bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic approach and transpalatal extraction of a chronic nasopharyngeal ballistic foreign body in a cat
Authors: Ziobro Paulina , Brás Inês , Heathcote Natalie , Rubiños Carlos , Warland James
Published: December 2024

A 4‐year‐old, female, neutered, domestic shorthair cat was referred for treatment of acute worsening of chronic upper respiratory signs after radiographic diagnosis of a metallic foreign body in the nasopharynx before referral. Computed tomography confirmed the presence of a metallic airgun pellet in the nasopharynx and shrapnel in the nasal bone and nasal cavity. The airgun pellet was successfully removed via a midline staphylotomy with no complications. The owner recalled a wound to the left of the nasal cavity that had been noticed approximately 2 years prior and had healed before any clinical signs developed. This case report describes the surgical management and long‐term outcome of a nasopharyngeal ballistic foreign body in a cat.
A deadly mix‐up: The incorrect dispensing of cyclophosphamide for cyclosporine resulting in a pancytopaenia and haemorrhagic cystitis
Authors: Caldwell Matthew A. , Black Annalise , Struthers Jason D.
Published: December 2024

A 10‐year‐old, male, Staffordshire bull terrier was presented to a veterinary hospital for a suspected snake envenomation. Three weeks prior, the patient was diagnosed with discoid lupus erythematosus and was prescribed cyclosporine. A complete blood count and chemistry panel revealed severe thrombocytopaenia, severe leukopaenia and mild anaemia of unknown aetiology. Severe thrombocytopaenia and leukopaenia persisted for 13 days. The patient developed severe haematuria, despite receiving intravenous fluids, vitamin K1, B12 injections and Yunnan Baiyao. Over subsequent hospital visits, the patient became recumbent and anuric. Due to poor prognosis and lack of clinical response, the patient was euthanased and submitted for a postmortem examination. Postmortem examination suggested a myelotoxic insult leading to pancytopaenia and sterile haemorrhagic cystitis. Cyclophosphamide toxicity was considered, which is known to cause these two conditions. When presented with the findings, the owner realised that the retail pharmacy had erroneously dispensed cyclophosphamide instead of cyclosporine.
Digital Innovations for City Sustainability Analysis and Decision-Making
Authors: Newton Peter , Pettit Chris , Barr Stuart , Bruns Loren
Published: December 2024

This chapter examines the potential for accelerating a convergence between fields of research associated with digitalisation (incorporating disciplines of sensing, data science, data analytics, and information technology) and urban-sustainability transition (relating to disciplines such as planning, design, environmental science, economics, transport, and politics), acknowledging that the threads of such linkages have been emerging over decades. Convergence research is a fundamental underlying principle of scientific progress that assembles and integrates all relevant capabilities to answer contemporary grand challenges. It is a frontier area for applied research that is critical for an accelerated transition to a green economy and sustainable urban development—two mission-scale challenges of the twenty-first century. The framework for this chapter comprises four interconnected innovation arenas associated with digitalisation that together constitute a basis for more rapidly advancing urban-sustainability research and development. These are information and communications technologies and digital infrastructure platforms that enable stakeholder engagement across distributed collaborative networks, advances in data science, and advanced urban analytics that support integrated urban analyses and decision-making.
Embedding Transformative Innovation into Mission-Oriented Policy and Innovation Districts: The Case of Melbourne
Authors: Nguyen Thi Minh Phuong , Davidson Kathryn , Farrelly Megan
Published: December 2024

This chapter presents key interventions to provide a step-change in the understanding of innovation, from orthodox to transformative, in the development of local government public policy in the Melbourne Innovation District (MID) City North, Australia. Innovation refers to the introduction of new technological, organisational, and social solutions in response to problems and challenges that arise in existing social, economic, and environmental settings. A step-change is necessary as traditional innovation practice is not currently fit for purpose to deliver a more inclusive and sustainable society. To illustrate this step-change, we reference the MID City North with the key actors including the City of Melbourne (CoM) and two universities (University of Melbourne and RMIT). The MID City North, established in 2017, is a maturing initiative that has evolved over a period of time punctuated by considerable disruptions, particularly the Australian bushfire (Black Summer 2019–2020) catastrophe and the COVID-19 pandemic. We argue these disruptions are a catalyst for change and therefore an important context for the social shaping of the evolving policy discourse relevant to the MID City North. Both disruptions were powerful pressures, as well as windows of opportunity, to effect policy reform mainly by the key actor: the CoM. We propose four key interventions to build on the policy-reform momentum to better develop pathways to deliver on transformative innovation in policy, specifically for the MID City North and the CoM. These interventions are key because they foster the establishment of favourable policy mixes supporting innovation for the transformative change required for cities transitioning towards sustainability.
Healthy Cities: Transitioning to Polycentric Cities Can Enhance Population Health
Authors: Chandrabose Manoj , Hadgraft Nyssa , Owen Neville , Sugiyama Takemi
Published: December 2024

Cities around the world are recognising the need for innovative solutions to address the growing chronic disease burden in the context of urban population growth. In this chapter, we propose transitioning from monocentric to polycentric city models as a solution to this contemporary challenge, particularly in the context of Australia. Such transitions will bring fundamental changes to the way people move across the city: from car dependency to active mobility. Essential features of the polycentric city for enhancing population health include improving walkability and bikeability, reducing driveability, promoting public transport use, and integrating greenspaces. We discuss the importance of some key aspects of urban planning and public-health research for providing a strong evidence base to guide the implementation of the polycentric transition, including identifying specific thresholds for planning attributes that are optimal for population health and understanding community preferences for attributes of polycentric urban forms.
A New Paradigm for Resilient Urban Infrastructure Planning: Game-Changing Interventions, Tipping Points, and Capacities
Authors: Moglia Magnus , Wise Russell M. , Meharg Seona
Published: December 2024

What infrastructure do Australian cities need over the next century? Planning for, delivering, and maintaining infrastructure that is usually long-lived and expensive in a rapidly changing environment is difficult. Complexity and uncertainties are at play, with potentially serious consequences to be considered. Specifically, current infrastructure-investment risks are not fit for purpose and would fail to meet the rapidly evolving needs of communities and economic activities. This may create lock-in situations that are difficult to adapt to or reverse; they therefore close down opportunities for the transformation needed to reduce systemic risks. In this chapter, we argue that the key to cities’ resilience lies in the people and organisations having capacity, competencies, and governance for systemic interventions based on adaptive learning and decision-making. We outline a method for changing the planning of infrastructure to meet urgent urban challenges, such as climate change, rapid technological change, and pandemics. This is based on a mission-oriented programme of innovation that guides, underpins, and supports inclusive and robust infrastructure decisions. Finally, we introduce principles that can trigger a set of tipping points that can promote necessary shifts in infrastructure planning, policies, and practices that encourage more resilient, sustainable and equitable outcomes.
Delivering Sustainable, Resilient, and Low-Carbon-Built Environments
Authors: He Bao-Jie , Prasad Deo
Published: December 2024

The current climate emergency is now a matter of urgent attention, as evidenced by the growing number of scientific reports on the subject and media generally. In response, there is a global movement within the built environment sector to explore how net-zero carbon targets can best be met for this sector, globally, by 2030. Many businesses, governments, and other organisations have released their commitments with benchmarks, targets, and pathways to achieve net-zero carbon-built environments. Such commitments have mainly prioritised carbon pollution metrics, while urban liveability indicators related to cooling, comfort, health, and well-being of communities have often not been well integrated into built environment decarbonisation goals. This chapter aims to present pathways for achieving climate-linked goals for resilient planning and design systems for built environments. It analyses global guides, plans, and actions designed to lead to sustainable, resilient, and low-carbon-built environments and presents a robust, comprehensive, and integrative discussion of the findings of the CRC for low-carbon living to inform strategic decision-making for built environments in Australia.
The difference between the weak core and the strong core from the design point of view
Authors: Korpela Ville , Lombardi Michele , Savva Foivos
Published: December 2024

From a normative viewpoint, there is no compelling reason for preferring the weak over the strong core, and vice versa. However, the situation changes significantly from a mechanism design perspective. We work in a rights structures environment, where the role of the social planner is to allocate rights to individuals or coalitions which allow them to change the status-quo state. While coalitions are irrelevant for implementation in weak core (Koray and Yildiz in J. Econ. Theory 176:479-502, 2018; Korpela et al. in J. Econ. Theory 185:104953, 2020), our results show that they are fundamental for implementation in strong core. We fully characterize the implementation of social choice rules in strong core to outline this distinction. For robustness, we also characterize double implementation in weak and strong core which we show to be equivalent to implementation in weak core. Finally, we show that this equivalence breaks down in the more realistic case of implementation by codes of rights, where the set of states coincides with the set of outcomes.
Optimizing last-mile delivery: a dynamic compensation strategy for occasional drivers
Authors: Schur Rouven , Winheller Kai
Published: December 2024

Amid the rapid growth of online retail, last-mile delivery faces significant challenges, including the cost-effective delivery of goods to all delivery locations. Our work contributes to this stream by applying dynamic pricing techniques to effectively model the possible involvement of the crowd in fulfilling delivery tasks. The use of occasional drivers (ODs) as a viable, cost-effective alternative to traditional dedicated drivers (DDs) prompts the necessity to focus on the inherent challenge posed by the uncertainty of ODs’ arrival times and willingness to perform deliveries. We introduce a dynamic programming framework that offers individualized bundles of a delivery task and compensation to ODs as they arrive. This model, akin to a reversed form of dynamic pricing, accounts for ODs’ decision-making by treating their acceptance thresholds as a random variable. Therefore, our model addresses the dynamic and stochastic nature of OD availability and decision-making. We analytically solve the stage-wise optimization problem, outline inherent challenges such as the curses of dimensionality, and present structural properties. Tailored to meet these challenges, our approximation methods aim to accurately determine avoided costs, which are a key factor in calculating optimal compensation. Our simulation study reveals that the savings generated by involving ODs in deliveries can be significantly increased through our individualized dynamic compensation policy. This approach not only excels in generating savings for the firm but also provides a utility surplus for ODs. Additionally, we demonstrate the applicability of our approach to scenarios with time windows and illustrate the trade-off that arises from time window partitioning.
Unravelling vegetation and human dynamics during the first millennium ad in Brandenburg, north-eastern Germany: insights from lake sediments
Authors: Alinezhad Khadijeh , Feeser Ingo , Schneeweiß Jens , Dreibrodt Stefan , Jahns Susanne , Dörfler Walter
Published: December 2024

During the first millennium ad, Germany, like other European regions, witnessed dynamic interactions between human populations and the environment, resulting in effects on landscapes and vegetation. Despite their significance, the detailed changes and links between vegetation and population dynamics in Germany during this period are not yet fully understood. This study addresses this gap in an interdisciplinary approach combining high resolution pollen analysis, varve counts and AMS radiocarbon dating on a partially annually laminated lake sediment core from Kleiner Tornowsee, in Brandenburg, north-eastern Germany. Archaeological evidence of the region and available pollen data from another lake, Sacrower See, also in Brandenburg, were used for comparison and allowed the identification of regional developments. The results suggest that the Germanic tribes living there during the Roman Iron Age (ca. ad 1–375) were adept at maintaining an economy based on crop growing and the keeping of livestock. During the Migration period (ad 375–600) there was a relatively slow but continuous expansion of woodland, coinciding with two phases of depopulation. A low but constant presence of indicators of human activity in the pollen profiles, however, suggests that these areas were not completely abandoned. Evidence for an early phase of human activities starting again in the late 6th or early 7th century ad at both sites is striking, because of a lack of archaeological evidence for any settlements in this period. During the High Middle Ages (ad 1000–1300), a further increase in farming activities resulted in intensified clearance of woodland for farmland and led to more crop growing than grazing in the 11th and 12th centuries.
How Does an Expert Artist Create Artwork? Skills and Strategies of an Expert Calligrapher Utilizing Ecological Constraints
Authors: Nozawa Hikaru
Published: December 2024

How does an artist utilize ecological constraints to create artwork? What physical skills support this creative process? This paper presents three studies examining the bottom-up creative process of an expert calligrapher over 16 trials, analyzing the same case from different perspectives. The first study focuses on the calligrapher’s writing posture. It reveals that the calligrapher synchronized trunk and brush tip movements, flexibly altering whole-body coordination patterns depending on character forms. The second study investigates the modification process of the 17 characters written on the paper. The calligrapher progressively adjusted the form and layout of characters by establishing coordinative structures among the variables of character form and position, thus effectively utilizing the margins of the paper. The third study examines the calligrapher’s gaze searches. It shows that these searches allowed accurate adjustments of character shapes and layout by flexibly changing gaze direction distribution depending on the position of the paper and characters relative to the body. Collectively, the three studies demonstrate that the expert calligrapher’s key skill is the flexibility to make bottom-up adjustments to characters’ form and layout by actively utilizing the ecological constraints of the paper. This skill is supported by flexible gaze searches and a writing posture involving whole-body coordination.
Clinical confocal laser endomicroscopy for imaging of autofluorescence signals of human brain tumors and non-tumor brain
Authors: Reichenbach Marlen , Richter Sven , Galli Roberta , Meinhardt Matthias , Kirsche Katrin , Temme Achim , Emmanouilidis Dimitrios , Polanski Witold , Prilop Insa , Krex Dietmar , Sobottka Stephan B. , Juratli Tareq A. , Eyüpoglu Ilker Y. , Uckermann Ortrud
Published: December 2024

Purpose

Analysis of autofluorescence holds promise for brain tumor delineation and diagnosis. Therefore, we investigated the potential of a commercial confocal laser scanning endomicroscopy (CLE) system for clinical imaging of brain tumors.

Methods

A clinical CLE system with fiber probe and 488 nm laser excitation was used to acquire images of tissue autofluorescence. Fresh samples were obtained from routine surgeries (glioblastoma n = 6, meningioma n = 6, brain metastases n = 10, pituitary adenoma n = 2, non-tumor from surgery for the treatment of pharmacoresistant epilepsy n = 2). Additionally, in situ intraoperative label-free CLE was performed in three cases. The autofluorescence images were visually inspected for feature identification and quantification. For reference, tissue cryosections were prepared and further analyzed by label-free multiphoton microscopy and HE histology.

Results

Label-free CLE enabled the acquisition of autofluorescence images for all cases. Autofluorescent structures were assigned to the cytoplasmic compartment of cells, elastin fibers, psammoma bodies and blood vessels by comparison to references. Sparse punctuated autofluorescence was identified in most images across all cases, while dense punctuated autofluorescence was most frequent in glioblastomas. Autofluorescent cells were observed in higher abundancies in images of non-tumor samples. Diffuse autofluorescence, fibers and round fluorescent structures were predominantly found in tumor tissues.

Conclusion

Label-free CLE imaging through an approved clinical device was able to visualize the characteristic autofluorescence patterns of human brain tumors and non-tumor brain tissue ex vivo and in situ. Therefore, this approach offers the possibility to obtain intraoperative diagnostic information before resection, importantly independent of any kind of marker or label.
Exosomes, their sources, and possible uses in cancer therapy in the era of personalized medicine
Authors: Zemanek Tomas , Danisovic Lubos , Nicodemou Andreas
Published: December 2024

Despite significant advances in immunotherapy, its efficacy in solid tumors remains limited. Exosomes, a primary type of extracellular vesicles, can transport diverse intracellular molecules to nearby or distant cells and organs, facilitating numerous biological functions. Research has shown that exosomes have the dual ability to both activate and suppress the immune system. Their potential as anticancer vaccines arise from the capacity to carry antigens and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules. Exosomes derived from blood, saliva, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid serve as promising biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Recent advancements in exosome-based therapy have highlighted its utility in drug delivery and immunotherapy. This review examines the composition and sources of exosomes within the immune microenvironment of solid tumors and delves into the mechanisms and pathways through which exosomes impact immunotherapy. We further explore the clinical potential of engineered exosomes and exosome vaccines in solid tumor immunotherapy. These insights may pave the way for exosome-based strategies in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis, enhancing the effectiveness of immunotherapy for solid tumors.
Remineralisation of enamel erosive lesions by daily-use fluoride treatments: network meta-analysis of an in situ study set
Authors: Creeth Jonathan , Smith Gary , Franks Billy , Hara Anderson , Zero Domenick
Published: December 2024

Objectives

Daily-use fluoride products are first-line protection against enamel wear from dietary-acid exposure (DAE). This study aimed to understand effects of fluoride concentration, fluoride salt, product form and ingredients in daily-use products on remineralisation and demineralisation, via network meta-analysis (NMA) of 14 studies using one well-established in-situ model. Remineralisation (surface-microhardness recovery, SHMR) after treatment, and protection against subsequent demineralisation (acid-resistance ratio, ARR) were measured.

Materials and methods

Healthy participants, wearing intra-oral palatal appliances holding enamel specimens eroded with standardised DAE, used test products once. Enamel hardness was assessed (Knoop microhardness probe) pre-DAE; post-DAE; after 4 h intra-oral remineralisation; and after post-remineralisation DAE. NMA was performed using a mixed-models approach on subject-level data to estimate and compare means.

Results

There was a dose-response for fluoride ion in toothpastes (0-1426ppm F; p < 0.001 for SMHR and ARR). One toothpaste (silica-based, 1150ppm F as NaF) showed a benefit for SMHR versus placebo [mean(standard error)]: 8.8%(0.6%) (33.0% vs. 24.2%; p < 0.001); for ARR: 0.27(0.03) (0.43 vs. 0.15; p < 0.001; 9 mutual studies). Use of fluoride mouthwash after fluoride toothpaste increased SMHR [2.4%(1.1%); p = 0.043; 3 studies]; the effect on ARR [0.08(0.05)] was not significant (p = 0.164). Negative effects of polyvalent metal ions and polyphosphates on SMHR (p < 0.05) were observed.

Conclusions

NMA proved effective in discriminating between fluoride-based treatments in this in-situ study, highlighting the importance of fluoride ion to enamel protection and showing formulation ingredients can affect its performance.

Clinical Relevance

Daily-use fluoride products can protect enamel against dietary acids, but careful formulation is required for optimal performance.
Objective agency measurement of different hand appearances in virtual reality with intentional binding
Authors: Hartfill Judith , Bormann Frederico , Riebandt Kevin , Kühn Simone , Steinicke Frank
Published: December 2024

The feeling of being in control of the actions of a self-avatar (sense of agency) is a crucial factor of VR embodiment, but the exact role of avatar appearance in this context is not clear yet. Current research on sense of agency in the field of VR is often limited to subjective measures, like self-reports or questionnaires. In the field of neuroscience, however, objective measures to evaluate the agency are used, for instance, the Intentional Binding (IB) paradigm based on time estimation with the Libet clock. In this work we compare the sense of agency towards two fully articulated virtual hands with different levels of visual realism using the IB paradigm. While both hand representations elicted a sense of agency, we did not find a significant effect of appearance.
PreVISE: an efficient virtual reality system for SEEG surgical planning
Authors: Spiegler Pascal , Abdelsalam Haitham , Hellum Owen , Hadjinicolaou Aristides , Weil Alexander G. , Xiao Yiming
Published: December 2024

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by recurring seizures that can cause a wide range of symptoms. Stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) is a diagnostic procedure where multiple electrodes are stereotactically implanted within predefined brain regions to identify the seizure onset zone, which needs to be surgically removed or disconnected to achieve remission of focal epilepsy. This procedure is complex and challenging due to two main reasons. First, as electrode placement requires good accuracy in desired brain regions, excellent knowledge and understanding of the 3D brain anatomy is required. Second, as typically multiple SEEG electrodes need to be implanted, the positioning of intracerebral electrodes must avoid critical structures (e.g., blood vessels) to ensure patient safety. Traditional SEEG surgical planning relies on 2D display of multi-contrast volumetric medical imaging data, and places a high cognitive demand for surgeons’ spatial understanding, resulting in potentially sub-optimal surgical plans and extensive planning time (~ 15 min per electrode). In contrast, virtual reality (VR) presents an intuitive and immersive approach that can offer more intuitive visualization of 3D data as well as potentially enhanced efficiency for neurosurgical planning. Unfortunately, existing VR systems for SEEG surgery only focus on the visualization of post-surgical scans to confirm electrode placement. To address the need, we introduce the first VR system for SEEG planning that integrates user-friendly and efficient visualization and interaction strategies while providing real-time feedback metrics, including distances to nearest blood vessels, angles of insertion, and the overall surgical quality scores. The system reduces the surgical planning time by 91%.
Dating apps as tools for social engineering
Authors: Beckstein Martin , De Vries Bouke
Published: December 2024

In a bid to boost their below-replacement fertility levels, some countries, such as China, India, Iran, and Japan, have launched state-sponsored dating apps, with more potentially following. However, the use of dating apps as tools for social engineering has been largely neglected by political theorists and public policy experts. This article fills this gap. While acknowledging the risks and historical baggage of social engineering, the article provides a qualified defense of using these apps for three purposes: raising below-replacement birth rates, increasing social cohesion, and preventing certain genetic diseases.
Surrogate Wars: The “Best Interest Values” Hierarchy & End-of-Life Conflicts with Surrogate Decision-Makers
Authors: Fiester Autumn
Published: December 2024

Conflicts involving end-of-life care between healthcare providers (HCPs) and surrogate decision-makers (SDMs) have received sustained attention for more than a quarter of a century, with early studies demonstrating a frequency of HCP-SDM conflict in ICUs ranging from 32–78% of all admissions (Abbott et al. 2001; Breen et al. 2001; Studdert et al. 2003; Azoulay et al. 2009). More recent studies not only acknowledge the persistence of clinical conflict in end-of-life care (Leland et al. 2017), but they have begun to focus on the ways in which these conflicts escalate to verbal or physical violence in the ICU (Slack et al. 2023; Bass et al. 2024; Berger et al. 2024; Sjöberg et al. 2024). I will argue that part of the explanation for the persistence–and even escalation–of ICU disputes is the incommensurable value systems held by many conflicting HCPs and SDMs. I will argue that a common value system among HCPs can be understood as a “Best Interest Values” (BIV) hierarchy, which I will argue is irreconcilable with the set of “Life-Continuation Values” (LCV) held by a sizable minority of families in the United States. I argue this values-conflict undergirds many ICU disputes. If I am correct that an incommensurable value system underlies many ICU conflicts, then it is not just ineffectual for HCPs to impose their BIV system on LCV families, but also wrong given the American commitment to values pluralism. I conclude that the way to navigate continuous ICU surrogate wars is for BIV-focused healthcare institutions to engage more constructively with LCV stakeholders.
Entropy of difference works similarly to permutation entropy for the assessment of anesthesia and sleep EEG despite the lower computational effort
Authors: Edthofer Alexander , Ettel Dina , Schneider Gerhard , Körner Andreas , Kreuzer Matthias
Published: December 2024

EEG monitoring during anesthesia or for diagnosing sleep disorders is a common standard. Different approaches for measuring the important information of this biosignal are used. The most often and efficient one for entropic parameters is permutation entropy as it can distinguish the vigilance states in the different settings. Due to high calculation times, it has mostly been used for low orders, although it shows good results even for higher orders. Entropy of difference has a similar way of extracting information from the EEG as permutation entropy. Both parameters and different algorithms for encoding the associated patterns in the signal are described. The runtimes of both entropic measures are compared, not only for the needed encoding but also for calculating the value itself. The mutual information that both parameters extract is measured with the AUC for a linear discriminant analysis classifier. Entropy of difference shows a smaller calculation time than permutation entropy. The reduction is much larger for higher orders, some of them can even only be computed with the entropy of difference. The distinguishing of the vigilance states between both measures is similar as the AUC values for the classification do not differ significantly. As the runtimes for the entropy of difference are smaller than for the permutation entropy, even though the performance stays the same, we state the entropy of difference could be a useful method for analyzing EEG data. Higher orders of entropic features may also be investigated better and more easily.
Tuning the Physical Properties of V-Ti-Ce Alloy Superconductors Through Successive Cold-Working and Annealing at 650 °C
Authors: Khandelwal Asi , Mirza Nida , Chandra L. S. Sharath , Singh Rashmi , Sagdeo Archna , Chattopadhyay M. K.
Published: December 2024

V- Ti alloys are promising alternatives to Nb for the construction of superconducting solenoids that produce high magnetic fields. The critical current density ($$J_C$$

J
C

), which quantifies the capacity of a superconductor to carry large dissipationless current, increases in the V-Ti alloys with the addition of Ce. Here, the effects of successive cold working and annealing on the electrical resistivity, $$J_C$$

J
C

, and microstructure of the V$$_{0.59}$$

0.59

Ti$$_{0.40}$$

0.40

Ce$$_{0.01}$$

0.01

alloy are studied. The $$J_C$$

J
C

is the maximum after the second cold rolling. Annealing at 650 $$^{\circ }$$

∘

C is found to nucleate and grow the $$\alpha $$
α
-phase which is detrimental to $$J_C$$

J
C

, whereas the precipitation of the $$\alpha '$$

α
′

-phase is found to improve the $$J_C$$

J
C

.
A quantitative logistic-like model of immigration: the case of Spain
Authors: Torres Sheila , Company Rafael , Jódar Lucas
Published: December 2024

In this paper a discrete logistic–like dynamic model for the immigration arriving in Spain is constructed. The immigration population is split in two categories: regular and irregular. Taking into account economic, regulation, and political factors the model, is built in a vector form. For the sake of reliability the period of time is intentionally short, because the economic behavior and legal regulation are not stable.
Internet use and the Well-Being of the Elders. A Quantitative Study in an Aged Country
Authors: Suárez-Álvarez Ana , Vicente María Rosalía
Published: December 2024

In recent years, digital technologies have become an essential part of our lives. At the same time, the well-being of the elderly has raised great concern in developed countries due to the ageing of the population. In this context, our paper seeks to link these two issues by analysing the relationship between digital technologies and the well-being of the elderly, taking into account that the use of the former is endogenous. Such an issue has been little addressed in the literature. For this purpose, we use microdata from the European Social Survey since it includes both measures of individuals’ subjective level of well-being and of their use of the internet. We focus on Spain because it is a rapidly aging country, which also has the highest life expectancy in the European Union. Our main findings show that using internet daily is negatively associated with individuals’ happiness, but we observe a positive relationship between internet use and their social life. Additionally, these associations are enhanced for individuals aged over 60 years.
Does green entrepreneurial orientation impact entrepreneurial success through green innovation capability in the manufacturing and services sector of emerging economies?
Authors: Rong Chen , Cristia Juan Felipe Espinosa , Marian Matac Liviu , Alzuman Abad , Comite Ubaldo
Published: December 2024

Environmental concerns are rapidly becoming an essential component of successful entrepreneurship; consequently, managers at all levels have begun to acknowledge the significance of environmentally responsible innovation in achieving sustainable company performances. When it comes to mitigating the effects of environmental deterioration and fostering the growth of new businesses, the importance of the roles played by manufacturing and service industries cannot be overstated. Green innovation capabilities may impact the entrepreneurial performance of organizations in the manufacturing sector and the services sector, however, there has been little research on the relationship between green entrepreneurial approach and green innovation. As a result, the goal of this study is to evaluate the impact that a green entrepreneurial orientation has on an organization’s capacity for green innovation as well as the impact that this aptitude has on the success of entrepreneurial initiatives in China. The sample includes involvement from 300 workers in China’s manufacturing and service industries, all of whom were at different levels. The data analysis was performed using the partial least square approach, often known as the PLS-SEM. According to the study’s conclusions, the elements that have the greatest impact on business success are an entrepreneurial orientation toward sustainability and the potential for green innovation.
Action and Active Powers
Authors: Bianchi Robin T.
Published: December 2024

This paper explores the distinction between active and passive powers. Interest in the distinction has recently been revived in some quarters of the philosophy of action as some have sought to elucidate the distinction between action and passion (the changes that happen to a substance) in terms of the former (Hyman, 2015; Mayr, 2011; Lowe 2013). If there is a distinction between active and passive powers, parallel to the distinction between action and passion, what is it? In this paper, I distinguish two ways of drawing it. According to the first one, active and passive powers are distinguished by the ways in which their manifestations come about. According to the second, they are distinguished by their directedness, i.e. what they are powers to do. Both accounts are examined and the latter is defended against the former. I argue that active powers are powers to alter, modify, corrupt or change something.
Superimposed Wavefront Imaging of Diffraction-enhanced X-rays: sparsity-aware CT reconstruction from limited-view projections
Authors: Sunaguchi Naoki , Yuasa Tetsuya , Shimao Daisuke , Huang Zhuoran , Ichihara Shu , Nishimura Rieko , Iwakoshi Akari , Kim Jong-Ki , Gupta Rajiv , Ando Masami
Published: December 2024

Purpose

In this paper, we describe an algebraic reconstruction algorithm with a total variation regularization (ART + TV) based on the Superimposed Wavefront Imaging of Diffraction-enhanced X-rays (SWIDeX) method to effectively reduce the number of projections required for differential phase-contrast CT reconstruction.

Methods

SWIDeX is a technique that uses a Laue-case Si analyzer with closely spaced scintillator to generate second derivative phase-contrast images with high contrast of a subject. When the projections obtained by this technique are reconstructed, a Laplacian phase-contrast tomographic image with higher sparsity than the original physical distribution of the subject can be obtained. In the proposed method, the Laplacian image is first obtained by applying ART + TV, which is expected to reduce the projection with higher sparsity, to the projection obtained from SWIDeX with a limited number of views. Then, by solving Poisson's equation for the Laplacian image, a tomographic image representing the refractive index distribution is obtained.

Results

Simulations and actual X-ray experiments were conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in projection reduction. In the simulation, image quality was maintained even when the number of projections was reduced to about 1/10 of the originally required views, and in the actual experiment, biological tissue structure was maintained even when the number of projections was reduced to about 1/30.

Conclusion

SWIDeX can visualize the internal structures of biological tissues with very high contrast, and the proposed method will be useful for CT reconstruction from large projection data with a wide field of view and high spatial resolution.
A local-to-global inequality for spectral invariants and an energy dichotomy for Floer trajectories
Authors: Buhovsky Lev , Tanny Shira
Published: December 2024

We study a local-to-global inequality for spectral invariants of Hamiltonians whose supports have a “large enough” disjoint tubular neighborhood on semipositive symplectic manifolds. As a corollary, we deduce this inequality for disjointly supported Hamiltonians that are $$C^0$$

C
0

-small (when fixing the supports). In particular, we present the first examples of such an inequality when the Hamiltonians are not necessarily supported in domains with contact-type boundaries, or when the ambient manifold is irrational. This extends a series of previous works studying locality phenomena of spectral invariants [9, 13, 15, 20, 25, 27]. A main new tool is a lower bound, in the spirit of Sikorav, for the energy of Floer trajectories that cross the tubular neighborhood against the direction of the negative-gradient vector field.
The diversity of divestiture– stock market reactions around the announcements of divestiture programs
Authors: Erl Ludwig , Kiesel Florian , Schiereck Dirk
Published: December 2024

Single divestitures can adjust a firm’s strategy, while divestiture programs, a series of divestitures with a common rationale, may considerably change a firm’s business. However, this does not always imply a positive impact. Existing evidence on how capital markets evaluate these decisions lacks validation based on the firm’s strategic background. This paper fills this gap by examining stock market reactions to divestiture program announcements, conditional on the firm’s current situation. We explore five key antecedents likely to influence divestiture program decisions: CEO turnover, new blockholder, financial distress, prior divestiture experience, and industry divestiture waves. Examining more than 100 European firms and their divestiture disclosures, our results show that firms announce divestiture programs when financially distressed or after a change in the top management. Market reactions vary but are more positive when program value is disclosed, especially for financially driven programs or those programs which are part of broader restructuring initiatives.
Cost-effectiveness of ferric citrate hydrate in patients with iron deficiency anemia
Authors: Momoeda Mikio , Ito Kyoko , Inoue Sachie , Shibahara Hidetoshi , Mitobe Yuko , Komatsu Norio
Published: December 2024

We investigated the cost-effectiveness of treating iron deficiency anemia (IDA) with ferric citrate hydrate (FC) in Japan. We employed four treatment strategies: switching from sodium ferrous citrate (SF) to FC at (1) 500 mg (approximately 120 mg of iron) per day or (2) 1000 mg (approximately 240 mg of iron) per day in patients with SF-induced nausea/vomiting, or starting treatment with FC at (3) 500 mg/day or (4) 1000 mg/day. We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of these strategies compared with SF 100 mg (100 mg of iron) per day. Incremental effects over 26 weeks relative to SF 100 mg were 0.0052 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) for (1) and (2), and 0.0044 QALYs for (3) and (4). From the payer’s perspective, incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs: JPY/QALY) against SF 100 mg were: (1) 1,107,780, (2) 2,257,477, (3) 5,588,430, and (4) 11,544,816. All four FC strategies were dominant (less costly and more effective) from a limited societal perspective. Treatment with FC for IDA was cost-effective (ICER ≤ JPY 5,000,000/QALY) when switching strategies from the payer perspective, and cost-saving (all FC strategies) from limited societal perspectives. Individual patients' characteristics and cost-effectiveness should be considered in treatment selection.
Influence of pores on the fatigue life of welded joints and investigation of acceptance criteria defined in standard documents
Authors: Jung Matthias , Fenzl René
Published: December 2024

Inner defects in welded joints constitute concurrent sites for fatigue failure in welds, especially when high fatigue resistance is enforced at weld toe and root. Existing standards limit the size of pores and other inner defects in proportion to the sheet or weld thickness, but for larger dimensions cutoff values are in place. This leads to overly high acceptance criteria when it comes to thicker sheets, as for example those used for wind turbine towers. To analyze the influence of pores on the fatigue life, specimens with targeted pore sizes larger than the usually accepted were tested under fatigue loading. In the present study, a numerical model for fatigue assessment was developed based on the experimental results, which allowed further variance of pore sizes and locations. It is shown, that for larger weldments the acceptable pore size can be increased by up to 87.5 % without the necessity to reduce the applicable design curve. But, the location of the pore with regard to the specimens surface has a large influence, with pores in a distance to the surface smaller than 13 % of the sheet thickness leading to a reduction in the applicable design curve by up to 4 FAT classes — an effect that is currently not considered in common weld quality documents.
Four Key Questions to Guide Human Rights–based Social Listening during Infodemics
Authors: Forman Lisa
Published: December 2024

This paper considers what a human rights–based approach to the use of social listening to counter infodemics during a serious health threat might entail, using COVID-19 as a primary example. The paper considers social listening in the context of human rights including health, life, free speech, and privacy, and outlines what a rights-compliant form of social listening to infodemics might entail. The paper argues that human rights offer guardrails against illicit and unethical forms of social listening as well as signposts towards a more equitable, ethical, and effective public health tool. The paper first expands on the human rights dimensions of COVID-19, infodemics, and social listening. Second, it considers the human rights dimensions of social listening in relation to rights to health, life, and free speech, given international human rights law principles for limiting these rights. Finally, using this framework, the paper poses four key questions to frame a rights-based approach to social listening: Why do we listen? How do we listen? Who do we listen to and who is doing the listening? And what are the outcomes of such listening?
“Faith it, till you make it”: Prosperity Gospel and Spiritual Hustling among Young Pentecostal Christians in Harare
Authors: Taru Josiah , McNeill Fraser G.
Published: December 2024

Pentecostal charismatic churches that preach prosperity gospel in Zimbabwe have attracted a youthful membership. In the context of a deeply uncertain economic future, young Pentecostal Christians devise performativity strategies for optimizing their chances of converting prosperity gospel into material prosperity. These strategies include sartorial elegance in adorning counterfeit suits, the performance of obedience, and the use of social media technologies. The picture that emerges is a complex and at times contradictory one in which the potential realization of upward spiritual and social mobility rests, ultimately, on the transformative and volatile nature of value. Data for this project was collected in Harare through ethnographic research and interviews over a year-long period.
Expressed disapproval does not sustain long-term cooperation as effectively as costly punishment
Authors: Sparks Adam , Burleigh Tyler , Barclay Pat
Published: December 2024

Punishment plays a role in human cooperation, but it is costly. Prior research shows that people are more cooperative when they expect to receive negative feedback for non-cooperation, even in the absence of costly punishment, which would have interesting implications for theory and applications. However, based on theories of habituation and cue-based learning, we propose that people will learn to ignore expressions of disapproval that are not clearly associated with material costs or benefits. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a between-subjects, 40-round public goods game (i.e. much longer than most studies), where participants could respond to others’ contributions by sending numerical disapproval messages, paying to reduce others’ earnings, or neither. Consistent with previous results, we observed steadily increasing contributions in the costly punishment condition. In contrast, contributions declined after the early rounds in the expressed disapproval condition, and were eventually no higher than the basic control condition with neither costly punishment nor disapproval ratings. In other words, costless disapproval may temporarily increase cooperation, but the effects fade. We discuss the theoretical and applied implications of our findings, including the unexpectedly high levels of cooperation in a second control condition.
Generation of multi-watt sub-50 fs pulses in Mamyshev oscillators: influence of the central wavelength in the grating filter
Authors: Qiao Feihong , Wang Jinbo , Dou Xinhe , Li Xiang , Song Bole , Lv Zhiguo
Published: December 2024

Mamyshev oscillators (MOs) exhibit the potential for generating high average power and ultrashort pulses. Herein, we construct an MO using flexible double-cladding ytterbium-fiber with a fusion-spliced-combiner pumped scheme. Consistent with the most reported research results, the offset filter separation significantly affects the pulse characteristics (spectrum, pulse duration, etc.). Notably, in comparison with red-shifting, blue-shifting the peak spectral emission of the grating filter relative to a constant central wavelength of the bandpass filter substantially enhances the laser output characteristics. This phenomenon, which has not been previously reported, results in an average power up to 2.23 W and a pulse duration as short as 49 fs. To our knowledge, this is the highest average power achieved in sub-50 fs pulse duration in the nonlinear polarization rotation-assisted mode-locked MO laser architecture. The presented technique offers unique scientific proof for developing ultrafast laser sources with higher average power and shorter pulse duration.
Isochoric unsteady multipolar spherical oscillations in compressible radial and cylindrical background flows
Authors: Viúdez Álvaro
Published: December 2024

The multipolar spherical vortex solutions to the Euler and Navier–Stokes equations in background cylindrical flow with swirl admit an additional background divergent radial flow with arbitrary time-dependent amplitude. In this case the radial wavenumber

$k$

, fundamental frequency

$\omega$

and overall amplitude

$U$

of the multipolar mode superposition become time-dependent and related functions. Assumption of an additional constraint, as a constitutive equation defining the time evolution of the spatially homogeneous divergence of the background flow, is required for the time evolution of the total flow to be completely evaluated from the initial conditions. It is found that flow compression implies an increase of the absolute values of the fundamental frequency

$\omega$

and overall velocity amplitude

$U$

of the oscillations.