bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An adaptive optimization EEMD method and its application in bearing fault detection
Authors: Liu Xinming , Chen Wenzhuang , Mao Aikun
Published: February 2023

Aiming at the optimization of two important parameters (white noise amplitude coefficient and set average number) in the set empirical mode decomposition (EEMD), an adaptive EEMD parameter optimization method is proposed. First of all, this paper extracts the corresponding amplitude of the high-frequency component of the signal through the energy value of the first eigenmode function, uses the relative mean square error to determine the corresponding amplitude of the low-frequency component of the signal, and establishes the optimal amplitude evaluation criteria based on the corresponding amplitude of the two; At the same time, in order to improve the calculation efficiency and reduce the influence of white noise, the energy value of the first modal component is used to determine the optimal average number of sets; Then, the effectiveness of the method in this paper is verified by simulation experiments; Finally, this method is applied to the extraction of bearing inner ring fault vibration signal. The results show that compared with the traditional EEMD method, this method can adaptively determine the noise amplitude and the set average number, and can more effectively identify the periodic fault components of the vibration signal.
WITHDRAWN: Cities expansion drivers and maximum temperatures variation in the Tropics
Authors: Bonilla-Bedoya Santiago , Zalakeviciute Rasa , Santos Fabián , Mejía Danilo , Watson Scott , Silva Gilson Fernandes , Mora Argenis
Published: February 2023

Urban expansion and contemporary climate variations are caused by different proximate and underlying multidimensional factors. A spatiotemporal analysis of the urban socio-ecosystem generates key information for planning a sustainable urban model. We analyzed the spatiotemporal pattern of urban expansion and maximum temperature variations in a hierarchy of four categories of cities in the South American tropics in a sequence of seven-time intervals between 1985 and 2018. We defined the boundaries of 31 cities using spatiotemporal information on climatic, topographic, forest, demographic, and economic dimensions. This information was used to run several linear and nonlinear models that would explain the pattern of urban expansion and maximum temperature variations. We found that the historical pattern of expansion varied over time by city category; however, by the end of the first two decades of the 21st century, expansion was significantly higher for all categories. All dimensions contributed to explaining the expansion. An increasing altitude, the steepness of the slope, and a lower roughness index were the proximate causes of increasing the probability of city expansion; on the contrary, vegetation cover had the least importance, suggesting degradation of peripheral ecosystems. Underlying causes, an increase in the gross domestic product (GDP), and demographic variations were of high importance in explaining the probability of expansion in the region. We suggest that the systematic transition from peri-urban soil to impervious cover in the South American tropics is key to both local and global land surface energy balance.
Comparative Study of Mixed Convection Flow of Mono/Hybrid Nanofluid within a Porous Medium
Authors: Jena Snehalata , Mishra Manoj Kumar
Published: February 2023

The purpose of the present research paper, is to carry out a comparative study for mixed convection flow of mono and hybrid nanofluids within the porous medium in the presence of magnetic field and melting effects. The Darcy-Forchheimer model along-with single phase nanofluid model is used to propose the mathematical model of the envisioned problem. The PDEs governing the problem are transformed into a non-dimensional ODEs using suitable similarity variables. The numerical solution of the problem is obtained using the MATLAB package bvp4c and the results showing the effect of various flow controlling parameters on the flow field is presented graphically. The investigation revealed that the heat transfer rate is increases with melting parameter and nanofluid produces more skin friction comparative to hybrid nanofluid. The findings have the applications involving oil flow filtration, electronic cooling equipment, etc.
Blowup for the 3D axisymmetric Keller-Segel-Euler equations
Authors: Chen Qiong
Published: February 2023

We consider a mathematical model describing the fertilization process of some invertebrates (see corals, urchins). Then we obtain a Keller-Segel system with reaction terms coupling with a Euler equation. Using the Fourier localization technique, we establish the blowup criterion of smooth solutions for the 3D axisymmetric Keller-Segel-Euler equations.
AMS subject classi cations. 35K55, 35Q92, 35Q35, 92C17
The study of species and phylogenetic diversity on karst forest along Lijiang River
Authors: Zhao Yi , Li Lin , Zhou Jinggang , Wen Zhifeng , Zhong Jianjun , Shen Kaihui , Yang Xintian , Wei Shiguang
Published: February 2023

Forest community is the key point of global biodiversity conservation for its large number of species. Over the centuries, many scholars have tried to reveal the community diversity of forests such as tropical rainforests. But we know very little about karst forests because it is distributed in very few areas of the world. Lijiang river basin, a subtropical karst forest area, is a vital biodiversity hotspot in South China. In this paper, we aimed to reveal the characteristics of forestry species diversity in the karst area of Lijiang River by Hill diversity and two beta diversity partitioning method. We also studied the phylogenetic diversity and established a pedigree tree for the karst forest in the whole basin. Our findings showed that alpha diversity and beta diversity was quite different between the watershed. The alpha diversity indices in the upper reaches were significantly higher than that of the rest reaches, while the beta diversity was extreme variation among planted forest than natural forest. The decomposition of beta diversity in these karst forests showed that the diffusion limitation was the main driving force causing the beta diversity difference. The phylogenetic structure showed that the midstream karst forest had more distantly related species than other basins. We found that upstream forest was under species invasion while midstream karst forest was under factitious threatened. We suggest that the karst forests in the Lijiang River basin should be protected immediately. This study also filled the gap in the study of karst forests in subtropical regions.
Cardiovascular disease prevention: Community Based Asset Mapping within religious networks in a rural Sub-Saharan African neighbourhood
Authors: Willis Andrew , Chatio Samuel , Darko Natalie , Nonterah Engelbert , Zakariah-Akoto Sawudatu , Alale Joseph , Jones Ceri , Curtis Ffion , knutusor setor , Ansah Patrick , Seidu Samuel
Published: February 2023

Background
Prevalence of conditions which raise cardiovascular risk, such as hypertension and type 2 diabetes are seeing a dramatic rise in Sub Saharan Africa. A large proportion of these cases remain undiagnosed and there is limited resource to provide patients with self-management support and education once diagnosed. This study aimed to identify and catalogue community-based assets for the purposes of developing and deploying a screening and education programme for cardiometabolic risk factors (diabetes and hypertension) within religious organisations in a local community in a rural Ghanaian context.
Methods
We utilised a community-based form of participatory research made up of a number of different components including community-based asset mapping and stakeholder consultation, supplemented by 18 depth interviews and 10 focus groups with n = 115 service users, to map existing assets with relevance to cardiometabolic health in this setting and context. Thematic analysis of interview and focus group data was performed to identify themes related to successful implementation of health screening. Two stakeholder workshops with local healthcare professionals, faith leaders and health policy makers were delivered to co-produced a prioritised list of recommendations and ‘asset map’ to aid deployment of mass screening within faith organisations in this context.
Results
The findings of this research highlight a number of ‘hidden’ community assets and motivational mechanisms at an individual, community and institutional levels; these have informed a list of recommendations which have been co-developed with the stakeholder group and local community to support the development of effective screening strategies for cardiometabolic conditions within faith organisations in this context.
Conclusions
we have identified key mechanisms and assets which would support a sustainable screening approach designed to engage an underserved community at high CVD risk to promote general community health and well-being.
Precise and efficient insertion of A673T mutation in APP gene using MSYM
Authors: Xia Qing , Liu Zijie , Yang Xinyu , Xiao Jiaying , Zhao Xue , Zhao Yu , Zheng Feifei , Ge Fangliang , Ye Ke , Wang Dayong , Gao Xu
Published: February 2023

Alzheimer's Disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by toxic accumulation of amyloid beta peptides and tau neurofibrillary tangles. A673T mutation, as a protective mutation existing in natural people has a huge potential in the pharmacotherapy of Alzheimer's Disease, particularly for the combination with stem cell therapy, which may not only provide clinic benefit to amyloid beta peptides, but correct irreversible injury due to amyloid beta peptides. Here we describe a CRISPR/Cas9-based genome-editing framework that allows point mutation with high efficiency and accuracy. We show that HDR accuracy is increased dramatically by increasing same sense mutation positioned in the guide RNA target sequence along with cleavage site, and establish a method termed “MSYM” for scarless genome editing. Using this approach, we generated the A673T mutation in iPS cells. This point mutation is an alanine-to-threonine substitution at position 673 of APP. More importantly, this approach provides more options for researchers and clinicians in efficient introduction of specific sequence changes, facilitating study of human disease, not only AD.
A unique approach for electrochemical determination of dopamine by turning off uric acid and ascorbic acid peaks
Authors: Dung Nguyen Quoc , Toan Tran Quoc , Nang Lam , Hien Trinh Ngoc , Anh Le Phuoc , Thanh Dang Van
Published: February 2023

A novel technique was adopted for the electrochemical determination of dopamine and the simultaneous determination of uric acid (UA), ascorbic acid (AA), and dopamine (DA) in buffered phosphate-saline pH 7.4 using a few-layer graphene/Pt (FGP) electrode. In the positive scan, the differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) technique of FGP for UA, DA, and AA revealed widely separated three oxidation peaks. In particular, in the negative scan, the FGP electrode only worked with DA while "turning off" for UA and AA, indicating that small amounts of DA could be easily quantified in the presence of large amounts of UA and AA interferences. In the positive scan, the sensors of UA, DA and AA were determined with a linear range of 10 - 1500 (µM), 1 - 200 (µM), and 5 - 500 (µM), a sensitivity of 136.02, 111.45, and 815.58 (µAcm-2mM-1), and a detection limit of 2.6, 4.0, and 0.4 (µM), respectively. DA was quantified in a negative scan with a linear range of 1 – 50 µM, a sensitivity of 2576.87 (µAcm-2mM-1), and a detection limit of 0.1 (µM). This report presents a novel technique that aims to determine dopamine based on fast and simple electrochemical measurements.
The Complex Characterization of Ceramics from Lalatepe Archeological Site
Authors: Mammadov S. , A.Ahadova  , Gasymov V. , Abishov A. , Akhundov T. , Almammadov Kh.
Published: February 2023

In the present work, four ancient ceramic shreds from the archaeological site Lalatapa, Fizuli region of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and two local raw ceramic pastes were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy and thermal analysis (TG-DTG) techniques. XRD analysis of ceramic sherds reveals that all investigated samples contain similar minerals: quartz, feldspar, and clay. Three samples out of four contain calcite. Based on the traditional approach, it has been assumed that the firing process in these samples stopped before 700°C. The mass loss ratios of samples of ancient ceramics also indicate that reversible dehydroxylation took place in all four samples, thus indicating the initial mild firing conditions. SEM analysis also did not reveal the signs of deep vitrification. The summary of all the applied methods indicates that the ceramic samples were made using a similar manufacturing technology. According to XRD analysis, samples N1 and N4 contain diopside, and samples N2 and N3 maghemite indicate the different origins of the ceramic shreds. Analysis of the raw ceramic mass also did not reveal the presence of these minerals, which may indicate a discrepancy between the origin of ancient ceramic sherds and modern ones.
Uncertainty of vibrated granular balls in dynamical behavior
Authors: Zhang Kai
Published: February 2023

There is a known granular motion pattern where a dense upper region is supported on a fluidized low-density region underneath, i.e., so-called density inversion which is regarded as a precursor to granular Leidenfrost effect1-2. In this work, we show another possible granular motion pattern by discrete element simulation, i.e., the granular wave-solid state3 which reflects the uncertainty of density inversion. The occurrence probability of density inversion or wave-solid state is presented by vibrating granular systems of random packing with constant excitation parameters. Moreover, our simulations further reproduce the well-known Butterfly effect that indicates the sensitivity of nonlinear systems to initial conditions. Based on the phenomena revealed by our simulations, we believe that density inversion which is highly influenced by initial packing state of granular balls is not the only path to granular Leidenfrost effect. In addition, we argue that the granular system that undergone one dynamic test is no longer the original one due to the change of granular packing state, which should not be ignored in the experimental studies of granular dynamics.
Beyond the grid : post-network energy provision in Rwanda
Authors: Kranefeld Robert
Published: February 2023

In many parts of the world, the centralized grid provides energy to the population only to a limited extent. The electrification for sub-Saharan Africa countries is the lowest in the world, representing half of the world's population withoutelectricity. However, during the last years there has been an increased attention to rural areas in the Global South beyond the centralised grid, especially with respect to improved possibilities of solar power systems. The transition from one dominant form of energy provision to various alternatives includes different dimensions and depends on specific socio-spatial contexts. Energy systems are framed within systems of spatial practices, performed by a variety of involved actors, like consumers, local suppliers, international for-profit companies, international development donors as well as national and regional authorities. As such power systems arealways cause and effect of socio-technical change This study takes the example of Rwanda to analyse the marketization of decentralised energy systems. Based on empirical field work with energy entrepreneurs it combines Post-Colonial Theory with Science and Technology-Studies to theorise the role of energy to the social production of space beyond the grid.
The Rise of the Far Right and the Domestication of the War on Terror
Authors: Schwartz William Alexander
Published: February 2023

Today in the United States, the notion that ‘the rise of the far right’ poses the greatest threat to democratic values, and by extension, to the nation itself, has slowly entered into common sense. The antecedent of this development is the object of our study. Explored through the prism of what we refer to as the domestication of the War on Terror, this publication adopts and updates the theoretical approach first forwarded in Policing the Crisis: Mugging, the State, the Law and Order (Hall et al. 1978). Drawing on this seminal work, a sequence of three disparate media events are explored as they unfold in the United States in mid-2015: the rise of the Trump campaign; the release of an op-ed in The New York Times warning of a rise in right-wing extremsim; and a mass shooting at a historic African American church in Charleston, South Carolina. By the end of 2015, as these disparate events converge into what we call the public face of the rise of the far right phenomenon, we subsequently turn our attention to its origins in policing and the law in the wake of the global War on Terror and the Great Recession. It is only from there, that we turn our attention to the poltical class struggle as expressed in the rise of 'populism' on the one hand, and the domestication of the War on Terror on the other, and in doing so, attempt to situate the role of the rise of the far right phenomenon within it.
Prekär, flexibel, entgrenzt : Geographien der Arbeit in der "Global City" Frankfurt
Authors: Ouma Stefan
Published: February 2023

Frankfurt ist Knotenpunkt globaler Güter-, Finanz-, Wissens- und Migrationsbewegungen. Die Arbeitsmärkte und -verhältnisse in der Stadt sind Ausdruck einer globalen Verwobenheit, die diskursiv oft mit dem Label der ›Global City‹ markiert wird. In einer Zeit, in der Arbeit als Feld der Produktion und Reproduktion weitreichenden Transformationsprozessen ausgesetzt ist, in der das sogenannte Normalarbeitsverhältnis zunehmend erodiert, in der Arbeitsverhältnisse oft räumlich, sozial und zeitlich entgrenzt und flexibilisiert sind und in der gut bezahlte Jobs und schlecht- bezahlte, teils prekarisierte Formen der Beschäftigung koexistieren – zum Teil im gleichen Betrieb –, muss es Aufgabe wirtschaftsgeographischer Forschung sein, die Lebenswelten von Arbeitenden in einer räumlichen Perspektive zu beleuchten. Genau dies will der vorliegende Band tun. Er versammelt engagierte, theoretisch gesättigte und empirisch geerdete Beiträge von Studierenden des Instituts für Humangeographie, die einen kritischen Blick auf die Formen, Praktiken, Beziehungen und gesellschaftliche Einbettung von Arbeit in unterschiedlichen Branchen in der ›Global City‹ Frankfurt werfen.
FEATURES OF ENTERPRISE CAPITAL FORMATION AND MANAGEMENT IN CONDITIONS OF ECONOMIC INSTABILITY
Authors: Hrytsenko Larysa , Derkach Liliia
Published: February 2023

The paper examines methodological aspects of enterprise capital formation and management. Inaccuracies in this matter lead to the decline in development of business entities and, as a consequence, the economy in general, which should be stable to face today's challenges. Therefore, the purpose of our paper is to investigate the aspects and problems of the enterprise capital formation and management in the context of ensuring the effective production and economic activity of the enterprise in conditions of economic instability.
The research reveals the presence of financially unstable enterprises in Ukraine , taking into account both the dynamics of their profits and the indicators of autonomy, which is exacerbated by the economic instability and leads to a decrease in business activity in the state. It determines that an important aspect in ensuring the effective activity of the enterprise is the optimal approach to the formation of its capital. The essence of capital and its role in the general system of enterprise management are described. The sources from which it is possible to ensure the process of capital formation and the requirements for its structure are outlined. In particular, it is important to have a variety of sources and prevent the predominance of borrowed capital over own capital, which can be achieved by effective management of working capital as a requirement of the enterprise productive forces development and the achieving of growing economic benefits. An expedient method and indicators regarding the analysis of the effectiveness of enterprise capital formation and management is proposed. There are horizontal and vertical assets and liabilities analysis and an assessment of the enterprise financial condition. It is emphasized that special attention should be paid to the effect of financial leverage, which makes it possible to assess the level of obtaining additional profit on one's own capital due to the use of various parts of loan funds in general enterprise capital structure. Understanding this is an important factor in finding the best solutions for the formation of enterprise capital.
Estimation and regular monitoring of the enterprise capital state, according to the approach formed in this paper, is able to provide economic entities with the optimal volume of the resource base. This will maintain their expanded reproduction and will contribute to the development of the economy as a result of the effective functioning of economic entities.
Out-of-Pocket Health Care Expenditure and Poverty Impact in a Fragile Indian State of Assam
Authors: Basumatary Joel
Published: February 2023

Out-of-Pocket (OOP) expenditure on health care is one of the debilitating factors in pushing households into poverty. Households, especially the lower income groups and which do not have security measures like medical insurance, are the worst sufferers when faced with health shocks. Conventional methods of poverty estimation do not take into account health care consumption expenditure, which might understate the poverty headcount. In this study, poverty headcount and impoverishing effects of OOP health care expenditure have been analysed. The data have been collected from Chirang district of Indian state of Assam. The state is a fragile state due to ethnic violence, militancy and natural calamities like flood that the region has been experiencing for decades. The recall period for the inpatient care is 365 days, and six months for outpatient care. The poverty headcount is the difference between post Hp and pre Hp. The pre-payment (i.e. pre-OOP) ‘poverty headcount’ is calculated by comparing household’s consumption expenditure gross of payments for health care with the poverty line defined by the planning commission of India (2001). The post-OOP payment ‘poverty headcount’ is computed by netting out health care payments from a household’s consumption expenditure and then comparing with the poverty line. The intensity of poverty has been estimated with the help of the methods introduced by Wagstaff and Doorslaer (2003). The higher income households make higher OOP expenditure than the lower income households. The burden of OOP is higher on the lower income households because the proportion of OOP expenditure to total income of households is higher amongst the poor households compared to higher income households. OOP expenditure pushed households into poverty. This is more serious with the inpatient care compared to the OOP expenditure on outpatient care. The poverty gap or the intensity of poverty of the overall OOP expenditure is Rs. 279.28, which varies between outpatient and inpatient OOP expenditure.
Relative Influence of Rootstock and Scion on Asian Citrus Psyllid Infestation and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus Colonization
Authors: Tardivo Caroline , Qureshi Jawwad , Bowman Kim D. , Albrecht Ute
Published: February 2023

The citrus industry in Florida faces a destructive endemic disease, known as huanglongbing (HLB), associated with Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas), a phloem-limited bacterium, and transmitted by the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP). Rootstocks are regarded as critical to keep citrus production commercially viable and help trees cope with the disease. Although most scions are susceptible, some rootstocks are HLB-tolerant and may influence ACP infestation and CLas colonization and therefore the grafted tree tolerance. This study aimed to elucidate the relative influence of rootstock and scion on insect vector infestation and CLas colonization under natural HLB-endemic conditions. Seven commercial rootstock cultivars with different genetic backgrounds were grafted with ‘Valencia’ sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) or were self-grafted (non-‘Valencia’) and planted in an open field where ACP and CLas were abundant. ACP infestation was determined weekly during periods of leaf flushing, and leaves and roots were analyzed every 3 months to determine CLas titers. Trees with ‘Valencia’ scion were more attractive to the psyllids than non-‘Valencia’ scions. This was also associated with a higher number of bacteria and a larger abundance of foliar HLB symptoms. The influence of the rootstock on the psyllid attraction of grafted ‘Valencia’ scion was less evident, and leaf CLas titers were similar regardless of the rootstock. Among the non-‘Valencia’ scions, Carrizo had the lowest and US-942 the highest leaf CLas titers. Root CLas titers also varied among cultivars, and standard sour orange roots harbored more bacteria than some trifoliate orange hybrid rootstocks such as US-942. In some trees, CLas was detected first in the roots 4 months after planting, but root CLas titers remained low throughout the study. In contrast, leaf CLas titers increased over time and were considerably higher than root titers from 7 months until the end of the study, 15 months after planting. Overall, the results of this study demonstrate a greater relative influence of the scion than the rootstock on ACP infestation and CLas colonization during the early stages of infection. This suggests that other cultivar-specific traits, such as the ability to tolerate other stresses and to absorb water and nutrients more efficiently, along with influences on the scion phenology, may play a larger role in the rootstock influence on the grafted tree tolerance during the later stages of HLB progression.
Ecology of Shigatoxic E. coli 0157 and Prospects for On-farm Control
Authors: Besser Thomas E. , Hancock Dale , Rice Dan , Gay Clive , Gay John
Published: February 2023

The impetus for considering pre-harvest efforts for shiga-toxigenic E. coli 0157 (sometimes termed E. coli O157:H7, and denoted in the remainder of this paper as simply 0157) has been the growing recognition that the risk of foodborne disease associated with 0157 cannot be eliminated at processing, retailing, or consumer levels. This has led to the multiple hurdles model (Figure 1) in which some reduction is made at each level. Since reductions are multiplicative, the overall effect is one of great reduction in risk.
What is Antimicrobial Resistance?
Authors: Prescott John F.
Published: February 2023

Antimicrobial drug resistance is resistance of microorganisms, especially bacteria, to antimicrobial drugs. Although it usually refers to an individual antimicrobial drug or drug class, multiple resistance can develop.
Management Considerations to Control Calf Diarrhea
Authors: Whittier William Dee
Published: February 2023

This presentation will discuss a number of interventions believed to influence the rates of neonatal diarrhea. These actions are effective because they either increase the resistance of the calf to disease or decrease the infectious agent challenge. Included are:•Colostrum provision to calves• Steps to improve colostrum amount and quality• Immunological considerations• Nutritional considerations• Reducing exposure through housing and grouping management
Neosporosis in Cattle
Authors: Anderson Mark
Published: February 2023

Bovine neosporosis has emerged as an important reproductive disease since its first association with an abortion storm in 1987 on a dairy in New Mexico.46 Numerous reports of Neospora abortion have confirmed this infection as a significant cause of abortion, particularly among dairy cattle.2,7,18,23,25,26,36,45,46,47,48,55 It has a worldwide distribution, having been diagnosed in many countries from six continents, and is prevalent throughout North America. Bovine neosporosis is probably not a new disease, but rather a newly recognized one. Retrospective studies in California have confirmed that the parasite has been endemic since 1984, and a decade earlier the infection was identified retrospectively in a stillborn calf in Australia.23 Surveys in California, the Netherlands and New Zealand indicate that approximately 20% of all aborted bovine fetuses submitted to the diagnostic laboratory are diagnosed with this infection. In abortion submissions from dairy herds with a history of Neospora abortion, the proportion of Neospora infection in aborted fetuses is as much as 44%.4 Since fetal infection can result in either fetal death or the birth of a live congenitally infected calf, there are questions about what factors determine the clinical outcome of fetal infection and what are the appropriate methods to diagnose Neospora abortion. This will be discussed.
Acute Interstitial Pneumonia in Feedlot Cattle
Authors: Loneragan Guy H. , Gould Daniel H.
Published: February 2023

Acute interstitial pneumonia (AIP) is a descriptive term for a specific histopathological pattern, including hyaline membrane formation, and proliferation of type II alveolar epithelial cells.6,18 Other lesions often identified are interlobular edema, hemorrhage and vascular congestion. The condition occurs secondary to alveolar wall damage resulting in transudation of relatively acellular, and fibrinogen-rich fluid into alveolar spaces and terminal airways.
Veterinarian's Approach to SPA
Authors: Robbe Suelee , Strohbehn Daryl , Ensley Doug , Meyer Brent
Published: February 2023

Cow/calf practitioners routinely make recommendations regarding management issues, culling and ration balancing without knowledge of the producer's cost of production. Lack of this information significantly reduces the practitioner's ability to make appropriate recommendations. Just as treating a cow without diagnostic tests, i.e., physical exam and serum chemistries, can lead to inappropriate treatment, management recommendations made without production and financial records can be inappropriate.

Diagnostic tests cannot be interpreted without standard methodology for conducting the tests. The same is true for financial and production records. Standardized Performance Analysis (SPA) guidelines for beef cowherd records were developed in the early 1990s to address these concerns.

Many states have implemented these guidelines into their cow-calf record systems, developed benchmarking databases, and have assisted producers with decision-making processes from these comparisons. Reports from various states suggest major herd economic improvements from this type of outreach activity.

Even with this success, adoption of these recordkeeping systems has been slow. For example, the number of herds in the annual Iowa database for 1999 is 27, compared to 16 herds at its initiation in 1994 and 45 herd at its peak in 1997. With budget concerns, it is increasingly difficult to provide this kind of individualized service through extension.
Evaluation of the Field Performance of the First Commercial Neospora Vaccine in Dairy Cattle
Authors: Choromanski Les , Zimmerman John , Rogers Sandy
Published: February 2023

Neospora caninum, the causative agent of neosporosis, was recognized in 1991 as a major cause of abortion in dairy cattle in California. The first isolation of Neospora caninum from bovine aborted fetuses and experimental reproduction of neosporosis in cattle was reported in 1993. Today, neosporosis is described more commonly in dairy cattle, but also has been identified in beef breeds. Infections with Neospora, which can be acquired by cattle via congenital or horizontal transmission, have been associated with a 3-fold increase of abortion for herds with endemic abortions. For herds with epidemic abortion, the increased abortion risk can be as high as 40-fold, indicating a significant economic impact of neosporosis in affected herds. A research project was initiated to evaluate feasible control measures aimed at reduction or elimination of abortions caused by Neospora caninum.
Importance of Understanding Dairy Farmers' Competencies Prior to Industry Deregulation
Authors: Marchant David
Published: February 2023

This paper outlines the links between dairy farmers' personalities, financial risk management competencies, education and ability to trade in a deregulated market.
Carcass Disposal by Composting
Authors: Kube John
Published: February 2023

Composting is an acceptable method of disposal of cattle carcasses. Composting requires appropriate carbon:nitrogen mix (-30:1), moisture (50-60%), porosity (35-45% open spaces), and temperature (130-150°F) to be successful. This paper describes a procedure used for approximately four years to successfully compost cattle. Adult (-1200 lb) intact cattle carcasses should be placed in a compost windrow for at least 60 days to assure adequate heat production and degradation of carcass before turning, mixing or grinding. Composted intact cattle can be ready for field application in approximately 12 months. Larger bones should be 'recycled' back into more compost for complete deterioration. Grinding of fresh carcasses or carcasses composted at least 60 days could reduce compost time to approximately 6 months and will eliminate major bone structure.
Evaluation of Keto-Test in Urine and Milk for the Detection of Subclinical Ketosis in Periparturient Holstein Dairy Cattle
Authors: Osborne Tera M. , Leslie Ken E. , Duffield Todd , Petersson Christina S. , Ten Hag Jeromy , Okada Yoshihiro
Published: February 2023

Subclinical ketosis causes significant economic loss to producer by decreasing milk production and increasing risk of periparturient disease. The dairy industry needs a cowside test to monitor periparturient dairy cattle for subclinical ketosis. The objective of this study was to determine the sensitivity, specificity and predictive values of the semi-qualitative Keto-Test in periparturient dairy cattle. This test was previously evaluated (Geishauser et al, J Dairy Sci, 2000) and shown to have a sensitivity and specificity of 80% and 76%, respectively, using a cut-point of 100 μmol/L betahydroxybutyrate (BHBA) or greater as a positive. However, in that evaluation tests were not performed prior to parturition or in the immediate periparturient period.
Interplay of Kelvin-Helmholtz and superradiant instabilities of an array of quantized vortices in a two-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensate
Authors: Giacomelli Luca , Carusotto Iacopo
Published: February 2023

We investigate the various physical mechanisms that underlie the
dynamical instability of a quantized vortex array at the interface
between two counter-propagating superflows in a two-dimensional
Bose–Einstein condensate. Instabilities of markedly different nature are
found to dominate in different flow velocity regimes. For moderate
velocities where the two flows are subsonic, the vortex lattice displays
a quantized version of the hydrodynamic Kelvin–Helmholtz instability
(KHI), with the vortices rolling up and co-rotating. For supersonic flow
velocities, the oscillation involved in the KHI can resonantly couple to
acoustic excitations propagating away in the bulk fluid on both sides.
This makes the KHI rate to be effectively suppressed and other
mechanisms to dominate: For finite and relatively small systems along
the transverse direction, the instability involves a repeated
superradiant scattering of sound waves off the vortex lattice; for
transversally unbound systems, a radiative instability dominates,
leading to the simultaneous growth of a localized wave along the vortex
lattice and of acoustic excitations propagating away in the bulk.
Finally, for slow velocities, where the KHI rate is intrinsically slow,
another instability associated to the rigid lateral displacement of the
vortex lattice due to the vicinity of the system’s boundary is found to
dominate.
The Influence of Economic and Technology Factors on Performance Outcomes of Community Pharmacists in Nigeria: A Structural Equation Modeling Study
Authors: Oamen Theophilus Ehidiamen
Published: February 2023

Community pharmacists, as healthcare providers, operate within local and global business environments. Therefore, they are not immune from the effects of the business environment on practice performance. However, limited empirical research is available to explore these effects. The study proposes an empirical model to investigate the influence of economic and technological factors on the performance domains of community pharmacists in southwestern Nigeria. A cross-sectional study with self-administered questionnaires to 661 randomly selected community pharmacists. Performance measures were operationalized based on theory into 3 domains: operational, economic, and social performance domains. Study hypotheses were tested by applying factor-based structural equation modeling (SEM) using WarpPLS software. Results showed acceptable internal reliability of constructs and fit of the model to the data. Technology, compared to economic factors, had a significant influence on operational performance (β=0.242, p=0.001 vs. β=0.067, p=0.055). At the same time, economic factors had a higher influence on economic performance (β=0.070, p=0.036 vs. β=0.032, p=0.203). Both predictors affected social performance, with economic factors having a relatively stronger impact compared to technological factors. (β=0.095, p=0.007 vs. β=0.069, p=0.037). Community pharmacists should continue to strengthen economic value for their customers while incorporating relevant technology to improve practice outcomes. Macroeconomic policy by governments to enable community pharmacy practice is also recommended. The study recommends that community pharmacists emphasize the relevance of regular performance assessments to identify areas for improvement. This study adds substantial theoretical and methodological value to the existing literature by using SEM to explore the impact of business environmental factors on disaggregated performance measures of community pharmacists. Keywords: Community pharmacists, Economic, Measures, Nigeria, Performance, Technology, Structural equation modeling.
CSR Paradigms, Consumer Behaviour, and Business Performance: A Literature-Based Analysis
Authors: Koi-Akrofi Joyce
Published: February 2023

The study sought to contribute to the general body of knowledge and research work in corporate social responsibility. The research work also aimed to establish the most prevalent forms of CSR from the literature and ascertain how CSR influences customer behavior and businesses. Corporate social responsibility is a contentious subject for managers of businesses and their stakeholders. However, this paper’s purpose is to bridge the various pieces of CSR knowledge in literature by systematically reviewing a collection of articles on the subject and drawing valuable conclusions relating to the various paradigms or schools of thought. The researcher, for this study, identified and critically reviewed twenty (20) recent articles on CSR that were gathered from highly recognized and profiled research databases, including Google Scholar, Research Gate, Emerald (database), Elsevier (database), Pro-quest, Scopus, and Springer. Persistent themes on the prevalent forms of CSR; and the influence of CSR on consumer behavior and business performance were observed. It became clear that defining CSR is an arduous task because of the different perspectives of researchers and managers of organizations. Nevertheless, CSR is simply an organization getting back to the people it serves or produces for and offering any form of help that revolves around the environmental, the social, the economic, the stakeholder, and the voluntariness themes: In conclusion, CSR, no matter the angle it is looked at, there is enough evidential proof from the literature that when implemented well, yields enormous benefits to the community and respective businesses. Keywords: Benefits, Business Performance, Consumer Behaviour, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) Governance in Public Organizations: A Study of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)
Authors: Kusena Priscilla
Published: February 2023

With the growing level of adoption and utilisation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the 21st century, it is cardinal to examine Information Technology Governance (ITG) in relation to approaches utilizable in public sector organizations for efficiency and effectiveness. Therefore, this work examines information, communication, and technology governance in public organizations with a focus on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). The specific objective covers the level of involvement of Information Technology Governance (ITG) and the Information Technology Governance (ITG) mechanism used by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) as a public sector organization. Objectives also focus on the benefits of Information Technology Governance (ITG) and the challenges involved with Information Technology Governance (ITG) in the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). The study adopted the Technological Determinism Theory. With the adoption of the survey method through the instrumentation of a self-designed questionnaire administered to two hundred and nine (209) respondents, the study revealed that the involvement of Control Objective for Information and Technology (COBIT) as ITG mechanism in the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is to a great extent. The benefits of ITG include the creation of values, improved effectiveness and efficiency of service delivery, and improvement of service quality. However, these benefits are hindered by some challenges ranging from poor infrastructures, inadequate expertise, poor resource management, culture, and bureaucracy to leadership style. The study recommends that government commitment and provision of adequate IT infrastructures to various public service agencies in Nigeria will enhance the successful implementation of ITG applications and efficiency in public service delivery. Keywords: Information Technology Public Organisation, Information Technology Governance, Nigerian Communications Commission, Standard Framework.
A Snapshot of Current Updates and Future Prospects of 3D Printing in
Medical and Pharmaceutical Science
Authors: Agrawal Rutvi , Garg Akash , Deshmukh Rohitas
Published: February 2023

3D printing in other fields, such as aviation, is quite old, but in the pharmaceutical area, it is an emerging technique. 3D printing is used to formulate various drug delivery systems and dosage forms with complex geometry. It allows large and fast production of products according to the need of the patient. Today, it is the widely used manufacturing technique in the healthcare field for the engineering of tissues and tissue models, production of medicines and medical devices, organ and tissue bioprinting, implant manufacturing, and production of polypills, vaginal rings, orodispersible films, etc. It allows the production of various dosage forms with complex release profiles containing multiple active ingredients. It is used for manufacturing medicines according to the need of individual patients focusing on the concept of personalized medicines. The idea of customized medicines allows change of dosage and design of the product as per individual and with decreased side effects. This review details various techniques of 3D printing used, such as stereolithography, fused deposition modeling, inkjet printing, etc., and applications and dosage forms developed with the latest patents. The significant challenges in the emergence of the 3D printing technique are the involvement of complex combinations to achieve desired properties, and also, the bioprinter involved provides slow and less resolution. The materials prepared by this technique are both biocompatible and printable, due to which additive manufacturing is increasing in the field of medicine.
Serum Irisin is Associated with Bone Mineral Density in Postmenopausal
T2dm Patients Complicated with Osteoporosis and in Mice with Diabetic
Osteoporosis
Authors: Xing Baorui , Hou Xiuxiu , Zhang Guochen , Wu Hao , Feng Nana , Li Yunmei , Han Guangpu
Published: February 2023

Background::

Osteoporosis is a systemic bone disease with low bone mass, destruction of
bone microstructure, and increased bone fragility. Gender and metabolic status are well-known risk
factors for osteoporosis. Irisin is a newly discovered myokine that is secreted by skeletal muscle and
adipose tissue. Serum Irisin was reported to be decreased in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and/or
osteoporosis patients, and it is correlated with bone mineral density (BMD) of neck bone, but its role in
postmenopausal T2DM with osteoporosis remains largely unknown.

Methods::

Postmenopausal T2DM patients with or without osteoporosis were recruited, and 50 agematched
healthy postmenopausal women were employed as healthy control. C57BL/6J mice were intraperitoneally
injected with 65 mg/kg Streptozotocin (STZ) daily for consecutive 5 days to induce
diabetes, and 1 mg/kg recombinant Irisin protein was injected into diabetic mice through the tail vein
once a week for 4 months.

Results::

Compared to that of healthy control, serum Irisin levels and BMD in L1–L4 lumbar spine,
femoral neck, total hip, and Wards were decreased in postmenopausal T2DM patients and further decreased
in T2DM patients with osteoporosis. Moreover, serum Irisin levels were also correlated with
BMD in the above body parts in T2DM patients. Furthermore, recombinant Irisin protein improved
diabetic osteoporosis and inflammation in STZ-induced diabetic mice with osteoporosis.

Conclusion::

Serum Irisin levels in postmenopausal T2DM patients with osteoporosis were significantly
decreased, which may be related to the decreased BMD and the occurrence of osteoporosis in postmenopausal
T2DM patients. The combined measurement of serum Irisin levels and BMD in patients
with T2DM in the early stage has a certain effect on the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis.
Comparing the Efficacy and Safety of Nebulized Gentamicin Plus Amikacin
versus Tobramycin in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis
Authors: Kouhestani Fatemeh , Hassanzad Maryam , Baniasadi Shadi
Published: February 2023

Background:

Cystic fibrosis is an autosomal recessive disease that causes respiratory
tract infection. These patients use nebulized antibiotics such as tobramycin and gentamicin plus
amikacin. Due to the high price of tobramycin and the inaccessibility of this drug in Iran at different
periods, we aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of nebulized plus amikacin and tobramycin
in patients with cystic fibrosis.

Methods:

In this analytic cross-sectional study, data were collected from the records of all patients with
cystic fibrosis. They were divided into two groups by their type of nebulized antibiotic. Group 1 included
41 patients who received 80 mg gentamicin and 500 mg amikacin as a nebulized antibiotic every other
month, whereas, group 2 consisted of 9 patients who received 300 mg nebulized tobramycin. Collected
data were pulmonary function parameters, body mass index, the frequency of hospitalization, infection
progress, Shwachman-Kulczycki score, and renal complications. The data were compared in terms of
efficacy and renal adverse effects by independent t-test and repeated measure ANOVA.

Results:

A total of 50 cystic fibrosis patients were evaluated and there was no significant difference
between group 1 and group 2 in terms of pulmonary function, frequency of hospitalizations,
body mass index, Shwachman-Kulczycki score, infection progress, and renal complications. Notably,
pulmonary function factors were reduced in both groups over time during their treatment.

Conclusion:

Nebulized tobramycin and gentamicin plus amikacin had similar efficacy against
Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis and had no serious renal complications.