bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Tragedy of the Risk Averse
Authors: Stefánsson H. Orri
Published: December 2020

Those who are risk averse with respect to money, and thus turn down some gambles with positive monetary expectations, are nevertheless often willing to accept bundles involving multiple such gambles. Therefore, it might seem that such people should become more willing to accept a risky but favourable gamble if they put it in context with the collection of gambles that they predict they will be faced with in the future. However, it turns out that when a risk averse person adopts the long-term perspective, she faces a decision-problem that can be analysed as a noncooperative game between different “time-slices” of herself, where it is in the interest of each time-slice (given its prediction about other slices) to turn down the gamble with which it is faced. Hence, even if a risk averse but rational person manages to take the long-term perspective, she will, in the absence of what Hardin called “mutual coercion”, end up in a situation analogous to the “tragedy of the commons”.
Laves phases: a review of their functional and structural applications and an improved fundamental understanding of stability and properties
Authors: Stein Frank , Leineweber Andreas
Published: December 2020

Laves phases with their comparably simple crystal structure are very common intermetallic phases and can be formed from element combinations all over the periodic table resulting in a huge number of known examples. Even though this type of phases is known for almost 100 years, and although a lot of information on stability, structure, and properties has accumulated especially during the last about 20 years, systematic evaluation and rationalization of this information in particular as a function of the involved elements is often lacking. It is one of the two main goals of this review to summarize the knowledge for some selected respective topics with a certain focus on non-stoichiometric, i.e., non-ideal Laves phases. The second, central goal of the review is to give a systematic overview about the role of Laves phases in all kinds of materials for functional and structural applications. There is a surprisingly broad range of successful utilization of Laves phases in functional applications comprising Laves phases as hydrogen storage material (Hydraloy), as magneto-mechanical sensors and actuators (Terfenol), or for wear- and corrosion-resistant coatings in corrosive atmospheres and at high temperatures (Tribaloy), to name but a few. Regarding structural applications, there is a renewed interest in using Laves phases for creep-strengthening of high-temperature steels and new respective alloy design concepts were developed and successfully tested. Apart from steels, Laves phases also occur in various other kinds of structural materials sometimes effectively improving properties, but often also acting in a detrimental way.
When do the expectations of others matter? Experimental evidence on distributional justice and guilt aversion
Authors: Ghidoni Riccardo , Ploner Matteo
Published: December 2020

Distributional justice—measured by the proportionality between effort exerted and rewards obtained—and guilt aversion—triggered by not fulfilling others’ expectations—are widely acknowledged fundamental sources of pro-social behavior. We design three experiments to study the relevance of these sources of behavior when considered in interaction. In particular, we investigate whether subjects fulfill others’ expectations also when this could produce inequitable allocations that conflict with distributional justice considerations. Our results confirm that both justice considerations and guilt aversion are important drivers of pro-social behavior, with the former having an overall stronger impact than the latter. Expectations of others are less relevant in environments more likely to nurture equitable outcomes.
Coded conduct: making MACSYMA users and the automation of mathematics
Authors: Dick Stephanie A.
Published: December 2020

This article explores an early computer algebra system called MACSYMA – a repository of automated non-numeric mathematical operations developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from the 1960s to the 1980s, to help mathematicians, physicists, engineers and other mathematical scientists solve problems and prove theorems. I examine the extensive paper-based training materials that were produced alongside the system to create its users. Would-be users were told that the system would free them from the drudgery of much mathematical labour. However, this ‘freedom’ could only be won by adapting to a highly disciplined mode of problem solving with a relatively inflexible automated assistant. In creating an automated repository of mathematical knowledge, MACSYMA developers sought to erase its social context. However, looking at the training literature, we see that the social operates everywhere, only recoded. This article uses the paper-based training materials to uncover the codes of conduct – both social and technical – that coordinated between the users, developers and machines that constituted the system.
Trusts, co-ops, and crowd workers: Could we include crowd data workers as stakeholders in data trust design?
Authors: Gomer Richard C. , Simperl Elena
Published: December 2020

Data trusts have been proposed as a mechanism through which data can be more readily exploited for a variety of aims, including economic development and social-benefit goals such as medical research or policy-making. Data trusts, and similar data governance mechanisms such as data co-ops, aim to facilitate the use and re-use of datasets across organizational boundaries and, in the process, to protect the interests of stakeholders such as data subjects. However, the current discourse on data trusts does not acknowledge another common stakeholder in the data value chain—the crowd workers who are employed to collect, validate, curate, and transform data. In this paper, we report on a preliminary qualitative investigation into how crowd data workers themselves feel datasets should be used and governed. We find that while overall remuneration is important to those workers, they also value public-benefit data use but have reservations about delayed remuneration and the trustworthiness of both administrative processes and the crowd itself. We discuss the implications of our findings for how data trusts could be designed, and how data trusts could be used to give crowd workers a more enduring stake in the product of their work.
Addressing Operational Challenges Faced by COVID-19 Public Health Rapid Response Teams in Non–United States Settings
Authors: Anantharam Puneet , Hoffman Adela , Noonan Michelle , Bugli Dante , Pechta Laura , Bornemann Jennifer , Victory Kerton R. , Greiner Ashley L.
Published: December 2020

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global response underscores the need for a multidisciplinary approach that integrates and coordinates various public health systems—surveillance, laboratory, and health-care systems/networks, among others—as part of a larger emergency response system. Multidisciplinary public health rapid response teams (RRTs) are one mechanism used within a larger COVID-19 outbreak response strategy. As COVID-19 RRTs are deployed, countries are facing operational challenges in optimizing their RRT’s impact, while ensuring the safety of their RRT responders. From March to May 2020, United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention received requests from 12 countries for technical assistance related to COVID-19 RRTs and emergency operations support. Challenges included: (1) an insufficient number of RRT responders available for COVID-19 deployments; (2) limited capacity to monitor RRT responders’ health, safety, and resiliency; (3) difficulty converting critical in-person RRT operational processes to remote information technology platforms; and (4) stigmatization of RRT responders hindering COVID-19 interventions. Although geographically and socioeconomically diverse, these 12 countries experienced similar RRT operational challenges, indicating potential applicability to other countries. As the response has highlighted the critical need for immediate and effective implementation measures, addressing these challenges is essential to ensuring an impactful and sustainable COVID-19 response strategy globally.
How is COVID-19 Being Contained in China? An Observational Study on the Local Level
Authors: Han Ziqiang , Ai Xin , Veuthey Justin
Published: December 2020

Objective:

This article investigates how a Chinese local government responded to the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, and the lessons can be valuable for the ongoing response efforts worldwide.

Methods:

This case study used primarily participant observations and interviews with stakeholders.

Results:

We find that nonpharmaceutical interventions, especially the physical distancing measures, are the primary tools used to contain the spread of the virus, and these actions keep changing to adapt to the situation of the local cases and the directions from the central government. Medical countermeasures, maintenance of essential public services, and effective public communications tactics are important allies of the strict physical distancing measures, which can enforce the public’s compliance.

Conclusions:

Local governments are the frontlines of emergency response. Both regulated policies (eg, physical distancing) and supportive services (eg, medical and essential living support) are necessary to the success of public health emergency response.
Rapid Integrated Healthcare Response for the First US Evacuees from Wuhan, China, During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Mesisca Michael , Leung Geoff , Morris Jonelle , Chang Matthew , Verbeck Roderick , Loe Stephanie , Cruikshank Jennifer , Tabuenca Arnold , Miller Rhyan , Kaiser Cameron , Saruwatari Kim , Pachon Andrew , Randall Melanie M
Published: December 2020

On January 29, 2020, a total of 195 US citizens were evacuated from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in Wuhan, China, to March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, California, and entered the first federally mandated quarantine in over 50 years. With less than 1-d notice, a multi-disciplinary team from Riverside County and Riverside University Health System in conjunction with local and federal agencies established on-site 24-h medical care and behavioral health support. This report details the coordinated efforts by multiple teams that took place to provide care for the passengers and to support the surrounding community.
Risk factors for carbapenemase-producing organisms among inpatients in Scotland: A national matched case–control study
Authors: Zhao Shengyuan , Perry Meghan R. , Kennedy Sharon , Wilson Julie , Chase-Topping Margo E. , Anderson Eleanor , Lockhart Michael C. , Woolhouse Mark E.J.
Published: December 2020

Objective:

To determine risk factors for carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) and to determine the prognostic impact of CPOs.

Design:

A retrospective matched case–control study.

Patients:

Inpatients across Scotland in 2010–2016 were included. Patients with a CPO were matched with 2 control groups by hospital, admission date, specimen type, and bacteria. One group comprised patients either infected or colonized with a non-CPO and the other group were general inpatients.

Methods:

Conditional logistic regression models were used to identify risk factors for CPO infection and colonization, respectively. Mortality rates and length of postisolation hospitalization were compared between CPO and non-CPO patients.

Results:

In total, 70 CPO infection cases (with 210 general inpatient controls and 121 non-CPO controls) and 34 CPO colonization cases (with 102 general inpatient controls and 60 non-CPO controls) were identified. Risk factors for CPO infection versus general inpatients were prior hospital stay (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 4.05; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.52–10.78;P= .005), longer hospitalization (aOR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.04–1.10;P< .001), longer intensive care unit (ICU) stay (aOR, 1.41; 95% CI, 1.01–1.98;P= .045), and immunodeficiency (aOR, 3.68; 95% CI, 1.16–11.66;P= .027). Risk factors for CPO colonization were prior high-dependency unit (HDU) stay (aOR, 11.46; 95% CI, 1.27–103.09;P= .030) and endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic (ENM) diseases (aOR, 3.41; 95% CI, 1.02–11.33;P= .046). Risk factors for CPO infection versus non-CPO infection were prolonged hospitalization (aOR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.00–1.03;P= .038) and HDU stay (aOR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.02–1.26;P= .024). No differences in mortality rates were detected between CPO and non-CPO patients. CPO infection was associated with longer hospital stay than non-CPO infection (P= .041).

Conclusions:

A history of (prolonged) hospitalization, prolonged ICU or HDU stay; ENM diseases; and being immunocompromised increased risk for CPO. CPO infection was not associated with increased mortality but was associated with prolonged hospital stay.
Together in the Same Boat: Exiled Nationalist State and Chinese Civil War Exiles in 1950s Taiwan
Authors: Yang Dominic Meng-Hsuan
Published: December 2020

When the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) came to power, one million mainland Chinese were forcibly displaced to Taiwan with Chiang Kai-shek's regime. Today, this event is still largely considered as a relocation of government or a military withdrawal operation instead of a massive population movement. Contrary to popular belief, many of the displaced mainlanders were not Nationalist elites. Most were common soldiers, petty civil servants, and war refugees from different walks of life. Based on newspapers, magazines, surveys, declassified official documents produced in 1950s Taiwan and contemporary oral history, this article uncovers the complicated relationship between the regime in exile and the people in exile. It argues that the interdependency between the two, in particular between the migrant state and the socially atomized lower class migrants, was formed gradually over a decade due to two main factors: wartime displacement and the need to face an unfriendly local population together.
Measuring and inferring the ice thickness distribution of four glaciers in the Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan
Authors: Van Tricht Lander , Huybrechts Philippe , Van Breedam Jonas , Fürst Johannes J. , Rybak Oleg , Satylkanov Rysbek , Ermenbaiev Bakyt , Popovnin Victor , Neyns Robbe , Paice Chloë Marie , Malz Philipp
Published: December 2020

Glaciers in the Tien Shan mountains contribute considerably to the fresh water used for irrigation, households and energy supply in the dry lowland areas of Kyrgyzstan and its neighbouring countries. To date, reconstructions of the current ice volume and ice thickness distribution remain scarce, and accurate data are largely lacking at the local scale. Here, we present a detailed ice thickness distribution of Ashu-Tor, Bordu, Golubin and Kara-Batkak glaciers derived from radio-echo sounding measurements and modelling. All the ice thickness measurements are used to calibrate three individual models to estimate the ice thickness in inaccessible areas. A cross-validation between modelled and measured ice thickness for a subset of the data is performed to attribute a weight to every model and to assemble a final composite ice thickness distribution for every glacier. Results reveal the thickest ice on Ashu-Tor glacier with values up to 201 ± 12 m. The ice thickness measurements and distributions are also compared with estimates composed without the use of in situ data. These estimates approach the total ice volume well, but local ice thicknesses vary substantially.
Factor Structure and Convergent Validity of the Portuguese version of the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems – 32
Authors: Faustino Bruno , Vasco António Branco
Published: December 2020

The identification of dysfunctional patterns in individuals’ interpersonal interactions is a cornerstone of psychotherapy. The Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP-32) is one of the most used measures to explore individuals’ interpersonal styles. However, an IIP-32 Portuguese version is missing. Therefore, this study describes a preliminary psychometric study of an IIP-32 Portuguese version in a nonclinical sample. In a cross-sectional correlational design, 250 participants (Mage = 20.67,SD= 4.88, males = 33, females = 217) were assessed with self-report questionnaires. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), convergent, and divergent validities of the IIP-32 were tested with the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Relationships with symptomatology were also tested with the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-53). The EFA showed a theoretically coherent eight-factor structure. Almost all of the IIP-32 subscales were positively correlated with personal discomfort and with BSI-53 subscales. Vindictive/self-centred, socially inhibited, domineering/controlling and self-sacrificing subscales predicted symptomatology. Promising preliminary psychometric properties were found that may support the IIP-32 as a reliable instrument to assess interpersonal styles. However, more research is required to deepen the analysis of the IIP-32 in the Portuguese population.
Plainclothes Policewomen on the Trail: NYPD Undercover Investigations of Abortionists and Queer Women, 1913–1926
Authors: Evens Elizabeth
Published: December 2020

In early twentieth-century New York City, policewomen went undercover to investigate abortion and queer women. These early female entrants to the New York Police Department were not the middle class reformers typically associated with Progressive Era vice reform; they tended to be working class white widows who carved out a gendered expertise that relied upon their unique capacity and willingness to extend surveillance over the female, immigrant spaces that eluded their male counterparts. The NYPD instrumentalized policewomen's bodies; investigations of criminalized female sexuality required policewomen participate in intimate encounters, exposing their own precarity in the masculine world of policing. But plainclothes work also furnished policewomen with a rare route to professional renown and social mobility, “success” they won at the expense of more marginalized women. Their work reveals that the early twentieth-century state was more innovative and invested in methods to police “disorderly” female heterosexuality and same sex desire than previously understood.
ON ORDINARY ENRIQUES SURFACES IN POSITIVE CHARACTERISTIC
Authors: LAFACE ROBERTO , TIRABASSI SOFIA
Published: December 2020

We give a notion of ordinary Enriques surfaces and their canonical lifts in any positive characteristic, and we prove Torelli-type results for this class of Enriques surfaces.
WILLIAM TYNDALE, HENRY VIII, ANDTHE OBEDIENCE OF A CHRISTIAN MAN
Authors: COAST DAVID
Published: December 2020

William Tyndale'sThe obedience of a Christian manhas been credited with influencing the Henrician regime's thinking and propaganda on the subject of obedience to royal authority. According to an anecdote first recorded by the archdeacon of Nottingham, John Louthe, Henry was so delighted by Tyndale's tract that he called it a book ‘for me and all kings to read’, and historians have argued that Henry tried to recruit Tyndale as a royal propagandist or diplomat in 1531. This article argues that Louthe's anecdote was probably a later invention, and that Henry disapproved of theObedienceand its author. There is little evidence that the king tried to recruit Tyndale, but wanted instead to silence him and force him to abjure his heresies. TheObediencecontained very little that would have pleased Henry, presenting him as a mere ‘shadow’ of a king, manipulated by evil prelates. While Tyndale rejected rebellion against even tyrannical rulers, this should not be confused with advocating obedience of the kind that Henry might approve of, and theObediencesanctioned disobedience of various kinds. From the outset, remarkably radical ideas were contained within an apparently ‘conservative’ tradition of English evangelical political thought.
ISOTROPIC MOTIVES
Authors: Vishik Alexander
Published: December 2020

In this article we introduce the local versions of the Voevodsky category of motives with$\mathbb{F} _p$-coefficients over a fieldk, parametrized by finitely generated extensions ofk. We introduce the so-calledflexiblefields, passage to which is conservative on motives. We demonstrate that, over flexible fields, the constructedlocalmotivic categories are much simpler than theglobalone and more reminiscent of a topological counterpart. This provides handy ‘local’ invariants from which one can read motivic information. We compute the local motivic cohomology of a point for$p=2$and study thelocal Chow motivic category. We introducelocal Chow groupsand conjecture that over flexible fields these should coincide withChow groups modulo numerical equivalence with$\mathbb{F} _p$-coefficients, which implies thatlocal Chow motivescoincide withnumerical Chow motives. We prove this conjecture in various cases.
Individual- and party-level determinants of far-right support among women in Western Europe
Authors: Allen Trevor J. , Goodman Sara Wallace
Published: December 2020

Support for Western Europe’s far-right is majority-male. However, given the sweeping success of the party family, literature on this ‘gender gap’ belies support given to the radical right by millions of women. We examine differences between men and women’s support for far-right parties, focusing on workplace experience, positions on economic and cultural issues, and features of far-right parties themselves. We find that the received scholarship on blue-collar support for far-right populists is a largely male phenomenon, and women in routine nonmanual (i.e. service, sales, and clerical) work are more likely than those in blue-collar work to support the far-right. Moreover, while men who support the far-right tend to be conservative on other moral issues, certain liberal positions predict far-right support among women, at both the voter and party level. Our analysis suggests that gender differences may obscure the socio-structural and attitudinal bases of support for far-right parties and have broader implications for comparative political behavior and gender and politics.
A New Look at the Electron Diffusion Region in Asymmetric Magnetic Reconnection
Authors: Hesse Michael , Norgren Cecilia , Tenfjord Paul , Burch James L. , Liu Yi‐Hsin , Bessho Naoki , Chen Li‐Jen , Wang Shan , Kolstø Håkon , Spinnangr Susanne F. , Ergun Robert E. , Moretto Therese , Kwagala Norah K.
Published: December 2020

A new look at the structure of the electron diffusion region in collision less magnetic reconnection is presented. The research is based on a particle‐in‐cell simulation of asymmetric magnetic reconnection, which includes a temperature gradient across the current layer in addition to density and magnetic field gradient. We find that none of X‐point, flow stagnation point, and local current density peak coincide. Current and energy balance analyses around the flow stagnation point and current density peak show consistently that current dissipation is associated with the divergence of nongyrotropic electron pressure. Furthermore, the same pressure terms, when combined with shear‐type gradients of the electron flow velocity, also serve to maintain local thermal energy against convective losses. These effects are similar to those found also in symmetric magnetic reconnection. In addition, we find here significant effects related to the convection of current, which we can relate to a generalized diamagnetic drift by the nongyrotropic pressure divergence. Therefore, only part of the pressure force serves to dissipate the current density. However, the prior conclusion that the role of the reconnection electric field is to maintain the current density, which was obtained for a symmetric system, applies here as well. Finally, we discuss related features of electron distribution function in the electron diffusion region (EDR). Specifically, we analyze both new crescent substructures as well as outer, higher energy crescents generated by accelerated magnetospheric particles.
Histidine orientation in artificial peroxidase regioisomers as determined by paramagnetic NMR shifts
Authors: Maglio Ornella , Chino Marco , Vicari Claudia , Pavone Vincenzo , Louro Ricardo O. , Lombardi Angela
Published: December 2020

A semi-empirical approach allows determining the His axial-ligand orientation with respect to the porphyrin plane in synthetic heme-peroxidases, for structure/function analysis.
Palladium-catalyzed allylic alkylation dearomatization of β-naphthols and indoles withgem-difluorinated cyclopropanes
Authors: Fu Zhiyuan , Zhu Jianping , Guo Songjin , Lin Aijun
Published: December 2020

A palladium-catalyzed allylic alkylation dearomatization of β-naphthols and indoles withgem-difluorinated cyclopropanes has been developed for the first time.
Growth and inhibition of monohydrate sodium urate banded spherulites
Authors: Zhou Yao , Feng Xiaowei , Wang Ting , Tian Yang , Cui Xiaoyan
Published: December 2020

The growth and inhibition of banded monosodium urate spherulites are explored in detail.
Atom-surface van der Waals potentials of topological insulators and semimetals from scattering measurements
Authors: Tamtögl Anton , Ruckhofer Adrian , Campi Davide , Allison William , Ernst Wolfgang E.
Published: December 2020

Gas-surface scattering experiments yield high accuracy interaction potentials in the van der Waals regime. A perspective overview for topological semimetals & insulators is provided and the importance for benchmarking ab initio calculations outlined.
Tripling the reverse electrodialysis power generation in conical nanochannels utilizing soft surfaces
Authors: Khatibi Mahdi , Sadeghi Arman , Ashrafizadeh Seyed Nezameddin
Published: December 2020

We theoretically investigate the feasibility of enhancing the reverse electrodialysis power generation in nanochannels by covering the surface with a polyelectrolyte layer (PEL).
Hydrogen bond regulated hydrogen sulfate ion recognition: an overview
Authors: Paul Suvendu , Majumdar Tapas , Mallick Arabinda
Published: December 2020

This review article summarizes the advancement of hydrogen bonding driven different photo-process (PT, ESIPT, ICT, PET, CHEF, TBET) based optical detection of HSO4−during the past two decades.
Deciphering supramolecular isomerization in coordination polymers: connected molecular squares vs. fused hexagons
Authors: Gupta Vijay , Laha Biswajit , Khullar Sadhika , Mandal Sanjay K.
Published: December 2020

Supramolecular isomerization in coordination polymers is demonstrated by using bis(tridentate) polypyridyl ligands and bent dicarboxylate linkers.
ATP regeneration by a single polyphosphate kinase powers multigram-scale aldehyde synthesisin vitro
Authors: Tavanti Michele , Hosford Joseph , Lloyd Richard C. , Brown Murray J. B.
Published: December 2020

Towards scalable ATP recycling: a newly identified PPK2-III biocatalyst unlocked fullyin vitromultigram-scale aldehyde synthesis employing a carboxylic acid reductase.
Modulating photoelectrochemical water splitting performance by constructing a type-II heterojunction between g-C3N4 and BiOI
Authors: Vinoth S. , Rajaitha P. Mary , Pandikumar A.
Published: December 2020

g-C3N4/BiOI type-II heterojunction prepared by ultrasonically aided hydrothermal method exhibits high stability during PEC water splitting for up to 6000 s at 1.23 V vs. RHE.
Phytostilbenes as agrochemicals: biosynthesis, bioactivity, metabolic engineering and biotechnology
Authors: Jeandet Philippe , Vannozzi Alessandro , Sobarzo-Sánchez Eduardo , Uddin Md. Sahab , Bru Roque , Martínez-Márquez Ascension , Clément Christophe , Cordelier Sylvain , Manayi Azadeh , Nabavi Seyed Fazel , Rasekhian Mahsa , El-Saber Batiha Gaber , Khan Haroon , Morkunas Iwona , Belwal Tarun , Jiang Jingjie , Koffas Mattheos , Nabavi Seyed Mohammad
Published: December 2020

Although constituting a limited chemical family, phytostilbenes represent an emblematic group of molecules among natural compounds.
Investigation of action pattern of a novel chondroitin sulfate/dermatan sulfate 4-O-endosulfatase
Authors: Wang Wenshuang , Przybylski Cédric , Cai Xiaojuan , Lopin-Bon Chrystel , Jiao Runmiao , Shi Liran , Sugahara Kazuyuki , Neira José L. , Daniel Régis , Li Fuchuan
Published: December 2020

Recently, a novel CS/DS 4-O-endosulfatase was identified from a marine bacterium and its catalytic mechanism was investigated further (Wang, W., et. al (2015) J. Biol. Chem.290, 7823–7832; Wang, S., et. al (2019) Front. Microbiol.10, 1309). In the study herein, we provide new insight about the structural characteristics of the substrate which determine the activity of this enzyme. The substrate specificities of the 4-O-endosulfatase were probed by using libraries of structure-defined CS/DS oligosaccharides issued from synthetic and enzymatic sources. We found that this 4-O-endosulfatase effectively remove the 4-O-sulfate of disaccharide sequences GlcUAβ1-3GalNAc(4S) or GlcUAβ1-3GalNAc(4S,6S) in all tested hexasaccharides. The sulfated GalNac residue is resistant to the enzyme when adjacent uronic residues are sulfated as shown by the lack of enzymatic desulfation of GlcUAβ1-3GalNAc(4S) connected to a disaccharide GlcUA(2S)β1-3GalNAc(6S) in an octasaccharide. The 3-O-sulfation of GlcUA was also shown to hinder the action of this enzyme. The 4-O-endosulfatase exhibited an oriented action from the reducing to the non-reducing whatever the saturation or not of the non-reducing end. Finally, the activity of the 4-O-endosulfatase decreases with the increase in substrate size. With the deeper understanding of this novel 4-O-endosulfatase, such chondroitin sulfate (CS)/dermatan sulfate (DS) sulfatase is a useful tool for exploring the structure–function relationship of CS/DS.
Optimization of the isolation procedure and culturing conditions for hepatic stellate cells obtained from mouse
Authors: Dang Thanh Minh , Le Trinh Van , Do Huy Quang , Nguyen Van Thuan , Holterman Ai Xuan Le , Dang Loan Tung Thi , Phan Nhan Chinh Lu , Pham Phuc Van , Hoang Son Nghia , Le Long Thanh , Grassi Gabriele , Truong Nhung Hai
Published: December 2020

Liver fibrosis (LF) mortality rate is approximately 2 million per year. Irrespective of the etiology of LF, a key element in its development is the transition of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) from a quiescent phenotype to a myofibroblast-like cell with the production of fibrotic proteins. It is necessary to define optimal isolation and culturing conditions for good HSCs yield and proper phenotype preservation for studying the activation of HSCs in vitro. In the present study, the optimal conditions of HSC isolation and culture were examined to maintain the HSC’s undifferentiated phenotype. HSCs were isolated from Balb/c mice liver using Nycodenz, 8, 9.6, and 11%. The efficiency of the isolation procedure was evaluated by cell counting and purity determination by flow cytometry. Quiescent HSCs were cultured in test media supplemented with different combinations of fetal bovine serum (FBS), glutamine (GLN), vitamin A (vitA), insulin, and glucose. The cells were assessed at days 3 and 7 of culture by evaluating the morphology, proliferation using cell counting kit-8, lipid storage using Oil Red O (ORO) staining, expression of a-smooth muscle actin, collagen I, and lecithin-retinol acyltransferase by qRT-PCR and immunocytochemistry (ICC). The results showed that Nycodenz, at 9.6%, yielded the best purity and quantity of HSCs. Maintenance of HSC undifferentiated phenotype was achieved optimizing culturing conditions (serum-free Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle’s Medium (DMEM) supplemented with glucose (100 mg/dl), GLN (0.5 mM), vitA (100 μM), and insulin (50 ng/ml)) with a certain degree of proliferation allowing their perpetuation in culture. In conclusion, we have defined optimal conditions for HSCs isolation and culture.
Electron-beam interaction with emission-line clouds in blazars
Authors: Wendel Christoph , Becerra González Josefa , Paneque David , Mannheim Karl
Published: December 2020

Context.An electron-positron beam escaping from the magnetospheric vacuum gap of an accreting black hole interacts with recombination-line photons from surrounding gas clouds. Inverse-Compton scattering and subsequent pair production initiate unsaturated electromagnetic cascades exhibiting a characteristic spectral energy distribution.

Aims.By modelling the interactions of beam electrons (positrons) with hydrogen and helium recombination-line photons, we seek to describe the spectral signature of beam-driven cascades in the broad emission-line region of blazar jets.

Methods.Employing coupled kinetic equations for electrons (positrons) and photons including an escape term, we numerically obtained their steady-state distributions and the escaping photon spectrum.

Results.We find that cascade emission resulting from beam interactions can produce a narrow spectral feature at TeV energies. Indications of such an intermittent feature, which defies an explanation in the standard shock-in-jet scenario, have been found at ≈ 4σconfidence level at an energy of ≈ 3 TeV in the spectrum of the blazar Mrk 501.

Conclusions.The energetic requirements for explaining the intermittent 3 TeV bump with the beam-interaction model are plausible: Gap discharges that lead to multi-TeV beam electrons (positrons) carrying ≈ 0.1% of the Blandford-Znajek luminosity, which interact with recombination-line photons from gas clouds that reprocess ≈ 1% of the similar accretion luminosity are required.
New material for anti-wear corrosion-resistant coating of agro industrial complex machinery parts
Authors: Okhlupin D.N. , Korolev A.V. , Sinev I.V.
Published: December 2020

The article presents the results of an experimental study of the corrosion resistance of the ta-C double coating of parts by PVD method with intermediate and final surface polishing with a discrete tool. The influence of regime factors on the results of polishing the ta-C coating with a discrete tool is shown, and optimal processing modes are proposed. Tests of samples in a salt bath showed that the double ta-C coating by PVD method with intermediate and final polishing ensures the absence of corrosion and coating peeling
Control in the inter-organizational management accounting system
Authors: Khoruzhiy Liudmila , Romanova Anastasiya
Published: December 2020

This article discusses the main concepts of the inter-organizational cooperation model, inter-organizational accounting and analytical system and the role of control in the management accounting system of partners. The main objective of the research is to build a management accounting model of enterprises at the inter-organizational level, which operates on the basis of self-organization and takes into account different levels of interaction of the enterprise. The management accounting model focuses on the role and place of control in the complex structure of relationships between enterprises and partners in the framework of inter-organizational management accounting. The control element is an important part of building a fundamentally new inter-organizational accounting and analytical system. This is due to the complexity of this structure, the presence of an unlimited number of subjects of inter-company relations and management levels. Establishing an effective control system will prevent a conflict of goals between partnership subjects, balance the interests of partners, and carry out coordinated adoption and implementation of decisions on the functioning and interaction in the network.
Determination of conditions for frequency adjustment of maintenance (M) and routine repair (RR) of electrical equipment under risk-oriented strategy of technical operation
Authors: Trushkin V.A. , Schlyupikov S.V. , Churlyaeva O.N. , Guzachev A.S.
Published: December 2020

Currently, in order to ensure the required fault-proof level of technological processes in agricultural production, the following strategies among the main ones: afterfailure, planned systematic and a mixed electrical equipment maintenance and repair strategy. The pervasion of information technology in this segment was not widespread. Application of information technologies in conjunction with implementation of risk-oriented strategy is one of the promising directions of electrical equipment maintenance optimization, yet requires adaptation to sectoral characteristics of agricultural production. The article describes the problem of determining the optimal conditions for adjusting the frequency of maintenance and repair of electrical equipment on the basis of risk-oriented approach. To solve this problem, the equation of annual costs for maintenance and repair of electrical equipment was drawn up taking into account the parameter of its failure risk. The relationship between the change of relative risk and the service frequency was established; based on it, the ranges of frequency adjustment of maintenance and ongoing repair were determined.
Selection of operating modes of tillage implement with ring working tools by criteria of quality and energy inputs
Authors: Dzhabborov N.I. , Dobrinov A.V. , Sergeev A.V. , Shamonin V.I. , Perekopskiy A.N.
Published: December 2020

Improving the tillage methods, machines and equipment to increase their efficiency is an urgent task. Tillage implements should provide high-quality tillage, save energy and improve the yielding capacity of cultivated crops. The study purpose was to obtain the experimental data, which would reveal the variation patterns of energy parameters and agrotechnical indicators of the tillage implement operation, and to identify the rational operation modes under specific operating environment. The study object was the developed tillage implement with ring working tools PM-2/DK for pre-seeding tillage. The study subject was to obtain the variation patterns in energy and agrotechnical indicators of the designed modification of the tillage implement with the ring working tools teamed with MTZ-920 tractor. The study used the modern methods of theory and experimentation to identify the main quality indicators of the technological process of surface tillage, as well as to determine the energy parameters of the machine, to generalize them, and to analyze the experimental data obtained. The variation patterns of energy and agrotechnical indicators were revealed, the rational operation modes of the tillage implement were justified, namely, working speed V=2.8-3.3 m/s; installation angle of the ring working tools α=15-22°; energy inputs of the technological process Ei = 373.80-431.18 MJ/ha.
Influence of the size of nanostructured metals on changes in the functional state of the cell and biological activity
Authors: Churilov Dmitry , Churilov Gennady , Polischuk Svetlana , Churilova Veronika , Byshova Darya
Published: December 2020

The properties of nanostructured metals differ from the classical ones. The biological activity of nanoparticles is influenced by many factors, but primarily by concentration and size. It is urgent to study their interaction with living organisms, in particular plants, for which the main action is the realization of the genetic orientation of various varieties and hybrids, as well as the enhancement of the biosynthesis of biologically active compounds. The same biological effects are caused by nanoparticles of the same size, although the magnitude of their activity is different. It is assumed that these effects are due to the action of a certain regulatory response signal in biological systems. One of the responses may be changes in the structure of membranes that allow the passage of nanostructured particles, which can contribute to a change in the functional state of the cell. The magnitude of the response signal depends on the concentration of nanoparticles. The aim of this work is to study the effect of the size of nanostructured metals of various concentrations on the change in the functional state of the cell and the manifestation of biocompatibility and bioaccumulation in relation to nanoparticles.
Body type of cows as a factor of their productive longevity
Authors: Donnik I.M. , Chechenikhina O.S. , Bykova O.A. , Loretts O.G. , Stepanov A.V.
Published: December 2020

The purpose of these studies was to assess the influence of Russian Black Pied cows’ body types on their productive longevity. The studies were conducted on the basis of enterprises of the Sverdlovsk region specializing in breeding of Russian Black Pied cattle. Most heifers were of the complex class “Excellent” (36.0%), less of “Satisfactory” (6.0%). The second largest class was “Good with a plus” (28.0%). A complex class of animals affects their milk production. When selecting first-calf heifers, taking into account the body type, it seems possible to obtain animals of a conformation complex class not lower than “Good”; to obtain at least 5000-5500 kg of good quality milk with a mass fraction of fat of 3.85-3.88% and protein fraction of 3.06-3.08% from cows of 305 days of lactation, depending on the potential of the breeding herd; to increase the duration of production use up to 4.3-6.8 lactations; to increase the level of lifelong yield to 29637.0-38126.8 kg of milk.
Studying the biochemical transformations in sherry wines subjected to biological aging
Authors: Cherviak Sofia , Gerzhikova Victoria , Anikina Nadezhda , Gnilomedova Nonna , Vesyutova Antonina
Published: December 2020

The fundamental role in the process of biological aging is given to yeast which enrich the wine with substances that contribute to the formation of the characteristic organoleptic properties of sherry. We studied 55 samples of wine in the dynamics of biological aging. The purpose of this research was to study the transformation of wine components during biological aging and to determine their technological value. Generalization of experimental data showed that biological aging determines changes in the composition of wines and physical-chemical characteristics: reduction of the volume fraction of ethanol, the mass concentration of the components of the acid complex (malic, lactic and acetic acids), amine nitrogen and glycerin as sources of energy and carbon nutrition for yeast. Decrease in the content of phenolic substances, the value of the redox-potential of wine and optical density D420 confirms the protective function of the sherry film that prevents non-enzymatic oxidation of wine components. The biological aging is also characterized by an increase in the mass concentration of aroma-forming substances: acetaldehyde, diacetyl, acetoin, dioxanes, dioxolans, lactones. Based on the data obtained, the role of the main components of wines in the process of biological aging and the ranges of their variation were determined.
Implementing state support for small agricultural businesses in the Russian Federation
Authors: Nigmatullina Gulnara , Kipchakbaeva Elina , Ableeva Alisa , Askarova Aigul , Salimova Guzel
Published: December 2020

The paper describes the current level of small farm business development in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Bashkortostan. The existing regulatory framework provides a wide range of measures to implement state support for the agricultural sector. The state aid mechanism and influence on the efficiency of agricultural production in microenterprises, budget efficiency, the need and prospects for directing budget funds for the development of small agricultural businesses are considered. The Bashkortostan Republic’s agricultural industry and perspective small farm business development in the region are assessed. The efficiency of allocating budget funds of the region’s consolidated budget is calculated.
Liver Elastography in Healthy Children Using Three Different Systems – How Many Measurements Are Necessary?
Authors: Mjelle Anders Batman , Mulabecirovic Anesa , Havre Roald Flesland , Olafsdottir Edda Jonina , Gilja Odd Helge , Vesterhus Mette
Published: December 2020

Purpose Liver elastography is increasingly being applied in screening for and follow-up of pediatric liver disease, and has been shown to correlate well with fibrosis staging through liver biopsy. Because time is of the essence when examining children, we wanted to evaluate if a reliable result can be achieved with fewer acquisitions.

Materials and Methods 243 healthy children aged 4–17 years were examined after three hours of fasting. Participants were divided into four age groups: 4–7 years; 8–11 years; 12–14 years and 15–17 years. Both two-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE; GE Logiq E9) and point shear wave elastography (pSWE; Samsung RS80A with Prestige) were performed in all participants, while transient elastography (TE, Fibroscan) was performed in a subset of 87 children aged 8–17 years. Median liver stiffness measurement (LSM) values of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 acquisitions were compared with the median value of 10 acquisitions (reference standard). Comparison was performed for all participants together as well as within every specific age group. We investigated both the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) with absolute agreement and all outliers more than 10 %, 20 % or ≥ 0.5 or 1.0 kPa from the median of 10 acquisitions.

Results For all three systems there was no significant difference between three and ten acquisitions, with ICCs ≥ 0.97. All systems needed 4 acquisitions to achieve no LSM deviating ≥ 1.0 kPa of a median of ten. To achieve no LSM deviating ≥ 20 % of a median of ten acquisitions, pSWE and TE needed 4 acquisitions, while 2D-SWE required 6 acquisitions.

Conclusion Our results contradict recommendations of 10 acquisitions for pSWE and TE and only 3 for 2D-SWE.
The Potential of Biologically Active Brazilian Plant Species as a Strategy to Search for Molecular Models for Mosquito Control
Authors: Valli Marilia , Atanázio Letícia Cristina Vieira , Monteiro Gustavo Claro , Coelho Roberta Ramos , Demarque Daniel Pecoraro , Andricopulo Adriano Defini , Espindola Laila Salmen , Bolzani Vanderlan da Silva
Published: December 2020

Natural products are a valuable source of biologically active compounds and continue to play an important role in modern drug discovery due to their great structural diversity and unique biological properties. Brazilian biodiversity is one of the most extensive in the world and could be an effective source of new chemical entities for drug discovery. Mosquitoes are vectors for the transmission of dengue, Zika, chikungunya, yellow fever, and many other diseases of public health importance. These diseases have a major impact on tropical and subtropical countries, and their incidence has increased dramatically in recent decades, reaching billions of people at risk worldwide. The prevention of these diseases is mainly through vector control, which is becoming more difficult because of the emergence of resistant mosquito populations to the chemical insecticides. Strategies to provide efficient and safe vector control are needed, and secondary metabolites from plant species from the Brazilian biodiversity, especially Cerrado, that are biologically active for mosquito control are herein highlighted. Also, this is a literature revision of targets as insights to promote advances in the task of developing active compounds for vector control. In view of the expansion and occurrence of arboviruses diseases worldwide, scientific reviews on bioactive natural products are important to provide molecular models for vector control and contribute with effective measures to reduce their incidence.