bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
New Predictive Resting Metabolic Rate Equations for High-Level Athletes: A Cross-Validation Study
Authors: FREIRE RAUL , PEREIRA GLAUBER R. , ALCANTARA JUAN M. A. , SANTOS RUAN , HAUSEN MATHEUS , ITABORAHY ALEX
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The present study aims a) to assess the agreement between the measured resting metabolic rate (RMR) using indirect calorimetry and different predictive equations (predicted RMR), and b) to propose and cross-validate two new predictive equations for estimating the RMR in high-level athletes.

Methods

The RMR of 102 athletes (44 women) was assessed using indirect calorimetry, whereas the body composition was assessed using skinfolds. Comparisons between measured and predicted RMR values were performed using one-way ANOVA. Mean difference, root mean square error (RMSE), simple linear regression, and Bland–Altman plots were used to evaluate the agreement between measured and predicted RMR. The accuracy of predictive equations was analyzed using narrower and wider accuracy limits (±5% and ±10%, respectively) of measured RMR. Multiple linear regression models were employed to develop the new predictive equations based on traditional predictors (equation 1) and the stepwise method (equation 2).

Results

The new equations 1 and 2 presented good agreement based on the mean difference (3 and −15 kcal·d−1), RMSE (200 and 192 kcal·d−1), and R
2 (0.71 and 0.74), respectively, and accuracy (61% of subjects between the limit of ±10% of measured RMR). Cunningham’s equation provided the best performance for males and females among the existing equations, whereas Jagim’s equation showed the worst performance for males (mean difference = −335 kcal·d−1; RMSE = 386 kcal·d−1). Compared with measured RMR, most predictive equations showed heteroscedastic distribution (linear regression’s intercept and slope significantly different from zero; P ≤ 0.05), mainly in males.

Conclusions

The new proposed equations can estimate the RMR in high-level athletes accurately. Cunningham’s equation is a good option from existing equations, and Jagim’s equation should not be used in high-level male athletes.
Interaction of surface glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern with potential drug candidates: A molecular docking study
Authors: Mavlankar Anuj , Ansari Afzal , Sharma Mukul , Dwivedi Purna , Singh Pushpendra
Published: April 2022

Background: COVID-19 has become a global threat. Since its first outbreak from Wuhan, China in December 2019, the SARS-CoV-2 virus has gone through structural changes arising due to mutations in its surface glycoprotein. These mutations have led to the emergence of different genetic variants threatening public health due to increased transmission and virulence. As new drug development is a long process, repurposing existing antiviral drugs with potential activity against SARS-CoV-2 might be a possible solution to mitigate the current situation.

Methods: This study focused on utilizing molecular docking to determine the effect of potential drugs on several variants of concern (VOCs). The effect of various drugs such as baricitinib, favipiravir, lopinavir, remdesivir and dexamethasone, which might have the potential to treat SARS-CoV-2 infections as evident from previous studies, was investigated for different VOCs.

Results: Remdesivir showed promising results for B.1.351 variant (binding energy: -7.3 kcal/mol) with residues Gln319 and Val503 facilitating strong binding. Favipiravir showed favorable results against B.1.1.7 (binding energy: -5.6 kcal/mol), B.1.351 (binding energy: -5.1 kcal/mol) and B.1.617.2 (binding energy: -5 kcal/mol). Molecular dynamics simulation for favipiravir/B.1.1.7 was conducted and showed significant results in agreement with our findings.

Conclusions: From structural modeling and molecular docking experiments, it is evident that mutations outside the receptor binding domain of surface glycoprotein do not have a sharp impact on drug binding affinity. Thus, the potential use of these drugs should be explored further for their antiviral effect against SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.
Mapping the landscapes of the Stalinist mass repressions
Authors: Pallot Judith , Gavrilova Sofya
Published: April 2022

In this article, we focus on the ways in which a variety of different carceral techniques used to punish and exploit people’s labour during the Stalin period (1927—1953) in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) created a distinctive landscape of repression. Using the tools of historical geographic information science (GIS) to map the material landscape, we foreground space in the discussion of the USSR’s exceptional history of repression. The ‘carceral conditions’ frame allows us to deconstruct boundaries erected over more than half a century of writing the history of the USSR that have maintained artificial distinctions between the victims and impacts of different punishment modalities.  In the article, we follow the example of the Stanford Holocaust Geographies Project in combining quantitative and textual data with the spatial analytical tools of geovisualisation to reveal the patterns of events as the Stalinist repressive apparatus extended its reach across Soviet space.  In fixing the geolocation of carceral institutions and layering the resultant pattern with different types of qualitative and quantitative information in the same visual space, we hope to counter some of the myths and generalizations that exist in the literature about the geography of Soviet gulag. We use the case study of Perm’ region in the Urals to highlight the spatiality of the production of the material landscape of repression in one region.  Our aim is to position the USSR in the now substantial geographical literature discussing the twentieth century history of crimes against humanity and genocide and to suggest to historians that the geovisualisation of data can add a new dimension their studies of the Stalin period.
Local brain-state dependency of effective connectivity: a pilot TMS–EEG study
Authors: Granö Ida , Mutanen Tuomas P. , Tervo Aino , Nieminen Jaakko O. , Souza Victor H. , Fecchio Matteo , Rosanova Mario , Lioumis Pantelis , Ilmoniemi Risto J.
Published: April 2022

Background

Spontaneous cortical oscillations have been shown to modulate cortical responses to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). However, whether these oscillations influence cortical effective connectivity is largely unknown. We conducted a pilot study to set the basis for addressing how spontaneous oscillations affect cortical effective connectivity measured through TMS-evoked potentials (TEPs).

Methods

We applied TMS to the left primary motor cortex and right pre-supplementary motor area of three subjects while recording EEG. We classified trials off-line into positive- and negative-phase classes according to the mu and beta rhythms. We calculated differences in the global mean-field amplitude (GMFA) and compared the cortical spreading of the TMS-evoked activity between the two classes.

Results

Phase affected the GMFA in four out of 12 datasets (3 subjects × 2 stimulation sites × 2 frequency bands). Two of the observed significant intervals were before 50 ms, two between 50 and 100 ms, and one after 100 ms post-stimulus. Source estimates showed complex spatial differences between the classes in the cortical spreading of the TMS-evoked activity.

Conclusions

TMS-evoked effective connectivity appears to depend on the phase of local cortical oscillations at the stimulated site. This work paves the way to design future closed loop stimulation paradigms.
Qudi-HiM: an open-source acquisition software package for highly multiplexed sequential and combinatorial optical imaging
Authors: Barho Franziska , Fiche Jean-Bernard , Bardou Marion , Messina Olivier , Martiniere Alexandre , Houbron Christophe , NOLLMANN Marcelo
Published: April 2022

Multiplexed sequential and combinatorial imaging enables the simultaneous detection of multiple biological molecules, e.g. proteins, DNA, or RNA, enabling single-cell spatial multi-omics measurements at sub-cellular resolution. Recently, we designed a multiplexed imaging approach (Hi-M) to study the spatial organization of chromatin in single cells. In order to enable Hi-M sequential imaging on custom microscope setups, we developed Qudi-HiM, a modular software package written in Python 3. Qudi-HiM contains modules to automate the robust acquisition of thousands of three-dimensional multicolor microscopy images, the handling of microfluidics devices, and the remote monitoring of ongoing acquisitions and real-time analysis. In addition, Qudi-HiM can be used as a stand-alone tool for other imaging modalities.
“AMR Dialogues”: a public engagement initiative to shape policies and solutions on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Thailand
Authors: Poomchaichote Tassawan , Osterrieder Anne , Prapharsavat Ravikanya , Naemiratch Bhensri , Ruangkajorn Supanat , Thirapantu Chaiwat , Sukrung Karnjariya , Kiatying-Angsulee Niyada , Sumpradit Nithima , Punnin Sirima , Limmathurotsakul Direk , Cheah Phaik Yeong
Published: April 2022

Background: The use of antimicrobials in Thailand has been reported as one of the highest in the world in both the human and animal sectors. The objectives of this project are: (1) to improve understanding of the issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among adult Thai communities and (2) to drive change through the national AMR policy to include context-specific and locally-driven solutions.

Methods: The project contains two components conducted in parallel: the “AMR Dialogues” public engagement project and the embedded evaluation of the project. We will bring together AMR stakeholders and members of the public through a series of conversation events to co-create an AMR stakeholder map, engagement strategy, and context-specific solutions to reduce the burden of AMR. There will be a combination of regional in-person events (‘regional conversations’) and national online events (‘national conversations’) with members of the public and AMR stakeholders. The conversations will follow this sequence: introduce and explore issues related to AMR, brainstorm solutions and finally propose promising/feasible solutions to take forward. Evaluation of the project will be conducted to assess if the AMR Dialogues objectives have been achieved using feedback forms and qualitative methods.

Ethics: Approval of the evaluation component of the project has been obtained from the ethics committee of the Thailand Institute for the Development of Human Subject Protection (IHRP2021059) and the Oxford University Tropical Research Ethics Committee (OxTREC 529-21).

Dissemination: The results of these conversation events will inform the next Thailand National Strategic Plan on AMR. The learning and outcomes will be disseminated to AMR policy makers, academic audiences, and participants of all the conversation events.

Thaiclinicaltrials.org registration: TCTR20210528003 (28/05/2021)
The mechanism of action of pulsed radiofrequency in reducing pain: a narrative review
Authors: Park Donghwi , Chang Min Cheol
Published: April 2022

Pain from nervous or musculoskeletal disorders is one of the most common complaints in clinical practice. Corticosteroids have a high pain-reducing effect, and their injection is generally used to control various types of pain. However, they have various adverse effects including flushing, hyperglycemia, allergic reactions, menstrual changes, immunosuppression, and adrenal suppression. Pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) is known to have a pain-reducing effect similar to that of corticosteroid injection, with nearly no major side effects. Therefore, it has been widely used to treat various types of pain, such as neuropathic, joint, discogenic, and muscle pain. In the current review, we outlined the pain-reducing mechanisms of PRF by reviewing previous studies. When PRF was first introduced, it was supposed to reduce pain by long-term depression of pain signaling from the peripheral nerve to the central nervous system. In addition, deactivation of microglia at the level of the spinal dorsal horn, reduction of proinflammatory cytokines, increased endogenous opioid precursor messenger ribonucleic acid, enhancement of noradrenergic and serotonergic descending pain inhibitory pathways, suppression of excitation of C-afferent fibers, and microscopic damage of nociceptive C- and A-delta fibers have been found to contribute to pain reduction after PRF application. However, the pain-reducing mechanism of PRF has not been clearly and definitely elucidated. Further studies are warranted to clarify the pain-reducing mechanism of PRF.
Ciclos de mejora en el aula. Año 2021 Experiencias de innovación docente de la Universidad de Sevilla
Authors: Porlán Ariza Rafael , Navarro Medina Elisa , Villarejo Ramos Ángel Francisco
Published: April 2022

La Universidad de Sevilla, en su compromiso con la mejora continua de la docencia, viene poniendo en marcha periódicamente un "Programa de Formación e Innovación Docente del Profesorado" (Programa FIDOP) en el marco de su Plan Propio de Docencia. Dicho programa tiene por objeto la formación y la innovación para la adquisición y el perfeccionamiento de las competencias en el empleo de metodologías docentes del profesorado. La filosofía y los principios básicos del Programa FIDOP se orientan en la dirección de ir generando un proceso de cambio conceptual y metodológico que acerque al Personal Docente e Investigador (PDI) de la Universidad de Sevilla -tanto al experimentado como al que inicia su carrera docente- a un modelo más innovador y acorde con los nuevos presupuestos emanados de las investigaciones que, sobre educación, didáctica de las diversas disciplinas, psicología del aprendizaje, epistemología, neurociencia, etc, han venido desarrollándose en los últimos años. En este marco de formación del PDI, se organizan anualmente unas Jornadas de Formación e Innovación Docente del Profesorado (Jornadas FIDOP) que constituyen el foro reservado para el debate e intercambio de experiencias en torno a los "Ciclos de Mejora en el Aula" (CIMA) realizados por los participantes en el programa. El contenido de las Jornadas FIDOP se estructura en base a la celebración de seminarios en los que se debaten las cuestiones que en los CIMA hayan suscitado mayor interés, generado mayores dificultades o se entiendan como más susceptibles de aprovechamiento a modo de benchmarking en otros ámbitos docentes. En las Jornadas FIDOP los participantes presentan sus comunicaciones -previamente evaluadas en cuanto a su idoneidad e incluidas en el documento que ahora se presenta-, que siguiendo las orientaciones dadas al respecto, describen y analizan las innovaciones puestas en marcha y las mejoras experimentadas en la impartición de la docencia en el aula -tanto en su diseño como en el proceso docente- y en sus resultados, derivados de la aplicación de los CIMA.
Supporting Innovation in Early-Stage Pharmaceutical Development Decisions
Authors: Methling Florian , Borden Steffen A. , Veeraraghavan Deepak , Sommer Insa , Siebert Johannes Ulrich , von Nitzsch Rüdiger , Seidler Mark
Published: April 2022

Pharmaceutical companies have frequent portfolio reviews to monitor development progress and prioritize development assets. The earliest assets are drug candidates whose efficacy is unknown and whose effects on the human body have yet to be fully investigated. These assets are characterized by a high degree of uncertainty in reaching the market and in being used in clinical practice. In addition, not all potential applications are foreseen and can often be very different. In the absence of satisfactory methods for making decisions on resource allocation among early development assets, decision makers focus almost exclusively on assessments of an asset’s probability of technical success. This study proposes a more holistic methodology to support early-stage pharmaceutical development decisions using value-focused thinking and multicriteria decision making. The methodology operates within the decision quality framework and provides a consistent evaluation of various early development assets across a diverse set of disease areas. This combination of concepts and methodologies has been implemented and proven valuable at Bayer Pharmaceuticals, which needed a new, more robust decision-making process for early development. Thus, this study discusses how to enable concrete trade-offs at the level of corporate objectives to align, communicate, and translate corporate strategy into portfolio strategy. In addition, this study presents learnings for decision analysts and decision makers in the pharmaceutical industry on how to develop a set of fundamental objectives, how to create scales to operationalize these objectives, and how to take steps to debias an organizational decision-making process.

History: This paper has been accepted for the Decision Analysis Special Issue on Emerging Topics in Health Decision Analysis.
Moving Consumers from Free to Fee in Platform-Based Markets: An Empirical Study of Multiplayer Online Battle Arena Games
Authors: Wang Le , Lowry Paul Benjamin , Luo Xin (Robert) , Li Han
Published: April 2022

Companies in platform-based business markets have widely embraced freemium business models, in which profit is primarily determined by a minority of paying customers. However, the key challenge of these models is transitioning participants from free users to paying consumers. To encourage paid consumption, companies often rely on product differentiation such as providing consumers who pay for products or services with enhanced features. Product differentiation can be broadly classified into two categories: taste differentiation and quality differentiation. The authors demonstrate that extending the magnitude of taste differentiation is an effective differentiation strategy. Quality differentiation, however, is a double-edged sword and should be used with care. Increasing product differentiation leads to greater perceived value of the service, but undermines fairness perceptions.
Self-Funding of Political Campaigns
Authors: Ovtchinnikov Alexei V. , Valta Philip
Published: April 2022

Candidate self-funding, in particular self-loans, is a significant source of funding of political campaigns. Self-funding clusters among nonincumbent campaigns, republican campaigns, and more expensive campaigns. Self-funded campaigns raise less money from individuals and special interests and also spend less. Self-funders are wealthier on average and run in more competitive elections. The analysis of self-funders’ legislative decisions shows that self-funders’ votes, especially those of republicans, are significantly more sensitive to contributions from special interests that are affected by the votes. The results highlight the importance of considering politicians’ self-funding choices in analyzing voting behavior and the value of political activism.

This paper was accepted by Gustavo Manso, finance.

Supplemental Material: Data and the online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4404 .
The Exploration-Exploitation Trade-off in the Newsvendor Problem
Authors: Besbes Omar , Chaneton Juan M. , Moallemi Ciamac C.
Published: April 2022

When an inventory manager attempts to construct probabilistic models of demand based on past data, demand samples are almost never available: only sales data can be used. This demand censoring introduces an exploration-exploitation trade-off as the ordering decisions impact the information collected. Much of the literature has sought to understand how operational decisions should be modified to incorporate this trade-off. We ask an even more basic question: When does the exploration-exploitation trade-off matter? To what extent should one deviate from a myopic policy that takes the optimal decision for the current period without consideration for future periods? We analyze these questions in the context of a well-studied stationary multiperiod newsvendor problem in which the decision maker starts with a prior on parameters characterizing the demand distribution. We show that, under very general conditions in both perishable and nonperishable settings, the myopic policy will almost surely learn the optimal decision one would have taken with knowledge of the unknown parameters. Furthermore, in the perishable setting, we analyze finite time performance for a broad family of tractable cases. Through a combination of analytical parametric bounds and exhaustive exact analysis, we show that the myopic optimality gap is negligible for many practical instances.

Funding: The third author was partially supported by the National Science Foundation [Grant CMMI-1235023].

Supplemental Material: The online supplement is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/stsy.2022.0093 .
Analysis and Design of Rack-Climbing Robotic Storage and Retrieval Systems
Authors: Chen Wanying , De Koster René , Gong Yeming
Published: April 2022

Warehouses are becoming increasingly robotized. Autonomous rack-climbing robots have recently been introduced in e-commerce fulfillment centers. The robots not only retrieve loads from any level in a rack but also, roam the warehouse and bring the loads to order picking stations without using conveyors or lifts. This paper models and analyzes this system under both single and dual commands with different robot assignment (dedicated versus shared) and storage location assignment (class-based and random) policies. We study these policies in the presence of robot congestion. We evaluate the impact of two blocking protocols, a wait-outside-aisle policy and a block-and-recirculate policy, on the order throughput time. The system is modeled using semiopen queuing networks (SOQNs) for the different operating policies. The analytical models are validated using simulation. We also use this model to compare this system with a shuttle-based system. The results show that (1) the choice of the wait-outside-aisle policy or the block-and-recirculate policy mainly depends on the number of the robots in the system and the throughput requirement and that (2) the dedicated robot assignment policy can be an attractive policy, especially for a large system.
Social Optimum in the Basic Bathtub Model
Authors: Arnott Richard , Kilani Moez
Published: April 2022

The basic bathtub model extends Vickrey’s bottleneck model to admit hypercongestion (traffic jam situations). A fixed number of identical commuters travel a fixed distance over a dense network of identical city streets between home and work in the early morning rush hour under dynamic macroscopic fundamental diagram congestion. This paper investigates social optima in the basic bathtub model and contrasts them with the corresponding competitive equilibria. The model gives rise to delay-differential equations, which considerably complicate analysis of the solution properties and design of computational solution algorithms. This paper considers the cases of smooth and strictly concave travel utility functions and of α–β–γ tastes. For each it develops a customized solution algorithm, which it applies to several examples, and for α–β–γ tastes, it derives analytical properties as well. Departures may occur continuously, in departure masses, or a mix of the two. Additionally, hypercongestion may occur in the social optimum. This paper explores how these qualitative solution properties are related to tastes.
Air ambulance outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest seen in the pandemic
Authors: Hodkinson Mark
Published: April 2022

Introduction:

COVID-19 was declared a global health pandemic in March 2020, and national lockdowns were imposed in an attempt to limit the spread of the virus. Several studies have reported significant increases in the number of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) attendances coupled with a reduction in return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). This is the first study to report the characteristics and outcomes from OHCA in a UK air ambulance setting.

Methods:

A retrospective database review of adult OHCA with a medical cause attended by Thames Valley Air Ambulance was undertaken covering two time periods: 1 February 2019 to 31 January 2020; and 1 February 2020 to 31 January 2021. Cases during the pandemic period were screened for COVID-19 symptoms. Descriptive statistics were used to establish the characteristics of COVID-19. The primary outcome of the study was ROSC on arrival at hospital.

Results:

An overall rise of 6.6% in OHCA was noted between the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods, with a prevalence of COVID-19 of 6.0%. There was a significant increase in termination of resuscitation at scene (42.6% to 54.8%; P<0.001). Overall, ROSC at hospital decreased (37.7% versus 31.1%).

Conclusion:

This study highlights the impact and implications of a global pandemic on OHCA and an air ambulance system. Poorer overall outcomes were observed during the pandemic period. Further exploration of the effects of COVID-19 on OHCA and air ambulance systems is required.
Remediate Effect of Ryanodine Receptor Antagonist in Valproic-Acid Induced Autism
Authors: Kumar Hariom , Diwan Vishal , Sharma Bhupesh
Published: April 2022

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) mainly diagnosed with social behavioral problems, lack of communication, social interaction, and repetitive behavior along with cognitive dysfunction. Ryanodine receptors are involved in various neurological and behavioral impairments in different conditions. The role of Ryanodine receptors has not been explored in experimental ASD. The present study explicates the role of ryanodine receptor antagonist; ruthenium red (RR) in prenatal valproic acid (Pre-VPA) administered experimental ASD phenotypes. Three chamber social behavior, Y-Maze were utilized to assess social interaction, spontaneous alteration, respectively. Hippocampus and Prefrontal cortex (PFC) were utilized for various biochemical assessments, whereas cerebellum was used for assessments of blood brain barrier (BBB) permeability. Pre-VPA rats showed reduction in spontaneous alteration, social interaction. Pre-VPA administration were decreased PFC levels of IL-10, and GSH along with hippocampus cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Also, the animals have shown increase in PFC levels of IL-6, TNF-α, TBARS, Evans blue leakage and water content. Daily administration of R Red considerably diminished Pre-VPA administered reduction in spontaneous alteration, social interaction, CREB, BDNF and increase in inflammation, oxidative stress, BBB permeability. Conclusively, Pre-VPA has induced autistic phenotype, which were attenuated by ryanodine receptor antagonist. Ryanodine receptor antagonists may further test for their pharmacological effects in ASD phenotypes.
The Changes of HIF-1α and ICAM-1 Expression after Miana (Coleus Scutellariodes [L]) Treatment in Balb/C Mice with Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Infection
Authors: Rosamarlina Rosamarlina , Hatta Mochammad , Djaharuddin Irawaty , Patellongi Ilhamjaya , Dwi Susanto Agus , Asadul Islam Andi , Nasrum Massi Muhammad , Bukhari Agussalim , Santoso Arif , Ahmad Tabri Nur , Murtiani Farida , Junita Ade Rifka , Syukri Saleh Ahmad , Dwiyanti Ressy , Pakadang Sesilia Rante
Published: April 2022

Background: Increasing resistance to TB drugs raises the challenge of TB eradication. Miana leaves is Indonesian traditional herbal medicine, have antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and immunoregulatory action. Not much is known about the effect of Miana on HIF-1α and ICAM-1, the immunoregulators of infection and inflammation. This study aims to elucidate the effect of Miana on HIF-1α and ICAM-1 in M. tuberculosis (Mtb) infected mice. Materials and Methods: This experimental study used Mtb infected Balb/c mice were divided into 4 groups; group 1 is placebo, group 2 is treated with Rifampicin as Anti TB drug, group 3 is treated with Miana, and group 4 is treated with Miana + Anti TB drug. HIF-1α and ICAM-1 serum levels were analyzed using ELISA. Results: There is a significant difference of mean HIF-1α (p= 0.00, F = 114.21) and ICAM-1 (p= 0.00, F = 113.11) between the four groups after treatment. HIF-1α level is significantly lower in anti TB treatment, Miana, and Miana + anti TB treatment compared to placebo (mean difference (MD) 35,764.67, p=0.00; 29,230.98, p=0.000; 38,489.62, p=0.00, respectively). Furthermore, ICAM-1 level is significantly lower in anti TB treatment, Miana, and Miana + anti TB treatment compared to placebo (MD 95,449.68, p=0.00; 79,509.69, p=0.00; 108,672.83, p=0.00, respectively). Conclusion: HIF-1α and ICAM-1 expression was reduced after Miana administration. Miana can be a potential complement to anti-TB treatment but cannot replace rifampicin as anti-TB drugs.
Silibinin Improves the Clinical Scores of Memory Function in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study
Authors: Hussain Saad Abdulrahman , Abdulrahman Zainab Saad , Mustafa Wael Waleed
Published: April 2022

The aim of pharmacotherapy for moderate cognitive impairment (MCI) is to reduce the present clinical signs and delay the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is currently no viable pharmacological therapy for the treatment of AD. Early intake of nutraceuticals, on the other hand, may help to alleviate and delay MCI. The goal of this study was to see how silibinin (SIL) supplementation affected cognitive function in older people with memory problems. A total of 85 subjects with memory impairment were randomly assigned to one of two groups: SIL (n = 42) supplied with 250 mg twice daily, or placebo (n = 43) for 16 weeks. A computerized neurocognitive function test was used to assess cognitive function (CNT). When comparing the SIL group to the placebo group, the "verbal learning test index" items of the CNT were significantly improved in the SIL arm (P < 0.05). Supplementing older people with memory impairment with SIL for 16 weeks appears to have a positive impact on their state of "verbal memory." Further studies are highly recommended.
The Forgotten Joint Score patient-acceptable symptom state following primary total hip arthroplasty
Authors: Singh Vivek , Bieganowski Thomas , Huang Shengnan , Karia Raj , Davidovitch Roy I. , Schwarzkopf Ran
Published: April 2022

Aims

The Forgotten Joint Score-12 (FJS-12) is a validated patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) tool designed to assess artificial prosthesis awareness during daily activities following total hip arthroplasty (THA). The patient-acceptable symptom state (PASS) is the minimum cut-off value that corresponds to a patient’s satisfactory state-of-health. Despite the validity and reliability of the FJS-12 having been previously demonstrated, the PASS has yet to be clearly defined. This study aims to define the PASS of the FJS-12 following primary THA.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed all patients who underwent primary elective THA from 2019 to 2020, and answered both the FJS-12 and the Hip Disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, Joint Replacement (HOOS, JR) questionnaires one-year postoperatively. HOOS, JR score was used as the anchor to estimate the PASS of FJS-12. Two statistical methods were employed: the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve point, which maximized the Youden index; and 75th percentile of the cumulative percentage curve of patients who had the HOOS, JR score difference larger than the cut-off value.

Results

This study included 780 patients. The mean one-year FJS-12 score was 65.42 (SD 28.59). The mean one-year HOOS, JR score was 82.70 (SD 16.57). A high positive correlation between FJS-12 and HOOS, JR was found (r = 0.74; p<0.001), making the HOOS, JR a valid external anchor. The threshold score of the FJS-12 that maximized the sensitivity and specificity for detecting a PASS was 66.68 (area under the curve = 0.8). The cut-off score value computed with the 75th percentile approach was 92.20.

Conclusion

The PASS threshold for the FJS-12 at one year following primary THA was 66.68 and 92.20 using the ROC curve and 75th percentile approaches, respectively. These values can be used to achieve consensus about meaningful postoperative improvement to maximize the utility of the FJS-12 to evaluate and counsel patients undergoing THA. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2022;3(4):307–313.
Cybersecurity and Simondon's Concretization Theory:  Making Software More Like a Living Organism
Authors: Meng Ziyuan , Burmeister Jon K.
Published: April 2022

The cybersecurity crisis has destabilized the field of informatics and called many of its foundational beliefs into question. This paper argues that Gilbert Simondon’s theory of the origin and development of technical objects helps us identify faulty theoretical assumptions within computer science and cybersecurity. In particular, Simondon’s view is that the process of the ‘individuation’ of technical objects can have similarities with the development of living beings – a view that stands in stark contrast with hylomorphic and reductionist views of technical objects currently common in computer science. We argue that those common hylomorphic approaches to software development lead to excessive modularity in software applications, which in turn results in less secure systems. To investigate a new ontological basis of software security, we look to Simondon’s ontology to reconsider what makes a piece of software vulnerable in the first place, and we focus on two concepts in his general theory of ontogenesis – ‘individuation’ and ‘associated milieu’. By examining a case study of a malware infection attack, we show that the event of a cyberattack unleashes a ‘co-concretization’ process of software applications and their associated milieu, namely, their operating system. Both the application and the operating system evolve from an abstract form to a more concrete form by re-inventing their own interiors and re-orienting their relationship to each other. We argue that software development will be more secure if it takes inspiration from the development of living beings and refocuses on the dynamic reciprocal relationship between software applications and their technical and social environment.
Difference-in-relation: Diffracting human-robot encounters
Authors: Gemeinboeck Petra
Published: April 2022

This article adopts Donna Haraway’s (1992) and Karen Barad’s (2007) lenses of reflection and diffraction to probe into human-robot relationships in-the-making. Dominant practices of human-robot interaction aspire to an optics of reflection based on the belief that the differences inherent to machines need masking or assimilating. I propose that diffracting human-robot encounters requires becoming-with and co-worlding with artefacts and their asymmetries. Entering the robot lab to witness my collaborative Machine Movement Lab project and its diffractive strategies in-the-making, as well as the material-bodily knowledges they enact, offers situated insights into how they make tangible difference patterns and relational ontologies at work in our more-than-human encounters.
Discerning Relational Data in Breath Patterns. Gilbert Simondon’s Philosophy in the Context of Sequence Transduction
Authors: Müller-Trede Lisa
Published: April 2022

This article discusses Gilbert Simondon’s philosophies of the technical object, information, and individuation to frame the potential inherent in a practical application of his notions of intensity, amplification, and transduction of relational processes, which have been largely neglected in the traditions of substantialist and hylomorphic thought. Specifically, the study introduces a method to discern relational information by amplifying audible breath patterns of a collective via a wearable digital stethoscope (WDS). The non-lexical modality of the breath grants insights into non-verbal phases of communication during which multiple points of view may exist simultaneously. These points of view can be understood as a subject’s sense of orientation within phases prior to signification, i.e., before affect becomes a specific emotion and before perception becomes a concrete action—using the terms as they are defined by Simondon. Bodily movement is audible within the breath and can be further transcribed into preliminary signs with the help of a sequence transduction machine learning (ML) model. Discerning semiosis within audible breath patterns exemplifies a logic of computation which is not concerned with quantitative and qualitative information but, instead, computes intense data to grasp relational dynamics.
Manifold Spaces and Patterned Potentialities
Authors: Passia Yota , Roupas Panagiotis
Published: April 2022

The research aims at providing a new perspective and methodology to dynamic space setting as a mode articulation for intensity, transformation, and change pointing to more versatile, resilient, and ecological urban assemblages. The anticipation apparatus proposed for architecture and the city is a landscape of Alexandrian Design Patterns and intensive variables that simulates spatial contingencies and connects them with actual bodies as an extended mode of prediction and design. The city is represented as an N-dimensional manifold, a plane of variable dimensionality where its dimensions are used to represent its sociospatial becomings. At the same time, the manifold itself becomes the space of possible states that city can have, an apparatus that structures the city’s sociospatial potentialities and dynamically patterns its material reality.
Contagious Education
Authors: Webb P. Taylor , Piotrowski Marcelina , Mikulan Petra
Published: April 2022

The use of data to govern education is increasingly supported by the use of knowledge-based technologies, including algorithms, artificial intelligence (AI), and tracking technologies. Rather than accepting these technologies as possibilities to improve, reform, or more efficiently practice education, this intra-view discusses how these technologies portend possibilities to escape education. The intra-view revolves around Luciana Parisi’s idea of “digital contagions” and participants muse about the contagious opportunities to escape the biopolitical, colonial, and historical rationalities that contemporary education now uses to govern populations in ways that are automated, modulated, and wearable.
Review of the Book: Exposed. Environmental Politics and Pleasures in Posthuman Times (Alaimo, Stacy, 2016)
Authors: Skonieczny Krzysztof
Published: April 2022

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Evaluación del conocimiento sobre la mentalidad de crecimiento en el aula del profesorado de Educación Infantil, Primaria y Secundaria
Authors: Belmonte Noelia
Published: April 2022

The concept of Growth Mindset resembles a prism with different faces: expectations, communication style, emotional management, etc. In this study, teachers’ knowledge of the stages of infant, Primary and Secondary education on this concept and its applied ramifications on the academic field are evaluated through a survey provided electronically. It is observed that the majority of teachers, although they do not know the theoretical concept of Growth Mindset, they do have knowledge about the importance of teaching strategies such as feedback, highlighting their relevance and applying them correctly. Likewise, a great majority are aware that the expectations that teachers have on their students have an important weight on their academic performance, as well as the assessment that the student makes of their own abilities. However, it seems that a large part of the educational community still needs to expand their training in neuroeducation to understand the influence that emotions have on thinking and, therefore, on learning, just as the type of verbal and non-verbal communication that is used in the classroom.
Aprendizaje organizado (AO): de la simplicidad de las tareas de aprendizaje a la complejidad de las tareas competenciales en Educación Física
Authors: Subirats Joan
Published: April 2022

Con el objetivo de responder a algunas de las nuevas perspectivas educativas para el siglo XXI y donde el concepto de competencia es su eje principal 1, se hace hincapié en las dificultades de los docentes de EF para poder crear tareas complejas donde el alumnado desarrolle dichas competencias. En este sentido se interpretan dos paradigmas: el de la simplicidad y el de la complejidad en el contexto educativo de la Educación Física, la transmisión de la información en las tareas de aprendizaje y el learning by doing (LBD) y learning by thinking (LBT). Teniendo en cuenta la enorme diferencia de los dos paradigmas, estos se unen a través de la explicación teórica del concepto de aprendizaje organizado (AO). El cual intenta aproximar ambos paradigmas para así poder ayudar a los docentes en la elaboración de buenas prácticas competenciales.
Neuroeducación y sus alcances socio-afectivos al quehacer docente
Authors: Valdés Villalobos Belén
Published: April 2022

Durante años se ha vinculado lo cognitivo a la razón y el cerebro, imponiendo lo racional como superior a lo emocional. En este sentido, la neuroeducación y su investigación, ha podido evidenciar que las emociones son la esencia de la educación,  generando una nueva mentalización y alfabetización acerca del conocimiento del cerebro y  los procesos que confluyen durante la enseñanza y el aprendizaje.

En este sentido, cuando hablamos de neuroeducación no podemos dejar de hablar de emociones, debido que para influir en los demás es importante comprender las mentes de las personas a las que se quiere influir, más que los contenidos mediante los que se pretende influir, siendo el eje central la energía del cerebro emotivo.

Vinculando desde la neuroeducación las emociones con la interacción social, mediante el impacto que genera el desarrollo de un ambiente significativo y emocional como afianzador del aprendizaje. A través, de los procesos que caracterizan las relaciones actitudinales e interpersonales de los seres humanos, presentando desde la ciencia las neuronas espejos, y su función de adaptación social, además de fomentar la competencia de entender y percibir sentimientos y emociones.

En honor  a lo expuesto el presente artículo, fue realizado desde un análisis bibliográfico que busca señalar los aportes que la neuroeducación entrega a la práctica docente develando la importancia de conocer cómo educar social y afectivamente.
¿Qué significa transferir el aprendizaje en educación infantil?
Authors: Conde Ana María
Published: April 2022

¿Qué sentido tiene enseñar o aprender si no buscamos un impacto con lo aprendido? ¿En qué se fundamentaría la educación si lo aprendido no tiene un efecto en el individuo? Este trabajo busca responder a la pregunta sobre cómo entendemos ese impacto en el marco del concepto de transferencia del aprendizaje, especialmente en el contexto de la educación infantil. En las últimas décadas se ha obtenido un mayor entendimiento del aprendizaje adquirido en estas edades, y eso hace necesario abrir un debate sobre cómo se debe dar ese aprendizaje para efectivamente tener los resultados esperados. Este trabajo busca explorar desde un enfoque interpretativo las nociones asociadas a transferencia del aprendizaje por parte de docentes de infantil. Este análisis facilitó el planteamiento de una discusión conceptual desde la mirada multidimensional propuesta por Barnett y Stephen. Ejercicio que se presenta como el primer paso para continuar indagando y desarrollando un marco claro con el que responder a preguntas sobre qué es la transferencia y cuáles son las mejores formas de promoverla y evidenciarla.
Trabajo de Fin de Grado y el desarrollo de la competencia investigadora de los futuros maestros de Educación Infantil y Primaria
Authors: Palou-Julian Berta , Gros-Salvat Begoña , Mercader-Tresserras Jennifer
Published: April 2022

INTRODUCCIÓN. El presente trabajo es fruto de un proyecto de investigación orientado a desarrollar la competencia investigadora en los estudiantes del Grado de Maestro de Educación Infantil y Primaria de la Universidad de Barcelona. La contribución se centra en el análisis de la percepción del alumnado respecto al nivel de adquisición de la competencia de investigación durante los estudios y después de la realización del trabajo final de grado (TFG).

MÉTODO. Se realiza un estudio descriptivo por encuesta a partir de un cuestionario sobre un conjunto de ocho dimensiones específicas relacionadas con la competencia de investigación antes (n = 146) y después (n = 121) de realizar el TFG.

RESULTADOS. Los resultados muestran que el estudiantado percibe tener escasas competencias de investigación a pesar de que los planes de estudio incorporan este tipo de competencias. Los resultados mejoran en algunos aspectos después de realizar el TFG entre los que destacan la capacidad de formular los objetivos de una investigación y elaborar la fundamentación teórica.

DISCUSIÓN. Los resultados aconsejan repensar las metodologías de formación de los futuros maestros de educación infantil y primaria. Parece necesario replantear la extensión del TFG, así como la formación previa necesaria para mejorar la capacidad investigadora.
Microgeopolítica de las fronteras: el discurso político e infrapolítico de los marcadores físicos de la raya/raia hispano-portuguesa
Authors: Cairo Heriberto , Simões Dulce , González Sergio
Published: April 2022

La demarcación de la frontera es una parte fundamental de la puesta en pie de la misma, pero ha sido muy escasamente estudiada. Apenas hay trabajos sobre la cuestión, y en la mayor parte de los trabajos sobre fronteras se resuelve con una breve alusión a los marcos o los mojones de los que constan. La demarcación suele interpretarse que constituye verdaderamente el punto final de la fijación de la frontera, y tiene un efecto directo  sobre el “paisaje fronterizo” (borderscape). Pero la demarcación es un proceso en el que los Estados a menudo encuentran resistencias de las poblaciones locales, que muestran el grado de su acuerdo o rechazo al trazado de la frontera. Abordaremos este estudio en el caso de la frontera hispano-portuguesa, la raya/raia, desde el amojonamiento hasta el mantenimiento, a escala local y estatal.
La frontera finlandesa-sueca, las movilidades y la geopolítica de la resiliencia
Authors: Prokkola Eeva-Kaisa , Ridanpää Juha
Published: April 2022

Este artículo analiza el potencial del concepto de resiliencia para la investigación desde la geopolítica crítica en el contexto de la frontera interna entre Finlandia y Suecia en la Unión Europea. El examen se centra en la geopolítica cotidiana de la resiliencia, manifestada en la política de adaptación/no adaptación a los requisitos estatales, y en dos de los principales eventos fronterizos que han tenido un impacto considerable en las instituciones fronterizas y en la vida de las personas en la frontera: primero, la intervención de la frontera estatal durante el "largo verano de la migración" europeo de 2015 y, en segundo lugar, la pandemia de Covid-19 a la que Finlandia respondió con una regulación estricta, mientras que Suecia continuó con una política de fronteras abiertas. El material del estudio se recopiló a través de la realización de trabajo de campo y entrevistas en la zona fronteriza entre Finlandia y Suecia, y de los medios de comunicación finlandeses y suecos. Ambos casos brindan un ejemplo de una rápida intervención fronteriza y de securitización.
Desalojos de favelas en Río de Janeiro, Brasil: antiguo problema, nuevas justificativas
Authors: Freire Leticia de Luna
Published: April 2022

Este artículo aborda el problema de la movilidad residencial forzada de los que viven en las favelas de la metrópoli de Río de Janeiro como reflejo de dificultades históricas de los poderes públicos para reconocer estos espacios populares como parte integrante de la ciudad. Bajo una perspectiva sociológica, el artículo analiza cómo los desalojos, que alcanzaron su punto crítico durante la dictadura cívico-militar y recibieron duras críticas, a lo largo de la democratización, retomaron con fuerza en el contexto de los megaeventos deportivos. Teniendo en cuenta los Mundiales de FIFA 2014 y los Juegos Olímpicos de 2016, se resalta, a partir de los casos de dos localidades, cómo este antiguo problema adquirió nuevas justificativas ancladas en el discurso del legado y provocó una "nueva diáspora urbana forzada", que fortaleció el poder del capital y la expulsión de los más pobres de las zonas más valoradas de la ciudad.