bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Association of body anthropometry and obstructive sleep apnea in children: Variations observed in Hispanic children
Authors: Bhattacharjee Emily B. , Sun Xiaoying , Malhotra Atul , Tantisira Kelan G. , Landeo‐Gutierrez Jeremy S. , Jain Sonia , Bhattacharjee Rakesh
Published: September 2022

Objectives

Obesity is a risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in children. Childhood obesity rates vary amongst different ethnic groups. Here the interaction of Hispanic ethnicity and obesity on OSA risk was evaluated.

Methods

Retrospective cross‐sectional analysis of consecutive children undergoing polysomnography and anthropometry using bioelectrical impedance from 2017 to 2020. Demographics obtained from the medical chart. Children who had also undergone cardiometabolic testing were identified and the relationship of cardiometabolic markers with OSA and anthropometry was assessed.

Results

Data from 1217 children revealed Hispanic children were more likely to have moderate‐severe OSA (36.0%) compared to Non‐Hispanic children (26.5%), p < 0.001. Hispanic children had greater Body mass index (BMI), BMI percentile and percent body fat, p < 0.0001. In children that underwent cardiometabolic testing, Hispanic children had significantly greater serum alanine aminotransferase levels (ALT) levels. Following adjustment of age and sex, Hispanic ethnicity was not found to moderate the association of anthropometry with OSA, anthropometry with cardiometabolic markers, and OSA with cardiometabolic markers.

Conclusions

OSA was more likely in Hispanic children; this relationship was likely driven by obesity status rather than ethnicity. Among children undergoing cardiometabolic testing, Hispanic children were observed to have greater ALT concentrations however ethnicity did not impact the association of anthropometry and ALT or other cardiometabolic markers.
Holistic temporal order judgment of tones requires top‐down disentanglement
Authors: Zhang Zhilin , Lin Xiaoxiong , Bao Yan
Published: September 2022

How temporal sequence gets organized is a central topic in cognitive processing. In a high‐frequency time window of tens of milliseconds, the temporal order is reconstructed rather than mirroring the sequence of events objectively in physical time. Two separate phases or strategies, a holistic coding phase that groups successively presented events as a gestalt and a disentanglement phase that decodes the temporal order of discrete events from the gestalt representation, may presumably be involved in the perception of temporal order across different modalities. With a temporal order adaptation protocol of pure tones using glide adaptors, the present study demonstrated a dissociation between constant discriminability and shifted subjective simultaneity across different adaptor directions. While discriminability of temporal order was not adapted by glides, revealing a constant coding sensitivity of different asynchronies, the shift of subjective simultaneity indicated the recalibration of a top‐down disentanglement of the holistic processing under the influence of glide adaptors. The results suggest a dual‐phase holistic processing in temporal order perception, supporting two separate cognitive strategies for event timing on the sub‐second level.
Nitrogen and Sulfur Co‐Doped Hierarchically Porous Carbon Nanotubes for Fast Potassium Ion Storage
Authors: Jin Xin , Wang Xianfen , Liu Yalan , Kim Minjun , Cao Min , Xie Huanhuan , Liu Shantang , Wang Xianbao , Huang Wei , Nanjundan Ashok Kumar , Yuliarto Brian , Li Xingyun , Yamauchi Yusuke
Published: September 2022

Exploration of advanced carbon anode material is the key to circumventing the sluggish kinetics and poor rate capability for potassium ion storage. Herein, a synergistic synthetic strategy of engineering both surface and structure is adopted to design N, S co‐doped carbon nanotubes (NS‐CNTs). The as‐designed NS‐CNTs exhibit unique features of defective carbon surface, hollow tubular channel, and enlarged interlayer space. These features significantly contribute to a large potassium storage capacity of 307 mA h g−1 at 1 A g−1 and a remarkable rate performance with a capacity of 151 mA h g−1 even at 5 A g−1. Furthermore, an excellent cyclability with 98% capacity retention after 500 cycles at 2 A g−1 is also achieved. Systematic analysis by in situ Raman spectroscopy and ex situ TEM demonstrates the structural stability and reversibility in the charge–discharge process. Although the kinetics studies reveal the capacitive‐dominated process for potassium storage, density functional theory calculations provide evidence that N, S co‐doping contributes to expanding the interlayer space to promote the K‐ion insertion, improving the electronic conductivity, and providing ample defective sites to favor the K‐ion adsorption.
Recent Progress of Diatomic Catalysts: General Design Fundamentals and Diversified Catalytic Applications
Authors: Hu Yifan , Li Zesheng , Li Bolin , Yu Changlin
Published: September 2022

In recent years, some experiments and theoretical work have pointed out that diatomic catalysts not only retain the advantages of monoatomic catalysts, but also introduce a variety of interactions, which exceed the theoretical limit of catalytic performance and can be applied to many catalytic fields. Here, the interaction between adjacent metal atoms in diatomic catalysts is elaborated: synergistic effect, spacing enhancement effect (geometric effect), and electronic effect. With regard to the classification and characterization of various new diatomic catalysts, diatomic catalysts are classified into four categories: heteronuclear/homonuclear, with/without carbon carriers, and their characterization measures are introduced and explained in detail. In the aspect of preparation of diatomic catalysts, the widely used atomic layer deposition method, metal–organic framework derivative method, and simple ball milling method are introduced, with emphasis on the formation mechanism of diatomic catalysts. Finally, the effective control strategies of four diatomic catalysts and the key applications of diatomic catalysts in electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, thermal catalysis, and other catalytic fields are given.
Ligand‐Engineered Quantum Dots Decorated Heterojunction Photoelectrodes for Self‐Biased Solar Water Splitting
Authors: Cai Mengke , Tong Xin , Zhao Hongyang , Li Xin , You Yimin , Wang Rui , Xia Li , Zhou Nan , Wang Lianzhou , Wang Zhiming M.
Published: September 2022

A cost‐effective and high‐efficiency photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting system based on colloidal quantum dots (QDs) represents a potential solar‐to‐hydrogen (STH) conversion technology to achieve future carbon neutrality. Herein, a self‐biased PEC cell consisting of BiVO4 photoanode and Cu2O photocathode both decorated with Zn‐doped CuInS2 (ZCIS) QDs is successfully fabricated. The intrinsic charge dynamics of the photoelectrodes are efficiently optimized via rational engineering of the surface ligands capped on QDs with controllable chain lengths and binding affinities to the metal oxide electrodes. It is demonstrated that the short‐chain monodentate 1‐dodecanethiol ligands are beneficial to ZCIS QDs for suppressing charge recombination, which enables the construction of tight heterojunction with coupled metal oxide electrodes, leading to effective photo‐induced charge transfer/injection for enhanced PEC performance. The QD decorated BiVO4 and Cu2O photoelectrodes in pairs demonstrate a self‐biased PEC water splitting process, delivering an STH efficiency of 0.65% with excellent stability under AM 1.5 G one‐sun illumination. The results highlight the significance of synergistic ligand and heterojunction engineering to build highly efficient and robust QDs‐based PEC devices for self‐biased solar water splitting.
Probing Nanoconfined Ion Transport in Electrified 2D Laminate Membranes with Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy
Authors: Wang Xiao , Liang Qinghua , Jiang Wen‐Jie , Wang Peiyao , Liao Jinsha , Xiong Zhiyuan , Li Dan
Published: September 2022

The recent emergence of electrically conductive nanoporous membranes based on graphene and other 2D materials opens up new opportunities to revisit some longstanding nanoconfined ion transport problems under electrification. This work probes the ionic resistance in electrified multilayered graphene membranes with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. This study demonstrates that the combination of additive‐free feature and tunable slit pore sizes in the sub‐10 nm range in graphene‐based membranes has made it possible to deconvolute the different ionic processes from the impedance obtained and examine the exclusive influence of pore size on the ionic resistance in a quantitative manner. The trends revealed for the ionic resistance at the pore entrance and inside the pores under severe nanoconfinement (<2 nm) are found to be generally consistent with the microscale theoretical simulations previously reported. It also allows a quantitative analysis of the relative effects of the external polarization potential and ion identity under nanoconfinement. The results suggest that the classic electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique, when applied to appropriate nanoporous electrode materials, can provide rich information about nanoconfined ion transport phenomena under electrification for fundamental understanding and application development.
Multi‐Response Optimization of the Thermal and Thermomechanical Behavior of a Steel Ladle Lining using Grey Relational Analysis and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution
Authors: Hou Aidong , Gruber Dietmar , Jin Shengli
Published: September 2022

The present research attempts to simultaneously optimize the thermal and thermomechanical behavior of a steel ladle lining. The lining configurations are designed with an L32 orthogonal array considering the input parameters of various material properties and lining thicknesses. From the finite‐element (FE) simulations, three responses are evaluated: the end temperature and maximum tensile stress at the steel shell and the maximum compressive stress at the hot face of the working lining. Multi‐response optimization is performed through grey relational analysis (GRA) and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) by applying a distinguishing coefficient of 0.5 in GRA and the signal‐to‐noise (S/N) ratio‐based weight in both techniques. Both GRA and TOPSIS results yield the same best solution (the fourth lining configuration) and the same optimal levels for significant factors. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is used to identify the significance of the factors and their contributions to the overall performance characteristic. The results demonstrate that the top five factors with the analyses of GRA and TOPSIS are the same and their total contribution is similar.
The study of gesture in cognitive linguistics: How it could inform and inspire other research in cognitive science
Authors: Cienki Alan
Published: September 2022

Cognitive linguists are increasingly extending their paradigm to include the study of gestures. The bottom‐up, usage‐based approach in cognitive linguistics has advanced the methods for identifying gesture functions, starting from a detailed analysis of gesture forms. Theoretical notions from cognitive linguistics also help explain the means by which the forms of gestures can be interpreted as meaningful functions. Principles of conceptual metonymy explain how gestures indicate referents through the partial representation of their features that are relevant in the context of use. Conceptual metaphor theory sheds light on how abstract notions can be represented in gesture via comparison with physical source domains. Furthermore, every gestural representation inherently requires the gesturing speaker to employ a specific viewpoint for their depiction—something which is normally not expressed verbally. These aspects of gesture provide insights into processes of thinking for speaking that can be exploited in various fields of cognitive science research. Referential gestures also normally combine pragmatic and interactive functions (showing stance‐taking, for example) with representational or deictic functions. The multiple functions of gesture combined with those of speech raise questions for further research about how viewing‐listeners interpret and combine information from the multiple semiotic systems employed by gesturing‐speakers. Finally, gesture use has been shown to correlate not only with lexical concepts but also in some ways with grammatical constructions. This gives rise to fundamental questions about what constitutes the grammar of a language. Gesture analysis thus raises issues for consideration in any research in cognitive science that concerns spoken language.

This article is categorized under:

Linguistics > Cognitive

Linguistics > Linguistic Theory

Psychology > Language
On unbiasedness and biasedness of the Wilcoxon and some nonparametric tests
Authors: Murakami Hidetoshi , Lee Seong‐Keon
Published: September 2022

In several fields of applications, the underlying theoretical distribution is unknown and cannot be assumed to have a specific parametric distribution such as a normal distribution. Nonparametric statistical methods are preferable in these cases. Nonparametric testing hypotheses have been one of the primarily used statistical procedures for nearly a century, and the power of the test is an important property in nonparametric testing procedures. This review discusses the unbiasedness of nonparametric tests. In nonparametric hypothesis, the best‐known Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney (WMW) test has both robustness and power performance. Therefore, the WMW test is widely used to determine the location parameter. In this review, the unbiasedness and biasedness of the WMW test for the location parameter family of the distribution is mainly investigated. An overview of historical developments, detailed discussions, and works on the unbiasedness/biasedness of several nonparametric tests are presented with references to numerous studies. Finally, we conclude this review with a discussion on the unbiasedness/biasedness of nonparametric test procedures. This article is categorized under: Statistical and Graphical Methods of Data Analysis > Nonparametric Methods.

This article is categorized under:

Statistical and Graphical Methods of Data Analysis > Nonparametric Methods
Crystal Structure and Magnetism of Fe1−xTe (x=0.31)
Authors: Prots Yurii , Clark William P. , Schmidt Marcus , Burkhardt Ulrich , Rößler Sahana , Fitch Andy , Grin Yuri , Schwarz Ulrich
Published: September 2022

Reaction of iron‐tellurium mixtures in the composition range from Fe0.41Te0.59 to Fe0.43Te0.57 followed by quenching to ambient temperature yields the high‐temperature δ phase Fe1−xTe (0.25<x<0.31). Single crystals of δ phase Fe1−xTe, with x=0.31(1), are obtained by reacting Fe−Te mixtures with nominal composition Fe0.43Te0.57 in closed ampoules at 973 K for 15 days before quenching to ambient temperature. In accordance with the chemical transport behavior of other phases in the iron‐tellurium system, the refined composition of the single crystals Fe1−xTe with x=0.31(1) suggests that crystallization and growth preferably occur in the tellurium‐rich part of the homogeneity range.The resulting crystals adopt a monoclinic crystal structure with unit cell parameters a=6.645(2) Å, b=3.8409(6) Å, c=11.314(3) Å, β=90.47(1)°, Z=4 (space group I2/m, non‐standard setting of C2/m). Single crystal structure refinement reveals a NiAs motif with partial occupation in every second iron layer along [001]. Magnetic susceptibility measurements indicate antiferromagnetic order below 400 K.
Marginally deformed Schrödinger/dipole CFT correspondence
Authors: Georgiou George , Itsios Georgios , Zoakos Dimitrios
Published: September 2022

Abstract

We construct and thoroughly study a new integrable example of the AdS/CFT correspondence with Schrödinger symmetry. On the gravity side, the supergravity solution depends on two parameters and is obtained by marginally deforming the internal space of the Schrödinger background through a series of TsT transformations. On the field theory side, we identify the dual field theory which also depends on two parameters.

We find a point-like string solution and derive its dispersion relation. By using the Landau-Lifshitz coherent state Lagrangian, which originates from field theory, we reproduce the leading, in the deformation parameters, terms of the string theory prediction. This constitutes a non-trivial test of the correspondence. Then, we calculate the Wilson loop, describing the quark/anti-quark potential at strong coupling. It exhibits confining behaviour when the separation length is much less than the Schrödinger parameter. When the separation length is much greater than the Schrödinger parameter the behaviour is that of a conformal theory. Subsequently, we take the Penrose limit along a certain null geodesic of the constructed background and calculate the bosonic spectrum. Based on that spectrum, we make an educated guess for the exact, in the ’t Hooft coupling, dispersion relation of the magnon excitations in the original doubly deformed background. This provides us with an exact prediction for the dimensions of the dual field theory operators. This applies to operators of large length, for which finite size corrections are suppressed.
The holographic entropy cone from marginal independence
Authors: Hernández-Cuenca Sergio , Hubeny Veronika E. , Rota Massimiliano
Published: September 2022

Abstract

The holographic entropy cone characterizes the relations between entanglement entropies for a spatial partitioning of the boundary spacetime of a holographic CFT in any state describing a classical bulk geometry. We argue that the holographic entropy cone, for an arbitrary number of parties, can be reconstructed from more fundamental data determined solely by subadditivity of quantum entropy. We formulate certain conjectures about graph models of holographic entanglement, for which we provide strong evidence, and rigorously prove that they all imply that such a reconstruction is possible. Our conjectures (except only for the weakest) further imply that the necessary data is remarkably simple. In essence, all one needs to know to reconstruct the holographic entropy cone, is a certain subset of the extreme rays of this simpler “subadditivity cone”, namely those which can be realized in holography. This recasting of the bewildering entanglement structure of geometric states into primal building blocks paves the way to distilling the essence of holography for the emergence of a classical bulk spacetime.
Chiral anomaly induces superconducting baryon crystal
Authors: Evans Geraint W. , Schmitt Andreas
Published: September 2022

Abstract

It was previously shown within chiral perturbation theory that the ground state of QCD in a sufficiently large magnetic field and at nonvanishing, but not too large, baryon chemical potential is a so-called chiral soliton lattice. The crucial ingredient of this observation was the chiral anomaly in the form of a Wess-Zumino-Witten term, which couples the baryon chemical potential to the magnetic field and the gradient of the neutral pion field. It was also shown that the chiral soliton lattice becomes unstable towards charged pion condensation at larger magnetic fields. We point out that this instability bears a striking resemblance to the second critical magnetic field of a type-II superconductor, however with the superconducting phase appearing upon increasing the magnetic field. The resulting phase has a periodically varying charged pion condensate that coexists with a neutral pion supercurrent. We construct this phase analytically in the chiral limit and show that it is energetically preferred. Just like an ordinary type-II superconductor, it exhibits a hexagonal array of magnetic flux tubes, and, due to the chiral anomaly, a spatially oscillating baryon number of the same crystalline structure.
Entanglement witnessing for lattice gauge theories
Authors: Panizza Veronica , Costa de Almeida Ricardo , Hauke Philipp
Published: September 2022

Abstract

Entanglement is assuming a central role in modern quantum many-body physics. Yet, for lattice gauge theories its certification remains extremely challenging. A key difficulty stems from the local gauge constraints underlying the gauge theory, which separate the full Hilbert space into a direct sum of subspaces characterized by different superselection rules. In this work, we develop the theoretical framework of entanglement witnessing for lattice gauge theories that takes this subtlety into account. We illustrate the concept at the example of a U(1) lattice gauge theory in 2+1 dimensions, without and with dynamical fermionic matter. As this framework circumvents costly state tomography, it opens the door to resource-efficient certification of entanglement in theoretical studies as well as in laboratory quantum simulations of gauge theories.
Genome-wide association mapping of septoria nodorum blotch resistance in Nordic winter and spring wheat collections
Authors: Lin Min , Ficke Andrea , Dieseth Jon Arne , Lillemo Morten
Published: September 2022

Key message

A new QTL for SNB,QSnb.nmbu-2AS, was found in both winter and spring wheat panels that can greatly advance SNB resistance breeding

Septoria nodorum blotch (SNB), caused by the necrotrophic fungal pathogenParastagonospora nodorum, is the dominant leaf blotch pathogen of wheat in Norway. Resistance/susceptibility to SNB is a quantitatively inherited trait, which can be partly explained by the interactions between wheat sensitivity loci (Snn) and correspondingP. nodorumnecrotrophic effectors (NEs). Two Nordic wheat association mapping panels were assessed for SNB resistance in the field over three to four years: a spring wheat and a winter wheat panel (n = 296 and 102, respectively). Genome-wide association studies found consistent SNB resistance associated with quantitative trait loci (QTL) on eleven wheat chromosomes, and ten of those QTL were common in the spring and winter wheat panels. One robust QTL on the short arm of chromosome 2A,QSnb.nmbu-2AS, was significantly detected in both the winter and spring wheat panels. For winter wheat, using the four years of SNB field severity data in combination with five years of historical data, the effect ofQSnb.nmbu-2ASwas confirmed in seven of the nine years, while for spring wheat, the effect was confirmed for all tested years including the historical data from 2014 to 2015. However, lines containing the resistant haplotype are rare in both Nordic spring (4.0%) and winter wheat cultivars (15.7%), indicating the potential of integrating this QTL in SNB resistance breeding programs. In addition, clear and significant additive effects were observed by stacking resistant alleles of the detected QTL, suggesting that marker-assisted selection can greatly facilitate SNB resistance breeding.
Herausforderungen und Chancen für die Lithiumgewinnung aus geothermalen Systemen in Deutschland – Teil 1: Literaturvergleich bestehender Extraktionstechnologien
Authors: Goldberg Valentin , Kluge Tobias , Nitschke Fabian
Published: September 2022

Die hier vorgestellte Arbeit schätzt den Stand der Extraktionstechnologien zur Lithiumgewinnung aus geothermalen Wässern basierend auf aktuellen wissenschaftlichen Studien ab und identifiziert mögliche technische Herausforderungen. Bewertet werden häufig diskutierte Technologien wie Flüssig-Flüssig-Extraktion, selektive Extraktion durch anorganische Sorptionsmittel, elektrochemische Methoden und Membrantechnologien hinsichtlich ihrer Anwendbarkeit und Integrierbarkeit in die geothermische Energieproduktion. Aktuelle Forschungsprojekte haben verschiedene Extraktionsmethoden im Labor- und teilweise Prototypenmaßstab validiert. Eine Skalierung zu einem industriellen Prozess existiert bisher nicht. Dementsprechend fehlen Informationen bezüglich Dauerbetriebs sowie Einfluss standortspezifischer Hürden (Wasserchemie, Volumenstrom, Fließraten etc.) und zur tatsächlichen Wirtschaftlichkeit. Die Menge des rückgewinnbaren Lithiums ergibt sich in erster Linie aus der Konzentration des im Wasser gelösten Lithiums, der Extraktionseffizienz und -geschwindigkeit, sowie der Menge des verwendeten Extraktionsmittels. Das Zusammenspiel dieser Faktoren bestimmt die Verfahrenstechnik und die Größe der Extraktionsinfrastruktur. Je nach Verfahren werden die physikochemischen Eigenschaften des Wassers (pH, Eh, T, p etc.) während der Extraktion verändert, wodurch das Scaling- und Korrosionspotenzial gesteigert werden kann.

Der aktuelle Stand der Technik zeigt ein frühes bis mittleres Technologiereifestadium bei Lithium-Extraktionseffizienzen in Laborexperimenten von 50–90 %. Unter den ungleich höheren Herausforderungen im laufenden Betrieb eines Geothermiekraftwerks, werden Extraktionseffizienzen im unteren Bereich dieser Bandbreite als realistisch angesehen.
Diversity of root hydrotropism among natural variants of Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Mao Boyuan , Takahashi Hiroki , Takahashi Hideyuki , Fujii Nobuharu
Published: September 2022

Root gravitropism affects root hydrotropism. The interference intensity of root gravitropism with root hydrotropism differs among plant species. However, these differences have not been well compared within a single plant species. In this study, we compared root hydrotropism in various natural variants of Arabidopsis under stationary conditions. As a result, we detected a range of root hydrotropism under stationary conditions among natural Arabidopsis variants. Comparison of root gravitropism and root hydrotropism among several Arabidopsis natural variants classified natural variants that decreased root hydrotropism into two types; namely one type that expresses root gravitropism and root hydrotropism weaker than Col-0, and the other type that expresses weaker root hydrotropism than Col-0 but expresses similar root gravitropism with Col-0. However, root hydrotropism of all examined Arabidopsis natural variants was facilitated by clinorotation. These results suggested that the interference of root gravitropism with root hydrotropism is conserved among Arabidopsis natural variants, although the intensity of root gravitropism interference with root hydrotropism differs.
Draft genomes and descriptions of Urmitella timonensis gen. nov., sp. nov. and Marasmitruncus massiliensis gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from severely malnourished African children using culturomics
Authors: Bellali Sara , Haddad Gabriel , Pham Thi-Phuong-Thao , Iwaza Rim , Ibrahim Ahmad , Armstrong Nicholas , Fadlane Amael , Couderc Carine , Diallo Aldiouma , Sokhna Cheikh , Million Matthieu , Raoult Didier , Tidjani Alou Maryam
Published: September 2022

Two strains, designated as Marseille-P2918T and Marseille-P3646T, were isolated from a 14-week-old Senegalese girl using culturomics: Urmitella timonensis strain Marseille-P2918T (= CSUR P2918, = DSM 103634) and Marasmitruncus massiliensis strain Marseille-P3646T (= CSUR P3646, = CCUG72353). Both strains were rod-shaped, anaerobic, spore forming motile bacteria. The 16S rRNA gene sequences of strains Marseille-P2918T (LT598554) and Marseille-P3646T (LT725660) shared 93.25% and 94.34% identity with Tissierella praeacuta ATCC 25539T and Anaerotruncus colihominis CIP 107754T, their respective phylogenetically closest species with standing in nomenclature. Therefore, strain Marseille-P2918T is classified within the family Tissierellaceae and order Tissierellales whereas strain Marseille-P3646T is classified within the family Oscillospiraceae and order Eubacteriales. The genome of strain Marseille-P2918T had a size of 2.13 Mb with a GC content of 50.52% and includes six scaffolds and six contigs, and that of strain Marseille-P3646T was 3.76 Mbp long consisting of five contigs with a 50.04% GC content. The genomes of both strains presented a high percentage of genes encoding enzymes involved in genetic information and processing, suggesting a high growth rate and adaptability. These new taxa are extensively described and characterised in this paper, using the concept of taxono-genomic description.
Identifying algorithm in program code based on structural features using CNN classification model
Authors: Watanobe Yutaka , Rahman Md. Mostafizer , Amin Md. Faizul Ibne , Kabir Raihan
Published: September 2022

In software, an algorithm is a well-organized sequence of actions that provides the optimal way to complete a task. Algorithmic thinking is also essential to break-down a problem and conceptualize solutions in some steps. The proper selection of an algorithm is pivotal to improve computational performance and software productivity as well as to programming learning. That is, determining a suitable algorithm from a given code is widely relevant in software engineering and programming education. However, both humans and machines find it difficult to identify algorithms from code without any meta-information. This study aims to propose a program code classification model that uses a convolutional neural network (CNN) to classify codes based on the algorithm. First, program codes are transformed into a sequence of structural features (SFs). Second, SFs are transformed into a one-hot binary matrix using several procedures. Third, different structures and hyperparameters of the CNN model are fine-tuned to identify the best model for the code classification task. To do so, 61,614 real-world program codes of different types of algorithms collected from an online judge system are used to train, validate, and evaluate the model. Finally, the experimental results show that the proposed model can identify algorithms and classify program codes with a high percentage of accuracy. The average precision, recall, and F-measure scores of the best CNN model are 95.65%, 95.85%, and 95.70%, respectively, indicating that it outperforms other baseline models.
New Bregman proximal type algorithms for solving DC optimization problems﻿
Authors: Takahashi Shota , Fukuda Mituhiro , Tanaka Mirai
Published: September 2022

Difference of Convex (DC) optimization problems have objective functions that are differences between two convex functions. Representative ways of solving these problems are the proximal DC algorithms, which require that the convex part of the objective function have L-smoothness. In this article, we propose the Bregman Proximal DC Algorithm (BPDCA) for solving large-scale DC optimization problems that do not possess L-smoothness. Instead, it requires that the convex part of the objective function has the L-smooth adaptable property that is exploited in Bregman proximal gradient algorithms. In addition, we propose an accelerated version, the Bregman Proximal DC Algorithm with extrapolation (BPDCAe), with a new restart scheme. We show the global convergence of the iterates generated by BPDCA(e) to a limiting critical point under the assumption of the Kurdyka-Łojasiewicz property or subanalyticity of the objective function and other weaker conditions than those of the existing methods. We applied our algorithms to phase retrieval, which can be described both as a nonconvex optimization problem and as a DC optimization problem. Numerical experiments showed that BPDCAe outperformed existing Bregman proximal-type algorithms because the DC formulation allows for larger admissible step sizes.
The COVID-19 pandemic, well-being, and transitions to post-secondary education
Authors: Sandner Malte , Patzina Alexander , Anger Silke , Bernhard Sarah , Dietrich Hans
Published: September 2022

This study examines the immediate and intermediate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the well-being of two high school graduation cohorts (2020 and 2021) and how changes in well-being affect students’ educational plans and outcomes. Our unique panel data on 3697 students from 214 schools in 8 German federal states contain prospective survey information on three dimensions of well-being: mental health problems, self-rated health, and life satisfaction. Data is collected several months before (fall 2019), shortly before and soon after (spring 2020) as well as several months after (fall/winter 2020/21) the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applying difference-in-differences designs, random effect growth curve models, and linear regression models, we find that school closures had a positive immediate effect on students’ well-being. Over the course of the pandemic, however, well-being strongly declined, mainly among the 2021 graduation cohort. We show that a strong decline in mental health is associated with changes in educational and career plans and transition outcomes. As adverse life experiences in adolescence are likely to accumulate over the life course, this study is the first to exhibit potential long-lasting negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on education and careers of young individuals.
On the heuristic power of mathematical representations
Authors: Ippoliti Emiliano
Published: September 2022

I argue that mathematical representations can have heuristic power since their construction can be ampliative. To this end, I examine how a representation (a) introduces elements and properties into the represented object that it does not contain at the beginning of its construction, and (b) how it guides the manipulations of the represented object in ways that restructure its components by gradually adding new pieces of information to produce a hypothesis in order to solve a problem.

In addition, I defend an ‘inferential’ approach to the heuristic power of representations by arguing that these representations draw on ampliative inferences such as analogies and inductions. In effect, in order to construct a representation, we have to ‘assimilate’ diverse things, and this requires identifying similarities between them. These similarities form the basis for ampliative inferences that gradually build hypotheses to solve a problem.

To support my thesis, I analyse two examples. The first one is intra-field (intra-mathematical), that is, the construction of an algebraic representation of 3-manifolds; the second is inter-fields, that is, the construction of a topological representation of DNA supercoiling.
Abattoir-based serological surveillance for transboundary and zoonotic diseases in cattle and swine in Cambodia: a pilot study in Phnom Penh province during 2019 and 2020
Authors: Siengsanan-Lamont Jarunee , Tum Sothyra , Kong Lida , Selleck Paul W. , Gleeson Laurence J. , Blacksell Stuart D.
Published: September 2022

A pilot animal disease surveillance program was implemented at four abattoirs in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, between October 2019 and January 2020. A total of 1141 samples were collected from 477 cattle and 664 swine. Serological testing was performed using commercial antibody ELISA kits for zoonotic and high-impact animal diseases, namely brucellosis, Q fever, classical swine fever (CSF), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) and African swine fever (ASF). Only two samples tested positive for Brucella antibodies (0.2%, 95% CI 0.4–0.6, n = 1141). The seroprevalence of Q fever was 0.8% (95% CI 0.3–2.1, n = 477) in the cattle samples, while CSF, PRRS and ASF in pigs were 55.4% (95% CI 51.6–59.2, n = 655), 81.2% (95% CI 78.1–84.0, n = 655) and 2.6% (95% CI 1.6–4.1, n = 664), respectively. All 38 doubtful and 17 positive ASF antibody ELISA samples were negative when tested by real-time PCR. Univariate analyses demonstrated that the factor significantly associated with positive results of ASF was the abattoir location (p-value = 0.002). Based on logistic regression models, significant risk factors for CSF were province of origin (p-value = 1.7 × 10−6), abattoir (p-value = 3.6 × 10−11) and PRRS positivity (p-value = 0.004), and for PRRS were province of origin (p-value = 0.0004) and CSF positivity (p-value = 0.001). In conclusion, the seroprevalences of zoonotic diseases in this study were very low. The high prevalence of CSF and PRRS antibodies were most likely the result of vaccination. All ASF seropositive pigs, including those that gave equivocal results, originated from large-scale Cambodian-based commercial farms, as well as Thailand, which raises questions about possible illegal vaccination or low-pathogenicity ASF variants. The pilot abattoir serological surveillance program described here has the potential to provide a sentinel for incursions of novel and endemic pathogens, although further work is required to demonstrate its capacity to provide information on the longitudinal disease trends.
Voting Behaviour and Health Among the Oldest-old in Germany: Results from a Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Wenner Judith , Wagner Michael
Published: September 2022

Background If voter turnout reflects social or health inequalities, then these inequalities can reduce equal political representation. Research suggests that poor health impedes voting and contributes to low turnout, especially among the oldest-old (80 years and older). Therefore, we examine the determinants of voting behaviour in more detail, with a special focus on the role of health status among the oldest-old. Methods The analysis was based on a population-based sample of older adults living in Germany’s largest federal state, North Rhine-Westphalia (n = 1826). The outcome was participation in the last federal election. As determinants, we included subjective, functional, mental, and cognitive health; mobility; institutional living; education; social embeddedness; party attachment; habituation; and conformist attitudes. We used logistic regression models to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. Results The overall turnout rate was 84.6% (95%-CI:82.9–86.3), which shows that most of the oldest-old participate in elections. Results from logistic regressions revealed that lower formal education and limitations in functional, cognitive, and mental health were associated with lower odds of voting; while habituation, party attachment, and partnership were associated with higher odds of voting. Conclusion Most of the oldest-old in Germany participate in elections. Still, our results hint at the existence of important inequalities in turnout rates. Given that older adults constitute an increasing share of the electorate, and that those who are less likely to vote are often among those most directly affected by political decisions, all individuals who are willing and able to participate in elections should be given the necessary support to actually do so.
Measuring Subjective Wellbeing in a School Context: A Polish Version of the Student Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire
Authors: Zadworna Magdalena , Kossakowska Karolina , Renshaw Tyler L.
Published: September 2022

The Student Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire is a measure designed to assess adolescents’ subjective wellbeing at school. The article presents our work toward adapting the SSWQ to the Polish cultural context. The Polish translation of the SSWQ, the KIDSCREEN–27, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) were administered to 818 students aged 10–16 years, who were in Grades 5–8 of elementary school. As a result of a language adaptation process, a 16-item questionnaire was created, comprising four subscales, like the original version: School Connectedness, Joy of Learning, Educational Purpose, and Academic Efficacy. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that both the SSWQ-PL first-order measurement model, which consisted of the above four fully correlated factors, and its second-order measurement model, which structured these four first-order factors as indicators of one second-order factor (i.e., student subjective wellbeing), showed good data–model fit and high internal consistency with the present sample. Cronbach’s alpha for the overall score was .87 and H coefficient was .94. The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient between the total SSWQ-PL scores at two time points was.88 (p < .01), which suggests that the SSWQ-PL is reliable over time. Results showed that the SSWQ-PL had appropriate convergent and divergent validity with scores from the KIDSCREEN-27 and STAIC, which means it can be a useful measure to assess students’ subjective wellbeing in school counseling.
Inklusive Schutzkonzepte in stationären Einrichtungen der Kinder- und Jugendhilfe entwickeln und erproben (SCHUTZINKLUSIV): Das Teilprojekt A Nähe und Distanz
Authors: Böllert Karin , Sawatzki Maik , Demski Jana
Published: September 2022

Das Verbundprojekt „Inklusive Schutzkonzepte in stationären Einrichtungen der Kinder- und Jugendhilfe entwickeln und erproben (SCHUTZINKLUSIV)“ der WWU Münster, des DJI, des SOS Kinderdorf e. V. und des SOCLES versucht in einer wechselseitigen Kooperation von Wissenschaft und Praxis, inklusive Schutzkonzepte im Kontext einer inklusiven Kinder- und Jugendhilfe zu entwickeln und nachhaltig zu erproben. Das Teilprojekt ANähe und Distanzder WWU Münster wird methodologisch und erkenntnistheoretisch insofern exemplarisch skizziert, als dieses den empirischen Ausgangspunkt des Projektes mit Blick auf die besonderen (Schutz‑)Bedarfe von Kinder und Jugendlichen in inklusiv-stationären Einrichtungen der Jugendhilfe (u. a. bezogen auf Nähe-Distanz-Regulation) markiert und eine passgenaue und partizipative Weiterentwicklung inklusiver Schutzkonzepte im Rahmen einer Potenzial- und Risikoanalyse ermöglicht.
Monte Carlo simulation of SDEs using GANs
Authors: van Rhijn Jorino , Oosterlee Cornelis W. , Grzelak Lech A. , Liu Shuaiqiang
Published: September 2022

Generative adversarial networks (GANs) have shown promising results when applied on partial differential equations and financial time series generation. We investigate if GANs can also be used to approximate one-dimensional It$$\hat{\text {o}}$$

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stochastic differential equations (SDEs). We propose a scheme that approximates the path-wise conditional distribution of SDEs for large time steps. Standard GANs are only able to approximate processes in distribution, yielding a weak approximation to the SDE. A conditional GAN architecture is proposed that enables strong approximation. We inform the discriminator of this GAN with the map between the prior input to the generator and the corresponding output samples, i.e. we introduce a ‘supervised GAN’. We compare the input-output map obtained with the standard GAN and supervised GAN and show experimentally that the standard GAN may fail to provide a path-wise approximation. The GAN is trained on a dataset obtained with exact simulation. The architecture was tested on geometric Brownian motion (GBM) and the Cox–Ingersoll–Ross (CIR) process. The supervised GAN outperformed the Euler and Milstein schemes in strong error on a discretisation with large time steps. It also outperformed the standard conditional GAN when approximating the conditional distribution. We also demonstrate how standard GANs may give rise to non-parsimonious input-output maps that are sensitive to perturbations, which motivates the need for constraints and regularisation on GAN generators.
Deformations of vector bundles over Lie groupoids
Authors: La Pastina Pier Paolo , Vitagliano Luca
Published: September 2022

VB-groupoids are vector bundles in the category of Lie groupoids. They encompass several classical objects, including Lie group representations and 2-vector spaces. Moreover, they provide geometric pictures for 2-term representations up to homotopy of Lie groupoids. We attach to every VB-groupoid a cochain complex controlling its deformations and discuss its fundamental features, such as Morita invariance and a van Est theorem. Several examples and applications are given.
Disaster Impacts Surveillance from Social Media with Topic Modeling and Feature Extraction: Case of Hurricane Harvey
Authors: Mihunov Volodymyr V. , Jafari Navid H. , Wang Kejin , Lam Nina S. N. , Govender Dylan
Published: September 2022

Twitter can supply useful information on infrastructure impacts to the emergency managers during major disasters, but it is time consuming to filter through many irrelevant tweets. Previous studies have identified the types of messages that can be found on social media during disasters, but few solutions have been proposed to efficiently extract useful ones. We present a framework that can be applied in a timely manner to provide disaster impact information sourced from social media. The framework is tested on a well-studied and data-rich case of Hurricane Harvey. The procedures consist of filtering the raw Twitter data based on keywords, location, and tweet attributes, and then applying the latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) to separate the tweets from the disaster affected area into categories (topics) useful to emergency managers. The LDA revealed that out of 24 topics found in the data, nine were directly related to disaster impacts—for example, outages, closures, flooded roads, and damaged infrastructure. Features such as frequent hashtags, mentions, URLs, and useful images were then extracted and analyzed. The relevant tweets, along with useful images, were correlated at the county level with flood depth, distributed disaster aid (damage), and population density. Significant correlations were found between the nine relevant topics and population density but not flood depth and damage, suggesting that more research into the suitability of social media data for disaster impacts modeling is needed. The results from this study provide baseline information for such efforts in the future.
Modelling the downstream development of a turbulent boundary layer following a step change of roughness
Authors: Li Mogeng , de Silva Charitha M. , Chung Daniel , Pullin Dale I. , Marusic Ivan , Hutchins Nicholas
Published: September 2022

In this study, we develop an analytical model to predict the turbulent boundary layer downstream of a step-change in the surface roughness where upstream flow conditions are given. We first revisit the classical model of Elliott (Trans. Am. Geophys. Union, vol. 39, 1958, pp. 1048–1054), who modelled the velocity distribution within and above the internal layer with a simple piecewise logarithmic profile, and evolved the velocity profile using the streamwise momentum equation. Elliott's model was originally developed for an atmospheric surface layer, and to make the model applicable to a spatially developing turbulent boundary layer with finite thickness, we propose a number of more physical refinements, including adding a wake function to the velocity profile, considering the growth of the entire boundary layer in the streamwise direction, and using a more realistic shear stress profile in the momentum equation. In particular, we implement the blending model (Li et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 923, 2021, p. A18) to account for the deviation of the mean flow within the internal layer from a canonical velocity profile based on the local wall condition. These refinements lead to improved agreement between the prediction and the measurement, especially in the vicinity of the rough-to-smooth change.