bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Personality profile of amateur team handball referees
Authors: Dodt Marcus , Fasold Frowin , Memmert Daniel
Published: July 2022

Referees play a central role in competitive sport. Particularly in amateur sport, referees contribute significantly to making participation in sport possible for the masses. However, considering that every referee’s career starts at the grassroots level, it is very surprising that there has been no research on the personality traits of amateur referees so far. The current state of research indicates that personality is an essential component of the requirement profile of referees. Personality has been associated with job performance, particularly with regard to resilience and coping with pressure. Personality also affects effective game management in terms of influencing actions in the game in a preventative and proactive manner. This study, therefore, examines the personality profile of amateur handball referees (n = 582) for the first time using the German version of the Big Five Inventory 2 (BFI-2). Current data from German handball referees at the expert level and the German general population were used to compare and discuss the results. Except for lower scores in the domain of extraversion and the facets of sociability and energy level as well as a higher score in the facet of aesthetic sensitivity, amateur referees did not differ significantly from expert referees. In relation to the general population, the results indicate that handball referees, regardless of performance level, have higher scores in assertiveness, emotional stability, and responsibility. Our findings create awareness of personality traits in handball refereeing and illustrate the applied relevance of personality research, e.g., for coaching or recruitment activities.
Integrated in silico analysis of LRP2 mutations to immunotherapy efficacy in pan-cancer cohort
Authors: Li Chunbo , Ding Yan , Zhang Xuyin , Hua Keqin
Published: July 2022

Purpose

Immunotherapy has emerged as a novel therapy, while many patients are refractory. Although, several biomarkers have been identified as predictive biomarkers for immunotherapy, such as tumor specific genes, PD-1/PD-L1, tumor mutation burn (TMB), and microsatellite instability (MSI), results remain unsatisfactory. The aim of this study is to evaluate the value of LRP2 mutations in predicating cancer immunotherapy.

Methods

We investigated the characteristics of low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 2 (LRP2) mutation in the cancer genome atlas (TCGA) and explored the potential association of LRP2 mutations with immunotherapy. Characteristics of LRP2 mutations in 33 cancer types were analyzed using large-scale public data. The association of LRP2 mutations with immune cell infiltration and immunotherapy efficacy was evaluated. Finally, a LPR2 mutation signature (LMS) was developed and validated by TCGA-UCEC and pan-cancer cohorts. Furthermore, we demonstrated the predictive power of LMS score in independent immunotherapy cohorts by performing a meta-analysis.

Results

Our results revealed that patients with LRP2 mutant had higher TMB and MSI compared with patients without LRP2 mutations. LRP2 mutations were associated with high levels of immune cells infiltration, immune-related genes expression and enrichment of immune related signaling pathways. Importantly, LRP2-mutated patients had a long overall survival (OS) after immunotherapy. In the endometrial cancer (EC) cohort, we found that patients with LRP2 mutations belonged to the POLE and MSI-H type and had a better prognosis. Finally, we developed a LRP2 mutations signature (LMS), that was significantly associated with prognosis in patients receiving immunotherapy.

Conclusion

These results indicated that LRP2 mutations can serve as a biomarker for personalized tumor immunotherapy. Importantly, LMS is a potential predictor of patients’ prognosis after immunotherapy.
Application
Authors: Degen Bernd
Published: July 2022

Data on genetic diversity and differentiation, as well as kinship between individuals, are important for the conservation of animal and plant genetic resources. Often genetic assignment is part of law enforcement of protected endangered species. The software GDA-NT 2021 is a new, freely available user-friendly Windows program that can be used to compute various measures of genetic diversity and population genetic differentiation. It further allows genetic assignment of individuals to populations and enables the calculation of kinship-coefficients and genetic distances among pairs of individuals within populations. GDA-NT 2021 specifically computes the alternative measures for population differentiation Dj and the standardized FST of Hedrick. It has more options to compute exclusion-probabilities in assignment tests, enables self-assignment tests for variable groups of individuals, and allows for information on geographic positions to be accounted for while using permutation tests to assess statistical significance.
Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Fosters Working Memory and Social-Emotional Behavior in Two- and-Three-Year-Old Children
Authors: Grosse Gerlind , Simon Antonia , Soemer Alexander , Schönfeld Romy , Barth Stefanie , Linde Nadine
Published: July 2022

How does teacher–child interaction quality in early child care and education settings influence the development of social-emotional skills in children at around two to three years of age? We measured the quality of interactions on the side of the child care teachers (N = 9, CLASS Toddler) and assessed self-regulatory skills through an individual assessment (i.e. working memory by the “Hidden Toys Task”, selective attention with the NEPSY, inhibitory control by using the “Toy Wrap Task”), testing children between 22 and 45 months old (M = 33 months, SD = 6 months;N = 64; 44% girls) who attended a child care center. Additionally, children’s social and self-regulatory skills were assessed by their teachers by using the MASCS and CBRS rating scales. We found evidence that for even children this young, the quality of interactions in child care settings is positively related to working memory, and less disruptive behavior. Conversely, we found no evidence that interaction quality influenced other aspects of social-emotional development, such as selective attention, inhibitory control, self-regulatory skills, prosocial behavior and impulsiveness. Results emphasize the importance of positive interaction in child care settings for children at about the age of three. Possible reasons for null findings are discussed.
Does the Problem of Variability Justify Barrett’s Emotion Revolution?
Authors: Majeed Raamy
Published: July 2022

The problem of variability concerns the fact that empirical data does not support the existence of a coordinated set of biological markers, either in the body or the brain, which correspond to our folk emotion categories; categories like anger, happiness, sadness, disgust and fear. Barrett (2006a, b, 2013, 2016, 2017a, b) employs this fact to argue (i) against the faculty psychology approach to emotion, e.g. emotions are the products of emotion-specific mechanisms, or “modules”, and (ii) for the view that emotions are constructed from domain-general “core systems” with the aid of our folk concepts. The conjunction of (i) and (ii), she argues, heralds a paradigm shift in our understanding of emotion: emotions aren’t triggered but made. In this paper, I argue such a shift is premature for a faculty psychology framework can accommodate the neurobiological variability of emotion. This can be done by treating emotions as developmental modules: non-innate systems which behave like modules, but form as a product of ontogenetic development.
Zooming in on host-symbiont interactions: advances in cryo-EM sample processing methods and future application to symbiotic tissues
Authors: Gundlach Katrina A. , Briegel Ariane
Published: July 2022

Animals, plants, and fungi live in a microbe-dominated world. Investigating the interactions and processes at the host-microbe interface offers insight to how bacteria influence the development, health, and disease of the host. Optimization of existing imaging technologies and development of novel instrumentation will provide the tools needed to fully understand the dynamic relationship that occurs at the host-microbe interface throughout the lifetime of the host. In this review, we describe the current methods used in cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) including cryo-fixation, sample processing, FIB-SEM, and cryotomography. Further, we highlight the new advances associated with these methods that open the cryo-EM discipline to large, complex multicellular samples, like symbiotic tissues. We describe the advantages and challenges associated with correlative imaging techniques and sample thinning methods like lift-out. By highlighting recent pioneering studies in the large-volume or symbiotic sample workflows, we provide insight into how symbiotic model systems will benefit from cryo-EM methods to provide artefact-free, near-native, macromolecular-scale resolution imaging at the host-microbe interface throughout the development and maintenance of symbiosis. Cryo-EM methods have brought a deep fundamental understanding of prokaryotic biology since its conception. We propose the application of existing and novel cryo-EM techniques to symbiotic systems is the logical next step that will bring an even greater understanding how microbes interact with their host tissues.
Cyclic heptapeptides with metal binding properties isolated from the fungus Cadophora malorum from Antarctic soil
Authors: Donalle Guidmar C. , Martorell María Martha , Siless Gastón E. , Ruberto Lucas , Cabrera Gabriela M.
Published: July 2022

The Antarctic fungus Cadophora malorum produces previously undescribed cyclic heptapeptides (cadophorin A and B) containing an anthranilic acid residue. The planar structure of these peptides was determined by high-resolution mass spectrometry combined with extensive 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy. The absolute configuration of the amino acids was determined by Marfey’s method, with HPLC analysis of FDVA (Nα-(2,4-dinitro-5-fluorphenyl)-l-valinamide) derivatives making use of a PFP column. Remarkably, cadophorin 2 possesses both the uncommon d-Ile and d-allo-Ile in its structure. The peptides have metal binding properties as shown by LCMS with post column addition of metal salt solutions. These results were supported by DFT calculations.

Graphical Abstract
Longitudinal relationship between experience of sexual harassment and 2-year body image and weight outcomes in adolescence: mediation through self-objectification and psychological distress
Authors: Hayes Samantha , Lonergan Alexandra , Trompeter Nora , Bussey Kay , Hay Phillipa , Mitchison Deborah
Published: July 2022

Background

The current study investigated the experience of sexual harassment as a risk factor for weight gain and weight/shape concerns in a community sample of adolescents, with potential mediating factors self-objectification and psychological distress.

Method

1034 Australian adolescents (aged 11 to 19 years) from the EveryBODY longitudinal study of disordered eating pathology participated. Data were collected through online surveys annually for 3 years. Participants completed self-report measures of demographics, sexual harassment, psychological distress, self-objectification, weight/shape concerns and BMI percentile.

Results

A parallel mediation model adjusting for baseline scores found no direct effect between baseline experiences of sexual harassment and change in BMI percentile or weight/shape concern after 2 years. Experiences of sexual harassment significantly increased self-objectification scores after 1 year in female adolescents. Subsequently, higher self-objectification significantly increased the risk of greater weight/shape concern after 1 year in female adolescents. However, no significant mediating relationship was found in the relationship between sexual harassment and weight/shape concern or BMI percentile for either gender. Psychological distress was found to be a clear risk factor for weight/shape concern in both genders after 1 year.

Conclusions

Intervention programmes in schools should focus on developing policies to reduce sexual harassment, self-objectification and distress in adolescents.

Level of evidence

Level IV, longitudinal multiple time series without intervention.
Exploring the raison d’etre behind metric selection in network analysis: a systematic review
Authors: Morrison D. , Bedinger M. , Beevers L. , McClymont K.
Published: July 2022

Network analysis is a useful tool to analyse the interactions and structure of graphs that represent the relationships among entities, such as sectors within an urban system. Connecting entities in this way is vital in understanding the complexity of the modern world, and how to navigate these complexities during an event. However, the field of network analysis has grown rapidly since the 1970s to produce a vast array of available metrics that describe different graph properties. This diversity allows network analysis to be applied across myriad research domains and contexts, however widespread applications have produced polysemic metrics. Challenges arise in identifying which method of network analysis to adopt, which metrics to choose, and how many are suitable. This paper undertakes a structured review of literature to provide clarity on raison d’etre behind metric selection and suggests a way forward for applied network analysis. It is essential that future studies explicitly report the rationale behind metric choice and describe how the mathematics relates to target concepts and themes. An exploratory metric analysis is an important step in identifying the most important metrics and understanding redundant ones. Finally, where applicable, one should select an optimal number of metrics that describe the network both locally and globally, so as to understand the interactions and structure as holistically as possible.
Analysis of Joint Power and Work During Gait in Children With and Without Cerebral Palsy
Authors: Hazra Priyam , Gibbs Sheila , Arnold Graham , Nasir Sadiq , Wang Weijie
Published: July 2022

Purpose

To compare joint work in the lower limb joints during different sub-phases of the gait cycle between Cerebral Palsy (CP) and healthy children.

Methods

Eighteen CP and 20 healthy children’s gait data were collected. The CP group included orthoses, intra-muscular injection of botulinum toxin and surgery groups. A motion capture system was used to collect gait data. Joint work was calculated as positive and negative components in six subphases during gait and normalised by speed when comparing the groups.

Results

The CP group had a slower walking speed, smaller stride length and longer stance phase than the healthy group. Hip max positive work was 0.12 ± 0.02 Jkg−1/ms−1 for the CP group in pre-mid-stance but 0.07 ± 0.01 Jkg−1/ms−1 for the healthy group during the terminal phase. In terminal stance, ankle positive work was significantly lower in the CP group (0.12 ± 0.01) than in the healthy group (0.18 ± 0.01). The knee showed a similar distribution of positive work in the stance phase for the two groups. In the ankle and hip, the CP group had energy generation mainly in midstance while the healthy group was mainly in terminal stance. In the ankle, the CP group had larger energy absorption in mid-stance than the healthy children group, while the CP group showed lower energy generation in the terminal stance phase than seen in the healthy group.

Conclusion

The qualitative and quantitative analysis of joint work provides useful information for clinicians in the treatment and rehabilitation of CP patients.
Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Potential of European Union’s Circularity Related Targets for Plastics
Authors: Tenhunen-Lunkka Anna , Rommens Tom , Vanderreydt Ive , Mortensen Lars
Published: July 2022

Current rising concerns about environmental and climate impacts in production, consumption and end-of-life of plastics have led to efforts to switch from linear to circular economy of plastics in Europe. Greenhouse gas emissions are likely to decrease with a transition to a circular system; however, a systematic and integrated perspective on plastics and the carbon cycle is currently missing in the debate on plastics.

In this study, a model to estimate greenhouse gas emissions of the current mostly linear plastics value chain of the EU in 2018 and a future scenario, 2025 model, were created. By 2025 if current policy targets are reached, the plastic packaging recycling rate should be 50%, PET-based drinking bottles should include 25% recycled content, 77% collection target for plastic bottles, 10 Mt recyclates should enter the markets, uptake of bio-based plastics is estimated by European bioplastics to increase from current 1 to 1.32% and landfilling will continue to decrease according to the current trend at 3.85%.

Total greenhouse gas emissions caused by the current plastics value chain are estimated at 208 million tonnes of CO2-eq. The 2025 model estimates that total plastics value chain emissions will be 182 Mt of CO2-eq. Reduction potential is approximately 26 Mt of CO2-eq or 13%.
Regulatory network established by transcription factors transmits drought stress signals in plant
Authors: Hu Yongfeng , Chen Xiaoliang , Shen Xiangling
Published: July 2022

Plants are sessile organisms that evolve with a flexible signal transduction system in order to rapidly respond to environmental changes. Drought, a common abiotic stress, affects multiple plant developmental processes especially growth. In response to drought stress, an intricate hierarchical regulatory network is established in plant to survive from the extreme environment. The transcriptional regulation carried out by transcription factors (TFs) is the most important step for the establishment of the network. In this review, we summarized almost all the TFs that have been reported to participate in drought tolerance (DT) in plant. Totally 466 TFs from 86 plant species that mostly belong to 11 families are collected here. This demonstrates that TFs in these 11 families are the main transcriptional regulators of plant DT. The regulatory network is built by direct protein-protein interaction or mutual regulation of TFs. TFs receive upstream signals possibly via post-transcriptional regulation and output signals to downstream targets via direct binding to their promoters to regulate gene expression.
Luteinizing Hormone Suppression Profiles in Men Treated with Exogenous Testosterone
Authors: Miranda Eduardo P. , Schofield Elizabeth , Matsushita Kazuhito , Katz Darren J. , Nelson Christian J. , Benfante Nicole , Mulhall John P.
Published: July 2022

Background

Due to the negative feedback mechanism involved in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, testosterone therapy (TTh) may result in suppression of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion, but clinical experience demonstrates the level of LH suppression is variable.

Aim

We sought to define the relationship between TTh and LH levels, specifically predictors of LH suppression in men on TTh.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database of patients with testosterone deficiency (TD) treated with TTh. Patient demographic and clinical data including vascular risk factor (VRF) status were collected. Serum total T and LH levels before TTh and after ≥3 months (m) were recorded. LH suppression was defined as serum LH level <1.0 IU/ml.

Main Outcome Measures

Predictors of LH suppression were searched though a series of logistic regression models assessing suppression status at the final observation, and then a series of Cox proportional hazards models assessing time to first suppression were performed.

Results

A total of 227 patients with mean age of 58±14 years at time of TTh initiation were included in our analysis. Just under half of subjects received transdermal T as the only modality (n = 101, 44%), while one third (n = 77, 34%) received intramuscular only, and the remainder (n = 49, 22%) received both modalities during follow-up. The mean baseline LH level was 10 ± 12 IU/ml. The percent of men who had baseline LH level above 1 IU/ml and at any given point of TTh was 84% and 78%, respectively, thus 22% of men had suppressed LH levels on TTh considering the definition of LH <1 IU/ml. Most men (73%) had a suppressed LH level of <1 IU/ml at least once during follow-up. In the final adjusted model for LH suppression, intramuscular route (OR = 2.44), baseline LH (OR = 0.94), estradiol (OR = 1.05) remained significant.

Clinical Implications

LH suppression profiles may be relevant for dose titration during TTh and perhaps to minimize testicular atrophy.

Strengths & Limitations

A strict definition for TD was applied using LCMS for T measurements and patients had long-term follow-up.

Conclusion

While 73% of patients had at least one LH <1 IU/ml during TTh, only 22% maintained suppressed throughout the treatment.
A New Literary History of the Long Twelfth Century
Authors: Faulkner Mark
Published: July 2022

A New Literary History of the Long Twelfth Century offers a new narrative of what happened to English language writing in the long twelfth century, the period that saw the end of the Old English tradition and the beginning of Middle English writing. It discusses numerous neglected or unknown texts, focusing particularly on documents, chronicles and sermons. To tell the story of this pivotal period, it adopts approaches from both literary criticism and historical linguistics, finding a synthesis for them in a twenty-first century philology. It develops new methodologies for addressing major questions about twelfth-century texts, including when they were written, how they were read and their relationship to earlier works. Essential reading for anyone interested in what happened to English after the Norman Conquest, this study lays the groundwork for the coming decade's work on transitional English.
The Statistical Mechanics of Irreversible Phenomena
Authors: Gaspard Pierre
Published: July 2022

This book provides a comprehensive and self-contained overview of recent progress in nonequilibrium statistical mechanics, in particular, the discovery of fluctuation relations and other time-reversal symmetry relations. The significance of these advances is that nonequilibrium statistical physics is no longer restricted to the linear regimes close to equilibrium, but extends to fully nonlinear regimes. These important new results have inspired the development of a unifying framework for describing both the microscopic dynamics of collections of particles, and the macroscopic hydrodynamics and thermodynamics of matter itself. The book discusses the significance of this theoretical framework in relation to a broad range of nonequilibrium processes, from the nanoscale to the macroscale, and is essential reading for researchers and graduate students in statistical physics, theoretical chemistry and biological physics.
EU Law
Authors: Solanke Iyiola
Published: July 2022

The Court of Justice of the European Union is the busiest court in the world. The second edition of this textbook explores why this is. It examines in detail the interactions between European Union and national institutions, instruments, laws and concepts that make up this unique legal order. It explains the core constitutional and substantive principles that underpin the European Union legal order, and introduces EU law in a detailed, comprehensive way which is both enjoyable and clear to read. It offers an up-to-date and accessible analysis of EU law and avoids technical jargon, providing informed insights on an exciting but challenging subject. Combining a historical perspective with up-to-date examples, it aims to help students appreciate how EU law developed and its continued significance in day-to-day life. This updated edition features new coverage on free movement, online resources plus additional chapters on Article 50 and EU law in the UK after Brexit.
Disciplining Persian Literature in Twentieth-Century Afghanistan
Authors: Fani Aria
Published: July 2022

How was Persian literature disciplinized in the twentieth century? This article addresses this question by focusing on twentieth-century Afghanistan and outlining the sociohistorical processes that helped to transform scholarly and literary production into a social enterprise. A major outcome of these underexamined processes was the making of Dāʾerat ol-maʿāref-e Āryānā (1949–79) in Kabul, the first modern encyclopedia produced in Persian. The article explains the multilayered significance of Āryānā's literary taxonomies, reading practices, and historiographical models that reified Persian literature as an object of academic study and national veneration in Afghanistan. A close reading of Āryānā's account of Persian literary history illustrates its complex relationship with both Iranian and Afghan nationalisms of the 1940s and 1950s and its contributors’ adherence to a modern methodology. The present study places Āryānā squarely within a transregional ecosystem that brought about the institutionalization of literature in Persian-speaking lands.
Structural evolution during a surge in the Paulabreen glacier system, Svalbard
Authors: Lovell Harold , Fleming Edward J.
Published: July 2022

We assess the evolution of glaciological structures during the 2003–05 surge in the Paulabreen glacier system, Svalbard. Glaciological structures on the glacier surface were mapped using aerial photographs captured in the early stages of the surge (2003) and 5 years after surge termination (2011). Three-dimensional measurements of glaciological structures were collected at the tidewater front in 2013. These datasets document the physical changes during (1) the late quiescent phase; (2) the early phase of the surge as the surge front propagated down Skobreen and advanced into Paulabreen and (3) the final stages of the surge following the surge front reaching the glacier terminus. Crevasse patterns and clusters of arcuate shear planes record zones of compressive and extensional flow associated with the downglacier progression of the surge front. The transfer of surging ice from Skobreen into Paulabreen caused lateral displacement of the medial moraines to the northeast. At the ice front, this movement tilted glaciological structures in the same direction. Structures at the southwest margin record strike–slip faulting and the elevation of debris into the ice in a zone of compression and transpression. We summarise these observations in a schematic reconstruction of structural evolution during the surge.
Feeding in the Devonian antiarch placoderm fishes: a study based upon morphofunctional analysis of jaws
Authors: Lebedev Oleg A. , Johanson Zerina , Kuznetsov Alexander N. , Tsessarsky Alekey , Trinajstic Kate , Isakhodzayev Farkhad B.
Published: July 2022

Antiarch placoderm fishes were an abundant component of the Middle Paleozoic vertebrate assemblages. Despite a large number of known taxa and specimens, the morphology and function of the skeletal elements of their jaws is inadequately known. Because of this, questions regarding their feeding modes and their roles in the trophic webs remain open. We present a skeletomuscular model of the antiarch jaw apparatus with an attempt to reconstruct its potential biomechanical function. The position of the upper jaw suborbital bones within the plane of the ventral side of the fish armor is suggested to represent the natural “mouth closed” position. During mouth opening, the suborbitals rotated rostrally with simultaneous depression and inward rotation of the infragnathals. The ball-and-socket jaw articulation might ensure this combined movement. Recently described lower jaw elements ofLivnolepis zadonica(Obrucheva, 1983) andBothriolepissp. from the Upper Devonian (lower Famennian) of Central Russia demonstrating very deep and porous blades of the oral division of the infragnathals queried the structure of these bones in other antiarchs. Observed porosity reflects intense vascularization to supply blood to a connective tissue underlying a supposed keratinous sheath, which protected and strengthened the jaws, as well as made possible scraping tough food objects, such as thallus algae, from the substrate.

Having evolved during the Silurian in the Pan-Cathaysian zoogeographical province, antiarchs migrated to Gondwana during the Emsian and later to Euramerica during the Eifelian. Supposedly, antiarchs became the first macrophytophagous vertebrates occupying the trophic level of primary consumers during the late Silurian–Early Devonian. This event diversified the only previously existing predator–prey interrelationships between filter-feeding agnathans and predatory gnathostomes.
Applications of the classical compound Poisson model with claim sizes following a compound distribution
Authors: Gao Dechen , Sendova Kristina P.
Published: July 2022

In this paper, we discuss a generalization of the classical compound Poisson model with claim sizes following a compound distribution. As applications, we consider models involving zero-truncated geometric, zero-truncated negative-binomial and zero-truncated binomial batch-claim arrivals. We also provide some ruin-related quantities under the resulting risk models. Finally, through numerical examples, we visualize the behavior of these quantities.
The relationship between poststimulus pause, learner proficiency, and working memory in an Elicited Imitation Task
Authors: Norris John M. , Sasayama Shoko , Kim Michelle
Published: July 2022

The Elicited Imitation Task (EIT) is a popular technique for efficiently measuring global proficiency in multiple languages, and accumulated evidence indicates high reliability and strong relationships with other proficiency measures. Nevertheless, several dimensions of EIT design remain open to investigation, including the assumption that a pause is required in between the aural stimulus and oral response, to ensure processing of the input and prevent so-called parroting. This study investigated the relationship between three poststimulus pause conditions, learners’ proficiency and working memory, and their EIT scores as well as their perceptions of task difficulty, mental effort, focus, and interest. Findings indicated no differences in performances or perceptions between the 0-second pause, 2-second pause, and 5-second pause conditions, and a weak relationship between EIT performance and working memory. Across all conditions, the EIT distinguished consistently among proficiency levels, correlated strongly with a criterion proficiency measure, and produced remarkably reliable scores.
Review of research on applications of speech recognition technology to assist language learning
Authors: Shadiev Rustam , Liu Jiawen
Published: July 2022

Speech recognition technology (SRT) is now widely used in education because of its potential to aid learning, particularly language learning. Nevertheless, SRT has received only limited attention in earlier review studies. The present research aimed to address this gap in the field. To this end, 26 articles published in SSCI journals between 2014 and 2020 were selected and reviewed with respect to domain and skills, technology and their application, participants and duration, measures, reported results, and advantages and disadvantages of SRT. The results showed that English received much more attention than any other language, and scholars mostly focused on facilitating pronunciation skills. Dragon Naturally Speaking and Google speech recognition were the most popular technologies, and their most frequent application was providing feedback. According to the results, college students were involved in research more than any other group, most studies were carried out for less than one month, and most scholars administered a questionnaire or pre-/posttest to collect the data. Positive results related to gains in proficiency and student perceptions of SRT were identified. The study revealed that improved affective factors and enhanced language skills were advantages, whereas a low accuracy rate and insufficiency (i.e. lack of some useful features to support learning efficiently) of SRT were disadvantages. Based on the results, the study puts forward several implications and suggestions for educators and researchers in the field.
How vulnerable are small firms to energy price increases? Evidence from Mexico
Authors: Greve Hannes , Lay Jann , Negrete Ana
Published: July 2022

The vulnerability of small firms to price shocks may partly explain why fossil fuel subsidy removals in developing countries are so difficult to implement. This paper analyzes the effects of fuel and electricity price increases on profits of micro- and small-sized enterprises in Mexico. Using representative cross-sectional data, simulations of profit losses hint at potentially large short-term effects. First-order profit losses of a 1 per cent price increase are 0.2 per cent for fuels and 0.07 per cent for electricity, but are higher than 1 per cent for fuels in the transport sector. These effects are larger for formal than for informal firms, with energy-using low-profit firms being most vulnerable. Second-order impacts – predicted using estimated input-demand elasticities – indicate that firms react to price shocks by substituting labor for energy, while the self-employed appear to increase their own labor input. Reduced-form regressions show that some firms pass on higher fuel costs to customers.
A surface deformation measurement algorithm for reflector antennas based on complex geometrical optics
Authors: Wang Boyang , Ye Qian , Fu Li , Meng Guoxiang , Liu Qinghui , Shen Zhiqiang
Published: July 2022

This paper presents a new method to reveal the relation between the surface deformation and near-field amplitude of a reflector antenna based on complex geometrical optics, which could be used as an efficient way to estimate the antenna surface verified by simulation results. The measurement process based on this method is envisaged to be realized by a single scanning of the near-field amplitude which would overcome many limitations of radio holography and phase retrieval methods such as the frequency and elevation. The largest source of error in the original deformation-amplitude equation (DAE) has been corrected by considering the Gaussian feed as a complex point source. To track the ray trajectory so that the improved DAE could be solved, an iteration method including a golden section search algorithm is designed to make the solution converge. By solving the modified DAE, simulation result shows that a more accurate solution could be obtained, and the antenna surface could be recovered to a root mean square error of under 30 microns.
Weed management in rainfed lowland rice ecology in Nigeria – challenges and opportunities
Authors: Alagbo Oyebanji O. , Akinyemiju Oluyemisi A. , Chauhan Bhagirath S.
Published: July 2022

Developing an effective weed management strategy is crucial to sustainable rice production in Nigeria. Rainfed lowland ecology contributes significantly to the volume of rice cultivated in terms of yield and land acreage. Nevertheless, increased weed infestation remains one of the major production constraints. This review highlights the strength and weaknesses of weed management practices in rainfed lowland ecology and research gaps, and examines the potential for developing a sustainable weed management strategy for lowland rice. In this review, a rainfed lowland situation is described (where water is limited) to engage flooding as a potential weed control option, due to the undulating land terrains. Effective weed management begins with creating a weed-free environment at the critical crop growth stages, such that broadcasted or transplanted rice seedlings can efficiently use water, nutrients, and light. Sustainable weed management practices in Nigerian lowland ecology would therefore imply that farmers begin to incorporate crop rotation to suppress problem weeds in continuous rice cropping systems; adopt conventional or minimum tillage to enhance herbicide efficacy and early establishment of rice; adopt weed-competitive and high-yielding cultivars; and practice appropriate spacing, seeding rate, and seeding methods that can support easy adoption of mechanical weeders and optimum plant population to suppress weed pressure at a later growth stage. This is feasible where farmers are supported with infrastructure, farm machinery, and other necessary inputs. Future research should engage lowland rice farmers in specific agroecological zones.
Resistance of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri) to S-metolachlor in the midsouthern United States
Authors: Kouame Koffi Badou Jeremie , Bertucci Matthew B. , Savin Mary C. , Bararpour Taghi , Steckel Lawrence E. , Butts Thomas R. , Willett Cammy D. , Machado Fellipe G. , Roma-Burgos Nilda
Published: July 2022

Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Watson) is one of the most problematic weeds in many cropping systems in the midsouthern United States because of its multiple weedy traits and its propensity to evolve resistance to many herbicides with different mechanisms of action. In Arkansas, A. palmeri has evolved metabolic resistance to S-metolachlor, compromising the effectiveness of an important weed management tool. Greenhouse studies were conducted to evaluate the differential response of A. palmeri accessions from three states (Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee) to (1) assess the occurrence of resistance to S-metolachlor among A. palmeri populations, (2) evaluate the resistance level in selected accessions and their resistant progeny, (3) and determine the susceptibility of most resistant accessions to other soil-applied herbicides. Seeds were collected from 168 crop fields between 2017 and 2019. One hundred seeds per accession were planted in silt loam soil without herbicide for >20 yr and sprayed with the labeled rate of S-metolachlor (1,120 g ai ha−1). Six accessions (four from Arkansas and two from Mississippi) were classified resistant to S-metolachlor. The effective doses (LD50) to control the parent accessions ranged between 73 and 443 g ha−1, and those of F1 progeny of survivors were 73 to 577 g ha−1. The resistance level was generally greater among progeny of surviving plants than among resistant field populations. The resistant field populations required 2.2 to 7.0 times more S-metolachlor to reduce seedling emergence 50%, while the F1 of survivors needed up to 9.2 times more herbicide to reduce emergence 50% compared with the susceptible standard.
Merkmale und Perspektiven der (psycho–)‌therapeutischen Behandlung im Justizvollzug
Authors: Moosburner Maeve , Etzler Sonja , Rettenberger Martin
Published: July 2022

Zusammenfassung. Hintergrund: Sozialtherapeutische Einrichtungen des Justizvollzugs (SothEn) dienen der Behandlung von (Sexual‐ und Gewalt–)‌Straftätern, um deren Rückfallrisiko nachhaltig zu reduzieren. Fragestellung und Methode: Die vorliegende Studie erfasste unterschiedliche Merkmale der gesprächsbasierten therapeutischen Behandlung in allen 71 SothEn in Deutschland. Gesprächsbasierte Behandlung wurde dabei definiert als durch Gespräche vermittelte Behandlung, die auf eine Besserung der psychischen Gesundheit sowie auf eine Reduktion des Rückfallrisikos abzielt. Ergebnisse und Schlussfolgerungen: Aus der Sicht der befragten Einrichtungen wird die Wirksamkeit der gesprächsbasierten Behandlung durch eine hohe Fluktuation des Personals, mangelnde Qualifikationsmöglichkeiten sowie die eingeschränkte Autonomie der Behandlungseinrichtung von der Gesamtanstalt eingeschränkt. Die Wirksamkeit der Behandlung ließe sich demnach durch einen gezielten Ausbau empirisch abgesicherter therapeutischer Maßnahmen sowie durch erhöhte Ressourcen und Alltagsnähe für Lockerungen, Übergang und Nachsorge steigern.
Contributions of Different Sea‐Level Processes to High‐Tide Flooding Along the U.S. Coastline
Authors: Li S. , Wahl T. , Barroso A. , Coats S. , Dangendorf S. , Piecuch C. , Sun Q. , Thompson P. , Liu L.
Published: July 2022

Coastal communities across the United States (U.S.) are experiencing an increase in the frequency of high‐tide flooding (HTF). This increase is mainly due to sea‐level rise (SLR), but other factors such as intra‐ to inter‐annual mean sea level variability, tidal anomalies, and non‐tidal residuals also contribute to HTF events. Here we introduce a novel decomposition approach to develop and then analyze a new database of different sea‐level components. Those components represent processes that act on various timescales to contribute to HTF along the U.S. coastline. We find that the relative importance of components to HTF events strongly varies in space and time. Tidal anomalies contribute the most along the west and northeast coasts, where HTF events mostly occur in winter. Non‐tidal residuals are most important along the Gulf of Mexico and mid‐Atlantic coasts, where HTF events mostly occur in fall. We also quantify the minimum number of components that were required to cause HTF events in the past and how this number changed over time. The results highlight that at present, due to SLR, fewer components are needed to combine to push water levels above HTF thresholds, but tidal anomalies alone are still not sufficient to reach HTF thresholds in most locations. Finally, we explore how co‐variability between different components leads to compounding effects. In some places, positive correlation between sea‐level components leads to significantly more HTF events than would be expected if sea‐level components were uncorrelated, whereas in other places negative correlation leads to fewer HTF events.
Statistical Study of Favorable Foreshock Ion Properties for the Formation of Hot Flow Anomalies and Foreshock Bubbles
Authors: Liu Terry Z. , Zhang Hui , Turner Drew , Vu Andrew , Angelopoulos Vassilis
Published: July 2022

Hot flow anomalies (HFAs) and foreshock bubbles (FBs) are frequently observed in Earth's foreshock, which can significantly disturb the bow shock and therefore the magnetosphere‐ionosphere system and can accelerate particles. Previous statistical studies have identified the solar wind conditions (high solar wind speed and high Mach number, etc.) that favor their generation. However, backstreaming foreshock ions are expected to most directly control how HFAs and FBs form, whereas the solar wind may partake in the formation process indirectly by determining foreshock ion properties. Using Magnetospheric Multiscale mission and Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms mission, we perform a statistical study of foreshock ion properties around 275 HFAs and FBs. We show that foreshock ions with a high foreshock‐to‐solar wind density ratio (>∼3%), high kinetic energy (>∼600 eV), large ratio of kinetic energy to thermal energy (>∼0.1), and large ratio of perpendicular temperature to parallel temperature (>∼1.4) favor HFA and FB formation. We also examine how these properties are related to solar wind conditions: high solar wind speed and oblique bow shock (angle between the interplanetary magnetic field and the bow shock normal ) favor high kinetic energy of foreshock ions; foreshock ions have large ratio of kinetic energy to thermal energy at large (>30°); small (<30°), high Mach number, and closeness to the bow shock favor a high foreshock‐to‐solar wind density ratio. Our results provide further understanding of HFA and FB formation.
An Analysis of the Aerosol Lifecycle Over India: COALESCE Intercomparison of Three General Circulation Models
Authors: Bhattacharya Anwesa , Venkataraman Chandra , Sarkar Tanmay , Sharma Amit Kumar , Sharma Arushi , Anand S. , Ganguly Dilip , Bhawar Rohini , Dey Sagnik , Ghosh Sudipta
Published: July 2022

Atmospheric aerosols or atmospheric particulate matter affects climate variables like temperature and rainfall, agricultural productivity, soil, and human health. We evaluated aerosol lifecycle over India via simulations (2005–2014) from three general circulation models under the COALESCE project (carbonaceous aerosol emissions, source apportionment, and climate impacts; Venkataraman et al., 2020, 10.1175/bams‐d‐19‐0030.1). The ECHAM6.3‐HAM2.3, CAM5.3, and NICAM‐SPRINTARS simulations use identical regional emissions (from the Speciated Multi‐pollutant generator, SMoG‐India‐v1). Satisfactory model simulations of meteorological variable magnitudes and seasonal cycle have been achieved partly from the adoption of nudging. Estimations of anthropogenic aerosol, aerosol optical depth (AOD), and particulate matter surface concentrations are significantly improved from (a) dust tuning (b) use of satellite‐derived organic aerosol to carbon ratio, and (c) nudged meteorology to capture variables influencing the production of secondary sulfate. Larger wintertime under prediction (−30% to −60%) results from over prediction of seasonal planetary boundary layer height and the absence of secondary ammonium nitrate and organic aerosols. Vertical dispersion to higher altitudes than in observations calls for improved modeling of vertical mass flux representation. Carbonaceous aerosol residence time and AOD fraction larger than global mean values in India, with a seasonal predominance in the autumn and winter seasons can be explained by enhanced regional emissions from residential biofuel cooking, agricultural stubble burning, and traditional informal industries like brick production.
New Constraints on Assemblage‐Driven Variation in the Relationship Amongst Diatom‐Bound, Biomass, and Nitrate Nitrogen Isotope Values
Authors: Jones C. A. , Closset I. , Riesselman C. R. , Kelly R. P. , Brzezinski M. A. , Robinson R. S.
Published: July 2022

Tracking variations in the surface ocean supply and demand of nitrate, a key marine nutrient, can help constrain the contribution of biological production in driving past climate shifts. The nitrogen isotopic composition (as δ15N) of organic matter in marine sediments is a proxy for surface ocean nitrate supply and demand over time, but it may be subject to alteration during sinking and burial. The isotopic composition of nitrogen occluded in the opal shells, or frustules, of diatoms (δ15NDB) is protected and is, therefore, a potentially more robust tracer of nitrate use in the past. Here, we show that δ15NDB in Southern Ocean growout cultures of natural communities does not depend on species composition. We found that the εDB (= biomass δ15N–δ15NDB) of the community growouts was −4.8 ± 0.8‰, more than 10‰ different from previous monospecific growouts, but statistically indistinguishable from previous Southern Ocean and North Pacific surface ocean observations. The two community growouts, seeded with populations from ∼66° to ∼61°S, had distinct community compositions, but indistinguishable εDB, suggesting that species composition does not primarily set δ15NDB values, at least in Antarctic and Polar Frontal Zones of the Southern Ocean. Our results demonstrate that under nitrate‐replete conditions, δ15NDB values of frustules sinking from the surface ocean robustly track surface ocean nitrate δ15N values, and therefore nitrate supply and demand.