bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Heavy Metals in Edible Fruits Sold in Selected Markets in Ihiala Local Government Area, Anambra State
Authors: Uchenna Igwe Peter , Onyebuchi Ezekwesili Janet
Published: March 2023

This study assessed the concentration of heavy metals in edible fruits sold in selected markets in Ihiala Local Government Area, Anambra State. Despite the nutritional benefits obtained from fruit consumption, the presence of heavy metals accompanying it from the environment draws scientific concerns affecting the human health. The multi-stage and random sampling techniques were used in dividing the area into three with three markets. Ninety-five fruit sellers participated in the study. The instruments used for data collection were field observation, questionnaire and laboratory analysis. Twelve fruit samples of banana, watermelon, apple and pineapple, four from three markets were collected. Also, three samples of unripe banana fruits were collected, to compare the percentage increase in the concentration of arsenic that might be arising from the use of calcium carbide. ANOVA was used for data analysis. Results revealed that the concentrations of Zn, Ni, Cu, Pb and Cr in all fruits were within WHO/FAO’s acceptable limits of heavy metals in fruits. Whilst As and Fe were above the limit. Results also indicated an increase in the concentration of As in ripe banana compared with unripe one. Findings showed that 80% of the respondents were not aware of the health implication of consuming of CaC2 ripen fruits. There was no significant relationship between the concentration of Zn, Ni, Cu, Pb and Cr in fruits sold in markets and human health risks as the Fcal value of the metals was less than Fcrit at (P<0.05) level of significance. However, there was a significant relationship between the concentrations of As and Fe and human health risk as Fcal was greater than Fcrit at (P˃0.05) level of significance, which shows the serious human health risk associated with As and Fe toxicity.
Characterization and Removal Efficiency of Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP)
Authors: Monira U. , Sattar G.S. , Mostafa M.G.
Published: March 2023

Tannery industries are one of the most pollution-generating industries in the world. Tannery wastewater is usually characterized by high BOD, COD, TDS, and TSS and a high percentage of dissolved organic and inorganic matter. The central effluent treatment plant (CETP) of industry plays a vital role in sustainable industrial waste management and saves different lives from harmful effects. The study aimed to analyze various physicochemical parameters of the composite tannery influent and effluent as well as the removal efficiency of the CETP of the Savar Tannery Industrial Zone in Bangladesh. It was carried out at Savar Upazila, situated in the northwest part of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The samples were collected three times (pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoon) in a year, from monsoon 2021 to pre-monsoon 2022. The major water quality parameters for the influents and effluents included pH, BOD, COD, TDS, TSS, NO3-, SO42-, HCO3-, PO43-, Cl-, Na, Ca, Cr, Fe, Cu, Zn, and Pb. Most of the parameters, especially BOD, COD, TDS, and TSS after treatment, exceeded the standard permissible limits of effluent discharge prescribed by the ISW-BDS-ECR (1997), DoE-BD, and NEQS (2000), and these values were two times higher than the permissible limit. The DO value was four times lower than the permissible limit, indicating heavily polluted water. The concentration of the cations in the tannery effluents was in the following order: Na>Ca>Cr>Fe>Cu>Zn>Pb. The analysis results illustrated that the overall removal efficiency of the CETP was about 47%. The study observed that the performance of the CETP was not satisfactory, and hence it needs further improvement in the treating capacity for sustainable industrial wastewater management.
A Systematic Review of the Pros and Cons of Digital Pollution and its Impact on the Environment
Authors: Oo KYAW Than , Jonah KAZORA , Thin MOH Moh Zaw
Published: March 2023

Digital technologies are becoming more important in our daily lives. Because of digital technology, our carbon footprint has significantly increased and caused ecological consequences. As gadgets get smaller and have more internal components, there is more trashes produced during manufacture. By 2023, more than 70% of the world's population will own a mobile phone. From the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and the numerous ensuing lockdowns, there has been an exponential increase in the use of video transmission (streaming) all over the world. In fact, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), watching an hour of video streaming on Netflix entails emissions of 36gCO2.  Between 2020 and 2030, the overall amount of data transmission will increase fourteen times. Digital technologies can contribute up to 20% to net-zero energy, materials, and mobility reduction required by IEA by 2050. However, there aren't many summaries of the digital transformation of environmental sustainability. This review presents the implications of the digital world on environmental sustainability, including both beneficial and detrimental aspects. Some methods are based on the network and its energy consumption. The outcomes also show how changes in three key areas—waste management and handling, pollution prevention and control, and sustainable resource management—have preserved the environment. The footprints are also significantly smaller than previously predicted. While subscriptions and data traffic have continued to rise, the footprint of the ICT and E&M sectors has shrunk. As countless individuals are used to digital daily life, this study points out the challenges to govern this issue. This review also points out the potential and problems in this field, which tries to provide a vision for future research, based on the literature overview.
Literature as a Technology of Commemoration at Expo 67
Authors: Herder Scott
Published: March 2023

This study highlights the significance of literature to Expo 67 and the tradition of world exhibitions. Like the world’s fairs before it, the Montreal exhibition promoted literature as a technology of national progress. Yet Expo 67 reflected simultaneously the contemporary anxieties about technology and nationhood expounded by George Grant in the 1960s in contrast with the celebration of nationalism and technological progress bound together in the tradition of world’s fairs. Though world’s fairs had depicted the educational utility of literature throughout their tradition, Expo 67 emphasized literature more than any world exhibition had to that point. Its theme, Terre des hommes, drawn from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s autobiographical narrative, its literature conferences and poetry performances, and the broader textuality of Expo 67 as a “total environment” were intended to deploy texts in promotion of the ideals of universal humanism. However, I find that poetry performances by Michèle Lalonde, George Clutesi, and Duke Redbird contradicted the event’s stated ideals by spotlighting the negative effects of technology and ongoing colonial violence. I argue further that large-scale literature exhibits at Expo 67 resisted the humanist ideals of the event by continuing the world exhibition convention of treating literary works as an educative technology of national progress. As a result, I find that Canadian literature at Expo 67 complicates the Canadian collective memory of the event and the 1967 Centennial Year.
Blacksmithing Art in the Cultural and Art Environment of Ukraine
Authors: Bezuhla Ruslana , Honcharenko Anastasiia
Published: March 2023

The paper analyzes the body of literature on the blacksmithing art and delineates the main lines ofstudy of the latter as a phenomenon of contemporary culture and art. Reconsideration of the experience of the blacksmiths, both craftsmen and artists, contributes to revealing the national, regional, and local cultural features, asthe culture of blacksmithing art, on the one hand, islinked to the past, and on the other hand it serves as a modern representation and symbol of the nation. The aim of the work is to study Ukrainian blacksmithing art in the sociocultural context of contemporary time. Methodologically, the research was based on generalization, on the systemic-structural, and structural-functional methods that enabled revealing and examining the traditional and innovative basis of Ukrainian blacksmithing art in the cultural and art environment of Ukraine.
Interplay Between the Arts in the Works of Ukrainian Artists at the Turn of the 21st Century: Kharkiv School
Authors: Sokolyuk Lyudmyla , Naydenko Viktoria , Khudiakova Anastasiia
Published: March 2023

The paper addresses the interplay between the arts in the art practice of Ukraine at the turn of the 21st century in the context of the changes that occurred in connection with the introduction of Ukrainian artistic culture to the new trends in contemporary art. This phenomenon is analyzed using the example of the activities of the Kharkiv-based artists, asthis large art center in Eastern Ukraine has its deeply-rooted specific art traditionіs: academic art education and art-industrial education were introduced here significantly earlier than in other Ukrainian cities. At present, both of these lines continue to develop in the higher educational system of Kharkiv, in particular, in the Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts. The traditions of art education are intertwined with new trends in contemporary arts that is manifested both in the interaction of painting and design culture, and in performances with the original combination of classical traditions and modern forms (body art, digital art, multimedia). The paper also demonstrates the changes in the design of Kharkiv architecture as the local artists turn to new expressive means of contemporary art.
Neurocinematics and Beyond: Imagery of Contemporary Screen Culture
Authors: Zubavina Iryna
Published: March 2023

The paper focuses on the features of emotional perception ofscreen-displayed videos and images, when the neural response of the viewer is included into the subject field of neuroaesthetics—an interdisciplinary sphere of knowledge at the intersection of art studies, philosophy, psychology of perception, and neuroscience.
The study describes innovative methods of neuroscientific research for studying the reception of a “screen product.” One ofsuch methods is determining the algorithm of evoking certain impressions in the mind of the viewer— “consumer” of the screen culture. Further ways of development of dialectical ties between neuroscience and screen studies are formulated as a research hypothesis. Practical significance of the study is determining the parameters of regulatory/manipulative influence of the audiovisual stimuli on the viewer’s behavior in the contemporary situation when objective and subjective realities are gradually substituted by the virtual reality
The Work of Maryna Denysenko for the Instrumental Bandura Performance: The Aspects of Timbre and Sonority
Authors: Druzhga Iryna
Published: March 2023

This study considers modern instrumental and vocal-instrumental bandura performance with regard to the aspects of timbre and sonority. The latter influence innovative experiments in the field of bandura performance the most. Modern instrumental compositions for bandura are marked by the expansion ofstylistic attributes; the use of a wide range of new techniques and elements of polystylistics, classical genre prototypes, and the most recent technologies (aleatorics, cluster, layered polyphony, sonorism, etc.). These explorations are also characterized by a deeply individual artist’s idea, marked by innovative discoveries in the bandura technique, often determined by the timbre and sound concept of the composition.
It should be noted that the bandura in its modern form (namely, Chernihiv and Lviv chromatic prototypes) is a relatively new instrument. It has undergone a significant transformation over the centuries: from an accompanying one to an instrument with a broad expressive potential for genre and stylistic solutions in interpreting the stylistic discourses. Its dynamic development is evident in recent decades, when bandura, because of its timbre and dynamic potential, happened to be on the forefront of the innovative compositional explorations with experimental techniques and approaches. The increased attention of composers to the sound of the bandura, its diversity, changeability, length, etc. encourages performers and composers to experiment with the innovative ways of bandura sound-producing. The well-known Ukrainian composer Maryna Denysenko (1962–2022) worked productively in this direction. Her work testifies to the attention to timbre and sonorous expressiveness along with expanding and changing the emphasis on the traditional approaches to the bandura performing. In her works, Denysenko significantly modernizes the expressive and performing potential of the bandura performance, while at the same time modifying established ideas about the genre models of bandura art and the field of timbre/ sonority of academic bandura.
Personal Writings of Memoir Nature of Ukrainian Vocal Artists of 1950s–1970s in the Context of the Development of National Culture
Authors: Kabka Hennadii
Published: March 2023

The research paper explores the personal texts of Ukrainian vocal artists of the second half of the twentieth century as written cultural and historical sources that reflect personal perceptions of events, recording them subjectively in various forms of artistic and figurative generalizations (letters, memoirs, diaries, interviews, etc.). The texts by Ukrainian vocal artists of the 1950s–1970s— Borys Hmyria, Bohdan Hnyd, Lilia Lobanova, Yevhenia Miroshnychenko, Kostiantyn Ohnievoi, and Klavdia Radchenko—expand the current understanding of the vocal and performing details of their professional activity.
The diaries of L. Lobanova and K. Radchenko significantly complement the picture of their vocal and performing activities. B. Hnyd’s memoirs, based on diary entries and edited in the late 1990s, also provide a deeper insight into the causes and consequences of dramatic socio-cultural events of the 1970s in the country’sleading opera company. For the sake of completeness and objectivity, the memoir texts of other participants and witnesses of these cultural and artistic events were quoted.
Analyzed methodological approaches to the personal texts of memoir nature of Ukrainian opera artists of the 1950s–1970s ensure the study of these texts with regard to the features of historical cultural process. This enables the researcher to reconstruct previously unknown or little-known processes of cultural development of the era and to form an unbiased vision of the cultural and artistic institutions (in particular, of the Kyiv Opera).
Artistic and Expressive Space of the Vocal Chamber Works of Bohdana Filtz
Authors: Zijing Zhang
Published: March 2023

The paper studies the chamber and vocal legacy of the prominent Ukrainian composer Bohdana Filtz (1932–2021), whose musical thinking was influenced by the traditional Ukrainian romance songs, in particular, the old Galician ones. Her orientation towards the genre of romanсe manifests itself in the poetic intonation of the textual basis and in the manner of her musical writing. In Filtz’s chamber vocal works, she expands the boundaries of themes and genres of solo singing. Her solo pieces for voice are characterized by an attentive and careful attitude to the performance and skillful use of the entire range of the most “capricious and fragile” musical instrument—the human voice. In addition, she effectively builds the very part of the piano accompaniment, which always plays an important figurative and semantic role. Two significant components in the figurative and thematic content of Filtz’s vocal music were defined—civil and lyrical. In her chamber vocal compositions, Filtz combines a purely personal idea with a universal, humanistic principle at the figurative and meaningful level, closely intertwining epic characteristics with lyrics and drama. Her tendency for the psychological acuity of the musical images of her vocal works was traced through their philosophic nature, enriched with drama, and sometimes with tragedy. Ukrainian classical and modern poets prevail in the poetic stanzas of her romances.
Les agences de financement des collectivités locales nordiques : leur influence sur l’AFL
Authors: Andersson Lars M.
Published: March 2023

Cet article décrit le contexte de la création des Agences de financement des collectivités locales dans les pays nordiques (Danemark, Finlande, Norvège et Suède), ainsi que leur fonctionnement actuel. Il analyse leur modèle de participation ainsi que la nature des entités autorisées à utiliser leurs services.

Les enjeux liés à la création de l’Agence suédoise, Komuninvest, révèlent la résistance initiale des banques commerciales et des autorités de l’Etat.

Les Agences nordiques de financement des collectivités locales ont fait la preuve de leur utilité en matière d’accès aux marchés financiers, de réduction des coûts et des risques, et d’amélioration de la solvabilité et de la transparence.

Elles ont inspiré la création de l’Agence France locale non seulement pour son plan d’affaires mais aussi pour d’importants aspects de sa gouvernance.
Souhaitons bon vent à l’Agence France locale ! Synthèse des travaux du colloque sur l’Agence France locale, un levier institutionnel d’autonomie financière
Authors: Douat Étienne
Published: March 2023

L’Agence France locale a été créée en France 2013 en prenant exemple sur le modèle suédois. Elle permet aux collectivités territoriales d’accéder aux marchés financiers plus facilement pour financer leurs investissements.
Incidence of concussion and recovery of neurocognitive dysfunction on ImPACT assessment among youth athletes with premorbid depression or anxiety taking antidepressants
Authors: Ali Muhammad , Asghar Nek , Li Adam , Hannah Theodore , Spiera Zachary , Marayati Naoum Fares , Dreher Nickolas , Durbin John , Gometz Alex , Lovell Mark , Choudhri Tanvir
Published: March 2023

OBJECTIVE

Concussions in youth sports comprise an estimated 1.6–3.8 million annual injuries in the US. Sex, age, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been identified as salient risk factors for concussion. This study seeks to evaluate the role of premorbid depression or anxiety (DA), with or without antidepressant use, on the incidence of concussion and the recovery of symptoms and neurocognitive dysfunction after concussion.

METHODS

Immediate Postconcussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) was administered to 7453 youth athletes at baseline. Throughout the season, concussions were examined by physicians and athletic trainers, followed by readministration of ImPACT postinjury (PI) and again at follow-up, a median of 7 days PI. Individuals were divided into three categories: 1) unmedicated athletes with DA (DA-only, n = 315), athletes taking antidepressants (DA-meds, n = 81), and those without DA or antidepressant use (non-DA, n = 7039). Concussion incidence was calculated as the total number of concussions per total number of patient-years. The recovery of neurocognitive measures PI was calculated as standardized deviations from baseline to PI and then follow-up in the 5 composite ImPACT scores: symptom score, verbal memory, visual memory, visual motor skills, and reaction time. Univariate results were confirmed with multivariate analysis.

RESULTS

There was no difference in concussion incidence between the DA-only cohort and the non-DA group. However, the DA-meds group had a significantly greater incidence of concussion than both the DA-only group (OR 2.67, 95% CI 1.88–7.18, p = 0.0001) and the non-DA group (OR 2.19, 95% CI 1.16–4.12, p = 0.02). Deviation from baseline in PI symptom scores was greater among the DA-meds group as compared to the non-DA group (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.01–1.28, p = 0.03). At follow-up, the deviation from baseline in symptom scores remained elevated among the DA-meds group as compared to the non-DA group (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.20–2.20, p = 0.002) and the DA-only group (OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.12–3.10, p = 0.02). Deviation from baseline in follow-up verbal memory was also greater among the DA-meds group as compared to both the non-DA group (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.08–2.27, p = 0.02) and the DA-only group (OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.03–2.69, p = 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

Premorbid DA itself does not seem to affect the incidence of concussion or the recovery of symptoms and neurocognitive dysfunction PI. However, antidepressant use for DA is associated with 1) increased concussion incidence and 2) elevated symptom scores and verbal memory scores up to 7 days after concussion, suggesting impaired symptomatic and neurocognitive recovery on ImPACT.
Promoting diversity in neurosurgery through a virtual symposium
Authors: Charles Antoinette J. , Seas Andreas , Corley Jacquelyn , Duvall Julia B. , Owolo Edwin , Abu-Bonsrah Nancy , Elsamadicy Aladine A. , Simpson Venita , Sanusi Olabisi , Holly Langston T. , Rodriguez Analiz , Nduom Edjah K. , Levi Allan D. , Liau Linda M. , Quiñones-Hinojosa Alfredo , Karikari Isaac , Grant Gerald , Fuller Anthony T. , Goodwin C. Rory
Published: March 2023

OBJECTIVE

The rates of women and underrepresented racial and ethnic minority (UREM) students successfully matching into neurosurgical residency are extremely low and do not reflect the makeup of the general population. As of 2019, only 17.5% of neurosurgical residents in the United States were women, 4.95% were Black or African American, and 7.2% were Hispanic or Latinx. Earlier recruitment of UREM students will help to diversify the neurosurgical workforce. Therefore, the authors developed a virtual educational event for undergraduate students entitled "Future Leaders in Neurosurgery Symposium for Underrepresented Students’’ (FLNSUS). The primary objectives of the FLNSUS were to expose attendees to 1) neurosurgeons from diverse gender, racial, and ethnic backgrounds; 2) neurosurgical research; 3) opportunities for neurosurgical mentorship; and 4) information about life as a neurosurgeon. The authors hypothesized that the FLNSUS would increase student self-confidence, provide exposure to the specialty, and reduce perceived barriers to a neurosurgical career.

METHODS

To measure the change in participant perceptions of neurosurgery, pre- and postsymposium surveys were administered to attendees. Of the 269 participants who completed the presymposium survey, 250 participated in the virtual event and 124 completed the postsymposium survey. Paired pre- and postsurvey responses were used for analysis, yielding a response rate of 46%. To assess the impact of participant perceptions of neurosurgery as a field, pre- and postsurvey responses to questions were compared. The change in response was analyzed, and a nonparametric sign test was performed to check for significant differences.

RESULTS

According to the sign test, applicants showed increased familiarity with the field (p < 0.001), increased confidence in their abilities to become neurosurgeons (p = 0.014), and increased exposure to neurosurgeons from diverse gender, racial, and ethnic backgrounds (p < 0.001 for all categories).

CONCLUSIONS

These results reflect a significant improvement in student perceptions of neurosurgery and suggest that symposiums like the FLNSUS may promote further diversification of the field. The authors anticipate that events promoting diversity in neurosurgery will lead to a more equitable workforce that will ultimately translate to enhanced research productivity, cultural humility, and patient-centered care in neurosurgery.
Novel approaches to targeting gliomas at the leading/cutting edge
Authors: Schupper Alexander J. , Hadjipanayis Constantinos G.
Published: March 2023

Despite decades of clinical trials and surgical advances, the most common high-grade glioma, glioblastoma (GBM), remains an incurable disease with a dismal prognosis. Because of its infiltrative nature, GBM almost always recurs at the margin, or leading edge, where tumor cells invade the surrounding brain parenchyma. This region of GBMs is unique, or heterogeneous, with its own microenvironment that is different from the tumor bulk or core. The GBM microenvironment at the margin contains immunosuppressive constituents as well as invasive and therapy-resistant tumor cells that are difficult to treat. In addition, the blood-brain barrier remains essentially intact at the infiltrative margin of tumors; further limiting the effectiveness of therapies. The invasive margin creates the greatest challenge for neurosurgeons when managing these tumors. The current paradigm of resection of GBM tumors mainly focuses on resection of the contrast-enhancing component of tumors, while GBMs extend well beyond the contrast enhancement. The infiltrative margin represents a unique challenge and opportunity for solutions that may overcome current limitations in tumor treatments. In this review of the current literature, the authors discuss the current and developing advances focused on the detection and treatment of GBM at the infiltrative margin and how this could impact patient outcomes.
Effect of growth regulators and organic matter on the growth of Sappan wood seedlings (Caesalpinia sappan L.)
Authors: ROSNIAWATY SANTI , ANJARSARI INTAN RATNA DEWI , SUDIRJA RIJA , MUBAROK SYARIFUL , FATMAWATI DWI
Published: March 2023

Sappan wood is a useful woody plant from Brazil that could possibly be utilized as a natural dye. The generative proliferation of Sappan wood is hindered by its sluggish seed germination (dormancy), which necessitates greater efforts to break seed dormancy through the use of plant growth regulator (PGR) and organic matter as a planting media mixture to improve seedling growth. This study was conducted during dry season from June to September 2022 at experimental field of Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Padjadjaran_with an aim to determine the effect of PGR (IAA, NAA, BAP) and organic matter (cow manure) on the growth of Sappan wood seeds. The design used was a randomized block design (RBD) with 14 combination treatments of different types of PGR with the concentration of 1.25 ppm and the use of organic matter that is cow manure (comparison 2:1) with three replications. The data obtained were then processed using one-way ANOVA and continued with the Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at a 95% confidence level. The use of plant growth regulators (auxin and cytokinin) and organic matter affected the growth of Sappan wood seedlings, especially on the variables of seedling height (22.37 cm), stem diameter (3.89 mm), number of leaves (8.67), leaf area (104.84 cm2), root length (26.03 cm), dry weight of roots (1.15 g) and dry weight of the stem (1.6 g), but it was not significantly affected by the root volume. The combination of IAA+BAP 1.25 ppm and organic matter in the form of cow manure (2 : 1) was selected as the best treatment to increase the growth of Sappan wood seedlings.
URBOECOSYSTEM ECOLOGICAL STATUS ASSESSMENT BY THE MORPHOLOGICAL PARAMETERS OF PICEA ABIES L.
(ON THE EXAMPLE OF IVANO-FRANKIVSK CITY)
Authors: Glibovytska N.I.
Published: March 2023

The bioindicative prospects of Picea abies L. in the conditions of an urbanized environment are analyzed based on the complex of morphological parameters of the species' vitality. The preference of conifers as phytoindicators of populated areas is substantiated due to the peculiarities of their physiology and structure. Simple, convenient and informative phytoindicative morphological markers of Picea abies vitality are applied: weight, length and type and degree of needle necrosis, as well as the general sanitary condition of the species individuals. The use of morphological indicators of coniferous plants vitality is proposed as an alternative to physiological and biochemical methods of biomonitoring, or analytical methods of ecological monitoring of the urban environment.
The research is conducted in the conditions of functional zones of Ivano-Frankivsk city, selected on the principle basis of urban areas functional zoning. A decrease in the needles mass in the conditions of the transport routes zone and residential development zone is established by 1.9 and 1.6 times, relative to the background values, respectively. At the same time, the length of needles is a constant parameter and does not undergo a significant decrease compared to the background area. In the conditions of the urban ecosystem of Ivano-Frankivsk a decrease in the functional state of Picea abies individuals is observed in the following series of functional zones: background zone → zone of complex greening → zone of residential development → zone of transport routes. The highest necrosis degree of Picea abies needles is observed in the zone of the city's transport routes, while the dominant type of necrosis is apical. This is a sign of the heavy metals accumulation and other anthropogenic pollutants at the tips of the needles, which is an adaptive mechanism in response to stress. In the conditions of the Ivano-Frankivsk ecosystem the most common degree of necrosis of Picea abies needles is the first and fifth degrees. At the same time, the highest percentage of needles with signs of drying is observed in the transport routes zone of the city - 39%. In the area of complex greening and residential development this parameter is approximately 20%, and in the background area - 2%. The first class of damage refers to individuals of Picea abies growing in the complex greening zone, the second class of damage is observed in individuals existing in the residential development zone, and the third class of damage is fixed in individuals existing in the transport route zone of Ivano-Frankivsk city.
Picea abies is a promising biological indicator of the urban environment quality and is recommended for wider implementation in the practice of greening urban ecosystems.
On the issues of chronology and periodisation of the Armenian Middle Bronze Age archaeological cultures
Authors: Avetisyan Pavel
Published: March 2023

Archaeological periodisation and chronological scales currently applicable for Armenia and the principles of their development were brought into circulation in the 1990s while the assemblages of material culture unearthed since then as well as regularly published extensive results of radiocarbon datings or new stratigraphic data bring forth a demand of additional analysis of the scales and exact specification of their timeframes. It also seems that there is a need of discussing the matters relating to the concepts and methodology of periodisation systems. Specifically, there is a commonly accepted opinion that the Armenian archaeological complexes attributed to Bronze-Iron Ages (with their cultural layers, dwelling and burial structures, typological composition of the inventory, etc.) may be grouped into 8 megacomplexes forming original cultural environments, which in their turn are thought to be archaeological cultures (Early Bronze – ‘Shengavit’ or ‘Kura-Araxes’ culture; Middle Bronze – ‘Early Kurgan’, ‘Trialeti-Vanadzor’, ‘Sevan-Artsakh’, Karmirberd, Karmirvank or Van-Urmia ceramic traditions, Late Bronze-Iron Age – Lchashen-Metsamor and beginning with the 9th century – Urartian or Van-Tosp cultures).
A preliminary report on the 2015 and 2017 field seasons at the Lernagog-1 site in Armenia
Authors: Arimura Makoto , Petrosyan Artur , Arakelyan Dmitri , Nahapetyan Samvel , Gasparyan Boris
Published: March 2023

The Eo-Holocene Lernagog-1 site (also known as the Lower or Early Holocene, between 10,300 BP and 7500 BP, approximately equating to the last quarter of the 9th millennium BC to the middle of the 6th millennium BC) is a significant period in the Near East as encompasses the transition from hunting-gathering to agriculture. Early farming villages, also known as Pre-pottery Neolithic communities, also appeared at this time and developed in some areas of the Near East.
Newly found tombs at the north-eastern outskirts of Artashat
Authors: Gyulamiryan Hayk
Published: March 2023

The up to date ongoing excavations initiated by the Artashat archaeological expedition of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Academy of Sciences of the Armenian SSR in 1970 revealed the significant role the capital played in the cultural, economic and political life of Antique Armenia as well as in the Near East.

The systematic study of the site enabled to elucidate various spheres of urban life, including the burial types and some rituals linked to them which stand out and are widespread in this territory in the Antique period.
A newly discovered building inscription
Authors: Sargsyan Gagik
Published: March 2023

The inscription is carved on the upper portion of a rock slab with arciform ornamentation. It is 20 lines long. The inscription is well-preserved, with no defaced, illegible, or reconstructed letters or passages apparent. There are crosses carved into the upper and lower portions of the rock. The full abbreviation of Christ is written on the four corners of the upper cross, flanked by two circles containing stars with at least six points. The lines of the main text of the inscription, with the exception of the last two lines, are separated by horizontal lines. The language, composition style, and paleography are all clearly from the time it was inscribed, which is also evident based on the abundance of abbreviations. The abbreviations do not follow any particular guidelines or rules and vowels as well as consonants are dropped. It is also important to note the complete absence of ornamental ligatured script. The final three lines were carved by another scribe, perhaps at a later date. The content of these final lines is difficult to explain. They perhaps refer to the place of something, or the boundaries of the site. We think that they are in regards to the abbey complex, made up of a church and a vicarage.
Diskursus Mengenai Peran Arsitek Dalam Penerbitan Persetujuan Bangunan Gedung di Kota Mataram
Authors: Miratri Absari
Published: March 2023

Definisi Arsitek telah berubah sejak diterbitkannya Undang-Undang Arsitek Nomor 6 Tahun 2017. Dengan adanya peraturan tersebut, kompetensi dan lisensi menjadi persyaratan utama agar dapat diakui dan berprofesi sebagai seorang arsitek profesional. Di sisi lain, seiring dengan terbitnya peraturan perijinan tentang Persetujuan Bangunan Gedung (PBG), telah terjadi perubahan jumlah penggunaan tenaga arsitek dalam proses penerbitan PBG di Kota Mataram pada periode Tahun 2017-2021. Dalam perijinan berusaha, PBG mensyaratkan adanya tenaga arsitek sebagai perancang bangunan yang diajukan PBGnya. Diskursus ini merupakan paparan aparatur negara yang bertujuan untuk memberikan pemahaman mengenai peran arsitek dalam penerbitan PBG. Penerbitan PBG membutuhkan kajian arsitek dalam penyelenggaraan pembangunan di Indonesia. Diskursus dilakukan dengan pendekatan deskriptif dan diskusi dengan pihak dinas terkait. Hasil diskursus menemukan di Kota Mataram telah terjadi peningkatan jumlah arsitek yang digunakan dalam penerbitan PBG. Diskursus ini menyimpulkan terdapat beberapa peran lain dari seorang arsitek selain sebagai perancang bangunan, salah satunya adalah sebagai pelaku utama untuk memperlancar proses investasi pembangunan di daerah.
Singular elliptic problem involving a Hardy potential and lower order term
Authors: Sbai Abdelaaziz , El Hadfi Youssef , El Ouardy Mounim
Published: March 2023

We consider the following non-linear singular elliptic problem [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text]; [Formula: see text] is a bounded regular domain containing the origin and [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]. The main goal of this work is to study the existence and regularizing effect of some lower order terms in Dirichlet problems despite the presence of Hardy the potentials and the singular term in the right hand side.
Oligometastatic breast cancer to parotid gland with complete response
Authors: Peron Veruska , Miyasaki Piovesana Mariana , Martins Medeiros Eni , André Di Ricco Bruno , Teixeira Liutti Vitor
Published: March 2023

Breast cancer metastatic to parotid gland is a very rare condition which tend to confer poor prognosis and challenging approaches. Oligometastatic breast cancer is usually defined as advanced breast cancer with less or equal than 5 metastatic lesions. We report a case of oligometastatic HER-2 breast cancer to parotid gland and lymph nodes which presented with left hemifacial swelling with erythema and enlargement of cervical and axillary lymph nodes. After 6 cycles of Docetaxel plus Trastuzumab the patient had complete response that was complemented with posterior surgical removal of primary tumor followed by radiotherapy directed to plastron, left supraclavicular and cervical drainage. The patient is still on Trastuzumab therapy and is free of disease in the last two years. We discuss the presentation and approach of a patient with metastatic breast cancer to parotid gland in the oligometastatic scenario.
Assessing the Role of Past Depression in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment, with and without Biomarkers for Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Golas Angela C. ,   on behalf of the PACt-MD Study Group, Salwierz Patrick , Rajji Tarek K. , Bowie Christopher R. , Butters Meryl A. , Fischer Corinne E. , Flint Alastair J. , Herrmann Nathan , Mah Linda , Mulsant Benoit H. , Pollock Bruce G. , Taghdiri Foad , Wang Wei , Tartaglia M. Carmela
Published: March 2023

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Cerebrovascular disease (CVD) is implicated in MDD and AD. Our study compared participants with AD positive and negative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers on neuropsychological performance, remitted MDD status, and CVD burden. Next, we compared AD-CSF biomarkers and white matter hyperintensities (WMH) burden among three groups: mild cognitive impairment (MCI) (n = 12), MCI with remitted MDD (MDD+MCI) (n = 12), and remitted MDD alone (MDD) (n = 7). Few participants (18%) with MCI+MDD exhibited AD(+) biomarkers. Nearly all participants had moderate-severe WMH. WMH may contribute to cognitive impairment or depression in MCI patients with AD(-) biomarkers.
TDS-U-Net: Automatic liver and tumor separate segmentation of CT volumes using attention gates1
Authors: Wang Hua , Wang Zhi-Ming , Cui Xiu-Tao , Li Long
Published: March 2023

Considering the heterogeneity, diffusive shape, and complex background of tumors, automatic segmentation of hepatic lesions in computed tomography (CT) images has been considered a challenging task. The performance of existing methods remains subject to segmentation uncertainties, especially in tumor boundary regions. The pixel information in these regions will be affected by both sides, thereby exposing the segmentation results to missing marks. To this end, a new network architecture named Two Direction Segmentation U-Net (TDS-U-Net) is hereby designed based on the classic Attention U-Net to tackle this problem. As the most important blocks of the Attention U-Net network, attention gates (AGs) focus on the target structures of different shapes and sizes. In the last layer of TDS-U-Net, two dichotomous convolutional networks are applied to obtain the segmentation maps of the liver and the tumor respectively. Superimposing two segmented maps to obtain the final image addresses the above problems. The entire structure has been verified on two widely accepted public CT datasets, LiTS17 and KiTS19. Compared with the state of the art, this method exhibits superior performance and excellent shape extractions with high detection sensitivity, perfectly demonstrating its effectiveness in medical image segmentation.
Complex fuzzy sets: (r, θ)-cut sets, decomposition theorems, extension principles and their applications1
Authors: Gong Zengtai , Wang Fangdi
Published: March 2023

Complex fuzzy set, as an extension of classical fuzzy sets, could describe the fuzzy characters of things more detail and comprehensively and is very useful in dealing with vagueness and uncertainty of problems that include the periodic or recurring phenomena. Note that a complex fuzzy set is different from the fuzzy complex set introduced and discussed by many scholars, since the membership degree of a complex fuzzy set is a complex number with length less than or equal to 1 while a fuzzy complex set is a real number with membership degree less than or equal to 1, and the universe is the complex plane. As the mathematical theoretical basis of fuzzy mathematics, fuzzy set and its mapping, corresponding fuzzy complex set and its mapping have been investigated in depth because they integrate and cross the methods and results of classical real analysis and complex analysis. However, there is no comprehensive investigation on complex fuzzy set and its corresponding mathematical theory, even include decomposition theorems, extension principles and the basic operations of the complex fuzzy set. As is well known, the cut set of fuzzy sets is the bridge between fuzzy sets and classical sets, which plays a significant role in fuzzy sets and fuzzy systems. In this paper, the concept of (r, θ)-cut sets of complex fuzzy sets is proposed and their properties are discussed. Meanwhile, the decomposition theorems and the extension principles of complex fuzzy set based on (r, θ)-cut sets are deduced and corresponding properties are investigated. All these conclusions not only deeply enrich the fundamental theory of complex fuzzy set, but also provide a powerful tool to investigate complex fuzzy set. Finally, an example application of signal detection demonstrates the utility of the (r, θ)-cut sets of complex fuzzy sets in practice.
A novel technique based on mutual information weighted feature selection to predict chronic kidney disease
Authors: Savitha S. , Rajiv Kannan A.
Published: March 2023

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a crucial life-threatening condition due to impaired kidney functionality and renal disease. In recent studies, Kidney disorder is considered one of the essential and deadliest issues that threaten patients’ survival with the lack of earlier prediction and classification. The earlier prediction process and the proper diagnosis help delay or stop the chronic disease progression into its final stage, where renal transplantation or dialysis is a known way of saving the patient’s life. Global studies reveal that nearly 10% of the population is affected by Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), and millions die because of non-affordable treatment. Early detection of CKD from the biological parameters would save people from this crisis. Machine Learning algorithms are playing a predominant role in disease diagnosis and prognosis. This work generates compound features from CKD indicators by two novel algorithms: Correlation-based Weighted Compound Feature (CWCF) and Feature Significance based Weighted Compound Feature (FSWCF). Any learning algorithm is as good as its features. Hence, the features generated by these algorithms are validated on different machine learning algorithms as a test for generality. The simulation is done in MATLAB 2020a environment where various metrics like prediction accuracy gives superior results compared to multiple other approaches. The accuracy of CWCF over different methods like LR is 97.23%, Gaussian NB is 99%, SVM is 99.18%, and RF is 99.89%, which is substantially higher than the approaches without proper methods feature analysis. The results suggest that generated compound features improve the predictive power of the algorithms.
The named entity recognition of vessel power equipment fault using the multi-details embedding model
Authors: Qiu Guangying , Tao Dan , Su Housheng
Published: March 2023

The fault diagnosis of vessel power equipment is established by the manual work with low efficiency. The knowledge graph(KG) usually is applied to extract the experience and operation logic of controllers into knowledge, which can enrich the means of fault judgment and recovery decision. As an important part of KG building, the performance of named entity recognition (NER) is critical to the following tasks. Due to the challenges of information insufficiency and polysemous words in the entities of vessel power equipment fault, this study adopts the fusion model of Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT), revised Convolutional neural network (CNN), bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM), and conditional random field (CRF). Firstly, the adjusted BERT and revised CNN are respectively adopted to acquire the multiple embeddings including semantic information and contextual glyph features. Secondly, the local context features are effectively extracted by adopting the channel-wised fusion structures. Finally, BiLSTM and CRF are respectively adopted to obtain the semantic information of the long sequences and the prediction sequence labels. The experimental results show that the performance of NER by the proposed model outperforms other mainstream models. Furthermore, this work provides the foundation of the tasks of intelligent diagnosis and NER in other fields.
Using evolution rule in complex time series comparison
Authors: He Xiaoxu
Published: March 2023

Complex time series appear in numerous applications and are related to some essential physiological and natural systems. Their comparison faces big challenges: 1) with different complexity; 2) with significant phase shift in one series or shift∖on the time axis. Existing methods work well for periodic time-series data, but fail to produce satisfactory results in complex time-series. In this paper, we introduce a novel distance function based on the evolution rule for complex time series comparison. Here, the evolution rule, as the innate generative mechanism of time series, is creatively used to characterize complicated dynamics from complex time series. The comparison includes different level comparisons: the coarse level is to compare the difference in complexity, and the fine level is to compare the difference in actual evolution behavior. The proposed method is inspired by the observation that similar sequences come from the same source, e.g. a person’s heart, in the case of ECG, thus two similar series will have the same innate generative mechanism. The performance has been verified by the conducting experiments, and the experiment results show that the proposed method is superior to the previously existing methods in clustering and classification on some real data sets.
Multi-scale attention and boundary enhancement with long-range dependency for salient object detection
Authors: Yu Ming , Lin Xiaoqing , Liu Yi , Guo Yingchun
Published: March 2023

Existing saliency detection methods have achieved great progress in extracting multi-level features, however it is a challenging problem to catch accurate long-range dependencies that can enhance the accuracy of semantic information. To address this, a Transformer-based multi-scale attention and boundary enhancement with long-range dependency (MSBE) network is proposed in this paper. A multi-scale attention enhancement module (MSAEM) is designed to reduce the redundant or noisy features and generate a high-quality feature representation by integrating multiple attentional features with diverse perspectives. The high-quality features are then fed into the triple Transformer encoder embedding module (TEM) to enhance high-level semantic features by learning long-range dependencies across layers. In the decoder part, a cross-layer feature fusion module (CLFFM) and boundary enhancement module (BEM) are designed to improve the effect of feature fusion and get accurate prediction results. Extensive experiments on six challenging public datasets demonstrate that the proposed method achieves competitive performance.