bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Integrating ADTs in KeY and their application to history-based reasoning about collection
Authors: Bian Jinting , Hiep Hans-Dieter A. , de Boer Frank S. , de Gouw Stijn
Published: May 2023

We discuss integrating abstract data types (ADTs) in the KeY theorem prover by a new approach to model data types using Isabelle/HOL as an interactive back-end, and represent Isabelle theorems as user-defined taclets in KeY. As a case study of this new approach, we reason about Java’s interface using histories, and we prove the correctness of several clients that operate on multiple objects, thereby significantly improving the state-of-the-art of history-based reasoning. Open Science. Includes video material (Bian and Hiep in FigShare, 2021. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5413263) and a source code artifact (Bian et al. in Zenodo, 2022. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7079126).
Traversable wormholes with double layer thin shells in quadratic gravity
Authors: Rosa João Luís , André Rui , Lemos José P. S.
Published: May 2023

In quadratic gravity, the junction conditions are six in number and permit the appearance of double layer thin shells. Double layers arise typically in theories with dipoles, i.e., two opposite charges, such as electromagnetic theories, and appear exceptionally in gravitational theories, which are theories with a single charge. We explore this property of the existence of double layers in quadratic gravity to find and study traversable wormholes in which the two domains of the wormhole interior region, where the throat is located, are matched to two vacuum domains of the exterior region via the use of two double layer thin shells. The quadratic gravity we use is essentially given by a $$R+\alpha R^2$$

R
+
α

R
2

Lagrangian, where R is the Ricci scalar of the spacetime and $$\alpha $$
α
is a coupling constant, plus a matter Lagrangian. The null energy condition, or NEC for short, is tested for the whole wormhole spacetime. The analysis shows that the NEC is satisfied for the stress-energy tensor of the matter in the whole wormhole interior region, notably at the throat, and is satisfied for some of the stress–energy tensor components of the matter at the double layer thin shell, but is not satisfied for some other components, namely, the double layer stress–energy distribution component, at the thin shell. This seems to mean that the NEC is basically impossible, or at least very hard, to be satisfied when double layer thin shells are present. Single layer thin shells are also admitted within the theory, and we present thin shell traversable wormholes, i.e., wormholes without interior, with a single layer thin shell at the throat for which the corresponding stress–energy tensor satisfies the NEC, that are asymmetric, i.e., with two different vacuum domains of the exterior region joined at the wormhole throat.
Institutional Entrepreneurship in Loosely Coupled Systems: The Subject Position of MOOC Entrepreneurs and Their Interpretive Struggles in a Norwegian Context
Authors: Langseth Inger Dagrun , Jacobsen Dan Yngve , Haugsbakken Halvdan
Published: May 2023

While technological change in organizations is fast and eminent to most people, the adoption of Massive Open Online Courses, micro-credentials, and flexible and scalable online courses, appear to be comparatively slow in Higher Education in the Nordic countries. To explore this phenomenon, we completed 10 qualitative interviews at ten different higher education institutions across Norway in fall 2020. The informants were strategically selected among employees who had been involved in open platform technology, MOOC production and support for faculties. Adopting thematic analyses, we found entrepreneurs who positioned themselves in pockets of innovation with the intention to transform teaching and learning. Rather than seeing technological innovations as “more of the same”, the entrepreneurs embraced the possibilities emerging in new educational practices. Inspired by New Institutionalism, we focused on the organizational conditions for MOOC production. The entrepreneurs often entered interpretive struggles at higher organizational levels in competition with other stakeholders. Despite national initiatives and funding, many stakeholders questioned the value of MOOCs. Our study points to discrepancies in understanding the disruptive and transformative change that new technology can bring to study programs and lifelong learning. The informants also experienced insufficient support from leaders and lamented the lack of a national platform for open online access. We link these findings to embedded theories, belief systems and discourses in educational cultures and management in Higher Education.
Seeing Death with More Equanimity: The Indirect Effect of Generativity on Death Acceptance Through Ego-Integrity
Authors: Busch Holger
Published: May 2023

In two studies with German adults aged 40 years or older, it was hypothesized that there is an indirect positive effect of generativity on death acceptance through ego-integrity: That is, generativity is positively associated with death acceptance in that it positively relates to ego-integrity, which positively relates to death acceptance. Study 1 (N = 312) confirms this hypothesis. Additional exploratory analyses, however, revealed that the indirect effect was not valid for younger participants. This difference could be attributed to a moderation effect of age on the relation between ego-integrity and death acceptance, which increased with age. Study 2 (N = 314) differentiates between neutral, approach, and escape acceptance. Again, analyses yielded the hypothesized indirect effect for neutral death acceptance. Moreover, there was a negative indirect effect for escape acceptance. For approach acceptance, no indirect effect emerged. Thus, although the overall results confirm an indirect positive effect of generativity on death acceptance through ego-integrity, which had previously been reported only for fear of death, the role of age in this context should further be examined.
Insights into the expanding intestinal phenotypic spectrum of SOCS1 haploinsufficiency and therapeutic options
Authors: Rodari Marco M. , Cazals-Hatem Dominique , Uzzan Mathieu , Martin Silva Nicolas , Khiat Anis , Ta Minh Chau , Lhermitte Ludovic , Touzart Aurore , Hanein Sylvain , Rouillon Cléa , Joly Francisca , Elmorjani Adrienne , Steffann Julie , Cerf-Bensussan Nadine , Parlato Marianna , Charbit-Henrion Fabienne
Published: May 2023

Purpose

Hyper activation of the JAK-STAT signaling underlies the pathophysiology of many human immune–mediated diseases. Herein, the study of 2 adult patients with SOCS1 haploinsufficiency illustrates the severe and pleomorphic consequences of its impaired regulation in the intestinal tract.

Methods

Two unrelated adult patients presented with gastrointestinal manifestations, one with Crohn’s disease-like ileo-colic inflammation refractory to anti-TNF and the other with lymphocytic leiomyositis causing severe chronic intestinal pseudo-occlusion. Next-generation sequencing was used to identify the underlying monogenic defect. One patient received anti-IL-12/IL-23 treatment while the other received the JAK1 inhibitor, ruxolitinib. Peripheral blood, intestinal tissues, and serum samples were analyzed before-and-after JAK1 inhibitor therapy using mass cytometry, histology, transcriptomic, and Olink assay.

Results

Novel germline loss-of-function variants in SOCS1 were identified in both patients. The patient with Crohn-like disease achieved clinical remission with anti-IL-12/IL-23 treatment. In the second patient with lymphocytic leiomyositis, ruxolitinib induced rapid resolution of the obstructive symptoms, significant decrease of the CD8+ T lymphocyte muscular infiltrate, and normalization of serum and intestinal cytokines. Decreased frequencies of circulating Treg cells, MAIT cells, and NK cells, with altered CD56bright:CD16lo:CD16hi NK subtype ratios were not modified by ruxolitinib.

Conclusion

SOCS1 haploinsufficiency can result in a broad spectrum of intestinal manifestations and need to be considered as differential diagnosis in cases of severe treatment-refractory enteropathies, including the rare condition of lymphocytic leiomyositis. This provides the rationale for genetic screening and considering JAK inhibitors in such cases.
Towards the Complete Classification of the Two Lines Inverse Limit
Authors: Gril Rogina Rene
Published: May 2023

For positive numbers $$r<1$$

r
<
1

and $$\rho >1$$

ρ
>
1

, let $$L_{r,\rho }$$

L

r
,
ρ

be the union of two line segments in $$ [0,1] \times {[}0,1{]}$$

[
0
,
1
]
×
[
0
,
1
]

, one from (0, 0) to (1, r) and the other one from (0, 0) to $$(\frac{1}{\rho },1)$$

(

1
ρ

,
1
)

. In Banič et al.
(2022), it was proven for all such r and $$\rho $$
ρ
that, if r and $$\rho $$
ρ
never connect, then the Mahavier product of $$L_{r,\rho }$$

L

r
,
ρ

’s is homeomorphic to the Lelek fan. In this paper, we show that for all such r and $$\rho $$
ρ
, if r and $$\rho $$
ρ
do connect, the Mahavier product of $$L_{r,\rho }$$

L

r
,
ρ

’s is a fan F with top v with some additional properties. More precisely, it is the union of a countable family $$\mathcal {C}$$
C
of Cantor fans such that

for each $$C_1,C_2\in \mathcal {C}$$

C
1

,

C
2

∈
C

, if $$C_1\ne C_2$$

C
1

≠

C
2

, then $$C_1\cap C_2 = \{v\}$$

C
1

∩

C
2

=

{
v
}

and

the set of limit points of the set of end-points of F, forms in each arc from v to an end-point, a harmonic sequence.

This solves the open problem from Banič et al.
(2022).
Experimental Growth Conditions affect Direct and Indirect Defences in two Cotton Species
Authors: Chappuis Laura , Egger Alicia , Roeder Gregory , Glauser Gaétan , Jaffuel Geoffrey , Benrey Betty , Abdala-Roberts Luis , Clancy Mary V. , Turlings Ted C. J. , Bustos-Segura Carlos
Published: May 2023

Cotton has been used as a model plant to study direct and indirect plant defence against herbivorous insects. However, the plant growing conditions could have an important effect on the outcome of such plant defence studies. We examined how common experimental growth conditions influence constitutive and inducible defences in two species of cotton, Gossypium hirsutum and G. herbaceum. We induced plants by applying caterpillar regurgitant to mechanical wounds to compare the induction levels between plants of both species grown in greenhouse or phytotron conditions. For this we measured defence metabolites (gossypol and heliocides) and performance of Spodoptera frugiperda caterpillars on different leaves, the emission of plant volatiles, and their attractiveness to parasitic wasps. Induction increased the levels of defence metabolites, which in turn decreased the performance of S. frugiperda larvae. Constitutive and induced defence levels were the highest in plants grown in the phytotron (compared to greenhouse plants), G. hirsutum and young leaves. Defence induction was more pronounced in plants grown in the phytotron and in young leaves. Also, the differences between growing conditions were more evident for metabolites in the youngest leaves, indicating an interaction with plant ontogeny. The composition of emitted volatiles was different between plants from the two growth conditions, with greenhouse-grown plants showing more variation than phytotron-grown plants. Also, G. hirsutum released higher amounts of volatiles and attracted more parasitic wasps than G. herbaceum. Overall, these results highlight the importance of experimental abiotic factors in plant defence induction and ontogeny of defences. We therefore suggest careful consideration in selecting the appropriate experimental growing conditions for studies on plant defences.
Determining the Impact of Lifestyle on the Health of Primary School Children in Slovenia Through Mixed Membership Focus Groups
Authors: Lekše Rebeka , Godec Dijana , Prosen Mirko
Published: May 2023

Lifestyle choices made by children and adolescents can lead to a variety of health problems. It is therefore crucial to evaluate the state health-related lifestyles of primary school children’s and identify areas for improvement. The aim of this study was to investigate the experiences and perspectives of those involved in educating current generations of primary school children about their lifestyle and the associated health implications of their behavior. Four focus groups were formed, comprising parents, primary school teachers, health professionals, and leisure activity teachers, with five participants in each group. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each group as part of the qualitative research paradigm of the study. The study revealed three central themes, emphasizing the need to promote health and educate children about healthy behaviors, environmental influences, and health literacy. Community nurses need to take a proactive role in promoting school health. Although adults, peers, and the environment exert a strong influence on children’s lifestyles, they often fail to live up to their responsibilities and allow harmful habits to form. To instill positive behaviors and an optimistic attitude towards a healthy lifestyle, all those involved in a child’s education need to collaborate. Health-related topics should be included or reinforced in primary school curricula, and parents and school staff should receive appropriate training.
RNA-seq profiling in leaf tissues of two soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) cultivars that show contrasting responses to drought stress during early developmental stages
Authors: Yang Xuefei , Kwon Hakyung , Kim Moon Young , Lee Suk-Ha
Published: May 2023

Drought stress is the major environment constraint on soybean yield, and a variety of pathways underlie drought tolerance mechanisms. Transcriptomic profiling of two soybean cultivars, drought-tolerant SS2-2 and drought-sensitive Taekwang, was performed under normal and drought conditions to identify genes involved in drought tolerance. This revealed large differences in water loss during drought treatment. Genes involved in signaling, lipid metabolism, phosphorylation, and gene regulation were overrepresented among genes that were differentially expressed between cultivars and between treatments in each cultivar. The analysis revealed transcription factors from six families, including WRKYs and NACs, showed significant SS2-2-specific upregulation. Genes involved in stress defense pathways, including MAPK signaling, Ca2+ signaling, ROS scavenging, and NBS-LRR, were also identified. Expression of non-specific phospholipases, phospholipase D, and PHOSPHATIDYL INOSITOL MONOPHOSPHATE 5 KINASE (PIP5K), which act in the lipid-signaling pathway, was greatly increased in SS2-2. The roles of PIP5K in drought stress tolerance were confirmed in Arabidopsis thaliana. Arabidopsispip5k mutants had significantly lower survival rates under drought stress than wild-type plants. This study identified additional elements in the mechanisms used by plants to protect themselves from drought stress and provides valuable information for the development of drought-tolerant soybean cultivars.
Inferring the fractional nature of Wu Baleanu trajectories
Authors: Conejero J. Alberto , Garibo-i-Orts Òscar , Lizama Carlos
Published: May 2023

We infer the parameters of fractional discrete Wu Baleanu time series by using machine learning architectures based on recurrent neural networks. Our results shed light on how clearly one can determine that a given trajectory comes from a specific fractional discrete dynamical system by estimating the fractional exponent and the growth parameter $$\mu $$
μ
. With this example, we also show how machine learning methods can be incorporated into the study of fractional dynamical systems.
Small Business Property Tax Reductions and Firm Productivity
Authors: Matikonis Karolis , Gobey Matthew
Published: May 2023

We investigate the productivity spillovers from the UK government’s decision to use extensive property tax reductions as a key instrument to stimulate innovation in smaller businesses and drive local growth. To capture the complex interaction and clustering of hierarchical effects, we apply non-parametric Random Effects Expectation Maximisation algorithm that complements more standard econometric estimators, namely matching to control for endogeneity and control functions to estimate total factor productivity. These approaches enabled us to incorporate various contextual configurations in comparing the recipients of these reductions to non-recipients with regard to productivity, in which the UK has experienced a considerably worse performance than its peers since the great recession. Contrary to policy assumptions and business community expectations, we show that generic tax reductions, when significant, are mostly associated with lower productivity and thus have been unsuitably chosen as a policy mechanism to stimulate productivity growth. We further show how instruments that are not built for causality could be beneficial for policy evaluation.
Instruments for the Legal Protection of Digitized Cultural Heritage in Colombia
Authors: Peña Karen Isabel Cabrera , Jaramillo Yamile Andrea Montenegro , Peña Angie Marcela Cabrera
Published: May 2023

Considering that culture is the product of creative and human processes, it is believed that intellectual property is a legal tool that allows for its protection given that it helps conserve, safeguard and preserve its tangible and/or intangible assets. In the case of digital heritage, which is made up of digital elements that should be preserved due to their cultural value, some challenges have arisen regarding their legal protection. One of these challenges is the lack of clarity about how the elements that comprise it should be protected, giving rise to doubts about how intellectual property should help solve this conflict. This article presents the discussion regarding the protection of digital heritage in Colombia, how copyright is becoming an instrument that contributes to its legal protection, and the challenges to further develop it in the country.
Floral richness and seasonality influences bee and non-bee flower interactions in urban community gardens
Authors: Schmack Julia Marion , Egerer Monika
Published: May 2023

Pollinating insects are essential for food production. Both bee and non-bee pollinators are undergoing dramatic declines due to land use intensification and its consequences on native ecosystems. While interactions between crops and bee pollinators are well studied, our understanding of the pollination service provided by non-bee flower visitors including flies, ants, beetles and others is still limited. Moreover, the effects of landscape urbanization and changes in floral and nesting resource availability on the network structure of pollinators with both cultivated and wild plants have been poorly studied. We assessed which common bee and non-bee flower visitor groups dominate the interactions with both wild (e.g. Trifolium pratense, Taraxacum officinales) and cultivated plants (e.g. Fragaria ananassa, Cucurbita pepo) in urban community gardens in Berlin and Munich and explored how these interactions between flower visitor groups and plants change over the growing season. We further investigated the effect of changes in urbanization surrounding community gardens, and the availability of floral and nesting resources within gardens on the complexity (i.e. nestedness, linkage density, connectance) of interaction networks. We observed 20 focal plant species and 13 common bee and non-bee flower visitor groups in 30 urban community gardens. We found that dominant plant visitors changed over the growing season, with non-bee flower visitors including ants and flies as dominant early season visitors, and bee pollinators as important visitors later in the season. Nestedness of the flower visitor network increased with increases in floral richness in community gardens, while neither floral abundance nor the impervious surface surrounding the community gardens, garden size or the availability of nesting resources in gardens strongly influenced the flower visitor networks. Our findings suggest that high floral richness in community gardens may ensure the complexity and, thus, the stability of flower visitor networks. Findings further suggest that the role of non-bee flower visitors should be considered for pollination service provision especially in the shoulder seasons. Finally, our results emphasize that urban gardeners play a key role in mediating flower visitor interactions through their gardening practices.
Permanently updated 3D-model of actual geometries of research environments
Authors: Rauscher Fiete , Fuchs Mara , Ghanjaoui Yassin , Markusheska Nastasija , Biedermann Jörn , Meller Frank , Nagel Björn
Published: May 2023

This report describes the approach to create permanently updated 3D models of research aircraft and laboratory facilities. Therefore, optical metrology scans the research environment in its raw or as-delivered condition. The result is a virtual model of the actual geometry and, in comparison to reference data (e.g. CAD-data), the smallest inaccuracies can be identified and analyzed. The exact position of non-rigid components, like riser ducts, electronics or isolation, can be determined in the models. Further changes to the layout of these facilities are permanently digitized and added to the virtual model of the environment. This can be a new recording of the entire facility or of individual areas that are affected by the changes. The individual, newly recorded models are then integrated into the existing model. This creates an always up-to-date 3D model of the research environment, which is added to its digital twin and can be observed there. In combination with CAD data, future conversion and installation measures are planned in advance and analyzed virtually in relation to the up-to-date geometry and installation space data. In addition, the virtual models of the aircraft cabins can be used to support the lengthy approval and certification process at an early stage.
Dementia, infections and vaccines: 30 years of controversy
Authors: Ecarnot Fiona , Boccardi Virginia , Calcagno Andrea , Franceschi Claudio , Fülop Tamas , Itzhaki Ruth F. , Michel Jean-Pierre , Panza Francesco , Rainero Innocenzo , Solfrizzi Vincenzo , Ticinesi Andrea , Veronese Nicola , Maggi Stefania
Published: May 2023

This paper reports the proceedings of a virtual meeting convened by the European Interdisciplinary Council on Ageing (EICA), to discuss the involvement of infectious disorders in the pathogenesis of dementia and neurological disorders leading to dementia. We recap how our view of the infectious etiology of dementia has changed over the last 30 years in light of emerging evidence, and we present evidence in support of the implication of infection in dementia, notably Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The bacteria and viruses thought to be responsible for neuroinflammation and neurological damage are reviewed. We then review the genetic basis for neuroinflammation and dementia, highlighting the genes that are currently the focus of investigation as potential targets for therapy. Next, we describe the antimicrobial hypothesis of dementia, notably the intriguing possibility that amyloid beta may itself possess antimicrobial properties. We further describe the clinical relevance of the gut–brain axis in dementia, the mechanisms by which infection can move from the intestine to the brain, and recent findings regarding dysbiosis patterns in patients with AD. We review the involvement of specific pathogens in neurological disorders, i.e. SARS-CoV-2, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1), and influenza. Finally, we look at the role of vaccination to prevent dementia. In conclusion, there is a large body of evidence supporting the involvement of various infectious pathogens in the pathogenesis of dementia, but large-scale studies with long-term follow-up are needed to elucidate the role that infection may play, especially before subclinical or clinical disease is present.
Low frequency of AIP mutations in patients with young-onset sporadic pituitary macroadenomas
Authors: Gaspar L. M. , Gonçalves C. I. , Saraiva C. , Cortez L. , Amaral C. , Nobre E. , Lemos M. C.
Published: May 2023

Purpose

Mutations in the aryl hydrocarbon receptor interacting protein (AIP) gene cause familial isolated pituitary adenomas (FIPA). AIP mutations have also been found in patients with apparently sporadic pituitary adenomas, particularly in young patients with large adenomas. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of AIP germline mutations in patients with young-onset sporadic pituitary macroadenomas.

Methods

The AIP gene was sequenced in 218 Portuguese patients with sporadic pituitary macroadenomas diagnosed before the age of 40 years.

Results

Heterozygous rare sequence variants in AIP were identified in 18 (8.3%) patients. However, only four (1.8%) patients had pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants. These consisted of two already known mutations (p.Arg81* and p.Leu115Trpfs*41) and two novel mutations (p.Glu246*, p.Ser53Thrfs*36). All four patients had GH-secreting adenomas diagnosed between the ages of 14 and 25 years. The frequency of AIP pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in patients under the age of 30 and 18 years was 3.4% and 5.0%, respectively.

Conclusion

The frequency of AIP mutations in this cohort was lower than in other studies. Previous reports may have overestimated the contribution of AIP mutations due to the inclusion of genetic variants of uncertain significance. The identification of novel AIP mutations expands the known spectrum of genetic causes of pituitary adenomas and may help understand the role of AIP mutations in the molecular mechanisms underlying pituitary tumorigenesis.
Modular forms via invariant theory
Authors: Cléry Fabien , van der Geer Gerard
Published: May 2023

We discuss two simple but useful observations that allow the construction of modular forms from given ones using invariant theory. The first one deals with elliptic modular forms and their derivatives, and generalizes the Rankin-Cohen bracket, while the second one deals with vector-valued modular forms of genus greater than 1.
Cryptogamic communities on flatroofs in the city of Debrecen (East Hungary)
Authors: Aszalósné Balogh Rebeka , Matus Gábor , Lőkös László , Adorján Balázs , Freytag Csongor , Mészáros Ilona , Oláh Viktor , Szűcs Péter , Erzberger Peter , Farkas Edit
Published: May 2023

Cryptogams of ten urban flatroofs, contrasting in their age and size, were studied between 2016 and 2018. Siliceous (bituminous felt, gravel, brick) and calcareous (concrete) substrata occurred at each site. Microclimate (T, RH) at two sites of contrasting shading was monitored from September 2016 to January 2017. Biomass of two differently aged, exposed flatroofs was sampled in October 2018. Taxa of Cladonia and Xanthoparmelia have been identified by spot tests and HPTLC. A total of 61 taxa (25 bryophytes, 36 lichens), mostly widespread synanthropic species, have been detected with an explicit difference of species composition between shaded and exposed sites. Floristically interesting species included acidophilous bryophytes (Hedwigia ciliata, Racomitrium canescens) and lichens (Xanthoparmelia conspersa, Stereocaulon tomentosum) of montane character. The most widespread lichen is Cladonia rei which accounted for a significant part of the biomass at selected sites. Species-area curves for bryophytes at exposed sites have become saturated at 100–150 m2. In contrast, saturation of lichen diversity has not been reached even at the largest sites. Flatroofs with traditional roofing techniques can harbour relatively diverse microhabitats and species-rich synanthropic vegetation. It is urgent to study these sites before renovation with modern roofing techniques eliminates them. Diversification of urban surroundings is possible in the future via application of various substrats in renovated and newly constructed roofs.
Alcohol consumption in healthcare workers and risk of workplace injury: a case-control study
Authors: Borrelli Ivan , Gualano Maria Rosaria , Rossi Maria Francesca , Capitanelli Ilaria , Dolgetta Valentina , Santoro Paolo Emilio , Moscato Umberto
Published: May 2023

Medical surveillance for alcohol abuse and dependency at work is mandatory for a list of high-risk occupations. The occupational physician is the only figure entitled to perform alcohol and laboratory tests on employees. This study aims to investigate alcohol-induced injuries in healthcare workers, by using Carbohydrate-Deficient Transferrin (CDT) as a marker during medical surveillance visits. A retrospective study was carried out in an Italian healthcare unit. The sample consisted in 75 healthcare workers who sustained an occupational injury. To assess alcohol consumption, CDT levels were tested as well as serum alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), mean corpuscular volume (MCV). No worker had positive CDT levels (cut-off 2%); 12% of cases (5 male and 4 female workers) had γ-GT level higher than normal range (cut-off: 36 U/L). Most injuries (53.33%) occurred during morning shifts, 33.33% during afternoon shifts and 13.33% during night shifts. Female workers had a higher injury rate (73%); biological injuries were the most frequent (36%), followed by slipping and falling 33%. This study seems to indicate that alcohol does not represent an important cause of occupational injuries, as no cases of workplace injury were found positive for CDT. CDT as a biomarker in health surveillance programs could be used to assess alcohol consumption when used alongside other biochemical parameters, and its routine use during medical surveillance could act as a deterrent.
Machine Learning Applied to COVID-19: A Review of the Initial Pandemic Period
Authors: Mano Leandro Y. , Torres Alesson M. , Morales Andres Giraldo , Cruz Carla Cristina P. , Cardoso Fabio H. , Alves Sarah Hannah , Faria Cristiane O. , Lanzillotti Regina , Cerceau Renato , da Costa Rosa Maria E. M. , Figueiredo Karla , Werneck Vera Maria B.
Published: May 2023

Diagnostic and decision-making processes in the 2019 Coronavirus treatment have combined new standards using patient chest images, clinical and laboratory data. This work presents a systematic review aimed at studying the Artificial Intelligence (AI) approaches to the patients’ diagnosis or evolution with Coronavirus 2019. Five electronic databases were searched, from December 2019 to October 2020, considering the beginning of the pandemic when there was no vaccine influencing the exploration of Artificial Intelligence-based techniques. The first search collected 839 papers. Next, the abstracts were reviewed, and 138 remained after the inclusion/exclusion criteria was performed. After thorough reading and review by a second group of reviewers, 64 met the study objectives. These papers were carefully analyzed to identify the AI techniques used to interpret the images, clinical and laboratory data, considering a distribution regarding two variables: (i) diagnosis or outcome and (ii) the type of data: clinical, laboratory, or imaging (chest computed tomography, chest X-ray, or ultrasound). The data type most used was chest CT scans, followed by chest X-ray. The chest CT scan was the only data type that was used for diagnosis, outcome, or both. A few works combine Clinical and Laboratory data, and the most used laboratory tests were C-reactive protein. AI techniques have been increasingly explored in medical image annotation to overcome the need for specialized manual work. In this context, 25 machine learning (ML) techniques with a highest frequency of usage were identified, ranging from the most classic ones, such as Logistic Regression, to the most current ones, such as those that explore Deep Learning. Most imaging works explored convolutional neural networks (CNN), such as VGG and Resnet. Then transfer learning which stands out among the techniques related to deep learning has the second highest frequency of use. In general, classification tasks adopted two or three datasets. COVID-19 related data is present in all papers, while pneumonia is the most common non-COVID-19 class among them.
Adaptively Directed Image Restoration Using Resilient Backpropagation Neural Network
Authors: Nawaz Waqas , Siddiqi Muhammad Hameed , Almadhor Ahmad
Published: May 2023

In this modern era, visual data transmission, processing, and analysis play a vital role in daily life. Image denoising is the process of approximately estimating the original version of a degraded image. The presence of unexpected noise (e.g., fixed, random, and Gaussian) is the root cause of degradation, which has been reduced to some extent by many linear and non-linear filters based on a median value. The real issue is developing a strategy that should be generalized enough to effectively restore an image corrupted with multi-nature noise. Many researchers have developed novel concepts, but their tactics must acquire the highest performance in this area. This article proposes a constrained strategy for this problem, i.e., an adaptively directed denoising filter (ADD filter) based on a neural network. It consists of three major stages: training, filtering, and enhancing. First, we train a feed-forward back-propagation neural network on noisy and noise-free pixels for effective differentiation. Second, we apply a one-pass selective filter to the noisy image. The objective of this one-pass filter is to minimize noise using an adaptive median or directional filter based on density. Finally, the iterative directional filter is applied to the pre-processed image to enhance its visual quality. The extensive experiments depict that the proposed system has achieved better subjective results and improved local (structural similarity) and global (peak signal-to-noise ratio or mean square error) statistical measures.
Efficient Modeling and Estimation of Group Music and Dance Happiness via Intelligent Wearable Devices
Authors: Wang Qian
Published: May 2023

Smart wearable items are becoming more well recognized and are steadily making their way into people’s lives as a result of the ongoing advancement of technology and people’s growing concern for their health. In this work, we investigate the stimulation of physiological signals and the level of happiness indicated by people’s emotions using the linkage of smart gadgets and biological data. To reduce motion artifacts from wearable PPGs, we first suggest a sparse representation-based approach. To address the issue of poor model generalization brought on by individual signal differences (inter- and intra-individual) in human ECG data, a wearable ECG individual signal difference reduction technique based on Balanced Distribution Domain Adaptive (BDA) is also suggested. In addition to making a significant contribution to the advancement of intelligent control technology, medicine, and other fields, it provides an effective baseline for research on the satisfaction level of group music and dancing based on physiological signals.
The “Airlift” Generation, Economic Aspiration, and Secondary School Education in Kenya, 1940-1960
Authors: Mutongi Kenda
Published: May 2023

This article argues that the “airlift” language often used to describe the eight hundred Kenyan students who attended US and Canadian universities between 1959 and 1963 is misleading. It assumes that the students were being plucked out of substandard education, yet these youth had received some of the most rigorous education in the world—even though it was colonial education intended to inculcate in them British cultures and mores. The students took this education seriously because they knew it would help improve their economic status as well as that of their families. These elite students were not necessarily concerned with the politics of decolonization or the nation-state, as most studies of colonial elites at the end of empire have tended to claim. They were interested in uplifting their economic status. This uplifting was in and of itself a political act—even though it was not politically motivated.
The first cultivation of the glacier ice alga Ancylonema alaskanum (Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta): differences in morphology and photophysiology of field vs laboratory strain cells
Authors: Remias Daniel , Procházková Lenka
Published: May 2023

Melting glacier surfaces are unique ecosystems for specialized microbes, frequently harbouring blooms of microalgae with pigments contributing to the darkening of ice surfaces, reducing albedo and enhancing melt rates. The main cause of this phenomenon is algae of the genus Ancylonema. Prior investigation depended on field-collected material because these algae resisted cultivation. To enhance research on how these algae dominate melting ice, we established a strain of Ancylonema alaskanum from an alpine glacier and exposed to temperatures around the freezing point at irradiations of ~10% of full sunlight. The morphology of the culture changed, with the cells becoming longer and turning green by losing their brownish pigmentation, indicating that these dark phenols are crucial for survival in the cryosphere. Photophysiological comparisons of strain and glacial material showed adaptation of the photosynthetic apparatus to prevailing conditions. This laboratorial strain opens possibilities for a wide range of comparative ‘omics’ research.
The first documentation of an Ordovician eurypterid (Chelicerata) from China
Authors: Wang Han , Braddy Simon J. , Botting Joseph , Zhang Yuandong
Published: May 2023

An early form of eurypterids (Chelicerata),Archopterus anjiensisn. gen. n. sp., is described from the uppermost Ordovician Wenchang Formation of Anji County, Zhejiang Province, South China. It is the earliest record of eurypterids in China and likely the oldest representative of the Adelophthalmidae. The species, represented by a single specimen, is diagnosed by a ventrally preserved prosoma with a parabolic carapace,Hughmilleria-type prosomal appendages, a short vase-shaped metastoma, and a three-segmented type A (female) genital appendage. The specimen is preserved, together with diverse sponges, graptolites and occasional nautiloids, in a 10 m thick shale of marine deep-water setting. This finding extends the stratigraphic range of adelophthalmids from the previously recorded early Silurian into the Late Ordovician (some 10 million years older) and supports an earlier cryptic phase of eurypterid evolution in Gondwana.

UUID:http://zoobank.org/a2d090e5-1a15-40b6-8e2a-dda45b01e94d
A Port by Any Other Name: A Preliminary Spatial Analysis of Ancient Infrastructural Landscapes and Settlement Organization at Macurany, Brazil
Authors: Ellis M. Grace , Browne Ribeiro Anna T. , Carvalho Michel , Fisher Christopher T.
Published: May 2023

Complex human–environmental processes form identifiable, lasting features on the landscape that can illuminate past human behavior and human–environment interactions. We examine the anthropogenic landscape of the ancient port of Macurany, located along the middle Amazon River in Parintins, Brazil, and identify four classes of anthropogenic landscape features at the site: wharfs, middens, terra preta (dark or black earths), and cultural forests. Middens, terra preta, and cultural forests have been found at archaeological sites in regions surrounding Macurany, but wharfs have not previously been reported in Amazonian contexts predating European contact. Taken together, these features are clearly the result of anthropogenesis and represent a range of subsistence, settlement, and infrastructure-building activities pointing to an ancient society that was actively engaged in modifying the surrounding landscape for purposes beyond settlement and subsistence. Evidence for a permanent, extensive, continuously settled society practicing intensive landscape engineering in this region of Amazonia reinforces findings of dense habitation, infrastructure, and early urbanization in Amazonia prior to European contact. This research helps expand our understanding of human–environment interactions, landscape formation processes, and settlement organization in ancient Amazonia.
Ethical Issues in Cerebral Organoid Research
Authors: Arnason Gardar , Pichl Anja , Ranisch Robert
Published: May 2023

About ten years ago, reports of lab-grown “mini brains” or “brains in a dish” appeared in the media, falling somewhere between the curious and the alarming. The trigger of these reports was a new method to grow three-dimensional neural tissue from human stem cells that recapitulates, to some degree, the early development of brain tissue. Despite their relatively small size and other limitations, such model systems capture in part the structure and functions of regions of the human brain and can also be combined to form so-called assembloids.
TheInspector-General of the Australian Defence Force Afghanistan Inquiry Reportand the applicability of Additional Protocol II to intervening foreign forces
Authors: McDougall Carrie
Published: May 2023

This article critiques the articulation of the legal framework applicable to Australian Defence Force operations in Afghanistan found in theInspector-General of the Australian Defence Force Afghanistan Inquiry Report(Brereton Report). In particular, using the Australian experience in Afghanistan as a case study, the article argues, on the basis of the rules of treaty interpretation, that where a foreign State party to Additional Protocol II (AP II) intervenes in a non-international armed conflict (NIAC) to which AP II applies, that foreign State is bound by AP II, in addition to the host State and non-State armed actors that are parties to the NIAC. The article concludes by outlining the reasons why the Brereton Report's silence in relation to AP II matters.
Exploring the genetic correlation of cardiovascular diseases and mood disorders in the UK Biobank
Authors: Chen Chi-Jen , Liao Wan-Yu , Chattopadhyay Amrita , Lu Tzu-Pin
Published: May 2023

Aims

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of deaths globally. Mortality and incidence of CVDs are significantly higher in people with mood disorders. About 81.1% of CVD patients were reported with comorbidities in 2019, where the second most common comorbidity was due to major depressive disorder (MDD). This study, therefore, aimed to evaluate the genetic correlation between CVDs and mood disorders by using data from the UK Biobank towards understanding the influence of genetic factors on the comorbidity due to CVDs and mood disorders.

Methods

The UK Biobank database provides genetic and health information from half a million adults, aged 40–69 years, recruited between 2006 and 2010. A total of 117,925 participants and 6,128,294 variants were included for analysis after applying exclusion criteria and quality control steps. This study focused on two CVD phenotypes, two mood disorders and 12 cardiometabolic-related traits to conduct association studies.

Results

The results indicated a significant positive genetic correlation between CVDs and overall mood disorders and MDD specifically, showing substantial genetic overlap. Genetic correlation between CVDs and bipolar disorder was not significant. Furthermore, significant genetic correlation between mood disorders and cardiometabolic traits was also reported.

Conclusions

The results of this study can be used to understand that CVDs and mood disorders share a great deal of genetic liability in individuals of European ancestry.
Understanding and Mitigating the Spatial Bias of Earthquake Source Imaging With Regional Slowness Enhanced Back‐Projection
Authors: Zhang Yijun , Bao Han , Meng Lingsen , Aoki Yosuke
Published: May 2023

We investigate characteristics of spatial biases in the Back‐projection method and the effectiveness of the Slowness Enhanced Back‐projection (SEBP). The spatial bias refers to the location error in Back‐projection caused by travel time errors due to 3D Earth structure. SEBP reduces such bias by calibrating the gradient of travel time (slowness) in the source. We first analyze 22 M4–M6 earthquakes in the Commander Island and find that the amplitudes and directions of spatial biases follow distinct regional patterns. In light of this, we propose a regional SEBP approach that introduces spatially variable slowness correction. The regional SEBP in the Commander Island resulted in a ∼50% reduction in the average length of spatial bias from ∼20 to ∼10 km, which is more effective than the uniform SEBP that gives a 25% error reduction. We then analyze 109 M4–M7 earthquakes in the Tohoku region and also find a 50% error reduction by regional SEBP. This indicates that half of the spatial biases are aleatory uncertainties that are caused by regional structural complexity and can be calibrated with SEBP, while the residue errors are epistemic uncertainties that are random and caused by local velocity heterogeneities. With regional SEBP applied to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, we find that high‐frequency radiators did not reach beyond the down‐dip limit of interplate seismicity, indicating that the coseismic slip unlikely penetrated the down‐dip velocity‐strengthening zone. Such observations suggest that the enhanced dynamic weakening mechanism due to thermal pressurization effects may not be activated during this event.
A Modeling Study on the Responses of the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere (MLT) Temperature to the Initial and Main Phases of Geomagnetic Storms at High Latitudes
Authors: Li Jingyuan , Wei Guanchun , Wang Wenbin , Luo Qinshun , Lu Jianyong , Tian Yufeng , Xiong Shiping , Sun Meng , Shen Fuzhen , Yuan Tao , Zhang Xiaoping , Fu Shuai , Li Zheng , Zhang Hua , Yang Chaolei
Published: May 2023

Joule heating and radiative cooling usually play key roles in high‐latitude thermospheric temperature changes during geomagnetic storms. In the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT), however, the causes of storm‐time temperature changes at high latitudes are still elusive. Here, we elucidate the nature and mechanisms of MLT temperature variations at high latitudes during the 10 September 2005 storm by diagnostically analyzing the MLT thermodynamics in the Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIMEGCM) simulations. In the storm's initial and main phases, the MLT temperature decreases at 0:00 local time (LT)−12:00 LT, but increases in the 12:00 LT–24:00 LT sector at high latitudes. Afterward, the temperature decrease disappears and temperature increase occurs at all local times in the high latitudes. Adiabatic heating/cooling and vertical advection associated with vertical winds are the main drivers of high‐latitude temperature changes in the entire altitude range of the MLT region. However, around the auroral oval and above ∼100 km, the Joule heating rate is comparable to the heating caused by vertical advection and adiabatic heating/cooling associated with vertical winds and becomes one of the major contributors to total heating in the high‐latitude MLT region. The effects of Joule heating can penetrate down to ∼95 km. Horizontal advection also plays a key role in storm‐time MLT temperature changes inside the polar cap and becomes larger than the adiabatic heating/cooling above ∼105 km.