bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adjustments of non-invasive ventilation and mechanically assisted cough by combining ultrasound imaging of the larynx with transnasal fibre-optic laryngoscopy: a protocol for an experimental study
Authors: Brekka Anne Kristine , Vollsæter Maria , Ntoumenopoulos George , Clemm Hege Havstad , Halvorsen Thomas , Røksund Ola Drange , Andersen Tiina Maarit
Published: May 2022

Introduction

Application of non-invasive positive airway pressure may provoke laryngeal responses that obstruct the airways, especially in patients with disturbed laryngeal control. To control and adjust for this, transnasal fibre-optic laryngoscopy (TFL) is used to visualise laryngeal movements during therapeutic interventions. Being an invasive procedure, this may be unpleasant for patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate if ultrasound (US) imaging of the larynx may be used as an alternative less invasive diagnostic tool for evaluating the upper airway responses to non-invasive ventilation (NIV) and mechanical insufflation–exsufflation (MI-E).

Methods and analysis

This protocol presents an experimental cross-sectional study of a novel method to study laryngeal responses in adult healthy volunteers (n=30). The participants will be assessed with simultaneous TFL and laryngeal US imaging (anterior and lateral approaches) during NIV and MI-E therapy. Additionally, airflow and pressure signals will be registered during the procedures. The primary outcome is whether laryngeal US is a feasible method to study laryngeal responses and, if so, to compare the laryngeal responses visualised with TFL and US. The participants’ perception of the examinations will be recorded. Secondary outcomes include airflow curve shapes and calculated ventilation volumes during the interventions.

Ethics and dissemination

The study has been approved by The Regional Committee for Medical Research Ethics in Norway, and registered in ClinicalTrials.gov. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals, presentation of scientific abstracts at international medical conventions and oral presentations in relevant medical conventions.

Trial registration number

NCT04586855.
Experiences of older immigrants living with dementia and their carers: a systematic review and meta-synthesis
Authors: Chejor Pelden , Laging Bridget , Whitehead Lisa , Porock Davina
Published: May 2022

Objective

To systematically review and synthesise evidence on the experiences of older immigrants living with dementia and their carers.

Design

A systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative studies.

Methods

Studies exploring the experiences of older immigrants living with dementia and their carers were eligible. Databases were searched including CINAHL, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane Library from January 2000 to April 2021. Quality assessment was undertaken using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklist for qualitative studies. Data were then synthesised using the thematic synthesis approach.

Results

The results of this meta-synthesis were reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement and Enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research statement. A total of 3857 studies were returned from the database search. Eighteen studies were included for meta-synthesis. Five synthesised findings were identified: living with dementia and caregiving; family relationships; barriers to dementia care services; stigma and discrimination; and legal and financial issues. The experiences of living with dementia and caregiving presented multiple challenges for older immigrants living with dementia and their families. However, there seems to be very little difference between the experiences of those who have migrated to a new country and those who were born and aged in the same country, but the ability to access and use the available services is different.

Conclusion

A lack of culturally appropriate dementia services, language barriers and dementia stigma can impede access to dementia care for older immigrants. Strategies to mitigate these barriers are urgently needed to ensure people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds with dementia and their families have the information, education and support to access dementia services, in addition to research that explores the experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse populations.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42021277913.
Association between social support, smartphone usage and loneliness among the migrant elderly following children in Jinan, China: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Liu Guangwen , Li Shixue , Kong Fanlei
Published: May 2022

Objectives

As the fast population ageing in the past few decades, China has also witnessed an increase in the number of migrant elderly following children (MEFC). This study aims to examine the relationship between MEFC’s social support, smartphone usage and loneliness in Jinan, China.

Design

Cross-sectional survey.

Setting

Shandong Province, China.

Participants

The participants were 656 MEFC aged 60 years or above.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

Loneliness was measured by an eight-item version of the University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale (ULS-8). A t-test and one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were conducted to compare the level of loneliness across different sociodemographic variables, social support indicators and smartphone usage indicators. Structural equation modelling was used to validate the association between the above variables.

Results

The MEFC’s mean score on the ULS-8 was 12.82±4.05, indicating a relatively lower level of loneliness. It was found that social support and smartphone usage exerted negative effects on loneliness of the MEFC, and the standardised direct effects were −0.165 (95% CI −0.257 to −0.070) and −0.094 (95% CI −0.180 to −0.003), respectively. Social support was found to be positively associated with smartphone usage of the MEFC, and the standardised direct effect was 0.147 (95% CI 0.052 to 0.246).

Conclusions

The loneliness of the MEFC was relatively low and was clarified to be negatively associated with social support and smartphone usage. Effective intervention measures on social support and smartphone usage to alleviate loneliness among the MEFC in China were recommended based on this study.
Cohort profile: the Taicang and Wuqiang mother–child cohort study (TAWS) in China
Authors: Wang Jie , Duan Yifan , Yang Jiaxi , Li Jun , Li Fang , Zhou Pinjiao , Liu Changqing , Zhao Yongli , Gu Xuyang , Yuan Changzheng , Yin Shian , Yang Zhenyu , Lai Jianqiang
Published: May 2022

Purpose

The Taicang and Wuqiang cohort study (TAWS) was established to examine the association between early-life nutrition and children’s health, and to explore the potential roles of maternal health, metabolites and microbiota in children’s health in two different regions of China.

Participants

A total of 7041 mother–child pairs were recruited during early pregnancy (n=4035, 57.3%) or delivery phase (n=3006, 42.7%) from health centres or hospitals in Taicang and Wuqiang. Mother–child pairs were followed up three times during pregnancy, once during delivery, and 7–10 times in the 3 years after delivery. Questionnaires were used to collect data on diet, supplementary intake, physical activity, depression scale, disease occurrence, feeding practice and development quotient of children. Anthropometric measurements of mothers and their children were assessed at each visit. Pregnancy outcomes were extracted from medical records. Biospecimens were collected and stored, including venous blood, cord blood, urine, stool, breast milk, cord and placenta.

Findings to date

Data from the TAWS cohort showed different baseline characteristics of participants at the two sites of TAWS. Abnormal metabolism occurred among newborns whose mothers were diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus. Maternal serum folic acid above 14.5 ng/mL at early pregnancy was associated with a reduced risk of delivering small-for-gestational-age newborns.

Future plans

The association between maternal nutrition and the health of offspring will be examined at various follow-up visits. Biomarkers will be analysed to assess the associations between early-life nutrition and child development, immunity and health. Strategic recommendations for optimal infant feeding practices, obesity prevention and routine healthcare items will be developed and proposed based on the findings from the study. Children in this prospective cohort study will be followed up once a year until age 12 years to further examine the relationships between early-life nutrition and children’s long-term development and health.
Correlation between preseason body composition and sports injury in an English Premier League professional football team
Authors: Seow Dexter , Massey Andrew
Published: May 2022

Objectives

To identify the correlation between preseason body composition and incidence coupled with injury burden throughout the season in adult male professional football players.

Methods

A retrospective case series was performed for linear regression analysis of preseason body composition variables and injury data. R2>0.10 was deemed of adequate correlation.

Results

All 36 professional football players in the male first team of an English Premier League professional football team were recruited, with none lost to follow-up. The total and mean incidence of injuries was 83.00 and 2.31 (95% CI 1.72 to 2.89), respectively. The mean injury burden was 58.32 (95% CI 37.67 to 78.98) days missed. Simple linear regression analysis indicated no significant or adequate correlations between incidence and preseason body composition variables. Injury burden revealed non-significant adequate negative correlations to body mass (R2=0.17), body mass index (BMI) (R2=0.15), waist circumference (R2=0.17), total bone mineral density (BMD) (R2=0.11) and mean embedded structures (R2=0.10).

Conclusions

Players with decreased body mass, BMI, waist circumference, total BMD and mean embedded structures may be prone to greater injury burden. Further studies with a larger sample size that incorporates multiple football teams are warranted to investigate this.
Vitruvian plot: a visualisation tool for multiple outcomes in network meta-analysis
Authors: Ostinelli Edoardo Giuseppe , Efthimiou Orestis , Naci Huseyin , Furukawa Toshi A , Leucht Stefan , Salanti Georgia , Wainwright Laurence , Zangani Caroline , De Crescenzo Franco , Smith Katharine , Stevens Katherine , Liu Qiang , Cipriani Andrea
Published: May 2022

Objective

A network meta-analysis (NMA) usually assesses multiple outcomes across several treatment comparisons. TheVitruvian plotaims to facilitate communication of multiple outcomes from NMAs to patients and clinicians.

Methods

We developed this tool following the recommendations on the communication of benefit–risk information from the available literature. We collected and implemented feedback from researchers, statisticians, methodologists, clinicians and people with lived experience of physical and mental health issues.

Results

We present theVitruvian plot, which graphically presents absolute estimates and relative performance of competing interventions against a common comparator for several outcomes of interest. We use two alternative colour schemes to highlight either the strength of statistical evidence or the confidence in the evidence. Confidence in the evidence is evaluated across six domains (within-study bias, reporting bias, indirectness, imprecision, heterogeneity and incoherence) using the Confidence in Network Meta-Analysis (CINeMA) system.

Conclusions

TheVitruvian plotallows reporting of multiple outcomes from NMAs, with colourings appropriate to inform credibility of the presented evidence.
United Kingdom standards for non-invasive cardiac imaging: recommendations from the Imaging Council of the British Cardiovascular Society
Authors: Treibel Thomas A , Kelion Andrew , Ingram Thomas E , Archbold R Andrew , Myerson Saul G , Menezes Leon J , Morgan-Hughes Gareth J , Schofield Rebecca , Keenan Niall G , Clarke Sarah C , Keys Alan , Keogh Bruce , Masani Navroz , Ray Simon , Westwood Mark , Pearce Keith , Colebourn Claire L , Bull Russell K , Greenwood John Pierre , Roditi Giles H , Lloyd Guy ,   on behalf of the Imaging Council of the British Cardiovascular Society,   on behalf of the British Society of Echocardiography,   on behalf of the British Cardiovascular Society,   on behalf of the British Society of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance,   on behalf of the British Nuclear Cardiology Society
Published: May 2022

Heart and circulatory diseases affect more than seven million people in the UK. Non-invasive cardiac imaging is a critical element of contemporary cardiology practice. Progressive improvements in technology over the last 20 years have increased diagnostic accuracy in all modalities and led to the incorporation of non-invasive imaging into many standard cardiac clinical care pathways. Cardiac imaging tests are requested by a variety of healthcare practitioners and performed in a range of settings from the most advanced hospitals to local health centres. Imaging is used to detect the presence and consequences of cardiovascular disease, as well as to monitor the response to therapies. The previous UK national imaging strategy statement which brought together all of the non-invasive imaging modalities was published in 2010. The purpose of this document is to collate contemporary standards developed by the modality-specific professional organisations which make up the British Cardiovascular Society Imaging Council, bringing together common and essential recommendations. The development process has been inclusive and iterative. Imaging societies (representing both cardiology and radiology) reviewed and agreed on the initial structure. The final document therefore represents a position, which has been generated inclusively, presents rigorous standards, is applicable to clinical practice and deliverable. This document will be of value to a variety of healthcare professionals including imaging departments, the National Health Service or other organisations, regulatory bodies, commissioners and other purchasers of services, and service users, i.e., patients, and their relatives.
A Novel Approach Towards Degree and Walsh-Transform of Boolean Functions
Authors: Kumar Sunil , Singh Harshdeep , Mittal Gaurav
Published: May 2022

Boolean functions are fundamental bricks in the development of various applications in Cryptography and Coding theory by making benefit from the weights of related Boolean functions (Walsh spectrum). Towards this, the discrete Fourier transform (Walsh–Hadamard) plays a pivotal tool. The work in this paper is dedicated towards the algebraic and numerical degrees, together with the relationship between weights of Boolean function and their Walsh transforms. We introduce Walsh matrices and generalize them to any arbitrary Boolean function. This improves the complexity in computation of Walsh–Hadamard and Fourier transform in certain cases. We also discuss some useful results related to the degree of the algebraic normal form using Walsh–Hadamard transform.
PRODUCTIVITY AND WAGES IN THE JAPANESE FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Authors: MIURA YUTA , NAKAZONO YOSHIYUKI
Published: May 2022

Using matched performance data and annual salary data of Japanese professional footballers, we examine the discrepancy between productivity and wages. We find that high productivity, as measured by effort and skill, contributes to raising the probability of winning matches in the Japanese professional football league, but that players’ effort and skills are not well reflected in their wages, with wages sometimes even having a negative influence on performance. Furthermore, we find that players’ attributes, such as experience, are larger drivers of wage levels than effort or skill level. The evidence suggests a seniority-based pay scale in a professional football league in the sense that reputation and “names” have market value. This discrepancy between productivity and wages suggests that there may exist inefficiency in payroll even in the professional labor market.
Dilaton invading from infinitesimal extra dimension
Authors: Matsumoto Minoru , Nakayama Yu
Published: May 2022

We show that the Wess–Zumino action for the spontaneously broken Weyl (or conformal) symmetry, a.k.a dilaton effective action, in even [Formula: see text] dimensions can be obtained from the Kaluza–Klein dimensional reduction of the Lovelock action in [Formula: see text] dimensions by taking the [Formula: see text] limit, where the dilaton is identified with the metric in the extra dimension. The construction gives an explicit form of the dilaton effective action in any even dimensions.
Robust violation of a multipartite Bell inequality from the perspective of a single-system game
Authors: He Gang-Gang , Fan Xing-Yan , Zhang Fu-Lin
Published: May 2022

Recently, Fan et al. [Mod. Phys. Lett. A 36, 2150223 (2021)] presented a generalized Clauser–Horne–Shimony–Holt (CHSH) inequality, to identify [Formula: see text]-qubit Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger states. They showed an interesting phenomenon that the maximal violation of the generalized CHSH inequality is robust under some specific noises. In this work, we map the inequality to the CHSH game, and consequently to the CHSH* game in a single-qubit system. This mapping provides an explanation for the robust violations in [Formula: see text]-qubit systems. Namely, the robust violations, resulting from the degeneracy of the generalized CHSH operators correspond to the symmetry of the maximally entangled two-qubit states and the identity transformation in the single-qubit game. This explanation enables us to exactly demonstrate that the degeneracy is [Formula: see text].
SSPCO: A new particle propagation model for community detection in complex network
Authors: Wang Ben-Yu , Gu Yi-Jun , Zheng Di-Wen
Published: May 2022

Community detection is of extraordinary significance in comprehending the structure and functions of complex networks. The particle competition algorithm is a quick and heuristic algorithm when applied to community detection. However, existing particle competition algorithms do not make full use of all information of networks and have several shortcomings such as poor robustness, weak stability, and low accuracy. In addition, it cannot be effectively applied to overlapping community detection. In this paper, a new particle propagation model with semi-supervised learning for community detection in social networks (SSPCO) is proposed. SSPCO divides the formation process of communities into the initialization phase, walking phase, restart phase, convergence phase and overlapping community detection phase. In the initialization phase, each team of labeled vertices generates a particle of this team. The domination level of each team particles at vertices and edges is also initialized in this phase. In the walking phase, the particle walks to one of the neighbors of the current vertex based on the proposed walking probability calculated by the proposed transfer acceptance probability and the proposed transfer proposal probability. In the process of particle walking, the particle has a possibility of entering the restart phase. The proposed restart probability determines whether the particle performs the restart mechanism. If the particle decides to restart, it will select a vertex for restart based on the domination level of this team particles at vertices. Otherwise, it continues to walk. After several particle walking and restart phases, the particle meets the convergence state. In the convergence phase, if all particles meet the proposed convergence condition, we will obtain community partition results based on the domination level of each team particles at the vertex. In the overlapping community detection phase, we can obtain overlapping community partition results based on the overlapping community detection mechanism. Experiment results reveal that SSPCO can improve the stability and accuracy of detecting communities. Moreover, SSPCO runs in near-linear time complexity, which allows it to be applied in large-sized networks.
Public Engagement Improvement in STI Policies: Challenges and Solutions
Authors: Sadabadi Ali Asghar , Rad Zohreh Rahimi
Published: May 2022

Studies show that actors who are directly involved with science, technology and innovation (STI), such as scientists and managers, are more likely to participate. Therefore, policy documents, as an important guiding factor, need to emphasize the engagement of various stakeholders. On the other hand, due to the need for innovative models in public engagement, social innovation has provided new ways to promote it. Therefore, this study aims to strengthen public engagement in STI policies through social innovation in Iran.

In order to data gathering, questionnaires, interviews, document analysis and literature review were used in different stages of the research. In the first step, after interviewing experts on the dimensions and components of public engagement in STI, in the context of macro-policy documents, a model was extracted using thematic analysis and fuzzy delphi techniques. Then, in the second step, this study identified the statements related to public engagement in STI in macro-policy documents using quantitative content analysis, and thus the degree of attention to public engagement in STI macro-policy documents was determined. In the next step, this study sought to find solutions to its weaknesses in STI by examining the opinions of knowledgeable people about public engagement methods. Then, these solutions were evaluated in terms of their relevance to the Iranian context and social innovativeness, and finally, the selected solutions were ranked by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method.
An Integrated Study of User Acceptance and Resistance on Voice Commerce
Authors: Chung Doohee , Kim Hyeongki , Ahn Suho
Published: May 2022

Virtual assistants are becoming significant in the area of voice commerce. Voice commerce creates an environment where orders and payments can be done through voice recognition, increasing its accessibility in comparison to other existing commercial transaction methods. Thus, the field is expected to grow into a promising industry. However, the full bloom of voice commerce depends on user acceptance, as well as technological improvement. This study develops a conceptual framework to describe factors influencing user acceptance to voice commerce, which are analyzed with the structural equation model by combining the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the model of innovation resistance (MIR). With accuracy, social presence, and interactivity of a virtual assistant, along with user attributes such as user innovativeness and experience, as variables, a survey of 151 Koreans in their 20s and 30s is conducted. Moreover, the impact of three factors, relative advantage, perceived ease of use, and perceived risk, on innovation acceptance and resistance is analyzed to find key variables that affect the resistance to and acceptance of voice commerce. These findings provide notable implications to companies currently using voice commerce platforms and guidance to an emerging commercial trading system.
Financial and Non-Financial Tools Useful for Exhaustive Corporate Environmental Disclosure and Practices
Authors: Barbu Elena M. , Ionescu-Feleagă Liliana , Ferrat Yann
Published: May 2022

This paper offers our insights concerning the issues raised by Prof. Charitou (2022) [Discussion of “The evolution of environmental reporting in Europe: The role of financial and non-financial regulation”. The International Journal of Accounting, 57, a–b] in commentaries on the article “The Evolution of Environmental Reporting in Europe: The Role of Financial and Non-Financial Regulation” [Barbu, E. M., Feleaga, L., & Ferrat, Y. (2022). The International Journal of Accounting, 57, c–d]. As suggested by Charitou (2022), we explain the pertinence of our financial environmental grid of 12 items based on IAS/IFRS, and we propose a complementary non-financial environmental grid of almost 100 elements useful to ensure an exhaustive analysis of corporate environmental disclosure and environmental governance. Furthermore, we analyzed the results through the influence of national regulation on environmental disclosure and practices, and we explain why it is important to work on the synergy among environmental, social, and economic pillars and with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to improve corporate social and environmental responsibility.
Thermal damage and acoustic emission characteristics of granite based on Brazilian splitting test
Authors: Deng Long-Chuan , Wu Yun , Huang Jia-Wei
Published: May 2022

Rapid and non-destructive evaluation of the thermal stability of surrounding rocks and rock strength is important in field construction. Physical properties and acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of granites can be changed at high temperatures. Thus, investigations on the relationships between rock strength and physical properties could help to evaluate the thermal stability via a physical measuring method. In this study, granite selected from a geothermal drilling project was heated at 25–600°C and different physical properties and tensile strength were measured. Moreover, the thermal damage degree was evaluated and the tensile failure pattern was quantitatively characterized. Notably, the tensile strength of granites could be indirectly acquired through P-wave velocity, hardness, colour, mass loss and volume expansion. The experimental results showed that the variations could be roughly divided into two stages. (1) At 25–400°C, the mass, volume, P-wave velocity, hardness, tensile strength, colour and AE parameters changed slightly. The failure mode and damaged section did not differ significantly within this temperature range. (2) At 400–600°C, these physical and mechanical properties and AE parameters changed significantly. The formation of micro-cracks was aggravated by the loss of structural water and phase transition of quartz, leading to complex failure modes and jagged morphology of damaged sections. The thermal damage factor and the compressive damage factor defined by the P-wave velocity at different conditions increased greatly. In summary, there was no major damage and the internal structure was still relatively intact at 25–400°C. However, the granite showed serious damage in the high-temperature environment (400–600°C), resulting in great changes in physical and mechanical properties and AE characteristics.
Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Polypeptide—A Postprandial Hormone with Unharnessed Metabolic Potential
Authors: Guccio Nunzio , Gribble Fiona M. , Reimann Frank
Published: May 2022

Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) is released from the upper small intestine in response to food intake and contributes to the postprandial control of nutrient disposition, including of sugars and fats. Long neglected as a potential therapeutic target, the GIPR axis has received increasing interest recently, with the emerging data demonstrating the metabolically favorable outcomes of adding GIPR agonism to GLP-1 receptor agonists in people with type 2 diabetes and obesity. This review examines the physiology of the GIP axis, from the mechanisms underlying GIP secretion from the intestine to its action on target tissues and therapeutic development.
Chlorogenic Acid Prevents Microglia-Induced Neuronal Apoptosis and Oxidative Stress under Hypoxia-Ischemia Environment by Regulating the MIR497HG/miR-29b-3p/SIRT1 Axis
Authors: Fan Yong , Li Yongkun , Yang Yongkai , Lin Kunzhe , Lin Qingqiang , Luo Shenghui , Zhou Xiaohui , Lin Qun , Zhang Fan
Published: May 2022

Background. Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is a polyphenolic compound with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. CGA has been shown to improve neuroinflammation. This study is aimed at elucidating the exact mechanism by which CGA reduces neuroinflammation. Methods. Oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) was utilized to treat BV2 microglia and HT-22 hippocampal neurons to engineer an in vitro model of hypoxic ischemia reperfusion. The levels of inflammatory factors (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-4, and IL-10) and oxidative stress factors (MDA, SOD, and GSH-PX) in microglia were determined by ELISA kits. The neuron proliferation was assessed by CCK-8 assay, and LDH kit was used to determine LDH release in neurons. The fluorescent dye DCF-DA was employed to measure ROS levels in neurons. Correlation of MIR497HG, miR-29b-3p, and SIRT1/NF-κB in neurons and microglia was determined by qRT-PCR. Expressions of inflammatory proteins (COX2, iNOS), oxidative stress pathways (Nrf2, HO-1), and apoptosis-related proteins (Bcl-2, Bax, caspase3, caspase8, and caspase9) in microglia or neurons were determined by western blot. The interactions between MIR497HG and miR-29b-3p, as well as between miR-29b-3p and SIRT1, were determined by dual luciferase assay and RIP assay. Results. CGA attenuated OGD-mediated inflammation and oxidative stress in microglia and inhibited microglia-mediated neuronal apoptosis. CGA increased the levels of MIR497HG and SIRT1 and suppressed the levels of miR-29b-3p in BV2 and HT-22 cells. MIR497HG knockdown, miR-29b-3p upregulation, and SIRT1 inhibition inhibited CGA-mediated anti-inflammatory and neuronal protective functions. There is a targeting correlation between MIR497HG, miR-29b-3p, and Sirt1. MIR497HG sponges miR-29b-3p to regulate SIRT1 expression in an indirect manner. Conclusion. CGA upregulates MIR497HG to curb miR-29b-3p expression, hence initiating the SIRT1/NF-κB signaling pathway and repressing OGD-elicited inflammation, oxidative stress, and neuron apoptosis.
Inept and Indifferent? Self-Understanding of Early Career Teachers of Government Schools in the Indian State of Odisha
Authors: Apat Biswajit , Swain Pranaya
Published: May 2022

The Indian education system has remarkably improved in some respects in the last two decades. With the rapid expansion of educational facilities and increased enrolment of children in schools, the issue of access and participation has been addressed to a large extent. The problem of quality, however, still persists. Even after spending several years in school, many children are not acquiring basic literacy and numeracy. Reports indicate that children of the poor learn the least, and unsurprisingly, most of them study in government-run schools. While there are many factors of learning crisis, teachers are often held responsible for the deteriorating condition of government schools. A discourse of teacher criticism has emerged which portrays teachers as poorly trained, frequently absent, work-shy, hard-to-please, inefficient, ineffective, and occasionally corrupt. How does this discourse impact teachers’ self-understanding? This study analyses narrative data collected from seventeen early career teachers to understand their professional self-understanding. With the help of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, the study concludes that the popular perceptions of being work-shy, inept, and incompetent are contested by the teachers. On the contrary, there is some evidence to suggest that negotiating a positive professional identity has become a struggle for the participating teachers in the quest for becoming better teachers. While they tend to assert their effectiveness and commitment, they also experience helplessness, vulnerability, and humiliation. This research is expected to pave ways for further explorations of whether the discourse of teacher criticism negatively impacts experienced teachers as well and how teachers’ struggle for positive professional identity influences children’s learning outcomes.
Sex Differences in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus-Related Left Ventricular Remodeling: A Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Study
Authors: Shang Yongning , Zhang Yulin , Leng Weiling , Lei Xiaotian , Chen Liu , Zhou Xiaoyue , Liang Ziwen , Wang Jian
Published: May 2022

Background. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sex differences in myocardial structure, tissue characteristics, and myocardial function in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. Methods. A total of 62 T2DM patients and 40 controls were prospectively recruited for the study. All the participants were scanned using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) cine and underwent native and postcontrast T1 mapping to obtain left ventricular (LV) structure, function, and tissue characteristics. The differences between the control and T2DM patients were compared in males and females, respectively. Results. For myocardial structure, T2DM was associated with a larger ratio of myocardial mass to end-diastolic volume (MVR, T2DM:

0.87
±
0.20

vs. controls:

0.73
±
0.14

,

p
=
0.008

) and thicker wall thickness (WT, T2DM:

6.5
±
1.1

 mm vs. controls:

5.6
±
1.0

 mm,

p
=
0.002

) in females. For tissue characteristics, T2DM was associated with a similar T1 value, elevated extracellular volume fraction (ECV, T2DM:

27.8
±
3.6

% vs. controls:

25.1
±
2.5

%,

p
=
0.002

), and increased extracellular matrix volume index (ECMVi, T2DM:

15.8
±
3.8

 ml/m2 vs. controls:

13.4
±
2.7

 ml/m2,

p
=
0.008

) in males. For myocardial function, in male, compared with control, T2DM was associated with decreased peak longitudinal diastolic strain rate (PLDSR, T2DM:

0.97
±
0.19

1/s vs. control:

1.13
±
0.29

1/s,

p
=
0.030

). Conclusions. There might be sex differences in myocardial remodeling induced by T2DM, including LV structural concentric remodeling in female patients and extracellular matrix remodeling and subclinical diastolic dysfunction in male patients.
Texture Image Classification Based on Deep Learning and Wireless Sensor Technology
Authors: Chen Fengping , Qi Jianhua , Li Xinquan
Published: May 2022

The main purpose of the object detection process is to determine the category of the scene object and use the display 3D and 3D frame size. At present, in the case of 3D object detection, we can extract more accurate features by learning a large number of data, and this deep learning network has good results, but there is a very big problem, including the error of input information, extraction error, and so on. Therefore, solving the above problems has become an important direction to promote the rapid development of 3D target detection technology. This paper mainly studies the deep learning wireless sensor technology and also studies the deep learning infrared and visible image fusion. At the same time, based on the introduction of wireless sensor technology and research status, this paper summarizes the existing algorithms. Texture image classification is a more important visual cue in life. Because it will be affected by light intensity, noise size, image scale, and so on. This makes the classification and feature extraction of image scale and texture image more difficult. To solve these problems has become a hot topic of computer vision research in recent years. The shape of the point cloud is completed by using the 3D target detection method to complete the algorithm research. The radar point cloud is extracted by the 3D target detection method, and the radar point group of the overall shape of the object is obtained. The principal component analysis algorithm is used to extract the principal features of the radar point cloud with the complete shape of the object, and the more accurate 3D target frame is obtained after feature adjustment.
The Analysis of a Proposed Experiment to Measure the Speed of Gravity in Short Distances
Authors: Frajuca Carlos , da Silva Bortoli Fabio , Magalhaes Nadja Simao
Published: May 2022

In order to investigate the speed of gravitational signals travelling in air or through a different medium two experiments were designed. One of the experiments contains 2 masses rotating at very high speed and in the other experiment a sapphire bar will vibrate, in both cases they will emit a periodic tidal gravitational signal and one sapphire device that behaves as a detector, which are suspended in vacuum and cooled down to 4.2 K will act as a detector. The vibrational amplitude of the sapphire detector device is measured by an microwave signal with ultralow phase-noise that uses resonance in the whispering gallery modes inside the detector device. Sapphire has a quite high mechanical Q and electrical Q which implies a very narrow detection band thus reducing the detection sensitivity. A new detector shape for the detector device is presented in this work, yielding a detection band of about half of the device vibrational frequency. With the aid of a Finite Element Program the normal mode frequencies of the detector can be calculated with high precision. The results show a similar expected sensitivity between the two experimental setup, but the experiment with the vibration masses is more stable in frequency then it is chosen for the experimental setup to measure the speed of gravity in short distances. Then a more precise analysis is made with this experiment reaching a signal-noise ratio of 10 at a frequency of 5000 Hz.
OPTCLOUD: An Optimal Cloud Service Selection Framework Using QoS Correlation Lens
Authors: Kumar Rakesh Ranjan , Tomar Abhinav , Shameem Mohammad , Alam Md. Nasre
Published: May 2022

Cloud computing has grown as a computing paradigm in the last few years. Due to the explosive increase in the number of cloud services, QoS (quality of service) becomes an important factor in service filtering. Moreover, it becomes a nontrivial problem when comparing the functionality of cloud services with different performance metrics. Therefore, optimal cloud service selection is quite challenging and extremely important for users. In the existing approaches of cloud service selection, the user’s preferences are offered by the user in a quantitative form. With fuzziness and subjectivity, it is a hurdle task for users to express clear preferences. Moreover, many QoS attributes are not independent but interrelated; therefore, the existing weighted summation method cannot accommodate correlations among QoS attributes and produces inaccurate results. To resolve this problem, we propose a cloud service framework that takes the user’s preferences and chooses the optimal cloud service based on the user’s QoS constraints. We propose a cloud service selection algorithm, based on principal component analysis (PCA) and the best-worst method (BWM), which eliminates the correlations between QoS and provides the best cloud services with the best QoS values for users. In the end, a numerical example is shown to validate the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed methodology.
Combination of HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS, Network Pharmacology, and Molecular Docking to Reveal the Mechanism of Apple Pollen in the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Wang Yiwen , Chen Ping
Published: May 2022

Studies have found that apple pollen can restrain the activity of amylase. Therefore, we speculate that it may be prescribed to treat patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), while its chemical and pharmacologic profiles remain to be further explained. In this study, the potential bioactive compounds of apple pollen and the underlying mechanism of action were investigated by performing chemical and network pharmacology analysis. Therefore, HPLC-QTOF-MS/MS analysis based on chemical compound libraries was applied in identifying the chemical profiles of apple pollen and network pharmacology was adopted for predicting the potential targets of the active components of apple pollen. Initially, the chemical map of apple pollen was identified and characterized. Secondly, the potential targets of active compounds of apple pollen were predicted with the Swiss Target Prediction and PharmMapper databases, whereas targets of T2DM were collected from the GeneCards and OMIM database. Thereafter, the target of active compounds and T2DM targets established common targets using Venn. Afterwards, the common targets were imported into the STRING database in order to construct the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and select the core targets of apple pollen treatment of T2DM. In addition, GO and KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analyses were conducted on the selected core targets using the DAVID database. As a result, totally 28 compounds were identified. Meanwhile, network pharmacological analysis showed that 3-hydroxy-3-methyl glutaric acid, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, DL-3-phenyllactic acid, isorhamnetin-3-glucoside-4′-glucoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside, syringetin-3-O-galactoside, rhamnetin, m-coumaric acid, quercitrin, isorhamnetin-3-galactoside-6″-rhamnoside, and kaempferol-3-O-alpha-L-arabinoside might be the active compounds of apple pollen. Moreover, AKT1, PPARG, SRC, EGFR, CASP3, ESR1, and the other potential core targets might be involved in the treatment of T2DM by modulating the following pathways, containing insulin resistance, hepatitis C, pancreatic cancer, insulin signaling pathway, TNF signaling pathway, and PI3K-AKT signaling pathway. Quercitrin, kaempferol, and isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside bound most stably to AKT1. Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and quercitrin bound most stably to SRC. In addition, arachidonic acid bound most stably to PPARG.
Front-End Model of Wireless Network Combined with Artificial Intelligence in Computer Information Management System
Authors: Wang Yu
Published: May 2022

To address the security problem of computer information management, an artificial intelligence- (AI-) based information intrusion detection model is built in combination with wireless network. Firstly, the background and characteristics of wireless local area network (WLAN) technology are analyzed, and the relationship between AI technology and deep learning is introduced. Secondly, an intrusion detection model on account of long short-term memory (LSTM) neural network and gated recursive unit (GRU) is constructed after analysis of different neural network models. The L2 weight attenuation and dropout regularization strategies are combined with the neural network model. Finally, an intrusion detection front-end model combining wireless network and AI is established. From the comparison of intrusion detection experiments, the generalization ability of the model can be improved by using L2 weight attenuation and dropout regularization strategies. Nevertheless, the performance improvement is only slight, so the early stop method is adopted instead of the regularization strategy. Compared with the existing classification models, the overall performance of LSTM and GRU models is improved by about 17%. The performance of GRU model is not much different from that of LSTM model, but the amount of computation is reduced. Therefore, GRU model is the optimal choice to construct intrusion detection system. The intrusion detection models in WLAN and GRU can improve the security performance of computer information management system. To sum up, this work provides reference for the development of computer management system.
Impact of Land Cover Changes on the Wetland Ecosystem Water Environment Using Soft Computing Methods
Authors: Cai Wenming , Liu Xue , Zhang Dapeng , Akter Farzana
Published: May 2022

Economic growth is accelerating in the entire world due to new inventions and advancements in the field of science and technology. The technology is progressing at a rapid pace and resulting in the infrastructure and technical progression of each nation. The utilization rate of land in the world has also increased substantially where the cultivated land is used for the development of industries and buildings. This land occupancy is alarming for the environment, and it is impacting the ecosystem of the earth in many adverse ways. In this study, the impact of land cover changes on the wetland ecosystem water environment has been studied in depth using soft computing techniques. The water environment data of the wetland ecosystem are obtained from real-world scenario and are mined using a particle swarm K-means clustering approach based on chaos search. The water environment assessment approach is used to analyze the influence of land cover changes on the water environment of the wetland ecosystem. The findings of this research work reveal that the cultivated land in the wetland is steadily decreasing, and the fertile forestland is steadily decreasing in the early stages and gradually increasing in the latter stages. The wetland water quality is gradually degrading over the period of time. The outcomes of the study demonstrate that a nonpoint source of pollution produced by land-use changes is the most important factor, which is affecting water quality. The analytical results’ accuracy is as high as 0.98 when compared to the real-world circumstances.
Intelligent Tomographic Microwave Imaging for Breast Tumor Localization
Authors: Mehedi Ibrahim M. , Rao K. Prahlad , Al-Saggaf Ubaid M. , Alkanfery Hadi Mohsen , Bettayeb Maamar , Jannat Rahtul
Published: May 2022

Researchers are continuously exploring the potential use of microwave imaging in the early detection of breast cancer. The technique offers a promising alternative to mammography, a standard clinical imaging procedure today. The contrast in dielectric properties between normal and cancerous tissues makes microwave imaging a viable technique for detecting breast cancer. Experimental results are presented in this paper that demonstrate the detection of breast cancer using microwaves operating at 2.4 GHz. The procedure involves antenna fabrication, phantom tissue development, and image reconstruction. Design and fabrication of patch antenna are used in the study, described in detail. The patch antenna pair is used for transmitting and receiving source waves. Tissue mimicking models were developed from paraffin wax and glycerin for the dielectric constants of 9 and 47, respectively, representing the tissue and tumor. Further, AI-based tomographic images were obtained by implementing a filtered back-projection algorithm in the computer. In the results, the presence of the tumor is quantitatively analyzed.
Biosynthesis of Selenium Nanoparticles and Evaluation of Its Antibacterial Activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Shakeri Fatemeh , Zaboli Fatemeh , Fattahi Esmail , Babavalian Hamid
Published: May 2022

Background. A fundamental component of innate immunity is represented by skin that acts as a first aid against infection. The skin’s epithelial barriers, respiratory tract, and eyes directly contacting with the external environment have incremented the probability of infection. The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes various infections in immunocompromised hosts. In addition, one-third of P. aeruginosa clinical isolates are resistant to three or more antibiotics. Lately, lots of researchers concentrate on halophilic microorganisms due to affordable novel biomolecules. One of these biomolecules is metal nanoparticles. MNPs exhibited antimicrobial functionality against a variety of microbes. Amidst MNPs, SeNPs are one of the most extensively studied. In this study, halophilic bacteria from solar saltern were employed for the biosynthesis of SeNPs. Aim. This study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial properties of SeNPs which are synthesized by halophilic microorganisms. Result. The NPs were synthesized by Halomonas eurihalina intracellularly. The produced SeNPs were identified through various assays such as UV-Vis spectroscopy, XRD, DLS, FTIR, and SEM. UV-Vis spectroscopy confirmed the presence of SeNPs. In addition, the average particle size of SeNPs was 260 nm. FTIR confirmed the presence of the capping agent to inhibit the aggregation of SeNPs. Also, synthesized selenium nanoparticles have a natural crystalline nature that is verified by XRD. SEM also revealed the spherical shape. Furthermore, SeNPs represented significant antibacterial activity against P. aeruginosa. Conclusion. According to the obtained result, biosynthesized SeNPs demonstrated remarkable characteristics that make them profitable nonantibiotics and also decrease the morbidity and mortality associated with tissue infections.