bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Vegetation Drought Vulnerability Mapping Using a Copula Model of Vegetation Index and Meteorological Drought Index
Authors: Won Jeongeun , Seo Jiyu , Lee Jeonghoon , Lee Okjeong , Kim Sangdan
Published: December 2021

Since vegetation is closely related to a variety of hydrological factors, the vegetation condition during a drought is greatly affected by moisture supply or moisture demand from the atmosphere. However, since feedback between vegetation and climate in the event of drought is very complex, it is necessary to construct a joint probability distribution that can describe and investigate the interrelationships between them. In other words, it is required to understand the interaction between vegetation and climate in terms of joint probability. In this study, the possibility of drought stress experienced by vegetation under various conditions occurring during drought was investigated by dividing drought into two aspects (atmospheric moisture supply and moisture demand). Meteorological drought indices that explain different aspects of drought and vegetation-related drought indexes that describe the state of vegetation were estimated using data remotely sensed by satellites in parts of Far East Asia centered on South Korea. Bivariate joint probability distribution modeling was performed from vegetation drought index and meteorological drought index using Copula. It was found that the relationship between the vegetation drought index and the meteorological drought index has regional characteristics and there is also a seasonal change. From the copula-based model, it was possible to quantify the conditional probability distribution for the drought stress of vegetation under meteorological drought scenarios that occur from different causes. Through this, by mapping the vulnerability of vegetation to meteorological drought in the study area, it was possible to spatially check how the vegetation responds differently depending on the season and meteorological causes. The probabilistic mapping of vegetation vulnerability to various aspects of meteorological drought may provide useful information for establishing mitigation strategies for ecological drought.
Posture Detection of Individual Pigs Based on Lightweight Convolution Neural Networks and Efficient Channel-Wise Attention
Authors: Luo Yizhi , Zeng Zhixiong , Lu Huazhong , Lv Enli
Published: December 2021

In this paper, a lightweight channel-wise attention model is proposed for the real-time detection of five representative pig postures: standing, lying on the belly, lying on the side, sitting, and mounting. An optimized compressed block with symmetrical structure is proposed based on model structure and parameter statistics, and the efficient channel attention modules are considered as a channel-wise mechanism to improve the model architecture.The results show that the algorithm’s average precision in detecting standing, lying on the belly, lying on the side, sitting, and mounting is 97.7%, 95.2%, 95.7%, 87.5%, and 84.1%, respectively, and the speed of inference is around 63 ms (CPU = i7, RAM = 8G) per postures image. Compared with state-of-the-art models (ResNet50, Darknet53, CSPDarknet53, MobileNetV3-Large, and MobileNetV3-Small), the proposed model has fewer model parameters and lower computation complexity. The statistical results of the postures (with continuous 24 h monitoring) show that some pigs will eat in the early morning, and the peak of the pig’s feeding appears after the input of new feed, which reflects the health of the pig herd for farmers.
Enhancing EEG-Based Mental Stress State Recognition Using an Improved Hybrid Feature Selection Algorithm
Authors: Hag Ala , Handayani Dini , Altalhi Maryam , Pillai Thulasyammal , Mantoro Teddy , Kit Mun Hou , Al-Shargie Fares
Published: December 2021

In real-life applications, electroencephalogram (EEG) signals for mental stress recognition require a conventional wearable device. This, in turn, requires an efficient number of EEG channels and an optimal feature set. This study aims to identify an optimal feature subset that can discriminate mental stress states while enhancing the overall classification performance. We extracted multi-domain features within the time domain, frequency domain, time-frequency domain, and network connectivity features to form a prominent feature vector space for stress. We then proposed a hybrid feature selection (FS) method using minimum redundancy maximum relevance with particle swarm optimization and support vector machines (mRMR-PSO-SVM) to select the optimal feature subset. The performance of the proposed method is evaluated and verified using four datasets, namely EDMSS, DEAP, SEED, and EDPMSC. To further consolidate, the effectiveness of the proposed method is compared with that of the state-of-the-art metaheuristic methods. The proposed model significantly reduced the features vector space by an average of 70% compared with the state-of-the-art methods while significantly increasing overall detection performance.
Assessment of Soil Moisture Anomaly Sensitivity to Detect Drought Spatio-Temporal Variability in Romania
Authors: Ontel Irina , Irimescu Anisoara , Boldeanu George , Mihailescu Denis , Angearu Claudiu-Valeriu , Nertan Argentina , Craciunescu Vasile , Negreanu Stefan
Published: December 2021

This paper will assess the sensitivity of soil moisture anomaly (SMA) obtained from the Soil water index (SWI) product Metop ASCAT, to identify drought in Romania. The SWI data were converted from relative values (%) to absolute values (m3 m−3) using the soil porosity method. The conversion results (SM) were validated using soil moisture in situ measurements from ISMN at 5 cm depths (2015–2020). The SMA was computed based on a 10 day SWI product, between 2007 and 2020. The analysis was performed for the depths of 5 cm (near surface), 40 cm (sub surface), and 100 cm (root zone). The standardized precipitation index (SPI), land surface temperature anomaly (LST anomaly), and normalized difference vegetation index anomaly (NDVI anomaly) were computed in order to compare the extent and intensity of drought events. The best correlations between SM and in situ measurements are for the stations located in the Getic Plateau (Bacles (r = 0.797) and Slatina (r = 0.672)), in the Western Plain (Oradea (r = 0.693)), and in the Moldavian Plateau (Iasi (r = 0.608)). The RMSE were between 0.05 and 0.184. Furthermore, the correlations between the SMA and SPI, the LST anomaly, and the NDVI anomaly were significantly registered in the second half of the warm season (July–September). Due to the predominantly agricultural use of the land, the results can be useful for the management of water resources and irrigation in regions frequently affected by drought.
Sound Event Detection by Pseudo-Labeling in Weakly Labeled Dataset
Authors: Park Chungho , Kim Donghyeon , Ko Hanseok
Published: December 2021

Weakly labeled sound event detection (WSED) is an important task as it can facilitate the data collection efforts before constructing a strongly labeled sound event dataset. Recent high performance in deep learning-based WSED’s exploited using a segmentation mask for detecting the target feature map. However, achieving accurate detection performance was limited in real streaming audio due to the following reasons. First, the convolutional neural networks (CNN) employed in the segmentation mask extraction process do not appropriately highlight the importance of feature as the feature is extracted without pooling operations, and, concurrently, a small size kernel forces the receptive field small, making it difficult to learn various patterns. Second, as feature maps are obtained in an end-to-end fashion, the WSED model would be weak to unknown contents in the wild. These limitations would lead to generating undesired feature maps, such as noise in the unseen environment. This paper addresses these issues by constructing a more efficient model by employing a gated linear unit (GLU) and dilated convolution to improve the problems of de-emphasizing importance and lack of receptive field. In addition, this paper proposes pseudo-label-based learning for classifying target contents and unknown contents by adding ’noise label’ and ’noise loss’ so that unknown contents can be separated as much as possible through the noise label. The experiment is performed by mixing DCASE 2018 task1 acoustic scene data and task2 sound event data. The experimental results show that the proposed SED model achieves the best F1 performance with 59.7% at 0 SNR, 64.5% at 10 SNR, and 65.9% at 20 SNR. These results represent an improvement of 17.7%, 16.9%, and 16.5%, respectively, over the baseline.
Design and Control of an Adaptive Knee Joint Exoskeleton Mechanism with Buffering Function
Authors: Wang Yapeng , Zhang Wei , Shi Di , Geng Yunhai
Published: December 2021

A knee exoskeleton with an adaptive instantaneous rotation center and impact absorption is used for rehabilitation. Due to the human knee joint’s special physiological structure and motion characteristics, the exoskeleton mechanism needs to be designed for both static and dynamic aspects. Therefore, a novel knee exoskeleton mechanism was designed. To adapt to the rotation center of the knee joint, a mechanism with cross-configuration was designed according to the equivalent degree of freedom and the stiffness of the springs was calculated by its combination with gait motion, so that the average force of the human body was minimized. A dynamic model of the exoskeleton was established. To overcome the uncertainty in the parameters of the human and robotic limbs, an adaptive controller was designed and a Lyapunov stability analysis was conducted to verify the system. A simulation was conducted and experimental results show that the tracking error of the knee joint angle between the actual and desired trajectory was within the range of −1 to 1 degree and indicate the effectiveness of the controller.
Exploring the Linkages between Substance Use, Natural Disasters, Pandemics, and Intimate Partner Violence against Women: A Rapid Review in the Context of COVID-19
Authors: Brabete Andreea C. , Wolfson Lindsay , Stinson Julie , Poole Nancy , Allen Sarah , Greaves Lorraine
Published: December 2021

Rates of intimate partner violence (IPV) and substance use have risen during the COVID-19 pandemic, with potentially enduring effects on women’s health. A rapid review was conducted on IPV and women’s substance use in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The rapid review explored two separate research questions with a view to integrate the literature related to: (1) containment, social isolation, pandemics, disasters, lockdowns, and IPV; and (2) the relationships between substance use and IPV. Two different searches for each question were conducted between May and October 2020 and n = 47 articles were included. Women experience multiple physical and mental health consequences related to IPV that can be exacerbated by public health crises such as pandemics and disasters. Perpetrators may use these events as a tactic to threaten, isolate, or use coercive control. Similar tactics are reported in the complex relationship between IPV and substance use, where substance use can accompany IPV and/or be used as a coping mechanism for survivors. The findings highlight long standing women’s health concerns made further visible during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional research is needed to identify actions required to reduce gender inequities and harms associated with IPV and substance use, and to adequately tailor and prepare effective responses in the context of future public health crises.
‘You Owe It to Yourself, Everyone You Love and to Our Beleaguered NHS to Get Yourself Fit and Well’: Weight Stigma in the British Media during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Thematic Analysis
Authors: Carbone-Moane Camila , Guise Andrew
Published: December 2021

The portrayal of obesity in the media can impact public health by guiding peoples’ behaviours and furthering stigma. Individual responsibility for body weight along with negative portrayals of obesity have frequently dominated UK media discourses on obesity. This study aims to explore how the media has represented obesity during the COVID-19 pandemic through a thematic analysis of 95 UK online newspaper articles published in The Sun, The Mail Online, and The Guardian. The first theme, lifestyle recommendations, accounts for media coverage providing ‘expert’ advice on losing weight. The second theme, individual responsibility, emphasises media appeals to self-governance to tackle obesity and protect the NHS during the pandemic. The third theme, actors of change, explores how celebrities and politicians are presented as examples of weight management. These results suggest that individuals are held responsible for their weight and accountable for protecting the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stigma can be furthered by the decontextualisation of lifestyle recommendations and exacerbated by the actors of change presented: Celebrity profiles reveal gendered goals for weight management, and politicians exemplify self-governance, which consolidates their power. In conclusion, individualising and stigmatising discourses around obesity have taken new forms during the pandemic that link health responsibility to protecting the NHS and invokes celebrities and politicians to foster action.
Glomus mosseae and Pseudomonas fluorescens Application Sustains Yield and Promote Tolerance to Water Stress in Helianthus annuus L.
Authors: Sharma Meenakshi , Delta Anil Kumar , Kaushik Prashant
Published: December 2021

The inoculation of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) plants with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can significantly enhance its growth and yield in a sustainable manner. Drought tolerance is mediated by a combination of direct AMF and PGPR benefits that boost the plant’s natural ability to cope with stress, whereas drought mitigation is mediated by indirect AMF and PGPR benefits and increased water uptake. An experiment was carried out to demonstrate the interactive effects of AMF (Glomus mosseae) alone or in association with PGPR (Pseudomonas fluorescens) under water-stressed conditions in order to assess their biofertilizer efficiency. Accordingly, various morphological and biochemical parameters were studied, and the results suggested that all the co-inoculation treatments displayed beneficial effects. Still, the combination of G. mosseae + P. fluorescens showed the maximum increment in all the parameters considered, i.e., plant height and weight, leaves length and width, number of leaves per plant, specific leaf weight, relative leaf water content (RLWC), photosynthetic efficiency, seed length, width, and area, seed yield per plant, number of seeds per flower, days to 50% flowering, days to maturity, flower and head diameter, harvest index, oil content, fatty acid composition (palmitic acid, oleic acid, stearic acid, and linoleic acid), and total yield. The improvement in different parameters may be attributed to the increased availability of nutrients due to the symbiotic association of AMF and PGPR with plant roots along with enhanced root structures for more water absorption under stressed conditions. Therefore, the results suggested that they offer a promising bio-control strategy for crop protection as biofertilizers combined in one formulation.
Harnessing Public Food Procurement for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods in South Africa through the National School Nutrition Programme: A Qualitative Assessment of Contributions and Challenges
Authors: Mensah Clement , Karriem Abdulrazak
Published: December 2021

This paper examines how public food procurements contributes to sustainable rural livelihoods through local sourcing of school food, what has become known as ‘home-grown’ school feeding. Specifically, it draws on in-depth interviews to explore the contributions and challenges of using local farmers as suppliers for South Africa’s National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) using the case of the Eastern Cape Province, the country’s poorest province. The study found that participating schools in rural areas benefit from local sourcing by way of using fresh vegetables in preparing meals thanks to the utilisation of a decentralised catering model in the Eastern Cape Province. Consequently, there is evidence of farmers participating in NSNP food market earning additional income and growing more vegetables on more land in some cases. However, even though the Eastern Cape Province uses a decentralised procurement model, it has no clear-cut programme to optimise the benefits of local sourcing for NSNP. It only ‘encourages’ schools to buy vegetables grown locally. This calls for pragmatism on the side of government to, through creative procurement and initiatives such as the Agri-Parks, use NSNP as a tool for making the South African food system more inclusive, drive down rural poverty and realise sustainable rural development.
Valorization of Cotton Gin Trash through Thermal and Biological Conversion for Soil Application
Authors: Qurat-ul-Ain  , Nazir Aisha , Capareda Sergio C. , Shafiq Muhammad , Firdaus-e-Bareen
Published: December 2021

Cotton gin trash, the by-product of the cotton ginning industry which is produced in large quantities every year, can be utilized as feedstock for deriving high quality organic materials such as biochar, compost and co-composted derivates for improvement of soils’ key physical, chemical and biological properties. This is the first report in which cotton gin trash was both thermally and biologically converted at the same time into biochar (BC), compost (C) and co-compost (Coc), and their effects on soil properties and on plant performance were examined. In order to find the optimum rate, the products were used as soil amendments in a greenhouse experiment at 2.5 t ha−1, 5 t ha−1and 10 t ha−1 rates. All of the amendments contributed in improving the soil properties and provided agronomic benefits to plants, however plants (radish var. Cherry belle) showed significantly (p < 0.05) better growth attributes and almost a 315% increase in biomass yield observed when co-composted biochar (10 t ha−1) was applied to the soil, thus suggesting its role in compensating fertilizer application. Amendments (2.5 and 5.0 t ha−1) considerably increased plant growth parameters; however, differences between 5 and 10 t ha−1 amendments were not so significant. As a result, replenishing soil with Coc (5 t ha−1) on a regular basis can promote plant growth and improve soil qualities over time.
Can Crop Insurance Encourage Farmers to Adopt Environmentally Friendly Agricultural Technology—The Evidence from Shandong Province in China
Authors: Wei Tengda , Liu Ye , Wang Ke , Zhang Qiao
Published: December 2021

It is critical to encourage farmers to adopt agriculture technology that is beneficial to the environment in the context of the ongoing emphasis on the ecological growth of agriculture, yet risk and uncertainty diminish the incentive to adopt these technologies. This research examines whether crop insurance might affect and increase willingness to adopt Environmentally Friendly Agricultural Technology (EFAT) from a psychological perspective, utilizing data from 219 questionnaires in Shandong Province. The findings suggest that crop insurance can boost readiness to embrace technology in three ways: motivation, ability, and opportunity; however, the positive effect of motivation on farmers diminishes as capacity increases. Insurance companies must offer products that contain the risk of adopting EFAT as an insurance obligation as soon as feasible to successfully boost willingness to use technologies and collaborate with agricultural technology departments to provide farmers with training as well as disaster avoidance services.
Fishing Tourism in Greece: Defining Possibilities and Prospects
Authors: Tsafoutis Dimitris , Metaxas Theodore
Published: December 2021

The transformation of the fishing industry into tourism has become a global trend. Due to the continuous crisis on the field, professional fishermen turn to maritime tourism activities, providing a memorable tourism experience to visitors. Fishing tourism is a relatively new development in sustainable tourism, where tourists have the opportunity to participate in fishing operations by casting and pulling in the nets and taste freshly caught fish cooked on board. Over the past seven years, Greece, following the other European countries, has rapidly adopted this conversion into tourism. The aim of this research is to examine the possibilities and prospects for the development of fishing tourism in Greece. This is achieved through face-to-face interviews with 40 experienced fishers who wanted to be actively involved in this whole process. The analysis of data revealed positive results in this groundbreaking form of tourism.
Reframing Recycling Behaviour through Consumers’ Perceptions: An Exploratory Investigation
Authors: Oke Adekunle , McDonald Seonaidh , Korobilis-Magas Evagelos , Osobajo Oluyomi A. , Awuzie Bankole Osita
Published: December 2021

Despite the increasing awareness of the consequences of waste, there is no consensus on how and why consumers engage in recycling, making it challenging to design behavioural interventions that might promote recycling, especially in organisational settings. This study is designed to explain consumers’ recycling behaviour and how it differs across contexts, particularly between home and work settings. Using personal accounts of 367 employees from different organisations in the UK, this study explores recycling behaviour at home and work including its motivations and barriers. The findings show that recycling behaviour is different across contexts due to many disparate factors underlying people’s waste generation and recycling behaviours from one context to another. According to the findings, buying and consumption behaviour and waste generation patterns influence the way consumers engage in recycling. The study further demonstrates that contextual factors and individual circumstances are important contributors to consumption behaviour, waste production, and recycling behaviour. While recycling behaviour has been investigated extensively, the findings of this study indicate the need for consumption and waste production patterns to be taken into consideration when designing recycling interventions, enhancing the prospect of a circular economy. This study contributes to theory and practice by associating recycling behaviour with buying and consumption behaviour, including waste generation patterns.
Changes in Drop Out Intentions: Implications of the Motivational Climate, Goal Orientations and Aspects of Self-Worth across a Youth Sport Season
Authors: Fabra Priscila , Castillo Isabel , González-García Lorena , Duda Joan L. , Balaguer Isabel
Published: December 2021

The main objective of this work was to study the motivational antecedents of the intention to drop out of youth sport from the postulates of the achievement goal theory (AGT), placing special emphasis on the motivational climate that coaches create in their teams. Specifically, we analyzed whether changes in the perception of the motivational climate between the beginning and the end of the season predicted changes in players’ goal orientations, whether these, in turn, predicted changes in self-esteem and contingent self-esteem, and finally, whether the latter predicted the intention to drop out. Participants in the study were 552 players (Mage = 11.23, SD = 1.14), who completed the questionnaires at the beginning and at the end of the season. The results of the longitudinal structural model presented acceptable goodness-of-fit indices and the relationships were significant in the expected direction according to the postulates of the AGT. This research provides evidence that AGT is a relevant theoretical model for the study of drop out in sport.
Connectivity in Superblock Street Networks: Measuring Distance, Directness, and the Diversity of Pedestrian Paths
Authors: Scoppa Martin , Anabtawi Rim
Published: December 2021

Superblocks are a common urban development strategy used in cities of the United Arab Emirates and the larger Gulf region. In planning new neighborhoods, these cities utilize superblocks structured using various street network designs. Despite their key role in shaping its main transportation network, the connectivity of these designs has not been frequently studied. This paper addresses this research gap, analyzing ten different superblock designs, and focusing on their internal and external connectivity properties. Internal connectivity is studied by measuring connections between plots in the superblocks. External connectivity is measured from plots to the superblocks’ corners, the points from which to access surrounding areas. Connectivity is measured in terms of distance, directness, and route diversity. The results show that strong similarities exist across the studied designs, particularly in terms of travel distances. Differences are found in terms of efficiency and, most notably, route diversity. Findings are discussed in relation to walkability, the costs associated to each design given network length variations, and the importance of creating rich and diverse street systems that support open-ended exploration. While based on a sample of ideal cases and in need of validation with built cases, this paper outlines a method by which to evaluate and compare superblock network design alternatives.
The Effect of Carbon Sink Plantation Projects on Local Economic Growth: An Empirical Analysis of County-Level Panel Data from Guangdong Province
Authors: Wu Juan , Hou Fangmiao , Yu Wenjing
Published: December 2021

In recent years, there has been an increased focus on carbon sink plantation projects. Carbon sink plantations can slow global climate change and promote sustainable economic development, which is well suited to the needs of both ecological protection and economic growth. This article aims to accurately assess the causal effect of carbon sink plantation projects on economic development at the county level and explore its effect mechanisms. In this study, 56 counties in Guangdong Province were selected as the research areas, providing balanced panel data from 2006 to 2018. Then the propensity score matching and difference-in-differences (PSM-DID) model was used to estimate both the average and dynamic effects of carbon sink plantation projects on county-level economic development. The ordinary least squares (OLS) multiple regression results of the single-difference method and difference-in-differences (DID) model show that carbon sink plantation projects have a significant role in promoting county-level economic development. In addition, our findings suggest that the economic benefits of carbon sink plantation projects began to gradually appear from the sixth year after the projects were implemented.
Measuring the Economic Impact of COVID-19 on the UK’s Leisure and Sport during the 2020 Lockdown
Authors: Kokolakakis Themis , Lera-Lopez Fernando , Ramchandani Girish
Published: December 2021

This research evaluates the effect of the SARS-CoV2 pandemic on sport Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and consumer expenditure in the leisure sector in the United Kingdom (UK). The leisure sector is divided into leisure at home and away from home, examining in this way the different patterns that emerged because of the national lockdown in 2020. The effect on sport GDP is examined using the Office for National Statistics (ONS) surveys and the UK Sport Satellite Account (SSA). The study found that, because of its reliance on human contact, sport GDP is likely to decline by more than twice the rate of the overall economy. Furthermore, this finding is consistent with the 2020 consumer expenditure on leisure that shows increases in spending on home leisure but also a huge decline in spending on out-of-home entertainment. The decline in GDP is extremely likely to put pressure on profit margins and hence threaten the survival of private enterprises, raising issues of sustainability under conditions of a pandemic. Increases in long-term public funding for reducing sport inequalities should be considered along with short-term relief packages for the sport sector. Additional policy suggestions are offered to address these issues.
Novel World University Rankings Combining Academic, Environmental and Resource Indicators
Authors: Lin Wei-Chao , Chen Ching
Published: December 2021

World university rankings are regarded as an important tool to assess higher education quality. There are several media sources that publish world university rankings every year. These ranking results are mainly based on academic indicators, including research and teaching, with different weightings. However, some of these academic indicators are questionable, which affects the objectivity of the ranking results. In addition, conducting more medical-related studies could enhance the research impact scores. Some universities that devote themselves to enhancing these academic indicators lose sight of their original development goals and directions. To make the rankings more comprehensive, it is necessary to consider different viewpoints in the assessment. In other words, the research question of this paper is: whether considering different kinds of indicators can provide better ranking results? Therefore, in this paper, we introduce a novel ranking approach that combines academic, environmental, and resource indicators based on the Borda count method. The top 100 world universities from the Academic Ranking of World Universities, QS World University Rankings, Times Higher Education World Universities, and U.S. News & World Report are chosen for the analysis. The comparisons between the original and new rankings show that many universities improve in the rankings, while some universities from particular countries drop in the rankings due to the scores obtained from the environmental and resource indicators.
Incorporation of Microgrid Technology Solutions to Reduce Power Loss in a Distribution Network with Elimination of Inefficient Power Conversion Strategies
Authors: Rengasamy Mageswaran , Gangatharan Sivasankar , Elavarasan Rajvikram Madurai , Mihet-Popa Lucian
Published: December 2021

The increase in energy-efficient DC appliances and electronic gadgets has led to an upheaval in the usage of AC–DC power convertors; hence, power loss in converter devices is cumulatively increasing. Evolving microgrid technology has also become deeply integrated with the conversion process due to increased power converters in its infrastructure, significantly worsening the power loss situation. One of the practical solutions to this disturbance is to reduce conversion losses in domestic distribution systems through the optimal deployment of the battery storage system and solar PV power using microgrid technology. In this paper, a novel energy management system is developed that uses a new control algorithm, termed Inefficient Power Conversion Elimination Algorithm (IPCEA). The proposed algorithm compares the Net Transferable Power (NTP) available on the DC side with the loss rate across the converter. The converter is switched off (or disconnected from the grid and load) if the NTP is less than 20% of the converter rating to avoid low-efficiency power conversion. The solar PV system is connected to the DC bus to supply the DC loads while the AC loads are supplied from the AC source (utility power). An auxiliary battery pack is integrated to the DC side to feed DC loads during the absence of solar energy. A battery energy storage system (BESS) is deployed to manage energy distribution effectively. The power distribution is managed using a centralized microgrid controller, and the load demand is met accordingly. Thereby, the power generated by the solar PV can be utilized effectively. Microgrid technology’s effectiveness is emphasized by comparative analysis, and the achievements are discussed in detail and highlighted using a prototype model.
Understanding Climate Hazard Patterns and Urban Adaptation Measures in China
Authors: Sun Shao , Wang Zunya , Hu Chuanye , Gao Ge
Published: December 2021

Climate-related risks pose a great threat to urban safety, infrastructure stability and socioeconomic sustainability. China is a country that crosses diverse geomorphic and climatic regions in the world and is frequently affected by various climate hazards. In this study, we propose a comprehensive analysis on the spatial pattern of major climate hazards in China from 1991 to 2020, including rainstorms, droughts, heatwaves, coldwaves, typhoons, and snowstorms, and generate an integrated sketch map on multi-hazard zones. It is detectable that South of the Yangtze River is in danger of heatwaves, rainstorms, and typhoons, while the North China Plain is more likely to suffer droughts. Coldwaves, snowstorms, and freezing mainly affect Northeast China, Northwest China, and the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. In the view of climate governance, cities are hotspots affected by intensified climate hazards in a warmer climate. There is an urgent need to incorporate a climate adaptation strategy into future city construction, so as to improve social resilience and mitigate climate impacts in rapid urbanization process. Specific adaptation measures have been developed from the perspectives of land-use planning, prevention standard, risk assessment, and emergency response to facilitate the understanding of climate resilience and urban sustainability.
Urban Flood Risk and Economic Viability Analyses of a Smart Sustainable Drainage System
Authors: Ramos Helena M. , Besharat Mohsen
Published: December 2021

Urban drainage systems are in transition from functioning simply as a transport system to becoming an important element of urban flood protection measures providing considerable influence on urban infrastructure sustainability. Rapid urbanization combined with the implications of climate change is one of the major emerging challenges. The increased concerns with water security and the ageing of existing drainage infrastructure are new challenges in improving urban water management. This study carried out in the Seixal area in Portugal examines flood risk analyses and mitigation techniques performed by computational modelling using MIKE SHE from the Danish Hydraulic Institute (DHI). Several scenarios were compared regarding flood risk and sustainable urban drainage systems (SuDS) efficiency. To obtain a more accurate analysis, the economic viability of each technique was analyzed as well through (i) life cost analysis and (ii) taking into account the damages caused by a certain type of flood. The results present that the best scenario is the one that will minimize the effects of great urbanization and consequently the flood risk, which combines two different measures: permeable pavement and detention basin. This alternative allows us to fully explore the mitigation capacity of each viable technique, demonstrating a very important improvement in the flood mitigation system in Seixal.
Reflecting on the Past to Shape the Future: A Systematic Review on Cross-Cultural Collaborative Learning from 2011 to 2020
Authors: Gyasi Juliana Fosua , Zheng Lanqin , Long Miaolang
Published: December 2021

Cross-cultural collaborative learning in different learning domains is the road to the sustainability of economic, social, and environmental development. It creates the appropriate environment to acquire cross-cultural communication and collaboration skills for the 21st century. This study conducted a systematic review of 54 articles on cross-cultural collaborative learning published from 2011 to 2020. Based on the proposed analysis framework, the major elements of cross-cultural collaborative learning are revealed, including learners, group composition, learning environment, cross-cultural learning content, collaborative learning strategies, and research designs. The results indicated that most studies engaged learners at the university level and adopted small group sizes in cross-cultural collaborative learning activities. The online learning environment and social science learning content were widely employed in the past 10 years. Most studies adopted multiple collaborative learning strategies and lasted for 9 to 24 weeks. Most studies targeted mixed research purposes and adopted the qualitative analysis method. The findings and relevant suggestions for future studies are discussed in depth.
Authenticated Encryption Based on Chaotic Neural Networks and Duplex Construction
Authors: Abdoun Nabil , El Assad Safwan , Manh Hoang Thang , Deforges Olivier , Assaf Rima , Khalil Mohamad
Published: December 2021

In this paper, we propose, implement and analyze an Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data Scheme (AEADS) based on the Modified Duplex Construction (MDC) that contains a chaotic compression function (CCF) based on our chaotic neural network revised (CNNR). Unlike the standard duplex construction (SDC), in the MDC there are two phases: the initialization phase and the duplexing phase, each contain a CNNR formed by a neural network with single layer, and followed by a set of non-linear functions. The MDC is implemented with two variants of width, i.e., 512 and 1024 bits. We tested our proposed scheme against the different cryptanalytic attacks. In fact, we evaluated the key and the message sensitivity, the collision resistance analysis and the diffusion effect. Additionally, we tested our proposed AEADS using the different statistical tests such as NIST, Histogram, chi-square, entropy, and correlation analysis. The experimental results obtained on the security performance of the proposed AEADS system are notable and the proposed system can then be used to protect data and authenticate their sources.
The Impact of Different Internet Application Contexts on Knowledge Transfer between Enterprises
Authors: Li Xingong , Li Xiaokai
Published: December 2021

This paper investigates the effect of different Internet application scenarios on the forward and reverse knowledge transfer between architecture enterprises and component enterprises in the context of modular production in manufacturing enterprises. After dividing the Internet contexts into three the perspectives of Internet tools, Internet platforms, and Internet resources, this paper adopts a system dynamics approach to construct a causality model and a system flow diagram of the influence of different Internet contexts on the knowledge transfer between architecture enterprises and component enterprises, and uses Vensim PLE software to simulate and conduct a sensitivity analysis of the model. The results show that the three Internet contexts, namely Internet tools, Internet platforms, and Internet resources, can promote both positive and negative knowledge transfer between architecture enterprises and component enterprises, and exhibit a steadily growing trend of promotion; Internet tools and Internet resources are more conducive to positive knowledge transfer from architecture enterprises to component enterprises, and Internet platforms have a stronger facilitation effect on the reverse knowledge transfer from the component enterprises to the architecture enterprises. Our research offers useful recommendations for businesses on how to utilize various Internet settings to promote and assist effective knowledge transfer.
The Cytotoxic Necrotizing Factors (CNFs)—A Family of Rho GTPase-Activating Bacterial Exotoxins
Authors: Chaoprasid Paweena , Dersch Petra
Published: December 2021

The cytotoxic necrotizing factors (CNFs) are a family of Rho GTPase-activating single-chain exotoxins that are produced by several Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. Due to the pleiotropic activities of the targeted Rho GTPases, the CNFs trigger multiple signaling pathways and host cell processes with diverse functional consequences. They influence cytokinesis, tissue integrity, cell barriers, and cell death, as well as the induction of inflammatory and immune cell responses. This has an enormous influence on host–pathogen interactions and the severity of the infection. The present review provides a comprehensive insight into our current knowledge of the modular structure, cell entry mechanisms, and the mode of action of this class of toxins, and describes their influence on the cell, tissue/organ, and systems levels. In addition to their toxic functions, possibilities for their use as drug delivery tool and for therapeutic applications against important illnesses, including nervous system diseases and cancer, have also been identified and are discussed.
Zearalenone Exposure Triggered Cecal Physical Barrier Injury through the TGF-β1/Smads Signaling Pathway in Weaned Piglets
Authors: Zhang Pengfei , Jing Changwei , Liang Ming , Jiang Shuzhen , Huang Libo , Jiao Ning , Li Yang , Yang Weiren
Published: December 2021

This study aims to investigate the effects of exposure to different dosages of zearalenone (ZEA) on cecal physical barrier functions and its mechanisms based on the TGF-β1/Smads signaling pathway in weaned piglets. Thirty-two weaned piglets were allotted to four groups and fed a basal diet supplemented with ZEA at 0, 0.15, 1.5, and 3.0 mg/kg, respectively. The results showed that 1.5 and 3.0 mg/kg ZEA damaged cecum morphology and microvilli, and changed distribution and shape of M cells. Moreover, 1.5 and 3.0 mg/kg ZEA decreased numbers of goblet cells, the expressions of TFF3 and tight junction proteins, and inhibited the TGF-β1/Smads signaling pathway. Interestingly, the 0.15 mg/kg ZEA had no significant effect on cecal physical barrier functions but decreased the expressions of Smad3, p-Smad3 and Smad7. Our study suggests that high-dose ZEA exposure impairs cecal physical barrier functions through inhibiting the TGF-β1/Smads signaling pathway, but low-dose ZEA had no significant effect on cecum morphology and integrity through inhibiting the expression of smad7. These findings provide a scientific basis for helping people explore how to reduce the toxicity of ZEA in feeds.
Detailed Evolutionary Analyses of the F Gene in the Respiratory Syncytial Virus Subgroup A
Authors: Saito Mariko , Tsukagoshi Hiroyuki , Sada Mitsuru , Sunagawa Soyoka , Shirai Tatsuya , Okayama Kaori , Sugai Toshiyuki , Tsugawa Takeshi , Hayashi Yuriko , Ryo Akihide , Takeda Makoto , Kawashima Hisashi , Saruki Nobuhiro , Kimura Hirokazu
Published: December 2021

We performed evolution, phylodynamics, and reinfection-related antigenicity analyses of respiratory syncytial virus subgroup A (RSV-A) fusion (F) gene in globally collected strains (1465 strains) using authentic bioinformatics methods. The time-scaled evolutionary tree using the Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo method estimated that a common ancestor of the RSV-A, RSV-B, and bovine-RSV diverged at around 450 years ago, and RSV-A and RSV-B diverged around 250 years ago. Finally, the RSV-A F gene formed eight genotypes (GA1-GA7 and NA1) over the last 80 years. Phylodynamics of RSV-A F gene, including all genotype strains, increased twice in the 1990s and 2010s, while patterns of each RSV-A genotype were different. Phylogenetic distance analysis suggested that the genetic distances of the strains were relatively short (less than 0.05). No positive selection sites were estimated, while many negative selection sites were found. Moreover, the F protein 3D structure mapping and conformational epitope analysis implied that the conformational epitopes did not correspond to the neutralizing antibody binding sites of the F protein. These results suggested that the RSV-A F gene is relatively conserved, and mismatches between conformational epitopes and neutralizing antibody binding sites of the F protein are responsible for the virus reinfection.
Optimising COVID-19 Vaccination Policy to Mitigate SARS-CoV-2 Transmission within Schools in Zimbabwe
Authors: Murewanhema Grant , Mukwenha Solomon , Dzinamarira Tafadzwa , Mukandavire Zindoga , Cuadros Diego , Madziva Roda , Chingombe Innocent , Mapingure Munyaradzi , Herrera Helena , Musuka Godfrey
Published: December 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the learning of millions of children across the world. Since March 2020 when the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in Zimbabwe, the country, like many others, has gone through periods of closing and re-opening of schools as part of the national COVID-19 control and mitigation measures. Schools promote the social, mental, physical, and moral development of children. With this viewpoint, the authors argue that schools should not be closed to provide a measured and efficient response to the threats posed by the COVID-19 epidemic. Rather, infection prevention and control strategies, including vaccination of learners and teachers, and surveillance in schools should be heightened. The use of multiple prevention strategies discussed in this viewpoint has shown that when outbreaks in school settings are adequately managed, the transmission usually is low. The information presented here suggests that schools should remain open due to the preponderance of evidence indicating the overriding positive impacts of this policy on the health, development, and wellbeing of children.
A Synergic Use of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Imagery for Complex Wetland Classification Using Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) Scheme
Authors: Jamali Ali , Mahdianpari Masoud , Mohammadimanesh Fariba , Brisco Brian , Salehi Bahram
Published: December 2021

Due to anthropogenic activities and climate change, many natural ecosystems, especially wetlands, are lost or changing at a rapid pace. For the last decade, there has been increasing attention towards developing new tools and methods for the mapping and classification of wetlands using remote sensing. At the same time, advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, particularly deep learning models, have provided opportunities to advance wetland classification methods. However, the developed deep and very deep algorithms require a higher number of training samples, which is costly, logistically demanding, and time-consuming. As such, in this study, we propose a Deep Convolutional Neural Network (DCNN) that uses a modified architecture of the well-known DCNN of the AlexNet and a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) for the generation and classification of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 data. Applying to an area of approximately 370 sq. km in the Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland, the proposed model with an average accuracy of 92.30% resulted in F-1 scores of 0.82, 0.85, 0.87, 0.89, and 0.95 for the recognition of swamp, fen, marsh, bog, and shallow water, respectively. Moreover, the proposed DCNN model improved the F-1 score of bog, marsh, fen, and swamp wetland classes by 4%, 8%, 11%, and 26%, respectively, compared to the original CNN network of AlexNet. These results reveal that the proposed model is highly capable of the generation and classification of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 wetland samples and can be used for large-extent classification problems.
Creation of the Simulator to Train Cosmonauts for Visual Instrumental Observations from the International Space Station Using Up-to-Date Information Technologies.
Authors: Dedkova Ye.V. , Yurchenko Ye.S. , Fokin V.Ye.
Published: December 2021

Visual Instrumental Observations (VIOs) of the Earth’s surface is a very special activity for cosmonauts that include searching, finding, and monitoring the objects with the unaided eye and their registration using optical facilities expanding capabilities of an operator’s visual analyzer. In order to impart the correct practical skills in performing VIOs from the ISS to cosmonauts in the course their ground training it is necessary to visualize the image observed by the naked eye and/or in the camera view finder taking into account an optical zoom, mutual location of a cosmonaut, a camera, a window, and the station at a certain point in orbit. For these purposes, the special simulator which simulates an external visual environment as close as possible to the flight conditions has been developed, that is the VIOs simulator designated to train cosmonauts for performing tasks in the field of geophysical studies and monitoring of the Earth.