bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Study of Evaluation of Kenanga Road Drainage Channels, Karang Anyar Region, Tarakan City
Authors: Handayani Rosmalia , Rahmad Muhammad
Published: October 2022

Tarakan City is one of the developing areas in North Kalimantan Province. As an effort to increase development and economic development of Tarakan City. Jalan Kenanga Karang Anyar is a road segment in Tarakan City that is still experiencing inundation due to drainage channels that are unable to accommodate or drain excess surface water. The purpose of this study was to determine the capacity of the Kenanga Karang Anyar road drainage channel, Tarakan City. In this study, the calculation of maximum rainfall data is used, for the calculation of discharge and flow velocity using the Manning formula. Based on the calculation results, it is obtained that the design discharge is 7.436 m3/second with the dimensions of the design channel, the bottom width (B) = 1.68 m, the channel height (H) = 2.30 m with the water height (hair) = 1.45 m. For the existing channel, bottom width (B) = 0.63 m, channel height (H) = 0.45 m with water height (hair) = 0.45 m, when there is a flood, the existing channel is unable to accommodate the existing water discharge.
Utilization of village potential data to determine the sustainability status of village development in Riau Province, Indonesia
Authors: Hariyanti Fitri , Indasari Bekti
Published: October 2022

Rural areas are still relatively lagging behind urban areas in many aspects. To overcome the problem of underdevelopment is through village development. Village potential data in 2018 can be analyzed to know and determine the sustainability status of village development through a five-dimensional approach (economy, social, environment, institution, and technology). This analysis used the Rapid Assessment Technique for Fisheries (RAPFISH) approach to assess the sustainability level of village development. The Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS) technique was conducted by this approach. The sensitivity analysis (leverage analysis) also needed out to decide variables that significantly influence sustainability. The results of the RAPFISH analysis showed that there were differences in the pattern of sustainability between regencies and cities, with the value of the sustainability index between regencies/cities between 47.50 to 64.14. Of the 12 regencies/cities, 2 regencies (Kuantan Singingi and Meranti Islands) are included in the same category, named less sustainable. The leverage analysis showed that 25 sensitive variables affect sustainability. To improve its sustainability, it is recommended for districts to manage sensitive variables of environmental dimensions while for cities it is necessary to increase the institutional dimension.
Characteristics of Nanochitosan from Soft Shell Crab Culture Waste in TarakanUsing The Ionic Gelation Method
Authors: Luthfiyana Novi , Bija Stephanie , Anwar Effionora , Laksmitawati Dian Ratih , Nugraeni Christine Dyta , Nusaibah  , Mutmaina
Published: October 2022

Crab that is undergoing a molting process produces solid waste in the form of shells that can disturb the environment. One of the appropriate technologies that can be utilized in dealing with this waste is the manufacture of nanochitosan. The purpose of this study was to obtain nano-sized chitosan from soft shell crab culture waste by determining the quality of chitosan through analysis of water content, ash, nitrogen, Fourier Transform InfraRed (FTIR) and Particle Size Analyzer (PSA). The material used in this research is crab shells from soft shell crab culture waste. The method used in this research is descriptive quantitative. The results showed that the yield of chitosan produced was 4.67%. The quality of chitosan produced showed 8% water content, 1.5% ash and 4.83% nitrogen. In the FTIR spectra of nanochitosan powder, peaks appear which confirm the bond in chitosan, while in nanochitosan gel it is dominated by the absorption band of H-O which indicates the presence of water as a solvent. The value of the degree of deacetylation of the chitosan nanoparticles produced was 78.43%. The particle size of chitosan by ionic gelation method was 468.1±21.63 nm. The high speed of the magnetic stirrer is able to reduce the chitosan to a stable nano size and prevent agglomeration.
Fatty acid profiles and biological activity of Nannochloropsis oculata and Isochrysis galbana, clone t-ISO
Authors: Putra Y , Mustikasari I , Pangestuti R , Rahmadi P , Siahaan E A
Published: October 2022

The microalgae Nannochloropsis oculata and Tahiti clone Isochrysis galbana (t-ISO) were collected from the Mariculture laboratory, Research Centre for Oceanography, BRIN. Both samples were cultivated and harvested by using a centrifuge. The microalgae biomass obtained was analyzed to determine the fatty acids content. The samples were then extracted, followed by an evaporation process using a rotary evaporator. The microalgae extracts were then tested for its antioxidant activity and antibacterial activity. The results showed that the total fatty acid content of N. oculata (89.82%) was slightly higher than t-ISO (84.97%). The antioxidant activity test showed that t-ISO had slightly higher antioxidant activity than N. oculata (2.4 and 3.33 mg/mL, respectively). As for the results of the antibacterial activity test against the four test bacteria, N. oculata had a slightly lower inhibitory power than t-ISO
Study on stomach contents of sailfin silversides, Telmatherina sarasinorum Kottelat 1991, in Matano Lake, South Sulawesi, Indonesia
Authors: Rasuna A F K , Kamal M M , Affandi R , Chadijah A , Sulistiono
Published: October 2022

The silverside sailfin, Telmatherina sarasinorum Kottelat 1991, is an endemic fish that lives in Matano Lake, South Sulawesi. The purpose of this study is to analyze the stomach contents of T. sarasinorum. The study was conducted from March 2018 to February 2019. Samples were collected using bag nets (with mesh size of 0.5 inches). The fish collected (N=2124 individuals) consisted of 1318 male fish and 806 female fish with a total body length ranging from 30.1 to 89.85 mm. Gastrointestinal contents were analyzed using Index of Preponderance (IP), niche breadth, and feeding overlap. The data was processed based on gender temporally and spatially. The results showed that the fish’s main diet was insects (IP 71.04% in males, 95.40% in females) and fish eggs (IP 26.04% in males, 3.71% in females). The value of niche breadth in males and females was low, ranging from 0.0005-0.2291 (male) and 0.0048-0.2295 (female) indicating that this species was a fish that specializes in utilizing food. There was a high competition for food between males and females which was indicated by a fairly large overlap value, which was 0.7767 temporally and 0.7725 spatially.
Storage Power Enhance Of Vaname Shrimp And Windu Using Garlic Extract at Room Temperature
Authors: Elsania Fransiska , Dachi Agnes Sanomasi , Sinuraya Harisma , Hartono  , Silalahi Marlinang , Manalu Putranto , Simanullang Andry
Published: October 2022

Shrimp is one of the fishery products with high protein content and when viewed biologically and chemically this shrimp is perishable and smells bad. The method used in this study was a Quasi-Experiment with 6 treatments and 3 replications at concentrations of garlic extract of 200 gs, 400 gs, 600 gs, 800 gs, 1000 gs, and 1200 gs. This study uses an organoleptic test to determine the decay of shrimp through the senses. The research sample was vaname and windu shrimps taken directly from fishermen and shrimp farmers in Bagan Percut Village, Deli Serdang Regency. Simple random sampling was used to determine the sample in this study. The data in this study were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA test with a 95% confidence level. The results showed that the higher the concentration of the extract, the longer the shelf life of shrimp at room temperature.
Influence of volume medium on growth and ginsenoside level in adventitious root culture of Panax ginseng CA Meyer
Authors: Natalie Karina , Chandra S P , Christanti P , Hak K J , Yang D C , Sukweenadhi J
Published: October 2022

Ginseng (Panax ginseng, Family Araliaceae) is a traditional herbal plant that is pretty well known and has been widely used in various countries, such as Korea, China, and Japan. Ginseng contains ginsenoside secondary metabolites that have been shown to have therapeutic effects, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, anti-diabetic, and anti-cancer. Ginseng production by traditional cultivation methods is long and produces inconsistent results. Therefore, in vitro culture is an alternative method to produce ginseng and ginsenoside consistently. In 2018, PT Bintang Todjoe collaborated with the University of Surabaya (UBAYA) and the Hanbang-Bio Inc. (holding company of Kyung Hee University) to establish the Kalbe Ubaya Hanbang-Bio Laboratory (KUH Lab). From previous studies, the dry weight achieved was only 109.758 g, which did not reach the target (120 grams). Therefore, the media was modified by adding media volume from 13L to 15L. The increase in media volume increased fresh weight to 2728.7 g, dry weight to 137.6 g, and yield up to 5%. However, this increase in media volume has not increased ginsenoside levels.
Identification of Diversity and Potential of Freshwater Fish Species in the Peatlands of Sembakung, North Kalimantan
Authors: Azis  , Ibrahim Jabarsyah , Iromo Heppi , Rachmawani Dory , Achyani Ratno
Published: October 2022

Sembakung River is one of the important river ecosystems in North Kalimantan. Based on the parent material, the soils along the Sembakung river basin consist of peat soil and mineral soil. With its unique characteristics, this river has quite high potential resources in public waters, especially fish and other aquatic biota. The purpose of this study was to identify and identify the diversity of freshwater fish species that exist in peatland areas. Found 11 types of fish along the Sembakung River. These fish species come from Familia Siluridae, Cyprinidae, Cannidae, Eleotridae, Pangasiidae, Bagridae and Helostomatidae. The highest relative abundance (Kr) was the Salap beruntus (Barbonymus gornionotus). The most common type of fish found (Fi) was white Lais fish, 58.3% Fi and the least common were Toman (Channa micropelte), black Betutu (Oxyeleotris selheimi) and Red Betutu (Oxyeleotris marmorata).
Coupled modeling of peatlands carbon cycle and carbon dioxide emission from their peat deposits
Authors: Zavalishin N N
Published: October 2022

COmplex Model of BOg LAndscapes (COMBOLA) is a set of dynamic models of carbon and nitrogen turnover, net ecosystem exchange, water balance, heat and water transport, generation and transfer of CO2 and CH4 in a peat deposit on a number of time scales. Combined modeling of carbon turnover and carbon dioxide emission from peat deposits on an annual time scale is carried out as part of COMBOLA for several bog landscapes in Western-Siberian south taiga. One-dimensional vertical reaction-diffusion model for carbon dioxide emission from peat deposit is combined with compartment carbon cycle model allowing estimate both bog type vegetation changes and greenhouse gases balance under probable climate change or perturbations initiated by human activities. Water table level (WTL) separating aerobic peat layer from the anaerobic one is calculated by means of the whole peat layer depth and its water balance relations. Minimal statistical information is used for calibrating temperature dependencies together with coefficients of heat and water transfer equations. The stationary states of carbon cycle are accompanied by steady average profiles of carbon dioxide concentration and can loose stability under human or climatic perturbations. The model dynamics is simulated with several climatic projections of the IPSL atmospheric circulation model for 21st century with anthropogenic scenarios RCP-2.6 and RCP-8.5.
Development history and composition of peatland in the Numto natural park in Western Siberia, Russia
Authors: Moskovchenko D V , Afonin A S , Pozhitkov R Yu
Published: October 2022

A flat frost mound bog in the Numto Natural Park located in the northern taiga of Western Siberia (Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug) was studied. Radiocarbon dating showed that the peatland formation began about 6658 cal years BP. Peat accumulation was slow due to the permafrost influence. The peat accumulation rate had the highest value of 0.3 mm/year between 5500 and 3400 cal years BP, then it sharply decreased to 0.1 mm/year due to climate cooling and remained at that level up to day. The change from cotton grass to sphagnum peat, which indicated transition to the oligotrophic stage of peatland development, was dated around 1800 cal years BP. The chemical composition of peat was characterized by the increase in Cu, Ni, Zn, Mn, Li, Ti and Mo concentrations with depth. The peak of Pb concentration in the upper horizon was likely to result from the former technogenic impact. Concentrations of microelements in the studied peat core were generally comparable to those in peatlands in the south-east of Western Siberia, except for the high concentration of Zn that was connected with the predominance of cotton grass in the major part of the studied core.
Peat and bog plants as indicators of aerosol pollution
Authors: Gashkova L P
Published: October 2022

The paper assesses the impact of aerosol pollution on the accumulation of Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd in plants and peat bogs. In pristine and contaminated areas, the following were compared: 1) the absolute content of elements in plants and peat; 2) the coefficients of biological absorption; 3) the enrichment factors reflecting the ratio of the concentration of elements in peat/bedrock. The most stable indicator reflecting the effect of pollution is the enrichment factor, the value of which is significantly lower in the pristine areas.
Effect of mechanical damage under repeated loading and abrasion on the tensile behaviour of a reinforcement geocomposite
Authors: Carneiro J R , Carvalho F , Almeida F , de Lurdes Lopes M
Published: October 2022

The installation process and the occurrence of abrasion may cause unwanted changes on the properties of the geosynthetics. When identified as relevant degradation agents for a given application, their effect has to be properly taken into account during the design phase in order to guarantee that the geosynthetics will perform correctly their functions over time. In this work, a reinforcement geocomposite (formed by a nonwoven polypropylene geotextile reinforced with polyethylene terephthalate filaments) was exposed to the isolated and combined effects of two degradation tests: mechanical damage under repeated loading and abrasion (the geocomposite was tested on both sides, which were structurally different). Damage assessment was performed by visual inspection and tensile tests. Based on the changes occurred in tensile strength, reduction factors were determined. The degradation tests provoked extensive damage on the geocomposite, having a negative impact on its tensile behaviour. Contrary to mechanical damage under repeated loading, the effect of abrasion on the geocomposite was influenced by the side that was tested. Finally, some differences were found between the reduction factors determined by the traditional method (multiplication of reduction factors obtained in isolation for each agent) for the combined effect of mechanical damage under repeated loading and abrasion and those resulting from the successive exposure to both degradation agents.
Design Method for Geogrid Stabilisation of Railway Ballast and Subballast
Authors: Rimoldi P , Pezzano P , Trovato F
Published: October 2022

Railways are often built on soft soils. Railways present peculiar characteristics in terms of loads applied to subgrade: a single train may produce hundreds wheels loads in few seconds, that is a train produces rapid, repeated and cyclic loads; loads are first distributed from rails to sleepers, then from sleepers to ballast, and finally from ballast to subgrade; loads are always applied to the same area. The effect of such loads on soft soils generates absolute and differential settlements, which may quickly degrade the quality of the railway segment. Reinforcing geogrids may be used for stabilizing the railway base, in such a way as to decrease settlements and to increase the railway lifetime. The paper aims to present a design method for geogrid stabilisation of railway ballast and subballast, taking into account the wheel loads, the number of passages, the railway geometry, the subgrade characteristics and the geogrid properties. The proposed design method can be considered as an extension of design methods for geogrid stabilisation of road bases and it is based on the same engineering principles.
Experimental study to evaluate soil water retention curve of HYPER clay geosynthetic clay liner
Authors: Khan M K , Camillis M D , Emidio G D , Bezuijen A
Published: October 2022

Geosynthetic clay liners are widely used as hydraulic barrier due to their low hydraulic conductivity but bentonite in the liners loses its effectiveness due to significant thermal fluxes by both diurnal and seasonal heating and cooling cycles. Modified sodium carboxy methyl cellulose-based bentonite clay (HYPER clay) has shown better hydraulic performance in both situations. A possible reason for this improved performance of HYPER clay based geosynthetic clay liner is the improvement in the suction under changing thermal conditions. Thus, the relationship between soil suction and moisture content, also called the soil water retention curve, needs to be estimated. Therefore, we investigated the soil-water retention curve of the HYPER clay based geosynthetic clay liner and compared it with the untreated clay based geosynthetic clay liner. The article presents the suction test results on wetting path conducted on geosynthetic clay liner prototypes containing HYPER and untreated clay assessed by the contact filter paper method and the relative humidity sensor. The results showed that the geosynthetic clay liner containing HYPER clay has a high volumetric water content and thus, high water retention compared to untreated bentonite at a given suction value. In other words, the HYPER clay can be considered as a potential alternative to conventional bentonite due to its improved water retention capacity.
Modified multiaxial tensile tests with geogrids in soil contact
Authors: Zanzinger H , Alexiew D
Published: October 2022

For geogrids with the function "stabilization", the (low) deformability is one of the essential parameters. As a punctual wheel load is usually involved, the products are subjected to multiaxial loads. Therefore, one-directional tensile strip tests are not sufficiently meaningful for this application. A modified burst test is more likely to generate a multiaxial tensile load to geogrids. The geogrid is clamped in a circular ring and loaded by a spherically inflating membrane. The geogrid deforms into a spherical segment. This "multiaxial" tensile force-elongation behaviour can be evaluated and compared.

The “multiaxial” test method has been further developed, while applying a gravel layer to the membrane (in a superstructure) and then tensioning the geogrid over it. This means that the geogrid is loaded by the ballast and no longer directly by the smooth membrane. Thus, any interaction effects between geogrid and gravel are also reflected, and the test approaches a so-called performance test. In principle, the evaluation is analogous to the test without gravel, but the measured values and diagrams reflect not only the ratio of load-deformation-stress, but also the interaction effects. Test setup, special features and evaluation are described and illustrated. The experiments and the results for three geogrids are presented and commented.
Basal reinforcement of embankment over voids and soil subsidence area – new standard XP G38065
Authors: Nancey A , Delmas P
Published: October 2022

The use of geosynthetic reinforcement to limit the consequences of a localized collapse of the ground under road and railway structure started in the 90s. The new French standard XP G 38065 for basal reinforcement establishes the rules for justifying works on potential cavity risk areas and will provide users with a tool adapted to this use. This paper shows the different steps of a design, considering the Eurocode approach with deformation and stress criteria, and the lateral displacement design model.
Embodied Artificial Intelligence: Enabling the Next Intelligence Revolution
Authors: Hughes Josie , Abdulali Arsen , Hashem Ryman , Iida Fumiya
Published: October 2022

There has been a long-standing debate about the extent to which the human mind controls the human body and vice-versa. Today this debate still powers a profound scientific desire to deepen our understanding of the nature of both humans' and animals' intelligent, adaptive behavior. In order to gain further insights into intelligence and explore how our brain and bodies develop through physical interactions with the world, Embodied Intelligence places the physical entity of the human body at the center of this subject. In the age of AI and Machine Learning, Embodied Intelligence research remains highly important as it can deliver valuable input which enhances the impact of conventional AI technology. Embodied Intelligence provides potential solutions for current AI technologies that are dependent on large amounts of data and reliable output whilst that output is reliant on uncertain, unstructured tasks and situations aligned closely to human users both as individuals and communities. In the following Chapter we discuss current trends and directions within this interdisciplinary community, and also the future challenges and opportunities.
Embodied Intelligence in soft robotics: joys and sorrows
Authors: Laschi Cecilia
Published: October 2022

Embodied intelligence and soft robotics are strictly interconnected, as soft bodyware is key to obtain emergent behaviours from external interactions. The overall advantages of embodied intelligence in robotics are balanced by additional challenges in robot design and control. A main contribution of embodied intelligence to robotics consists of simplifying principles for robot control, in terms of control parameters. At the same time, robot design becomes more complex, involving the complex dynamic interaction of the robot with the environment and the task. These two form the ecological niche where embodied intelligence is effective, but they also limit the robot task space. To what extent can we enlarge the ecological niche without missing the benefits of embodied intelligence? Emergent behaviours are what we expect to simplify control, but what level of controllability can we still achieve? And how far are we from a mathematical description of embodied intelligence, to the benefit of soft robot design and control? Few trade-offs between contrasting needs in the use of embodied intelligence in soft robotics are discussed here, in view of directions of future progress.
Taking Shape: A Perspective on the Future of Embodied Cognition and a new Generation of Evolutionary Robotics
Authors: Howard David , Collins Jack , Robinson Nicole
Published: October 2022

The philosophy of Embodied Cognition (EC) presents an intuitive lens with which to consider a variety of problems that attempt to optimise or refine some physically-grounded combination of form and function. Conceptualised as a Venn diagram, with circles of 'body', 'brain', and 'environment', the prevailing notion is that moving to the centre of the diagram is the ultimate goal - intertwining and leveraging all three components to generate adaptive solutions. Philosophically, at least, this makes sense: nature abounds with examples of life that extol the virtues of tightly-coupled embodiment and hint at the possibilities attainable when designing entities through EC principles. The algorithmic basis for following this approach is similarly intuitive: extra degrees of freedom to the design process combined with explicit consideration of the environment allow for a wider range of interesting, useful behaviours. However, moving from philosophy to concrete algorithmic implementation presents a number of pitfalls and barriers that have prevented EC from being more ubiquitously applied as a mainstream problem-solving methodology. In this comment, we speculate on one possible avenue for the future of EC wherein fuller implementations of EC are enabled through adoption of algorithmic advances from the neighbouring field of Machine Learning. Further, we suggest to re-frame evolutionary robotics as a model learning problem, wherein the end goal is to generate an accurate design landscape through the application of high-throughput techniques and tightly coupled digital-experimental systems. Combined, these techniques offer the possibility to reinvent the state of the art and hint at a bright future for evolutionary robotics.
Meta-brain Models: biologically-inspired cognitive agents
Authors: Alicea B , Parent J
Published: October 2022

Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems based solely on neural networks or symbolic computation present a representational complexity challenge. While minimal representations can produce behavioral outputs like locomotion or simple decision-making, more elaborate internal representations might offer a richer variety of behaviors. We propose that these issues can be addressed with a computational approach we call meta-brain models. Meta-brain models are embodied hybrid models that include layered components featuring varying degrees of representational complexity. We will propose combinations of layers composed using specialized types of models. Rather than using a generic black box approach to unify each component, this relationship mimics systems like the neocortical-thalamic system relationship of the mammalian brain, which utilizes both feedforward and feedback connectivity to facilitate functional communication. Importantly, the relationship between layers can be made anatomically explicit. This allows for structural specificity that can be incorporated into the model's function in interesting ways. We will propose several types of layers that might be functionally integrated into agents that perform unique types of tasks, from agents that simultaneously perform morphogenesis and perception, to agents that undergo morphogenesis and the acquisition of conceptual representations simultaneously. Our approach to meta-brain models involves creating models with different degrees of representational complexity, creating a layered meta-architecture that mimics the structural and functional heterogeneity of biological brains, and an input/output methodology flexible enough to accommodate cognitive functions, social interactions, and adaptive behaviors more generally. We will conclude by proposing next steps in the development of this flexible and open-source approach.
Active inference, preference learning and adaptive behaviour
Authors: Sajid Noor , Tigas Panagiotis , Friston Karl
Published: October 2022

The ability to adapt to a changing environment underwrites sentient behaviour e.g., wearing a raincoat when walking in the rain but removing it when indoors. In such instances, agents act to satisfy some preferred mode of behaviour that leads to predictable states necessary for survival, i.e., states that are characteristic of that agent. In this chapter, we describe how active inference agents, equipped with preference learning, can exhibit these distinct behavioural modes – influenced by environment dynamics – to aptly trade-off between preference satisfaction and exploration. We validate this in a modified OpenAI Gym FrozenLake environment (without any extrinsic signal) with and without volatility under a fixed model of the environment. In a static (i.e., without volatility) environment, preference-learning agents accumulate confident (Bayesian) beliefs about their behaviour and act to satisfy them. In contrast, volatile dynamics led to preference uncertainty and exploratory behaviour. This demonstrates that active inference agents, equipped with preference learning, have the appropriate machinery to (i) engage in adaptive behaviour under appropriate levels of volatility, and (ii) learn context-dependent subjective preferences.
The deep time perspective: How insights from millennia of evolving and extinct animals can inform robot design decision making
Authors: Carter Aja , Roberts Sonia
Published: October 2022

Animals on the visible scale have been experimenting with body form and function in enumerable enviroments for the last 540 million years. Almost all of the variation in the history of life is now gone, leaving only a tiny fraction of what is possible alive in modern animals. Recently biological and engineering techniques have made it possible to robustly answer questions only the fossil record can provide, such as the history and original functions of certain behaviors. Robotics has already begun to champion inspiration from biology, but only from the small variation seen in extant taxa. In this chapter we introduce paleontological study of a now famous source of bioinspiration: The modern African Cheetah. We discuss additional forms of high-speed pursuit predators from the lineage that demonstrate an evolutionary experiment in manuverability on uneven terrain. We also discuss how the evolution of sensing and perception does not always follow or work in concert with the evolution of the musculoskeletal system. We end by summarizing the process of our analysis so that our methods can be repeated for other animals that inspire engineers. We hope this brief primer introduces paleobiology to roboticists and demonstrates the need for biologically inspired robotics to engage with paleobiological processes, to the benefit of both robotics in developing new technology and paleobiology in answering long-standing questions about relationships between extinct forms and their functions.
What Could Models of Superorganismal Cognition Offer to Embodied AI?
Authors: Hunt Edmund R.
Published: October 2022

Superorganisms such as ant or honeybee colonies exhibit extraordinary collective intelligence, such as an ability to identify and choose the best available nest site in an uncertain world. This collective cognition is inextricably reliant on the embodiment of individual agents, specifically their movement through space. We have recently developed models of superorganismal cognition based on a compelling analogy with techniques in Bayesian statistics, which are likewise aimed at grappling with the uncertainty and incompleteness of real data sources. These models foreground some potential lessons for the design of embodied artificial intelligences, such as robot swarms. For example, the spatial distribution of independently judging agents can convey valuable information, relaxing expectations that regular inter-agent (‘inter-neuronal’) communication is necessary for cognition, which points to the potential of minimal field swarm robotics. Meanwhile, the importance of individual heterogeneity to effective and resilient collective cognition in biology suggests great potential in this area for engineering.
Embodied Intelligence in Physical, Social and Technological Environments
Authors: Straub Ilona
Published: October 2022

The aim of this contribution is to highlight different aspects of embodied intelligence that add to a broader interdisciplinary perspective on this phenomenon. This article intends to bring together three forms of embodied intelligence from the fields of technology and social research, starting from robotics research that deals with the technical replication of organic bodies, to insights from the sociology of the body outlining the relevance of corporeality in social encounters, and finally to the forms of embodied intelligence in the connection of technical forms with organic bodies and their effects on the perception of self and others within the hybrid research field of "Bodies of Technologies". This tripartite division of embodied intelligence deals with the biophysiological properties of an organism in self-environment relationships (the subject of robotics research), the interaction of a being or system with other beings in self-environment relationships (the subject of the sociology of bodies), and finally, as a third, new level of embodied intelligence, the technically mediated experience of (virtual) self-environment relationships through the somatechnical fusion of bio- and socio-physical properties in human-machine hybrids is presented. Accordingly, the article will name the specificity of each form of embodied intelligence and trace the conditions and peculiarities in the gradual increase of complexity from simple to interactive and finally to virtual bodily intelligence.
Non-invasive assessment of intestinal permeability in healthy volunteers using transcutaneous fluorescence spectroscopy
Authors: Gan Jonathan , Monfort Sánchez Elena , Avery James , Barbouti Omar , Hoare Jonathan , Ashrafian Hutan , Darzi Ara , Thompson Alex J
Published: October 2022

The permeability of the intestinal barrier is altered in a multitude of gastrointestinal conditions such as Crohn’s and coeliac disease. However, the clinical utility of gut permeability is currently limited due to a lack of reliable diagnostic tests. To address this issue, we report a novel technique for rapid, non-invasive measurement of gut permeability based on transcutaneous (‘through-the-skin’) fluorescence spectroscopy. In this approach, participants drink an oral dose of a fluorescent dye (fluorescein) and a fibre-optic fluorescence spectrometer is attached to the finger to detect permeation of the dye from the gut into the blood stream in a non-invasive manner. To validate this technique, clinical trial measurements were performed in 11 healthy participants. First, after 6 h of fasting, participants ingested 500 mg of fluorescein dissolved in 100 ml of water and fluorescence measurements were recorded at the fingertip over the following 3 h. All participants were invited back for a repeat study, this time ingesting the same solution but with 60 g of sugar added (known to transiently increase intestinal permeability). Results from the two study datasets (without and with sugar respectively) were analysed and compared using a number of analysis procedures. This included both manual and automated calculation of a series of parameters designed for assessment of gut permeability. Calculated values were compared using Student’s T-tests, which demonstrated significant differences between the two datasets. Thus, transcutaneous fluorescence spectroscopy shows promise in non-invasively discriminating between two differing states of gut permeability, demonstrating potential for future clinical use.
Fabricating a slippery porous nickel coating based on the hydrogen bubble template method for corrosion protection with self-healing property
Authors: Ma Fuliang , Shen Luli , Zeng Zhixiang
Published: October 2022

In recent years, the development of the slippery liquid-infused porous surface (SLIPS) for metal corrosion protection has attracted extensive attention. The current construction method of SLIPS micro-nano structure has certain limitations. In this paper, a porous structure was firstly constructed by electroplating nickel based on the hydrogen bubble template method, and then the porous structure was modified by 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluorodecyltriethoxysilane (PFDS) to obtain the superhydrophobic coating, and finally, The SLIPS coating was obtained by infusing perfluoropolyether (PFPE) on the basis of superhydrophobic coating. After immersed in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution for 4 weeks, the WCA of SLIPS constructed in this paper only decreased from 121° to 114°. Importantly, the corrosion resistance of SLIPS was enhanced by one and three orders of magnitude compared with SHC and Cu substrate. In addition, it was worth mentioning that the SLIPS also exhibited a superior self-healing property even after several scratching healing cycles. The simple method of building porous structures in this paper will promote the further development of the SLIPS coating and its application in engineering.
Disordered packings of binary mixtures of dimer particles
Authors: Kurban Esma , Baule Adrian
Published: October 2022

Disordered packings of non-spherical particles and their mixtures are abundant in nature, but have so far attracted only few systematic studies. Previous investigations of binary mixtures of specific convex shapes have established two generic properties: (i) the existence of a unique density maximum when shape or mixture composition of the two species are varied; (ii) the validity of an ideal mixing law indicating that the packing density is independent of the segregation state. These findings were so far only observed for mixtures of convex particles such as spherocylinders, ellipsoids, and spheres. Here, we investigate the packing properties of binary mixtures of frictionless dimer particles simulated by a gravitational pouring protocol in LAMMPS. Our results demonstrate the validity of (i, ii) also for such packings of non-convex particles. Moreover, we investigate the contact statistics of these packings to elucidate the microstructural features that underlie (i, ii). Our results show that the contact number per species also satisfies a simple mixing law and that similar microscopic rearrangements of contacts as in monodisperse dimer packings accompany the formation of the density peak in binary mixtures largely independent of the mixture composition.
iDVIP: identification and characterization of viral integrase inhibitory peptides
Authors: Huang Kai-Yao , Kao Hui-Ju , Weng Tzu-Hsiang , Chen Chia-Hung , Weng Shun-Long
Published: October 2022

Antiretroviral peptides are a kind of bioactive peptides that present inhibitory activity against retroviruses through various mechanisms. Among them, viral integrase inhibitory peptides (VINIPs) are a class of antiretroviral peptides that have the ability to block the action of integrase proteins, which is essential for retroviral replication. As the number of experimentally verified bioactive peptides has increased significantly, the lack of in silico machine learning approaches can effectively predict the peptides with the integrase inhibitory activity. Here, we have developed the first prediction model for identifying the novel VINIPs using the sequence characteristics, and the hybrid feature set was considered to improve the predictive ability. The performance was evaluated by 5-fold cross-validation based on the training dataset, and the result indicates the proposed model is capable of predicting the VINIPs, with a sensitivity of 85.82%, a specificity of 88.81%, an accuracy of 88.37%, a balanced accuracy of 87.32% and a Matthews correlation coefficient value of 0.64. Most importantly, the model also consistently provides effective performance in independent testing. To sum up, we propose the first computational approach for identifying and characterizing the VINIPs, which can be considered novel antiretroviral therapy agents. Ultimately, to facilitate further research and development, iDVIP, an automatic computational tool that predicts the VINIPs has been developed, which is now freely available at http://mer.hc.mmh.org.tw/iDVIP/.
Bridging wounds: tissue adhesives’ essential mechanisms, synthesis and characterization, bioinspired adhesives and future perspectives
Authors: Xu Kaige , Wu Xiaozhuo , Zhang Xingying , Xing Malcolm
Published: October 2022

Bioadhesives act as a bridge in wound closure by forming an effective interface to protect against liquid and gas leakage and aid the stoppage of bleeding. To their credit, tissue adhesives have made an indelible impact on almost all wound-related surgeries. Their unique properties include minimal damage to tissues, low chance of infection, ease of use and short wound-closure time. In contrast, classic closures, like suturing and stapling, exhibit potential additional complications with long operation times and undesirable inflammatory responses. Although tremendous progress has been made in the development of tissue adhesives, they are not yet ideal. Therefore, highlighting and summarizing existing adhesive designs and synthesis, and comparing the different products will contribute to future development. This review first provides a summary of current commercial traditional tissue adhesives. Then, based on adhesion interaction mechanisms, the tissue adhesives are categorized into three main types: adhesive patches that bind molecularly with tissue, tissue-stitching adhesives based on pre-polymer or precursor solutions, and bioinspired or biomimetic tissue adhesives. Their specific adhesion mechanisms, properties and related applications are discussed. The adhesion mechanisms of commercial traditional adhesives as well as their limitations and shortcomings are also reviewed. Finally, we also discuss the future perspectives of tissue adhesives.
Disentangling the association between alcohol consumption and employment status: causation, selection or confounding?
Authors: Mangot-Sala Lluís , Smidt Nynke , Liefbroer Aart C
Published: October 2022

Background

Alcohol use constitutes a major health risk and is related to unemployment. However, the direction of this relationship is unclear: unemployment may change drinking patterns (causation), but heavy drinkers may also be more prone to lose their job (selection). We simultaneously examined selection and causation, and assessed the role of residual confounding. Moreover, we paid attention to the subgroup of abstainers and occupationally disabled, often disregarded in the literature.

Methods

Longitudinal data (three waves collected between 2006 and 2018) of the Lifelines Cohort study from the Netherlands were used (138 875 observations of 55 415 individuals, aged 18–60 at baseline). Alcohol use was categorized as ‘abstaining’, ‘moderate drinking’ and ‘binge drinking’ (≥5 drinks/occasion for male; ≥4 for women). Employment status included occupational disability, short (<6 months) and long-term (≥6 months) unemployment. Random- and fixed-effects multinomial regression models were fitted in order to account for residual confounding. Reciprocal causality was assessed through generalized structural equation modelling with fixed-effects.

Results

Long unemployment spells increase the risk for both binge drinking (β = 0.23; 95% CI 0.04–0.42) and abstinence (β = 0.27; 95% CI 0.11–0.44), and the effects hold after accounting for reciprocal causality and time-constant confounding. Contrarily, the effect of binge drinking on unemployment is weak (β = 0.14; 95% CI −0.03 to 0.31). Abstinence is strongly associated with occupational disability (β = 0.40; 95% CI 0.24–0.57).

Conclusions

We find evidence supporting the causation hypothesis (unemployment altering drinking patterns), whereas evidence for the selection hypothesis is weak and mostly confounded by unobserved variables, such as poor health prior to baseline.
Pregnancy and Crohn’s disease: concerns and assurance of medical therapy
Authors: Chowdhury Reezwana , Kane Sunanda V
Published: October 2022

Approximately 50% of patients with inflammatory bowel disease including both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are female with many being diagnosed and treated during their reproductive years. It is important for women to be in remission prior to and during pregnancy. There have been many advances in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, including new therapies. In this review, we summarize the currently approved medications for Crohn’s disease and their safety in pregnancy and postpartum. The totality of evidence suggests that the majority of therapies are low-risk before and during pregnancy, and should be continued to control maternal disease.
A hybrid method based on undecimated discrete wavelet transform and autoregressive model toS-wave automatic picking
Authors: Shokri-Kaveh Mohammad , Javan-Doloei Gholam , Mansouri Reza , Karamzadeh Nasim , Keshavarz Ahmad
Published: October 2022

Automatic S-wave arrival time estimation is, due to the complex characteristic of most of the S onsets, a topic of ongoing research. Manual as well as automated S-wave picking is more difficult than P-wave picking, as S wave is usually buried in the preceding P-coda. In addition, S-wave splitting, due to possible seismic anisotropy, and the presence of Sp-converted precursors, due to shallow strong velocity discontinuities, increase the complexity of S-wave onset time picking. The goal of this study is to develop an automatic S-wave onset time picking algorithm, using undecimated discrete wavelet transform (UDWT) and autoregressive (AR) model. The novelty of this research is the application of UDWT to define a characteristic function based on the seismogram envelope that leads to accurate S-wave detection. First, an initial arrival time is estimated using the signal envelope. Then S-wave onset is improved with an AR model regarding the fact that a short time after S waves arrival the amplitude is maximized. The robustness of the proposed method under different SNR’s has been tested on synthetic seismograms, contaminated with noise. It has also been applied to 180 local and regional events with magnitude greater than 4 and epicentral distance from 100 to 1000 km, recorded by the permanent seismic networks within Iran. We also applied our method to a data set from Japan; the data set contains 30 events with a magnitude range greater than 3. The results of our proposed algorithm are compared with a traditional reference method, novel deep learning methods and manually picked phases. The tested data set contains 1160 manual picks from Iran earthquakes data set and 518 manual picks from Japan earthquakes data set. The results show that the proposed method appears to be promising to replace manual phase picking. The automatic picking algorithm described in this study is applicable in many seismological studies that require S onset detection and picking.
In vitro activity of lactone ketolide nafithromycin (WCK 4873) against Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates enriched with macrolide-resistance phenotype collected from mainland China
Authors: Zhou Menglan , Wu Lijuan , Kang Wei , Li Yanbing , Zhang Ge , Zhang Jingjia , Duan Simeng , Li Jin , Wang Tong , Xu Yingchun , Gu Yihai
Published: October 2022

Background

Widespread MDR Streptococcus pneumoniae in China translates clinically into a substantial pneumococcal disease burden and related morbidity and mortality, particularly in the elderly and children. Nafithromycin (WCK 4873), a novel lactone ketolide class of antibiotic designed with a 3 day, once-daily regimen is highly active against resistant pneumococci and other community respiratory pathogens. It is currently in clinical development for the treatment of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP).

Objectives

To determine the in vitro activity of nafithromycin against clinical S. pneumoniae isolates collected during 2015–21 from three hospitals in mainland China.

Methods

A total of 920 clinical isolates (one isolate per patient), which predominantly with the macrolide- and clindamycin-resistant phenotype were included in this study. The MICs of nafithromycin and other antibiotics tested were determined using the reference broth microdilution method.

Results

Clinical S. pneumoniae isolates used in this study showed high macrolide and clindamycin resistance (>95% against erythromycin and azithromycin and 80% against clindamycin) for which nafithromycin showed potent activity (MIC50/90; 0.03/0.06 mg/L) with 100% susceptibility at a proposed pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics (PK/PD) breakpoint of 0.25 mg/L. Among other classes of antibiotics tested, moxifloxacin also showed good activity while amoxicillin/clavulanate and ceftriaxone showed lower susceptibility.

Conclusions

Nafithromycin exhibited therapeutically relevant in vitro antibacterial activity against contemporary highly resistant pneumococci collected from mainland China. This study supports the clinical development of nafithromycin for the management of CABP caused by pneumococci in China.