bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Studies on the suitability of oxidizing agents for discolouring lime and
poplar wood in the first stage of transparent wood forming process
Authors: RADOMSKI ANDRZEJ , KAŹMIERCZAK DARIA
Published: January 2020

Studies on the suitability of oxidizing agents for discolouring lime and poplar wood in the first stage
of transparent wood forming process. Series of lime and poplar wood samples were prepared and subjected to
oxidising agent in order to decolourise wood in bulk. Sodium chlorite solution in the environment of diluted
acetic acid and alkaline hydrogen peroxide solution were used as different treating agents, followed by intense
rinsing in water and drying the samples. The effect of wood delignification conditions such as time of treatment
and reagent used was investigated. Changes in mass and dimensions of the samples were measured, and thus
density changes were calculated. Colour changes were measured with colorimeter in CIE Lab colour space.
In the case of lime wood swelling of the samples was observed at the first stage, along with mass loss, leading to
density decrease by 10 % after 20 h exposure. In the case of poplar wood, shrinking of the samples was
observed, but due to severe mass loss, final density was similar to lime wood. Colour changes correlated mainly
with lightness parameter of the samples. Significant colour differences were found even at the shortest time of
treatment.
The chemical composition of poplar wood in relation to the species and age of trees
Authors: KRUTUL DONATA , ANTCZAK ANDRZEJ , KŁOSIŃSKA TERESA , DROŻDŻEK MICHAŁ , RADOMSKI ANDRZEJ , ZAWADZKI JANUSZ
Published: January 2020

The chemical composition of poplar wood in relation to the species and age of trees. The contents of the following substances: mineral substances, extractives, cellulose, lignin, holocellulose, in wood from fastgrowing poplar species (Populus deltoides x maximowiczii and Populus trichocarpa Torr and A.Gray) aged 2.5, 3, 5 and 7 years were compared to the contents of the abovementioned substances in Populus nigra L. and Populus alba L. wood, aged about 30. According to other publications, the cellulose and lignin contents increase in parallel with the tree's age. On the other hand, the comparison of cellulose content in poplar wood showed that its content did not depend from the species of tree, age and growth environment. Whereas, the content of extractives in poplar wood was dependent from the species of tree, age and growth environment. The lignin content increased slightly as a tree age, but its content in 7-year-old wood was already similar to the level to be found in the wood at the age of about 30 years. About 30-year-old wood of P. nigra and P. alba contained less holocellulose as compared to its contents in P. deltoides x maximowiczii and P. trichocarpa wood, regardless of its age.
Influence of the filler on the density profile of wood polymer composites
Authors: BORYSIUK PIOTR , AURIGA RADOSŁAW , KOŚKA PAWEŁ
Published: January 2020

Influence of the filler on the density profile of wood polymer composites. WPC panels with HDPE
matrix composites made in two stages were tested: 1 - obtaining WPC granulate using the extrusion method, 2 -
production of panels by flat pressing in the form. As a filler, sawdust was used with two degrees of fineness
(about 10 - 35 mesh and below 35 mesh) and three levels of content (40, 50 and 60%). In total, 6 panel variants
were created for which the density and density profile in the cross-section were determined. It was found that
panels with a filler content of 40% are characterized by a uniform flat density profile. The increase in filler
content (up to 50 - 60%) affects the density reduction in the core zone of the panel. The density and density
profile of panels from WPC composites does not depend on the size of the filler particles.
The effect of UV radiation in Xenotest 450 on the colour of steamed beech wood during the process of simulated ageing
Authors: DZURENDA LADISLAV
Published: January 2020

The effect of UV radiation in Xenotest 450 on the colour of steamed beech wood during the process of simulated ageing .The aim of the paper is to present the changes in colour of steamed beech wood in the pocess of simulated ageing in Xenotest 450. Red-brown colour of beech wood with the coordinates of L* = 62.6 ± 2.8; a* = 10.9 ± 2.3; b* = 17.1 ± 1.3 in the CIE L*a*b* colour space resulted from the mode of colour modification of wood with saturated vapour with the temperature of t = 120 ± 2 oC for τ = 6.5 hours. The surface of samples after drying to the moisture content of w = 12 % and planing was irradiated in Xenotest 450 with xenon gasdischarge tube by UV radiation with the wave length of 340 nm. Accelerated ageing experiment ran in exposure period A1 for seven days. Simulated ageing of thermally treated beech wood showed that due to UV radiation, the wood surface is turning pale and brown. The change in the lightness coordinate by the value of ΔL* = + 6.7 shows the rate of change in the surface lightness and the changes in the values of chromatic coordinates of red colour by the value of Δa* = - 0.1 and yellow colour by Δb* = + 12.3 shows the rate of getting brown. Therefore the hue angle increases from h*ab = 57.5 ° to h°ab = 69.8 °. The value of the total colour difference resulting from the process of ageing is ΔE* = 14.5.
Forms of Philosophical Expression
Authors: Nalewajk Żaneta , Czardybon Marcin
Published: January 2020

The article provides an overview of the forms of verbalizing philosophical ideas. It discusses the implications of employing specifi c forms of philosophical expression and addresses the problem of combining content and form. It brings to the fore the instances of originality and transgression in this realm. The article poses questions as to the lack of thorough critical analyses of the forms of philosophical expression. It uses an excerpt from Martin Heidegger’s correspondence with Hannah Arendt to exemplify the complications generated by the study of the forms of philosophical expression.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES
OF THE MACHINED SURFACE BASED ON THE TOPOGRAPHY
NON-PARAMETRIC AND PARAMETRIC DESCRIPTIONS
Authors: Niemczewska-Wójcik Magdalena , Gawłowski Grzegorz
Published: January 2020

The shaping of the functional properties of the surface of an object in a technological process plays a key role in
the later operation of this object. The paper presents the results of the tests performed on the surface topography of
objects made of a selected hard-to-machine material, i.e., titanium alloy. Two measuring devices were used in the
research, an interference microscope, and a scanning electron microscope, which enabled the comprehensive (nonparametric
and parametric) description of surface topography obtained for three different finishing parameters. It
was noted that, in addition to material properties, in the evaluation of the functional properties of a surface, it is
important to carry out not only the qualitative, but also quantitative analysis of the machined surface topography.
THE INFLUENCE OF BORON IN THE SURFACE LAYER
ON THE STRUCTURE AND THE TRIBOLOGICAL PROPERTIES
OF IRON ALLOYS
Authors: Pertek-Owsianna Aleksandra , Wiśniewska-Mleczko Karolina , Piasecki Adam
Published: January 2020

This paper presents two methods of introducing boron into the surface layer of iron alloys, namely diffusion
boronizing by means of the powder method and laser alloying with a TRUMPF TLF 2600 Turbo CO2 gas
laser. Amorphous boron was used as the chemical element source. As regards diffusion drilling, the influence
of temperature and time on the properties of the layer was tested. During the laser alloying, the influence of the
thickness of the boriding paste layer as well as the power and laser beam scanning velocity was determined. How
the carbon content in steel and alloying elements in the form of chromium and boron influence the structure of
the surface layer was tested. To achieve this object, the following grades of steel were used: C45, C90, 41Cr4,
102Cr6, and HARDOX boron steel. The microhardness and wear resistance of the obtained boron-containing
surface layers were tested. A Metaval Carl Zeiss Jena light microscope and a Tescan VEGA 5135 scanning
electron microscope, a Zwick 3212B microhardness tester, and an Amsler tribotester were used for the tests.
The structure of the diffusion- borided layer consists of the needle-like zone of FeB + Fe2B iron borides about
0.15 mm thick, with a good adhesion to the substrate of the steel subjected to hardening and tempering after
the boriding process. After the laser alloying, the structure shows paths with dimensions within: width up to
0.60 mm, depth up to 0.35 mm, containing a melted zone with a eutectic mixture of iron borides and martensite,
a heat affected zone with a martensitic-bainitic structure and a steel core. The microhardness of both diffusionborided
and laser-borided layers falls within the range of 1000 – 1900 HV0.1, depending on the parameters
of the processes. It has been shown that, apart from the structure and thickness of the layer containing boron
and microhardness, the frictional wear resistance depends on the state of the steel substrate, i.e. its chemical
composition and heat treatment. The results of testing iron alloys in the borided state were compared with those
obtained only after the heat treatment.
THE NON-NORMATIVE TESTS OF THE OPERATIONAL
SUITABILITY OF BIODEGRADABLE HYDRAULIC OILS
Authors: Rogoś Elżbieta
Published: January 2020

The paper presented the results of tests on the operational properties of industrial oils based on plants
carried out by methods not covered by subject standards. It was a method for testing the thermo-oxidative
resistance of oils using an actual hydraulic stand and a method for testing the resistance of oils to the action
of microorganisms in an aqueous environment. The results of tests on biodegradable hydraulic oil based on
a mixture of rapeseed and castor oil were presented. The usefulness of methods for assessing the operational
properties of oils was demonstrated, in particular at the stage of composition.
Terrorist Threats of Polish Diplomatic Missions in Military Areas and Their Protection
Authors: Pawlikowski Andrzej
Published: January 2020

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Evolution-based Refinement of Cross-language Ontology Alignments
Authors: Destro Juliana Medeiros , dos Reis Julio César , Torres Ricardo da S. , Ricarte Ivan
Published: January 2020

Ontology alignment plays a key role for information interconnectivity between computational systems relying on ontologies described in different natural languages. Existing approaches for ontology matching usually provide equivalent type of relation in the generated mappings. In this article, we propose a refinement technique to enable the update of the semantic type of the mapping such as “is-a”, “part-of”, etc. Our approach relies on information from the ontology evolution to apply refinement actions. We formalize the refinement actions and procedures, as well as apply the proposal in application scenarios.
SAVIME: A Database Management System for Simulation Data Analysis and Visualization
Authors: Lustosa Hermano , Porto Fábio , Valduriez Patrick
Published: January 2020

Limitations in current DBMSs prevent their wide adoption in scientific applications. In order to make scientific applications benefit from DBMS support, enabling declarative data analysis and visualization over scientific data, we present an in-memory array DBMS system called SAVIME. In this work we describe the system SAVIME, along with its data model. Our preliminary evaluation shows how SAVIME, by using a simple storage definition language (SDL) can outperform the state-of-the-art array database system, SciDB, during the process of data ingestion. We also show that is possible to use SAVIME as a storage alternative for a numerical solver without affecting its scalability.
Towards a Technique for Extracting Relational Actors from Monolithic Applications
Authors: Laigner Rodrigo , Lifschitz Sérgio , Kalinowski Marcos , Poggi Marcus , Salles Marcos Antonio Vaz
Published: January 2020

Relational actors, or reactors for short, integrate the actor model with the relational data model, providing an abstraction for enabling actor-relational database systems. However, as a novel model of computation for databases, there is no extensive work on reasoning about reactor modeling. To close this gap, this paper aims to propose as well as evaluate a technique to extract reactors from a monolithic system. For evaluation, we selected a REST-based open-source OLTP system in which a decomposition to microservices was conducted and applied our technique on its predecessor monolithic version. Our technique led to the same set of decisions, regarding table and behavior selection, taken by experts when decomposing the same system into microservices. The proposed technique can be seen as a first step towards supporting practitioners in decomposing OLTP systems into reactors.
Fake News and Brazilian politics – temporal investigation based on semantic annotations and graph analysis
Authors: Gomes Jr. Luiz , Frizzon Gabriel
Published: January 2020

The widespread use of misleading news articles has been threatening democratic processes such as elections and referendums. Understanding how fake news address social entities (e.g. personalities and institutions) and how they react to social events are important factors in the fight against the trend. This paper employs a new approach based on semantic annotations and graph analysis to study fake news articles about Brazilian politics in a two-year time span. We demonstrate how graph analysis can be used to track topic evolution and cluster related entities. A preliminary result also indicates that fake news tends to be influenced by public interest (and not the other way around).
Conformity Analysis of GTFS Routes and Bus Trajectories
Authors: Queiroz Andreza Raquel M. , Santos Veruska B. , Nascimento Dimas C. , Pires Carlos Eduardo S.
Published: January 2020

General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) is a standard data format generated by transportation agencies of most of the cities worldwide to provide scheduled data of their services. Despite being the standard in the public transportation field, applications that consume GTFS data may face two problems: outdated versions, since some transportation agencies do not provide GTFS in the same frequency that transit changes; and discrepancy with positioning data sent by the buses. This paper provides a conformity analysis of GTFS routes and bus positioning data from multiple cities. We have found inconsistencies related to GPS route labels and GTFS routes. We also classify the conformity of bus trajectories and enumerate the main inconsistencies found in data analysis.
Comunicação em bloco na exploração de grafos em bases RDF distribuídas
Authors: Santos Eduardo Villas Boas , Hara Carmem S. , Penteado Raqueline R. M.
Published: January 2020

Sistemas RDF distribuídos adotam estratégias de comunicação que trocam resultados intermediários entre servidores durante a execução distribuída de consultas. Este artigo analisa o impacto do agrupamento de resultados intermediários em blocos, com a finalidade de reduzir a quantidade de transmissões. A comunicação em blocos foi implementada em um processador de consultas SPARQL baseado em um algoritmo de exploração de grafos. Resultados experimentais mostram que esta estratégia de comunicação pode melhorar o desempenho de consultas distribuídas. Trabalhos futuros envolvem alterações no processador analisado a fim de considerar o agrupamento no cálculo do custo de comunicação do otimizador de consultas.
Achieving Differential Privacy in Smart Home Scenarios
Authors: Vidal Israel C. , Rousseau Franck , Machado Javam C.
Published: January 2020

With the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Smart Homes, there is an ever-growing amount of data coming from within people’s houses. These data are intrinsically private and should be treated carefully, despite their high value for analysis. In this work, we propose a differentially private strategy to estimate frequencies of values in the context of Smart Home data.
Análise de Hiperparâmetros em Aplicações de Aprendizado Profundo por meio de Dados de Proveniência
Authors: Pina Débora B. , Neves Liliane , Paes Aline , de Oliveira Daniel , Mattoso Marta
Published: January 2020

O treinamento das Redes Neurais Convolucionais (CNN) requer o ajuste de hiperparâmetros. As soluções existentes para auxiliar a escolha das melhores combinações de hiperparâmetros definem uma representação própria para modelar os relacionamentos de derivação dos dados. Essa representação proprietária dificulta a análise de dados e a interoperabilidade. Este artigo propõe a CNNProv, que adota o padrão W3C PROV para representar relacionamentos de derivação de dados para facilitar a análise das combinações de hiperparâmetros, contribuindo assim para a fase de treinamento das CNNs. A CNNProv captura dados de proveniência e permite a análise de valores de hiperparâmetros durante a execução. Os experimentos mostram a adequação do W3C PROV para a análise de hiperparâmetros e contribui para a qualidade e confiabilidade dos resultados de CNN, com overhead desprezível de até, no máximo, 4%.
Definindo e Predizendo Níveis de Saúde de Colônias de Abelhas via Clusterização e Classificação
Authors: Braga Antonio Rafael , Silva Daniel A. , Nobre Juvêncio S. , Freitas Breno M. , Gomes Danielo G.
Published: January 2020

As abelhas são essenciais à produção de alimentos para o ser humano e para manutenção dos ecossistemas. Esse artigo apresenta uma solução para calcular os níveis de estados de saúde de colônias de abelhas usando dados de sensores internos e externos à colônia e de inspeções in loco realizadas por apicultores. A clusterização foi usada para determinar a quantidade de níveis de saúde e a classificação para criação de um modelo de predição. Obteve-se um modelo de classificação com taxa de acerto de 99.36%.
Refinamento do Conjunto Inicial de Resultados baseado em Contexto para Recuperação Interativa de Imagens
Authors: Dourado Filho Luciano Araujo , Calumby Rodrigo Tripodi
Published: January 2020

Este trabalho propõe a exploração de informações contextuais para refinamento do conjunto inicial de resultados em sistemas de recuperação interativa de imagens. Este método baseado em contexto difere das abordagens tradicionais, pois considera a rica informação presente nas relações entre múltiplas imagens, ao invés de realizar o cômputo de similaridade apenas entre pares de imagens. Neste trabalho, realizou-se uma avaliação experimental da eficácia desta técnica em diferentes cenários de busca na Web. Os resultados mostraram que o método avaliado foi capaz aprimorar significativamente a eficácia da recuperação, especialmente quanto aplicado em conjunto com medidas de similaridade de maior poder distintivo.
A Report of Three Consecutive Recurrent Ectopic Pregnancies in Two Patients
Authors: Ghomian Nayereh , Rastin Zahra
Published: January 2020

Introduction: Ectopic pregnancy (EP) is a life-threatening pregnancy complication and can cause maternal morbidity and mortality and early fetal death with the incidence rate of approximately 2% of all pregnancies. The rate of recurrence of EP increases in patients with a past history of EP. We present here two cases that have had three consecutive recurrent EPs during one year with different management. Case Presentation: Case 1: A 27-year-old woman gravida 3 Ep2 with 6 weeks gestational age was referred with abdominal pain. She had a history of two consecutive ectopic pregnancies 9 and 4 months ago that were treated with methotrexate (MTX) and right salpingectomy. Transvaginal ultrasonography showed left tubal ectopic pregnancy with intra-abdominal bleeding. Left salpingectomy was performed. Case 2: A 34-year-old women gravid 3 with a history of 2 consecutive Ep 11 and 6 months ago that were treated with left salpingectomy and MTX, was referred. She was treated with two doses of MTX. Conclusions: The rate of recurrent EP considerably rises in patients with a history of the previous EP and considering this medical history is highly recommended in future pregnancies for early diagnosis.
TF-IDF Inspired Detection for Cross-Language Source Code Plagiarism and Collusion
Authors: Karnalim Oscar
Published: January 2020

Several computing courses allow students to choose which programming language they want to use for completing a programming task. This can lead to cross-language code plagiarism and collusion, in which the copied code file is rewritten in another programming language. In response to that, this paper proposes a detection technique which is able to accurately compare code files written in various programming languages, but with limited effort in accommodating such languages at development stage. The only language-dependent feature used in the technique is source code tokeniser and no code conversion is applied. The impact of coincidental similarity is reduced by applying a TF-IDF inspired weighting, in which rare matches are prioritised. Our evaluation shows that the technique outperforms common techniques in academia for handling language conversion disguises. Further, it is comparable to those techniques when dealing with conventional disguises.
Extraction of Scores and Average From Algerian High-School Degree Transcripts
Authors: Kefali Abderrahmane , Drabsia Soumia , Sari Toufik , Chaoui Mohammed , Ferkous Chokri
Published: January 2020

A system for extracting scores and average from Algerian High School Degree Transcripts is proposed. The system extracts the scores and the average based on the localization of the tables gathering this information and it consists of several stages. After preprocessing, the system locates the tables using ruling-lines information as well as other text information. Therefore, the adopted localization approach can work even in the absence of certain ruling-lines or the erasure and discontinuity of lines. After that, the localized tables are segmented into columns and the columns into information cells. Finally, cells labeling is done based on the prior knowledge of the tables structure allowing to identify the scores and the average. Experiments have been conducted on a local dataset in order to evaluate the performances of our system and compare it with three public systems at three levels, and the obtained results show the effectiveness of our system.
Gene regulatory network reconstruction using single-cell RNA sequencing of barcoded genotypes in diverse environments
Authors: Jackson Christopher A , Castro Dayanne M , Saldi Giuseppe-Antonio , Bonneau Richard , Gresham David
Published: January 2020

Understanding how gene expression programs are controlled requires identifying regulatory relationships between transcription factors and target genes. Gene regulatory networks are typically constructed from gene expression data acquired following genetic perturbation or environmental stimulus. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) captures the gene expression state of thousands of individual cells in a single experiment, offering advantages in combinatorial experimental design, large numbers of independent measurements, and accessing the interaction between the cell cycle and environmental responses that is hidden by population-level analysis of gene expression. To leverage these advantages, we developed a method for scRNAseq in budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). We pooled diverse transcriptionally barcoded gene deletion mutants in 11 different environmental conditions and determined their expression state by sequencing 38,285 individual cells. We benchmarked a framework for learning gene regulatory networks from scRNAseq data that incorporates multitask learning and constructed a global gene regulatory network comprising 12,228 interactions.
A Stepwise Approach to the Management of Heart Failure and its Comorbidities
Authors: Rogers Felix J. , Saghir Zeinab
Published: January 2020

Modern medical and technological advances provide highly effective management for the treatment of patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). In this review, the authors propose a 2-step approach to treatment that is straightforward, practical, and thorough. For the patient whose life now includes HFrEF, the physician's first step is to ensure that the patient is taking the 3 key medications ([1] renin-angiotensin inhibitors (angiotensin receptor/neprilysin inhibitors, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, or angiotensin receptor blockers), [2] β-blockers, and [3] mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists) recommended in guideline-directed doses to attain comprehensive receptor blockade. Significant coexisting medical issues are also characteristic in patients with HFrEF. Therefore, the physician's second step is to address the comorbidities of heart failure to fulfill comprehensive patient care. This review presents evidence to implement the management of HFrEF and heart failure comorbidities that will reduce cardiac mortality and hospitalization and to avoid treatments that are of no benefit or may cause harm.
Shift Workers at Risk for Metabolic Syndrome
Authors: Kulkarni Kshma , Schow Marie , Shubrook Jay H.
Published: January 2020

In this highly digitalized era, sleep disorders are becoming more common and are associated with an increased burden of chronic disease. Shift workers are at an increased risk for both sleep disorders and metabolic syndrome. In this article, the authors outline the connection between circadian discordance, hormonal imbalance, and the development of metabolic syndrome in shift workers. Based on a literature review of animal model studies, observational studies, and clinical trials conducted between August and October of 2018, the authors offer several clinical interventions, including work schedules, light therapy, medications, and dietary habits to improve the circadian synchronicity of shift workers and reduce their risk of morbidity and mortality. It is important for physicians to be familiar with the consequences of shift work and ways to mitigate the risks for this patient population.
The Relationship between Demographic Factors in Adult Patients with Stroke
Authors: Shams-Vahdati Samad , Ala Alireza , Sadeghi-Hokmabad Eliar , Parnianfard Neda , Ahmadi Sepehri Nasim , Gheybi Maedeh
Published: January 2020

Background: Developing countries are challenging with stroke as the third cause of death in developed countries and the most popular neurologic disease which results in disability. This study was designed to assess the relationship between demographic factors and early outcome in adult patients with difference type of stroke. Methods and Materials: A retrospective register review was performed from March 2017 to March 2018. ED medical document (chart) were reviewed by a neurologist or physician to obtain the clinical diagnosis, patient characteristics. Their demographic data (such as age, gender), NIHSS score and MRS score were filled in questionnaire. the significant variables were verified in a multivariable model to achieve an attuned estimate of effect. Results: A total of 861 patients with stroke were included in the analysis; the male and female sex in the statistical population were 56% and 43%; the mean age of the patients was 14.32 ± 61.74. The mean NIHSS (16.08±10.51) & MRS (3.66) scores were evaluated, respectively 47% severe stroke (NICHSS>16). There was no significant relationship between age increase and NIHSS increase (P = 0.86). Conclusion: Aging has a significant relationship with increased stroke. Gender and age differences in risk of stroke outcomes are mostly described by variations in physical characteristics and stroke severity of the patients.
Crypsis and convergence: integrative taxonomic revision of the Gehyra australis group (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from northern Australia
Authors: Oliver Paul M. , Prasetya Audrey Miranda , Tedeschi Leonardo G. , Fenker Jessica , Ellis Ryan J. , Doughty Paul , Moritz Craig
Published: January 2020

For over two decades, assessments of geographic variation in mtDNA and small numbers of nuclear loci have revealed morphologically similar, but genetically divergent, intraspecific lineages in lizards from around the world. Subsequent morphological analyses often find subtle corresponding diagnostic characters to support the distinctiveness of lineages, but occasionally do not. In recent years it has become increasingly possible to survey geographic variation by sequencing thousands of loci, enabling more rigorous assessment of species boundaries across morphologically similar lineages. Here we take this approach, adding new, geographically extensive SNP data to existing mtDNA and exon capture datasets for the Gehyra australis and G. koira species complexes of gecko from northern Australia. The combination of exon-based phylogenetics with dense spatial sampling of mitochondrial DNA sequencing, SNP-based tests for introgression at lineage boundaries and newly-collected morphological evidence supports the recognition of nine species, six of which are newly described here. Detection of discrete genetic clusters using new SNP data was especially convincing where candidate taxa were continuously sampled across their distributions up to and across geographic boundaries with analyses revealing no admixture. Some species defined herein appear to be truly cryptic, showing little, if any, diagnostic morphological variation. As these SNP-based approaches are progressively applied, and with all due conservatism, we can expect to see a substantial improvement in our ability to delineate and name cryptic species, especially in taxa for which previous approaches have struggled to resolve taxonomic boundaries.
Conserved novel ORFs in the mitochondrial genome of the ctenophore Beroe forskalii
Authors: Schultz Darrin T. , Eizenga Jordan M. , Corbett-Detig Russell B. , Francis Warren R. , Christianson Lynne M. , Haddock Steven H.D.
Published: January 2020

To date, five ctenophore species’ mitochondrial genomes have been sequenced, and each contains open reading frames (ORFs) that if translated have no identifiable orthologs. ORFs with no identifiable orthologs are called unidentified reading frames (URFs). If truly protein-coding, ctenophore mitochondrial URFs represent a little understood path in early-diverging metazoan mitochondrial evolution and metabolism. We sequenced and annotated the mitochondrial genomes of three individuals of the beroid ctenophore Beroe forskalii and found that in addition to sharing the same canonical mitochondrial genes as other ctenophores, the B. forskalii mitochondrial genome contains two URFs. These URFs are conserved among the three individuals but not found in other sequenced species. We developed computational tools called pauvre and cuttlery to determine the likelihood that URFs are protein coding. There is evidence that the two URFs are under negative selection, and a novel Bayesian hypothesis test of trinucleotide frequency shows that the URFs are more similar to known coding genes than noncoding intergenic sequence. Protein structure and function prediction of all ctenophore URFs suggests that they all code for transmembrane transport proteins. These findings, along with the presence of URFs in other sequenced ctenophore mitochondrial genomes, suggest that ctenophores may have uncharacterized transmembrane proteins present in their mitochondria.
Association of IGF1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms with myopia in Chinese children
Authors: Cheng Tianyu , Wang Jingjing , Xiong Shuyu , Zhang Bo , Li Qiangqiang , Xu Xun , He Xiangui
Published: January 2020

Purpose

To investigate the association between insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and myopia in a young Chinese population.

Methods

A total of 654 Chinese children aged 6–13 years from one primary school participated in our study and underwent a series of comprehensive ocular examinations, including cycloplegic refraction and measurements of axial length. Myopia was defined as a spherical equivalence (SE) ≤ −0.5 D in the worse eye. In total, six tagging SNPs of IGF1 were genotyped using the PCR-LDR (Polymerase Chain Reaction-Ligation Detection Reaction) method. We tested four different genetic modes (the allele, dominant, recessive, and additive models) of these SNPs and used multivariate logistic regression to calculate the effect of SNPs on myopia. In addition, we conducted a haplotype analysis with a variable-sized slide-window strategy.

Results

Overall, 281 myopic children and 373 non-myopic controls were included in the analysis. The SNP rs2162679 showed a statistical difference between the two groups in both the allele (p = 0.0474) and additive (p = 0.0497) models. After adjusting for age and gender, children with the genotype AA in the SNP rs2162679 had a higher risk of myopia than those with the genotype GG (OR = 2.219, 95% CI [1.218–4.039], p = 0.009). All haplotypes that varied significantly between the two groups contained the SNP rs2162679, and the four-SNP window rs5742653–rs2162679 had the lowest p value (Chi square = 5.768, p = 0.0163). However, after permutation tests, none of the associations remained statistically significant.

Conclusion

The SNP rs2162679 in IGF1 was associated with myopia in a young Chinese population. The G allele in the SNP rs2162679 may protect against myopia.
On Summing Formulas for Horadam Numbers
Authors: Soykan Y¨ uksel
Published: January 2020

In this paper, closed forms of the summation formulas for generalized Fibonacci numbers arepresented. As special cases, we give summation formulas of Fibonacci, Lucas, Pell, Pell-Lucas,Jacobsthal, Jacobsthal-Lucas numbers.
Organizational Identification and Proactive Work Behaviour as Predictors of Cyber-loafing among Anambra State Civil Servants
Authors: Chukwuemeka E. Etodike, , Collins I. Nnaebue, , Iloke, Stephen E. , Elizabeth Anierobi,
Published: January 2020

Cyber-loafing is a growing organizational vice with resource and productivity consequences.  Given its observed rise in public service in Nigeria; this study examined the organizational identification and proactive work behaviour as predictors of cyber-loafing among public sector employees in Anambra State. The study participants were 403 employees drawn from Anambra State civil service, Nigeria. The participants were 131 males and 272 females with a mean age of 39 years and standard deviation of 4.20. Cluster sampling was used to select participants Ministries whereas accidental sampling was utilized to select the participants from their respective ministries. Organizational identification scale, Proactive work behavior scale and Cyber-loafing questionnaire were instruments of data collection. Anchored on social exchange theory, the study utilized correlation design and hierarchical regression analysis as design and statistical tool for data analysis. The result indicated that positive and significant correlation was recorded between organizational identification and proactive work behaviour at r(1, 403) = .43*, p < .05; while  negative and significant correlation was recorded between organizational identification and cyber-loafing at r(1, 403) = -.37*, p < .05.  Also, negative and significant correlation was recorded between proactive work behaviour and cyber-loafing at r(1, 403) = -.56*, p < .05. Hierarchical regression analysis confirmed that both organizational identification and proactive work behaviour negatively and significantly predicted cyber-loafing at α = -.39*, p < .05 (n = 403) and α = -.48*, p < .05 (n = 403) respectively among civil servants in Anambra State. Organizations are adviced to improve on their social exchange among employees to engender for greater organizational identification and pro-activity to reduce cyber-loafing behaviours.
Myelin‐associated glycoprotein inhibits neurite outgrowth through inactivation of the small GTPase Rap1
Authors: Nikulina Elena , Gkioka Vasiliki , Siddiq Mustafa M. , Mellado Wilfredo , Hilaire Melissa , Cain Christine R. , Hannila Sari S. , Filbin Marie T.
Published: January 2020

Rap1 is a small GTPase that has been implicated in dendritic development and plasticity. In this study, we investigated the role of Rap1 in axonal growth and its activation in response to neurotrophins and myelin‐associated inhibitors. We report that Rap1 is activated by brain‐derived neurotrophic factor and that this activation can be blocked by myelin‐associated glycoprotein (MAG) or central nervous system myelin, which also induced increases in Rap1GAP1 levels. In addition, we demonstrate that adenoviral overexpression of Rap1 enhances neurite outgrowth in the presence of MAG and myelin, while inhibition of Rap1 activity through overexpression of Rap1GAP1 blocks neurite outgrowth. These findings suggest that Rap1GAP1 negatively regulates neurite outgrowth, making it a potential therapeutic target to promote axonal regeneration.
Interleukin‐4 Gene Transfection and Spheroid Formation Potentiate Therapeutic Efficacy of Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Osteoarthritis
Authors: Song Seuk Young , Hong Jihye , Go Seukhyeong , Lim Songhyun , Sohn Hee Su , Kang Mikyung , Jung Gun‐Jae , Yoon Jeong‐Kee , Kang Mi Lan , Im Gun‐il , Kim Byung‐Soo
Published: January 2020

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a painful intractable disease that significantly affects patients' quality of life. However, current therapies, such as pain killers and joint replacement surgery, do not lead to cartilage protection. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been proposed as an alternative strategy for OA therapy because MSCs can secrete chondroprotective and anti‐inflammatory factors. However, interleukin‐4 (IL‐4), a potent anti‐inflammatory cytokine, is barely produced by MSCs, and MSC therapy suffers from rapid MSC death following intra‐articular implantation. MSCs in spheroids survive better than naïve MSCs in vitro and in vivo. IL‐4‐transfected MSCs in spheroids (IL‐4 MSC spheroid) show increased chondroprotective and anti‐inflammatory effects in an OA chondrocyte model in vitro. Following intra‐articular implantation in OA rats, IL‐4 MSC spheroids show better cartilage protection and pain relief than naïve MSCs. Thus, IL‐4 MSC spheroid may potentiate the therapeutic efficacy of MSCs for OA.
Stable and High‐Efficiency Methylammonium‐Free Perovskite Solar Cells
Authors: Gao Xiao‐Xin , Luo Wen , Zhang Yi , Hu Ruiyuan , Zhang Bao , Züttel Andreas , Feng Yaqing , Nazeeruddin Mohammad Khaja
Published: January 2020

Organic–inorganic metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have achieved certified power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 25.2% with complex compositional and bandgap engineering. However, the thermal instability of methylammonium (MA) cation can cause the degradation of the perovskite film, remaining a risk for the long‐term stability of the devices. Herein, a unique method is demonstrated to fabricate highly phase‐stable perovskite film without MA by introducing cesium chloride (CsCl) in the double cation (Cs, formamidinium) perovskite precursor. Moreover, due to the suboptimal bandgap of bromide (Br−), the amount of Br− is regulated, leading to high power conversion efficiency. As a result, MA‐free perovskite solar cells achieve remarkable long‐term stability and a PCE of 20.50%, which is one of the best results for MA‐free PSCs. Moreover, the unencapsulated device retains about 80% of the original efficiencies after a 1000 h aging study. These results provide a feasible approach to enhance solar cell stability and performance simultaneously, paving the way for commercializing PSCs.
Enlightening Materials with Photoswitches
Authors: Goulet‐Hanssens Alexis , Eisenreich Fabian , Hecht Stefan
Published: January 2020

Incorporating molecular photoswitches into various materials provides unique opportunities for controlling their properties and functions with high spatiotemporal resolution using remote optical stimuli. The great and largely still untapped potential of these photoresponsive systems has not yet been fully exploited due to the fundamental challenges in harnessing geometrical and electronic changes on the molecular level to modulate macroscopic and bulk material properties. Herein, progress made during the past decade in the field of photoswitchable materials is highlighted. After pointing to some general design principles, materials with an increasing order of the integrated photoswitchable units are discussed, spanning the range from amorphous settings over surfaces/interfaces and supramolecular ensembles, to liquid crystalline and crystalline phases. Finally, some potential future directions are pointed out in the conclusion. In view of the exciting recent achievements in the field, the future emergence and further development of light‐driven and optically programmable (inter)active materials and systems are eagerly anticipated.
Unusual Two‐Step Assembly of a Minimalistic Dipeptide‐Based Functional Hypergelator
Authors: Chakraborty Priyadarshi , Tang Yiming , Yamamoto Tomoya , Yao Yifei , Guterman Tom , Zilberzwige‐Tal Shai , Adadi Nofar , Ji Wei , Dvir Tal , Ramamoorthy Ayyalusamy , Wei Guanghong , Gazit Ehud
Published: January 2020

Self‐assembled peptide hydrogels represent the realization of peptide nanotechnology into biomedical products. There is a continuous quest to identify the simplest building blocks and optimize their critical gelation concentration (CGC). Herein, a minimalistic, de novo dipeptide, Fmoc‐Lys(Fmoc)‐Asp, as an hydrogelator with the lowest CGC ever reported, almost fourfold lower as compared to that of a large hexadecapeptide previously described, is reported. The dipeptide self‐assembles through an unusual and unprecedented two‐step process as elucidated by solid‐state NMR and molecular dynamics simulation. The hydrogel is cytocompatible and supports 2D/3D cell growth. Conductive composite gels composed of Fmoc‐Lys(Fmoc)‐Asp and a conductive polymer exhibit excellent DNA binding. Fmoc‐Lys(Fmoc)‐Asp exhibits the lowest CGC and highest mechanical properties when compared to a library of dipeptide analogues, thus validating the uniqueness of the molecular design which confers useful properties for various potential applications.
Miscible‐Solvent‐Assisted Two‐Phase Synthesis of Monolayer‐Ligand‐Protected Metal Nanoclusters with Various Sizes
Authors: Yuan Xun , Chng Leng Leng , Yang Jinhua , Ying Jackie Y.
Published: January 2020

Effective yet versatile synthetic strategies for size‐tunable metal nanoclusters (NCs) are scarce. This has hampered the development of this unique class of nanomaterials. Here, a general protocol is reported for the synthesis of high‐quality metal NCs protected by a variety of organic ligands (e.g., selenolate, thiolate, and phosphine) based on a miscible‐solvent‐assisted phase transfer between water and organic solution. This method is demonstrated to be facile, rapid (≤3 h), scalable (gram‐scale), and versatile. The size of the selenolated and thiolated Au NCs can be tuned from Au10 to Au61 by simply varying the miscible solvent in proportions and types. The advantages of this method, such as quick phase separation and no need for purification treatment, enable real‐time monitoring of metal NC growth within the NaBH4 reduction system. The results show that the size of Au NCs gradually increases with increasing valence electron count by a stepwise 2x e‐ hopping mechanism (x = 0–5), i.e., 0 e‐ → 2 e‐ → 4 e‐ → 8 e‐ → 18 e‐ → 22 e‐ → 32 e‐.
Composition‐Dependent Passivation Efficiency at the CdS/CuIn1-xGaxSe2 Interface
Authors: Ballabio Marco , Fuertes Marrón David , Barreau Nicolas , Bonn Mischa , Cánovas Enrique
Published: January 2020

The bandgap of CuIn1-xGaxSe2 (CIGS) chalcopyrite semiconductors can be tuned between ≈1.0 and ≈1.7 eV for Ga contents ranging between x = 0 and x = 1. While an optimum bandgap of 1.34 eV is desirable for achieving maximum solar energy conversion in solar cells, state‐of‐the‐art CIGS‐based devices experience a drop in efficiency for Ga contents x > 0.3 (i.e., for bandgaps >1.2 eV), an aspect that is limiting the full potential of these devices. The mechanism underlying the limited performance as a function of CIGS composition has remained elusive: both surface and bulk recombination effects are proposed. Here, the disentanglement between surface and bulk effects in CIGS absorbers as a function of Ga content is achieved by comparing photogenerated charge carrier dynamics in air/CIGS and surface‐passivated ZnO/CdS/CIGS samples. While surface passivation prevents surface recombination of charge carriers for low Ga content (x < 0.3; up to 1.2 eV bandgap), surface recombination dominates for higher‐bandgap materials. The results thus demonstrate that surface, rather than bulk effects, is responsible for the drop in efficiency for Ga contents larger than x ≈ 0.3.
Solution‐Processable 2D Materials Applied in Light‐Emitting Diodes and Solar Cells
Authors: Ricciardulli Antonio Gaetano , Blom Paul W. M.
Published: January 2020

The last decades have witnessed a remarkable scientific progress in the field of organic and perovskite optoelectronics. Two‐dimensional (2D) materials are an attractive building block for next‐generation devices, thanks to their unique physical, optical, and electric characteristics including atomically thin bodies, high transmittance, ultralight weight, and tunable band structures. The state‐of‐the‐art optoelectronic devices utilizing 2D materials mainly rely on 2D thin films grown by chemical vapor deposition. Although good device performances have been demonstrated, a huge gap between fundamental studies and practical applications remains, because of the high cost and troublesome transfer/restacking processes. Therefore, flexible and transparent light‐emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar cells (SCs) containing solution‐processed 2D materials from top‐down exfoliation methods have recently emerged as promising candidates for future light conversion and emission devices. They combine ease of processing, tailorable optoelectronic features, facile integration with complementary layers, compatibility with arbitrary substrates, and enhanced performances. In addition, the latest processing techniques (such as ink‐jet printing, spray coating) also offer the opportunity for the scaled‐up fabrication of square‐meter‐scale low‐cost device systems. Recent advances, challenges, and future perspectives of solution‐processed 2D materials for usage in emerging LEDs and SCs applications are discussed here.
Circularly Polarized Spin‐Selectivity Absorbing Coding Phase Gradient Metasurface for RCS Reduction
Authors: Feng Maochang , Chen Xiaoli , Li Yongfeng , Zheng Qiqi , Han Yajuan , Zhang Jieqiu , Wang Jiafu , Hou Yi , Liu Zhewei , Li Xuojian , Wang Chao , Jing Jao , Ma Hua , Qu Shaobo
Published: January 2020

A novel spin‐selectivity absorbing coding phase gradient metasurface (SACPGM) is proposed and demonstrated. The coding element consists of spin‐selectivity absorbing unit cells, which exhibit different absorption characteristics for left‐handed circularly polarized and right‐handed circularly polarized incidence wave due to their spin‐selectivity absorbing properties. The scattering patterns of the SACPGM can be synthetically manipulated by the reflection of the spin‐selectivity absorbing unit cells, the phase gradient of the coding elements, and the coding sequences. As an example, a two‐bit SACPGM with random coding sequence is designed to reduce radar cross section (RCS) by a combination of absorption, beam deflection, surface wave coupling, and diffusion scattering. Both simulated and measured results agree well and demonstrate that the SACPGMs possess excellent performance for RCS reduction. This strategy can help realize stealth applications under bi‐static detections.