bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determining the parameters of a shunting locomotive taking into account the environmental component
Authors: Kletska Olha , Falendysh Anatoliy , Ivanchenko Dmitro , Dizo Jan , Kravchenko Kateryna
Published: June 2021

The article considers the issues of determining the main technical and economic indicators of the shunting locomotive during its modernization by a hybrid power plant. The analysis of scientific and practical works on the impact of railway transport on the environment and increase the efficiency of shunting locomotives due to design changes, which are aimed at reducing emissions. A model has been developed to determine the rational ecological and energy characteristics of a shunting locomotive, which has been modernized by technical means for energy saving taking into account the ecological component. A procedure, algorithm and program for calculating locomotive parameters have been developed. The main parameters of the shunting locomotive of the ChME3 type at modernization by its hybrid power plant taking into account an ecological component are defined and the estimation of expediency of such modernization is given.
Prevention of steel reinforcement corrosion in alkali-activated slag cement concrete mixed with seawater
Authors: Krivenko Pavlo , Rudenko Igor , Konstantynovskyi Oleksandr , Boiko Olha
Published: June 2021

Concretes mixed with seawater are characterised by enhanced performances, but action of chlorides and sulfates ensures the risk of reinforcement corrosion. Application of high consistency fresh concretes ensures changes in hardened concrete structure that causes the problem of steel reinforcement passive state ensuring. Thus mixing of plasticized concretes by seawater actualizes the search for means of steel corrosion prevention. Alkali-activated slag cements (further, AASC’s) reduce effect of ions Cl−and SO42−on steel reinforcement in concrete due to their exchange for ions OH−in the structure of zeolite-like alkaline hydroaluminosilicates. Complex additive «portland cement - calcium aluminate cement - clinoptilolite» was proposed to enhance the protective properties of AASC concretes to steel reinforcement. The results of DTA, X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, microprobe analysis show that complex additive ensures to prevent steel reinforcement corrosion in AASC concrete mixed with seawater due to binding Cl−and SO42−ions in Kuzel’s salt in AASC hydration products and exchange of these aggressive ions with OH−ions in the structure of clinoptilolite. This effect of complex additive confirmed by surface state and the absence of mass loss of steel rebars embedded in plasticized AASC fine concrete mixed with seawater after 90 d of hardening.
Technological measures to enhance efficiency of mining ore from stopes applying self-propelled equipment
Authors: Stupnik Mykola , Kalinichenko Vsevolod , Kalinichenko Olena , Pochtarev Alexey
Published: June 2021

The work analyzes current technologies of ore mining applying self-propelled equipment in underground conditions; studies practices of using the equipment in general and for broken ore transportation only; considers performance of mining enterprises in similar mining-geological and miningtechnical conditions; analyzes and generalizes causes of high ore loss and dilution rates in underground mining in Kryvyi Rih iron ore basin, thus revealing a problem of providing high efficiency and increased ore extraction with minimal quality deterioration. Marketable ore production is affected by decreased quality and high broken ore losses. Incomplete balance ore extraction when breaking and drawing ore from the stope results in deterioration of mining indices. Ore dilution with waste rocks leads to decreased ore content in the mined mass as compared with that in the ore massif. The research enables development and substantiation of the rational technology of ore drawing and transportation as well as designing a new structure of the loading face to ensure increase of the drawn ore quality indices.
Rock pressure relief is the basic alternative for sustainable underground mining
Authors: Nazimko Victor , Zakharova Ludmila , Kusen Alexey , Peng Syd
Published: June 2021

Retreat longwall mining is the most productive system for underground extraction of tabulated deposits. However, the steady growth of the mining depth dramatically increased the ground pressure in chain pillars protecting the longwall entries. Therefore, several coal industries have tried to shift to pillarless mining and practiced maintenance of the head or tail entry behind the longwall in the stress relief zones using the backfill bodies in the thin coal seams. We modernized the pillarless variant of the retreat longwall system introducing the third roadway, which is driven in the consolidated goaf behind the moving longwall in a stress relief zone. We used a computer code FLAC3D to simulate stress redistribution during pillarless extraction of adjacent panels that assisted to determine optimal parameters of mining layout. This modernized technology provides for sustainable mining due to enhancement of transport, ventilation, safety conditions, and a comfortable environment because of the stability of the underground roadways, which serve the high productive longwalls.
Information technologies in local geophysical process management methodology
Authors: Maevsky Oleksandr , Artemchuk Volodymyr , Brodsky Yuri , Topolnytskyi Pavlo , Ikokwu Chijioke
Published: June 2021

The authors propose an approach to assessing the possibility of stabilizing controlled impact on the ecological system, its climatic characteristics, within a limited space. Maintaining the necessary climatic parameters at an acceptable level ensures the stability of any ecosystem, the natural habitat of all living organisms, the preservation of biodiversity, including humans. The biggest potential threat is the rapid dynamics of global warming. Rising temperatures are the cause of extreme weather events, which directly affects environmental and food security. Given the urgency of the task, there is a need to study the controlled mechanism of influence on certain climatic factors in order to curb abnormal dynamics and bring the ecosystem into a state of stable equilibrium. The approach proposed by the authors is based on modeling the process of reducing the risk of crisis situations with abnormal fluctuations in ambient temperature. The mathematical model is represented by a system of ordinary differential equations, which is a consequence of the adaptation of Lagrange equations to oscillatory processes. The state of the studied climatic factor is matched by some random process, the amplitude of which depends on the values of the components of the control vectors and the function of external influence. The experimental parameter is ambient temperature. The problem was solved using statistical data for the Zhytomyr region (Ukraine). The main results of the simulation are to obtain a set of control vectors and functions of external influence, which will be taken into account in the information system for monitoring the environmental situation.
Prospective directions of state regulation of “green” energy development in the context of Ukraine’s energy safety
Authors: Radchenko Oleksandr , Radchenko Oksana , Kriukov Oleksiy , Kovach Valeriia , Mykhalchenko Oleksii , Abbasov Rovshan , Jureniene Virginija
Published: June 2021

The article describes the leading world trends and factors of state regulation of “green” energy development as a key element of energy safety of mankind at transition stage to globalized society. Paradigm change of energy safety of mankind, problems and obstacles on the way to abandon hydrocarbons use as the main energy sources and replace them by renewable environmentally friendly sources are analyzed. International and national normative legal documents regulating functioning and “green” energy development are characterized. Mechanisms for strengthening Ukraine’s energy safety by acceleration stimulating of construction of new generation power plants using exclusively renewable energy sources in our country were proposed.
Principles of natural capital preservation in the context of strategy of state environmental safety
Authors: Radchenko Oleksandr , Kovach Valeriia , Radchenko Oksana , Kriukov Oleksiy , Sydorchuk Liudmyla , Sharov Petr , Semenets-Orlova Inna
Published: June 2021

The article analyzes issue of strategy forming of state development through prism of state environmental safety, preservation of its natural capital in the process of formation and implementation of state environmental policy. Basic ecological, economic, social principles of natural capital preservation of Ukraine are considered. Possibilities of ecological network development of Ukraine are investigated. A comprehensive knowledge framework for the management of natural capital is shown.
Theoretical research of friction factor in hydraulically smooth pipes
Authors: Khlapuk Mykola , Bezusyak Olexander , Volk Liubov , Zhang Zelu
Published: June 2021

The paper presents the disclosure of the problem of calculating the friction factor. This problem exists in the calculations of head losses for a given flow discharge and the geometric parameters of the pipes. The analysis of the formulas recommended by known scientists is described. The article also presents the shortcomings of the formulas and the variance of the adequacy of the experimental data. These research data were obtained by J. Nikuradze for smooth pipes. We obtained a formula based on the method of dimensional analysis. This formula characterizes the inner surface of the pipes. Also, this formula describes the change in the friction factor from the Reynolds number. The accuracy of calculating the obtained formula is higher than the accuracy of existing formulas.
Waste management in Ukraine: organizational aspects
Authors: Ishchenko Mykola , Iarova Alla , Adamovska Victoria , Astafieva Kateryna , Holoborodko Tetiana , Lapshyna Daria , Holovchenko Yevheniia
Published: June 2021

Environmental management emerged as a consequence of an unprecedented strain on the Earth by humans. Each our activity leaves a trail, such as pollutions of air and soil, contamination of water, deforestation, and also tons of wastes. We are confronting environmental problems that are more taxing than ever before. Now we have everyday changes of the climate which is why there is an urgent need to find ways of life that is less damaging to the Earth. Waste management is a particular specialization of the environmental management which studies how to achieve a zero-waste life. The difference between the situation with waste in Ukraine compared to other developed countries is the large volume of waste generation and the lack of infrastructure for waste management. At the same time, the availability of such infrastructure is an essential feature of all economies of developed countries. Also, it is showed to increase of the amount of illegal and uncontrolled landfills and to degrade of the condition of existing dumps. This paper is aimed to explain how the Ukrainian government could educate people about problems of wastes and encourage us to change our habits.
New error bounds for Laplace approximationviaStein’s method
Authors: Gaunt Robert E.
Published: June 2021

We use Stein’s method to obtain explicit bounds on the rate of convergence for the Laplace approximation of two different sums of independent random variables; one being a random sum of mean zero random variables and the other being a deterministic sum of mean zero random variables in which the normalisation sequence is random. We make technical advances to the framework of Pike and Ren [ALEA Lat. Am. J. Probab. Math. Stat.11(2014) 571–587] for Stein’s method for Laplace approximation, which allows us to give bounds in the Kolmogorov and Wasserstein metrics. Under the additional assumption of vanishing third moments, we obtain faster convergence rates in smooth test function metrics. As part of the derivation of our bounds for the Laplace approximation for the deterministic sum, we obtain new bounds for the solution, and its first two derivatives, of the Rayleigh Stein equation.
Synthesis of Longhorn Beetle Pheromone Components by Proline-Mediated α-Hydroxylation of Alkyl Ketones
Authors: Heguaburu Viviana Lucía , do Carmo Hugo , Amorós María Eugenia , González Andrés
Published: June 2021

The stereoselective synthesis of several components of the aggregation pheromones of numerous longhorn beetle species is described. These attractants consist of 3-hydroxy-2-alkanones and 2,3-alkyldiols­ with chain lengths varying from six to ten carbons. The 3R- and 3S-series are generated by organocatalytic α-hydroxylation of alkyl ketones with nitrosobenzene in the presence of l- or d-proline, respectively, to obtain the hydroxyketones in high enantiomeric excess. Further reduction and chromatographic separation lead to the enantiomerically pure diols that complete the library.
U.S. News & World Report Ophthalmology Hospital Rankings and Research Productivity
Authors: Lin John C. , Chen Allison J. , Scott Ingrid U. , Greenberg Paul B.
Published: June 2021

Introduction Despite the wide usage of U.S. News & World Report (U.S. News) rankings of ophthalmology hospitals among the public, residency applicants, and ophthalmologists, there is disagreement in the literature on the role of quality of care, research productivity, and other factors in the ranking system. This study investigated the association of U.S. News ranking of ophthalmology hospitals and objective measures of research productivity.

Methods The 2020 U.S. News “Best Hospitals for Ophthalmology” ranking lists 38 hospitals by reputation score and numerically ranks the top 12 institutions. For our analysis, top 12 hospitals were classified as group A and the remaining 26 as group B. The Clinicaltrials.gov, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Results (RePORTER), and NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools (RePORT) were systematically searched for total clinical trials, NIH funding, and the National Eye Institute (NEI) funding for fiscal years 2017, 2018, and 2019. Faculty size and the number of publications by ophthalmology faculty per hospital were recorded from a previous study in 2016.

Results Independent measures of research productivity significantly associated with group A status after multivariate logistic regression analysis were mean faculty Hirsch's index (h-index) over 15 (odds ratio [OR]: 6.13, 95% confidence interval [CI]: [1.14–32.94]) and conducting five or more total clinical trials (OR: 8.77, 95% CI: [1.39–55.16]).

Conclusion This study suggests that the reputation-based U.S. News ranking may serve as a proxy for an ophthalmology department's contribution to research measured by mean faculty h-index and number of clinical trials.
Dermal Fillers for Tear Trough Rejuvenation: A Systematic Review
Authors: Trinh Lily N. , Grond Sarah E. , Gupta Amar
Published: June 2021

There is significant variation in treatment parameters when treating the infraorbital region. Thorough knowledge of these pertinent factors, choice of the optimal filling material, and proper understanding of the anatomy of this unforgiving region will contribute to a safe, effective, and natural result. We aim to conduct a systematic review of published literature related to soft tissue fillers of the tear trough and infraorbital region. A search of published literature was conducted in accordance with PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines and included PubMed, Embase, and Science Direct databases. The Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms used were “tear trough” OR “infraorbital” AND “dermal filler” OR “hyaluronic acid” OR “poly-L-lactic acid” OR “calcium hydroxyapatite” OR “Restylane” OR “Radiesse” OR “Perlane” OR “Juvéderm” OR “Belotero.” Different combinations of these key terms were used. The initial search identified 526 articles. Six additional articles were identified through references. Two-hundred twenty-five duplicates were removed. A total of 307 studies were screened by title and abstract and 258 studies were eliminated based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Forty-nine articles underwent full-text review. The final analysis included 23 articles. Patient satisfaction was high, and duration of effect ranged from 8 to 12 months. Restylane was most commonly used. Injection technique varied, but generally involved placing filler pre-periosteally, deep to orbicularis oculi muscle, anterior to the inferior orbital rim via serial puncture or retrograde linear threading with a 30-gauge needle. Topical anesthetic was most commonly used. Side effects were generally mild and included bruising, edema, blue–gray dyschromia, and contour irregularities. Nonsurgical correction of the tear trough deformity with soft tissue filler is a minimally invasive procedure with excellent patient satisfaction with long-lasting effects. It is essential to have a fundamental understanding of the relevant anatomy and ideal injection technique to provide excellent patient outcomes and prevent serious complications.
Hydrocephalus Revisited: New Insights into Dynamics of Neurofluids on Macro- and Microscales
Authors: Ludwig Hans C. , Bock Hans C. , Gärtner Jutta , Schiller Stina , Frahm Jens , Dreha-Kulaczewski Steffi
Published: June 2021

New experimental and clinical findings question the historic view of hydrocephalus and its 100-year-old classification. In particular, real-time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) evaluation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flow and detailed insights into brain water regulation on the molecular scale indicate the existence of at least three main mechanisms that determine the dynamics of neurofluids: (1) inspiration is a major driving force; (2) adequate filling of brain ventricles by balanced CSF upsurge is sensed by cilia; and (3) the perivascular glial network connects the ependymal surface to the pericapillary Virchow–Robin spaces. Hitherto, these aspects have not been considered a common physiologic framework, improving knowledge and therapy for severe disorders of normal-pressure and posthemorrhagic hydrocephalus, spontaneous intracranial hypotension, and spaceflight disease.
Detection of arsenic donor electrons using gate-pulse-induced spin-dependent recombination in silicon transistors
Authors: Hori Masahiro , Ono Yukinori
Published: June 2021

The detection of donor electrons is important for Si-based spintronics and quantum computers, as well as complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) circuits. One of the detection schemes is based on the spin-dependent recombination, for which photoexcitation has, so far, been used to generate electrons and holes. In this study, we rather induce the recombination electrically by a gate pulse in Si MOS transistors. Under the spin resonance conditions, we detect signals from arsenic (As) donors, located in the channel edge regions close to the As-implanted source/drain. The analysis suggests that the detection is owing to the spin pairs formed by an As donor electron spin and an electron spin of a defect center at the MOS SiO2/Si interface and to their spin-dependent process during the recombination.
Large anisotropic Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction in CoFeB(211)/Pt(110) films
Authors: Liu C. Q. , Zhang Y. B. , Chai G. Z. , Wu Y. Z.
Published: June 2021

We investigated the crystalline direction dependent Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction (DMI) in single crystal CoFeB(211)/Pt(110) films utilizing the Brillouin light scattering technique. The in-plane magnetic anisotropy and the DMI coefficient show a clear 1/tCFB relation. The quantified DMI strength is −2.5 pJ/m along Pt [001] and −1.2 pJ/m along Pt [11¯0] with a large anisotropy ratio of 2.1. Such a strong anisotropy of DMI is attributed to the C2v crystal symmetry at the CoFeB/Pt(110) interface. Our results provide a route toward designing topological magnetic textures by tailoring the DMI strength along the specific crystal orientation in ferromagnet/Pt(110) systems.
Interaction of counterpropagating waves in a Nd :YVO4 ring laser
Authors: Lariontsev E.G. , Firsov V.V. , Chekina S.N.
Published: June 2021

We have experimentally studied the stationary regime of bidirectional lasing and self-modulation regimes in a Nd :YVO4 solid-state ring laser (SSRL) in the presence of phase nonreciprocity of the ring cavity. It is found that the emission spectrum in the regime of frequency matching of counterpropagating waves is much narrower than in a Nd :YAG SSRL. When the phase nonreciprocity increases in the matching regime, one of the counterpropagating waves is suppressed, and this regime does not switch to the beat regime.
Effect of elastic anisotropy on thermally induced distortions of a laser beam in single cubic syngony crystals with radial cooling. Part II
Authors: Vyatkin A.G.
Published: June 2021

We report a study of thermally induced depolarisation of a laser beam in single cubic syngony crystals of 432,

, and m3m symmetry groups with an anisotropic elastic stiffness tensor. For active elements in the form of a long rod and a thin disk with radial cooling under uniform volume pumping, we investigate the effect of anisotropy of elastic properties on the dependence of the degree of depolarisation in the crystal on the orientation of the crystallographic axes, as well as on the position of the critical orientation in the crystallographic coordinate system.
Method for calculating the optical axis position in laser cavities
Authors: Polukeev E.A. , Broslavets Yu.Yu. , Fomichev A.A.
Published: June 2021

We present a method for calculating the optical axis contour in laser cavities using the geometric optics approximation. The deviation of the position of the optical axis in four-mirror nonplanar ring cavities is calculated for various cavity perturbations. Various types of laser cavities are considered and classified according to their symmetry. Deviations of the optical axis are determined in a nonplanar ring cavity that provides Kerr mode locking operation. A formula is given that relates the bend angle in four-mirror cavities to the angles of radiation incidence on the mirrors.
Interwave interaction in an array of carbon nanotubes with a dynamic plasmon lattice
Authors: Afanas’ev S.A. , Zolotovskii I.O. , Kadochkin A.S. , Moiseev S.G. , Svetukhin V.V. , Pavlov A.A.
Published: June 2021

It is shown that when counterpropagating laser beams are incident on an array of parallel single-walled carbon nanotubes, strong interaction of waves is possible, accompanied by the amplification of one of the waves at the expense of another, more intense pump wave. The interaction is most efficient when the condition of phase matching of the incident waves and the slow plasmon polariton wave formed because of the laser-induced metallisation of nanotubes is satisfied. The dependence of the the signal wave gain on the geometric parameters of the array and the wave characteristics of the incident waves is studied numerically. A range of phase detuning values is found, in which the gain changes weakly near its maximum value.
Transient processes and cross talk in an O-band bismuth-doped fibre amplifier
Authors: Alyshev S.V. , Kharakhordin A.V. , Khegai A.M. , Ososkov Ya.Zh. , Vakhrushev A.S. , Firstova E.G. , Riumkin K.E. , Melkumov M.A. , Lobanov A.S. , Guryanov A.N. , Firstov S.V.
Published: June 2021

This paper reports on transient processes and cross talk (cross modulation) in an O-band (1260 – 1360 nm) bismuth-doped phosphosilicate fibre amplifier. Times characterising dynamic parameters of the amplifier at a pump wavelength of 1.23 μm have been determined experimentally. Data have been obtained on the effect of the modulation frequency Ω of one of the channels in the range 10 Hz to 1 MHz on the cross-talk intensity in another channel. The data, in combination with numerical calculation results, show that the cross talk in the Bi-doped fibre amplifier is insignificant at modulation frequencies Ω above 100 kHz. Our results demonstrate that O-band Bi-doped fibre amplifiers are potentially attractive for practical application in multichannel high-speed data transmission systems.
Possibility of increasing the efficiency of a laser jet engine due to the attachment of gas mass of shock waves
Authors: Apollonov V.V. , Bogdanov V.I.
Published: June 2021

Based on the results of studies of jet power propulsion systems with a pulsating working process, the thrust in which is significantly increased due to the gas mass attachment, and the analysis of the operation of a laser jet engine (LJE), we consider the possibility of such an effect in an LJE. The thrust characteristics of pulsating jet engines with the gas mass attachment are studied numerically and theoretically. Investigation of the effect of the attached mass of a gas or ablation products of the reflector material in the LJE is promising for optimising the gas-dynamic parameters that ensure the implementation of the maximum thrust efficiency of such an engine.
Laser generation and fragmentation of selenium nanoparticles in water and their testing as an additive to fertilisers
Authors: Shafeev G.A. , Barmina E.V. , Pimpha N. , Rakov I.I. , Simakin A.V. , Sharapov M.G. , Uvarov O.V. , Gudkov S.V.
Published: June 2021

The generation of selenium nanoparticles in water and their fragmentation by a neodymium laser with a pulse repetition rate of 10 kHz and an average power of 20 W is experimentally investigated. The size distribution of selenium nanoparticles is determined using a measuring disk centrifuge. The particle morphology is analysed by transmission electron microscopy. It is found that laser ablation of a selenium target in water provides mainly submicron particles, which must be subjected to laser fragmentation in a solution to obtain selenium nanoparticles about 100 nm in size. These selenium nanoparticles are used as an additive to soil in which some crops are grown. The optimal selenium content in soil is determined.
Actual and perceived motor competence mediate the relationship between physical fitness and technical skill performance in young soccer players
Authors: Duncan Michael J. , Eyre Emma L. J. , Noon Mark R. , Morris Rhys , Thake C. Doug , Clarke Neil D. , Cunningham Anna J.
Published: June 2021

This study examined the role of fundamental movement skills (FMS) and perceived competence in the relationship between physical fitness and technical soccer skills in children. Seventy boys aged 7‐12 years of age (Mean ± SD = 9 ± 2 years) who were regularly engaged in grassroots soccer participated in the present study. The Test of Gross Motor Development‐2 (Ulrich, 2001. Test of gross motor development (2nd ed.). Austin, TX: PRO‐ED) was used to assess FMS and the Perceived Physical Ability Scale for Children (Colella, Morano, Bortoli, & Robazza, 2008. A physical self‐efficacy scale for children. Social Behavior and Personality: an International Journal, 36, 841–848) was used to assess perceived competence. Technical skill was determined from three tests reflecting dribbling, passing and shooting. Z‐scores of each measure were summed, creating a composite measure of technical skill. Three measures of physical fitness were employed; 15m sprint time, standing long jump, and seated medicine ball (1kg) throw. Z‐scores for each measure were summed creating a composite measure of physical fitness. The relationship between technical skill and FMS, fitness, perceived competence and age was examined via path analysis. Results indicated two significant mediated pathways: from physical fitness to technical skills via FMS, and from physical fitness to technical skills via perceived competence. Once these mediators had been accounted for, there was no direct link from physical fitness to technical skills. Coaches should therefore seek to avoid one‐sided delivery of practice by not solely focusing on football type drills, and focusing on a range of activities which enhance a broad foundation of FMS and promote strategies to positively influence a child's perception of their own competence.

Highlights

Fundamental movement skills (FMS) are considered the foundation for physical activity and sport performance yet they tend to be overlooked, in favour of physical fitness, in the development of soccer talent.

We examined mediating effects of FMS and perceived competence in the relationship between physical fitness and technical soccer skills in 70, 7‐12 year old grassroots soccer players.

We suggests there is no direct effect of physical fitness on technical skills in soccer but both FMS and perceived competence act as mediators of the physical fitness‐technical skill relationship in children aged 7‐12 years old.

Coaches should therefore look to develop a broad base of FMS and a higher perception of competence to improve children's technical soccer skills.
Individuals practicing meditation have enhanced subcortical auditory processing of speech
Authors: Sinha Sujeet Kumar , Sahu Manisha
Published: June 2021

Background

Meditation is a compound mental task that leads to several changes, both physiologically and psychologically. These physiological changes can occur in the auditory system as well, and this can change the way the stimulus gets coded in the auditory system at both the brainstem as well as cortical level. The present study aimed to investigate the encoding of speech at the brainstem in the individuals who practice meditation.

Method

Two groups of 10 male individuals participated in the study. The first group included ten individuals who practiced meditation for a minimum period of 6 months, and the other group consisted of 10 age-matched individuals who never practiced meditation. Speech evoked ABR was recorded for the right ears for all the individuals. FFT analysis of the waveforms was done, and the latency of wave V and amplitude of F0, F1, and F2 were noted.

Results

Results of the present study revealed a significantly higher amplitude of F1 and F2 individuals who practiced meditation. However, there was no such significant difference in the latency of wave V and amplitude of F0.

Conclusion

The present study reveals that meditation can alter the functioning of the encoding of speech sounds in individuals who practice meditation.
What happens when the newborn hearing screening program is integrated with congenital Cytomegalovirus infection screening? Preliminary results in a tertiary hospital
Authors: Palma Silvia , Botti Cecilia , Roversi Maria Federica , Bettini Margherita , Pietrosemoli Paola , Berardi Alberto , Genovese Elisabetta
Published: June 2021

Objective

Early diagnosis of congenital Cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection related hearing loss has increased since the spread of newborn hearing screening (NHS) programs worldwide. However, since most newborns affected are asymptomatic at birth but may develop hearing loss later, some of them may elude the NHS. The aim of this study was to compare the results in two cohorts of children, in one of which all newborns who failed the NHS were tested for cCMV.

Methods

We retrospectively compared the results of early diagnosis of cCMV-related hearing loss between two groups of patients at a high-volume centre. Group 1 included the first 3 years of activity without a targeted cCMV screening and was composed of children born between 2012 and 2014. Group 2 included neonates born between 2015 and 2017: in this group, those who failed the NHS underwent urine CMV analysis within 14 days.

Results

There were 17,229 live births during the study period, 20 were diagnosed with cCMV infection, with a global prevalence of 1.1:1000. 72 neonates (0.42%) with hearing loss were identified, 7% of which were diagnosed with cCMV infection, 3/34 (8.8%) in group 1 and 2/38 (5.3%) in group 2 (p = .66). One newborn in group 2 was identified through the protocol. The percentage of patients affected by cCMV-related hearing loss diagnosed during the NHS showed non-significant differences in the two groups.

Conclusion

Our results suggest that the suspicion index of cCMV infection in a tertiary hospital is currently high and neonatologists are able to identify most symptomatic cases which have higher risk of developing hearing loss. Coupling the cCMV screening and the NHS program is worthwhile as it allows early recognition of asymptomatic cases with hearing loss and subsequent immediate administration of antiviral therapy.
Stapedotomy for fenestral otosclerosis
Authors: Minni Antonio , Sementilli Giulio , Cialente Fabrizio , Rossetti Valeria , Marinelli Alessia , Ralli Massimo , De Seta Daniele
Published: June 2021

Objectives

Otosclerosis is a progressive disease of the otic capsule characterised by disordered bone remodelling with abnormal resorption and neoformation of the temporal bone. Fenestral (or stapedial) otosclerosis is the most frequent form, when the focus of demineralisation involves the stapes footplate and the oval window. Stapedotomy and stapedectomy are indisputably the two main stapes surgery techniques for otosclerosis. The aims of this article are to evaluate the outcome of stapedotomy in terms of long-term audiological results and possible onset of late audiovestibular complications.

Methods

This retrospective study included 63 patients who underwent primary stapedotomy for treatment of conductive hearing loss due to otosclerosis with more than 15 years postoperative follow-up.

Results

We compared the preoperative results with the long-term stapedotomy results and observed an improvement of the pure tone average (PTA) for air conduction (AC) of 10.6 ± 7.6 dB and an average air/bone gap (ABG) improvement of 22.6 ± 5.7 dB. A surgical revision was necessary in two cases (3%). Complications included tinnitus in 5 cases and a temporary hypogeusia in two patients (3%); in the immediate postoperative period, 6 patients (10.2%) complained of vertigo.

Conclusions

Our results provide further evidence of the validity of stapedotomy as the reference technique for the surgical treatment of fenestral otosclerosis.
Equivariant neural networks for inverse problems
Authors: Celledoni Elena , Ehrhardt Matthias J , Etmann Christian , Owren Brynjulf , Schönlieb Carola-Bibiane , Sherry Ferdia
Published: June 2021

In recent years the use of convolutional layers to encode an inductive bias (translational equivariance) in neural networks has proven to be a very fruitful idea. The successes of this approach have motivated a line of research into incorporating other symmetries into deep learning methods, in the form of group equivariant convolutional neural networks. Much of this work has been focused on roto-translational symmetry of R

d
, but other examples are the scaling symmetry of R

d
and rotational symmetry of the sphere. In this work, we demonstrate that group equivariant convolutional operations can naturally be incorporated into learned reconstruction methods for inverse problems that are motivated by the variational regularisation approach. Indeed, if the regularisation functional is invariant under a group symmetry, the corresponding proximal operator will satisfy an equivariance property with respect to the same group symmetry. As a result of this observation, we design learned iterative methods in which the proximal operators are modelled as group equivariant convolutional neural networks. We use roto-translationally equivariant operations in the proposed methodology and apply it to the problems of low-dose computerised tomography reconstruction and subsampled magnetic resonance imaging reconstruction. The proposed methodology is demonstrated to improve the reconstruction quality of a learned reconstruction method with a little extra computational cost at training time but without any extra cost at test time.
Existence of ferroelectric resistive switching memory in MoS2/PVDF heterojunction devices
Authors: Liu Wei-song , Yang Hui , Li Lan
Published: June 2021

The heterostructure device based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/MoS2 films was succesfully prepared and showed a good hysteresis feature with a unique resistive switching perpromance, where the logarithmic I–V curve looks like a butterfly. The on-off ratio for the resistive switching in the device based on PVDF/MoS2 films reaches 2.5 × 102 and the resistive switching happens at −0.9 V and −4.9 V for a half loop. The influence of the introduction of MoS2 and ferroelectric PVDF film was also studied and compared to a device based on a single film. The underlying physical mechanism for the unique resistive transition was attributed to the polarization field from the ferroelectric polymer PVDF and the S vacancies in MoS2.
Automated pipeline for EEG artifact reduction (APPEAR) recorded during fMRI
Authors: Mayeli Ahmad , Al Zoubi Obada , Henry Kaylee , Wong Chung Ki , White Evan J , Luo Qingfei , Zotev Vadim , Refai Hazem , Bodurka Jerzy
Published: June 2021

Objective.Simultaneous electroencephalography-functional magnetic resonance imaging (EEG-fMRI) recordings offer a high spatiotemporal resolution approach to study human brain and understand the underlying mechanisms mediating cognitive and behavioral processes. However, the high susceptibility of EEG to MRI-induced artifacts hinders a broad adaptation of this approach. More specifically, EEG data collected during fMRI acquisition are contaminated with MRI gradients and ballistocardiogram artifacts, in addition to artifacts of physiological origin. There have been several attempts for reducing these artifacts with manual and time-consuming pre-processing, which may result in biasing EEG data due to variations in selecting steps order, parameters, and classification of artifactual independent components. Thus, there is a strong urge to develop a fully automatic and comprehensive pipeline for reducing all major EEG artifacts. In this work, we introduced an open-access toolbox with a fully automatic pipeline for reducing artifacts from EEG data collected simultaneously with fMRI (refer to APPEAR).Approach.The pipeline integrates average template subtraction and independent component analysis to suppress both MRI-related and physiological artifacts. To validate our results, we tested APPEAR on EEG data recorded from healthy control subjects during resting-state (n= 48) and task-based (i.e. event-related-potentials (ERPs);n= 8) paradigms. The chosen gold standard is an expert manual review of the EEG database.Main results.We compared manually and automated corrected EEG data during resting-state using frequency analysis and continuous wavelet transformation and found no significant differences between the two corrections. A comparison between ERP data recorded during a so-called stop-signal task (e.g. amplitude measures and signal-to-noise ratio) also showed no differences between the manually and fully automatic fMRI-EEG-corrected data.Significance.APPEAR offers the first comprehensive open-source toolbox that can speed up advancement of EEG analysis and enhance replication by avoiding experimenters’ preferences while allowing for processing large EEG-fMRI cohorts composed of hundreds of subjects with manageable researcher time and effort.
Characterization of the CMS Endcap Timing Layer readout chip prototype with charge injection
Authors: Sun H. , Gong D. , Zhang W. , Edwards C. , Huang G. , Huang X. , Liu C. , Liu T. , Liu T. , Olsen J. , Sun Q. , Wu J. , Ye J. , Zhang L.
Published: June 2021

We present the characterization of a readout Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) for the CMS Endcap Timing Layer (ETL) of the High-Luminosity LHC upgrade with charge injection. The ASIC, named ETROC and developed in a 65 nm CMOS technology, reads out a 16× 16 pixel matrix of the Low-Gain Avalanche Detector (LGAD). The jitter contribution from ETROC is required to be below 40 ps to achieve the 50 ps overall time resolution per hit. The analog readout circuits in ETROC consist of the preamplifier and the discriminator. The preamplifier handles the LGAD charge signal with the most probable value of around 15 fC. The discriminator generates the digital pulse, which provides the Time-Of-Arrival (TOA, leading edge) and Time-Over-Threshold (TOT, pulse width) information. The prototype of ETROC (ETROC0) that implements a single channel of analog readout circuits has been evaluated with charge injection. The jitter of the analog readout circuits, measured from the discriminator's leading edge, is better than 16 ps for a charge larger than 15 fC with the sensor capacitance. The time walk resulting from different pulse heights can be corrected using the TOT measurement. The time resolution distribution has a standard deviation of 29 ps after the time-walk correction from the charge injection. At room temperature, the preamplifier's power consumption is measured to be 0.74 mW and 1.53 mW per pixel in the low- and high-power mode, respectively. The measured power consumption of the discriminator is 0.84 mW per pixel. With the ASIC alone or the LGAD sensor, The characterization performances fulfill the ETL's challenging requirements.
Accessing register spaces in FPGAs within the ATLAS DAQ scheme via the SCA eXtension
Authors: Bakalis C. , Alexopoulos T. , Grayzman I. , Lee L. , Levinson L. , Polychronakos V.
Published: June 2021

The foreseen upgrades of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) are expected to increase the required throughput of the front-end and back-end electronics that support the readout of the LHC detectors. Therefore, the complexity of the electronics systems will be increased as well. An example of this is the electronics system of the New Small Wheel (NSW) upgrade of the ATLAS detector, which will be comprised of a number of Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), and Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs). These ASICs will be configured and monitored by the Slow Control Adapter (SCA), another ASIC designed for this purpose. The Slow Control Adapter eXtension (SCAX) on the other hand, is an FPGA module designed to support FPGA systems that are part of the ATLAS electronics scheme by reading and writing their configuration parameters and status indicators. SCAX emulates both the I2C interface of the SCA used to access the NSW ASICs, as well as the communication protocol implemented between the SCA and the back-end infrastructure. It thereby enables using the same OPC-UA server and back-end software suite that support the ASICs, to also interface with the FPGAs that are part of the same system. This work describes the context of the SCAX's implementation, alongside architectural considerations of the module, features, and techniques to validate its hardware implementation across a variety of FPGA devices.
Measurement of the relative quantum efficiency of Hamamatsu model R5912-20MOD photomultiplier tubes at liquid argon temperature
Authors: Zhao Q. , Guan M.Y. , Zhang P. , Yang C.G. , Li J.J. , Wei Y.T. , Wang L. , Gan Y.Y. , Xiong W.X.
Published: June 2021

The model R5912-20MOD photomultiplier tube(PMT) is made for cryogenic application by Hamamatsu. In this paper, we report on the measurement of relative quantum efficiency (QE) of this model PMT at liquid argon(LAr) temperature. Furthermore, a specially designed setup and relevant test method are introduced. The relative QE is measured in visible wavelengths with the PMT emerged in high purity nitrogen atmosphere. The results show that the change of QE at LAr temperature is within about 5% compared with room temperature around 420 nm. However, the QE increases about 10% in the shorter wavelength range and decreases significantly after 550 nm.
Study on the stability of 20 inch photomultiplier tubes based on microchannel plate
Authors: Li H. , Qian S. , Ning Z. , Zhang Y. , Wu Q. , Ma L. , Zhu Y. , Peng S. , Yan M.
Published: June 2021

The normal working stability of 20-inch MCP-PMTs are studied by random triggering, in this paper. The variation of dark counting rate and gain in the long-term (∼400 days) aging process is mainly analyzed. It is found that the variation trend of the dark counting rate is consistent with the temperature, and the dark counting rate increases by about 15%/∘C at room temperature (20–28∘C). Moreover, the gain of PMTs began to decline after 5 months of continuous operation. After the gain is reduced by about 15%, the gain reaches a steady state.
Global air quality change during COVID-19: a synthetic analysis of satellite, reanalysis and ground station data
Authors: Yang Qianqian , Wang Bin , Wang Yuan , Yuan Qiangqiang , Jin Caiyi , Wang Jiwen , Li Shuwen , Li Muyu , Li Tongwen , Liu Song , Shen Huanfeng , Zhang Liangpei
Published: June 2021

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a rare reduction in human activities. In such a background, data from ground-based environmental stations, satellites, and reanalysis materials are utilized to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the global air quality changes during the COVID-19 outbreak. The results showed that under the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, a significant decrease in particulate matter (PM
x
) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) occurred in more than 40% of the world’s land area, with NO2 (PM
x
) decreasing by ∼30% (∼20%). The mobility, meteorological factors, and the response speed to COVID-19 outbreaks were examined. It was further found that in quick-response cities, lockdowns produced a sharp decline in mobility and had a dominant impact on air quality. In contrast, in slow-response cities, mobility dropped gradually since the confirmation of the first COVID-19 case (FCC) and he impact of the FCC, lockdowns, and meteorological factors were comparable.
Isolates of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria activities that derived from catfish, Pangasius sp. culture pond
Authors: Yosmaniar  , Setiadi E , Novita H
Published: June 2021

Nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria are very fruitful for controlling water quality in fish culture because they have a role in converting toxic chemical compounds into non-toxic compounds. The purpose of this experiment is to determine the isolates of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria in terms of oxidizing ammonia, accumulating total nitrite, and accumulating total nitrate activities. Eight isolates of bacteria consist of four nitrifying bacteria (NP1, NP2, NP3, and NP4), and four denitrifying bacteria (DP1, DP2, DP3, and DP4) were inoculated with the density of 102CFU/ml. The result showed that NP1, NP2, NP3, and NP4 isolates have almost similar ability to oxidize ammonium of 99.57, 99.37, 99.89, and 99.83%, respectively. The NP1-NP4 isolates on the total nitrite accumulated were 0.06, 0.05, 0.06, and 0.06%, while the total nitrate accumulated were 1.56, 1.65, 2.08, and 1.65%, respectively. The isolates of DP1, DP2, DP3, and DP4 can reduce total nitrate by 99.9, 100.0, 99.9, and 99.9%, respectively, while accumulated total nitrite was 0.01, 0.04, 0.00, and 0.00%. Isolates of NP2 and DP2 are recommended for controlling chemical compounds in the pond water.
The influence of moon period day to paperek fish (Leiognathus spp) cathed and it’s connection with physical waters of boat live nets at Dodinga Bay, West Halmahera Districs
Authors: Karuwal J , Budiman B
Published: June 2021

The aims of this research are to know the influence of the moon day period on paperek (Leiognathus spp ) catches and it’s relation to waters physical factors of the boat liftnets in the Dodinga bay. The oceanographic parameter data are sea surface temperature, waters salinity, brightness, current velocity, wind speed and peperek catches that was in situ collected. Data analysis was done descriptively and statistics to explain the relationship among variables by using multiple linear regression. The result of F test gets the Fcount is 0.974 is greater than Ftable value is 0.442. This showing that all physical parameter waters were together to exert an influence upon the presence of paperek fish in waters. The formed of regression equation model are ŷ = 6.675 – 0.22x
1 + 0.70x
2 – 0.126x
3 – 0.58x
4 – 0.806x
1 + e; where: ŷ = total anchovies fish catch; X1 = temperature (°C ); X2 = salinity (o/oo ); X3 = wind speed (ms -1); X4 = brightness (m ); X5 = current velocity ( ms -1 ) and e = standard error. Furthermore the obtained of the paperek (Leiognathus spp ) catches were many caught on Dodinga bay waters with boat liftnets at water temperature are 25.00-25.09 °C. salinities are 30.0-31.0 ppt. current velocity are 0.05 0.18 m s-1. brightness value are 8.97-10 meters and wind speed are 1.83 3.05 ms -1.