bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Clinical Imaging and Innovations in Aortic Aneurysm and Dissection
Authors: Burris Nicholas S. , Marway Prabhvir S. , Jorge Carlos Alberto Campello
Published: December 2024

Imaging plays a central role in the management of patients with aortic disease. Such imaging can be made particularly complex by changing terminology and definitions, overlapping pathologies, and unfamiliarity with evolving endovascular treatment approaches. This article will review basic principles of aortic imaging that can be applied across a variety of settings and pathologies, with a description of key best practices and potential pitfalls for image acquisition, diagnostic assessment, and reporting. Additionally, the topic of imaging in the setting of endovascular aortic repair will be addressed, as well as a variety of imaging-related diagnostic challenges in the setting of chronic aortic dissection, including surgically repaired type A and uncomplicated type B dissections. Finally, recent developments in advanced aortic imaging will be highlighted with descriptions of several areas of promising research that may yield significant advances in imaging of aortic disease.
Super-resolution wide-field quantum sensing
Authors: Shan Long-Kun , Weng Tong-Tian , Ma Meng-Qi , Liu Yong , Jiang Wang , Zhang Shao-Chun , Dong Yang , Chen Xiang-Dong , Guo Guang-Can , Sun Fang-Wen
Published: December 2024

Wide-field quantum sensing and imaging with solid-state spins has attracted wide interest for its ability to detect relative physical quantities with high sensitivity at nanoscale. However, the optical diffraction limit hinders the improvement in spatial resolution. In this work, we utilize blind structured illumination microscopy to perform wide-field quantum sensing with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond. Without the requirement of prior knowledge of excitation light field, the spatial resolution of NV centers imaging is enhanced by 1.8-fold in comparison with conventional microscopy. Combined with spin manipulation and detection, super-resolution NV center sensing is subsequently performed to reveal the optical and electrical properties of nanodevice. The high spatial resolution and feasibility of this work will promote the applications of quantum sensing in nanoscience.
The Stern–Gerlach effect as a method for obtaining nanostructures with a given unidirectional anisotropy of optical properties
Authors: Pudonin F. , Sherstnev I. , Kostzov D.
Published: December 2024

We propose a quantum technology for producing chiral systems from multilayer nanostructures based on quantum Stern–Gerlach effects. Using the example of multilayer systems with non-magnetic metals, such as [Bi(Ag)–Al2O3]N, we demonstrate that depending on the relative orientation of the substrate, the magnetic field, and the beam of atoms from the sputtered material, several separate extended regions (films) grow on the substrate. In these regions, stable optical unidirectional anisotropy emerges, with the orientation of the axis varying across different regions. Our findings reveal that the resulting anisotropy is influenced by the interaction of atomic moments within the metal film. Remarkably, external magnetic and electric fields, as well as thermal annealing, fail to destroy the unidirectional anisotropy in the prepared structures. Thus, these structures exhibit highly correlated behavior.
Anomalous valley Hall effect in electric-potential-difference antiferromagnetic Cr2CHCl monolayer
Authors: Liang Dun-Cheng , Guo San-Dong , Chen Shaobo
Published: December 2024

The antiferromagnetic (AFM) valleytronics can be intrinsically more energy-saving and fast-operating in device applications. In general, the lacking spontaneous spin-splitting hinders the implementation and detection of anomalous valley Hall effect (AVHE). Here, we propose to implement AVHE in electric-potential-difference antiferromagnetic Cr2CHCl monolayer with excellent stability, where the spontaneous spin-splitting can be induced due to layer-dependent electrostatic potential caused by out-of-plane built-in electric field. From a symmetry perspective, the introduction of Janus structure breaks the combined symmetry (PT symmetry) of spatial inversion (P) and time reversal (T), which gives rise to spin-splitting. Both unstrained and strained monolayer Cr2CHCl possess valley splitting of larger than 51 meV, which is higher than the thermal energy of room temperature (25 meV). The layer-locked Berry curvature gives rise to layer-locked AVHE. Our work reveals a route to achieve AVHE in AFM monolayer with spontaneous spin-splitting.
Multi-channel frequency router based on valley-Hall metacrystals
Authors: Fan Jiayu , Li Haitao , Kang Shijie , Chen Peng , Xie Biye , Ling Fang , Deng Ruping , Wu Xiaoxiao
Published: December 2024

Topological photonics has revolutionized the manipulation of electromagnetic waves by leveraging various topological phases proposed originally in condensed matter, leading to robust and error-immune signal processing. Despite considerable efforts, a critical challenge remains in devising frequency routers operating at a broadband frequency range with limited crosstalk. Previous designs usually relied on fine-tuning of parameters and are difficult to be integrated efficiently and compactly. Here, targeting the demand for frequency-selective applications in on-chip photonics, we explore a topological approach to photonic frequency router via valley-Hall metacrystals. Diverging from the majority of studies focusing on zigzag interfaces, our research shifts the attention to armchair interfaces within an type-A type-B type-A (ABA) sandwich-like structure, where a single column of type-B unit cells acts as a replacement in the background type-A metacrystal. Essentially, through tuning a single geometric parameter of the type-B unit cells, this configuration gives rise to interface states within a customized frequency band, enabling signal routing with limited crosstalk to meet specified demands. Moreover, this concept is practically demonstrated through a photonic frequency router with three distinct channels, experimentally exhibiting robust wave transmissions with excellent agreement with the design. This investigation manifests possible applications of the armchair interfaces in valley-Hall photonic systems and advances development of photonic devices that are both compact and efficient. Notably, the approach is naturally compatible with on-chip photonics and integration, which could benefit telecommunications and optical computing applications.
On the increase of the melting temperature of water confined in one-dimensional nano-cavities
Authors: Della Pia Flaviano , Zen Andrea , Kapil Venkat , Thiemann Fabian L. , Alfè Dario , Michaelides Angelos
Published: December 2024

Water confined in nanoscale cavities plays a crucial role in everyday phenomena in geology and biology, as well as technological applications at the water–energy nexus. However, even understanding the basic properties of nano-confined water is extremely challenging for theory, simulations, and experiments. In particular, determining the melting temperature of quasi-one-dimensional ice polymorphs confined in carbon nanotubes has proven to be an exceptionally difficult task, with previous experimental and classical simulation approaches reporting values ranging from ∼180 K up to ∼450 K at ambient pressure. In this work, we use a machine learning potential that delivers first principles accuracy (trained to the density functional theory approximation revPBE0-D3) to study the phase diagram of water for confinement diameters 9.5 < d < 12.5 Å. We find that several distinct ice polymorphs melt in a surprisingly narrow range between ∼280 and ∼310 K, with a melting mechanism that depends on the nanotube diameter. These results shed new light on the melting of ice in one-dimension and have implications for the operating conditions of carbon-based filtration and desalination devices.
Consistent theoretical description of nuclear spin long-lived states decay under conditions of reversible ligand–protein binding
Authors: Geniman M. P. , Yurkovskaya A. V. , Lukzen N. N.
Published: December 2024

Determining the stability constant of the complex formed by an organic ligand with a protein is the first stage in the screening of new drugs. Nuclear spin long-lived states, in particular the singlet state, can be used to study the reversible binding of ligands to proteins. In a complex with a protein, the spins of the ligand interact with the spins of the protein, the system of protein and ligand nuclei can relax by a dipole–dipole mechanism, and the lifetime of the singlet state is strongly reduced. In this theoretical study, a system of encounter theory equations with the condition of fast relaxation in free protein was solved to determine the lifetime of the LLS in the presence of protein. It was shown that in the limit of fast chemical exchange, the relaxation of the LLS of the ligand nuclei due to dipole interaction with the protein nuclei is reduced to relaxation by the mechanism of dipole interaction with one proton of the protein, which is located at some effective distance from the ligand nuclei. Numerical calculations were made to test the applicability of the approximations used to process the experimental lifetime dependencies on the ligand concentration and external field, and it was shown that these approximations coincide with the limit of fast exchange in strong and weak magnetic fields, but not in the medium field. An analytical expression for the lifetime of the singlet state of ligand nuclei in an arbitrary magnetic field in the absence of protein was obtained.
An asymmetric Schottky black phosphorus transistor for enhanced broadband photodetection and neuromorphic synaptic functionality
Authors: Shen Ya , Hou Pengfei
Published: December 2024

Artificial synapses that mimic the functions of biological neurons are fundamental elements of brain-like computing. The development of artificial synaptic devices is essential for future applications in computer vision information processing capabilities, as well as in the fields of artificial intelligence and the internet of things. However, the sensitivity and detection range of optoelectronic synapses, which can also serve as self-powered photodetectors, pose urgent challenges to be addressed, particularly in achieving broadband and infrared detection using individual two-dimensional semiconductor materials. In this report, a black phosphorus (BP)-based transistor is constructed based on the potential difference between BP nanoflake and Au electrodes with varying thicknesses. The BP-based transistor demonstrates the capability for self-powered photodetection across a wide range from 405 to 1064 nm. Furthermore, with the assistance of an external voltage of 1 V, the photodetection bandwidth of the BP-based transistor extends to 2200 nm. The specific detectivity and responsivity of the BP-based transistor are high to 2.47 × 1011 and 1.94 × 1011 Jones, 34 and 20 A/W under 1550 and 2200 nm infrared light, respectively. Moreover, the BP-based transistor can emulate the “learning-forgetting” behaviors of optoelectronic synapses under light with a wide range from 405 to 2200 nm, providing an effective approach for brain-like recognition processing systems. This research contributes to the advancement of optoelectronic synaptic devices and holds promise for future developments in neuromorphic computing.
Thermal properties of SnSe nanoflakes by AFM-based scanning thermal microscopy measurements
Authors: Ozdogan M. , Iken T. , Cakir D. , Oncel N.
Published: December 2024

We investigated the thermal resistance of SnSe nanoflakes using scanning thermal microscopy (SThM), an extension of atomic force microscopy that allows for nanoscale thermal mapping. The nanoflakes studied ranged in thickness from 5 to 40 nm, enabling us to observe the thermal properties across a wide range of dimensions. Our findings reveal a clear trend of increasing thermal resistance with SnSe nanoflake thickness, suggesting that heat transport in SnSe is governed by diffusive mechanisms that limit the effectiveness of nanostructuring in further reducing thermal conductivity. This investigation showcases the capabilities of SThM for nanoscale thermal analysis, providing critical insights into the intrinsic thermal transport properties of SnSe.
Calculation of thermodynamic properties of helium using path integral Monte Carlo simulations in the NpT ensemble and ab initio potentials
Authors: Marienhagen Philipp , Meier Karsten
Published: December 2024

We apply the methodology of Lustig, with which rigorous expressions for all thermodynamic properties can be derived in any statistical ensemble, to derive expressions for the calculation of thermodynamic properties in the path integral formulation of the quantum-mechanical isobaric–isothermal (NpT) ensemble. With the derived expressions, thermodynamic properties such as the density, speed of sound, or Joule–Thomson coefficient can be calculated in path integral Monte Carlo simulations, fully incorporating quantum effects without uncontrolled approximations within the well-known isomorphism between the quantum-mechanical partition function and a classical system of ring polymers. The derived expressions are verified by simulations of supercritical helium above the vapor–liquid critical point at selected state points using recent highly accurate ab initio potentials for pairwise and nonadditive three-body interactions. We observe excellent agreement of our results with the most accurate experimental data for the density and speed of sound and a reference virial equation of state for helium in the region where the virial equation of state is converged. Moreover, our results agree closer with the experimental data and virial equation of state than the results of semiclassical simulations using the Feynman–Hibbs correction for quantum effects, which demonstrates the necessity to fully include quantum effects by path integral simulations. Our results also show that nonadditive three-body interactions must be accounted for when accurately predicting thermodynamic properties of helium by solely theoretical means.
Enhanced piezoelectricity and temperature stability in La-doped PIN-PMN-PT transparent ceramics by composition regulation
Authors: Fu Dashi , Wang Yaqi , Zheng Weijie , Lin Jinfeng , Zhu Jian , Zhao Chunyang , Xu Jinfeng , Wang Runyi , Jin Lei , Wen Zheng , Liu Jianyi , Zhang Yongcheng
Published: December 2024

Transparent ferroelectric ceramics are popular due to their ability to couple optical and electrical properties. However, simultaneously achieving high electrical and optical performance in ceramics remains a formidable challenge. By using the two-step sintering process combined with a rare earth doping strategy, xLa-24PIN-42PMN-34PT transparent piezoelectric ceramics were prepared, achieving the coexistence of the highest known d33 (>1000 pC/N), excellent transmittance (T = 66.2% at 1600 nm), and the piezoelectric properties decrease by only 26.8% when approaching TC. PFM and in situ XRD results indicate that the parallel stripe-like and watermark-like coexisting ferroelectric domain structures, which are induced by La3+ doping, generate large piezoelectric responses. Light scattering loss is reduced by the small size of the ferroelectric domain structure. Excellent thermal stability is ensured by the tetragonal-dominated morphotropic phase structure. This work provides a valuable idea for the subsequent preparation of transparent ferroelectric ceramics with high performance.
Distinct modulation of calcium-activated chloride channel TMEM16A by drug-binding sites
Authors: Roh Jae Won , Gee Heon Yung , Wainger Brian , Kim Woo Kyung , Lee Wook , Nam Joo Hyun
Published: December 2024

TMEM16A is a calcium-activated chloride channel with significant role in epithelial fluid secretion, sensory transduction, and smooth muscle contraction. Several TMEM16A inhibitors have been identified; however, their binding sites and inhibitory mechanisms remain unclear. Using magnolol and honokiol, the two regioisomeric inhibitors, as chemical probes, we have identified a drug-binding site distinct from the pore region, in TMEM16A, which is described here. With electrophysiology, unbiased molecular docking and clustering, molecular dynamics simulations, and experimental validation with mutant cycle analysis, we show that magnolol and honokiol utilize different drug-binding sites, pore and nonpore pockets. The pore blocker utilizes amino acids crucial for chloride passage, whereas the nonpore blocker allosterically modulates the pore residues to hinder ion permeation. Among 17 inhibitors tested, 11 were pore blockers and 6 were nonpore blockers, indicating the importance of this nonpore pocket. Our study provides insights into drug-binding mechanism in TMEM16A together with a rationale for future drug development.
Manifest in the flesh
Authors: Wheeler Michael
Published: December 2024

The summer of 1859 proved to be a turning point for William, both spiritually and professionally. In June, Palmerston appointed him to the Liberal chancellorship that he was to retain for seven years. He also fell under the spell of Tennyson’s Idylls of the King, poems that explore two models of manhood. At the end of July he became obsessed with Marion Summerhayes, an artists’ model and a courtesan. In October he published a major review article on Tennyson’s poems and wrote a sermon on the incarnation which focuses upon the discipline exhibited by Christ in his life on earth. Incarnational theology, the providential order, and religious freedom, subjects on which he focused intensely in his private reflections in the early 1860s, also figured in speeches that he gave in the Commons and in front of mass audiences ‘out of doors’.
Fight the good fight
Authors: Wheeler Michael
Published: December 2024

During William’s first premiership (1868–74), he battled to solve the ‘Irish question’. Three other battles were also to be fought between his sixtieth and seventieth birthdays. The first was related to his intense relationship with Laura Thistlethwayte, said to have been a former courtesan, and the battle against ‘the Evil One’. Secondly, having resigned as prime minister, he believed that providence had equipped him to fight the good fight in defence of the Church of England as a bulwark against ‘unbelief’. His main weapon was the pen. Thirdly, having taken up arms in the national debate on the ‘Eastern question’, he reflected that ‘the battle to be fought was a battle of justice humanity freedom law, all in their first elements from the very root, and all on a gigantic scale.’ His pamphlet on The Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East was the belated result.
Life and Ideal
Authors: Ware Owen
Published: December 2024

This chapter argues that Friedrich Schiller plays a decisive role in shaping the German romantic turn to mythology. §1.2 traces the development of Schiller’s relationship with Greek mythology leading up to his poem “The Gods of Greece.” §§1.3–2.4 show that Schiller’s breakthrough occurs when he distinguishes between the poetry of the ancients, characterized by unconscious contact with nature, and the poetry of the moderns, characterized by conscious separation from nature. §1.5 explains why this distinction allows Schiller to articulate a new form of poetry that consists in the infinite striving for wholeness, one that turns on the reciprocal coordination of our rational and sensible natures. The chapter concludes by clarifying Schiller’s view of mythology (in §1.6) and situates it within a broader intellectual context (in §1.7).
Searching for the Blue Flower
Authors: Ware Owen
Published: December 2024

This chapter develops a close reading of three German romantic novels: Hölderlin’s Hyperion, Schlegel’s Lucinde, and Novalis’s Heinrich von Ofterdingen. The argument of this chapter is that each of these novels seeks to realize the project of a new mythology. §§4.2–4.3 analyze Hölderlin’s novel, showing how his work captures the reconciliation between self and world through the act of poetic recollection. §§4.4–4.5 analyze Schlegel’s novel, showing how his work appeals to a principle of “irony” in depicting the interplay of sensuality and spirituality. §§4.6–4.7 analyze Novalis’s novel, showing how his work uses a “fairytale” to construct a symbolic narrative of the self in its journey from fragmentation to wholeness. In comparing the three, Heinrich von Ofterdingen goes furthest in realizing the aims of a new mythology.
Remittance-Driven Growth and the Continuation of Labor Export in the Philippines, 1984–Present
Authors: Lee Suzy K
Published: December 2024

Chapter 6 takes up the continuation of labor export after the period of labor-export-mediated industrialization (LEMI). By the early 1980s, Korean labor export was becoming increasingly unnecessary, as the economic transformations enabled by LEMI were making any labor-export-based strategy more difficult to implement because Korea’s rapidly rising wages made its workers less competitive internationally. While labor-export policy in the Philippines continued, its relationship to economic development changed. Instead of supporting industrialization, labor export helped sustain migrant remittances, which grew to approximately 10 percent of the country’s economy, and helped the country establish a steady, if not astronomical, pattern of growth. This growth has relied not on heavy industry or export manufacturing but on sectors associated with deindustrialization—services, real estate, retail trade, and finance—whose rise occurred in parallel with that of temporary labor migration.
The Remittance Workaround—Explaining the Relative Success of RDG
Authors: Lee Suzy K
Published: December 2024

Chapter 7 discusses the crucial role of Philippine state policy in its modern remittance-dependent economy. Since remittances from individual migrants, dependent on changing conditions and policies in receiving countries, can be an unreliable basis for a national economy, labor-export policy plays a crucial role in securing a steady and growing flow of remittances, by directing labor migration toward temporary and employment-based migration associated with reliable rates of remittances and by diversifying the countries to which workers deploy. The labor-export apparatus has avoided the most corrosive effects of oligarchic rent-seeking because remittances arrive as millions of small sums directed toward households, rather than as windfall profits collected via monopolized markets or large state-controlled pools of funds. Because the actual “business” of labor export—the recruitment of manpower—constitutes so little of the revenue generated, the incentive for conglomerates to intervene in labor-export policy to capture this revenue does not exist.
The Long Line of Imperial Servants
Authors: Anooshahr Ali
Published: December 2024

As remarkable as Jawhar’s memoirs may appear at first glance, they were not exactly unique. His experience fits a pattern in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century South Asia in which a number of “subaltern” persons (meaning both “marginal figures” and “low-ranking military men”) produced similar types of narrative. These included Dattu Sarvani, Bayazid Bayat, Asad Beg Qazvini, Mirza Nathan, and others. Essentially, the context for this was the formation of a bureaucratic and absolutist state in north India that attempted to compensate for the rupture of most other bonds of social cohesion among its servitors by sublimating itself into a mystical patriarchy.
A Brief History of Victorian Microscopy
Authors: Kennedy Meegan
Published: December 2024

A review of the history of technological, publishing, and social developments during the nineteenth century shows how these shaped critical narratives about the microscope. Benefitting from recent innovations in the design of the compound microscope and a surge in print culture, microscopy became available in new ways for research and leisure use, with important developments especially during the middle decades of the century. Victorian writers promoted and challenged certain tropes, both inherited and newly invented, about microscopical practice. One of the most persistent tropes is the comparison of the microscope to the telescope; over the course of the century this pairing shifted from depicting the microscope as an inferior younger sibling to showing them as complementary equals in investigative value.
Wonder Everywhere?
Authors: Kennedy Meegan
Published: December 2024

Although writers claimed that the microscope confronted them with the sublime, the objects studied were often surprisingly commonplace. Especially in popular settings, microscopists adapted the longstanding natural-theology trope of the divine in the commonplace to address contemporary concerns that microscopical work required attention to what was trivial, sometimes even repellent. The trope of the common wonder can serve either sacred or secular aims, as is seen in discussions of diatoms, which were both abundant and rare, common and exceptional. Microscopists discussing insects and other possibly repellant objects invoke the repulsive revealed to be wonderful to promise revelations hidden even in what disgusts the observer.
Trained Hands and Tact
Authors: Kennedy Meegan
Published: December 2024

Skeptical tropes (such as patient labor) helped working microscopists manage their concerns about how microscopical observation links the embodied components of observer, instrument, and object in one dynamic, unstable system. Guidebooks for students emphasized the need for painstaking discipline in order to achieve the skilled interactions of eye, hand, and body with the apparatus of observation, perhaps especially slide preparation and the management of focus and of light. Drawing from physiological psychology, microscopists debated how the physical experience of perception, attention, and fatigue might contribute to discovery, learning, and error. Students hoped eventually to achieve tact in the skill of delicate manipulation and, through discipline and training, render this difficult practice habitual and automatic.
Soirée Form
Authors: Kennedy Meegan
Published: December 2024

The soirée was a commonplace of Victorian polite science and popular microscopical culture. Soirée form engaged aesthetic, literary, and social norms to integrate science, technology, and art, within an imagined community. In texts like Gosse’s Evenings at the Microscope (1859), the microscopical soirée was used as a literary form built on an aesthetic of miscellaneity (especially of intricate or lively objects), an ethic of sociality, and an appeal to affect, often within an explicitly imagined virtual storyspace. The fictional observer in Gosse’s text, like many others, oscillates between wonder and skepticism, romantic and realist approaches to the microscopical image. This convention was remediated as a structure for microscopical photographs and slides, book frontispieces, magic lantern slides, and microcinematic short films.
The Price We Pay for Justice
Authors: Macklem Timothy
Published: December 2024

There are many reasons to seek justice and even to permit its prioritization over other values from time to time. Yet when justice is understood as a distinct value (rather than as a name for all that is good), its claims are incommensurable with the claims of the many other values that are alternatives to it and that may be in competition with it in any given setting. That means that while it is often open to us to assign to justice some sort of regulatory oversight of the operation of other values in our lives, the assignment is an arbitrary one, born of a practical need to prioritize what has no native claim to priority. More important, it means that when we pursue justice, as we often have excellent reason to do, we pay a price in terms of the other values with which the pursuit of justice is at odds. Most obviously, we neglect all those values the realization of which depends on not keeping score in the manner that the realization of justice not only calls for but depends upon. To be just is not to be many other good things, and much that is important in our lives is lost thereby, such as the practice and pursuit of generosity, kindness, mercy, and love.
Generative AI and Business: A Review and Research Agenda
Authors: Woolley Jennifer
Published: December 2024

Generative Artificial Intelligence (Generative AI or GenAI) is an emerging and fast-growing technology with important consequences for workers, businesses, and society. GenAI is a subset of Machine Learning, which is a branch of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that not only analyzes data but also produces human-like output in response to users’ prompts. These creative capabilities distinguish it from former iterations of AI, with distinctive and profound implications. Largely unknown before, GenAI became a household term in the fall of 2022 with the wide release and adoption of ChatGPT. Since then, GenAI has incited discussion and debate in many settings, including education, social media, and engineering. However, much uncertainty and confusion surrounds the topic, even with its widespread adoption. To gain a better understanding of the topic requires a brief overview to clarify some of the most pressing issues pertaining to GenAI and business introducing GenAI and what makes it different from traditional AI, highlighting its ability to produce data besides analyzing it. The generated data or the output that GenAI produces can be categorized as language-based, visual, auditory, and multimodal. Each category has applications in several fields that range from incremental to transformative. Use cases in customer service, sales and marketing, finance, healthcare, education, gaming, and operations are also relevant. Although much has been made of the benefits of using GenAI, there are also important challenges, particularly in terms of a program’s design, technological limitations, and ethical and legal considerations.
Queer Theory
Authors: Self Jen , Atis Allison
Published: December 2024

The term “queer” has predominantly occupied everyday vocabulary at the turn of the 21st century. Given this, queer lands uniquely with people across diverse experiences and positionalities, arriving at a tautology that continues to fit queer narratives and histories—“queer is queer.” Variety translates to the roots of queer theory and, presently, to its influences and attentions. Little has been said about queer theory in relation to social work; instead, queer theory is understood as “work with queer people or work with LGBTQIA+ populations.” Queer theory, then, has merely been used to make sense of individual cases, which can expand sense-making within the social work practice. Discussion on the critical histories and definitions of queer theory has emphasized the latent and emergent possibilities in queering social work itself—its language, viewpoints, practice, and contexts.
Policies, Principles, and Adjudication (c. 1977-82)
Authors: Hart H L A
Published: December 2024

A previously unpublished paper by H.L.A. Hart responding to some of the work of Ronald Dworkin and found among Dworkin’s papers. For commentary on the origins and background of the paper see Samuel Burry, “H.L.A. Hart’s Lost Essay on Policies, Principles, and Adjudication,” American Journal of Jurisprudence 69 (2024): 000-00.
Diversity on a small scale: phylogeography of the locally endemic dwarf succulent genus Oophytum (Aizoaceae) in the Knersvlakte of South Africa
Authors: Schmidt Sabrina A , Schmiedel Ute , Carstens Frederic , Rau Anna-Lena , Rudolph-Bartsch Barbara
Published: December 2024

Background and Aims

Oophytum (Aizoaceae) is a locally endemic genus of the extremely fast-evolving subfamily Ruschioideae and consists of only two formally accepted species (Oophytum nanum and Oophytum oviforme). Both species are leaf-succulent dwarf shrubs and habitat specialists on quartz fields in the Knersvlakte, a renowned biodiversity hotspot in the arid winter-rainfall Succulent Karoo Biome of South Africa. Quartz fields present specialised patchy habitats with an island-like distribution in the landscape. Oophytum oviforme grows in the south-western part, whereas O. nanum covers most of the remaining Knersvlakte. These species co-occur in a small area, but within different quartz islands. We investigated the effects of the patchy distribution, environmental conditions and potential effects of palaeoclimatic changes on the genetics of Oophytum.

Methods

Phylogenetic and population genetic analyses of 35 populations of the genus, covering its entire distribution area, were conducted using four chloroplast DNA markers and an amplified fragment length polymorphism dataset. These were combined with environmental data via a principal component analysis and comparative heatmap analyses.

Key Results

The genetic pattern of the Oophytum metapopulation is a tripartite division, with northern, central and western groups. This geographical pattern does not correspond to the two-species concept of Oophytum. Only the western O. oviforme populations form a monophyletic lineage, whereas the central populations of O. oviforme are genetic hybrids of O. nanum populations. The highly restricted gene flow often resulted in private gene pools with very low genetic diversity, in contrast to the hybrid gene pools of the central and edge populations.

Conclusions

Oophytum is an exceptional example of an extremely fast-evolving genus that illustrates the high speciation rate of the Ruschioideae and their success as one of the leading plant groups of the drought-prone Succulent Karoo Biome. The survival strategy of these dwarf quartz-field endemics is an interplay of adaptation to diverse island habitats, highly restricted gene flow, occasional long-distance dispersal, migration, founder effects and hybridisation events within a small and restricted area caused by glacial and interglacial changing climate conditions from the Pleistocene to the Present. These findings have important implications for future conservation management strategies.
The future, before, and after: Bayesian and multivariate analyses reveal shared and unique neural mechanisms of imagining and remembering the same unique event
Authors: Raz Inon , Gamoran Avi , Nir-Cohen Gal , Trzewik Maayan , Salti Moti , Sadeh Talya , Gilead Michael
Published: December 2024

Research shows that the brain regions that subserve our ability to remember the past are also involved in imagining the future. Given this similarity in brain activity, it remains unclear how brain activity distinguishes imagination from memory. In the current work, we scanned participants using functional magnetic resonance imaging before and after they performed a highly unique and elaborate activity wherein they went skydiving for the first time in their lives. Multivariate pattern analysis, Bayesian inference, and a tightly controlled experimental design were used to identify the neural activity that differentiates between memory and imagination of the same events. The results showed that large swaths of the default mode network exhibited identical patterns of activity in recollection and imagination; several frontal areas were involved in imagination (but not in recollection). Representational similarity analysis revealed that the left ventral precuneus exhibited different patterns of memory and imagination. Further examination revealed that this subarea may be especially important for recollection of specific episodes. These results advance our understanding of how the critical distinction between the past and future might be manifested in the brain.
Interplay between platelets and coagulation: from protective haemostasis to pathological arterial thrombosis
Authors: Vilahur Gemma , Fuster Valentin
Published: December 2024

Haemostasis refers to the physiological process aimed at repairing vessel injury and preventing bleeding. It involves four interlinked stages culminating in the formation of a platelet–fibrin haemostatic plug that is eventually dissolved once the vessel heals. In contrast, arterial thrombosis is a pathological condition resulting from atheroma exposure, triggering the formation of a platelet-rich thrombus that may obstruct blood flow, leading to the clinical manifestations of ischaemic cardiovascular disease. The following review will provide a comprehensive overview of the finely regulated endogenous antithrombotic mechanisms responsible for maintaining the haemostatic balance and preventing intravascular thrombosis. Thereafter, it will further detail the different stages and mechanisms governing the intricate interplay between the vessel, platelets, and the coagulation cascade in haemostasis, highlighting the most recent advances in platelet biology and function, to further elucidate the differential traits and players contributing to pathological arterial thrombus growth. The review will also delve into the impact of emerging cardiovascular risk factors on tilting the haemostatic balance towards a pro-thrombotic state, thereby increasing the patient’s vulnerability to thrombotic events. Finally, it will underscore the importance of early screening for subclinical atherosclerosis through advanced imaging technologies capable of quantifying plaque burden and metabolic activity since they may set the stage for an increased thrombotic risk. Implementing proactive interventions to halt atherosclerosis progression or inducing its regression at early stages is crucial for preserving haemostasis and reducing the likelihood of ischaemic atherothrombotic disease.
Controlled-source electromagnetic survey in a volcanic area: relationship between stacking time and signal-to-noise ratio and comparison with magnetotelluric data
Authors: Ishizu Keiichi , Ogawa Yasuo , Tseng Kuo Hsuan , Kunitomo Takahiro , Kitaoka Norihiro , Caldwell Grant , Minami Takuto , Serita Sohei , Ichihara Hiroshi , Bertrand Edward Alan , Heise Wiebke
Published: December 2024

Although controlled-source electromagnetic (CSEM) methods have higher sensitivity to thin resistive bodies than the magnetotelluric (MT) method, their delineation by the inversion requires CSEM data with high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This study aims to enhance the SNR of CSEM data by increasing the number of stacks. To efficiently stack long-term data, we use an EM-accurately controlled, routinely operated signal system (ACROSS), which can transmit accurately controlled waveforms by synchronizing the transmitting waveforms with a 10 MHz Global Positioning System signal. We conducted a CSEM survey using the EM-ACROSS in the Kusatsu-Shirane Volcano to demonstrate that the SNR can be improved by extensive observation data and the CSEM inversion can delineate hydrothermal systems, including resistive bodies of vapour-rich reservoirs. Our EM-ACROSS simultaneously transmitted waveforms from two dipoles during a 192-h of the survey; five-component receivers located 4–6 km away from the transmitter captured EM-ACROSS signals ranging between 146 and 192 h. By stacking extensive observation data using a weighted method, the CSEM responses show minimal error levels, with standard errors <2 per cent for most frequencies. The SNR roughly followed the square root of the stacking times. 3-D inversion of the collected CSEM data delineated a relatively resistive body, interpreted as a vapour-dominated reservoir below a cap-rock layer, while the MT inversion failed to recover the same. This highlights the ability of an EM-ACROSS-based CSEM survey to delineate hydrothermal systems including vapour-dominated reservoirs, and provides a compelling rationale for establishing CSEM as a standard methodology in hydrothermal imaging. Furthermore, this study suggests that the enhanced imaging capabilities of CSEM data can be further improved when integrated with MT data.
Symbols of National Importance, Article 6ter Paris Convention and Public Policy and Morality: Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service Before the General Court in T-82/24 ‒ RUSSIAN WARSHIP
Authors: Oprysk Liliia
Published: December 2024

24 February 2022, the day that Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, caught many by surprise and prompted an unprecedented use of the Ukrainian flag and other national symbols by public authorities and private entities across the globe. Public attention also led to a spike in applications for trademark registrations of such symbols, including at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). One of these applications, notably made on behalf of Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, reached the General Court. The application does not concern a state emblem communicated under Art. 6ter Paris Convention but it certainly does involve a symbol of national importance. While, nearly a hundred years after the adoption of Art. 6ter in 1925, the issue of use and trademark registration of various symbols of national importance is not an exclusive domain of public authorities, it is of interest to society at large, as the public reaction to (over)use of such symbols demonstrates. The article discusses the T-82/24 – RUSSIAN WARSHIP case in light of the cross-border treatment of symbols of national importance under trademark law and the ongoing discussions in Ukraine and at the WIPO. It deals with the prohibition of trademark registration of state symbols and the role of public policy and morality, including in the EUIPO examination of applications made in connection with Russia’s full-scale invasion. The article also reflects more broadly on the treatment of symbols of national importance and the implications of the cross-border use of such symbols for examinations at the EUIPO.
Barriers to integration of health and equity into urban design policies in Regina, Saskatchewan
Authors: Mahani Akram , Lyeo Joonsoo Sean , Fung Agnes , Husack Kelly , Muhajarine Nazeem , Diener Tania , Brown Chelsea
Published: December 2024

Although there is extensive literature on the impact of urban design on health, little is known about the barriers to integrating health into urban design policies. As cities increasingly lead efforts to improve health equity and population health, understanding the perspectives and experiences of municipal actors on health and equity is essential. To address this gap, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 30 stakeholders engaged with urban design policy- and decision-making at the City of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada. We analysed our data using a qualitative thematic framework. Our research uncovered a lack of shared understanding of health among municipal actors. Interviewees identified several barriers to integrating health and equity in urban design policies, including inaccessibility of evidence; insufficient resourcing; fragmented governance structure; limited legal power of local governments in Canada; a deeply ingrained culture of individualism and lack of representation. Our findings underscore the importance of adopting an integrated and holistic approach for healthy and equitable urban design. As urbanization continues to bring a greater share of the world’s population into urban areas, it is crucial to understand how municipal governance can foster environments that promote residents’ well-being.
Gonadal hormone abnormalities in young patients with first-episode schizophrenia
Authors: Hu Qiang , Wang Jindong , Liang Jing , Xiu Meihong , Zhang Shuangli , Wu Fengchun
Published: December 2024

Background

Gonadal hormones have been reported to be involved in the molecular mechanisms of schizophrenia (SCH). However, only a few studies have examined the gonadal hormone dysfunctions in first-episode schizophrenia (FES) patients, in particular in young patients with SCH. This study was designed to investigate the sex differences in gonadal hormones in young and antipsychotic-naïve FES patients.

Methods

One hundred and sixty-two patients with SCH and 74 healthy controls were recruited, and blood gonadal hormones, including estradiol (E2), follicular-stimulating hormone (FSH), progesterone (PROG), luteinizing hormone (LH), and testosterone (TESTO), were measured in young FES patients and controls.

Results

We found that both male and female young FES patients showed gonadal hormone disturbances at the onset of psychosis. Male patients exhibited a significantly higher rate of abnormal E2 (25.6% vs 3.9%), while female patients had higher rates of abnormal FSH (0% vs 5.3%), PROG (0% vs 21.1%), LH (3.5% vs 17.1%), and TESTO (3.5% vs 13.2%) (all P < .05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis further identified that specific gonadal hormone indices, including E2, LH, and TESTO, were factors associated with sex differences in young FES patients, after controlling for age, smoking status, and body mass index.

Conclusions

Our study reveals an overall gonadal hormone imbalance in young antipsychotic-naïve FES patients, highlighting sex differences at the onset of psychosis. Our study provides a foundation for further research into the role of gonadal hormones in the pathophysiology of SCH and the potential for personalized medicine approaches based on hormonal balance. Future studies were warranted to explore these differences and their implications for clinical practice to improve the treatment outcomes for individuals suffering from SCH.
Establishment of epidemiological cut-off values of etimicin: a new fourth-generation aminoglycoside, against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii and Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Zhang Ge , Luo Zhengyu , Yang Qiwen , Kang Wei , Zhang Jingjia , Li Jin , Wang Tong , Lin Jie , Yu Yunsong , Zhuo Chuyue , Zhuo Chao , Wang Qihui , Chu Yunzhuo , Chen Zhongju , Sun Ziyong , Guo Dan , Zhang Li , Xu Yingchun
Published: December 2024

Objective

To determine the epidemiological cut-off (ECOFF) values of etimicin against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii and Staphylococcus aureus.

Methods

We selected 1500 isolates from five hospitals throughout five cities in China spanning from January 2018 to December 2021 in the study. Minimal inhibit concentrations (MICs) of etimicin were determined using the broth microdilution method. ECOFFs of etimicin against six species were calculated using ECOFFinder software and visual estimation following EUCAST principles.

Results

MICs of etimicin were distributed from 0.064 to >128 mg/L for S. aureus, from 0.125 to >128 mg/L for P. aeruginosa, from 0.25 to >128 mg/L for K. pneumoniae, P. mirabilis and A. baumannii, and from 0.5 to >128 mg/L for E. coli. The MIC ECOFF of etimicin was 2 mg/L for K. pneumoniae, 8 mg/L for E. coli and P. mirabilis, 16 mg/L for P. aeruginosa and A. baumannii, and the tentative ECOFF (TECOFF) of etimicin was 2 mg/L for S. aureus.

Conclusions

(T)ECOFFs of etimicin against E. coli, K. pneumoniae, P. mirabilis, P. aeruginosa, A. baumannii and S. aureus were determined, which will be helpful to differentiate wild-type strains.