bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Model Klasifikasi Mata Katarak dan Normal Menggunakan Histogram
Authors: Wirawan Valencia , Soelistio Yustinus Eko
Published: September 2018

Telah banyak penelitian pada citra medis telah diadopsi oleh sebagian besar ilmuwan dan dokter yang dapat membantu dalam mendeteksi gangguan pada mata terutama katarak. Namun, umumnya penelitian tersebut menggunakan citra medis atau digital yang relatif mahal dan sulit didapatkan oleh sebagian orang, dan metode yang rentan akan translasi (pergeseran), serta perubahan ukuran gambar dan bentuk objek. Penelitian ini mengembangkan sebuah metode menggunakan model histogram untuk mengklasifikasi mata katarak dari citra digital dengan (1) format yang lebih umum seperti JPEG dan (2) lebih toleranterhadap translasi dan perubahan ukuran. Metode ini juga mampu bekerja dengan baik menggunakan citra digital dalam citra mata yang tidak tegak lurus terhadap kamera. Metode ini mencapai akurasi 79,03% dalam kondisi bebas dan 88.47% dalam kondisi mata tegak lurus terhadap kamera. Metode ini mempunyai kompleksitas yang rendah sehingga dapat digunakan pada komputer dengan spesifikasi rendah dan sistem yang membutuhkan kecepatan mendekati real-time.

Index Terms—Image processing, cataract, classification, histogram
Evalution of anti Diabetic Activity for ethanolic extract Syzygium cumini leaf in Alloxan induced diabetic rat
Authors: Chattu Maheswararao , Attyam Guptha
Published: September 2018

The available drugs for the treatment of diabetes, such as Insulin or Oral hypoglycemic agents have one or more side effects. So the search for newer anti-diabetic drugs with minimum or no side effects from herbal plants is a challenge as per world health organization (WHO) recommendations. Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder of carbohydrate, protein and fat which are characterized by hyperglycemia, polyuria, polydipsia, and polyphagia which is deficient insulin production or ineffectiveness in insulin actions. The present study was aimed to evaluate the anti diabetic potency of syzygium cumini leaf on the blood glucose level in alloxan induced diabetic rats. Diabetic Wistar strain rats were treated with standard drug Glibenclamide and test drug syzygium cumini at 100mg, 200mg. The hypoglycemic effect was determined in the rats and the efficacy of the test drug was compared to the standard drug Glibenclamide. Syzygium cumini leaf was orally administered for 14 days in alloxan induced diabetic rats. At the end of the study duration blood glucose level and Biochemical parameters were statistically analyzed. Based on these results of the study this syzygium cumini produced a significant reduction in blood glucose levels when compared with diabetic control rats and hence the present research work proved that the syzygium cumini possess hypoglycemic effect.
Hi-Fi Stake Piezo Single Crystal Actuator
Authors: Huang Yu , Zhang Shuangjie , Wang Penghui , Xia Yue Xue , Lin Dian Hua , Yao Kui , Lim Leong-Chew
Published: September 2018

High fidelity (Hi-Fi) piezoelectric single crystal stake actuators are presented in this work. They are made of multiple rectangular d32 mode lead-based relaxor ferroelectric (notably Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PZN-PT) and Pb(In0.5Nb0.5)O3-Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PIN-PMN-PT)) single crystals bonded along their long edges with the aid of compliant polymeric edge guides into a square or polygonal pipe-like construction. Due to the highly stable engineered domain structure and high piezoelectricity of single crystal active materials, the actuators exhibit large linear displacement responses with negligible (<1%) hysteresis. Prototypes of square-pipe stake actuators were first fabricated and their phase transformation curves under different applied voltages, axial compressive loads and temperatures were established. Based on the information obtained, a range of Hi-Fi stake actuators with external square cross-sections of 5 × 5 mm2, 7.5 × 7.5 mm2 and 10 × 10 mm2, each of 4 different overall lengths of 15, 28, 41 and 54 mm, were further designed and fabricated using either PZN-PT or PIN-PMN-PT single crystals (both with TRO ≈ 110–125 °C) of 0.4 mm in crystal thickness. The stroke for the longest stake actuator fabricated (L = 54 mm) reaches −58 µm at 240 V. The working conditions, over which these Hi-Fi stake actuators remain linear with negligible hysteresis, were established for a total load of up to 10 kg and use temperature of up to 40 °C.
Melody Extraction Using Chroma-Level Note Tracking and Pitch Mapping
Authors: Zhang Weiwei , Chen Zhe , Yin Fuliang
Published: September 2018

A new architecture for melody extraction from polyphonic music is explored in this paper. Specifically, chromagrams are first constructed through the harmonic pitch class profile (HPCP) to measure the salience of melody, and chroma-level notes are tracked by dynamic programming. Then, note detection is performed according to chroma-level note differences between adjacent frames. Next, note pitches are coarsely mapped by maximizing the salience of each note, followed by a fine tuning to fit the dynamic variation within each note. Finally, voicing detection is carried out to determine the presence of melody according to the salience of fine-tuned notes. Note level pitch mapping and fine tuning avoids pitch shifting between different octaves or notes within one note duration. Several experiments have been conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. The experimental results show that the proposed method can track the dynamic pitch changing within each note, and performs well at different signal-to-accompaniment ratios. However, its performance for deep vibratos and pitch glides still needs to be improved.
The Prostate Clinical Outlook (PCO) Classifier Application for Predicting Biochemical Recurrences in Patients Treated by Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT)
Authors: Mun Seong K. , Park Jihwan , Dritschilo Anatoly , Collins Sean P. , Suy Simeng , Choi In Young , Rho Mi Jung
Published: September 2018

(1) Background: Prostate cancer risk classifiers have been used for predicting surgical and radiation therapy outcomes; however, a classifier for predicting biochemical recurrence (BCR) in patients undergoing stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is not available. We attempted to develop a model that creates a risk classifier to predict BCR in patients considering SBRT. (2) Methods: We studied the outcomes of 809 patients treated with SBRT between August 2007 and November 2016. We used Cox regression analysis with time to BCR as the outcome to develop a model that calculates a prostate clinical outlook (PCO) score based on age at diagnosis, clinical-radiological staging, and a modified risk level. We then created the PCO classifier application, which uses the model we created to categorize patients into risk groups based on multiple factors. We assessed the concordance index (c-index) to determine the accuracy of the PCO classifier application and compared the results to the D’Amico and Kattan nomogram classifications. (3) Results: The calculated PCO scores ranged from 0 to 156 points. The PCO classifier application categorized patients into three risk-groups, with 5-year BCR-free survival rates of 98.3% for low risk (n = 137), 95.4% for intermediate risk (n = 570), and 86.4% for high risk (n = 102). We demonstrated the improved prognostic power of the PCO classifier application, with a c-index of 0.75 (training set) and 0.67 (validation set); the c-index of the Kattan nomogram was 0.62 and 0.63, respectively, and that of the D’Amico classifier was 0.64 and 0.64, respectively. (4) Conclusions: The PCO classifier application is a predictive tool for employing readily available clinical parameters to stratify prostate cancer patients and to predict the probability of BCR after SBRT.
Web-Based Android Malicious Software Detection and Classification System
Authors: Doğru İbrahim Alper , KİRAZ Ömer
Published: September 2018

Android is the most used operating system (OS) by mobile devices. Since applications uploaded to Google Play and other stores are not analyzed comprehensively, it is not known whether the applications are malicious software or not. Therefore, there is an urgent need to analyze these applications regarding malicious software. Moreover, mobile devices have limited resources to analyze the applications. In this study, a malicious detection system named “Web-Based Android Malicious Software Detection and Classification System” was developed. The system is based on client-server architecture, static analysis and web-scraping methods. The proposed system overcomes the resource restriction issue, as well as providing third-party service support by means of client-server architecture. Based on the performance evaluation conducted in this research, the developed system’s success rate is 97.62% on benign and malicious datasets.
Optimal Robust Control of Path Following and Rudder Roll Reduction for a Container Ship in Heavy Waves
Authors: Wang Sisi , Wang Lijun , Qiao Zixuan , Li Fengshan
Published: September 2018

This paper presents an optimal approach to the multi-objective synthesis of path following and rudder roll reduction for a container ship in heavy waves. An improved line of sight principle with course-keeping in track-belt is proposed to guide the ship in accordance with marine practice. Concise robust controllers for the course and roll motion based on Backstepping and closed-loop gain shaping are developed. The control parameters have obvious physical significance. The determination method is given and much effort is made to guarantee the uniform asymptotic stability of the closed-loop systems by Lyapunov synthesis. Furthermore, the multi-objective optimization method a fast and elitist multi-objective genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is used to solve the restrictions caused by the model perturbation, external disturbance and performance trade-off. Contrasting with the existing literature, the research strategy and control performance are more in line with marine engineering practice. Simulation results illustrate the performances and effectiveness of the proposed system.
A Composite and Wearable Sensor Kit for Location-Aware Healthcare Monitoring and Real-Time Trauma Scoring for Survival Prediction
Authors: Walinjkar Amit
Published: September 2018

With the advances in the microfabrication of analogue front-end devices, and embedded and signal processing technology, it has now become possible to devise miniaturized health monitoring kits for non-invasive real time monitoring at any location. The current commonly available kits only measure singleton physiological parameters, and a composite analysis that covers all vital signs and trauma scores seems to be missing with these kits. The research aims at using vital signs and other physiological parameters to calculate trauma scores National Early Warning Score (NEWS), Revised Trauma Score (RTS), Trauma Score - Injury Severity Score (TRISS) and Prediction of survival (Ps), and to log the trauma event to electronic health records using standard coding schemes. The signal processing algorithms were implemented in MATLAB and could be ported to TI AM335x using MATLAB/Embedded Coder. Motion artefacts were removed using a level ‘5’ stationary wavelet transform and a ‘sym4’ wavelet, which yielded a signal-to-noise ratio of 27.83 dB. To demonstrate the operation of the device, an existing Physionet, MIMIC II Numerics dataset was used to calculate NEWS and RTS scores, and to generate the correlation and regression models for a clinical class of patients with respiratory failure and admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Parameters such as age, heart rate, Systolic Blood Pressure (SysBP), respiratory rate, and Oxygen Saturation (SpO2) as predictors to Ps, showed significant positive regressions of 93% at p < 0.001. The NEWS and RTS scores showed no significant correlation (r = 0.25, p < 0.001) amongst themselves; however, the NEWS and RTS together showed significant correlations with Ps (blunt) (r = 0.70, p < 0.001). RTS and Ps (blunt) scores showed some correlations (r = 0.63, p < 0.001), and the NEWS score showed significant correlation (r = 0.79, p < 0.001) with Ps (blunt) scores. Global Positioning System (GPS) system was built into the kit to locate the individual and to calculate the shortest path to the nearest healthcare center using the Quantum Geographical Information System (QGIS) Network Analysis tool. The physiological parameters from the sensors, along with the calculated trauma scores, were encoded according to a standard Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine-Clinical Terms (SNOMED-CT) coding system, and the trauma information was logged to electronic health records using Fast Health Interoperability Resources (FHIR) servers. The FHIR servers provided interoperable web services to log the trauma event information in real time and to prepare for medical emergencies.
A Facile Synthesis of Visible-Light Driven Rod-on-Rod like α-FeOOH/α-AgVO3 Nanocomposite as Greatly Enhanced Photocatalyst for Degradation of Rhodamine B
Authors: Sun Meng , Senthil Raja Arumugam , Pan Junqing , Osman Sedahmed , Khan Abrar
Published: September 2018

In this work, we have synthesized the rod-on-rod–like α-FeOOH/α-AgVO3 nanocomposite photocatalysts with the different amounts of solvothermally synthesized α-FeOOH nanorods via a simple co-precipitation method. The as-synthesized photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, UV−Visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), element mapping, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. The observed SEM images show that both α-AgVO3 and α-FeOOH exhibits the rod-shaped morphology with nano size. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activities of the obtained photocatalysts were evaluated towards the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible-light irradiation. It is demonstrated that the 3 mg α-FeOOH added to the α-FeOOH/α-AgVO3 nanocomposite exhibited an enhanced photocatalytic performance as compared with the pure α-AgVO3 and α-FeOOH. This significant improvement can be attributed to the increased photo-excited electron-hole pair separation efficiency, large portion of visible-light absorption ability and the reduced recombination of the electron-hole pair. The recycling test revealed that the optimized nanocomposite exhibited good photostability and reusability properties. In addition, the believable photodegradation mechanism of RhB using α-FeOOH/α-AgVO3 nanocomposite is proposed. Hence, the developed α-FeOOH/α-AgVO3 nanocomposite is a promising material for the degradation of organic pollutants in an aqueous environment.
Expanding the Scope of Universal Design: Implications for Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation
Authors: Couillard Ellyn , Higbee Jeanne L.
Published: September 2018

This article encourages postsecondary educators to expand the scope of applications of universal design and universal instructional design by exploring how principles of UD and UID can be applied to other social identities, and specifically to gender identity and sexual orientation. There are many parallels that can be drawn between students who are excluded because of their disability and students who are marginalized on the basis of nonconforming gender identity or sexual orientation. It is important that faculty and staff understand intersectionality and interdependence among social identities and consider what steps they can take to apply UID principles in ways that consider multiple aspects of identity in order to provide inclusive educational experiences for all students. Scenarios for further discussion are provided.
Photosynthetic Capacity, Stomatal Behavior and Chloroplast Ultrastructure in Leaves of the Endangered Plant Carpinus putoensis W.C.Cheng during Gaseous NO2 Exposure and after Recovery
Authors: Sheng Qianqian , Zhu Zunling
Published: September 2018

Foliar uptake of gaseous NO2 mainly occurs through the stomata and disrupts normal plant growth, but no detailed reports about the physiological responses of plants exposed to NO2 are available. In this study, to study leaf physicochemical responses, stomatal characteristics and chloroplast structure, we observed the leaves of Carpinus putoensis W.C.Cheng after exposure to NO2 (6 μL/L) for five time periods (0, 1, 6, 24, and 72 h) and after 30 days of recovery following NO2 exposure. Our results showed that short-duration exposure to a high concentration of NO2 had significant negative impacts (p < 0.05) on the chlorophyll content, photosynthesis and chloroplast-related physicochemical processes of C. putoensis leaves; with the exception of one hour of NO2 exposure, which was helpful for plant physiological responses. Moreover, NO2 exposure significantly increased the thickness of the palisade/spongy tissue and caused swelling of the thylakoids within the chloroplasts; this thylakoid swelling could be reversed by removing the pollutant from the air flow. Restoration of unpolluted air alleviated the toxic effects of NO2, as indicated by an increased chlorophyll content, net photosynthesis, and PSII maximum quantum yield. These results could support the development of a treatment for roadside trees that are exposed to NO2 as a major road pollutant.
Improved Brain Tumor Segmentation via Registration-Based Brain Extraction
Authors: Uhlich Maxwell , Greiner Russell , Hoehn Bret , Woghiren Melissa , Diaz Idanis , Ivanova Tatiana , Murtha Albert
Published: September 2018

Automated brain tumor segmenters typically run a “skull-stripping” pre-process to extract the brain from the 3D image, before segmenting the area of interest within the extracted volume. We demonstrate that an effective existing segmenter can be improved by replacing its skull-stripper component with one that instead uses a registration-based approach. In particular, we compare our automated brain segmentation system with the original system as well as three other approaches that differ only by using a different skull-stripper—BET, HWA, and ROBEX: (1) Over scans of 120 patients with brain tumors, our system’s segmentation accuracy (Dice score with respect to expert segmentation) is 8.6% (resp. 2.7%) better than the original system on gross tumor volumes (resp. edema); (2) Over 103 scans of controls, the new system found 92.9% (resp. 57.8%) fewer false positives on T1C (resp. FLAIR) volumes. (The other three methods were significantly worse on both tasks). Finally, the new registration-based approach is over 15% faster than the original, requiring on average only 178 CPU seconds per volume.
Investigation of the Antioxidant Capacity, Insecticidal Ability and Oxidation Stability of Chenopodium formosanum Seed Extract
Authors: Chuang Kai-Jen , Chen Zong-Jiang , Cheng Chih-Lun , Hong Gui-Bing
Published: September 2018

To maximize the extraction of antioxidants from Chenopodium formosanum seeds, the process factors, such as the ethanol concentration (0–100%), extraction time (30–180 min) and temperature (30–70 °C), for the extraction of the bioactive contents as well as the antioxidant capacity are evaluated using response surface methodology (RSM). The experimental results fit well with quadratic models. The extract was identified by GC/MS, and it was found that some active compounds had antioxidant, repellency and insecticidal activities. Various concentrations of the extract were prepared for the evaluation of the insecticidal activity against Tribolium castaneum, and the toxicity test results indicated that the extract was toxic to Tribolium castaneum, with an LC50 value of 354.61 ppm. The oxidative stability of the olive oil determined according to the radical scavenging activity and p-anisidine test demonstrates that the extract obtained from the Chenopodium formosanum seeds can retard lipid oxidation.
Teasing Apart the Effects of Dominance, Transfer, and Processing in Reference Production by German–Italian Bilingual Adolescents
Authors: Torregrossa Jacopo , Bongartz Christiane
Published: September 2018

This paper intends to test different accounts of bilingual reference production against the production of referring expressions in Italian by German‒Italian bilingual adolescents. In particular, we investigate to what extent bilingual referring expressions involve transfer from one language to the other, result from processing and dominance variables, and are the outcome of a process of language change. We will show that each of these hypotheses makes a precise prediction about which referential strategy bilinguals should adopt. The production of referring expressions is examined in the context of a story-telling task. Based on the analysis of overspecified forms, clitic omissions, and agreement mismatches, as well as on correlations with dominance factors, we argue in favor of the relevance of dominance and processing factors for bilingual reference production. Finally, we verify the possibility of generalizing our conclusions to a different linguistic domain, concerning the expression of word order in main clauses.
Carbon Black-Carbon Nanotube Co-Doped Polyimide Sensors for Simultaneous Determination of Ascorbic Acid, Uric Acid, and Dopamine
Authors: Wang Yue , Yang Tian , Hasebe Yasushi , Zhang Zhiqiang , Tao Dongping
Published: September 2018

Carbon black (CB) and carbon nanotube (CNT) co-doped polyimide (PI) modified glassy carbon electrode (CB-CNT/PI/GCE) was first prepared for the simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid (AA), dopamine (DA), and uric acid (UA). The CB-CNT/PI/GCE exhibited persistent electrochemical behavior and excellent catalytic activities. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) were used for the simultaneous detection of AA, DA, and UA in their ternary mixture. The peak separations between AA and DA, and DA and UA, are up to 166 mV and 148 mV, respectively. The CB-CNT/PI/GCE exhibited high sensitivity to DA and UA, with the detection limit of 1.9 µM and 3 µM, respectively. In addition, the CB-CNT/PI/GCE showed sufficient selectivity and long-term stability, and was applicable to detect AA, DA, and UA in human urine sample.
Energy-Based Approach to Predict Fatigue Life of Asphalt Mixture Using Three-Point Bending Fatigue Test
Authors: Sun Yazhen , Fang Chenze , Wang Jinchang , Ma Zuoxin , Ye Youlin
Published: September 2018

The three-point bending fatigue tests were carried out in order to accurately predict the fatigue life of an asphalt mixture based on the plateau value (PV) of the dissipated strain energy ratio (DSER). The relations of the dissipated strain energy (DSE) to the stress-strength ratio, temperature and loading rate were studied, and the constructions of the mathematical models of DSE and DSER were completed based on the change laws of the DSE. The relation of the fatigue life to the PV was determined based on the analysis of damage evolution, based on which the fatigue equation was established and used to predict the fatigue life. The results show that the change laws of DSE and DSER can be well described by the proposed mathematical models. The PV is defined as the average value of the DSER in the second stage and the fatigue life decreases in power function with the increase of PV, based on which the fatigue equation of Nf = A(PV)B was established, and the established fatigue equation is very close to that is used in the MEPDG. The fatigue equation can well predict the fatigue life asphalt mixture.
Thermal-Flow Characteristics of Ferrofluids in a Rotating Eccentric Cylinder under External Magnetic Force
Authors: Kim Jae-Hee , Seo Hyeon-Seok , Kim Youn-Jea
Published: September 2018

Heat dissipation has become an important issue due to the miniaturization of various electronic devices. Various methods such as spray and nozzle coolers, heat sinks and so on are used for heat dissipation. However, the emergence of ferrofluids drastically improves the operating characteristics of electromagnetic systems and devices. A ferrofluid is a suspension containing 10-nm magnetic particles in a colloidal solution. This material exhibits paramagnetic behavior and is sensitive to magnetic field and temperature. In this study, heat transfer characteristics of ferrofluids in a rotating eccentric cylinder were investigated using the commercial code, COMSOL Multiphysics. Numerical results of the local Nusselt number, magnetophoretic force and velocity distributions were obtained from various eccentricities of the cylinder, and the results were graphically depicted with various flow conditions.
Chemical Constituents from Croton Species and Their Biological Activities
Authors: Xu Wen-Hui , Liu Wei-Yi , Liang Qian
Published: September 2018

The genus Croton belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family, which comprises approximately 1300 species. Many Croton species have been used as folk medicines. This review focuses on the chemical constituents from Croton species and their relevant biological activities, covering the period from 2006 to 2018. A total of 399 new compounds, including 339 diterpenoids, were reported. Diterpenoids are characteristic components of the Croton species. These isolated compounds exhibited a broad spectrum of bioactivities, including cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, acetylcholinesterase inhibitory, and neurite outgrowth-promoting properties. The present review provides a significant clue for further research of the chemical constituents from the Croton species as potential medicines.
Potassium Citrate Supplementation Decreases the Biochemical Markers of Bone Loss in a Group of Osteopenic Women: The Results of a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study
Authors: Granchi Donatella , Caudarella Renata , Ripamonti Claudio , Spinnato Paolo , Bazzocchi Alberto , Massa Annamaria , Baldini Nicola
Published: September 2018

The relationship involving acid-base imbalance, mineral metabolism and bone health status has previously been reported but the efficacy of the alkalizing supplementation in targeting acid overload and preventing bone loss has not yet been fully elucidated. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the hypothesis that potassium citrate (K citrate) modifies bone turnover in women with postmenopausal osteopenia was tested. Three hundred and ten women were screened; 40 women met the inclusion criteria and were randomly assigned to the treatment or the placebo group. They were treated with K citrate (30 mEq day−1) or a placebo in addition to calcium carbonate (500 mg day−1) and vitamin D (400 IU day−1). At baseline and time points of 3 and 6 months, serum indicators of renal function, electrolytes, calciotropic hormones, serum bone turnover markers (BTMs) (tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP5b), carboxy-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX), bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP), procollagen type 1 N terminal propeptide (PINP)), and urine pH, electrolytes, and citrate were measured. The follow-up was completed by 17/20 patients in the “K citrate” group and 18/20 patients in the “placebo” group. At baseline, 90% of the patients exhibited low potassium excretion in 24 h urine samples, and 85% of cases had at least one urine parameter associated with low-grade acidosis (low pH, low citrate excretion). After treatment, CTX and BAP decreased significantly in both groups, but subjects with evidence of low-grade acidosis gained significant benefits from the treatment compared to the placebo. In patients with low 24h-citrate excretion at baseline, a 30% mean decrease in BAP and CTX was observed at 6 months. A significant reduction was also evident when low citrate (BAP: −25%; CTX: −35%) and a low pH (BAP: −25%; CTX: −30%) were found in fasting-morning urine. In conclusion, our results suggested that K citrate supplementation improved the beneficial effects of calcium and vitamin D in osteopenic women with a documented potassium and citrate deficit, and a metabolic profile consistent with low-grade acidosis.
Sustainability Assessment of Waste Management System for Mexico City (Mexico)—Based on Analytic Hierarchy Process
Authors: Tsydenova Nina , Vázquez Morillas Alethia , Cruz Salas Arely Areanely
Published: September 2018

Mexico City introduced the new legal waste norm Norma NADF-024-AMBT-2013 in July 2017. This report compares the proposed system with three alternatives: a baseline scenario with composting of organics, a scenario which involves anaerobic digestion of organics, and a mechanical–biological treatment scenario with no source separation. The comparison was done using an Analytic Hierarchy Process. Eleven different indicators were chosen for the evaluation: general waste performance indicators (landfill disposal and recycling rates), environmental indicators (greenhouse gas emissions, acid gas emissions, Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), and mercury content in water and soil), economic indicators (investment and operation costs) ($ per Mg municipal solid waste (MSW)), and social indicators (jobs created and social acceptance). The scenario ranking based on pairwise comparison made by 5 experts from Mexico City showed that the most sustainable scenario, environmentally, socially, and economically, is that which corresponds to Norma NADF-024-AMBT-2013 with a ranking priority of 30.78%.
Introduction of Special Issue “Theodicy”
Authors: Hernandez Jill
Published: September 2018

For a topic that many have thought long-solved, theodicy in the 21st-century has thus far produced novel approaches [...]
Second Primary Spindle Cell Carcinoma of Oral Cavity and Oropharynx: A Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Liao Ying-Ting , Tseng Hung-Ding , Chang Peter Mu-Hsin , Chu Pen-Yuan , Kuo Ying-Ju , Liu Chun-Yu
Published: September 2018

Spindle cell squamous cell carcinoma (SpCC) is a poorly differentiated subtype of squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC). We report a case with second primary oropharyngeal SpCC after seven years of complete treatment of SqCC. The patient underwent surgery and adjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Relevant literature about SpCC was reviewed.
Bootstrapping Average Value at Risk of Single and Collective Risks
Authors: Beutner Eric , Zähle Henryk
Published: September 2018

Almost sure bootstrap consistency of the blockwise bootstrap for the Average Value at Risk of single risks is established for strictly stationary β -mixing observations. Moreover, almost sure bootstrap consistency of a multiplier bootstrap for the Average Value at Risk of collective risks is established for independent observations. The main results rely on a new functional delta-method for the almost sure bootstrap of uniformly quasi-Hadamard differentiable statistical functionals, to be presented here. The latter seems to be interesting in its own right.
BULC-U: Sharpening Resolution and Improving Accuracy of Land-Use/Land-Cover Classifications in Google Earth Engine
Authors: Lee Jacky , Cardille Jeffrey A. , Coe Michael T.
Published: September 2018

Remote sensing is undergoing a fundamental paradigm shift, in which approaches interpreting one or two images are giving way to a wide array of data-rich applications. These include assessing global forest loss, tracking water resources across Earth’s surface, determining disturbance frequency across decades, and many more. These advances have been greatly facilitated by Google Earth Engine, which provides both image access and a platform for advanced analysis techniques. Within the realm of land-use/land-cover (LULC) classifications, Earth Engine provides the ability to create new classifications and to access major existing data sets that have already been created, particularly at global extents. By overlaying global LULC classifications—the 300-m GlobCover 2009 LULC data set for example—with sharper images like those from Landsat, one can see the promise and limits of these global data sets and platforms to fuse them. Despite the promise in a global classification covering all of the terrestrial surface, GlobCover 2009 may be too coarse for some applications. We asked whether the LULC labeling provided by GlobCover 2009 could be combined with the spatial granularity of the Landsat platform to produce a hybrid classification having the best features of both resources with high accuracy. Here we apply an improvement of the Bayesian Updating of Land Cover (BULC) algorithm that fused unsupervised Landsat classifications to GlobCover 2009, sharpening the result from a 300-m to a 30-m classification. Working with four clear categories in Mato Grosso, Brazil, we refined the resolution of the LULC classification by an order of magnitude while improving the overall accuracy from 69.1 to 97.5%. This “BULC-U” mode, because it uses unsupervised classifications as inputs, demands less region-specific knowledge from analysts and may be significantly easier for non-specialists to use. This technique can provide new information to land managers and others interested in highly accurate classifications at finer scales.
Recovery Rates of Wetland Vegetation Greenness in Severely Burned Ecosystems of Alaska Derived from Satellite Image Analysis
Authors: Potter Christopher
Published: September 2018

The analysis of wildfire impacts at the scale of less than a square kilometer can reveal important patterns of vegetation recovery and regrowth in freshwater Arctic and boreal regions. For this study, NASA Landsat burned area products since the year 2000, and a near 20-year record of vegetation green cover from the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) satellite sensor were combined to reconstruct the recovery rates and seasonal profiles of burned wetland ecosystems in Alaska. Region-wide breakpoint analysis results showed that significant structural change could be detected in the 250-m normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) time series for the vast majority of wetland locations in the major Yukon river drainages of interior Alaska that had burned at high severity since the year 2001. Additional comparisons showed that wetland cover locations across Alaska that have burned at high severity subsequently recovered their green cover seasonal profiles to relatively stable pre-fire levels in less than 10 years. Negative changes in the MODIS NDVI, namely lower greenness in 2017 than pre-fire and incomplete greenness recovery, were more commonly detected in burned wetland areas after 2013. In the years prior to 2013, the NDVI change tended to be positive (higher greenness in 2017 than pre-fire) at burned wetland elevations lower than 400 m, whereas burned wetland locations at higher elevation showed relatively few positive greenness recovery changes by 2017.
‘Boxing Is Our Business’: The Embodiment of a Leftist Identity in Boxe Popolare
Authors: Pedrini Lorenzo
Published: September 2018

Based on two-year ethnography of boxe popolare—a style of boxing codified by Italian leftist grassroots groups—and participant observation of a palestra popolare in an Italian city, the article purports to (a) deepen understanding of the nexus between physical cultures and politics and (b) contribute to understanding the renewal of political cultures by overcoming the disembodied perspectives on ideology. The first section of the paper tracks down the relation that ties boxing to the sociocultural matrix of the leftist grassroots groups. Boxing draws its significance from the antagonistic culture of the informal political youth organisations in which the practice is embedded and reflects the main changes that have been occurring in the collective action repertoires of the street-level political forces over the past few decades. The second section analyses the daily activities of boxe popolare. The paper thereby demonstrates how training regimes manipulate the bodies to inculcate a set of corporeal postures and sensibilities inherent to a mythology of otherness peculiar to the far-left ethos. In conclusion, the lived experience of boxe popolare addresses the importance of placing the situated practices and the socialised body at the centre of the study of political cultures in the contemporary post-ideological era.
Decomposition Analysis in Electricity Sector Output from Carbon Emissions in China
Authors: Jiang Xue-Ting , Su Min , Li Rongrong
Published: September 2018

Carbon emissions from China’s electricity sector account for about one-seventh of the global carbon dioxide emissions, or half of China’s carbon dioxide emissions. A better understanding of the relationship between CO2 emissions and electric output would help develop and adjust carbon emission mitigation strategies for China’s electricity sector. Thus, we applied the electricity elasticity of carbon emissions to a decoupling index that we combined with advanced multilevel Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index tools in order to test the carbon emission response to the electric output and the main drivers. Then, we proposed a comparative decoupling stability analysis method. The results show that the electric output effect played the most significant role in increasing CO2 emissions from China’s electric sector. Also, “relative decoupling” was the main state during the study period (1991–2012). Moreover, the electricity elasticity of CO2 emissions had a better performance regarding stability in the analysis of China’s electricity output.
Sustainable Management of the Offer of Cultural Institutions in the Cross-Border Market for Cultural Services—Barriers and Conditions
Authors: Wróblewski Łukasz , Dziadzia Bogusław , Dacko-Pikiewicz Zdzisława
Published: September 2018

The concept of sustainable management in culture has been recognised in global strategic documents on sustainable development for more than a decade. It is also increasingly reflected in the cultural polices of particular states, and—very importantly—cultural managers who are responsible for shaping the cultural offer in cities are becoming more interested in this concept. Despite the increasing attention being paid to this topic among both practitioners and theoreticians of management, in none of these documents or other works can we find any content that is directly related to the possibility of applying this concept in a town which, due to political turmoil, has been divided by a national border. Hence, this gap was the direct impulse for taking up research in this field. In the article, by using different notions of the market, our own definition of a cross-border market for cultural services was developed, and the conditions for the functioning of this market were presented based on the example town of Cieszyn (Poland) and Český Těšín (Czech Republic). In the opinion of the authors of the article, the development and functioning of a cross-border market for cultural services is essential for the application of the concept of sustainable management of the cultural offer in a town divided by a border. For the purpose of the article, a survey and individual interviews with experts shaping the cultural offer in Cieszyn and Český Těšín were conducted. The results of the research prove that despite numerous cross-border Czech–Polish projects carried out by cultural institutions, there are still many barriers in the town, which make it difficult for the residents to benefit from the cultural offer that is available on the other side of the border. These barriers limit the full implementation and application of the concept of sustainable management of the cultural offer.
The Gauss Map and the Third Laplace-Beltrami Operator of the Rotational Hypersurface in 4-Space
Authors: Güler Erhan , Hacısalihoğlu Hasan Hilmi , Kim Young Ho
Published: September 2018

We study and examine the rotational hypersurface and its Gauss map in Euclidean four-space E 4 . We calculate the Gauss map, the mean curvature and the Gaussian curvature of the rotational hypersurface and obtain some results. Then, we introduce the third Laplace–Beltrami operator. Moreover, we calculate the third Laplace–Beltrami operator of the rotational hypersurface in E 4 . We also draw some figures of the rotational hypersurface.
Newcastle Disease Virus V Protein Promotes Viral Replication in HeLa Cells through the Activation of MEK/ERK Signaling
Authors: Chu Zhili , Ma Jiangang , Wang Caiying , Lu Kejia , Li Xiaoqin , Liu Haijin , Wang Xinglong , Xiao Sa , Yang Zengqi
Published: September 2018

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) can infect a wide range of domestic and wild bird species. The non-structural V protein of NDV plays an important role in antagonizing innate host defenses to facilitate viral replication. However, there is a lack of knowledge related to the mechanisms through which the V protein regulates viral replication. The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway in the host is involved in a variety of functions and is activated by several stimuli, including viral replication. In this study, we show that both the lentogenic strain, La Sota, and the velogenic strain, F48E9, of NDV activate the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MEK)/ERK signaling pathway. The pharmacological inhibition of ERK1/2 phosphorylation using the highly selective inhibitors U0126 and SCH772984 resulted in the reduced levels of NDV RNA in cells and virus titers in the cell supernatant, which established an important role for the MEK/ERK signaling pathway in NDV replication. Moreover, the overexpression of the V protein in HeLa cells increased the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and induced the transcriptional changes in the genes downstream of the MEK/ERK signaling pathway. Taken together, our results demonstrate that the V protein is involved in the ERK signaling pathway-mediated promotion of NDV replication and thus, can be investigated as a potential antiviral target.
Thickness-dependent photoelectrochemical properties of a semitransparent Co3O4 photocathode
Authors: Patel Malkeshkumar , Kim Joondong
Published: September 2018

Co3O4 has been widely studied as a catalyst when coupled with a photoactive material during hydrogen production using water splitting. Here, we demonstrate a photoactive spinel Co3O4 electrode grown by the Kirkendall diffusion thermal oxidation of Co nanoparticles. The thickness-dependent structural, physical, optical, and electrical properties of Co3O4 samples are comprehensively studied. Our analysis shows that two bandgaps of 1.5 eV and 2.1 eV coexist with p-type conductivity in porous and semitransparent Co3O4 samples, which exhibit light-induced photocurrent in photoelectrochemical cells (PEC) containing the alkaline electrolyte. The thickness-dependent properties of Co3O4 related to its use as a working electrode in PEC cells are extensively studied and show potential for the application in water oxidation and reduction processes. To demonstrate the stability, an alkaline cell was composed for the water splitting system by using two Co3O4 photoelectrodes. The oxygen gas generation rate was obtained to be 7.17 mL·h−1 cm−1. Meanwhile, hydrogen gas generation rate was almost twice of 14.35 mL·h−1·cm−1 indicating the stoichiometric ratio of 1:2. We propose that a semitransparent Co3O4 photoactive electrode is a prospective candidate for use in PEC cells via heterojunctions for hydrogen generation.
The mechanochemical synthesis of quinazolin-4(3H)-ones by controlling the reactivity of IBX
Authors: Alam Md Toufique , Maiti Saikat , Mal Prasenjit
Published: September 2018

Performing any synthesis using several arylamines and hypervalent iodine(V) reagents by direct mixing is unrealistic because of the high exothermic reaction or explosion. Herein we demonstrate, when anilines were substituted with an amide group at the ortho-position, successful chemical reactions could be performed due to intramolecular control. At maximum contact of the reacting substances, i.e., under solvent-free mechanochemical conditions, 2-aminobenzamides, aryl-, alkylaldehydes and the iodine(V) reagent o-iodoxybenzoic acid (IBX) led to substituted quinazolin-4(3H)-one derivatives in fair yields.
Multifractal Analysis of Pulsar Timing Residuals: Assessment of Gravitational Wave Detection
Authors: Eghdami I. , Panahi H. , Movahed S. M. S.
Published: September 2018

We introduce a pipeline including multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DXA) modified by either singular value decomposition or the adaptive method to examine the statistical properties of the pulsar timing residual (PTR) induced by a gravitational wave (GW) signal. We propose a new algorithm, the so-called irregular MF-DXA, to deal with irregular data sampling. Inspired by the quadrupolar nature of the spatial cross-correlation function of a gravitational wave background (GWB), a new cross-correlation function,

, derived from irregular MF-DXA will be introduced. We show that this measure reveals the quadrupolar signature in the PTRs induced by stochastic GWB. We propose four strategies based on the y-intercept of fluctuation functions, the generalized Hurst exponent, and the width of the singularity spectrum to determine the dimensionless amplitude and power-law exponent of the characteristic strain spectrum as

for stochastic GWB. Using the value of the Hurst exponent, one can clarify the type of GWs. We apply our pipeline to explore 20 ms pulsars observed by the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array. The computed scaling exponents confirm that all data are classified into a nonstationary class implying the universality feature. The value of the Hurst exponent is in the range H ∈ [0.56, 0.87]. The q-dependency of the generalized Hurst exponent demonstrates that the observed PTRs have multifractal behavior, and the source of this multifractality is mainly attributed to the correlation of data, which is another universality of the observed data sets. Multifractal analysis of available PTR data sets reveals an upper bound on the dimensionless amplitude of the GWB,

.
Estimating the Rate of Field Line Braiding in the Solar Corona by Photospheric Flows
Authors: Candelaresi S. , Pontin D. I. , Yeates A. R. , Bushby P. J. , Hornig G.
Published: September 2018

In this paper, we seek to understand the timescale in which the photospheric motions on the Sun braid coronal magnetic field lines. This is a crucial ingredient for determining the viability of the braiding mechanism for explaining the high temperatures observed in the corona. We study the topological complexity induced in the coronal magnetic field, primarily using plasma motions extracted from magneto-convection simulations. This topological complexity is quantified using the field line winding, finite time topological entropy (FTTE), and passive scalar mixing. With these measures, we contrast mixing efficiencies of the magneto-convection simulation, a benchmark flow known as a “blinking vortex”, and finally photospheric flows inferred from sequences of observed magnetograms using local correlation tracking. While the highly resolved magneto-convection simulations induce a strong degree of field line winding and FTTE, the values obtained from the observations from the plage region are around an order of magnitude smaller. This behavior is carried over to the FTTE. Nevertheless, the results suggest that the photospheric motions induce complex tangling of the coronal field on a timescale of hours.