bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Association between smoking and central sensitization pain: a web-based cross-sectional study
Authors: Chiba Satoko , Yamada Keiko , Kawai Aiko , Hamaoka Saeko , Ikemiya Hiroko , Hara Atsuko , Wakaizumi Kenta , Tabuchi Takahiro , Yamaguchi Keisuke , Kawagoe Izumi , Iseki Masako
Published: January 2024

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate whether smoking is an independent risk factor for central sensitization syndrome (CSS) in individuals with pain as measured by the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI).

Methods

In 2020, we conducted an Internet survey targeting 2000 ordinary residents of Japan (aged 20–69 years) who had pain symptoms from October to November 2020. A multiple regression analysis was performed on the association between smoking status (nonsmokers and current smokers; Brinkman index) and CSI values. Moreover, compared to nonsmokers, the relative risk (RR) of the CSI cut-off score of 40 points or higher among current smokers was calculated using a modified Poisson regression model. Covariates included age, sex, body mass index, marital status, equivalized income, exercise habits, history of hypertension, history of hyperlipidemia, history of diabetes, pain chronicity, and Pain Catastrophizing Scale score.

Results

This study analyzed 1,822 individuals (1,041 men and 781 women). Among those experiencing pain, current smoking was associated with the increase in CSI values (β = 0.07). The Brinkman index was also significantly associated with the increase in CSI values (β = 0.06). Current smoking also increased the risk of being over the CSI cut-off score, with a relative risk (RR) of 1.29 (95% confidence intervals, 1.04–1.60). Younger age, being women, experiencing chronic pain, and higher pain catastrophizing thinking were also significantly associated with increased CSS severity, independent of smoking status.

Conclusion

Smoking is an independent risk factor for CSS. This indicates that smoking may be an important factor in the management of central pain disorders.
Distributed mobile CEP for collaborative social computing
Authors: Pérez-Vereda Alejandro , Canal Carlos , Hervás Ramón
Published: January 2024

Smartphones have become highly personalized interfaces between people and the technology ecosystem around them. In this sense, they play a key role for a technology shift from the current Internet of Things to a future human-centric paradigm of an Internet of People, automatically adapting smart things and services to the preferences and context of their users. In this paper, we propose the use of Complex Event Processing (CEP) engines deployed in the users’ smartphones granting them context-awareness capabilities in order to react to external stimulus, and enabling them to interact both with smart things and services in the surroundings of the users. With that purpose, we have designed a communication architecture that interconnects CEP engines running on smartphones, providing a framework for building applications for Mobile-based Collaborative Social Computing (MCSC). For that, we make use of previous works of the authors with Digital Avatars, a framework which promotes the use of smartphones for inferring and sharing a unique digital avatar or virtual profile of each user. The resulting framework, which we have called Collaborative CEP, allows to implement complex interactions among users, and between them and the IoT, a common need in Collaborative Social Computing applications. We provide a proof of concept based on the implementation of a Cops and Robbers game to test the expressiveness and correct functioning of the framework, and we evaluate its performance and efficiency.
Image searching in an open photograph archive: search tactics and faced barriers in historical research
Authors: Late Elina , Ruotsalainen Hille , Kumpulainen Sanna
Published: January 2024

During the last decades, cultural heritage collections have been digitized, for example, for the use of academic scholars. However, earlier studies have mainly focused on the use of textual materials. Thus, little is known about how digitized photographs are used and searched in digital humanities. The aim of this paper is to investigate the applied search tactics and perceived barriers when looking for historical photographs from a digital image archive for research and writing tasks. The case archive of this study contains approximately 160,000 historical wartime photographs that are openly available. The study is based on a qualitative interview and demonstration data of 15 expert users of the image collection searching photographs for research and writing tasks. Critical incident questions yielded a total of 37 detailed real-life search examples and 158 expressed barriers to searching. Results show that expert users apply and combine different tactics (keywords, filtering and browsing) for image searching, and rarely using one tactic only is enough. During searching users face various barriers, most of them focusing on keyword searching due to the shortcomings of image metadata. Barriers were mostly in the context of the collection and tools. Although scholars have benefited from the efforts put into digitizing cultural heritage collections, providing digitized content openly online is not enough if there are no sufficient means for accessing the content. Automatic annotation methods are one option for creating metadata to improve the findability of the images. However, a better understanding of human information interaction with image data is needed to better support digitalization in the humanities in this respect.
Quantum chemical “Aufbau” principles: how to estimate the shape of highly flexible (bio-)polymers? A recursively extendable “chemion picture” of Euler-Hückel-type
Authors: Koch Wolfhard H. G.
Published: January 2024

An outline is given of how to split the n-dimensional space of torsion angles occurring in flexible (bio-)polymers (like alkanes, nucleic acids, or proteins, for instance) into n one-dimensional potential curves. Forthcoming applications will focus on the “protein folding problem,” beginning with polyglycine.

Context

In accordance with Euler’s topology rules, molecules are considered to be composed of “vertices” (atoms, ligands, bonding sites, functional groups, and bigger fragments). Following Hückel, each vertex is represented by only one basis function. Starting from the “monofocal” hydrids $$\text {CH}_{4}$$

CH
4

, $$\text {NH}_{3}$$

NH
3

, $$\text {OH}_{2}$$

OH
2

, FH, and $$\text {SiH}_{4}$$

SiH
4

, $$\text {PH}_{3}$$

PH
3

, $$\text {SH}_{2}$$

SH
2

, ClH as anchor units, “chemionic” Hamiltonians (of individual “chemion ensembles” and proportional nuclear charges) are constructed recursively, together with an appropriate basis set for the first five (normal) alkanes and some related oligomers like primary alcohols, alkyl amines, and alkyl chlorides.

Methods

Standard methods (“Restricted Hartree-Fock RHF” and “Full Configuration Interaction FCI”) are used to solve the various stationary Schrödinger equations. Two software packages are indispensable: “SMILES” for integral evaluations over Slater-type orbitals (STO), and “Numerical Recipes” for matrix diagonalizations and inversions. While managing with only two-center repulsion integrals, “implicit multi-center integrations” lead us to the non-empirical fundament of Hoffmann’s “Extended-Hückel Theory.”
High-quality dense ZnO thin films: work function and photo/electrochemical properties
Authors: Krysova H. , Mansfeldova V. , Tarabkova H. , Pisarikova A. , Hubicka Z. , Kavan L.
Published: January 2024

Compact ZnO (wurtzite) thin films are prepared on four different substrates by (i) spray pyrolysis or (ii) pulsed reactive magnetron sputtering combined with a radio frequency electron cyclotron wave resonance plasma. Films are characterized by AFM, XRD, Kelvin probe, cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and UV photoelectrochemistry. Film morphologies, defect concentrations, crystallite size, and orientation provided specific fingerprints for the electronic structure of ZnO close to the conduction band minimum. Fabricated films are referenced, if relevant, to a model system based on a wurtzite single crystal with either Zn-face or O-face termination. Kelvin probe measurements of the ZnO/air interface distinguished effects of annealing and UV excitation, which are attributed to removal of oxygen vacancies close to the surface. In turn, the work function, at the electrochemical interface, specifically addressed the growth protocol of the ZnO electrodes but not the effects of crystallinity and annealing. Finally, high photocurrents of water oxidation are observed exclusively on virgin films. This effect is then discussed in terms of photocorrosion, and work function changes due to UV light.

Graphical Abstract
Genomic epidemiology and molecular characteristics of blaNDM-1-positive carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa belonging to international high-risk clone ST773 in the Gauteng region, South Africa
Authors: Jung Hyunsul , Pitout Johann D. D. , Matsumura Yasufumi , Strydom Kathy-Anne , Kingsburgh Chanel , Ehlers Marthie M. , Kock Marleen M.
Published: January 2024

Purpose

The emergence of carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) harbouring acquired carbapenemase genes (blaVIM, blaIMP and blaNDM) has become a global public health threat. Three CRPA isolates included in the study had an extensively drug-resistant phenotype with susceptibility to colistin only and were positive for the blaNDM-1 gene. The current study aimed to investigate the genomic epidemiology and molecular characteristics of the blaNDM-1-positive CRPA isolates collected from the Gauteng region, South Africa.

Methods

Short read whole genome sequencing (WGS) was performed to determine sequence types (STs), genetic relatedness, resistome, virulome and the genetic environment of the blaNDM-1 gene.

Results

The WGS and phylogenetic analyses revealed that the study isolates belonged to an international high-risk clone ST773 and belonged to the same clade with eight blaNDM-1-positive ST773 isolates from Hungary, India, Nigeria, South Korea and USA. The study isolates harboured a wide repertoire of intrinsic and acquired antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) related with mobile genetic elements, porins and efflux pumps, as well as virulence factor genes. The clade-specific ARGs (blaNDM-1, floR2/cmlA9, rmtB4, tetG) were found in a putative integrative and conjugative element (ICE) region similar to ICE6660-like.

Conclusion

As ICE carrying the blaNDM-1 gene can easily spread to other P. aeruginosa isolates and other Gram-negative bacteria, the findings in this study highlight the need for appropriate management strategies and active surveillance of CRPA isolates in the Gauteng region, South Africa.
Capital exploitation and environmental awareness: How they affect the economy and the environment in a dynamic framework
Authors: Grassetti Francesca , Mammana Cristiana , Michetti Elisabetta
Published: January 2024

We present a model in which capital and environmental quality co-evolve over time. To improve the environmental quality, the government intervenes by means of a limitation of the capital use and awareness campaigns. In case of severe degradation of the environment, a restriction on capital use is introduced that is proportional to the damage caused by human activity; at the same time, awareness campaigns are used to increase the public concern about sustainability. By means of a discrete-time dynamical system and considering homogeneous agents, we found that multiple equilibria may exist and that awareness campaigns are a useful tool to push an economy toward sustainable levels of production. The limitation in the use of available capital, however, might be useless or even harmful, deteriorating the level of capital disposable for those countries that are trapped in an equilibrium in which the environmental quality is low.
Bronze Age Stone Anchors as Material Metaphors: Applying Conceptual Blending Theory to Investigate Their Symbolic Value
Authors: Yamasaki Mari
Published: January 2024

In ancient navigation, the safety of a ship depended in no small measure on the stability of her anchors, and this crucial role at sea was not overlooked in the ritual symbolism of maritime communities. Accordingly, there is a general consensus on the fact that the anchors deposited at Eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age temples were important carriers of meaning for seafaring groups. Nevertheless, little effort has been made to understand the role of anchors in the conceptual world of the ancient seafarers beyond the fact that they were powerful symbols of maritimity. Borrowed and adapted from linguistics, Conceptual Blending Theory (CBT) provides the theoretical framework to use material culture as a source for the investigation of ancient thought processes. In this paper, I apply the perspective of CBT to the anchors found at the Late Cypriot sanctuary of Kition-Kathari, with comparisons to those from Byblos and Ugarit, and I examine the cognitive implications of anchors as material metaphors and investigate how they embody the blending of the mental spaces of the sacred, the city, and the sea.
Temperature Monitoring of Through-Thickness Temperature Gradients in Thermal Barrier Coatings Using Ultrasonic Guided Waves
Authors: Yule Lawrence , Harris Nicholas , Hill Martyn , Zaghari Bahareh
Published: January 2024

Ultrasonic guided waves offer a promising method of monitoring the online temperature of plate-like structures in extreme environments, such as aero-engine nozzle guide vanes (NGVs), and can provide the resolution, response rate, and robust operation that is required in aerospace. Previous investigations have shown the potential of such a system but the effect of the complex physical environment on wave propagation is yet to be considered. This article uses a numerical approach to investigate how thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) applied to the surface of many components designed for extreme thermal conditions will affect ultrasonic guided wave propagation, and how a system can be employed to monitor through-thickness temperature changes. The top coat/bond coat boundary in NGVs has been shown to be a temperature critical point that is difficult to monitor with traditional temperature sensors, which highlights the potential of ultrasonic guided waves. Differences in application method and layer thickness are considered, and analysis of through-thickness displacement profiles and dispersion curves are used to predict signal response and determine the most suitable mode of operation. Heat transfer simulations (COMSOL) have been used to predict temperature gradients within a TBC, and dispersion curves have been produced from the temperature dependant material properties. Time dependant simulations of wave propagation are in good agreement with dispersion curve predictions of wave velocity for the two lowest order modes in three thicknesses of TBC top coat (100, 250, and 500 $$\upmu \hbox {m}$$

μ
m

). When wave velocity measurements from the simulations are compared to dispersion curves generated at isotropic temperatures, the corresponding temperature represents the average temperature of a gradient system well. Such a measurement system could, in principle, be used in conjunction with surface temperature measurement systems to monitor through-thickness temperature changes.
Multicentric Study on the Clinical Mycology Capacity and Access to Antifungal Treatment in Portugal
Authors: Fernandes Raquel , Sabino Raquel , Cunha Cristina , Cornely Oliver A. , Carvalho Agostinho , Salmanton-García Jon ,   PT Group for IFI Management Capacity, Batista Joana , Carvalho Dinah , Coutinho Adriana , Cunha Flávia , Gonçalves Augusta , Gouveia Catarina , Guerra Maio António , Machado e Costa Augusto , Pinheiro Dolores , Póvoa Pedro , Ramalheira Elmano , Santos Valentina , Silva Ana Cristina , Videira Zélia
Published: January 2024

The success of the clinical management of invasive fungal diseases (IFD) is highly dependent on suitable tools for timely and accurate diagnosis for effective treatment. An in-depth analysis of the ability of European institutions to promptly and accurately diagnose IFD was previously conducted to identify limitations and aspects to improve. Here, we evaluated and discussed the specific case of Portugal, for which, to our knowledge, there are no reports describing the national mycological diagnostic capacity and access to antifungal treatment. Data from 16 Portuguese medical institutions were collected via an online electronic case report form covering different parameters, including institution profile, self-perceived IFD incidence, target patients, diagnostic methods and reagents, and available antifungals. The majority of participating institutions (69%) reported a low-very low incidence of IFD, with Candida spp. indicated as the most relevant fungal pathogen, followed by Aspergillus spp. and Cryptococcus spp. All institutions had access to culture and microscopy, whereas 94 and 88% were able to run antigen-detection assays and molecular tests, respectively. All of the institutions capable of providing antifungal therapy declared to have access to at least one antifungal. However, echinocandins were only available at 85% of the sites. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) was reported to remain a very restricted practice in Portugal, being available in 19% of the institutions, with the TDM of itraconazole and posaconazole performed in only 6% of them. Importantly, several of these resources are outsourced to external entities. Except for TDM, Portugal appears to be well-prepared concerning the overall capacity to diagnose and treat IFD. Future efforts should focus on promoting the widespread availability of TDM and improved access to multiple classes of antifungals, to further improve patient outcomes.
Changes in prospectively collected patient-reported outcomes among women with incident endometrial cancer
Authors: Sinnott Jennifer A. , Torkashvand Elaheh , Meade Caitlin E. , Salani Ritu , Vetter Monica Hagan , Hall Bobbie , Skolnick Rebecca , Bixel Kristin L. , Cohn David E. , Cosgrove Casey M. , Copeland Larry J. , Hebert Courtney , Felix Ashley S.
Published: January 2024

Purpose

We examined associations between patient and treatment characteristics with longitudinally collected patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures to provide a data-informed description of the experiences of women undergoing treatment for endometrial cancer.

Methods

We administered National Institutes of Health Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) questionnaires at the preoperative visit and at 6 and 12 months after surgery. Anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbance, pain, physical function, and ability to participate in social roles were assessed. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and linear mixed models were used to examine associations between patient characteristics and PRO measures at baseline and through time.

Results

Of 187 women enrolled, 174 (93%) and 103 (69%) completed the 6- and 12-month questionnaires, respectively. Anxiety was substantially elevated at baseline (half of one population-level standard deviation) and returned to general population mean levels at 6 and 12 months. Younger age, Medicaid/None/Self-pay insurance, prevalent diabetes, and current smoking were associated with higher symptom burden on multiple PRO measures across the three time points. Women with aggressive histology, higher disease stage, or those with adjuvant treatment had worse fatigue at 6 months, which normalized by 12 months.

Conclusions

We observed a high symptom burden at endometrial cancer diagnosis, with most PRO measures returning to general population means by 1 year. Information on risk factor-PRO associations can be used during the clinical visit to inform supportive service referral.

Implications for Cancer Survivors

These findings can inform clinicians’ discussions with endometrial cancer survivors regarding expected symptom trajectory following diagnosis and treatment.
The Association Between Branched-Chain Amino Acid Concentrations and the Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Preschool-Aged Children
Authors: Gao Qi , Bi Dan , Li Bingbing , Ni Min , Pang Dizhou , Li Xian , Zhang Xiaoli , Xu Yiran , Zhao Qiang , Zhu Changlian
Published: January 2024

Several studies have linked branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) metabolism disorders with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the results have been inconsistent. The purpose of this study was to explore the association between BCAA concentrations and the risk of ASD. A total of 313 participants were recruited from two tertiary referral hospitals from May 2018 to July 2021. Concentrations of BCAAs in dried blood spots were analyzed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-based analysis. Multivariate analyses and restricted cubic spline models were used to identify the association between BCAAs and the risk of ASD, and a nomogram was developed by using multivariate logistic regression and the risk was determined by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis and calibration curve analysis. Concentrations of total BCAA, valine, and leucine/isoleucine were higher in the ASD group, and all of them were positively and non-linearly associated with the risk of ASD even after adjusting for potential confounding factors such as age, gender, body mass index, and concentrations of BCAAs (P < 0.05). The nomogram integrating total BCAA and valine showed a good discriminant AUC value of 0.756 (95% CI 0.676–0.835). The model could yield net benefits across a reasonable range of risk thresholds. In the stratified analysis, the diagnostic ability of the model was more pronounced in children older than 3 years. We provide evidence that increased levels of BCAAs are associated with the risk of ASD, and the nomogram model of BCAAs presented here can serve as a marker for the early diagnosis of ASD.
PGC-1α activation boosts exercise-dependent cellular response in the skeletal muscle
Authors: Mozaffaritabar Soroosh , Koltai Erika , Zhou Lei , Bori Zoltan , Kolonics Attila , Kujach Sylwester , Gu Yaodong , Koike Atsuko , Boros Anita , Radák Zsolt
Published: January 2024

The role of Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator alpha (PGC-1α) in fat metabolism is not well known. In this study, we compared the mechanisms of muscle-specific PGC-1α overexpression and exercise-related adaptation-dependent fat metabolism. PGC-1α trained (PGC-1α Ex) and wild-trained (wt-ex) mice were trained for 10 weeks, five times a week at 30 min per day with 60 percent of their maximal running capacity. The PGC-1α overexpressed animals exhibited higher levels of Fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5), 5' adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPK-α), the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), Lon protease homolog 1 (LONP1), citrate synthase (CS), succinate dehydrogenase complex flavoprotein subunit A (SDHA), Mitofusin-1 (Mfn1), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), Hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL), adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), G protein-coupled receptor 41 (GPR41), and Phosphatidylcholine Cytidylyltransferase 2 (PCYT2), and lower levels of Sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) compared to wild-type animals. Exercise training increased the protein content levels of SIRT1, HSL, and ATGL in both the wt-ex and PGC-1α trained groups. PGC-1α has a complex role in cellular signaling, including the upregulation of lipid metabolism-associated proteins. Our data reveals that although exercise training mimics the effects of PGC-1α overexpression, it incorporates some PGC-1α-independent adaptive mechanisms in fat uptake and cell signaling.
Welchen Effekt haben Lehramtsaufgaben auf die Wahrnehmung von Studierenden zur doppelten Diskontinuität?
Authors: Weber Birke-Johanna , Heinze Aiso , Lindmeier Anke
Published: January 2024

Viele Lehramtsstudierende haben Schwierigkeiten, Verbindungen zwischen der Mathematik, die sie an der Hochschule lernen, und der Mathematik, die sie später in der Schule unterrichten sollen, zu erkennen. Dieses Phänomen wurde von Klein (1908) als doppelte Diskontinuität beschrieben und beschäftigt die Lehramtsausbildung noch heute. Mittlerweile haben verschiedene Hochschulen sogenannte Lehramtsaufgaben in ihre Lehre integriert, um diesem Problem entgegenzuwirken und Verbindungen zwischen Schul- und Hochschulmathematik explizit zu adressieren. Ergebnisse dazu, inwiefern Lehramtsaufgaben tatsächlich einer wahrgenommenen doppelten Diskontinuität entgegenwirken, gibt es bisher allerdings nur vereinzelt. Die in diesem Beitrag berichtete Fragebogen-Feldstudie mit 98 Studierenden in einer Treatmentgruppe von Gymnasiallehramtsstudierenden und Vergleichsgruppe Fachstudierender zielt daher darauf ab, erste Befunde zur Frage nach der Auswirkung von Lehramtsaufgaben auf die Wahrnehmung der doppelten Diskontinuität zu ergänzen. In der Studie bewirkten Lehramtsaufgaben keine Erhöhung der wahrgenommenen Relevanz von Hochschulmathematik für den Lehrberuf, konnten aber einem Absinken ebendieser vermutlich vorbeugen. Darüber hinaus zeigte sich in dieser Studie erwartungsgemäß, dass sich der Einsatz von Lehramtsaufgaben positiv auf die Wahrnehmung von Verbindungen zwischen Schul- und Hochschulmathematik auswirken kann. Ersteres bestärkt vorhandene Forschungsbefunde, Letzteres wurde in bisherigen Studien noch nicht einheitlich beobachtet. Es werden Ansatzpunkte für weiterführende Forschung zur hochschuldidaktischen Lehrinnovation der Lehramtsaufgaben abgeleitet.
XGB-SEGA coupled energy saving method for wastewater treatment plants
Authors: Wang Zijian , Zhou Xuwen , Wang Hao , Huang Zehan , Ji Jiantao , Peng Zhaoxu , Jiang Kun
Published: January 2024

To reduce the amount of energy consumed in wastewater treatment plants, nine methods were used to select the key operation parameters that affected energy consumption according to daily operation records, and an intelligent operation management system based on a genetic algorithm was constructed by mapping the relationships between energy consumption and the key operation parameters. The results showed that the prediction and management of energy consumption could be achieved by incorporating the strengthened elastic genetic algorithm into the extreme gradient boosting model. The main parameters affecting energy consumption were the influent flow rate, effluent total nitrogen, NH4+–N loading rate, etc., and the energy consumption could be reduced by 13–27% (with an average of 22%). The parameters were all selected from the daily operation records of the wastewater treatment plant, and no additional complex data acquisition system was needed to collect specific parameters. This study provided a cost-effective strategy to reduce energy consumption in wastewater treatment plants.
On the thermodynamic entropy in the microcanonical ensemble of classical systems
Authors: Yi Juyeon , Choi M. Y.
Published: January 2024

We demonstrate that the surface entropy given by the volume of an energy shell in the phase space can be the thermodynamically consistent entropy in a classical microcanonical ensemble if the thickness of the energy shell is not an arbitrary constant but a non-extensive function satisfying a specific differential equation. A particular form of the energy shell thickness as a possible solution to the differential equation converts the surface entropy into the volume entropy given by the phase-space volume bounded by a constant energy surface. However, such a form bears a problem: The temperature derived accordingly becomes extensive when the density of states is a non-monotonic function of energy. Based on the adiabatic invariance of the degeneracy of a quantum system and the Weyl correspondence, we propose an alternative solution: the energy shell thickness given by the energy level spacing in the quantum counterpart of the classical ensemble considered, which is illustrated by a few simple examples.
Muscle weakness is more strongly associated with functional outcomes in patients with stroke than sarcopenia or muscle wasting: an observational study
Authors: Nozoe Masafumi , Kubo Hiroki , Yamamoto Miho , Ikeji Rio , Seike Haruka , Majima Kazuki , Shimada Shinichi
Published: January 2024

Background

Stroke-related sarcopenia is an important prognosis factor and an intervention target for improving outcomes in patients with stroke.

Aim

This study aimed to identify the association between sarcopenia, possible sarcopenia, muscle weakness, muscle mass and calf circumference, and the functional outcomes 3 months after stroke.

Methods

In this single-centre prospective observational study, muscle strength, muscle mass, and calf circumference were measured in patients with acute stroke at hospital discharge. Diagnosis of sarcopenia, possible sarcopenia, muscle weakness, low muscle mass, and low calf circumference were defined according to the 2019 Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia criteria. The primary outcome measure was the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score at 3 months, with an mRS score of 3 or higher indicating a poor outcome. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine independent associations between each assessment and functional outcomes.

Results

A total of 247 patients (median age: 73 years) were included in this study. The prevalence of sarcopenia was 28% (n = 70), and in the adjusted model, sarcopenia (aOR = 2.60, 95% CI 1.07–6.31, p = 0.034), muscle weakness (aOR = 3.40, 95% CI 1.36–8.52, p = 0.009), and low muscle mass (aOR = 2.61, 95% CI 1.04–6.52) were significantly associated with poor functional outcome. Nevertheless, other evaluations did not demonstrate an independent association with the outcome.

Conclusion

Sarcopenia, muscle weakness, and low muscle mass were found to be independently associated with functional outcomes 3 months after stroke, and muscle weakness exhibited the strongest association with outcomes among them.
Statistical Analysis of the Vibrations Transmitted From an Electric Kick Scooter to Riders
Authors: Vella A. D. , Digo E. , Gastaldi L. , Pastorelli S. , Vigliani A.
Published: January 2024

In recent years, micro-vehicles have been increasingly involved in urban mobility following the actual trend towards light, more affordable, and eco-friendly means of transportation. Among this vehicle category, the electric kick scooters (e-scooters) represent the most popular example driven by app-based sharing mobility services. Despite the positive implications, poor safety requirements and issues of discomfort are also related to this new segment. The recent spread of e-scooters is motivating the scientific community in investigating performance and ride comfort, in the attempt of improving vehicle design and safety regulations. The aim of this study is to evaluate e-scooter vibrations in driving in a realistic environment, constituted by bike path with seven speed bumps. Fourteen healthy young participants (seven males and seven females) are asked to conduct the test at two different constant velocities ($$5$$

5

km/h and $$25$$

25

km/h). Accelerations are acquired at the main human body segments as well as on the e-scooter. The assessment is based on identifying maxima and root mean squares from signal time histories. A non-parametrical statistical analysis is performed focusing on vibrations transmitted from vehicle to human body, e-scooter velocity, and some rider’s characteristics such as gender, mass, dominant arm, and dominant foot. Root mean squares and tests at low velocity generally underline a larger number of significant differences. Moreover, the parameter which mostly influences the system is the rider’s mass. Overall, the proposed methodology proves to be an efficient tool to investigate the vehicle-rider vibrational influence.
Regionale politische Kulturen: Demokratische Einstellungen in den deutschen Bundesländern
Authors: Reiser Marion , Hebenstreit Jörg , Küppers Anne
Published: January 2024

Das Special Issue beleuchtet demokratische Einstellungen in den deutschen Bundesländern vor dem Hintergrund der Polykrise. Besondere Bedeutung kommt dabei den Ländermonitoren zu, die als Datenquellen der politischen Kulturforschung bislang weitestgehend unbeachtet blieben. Die Ergebnisse verdeutlichen eine hohe Legitimität der Demokratie, jedoch zeigen sich regionale Unterschiede hinsichtlich der Demokratiezufriedenheit und des Institutionenvertrauens – diese betreffen sowohl das Niveau als auch zentrale Bestimmungsfaktoren. Intraregionale Analysen enthüllen darüber hinaus Unterschiede zwischen städtischen und ländlichen Gebieten. Trotz methodischer Herausforderungen bieten die Ländermonitore ein erhebliches Potenzial für die regionale politische Kulturforschung und ermöglichen einen detaillierten Blick auf regionale Spezifika sowie zentrale Problemlagen. Der Beitrag plädiert für eine teilweise Standardisierung der Erhebungsinstrumente und spricht sich für die Erweiterung der Länderstudien auf bisher nicht abgedeckte Regionen aus, um somit eine noch systematischere Analyse der inter- als auch intraregionalen politischen Kultur(-en) in Deutschland zu ermöglichen.
Organizing for good—using organization design to take on grand challenges
Authors: Baumann Oliver , Davis Gerald F. , Kunisch Sven , Luo Jiao , Wu Brian
Published: January 2024

Over the past decade, scholarly work has surged around grand societal challenges, such as climate change, public health, and poverty, often framed by the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These complex and global issues demand innovative organization design solutions. The “Organizing for Good” campaign, launched by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the Organizational Design Community (ODC), aims to spotlight, curate, and stimulate research and practices contributing to the SDGs. This introductory essay serves as a prologue to a special issue in theJournal of Organization Design, which closely aligned with the campaign’s objectives. It delves into the concept of organization design as a tool for addressing these challenges, viewing organization designs as problem-solving systems for collective action. Furthermore, it provides an overview of how the SDGs intersect with the scholarly community focusing on organization design, previews the content of articles featured in this special issue, and raises questions for future research.
Negotiating Leisure Constraints in the Pandemic: The Case of Migrant Domestic Workers in Hong Kong
Authors: Yonaha Yvan Ysmael
Published: January 2024

How did migrant domestic workers accomplish serious leisure during the pandemic (Stebbins RA (1982) Serious leisure: A conceptual statement. Pac Sociol Rev 25(2):251–272, 1982)? In this paper, I look at the uneven effects of the disruptions in leisure activities as governments introduced lockdowns and physical distancing measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus. While the restrictions were applied broadly across societies, it is necessary to examine how these played out for ‘temporary’ migrant communities subjected to different conditions of stay in their host countries. I address this question by looking at the experience of One Filipino Migrants – a network of Filipino domestic worker organizations in Hong Kong engaged in advocacy work for migrant workers’ welfare even prior to the pandemic. In the Special Administrative Region, the prescribed living-in arrangements and the absence of spatial separation between home and work life steer these mostly female workers to spend their leisure time outside their domicile. But with the spread of COVID-19, their leisure activities are now met with stringent physical distancing measures. Through interviews and participant observation, I narrate how their pre-pandemic activities were scaled down through government and employer regulation of their use of leisure spaces and mandated time off. But I also show their capacity to negotiate with constraints through behavioral changes while challenging notions that portray them as virus carriers. This paper shows how leisure constraints could grow in disaster situations. But it also highlights how leisure agents can come up with negotiation tactics to maintain participation.
“ChatGPT says no”: agency, trust, and blame in Twitter discourses after the launch of ChatGPT
Authors: Heaton Dan , Nichele Elena , Clos Jeremie , Fischer Joel E.
Published: January 2024

ChatGPT, a chatbot using the GPT-n series large language model, has surged in popularity by providing conversation, assistance, and entertainment. This has raised questions about its agency and resulting implications on trust and blame, particularly when concerning its portrayal on social media platforms like Twitter. Understanding trust and blame is crucial for gauging public perception, reliance on, and adoption of AI-driven tools like ChatGPT. To explore ChatGPT’s perceived status as an algorithmic social actor and uncover implications for trust and blame through agency and transitivity, we examined 88,058 tweets about ChatGPT, published in a ‘hype period’ between November 2022 and March 2023, using Corpus Linguistics and Critical Discourse Analysis, underpinned by Social Actor Representation. Notably, ChatGPT was presented in tweets as a social actor on 87% of occasions, using personalisation and agency metaphor to emphasise its role in content creation, information dissemination, and influence. However, a dynamic presentation, oscillating between a creative social actor and an information source, reflected users’ uncertainty regarding its capabilities and, thus, blame attribution occurred. On 13% of occasions, ChatGPT was presented passively through backgrounding and exclusion. Here, the emphasis on ChatGPT’s role in informing and influencing underscores interactors’ reliance on it for information, bearing implications for information dissemination and trust in AI-generated content. Therefore, this study contributes to understanding the perceived social agency of decision-making algorithms and their implications on trust and blame, valuable to AI developers and policymakers and relevant in comprehending and dealing with power dynamics in today’s age of AI.
Examining the Seventeenth-Century Copper Trade: An Analysis of Smelted Copper from Sites in Virginia and North Carolina
Authors: Stevenson Christopher M. , Gunter-Bassett Madeleine , Dussubieux Laure
Published: January 2024

When the colonists who made up the Virginia Company of London established James Fort on the banks of the James River in 1607, they brought with them sheets of scrap copper. Based in large part on the experience of the earlier Roanoke Colony, the English knew that copper was a highly prized material among Native peoples of the Chesapeake, and they brought it with them as a trade item. Artifacts made from European smelted copper (impure copper and copper alloy) have been found at contact period sites (ca. AD 1607–1680) throughout Virginia, and James Fort has long been hypothesized to be the primary distribution point for that material. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed the elemental composition of a sample of smelted copper artifacts from James Fort (1607–ca. 1625), as well as samples of copper artifacts from five Native sites in central Virginia. We also analyzed a sample of copper artifacts from another well-known European fort site—Fort San Juan (1567–1568) in North Carolina. The results suggest that although a portion of the smelted copper that circulated through Native networks in Virginia came from James Fort, the rest of it possibly came from English, French, or Dutch distribution points to the northeast.
Rounded-corners-induced re-entrant non-occlusion in a horizontal tube
Authors: Tan Dongwen , Zhou Xinping
Published: January 2024

Keeping a tube from being plugged by a fluid is an important process in applications. An interesting re-entrant phenomenon for the capillary state with the occluding state sandwiching the non-occluding state from both the high- and low-Bond-number regions can appear by inserting a rod into a horizontal tube at an eccentric position (Tan et al., J. Fluid Mech, vol. 946, 2022, A7). Containers with rounded corners are very common. We theoretically investigate a situation for a horizontal open tube with rounded corner(s). The results show that a re-entrant non-occlusion at a contact angle can also appear without the insertion of any object. The competition between the rounded corner wetting/non-wetting effect and gravity effect can lead to a re-entrant non-occlusion. The re-entrant non-occlusion is affected by the shape and orientation of the rounded corner(s). For a tube with only one rounded corner, the re-entrant non-occlusion exists when the rounded corner has a not-so-large corner radius and is not in a landscape orientation. For a tube with two (or more) rounded corners, the corner(s) with the strongest corner effect will determine the existence or non-existence of the re-entrant non-occlusion. This paper provides an effective scheme for designing a high-performance capillary with corners that are not easily occluded by a fluid and removing fluid blockage from a capillary in optofluidic/microfluidic applications.
Transforming “Transformative Accommodation”: Palestinian-Muslim Women’s Maintenance Suits as a Case Study
Authors: Hleihel Wejdan , Shahar Ido , Yefet Karin Carmit
Published: January 2024

“Transformative accommodation,” one of the most influential models proposed and debated in multiculturalist literature, is designed to strike a fine-tuned balance between minority community culture and the rights of its most vulnerable constituents. This article seeks to challenge the model’s theoretical premises and predictive normative outputs. Drawing on a novel empirical case study—the adjudication of Palestinian-Muslim wife maintenance suits in both Israel’s sharia courts as well as its civil family courts—we contend that multicultural transformation is a bidirectional process. That is, the complex encounter between liberal normativity and indigenous-religious normativity may bring about transformation not only in the minority community’s nomos, as the model envisions, but also in both normative legal systems. The article concludes with an analytical discussion aiming to transform transformative accommodation such that the model may indeed live up to its ambitious multiculturalist goals.
Network Centrality and Dissent Voting by Directors on Boards
Authors: Zhang Hong , Liu Zimin , Zhong Weiguo
Published: January 2024

We investigate how directors’ positions within board interlocking networks influence their monitoring behaviors from a social network perspective. We argue that the effectiveness of directors’ monitoring of a firm's management depends on their ability to overcome the information barrier and their motivation to develop a public reputation in the directorship market. We further contend that network centrality can supplement directors’ existing information set and facilitate reputation spillover, leading to an increase in the extent of their dissent on boards. We analyze the unique individual-director-level data of Chinese firms and find that directors occupying positions of greater centrality in the board interlock network are more likely to dissent. We then examine the underlying mechanisms of information and reputation through two moderators: firm transparency and media mention of a director. We also find that the effect of network centrality on dissent is weaker for independent directors. Our study advances the corporate governance literature by examining the micro-foundations of board monitoring and providing a social network perspective.
14C PREPARATION PROTOCOLS FOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL SAMPLES AT THE LMC14, SACLAY, FRANCE
Authors: Dumoulin J-P , Moreau C , Delqué-Količ E , Caffy I , Farcage D , Goulas C , Hain S , Perron M , Semerok A , Sieudat M , Thellier B , Beck L
Published: January 2024

The Laboratoire de Mesure du Carbone 14 (LMC14) has operated a radiocarbon dating laboratory for almost twenty years with ARTEMIS, the Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS) based on a NEC 9SDH-2 Pelletron tandem accelerator. A first status report describing the chemical pretreatment methods was published in 2017 (Dumoulin et al. 2017). This article summarizes updates of the routine procedures and presents new protocols. The quality checks in place at the LMC14 and results obtained for the GIRI international inter-comparison are reported. New protocols developed by the laboratory over the last five years are described with the preparation of iron, lead white, cellulose, calcium oxalate, and mortar. This report also provides a summary of practical information for sample preparation and can help the laboratory users who provide samples and publish results to better understand all the work behind a 14C dating.
The origin and evolution of laterals in Proto-Naish
Authors: Li Zihe
Published: January 2024

This paper reconstructs Proto-Naish initials with lateral main consonants using data from three Naish languages: Lijiangba Naxi (LJ), Malimasa (MM), and Yongning Na (YN). The methodology of using conservative languages, such as Written Tibetan, Burmese, and rGyalrong, in interpreting sound correspondences is emphasized. At least five lateral initials should be reconstructed to Proto-Naish. Initial correspondences relevant to laterals are also discussed.
Swiss Multinationals versus the French Welfare State? The Social Security Deficit, European Integration, and the Battle for ‘Fair’ Drug Prices (1970–1990)
Authors: Pitteloud Sabine , Donzé Pierre-Yves
Published: January 2024

Drawing on corporate and business association archives, this contribution investigates how Swiss multinational enterprises from the pharmaceutical industry (Ciba, Geigy, Hoffmann-La Roche, Sandoz) navigated governments’ interventions in France to preserve their profitability. Our analysis shows how diplomatic talks were crucial for Swiss firms having to cope with rising inflation and the freezing of drug prices, as well as increased customs controls targeting multinationals’ transfer prices. In particular, promises of future R&D were used as a tool in negotiations, and secrecy about prices and profits formation was key in maintaining pressure on the French government. The article also highlights that from the mid-1980s onwards, pharmaceutical multinationals promoted the creation of the Single Market, since it had the potential to enforce supranational rulings over national discretionary pricing policies.
How do control tokens affect natural language generation tasks like text simplification
Authors: Li Zihao , Shardlow Matthew
Published: January 2024

Recent work on text simplification has focused on the use of control tokens to further the state-of-the-art. However, it is not easy to further improve without an in-depth comprehension of the mechanisms underlying control tokens. One unexplored factor is the tokenization strategy, which we also explore. In this paper, we (1) reimplemented AudienCe-CEntric Sentence Simplification, (2) explored the effects and interactions of varying control tokens, (3) tested the influences of different tokenization strategies, (4) demonstrated how separate control tokens affect performance and (5) proposed new methods to predict the value of control tokens. We show variations of performance in the four control tokens separately. We also uncover how the design of control tokens could influence performance and give some suggestions for designing control tokens. We show the newly proposed method with higher performance in both SARI (a common scoring metric in text simplificaiton) and BERTScore (a score derived from the BERT language model) and potential in real applications.