bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On the nonlinear electrodynamics in a Lorentz-breaking scenario
Authors: Neres Júnior E , Felipe J C C , Baêta Scarpelli A P
Published: May 2024

In this work, we study a model in nonlinear electrodynamics in the presence of a CPT-even term that violates Lorentz symmetry. The Lorentz-breaking vector, in addition to the usual background magnetic field, produces interesting effects in the dispersion relations. The consequences on the vacuum refractive index and the group velocity are studied. Vacuum birefringence is discussed in the case the nonlinear electrodynamics is a Euler–Heisenberg model.
Impact of breath sample collection method and length of storage of breath samples in Tedlar bags on the level of selected volatiles assessed using gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (GC-IMS)
Authors: Czippelová Barbora , Nováková Slavomíra , Šarlinová Miroslava , Baranovičová Eva , Urbanová Anna , Turianiková Zuzana , Krohová Jana Čerňanová , Halašová Erika , Škovierová Henrieta
Published: May 2024

The analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled air has attracted the interest of the scientific community because it provides the possibility of monitoring physiological and metabolic processes and non-invasive diagnostics of various diseases. However, this method remains underused in clinical practice as well as in research because of the lack of standardized procedures for the collection, storage and transport of breath samples, which would guarantee good reproducibility and comparability of results. The method of sampling, as well as the storage time of the breath samples in the polymer bags used for sample storage and transport, affect the composition and concentration of VOCs present in the breath samples. The aim of our study was to compare breath samples obtained using two methods with fully disposable equipment: a Haldane sampling tube intended for direct breath collection and breath samples exhaled into a transparent Tedlar bag. The second task was to monitor the stability of selected compounds of real breath samples stored in a Tedlar bag for 6 h. Gas chromatography coupled with ion mobility spectrometry (GC-IMS) implemented in the BreathSpec® device was used to analyse exhaled breath. Our results showed a significant difference in the signal intensity of some volatiles when taking a breath sample with a Haldane tube and a Tedlar bag. Due to its endogenous origin, acetone levels were significantly higher when the Haldane tube sampler was used while elevated levels of 2-propanol and unidentified VOC (designated as VOC 3) in the Tedlar bag samples likely originated from contamination of the Tedlar bags. The VOC stability study revealed compound-specific signal intensity changes of the selected VOCs with storage time in the Tedlar bags, with some volatiles showing increasing signal intensity during storage in Tedlar bags. This limits the use of Tedlar bags only for very limited time and carefully selected purpose. Our results highlight the importance of careful design and implementation of experiments and clinical protocols to obtain relevant and reliable results.
Analysis of Water Conservation Priority Locations in Upper Sub Watershed
Authors: Anggraini E , Yuliastuti N , Budihardjo M A
Published: May 2024

Water is useful for supplying household, industrial, and agricultural needs. The availability of water supports food security and decent life. The process of sustaining water resources requires conservation, which is in line with sustainable development goals. The Keyang sub watershed is one of the catchment areas of the Upstream Madiun River, located in East Java. The development of agriculture land in Keyang sub watershed increases the number of disasters. The Central Statistics Office of Ponorogo Regency recorded 24 floods, 11 drought disasters, and 42 landslides in Keyang sub watershed during 2020. Floods and drought disasters in the same location show strong fluctuations in water resources, so Keyang sub watershed requires water conservation actions. The aim of this study is to analyze priority locations for water conservation. Indicateurs de Ruissellement Intense Pluvial (IRIP) is a method for determining water conservation priority locations. IRIP divides surface runoff vulnerability area into three types: generation area, transfer area, and accumulation area. Each area requires different adaptations to conservation techniques. The result shows that Keyang sub watershed has 4.96% strong potential surface runoff generation area. This priority area is suitable for wetland development, agroforestry, and sustainable agriculture. Then, Keyang sub watershed has 0.03% strong potential area of surface runoff transfer, this area is compatible with prevention of erosion and landslides. Keyang sub watershed has 0.63% very strong potential and 18.42% strong potential for surface runoff accumulation area. Accumulation area appropriate for developing flood mitigation strategies.
A design framework for Food Small Medium Enterprises resilience and performance in Indonesia
Authors: Dewi Heptari Elita , Muhaimin Abdul Wahib , Setiawan Budi , Maulidah Silvana
Published: May 2024

For small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Indonesia, the post-pandemic economic challenges are particularly severe, even with the numerous government initiatives that have been put into place over the last two years. Most SMEs, including food SMEs, are finding it difficult to overcome the health crisis and the uncertainty of impending economic difficulties. While food SME players must concentrate on their business performance—both financial and non-financial, such as environmental performance—in order to survive and endure in the competitive landscape. The aim of this paper is to identify resilience factors and performance measurement for food SMEs in Indonesia that are facing economic challenges. Using a literature review, this paper recommends a framework that integrates food SME resilience factors with business market challenges identified in Indonesia as drivers of food SMEs performance. Additionally, this paper offers researchers and policy makers a framework for creating plans that will increase the performance and resilience of food SMEs. This research implies that in order to improve food SMEs performance, actors must work together and in concert.
The Impact of Product Quality on Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty toward Hydroponic Vegetables in Padang City: Gender as Moderation Variable
Authors: Raesi Syahyana , Paloma Cindy , Yusmarni
Published: May 2024

Hydroponics can be an innovative and sustainable agricultural food system method that offers potential solutions to some of the challenges posed by climate change. The purpose of this study is to examine how product quality and consumer satisfaction on consumer loyalty to hydroponic vegetables in Padang City, West Sumatra. Gender is also considered a moderating variable in customer loyalty. Between May and June 2023, data was collected from 100 hydroponic vegetable consumers in Padang City using the accidental sampling method and were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) with SMART PLS 3.3 software. The results revealed a positive and significant correlation between the quality of hydroponic products, consumer satisfaction, and consumer loyalty. Consumer satisfaction was found to be positively and significantly related to consumer loyalty. However, genders moderating effect on consumer loyalty was found to be positive but insignificant. The findings hold practical implications for stakeholders, especially hydroponic producers and marketers. They underline the pivotal role of product quality, necessitating careful attention to aspects like freshness, cleanliness, and durability prior to market entry. Policymakers and marketers can promote hydroponic vegetables as a gender-neutral, healthy, and sustainable food option. The universality of vegetable needs makes vegetables attractive to a wide range of consumers to support food system sustainability.
Peatland Forest Fire Mitigation Policies: Impact on Traditional Farmer’s Food Security and Environmental Improvement
Authors: Ekawati S , Siburian R , Yanarita  , Surati  , Nurlia A , Sundary L V
Published: May 2024

Indonesia is one of the countries with the most vulnerable food security to the effects of climate change. Peatlands have a considerable potential for crop production, but they must be managed carefully. The government issued a regulation restricting burning the land for farming preparation in response to forest and land fires on peatlands. Unfortunately, traditional farmers lost their food security due to that policy. This research aims to: i) analyze farmers’ food security and its impact on improving the environment after the policy banning burning in land preparation. Data was collected through interviews, field observations, and focus group discussions. The acquired data is analyzed qualitatively and descriptively. According to the study’s findings, their land no longer supports farmer’s food availability, and they must pursue new livelihoods to afford to buy their daily needs from the nearest market. Food utilization is still superficial. Farmers’s food stability is extremely fragile due to the impact of policies, pest invasions, droughts, and floods. Although the policy bans burning in land preparation causes farmers to lose their self-sufficient food security, it has improved peatland ecosystems. The government must strengthen community empowerment programs to restore farmers’ food security.
The Role of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) In Overcoming Deforestation In Central Kalimantan 2017-2020
Authors: Susilowati Ida , Sholeh Mohamad , Yunus Nur Rohim , Ainaya Dinah Alifia
Published: May 2024

Climate change is a global environmental problem, one of the causes of which is deforestation. As the second largest province in Indonesia, with forest area reaching 50% of the total area, Central Kalimantan has a vital role in environmental problems and deforestation. Government policies that convert forests into non-forest areas increase the rate of deforestation and increase global emissions. Deforestation is a worldwide problem that requires joint attention in handling, especially for the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) as the international environmental regime. This research is a type of qualitative research that uses analytical descriptive methods to describe the phenomenon of deforestation in Central Kalimantan and UNEP’s role in overcoming it. Library study techniques are used to collect research data in documents, which are compiled, analyzed, and concluded. UNEP’s role in realizing SDG 13 is examined using an international regime approach through global diplomacy. The research results show that UNEP, as an international regime, plays a vital role in making global regulations regarding handling climate change from the deforestation sector through REDD+. In its implementation, UNEP assisted Indonesia in implementing REDD+ in Central Kalimantan and acted as a catalyst, facilitator, advocate, and educator on the issue of deforestation in Central Kalimantan in 2017-2020. This research is essential to show the urgency of the multi-stakeholder role in global diplomacy in dealing with climate change.
Are our lands getting wetter or drier? A perspective from Climate scenario data in Upper Brantas
Authors: Wiwoho Bagus Setiabudi , Astuti Ike Sari , Bachri Syamsul , Azhar Rifqi Anshori , Herlambang Gilang Aulia , Dargusch Paul
Published: May 2024

Changes in rainfall are considered influential for sustaining the land resources in tropical agriculture. Many areas in East Java are classified as top priorities in adaptation and mitigation programs, especially in the agricultural and water resources sectors. Climate change impacts have been documented through global-scale General Circular Models (GCM). This study examined the future estimated climate generated from the CMIP5 model of the globe’s climate of four greenhouse gas scenarios in the Brantas Hulu watershed and studied the consequences for the agricultural climate suitability. The study exploited the 18 climate calculation models at the regional level by focusing on RCP 4.5, the development scenario considered in Indonesia’s climate action. During the 2000-2099 predictions, temperature and precipitation increased in all models. If this increase continues to be experienced without efforts for proper mitigation and adaptation plans, the disruption in agricultural products might pose a major consequence for food security.
Understanding Farmers Perception of Climate Change to Prepare Adaptation of Farmers
Authors: Aisyah I , Darwanto D H , Masyhuri  , Utami A W
Published: May 2024

The impact of climate change has resulted in a decline in agricultural productivity. This study estimated farmers’ perceptions of climate change by comparing Imogiri Sub-district represent highland area and Pundong Sub-district deputize lowland area farmers in Bantul Regency. This study collected data using questionnaires to 79 respondents then analysis by likerts scale and descriptive statistical. The results showed that there six indicators of climate change became farmers’ perceptions. The farmers perception on highland regarding climate change is that 54% of farmers feel a decrease in rainfall, 54% feel drought, 55.2% feel a longer dry season, 60.8% feel reduced water sources, 74.4% feel a decrease in crop quality and 73.2% feel a decrease in crop quantity. At the same time, the perception of farmers in the lowland area regarding climate change is 66.9% of farmers feel a decrease in rainfall, 68.28% feel drought, 71.03% feel a longer dry season, 68.28% feel reduced water sources, 77.93% feel a decrease in crop quality and 77.93% feel a decrease in crop quantity. The importance of farmers’ perceptions of climate change may be used to adaptation from climate change. Understanding farmers’ perceptions can aid the impact of climate change on agricultural productivity.
Estimating the natural gas compressibility factor using a statistical correlations and machine learning approaches
Authors: Tran Tam Nguyen Thien , Quang Do Khanh , Hoang Quang Trong , Hai Le Nam Nguyen , Nguyen Trong Van
Published: May 2024

Gas compressibility factor plays an critical role in petroleum engineering applications such as gas metering, pipeline design, reserve estimation, gas flow rate, material balance calculations, and many other significant tasks. Therefore, it is crucial to accurately estimate the gas compressibility factor. There have been a lot of studies on calculating the gas compressibility factor from laboratory data, which can be summarized into two main approaches: statistical correlations and machine learning algorithms. In this study, on statistical correlations the authors implement explicit and implicit method while on machine learning algorithms, we use Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Least-Squares Support Vector Machine (LS-SVM). The data was collected from open literature. Implementing the two approaches mentioned above and comparing statistical parameters such as Mean Squared Error (MSE), Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), and Coefficient of Determination (R2
) found that machine learning algorithms give much more accurate estimation results than statistical correlations, and besides, the ANN algorithm has the most accurate prediction results with the lowest MSE and RMSE (0.000002 and 0.0016) and the highest R2
(0.9999). The high-precision calculation results show that the ANN algorithm mentioned above can be applied to estimate other real gas compressibility factor data sets. On the other hand, this study can be extended to another subset of machine learning algorithms, such as deep learning and ensemble learning.
Epoxidation of mixture of waste cooking oil and soybean oil with different compositions
Authors: Phan Hong Phuong , Le My Nhan , Khau Hoang Thien Han
Published: May 2024

Epoxidation of soybean oil (SO) blended with waste cooking oil (WCO) of different mass ratio (90:10, 80:20, 70:30, 60:40 and 50:50) was carried out at reaction temperature of 65 °C and reaction time of 7 h. Physicochemical properties of the reagent and product such as viscosity at 40 °C and 100 °C, viscosity index, iodine index as well as FT-IR spectral analysis are studied to investigate the effect of the mixing ratio of SO and WCO on C=C conversion and physical properties of epoxidized product. The experiment results showed that conversion of C=C in the feed oil of different blending ratio through epoxidation at 65 °C and 7 h could reach high value (almost 98 %) with corresponding Iodine Value of all products of nearly 2. The viscosity of epoxidized oil at both 40 °C and 100 °C increased remarkably compared to the values of soybean oil while viscosity index decreased. However, the VI of epoxidized products are in the range of requirement for lubricating oil. Among all samples studied, the mixture of SO and WCO of 90:10 (mass ratio) had the best lubricating properties, with the highest viscosity at both 40 °C and 100 °C (138.22 and 18.50 cSt) and viscosity index (151).
Determination of formaldehyde in indoor air by active and passive sampling methods
Authors: Huynh Thanh-Binh , Dang-Bao Trung , Tran Thi-Kieu-Anh
Published: May 2024

Formaldehyde (HCHO), the simplest molecule of the aldehyde group, is a toxic gas commonly found in indoor air. Many analysis methods have been developed to determine concentrations of formaldehyde in air, including sampling methods (active sampling and passive sampling), analytical methods (spectrophotometry, chromatography), and sensors. In general, the active sampling method is the standard and widely used method, and the passive sampling method is relatively simple, low-cost, and easy to implement. Gas sensing, meanwhile, is a quick detection method and has a lot of research potential. The purpose of this article is to compare analytical methods of formaldehyde in air and to summarize their advantages and disadvantages. This paper also focuses on HCHO passive samplers (the principle of operation, sampler geometries (tube, badge), validation experiments in the laboratory, and their applications in the determination of HCHO in personal/indoor air.
Biological Activities of Crude Extracts of Some Plant Leaves Cultivated in Vinh Long, Vietnam
Authors: Nguyen Thanh Luan , Khoi Tu Thanh , Thi Hai Ha Pham
Published: May 2024

This study carried on assessing the in vitro bioactivities of leaf extracts from five plants collected in Vinh Long Province, Vietnam, including extraction yield, antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer activities. Five crude leaf extracts were obtained by maceration with ethanol. The antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer activities of five extracts were evaluated separately. The results showed that the leaf extraction yields of Vitex negundo, Acrostichum aureum L., Vitex rotundifolia, Bouea macrophylla Griff, and the highest Jasminum subtriplinerve, respectively, were 1.32%, 1.4%, 1.54%, 1.72%, and 2.95%. The leaf extract of B. macrophylla Griff (BLE) had the highest antioxidant capacity, with an IC50 of 6.4 ± 0.08 μg/ml. Except for A. aureum L. and J. subtriplinerve, the other leaf extracts exhibited antibacterial properties against two Gram-positive bacteria and two Gram-negative bacteria. Notably, BLE demonstrated the maximum antibacterial activity against Listeria monocytogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, with inhibition zones ranging from 15 to 16 mm and a MIC of 12.5 µg/ml. Accordingly, BLE was chosen to test for anticancer potential because its activities seemed to be greater than those of the other extracts. Especially, BLE suppressed the proliferation of HepG2 liver cancer cells with an IC50 of 72.33 ± 0.68 μg/ml. In addition, the phenotype of BLE-stimulated HepG2 cell death was typical of apoptotic cell death by analyzing the morphology and DNA fragmentation assay. Overall, the results indicated that five leaf extracts, particularly BLE, were efficient against all tested bacteria and effectively depressed the viability of HepG2 cancer cells. Furthermore, this study’s findings provide foundations for future research into the mechanisms behind these antibacterial and anticancer capabilities, as well as the knowledge of specific treatment pathways.
Antimicrobial activity of some plant extracts against Kosakonia sacchari causing diseases on a Vietnamese climbing perch (Anabas testudineus)
Authors: Tran Kien Cuong , Thuan Doan Van , Nguyen Thanh Luan
Published: May 2024

The aquaculture of the climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) is presently focused on growth; however, pathogenic infections are an urgent threat, and multi-drug resistant bacteria may transfer and cause disease in other species. Due to its antimicrobial action and growth stimulant, herb medicine has been widely employed as feed additives in environmentally friendly strategies. This study was to investigate the in vitro and in vivo activity of EtOH 96% leaf extracts obtained from five plants including Anacardium occidentale (Ex1), Vitex negundo (Ex2), Vitex rotundifolia (Ex3), Acrostichum aureum L (Ex4), and Jasminum subtriplinerve Blume (Ex5). Using disk diffusion method, the Ex1 exhibited higher antibacterial effect than the other four plant extracts with a concentration of MIC at 12.5 µg/ml. Survival ratio was higher in fish challenged with selected virulence Kosakonia sacchari and then medicated by feed-supplemented with plant extract Ex1 compared to those in non-medicated group. In particular, EX1 help to protect fish from ammonia toxins with survival rates remain at 82%. In addition, supplementation with Ex1 also helped increase the weight gain of fish in each treatment respectively for each fish reach as 1.33 ± 0.07, 0.93 ± 0.03 and 1.35 ± 0.05 g. For efficacy protection of herb medicine. In conclusion, natural herb plant supplement to fish feed will have the potential to replace antibiotics in prophylaxis and be material for enhancing stress tolerant as well as growth promoter. Future study needs to conduct the protection efficacy in pilot scale of aquaculture.
Study of weight loss induction activity of Camellia sinensis, Cynara scolymus, and Coffea robusta
Authors: Thanh Nga Phan Thi , Hoang Dung M
Published: May 2024

This research reports on the effectiveness of herbal infusions (Camellia sinensis, Cynara scolymus, and Coffea robusta) in promoting weight loss in mice. Amongst the infusions, Coffea robusta showed significant weight loss induction in a high-fat diet mouse model (up to 28.11% weight loss). The study also evaluated the total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of the infusions. Camellia sinensis infusions exhibited the highest total polyphenol values (69.53 ± 0.5 mgGAE/g). Furthermore, this infusion demonstrated impressive antioxidant activity with an IC50 value of 24.45 ± 0.98 μg/mL.
Potential in enhancement of salinity tolerance to crops in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta using endophytes: A review
Authors: Huynh Thu
Published: May 2024

Mekong Delta is the most important agricultural area of Vietnam. In the backdrop of recent climate change, the salinisation in soil is threatening crop plants causing serious damages such as yield loss as well as inhibition of crop quality and productivity in the region. Under salinisation conditions, plant growth and development have to experience negative effects to adverse conditions. The high concentration of Na+ ions in plants hampers water and nutrient uptakes, inhibits pathway of photosynthesis, and changes physiological and molecular mechanisms causing intracellular osmotic and ionic stress. Hence, salinisation in the Mekong Delta area is among key challenges affecting national crop productivity and food security.

This review describes the plant-endophyte interaction associated with saline tolerance and the performance of endophytes in plants under saline stress. Endophytes are within living healthy plants, play an important role in plant growth promotion and enhance the stress-tolerating ability in host plant without obvious negative effects. Halotolerant plants owning beneficially endophytic community are revealed as a microbial biotechnology tool to alleviate saline stress. Accordingly, endophytes within plants can overcome saline stress via multiple mechanisms such as accumulating and synthesizing organic osmolytes, activating the antioxidant defense system and phytohormonal profiles, stimulating the lipidic layer of Gram-negative bacteria and bacterial consortium interactions, regulating key transcripts for saline tolerance, and other unclear mechanisms. The symbiotic plant-endophyte interactions have been considered as a promising mechanism for saline tolerance in numerous recent studies. Therefore, unraveling the mechanisms of saline-tolerating ability using plant-endophyte interactions could provide valuable strategies to improve crop yields. The management of saline stress using endophytic strategies has been promised as a great approach to sustainable agriculture in the Mekong Delta area.
Drying method-affected polyphenolic contents: a microwave-assisted extraction from Cayratia trifolia L. berry
Authors: Nguyen-Doan Minh-Anh , Huynh Thanh-Binh , Tu Quang-Dong , Nguyen Minh-Tam K. , Do Thi-An-Sa , Lam Hoa-Hung , Dang-Bao Trung
Published: May 2024

This work discovered the influence of pretreatment methods (thermal drying and lyophilization (freeze-drying)) on the total phenolic content (TPC), the total flavonoid content (TFC), and the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) antioxidant activity of the berry extract of Cayratia trifolia L. of Ca Mau origin (Vietnam). With the assistance of microwave, the freeze-drying method showed higher TPC (9.68 ± 0.31 mg GAE/g), TFC (7.14 ± 0.51 mg QE/g), and DPPH scavenging activity (IC50 of 24.96 ± 0.89 μg/mL) than those of thermal drying method, under the optimal conditions (an extraction time of 60 s, an ethanol concentration of 60% (%v/v), and a ratio of raw material-to-solvent of 1/500 g/mL).
Syzygium nervosum extraction and potent bioactivities
Authors: Lan Thao Phan Ngoc , Tran Thanh Truc
Published: May 2024

Syzygium nervosum leaves have been used in life the Vietnamese regularly as a beverage. S. nervosum leaves were extracted by ultrasonic - assisted extraction method, with the ratio of ingredients: ethanol 99 % = 1 : 30 (w/v), in 30 minutes, at 50 °C, then sonicated for 5 minutes at an ultrasonic frequency of 20 kHz. The result of the content of total polyphenol and total flavonoid was: 67.55 ± 2.28 mg/g and 93.78 ± 6.04 mg/g, respectively. The extraction showed the following results of bioactivities: α - glucosidase enzyme inhibition, IC50 = 0.60 ± 0.11 µg/mL, free radical resistance, IC50 = 14.50 ± 0.71 µg/mL, cholesterol resistance, IC20 = 166.38 µg/mL and anti - inflammatory, IC50 = 351.95 ± 1.98 μg/mL. Our analysis showed potential bioactivities on diabetes, support digestion and inflammatory diseases of Syzygium nervosum leaves in Vietnam.
All-dielectric hybrid VIS-NIR dual-function metaoptic
Authors: Xiong Pei , Nikolov Daniel K , Cheng Fei , Rolland Jannick P , Vamivakas A N
Published: May 2024

Metasurfaces are a promising technology that can serve as a compact alternative to conventional optics while providing multiple functions depending on the properties of the incident light, such as the wavelength, polarization, and incident angle. Here, we demonstrate a hybrid visible/near-infrared dielectric metaoptic capable of reflecting 940 nm light in a specified direction while allowing transmission of visible light (450–750 nm). This dual functionality is achieved by combining an aperiodic distributed Bragg reflector with dielectric meta-atoms. Experimental demonstration is also reported, showing an anomalous reflection of near-infrared light within a 20° full field-of-view and the transmission of wavelengths from 450 nm to 750 nm.
Adaptive multi-spectral mimicking with 2D-material nanoresonator networks
Authors: Luo Yujie , Christensen Thomas , Ilic Ognjen
Published: May 2024

Active nanophotonic materials that can emulate and adapt between many different spectral profiles—with high fidelity and over a broad bandwidth—could have a far-reaching impact, but are challenging to design due to a high-dimensional and complex design space. Here, we show that a metamaterial network of coupled 2D-material nanoresonators in graphene can adaptively match multiple complex absorption spectra via a set of input voltages. To design such networks, we develop a semi-analytical auto-differentiable dipole-coupled model that allows scalable optimization of high-dimensional networks with many elements and voltage signals. As a demonstration of multi-spectral capability, we design a single network capable of mimicking four spectral targets resembling select gases (nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide) with very high fidelity (

>

90
%

). Our results could impact the design of highly reconfigurable optical materials and platforms for applications in sensing, communication and display technology, and signature and thermal management.
The African Intellectual Property Organization
Authors: Schneider Marius , Ho Tu Nam Nora
Published: May 2024

This chapter explores the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), which is one of the two main regional intellectual property organizations in Africa. Membership to the OAPI is open to all African states who become party to the Agreement of Bangui. First created in September 1962, the OAPI is a unitary system for the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights. All member states apply a uniform law, the Bangui Agreement and its ten annexes. The chapter explains how geographical indications (GIs) can be registered and enforced in the OAPI either through the sui generis system or as collective marks or certification marks. The sui generis protection of GIs has been possible at the OAPI since 1977 as appellations of origin inspired by the definition in the Lisbon Agreement and as GIs since 1999.
Botswana
Authors: Schneider Marius , Ho Tu Nam Nora
Published: May 2024

This chapter talks about Botswana, which is located in Southern Africa. Botswana is a member of the World Trade Organization and a party to the Banjul Protocol on marks in the framework of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO). GIs are protected in Botswana via a sui generis system under the Industrial Property Act No 8 of 2010 (IPA), which came into force on 31 August 2012. It is further possible under the IPA to register a collective mark, although some GIs may be excluded from registration due to restrictions under the IPA. This chapter looks at the registrability of names, the procedure and requirements for registration of GIs and collective marks, the term of protection, the rights of the owner against infringers and customs enforcement. The chapter ends by looking at whether Botswana is party to any bilateral agreements touching on GIs.
Kenya
Authors: Schneider Marius , Ho Tu Nam Nora
Published: May 2024

This chapter focuses on Kenya, which is found in East Africa. Kenya has been a party to the Madrid Agreement Concerning International Registration of Marks, and the Protocol relating to that Agreement since 1998. Kenya is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Although there has been various attempts to introduce geographical indications (GIs) in Kenyan law, there is no specific legislation regarding GIs currently in force in Kenya. Collective and certification marks are however available to both foreign and domestic applicants. This chapter discusses the registration of certification and collective marks, the registrability of names, the procedure and requirements for registration, the term of protection , the rights of the owner against infringers, enforcement by the Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA) and customs enforcement. The chapter ends by looking at whether there are any bilateral agreements regarding GIs to which Kenya is a party.
Mauritius
Authors: Schneider Marius , Ho Tu Nam Nora
Published: May 2024

This chapter discusses the island nation of Mauritius, found in the Indian Ocean. Mauritius is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and must implement the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). The chapter explains how geographical indications (GIs) can be registered and enforced in Mauritius either through a sui generis system or as collective marks or certification marks. The sui generis registration of GIs is possible since 31 January 2022 after the coming into force of the Industrial Property Act. The chapter outlines the registration of GIs, certification and collective marks, the registrability of names, the procedure and requirements for registration, the term of protection, the rights of the owner against infringers and customs enforcement. The chapter ends by looking at whether there are any bilateral agreements regarding GIs to which Mauritius is a party.
Informed by Microbes
Authors: Armstrong Rachel
Published: May 2024

This chapter explores an alternative framework for human settlement by harnessing the environmental knowledge of microbes and advanced biotechnologies. It discusses the principles and practices underlying this platform’s development, with radical implications for design practice and its pedagogies by focusing on microbial cities, or biofilms, to address the environmental challenges of the Anthropocene era. Biofilms, formed by diverse communities of microbes, have played a crucial role in shaping the biosphere for billions of years, whose complex organisational principles resemble human settlements and engage in cooperative behaviours to enhance collective resilience. By studying and collaborating with microbes, humans can establish new forms of infrastructure and cohabitation that promote ecological collaboration and sustainability. Central to actualising this microbial framework is the bio-digital platform, where electroactive bacteria and artificial intelligence interface, exchanging electrons produced from metabolising organic waste. This convergence of organism, information, and machine offers transformative possibilities for cities.
Contestation: Challenges to the Absolute Prohibition of Torture
Authors: Oette Lutz
Published: May 2024

Chapter 1 sets out the genesis of and rationale for the absolute prohibition of torture before examining challenges to it in their wider historical, colonial, and imperial context. It analyses how the portrayal of torture as a ‘barbaric’ practice and the rationale for its prohibition in international law informed subsequent challenges. Focusing on France (Algeria), the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland), Israel (Palestinians), and the United States of America (counter-terrorism) as key case studies, it shows how states employed legal stratagems to narrow the prohibition’s application and necessity arguments, which were discursively underpinned by the ticking bomb scenario, to justify the use of torture while portraying themselves as ‘civilized’, ‘rational’, and ‘humane’. The discussion surrounding the case of Gäfgen v Germany where the police threatened a suspected kidnapper with torture in their attempt to rescue a kidnapped child illustrates doctrinal challenges to the absolute prohibition in exceptional circumstances beyond the counter-terrorism context. The chapter concludes by highlighting the ambivalent consequences of the ‘war on terror’ for the prohibition, resulting in both problematic legal grey areas and multiple initiatives, including a focus on effective interviewing as a means to reduce recourse to coercive interrogation techniques.
Diversity: Discriminatory Torture and Other Ill-treatment
Authors: Oette Lutz
Published: May 2024

The chapter examines the relationship between discrimination and torture and other ill-treatment. It focuses particularly on the interpretation of discriminatory torture, a notion that had long been neglected in international human rights law. A review of developments in four key areas in the field of non-discrimination, namely gender, including gender identity and sexual orientation, ‘race’, disability, and age (children) provides evidence of an increasingly rich yet fragmented and partial jurisprudence and treaty body practice. It also shows the ambivalent role of international law in legitimizing problematic practices. Based on this review, the chapter sets out its interpretation of the elements of discriminatory torture, which focuses on all grounds of discrimination, including intersectional discrimination and neglected characteristics such as poverty, and identifies indicators that demonstrate discriminatory purpose. It makes a case for discriminatory torture and other ill-treatment to become an integral part of the contextual interpretation of the prohibition that is embedded in a broader transformative agenda which, by seeking to bring about equality, addresses the structural causes underpinning persistent torture practices.
Expansion: Widespread and Systemic Suffering and the Future of the Prohibition
Authors: Oette Lutz
Published: May 2024

The chapter explores the future evolution of the prohibition. It examines the conceptual and doctrinal challenges posed by newly emerging methods of torture, namely less-lethal and autonomous weapons and digital torture as well as structural conditions, focusing on health, poverty, and environmental damage. Powerful and sophisticated weapons foster arsenals of repression, aggravate the impact of measures taken in the crowd-control context, and proliferate, in the absence of effective regulation, with the result of increasingly militarized law enforcement. Digital torture denotes a space for and mode of various forms of ill-treatment, which has distinctive features in terms of how its nature, impact, perpetrators, and setting inform the interpretation of the prohibition and states’ obligations. Structural conditions have traditionally not been viewed through the lens of the prohibition. As the chapter demonstrates, however, the prohibition can play a vital role in linking widespread, systemic human suffering to state indifference and highlighting how states contribute to such suffering through systemic policy failures. The application of the prohibition in fields that typically fall within the purview of economic, social and cultural rights or other rights provides a critical complementary dimension, with its focus on what action states must take to protect human dignity in such contexts.
Dancing to the Goldberg Variations
Authors: Knyt Erinn E
Published: May 2024

Since William Dollar’s Air and Variations in 1937, there have been at least nineteen additional choreographed versions of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, including an iconic classic by Jerome Robbins (1971). With dance styles ranging from tap dance, to modern dance, to classical ballet, Bach’s work, which was inspired by dance, has become a regularly choreographed work. Although many choreographers have shown reverence toward the Goldberg Variations and have viewed the dance movements as visual representations of Bach’s musical architecture, since the late 1990s, there has been more openness to the deconstruction and reorganization of the piece according to the conception of the choreographer and interpreter, through narrative and conceptual interpolations, through musical deconstruction and fragmentation, and through physical movements that go against the rhythms and themes in Bach’s composition. These trends coincide with the more open approach to the work concept described in the previous chapters.
Coda
Authors: Knyt Erinn E
Published: May 2024

The Coda summarizes main points from the book and also examines the continued dissemination of the Goldberg Variations in the twenty-first century, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. It documents the use of the piece in relation to postmodern media, such as video games and TikTok. It also documents literary, architectural, and artistic adaptations of the piece. Finally, it ties the topic to broader discourse about Bach reception, the work concept, and performance practice in general through a comparison to adaptations of Bach’s Concerto after the Italian Taste, BWV 971, and his passions. Once viewed as an object, Bach’s works are now becoming fluid ephemera that span generations and centuries. Bach and his music are made anew in the image of the present, in which the past lives on, transformed.
Isolated court determinations on the admissibility of arbitration: a case study of the German Federal Court of Justice’s recent decision on intra-EU ICSID proceedings
Authors: Steinbrück Ben , Krahé Justin Friedrich
Published: May 2024

The German Federal Court of Justice recently confirmed that German courts can issue declarations—with binding effect for the German legal order—finding intra-EU ICSID arbitration inadmissible. While this further step in the post-Achmea dismantling of the EU investment protection system is an important, if unsurprising, development for investment protection lawyers, the procedural mechanism used, section 1032(2) of the German Civil Procedural Code (Zivilprozessordnung—ZPO), is relevant to all forms of arbitration and is available as soon as one party is seated or even just has assets in Germany. This article provides an overview of the German mechanism for isolated determination of the admissibility of arbitration. It uses the recent Federal Court of Justice decision as a model example where such an early determination allows for significant costs savings, explores the functioning of the relevant statutory provision, and highlights situations in which this may be an appropriate means of determining the admissibility of arbitration while limiting costs exposure.
Relative telencephalon size does not affect collective motion in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)
Authors: Boussard Annika , Ahlkvist Mikaela , Corral-López Alberto , Fong Stephanie , Fitzpatrick John , Kolm Niclas
Published: May 2024

Collective motion is common across all animal taxa, from swarming insects to schools of fish. The collective motion requires intricate behavioral integration among individuals, yet little is known about how evolutionary changes in brain morphology influence the ability for individuals to coordinate behavior in groups. In this study, we utilized guppies that were selectively bred for relative telencephalon size, an aspect of brain morphology that is normally associated with advanced cognitive functions, to examine its role in collective motion using an open-field assay. We analyzed high-resolution tracking data of same-sex shoals consisting of 8 individuals to assess different aspects of collective motion, such as alignment, attraction to nearby shoal members, and swimming speed. Our findings indicate that variation in collective motion in guppy shoals might not be strongly affected by variation in relative telencephalon size. Our study suggests that group dynamics in collectively moving animals are likely not driven by advanced cognitive functions but rather by fundamental cognitive processes stemming from relatively simple rules among neighboring individuals.
Deep learning in structural bioinformatics: current applications and future perspectives
Authors: Kumar Niranjan , Srivastava Rakesh
Published: May 2024

In this review article, we explore the transformative impact of deep learning (DL) on structural bioinformatics, emphasizing its pivotal role in a scientific revolution driven by extensive data, accessible toolkits and robust computing resources. As big data continue to advance, DL is poised to become an integral component in healthcare and biology, revolutionizing analytical processes. Our comprehensive review provides detailed insights into DL, featuring specific demonstrations of its notable applications in bioinformatics. We address challenges tailored for DL, spotlight recent successes in structural bioinformatics and present a clear exposition of DL—from basic shallow neural networks to advanced models such as convolution, recurrent, artificial and transformer neural networks. This paper discusses the emerging use of DL for understanding biomolecular structures, anticipating ongoing developments and applications in the realm of structural bioinformatics.
SpatialCells: automated profiling of tumor microenvironments with spatially resolved multiplexed single-cell data
Authors: Wan Guihong , Maliga Zoltan , Yan Boshen , Vallius Tuulia , Shi Yingxiao , Khattab Sara , Chang Crystal , Nirmal Ajit J , Yu Kun-Hsing , Liu David , Lian Christine G , DeSimone Mia S , Sorger Peter K , Semenov Yevgeniy R
Published: May 2024

Cancer is a complex cellular ecosystem where malignant cells coexist and interact with immune, stromal and other cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Recent technological advancements in spatially resolved multiplexed imaging at single-cell resolution have led to the generation of large-scale and high-dimensional datasets from biological specimens. This underscores the necessity for automated methodologies that can effectively characterize molecular, cellular and spatial properties of TMEs for various malignancies. This study introduces SpatialCells, an open-source software package designed for region-based exploratory analysis and comprehensive characterization of TMEs using multiplexed single-cell data. The source code and tutorials are available at https://semenovlab.github.io/SpatialCells. SpatialCells efficiently streamlines the automated extraction of features from multiplexed single-cell data and can process samples containing millions of cells. Thus, SpatialCells facilitates subsequent association analyses and machine learning predictions, making it an essential tool in advancing our understanding of tumor growth, invasion and metastasis.
Genotypic–phenotypic landscape computation based on first principle and deep learning
Authors: Liu Yuexing , Luo Yao , Lu Xin , Gao Hao , He Ruikun , Zhang Xin , Zhang Xuguang , Li Yixue
Published: May 2024

The relationship between genotype and fitness is fundamental to evolution, but quantitatively mapping genotypes to fitness has remained challenging. We propose the Phenotypic-Embedding theorem (P-E theorem) that bridges genotype–phenotype through an encoder–decoder deep learning framework. Inspired by this, we proposed a more general first principle for correlating genotype–phenotype, and the P-E theorem provides a computable basis for the application of first principle. As an application example of the P-E theorem, we developed the Co-attention based Transformer model to bridge Genotype and Fitness model, a Transformer-based pre-train foundation model with downstream supervised fine-tuning that can accurately simulate the neutral evolution of viruses and predict immune escape mutations. Accordingly, following the calculation path of the P-E theorem, we accurately obtained the basic reproduction number (${R}_0$) of SARS-CoV-2 from first principles, quantitatively linked immune escape to viral fitness and plotted the genotype-fitness landscape. The theoretical system we established provides a general and interpretable method to construct genotype–phenotype landscapes, providing a new paradigm for studying theoretical and computational biology.