bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
In vivo osseointegration evaluation of implants coated with nanostructured hydroxyapatite in low density bone
Authors: Almeida Daniel , Sartoretto Suelen Cristina , Calasans-Maia Jose de Albuquerque , Ghiraldini Bruna , Bezerra Fabio Jose Barbosa , Granjeiro Jose Mauro , Calasans-Maia Mônica Diuana
Published: February 2023

Objective

Thisin vivostudy, aimed to biomechanically, histomorphometrically and histologically evaluate an implant surface coated with nanostructured hydroxyapatite using the wet chemical process (biomimetic deposition of calcium phosphate coating) when compared to a dual acid-etching surface.

Material and methods

Ten sheep (2–4 years old) received 20 implants, 10 with nanostructured hydroxyapatite coating (HAnano), and 10 with dual acid-etching surface (DAA). The surfaces were characterized with scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy; insertion torque values and resonance frequency analysis were measured to evaluate the primary stability of the implants. Bone-implant contact (BIC) and bone area fraction occupancy (BAFo) were evaluated 14 and 28 days after implant installation.

Results

The HAnano and DAA groups showed no significant difference in insertion torque and resonance frequency analysis. The BIC and BAFo values increased significantly (p<0.05) over the experimental periods in both groups. This event was also observed in BIC value of HAnano group. The HAnano surface showed superior results compared to DAA after 28 days (BAFo, p = 0.007; BIC, p = 0.01).

Conclusion

The results suggest that the HAnano surface favors bone formation when compared to the DAA surface after 28 days in low-density bone in sheep.
A characterization of cross-border use of health services in a transborder population at the Mexico-Guatemala border, September–November 2021
Authors: Rodriguez-Chavez Cesar , Larrea-Schiavon Silvana , Leyva-Flores Rene , Bustamante Nirma D. , Arevalo Marcel , Cortes-Alcala Ricardo , Rodriguez Georgina , Merrill Rebecca , Escotto Dianne , Bojorquez Ietza
Published: February 2023

Background

Cross-border use of health services is an important aspect of life in border regions. Little is known about the cross-border use of health services in neighboring low- and middle-income countries. Understanding use of health services in contexts of high cross-border mobility, such as at the Mexico-Guatemala border, is crucial for national health systems planning. This article aims to describe the characteristics of the cross-border use of health care services by transborder populations at the Mexico-Guatemala border, as well as the sociodemographic and health-related variables associated with use.

Methods

Between September-November 2021, we conducted a cross-sectional survey using a probability (time-venue) sampling design at the Mexico-Guatemala border. We conducted a descriptive analysis of cross-border use of health services and assessed the association of use with sociodemographic and mobility characteristics by means of logistic regressions.

Results

A total of 6,991 participants were included in this analysis; 82.9% were Guatemalans living in Guatemala, 9.2% were Guatemalans living in Mexico, 7.8% were Mexicans living in Mexico, and 0.16% were Mexicans living in Guatemala. 2.6% of all participants reported having a health problem in the past two weeks, of whom 58.1% received care. Guatemalans living in Guatemala were the only group reporting cross-border use of health services. In multivariate analyses, Guatemalans living in Guatemala working in Mexico (compared to not working in Mexico) (OR 3.45; 95% CI 1.02,11.65), and working in agriculture/cattle, industry, or construction while in Mexico (compared to working in other sectors) (OR 26.67; 95% CI 1.97,360.85), were associated with cross-border use.

Conclusions

Cross-border use of health services in this region is related to transborder work (i.e., circumstantial use of cross-border health services). This points to the importance of considering the health needs of migrant workers in Mexican health policies and developing strategies to facilitate and increase their access to health services.
JAWS’s return
Authors: Ferreira-Norman Inês
Published: February 2023

In this editorial, the editor-in-chief reaches out to JAWS’s readership to shed light on the internal workings of the journal’s team and introduces the articles published in this volume. Having finally overcome many difficulties due to COVID-19’s epidemic backlash, JAWS is continuing to publish relevant and exciting arts writing.
Walking simulators and an ethics of care: An essay
Authors: Issar Shiv
Published: February 2023

The emergence of the genre of ‘walking simulators’ problematized the way by which a ‘game’ is defined. As walking simulators were relegated to the realm of being a non-game or an anti-game in a post-GamerGate world, it became increasingly important to evaluate the relationship that they had with masculinity and femininity. Moreover, it became crucial to articulate the interventions that the genre was offering and to review the definition of a ‘game’ in order to account for greater inclusivity. This essay examines walking simulators through a multidisciplinary lens, bringing in fields such as sociology, queer theory and communication to name a few. By tying together multidisciplinary perspectives on walking simulators, I reveal the genre’s engagements with care-oriented labour and an ‘ethics of care’. The essay concludes with a discussion on the games Firewatch and Death Stranding, where the implications of their respective entanglements with an ethics of care are foregrounded.
Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider, Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray and Anastasia Salter (2020)
Authors: Poirier-Poulin Samuel
Published: February 2023

Review of: Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider, Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray and Anastasia Salter (2020)

New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 230 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-50138-582-7, p/bk, USD 52.50
‘You can get it if you really want?’: The use of Caribbean music genres in Death in Paradise
Authors: Beattie Melissa
Published: February 2023

Set on the fictional Caribbean island of Saint Marie and filmed on Guadeloupe, British/French co-production Death in
Paradise (2011–present) frequently uses reggae, amongst other perceived local styles, as its diegetic and non-diegetic music. Reggae is historically a music of resistance, specifically resistance to oppression by White colonial power structures. That a British/French co-production uses reggae to reinforce an elided pan-Caribbean location featuring a White, male, British or Irish DI in charge of a local Black police force can be read as stereotypical. When added to a British/French series such as this, with what can be read as colonialist discourses, the readings can become problematic. This article argues that, rather than simply being part of the series’ banal diegetic nationalism (i.e. the series’ flagging itself as a particular identity/-ties), the use of Caribbean music genres in this context can be read as subverting their original anti-colonialist context and both supporting and exacerbating a (perceived) colonialist reading for the series.
Disrupted and deranged: The formless and the abject in Twin Peaks: The Return
Authors: Thomson Amanda M. E. , Thomson Andrew
Published: February 2023

This article intends to explore the formlessness of the Woodsmen as unsettling characters in Twin Peaks:
The Return (2017). Their lack of, or blurred, humanity and our misunderstanding of their origins, intentions and boundaries is disruptive enough to our senses that there exists a desire to abject them. It is through this abjection that we, as viewers of Twin Peaks (1990–91), experience a loss of self that permeates through the entirety of The Return. Yet, we return to watch the show, as we, as spectators, are drawn to that which confuses and repulses us. The Woodsmen serve as a metaphor for Season 3 in that they aid in our inability to interpret the show in the traditional sense of what a narrative is, could be or should be. Watching Twin Peaks: The Return is an unsettling experience, and the findings and connections drawn through this research serve as one – among many possible – explanations for this uncanniness, of our misunderstanding of a show that exists outside of traditional boundaries. Links will be drawn through this work of David Lynch and Mark Frost along with the theories and philosophies of Georges Bataille and Julia Kristeva, among others, with the intention of responding to the overarching question of why The Return was so difficult and unsettling to watch as viewers.
Geolocational Soundwalk as ecological choreography: Walking and listening towards ecological awareness
Authors: Buh Maša Radi
Published: February 2023

This article, which is based on a thesis written for an MA in Contemporary Theatre, Dance and Dramaturgy at Utrecht University, considers the ecological potential of performing arts through a lens of a newly proposed concept of ecological choreography with reference to a stimulation of ecological experience of interconnectedness and an attention on the format of a geolocational soundwalk (through a study case of Sandbox). A geolocational soundwalk is an example of ecological choreography due to its characteristics of practical mechanics and the use of sound. Choreography, here defined as an organisation of things in space and time, refers to performance’s way of producing such ecological experiences. Relying on a combination of geographical location and sound excerpts instigated by these coordinates, a geolocational soundwalk’s audience experiences interconnectedness immediately when encountering the medium itself. The interdependence of its elements is ingrained into the artwork’s structure and any missteps from the audience which disturb the interconnectedness are visible, revealing the web of complex connections. In combination with presenting topics such as degradation of public space and the return of natural sounds during the pandemic, Sandbox produces an experience of interconnectedness for the attendee. When listening to sound excerpts and stories about the physical place they are walking, the web of connections between the location, the mechanics of the soundwalk as well as ecological topics is revealed. The embodied experience, which is the ecological contribution of performance, is what makes the soundwalk an example of the concept of ecological choreography.
External policy of the European Union as a late-Westphalian political innovation
Authors: Rewizorski Marek
Published: February 2023

This article looks at the European Union’s external policy as a late-Westphalian political innovation. The article assumes that the external activity of the European Union goes beyond the classical framework of foreign policy, which is usually considered an attribute of the state, and the EU itself, as a hybrid entity, formulates and implements external policy. The latter has a normative and functional character, which means that the basis of the EU’s presence in the world is a set of specific rules, tools and organizational structures allowing for actions that not only complement the foreign policy of the member states but also go beyond its framework. European Union’s late-Westphalian external policy is based on three pillars – multilateralism, normative plasticity, and hybridism, which when considered collectively create an image of the EU’s activity beyond the model of classical diplomacy and interstate cooperation.
The Kottwitz conjecture for unitary PEL-type Rapoport–Zink spaces
Authors: Bertoloni Meli Alexander , Nguyen Kieu Hieu
Published: February 2023

In this paper we study the cohomology of PEL-type Rapoport–Zink spaces associated to unramified unitary similitude groups over

ℚ
p

{\operatorname{\mathbb{Q}}_{p}}

in an odd number of variables. We extend the results of Kaletha–Minguez–Shin–White and Mok to construct a local Langlands correspondence for these groups and prove an averaging formula relating the cohomology of Rapoport–Zink spaces to this correspondence. We use this formula to prove the Kottwitz conjecture for the groups we consider.
Reconstruction of acoustic sources from multi-frequency phaseless far-field data
Authors: Sun Fenglin , Wang Xianchao
Published: February 2023

We consider the inverse source problem of determining an acoustic source from multi-frequency phaseless far-field data. By supplementing some reference sources to the inverse source model, we develop a novel strategy for recovering the phase information of far-field data. This reference source technique leads to an easy-to-implement phase retrieval formula. Mathematically, the stability of the phase retrieval approach is rigorously justified. Then we employ the Fourier method to deal with the multi-frequency inverse source problem with recovered phase information. Finally, some two and three dimensional numerical results are presented to demonstrate the viability and effectiveness of the proposed method.
Age-and sex-specific reference intervals of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol. Comparison of two algorithms for the indirect estimation of reference intervals
Authors: Haeckel Rainer , Ammer Tatjana , Wosniok Werner , Krebs Alexander , Torge Antje , Özcürümez Mustafa , Bertram Alexander
Published: February 2023

Objectives

Reference intervals of total cholesterol concentrations in plasma and of their fractions low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-and non-HDL concentrations are seldom studied with respect to the relevance of age and sex. Therefore, the effect of age and sex on the reference intervals was reinvestigated with 2 indirect procedures.

Methods

As an indirect approach, the truncated minimum chi-square method was applied. All analyses were performed by computer programs available. The script published on the homepage of the German Society of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (DGKL) allows to derive a continuous age dependency of reference intervals together with their confidence and equivalence limits. The results of this approach were compared with those obtained by an indirect method developed more recently, the refineR algorithm.

Results

In the present study, the upper reference limits of total cholesterol varied from 5.1 to 7.8 mmol/L (197–302 mg/dL) depending on various biological variables (as age, sex, inpatients versus outpatients). These upper limits increased with age. Differences between sexes can be neglected except for the age above 80 years. The pattern of reference limits of LDL cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol paralleled those of total cholesterol. The reference limits of HDL cholesterol were higher in women than in men but were independent of age.

Conclusions

Reference limits for the concentrations of total cholesterol and their fractions LDL-, HDL-and non-HDL concentrations should be stratified for age and sex.
Computational study of propene selectivity and yield in the dehydrogenation of propane via process simulation approach
Authors: Oyegoke Toyese , Dabai Fadimatu N. , Waziri Saidu M. , Uzairu Adamu , Jibril Baba Y.
Published: February 2023

Propene is a vital feedstock in the petrochemical industry with a vast range of applications. And there is a continuous rise in propene demand. To gain insight into how the on-purpose method could help meet the demand in the propene market, we investigated the impact of temperature (T) and pressure (P) on product distribution in terms of product yield and selectivity using the process simulation approach. Existing related studies were deployed to identify possible products that could be evaluated in the simulation. In the study, we used Gibbs minimization (with Gibb’s reactor) to predict the likely products obtained at different T and P. The impact of feed purity on product distribution was also evaluated. The study was aided by using the Aspen HYSYS process simulator, while Design Expert was used to search for the optimum conditions for higher conversion, yield, and selectivity. Results obtained for the modeling and simulation of the process show that operating the production process at a lower pressure would favor higher selectivity within the temperature range of 500–600 °C. In comparison, the one run at a higher pressure was predicted to be only promising, showing better selectivity within the range of 550–650 °C. The feed purity significantly impacts the propene amount, especially for one with sulfur impurity, leading to the formation of smaller olefins and sulfide compounds. Our study reveals the importance of reviewing feed purity before charging them into the dehydrogenation reactor to prevent poisoning, coking, and other activities, which do lead to undesired products like methane and ethylene. A catalyst can also be designed to efficiently dehydrogenate the propane to propene at a lower temperature to prevent side reactions.
Adsorption of trichloroacetic acid from drinking water using polyethylene terephthalate waste carbon and periwinkle shells–based chitosan
Authors: Abioye Babasanmi Oluwole , Okoya Aderonke Adetutu , Akinyele Abimbola Bankole
Published: February 2023

Toxins are formed because of massive anthropogenic activities, polluting freshwater bodies. Most disinfectants used in water purification produce disinfection by-products (DBPs) such as trichloroacetic acid (TCA). TCA is a strong acid, and TCA uptake could harm gastrointestinal tract tissues or result in systemic acidosis. Activated carbons were investigated to remove TCA from drinking water in this study. Elemental and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) and scanning electron microscope methodologies were employed to characterize the surface morphological features of the activated carbons (SEM). Activated carbons’ chemical functional groups were identified through using Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy technique. Using a UV-vis spectrophotometer, the TCA concentrations in water samples were examined at 530 nm. The levels of TCA in raw and conventionally treated water were 0.9900 and 2.8900 mg/L, respectively. The polyethylene terephthalate activated carbon (PETAC), polyethylene terephthalate modified activated carbon (PETMAC), and commercial activated carbon (CAC) gave mean TCA removal efficiencies of 80.80%, 90.90%, and 90.90% for raw water and 95.16%, 96.13%, and 100% for conventionally treated water, respectively. The reusability efficiencies of PETAC and PETMAC were 78.4% and 82.4%, respectively. The PETAC with R
2 = 0.9377 showed that Langmuir model best fit the TCA adsorption in the isotherm models. According to the findings, PETAC was effective at removing TCA from water sources and could be improved by incorporating chitosan.
My Study of Law and Economics. An Educational Journey with Knowledgeable Tour Guides
Authors: Schäfer Hans-Bernd
Published: February 2023

After studies of economics and business administration in Cologne my academic career as an economist started 1968 as a doctoral student and later as a post doc in the Institute of Development Research and Development Policy of the University of Bochum in Germany. The economic theories, with which I worked at the time had no relation to legal or social norms. This changed, after I became a professor of economics in the newly established second law department of the University of Hamburg. It was a model trial of a reformed legal education. My lawyer colleagues propagated a more policy oriented and teleological understanding of the law, legal scholarship, and teaching and demanded the integration of social sciences into the study of the law. I began studying and teaching the classical writings of the American law and economics pioneers and related them to German private law. Gradually I shifted the focus of my academic interest and publications from development studies to the economic study of civil law and became increasingly convinced that “law and economics” corrects a scientific fallacy, which emerged when the two disciplines fell apart. Later I joined -together with my lawyer colleague Claus Ott-the European master program in law and economics, established a doctoral program in law and economics and the Hamburg institute of law and economics. After the merger of the two competing law departments the united faculty took supportive and far reaching decisions to consolidate the institute and make it a center for the study of law and economics. The following pages show in more detail the factors and reasons, which made me a convinced supporter and scholar of the economic approach to law and of institutional economics.
Passive Voice in Ugaritic and Biblical Hebrew in the Historical Linguistic Perspective
Authors: Notarius Tania
Published: February 2023

Passive diathesis in Ugaritic and Biblical Hebrew is expressed by four morphological categories: Qal passive stem, Niphal stem, Qal passive participle, and impersonal construction. The distribution and functions of these categories are not proportional at different stages of the development of these languages. This paper concentrates on the distribution of Qal passive and Niphal stems. In the language of Ugaritic poetry G passive is the prevailing category; in the language of Ugaritic prose both G passive and N-stem are used to express passivity. In the languages of Classical Biblical Hebrew prose there are examples of Qal passive and Niphal in the passive function, but the situation is essentially different from Ugaritic: in Hebrew the lexical overlap between these stems is broader, and Niphal can be used in impersonal passive constructions. In Late Biblical Hebrew Qal passive is practically out of use. In Qumran Hebrew the Qal passive forms are sporadically attested, apparently as an archaizing retention.
Conversational Aposiopesis in the MT Samuel – Textual Omission or Conversational Ellipsis?
Authors: Toshio Tsumura David
Published: February 2023

Aposiopesis, »the sudden breaking off of what is being said (or written)«, is not simply a rhetorical figure but a linguistic device of the ellipsis of the main clause or the sentence nucleus. The speaker conveys »feelings of haste, urgency, and anxiety«, as in the cases of Hannah (1Sam 1:22) and Tamar (2Sam 13:16). The omitted phrase or clause is usually negative.

Further Examples:

1) 2Sam 23:17 Is it [not] the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?

2) 2Sam 21:1 due to Saul and the bloody house

Textual omission and conversational ellipsis need to be carefully distinguished.
Amazon’s distribution space: constructing a ‘labour fix’ through digital Taylorism and corporate Keynesianism
Authors: Henaway Mostafa
Published: February 2023

Amazon is one of the largest e-commerce corporations in the world and has built a reputation for fast, low-cost service. To rapidly and efficiently move goods from production to consumption, however, Amazon relies on a logistics network that entails significant investments in infrastructure (physical and human) and these investments present a challenge for capital accumulation. In this paper, I examine the labour practices that Amazon employs within its distribution work spaces to address this challenge. The analysis is based on a case study of Amazon’s distribution facilities (fulfilment centres and delivery stations) in Montreal, Quebec. It draws on ethnographic research as a community organizer and semi-structured interviews with workers (present and former), trade union representatives and public policy experts to identify Amazon’s key strategies. Building on past studies on the platform economy, I illustrate how Amazon relies on ‘digital Taylorism’ (Staab & Nachtwey, 2016), involving the use of digital technologies to structure and control the labour process and surveil workers, as a key strategy. However, I further illustrate how Amazon seeks to balance the harmful effects of digital Taylorism with what I term ‘corporate keynesianism’ (i.e., social welfare benefits) to attain a ‘labour fix’, i.e., the steady supply of precarious, compliant labour needed to sustain the logistics machine.
Development of a Novel Laboratory Rotating Surface Erosion Apparatus for Cohesive or Stabilized Soils
Authors: Lin Yunjie , Lin Cheng , Tura Armando
Published: February 2023

Soil surface erosion has been recognized as a major threat to the sustainability of infrastructure, particularly in the context of climate change that can accelerate changes in physicochemical properties of eroding fluids. This study proposes a rotating surface erosion apparatus (RSEA) for soil erosion tests on cohesive/stabilized soils. Compared to other erosion test apparatuses, RSEA possesses some unique features: (1) it enables testing both disturbed and undisturbed in-situ soil specimens while imposing uniform hydraulic shear stress on the specimens, (2) it produces negligible temperature changes in the eroding fluid during the erosion testing, and (3) it accommodates fluids with different physicochemical properties. The computational fluid dynamics analysis was conducted to guide the design of the apparatus. The details of the design and fabrication of this apparatus are presented, followed by the discussions of the calibration and test procedure. In the end, effect of suspension on erosion testing using the proposed RSEA was discussed. Preliminary tests on cemented sands considering different temperature and acidity in eroding fluids were also performed and the results are discussed.
Thermal Triaxial Tests to Evaluate Improvement of Soft Marine Clay through Thermal Consolidation
Authors: Huancollo Hiden Jaime Machaca , Saboya Fernando , Tibana Sérgio , McCartney John Scott , Garske Borges Ricardo
Published: February 2023

This paper presents an experimental study on the thermomechanical behavior of marine clay from the Santos Basin off the coast of Brazil. The aim of the study is to assess the gain in undrained shear strength of reconstituted, normally consolidated (NC) clay specimens after drained thermal consolidation using a thermal triaxial device. The motivation behind performing these tests is that relatively few studies in the literature have focused on understanding the changes in shear strength of NC clays after a heating-cooling cycle, a path encountered in using heat to improve the properties of soft clays. Furthermore, the high-plasticity marine clays evaluated in this study have a pronounced thermal creep different from that observed in previous non-isothermal tests on clays. Consolidated isotropic undrained triaxial compression tests were performed on specimens consolidated to effective stresses of 100 kPa, 200 kPa, and 400 kPa and then sheared conventionally at room temperature as well as after drained heating-cooling cycles with maximum temperatures of 40°C and 55°C. The results were analyzed according to critical state soil mechanics after drained thermal consolidation, which was well suited to explain the improvement in undrained shear strength. The results have potential implications on the development of techniques that can promote thermal improvement of deep-water offshore anchors installed in soft soil.
Experimental Research on the Physical and Mechanical Properties of Remolded Fine-Grained Debris-Flow Deposits
Authors: Ran Yuling , Jiang Yu , He Hongzhi , Zhou Zhenhua
Published: February 2023

To make better use of debris-flow deposits, this paper adopts fine-grained debris-flow deposits (< 2 mm) sampled from Jiangjia Gully to constitute 17 gradation structures and determines the shear strength of the remolded structures at different moisture contents and vertical loads. Furthermore, the role and mechanism of each grain size interval in the remolded soils is discussed in depth. Grey correlation analysis is also introduced to evaluate the degree of influence of each factor on remolded structures. The results indicate that the difference in grain size distribution causes different physical and mechanical characteristics for remolded structures under different external conditions. The correlation degree of each influencing factor on the shear strength of remolded soil is ordered as follows: vertical load > moisture content > structural gradation. At different moisture contents, fine particles exert the greatest effect on the physical and mechanical characteristics of remolded soils, especially variation in the content of fine particles of less than 0.16 mm. At low moisture content, both fine particles and coarse particles facilitate the improvement of shear strength, and the increase in particle content in the range of 0.315–0.16 mm helps to enhance the mechanical properties of remolded structures. At high moisture content, the influence of the variation in intermediate particle content should be considered, especially the increase in particle content in the size range of 0.63–0.315 mm, which helps to improve the shear strength. The change in moisture content affects the cohesion of fine particles in the structures, and the change in vertical load shifts the contact form between particles in the structures, thereby affecting the internal frictional resistance and cohesion of remolded structures. The results obtained from this research are expected to provide a good basis for the reutilization of debris-flow deposits.
A Role for KCNQ Channels on Cell Type-Specific Plasticity in Mouse Auditory Cortex after Peripheral Damage
Authors: Henton Amanda , Zhao Yanjun , Tzounopoulos Thanos
Published: February 2023

Damage to sensory organs triggers compensatory plasticity mechanisms in sensory cortices. These plasticity mechanisms result in restored cortical responses, despite reduced peripheral input, and contribute to the remarkable recovery of perceptual detection thresholds to sensory stimuli. Overall, peripheral damage is associated with a reduction of cortical GABAergic inhibition; however, less is known about changes in intrinsic properties and the underlying biophysical mechanisms. To study these mechanisms, we used a model of noise-induced peripheral damage in male and female mice. We uncovered a rapid, cell type-specific reduction in the intrinsic excitability of parvalbumin-expressing neurons (PVs) in layer (L) 2/3 of auditory cortex. No changes in the intrinsic excitability of either L2/3 somatostatin-expressing or L2/3 principal neurons (PNs) were observed. The decrease in L2/3 PV excitability was observed 1, but not 7, d after noise exposure, and was evidenced by a hyperpolarization of the resting membrane potential, depolarization of the action potential threshold, and reduction in firing frequency in response to depolarizing current. To uncover the underlying biophysical mechanisms, we recorded potassium currents. We found an increase in KCNQ potassium channel activity in L2/3 PVs of auditory cortex 1 d after noise exposure, associated with a hyperpolarizing shift in the minimal voltage activation of KCNQ channels. This increase contributes to the decreased intrinsic excitability of PVs. Our results highlight cell-type- and channel-specific mechanisms of plasticity after noise-induced hearing loss and will aid in understanding the pathologic processes involved in hearing loss and hearing loss-related disorders, such as tinnitus and hyperacusis.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTNoise-induced damage to the peripheral auditory system triggers central plasticity that compensates for the reduced peripheral input. The mechanisms of this plasticity are not fully understood. In the auditory cortex, this plasticity likely contributes to the recovery of sound-evoked responses and perceptual hearing thresholds. Importantly, other functional aspects of hearing do not recover, and peripheral damage may also lead to maladaptive plasticity-related disorders, such as tinnitus and hyperacusis. Here, after noise-induced peripheral damage, we highlight a rapid, transient, and cell type-specific reduction in the excitability of layer 2/3 parvalbumin-expressing neurons, which is due, at least in part, to increased KCNQ potassium channel activity. These studies may highlight novel strategies for enhancing perceptual recovery after hearing loss and mitigating hyperacusis and tinnitus.
A Novel CCK Receptor GPR173 Mediates Potentiation of GABAergic Inhibition
Authors: He Ling , Shi Heng , Zhang Ge , Peng Yujie , Ghosh Avirup , Zhang Mengfan , Hu Xiaofeng , Liu Chunhua , Shao Yue , Wang Shujie , Chen Lijiang , Sun Wenjian , Su Junfeng , Chen Xi , Zhang Liang , Chan Ying-Shing , Pei Duanqing , Tortorella Micky , Guo Yiping , Yan Hong , He Jufang
Published: February 2023

Cholecystokinin (CCK) enables excitatory circuit long-term potentiation (LTP). Here, we investigated its involvement in the enhancement of inhibitory synapses. Activation of GABA neurons suppressed neuronal responses in the neocortex to a forthcoming auditory stimulus in mice of both sexes. High-frequency laser stimulation (HFLS) of GABAergic neurons potentiated this suppression. HFLS of CCK interneurons could induce the LTP of their inhibition toward pyramidal neurons. This potentiation was abolished in CCK knock-out mice but intact in mice with both CCK1R and 2R knockout of both sexes. Next, we combined bioinformatics analysis, multiple unbiased cell-based assays, and histology examinations to identify a novel CCK receptor, GPR173. We propose GPR173 as CCK3R, which mediates the relationship between cortical CCK interneuron signaling and inhibitory LTP in the mice of either sex. Thus, GPR173 might represent a promising therapeutic target for brain disorders related to excitation and inhibition imbalance in the cortex.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTCCK, the most abundant and widely distributed neuropeptide in the CNS, colocalizes with many neurotransmitters and modulators. GABA is one of the important inhibitory neurotransmitters, and much evidence shows that CCK may be involved in modulating GABA signaling in many brain areas. However, the role of CCK-GABA neurons in the cortical microcircuits is still unclear. We identified a novel CCK receptor, GPR173, localized in the CCK-GABA synapses and mediated the enhancement of the GABA inhibition effect, which might represent a promising therapeutic target for brain disorders related to excitation and inhibition imbalance in the cortex.
The Impact of Renewable Energy and Education on G-20 Environmental Degradation
Authors: Partini Ni Putu Dewi , Ekananda Mahjus
Published: February 2023

The efforts of the G-20 for sustainable development continue to be pursued in order to improve human welfare while reducing pressure on ecological resources. The ecological footprint is used as a more comprehensive measure that can see the pressure on the environment that comes from human activities. Using panel data from 19 G-20 countries from 1992 to 2018, this study aims to analyze the dynamic linkages of economic growth, use of renewable energy and level of education to the ecological footprint of the G20 countries. This study uses the PMG-ARDL analysis method to see the dynamic relationship between variables and makes it possible to see cointegration or long-term relationships. The estimation results show that in the long run an increase in per capita income will follow the EKC hypothesis. However, the educational attainment of the increase in the average length of schooling of the G-20 countries does not follow the EKC hypothesis and has not been able to directly reduce the ecological footprint. The higher the education level of a person can put higher pressure on the environment. However, education will indirectly make an increase in the level of income to be able to get to the turning point so that an increase in income can have the possibility of reducing pressure on the environment. This shows that the level of education can make the stability of environmental conditions return to a state of balance more quickly if there is a disturbance or shock to the condition of environmental balance.
Diabetes in all hospitalized cases in Germany 2015–2019 and impact of the first COVID-19 year 2020
Authors: Auzanneau Marie , Eckert Alexander J , Fritsche Andreas , Heni Martin , Icks Andrea , Mueller-Stierlin Annabel S , Dugic Ana , Risse Alexander , Lanzinger Stefanie , Holl Reinhard W
Published: February 2023

Objective

To analyze the proportion of diabetes among all hospitalized cases in Germany between 2015 and 2020.

Methods

Using the nationwide Diagnosis-Related-Groups statistics, we identified among all inpatient cases aged ≥ 20 years all types of diabetes in the main or secondary diagnoses based on ICD-10 codes, as well all COVID-19 diagnoses for 2020.

Results

From 2015 to 2019, the proportion of cases with diabetes among all hospitalizations increased from 18.3% (3.01 of 16.45 million) to 18.5% (3.07 of 16.64 million). Although the total number of hospitalizations decreased in 2020, the proportion of cases with diabetes increased to 18.8% (2.73 of 14.50 million). The proportion of COVID-19 diagnosis was higher in cases with diabetes than in those without in all sex and age subgroups. The relative risk (RR) for a COVID-19 diagnosis in cases with vs without diabetes was highest in age group 40–49 years (RR in females: 1.51; in males: 1.41).

Conclusions

The prevalence of diabetes in the hospital is twice as high as the prevalence in the general population and has increased further with the COVID-19 pandemic, underscoring the increased morbidity in this high-risk patient group. This study provides essential information that should help to better estimate the need for diabetological expertise in inpatient care settings.
Transforming Building Renovation: A Holistic, Strategic Approach with Construction Robot Management
Authors: Ghammad Badr , Hu Rongbo , Bock Thomas
Published: February 2023

The purpose of this research is to investigate the topic of the efficient renovation of existing buildings through construction robotics management. The main questions addressed are: How can we increase labor working conditions around construction sites? Why has the productivity of the construction industry decreased? What construction tasks require automation most? What is needed to smoothly integrate single-task construction robots (STCRs) into the established workflows? How can we optimize processes? What management system is required for STCRs? To answer these questions, thorough research has been conducted, including all identifiable resources for the area or problem. In addition, the research has been strengthened by an expert survey to define the focus areas. Further, the analysis of current established solutions and processes resulted in the presentation of a centralized platform for managing STCRs, which has been developed as part of this research. In conclusion, the strategic implications of deploying STCRs through Visual User Experience (VUX), the low-code cloud-based platform, are discussed and reinforced with a business plan to bring the product idea to life.
Bifurcation analysis and optimal control of a network-based SIR model with the impact of medical resources
Authors: Wang Fang , Liu Maoxing , Zhang Lei , Xie Boli
Published: February 2023

A new network-based SIR epidemic model, which incorporates the individual medical resource factor and public medical resource factor is proposed. It is verified that the larger the public medical resource factor, the smaller the control reproduction number, and the larger individual medical resource factor can weaken the spread of diseases. We found that the control reproduction number below unity is not enough to ensure global asymptotic stability of the disease-free equilibrium. When the number of hospital beds or the individual medical resource factor is small enough, the system will undergoes backward bifurcation. Moreover, the existence and uniqueness of the optimal control and two time-varying variables’s optimal solutions are obtained. On the scale-free network, the level of optimal control is also proved to be different for different degrees. Finally, the theoretical results are illustrated by numerical simulations. This study suggests that maintaining sufficient both public medical resources and individual medical resources is crucial for the control of infectious diseases.
A new conversation on the existence of Hilfer fractional stochastic Volterra–Fredholm integro-differential inclusions via almost sectorial operators
Authors: Sivasankar Sivajiganesan , Udhayakumar Ramalingam , Muthukumaran Venkatesan
Published: February 2023

The existence of Hilfer fractional stochastic Volterra–Fredholm integro-differential inclusions via almost sectorial operators is the topic of our paper. The researchers used fractional calculus, stochastic analysis theory, and Bohnenblust–Karlin’s fixed point theorem for multivalued maps to support their findings. To begin with, we must establish the existence of a mild solution. In addition, to show the principle, an application is presented.
Сучасні наукові проблеми кібербезпеки
Authors: Летичевський Олександр Олександрович
Published: February 2023

У статті наведено огляд сучасних проблем кібербезпеки та проаналізовано роль наукових досліджень у їх вирішенні. Зокрема, виокремлено два види досліджень — із застосуванням алгебраїчного підходу та з використанням нейронних мереж, що належать до методів штучного інтелекту. Алгебраїчні методи ґрунтуються на використанні автоматичного доведення теорем та програм-розв’язувачів і спрямовані на вирішення двох основних проблем кібербезпеки: перша — виявлення вразливостей у програмних і апаратних системах та оцінка їх стійкості до вторгнень; друга — виявлення вторгнень зловмисників у реальному часі. Наведено результати досліджень, які сприяють створенню надійного захисту систем від кібератак, зокрема систем об’єктів критичної інфраструктури, що на сьогодні є особливо актуальним завданням.
Цитування: Летичевський О.О. Сучасні наукові проблеми кібербезпеки. Вісник НАН України. 2023. № 2. С. 12—20. https://doi.org/10.15407/visn2023.02.012
DAYA SAING TEH HITAM EKSPOR INDONESIA DI PERDAGANGAN INTERNASIONAL
Authors: Elpawati Elpawati , Utama Bahagio
Published: February 2023

Black tea is one of the preparations of the tea plant that comes from the fermentation of tea leaves and is one of the leading commodities in the Indonesian plantation sub-sector, however Indonesian black tea has experienced a decline in export value in the last 10 years. The purpose of this research is to analyze the structure of the world black tea market, the comparative and competitive advantages of Indonesian black tea in the world market and the position of Indonesia's trade in black tea commodities in the world in the 2010-2019 period. The analytical tools used are the Herfindahl Hirschman Index (HHI), Concentration Ratio (CR), Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA), Trade Specialization Index (TSI) and Export Dynamic Product (EPD). The comparison countries are Kenya, Sri Lanka, India and China, while the export destinations for black tea are Malaysia, Russia, Pakistan, Germany and the United States. The results of this study are (1) The structure of the world black tea market is a moderate oligopoly (2) Indonesia has the comparative advantage of black tea in the export destination country. (3) Indonesia’s black tea does not have a competitive advantage in the export destination country. (4) Indonesia's trade position in black tea commodity as an exporting country.Keywords: Black Tea, Market Structure, Comparative Advantage, Competitive Advantage, Trading Position.AbstrakTeh hitam merupakan salah satu olahan dari tanaman teh yang berasal dari fermentasi daun teh serta menjadi salah satu komoditas unggulan subsektor perkebunan Indonesia, tetapi teh hitam Indonesia mengalami penurunan nilai ekspor dalam 10 tahun terakhir. Tujuan dari penelitian adalah menganalisis struktur pasar teh hitam dunia, keunggulan komparatif dan kompetitif teh hitam Indonesia di pasar dunia dan posisi perdagangan Indonesia pada komoditas teh hitam di dunia dalam periode 2010-2019. Alat analisis yang digunakan adalah Herfindahl Hirschman Index (HHI), Concentration Ratio (CR), Revealed Comparative Advantadge (RCA), Trade Specialization Index (TSI) dan Export Dynamic Product (EPD). Negara pembandingnya adalah Kenya, Sri Lanka, India dan Cina, sedangkan negara tujuan ekspor teh hitam adalah Malaysia, Rusia, Pakistan, Jerman dan Amerika Serikat. Hasil dari penelitian ini adalah (1) Struktur pasar teh hitam dunia adalah oligopoli moderat. (2) Indonesia memiliki keunggulan komparatif teh hitam di negara tujuan ekspor. (3) Teh hitam Indonesia tidak memiliki keunggulan kompetitif di negara tujuan ekspor. (4) Posisi Perdagangan Indonesia pada komoditas teh hitam sebagai negara eksportir.Kata Kunci: Teh Hitam, Struktur Pasar, Keunggulan Komparatif, Keunggulan Kompetitif, Posisi Perdagangan.
Getting dressed as a social activity
Authors: Prado Erika , Bucholtz Mary
Published: February 2023

Up to 25 per cent of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder are classified as ‘nonverbal’. Building on interactional research on the communicative skills of Autistic children and of individuals who do not use speech, this article uses video data to examine the interactional competence of an Autistic bilingual Latino teenager who does not use speech to communicate. A comparison of multiple instances of the teenager’s getting-dressed routine shows that contrary to the clinical framing of this routine as individualized and efficiency-oriented, getting dressed can be a social achievement that relies on the collaboration of multiple social actors in community settings. While a core feature of an Autism diagnosis is social and communicative impairment, the analysis demonstrates that Autistic interaction is highly social and richly communicative as well as affectively engaged.
Mobilizing device-mediated contributions in interaction involving beginner users of eye-gaze-accessed speech-generating devices
Authors: Tegler Helena , Demmelmaier Ingrid , Blom Johansson Monica , Norén Niklas
Published: February 2023

Interaction mediated by speech-generating devices (SGDs) may promote participation and independence for non-speaking children, but developing skills to use the SGD is time consuming and demanding. The present conversation analysis study aimed to identify features of interactional projects that mobilized SGD-mediated responses by two children with intellectual disability who were beginner-level users. The children and their professional communication partners were video recorded when interacting in an institutional setting. The analysis shows that SGD-mediated responses were mobilized by multimodal and sequentially organized actions combining different types of spoken initiatives, SGD modelling, and embodied resources that facilitated SGD use and hence participation. These results indicate a need for communication partners to use a wide range of practices to facilitate SGD-mediated interaction.
Stability analysis for a recovered fracturing fluid model in the wellbore of shale gas reservoir
Authors: CEN Jinxia , COSTEA Nicuşor , MİN Chao , YAO Jen-chih
Published: February 2023

This paper is concerned with the study of stability analysis to a complicated recovered frac- turing fluid model (RFFM, for short), which consists of a stationary incompressible Stokes equation involving multivalued and nonmonotone boundary conditions, and a reaction- diffusion equation with Neumann boundary conditions. Firstly, we introduce a family of perturbated problems corresponding to (RFFM) and deliver the variational formulation of perturbated problem which is a hemivariational inequality coupled with a variational equation. Then, we prove that the existence of weak solutions to perturbated problems and the solution sequence to perturbated problems are uniformly bounded. Finally, via employing Mosco convergent approach and the theory of nonsmooth, a stability result to (RFFM) is established.