bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Firearm Deaths Impacting Older Adults
Authors: Price James H. , Payton Erica
Published: January 2025

Each year in the United States (U.S.) thousands of older adults die from firearm-related injuries. The purpose of this study was to characterize the similarities and differences in the three main forms of firearm mortality (homicides, suicides, and unintentional) in older adults. Using the Web-based Inquiry Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) for the year 2021 we conducted a descriptive analysis (e.g. frequencies, percents, crude rates, rank orders) by gender, race/ethnicity, age, and census region of the U.S. Older adult firearm-related homicides were most likely to occur in males (61.2%), non-Hispanic whites (61.9%), ages 65–69 (42.4%) and in the South (53.6%). Firearm-related suicides were most common in males (91.4%), non-Hispanic whites (93.5%), ages 65–69 and 70–74 (24.8 and 24.7%, respectively), and in the South (45.1%). Firearm suicides were 12 times more common than firearm homicides and 99 times more common than unintentional firearm-related deaths. Both firearm homicides and suicides decreased with age. Years of potential life lost before 80 paralleled the demographic mortality data, resulting in over 45,000 potential years of life lost in 2021. These findings underscore the need to focus primary prevention of firearm-related mortality in older adults on the role of suicides, especially in non-Hispanic white males. In addition, improving mental health care access for older adults and their social connections are essential elements of preventing firearm-related suicides.
Performance assessment of GIS-based spatial clustering methods in forest fire data
Authors: Memisoglu Baykal Tugba
Published: January 2025

Forest fires are a significant global issue, devastating large forest areas each year. Effective prevention and control are essential. Geographic Information System (GIS)-based spatial clustering methods are commonly used to manage forest fire risks. However, these methods rely on different mathematical foundations and parameters, resulting in varied hotspot maps. Consequently, areas identified as hotspots by one method may not be significant or may even be classified as cold spots by another. This study utilized forest fire data from 2021 and 2022 in Türkiye to conduct spatial clustering analyses using three methods: Getis Ord Gi*, Anselin Local Moran's I, and Kernel Density Estimation. The aim was to identify high-risk forest fire areas. The effectiveness of these methods was evaluated based on Hit Rate (HR), Predictive Accuracy Index (PAI), and Recapture Rate Index (RRI). The study concluded which method was most suitable for detecting risky forest fire areas in the region. This research fills a gap in the literature by providing a comparative performance evaluation of spatial clustering methods for forest fire risk assessment, offering valuable insights for future studies in this field.
Fast likelihood calculations for emerging epidemics
Authors: Ball Frank , Neal Peter
Published: January 2025

Statistical inference for epidemic outbreaks is often complicated by only partial observation of the epidemic process. Recently in Ball and Neal (Adv Appl Probab 55:895-926, 2023) the distribution of the number of infectives (individuals alive) given only the times of removals (death) in a Markovian SIR epidemic (time-inhomogeneous birth–death process) was derived. We show that this allows us to derive an explicit expression for the likelihood of the observed inter-removal times of the epidemic without recourse to data augmentation techniques. Moreover, the time-inhomogeneous birth–death process provides a good approximation for the SIR epidemic model for which we are able to obtain both, the exact likelihood of the inter-arrival death times, and a fast to compute Gaussian-based approximation of the likelihood. The explicit expressions for the likelihood enable us to reveal bi-modality in the likelihood of the ongoing Markovian SIR epidemic model and to devise scaleable MCMC algorithms which are applied to the emergence of the Covid-19 epidemic in Europe (March–May 2020).
Effect of Bond Hardness of Additively Manufactured Grinding Tool Bonds on Material Removal Efficiency during Single-Grain Cutting
Authors: Denkena Berend , Weißgärber Thomas , Studnitzky Thomas , Bergmann Benjamin , Strauß Alexander , Puls Lennart
Published: January 2025

In order to gain insight into the material removal mechanism of abrasive machining processes, single-grain cutting is a useful and widely adopted technique. In most of the works on this subject, the single abrasive grains are bonded to a substrate by soldering, electroplating or simple adhesive bonding. As a result, the grinding tool bond’s influence is largely neglected. This publication shows a new variant of single-grain cutting that makes it possible to quantify the influence of the bond on the material removal mechanism. Specimens with different bond hardness are prepared using a sintering-based additive printing process. In single-grain cutting experiments, the influence of the Rockwell hardness of different bond types on the material removal efficiency was investigated. Among other things, a reduction in the specific scratch energy by 40% and an increase in the grinding force ratio by 70% were found when using an iron-based bond with increased hardness, compared to a softer, steel-based bond. This is a result of an increased grain protrusion under load for the grains in the harder bonds which leads to an increased material removal efficiency.
Thickness and Uniformity of Commercial Aluminum Foils
Authors: Peralta L. , Campos A. I. , Rodrigues M. S.
Published: January 2025

There are several brands of aluminum foils for domestic use on the market. The vast majority do not provide consumers with any type of information about the characteristics of the film, in particular its thickness. In this work, we compare the thickness and non-uniformity thickness of aluminum foil on sale in the Portuguese market. The method used was the loss of energy of alpha particles as they passed through the foil. For all tested brands, the thickness value is approximately 11 µm. Regarding the non-uniformity thickness, we conclude that the standard deviation is of the order of 5% of the foil average thickness.
Citizen science and negotiating values in the ethical design of AI-based technologies targeting vulnerable individuals
Authors: Cenci Alessandra
Published: January 2025

Citizen science is the new mantra both in academic circles and the public discourse. While the citizen science ideal is conceptually broad, If and how it can be realized in fields often depicted as value free/value neutral—such as applied AI—is controversial. The practical challenges in generating ethical AI encapsulating the citizen science ideal are addressed by targeting scientific practices underlying the participatory design of an AI-based tracking app aimed at enhancing the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable citizens with dementia of a Danish municipality through the engagement of the local community. The focus is on the process of social value construction and its citizen science rationale: how design values have been debated, traded-off, and selected via participatory-deliberative methods and by engaging experts and non-expert stakeholders as citizen scientists. An emphasis is on the import of dialogic interaction for negotiating values in open conversations within diverse groups of interest. Deliberative procedures are beneficial to produce ethical AI embodying vital citizen science desiderata since users’/citizens' values, needs, and expectations are fulfilled while technical-efficiency standards are also met. The result is a public methodology for designing ethical AI that better expresses the true spirit of citizen science in liberal democracies (value-laden, pluralistic, inter-disciplinary, inclusive, participatory, cooperative, solidarity-oriented). Hence, trust and acceptance of the AI generated, even of contentious “surveillance” technologies, is enhanced since the digital innovation can be perceived as truly citizens-/humans-centred and society-oriented.
Gauge Theory and the Geometrisation of Physics
Authors: Gomes Henrique De Andrade
Published: January 2025

This Element is broadly about the geometrization of physics, but mostly it is about gauge theories. Gauge theories lie at the heart of modern physics: in particular, they constitute the Standard Model of particle physics. At its simplest, the idea of gauge is that nature is best described using a descriptively redundant language; the different descriptions are said to be related by a gauge symmetry. The over-arching question this Element aims to answer is: why is descriptive redundancy fruitful for physics? I will provide three inter-related answers to the question: ``Why gauge theory?'', that is: why introduce redundancies in our models of nature in the first place? The first is pragmatic, or methodological; the second is based on geometrical considerations, and the third is broadly relational.
Probability and Inductive Logic
Authors: Eagle Antony
Published: January 2025

Reasoning from inconclusive evidence, or 'induction', is central to science and any applications we make of it. For that reason alone it demands the attention of philosophers of science. This element explores the prospects of using probability theory to provide an inductive logic: a framework for representing evidential support. Constraints on the ideal evaluation of hypotheses suggest that the overall standing of a hypothesis is represented by its probability in light of the total evidence, and incremental support, or confirmation, indicated by the hypothesis having a higher probability conditional on some evidence than it does unconditionally. This proposal is shown to have the capacity to reconstruct many canons of the scientific method and inductive inference. Along the way, significant objections are discussed, such as the challenge of inductive scepticism, and the objection that the probabilistic approach makes evidential support arbitrary.
Mobile Manuscripts
Authors: Bahl Christopher D.
Published: January 2025

In this essential new work, Christopher D. Bahl departs from the established historiography on trade, shipping, and pilgrimage to argue for the emergence of Arabic learning as a crucial form of transoceanic mobility from the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries. From Egypt to the Hijaz, Yemen and further on to Gujarat and the Deccan, networks of manuscript circulation created shared social and cultural spaces across the early modern western Indian Ocean, in which South Asia was a key node of connection. Largely unstudied Arabic manuscripts from collections in eight different archives offer a new source base to explore the region as a hub of Arabic scholarly culture, while marginalia and notes provide an empirical treasure trove for the study of social spaces and cultural practices. This is the first book to trace these truly transoceanic encounters between scholars, sultans, scribes, readers, and librarians.
The Making of Leaderful Mobilization
Authors: Cheng Edmund W. , Yuen Samson
Published: January 2025

The past few decades saw the transformation of Hong Kong from a liberal enclave to a revolutionary crucible at China's offshore. The Making of Leaderful Mobilization takes you through the evolution of protests in this restive city, where ordinary citizens gradually emerged as the protagonists of contention in place of social movement organizations. The book presents a theory of mediated threat that illuminates how threat perceptions fueled shifting forms of mobilization – from brokered mobilization where organizations played guiding roles to leaderful mobilization driven by peer collaboration among the masses. Bringing together event analysis, opinion polls, interviews, and social media data, this book provides a thorough and methodical anatomy of Hong Kong's contentious politics. It unveils the processes and mechanisms of collective action that likely prevailed in many contemporary social movements worldwide. Our temporal approach also uncovers the multiple pathways reshaping hybrid regimes, underscoring their resilience and fragility.
Constructing Experience
Authors: Clarke Jason
Published: January 2025

This Element examines the influence of expectation and attention on conscious perception. It explores the debate on whether attention is necessary for conscious perception by presenting empirical evidence from studies on inattentional blindness, change blindness, and the attentional blink. While the evidence strongly suggests that attention is necessary for conscious perception, other research has shown that expectation can shape perception, sometimes leading to illusory experiences where predicted stimuli are perceived despite their absence. This phenomenon, termed 'expectation awareness', suggests that attention may not be necessary for all conscious experiences. These findings are explored within the predictive processing framework, where the brain is characterized as a prediction engine, continuously updating its internal models to minimize prediction errors. Integrating findings from psychology, neuroscience, and cognitive science, this Element provides a predictive processing model of how attention and expectation construct perceptual reality. It also discusses clinical and theoretical implications and suggests future research.
Complete verification of strong BSD for many modular abelian surfaces over
${\mathbf {Q}}$
Authors: Keller Timo , Stoll Michael
Published: January 2025

We develop the theory and algorithms necessary to be able to verify the strong Birch–Swinnerton-Dyer Conjecture for absolutely simple modular abelian varieties over
${\mathbf {Q}}$
. We apply our methods to all 28 Atkin–Lehner quotients of
$X_0(N)$
of genus
$2$
, all 97 genus
$2$
curves from the LMFDB whose Jacobian is of this type and six further curves originally found by Wang. We are able to verify the strong BSD Conjecture unconditionally and exactly in all these cases; this is the first time that strong BSD has been confirmed for absolutely simple abelian varieties of dimension at least
$2$
. We also give an example where we verify that the order of the Tate–Shafarevich group is
$7^2$
and agrees with the order predicted by the BSD Conjecture.
A presentation of the torus-equivariant quantum K-theory ring of flag manifolds of type A, Part II: quantum double Grothendieck polynomials
Authors: Maeno Toshiaki , Naito Satoshi , Sagaki Daisuke
Published: January 2025

In our previous paper, we gave a presentation of the torus-equivariant quantum K-theory ring
$QK_{H}(Fl_{n+1})$
of the (full) flag manifold
$Fl_{n+1}$
of type
$A_{n}$
as a quotient of a polynomial ring by an explicit ideal. In this paper, we prove that quantum double Grothendieck polynomials, introduced by Lenart-Maeno, represent the corresponding (opposite) Schubert classes in the quantum K-theory ring
$QK_{H}(Fl_{n+1})$
under this presentation. The main ingredient in our proof is an explicit formula expressing the semi-infinite Schubert class associated to the longest element of the finite Weyl group, which is proved by making use of the general Chevalley formula for the torus-equivariant K-group of the semi-infinite flag manifold associated to
$SL_{n+1}(\mathbb {C})$
.
Laminar flow over I-shaped dual-step cylinders
Authors: Tian Cai , Zhu Jianxun , Andersson Helge I. , Pettersen Bjørnar , Holmedal Lars Erik
Published: January 2025

The three-dimensional flow field past an I-shaped dual-step cylinder has been obtained by numerical integration of the Navier–Stokes equations at Reynolds number (

$Re_D$

) 150. The I-shaped cylinder consisted of two large-diameter (D) cylinders with a small-diameter (d) cylinder in between. With a view to exploring the vortex dynamics and structural loads, simulations were performed for eight different lengths

$l$

of the small cylinder, varied from

$l/D=10$

to 0.2 for a fixed diameter ratio

$D/d=2$

. When the length of the small cylinder is sufficiently large, the wake behind the I-shaped cylinder is similar to the wake behind the single-step cylinder (Tian et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 891, 2020, A24). As the small cylinder length decreases, the enhanced interactions between the two steps make the present wake deviate from the wake of the single-step cylinder, leading to four different wake modes distinguished by different combinations of vortex cells. The physical formation mechanisms were analysed in terms of the vortex dynamics. Besides the wake flow, the streamwise vortices around the I-shaped step cylinder were also investigated. A pair of edge vortices and a junction vortex were identified for

$l/D \geq ~1$

. When the gap between the two steps becomes too small,

$l/D \leq ~0.2$

, the junction vortex disappears, and only a pair of edge vortices exists. Varying the distance between the two steps strongly affects the structural loads (drag and lift) along the I-shaped cylinder. The dependence of the loads on

$l/D$

was readily explained by the different wake modes.
On the use of simplified geometries to represent turbulent flow over coral reefs
Authors: Hamilton J.F. , Kelley B.Z. , Monismith S.G. , Koseff J.R.
Published: January 2025

Hydrodynamic consequences of using simpler geometric shapes to represent coral canopies are examined through a laboratory study. A canopy composed of cylinders is compared with a canopy composed of 3-D-printed, scaled down coral heads in a recirculating flume. Vertical velocity profiles are measured at four horizontal locations for each canopy type, and mean velocity and turbulence statistics are compared both within and above the canopy. A narrow, defined wake on the scale of the canopy element is present behind the cylinder canopy elements that is absent in the coral canopy. There is also a peak in shear stress at the top of the cylinder canopy, likely due to the sharp edge at the top of the cylinder. Above the canopy, however, turbulence statistics and friction velocities behave similarly for both canopy types. Therefore, the results indicate we may reasonably get coral reef drag estimates from canopies with simpler geometric surrogates, especially when the mean free-stream and within-canopy flow speeds are matched to environmental conditions.
Visualizing map data for linguistics using ggplot2: A tutorial with examples from dialectology and typology
Authors: Roemling Dana , Winter Bodo , Grieve Jack
Published: January 2025

Maps are important in many areas of linguistics, especially dialectology, sociolinguistics, typology, and historical linguistics, including for visualizing regional patterns in the distribution of linguistic features and varieties of language. In this hands-on tutorial, we introduce map making for linguistics using R and the popular package ggplot2. We walk the reader through the process of making maps using both typological data, based on the World Atlas of Language Structures, and dialect data, based on large corpora of language data collected from German and American social media platforms. This tutorial is intended to be of use to anyone interested in making maps of linguistic data, and more widely to anyone wanting to learn about mapping in R.
The Soul (Put to Work) in Medicine: A Response to Arthur Kleinman
Authors: Moyse Ashley John , Mason Jordan Ashley
Published: January 2025

In his 2019 essay, Arthur Kleinman laments that medicine has become ever-competent at managing illness, yet caring for those who are ill is increasingly out of practice. He opines that the language of ‘the soul’ is helpful to those practicing medicine, as it provides an important counterbalance to medicine’s technical rationality that avoids the existential and spiritual domains of human life. His accusation that medicine has become soulless merits considering, yet we believe his is the wrong description of contemporary medicine. Where medicine is disciplined by technological and informational rationalities that risk coercing attention away from corporealities and toward an impersonal, digital order, the resulting practices expose medicine to becoming not soulless but excarnated. Here we engage Kleinman in conversation with Franco Berardi, Charles Taylor, and others to ask: Have we left behind the body for senseless purposes? Perhaps medicine is not proving itself to be soulless, but rather senseless, bodyless – the any-occupation of excarnated souls. If so, the dissension of excarnation and the recovery of touching purpose seems to us to be an apparent need within the contemporary and increasingly digitally managed and informationally ordered medical milieu.
A comprehensive bibliographic study on mental illness
Authors: Ding Yuanzhao , Chen Shan
Published: January 2025

This study presents a comprehensive analysis of recent mental illness research by utilizing an advanced bibliographic method capable of analyzing up to 12,965 papers indexed in the Web of Science database, overcoming the limitations of traditional tools like VOSviewer, which typically analyze fewer than 1,000 papers. By examining a vast dataset, this study identifies key trends, significant keywords, and prominent contributors, including leading researchers, universities, and countries/regions, in the field of mental illness research. Additionally, the study highlights eight major contributors to mental health problems, offering critical insights into the field’s current state. The findings underscore the importance of advanced bibliographic methods in providing a more detailed and accurate overview of mental illness research. This analysis not only enhances the understanding of young scholars entering the field but also uncovers significant trends and identifies notable gaps in the literature. The study advocates for continued innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration to deepen understanding and address unresolved challenges in mental health research.
Pleistocene aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrow traces on South Africa’s Cape coast
Authors: Helm Charles W. , Carr Andrew S. , Cawthra Hayley C. , De Vynck Jan C. , Dixon Mark G. , Gräbe Pieter-Jan , Rust Renée , Stear Willo
Published: January 2025

The aardvark (Oryecteropus afer) is a fossorial species with a widespread distribution across sub-Saharan Africa. It leaves distinctive tracks and traces of its presence, including large burrows. However, despite a substantial body fossil record, few trace fossils registered by aardvarks have been described. Its distribution range in southern Africa during historic and prehistoric times was probably broadly similar to that of today, with the addition of the currently submerged Palaeo-Agulhas Plain during much of the Pleistocene. Five new trace fossil sites have been identified in Pleistocene aeolianites on the Cape coast and are here interpreted with varying degrees of confidence as large burrows that were made by aardvarks. In addition, a possible aardvark tracksite has been identified. Together these add to the sparse paleoichnological evidence of aardvarks and add to the global ichnological record of large vertebrate burrows. While at this point the evidence does not warrant the proposal of new ichnotaxa, the findings may act to spur further identification of fossilized traces of aardvarks and other fossorial species on the Cape coast and beyond.
What Do Senate Committees Tell Us About the Post-2016 Senate?
Authors: de Paiva David , Malloy Jonathan
Published: January 2025

The rarely examined committees of the Senate of Canada offer interesting insights into the Senate as a whole, particularly following the 2016 reforms to the institution. While discussion of House of Commons committees often emphasizes them as separate and different from the larger chamber, Senate committees mirror the dynamics of the overall Senate; looking at them tells us a lot about the Senate itself. Through qualitative research and in-depth interviews about committees with senators, this article finds both contrast and continuity in the Senate and its committees.
Fratricidal Coercion in Modern War
Authors: Lyall Jason , Zhukov Yuri
Published: January 2025

Armies sometimes use fratricidal coercion—violence and intimidation against their own troops—to force reluctant soldiers to fight. How this practice affects battlefield performance remains an open question. We study fratricidal coercion using a mixed-methods strategy, drawing on (1) monthly panel data on Soviet Rifle Divisions in World War II, built from millions of declassified personnel files; (2) paired comparisons of Rifle Divisions at the Battle of Leningrad; and (3) cross-national data on 526 land battles and war outcomes from 75 conflicts (1939–2011) to assess generalizability. We offer three sets of empirical findings. First, coercion keeps some soldiers from fleeing the battlefield, but at the cost of higher casualties and reduced initiative. Second, wartime and prewar coercion (such as mass repression and officer purges) affect soldiers’ behavior in similar, mutually reinforcing ways. Third, the resolve-boosting, initiative-dampening effects of fratricidal coercion generalize across belligerents and wars. Fratricidal coercion generates compliance through fear, compelling soldiers with variable levels of resolve to conform to a uniform standard of battlefield behavior. But the net utility of this approach is dubious. On balance, countries employing fratricidal coercion are less likely to win wars.
Reproductive biology of the sea cucumber Holothuria arguinensis (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea) and its relationship with the environment in the coastal waters of Morocco
Authors: Haddi Imane , Belhsen Oumkeltoum , Siddique Saima , Benzha Fatiha , Benazzouz Aïssa , Rezzoum Noreddine , Zidane Hakima
Published: January 2025

This study investigates the reproductive biology of Holothuria arguinensis over one year (December 2016 to December 2017) from two locations on the Atlantic coast of Morocco: Skhirat (North Atlantic) and Souiria K'dima (Central Atlantic), including the sex ratio, size at sexual maturity, and reproductive cycle. Monthly sampling was carried out, along with the collection of environmental and biometric data at each site. The sex ratio did not differ significantly from 1:1 at either study site. The gonadosomatic index (GSI) reached its peak during spring (April and May) for both sexes, and the spawning period was observed from summer to autumn (June–October) at both locations, suggest annual spawning. GSI was correlated with increasing or high chlorophyll-a concentrations, salinity, and spawning with rainfall periods. The estimated size at sexual maturity was 15.9 cm body length, 189.1 g total body weight, and 92.5 g gutted body weight. The minimum mean oocyte diameter was recorded during the recovery stage (31 ± 11 μm (mean ± SD) at Skhirat and 34 ± 23 μm (mean ± SD) at Souiria K'dima), while the highest values were observed in the partial spawning stage (112 ± 27 μm (mean ± SD) at Skhirat and 104 ± 19 μm (mean ± SD) at Souiria K'dima). This study highlights the need for further research to expand our knowledge of the biological and ecological characteristics of H. arguinensis populations, to facilitate the cultivation of juveniles in captivity, and to develop fishing regulations based on scientific findings. As a fishery management strategy, we suggest a closed season from April to October to protect the reproductive period of H. arguinensis on the Moroccan coast.
The French Bataclan Trial as a judicial experiment: What lessons for the prosecution of mass crimes?
Authors: Weill Sharon , Lefranc Sandrine
Published: January 2025

Although criminal trials are primarily designed to repress individual acts, a new role has emerged in the era of French jihadist trials. They have transformed into a ‘forum’ giving voice to different actors to comprehend the phenomenon in all its complexity, as in truth commissions: defendants presented their path to radicalization, victims related their trauma, experts situated jihadism in a socio-political context, and security forces disclosed their work. Aligned with forms of justice, which seeks to return control ‘stolen’ by professionals to the parties involved, they also place significant emphasis on emotions, in contrast to the cold, impersonal authority of conventional law, which relies on legal rhetoric, justified to maintain neutrality and impartiality.

Employing an ethnographic approach, we examine this trial as an experiment that challenges the way justice is administered after mass violence. Our premise is that this judicial experiment can propose a new paradigm for the prosecution of mass crimes, in line with contemporary new mechanisms that more effectively incorporate restorative objectives. It could serve as inspiration for procedures in international courts by attributing space to the direct participation of both the victims and the defendants, basing the procedure on narrative rather than strict legalistic rules, and engaging with social science expertise.
The exclusive making of space law
Authors: van Eijk Cris
Published: January 2025

The commons are defined by non-excludability – the idea that none can exclude another from access or use. Likewise, space lawyers portray their discipline’s origin story as uniquely egalitarian and inclusive, in part because of how it was made. The 1963 Principles Declaration and 1967 Outer Space Treaty were drafted by a committee of 28 states that decided by consensus – the first permanent UN body to do so. They worked in the midst of significant colonial and Cold War tensions to form a body of law which implicated the interests of every state. This article argues that the lawmaking which made space ‘common’ was made possible by excluding the Third World. It uses historical sources from 18 archives to shed new light on the process of making space law from 1957 to 1967. Based on this, it explores various factors, from UN documentation practices to American racial segregation, that cumulatively prevented Third World representatives from meaningful participation in space lawmaking. These factors had broad impacts on the drafting committee’s membership, attendance, decision-making procedure, and final products. By seeking to understand this ‘small history’ of a niche field at a specific historical moment, this article also adds to ongoing work that questions the axioms by which international lawyers interpret treaties today.
Global climate change and seasonal variation of cellulitis in hospitalized children: a 30 year retrospective study
Authors: Megged Orli , Raphael Allon , Burstyn Amalia , Deri Noy , Schwartz Shepard , Eisenberg Rachel , Toker Ori
Published: January 2025

Cellulitis, a common subcutaneous infection, is influenced by host, pathogen, and environmental factors. Previous studies have shown seasonal patterns in adult cellulitis, suggesting temperature as a risk factor. This study investigated seasonal patterns in paediatric cellulitis in Jerusalem’s semi-arid climate. A single-center retrospective cohort study reviewed medical records of 2,219 hospitalized children under 18 with cellulitis between 1990 and 2020. Demographic, clinical, temperature, and humidity data were collected. Results revealed a significant sinusoidal pattern for limb cellulitis (LC) but for other body sites, with summer peaks and winter nadirs (P < 0.01). August showed the highest incidence, tripling that of February. Age groups 1-6 and 6-12 demonstrated the largest seasonal differences (P = 0.004, P = 0.008). Over three decades, paediatric hospitalized LC cases increased by 71% (P < 0.001), correlating with rising temperatures. Elevated ambient temperature seven days prior to diagnosis was a risk factor for LC development (OR = 1.02, P = 0.03). This study highlights the cyclic seasonal pattern of paediatric LC, peaking in summer. The significant increase in cases over time, coupled with rising temperatures, suggests climate change as a contributing factor. These findings could inform public health strategies for cellulitis prevention and management in children.
Performance and functional assessment of the Kimera P-IV point-of-care plasmonic qPCR prototype for ultra rapid pathogen detection of chlamydia trachomatis
Authors: Hayes Joshua , Lee Seung Soo , Carnevale Jason , Shamir Daniel , Bohbot Marc , Kirk Andrew G. , Paliouras Miltiadis , Trifiro Mark A.
Published: January 2025

Current standard microbiological techniques are generally very time consuming, usually requiring 24–72 h to establish a diagnosis. Consequentially, contemporary clinical practices implement broad-spectrum antibiotic administration prior to pathogen detection, prompting the emergence of extremely dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Additionally, lengthy test-to-result turnover times can greatly exacerbate the rate of disease spread. Rapid point-of-care (POC) diagnostics has quickly gained importance since the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic; accordingly, we have developed a rapid four-channel POC plasmonic quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) machine (Kimera P-IV) to respond to the deficiencies in infection control. Utilizing gold nanorods (GNRs) as nano-heaters and integrating vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL) to replace traditional Peltier blocks, the Kimera P-IV has also incorporated quantitative real-time fluorescent monitoring. Using Chlamydia trachomatis genetic material to evaluate the rapid thermocycling performance of the platform, we have generated positive amplicons in less than 13 min; however, to achieve these results, several biological reagent considerations needed to be taken into account, specifically primer design. The device can achieve a limit of detection (LoD) of <101 DNA copies, a PCR efficiency of 88.3%, and can differentiate positive from negative results with 100% accuracy. Moreover, it can also analyze C. trachomatis DNA spiked urine samples via a simple dilution, suggesting that a separate nucleic acid step may not be needed for diagnosing infections. In conclusion, the operation of the Kimera P-IV prototype places it in a unique position of POC devices to revolutionize infectious disease diagnosis.
Percutaneous permeabilisation with electrosurgery of intrahepatic inferior vena cava agenesis in a 12-year-old boy
Authors: Figueras-Coll Marc , Sabidó-Sánchez Laura , Betrián-Blasco Pedro
Published: January 2025

We describe a 12-year-old boy with agenesis of the intrahepatic segment of the inferior vena cava (a rare congenital anomaly) in whom an electrified coronary guidewire with electrocautery was used percutaneously to perforate and open the atretic segment, followed by stent implantation. This technique may be a safe and feasible option for paediatric patients, offering a therapeutic alternative for complex cardiac anatomies.
The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education: The Case of Armenia
Authors: Atoyan Vardan , Brosius Logan , Movsisyan Nane , Ohanyan Sofya , Hovyan Vahram
Published: January 2025

Artificial intelligence in higher education has expanded worldwide with the growth of AI technologies. The emergent applications of artificial intelligence in higher education (AIEd) in course preparation, delivery, and administration as well as in learning assistants and prediction for the sake of learners are widely considered important innovations that can change education worldwide. The Armenian case was examined via a survey that was conducted at the country’s leading universities to investigate whether and how faculty use AIEd. Although the results indicate that many Armenian teaching faculty use AIEd in narrow capacities and acknowledge the potential usefulness of AIEd in the practical administration of Armenia’s higher education, the use of AIEd is not deep.
MDMA-assisted therapy: challenges, clinical trials, and the future of MDMA in treating behavioral disorders
Authors: O’Brien Steve , Nutt David
Published: January 2025

This chapter explores the complex and controversial path of MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other behavioral disorders. It covers MDMA’s history from research to recreation to medicine, the pivotal trials, and the challenges faced by researchers. Despite recent setbacks for the clinical application of MDMA, the chapter argues that it holds potential for transforming psychiatry and discusses the uncertain future amidst ongoing debates over ethics, methodology, and political influence.
Challenges from the field: experiences of first-year hemp farmers in Nebraska
Authors: Caldwell Jason , Colclasure Blake C. , Granberry Tyler
Published: January 2025

Despite its recent history as a controlled substance, hemp holds promise in contributing to more resilient and sustainable agricultural systems in the United States. Due to reclassification in the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp grown for fiber, grain, and cannabidiol has become an intriguing new crop for many farmers. However, the introduction of hemp into an established agricultural landscape has been met with challenges. This qualitative study explores the experiences of 15 first-year hemp producers in Nebraska, United States. The producers in this study describe the complexities they encountered, including navigating stringent state and federal regulations, securing insurance and loans, and overcoming the public and political stigma associated with cannabis. Additionally, gaps in research and development have contributed to producers' difficulties in accessing credible information, high production costs, and labor shortages. Lastly, farmers expressed having a lack of control options to combat the presence of weeds and insects. Based on these findings, we conclude that, although challenges are to be expected with any new crop, many of the issues encountered by the farmers in the study could be overcome or lessened by research, agricultural extension, and government support. We recommend continued research in hemp production, both in crop production and processing, along with dissemination of meaningful results, to aid producers in building their knowledge base. Additionally, government agencies that oversee hemp production could improve accessibility through revisions to regulations and financial resources for producers.
Assessment of nonchemical weed management of windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) nursery
Authors: Inci Deniz , Uludağ Ahmet , Al-Khatib Kassim
Published: January 2025

The windmill palm is a distinctive outdoor ornamental palm adapted to cooler climates. Weeds pose significant challenges in palm nurseries, particularly during seedling and establishment stages. This research was conducted in a nursery with 5,500 windmill palm seedlings, starting in April 2014 when the palm trees were three years old. Experiments were terminated in October 2018 when weed control was no longer necessary due to the advanced growth stages of the palm trees. The objectives were to determine the weed composition and diversity, elucidate the effects of mechanical weed management (MWM) on growth rate of palm, and develop a sustainable program to maximize palm tree growth through effective weed management and soil tillage. Owing to the lack of registered nursery herbicides in Türkiye, weed control was performed mechanically using garden hoeing machines between rows and hand hoeing for intra-row strips. The most common and dense weeds were purple nutsedge, annual mercury, and common purslane in summer-autumn, and burning nettle in winter-spring. In 2014, weed densities were 100, 127, and 145 weeds m–2 for MWM, hand-weeding (HW), and nontreated (NT), respectively. Transplanted palm seedlings required at least two, ideally three growing seasons of intensive weed control until the palm tree crowns block sunlight and suppress weed growth. The research indicated palm trees in the MWM treatment had approximately 84 leaves and a height of 210 cm by October 2018, compared to 54 leaves and 136 cm for HW, and 40 leaves and 100 cm for NT. These results highlight the critical role of MWM in promoting optimal growth of Chinese windmill palms. Effective and sustainable weed management, combining MWM and HW, is essential for producing high-quality palm trees, which are valuable insights for nursery managers and contribute to best practices for cultivating windmill palm trees in similar climatic regions.
Seasonal Variation and Key Controls of Groundwater Ammonium Concentrations in Hypoxic/Anoxic Riparian Sediments
Authors: Sena Matthew G. , Peipoch Marc , Joshi Bisesh , Rahman Md. Moklesur , Peck Erin , Gold Arthur J. , Kan Jinjun , Inamdar Shreeram
Published: January 2025

The seasonal controls of hydrology, temperature, hypoxia, and biogeochemical conditions for groundwater ammonium–N (NH4+) concentrations are not well understood. Here we investigated these controls for riparian groundwaters located upstream of two milldams over a period of 4 years. Groundwater chemistry was sampled monthly while groundwater elevations, hydraulic gradients, and temperatures were recorded sub‐hourly. Distinct seasonal patterns for NH4+ were observed which differed among the wells. For wells that displayed a strong seasonal pattern, NH4+ concentrations increased through the summer and peaked in October–November. These elevated concentrations were attributed to ammonification, suppression of nitrification, and/or dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA). These processes were driven by high groundwater temperatures, low hydraulic gradients (or long residence times), hypoxic/anoxic groundwater conditions, and increased availability of dissolved organic carbon as an electron donor. In contrast, NH4+ concentrations decreased in the riparian groundwater from January to April during cool and wet conditions. A groundwater well with elevated total dissolved iron (TdFe) concentrations had elevated NH4+ concentrations but displayed a muted seasonal response. In addition to hydrologic controls, we attributed this response to additional NH4+ contribution from Fe‐driven autotrophic DNRA and/or ammonification linked to dissimilatory Fe reduction. Understanding the temporal patterns and factors controlling NH4+ in riparian groundwaters is important for making appropriate watershed management decisions and implementing appropriate best management practices.
Mooring Observation and Numerical Simulation of the Oblique Wave‐Wave Interactions in the Andaman Sea
Authors: Yang Yunchao , Huang Xiaodong , Huang Siwei , Zhao Wei , Guo Jingsong , Sangmanee Chalermrat , Zhou Chun , Tian Jiwei
Published: January 2025

Internal solitary waves (ISWs) typically exhibit a strong tendency to preserve their waveforms and amplitudes upon collision, but this preservation breaks down when two ISWs obliquely interact. Although oblique wave‐wave interactions have been frequently observed in the oceans worldwide and studied extensively through theoretical research and satellite imagery, the fundamental underwater dynamics and spatiotemporal evolution of these interactions remain poorly understood. This study presents a detailed investigation of oblique ISW interactions in the southern Andaman Sea, integrating long‐term in situ mooring data with high‐resolution 3D numerical simulations. The observations show that when two ISW packets interact obliquely, they merge into a new, chaotic waveform with significant disruption to the horizontal velocity field. The resulting merged ISW is asymmetric, narrow, and steep, exhibiting a particular velocity structure with enhanced current shears. It is worth noting that the amplitude (energy) of the merged ISW is approximately 25% (79%) larger than the combined amplitude of the two incident ISWs, highlighting the strong nonlinearity that has been long proposed by previous theoretical studies. Theoretical analyses suggest that the observed interaction is strong and non‐phase‐conserving, and the resulting merged ISW is a part of an evolving Mach stem. Additionally, model simulations indicate that ISWs originating from three distinct source regions interact in multiple ways, each producing unique variations in crest patterns and wave intensity, which is far more complex than earlier theoretical predictions. This study underscores the critical role of oblique wave‐wave interactions in altering the 3D characteristics of ISWs, including both their underwater dynamics and along‐crest variability.
Shoreline Seasonality of California's Beaches
Authors: Warrick Jonathan A. , Buscombe Daniel , Vos Kilian , Kenyon Hannah , Ritchie Andy C. , Harley Mitchell D. , Janda Catherine , L’Heureux Jess , Vitousek Sean
Published: January 2025

We report on remote sensing techniques developed to characterize seasonal shoreline cycles from satellite‐derived shoreline measurements. These techniques are applied to 22‐yr of shoreline measurements for over 777 km of beach along California's 1,700‐km coast, for which the general understanding is that shorelines exhibit winter‐narrow and summer‐recovery seasonality. We find that approximately 90% of beach transects exhibit significant and recurring seasonal cycles in the shoreline position. Seasonal shoreline excursions are twice as large in northern and central California (17.5–32.2 m) than southern California (7.3–15.9 m; interquartile ranges). Clustering analyses were effective at characterizing the temporal patterns of the seasonality, revealing that ∼459 km of beach (59%) exhibit winter‐narrow conditions, whereas ∼189 km (24%) and ∼50 km (6.4%) exhibit spring‐narrow and summer‐narrow conditions, respectively. These spring‐ and summer‐narrow conditions are most common in southern California, where they represent over half of the total length of beach shoreline. Multivariate analyses reveal that wave climate and geomorphic setting are significantly related to the magnitude and timing of shoreline seasonal cycles. Combinations of these variables explain 44% of the seasonality variance of the complete data set and 85% of the variance for a subset of 93 long (>1 km) continuous beaches. We conclude that diversity in waves and geomorphic setting along California cause a broad range of seasonal patterns in the shoreline. Combined, this indicates that the overly generalized “winter‐narrow/summer‐recovery” conventions for California beaches are not expressed universally and that shoreline seasonality is far more diverse than these simple canonical rules.
A Comprehensive Framework for Evaluation of Skeletonization Impacts on Urban Drainage Network Model Simulations
Authors: Ji Yiran , Zheng Feifei , Yang Yongfei , Shuai Jia , Huang Yuan , Kapelan Zoran , Savic Dragan
Published: January 2025

Urban drainage network models (UDNMs) have been widely used to facilitate flood management. Typically, a UDNM is developed using data from Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and hence it consists of many short pipes and connection nodes or manholes. To improve modeling efficiency, a GIS‐based model is generally skeletonized by removing many elements. However, there has been surprisingly a lack of knowledge on to what extent such skeletonization can affect the model's simulation accuracy, resulting in uncertainty in flood risk estimation. This paper makes the first attempt to quantitatively evaluate multidimensional impacts of different skeletonization levels on hydraulic properties of UDNMs. This goal is achieved by a new evaluation framework comprising of eight existing and new metrics that make use of hydrographs, main pipe hydraulics and flood distribution properties. A real‐life UDNM is used to illustrate the new framework under various rainfall conditions and different skeletonization levels. The new framework is also used to compare the performance of two compensation methods in mitigating impacts caused by model skeletonization. Results obtained show that: (a) model skeletonization can significantly affect the magnitude of peak flow at the outfall, with a maximum overestimation of up to 20%, (b) hydraulics in main pipes can also be affected by model skeletonization with the maximum flow increasing up to 35%, and (c) model skeletonization may significantly alter the flood distribution properties which has been largely ignored in past studies. These findings provide guidance for UDNM skeletonization, where their associated impacts should be aware in engineering practice.
Tracing Metals from Earth to Water to Life in the Yellow River
Authors: Scharping Nathaniel
Published: January 2025

The mix of metals in China’s Yellow River stays relatively similar as it moves from the upper continental crust to biological life.