bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Making the Argument for Intact Cord Resuscitation: A Case Report and Discussion
Authors: Mercer Judith , Erickson-Owens Debra , Rabe Heike , Jefferson Karen , Andersson Ola
Published: April 2022

We use a case of intact cord resuscitation to argue for the beneficial effects of an enhanced blood volume from placental transfusion for newborns needing resuscitation. We propose that intact cord resuscitation supports the process of physiologic neonatal transition, especially for many of those newborns appearing moribund. Transfer of the residual blood in the placenta provides the neonate with valuable access to otherwise lost blood volume while changing from placental respiration to breathing air. Our hypothesis is that the enhanced blood flow from placental transfusion initiates mechanical and chemical forces that directly, and indirectly through the vagus nerve, cause vasodilatation in the lung. Pulmonary vascular resistance is thereby reduced and facilitates the important increased entry of blood into the alveolar capillaries before breathing commences. In the presented case, enhanced perfusion to the brain by way of an intact cord likely led to regained consciousness, initiation of breathing, and return of tone and reflexes minutes after birth. Paramount to our hypothesis is the importance of keeping the umbilical cord circulation intact during the first several minutes of life to accommodate physiologic neonatal transition for all newborns and especially for those most compromised infants.
The Temporal Association between Body Characteristics and Speed Performance over Twenty-Five Years in Italian Adolescents
Authors: Vandoni Matteo , Carnevale Pellino Vittoria , De Silvestri Annalisa , Lovecchio Nicola , Rovida Antonio , Gatti Alessandro , Biagioli Valentina , Zuccotti Gianvincenzo , Calcaterra Valeria
Published: April 2022

Background: Physical fitness (PF) is positively related to skeletal and metabolic health, and it had an inverse relation with obesity. Adolescents with obesity have the worst performance in PF and speed-agility (SA) that contributes to an augmented risk to develop pathologies. To the best of our knowledge, many studies analyzed the trends of obesity and SA separately, but there is a lack of data about SA ability trends in adolescents with obesity. We aimed to investigate SA trends in children with obesity in the last few decades to define the association between body weight and physical performance. Methods: We recruited 3.923 Caucasian children across the period 1985–2010 in the same school in Northern Italy, near Milan. Once a year, at the ages of 11–12- and 13-years-old, we collected anthropometric measures and SA performance. We pooled the data into 5-year-period study waves and then stratified our analysis into test-sex-age BMI-z-score specific groups. Results: We reported an undetermined trend across years. The 4×5 m run test significantly decreased in adolescents with overweight/obesity, while we did not report a decline in 30 m and 60 m run tests. Conclusions: Fitness tests highlighted differences in normal weight compared to overweight/obese children, suggesting that it is crucial to carefully monitor PF capacities through the years.
Laser Surface Melting and Consecutive Point-Mode Forging Hardening of DH36 Marine Steel: Mechanical and Precipitation Behavior
Authors: Liu Rui , Xi Mingzhe , Yu Jiacheng , Zhou Haoyang , Wu Jing , Gao Shiyou , Yang Qifan
Published: April 2022

This study investigates the effect of the laser surface melting and consecutive point-mode forging process (LSM-CPF) on the mechanical properties and the microstructure of DH36 marine steel. The microstructual revolution during the LSM-CPF process are revealed by metallographic microscope (OM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) technique, and the strengthening mechanisms for different samples are also elucidated. The results show that the best yield strength (σ0.2) and tensile strength (σb) for the sample treated with 4000 W laser power and 10% reduction ratio are 721.3 and 884.2 MPa, which are 49.55% and 41.54% higher than that of the DH36 matrix, respectively. The hardness of the coatings decreases along the normal direction with the maximum value of 586.4 HV in the CPF zone for the sample treated with 2000 W laser power and 20% reduction ratio. During the low power LSM-CPF treatment, the nanoscale cementite appear as intragranular due to the inhibited carbon diffusion. The coherent boundary of (110)NbC‖(110)Ferrite, [11¯0]NbC‖[001]Ferrite between NbC and ferrite reduces the nucleation barrier to promote the nucleation of acicular ferrite (AF). The strengthening mechanism for samples treated at 2000 W is found to be dislocation strengthening. During high power laser treatment, pearlite transformation is found to occur with a low cooling rate. In this case, the strengthening mechanism is the boundary strengthening of lamellar pearlite and dislocation strengthening.
Synergistic Effect of Dipping in Aloe Vera Gel and Mixing with Chitosan or Calcium Chloride on the Activities of Antioxidant Enzymes and Cold Storage Potential of Peach (Prunus persica L.) Fruits
Authors: Aboryia M. S. , El-Gioushy Sherif Fathy , Sami Rokayya , Aljumayi Huda , Alyamani Amal , Almasoudi A. , Gawish Mohamed S.
Published: April 2022

Peach is a climacteric fruit characterized by a rapid maturation, high respiration level, weight loss, breakdown of texture, and interior browning. Fast tempering of the fruit and subsequent mold expansion caused a negative impact on the marketing. This study was carried out to estimate the synergistic influence of coating with Aloe vera gel (AVG) at 15% or 30% mixed with chitosan (CH) at 1.5% as a kind of natural polymers or calcium chloride (CaCl2) at 3% on physical and chemical features. We investigated the changes in antioxidant enzymes activities of peach fruits Prunus persica (L.) Metghamer Sultany. Fruits were kept at 3 ± 1 °C and relative humidity (RH) 85–90% for 36 days during two consecutive seasons (2020 and 2021). Results revealed that applying AVG at 30% blended with CH at 1.5% significantly impacted the storage period of peach fruits, reduced the ion leakage (IL), malondialdehyde (MDA), and lessened weight loss. The differences were significant compared to the other treatments and untreated fruits (control) that exhibited the higher values for IL, MDA, and weight loss in the 36th day. Moreover, fruit quality features such as firmness, total acidity (TA), total soluble solids (TSS), and skin color chroma (c*), hue angle (h) were also maintained. Furthermore, this combination was raised of phenolic content, antioxidant capacity (DPPH), antioxidant enzyme activity such as catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), and quench the generation of H2O2 and O2•−. It could be concluded that dipping peach fruits in AVG at 30% blended with CH at 1.5% retained the biological features of peach fruit at considerable levels during cold storing. Thus, this effective mixture can be utilized to prolong the storage and marketing period of peach fruits. Nevertheless, a more in-depth analysis is required for this edible coating to be successfully commercialized in the peach fruit post-harvest industry.
Thermal Properties and Ionic Conductivity of Tetra-n-Butylammonium Perchlorate
Authors: Uvarov Nikolai F. , Asanbaeva Nargiz B. , Ulihin Artem S. , Mateyshina Yulia G. , Gerasimov Konstantin B.
Published: April 2022

The thermal parameters of the phase transitions and transport properties of tetra-n-butylammonium (TBA) perchlorate (n-C4H9)4NClO4 (TBAClO4) were investigated. TBAClO4 has a polymorphous transition at 330 K and melts at 487 K. The structure of the high-temperature (HT) phase belongs to cubic symmetry and is similar to the HT phases of TBABF4 and TBAI salts. The conductivity parameters of the low-temperature and HT phases of TBAClO4 were determined from the Arrhenius plots. The thermodynamic parameters and transport properties of TBAClO4 were compared with those of other TBA salts having isostructural HT phases. The polymorphous phase transition entropy was found to correlate with the conductivity of HT phases of TBA salts; TBAClO4 has the lowest conductivity compared to TBABF4 and TBAI salts.
Checklist of Arrenurids (Acari: Hydrachnidia: Arrenuridae) of Mexico, with New Records from the Yucatan Peninsula, and the Description of Five New Species of the Subgenera Megaluracarus and Dadayella
Authors: Montes-Ortiz Lucia , Elías-Gutiérrez Manuel , Ramírez-Sánchez Marcia María
Published: April 2022

A checklist of arrenurids of Mexico is presented, including three new records from the Yucatan Peninsula. We provide updated descriptions of Arrenurus mexicanus, A. (Megaluracarus) colitus, and A. (Megaluracarus) marshalli. Additionally, four new species of the subgenus Megaluracarus and one of Dadayella are described by using integrative taxonomy: Arrenurus (Megaluracarus) eduardoi n. sp., characterized by a large, thorn-shaped hump in the middle dorsal shield; Arrenurus (Megaluracaurus) federicoi n. sp., with large pores in the body, including the idiosoma; Arrenurus (Megaluracarus) ecosur n. sp., with a peculiar pattern of setation in the legs; Arrenurus (Megaluracarus) beatrizae n. sp., with a short cauda with two pairs of lateral notches, and Arrenurrus (Dadayella) cristinae n. sp., characterized by a male cauda with two falcate setae. Non-destructive methods allowed the taking of scanning electron microscope images and DNA sequencing of the designed type material. All new species have a divergence using the DNA mitochondrial gene COI from 21.1% to 28.6% within them. With these records and descriptions, the number of Arrenurus registered for Mexico increases to 42, most of them from a single locality.
Using Social Media to Detect Fake News Information Related to Product Marketing: The FakeAds Corpus
Authors: Alnazzawi Noha , Alsaedi Najlaa , Alharbi Fahad , Alaswad Najla
Published: April 2022

Nowadays, an increasing portion of our lives is spent interacting online through social media platforms, thanks to the widespread adoption of the latest technology and the proliferation of smartphones. Obtaining news from social media platforms is fast, easy, and less expensive compared with other traditional media platforms, e.g., television and newspapers. Therefore, social media is now being exploited to disseminate fake news and false information. This research aims to build the FakeAds corpus, which consists of tweets for product advertisements. The aim of the FakeAds corpus is to study the impact of fake news and false information in advertising and marketing materials for specific products and which types of products (i.e., cosmetics, health, fashion, or electronics) are targeted most on Twitter to draw the attention of consumers. The corpus is unique and novel, in terms of the very specific topic (i.e., the role of Twitter in disseminating fake news related to production promotion and advertisement) and also in terms of its fine-grained annotations. The annotation guidelines were designed with guidance by a domain expert, and the annotation is performed by two domain experts, resulting in a high-quality annotation, with agreement rate F-scores as high as 0.815.
MRI Evaluation of Complete and Near-Complete Response after Neoadjuvant Therapy in Patients with Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer
Authors: Popita Anca-Raluca , Lisencu Cosmin , Rusu Adriana , Popita Cristian , Cainap Calin , Irimie Alexandru , Resiga Liliana , Munteanu Alina , Fekete Zsolt , Badea Radu
Published: April 2022

Purpose To evaluate MRI performance in restaging locally advanced rectal cancers (LARC) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and interobserver agreement in identifying complete response (CR) and near-complete response (nCR). Methods 40 patients with CR and nCR on restaging MRI, surgery and/or endoscopy were enrolled. Two radiologists independently scored the restaging MRI and reported the presence of split scar sign (SSS) and MRI tumor regression grade (mrTRG). Diagnostic accuracy and ROC curves were calculated for single and combined sequences, with inter-reader agreement. Results Diagnostic performance was good for detecting CR and weaker for nCR. T2WI had the highest AUCs among individual sequences. There was a significant positive correlation between SSS and CR, with high Sp (89.5%/73.7%) and PPV (90%/79.2%) for both Readers. Similar accuracy rates were observed for the combination of sequences, with AUCs of 0.828–0.847 for CR and 0.690–0.762 for nCR. Interobserver agreement was strong for SSS, moderate for T2WI, weak for the combination of sequences. Conclusions Restaging MRI had good diagnostic performance in identifying CR and nCR. SSS had high Sp and PPV in diagnosing CR, with a strong level of interobserver agreement. T2WI with DWI was the optimal combination of sequences for selecting good responders.
Severe Respiratory Failure Due to Pulmonary BCGosis in a Patient Treated for Superficial Bladder Cancer
Authors: Lewandowska Katarzyna , Lewandowska Anna , Baranska Inga , Klatt Magdalena , Augustynowicz-Kopec Ewa , Tomkowski Witold , Szturmowicz Monika
Published: April 2022

Intra-vesical instillations with bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) are the established adjuvant therapy for superficial bladder cancer. Although generally safe and well tolerated, they may cause a range of different, local, and systemic complications. We present a patient treated with BCG instillations for three years, who was admitted to our hospital due to fever, hemoptysis, pleuritic chest pain and progressive dyspnea. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed massive bilateral ground glass opacities, partly consolidated, localized in the middle and lower parts of the lungs, bronchial walls thickening, and bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy. PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 as well as sputum, blood, and urine for general bacteriology—were negative. Initial empiric antibiotic therapy was ineffective and respiratory failure progressed. After a few weeks, a culture of M. tuberculosis complex was obtained from the patient’s specimens; the cultured strain was identified as Mycobacterium bovis BCG. Anti-tuberculous treatment with rifampin (RMP), isoniazid (INH) and ethambutol (EMB) was implemented together with systemic corticosteroids, resulting in the quick improvement of the patient’s clinical condition. Due to hepatotoxicity and finally reported resistance of the BCG strain to INH, levofloxacin was used instead of INH with good tolerance. Follow-up CT scans showed partial resolution of the pulmonary infiltrates. BCG infection in the lungs must be taken into consideration in every patient treated with intra-vesical BCG instillations and symptoms of protracted infection.
Detecting Multiple Myeloma Infiltration of the Bone Marrow on CT Scans in Patients with Osteopenia: Feasibility of Radiomics Analysis
Authors: Park Hyerim , Lee So-Yeon , Lee Jooyeon , Pak Juyoung , Lee Koeun , Lee Seung-Eun , Jung Joon-Yong
Published: April 2022

It is difficult to detect multiple myeloma (MM) infiltration of the bone marrow on computed tomography (CT) scans of patients with osteopenia. Our aim is to determine the feasibility of using radiomics analysis to detect MM infiltration of the bone marrow on CT scans of patients with osteopenia. The contrast-enhanced thoracic CT scans of 104 patients with MM and 104 age- and sex-matched controls were retrospectively evaluated. All individuals had decreased bone density on radiography. The study group was divided into development (n = 160) and temporal validation sets (n = 48). The radiomics model was developed using 805 texture features extracted from the bone marrow for a development set, using a Random Forest algorithm. The developed models were applied to evaluate a temporal validation set. For comparison, three radiologists evaluated the CTs for the possibility of MM infiltration in the bone marrow. The diagnostic performances were assessed and compared using an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) analysis. The AUC of the radiomics model was not significantly different from those of the radiologists (p = 0.056–0.821). The radiomics analysis results showed potential for detecting MM infiltration in the bone marrow on CT scans of patients with osteopenia.
Feasibility Study of an Internet-Based Platform for Tele-Neuropsychological Assessment of Elderly in Remote Areas
Authors: Zeghari Radia , Guerchouche Rachid , Tran-Duc Minh , Bremond François , Langel Kai , Ramakers Inez , Amiel Nathalie , Lemoine Maria Pascale , Bultingaire Vincent , Manera Valeria , Robert Philippe , König Alexandra
Published: April 2022

Today, in rural isolated areas or so-called ‘medical deserts’, access to diagnosis and care is very limited. With the current pandemic crisis, now even more than ever, telemedicine platforms are gradually more employed for remote medical assessment. Only a few are tailored to comprehensive teleneuropsychological assessment of older adults. Hence, our study focuses on evaluating the feasibility of performing a remote neuropsychological assessment of older adults suffering from a cognitive complaint. 50 participants (aged 55 and older) were recruited at the local hospital of Digne-les-Bains, France. A brief neuropsychological assessment including a short clinical interview and several validated neuropsychological tests was administered in two conditions, once by Teleneuropsychology (TNP) and once by Face-to-Face (FTF) in a crossover design. Acceptability and user experience was assessed through questionnaires. Results show high agreement in most tests between the FTF and TNP conditions. The TNP was overall well accepted by the participants. However, differences in test performances were observed, which urges the need to validate TNP tests with broader samples with normative data.
It Is Time to Address Ableism in Academia: A Systematic Review of the Experiences and Impact of Ableism among Faculty and Staff
Authors: Lindsay Sally , Fuentes Kristina
Published: April 2022

Faculty and staff with disabilities are significantly underrepresented within academia and experience alarming rates of discrimination, social exclusion and marginalization. This review aimed to understand the experiences and impact of disability discrimination (ableism) among faculty and staff. We conducted a systematic review while searching six international databases that identified 33 studies meeting our inclusion criteria. Of the 33 studies that were included in our review, they involved 1996 participants across six countries, over a 25-year period. The studies highlighted faculty and staff experiences of ableism in academia, which focused on disclosure (i.e., choosing to disclose or not), accommodations (i.e., lack of workplace accommodations and the difficult process for obtaining them) and negative attitudes (i.e., stigma, ableism and exclusion). Twenty-one studies explained the impact of ableism in academia, including a negative effect on physical and mental health, and career development. Coping mechanisms and strategies to address ableism in academia were also described. There is a critical need for more research and attention to the lived experiences of ableism among faculty and staff in academia and the impact that ableism has on their health and well-being.
Exploring the Association between Emotional Intelligence and Academic Performance and Stress Factors among Dental Students: A Scoping Review
Authors: Jahan Shah Saif , Nerali Jayashri Tamanna , Parsa Ali Davod , Kabir Russell
Published: April 2022

Background: Numerous studies have been conducted to explicate the scope of emotional intelligence in educational success and coping with stress in different academic sectors, but very few have been conducted with dental students. This scoping review aimed to ascertain the role of emotional intelligence in academic performance and stress factors among dental students. Methods: All publications in the English language between 2001 and 2020 were retrieved employing MeSh keywords. Academic resources such as Pubmed, Pubmed Central, EMBASE, Web of Science, EBSCO-Host, Cochrane, PROSPERO, and ARU E-library were comprehensively searched for empirical research. One thousand, three hundred and fifty-nine papers were screened according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) standards for inclusion and exclusion criteria. These publications were then evaluated further by deleting duplicates, examining full-text articles, and conducting an abstract assessment. This review included a critical appraisal of 24 articles. Results: The narrative analysis method was applied to evaluate the data retrieved from publications regarding EI, academic performance, and stress factors. The review found that EI had a greater impact on the educational success of dental students throughout their clinical years. Moreover, EI may be a key tool in coping with stress and negative emotions. Higher EI scores were shown to be associated with better performance in organizational and leadership abilities, which are important for career advancement. Conclusion: The review suggested including EI training in the dental curriculum. Furthermore, EI should be used as a selection criterion for admission to dental education.
Updating the Phylogeography and Temporal Evolution of Mitochondrial DNA Haplogroup U8 with Special Mention to the Basques
Authors: Cabrera Vicente M.
Published: April 2022

Mitochondrial DNA phylogenetic and phylogeographic studies have been very useful in reconstructing the history of modern humans. In addition, recent advances in ancient DNA techniques have enabled direct glimpses of the human past. Taking advantage of these possibilities, I carried out a spatiotemporal study of the rare and little-studied mtDNA haplogroup U8. Today, U8, represented by its main branches U8a and U8b, has a wide western Eurasian range but both with average frequencies below 1%. It is known that, in Paleolithic times, U8 reached high frequencies in European hunter-gatherers. However, it is pertinent to precise that only lineages belonging to U8a and U8c, a sister branch of U8b, were detected at that time. In spite of its wide geographic implantation, U8c was extinct after the Last Glacial Maximum, but U8a subsisted until the present day, although it never reached its high Paleolithic frequencies. U8a is detected mainly in northern and western Europe including the Basques, testifying to a minor maternal Paleolithic continuity. In this respect, it is worth mentioning that Basques show more U8-based affinities with continental European than with Mediterranean populations. On the contrary, coalescent ages of the most ancient U8b clades point to a Paleolithic diversification in the Caucasus and the Middle Eastern areas. U8b-derived branches reached eastern Europe since the Mesolithic. Subsequent Neolithic and post-Neolithic expansions widen its ranges in continental Europe and the Mediterranean basin, including northern Africa, albeit always as a minor clade that accompanied other, more representative, mitochondrial lineages.
A Cascade Framework for Privacy-Preserving Point-of-Interest Recommender System
Authors: Cui Longyin , Wang Xiwei
Published: April 2022

Point-of-interest (POI) recommender systems (RSes) have gained significant popularity in recent years due to the prosperity of location-based social networks (LBSN). However, in the interest of personalization services, various sensitive contextual information is collected, causing potential privacy concerns. This paper proposes a cascaded privacy-preserving POI recommendation (CRS) framework that protects contextual information such as user comments and locations. We demonstrate a minimized trade-off between the privacy-preserving feature and prediction accuracy by applying a semi-decentralized model to real-world datasets.
Smart Cities and Awareness of Sustainable Communities Related to Demand Response Programs: Data Processing with First-Order and Hierarchical Confirmatory Factor Analyses
Authors: Oprea Simona-Vasilica , Bâra Adela , Ciurea Cristian-Eugen , Stoica Laura
Published: April 2022

The mentality of electricity consumers is one of the most important entities that must be addressed when dealing with issues in the operation of power systems. Consumers are used to being completely passive, but recently these things have changed as significant progress of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Internet of Things (IoT) has gained momentum. In this paper, we propose a statistical measurement model using a covariance structure, specifically a first-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using SAS CALIS procedure to identify the factors that could contribute to the change of attitude within energy communities. Furthermore, this research identifies latent constructs and indicates which observed variables load on or measure them. For the simulation, two complex data sets of questionnaires created by the Irish Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) were analyzed, demonstrating the influence of some exogenous variables on the items of the questionnaires. The results revealed that there is a relevant relationship between the social–economic and the behavioral factors and the observed variables. Furthermore, the models provided a good fit to the data, as measured by the performance indicators.
A Review on SIW and Its Applications to Microwave Components
Authors: Nwajana Augustine O. , Obi Emenike Raymond
Published: April 2022

Substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) is a modern day (21st century) transmission line that has recently been developed. This technology has introduced new possibilities to the design of efficient circuits and components operating in the radio frequency (RF) and microwave frequency spectrum. Microstrip components are very good for low frequency applications but are ineffective at extreme frequencies, and involve rigorous fabrication concessions in the implementation of RF, microwave, and millimeter-wave components. This is due to wavelengths being short at higher frequencies. Waveguide devices, on the other hand, are ideal for higher frequency systems, but are very costly, hard to fabricate, and challenging to integrate with planar components in the neighborhood. SIW connects the gap that existed between conventional air-filled rectangular waveguide and planar transmission line technologies including the microstrip. This study explores the current advancements and new opportunities in SIW implementation of RF and microwave devices including filters, multiplexers (diplexers and triplexers), power dividers/combiners, antennas, and sensors for modern communication systems.
Feasibility Prediction for Rapid IC Design Space Exploration
Authors: Islam Riadul
Published: April 2022

The DARPA POSH program echoes with the research community and identifies that engineering productivity has fallen behind Moore’s law, resulting in the prohibitive increase in IC design cost at leading technology nodes. The primary reason is that it requires many computing resources, expensive tools, and even many days to complete a design implementation. However, at the end of this process, some designs could not meet the design constraints and become unroutable, creating a vicious circuit design cycle. As a result, designers have to re-run the whole process after design modification. This research applied a machine learning approach to automatically identify design constraints and design rule checking (DRC) violation issues and help the designer identify design constraints with optimal DRCs before the long detailed routing process through iterative greedy search. The proposed algorithm achieved up to 99.99% design constraint prediction accuracy and reduced 98.4% DRC violations with only a 6.9% area penalty.
Safety System Assessment Case Study of Automated Vehicle Shuttle
Authors: Pikner Heiko , Sell Raivo , Majak Jüri , Karjust Kristo
Published: April 2022

Automated vehicle (AV) minibuses, i.e., AV shuttles, are gaining popularity in the testing of new types of transportation services in real traffic conditions. AV shuttles have moved from closed test areas to low-traffic public sites such as local residential areas, technology parks, university campuses, etc. These types of vehicles are usually low-speed and rely on a lidar-camera sensor set and a self-driving software stack. These new use cases are increasing these systems’ safety demands. In addition to functional safety, many other aspects need to be considered. In this study, a risk analysis model is developed, combining the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process and the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution method. The proposed model is utilized to prioritize risks corresponding to the particular case study, based on real AV shuttle bus development, and focuses on the low-level hardware/software safety issues and improvements.
P-Ride: A Shareability Prediction Based Framework in Ridesharing
Authors: Chen Yu , Wang Liping
Published: April 2022

Ridesharing services aim to reduce travel costs for users and optimize revenue for drivers and platforms by sharing available seats. Existing works can be roughly classified into two types, i.e., online-based and batch-based methods. The former mainly focuses on responding quickly to the requests, and the latter focuses on meticulously enumerating request combinations to improve service quality. However, online-based methods perform poorly in service quality due to the neglect of the sharing relationship between requests, while batch-based methods fail in terms of efficiency. To obtain better service quality more efficiently, we propose a shareability prediction-based framework P-Ride. Specifically, we first introduce the k-clique listing strategy in graph theory based on the shareability graph to reduce the infeasible request combinations. Moreover, we extend the shareability graph to the hypergraph structure to represent the higher-order shareable relationships among requests. Furthermore, we devise a shareability prediction model that supports the prediction of sharable relationships for request combinations of an arbitrary size, which helps further filtering of candidate request combinations with GPU devices acceleration. The extensive experimental results demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of our proposed P-Ride framework.
RETRACTED: Haris, M.; Glowacz, A. Road Object Detection: A Comparative Study of Deep Learning-Based Algorithms. Electronics 2021, 10, 1932
Authors: Haris Malik , Glowacz Adam
Published: April 2022

The Electronics Editorial Office retracts the paper entitled “Road Object Detection: A Comparative Study of Deep Learning-Based Algorithms” [...]
Objective Video Quality Assessment Method for Face Recognition Tasks
Authors: Leszczuk Mikołaj , Janowski Lucjan , Nawała Jakub , Boev Atanas
Published: April 2022

Nowadays, there are many metrics for overall Quality of Experience (QoE), both those with Full Reference (FR), such as Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) or Structural Similarity (SSIM), and those with No Reference (NR), such as Video Quality Indicators (VQI), which are successfully used in video processing systems to evaluate videos whose quality is degraded by different processing scenarios. However, they are not suitable for video sequences used for recognition tasks (Target Recognition Videos, TRV). Therefore, correctly estimating the performance of the video processing pipeline in both manual and Computer Vision (CV) recognition tasks is still a major research challenge. There is a need for objective methods to evaluate video quality for recognition tasks. In response to this need, we show in this paper that it is possible to develop the new concept of an objective model for evaluating video quality for face recognition tasks. The model is trained, tested and validated on a representative set of image sequences. The set of degradation scenarios is based on the model of a digital camera and how the luminous flux reflected from the scene eventually becomes a digital image. The resulting degraded images are evaluated using a CV library for face recognition as well as VQI. The measured accuracy of a model, expressed as the value of the F-measure parameter, is 0.87.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Handling Abusive Domain Names by Internet Entities
Authors: Cheng Yanan , Liu Yali , Wang Lianmiao , Zhang Zhaoxin , Chai Tingting , Du Yuejin
Published: April 2022

A large number of domains are abused every day for cybercrime. At the same time, the fight against abusive domains is not the fight of one person or organization but a battle that requires the cooperation of the entire community. However, very little research has been done to quantify the positive benefits of this strategy for dealing with abusive domains. As a result, using pornography and gambling domain names as examples, we present the first empirical study evaluating the usability and effectiveness of all Internet entities (e.g., registrars and hosting providers) in the DNS ecosystem for receiving and handling abusive domain reports. First, the paper thoroughly demonstrates the mechanisms for receiving and handling abusive domain reports at various Internet entities in China. Second, we select and report the appropriate 2433 abusive domains to 43 service providers across six categories of Internet entities. Finally, we discover the methods and response time used by each Internet entity to handle abuse reports based on the changes in reported domains. Based on the above data, we analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of Internet entities in dealing with abusive domains. Moreover, we indicate the scope of protection and disadvantages of each method, i.e., whether the abusive domain can escape handling. The paper aims to provide a more detailed overview and reference for the security communities, service providers, and Internet entities concerned with dealing with abusive domains.
Model Prediction and Pulse Optimal Modulation of Electrically Excited Synchronous Motor at Low Switching Frequency
Authors: Li Kai , Yuan Qingqing , Nai Wei
Published: April 2022

In this paper, in order to improve the control performance of a high-power electrically excited synchronous motor (EESM) under low switching frequency, and to improve the poor dynamic response of the traditional selective harmonic elimination pulse width modulation (SHEPWM) strategy, an optimized pulse width modulation (PWM) pulse mode with specific harmonic elimination and good dynamic performance is studied. Based on the fast response characteristics of predictive control, it combines the rolling time domain optimization theory with SHEPWM strategy. Firstly, the stator flux linkage of EESM is taken as the tracking target, and the real-time tracking error value of flux linkage is transformed into a voltage-second product; then, the predictive rolling time domain is established, the above error voltage-second product value is optimized in this time domain and the switching angle of SHEPWM is dynamically adjusted to minimize the stator tracking error so as to realize the dynamic adjustment of EESM at low switching frequency. Through MATLAB simulation and a 50 kW experimental platform, the optimized modulation strategy proposed in this paper has been verified to have good dynamic regulation performance at low switching frequency (≈500 Hz).
ForkJoinPcc Algorithm for Computing the Pcc Matrix in Gene Co-Expression Networks
Authors: Alhussan Amel Ali , AlEisa Hussah Nasser , Atteia Ghada , Solouma Nahed H. , Seoud Rania Ahmed Abdel Azeem Abul , Ayoub Ola S. , Ghoneim Vidan F. , Samee Nagwan Abdel
Published: April 2022

High-throughput microarrays contain a huge number of genes. Determining the relationships between all these genes is a time-consuming computation. In this paper, the authors provide a parallel algorithm for finding the Pearson’s correlation coefficient between genes measured in the Affymetrix microarrays. The main idea in the proposed algorithm, ForkJoinPcc, mimics the well-known parallel programming model: the fork–join model. The parallel MATLAB APIs have been employed and evaluated on shared or distributed multiprocessing systems. Two performance metrics—the processing and communication times—have been used to assess the performance of the ForkJoinPcc. The experimental results reveal that the ForkJoinPcc algorithm achieves a substantial speedup on the cluster platform of 62× compared with a 3.8× speedup on the multicore platform.
Deep Learning-Based Consensus Control of a Multi-Agents System with Unknown Time-Varying Delay
Authors: Yang Janghoon
Published: April 2022

Despite the enormous progress in consensus control of a multi-agents system (MAS), amodel-based consensus control is valid only when the assumption on the system environment and on the model is valid. To overcome this limitation, several deep learning (DL) based consensus controls directly learn how to generate a control signal from the model-based control. Depending on the exploitation of knowledge from the model-based control structure, four different deep learning models were considered. Numerical simulations of MAS with unknown time-varying delays and disturbance verify that, while providing comparable performance to the model-based control for many different system configurations, the DL-based controls with explicit knowledge of the control signal structure are preferred to that with implicit knowledge of the control signal or no knowledge, which shows the promising potential of DL-based control with supervised learning.
Deeper Understanding of Ternary Eutectic Carbonates/Ceria-Based Oxide Composite Electrolyte through Thermal Cycling
Authors: Grishin André , Ben Osman Manel , Meskine Haïtam , Albin Valérie , Lair Virginie , Cassir Michel , Ringuedé Armelle
Published: April 2022

Due to a high conductivity of about 0.1 S·cm−1, Li-Na-K carbonate eutectic and Sm-doped ceria composite material is a good electrolyte candidate for hybrid fuel cells operating between 500 °C and 600 °C. The present paper aims at a deeper understanding of the species and mechanisms involved in the ionic transport through impedance spectroscopy and thermal analyses, in oxidizing and reducing atmospheres, wet and dry, and during two heating/cooling cycles. Complementary structural analyses of post-mortem phases allowed us to evidence the irreversible partial transformation of molten carbonates into hydrogenated species, when water and/or hydrogen are added in the surrounding atmospheres. Furthermore, this modification was avoided by adding CO2 in anodic and/or cathodic compartments. Finally, a mechanistic model of such composite electrical behavior is suggested, according to the surrounding atmospheres used. It leads to the conclusions that cells based on this kind of electrolyte would preferably operate in molten carbonate fuel cell conditions, than in solid oxide fuel cell conditions, and confirms the name of “Hybrid Fuel Cells” instead of Intermediate Temperature (or even Low Temperature) Solid Oxide Fuel Cells.
Genetic Diversity and Structure of Quercus hondae, a Rare Evergreen Oak Species in Southwestern Japan
Authors: Kamiya Koichi , Ogasahara Misato , Kenzo Tanaka , Muramoto Yasuharu , Araki Takuya , Ichie Tomoaki
Published: April 2022

Conservation of rare species is essential for maintaining ecosystem function. Quercus hondae is a rare evergreen oak species (Cyclobalanopsis) endemic to Japan. This species is found in several locations in Southwestern Japan; small populations remain in the tutelary forests of the Japanese shrine. To evaluate the genetic diversity and phylogeographic structure of this rare species, 11 microsatellite loci and chloroplast DNA sequences are analyzed for 12 populations of Q. hondae and 8 populations of the more widespread congeneric species, Q. glauca. It is found that heterozygosity at both the population and species level is substantially lower in Q. hondae than in Q. glauca. Genetic differentiation among populations of Q. hondae was high, in contrast to Q. glauca, in which populations exhibit largely insignificant differentiation. STRUCTURE analysis shows that at K = 7, the clusters largely corresponded to major predefined populations. This study suggests that there is little gene flow among extant Q. hondae populations and that Q. hondae is genetically differentiated due to the greater effect of genetic drift in small populations. This pattern is in sharp contrast to that of a more common congeneric species, which will be an important consideration in the conservation of Q. hondae.
Traditional Fire Knowledge: A Thematic Synthesis Approach
Authors: Vázquez-Varela Carmen , Martínez-Navarro José M. , Abad-González Luisa
Published: April 2022

Building fire-adaptive communities and fostering fire-resilient landscapes have become two of the main research strands of wildfire science that go beyond strictly biophysical viewpoints and call for the integration of complementary visions of landscapes and the communities living there, with their legacy of knowledge and subjective dimensions. Both indigenous fire management (IFM) and local fire management (LFM) are rooted in traditional fire knowledge and are among the most important contributions that rural communities can make to management partnerships. Focusing specifically on traditional fire knowledge (TFK), we examine the scholarly literature on TFK using a thematic synthesis approach. We extract themes from the literature and cluster and synthesize them into four analytical themes: (a) TFK within the fire ecology global research field; (b) the role of TFK in integrated fire management; (c) governance; and (d) TFK within global fire management research needs. Who the researchers are, the topics they study, how they approach these topics, and where they focus can help us also to understand possible biases in their contributions to the topics. The analysis conducted reveals the existing gap in current research on local fire knowledge among non-Indigenous populations. This paper offers a call to action to include indigenous and non-indigenous local knowledge and voices on this important topic. Evidence drawn from the thematic synthesis of the literature can help to re-focus research and awareness on this multidisciplinary phenomenon.
A Study on the Evacuation Spacing of Undersea Tunnels in Different Ventilation Velocity Conditions
Authors: Na Wei , Chen Chen
Published: April 2022

Ventilation velocity conditions may affect the smoke diffusion and evacuation environment in a tunnel fire, which should be fully considered in evacuation spacing designs of undersea tunnels. This study focuses on reasonable evacuation spacing under various possible velocity conditions of an undersea tunnel, providing a design method reference for calculating safe evacuation spacing. Fire Dynamic Simulator and Pathfinder software were used for numerical simulations of a 50 MW fire and evacuation process in a full-scale undersea tunnel with traffic congestion. The simulation cases contained velocity modes from zero to satisfying the critical velocity and evacuation spacings from 30 m to 80 m. The calculated distributions of the available safe escape time indicated that a low ventilation velocity, such as 1.0 m/s, is beneficial to the downstream evacuation, but turning off mechanical ventilation increased risk near the fire source. The required safe escape time is shortened with a reduction in slide spacings, but the shortened rate slowed down after spacing was less than 60 m. In addition, the slow evacuating areas from 100 m to 300 m from the fire source independent of spacing are identified. Ultimately, the reasonable evacuation spacings of 60 m, 50 m, and 30 m, corresponding to three possible ventilation velocity modes of low, medium, and high, are proposed through the comparisons of the distributions of available safe escape time and required safe escape time.
Adaptive Data-Driven Model Order Reduction for Unsteady Aerodynamics
Authors: Nagy Peter , Fossati Marco
Published: April 2022

A data-driven adaptive reduced order modelling approach is presented for the reconstruction of impulsively started and vortex-dominated flows. A residual-based error metric is presented for the first time in the framework of the adaptive approach. The residual-based adaptive Reduced Order Modelling selects locally in time the most accurate reduced model approach on the basis of the lowest residual produced by substituting the reconstructed flow field into a finite volume discretisation of the Navier–Stokes equations. A study of such an error metric was performed to assess the performance of the resulting residual-based adaptive framework with respect to a single-ROM approach based on the classical proper orthogonal decomposition, as the number of modes is varied. Two- and three-dimensional unsteady flows were considered to demonstrate the key features of the method and its performance.
Effect of Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato Purée and Wheat Flour Blends on β-Carotene, Selected Physicochemical and Microbiological Properties of Bread
Authors: Malavi Derick , Mbogo Daniel , Moyo Mukani , Mwaura Lucy , Low Jan , Muzhingi Tawanda
Published: April 2022

Partial substitution of wheat flour with orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) purée in bread can increase vitamin A intake among consumers. The study investigated the influence of wheat flour substitution with 20–50% of OFSP purée on proximate composition, color, β-carotene, water activity, and microbial keeping quality. The moisture content, crude protein, crude fat, total ash, crude fiber, and carbohydrate in bread ranged from 28.6–32.7%, 9.9–10.6%, 5.0–5.5%, 1.9–3.2%, 1.4–1.8%, and 79.1–80.9%, respectively. β-carotene, total ash, and crude fiber contents in bread, and Hunter color values a*, b*, chroma, and ∆E significantly increased with the addition of OFSP purée. Total viable counts (TVC), yeast, and molds in bread ranged from 2.82–3.64 log10 cfu/g and 1.48–2.16 log10 cfu/g, respectively, on the last day of storage. Water activity, TVC, and fungal counts were low in sweet potato composite bread as compared to white bread. Total β-carotene in OFSP bread ranged from 1.9–5.4 mg/100 g (on dry weight). One hundred grams of bread portion enriched with 40% and 50% OFSP purée provides more than 50% of vitamin A dietary requirements to children aged 4–8 years. Incorporation of up to 50% OFSP purée in wheat flour produces a relatively shelf-stable, nutritious, and health-promoting functional bread.
Influence of Processing Parameters and Natural Antimicrobial on Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris and Clostridium pasteurianum Using Response Surface Methodology
Authors: Hadj Saadoun Jasmine , Levante Alessia , Marrella Martina , Bernini Valentina , Neviani Erasmo , Lazzi Camilla
Published: April 2022

The food industry must ensure the stability of the products, and this is often achieved by exposing foods to heat treatments that are able to ensure the absence of pathogenic or spoilage microorganisms. These treatments are different in terms of temperature and duration and could lead to a loss in nutritional and sensory value. Moreover, some types of microorganisms manage to survive these treatments thanks to the sporification process. The addition of antimicrobials can become necessary, but at present, consumers are more inclined toward natural products, avoiding synthetic and chemical additives. Antimicrobials from plants could be a valuable option and, in this context, a patent concerning an antimicrobial extract from fermented plant substrate was recently tested against foodborne pathogens revealing high antimicrobial activity. The objective of this study was the creation of a model for the evaluation and subsequent prediction of the combined effect of different process and product variables, including antimicrobial addition, on the inhibition and reduction of spore germination of target microorganisms, Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris and Clostridium pasteurianum, responsible for spoilage of tomato-based products.