bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What Is the Function of Confirmation Bias?
Authors: Peters Uwe
Published: April 2020

Confirmation bias is one of the most widely discussed epistemically problematic cognitions, challenging reliable belief formation and the correction of inaccurate views. Given its problematic nature, it remains unclear why the bias evolved and is still with us today. To offer an explanation, several philosophers and scientists have argued that the bias is in fact adaptive. I critically discuss three recent proposals of this kind before developing a novel alternative, what I call the ‘reality-matching account’. According to the account, confirmation bias evolved because it helps us influence people and social structures so that they come to match our beliefs about them. This can result in significant developmental and epistemic benefits for us and other people, ensuring that over time we don’t become epistemically disconnected from social reality but can navigate it more easily. While that might not be the only evolved function of confirmation bias, it is an important one that has so far been neglected in the theorizing on the bias.
G × E interactions on yield and quality in Coffea arabica: new F1 hybrids outperform American cultivars
Authors: Marie Lison , Abdallah Cécile , Campa Claudine , Courtel Philippe , Bordeaux Mélanie , Navarini Luciano , Lonzarich Valentina , Bosselmann Aske Skovmand , Turreira-García Nerea , Alpizar Edgardo , Georget Frédéric , Breitler Jean-Christophe , Etienne Hervé , Bertrand Benoît
Published: April 2020

Conventional American cultivars of coffee are no longer adapted to global warming. Finding highly productive and stable cultivars in different environments without neglecting quality characteristics has become a priority for breeders. In this study, new Arabica F1 hybrids clones were compared to conventional American varieties in seven contrasting environments, for yield, rust incidence and volume of the canopy. The quality was assessed through size, weight of 100 beans, biochemical analysis (24 aroma precursors and 31 volatiles compounds) and sensory analysis. Conventional varieties were the least productive, producing 50% less than the best hybrid. The AMMI model analysis pointed out five hybrids as the most stable and productive. Two F1 hybrids clones, H1-Centroamericano and H16-Mundo Maya, were superior to the most planted American cultivar in Latin and Central America showing a high yield performance and stability performance. H1-Centroamerica and Starmaya contain more d-limonene than Caturra, while Starmaya contain more 3-methylbutanoic acid than the control. Those two latter volatiles compounds are linked with good cup quality in previous studies. In terms of sensory analysis, Starmaya and H1-Centroamericano scored better than control.
Comparative efficacy of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) for cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials
Authors: Täger Tobias , Atar Dan , Agewall Stefan , Katus Hugo A. , Grundtvig Morten , Cleland John G. F. , Clark Andrew L. , Fröhlich Hanna , Frankenstein Lutz
Published: April 2020

Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) improve cardiovascular outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). The comparative efficacy of individual SGLT2i remains unclear. We searched PubMed, www.clinicaltrials.gov and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for randomised controlled trials exploring the use of canagliflozin, dapagliflozin, empagliflozin or ertugliflozin in patients with T2D. Comparators included placebo or any other active treatment. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Secondary endpoints were cardiovascular mortality and worsening heart failure (HF). Evidence was synthesised using network meta-analysis (NMA). Sixty-four trials reporting on 74,874 patients were included. The overall quality of evidence was high. When compared with placebo, empagliflozin and canagliflozin improved all three endpoints, whereas dapagliflozin improved worsening HF. When compared with other SGLT2i, empagliflozin was superior for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality reduction. Empagliflozin, canagliflozin and dapagliflozin had similar effects on improving worsening HF. Ertugliflozin had no effect on any of the three endpoints investigated. Sensitivity analyses including extension periods of trials or excluding studies with a treatment duration of < 52 weeks confirmed the main results. Similar results were obtained when restricting mortality analyses to patients included in cardiovascular outcome trials (n = 38,719). Empagliflozin and canagliflozin improved survival with empagliflozin being superior to the other SGLT2i. Empagliflozin, canagliflozin and dapagliflozin had similar effects on improving worsening HF. Prospective head-to-head comparisons would be needed to confirm these results.
Global and local conductivity in percolating crosslinked carbon black/epoxy–amine composites
Authors: Alekseev A. , Wu T. H. , van der Ven L. G. J. , van Benthem R. A. T. M. , de With G.
Published: April 2020

Conductive particle-filled polymer composites are promising materials for applications where both the merits of polymer and conductivity are required. The electrical properties of such composites are controlled by the particle percolation network present in the polymeric matrix. In this study, the electrical properties of crosslinked carbon black–epoxy–amine (CB-EA) composites with various CB concentrations are studied at room temperature as a function of the AC frequencyf. A transition at critical frequencyfcfrom the DC plateauσDCto a frequency-dependent part was observed. Conductivity mechanisms forf > fcandf < fcwere investigated. By considering the fractal nature, conduction forf > fcwas verified to be intra-cluster charge diffusion. Forf < fc, with the assistance of conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM), the conduction behavior of individual clusters can be observed, revealing both linear and nonlinearI–Vcharacteristics. By combining microtoming and C-AFM measurements, 3D reconstructed images offer direct evidence that the percolating network of these materials consists of both a low-conductivity part, in which the charge transports through tunneling, and a high-conductivity part, which shows ohmic electrical properties. Nevertheless, for these CB-EA composites, the presence of these non-ohmic contacts still leads to Arrhenius-type behavior for the macroscopic conductivity.
Local analysis on dislocation structure and hardening during grain boundary pop-ins in tungsten
Authors: Javaid Farhan , Xu Yukun , Durst Karsten
Published: April 2020

In the present work, dislocation structures at the grain boundary (GB) pop-in events were studied around and below the Berkovich indentations using electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) in polycrystalline tungsten. The GB pop-in events were identified as displacement bursts in the load–displacement curve, and the indentation experiments were stopped just after the occurrence of the displacement burst. A significant hardness increase was observed before the GB pop-in event. The careful ECCI analysis on the sequential polished cross sections clearly shows the dislocation pile-up in the vicinity of the GB along with transmitted dislocations in the adjacent grain. The transmitted dislocations were also found to be influenced by the indenter orientation with respect to the GB.
Transcriptome analysis of drought-tolerant sorghum genotype SC56 in response to water stress reveals an oxidative stress defense strategy
Authors: Azzouz-Olden Farida , Hunt Arthur G. , Dinkins Randy
Published: April 2020

Drought tolerance is a crucial trait for crops to curtail the yield loss inflicted by water stress, yet genetic improvement efforts are challenged by the complexity of this character. The adaptation of sorghum to abiotic stress, its genotypic variability, and relatively small genome make this species well-suited to dissect the molecular basis of drought tolerance. The use of differential transcriptome analysis provides a snapshot of the bioprocesses underlying drought response as well as genes that might be determinants of the drought tolerance trait. RNA sequencing data were analyzed via gene ontology enrichment to compare the transcriptome profiles of two sorghum lines, the drought-tolerant SC56 and the drought-sensitive Tx7000. SC56 outperformed Tx7000 in wet conditions by upregulating processes driving growth and guaranteeing homeostasis. The drought tolerance of SC56 seems to be an intrinsic trait occurring through overexpressing stress tolerance genes in wet conditions, notably genes acting in defense against oxidative stress (SOD1, SOD2, VTC1, MDAR1, MSRB2, and ABC1K1). Similarly to wet conditions, under drought, SC56 enhanced its transmembrane transport and maintained growth-promoting mechanisms. Under drought, SC56 also upregulated stress tolerance genes that heighten the antioxidant capacity (SOD1, RCI3, VTE1, UCP1, FD1, and FD2), regulatory factors (CIPK1 and CRK7), and repressors of premature senescence (SAUL1). The differential expression analysis uncovered biological processes which upregulation enables SC56 to be a better accumulator of biomass and connects the drought tolerance trait to key stress tolerance genes, making this genotype a judicious choice for isolation of tolerance genes.
An Itô Formula for rough partial differential equations and some applications
Authors: Hocquet Antoine , Nilssen Torstein
Published: April 2020

We investigate existence, uniqueness and regularity for solutions of rough parabolic equations of the form $\partial _{t}u-A_{t}u-f=(\dot X_{t}(x) \cdot \nabla + \dot Y_{t}(x))u$

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To do so, we introduce a concept of “differential rough driver”, which comes with a counterpart of the usual controlled paths spaces in rough paths theory, built on the Sobolev spaces Wk,p. We also define a natural notion of geometricity in this context, and show how it relates to a product formula for controlled paths. In the case of transport noise (i.e. when Y = 0), we use this framework to prove an Itô Formula (in the sense of a chain rule) for Nemytskii operations of the form u↦F(u), where F is C2 and vanishes at the origin. Our method is based on energy estimates, and a generalization of the Moser Iteration argument to prove boundedness of a dense class of solutions of parabolic problems as above. In particular, we avoid the use of flow transformations and work directly at the level of the original equation. We also show the corresponding chain rule for F(u) = |u|p with p ≥ 2, but also when Y ≠ 0 and p ≥ 4. As an application of these results, we prove existence and uniqueness of a suitable class of Lp-solutions of parabolic equations with multiplicative noise. Another related development is the homogeneous Dirichlet boundary problem on a smooth domain, for which a weak maximum principle is shown under appropriate assumptions on the coefficients.
Physical Processes of Meso-Scale, Dynamic Auroral Forms
Authors: Forsyth C. , Sergeev V. A. , Henderson M. G. , Nishimura Y. , Gallardo-Lacourt B.
Published: April 2020

Meso-scale auroral forms, such as poleward boundary intensifications, streamers, omega bands, beads and giant undulations, are manifestations of dynamic processes in the magnetosphere driven, to a large part, by plasma instabilities in the magnetotail. New observations from ground- and space-based instrumentation and theoretical treatments are giving us a clearer view of some of the physical processes behind these auroral forms. However, questions remain as to how some of these observations should be interpreted, given uncertainties in mapping auroral features to locations in the magnetotatil and due to the significant overlap in the results from a variety of models of different plasma instabilities. We provide an overview of recent results in the field and seek to clarify some of the remaining questions with regards to what drives some of the largest and most dynamic auroral forms.
Noise and Synthetic Biology: How to Deal with Stochasticity?
Authors: Prado Casanova Miguel
Published: April 2020

This paper explores the functional role of noise in synthetic biology and its relation to the concept of randomness. Ongoing developments in the field of synthetic biology are pursuing the re-organisation and control of biological components to make functional devices. This paper addresses the distinction between noise and randomness in reference to the functional relationships that each may play in the evolution of living and/or synthetic systems. The differentiation between noise and randomness in its constructive role, that is, between noise as a perturbation in routine behaviours and noise as a source of variability that cells may exploit, indicates the need for a clarification and rectification (whenever necessary) of the conflicting uses of the notion of noise in the studies of the so-called noise biology.
Functional connectivity dysfunction of insular subdivisions in cognitive impairment after acute mild traumatic brain injury
Authors: Lu Liyan , Li Fengfang , Chen Huiyou , Wang Peng , Zhang Hong , Chen Yu-Chen , Yin Xindao
Published: April 2020

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate the early functional connectivity alterations between insula subdivisions and other cortical regions in patients with acute mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and subsequently to explore the relationship between functional connectivity changes of insula subdivisions with other cortical regions and cognitive function.

Methods

Fifty-three mTBI patients and 37 age-, gender- and education level- matched healthy controls were included in this study. All participants obtained resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) and clinical and neuropsychological evaluations (Montreal cognitive assessment, MoCA) at the acute stage. Functional connectivity alterations of insula subdivisions and correlations with MoCA were further explored by seed-voxel functional connectivity.

Results

Compared with healthy controls, patients with acute mTBI showed significantly decreased functional connectivity between the L-vAI and the left middle temporal gyrus and right superior frontal gyrus and significantly decreased functional connectivity between the R-vAI and the right middle frontal gyrus and right hippocampus. While significantly decreased functional connectivity were observed between the L-dAI and the right superior frontal gyrus. In addition, significantly increased functional connectivity was observed between the R-PI and the left inferior frontal gyrus. Furthermore, the mTBI group demonstrated positive correlations between performances in orientation and insula and middle temporal gyrus and superior frontal gyrus and middle frontal gyrus functional connectivities. Abstraction scores for mTBI patients positively correlated with functional connectivity between insula and middle frontal gyrus.

Conclusions

The present study demonstrated functional connectivity dysfunction of insula subdivisions and correlations between these alterations and cognitive performance, which provide a novel insight into the neurophysiological mechanism of cognitive impairment in patients with mTBI at the acute stage.
Training benchmarks based on validated composite scores for the RobotiX robot-assisted surgery simulator on basic tasks
Authors: Leijte Erik , Claassen Linda , Arts Elke , de Blaauw Ivo , Rosman Camiel , Botden Sanne M. B. I.
Published: April 2020

The RobotiX robot-assisted virtual reality simulator aims to aid in the training of novice surgeons outside of the operating room. This study aimed to determine the validity evidence on multiple levels of the RobotiX simulator for basic skills. Participants were divided in either the novice, laparoscopic or robotic experienced group based on their minimally invasive surgical experience. Two basic tasks were performed: wristed manipulation (Task 1) and vessel energy dissection (Task 2). The performance scores and a questionnaire regarding the realism, didactic value, and usability were gathered (content). Composite scores (0–100), pass/fail values, and alternative benchmark scores were calculated. Twenty-seven novices, 21 laparoscopic, and 13 robotic experienced participants were recruited. Content validity evidence was scored positively overall. Statistically significant differences between novices and robotic experienced participants (construct) was found for movements left (Task 1 p = 0.009), movements right (Task 1 p = 0.009, Task 2 p = 0.021), path length left (Task 1 p = 0.020), and time (Task 1 p = 0.040, Task 2 p < 0.001). Composite scores were statistically significantly different between robotic experienced and novice participants for Task 1 (85.5 versus 77.1, p = 0.044) and Task 2 (80.6 versus 64.9, p = 0.001). The pass/fail score with false-positive/false-negative percentage resulted in a value of 75/100, 46/9.1% (Task 1) and 71/100, 39/7.0% (Task 2). Calculated benchmark scores resulted in a minority of novices passing multiple parameters. Validity evidence on multiple levels was assessed for two basic robot-assisted surgical simulation tasks. The calculated benchmark scores can be used for future surgical simulation training.
Public or perish? From founding to initial public offering
Authors: Honjo Yuji
Published: April 2020

We examine the factors affecting the time to initial public offering (IPO), using a sample of more than 10,000 start-up firms in Japan. We provide evidence that start-up firms engaging in innovative and uncertain businesses are more likely to go public earlier than other firms. The results also reveal that start-up firms that rely on equity financing at founding are more likely to go public earlier than others. Moreover, we find that start-up firms in highly valued industries are more likely to go public earlier than in other industries and that the likelihood of an IPO among start-up firms depends on market conditions.
Ground Fracturing Related to 7.8Mw Saravan Earthquake, Sistan and Baluchistan, Iran - Evidence for Brittle Deformation
Authors: Sepahi Mohammad Noor , Maskare Babaji , Boomeri Mohammad , Gadpallu Purva , Duraiswami Raymond A.
Published: April 2020

The eastern parts of the Sistan and Baluchistan province, southeast Iran is a tectono-magmatically active zone that continues to witness numerous small and large earthquakes. The volcanism in this region is related to the subduction of the Oman plate below the Eurasian plate. The study of the spatial distribution of the epicenter and focus of the earthquakes suggests close association with the numerous faults related to collisional tectonics. Evidence of ground fractures and faulting related to Saravan earthquake of 16th April 2013 which is the largest (7.8 Mw) recorded earthquake in the region is documented. This earthquake occurred along a segment of the NW-SE trending Saravan normal fault and its reverberations were felt as far away as New Delhi and Dubai. En echelon, 2-km long, northwest-southeast trending surface fractures and faults are recorded in the field near Hampani village southwest of Gosht city. The epicenter is located in the remote hilly terrain east of Gosht. Many of the fractures are listric. The fault records a downthrow of about half a meter and some segments record brecciation of phyllite, liquefaction of sediments and emergence of saline springs are associated features. Despite the high magnitude only a few casualties and minor damage to civil structures were recorded in Iran due to the sparse population and its remoteness.
Underground Coal fire Mapping Using Analysis of Self-potential (SP) Data Collected from Akashkinaree Colliery, Jharia Coalfield, India
Authors: Kumar Sahadev , Pal Sanjit Kumar
Published: April 2020

Sub-surface coal mine fires burn valuable resources and give rise to great threat in the local environs and people’s health. Jharia coal field is one of utmost fire affected coal fields in India. This paper deals with the study of sub-surface coal fire using self-potential (SP) method, a cost-effective and non-invasive passive geophysical technique. SP method in coal fire mapping works based on redox potential generated by oxidation of coal and also on Thomson potential due to temperature gradient. Initially, SP anomaly map generated using electrode drift corrected field data. The SP anomalies in the present study area vary from ~95 to ~ -40mV. SP anomaly map has been continued to a height of 10m from the ground to remove the possible shallow surface noises. The upward continued anomaly map has been enhanced using first vertical derivative. Further, Euler’s depth solutions have been estimated to understand possible geometry and source depth of sub-surface coal fires. The local geological map and field photograph corroborate well with the results for the characterization of coal seam fires.
Nitrogen fixation estimates for the Baltic Sea indicate high rates for the previously overlooked Bothnian Sea
Authors: Olofsson Malin , Klawonn Isabell , Karlson Bengt
Published: April 2020

Dense blooms of diazotrophic filamentous cyanobacteria are formed every summer in the Baltic Sea. We estimated their contribution to nitrogen fixation by combining two decades of cyanobacterial biovolume monitoring data with recently measured genera-specific nitrogen fixation rates. In the Bothnian Sea, estimated nitrogen fixation rates were 80 kt N year−1, which has doubled during recent decades and now exceeds external loading from rivers and atmospheric deposition of 69 kt year−1. The estimated contribution to the Baltic Proper was 399 kt N year−1, which agrees well with previous estimates using other approaches and is greater than the external input of 374 kt N year−1. Our approach can potentially be applied to continuously estimate nitrogen loads via nitrogen fixation. Those estimates are crucial for ecosystem adaptive management since internal nitrogen loading may counteract the positive effects of decreased external nutrient loading.
Predicting rut depth induced by an 8-wheeled forwarder in fine-grained boreal forest soils
Authors: Uusitalo Jori , Ala-Ilomäki Jari , Lindeman Harri , Toivio Jenny , Siren Matti
Published: April 2020

Key message

Rut depth in fine-grained boreal soils induced by an 8-wheeled forwarder is best predicted with soil moisture content, cumulative mass of machine passes, bulk density and thickness of the humus layer.

Context

Forest machines are today very heavy and will cause serious damage to soil and prevent future growth if forest operations are carried out at the wrong time of the year. Forest operations performed during the wettest season should therefore be directed at coarse-grained soils that are not as prone to soil damage.

Aims

The study aimed at investigating the significance of the most important soil characteristics on rutting and developing models that can be utilized in predicting rutting prior to forest operations.

Methods

A set of wheeling tests on two fine-grained mineral soil stands in Southern Finland were performed. The wheeling experiments were conducted in three different periods of autumn in order to get the largest possible variation in moisture content. The test drives were carried out with an 8-wheeled forwarder.

Results

Soil moisture content is the most important factor affecting rut depth. Rut depth of an 8-wheeled forwarder in fine-grained boreal soil is best predicted with soil moisture content, cumulative mass of machine passes, bulk density and thickness of the humus layer.

Conclusion

The results emphasize the importance of moisture content on the risk of rutting in fine-grained mineral soils, especially with high moisture content values when soil saturation reaches 80%. The results indicate that it is of high importance that soil type and soil wetness can be predicted prior to forest operations.
Eriocalyxin B Inhibits Adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes by Cell Cycle Arrest
Authors: Mu Rong-Fang , Niu Yan-Fen , Wang Qian , Zhou Hui-Min , Hu Jing , Qin Wan-Ying , Xiong Wen-Yong
Published: April 2020

Eriocalyxin B, an ent-Kaurene diterpenoid extracted from a traditional Chinese herbIsodon eriocalyx, has been shown to possess multifunctional activities such as anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory. However, the function and mechanism of the compound in adipocyte differentiation is still unknown. Here we reported that eriocalyxin B blunted adipogenesis remarkably by inhibiting the accumulation of lipid droplets, triglycerides and the expressions of adipogenesis-related factors, including C/EBPβ, C/EBPα, PPARγ, and FABP4. Moreover, we showed that the inhibition might be the consequence of cell cycle being arrested at the G2/M phase during the mitotic clonal expansion of adipocyte differentiation, most likely by suppressing mRNAs and proteins of CDK1, CDK2, Cyclin A and Cyclin B1. Overall, we conclude that eriocalyxin B is capable of inhibiting adipocyte differentiation at the early stage through downregulating the proteins involved in cell cycle progression.

Graphic Abstract
Numerical study via total Lagrangian smoothed particle hydrodynamics on chip formation in micro cutting
Authors: Wang Jin-Shi , Zhang Xiao-Dong , Fang Feng-Zhou
Published: April 2020

Numerical simulation is an effective approach in studying cutting mechanism. The widely used methods for cutting simulation include finite element analysis and molecular dynamics. However, there exist some intrinsic shortcomings when using a mesh-based formulation, and the capable scale of molecular dynamics is extremely small. In contrast, smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) is a candidate to combine the advantages of them. It is a particle method which is suitable for simulating the large deformation process, and is formulated based on continuum mechanics so that large scale problems can be handled in principle. As a result, SPH has also become a main way for the cutting simulation. Since some issues arise while using conventional SPH to handle solid materials, the total Lagrangian smoothed particle hydrodynamics (TLSPH) is developed. But instabilities would still occur during the cutting, which is a critical issue to resolve. This paper studies the effects of TLSPH settings and cutting model parameters on the numerical instability, as well as the chip formation process. Plastic deformation, stress field and cutting forces are analyzed as well. It shows that the hourglass coefficient, critical pairwise deformation and time step are three important parameters to control the stability of the simulation, and a strategy on how to adjust them is provided.
The Lens Shapes the View: on Task Dependency in ToM Research
Authors: Breil Christina , Böckler Anne
Published: April 2020

Purpose of Review

This article provides an overview of current findings on Theory of Mind (ToM) in human children and adults and highlights the relationship between task specifications and their outcome in socio-cognitive research.

Recent Findings

ToM, the capacity to reason about and infer others’ mental states, develops progressively throughout childhood—the exact time course is still a matter of debate. Neuroimaging studies indicate the involvement of a widespread neuronal network during mentalizing, suggesting that ToM is a multifaceted process. Accordingly, the tasks and trainings that currently exist to investigate and enhance ToM are heterogeneous, and the outcomes largely depend on the paradigm that was used.

We argue for the implementation of multiple-task batteries in the assessment of socio-cognitive abilities. Decisions for a particular paradigm need to be carefully considered and justified. We want to emphasize the importance of targeted research on the relationship between task specifications and outcomes.
Creating and Supporting a Harassment- and Assault-Free Field School
Authors: Colaninno Carol E. , Lambert Shawn P. , Beahm Emily L. , Drexler Carl G.
Published: April 2020

Given the hierarchical nature and structure of field schools, enrolled students are particularly susceptible to harassment and assault. In 2018, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) released recommendations to help prevent sexual harassment and assault of women in academia. Although these recommendations are specific to higher education and exclusive to women, some can be modified and applied to the context of archaeological field schools. We review the NASEM's recommendations, with particular attention to those applicable to the field school setting, and provide suggestions for making field schools safer and more inclusive learning environments for all students. Although we present recommendations for practices that can be implemented at field schools, additional research is needed to understand how sexual harassment occurs at field schools and how the implementation of these recommendations can make learning safer.
A sizing-based approach to evaluate hypersonic demonstrators: demonstrator-carrier constraints
Authors: Haley J.G. , McCall T.P. , Maynard I.W. , Chudoba B.
Published: April 2020

The objective of this study is to identify, evaluate, and provide recommendations towards the realisation of near-term hypersonic flight hardware through the consideration of carrier vehicle constraints. The current rush of available funds for hypersonic research cannot cause a program to ignore growth potential for future missions. The prior NB-52 carrier vehicles, famous for the X-15 and X-43A missions, are retired. Next generation hypersonic demonstrator requirements will necessitate a substitution of carrier vehicle capability. Flight vehicle configuration, technology requirements, and recommendations are arrived at by constructing and evaluating a hypersonic technology demonstrator design matrix. This multi-disciplinary parametric sizing investigation of hypersonic vehicle demonstrators focuses on the evaluation of the combined carrier platform, booster, and hypersonic cruiser solution space topography. Promising baseline configurations are evaluated against operational requirements by trading fuel type, endurance cruise time, and payload weight. The multi-disciplinary study results are constrained with carrier payload mass and geometry limitations. The multi-disciplinary results provide physical insights into near-term hypersonic demonstrator payload and cruise time requirements that will stretch the capability of existing carrier aircraft. Any growth in hypersonic research aircraft size or capability will require new carrier vehicle investments.
Akratic Action under the Guise of the Good
Authors: Chislenko Eugene
Published: April 2020

Many philosophers have thought that human beings do or pursue only what we see as good. These “guise-of-the-good” views face powerful challenges and counterexamples, such as akratic action, in which we do what we ourselves believe we ought not do. I propose a new way for guise-of-the-good views to address this central counterexample by appealing to conflicting beliefs. I then answer concerns that this appeal is insufficiently explanatory, attributes too much conflict, leaves out an essential asymmetry in action against one’s “better” judgment, attributes systematic error about one’s own beliefs, and is too implausible.
Health impact of the Anthropocene: the complex relationship between gut microbiota, epigenetics, and human health, using obesity as an example
Authors: Torp Austvoll Cecilie , Gallo Valentina , Montag Doreen
Published: April 2020

The growing prevalence of obesity worldwide poses a public health challenge in the current geological epoch, the Anthropocene. Global changes caused by urbanisation, loss of biodiversity, industrialisation, and land-use are happening alongside microbiota dysbiosis and increasing obesity prevalence. How alterations of the gut microbiota are associated with obesity and the epigenetic mechanism mediating this and other health outcome associations are in the process of being unveiled. Epigenetics is emerging as a key mechanism mediating the interaction between human body and the environment in producing disease. Evidence suggests that the gut microbiota plays a role in obesity as it contributes to different mechanisms, such as metabolism, body weight and composition, inflammatory responses, insulin signalling, and energy extraction from food. Consistently, obese people tend to have a different epigenetic profile compared to non-obese. However, evidence is usually scattered and there is a growing need for a structured framework to conceptualise this complexity and to help shaping complex solutions. In this paper, we propose a framework to analyse the observed associations between the alterations of microbiota and health outcomes and the role of epigenetic mechanisms underlying them using obesity as an example, in the current context of global changes within the Anthropocene.
Using a Systematic Review to Explore Single-Subject Design Use Within Special Education Over Time
Authors: Zanuttini Jessica Zoe
Published: April 2020

While teachers and researchers of students with disability are commonly interested in individual students and their progress towards individualised goals, traditional approaches to educational research that aim to illustrate generalisation between cause and effect are still commonly used. Traditional approaches, such as group-comparison designs, are used to demonstrate improved performance for the average student; however, they also obscure individual student data. Within special and inclusive education, single-subject designs may provide more appropriate conclusions to particular types of questions than traditional research methods as they allow for the examination of a functional relationship between the dependent and independent variables and rely on the participant serving as their own control. This article provides a summary of the use of single-subject designs within the field of special education over time and the findings of a systematic review conducted according to the PRISMA statement are presented. Through this systematic review, published articles from 7 prominent special education journals that involved intervention for school-aged students with disability were examined. In addition, a sample of exemplar studies that have employed single-subject designs are discussed.
Just Hindus
Authors: Das Acevedo Deepa
Published: April 2020

What happens when courts reach “good” outcomes through “bad” reasoning? Are there limits to consequentialist jurisprudence? The Indian Supreme Court’s recent decision inIYLA v. State of Keralaoffers important insights on both issues.IYLA, decided in September 2018, held that the Hindu temple at Sabarimala may not ban women aged ten to fifty from its premises even though devotees argue the exclusion is religiously mandated. Reactions toIYLAhave been vehement and violent, and so far only two women in the prohibited age range have managed to visit the temple. Perhaps any outcome impinging on religious practice would have elicited such responses. Nevertheless, the Court’s analysis, which disregarded devotee perspectives in its eagerness to acknowledge the previously overlooked perspectives of women, is problematic insofar as it superficially upholds the Court’s reputation as a progressive institution while creating bad precedent by further damaging the “essential practices” doctrine. This article draws on case law and legal analysis to demonstrate how the Court’s reasoning paid short shrift to its own doctrines and to conflicting imperatives in the Indian Constitution. The Court’s (and ruling’s) failures underscore the extent to which winning good outcomes through bad reasoning should be sobering rather than satisfying.
J. William Fulbright, the Contested Legacies of the American Revolution, and the War in Vietnam
Authors: Sobers Candace
Published: April 2020

In 1968, veteran Chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations J. William Fulbright summoned a series of experts to a hearing on the Vietnam War and American foreign policy. The assembled academics were not asked to examine the minutiae of U.S. strategy and tactics in Vietnam, but to grapple with a more fundamental issue—what was the nature of revolution? The participants’ testimonies interrogated the nation's revolutionary past to understand and inform their perspectives on Vietnam, the limits of U.S. power, and the contested legacies of the American Revolution. The hearings illuminated the intellectual history of an underexplored theme in U.S. foreign relations history—a marked ambivalence toward other people's revolutions, especially in the twentieth century, and the consequences of this contradictory posture for the United States's self-image and foreign policy.
Is it correct to project and detect? How weighting unipartite projections influences community detection
Authors: Cann Tristan J. B. , Weaver Iain S. , Williams Hywel T. P.
Published: April 2020

Bipartite networks represent pairwise relationships between nodes belonging to two distinct classes. While established methods exist for analyzing unipartite networks, those for bipartite network analysis are somewhat obscure and relatively less developed. Community detection in such instances is frequently approached by first projecting the network onto a unipartite network, a method where edges between node classes are encoded as edges within one class. Here we test seven different projection schemes by assessing the performance of community detection on both: (i) a real-world dataset from social media and (ii) an ensemble of artificial networks with prescribed community structure. A number of performance and accuracy issues become apparent from the experimental findings, especially in the case of long-tailed degree distributions. Of the methods tested, the “hyperbolic” projection scheme alleviates most of these difficulties and is thus the most robust scheme of those tested. We conclude that any interpretation of community detection algorithm performance on projected networks must be done with care as certain network configurations require strong community preference for the bipartite structure to be reflected in the unipartite communities. Our results have implications for the analysis of detected community structure in projected unipartite networks.
Quantifying late Quaternary Australian rainfall seasonality changes using the Poaceae:Asteraceae pollen ratio
Authors: Herbert Annika V. , Fitchett Jennifer M.
Published: April 2020

Mounting evidence suggests that the Southern Westerly Winds were significantly equatorially displaced and more intense during the last glacial maximum (LGM), prompting deliberate research identifying proxies to reconstruct these changes. This has focused on rainfall seasonality to track changes in major circulation patterns across the southern hemisphere midlatitude regions. Using a common methodology to reconstruct climatic changes aids comparability and makes it easier to draw significant conclusions regarding general circulation movements. We assess the applicability of Coetzee's (1967) Poaceae:Asteraceae pollen ratio, which has been used successfully in South Africa, in the Australian context. The ratio scores from modern samples fail to capture the weak seasonality in the southeast and on Tasmania but is successful for the rest of the continent. The periods of greatest change compared to present day match known periods of distinct climatic events, namely the mid-Holocene (6–7 cal ka BP), the last deglacial period (15–17 cal ka BP), and two periods during the LGM (20–22 and 31–33 cal ka BP), suggesting large parts of Australia experienced a “double peak” of rainfall seasonality change during the LGM. This confirms that the Poaceae:Asteraceae pollen ratio can be used on records outside of South Africa.
High levels of fatty acids inhibit β-casein synthesis through suppression of the JAK2/STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways in mammary epithelial cells of cows with clinical ketosis
Authors: Shu Xin , Fang Zhiyuan , Guan Yuan , Chen Xiying , Loor Juan J. , Jia Hongdou , Dong Jihong , Wang Yazhe , Zuo Rankun , Liu Guowen , Li Xiaobing , Li Xinwei
Published: April 2020

Ketosis is a metabolic disease of dairy cows often characterized by high concentrations of ketone bodies and fatty acids, but low milk protein and milk production. The Janus kinase 2 (JAK2)-signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5) and the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathways are central for the regulation of milk protein synthesis. The effect of high levels of fatty acids on these pathways and β-casein synthesis are unknown in dairy cows with clinical ketosis. Mammary gland tissue and blood samples were collected from healthy (n = 15) and clinically-ketotic (n = 15) cows. In addition, bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMEC) were treated with fatty acids, methionine (Met) or prolactin (PRL), respectively. In vivo, the serum concentration of fatty acids was greater (P > 0.05) and the percentage of milk protein (P > 0.05) was lower in cows with clinical ketosis. The JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways were inhibited and the abundance of β-casein was lower in mammary tissue of cows with clinical ketosis (P > 0.05). In vitro, high levels of fatty acids inhibited the JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways (P > 0.05) and further decreased the β-casein synthesis (P > 0.05) in BMEC. Methionine or PRL treatment, as positive regulators, activated the JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways to increase the β-casein synthesis. Importantly, the high concentration of fatty acids attenuated the positive effect of Met or PRL on mTOR, JAK2-STAT5 pathways and the abundance of β-casein (P > 0.05). Overall, these data indicate that the high concentrations of fatty acids that reach the mammary cells during clinical ketosis inhibit mTOR and JAK2-STAT5 signaling pathways, and further suppress β-casein synthesis.
The effect of bleeding on children's haemodynamic indices: an analysis of previous post-tonsillectomy bleeding cases
Authors: Ronen O , Sela E , Degabli L
Published: April 2020

Objective

Post-surgical bleeding after tonsillectomy occurs in 2–7 per cent of cases. This study examined whether heart rate and haematocrit changes are associated with the amount of bleeding.

Method

In this retrospective analytical study, data were collected from the medical charts of patients admitted with post-surgical bleeding.

Results

Over the course of 10 years, there were 218 cases of post-operative bleeding in children aged under 18 years. There was a significant increase in heart rate after the bleeding had started, and a significant decrease in both haemoglobin and haematocrit levels (p < 0.05). There was no significant correlation between the differences in haemoglobin and haematocrit and changes in heart rate.

Conclusion

No correlation was found between the differences in haemoglobin and haematocrit levels and the changes in heart rate from before the surgery to after the bleeding had started. The monitoring of paediatric patients’ heart rate after tonsillectomy surgery solely for the purpose of predicting acute blood loss is therefore discouraged.
Arachnoid cysts on magnetic resonance imaging: just an incidental finding?
Authors: Li L , Begbie F , Grimmond N , Kontorinis G
Published: April 2020

Objective

To determine the clinical significance of arachnoid cysts.

Methods

The scans of 6978 patients undergoing magnetic resonance imaging of the internal acoustic meatus for unilateral cochleovestibular symptoms were retrospectively reviewed. We identified the scans with arachnoid cysts, and assessed the statistical associations between the laterality, location and size of the arachnoid cyst, the laterality of symptoms, the patients’ age and gender.

Results

In a total of 37 arachnoid cysts identified in 36 patients (0.5 per cent), no associations were identified between the laterality of symptoms and the laterality of the arachnoid cyst, regardless of its size or location. There were no significant associations between the location of the arachnoid cyst and the age (p = 0.99) or gender of the patient (p = 0.13), or size (p = 0.656) or side of the cyst (p = 0.61). None of the cysts with repeat imaging scans (17 cysts) demonstrated growth.

Conclusion

Our results suggest that most, if not all, arachnoid cysts are of no clinical significance. Given their indolent behaviour, even serial imaging is not essential.
The number of unknown paradoxes
Authors: Sorensen Roy , Sainsbury Mark
Published: April 2020

‘A logical theory may be tested by its capacity for dealing with puzzles, and it is a wholesome plan, in thinking about logic, to stock the mind with as many puzzles as possible, since these serve much the same purpose as is served by experiments in physical science’.

How many paradoxes are there? By 1920, Bertrand Russell's star student had concluded that there are few or zero paradoxes in philosophy. Most philosophical propositions ‘are not false but nonsensical’.
The Radical Goals of Slave Morality in Nietzsche'sOn the Genealogy of Morality
Authors: Meredith Thomas
Published: April 2020

This paper offers a new account of Nietzsche's critique of morality in the first treatise of hisOn the Genealogy of Morality. According to the general view, Nietzsche places political revenge at the center of slave morality: the priest invents slave morality in order to rule the noble. I argue that this view is incomplete, for Nietzsche's deeper critique reveals that the priest's revenge is not purely political but also radically ontological. Ultimately, the priest aims at supplanting not just the noble but also the rule of nature. This reading reveals the priest's attempt to transform the natural order of rank through imagining the human being as subject to the omnipotent God of monotheism, i.e., the “just God.” This interpretation not only broadens our understanding of Nietzsche's critique of morality but also clarifies its purpose, namely, to show us how the demand for morality can blind us to the world's truths.
Coupling law enforcement and community-based regulations in support of compliance with biodiversity conservation regulations
Authors: Atuo Fidelis Akunke , Fu Jun , O’Connell Timothy John , Agida Jonathan Akomaye , Agaldo Jennifer Arubemi
Published: April 2020

The scope and scale of wildlife crimes around the world have risen in intensity and complexity, yet current enforcement strategies have often not delivered desired effects on illegal activities, even within protected areas. Tackling the array of illegal activities by emphasizing law enforcement above other options is challenging and potentially unsustainable. We explored the potential for social norms, community regulations and socioeconomic factors to promote compliance with wildlife laws by interviewing 334 respondents in 28 villages that share boundaries with protected areas in Nigeria. Using an anonymous direct questioning approach, we recorded a high prevalence of non-compliance behaviours in all studied communities. Injunctive norms (i.e., perceptions of acceptable behaviour within a social group) significantly predicted compliance, as respondents with no complicit friends or family members were more likely to comply with wildlife regulations. Perceived likelihood of community-level sanctions played a more salient role than the fear of arrest by rangers in influencing compliance. In addition, non-compliance increased with number of dependents, but reduced with average monthly household income. Our study demonstrates that clear knowledge of the social norms that drive local behaviour as well as the authorities that enforce them is integral to understanding the forces that drive community involvement and participation in conservation. Incorporating local communities in planning enforcement interventions may help protect threatened species and landscapes.