bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Influence of Semi Die Angle on the Forming Process of Ribbed Tube
Authors: Liu Shengqiang , Wang Baoyu , Li Wei
Published: November 2021

Cladding tube is one of the key components in nuclear power reactor. In this paper, the forming process of a new cladding tube is investigated, namely ribbed tube. The influence of semi die angle on the forming process of ribbed tube is studied. Firstly, the strain-stress curves of 316L stainless steel (SS) at different strain rates are obtained. Based on the strain-stress curves, a modified Johnson-Cook constitutive model which ignore the influence of temperature are used, and the parameters of the modified model are determined. Then, the modified Johnson-Cook is used to establish the finite element (FE) model of ribbed tube drawing process, and two pass drawing process is adopted in this paper. Finally, the influence of semi die angle on the forming process (forming quality and drawing force) of ribbed tube is elucidated, and the credibility of the simulation is confirmed by comparing the simulation and experimental results. The results show that when the semi die angle less than 8 °, all the formed ribbed tubes meet the requirement, but there are inner grooves appear at the inner wall, and the inner grooves cannot be avoided in the drawing process. Moreover, when the semi die angle is 8 °, the inner grooves have smallest depth.
Experimental Study on the Properties of Copper Base Alloy by Laser Cladding on the Surface of Pure Copper Contact
Authors: Xue Shouhong , Li Baokun , Wu Jiguang , Ge Lihong , Gao Zhengping , Yang Yaoguo , Li Jiaxuan
Published: November 2021

Arc ablation is the main reason for the failure of pure copper switches. In order to improve the electric ablation resistance of pure copper contacts, Cu-W-Ni alloy cladding layers with different tungsten contents were prepared on the surface of pure copper matrix by laser cladding technology. The microstructure, composition distribution, hardness and corrosion resistance of the cladding layer were analyzed. The results show that the surface of the cladding layer and the pure copper matrix is metallurgical, without holes, cracks and other defects, and the dilution rate is low, and the average hardness is significantly increased. On the whole, the comprehensive properties of CuW10Ni3 cladding layer are slightly better than the other two Cu-W-Ni cladding layers. Compared with the pure copper matrix, the contact hardness is significantly improved under the premise of ensuring the electric conductivity of the inner pure copper matrix.
Effects of Rare Earth Elements (Ce, Y) on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of P20 Die Steel
Authors: Wu Dan , Hu Qiang , Chen Wei , Lu Deping , Zou Jin , Guo Junli , Liu Qi , Sun Lefei
Published: November 2021

Electroslag remelting P20 die steels with different amount of CeO2 or Y2O3 additions have been investigated by using mechanical tests and scanning electronic microscope with energy dispersive spectrometry. The microstructure of P20 die steels is tempered martensite, in which plenty of carbides precipitate along the martensite laths. With addition of rare earth Ce or Y, the matrix microstructure is refined, the quantity of carbides is decreased, and the distribution of carbides becomes more uniform. As a result of these microstructural changes, both the impact energy and tensile strength increase with increasing rare earth content. The samples obtain optimum microstructure and mechanical properties when the amount of CeO2 or Y2O3 additions reach 4 wt.%. However, over-added CeO2 or Y2O3 (>4 wt.%) results in the increase of carbides quantity and the aggregation of carbides, which reduces the impact energy and tensile strength of the samples. Present study indicates that the optimum addition of CeO2 and Y2O3 for the P20 die steels is 4 wt.%.
CAMPUS MITHRA: Design and implementation of voice based attender robot
Authors: Saniya Ambreen , Chandana M S , Dennis Maria Sharon , Pooja K , Chaithanya D J , Rohith K , Anitha S
Published: November 2021

A robot is a machine which is programmed by a computer and the movements and functions of which are controlled by an external or an embedded control. It has dynamic uses in all domains of life. A robot in a university setting can be used as an attender for passing circulars around instead of multiple attenders doing the task manually which is a cost and time consuming process. Parents often find it difficult to navigate through the unfamiliar university. In this paper, we have focused on a voice based attender robot with line following capabilities along with speech recognition that can be used at universities for a variety of purposes like passing around the circulars, interacting with parents and helping them navigate through the university through Spoken Natural Language. The main objectives of the proposed work is to reduce the burden of passing circulars, calling a student/faculty on the attender by designing a robot that is also competent enough to connect with human through spoken natural language such as English or Kannada, so that it interacts with parents who are new to the institution and do not know whom to approach. The main aim of this work is to introduce a robot that it is able to interact with human through the Spoken Natural Language. Here, the focus is on two languages; English and Kannada. This system uses a voice recognition module to recognize human voice and a voice playback module is used to reply back in either English or Kannada according to the user’s command. It can work in two modes, the voice recognition mode to answer to user queries or in line following mode to pass circulars, call student/faculty. In this way, the voice based attender robot finds its applications in the university setting. But it is not limited to only universities. It can also be further implemented in places like railway stations, bus stations, big factories and other similar surroundings.
Real-Time Motion Control of a Humanoid Robot Using Deep Learning
Authors: Faraz Ahmed A S , Sudharsan V , Arockia Doss Arockia Selvakumar
Published: November 2021

This paper discusses the research work done for controlling the humanoid robot manually using deep learning. For teaching, personal assistance, search and rescue humanoid robot are used. Controlling manually makes it to do any task without any explicitly programming. Existing technique for manually controlling the humanoid are heavily dependent on hardware and they are not cost efficient. This paper proposes a novel method for controlling the humanoid using a 2D camera. The image from the 2D camera is processed and skeleton of the human body is captured using deep learning. Then the skeleton is used to control the actuators present in the humanoid robot using image classifier and ROS. As a proof of concept the upper body of the humanoid robot is controlled in real time using this method.
Industrial Internet of Things - Control of Industry Simulation Through Different Protocols
Authors: Surya P , Suenbuel Asuman , Arockia Doss Arockia Selvakumar
Published: November 2021

In past few years there is a great demand for internet of things (IoT), It has become an important part of smart technologies. There have been many researches going-on in internet of things in both academics and industries. IoT using in industries is also known as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). Where smart sensors are used along with IoT are used. This research work is done to identify the best protocol for high-speed data transmission with no loss of data to prevent command lag between mobile controller and industry. In this research a soda filling Industry simulation with 3 different plants was controlled through a mobile application through different protocols with 4 different features of data transfer. The time of data sending and receiving from application and ESP32 controller are stored in a log. The speed of data transfer of all different protocols is compared. From the final result, ThingSpeak is an optimum protocol for this application which is 36% faster than HTTP in single data transfer and 39% faster than MQTT in continuous data transfer.
Design and development of IoT enabled gas sensing system for remote monitoring of air quality in borewell rescue operations
Authors: Abhishek L , Kathirvelan J
Published: November 2021

The children demise inside the borewell is expanded in nowadays, with uncovered borewell they fallen without knowing and lost their lives due to asphyxiant inside, likewise without oxygen, food and so forth The harmful gases like carbon monoxide, Methane, LPG, hydrogen sulphide inside the bore-well it will influence the children breathing and furthermore this may prompt unconsciousness, and without oxygen it might influence the brain functioning of child and child may die and furthermore explicit distance of the child at what distance child stuck isn’t know. To overcome these, we need to detect the various gases with different multiple gas sensors additionally to get the temperature and humidity condition. Alongside this ultrasonic sensor is utilized to get the distance of child at what distance child got stuck. We have utilized two Arduino Uno microcontrollers which is at the transmitter side and other at Receiver side also utilized two ZigBee’s as the communication devices. With the help of IoT involved in the proposed system. Every one of these information are sent to the cloud and we can monitor the data in the thing speak dashboard through PC or from our smart phone through Android App Usage and also, through LCD at Receiver end. We can utilize this proposed framework inside the borewell for up to 80-meter depth. Thus, we came up with this Design and Development of IoT enabled Gas sensing system for remote monitoring of Air quality in borewell Rescue operations. Based on proposed system results of real time data the Rescue specialists can make a further move by providing of oxygen, food, and so forth Save their lives.
Monitoring of Workplace Safety Using IoT
Authors: Elangovan Muniyandy , Surrya Prakash D , Sasidharan P
Published: November 2021

Security is the most critical thing in today’s working conditions for the workers who are working in process industries and manufacturing industries. In order to have a safe workplace, a suitable safety system is yet to be developed for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterpiises-level companies. Therefore, a safety system is developed to monitor the temperature of the employee while entering the workplace and company gate. Even for the single parameter health check, the control system to get the data from the sensor to the database and the database needs to be checked for the limitation of range whether it is acceptable or not. Based on the data condition, the sound alarm system needs to be connected and at the same time, a Short message service needs to be sent to the higher authorities. This information is sent to top management in an email form for their record and the information. The database contains data for the long period to have a statistical analysis of health issues for the employees. This statistical data analysis can help to improve the safety standard at companies. Considering the low-cost estimation, this safety system can be used in any MSME-level company.
IoT Based Smart Agriculture and Plant Disease Prediction
Authors: Bala Murugan MS , Rajagopal Manoj Kumar , Roy Diproop
Published: November 2021

Agriculture is a very prominent sector in our country and has been one of the highest contributors to the GDP. During the 1960s, an all-time high was reached with approximately 50% contribution to the GDP of the country, as more than half of the population was rural and focused primarily on agriculture as means of their livelihood. But from the latest records of 2019, the contribution by this sector has decreased to 15.96 percent. IoT plays a significant tole in remote sensing with machine learning in monitoring crops and surveying, which in turn aids agriculturists in ways for efficient field management. The proposed work integrates the role of Internet of Things and Deep learning deployment in farm management and disease identification of leaves. With the use of Internet of Things through remote sensing this work monitors the agriculture field parameters in remote cloud environment. With modified Resnet model deployed on the cloud for the purpose building a smart disease prediction. This system achieves 99.35% accuracy for the dataset. Overall this approach will provide an opportunity for agriculturists to test the plant disease with a smart phone connected to Internet and take appropriate actions.
Hyperledger blockchain based secure storage of electronic health record system in edge nodes
Authors: Arul P , Renuka S
Published: November 2021

An Electronic Health Record (EHR) is a database for storing patients medical information collected from different sources such as smart wearable devices, smart sensors and diagnostic imaging equipment. An EHR contains sensitive private information for the patients and the treatment of their diseases. Furthermore, it’s often shared among different members consists of healthcare providers, insurance companies, medical researchers, and others. The main difficulty for EHR information management is the result of gathering, storing, and sharing patient healthcare without affecting privacy and security. Blockchain has recently proposed an efficient way to manage EHR data. This paper provides hybrid architecture for EHR data management by using both Hyperledger blockchain network in on-chain and edge node in off-chain. In this architecture is used to authenticate user without affecting sensitive patient’s information and also used to authenticate the encrypted EHR information in edge node. In the on-chain approach EHR activities and Patient authentication activities are recorded in the blockchain for the purpose of accountability and traceability. Edge nodes stored the encrypted EHR data in the off-chain method. So the combination of on-chain and off-chain approaches only allows the authorized data user who has to meet the EHR access activities and to decrypt the EHR data. If the EHR information is alter by an unauthorized user, the hash code is newly generated which is different from old hash code stored in the blockchain. As the result the user can easily detect that their EHR information has been hacked.
Conjectural schema using Quantum mechanics-AI to express and interpret emotional intellect in a social robot
Authors: Gayathri G , Sethuraman Aravind , Anna Vishaal K
Published: November 2021

In this paper, the study represents a theoretical conceptualization on the potential improvements to interpret and devise under the notion of quantum mechanics & AI utilizing psychology for social robots. The framework is elaborated in regard to the development of emotions encoded through information and possibilities, which manipulates the use of transitions of these emotions in states through the Quantum & AI measurements. To support the development, work introduced is an interpretation of quantum mechanics, linked with quantum science, systems science, and Conceptualized Neural Network. The understanding of these emotions are expected to impact the technical capability of robots in a specific aspect to sense, capture, and act in an environment relied on optimization of quantum bits, where a robot, perform these emotions through a network which will allow interaction with the given target, changing the robot’s state of response according to optimization and gates from target itself, computing the robot’s emotional performance based on measurement and mathematical expressions changing in accordance to the available information. This method will help to emphasize its viability and effectiveness in the synthesis of emotional intellect in social robots.
Implementation of Strategic Structure By Integrating Flexible Manufacturing System With Green Technology for Enhancement of Productivity And Quality Of Product
Authors: Ganvir Kanchan , Jain Rakeshkumar
Published: November 2021

The worldwide advancements of new innovations are developing at a touchy rate, yet associations are embracing more gradually henceforth, serious promoting society and incorporated supervisory crews are required in an organization to exploit new advances. Adaptable assembling innovations are seen by organizations to be a significant component Exceeding competitiveness and seriousness. Notwithstanding, dominating in the present market isn’t easy and straightforward like the procurement of fresh improvement. So as to accomplish more of advantages, the structural framework associations will combine to ensure that the execution of innovation should lead to the normal benefits. Hence, a structure that encourages flexible manufacturing system companies deciding the prerequisites of the FMS reception, with the correct blend of green technology and vital components is required. The study examines particular dimensions of green manufacturing Index Applicability and FMS such as Information technology, planning, flexible automation techniques. The outcome will determine the major substantiate to establish and strengthen the value of product with superior performance, Using the findings the research will suggests the implication and adoption for further research. It would definitely enhance the performance in any industrial organisation with economic growth. This Research aims to report the findings of an exploratory work by integrating Green Manufacturing and flexible Manufacturing system techniques to generate new strategies which can be further administered in an industrial organization and sectors such as component manufacturing, automobile parts and processing sectors.
Design and Analytics of Smart Posture Monitoring System
Authors: Chaitanya Kumar A , Sridhar V G
Published: November 2021

Instances of low-back pain in people of all ages is one of the most common issues in the world. Over 50% of the world population report of being affected by low-back pain at least once a year. It is therefore of paramount importance for individuals to realize the necessity and importance of a proper sitting posture, to interact and work in an ergonomically supportive environment. With the advent of the Internet of Things, it is now evident that communication technology coupled with the mechanics of the seating device can help produce meaningful insights, and help in undertaking data-driven decisions. There have been various attempts at designing “smart chairs”. These smart chairs in addition to the above mentioned functionalities, can also be deployed as robust health-monitoring systems. Using embedded sensors within, these chairs can function as an alert mechanism to the user, when he/she is sitting with an incorrect posture, that could be detrimental to the physical health of the individual. In this paper, the researchers conduct a comprehensive analysis of the existing products, by a customer survey and propose a solution that could potentially serve the people with back pain to use the proposed chair: embedded with sensors, and supplemented by data analytics. The system designed is a cost-effective low-power consuming posture monitoring system, that simultaneously works as an accurate health monitoring system as well.
Divergent responses of maize yield to precipitation in the United States
Authors: Xu Ru , Li Yan , Guan Kaiyu , Zhao Lei , Peng Bin , Miao Chiyuan , Fu Bojie
Published: November 2021

How maize yield response to precipitation varies across a large spatial scale is unclear compared with the well-understood temperature response, even though precipitation change is more erratic with greater spatial heterogeneity. This study provides a spatial-explicit quantification of maize yield response to precipitation in the contiguous United States and investigates how precipitation response is altered by natural and human factors using statistical and crop model data. We find the precipitation responses are highly heterogeneous with inverted-U (40.3%) being the leading response type, followed by unresponsive (30.39%), and linear increase (28.6%). The optimal precipitation threshold derived from inverted-U response exhibits considerable spatial variations, which is higher under wetter, hotter, and well-drainage conditions but lower under drier, cooler, and poor-drainage conditions. Irrigation alters precipitation response by making yield either unresponsive to precipitation or having lower optimal thresholds than rainfed conditions. We further find that the observed precipitation responses of maize yield are misrepresented in crop models, with a too high percentage of increase type (59.0% versus 29.6%) and an overestimation in optimal precipitation threshold by ∼90 mm. These two factors explain about 30% and 85% of the inter-model yield overestimation biases under extreme rainfall conditions. Our study highlights the large spatial heterogeneity and the key role of human management in the precipitation responses of maize yield, which need to be better characterized in crop modeling and food security assessment under climate change.
The elements of productivity and their contribution to high level of crop yield (based on spring barley researches)
Authors: Eroshenko L M , Levakova O V , Gladysheva O V , Gureeva E V , Romakhin M M , Dedushev I A
Published: November 2021

The analysis of long-term data showed that in various agrometeorological conditions, the average yield of the selected numbers of the competitive test was 6.76 t/ha and varied from 6.15 t/ha for the line 4/3-12h 933 to 7.04 t/ha for the Noble variety. The maximum yield was shown in 2016 in the varieties Znatny, Nadezhny and breeding lines 30/3-12h 983 and 135/2-12h 1068 at the level of 8.91 to 9.52 t/ha. The differences between the samples in terms of the level of crop structure elements were revealed. In the group of high-yielding genotypes, breeding lines 141/1-09 h 746, 135/2-13 h 1068, 4/3-12 h 933 were distinguished, the weight of 1000 grains in which was 1.7-5.6 g higher than the average value. Ranking by the complex of the most important productivity characteristics determined the high breeding value of Yaromir, Nadyozhny, Znatny varieties and lines 30/3-12h 983, 135/2-13h 1068 as a source material for breeding to increase the yield of new varieties.
Dependence of winter wheat productivity on mineral nutrition and growth stimulants
Authors: Voronov S I , Pleskachev Y N , Vlasova O I , Ilyashenko P V , Savinov E V
Published: November 2021

In the experiment, four varieties of winter wheat (Don 93 – standard, Krasa of Don, Lilit, Kapitan) and four levels of mineral nutrition (1. Ammophos 60 kg/ha when sowing; 2. Ammophos 60 kg/ha when sowing, Polydon Biouniversal 0.5 l/ha in the tillering phase, Polydon Biouniversal 0.5 l/ha in the earing phase; 3. Ammophos 60 kg/ha when sowing, spring tillering ammonium nitrate 130 kg/ha, Polydon Biouniversal 0.5 l/ha in the tillering phase, Polydon Biouniversal 0.5 l/ha in the earing phase; 4. Ammophos 60 kg/ha during sowing, spring tillering ammonium nitrate 130 kg/ha) were considered. According to the level of mineral nutrition, the lowest biological yield was formed at the first level of nutrition. At the third level of nutrition, the largest biological yield was formed. On average, for three years of research, it was in the Don-93 variety by 0.54 t/ha more than at the first level, in the Kapitan variety by 0.66 t/ha more than at the first level, in the Krasa of Don variety by 0.81 t/ha more than at the first level and in the Lilit variety by 0.89 t/ha more than at the first level.
Soil density, soil moisture content and maize yield using No-till technology of cultivation
Authors: Dridiger V K , Gadzhiumarov R G
Published: November 2021

The research was carried out at the experimental field of the North Caucasus Federal Research Center. In the field, years of experience, founded in 2012, in crop rotation of soybean-winter wheat-sunflower-corn all crops cultivated on the recommended scientific institutions technology soil treatment, and these same crops in the same crop turnover has grown by No-till technology. The recommended technology of maize cultivation consisted of soil double tillage by the heavy disk tools to the depth of 0.120-0.140 m immediately after harvesting the previous sunflower, winter plowing at 0.200-0.220 m, early spring harrowing, pre-sowing cultivation and sowing with an Optima seeder. In the No-till technology, the soil was not treated and ten days before corn sowing, the plots were sprayed with a continuous herbicide Rap 600 at a dose of 2 l/ha. The research showed that better accumulation and conservation of moisture can be provided during the flowering of maize with the content in the soil layer of 1.5 m at the depth of 34 mm, or 18.1% more moisture than usage of the technology with tillage which is recommended by scientific institutions. It contributes to a significant increase of 0.42 t/ha, or 12.0% in crop yield by using this technology.
The trace elements influence on the tomato plants heat resistance in arid climate
Authors: Ionova L P , Vilkova Zh A , Arslanova R A , Babakova A S , Yu Anishko M
Published: November 2021

In the arid conditions of the Astrakhan region agricultural plants heat resistance is one of the important criteria of quality production getting. In this regard, and also taking into consideration the fact that the soils of our region are characterized by a very low content of trace elements in the form accessible to plants, researches were carried out to study the effect of trace elements of copper, manganese and zinc for tomato plants heat resistance. To exclude the trace elements rapid absorption by the soil, plants foliar treatments were used during the growing season with 0.05% solutions of zinc sulfate (ZnSO4), manganese sulfate (MnSO4) and copper sulfate (CuSO4). In the control variant, the plants were sprayed with water. The results showed that tomato plants foliar feeding during the III-V organogenesis stages with 0.05% solutions of zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate and copper sulfate have not got a significant effect on tomatoes growth and productivity. However, the zinc and copper trace elements positively influenced such physiological parameters of plants as the leaf cells hydration, the bound water content in them, the protoplasm viscosity, thereby contributing to the increase in tomato resistance to the adverse effects of high temperatures in the arid climate.
Accurate technologies of agricultural crops cultivation for organic farming
Authors: Kirdin V F , Laptina Yu A
Published: November 2021

The article presents the results of many years of experiments on the development of energy-saving farming systems. Preference in crop rotations should be given to multi-depth combined treatments that provide high productivity and are characterized by high-energy efficiency. Data on the yield of grain and leguminous crops in a six-field grain crop rotation with constant dump and combined longline tillage shows that the yield of oats in the first year of rotation according to the experimental variants was the same and amounted to 3.60 t/ha. In the second year of winter wheat yield in the variant with longline tillage was by 0.20 t/ha more in comparison with a plow on row, in the third year the difference in yield of spring barley on options for primary processing amounted to 0.30 t/ha in favor of combined tiered processing, in the fourth year the yield of peas has also been found to 0.40 t/ha more, also on the option of combined longline processing in the fifth year of the rotation crop of winter triticale. The yield of oats was 0.30 t/ha higher, and in the sixth year the yield of oats was 0.40 t/ha higher on the variant of combined longline processing.
Resource-saving elements in onions growing technology on Nizhjeje Povolzhje region irrigated lands
Authors: Matveeva N I , Zvolinsky V P , Yu Petrov N , Zaitsev V A
Published: November 2021

The aim of this work was to prove many years research (at least two rotations) devoted to the problems of onion growing for industrial purposes on Nizhneje Povolzhje irrigated land. For these purposes, we have selected two farms with typical characteristics and production conditions in Astrakhan and Volgograd regions. During the period of the first rotation (2011-2015), we conducted competitive tests for the number of onion varieties and hybrids introduction and adaptation, as the result of which the zoned variety Volgodonets was selected for the second rotation (2016-2020) as a control and two regionalized hybrids of foreign selection Pandero F1 and Benefit F1. These samples were sown in the selected experimental plots as part of five-field vegetable-grain crop rotations in both farms. As the result, over five years of observations, the Benefit F1 hybrid showed the highest yield of 150.16 t/ha, Pandero F1 - 139.58 t/ha, and the Volgodonets variety - only 69.35 t/ha in Astrakhan region and 129.57 t/ha; 103.10 t/ha; 74.00 t/ha, respectively, in Volgograd region. The highest profitability indicator was provided by the Benefit F1 hybrid, which amounted to 87.94%.
Seasonal development of aboveground phytomass of evergreen introduced plants on the Southern Coast of the Crimea
Authors: Plugatar Yu V , Kovalev M S , Korsakova S P
Published: November 2021

For the Southern Coast of Crimea, the problem of park communities’ productivity, due to the high recreational load on the environment and climate change, is of particular relevance. The aim of the research was to study the features of the introduced park communities evergreen aboveground phytomass formation and seasonal growth in the conditions of the Southern coast of the Crimea. A comparative assessment of vegetative shoots seasonal growth features of plants Laurus nobilis L., Prunus laurocerasus L., Viburnum tinus L., Aucuba japonica Thunb and Nerium oleander L. was performed. It was found that the time of renewal of shoot growth in spring after winter dormancy in V. tinus and A. japonica began at 459-462 °C, P. laurocerasus - 649 °C, and L. nobilis - 886 °C and N. oleander - 990 °C amounts of active air temperatures above 5 °C. The largest growth (49.3 cm) and the accumulation of leaf phytomass (42.3 cm3) differ in annual shoots of N. oleander. P. laurocerasus has a great potential with a phytomass volume an annual shoot of 24.5 cm3. The increase of shoots phytomass in V. tinus, A. japonica, and L. nobilis is 7-8 times less than that in N. oleander.
Forest pathological monitoring of different types protective planting in Lower Volga region
Authors: Gribust I R , Belitskaya M N , Yudaev I V , Ivushkin D S , Nefedjeva E E , Drevin V E , Spivak M E
Published: November 2021

In maintaining the material and energy balance of dry-steppe and semi-desert ecosystems, the main active component is forest-reclamation complexes of various purposes. In addition to environmental stabilization and other economic functions, protective plantings are also reserves of regional biodiversity. Research was carried out on permanent test sites in dendrological collections and protective forest stands of the Federal Research Center of Agroecology of RAS, as well as in recreational and landscaping plantings using route and stationary methods in different types of forest plantations that differ in condition, level of anthropogenic impact and maintenance regime. The assessment of the forest pathology status of stands was carried out using standard methods and in accordance with the current guidelines for forest pathology survey of plantings and forest pathology monitoring. It was found that in the spectrum of the examined plants, the most prosperous state of the dendroflora is distinguished by arboretums and forest belts. Urban plantings are dominated by severely weakened and shrinking trees (up to 80.0%). The main pathologies in them were shrunken tops and skeletal branches, xylophages, diseases of foliage, wood and trunks. The least pronounced anomalies of woody plants in forest belts (10.7-22.0% lower than in other types of plantings).
Development of irrigation based on various business payment systems
Authors: Medvedeva L N , Melihov V V , Novikov A A , Koshkarova T S , Vasiluk D I , Medvedev A V
Published: November 2021

As the result of the changes that took place in the Russian economy in the 90s, interfarm reclamation systems remained in state ownership, and reclamation lands and intra-farm irrigation systems were transferred to private ownership. For fixed assets managed by budget organizations that pump water for irrigation, depreciation deductions are not provided by the current legislation, and state subsidies cover only a small part of the necessary restoration work. The study uses international practices in the field of paid water use in irrigated agriculture, the regulatory and methodological framework adopted on the territory of the Russian Federation, data received from regional state organizations for land reclamation and agriculture, materials, data from Russian Federal State Statistics Service and the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, the work of Russian and foreign scientists and practitioners. The article explains the pricing of water supply for irrigation, creation of funds (financial resources) in the accounts of plumbing organizations to update their fixed assets, upgrading irrigation systems, having the physical deterioration of more than 70%.
Evaluation of corn crops drip irrigation quality at different versions of the tillering zone
Authors: Lamskova M I , Novikov A E , Borodychev S V , Filimonov M I
Published: November 2021

Presents results of a study of the uniformity of distribution of irrigation water along the length of the drip lines at its pre-treatment in sand gravel and disc filters (typical) and hydrocyclone installation (experimental version) and the efficiency of water technology in the cultivation of corn. It was found that when using a sand-gravel and disc filter as a water treatment unit on a drip irrigation system, the coefficient of effective irrigation was 0.635, insufficient irrigation - 0.240, and excessive irrigation - 0.125. The use of hydrocyclone installation for water treatment, which combines the processes of capture of dispersed particles by the method of sedimentation in a centrifugal field and the filtration method provides an increase of the coefficient of effective irrigation to 0.715 and reduce the rates of under-and over-irrigation, respectively, to 0.20 and 0.085. Thus, increasing the uniformity of the distribution of irrigation water along the length of the drip lines ensures the regulation of irrigation of agricultural crops. In field experiments on corn cultivation with drip irrigation, an increase in grain yield was achieved by 9% when using an experimental version of the water treatment unit instead of the standard one on the irrigation system.
BNT162b2 mRNA Vaccine Effectiveness Given Confirmed Exposure: Analysis of Household Members of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients
Authors: Gazit Sivan , Mizrahi Barak , Kalkstein Nir , Neuberger Ami , Peretz Asaf , Mizrahi-Reuveni Miri , Ben-Tov Amir , Patalon Tal
Published: November 2021

Background

Although BNT162b2 vaccine-efficacy analyses have been published, the effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing coronavirus disease 2019 given confirmed exposure has not been previously demonstrated, even though it has policy implications, such as the need for self-quarantine when exposure has occurred.

Methods

In a retrospective cohort study, we used data collected between 20 December 2020 and 17 March 2021 from the second largest healthcare provider in Israel to analyze the probability of an additional household infection occurring within 10 days after an index infection. In model 1, vaccine effectiveness was described for Fully Vaccinated individuals (7 or more days from second dose) vs either Unvaccinated individuals or those Recently Vaccinated Once (0–7 days from the first dose, presumably still unprotected). Secondary analyses included correction for differing testing rates. In model 2, we conducted a separate analysis of households comprised of only adults with the same vaccination status.

Results

A total of 173 569 households were included, of which 6351 had an index infection (mean [standard deviation] age, 58.9 [13.5] years); 50% were women. Adjusted vaccine effectiveness of Fully Vaccinated compared with Unvaccinated participants was 80.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 73.5–85.4) and 82.0% (95% CI, 75.6–86.8) compared with those Recently Vaccinated Once.

Conclusions

The BNT162b2 vaccine is effective in high-risk real-life exposure scenarios, but the protection afforded in these settings is lower than that previously described. Individuals with a confirmed significant exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome are still at risk of being infected even if fully vaccinated.
Impact of hospital volume of valve operations on the utilization and outcomes of surgery for patients with infective endocarditis
Authors: Bansal Agam , Jaber Wael A , Cremer Paul , Wassif Heba , Mentias Amgad , Menon Venu
Published: November 2021

Aims

Valve surgery is indicated and can be life-saving in patients with infective endocarditis (IE). We evaluated the impact of hospital valvular surgery volume on utilization and outcomes of surgery for IE.

Methods and results

National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database was used for IE hospitalizations from 2008 to 2015. Hospitals were divided into quartiles based on valve surgery volume with quartile 1 (Q1) indicating lowest volume and quartile 4 (Q4) highest volume. Primary outcome was utilization of valve surgery in patients hospitalized with IE and secondary outcomes were in-hospital mortality and length of stay for IE patients undergoing valve surgery. Volume–outcome relationship was analysed both as categorical (quartiles) and continuous variable (restricted cubic splines). A total of 36 471 hospitalizations for IE were identified using the NIS database from 2008 to 2015 of which 17.33% underwent any valve surgery. Utilization rates of valve surgery for IE were significantly higher in Q4 hospitals (Q1: 6.73%; Q2: 10.39%; Q3: 14.91%; Q4: 2321%). Amongst the admissions for IE endocarditis undergoing valve surgery, there was no significant difference in in-hospital mortality when analysed as a categorical variable (as quartiles). However, when analysed as a continuous variable we note significant variation in outcomes across the Q4 hospitals, with highest volume centres having reduced mortality rates and length of stay.

Conclusion

Hospital valvular surgery volume has direct impact on utilization and outcomes of surgery for IE. Given rising rates of IE and ongoing intravenous drug pandemic, there is need for regionalization of care for IE patients and development of ‘endocarditis centres of excellence’ for improved patient outcomes.
Are Men or Women More Unsettled by Fixed-Term Contracts? Gender Differences in Affective Job Insecurity and the Role of Household Context and Labour Market Positions
Authors: Morgenroth Nicolas , Schels Brigitte , Teichler Nils
Published: November 2021

This study investigates differences in the causal effect of fixed-term contracts on affective job insecurity by gender and household context in Germany. Research shows that workers in fixed-term employment are more unsettled about their job security than are permanent employees. We contribute to the literature on subjective job insecurity by explicitly modelling the causal effect of fixed-term employment and by examining how women and men differ in this effect. We argue that gender differences in the labour market positions and a gendered division of labour in the household account for gender differences in the subjective vulnerability to fixed-term employment. We apply linear fixed effect probability models based on the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) with a sample of employees aged between 20 and 45 years. Results show that a fixed-term contract doubles the probability of big job worries compared to a permanent contract. Women are substantially more unsettled by fixed-term contracts than men across all household types. These gender differences cannot be explained by unfavourable labour market positions of women. Fixed-term employment thus seems to add to existing gender inequalities on the labour market.
The Birth-and-Death Evolution of Cytochrome P450 Genes in Bees
Authors: Darragh Kathy , Nelson David R , Ramírez Santiago R
Published: November 2021

The birth-and-death model of multigene family evolution describes how gene families evolve and diversify through duplication and deletion. The cytochrome P450s are one of the most diverse and well-studied multigene families, involved in both physiological and xenobiotic functions. Extensive studies of insect P450 genes have demonstrated their role in insecticide resistance. Bees are thought to experience toxin exposure through their diet of nectar and pollen, as well as the resin-collecting behavior exhibited by some species. Here, we describe the repertoire of P450 genes in the orchid bee Euglossa dilemma. Male orchid bees form perfume bouquets used in courtship displays by collecting volatile compounds, resulting in exposure to compounds known to be toxic. In addition, we conducted phylogenetic and selection analyses across ten bee species encompassing three bee families. We find that social behavior and resin collection are not correlated with the repertoire of P450 present in a bee species. However, our analyses revealed that P450 clades can be classified as stable and unstable, and that genes involved in xenobiotic metabolism are more likely to belong to unstable clades. Furthermore, we find that unstable clades are under more dynamic evolutionary pressures and exhibit signals of adaptive evolution. This work highlights the complexity of multigene family evolution, revealing that multiple factors contribute to the diversification, stability, and dynamics of this gene family. Furthermore, we provide a resource for future detailed studies investigating the function of different P450s in economically important bee species.
Novel role of prostate cancer risk variant rs7247241 on PPP1R14A isoform transition through allelic TF binding and CpG methylation
Authors: Tian Yijun , Soupir Alex , Liu Qian , Wu Lang , Huang Chiang-Ching , Park Jong Y , Wang Liang
Published: November 2021

Although previous studies identified numerous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and their target genes predisposed to prostate cancer (PrCa) risks, SNP-related splicing associations are rarely reported. In this study, we applied distance-based sQTL analysis (sQTLseekeR) using RNA-seq and SNP genotype data from benign prostate tissue (n = 467) and identified significant associations in 3344 SNP-transcript pairs (P ≤ 0.05) at PrCa risk loci. We characterized a common SNP (rs7247241) and its target gene (PPP1R14A) located in chr19q13, an sQTL with risk allele T associated with upregulation of long isoform (P = 9.99E−7). We confirmed the associations in both TCGA (P = 2.42E−24) and GTEX prostate cohorts (P = 9.08E−78). To functionally characterize this SNP, we performed chromatin immunoprecipitation qPCR and confirmed stronger CTCF and PLAGL2 binding in rs7247241 C than T allele. We found that CTCF binding enrichment was negatively associated with methylation level at the SNP site in human cell lines (r = −0.58). Bisulfite sequencing showed consistent association of rs7247241-T allele with nearby sequence CpG hypermethylation in prostate cell lines and tissues. Moreover, the methylation level at CpG sites nearest to the CTCF binding and first exon splice-in (ψ) of PPP1R14A was significantly associated with aggressive phenotype in the TCGA PrCa cohort. Meanwhile, the long isoform of the gene also promoted cell proliferation. Taken together, with the most updated gene annotations, we reported a set of sQTL associated with multiple traits related to human prostate diseases and revealed a unique role of PrCa risk SNP rs7247241 on PPP1R14A isoform transition.
A random survey of the prevalence of falsified and substandard antibiotics in the Lao PDR
Authors: Tabernero Patricia , Swamidoss Isabel , Mayxay Mayfong , Khanthavong Maniphone , Phonlavong Chindaphone , Vilayhong Chanthala , Sichanh Chanvilay , Sengaloundeth Sivong , Green Michael D , Newton Paul N
Published: November 2021

Objectives

In 2012, a stratified random survey, using mystery shoppers, was conducted to investigate the availability and quality of antibiotics sold to patients in the private sector in five southern provinces of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Laos).

Methods

A total of 147 outlets were sampled in 10 districts. The active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) content measurements for 909 samples, including nine APIs (amoxicillin, ampicillin, ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, ofloxacin, sulfamethoxazole, tetracycline and trimethoprim), were determined using HPLC.

Results

All the analysed samples contained the stated API and we found no evidence for falsification. All except one sample had all the units tested with %API values between 75% and 125% of the content stated on the label. However, we identified the presence of substandard antibiotics: 19.6% (201/1025) of samples had their units outside the 90%–110% content of the label claim and 18.3% (188/1025) of the samples had units outside the International Pharmacopoeia/United States Pharmacopoeia assay (percentage of label claim) specifications. Trimethoprim had a high number of samples [51.6% (64)] with units below the limit range, followed by ceftriaxone [42.9% (3)] and sulfamethoxazole [34.7% (43)]. Doxycycline, ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin had the highest number of samples with high API content: 43.7% (38), 14.7% (10) and 11.8% (2), respectively. Significant differences in %API were found between stated countries of manufacture and stated manufacturers.

Conclusions

With the global threat of antimicrobial resistance on patient outcomes, greater understanding of the role of poor-quality antibiotics is needed. Substandard antibiotics will have reduced therapeutic efficacy, impacting public health and control of bacterial infections.
Toxicological Analysis of Cases of Mixed Poisonings with Synthetic Cathinones and Other Drugs of Abuse
Authors: Pieprzyca Ewelina , Skowronek Rafał , Czekaj Piotr
Published: November 2021

Some of the most commonly used new psychoactive substances (NPSs) are synthetic cathinones (SCs). The literature increasingly indicates that SCs have a significant addictive potential and pose a high risk to human health and life. The vast majority of SC users take a number of substances simultaneously. This article lists the detected concentrations in 26 fatal and 2 non-fatal real cases, in which SCs or an SC along with other substances were determined in blood and other biological materials. The following SCs were found most often: α-pyrrolidinohexiophenone, α-pyrrolidinopentiophenone, N-ethylpentedrone (NEP), 4-methyl-α-ethylaminopentiophenone and N-ethylhexedrone. In addition to detected SCs, the analyzed samples showed the presence of conventional drugs such as methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine, amphetamine and NPSs from groups other than SCs, such as synthetic cannabinoids (UR-144 and 5F-AMB), synthetic opioids (AH-7921, U-47700 and 4-fluorobutyrfentanyl) and others (desoxypipradrol and etizolam). The quantitative analyses were carried out by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS-MS). This study presents pioneering data on concentrations and effects of 4-ethylmethcathinone, NEP, N-ethylbuphedrone and mexedrone. Also noteworthy are the data on SCs that until now have rarely been described in the literature together with specified blood concentrations. The analyzed cases of taking SCs were associated with fatal intoxication (n = 26), driving under the influence of drugs (n = 2) and death caused by beating (n = 1). Taking SCs has serious side effects that can lead to multiple organ failure and death. The use of more than one psychoactive substance simultaneously (including at least one SC) contributes to increased SC toxicity. These data could be valuable for further interpretation of other results from toxicological analyses.