
Authors: Zhang Yong , Wang Hao , Ding Yi , Hou Beiping
Published: November 2021

In this paper, we propose a CPG (central pattern generator) network control system using motor dynamics for the gait planning of a quadruped robot with a trot walking pattern to climb up and down a slope and turn back and follow the symmetry of route. The CPG unit model, which includes two DC motors model, has the ability to generate the periodic joint angle with complex-value parameters. Through plural feedback parameters, the CPG network can adjust the frequency and amplitude of an internal neuron model such as a robot meeting an irregular surface of a road. Using the stride length and frequency of robot joint angles, the distance of walking with a trot pattern can be calculated. In order to confirm the validity of the proposed control system, a quadruped robot is produced to implement the adaptive walking system.
A Novel In Vitro Simulator to Investigate Promotion of Reconstruction of Damaged Neuronal Cell Colony Differentiated from iPS Cells with the Aid of Micro Dynamic Stimulation
Authors: Kosawada Tadashi , Kitsunai Taku , Feng Zhonggang , Goto Kaoru
Published: November 2021

Neuronal cells are equipped with the function of a sensor that senses stimulation and elongates neurites to connect nearby neuronal cells in forming a neuronal network, as they are generally said to be hard to recover from physical damage, such as in the case of a spinal cord injury. Therefore, in this study, a novel in vitro simulator in which micro dynamic stimulations are applied to a damaged neuronal cell colony artificially is proposed to investigate the possibility of promoting the reconstruction of damaged neuronal cells on a colony basis. A neuronal cell colony differentiated from iPS cells is physically damaged by cutting off treatment, and micro dynamic stimulations are applied to the colony by utilizing a developed mini-vibration table system. NeuroFluor NeuO is used to establish a method for fluorescent staining of the living neuronal cells, and morphologies of the reconstructing neurons are analysed, revealing a relationship between the stimulation and the reconstructing process of the damaged neurons. It is found that significant differences are observed in the reconstructing efficiency between the statically cultured damaged neuronal cell colony and the dynamically stimulated one. The results suggest that applying appropriate micro dynamic stimulations is a promising approach to promote the reconstruction of a damaged neuronal cell colony.
Morphology of the Cutaneous Poison and Mucous Glands in Amphibians with Particular Emphasis on Caecilians (Siphonops annulatus)
Authors: Mauricio Beatriz , Mailho-Fontana Pedro Luiz , Sato Luciana Almeida , Barbosa Flavia Ferreira , Astray Renato Mancini , Kupfer Alexander , Brodie Edmund D. , Jared Carlos , Antoniazzi Marta Maria
Published: November 2021

Caecilians (order Gymnophiona) are apodan, snake-like amphibians, usually with fossorial habits, constituting one of the most unknown groups of terrestrial vertebrates. As in orders Anura (frogs, tree frogs and toads) and Caudata (salamanders and newts), the caecilian skin is rich in mucous glands, responsible for body lubrication, and poison glands, producing varied toxins used in defence against predators and microorganisms. Whereas in anurans and caudatans skin gland morphology has been well studied, caecilian poison glands remain poorly elucidated. Here we characterised the skin gland morphology of the caecilian Siphonops annulatus, emphasising the poison glands in comparison to those of anurans and salamanders. We showed that S. annulatus glands are similar to those of salamanders, consisting of several syncytial compartments full of granules composed of protein material but showing some differentiated apical compartments containing mucus. An unusual structure resembling a mucous gland is frequently observed in lateral/apical position, apparently connected to the main duct. We conclude that the morphology of skin poison glands in caecilians is more similar to salamander glands when compared to anuran glands that show a much-simplified structure.
Characterization of Visitors’ Perception of Landscape Heterogeneity in Urban Green Spaces
Authors: Meyer-GrandBastien Alice , Burel Françoise , Hellier Emmanuelle , Bergerot Benjamin
Published: November 2021

In the current context of global urbanization, interdisciplinary research is needed to identify planning and management practices in urban green spaces (UGS) that would enhance both biodiversity and visitors’ well-being. The perception of landscape heterogeneity, a core ecological concept, has been demonstrated to have a positive impact on visitors’ psychological restoration. In order to apply these findings within UGS to planning and management practices, we need to characterize visitors’ perception of landscape heterogeneity. We gathered data on 390 visitors’ perception of landscape heterogeneity. Our results highlighted that visitors perceive landscape heterogeneity through the mixing of different heights of three vegetation strata and flower areas. Planning and management practices should enhance this landscape aspect within UGS to simultaneously promote biodiversity and visitors’ psychological well-being.
Hypovitaminosis D Is Associated with Higher Levels of Inflammatory Cytokines and with HAM/TSP in HTLV-Infected Patients
Authors: Netto Elaine Coutinho , Silva Alfredo Carlos , Pedroso Célia , Brites Carlos
Published: November 2021

Recent studies have shown the effects of vitamin D on host response to infectious diseases. Some studies detected a high prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in HIV-infected patients, but scarce information exists for HTLV-1 infection. We conducted a cross-sectional study to evaluate the frequency of hypovitaminosis D in HTLV-1 patients and its relationship with their immune response in HTLV-infected patients and in age- and gender-matched controls at a Brazilian rehabilitation hospital. We compared vitamin D, interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumoral necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) levels across groups. Logistic regression was utilized to assess the association between hypovitaminosis D and cytokine levels. We enrolled 161 HTLV-infected subjects (129 HTLV-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) patients, 32 asymptomatic HTLV carriers) and equal number of HTLV-negative controls. We observed a significantly higher prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in patients with HAM/TSP than in HTLV asymptomatic carriers (p < 0.001), or controls (p < 0.001). HAM/TSP patients also had higher levels of IL-6 and IFN-γ than asymptomatic carriers. Patients with HAM/TSP and hypovitaminosis D had higher levels of TNF-α than asymptomatic HTLV carriers. These findings suggest hypovitaminosis D plays a role in HAM/TSP pathogenesis, and it needs to be evaluated in further studies.
The Therapeutic Effects of Oral Intake of Hydrogen Rich Water on Cutaneous Wound Healing in Dogs
Authors: Qi Dong-Dong , Ding Meng-Yuan , Wang Ting , Hayat Muhammad Abid , Liu Tao , Zhang Jian-Tao
Published: November 2021

This study explored the effects of drinking Hydrogen-rich water (HRW) on skin wound healing in dogs. Eight circular wounds were analyzed in each dog. The experimental group was treated with HRW thrice daily, while the control group was provided with distilled water (DW). The wound tissues of dogs were examined histopathologically. The fibroblasts, inflammatory cell infiltration, the average number of new blood vessels, and the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in the skin homogenate of the wound was measured using the corresponding kits. The expressions of Nrf-2, HO-1, NQO-1, VEGF, and PDGF were measured using the real-time fluorescence quantitative method. We observed that HRW wounds showed an increased rate of wound healing, and a faster average healing time compared with DW. Histopathology showed that in the HRW group, the average thickness of the epidermis was significantly lower than the DW group. The average number of blood vessels in the HRW group was higher than the DW group. The MDA levels were higher in the DW group than in the HRW group, but the SOD levels were higher in the HRW group than in the DW group. The results of qRT-PCR showed that the expression of each gene was significantly different between the two groups. HRW treatment promoted skin wound healing in dogs, accelerated wound epithelization, reduced inflammatory reaction, stimulated the expression of cytokines related to wound healing, and shortened wound healing time.
Application of the Organic Waste-Based Sorbent for the Purification of Aqueous Solutions
Authors: Cheremisina Olga , Litvinova Tatiana , Sergeev Vasiliy , Ponomareva Maria , Mashukova Julia
Published: November 2021

The effective purification of large-capacity wastewater from heavy non-ferrous metals and organic pollutants using inexpensive sorption technology remains a crucial task. Analyzing the current objectives of sustainable development, biochar obtained from chicken manure has prospects as a source for sorption purification of industrial wastewater. To determine the characteristics of organic material and the composition of the initial and equilibrium phases, the following analysis methods were used: volumetric, complexometric, pH-metric, X-ray fluorescence, chromatographic, spectrophotometric, luminescence-photometric and X-ray diffraction. The thermal nitrogen desorption method was used for determining the specific surface area and pore sizes with the Quantachrome Nova 1000e automatic analyzer. The sorption properties of the reprocessing product of the fresh poultry manure were investigated in relation to organic and inorganic compounds: phenols, benzene, ketones, cations of lead, mercury, manganese and iron. Based on the results obtained, technical conditions were developed for the use of the reprocessed organic waste-based product as a sorption material for household, industrial and technological wastewater purification from organic and inorganic components.
Assessment of Water Measurements in an Irrigation Canal System Based on Experimental Data and the CFD Model
Authors: Xu Hu , Wang Zhenhua , Li Wenhao , Wang Qiuliang
Published: November 2021

Due to their convenience, water measuring structures have become an important means of measuring water in irrigation canal systems However, relevant research on upstream and downstream water-depth monitoring point locations is scarce. Our study aims to determine the functional relationship between the locations of the water-depth monitoring points and the opening width of the sluice. We established 14 trunk-channel and branch-channel hydrodynamic models. The locations of the water-depth monitoring points for the upstream and downstream reaches and their hydraulic characteristics were assessed using a numerical simulation and hydraulic test. The results showed that the locations of the upstream and downstream water-depth monitoring points were, respectively, 16.26 and 15.51 times the width of the sluice. The average error between the calculated flow rate and the simulated value was 14.37%; the average error between the flow rates calculated by the modified and the simulated values was 3.36%. To further verify the accuracy of the modified discharge calculation formula, by comparing the measured values, we reduced the average error of the modified formula by 19.29% compared with the standard formula. This research provides new insights into optimizing water measurements in irrigation canal systems. The results provide an engineering basis for the site selection of water-depth monitoring points that is suitable to be widely applied in the field.
Water Balance of Pit Lake Development in the Equatorial Region
Authors: Tuheteru Edy Jamal , Gautama Rudy Sayoga , Kusuma Ginting Jalu , Kuntoro Arno Adi , Pranoto Kris , Palinggi Yosef
Published: November 2021

In recent years, Indonesia has become the largest coal exporter in the world, and most of the coal is being mined by means of open-pit mining. The closure of an open-pit mine will usually leave a pit morphological landform that, in most cases, will be developed into a pit lake. One of the main issues in developing a pit lake is the understanding of the pit lake filling process. This paper discusses the hydrological model in filling the mineout void in a coal mine in Kalimantan which is located close to the equatorial line. The J-void is a mineout coal pit that is 3000 m long and 1000 m wide, with a maximum depth of 145 m. The development of the J-void pit lake after the last load of coal had been mined out experienced a dynamic process, such as backfilling activities with an overburden as well as pumping mine water from the surrounding pits. There are two components in the model, i.e., overland/subsurface and pit area. The overland zone is simulated using the Rainfall-Runoff NRECA Hydrological Model approach to determine the runoff and groundwater components, whereas the pit area is affected by direct rainfall and evaporation. The model is validated with the observation data. The main source of water in the J-void pit lake is rainwater, both from the surrounding catchment area as well as direct rainfall. As this coal mine area is characterized as a multi-pit area and, consequently, several pit lakes will be formed in the future, the result of the hydrological model is very useful in planning the future pit lakes.
The Common Pool Resource Heatmap: A Tool to Drive Changes in Water Law and Governance
Authors: Robertson Jacqui
Published: November 2021

Anticipated water-related impacts of climate change heighten the need for tools supporting proactive efforts to address current and future conflicts involving water. Analysing a regulatory framework for a water resource using Ostrom’s (1990) Common Pool Resource (CPR) theory can assist in identifying regulatory weaknesses that may contribute to deterioration of the resource and conflicts between resource users. Equally, adopting adaptive management to transform the regulatory context can also have positive effects. However, if incentives drive resource extractor behaviours, a tool to communicate these initiatives with stakeholders, including state actors, could assist. This article presents the ‘CPR heat map’ to assist with efforts to drive changes in water governance. An example of the CPR heatmap is presented involving the governance of groundwater in the Surat Cumulative Management Area, Queensland, Australia. This example shows how perceived weaknesses and strengths of the governance framework can be illustrated. It also shows how initiatives that are transforming water governance can be presented to drive social learning. The CPR heat map illustrates the collective nature of the resource system and how to potentially resolve and manage water-related conflict. This research has implications for how we approach conflict involving water and may be also relevant for managing other CPRs.
Estimating Baseflow and Baseflow Index in Ungauged Basins Using Spatial Interpolation Techniques: A Case Study of the Southern River Basin of Thailand
Authors: Ditthakit Pakorn , Nakrod Sarayod , Viriyanantavong Naunwan , Tolche Abebe Debele , Pham Quoc Bao
Published: November 2021

This research aims to estimate baseflow (BF) and baseflow index (BFI) in ungauged basins in the southern part of Thailand. Three spatial interpolation methods (namely, inverse distance weighting (IDW), kriging, and spline) were utilized and compared in regard to their performance. Two baseflow separation methods, i.e., the local minimum method (LM) and the Eckhardt filter method (EF), were investigated. Runoff data were collected from 65 runoff stations. These runoff stations were randomly selected and divided into two parts: 75% and 25% for the calibration and validation stages, respectively, with a total of 36 study cases. Four statistical indices including mean absolute error (MAE), root mean squared error (RMSE), correlation coefficient (r), and combined accuracy (CA), were applied for the performance evaluation. The findings revealed that monthly and annual BF and BFI calculated by EF were mostly lower than those calculated by LM. Furthermore, IDW gave the best performance among the three spatial interpolation techniques by providing the highest r-value and the lowest MAE, RMSE, and CA values for both the calibration and validation stages, followed by kriging and spline, respectively. We also provided monthly and annual BF and BFI maps to benefit water resource management.
Assessing the Vulnerability of Agricultural Systems to Drought in Kyrgyzstan
Authors: Liang Li , Zhang Fan , Qin Keyu
Published: November 2021

As climate change worsens, the frequent occurrence of extreme drought events will further threaten the agricultural systems of all countries in the world. Kyrgyzstan is a country with agriculture and animal husbandry as its main industries, with a weak industrial base, and agriculture plays an important role in the national economy. Kyrgyzstan is located in Central Asia and suffers from a dry climate and frequent droughts. Thus, an integral analysis of the vulnerability of Kyrgyzstan’s agricultural system is of great significance for this country’s socio-economic stability. In this study, we comprehensively analyze the agricultural system drought vulnerability of Kyrgyzstan from three dimensions of sensitivity, adaptability and exposure. The results show that the areas of higher vulnerability in Kyrgyzstan’s agricultural system are distributed in the eastern mountainous, northwest and southwest areas. In addition, regions with low vulnerability are mainly concentrated in the central area. Kyrgyzstan has abundant water resources, but the supporting infrastructure construction is relatively backward. The imperfect irrigation facilities have greatly restricted the development of agriculture and have also increased the vulnerability of the agricultural systems. In the face of climate change, the region may face more severe drought disasters, so increasing infrastructure investment and building a complete irrigation system and water use plan are the keys to reducing the vulnerability of Kyrgyzstan’s agricultural system.
Application of neural network for morphological assessment of revascularized autograft remodeling at the stage of implant placement in jaw defects
Authors: Berchenko G. N. , Braylovskaya T. V. , Fedosova N. V. , Tangieva Z. A.
Published: November 2021

Relevance. The study examines the possibility of using a mathematic model of an artificial neural network (ANN) for comparative quantitative morphological assessment of revascularized autograft remodeling after reconstructive surgery in patients with jaw defects.Materials and methods. Jawbone biopsies of 30 patients were histologically examined during the implant placement stage, 6, 9, 12 months after the reconstructive surgery with a revascularized fibular graft. Histology images were analyzed using a mathematic model created on the basis of GoogLeNet and trained on morphological images of bone maturation. Histology slides were digitized by a scanning microscope Leica SC2 and streamed through the neural network model. Results. During the follow-up period, jaw defect areas demonstrated relatively mature bone tissue formation with various intensity rates of remodeling and maturation of the newly-formed bone. At that, the results of the descriptive histology were consistent with the quantitative results of the ANN mathematic model, created on the basis of the softwarehardware system developed by the authors. The confirmed significance level is 95% or higher.Conclusion. Pathomorphological data of biopsies were studied using an ANN mathematical model, built on a softwarehardware system, which allowed analyzing all microscope fields of view of a histological slide, bypassing random samples, as well as the evaluation by a pathologist of individual microscope fields of view, to exclude the possibility of unrepresentative sampling and the influence of human factor, which significantly increases the significance of the received results.
Study of sexual dimorphism in the maturation of human dental enamel prisms by microscopic methods
Authors: Vagner V. D. , Konev V. P. , Korshunov A. S. , Kuryatnikov K. N. , Skurikhina A. P. , Bondar A. A.
Published: November 2021

Relevance. Recent-years research specifies the influence of body internal environmental factors on the development and maturity of hard dental tissues. The negative impact of which causes severe amelogenesis disorder, with the formation of immature enamel, the hypoplastic phenotype of different intensity. The timing of tooth eruption in humans has become unpredictable as the child development accelerates and new orofacial dysplastic phenomena appear or are inherited. Tooth eruption with localized or generalized hypomineralization is little studied. The study aims to compare the rate of dental enamel mineral component maturation in males and females of different ages by electron and atomic force microscopy.Materials and methods. The study involved 90 female and male subjects, aged 15-20, 21-30, 31-40 years. Impacted teeth 38 were extracted on medical grounds in all patients. The study analyzed the shape, packing and the 3D surface of enamel prisms using a Jeol JCM – 5700 scanning electron microscope and an NTEGRA Prima atomic force microscope according to Omsk State Medical University methods. The variation statistics methods processed the received data using standard packages Microsoft Excel 2008, Statistica 12.0.Results. The enamel prisms in females aged 15-20, 21-30 years are not closely spaced, compared to similar ages in the male group, as indicated by the distance between enamel prisms (15-20 years U = 9.3496, p = 0.0035 between males and females; 21-30 years U = 10.6949, p = 0.0018 between males and females). In women aged 15-20 and 21-30 years, the enamel prisms are chaotically organized: a 6-sided or 7-sided prism of larger size often squeezes a less mature 5-sided prism, providing the characteristic appearance of an immature prism with ugly outlines in various geometric shapes. In 31-40-year-old women, the enamel prisms are more densely spaced.Conclusion. There are local and total hypomineralised areas of the enamel prisms in females under 30 years old and in males under 20 years old.