bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Fluid Model of a Traffic Network with Information Feedback and Onramp Controls
Authors: Helton J. William , Kelly Frank P. , Williams Ruth J. , Ziedins Ilze
Published: April 2021

Unlimited access to a motorway network can, in overloaded conditions, cause a loss of throughput. Ramp metering, by controlling access to the motorway at onramps, can help avoid this loss of throughput. The queues that form at onramps are dependent on the metering rates chosen at the onramps, and these choices affect how the capacities of different motorway sections are shared amongst competing flows. In this paper we perform an analytical study of a fluid, or differential equation, model of a linear network topology with onramp queues. The model allows for adaptive arrivals, in the sense that the rate at which external traffic enters the queue at an onramp can depend on the current perceived delay in that queue. The model also includes a ramp metering policy which uses global onramp queue length information to determine the rate at which traffic enters the motorway from each onramp. This ramp metering policy minimizes the maximum delay over all onramps and produces equal delay times over many onramps. The paper characterizes both the dynamics and the equilibrium behavior of the system under this policy. While we consider an idealized model that leaves out many practical details, an aim of the paper is to develop analytical methods that yield interesting qualitative insights and might be adapted to more general contexts. The paper can be considered as a step in developing an analytical approach towards studying more complex network topologies and incorporating other model features.
Response durability after cessation of immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma: a retrospective multicenter DeCOG study
Authors: Stege H. M. , Haist M. , Schultheis S. , Fleischer M. I. , Mohr P. , Ugurel S. , Terheyden P. , Thiem A. , Kiecker F. , Leiter U. , Becker J. C. , Meissner M. , Kleeman J. , Pföhler C. , Hassel J. , Grabbe S. , Loquai C.
Published: April 2021

Background

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have led to a prolongation of progression-free and overall survival in patients with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). However, immune-mediated adverse events due to ICI therapy are common and often lead to treatment discontinuation. The response duration after cessation of ICI treatment is unknown. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the time to relapse after discontinuation of ICI in MCC patients.

Methods

We analyzed 20 patients with metastatic MCC who have been retrospectively enrolled at eleven skin cancer centers in Germany. These patients have received ICI therapy and showed as best overall response (BOR) at least a stable disease (SD) upon ICI therapy. All patients have discontinued ICI therapy for other reasons than disease progression. Data on treatment duration, tumor response, treatment cessation, response durability, and tumor relapse were recorded.

Results

Overall, 12 of 20 patients (60%) with MCC relapsed after discontinuation of ICI. The median response durability was 10.0 months. Complete response (CR) as BOR to ICI-treatment was observed in six patients, partial response (PR) in eleven, and SD in three patients. Disease progression was less frequent in patients with CR (2/6 patients relapsed) as compared to patients with PR (7/11) and SD (3/3), albeit the effect of initial BOR on the response durability was below statistical significance. The median duration of ICI therapy was 10.0 months. Our results did not show a correlation between treatment duration and the risk of relapse after treatment withdrawal. Major reasons for discontinuation of ICI therapy were CR (20%), adverse events (35%), fatigue (20%), or patient decision (25%). Discontinuation of ICI due to adverse events resulted in progressive disease (PD) in 71% of patients regardless of the initial response. A re-induction of ICI was initiated in 8 patients upon tumor progression. We observed a renewed tumor response in 4 of these 8 patients. Notably, all 4 patients showed an initial BOR of at least PR.

Conclusion

Our results from this contemporary cohort of patients with metastatic MCC indicate that MCC patients are at higher risk of relapse after discontinuation of ICI as compared to melanoma patients. Notably, the risk of disease progression after discontinuation of ICI treatment is lower in patients with initial CR (33%) as compared to patients with initial PR (66%) or SD (100%). Upon tumor progression, re-induction of ICI is a feasible option. Our data suggest that the BOR to initial ICI therapy might be a potential predictive clinical marker for a successful re-induction.
Combined vaccine-immune-checkpoint inhibition constitutes a promising strategy for treatment of dMMR tumors
Authors: Salewski Inken , Kuntoff Steffen , Kuemmel Andreas , Feldtmann Rico , Felix Stephan B. , Henze Larissa , Junghanss Christian , Maletzki Claudia
Published: April 2021

Background

Mlh1-knock-out-driven mismatch-repair-deficient (dMMR) tumors can be targeted immunologically. By applying therapeutic tumor vaccination, tumor growth is delayed but escape mechanisms evolve, including upregulation of immune-checkpoint molecules (LAG-3, PD-L1). To counteract immune escape, we investigated the therapeutic activity of a combined tumor vaccine-immune-checkpoint inhibitor therapy using α-PD-L1.

Design

In this trial, Mlh1-knock-out mice with established gastrointestinal tumors received single or thrice injections of α-PD-L1 monoclonal antibody clone 6E11 (2.5 mg/kg bw, q2w, i.v.) either alone or in combination with the vaccine. Longitudinal flow cytometry and PET/CT imaging studies were followed by ex vivo functional immunological and gene expression assays.

Results

6E11 monotherapy slightly increased median overall survival (mOS: 6.0 weeks vs. control 4.0 weeks). Increasing the number of injections (n = 3) improved therapy outcome (mOS: 9.2 weeks) and was significantly boosted by combining 6E11 with the vaccine (mOS: 19.4 weeks vs. 10.2 weeks vaccine monotherapy). Accompanying PET/CT imaging confirmed treatment-induced tumor growth control, with the strongest inhibition in the combination group. Three mice (30%) achieved a complete remission and showed long-term survival. Decreased levels of circulating splenic and intratumoral myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) and decreased numbers of immune-checkpoint-expressing splenic T cells (LAG-3, CTLA-4) accompanied therapeutic effects. Gene expression and protein analysis of residual tumors revealed downregulation of PI3K/Akt/Wnt-and TGF-signaling, leading to T cell infiltration, reduced numbers of macrophages, neutrophils and MDSC.

Conclusions

By successful uncoupling of the PD-1/PD-L1 axis, we provide further evidence for the safe and successful application of immunotherapies to combat dMMR-driven malignancies that warrants further investigation.
A historical review and bibliometric analysis of research on fracture nonunion in the last three decades
Authors: Giannoudis Peter V. , Chloros George D. , Ho Yuh-Shan
Published: April 2021

Background

Nonunion continues to be the most frequent and challenging complication to treat following fracture fixation. Herein, we carried out a bibliometric analysis aiming to identify the key researchers, centres and research trends developed during the past 30 years in this important clinical condition.

Methods

The Science Citation Index Expanded database and the Web of Science Core Collection were interrogated for manuscripts published between 1990 and 2019 in the topic domain, utilising title, abstract, author keywords and KeyWords Plus. Overall, such citation indicators were used as TCyear, Cyear and CPPyear to help analyse the identified manuscripts.

Results

Over the prespecified period, there was a steady increase in the number of articles published in fracture nonunion. In total, 12 languages were the primary languages in the documents, with English being the most prevalent. The CPP sharply increased to reach a plateau in three full years and up to a peak in ten full years. A total of 8976 nonunion-related articles in Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) were published in 790 journals. The 8976 articles were published by 26,079 authors among 101 different countries. There is a slightly fluctuating steady increase of articles from 116 in 1991 to 201 in 2003, and thereafter, the number of articles sharply increased to reach a plateau in 2015. Seven possible main research foci in nonunion-related research were identified including: epidemiology, classification, aetiology, diagnosis/prediction, treatment modalities, functional outcomes and health economics.

Conclusions

This bibliometric analysis revealed information on citation number, publication outputs, categories, journals, institutions, countries, research highlights and tendencies. The current research activity on fracture nonunion identified key opinion leaders and leading research institutions focusing on this important clinical condition. It is hoped that the informed included will aid to guide research work in the foreseeable future.
Multi-objective hybrid genetic algorithm for task scheduling problem in cloud computing
Authors: Pirozmand Poria , Hosseinabadi Ali Asghar Rahmani , Farrokhzad Maedeh , Sadeghilalimi Mehdi , Mirkamali Seyedsaeid , Slowik Adam
Published: April 2021

The cloud computing systems are sorts of shared collateral structure which has been in demand from its inception. In these systems, clients are able to access existing services based on their needs and without knowing where the service is located and how it is delivered, and only pay for the service used. Like other systems, there are challenges in the cloud computing system. Because of a wide array of clients and the variety of services available in this system, it can be said that the issue of scheduling and, of course, energy consumption is essential challenge of this system. Therefore, it should be properly provided to users, which minimizes both the cost of the provider and consumer and the energy consumption, and this requires the use of an optimal scheduling algorithm. In this paper, we present a two-step hybrid method for scheduling tasks aware of energy and time called Genetic Algorithm and Energy-Conscious Scheduling Heuristic based on the Genetic Algorithm. The first step involves prioritizing tasks, and the second step consists of assigning tasks to the processor. We prioritized tasks and generated primary chromosomes, and used the Energy-Conscious Scheduling Heuristic model, which is an energy-conscious model, to assign tasks to the processor. As the simulation results show, these results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm has been able to outperform other methods.
Variation of salinity and nitrogen concentration affects the pentacyclic triterpenoid inventory of the haloalkaliphilic aerobic methanotrophic bacterium Methylotuvimicrobium alcaliphilum
Authors: Cordova-Gonzalez Alexmar , Birgel Daniel , Kappler Andreas , Peckmann Jörn
Published: April 2021

The occurrence and activity of aerobic methanotrophs are influenced by environmental conditions, including pH, temperature, salinity, methane and oxygen concentrations, and nutrient availability. Aerobic methanotrophs synthesize a variety of lipids important for cell functions. However, culture-based experiments studying the influence of environmental parameters on lipid production by aerobic methanotrophs are scarce. Such information is crucial to interpret lipid patterns of methanotrophic bacteria in the environment. In this study, the alkaliphilic strain Methylotuvimicrobium alcaliphilum was cultivated under different salinities and different nitrate concentrations to assess the effect of changing conditions on the inventory of pentacyclic triterpenoids. The results indicate that hopanoid abundance is enhanced at lower salinity and higher nitrate concentration. The production of most pentacyclic triterpenoids was favored at low salinity, especially for aminotriol. Interestingly, 3-methyl-aminotetrol and tetrahymanol were favored at higher salinity. Bacteriohopanepolyols (BHPs), particularly aminotriol and 3-methyl-aminotriol, increased considerably at higher nitrate concentrations. Four novel N-containing BHPs—aminodiol, 3-methyl-aminodiol, and isomers of aminotriol and 3-methyl-aminotriol—were identified. This study highlights the significance of environmental factors for bacterial lipid production and documents the need for cultivation studies under variable conditions to utilize the full potential of the biomarker concept.
Data-Seeking Behaviour in the Social Sciences
Authors: Krämer Thomas , Papenmeier Andrea , Carevic Zeljko , Kern Dagmar , Mathiak Brigitte
Published: April 2021

Purpose Publishing research data for reuse has become good practice in recent years. However, not much is known on how researchers actually find said data. In this exploratory study, we observe the information-seeking behaviour of social scientists searching for research data to reveal impediments and identify opportunities for data search infrastructure.Methods We asked 12 participants to search for research data and observed them in their natural environment. The sessions were recorded. Afterwards, we conducted semi-structured interviews to get a thorough understanding of their way of searching. From the recordings, we extracted the interaction behaviour of the participants and analysed the spoken words both during the search task and the interview by creating affinity diagrams.Results We found that literature search is more closely intertwined with dataset search than previous literature suggests. Both the search itself and the relevance assessment are very complex, and many different strategies are employed, including the creatively “misuse” of existing tools, since no appropriate tools exist or are unknown to the participants.Conclusion Many of the issues we found relate directly or indirectly to the application of the FAIR principles, but some, like a greater need for dataset search literacy, go beyond that. Both infrastructure and tools offered for dataset search could be tailored more tightly to the observed work processes, particularly by offering more interconnectivity between datasets, literature, and other relevant materials.
Capturing the footprints of ground motion in the spatial distribution of rainfall-induced landslides
Authors: Tanyaş Hakan , Kirschbaum Dalia , Lombardo Luigi
Published: April 2021

The coupled effect of earthquakes and rainfall is rarely investigated in landslide susceptibility assessments although it could be crucial to predict landslide occurrences. This is even more critical in the context of early warning systems and especially in cases of extreme precipitation regimes in post-seismic conditions, where the rock masses are already damaged due to the ground shaking. Here, we investigate this concept by accounting for the legacy of seismic ground shaking in rainfall-induced landslide (RFIL) scenarios. We do this to identify whether ground shaking plays a role in the susceptibility to post-seismic rainfall-induced landslides and to identify whether this legacy effect persists through time. With this motivation, we use binary logistic regression and examine time series of landslides associated with four earthquakes occurred in Indonesia: 2012 Sulawesi (Mw= 6.3), 2016 Reuleut (Mw= 6.5), 2017 Kasiguncu (Mw= 6.6) and 2018 Palu (Mw= 7.5) earthquakes. The dataset includes one co-seismic and three post-seismic landslide inventories for each earthquake. We use the peak ground acceleration map of the last strongest earthquake in each case as a predisposing factor of landslides representing the effect of ground shaking. We observe that, at least for the study areas under consideration and in a probabilistic context, the earthquake legacy contributes to increase the post-seismic RFIL susceptibility. This positive contribution decays through time. Specifically, we observe that ground motion is a significant predisposing factor controlling the spatial distribution of RFIL in the post-seismic period 110 days after an earthquake. We also show that this effect dissipates within 3 years at most.
Disentangling the taxonomic status and phylogeographic structure of Marmora’s (Curruca sarda) and Balearic Warbler (Curruca balearica): a genetic multi-marker approach
Authors: Nespoli Davide , Pellegrino Irene , Galaverni Marco , Caniglia Romolo , Sunyer Joseph , Mengoni Chiara , Randi Ettore , Galimberti Andrea , Rubolini Diego , Spina Fernando , Gargallo Gabriel , Brambilla Mattia
Published: April 2021

Marmora’s Warbler (Curruca sarda) and Balearic Warbler (C. balearica) are allopatric sibling species and were recently split mostly based on morphological and ethological characteristics. Here we provide the first phylogenetic and phylogeographic analyses of this species complex to support the taxonomic status of C. sarda and C. balearica in light of integrative taxonomy. We sampled the two taxa in most of their breeding ranges and we sequenced three mitochondrial and one nuclear gene region. All C. balearica individuals had private haplotypes for the four markers and formed monophyletic clades. Genetic distances between the two taxa were comparable with those found between other species belonging to the Curruca genus. Furthermore, most of the genetic variance was expressed at the interspecific level, rather than between different populations within taxa or between individuals within populations. Our results strongly support the current taxonomic status of these two warblers as distinct species.
NODE: a large‐scale seismic risk prioritization tool for Italy based on nominal structural performance
Authors: Petruzzelli Fabio , Iervolino Iunio
Published: April 2021

Prioritization of seismic risk mitigation at a large scale requires rough-input methodologies able to provide an expedited, yet conventional, assessment of the seismic risk corresponding to the portfolio of interest. In fact, an evaluation of seismic vulnerability at regional level by means of mechanics-based methods is generally only feasible for a fraction of the portfolio, selected according to prioritization criteria, due to the sheer volume of information and computational effort required. Therefore, conventional assessment of seismic risk via simple indices has been proposed in literature and in some guidelines, mainly based on the comparison of code requirements at the time of design and current seismic demand. These indices represent an attempt to define a relative seismic risk measure for a rapid ranking to identify the part of the portfolio that deserves further investigation. Although these risk metrics are based on strong assumptions, they have the advantage of only requiring easy-to-retrieve data, such as design year and location as the bare minimum, making them suitable for applications within the risk analysis industry. Moreover, they can take both hazard and vulnerability into account, albeit conventionally, and can be manipulated in order to account for exposure in terms of individual or societal risks. In the present study, the main assumptions, limitations, and possible evolutions of existing prioritization approaches to nominal risk are reviewed, with specific reference to the Italian case. Furthermore, this article presents the software NODE (available to interested readers), which enables the computation of location-specific code-based seismic performance demands, according to the Italian code and the evolution of seismic classification since 1909. Finally, this study intends to contribute to the ongoing debate on strategies for large-scale seismic assessment for building stock management purposes.
LIGA: a cryptosystem based on the hardness of rank-metric list and interleaved decoding
Authors: Renner Julian , Puchinger Sven , Wachter-Zeh Antonia
Published: April 2021

We propose the new rank-metric code-based cryptosystem which is based on the hardness of list decoding and interleaved decoding of Gabidulin codes. is an improved variant of the Faure–Loidreau (FL) system, which was broken in a structural attack by Gaborit, Otmani, and Talé Kalachi (GOT, 2018). We keep the FL encryption and decryption algorithms, but modify the insecure key generation algorithm. Our crucial observation is that the GOT attack is equivalent to decoding an interleaved Gabidulin code. The new key generation algorithm constructs public keys for which all polynomial-time interleaved decoders fail—hence resists the GOT attack. We also prove that the public-key encryption version of is IND-CPA secure in the standard model and the key encapsulation mechanisms version is IND-CCA2 secure in the random oracle model, both under hardness assumptions of formally defined problems related to list decoding and interleaved decoding of Gabidulin codes. We propose and analyze various exponential-time attacks on these problems, calculate their work factors, and compare the resulting parameters to NIST proposals. The strengths of are short ciphertext sizes and (relatively) small key sizes. Further, guarantees correct decryption and has no decryption failure rate. It is not based on hiding the structure of a code. Since there are efficient and constant-time algorithms for encoding and decoding Gabidulin codes, timing attacks on the encryption and decryption algorithms can be easily prevented.
Making Partnerships Work: Proposing a Model to Support Parent-Practitioner Partnerships in the Early Years
Authors: Kambouri Maria , Wilson Teresa , Pieridou Myria , Quinn Suzanne Flannery , Liu Jie
Published: April 2021

Building on Froebelian principles that highlight the importance of family and community, this study explored the importance of collaboration and communication as part of a two-way dialogue. The aim was to identify the key characteristics of a model that would encourage interest and commitment to partnerships from both parents and practitioners. The idea of such partnerships has a solid theoretical background and is supported both rhetorically and by legislation by the Department of Education. However, research has shown that practice often falls short of the ideal, due to reasons such as the managerial discourse that constructs parents as potential consumers and the challenges faced when performance is prioritised over creativity. As part of the study, we employed a mixed methods approach and encouraged parents and practitioners to work together by participating at two sessions with families and children. The sessions provided parents and practitioners with space and time to explore the issue of working in ‘partnership’. After careful consideration of ethical issues, data were collected using pre and post-session questionnaires with all participants, as well as face to face interviews with some of them. Findings indicate that both parties need to invest time and recognise that ‘effective partnership’ is a two way process which requires engagement and dialogue to be able to develop meaningful relationships of trust. The findings were used to develop the ‘CAFE' partnership model which incorporates those elements considered important to facilitate the development of partnerships between practitioners and parents. The CAFE model addresses the gap in the literature in terms of unpicking the key features of a partnership approach, as captured through the lived experience of both parents and practitioners. It also contributes to deepening the understanding of the applications of Froebelian principles in contemporary contexts and the ways in which they can encourage high quality early childhood development and education. Future research should explore how this model could be used to evaluate existing practice and guide the development of current partnership policies and approaches.
New Insights and Novel Therapeutic Potentials for Macrophages in Myocardial Infarction
Authors: Zhang Zenglei , Tang Junnan , Cui Xiaolin , Qin Bo , Zhang Jianchao , Zhang Li , Zhang Hui , Liu Gangqiong , Wang Wei , Zhang Jinying
Published: April 2021

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has long been the leading cause of death worldwide, and myocardial infarction (MI) accounts for the greatest proportion of CVD. Recent research has revealed that inflammation plays a major role in the pathogenesis of CVD and other manifestations of atherosclerosis. Overwhelming evidence supports the view that macrophages, as the basic cell component of the innate immune system, play a pivotal role in atherosclerosis initiation and progression. Limited but indispensable resident macrophages have been detected in the healthy heart; however, the number of cardiac macrophages significantly increases during cardiac injury. In the early period of initial cardiac damage (e.g., MI), numerous classically activated macrophages (M1) originating from the bone marrow and spleen are rapidly recruited to damaged sites, where they are responsible for cardiac remodeling. After the inflammatory stage, the macrophages shift toward an alternatively activated phenotype (M2) that promotes cardiac repair. In addition, extensive studies have shown the therapeutic potential of macrophages as targets, especially for emerging nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery systems. In the present review, we focused on the role of macrophages in the development and progression of MI, factors regulating macrophage activation and function, and the therapeutic potential of macrophages in MI.
Educational Interventions for Children and Youth with Autism: A 40-Year Perspective
Authors: Odom Samuel L. , Hall Laura J. , Morin Kristi L. , Kraemer Bonnie R. , Hume Kara A. , McIntyre Nancy S. , Nowell Sallie W. , Steinbrenner Jessica R. , Tomaszewski Brianne , Sam Ann M. , DaWalt Leann
Published: April 2021

Commemorating the 40 th anniversary of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) III, the purpose of this commentary is to describe school-based and school-relevant interventions and instructional approaches for children and youth with autism that have been developed and employed during that time period. The commentary begins with a brief description of foundational research that provides an historical context. Research themes shaped by science, ethics, social policy, and the changes in the DSM provide an organization for describing the evolution of intervention and instructional practices over the four previous decades. The commentary concludes with a discussion of school-contextual variables that influence implementation and the promise of the “iSciences” for closing the research to practice gap in the future.
Adaptive covariate acquisition for minimizing total cost of classification
Authors: Andrade Daniel , Okajima Yuzuru
Published: April 2021

In some applications, acquiring covariates comes at a cost which is not negligible. For example in the medical domain, in order to classify whether a patient has diabetes or not, measuring glucose tolerance can be expensive. Assuming that the cost of each covariate, and the cost of misclassification can be specified by the user, our goal is to minimize the (expected) total cost of classification, i.e. the cost of misclassification plus the cost of the acquired covariates. We formalize this optimization goal using the (conditional) Bayes risk and describe the optimal solution using a recursive procedure. Since the procedure is computationally infeasible, we consequently introduce two assumptions: (1) the optimal classifier can be represented by a generalized additive model, (2) the optimal sets of covariates are limited to a sequence of sets of increasing size. We show that under these two assumptions, a computationally efficient solution exists. Furthermore, on several medical datasets, we show that the proposed method achieves in most situations the lowest total costs when compared to various previous methods. Finally, we weaken the requirement on the user to specify all misclassification costs by allowing the user to specify the minimally acceptable recall (target recall). Our experiments confirm that the proposed method achieves the target recall while minimizing the false discovery rate and the covariate acquisition costs better than previous methods.
Development of optical MEMS-based micromirror arrays on flexible substrate for curvilinear surfaces
Authors: Amirzada Muhammad Rizwan , Li Qingdang , Hillmer Hartmut
Published: April 2021

This research work is targeting to demonstrate that micromirror arrays can also be fabricated successfully on flexible substrates—not only on glass substrates. The paper reports on the technological data of a successful process on a flexible substrate for curvilinear surfaces. Polyethylene naphthalate substrate was selected for its low cost, strong resistance against chemicals which are used in fabrication process and sufficient optical transmission for the visible and near infrared spectrum. Finally, electrostatic actuation of the fabricated micromirror structures is proven experimentally.
Day-to-day discovery of preprint–publication links
Authors: Cabanac Guillaume , Oikonomidi Theodora , Boutron Isabelle
Published: April 2021

Preprints promote the open and fast communication of non-peer reviewed work. Once a preprint is published in a peer-reviewed venue, the preprint server updates its web page: a prominent hyperlink leading to the newly published work is added. Linking preprints to publications is of utmost importance as it provides readers with the latest version of a now certified work. Yet leading preprint servers fail to identify all existing preprint–publication links. This limitation calls for a more thorough approach to this critical information retrieval task: overlooking published evidence translates into partial and even inaccurate systematic reviews on health-related issues, for instance. We designed an algorithm leveraging the Crossref public and free source of bibliographic metadata to comb the literature for preprint–publication links. We tested it on a reference preprint set identified and curated for a living systematic review on interventions for preventing and treating COVID-19 performed by international collaboration: the COVID-NMA initiative (covid-nma.com). The reference set comprised 343 preprints, 121 of which appeared as a publication in a peer-reviewed journal. While the preprint servers identified 39.7% of the preprint–publication links, our linker identified 90.9% of the expected links with no clues taken from the preprint servers. The accuracy of the proposed linker is 91.5% on this reference set, with 90.9% sensitivity and 91.9% specificity. This is a 16.26% increase in accuracy compared to that of preprint servers. We release this software as supplementary material to foster its integration into preprint servers’ workflows and enhance a daily preprint–publication chase that is useful to all readers, including systematic reviewers. This preprint–publication linker currently provides day-to-day updates to the biomedical experts of the COVID-NMA initiative.
The landscape and the multiverse: What’s the problem?
Authors: Read James , Le Bihan Baptiste
Published: April 2021

As a candidate theory of quantum gravity, the popularity of string theory has waxed and waned over the past four decades. One current source of scepticism is that the theory can be used to derive, depending upon the input geometrical assumptions that one makes, a vast range of different quantum field theories, giving rise to the so-called landscape problem. One apparent way to address the landscape problem is to posit the existence of a multiverse; this, however, has in turn drawn heightened attention to questions regarding the empirical testability and predictivity of string theory. We argue first that the landscape problem relies on dubious assumptions and does not motivate a multiverse hypothesis. Nevertheless, we then show that the multiverse hypothesis is scientifically legitimate and could be coupled to string theory for other empirical reasons. Looking at various cosmological approaches, we offer an empirical criterion to assess the scientific status of multiverse hypotheses.
Barad, Bohr, and quantum mechanics
Authors: Faye Jan , Jaksland Rasmus
Published: April 2021

The last decade has seen an increasing number of references to quantum mechanics in the humanities and social sciences. This development has in particular been driven by Karen Barad’s agential realism: a theoretical framework that, based on Niels Bohr’s interpretation of quantum mechanics, aims to inform social theorizing. In dealing with notions such as agency, power, and embodiment as well as the relation between the material and the discursive level, the influence of agential realism in fields such as feminist science studies and posthumanism has been profound. However, no one has hitherto paused to assess agential realism’s proclaimed quantum mechanical origin including its relation to the writings of Niels Bohr. This is the task taken up here. We find that many of the implications that agential realism allegedly derives from a Bohrian interpretation of quantum mechanics dissent from Bohr’s own views and are in conflict with those of other interpretations of quantum mechanics. Agential realism is at best consistent with quantum mechanics and consequently, it does not capture what quantum mechanics in any strict sense implies for social science or any other domain of inquiry. Agential realism may be interesting and thought provoking from the perspective of social theorizing, but it is neither sanctioned by quantum mechanics nor by Bohr’s authority. This conclusion not only holds for agential realism in particular, it also serves as a general warning against the other attempts to use quantum mechanics in social theorizing.
Biochar-templated surface precipitation and inner-sphere complexation effectively removes arsenic from acid mine drainage
Authors: Wang Dongmei , Root Robert A. , Chorover Jon
Published: April 2021

Treatment of aqueous leachate from acid mine tailings with pristine biochar (BC) resulted in the removal of more than 90% of the dissolved arsenic with an attendant rapid and sustained pH buffering from 3 to 4. Pine forest waste BC was transformed to a highly effective adsorbent for arsenic remediation of acid mine drainage (AMD) because the dissolved iron induced “activation” of BC through accumulation of highly reactive ferric hydroxide surface sites. Physicochemical properties of the BC surface, and molecular mechanisms of Fe, S, and As phase transfer, were investigated using a multi-method, micro-scale approach (SEM, XRD, FTIR, XANES, EXAFS, and STXM). Co-located carbon and iron analysis with STXM indicated preferential iron neo-precipitates at carboxylic BC surface sites. Iron and arsenic X-ray spectroscopy showed an initial precipitation of ferrihydrite on BC, with concurrent adsorption/coprecipitation of arsenate. The molecular mechanism of arsenic removal involved bidentate, binuclear inner-sphere complexation of arsenate at the surfaces of pioneering ferric precipitates. Nucleation and crystal growth of ferrihydrite and goethite were observed after 1 h of reaction. The high sulfate activity in AMD promoted schwertmannite precipitation beginning at 6 h of reaction. At reaction times beyond 6 h, goethite and schwertmannite accumulated at the expense of ferrihydrite. Results indicate that the highly functionalized surface of BC acts as a scaffolding for the precipitation and activation of positively charged ferric hydroxy(sulf)oxide surface sites from iron-rich AMD, which then complex oxyanion arsenate, effectively removing it from porewaters.
Synchronized Tick Population Oscillations Driven by Host Mobility and Spatially Heterogeneous Developmental Delays Combined
Authors: Zhang Xue , Wu Jianhong
Published: April 2021

We consider a coupled system of delay differential equations for a single-species tick population dynamics, assuming feeding adult ticks are distributed by their hosts in a spatially heterogeneous environment consisting of two patches where egg ticks produced will complete their life cycles with different, normal and diapause, developmental delays. We show that the mobility of adult tick host and the diapause developmental delay combined drive a synchronized oscillation in the total tick populations around a uniquely defined positive equilibrium, and this synchronization makes the oscillatory patterns much simpler in comparison with multi-peak oscillations exhibited in the absence of host mobility.
The role of textbook quality in first graders’ ability to solve quantitative comparisons: a multilevel analysis
Authors: Sievert Henning , van den Ham Ann-Katrin , Heinze Aiso
Published: April 2021

Students need to create mental models for different types of addition and subtraction situations in order to develop a broad and viable understanding of these operations. Although most students succeed when changing or combining sets, situations that demand a quantitative comparison of sets seem considerably more difficult in the first school year. Textbooks represent the most important learning resource for elementary school mathematics teachers. However, research on their impact on students’ knowledge is limited. Hence, we examined textbooks’ role in students’ ability to model quantitative comparisons by analyzing the learning opportunities presented by four German textbooks for Grade 1 and by conducting a secondary analysis of a dataset based on 1513 students from 84 classes that used one of these textbooks. The results revealed differences in the textbooks’ topic-specific instructional quality as well as a significant relation between this quality and student achievement in quantitative comparisons.
The Male Gaze or Male Gays? From Romance to Bromance through Performances of Gender and Sexuality by two of Love Island’s Favourite Characters
Authors: Silverio Sergio A. , Wilkinson Catherine , Wilkinson Samantha
Published: April 2021

This paper draws on two favourite characters from British reality television show,Love Island2018: Jack Fincham, a former stationery sales manager, and Alex George, an Accident & Emergency [A&E] doctor, to explore how heterosexual norms are constructed and challenged. We study the romantic on-screen relationships these characters have with the female contestants, and between the two male characters themselves through the notion of ‘bromance’. Through a textual analysis of the spoken words and physical interactions between characters in episodes forming the fourth series ofLove Islandand analysis of social media posts and articles in popular press outlets, we use the notion of gender performativity to explore how these characters perform both hegemonic and, what we argue is, ‘threatened’ masculinity. We use the ‘Male Gaze’ to methodologically lens the performances by characters and their romantic interactions on the television show. In particular, we focus on Jack and Alex’s budding relationship and the condemning of this relationship by the public amid Alex’s termination of his romantic relationship. The decision by Alex to end this relationship led to many viewers questioning his sexuality, with specific reference to his adoration for Jack. Whilst broadly, this paper contributes to debates on the sociological potential of reality television shows, such asLove Island, its specific contribution is to a small, but growing body of international scholarship on homosocial relationships and male love stories in television and film. With this paper, we also contribute towards redressing the marginalization of women within the study of bromance.
HLFC-optimized retrofit aircraft design of a medium-range reference configuration within the AVACON project
Authors: Effing Tim , Schültke Florian , Stumpf Eike
Published: April 2021

This paper presents an approach for the design of a retrofit aircraft with integrated, optimized hybrid laminar flow control (HLFC). The basis for this research is a medium-range reference configuration derived within the German LuFo project “Advanced Aircraft Concepts” (AVACON). For the aerodynamics, an in-house-developed process chain for flow analysis is used, which requires airfoil shapes at specific sections of a known wing geometry. To improve the accuracy, pressure distributions from the 2D flow solver MSES are first aligned to high-fidelity 3D results from DLR’s TAU code for extracted airfoils. This is done by varying parameters of the transformation methods used. Subsequently, the required suction distributions are optimized based on pre-defined criteria; these include not only the aerodynamic effects but also the needed mass flows. After optimizing the HLFC system architecture concerning mass and power offtakes, a retrofit aircraft is designed with the in-house “Multidisciplinary Integrated Aircraft Design and Optimization” (MICADO) environment. Compared to the turbulent baseline, the promising potential of the HLFC technology is demonstrated. In addition, the actual benefit of the optimization approach is evaluated in the context of overall preliminary aircraft design. This is done by redesigning the aircraft with other suction distributions and HLFC system architectures. Although it is shown that the approach leads to an overall optimum, the optimization benefit remains small. This indicates the limits of the HLFC technology as a pure add-on for initially turbulent aircraft and the need for the application of new laminar wing design methods to tap the full potential of HLFC.
Counterfactual attribute-based visual explanations for classification
Authors: Gulshad Sadaf , Smeulders Arnold
Published: April 2021

In this paper, our aim is to provide human understandable intuitive factual and counterfactual explanations for the decisions of neural networks. Humans tend to reinforce their decisions by providing attributes and counterattributes. Hence, in this work, we utilize attributes as well as examples to provide explanations. In order to provide counterexplanations we make use of directed perturbations to arrive at the counterclass attribute values in doing so, we explain what is present and what is absent in the original image. We evaluate our method when images are misclassified into closer counterclasses as well as when misclassified into completely different counterclasses. We conducted experiments on both finegrained as well as coarsegrained datasets. We verified our attribute-based explanations method both quantitatively and qualitatively and showed that attributes provide discriminating and human understandable explanations for both standard as well as robust networks.
On prime powers in linear recurrence sequences
Authors: Odjoumani Japhet , Ziegler Volker
Published: April 2021

In this paper we consider the Diophantine equation $$U_n=p^x$$

U
n

=

p
x

where $$U_n$$

U
n

is a linear recurrence sequence, p is a prime number, and x is a positive integer. Under some technical hypotheses on $$U_n$$

U
n

, we show that, for any p outside of an effectively computable finite set of prime numbers, there exists at most one solution (n, x) to that Diophantine equation. We compute this exceptional set for the Tribonacci sequence and for the Lucas sequence plus one.
Variations and Control of Thrust and Mixture Ratio in Hybrid Rocket Motors
Authors: Barato Francesco , Toson Elena , Pavarin Daniele
Published: April 2021

Hybrid rocket motors have several attracting characteristics such as simplicity, low cost, safety, reliability, environmental friendliness. In particular, hybrid rockets can provide complex and flexible thrust profiles not possible with solid rockets in a simpler way than liquid rockets, controlling only a single fluid. Unfortunately, the drawback of this feature is that the mixture ratio cannot be directly controlled but depends on the specific regression rate law. Therefore, in the general case the mixture ratio changes with time and with throttling. Thrust could also change with time for a fixed oxidizer flow. Moreover, propellant residuals are generated by the mixture ratio shift if the throttling profile is not known in advance. The penalties incurred could be more or less significant depending on the mission profile and requirements. In this paper, some proposed ways to mitigate or eliminate these issues are recalled, quantitatively analysed and compared with the standard case. In particular, the addition of energetic additives to influence the regression rate law, the injection of oxidizer in the post-chamber and the altering-intensity swirling-oxidizer-flow injection are discussed. The first option exploits the pressure dependency of the fuel regression to mitigate the shift during throttling. The other two techniques can control both the mixture ratio and thrust, at least in a certain range, at the expense of an increase of the architecture complexity. Moreover, some other options like pulse width modulation or multi-chamber configuration are also presented. Finally, a review of the techniques to achieve high throttling ratios keeping motor stability and efficiency is also discussed.
Association of chronotype as assessed by the midpoint of sleep with the dietary intake and health-related quality of life for elderly Japanese women
Authors: Mito Natsuko , Fujimoto Eka , Sasaki Satoshi ,   the Three-generation Study of Women on Diets and Health Study Group
Published: April 2021

The relationship of chronotype differences with dietary habits and health-related outcomes among elderly people is not fully understood, although sex and generation differences are observed in human chronotype. Accordingly, we analysed the association of chronotype (as assessed by the midpoint of sleep) with dietary intake and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in elderly Japanese women. The subjects in this cross-sectional study were 1618 women aged 65 years and older who were grandmothers or acquaintances of dietetics students. The subjects were classified into quintiles with respect to the midpoint of sleep, from the earliest to the latest quintile. HRQoL was assessed by the Japanese version of the short-form 36-item health survey score. Mental health was assessed by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale. Dietary intake was assessed by a brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire. A later midpoint of sleep was associated with a lower intake of vitamin D and a higher intake of bread and caffeinated drinks. No correlations were observed between chronotype and other nutrient and food intake. The subjects with a late midpoint of sleep (eveningness) showed poor general health perception (GH) and high CES-D scores. Other HRQoL scores did not differ among groups with different midpoints of sleep. In conclusion, chronotype as assessed by the midpoint of sleep is associated with poor GH and depressive tendencies in elderly Japanese women. Additionally, a few associations were found between dietary intake and chronotype in elderly Japanese women.
Photoconductive PbSe thin films for infrared imaging
Authors: Gupta Mool C. , Harrison Joel T. , Islam Md Toriqul
Published: April 2021

Lead selenide (PbSe) emerged 70+ years ago for its unique photoconductive sensitivity to the mid-wave infrared (MWIR) spectrum; however, new and exciting research continues to ignite interest in this material to this day.