bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Integrated Reporting Narratives: The Case of an Industry Leader
Authors: Aluchna Maria , Hussain Nazim , Roszkowska-Menkes Maria
Published: February 2019

In this paper, we investigate the integrated reporting practice of the second-largest Polish petroleum company. Using the qualitative research method of narrative analysis, the paper draws upon the practice of integrated reporting by the domestic and sector leader, the second-largest Polish petroleum company, LOTOS Group. By analyzing the content of integrated reports for the years 2006–2015, alongside the main actors and themes involved, we distinguish three main narrative strategies, including: legitimacy, shareholder-agency, and signaling. In addition, we reveal the evolutionary transition of integrated reporting and identify its phase of development. Reporting appears to be conjoined rather than integrated. The study’s results imply that the implementation of integrated reporting may be limited by its insufficient institutionalization in the organizational context and the lack of recognized standards.
Improving the Sustainability of Traditional Dwellings in Yunnan, China: Seismic Resistance Testing of Wood-frame and Earth-Built Wall Dwellings
Authors: Bai Yu , Gao Jing , Pitts Adrian , Gao Yun , Bai Wenfeng , Tao Zhong
Published: February 2019

The Southwest provinces of China are locations with a rich variety of different dwelling design typologies based on traditional cultures and ethnic groups. In this area, the Province of Yunnan has many such dwelling types, and it is also an area with most frequent earthquakes in China. The seismic problems of housing structure must therefore be solved as part of the study on sustainable development of villages to provide relevant advice for future design options. This paper reports research, which evolved over a ten-year period that deals with the seismic capacity of residential buildings. Simulations using shaking table tests were carried out to assess the performance of traditional residential structures as well with the impacts of material modifications and the structural strengthening of common residential building components found in Yunnan. Relevant and pertinent construction technology solutions that could enhance the seismic capacity of residential buildings and act as innovative improvements for the sustainability of rural dwellings are suggested.
Radiometric Calibration for Multispectral Camera of Different Imaging Conditions Mounted on a UAV Platform
Authors: Guo Yahui , Senthilnath J. , Wu Wenxiang , Zhang Xueqin , Zeng Zhaoqi , Huang Han
Published: February 2019

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with multispectral cameras for remote sensing (RS) has provided new opportunities for ecological and agricultural related applications for modelling, mapping, and monitoring. However, when the multispectral images are used for the quantitative study, they should be radiometrically calibrated, which accounts for atmospheric and solar conditions by converting the digital number into a unit of scene reflectance that can be directly used in quantitative remote sensing (QRS). Indeed, some of the present applications using multispectral images are processed without precise calibration or with coarse calibration. The radiometric calibration of images from the UAV platform is quite difficult to perform, as the imaging condition is different for every single image. Thus, a standard procedure is necessary for a systematical radiometric calibration method to generate multispectral images with unit reflectance. Further, these images can be used to calculate vegetation indices, which are useful in monitoring vegetation phenology. These vegetation indices are considered as a potential screening tool to know the plant status, such as nitrogen, chlorophyll content, green leaf biomass, etc. This study focuses on a series of radiometric calibrations for multispectral images acquired from different flight altitudes, time instants, and weather conditions. Radiometric calibration for multispectral images is performed using the linear regression method (LRM). The main contribution involves (1) affirming the optimal calibration targets and assessing the atmospheric effects of different flights using the single scene of images; (2) to evaluate the effects of mosaic images with the LRM; (3) to propose and validate a universal calibration equation for the Mini Multiple Camera Array (MCA) 6 camera. The obtained results show that the three calibration targets, such as the dark, moderate, and white, are better for the Mini MCA 6 camera. The atmospheric effects increase with the increase of flight altitudes for each band, and the camera effect is of a fixed number. However, the camera effect and atmospheric attenuation to reflectance from different altitudes were relatively low considering the accuracy assessment. The performance measures namely, mean absolute deviation (indicated as V) and root mean square error (RMSE) between single and mosaic images show that the mosaic will not influence too much reflectance. The LRM performs well in all weather conditions. The universal calibration equation is suitable to apply to the images acquired during a sunny day and even with a little cloud.
The Synergy in the Economic Production System: An Empirical Study with Chinese Industry
Authors: Shao Yanmin , Han Song
Published: February 2019

Due to the difference in pollutants discharged, along with heterogeneous abatement technology, the structural and model design of the economic production system needs to consider these differences. This study first proposes a network slacks-based model (SBM) to address the inefficiency of the production system after considering pollutant abatement technology heterogeneity for different kinds of pollutant. Then, we employ the model to study the inefficiency of the Chinese industrial production system, analyzing the inefficiency in the stages of economic production and pollutant treatment. Furthermore, the regional distribution of inefficiencies concerning SO2 (NOx) generation (emission) are discussed and compared. The results show that only the joint reduction of NOx in two sub-stages simultaneously is feasible, and the synergistic pollutant reductions seems limited.
Supporting Sustainable Maintenance of Substations under Cyber-Threats: An Evaluation Method of Cybersecurity Risk for Power CPS
Authors: Fan Youping , Li Jingjiao , Zhang Dai , Pi Jie , Song Jiahan , Zhao Guo
Published: February 2019

In the increasingly complex cyber-environment, appropriate sustainable maintenance of substation auto systems (SASs) can lead to many positive effects on power cyber-physical systems (CPSs). Evaluating the cybersecurity risk of power CPSs is the first step in creating sustainable maintenance plans for SASs. In this paper, a mathematical framework for evaluating the cybersecurity risk of a power CPS is proposed considering both the probability of successful cyberattacks on SASs and their consequences for the power system. First, the cyberattacks and their countermeasures are introduced, and the probability of successful cyber-intruding on SASs is modeled from the defender’s perspective. Then, a modified hypergraph model of the SAS’s logical structure is established to quantitatively analyze the impacts of cyberattacks on an SAS. The impacts will ultimately act on the physical systems of the power CPS. The modified hypergraph model can describe more information than a graph or hypergraph model and potentially can analyze complex networks like CPSs. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed evaluation method is verified by the IEEE 14-bus system, and the test results demonstrate that this proposed method is more reasonable to assess the cybersecurity risk of power CPS compared with some other models.
Does Urban Industrial Agglomeration Lead to the Improvement of Land Use Efficiency in China? An Empirical Study from a Spatial Perspective
Authors: Han Wei , Zhang Ying , Cai Jianming , Ma Enpu
Published: February 2019

Industrial agglomeration is an important economic phenomenon in urban areas and has significant effects on land use efficiency (LUE) due to external economies of scale. A bourgeoning body of literature has investigated the effects of industrial agglomeration. However, the relationship between industrial agglomeration and land use efficiency has rarely been discussed in China. To fill this gap, this study aims to explore the effects of industrial agglomeration on LUE and the characteristics of its spatial distribution. In this study, the spatial effects of industrial agglomeration of 12 detailed sectors on LUE are estimated through the geographical weighted regression model. Socioeconomic data of 289 prefecture-level cities in China are utilized for the analysis. Results show several important findings. First, spatial effects of industrial agglomerations on LUE are evident in three grand city clusters, i.e. the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pearl River Delta. Second, spatial patterns and distributions of industrial agglomeration effects on LUE vary across regions. Third, the significance of industrial agglomeration effects on LUE between 2-digit industrial sectors is different. The merits of this study lie in three aspects: First, a theoretical framework is explored to analyze the impacts of industrial agglomeration on LUE based on the expanded Cobb–Douglas production function; Second, the impacts of industrial sectors on LUE are estimated from a spatial perspective; Third, some policy implications for a more economically efficient urban spatial development are suggested.
Deep Long Short-Term Memory: A New Price and Load Forecasting Scheme for Big Data in Smart Cities
Authors: Mujeeb Sana , Javaid Nadeem , Ilahi Manzoor , Wadud Zahid , Ishmanov Farruh , Afzal Muhammad Khalil
Published: February 2019

This paper focuses on analytics of an extremely large dataset of smart grid electricity price and load, which is difficult to process with conventional computational models. These data are known as energy big data. The analysis of big data divulges the deeper insights that help experts in the improvement of smart grid’s (SG) operations. Processing and extracting of meaningful information from data is a challenging task. Electricity load and price are the most influential factors in the electricity market. For improving reliability, control and management of electricity market operations, an exact estimate of the day ahead load is a substantial requirement. Energy market trade is based on price. Accurate price forecast enables energy market participants to make effective and most profitable bidding strategies. This paper proposes a deep learning-based model for the forecast of price and demand for big data using Deep Long Short-Term Memory (DLSTM). Due to the adaptive and automatic feature learning mechanism of Deep Neural Network (DNN), the processing of big data is easier with LSTM as compared to the purely data-driven methods. The proposed model was evaluated using well-known real electricity markets’ data. In this study, day and week ahead forecasting experiments were conducted for all months. Forecast performance was assessed using Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and Normalized Root Mean Square Error (NRMSE). The proposed Deep LSTM (DLSTM) method was compared to traditional Artificial Neural Network (ANN) time series forecasting methods, i.e., Nonlinear Autoregressive network with Exogenous variables (NARX) and Extreme Learning Machine (ELM). DLSTM outperformed the compared forecasting methods in terms of accuracy. Experimental results prove the efficiency of the proposed method for electricity price and load forecasting.
Visualization and Analysis of Mapping Knowledge Domain of Urban Vitality Research
Authors: Shi Jian-gang , Miao Wei , Si Hongyun
Published: February 2019

Mapping knowledge domain (MKD) is an important research technology in bibliometrics. It provides a visual perspective for researchers and helps researchers to clearly understand the general situations of specific research fields. Presently, MKD has been widely used in fields such as ecology and transportation safety. In this paper, we conduct a systematically bibliometric analysis of the development trend on urban vitality research by using VOSviewer software, and this work is based on the related articles published in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) between 1998 and 2018. In the implementation, we firstly introduce the annual numbers of articles, source journals, highly cited papers, and production countries relating to urban vitality research. Then, we adopt a keywords co-occurrence analysis to explore the topic distribution, research frontiers, and research trends of urban vitality research intuitively. Overall, the Mapped Knowledge Domain method has proved to be an effective way to assess research trends in specific disciplines and to contribute to researchers and governments with respect to management and decision-making on issues of science.
Spatial-Temporal Variance of Coupling Relationship between Population Modernization and Eco-Environment in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei
Authors: Li Meicun , Mao Chunmei
Published: February 2019

Steady population growth promotes economic and societal progress, and the symbiotic coordination between the ecological environment and the local population is the necessary requirement for realizing sustainability. We used population modernization and ecological environment data of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei from 2005 to 2016 to construct two index systems. We used the variation coefficient method, the coupling degree model, and a geographical detector to analyze the coordination degree of population modernization and the ecological environment. The results showed that: (1) From 2005 to 2016, the coupling degree was stable at a high level, the degree of coordination increased, and the growth rate decreased; (2) From the perspective of spatial distribution, the types of good harmony and high harmony were located in the middle, eastern, and western regions. The adjacent disorder and moderate disorder regions were distributed in the north and south sides; (3) Through influence detection, we found the main factors that influenced the spatial distribution of coordination degree were the natural population growth rate, health technicians/10,000 people, etc. These factors had some characteristics of space-time heterogeneity. Such results can contribute to the understanding of characteristics of population-environment development in different regions, promoting sustainable development of regional environment in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei.
Empirical Study of Software Defect Prediction: A Systematic Mapping
Authors: Son Le Hoang , Pritam Nakul , Khari Manju , Kumar Raghvendra , Phuong Pham Thi Minh , Thong Pham Huy
Published: February 2019

Software defect prediction has been one of the key areas of exploration in the domain of software quality. In this paper, we perform a systematic mapping to analyze all the software defect prediction literature available from 1995 to 2018 using a multi-stage process. A total of 156 studies are selected in the first step, and the final mapping is conducted based on these studies. The ability of a model to learn from data that does not come from the same project or organization will help organizations that do not have sufficient training data or are going to start work on new projects. The findings of this research are useful not only to the software engineering domain, but also to the empirical studies, which mainly focus on symmetry as they provide steps-by-steps solutions for questions raised in the article.
Emerging Approaches and Advances in Big Data
Authors: Man Ka Lok , Lee Kevin
Published: February 2019

This special issue of Symmetry entitled “Emerging Approaches and Advances in Big Data” consists of 17 papers [...]
A Novel Computational Technique for Impulsive Fractional Differential Equations
Authors: Ma Changyou
Published: February 2019

A computational technique for impulsive fractional differential equations is proposed in this paper. Adomian decomposition method plays an efficient role for approximate analytical solutions for ordinary or fractional calculus. Semi-analytical method is proposed by use of the Adomian polynomials. The method successively updates the initial values and gives the numerical solutions on different impulsive intervals. As one of the numerical examples, an impulsive fractional logistic differential equation is given to illustrate the method.
4D,

N
=
1

Matter Gravitino Genomics
Authors: Mak S.-N. Hazel , Stiffler Kory
Published: February 2019

Adinkras are graphs that encode a supersymmetric representation’s transformation laws that have been reduced to one dimension, that of time. A goal of the supersymmetry “genomics” project is to classify all 4D, N = 1 off-shell supermultiplets in terms of their adinkras. In previous works, the genomics project uncovered two fundamental isomer adinkras, the cis- and trans-adinkras, into which all multiplets investigated to date can be decomposed. The number of cis- and trans-adinkras describing a given multiplet define the isomer-equivalence class to which the multiplet belongs. A further refining classification is that of a supersymmetric multiplet’s holoraumy: the commutator of the supercharges acting on the representation. The one-dimensionally reduced, matrix representation of a multiplet’s holoraumy defines the multiplet’s holoraumy-equivalence class. Together, a multiplet’s isomer-equivalence and holoraumy-equivalence classes are two of the main characteristics used to distinguish the adinkras associated with different supersymmetry multiplets in higher dimensions. This paper focuses on two matter gravitino formulations, each with 20 bosonic and 20 fermionic off-shell degrees of freedom, analyzes them in terms of their isomer- and holoraumy-equivalence classes, and compares with non-minimal supergravity which is also a 20 × 20 multiplet. This analysis fills a missing piece in the supersymmetry genomics project, as now the isomer-equivalence and holoraumy-equivalence for representations up to spin two in component fields have been analyzed for 4D, N = 1 supersymmetry. To handle the calculations of this research effort, we have used the Mathematica software package called Adinkra.m. This package is open-source and available for download at a GitHub Repository. Data files associated with this paper are also published open-source at a Data Repository also on GitHub.
Starlike Functions Related to the Bell Numbers
Authors: Cho Nak Eun , Kumar Sushil , Kumar Virendra , Ravichandran V. , Srivastava H. M.
Published: February 2019

The present paper aims to establish the first order differential subordination relations between functions with a positive real part and starlike functions related to the Bell numbers. In addition, several sharp radii estimates for functions in the class of starlike functions associated with the Bell numbers are determined.
The Second-Order Correction to the Energy and Momentum in Plane Symmetric Gravitational Waves Like Spacetimes
Authors: Ali Mutahir , Ali Farhad , Saboor Abdus , Ghafar M. Saad , Khan Amir Sultan
Published: February 2019

This research provides second-order approximate Noether symmetries of geodetic Lagrangian of time-conformal plane symmetric spacetime. A time-conformal factor is of the form e ϵ f ( t ) which perturbs the plane symmetric static spacetime, where ϵ is small a positive parameter that produces perturbation in the spacetime. By considering the perturbation up to second-order in ϵ in plane symmetric spacetime, we find the second order approximate Noether symmetries for the corresponding Lagrangian. Using Noether theorem, the corresponding second order approximate conservation laws are investigated for plane symmetric gravitational waves like spacetimes. This technique tells about the energy content of the gravitational waves.
SAGBI Bases in G-Algebras
Authors: Khan Muhammad Abdul Basit , Alam Khan Junaid , Binyamin Muhammad Ahsan
Published: February 2019

In this article, we develop the theory of SAGBI bases in G-algebras and create a criterion through which we can check if a set of polynomials in a G-algebra is a SAGBI basis or not. Moreover, we will construct an algorithm to compute SAGBI bases from a subset of polynomials contained in a subalgebra of a G-algebra.
The Non-Relativistic Limit of the DKP Equation in Non-Commutative Phase-Space
Authors: Haouam Ilyas
Published: February 2019

The non-relativistic limit of the relativistic DKP equation for both of zero and unity spin particles is studied through the canonical transformation known as the Foldy–Wouthuysen transformation, similar to that of the case of the Dirac equation for spin-1/2 particles. By considering only the non-commutativity in phases with a non-interacting fields case leads to the non-commutative Schrödinger equation; thereafter, considering the non-commutativity in phase and space with an external electromagnetic field thus leads to extract a phase-space non-commutative Schrödinger–Pauli equation; there, we examined the effect of the non-commutativity in phase-space on the non-relativistic limit of the DKP equation. However, with both Bopp–Shift linear transformation through the Heisenberg-like commutation relations, and the Moyal–Weyl product, we introduced the non-commutativity in phase and space.
Parametric Fault Diagnosis of Analog Circuits Based on a Semi-Supervised Algorithm
Authors: Wang Ling , Zhou Dongfang , Tian Hui , Zhang Hao , Zhang Wei
Published: February 2019

The parametric fault diagnosis of analog circuits is very crucial for condition-based maintenance (CBM) in prognosis and health management. In order to improve the diagnostic rate of parametric faults in engineering applications, a semi-supervised machine learning algorithm was used to classify the parametric fault. A lifting wavelet transform was used to extract fault features, a local preserving mapping algorithm was adopted to optimize the Fisher linear discriminant analysis, and a semi-supervised cooperative training algorithm was utilized for fault classification. In the proposed method, the fault values were randomly selected as training samples in a range of parametric fault intervals, for both optimizing the generalization of the model and improving the fault diagnosis rate. Furthermore, after semi-supervised dimensionality reduction and semi-supervised classification were applied, the diagnosis rate was slightly higher than the existing training model by fixing the value of the analyzed component.
Grey Regulatory Focus Theory Weighting Method for the Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Problem in Evaluating University Reputation
Authors: Esangbedo Moses Olabhele , Bai Sijun
Published: February 2019

Evaluating the reputation of higher institutions is important as a benchmark for the continuous development of universities. In multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM), the estimation of the criteria weight is significant in improving the accuracy of the evaluation results. However, criteria weights assigned by decision makers (DMs) can be inaccurate when not measured from the orientations from which the DMs pursue their decision goals. This paper combines the grey system theory (GST) and regulatory focus theory (RFT) in estimating the weights of criteria by measuring the promotional and prevention focus orientations of the DMs and representing it as grey numbers. In this paper, we showed not all weight measurements from the DMs are symmetrical. In essence, to improve the accuracy of the MCDM weights, the grey regulatory focus theory (GRFT) weighting method is proposed to estimate the weights of an MCDM problem as well as aggregating the weights of the group DMs, thereby overcoming the limitation of a single orientation measurement. Furthermore, the GRFT weighting method is applied in ranking four universities in Xi’an city of China from a sample data from 1200 students. The most reputable university is consistent with the other ranking indexes in the literature.
Magnetic Stirring Assisted Demulsification Dispersive Liquid–Liquid Microextraction for Preconcentration of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Grilled Pork Samples
Authors: Vichapong Jitlada , Santaladchaiyakit Yanawath , Burakham Rodjana , Srijaranai Supalax
Published: February 2019

A simple microextraction method, magnetic stirring assisted demulsification dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction, for preconcentration of five polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthrene, and pyrene) was investigated prior to analysis by high performance liquid chromatography. In this method, a mixture of extraction solvent and disperser solvent was rapidly injected into sample solution. The magnetic stirrer agitator aided the dispersion of the extraction solvent into the sample solution. After the formation of an emulsion, the demulsifier was added, resulting in the rapid separation of the mixture into two phases. No centrifugation step was required. Several parameters affecting the extraction efficiency of the proposed method were studied, including addition of salt, kind and volume of extraction solvent, volume of demulsifier solvent, and extraction times. Under the optimum conditions, high enrichment factor, low limit of detections (LODs) and good precision were gained. The proposed method was successfully applied to analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon residues in grilled pork samples.
Aflatoxin Contamination of Milk Marketed in Pakistan: A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Yunus Agha Waqar , Imtiaz Nida , Khan Haider , Ibrahim Mohammed Nawaz Mohammed , Zafar Yusuf
Published: February 2019

A longitudinal one-year study was conducted to determine aflatoxin M1 levels in different types of milk marketed in Pakistan. Processed and raw liquid milk from 21 sources, two milk powder and six tea whitener brands were sampled on monthly basis from Islamabad. The aflatoxin M1 levels in liquid milk were lower (p < 0.05) in summer (April to July) compared with the levels in winter (January, November and December). The mean aflatoxin M1 levels were 254.9, 939.5, and 1535.0 ng/L in UHT, pasteurized, and raw milk, respectively (differing at p < 0.001). The mean toxin level in powdered milk after reconstitution was 522.1 ng/L. Overall, 12.9, 41.0, 91.9 and 50.0% of the UHT, pasteurized, raw and powdered milk samples, respectively, exceeded the Codex maximum tolerable limit of 500 ng of aflatoxin M1/L. It was estimated that consumers of raw and processed milk were exposed to 11.9 and 4.5 ng aflatoxin M1, respectively, per kg of body weight daily. The study indicates potential aflatoxin M1 exposure risks for the consumers of raw milk in the country. The levels of the toxin though comparatively lower in milk powder, requires attention as this type of milk is consumed by infants.
The Adenylate Cyclase (CyaA) Toxin from Bordetella pertussis Has No Detectable Phospholipase A (PLA) Activity In Vitro
Authors: Voegele Alexis , Sadi Mirko , Raoux-Barbot Dorothée , Douché Thibaut , Matondo Mariette , Ladant Daniel , Chenal Alexandre
Published: February 2019

The adenylate cyclase (CyaA) toxin produced in Bordetella pertussis is the causative agent of whooping cough. CyaA exhibits the remarkable capacity to translocate its N-terminal adenyl cyclase domain (ACD) directly across the plasma membrane into the cytosol of eukaryotic cells. Once translocated, calmodulin binds and activates ACD, leading to a burst of cAMP that intoxicates the target cell. Previously, Gonzalez-Bullon et al. reported that CyaA exhibits a phospholipase A activity that could destabilize the membrane to facilitate ACD membrane translocation. However, Bumba and collaborators lately reported that they could not replicate these results. To clarify this controversy, we assayed the putative PLA activity of two CyaA samples purified in two different laboratories by using two distinct fluorescent probes reporting either PLA2 or both PLA1 and PLA2 activities, as well as in various experimental conditions (i.e., neutral or negatively charged membranes in different buffers.) However, we could not detect any PLA activity in these CyaA batches. Thus, our data independently confirm that CyaA does not possess any PLA activity.
The Effect of Probiotic Supplementation on Performance and the Histopathological Changes in Liver and Kidneys in Broiler Chickens Fed Diets with Aflatoxin B1
Authors: Śliżewska Katarzyna , Cukrowska Bożena , Smulikowska Stefania , Cielecka-Kuszyk Joanna
Published: February 2019

The aim of the study was to investigate the toxic effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and efficacy of a probiotic preparation containing L. reuteri, L. plantarum, L. pentosus, L. rhamnosus and L. paracasei and Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts to ameliorate their effects in broiler chickens. A total of 168 one-day-old female Ross 308 broilers were randomly allocated to six groups. Three wheat and soybean meal-based diets were prepared: Control diet and diets contaminated with 1 or 5 mg/kg AFB1 supplied in moldy wheat. All diets were unsupplemented or supplemented with probiotic, cold pelleted and fed from 1 to 35 day of life. Feeding diet with 1 mg AFB1/kg did not affect performance, but a diet with 5 mg AFB1 resulted in a significant reduction of feed intake and BWG, both diets induced liver and kidneys enlargement. The probiotic supplementation of the diets partially ameliorated those negative effects and resulted in a significant increase of AFB1 excretion. It was accompanied by the reduced level of AFB1 residues in the liver from 8.9 to 3.7 and from 11.8 to 5.9 µg/kg, in kidneys from 7.9 to 2.5 and from 13.7 to 4.1 µg/kg in birds fed the less and more contaminated diets, respectively. AFB1 exposure caused many severe histopathological changes in the liver and kidneys of broilers, probiotic supplementation significantly reduced the changes of these organs. It may be concluded that the probiotic supplementation can be used to alleviate the negative effects of contamination of broiler feed with AFB1 on bird health and product security.
Developmental Toxicity of Mycotoxin Fumonisin B1 in Animal Embryogenesis: An Overview
Authors: Lumsangkul Chompunut , Chiang Hsin-I , Lo Neng-Wen , Fan Yang-Kwang , Ju Jyh-Cherng
Published: February 2019

A teratogenic agent or teratogen can disturb the development of an embryo or a fetus. Fumonisin B1 (FB1), produced by Fusarium verticillioides and F. proliferatum, is among the most commonly seen mycotoxins and contaminants from stale maize and other farm products. It may cause physical or functional defects in embryos or fetuses, if the pregnant animal is exposed to mycotoxin FB1. Due to its high similarity in chemical structure with lipid sphinganine (Sa) and sphingosine (So), the primary component of sphingolipids, FB1 plays a role in competitively inhibiting Sa and So, which are key enzymes in de novo ceramide synthase in the sphingolipid biosynthetic pathway. Therefore, it causes growth retardation and developmental abnormalities to the embryos of hamsters, rats, mice, and chickens. Moreover, maternal FB1 toxicity can be passed onto the embryo or fetus, leading to mortality. FB1 also disrupts folate metabolism via the high-affinity folate transporter that can then result in folate insufficiency. The deficiencies are closely linked to incidences of neural tube defects (NTDs) in mice or humans. The purpose of this review is to understand the toxicity and mechanisms of mycotoxin FB1 on the development of embryos or fetuses.
Correction: Mauro, A., et al. Biological Control Products for Aflatoxin Prevention in Italy: Commercial Field Evaluation of Atoxigenic Aspergillus flavus Active Ingredients. Toxins 2018, 10, 30
Authors: Mauro Antonio , Garcia-Cela Esther , Pietri Amedeo , Cotty Peter , Battilani Paola
Published: February 2019

The authors wish to make the following correction to their paper [...]
Bayesian Analysis for Extracting Properties of the Nuclear Equation of State from Observational Data Including Tidal Deformability from GW170817
Authors: Ayriyan Alexander , Alvarez-Castillo David , Blaschke David , Grigorian Hovik
Published: February 2019

We develop a Bayesian analysis method for selecting the most probable equation of state under a set of constraints from compact star physics, which now include the tidal deformability from GW170817. We apply this method for the first time to a two-parameter family of hybrid equations of state that is based on realistic models for the hadronic phase (KVORcut02) and the quark matter phase (SFM α ) which produce a third family of hybrid stars in the mass–radius diagram. One parameter ( α ) characterizes the screening of the string tension in the string-flip model of quark matter while the other ( Δ P ) belongs to the mixed phase construction that mimics the thermodynamics of pasta phases and includes the Maxwell construction as a limiting case for Δ P = 0 . We present the corresponding results for compact star properties like mass, radius and tidal deformabilities and use empirical data for them in the newly developed Bayesian analysis method to obtain the probabilities for the model parameters within their considered range.
Protein Disulfide Isomerase Inhibitor Suppresses Viral Replication and Production during Antibody-Dependent Enhancement of Dengue Virus Infection in Human Monocytic Cells
Authors: Rawarak Nantapon , Suttitheptumrong Aroonroong , Reamtong Onrapak , Boonnak Kobporn , Pattanakitsakul Sa-nga
Published: February 2019

One of several mechanisms that leads to the development of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS) is called antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE). Monocytes can be infected by the ADE phenomenon, which occurs in dengue secondary infection. This study aimed to investigate the proteins involved in ADE of DENV infection in the human monocytic cell line U937. The phosphoproteins were used to perform and analyze for protein expression using mass spectrometry (GeLC-MS/MS). The differential phosphoproteins revealed 1131 altered proteins compared between isotype- and DENV-specific antibody-treated monocytes. The altered proteins revealed 558 upregulated proteins and 573 downregulated proteins. Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI), which is an enzyme that had a high-ranking fold change and that catalyzes the formation, breakage, and rearrangement of disulfide bonds within a protein molecule, was selected for further study. PDI was found to be important for dengue virus infectivity during the ADE model. The effect of PDI inhibition was also shown to be involved in the early stage of life cycle by time-of-drug-addition assay. These results suggest that PDI is important for protein translation and virion assembly of dengue virus during infection in human monocytes, and it may play a significant role as a chaperone to stabilize dengue protein synthesis.
Meteorological Factors Affecting Pan Evaporation in the Haihe River Basin, China
Authors: Yan Zhihong , Wang Shuqian , Ma Ding , Liu Bin , Lin Hong , Li Su
Published: February 2019

Pan evaporation (Epan) is an important indicator of regional evaporation intensity and degree of drought. However, although more evaporation is expected under rising temperatures, the reverse trend has been observed in many parts of the world, known as the “pan evaporation paradox”. In this paper, the Haihe River Basin (HRB) is divided into six sub-regions using the Canopy and k-means (The process for partitioning an N-dimensional population into k sets on the basis of a sample is called “k-means”) to cluster 44 meteorological stations in the area. The interannual and seasonal trends and the significance of eight meteorological indicators, including average temperature, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, sunshine duration, wind speed, and Epan, were analyzed for 1961 to 2010 using the trend-free pre-whitening Mann-Kendall (TFPW-MK) test. Then, the correlation between meteorological elements and Epan was analyzed using the Spearman correlation coefficient. Results show that the average temperature, maximum temperature, and minimum temperature of the HRB increased, while precipitation, relative humidity, sunshine duration, wind speed and Epan exhibited a downward trend. The minimum temperature rose 2 and 1.5 times faster than the maximum temperature and average temperature, respectively. A significant reduction in sunshine duration was found to be the primary factor in the Epan decrease, while declining wind speed was the secondary factor.
Between Emulation and Assemblage: Analysing WFD Policy Transfer Outcomes in Turkey
Authors: Demirbilek Burcin , Benson David
Published: February 2019

Turkey’s protracted European Union (EU) accession process has resulted in the transfer of environmental policy, primarily the water acquis. Despite a recent reversal in accession negotiations, this process is continuing and has thereby resulted in the active Europeanisation of Turkish water policy. However, the resultant pattern of Europeanisation remains poorly understood with questions arising as to whether policy transfer is leading to significant convergence with EU policy, or if a uniquely Turkish hybrid system of water governance is emerging. The paper therefore provides an analysis of transfer outcomes from the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD), using eight core institutional features: identification of river basins; transboundary cooperation; environmental objectives setting; characterisation of river basins; monitoring; cost recovery and water pricing; river basin management planning; and public participation. While analysis of legal frameworks and their implementation shows many areas of emulation, some features of the WFD in Turkey are an amalgam of pre-existing water institutions, the mimetic influence of integrated water resources management (IWRM) norms, EU policy and changing national water policy priorities: what we call assembled emulation. This observation has implications for future studies on policy transfer, Europeanisation, IWRM and Turkish accession.
Debris Flow Damage Assessment by Considering Debris Flow Direction and Direction Angle of Structure in South Korea
Authors: Nam Dong Ho , Kim Man-Il , Kang Dong Ho , Kim Byung Sik
Published: February 2019

Recently, human and property damages have often occurred due to various reasons—such as landslides, debris flow, and other sediment-related disasters—which are also caused by regional torrential rain resulting from climate change and reckless development of mountainous areas. Debris flows mainly occur in mountainous areas near urban living communities and often cause direct damages. In general, debris flows containing soil, rock fragments, and driftwood temporarily travel down to lower parts along with a mountain torrent. However, debris flows are also often reported to stream down from the point where a slope failure or a landslide occurs in a mountain directly to its lower parts. The impact of those debris flows is one of the main factors that cause serious damage to structures. To mitigate such damage of debris flows, a quantitative assessment of the impact force is thus required. Moreover, technologies to evaluate disaster prevention facilities and structures at disaster-prone regions are needed. This study developed two models to quantitatively analyze the damages caused by debris flows on structures: Type-1 model for calculating the impact force, which reflected the flow characteristics of debris flows and the Type-2 model, which calculated the impact force based on the topographical characteristics of mountainous regions. Using RAMMS a debris flow runoff model, the impact forces assessed through Type-1 and Type-2 models were compared to check reliability. Using the assessed impact forces, the damage ratio of the structures was calculated and the amount of damage caused by debris flows on the structures was ultimately assessed. The results showed that the Type-1 model overestimated the impact force by 10% and the Type-2 model by 4% for Mt. Umyeon in Seoul, compared to the RAMMS model. In addition, the Type-1 model overestimated the impact force by 3% and Type-2 by 2% for Mt. Majeok in Chuncheon, South Korea.
Wearable, stable, highly sensitive hydrogel–graphene strain sensors
Authors: Lv Jian , Kong Chuncai , Yang Chao , Yin Lu , Jeerapan Itthipon , Pu Fangzhao , Zhang Xiaojing , Yang Sen , Yang Zhimao
Published: February 2019

A stable and highly sensitive graphene/hydrogel strain sensor is designed by introducing glycerol as a co-solvent in the formation of a hydrogel substrate and then casting a graphene solution onto the hydrogel in a simple, two-step method. This hydrogel-based strain sensor can effectively retain water in the polymer network due to the formation of strong hydrogen bonding between glycerol and water. The addition of glycerol not only enhances the stability of the hydrogel over a wider temperature range, but also increases the stretchability of the hydrogel from 800% to 2000%. The enhanced sensitivity can be attributed to the graphene film, whereby the graphene flakes redistribute to optimize the contact area under different strains. The careful design enables this sensor to be used in both stretching and bending modes. As a demonstration, the as-prepared strain sensor was applied to sense the movement of finger knuckles. Given the outstanding performance of this wearable sensor, together with the proposed scalable fabrication method, this stable and sensitive hydrogel strain sensor is considered to have great potential in the field of wearable sensors.
LCST phase behavior of benzo-21-crown-7 with different alkyl chains
Authors: Deng Yan , Li Xing , Zhang Qiao , Luo Zheng , Han Chengyou , Dong Shengyi
Published: February 2019

The introduction of hydrophobic units into crown ethers can dramatically decrease the critical transition temperature of LCST and realize macroscopic phase separation at low to moderate temperature and concentration. Minor modifications in the chemical structure of crown ethers (benzo-21-crown-7, B21C7s) can effectively control the thermo-responsive properties.
Aqueous olefin metathesis: recent developments and applications
Authors: Sabatino Valerio , Ward Thomas R
Published: February 2019

Olefin metathesis is one of the most powerful C–C double-bond-forming reactions. Metathesis reactions have had a tremendous impact in organic synthesis, enabling a variety of applications in polymer chemistry, drug discovery and chemical biology. Although challenging, the possibility to perform aqueous metatheses has become an attractive alternative, not only because water is a more sustainable medium, but also to exploit biocompatible conditions. This review focuses on the progress made in aqueous olefin metatheses and their applications in chemical biology.
Predicted Genetic Gains from Targeted Recombination in Elite Biparental Maize Populations
Authors: Brandariz Sofía P. , Bernardo Rex
Published: February 2019

Targeted recombination is the ability to induce or select for specific recombination points on chromosomes. A first study with the intermated B73 × Mo17 maize (Zea mays L.) population showed that targeted recombination doubles the predicted gains for yield and other agronomic traits. Our objective was to assess the predicted gains from targeted recombination for quantitative traits in multiple, elite maize populations. A total of 969 biparental maize populations were phenotyped at four to 12 environments in the United States from 2000 to 2008. Positions of one and two targeted recombinations per chromosome were determined from genomewide marker effects for 2911 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci. Relative efficiency (RETargeted) was calculated as the predicted response to targeted recombination divided by the predicted response to nontargeted recombination. On average, targeted recombination doubled the predicted genetic gains for yield, moisture, and test weight. For each trait, RETargeted ranged from around 60 to 400% among the populations, and targeted recombination did not increase gains in around 4% of the populations. The RETargeted tended to decrease as the similarity between the parents increased. Having targeted recombination on three chromosomes (for yield and test weight) to seven chromosomes (for moisture) led to the same or greater predicted gain than nontargeted recombination. Marker intervals for targeted recombination varied across populations and traits. Overall, our results for multiple, elite maize populations indicated that targeted recombination is a most promising breeding approach.
PECULIARITIES OF TRACTION FORCES IN WHEEL/RAIL CONTACT AREA
Authors: Bureika Gintautas , Mikaliūnas Šarūnas
Published: February 2019

Tractive force and train movement stability dependence on division of forces involved in wheel/rail contact area are the main subjects of this article. The influence of wheel/rail contact properties in the vehicle dynamics and adhesion fields is investigated. Current tendency all over the world is to reduce the conicity of wheels with the aim of increasing the speed of trains. Wave-length of moving wheel-set in track for worn wheel-set tyre is twice less than for new wheel running profile.
THE ROLE OF A TIRE IN VEHICLE AND ROAD INTERACTION
Authors: Rutka Arūnas , Sapragonas Jonas
Published: February 2019

Major difficulties in road surface description lies in the evaluation of the tire and road interaction. Main purpose of this paper is to analyse the influence of the tire in vehicle and road interaction with the purpose to choose more commons, but enough precise tire models. Data of profile used in investigations were measured in real roads. For the investigation of the tire's smoothing function two models were used: flexible narrow ring-2D estimates the tire and road contact in a line and flexible band-3D estimates dimensional contact between the road and tire. Results of computations are presented in figures. There were determinate that tire does not fully smooth irregularity of surface texture level.
PREDICTION OF MAJOR TRENDS OF TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT
Authors: Mazūra Mindaugas
Published: February 2019

The importance of forecasting the economic characteristics of transportation (i.e. the amount of freight and passengers carried, the turnover rate of freight and passengers, etc. in transportation as a whole and in particular areas using various transport facilities) is demonstrated. Methods for predicting the development of transportation based on multidimensional regression and correlation analysis and realizing mathematical models for finding linear and non-linear multidimensional regression equations as well as a mathematical model for choosing linear and non-linear regression equations, more accurately approximating the empirical data, are presented.

The techniques aimed to obtain and apply the linear correlation coefficient and correlative relationship in determining the forecast accuracy is also given. The efficiency of methods, determining the linear correlation coefficient and correlative relationship, used in achieving higher accuracy of forecasts is shown.
THE ANALYSIS OF POSSIBILITIES TO ENTER THE PORTS OF THE BALTIC SEA FOR BIG CONTAINER SHIPS
Authors: Paulauskas Vytautas , Paulauskas Donatas , Plačienė Birutė
Published: February 2019

The article investigates technical, economical and organizational possibilities to enter the Baltic ports for container ships as the result of economic globalization and the increase of transcontinental container transportation.