bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Glyphosate Impact on the Agrofood Ecosystem
Authors: Sang Yaxin , Mejuto Juan-Carlos , Xiao Jianbo , Simal-Gandara Jesus
Published: February 2021

Agro-industries should adopt effective strategies to use agrochemicals such as glyphosate herbicides cautiously in order to protect public health. This entails careful testing and risk assessment of available choices, and also educating farmers and users with mitigation strategies in ecosystem protection and sustainable development. The key to success in this endeavour is using scientific research on biological pest control, organic farming and regulatory control, etc., for new developments in food production and safety, and for environmental protection. Education and research is of paramount importance for food and nutrition security in the shadow of climate change, and their consequences in food production and consumption safety and sustainability. This review, therefore, diagnoses on the use of glyphosate and the associated development of glyphosate-resistant weeds. It also deals with the risk assessment on human health of glyphosate formulations through environment and dietary exposures based on the impact of glyphosate and its metabolite AMPA—(aminomethyl)phosphonic acid—on water and food. All this to setup further conclusions and recommendations on the regulated use of glyphosate and how to mitigate the adverse effects.
Dynamic Parameter Identification of a Pointing Mechanism Considering the Joint Clearance
Authors: Sun Jing , Han Xueyan , Li Tong , Li Shihua
Published: February 2021

The clearance of the revolute joint influences the accuracy of dynamic parameter identification. In order to address this problem, a method for dynamic parameter identification of an X–Y pointing mechanism while considering the clearance of the revolute joint is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the nonlinear dynamic model of the pointing mechanism was established based on a modified contact model, which took the effect of the asperity of contact surface on joint clearance into consideration. Secondly, with the aim of achieving the anti-interference incentive trajectory, the trajectory was optimized according to the condition number of the observation matrix and the driving functions of activate joints that could be obtained. Thirdly, dynamic simulation was conducted through Adams software, and clearance was involved in the simulation model. Finally, the dynamic parameter identification of the pointing mechanism was conducted based on an artificial bee colony (ABC) algorithm. The identification result that considered joint clearance was compared with that which did not consider joint clearance. The results showed that the accuracy of the dynamic parameter identification was improved when the clearance was taken into consideration. This study provides a theoretical basis for the improvement of dynamic parameter identification accuracy.
Using Digital Photography to Track Understory Phenology in Mediterranean Cork Oak Woodlands
Authors: Jorge Catarina , Silva João M. N. , Boavida-Portugal Joana , Soares Cristina , Cerasoli Sofia
Published: February 2021

Monitoring vegetation is extremely relevant in the context of climate change, and digital repeat photography is a method that has gained momentum due to a low cost–benefit ratio. This work aims to demonstrate the possibility of using digital cameras instead of field spectroradiometers (FS) to track understory vegetation phenology in Mediterranean cork oak woodlands. A commercial camera was used to take monthly photographs that were processed with the Phenopix package to extract green chromatic coordinates (GCC). GCC showed good agreement with the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and normalized difference water index (NDWI) obtained with FS data. The herbaceous layer displayed a very good fit between GCC and NDVI (coefficient of determination, represented by r2 = 0.89). On the contrary, the GCC of shrubs (Cistus salviifolius and Ulex airensis) showed a better fit with NDWI (r2 = 0.78 and 0.55, respectively) than with NDVI (r2 = 0.60 and 0.30). Models show that grouping shrub species together improves the predictive results obtained with ulex but not with cistus. Concerning the relationship with climatic factors, all vegetation types showed a response to rainfall and temperature. Grasses and cistus showed similar responses to meteorological drivers, particularly mean maximum temperature (r = −0.66 and −0.63, respectively). The use of digital repeat photography to track vegetation phenology was found to be very suitable for understory vegetation with the exception of one shrub species. Thus, this method proves to have the potential to monitor a wide spectrum of understory vegetation at a much lower cost than FS.
Application of Denoising CNN for Noise Suppression and Weak Signal Extraction of Lunar Penetrating Radar Data
Authors: Zhou Haoqiu , Feng Xuan , Dong Zejun , Liu Cai , Liang Wenjing
Published: February 2021

As one of the main payloads mounted on the Yutu-2 rover of Chang’E-4 probe, lunar penetrating radar (LPR) aims to map the subsurface structure in the Von Kármán crater. The field LPR data are generally masked by clutters and noises of large quantities. To solve the noise interference, dozens of filtering methods have been applied to LPR data. However, these methods have their limitations, so noise suppression is still a tough issue worth studying. In this article, the denoising convolutional neural network (CNN) framework is applied to the noise suppression and weak signal extraction of 500 MHz LPR data. The results verify that the low-frequency clutters embedded in the LPR data mainly came from the instrument system of the Yutu rover. Besides, compared with the classic band-pass filter and the mean filter, the CNN filter has better performance when dealing with noise interference and weak signal extraction; compared with Kirchhoff migration, it can provide original high-quality radargram with diffraction information. Based on the high-quality radargram provided by the CNN filter, the subsurface sandwich structure is revealed and the weak signals from three sub-layers within the paleo-regolith are extracted.
Time Evolution of Storms Producing Terrestrial Gamma-Ray Flashes Using ERA5 Reanalysis Data, GPS, Lightning and Geostationary Satellite Observations
Authors: Tiberia Alessandra , Mascitelli Alessandra , D’Adderio Leo Pio , Federico Stefano , Marisaldi Martino , Porcù Federico , Realini Eugenio , Gatti Andrea , Ursi Alessandro , Fuschino Fabio , Tavani Marco , Dietrich Stefano
Published: February 2021

In this article, we report the first investigation over time of the atmospheric conditions around terrestrial gamma-ray flash (TGF) occurrences, using GPS sensors in combination with geostationary satellite observations and ERA5 reanalysis data. The goal is to understand which characteristics are favorable to the development of these events and to investigate if any precursor signals can be expected. A total of 9 TGFs, occurring at a distance lower than 45 km from a GPS sensor, were analyzed and two of them are shown here as an example analysis. Moreover, the lightning activity, collected by the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN), was used in order to identify any links and correlations with TGF occurrence and precipitable water vapor (PWV) trends. The combined use of GPS and the stroke rate trends identified, for all cases, a recurring pattern in which an increase in PWV is observed on a timescale of about two hours before the TGF occurrence that can be placed within the lightning peak. The temporal relation between the PWV trend and TGF occurrence is strictly related to the position of GPS sensors in relation to TGF coordinates. The life cycle of these storms observed by geostationary sensors described TGF-producing clouds as intense with a wide range of extensions and, in all cases, the TGF is located at the edge of the convective cell. Furthermore, the satellite data provide an added value in associating the GPS water vapor trend to the convective cell generating the TGF. The investigation with ERA5 reanalysis data showed that TGFs mainly occur in convective environments with unexceptional values with respect to the monthly average value of parameters measured at the same location. Moreover, the analysis showed the strong potential of the use of GPS data for the troposphere characterization in areas with complex territorial morphologies. This study provides indications on the dynamics of con-vective systems linked to TGFs and will certainly help refine our understanding of their production, as well as highlighting a potential approach through the use of GPS data to explore the lightning activity trend and TGF occurrences.
Estimations of Global Horizontal Irradiance and Direct Normal Irradiance by Using Fengyun-4A Satellite Data in Northern China
Authors: Jia Dongyu , Hua Jiajia , Wang Liping , Guo Yitao , Guo Hong , Wu Pingping , Liu Min , Yang Liwei
Published: February 2021

Accurate solar radiation estimation is very important for solar energy systems and is a precondition of solar energy utilization. Due to the rapid development of new energy sources, the demand for surface solar radiation estimation and observation has grown. Due to the scarcity of surface radiation observations, high-precision remote sensing data are trying to fill this gap. In this paper, a global solar irradiance estimation method (in different months, seasons, and weather conditions), using data from the advanced geosynchronous radiation imager (AGRI) sensor onboard the FengYun-4A satellite with cloud index methodology (CSD-SI), was tested. It was found that the FengYun-4A satellite data could be used to calculate the clear sky index through the Heliosat-2 method. Combined with McClear, the global horizontal irradiance (GHI) and the direct normal irradiance (DNI) in northeast China could be accurately obtained. The estimated GHI accuracy under clear sky was slightly affected by the seasons and the normalized root mean square error (nRMSE) values (in four sites) were higher in summer and autumn (including all weather conditions). Compared to the estimated GHI, the estimated DNI was less accurate. It was found that the estimated DNI in October had the best performance. In the meantime, the nRMSE, the normalized mean absolute error (nMAE), and the normalized mean bias error (nMBE) of Zhangbei were 35.152%, 27.145%, and −8.283%, while for Chengde, they were 43.150%, 28.822%, and −13.017%, respectively. In addition, the estimated DNI at ground level was significantly higher than the actual observed value in autumn and winter. Considering that the error mainly came from the overestimation of McClear, a new DNI radiation algorithm during autumn and winter is proposed for northern China. After applying the new algorithm, the nRMSE decreased from 49.324% to 48.226% for Chengde and from 48.342% to 41.631% for Zhangbei. Similarly, the nMBE decreased from −32.351% to −18.823% for Zhangbei and from −26.211% to −9.107% for Chengde.
Adjacent-Track InSAR Processing for Large-Scale Land Subsidence Monitoring in the Hebei Plain
Authors: Li Xi , Yan Li , Lu Lijun , Huang Guoman , Zhao Zheng , Lu Zechang
Published: February 2021

Large-scale land subsidence has threatened the safety of the Hebei Plain in China. For tens of thousands of square kilometers of the Hebei Plain, large-scale subsidence monitoring is still one of the most difficult problems to be solved. In this paper, we employed the small baseline subset (SBAS) and NSBAS technique to monitor the land subsidence in the Hebei Plain (45,000 km2). The 166 Sentinel-1A data of adjacent-track 40 and 142 collected from May 2017 to May 2019 were used to generate the average deformation velocity and deformation time-series. A novel data fusion flow for the generation of land subsidence velocity of adjacent-track is presented and tested, named as the fusion of time-series interferometric synthetic aperture radar (TS-InSAR) results of adjacent-track using synthetic aperture radar amplitude images (FTASA). A cross-comparison analysis between the two tracks results and two TS-InSAR results was carried out. In addition, the deformation results were validated by leveling measurements and benchmarks on bedrock results, reaching a precision 9 mm/year. Twenty-six typical subsidence bowls were identified in Handan, Xingtai, Shijiazhuang, Hengshui, Cangzhou, and Baoding. An average annual subsidence velocity over −79 mm/year was observed in Gaoyang County of Baoding City. Through the cause analysis of the typical subsidence bowls, the results showed that the shallow and deep groundwater funnels, three different land use types over the building construction, industrial area, and dense residential area, and faults had high spatial correlation related to land subsidence bowls.
Hierarchical Cluster Analysis of Human Value Priorities and Associations with Subjective Well-Being, Subjective General Health, Social Life, and Depression across Europe
Authors: Leite Ângela , Ramires Ana , Vidal Diogo Guedes , Sousa Hélder Fernando Pedrosa e , Dinis Maria Alzira Pimenta , Fidalgo Alexandra
Published: February 2021

Human values are a central component in understanding individuals’ choices. Using the Schwartz’s Values instrument, this study aimed to identify patterns of human value priorities of 35,936 participants across 20 European countries and analyse their relations with subjective well-being (SWB), subjective general health (SGH), social life, and depression indices in Europe. A hierarchical cluster analysis of data from the seventh European Social Survey (ESS) round 7, based on the higher order dimensions of the Schwartz values model, allowed identifying four European groups with distinct indicators. Indices of SWB, SGH, social life, and depression showed statistically significant differences among the four different sociodemographic groups. The graphical representation of the monotonic correlations of each of these indices with the value priorities attributed to the ten basic human values was ordered according to the Schwartz circumplex model, yielding quasi-sinusoidal patterns. The differences among the four groups can be explained by their distinct sociodemographic characteristics: social focus, growth focus, strong social focus, and weak growth focus. The results of this study suggest a rehabilitation of the notion of hedonism, raising the distinction between higher and lower pleasures, with the former contributing more to well-being than the latter.
Simulating Urban Shrinkage in Detroit via Agent-Based Modeling
Authors: Jiang Na , Crooks Andrew , Wang Wenjing , Xie Yichun
Published: February 2021

While the world’s total urban population continues to grow, not all cities are witnessing such growth—some are actually shrinking. This shrinkage has caused several problems to emerge, including population loss, economic depression, vacant properties and the contraction of housing markets. Such issues challenge efforts to make cities sustainable. While there is a growing body of work on studying shrinking cities, few explore such a phenomenon from the bottom-up using dynamic computational models. To fill this gap, this paper presents a spatially explicit agent-based model stylized on the Detroit Tri-County area, an area witnessing shrinkage. Specifically, the model demonstrates how the buying and selling of houses can lead to urban shrinkage through a bottom-up approach. The results of the model indicate that, along with the lower level housing transactions being captured, the aggregated level market conditions relating to urban shrinkage are also denoted (i.e., the contraction of housing markets). As such, the paper demonstrates the potential of simulation for exploring urban shrinkage and potentially offers a means to test policies to achieve urban sustainability.
The Asymmetric Impact of Funding Liquidity Risk on the Volatility of Stock Portfolios during the COVID-19 Crisis
Authors: Kocaarslan Baris , Soytas Ugur
Published: February 2021

In this study, we identify economic transmission channels through which changes in funding liquidity conditions in interbank markets asymmetrically affect volatilities of stock portfolios during the COVID-19 crisis. For the purpose of this study, the quantile regression approach is utilized. Controlling for macroeconomic factors, we document that volatilities of high-risk portfolios increase more in response to a deterioration in funding liquidity conditions compared to less risky portfolios. More importantly, this increase intensifies in high-volatility periods of high-risk portfolios, which implies the impact is stronger during uncertain economic environments, such as the one caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Chilean Teachers’ Attitudes towards Inclusive Education, Intention, and Self-Efficacy to Implement Inclusive Practices
Authors: San Martin Constanza , Ramirez Chenda , Calvo Rubén , Muñoz-Martínez Yolanda , Sharma Umesh
Published: February 2021

Teachers play an important role in the success of inclusive practices for diverse learners in regular classrooms. It is, therefore, important to examine their beliefs and preparation to teach in inclusive classrooms. The main purpose of this study was to analyze the attitude of active Chilean teachers (n = 569) towards inclusion, their self-efficacy regarding inclusive practices, and their intention to teach in inclusive classrooms. Our secondary objectives were to explore the relationship between their attitudes and self-efficacy and to determine the influence of demographic and professional variables on these two constructs. A positive and significant relationship between teachers’ attitude and self-efficacy was found. Teacher qualification was not significantly related to attitudes towards inclusion but was negatively associated with their self-efficacy beliefs concerning inclusive practices. Secondary education teachers reported lower teaching efficacy beliefs for inclusion than pre-school, primary, and special education teachers. The type of school emerged as a significant predictor of teachers’ attitude and self-efficacy beliefs. The implications of this research and need for additional teacher and in-service training to improve educators’ attitudes and self-efficacy are discussed.
Collaborative Organization Models for Sustainable Development in the Agri-Food Sector
Authors: Ammirato Salvatore , Felicetti Alberto Michele , Ferrara Massimiliano , Raso Cinzia , Violi Antonio
Published: February 2021

It is widely recognized that the adoption of collaborative organization models in the agri-food sector can help farmers in rural areas to reach sustainable development goals. In any case, a holistic and coherent view of sustainability, organizational models and supporting technologies in the agri-food sector is still not present in the scientific literature. With this paper, we aim to fill this gap and to propose a framework that is useful to help scholars and practitioners in analyzing and designing sustainable Collaborative Networks in the agri-food sector
Evaluation and Prediction of Ecosystem Service Value in the Zhoushan Islands Based on LUCC
Authors: Xi Henghui , Cui Wanglai , Cai Li , Chen Mengyuan , Xu Chenglei
Published: February 2021

Islands are the confluence of terrestrial ecology and marine ecology. With urban expansion and economic development, the ecological environment of islands is facing serious threats. In order to study the island area land use change/cover (LUCC) and its impact on the ecosystem service value (ESV), this study was conducted. This study evaluated the ESV of Zhoushan Islands based on the LUCC, using the equivalent coefficient method, and simulated and analyzed the ESV of Zhoushan Islands in 2025 under different scenarios using the "Future Land Use Simulation Model". The results showed: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the ESV of Zhoushan Islands showed a "∧" type change trend, and the total amount decreased by 14.1141 million yuan. (2) The spatial distribution and changes of ESV have a certain regularity. The ESV in the center of the island and in the water system area is relatively high but does not change significantly over time, while the ESV of urban buildings and cultivated areas on the edge of the island is low, and, over time, the change is significant. (3) Compared with 2020, the total ESV under the business-as-usual (BAU) scenario shows a slow downward trend, the ESV under the socio-economic development (SED) scenario shows a significant downward trend, and the total ESV under the ecological protection priority (EPP) scenario has increased. This research provides a theoretical basis and support for the development and utilization of island space and the improvement of "eco-economy-society" benefits; in addition, the research results provide support for scientific decision-making on the sustainable use of resources in island areas (island cities) and the sustainable management of ecosystems.
Does Forest Industries in China Become Cleaner? A Prospective of Embodied Carbon Emission
Authors: Wang Lanhui , Cui Zichan , Kuuluvainen Jari , Sun Yongyu
Published: February 2021

Forests and the forest products industry contribute to climate change mitigation by sequestering carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in biomass, and by fabricating products that substitute other, more greenhouse-gas-emission-intensive materials and energy. This study investigates primary wood-working industries (panel, furniture, pulp and paper) in order to determine the development of carbon emissions in China during the last two decades. The input–output approach is used and the factors driving the changes in CO2 emissions are analyzed by Index Decomposition Analysis–Log Mean Divisia Index (LMDI). The results show that carbon emissions in forest product industries have been declining during the last twenty years and that the driving factor of this change is the energy intensity of production and economic input, which have changed dramatically.
CSR Communication through Social Media: A Litmus Test for Banking Consumers’ Loyalty
Authors: Ahmad Naveed , Naveed Rana Tahir , Scholz Miklas , Irfan Muhammad , Usman Muhammad , Ahmad Ilyas
Published: February 2021

Prior literature in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has largely focused on investigating its relationship with organizational-related outcomes, whereas the impact of CSR on consumer behavior is largely ignored in the recent literature. Further, most of the prior studies have investigated CSR with a philanthropic viewpoint, but its importance in achieving marketing-related outcomes is something that is to date, underexplored. Hence, the aim of the present study is to investigate the impact of CSR communication through social media on consumer loyalty with the mediating effect of consumers’ brand admiration in the banking sector of Pakistan. The banking sector was selected due to the reason that this sector is homogenized in nature and creating consumers’ loyalty due to this homogenized character of this sector is challenging. The data of the present study were collected from different banking consumers through an adapted questionnaire on a five-point Likert scale. A total of 448 fully filled questionnaires were received which included 289 male and 159 female banking consumers. The results of the present study revealed that CSR communications through social media have a positive impact on consumer loyalty, and consumers’ brand admiration partially mediates this relationship. The findings of the present study would help policymakers from banking institutions to use CSR strategy from the perspective of marketing which is undoubtedly very important for every organization in the current digital age.
Design and Development of an Instrument on Knowledge of Food Safety, Practices, and Risk Perception Addressed to Children and Adolescents from Low-Income Families
Authors: Batista Sueny Andrade , Stedefeldt Elke , Nakano Eduardo Yoshio , Cortes Mariana de Oliveira , Botelho Raquel Braz Assunção , Zandonadi Renata Puppin , Raposo António , Han Heesup , Ginani Verônica Cortez
Published: February 2021

In the fight against foodborne diseases, expanding access to information for different groups is needed. In this aspect, it is crucial to evaluate the target audience’s particularities. This study constructed and validated an instrument containing three questionnaires to identify the level of knowledge, practices, and risk perception of food safety by low-income students between 11 and 14 years old. The following steps were used: systematic search of the databases; conducting and analyzing focus groups; questionnaires development; and questionnaires analysis. After two judges’ rounds, the final version was reached with 11 knowledge items, 11 practice items, and five risk perception items. The content validation index values were higher than 0.80. The adopted methodology considered the students’ understanding and perceptions, as well the appropriate language to be used. Besides, it allowed the development of questionnaires that directly and straightforwardly covers the rules set by the World Health Organization for foodborne disease control called Five Keys to Safer Food (keep clean; separate raw and cooked; cook thoroughly; keep food at safe temperatures; and use safe water and raw materials). Its use can result in a diagnosis for elaborating educational proposals and other actions against foodborne illness in the most vulnerable population.
The Relationship between Corporate Culture and Value at Different Life Cycle Stages
Authors: Park Sung Ook , Choi Seung Uk , Kim Seong Tae , Na Hyung Jong
Published: February 2021

Despite the general agreement that a firm embodies its own culture, there is still a lack of empirical research on how a firm’s culture affects its value. Another caveat on previous studies is that they implicitly assume that a firm’s culture does not vary over time. In this paper, we examine the following two questions to address this lack: (1) Does a firm’s culture affect the firm’s value? (2) If a firm’s culture varies at different life cycle stages, do these changes have an impact on firm value? By using a competing values framework, we identify four types of corporate culture—adhocracy, market, clan, and hierarchy—and use life cycle stages to proxy for changes in a firm’s environment. The results reveal that adhocracy culture has a positive effect on a firm’s value. In contrast, we find a negative association between hierarchy culture and a firm’s value. This can be interpreted as the features of adhocracy culture, which gives autonomy to its members (flexible and discretion) and keeps challenging a firm to grow (external focus and differentiation), positively impacting firm value more than the other cultures. Furthermore, at a growth stage in which a firm faces dynamic environmental changes, both adhocracy and clan cultures have an incrementally positive effect on firm value. This implies that firms in mature or decline stages lose dynamic changes in their operational environment, therefore, the effect of culture on firm value is restricted in those stages.
Can Glyphosate-Based Herbicides Contribute to Sustainable Agriculture?
Authors: Krimsky Sheldon
Published: February 2021

Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) have become the leading agricultural herbicides used globally since the development of genetically engineered herbicide-tolerant crops. This paper investigates whether GBHs are consistent with or supportive of sustainable agriculture. Agricultural sustainability is defined by generally agreed upon goals: (1) promoting agroecology; (2) protecting soils and the Earth’s natural resources; (3) protecting biodiversity; and (4) enhancing the quality of life and health of farmers, farm workers, and society. Through an in-depth examination of the scholarly literature, the paper explores whether the scientific studies of GBHs are consistent with their sustainable applications in agriculture in the areas of human health, non-tillage agriculture, soil quality, aquatic ecosystems and beneficial, non-target species. Based on the four generally agreed upon goals listed above for agricultural sustainability, the paper finds that GBHs are not consistent with sustainability goals.
Social Sustainability of Compact Neighbourhoods Evidence from London and Berlin
Authors: Shirazi M. Reza , Keivani Ramin
Published: February 2021

This article revisits social sustainability of compact urban neighbourhoods based on first-hand evidence from four case studies in London and Berlin. It suggests a working definition for socially sustainable neighbourhoods, develops a tripartite integrative evaluation framework for measuring social sustainability of urban neighbourhoods, and applies it to four case studies in London and Berlin. Findings of this research are in line with some dominant arguments made in favour of social sustainability of compact urban form, but challenges some others. Research findings suggest that compact urban form is not an urban orthodoxy, but has multiple and contrasting social meanings and perceptions in different contexts and places.
A Dimensionality Reduction Algorithm for Unstructured Campus Big Data Fusion
Authors: Wang Zhenfei , Wang Yan , Zhang Liying , Zhang Chuchu , Zhang Xingjin
Published: February 2021

Data modeling and dimensionality reduction are important research points in the field of big data. At present, there is no effective model to realize the consistent representation and fusion of different types of data of students in unstructured campus big data. In addition, in the process of big data processing, the amount of data is too large and the intermediate results are too complex, which seriously affects the efficiency of big data dimension reduction. To solve the above problems, this paper proposes an incremental high order singular value decomposition dimensionality (icHOSVD) reduction algorithm for unstructured campus big data. In this algorithm, the characteristics of audio, video, image and text data in unstructured campus student data are tensioned to form a sub-tensor model, and the semi-tensor product is used to fuse the sub-tensor model into a unified model as the individual student tensor model. On the basis of individual model fusion, the campus big data fusion model was segmented, and each segmented small tensor model was dimensioned by icHOSVD reduction to obtain an approximate tensor as the symmetric tensor that could replace the original tensor, so as to solve the problem of large volume of tensor fusion model and repeated calculation of intermediate results in data processing. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can effectively reduce the computational complexity and improve the performance compared with traditional data dimension reduction algorithms. The research results can be applied to campus big data analysis and decision-making.
Preparation and Neutralization Efficacy of Novel Jellyfish Antivenoms against Cyanea nozakii Toxins
Authors: Li Rongfeng , Yu Huahua , Li Aoyu , Yu Chunlin , Li Pengcheng
Published: February 2021

Jellyfish stings are a common issue globally, particularly in coastal areas in the summer. Victims can suffer pain, itching, swelling, shock, and even death. Usually, hot water, vinegar, or alumen is used to treat the normal symptoms of a jellyfish sting. However, a specific antivenom may be an effective treatment to deal with severe jellyfish stings. Cyanea nozakii often reach a diameter of 60 cm and are responsible for hundreds of thousands of stings per year in coastal Chinese waters. However, there has been no specific C. nozakii antivenom until now, and so the development of this antivenom is very important. Herein, we collected C. nozakii antisera from tentacle extract venom immunized rabbits and purified the immunoglobulin (IgG) fraction antivenom (AntiCnTXs). Subsequently, two complete procedures to produce a refined F(ab’)2 type of antivenom (F(ab’)2-AntiCnTXs) and Fab type of antivenom (Fab-AntiCnTXs) by multiple optimizations and purification were established. The neutralization efficacy of these three types of antivenoms was compared and analyzed in vitro and in vivo, and the results showed that all types of antibodies displayed some neutralization effect on the lethality of C. nozakii venom toxins, with the neutralization efficacy as follows: F(ab’)2-AntiCnTXs ≥ AntiCnTXs > Fab-AntiCnTXs. This study describes the preparation of novel C. nozakii jellyfish antivenom preparations towards the goal of developing a new, effective treatment for jellyfish stings.
Design and Synthesis of HCV-E2 Glycoprotein Epitope Mimics in Molecular Construction of Potential Synthetic Vaccines
Authors: Meuleman Theodorus J. , Cowton Vanessa M. , Patel Arvind H. , Liskamp Rob M. J.
Published: February 2021

Hepatitis C virus remains a global threat, despite the availability of highly effective direct-acting antiviral (DAA) drugs. With thousands of new infections annually, the need for a prophylactic vaccine is evident. However, traditional vaccine design has been unable to provide effective vaccines so far. Therefore, alternative strategies need to be investigated. In this work, a chemistry-based approach is explored towards fully synthetic peptide-based vaccines using epitope mimicry, by focusing on highly effective and conserved amino acid sequences in HCV, which, upon antibody binding, inhibit its bio-activity. Continuous and discontinuous epitope mimics were both chemically synthesized based on the HCV-E2 glycoprotein while using designed fully synthetic cyclic peptides. These cyclic epitope mimics were assembled on an orthogonally protected scaffold. The scaffolded epitope mimics have been assessed in immunization experiments to investigate the elicitation of anti-HCV-E2 glycoprotein antibodies. The neutralizing potential of the elicited antibodies was investigated, representing a first step in employing chemically synthesized epitope mimics as a novel strategy towards vaccine design.
Standard Bacteriophage Purification Procedures Cause Loss in Numbers and Activity
Authors: Carroll-Portillo Amanda , Coffman Cristina N. , Varga Matthew G. , Alcock Joe , Singh Sudha B. , Lin Henry C.
Published: February 2021

For decades, bacteriophage purification has followed structured protocols focused on generating high concentrations of phage in manageable volumes. As research moves toward understanding complex phage populations, purification needs have shifted to maximize the amount of phage while maintaining diversity and activity. The effects of standard phage purification procedures such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation and cesium chloride (CsCl) density gradients on both diversity and activity of a phage population are not known. We have examined the effects of PEG precipitation and CsCl density gradients on a number of known phage (M13, T4, and ΦX 174) of varying structure and size, individually and as mixed sample. Measurement of phage numbers and activity throughout the purification process was performed. We demonstrate that these methods, used routinely to generate “pure” phage samples, are in fact detrimental to retention of phage number and activity; even more so in mixed phage samples. As such, minimal amounts of processing are recommended to introduce less bias and maintain more of a phage population.
Antibody Response to Canine Parvovirus Vaccination in Dogs with Hypothyroidism Treated with Levothyroxine
Authors: Bergmann Michèle , Freisl Monika , Hartmann Katrin , Speck Stephanie , Truyen Uwe , Zablotski Yury , Mayr Matthias , Wehner Astrid
Published: February 2021

(1) Background: No information is available on how dogs with hypothyroidism (HypoT) respond to vaccination. This study measured pre- and post-vaccination anti-canine parvovirus (CPV) antibodies in dogs with HypoT treated with levothyroxine and compared the results to those of healthy dogs. (2) Methods: Six dogs with HypoT and healthy age-matched control dogs (n = 23) were vaccinated against CPV with a modified-live vaccine. Hemagglutination inhibition was used to measure antibodies on days 0, 7, and 28. The comparison of the vaccination response of dogs with HypoT and healthy dogs were performed with univariate analysis. (3) Results: Pre-vaccination antibodies (≥10) were detected in 100% of dogs with HypoT (6/6; 95% CI: 55.7–100) and in 100% of healthy dogs (23/23; 95% CI: 83.1–100.0). A ≥4-fold titer increase was observed in none of the dogs with HypoT and in 4.3% of the healthy dogs (1/23; CI95%: <0.01–22.7). Mild vaccine-associated adverse events (VAAEs) were detected in 33.3% of the dogs with HypoT (2/6; 95% CI: 9.3–70.4) and in 43.5% (10/23; 95% CI: 25.6–63.2) of the healthy dogs. (4) Conclusions: There was neither a significant difference in the dogs’ pre-vaccination antibodies (p = 1.000), or vaccination response (p = 0.735), nor in the occurrence of post-vaccination VAAEs (p = 0.798). The vaccination response in dogs with levothyroxine-treated HypoT seems to be similar to that of healthy dogs.
Pneumococcal Choline-Binding Proteins Involved in Virulence as Vaccine Candidates
Authors: Sempere Julio , Llamosí Mirella , del Río Menéndez Idoia , López Ruiz Beatriz , Domenech Mirian , González-Camacho Fernando
Published: February 2021

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a pathogen responsible for millions of deaths worldwide. Currently, the available vaccines for the prevention of S. pneumoniae infections are the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide-based vaccine (PPV-23) and the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV10 and PCV13). These vaccines only cover some pneumococcal serotypes (up to 100 different serotypes have been identified) and are unable to protect against non-vaccine serotypes and non-encapsulated pneumococci. The emergence of antibiotic-resistant non-vaccine serotypes after these vaccines is an increasing threat. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop new pneumococcal vaccines which could cover a wide range of serotypes. One of the vaccines most characterized as a prophylactic alternative to current PPV-23 or PCVs is a vaccine based on pneumococcal protein antigens. The choline-binding proteins (CBP) are found in all pneumococcal strains, giving them the characteristic to be potential vaccine candidates as they may protect against different serotypes. In this review, we have focused the attention on different CBPs as vaccine candidates because they are involved in the pathogenesis process, confirming their immunogenicity and protection against pneumococcal infection. The review summarizes the major contribution of these proteins to virulence and reinforces the fact that antibodies elicited against many of them may block or interfere with their role in the infection process.
Inherent Safety Analysis and Sustainability Evaluation of Chitosan Production from Shrimp Exoskeleton in Colombia
Authors: Zuorro Antonio , Moreno-Sader Kariana , González-Delgado Ángel
Published: February 2021

Waste valorization strategies are key to achieve more sustainable production within the shrimp industry. The crustacean exoskeletons can be potentially used to obtain value-added products such as chitosan. A comprehensive analysis including both safety and sustainability aspects of chitosan production from shrimp shells is presented in this study. The inherent safety analysis and sustainability evaluation was performed using the Inherent Safety Index (ISI) methodology and the Sustainable Weighted Return on Investment Metric (SWROIM), respectively. The process was designed for a processing capacity of 57,000 t/year. The return on investment (%ROI), potential environmental impact (PEI output), exergy efficiency, and the total inherent safety index (ITI) were used as indicators to evaluate process sustainability. The total inherent safety index was estimated at 25 indicating that the process is inherently unsafe. The main process risks were given by handling of flammable substances, reactivity, and inventory subindices. The overall sustainability evaluation showed a SWROIM of 36.33% indicating that the case study showed higher weighted performance compared to the return on investment metric of 18.08%.
Modèles et expériences autogestionnaires au Japon
Authors: Ishikawa Akihiro
Published: February 2021

Podemos distinguir hoy dia 4 modelos de autogestion en Japon, en función de la génesis de cada esperiencia : las pequeñas y medianas empresas recuperadas y administradas por los sindicatos o bajo forma de cooperativas despuès de un a declaración de quiebra, las pequenas y medianas empresas en las que los propietarios capitalistas -en periódos de crecimiento económico favorable - han acordado a los trabajadores ciertos derechos de autogestion, en vista de aumentar la productividad, de estabilizar la mano de obra, etc... ; las actividades de pequenos grupos ubicados a nisei de talleres en las grandes empresas, para aumentar la rentabilidad y mejorar la gestion del personal bajo el control de la dirección y de la jerarquia ; las comunidades « utópicas », agricolas y otras inspiradas por ciertas tendencias religiosas y beneficiando de una tradición antigua.

El articulo estudia cada una de estas experiencias analizando las condiciones internas y externas de su desarrollo.
Des Lip nippons
Authors: Ishikawa Akihiro , Sabouret Jean-François
Published: February 2021

There are several different ways in which Japanese enterprises that are forced to declare bankruptcy become self-managing : either upon prompting by the trade-union, as in the case of Van, a wholesale textile dealer or of Petri, a camera manufacturer, or by the workers joining a trade-union which launches the process of self-production as in the case of Paramount, a ladies’ shoe manufacturer. The problems vary from one company to another : production, turnover of products, market hostility, the level of salaries, workers’ participation in management, the need for specialised management are all factors which continually challenge the functioning of the enterprise in self-management.
Communautés pour l’autogestion
Authors: Gabert Gérard
Published: February 2021

Beschreibung der verschiedenen gemeinschaftlichen Ebenen und Praktiken : Wohngemeinschaften, selbstverwaltetes Wohnen, Landgemeinschaften, Jugend-kollektive und -zentren, Versuche der Zusammenarbeit und der Vernetzung, Integrationsmoglichkeiten in die Gesellschaft und Perspektive der Marginali-sierung.
Réseaux et coordination des alternatives. Bilan provisoire
Authors: Wend Christian
Published: February 2021

Welchem Bedürfnis entspricht die Vernetzung der alternativen Projekte und mit welchen Schwierigkeiten wird sie konfrontiert ? Versuch einer Erlàuterung auf Grand der Verschiedenartigkeit der Teilnehmer und der Unterschiede in der Bewertung der allgemeinen Wirtschaftlichen, politischen und sozialen Lage.
Régions et cogestion
Authors: Széll György
Published: February 2021

Analysis of the means by which co-management, not confined to a company structure but applied on a regional and national level, can mean a step towards self-management.
Isı Enerjisi Depolayan Faz Değişim Malzemelerinin Üretimi
Authors: AÇIKGÖZ Çağlayan , BALBAY Şenay , DAL İsmail
Published: February 2021

Bu çalışmada; Parafin, Polietilen glikol 600, üç farklı yüzey aktif madde (Lineer Alkil Benzen Sülfonik Asit, Setil Trimetil Amonyum Klorür ve Kokoamidopropil Betain) ve atık lastiğin kimyasal bozundurulması sonucu elde edilen Geri Kazanılmış Karbon kullanılarak Organik Faz Değişim Malzemesi üretilmiştir. Organik Faz Değişim Malzemeleri basit bir karıştırma ve vakum emdirme yöntemiyle üretilmiştir. Farklı türdeki yüzey aktif maddelerin kullanıldığı farklı kompozisyonlarda elde edilen numunelere; faz değişim sıcaklık farkı testleri yapılarak en yüksek faz değişim sıcaklık farkına sahip numuneler belirlenmiştir. Belirlenen bu numunelerin (FM13; FM20 ve FM26 Kodlu) kimyasal ve termal özellikleri, Fourier Dönüşümlü Kızılötesi Spektrotometresi ve Diferansiyel Taramalı Kalorimetri cihazı kullanılarak belirlenmiştir. En yüksek enerji depolama kapasitesine (85,64 j/g) sahip numunenin; Setil Trimetil Amonyum Klorür yüzey aktif maddesi içeren FM-26 kodlu numune olduğu belirlenmiştir.
Tinerețea patriarhului Nicodim la Dunărea de Jos în contextul anului omagial al satului românesc
Authors: Crăciun Casian
Published: February 2021

“The homage Year of the Romanian village, of the priests, teachers and mayors” and “The commemorative Year of the patriarchs Nicodim Munteanu and Iustin Moisescu”, topics decided by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church to be debated in the Romanian Patriarchate in 2019, they have given numerous scientific and cultural events, symposia or conferences within the Archdiocese of the Lower Danube, which have brought to light personalities of the Romanian village within the eparchy, and have shown how much we owe to our ancestors and how much and how much we have. to learn from them. The close connection between the traditional Romanian village and the intellectual, cultural, church life of the great urban centers of the Country was also highlighted, the village being the source from which the men of state, high hierarchies, great cultural people, intellectuals came out at the right time, especially that have contributed to the unification of all Romanians in a single homeland, to the preservation and affirmation of national identity, to the defense of the right faith and of the Romanian soul. This is also the case of the Nicodim Munteanu, a peasant son from Pipirig village, in the Neamț region, who was the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church between 1939 and 1948. Because an important stage in the becoming of Patriarch Nicodim took place in the Diocese of the Lower Danube, between 1902-1909, the present study sketches the personality and the theological, liturgical, missionary, cultural and administrative activity of Patriarch Nicodim in Galați, as archimandrite of the chair (vicar) and director of the Seminary “Sf. Apostle Andrew” (1908-1909). These issues, briefly presented, will be developed by our young priests, religious teachers, theologians, seminarians and social workers and, no less, by our good young Christians, by all the believers in the Lower Danube Diocese, by far and real useful for the salvation of our souls, for more soul peace, through prayer and the practice of liturgical, cultural and philanthropic life in the real way.
Patriarhul Iustin Moisescu (1910-1986), un ierarh care și-a pus „toată osârdia, priceperea și râvna“ în slujba Bisericii Ortodoxe Române
Authors: Marinescu Sorin
Published: February 2021

The present work is intended to be a retrieval of the history of the contribution of personalities that have marked the history of the Romanian Orthodox Church and, implicitly, the history of Romania. Thus, In the “Commemorative Year of the Patriarchs Nicodim Munteanu and Iustin Moisescu and of the translators of church books” in the Romanian Patriarchate, addressed to the Romanian Orthodox hierarchies and eparchies in the country and abroad, we set out to talk about the Patriarch Iustin Moisescu for understand the role it played in promoting living theology as a model, based on prayer, experience and life, even if the historical times were very difficult for the Church, the communists wanting to destroy it, because it maintained the consciousness of national identity and a hierarchy of authentic values, that opposed the atheist ideology promoted by them. Thus, starting from a brief biography of the one who was the fourth Romanian Patriarch, we were interested in the perception of contemporaries, as well as those who succeeded him, as I have not neglected his quality as a theologian, teacher university and publisher. Iustin Moisescu was an intellectual, theologian, who devoted all his energy to maintaining the right faith, to support the monastery life, to relieve the people and to give cultural brilliance to the Church, as he alone confessed.