bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Stability and Volatility in the Contextual Predictors of Working-Age Mortality in the United States
Authors: Montez Jennifer Karas , Monnat Shannon M. , Wiemers Emily E. , Wolf Douglas A. , Zhang Xue
Published: September 2024

The contextual predictors of mortality in the United States are well documented, but the COVID-19 pandemic may have upended those associations. Informed by the social history of disease framework (SHDF), this study examined how the importance of county contexts on adult deaths from all causes, drug poisonings, and COVID-19-related causes fluctuated during the pandemic. Using 2018 to 2021 vital statistics data, for each quarter, we estimated associations between county-level deaths among adults ages 25 to 64 and prepandemic county-level contexts (economic conditions, racial-ethnic composition, population health profile, and physician supply). The pandemic significantly elevated the importance of county contexts—particularly median household income and counties’ preexisting health profile—on all-cause and drug poisoning deaths. The elevated importance of household income may be long-lasting. Contextual inequalities in COVID-19-related deaths rose and then fell, as the SHDF predicts, but rose again along with socio-political disruptions. The findings support and extend the SHDF.
Opening the blackbox of air deportation: The case of Switzerland's “Action Black Autumn”
Authors: Lüthi Barbara , Walters William
Published: September 2024

In 1985, in an operation Swiss authorities termed “Action Black Autumn,” a group of (mainly) Zaïrean migrants were deported to Zaïre on Switzerland's first documented deportation charter flight. What later would become a routinised practice was at that point still experimental and encountered significant resistance. Based on primary sources, this article looks at expulsion beyond law and policy by focusing on the development of what we call deportation infrastructure. This move allows for a fuller appreciation of the material systems that mediate coercive mobility and shape struggles. The article especially zooms in on questions of violence, resistance and visibility. By engaging the case from these different angles, we will demonstrate that a perspective of infrastructure offers new insights about deportation as a practice.
Early and late blight disease identification in tomato plants using a neural network-based model to augmenting agricultural productivity
Authors: Khan Muzammil , Gulan Fahmida , Arshad Muhammad , Zaman Abnash , Riaz Ammara
Published: September 2024

Computer-advanced technologies have a significant impact across various fields. It is widely recognized that diseases have a detrimental effect on crop productivity and can significantly impact the economy, particularly in agricultural countries. Tomatoes hold great economic importance among cash crops, second only to potatoes. Globally, tomato production reaches a staggering 160 million tons annually, making it even more crucial for agricultural development. Unfortunately, the tomato crop is susceptible to several diseases, with early blight and late blight as two prominent culprits responsible for a production decrease of around 79%. Traditional disease detection and identification methods are time-consuming, expensive, and destructive, often requiring pathologists’ expertise. Thus, the primary research objective is to enhance disease identification accuracy by leveraging deep learning techniques. A model based on the inception-V3 architecture has been devised to classify diseases affecting tomato plant leaves. The model was trained and tested using the PlantVillage dataset, which comprises 6000 sample images of tomato leaves. The training and testing process utilized an 80 : 20 ratio, resulting in an impressive classification accuracy of 97.44% for the proposed model. The proposed solution aims to enable the tomato industry to thrive in the global market by mitigating the impact of tomato leaf diseases. By reducing the prevalence of these diseases, the solution can increase demand and contribute to the industry’s growth.
Digital finance and sustainable development: Evidence from developing nations
Authors: Bakry Walid , Nghiem Xuan-Hoa , Bhatti Muhammad Ishaq , Al-Mohamad Somar , Cui Lianbiao
Published: September 2024

Objectives

This paper investigates the role of digital finance in promoting environmental sustainability within a group of 52 developing economies from 2010 to 2019. Specifically, it examines whether digital finance effectively contributes reducing CO2 emissions in these nations.

Methods

This paper is a quantitative study which employs the IV-GMM (instrumental variable generalized methods of moment) approach that tackles any potential endogeneity. Furthermore, to ensure robustness of results, this paper also utilizes different measures of financial development.

Results

Estimation results from this study reveal the presence of inverted U-shaped relationship between digital finance and CO2 emissions. This suggests that the beneficial effects of digital finance may take time to materialize. Additionally, this research also records the presence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve and a significant impact of renewable energy, trade openness, financial development, urbanization, and population on CO2 emissions.

Conclusions

It can be concluded that it may take time for digital finance to become beneficial to the environment. Therefore, in addition to digital finance, countries should also adopt other measures simultaneously (use of renewable energy, combination between digital finance and financial development).
Simulating cyberattacks with extended Petri nets
Authors: Petty Mikel D , Bland John A , Whitaker Tymaine S , Cantrell Walter Alan , Maxwell Katia P , Colvett C Daniel , Bearss E Michael
Published: September 2024

Cybersecurity is an urgent concern. Cybersecurity simulation is an important part of the response to it. This article describes a research program consisting of several interconnected cybersecurity simulation research projects. Cyberattacks are modeled using Petri nets extended with features designed for modeling cyberattacks, including representations of the attacker’s and defender’s strategies, their actions, and their actions’ cost. A database of known attack patterns is automatically processed to generate cyberattack component models, one for each attack pattern. The models are verified and validated using multiple application-relevant methods that consider both Petri nets’ theoretical properties and cyberattacks’ practical characteristics. Because the source attack pattern database is attacker-centric, the cyberattack component models are enhanced to include defender actions and responses, as well as representations of normal user activities on the computer system being attacked. Cyberattack component models stored in a repository are selected and composed into complete models of target computer systems. Metadata associated with each model guides the selection and composition. The cyberattack models are executed to simulate cyberattacks. Multiple simulation iterations are used to train reinforcement learning algorithms that automatically learn improved attacker or defender strategies.
Riotous methodological and methodointuitive reflections on (non)religion, spirituality and the multispecies turn
Authors: HALAFOFF Anna , YUNKAPORTA Tyson , HANCOCK Rosemary , HARRIS Racheal
Published: September 2024

The ‘multispecies turn’ in the social sciences and humanities is informing many disciplines including animal studies, anthropology, Indigenous studies and, more recently, sociology of religion. Scholars working on multispecies relations employ various methods and methodologies, many of which are challenging modern, Western, Christian paradigms and practices that are anthropocentric and focus on logos/words/texts/beliefs. This discussion examines new and multiple ways of conducting multispecies focused research, that is critical, reflexive, embodied, affective and intuitive. It begins with an overview of the methods applied by notable scholars – Kimmerer, Tsing and Beaman – researching multispecies relations, and then includes four personal ‘riotous’ reflections by this article’s co-authors, on their own positionality and experiences of conducting such research. The discussion concludes by identifying key challenges in research on diverse worldviews and multispecies relations, and aims to generate creative and scientific responses to further decenter anthropocentrism in academia.
Stiffness in compression therapy: Analytical estimation of pressure changes beneath textile compression devices
Authors: Kisiel Michael , Thoppey Nagarajan M , Morlock Michael M , Bannwarth Sebastian
Published: September 2024

Compression pressure changes in dynamic conditions under textile compression devices have a critical impact on the success of compression therapy. Models exist to predict the level of compression pressure, but not the actual change in pressure. This paper aims to derive a formula to accurately determine the pressure change under textile compression devices, to investigate the factors influencing the pressure change and to verify their effects through theoretical analysis. Firstly, a formula based on Laplace’s law is presented which mathematically describes the dependencies of pressure changes. Secondly, a simulation is carried out to demonstrate the effect of these dependencies on pressure changes using theoretical textile curve functions. Finally, the effect of these dependencies is demonstrated by testing short- and long-stretch bandages in a tensile testing machine and using the recorded material curves to simulate a theoretical application of these bandages to the lower limbs. The results show that the change in pressure is not solely determined by the intrinsic properties of the material, but is influenced by several variables, including the mechanical performance of the textile materials during stretching, the target pressures for application of the textile material, and the body geometries to which the material is applied. Pressure change cannot be a constant for textile compression devices such as bandages. The research increases the understanding of the factors that influence pressure changes in compression device materials. The findings may have implications for the design and selection of compression textiles in clinical applications.
Tea polyphenols-enhanced in-situ polarization of polyvinylidene fluoride nanofiber material with antibacterial and high-filtration, low-resistance filtering performances
Authors: Jia Qi , Diao Xinyi , Li Kun , Han Ling
Published: September 2024

To address the issue of viral and bacterial contamination in air filtration materials, specifically focusing on the accumulation of viruses on aerogels and long-term bacterial growth, a hydrophobic and antimicrobial polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/tea polyphenols (TPs) nanofibers membrane was prepared by electrospinning technique with natural antimicrobial TPs and ferroelectric PVDF as raw materials. By scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and testing on contact angle and antimicrobial properties, the performances of the nanofiber membranes were characterized. It was verified by XRD and FTIR analyses that the TPs facilitated the transition of PVDF from α-crystalline phase to the β-crystalline phase, thereby enhancing the polarization effect of PVDF nanofiber membranes and fortifying the electrostatic adsorption filtration capacity of the material’s trapped charges. Therefore, the incorporation of TPs not only bolstered the material’s antimicrobial efficacy but also reinforced the in-situ polarized electret effect of PVDF, consequently augmenting the high filtration efficiency and low filtration resistance capabilities of the PVDF/TPs membrane. The research found that filter membranes containing TPs exhibit exceptional filtration performance, effectively maintaining filtration resistance in 20–25 Pa while achieving a filtration efficiency of over 90% for aerosols with diameters of 2.5 μm. Notably, the PVDF/TPs membrane containing 20% TPs demonstrated outstanding filtration efficiency against 1.5 μm aerosol particles, reaching 99.98% with a filtration resistance of only 23.26 Pa, and a high inhibition rate against Staphylococcus aureus of 96.5%. The PVDF/TPs nanofiber air filtration material developed in this study presents a novel approach for high-efficiency, low-resistance, antibacterial filtration for diverse applications in antibacterial air filtration fields.
Study on the thermo-physiological comfort properties of cotton/polyester combination yarn-based double-layer knitted fabrics
Authors: Ma Wanwan , Cheng Longdi , Liu Yunying , Psikuta Agnes , Zhang Yimin
Published: September 2024

In this study, a cotton/polyester combination yarn with a hydrophobic–hydrophilic gradient across the yarn cross-section was developed using twinning and twisting technologies, and the hermos-physiological comfort properties of the cotton/polyester combination yarn-based double-layer knitted fabrics, prepared from the cotton/polyester combination yarn together with cotton yarn and polyester filaments, were systematically investigated and compared with the cotton (outer)–polyester filaments (inner) fabric. The results show that the cotton/polyester fabric has a better one-way transfer capacity and drying property due to the hydrophobic–hydrophilic gradient from inside to outside, as well as a lower thermal resistance. The cotton/polyester (outer)–polyester filaments (inner) fabric exhibits a weaker hydrophobic–hydrophilic gradient than the cotton/polyester fabric, offering superior water vapor permeability and dynamic cooling property. Although the cotton (outer)–cotton/polyester (inner) fabric with a hydrophilic gradient shows a higher thermal resistance and a weaker dynamic cooling property, it also has a higher air permeability, thermal conductivity and qmax, and its drying rate is second only to the cotton/polyester fabric. The use of the cotton/polyester combination yarn in the inner layer significantly improves the fabrics’ wettability, wickability, and tactile comfort. Furthermore, the combination yarn-based fabrics also have very good water transfer ability. As a result, the combination yarn can take advantage of both fibers in the preparation of fabrics that meet different comfort requirements.
Integrating artificial intelligence for optimal thermal comfort: A design approach for electric heating textiles aligned with user preferences
Authors: Lee Ching , Tan Jeanne , Tan Jun Jong , Tang Hiu Ting , Yu Wing Shan , Lam Ngan Yi Kitty
Published: September 2024

Human thermal comfort, crucial for well-being and productivity, is often improved by personal comfort systems that offer tailored control over environmental conditions while promoting energy efficiency. Previous studies have explored various textile technologies in thermoregulation systems according to user preferences. However, limited research has focused on temperature prediction by artificial intelligence to maximize thermal comfort for varied users. This study proposes a design approach to optimize thermal comfort in electric heating textiles using artificial intelligence, considering user preferences related to age and gender differences. A fuzzy logic model is established as a proof of concept for temperature regulation by varying ambient temperature, followed by developing an artificial neural network model to predict the optimal temperature for maximum comfort. Subsequently, a smart electric heating jacket is fabricated to assess preferred heating temperatures among 50 subjects with varying ages and genders. Results from the artificial neural network model show promising temperature prediction, while subject tests reveal significant differences in skin temperatures based on gender. This emphasizes the need for artificial intelligence-based heating e-textiles to accommodate diverse user needs. The study’s findings are expected to contribute to intelligent temperature regulation in thermal textiles and wearables, benefitting both the industry and consumers through customized heating products.
Public Health Ambassadors: A Novel Participatory Community Health Awareness Program in Abu Dhabi
Authors: Elbarazi Iffat , Al-Balushi Jamila , Al-Dhaheri Aisha , Meeran Mumtaz , Peyroteo Mariana , Paulo Marília Silva , Grivna Michal
Published: September 2024

Community-based intervention (CBI) programs promote lifestyle changes, modify risk factors, and substantially improve public health. Social mobilization and community involvement improve health outcomes, reduce health disparities, and improve access to care and services. Health intervention program evaluations are essential to provide evidence-based strategies that can enhance the design and implementation of successful health promotion programs. Interventions that enable the United Arab Emirates (UAE) community to change and modify unhealthy behaviors were the priority of the last decade and are the health authorities’ objectives. The Department of Health Abu Dhabi launched a wellness program to enable the community to adopt healthy behaviors. The Public Health Ambassadors program is a community-based health intervention program under the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, inaugurated in 2019. This paper describes the Public Health Ambassadors CBI conducted in Abu Dhabi. The implementation science framework was used to develop the intervention. The Public Health Ambassadors is one of the UAE’s earliest and most successful CBIs. The program can be used as a model to encourage more health promotion interventions in the country and the region. The role of the program was highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Voluntary community participation and social responsibilities are essential competencies promoted by this program.
The “New-Old” Dimensions of Caring in Humanitarian Response: The Opportunity for Public Health Palliative Care to Advance the Humanitarian-Development Nexus, Decoloniality, and Localization Thought
Authors: Coghlan Rachel , Zadeh-Cummings Nazanin , Petrova, PhD Mila , Spiegel Paul
Published: September 2024

How can palliative care framings advance humanitarian discourse? The imperative for palliative care in humanitarian settings is increasingly urgent. Recent efforts by health and humanitarian organizations demonstrate increasing attention to the issue. Yet palliative care is still not adequately formally considered or enacted by humanitarian agencies in rhetoric, policy, research, or practice. Even where it is considered in humanitarian action, palliative care is often assumed to be a novel intervention, rather than a caring practice that has existed from time immemorial, including in humanitarian situations. The generation of ideas in this paper has followed a dynamic, iterative, and reflexive process through engagement with key literature, critical thinking, conversations with colleagues across both sectors, primary data, and debate amongst the authors. The paper argues that the current dominant frame of a new, specialized, professionalized, and medicalized palliative care in the humanitarian sector would perpetuate existing challenges. It contends that viewing both fields through a “new-old” lens, where historical and traditional caring practices intertwine with progressive discourse for a more just and appropriate public health response, can further humanitarianism. It posits that the humanitarian-development nexus, decoloniality, and localization thought can benefit from palliative care practice through critical interaction with a broad range of literature.
Clinical correlates of medication adherence in individuals with bipolar disorder and comorbid hypertension
Authors: Levin Jennifer B. , Moore David J. , Briggs Farren , Rahman Mahboob , Montoya Jessica , Depp Colin , Einstadter Douglas , Stange Kurt C. , Weise Celeste , Maniglia Taylor , Barigye Richard , Howard Griggs Gracie , Adeniyi Clara , Yala Joy , Sajatovic Martha
Published: September 2024

Objective

Individuals with bipolar disorder (BD) have high rates of suboptimal medication adherence, medical illness, and premature mortality, largely from cardiovascular causes. This study examined the association between adherence to antihypertensive, adherence to BD medications, and clinical symptoms in patients with BD and comorbid hypertension (HTN). Participants were involved in an ongoing clinical trial.

Method

Inclusion criteria were a BD diagnosis, treatment with antihypertensives, adherence challenges, and poorly controlled HTN. Adherence was measured via self-report using the Tablets Routine Questionnaire and using eCAP, an electronic pill bottle that captures openings. Average systolic blood pressure (SBP) was calculated from 12 readings over one week. The Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) assessed BD symptoms.

Results

A total of 83 participants with BD and HTN were included. Adherence to BD medications and antihypertensive medications were positively correlated. eCAP openings showed more missed doses than participants self-reported for antihypertensive adherence. BD medication adherence was positively correlated with BPRS at baseline, whereas antihypertensive adherence was negatively correlated with SBP at screening. Antihypertensive adherence improved and SBP decreased between screening and baseline.

Conclusions

Adherence levels fluctuated over time and differed based on measurement method in participants with comorbid BD and HTN. Self-reported BD adherence was positively related to global psychiatric symptoms and antihypertensive adherence was related to better SBP control. Monitoring both medication and blood pressure led to a change in self-reported adherence. BD symptom severity may interfere with medication adherence in patients with BD and should be considered in treatment planning.
Church Conflict, Loneliness, and the Bid to Belong
Authors: Lee Cameron
Published: September 2024

Loneliness, a perceived sense of isolation, has been demonstrated to have deleterious effects on both physical and mental health. Numerous studies suggest that the prevalence of loneliness is increasing over time and is common in the church, even among pastors. Many researchers now conceptualize the pain of loneliness as an evolutionarily adaptive signal that prompts the lonely person to make social connections. Loneliness, however, can also increase one’s hypervigilance to the threat of rejection, leading to a cycle of behavior and biased interpretation called the “loneliness loop.” Drawing upon Baumeister’s need-to-belong theory, this article is a concept paper that suggests that congregations are places of belonging, and that some church conflict can be understood as stemming from failed bids for social connection, with the conflict being reciprocally maintained by the mutual activation of the loneliness loop. This perspective will be illustrated through two vignettes drawn from the published ministry literature.
The Effects of Social Approval Signals on the Production of Online Hate: A Theoretical Explication
Authors: Walther Joseph B.
Published: September 2024

This essay explicates a middle range theory to predict and explain the propagation and magnification of hate messages on social media. It builds upon an assumption that people post hate messages in order to garner signals of social approval from other social media users. It articulates specific propositions involving several constructs, including signals of social approval, disapproval, and sufficiency of social approval. Six derived hypotheses predict how these dynamics apply in certain contexts of social media interaction involving hate posting. It reviews empirical research that applies to these hypotheses, raises issues for future research, and reviews concurrence and distinctions between this approach and other theories.
Examining How Sex Appeal Cues and Strength Cues Influence Impressions of Female Video Game Characters
Authors: Lynch Teresa , Dooley Annie , Erxleben Matthew R.
Published: September 2024

Sexualization is a prominently studied dimension of how media content contributes to problematic outcomes for women (e.g., self-objectification). In video game contexts, scholars have debated whether portrayals of powerful characters may disrupt undesirable outcomes of sexual objectification. In two studies, we experimentally manipulated sex appeal cues and strength cues in female characters. Participants reported their impressions in terms of key person perception outcomes and liking of the characters. We also aimed to understand how interactivity shapes impression formation by comparing viewing (Study 1) to playing (Study 2) contexts. Results indicated that sex appeal cues and strength cues interacted to shape character impressions but did so differently depending on the type of interaction participants had with the character. In both studies, sexual appeal cues produced greater disliking of the characters. Our discussion considers the findings with respect to character design in video games and other media entertainment.
Public-Private Partnerships in the Healthcare Sector and Sustainability: Managerial Insights from a Systematic Literature Review
Authors: De Matteis Fabio , Striani Fabrizio , Notaristefano Giovanni , Caferra Rocco
Published: September 2024

This article aims to critically understand the current state of the art of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the health sector and to highlight implications useful for implementing sustainability-oriented PPPs. By employing text mining to analyze the sampled articles, we identify the main themes distinguishing healthcare PPPs and sustainability. We critically discuss the narrative underlying the results achieved in terms of emerging topics: governance, managerial tools, barriers, advantages/disadvantages, and big data. Finally, we propose a literature-driven framework on PPP management that identifies implications – systemic approach, technical managerial skills, governance balance, operational instruments – that can facilitate the development of sustainability-oriented PPPs in the healthcare sector.
The employee representation plan movement in the United States 1913–1935: The attempted legitimation of novel organizational forms
Authors: Smith Andrew DA , Tennent Kevin D
Published: September 2024

How managers collaborate across firm boundaries to legitimate novel institutional arrangements in the eyes of the public is a topic that has attracted the interest of a wide range of researchers. This article, which is informed by this literature, explores the rise and fall of the employee representation movement in the United States. The period 1913–1935 saw intense interest on the part of American managers in the creation of non-union employee representation plans (ERPs) such as works councils and shop committees. The article uses archival and other primary sources to argue that the employee representation movement of the pre-1935 era was an attempt to legitimate big business in the eyes of a wide range of stakeholders, not just workers.
Discussion on the production mechanism of deep coalbed methane in the eastern margin of the Ordos Basin
Authors: Yu Lizhu , Wang Dameng , Feng Xin , Gu Xianfeng , Chen Ming , Wu Xiaolei , Kong Jintao
Published: September 2024

This study builds upon the research progress in the theories of CBM desorption, diffusion, and seepage flow to explore the production mechanisms of deep coalbed methane (CBM) in the Daing-Jixian block, aiming to achieve scientific and reasonable control of gas wells. Theoretical analysis suggests that CBM adsorption belongs to liquid–solid interfacial adsorption, encompassing four stages: liquid phase adsorption—liquid phase desorption—composite desorption—gas phase desorption. Most of the desorbed gas is driven by a pressure differential in a Darcy's flow process. By calculating the Knudsen number (Kn) under various temperature, pressure, and fracture diameter conditions, the flow state can be identified. Whole-diameter CT scanning reveals a multi-scale pore-fracture system ranging from millimeters to micrometers to nanometers. Calculations show that during the gas well drainage and depressurization process, fractures of millimeter scale and larger exhibit Darcy's flow, while micron-scale fractures maintain Darcy's flow status above a reservoir pressure of 5 MPa; other scales primarily exhibit non-Darcy flow without significant macroscopic movement. In summary, starting from the fundamental mechanisms of the original multiscale tri-level pore-permeability system of the coal reservoir, through the post-fracturing transformation forming three diversion zones of high, medium, and low conductive regions, and transitioning from primarily free gas to desorbed gas in three production stages, an ideal comprehensive production model schematic for the study area has been established, providing theoretical support for on-site production management.
Evaluation of the Curative Effects of Surgical Intervention in Cases of Congenital Malformation of the Ossicular Chain in Children
Authors: Zhen Junsong , Liu Wei , Ma Ning , Shao Jianbo , Wang Xiaoxu , Liu Yuxin , Li Shilan , Guo Lining , Zhang Jie
Published: September 2024

Purpose: Congenital malformation of the ossicular chain results in challenges with hearing and language development in children. We aimed to analyze the clinical characteristics, prognosis, and surgical treatments of different types of congenital ossicular chain malformations in children. Methods: Eight cases (10 ears) treated between October 2019 and February 2022 were analyzed retrospectively. Patients were divided according to the location of the ossicular chain malformation and whether it was complicated by external ear malformation. Imaging, audiological examination, intraoperative exploration of the middle ear, and postoperative outcomes were recorded. Results: Group 1 incudostapedial joint deformity): 6 ears/60%; Group 2 (simple incus deformity): 2 ears/20%; Group 3 (simple malleus deformity): 2 ears/20%; Group A (with external ear malformations): 4 ears/40%; Group B (without external ear malformations): 6 ears/60%. The average hearing threshold before and after the operation was 51.25 ± 12.88 and 31.94 ± 12.96 dB, respectively. There were differences in the intervention effects of different malformed sites (Group 1: t = 5.139, P = .004; Group 2: t = 13.500, P = .047; Group 3: t = 15.000, P = .042). The effect of the intervention in cases of malformation with mobile stapes footplates was better than that with immobile stapes footplates ( t = 4.082, P = .027). The effect of the intervention without external ear malformations was better than that with external ear malformations ( t = 7.706, P = .001). Conclusions: The intervention yielded superior results in cases of malformation with mobile stapes footplates compared to those with immobile stapes footplates. Different intervention strategies should be determined through precise deformity assessments, with the degree of stapes mobility serving as a crucial factor in improving the prognosis.
Intensive Care Unit Transfer in Patients With Deep Neck Infections
Authors: Hung Yu-Cheng , Ho Chia-Ying , Chan Kai-Chieh , Wang Yu-Chien , Chin Shy-Chyi , Chen Shih-Lung
Published: September 2024

Background: Deep neck infection (DNI) involves the deep neck spaces and may lead to airway compromise. An intensive care unit (ICU) is a specialized unit of the hospital that provides intensive care. ICU care is required for patients with severe DNI, although the risk factors for need of ICU care in patients with DNI have not been investigated. Methods: The clinical and laboratory parameters of 350 patients aged >18 years who were diagnosed with DNI between October 2018 and October 2023 were evaluated. Of these patients, 62 were transferred to the ICU. Univariate and multivariate analyses were applied to assess the risk factors for need of ICU care. Results: Univariate analysis revealed that older age [odds ratio (OR) = 1.0324, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.0155-1.0496, P = .0001], a higher C-reactive protein (CRP) level (OR = 1.0076, 95% CI: 1.0049-1.0103, P < .0001), and blood glucose level (OR = 1.0057, 95% CI: 1.0023-1.0091, P = .0011), involvement ≥3 spaces (OR = 2.2366, 95% CI: 1.2827-3.8998, P = .0046), and mediastinitis (OR = 4.7134, 95% CI: 2.3537-9.4391, P < .0001) were significant risk factors for ICU transfer in patients with DNI. In multivariate analysis, older age (OR = 1.0216, 95% CI: 1.0032-1.0403, P = .0210), higher CRP level (OR = 1.0063, 95% CI: 1.0033-1.0092, P < .0001), and mediastinitis (OR = 2.6103, 95% CI: 1.1974-5.6905, P = .0158) were independent risk factors of ICU transfer in patients with DNI. The ICU group had a longer hospital stay (23.98 ± 8.53 vs 7.44 ± 4.24, P < .0001) and higher rate of tracheostomy ( P < .0001) than the non-ICU group. However, there were no significant differences in the rate of incision and drainage open surgery or pathogens between the groups (all P > .05). Conclusions: Elder patients and those with advanced CRP levels and mediastinitis are more likely to be transferred to the ICU, leading to prolonged hospital stays and a higher risk of tracheostomy. Clinicians should assess the patient’s need for ICU transfer and timely manage the airway according to the aforementioned laboratory parameters and complications carefully.
Plasma Circulating HPV DNA Surveillance in a Patient With Nasopharyngeal Cancer
Authors: Sheth Siddharth , Walburn Tyler , Tasoulas Jason , Patel Samip , Agarwal Ankit , Gulley Margaret L.
Published: September 2024

Nearly one third of nasopharyngeal carcinomas (NPCs) in the United States are associated with human papillomavirus (HPV). Surveillance for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-negative subtypes is customarily based solely on imaging and physical examinations. We present a case of HPV-positive NPC using serial circulating tumor HPV DNA (ctHPVDNA) as a biomarker of disease status. A 58-year-old Caucasian female initially presented with T1N1M0 EBV-negative p16-positive squamous cell carcinoma of the nasopharynx and was treated with concurrent chemoradiation. Regional nodal recurrence identified 7 months post-radiotherapy was treated with salvage left neck dissection. Surveillance was supplemented using a commercially available polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based ctHPVDNA assay. Rising ctHPVDNA levels at 9 and 10 months post salvage surgery prompted positron emission tomography (PET). Biopsy confirmed recurrence in avid right hilar and paraoesophageal lymph nodes. Following definitive radiotherapy to the involved nodes and concurrent pembrolizumab, posttreatment ctHPVDNA decreased to baseline, but then increased after 6 cycles of pembrolizumab. Follow-up PET found left mediastinal recurrence outside of the prior treatment field, which was treated with concurrent chemoradiation with cetuximab. Again, ctHPVDNA level dropped to baseline but increased 3 months postradiation. PET scan showed a left lung nodule, and the patient received systemic therapy. Plasma ctHPVDNA monitoring correlated well with disease activity in our patient with HPV-positive NPC. ctHPVDNA detected disease earlier than standard surveillance methods and allowed for earlier intervention. Larger studies are needed to validate the utility of HPV biomarker surveillance in NPC.
The Effects of the 2020 BLM Protests on Racial Bias in the United States
Authors: Primbs Maximilian A. , Holland Rob W. , Maatman Freek Oude , Lansu Tessa A. M. , Faure Ruddy , Bijlstra Gijsbert
Published: September 2024

The 2020 Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests in response to the murder of George Floyd highlighted the lingering structural inequalities faced by Black people in the United States. In the present research, we investigated whether these protests led to reduced implicit and explicit racial bias among White U.S. Americans. Combining data from Project Implicit, Armed Conflict Location Event Data Project (ACLED), Google Trends, and the American Community survey, we observed rapid drops in implicit and explicit measures of racial bias after the onset of the protests. However, both types of racial bias slowly increased again over time as (attention to) BLM faded. We use directed acyclic graphs to show under which assumptions causal inferences are warranted. We discuss our results in light of situational models of bias, their implications for protest movements, and raise questions about when and how social norms play a role in large-scale attitude change.
Developing Hidden Talent: An Exploratory Study of Advanced Math Curriculum Implementation and Its Effects on Young Mathematically Promising English Learners
Authors: Yang Jenny , Cho Seokhee
Published: September 2024

In this qualitative case study, we investigated the role of an advanced math curriculum with language scaffolding on the development of geometric and visual-spatial reasoning skills in young mathematically promising English learners (MPELs). Specifically, we examined the effects of providing MPELs with challenging and supportive math curriculum to facilitate the development of mathematical potential through a geometry unit. Twenty-one MPELs were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a comparison class. The data sources included audio recordings of class sessions, documents of math tasks, field notes, and test scores. Findings revealed that in the intervention class, tasks required more cognitive demands, and students were encouraged to contribute to classroom discourse more than in the comparison class. MPELs in the intervention class demonstrated greater gains in geometric reasoning compared to their peers in the comparison class. These findings underscore the point that challenging and supportive curricula can effectively nurture the mathematical potential of underrepresented gifted students.
Legacies of dignity: Remembering Drucilla Cornell
Authors: Guilmette Lauren
Published: September 2024

This essay engages Drucilla Cornell's thinking about ethical feminism, dignity, and intergenerational responsibility in the wake of her passing in December 2022.
Artificial Intelligence and the Production of Judicial Truth
Authors: Rovira Martorell Joan , Gálvez Ana , Tirado Francisco
Published: September 2024

The aim of this paper is to present artificial intelligence (AI) as an organ with a role in the production of judicial truth, expanding its objects, changing its procedures and reshaping the distribution of agencies within the judicial organism. To this end, it builds on Michel Foucault’s work on the procedures of truth production and the three subject forms involved: operator, spectator and object. This is then complemented by the general organological perspective proposed by Bernard Stiegler. On the basis of both, we will demonstrate two realities: first, that AI is shifting truth production from the individual to the profile, and second, that the types of associations that AI is forming have the potential to curtail human agency in the production of judicial truth.
Methylene blue and acid red adsorption on biochar made from modified sugarcane bagasse: A dynamic, equilibrium, and thermodynamic investigation
Authors: Zhu Wenfang , Chen Fangyuan , Ye Lei , Yang Xinyuan , Song Yali , Wang Hua
Published: September 2024

This study synthesized biochar adsorbents from chemically activated sugarcane bagasse using ZnCl2 at pyrolysis temperatures of 400, 500, and 600°C. The modified bagasse biochar was used to remove methylene blue (MB) and acid red (AR) dyes. The surface characteristics of the modified bagasse biochars were analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to assess the impact of various parameters on adsorption performance. Among the different bagasse biochar samples, Zn-BC-600 exhibited superior adsorption capacities for MB and AR with values of 182.225 and 43.324 mg/g, respectively. The adsorption efficiency was significantly influenced by pH, with optimal conditions at pH = 6.0 for MB and pH = 2.0 and 10.0 for AR. The adsorption process for MB and AR on Zn-BCs followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model, indicating chemisorption as the primary mechanism. Adsorption isotherm studies revealed that Zn-BCs conform to the Freundlich model, proposing a multilayer adsorption due to the heterogeneity of the biochar surface. Regeneration experiments indicated that Zn-BCs could be reused for multiple adsorption cycles. In conclusion, the modified bagasse biochar showed strong adsorption affinity for both MB and AR, particularly for MB, making it a promising adsorbent for treating printing and dyeing wastewater.
Fintech ‘frontiers’ and the platformed motorcycle: Emergent infrastructures of value creation in African cities
Authors: Rose Cirolia Liza , Pollio Andrea , Sitas Rike , Fortuin Alicia , Odeo Jack Ong’iro , Gatoni Sebarenzi Alexis
Published: September 2024

Concerned with financialized extraction, the exploitation of precarious workers and racialized violence, critical scholars call for greater attention to the coloniality of financial technology (fintech) expansion in Africa. In this article, we echo the utility in foregrounding coloniality, but argue that it should be read as one among multiple, specific, and entangled ways in which fintech is creating new forms of value in the context of Africa’s urbanization. To make this case, we focus on the nexus between platforms, motorcycle taxis and fintech. In three different African cities, we observe how fintech maps onto the impulses and desires of the private sector and the state alike to use fintech to enact various forms of value creation. In Nairobi, the motorcycle has become the testbed of assetization experiments that seek to create data-rich and less fuel-dependent economies; in Kigali, the state-led and platform-enabled standardization of motorcycle services intends to create fiscal, planning, and regulatory values; and in Cape Town, legacy supermarket chains enroll motorcycles and fintech offerings to algorithmically integrate urban economies of labor and retail. Tracing these processes illuminates the different rationalities, ingenuities, and technological entanglements that, beyond the endurance of coloniality, shape Africa’s fintech moment.
Hot deformation behavior and processing map of the nanocrystalline pure Mg
Authors: Guan Gaoyang , Fan Jianfeng , Zhang Qiang , Li Weiguo , Dong Hongbiao , Ma Chao , Su Di
Published: September 2024

The thermal compression test of the nanocrystalline, as-extrusion and as-cast pure Mg was carried out by the AGX-XD universal testing machine. The results demonstrated that flow stress of pure Mg with different grain sizes decreased with increasing temperature and decreasing strain rate. Accurate prediction of the thermal deformation behavior was achieved through establishing the constitutive equations. In comparison, the nanocrystalline pure Mg represents stronger strain hardening rate and weaker sensitivity to strain rate. Based on processing map, the optimal processing area for the nanocrystalline pure Mg is at 300–400 °C, 0.01– 0.1 s−1. The grain distribution of the nanocrystalline pure Mg remains stable and uniform after hot compression, and the grain boundary migration is the dominant deformation mechanism.
Insight into myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury from the perspective of ferroptosis
Authors: Huang Xia , Wang Yanni , Cui Xiangrong , Yan Qin , Xue Tingting , Jing Xuan
Published: September 2024

Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) most frequently happens in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) when rapid reperfusion is utilized to save the ischemia myocardium. MIRI is the main contributing of poor healing in AMI and is related to high mortality and disability rates around the worldwide. Currently, there is no effective precautionary measure for MIRI. Ferroptosis is a novel regulated cell death characterized by iron overload and reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, which lead to death membrane lipid peroxidation. An increasing amount of studies indicates that ferroptosis plays a vital role in the occurrence and progression of MIRI. Given the crucial role of ferroptosis in MIRI, it is critical to understand the cardiomyocyte iron metabolism and investigate the molecular mechanisms of ferroptosis. In this review, we systematically summarize the molecular and metabolic pathways of ferroptosis in context of MIRI, which could provide novel understandings for the pathophysiological machine and new ideas for treatment.
Outcomes in peripheral right ventricular device support: Comparing the dual lumen, single canula and femoral vein cannulation strategies for right ventricular support
Authors: Florea Ioana B , Kotkar Kunal D , Fischer Irene , Damiano Marci , Itoh Akinobu , Damiano Ralph J , Pawale Amit A , Masood Muhammad F
Published: September 2024

Introduction

The Protek Duo (PtD) dual lumen, single cannula was developed as a percutaneous system for temporary mechanical support, inserted through the internal jugular vein (IJ) for both atrial inflow and pulmonary artery outflow. Outcomes of PtD compared to alternative Peripheral Right Ventricular Assist Device (pRVAD) methods are limited.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was conducted of pRVAD recipients from January 2017 - February 2022 ( n = 111). These were classified into PtD ( n = 52) patients and Non-Protek [(N-PtD) ( n = 59)] recipients undergoing cannulation of the IJ and femoral vein. Results were further stratified by indication for pRVAD support: cardiogenic etiologies of heart failure and progressive ARDS.

Results

No survival benefit was detected between PtD and N-PtD groups at 1-week (OR: 1.32, 95% CI: 0.49–3.56, p = 0.58) or 6-month (OR: 9.83, 95% CI: 0.37–1.84, p = 0.64) follow-up. There were no statistically significant differences in whether patients’ mobility progressed to out-of-bed activity ( p = 0.26) or ambulation ( p = 0.38). No differences were noted in time to out-of-bed ( p = 0.26) or time to ambulation ( p = 0.36). On subgroup analysis of patients by indication for pRVAD cannulation, these results persisted; no difference was noted in mid-term mortality (Cardiogenic: p = 0.39; ARDS: p = 0.91), progression to out-of-bed ( p = 0.59; p = 1.00), or ambulation ( p = 0.51; p-0.68). Among secondary outcomes, PtD patients had an increased dialysis requirement ( p = 0.02). There were no differences in ability to wean from RVAD ( p = 0.06), tracheostomy ( p = 0.88), major bleeding events ( p = 0.57), stroke ( p = 0.58), or hospital length of stay ( p = 0.39).

Conclusions

Outcomes with PtD are comparable to those of traditional pRVAD cannulation strategies. Of note, no mobility benefit was observed to the use of PtD across several metrics.