bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
American financial hegemony, global capital cycles, and the macroeconomic growth environment
Authors: Ba Heather , Winecoff William K.
Published: July 2023

Global financial cycles have become a growing concern for scholars and policymakers. Recent research has identified these cycles as originating in American markets, at least in part due to policy innovations in the United States. We articulate a previously unidentified, but powerful, mechanism that influence growth (and growth volatility) in the global economy: expansions in the American financial cycle disproportionately affect global credit conditions, leading to a higher incidence of gross capital inflow surges that subsequently create a boom‐bust growth dynamic in recipient economies. We evaluate this argument with an extensive empirical examination of 102 countries from 1975 to 2011 and find substantial support for the argument: US financial market developments produce capital flow cycles that challenge the ability of policymakers to stabilize their macroeconomies. We disaggregate capital flows and find that interbank lending plays a crucial role in driving these outcomes, with the results exhibiting a high degree of robustness to alternative specifications. Domestic policy tools alone may be insufficiently powerful to counteract volatility induced by these capital waves emanating from the core of the global financial system.
Moderate nitrogen retention in temperate heath ecosystem after elevated CO2, drought and warming through 7 years
Authors: Andresen Louise C. , Ambus Per , Beier Claus , Michelsen Anders
Published: July 2023

Nitrogen (N) dynamic is one of the main controlling factors of responses to climate change in N‐limited terrestrial ecosystems, which rely on nutrient recycling and retention. In this study we investigate the N partitioning in ecosystem compartments of a grassland heath, and the impact of multiple climate change factors on long‐term N retention after 15N pulse labelling. The impacts of elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2), warming and drought and the treatments in combination on ecosystem N retention were investigated in a field scale manipulation experiment. A 6‐year time‐course was assessed by pulse‐labelling with the stable N isotope 15N and by sampling after 1 day, 1 year and 6 years. After 6 years we observed that the total ecosystem retained 42% of the amended 15N across treatments (recovery of the amended 15N in the pool). The fate of the applied 15N was mainly stabilization in soil, with 36% 15N recovery in soil, while the plant compartment and microbial biomass each retained only 1%–2% of the added 15N. This suggests a moderate retention of N, for all treatments, as compared to similar long‐term studies of forest ecosystems. A decreased ammonium and vegetation N pool combined with higher 15N retention in the soil under eCO2 treatments suggests that eCO2 promoted processes that immobilize N in soil, while warming counteracted this when combined with eCO2. Drought treatments contrastingly increased the vegetation N pool. We conclude that as the organic soil layer has the main capacity for N storage in a temperate heathland‐grassland, it is important for buffering nutrient availability and maintaining a resilient ecosystem. However, the full treatment combination of drought, warming and eCO2 did not differ in 15N recovery from the control, suggesting unchanged long‐term consequences of climate change on retention of pulse added N in this ecosystem.
Feedback loops between 3D vegetation structure and ecological functions of animals
Authors: Russo Nicholas J. , Davies Andrew B. , Blakey Rachel V. , Ordway Elsa M. , Smith Thomas B.
Published: July 2023

Ecosystems function in a series of feedback loops that can change or maintain vegetation structure. Vegetation structure influences the ecological niche space available to animals, shaping many aspects of behaviour and reproduction. In turn, animals perform ecological functions that shape vegetation structure. However, most studies concerning three‐dimensional vegetation structure and animal ecology consider only a single direction of this relationship. Here, we review these separate lines of research and integrate them into a unified concept that describes a feedback mechanism. We also show how remote sensing and animal tracking technologies are now available at the global scale to describe feedback loops and their consequences for ecosystem functioning. An improved understanding of how animals interact with vegetation structure in feedback loops is needed to conserve ecosystems that face major disruptions in response to climate and land‐use change.
Observed forest trait velocities have not kept pace with hydraulic stress from climate change
Authors: Quetin G. R. , Anderegg L. D. L. , Boving I. , Anderegg W. R. L. , Trugman A. T.
Published: July 2023

The extent to which future climate change will increase forest stress and the amount to which species and forest ecosystems can acclimate or adapt to increased stress is a major unknown. We used high‐resolution maps of hydraulic traits representing the diversity in tree drought tolerance across the United States, a hydraulically enabled tree model, and forest inventory observations of demographic shifts to quantify the ability for within‐species acclimation and between‐species range shifts to mediate climate stress. We found that forests are likely to experience increases in both acute and chronic hydraulic stress with climate change. Based on current species distributions, regional hydraulic trait diversity was sufficient to buffer against increased stress in 88% of forested areas. However, observed trait velocities in 81% of forested areas are not keeping up with the rate required to ameliorate projected future stress without leaf area acclimation.
Sampling strategy matters to accurately estimate response curves' parameters in species distribution models
Authors: Bazzichetto Manuele , Lenoir Jonathan , Da Re Daniele , Tordoni Enrico , Rocchini Duccio , Malavasi Marco , Barták Vojtech , Sperandii Marta Gaia
Published: July 2023

Aim

Assessing how different sampling strategies affect the accuracy and precision of species response curves estimated by parametric species distribution models.

Major Taxa Studied

Virtual plant species.

Location

Abruzzo (Italy).

Time Period

Timeless (simulated data).

Methods

We simulated the occurrence of two virtual species with different ecology (generalist vs specialist) and distribution extent. We sampled their occurrence following different sampling strategies: random, stratified, systematic, topographic, uniform within the environmental space (hereafter, uniform) and close to roads. For each sampling design and species, we ran 500 simulations at increasing sampling efforts (total: 42,000 replicates). For each replicate, we fitted a binomial generalised linear model, extracted model coefficients for precipitation and temperature, and compared them with true coefficients from the known species' equation. We evaluated the quality of the estimated response curves by computing bias, variance and root mean squared error (RMSE). Additionally, we (i) assessed the impact of missing covariates on the performance of the sampling approaches and (ii) evaluated the effect of incompletely sampling the environmental space on the uniform approach.

Results

For the generalist species, we found the lowest RMSE when uniformly sampling the environmental space, while sampling occurrence data close to roads provided the worst performance. For the specialist species, all sampling designs showed comparable outcomes. Excluding important predictors similarly affected all sampling strategies. Sampling limited portions of the environmental space reduced the performance of the uniform approach, regardless of the portion surveyed.

Main Conclusions

Our results suggest that a proper estimate of the species response curve can be obtained when the choice of the sampling strategy is guided by the species' ecology. Overall, uniformly sampling the environmental space seems more efficient for species with wide environmental tolerances. The advantage of seeking the most appropriate sampling strategy vanishes when modelling species with narrow realised niches.
High piezoelectric and dielectric constant of Fe/In Co‐doped KNN‐based ceramics regulated by lattice distortion
Authors: Leng Wangzhe , Wan Guoxi , Liu Yanyu , Ma Rui , Du Yi
Published: July 2023

The new (0.96‐x)(K0.48Na0.52Nb0.96Sb0.04)O3‐0.04(Bi0.5Ag0.5)ZrO3‐x(Fe2O3‐In2O3) ceramics with high dielectric, and electromechanical coupling properties were designed. In this work, the effect of KNN‐based ceramics lattice distortion (c/a) and microstructure on the electrical properties was explored by varying the doping amount of Fe3+ and In3+. The problem of a large number of oxygen vacancies generated by the volatilization of K and Na can be well solved by introducing Fe3+ and In3+. The bulk density increases significantly and the maximum value is about 4.52 g/cm3.The sample with x = 0.003 has the smallest c/a, and exhibits the best piezoelectric and dielectric properties (d33 = 536 pC/N, εr = 3432 and kp = 55.8 %). Low doping concentration of Fe2O3 is considered a “soft” addition for KNN‐based piezoelectric ceramics. The study of this mechanism provides a new idea to regulate the electrical performance of KNN‐based ceramics.
Effect of illness perception on predicting breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours among breast cancer patients: A comparison between dimensions and profiles
Authors: Chen Jing , Wang Ying , Luo Xia , Zhang Yue , Zhang Xiaomin , Li Mingfang , Xiong Chenxia , Guo Zijun , Zhao Meng , Yan Jun
Published: July 2023

Aim

This study aimed to explore the utility of latent profile analysis of illness perception, in comparison to treating illness perception as several dimensions, to predict breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours among Chinese breast cancer patients.

Methods

This is a 3‐month longitudinal study. From August 2019 to January 2021, patients who recently underwent breast cancer surgery including axillary lymphadenectomy were recruited. Illness perception and risk management behaviours were measured by breast cancer‐related lymphedema specific questionnaires before discharge following surgery (n = 268) and at 3 months postsurgery (n = 213), respectively.

Results

Treating illness perception as several dimensions, ‘illness coherence’ and ‘timeline (cyclical)’ dimensions were found to be significantly associated with breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours. Using the latent profile analysis, two illness perception profiles were identified and significant differences were revealed in breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours between them. Overall, illness perception profiles explained smaller amounts of variability in breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours than illness perception dimensions.

Conclusion

Future studies could combine these two different perspectives of illness perception regarding breast cancer‐related lymphedema into the design of interventions to improve breast cancer‐related lymphedema risk management behaviours.
Characterization of biodegradable core–clad borosilicate glass fibers with round and rectangular cross‐section
Authors: Hongisto Mikko , Ghanavati Sonya , Lemiere Arnaud , Hauss Gregory , Boraiah Shashank , Cornet Louis , Poulon‐Quintin Angeline , Pagnoux Dominique , Bernard Dominique , Massera Jonathan , Petit Laeticia , Jubera Veronique , Danto Sylvain
Published: July 2023

Here, we report on core–clad bioactive borosilicate fibers, that we have prepared both with round and rectangular cross‐section profile. The exposed approach, which relies on the stacking and drawing of glass slabs, demonstrates our ability to develop bioactive‐based glass fibers with tailored cross‐section profiles. Tens‐of‐meters‐long fibers were successfully drawn, although suffering from elevated losses in the case of the rectangular ones. The response of the fibers in simulated body fluid was studied for both geometries. We found that a round cladding can act as protective layer, tempering effects of the corrosion. We also noticed that rectangular fibers are more prone to degradation, the enhanced corrosion beginning from their sharp corners as they accumulated residual tensile stress during drawing. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the effect of residual tensile stresses from surface tension deformations applied to the corrosion of rectangular fibers. As geometry plays a critical role on the biodegradation behavior of the fiberglass, we believe the enclosed results could lead to the design of fiber devices with tailored cross‐section profile in order to tune their rate of degradation on solely based geometrical effects.
Seeing COVID‐19 is believing: Direct and indirect experiences with COVID‐19 predict health behaviors through conspiracy beliefs and risk perception
Authors: Evans Nicholas D. , Fetterman Adam K.
Published: July 2023

When people are confronted with research that contradicts their own personal experiences, they tend to deny the science. Using a secondary multinational data set collected during the early stages of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic (N = 46,490), we tested this “seeing is believing” effect as it relates to the link between direct and indirect personal experience with COVID‐19 and public health behaviors (PHBs) through COVID‐19 conspiracy beliefs and perceived risk of infection. Indirect experience with COVID‐19 was associated with lower endorsement of COVID‐19 conspiracy beliefs, which negatively predicted risk perception of infection, and, in turn, positively predicted PHBs. However, direct experience positively predicted COVID‐19 conspiracy beliefs, while it negatively predicted perceived risk. Moreover, while indirect experience positively predicted PHBs, direct experience largely negatively predicted PHBs. Implications of these findings as it relates to the “seeing is believing” effect are discussed.
Effect of CAD‐CAM restorative materials and scanning aid conditions on the accuracy and time efficiency of intraoral scans
Authors: Cho Jun‐Ho , Çakmak Gülce , Yilmaz Burak , Yoon Hyung‐In
Published: July 2023

Purpose

This in vitro study aimed to evaluate the effects of restorative materials and scanning aid conditions on the accuracy and time efficiency of intraoral scans.

Materials and Methods

Identical anatomic contour crowns were fabricated using the following materials: hybrid ceramic, 3 mol% yttria‐stabilized tetragonal zirconia, 4 mol% yttria‐partially stabilized zirconia, 5 mol% yttria‐partially stabilized zirconia, cobalt–chromium (Co–Cr), resin, lithium disilicate, and feldspathic ceramic. The models were digitized and analyzed for accuracy (n = 10) under three scanning aid conditions (powder‐based, liquid‐based, and none). Additionally, the effect of metal restorations on the scan accuracy of other crowns was investigated. The scan time for complete arches was also recorded. One‐way analysis of variance, Welch analysis of variance, and post‐hoc comparison or independent t‐tests were used for trueness analysis, and the F‐test was used to examine precision (α = 0.05).

Results

Significant differences were observed in the trueness of the different restorative materials under the no‐scanning aid condition (P < 0.05). In contrast, no statistically significant difference among the groups was observed with the powder‐ or liquid‐based scanning aid. For each restorative material, the no‐scanning aid condition showed significantly lower trueness than that with powder‐ or liquid‐based scanning aids. The presence of a Co–Cr crown did not affect the trueness of other restorations in the arch. The scan time efficiency significantly increased on applying a powder‐ or liquid‐based scanning aid.

Conclusions

Using a scanning aid was effective to improve the scan accuracy of the tested restorative materials and scan time efficiency. Applying scanning aids to existing intraoral restorations can help improve prosthesis quality and reduce the need for clinical adjustment at the occlusal or proximal contacts.
Influence of polishing technique and coffee thermal cycling on the surface roughness and color stability of additively and subtractively manufactured resins used for definitive restorations
Authors: Çakmak Gülce , Oosterveen‐Rüegsegger Alice Lisa , Akay Canan , Schimmel Martin , Yilmaz Burak , Donmez Mustafa Borga
Published: July 2023

Purpose

To evaluate how different polishing techniques and coffee thermal cycling affect the surface roughness and stainability of additively and subtractively manufactured resins used for definitive prostheses.

Materials and Methods

Two additively manufactured composite resins (Crowntec, CT and VarseoSmile Crown Plus, VS) and a subtractively manufactured resin nanoceramic (Cerasmart, CS) were used to fabricate 90 rectangular‐shaped specimens (14 × 12 × 1 mm) (n = 30). After baseline surface roughness (Ra) measurements, specimens were divided into three groups based on the polishing technique; conventional polishing with a 2‐stage polishing kit (CP) and surface sealant application (Optiglaze, OG or Vita Akzent LC, VA) (n = 10). After polishing, specimens were subjected to 10,000 cycles of coffee thermal cycling. Ra and color coordinate measurements were performed after polishing and after coffee thermal cycling. Color difference (ΔE00) was calculated. Scanning electron microscope images were taken at each time interval. Kruskal–Wallis or 1‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to evaluate Ra of materials within each polishing‐time interval pair and different polishing techniques within each material‐time interval pair, while Friedman or repeated measures ANOVA were used to evaluate Ra at different time intervals within each material‐polishing pair. ΔE00 was assessed with 2‐way ANOVA (α = 0.05).

Results

Other than VA‐after polishing (p = 0.055), tested materials had significantly different Ra within each polishing‐time interval pair (p ≤ 0.038). When Ra differences among different polishing techniques within each material‐time interval pair were considered, CS had differences after coffee thermal cycling, CT had differences before polishing and after coffee thermal cycling, and VS had differences within each time interval (p ≤ 0.038). When Ra differences among different time intervals within each material‐polishing pair were considered, significant differences were observed among all pairs (p ≤ 0.016), except for CS‐VA (p = 0.695) and VS‐VA (p = 0.300). ΔE00 values were affected by material and polishing technique interaction (p = 0.007).

Conclusions

Ra of CS was similar to or lower than the Ra of other materials, regardless of the time interval or polishing technique. CP mostly led to lower Ra than other polishing techniques, whereas VA resulted in a high Ra regardless of the material‐time interval pair. Polishing reduced the Ra, while coffee thermal cycling was found to have a small effect. Among tested material‐polishing pairs, only CS‐VA had moderately unacceptable color change when previously reported threshold values were considered.
Special Education Teachers’ Self–Efficacy in Implementing Social–Emotional Learning to Support Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Alsalamah Areej Ali
Published: July 2023

This study was designed to determine how special education teachers (SETs) in Saudi Arabia perceive their self–efficacy in implementing social–emotional learning (SEL) practices to support students with learning disabilities (LD). The data were collected by surveying 109 SETs of students with LD who teach at elementary and middle schools in Riyadh. The findings demonstrate that SETs had low to moderate self–efficacy in putting SEL into practice, and the participants highlighted the importance of receiving support that can enhance their self–efficacy in SEL. Moreover, the study's findings show some statistically significant variations in the responses of the teachers, as those who attended more professional development programs reported higher levels of self–efficacy. Additionally, middle school teachers and teachers with fewer years of experience showed a higher need for receiving support to enhance their implementation of SEL. Recommendations for future studies and practices are provided.
Species phylogeny, ecology, and root traits as predictors of root exudate composition
Authors: Rathore Nikita , Hanzelková Věra , Dostálek Tomáš , Semerád Jaroslav , Schnablová Renáta , Cajthaml Tomáš , Münzbergová Zuzana
Published: July 2023

Root traits including root exudates are key factors affecting plant interactions with soil and thus play an important role in determining ecosystem processes. The drivers of their variation, however, remain poorly understood. We determined the relative importance of phylogeny and species ecology in determining root traits and analyzed the extent to which root exudate composition can be predicted by other root traits.

We measured different root morphological and biochemical traits (including exudate profiles) of 65 plant species grown in a controlled system. We tested phylogenetic conservatism in traits and disentangled the individual and overlapping effects of phylogeny and species ecology on traits. We also predicted root exudate composition using other root traits.

Phylogenetic signal differed greatly among root traits, with the strongest signal in phenol content in plant tissues. Interspecific variation in root traits was partly explained by species ecology, but phylogeny was more important in most cases. Species exudate composition could be partly predicted by specific root length, root dry matter content, root biomass, and root diameter, but a large part of variation remained unexplained.

In conclusion, root exudation cannot be easily predicted based on other root traits and more comparative data on root exudation are needed to understand their diversity.
Joint probabilities under expected value constraints, transportation problems, maximum entropy in the mean
Authors: Gzyl Henryk , Mayoral Silvia
Published: July 2023

Here we consider an application of the method of maximum entropy in the mean to solve an extension of the problem of finding a discrete probability distribution from the knowledge of its marginals. The extension consists of determining joint probabilities when, besides specifying the marginals, we specify the expected value of some given random variables. The proposed method can incorporate constraints as the the requirement that the joint probabilities have to fall within known ranges. To motivate, think of the marginal probabilities as demands or supplies, and of the joint probability as the fraction of the supplies to be shipped from the production sites to the demand sites, thus joint probabilities become transportation policies. Fixing the cost of a transportation policy is equivalent to requiring that the unknown probability yields a given value to some random variable, and prescribing the range for each unknown may have an economical interpretation.
Apheresis medicine education during the early phase of theCOVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Treml Angela , Joshi Sarita A. , Stephens Laura Dilly , Zantek Nicole D. , Tanhehco Yvette C. , Mason Holli M. , Li Yanhua , Srivaths Poyyapakkam , Mattiazzi Adela D. , Schwartz Joseph , Wehrli Gay
Published: July 2023

Background

The COVID‐19 pandemic introduced challenges and disruption across healthcare, including apheresis medicine (AM). In this study, we report findings from a survey conducted among American Society for Apheresis Physician Committee (ASFA‐PC) members to describe the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on AM education practices.

Study design and methods

A voluntary, anonymous, 24‐question, institutional review board‐approved survey regarding AM teaching during the pandemic was distributed to ASFA‐PC members in the United States between December 1, 2020, and December 15, 2020. Descriptive analyses were reported as number and frequency of respondents for each question. Free text responses were summarized.

Results

Responses were received from 14/31 (45%) of ASFA‐PC members, of whom 12 practiced at academic institutions. Among these, 11/12 (92%) transitioned to virtual platform for AM trainee conferences during the pandemic. A variety of resources were employed to support independent AM learning. While 7/12 (58%) respondents did not change the informed consent process for AM procedures, others delegated this process or introduced remote alternatives. The most common method respondents used to conduct AM patient rounding was a hybrid in‐person/virtual model.

Conclusion

This survey describes the adaptations and changes AM practitioners made to trainee education in response to the early phase of the COVID‐19 pandemic. The transition to virtual and/or hybrid trainee learning and AM rounds underscores the importance of digital AM resources. Further study of the effects of the pandemic and its impact on AM trainee education, as well as patient care is warranted.
Characteristics of “Dust” Fluxes from the Surface of Copper and Lead Liners Exposed to One or Two Successive Shock Waves
Authors: Ogorodnikov V. A. , Erunov S. V. , Panov K. N. , Chudakov E. A. , Blinov I. A. , Georgievskaya A. B. , Zamyslov D. N. , Farin I. R.
Published: July 2023

Comparative experimental studies of the shock-induced particle ejection (“dusting”) from the free rough (Rz20) surface of copper and lead liners exposed to one or two successive shock waves separated in time by 0.2 μs have been carried out for the first time. This situation usually occurs in cumulative systems for the compression of the plasma by cylindrical or spherical liners shock or quasi-isentropically accelerated by explosion products. Using pulsed X-ray diffraction, laser optical recording, piezoelectric pressure sensors, and heterodyne interferometry, a qualitative picture has been studied and the quantitative characteristics of particle ejection from the free surface such as the velocities of the free surface and the particle flux front and the density (mass) distribution of particle flux in the direction of its motion, which are necessary for more accurate determination of features and the development of more appropriate models of the effect, have been evaluated.
Entanglement entropy and complexity in the holographic model of superfluid
Authors: Lai Chuyu , Pan Qiyuan
Published: July 2023

We numerically study the holographic entangle-ment entropy and complexity conjectured with the volume in the holographic superfluid with full backreaction which can realize first and second order phase transitions. Our results show that both the entanglement entropy and complexity exhibit the behaviors characterizing the type of the transition. For the first order phase transition, there is a fast drop of the entanglement entropy and a fast jump of the complexity at the critical temperature, while both of them are continuous but non-differentiable at the second order phase transition point. These suggest that both of holographic entanglement entropy and complexity may be used as a good probe to the type of superfluid phase transition. Moreover, at a fixed temperature in the superfluid phase, we observe that the increasing superfluid velocity increases the entanglement entropy but decreases the complexity. Interestingly, we find that, for the condensation operators $$\mathcal {O}_{+}$$

O
+

and $$\mathcal {O}_{-}$$

O
-

, the dependence of holographic entanglement entropy on the backreaction is inconsistent and so is the dependence of holographic complexity on the superfluid velocity in the normal phase, which indicates that the entanglement entropy and complexity may reflect deep physics about the difference between the two operators in the superfluid dual system.
Hopping of elliptical pebbles on the beach and laboratory results
Authors: Winzer K.
Published: July 2023

On sandy ocean beaches, amongst many irregularly shaped pebbles, a surprisingly large number of pebbles that are nearly perfect ellipsoids may also be found. These elliptical stones are characterized by the density $$\rho$$
ρ
of the mineral and by the length of their symmetry axes (a, b, c) with (a > b > c). The grinding process which forms the ab-plane of the ellipsoid relates to the rotation around the axis of the greatest moment of inertia (c-axis) in the surf. In a recent paper by fairly simple physical arguments, it was shown that by this rotation around the c-axis the ellipticity $$\varepsilon$$
ε
always increases. This is in agreement with the empirical observation that on sandy beaches of the oceans no spherical or disc-like pebbles can be found. If the pebble velocity during the rotation becomes too large, then hopping of the pebble sets in. This is caused by the fact that the centre-of-mass acceleration during fast rotation exceeds the gravity acceleration g. Since greater forces occur for jumping than for rolling, the hopping can have a strong influence on the b/a-ratio of the elliptical pebble. In this work, it will be shown that the b-axis is worn away more than the a-axis by erosion with jumping. In a laboratory study with a model of an elliptical cylinder, the theoretical results were checked and partially confirmed.
A Polynomial-Time Algorithm for 1/3-Approximate Nash Equilibria in Bimatrix Games
Authors: Deligkas Argyrios , Fasoulakis Michail , Markakis Evangelos
Published: July 2023

Since the celebrated PPAD-completeness result for Nash equilibria in bimatrix games, a long line of research has focused on polynomial-time algorithms that compute ε-approximate Nash equilibria. Finding the best possible approximation guarantee that we can have in polynomial time has been a fundamental and non-trivial pursuit on settling the complexity of approximate equilibria. Despite a significant amount of effort, the algorithm of Tsaknakis and Spirakis [
38
], with an approximation guarantee of (0.3393+δ), remains the state of the art over the last 15 years. In this paper, we propose a new refinement of the Tsaknakis-Spirakis algorithm, resulting in a polynomial-time algorithm that computes a

\((\frac{1}{3}+\delta)\)

-Nash equilibrium, for any constant δ > 0. The main idea of our approach is to go beyond the use of convex combinations of primal and dual strategies, as defined in the optimization framework of [
38
], and enrich the pool of strategies from which we build the strategy profiles that we output in certain bottleneck cases of the algorithm.
Consistency Constraints for Mapping Dataflow Graphs to Hybrid Dataflow/von Neumann Architectures
Authors: Schneider Klaus , Bhagyanath Anoop
Published: July 2023

Dataflow process networks (DPNs) provide a convenient model of computation that is often used to model system behavior in model-based designs. With fixed sets of nodes, they are also used as dataflow graphs as an intermediate program representation by compilers to uncover instruction-level parallelism of sequential programs. Many recent processor architectures, which are still von Neumann architectures, also use dataflow computing to increase their exploitation of instruction-level parallelism by exposing their datapaths so that the compiler can take care of the allocation of processing units (PUs), the execution schedules of instructions on the PUs, and the communication of intermediate values between PUs. If the communication paths are buffered, these architectures can be abstracted into a DPN architecture whose PUs and interconnection network are DPN nodes.

In this article, we introduce a DPN abstraction of hybrid dataflow/von Neumann architectures and consider the mapping of the nodes of a given dataflow graph to the PUs of such a DPN architecture such that there are no conflicts due to the mapping of different nodes to the same PU. We express the allocation and scheduling constraints in terms of propositional logic for the original dataflow graph and for a modified version of the dataflow graph that simplifies the constraints by introducing levels using copy nodes, such that all nodes receive inputs only from nodes of the previous level. We also formulate equisatisfiable SMT constraints using integer variables to reason directly about the parallel runtime. On this basis, we further present alternative SAT constraints that explicitly encode concurrency, and discuss variants of the constraints for a better understanding of the same.
On Predicting ESG Ratings Using Dynamic Company Networks
Authors: Ang Gary , Guo Zhiling , Lim Ee-Peng
Published: July 2023

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations play an increasingly important role due to the growing focus on sustainability globally. Entities, such as banks and investors, utilize ESG ratings of companies issued by specialized rating agencies to evaluate ESG risks of companies. The process of assigning ESG ratings by human analysts is however laborious and time intensive. Developing methods to predict ESG ratings could alleviate such challenges, allow ESG ratings to be generated in a more timely manner, cover more companies, and be more accessible. Most works study the effects of ESG ratings on target variables such as stock prices or financial fundamentals of companies, but few works study how different types of company information can be utilized to predict ESG ratings. Previous works also largely focus on using only the financial information of individual companies to predict ESG ratings, leaving out the different types of inter-company relationship networks. Such inter-company relationship networks are typically dynamic, i.e., they evolve across time. In this paper, we focus on utilizing dynamic inter-company relationships for ESG ratings prediction, and examine the relative importance of different financial and dynamic network information in this prediction task. Our analysis shows that utilizing dynamic inter-company network information, based on common director, common investor and news event-based knowledge graph relationships, can significantly improve ESG rating prediction performance. Robustness checks over different time-periods and different number of time-steps in the future further validate these insights.
Rehabilitation Methods for Patients with Geographic Atrophy due to Age‐Related Macular Degeneration and Effects of Rehabilitation on Quality of Life
Authors: Erginturk Acar Damla , Batioglu Figen , Idil Aysun , Sahli Esra , Goksuluk Dincer
Published: July 2023

Purpose. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the low vision rehabilitation methods and to investigate the effect of visual rehabilitation on quality of life in patients with low vision due to geographic atrophy from age‐related macular degeneration (ARMD). Methods. The better‐seeing eye of 78 patients with geographic atrophy due to ARMD were included in the study. Sociodemographic characteristics, ophthalmological examination findings, and preferred low vision aids for near and distant were recorded. Fifty‐seven patients who preferred to use a low vision aid device in daily life were considered as a rehabilitation group, whereas 21 patients who did not use any device were considered as a control group. The National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire (NEI‐VFQ‐25) was applied to all patients at the initial examination and at least 6 months after the initial examination. Results. In the rehabilitation group, statistically significant increases were found in the overall composite score, and general vision, near and distance activities, social functioning, mental health, role difficulties, and dependency subscale scores of the NEI‐VFQ‐25 quality of life scale after low vision rehabilitation (p = 0.009 for general vision, p < 0.001; for others). In the control group, there was no statistically significant change in any of the subscale scores or the overall score of the scale (p > 0.05). All patients (n = 78) were recommended to use at least one low vision aid for near vision. Hyperocular glasses were recommended for 77 patients (98.72%), magnifiers for 15 patients (19.23%), electro‐optical devices for 2 patients (2.56%), and telemicroscope for one patient (1.28%). Furthermore, 17 patients (21.8%) were prescribed more than one low vision aids. However, for distance vision, only 29 patients (37.18%) received a recommendation for a low vision aid. Conclusions. Low vision patients with ARMD‐related geographic atrophy should meet with low vision aids as soon as possible and should be included in low vision rehabilitation programs.
Replacing Missing Maxillary Lateral Incisors by CAD/CAM PMMA Cantilever Bridges
Authors: Karray Shayma , Gassara Yosra , Boudabous Emna , Nasri Sarra , Nouira Zohra , Hajjami Hayet
Published: July 2023

Introduction. Management of missing maxillary lateral incisors can be a challenging endeavour for dentists. Whether from agenesis or tooth loss, several treatment modalities are currently present to tackle this task to ensure satisfactory aesthetics. Most patients, especially younger patients are more likely to prefer fixed prosthodontic rehabilitation. Among these options is the computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing polymethyl methacrylate (CAD/CAM PMMA) cantilever bridge. Case Descriptions. These two clinical cases describe the management of missing lateral maxillary incisors in two Tunisian female patients with different etiologies, using CAD/CAM PMMA cantilever bridge. Conclusions. CAD/CAM technologies allow for a fairly quick and simple try-in thanks to their high accuracy as well as being predictable, minimally invasive, and affordable treatment options. This type of restoration can be put to use for mid- to long-term solutions to missing maxillary lateral incisors. However, its success depends mainly on patient selection regarding age, general health, occlusal context, and proper indication.
Mathematical Analysis on the Action Mechanism of Different Intensities of Environmental Regulation on Regional Economy
Authors: Lin Ling , Sun Hai
Published: July 2023

An in-depth understanding of environmental regulation and its action mechanisms on the regional economy helps the regional government make correct and reasonable decisions on environmental and industrial policy. So far, relatively few scholars have analyzed the influence of different intensities of environmental regulation on the spatial evolution of regional economies. Drawing on the existing results, this paper carries out a mathematical analysis of the action mechanism of different intensities of environmental regulation on the regional economy. The action paths of environmental regulation on the regional economy were identified, and the basic assumptions were provided for the action mechanism. Furthermore, the authors discussed the energy conservation and emission reduction (ECER) cost and economic benefit under the effect of environmental regulation. Finally, the empirical results were obtained through the experiments. It is concluded that the ecological efficiencies of the regional economy in the study area demonstrated heterogeneous spatial correlations.
Portable Face‐Shielding Device Based on sEMG Considering the COVID‐19 Scenario
Authors: Lyu Tian , Liu Dong Yang , Shao Chen , Zhang ZiJie
Published: July 2023

Wearing a mask greatly reduced the possibility of infection during the COVID‐19 pandemic. However, major inconveniences occur regarding patients with upper limb amputations, as they cannot independently wear masks. As a result, bacterial contamination is caused by medical staff touching the quilt when helping. Furthermore, this effect can occur with ordinary people due to accidental touch. This research aims to design an automatic and portable face shield assistive device based on surface electromyography (sEMG) signals. A concise face shield‐wearing mechanism was built through 3D printing. A novel decision‐making control method regarding a feature extraction model of 16 signal features and a Softmax classification neural network model were developed and tested on an STM32 microcontroller unit (MCU). The optimized electrode was fabricated using a carbon nanotube (CNT)/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The design was further integrated and tested, showing a promising future for further implementation.
A New Model Selection Metric for Biomarker Detection Algorithms and Tools
Authors: Feng Bo , Sun Yubo , Zee Benny
Published: July 2023

In the era of precision medicine, biomarker plays a vital role in drug clinical trials. It helps select the patients more likely to respond to the therapy and increases the possibility of success of the trial. Model selection is critical in the development of the algorithm. Traditional model selection metrics ignore two clinical utilities of the biomarker in drug clinical trials, one is its ability to distinguish positive and negative patients in terms of treatment effect and another is the total cost of the biomarker-based drug clinical trial. We proposed a new model selection metric that estimates the above two clinical utilities of biomarker detection algorithms without the need for a real drug clinical trial. In the simulation, we will compare the proposed metric with the widely used ROC-based metric in selecting the optimal cutoff value for the model and discuss which one to choose under various circumstances.
Application of Time-Frequency Analysis in Rotating Machinery Fault Diagnosis
Authors: Bai Yihao , Cheng Weidong , Wen Weigang , Liu Yang
Published: July 2023

Fault diagnosis is an important means to ensure the safe and reliable operation of mechanical equipment. In machinery fault diagnosis, collecting and mining the potential fault information of the vibration signal is the most commonly used method to reflect the operating status of the equipment. In engineering scenarios, in the face of rotating machinery with variable speed, simple time domain analysis or frequency domain analysis is difficult to solve the problem. The time-frequency analysis technology that combines time-frequency transformation and data analysis can solve practical engineering problems by capturing the transient information of the signal. At present, a large number of related literatures have been published in academic journals. This paper hopes to provide convenience for relevant researchers and motivate researchers to further explore by summarizing the published literature. First, this paper briefly explains the concept of time-frequency analysis and its development. Then, the time-frequency transformation method proposed for the characteristics of rotating machinery fault vibration signal and related works of literature are reviewed, and the key issues of the application of time-frequency transformation method in rotating machinery fault diagnosis are discussed. Next, this paper summarizes the relevant literature on the combination of data analysis technology and time-frequency transformation and sorts out its development route and prospects. The study reveals that time-frequency analysis technology is able to detect the rotating machinery fault effectively. The time-frequency analysis technology has made abundant achievements in the field of rotating machinery fault diagnosis. It is expected that this review would inspire researchers to explore the potential of time-frequency analysis as well as to develop advanced research in this field.
Safety and Tolerability of a Novel Anti-HER2 Antibody–Drug Conjugate (PF-06804103) in Patients with HER2-Expressing Solid Tumors: A Phase 1 Dose-Escalation Study
Authors: Meric-Bernstam Funda , Calvo Emiliano , Lee Keun Seok , Moreno Victor , Park Yeon Hee , Rha Sun Young , Chalasani Pavani , Zhong Wei , Zhou Li , Pirie-Shepherd Steven , Leung Abraham C.F. , Curigliano Giuseppe
Published: July 2023

PF-06804103 is an anti-HER2 antibody–drug conjugate with auristatin payload. We evaluated its safety, tolerability, and antitumor activity in patients with advanced/unresectable or metastatic breast and gastric cancers. This multicenter, open-label, first-in-human, phase 1 study (NCT03284723) comprised dose escalation (P1) and dose expansion (P2). In P1, adults with HER2+ breast or gastric cancer received PF-06804103 0.15–5.0 mg/kg intravenously once/21 days (Q3W); in P2, patients with HER2+ or HER2-low (IHC 1+ or IHC 2+/ISH−) breast cancer received 3.0 or 4.0 mg/kg Q3W. The primary endpoints were dose-limiting toxicities (DLT) and safety (P1), and objective response rate (ORR) assessed using RECIST v1.1 (P2). Ninety-three patients enrolled in P1 (n = 47: HER2+ gastric cancer = 22, HER2+ breast cancer = 25) and P2 [n = 46: HER2+ breast cancer = 19, hormone receptor (HR)+ HER2-low breast cancer = 27] received PF-06804103. Four patients (3.0- and 4.0-mg/kg groups, n = 2 each) had DLTs (mostly Grade 3). Safety and efficacy results showed a dose–response relationship. Adverse events (AE) leading to treatment discontinuation (44/93, 47.3%) included neuropathy (11/93, 11.8%), skin toxicity (9/93, 9.7%), myalgia (5/93, 5.4%), keratitis (3/93, 3.2%), and arthralgia (2/93, 2.2%). Two (2/79, 2.5%) patients (P1, 4.0- and 5.0-mg/kg groups, n = 1 each) achieved complete response; 21 (21/79, 26.6%) achieved partial response. In P2, ORR was higher in HER2+ compared with HR+ HER2-low breast cancer [3.0 mg/kg: 16.7% (2/12) vs. 10.0% (1/10); 4.0 mg/kg: 47.4% (9/19) vs. 27.3% (3/11)]. PF-06804103 demonstrated antitumor activity; however, AEs led to discontinuation in 47.3% of patients. Safety and efficacy were dose-dependent.
Associations of Tissue and Soluble LOX‐1 with Human Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm
Authors: Hofmann Anja , Khorzom Yazan , Klimova Anna , Wolk Steffen , Busch Albert , Sabarstinski Pamela , Müglich Margarete , Egorov Dmitry , Kopaliani Irakli , Poitz David M. , Kapalla Marvin , Hamann Bianca , Frank Frieda , Jänichen Christian , Brunssen Coy , Morawietz Henning , Reeps Christian
Published: July 2023

Background

Indication for prophylactic surgical abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair depends on the maximal aortic diameter. The lectin‐like oxidized low‐density lipoprotein receptor‐1 (LOX‐1) is the major receptor for uptake of oxidized low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and is implicated in atherosclerosis. A soluble form of LOX‐1 (sLOX‐1) has been discussed as a novel biomarker in coronary artery disease and stroke. Herein, we assessed the regulation of aortic LOX‐1 as well as the diagnostic and risk stratification potential of sLOX‐1 in patients with AAA.

Methods and Results

Serum sLOX‐1 was assessed in a case–control study in AAA (n=104) and peripheral artery disease (n=104). sLOX‐1 was not statistically different between AAA and peripheral artery disease but was higher in AAA (β=1.28,
P
=0.04) after adjusting for age, atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes, prescription of statins, β‐blockers, ACE inhibitors, and therapeutic anticoagulation. sLOX‐1 was not associated with the aortic diameter, AAA volume, or the thickness of the intraluminal thrombus. Aortic LOX‐1 mRNA expression tended to be higher in AAA when compared with disease, and expression was positively associated with cleaved caspase‐3, smooth muscle actin, collagen, and macrophage content.

Conclusions

In AAA, sLOX‐1 was differently affected by age, cardiometabolic diseases, and corresponding medical therapies. Comparison with nonatherosclerotic disease would be beneficial to further elucidate the diagnostic potential of sLOX‐1, although it was not useful for risk stratification. Aneurysmal LOX‐1 mRNA expression was increased and positively associated with smooth muscle cells and collagen content, suggesting that LOX‐1 is eventually not deleterious in human AAA and could counteract AAA rupture.