bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Alpha decay and spontaneous fission in superheavy isotopes, Z = 124, using a density-dependent cluster model
Authors: Seyyedi S. A.
Published: December 2020

Alpha decay (AD) and spontaneous fission (SF) half-lives of superheavy nuclei [Formula: see text] have been studied within the density-dependent cluster model. The alpha-nucleus potentials were calculated using the double-folding model with the realistic M3Y nucleon–nucleon interaction. To calculate nuclear half-lives, several semi-empirical formulas were used in addition to the Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin (WKB) approximation. The calculated AD half-lives agree well with the values computed by the analytical formulas of Royer, the semi-empirical formula of Poenaru et al. and the Viola–Seaborg systematic. To identify the mode of decay of these nuclei, the SF half-lives were calculated using the semi-empirical formula given by Xu et al. The results show that among the isotopes studied, isotopes [Formula: see text] can be survived from the SF and have a half-life greater than [Formula: see text][Formula: see text](s). The study predicts [Formula: see text] chains from isotopes [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] chains from isotopes [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] chains from isotopes [Formula: see text] and an AD from [Formula: see text]. These isotopes have a half-life long enough to be synthesized in the laboratory. Also, in the decay chains of these isotopes, it is observed that the nuclei [Formula: see text] have higher half-lives than their neighbors. The neutron numbers corresponding to these isotopes are [Formula: see text] indicating the magical or semi-magical behavior of these numbers, which is in good agreement with the research results.
Feasibility and utility of intraoperative optical coherence tomography during vitreoretinal surgery: A 4-year report in Chinese population
Authors: Tao Jiwei , Chen Huan , Yu Jiafeng , Cheng Dan , Chen Yiqi , Mao Jianbo , Fang Jia , Shen Lijun
Published: December 2020

Purpose: To introduce the application of intraoperative optical coherence tomography (iOCT) in pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) for various vitreoretinal diseases, and to report the 4-year assessment of feasibility and utility in Chinese population. Methods: Retrospective case series of patients who underwent PPV and iOCT scan at Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical College from January 2016 to January 2020. Clinical characteristics were documented before operation, and we intraoperatively recorded the time and results of iOCT scanning, specific surgical maneuvers performed, the consistency with the planned strategies before surgery, the type of OCT images obtained, and adverse events (AEs). The surgeon feedback was collected to evaluate the utility of iOCT during surgery. Results: In total 339 eyes successfully completed iOCT scan, with an average scanning time of [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]min, including 59 cases of idiopathic macular hole (iMH), 134 cases of idiopathic epiretinal membrane (iERM), 33 cases of lamellar macular hole (LMH), 40 cases of high myopic maculopathy, 13 cases of vitreous macular traction (VMT), 60 cases of dense vitreous hemorrhage (VH). The iOCT findings were not consistent with examination under the operating microscope in 49 cases (14.5%), including 29 cases (8.6%) which changed the operation strategies during surgery. The Hole-door phenomenon arose in 20 cases (33.9%) of iMH and 3 cases (25%) of high myopic MH after ILMs peeling. Moreover, the residue ERM was observed in nine cases (6.7%) of iERM and two cases (14.3%) in high myopic ERM after ILMs peeling. Some new surgical methods could also be confirmed using iOCT. Conclusion: The application of iOCT has a significant clinical functionality in vitreoretinal surgery, providing the surgeon with a new surgical understanding, guiding the selection of a more reasonable operative procedure during surgery, predicting postoperative recovery and improving postoperative outcomes.
Highly improved electrical and photoelectrical properties of electro-deposited p-type cuprous oxide
Authors: Wu G. , Zhang Y. , Zhang W. , Jin D. , Wang L.
Published: December 2020

In this work, the effect of annealing on the electrical and optical properties of electro-deposited [Formula: see text]-type cuprous oxide was studied in detail. It is found that the flat band potential linearly increased with annealing temperature and the carrier concentration was improved from 6.56 × 10[Formula: see text] cm[Formula: see text] to 23.3 × 10[Formula: see text] cm[Formula: see text]. The photocurrent intensity of cuprous oxide was improved from 12.1 [Formula: see text]A to 106.6 [Formula: see text]A after annealing. The dramatically improved electrical and photoelectrical properties might be ascribed to the highly improved crystallinity and the lower surface defect density caused by annealing.
Robust Person Re-Identification Through the Combination of Metric Learning and Late Fusion Techniques
Authors: Nguyen Hong-Quan , Nguyen Thuy-Binh , Le Thi-Lan
Published: December 2020

Fusion techniques with the aim to leverage the discriminative power of different appearance features for person representation have been widely applied in person re-identification. They are performed by concatenating all feature vectors (known as early fusion) or by combining matching scores of different classifiers (known as late fusion). Previous studies have proved that late fusion techniques achieve better results than early fusion ones. However, majority of the studies focus on determining the suitable weighting schemes that can reflect the role of each feature. The determined weights are then integrated in conventional similarity functions, such as Cosine [L. Zheng, S. Wang, L. Tian, F. He, Z. Liu and Q. Tian, Queryadaptive late fusion for image search and person reidentification, in Proc. IEEE Conf. Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, 2015, pp. 1741–1750]. The contribution of this paper is two-fold. First, a robust person re-identification method by combining the metric learning with late fusion techniques is proposed. The metric learning method Cross-view Quadratic Discriminant Analysis (XQDA) is employed to learn a discriminant low dimensional subspace to minimize the intra-person distance while maximize the inter-person distance. Moreover, product rule-based and sum rule-based late fusion techniques are applied on these distances. Second, concerning feature engineering, the ResNet extraction process has been modified in order to extract local features of different stripes in person images. To show the effectiveness of the proposed method, both single-shot and multi-shot scenarios are considered. Three state-of-the-art features that are Gaussians of Gaussians (GOG), Local Maximal Occurrence (LOMO) and deep-learned features extracted through a Residual network (ResNet) are extracted from person images. The experimental results on three benchmark datasets that are iLIDS-VID, PRID-2011 and VIPeR show that the proposed method [Formula: see text]% [Formula: see text]% of improvement over the best results obtained with the single feature. The proposed method that achieves the accuracy of 85.73%, 93.82% and 50.85% at rank-1 for iLIDS-VID, PRID-2011 and VIPeR, respectively, outperforms different SOTA methods including deep learning ones. Source code is publicly available to facilitate the development of person re-ID system.
The Role of Epigenetic Mechanisms in B Cell Lymphoma Pathogenesis
Authors: Venturutti Leandro , Melnick Ari M.
Published: December 2020

The capacity of the adaptive immune system to respond to antigenic challenges relies on rapid diversification, expansion, and functional specialization of mature B cells. To accomplish this, activated B cells are transiently endowed with phenotypes that would normally be suppressed in somatic cells, such as enhanced proliferative potential and tolerance for genomic instability. Acquisition of these traits, directed by immune signaling cues and orchestrated by transcriptional and epigenetic programs, sets the stage for malignant transformation, often due to somatic mutations targeting epigenetic machinery in B cell lymphomas. This review examines how such mutations hack the epigenome to reprogram the immune response in such a way as to facilitate the emergence of malignant traits, suppress immune surveillance, and ultimately drive transformation and progression of a diverse spectrum of B cell lymphomas. Importantly, these novel mechanisms reveal vulnerabilities that can be harnessed using new forms of epigenetic therapy.
When a House Is Not a Home: A Survey of Antimetastatic Niches and Potential Mechanisms of Disseminated Tumor Cell Suppression
Authors: Crist Sarah B. , Ghajar Cyrus M.
Published: December 2020

Over the last four decades, the cancer biology field has concentrated on cellular and microenvironmental drivers of metastasis. Despite this focus, mortality rates upon diagnosis of metastatic disease remain essentially unchanged. Would a small change in perspective help? Knowing what constitutes an inhospitable, rather than hospitable, microenvironment could provide the inspiration necessary to develop better therapies and preventative strategies. In this review, we canvas the literature for hints about what characteristics four common antimetastatic niches—skeletal muscle, spleen, thyroid, and yellow bone marrow—have in common. We posit that thorough molecular and mechanistic characterization of antimetastatic tissues may inspire reimagined therapies that inhibit metastatic development and/or progression in an enduring manner.
Selective Permeation of Dysprosium Through an Alloy Diaphragm in Molten Chloride Systems
Authors: Oishi Tetsuo , Yaguchi Miki , Katasho Yumi , Konishi Hirokazu , Nohira Toshiyuki
Published: December 2020

To develop a new separation technique for rare earth (RE) elements based on alloy diaphragms and molten salt electrolysis, a permeation experiment was conducted in LiCl–KCl eutectic melts containing RECl3 (RE = Dy, Nd, and La, 0.5 mol%) at 450 °C. In this technique, the alloy diaphragm functions as a bipolar electrode and RE ions permeate via three steps: (a) reduction of RE ions to form alloys on the anolyte side of the diaphragm, (b) diffusion of RE atoms in the diaphragm, and (c) oxidation of RE atoms to dissolve into the catholyte on the other side of the diaphragm. The experiment indicated that Dy selectively permeated through the alloy diaphragm consisting of RENi2. The permeated Dy/Nd molar ratio was ∼5, which was mainly determined by the selective alloy formation on the anolyte side of the diaphragm. However, the obtained Dy/Nd ratio was lower than that suggested by the preliminary experiment, in which a Ni substrate was simply alloyed in a LiCl–KCl–NdCl3–DyCl3 melt. Scanning electron microscopy observation and energy dispersive X-ray analysis of the diaphragm revealed that the lower selectivity compared to the preliminary experiment was attributable to the high diffusion rate of Nd atoms inside the alloy diaphragm.
A Novel PSO-Based Optimized Lightweight Convolution Neural Network for Movements Recognizing from Multichannel Surface Electromyogram
Authors: Kan Xiu , Yang Dan , Cao Le , Shu Huisheng , Li Yuanyuan , Yao Wei , Zhang Xiafeng
Published: December 2020

As the medium of human-computer interaction, it is crucial to correctly and quickly interpret the motion information of surface electromyography (sEMG). Deep learning can recognize a variety of sEMG actions by end-to-end training. However, most of the existing deep learning approaches have complex structures and numerous parameters, which make the network optimization problem difficult to realize. In this paper, a novel PSO-based optimized lightweight convolution neural network (PLCNN) is designed to improve the accuracy and optimize the model with applications in sEMG signal movement recognition. With the purpose of reducing the structural complexity of the deep neural network, the designed convolution neural network model is mainly composed of three convolution layers and two full connection layers. Meanwhile, the particle swarm optimization (PSO) is used to optimize hyperparameters and improve the autoadaptive ability of the designed sEMG pattern recognition model. To further indicate the potential application, three experiments are designed according to the progressive process of body movements with respect to the Ninapro standard data set. Experiment results demonstrate that the proposed PLCNN recognition method is superior to the four other popular classification methods.
The Influence of Marital Status on the Survival of Patients with Uveal Melanoma
Authors: Cai Wenting , Fan Jiaqi , Shen Tianyi , Yu Jing
Published: December 2020

Background. Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular tumor in adults and arises from the uvea. Marital status was a vital factor among physical conditions and social networks of cancer patients. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of marital status on the outcomes among patients with UM. Methods. Patients with UM newly diagnosed from 2004 to 2015 were extracted, and the data were extracted from Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program. Overall survival (OS) was measured via the log-rank test, as well as cancer-specific survival (CSS) was also calculated via the same method. Cox proportional hazards models were applied to assess whether marital status was related to both OS and CSS. Furthermore, we performed subgroup analysis depending on different sexes and SEER stages. Results. In total, 4217 eligible patients were involved. Of these patients, 66.2% (n = 2793) were married, 14.6% (n = 615) were single, and 9.0% (n = 379) were divorced or separated, as well as widowed were 10.2% (n = 430). The 5-year OS of married, single, divorced or separated, and widowed patients was 74.0%, 72.8%, 68.6%, and 55.8%, respectively. The results indicating better OS and CSS occurred among married patients. Other factors such as sex, age at diagnosis, and SEER stage were also correlated with survival in UM patients. Furthermore, subgroup analyses were consistent with the results above. Conclusion. Marital status was proved to be an independent prognostic value for survival in UM patients. In addition, contrast to married patients, widowed individuals showed poor OS and CSS at different subgroup analyses.
Neuroprotective Effect of Syringic Acid by Modulation of Oxidative Stress and Mitochondrial Mass in Diabetic Rats
Authors: Rashedinia Marzieh , Alimohammadi Mahshid , Shalfroushan Nazgol , Khoshnoud Mohammad Javad , Mansourian Mitra , Azarpira Negar , Sabahi Zahra
Published: December 2020

Diabetes is a metabolic complaint associated with oxidative stress and dysfunction of mitochondria. One of the most common complications of diabetes mellitus is neuropathy. This study evaluated the possible neuroprotective effects of syringic acid (SYR), a natural polyphenolic derivative of benzoic acid, on oxidative damage and mitochondria in the brain, spinal cord, and sciatic nerve of streptozotocin‐induced diabetic rats. Different groups of rats including normal control, diabetics (induced by streptozotocin), diabetic groups treated with 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg of SYR, and non‐diabetic group treated with only 100 mg/kg of SYR were treated for 6 weeks. Learning and memory function, physical coordination, and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and antioxidant indexes, as well as mRNA expression of mitochondrial biogenesis, were measured in the brain, spinal cord, and sciatic nerves. Diabetic rats treated with 100 mg/kg SYR exhibited significantly improved learning, memory, and movement deficiency (p < 0.05). SYR 100 mg/kg also significantly upregulated the brain mRNA expression of PGC‐1α and NRF‐1, the key regulators of energy metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, and mitochondrial biogenesis. In addition, SYR 100 mg/kg and SYR 50 mg/kg increased the mtDNA/nDNA ratio in the brain and the spinal cord of diabetic rats, respectively (p < 0.05). SYR attenuated the lipid peroxidation in all the tissues, but not significant effects were observed on GSH, AChE, catalase, and superoxide dismutase activity. In all the tests, nonsignificant differences were observed between the control and SYR 100 mg/kg groups. Moreover, SYR reduced inflammation and demyelination in sciatic nerves. This is the first study to reveal the regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis and energy metabolism by SYR, beyond its antioxidant role in the diabetic rats’ brain and spinal tissues.
A Review of Cocoa Drying Technologies and the Effect on Bean Quality Parameters
Authors: Dzelagha Banboye Frederick , Ngwa Ngwabie Martin , Nde Bup Divine
Published: December 2020

Considering drying as a key farm-based, quality determining unit operation in the cocoa processing chain, this paper reviews recent studies in the drying methods and quality parameters of cocoa beans. Open sun, solar, oven, microwave, and freeze drying methods have been investigated at various levels in the drying of cocoa beans with objectives to improve the drying properties and final quality of cocoa beans. While an open sun dryer employs natural passive mechanisms, the solar drying methods can employ a combination of passive and active mechanisms. The oven, microwave, and freeze drying methods are fully active requiring electrical energy inputs. To improve drying rates in the open sun method, dryer materials and location of drying trays are the parameters optimized since the drying temperature depends on solar intensity. For solar dryers, materials, angles of elevation, heaters, and fans are manipulated to optimize energy absorption and drying parameters. For the oven and microwave methods, drying air properties are directly controlled by electronic systems. Moisture content, mouldiness, bean colour, pH, titratable acidity, fat content, and acetic acid concentration are the most widely evaluated bean quality parameters.
Assessing the Correlation between Malaria Case Mortality Rates and Access to Health Facilities in the Malaria Region of Vhembe District, South Africa
Authors: Coetzer Ryno Harm , Adeola Abiodun Morakinyo
Published: December 2020

Background. Local villages in the Vhembe district of South Africa have experienced high malaria infection rates and a high variability of malaria case mortality rates over the past 20 years. This research project sets out to determine if specific socioeconomic factors have influence on the varying malaria case mortality rates. Methods. The study used existing malaria records of all reported malaria cases in the Vhembe district between 1998 and 2017. The data set was sampled using maximum variation sampling combined with a stratified sampling approach to select the source locations with the highest reported variations in malaria case mortality. The number of medical facilities used, distances to the medical facilities, and proximity to significant water sources were subsequently spatially and statistically analysed for potential correlations between these factors and the malaria case fatality rates of the source locations. Results. Within the period of study, a total of 57,974 malaria infections were reported from 850 source locations across the villages and neighbourhoods. The result of the sampling methods gave 30 source locations with highest reported variations in malaria case mortality. The statistical analysis indicated a significant negative correlation between the case mortality rates and the number of medical facilities used, the number of infections reported, and the maximum and mean distances travelled to the medical facilities used. In addition, the analysis indicated a positive correlation between the minimum distances travelled to the medical facilities used and the case mortality rates. The spatial analysis supported the majority of the findings from the statistical analysis. Proximity to significant water bodies was not found to have any significant impact on case mortality rates. Conclusion. The results suggested that malaria patients from larger communities, those who had financial or other means to consult more advanced facilities, or those with a larger variety of services had a significantly lower risk of mortality. The findings of this study could assist societies and authorities in mitigating the negative effects of malaria infections on human life expectancies through improved socioeconomic development.
Melatonin Suppresses Ferroptosis Induced by High Glucose via Activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 Signaling Pathway in Type 2 Diabetic Osteoporosis
Authors: Ma Hongdong , Wang Xindong , Zhang Weilin , Li Haitian , Zhao Wei , Sun Jun , Yang Maowei
Published: December 2020

Ferroptosis is recently identified, an iron- and reactive oxygen species- (ROS-) dependent form of regulated cell death. This study was designed to determine the existence of ferroptosis in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetic osteoporosis and confirm that melatonin can inhibit the ferroptosis of osteoblasts through activating Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway to improve bone microstructure in vivo and in vitro. We treated MC3T3-E1 cells with different concentrations of melatonin (1, 10, or 100 μM) and exposed them to high glucose (25.5 mM) for 48 h in vitro. Our data showed that high glucose can induce osteoblast cytotoxicity and the accumulation of lipid peroxide, the mitochondria of osteoblast show the same morphology changes as the erastin treatment group, and the expression of ferroptosis-related proteins glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and cystine-glutamate antiporter (SLC7A11) is downregulated, but these effects were reversed by ferroptosis inhibitor ferrastatin-1 and iron chelator deferoxamine (DFO). Furthermore, western blot and real-time polymerase chain reaction were used to detect the expression levels of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1); osteogenic capacity was evaluated by alizarin red S staining and the expression of osteoprotegerin, osteocalcin, and alkaline phosphatase; the results showed that the expression levels of these proteins in osteoblasts with 1, 10, or 100 μM melatonins were significantly higher than the high glucose group, but after using Nrf2-SiRNA interference, the therapeutic effect of melatonin was significantly inhibited. We also performed in vivo experiments in a diabetic rat model treated with two concentrations of melatonin (10, 50 mg/kg). Dynamic bone histomorphometry and micro-CT were used to observe the rat bone microstructure, and the expression of GPX4 and Nrf2 was determined by immunohistochemistry. Here, we first report that high glucose induces ferroptosis via increased ROS/lipid peroxidation/glutathione depletion in type 2 diabetic osteoporosis. More importantly, melatonin significantly reduced the level of ferroptosis and improved the osteogenic capacity of MC3T3-E1 through activating the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in vivo and in vitro.
Online Parameter Identification and State of Charge Estimation of Battery Based on Multitimescale Adaptive Double Kalman Filter Algorithm
Authors: Duan Wenxian , Song Chuanxue , Chen Yuan , Xiao Feng , Peng Silun , Shao Yulong , Song Shixin
Published: December 2020

An accurate state of charge (SOC) can provide effective judgment for the BMS, which is conducive for prolonging battery life and protecting the working state of the entire battery pack. In this study, the first-order RC battery model is used as the research object and two parameter identification methods based on the least square method (RLS) are analyzed and discussed in detail. The simulation results show that the model parameters identified under the Federal Urban Driving Schedule (HPPC) condition are not suitable for the Federal Urban Driving Schedule (FUDS) condition. The parameters of the model are not universal through the HPPC condition. A multitimescale prediction model is also proposed to estimate the SOC of the battery. That is, the extended Kalman filter (EKF) is adopted to update the model parameters and the adaptive unscented Kalman filter (AUKF) is used to predict the battery SOC. The experimental results at different temperatures show that the EKF-AUKF method is superior to other methods. The algorithm is simulated and verified under different initial SOC errors. In the whole FUDS operating condition, the RSME of the SOC is within 1%, and that of the voltage is within 0.01 V. It indicates that the proposed algorithm can obtain accurate estimation results and has strong robustness. Moreover, the simulation results after adding noise errors to the current and voltage values reveal that the algorithm can eliminate the sensor accuracy effect to a certain extent.
Metal Roof Fault Diagnosis Method Based on RBF-SVM
Authors: Yang Liman , Su Lianming , Wang Yixuan , Jiang Haifeng , Yang Xueyao , Li Yunhua , Shen Dongkai , Wang Na
Published: December 2020

Metal roof enclosure system is an important part of steel structure construction. In recent years, it has been widely used in large-scale public or industrial buildings such as stadiums, airport terminals, and convention centers. Affected by bad weather, various types of accidents on metal roofs frequently occurred, causing huge property losses and adverse effects. Because of wide span, long service life and hidden fault of metal roof, the manual inspection of metal roof has low efficiency, poor real-time performance, and it is difficult to find hidden faults. On the basis of summarizing the working principle of metal roof and cause of accidents, this paper classifies the fault types of metal roofs in detail and establishes a metal roof monitoring and fault diagnosis system using distributed multisource heterogeneous sensors and Zigbee wireless sensor networks. Monitoring data from strain gauge, laser ranging sensor, and ultrasonic ranging sensor is utilized comprehensively. By extracting time domain feature, the data trend characteristics and correlation characteristics are analyzed and fused to eliminate erroneous data and find superficial faults such as sensor drift and network interruption. Aiming to the hidden faults including plastic deformation and bolt looseness, an SVM fault diagnosis algorithm based on RBF kernel function is designed and applied to diagnose metal roof faults. The experimental results show that the RBF-SVM algorithm can achieve high classification accuracy.
Tourist Intentions to Visit or Revisit Archaeological Sites in Pakistan
Authors: Ashraf Jawaria , Ali Sumran , Nawaz Muhammad Asim , Ghufran Muhammad
Published: December 2020

This study contributes to the literature on archaeological tourism by investigating the impact of psychological distance on tourist’s continuity to visit or revisit the archaeological sites. Recent trends show tourist preferred to visit the natural beauty and modern art instead of archaeological sites. Archaeologist encounters a considerable amount of difficulties when they try to operate on economic and sites protection fronts simultaneously. This study has relied on construal level theory to determine the tourist intentions to visit or revisit the archaeological sites in different time contrast and social proximity with identity centrality and gender diversity. For this study, 868 responses were collected from tourists using a structured questionnaire and analysed by structural equation modelling. The study establishes the role of psychological distance, which offers a clear plan to the tourist to visit or revisit archaeological sites by understanding their religious, social, and historical connection to them. This research also provides a dynamic way of thinking for archaeologists, policy makers, and the managing institutions to assist the tourist to visit or revisit archaeological sites through using social ties and time-spans as unique alternatives. The notable findings of this study open the door for future research to bridge the economic and social aspects with site preservation and capacity parameters.
Esoteric Writing through Historical Allusions
Authors: Chiu Yi-hsuan
Published: December 2020

This paper investigates the poetry of Qu Xuanying, a literatus who remained in the city of Beiping (now Beijing) following its occupation by the Japanese in 1937. Through historical allusions in his poetry, Qu communicated with friends about the ethical dilemmas that he faced under occupation, and reflected upon the choices that literati in earlier eras had made when facing dynastic transitions and foreign conquest. Qu’s ‘esoteric writing’ during the occupation contained a complex set of historical allusions which referenced various points in the Chinese past. Since Qu served in the collaborationist north China regime, he has often been perceived as a ‘traitor’ or a ‘collaborator’. Through this in-depth analysis of his literary works, however, this paper seeks to reveal the special exegetical strategies adopted by literati such as Qu under occupation.
A Historian’s Ethical Duty
Authors: Yuan Yidan
Published: December 2020

In the wake of Japan’s occupation of Beiping (now Beijing) in 1937, the historian Chen Yuan’s choice between staying in or leaving the city (which would imply accommodation or resistance) was regarded not merely as a personal decision but also as a symbolic stance for the ethical principles of the Chinese intelligentsia. Based on a close reading of Chen’s historical writings during the Japanese occupation, this paper focuses on the inner world of this historian, and argues that a salient rhetorical feature of Chen’s wartime work was its role as a mechanism which he referred to as ‘illuminating the subtle’. This involved historical facts being cited and interpreted in a way that demonstrated the historian’s attitude and feelings towards contemporary events. It is proposed that the ‘illumination of the subtle’ is not accepted at face value as academic research, but rather that it is treated as a rhetorical device, in order to understand the inner logic and dynamism of this expressive mechanism.
Naming the Unnamable
Authors: Stock Wiebke-Marie
Published: December 2020

In On Divine Names the Christian neoplatonist Dionysius the Areopagite (~500 AD) develops a philosophical mode in which the form of the text follows from and advances his topic. This has not been recognized mostly because modern philosophical treatises have followed primarily the expository line of the text. However, Dionysius’ topic here, how properly to name God or as he would put it more broadly, how to praise God (hymnein), requires a technique of a certain indirection. In short, the reader cannot be led by argument alone to appropriate naming of the divine. Instead, the reader is led to a performative, almost liturgical philosophizing. This paper will consider in particular Dionysius’ opening chapters that serve to orient the reader to such a performative mode and to Dionysius’ modification of neoplatonic thinking on naming the divine.
The Academic Historiography of the Crusades and the Twenty-First Century Debate on Religious Violence
Authors: Cotts John D.
Published: December 2020

21st-century journalists, politicians, and terrorists have found the crusades to be a remarkably versatile point of reference when they consider religiously articulated violence in the modern world. This article will explore how recent academic historiography relates to and can better inform modern debates about geopolitics, the role of religion in political life, as well as the broader question of how scholars can meaningfully participate in those debates. Historians need to walk a fine line between taking religious experience seriously while also rejecting simple explanations that see religion as especially culpable in inspiring violence, and that portray such violence as an irrational return to the “medieval”. The various sections of the article provide a few key examples of recent controversies over religious violence, and situate both traditional and recent crusades historiography within a contemporary political context. It will be argued here that recent crusades scholarship has provided nuanced and dynamic accounts of crusading piety that can be used to reject simplistic explanations of religious violence as pre-modern, and as inherent in particular faith traditions.
Study of Methane Production by High Temperature Anaerobic Fermentation of Chicken Manure and Stalks
Authors: Li Yongku , Hu Xiaomin , Feng Lei
Published: December 2020

The changing parameters, as the biogas production rate, the methane production rate, the cumulative biogas amount, the cumulative methane amount, the biogas composition, pH etc. in high temperature anaerobic fermentation of chicken manure and stalks were analyzed by experiments with
different mass ratios of chicken manure or livestock manure and stalks with a high C/N ratio. The methane production mechanism of high temperature anaerobic digestion of chicken manure and stalks was discussed in detail. It showed that not only the biogas production rates but also the
methane production rates of R1–R7 demonstrated the trend of initial increase and then decrease after 50 d of high temperature anaerobic digestion. Besides, the gas production of R1 with pure chicken manure stopped on the 30th d of the reaction. The gas production of other groups
R2–R7 also stopped on the corresponding 34th, 36th, 36th, 37th, 37th, and 37th day, respectively. At the end of the reaction, the cumulative biogas amounts and the cumulative methane amounts of R1–R7 were 411.58 and 269.54, 459.91 and 314.41, 425.32 and 294.11, 401.85 and 272.54,
382.63 and 257.07, 363.04 and 218.16, and 257.15 and 160.10 N ml/(g VS). The biogas slurry pH of R1–R7 all demonstrated a trend of initial decrease and then increase, e. g., pH of R2 reached the minimum of 5.94 on the 5th day. pH values of other groups were between 6.01 and 6.39. After
the addition of 4 g of sodium bicarbonate on the 7th day, biogas slurry pH of R1–R7 all increased. pH was maintained between 7.16 and 7.44 until the end of the reaction.
Recycling of Black Liquor Generated from Cellulosic Ethanol Process for Plant Growth
Authors: Song Changzhong , Zhang Bowen , Wang Wen , Tan Xuesong , Zahoor  , Zhou Guixiong , Zhang Quan , Wang Qingfeng , Ku Song , Zhuang Xinshu
Published: December 2020

The alkaline pretreatment has the advantages of low energy input and atmospheric pressure to highly enhance the conversion of lignocellulose to ethanol. However, the black liquor from the process would pollute the environment, which hinders its industrial application. This study selected
the potassium hydroxide (KOH) as the alkaline reagent for lignocellulosic pretreatment and investigated the feasibility of recycling the black liquor (BL) as molecular bio-activator for plant growth. After optimization of KOH pretreatment, the enzymatic saccharification efficiency of rice
straw achieved to 86.6% under the optimum condition of 2% KOH, 15:1 of liquid–solid ratio, 70 °C for 1 h. The ethanol production and conversion ratio was 32.24 g/L and 53.0% respectively at 20% solid loading. The tobacco cultured in the nutrient solution with BL was more luxuriant
than that without BL, of which the dry weight of plant increased 367% and the leaf area increment of tobacco was about 2∼4 times than the control after 30 days. Thus this study provided a promising way to accelerate the industrialization of alkaline pretreatment for cellulosic ethanol
production.
Effect of Activation Pretreatment on the Pyrolysis Behavior of Sludge
Authors: Luo Siyi , Liu Lin , Song Yanggang , Fang Ling , Wang Junzhi , Zuo Zongliang , Xiang Lan , Bing Huilin , Peng Bo
Published: December 2020

In the present research, TG and FTIR were used to study the effect of chemical activation pretreatment on sludge pyrolysis. The results showed that both acidic and alkaline activation promoted sludge pyrolysis. KOH inhibited the elimination of crystallization water and promoted the
release of volatiles. On the other hand, H2SO4 favored the separation of crystallization water and the release of volatiles. Low concentrations of the activator promoted the production of combustible gas and inhibited the generation of CO2. By analyzing the
activation energy of the pyrolysis process using the Coats-Redfern method, it was found that both, KOH and H2SO4, were able to reduce the pyrolysis activation energy. When H2SO4 was used, the effect was more significant.
Hepatoprotective Effects of Plumbago zeylanica L., A Folk Medicine from Southwest China
Authors: Zhao Xiangpei , Chen Shaofeng , Zhong Wen , Li Huachun , Yu Shengmin
Published: December 2020

Plumbago zeylanica L. (PZ) is a folk medicine for liver damage. To further explore its mechanism of action, a rat model of liver injury induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) was used to evaluate the protective effect of PZ water extract (PZE). The results showed that
PZE normalized the CCl4-induced serum levels of liver function index, hyaluronic acid (HA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), and decreased the hydroxyproline (Hyp) level in liver tissue. PZE also reduced the histological injuries induced by CCl4. In
conclusion, these data demonstrated the hepatoprotective activities of PZE that may be related to its antioxidant properties.
Hypergraph Clustering Based on Game-Theory for Mining Microbial High-Order Interaction Module
Authors: Yu Limin , Shen Xianjun , Yang Jincai , Wei Kaiping , Zhong Duo , Xiang Ruilong
Published: December 2020

Microbial community is ubiquitous in nature, which has a great impact on the living environment and human health. All these effects of microbial communities on the environment and their hosts are often referred to as the functions of these communities, which depend largely on the composition of the communities. The study of microbial higher-order module can help us understand the dynamic development and evolution process of microbial community and explore community function. Considering that traditional clustering methods depend on the number of clusters or the influence of data that does not belong to any cluster, this paper proposes a hypergraph clustering algorithm based on game theory to mine the microbial high-order interaction module (HCGI), and the hypergraph clustering problem naturally turns into a clustering game problem, the partition of network modules is transformed into finding the critical point of evolutionary stability strategy (ESS). The experimental results show HCGI does not depend on the number of classes, and can get more conservative and better quality microbial clustering module, which provides reference for researchers and saves time and cost. The source code of HCGI in this paper can be downloaded from https://github.com/ylm0505/HCGI .
Constrained choices: Exploring the complexities of adolescent girls’ voice and agency in child marriage decisions in Ethiopia
Authors: Jones Nicola , Presler-Marshall Elizabeth , Kassahun Guday , Kebede Hateu Meti
Published: December 2020

Ethiopia has recently seen a remarkable fall in the proportion of girls who marry in early adolescence, reflecting the country’s lauded efforts to tackle child marriage. However, aggregate national figures mask a more complex reality. This article explores this complexity, drawing on qualitative data with adolescent girls and boys, their caregivers, service providers and community leaders, from the Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) longitudinal study baseline. Our findings highlight the complex interplay between cultural norms, economic factors, individual voice and agency, and collective support thereof, on the part of leaders and service providers, from grassroots to national levels.
PartialF8gene duplication (factor VIII Padua) associated with high factor VIII levels and familial thrombophilia
Authors: Simioni Paolo , Cagnin Stefano , Sartorello Francesca , Sales Gabriele , Pagani Luca , Bulato Cristiana , Gavasso Sabrina , Nuzzo Francesca , Chemello Francesco , Radu Claudia M. , Tormene Daniela , Spiezia Luca , Hackeng Tilman M. , Campello Elena , Castoldi Elisabetta
Published: December 2020

High coagulation factor VIII (FVIII) levels comprise a common risk factor for venous thromboembolism (VTE), but the underlying genetic determinants are largely unknown. We investigated the molecular bases of high FVIII levels in 2 Italian families with severe thrombophilia. The proband of the first family had a history of recurrent VTE before age 50 years, with extremely and persistently elevated FVIII antigen and activity levels (>400%) as the only thrombophilic defects. Genetic analysis revealed a 23.4-kb tandem duplication of the proximal portion of the F8 gene (promoter, exon 1, and a large part of intron 1), which cosegregated with high FVIII levels in the family and was absent in 103 normal controls. Targeted screening of 50 unrelated VTE patients with FVIII levels ≥250% identified a second thrombophilic family with the same F8 rearrangement on the same genetic background, suggesting a founder effect. Carriers of the duplication from both families showed a twofold or greater upregulation of F8 messenger RNA, consistent with the presence of open chromatin signatures and enhancer elements within the duplicated region. Testing of these sequences in a luciferase reporter assay pinpointed a 927-bp region of F8 intron 1 associated with >45-fold increased reporter activity in endothelial cells, potentially mediating the F8 transcriptional enhancement observed in carriers of the duplication. In summary, we report the first thrombophilic defect in the F8 gene (designated FVIII Padua) associated with markedly elevated FVIII levels and severe thrombophilia in 2 Italian families.
Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency and susceptibility to childhood diseases in Kilifi, Kenya
Authors: Uyoga Sophie , Macharia Alex W. , Ndila Carolyne M. , Nyutu Gideon , Shebe Mohammed , Awuondo Kennedy O. , Mturi Neema , Peshu Norbert , Tsofa Benjamin , Scott J. Anthony G. , Maitland Kathryn , Williams Thomas N.
Published: December 2020

Few previous studies have reported the effects of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD)–deficiency on child health in Africa. We conducted a case-control study in which cases (n = 6829) were children admitted, for any reason, to Kilifi County Hospital, Kenya, while controls (n = 10 179) were recruited from the surrounding community. Cases were subclassified based on their clinical and laboratory findings at admission. We calculated the prevalence of specific diseases by G6PD c.202 genotype, the only significant cause of G6PD-deficiency in this area, then estimated the association between genotype and admission with specific conditions using logistic regression.  Among neonates, the prevalence of jaundice was higher in both G6PD c.202T heterozygotes (40/88; 45.5%; P = .004) and homo/hemizygotes (81/134; 60.5%; P < .0001) than in wild-type homozygotes (157/526; 29.9%). Median bilirubin levels also increased across the groups, being highest (239 mmol/L; interquartile range 96-390 mmol/L) in G6PD c.202T homo/hemizygotes. No differences were seen in admission hemoglobin concentrations or the prevalence of anemia or severe anemia by G6PD c.202 genotype. On case control analysis, G6PD heterozygosity was negatively associated with all-cause hospital admission (odds ratio 0.81; 95% confidence interval 0.73-0.90; P < .0001) and, specifically, admission with either pneumonia or Plasmodium falciparum parasitemia; while, conversely, it was positively associated with Gram-positive bacteremia. G6PD c.202T homo/heterozygosity was positively associated with neonatal jaundice, severe pneumonia, the receipt of a transfusion, and in-patient death. Our study supports the conclusion that G6PD c.202T is a balanced polymorphism in which a selective advantage afforded to heterozygous females against malaria is counterbalanced by increased risks of neonatal jaundice, invasive bacterial infections, and anemia.
Strategies for introducing palliative care in the management of relapsed or refractory aggressive lymphomas
Authors: Odejide Oreofe O.
Published: December 2020

Recent advances in treatment of patients with aggressive lymphomas ranging from chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy to combination of antibody–drug conjugates with chemotherapy have improved survival outcomes. Despite these significant advances, patients with relapsed or refractory disease experience high physical and psychological symptom burden, and a substantial proportion still die of their lymphoma. In addition, end-of-life care outcomes are suboptimal with high rates of intensive end-of-life health care use and low rates of timely hospice enrollment. Integrating palliative care concurrently with disease-directed care for this patient population has strong potential to improve their symptom burden, quality of life, and end-of-life care. Multiple factors, including heightened prognostic uncertainty in the setting of relapsed/refractory disease, pose challenges to timely provision of palliative care. This article reviews benefits of primary and specialty palliative care for patients with relapsed/refractory aggressive lymphomas and barriers to such care. It also highlights strategies for effectively integrating palliative care for patients with relapsed/refractory aggressive lymphomas.
Social aspects of chronic transfusions: addressing social determinants of health, health literacy, and quality of life
Authors: Webb Jennifer
Published: December 2020

Chronic monthly transfusions are a lifesaving preventative therapy for many patients with sickle cell disease; however, the burden of this therapy for patients and families is high. In the United States, there is overlap in the population affected by sickle cell disease and those with the greatest burden of social needs. Hematology providers caring for patients with SCD have an opportunity to screen for and mitigate social determinants of health, especially in those receiving chronic transfusion therapy given the frequent interactions with the healthcare system and increased demand on already potentially limited resources. Given the complexity of the treatment and medication regimens, providers caring for patients receiving chronic transfusions should implement universal strategies to minimize the impact of low health literacy, as this therapy imposes a significant demand on the health literacy skills of a family. Despite the social and literacy burden of this intervention, it is reassuring that quality of life is preserved as patients with SCD on chronic transfusion therapy often report higher health related quality of life than their peers receiving other disease modifying therapies.
Bispecifics, trispecifics, and other novel immune treatments in myeloma
Authors: Lancman Guido , Richter Joshua , Chari Ajai
Published: December 2020

Despite recent advances in treatment, relapses in multiple myeloma (MM) are inevitable. Off-the-shelf immunotherapeutics represent a promising avenue for research, with various classes of agents under development and several demonstrating deep and durable responses in patients who have exhausted all available therapies. Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) seek to improve on naked monoclonal antibodies by delivering a cytotoxic payload directly to tumor cells while largely limiting systemic effects. Belantamab mafodotin, a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)–targeted ADC, has shown response rates >30% in a phase 2 trial of highly refractory patients and is being investigated in a variety of settings and combinations. Several other ADCs are in earlier stages of development that target cell surface antigens that are internalized, including BCMA, CD38, CD46, CD56, CD74, and CD138. Bispecifics are designed to bring cytotoxic immune effector cells into proximity with tumor cells, and several agents have shown high response rates in early trials. Current targets include BCMA, CD38, GPRC5d, and FCRH5, and all of these seek to engage T cells through CD3. Bispecifics targeting natural killer (NK) cells through CD16 are still in preclinical development. Trispecific antibodies may represent an advance over bispecifics by providing a T-cell costimulatory signal such as CD28, or alternatively, dual MM antigens to increase specificity of NK or T-cell targeting. This is an area of active preclinical research at this time. Lastly, designed ankyrin repeat proteins, which are small antibody-mimetic proteins with high target-binding affinity, have the potential to block multiple pathways at once and provide stimulatory signals to the immune system.