bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mental health following an initial period of COVID-19 restrictions: findings from a cross-sectional survey in the Republic of Ireland
Authors: Troya Maria Isabela , Joyce Mary , Khashan Ali , Buckley Claire , Chakraborti Kasturi , Hoevel Philipp , Humphries Rory , Kearney Patricia M. , Kiely Elizabeth , Murphy Mike , Perry Ivan , Arensman Ella
Published: December 2021

Background: We assessed the mental health of individuals in the general population, during an initial period of easing of COVID-19 restrictions in the Republic of Ireland (RoI).

Methods: Data were collected through a nationally representative cross-sectional telephone survey, during the first period of easing of restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic between May and July 2020. Mental health was examined using the Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety Depression Scale. Poisson regression analyses were conducted to estimate risk ratios with robust variance estimation of the association between selected demographic factors and the risk of having depression and anxiety symptoms.

Results: Of the 1,983 participants, 27.7% (n = 549; 95% CI: 0.26 - 0.30) reported depression and anxiety symptoms, while 74 (3.8%; 95% CI: 0.03 - 0.05) disclosed self-harm and/or suicidal thoughts. Females (RR: 1.60, 95% CI: 1.37 - 1.87, p < 0.0005), employed individuals who experienced a change in work status (RR: 1.50, 95% CI: 1.24 - 1.82, p < 0.0005), participants cocooning due to a health condition (RR: 1.34, 95% CI: 1.08 - 1.66, p< 0.01), participants who were self-isolating (RR: 1.25, 95% CI: 1.03 - 1.51, p=0.025) and moderate-heavy drinkers (RR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.09 - 1.47, p<0.01) were at increased risk of depression and anxiety. Young people aged 18-29 years and those in the two lowest income categories were most likely to report self-harm and/or suicidal thoughts.

Conclusion: As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, with further waves and associated restrictions, the impact on mental health in the population as a whole and in specific subgroups must be considered.

Study protocol registration: doi.org/10.12688/hrbopenres.13103.2
Discrepancies between two long-term dietary datasets in the United Kingdom (UK)
Authors: Smith Kerry G. , Scheelbeek Pauline , Balmford Andrew , Garnett Emma E.
Published: December 2021

Background: Studying dietary trends can help monitor progress towards healthier and more sustainable diets but longitudinal data are often confounded by lack of standardized methods. Two main data sources are           used for longitudinal analysis of diets: food balance sheets on food supply (FBS) and household budget surveys on food purchased (HBS).

Methods: We used UK longitudinal dietary data on food supply, provided by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) (FAO-FBS, 1961-2018), and food purchases, provided by Defra (Defra-HBS, 1942-2018). We assessed how trends in dietary change per capita compared between FAO-FBS and Defra-HBS for calories, meat and fish, nuts and pulses, and dairy, and how disparities have changed over time.

Results: FAO-FBS estimates were significantly higher (p<0.001) than Defra-HBS for calorie intake and all food types, except nuts and pulses which were significantly lower (p<0.001). These differences are partly due to inclusion of retail waste in FAO-FBS data and under-reporting in Defra- HBS data. The disparities between the two datasets increased over time for calories, meat and dairy; did not change for fish; and decreased for nuts and pulses . Between 1961 and 2018, both FAO-FBS and Defra-FBS showed an increase in meat intake (+11.5% and +1.4%, respectively) and a decrease in fish (-3.3% and -3.2%, respectively) and dairy intake (-11.2% and -22.4%). Temporal trends did not agree between the two datasets for calories, and nuts and pulses.

Conclusions: Our finding raises questions over the robustness of both data sources for monitoring UK dietary change, especially when used for evidence-based decision making around health, climate change and sustainability.
Extended Cohort for E-health, Environment and DNA (EXCEED) COVID-19 focus
Authors: Lee Paul H. , Guyatt Anna L. , John Catherine , Ali Altaf , Wang Xueyang , Williams Alexander T. , Zhao Bo , Batini Chiara , Bee Catherine , Adams Emma , Melbourne Carl A. , Brightling Christopher E. , Hsu Ron , Bethea Jane , Reeve Nicola , Ntalla Ioanna , Terry Sarah , Pareek Manish , Brunskill Nigel J. , Barwell Julian , Hollox Edward J. , Miola Jose , Wallace Susan E. , Shepherd David J. , Packer Richard , Venn Laura , Wain Louise V. , Free Robert C. , Tobin Martin D.
Published: December 2021

Background: New data collection in established longitudinal population studies provides an opportunity for studying the risk factors and sequelae of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), plus the indirect impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on wellbeing. The Extended Cohort for E-health, Environment and DNA (EXCEED) cohort is a population-based cohort (N>11,000), recruited from 2013 in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. EXCEED includes consent for electronic healthcare record (EHR) linkage, spirometry, genomic data, and questionnaire data.

Methods: Between May 2020 and July 2021, a new questionnaire was deployed in EXCEED, which captured COVID-19 symptoms, general physical and mental health, plus socioeconomic and environmental factors during the pandemic. An online system was developed to invite new participants to join EXCEED, with informed consent being provided online. New and existing participants then completed the COVID-19 questionnaire online. A subset of the new questionnaire respondents were invited to participate in COVID-19 serology substudies, using home antibody testing kits.

Results: In total, 3,693 participants provided COVID-19 infection status (median age 62.9 (IQR 54.7-69.2), 58.9% female). Trends of monthly incidence proportions of COVID-19 in EXCEED (self-report or symptom-predicted) approximated local and national figures. Regression analysis of 2,768 participants with linked EHR data showed no obvious monotonic relationship between number of chronic diseases (of 16 pre-specified diseases) and COVID-19 infection. There were 2,144 participants with valid results from a kit allowing differentiation between antibodies due to vaccination or infection. Of these, 8.5% had results consistent with previous COVID-19 infection, and 85.9% had evidence of COVID-19 vaccination, but without evidence of infection.

Conclusions: Enriching EXCEED with a new COVID-19 questionnaire and serology data may improve understanding of the risk factors, clinical sequelae and broader impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the general population. Controlled access to these data for bona fide researchers is via application to the EXCEED study.
Bryophyte species and communities on various roofing materials, Estonia
Authors: Rajandu Elle , Elvisto Tiina , Kappel Hanna-Liisa , Kaasik Marko
Published: December 2021

Considering the recent growth of interest in using mosses in creating vegetated green roofs, we set the aim of our study to get an overview of the variety of moss and liverwort species and communities growing spontaneously on roofs. Data were collected from 67 roofs of five different types of materials: fibre cement, bitumen, stone, thatched and steel from Tallinn and rural areas on Hiiumaa Island and in South Estonia. Indicator species analysis, MRPP, cluster analysis and ordination methods (DCA, CCA) were used for data analysis. As a result of this research, generalist bryophytes occurring on all types of roofing materials were studied and bryophyte species characteristics for certain material types were identified. The thatched roofs differed most clearly from the other roof types in their species composition and had the highest species diversity. Stone and fibre cement roofs had similar species composition. The results revealed significant dependence of the composition of the bryophyte flora on roofs on the density of the bryophyte carpet formed over time on the roof and the presence of a tree canopy above the roof. Other important factors were roof relief, the height of the roof from the ground and the indicator of environmental pollution NOx. However, the studied roofs in Tallinn and rural areas did not show significant differences in the species composition of bryophytes. Five communities were delimited: (1) Syntrichia ruralis – Schistidium apocarpum; (2) Orthotrichum speciosum – Bryum argenteum; (3) Brachythecium rutabulum – Hypnum cupressiforme; (4) Ceratodon purpureus – Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus; and (5) Pleurozium schreberi – Dicranum scoparium. The mentioned communities inhabited locations that differed in environmental conditions. The findings of this research can help choose the roofing material and species suitable for a certain location in creating moss greenery on roofs.
The main drivers for the occurrence of six red-listed epiphytic bryophytes and lichens in the boreo-nemoral forest landscape, Latvia
Authors: Mežaka Anna , Moisejevs Rolands , Nitcis Māris
Published: December 2021

Forest landscape plays a significant role in rare cryptogam distribution. However, data about the environmental demands of rare epiphytic bryophytes and lichens in boreo-nemoral forest landscapes are not complete. In this study, we focused on finding the main environmental predictors influencing the occurrence of three red-listed epiphytic bryophytes and three red-listed epiphytic lichens in the Latvian boreo-nemoral forest landscape. We obtained the records of species from the Natural Data Management System OZOLS database, which is a national information system on all rare taxa. We analyzed the occurrence of species in relation to forest stand age and area, forest type, heterogeneity and tree bark pH class. We found that selected red-listed bryophyte and lichen occurrence was mainly influenced by forest stand age and area. However, each of the red-listed epiphytic bryophyte and lichen has their own ecological demands in the boreo-nemoral landscape.
Semiotic Essence of Linguistic Ambiguity in the German Poetic Discourse of the XXI Century
Authors: Dacko D.
Published: December 2021

The article deals with the problem of the phenomenon of linguistic ambiguity and methods of its resolution in the context of modern German poetic texts, as well as possible communication failures associated with differences in the sociocultural characteristics of the author and recipient. In particular, there are illustrations of ambiguity of the entire poem, when the analyzed concept has a dualistic origin and certain linguo-stylistic means; lexical ambiguity, which main mechanisms are a language game, polysemantic words, chains of key lexical items, allusions; syntactic ambiguity, that is realized through special punctuation and two-way communication, that allowed two different interpretations of the sentence. In addition, the German poetic text is characterized by temporary and permanent types of ambiguity.

As part of the study, it was found that the phenomenon of ambiguity can be resolved due to contextual peculiarities, and situations of communicative failure can be avoided by an increase of the level of linguistic and intercultural competence.
Communicative Aspect of University Reputation Assessment (on the Case of RUDN University)
Authors: Glagoleva A. , Zemskaya Yu. , Kuznecova Evgeniya , Aleshina Irina
Published: December 2021

This article is concerned with the communicative study of the issue of assessing the reputation of universities. The article presents the concept of "reputation" and its characteristics such as a long-term period of creation, the multiple nature of reputation, the relationship with the values that the audience gives to the company etc. Reputation is seen as the result of communicative interaction with the audience, which allows to create trust and inspire confidence in stakeholders. The authors review the characteristics of the three leading world university rankings: Times Higher Education World University Rankings; Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings; The Academic Ranking of World Universities. And also, the article describes the criteria by which these rankings are built. It either observes the indicators that are taken into account in the compilation of reputational ratings for companies and brands. It turns out during the comparing of the criteria for assessing the ratings of universities and the ratings of companies and brands, that emotional components are completely dismissed from the ratings of universities. While compilers of the company’s reputation rankings RepTrak ™ Pulse and the brand’s reputation rankings Interbrand always include them. The article presents the data from a study of the reputation of RUDN University, which the authors conducted by methods of survey and interview in November 2019. They show that an emotional assessment of a university's reputation is more important for an internal audience than a rational one.
Agriculture and Rural Development as a Main Objective of Polish Cooperation and Development Aid for the Republic of Moldova
Authors: Sikora-Gaca Małgorzata
Published: December 2021

Agriculture and development of rural areas are important sectors of Polish-Moldovan cooperation and development aid. Importantly, both of them constitute structural problems, similar to those which faced agriculture in Poland in the 1990s. Through Polish aid and development cooperation, various measures are initiated which increase the competitiveness of Moldovan agricultural production, improve sanitary and phytosanitary conditions, bring technological innovations in agricultural farms, ensure modernization of rural infrastructure, providing support to small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, cooperatives, and agricultural consultants, along with professional activation of the Republic’s residents.
Kodeksowe ograniczenia uprawnień procesowych Żandarmerii Wojskowej wobec żołnierza w czynnej służbie wojskowej
Authors: Konarska-Wrzosek Violetta , Ziółkowska Agata
Published: December 2021

W artykule porównano przepisy proceduralne (karne i wykroczeniowe) określające właściwość procesową Żandarmerii Wojskowej wobec żołnierza w czynnej służbie wojskowej, w sytuacji, gdy popełnił on czyn zabroniony pod groźbą kary. Porównanie art. 312 k.p.k. oraz art. 85 § 2 k.p.w. dało asumpt do sformułowania propozycji de lege ferenda, wskazujących na potrzebę znowelizowania art. 85 § 2 k.p.w. (i nie tylko). Z uwagi na materię podlegającą weryfikacji (z zastosowaniem wykładni językowo-logicznej), jaką są wybrane przepisy kodeksowe, w niniejszym artykule posłużono się metodami badawczymi – porównawczą wewnątrzsystemową oraz dogmatyczno-prawną.
Examining the Effects of Organizations Competencies and Opportunistic Behaviors on Firm Performance in a Competitive Environment
Authors: Adiguzel Zafer , Celtekligil Kudret , Sonmez Cakir Fatma
Published: December 2021

The aim of this research is to show the effects of the relations between capability similarity and opportunisticbehaviors and competitiveness and performance from firms. The research provides the basis for capability similarity and opportunistic behaviors. The research was carried out in companies with at least 100 stores, which are centrally located in Istanbul and have a significant share in the service sector. The data were statistically analyzed using the Smartpls 3.2 Package Program. The research showed that the organizations’ capabilities and opportunistic behavior influenced their performance and competitiveness.
Employee Turnover and Firm Performance: Large-Sample Archival Evidence
Authors: Li Qin , Lourie Ben , Nekrasov Alexander , Shevlin Terry
Published: December 2021

Employee turnover is a significant cost for businesses and a key human capital metric, but firms do not disclose this measure. We examine whether turnover is informative about future firm performance using a large panel of turnover data extracted from employees’ online profiles. We find that turnover is negatively associated with future financial performance (one-quarter ahead return on assets and sales growth). The negative association between turnover and future performance is stronger for small firms, for young firms, for firms with low labor intensity, when the local labor market is tight, and when the firm is trying to replace departing employees. The negative association disappears when turnover is very low, suggesting that a certain amount of turnover can be beneficial. Consistent with the concern that turnover increases operational uncertainty, we find a positive association between turnover and the uncertainty of future financial performance. Finally, we find a significant association between turnover and future stock returns, suggesting that investors do not fully incorporate turnover information. Our findings answer the call from the Securities and Exchange Commission to determine the importance of turnover disclosure.

This paper was accepted by Brian Bushee, accounting.
The Prelimit Generator Comparison Approach of Stein’s Method
Authors: Braverman Anton
Published: December 2021

This paper uses the generator comparison approach of Stein’s method to analyze the gap between steady-state distributions of Markov chains and diffusion processes. The “standard” generator comparison approach starts with the Poisson equation for the diffusion, and the main technical difficulty is to obtain bounds on the derivatives of the solution to the Poisson equation, also known as Stein factor bounds. In this paper we propose starting with the Poisson equation of the Markov chain; we term this the prelimit approach. Although one still needs Stein factor bounds, they now correspond to finite differences of the Markov chain Poisson equation solution rather than the derivatives of the solution to the diffusion Poisson equation. In certain cases, the former are easier to obtain. We use the [Formula: see text] model as a simple working example to illustrate our approach.
Holistic nursing approach to trauma wound management in a loggerhead sea turtle
Authors: Ashfield Samantha , Rendle Matthew
Published: December 2021

Wildlife Vets International provide support to many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) around the world with many species. The requirements for each species and project are different, but they are linked by the need to assess and if possible address all elements that will allow wound healing to occur. Sea turtles are a highly charismatic species and face many threats in the wild. Veterinary care of sea turtles needs to be optimal and carried out in a timely manner. Providing correct husbandry is essential for the healing of all reptile wounds, including sea turtles. It is important to remember we are nursing an intelligent, exothermic, ureotelic species, with a requirement for UV light, which is likely to be experiencing significant stress which we need to try and mitigate. Veterinary nurses are well placed to assist in assessing all these factors, documenting these assessments, creating care plans/bundles and, of course, carrying out the wound management itself. Dealing with the wound healing of wild animals is very challenging and complicated. A dynamic and holistic approach is essential, although sometimes overlooked, and every effort must be made to reduce treatment times. This will both improve welfare while under veterinary care, and will hopefully allow a timely return to the wild. New wound management products are becoming available all the time, and it is important that veterinary professionals are always looking for how they can use these in their wild animal patients, as well as always questioning why they use the materials they use.
Current State of High-School Students’ Multiliteracy after a Year of Online Lessons in the Context of Chile
Authors: Araos-Gallardo Nicole
Published: December 2021

The worldwide pandemic Coronavirus disease, affected every aspect of people’s lives due to being locked at their homes, therefore many difficulties began to appear, especially in education. Scholars were the leading group that has been affected the most due to the online lessons that began from one day to another, without any kind of previous training specifically in these types of contexts at home. According to some national diagnostical studies, most of the students could not achieve the minimum educational objectives in mathematics and language, which are the essential subjects in Chilean education. In this study, in which qualitative phenomenology analysis was used, the aim was to reveal the current state of students after a whole year of online lessons in terms of personal technological use and personal perceptions about e-learning. In this study, in which the criterion sampling was used, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 adolescents from different sorts of schools who experienced online lessons using their previous personal knowledge in Information and Communication Technologies. The data were analyzed in Nvivo node tree, which revealed six main themes that define the experience and personal perception of the participants: adaptation to the new order, learning by their own, how to use better the technology, use of social media, new ways of personal knowledge sharing, importance of classmates. It is believed that the results obtained from this study will contribute to schools’ view of learning and teaching education in the 21st century and to improve students’ experiences in online lessons.
Psychological and Occupational Pressure Among Female Teachers in Light of the Coronavirus Disease Pandemic and Coping Strategies
Authors: Al-Rashidi Anwar Hammad
Published: December 2021

This study aims at identifying the level of psychological and professional stress in light of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. It adopted descriptive and analytical methodologies. Two scales were prepared: one scale for psychological and professional stress and the other for coping with psychological and professional pressures. The study sample consisted of 608 female teachers at public schools in Al-Kharj province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The results show a moderate level of psychological and professional stresses. The findings show statistically significant differences in teaching experience variable. The differences were in favour of female teachers with experience of less than 5 years. However, no statistically significant differences were found on the variable of academic qualification. It was found that female teachers had followed strategies to cope with psychological and professional stresses including resorting to faith, connecting with other teachers and students, planning different strategies, seeking help from others and managing time. The study recommends arranging training courses for female teachers to develop remote teaching skills and using various technologies and applications in this field particularly during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Stigmatic singlet with a user-defined apodization pupil function
Authors: González-Acuña Rafael G.
Published: December 2021

Here we present a method to design a stigmatic lens with a user-defined apodization pupil function. The motive is that the apodization pupil function is required by Richards–Wolf diffraction integrals to compute non-paraxial diffraction patterns. Then, the user-defined apodization pupil function can be chosen such that the focus spot obtained by the stigmatic lens is smaller. The mentioned method is based on numerically solving a non-linear differential equation.
Tunable, high-power, high-order optical vortex beam generation in the mid-infrared
Authors: Sharma Varun , Chaitanya Kumar S. , Samanta G. K. , Ebrahim-Zadeh M.
Published: December 2021

We report the generation of tunable high-order optical vortices in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) using a picosecond optical parametric oscillator (OPO). The OPO is based on MgO:PPLN as the nonlinear gain medium and synchronously pumped by a mode-locked Yb-fiber laser at 1064 nm. Using a singly-resonant oscillator configuration for the OPO, we have achieved direct transfer of pump optical vortices to the non-resonant idler beam, with the resonant signal in the Gaussian cavity mode. We demonstrate the successful transfer of pump optical vortices of order, lp = 1 to 5, to the idler beam of the same order across the mid-IR, with an output power of 630 mW to 130 mW across 2538 nm to 4035 nm for the highest idler vortex order, li = 5. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of an OPO pumped by a vortex beam of order as high as lp = 5 and generating idler vortices of high order in the mid-IR.
Rapid fabrication of sub-micron scale functional optical microstructures on the optical fiber end faces by DMD-based lithography
Authors: Wang Luming , Luo Ningning , Zhang Zhimin , Xiao Haifeng , Ma Long , Meng Qingwang , Shi Jiulin
Published: December 2021

The rapid development of optical fiber application systems puts forward higher requirements for the miniaturization and integration of optical fiber devices. One promising solution is to integrate diffractive optical microstructures on the end faces of optical fibers. However, rapid microfabrication on such tiny and irregular substrates is a challenge. In recent years, Femtosecond laser polymerization technology has become an effective solution to the challenge, which can be flexibly applied for the fabrication of complex 3D microstructures with ultra-high resolution. When the demand for the lithography resolution is not very high, other microfabrication methods with a lower technical threshold may be developed for achieving a balance between fabrication precision, cost and efficiency. In this paper, we report a Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) based lithography method dedicated to the fabrication of functional optical microstructures on the optical fiber end faces. Especially, it’s also applicable to single-mode fibers (SMFs). By the projection via a 40x objective lens, the fabrication resolution of 0.405 μm was achieved within an exposure area of 209.92 μm × 157.44 μm. We evaluated the microfabrication results by the photomicrographs and the optical diffraction modulation effects of the functional optical microstructures. This method provides a new idea for fabricating both hybrid optical fiber devices and SMF devices, and it may be an alternative method for resolving the conflict between the precision, the cost and the efficiency.
Dirac cones with zero refractive indices in phoxonic crystals
Authors: Lei Linlin , Yu Tianbao , Liu Wenxing , Wang Tongbiao , Liao Qinghua
Published: December 2021

In this paper, simultaneous zero refractive indices (ZRIs) for both sound and light are realized on the basis of a 2D triangular lattice phoxonic crystal (PxC) with C6v symmetry. For the phononic mode, accidental phononic Dirac degeneracy at the center of Brillouin zone (BZ) occurs at a relatively high frequency which leads to the failure of the efficient medium theory; hence, it is no longer applicable to the realization of acoustic ZRI. We thus turn to a low-frequency phononic Dirac cone located at K point, the corner of the BZ, which shows in-phase pressure field oscillations in expanded unit cells. Using zone folding, we further reveal the cause for the characteristic of acoustic ZRI. For the photonic mode, a low-frequency photonic Dirac-like cone can be achieved by adjusting the geometric parameter due to the high contrast permittivity between scatterers and the matrix. When the phononic and photonic low-frequency Dirac dispersions coexist, the PxC can be mapped into a zero-index material for both sound and light at the same time. The new mechanism for simultaneously controlling sound and light helps to achieve acousto-optic synchronous cloaking and unidirectional transmission, which are numerically demonstrated.
Advances in mid-infrared spectroscopy enabled by supercontinuum laser sources
Authors: Zorin Ivan , Gattinger Paul , Ebner Alexander , Brandstetter Markus
Published: December 2021

Supercontinuum sources are all-fiber pulsed laser-driven systems that provide high power spectral densities within ultra-broadband spectral ranges. The tailored process of generating broadband, bright, and spectrally flat supercontinua—through a complex interplay of linear and non-linear processes—has been recently pushed further towards longer wavelengths and has evolved enough to enter the field of mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectroscopy. In this work, we review the current state and perspectives of this technology that offers laser-like emission properties and instantaneous broadband spectral coverage comparable to thermal emitters. We aim to go beyond a literature review. Thus, we first discuss the basic principles of supercontinuum sources and then provide an experimental part focusing on the quantification and analysis of intrinsic emission properties such as typical power spectral densities, brightness levels, spectral stability, and beam quality (to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the M2 factor for a mid-IR supercontinuum source is characterized for the first time). On this basis, we identify key competitive advantages of these alternative emitters for mid-IR spectroscopy over state-of-the-art technologies such as thermal sources or quantum cascade lasers. The specific features of supercontinuum radiation open up prospects of improving well-established techniques in mid-IR spectroscopy and trigger developments of novel analytical methods and instrumentation. The review concludes with a structured summary of recent advances and applications in various routine mid-IR spectroscopy scenarios that have benefited from the use of supercontinuum sources.
Propagation of temporal mode multiplexed optical fields in fibers: influence of dispersion
Authors: Zhao Wen , Huo Nan , Cui Liang , Li Xiaoying , Ou Z. Y.
Published: December 2021

Exploiting two interfering fields which are initially in the same temporal mode but with the spectra altered by propagating through different fibers, we characterize how the spectral profiles of temporal modes change with the fiber induced dispersion by measuring the fourth-order interference when the order number and bandwidth of temporal modes are varied. The experiment is done by launching a pulsed field in different temporal modes into an unbalanced Mach-Zehnder interferometer, in which the fiber lengths in two arms are different. The results show that the mode mismatch of two interfering fields, reflected by the visibility and pattern of interference, is not only dependent upon the amount of unbalanced dispersion but also related to the order number of temporal mode. In particular, the two interfering fields may become orthogonal under a modest amount of unbalanced dispersion when the mode number of the fields is k ≥ 2. Moreover, we discuss how to recover the spectrally distorted temporal mode by measuring and compensating the transmission induced dispersion. Our investigation paves the way for further investigating the distribution of temporally multiplexed quantum states in fiber network.
Compact pulse shaper based on a tilted volume Bragg grating
Authors: Martyanov Mikhail , Mukhin Ivan , Kuzmin Igor , Mironov Sergey
Published: December 2021

A compact optical layout of a pulse shaper for strongly chirped laser pulses of nanosecond time scale exploiting a tilted chirped volume Bragg grating and a programmable spatial light modulator is proposed. The setup has a non-zero frequency dispersion; thus it may be used for stretching or compressing the pulse and controlling its shape simultaneously. The feasibility of spectral shaping with a resolution of 0.16 nm, corresponding to a time resolution of 150 ps, and a contrast ratio of 102 is demonstrated experimentally.
N-polar InGaN nanowires: breaking the efficiency bottleneck of nano and micro LEDs
Authors: Liu Xianhe , Sun Yi , Malhotra Yakshita , Pandey Ayush , Wang Ping , Wu Yuanpeng , Sun Kai , Mi Zetian
Published: December 2021

The efficiency of conventional quantum well light-emitting diodes (LEDs) decreases drastically with reducing areal size. Here we show that such a critical size scaling issue of LEDs can be addressed by utilizing N-polar InGaN nanowires. We studied the epitaxy and performance characteristics of N-polar InGaN nanowire LEDs grown on sapphire substrate by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. A maximum external quantum efficiency

∼
11
%

was measured for LEDs with lateral dimensions as small as 750 nm directly on wafer without any packaging. The effect of electron overflow and Auger recombination on the device performance is also studied. This work provides a viable approach for achieving high-efficiency nano and micro LEDs that were not previously possible.
High-sensitivity integrated SiN rib-waveguide long period grating refractometer
Authors: Deleau Clement , Seat Han Cheng , Bernal Olivier , Surre Frederic
Published: December 2021

In this research, we demonstrate a high-sensitivity integrated silicon nitride long period grating (LPG) refractometer based on a rib waveguide with sinusoidally modulated width. While integrated LPG architectures typically achieve ultrahigh sensitivity only over a narrow optical bandwidth using a phase-matching turning-point optimization technique, our sensor exhibits a very high refractometric sensitivity that was designed to remain constant over a broad operational optical spectral bandwidth. The proposed design method relies on multi-modal dispersion tailoring that consists of homogenizing the spectral behaviors of both group and effective indices of the coupling modes. Experimental results are in agreement with numerical simulations, demonstrating not only a sensitivity reaching 11,500 nm/RIU but, more significantly, also that this sensitivity remains almost constant over a broad spectral range of at least 100 nm around 1550 nm. Additional advantages of the proposed sensor architecture encompass a low temperature sensitivity, down to −0.15 nm/K, and simplicity of the fabrication process. These results demonstrate the feasibility of chip-scale photonic integration to achieve both high sensitivity and large dynamic range of the proposed refractometer.
Acoustic traits of bat-pollinated flowers compared to flowers of other pollination syndromes and their echo-based classification using convolutional neural networks
Authors: Simon Ralph , Bakunowski Karol , Reyes-Vasques Angel Eduardo , Tschapka Marco , Knörnschild Mirjam , Steckel Jan , Stowell Dan
Published: December 2021

Bat-pollinated flowers have to attract their pollinators in absence of light and therefore some species developed specialized echoic floral parts. These parts are usually concave shaped and act like acoustic retroreflectors making the flowers acoustically conspicuous to the bats. Acoustic plant specializations only have been described for two bat-pollinated species in the Neotropics and one other bat-dependent plant in South East Asia. However, it remains unclear whether other bat-pollinated plant species also show acoustic adaptations. Moreover, acoustic traits have never been compared between bat-pollinated flowers and flowers belonging to other pollination syndromes. To investigate acoustic traits of bat-pollinated flowers we recorded a dataset of 32320 flower echoes, collected from 168 individual flowers belonging to 12 different species. 6 of these species were pollinated by bats and 6 species were pollinated by insects or hummingbirds. We analyzed the spectral target strength of the flowers and trained a convolutional neural network (CNN) on the spectrograms of the flower echoes. We found that bat-pollinated flowers have a significantly higher echo target strength, independent of their size, and differ in their morphology, specifically in the lower variance of their morphological features. We found that a good classification accuracy by our CNN (up to 84%) can be achieved with only one echo/spectrogram to classify the 12 different plant species, both bat-pollinated and otherwise, with bat-pollinated flowers being easier to classify. The higher classification performance of bat-pollinated flowers can be explained by the lower variance of their morphology.
One-carbon metabolism during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy
Authors: Kim Ruby , Nijhout H. Frederik , Reed Michael C.
Published: December 2021

Many enzymes in one-carbon metabolism (OCM) are up- or down-regulated by the sex hormones which vary diurnally and throughout the menstrual cycle. During pregnancy, estradiol and progesterone levels increase tremendously to modulate physiological changes in the reproductive system. In this work, we extend and improve an existing mathematical model of hepatic OCM to understand the dynamic metabolic changes that happen during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy due to estradiol variation. In particular, we add the polyamine drain on S-adenosyl methionine and the direct effects of estradiol on the enzymes cystathionine β-synthase (CBS), thymidylate synthase (TS), and dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). We show that the homocysteine concentration varies inversely with estradiol concentration, discuss the fluctuations in 14 other one-carbon metabolites and velocities throughout the menstrual cycle, and draw comparisons with the literature. We then use the model to study the effects of vitamin B12, vitamin B6, and folate deficiencies and explain why homocysteine is not a good biomarker for vitamin deficiencies. Additionally, we compute homocysteine throughout pregnancy, and compare the results with experimental data. Our mathematical model explains how numerous homeostatic mechanisms in OCM function and provides new insights into how homocysteine and its deleterious effects are influenced by estradiol. The mathematical model can be used by others for further in silico experiments on changes in one-carbon metabolism during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy.
Characterization of international partnerships in global retinoblastoma care and research: A network analysis
Authors: Girdler Hannah , Flegg Kaitlyn , Prochaska John , Dimaras Helen
Published: December 2021

Global cooperation is an integral component of global health research and practice. One Retinoblastoma World (1RBW) is a cooperative network of global treatment centers that care for children affected by retinoblastoma. The study aimed to determine the number, scope and nature of collaborations within 1RBW, and uncover how they are perceived to contribute towards improving retinoblastoma outcomes. A cross-sectional, mixed-methods egocentric network analysis was conducted. Treatment centers (n = 170) were invited to complete an electronic survey to identify collaborative activities between their institution (ego), and respective partners (alters). Network maps were generated to visualize connectivity. Key informants (n = 18) participated in semi-structured interviews to add details about the reported collaborations. Interviews were analysed through inductive thematic analysis. Surveys were completed by 56/170 (33%) of 1RBW treatment centers. Collectively, they identified 112 unique alters (80 treatment centers; 32 other organizations) for a total network size of 168 nodes. Most collaborations involved patient referrals, consultations and twinning/capacity building. Interviews identified four main themes: conceptualization of partnership; primary motivation for collaborations; common challenges to collaboration; and benefits to partnership. There is extensive global collaboration to reduce global retinoblastoma mortality, but there is room to expand connectivity through active efforts to include actors located at network peripheries.
A simple assay to quantify mycobacterial lipid antigen-specific T cell receptors in human tissues and blood
Authors: Zhou Angela X. , Scriba Thomas J. , Day Cheryl L. , Hagge Deanna A. , Seshadri Chetan
Published: December 2021

T cell receptors (TCRs) encode the history of antigenic challenge within an individual and have the potential to serve as molecular markers of infection. In addition to peptide antigens bound to highly polymorphic MHC molecules, T cells have also evolved to recognize bacterial lipids when bound to non-polymorphic CD1 molecules. One such subset, germline-encoded, mycolyl lipid-reactive (GEM) T cells, recognizes mycobacterial cell wall lipids and expresses a conserved TCR-ɑ chain that is shared among genetically unrelated individuals. We developed a quantitative PCR assay to determine expression of the GEM TCR-ɑ nucleotide sequence in human tissues and blood. This assay was validated on plasmids and T cell lines. We tested blood samples from South African subjects with or without tuberculin reactivity or with active tuberculosis disease. We were able to detect GEM TCR-ɑ above the limit of detection in 92% of donors but found no difference in GEM TCR-ɑ expression among the three groups after normalizing for total TCR-ɑ expression. In a cohort of leprosy patients from Nepal, we successfully detected GEM TCR-ɑ in 100% of skin biopsies with histologically confirmed tuberculoid and lepromatous leprosy. Thus, GEM T cells constitute part of the T cell repertoire in the skin. However, GEM TCR-ɑ expression was not different between leprosy patients and control subjects after normalization. Further, these results reveal the feasibility of developing a simple, field deployable molecular diagnostic based on mycobacterial lipid antigen-specific TCR sequences that are readily detectable in human tissues and blood independent of genetic background.
Crop loss identification at field parcel scale using satellite remote sensing and machine learning
Authors: Hiremath Santosh , Wittke Samantha , Palosuo Taru , Kaivosoja Jere , Tao Fulu , Proll Maximilian , Puttonen Eetu , Peltonen-Sainio Pirjo , Marttinen Pekka , Mamitsuka Hiroshi
Published: December 2021

Identifying crop loss at field parcel scale using satellite images is challenging: first, crop loss is caused by many factors during the growing season; second, reliable reference data about crop loss are lacking; third, there are many ways to define crop loss. This study investigates the feasibility of using satellite images to train machine learning (ML) models to classify agricultural field parcels into those with and without crop loss. The reference data for this study was provided by Finnish Food Authority (FFA) containing crop loss information of approximately 1.4 million field parcels in Finland covering about 3.5 million ha from 2000 to 2015. This reference data was combined with Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from Landsat 7 images, in which more than 80% of the possible data are missing. Despite the hard problem with extremely noisy data, among the four ML models we tested, random forest (with mean imputation and missing value indicators) achieved the average AUC (area under the ROC curve) of 0.688±0.059 over all 16 years with the range [0.602, 0.795] in identifying new crop-loss fields based on reference fields of the same year. To our knowledge, this is one of the first large scale benchmark study of using machine learning for crop loss classification at field parcel scale. The classification setting and trained models have numerous potential applications, for example, allowing government agencies or insurance companies to verify crop-loss claims by farmers and realise efficient agricultural monitoring.
Analysis of migration of pathogenic drug-resistant bacteria to soils and groundwater after fertilization with sewage sludge
Authors: Stańczyk-Mazanek Ewa , Stępniak Longina
Published: December 2021

The paper discusses the analysis of the effect of using sewage sludge for fertilization on the level of soil and groundwater contamination with drug-resistant bacteria. Other sanitary contaminants in these environments were also analysed. Composted sewage sludge was introduced into the sandy soil over a period of 6 months. The examinations were conducted under conditions of a lysimetric experiment with the possibility of collecting soil leachates (in natural conditions). The following doses of sewage sludge were used: 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40 t/ha calculated per experimental object containing 10 kg of sandy soil. The research were carried out within the time frame of one year. Dactylis glomerata grass was grown on the fertilized soils. In soils and leachates from soils (which may have polluted groundwater) collected from fertilized experimental objects, the sanitary condition and quantity of drug-resistant bacteria (mainly from the families Enterobacteriaceae and Enterococcus) were analysed one year after fertilization. Their drug resistance to selected antibiotics was also analysed based on current recommendations. The study showed that fertilization with sewage sludge (even after stabilization and hygienization) results in contamination of soil and infiltrating waters with many species of drug-resistant pathogenic bacteria. The lowest level of contamination of soil and water environment was found after the application of sewage sludge at a dose of 10 t/ha. The isolated drug-resistant strains of intestinal bacteria were less sensitive to older generations of antibiotics including cefazolin, ampicillin, and co-amoxiclav.
ACCU3RATE: A mobile health application rating scale based on user reviews
Authors: Biswas Milon , Tania Marzia Hoque , Kaiser M. Shamim , Kabir Russell , Mahmud Mufti , Kemal Atika Ahmad
Published: December 2021

Background

Over the last decade, mobile health applications (mHealth App) have evolved exponentially to assess and support our health and well-being.

Objective

This paper presents an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled mHealth app rating tool, called ACCU3RATE, which takes multidimensional measures such as user star rating, user review and features declared by the developer to generate the rating of an app. However, currently, there is very little conceptual understanding on how user reviews affect app rating from a multi-dimensional perspective. This study applies AI-based text mining technique to develop more comprehensive understanding of user feedback based on several important factors, determining the mHealth app ratings.

Method

Based on the literature, six variables were identified that influence the mHealth app rating scale. These factors are user star rating, user text review, user interface (UI) design, functionality, security and privacy, and clinical approval. Natural Language Toolkit package is used for interpreting text and to identify the App users’ sentiment. Additional considerations were accessibility, protection and privacy, UI design for people living with physical disability. Moreover, the details of clinical approval, if exists, were taken from the developer’s statement. Finally, we fused all the inputs using fuzzy logic to calculate the new app rating score.

Results and conclusions

ACCU3RATE concentrates on heart related Apps found in the play store and App gallery. The findings indicate the efficacy of the proposed method as opposed to the current device scale. This study has implications for both App developers and consumers who are using mHealth Apps to monitor and track their health. The performance evaluation shows that the proposed mHealth scale has shown excellent reliability as well as internal consistency of the scale, and high inter-rater reliability index. It has also been noticed that the fuzzy based rating scale, as in ACCU3RATE, matches more closely to the rating performed by experts.