bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Differences in office-based personal space perception between British and Korean populations
Authors: Richardson Mike , Jicol Crescent , Taulo Gerald , Park Jaehyun , Kim Hyun K. , Proulx Michael J. , de Sousa Alexandra A.
Published: March 2023

We sought to understand how the perception of personal space is influenced by different levels of social density, spatial density, and type of window-view in South Korean and United Kingdom workplaces. We employed virtual reality to simulate shared and single occupancy offices. We obtained personal space estimations using a virtual disc around the participant which could be extended and retracted, inside the simulation, to indicate perceived amount of personal space, and compared this measure to questionnaire-based estimations. We found that in both cultures participants experienced greater perceived personal space (1) when in a sparse rather than dense office and (2) having a view of the city outside the office. However, British, but not Korean, participants had significantly higher personal space estimations in single occupancy offices than in shared offices. These results suggest subtle cross-cultural differences in workplace experience, that could only be investigated using virtual reality.
Adolescents’ experiences of acceptance and commitment therapy for depression: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of good-outcome cases
Authors: Ma Jinping , Ji Lili , Lu Guohua
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) has been shown to help treat depression. However, little is known about the patient’s experiences with ACT. This study aimed to learn how it was used in adolescents with major depressive disorder who have achieved good treatment outcomes.

Methods

Five adolescents with major depressive disorder with good treatment outcomes of ACT were enrolled in the semi-structured qualitative interview and analyzed using systematic textual condensation and interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Results

Four primary themes emerged from the investigation. “Therapist relationships and characteristics” describes the therapist’s receptiveness and respect for adolescents with depression and having a trustworthy and sincere therapist. “Spaces to explore and experience” describes the ongoing process and content of acceptance of negative emotions and mindfulness practices in the healing process. “Do important things” refers to values and committed action. The “time settings” include the frequency and duration of treatment.

Conclusion

Adolescents make positive changes with a receptive and respectful therapist by exploring themselves in a genuine and trusting therapeutic relationship. Improvement seems to come from being open to all thoughts and feelings and developing the ability to live in the present moment. Teenagers attach great importance to value-oriented behaviour. Therefore, treatment should target the critical areas of depressed adolescents to guide them towards recovery effectively.
A pilot study of how the past, present, and future are represented in three-dimensional space
Authors: Yabe Yoshiko , Yamada Sachie
Published: March 2023

Numerous studies have shown that the representation of temporal concepts is associated with spatial features such as position and size. In a conventional task called the “Circle Test (CT),” participants are asked to express the relative importance of the past, present, and future and to demonstrate relationships among them by drawing three circles representing the past, present, and future. Studies on various participants, including refugees, patients living with serious illnesses, and adolescents, have used it to understand the temporal perspectives of different test takers. On the other hand, several studies have suggested that concepts of time are represented in three-dimensional (3D) space. It is expected that temporal concepts of the past, present, and future could be recorded using a 3D drawing task. Here we created a 3D version of CT (the “Sphere Test [ST]”) to investigate the sagittal representation of time and to record the relative time importance and relatedness, allowing for the shielding relationships and the laws of perspective. We conducted experiments with university students to compare the results from the CT and the ST. Our results suggested that not all on-screen overlapping can be interpreted as representing a connection between two time zones in 3D space. We also found correlations between the chosen sizes of the three circles in the CT and ST, i.e., the on-screen sizes of the past and present circles were positively correlated. In contrast, we observed no correlation between the on-screen sizes of the future circles in the two tests. The alignment pattern along the sagittal axis showed different patterns from the horizontal and vertical axes. In conclusion, this study sheds new light on the third dimension of the spatial representation of time and may help us understand the relationship between temporal perspectives and other factors, including mental health.
The role of personality, authoritarianism and cognition in the United Kingdom’s 2016 referendum on European Union membership
Authors: Sumner Chris , Scofield John E. , Buchanan Erin M. , Evans Mimi-Rose , Shearing Matthew
Published: March 2023

Introduction

The results of the United Kingdom’s 2016 referendum on European Union (EU) membership have highlighted deep societal divides. In six studies, we examined the role of personality traits, cognition and cognitive biases in relation to referendum voters’ choices.

Methods

A total of 11,225 participants completed questionnaires and controlled experiments, which assessed differences in personality traits, levels of authoritarianism, numeracy, thinking styles, and susceptibility to cognitive biases including ideologically motivated numeracy and reasoning, framing, and the Dunning-Kruger effect.

Results

Participants expressing an intent to vote to leave the EU reported significantly higher levels of authoritarianism and conscientiousness, and lower levels of openness and neuroticism than voters expressing an intent to vote to remain in the EU. When compared with Remain voters, Leave voters displayed significantly lower levels of numeracy and appeared more reliant on impulsive System 1 thinking. In the experimental studies, voters on both sides were found to be susceptible to the cognitive biases tested, with a general trend for Leave voters to show more bias than Remain voters.

Discussion

These results raise important questions regarding the use and framing of numerical and non-numerical data for public consumption.
Effect of Yoga involvement on mental health in times of crisis: A cross-sectional study
Authors: Bös Christiane , Gaiswinkler Lisza , Fuchshuber Jürgen , Schwerdtfeger Andreas , Unterrainer Human-Friedrich
Published: March 2023

Background

Yoga involvement can be understood as a degree of immersion in the philosophical/spiritual teachings of Yoga. Previous research has shown a positive association between Yoga involvement and mental health. This study further investigates the effect of Yoga involvement on several parameters of psychological well-being and distress amidst a global crisis precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

A total sample of 246 participants (216 females; 118 Yoga versus 128 age-matched Pilates practitioners) were included in the study. Via an online-survey the following questionnaires were completed: the WHO-Five Well-Being Index, the Multidimensional Inventory for Religious/Spiritual Well-Being short version, the Leipzig Short Scale of Sense of Coherence, the Brief Symptom Inventory and the Yoga Immersion Scale which was adapted for the control group to Pilates Immersion Scale.

Results

When controlling for occupation and psychiatric disorder, involvement in general was higher for Yoga practitioners than for Pilates controls. Furthermore, Yoga practice was associated with increased religious/spiritual well-being and decreased sense of coherence, but neither with psychological well-being nor with psychological distress. Involvement, in general, positively predicted psychological well-being, religious/spiritual well-being and sense of coherence, but there was no connection with psychological distress. Lastly, involvement mediated the positive relationship between Yoga practice and religious/spiritual well-being and suppressed the negative effect of Yoga practice on sense of coherence.

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that involvement in a certain relaxation practice has a positive impact and might be a key component in understanding Yoga’s influence on mental health. Further randomized controlled research, including clinical groups, is necessary to explain how involvement changes and how it effects well-being more specifically.
Effects of regulated learning scaffolding on regulation strategies and academic performance: A meta-analysis
Authors: Shao Jingjing , Chen Yunshan , Wei Xiaoyang , Li Xiaoran , Li Yanyan
Published: March 2023

Education research is increasingly focused on fostering self-regulated learning (SRL) and socially shared regulation of learning (SSRL) among students. However, previous meta-analyses have rarely focused on the specific types of regulated learning scaffolding. Therefore, this meta-analysis examines the effects of different types of regulated learning scaffolding on regulation strategies and academic performance. A total of 46 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the final analysis. The findings showed that overall, regulated learning scaffolding had a moderate effect (g = 0.587). In addition, moderation analyses were performed using a random effects model that focused on four types of scaffolding. The results showed that overall, composite tools had the greatest effect, while the most useful scaffolding for SRL and SSRL were group awareness tools (g = 0.61) and composite tools (g = 0.53), respectively. In terms of learning outcomes, composite tools had the greatest effect on regulation strategies, while intelligent pedagogical agents had the greatest effect on academic performance. We also performed a meta-regression analysis to identify the moderators that had the greatest influence on the effects of regulated learning scaffolding. The results showed that grade level, academic subject, and cooperation all had a significant impact. In conclusion, these findings provide evidence for validating the effectiveness of four regulated learning scaffolding and for discovering their function for SSRL, and presented some practical implications of our findings.
Online and computer-assisted career guidance: Are students prepared for it?
Authors: Khurumova Veronika , Pinto Joana Carneiro
Published: March 2023

Career services should be a priority for any higher education institution. These structures should be prepared to support the design, implementation, and evaluation of academic and career plans and decisions, providing services properly aligned with students’ needs, preferences, and characteristics. The present study addressed these questions by analyzing data from an online survey administered to 361 Portuguese higher education students. Results indicate that most students do not seek support in these structures, despite having various needs, particularly in the scope of exploring the world of work, developing goals and implementing career strategies. Most students are open to the use of online and computer-assisted career guidance, although their preference is for in-person interventions. These results allow Career Offices to identify new directions and opportunities to work with students, while demonstrating their value to the academic community and the labor market.
The psychological stress response of COVID-19 to medical staff and prevention: A large sample study from China
Authors: Hu Mei , Xu Yuan , Bu Dengying , Luo Kai , Chang Liying , Mao Chun
Published: March 2023

Objectives

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, medical staff in China were more likely to suffer from psychological problems. By investigating the actual state of psychological stress response of medical staff during the COVID-19 outbreak, the study discussed and analyzed the influencing factors of different psychological states in order to prevent the occurrence of serious adverse emotional events in medical staff.

Methods

In the Xiangyang Central Hospital, 1,466 medical staff members have adopted the Psychological Questionnaire for Emergencies Events of Public Health (PQEEPH), which includes questions about depression, neurasthenia, fear, obsessive anxiety, and hypochondriac disorders. The questionnaire also asks about gender, age, education level, health, department, position, and whether personnel exposure history correlation analysis has been confirmed.

Results

The survey revealed that 55% had depression, 26.7% had neurasthenia, 95% had fear, 47.9% had obsessive anxiety, and 69.3% had hypochondria. The effects of depression and hypochondriac emotional stress were significantly greater in female workers than in male workers (p < 0.05). Those with higher educational levels had a stronger emotional stress response. Medical professionals with or without contact histories, those who were suspected or confirmed, as well as those in various positions and departments, all demonstrated significant differences in their stress emotions (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Emotional stress affected medical professionals, especially doctors and nurses, who were on the front lines of clinical work in the face of significant public health emergencies. Therefore, to reduce the stress burden and enhance mental health on medical staff, hospitals were suggested to improve their emergency management practices. In addition, the sensitization knowledge training and psychological counseling for front-line clinical staff should be strengthened.
Factors affecting Malaysian ESL teachers' behavioral intentions for technology use in the post-COVID-19 era
Authors: Chun Teo Woon , Yunus Melor Md
Published: March 2023

This study aimed to investigate English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers' technology acceptance levels and to identify the factors affecting their behavioral intentions (BI) with respect to technology use in the post-COVID-19 era. A cross-sectional survey of 361 Malaysian ESL teachers was conducted. Participants were recruited via convenience sampling, and they answered an online survey questionnaire that was designed with reference to past studies. The collected data were analyzed via descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation, and multiple regression analyses. The findings revealed that Malaysian ESL teachers generally had a high level of technology acceptance in the post-COVID-19 era. Their BIs had a significant relationship with three factors: performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), and social influence (SI), of which EE was identified as the most significant factor influencing their BI with respect to technology use in the post-COVID-19 era. Conversely, the presence of facilitating conditions did not have a substantial connection with ESL teachers' behavioral intentions for technology use after the pandemic, despite the fact that there was weak positive relationship with each other. This study provides insights for the field of educational psychology by identifying the current trends in ESL teachers' behavioral intentions in adopting technology in the post-COVID-19-era ESL classrooms. The findings of this study may also support investigations into technology acceptance in ESL teaching, illustrating a growing need to provide adequate educational and technological tools, resources, and facilities to facilitate the delivery of lessons by ESL teachers. Future studies should conduct longitudinal research and investigate more variables from different technology acceptance models.
Positive distraction in daily activities as a predictor of good coping: A “day in the life” during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Leslie-Miller Calissa J. , Cole Veronica T. , Waugh Christian E.
Published: March 2023

Introduction

The early part of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) was a chronic stressor that led to decreased life satisfaction, increased psychopathology, and decreased social interaction, making it important to study coping strategies that stimulate increases in emotional well-being. Previous research has demonstrated that disengagement coping may be beneficial in scenarios where engagement coping is too difficult or not possible. We hypothesized that disengagement coping would be related to good emotional well-being (high positive emotions and/or perceived control, lower negative emotions and/or stress), with distraction (taking a break from a stressor) related to better emotional well-being than is avoidance (avoiding thoughts and feelings associated with a stressor).

Methods

Using a daily reconstruction method that represents a “day in the life” of people in the United States during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, we assessed people’s (N = 329) activities, their intention to distract from or avoid the stressor during these activities, emotions, and thoughts about and motivation to deal with COVID.

Results

Between-subjects’ analyses revealed that habitual distraction did not predict any outcomes, while habitual avoidance related to poorer emotional well-being. Within-subject analyses, however, demonstrated that engaging in distraction (and to a smaller extent, avoidance) was associated with better concurrent emotional well-being and less thinking about COVID. Furthermore, the intent to distract/avoid was more reliable in predicting emotional outcomes than was the activity type.

Conclusion

These findings suggest that disengagement from stress can be an adaptive coping behavior during global pandemics and possibly other chronic stressors with similar attributes.
The occupational anxiety of teachers caused by China’s ‘double reduction’ policy—a study based on the grounded theory
Authors: Yue Wei , Yu Le , Yang Yanru
Published: March 2023

Teachers’ occupational anxiety is a kind of negative emotional state of teachers, which is prevalent in Chinese teachers. Unfortunately, in the existing research, teachers’ occupational anxiety caused by China’s ‘double reduction’ policy has not been paid attention to. Based on the grounded theory, this study conducted in-depth interviews with 45 in-service primary and junior high school teachers, and used NVivo 12 to process recording materials. Through a series of steps such as open coding, axial coding and selective coding, we found that the core feature of teachers’ occupational anxiety caused by the ‘double reduction’ policy was that the implementation of the ‘double reduction’ policy was incomplete matching the actual educational ecology. Then we constructed a theoretical model of the formation mechanism of teachers’ occupational anxiety caused by the ‘double reduction’ policy. The study showed that due to the influence of teachers’ own personality characteristics and incomplete match between external factors, although teachers insisted on self-adjustment, it was difficult to fundamentally solve the teachers’ occupational anxiety caused by the ‘double reduction’ policy.
Asymmetry of the pelvis in Polish young adults
Authors: Bibrowicz Karol , Szurmik Tomasz , Ogrodzka-Ciechanowicz Katarzyna , Hudakova Zuzana , Gąsienica-Walczak Bartłomiej , Kurzeja Piotr
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Symmetry is one of the criteria of correct body posture in upright position. The spatial positioning of the pelvic girdle is crucial to it. Functional and structural asymmetries within the lumbo-pelvic-hip complex can have a significant influence on the structure and functions of many human body organs and systems. The aim of the study was to present the results of inclinometer measurements of selected landmarks of the pelvic girdle in young adults aged 19–29.

Methods

The analysis of occurrence of spatial pelvic asymmetry was based on the authors’ original, clinical classification and the significance of the body mass and height for the analyzed asymmetries. The inclinometer measurements of the selected landmarks of the pelvic girdle were performed in a sample consisting of 300 young individuals. Then, the occurrences of the spatial asymmetry of the pelvis were analyzed based on the authors’ own clinical classification using alignment symmetry of the iliac crests, the anterior superior iliac spines and the trochanters major as a criterion. All study subjects with asymmetry <1 degree were treated as those with a symmetrical pelvis.

Results

The significance of gender, body mass and height for the analyzed asymmetries was assessed. Symmetric positioning of the iliac crests was observed in only 32% of the respondents. The iliac crest depression on the left side was more frequently observed – in 41% of the respondents. This occurred more often in women (44%) than in men (38%). In the group of women, the rotated pelvis was the most often observed (39.4%) asymmetry, while for men, it was the oblique pelvis (40%). More detailed analysis by pelvic asymmetry subtypes showed their statistical differentiation between women and men (p    <     0.0001). Analysis of moderate rotation of the pelvis for men, were reported slightly higher values but these differences were not statistically significant (p = 0.253). Women, in turn, showed slightly higher mean values but here too, the differences were not statistically significant (p = 0.245).

Discussion

Asymmetries in the pelvis area are common; they were observed in less than three-quarters of the examined population. Oblique pelvis was found in less than a quarter of women and in more than one-third men with the predominant structural asymmetries. Rotated pelvis was observed in more than one-third of women and men with dominating functional asymmetries. There were no linear correlations between the body mass and height, and the angle of asymmetries.
The Questionnaire of Intention to Help in VAW Cases (QIHVC): Development and preliminary results
Authors: Ferrer-Perez Victoria A. , Sánchez-Prada Andrés , Bosch-Fiol Esperanza , Delgado-Alvarez Carmen , Vázquez-González Leila I. , Nardi-Rodriguez Ainara
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Violence against women (VAW) is a worldwide social and health problem of epidemic proportions. This violence is preventable, and bystander programs are one of the possible preventative strategies. The main purpose of this research was to develop a tool that, by applying a contrastive methodology for its application in different forms of violence (forms of gender-based violence, such as intimate partner VAW, sexual harassment at work, and street harassment, and common violence, such as a robbery), would allow measuring the probability of occurrence of bystander response in the face of these types of violence with good evidence of content validity.

Method

Firstly (Study 1), an initial version of a measure tool, the Questionnaire of Intention to Help in VAW Cases (QIHVC), was developed; secondly (Study 2), a Delphi (modified) study was carried out to obtain valid, content-based evidence; and finally (Study 3), a pilot study was carried out to evaluate the appropriate functioning of the QIHVC and, if required, to make any necessary adjustments.

Results and discussion

The main result is the development of a set of case scenarios and a questionnaire related to its content which constitutes the QIHVC and, in its initial approximation, seems to constitute an adequate and sensible tool to capture the differences between the characterizations of common violence and VAW and in the possible response of bystanders in the face of such violence.
Factors influencing adolescent experimental and current smoking behaviors based on social cognitive theory: A cross-sectional study in Xiamen
Authors: Lin Manzhi , Chu Meijie , Li Xian , Ma Honghao , Fang Zhiwei , Mao Li , Wang Pengjun , Chen Tianmu , Chiang Yi-Chen
Published: March 2023

Introduction

China has the largest youth population in the world. To better implement the Smoke-free School Initiative, this study aims to examine the protective and risk factors for different smoking behaviors (never smoked, experimental smoking, and current smoking) among school adolescents based on social cognitive theory.

Methods

This research was a secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey of middle schools in Huli District of Xiamen, China. The final sample consisted of 1937 participants with an average age of 15.41 (SD = 1.64). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the sociodemographic characteristics of the sample. Multivariate multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed using four models.

Results

Of the respondents, 1685 (86.99%) were never smokers, 210 (10.84%) were experimental smokers, and 42 (2.17%) were current smokers. Social norms, positive outcome expectations, anti-smoking self-efficacy, and attitudes toward control tobacco policies were associated with adolescents' smoking behaviors. The number of smoking family members, classmates smoking, the perception that smoking is cool and attractive, and attitudes toward control tobacco policies were the predictors of current smoking behavior (p < 0.05). In contrast, friends smoking and individual and social relationship motivation were associated with only experimental smoking (p < 0.05).

Discussion

The relationship of social norms, positive outcome expectations, anti-smoking self-efficacy, and attitudes toward control tobacco policies varied across smoking behaviors. Family, school, society and the government need to cooperate in prevention and intervention programs for adolescent smoking. The relationships between these factors and adolescents' different smoking behaviors needs to be further verified.
Association between radiotherapy for surgically treated oral cavity cancer and secondary lung cancer
Authors: He Dongjie , Zhang Jun , Xiang Ying , Wu Peiwen , Li Gaiyan , Chang Hao , Wang Qiming , Shao Qiuju , Zhu Siying
Published: March 2023

Background

There is limited research on the incidence of secondary lung cancer (SLC) after radiotherapy (RT) for oral cavity cancer (OCC). Therefore, we investigated the association between RT for OCC and the risk of SLC and the overall survival of these patients.

Methods

Patients diagnosed with OCC between 1975 and 2015 were selected from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. The cumulative incidence of SLC, relative risk (RR) of RT vs. no RT (NRT), standardized incidence ratios (SIR), and survival outcomes were assessed.

Results

A total of 10,936 patients with OCC were included. Of these, 429 (3.92%) patients developed SLC, where 136 (5.02%) received RT and 293 (3.56%) did not. The cumulative incidence of SLC during follow-up was 6.89% and 4.84% in the RT and NRT patients, respectively. RT was associated with a higher risk of SLC. In the subset analysis, the results showed that a higher risk of developing SLC among patients with index OCC in most subgroups. Dynamic RR and SIR revealed a decreased risk of SLC with increasing latency time. No difference was observed in the 10-year survival rates for patients with SLC who received RT or not or compared with primary lung cancer.

Conclusion

RT was associated with a higher risk of SLC, and patients diagnosed with OCC could be followed for 5–10 years after diagnosis.
The importance of disability representation to address implicit bias in the workplace
Authors: Derbyshire Daniel W. , Spencer Anne E. , Grosskopf Brit , Blackmore Theo
Published: March 2023

Introduction

People are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairment. Barriers can be physical or be caused by people's implicit and explicit attitudes towards people with disabilities.

Methods

We utilise the Implicit Association Test to investigate implicit attitudes towards people with disabilities among Human Resource professionals and people involved in making hiring decisions.

Results

We find no significant differences between people who work for large companies or Small- to Medium-sized Enterprises. Similarly, working in Human Resources (or making recruitment decisions) has no effect on implicit bias. We supply the first evidence linking a person's own health status (measured using EQ-5D-5L) to their implicit bias. We find that a worse health status is associated with lower implicit bias towards people with disabilities. In addition, we find women have lower implicit bias than men.

Discussion

The discussion reflects on the need for greater disability representation within the workplace - especially in making hiring decisions.
Venous thoracic outlet syndrome and hemodialysis
Authors: Davies Mark G. , Hart Joseph P.
Published: March 2023

Central venous stenotic disease is reported in 7%–40% of patients needing a central venous catheter for dialysis and in 19%–41% of hemodialysis patients who have had a prior central venous catheter. Half of these patients will be asymptomatic. Venous Thoracic Outlet syndrome in hemodialysis (hdTOS) is part of this spectrum of disease. The extrinsic mechanical compression of the subclavian vein at the costoclavicular triangle between the clavicle and 1st rib results in an area of external compression with a predisposition to intrinsic mural disease in the vein. The enhanced flow induced by the presence of a distal arteriovenous access in all patients exacerbates the subclavian vein’s response to ongoing extrinsic and intrinsic injury. Repeated endovascular interventions during the maintenance of vascular access accelerates chronic untreatable occlusion of the subclavian vein in the long term. Similar to patients with central venous stenosis, patients with hdTOS can present immediately after access formation with ipsilateral edema or longitudinally with episodes of access dysfunction. hdTOS can be treated in an escalating manner with arteriovenous access flow reduction to <1,500 ml/min, endovascular management, surgical decompression by first rib resection in healthy patients and medial clavicle resection in less healthy patients followed by secondary venous interventions, or finally, a venous bypass. hdTOS represents a complex and evolving therapeutic conundrum for the dialysis community, and additional clinical investigations to establish robust algorithms are required.
Preliminary study on fluid bolus administration for prevention of spinal hypotension in dogs undergoing elective cesarean section
Authors: Antończyk Agnieszka , Kiełbowicz Zdzisław , Niżański Wojciech , Ochota Małgorzata
Published: March 2023

Introduction

This study aimed to investigate the effect of fluid bolus administration during epidural anesthesia (coload) in female dogs scheduled for elective cesarean section (CS). Hypotension is one of the most common complications of epidural (EA) and spinal (SA) analgesia, and in the case of cesarean section, it may pose a significant risk for placental perfusion and subsequent fetal vitality and puppy survival.

Methods

Pregnant bitches scheduled for elective CS underwent EA with (treatment group) or without (control group) intravenous fluid bolus administration. The following parameters were measured and compared between both groups: HR, RR, etCO2, SpO2, systolic, diastolic and mean arterial blood pressure were measured at three time points (T1: before surgery, T2: after the last puppy removal, and T3: end of surgery) in dams; vitality (Apgar score at 0, 5, and 20 min) and umbilical cord blood parameters (pH, pCO2, HCO3, base excess, lactate and glucose) in newborns.

Results

The results indicated that crystalloid coloading increased maternal systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressure (treatment vs. control group, 101.46 ± 9.18, 48.01 ± 13.47, and 67.07 ± 13.15 mmHg vs. 80.68 ± 7.29, 36.52 ± 8.75, and 180 52.30 ± 7.77, p < 0.05) with significantly fewer episodes of hypotension. Additionally, puppies in the treatment group received higher scores in the 5-min (7.91 ± 1.67 vs. 6.74 ± 2.20) and 20-min (9.38 ± 0.87 vs. 8.39 ± 2.50) assessments without the favorable effect on umbilical blood gas parameters.

Discussion

Based on the obtained results, it can be stated that crystalloid coload offers an effective option in cases of hypotension during cesarean section, with clear benefits for both mothers and newborns.
Prevalence and risk factors of Klebsiella spp. in milk samples from dairy cows with mastitis—A global systematic review
Authors: Song Jinming , Xiang Wentao , Wang Qi , Yin Jiying , Tian Tian , Yang Qizhu , Zhang Meng , Ge Guiyang , Li Jianming , Diao Naichao , Liu Fei , Shi Kun , Cai Ruopeng , Du Rui , Gong Qinglong
Published: March 2023

Introduction

The overall prevalence of Klebsiella spp., a group of important zoonotic pathogens, in the global dairy herds and the risk of cross-species transmission between humans and dairy cows remain to be clarified. This systematic review aimed to determine the prevalence of Klebsiella spp. in milk samples from dairy cows with mastitis worldwide and to assess the factors influencing the prevalence of these strains.

Methods

Qualified studies published from 2007 to 2021 were retrieved from ScienceDirect, Web of Science, PubMed, WanFang Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and VIP Chinese Journal Database. Calculations of prevalence and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were performed for all the studies using the Freeman-Tukey double arcsine transformation (PFT).

Results

A total of 79,852 milk samples from 55 manuscripts were examined in this meta-analysis, and 2,478 samples were found to be positive for Klebsiella spp. The pooled prevalence estimates worldwide were 7.95% (95% CI: 6.07%–10.06%), with significant heterogeneity (I2 = 98.8%, p = 0). The sampling period of 2013–2020 had a higher (p < 0.05) Klebsiella-positive proportion of milk samples (12.16%, 95% CI: 8.08%–16.90%) than that of 2007–2012 (3.85%, 95% CI: 2.67%–5.21%), indicating that bovine mastitis caused by Klebsiella may become increasingly prevalent. The risk factors for the high prevalence of Klebsiella in milk samples mainly included: economic development level (developing countries; 11.76%, 95% CI: 8.25%–15.77%), mastitis type (CM; 11.99%, 95% CI: 8.62%–15.79%), and population density (>500 per sq km; 10.28%, 95% CI: 2.73%–21.58%). Additionally, a bivariate meta-regression analysis revealed that the multidrug-resistance (MDR) rate of the epidemic strains was also closely related to economic development level (R2 = 78.87%) and population density (R2 = 87.51%).

Discussion

Due to the potential risk of cross-species transmission between humans and cows, the prevalence of mastitis milk-derived Klebsiella and its high MDR rate need to be monitored, especially in developing countries with high population densities.
Case series: Four fatal rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus infections in urban pet rabbits
Authors: Pinto Filipe Fontes , Abrantes Joana , Ferreira Paula Gomes , Nóbrega Mário , Marcos Ricardo
Published: March 2023

Four pet rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus cuniculus) diagnosed with a fatal infection by rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV GI.2) were identified in the same week and further investigated. All animals lived in an urban environment (Lisbon, Portugal), were between 8 months and 2 years old and none had been vaccinated against RHDV2 (GI.2). Three animals arrived at the clinic and died shortly afterward and it was only possible to collect material for RT-qPCR (RHDV) test. These rabbits tested positive for RHDV2, with high viral loads. In the fourth case, additional clinical and post-mortem gross and histological evaluations were performed. This 8 month old intact female indoor pet rabbit was presented with apathy, tachypnea and tachycardia. Radiographic projections revealed no clinical revealed no clinical abnormalities. Serum biochemistry revealed a significant increase in AST and ALT with a small hypoglycemia. Abdominal ultrasound revealed an acute hepatitis. Despite hospitalization support, after 30 h of admission, the rabbit lost consciousness and developed anorexia and pyrexia in the last minutes before death. Post-mortem analysis and molecular testing by RT-qPCR, confirmed the diagnosis of RHDV2 (GI.2) infection also with high viral load. In conclusion, this paper reports a case series that demonstrates the severe infectious ability and the high mortality associated with RHDV even in rabbits from urban environments. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of always considering rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHD) as a differential diagnosis in pet rabbits with non-specific clinical signs, and should warn veterinarians that pet rabbits living indoors can also be infected with a fatal outcome.
MixFormer: A Self-Attentive Convolutional Network for 3D Mesh Object Recognition
Authors: Huang Lingfeng , Zhao Jieyu , Chen Yu
Published: March 2023

3D mesh as a complex data structure can provide effective shape representation for 3D objects, but due to the irregularity and disorder of the mesh data, it is difficult for convolutional neural networks to be directly applied to 3D mesh data processing. At the same time, the extensive use of convolutional kernels and pooling layers focusing on local features can cause the loss of spatial information and dependencies of low-level features. In this paper, we propose a self-attentive convolutional network MixFormer applied to 3D mesh models. By defining 3D convolutional kernels and vector self-attention mechanisms applicable to 3D mesh models, our neural network is able to learn 3D mesh model features. Combining the features of convolutional networks and transformer networks, the network can focus on both local detail features and long-range dependencies between features, thus achieving good learning results without stacking multiple layers and saving arithmetic overhead compared to pure transformer architectures. We conduct classification and semantic segmentation experiments on SHREC15, SCAPE, FAUST, MIT, and Adobe Fuse datasets. Experimental results show that the network can achieve 96.7% classification and better segmentation results by using fewer parameters and network layers.
Generative Adversarial Network for Overcoming Occlusion in Images: A Survey
Authors: Saleh Kaziwa , Szénási Sándor , Vámossy Zoltán
Published: March 2023

Although current computer vision systems are closer to the human intelligence when it comes to comprehending the visible world than previously, their performance is hindered when objects are partially occluded. Since we live in a dynamic and complex environment, we encounter more occluded objects than fully visible ones. Therefore, instilling the capability of amodal perception into those vision systems is crucial. However, overcoming occlusion is difficult and comes with its own challenges. The generative adversarial network (GAN), on the other hand, is renowned for its generative power in producing data from a random noise distribution that approaches the samples that come from real data distributions. In this survey, we outline the existing works wherein GAN is utilized in addressing the challenges of overcoming occlusion, namely amodal segmentation, amodal content completion, order recovery, and acquiring training data. We provide a summary of the type of GAN, loss function, the dataset, and the results of each work. We present an overview of the implemented GAN architectures in various applications of amodal completion. We also discuss the common objective functions that are applied in training GAN for occlusion-handling tasks. Lastly, we discuss several open issues and potential future directions.
The Residual Stress Relief and Deformation Control of Al Alloy Thin-Walled Antenna Components by Ultrasonic Regulation
Authors: Song Wen-Yuan , Xu Chun-Guang , Pan Qin-Xue , Li Pei-Lu , Yu Tao
Published: March 2023

The residual stress fields of the initial billet and subsequent machining in the material bring great challenges to the precision machining and geometrical stability of aluminum alloy thin-walled components. To ensure that a certain type of large-sized aluminum alloy thin-walled antenna has a small flatness deformation during forming, this paper firstly employed the ultrasonic critical refraction longitudinal wave (LCR wave) detection method to measure the different depth ranges’ residual stress distribution of 5A06/6061/7075 aluminum alloy plate, both as blanks and after multiple milling. Additionally, the effects of inherent residual stress (IRS) and machining-induced residual stress (MIRS) on the subsequent milling deformation were analyzed. After that, combined with the self-developed ultrasonic stress relief (USR) system, the deformation control effect of a thin-walled plate after eliminating residual stress in each stage was tested. The results show that the ultrasonic stress relief treatment can quickly and efficiently eliminate the IRS and MIRS with small flatness deformation. By introducing the URS treatment in the blank, rough machining, and semi-finishing stages, the components before each subsequent machining are in a low-stress state, and the component deformation can be gradually controlled so that the final thin-walled antenna has a smaller flatness.
Mechanism Underlying the Effect of Self-Circulating Casings with Different Circumferential Coverage Ratios on the Aerodynamic Performance of a Transonic Centrifugal Compressor
Authors: Zhang Haoguang , Wang Hao , Li Qi , Jing Fengyu , Chu Wuli
Published: March 2023

The aim of this research was to explore the mechanisms underlying the effect of self-circulating casing treatment with different circumferential coverage ratios on the aerodynamic performance of a transonic centrifugal compressor. A three-dimensional unsteady numerical simulation was carried out on a Krain impeller. The circumferential coverage ratios of the self-circulating casings were set to 36%, 54%, 72% and 90%, respectively. The numerical results showed that the Stall Margin Improvement (SMI) increased with the increase in circumferential coverage ratios. The self-circulating casing with a 90% circumferential coverage ratio exhibited the highest SMI at 20.22%. Internal flow field analysis showed that the self-circulating casing treatment improved the compressor stability by sucking the low-speed flow in the blade tip passage and restraining the leakage vortexes breaking, which caused flow blockage. The compressor performance was improved at most of the operating points, and the improvement increased with increase in circumferential coverage ratio. The improvement in compressor performance was mainly attributed to reduction in the area of the high relative total pressure loss in the blade tip passage and significant decrease in the flow loss by the self-circulating casings.
Crashworthiness Study of a Newly Developed Civil Aircraft Fuselage Section with Auxiliary Fuel Tank Reinforced with Composite Foam
Authors: Rayhan Saiaf Bin , Pu Xue
Published: March 2023

Over the past two decades, aircraft crashworthiness has seen major developments, mainly with modern computing systems and commercial finite element (FE) codes. The structure and the material have been designed to absorb more kinetic energy to ensure enough safety during a controlled crash condition. However, the fuselage section with an onboard auxiliary fuel tank requires special arrangements, since the inclined strut system with an efficient energy absorber is difficult to install under the cabin floor due to the space occupied by the fuel tank. To solve this shortcoming, a PVC composite foam along with an aluminum plate is introduced beneath the fuel tank to improve the crashworthiness metrics of the fuselage. Drop tests for both the conventional design and the proposed model are investigated by adopting the nonlinear explicit dynamics code Ansys Autodyn, with an impact velocity of 9.14 m/s. It was found that the kinetic energy absorption of the original fuselage section can be improved by 3.54% by reinforcing the foam and the plate. Moreover, they contribute to 20% of total internal energy dissipation. Numerical outcomes also suggest that the cabin floor surface experiences a 41% lower maximum stress, in addition to the mitigation of the maximum peak acceleration responses of the cabin floor at different measured locations from 6% to 36%.
Angle-of-Attack Estimation for General Aviation Aircraft
Authors: Ivanković Marin , Vrdoljak Milan , Andrić Marijan , Kozmar Hrvoje
Published: March 2023

The angle of attack is one of the most important flight parameters. In the framework of the present study, a flight data recording method was designed to analyze the Valasek angle-of-attack estimation method and investigate its applicability for general aviation aircraft. This was performed using two devices characterized by substantially different characteristics. The test flight, and the ground test, i.e., a flight simulator experiment, were conducted. Two flight regimes were analyzed: (a) steady climb and descent with low values of angle of attack, (b) approach to stall with idle power with an increase of the angle of attack to the critical value. A satisfactory angle of attack estimate was obtained for the steady climb and descent regime, while the approach to stall estimate was less accurate but still indicative and considered useful for the pilot. The results indicate that less expensive synthetic sensors may provide acceptable results compared to high-quality certified equipment. A proposed modification of the estimation method enables simplification of the required equipment, while offering important information to the pilot.
Evaluation of the Entrepreneurial Ability of Small-Scale Farmers through the Rasch–Andrich Model
Authors: Cortés-Rodríguez Carlos Alberto , Martínez-Gómez Gladys , Romo-Lozano José Luis , Arvizu-Barrón Ezequiel
Published: March 2023

Entrepreneurial skills are fundamental to the success of agricultural production units. Since small-scale farmers have developed production skills but not market-oriented skills, it is necessary to assess their entrepreneurial skills to provide a reference for sustainable community development plans. The objective was to evaluate the entrepreneurial ability of small-scale farmers in San Pablo Huixtepec, Oaxaca, using the Rasch–Andrich rating scale, a psychometric model that makes it possible to obtain measurements with a certain degree of precision. A survey was conducted among 45 small-scale farmers to collect the characteristics of their production unit, the characteristics of the small-scale farmers, and to determine their entrepreneurial skills (17 items). The data were processed using Winsteps software. Item 14 “I easily market what I produce” was eliminated because it did not contribute to the unidimensionality of the variable. The data fit the model and the Rasch–Andrich thresholds and, together with the category probability curves, demonstrated the good performance of the rating scale. The entrepreneurial ability ranged from −1.54 to 10.11 logits. Since most of producers (66.6%) were below average (1.09 logits), it is considered pertinent to support them to improve their ability.
The Impact of Auxin and Cytokinin on the Growth and Development of Selected Crops
Authors: Sosnowski Jacek , Truba Milena , Vasileva Viliana
Published: March 2023

With a very diverse structure and small molecules, phytohormones are regulators of plant growth and development. Despite the fact that they are synthesized by plants in small quantities, they are highly active physiologically. According to their action, phytohormones can be divided into two categories, as either activators of plant growth and development or as inhibitors, with auxins and cytokinins belonging to the former group. Auxins are synthesized by plants in the apical meristems of shoots, but also in young leaves, seeds, and fruits. They stimulate the elongation growth of shoots and initiate the production of adventitious and lateral roots. Cytokinins, in turn, are formed in root tips and in unripe fruits and seeds. These hormones are responsible for stimulating the growth of lateral shoots, they also stimulate cytokinesis and, consequently, cell division. The aim of this review paper is to present the progress of the research on the effect of selected auxins and cytokinins on crops, considering the prospect of using them in plant growing methods.