bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimal model averaging based on leave‐h‐out forward‐validation for threshold autoregressive models
Authors: Xi Li , Liu Yin , Chen Zhanshou , Zhang Xinyu
Published: March 2023

The threshold autoregressive (TAR) model has received considerable attention in nonlinear time series literature. To weaken the impacts coming from model uncertainty and to improve the prediction accuracy, this paper develops a leave‐
‐out forward‐validation model averaging (LhoFVMA) method to average predictions from the TAR model. We establish our method's asymptotic optimality in the sense of achieving the lowest possible squared prediction risk. Simulation experiments show that our method is generally more efficient than other methods. For illustration, we future apply the proposed method to the basis of CSI 300 stock index futures.
The impact of system representation choices on architecting insights
Authors: Hennig Anthony , Szajnfarber Zoe
Published: March 2023

Systems engineers regularly rely on analysis of early design artifacts like system architecture representations to predict system performance, lifecycle costs, and development schedules, and to support design decision‐making. Recent recognition of challenges in this type of measurement has led to a heightened focus on developing better metrics. Less attention has been paid to the system representations upon which all subsequent analysis is performed. With this study, we demonstrate that choices about how to represent the system can explain variation in measurement, even holding metrics constant. This is important because most of these representation choices remain unarticulated in current practice. To do this, we conduct a controlled experiment where we experimentally manipulated the Design Structure Matrix (DSM) architecture representation of nine crowdsourced robotic arm designs and compared the value and relative ranks of their modularity and complexity. We found statistically significant changes in both value and rank, attributable to differences in choices in the system representation. The direction and magnitude of these changes also differed across modularity and complexity. In addition, some underlying designs seemed to be more robust to representation changes. This suggests an interaction between representation, design, and lifecycle properties. These results emphasize the importance of developing standard guidelines for how to represent system architectures and better documenting their use.
A genome‐wide analysis of the USDA Soybean Isoline Collection
Authors: Gilbert Erin , Merry Ryan , Campbell Benjamin W. , Stupar Robert M. , Lorenz Aaron J.
Published: March 2023

The USDA Soybean Isoline Collection has been an invaluable resource for the soybean genetics and breeding community. This collection, established in 1972, consists of 611 near‐isogenic lines (NILs) carrying one or multiple genes conferring traits that had been determined to exhibit Mendelian inheritance. It has been used in multiple studies on the genetic basis, physiology, and agronomy of these qualitative traits. Here, we used publicly available genotype (SoySNP50K), phenotype, and pedigree data on this collection to characterize the isogenicity of the NILs and identify chromosomal positions of unmapped genes. A total of 368 NILs had at least 80% identity to their recurrent parent and, thus, were useful for what can be called introgression mapping. Both on‐target and off‐target introgressions were evaluated. The size of on‐target introgressions into individual NILs ranged from 61 kb to 8.4 Mb, whereas off‐target introgressions ranged from 2.6 kb to 54.8 Mb. The observed large off‐target introgressions indicated that some NILs carry introgressions nearly the size of an entire chromosome. By applying introgression mapping to genes that had never been mapped, we identified the likely chromosomal positions of six such genes: ab, im, lo, Np, pc, and Rpm. The size of mapping intervals was large in some cases (10.28 Mb for im) but small in others (0.21 Mb for Np). The results reported herein will provide future researchers with a resource to help select informative NILs for future studies, and provide a starting point to further fine map, and ultimately clone and functionally characterize these six soybean genes.
The Impact of Ecolabels and Green Taxes on Market Outcomes
Authors: Englander Gabriel , Stevens Andrew W. , Taylor Rebecca L. C. , Villas-Boas Sofia B.
Published: March 2023

Ecolabels and green taxes aim to achieve more sustainable market outcomes by affecting suppliers’ production and sales behaviour, consumers’ purchasing behaviour, or both. In this chapter, we present the economic rationale for how these approaches may impact suppliers and consumers in various settings and review recent published empirical research on the topic. We focus specifically on examples where ecolabels and green taxes have been used to protect oceans and fisheries by reducing plastic waste and reducing purchases of less sustainable seafood. We conclude by discussing other possible policy instruments and highlight important avenues for future work in pursuing more sustainable market outcomes.
Connected and automated transport in the socio-technical transition
Authors: Dangschat Jens S.
Published: March 2023

Alongside questions of ethics, legislation, safety, financing, environmental friendliness and climate protection, the development of connected and automated transport (CAT) is primarily discussed as a technological challenge in the context of broad and diverse digitalization. By contrast, the social impacts or even the societal embedding of the technics associated with CAT developments still play a vastly subordinate role in the contemporary scientific discourse surrounding CAT and are occasionally portrayed as being highly uncertain.
Prey choice and ingestion of microplastics by common shelducks and common eiders in the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site
Authors: Bange Andreas , Backes Anna , Garthe Stefan , Schwemmer Philipp
Published: March 2023

Top predators such as coastal birds are essential components of marine food webs, and understanding their trophic interactions forms an essential basis of food web models. At the same time, the proportion of plastic debris in marine food webs has constantly increased while the degree of plastic ingestion by marine birds is still poorly known. In this study, the diets and microplastic uptakes in two numerous benthivorous bird species in the Wadden Sea were examined microscopically, i.e. the common eider (Sommateria mollissima) indicative for the subtidal and the common shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) indicative for the intertidal area. Eiders (n = 42 carcasses; n = 120 faecal samples) mainly ingested common cockles (Cerastoderma edule). Blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) ranged second and—same as the invasive razor clam (Ensis leei)—occurred more frequently than reflected by historic data. Proportions of gastropods, bristle worms and crustaceans were low. Shelducks (n = 20 carcasses; n = 98 faecal samples) fed mainly on small molluscs, especially C. edule, mud snails Peringia ulvae, and amphipods. Plastic debris was found in 92.9% of the stomachs and 74.2% of the faeces from eiders as well as in 95% of the stomachs and 85.7% of the faeces from shelducks. Filaments in shelduck prey remains were significantly larger, whereas there was no species-specific difference in abundance of filaments. Most plastic consisted of brightly coloured filaments ˂ 5 mm. These findings indicate regular uptake and excretion of plastic debris by coastal benthivorous seabirds, both in the subtidal and intertidal realm. The origin and mode of uptake of microplastics are discussed.
Fast and precise inference on diffusivity in interacting particle systems
Authors: Lindwall Gustav , Gerlee Philip
Published: March 2023

Particle systems made up of interacting agents is a popular model used in a vast array of applications, not the least in biology where the agents can represent everything from single cells to animals in a herd. Usually, the particles are assumed to undergo some type of random movements, and a popular way to model this is by using Brownian motion. The magnitude of random motion is often quantified using mean squared displacement, which provides a simple estimate of the diffusion coefficient. However, this method often fails when data is sparse or interactions between agents frequent. In order to address this, we derive a conjugate relationship in the diffusion term for large interacting particle systems undergoing isotropic diffusion, giving us an efficient inference method. The method accurately accounts for emerging effects such as anomalous diffusion stemming from mechanical interactions. We apply our method to an agent-based model with a large number of interacting particles, and the results are contrasted with a naive mean square displacement-based approach. We find a significant improvement in performance when using the higher-order method over the naive approach. This method can be applied to any system where agents undergo Brownian motion and will lead to improved estimates of diffusion coefficients compared to existing methods.
Volume conductor: interactive visibility management for crowded volumes
Authors: Lesar Žiga , Alharbi Ruwayda , Bohak Ciril , Strnad Ondřej , Heinzl Christoph , Marolt Matija , Viola Ivan
Published: March 2023

We present a novel smart visibility system for visualizing crowded volumetric data containing many object instances. The presented approach allows users to form groups of objects through membership predicates and to individually control the visibility of the instances in each group. Unlike previous smart visibility approaches, our approach controls the visibility on a per-instance basis and decides which instances are displayed or hidden based on the membership predicates and the current view. Thus, cluttered and dense volumes that are notoriously difficult to explore effectively are automatically sparsified so that the essential information is extracted and presented to the user. The proposed system is generic and can be easily integrated into existing volume rendering applications and applied to many different domains. We demonstrate the use of the volume conductor for visualizing fiber-reinforced polymers and intracellular organelle structures.
Multi-omic analysis of the cardiac cellulome defines a vascular contribution to cardiac diastolic dysfunction in obese female mice
Authors: Dona Malathi S. I. , Hsu Ian , Meuth Alex I. , Brown Scott M. , Bailey Chastidy A. , Aragonez Christian G. , Russell Jacob J. , Krstevski Crisdion , Aroor Annayya R. , Chandrasekar Bysani , Martinez-Lemus Luis A. , DeMarco Vincent G. , Grisanti Laurel A. , Jaffe Iris Z. , Pinto Alexander R. , Bender Shawn B.
Published: March 2023

Coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) is associated with cardiac dysfunction and predictive of cardiac mortality in obesity, especially in females. Clinical data further support that CMD associates with development of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and that mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonism may be more efficacious in obese female, versus male, HFpEF patients. Accordingly, we examined the impact of smooth muscle cell (SMC)-specific MR deletion on obesity-associated coronary and cardiac diastolic dysfunction in female mice. Obesity was induced in female mice via western diet (WD) feeding alongside littermates fed standard diet. Global MR blockade with spironolactone prevented coronary and cardiac dysfunction in obese females and specific deletion of SMC-MR was sufficient to prevent obesity-associated coronary and cardiac diastolic dysfunction. Cardiac gene expression profiling suggested reduced cardiac inflammation in WD-fed mice with SMC-MR deletion independent of blood pressure, aortic stiffening, and cardiac hypertrophy. Further mechanistic studies utilizing single-cell RNA sequencing of non-cardiomyocyte cell populations revealed novel impacts of SMC-MR deletion on the cardiac cellulome in obese mice. Specifically, WD feeding induced inflammatory gene signatures in non-myocyte populations including B/T cells, macrophages, and endothelium as well as increased coronary VCAM-1 protein expression, independent of cardiac fibrosis, that was prevented by SMC-MR deletion. Further, SMC-MR deletion induced a basal reduction in cardiac mast cells and prevented WD-induced cardiac pro-inflammatory chemokine expression and leukocyte recruitment. These data reveal a central role for SMC-MR signaling in obesity-associated coronary and cardiac dysfunction, thus supporting the emerging paradigm of a vascular origin of cardiac dysfunction in obesity.
Continuous gap contact formulation based on the screened Poisson equation
Authors: Areias P. , Sukumar N. , Ambrósio J.
Published: March 2023

We introduce a PDE-based node-to-element contact formulation as an alternative to classical, purely geometrical formulations. It is challenging to devise solutions to nonsmooth contact problem with continuous gap using finite element discretizations. We herein achieve this objective by constructing an approximate distance function (ADF) to the boundaries of solid objects, and in doing so, also obtain universal uniqueness of contact detection. Unilateral constraints are implemented using a mixed model combining the screened Poisson equation and a force element, which has the topology of a continuum element containing an additional incident node. An ADF is obtained by solving the screened Poisson equation with constant essential boundary conditions and a variable transformation. The ADF does not explicitly depend on the number of objects and a single solution of the partial differential equation for this field uniquely defines the contact conditions for all incident points in the mesh. Having an ADF field to any obstacle circumvents the multiple target surfaces and avoids the specific data structures present in traditional contact-impact algorithms. We also relax the interpretation of the Lagrange multipliers as contact forces, and the Courant–Beltrami function is used with a mixed formulation producing the required differentiable result. We demonstrate the advantages of the new approach in two- and three-dimensional problems that are solved using Newton iterations. Simultaneous constraints for each incident point are considered.
Hyper-power series and generalized real analytic functions
Authors: Tiwari Diksha , Mukhammadiev Akbarali , Giordano Paolo
Published: March 2023

This article is a natural continuation of the paper Tiwari, D., Giordano, P., Hyperseries in the non-Archimedean ring of Colombeau generalized numbers in this journal. We study one variable hyper-power series by analyzing the notion of radius of convergence and proving classical results such as algebraic operations, composition and reciprocal of hyper-power series. We then define and study one variable generalized real analytic functions, considering their derivation, integration, a suitable formulation of the identity theorem and the characterization by local uniform upper bounds of derivatives. On the contrary with respect to the classical use of series in the theory of Colombeau real analytic functions, we can recover several classical examples in a non-infinitesimal set of convergence. The notion of generalized real analytic function reveals to be less rigid both with respect to the classical one and to Colombeau theory, e.g. including classical non-analytic smooth functions with flat points and several distributions such as the Dirac delta. On the other hand, each Colombeau real analytic function is also a generalized real analytic function.
Small errors imply large evaluation instabilities
Authors: Schaback Robert
Published: March 2023

Numerical analysts and scientists working in applications often observe that once they improve their techniques to get a better accuracy, some instability of the evaluation creeps in through the back door. This paper shows for a large class of numerical methods that such a Trade-off Principle between error and evaluation stability is unavoidable. It is an instance of a no free lunch theorem. Here, evaluation is the mathematical map that takes input data to output data. This is independent from the numerical routine that calculates the output. Therefore, evaluation stability is different from computational stability. The setting is confined to recovery of functions from data, but it includes solving differential equations by writing such methods as a recovery of functions under constraints imposed by differential operators and boundary values. The trade-off principle bounds the product of two terms from below. The first is related to errors, and the second turns out to be related to evaluation instability. Under certain conditions satisfied for splines and kernel-based interpolation, both can be minimized. Then the lower bound is attained, and the error term is the inverse of the instability term. As a byproduct, it is shown that Kansa’s Unsymmetric Collocation Method sacrifices accuracy for improved evaluation stability, when compared to symmetric collocation.
Reliability and Validity of the East Asia-Pacific Early Child Development Scales: A Longitudinal Validation Study in China
Authors: Rao Nirmala , Su Yufen , Chan Stephanie W. Y.
Published: March 2023

This study examined the test-retest reliability and predictive validity of the East Asia-Pacific Early Child Development Scales (EAP-ECDS) Short Form. In China, preschools typically provide children with educational activities in age-segregated classrooms – Kindergarten Level 1 (K1) (3 to 4 years), Kindergarten Level 2 (K2) (4 to 5 years), and Kindergarten Level 3 (K3) (5 to 6 years). A total of 709 children in K2 (Mage = 57.85 months, SD = 4.77) were randomly selected from 29 kindergartens in Shanghai municipality and Guizhou province of China. Children were assessed using the EAP-ECDS in K2 and K3. School readiness was assessed in K3, and literacy and mathematics achievement were assessed in Grade 2. Pearson’s correlation coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC = 0.73) indicated that the tool had good test-retest reliability across K2 and K3. Regarding predictive validity, K2 EAP-ECDS predicted K3 school readiness (β = 0.26), Grade 2 language and literacy (β = 0.18) and mathematics (β = 0.22) after adjusting for age, gender, socioeconomic status, and region. Findings support using the tool to measure the holistic development of preschool-aged children in China and the region.
The association between body fatness and mortality among breast cancer survivors: results from a prospective cohort study
Authors: Bonet Catalina , Crous-Bou Marta , Tsilidis Konstantinos K. , Gunter Marc J. , Kaaks Rudolf , Schulze Matthias B. , Fortner Renée T. , Antoniussen Christian S. , Dahm Christina C. , Mellemkjær Lene , Tjønneland Anne , Amiano Pilar , Ardanaz Eva , Colorado-Yohar Sandra M. , Rodriguez-Barranco Miguel , Tin Tin Sandar , Agnoli Claudia , Masala Giovanna , Panico Salvatore , Sacerdote Carlotta , May Anne M. , Borch Kristin Benjaminsen , Rylander Charlotta , Skeie Guri , Christakoudi Sofia , Aune Dagfinn , Weiderpass Elisabete , Dossus Laure , Riboli Elio , Agudo Antonio
Published: March 2023

Evidence linking body fatness to breast cancer (BC) prognosis is limited. While it seems that excess adiposity is associated with poorer BC survival, there is uncertainty over whether weight changes reduce mortality. This study aimed to assess the association between body fatness and weight changes pre- and postdiagnosis and overall mortality and BC-specific mortality among BC survivors. Our study included 13,624 BC survivors from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study, with a mean follow-up of 8.6 years after diagnosis. Anthropometric data were obtained at recruitment for all cases and at a second assessment during follow-up for a subsample. We measured general obesity using the body mass index (BMI), whereas waist circumference and A Body Shape Index were used as measures of abdominal obesity. The annual weight change was calculated for cases with two weight assessments. The association with overall mortality and BC-specific mortality were based on a multivariable Cox and Fine and Gray models, respectively. We performed Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to investigate the potential causal association. Five-unit higher BMI prediagnosis was associated with a 10% (95% confidence interval: 5–15%) increase in overall mortality and 7% (0–15%) increase in dying from BC. Women with abdominal obesity demonstrated a 23% (11–37%) increase in overall mortality, independent of the association of BMI. Results related to weight change postdiagnosis suggested a U-shaped relationship with BC-specific mortality, with higher risk associated with losing weight or gaining > 2% of the weight annually. MR analyses were consistent with the identified associations. Our results support the detrimental association of excess body fatness on the survival of women with BC. Substantial weight changes postdiagnosis may be associated with poorer survival.
Gulls as potential sentinels for urban litter: combining nest and GPS-tracking information
Authors: Galimany Eve , Navarro Joan , Martino Ilaria , Aymí Raül , Cermeño Pablo , Montalvo Tomas
Published: March 2023

The production of urban waste has increased in the past decades leading to its mishandling. The effects on public health, economy, and wildlife that waste mismanagement can have are forcing governments to increase their efforts in detecting and mitigating the presence of waste. Identifying and monitoring sentinel species to assess the presence of urban litter could be a cost-effective option. Thus, analyzing the nest composition of yellow-legged gulls from an urban population inhabiting a very high populated city (Barcelona, Spain), and combining this information with accurate GPS tracking data, provides a potential tool to monitor the presence of marine and terrestrial litter over time. The results revealed the highest presence of debris in the nests of a seabird ever recorded. All the nests examined contained anthropogenic waste, with plastic items present in all of them. Crossing the nest composition with GPS tracking movements confirmed that the waste to build the nests was collected in the urban area and not in other environments surrounding the city. Then, the nest waste composition may be a good indicator of waste mismanagement and advise the municipalities to improve waste management and recycling strategies for the different types of litter. Using gulls breeding in cities as sentinel species and, in particular, the study of their nest composition, may provide essential data to decision-making stakeholders to adopt a One Health approach and help improve not only the environment’s health but also the health of those who live in it.
Influence of adhesive on optical fiber-based strain measurements on printed circuit boards
Authors: Freitas C. , Leite T. M. , Lopes H. , Gomes M. , Cruz S. , Magalhães R. , Silva A. F. , Viana J. C. , Delgado I.
Published: March 2023

The use of optical fiber sensing for strain measurements on printed circuit boards is a recent approach, and there is a lack of f reliable methods to obtain valid strain measurements. This work investigates the influence of different adhesives and their application for strain measurements using optical fiber sensors on PCB, considering room and high temperature tests. Strain developed in PCB during production and quality testing are measured by a single distributed optical fiber sensor, interrogated by Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometry. Different adhesives are evaluated for room and high temperatures strain measurements. Different thicknesses of the adhesive layer are studied under tensile and bending loadings. The mechanical properties of the adhesives and their effectiveness in optical fiber measurements were evaluated. A suitable adhesive selection is required for reliable strain measurements under different testing requirements: cyanoacrylate based for room temperature testing; epoxy or polyimide-based for high temperature measurements. The adhesive thickness should be the lowest and uniformly applied. A linear relationship between adhesive thickness and strain error was found, being necessary the application of a correction factor for valid strain measurements. Optical distributed sensing is highlighted as an alternative approach to conventional strain gauges for PCB strain measurements, reducing the installation complexity, significantly enlarging the number of measured points, without reducing the quality of the strain measurements. Selection of the best adhesive is crucial, as well as its thickness for reliable strain measurements.
On the Rate of Convergence of the Difference-of-Convex Algorithm (DCA)
Authors: Abbaszadehpeivasti Hadi , de Klerk Etienne , Zamani Moslem
Published: March 2023

In this paper, we study the non-asymptotic convergence rate of the DCA (difference-of-convex algorithm), also known as the convex–concave procedure, with two different termination criteria that are suitable for smooth and non-smooth decompositions, respectively. The DCA is a popular algorithm for difference-of-convex (DC) problems and known to converge to a stationary point of the objective under some assumptions. We derive a worst-case convergence rate of $$O(1/\sqrt{N})$$

O
(
1
/

N

)

after N iterations of the objective gradient norm for certain classes of DC problems, without assuming strong convexity in the DC decomposition and give an example which shows the convergence rate is exact. We also provide a new convergence rate of O(1/N) for the DCA with the second termination criterion. Moreover, we derive a new linear convergence rate result for the DCA under the assumption of the Polyak–Łojasiewicz inequality. The novel aspect of our analysis is that it employs semidefinite programming performance estimation.
Connecting national flags – a deep learning approach
Authors: Kalampokas Theofanis , Mentizis Dimitrios , Vrochidou Eleni , Papakostas George A.
Published: March 2023

National flags are the most recognizable symbols of the identity of a country. Similarities between flags may be observed due to cultural, historical, or ethical connections between nations, because they may be originated from the same group of people, or due to unrelated sharing of common symbols and colors. Although the fact that similar flags exist is indisputable, this has never been quantified. Quantifying flags’ similarities could provide a useful body of knowledge for vexillologists and historians. To this end, this work aims to develop a supporting tool for the scientific study of nations’ history and symbolisms, through the quantification of the varying degrees of similarity between their flags, by considering three initially stated hypotheses and by using a novel feature inclusion (FI) measure. The proposed FI measure aims to objectively quantify the overall similarity between flags based on optical multi-scaled features extracted from flag images. State-of-the-art deep learning models built for other applications tested their capability for the first time for the problem under study by using transfer learning, towards calculating the FI measure. More specifically, FI was quantified by six deep learning models: Yolo (V4 and V5), SSD, RetinaNet, Fast R-CNN, FCOS and CornerNet. Flags’ images dataset included flags of 195 nations officially recognized by the United Nations. Experimental results reported maximum feature inclusion between flags of up to 99%. The extracted degrees of similarity were subsequently justified with the help of the Vexillology scientific domain, to support research findings and to raise questions for further investigation. Experimental results reveal that the proposed approach and FI measure are reliable and able to serve as a supporting tool to social sciences for knowledge extraction and quantification.
Learning from the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications from Governance Capacity and Legitimacy
Authors: Lund-Tønnesen Jonas , Christensen Tom
Published: March 2023

This paper examines the crisis management learning by the Norwegian government after the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on types of learning based on the concepts of governance capacity and legitimacy. Using unique interview data with 36 elite administrative and political executives in Norway, the study finds varied learning by the involved actors, and most learning about coordination between ministries and agencies, which are amplified by the lack of knowledge related to analytical capacity. The study contributes to advance the analytical understanding of crisis management learning and provides insight into what a high performing government in the pandemic attempts to learn.
Laboratory Flushing Tests of Dissolved Contaminants in Heterogeneous Porous Media with Low-Conductivity Zones
Authors: Kurasawa Tomoki , Takahashi Yoshitaro , Suzuki Mariko , Inoue Kazuya
Published: March 2023

The retention of contaminants within low-conductivity regions such as clay lenses and aquitards can greatly affect groundwater remediation processes. The aim of this study was to experimentally investigate the effects of the geometry of low-conductivity zones, conductivity contrast, and flow regime on solute flushing. We conducted a series of flushing tests in cylindrical models containing a cylindrical low-conductivity zone (i.e., low-K zone) embedded in a highly conductive medium (i.e., high-K zone). Seven models comprising four high-conductivity-contrast (SL, SS, LL, and LS), one medium-contrast (LLM), one low-contrast (LLL), and one homogeneous (H) models were considered. Experiments were conducted at two flow rates (Q = 0.6 and 26 cm3/min) for each heterogeneous model (SL, SS, LL, LS, LLM, and LLL) to compare the flushing processes in different flow regimes. First, we verified the validity of our experiments by comparing the results of the H model from an analytical solution with our experiment. The results of the high-contrast models showed that for a diffusion-dominated regime (Q = 0.6 cm3/min), the pore volume injected (PVI) required to flush out solute mass was much smaller than that in an advection-dominated regime (Q = 26 cm3/min). To evaluate the pore volumes required to flush out solutes for the four high-contrast models, we introduced a parameter P0.01, which is defined as the PVI needed for the relative concentration to become 0.01 at the middle of the low-K zone. P0.01 decreases with increasing the specific surface area of the low-K zone for diffusion-dominated regimes, while it increases with increasing the length of the low-K zone for advection-dominated regimes. We also determined the importance of the effect of K contrast on solute retention by comparing the results of three different models of K contrast (LL, LLM, and LLL).
The spectrum of knowledge: integrating knowledge dimensions in the context of forests and climate change
Authors: Priebe Janina , Hallberg-Sramek Isabella , Reimerson Elsa , Mårald Erland
Published: March 2023

Integrated approaches to knowledge that recognize meaning, behavior, culture, and systems as domains of knowledge are increasingly employed in holistic views on sustainability transformation but often remain conceptually driven. In this study, we analyze empirical data from a collaborative process with local forest stakeholders in Sweden through the lens of individual, collective, interior, and exterior knowledge dimensions. We show that the participants’ understanding of knowledge about forests and climate change presents a nuanced picture of how knowledge and acting are connected. Meaning-making, cultural frames, and techno-scientific knowledge conceptions converge, interact, and, at times, replace or diminish each other. The connection and interplay of these dimensions, we suggest, can be understood as a knowledge spectrum. These insights into integrated knowledge, based on an empirical case, must be addressed in the production of knowledge, both to grasp the climate and sustainability issues that face us and to support action in response to them.
The psychological future of unemployed individuals and workers: invariance measurement model and mean differences
Authors: Coscioni Vinicius , de Carvalho Catarina Luzia , Céu Taveira Maria do , Silva Ana Daniela
Published: March 2023

This study compared the psychological future of unemployed individuals and workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. It used the data from two previous data collections, one with unemployed individuals and another with workers. Participants from the two datasets were paired considering the same gender and similar age and education degree. The analyzed sample consisted of 352 participants, of which 176 were unemployed individuals and 176 were workers. The psychological future was measured by the Future Time Orientation Scale and the Life Project Scale. Both scales fit the sample of unemployed individuals and were invariant at the metric level across occupation status. Partial scalar model met good fit after freeing the intercepts of one item in each scale. In contrast to the hypothesis, compared to workers, unemployed individuals did not have lower rates in the assessed features of their psychological future. Conversely, for some variables, the rates were even higher among unemployed individuals. Unexpected results and limitations are discussed.
Phase 1 study of oral selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD) amcenestrant (SAR439859), in Japanese women with ER-positive and HER2-negative advanced breast cancer (AMEERA-2)
Authors: Tamura Kenji , Mukohara Toru , Yonemori Kan , Kawabata Yumiko , Nicolas Xavier , Tanaka Tomoyuki , Iwata Hiroji
Published: March 2023

Background

This AMEERA-2 study evaluated the pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety of the oral selective estrogen receptor degrader amcenestrant as a monotherapy with dose escalation in Japanese postmenopausal women with advanced estrogen receptor-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancer.

Methods

In this open-label, nonrandomized, phase I study, patients received amcenestrant 400 mg once daily (QD) (n = 7) and 300 mg twice daily (BID) (n = 3). The incidence of dose-limiting toxicities (DLT), recommended dose, maximum tolerated dose (MTD), pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety were assessed.

Results

No DLTs were observed and MTD was not reached in the 400 mg QD group. One DLT (grade 3 maculopapular rash) was reported in a patient treated with 300 mg BID. After repeated oral administration of either dosing regimen, steady state reached before day 8, without accumulation. Four out of 5 response-evaluable patients from 400 mg QD group achieved clinical benefit and showed tumor shrinkage. No clinical benefit was reported in the 300 mg BID group. Overall, most patients (8/10) experienced a treatment-related adverse event (TRAE), with skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders most commonly reported (4/10 patients). No ≥ grade 3 TRAE in 400 mg QD group and 1 grade 3 TRAE in 300 mg BID group were reported.

Conclusions

Amcenestrant 400 mg QD has a favorable safety profile and has been selected as the recommended Phase II dose for monotherapy for evaluating the safety and efficacy of amcenestrant in a larger, global, randomized clinical trial of patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Trial registration

Clinical trial registration NCT03816839.
On the Topologies of micro/macrohabitats in the Mollusca-Sciomyzidae Taxocene
Authors: Williams Christopher David
Published: March 2023

A new perspective on habitat is presented, which considers the topological relationships among macrohabitats of adults and the sub-set microhabitats of eggs and other juvenile stages. A model of seven topologies is presented using the snail-killing flies (Sciomyzidae: Diptera) as an exemplar; four of these topologies are drawn on a hydrological continuum from aquatic through shoreline to terrestrial, and three are presented as stand-alone specialized feeding groups. Colonisation-extinction dynamics are discussed in relation first to macrohabitat dynamics and then microhabitat structure. The topological perspective has wide application outside the Mollusca-Sciomyzidae taxocene e.g. in parasitoid wasp-host taxocenes, in phytophagous insect-host communities, for freshwater macro-invertebrates and even, in the context of a “landscape of fear”, for bird and mammal populations. The perspective taken is more “autecological” than the traditional “biotope” or resource view of habitats, yet is broad enough to encompass many different behavioural groups as shown for the Sciomyzidae.
Numerical Analysis of Thorax Injury Caused by the Blunt Impact of SIR-X Sponge Grenade
Authors: Chen Chaoming , Zhao Fadong , Ma Zongmin
Published: March 2023

To effectively assess the injury risk of the blunt impact of the SIR-X sponge grenade on the human thorax, in this paper, we used a numerical simulation technique to test the non-lethal kinetic energy projectiles that blunt impact on the Hybrid III 50th dummy model. By simulating the effect of the L5 projectile on the thorax of the Hybrid III 50th dummy model, about NATO standard AEP-99 (2021 edition), the thoracic displacement curves of the dummy model in three testing conditions were obtained in the validation corridors. The idea of replacing the finite element model of the human body with the Hybrid III 50th dummy finite element model was proposed. We considered the difficulty in obtaining data due to the large deformation of the contact position when the SIR-X sponge grenade impacts the dummy’s thorax. We proposed a mathematical model to predict the impact injury of the human thorax using the rib displacement measured by the rib displacement sensor of the Hybrid III 50th dummy. We simulated the SIR-X sponge grenade blunt impacting the dummy model’s thorax. The measured rib displacement was used to predict and analyze the injury risk of the human thorax, providing a specific data reference for practical application.
Decentring Narratives around Business and Human Rights Instruments: An Example of the French Devoir de Vigilance Law
Authors: Bose Debadatta
Published: March 2023

There has been tremendous momentum in adoption of business and human rights regulations, specifically national legislation that mandate human rights due diligence. While these laws have been heralded as the torchbearers of progress, this article approaches national legislation on business and human rights by placing them in context of a North–South divide through a Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) lens. It looks at the form of regulation of transnational corporations (national/international) – not the substance – and illustrates the neo-colonial flavour of these laws by diving into the narrative behind the adoption of the French devoir de vigilance law. It illustrates that the French law can also be read as an attempt to universalise European values while reinforcing power hierarchies. The claim of this article is that national legislation cannot be a substitute for a treaty but only a path towards one, because national legislation structurally lacks means to take the Global South participation seriously.
Knowledge, beliefs, and practices related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection and vaccination in healthcare personnel working at nonacute care facilities
Authors: Mansoor Armaghan-e-Rehman , O’Neil Caroline A. , McDonald David , Fraser Victoria J. , Babcock Hilary M. , Kwon Jennie H. ,   for the CDC Prevention Epicenters Program
Published: March 2023

Objective:

To characterize experiences, beliefs, and perceptions of risk related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), infection prevention practices, and COVID-19 vaccination among healthcare personnel (HCP) at nonacute care facilities.

Design:

Anonymous survey.

Setting:

Three non–acute-care facilities in St. Louis, Missouri.

Participants:

In total, 156 HCP responded to the survey, for a 25.6% participation rate). Among them, 32% had direct patient-care roles.

Methods:

Anonymous surveys were distributed between April-May 2021. Data were collected on demographics, work experience, COVID-19 exposure, knowledge, and beliefs about infection prevention, personal protective equipment (PPE) use, COVID-19 vaccination, and the impact of COVID-19.

Results:

Nearly all respondents reported adequate knowledge of how to protect oneself from COVID-19 at work (97%) and had access to adequate PPE supplies (95%). Many HCP reported that wearing a mask or face shield made communication difficult (59%), that they had taken on additional responsibilities due to staff shortages (56%), and that their job became more stressful because of COVID-19 (53%). Moreover, 28% had considered quitting their job. Most respondents (78%) had received at least 1 dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Common reasons for vaccination were a desire to protect family and friends (84%) and a desire to stop the spread of COVID-19 (82%). Potential side effects and/or inadequate vaccine testing were cited as the most common concerns by unvaccinated HCP.

Conclusions:

A significant proportion of HCP reported increased stress and responsibilities at work due to COVID-19. The majority were vaccinated. Improving workplace policies related to mental health resources and sick leave, maintaining access to PPE, and ensuring clear communication of PPE requirements may improve workplace stress and burnout.
Mixing, entrainment and energetics of gravity currents released from two-layer stratified locks
Authors: Zhu Rui , He Zhiguo , Meiburg Eckart
Published: March 2023

We conduct three-dimensional direct numerical simulations to investigate the mixing, entrainment and energy budgets of gravity currents emerging from two-layer stratified locks. Depending on the density and layer thickness ratios, we find that either the upper layer or lower layer fluid can propagate faster, and that the density structure of the overall gravity current can range from strongly stratified to near-complete mixing. We furthermore observe that intermediate values of the density ratio can maximise mixing between the gravity current layers. Based on the vorticity budget, we propose a theoretical model for predicting the overall gravity current height, along with the front velocity of the two layers, for situations in which the lower layer moves faster than the upper layer. The model identifies the role of the height and thickness ratios in determining the velocity structure of the current, and it clarifies the dynamics of the ambient counter-current. A detailed analysis of the energy budget quantifies the conversion of potential into kinetic energy as a function of the governing parameters, along with the energy transfer between the different layers of the gravity current and the ambient fluid. Depending on the values of the density and layer thickness ratios, we find that the lower lock layer can gain or lose energy, whereas the upper layer always loses energy.
Artificial-neural-network-based nonlinear algebraic models for large-eddy simulation of compressible wall-bounded turbulence
Authors: Xu Dehao , Wang Jianchun , Yu Changping , Chen Shiyi
Published: March 2023

In this paper, we propose artificial-neural-network-based (ANN-based) nonlinear algebraic models for the large-eddy simulation (LES) of compressible wall-bounded turbulence. An innovative modification is applied to the invariants and the tensor bases of the nonlinear algebraic models through using the local grid widths along each direction to normalise the corresponding gradients of the flow variables. Furthermore, the dimensionless model coefficients are determined by the ANN method. The modified ANN-based nonlinear algebraic model (MANA model) has much higher correlation coefficients and much lower relative errors than the dynamic Smagorinsky model (DSM), Vreman model and wall-adapting local eddy-viscosity model in the a priori test. The significantly more accurate estimations of the mean subgrid-scale (SGS) fluxes of the kinetic energy and temperature variance are also obtained by the MANA models in the a priori test. Furthermore, in the a posteriori test, the MANA model can give much more accurate predictions of the flow statistics and the mean SGS fluxes of the kinetic energy and the temperature variance than other traditional eddy-viscosity models in compressible turbulent channel flows with untrained Reynolds numbers, Mach numbers and grid resolutions. The MANA model has a better performance in predicting the flow statistics in supersonic turbulent boundary layer. The MANA model can well predict both direct and inverse transfer of the kinetic energy and temperature variance, which overcomes the inherent shortcoming that the traditional eddy-viscosity models cannot predict the inverse energy transfer. Moreover, the MANA model is computationally more efficient than the DSM.
Revalidation of the L2-Grit scale: A conceptual replication of Teimouri, Y., Plonsky, L., & Tabandeh, F. (2022). L2 grit: Passion and perseverance for second-language learning
Authors: Mikami Hitoshi
Published: March 2023

This study is a conceptual replication of Teimouri et al.'s (2022) investigation into the validity of the second language (L2) grit scale (the L2-Grit scale). There are several concerns about the generalizability of the findings of Teimouri et al. (2022), especially regarding the discriminant validity of the scale and the relation of L2 grit with language achievements. A conceptual replication study was conducted because these concerns could be addressed by using a different methodology. The main findings include: (a) the factor structure of L2 grit was supported in the replication sample (106 English majors at a Japanese university), (b) the results support the discriminant validity of L2 grit, but in a different way from the initial study, and (c) L2 grit was a consistent predictor of L2-specific Grade Point Average and standardized test score. The results obtained lend further support for the validity of the L2-Grit scale.
Global Climate Change and UNESCO World Heritage
Authors: Lafrenz Samuels Kathryn , Platts Ellen J.
Published: March 2023

This article considers the fiftieth anniversary of the 1972 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Convention in light of climate change, offering a state of the field review of climate responses for World Heritage sites (WHS). Opening with a brief review of UNESCO World Heritage activities around climate change, we then detail the primary impacts and risks that climate change pose for WHS and the reporting and monitoring systems in place to document and track these impacts. Looking forward, we examine the most promising pathways for World Heritage to advance in the domains of climate mitigation, adaptation, climate communication, and climate action.
Teaching Social Movements with a Sustained Simulation of Police–Protester Contention: The Hypothetical Case of the Contested Election of 2024
Authors: Kryder Daniel , Morgan Jamie , Parish Anja
Published: March 2023

This case study reviews a social movement course that centered on a 10-week simulation of a contemporary contentious event in Washington, DC, involving six movement organizations and four police agencies. To our knowledge, it is the first classroom simulation of a Trump-era police–protester contentious episode or of any political science simulation that places an episode of insurrection in the contemporary United States. Three goals animated this project: (1) promote learning concerning extra-institutional political conflict in the American case; (2) combine scholarship and role playing to explore the dynamic interaction of movement, countermovement, and enforcement organizations; and (3) teach the complex relationship between social science theory and political practice in an engaging way. Students used theoretical frameworks drawn from the literature to assess and develop protest capacity and repertoires for their assigned organization and chose strategic goals and tactical means to attempt to generate political leverage. Student organizations made concurrent “moves” and instructors iteratively developed the contentious episode. This article discusses the results of students’ evaluations of the simulation. In addition to extensive online appendices, it provides a detailed explanation and design for instructors who are considering a similar approach.