bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparison Between Barus And Plak-Pling Tombstones Based On Analysis Of Motif Design
Authors:   Centre for Global Archaeological Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, Maler Wani , S.K.M. Shyeh ,   Centre for Global Archaeological Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, R.W. Oetomo ,   Balai Arkeologi Medan, 20134 Sumatera Utara, Indonesia, S. Suprayitno ,   Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) 20155 Medan Sumatera Utara, Indonesia, Saidin Mokhtar ,   Centre for Global Archaeological Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
Published: December 2020

The Centre for Global Archaeological Research at Universiti Sains Malaysia (transl. University of Science Malaysia) had signed a memorandum of understanding with Universitas Syiah Kuala (Unsyiah) and Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) regarding Islamic archaeological research in Sumatera. This cooperation was in order to unearth new clues on the early history of Islam in the South East Asia region. A preliminary survey had been done in Aceh and Barus which found a number of tombstones belonging to the early Muslim population in the area. This study focused on the Barus tombstones found in Penanggahan, Barus during the fieldwork in the December of 2014. The oldest tombstone found in Barus to date was dated to about 1350 AD. The Barus tombstones were made from tuff. This particular tombstone was unique in its form, the decoration and motif not conforming to any known classification to date. The engravings and carvings on the surface of the tombstones have its own distinct style. There are also similarities of the ornaments with those of the Plak-Pling tombstones which seems indicative of contact between Barus and Aceh during the time of the spread of Islam in the region.
From the economic to the social contribution of the Social Economy. Monetary assessment of the social value created for the Spanish economy
Authors: Castro Núñez Rosa Belen , Santero-Sánchez Rosa , Martínez Martín María Isabel , De Diego Olmos Paula
Published: December 2020

The role of the Social Economy (SE) in society is increasingly acknowledged by social agents and institutions, especially in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Commitment to SE requires the support of quantitative measurement of its contribution to society from an aggregate perspective. The difficulty in specifying it in quantitative terms is related to the assessment of the contribution of SE’s differentiating and intrinsic values. These values contribute to the fight against some structural problems that persist in modern society in terms of unemployment, inequality, territorial imbalance, environmental problems and social exclusion that surpass the economic sphere and involve the contribution to social goals, social utility and social and territorial cohesion. Our objective is an assessment in quantitative terms, including an estimation, in monetary terms, of the specific contribution of Social Market Economy (SMkE) firms to society linked to their distinctive principles, and thus their behaviour, in comparison to traditional profit-oriented firms, used as a control group. We use impact analysis techniques, with a simulation exercise, by which SMkE entities “lose” their identity and behave like profit-oriented firms. The results obtained for Spain confirm the existence of differential behaviour that generates social value in several ways. In monetary terms, in 2017, SMkEs contributed 6,229 million Euros in benefits to Spanish society that would have been lost if SMkE entities had behaved like profit-oriented firms.
Propuesta de principios alternativos para la educación musical en un contexto latinoamericano
Authors: Jorquera Rossel Raúl , Valverde Ocariz Ximena , Godall Castell Pere
Published: December 2020

Se presenta en este artículo una propuesta de principios educativos alternativos para la educación musical en un contexto latinoamericano. En primer lugar, se describen modelos educativos predominantes que, desde una perspectiva histórica, han determinado el desarrollo de la educación musical en dicho contexto: modelos educativos “jesuita” y “de conservatorio” y paradigma estético-formalista. A continuación, se exponen las principales características del enfoque filosófico praxial, perspectiva teórica que puede ser considerada como una alternativa a las predominancias identificadas. Concluye este trabajo con una propuesta de principios educativos, los que han sido generados desde un contraste teórico entre los modelos detectados y el enfoque filosófico praxial. Esta propuesta busca aportar tanto a futuras investigaciones como a reflexiones pedagógicas, procesos de innovación tanto en currículum como en didácticas, metodologías, formación continua del profesorado y en el diseño y difusión de recursos educativos.
¿Cómo han gestionado los conservatorios de música españoles los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje durante el confinamiento del COVID-19?
Authors: Palau Ramon , Mogas Jordi , Ucar María José
Published: December 2020

Los conservatorios de música españoles han tenido que cerrar sus edificios con el objetivo de contener la propagación de la pandemia COVID-19. Los docentes de estos conservatorios han adoptado medidas para continuar con la enseñanza de forma remota utilizando recursos tecnológicos. El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar cómo los profesores de conservatorios españoles adaptaron los procesos de enseñanza y aprendizaje durante el cierre causado por la pandemia COVID-19 y revisar el potencial para cambiar el futuro de la educación musical. Este estudio se ha realizado mediante entrevistas a 36 docentes en activo de conservatorios de todas las comunidades autónomas de España. Los hallazgos muestran las dificultadas la enseñanza durante el confinamiento, la complejidad para virtualizar asignaturas de práctica instrumental, que esta se ha realizado en parte con recursos de los profesores, y que la competencia digital de los docentes genera comentarios diversos. Se evidencia la poca convicción sobre que los cambios realizados durante el confinamiento modifiquen aspectos tradicionales en la forma de enseñar ya que se muestran firmes defensores de la presencialidad.
ESTRATÉGIAS INCLUSIVAS PARA ALUNOS CEGOS NA DISCIPLINA DE NEUROANATOMIA: RELATO DE CASO.
Authors: Marins Monica
Published: December 2020

RESUMO No Brasil, apesar da inclusão de pessoas com necessidades especiais nos estabelecimentos de ensino ser garantida por lei, a efetivação dessa inclusão ainda enfrenta dificuldades. No nível universitário, tais dificuldades se multiplicam pelo número de cursos de graduação e de particularidades das disciplinas oferecidas. O presente estudo relata o caso de uma aluna cega, matriculada na disciplina de neuroanatomia, calcada eminentemente em imagens. A adaptação do conteúdo das aulas teóricas para essa aluna envolveu a utilização de massa de modelar e produção de relevos em imagens impressas. As atividades propostas e o material produzido contribuíram para o bom desempenho da aluna na disciplina. O empenho do professor se mostra como fator crucial para inclusão de alunos com necessidades especiais.
Enzyme-Assisted Extraction of Anthocyanin from Kokum (Garcinia indica Choisy) Rinds
Authors: Ranveer R. C. , Nanadane A. S. , Ganorkar P. M. , Sahoo A. K.
Published: December 2020

Background: The kokum rind consists of high amount of anthocyanin. The traditional methods are not capable to extract anthocyanin completely.

Aims: The present study was focused on the optimization of enzyme pretreatment for extraction of anthocyanin from Kokum rind.

Methodology: A central composite design was used to optimize the enzyme-assisted extraction of anthocyanin from the Kokum rinds. Kokum rinds was pretreated with food-grade pectinase and cellulase enzymes separately and then subjected to acidified ethanol extraction. The factors investigated included enzyme concentration (0 – 2%), Incubation time (1-5 h) and pretreatment temperature (15–55ºC).

Results: Overall, 107.17- to 63.71 - fold increase in anthocyanin recovery when treated with pectinase and cellulase, respectively was observed compared to the untreated rinds. From a response surface analysis of the data, a second-degree polynomial equation was developed which provided the following optimal extraction conditions i.e. enzyme concentration 0.5%, Incubation time 2.0h and temperature 35ºC for pectinase pretreatment. Whereas, in case of cellulase the optimum conditions was enzyme concentration 1.42%, Incubation time 4.0h and temperature 32ºC. The obtained results strongly support the idea of using cell-wall degrading enzymes as an effective means for recovering anthocyanin from Kokum rinds.
The Effect of Aqueous Extract of Vernonia Amygdalina (Bitter Leaf) on Antioxidants and the Liver of Rabbits on High Cholesterol Diet
Authors: Abdulmalik O. , Oladapo O. O.
Published: December 2020

Aims: To determine the effect of V. amygdalina on the levels of antioxidants and the liver of rabbits fed on a atherogenic diet.

Study Design: Prospective experimental study.

Place and Duration of study: Study lasted 14 weeks at Department of Anatomy, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.

Methodology: Eighteen male rabbits were randomly divided into three groups comprising control, high cholesterol diet and high cholesterol diet plus 200mg/kg of aqueous extract of V. amygdalina. The animals were fed a normal animal chow, or a diet supplemented by 0.5% cholesterol and 1% methionine for twelve weeks. Subsequently, serum was obtained for liver function tests. Samples of the liver of the animals were obtained for antioxidant tests and histology.

Results: Aspartate transaminase was significantly elevated in atherogenic diet only group compared to animals on normal diet. There was also no statistically significant difference across the three groups in the alanine transaminase values. Superoxide dismutase were significantly reduced in animals that were administered extract. Malondialdehyde was not statistically different across the three groups.

The histology of the liver of the animals on high cholesterol diet (with and without extract administration) revealed similar microscopic presence of fatty infiltration of the liver.

Conclusion: The use of high cholesterol diet for a duration of twelve weeks in rabbits resulted in significant increased relative liver weight, aspartate transaminase, superoxide dismutase and hepatic microvesicular steatosis. Furthermore, the use of 200mg/kg of aqueous extract of V. amygdalina had ameliorative effect on the level of superoxide dismutase. It did not have a measurable effect on the malondialdehyde, liver enzymes and liver histology.
A Study on Socio-Economic Status of Mango Growers in Bijnor District of Western Uttar Pradesh
Authors: Singh Desh Pal , Prakash Satya , Malik Vikas , Singh Krishna Kumar , Singh Narendra , Gupta Shakuntala , Sharma Prerna
Published: December 2020

Mango is a tropical and subtropical fruit crop grown in India over an area of 2258.13 thousand hectares with production of 21822.32 metric tons. The total area under mango cultivation in Uttar Pradesh is 265.62 thousand hectares with 4551.83 metric tons production 2017-18. In Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh, mango grown 5.91 thousand hectares area with 118.09 metric tons production of mango in the same period. Mango grown in diverse agro climatic conditions faces differential biotic and abiotic stress limiting the production and productivity of mango that in influenced the economic condition of mango Growers. The purpose of the present study was to examine the socio-economic status of mango growers in Bijnor district of Western Uttar Pradesh. The result of the analysis shows that 39.09 percent of respondent fall within the age range of 46 to 60 years,  general caste (53.64 percent), education level-literate (50.91 percent), family type-joint family (69.09 percent), family member-4 to 6 members (67.27), land holding size-above 5 hectare (50.91 percent), irrigation facilities-own (84.55 percent), 58.18 percent of respondents were engaged in farming activities only and 25.00 percent respondent were doing farming with business.  38.18 percent respondent got more than Rs 300000.00 annual income,  36.82 percent respondent have their own pumping set and electric motor and 53.64 respondent has not participated in any technical programme.
Use of Proton Pump Inhibitors in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Retrospective Drug Utilization Study
Authors: Ali Mohammad Daud , Ahmad Ayaz , Banu Nuzhat , Kannan Latha S.
Published: December 2020

Objective: Chief aim of the current study was to draw attention in the prescribing pattern and utilization of PPIs in one year at a single private hospital of Saudi Arabia.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional, retrospective drug utilization research on Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). The PPI usage pattern of in- and out- patients of Al-Mana Group of Hospital (AGH) Al-Khobar between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019 were investigated, including incidence, prevalence, and duration.

Results: We observed 27229 items of PPI were dispensed in the inpatient and outpatient pharmacy department of AGH-Al-khobar. Among all the PPI user more than the half {(52.98%, n = 14426), 95%CI (52.0-53.5)} were male. Nearly equal number of PPI users belongs between 18-40 years {(39.22%, n =10680), 95%CI (38.64-39.80)} and 41-60 years {(39.15%, n =10662), 95%CI (38.6-39.75)}. Among all the PPI users 61.46% (n=16736) were from community of Saudi Arabia while 38.53% (n=10493) from Non-Saudi. Among all the dispensed PPIs drugs Pantoprazole is dispensed to the highest number of patients {79% (95%CI, 78.53-79.50) (n=21515), p<0.05} while their average duration of therapy was 18.78 days. All the PPI prescribed to the AGH-Al-khobar patients adhere to the NICE guideline (p-value <0.05).

Conclusions: We also observed that PPIs was prescribed in AGH Al-khobar adhere to clinical guidelines. In our study among all the PPI Pantoprazole was prescribed to the highest number of patients, hence their safe and effective use must be warranted.
Bone morphogenetic protein 9 (BMP9) directly induces Notch effector molecule Hes1 through the SMAD signaling pathway in osteoblasts
Authors: Seong Chang‐Hwan , Chiba Norika , Kusuyama Joji , Subhan Amir Muhammad , Eiraku Nahoko , Yamashita Sachiko , Ohnishi Tomokazu , Nakamura Norifumi , Matsuguchi Tetsuya
Published: December 2020

Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) 9 is one of the most osteogenic BMPs, but its mechanism of action has not been fully elucidated. Hes1, a transcriptional regulator with a basic helix‐loop‐helix domain, is a well‐known effector of Notch signaling. Here, we find that BMP9 induces periodic increases of Hes1 mRNA and protein expression in osteoblasts, presumably through an autocrine negative feedback mechanism. BMP9‐mediated Hes1 induction is significantly inhibited by an ALK inhibitor and overexpression of Smad7, an inhibitory Smad. Luciferase and ChIP assays revealed that two Smad‐binding sites in the 5′ upstream region of the mouse Hes1 gene are essential for transcriptional activation by BMP9. Thus, our data indicate that BMP9 induces Hes1 expression in osteoblasts via the Smad signaling pathway.
Strain‐Mediated High Conductivity in Ultrathin Antiferromagnetic Metallic Nitrides
Authors: Jin Qiao , Cheng Hu , Wang Zhiwen , Zhang Qinghua , Lin Shan , Roldan Manuel A. , Zhao Jiali , Wang Jia‐Ou , Chen Shuang , He Meng , Ge Chen , Wang Can , Lu Hui‐Bin , Guo Haizhong , Gu Lin , Tong Xin , Zhu Tao , Wang Shanmin , Yang Hongxin , Jin Kui‐juan , Guo Er‐Jia
Published: December 2020

Strain engineering provides the ability to control the ground states and associated phase transition in epitaxial films. However, the systematic study of the intrinsic character and strain dependency in transition‐metal nitrides remains challenging due to the difficulty in fabricating stoichiometric and high‐quality films. Here the observation of an electronic state transition in highly crystalline antiferromagnetic CrN films with strain and reduced dimensionality is reported. By shrinking the film thickness to a critical value of ≈30 unit cells, a profound conductivity reduction accompanied by unexpected volume expansion is observed in CrN films. The electrical conductivity is observed surprisingly when the CrN layer is as thin as a single unit cell thick, which is far below the critical thickness of most metallic films. It is found that the metallicity of an ultrathin CrN film recovers from insulating behavior upon the removal of the as‐grown strain by the fabrication of freestanding nitride films. Both first‐principles calculations and linear dichroism measurements reveal that the strain‐mediated orbital splitting effectively customizes the relatively small bandgap at the Fermi level, leading to an exotic phase transition in CrN. The ability to achieve highly conductive nitride ultrathin films by harnessing strain‐control over competing phases can be used for utilizing their exceptional characteristics.
Poly(N,N′‐bis‐4‐butylphenyl‐N,N′‐bisphenyl)benzidine‐Based Interfacial Passivation Strategy Promoting Efficiency and Operational Stability of Perovskite Solar Cells in Regular Architecture
Authors: Akman Erdi , Akin Seckin
Published: December 2020

The failure of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) to maintain their maximum efficiency over a prolonged time is due to the deterioration of the light harvesting material under environmental factors such as humidity, heat, and light. Systematically elucidating and eliminating such degradation pathways are critical to imminent commercial use of this technology. Here, a straightforward approach is introduced to reduce the level of defect‐states present at the perovskite and hole transporting layer interface by treating the various perovskite surfaces with poly(N,N′‐bis‐4‐butylphenyl‐N,N′‐bisphenyl)benzidine (polyTPD) molecules. This strategy significantly suppresses the defect‐mediated non‐radiative recombination in the ensuing devices and prevents the penetration of degrading agents into the inner layers by passivating the perovskite surface and grain boundaries. Suppressed non‐radiative recombination and improved interfacial hole extraction result in PSCs with stabilized efficiency exceeding 21% with negligible hysteresis (≈19.1% for control device). Moreover, ultra‐hydrophobic polyTPD passivant considerably alleviates moisture penetration, showing ≈91% retention of initial efficiencies after 300 h storage at high relative humidity of 80%. Similarly, passivated device retains 94% of its initial efficiency after 800 h under operational conditions (maximum power point tracking under continuous illumination at 60 °C). In addition to interfacial passivation function, hole‐selective role of dopant‐free polyTPD is also evaluated and discussed in this study.
Enhanced CW Lasing and Q‐Switched Pulse Generation Enabled by Tm3+‐Doped Glass Ceramic Fibers
Authors: Kang Shiliang , Qiao Tian , Huang Xiongjian , Yang Changsheng , Liu Xiaofeng , Qiu Jianrong , Yang Zhongmin , Dong Guoping
Published: December 2020

Fiber lasers, owing to the high beam quality and super robustness, are widely used in fields from optical communications, fiber sensing, biomedicine to material processing. The use of glass fibers as the gain medium has, however, posed a strong obstacle for improving efficiency and, especially, achieving efficient lasing action in the mid‐infrared (MIR) region, because of the relatively large nonradiative energy loss. Here, the fabrication of a Tm3+‐doped tellurate glass‐ceramic (GC) fiber is demonstrated, which enables enhanced lasing action at ≈2 µm. Compared with the as‐prepared fiber, the optical conversion efficiency of GC fiber is increased from 8.8% to 14.1%. The microstructure and spectral characterization analyses suggest that the improvement of the laser performance in GC fiber is induced by the significant change of the local environment surrounding Tm3+ ions due to the formation of nanocrystals within the glass fibers. Moreover, the developed GC fiber also enables Q‐switched pulsed laser output at ≈2 µm with a pulse energy of 3.2 J and pulse width of 4.1 ns. The results demonstrated here may have strong implications in the development of MIR fiber lasers and the applications of GC fibers in MIR photonics.
Optical Tuning of Wigner Lattice in Conducting Polymer Nanowires
Authors: Manna Gouranga , Sanyal Milan K.
Published: December 2020

The well‐known characteristics such as switching transition of resistivity of charge density wave (CDW) can be observed in soft materials such as carbon nanotubes and conducting polymer nanowires due to Wigner lattice (WL) formation when long‐range Coulomb repulsion dominates over kinetic energy of charge carriers in confined geometry. Herein, it is shown that CDW energy‐gap and associated 1D WL parameters in polypyrrole nanowires depend on charge‐carrier (bipolarons) density, which can be tuned continuously with photoexcitation. Observed linear dependence of CDW energy‐gap with charge‐carrier density provides evidence of the WL formation in these conducting polymer nanowires. The observation is consistent with earlier findings of linear dependence of energy‐gap with lattice parameter, which can be tuned by pressure or substitution of ions in conventional CDW materials.
Variability of C‐reactive protein in first‐generation Ecuadorian immigrants living in the United States
Authors: Shattuck‐Heidorn Heather , Eick Geeta N. , Kramer Karen L. , Sugiyama Lawrence S. , Snodgrass James Josh , Ellison Peter T.
Published: December 2020

Objectives

Establish the variability of C‐reactive protein (CRP) within a population of first‐generation immigrants living in the United States. Prior work has theorized that individuals with high levels of childhood pathogen exposure may have lower CRP levels in adulthood, and therefore that for these individuals, CRP may not be as accurate an index of chronic disease risk related to low‐level inflammation as is presumed based on data from wealthy populations. This potentially has major implications for the interpretation of CRP as a biomarker of chronic inflammation.

Methods

This longitudinal study collected a total of 125 dried blood spot (DBS) samples from 31 participants (median 4 samples each) and CRP levels in these DBS were assayed by enzyme‐linked immunosorbant assay. Surveys were administered to characterize childhood pathogen exposure, and current illness. Variance was estimated using mixed effects regression models.

Results

On average, participants were adults (mean = 41.9 years old) who had immigrated to the United States nearly 20 years prior to the study and had nearly universally experienced childhood helminth infection and other major pathogen exposures. Median serum‐equivalent CRP was 0.77 mg/L. Individuals reliably differed in subacute CRP levels, and, depending on whether untransformed or log‐transformed CRP was the outcome variable, 45% or 62% of variance in CRP was attributable to between‐individual differences.

Conclusions

The variability of CRP levels in individuals with relatively high childhood pathogen exposure is comparable to previously reported studies in North America and Europe. However, CRP values are relatively low. CRP is an appropriate measure of subacute inflammation in this sample.
Physical, mechanical, and in vitro biological analysis of bioactive fibers‐based dental composite
Authors: Saleem Mehvish , Zahid Saba , Ghafoor Sarah , Khalid Hina , Iqbal Haffsah , Zeeshan Rabia , Ahmad Sarfraz , Asif Anila , Khan Abdul Samad
Published: December 2020

This study aimed to synthesize experimental composites reinforced with various concentrations (0, 40, 50, and 60 wt%) of nano‐hydroxyapatite grafted glass fibers. The release of monomers, residual monomers, and in‐vitro bioactivity of composite groups were evaluated after 1, 7, and 28 days. Compressive strength/ modulus, cell viability (by direct and indirect method), and bacterial adhesion were evaluated. The results showed that bis‐GMA was released from all samples. TEGDMA released from 50 and 60 wt% samples on day 1 and UDMA showed negligible release. Compressive strength values of 40 wt% sample were higher than other experimental groups. New apatite layer was formed, whereby both direct and indirect methods demonstrated cell viability. The numbers of active colonies grown were least for 60 wt% sample while their number increased over time. The nano‐hydroxyapatite/glass fibers have potential to be used as filler in dental composites and experimental composites were found to be biocompatible and comparable with commercial material.
Preparation and balanced mechanical properties of solid and foamed isotactic polypropylene/SEBS composites
Authors: Zhang Xiaoli , Sun Baojia , Yuan Guoyuan , Zhang Shixun , Ji Youxin , Liu Baochen , Zhang Mingxin , Yang Yang , Chen Jingbo
Published: December 2020

This study presents a self‐designed foaming apparatus and routes to manufacture foamed isotactic polypropylene (iPP) blends with uniform and dense cells, using styrene‐ethylene‐butadiene‐styrene (SEBS) block copolymer as toughening additive. The addition of SEBS can clearly enhance the impact strength of solid iPP, iPP blends with a 20 wt% SEBS has obtained high notched impact strength of 75 kJ/m2, which is ca. 16 times larger than that of neat iPP. Relatively fine microcellular iPP‐SEBS foams with the average cell size of several micrometers, and the cell density of 109 cells/cm3 were fabricated using a batch foaming procedure. Moreover, using our self‐designed mold and compression foaming method, iPP‐SEBS foams with balanced mechanical properties were produced. With the increasing of SEBS, tensile strength and flexural strength were slightly decreased, but the impact strength was increased clearly. The balanced mechanical properties between stiffness and toughness were achieved after compression foaming.
Mass and flow balances for reverse osmosis virus removal crediting with tracers
Authors: Trussell R. Rhodes , Kenny John D. , Tackaert Rodrigo A. , Pisarenko Aleksey N. , Trussell R. Shane
Published: December 2020

Constituents in the feed of reverse osmosis (RO) processes pass into the product by two mechanisms: diffusion through the membrane and advection through defects in the system. While minerals and tracers pass via both mechanisms, pathogens pass only via advection. Using mass and flow balances, a rigorous model is developed to characterize the response of both viruses and tracers in RO systems. The model is used to assess several tracers being considered today. Early virus testing and the commercial requirements of desalination are reviewed, leading to the conclusion that some degree of advection can be expected to be present in RO systems but that commercial incentives can be expected to maintain pathogen removal due to defects somewhat greater than 4.0 log. Model results suggest that the best tracers currently in use can detect defects near this log reduction value but that there is still room for improvement.
Untersuchung der Schutzwirkung von auf Gabionenwänden montierten Leitblechen gegen Explosionen
Authors: Xiao Weifang , Andrae Matthias , Gebbeken Norbert
Published: December 2020

In diesem Aufsatz werden experimentelle und numerische Untersuchungen zur Minderung von Explosionslasten auf Gebäude und Menschen durch verschiedene Konfigurationen einer Schutzwand vorgestellt. Die Wandkonstruktion besteht aus einer Gabionenwand mit einem aufgesetzten Leitblech, das mit unterschiedlichen Neigungswinkeln angeordnet wird. Für jede Testkonfiguration wurden drei Versuche durchgeführt. Numerische Modelle wurden entwickelt und anhand der Versuchsdaten validiert. Aus Kosten‐ und Platzgründen wurden Schutzwände mit einer geringen Breite von 2 m in den Versuchen untersucht. Hinter der Wand kommt es hierdurch zur Überlagerung der vertikal über die Oberseite der Schutzwand strömenden Schockwelle mit der seitlich um die Wand strömenden Schockwelle. Neben den in den Versuchen eingesetzten kurzen Wänden wurden lange Wände numerisch simuliert, wie sie in der Praxis benötigt werden. Die numerischen Untersuchungen an der langen Umfassungswand zeigten, dass Leitbleche die Intensität der Schockwelle deutlich reduzieren können. Bezüglich der Schutzwirkung erweist sich die Testkonfiguration mit einer Anordnung des Leitblechs von 45° in Richtung des Explosionsursprungs als wirkungsvollste Maßnahme. Im Vergleich zum Freifeldszenario wird in den untersuchten Bereichen eine Überdruckreduktion (Impulsreduktion) von 55,0 % bis 86,0 % (von 45,7 % bis 63,8 %) erreicht.
The UK construction and facilities management sector's response to the Modern Slavery Act: An intra‐industry initiative against modern slavery
Authors: Trautrims Alexander , Gold Stefan , Touboulic Anne , Emberson Caroline , Carter Helen
Published: December 2020

The United Kingdom's Modern Slavery Act exposed companies to a new ethical challenge in their supply chains. An estimated 40.3 million people worldwide are in modern slavery, working in a range of supply chains, including construction and facilities management. In this article, we show how the UK construction and facilities management sector responded to this challenge through an intra‐industry initiative and went through a process of collaborative sense‐making and sector‐wide agreement on a joint approach to challenge modern slavery in the sector's operations and supply chains. The research takes an engaged research approach whereby the researchers have been able to gain deep and continued access to the phenomenon from participation in a multi‐company initiative on the implementation of responses to the UK Modern Slavery Act in supply chain and procurement activities of their sector. We identify and discuss key areas for supply chain and procurement practitioners tasked with addressing a human rights topic in their operations and supply chains: Motivation, risk hot‐spots, challenges and response and provide a rich understanding of an intra‐industry initiative which creates a basis for further research on collective sustainability approaches by businesses who are otherwise commercial competitors. The study's results and insights are useful for policymakers and practitioners who are aiming to apply market‐based approaches for sustainability improvements in supply chains.
Liquid biopsy for esophageal cancer: Is detection of circulating cell‐free DNA as a biomarker feasible?
Authors: Yuan Zuyang , Wang Xinfeng , Geng Xiao , Li Yin , Mu Juwei , Tan Fengwei , Xue Qi , Gao Shugeng , He Jie
Published: December 2020

Esophageal cancer (EC) is a common cancer and is histopathologically classified into esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and esophageal adenocarcinoma. EC is a worldwide public health issue because of late diagnosis and lack of effective therapy. In contrast to standard tumor biopsies, liquid biopsies are emerging as a tool which is minimally invasive that can complement or even substitute more classical approaches. Specifically, cell‐free DNA (cfDNA) has shown promise in cancer‐related clinical applications. Indeed, cfDNA has been shown to be an effective circulating biomarker for non‐invasive cancer diagnosis and monitoring of cancer patients. Although the clinical application of cfDNA has been reported on other cancers, few studies have evaluated its use in EC. Here, we review this relevant literature and discuss limitations and advantages of its application in the diagnosis and monitoring of EC.
Attachment safety in psychotherapy
Authors: Mair Helma
Published: December 2020

Safety is generally considered a fundamental ingredient of the psychotherapeutic encounter. Theoreticians and clinicians of a variety of psychotherapy modalities and formats agree on the importance of the client feeling safe for positive therapeutic outcomes. Over the course of psychotherapy, clients start to view their therapist as an attachment figure, which makes the issue of attachment safety in therapy particularly relevant. This article presents two subthemes of a qualitative study on the client's experience of safety in psychotherapy that focus on attachment‐related aspects of this phenomenon: (a) The attachment language of safety and (b) The therapist as attachment figure. Semi‐structured interviews carried out on 10 Irish psychotherapy trainees to explore their experience of safety as a client were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis and showed that attachment processes and nonverbal language exchanged between client and therapist played an important role in the client's overall experience of safety in psychotherapy. In addition to traditional attachment theory, polyvagal theory provides a solid framework for understanding and working with attachment‐based processes in psychotherapy, which are a major factor in the client's experience of safety. The recommendation is for psychotherapy training programmes to include both of these fields in psychotherapeutic theory and practice.
Investigating the Mechanistic Inhibitory Discrepancies of Novel Halogen and Alkyl Di‐Substituted Oxadiazole‐Based Dibenzo‐Azepine‐Dione Derivatives on Poly (ADP‐Ribose) Polymerase‐1
Authors: Okunlola Felix O. , Soremekun Opeyemi S. , Olotu Fisayo A. , Soliman Mahmoud E. S.
Published: December 2020

Numerous studies have established the involvement of Poly (ADP‐ribose) Polymerase‐1 (PARP‐1) in cancer presenting it as an important therapeutic target over recent years. Although homology among the PARP protein family makes selective targeting difficult, two compounds [d11 (0.939 μM) and d21 (0.047 μM)] with disparate inhibitory potencies against PARP‐1 were recently identified. In this study, free energy calculations and molecular simulations were used to decipher underlying mechanisms of differential PARP‐1 inhibition exhibited by the two compounds. The thermodynamics calculation revealed that compound d21 had a relatively higher ΔGbind than d11. High involvement of van der Waal and electrostatic effects potentiated the affinity of d21 at PARP‐1 active site. More so, incorporated methyl moiety in d11 accounted for steric hindrance which, in turn, prevented complementary interactions of key site residues such as TYR889, MET890, TYR896, TYR907. Conformational studies also revealed that d21 is more stabilized for interactions in the active site compared to d11. We believe that findings from this study would provide an important avenue for the development of selective PARP‐1 inhibitors.
Aortic thrombosis and renal infarction in a young female with patent foramen ovale and COVID‐19 antibody
Authors: Kundal Sanchit V. , Emeasoba Emmanuel U. , Harris Chad , Randhawa Gurchetan , Astashkevich Mariya
Published: December 2020

Thrombotic complications in patients with prior COVID‐19 infection raises concern for a persistent hypercoagulable state among these patients. Thus, there is a dire need for further research aimed at anticoagulation guidelines for the same.
AgNPs@ZIF‐8 Hybrid Material‐Modified Polyethersulfone Microfiltration Membranes for Antibiofouling Property and Permeability Improvement
Authors: Feng Yue , Guo Ning , Ren Shaojie , Xie Xuan , Xu Juan , Wang Yunkun
Published: December 2020

Membrane fouling is a major hindrance to the effective application of polyethersulfone (PES) membranes. Synthetic silver nanoparticles @ zeolitic imidazolate framework‐8 (AgNPs@ZIF‐8) hybrid crystals were used to modify the PES microfiltration membranes for mitigating membrane fouling and better water permeability. The surface modification of AgNPs@ZIF‐8 hybrid crystals improved the antifouling property of the membranes. The number of live bacteria in the bacteria suspension was over 90 % less than that of control membranes. Furthermore, after surface modification, the membrane permeability was enhanced, which was due to increased surface hydrophilization of the membranes which could partly explain the improved antifouling property. The results demonstrate that the use of AgNPs@ZIF‐8 hybrid crystals is a feasible and attractive approach for the development of antifouling membranes.
Identifying sources of resistance in chickpea to seed rot and seedling damping‐off caused by metalaxyl‐resistant Pythium ultimum
Authors: Agarwal Chiti , Chen Weidong , Coyne Clare , Vandemark George
Published: December 2020

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) has been a globally important source of nutrition for human and animal diets for several thousand years. In the United States, chickpeas are integral components of dryland agriculture systems throughout the Pacific Northwest and Northern Plains, but seed rot and preemergent damping‐off of chickpea caused by metalaxyl‐resistant isolates of Pythium ultimum Trow have emerged as diseases of increasing importance in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. The objective of this study was to identify sources of resistance to metalaxyl‐resistant P. ultimum in chickpea. Resistance was evaluated based on the emergence of chickpea seedlings from soil artificially infested with the pathogen. Significant differences in emergence were consistently detected between the desi chickpea cultivar ‘Myles’ and the kabuli chickpea cultivar ‘Sierra’. These two cultivars were used as checks to screen two different chickpea mini‐core collections, including a 39‐accession mini‐core collection from the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System and 209 accessions from a chickpea mini‐core collection developed by International Crops Research Institute for the Semi‐Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). A total of 194 desi accessions and 41 kabuli accessions were significantly more resistant than Sierra, whereas 85 desi accessions identified from the ICRISAT collection were highly resistant to both P. ultimum isolates. Accessions with pigmented seed coats were significantly more resistant than accessions with beige seed coats, which is a characteristic of kabuli chickpeas. Two accessions, W6 25882 and W6 25884, may be especially promising parental materials for improving kabuli cultivars based on their consistent resistant reactions to P. ultimum isolates and higher 100‐seed weight.
Design and optimization of 3‐kW inductive power transfer charging system with compact asymmetric loosely coupled transformer for special applications
Authors: Ma Hongbo , Li Xiaobin , Zhang Bin , Yi Junhong , Wang Xiaoqiang , Xu Jianping
Published: December 2020

Inductive power transfer (IPT) technology has become popular in wireless charging applications. Compared with the traditional 3‐kW wireless charging application, the diameter for the primary coil and the secondary coil in this special design are required to be smaller than 260 and 110 mm, respectively. In order to achieve this target, an approach to design and optimize the loosely coupled transformer (LCT) is proposed to match the strict geometry limitation, while achieving the high conversion efficiency. Different from the traditional design method, the low resonant current and voltage stress are considered as the input of the design flowchart, especially the LCT. Thus, the overall conversion efficiency can be improved. Based on series–series (S–S) compensation topology, the parameter range of the LCT is determined by analyzing transformer‐based equivalent model. To achieve the desired coil size, an asymmetric LCT with single‐layer primary coil and three‐layer secondary coil is designed and optimized by the proposed approach. Furthermore, the closed‐loop controller with narrow frequency variation range is design to realize constant current (CC) charge and constant voltage (CV) charge. A 3‐kW IPT charging prototype is built to demonstrate the validity of the proposed method. Experimental results show that the peak efficiency from input to battery load is 95.69% at 3‐kW output power in the transition point from CC mode to CV mode.
Biosafety during a pandemic: shared resource laboratories rise to the challenge
Authors: Aspland Avrill M. , Douagi Iyadh , Filby Andrew , Jellison Evan R. , Martinez Lola , Shinko Diana , Smith Adrian L. , Tang Vera A. , Thornton Sherry
Published: December 2020

Biosafety has always been an important aspect of daily work in any research institution, particularly for cytometry Shared Resources Laboratories (SRLs). SRLs are common‐use spaces that facilitate the sharing of knowledge, expertise, and ideas. This sharing inescapably involves contact and interaction of all those within this working environment on a daily basis. The current pandemic caused by SARS‐CoV‐2 has prompted the re‐evaluation of many policies governing the operations of SRLs. Here we identify and review the unique challenges SRLs face in maintaining biosafety standards, highlighting the potential risks associated with not only cytometry instrumentation and samples, but also the people working with them. We propose possible solutions to safety issues raised by the COVID‐19 pandemic and provide tools for facilities to adapt to evolving guidelines and future challenges.
Identifying patients at increased risk of hypoglycaemia in primary care: Development of a machine learning‐based screening tool
Authors: Crutzen Stijn , Belur Nagaraj Sunil , Taxis Katja , Denig Petra
Published: December 2020

Introduction

In primary care, identifying patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) who are at increased risk of hypoglycaemia is important for the prevention of hypoglycaemic events. We aimed to develop a screening tool based on machine learning to identify such patients using routinely available demographic and medication data.

Methods

We used a cohort study design and the Groningen Initiative to ANalyse Type 2 diabetes Treatment (GIANTT) medical record database to develop models for hypoglycaemia risk. The first hypoglycaemic event in the observation period (2007–2013) was the outcome. Demographic and medication data were used as predictor variables to train machine learning models. The performance of the models was compared with a model using additional clinical data using fivefold cross validation with the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUC) as a metric.

Results

We included 13,876 T2D patients. The best performing model including only demographic and medication data was logistic regression with least absolute shrinkage and selection operator, with an AUC of 0.71. Ten variables were included (odds ratio): male gender (0.997), age (0.990), total drug count (1.012), glucose‐lowering drug count (1.039), sulfonylurea use (1.62), insulin use (1.769), pre‐mixed insulin use (1.109), insulin count (1.827), insulin duration (1.193), and antidepressant use (1.05). The proposed model obtained a similar performance to the model using additional clinical data.

Conclusion

Using demographic and medication data, a model for identifying patients at increased risk of hypoglycaemia was developed using machine learning. This model can be used as a tool in primary care to screen for patients with T2D who may need additional attention to prevent or reduce hypoglycaemic events.
State‐of‐charge estimation for LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2/graphite batteries using the compound method with improved extended Kalman filter and long short‐term memory network
Authors: Xu Shuai , Zhou Jianxiong , Zhou Fei , Liu Yuchen
Published: December 2020

Because it is necessary for electric vehicle (EV) driver to know the remaining power of the EV battery during driving, thus it is very valuable to research the precise state‐of‐charge estimation, which can update the residual capacity of battery and prevent the occurrence of overcharge and over discharge phenomenon for battery. As compared with most model‐based methods, neural network‐based methods can directly use battery surface temperature as the input parameters of the model. In here, the state‐of‐charge of LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2/graphite batteries is estimated using the compound method with improved extended Kalman filter and long short‐term memory network. The improved extended Kalman filter algorithm is composed of recursive least square method with forgetting factor algorithm, generalized regression neural network and extended Kalman filter algorithm. For the compound state‐of‐charge estimation method, the state‐of‐charge values are first estimated using the improved extended Kalman filter, and then optimized using long short‐term memory network. The datasets of dynamic stress test at 25°C are applied to train the long short‐term memory network, while the datasets under different conditions are used as validation datasets. The results reveal that the mean absolute error, maximum absolute error, and root mean square error for their combination method are less than 1%, 3%, 1.1%, respectively. Among three kinds of state‐of‐charge estimation methods, the compound method has the highest estimation accuracy under different working conditions.
The effect of complete replacing sodium with potassium, calcium, and magnesium brine on sodium‐free ultrafiltration Feta cheese at the end of the 60‐day ripening period: Physicochemical, proteolysis–lipolysis indices, microbial, colorimetric, and sensory evaluation
Authors: Zonoubi Razieh , Goli Mohammad
Published: December 2020

The effect of complete substitution of NaCl with KCl, MgCl2, and CaCl2 in brine used for the ripening stage in Na‐free ultrafiltration (UF) Feta cheese making investigated. The chemical, microbial, textural, colorimetric, and sensory evaluation did at the end of the 60‐day ripening period. As the ripening period of the cheese increased, the amount of acidity and total solid significantly increased while pH and moisture significantly decreased. All chloride salts exerted a significant antimicrobial effect on the fermentation growth cycle; particularly, CaCl2 showed a similar effect to NaCl, while KCl and MgCl2 were progressively less inhibitory. The highest hardness and syneresis on the first day seen in the samples containing sodium chloride and the lowest hardness and syneresis on the sixty day recognized in the samples containing magnesium chloride. There was no significant difference in whiteness index for monovalent salts in the first and sixtieth days of storage, and of course, this difference was not significant between divalent salts. There was no significant difference in overall acceptance score between sodium and potassium brine, although these two treatments had a significant difference compared with the others. There was no significant difference in the overall acceptance of cheeses stored in calcium and magnesium brine.
Theta power and theta‐gamma coupling support long‐term spatial memory retrieval
Authors: Vivekananda Umesh , Bush Daniel , Bisby James A. , Baxendale Sallie , Rodionov Roman , Diehl Beate , Chowdhury Fahmida A. , McEvoy Andrew W. , Miserocchi Anna , Walker Matthew C. , Burgess Neil
Published: December 2020

Hippocampal theta oscillations have been implicated in spatial memory function in both rodents and humans. What is less clear is how hippocampal theta interacts with higher frequency oscillations to support long‐term memory. Here we asked 10 presurgical epilepsy patients undergoing intracranial EEG recording to perform a long‐term spatial memory task in desktop virtual reality and found that increased theta power in two discrete bands (“low” 2‐5 Hz and “high” 6‐11 Hz) during cued retrieval was associated with improved task performance. Similarly, increased coupling between “low” theta phase and gamma amplitude during the same period was associated with improved task performance. Finally, low and high gamma amplitude appeared to peak at different phases of the theta cycle; providing a novel connection between human hippocampal function and rodent data. These results help to elucidate the role of theta oscillations and theta‐gamma phase‐amplitude coupling in human long‐term memory.