bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Multi-Complementary Model for Long-Term Tracking
Authors: Zhang Deng , Zhang Junchang , Xia Chenyang
Published: February 2018

In recent years, video target tracking algorithms have been widely used. However, many tracking algorithms do not achieve satisfactory performance, especially when dealing with problems such as object occlusions, background clutters, motion blur, low illumination color images, and sudden illumination changes in real scenes. In this paper, we incorporate an object model based on contour information into a Staple tracker that combines the correlation filter model and color model to greatly improve the tracking robustness. Since each model is responsible for tracking specific features, the three complementary models combine for more robust tracking. In addition, we propose an efficient object detection model with contour and color histogram features, which has good detection performance and better detection efficiency compared to the traditional target detection algorithm. Finally, we optimize the traditional scale calculation, which greatly improves the tracking execution speed. We evaluate our tracker on the Object Tracking Benchmarks 2013 (OTB-13) and Object Tracking Benchmarks 2015 (OTB-15) benchmark datasets. With the OTB-13 benchmark datasets, our algorithm is improved by 4.8%, 9.6%, and 10.9% on the success plots of OPE, TRE and SRE, respectively, in contrast to another classic LCT (Long-term Correlation Tracking) algorithm. On the OTB-15 benchmark datasets, when compared with the LCT algorithm, our algorithm achieves 10.4%, 12.5%, and 16.1% improvement on the success plots of OPE, TRE, and SRE, respectively. At the same time, it needs to be emphasized that, due to the high computational efficiency of the color model and the object detection model using efficient data structures, and the speed advantage of the correlation filters, our tracking algorithm could still achieve good tracking speed.
Hybrid Beamforming for Reduction of Inter-Beam Interference in Millimeter-Wave Cellular Systems
Authors: Maeng Sung Joon , Park Su Ho , Cho Yong Soo
Published: February 2018

In millimeter-wave (mm-wave) cellular systems, beamforming antennas are necessary at both the base station (BS) and mobile station (MS) to compensate for high attenuation in mm-wave frequency bands and to extend the transmission range. The beamforming antennas also allow each BS to serve a number of MSs simultaneously, providing a substantial gain in system capacity. In space-division multiple access (SDMA) systems, the challenge is the inter-beam interference (IBI) caused by adjacent beams that are formed by the BS in the same cell and BSs in neighboring cells. The beams that are formed toward MSs in each cell may generate significant interference to MSs in neighboring cells, especially for MSs at the cell boundary. In this paper, we propose four different digital precoding techniques (Type-1, Type-2, Type-3, and Type-4) to reduce IBI in mm-wave cellular systems with a hybrid beamformer. Simulation results show that the proposed techniques can reduce the IBI in mm-wave cellular systems effectively, compared with a single-cell multiuser case.
Laser-Based Monitoring of CH4, CO2, NH3, and H2S in Animal Farming—System Characterization and Initial Demonstration
Authors: Stachowiak Dorota , Jaworski Piotr , Krzaczek Paweł , Maj Grzegorz , Nikodem Michał
Published: February 2018

In this paper, we present a system for sequential detection of multiple gases using laser-based wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) method combined with a Herriot-type multi-pass cell. Concentration of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2), and ammonia (NH3) are retrieved using three distributed feedback laser diodes operating at 1574.5 nm (H2S and CO2), 1651 nm (CH4), and 1531 nm (NH3). Careful adjustment of system parameters allows for H2S sensing at single parts-per-million by volume (ppmv) level with strongly reduced interference from adjacent CO2 transitions even at atmospheric pressure. System characterization in laboratory conditions is presented and the results from initial tests in real-world application are demonstrated.
Achieving Quality Education by Understanding Teacher Job Satisfaction Determinants
Authors: Iwu Chux , Ezeuduji Ikechukwu , Iwu Ita , Ikebuaku Kenechukwu , Tengeh Robertson
Published: February 2018

The issue of quality education in Nigeria has come up in a number of studies. In particular, the teacher has been identified as a major resource in achieving the very important objective of quality basic education. This comes against the backdrop that teachers are perceived to be in a better position to influence the performance of learners. However, how can they positively influence student performance if they themselves are not motivated? A total of 547 teachers in 23 schools (pre-nursery to senior high schools) in the Ibadan South-West Local Government Area in Oyo state, Nigeria participated in the study. SPSS software version 22 was used for data analysis. Descriptive analysis (mean and standard deviation) was done at the first stage and factor analysis at the second stage. The Kaiser’s criterion technique was also applied to determine the factors (components) to be retained for the factor analysis. Only factors with an Eigen value of 1.0 or more were retained for analysis. Kolmogorov-Smirnov’s and Shapiro-Wilk’s tests of normality were also used to test if the generated components (factors) are normally distributed, and the p-values of less than 0.001 for all the components indicated no normal distribution. Overall, the results suggest that teachers’ pay or salary, growth opportunities and responsibilities attached to work are the top three job characteristics variables that contribute to teacher job satisfaction.
Sustainability in Teaching: An Evaluation of University Teachers and Students
Authors: Brito Rosa , Rodríguez Columba , Aparicio José
Published: February 2018

Since the 1970s, interest in caring for the environment has gained traction and the environmental education movement has gained momentum. The Talloires Declaration was the first document to incorporate sustainable development into higher education. After that, higher education institutions assumed the social responsibility of training human resources with a sustainable vision. This study aimed to contribute to the design of indicators that could be used to evaluate the efficacy of the sustainability taught at the Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero (Autonomous University of Guerrero) in Mexico. We administered a survey to 63 teachers and 511 students from four academic units in high schools, and undergraduate and postgraduate programs. The answers were analyzed using the F-test and the variable descriptions. For the environmental, social and economic indicators, the satisfaction levels of teachers and students were more positive in graduate and undergraduate programs than in the high school. To determine the efficacy of the teaching function in terms of sustainable education, as well as to fulfill the commitments acquired to achieve sustainability, institutional processes need to be strengthened.
Governance Strategies for a Sustainable Digital World
Authors: Linkov Igor , Trump Benjamin , Poinsatte-Jones Kelsey , Florin Marie-Valentine
Published: February 2018

Digitalization is changing society by the increased connectivity and networking that digital technologies enable, such as enhancing communication, services, and trade. Increasingly, policymakers within various national governments and international organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are examining the original sustainability policy concepts applied within the Brundtland Report of 1987 through the lens of digitalization. While the growth of a digital economy may increase productivity and benefit local and global economies, digitalization also raises potential sustainability challenges pertaining to social (i.e., the benefits or costs imposed by disruptive digital technologies upon social networks and ways of life, including threats to economic sustainability and the rise of economic disparity) and environmental wellbeing (i.e., natural resource stewardship and concern for future generations) driven by the automation of information processing and delivery of services. Various perspectives have been raised regarding how the process of digitalization might be governed, and national governments remain at odds regarding a single best strategy to promote sustainable digitalization using the Brundtland concept to meet the development needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations (i.e., social and environmental well-being). This paper reviews three governance strategies that countries can use in conjunction with adaptive governance to respond to digitalization sustainability threats: (i) a laissez-faire, industry-driven approach; (ii) a precautionary and preemptive strategy on the part of government; and (iii) a stewardship and “active surveillance” approach by government agencies that reduce the risks derived from digitalization while promoting private sector innovation. Regardless of a state’s digital governance response and how it is shaped by political and institutional realities, adaptive governance approaches are likely necessary to address the economic and social sustainability challenges posed within differing manifestations of digitalization.
Ontology Design for Solving Computationally-Intensive Problems on Heterogeneous Architectures
Authors: Faheem Hossam , König-Ries Birgitta , Aslam Muhammad , Aljohani Naif , Katib Iyad
Published: February 2018

Viewing a computationally-intensive problem as a self-contained challenge with its own hardware, software and scheduling strategies is an approach that should be investigated. We might suggest assigning heterogeneous hardware architectures to solve a problem, while parallel computing paradigms may play an important role in writing efficient code to solve the problem; moreover, the scheduling strategies may be examined as a possible solution. Depending on the problem complexity, finding the best possible solution using an integrated infrastructure of hardware, software and scheduling strategy can be a complex job. Developing and using ontologies and reasoning techniques play a significant role in reducing the complexity of identifying the components of such integrated infrastructures. Undertaking reasoning and inferencing regarding the domain concepts can help to find the best possible solution through a combination of hardware, software and scheduling strategies. In this paper, we present an ontology and show how we can use it to solve computationally-intensive problems from various domains. As a potential use for the idea, we present examples from the bioinformatics domain. Validation by using problems from the Elastic Optical Network domain has demonstrated the flexibility of the suggested ontology and its suitability for use with any other computationally-intensive problem domain.
Sustaining Innovation Performance in SMEs: Exploring the Roles of Strategic Entrepreneurship and IT Capabilities
Authors: Lyver Maurice , Lu Ta-Jung
Published: February 2018

Recent research questions our understanding of the processes at play regarding information technology (IT) capabilities’ contribution to innovation performance, particularly under environmental uncertainty. Strategic entrepreneurship (SE) or the interface of entrepreneurship and strategic management, which aims to answer the very question of how firms create value or wealth and sustain success in increasingly competitive and dynamic environments, is deemed the appropriate catalyst to further explore this link. Thus, this study attempts to examine the driving effects of IT capabilities on product innovation performance (PIP) by exploring the mediating role of SE. Data were collected from 164 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) information communication technology (ICT) firms in Canada. Partial least squares (PLS) regression tested the hypotheses derived from the research model, and data exploration and analysis including visual analytics were performed in R. Results confirm that IT capabilities drive PIP and thereby create firm level value. Secondly, SE had a direct impact on PIP, and SE partially mediates IT capabilities effect on PIP. To date, SE research has mostly been conceptual in nature making this study one of the few to empirically capture the phenomena and highlight its link to sustainable innovation performance.
Food-Energy Interactive Tradeoff Analysis of Sustainable Urban Plant Factory Production Systems
Authors: Huang Li-Chun , Chen Yu-Hui , Chen Ya-Hui , Wang Chi-Fang , Hu Ming-Che
Published: February 2018

This research aims to analyze the food–energy interactive nexus of sustainable urban plant factory systems. Plant factory systems grow agricultural products within artificially controlled growing environment and multi-layer vertical growing systems. The system controls the supply of light, temperature, humidity, nutrition, water, and carbon dioxide for growing plants. Plant factories are able to produce consistent and high-quality agricultural products within less production space for urban areas. The production systems use less labor, pesticide, water, and nutrition. However, food production of plant factories has many challenges including higher energy demand, energy costs, and installation costs of artificially controlled technologies. In the research, stochastic optimization model and linear complementarity models are formulated to conduct optimal and equilibrium food–energy analysis of plant factory production. A case study of plant factories in the Taiwanese market is presented.
Relationship of Ethical Leadership, Corporate Social Responsibility and Organizational Performance
Authors: Kim Min-Seong , Thapa Brijesh
Published: February 2018

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a major part of the foodservice industry due to external forces which encourage enterprises’ responsiveness. In reality, consumers’ social concern influences their attitudes towards foodservice firms’ socially responsible practices and purchase decisions, thereby influencing senior management to react. Considering this issue, this study examines the impact of senior management’s ethical leadership in evaluating operational, commercial, and economic performances along with the mediating role of CSR in the foodservice industry. A conceptual model was formulated and empirically tested based on responses from 196 foodservice franchise firms in South Korea. The results indicated ethical leadership significantly influenced CSR and operational performance, while CSR also had a positive effect on operational and commercial performances. Additionally, operational performance had a significantly positive influence on commercial performance, which subsequently enhanced economic performance. Overall, the findings highlight the role that ethical leadership exhibited by senior management of foodservice franchises influenced initiation of CSR activities, which provide implications for research and industry practice and is outlined.
Assessing the Merits of the Urban-Led Policy in China: Spread or Backwash Effect?
Authors: Chiang Shu-hen
Published: February 2018

Shanghai and Beijing, as two megacities, are often regarded as the most successful examples of China’s growth pole policy, which has stirred up a great deal of controversy behind the spread–backwash effects. It is believed that the spread–backwash effects for these two mega metropolitan regions are particularly valuable when evaluating the merits of adopting an “urban-led” policy in China. Moreover, a great deal of effort has been devoted to the cross-section analysis of relevant data. What seems to be lacking, however, is a time-series econometric method. The estimation results using real gross regional product (GRP) over the last 50 years (1967–2016) reveal that a long-run equilibrium exists for these central cities and their suburbs. More noteworthy is the finding that spread and backwash effects coexist in these two metropolitan regions, namely, the central city has spread and backwash effects on its medium-level and low-level suburbs, respectively. Thus, how to diminish the city–suburb gap is our concern and this argument is consistent with the spirit of new-type urbanization policy in China now to create a balanced and equalized metropolitan economy.
Factors Affecting Entrepreneurship and Business Sustainability
Authors: Tur-Porcar Ana , Roig-Tierno Norat , Llorca Mestre Anna
Published: February 2018

Sustainability is becoming increasingly important for society, and the creation of business ventures is one area where sustainability is critical. We examined the factors affecting actions that are designed to foster business sustainability. These factors are related to the environment, behavior, human relations, and business activity. Based on questionnaire responses from experts, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method was used to rank sustainable business criteria according to their importance for entrepreneurs starting sustainable businesses. The results indicate that the most important drivers of sustainable entrepreneurship are behavioral factors and business factors. Ethical principles and values, together with competitive intelligence, are crucial for undertaking actions that lead to sustainability.
Eco-Efficiency Evaluation of Regional Circular Economy: A Case Study in Zengcheng, Guangzhou
Authors: Liu Wei , Zhan Jinyan , Li Zhihui , Jia Siqi , Zhang Fan , Li Yifan
Published: February 2018

Circular economies are critical for alleviating resource pressure and improving environmental quality at regional level. Emergy analysis and eco-efficiency evaluations play important roles in measuring regional eco-efficiency and providing supporting information for governmental decision-making. In this study, emergy analysis and input–output analysis were applied to analyze the changes in emergy structure, functional efficiency, and sustainable development capacity of Zengcheng, Guangzhou during the period 2000–2016. The results showed that the proportion of non-renewable emergy in total emergy structure of Zengcheng increased from 55% to 75%, which placed a greater environmental load on the natural ecosystem and gradually weakened the capacity for sustainable development. The rates of emergy utilization and eco-efficiency both showed increasing trends. All indicators about eco-efficiency showed the development of Zengcheng heavily relied on emergy consumption, especially on non-renewable emergy. The relationship between emergy utilization and socio-economic development of Zengcheng can provide decision-making support for economic structure optimization and sustainable community development.
Improving the Forecasting Accuracy of Crude Oil Prices
Authors: Yin Xuluo , Peng Jiangang , Tang Tian
Published: February 2018

Currently, oil is the key element of energy sustainability, and its prices and economy have a strong mutual influence. Modeling a good method to accurately predict oil prices over long future horizons is challenging and of great interest to investors and policymakers. This paper forecasts oil prices using many predictor variables with a new time-varying weight combination approach. In doing so, we first use five single-variable time-varying parameter models to predict crude oil prices separately. Second, every special model is assigned a time-varying weight by the new combination approach. Finally, the forecasting results of oil prices are calculated. The results show that the paper’s method is robust and performs well compared to random walk.
Fostering Sustainable Transportation Operations through Corridor Management: A Simulation Gaming Approach
Authors: Kurapati Shalini , Kourounioti Ioanna , Lukosch Heide , Tavasszy Lóránt , Verbraeck Alexander
Published: February 2018

Synchromodality is described as a network of well-synchronised and interconnected transportation modes. One of the most important advantages of synchromodality is the development of a sustainable transportation system. Given the numerous stakeholders and network interdependencies within freight transport corridors, achieving efficient coordination and management is complex. In this paper, we regard information exchange as one of the main enablers of collaboration between the infrastructure managers. We developed a digital single-player simulation game called “Modal Manager” comprising logistic service providers and infrastructure managers. Each player takes over the role of an infrastructure manager who must use information provision as a tool to control flows in a network where various planned and unplanned disruptions occur. We include the game in a session where participants are able to interact with the game and with each other. The first gameplay session with Dutch experts revealed that infrastructure managers perceive synchromodality as a way to cope with disruptions more efficiently. On the other hand, the concept of synchromodal corridor management is ambiguous and various legal and governance barriers exist that hinder its implementation.
Comprehensive Analysis of Trends and Emerging Technologies in All Types of Fuel Cells Based on a Computational Method
Authors: Ogawa Takaya , Takeuchi Mizutomo , Kajikawa Yuya
Published: February 2018

Fuel cells have been attracting significant attention recently as highly efficient and eco-friendly energy generators. Here, we have comprehensively reviewed all types of fuel cells using computational analysis based on a citation network that detects emerging technologies objectively and provides interdisciplinary data to compare trends. This comparison shows that the technologies of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) and electrolytes in polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) are at the mature stage, whereas those of biofuel cells (BFCs) and catalysts in PEFCs are currently garnering attention. It does not mean, however, that the challenges of SOFCs and PEFC electrolytes have been overcome. SOFCs need to be operated at lower temperatures, approximately 500 °C. Electrolytes in PEFCs still suffer from a severe decrease in proton conductivity at low relative humidity and from their high cost. Catalysts in PEFCs are becoming attractive as means to reduce the platinum catalyst cost. The emerging technologies in PEFC catalysts are mainly heteroatom-doped graphene/carbon nanotubes for metal-free catalysts and supports for iron- or cobalt-based catalysts. BFCs have also received attention for wastewater treatment and as miniaturized energy sources. Of particular interest in BFCs are membrane reactors in microbial fuel cells and membrane-less enzymatic biofuel cells.
Estimation of CO2 Emissions Produced by Commercial Grills in Veracruz, Mexico
Authors: Lango-Reynoso Veronica , López-Spiegel Jonathan , Lango-Reynoso Fabiola , Castañeda-Chávez María , Montoya-Mendoza Jesús
Published: February 2018

In some urban areas in Mexico, the use of firewood and charcoal as fuel for meat grills in commercial establishments, has proliferated due to economic and cultural factors. Although this activity satisfies diverse human necessities, it also generates waste that impacts the environment to local and global scales. Such is the case of CO2 emissions produced by biomass burning in grills, whose sources are not recognized in municipal inventories of greenhouse effect gases (GEG) of the State of Veracruz. A theoretical estimation was made based in a census of establishments and an emission parameter, in order to establish a baseline on the amount of gas emitted to the atmosphere by commercial grills in Boca Del Río, Ver. It was concluded that 30 operating grills emit 134.56 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, equivalent to the annual combustion of 59,016.43 L of gasoline. Hence, these grills must be considered as micro-fixed sources of GEG, which influence local marine acidification and global climate change. It is recommended that it should be included in municipal, state, and national inventories for subsequent professionalization and regulation.
The Consumer Demand Estimating and Purchasing Strategies Optimizing of FMCG Retailers Based on Geographic Methods
Authors: Wang Luyao , Fan Hong , Gong Tianren
Published: February 2018

The fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry is expected to grow dramatically given the rapid increase in purchasing power of Chinese consumers over recent years. In order to facilitate the sustainable development of the Chinese FMCG market, it is important for FMCG retailers to understand the provincial market demand and make out flexible purchasing strategies. This paper proposes a new combination of geographic methods to estimate market demand at the micro-scale through historical sales data. Based on the consumer demand of regions and the sales performance of nearby regions, this study also proposes a method to decide what kinds of optimizing purchasing strategies should be adopted for the retailers in different areas, the positive strategies or the conservative strategies. The sales data of FMCG retailers in Guiyang was used in the experiment, and the results showed that their theoretical sales could be improved by over 6.5% and 10.2 under two strategies. The findings indicate that this study can provide practical guidance for retailers to estimate the market demand, and develop suitable optimizing purchasing strategies, thus improving the profit of retails and decreasing the risk of products waste.
Enhancing the Efficiency of Massive Online Learning by Integrating Intelligent Analysis into MOOCs with an Application to Education of Sustainability
Authors: Li Chao , Zhou Hong
Published: February 2018

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) is an innovative method in modern education, especially important for autonomous study and the sharing of global excellent education resources. However, it is not easy to implement the teaching process according to the specific characters of students by MOOCs because the number of participants is huge and the teacher cannot identify the characters of students through a face to face interaction. As a new subject combined with different areas, such as economics, sociology, environment, and even engineering, the education of sustainability-related courses requires elaborate consideration of individualized teaching for students from diverse backgrounds and with different learning styles. Although the major MOOC platforms or learning management systems (LMSs) have tried lots of efforts in the design of course system and the contents of the courses for sustainability education, the achievements are still unsatisfied, at least the issue of how to effectively take into account the individual characteristics of participants remains unsolved. A hybrid Neural Network (NN) model is proposed in this paper which integrates a Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and with a Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) based Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN) in an effort to detect individual learning style dynamically. The model was trained by learners’ behavior data and applied to predicting their learning styles. With identified learning style for each learner, the power of MOOC platform can be greatly enhanced by being able to offer the capabilities of recommending specific learning path and the relevant contents individually according to their characters. The efficiency of learning can thus be significantly improved. The proposed model was applied to the online study of sustainability-related course based on a MOOC platform with more than 9,400,000 learners. The results revealed that the learners could effectively increase their learning efficiency and quality for the courses when the learning styles are identified, and proper recommendations are made by using our method.
Diagonally Implicit Multistep Block Method of Order Four for Solving Fuzzy Differential Equations Using Seikkala Derivatives
Authors: Isa Syahirbanun , Abdul Majid Zanariah , Ismail Fudziah , Rabiei Faranak
Published: February 2018

In this paper, the solution of fuzzy differential equations is approximated numerically using diagonally implicit multistep block method of order four. The multistep block method is well known as an efficient and accurate method for solving ordinary differential equations, hence in this paper the method will be used to solve the fuzzy initial value problems where the initial value is a symmetric triangular fuzzy interval. The triangular fuzzy number is not necessarily symmetric, however by imposing symmetry the definition of a triangular fuzzy number can be simplified. The symmetric triangular fuzzy interval is a triangular fuzzy interval that has same left and right width of membership function from the center. Due to this, the parametric form of symmetric triangular fuzzy number is simple and the performing arithmetic operations become easier. In order to interpret the fuzzy problems, Seikkala’s derivative approach is implemented. Characterization theorem is then used to translate the problems into a system of ordinary differential equations. The convergence of the introduced method is also proved. Numerical examples are given to investigate the performance of the proposed method. It is clearly shown in the results that the proposed method is comparable and reliable in solving fuzzy differential equations.
Preparation of Monoclonal Antibody for Brevetoxin 1 and Development of Ic-ELISA and Colloidal Gold Strip to Detect Brevetoxin 1
Authors: Ling Sumei , Xiao Shiwei , Xie Chengjie , Wang Rongzhi , Zeng Linmao , Wang Ke , Zhang Danping , Li Xiulan , Wang Shihua
Published: February 2018

Brevetoxin-1 (BTX-1), a marine toxin mostly produced by the dinoflagellatae Karenia brevis, has caused the death of marine organisms and has had numerous toxicological effects on human health. Hence, it is very necessary to develop a rapid, economical, and reliable immunoassay method for BTX-1 detection. In this study, two kinds of complete antigen were synthesized using the succinic anhydride and isobutyl chloroformate two-step methods. Conjugate BTX-1-OVA was used as an antigen for mice immunization, and BTX-1-BSA for measuring the titer of the produced antibodies. A hybridoma cell line 6C6 stably secreting monoclonal antibody (mAb) against BTX-1 was obtained by fusing SP2/0 myeloma cells with the spleen cells from the immunized mouse. The hybridoma 6C6 was injected into the abdomen of BALB/c mice to obtain ascites, and the anti-BTX-1 mAb was harvested from ascites by precipitation with caprylic acid/ammonium sulfate (CA-AS). The anti-BTX-1 mAb was identified as an IgG1 subtype, and the cross-reactivity results showed that anti-BTX-1 mAb was highly specific to BTX-1 with the affinity of 1.06 × 108 L/mol. The indirect competitive ELISA results indicated that the linear range for BTX-1 detection was 14–263 ng/mL with IC50 of 60 ng/mL, and a detection limit of 14 ng/mL. The average recovery rate from the spiked samples was 88 ± 2% in intra-assay and 89 ± 2% in inter-assay. The limit of detection (LOD) using the colloidal gold strip was 200 ng/mL with high specificity. Therefore, the anti-BTX-1 mAb can be used to detect BTX-1 in shellfish and other related samples.
On Manifestation of In-Medium Effects in Neutron Stars and Heavy-Ion Collisions
Authors: Voskresensky Dmitry
Published: February 2018

This review focuses on the demonstration of an interrelation between various in-medium effects, which are manifested in the phenomena occurring in neutron stars and heavy-ion collisions. More specifically, the equation of state of a baryon-rich cold hadron matter is considered. It is done within the relativistic mean-field approach with σ field-scaled hadron masses and couplings, and a cut-mechanism is discussed leading to an increase of the stiffness of the dense baryon matter. Then, I discuss the role of the viscosity and thermal conductivity in description of the first-order phase transitions occurring in heavy-ion collisions and neutron stars. Next, the p-wave polarization effects on pion and kaon spectra are studied beyond the mean-field level. In particular, the pion softening effect is detailed. Then, a role of in-medium effects in neutrino radiation of neutron stars is discussed and effects of the bulk and shear viscosities in the problem of r-mode damping in young rapidly rotating pulsars are considered.
Centrality Dependent Lévy-Stable Two-Pion Bose-Einstein Correlations in \( {\sqrt{s_{NN}}} \) = 200 GeV Au+Au Collisions at the PHENIX Experiment
Authors: Lökös Sándor
Published: February 2018

Investigation of femtoscopic correlation functions in relativistic heavy ion reactions is an important tool to access the space-time structure of particle production in the strongly interacting Quark Gluon Plasma (sQGP). The shape of the source, and thus the shape of the correlation functions, is often assumed to be Gaussian, but experimental results found evidence for heavy tails in the source distribution of pions. Recent analysis revealed that the statistically correct assumption could be the so-called Lévy distribution. The detailed investigation of correlation functions in various systems may shed light on the location of the critical endpoint on QCD (Quantum Chromodynamics) phase diagram. It could also reveal if there is partially coherent pion production or could indicate the possible in-medium mass modification of the η ′ meson due to the (partial) restoration of the U A ( 1 ) axial symmetry. These phenomena could depend on the system size and on the collision energy. A detailed centrality-dependent analysis could explore the multiplicity dependencies of the Lévy parameters, and thus the critical and thermodynamical properties of the sQGP, and could give information about the above mentioned processes. In this paper, we present the status of the centrality dependent measurements of two-pion Lévy Bose-Einstein correlation functions s NN = 200 GeV Au+Au collisions at PHENIX.
A Phenomenological Equation of State of Strongly Interacting Matter with First-Order Phase Transitions and Critical Points
Authors: Typel Stefan , Blaschke David
Published: February 2018

An extension of the relativistic density functional approach to the equation of state for strongly interacting matter is suggested that generalizes a recently developed modified excluded-volume mechanism to the case of temperature- and density-dependent available-volume fractions. A parametrization of this dependence is presented for which, at low temperatures and suprasaturation densities, a first-order phase transition is obtained. It changes for increasing temperatures to a crossover transition via a critical endpoint. This provides a benchmark case for studies of the role of such a point in hydrodynamic simulations of ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions. The approach is thermodynamically consistent and extendable to finite isospin asymmetries that are relevant for simulations of neutron stars, their mergers, and core-collapse supernova explosions.
Nonstructural Proteins of Alphavirus—Potential Targets for Drug Development
Authors: Abu Bakar Farhana , Ng Lisa
Published: February 2018

Alphaviruses are enveloped, positive single-stranded RNA viruses, typically transmitted by arthropods. They often cause arthralgia or encephalitic diseases in infected humans and there is currently no targeted antiviral treatment available. The re-emergence of alphaviruses in Asia, Europe, and the Americas over the last decade, including chikungunya and o’nyong’nyong viruses, have intensified the search for selective inhibitors. In this review, we highlight key molecular determinants within the alphavirus replication complex that have been identified as viral targets, focusing on their structure and functionality in viral dissemination. We also summarize recent structural data of these viral targets and discuss how these could serve as templates to facilitate structure-based drug design and development of small molecule inhibitors.
“I Always Feel Like I Have to Rush…” Pet Owner and Small Animal Veterinary Surgeons’ Reflections on Time during Preventative Healthcare Consultations in the United Kingdom
Authors: Belshaw Zoe , Robinson Natalie , Dean Rachel , Brennan Marnie
Published: February 2018

Canine and feline preventative healthcare consultations can be more complex than other consultation types, but they are typically not allocated additional time in the United Kingdom (UK). Impacts of the perceived length of UK preventative healthcare consultations have not previously been described. The aim of this novel study was to provide the first qualitative description of owner and veterinary surgeon reflections on time during preventative healthcare consultations. Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 14 veterinary surgeons and 15 owners about all aspects of canine and feline preventative healthcare consultations. These qualitative data were thematically analysed, and four key themes identified. This paper describes the theme relating to time and consultation length. Patient, owner, veterinary surgeon and practice variables were recalled to impact the actual, versus allocated, length of a preventative healthcare consultation. Preventative healthcare consultations involving young, old and multi-morbid animals and new veterinary surgeon-owner partnerships appear particularly susceptible to time pressures. Owners and veterinary surgeons recalled rushing and minimizing discussions to keep consultations within their allocated time. The impact of the pace, content and duration of a preventative healthcare consultation may be influential factors in consultation satisfaction. These interviews provide an important insight into the complex nature of preventative healthcare consultations and the behaviour of participants under different perceived time pressures. These data may be of interest and relevance to all stakeholders in dog and cat preventative healthcare.
The Control of an Active Seat Suspension Using an Optimised Fuzzy Logic Controller, Based on Preview Information from a Full Vehicle Model
Authors: Alfadhli Abdulaziz , Darling Jocelyn , Hillis Andrew
Published: February 2018

The use of suspension preview information obtained from a quarter vehicle model (QvM) to control an active seat has been shown by the authors to be very promising, in terms of improved ride comfort. However, in reality, a road vehicle will be subjected to disturbances from all four wheels, and therefore the concept of preview enhanced control should be applied to a full vehicle model. In this paper, different preview scenarios are examined, in which suspension data is taken from all or limited axles. Accordingly, three control strategies are hypothesized—namely, front-left suspension (FLS), front axle (FA), and four wheel (4W). The former utilises suspension displacement and velocity preview information from the vehicle suspension nearest to the driver’s seat. The FA uses similar preview information, but from both the front-left and front-right suspensions. The 4W controller employs similar preview information from all of the vehicle suspensions. To cope with friction non-linearities, as well as constraints on the active actuator displacement and force capabilities, three optimal fuzzy logic controllers (FLCs) are developed. The structure of each FLC, including membership functions, scaling factors, and rule base, was sequentially optimised based on improving the seat effective amplitude transmissibility (SEAT) factor in the vertical direction, using the particle swarming optimisation (PSO) algorithm. These strategies were evaluated in simulation according to ISO 2631-1, using different road disturbances at a range of vehicle forward speeds. The results show that the proposed controllers are very effective in attenuating the vertical acceleration at the driver’s seat, when compared with a passive system. The controller that utilised suspension preview information from all four corners of the car provided the best seat isolation performance, independent of vehicle speed. Finally, to reduce the implementation cost of the “four suspension” controller, a practical alternative is developed that requires less measured preview information.
I Don’t See It Your Way: The Dot Perspective Task Does Not Gauge Spontaneous Perspective Taking
Authors: Langton Stephen
Published: February 2018

Data from studies employing the dot-perspective task have been used to support the theory that humans are capable of automatically computing the visual perspective of other individuals. Recent work has challenged this interpretation, claiming instead that the results may arise through the automatic reorienting of attention triggered by observed head and gaze cues. The two experiments reported here offer a stronger test of the perspective taking account by replacing the computer-generated avatars used in previous research with, respectively, photo-realistic stimuli and socially co-present individuals in a “live”, face-to-face version of the task. In each study observers were faster to judge the number of dots in a display when either a digitized image depicting a human “gazer” (Experiment 1), or a socially co-present gazer (Experiment 2) could see the same number of dots as the observer, than when the number of dots visible to each was different. However, in both experiments this effect was also obtained in conditions where barriers clearly occluded the gazers’ view of the target dots so that the perspectives of participants and gazers were always different. These results offer no support for the idea that participants are engaged in spontaneous perspective taking in the dot perspective task. It is argued that, instead, the results are likely caused by a spontaneous redirection of a viewer’s attention by the observed gazes, which is unlikely to involve representations of the gazer’s mental state.
Flood Mitigation by Permeable Pavements in Chinese Sponge City Construction
Authors: Hu Maochuan , Zhang Xingqi , Siu Yim , Li Yu , Tanaka Kenji , Yang Hong , Xu Youpeng
Published: February 2018

It is important to evaluate the effectiveness of permeable pavements on flood mitigation at different spatial scales for their effective application, for example, sponge city construction in China. This study evaluated the effectiveness of three types of permeable pavements (i.e., permeable asphalts (PA), permeable concretes (PC), and permeable interlocking concrete pavers (PICP)) on flood mitigation at a community scale in China using a hydrological model. In addition, the effects of clogging and initial water content in permeable pavements on flood mitigation performance were assessed. The results indicated that in 12 scenarios, permeable pavements reduced total surface runoff by 1–40% and peak flow by 7–43%, respectively. The hydrological performance of permeable pavements was limited by clogging and initial water content. Clogging resulted in the effectiveness on total surface runoff reduction and peak flow reduction being decreased by 62–92% and 37–65%, respectively. By increasing initial water content at the beginning of the simulation, the effectiveness of total runoff reduction and peak flow reduction decreased by 57–85% and 37–67%, respectively. Overall, among the three types of permeable pavements, PC without clogging had the best performance in terms of flood mitigation, and PICP was the least prone to being clogged. Our findings demonstrate that both the type and the maintenance of permeable pavements have significant effects on their performance in the flood mitigation.
Stochastic Linear Programming for Reservoir Operation with Constraints on Reliability and Vulnerability
Authors: Chen Cheng , Kang Chuanxiong , Wang Jinwen
Published: February 2018

Reliability and vulnerability (RV) are two very important performance measures but, due to their stage-inseparable nature, they cannot be explicitly incorporated in stochastic dynamic programming (SDP), which is extensively used in reservoir operation. With inflows described as a Markov chain, a stochastic linear programming (SLP) model is formulated in this paper to explicitly incorporate the RV constraints in the reservoir operation, aimed at maximizing the expected power generation by determining the optimal scheduling decisions and their probabilities. Simulation results of the SLP and SDP models indicate the equivalence of the proposed SLP and SDP models without considering the RV constraints, as well as the strength of the SLP in explicitly incorporating the RV constraints. A simulated scheduling solution also reveals a reduction of power generation fluctuation, with the reservoir capacity emptied in advance to meet given reliability and vulnerability.
Ecohydrologic Connections in Semiarid Watershed Systems of Central Oregon USA
Authors: Ochoa Carlos , Caruso Phil , Ray Grace , Deboodt Tim , Jarvis W. , Guldan Steven
Published: February 2018

An improved understanding of ecohydrologic connections is critical for improving land management decisions in water-scarce regions of the western United States. For this study, conducted in a semiarid (358 mm) rangeland location in central Oregon, we evaluated precipitation-interception-soil moisture dynamics at the plot scale and characterized surface water and groundwater relations across the landscape including areas with and without western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis). Results from this study show that juniper woodlands intercepted up to 46% of total precipitation, altering soil moisture distribution under the canopy and in the interspace. Results indicate that precipitation reaching the ground can rapidly percolate through the soil profile and into the shallow aquifer, and that strong hydrologic connections between surface and groundwater components exist during winter precipitation and snowmelt runoff seasons. Greater streamflow and springflow rates were observed in the treated watershed when compared to the untreated. Streamflow rates up to 1020 L min−1 and springflow rates peaking 190 L min−1 were observed in the watershed where juniper was removed 13 years ago. In the untreated watershed, streamflow rates peaked at 687 L min−1 and springflow rates peaked at 110 L min−1. Results contribute to improved natural resource management through a better understanding of the biophysical connections occurring in rangeland ecosystems and the role that woody vegetation encroachment may have on altering the hydrology of the site.
Terahertz spectroscopy of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene molecular solids from first principles
Authors: Azuri Ido , Hirsch Anna , Reilly Anthony M , Tkatchenko Alexandre , Kendler Shai , Hod Oded , Kronik Leeor
Published: February 2018

We present a computational analysis of the terahertz spectra of the monoclinic and the orthorhombic polymorphs of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene. Very good agreement with experimental data is found when using density functional theory that includes Tkatchenko–Scheffler pair-wise dispersion interactions. Furthermore, we show that for these polymorphs the theoretical results are only weakly affected by many-body dispersion contributions. The absence of dispersion interactions, however, causes sizable shifts in vibrational frequencies and directly affects the spatial character of the vibrational modes. Mode assignment allows for a distinction between the contributions of the monoclinic and orthorhombic polymorphs and shows that modes in the range from 0 to ca. 3.3 THz comprise both inter- and intramolecular vibrations, with the former dominating below ca. 1.5 THz. We also find that intramolecular contributions primarily involve the nitro and methyl groups. Finally, we present a prediction for the terahertz spectrum of 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, showing that a modest chemical change leads to a markedly different terahertz spectrum.