bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determination of the polynomial restoring force of a one DoF bistable Duffing oscillator by linear regression
Authors: Wulff Paul , Lentz Lukas , von Wagner Utz
Published: January 2023

A large class of energy-harvesting systems includes a bistable magnetoelastic oscillator. Due to the high complexity of the inherent magnetic field forces, those systems are commonly represented as a combination of physical and phenomenological, low-dimensional models. Therein occurring three free parameters of dissipation and restoring force are determined by the decay rate as well as constraints for the position of the equilibria and the frequency of small amplitude oscillations. As will be shown in this paper, one major disadvantage of this procedure is that high amplitude oscillations, which are most relevant in context of energy harvesting, yield the poorest consistency with experimental observations. To overcome the problem, a regression-based nonlinear system identification is performed using system responses under harmonic excitation. Models with cubic as well as quintic restoring forces are identified and compared with the experimental observations as well as a model that was built with the commonly used identification procedure. As a result, it is found that both models from the regression show a higher agreement with the experimental data. Furthermore, the quintic model is found to be more accurate than the cubic model. This shows the necessity to be able to include more than three free parameters in the model. The advantage of the applied procedure lies in the raised flexibility of model adaptation resulting in improved agreement of simulation and experimental results.
Critical velocities of a two-layer composite tube under a moving internal pressure
Authors: Gao X.-L.
Published: January 2023

Critical velocities of a two-layer composite tube under a uniform internal pressure moving at a constant velocity are analytically determined. The formulation is based on a Love–Kirchhoff thin shell theory that incorporates the rotary inertia and material anisotropy. The composite tube consists of two perfectly bonded axisymmetric circular cylindrical layers of dissimilar materials, which can be orthotropic, transversely isotropic, cubic or isotropic. Closed-form expressions for the critical velocities and radial displacement of the two-layer composite tube are first derived for the general case by including the effects of material anisotropy, rotary inertia and radial stress. The formulas for composite tubes without the rotary inertia effect and/or the radial stress effect and with various types of material symmetry for each layer are then obtained as special cases. In addition, it is shown that the model for single-layer, homogeneous tubes can be recovered from the current model as a special case. To illustrate the new model, a composite tube with an isotropic inner layer and an orthotropic outer layer is analyzed as an example. All four critical velocities of the composite tube are calculated using the newly derived closed-form formulas. Six values of the lowest critical velocity of the two-layer composite tube are computed using three sets of the new formulas, which compare fairly well with existing results.
Effects of methylphenidate and physiotherapeutic treatment on graphomotor movements in children with ADHD
Authors: Rothe Josefine , Kattlun Fabian A. , Kaufmann Jeanne , Uhlmann Anne , Wanderer Sina , Bluschke Annet , Beste Christian , Roessner Veit
Published: January 2023

In addition to the core symptoms defining ADHD, affected children often experience motor problems; in particular, graphomotor movements including handwriting are affected. However, in clinical settings, there is little emphasis on standardized and objective diagnosing and treatment of those difficulties. The present study investigated for the first time the effects of methylphenidate as well as physiotherapeutic treatment on objectively assessed graphomotor movements compared to a control condition, i.e. parental psychoeducation, in 58 children (mean age: 9.52 ± 1.91 years) newly diagnosed with ADHD in an outpatient clinic for child and adolescent psychiatry. Families were invited to join one of the treatment groups. Before and after 8 weeks of treatment, children performed six different tasks on a digitizing tablet which allowed the objective analysis of three important kinematic parameters of graphomotor movements (fluency, velocity, and pen pressure) in different levels of visual control and automation. Graphomotor movement fluency and velocity improves over time across the groups, especially in tasks with eyes closed. We did not find clear evidence for beneficial effects of methylphenidate or physiotherapeutic treatment on children’s overall graphomotor movements suggesting that treatments need to be better tailored towards specific and individual deficits in graphomotor movements.
Emulative learning of a two-step task in free-ranging domestic pigs
Authors: Veit Ariane , Weißhaupt Stefanie , Bruat Arnaud , Wondrak Marianne , Huber Ludwig
Published: January 2023

Previous research showed that young domestic pigs learn through observation of conspecifics by using social learning mechanisms like social facilitation, enhancement effects, and even object movement re-enactment. The latter suggests some form of emulative learning in which the observer learns about the object’s movements and affordances. As it remains unclear whether pigs need a social agent to learn about objects, we provided 36 free-ranging domestic pigs with varying degrees of social to non-social demonstrations on how to solve a two-step manipulative foraging task: observers watched either a conspecific or a human demonstrator, or self-moving objects ("ghost control"), or a ghost control accompanied by an inactive conspecific bystander. In addition, 22 subjects that were previously tested without any demonstrator were used as a non-observer control. To solve the task, the subjects had to first remove a plug from its recess to then be able to slide a cover to the side, which would lay open a food compartment. Observers interacted longer with the relevant objects (plugs) and were more successful in solving the task compared to non-observers. We found no differences with regard to success between the four observer groups, indicating that the pigs mainly learned about the apparatus rather than about the actions. As the only common feature of the different demonstrations was the movement of the plug and the cover, we conclude the observer pigs learned primarily by emulation, suggesting that social agents are not necessary for pigs when learning through observation.
Repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in cancer patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: induction of high-avidity anti-RBD neutralizing antibodies
Authors: Caruso Teresita , Salani Francesca , Catanese Silvia , Pratesi Federico , Mercinelli Chiara , Motta Giuseppe , Genovesi Virginia , Bonato Adele , Sara Galimberti , Masi Gianluca , Migliorini Paola
Published: January 2023

Background

Cancer patients are more vulnerable to COVID-19 and are thus given high priority in vaccination campaigns. In solid cancer patients treated with checkpoint inhibitors, we evaluated the amount of anti-RBD and neutralizing antibodies and antibody avidity after two or three doses of the vaccine.

Methods

Thirty-eight solid cancer patients, 15 untreated hematological patients and 21 healthy subjects were enrolled in the study. Blood was collected before the first dose (T0), 21 days after the second (T2) and in 18 solid cancer patients also 15 days after the third dose of vaccine (T3). IgG, IgM and IgA anti-RBD antibodies were detected by ELISA. Neutralizing antibodies were measured testing the inhibition of RBD binding to ACE2. Antibody avidity was evaluated in 18 patients by a urea avidity ELISA.

Results

IgG anti-RBD antibodies were produced in 65.8% of the cancer patients at T2, and in 60% of hematological patients at levels lower than healthy controls. IgM and IgA anti-RBD antibodies were also produced in 5.3% and 21% cancer patients, respectively. At T3, a significant increase in anti-RBD IgG levels was observed. Neutralizing antibodies were produced in 68.4% of cancer patients as compared with 93% of untreated hematological patients and 100% of controls, at titers lower than in healthy subjects. At T3, neutralizing antibodies and avidity of IgG anti-RBD increased; 6/18 patients negative at T2 developed neutralizing antibodies at T3.

Conclusion

The data indicate that in cancer patients mRNA vaccine induces high avidity anti-RBD antibodies and neutralizing antibodies that increase after the third dose. The process of induction and selection of high-affinity antibodies is apparently unaffected by the treatment with anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 antibodies.
Leaving windthrown stands unsalvaged as a management practice for facilitating late-successional carabid assemblages
Authors: Skłodowski Jarosław
Published: January 2023

The usual practice following a windthrow event is salvage logging of all damaged trees. This study was carried out in a pine stand affected by storms with varying disturbance severities in which no salvage logging was performed. Epigeic carabids (Coleoptera) were the test taxon. How does windthrow severity and disturbance legacies affect the abundance, richness and life traits of carabid assemblages? Two hypotheses were formulated: (1) the more severe the disturbance, the higher the abundance and species richness, and the lower the proportion of late-successional fauna in carabid assemblages, and (2) pine tree crowns lying on the ground support a higher proportion of late-successional carabid species, the effect of which should be more pronounced in more severely disturbed stands but will decrease as needles fall off over the next 3 years. To test the first hypothesis, 3 degrees of stand disturbance were distinguished. Both hypotheses were partially supported. Simultaneously, it was demonstrated that the importance of the leaf area index for carabids decreased over the 3 years, while the significance of the soil respiration rate and soil humidity increased. During the 3 years, the percentage of carabid forest species living under the fallen tree crowns remained at the same level. The findings indicate that there is a rationale for leaving fallen trees in place together with their crowns, while in tree stands where salvage logging is performed, whole crowns should be left cut-off from trunks to provide shelter for forest species.
Australian School Staff and Allied Health Professional Perspectives of Mental Health Literacy in Schools: a Mixed Methods Study
Authors: Marinucci Alexandra , Grové Christine , Allen Kelly-Ann
Published: January 2023

Schools are an ideal setting to base mental health literacy programs as the learning environment is already established. Mental health literacy represents how to obtain and maintain good mental health and should be incorporated into the school curriculum. Collaboration with key stakeholders in youth mental health, such as school staff and allied health professionals, is critical in ensuring needs are addressed, and programs are sustainable. This study aimed to understand the perspectives of school staff and allied health professionals towards mental health literacy within Australian schools. An exploratory qualitative and quantitative survey was completed by 88 participants across Australia. Results indicated that school staff feel less competent to deliver mental health literacy content and perceive their training did not address mental health education compared to allied health professionals. Most mental health programs reported to be implemented within schools were social and emotional learning programs. School staff viewed mental health programs to strengthen academic performance less than allied health professionals. Thematic analysis of qualitative data identified that participants viewed mental health knowledge, where and how to seek help, and coping skills as vital content to cover in a school-based mental health literacy program. This study reveals that school staff need sufficient training and resources to address youth mental health literacy. Though mental health literacy is lacking in the Australian school system, the perspectives of school staff and allied health professionals in this study provide key ideas and considerations for the future development of school-based mental health literacy programs for youth.
Why Do Employers (Fail to) Hire People with Disabilities? A Systematic Review of Capabilities, Opportunities and Motivations
Authors: Nagtegaal Rosanna , de Boer Noortje , van Berkel Rik , Derks Belle , Tummers Lars
Published: January 2023

Purpose

To increase the number of people with disabilities in employment, we need to understand what influences employers’ hiring decisions. In this systematic review, we map out factors affecting employers’ hiring decisions about people with disabilities.

Methods

This study is a systematic review that applies the COM-B model to identify factors that contribute to employers (not) hiring people with disabilities. The COM-B model proposes that employers will perform hiring behavior (B) if they have the capability (C), opportunity (O) and motivation (M) to do so. We also investigate if factors have a negative, positive or no effect. We report in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines.

Results

In a review of 47 studies, we find 32 factors. Most of these factors are barriers. The most frequently mentioned barriers are employers’ (1) expectations that people with disabilities are unproductive, (2) expectations that people with disabilities cost a lot of money, and employers’ (3) lack of knowledge about disabilities. The most researched facilitators for employers to hire people with disabilities include (1) the motivation to help others, (2) working in a large organization, and (3) expecting a competitive advantage. The effect of factors can differ depending on contextual circumstances, including the type of organization, the type of disability and different policies.

Conclusions

We conclude that hiring decisions are influenced by an array of different barriers and facilitators. The effect of these factors can differ across organizations and disability types. Our study of factors affecting hiring can be used by scholars, policy makers, and organizations to create interventions to increase the hiring of people with disabilities.
Grounding the Vector Space of an Octopus: Word Meaning from Raw Text
Authors: Søgaard Anders
Published: January 2023

Most, if not all, philosophers agree that computers cannot learn what words refers to from raw text alone. While many attacked Searle’s Chinese Room thought experiment, no one seemed to question this most basic assumption. For how can computers learn something that is not in the data? Emily Bender and Alexander Koller (2020) recently presented a related thought experiment—the so-called Octopus thought experiment, which replaces the rule-based interlocutor of Searle’s thought experiment with a neural language model. The Octopus thought experiment was awarded a best paper prize and was widely debated in the AI community. Again, however, even its fiercest opponents accepted the premise that what a word refers to cannot be induced in the absence of direct supervision. I will argue that what a word refers to is probably learnable from raw text alone. Here’s why: higher-order concept co-occurrence statistics are stable across languages and across modalities, because language use (universally) reflects the world we live in (which is relatively stable). Such statistics are sufficient to establish what words refer to. My conjecture is supported by a literature survey, a thought experiment, and an actual experiment.
New quantum codes from CSS codes
Authors: Grassl Markus
Published: January 2023

We present a new propagation rule for CSS codes. Starting with a CSS code $$[\![n,k,d]\!]_q$$

[

[
n
,
k
,
d
]

]

q

, we construct a CSS code with parameters $$[\![n-2,k,d-1]\!]_q$$

[

[
n
-
2
,
k
,
d
-
1
]

]

q

. In general, one would only obtain a code with parameters $$[\![n-2,k,d-2]\!]_q$$

[

[
n
-
2
,
k
,
d
-
2
]

]

q

. The construction applies to asymmetric quantum codes from the CSS construction as well.
Parallel border tracking in binary images for multicore computers
Authors: Garcia-Molla Victor M. , Alonso-Jordá Pedro
Published: January 2023

Border tracking in binary images is an important operation in many computer vision applications. The problem consists in finding borders in a 2D binary image (where all of the pixels are either 0 or 1). There are several algorithms available for this problem, but most of them are sequential. In a former paper, a parallel border tracking algorithm was proposed. This algorithm was designed to run in Graphics Processing units, and it was based on the sequential algorithm known as the Suzuki algorithm. In this paper, we adapt the previously proposed GPU algorithm so that it can be executed in multicore computers. The resulting algorithm is evaluated against its GPU counterpart. The results show that the performance of the GPU algorithm worsens (or even fails) for very large images or images with many borders. On the other hand, the proposed multicore algorithm can efficiently cope with large images.
Impacts of autochthonous particulate organic matter on redox-conditions and elimination of trace organic chemicals in managed aquifer recharge
Authors: Filter Josefine , Ermisch Till , Ruhl Aki Sebastian , Jekel Martin
Published: January 2023

Autochthonous carbon fixation by algae and subsequent deposition of particulate organic matter can have significant effects on redox conditions and elimination of trace organic chemicals (TOrCs) in managed aquifer recharge (MAR). This study investigated the impacts of different algae loadings (0–160 g/m2) and infiltration rates (0.06–0.37 m/d) on overall oxygen consumption and elimination of selected TOrCs (diclofenac, formylaminoantipyrine, gabapentin, and sulfamethoxazole) in adapted laboratory sand columns. An infiltration rate of 0.37 m/d in conjunction with an algae load of 80 g/m2 (dry weight) sustained oxic conditions in the sand bed and did not affect the degradation of TOrCs. Thus, the availability of easily degradable organic carbon from algae did not influence the removal of TOrCs at an influent concentration of 1 µg/L. In contrast, a lower infiltration rate of 0.20 m/d in combination with a higher algae loading of 160 g/m2 caused anoxic conditions for 30 days and significantly impeded the degradation of formylaminoantipyrine, gabapentin, sulfamethoxazole, and diclofenac. Especially the elimination of gabapentin did not fully recover within 130 days after pulsed algae deposition. Hence, measures like micro-sieving or nutrient control are required at bank filtration or soil aquifer treatment sites with low infiltration rates.
Effects of powered ankle–foot orthoses mass distribution on lower limb muscle forces—a simulation study
Authors: Marconi Grace , Gopalai Alpha Agape , Chauhan Sunita
Published: January 2023

This simulation study aimed to explore the effects of mass and mass distribution of powered ankle–foot orthoses, on net joint moments and individual muscle forces throughout the lower limb. Using OpenSim inverse kinematics, dynamics, and static optimization tools, the gait cycles of ten subjects were analyzed. The biomechanical models of these subjects were appended with ideal powered ankle–foot orthoses of different masses and actuator positions, as to determine the effect that these design factors had on the subject’s kinetics during normal walking. It was found that when the mass of the device was distributed more distally and posteriorly on the leg, both the net joint moments and overall lower limb muscle forces were more negatively impacted. However, individual muscle forces were found to have varying results which were attributed to the flow-on effect of the orthosis, the antagonistic pairing of muscles, and how the activity of individual muscles affect each other. It was found that mass and mass distribution of powered ankle–foot orthoses could be optimized as to more accurately mimic natural kinetics, reducing net joint moments and overall muscle forces of the lower limb, and must consider individual muscles as to reduce potentially detrimental muscle fatigue or muscular disuse.

Graphical Abstract

OpenSim modelling method to explore the effect of mass and mass distribution on muscle forces and joint moments, showing potential mass positioning and the effects of these positions, mass, and actuation on the muscle force integral.
Impact of ground source heat pumps on house sales prices in Finland
Authors: Vimpari Jussi
Published: January 2023

Buildings contribute to approximately 28% of global energy-related emissions. Heat pumps are a key technology for decarbonising the heating emissions of buildings. This study focuses on ground source heat pumps (GSHP), which are increasingly used in colder regions. Since, for an average home, the capital expenditure of GSHP can be an order of magnitude higher than that of traditional heating, it is important to understand whether GSHP has an impact on house transaction prices. A hedonic price model was constructed to estimate the sales prices of detached houses, where heating type is the main variable of interest. The hedonic analysis revealed that for detached houses, GSHP had a statistically significant positive impact of 5.33% on house sales prices. Further analysis puts the premium in the context of housing prices in different locations in Finland. An average house in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area (HMA) could cover the required capital expenditure of a GSHP system with the sales price premium, whereas in other areas in Finland, 5 years of energy savings are required on top of the premium. Hence, in locations with lower housing prices, the house must be owned for a longer period to recoup the investment costs. This is important to understand when national energy aid policies are planned to accelerate investments in heat pumps.
Assessing strategies to mitigate the impacts of a pandemic in apparel supply chains
Authors: Chowdhury Naimur Rahman , Janan Farhatul , Mahmud Priom , Liza Sharmine Akther , Paul Sanjoy Kumar
Published: January 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic has taught global businesses that a pandemic can put business dynamics in unforeseeable turbulence. The disruptions created by the pandemic in the apparel industry exposed the vulnerabilities of apparel supply chains (SCs). To recover the supply chain impacts (SCIs) during an unprecedented event such as the COVID-19 pandemic, apparel SCs need a robust framework that can identify, measure, and mitigate the severity of SCIs by assessing effective mitigation strategies. This study identifies 12 critical SCIs in apparel SCs during a pandemic and 17 mitigation strategies. To assess SCIs and mitigation strategies, a modified grey-based bi-level analytical network process (ANP) is proposed to deal with the complex relationship between the SCIs and mitigation strategies. A real-life case study is conducted from an apparel supply chain for validation purposes. The findings suggest that policymakers in apparel SCs should prioritize implementing government policies and financial aid to deal with increased material and operational costs, the sudden surge in the unemployment rate, cancellation of orders and delayed payment, and increased transportation costs during a pandemic. This study also contributes to the literature by providing a robust decision-making framework for practitioners to deal with the complexity of SCs during future pandemics.
Majority versus proportionality?
Authors: Krumm Thomas , Regalia Marta
Published: January 2023

The study of electoral system reform is often focused on consolidated democracies. This special issue on electoral reforms in the Mediterranean region selects both consolidated democracies and moderate authoritarian systems. It analyses reforms under the aspects of how they deal with the dilemma between improving ‘governability’ by majoritarian instruments versus increasing proportionality of representation. While governability also depends on other factors, public debates are frequently structured along this dichotomy, which also affects the outcome of the reform process. The Mediterranean focus reflects the higher degree of reform activities in this policy area (for instance compared to the Nordic countries), which helps to focus on drivers, scope, direction, and vested interests of electoral reforms.
Total impact of oxidative stress genes on cardiovascular events—a 7-year follow-up study
Authors: Racis Milena , Stanisławska-Sachadyn Anna , Sobiczewski Wojciech , Wirtwein Marcin , Krzemiński Michał , Rynkiewicz Andrzej , Wasąg Bartosz , Jaguszewski Miłosz , Gruchała Marcin
Published: January 2023

Cardiovascular (CV) events are the number one cause of lifetime disability and deaths worldwide. It is well known that traditional risk factors do not fully correlate with clinical outcomes; therefore, searching for other markers that would explain CV events’ occurrence seems essential. Of importance, one of the main factors at the origin of CV events is oxidative stress, causing inflammation and atherosclerotic plaque instability. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate eight carefully selected genetic polymorphisms related to oxidative stress as risk modifiers for CV events. A cohort of 1020 patients with coronary atherosclerosis was analysed in a 7-year follow-up observational study. The following end points were assessed: CV death, myocardial infarction (MI) and a combined end point of CV death/MI/stroke. Our results show that single polymorphisms are not significant cardiovascular disease risk factors, but genetic risk score (GRS), defined as the accumulation of our eight studied polymorphisms, was significantly associated with the three. Specifically, low GRS was associated with a higher risk of CV death, MI and CV death/MI/stroke. In conclusion, when regarding CV events, GRS investigated here can become clinically meaningful and undoubtedly adds to the knowledge in stratifying the risk of CV events.
An alternative numerical approach for an improved ecological model of interconnected lakes with a fixed pollutant
Authors: Yönet Nilay , Gürbüz Burcu , Gökçe Aytül
Published: January 2023

There is currently an undeniable demand for solutions to environmental issues, especially water pollution. Water is essential for life and lakes constitute a big portion of water sources. In this study, we introduce a modified numerical approach to a dynamic ecological model focused on a lake pollution problem. The model includes three connected lakes with certain parameters and unknown functions such as pollution quantities and lake volumes. First, a preliminary mathematical analysis of the variables of each lake is presented taking into account the system components and parameters. Then, we present our numerical approach considering a series expansion to approximate the problem with the help of the truncated Taylor series. We describe a convergent technique, and finally, demonstrate the numerical simulations of the approach for the different unknowns with appropriate parameters. According to the results, the application of our alternative approach to the lake pollution problem is successful in terms of producing highly accurate information outputs about pollutant quantities a better approximation than the previously studied numerical approaches for the unknown functions of time. Furthermore, it is applicable to other similar ecological and environmental dynamic systems, and to related fields.
Gut microbiota disturbances and protein-energy wasting in chronic kidney disease: a narrative review
Authors: Martín-del-Campo Fabiola , Avesani Carla Maria , Stenvinkel Peter , Lindholm Bengt , Cueto-Manzano Alfonso M. , Cortés-Sanabria Laura
Published: January 2023

Protein-energy wasting (PEW) is common in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, and lower quality of life. It is a complex syndrome, in which inflammation and retention of uremic toxins are two main factors. Causes of inflammation and uremic toxin retention in CKD are multiple; however, gut dysbiosis plays an important role, serving as a link between those entities and PEW. Besides, there are several pathways by which microbiota may influence PEW, e.g., through effects on appetite mediated by microbiota-derived proteins and hormonal changes, or by impacting skeletal muscle via a gut-muscle axis. Hence, microbiota disturbances may influence PEW independently of its relationship with local and systemic inflammation. A better understanding of the complex interrelationships between microbiota and the host may help to explain how changes in the gut affect distant organs and systems of the body and could potentially lead to the development of new strategies targeting the microbiota to improve nutrition and clinical outcomes in CKD patients. In this review, we describe possible interactions of gut microbiota with nutrient metabolism, energy balance, hunger/satiety signals and muscle depletion, all of which are strongly related to PEW in CKD patients.

Graphical abstract
NRSTRNet: A Novel Network for Noise-Robust Scene Text Recognition
Authors: Yue Hongwei , Huang Yufeng , Vong Chi-Man , Jin Yingying , Zeng Zhiqiang , Yu Mingqi , Chen Chuangquan
Published: January 2023

Scene text recognition (STR) has been widely applied in industrial and commercial fields. However, existing methods still face challenges when processing text images with defects such as low contrast, blur, low resolution, and insufficient illumination. These defects are common in actual situations because of diverse text backgrounds in natural scenes and limitations in shooting conditions. To address these challenges, we propose a novel network for noise-robust scene text recognition (NRSTRNet), which comprehensively suppresses the noise in the three critical steps of STR. Specifically, in the text feature extraction stage, NRSTRNet enhances the text-related features through the channel and spatial dimensions and disregards some disturbances from the non-text area, reducing the noise and redundancy in the input image. In the context encoding stage, fine-grained feature coding is proposed to effectively reduce the influence of previous noisy temporal features on current temporal features while simultaneously reducing the impact of partial noise on the overall encoding by sharing contextual feature encoding parameters. In the decoding stage, a self-attention module is added to enhance the connections between different temporal features, thereby leveraging the global information to obtain noise-resistant features. Through these approaches, NRSTRNet can enhance the local semantic information while considering the global semantic information. Experimental results show that the proposed NRSTRNet can improve the ability to characterize text images, enhance stability under the influence of noise, and achieve superior accuracy in text recognition. As a result, our model outperforms SOTA STR models on irregular text recognition benchmarks by 2% on average, and it is exceptionally robust when applied to noisy images.
Optimal consumption, investment, and insurance under state-dependent risk aversion
Authors: Steffensen Mogens , Søe Julie Bjørner
Published: January 2023

We formalize a consumption–investment–insurance problem with the distinction of a state-dependent relative risk aversion. The state dependence refers to the state of the finite state Markov chain that also formalizes insurable risks such as health and lifetime uncertainty. We derive and analyze the implicit solution to the problem, compare it with special cases in the literature, and illustrate the range of results in a disability model where the relative risk aversion is preserved, decreases, or increases upon disability.
Civilisation on Pause – Introduction to special issue ‘China's Global Capital and the Coronavirus: Views from Comparative Law and Regulation’
Authors: Erie Matthew
Published: January 2023

Pandemics have a history of interrupting civilisations. From the Greeks and Romans to the British Empire, pandemics have eroded political authority and caused economic instability. The twenty-first century has been hailed as the ‘Asian century’, with China's ascent as central to a reconfiguration of global capital and power. The COVID-19 pandemic, that began in 2019 and still rages as of this writing, started in China and was exacerbated by initial repression by the local government authorities before the central government could implement appropriate disaster response. Since then, COVID-19 has been one of the most devastating pandemics in the history of globalisation. Its mortality has been coupled with regulatory responses which at times have been debilitating to national economies, no less is this true for China's own regulatory response which has been anomalous across the world. This Special Issue explores the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on Chinese overseas direct investment and the concomitant forms of capital (symbolic, social, and political). It features collaborative research and writing by early career experts from throughout the world, as part of the ‘China, Law and Development’ project, based at the University of Oxford. It examines how China, its trade partners, and transnational orders have responded to the pandemic through law and regulation across an array of fields: dispute resolution, legal services, immigration law and policy, digital surveillance, global health governance, and democratic fragility.
Effectiveness of a decade of treatments to reduce invasive buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare)
Authors: Li Yue M. , Munson Seth M. , Lin Ya-Ching , Grissom Perry
Published: January 2023

The invasion of nonnative grasses threatens biodiversity and ecosystem function globally through competition with native plant species and increases to wildfire frequency and intensity. Management actions to reduce buffelgrass [Pennisetum ciliare (L.) Link], an invasive warm-season perennial bunchgrass, are widely implemented, with chemical and mechanical treatments extending over two decades within Saguaro National Park in the Sonoran Desert of North America. We assessed how the effectiveness of treatments to reduce P. ciliare cover spanning from 2011 to 2020 were influenced by stage of invasion, treatment type and intensity, and environmental conditions. An increase in treatment effectiveness was largely explained by high initial cover of P. ciliare, an indicator of a late invasion stage and associated with high treatment intensity. Treatments had potential to be effective in patches as small as 0.3-m2P. ciliare canopy per 400-m−2 area (<0.001% canopy cover) across treatment types and environmental gradients. Chemical treatments had higher or equal effectiveness compared with mechanical treatments, and greater reductions in P. ciliare were associated with shorter average years of treatment interruptions, or gaps, and to a lesser degree, total years of treatment. In many cases, P. ciliare was reduced with as little as 2 yr of treatment, but more than 3 average years of treatment gap could result in reduced treatment effectiveness. There was generally higher treatment effectiveness on shallow slopes, north- and east-facing aspects, and on higher elevations within one district of the park. Our findings highlight that resource-intensive treatments in all but the smallest patches of P. ciliare have largely been effective. Further opportunities for improvement include more frequent surveillance, limiting treatment gaps to ≤3 yr in areas of low P. ciliare cover, and comparison of treated with untreated areas.
What happened among Japanese children from school closure due to COVID-19 after school re-opening? Changes in sleep habits and dietary intake
Authors: Sugimoto Minami , Murakami Kentaro , Sasaki Satoshi
Published: January 2023

The present study aimed to (1) examine the changes in sleep habits and dietary intake among school-aged children after the school re-opening from a 3-month closure (without school lunch) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) examine whether the changes differ between those with different temporal patterns of sleep and eating during school closure, namely, ‘Very early’, ‘Early’, ‘Late’ and ‘Very late’. The latter patterns were characterised by later timings of wake up, breakfast and lunch. Questionnaires were answered twice by 4084 children (aged 8–15 years), themselves and/or their parents: first in June 2020 (for assessing lifestyle during school closure) and second, from July 2020 to February 2021 (for assessing lifestyle after school opening). After school re-opening, the participants’ wake-up time became an hour earlier (95 % CI 1⋅0, 1⋅1) and sleep duration got 0⋅94 h shorter (95 % CI 0⋅91, 0⋅97) than during school closure. An increase in dietary intake was observed for thiamine, vitamin B6, potassium, fruits and dairy products, and a decrease was observed for sugars (as foods) and confectioneries and sweetened beverages, despite small effect sizes (Cohen's d: 0⋅20–0⋅30). Significant changes in wake-up time, sleep duration and sweetened beverage intake were observed among children with the latter temporal patterns. Thus, children wake up earlier and sleep for shorter durations after school re-opening than during school closure; however, changes in dietary intake were generally insignificant. Dietary intake among school-aged children in Japan during school closure (without school lunch) might not be worse than that during school days with universal school lunch.
QUEER SOCIALITY AND PETRONIAN FRATERNITY
Authors: Oliver Jay
Published: January 2023

‘How tough it is for outlaws’ (quam male est extra legem uiuentibus, Sat. 125.4), laments Encolpius, the petty-criminal narrator of Petronius’ Satyrica, as he frets about whether he and his buddies will be found out as they engage in a scheme to fleece the legacy hunters of Croton. But Encolpius and his crew are outlaws in more senses than one. Having forgotten, or simply disregarded, marital-reproductive household arrangements, they engage in novel forms of relationality that their cultural lexicon can barely cover as they quest after sex, feasts, money, or simply subsistence. Much Petronian scholarship, promoting a reading that looks down on the characters, views these forms of relationality as parodic and ‘purely comic’, ludicrously failed attempts by low, satirized characters to appropriate sublime Roman social institutions like fraternal pietas. In this article, taking as my primary example the reformulation of brotherhood and the use of the kin term frater by Encolpius, Ascyltos, and Giton, I read these forms of sociality as queer: that is to say, potentially challenging to normativity rather than simply inadequate to meet its demands. Petronian brotherhood, read in this light, appears richly shaded and contested, not merely a one-dimensional misappropriation composed for the benefit of a ‘superior’ elite audience. What exactly it means to be a ‘brother’ in this postlapsarian world is always an active question in the scenes involving the trio. I offer in this article a more detailed close reading of Petronian brotherhood than has been possible in other, briefer scholarly accounts, focusing in particular on the competing conceptualizations of ‘brotherhood’ by different characters, from Encolpius’ exclusive use of the term as something like ‘boyfriend’ to Ascyltos’ more capacious use of the word.
CONFLICT, TRAGEDY, AND INTERRACIALITY: BOB THOMPSON PAINTS VERGIL'S CAMILLA
Authors: Karas Allannah
Published: January 2023

In The Death of Camilla (1964), Black American painter Bob Thompson fascinates, disturbs, and provokes enduring questions about race in the United States. In this painting (Figure 1), multicolored nudes clash in battle around two figures frozen in a moment of anguish: a light-skinned female warrioress dying in the arms of a dark-hued male opponent. The power of this painting lies not only in its raw emotion, symbolism, and color, but also in Thompson's daring signification upon the story of Camilla from Vergil's Aeneid and on a seventeenth-century drawing by Nicolas Poussin. While a relatively ‘underknown’ artist, during his life Robert Louis Thompson (1937–1966) received extensive recognition for his compelling reconfigurations of the European old masters and their Classical (Greco-Roman) subjects. Thompson, according to his early biographer, Judith Wilson, may also be ‘the first American artist to put the nation's interracial sex life/sex fantasies on public view.’ In many of his works of reception, Thompson combines these two artistic preoccupations into compelling pieces that foreground tragic contradictions around interraciality in the United States. In his The Death of Camilla painting, I argue, Thompson expands upon the symbolic trajectory of Vergil's story and ‘colors’ Poussin in such a way as to re-present Camilla as collateral damage of the sort of nation building that necessitates interracial conflict.
The truth about gluten!
Authors: Raju Suneil A. , Rej Anupam , Sanders David S.
Published: January 2023

Wheat was first cultivated in the Fertile Crescent (South Western Asia) with a farming expansion that lasted from around 9000 BC to 4000 BC. Whilst humans have been exposed to wheat for around the last 10 000 years, humans have existed for greater than 2·5 million years. Therefore, wheat (and thereby gluten) are relatively new introductions to our diet! By the end of the 20th century, global wheat output had expanded by 5-fold, with a corresponding increase in the prevalence of gluten-related disorders. Coeliac disease (CD) is a state of heightened immunological responsiveness to ingested gluten in genetically susceptible individuals. CD now affects 1 % or more of all adults, for which the management is a strict lifelong gluten-free diet (GFD). However, there is a growing body of evidence to show that a far greater proportion of individuals without CD are self-initiating a GFD. This includes individuals initiating a GFD as a lifestyle choice, people with irritable bowel-type symptoms and those diagnosed with non-coeliac gluten (or wheat) sensitivity. Despite a greater recognition of gluten-related disorders, gaps still remain in our understanding of both their aetiology and management. This article explores the role of the gluten-free diet in gluten-related disorders, along with current uncertainties.
Making the Public Work: Geography, Externalities, and Preferences for Mass Transit
Authors: Holland Alisha C.
Published: January 2023

In much of the world, public transportation infrastructure is sorely needed. Political economy models suggest that provision lags because uneven access and use of public transit fragments political coalitions. Yet, traditional survey techniques tell us little about who supports valence issues, such as mass transit. I instead adopt a novel survey approach from economics designed to elicit preference intensity. I then sample households at different distances from a subway project in Bogotá, Colombia. Contra conventional expectations, I find little evidence that local geography shapes preferences. Those who use public transit the least and pay the most for its construction—the upper class—are its strongest supporters. An experiment and focus groups suggest that middle- and upper-class groups want others to take public transportation to reduce congestion and shorten their commutes. One implication is that a growing middle class might help to strengthen urban public goods provision.
Common challenges in cochlear implant surgery performed under local anaesthesia and how to overcome them: the experience of UK surgeons
Authors: Abrar R , Stapleton E
Published: January 2023

Background

Cochlear implantation performed under local anaesthesia is an increasingly accepted technique worldwide, though the literature to date includes only single-surgeon and single-centre experiences. This study explored the national experience of UK surgeons using this challenging surgical technique, with the goal of providing consensus recommendations.

Methods

A qualitative analysis was conducted of semi-structured interviews with 10 UK-based cochlear implantation surgeons, focusing on common challenges, how to overcome them and candidate selection.

Results

Cochlear implantation under local anaesthesia can potentially be offered to all eligible adult patients with favourable anatomy. A posterior tympanotomy and round window approach is recommended. Common challenges and recommendations are explored thematically: managing patient, surgeon and staff expectations; optimising communication; patient comfort and position; minimising pain and vertigo; and safe use of sedation.

Conclusion

This is the first study of national experience of cochlear implantation performed under local anaesthesia. Key themes, including refinements to surgical technique and optimising patient comfort and communication, have been explored in depth.
Why the Jesus as mother tradition undermines the symbolic argument against women's ordination
Authors: Hibshman Grace
Published: January 2023

The symbolic argument against women's ordination supposes that the theological significance of Christ's sex is his saving relationship to the Church, which takes the form of that of a bridegroom and his bride. It infers that a male priest alone is fit to represent Christ in his capacity as the Saviour of the Church, and thus that only men should be ordained. Since the emergence of the symbolic argument, however, scholars have rediscovered a long tradition of understanding Christ's saving relationship to the Church in maternal terms. While remaining neutral on whether women ultimately ought to be ordained or not, I argue that the kind of reasoning in the symbolic argument, if updated with the Jesus as Mother tradition, would suggest that it is fitting for a female priest to represent Jesus as Mother, just as it is fitting for a male priest to represent Christ the Bridegroom. Other critics of the symbolic argument tend to contest what is seen as its ‘literalist’ or ‘essentialist’ or overly gendered-valanced assumptions about priestly representation. I show that even if we grant to the symbolic argument more gendered and ‘essentialist’ views on each of the major points of disagreement in these debates, women might still be fit to represent Christ because of the maternal ways that Christ has traditionally been thought to relate to the Church. As a result, the symbolic argument may be repurposed to support women's ordination rather than undermine it.
Political Corruption and Democratic Representatives - Emanuela Ceva and Maria Paola Ferretti: Political Corruption: The Internal Enemy of Public Institutions. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021. Pp. 232.)
Authors: Destri Chiara
Published: January 2023

Ceva and Ferretti's book offers an innovative account of political corruption as “a form of unaccountable use of entrusted power” (14). Accordingly, an officeholder's conduct counts as corrupt when in her institutional capacity she pursues an agenda whose rationale cannot be vindicated as coherent with the power mandate specified by her institutional role. Among the numerous advantages of this persuasive view, one is that it offers a nonmoralized definition of corruption with explanatory and discriminatory potential (21). Another point of strength is that the authors outline an original path to anticorruption centred on developing a public ethics of office accountability. To ensure public institutions’ good functioning, officeholders must exercise their power mandate in accordance with institutions’ raison d’être and engage in practices of mutual answerability, as they are all accountable to each other in virtue of the interrelatedness of their institutional roles (25).