bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Simulating spray droplet impaction outcomes: comparison with experimental data
Authors: Zabkiewicz Jerzy A , Pethiyagoda Ravindra , Forster W Alison , van Leeuwen Rebecca , Moroney Timothy J , McCue Scott W
Published: January 2020

BACKGROUND

A suite of plant retention spray models has been developed to simulate spray retention using virtual surfaces (either single leaves or whole plants) and their outputs compared with experimental data for the equivalent spray scenarios.

RESULTS

The results for a single formulation (0.1% v/v lecithin mixture in water) and difficult to wet plant species Chenopodium album L (common lambsquarters) are presented. They include experimental observations with single leaves, as well as simulations of virtual impaction events, conducted to provide for the first time estimates of f (the proportion of theoretical impact drop diameter at shatter). With this factor prescribed, multi‐plant simulations using a range of nozzle types and droplet sizes (volume mean diameter (VMD) range 241 to 530 μm) are compared with equivalent experimentally determined spray retention by real plants. The simulations demonstrated that impaction resulted predominantly in shatter with the production of daughter droplets, and that retention is mainly due to re‐capture of these droplets. Overall the simulations show the same trends as experimental retention results from different nozzle applications, but at best predicted retention results were 68% to 79% of experimental percentage retention, depending on plant spacing.

CONCLUSIONS

Retention is the result of some primary drop capture but predominantly by recapture of shatter droplets as the modelling illustrates. The value of f affects the droplet shatter outcome and can result in fewer, more energetic daughter droplets, or more droplets but with lower energies. However, this effect alone cannot explain the discrepancy between actual and simulated results. Possible operational influences are discussed. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry
Think beyond rehab to support students struggling with substance‐abuse issues
Authors: McCarthy Claudine
Published: January 2020

College student hospitalizations for stabilization have drastically increased in recent years, and higher ed officials and parents often mislabel or misidentify these students as addicts, which may contribute to or aggravate the crisis, according to Peter F. Lake, J.D., Director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at the Stetson University College of Law; and Tom Bennett, Higher Education Recovery Coordinator at Acadia Healthcare.
Did university act with deliberate indifference toward sexual harassment by rugby players?
Authors: Gelpi Aileen
Published: January 2020

A campus feminist group met with the University of Mary Washington administration in November 2014 about: (1) a videotape that allegedly depicted some UMW men's rugby players advocating violence against women and (2) anonymous threats against feminist students that were posted on a local social media site known as “Yik Yak.”
Rapid Combustion Synthesis of Metal Oxides Species Highly Dispersed on Layered Silicate Magadiite
Authors: Jing Xuyang , Zhang Yifu , Wang Qiushi , Cheng Yan , Meng Changgong
Published: January 2020

The good dispersion of metal oxides (MOs) with ultra‐small particles on host materials is essential for improving the utilization efficiency and increasing the service life. Herein, a novel strategy is developed as a methodology to synthesize MOs species highly dispersed on layered silicate magadiite by a rapid combustion method within 30 s. The speediness of the combustion process can avoid the agglomeration of MOs and well‐defined layered structure can further restrict the growth of nanoparticles. Thus, the lamellar structure of magadiite is well‐kept and MOs species with the particle size less than 5 nm immerse on the lamellar platelets. The results demonstrate this process can be considered as a methodology to synthesize different MOs species highly dispersed on various host materials for high efficiency applications.
Effect of pH on the Conductivity of Basidiomycetes DNAs Integrated Within Schottky‐Like Junctions
Authors: Rizan Nastaran , Shin Tan Yee , Tajuddin Hairul Anuar , Gnana kumar Georgepeter , Periasamy Vengadesh
Published: January 2020

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) has been studied extensively for its unique self‐assembling behavior for applications in the field of molecular electronics. The study of sequence‐specific electronic properties of DNA is one such study which could potentially be utilized as a platform to understand its charge transfer mechanism useful for integration into DNA‐based electronics. However, DNA charge transfer are significantly regulated by various environmental factors, such as pH fluctuations which influences the stability of the double helix structure and strongly attenuates its’ electronic profile. Extreme pH conditions lead to aggravated structural and chemical changes leading to DNA damage, which could have profound biological consequences. In this work, pH influence on basidiomycetes DNAs integrated within an aluminium (Al)‐indium tin oxide (ITO) Schottky junction was investigated. In general, the junction structure exhibited Ohmic behaviour at high acidic (pH 1 to 2) and basic (pH 13 to 14) environments, while behaving as a semiconductive Schottky‐like junction at intermediate pH values. Furthermore, various solid‐state parameters calculated for the DNA enable the gathering of information towards understanding the charge transfer mechanism in DNA molecules as a function of pH conditions, which could act as a potential indicator for various stages of DNA functionality.
Superbase‐Promoted N‐α‐sp3C‐H Functionalization of Tertiary Enaminones: Synthesis of Polysubstituted Pyrroles
Authors: Xu Limei , Wu Longqiao , Chen Ting , Xu Shuang , Huang Chuiting , Wang Yanyun , You Qihua , Shen Jinhai
Published: January 2020

An efficient superbase‐promoted N‐α‐sp3C−H functionalization of tertiary enaminones for the regiospecific synthesis of structurally diversified pyrroles under mild conditions has been exploited. The developed methodology led to a wide panel of pyrroles with broad substrate scope in an atom‐economy manner. Various substituted pyrroles are provided in up to 94% yield for 36 examples.
Electrochemical Synthesis of β‐Ketonitriles from Aryl Methyl Ketones
Authors: Yavari Issa , Shaabanzadeh Sina , Sheikhi Sara
Published: January 2020

A synthesis of β‐ketonitriles by cyanation of aryl methyl ketones with two completely distinct sources of cyanide, namely Me3SiCN and KCN, under metal‐ and oxidant‐free electrochemical anodic oxidation conditions is described. In this approach, a range of β‐ketonitriles can be obtained in good yields. This conversion is facilitated by I2, generated in situ from electrochemical oxidation of iodide ion to afford the β‐ketonitriles. This environmentally benign method is more convenient and practical compared to previous approaches.
A New Fluorescent Probe for Selective Detection of Endogenous Cysteine and Live Cell Imaging
Authors: Dang Yecheng , Chen Li , Yuan Li , Li Junbo , Chen Dugang
Published: January 2020

The detection of biothiols has attracted extensive interest owing to their vital importance in maintaining bioprocesses. Here, we reported a fluorescent probe MANK with facile preparation and excellent water solubility, which can effectively distinguish Cys from its two analogues glutathione (GSH) and homocysteine (Hcy) with a large “turn‐on” fluorescent signal of more than 40‐fold enhancement. Importantly, during the selective detection of Cys, the large concentration differences of three biothiols in living cells had been taken into account. The maleyl group in MANK acted both as a recognition site and fluorescence quenching group. And in the presence of Cys, the thiol group of Cys reacted with maleyl group of MANK by nucleophilic addition and the resulting adduct restored fluorescence emission with a high fluorescent quantum yield of 0.40 in phosphate buffered saline (PBS). Finally, it was successfully utilized to map the endogenous Cys in living cells by confocal microscopy.
Design, Synthesis and Efficacy of Hybrid Triclosan‐gold Based Molecules on Artemisinin‐resistant Plasmodium falciparum and Leishmania infantum Parasites
Authors: Ouji Manel , Delmas Sandra Bourgeade , Álvarez Álvaro Fernández , Augereau Jean‐Michel , Valentin Alexis , Hemmert Catherine , Gornitzka Heinz , Benoit‐Vical Françoise
Published: January 2020

The emergence of resistant parasites, Plasmodium and Leishmania, responsible of malaria and leishmaniasis diseases, to the currently available drugs, remains one of the major threats to public health. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop new molecules. Several hybrid molecules combining triclosan and gold(I) complexes have been synthesized and evaluated, in vitro, for their activities on P. falciparum and L. infantum parasites. The obtained results showed a good activity of the compounds. However, the cytotoxicity assays suggest a structure modulation to improve the selectivity. The synthesized molecules were also tested in a context of Plasmodium falciparum artemisinin‐resistance and the results showed no cross‐resistance induced between one gold(I) complex and artemisinin. This highlights that these compounds appear as a strong basis for further pharmacomodulation work to propose molecules targeting resistant parasites.
Formation of Hollow Co‐Ni‐S Nanowedges Arrays via Sulfidation‐etch of ZIF‐L for Advanced Hybrid Supercapacitor
Authors: Sun Jing , Yao Jing , Liu Ying , Lin Shuangyan , Xu Zhikun , Li Lin
Published: January 2020

Self‐supported hollow nanoarrays with rich active sites hold great promise as binder‐free electrode for supercapacitors. In this work, the hollow Co‐Ni−S nanowedge arrays (NWAs) have been fabricated on Ni foam (NF) substrate through a facile sulfidation and etch of ZIF−L‐Co NWAs/NF. Structural evolution upon solvothermal time indicates that the formation of hollow Co‐Ni−S NWAs is mainly due to the etch of defect‐rich interior of solid ZIF−L‐Co NWAs. The unique hollow nanowedge structural and compositional advantages ensure the hollow Co‐Ni−S NWAs excellent electrochemical properties with areal capacity of 0.286 mA h cm−2 at 5 mA cm−2, and 78% capacity retention after 2000 cycles. Moreover, the hybrid supercapacitor (HSC) of Co‐Ni−S // AC has been assembled, which illustrates good application performance. The results indicate that the Co‐Ni−S NWAs/NF is a promising binder‐free electrode for high‐performance hybrid supercapacitors.
Using mutants to help developers distinguish and debug (compiler) faults
Authors: Holmes Josie , Groce Alex
Published: January 2020

Measuring the distance between two program executions is a fundamental problem in dynamic analysis of software and useful in many test generation and debugging algorithms. This paper proposes a metric for measuring distance between executions and specializes it to an important application: determining similarity of failing test cases for the purpose of automated fault identification and localization in debugging based on automatically generated compiler tests. The metric is based on a causal concept of distance where executions are similar to the degree that changes in the program itself, introduced by mutation, cause similar changes in the correctness of the executions. Specifically, if two failing test cases for a compiler can be made to pass by applying the same mutant, those two tests are more likely to be due to the same fault. We evaluate our metric using more than 50 faults and 2,800 test cases for two widely used real‐world compilers and demonstrate improvements over state‐of‐the‐art methods for fault identification and localization. A simple operator selection approach to reducing the number of mutants can reduce the cost of our approach by 70%, while producing a gain in fault identification accuracy. We additionally show that our approach, although devised for compilers, is applicable as a conservative fault localization algorithm for other types of programs and can help triage certain types of crashes found in fuzzing non‐compiler programs more effectively than a state‐of‐the‐art technique.
Density‐Dependence Mediates the Effects of Temperature on Growth of Juvenile Blue Catfish in Nonnative Habitats
Authors: Nepal Vaskar , Fabrizio Mary C.
Published: January 2020

The combined effects of conspecific density and climate warming on the vital rates of invasive fish species have not been well studied, but may be important in predicting how successful they will be in the future. We evaluated the effects of temperature and population density on monthly time series of sizes of age‐0 Blue Catfish Ictalurus furcatus in the James, York, and Rappahannock River subestuaries (defined here as tidally influenced bodies of water that feed into the Chesapeake Bay) from 1996 to 2017, using growing degree‐days (GDDs, °C day) as a measure of thermal time. Our predictive linear mixed‐effects model explained 86% of the variation in the length of age‐0 Blue Catfish. In addition, it indicated a strong positive effect of temperature on the growth rate of age‐0 Blue Catfish, with individual fish biomass during warm years up to 63% higher than during cool years. Growth rate was influenced negatively by the abundance of age‐0 and older fish, resulting in at least fourfold differences in the predicted biomass of Blue Catfish by the end of the first year of life depending on conspecific density. We also observed regional differences in the growth rates of Blue Catfish in the three subestuaries we examined; although growth occurred in all subestuaries, growth was highest for the Rappahannock River population even though this river accumulated the fewest GDDs. Rising water temperatures due to global climate change will likely increase the growth rate of age‐0 Blue Catfish in the Chesapeake Bay region, potentially intensifying the negative impacts of this invasive species on the ecology of Chesapeake Bay. However, individual populations respond differently to warming temperatures, and thus, potential increases in the growth rate of age‐0 Blue Catfish may be partially offset by local conditions that may serve to limit growth.
Mechanical behavior of Q690 high‐strength steel beams at room and elevated temperatures
Authors: Luo Jinhui , Zong Shaohan , Zhu Shaojun , Guo Xiaonong , Yu Mengtong
Published: January 2020

This paper investigates the mechanical behavior of Q690 high‐strength steel (HSS) beams at room and high temperatures by means of experimental and numerical analysis. First, simply supported and cantilever Q690 steel beams were tested under room and elevated temperatures. The test results indicated that the bearing capacity of the specimens in fire decreases sharply with the increase of temperature. Subsequently, finite element models were established and verified against the experimental results. Finally, a large amount of numerical analysis was carried out, and two formulae to estimate the bearing capacity of Q690 HSS beams under room and elevated temperatures were obtained. The results estimated by the formulae were compared with the test data and Eurocode 3, which proved that the proposed formulae are reliable enough for practical design.
Environmental change of coastal Sundarbans: Impact on livelihood and standard of living status of indigenous people
Authors: Rudra Ayan , Chattopadhyay Aparajita
Published: January 2020

There is overwhelming scientific consensus that environmental change is currently having ecological and socioeconomical impacts at the micro and macrolevel. Over the coming decades, the impact of development, climate change, and urbanization on the ecosystem is likely to become even more ruthless in the Sundarbans. Like many other ecologically sensitive areas, the Sundarbans of the Indian state of West Bengal and of Bangladesh are being stressed climatically to the extreme due to their geographical location. This study explores both the ways in which residents of communities in the West Bengal and Bangladesh Sundarbans perceive changes in the environment, as well as intergenerational changes in livelihoods to be driven in a large part by environmental changes. Persons from a total of 368 households were interviewed using a structured interview tool. As an example of differences in perception between residents of the two areas, survey respondents from communities of the Sundarbans of Bangladesh were more likely to perceive that rainfall amounts are changing than did the residents interviewed from the Sundarbans of West Bengal. From the sample data, it is shown that in the Sundarbans of Bangladesh, 59% of the respondents, as compared to 63% of the respondents in West Bengal, reported that they had chosen to enter their parents’ occupations. From the multivariate logistic regression analysis, it was observed that, especially in Bangladesh when compared to West Bengal, the state of the environment plays a vital role in whether respondents adopt occupations other than those of their parents.
Generalized Kohn‐Sham energy decomposition analysis and its applications
Authors: Su Peifeng , Tang Zhen , Wu Wei
Published: January 2020

Energy decomposition analysis (EDA) methods bridge the gap between electronic structure calculations and conceptual interpretations of molecular interactions. The recently developed generalized Kohn‐Sham EDA (GKS‐EDA) can be used to examine various molecular interactions with restricted, restricted open‐shell or unrestricted Kohn‐Sham orbitals. It supports different density functional theory functionals, including LDA, GGA, hybrid, double hybrid, range‐separated, and dispersion‐corrected density functionals. GKS‐EDA can be also efficiently applied for intermolecular interactions in solutions and intramolecular interactions when used in combination with an implicit solvation model and appropriate fragmentation method. GKS‐EDA helps us not only to understand but also to predict the structures and properties of various interacting systems within a unified approach.

This article is categorized under:

Electronic Structure Theory > Ab Initio Electronic Structure Methods

Molecular and Statistical Mechanics > Molecular Interactions

Electronic Structure Theory > Density Functional Theory

Structure and Mechanism > Molecular Structures
Structural load mitigation control for wind turbines: A new performance measure
Authors: Do M. Hung , Njiri Jackson G. , Söffker Dirk
Published: January 2020

Structural loads of wind turbines are becoming critical because of the growing size of wind turbines in combination with the required dynamic output demands. Wind turbine tower and blades are therefore affected by structural loads. To mitigate the loads while maintaining other desired conditions such as the optimization of power generated or the regulation of rotor speed, advanced control schemes have been developed during the last decade. However, conflict and trade‐off between structural load reduction capacity of the controllers and other goals arise; when trying to reduce the structural loads, the power production or regulation performance may be also reduced. Suitable measures are needed when designing controllers to evaluate the control performance with respect to the conflicting control goals. Existing measures for structural loads only consider the loads without referring to the relationship between loads and other control performance aspects. In this contribution, the conflicts are clearly defined and expressed to evaluate the effectiveness of control methods by introducing novel measures. New measures considering structural loads, power production, and regulation to prove the control performance and to formulate criteria for controller design are proposed. The proposed measures allow graphical illustration and numerical criteria describing conflicting control goals and the relationship between goals. Two control approaches for wind turbines, PI and observer‐based state feedback, are defined and used to illustrate and to compare the newly introduced measures. The results are obtained by simulation using Fatigue, Aerodynamics, Structures, and Turbulence (FAST) tool, developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), USA.
Educational data mining and learning analytics: An updated survey
Authors: Romero Cristobal , Ventura Sebastian
Published: January 2020

This survey is an updated and improved version of the previous one published in 2013 in this journal with the title “data mining in education”. It reviews in a comprehensible and very general way how Educational Data Mining and Learning Analytics have been applied over educational data. In the last decade, this research area has evolved enormously and a wide range of related terms are now used in the bibliography such as Academic Analytics, Institutional Analytics, Teaching Analytics, Data‐Driven Education, Data‐Driven Decision‐Making in Education, Big Data in Education, and Educational Data Science. This paper provides the current state of the art by reviewing the main publications, the key milestones, the knowledge discovery cycle, the main educational environments, the specific tools, the free available datasets, the most used methods, the main objectives, and the future trends in this research area.

This article is categorized under:

Application Areas > Education and Learning
From two stages to one: acceleration of the induced membrane (Masquelet) technique using human acellular dermis for the treatment of non-infectious large bone defects
Authors: Verboket René Danilo , Leiblein Maximilian , Janko Maren , Schaible Alexander , Brune Jan Claas , Schröder Katrin , Heilani Myriam , Fremdling Charlotte , Busche Yannic , Irrle Tanja , Marzi Ingo , Nau Christoph , Henrich Dirk
Published: January 2020

Introduction

The induced membrane technique for the treatment of large bone defects is a two-step procedure. In the first operation, a foreign body membrane is induced around a spacer, then, in the second step, several weeks or months later, the spacer is removed and the Membrane pocket is filled with autologous bone material. Induction of a functional biological membrane might be avoided by initially using a biological membrane. In this study, the effect of a human acellular dermis (hADM, Epiflex, DIZG gGmbH) was evaluated for the treatment of a large (5 mm), plate-stabilised femoral bone defect.

Material and Methods

In an established rat model, hADM was compared to the two-stage induced membrane technique and a bone defect without membrane cover. Syngeneous spongiosa from donor animals was used for defect filling in all groups. The group size in each case was n = 5, the induction time of the membrane was 3–4 weeks and the healing time after filling of the defect was 8 weeks.

Results

The ultimate loads were increased to levels comparable with native bone in both membrane groups (hADM: 63.2% ± 29.6% of the reference bone, p < 0.05 vs. no membrane, induced membrane: 52.1% ± 25.8% of the reference bone, p < 0.05 vs. no membrane) and were significantly higher than the control group without membrane (21.5%). The membrane groups were radiologically and histologically almost completely bridged by new bone formation, in contrast to the control Group where no closed osseous bridging could be observed.

Conclusion

The use of the human acellular dermis leads to equivalent healing results in comparison to the two-stage induced membrane technique. This could lead to a shortened therapy duration of large bone defects.
Torsion plastometer trials to investigate the effect of non-proportional loading paths in caliber rolling on damage and performance of metal parts
Authors: Wang Shuhan , Dunlap Anthony , Möhring Kerstin , Lohmar Johannes , Schwedt Alexander , Aretz Anke , Walther Frank , Hirt Gerhard
Published: January 2020

The non-proportional loading path describes a strain-dependent development of stress triaxiality and Lode parameter during metal forming processes. Existing studies suggest a strong dependence of damage evolution on the non-proportional loading path. This work focuses on investigating the influence of non-proportional loading paths observed in hot caliber rolling of the case-hardening steel 16MnCrS5 using laboratory scale experiments. The applied torsion plastometer is highly flexible as it can apply combined loading types (tension, compression and torsion) on notched round specimen and enables deformation at elevated temperature. In this study, two characteristic non-proportional loading paths in caliber rolling and the maximal achievable non-proportional loading path variation were recreated in the torsion plastometer based on both FE simulations and experiments. After deformation, the specimen were further analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to quantify the damage. The results indicate an influence of the non-proportional loading path on damage evolution. Furthermore, fatigue tests were employed to characterize the fatigue performance of the deformed specimens. In the torsion plastometer trials carried out no clear correlation of performance and damage was observed. This is most likely due to differences in residual dislocation density after static recrystallization and deviations in the microstructure after hot working. Thus, the superposition of microstructure evolution and damage needs to be considered carefully when testing at elevated temperature.
Floral temperature patterns can function as floral guides
Authors: Harrap Michael J. M. , Hempel de Ibarra Natalie , Whitney Heather M. , Rands Sean A.
Published: January 2020

Floral guides are signal patterns that lead pollinators to floral rewards after they have located the flower, and increase foraging efficiency and pollen transfer. Patterns of several floral signalling modalities, particularly colour patterns, have been identified as being able to function as floral guides. Floral temperature frequently shows patterns that can be used by bumblebees for locating and recognising the flower, but whether these temperature patterns can function as a floral guide has not been explored. Furthermore, how combined patterns (using multiple signalling modalities) affect floral guide function has only been investigated in a few modality combinations. We assessed how artificial flowers induce behaviours in bumblebees when rewards are indicated by unimodal temperature patterns, unimodal colour patterns or multimodal combinations of these. Bees visiting flowers with unimodal temperature patterns showed an increased probability of finding rewards and increased learning of reward location, compared to bees visiting flowers without patterns. However, flowers with contrasting unimodal colour patterns showed further guide-related behavioural changes in addition to these, such as reduced reward search times and attraction to the rewarding feeder without learning. This shows that temperature patterns alone can function as a floral guide, but with reduced efficiency. When temperature patterns were added to colour patterns, bees showed similar improvements in learning reward location and reducing their number of failed visits in addition to the responses seen to colour patterns. This demonstrates that temperature pattern guides can have beneficial effects on flower handling both when alone or alongside colour patterns.
Migrants and Crime in Sweden in the Twenty-First Century
Authors: Adamson Göran
Published: January 2020

In 2005, the Swedish Crime Prevention Agency published a report about the link between immigration and crime. Since then, no comprehensive study has been conducted even though Sweden has experienced a large influx of migrants in combination with a rising crime rate. This study conducted by Göran Adamson and Tino Sanandaji is the first purely descriptive scientific investigation on the matter in fifteen years. The investigation (from 2002 to 2017) covers seven distinct categories of crime, and distinguishes between seven regions of origin. Based on 33 per cent of the population (2017), 58 per cent of those suspect for total crime on reasonable grounds are migrants. Regarding murder, manslaughter and attempted murder, the figures are 73 per cent, while the proportion of robbery is 70 per cent. Non-registered migrants are linked to about 13 per cent of total crime. Given the fact that this group is small, crime propensity among non-registered migrants is significant.
LaNiO3 as a Novel Anode for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Zhang Chang , Wu Cong , Zhang Zhiwei , Shen Yanran , Liu Wei
Published: January 2020

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have been developed for over 30 years; however, existing electrode materials cannot satisfy the increasing requirements of high-energy density, stable cycling, and low cost. Here, we present a perovskite-type LaNiO3 oxide (LNO) as a new negative electrode material. LNO was successfully synthesized by a sol–gel method. The microstructure and electrochemical performance of LNO calcined at various temperatures have been systematically investigated. The LNO electrode shows a high rate capability and long cycling stability. In a C-rate test, a specific capacity of 77 mAh/g was exhibited at 6 C. LNO can also deliver a specific capacity of 92 mAh/g after 200 cycles at 1 C. This paper presents a type of binary metal oxide as a new anode material for high-performance LIBs.
Sentiment and position-taking analysis of parliamentary debates: a systematic literature review
Authors: Abercrombie Gavin , Batista-Navarro Riza
Published: January 2020

Parliamentary and legislative debate transcripts provide access to information concerning the opinions, positions, and policy preferences of elected politicians. They attract attention from researchers from a wide variety of backgrounds, from political and social sciences to computer science. As a result, the problem of computational sentiment and position-taking analysis has been tackled from different perspectives, using varying approaches and methods, and with relatively little collaboration or cross-pollination of ideas. The existing research is scattered across publications from various fields and venues. In this article, we present the results of a systematic literature review of 61 studies, all of which address the automatic analysis of the sentiment and opinions expressed, and the positions taken by speakers in parliamentary (and other legislative) debates. In this review, we discuss the existing research with regard to the aims and objectives of the researchers who work in this area, the automatic analysis tasks which they undertake, and the approaches and methods which they use. We conclude by summarizing their findings, discussing the challenges of applying computational analysis to parliamentary debates, and suggesting possible avenues for further research.
Circuits of Compassion: The Affective Labor of Uganda’s Christian Orphan Choirs
Authors: Boyd Lydia
Published: January 2020

Uganda’s touring orphan choirs engage in a form of charity that is dependent on the mobility not only of money, but also of people and sentiments. Boyd considers the moral economies that underlie this ongoing project of compassionate “circulation.” If a key finding of the work on humanitarian affect has been how such “affective surpluses” mask inequalities between donors and recipients, this article considers how participants in charitable relationships conceive of dependency and indebtedness differently. These differences compel us to understand how moral and religious sentiments give shape to the inequalities inherent in dominant forms of global humanitarian “care.”
Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis
Authors: Vitturi Bruno Kusznir , Suriano Enrico Stefano , Pereira de Sousa Ana Beatriz , Torigoe Dawton Yukito
Published: January 2020

Background:

Little is known about the potential systemic effects of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) on the nervous system. We designed a study aiming to assess the frequency and clinical predictors of cognitive impairment in AS patients.

Methods:

We carried out a cross-sectional case–control study composed of consecutive patients with AS. Trained and blinded interviewers registered clinical-epidemiological data and applied a standardized neurological assessment for each subject of the study. At baseline, functional limitations were characterized using the Health Assessment Questionnaire. Cognitive impairment was evaluated with the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, and the Clinical Dementia Rating, while neuropsychiatric symptoms were investigated with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Healthy controls were matched for age, educational attainment, sex, and comorbidities. We compared the neurological outcomes between case and controls, and we determined the clinical predictors of cognitive decline.

Results:

We included 40 patients (mean: 49.3 years) with AS and 40 healthy controls (mean: 48.8 years) in our study. In Brief Cognitive Screening Battery, patients with AS presented a statistically significant poor performance in the clock drawing test and in the verbal fluency. The mean Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores were significantly lower in AS subjects compared to the control group. Also, the prevalence of subjects classified as cognitively impaired according to MoCA was significantly higher in the AS group (90.0% vs. 57.5%, p = 0.02). Moreover, neuropsychiatric symptoms were more prevalent in AS patients. Worse functional limitations were associated with poor cognitive performance as well.

Conclusions:

Patients with AS might be more vulnerable to cognitive decline.
Hand hygiene promotion delivered by change agents—Two attitudes, similar outcome
Authors: Lee Yew Fong , McLaws Mary-Louise , Ong Loke Meng , Amir Husin Suraya , Chua Hock Hin , Wong See Yin , Pittet Didier , Zingg Walter
Published: January 2020

Objective:

To assess the effect of peer-identified change agents (PICAs) compared to management-selected change agents (MSCAs) on hand hygiene behavior in acute care.

Design:

Randomized-controlled study.

Setting:

Two internal medicine wards of a public, university-affiliated, tertiary-care hospital in Malaysia.

Methods:

We randomly allocated 2 wards to hand hygiene promotion delivered either by PICAs (study arm 1) or by MSCAs (study arm 2). The primary outcome was hand hygiene compliance using direct observation by validated auditors. Secondary outcomes were hand hygiene knowledge and observations from ward tours.

Results:

Mean hand hygiene compliance in study arm 1 and study arm 2 improved from 48% (95% confidence interval [CI], 44%–53%) and 50% (95% CI, 44%–55%) in the preintervention period to 66% (63%–69%) and 65% (60%–69%) in the intervention period, respectively. We detected no statistically significant difference in hand hygiene improvement between the 2 study arms. Knowledge scores on hand hygiene in study arm 1 and study arm 2 improved from 60% and 63% to 98% and 93%, respectively. Staff in study arm 1 improved hand hygiene because they did not want to disappoint the efforts taken by the PICAs. Staff in study arm 2 felt pressured by the MSCAs to comply with hand hygiene to obtain good overall performance appraisals.

Conclusion:

Although the attitude of PICAs and MSCAs in terms of leadership, mode of action and perception of their task by staff were very different, or even opposed, both PICAs and MSCAs effectively changed behavior of staff toward improved hand hygiene to comparable levels.
Preparedness for Candida auris in Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program (CNISP) hospitals, 2018
Authors: Garcia-Jeldes Felipe , Mitchell Robyn , Bharat Amrita , McGeer Allison ,   for the CNISP  Interest Group
Published: January 2020

We surveyed Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program hospitals to evaluate infection prevention and microbiology laboratory preparedness for Candida auris. We identified significant gaps: most hospitals were not prepared to screen patients for colonization, and only one-half of laboratories reported identifying all clinically significant Candida isolates to the species level.
Is publicly funded criminal defence sustainable? Legal aid cuts, morale, retention and recruitment in the English criminal law professions
Authors: Thornton James
Published: January 2020

This paper examines how continued reductions in fee levels for criminal legal aid work affect recruitment and retention in the English publicly funded criminal defence profession. Data from 29 qualitative interviews with English defence solicitors and barristers are analysed to explore the impact of these reductions on recruitment of new lawyers and retention of current lawyers. On the basis of these findings, also building on research conducted by lawyer professional associations, I argue that a combination of cuts to legal aid, the resulting working patterns and low morale has led to a position where the criminal defence profession, as we know it, is unsustainable.
Many synchronized vector solutions for a Bose–Einstein system
Authors: Long Wei , Tang Zhongwei , Yang Sudan
Published: January 2020

This paper is concerned with the following nonlinear Schrödinger system in${\mathbb R}^3$$$\left\{ {\beging{matrix}{ {-\Delta u + (1 + \alpha P(x))u = \mu u^3 + \beta uv^2,} \hfill & {x\in {\open R}^3,} \hfill \cr {-\Delta v + (1 + \alpha Q(x))u = \nu v^3 + \beta u^2v,} \hfill & {x\in {\open R}^3,} \hfill \cr {u,v > 0,} \hfill & {x\in {\open R}^3,} \hfill \cr } } \right.$$where$\beta \in {\mathbb R}$is a coupling constant,$\mu ,\nu $are positive constants,P,Qare weight functions decaying exponentially to zero at infinity,αcan be regarded as a parameter. This type of system arises, in particular, in models in Bose–Einstein condensates theory and Kerr-like photo refractive media.

We prove that, for any positive integerk> 1, there exists a suitable range ofαsuch that the above problem has a non-radial positive solution with exactlykmaximum points which tend to infinity as$\alpha \to +\infty $(or$0^+$). Moreover, we also construct prescribed number of sign-changing solutions.
TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY AND CONSENT IN THE CHAGOS ADVISORY OPINION
Authors: McCorquodale Robert , Robinson Jennifer , Peart Nicola
Published: January 2020

A key element of the right to self-determination is territorial integrity. This has usually been considered solely in relation to the territorial integrity of an existing State seeking to resist claims by peoples for the right to self-determination. Yet the Chagos Opinion by the International Court of Justice examines a different type of territorial integrity—that of the colonial territory itself. This article explores the consequence of the Court's view that the territorial integrity of the colonial territory is a matter of customary international law, and that any division, integration or other disruption of that colonial territory after December 1960 is unlawful, without the free and genuine consent of the people of the colonial territory. In particular this article seeks to explore what the Chagos Opinion means in terms of the territorial integrity of a colonial territory. It also examines the required conditions for ascertaining a free and genuine consent of the people of that territory, and the legal effects of not complying with them. There is also consideration of the implications for other situations from the clarification of customary international law in the Chagos Opinion, with a special focus on West Papua.
AN IMPROVED TEST OF THE SQUARED SHARPE RATIO
Authors: Chiu Wan-Yi
Published: January 2020

The sample squared Sharpe ratio (SSR) is a critical statistic of the risk-return tradeoff. We show that sensitive upper-tail probabilities arise when the sample SSR is employed to test the mean-variance efficiency under different test statistics. Assuming the error's normality with a nonzero mean, we integrate the sample SSR and the arbitrage regression into a noncentral chi-square (χ2) test. We find that the distribution of the sample SSR based on the regression error is to the left of the F-distribution when assuming the returns' normality. Compared to two benchmarks that use the noncentral F-distribution and the central F-statistic, the χ2-statistic is more effective, competitive, significant, and locally robust when used to reject the upper-tailed mean-variance efficiency test using the usual parameters (sample size, portfolio size, and SSR).
Historians at the Court: How Cultural Expertise in Qing Law Contributes to the Invention of Hong Kong “Chinese Customary Law”
Authors: Bourgon Jérôme
Published: January 2020

This paper relies on the narrative of a renowned historian of Qing law from China mainland who has been called by Hong Kong High Court in 2007, to witness as an expert in “Chinese customary law.” At the opening of the trial, he recognized one well-known and estimated colleague from Taiwan in the expert engaged by the other party. During one week, these two legal historians called up a vast array of knowledge in Chinese history, culture, and law, to ensure the triumph of their party. The contest opposed the representatives of two branches of a same lineage who claimed their right to manage the lineage common wealth. As both were collaterals with dubious link with the original lineage, experts engaged in sophisticated arguments to make their cause prevail. Successively were adduced lineage registers the tabooing of fathers and emperors' personal name in the Chinese tradition, the degree of kinships as represented by “mourning charts” included in the Qing penal code. Even though it was “privately settled” before any judicial decision, this case raises questions on the very nature of “Chinese customary law”, and the role of “cultural expertise” at Common law in a Chinese environment.
A survey of Chinese consumers’ knowledge, beliefs and behavioural intentions regarding salt intake and salt reduction
Authors: Chen Si , Shan Liran Christine , Tao Wanting , Lu Ting , Regan Áine , Han Hongwei , Guo Lixia , Deng Taotao , Wall Patrick
Published: January 2020

Objective:

Globally, China is among the ‘saltiest’ nations. In order to support current nationwide salt reduction initiatives, we investigated Chinese consumers’ knowledge, beliefs and behaviours related to salt intake and salt reduction.

Design:

A cross-sectional face-to-face survey was carried out, focusing on salt knowledge, beliefs and behaviours related to salt intake and salt reduction, perceptions of salt reduction responsibility and support for different national strategies.

Setting:

The survey was carried out in China mainland.

Participants:

Consumers (n 2444) from six of seven major geographical regions in China participated in the survey. After data cleaning, a sample of 2430 was included in the final analysis.

Results:

A majority of Chinese consumers believed that salt added during home cooking was the biggest contributor to their salt intake. Knowledge gaps existed in the awareness of salt hidden in certain foods and flavouring products. Chinese consumers in general were interested in lowering their salt intake. They were aware of salt reduction tools, but the adoption level was low. Consumers expressed strong support for promotion of salt-restriction spoons and public education, but not fiscal policies (e.g. salt-related tax or subsidies). In terms of individual differences, education status demonstrated a substantial impact on salt reduction knowledge and behaviour.

Conclusions:

There is still big room to ‘shake’ Chinese consumers’ salt habit. The present study provides important evidence and consumer insights to support China’s efforts to meet its salt reduction targets.
A service evaluation of the immobilisation techniques adopted for breast cancer patients with large and/or pendulous breasts, receiving external beam radiotherapy
Authors: Montgomery Lisa , Flood Terri , Shepherd Paul
Published: January 2020

Introduction:

Breast cancer patients referred for external beam radiotherapy and who have large and/or pendulous breasts can present positioning and immobilisation challenges. Deep infra-mammary and/or lateral wrap skin folds can occur that can lead to unwanted radiation-induced skin toxicity. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the immobilisation techniques adopted for this subgroup of patients in order to inform best practice.

Method:

A survey aimed to identify the current clinical practice in radiotherapy centres throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland was undertaken. The email survey was distributed with support of the Radiotherapy Services Managers group.

Results:

Twenty-six of the 74 radiotherapy centres responded to the survey. Responses demonstrated that supine positioning with or without additional immobilisation was preferable. Of the eight different immobilisation techniques identified, patients positioned supine on a breast board wearing a bra was the most common. Only two of the centres reported using a prone technique.

Conclusions:

Immobilisation and reproducibility are key for successful external beam radiotherapy particularly when advanced treatment techniques are being employed. No single technique gained widespread acceptance as the optimum for the effective immobilisation of patients with large and/or pendulous breasts. Further evaluative research in the form of a multi-centre trial is warranted in order to clearly establish the most effective immobilisation methods/devices for this ever expanding, subgroup of cancer patients.
Dynamical environments of MU69: a state of chaotic clearing
Authors: Lages José , Shevchenko Ivan I.
Published: January 2020

The second (after Pluto) plausible target object for the New Horizons mission is 2014 MU69. It is a classical TNO, a primordial contact binary. Identifying any material in the vicinities of a target object is of an especial concern for planning cosmic fly-byes, as it is hazardous for a space probe. Luckily, no such material has been reported for MU69 up to now. The point of our report is that this lucky absence is just a dynamical consequence of the physical nature of MU69. Spinning gravitating dumbbells create zones of dynamical chaos around them, and this has a clearing effect: any material put in orbits around a rotating dumbbell (e.g., any material ejected from its surface) cannot be long-lived in such zones; it either escapes into space, or returns to the parent body’s surface. As the orbiting matter is removed in this way, a spinning gravitating dumbbell clears its vicinities. We show that MU69 is able to create such a clearing, making itself a safe and hospitable target for a space mission. Therefore, the guest probe is expected to be safe on arrival.
Planet-disk interactions in HD 169142? Tracing ellipticity, structures, and offsets
Authors: Bertrang Gesa H.-M. , Avenhaus Henning
Published: January 2020

In Bertrang et al. (2018), we present new data of the protoplanetary disk surrounding the Herbig Ae/Be star HD 169142 obtained in the very broad-band (VBB) with the Zurich imaging polarimeter (ZIMPOL), a subsystem of the Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet REsearch instrument (SPHERE) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT). Our Polarimetric Differential Imaging (PDI) observations probe the disk as close as 0.″3 (3.5au) to the star and are able to trace the disk out to ~1.″08 (~126 au). We find an inner hole, a bright ring bearing substructures around ~0.″18 (21au), and an elliptically shaped gap stretching from 0.″25 to 0.″47 (29–55 au). Outside of 0.″47, the surface brightness drops off, discontinued only by a narrow annular brightness minimum at ~0.″63–0.″74 (74–87 au). These observations confirm features found in less-well resolved data as well as reveal yet undetected indications for planet-disk interactions, such as small-scale structures, star-disk offsets, and potentially moving shadows.