bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Factor Abundance and Export Competitiveness: Hecksher-Ohlin (H-O) Theorem for Philippines and Japan Trade
Authors: Lemuel Preciados  , Al Rae Zabala
Published: November 2023

This paper empirically examined the validity of Hecksher-Ohlin theorem in the context of the Philippine-Japan inter-industry trade. Specifically, this study tried to validate whether Japan and the Philippines are primarily exporting their relatively abundant factor and importing their scarce inputs as predicted by the H-O theorem. The question of whether factor abundance affects specialization of export trade was also addressed in this study. This study employed the Leontief’s test for H-O theorem with the addition of multiple regression time-series analysis for further validation of the test. Based on the data collected, with actual counts of the labor force in total and disaggregated, it is found that Japan relatively has an abundance of labor than the Philippines. Arguably, using the measurement of factor abundance established by Leontief and other researchers (share of supply of effective factor/share of world GDP), the result show that Japan is scarce in labor, which the Philippines is abundant. This result validates the assumption that the Philippines, as a labor abundant country relative to Japan, can export labor intensive products. In contrast, because Japan is found in this study to be a capital abundant country relative to Philippines, can export capital intensive products. Trading of these two countries using their abundant factor endowment likely provides competitive price in the international market hence could lead to export competitiveness. Furthermore, results from the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) suggest that there is a long-run causality running from the Philippines’ labor supply and capital supply to its capacity to export merchandise products to Japan, hence enhancing efficiency on the utilization of these factor endowments could significantly improve export performance of the country that will ultimately achieve continuous increase in economic growth for the Philippines.
MANAGEMENT VALUES AND EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS
Authors: Antonio A. Remojo  , Gary C. Garcia
Published: November 2023

The extent of commitment of school administrators to management values is considered to be vital in development. Differences in value commitments among groups of administrators and the association between levels of management values as possessed and the levels of educational productivity measured in terms of subordinates' job satisfaction were determined. The study reveals that administrator groups vary in their commitments to management values. Secondary school administrators showed reliable commitments while primary school administrators showed varying commitments to values. Educational productivity levels in terms of job satisfaction were high in advancement and work interest but low in terms of giving responsibility to the teachers.
Creating a Financial Viability Model among Cooperatives Using Management Practices as Predictors
Authors: Melvin S. Sarsale
Published: November 2023

The contribution of cooperatives in the Philippine economy has been increasingly felt as it generated millions of business volume from various sectors and thousands of direct employment among Filipinos, however, only few continue to exist. This paper used management practices as predictors in creating a financial viability model among cooperatives. This paper clustered the multipurpose cooperatives operating in a Philippine province into large, medium, and small cooperatives based on their asset size and chose the top two as representative cooperatives in each cluster for a total of six out of 42 multipurpose cooperatives. This study assessed the management practices using these dimensions, strategy, execution, culture, structure, talent, leadership, innovation, and strategic linkages and partnerships and measured financial viability using Altman’s Z”-score model. This study also applied regression analysis in creating a prediction model which revealed that only culture, structure, and strategic linkages and partnerships can significantly predict financial viability among cooperatives. The model suggests that cooperative’s financial viability increases when it puts premium on improving its culture and structure. The model even suggests that cooperatives are discouraged in making strategic linkages and partnerships to become financially viable. In other words, this model proposes that closed-type cooperatives seem to be more financially viable than open-type cooperatives.
Profiling and Isolating Management Practices of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Philippines through Cluster Analysis
Authors: Sylvester T. Cortes
Published: November 2023

This study profiled and isolated the best management practices of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Philippines using Hierarchical Cluster Analysis. It is a multivariate interdependence technique which can segment MPAs into homogeneous clusters based on reported scores from nine management constructs identified by MPA Management Effectiveness Assessment Tool (MEAT). The cluster analysis creates four distinctly profiled MPA groups the same with the MPA classification in MEAT which distributions are the following: cluster 1 (n=28), cluster 2 (n=81), cluster 3 (n=6) and cluster 4 (n=35). These clusters are profiled as institutionalized, sustained, strengthened, and established respectively. The best practices from institutionalized cluster in nine management constructs are reported in this study. The study also identified management plan, management body, financing, information, education, and communication (IEC), enforcement, monitoring and evaluation (ME), and site development as management constructs that need attention from national and local MPA managers as they scored low in most of the MPAs.
Social Acceptability and Prevalence of Violence Against Women
Authors: Constantino G. Medilo, Jr.
Published: November 2023

This study determined if in a rural setting prevalence of various forms of violence against women will result as socially acceptable. Using the descriptive-correlational method, a survey was conducted to 456 residents of a rural area in the Philippines. The results showed that social acceptability of physical abuse was significantly correlated to its prevalence but not sexual, emotional and economic violence. This suggested that women may continue to suffer from physical violence because it is socially acceptable. Furthermore, the finding implied that finding ways to change the perception of the society towards physical violence is important.
What Social Progress Indicators are Enhanced by Mother Tongue Instruction?
Authors: Mark B. Galdo  , Dana D. Lim
Published: November 2023

This paper investigated on what social progress indicators are enhanced by Mother Tongue Instruction as evidence of better education outcomes particularly in terms of access to basic education, access to information and communication, access to advanced education and opportunity, personal life choices, adult literacy, freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. Online data of sixteen identified countries as the major implementer of Mother Tongue Instruction (MTI) based on the report of Asia Multilingual Education Mapping of Classroom and of Language Classroom Practices and 2017 Social Progress Index was mined and subjected to discriminant analysis. The countries were classified into less, moderate, and high users of MTI. With the use of statistical software, the data were processed using the linear discriminant analysis to analyze the social progress indicators of MTI implementer. The results showed that the enhanced social progress indices are the following: access to basic knowledge and information communication, personal life choices, freedom of expression, and assembly. It also revealed that there are three indicators - access to advanced education, opportunities, and adult literacy, which are considered trade-offs despite the enhanced social progress indicators of mother tongue instruction. Further studies on the world data on MTI policy are highly recommended to gain a broader perspective and understanding of the social progress enhanced in the mother tongue instruction.
Electronic Waste Management Practices and Its Extent of Implementation: A Case of an Academic Institution
Authors: Adolfo C. Ancheta
Published: November 2023

The increase of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) electronic wastes and electronic products depends on the technology upgrading and obsolescence rates in the equipment. It can be assumed that the disposal of electronic equipment is driven by the production of new technological development. This descriptive study assessed the electronic waste management practices and extent of implementation of e-waste management. Data on the practices on e-waste disposal was collected using a researcher-made questionnaire, with Southern Leyte State University (SLSU) end-users of ICT serving as respondents. Findings showed that e-waste management was practiced only by a few and that processing techniques were only partially implemented. This revelation strengthens the need to implement the best practices and processing techniques in the handling and disposal of electronics waste.
THE NEED FOR BASIC COURSES IN TEACHING DAY-CARE CHILDREN: A PROFILE ANALYSIS OF DAY-CARE TEACHERS
Authors: Nadine C. Matondo
Published: November 2023

The training needs assessment based on profile analysis by using the social survey method helped in identifying the basic courses needed of the day-care teachers of Tomas Oppus, Southern Leyte. Most of the day-care teachers did not meet the prescribed standard of the Department of Education. All of them are female; however few are beyond 45 years old and attained only a high school level education which did not meet the DSWD standard. Five basic courses needs are perceived by these teachers: Numeracy & Art, The Day-care Daily Routine, Music (Songs, Poetry & Movement), Principles & Strategies of Teaching Pre-school, and Classroom Management.
Extent of Transfer of Problem Solving Skills to Other Domains Facilitated Through Anchored Instruction
Authors: Juanita M. Costillas
Published: November 2023

This study took deeper look on how much the students applied problem solving skills learned from previous mathematics subject delivered through Anchored Instruction (AI) to other domains using pre-test - post-test Nonequivalent Control Group Design with English proficiency as moderator variable. The contents considered in AI were problems in Arithmetic, Advanced Algebra and Trigonometry. Results revealed that AI affected significantly better extent of transfer of the problem solving skills to General Chemistry but opposite results were found in Solid Mensuration while no significant difference in Analytic Geometry. English proficiency significantly moderated extent of transfer of problem solving skills to other domains like Solid Mensuration and General Chemistry. No interaction effect was found between English proficiency and teaching model. It is recommended that AI be considered as facilitator of transfer of problem solving skills in General Chemistry and enhancements can verify results in Solid Mensuration and Analytic Geometry.
Generating Women Empowerment Index through Principal Component Analysis
Authors: Merry Ann E. Malubay  , Imelda B. Yaoyao
Published: November 2023

Lack of women’s empowerment is a critical aspect of gender equality but despite all government initiatives, the empowerment barrier exists in many forms and the empowerment level did not reach its anticipated level. This study attempted to generate a women empowerment index from all direct and indirect indicators related to empowerment anchored on the identity empowerment theory using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Utilizing the data from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the 10 independent indicators of 145 countries were analyzed and reduced into two principal components, namely: women development and labor inclusion. Results showed that of the two extracted components, women development has the higher weight of 75% compared to labor inclusion with only 25%. Furthermore, countries that are more developed and have high development index have high empowerment index as well. Results also showed that developing countries have low human development index and low index in women empowerment. The study recommends that initiated programs and all forms of research to improve the empowerment index must put emphasis on the developing countries.
Health-Related Quality of Life Among Patients Receiving Home Dialysis Therapies
Authors: Stein, PhD, MSW, LCSW Dodie M. , Welch, PhD, RN, FAAN Janet L. , Kraus, MD Michael A. , Slaven, MS, MA James E.
Published: November 2023

Little is known about the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients receiving daily home hemodialysis (DHHD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD). The purposes of this study are to describe the HRQOL of these patients and examine the effect of some demographic and illness characteristics on HRQOL. A total of 114 patients from a single Midwestern unit were included. Average physical component summary (PCS) scores were lower than the general population. Both DHHD and PD patients perceived themselves as having good mental health with mental component summary (MCS) scores at or above those of the general population. These results suggest that the control and independence provided by home therapies have a positive effect on patients’ outlook on life.
Improving Health Literacy in Kidney Patients: Nephrology Social Workers as Leaders
Authors: Peace, MSW, MHA Leanne , Phillips, MPH, MSW Molly
Published: November 2023

This article will discuss two research studies related to health literacy (HL) and nephrology: one conducted with dialysis patients at facilities in New York City on health information seeking behaviors, and one conducted with nephrology social workers on their use of health literacy knowledge, tools, and assessments. The results of both studies were presented at a roundtable event hosted by The Rogosin Institute in New York City to inform a discussion around improving health literacy of renal patients, their families, and care teams. The authors define health literacy, then discuss the methods and findings from both studies, and finally, drawing from both studies, make recommendations for nephrology social workers to improve health literacy among kidney disease patients and their care partners.
Psychometric Evaluation of the Kidney Disease Quality of Life 36-Item Survey Instrument (KDQOL-36): A Comparison Between Older and Younger Adults Receiving Dialysis
Authors: Hall, MD, MBA, MHSc Rasheeda , Luciano, PhD Alison , Pieper, DPH Carl , Colon-Emeric MD, MHSc Cathleen
Published: November 2023

Medicare requires that dialysis units assess quality of life in all patients annually using the Kidney Disease Quality of Life 36-item survey instrument (KDQOL-36). However, whether the KDQOL-36 is a valid instrument for older adults receiving dialysis is not known. The objective of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the KDQOL-36 in both older and younger patients receiving dialysis. We used KDQOL-36 item responses from a nationally representative sample of 3500 older (≥ 75 years) and 500 younger (ages 21 to 74 years) patients receiving dialysis in 2012. We assessed subscale means, ceiling/floor effects, internal consistency reliability, and construct validity. Results demonstrated that the KDQOL-36 has comparable reliability and validity in older and younger adults receiving dialysis.
Assessment of Health-related Quality of Life in Hmong Dialysis Patients at Mayo Clinic Health System Northwest Wisconsin
Authors: Zeman, APSW, NSW-C Jessica , Khan, MD, MBBS Abdul
Published: November 2023

A chronic illness, such as kidney disease, has a significant effect on an individual’s perception of their quality of life (QOL). Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is the subjective perception of an illness and treatment on the physical, psychological, and social well-being of that individual. In this study, we reviewed HRQOL in the Hmong-American (n = 22) and Non- Hmong-American (n = 40) patients receiving dialysis treatments at Mayo Clinic Health System Northwest Wisconsin (MCHS NWWI) utilizing the Kidney Disease Quality of Life-36 (KDQOL-36TM) survey. Our findings indicate a discrepancy between Hmong-American and Non-Hmong-American patients in the Burden of Kidney Disease subscale score of this survey. Language barriers, traditional belief systems versus Western medical practices, lack of understanding regarding illnesses, and a cultural focus on the family as a whole instead of individuality may have a significant bearing on the differences found between Hmong- American and Non-Hmong-American patients.
Pathologic polyglutamine aggregation begins with a self-poisoning polymer crystal
Authors: Kandola Tej , Venkatesan Shriram , Zhang Jiahui , Lerbakken Brooklyn T , Von Schulze Alex , Blanck Jillian F , Wu Jianzheng , Unruh Jay R , Berry Paula , Lange Jeffrey J , Box Andrew C , Cook Malcolm , Sagui Celeste , Halfmann Randal
Published: November 2023

A long-standing goal of amyloid research has been to characterize the structural basis of the rate-determining nucleating event. However, the ephemeral nature of nucleation has made this goal unachievable with existing biochemistry, structural biology, and computational approaches. Here, we addressed that limitation for polyglutamine (polyQ), a polypeptide sequence that causes Huntington’s and other amyloid-associated neurodegenerative diseases when its length exceeds a characteristic threshold. To identify essential features of the polyQ amyloid nucleus, we used a direct intracellular reporter of self-association to quantify frequencies of amyloid appearance as a function of concentration, conformational templates, and rational polyQ sequence permutations. We found that nucleation of pathologically expanded polyQ involves segments of three glutamine (Q) residues at every other position. We demonstrate using molecular simulations that this pattern encodes a four-stranded steric zipper with interdigitated Q side chains. Once formed, the zipper poisoned its own growth by engaging naive polypeptides on orthogonal faces, in a fashion characteristic of polymer crystals with intramolecular nuclei. We further show that self-poisoning can be exploited to block amyloid formation, by genetically oligomerizing polyQ prior to nucleation. By uncovering the physical nature of the rate-limiting event for polyQ aggregation in cells, our findings elucidate the molecular etiology of polyQ diseases.
Genetic basis of Arabidopsis thaliana responses to infection by naïve and adapted isolates of turnip mosaic virus
Authors: Butkovic Anamarija , Ellis Thomas James , Gonzalez Ruben , Jaegle Benjamin , Nordborg Magnus , Elena Santiago F
Published: November 2023

Plant viruses account for enormous agricultural losses worldwide, and the most effective way to combat them is to identify genetic material conferring plant resistance to these pathogens. Aiming to identify genetic associations with responses to infection, we screened a large panel of Arabidopsis thaliana natural inbred lines for four disease-related traits caused by infection by A. thaliana-naïve and -adapted isolates of the natural pathogen turnip mosaic virus (TuMV). We detected a strong, replicable association in a 1.5 Mb region on chromosome 2 with a 10-fold increase in relative risk of systemic necrosis. The region contains several plausible causal genes as well as abundant structural variation, including an insertion of a Copia transposon into a Toll/interleukin receptor (TIR-NBS-LRR) coding for a gene involved in defense, that could be either a driver or a consequence of the disease-resistance locus. When inoculated with TuMV, loss-of-function mutant plants of this gene exhibited different symptoms than wild-type plants. The direction and severity of symptom differences depended on the adaptation history of the virus. This increase in symptom severity was specific for infections with the adapted isolate. Necrosis-associated alleles are found worldwide, and their distribution is consistent with a trade-off between resistance during viral outbreaks and a cost of resistance otherwise, leading to negative frequency-dependent selection.
The deubiquitinase Ubp3/Usp10 constrains glucose-mediated mitochondrial repression via phosphate budgeting
Authors: Vengayil Vineeth , Niphadkar Shreyas , Adhikary Swagata , Varahan Sriram , Laxman Sunil
Published: November 2023

Many cells in high glucose repress mitochondrial respiration, as observed in the Crabtree and Warburg effects. Our understanding of biochemical constraints for mitochondrial activation is limited. Using a Saccharomyces cerevisiae screen, we identified the conserved deubiquitinase Ubp3 (Usp10), as necessary for mitochondrial repression. Ubp3 mutants have increased mitochondrial activity despite abundant glucose, along with decreased glycolytic enzymes, and a rewired glucose metabolic network with increased trehalose production. Utilizing ∆ubp3 cells, along with orthogonal approaches, we establish that the high glycolytic flux in glucose continuously consumes free Pi. This restricts mitochondrial access to inorganic phosphate (Pi), and prevents mitochondrial activation. Contrastingly, rewired glucose metabolism with enhanced trehalose production and reduced GAPDH (as in ∆ubp3 cells) restores Pi. This collectively results in increased mitochondrial Pi and derepression, while restricting mitochondrial Pi transport prevents activation. We therefore suggest that glycolytic flux-dependent intracellular Pi budgeting is a key constraint for mitochondrial repression.
Long-distance electron transport in multicellular freshwater cable bacteria
Authors: Yang Tingting , Chavez Marko S , Niman Christina M , Xu Shuai , El-Naggar Mohamed Y
Published: November 2023

Filamentous multicellular cable bacteria perform centimeter-scale electron transport in a process that couples oxidation of an electron donor (sulfide) in deeper sediment to the reduction of an electron acceptor (oxygen or nitrate) near the surface. While this electric metabolism is prevalent in both marine and freshwater sediments, detailed electronic measurements of the conductivity previously focused on the marine cable bacteria (Candidatus Electrothrix), rather than freshwater cable bacteria, which form a separate genus (Candidatus Electronema) and contribute essential geochemical roles in freshwater sediments. Here, we characterize the electron transport characteristics of Ca. Electronema cable bacteria from Southern California freshwater sediments. Current–voltage measurements of intact cable filaments bridging interdigitated electrodes confirmed their persistent conductivity under a controlled atmosphere and the variable sensitivity of this conduction to air exposure. Electrostatic and conductive atomic force microscopies mapped out the characteristics of the cell envelope’s nanofiber network, implicating it as the conductive pathway in a manner consistent with previous findings in marine cable bacteria. Four-probe measurements of microelectrodes addressing intact cables demonstrated nanoampere currents up to 200 μm lengths at modest driving voltages, allowing us to quantify the nanofiber conductivity at 0.1 S/cm for freshwater cable bacteria filaments under our measurement conditions. Such a high conductivity can support the remarkable sulfide-to-oxygen electrical currents mediated by cable bacteria in sediments. These measurements expand the knowledgebase of long-distance electron transport to the freshwater niche while shedding light on the underlying conductive network of cable bacteria.
Next-Gen brain tumor classification: pioneering with deep learning and fine-tuned conditional generative adversarial networks
Authors: Asiri Abdullah A. , Aamir Muhammad , Ali Tariq , Shaf Ahmad , Irfan Muhammad , Mehdar Khlood M. , Alqhtani Samar M. , Alghamdi Ali H. , Alshamrani Abdullah Fahad A. , Alshehri Osama M.
Published: November 2023

Brain tumor has become one of the fatal causes of death worldwide in recent years, affecting many individuals annually and resulting in loss of lives. Brain tumors are characterized by the abnormal or irregular growth of brain tissues that can spread to nearby tissues and eventually throughout the brain. Although several traditional machine learning and deep learning techniques have been developed for detecting and classifying brain tumors, they do not always provide an accurate and timely diagnosis. This study proposes a conditional generative adversarial network (CGAN) that leverages the fine-tuning of a convolutional neural network (CNN) to achieve more precise detection of brain tumors. The CGAN comprises two parts, a generator and a discriminator, whose outputs are used as inputs for fine-tuning the CNN model. The publicly available dataset of brain tumor MRI images on Kaggle was used to conduct experiments for Datasets 1 and 2. Statistical values such as precision, specificity, sensitivity, F1-score, and accuracy were used to evaluate the results. Compared to existing techniques, our proposed CGAN model achieved an accuracy value of 0.93 for Dataset 1 and 0.97 for Dataset 2.
Utility of Diffusion-Weighted MRI with ADC Values in the Characterisation of Endometrial Lesions: A Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Singh Amandeep , Kaur Parmeet , Singh Amitojveer , Singh Gursangeet , Singh Arvinder , Arora Vijinder
Published: November 2023

Introduction: Endometrial lesions are a diagnostic dilemma for both radiologists, as well as, gynecologists. Characterising these lesions is crucial for effective management. The Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) reflects the molecular translational movement of water molecules. Malignant tumours, with higher cellularity than benign tumours, exhibit decreased ADC values compared to benign lesions. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of ADC in conjunction with Diffusion-weighted Images (DWI) for differentiating malignant and benign endometrial lesions. Materials and Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted at the Outpatient Department (OPD) of Radiodiagnosis at Sri Guru Ram Das Charitable Hospital in Amritsar, Punjab, India. The study spanned one year and seven months, from February 2020 to October 2021. A total of 100 female patients across all age groups with clinically suspected gynecological complaints related to the endometrium were included. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) was used to the examine the patients with endometrial lesions, and the results were compared with histopathology. The ADC values of benign and malignant lesions were statistically analysed using Student's t-test. Statistical significance was defined as a p-value < 0.05. Results: The mean age of participants with benign lesions was lower than that of those with malignant lesions (53.47±8.75 years and 60.00±13.93 years, respectively). The 100 individuals were divided into two groups: group I included individuals with benign lesions (58%), and group II comprised patients with malignant lesions (42%). Conventional MRI demonstrated a sensitivity of 86.2%, specificity of 91.8%, Positive Predictive Value (PPV) of 91.6%, and Negative Predictive Value (NPV) of 100% in lesion detection and differentiation. Combining DWI and ADC value mapping at a high b-value (b=800) in MRI significantly increased sensitivity (92.1%), specificity (97.9%), PPV (97.9%), and NPV (92.3%). Conclusion: The addition of DWI and ADC values to conventional MRI significantly improved the ability to distinguish malignant endometrial lesions from benign ones. However, histopathology remains the gold standard investigation as MRI inference cannot differentiate low-grade endometrial carcinoma from hyperplasia.
Response of Irrigation and Nitrogen Fertilization on Uptake of Primary Nutrients by Maize
Authors: Rimmi Salma Naznin , Islam Md. Shafiqul , Alam Mohammad Saiful , Khan Md. Arifur Rahman , Binte Bushra Islam
Published: November 2023

A field experiment was accomplished from November 2018 to April 2019 at the site for agricultural research of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur, Bangladesh to assess the effect of irrigation and nitrogen application on uptaking of primary nutrients by maize plant. A Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with two factors and three replications was used to execute the experiment. Four irrigation treatments (I1, I2, I3 and I4: irrigation concerning 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% of soil available water, respectively) as factor A and three nitrogen doses [N1, N2 and N3: Nitrogen application at 75%, 100% and 125% of prescribed dose (PD) as per fertilizer recommendation guide (FRG)] as factor B was implemented. The crop responded significantly in uptaking N, P, K to different levels of irrigation and nitrogen. The uptake of N at its highest level (141.66 Kg ha-1) was observed in treatment I3N3 but the maximum uptake of P (49.17 Kg ha-1) and K (159.39 Kg ha-1) were found under the treatment I4N2. The addition of irrigation and nitrogenous fertilizer also enhanced the N (0.08%), P (8.75 ppm) and K (0.18 meq/ 100g) content of post-harvest soils. The maximum total consumptive use of water of the crop was found to be 446 mm in I4 treatment regardless N levels. Irrigation at 80% of soil available water using 100% N on prescribed dose (I4N2), appeared to be the most acceptable combination for optimal nutrient absorption by maize in the specified region.
Analysis of Fringescale Sardine Fishing Grounds (Sardinella fimbriata) Based on Sea Surface Temperature and Chlorophyll-A in Tegal Waters, Indonesia
Authors: Zikri Muhammad Alfi , Setyawan Hendrik Anggi , Wibowo Bambang Argo
Published: November 2023

An alternative that can be done in determining the fishing area is to use remote sensing technology through the approach of sea surface temperature distribution and chlorophyll-a. The purpose of this study was to determine the value of the distribution of sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a, as well as analyze the relationship between sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a on Fringescale sardine (Sardinella fimbriata). The research method used is the descriptive method. The research data taken are in-situ data and SNPP Viirs satellite imagery data, as well as capture data from 2018 – 2022. Data analysis used multiple linear regression methods and Pearson correlation analysis. The results showed that the sea surface temperature distribution value ranged from 29.5°C – 29.9°C and chlorophyll-a ranged from 0.0545 mg m-3 – 0.4022 mg m-3. The value of sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a in Tegal waters on land tends to have a higher value compared to high seas waters. Analysis conducted between sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a on catches found a coefficient of determination of 0.74 or 74% affecting the total catch. The partial correlation between sea surface temperature and catch is 0.81 or 81%. The correlation between chlorophyll-a and catch is 0.86 or 86% where this value is included in the very strong category in influencing the catch of Sardinella fimbriata. Fishermen no longer rely on instinct to predict potential fishing zone each season, but it has taken advantage of variables that affect the presence of S. fimbriata using potential fishing zone map.
Analyzing the Variability in Maize (Zea mays L.) Genotypes Using Principal Component Analysis under Varied Ecosystems
Authors: Sheela K. R. V. Sathya , Selvakumar T. , Narayanan S. Lakshmi , Radhajeyalakshmi R.
Published: November 2023

Maize is a cereal cross-pollinated crop which belongs to the family poaceae. It is grown over a wider range of environment than any other cereal crop. The present study was conducted to study genetic variability using principal component analysis. Twenty maize genotypes were used in the study. Ten characters viz., plant height, ear height, days to 50 % tasselling, days to 50 % silking, ASI, cob length, number of rows per cob, hundred seed weight, shelling percentage and yield were recorded for the study. In the PCA, four principal components exhibited eigen value more than 1.0 exhibiting 84.54 percent of the variability for the characters under irrigated conditions. The PC1 negative loadings for the flowering traits, viz., days to 50 % silking (-0.3886), ASI (-0.3233) and days to 50 % tasselling (-0.2972) and positive loadings with higher contribution from cob length (0.4033), no of rows per cob (0.3480) followed by shelling percentage were observed. Positive loadings were exhibited by days to tasselling (0.4780), plant height (0.4670) and hundred seed weight (0.4518) in PC2. In PC3 positive loadings for the characters viz., number of rows per cob (0.5338), ASI (0.5226) and cob length (0.3299) and negative loadings for the traits grain yield (-0.3815), ear height (-0.2658) and plant height (-0.2437) and in PC4 positive loadings for plant height (0.4953), ear height (0.2546) and negative loadings were shown by days to grain yield (-0.6632), shelling percentage (-0.3751), ASI (-0.2369) and 50 % silking (-0.0648) were observed. In rainfed conditions, the two principal components had eigen value of more than 1. Under normal irrigated condition,  PC1 and PC2  had eigen value of 5.689 and 1.6439. Plant height (0.3866), cob length (0.3726), number of rows per cob (0.3551), shelling % (0.3196), grain yield (0.2941), and hundred seed weight (0.2847) contributed positively to PC1. PC 2 had highest positive contributions from days to 50 % tasselling (0.5676), days to 50 % silking (0.5249), shelling % (0.3885), hundred seed weight (0.3763) and grain yield (0.2007). Negative loadings were shown by ear height (-0.1356) and plant height (-0.0093). Positive loadings were contributed by days to 50 % tasselling (0.5676), Days to 50 % silking, shelling percentage (0.3885) and hundred grain weight (0.3763).
Effect of Nutrient Management Practices on Carbon Pools Following 13 Year of Cropping with Soybean (Glycine max) Based Cropping Systems in Vertisol of Central India
Authors: Jain Priyanka , Lakaria Brijlal , Shrivastav Rekha , Tekam Yagini
Published: November 2023

Organic manure application has its significant impact on the soil health. Low organic matter in tropical soils is a major factor contributing to their poor productivity. Soil properties have been continuously influenced by the management practices and land uses, in which latter one has been, identified as profound influence on soil properties especially on soil organic carbon. A thirteen year experiment on soybean based cropping system in a vertisol of central india under organic farming was used for this investigation An investigation was carried out on “Soil organic carbon dynamics under long-term nutrient management in soybean based cropping system” at the Indian Institute of Soil Science, Bhopal on an on-going research project on organic farming. The effect of organic, integrated and inorganic nutrient management was assessed in three cropping systems viz. soybean (JS 335)-wheat (Malwa Shakti), soybean-mustard (Pusa Bold) and soybean-gram (JG 130) on aggregate size fractions, carbon content in aggregate as well as soil organic carbon pools dynamics on a split plot experimental design with three replications. The study relevant to dynamics of soil organic carbon pools revealed higher content of soil organic carbon, labile carbon, water soluble carbon, SMBC as well as dehydrogenase activity that varied between 1.04 and 0.86 percent; 440 and 538 mg kg-1, 52.97 and 70.43; 288 and 375 mg kg-1, 88 and 137 µg TPF g-1 soil d-1, respectively in surface 0-15 cm soil under organic nutrient management.
Cost of Pacing in Pediatric Patients With Postoperative Heart Block After Congenital Heart Surgery
Authors: Mondal Abhijit , Yoo Minkyoung , Tuttle Stephanie , Mah Douglas , Nelson Richard , Sachse Frank B. , Hitchcock Robert , Kaza Aditya K.
Published: November 2023

Importance

Surgical correction of congenital heart defects (CHDs) has improved the lifespan and quality of life of pediatric patients. The number of congenital heart surgeries (CHSs) in children has grown continuously since the 1960s. This growth has been accompanied by a rise in the incidence of postoperative heart block requiring permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation.

Objective

To assess the trends in permanent pacing after CHS and estimate the economic burden to patients and their families after PPM implantation.

Design, Setting, and Participants

In this economic evaluation study, procedure- and diagnosis-specific codes within a single-institution database were used to identify patients with postoperative heart block after CHS between January 1, 1960, and December 31, 2018. Patients younger than 4 years with postoperative PPM implantation were selected, and up to 20-year follow-up data were used for cost analysis based on mean hospital event charges and length of stay (LOS) data. Data were analyzed from January 1, 2020, to November 30, 2022.

Exposure

Implantation of PPM after CHS in pediatric patients.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Annual trends in CHS and postoperative PPM implantations were assessed. Direct and indirect costs associated with managing conduction health for the 20 years after PPM implantation were estimated using Markov model simulation and patient follow-up data.

Results

Of the 28 225 patients who underwent CHS, 968 (437 female [45.1%] and 531 male [54.9%]; 468 patients aged <4 years) received a PPM due to postoperative heart block. The rate of CHS and postoperative PPM implantations increased by 2.2% and 7.2% per year between 1960 and 2018, respectively. In pediatric patients younger than 4 years with PPM implantation, the mean (SD) 20-year estimated direct and indirect costs from Markov model simulations were $180 664 ($32 662) and $15 939 ($1916), respectively. Using follow-up data of selected patients with clinical courses involving 1 or more complication events, the mean (SD) direct and indirect costs were $472 774 ($212 095) and $36 429 ($16 706), respectively.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this economic evaluation study, the cost of PPM implantation in pediatric patients was found to accumulate over the lifespan. This cost may represent not only a substantial financial burden but also a health care burden to patient families. Reducing the incidence of PPM implantation should be a focused goal of CHS.
Substructure Hardening and Twinning Suppression in Graphene Oxide‐Reinforced Magnesium Nanocomposites
Authors: Tahaghoghi Mehrad , Zarei-Hanzaki Abbas , Jaskari Matias , Karjalainen L. Pentti , Minarik Peter , Abedi Hamid Reza
Published: November 2023

The AZ31 magnesium matrix nanocomposites reinforced by 0, 1.2, 2.4 vol% graphene oxide (GO) nanoplatelets are thermomechanically fabricated through friction stir processing, and the influence of nanoplatelets on slip/twin activity is discussed in detail. The addition of GO significantly adjusts the characteristics of the developed substructure during the fabrication route and improves the matrix strength and work hardening rate in further mechanical loading. The presence of GO led to an increase in the length of low‐angle boundaries and higher dislocation storage in their vicinity can be found, highlighting the hardening effect of dislocation movements and increased flow stresses. The well‐defined developed substructure suppresses extension twinning leading to a twinning‐to‐slip deformation mode transition. Along with intensifying the substructure development, GO increases total intragranular strains developed during the fabrication and causes an improvement in the nanocomposites’ overall strength.
Numerical Prediction of the Yield Surface of a Chiral Auxetic Structure
Authors: Kose Rebecca , Novak Nejc , Grednev Sergej , Ren Zoran , Vesenjak Matej , Jung Anne
Published: November 2023

For today's requirements, the material itself is often not sufficient anymore. This leads to structural cellular materials and metamaterials, which allow for more degrees of freedom by a strong structure–property relationship. Auxetic structures investigated in this contribution belong to metamaterials. Auxetic metamaterials show huge advantages in their properties, e.g., an enhanced specific energy absorption capacity (SEAC) as well as a negative Poisson's ratio, combined with a very high stiffness‐to‐weight ratio. Experimental probing of these structures is very challenging, hence, up to now, auxetic materials have only been investigated in uniaxial, bending, or shear loading. But for an industrial application, the knowledge of the multiaxial yield behavior is inevitable. For the first time, the present study deals with the numerical probing of the yield surface for a chiral auxetic structure applying multiaxial loading. The changes in Poisson's ratio, SEAC, and the resulting nonconvex yield surface are studied numerically. It shows that the highest specific energy absorption capacities are reached under compression load cases while higher stiffnesses and yield stresses are achieved under tensile loading. There is a strong structure–property relationship and load case dependency for Poisson's ratio as well as for the SEAC.
Finite Element Analysis of Ceramic–Composite Structures for Ballistic Applications: Effect of Ceramic Thickness and Cell Structure
Authors: Chairi Mohamed , El Bahaoui Jalal , Hanafi Issam , Favaloro Federica , Borsellino Chiara , Di Bella Guido
Published: November 2023

This study employs finite element simulation to conduct a numerical modeling of ceramic–composite structure armors. The numerical armor models consist of a ceramic plate and a composite backing plate. Alumina oxide and silicon carbide ceramic materials with two different cell structures are used: hexagonal and square cell structures, respectively. A Kevlar composite is used as the back plate. The ceramic plate's thickness is altered among 7, 8, and 9 mm to explore its influence on the ballistic performance of the armors. The damage fracture is compared with experimental results, and the ballistic resistance is further examined by determining the projectiles’ velocities at the conclusion of the simulation and the evolution of the average velocity during the impact period. The findings of the numerical modeling reveal that the ceramics sustain damage consistent with the experimental damage. However, as perforation is observed in every sample, the overall performance of the samples is deemed unsatisfactory.
3D Printing of Branched Polyurethane with Tough Mechanical Properties for Stretchable Sensors
Authors: Shuai Kangjie , Zhang Kuiyao , Yao Shanshan , Ni Zhongbin , Shi Dongjian , Miao Jia-Tao , Chen Mingqing
Published: November 2023

The poor mechanical properties and difficulties in manufacturing complex structures seriously limit the applications of elastomers especially in flexible electronic sensor. Herein, a series of polyether amine (PEA) grafted polyurethane acrylate oligomers (PUA‐g‐PEAs) and the corresponding low‐viscosity UV‐curable flexible 3D printing elastomers (PEA‐1/IDAs) are synthesized. The results show that a certain amount of PEA branch exactly has strengthening and toughening effect on polyurethane, resulting in 12% increase in tensile strength and 44% increase in elongation at break of PUA‐g‐PEA‐1. When mixed PUA‐g‐PEA‐1with acrylimorpholine and IDA in the ratio of 3:5:2, PEA‐1/IDA‐20 with best overall mechanical properties is obtained. Its tensile strength and elongation at break are 18.5 MPa and 297.4%, respectively. The unprecedented fatigue resistance of PEA‐1/IDA‐20 ensures that it can withstand 100 compression cycles at 80% strain without damage. Besides, piezoresistive sensors and wearable finger guard sensors are fabricated by laminating a layer of conductive hydrogel on the surface of the 3D‐printed devices. The impressive mechanical properties and 3D printing producing process of this branched PUA endow it with great potentials in advanced electronic sensors.
Additive Manufacturing of Titanium Alloys: Processability, Properties, and Applications
Authors: Mosallanejad Mohammad Hossein , Abdi Ata , Karpasand Farshid , Nassiri Navid , Iuliano Luca , Saboori Abdollah
Published: November 2023

The restricted number of materials available for additive manufacturing (AM) technologies is a determining impediment to AM growing into sectors and providing supply chain relief. AM, in particular, is regarded as a trustworthy manufacturing technology to replace the traditional ones for Ti alloy components. Furthermore, the AM processability of Ti alloys and their features, such as microstructure, texture, and mechanical properties, is strongly dependent on the chemical composition of the processed alloy. It is essential to consider the ultimate applications as well. β Ti alloys are gaining popularity in the biomedical industry, while α + β Ti alloys are increasingly utilized for producing components in the automotive and aerospace sectors. Consequently, the topic has garnered considerable interest, and the current text reviews the advances during the last 10 years in this area to facilitate the pathway from the demanded Ti alloy to the best‐fit AM procedure. While systematically reviewing the works published in the literature, the current text attempts to establish a link between the production method, feedstock type, chemical composition, and the ultimate application. This review also features practical applications of Ti components produced by metal AM methods and offers prospective possibilities and industrial applications.
Aerosol Jet Printing of Strain Sensors for Soft Robotics
Authors: Karipoth Prakash , Chandler James H. , Lee Jaemin , Taccola Silvia , Macdonald James , Valdastri Pietro , Harris Russell A.
Published: November 2023

The field of soft robotics is rapidly progressing toward applications including; wearable electronics, prosthetics, and biomedical devices. This is leading to demand for flexible, embedded high‐performance strain sensors to deliver real‐time feedback on the static configurations and dynamic motions of these robotic devices, to ultimately enable the levels of autonomous control and structural monitoring required for intelligent manipulation. Herein, aerosol jet printing (AJP) technology is utilized to generate arbitrary piezoresistive strain sensor layouts on fibrous paper suitable for direct integration into elastomeric soft robots. A custom graphene nanoplatelet ink with a viscosity of around 2.70 cP has been formulated for optimized atomization and patterning of conductive traces via AJP. Single and multilayer printing onto different paper substrates are explored; with the nominal resistance of the printed tracks varying from 272 to 4900 kΩ depending on paper type and number of layers. Maximum gauge factors of 24.2 ± 1.8 and 56.5 ± 4.5 are determined for sensor surfaces under tensile and compression modes, respectively. To demonstrate the possibility for direct integration of this approach for soft robotics, strain sensors are directly printed onto the strain‐limiting layer of a pneumatic soft robotic gripper, to provide continuous feedback of the gripper over curvatures up to 80 m−1.
Effect of Al Content on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of the Sintered Fe–Mn–Al Porous Steel
Authors: Wang Kai , Zhang Hengtai , Liang Jinrong , Xu Zhigang , Huang Shangyu , Peng Jian , Yang Chao , Li Wenjun , Shen Qiang , Wang Chuanbin
Published: November 2023

Al content is of great importance for the evolution of the microstructure and compressive performance of the high‐Mn and high‐Al porous steels. Herein, Fe–Mn–Al porous steels with different Al contents are prepared via powder sintering at different temperatures. The results show that the main phases of the sintered samples at 640 °C are α‐Fe, α‐Mn, and Al, while a small amount of Fe2Al5 and Al8Mn5 exists in the samples with 15 and 20 wt% Al. At 1200 °C, the sintered sample with 5 wt% Al is composed of γ‐Fe, while those with 15 and 20 wt% Al are mainly α‐Fe. The length of Mn depletion region and porosity of the samples increase with the increase of Al content. The largest total and open porosity are observed in the 1200 °C‐sintered sample with 20 wt% Al, which are 63.1 and 60.7 vol%, respectively. The compressive strength decreases sharply from 770 MPa for the sample with 5 wt% Al to 7.5 MPa with 15 wt% Al, after sintering at 1200 °C. Ductile fracture occurs in the sample with 5 wt% Al, while brittle fracture is the main fracture mode in those with 15 and 20 wt% Al.