bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Detection of plant diseases using image-based similarity measures of Pythagorean fuzzy sets
Authors: Romisha Romisha , Vashist Shruti
Published: August 2023

In image processing, data extraction from any image with deviation is difficult to pursue. Especially in identification of radiological images, many issues have been involved in the choosing of right image from the available images. In this paper, new similarity measure model for images is proposed that have application in the identification of the images of plant diseases. The application of the similarity measures is compared with existing models. The results reports that the proposed Pythagorean entropy measures have application in the detection of plant diseases. Even, the quality ofextraction of data from images is enhanced. Further, the study concludes that the proposed measures are better than the existing measures in case of image processing problems.
Performance evaluation of RYU controller under distributed denial of service attacks
Authors: Kareem Mohammed Ibrahim , Jasim Mahdi Nsaif , Hussein Hussein Ibrahim , Ibrahim Karrar
Published: August 2023

Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks have been identified as one of the greatest threats to software-defined networking (SDN) because they are highly effective, hard to detect, and easy to use, and they take advantage of vulnerabilities in which the new architecture still exists. This paper describes one technique for denying the RYU controller's services, which can cause the controller's resources to be depleted if a significant number of packets from various zombie hosts are sent to the controller using spoofed source internet protocol (IP) addresses. In order to demonstrate the impact of the attack, we measure various metrics related to RYU controllers such as its central processing unit (CPU) usage and network throughput. In this work, Mininet was used to simulate the data plane and measure metrics such as random access memory (RAM) usage, CPU load, and link latency.
Classification of deep learning convolutional neural network feature extraction for student graduation prediction
Authors: Salam Abu , Zeniarja Junta
Published: August 2023

One indicator of a university’s educational quality is the proportion of enrolled students who actually graduate within four years. This proportion is typically fewer than the number of students that enroll in a given year. A low graduation rate can have a negative impact on both the university’s reputation and its accreditation because it indicates that fewer students are completing their degrees. Student activity, economic, and other issues all play a role in why some students are unable to complete their degrees on time. As a result, stakeholders need a model that can predict whether or not students will graduate on time as a means of evaluating and giving a basis for policy actions. This research proposes a model for converting textual data into an image format using a deep learning convolutional neural network (CNN), and then classifying the extracted features using a variety of machine learning classification algorithms like the decision tree, random forest, Naive Bayes, support vector machine (SVM), and k-nearest neighbor (K-NN). The classification model trained on feature extraction data had a 96.1% accuracy rate, while the classification model trained on the original data achieved a 71.2% accuracy rate.
Fault classification and detection for photovoltaic plants using machine learning algorithms
Authors: Naser Kabour Shaimaa , Adnan Almalki Raghad , A. Alghamdi Lujain , Alharthi Wujud , B. Alshagi Nisreen
Published: August 2023

Using photovoltaic (PV) energy has increased in recently, due to new laws that aim to reduce the global use of fossil fuels. The efficiency of a PV system relies on many types of malfunctions which may cause significant energy loss during the system’s operation, besides the ecological factors. Consequently, a monitoring system (MS) capable of measuring both the environmental and electrical factors is described in order to gather real-time and historical data and estimate the plant efficiency metrics. Additionally, a recursive linear model for detecting problems in the system is presented, where the input is the irradiance and temperature of the PV module, whereas the output is the power, using the same MS. The achieved fault detection’s accuracy for the 5-kW power plant reached 93.09 percent, based on 16 days and 143 hours of failures under various situations. After detecting a defect, a machine-learning-based algorithm categorizes each defect problem as short circuit, partial shadowing, deterioration, or open-circuit. The performance of the four most prevalent supervised machine learning (ML) approaches for this assignment (Naïve Bias, decision tree, LDA, and KNN) was evaluated according to their results.
Two-level boosting classifiers ensemble based on feature selection for heart disease prediction
Authors: Dissanyake Kaushalya , Johar Md Gapar Md
Published: August 2023

Heart disease is a prevalent global health concern, necessitating early detection to save lives. Machine learning has revolutionized medical research, prompting the investigation of boosting algorithms for heart disease prediction. This study employs three heart disease datasets from the University of California Irvine (UCI) repository: Cleveland, Statlog, and Long Beach, with 14 features each. Recursive feature elimination with a support vector machine (SVM) is utilized to identify significant features. Five boosting algorithms (gradient boosting algorithm (GB), adaptive boosting algorithms (AdaBoost), extreme gradient boosting algorithm (XGBoost), cat boost algorithm (CatBoost) and light gradient boosting algorithms (LightGBM)) are integrated into an ensemble model to achieve the best classification performance. The proposed model demonstrates superior accuracy, precision, recall, f-measure, and area under the curve (AUC) compared to individual boosting models, achieving 93.44%, 83.33%, and 79.75% accuracies for Cleveland, Statlog, and Long Beach datasets. This approach offers an accurate and efficient method for heart disease prediction, which is crucial for clinical decision-making and disease management.
Behavioural intention to adopt cloud computing: a quantitative analysis with a mediatory factor using bootstrapping
Authors: Athambawa Aiman , Md Johar Md Gapar , Khatibi Ali
Published: August 2023

This article discusses the research conducted to determine the factors contributing to behavioural intentions (BI) to adopt cloud computing. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Sri Lanka information technology (IT) sector were surveyed using a questionnaire. The diffusion of innovation (DOI) by Roger and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 (UTAUT2) by Venkatesh, Thong, and Xu was used as the theoretical framework for evaluating the reference model. Two hundred fifty-six important IT executives from Sri Lanka companies participated in the study. Quantitative techniques of data coding and analysis were applied in this investigation. Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) software is used for exploratory factor analysis, and analysis of moment structures (AMOS) software is used for confirmatory factor analysis, including bootstrapping for mediator analysis of BI. The results show that among seven hypothesised factors, three factors: relative advantage (RA), compatibility (CT), and complexity (CX), significantly influence BI to adopt cloud computing.
Improving the accuracy of recurrent neural networks models in predicting software bug based on undersampling methods
Authors: Khleel Nasraldeen Alnor Adam , Nehéz Károly
Published: August 2023

The process of identifying software bugs is of paramount importance as it ensures software reliability and facilitates maintenance activities. The quality improvement process of software relies heavily on software bug prediction (SBP). In SBP, the task of accurately identifying defective source code poses a significant challenge. Numerous of machine learning (ML) models has been developed specifically to address this challenge in SBP. Nonetheless, the class imbalance issue restricts the potential of these models to predict software bugs accurately. This issue poses a significant hindrance to the efficiency of these models, leading to imbalanced false-positive and false-negative outcomes. Previous studies have paid limited attention to addressing the challenge of class imbalance in SBP. This study aims to fill this research gap by employing a combination of two recurrent neural networks (RNNs), namely long-short-term memory (LSTM) and gated recurrent unit (GRU), along with an undersampling method (near miss) to effectively tackle this issue. Experiments have been conducted on publicly available benchmark datasets, considering both class-level and file-level metrics. The experimental results lead to the conclusion that our models outperform others and the combination of RNNs models with undersampling methods leads to improved bug prediction performance, particularly for datasets with imbalanced class distributions.
Medical variational autoencoder and generative adversarial network for medical imaging
Authors: Rguibi Zakaria , Hajami Abdelmajid , Zitouni Dya , Maleh Yassine , Elqaraoui Amine
Published: August 2023

erative adversarial networks have succeeded promising results in the medical imaging field. One of the most significant challenges in this regard is the lack of or limited data sharing. In our work, an approach for combining generative adversarial network (GAN) and variational autoencoder (VAE) models has been proposed to improve the accuracy and efficiency of medical image analysis tasks. Our approach leverages the capacity of VAEs to acquire condensed feature representations, and the ability of GANs to generate high-quality synthetic images to learn an embedding that keeps high-level abstract visual qualities. Inception score (IS) and Frechet inception distance (FID) score have been generated´ in order to demonstrate the high quality of images. Based on the score results, our approach demonstrates the potential of VAE-GAN fusion models and clearly outperforms existing methods on a variety of medical image analysis tasks. The suggested algorithm is explained, as are the results and evaluations.
Success factors for citizen-based government decision making using K-means fuzzy learning vector quantization
Authors: Utomo Pradityo , Adi Kusworo , Nurhayati Oky Dwi
Published: August 2023

The Indonesian government often needs assistance in making citizen-based decisions, for example selecting work program plans. Residents have their criteria in the forum to choose a work program plan. This study proposes the K-means fuzzy learning vector quantization (FLVQ) methods to select citizen-based government decision-making criteria. The K-means FLVQ method has never been used to assist government decision-making. However, citizen criteria can be a success factor for government decision-making. The selection of criteria begins with data collection from forum participants. The results of data collection get 11 criteria. Then, the K-means FLVQ method carries out labeling and classification. The addition of the K-means process in the selection criteria can provide optimal results. Citizens can give assessment criteria freely. Then the assessment of citizens is classified by FLVQ. The classification results obtained seven criteria, namely: i) urgency, ii) sustainability, iii) priority, vi) usability, v) prosperity, vi) comfortability, and vii) artistic. Governments can use these criteria to make decisions about planned work programs. The criteria selection algorithm was also evaluated using the confusion matrix method with an accuracy of 88% and an error of 12%.
Analysis of a field oriented control based variable direct current link drive for electric vehicles
Authors: Uddin Muhammad Helal , Dhar Sharith , Siddiqee Asif Mohammed , Chowdhury Rahul , Haque Akramul , Munna Mohammed Saifuddin
Published: August 2023

The performance and efficiency of electric vehicles (EVs) depend mostly on the EVs powertrains. Therefore, one of the most vital research areas is the efficiency analysis of the drivetrain parts in electric vehicles. In this work, two basic drivetrain configurations of EVs are considered and evaluated. Firstly, the one with constant direct current (DC) link voltage and second one having a bidirectional DC-DC converter which supplies variable DC link voltage to the inverter. In order to control a permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM), field oriented control (FOC) technique is performed. Furthermore, a bidirectional DC-DC converter with optimized parameters is designed and implemented with variable DC link voltage controller. Finally, a comparison is made taking into account both drivetrain configurations with details efficiency analysis using real time switches at wide operating points of the machine.
Life-size telepresence using holographic display
Authors: Ishigaki Shafina Abd Karim , Ismail Ajune Wanis , Halim Nur Ameerah Abdul , Suaib Norhaida Mohd
Published: August 2023

Despite massive advancements in the telecommunications industry over the last few decades, telepresence video-based teleconferencing is still far from giving a physical co-presence experience. Applications like Skype, Zoom and WebEx are constrained as it is only able to display the head and shoulders of the users on one monitor. It offers the user flat two-dimensional (2D) upper body imageries, a fixed viewpoint, inconsistent gaze direction, and restriction. Therefore, the problem arises when video-based teleconferencing is unable to support effective communication in telepresence. Thus, this research aims to propose life-size telepresence by using a projector-based holographic display. To actualize the aim, there are three phases have been proposed in this research. The first phase is to enable the tracking technique using the Kinect sensor. The second phase is to enable networking using Agora.io. The last phase is to set up the holographic display using a projector before the evaluation phase. Based on the evaluation results, the life-size telepresence using holographic display application has succeeded in achieving the project aim and shown the life-size display increases the co-presence experience of the users and increases the efficient communication between the users.
A novel single switch controlled efficient coupled inductor-based DC-DC boost converter
Authors: Geshma Kumari Remala , Ezhilarasi Arivukkannu , Pasula Naresh
Published: August 2023

Pollution is one of the most hazard facing in the world. Day by day pollutions has been increased in the society due to population growth, industries, constructions, and transportation. As per the world health organization (WHO) survey, 45% of the air pollution is due to transportation because they lay on internal combustion engine (ICE) based engines. To avoid carbon footprints, green transportation should be encouraged for further generations. In recent days many electric vehicles (EV’s) are found in the market but facing some issues like battery blasts, storage limitations and lack of charging infrastructure. Out of these issues, mainly my focus is on developing a compact, efficient, simple, medium gain coupled inductor-based DC-DC boost converter is proposed which is helpful for fast charging system. In this paper, coupled inductor (CI) and switched coupled inductor (SCI) based converters are designed and analysed with mathematical approach. The outputs of both CI and SCI converters are verified and compared with simulation results and as well CI based converter is developed with hardware prototype and verified hardware and simulation results in terms of gain, elements and efficient.
Yellow-green emitting CaGa2S4:Eu2+ phosphor: an application for enhancing the luminous flux of the white light emitting diodes
Authors: Thuy My Le Thi , Nguyen Thi My Hanh , Thinh Nhan Hoang
Published: August 2023

The optimal spectral characteristics and photometric qualities in white-emitting light-emitting diodes (WLEDs) featuring red-emitting LEDs instead of phosphor (pc/R-WLEDs) were determined using the luminescent efficiency (LE) theory. The color quality scale (Rf) is higher than 97K for correlating color temperature (CCTs) ranging between 2700K and 6500K. We first identified genuine pc/R-WLEDs having Rf levels at 96–97, LE levels at 120–124 lm/W with CCT levels at 2969K, 4468K, 5682K, as well as 6558K with the utilization of all four-color phosphors: blues (448 nm), reddish (650 nm) LEDs, greenish (507 nm), and yellowish (586 nm). When compared to phosphorus-converted white-emitting LEDs (pc-WLEDs) and quantum dots white-emitting LEDs (QD-WLEDs), the pc/R-WLEDs, rather than the QD-WLED, would make better representatives of improved color version, notably in the reduced color temperatures, and could eventually replace current pc-WLEDs.
Rare Variant Genetics and Dilated Cardiomyopathy Severity: The DCM Precision Medicine Study
Authors: Hofmeyer Mark , Haas Garrie J. , Jordan Elizabeth , Cao Jinwen , Kransdorf Evan , Ewald Gregory A. , Morris Alanna A. , Owens Anjali , Lowes Brian , Stoller Douglas , Wilson Tang W.H. , Garg Sonia , Trachtenberg Barry H. , Shah Palak , Pamboukian Salpy V. , Sweitzer Nancy K. , Wheeler Matthew T. , Wilcox Jane E. , Katz Stuart , Pan Stephen , Jimenez Javier , Smart Frank , Wang Jessica , Gottlieb Stephen S. , Judge Daniel P. , Moore Charles K. , Huggins Gordon S. , Kinnamon Daniel D. , Ni Hanyu , Hershberger Ray E. ,   for the DCM Precision Medicine Study of the DCM Consortium
Published: August 2023

BACKGROUND:

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) can lead to advanced disease, defined herein as necessitating a durable left ventricular assist device or a heart transplant (LVAD/HT). DCM is known to have a genetic basis, but the association of rare variant genetics with advanced DCM has not been studied.

METHODS:

We analyzed clinical and genetic sequence data from patients enrolled between 2016 and 2021 in the US multisite DCM Precision Medicine Study, which was a geographically diverse, multiracial, multiethnic cohort. Clinical evaluation included standardized patient interview and medical record query forms. DCM severity was classified into 3 groups: patients with advanced disease with LVAD/HT; patients with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) only; or patients with no ICD or LVAD/HT. Rare variants in 36 DCM genes were classified as pathogenic or likely pathogenic or variants of uncertain significance. Confounding factors we considered included demographic characteristics, lifestyle factors, access to care, DCM duration, and comorbidities. Crude and adjusted associations between DCM severity and rare variant genetic findings were assessed using multinomial models with generalized logit link.

RESULTS:

Patients’ mean (SD) age was 51.9 (13.6) years; 42% were of African ancestry, 56% were of European ancestry, and 44% were female. Of 1198 patients, 347 had LVAD/HT, 511 had an ICD, and 340 had no LVAD/HT or ICD. The percentage of patients with pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants was 26.2%, 15.9%, and 15.0% for those with LVAD/HT, ICD only, or neither, respectively. After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics and comorbidities, patients with DCM with LVAD/HT were more likely than those without LVAD/HT or ICD to have DCM-related pathogenic or likely pathogenic rare variants (odds ratio, 2.3 [95% CI, 1.5–3.6]). The association did not differ by ancestry. Rare variant genetic findings were similar between patients with DCM with an ICD and those without LVAD/HT or ICD.

CONCLUSIONS:

Advanced DCM was associated with higher odds of rare variants in DCM genes adjudicated as pathogenic or likely pathogenic, compared with individuals with less severe DCM. This finding may help assess the risk of outcomes in management of patients with DCM and their at-risk family members.

REGISTRATION:

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
; Unique identifier: NCT03037632.
Language Standardization & Linguistic
Subordination
Authors: Curzan Anne , Queen Robin M. , VanEyk Kristin , Weissler Rachel Elizabeth
Published: August 2023

Language standardization involves minimizing variation, especially in written forms of language. That process includes judgments about people who don‘t or can‘t use the standard forms. These kinds of judgments can unfairly limit people's access to opportunities, including in educational and professional realms. In this essay, we discuss standardized language varieties and the specific ways beliefs and ideologies about them allow judgments about language to become judgments about people, especially groups of people who share, or are presumed to share, gender, race, ethnicity, social status, education status, and numerous other socially salient identities. After describing how the process of standardization occurs, we illustrate how the expression of language peeves becomes embodied. Finally, we discuss how ideologies about standardized language circulate in higher education to the detriment of many students, and include a range of suggestions and examples for how to center linguistic justice and equity within higher education.
Asian American Racialization & Model Minority Logics in
Linguistics
Authors: Yoo Joyhanna , Lee Cheryl , Cheng Andrew , Ànand Anusha
Published: August 2023

With increased discussions of racial justice in academia, linguistics has had to contend with long-standing issues of inequality. We contribute to these conversations by considering historical and contemporary racializing tactics with respect to Asians and Asian Americans. Such racializing tactics, which we call model minority logics, weaponize an abstract version of one group to further racialize all minoritized groups and regiment ethnoracial hierarchies. We identify three functions of model minority logics that perpetuate white supremacy in the academy, using linguistics as a case study and underscoring the ways in which the discipline is already mired in racializing logics that differentiate scholars of color based on reified hierarchies. We urge language scholars to reject a superficial multiculturalism that appropriates embodied difference while perpetuating injustices under an inherently white supremacist framework. For those dedicated to greater racial justice in the discipline, we offer actions to critically reflect on and help dismantle existing racializing logics.
Linguistic Profiling across International Geopolitical
Landscapes
Authors: Baugh John
Published: August 2023

Voice recognition lies at the heart of linguistic profiling, a discriminatory practice whereby goods, services, or opportunities that might otherwise be available are denied to someone, typically sight unseen, based on the sound of their voice. The technology that faithfully recreates one's voice during phone conversations provides the basis on which nefarious, if not illegal, voice-derived discrimination occurs. These denials often go undetected because callers typically believe that the declination of their request for an apartment or a job or a loan is valid; that is, they do not necessarily assume that they were turned down because of negative stereotypes about their speech. I debunk a long-standing myth that exists among well-educated native speakers of the dominant language(s) in the countries where they live: namely, that such individuals speak without an accent. After dispelling this prevalent falsehood, I explore various forms of linguistic profiling throughout the world, culminating with observations intended to promote linguistic human rights and the aspirational goal of equality among people who do not share common sociolinguistic backgrounds.
Chirographs in Roman law: constitutive or evidential?
Authors: Sirks A.J.B.
Published: August 2023

It has recently been sustained that chirographs had only evidential value and no constitutive effect in classical Roman law. That is correct regarding their origin in Roman law, however, the nature of a chirograph was such that as evidence it was effectively constitutive. Only the remedies later created (the exceptio and later the querimonia non numeratae pecuniae) provided relief. They and the actiones utiles granted to acquirers of chirographs prove that in the course of time chirographs were considered by their users as constitutive, if not already declared so. It appears from the Murecine texts where debtors declare themselves indebted by chirographs that this situation may already have existed in the middle of the first century ad. Hence we should accept the possibility of an early shift in legal categorisation of the chirograph to a contractus litteris.
Special Courts (Sondergerichte) in the General Government (1939–1945)
Authors: Graczyk Konrad , Mielnik Hubert
Published: August 2023

This article presents the legal bases of operation and organisation of the special judiciary in the General Government for the occupied Polish territories. Special courts were subject to the policy pursued by the German authorities in the General Government. The German legislation in the gg delegated to the jurisdiction of special courts chiefly such criminal matters that involved safeguarding German interests in the occupied country. Adjudication in such cases boiled down to applying normative acts related to combatting serious (severe) crime or expressly pursued the German policy in the gg, including the exterminatory anti-Jewish legislation. The special courts created by the German occupier in the General Government were not judicial authorities in the traditional sense. The literature on the topic is not particularly extensive. The article would be the first comprehensive study of this subject written in English.
Eupotemus tuberculatus sp. nov., the first hooded shore beetle confirmed from southern Africa (Coleoptera, Epimetopidae)
Authors: BILTON DAVID T. , BIRD MATTHEW S.
Published: August 2023

Eupotemus tuberculatus sp. nov. is described on the basis of two specimens discovered during recent field work in South Africa. This is the first member of the Epimetopidae to be confirmed in Africa south of the Congo Basin and Tanzania. The new species is a member of the Eupotemus carinaticollis Fikáček et al., 2021 species group, sharing features of pronotal and aedeagal design. Characters distinguishing the new species from previously described taxa are discussed and notes provided on the collecting circumstances.
Taxonomic reassessment of salamanders (genus Hynobius) from Tsushima Islands, Japan, with a resurrection of Hynobius tagoi Dunn, 1923 (Amphibia: Caudata)
Authors: NIWA KEITA , NISHIKAWA KANTO , MATSUI MASAFUMI , KANAMORI SALLY , KURO-O MASAKI
Published: August 2023

To clarify the taxonomic status of salamanders from Tsushima Islands, Japan, we examined two species of salamanders, Hynobius tsuensis and Hynobius sp. from Tsushima Islands, and compared them with H. nebulosus from Kyushu. We found that the three taxa differ from each other in nuclear DNA, adult morphology, and egg-sac shape, and consider them to be independent species. Based on the investigation of type specimens of the synonyms, we identified Hynobius sp. as H. tagoi Dunn, 1923 and redescribe it herein. Also, we designate a neotype for H. tsuensis and redescribe H. tsuensis. The distribution areas of the two species partly overlap but they were distinguishable by their body colorations: H. tsuensis has uniformly blackish tail sides and a distinct yellow stripe on the upper tail edge; whereas H. tagoi has brown tail sides with numerous dark stippling and without a distinct yellow stripe on the upper tail edge.
Descriptions of two new species of leafhopper genus Uniformus (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Typhlocybinae: Dikraneurini) from China
Authors: SONG YUANYUAN , HUANG MIN
Published: August 2023

Two new species, U. robustispinus Song & Huang and U. semicircularis Song & Huang spp. nov., of the leafhopper genus Uniformus Jiao & Yang, 2020 from China are described and illustrated. A key to species and a checklist of Uniformus are provided.
A Novel Method for Diagnosing Land–Atmosphere Coupling Sensitivity in a Single-Column Model
Authors: Hay-Chapman Finley M. , Dirmeyer Paul A.
Published: August 2023

The response of boundary layer properties and cloudiness to changes in surface evaporative fraction (EF) is investigated in a single-column model to quantify the locally coupled impact of subgrid surface variations on the atmosphere during summer. Sensitive coupling days are defined when the model atmosphere exhibits large variations across a range of EFs centered on the analyzed value. Coupling sensitivity exists as both positive feedback (cloudiness increases with EF) and negative feedback (clouds increase with decreasing EF) regimes. The positive regime manifests in shallow convection situations, which are capped by a strengthened inversion and subsidence, restricting the vertical extent of convection to just above the boundary layer. Surfaces with larger EF (greater surface latent heat flux) can inject more moisture into the vertically confined system, lowering the cloud base and an increasing cloud liquid water path (LWP). Negative feedback regimes tend to manifest when large-scale deep convection, such as from mesoscale convective systems and fronts, is advected through the domain, where convection strengthens over surfaces with a lower EF (greater surface sensible heat flux). The invigoration of these systems by the land surface leads to an increase in LWP through strengthened updrafts and stronger coupling between the boundary layer and the free atmosphere. These results apply in the absence of heterogeneity-induced mesoscale circulations, providing a one-dimensional dynamical perspective on the effect of surface heterogeneity. This study provides a framework of intermediate complexity, lying between parcel theory and high-resolution coupled land–atmosphere modeling, and therefore isolates the relevant first-order processes in land–atmosphere interactions.

Significance Statement

Cloud formation, distribution, and other properties may be sensitive to heterogeneous surfaces depending on the strength and location of such heterogeneities and the background atmospheric state. This may drive differences in the cloud population depending on which part of the domain one is located. This may also lead to mesoscale circulations, which may strengthen or weaken this effect. Currently, climate models act on scales (∼100 km) that are too large to explicitly represent these processes, which are strongest at smaller scales (around 5–40 km). Therefore, subgrid-scale heterogeneity is neglected, and any predictability and model fidelity it may provide is lost. We use a simple model to diagnose sensitivity of the local atmosphere to surface variations meant to represent possible subgrid heterogeneity, providing a first-order estimate of its effect. We conclude that preferentially sensitive atmospheric states exist that lead to positive and/or negative feedback between land and atmosphere. This information is valuable to future climate model parameterizations aimed at improving the representation of these feedbacks.
Coffee and cigarettes in industrial relations: A comparative network analysis of the role of informality
Authors: Godino Alejandro , Molina Oscar , Martí Joel
Published: August 2023

Literature commonly links the role of informality in collective bargaining to industrial relations systems based on voluntarism and decentralized negotiation settings. According to this view, informal processes won’t exist or at best play a marginal role in institutionally strong industrial relations systems, where formal rules define the roles, rights and duties of actors in the system. Yet, even in highly regulated contexts, formal and informal mechanisms very often co-exist and complement each other to help reach agreements or solve conflicts among actors. A relational approach and social network analysis applied to the study of the retail sector in Italy, Netherlands and Spain allows to understand the role of informality in countries with different industrial relations regimes. The analysis shows the importance of informal interactions and events in all countries, irrespectively of the industrial relations regime, and confirms the positive contribution of relational approaches to the study of collective bargaining linking with the literature on the embeddedness theory and structural holes.
Changes in Purpose in Life and Low-Grade Chronic Inflammation Across Older Adulthood
Authors: Giannis Irene , Wrosch Carsten , Herriot Heather , Gouin Jean-Philippe
Published: August 2023

Background: Older adults often experience an increase in low-grade chronic inflammation. Purpose in life could act as a protective factor as it is associated with beneficial health outcomes. Purpose in life may exert part of its adaptive function by promoting persistence in goal pursuit. During older adulthood, however, when many individuals experience an increase in intractable stressors and declining resources, the adaptive function of purpose could become reduced. Purpose: We examined whether the association between inter- and intra-individual differences in purpose in life and chronic inflammation differed across older adulthood. Method: We assessed four waves of data among 129 older adults (63–91 years old) across 6 years. Results: Hierarchical linear modeling demonstrated that within-person increases in purpose in life predicted reduced levels of chronic inflammation in early old age (25th percentile or 73 years, coefficient = −.016, p < .01), but not in advanced old age (75th percentile or 81 years, coefficient = .002, p = .67). Between-person differences in purpose were not related to chronic inflammation. Conclusions: These results suggest that greater within-person increases in purpose may protect health processes particularly in early old age but become less effective in advanced old age.
Improving Learning of Figurative Concepts in Individuals With Blindness: Adopting Teaching Strategies to Enhance Learning Motivation
Authors: Wu Hsiang-Ping
Published: August 2023

Introduction: This study examines teaching strategies that help enhance learning motivation in individuals with blindness to facilitate improved learning of figurative concepts: attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction (ARCS). We began by teaching the origin of life and the reproductive system in the first unit of the relatively lacking gender-equality education. We established various teaching strategies through expert interviews. A teaching experiment was carried out to validate the strategy. Methods: Participants comprised eight individuals with blindness. They were first asked to draw various parts of the female reproductive system. Teaching activities based on the teaching strategy were then conducted. Upon completion of the activity, the participants were asked to redraw the diagram and the Instructional Materials Motivation Survey was administered to check the ARCS score. Results: The scores for each of the ARCS elements were attention = 3.99 (SD = 0.31), relevance = 3.99 (SD = 0.36), confidence = 3.61 (SD = 0.37) and satisfaction = 4.15 (SD = 0.46). The Kendall's W values obtained were attention = 0.21( p = .01), relevance = 0.31( p = .004), confidence = 0.25( p = .03), and satisfaction =0.67( p < .001). In the posttest, the average completion rate for each part of the drawing was 83.9% (standard deviation [SD] = 19.4) and the pretest was 35.7% (SD = 21.6). The test results were p < .001, t = −10.425, and the degrees of freedom = 7, thus, the learning effect is significant. Discussion: A, R, and S grades around 4 (agree) and C 3.61 (nearly agree) improved motivation. Additionally, a significant improvement was observed in the participants’ drawing-task performance as they could correctly express the relative position of each part. Implications for Practitioners: We conclude that the method tested in this study is feasible for teachers who wish to design teaching materials and lesson plans for figurative-concept learning and cognition. This teaching strategy could be referred to as a means of enhancing their students’ learning motivation and learning efficiency.
A Case of Giant Petrous Apex Cholesteatoma With Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infection
Authors: Huang Yu , Feng Guodong , Tian Xu , Gao Zhiqiang
Published: August 2023

Petrous apex cholesteatoma is a relatively rare and chronic aggressive disease that occurs in the petrous part of the temporal bone and can be classified as congenital or acquired. Due to the tendency of petrous cholesteatomas to cause bone destruction and invade important structures such as the facial nerve, cochlea, and semicircular canal, patients present mainly with severe hearing loss, progressive peripheral facial palsy, vertigo, etc. When the lesion invades the intracranial region or is infected, intracranial symptoms such as meningitis, lateral sinus thrombosis, and brain abscess may be present. We report a case of giant petrous cholesteatoma with Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection, with the aim of exploring the corresponding clinical treatment and surgical modalities to provide a reference for the clinical management of this type of disease.
Polyurethanes in the Motor Industry in South Africa
Authors: McGill W. J. , Summersell J.
Published: August 2023

The importation into South Africa of plastics components for the motor vehicle industry is often unattractive due to high shipping costs for bulky items and an unacceptably high damage factor in other cases. Local production runs are short, and the relatively low tooling costs for foamed polyurethane production is an incentive for the development of designs based on polyurethanes. Some such developments are discussed briefly.
Cellular Polymers in Footwear
Authors: Pettit D.
Published: August 2023

The roles played by cellular polymers as footwear materials are surveyed and the advantages and disadvantages of expansion of non-urethane polymers are considered in relation to the production and wear of shoes.
Inhibition of Chemically Foamed PVC Plastisols –A Brief Study
Authors: Hunter Andrew
Published: August 2023

The coated vinyl industries use a variety of chemical inhibitors in printing inks to prevent foaming of the vinyl compound in discrete areas. This technique allows sculptured decoration to be produced in the inhibitor systems by examining their effectiveness at various levels of expansion. Additionally, the rates of expansion and degrees of inhibition of typical blowing agent systems are compared.
Fire Tests on Plasterboard/Cellular Plastics Insulating Panels
Authors: Chapman J.F.
Published: August 2023

Small-scale fire and smoke test results are sometimes used — and the results interpreted – beyond their significance to choose materials for use in constructions and to reject others. When this happens, data from other small-scale tests are rarely adequate to correct the erroneous position. Instead, a quantum jump to more realistic tests is needed.

A U.K. specifying authority was influenced by test performance claims made for Phenolic Foam to impose a ban on any other rigid foam in plasterboard laminate lining boards for refurbishing its housing property.

This paper describes a real fire simulation test devised and used to compare the behaviour of 2.4 m X 1.2 m panels with plasterboard facings and respectively phenolic, polyurethane, polyisocyanurate, EPS and XPS foam insulant backings. The fire simulated the severity of a burning upholstered armchair, and reached a heat flux of over 10 W/cm2. Temperatures, stack gas compositions and smoke measurements combined to show that none of the foam insulants introduced significantly more hazard to house occupants than was presented by the fire source.

This work was successful in its aim, and was specially novel in illustrating the co-operation possible between distinct and normally competitive industry groups. It demonstrated a way to share out to individual organisations the high costs of large-scale test work – granting even more economy to separate manufacturers – and underlined an importance for trade associations not yet fully exploited.
Polyurethanes in Orthotics and Orthopaedics
Authors: Pratt D.J.
Published: August 2023

Polyurethane (PU) materials have found a number of applications in the fields of orthotics and orthopaedics to the benefit of patient care. It is perhaps true to say that this interest in PU's and other materials and techniques, has primarily been due to the employment of bioengineers who have both a basic engineering background as well as a basic knowledge of anatomy and physiology. Thus, there has been a more rapid and direct transfer of ideas and materials from fields outside medicine to specialities such as orthotics and orthopaedics. This paper aims to show some of the non-implantable uses to which PU has been put and perhaps may provide a hint of where further uses of PU may be advantageous.

The fields of orthotics and orthopaedics are very closely linked and the borders to them indistinct. Thus no attempt has been made by the author to try to indicate into which of the two these PU applications belong. Each application of PU's is treated under a different heading in no specific order.
‘Modar’ Urethane Methacrylates: Extending the Boundaries of Polyurethane Technology
Authors: Orton M.L. , Sparrow D.J.
Published: August 2023

Urethane methacrylates were described in the literature in the 1960s(1) and various uses suggested, for example, adhesives(2) and dental restoratives(3). Recently resins of this type have been introduced for use in filled and fibre-reinforced composites(4,5,6). The way in which these resins complement and extend the performance range offered by traditional polyurethanes is reviwed in this paper.
The Effects of Water as a Partial Blowing Agent for Rigid PUR and PUR/PIR Foams
Authors: Cunningham A. , Rosbotham I.D. , Sparrow D.J. , Brown R.K. , Galbraith C.J.
Published: August 2023

A preliminary evaluation of HCFC 123 and HCFC 141 b demonstrated that they appeared to be technically viable CFC-11 replacements only after substantial reformulation. Partial water blowing was proposed as a possible short/medium term solution to the decreasing availability of CFC-11 as a consequence of the Montreal Protocol.

In both polyurethane refrigeration and lamination products partial water blowing was shown to be a practical possibility up to a CFC-11 reduction of 50%.

Slight deterioration in thermal efficiency was compensated for through formulation optimisation. Preliminary work on the type of formulations used to produce PUR/PIR foams in the USA boardstock industry showed that a 25% reduction of CFC-11 was so far achievable without loss of mechanical and fire properties.
The Formation and Properties of Injection Moulded Thermoset Structural Foams
Authors: Brenner M. , Hornsby P.R.
Published: August 2023

Moulding technology is described for the production of hot cured thermosetting plastics structural foams, based on polyester and phenolic resin moulding compositions incorporating chemical expansion agents. Products with a well defined integral skin and cellular core are readily obtained by an injection-compression-decompression moulding sequence, preferably through programmed thermoset injection moulding.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of these materials are discussed, with emphasis on the load bearing and energy absorbing characteristics of fibre-reinforced structural foam variants.
Computer Simulation of Structure and Calculation of Physico-Mechanical Characteristics of Foamed Plastics –Part 2: Study of Elastic Foamed Plastics
Authors: Valuyskikh V.P.
Published: August 2023

Laboratory results are presented and calculation studies of the structure and properties of one of the flexible foams, i.e. PU foam are made. A problem is formulated to design plastic foams with a prescribed set of physical-mechanical characteristics is formulated and a possible solution is obtained by varying foam density and gas structural elements elongation.
Ceeprce: Unique Fire Barrier from a Versatile Filler
Authors: Parry David J. , Carter Russell A.
Published: August 2023

ICI have launched a new versatile additive for plastics, coatings, adhesives and sealants. Ceepree* fire barrier filler, unlike conventional flame retardants, increases the fire resistance of materials by virtue of its unique composition of powdered specially-designed glasses. Ceepree melts over a wide temperature range (350–900°C) to encapsulate and fuse with combustible material, char, reinforcing fibres and other fillers. In this way Ceepree confers in situ integrity, crystallinity and high temperature strength up to 1100°C which protects against the thermal degradation of plastics and other materials and prevents the passage of flames, smoke and toxic fumes. Ceepree uprates the fire resistance and high temperature strength of adhesives, sealants and protective surface coatings thereby making it possible to use plastics for greater design flexibility in new applications in building and construction, mass transit, aerospace, military and offshore industries where compartmentation of fire is essential.
RIBAS Seminar: Green Issues: The Practical Implications
Authors: Harper D.J.
Published: August 2023

This paper describes how Celotex, a manufacturer of a product with an environmental problem, is improving its products.

First, the background to Rigid Urethane Foams and the CFC issue.

Second a guide to the most popular applications for CFC-blown Rigid Urethane Foams in construction, highlighting the essential features of the product necessary for satisfactory performance in these applications.

Finally, an overview as to how successfully these essential characteristics are being reproduced in the new generations of CFC free foam boards now being introduced into the market, and some of those yet to come.
Economics and Urdeuteronomium: A response to Kåre Berge, Diana Edelman, Philippe Guillaume, and Benedetta Rossi
Authors: Richter Sandra Lynn
Published: August 2023

Although grateful that Berge, Edelman, Guillaume, and Rossi have engaged my essay, ‘The Question of Provenance and the Economics of Deuteronomy’, their critique, which speaks against my conclusions, fails to account for essential archaeological, ethnographic, and linguistic data illuminating the economic profile of the Book of Deuteronomy. The most significant lacuna is their failure to address the economic realities of the Persian period. That data, and more, is summarized here. The present essay moves past literary and historiographic presuppositions regarding the provenance of Urdeuteronomium in order to engage the economic and numismatic realia that is recoverable from Israel’s world and offer an important avenue forward in deuteronomic researcḥ
Prediction of municipal solid waste generation and analysis of dominant variables in rapidly developing cities based on machine learning – a case study of China
Authors: Zhao Ying , Tao Zhe , Li Ying , Sun Huige , Tang Jingrui , Wang Qianya , Guo Liang , Song Weiwei , Li Bailian Larry
Published: August 2023

Prediction of municipal solid waste (MSW) generation plays an essential role in effective waste management. The main objectives of this study were to develop models for accurate prediction of MSW generation (MSWG) and analyze the influence of dominant variables on MSWG. To elevate the model’s prediction accuracy, more than 50 municipal variables were considered original variables, which were selected from 12 categories. According to the screening results, the dominant variables are classified into four categories: urban greening, population size and residential density, regional economic development and resident income and expenditure. Among the seven machine learning methods, back propagation (BP) neural network has the best model evaluation effect. The R2 of the BP neural network model of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shandong provinces were 0.969, 0.941 and 0.971 respectively. The prediction accuracy of Shandong province (93.8%) was the best, followed by Jiangsu province (92.3%) and Zhejiang province (72.7%). The correlation between dominant variables and the MSWG was mined, suggesting that regional GDP and the total retail sales of consumer goods were the most important dominant variables affecting MSWG. Moreover, the MSWG might not absolutely associate with the population size and residential density. The method used in this study is a practical tool for policymakers on regional/local waste management and MSWG control.