bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparing the score interpretation across modes in PISA: an investigation of how item facets affect difficulty
Authors: Harrison Scott , Kroehne Ulf , Goldhammer Frank , Lüdtke Oliver , Robitzsch Alexander
Published: March 2023

Background

Mode effects, the variations in item and scale properties attributed to the mode of test administration (paper vs. computer), have stimulated research around test equivalence and trend estimation in PISA. The PISA assessment framework provides the backbone to the interpretation of the results of the PISA test scores. However, an identified gap in the current literature is whether mode effects have affected test score interpretation as defined by the assessment framework, and whether the interpretations of the PBA and CBA test scores are comparable.

Methods

This study uses the 2015 PISA field trial data from thirteen countries to compare test modes through a construct representation approach. It is investigated whether item facets defined by the assessment framework (e.g., different cognitive demands) affect item difficulty comparably across modes using a unidimensional two-group generalized partial credit model (GPCM).

Results

Linking the assessment framework to item difficulty using linear regression showed that for both maths and science domains, item categorisation relates to item difficulty, however for the reading domain no such conclusion was possible. In comparing PBA to CBA in representations across the three domains, maths had one facet with a significant difference in representation, reading had all three facets significantly different, and for science, four out of six facets had significant differences. Modelling items labelled “mode invariant” in PISA 2015, the results indicated that in every domain, two facets showed significant differences between the test modes. The graphical inspection of difficulty patterns confirmed that reading shows stronger differences while the patterns of the other domains were quite consistent between modes.

Conclusions

The present study shows that the mode effects on difficulty vary within the task facets proposed by the PISA assessment framework, in particular for reading. These findings shed light on whether the comparability of score interpretation between modes is compromised. Given the limitations of the link between the reading domain and item difficulty, any conclusions in this domain are limited. Importantly, the present study adds a new approach and empirical findings to the investigation of the cross-mode equivalence in PISA domains.
Synergistic effect of zinc and denak (Oliveria decumbens) essential oil to extend the storage life of pomegranate arils
Authors: Aminzade Reihaneh , Ramezanian Asghar , Eshghi Saeid , Hosseini Seyed Mohammad Hashem
Published: March 2023

Background

Semi-processed pomegranates are increasingly being used around the world. Due to their perishability, however, arils currently have a limited supply and distribution. The treatment of arils with zinc and denak essential oil (DEO) can assist in reducing the growth of pathogens and can contribute to an increase in storage life. Since zinc is nutritionally valuable, the experiment involved immersing arils in 0.8% zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) and packaging them in polypropylene (PP) containers. Then, labels were supercritically impregnated with DEO (25 and 50 μL L−1) in the packages. Sampling was performed regularly at 10-day intervals for 60 days of storage.

Results

Zinc and DEO had a synergistic impact on all indices. The treatment of arils with 0.8% ZnSO4 and 50 µL L−1 DEO caused the maximum total soluble solids (TSS), firmness, titratable acidity (TA), total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity, and anthocyanin content, as well as the lowest weight loss (WL) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity.

Conclusions

In general, the effect of 0.8% ZnSO4 + 50 µL L−1 DEO was most efficient for the increase in storage life and maintained the qualitative characteristics of arils. Also, it caused the zinc content of arils to increase 36-fold. This may be an excellent strategy to meet the body’s nutritional demand for zinc.

Graphical Abstract
Public health risk due to aflatoxin and fumonisin contamination in rice in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam
Authors: Phan Lien Thi Kim , De Saeger Sarah , Eeckhout Mia , Jacxsens Liesbeth
Published: March 2023

Mycotoxin contamination in rice can lead to a health risk for consumers. In this study, the health risk among different age groups of Vietnamese population in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam was evaluated through rice consumption. Total aflatoxins (AFs) and fumonisins (FBs) in raw rice samples (n = 50) were analyzed using an ELISA method. A survey (n = 155) was used to collect data on rice consumption and consumer practices for the evaluation of mycotoxin exposure. Results showed that the frequency of AFs and FBs contamination was 60 and 74% with the average concentrations in raw rice ranging from 1.88–4.00 ng/g and 227–290 ng/g from the lower bound (LB) to the upper bound (UB), respectively. The average AFs exposure due to rice consumption was estimated from 0.81 to 2.44 ng/kg bw/day at scenarios LB – UB with the medium bound (MB) of 2.10, 1.60, 1.92 and 1.23 ng/kg bw/day for children, adolescents, adults and elderly, respectively. These values ranged from 343 to 724 ng/kg bw/day with respect to FBs (scenarios LB - UB), which are below the provisional maximum tolerable daily intakes (PMTDI) value (2000 ng/kg bw/day). The margin of exposure (MoE) to AFs ranged from 160 to 1585,179-2669,149–2175 and 206–3480 for children, adolescent, adults and elderly, respectively from UB - LB, indicating a high health risk for this carcinogenic hazard since the values are so lower than 10,000 (safe limit). However, for FBs, MoE value ranged from 105 to 575 (UB-LB) for all groups, which are higher compared to 100 (safe limit), indicating no risk for public health. The mean cancer risk due to estimated AFs exposure at LB - UB was 0.05–0.13 cases/year/100,000 individuals with MB of 0.08–0.13 cases/year/100,000 people for all four age groups. This study provides new insights into probabilistic risk assessment and potential health impact of mycotoxins in rice in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam.
Student engagement during emergency remote teaching: A scoping review
Authors: Yang Dong , Wang Huanhuan , Metwally Ahmed Hosny Saleh , Huang Ronghuai
Published: March 2023

Research on student engagement has recently gained popularity as it can address problems such as early dropout and poor achievement. The growing interest in investigating student engagement during the Covid-19 pandemic is reflected in increased publications addressing this topic. However, no review provided research evidence and an overview of existing literature on student engagement during emergency remote teaching (ERT). We reviewed how student engagement studies were undertaken during ERT from three perspectives: (1) the landscape of studies, (2) methodologies issues, and (3) the strategies used to facilitate student engagement. 42 articles were analysed from an initial pool of 436 search results. The findings illustrate that current studies were predominately undertaken in the United States (36%) and China (22%) with focusing on STEM subjects as a dominant discipline. The literature was largely inconsistent in defining and measuring student engagement. In addition, the majority of studies (57%) investigated students’ engagement from the perspective of students, unlike other stakeholders. The most prominent finding is that ERT promoted several important engagement strategies, including motivational factors, teachers’ facilitation, a hybrid learning model, and using learning technologies to boost students’ engagement.
Resonance characteristics and impact of the 2006 Pingtung tsunami in southern Taiwan
Authors: Cheng An-Chi , Suppasri Anawat , Pakoksung Kwanchai , Imamura Fumihiko
Published: March 2023

Tsunami resonance excitation induces tsunami amplification, persistent oscillation, and strong current velocities, which may enlarge coastal hazards in tsunamigenic areas. Historically, the 2006 Pingtung earthquake doublet triggered tsunamis that affected the south Taiwan coast. Studying the resonance features based on past tsunamis is important for assessing tsunami hazards and obtaining critical disaster mitigation information. Here, we elucidate the tsunami resonance oscillation and its impacts along the south Taiwan coast based on synthetic assessment of tsunamis induced by the 2006 Pingtung earthquake doublet. A numerical simulation was performed to replicate the 2006 Pingtung earthquake doublet tsunamis. Then, spatially integrated spectra were obtained via spatiotemporal analysis. The results were compared to tsunami spectra at tide gauges to identify the main oscillation modes, suggesting the main oscillation modes had 13–50 min periods during the 2006 Pingtung earthquake doublet tsunamis. The tsunami resonance oscillations were analyzed based on the main oscillation modes. In the 2006 Pingtung earthquake doublet tsunamis, edge waves occurred along the south Taiwan west coast in most oscillation modes. The Hengchun Peninsula prevents tsunami oscillation transmission, and only part of the oscillation energy at certain periods propagates to the east coast. Furthermore, the spectral amplitude distribution migration across the period domain revealed that energy amplification is a frequency-dependent phenomenon and is responsible for the large tsunami heights and strong tsunami-induced current velocities distributed along the south Taiwan coast during this past tsunami.
Modeling students’ behavioral engagement through different in-class behavior styles
Authors: Gomes Samuel , Costa Luis , Martinho Carlos , Dias João , Xexéo Geraldo , Moura Santos Ana
Published: March 2023

Background

The growing necessity of providing better education, notably through the development of Adaptive Learning Systems (ALSs), leveraged the study of several psychological constructs to accurately characterize learners. A concept extensively studied in education is engagement, a multidimensional construct encompassing behavioral expression and motivational backgrounds. This metric can be used to not only guide certain pedagogic methodologies, but also to endow systems with the right tutoring techniques. As such, this article aims to inspire improved teaching styles and automatic learning systems, by experimentally verifying the influence of in-class behaviors in students’ engagement.

Results

Over 16 math lessons, the occurrence of students’ and instructors’ behaviors, alongside students’ engagement estimates, were recorded using the COPUS observation protocol. After behavior-profiling the classes deploying such lessons, significant linear models were computed to relate the frequency of the students’ or instructors’ behaviors with the students’ engagement at different in-class periods. The models revealed a positive relation of students’ initial individual thinking and later group activity participation with their collective engagement, as well as a positive engagement relation with the later application of instructor’s strategies such as giving feedback and moving through class, guiding on-going work.

Conclusions

The results suggest the benefit of applying a workshop-like learning process, providing more individual explanations and feedback at the beginning of an interaction, leaving collective feedback and students’ guidance of on-going work for later on. Based on the relations suggested by our models, several guidelines for developing ALSs are proposed, and a practical illustrative example is formulated.
A content analysis of research on technology use for teaching mathematics to students with disabilities: word networks and topic modeling
Authors: Shin Mikyung , Ok Min Wook , Choo Sam , Hossain Gahangir , Bryant Diane P. , Kang Eunyoung
Published: March 2023

The purpose of this study was to conduct a content analysis of research on technology use for teaching mathematics to students with disabilities. We applied word networks and structural topic modeling of 488 studies published from 1980 to 2021. Results showed that the words “computer” and “computer-assisted instruction” had the highest degree of centrality in the 1980s and 1990s, and “learning disability” was another central word in the 2000s and 2010s. The associated word probability for 15 topics also represented technology use within different instructional practices, tools, and students with either high- or low-incidence disabilities. A piecewise linear regression with knots in 1990, 2000, and 2010 demonstrated decreasing trends for the topics of computer-assisted instruction, software, mathematics achievement, calculators, and testing. Despite some fluctuations in the prevalence in the 1980s, the support for visual materials, learning disabilities, robotics, self-monitoring tools, and word problem-solving instruction topics showed increasing trends, particularly after 1990. Some research topics, including apps and auditory support, have gradually increased in topic proportions since 1980. Topics including fraction instruction, visual-based technology, and instructional sequence have shown increasing prevalence since 2010; this increase was statistically significant for the instructional sequence topic over the past decade.
Prediction of volcanic ash concentrations in ash clouds from explosive eruptions based on an atmospheric transport model and the Japanese meteorological satellite Himawari-8: a case study for the Kirishima-Shinmoedake eruption on April 4th 2018
Authors: Ishii Kensuke , Hayashi Masahiro , Ishimoto Hiroshi , Shimbori Toshiki
Published: March 2023

Prediction of ash concentrations in volcanic ash clouds for the Kirishima-Shinmoedake eruption on April 4th, 2018 is performed on the basis of an atmospheric transport model and the Japanese meteorological satellite Himawari-8. The retrieval algorithm for Himawari-8 (referred to as the “Optimal Volcanic Ash Algorithm”, OVAA) provides two-dimensional properties of volcanic ash clouds, such as cloud heights and total column mass loading, whereas it does not provide ash cloud thickness which is required to make an initial condition for the atmospheric transport model. To estimate ash cloud thickness immediately after an eruption, here, a wind shear index is introduced. The wind shear index includes an empirical constant parameter $$T_c$$

T
c

; a small value of $$T_c$$

T
c

leads to thick ash clouds, whereas a large value of $$T_c$$

T
c

leads to thin ash clouds. In this study, the value of $$T_c$$

T
c

is optimized empirically in the following two ways: (1) a comparison between the total column mass loadings in the prediction and that in the OVAA estimation and (2) a comparison between the estimated ash cloud thickness and the observed ash cloud thickness by lidar measurements. These two comparisons suggest the optimal value of $$T_c$$

T
c

is 0.5$$-$$
-
0.6, and then, the uncertainty of the ash clouds thickness estimation to be $$\sim$$
∼
700 m. In an operation, this estimation of $$T_c$$

T
c

can be used as a fixed value to estimate the ash cloud thickness for a future eruption. In this case, the ash concentration predictions can be obtained immediately after the OVAA estimation. The ash concentrations prediction for $$T_c$$

T
c

=0.6 provides areas of high contamination (>4 mg/m$$^3$$

3

) and low contamination (<2 mg/m$$^3$$

3

). This classification of ash concentration in ash clouds has been required by the aviation industry, and is helpful information to assess safe areas and routes for airline operations.

Graphical Abstract
Combined volcano-tectonic processes for the drowning of the Roman western coastal settlements at Campi Flegrei (southern Italy)
Authors: Vitale Stefano , Natale Jacopo
Published: March 2023

The active Campi Flegrei caldera in southern Italy has a remarkably long history of coexistence between volcanism and human settlements, and it is famous for its peculiar slow ground movement called bradyseism, i.e. episodes of inflation and deflation of the caldera floor due to magmatic and/or hydrothermal processes. This natural phenomenon has interacted with the civilization that inhabited this strategic and fertile area, especially in Roman times, when the sinking of the coast hindered the flourishment of Puteoli and Baiae coastal towns. The drowning of a large part of Republic-early Imperial Roman coastal buildings, west of the modern Pozzuoli town, is classically used to illustrate the bradyseism activity. In this paper, we investigate the spatial variability and the role of this phenomenon, demonstrating that the caldera deflation alone cannot account for the submersion of Roman facilities in the western sector where the harbour structures of Portus Iulius and luxury villas of the Baianus Lacus presently lie beneath sea level. On the contrary, the sinking of this area is mainly the result of the activity of volcano-tectonic faults. We restored the topography to 100 BCE using archaeological and high-resolution topographic data. Results show that the several metres of vertical displacement recorded in the Baia area in the last 2100 yr were mainly produced by the activity of normal faults and secondarily by caldera deflation, the former including the long-lived Baia Fault and the younger normal faults associated with the Monte Nuovo eruption at 1538 CE.

Graphical Abstract
Examination of one-dimensional S-wave velocity structure using strong-motion data for high-seismic-intensity area during the 2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake
Authors: Nakagawa Naofumi , Takai Nobuo , Shigefuji Michiko
Published: March 2023

The Yufutsu Plain, a sedimentary basin surrounded by mountains, is located in the southern part of the Ishikari–Yufutsu Lowlands, Hokkaido, Japan. The Hidaka arc–arc collision zone, located in the eastern part of the Yufutsu Plain, forms the Hidaka Mountain range in central Hokkaido, with the Ishikari–Teichi–Toen Fault Zone of the Ishikari–Yufutsu Lowlands on the west side, which forms part of a major geological boundary that extends in the north–south direction. The 2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake (Mw 6.6) occurred at 03:08 JST on September 6, 2018, in this arc–arc collision zone. The K-NET HKD126 station in Mukawa Town, which is close to the severely damaged basin margin area, recorded strong-motion data with strong power for a predominant frequency of 0.5–1.0 Hz during the main shock. The peak ground acceleration was 661 cm/s2 in the east–west direction. The site amplification characteristics of the shallow S-wave velocity structure, which was estimated from microtremor array observations and surface wave explorations, were one of the causes of this strong ground motion. It is essential to accurately estimate the depth of the seismic bedrock and basin margin to evaluate the long period of large earthquakes. In this study, we used strong-motion data recorded at HKD126 and three temporary strong-motion stations near the basin margin area to tune the deep S-wave velocity structure. First, we performed microtremor array observations and surface wave explorations to estimate the S-wave velocity structure to a depth of 1 km beneath the station at the hill site because a detailed shallow structure is not available for this site. Then, with a combination of the estimated S-wave velocity structure and the existing structure, we tuned the deep structures based on an autocorrelation function analysis using strong-motion data. The validity of the estimated structures from the shallowest depth to the seismic bedrock was verified based on the differences between the observed arrival time difference and theoretical travel time difference for the S-wave initial motion. We estimated the seismic bedrock of the four stations to be at a depth of 7–10 km. In addition, an autocorrelation function analysis suggests topological bedrock undulations.

Graphical Abstract
Advances in bioleaching of waste lithium batteries under metal ion stress
Authors: Zhang Xu , Shi Hongjie , Tan Ningjie , Zhu Minglong , Tan Wensong , Daramola Damilola , Gu Tingyue
Published: March 2023

In modern societies, the accumulation of vast amounts of waste Li-ion batteries (WLIBs) is a grave concern. Bioleaching has great potential for the economic recovery of valuable metals from various electronic wastes. It has been successfully applied in mining on commercial scales. Bioleaching of WLIBs can not only recover valuable metals but also prevent environmental pollution. Many acidophilic microorganisms (APM) have been used in bioleaching of natural ores and urban mines. However, the activities of the growth and metabolism of APM are seriously inhibited by the high concentrations of heavy metal ions released by the bio-solubilization process, which slows down bioleaching over time. Only when the response mechanism of APM to harsh conditions is well understood, effective strategies to address this critical operational hurdle can be obtained. In this review, a multi-scale approach is used to summarize studies on the characteristics of bioleaching processes under metal ion stress. The response mechanisms of bacteria, including the mRNA expression levels of intracellular genes related to heavy metal ion resistance, are also reviewed. Alleviation of metal ion stress via addition of chemicals, such as spermine and glutathione is discussed. Monitoring using electrochemical characteristics of APM biofilms under metal ion stress is explored. In conclusion, effective engineering strategies can be proposed based on a deep understanding of the response mechanisms of APM to metal ion stress, which have been used to improve bioleaching efficiency effectively in lab tests. It is very important to engineer new bioleaching strains with high resistance to metal ions using gene editing and synthetic biotechnology in the near future.
Does consensus contours improve robustness and accuracy on $$^{18}$$F-FDG PET imaging tumor delineation?
Authors: Zhuang Mingzan , Qiu Zhifen , Lou Yunlong
Published: March 2023

Purpose:

The aim of this study is to explore the robustness and accuracy of consensus contours with 225 nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) clinical cases and 13 extended cardio-torso simulated lung tumors (XCAT) based on 2-deoxy-2-[$$^{18}$$

18

F]fluoro-D-glucose ($$^{18}$$

18

F-FDG) PET imaging.

Methods:

Primary tumor segmentation was performed with two different initial masks on 225 NPC $$^{18}$$

18

F-FDG PET datasets and 13 XCAT simulations using methods of automatic segmentation with active contour, affinity propagation (AP), contrast-oriented thresholding (ST), and 41% maximum tumor value (41MAX), respectively. Consensus contours (ConSeg) were subsequently generated based on the majority vote rule. The metabolically active tumor volume (MATV), relative volume error (RE), Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and their respective test–retest (TRT) metrics between different masks were adopted to analyze the results quantitatively. The nonparametric Friedman and post hoc Wilcoxon tests with Bonferroni adjustment for multiple comparisons were performed with $$P<$$

P
<

0.05 considered to be significant.

Results:

AP presented the highest variability for MATV in different masks, and ConSeg presented much better TRT performances in MATV compared with AP, and slightly poorer TRT in MATV compared with ST or 41MAXin most cases. Similar trends were also found in RE and DSC with the simulated data. The average of four segmentation results (AveSeg) showed better or comparable results in accuracy for most cases with respect to ConSeg. AP, AveSeg and ConSeg presented better RE and DSC in irregular masks as compared with rectangle masks. Additionally, all methods underestimated the tumour boundaries in relation to the ground truth for XCAT including respiratory motion.

Conclusions:

The consensus method could be a robust approach to alleviate segmentation variabilities, but did not seem to improve the accuracy of segmentation results on average. Irregular initial masks might be at least in some cases attributable to mitigate the segmentation variability as well.
Assessing tsunami vertical evacuation processes based on probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment for west coast of Aceh Besar, Indonesia
Authors: Ibrahim  , Syamsidik  , Azmeri  , Hasan Muttaqin , Irwansyah Abdullah , Al Farizi Muhammad Daffa
Published: March 2023

Background

Tsunamis are rare events compared to other disasters but have devastating consequences. In the last 100 years, more than 24 tsunamis and more than 235,000 fatalities have occurred globally. Indonesia has a high risk of a tsunami disaster. Since the devastating 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean, much research and preparatory work have been done to reduce the impact of future tsunamis in Indonesia, including in the province of Aceh, especially along the western coast where West Aceh is located. This coastal area was destroyed by a tsunami as high as 15–30 m, resulting in the loss of life, housing, tourist areas, industrial areas, and other public facilities. Given that tsunami disasters are rare and sometimes occur long in advance, human memory and awareness are reduced, making research on the level of tsunami awareness of disasters a challenging task.

Method

Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Assessment (PTHA) is a method that has been developed to predict tsunami hazards with a return period of hundreds to thousands of years, beyond the limited availability of historical data. The PTHA method can provide important information that supports tsunami risk management measures. This study aims to estimate recurrence period-based tsunami risk on the west coast of the district of Aceh Besar using the PTHA method. In this study, the source of the tsunami is caused by fault activity at sea. Seven tsunami scenarios based on fault parameters (earthquakes of magnitudes Mw 8.0 to 9.2 with interval 0,2) with the fault location focusing on the Aceh-Andaman Mega Thrust Segment, as applied in this study. This segment was a similar source to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that created a rupture area along a distance of 1155 km, with six parts of the fault.

Result

The maximum inundation distance reached 6 km for the flat area, with a flow depth of 13 m. The site has a cliff that is close to the shoreline, with an inundation distance shorter than the distance across the flat area. With an arrival time of less than 25 min, it is recommended to have an evacuation building and evacuation road in a wide inundated area, and an arrangement of hills close to the beach as an evacuation area, in order to reduce the number of casualties. For 100 years return period or exceedance probability rate 0.01, the average flow depth on the coast may exceed 5 m, and the maximum flow depth for a 1000-year return period or annual probability of 0.001 is 12 m. With the potential tsunami in the future, continuous tsunami drills and tsunami education are needed so that people can maintain an awareness of the threat posed by tsunamis.
Multi-hazard zoning for national scale population risk mapping: a pilot study in Bhutan Himalaya
Authors: Tempa Karma , Yuden Kezang
Published: March 2023

Landslides, floods, fires, windstorms, hailstorms, and earthquakes are major dangers in Bhutan due to historical events and their potential damage. At present, systematic collection of data is scarce and no multi-hazard zoning is reported in the existing literature for Bhutan. In addition, for proper disaster management, recognizing the existence of the hazards and identifying the vulnerable areas are the first important tasks for any multi-hazard risk studies. To fill the gap, the main objective of this study is to prepare the multi-hazard zoning and assess the multi-hazard population risk for Bhutan on seven historical hazard events. To achieve this, we first collected data on the historical events of different periods based on the data availability and created a district-level database. A total of 1224 hazard events were retrieved. We then calculated the weighted score for individual hazards based on the number of occurrences and the degree of impact through a multi-criteria decision analysis model (MCDA) using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The district-wise individual hazard scores are then obtained using the weighted scores. The total hazard score (THS) was aggregated and normalized to obtain the district-wise multi-hazard scores. A multi-hazard zoning map was created in the open-source software QGIS, highlighting 70% of districts with moderate to severe multi-hazard vulnerability. Considering the population distribution in each district at the local levels, the multi-hazard score is integrated and the multi-hazard population risk is mapped.
Chilean long-term Socio-Ecological Research Network: progresses and challenges towards improving stewardship of unique ecosystems
Authors: Frêne Cristián , Armesto Juan J. , Nespolo Roberto F. , Gaxiola Aurora , Navarrete Sergio A. , Troncoso Alejandra , Muñoz Ariel , Corcuera Luis J.
Published: March 2023

Ecosystems provide a variety of benefits to human society and humanity’s utilization of ecosystems affects their composition, structure, and functions. Global change drivers demand us to study the interactions between ecological and social systems, and advise strategies to protect the large fraction of Chilean unique ecosystems. Long-term research and monitoring are vital for meaningful understanding of human impacts and socio-ecological feedback, which occur over multiple spatial and time-scales and can be invisible to traditional grant-sponsored short-term studies.

Despite the large fraction of unique ecosystems, Chilean government agencies have not established long-term monitoring programs to inform and guide management decisions for use, conservation, and adaptation to climate change. Responding to this void, the Chilean Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research Network (LTSER-Chile) was created, comprising nine study sites funded by a variety of private and public institutions, that broadly seeks to understand how global change is altering biodiversity and ecosystem functions. The LTSER-Chile is currently in a phase of institutional consolidation to achieve its objectives of alignment with international efforts, fill the need for high-quality, long-term data on social, biological and physical components of Chilean ecosystems, and develop itself as an open research platform for the world. Despite the wide diversity of ecosystems ecncompased by LTSER-Chile sites, several common variables are monitored, especially climatic and hydrographic variables and many ecological indicator variables that consider temporal fluctuations, population and community dynamics.

The main challenges currently facing the LTSER-Chile are to secure funding to maintain existing long-term monitoring programs, to persuade public and private decision-makers about its central role in informing and anticipating socio-ecological problems, and to achieve greater ecosystem representation by integrating new long-term study sites. This will require a more decisive political commitment of the State, to improve the stewardship of our unique terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and the realization that sound ecologically-sustainable policies will never be possible without a national monitoring network. We argue that the State should build on LTSER and several other private and university initiatives to provide the country with a monitoring network. In the absence of this commitment, the LTSER system is subject to discontinuity and frequent interruptions, which jeopardizes the long-term effort to understand the functioning of nature and its biodiversity.
The moral and political challenges of Hartmut Rosa’s theory of resonance
Authors: Anderson Amanda
Published: March 2023

This paper explores a series of challenges presented by Hartmut Rosa’s concept of resonance viewed in the context of the normative and political dimensions of critical theory, a tradition in which he explicitly places his work (even as he draws on a wide range of other scholarly fields and domains). First, a tension between the anthropological and sociocultural aspects of his project raises questions about whether the avowed political commitments of the project can be incorporated into its theoretical framework. Second, the variability with which resonance can present, and its fundamentally pathic nature, makes it difficult to imagine how it might serve an emancipatory interest. Beyond this, the critical diagnosis of forms of impaired or deficient resonance introduces methodological questions with moral consequences. Despite these challenges, Rosa’s project importantly calls for a renewed relation to the world, one that shares affinities with parallel developments within the humanities.
Determining who is at-risk in the full-day kindergarten program
Authors: Gooderham Suzanne
Published: March 2023

Research indicates that early intervention can improve long term outcomes for students who struggle early in school. However, in multi-layered organization such as the school system, many elements may come into play when deciding which students will receive support. This study examined these elements including system requirements and expectations at the provincial and school board levels, current practice in schools and classrooms, and the beliefs and knowledge of individuals surrounding the assessment and identification of at-risk students. Using a qualitative approach, 23 individuals were interviewed. Relevant provincial and school board documents as well as artifacts were gathered to provide further information. The findings indicate that many elements influence the identification of a student as at-risk including the characteristics of the student, and the particular classroom, school, and school board the student attends. The results of this study reveal a lack of clarity as well as differing perspectives and priorities when it comes to the concept of at-risk. The study findings contribute to our understanding of practice and beliefs around young students at-risk and how the interactions of the various elements involved impact the identification of individual students.
Preload and friction in an implant–abutment–screw complex including a carbon-coated titanium alloy abutment screw: an in vitro study
Authors: Sagheb K. , Görgen C.-I. , Döll S. , Schmidtmann I. , Wentaschek S.
Published: March 2023

Purpose

An experimental approach was designed to measure the preload force, the coefficient of friction and the component of the tightening torque that is needed to surmount the thread-friction in an implant–abutment–screw complex that includes a carbon-coated screw. With the determined preload values the coefficient of friction was calculated.

Methods

25 unused complexes, containing an implant, an abutment and a carbon-coated titanium alloy abutment screw, were tested. A custom load frame with two load cells and associated electronics was used. The threads were not lubricated. All abutment screws were torqued ten times to 25 Ncm. The produced preload values and a force that was proportional to the thread-friction component of the tightening torque were recorded.

Results

Mean preload values decreased significantly with the number of repetitions (p < 0.0001) from initially 329.9 N ± 33.3 (range 255.7 to 383.9) to 253.7 N ± 36.8 (range 200.1 to 332.5) for the last tightening procedure. The corresponding change in the calculated coefficient of friction was 0.33 ± 0.04 (range 0.28 to 0.43) to 0.44 ± 0.07 (range 0.32 to 0.56). For the thread-friction no corresponding trend for consecutive tightening repetitions could be noticed.

Conclusions

In the investigated implant–abutment units, repeated use of a coated abutment screw appears to increase the friction of the screw head and thereby decrease the preload. These results indicate that a pre-used coated implant–abutment–screw will fail reaching optimal screw preload.

Graphical abstract
Acute perforation in a gastrojejunocolic fistula after a laparascopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: case report
Authors: Velleman Jos , Masereel Benoit , Geyskens Paul
Published: March 2023

Background

Gastrojejunocolic fistulas are a rare type of fistulas after a laparascopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB). They are known as a chronic complication. This case report is the first to describe an acute perforation in a gastrojejunocolic fistula after LRYGB.

Case presentation

A 61-year-old woman with a history of a laparascopic gastric bypass was diagnosed with an acute perforation in a gastrojejunocolic fistula. A laparascopic repair was performed by closing the defect in the gastrojejunal anastomosis as well as the defect in the transverse colon. However, 6 weeks later, a dehiscence of the gastrojejunal anastomosis occured. This was reconstructed by an open revision of the gastric pouch and gastrojejunal anastomosis. Long-term follow up showed no recurrence.

Conclusions

Combining the findings of our case with other literature, a laparoscopic repair with wide resection of the fistula, a revision of the gastric pouch and gastrojejunal anastomosis as well as closing the defect in the colon seems to be the best approach in case of an acute perforation in a gastrojejunocolic fistula after LRYGB.
Preservation of remnant esophagus during total pharyngolaryngectomy in a patient with previous subtotal esophagectomy: a case report
Authors: Oshikiri Hiroyuki , Okamoto Hiroshi , Taniyama Yusuke , Ishii Ryo , Ohkoshi Akira , Kurosawa Koreyuki , Unno Michiaki , Kamei Takashi
Published: March 2023

Background

With the improved survival rate of patients with esophageal cancer, secondary cancers, including pharyngolaryngeal cancer, have become a problem. Phanryngolaryngeal cancer surgery often requires esophagogastric anastomosis resection in patients with a previous history of subtotal esophagectomy. Owing to adhesions, especially surrounding the esophagogastric anastomosis, caused by the initial surgery, the second surgery might cause postoperative complications.

Case presentation

A 65-year-old man was diagnosed with early stage esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and underwent endoscopic mucosal dissection. However, the histopathological depth of the tumor was pT1b, and additional treatment was required. After administration of the neoadjuvant chemotherapy, he underwent thoracoscopic esophagectomy and retrosternum reconstruction via a gastric tube (pT1N3M0 stage III). Eight months after the first surgery, tumor recurrences were observed at the anastomosis and left cervical lymph node. Definitive chemoradiotherapy was performed for the recurrences, and complete response was achieved. Seven months after chemoradiotherapy, he was diagnosed with hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma in the right piriform fossa (cT2N2bM0 stage IVA), and salvage surgery was chosen as treatment. The surgical findings revealed strong adhesion around the remnant esophagus, which was difficult to dissect from surrounding tissue and was associated with a risk of breaking of the anastomosis. However, indocyanine green fluorescence imaging findings indicated sufficient blood flow to preserve the remnant esophagus, including the anastomosis, even after the interruption of blood flow from the proximal side of the esophagus by total pharyngolaryngectomy. Finally, approximately 4 cm of the remnant esophagus was preserved, and the free jejunum reconstruction with cervical vascular anastomosis was performed. Moreover, the patient was discharged without complications on postoperative day 38. After 10 months of the second surgery, a metastatic lymph node was observed in the right neck. Immune checkpoint inhibitors and chemotherapy were administered, and the patient is alive and under treatment 1.5 years after the second surgery.

Conclusions

Blood supply to the remnant cervical esophagus was thought to be from the gastric conduit over the anastomosis and surrounding capillaries. Thus, the preservation of the remnant esophagus can be considered in total pharyngolaryngectomy even after < 2 years of esophagectomy by blood flow evaluation using indocyanine green fluorescence.
Potato root-associated microbiomes adapt to combined water and nutrient limitation and have a plant genotype-specific role for plant stress mitigation
Authors: Faist Hanna , Trognitz Friederike , Antonielli Livio , Symanczik Sarah , White Philip J. , Sessitsch Angela
Published: March 2023

Background

Due to climate change and reduced use of fertilizers combined stress scenarios are becoming increasingly frequent in crop production. In a field experiment we tested the effect of combined water and phosphorus limitation on the growth performance and plant traits of eight tetraploid and two diploid potato varieties as well as on root-associated microbiome diversity and functional potential. Microbiome and metagenome analysis targeted the diversity and potential functions of prokaryotes, fungi, plasmids, and bacteriophages and was linked to plant traits like tuber yield or timing of canopy closure.

Results

The different potato genotypes responded differently to the combined stress and hosted distinct microbiota in the rhizosphere and the root endosphere. Proximity to the root, stress and potato genotype had significant effects on bacteria, whereas fungi were only mildly affected. To address the involvement of microbial functions, we investigated well and poorly performing potato genotypes (Stirling and Desirée, respectively) under stress conditions and executed a metagenome analysis of rhizosphere microbiomes subjected to stress and no stress conditions. Functions like ROS detoxification, aromatic amino acid and terpene metabolism were enriched and in synchrony with the metabolism of stressed plants. In Desirée, Pseudonocardiales had the genetic potential to take up assimilates produced in the fast-growing canopy and to reduce plant stress-sensing by degrading ethylene, but overall yield losses were high. In Stirling, Xanthomonadales had the genetic potential to reduce oxidative stress and to produce biofilms, potentially around roots. Biofilm formation could be involved in drought resilience and nutrient accessibility of Stirling and explain the recorded low yield losses. In the rhizosphere exposed to combined stress, the relative abundance of plasmids was reduced, and the diversity of phages was enriched. Moreover, mobile elements like plasmids and phages were affected by combined stresses in a genotype-specific manner.

Conclusion

Our study gives new insights into the interconnectedness of root-associated microbiota and plant stress responses in the field. Functional genes in the metagenome, phylogenetic composition and mobile elements play a role in potato stress adaption. In a poor and a well performing potato genotype grown under stress conditions, distinct functional genes pinpoint to a distinct stress sensing, water availability and compounds in the rhizospheres.
POSMM: an efficient alignment-free metagenomic profiler that complements alignment-based profiling
Authors: Burks David J. , Pusadkar Vaidehi , Azad Rajeev K.
Published: March 2023

We present here POSMM (pronounced ‘Possum’), Python-Optimized Standard Markov Model classifier, which is a new incarnation of the Markov model approach to metagenomic sequence analysis. Built on the top of a rapid Markov model based classification algorithm SMM, POSMM reintroduces high sensitivity associated with alignment-free taxonomic classifiers to probe whole genome or metagenome datasets of increasingly prohibitive sizes. Logistic regression models generated and optimized using the Python sklearn library, transform Markov model probabilities to scores suitable for thresholding. Featuring a dynamic database-free approach, models are generated directly from genome fasta files per run, making POSMM a valuable accompaniment to many other programs. By combining POSMM with ultrafast classifiers such as Kraken2, their complementary strengths can be leveraged to produce higher overall accuracy in metagenomic sequence classification than by either as a standalone classifier. POSMM is a user-friendly and highly adaptable tool designed for broad use by the metagenome scientific community.
The selection of copiotrophs may complicate biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships in microbial dilution-to-extinction experiments
Authors: Mao Zhendu , Zhao Zifan , Da Jun , Tao Ye , Li Huabing , Zhao Biying , Xing Peng , Wu Qinglong
Published: March 2023

The relationships between biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) for microbial communities are poorly understood despite the important roles of microbes acting in natural ecosystems. Dilution-to-extinction (DTE), a method to manipulate microbial diversity, helps to fill the knowledge gap of microbial BEF relationships and has recently become more popular with the development of high-throughput sequencing techniques. However, the pattern of community assembly processes in DTE experiments is less explored and blocks our further understanding of BEF relationships in DTE studies. Here, a microcosm study and a meta-analysis of DTE studies were carried out to explore the dominant community assembly processes and their potential effect on exploring BEF relationships. While stochastic processes were dominant at low dilution levels due to the high number of rare species, the deterministic processes became stronger at a higher dilution level because the microbial copiotrophs were selected during the regrowth phase and rare species were lost. From the view of microbial functional performances, specialized functions, commonly carried by rare species, are more likely to be impaired in DTE experiments while the broad functions seem to be less impacted due to the good performance of copiotrophs. Our study indicated that shifts in the prokaryotic community and its assembly processes induced by dilutions result in more complex BEF relationships in DTE experiments. Specialized microbial functions could be better used for defining BEF. Our findings may be helpful for future studies to design, explore, and interpret microbial BEF relationships using DTE.
Optimized menu formulation to enhance nutritional goals: design of a mixed integer programming model for the workers’ food program in Brazil
Authors: Padovan Marina , de Senna Fernando Ribeiro , Kimura Juliana Klein , Nascimento Samara Tortorella , Moretti Antonio Carlos , Capitani Caroline Dário
Published: March 2023

Background

In Brazil, institutional foodservices are required to meet the recommendations of the Workers? Food Program (WFP), a national public policy used to plan collective menus. The current study aimed to propose a mathematical model to generate a one-month menu that meets the nutritional recommendations of the WFP, with low cost and good quality.

Methods

We considered aspects related to the eating habits of the Brazilian population, spacing of repetitions between the dishes, texture combination, and monotonicity of colors of the dishes served. A mixed integer programming model was built to formulate daily menus for an institutional foodservice for one month. The menu consisted of a base dish, a base dish option, salads (2 options), a protein dish, a protein dish option, a side dish, and a dessert.

Results

The model ensured compliance with the recommendations proposed by the WFP and the provision of healthy and nutritionally balanced meals. The menu generated met the recommendations of the WFP, with an average of 716.97 kcal/meal, including on average 58.28% carbohydrates, 17.89% proteins, and 24.88% total fats/meal.

Conclusion

The model used can help in the menu elaboration dynamics of institutional foodservices, optimizing the work of the nutritionist in charge.