bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The comparison of risk factors for colorectal neoplasms at different anatomical sites
Authors: Wang Huaqing , Yuan Zhen , Wang Shuyuan , Pang Wenwen , Wang Wanting , Liu Xinyu , Yi Ben , Han Qiurong , Yao Yao , Zhang Qinghuai , Zhang Xipeng , Zhang Chunze
Published: January 2023

Aim

Both the clinical manifestation and molecular characteristics of colorectal cancer (CRC) vary according to the anatomical site. We explored the risk factors for four groups of colorectal neoplasms (CRN) at different anatomical sites.

Methods

We extracted data from the database of Tianjin Colorectal Cancer Screening Program from 2010 to 2020. According to the CRN anatomical sites, patients were divided into four groups: the proximal colon group, the distal colon group, the rectum group, and the multiple colorectal sites. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to explore the differences in risk factors of CRN at different anatomical sites.

Results

The numbers of patients with CRN in the proximal colon, distal colon, rectum, and multiple colorectal sites were 4023, 6920, 3657, and 7938, respectively. Male sex was associated with a higher risk from the proximal colon to the rectum. Advanced age and obesity were also significantly associated with overall colorectal CRN risk, but there were some differences between men and women. Smoking was associated with CRN risk only in the distal colon and rectum in both men and women. Frequent alcohol consumption and family history of CRC in first-degree relatives (FDRs) were associated with the risk of multisite colorectal CRN only in males.

Conclusions

We observed differences in advanced age, obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and family history of colorectal cancer at different anatomical sites of colorectal neoplasms. These factors vary by gender.
Standorte der deutschen Musikindustrie in globalen Netzwerken der Musikproduktion
Authors: Marquardt Kai , Mager Christoph
Published: February 2023

Populäre Musik entsteht in komplexen Produktionsnetzwerken, in denen verschiedene Institutionen und hochspezialisierte Akteur:innen zusammenwirken. Als Orte, an denen diese Akteur:innen zusammenkommen, dienen Tonstudios als Zentren der musikalischen Kreativität. Virtuelle und physische Bewegungen zwischen Tonstudios verbinden Städte auf der ganzen Welt und bilden so urbane Netzwerke der Musikproduktion. Ziel dieses Beitrags ist die Identifizierung von Schlüsselstädten in Deutschland sowie eine Kartierung ihrer Position innerhalb der globalisierten Produktionsnetzwerke des deutschen Musikmarktes. Dazu verwenden wir einen Ansatz der sozialen Netzwerkanalyse, um relationale Muster zwischen Städten der Musikproduktion zu untersuchen. Datengrundlage sind Standorte von Tonstudios, die an der Produktion von Alben der deutschen Top 20 Charts beteiligt waren. Die resultierenden globalen Netzwerke werden identifiziert, visualisiert und analysiert. Das Ergebnis sind standortspezifische Produktionsnetzwerke der deutschen Musikindustrie mit unterschiedlichen geographischen Reichweiten und Vernetzungsgraden. Der Beitrag bietet damit systematische Anknüpfungspunkte für strategische Fragestellungen im Hinblick auf die Einbettung und Einzigartigkeit deutscher Städte in den globalisierten Netzwerken der Musikindustrie.
Early portfolio pruning: a scalable approach to hybrid portfolio selection
Authors: Gioia Daniele G. , Fior Jacopo , Cagliero Luca
Published: January 2023

Driving the decisions of stock market investors is among the most challenging financial research problems. Markowitz’s approach to portfolio selection models stock profitability and risk level through a mean–variance model, which involves estimating a very large number of parameters. In addition to requiring considerable computational effort, this raises serious concerns about the reliability of the model in real-world scenarios. This paper presents a hybrid approach that combines itemset extraction with portfolio selection. We propose to adapt Markowitz’s model logic to deal with sets of candidate portfolios rather than with single stocks. We overcome some of the known issues of the Markovitz model as follows: (i) Complexity: we reduce the model complexity, in terms of parameter estimation, by studying the interactions among stocks within a shortlist of candidate stock portfolios previously selected by an itemset mining algorithm. (ii) Portfolio-level constraints: we not only perform stock-level selection, but also support the enforcement of arbitrary constraints at the portfolio level, including the properties of diversification and the fundamental indicators. (iii) Usability: we simplify the decision-maker’s work by proposing a decision support system that enables flexible use of domain knowledge and human-in-the-loop feedback. The experimental results, achieved on the US stock market, confirm the proposed approach’s flexibility, effectiveness, and scalability.
Defining an Affine Partition Algebra
Authors: Creedon Samuel , De Visscher Maud
Published: February 2023

We define an affine partition algebra by generators and relations and prove a variety of basic results regarding this new algebra analogous to those of other affine diagram algebras. In particular we show that it extends the Schur-Weyl duality between the symmetric group and the partition algebra. We also relate it to the affine partition category recently defined by J. Brundan and M. Vargas. Moreover, we show that this affine partition category is a full monoidal subcategory of the Heisenberg category.
Semantical Analysis of the Logic of Bunched Implications
Authors: Gheorghiu Alexander V. , Pym David J.
Published: January 2023

We give a novel approach to proving soundness and completeness for a logic (henceforth: the object-logic) that bypasses truth-in-a-model to work directly with validity. Instead of working with specific worlds in specific models, we reason with eigenworlds (i.e., generic representatives of worlds) in an arbitrary model. This reasoning is captured by a sequent calculus for ameta-logic (in this case, first-order classical logic) expressive enough to capture the semantics of the object-logic. Essentially, one has a calculus of validity for the object-logic. The method proceeds through the perspective of reductive logic (as opposed to the more traditional paradigm of deductive logic), using the space of reductions as a medium for showing the behavioural equivalence of reduction in the sequent calculus for the object-logic and in the validity calculus. Rather than study the technique in general, we illustrate it for the logic of Bunched Implications (BI), thus IPL and MILL (without negation) are also treated. Intuitively, BI is the free combination of intuitionistic propositional logic and multiplicative intuitionistic linear logic, which renders its meta-theory is quite complex. The literature on BI contains many similar, but ultimately different, algebraic structures and satisfaction relations that either capture only fragments of the logic (albeit large ones) or have complex clauses for certain connectives (e.g., Beth’s clause for disjunction instead of Kripke’s). It is this complexity that motivates us to use BI as a case-study for this approach to semantics.
The EU Interreg Project “GEREMIA” on waste management for the improvement of port waters: results on monitoring the health status of fish as bioindicator
Authors: Reboa Anna , Besio Giovanni , Cutroneo Laura , Geneselli Irene , Gorbi Stefania , Nardi Alessandro , Piccione Maria Elena , Regoli Francesco , Capello Marco
Published: January 2023

Highly anthropized areas as ports represent complex scenarios that require accurate monitoring plans aimed to address the environmental status. In this context, the activities of the EU Interreg Project “GEstione dei REflui per il MIglioramento delle Acque portuali (GEREMIA)” were focused on comparing sites differently affected by human presence, as the Port of Genoa and the natural area of the S’Ena Arrubia fishpond: a panel of analyses was carried out on Mugilidae fish sampled in these two areas, aimed to address trace metal accumulation in the liver, gills, and muscle, as well as cytochrome P450 (CYP450) induction in liver and biliary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) metabolites, and histopathological alterations in the liver and gills. Chemical analyses in the liver, gills, and muscle of specimens collected in the port area showed an overall higher degree of trace metal contamination compared to the natural fishpond, and similar results were obtained in terms of CYP450 induction and biliary PAH metabolites, suggesting a higher exposure to organic compounds. In addition, histopathological analyses revealed a significant alteration and then a loss of functionality of liver and gill tissue in individuals from the port. Overall, this study describes the complex environmental pollution scenario in the Port of Genoa, confirming the importance of using multidisciplinary approaches and different types of analyses to address both the presence and the effects of contaminants in marine environments.
Miniaturized Design of a 1 × 2 Plasmonic Demultiplexer Based on Metal–Insulator-Metal Waveguide for Telecommunication Wavelengths
Authors: Butt M. A. , Kazanskiy N. L. , Khonina S. N.
Published: January 2023

In this work, a numerical analysis of a compact 1 × 2 plasmonic demultiplexer based on a metal–insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide is presented. Two hollow circular cavities are side coupled to the bus waveguide on both sides. The cavities are designed in such a way that they resonate at the working wavelength of 1310 nm and 1550 nm. The mechanism of light coupling to an MIM waveguide has not been considered in previous studies. Therefore, a silicon tapered mode converter is integrated with a plasmonic demultiplexer for the efficient conversion of a dielectric to a plasmonic mode. The footprint of the device is 6 μm × 6 μm. The crosstalk at P1 and P2 is ~ 14.07 dB and ~ 13.67 dB for the transmission wavelength of 1310 nm and 1550 nm, respectively.
A leverage points perspective on Arctic Indigenous food systems research: a systematic review
Authors: Zimmermann Silja , Dermody Brian J. , Theunissen Bert , Wassen Martin J. , Divine Lauren M. , Padula Veronica M. , von Wehrden Henrik , Dorresteijn Ine
Published: January 2023

Arctic food systems are increasingly challenged by rapid climate change, loss of food security and subsequent weakening of food sovereignty, and destabilization of Indigenous practices. Despite growing scientific knowledge on Arctic food systems, Indigenous communities continue to struggle with a plethora of sustainability challenges. To develop a systemic understanding of these challenges, we performed a systematic review of 526 articles published between 1998 and 2021 on Arctic Indigenous food systems. We used the leverage points framework to structure our analysis to understand to what extent the existing Western scientific body of literature provides the necessary knowledge to understand the food system characteristics that give rise to the current sustainability challenges. We combined deductive qualitative and inductive quantitative approaches to identify gaps in the systemic understanding of Arctic Indigenous food systems. We characterized existing research across the four levels of systemic depth—parameters, feedbacks, design, intent—and identified promising directions for future research. Our analyses show that research on food systems is clustered within six main domains, we term environmental contaminants, diet and health, food security, food culture and economy, changing socio-ecological systems and marine and coast. Based on our analysis, we identify three directions for future research that we believe to be of particular importance to enable sustainability transformations of Arctic Indigenous food systems: (i) the decolonization of research practices, (ii) acknowledging the significance of systemic interdependencies across shallow and deep leverage points, and (iii) transdisciplinary action-oriented research collaborations directing transformative system interventions.
The Best Interests of The Child Self-Report (BIC-S): Psychometric Properties of the Adapted Version of the BIC-S used as a Monitoring Instrument to Measure the Quality of The Children’s Rearing Environment From a Children’s Rights Perspective
Authors: Zijlstra A. Elianne , Post Wendy J. , Hopman Marit , De Jong Alexandra , Kalverboer Margrite E.
Published: January 2023

Background

In line with the legal duty to monitor the compliance of policy and practice with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Netherlands’ Ombudsman for Children collects data concerning children’s views about their rearing environment and well-being. This Children’s Rights Monitor uses the Best Interests of the Child Self-Report (BIC-S). The psychometric properties of the BIC-S need to be further investigated.

Method

For the 2018 Children’s Rights Monitor, 1639 children (age:M = 12.05SD = 2.70) completed the BIC-S (quality of rearing environment) and value their life on a scale of 1 to 10 (well-being). Mokken Scale Analysis was applied to determine the construct validity, and a Pearson correlation coefficient between well-being and the quality of rearing environment was used to determine the convergent validity of the BIC-S.

Results

The results of the Mokken Scale Analysis reveal an invariant, strong, and reliable family scale (H = 0.60; Rho = 0.88) and an invariant, moderate, and reliable society scale (H = 0.45; Rho = 0.81). Two conditions (safe wider physical environment and adequate examples in society) should be viewed as separate items. Strong and significant correlations are observed between well-being, on the one hand, and the family and society scales on the other (respectively, r = 0.54 and 0.63).

Implications

Results of this study point to a reliable and valid BIC-S for measuring the quality of the rearing environment. This instrument can be used to bring policy, practice, and decision-making in line with Children’s Rights.
Comparison of two immunohistochemical staining protocols for ALK demonstrates non-inferiority of a 5A4 clone-based protocol versus an ALK01 clone-based protocol for the diagnosis of ALK + anaplastic large cell lymphoma
Authors: Fernandez-Pol Sebastian , Ferreira Cristiane R. , Manohar Vidhya , Sanches José Antonio , Lage Luis A. P. C. , Pereira Juliana , Zerbini Maria C. N. , Gratzinger Dita , Natkunam Yasodha
Published: January 2023

Detection of ALK rearrangement and/or expression of the ALK protein is an essential component in the evaluation of many neoplasms. Variability has been reported in the ability of different antibody clones to detect ALK expression. The ALK01 clone is commonly used to detect ALK expression in ALK-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALK + ALCL). However, this clone has been shown to lack sensitivity when used for solid tumors. The aim of this study was to determine if our high-sensitivity 5A4-based immunohistochemistry protocol is non-inferior to our ALK01-based protocol for the detection of ALK expression in ALK + ALCL. To compare the two protocols, we stained tissue microarrays of 126 hematolymphoid neoplasms and an additional 21 primary cutaneous ALK-negative anaplastic large cell lymphomas with both protocols. All 28 ALK + ALCL samples that were positive for the ALK01 antibody were also positive for the 5A4 clone. Three cases on the tissue microarray that were negative with the ALK01 antibody were clearly positive with the 5A4 antibody. We subsequently stained whole tissue sections of these three cases with the ALK01 antibody and found that these three cases were indeed positive with the ALK01 protocol, suggesting that the absence of staining on the tissue microarray samples was due to a combination of sampling error as well as a dimmer signal with the ALK01 protocol. Our study demonstrates that our 5A4-based protocol is non-inferior to the ALK01 antibody for the diagnosis of ALK-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma, thus allowing our laboratory to discontinue the use of the ALK01-based protocol.
Water supply to a mountain village (Drave, North Portugal): historical overview, current scenario, and future perspectives
Authors: Espinha Marques Jorge , Duarte Lia , Queirós Miguel , Melo Armindo , Mansilha Catarina
Published: February 2023

Throughout the world, mountain populations have developed specific agroecosystems, with different types of water supply for irrigation and domestic use. The Drave mountain village (North Portugal) has, for centuries, faced harsh hydrological, hydrogeological, and hydropedological conditions. Since the second half of the twentieth century, the nature of water demand in Drave has drastically changed. The research objective is to understand the evolution of water demand and supply in the village of Drave, from the sixteenth century to the present day, and to present a possible solution to meet future water needs. A sampling network, comprising surface water and groundwater points, was established. Then, a sampling campaign took place in the dry season, and another one in the wet season. Laboratory analysis encompassed major inorganic ions, Potentially Toxic Elements, and microbiological parameters. Groundwater vulnerability to pollution was assessed through the DRASTIC index and GVTool, a Geographic Information System open-source application. Two historical periods were identified concerning the Drave water demand and supply: (i) from the foundation of the village until the second half of the twentieth century; (ii) from the mid-twentieth century on. The current scenario consists of using water resources with chemical and microbiological contamination to supply the needs of temporary inhabitants. Groundwater vulnerability to pollution ranges from extremely low to moderately low, with the most vulnerable areas corresponding to valley bottoms. A possible solution to meet the future water demand consists of abstracting and treating only surface water during the wet season and taking advantage of the hydrological regime of stream alluvial deposits during the dry season.
Machine learning to predict overall short-term mortality in cutaneous melanoma
Authors: Cozzolino C. , Buja A. , Rugge M. , Miatton A. , Zorzi M. , Vecchiato A. , Del Fiore P. , Tropea S. , Brazzale A. , Damiani G. , dall’Olmo L. , Rossi C. R. , Mocellin S.
Published: January 2023

Background

Cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM) ranks among the ten most frequent malignancies, clinicopathological staging being of key importance to predict prognosis. Artificial intelligence (AI) has been recently applied to develop prognostically reliable staging systems for CMM. This study aims to provide a useful machine learning based tool to predict the overall CMM short-term survival.

Methods

CMM records as collected at the Veneto Cancer Registry (RTV) and at the Veneto regional health service were considered. A univariate Cox regression validated the strength and direction of each independent variable with overall mortality. A range of machine learning models (Logistic Regression classifier, Support-Vector Machine, Random Forest, Gradient Boosting, and k-Nearest Neighbors) and a Deep Neural Network were then trained to predict the 3-years mortality probability. Five-fold cross-validation and Grid Search were performed to test the best data preprocessing procedures, features selection, and to optimize models hyperparameters. A final evaluation was carried out on a separate test set in terms of balanced accuracy, precision, recall and F1 score. The best model was deployed as online tool.

Results

The univariate analysis confirmed the significant prognostic value of TNM staging. Adjunctive clinicopathological variables not included in the AJCC 8th melanoma staging system, i.e., sex, tumor site, histotype, growth phase, and age, were significantly linked to overall survival. Among the models, the Neural Network and the Random Forest models featured the best prognostic performance, achieving a balanced accuracy of 91% and 88%, respectively. According to the Gini importance score, age, T and M stages, mitotic count, and ulceration appeared to be the variables with the greatest impact on survival prediction.

Conclusions

Using data from patients with CMM, we developed an AI algorithm with high staging reliability, on top of which a web tool was implemented (unipd.link/melanomaprediction). Being essentially based on routinely recorded clinicopathological variables, it can already be implemented with minimal effort and further tested in the current clinical practice, an essential phase for validating the model’s accuracy beyond the original research context.
A prediction method for abrasion loss rate of some Egyptian carbonate rocks due to cyclic salt crystallization weathering using physico-mechanical deterioration: insights from laboratory investigations
Authors: Abdelhamid Marzouk Mohamed Aly , Mousa B. G.
Published: February 2023

Salt crystallization is the most important weathering processes that causes problems for rocks used as building stones. Therefore, assessment of the physico-mechanical properties of stones against cyclic salt crystallization is a critical issue for rock engineering applications in salty environmental conditions especially prone to abrasion. This research aims at investigating the relationship between the degradation of various physico-mechanical properties including apparent porosity, point load index, unconfined compression strength and abrasion loss rate for rocks during salt weathering process. For showing rock weathering in the salt crystallization process, five kinds of carbonate rocks were sampled from different areas of Egypt and subject to cyclic salt crystallization, up to twenty cycles. The variation rates of their physico-mechanical characteristics and abrasion loss values were calculated after each five cycles of salt weathering. The results showed that the studied rocks are suitable for use as building and decorative stones in areas prone to crystallization of salts, but attention must be paid to rocks with high porosity and low strength characteristics such as El-Minia limestone specimens. It was also found that there are strong linear correlations between the physico-mechanical degradation parameters and the abrasion loss rate of the studied rock samples at the end of the twentieth cycle of salt weathering. These relationships may be used to estimate the abrasion loss rate of the studied rock types against the cyclic salt weathering conditions and hence to make a rapid evaluation of the stone durability.
A Fast-Converging Particle Swarm Optimization through Targeted, Position-Mutated, Elitism (PSO-TPME)
Authors: Shaqarin Tamir , Noack Bernd R.
Published: January 2023

We improve convergence speed by two orders of magnitude and the global exploration capabilities of particle swarm optimization (PSO) through targeted position-mutated elitism (TPME). The proposed fast-converging TPME operator requires a fitness-based classification technique to categorize the particles. The introduced classification is motivated by its simplicity, low memory requirements, and automated termination criteria based on convergence. The three key innovations address particle classification, elitism, and mutation in the cognitive and social model. PSO-TPME is benchmarked against five popular PSO variants for multi-dimensional functions, which are extensively adopted in the optimization field, In particular, the convergence accuracy, convergence speed, and the capability to find global minima are investigated. The statistical error is assessed by numerous repetitions. The simulations confirmed that in ten of the thirteen investigated functions, the proposed PSO variant outperforms other variants in terms of convergence rate and accuracy by at least two orders of magnitude. On the other hand, the simulations demonstrated the early exploration capabilities of PSO-TPME in all tested functions. In the first ten iterations, PSO-TPME outperformed all the investigated PSO variants by at least two orders of magnitude.
Silence in English Language Pedagogy
Authors: Bao Dat
Published: February 2023

Silence in language learning is commonly viewed negatively, with language teachers often struggling to interpret learner silence and identify whether it is part of communication, mental processing, or low engagement. This book addresses silence in language pedagogy from a positive perspective, translating research into practice in order to inform teaching and to advocate greater use of positive silence in the classroom. The first half of the book examines the existing research into silence, and the second half provides research-informed practical strategies and classroom tasks. It offers applicable principles for task design that utilises rich resources, which include visual arts, mental representation, poetry, music, and other innovative tools, to allow both silence and speech to express their respective and interrelated roles in learning. Comprehensive yet accessible, it is essential reading for academic researchers and students in applied linguistics, TESOL, and language teaching, as well as for language teachers and educators.
Boccaccio and Exemplary Literature
Authors: Holmes Olivia
Published: February 2023

This is the first monograph to provide a comprehensive interpretation of the Decameron's response to classical and medieval didactic traditions. Olivia Holmes unearths the rich variety of Boccaccio's sources, ranging across Aesopic fables, narrative collections of Islamicate origin, sermon-stories and saints' lives, and compilations of historical anecdotes. Examining the Decameron's sceptical and sexually permissive contents in relation to medieval notions of narrative exemplarity, the study also considers how they intersect with current critical assertions of fiction's power to develop empathy and emotional intelligence. Holmes argues that Boccaccio provides readers with the opportunity to exercise both what the ancients called 'Ethics,' and our contemporaries call 'Theory of Mind.' This account of a vast tradition of tale collections and its provocative analysis of their workings will appeal to scholars of Italian literature and medieval studies, as well as to readers interested in evolutionary understandings of storytelling.
Political Theory of the Digital Age
Authors: Risse Mathias
Published: February 2023

With the rise of far-reaching technological innovation, from artificial intelligence to Big Data, human life is increasingly unfolding in digital lifeworlds. While such developments have made unprecedented changes to the ways we live, our political practices have failed to evolve at pace with these profound changes. In this path-breaking work, Mathias Risse establishes a foundation for the philosophy of technology, allowing us to investigate how the digital century might alter our most basic political practices and ideas. Risse engages major concepts in political philosophy and extends them to account for problems that arise in digital lifeworlds including AI and democracy, synthetic media and surveillance capitalism and how AI might alter our thinking about the meaning of life. Proactive and profound, Political Theory of the Digital Age offers a systemic way of evaluating the effect of AI, allowing us to anticipate and understand how technological developments impact our political lives – before it's too late.
Organized Labor in Southeast Asia
Authors: Caraway Teri L.
Published: January 2023

This Element analyzes the economic and political forces behind the political marginalization of working-class organizations in the region. It traces the roots of labor exclusion to the geopolitics of the early postwar period when many governments rolled back the left and established labor control regimes that prevented the reemergence of working-class movements. This Element also examines the economic and political dynamics that perpetuated labor's containment in some countries and that produced a resurgence of labor mobilization in others in the 21st century. It also explains why democratization has had mixed effects on organized labor in the region and analyzes three distinctive “anatomies of contention” of Southeast Asia's feistiest labor movements in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
Awareness, Analysis and Action: A Rights Holder Perspective on Building the Fair Food Movement and the Way Forward for Worker-Driven Social Responsibility
Authors: Reyes Chavez Gerardo
Published: February 2023

There is growing recognition of the need for a more ‘socially just’ implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) that embraces bottom-up, rights holder-driven approaches.1 An initiative is underway to articulate a set of community principles to supplement the three-pillar ‘respect, protect, remedy’ framework of the UNGPs, with a fourth pillar that underscores the importance of rights holder agency to the effective implementation of human rights protections.2 With regard to access to remedy, the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights has emphasized that ‘rights holders should be central to the entire remedy process’,3 and others have made similar observations, encouraging a ‘co-design’ process.4
Criminology and Massive Violation of Human Rights: The Case of Terrorism and Genocide
Authors: Slimani Amina
Published: February 2023

The criminological dimension of crime generally does not arouse great enthusiasm from researchers in Arab countries, unlike Anglo-Saxon- or French-speaking countries. Admittedly, Western criminology is more advanced, but it is more interested in common crimes than in mass crimes such as crimes against humanity, genocide, human trafficking or terrorism. However, the rare existing studies reveal the emergence of a criminology of massive human rights violations and expose some particularities of this criminal phenomenon. These include the often transnational nature of the crimes, the geographical, socio-economic and political disparity of criminals, the high number of victims, and more. The relationship between criminal law, criminology and human rights should be examined to determine the complementarity of the law and the empirical criminal sciences in crime prevention.
A head-driven model of turbine fence performance
Authors: Dehtyriov D. , Vogel C.R. , Willden R.H.J.
Published: January 2023

This paper presents an analytic model for the analysis of co-planar turbine fences that partially span the width of a channel in which the flow is driven by a sinusoidally oscillating driving head. The thrust presented by the turbines reduces the flow rate through the channel leading to a solution for overall power that is dependent upon turbine resistance and flow blockage as well as on channel characteristics. We introduce a return parameter, in terms of power per turbine area, to assess optimum turbine fence deployment for a given channel. We find that the optimal deployment rests on a universal curve independent of the channel characteristics, and that these characteristics – namely the integrated channel bed friction and a modified channel Froude number – move the optimum along this curve. We find that blockage considerations play a large role in the performance of a tidal farm – its achievable power, optimal return, channel flow rate reduction and device thrust – and that the scales of blockage must be considered even when designing relatively unblocked farms. The impact of the channel characteristics on the optimal arrangement, alongside environmental constraints that may limit permissible flow blockage, are quantified and discussed.
On the Hilbert scheme of the moduli space of torsion-free sheaves on surfaces
Authors: Mata-Gutiérrez O. , Roa-Leguizamón L. , Torres-López H.
Published: February 2023

The aim of this paper is to determine a bound of the dimension of an irreducible component of the Hilbert scheme of the moduli space of torsion-free sheaves on surfaces. Let X be a nonsingular irreducible complex surface, and let E be a vector bundle of rank n on X. We use the m-elementary transformation of E at a point
$x \in X$
to show that there exists an embedding from the Grassmannian variety
$\mathbb{G}(E_x,m)$
into the moduli space of torsion-free sheaves
$\mathfrak{M}_{X,H}(n;\,c_1,c_2+m)$
which induces an injective morphism from
$X \times M_{X,H}(n;\,c_1,c_2)$
to
$Hilb_{\, \mathfrak{M}_{X,H}(n;\,c_1,c_2+m)}$
.
Morphological and molecular characterization of Metaxonchium magnum sp. n. from Iran (Nematoda, Dorylaimida, Belondiridae), with new insights into the phylogeny of the genus
Authors: Asgari M. , Abolafia J. , Eskandari A. , Sarafraz-Nikoo F. , Peña-Santiago R.
Published: January 2023

A new species of the genus Metaxonchium is described from a natural habitat in Iran. Metaxonchium magnum sp. n. is characterized by its 3.62–4.65 mm long body, lip region cap-like and offset by constriction and 13–16 μm wide, odontostyle fusiform and 14–17 μm long, neck 1016–1359 μm long, both parts of the pharynx separated by a short isthmus-like narrowing, pharyngeal expansion occupying 74.2 (73–77)% of total neck length in females and 70.4 (66–72)% in males, female genital system mono-opistho-ovarian, didelphic, anterior genital branch a large uterine sac with a small terminal mass occupying 7–14% of body length, posterior uterus long and tripartite with a Z-like differentiation, V = 50–52, caudal region short and rounded (24–41 μm, c = 99–161, c′ = 0.5–0.7), spicules 90–105 μm long and 10–13 spaced ventromedian supplements with hiatus. Analysis of D2–D3 28S rDNA sequences of the new species suggests that Metaxonchium might not be a monophyletic taxon, a matter that should be confirmed after future research.
Constructing ‘corrupted village wives and urban men’ through multilingual performances
Authors: Baioud Gegentuul
Published: January 2023

This article analyzes the sociolinguistic construction of two gendered figures in multilingual performances, namely a category of young Mongol wives in rural societies who challenge patriarchal social order, and a group of young urban Mongol men whose dream is to be rich and indulge themselves in luxury. By drawing on the analytical framework of stance and stylization, the study analyzes how the performers’ multivalent stance-taking towards constructed personas and specific social-moral orders are communicated through their skillful stylization of multilingual resources in Inner Mongolia. It also points out that language stylization and stance-taking, taking place in reference to local cultural values and linguistic ideologies, are anchored in continually evolving ethnic, gender, and class relationships in a changing, minoritized Mongolian society in the context of Chinese modernization and capitalist marketization. (Stance-taking, language stylization, gendered discourses, Mongols, multilingualism)*
Hearing the quiet voices: Listening as democratic action in a Norwegian neighborhood
Authors: Connor Janet E.
Published: January 2023

This article explores how modes of listening and ideologies of democratic action are intertwined, through the example of a multicultural neighborhood in Oslo, Norway. While much work on language and democracy focuses on speakers, this article instead interrogates how a government listens to citizens, and how different conceptualizations of what listening is index different understandings of democratic action. While the Oslo municipality sees listening as a form of legitimation for governmental policymaking, local residents try to create a more open form of listening, which they see to be a better way of addressing the needs of a more diverse citizenry. Based on ethnographic fieldwork with municipal employees, neighborhood organizations, and residents, the analysis focuses on the participation frameworks and interactional genres that my interlocutors take to be instances of democratic listening, and how listening practices are intertwined with imaginations of a more inclusive future. (Listening, democracy, participatory politics, Norway)*
Part of town as an independent factor: thenorth-forcemerger in Manchester
Authors: Baranowski Maciej
Published: February 2023

This paper investigates the question of whether, as is often popularly believed, there may be systematic linguistic differences between different neighborhoods within a city by testing the independence of “part of town” as a factor separate from social class in thenorth-forcemerger in Manchester, UK, in a sample of 122 speakers. The phonemic contrast is explored in minimal-pair tests, Cartesian distance, and Pillai scores. In opposition to most dialects of English, thenorth-forcecontrast is still present in Manchester, displaying a pattern of fine social stratification, with lower socioeconomic levels having a stronger distinction. The merger is in progress in the city, but it is slower in north Manchester, showing a significantly greater distinction than the rest of the city, independent of social class. The results indicate a degree of social evaluation of the vowels, with implications for the question of the social meaning of a merger in progress.
The other way around: the utility of a plant invader
Authors: Briones-Rizo Marina , Pérez-Corona M. Esther , Medina-Villar Silvia
Published: January 2023

Invasive species control management involves a large amount of plant material. The present work evaluated the allelopathic potential of the invasive species Ulex europaeus L. (Fabaceae) or ‘Gorse’ and its possible use as a bioherbicide, taking advantage of the extracted plant material after control measures, particularly needed in invaded areas. Specifically, we investigated the efficacy of dried plant material from U. europaeus in the control of the adventitious plants, Lolium multiflorum Lam. and Lolium rigidum Gaud., using the Avena sativa L. crop as a case study. We only used vegetative plant parts because it is essential to avoid the dispersion of U. europaeus with its use, especially in invaded areas. A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted, using activated carbon (AC). The target species (L. multiflorum, L. rigidum and A. sativa) were subjected to a mixture of organic substrate with U. europaeus mulch applied pre-emergence and a subsequent application of aqueous extracts from the mulch. Emergence, height and biomass of the target species were determined. After 2 months, we also tested a possible legacy effect of the substrate on the germination of the target species. We noticed a negative effect of U. europaeus mulch on the emergence of L. rigidum, which can be attributable to the allelopathic compounds released from U. europaeus mulch because the effect was non-significant in presence of AC. Conversely, no effect on L. multiflorum or A. sativa was produced by mulch treatments. Nevertheless, the combination of U. europaeus mulch and its extracts demonstrated a phytotoxic effect on the biomass of the crop species A. sativa, and a fertilizing effect on the weeds L. multiflorum and L. rigidum, which is why this use is discouraged. With our results we cannot recommend the use of U. europaeus as a bioherbicide in oat crops, but this study emphasizes the capability of U. europaeus to structure plant communities through the chemic- and bio-properties of its tissues that modifies the soil environment.
CLASSICS STRIKES BACK: THOMAS EVANS AND HISMATHEMATOGONIA
Authors: Stray Christopher , Collard Christopher
Published: February 2023

Thomas Saunders Evans’ Greek poemMathematogonia. The mythological birth of the nymph Mathesis(1839) is one of the outstanding products of the British compositional tradition. The article begins with a brief account of Evans and of the historical context of the poem, which also belongs to the history of mathematics in Britain, and in particular, its teaching in nineteenth-century Cambridge. This is followed by a preliminary note onMathematogonia; a reproduction of the text of the poem, with Evans’ original preface and notes; an English translation; notes detailing Evans’ sources and borrowings from Tragic texts; and an appendix listing the changes he made after its first publication. The aim is to show what Evans wrote, and to explain what prompted him to do so.
The Bay Area Muslim mental health community advisory board: evaluation of a community based participatory approach
Authors: Ali S. S. , Mahoui I. , Hassoun R. , Mojaddidi H. , Awaad R.
Published: January 2023

Aims

The aim of this paper is to present a novel case for the formation, operation and evaluation of a community advisory aboard comprised of Muslims residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, California that utilised a community based participatory approach to address local Muslim mental health needs. The CAB was recruited in partnership with the Muslim Community Association (MCA), one of the largest Islamic centres in the San Franscisco Bay Area. In addition to describing the development of the CAB, the authors present the findings of the evaluation and synthesis of best processes based on CAB members' feedback.

Methods

To evaluate the perceived community advisory board members' perceptions of their roles and elicit feedback on how to enhance the relationship between the university team and the CAB, an evaluation was conducted by an independent team who was not part of the research process. Data was collected using anonymous individual surveys and small group open discussions that were conducted over three evaluation meetings. The evaluation utilised mixed method data collection strategies using questions from Schulz et al. (2003, Evaluation and Program Planning 26, 249–262), an instrument for evaluating dimensions of group dynamics within CBPR partnerships.

Results

Results of the evaluation within the sphere of CAB operation indicated that CAB members found the greatest satisfaction from their contributions through direct participation in the research activities that were conducted by the university-CAB team. The collective responses indicated that most CAB members were satisfied with trust built between the university-CAB team and the diversity represented in the members of the board. However, given that the Bay Area is home to a very diverse Muslim community, challenges in recruiting representatives that account for all possible self-identifying groups was reported by the CAB with recommendations to recruit religious leaders. Recommendations also included eliciting funds for potential financial compensation for CAB members.

Conclusions

The Stanford-San Francisco Bay Area CAB demonstrated that empowering community members through direct participation, creating channels and safe spaces for feedback help create community rooted research that carry the true voices of marginalised communities and reflects their evolving needs
Public Voices and Environmental Decisions: The Escazú Agreement in Comparative Perspective
Authors: Etemire Uzuazo
Published: January 2023

Since the Escazú Agreement entered into force in 2021, many have looked forward to the realization of its goal of further entrenching environmental democratic rights and enabling sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region. The severe environmental and related human rights challenges in the region have caught global attention, and the Agreement is most timely in its pursuit of contributing to addressing the situation. This article assesses the quality of, and the extent to which, the right of the public to participate in environmental decision-making processes under the Escazú Agreement can enable the regime to achieve its goal, and how best this right might be strengthened where necessary. This assessment is executed within the context of local peculiarities of the LAC region and good practice in the field, as reflected in the Aarhus Convention and the UNEP Bali Guidelines. The study finds that while aspects of the participatory right regime in the Escazú Agreement are sound – and align with or go beyond existing good practice – some key provisions require improvement in order to increase the effectiveness of the Agreement.
Data Assimilation Using High‐Frequency Radar for Tsunami Early Warning: A Case Study of the 2022 Tonga Volcanic Tsunami
Authors: Wang Yuchen , Imai Kentaro , Mulia Iyan E. , Ariyoshi Keisuke , Takahashi Narumi , Sasaki Kenichi , Kaneko Hitoshi , Abe Hiroto , Sato Yoshiaki
Published: January 2023

High‐frequency (HF) radar monitors the sea surface current velocity and provides information for tsunami early warning. SeaSondeR, an HF ocean radar system in the eastern Tsugaru Strait, Japan, measured the tsunami‐induced current velocity during the 2022 Tonga volcanic tsunami. As an air‐coupled tsunami, the generating mechanism was complex, making it difficult to predict coastal tsunamis using traditional early warning methods. We adopted the tsunami data assimilation (DA) approach, which reconstructs the tsunami wavefield using offshore data and does not require source information, to forecast the coastal tsunami waveforms. Observations from the HF radar and offshore bottom pressure gauges (OBPGs) were used as the input for tsunami DA. The assimilation process started at 09:00 (UTC, hereafter) and forecasts were made at 14:00 and 15:00. The surface current velocity recorded by the HF radar reached the maximum (∼0.25 m/s) at 13:00, which corresponded to a negative phase of ∼2 cm sea level variation observed by OBPGs. We compared the forecasted waveforms with the observed waveforms at Hakodate and Shimokita tide gauges. The assimilation results obtained using HF radar showed a better performance in tsunami forecasting than those using OBPG in this case study. At 14:00, the forecasting accuracy indices were 91% and 67% for the next 2 and 6 hr, respectively. At 15:00, it was 63% and 70% for the next 2 and 6 hr, respectively. We suggest that HF radar could be a good supplement to OBPG for tsunami early warning purposes.
Global Observations of Riverbank Erosion and Accretion From Landsat Imagery
Authors: Langhorst Theodore , Pavelsky Tamlin
Published: January 2023

Riverbank migration has historically been seen as a risk to infrastructure that can be combated through channelization, bank stabilization, and sediment trapping. The physical processes involved with riverbank erosion and deposition are well defined, yet the solutions to equations that describe these processes are computationally and data intensive over large domains. While current understanding of large‐scale river channel mobility largely comes from reach‐ and watershed‐scale observations, we need global observations of riverbank erosion and accretion to broaden our understanding of sediment processes within and across river basins. In this work, we create the first global data set of riverbank erosion for >370,000 km of large rivers using up to 20 years of water classifications from Landsat imagery. We estimate uncertainty by propagating water classification errors through our methods. Globally, we find riverbank erosion for rivers wider than 150 m to have an approximately log‐normal distribution with a median value of 1.52 m/yr. Comparing our data set to 25 similar estimates of riverbank migration, we found a normalized mean absolute error of 42% and a bias of 5.8%. We show that river width is the best first‐order predictor of riverbank erosion, in agreement with existing literature. We also show that the relationship between width and bank erosion is substantially different among a sample of global river basins and suggest that this is due to second‐order influences of geology, hydrology, and human influence. These data will help improve models of sediment transport, support models of bank erosion, and improve our understanding of human modification of rivers.