bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Slope Stability Study in Quarries by Different Approaches: Case Chouf Amar Quarry, Algeria
Authors: Saadoun Abderrazak , Yilmaz Isik , Hafsaoui Abdallah , Hadji Riheb , Fredj Mohamed , Boukarm Riadh , Nakache Radouane
Published: December 2020

The Lafarge -M‘sila group’s cement plant (Algeria) is supplied by the Chouf Amar limestone quarry, which allows great quarrying at the national level with annual productions of 4.2 mt / year, since several sliding in previous years have disrupted the exploitation and production of the quarry, and in the strategy of the Lafarge group increased its production up to 5mt / year in the medium term 2020-2030; a stability study is necessary to ensure production under the right conditions, the aim of our work is to study Chouf Amar stability and identify the important causes of the landslides that have influenced the site in question. We start with an empirical approach through a geomechanical characterization of the massif was put in place to highlight the instability at the level of the various rock formations. then, a stability analysis was carried out using two different approaches: the analytical approach using the limit equilibrium method (Slide 6) and the numerical approach using two methods: the finite element method (Phase 2 ) and the finite difference method (Flac) in the static and dynamic case considering the state of dry and wet marls. The results show an optimal state of stability on the scale of the full profile north flank of the quarry and bad stability on the scale of the bench’s of the different levels and the main facies of the potential slide is that of the marls.
What information can be provided by the asphalt crack propagation test done on semicylindric specimens?
Authors: Vacková Pavla , Valentin Jan , Belhaj Majda
Published: December 2020

For several years, the crack propagation test data of bituminous mixtures according to CSN EN 12697-44 have been collected and evaluated at CTU in Prague. Over the time the standardized test procedure was adapted to the conditions more suitable to be used mainly in the Czech Republic - in terms of compaction of test specimens, the availability of cutting discs, diameters of test specimens etc. Some of the other test conditions were adapted as well as the procedures of collecting and evaluating the test data. Step by step, it has also been identified that the strict European focus on the fracture toughness as a suitable qualitative parameter is probably not correct. The characteristics of the fracture energy have been introduced and further study is devoted to the use of the tangent direction of force-strain diagrams. Selected findings from the testing of HMAC 22 are summarized in the paper.
Survey Studies in Construction Project Engineering
Authors: Radziszewska–Zielina Elżbieta
Published: December 2020

Construction project engineering provides us with both specialist knowledge and the skills and competencies necessary in decision-making concerning construction company management and carrying out construction projects, which requires reliable information and a wealth of knowledge on technical, societal, legal and economic conditions in the aspect of carrying out the process of construction, in addition to the skills necessary to make managerial decisions under market conditions while accounting for the expectations and preferences of developers and users alike. Survey studies can be a source of this data. This paper presents the results of the author’s research experience and proposals concerning the possibility of applying survey studies in construction project engineering. The author presented the results of many years of her original studies and analyses of the potential for applying survey methods in construction project engineering, a methodological and analytical approach typical for studying social phenomena and processes which is rarely used in the technical sciences. The author argues that the methods are appropriate and can be helpful in construction project engineering and, as a result, can support decision-makers in the process of making decisions. The author analysed and described the possibility of applying survey studies in both research and practice in the field of construction project engineering and proposed a typology of survey studies in said field. Survey methods are a source of valuable data, either individually or when paired with other methods, and can provide information that is then studied by researchers. The conclusions of these studies can be used to diagnose and prognosticate phenomena and problems or to control processes. Most importantly, such studies and their results support decision-makers in the difficult process of making decisions. When designing and carrying out survey studies, one should always inspect the soundness of the survey’s design and measurement quality (reliability and accuracy). Further studies should focus on developing measurement reliability verification methods adequately to the most common research problem groups in construction project engineering. There also exists a practical need to develop proposals of survey question sets that correspond to the most commonly observed research problems in construction project engineering.
Architectural Design as an Intermedial Creative Process - Scenography as a Creative Tool
Authors: Mazalan Peter , Hronský Michal
Published: December 2020

The development of generative methods of architecture has reached the point when it is continuously moving apart from its archetype to newer intellectual encodings. The ways of its creation and perception have radicalised by means of new media to offer a greater extent of its own representation. The theoretical and architectural discourse, influenced by philosophy, sociology, and literature creates by its multiplicity still opened and complicated discussion in the 20th century. The architectural education reflects the need for such a creative participation with other media at different levels, depending on the possibilities or focus of the university where architecture is taught. The paper focuses on a case study from the Faculty of Architecture of the Slovak Technical University (abbreviate FASTU), where besides other visual media, it is also possible to attend scenography as an optional course. It also deals with the reasons to build such an intermediary learning process. Theatre (performative arts), same as architecture, has always had great power and the potential to open discussion and be a critical mirror of various social phenomena. The aim of the study is to analyse the alternative method in education and in the teaching of architecture. The architecture will be explored herein in relation to space and its inherent characteristics by means of heterotopy and synaesthesia. The study does not understand the classical term architecture as the building and scenography as a staging of decorative mise-en-scéne. Can the architectural creative process be turned into a psychoanalytical laboratory, which helps to build optimal space for living and for the human’s relationships?
Planned Villages as Rural Heritage in the Function of Sustainable Development: Case Study of Gornji Vrhovci in Slavonia, Croatia
Authors: Kranjčević Jasenka , Stober Dina
Published: December 2020

Although cultural values are the subject of an increasing number of officially adopted documents, at international as well as on European level, elaborations of planned villages’ values are rare. In 1990, the term cultural landscape was confirmed in several international texts as a concept related to the protection and heritage (World Heritage Convention, 1992; Recommendation on the Integrated Conservation of Cultural Landscapes Areas as Part of Landscape Policies, 1995). From the beginning of the 21st century, the concept is dispersed into several disciplines and the focus shifts to the side of natural values, visual values of the landscape, built structure, heritage values, elaborating the concept of the cultural landscape more widely and at the same time clarifying its components more in depth. The paper analyses the values of planned rural settlements in the context of the cultural landscape and the values of the rural heritage. The importance of planned rural heritage as a tourist attraction and potential destination is examined through a spatial multi-level research of the regional area on the example of the area of Western Slavonia, Croatia. Since the middle of the 18th century, in the area of Slavonia, there is the largest number of planned and regulated villages that have been integrated into the landscape, contributing to the spatial diversity and consequently the spatial identity. Therefore, the question arises whether their planned spatial structure can be recognized as a heritage and whether this part of heritage can be used in the function of rural tourism development. This paper explores the historical urban - architectural reconstruction of the village Gornji Vrhovci (1945-1948) after its damage during World War II, and reconstruction (1995-1998) after the damage during the Homeland War. Since the architects led both reconstructions of the village, the paper explores whether the recognizable spatial structure of the village can serve as a contribution to the development of a model for the development of rural tourism. The paper concludes that, despite the need for the development of rural tourism in Croatia, the identity of spatial structures of the village are neglected by the development plans both in the sense of heritage and resource sustainable development.
Emergency Repair of the Bridge from Prefabricated Posttensioned Beams
Authors: Śliwka Andrzej
Published: December 2020

In the ‘70s and ‘80s of the last century, bridge constructions with prefabricated pretensioned concrete beams were commonly built in Poland. Objects made of these beams are characterized by low durability of about 40 years. This is mainly due to the very low quality of joint concrete This problem is particularly evident in the case of objects made of type I beams. In this type of bridges, we see rapid destruction of the slabs. The case of failure of an object made of WBS type concrete beams is shown. The way of repair and increase of load capacity is presented.
Space Back to Humanism: Research on the Development Trend and Coupling Characteristics of “Industry-City-People” in London
Authors: Yaolin Ran , Bingjie Wang , Wei Xiong , Lei Luo
Published: December 2020

Human-oriented development is an important issue in the world, and it also has become an important driving force for urban development and industrial upgrading in the world’s major cities. So, the paper takes 33 administrative districts of London as the research object, through judging the current development trend and coupling analysis characteristics of industry, city and people in London, hoping to provide some references for the future upgrade and development of large cities. This paper constructs a human-oriented index system about the development of London’s industry, city and people, and comprehensively evaluating the degree of industrial development, urbanization and people development of each administrative district of London by SPSS principal component analysis, while using the physical coupling coordination degree model to analyse the characteristics of the coupling development of London’s industry, city and people. It is found that London’s industrial development has the characteristics of central agglomeration and development in the direction of west, northwest and southeast. While city development also has the characteristics of central agglomeration, and it is developing towards the southwest and southeast. However, the characteristics of central agglomeration of human development are not obvious. It is developing along the south bank of the Thames and southwest of London. In addition, the coupling results of industry, city, and people systems have prominent functional hierarchy characteristics, which are obviously related to the layout of urban industrial function value areas. Finally, the paper summarizes the revelations for the development of major cities.
Sustainable Design Building Evaluation Based on Multi-Criteria Methods
Authors: Kamionka Lucjan W.
Published: December 2020

The article presents the objectives of sustainable development and the features of sustainable buildings executed within new urban structures. It presents various aspects of sustainable design, where energy-efficiency is the crucial building evaluation factor in multi-criteria LEED, BREEAM and Green Building methods. It points to the need for the application of a design solution multi-criteria evaluation method with the use of specialist software, within the sustainable design process. The process of evaluating and verifying applied solutions should involve a group of industry specialists, among others, from the field of building energy performance. The role of an architect in an inter-disciplinary design process is that of a leader in terms of coordinating the work, and a creator, where humanistic values are crucial. It also presents examples of buildings designed and constructed in Poland, which are characterized by high quality solutions in the field of sustainable design. These objects obtained LEED, BREEAM, Green Building and Passivhaus certificates.
A Solution of Wheelchair Accessibility in Existing Building – Apartment Building in Kraslice
Authors: Kankovsky Ales , Dedic Martin
Published: December 2020

The aim of this paper is to provide information about solution possibilities in the design of wheelchair accessibility in the existing apartment building. Given the growing population of the elderly, and the efforts to integrate people with health disabilities into society, greater emphasis is placed on ensuring a barrier-free environment in public places, in public infrastructure and at public buildings. Infrastructure, premises, and buildings without barrier-free modifications make it difficult to use and move around or through it. The government is actively trying to resolve these things by creating new texts of building laws, decrees and building standards and by tightening the rules for issuing building permits for new buildings. At the same time, the building authorities have the power to order the owner of the building or the place its construction modification to ensure the barrier-free environment. An example will be given to the existing apartment building in Kraslice city in the Czech Republic, where the building authority ordered an owner of the building to secure construction modifications for the barrier-less use of the building. The solution of barrier-less use of the apartment building for persons with reduced mobility is based on the building layout, possibilities and needs of persons in a wheelchair and persons with a baby stroller, as well as from the building layout and possibilities of persons using crutches, sticks, walkers or other equipment for walking, pregnant women and persons accompanying children under three years of age. The design of the wheelchair accessibility of the apartment building is based on the applicable building law, relevant decrees and building standards, as well as on the implementation possibilities, taking into account aspects such as the existing layout and its possibilities, structure system design, technical equipment, possibilities of surrounding area and investor’s financial options. The result is the realization of barrier-free entrance into the apartment building based on the most feasible design, which best analysed all the above aspects.
A relationship between the value of the whole and separate parts
Authors: Krulický Tomáš , Vrbka Jaromír , Brabenec Tomáš
Published: December 2020

The aim of this article is to analyse the relationship between the open market values of real property when the real property is sold in various ways. What is considered is the sale of real property as a whole and by its separate parts. Our conceptions are reflected on a specific real property model. The open market value of the real property is set by a comparative and yield-basis method. The difference in established open market values of the real property when selling the real property in various ways equals to 32%. Individual internal and external value-setting factors that make the difference are indicated and discussed. The discussed value-setting factors are mostly as follows: imposing administrative and organizational duties, the nature of the model real property, a position of the real property market, the economic law of declining demand, a risk of rental losses and the situation in the construction industry relating to the new buildings. A further research might be focused on identifying other value-setting factors related to real property.
Effect of Chemical Activators on the Compressive Strength of Cement-Slag Mortar
Authors: Faqe Hersh
Published: December 2020

The reaction of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) with water is slower compared to the hydration of ordinary Portland cement. This led researchers to concentrate on increasing the hydration rate of the GGBFS. Previous studies were done by (SCA) showed that GGBFS can be used with activators or a certain amount of Portland cement. Also, they found that alkali hydroxides and GGBFS can be reacted alone without any calcium hydroxide obtained from Portland cement hydration to obtain a strong cement paste in applications. This experimental study conducted by the TS EN 196-1 standard, with the ratio (79:21)% slag to cement and 0%, 1%, 2%, 3% and 4% levels of activators (CaCO3, Ca (OH) 2, Na2SO4, K2SO4 and CaSO4.2H2O); results indicates that with above ratio slag can be used with activator of (Na2SO4, K2SO4 and CaSO4.2H2O), greater compressive strength of 5-6 MPa was obtained at 2 and 7-day curing ages when K2SO4 was used as an activator at the dosages of 3% and 4%, while the activator (CaSO4.2H2O) can improve all ages, and there was not a clear difference among control mixture without activator and slag-mortars activated by CaCO3 and Ca (OH).
Fresh Behavior and Hardened Properties of Self-Compacting Concrete Containing Coal Ash and Fly Ash as Partial Replacement of Cement
Authors: Hilal Nahla N. , Rajab Noor A. , Faraj Rabar H.
Published: December 2020

Due to the higher price of cement compared to other concrete ingredients, the problems associated with greenhouse gases emissions during its production and its high popularity have arisen concerns in its substitution with other supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs). In this regard, the current experimental program was established to investigate the fresh and hardened performance of self-compacting concrete (SCC) made with coal ash (CA) and fly ash (FA) as fractional substitution of cement. In this paper an attempt was made to use the remaining CA from the barbecue process of the restaurants from Fallujah city, Iraq. A total number of 7 concrete mixes were prepared with unchanged (w/b) ratio of 0.37 and total cementitious content of 450 kg/m3. Reference mix was produced by using 100% cement without FA or CA. Then, other mixtures were batched with 10%, 20% and 30% (by weight) replacement of cement by FA and CA, respectively. The results illustrated that, in contrast to the FA, the CA has negative influences on the fresh properties of SCC but the results still meet the criteria for the fresh behavior of SCC. On the other hand, the inclusion of CA was significantly improved the strength and water absorption of SCC. Sustainable high strength SCC can be produced due to the addition of CA.
Compressive Strength-Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity Relationship of Concrete Containing Plastic Waste
Authors: Mohammed Azad A.
Published: December 2020

In this paper the relationship between compressive strength and non-destructive behavior of ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) of concrete containing different plastic wastes has been investigated. For this purpose, a total of 102 data observations were collected from nine past works on properties of concrete with plastic waste and analyzed. Relationship between both compressive strength and UPV with plastic waste aggregate was found weak. Also, relationship between compressive and UPV is not strong, and in contrast, there is a relatively strong correlation between compressive strength ratio (concrete with plastic waste/control concrete) and UPV ratio. Using regression analysis, an equation was developed for calculating compressive strength of concrete with plastic waste depending on the UPV test data. The proposed equation is helpful to assess the residual compressive strength and consequently the structural health monitoring of those structures made of concrete with aggregate partially replaced with plastic wastes, which depends essentially on test data of UPV and compressive strength of control concrete.
Possible Scenarios of Iraqi Marshland Restoration for Future Water Resources Management
Authors: Alshami Alaa H. , Ibrahim Mohammed A. , Hussein Haitham A. , Hameed Gatiea Hassan
Published: December 2020

Agriculture is the only source of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq. Annually more than 70% of the available water is used for irrigation. The total amount of land that can be cultivated in Iraq is 12 million hec. Only 2.2 million hec in Tigris basin and 1.37 million hec in the Euphrates basin were cultivated in 2001. According to the development of the projects in Turkey and development irrigation in Syria for the Euphrates basin, Iraq will face reduction in the amount of water entering Iraq with 50% for Tigris basin and 80% for Euphrates basin and with deficit of 21-22 billion cubic meters for the coming year 2030. The existing area of marshland restoration equal to 58%. The study suggests in case to increase the area of restoration Marshland to 75%, it should be need water amount to 2.5 BCM or 70 m3/s continuously with existing discharge.
Performance of High Strength Cementitious Composites with High Volume Supplementary Cementitious Materials
Authors: Adesina Adeyemi , Booya Emad , Karla Gorospe , Das Sreekanta
Published: December 2020

Portland cement (PC) is the major binder used for cementitious composites. However, due to the increase in the demand for cementitious composites for the construction of infrastructures, there’s a consequential effect of the production of this binder (i.e. PC) on the sustainability of our environment. The production of PC emits huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the environment and posses a huge strain on the natural deposits of its raw material. In order to create a sustainable environment while meeting the high demand for cementitious composites; it is paramount to replace the PC with locally available waste materials. This study incorporates a high volume of slag alongside silica fume at a ratio of 2.2 to that of PC to produce high strength cementitious composites. The effects of these compositions were determined experimentally on its fresh and hardened properties. Results from this study showed that high strength cementitious composites can be produced with a high volume of supplementary cementitious composites up to 80%. The use of slag as 80% replacement of slag resulted in a 9.3% increase in the compressive strength and a 48.1% decrease in sorption.
Upper Prosthetic Design based on EMG: A Systematic Review
Authors: Mahmood Noof T. , Al-Muifraje Mahmuod Hamza , Saeed Thamir R. , Kaittan Assel H.
Published: December 2020

In the past few years, physical therapy plays a very important role during rehabilitation. Numerous efforts have been made to demonstrate the effectiveness of medical/clinical and human-machine interface (HMI) applications. The prevalent control methods are using electromyography (EMG) signals generated by muscle contractions to implement the prosthetic human body parts. This paper aims to provide and summarize ideas about recent researches in the field of Pattern Recognition (PR) based on EMG signals to save time and efforts for the readers working in this field. The first step starts by demonstrating a general overview of the various techniques to collect the database by taking into consideration the factors that affect the accuracy of the collected data. Hence, different types of filters are presented to process the signals and reduce the noise of the raw EMG signals. This research clarifies the features extraction methods using time-domain (TD), frequency domain (FD), and time-frequency domain (TFD) and which of these methods will be suitable to use for EMG signals. Finally, a group of studies is reviewed based on three classification methods i.e. artificial neural network (ANN), machine learning (ML), and deep learning (DL). Depending on these methods, the accuracy range can be specified for each classifier, also the factors which affect the accuracy percentage. Therefore, the researchers can avoid these issues that reduce accuracy.
Dynamic Response of Machine Foundation Resting on End Bearing Piles
Authors: Fattah Mohammed Y. , Hamood Mohammed J. , Al-Nakdy Ibtihal A.M.
Published: December 2020

Herein, a finite element software (ANSYS. 11) is adopted which provides an effective tool for dynamic analysis and structural design of machine-foundations. As a case study, machine foundation on piles in sandy soil is investigated. Machine foundations supported by end-bearing piles are introduced. Sinusoidal dynamic load is applied. A study of parameters is conducted to investigate the influence of a number of parameters that include: geometry of the piles below the foundation, the dynamic load amplitude, damping ratio and frequency of the load. Linear elastic model is adopted for modeling the piles and their cap for machine foundation using eight node isoparametric (solid 65) element, while elastic model is adopted to model the soil behavior and eight node isoparametric elements are used to model the soil through (solid 45) element. It is concluded that the frequency ratio decreases with increase of spacing between piles values due to increase in natural frequency, except in the case of 3 m spacing where it increases due to decrease in natural frequency as the mass was increased obviously. The increase in spacing caused the increase of natural frequency by about 6% in the model having 1.5 m spacing more than the 1.25 m case and by about 3% for the 1.75 m spacing more than the 1.5 m reference case. The increase in pile cap length caused the natural frequency to decrease by about 18% for the 3.75 m pile cap length as compared with the reference case and by 29% in the case of 5 m less than the reference case. In the case of increasing pile cap thickness, there was only a slight difference in the values of natural frequency.
Evaluating and Modeling of Modified Asphalt Binder at Elevated Temperatures
Authors: Abed Yasameen Hadi , AL-Haddad Abdulhaq H.Abedali
Published: December 2020

Many regions in Iraq with high weathering temperature suffer from very hot climate during a long summer season continue to more than 5 months with temperature rise to more than 50C°. Also, increasing road traffic and axial loads causing a permanent deformation that leads to decrease pavement performance and reducing its life. Asphalt binder is considered one of the most significant keys in flexible pavement and its characteristics have a great impact on asphalt mixtures so choosing the suitable type of asphalt binder may improve its performance and control on permanent deformation failures. In this research, Daurh and Basrah asphalt binders were chosen to be characterized and enhanced their properties by using some modifiers. Three types of modifiers were selected with different percentages, styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS), butyl rubber (BR) and BG plus anti-stripping agent. The results showed Multi Stress Creep and Recovery (MSCR) test is a suitable technique to evaluate the improvement of asphalt cement. The degrees of improvement in the percent of recovery %R and the non-recoverable compliance Jnr values and percent of reduction accumulated strain at 0.1 and 3.2 kPa after asphalt modification is higher for the SBS followed by BR then BG plus and Durah asphalt binder has better rutting resistance than Basrah asphalt cement. The behavior of modified asphalt cement modeled as viscoelastic materials and predicted the sigmoidal model as a suitable mechanical model to represent this behavior.
1. A zone of freedom?
Authors: Stallabrass Julian
Published: December 2020

‘A zone of freedom?’ discusses how contemporary art seems to exist in a zone of freedom, set apart from the mundane and functional character of everyday life, and from its rules, conventions, and bureaucratic procedures. The relationship between free trade and free art is an important consideration here, in that the economy of art closely reflects the economy of finance capital. As financial power has shifted between nations, so has the art market. It is important to note how the current face of the contemporary art world was forged by the global events of 1989 and after, this has resulted in the emergence of political art and the rise of ‘installation art’.
3. Consuming culture
Authors: Stallabrass Julian
Published: December 2020

‘Consuming culture’ evaluates contemporary art’s relationship with consumerism and mass culture. The issue of art’s separation from or mergence with commodity culture has a long history. However, during the 1990s, there was an intensification of the forces involved, many of them old features of capitalism, which contributed to the dominance of a triumphant consumer culture not just over art but over all other cultural production. Branding, used by both artists and museums, is an important aspect of the consumer culture of art. In addition, the rise of social media has brought about a transforming, and intensely modernizing, turn, opening art up to quantifiable and manipulable instant feedback.
4. Uses and prices of art
Authors: Stallabrass Julian
Published: December 2020

‘Uses and prices of art’ details how, since the early 2000s, strong modernizing forces in the contemporary art market brought money into clear view and unabashed discussion. The prices of art and the forces that threaten art’s autonomy are all part of the story. These include the modernization of the art market, and the competing demands, promulgated by the state and business, that art should be put to use. Corporate art collecting has had a massive impact on the art world and this has been driven by the growing number of the super-rich who buy contemporary art. Ultimately, art has become a standard investment, part of the portfolio of the super-rich, used to spread risk and engage in tax avoidance.
Injectable Filler Technique for Face Lifting Based on Dissection of True Facial Ligaments
Authors: Cong Li-Yao , Duan Jing , Luo Cheng-En , Luo Sheng-Kang
Published: December 2020

Background

Strengthening weakened ligament tissues with injectable fillers to improve their supportive effect may achieve the aesthetic goal of face lifting.

Objectives

The aim of the study was to design an injectable technique for enhancing the true facial ligaments and dissect the ligaments to provide anatomical guidance for effective injection.

Methods

Six true facial ligaments were chosen as target anatomical sites for injection. Specimens were dissected, and 3-dimensional (3D) images were reconstructed to confirm the exact location of each injection site and to confirm that the proposed injection routes will not cause dangerous vascular damage. A total of 5 patients received the injections; 3D images were taken before and after the injections for comparison and clinical outcome assessments.

Results

The injection technique was designed to target 6 true facial ligaments, as follows. Site 1 targeted the temporal ligamentous adhesion region to lift the lateral ends of the eyebrows. Site 2 targeted the region of the lateral orbital thickening to lift the lateral canthus. Site 3 and site 4 targeted the zygomatic retaining ligaments and zygomatic cutaneous ligaments, respectively, to augment the soft tissues of the midface. Site 5 targeted the region of the maxillary ligament to lessen the nasolabial folds, and site 6 targeted the mandibular ligament to reduce the marionette line.

Conclusions

This site-specific injection technique targeting the true ligaments may lead to increased efficiency and accuracy of face rejuvenation and exert a lifting effect.

Level of Evidence: 4
Renoprotective role of bariatric surgery in patients with established chronic kidney disease
Authors: Morales Enrique , Porrini Esteban , Martin-Taboada Marina , Luis-Lima Sergio , Vila-Bedmar Rocío , González de Pablos Ignacio , Gómez Pilar , Rodríguez Elías , Torres Lucia , Lanzón Borja , Rodríguez Ana Elena , Maíz María , Medina-Gómez Gema , Praga Manuel
Published: December 2020

Background

Bariatric surgery (BS) has been postulated as the most effective measure for weight reduction. Weight loss improves metabolic parameters and exerts changes in renal function that lead to the amelioration of absolute or relative glomerular hyperfiltration, a condition that may be renoprotective in the long term. However, few studies have demonstrated the influence of BS in patients with severe obesity and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Our objective was to analyse the evolution of renal function, adipose tissue–derived molecules and inflammatory parameters in patients with CKD after BS.

Methods

This is an observational and prospective study. Thirty patients were screened and 12 were included between January 2016 and January 2018 with a 24-month follow-up. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was determined by plasma iohexol clearance. Adipokines, cytokines, circulating hormones and fibrotic parameters were evaluated before and 12 months after BS using the Bioplex system.

Results

The mean age was 50.6 years and 58.3% were males. Seven patients had a body mass index >40 kg/m2 and 66.7% were diabetic. Twenty-four months following BS there was a significant decrease in body weight (36.4%). Proteinuria decreased by 63.7 ± 28.2%. Measured GFR significantly diminished from before surgery to Month 24 after surgery (94 ± 44 to 79 ± 44 mL/min, P = 0.03). There was a significant decrease in adipocyte-derived molecules (leptin and vifastin) as well as in pro-inflammatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-1β, tumour necrosis factor α, IL-6 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1] and other circulating factors (vascular endothelial growth factor and transforming growth factor β isoforms).

Conclusions

BS is an effective option to prevent kidney damage in obese subjects with CKD due to the improvement of glomerular hyperfiltration, adipocyte cytokines metabolic and inflammatory parameters.
Optimization of Data Assignment for Parallel Processing in a Hybrid Heterogeneous Environment Using Integer Linear Programming
Authors: Boiński Tomasz , Czarnul Paweł
Published: December 2020

In the paper we investigate a practical approach to application of integer linear programming for optimization of data assignment to compute units in a multi-level heterogeneous environment with various compute devices, including CPUs, GPUs and Intel Xeon Phis. The model considers an application that processes a large number of data chunks in parallel on various compute units and takes into account computations, communication including bandwidths and latencies, partitioning, merging, initialization, overhead for computational kernel launch and cleanup. We show that theoretical results from our model are close to real results as differences do not exceed 5% for larger data sizes, with up to 16.7% for smaller data sizes. For an exemplary workload based on solving systems of equations of various sizes with various compute-to-communication ratios we demonstrate that using an integer linear programming solver (lp_solve) with timeouts allows to obtain significantly better total (solver+application) run times than runs without timeouts, also significantly better than arbitrary chosen ones. We show that OpenCL 1.2’s device fission allows to obtain better performance in heterogeneous CPU+GPU environments compared to the GPU-only and the default CPU+GPU configuration, where a whole device is assigned for computations leaving no resources for GPU management.
Humanity and revolution in José Fuentes Mares’La joven Antígona se va a la guerra
Authors: Carrete Andrés A
Published: December 2020

José Fuentes Mares’ La joven Antígona se va a la guerra (‘Young Antigone Goes to War’) is a Mexican adaptation of Sophocles’ Antigone written and first performed in 1968. The play, full of unique accomplishments, demonstrates a deep engagement with the Sophoclean original and has a complex original performance context. It premiered a week after the biggest student massacre in Mexican history, the Tlatelolco Massacre of 2 October 1968. In this article, I bring attention to Fuentes Mares’ work as an exceptional contribution to the Latin American reception of Sophocles’ Antigone. I detail the play’s explicit invitations to be read against Sophocles’ original and highlight the playwright’s choices to reframe Antigone’s resistance by reworking long-standing dualisms. I argue that Fuentes Mares’ adaptation of Antigone advises introspection, compassion, and endurance in the face of violent oppression. This function differs from other Latin American adaptations of Antigone, which tend to give a voice to the marginalized with calls for organized social action or pleas for the acknowledgment of ongoing abuses. This analysis should help expand our understanding of the reception of Sophocles’ Antigone as a multifaceted instrument varying in its response to oppressions throughout Latin America.
Role of cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging in cardio-oncology
Authors: Saunderson Christopher E D , Plein Sven , Manisty Charlotte H
Published: December 2020

Advances in cancer therapy have led to significantly longer cancer-free survival times over the last 40 years. Improved survivorship coupled with increasing recognition of an expanding range of adverse cardiovascular effects of many established and novel cancer therapies has highlighted the impact of cardiovascular disease in this population. This has led to the emergence of dedicated cardio-oncology services that can provide pre-treatment risk stratification, surveillance, diagnosis, and monitoring of cardiotoxicity during cancer therapies, and late effects screening following completion of treatment. Cardiovascular imaging and the development of imaging biomarkers that can accurately and reliably detect pre-clinical disease and enhance our understanding of the underlying pathophysiology of cancer treatment-related cardiotoxicity are becoming increasingly important. Multi-parametric cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is able to assess cardiac structure, function, and provide myocardial tissue characterization, and hence can be used to address a variety of important clinical questions in the emerging field of cardio-oncology. In this review, we discuss the current and potential future applications of CMR in the investigation and management of cancer patients.
‘Nothing but Thought, Was It?’: Berkeley, Idealism and Woolf’s The Years
Authors: Townsend Chris
Published: December 2020

Although scholarship has noted that the ‘faded brown book’ mentioned in Woolf’s The Years – in which the world is ‘nothing but thought’ – is a probable reference to the eighteenth-century philosopher George Berkeley, the full extent of Woolf’s adoption of Berkeleian ideas has not been accounted for. In this essay I argue that Woolf’s use of specifically Berkeleian images – including a coin-like moon and mind-dependent trees – feeds into a larger narrative technique in The Years relating to semblance: the way things seem or appear to be. Although The Years is sometimes understood as a comparatively ‘realist’ work by critics, I show that even its most apparently ‘objective’ scenes retain a semblance of subjectivity, upon which Woolf’s idiosyncratic realist mode depends. Reading Woolf alongside Berkeley, I develop a case study in the ways in which literary aesthetics can take up, and also challenge, philosophical theories of knowledge.
Variation in the Sensory Space of Three-spined Stickleback Populations
Authors: Mobley Robert B , Boughman Janette W
Published: December 2020

Synopsis

The peripheral sensory systems, whose morphological attributes help determine the acquisition of distinct types of information, provide a means to quantitatively compare multiple modalities of a species’ sensory ecology. We used morphological metrics to characterize multiple sensory modalities—the visual, olfactory, and mechanosensory lateral line sensory systems—for Gasterosteus aculeatus, the three-spined stickleback, to compare how sensory systems vary in animals that evolve in different ecological conditions. We hypothesized that the dimensions of sensory organs and correlations among sensory systems vary in populations adapted to marine and freshwater environments, and have diverged further among freshwater lake-dwelling populations. Our results showed that among environments, fish differed in which senses are relatively elaborated or reduced. When controlling for body length, littoral fish had larger eyes, more neuromasts, and smaller olfactory tissue area than pelagic or marine populations. We also found differences in the direction and magnitude of correlations among sensory systems for populations even within the same habitat type. Our data suggest that populations take different trajectories in how visual, olfactory, and lateral line systems respond to their environment. For the populations we studied, sensory modalities do not conform in a predictable way to the ecological categories we assigned.
Scenarios of fish waste deposition at the sub-lagoon scale: a modelling approach for aquaculture zoning and site selection
Authors: Chary Killian , Callier Myriam D , Covès Denis , Aubin Joël , Simon Julien , Fiandrino Annie
Published: December 2020

Spatial planning, including zoning and site-selection steps, is necessary to determine locations that minimize environmental impacts of aquaculture and respect ecosystem carrying capacities. This study aimed to analyse potential benthic waste deposition in a broad range of fish farming situations to facilitate zoning. To this end, we simulated waste dispersion for 54 aquaculture scenarios combining three red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) farm types (Small, Medium, and Large) based on real farm characteristics and 36 sites with contrasting hydrodynamics in Mayotte’s North-East Lagoon. Key forcing variables and parameters of the particle-dispersion model for farms (layout and solid waste fluxes), species (feed- and faeces-settling velocities) and sites (depth and barotropic currents) were obtained. From the outputs of the 54 simulations, relationships between hydrodynamic regimes and deposition rates, area of influence and distance of influence of the farm were analysed. Critical limits of current intensity that reduced deposition rate below selected deposition thresholds were identified. For instance, to prevent deposition rates greater than 12 kg solids m−2 year−1, the mean current intensity should exceed 10.2 and 6.8 cm s−1 for Medium and Large farms, respectively. The study confirmed that production level is not the main factor that influences deposition rates; instead, management of the entire farm (cage position, distance between cages) must be considered to predict impacts more accurately and guide site selection.
Special Values ofL-functions for GL(n)Over a CM Field
Authors: Raghuram A
Published: December 2020

We prove a Galois-equivariant algebraicity result for the ratios of successive critical values of $L$-functions for ${\textrm GL}(n)/F,$ where $F$ is a totally imaginary quadratic extension of a totally real number field $F^+$. The proof uses (1) results of Arthur and Clozel on automorphic induction from ${\textrm GL}(n)/F$ to ${\textrm GL}(2n)/F^+$, (2) results of my work with Harder on ratios of critical values for $L$-functions of ${\textrm GL}(2n)/F^+$, and (3) period relations amongst various automorphic and cohomological periods for ${\textrm GL}(2n)/F^+$ using my work with Shahidi. The reciprocity law inherent in the algebraicity result is exactly as predicted by Deligne’s conjecture on the special values of motivic $L$-functions.
Chigger Mites (Acariformes: Trombiculidae) of Chiloé Island, Chile, With Descriptions of Two New Species and New Data on the GenusHerpetacarus
Authors: Silva-de la Fuente María Carolina , Stekolnikov Alexandr A , Weitzel Thomas , Beltrami Esperanza , Martínez-Valdebenito Constanza , Abarca Katia , Acosta-Jamett Gerardo
Published: December 2020

Three species of chigger mites are recorded in our collections from four species of cricetid rodents on Chiloé Island (southern Chile, Los Lagos Region), an area endemic to scrub typhus (Orientia sp.). Two species are described as new—Herpetacarus (Abonnencia) eloisae sp. nov. and Quadraseta chiloensis sp. nov. One species, Paratrombicula goffiStekolnikov and González-Acuña 2012, is for the first time recorded on a mammal host (one species of cricetid rodent), and its distribution is extended to the Los Lagos Region of Chile. The genus ProschoengastiaVercammen-Grandjean, 1967 is synonymized with the subgenus Herpetacarus (Abonnencia)Vercammen-Grandjean, 1960, and four new combinations are established: Herpetacarus (Abonnencia) herniosa (Brennan and Jones, 1961), comb. nov., Herpetacarus (Abonnencia) insolita (Brennan and Jones, 1961), comb. nov., Herpetacarus (Abonnencia) macrochaeta (Brennan and Jones, 1961), comb. nov., and Herpetacarus (Abonnencia) antarctica (Stekolnikov and Gonzalez-Acuña, 2015), comb. nov.
Irreligion, Alfie Evans, and the Future of Bioethics
Authors: Camosy Charles C
Published: December 2020

Timothy Murphy has done those of us in the field of bioethics a great service by being forthright about how irreligious centers of power work against theology and theologians. This has opened the door to direct and honest conversation about some facts that were previously known (especially to theologians working in the field) but rarely discussed publicly. Now, eight years after Murphy’s important article appeared in the American Journal of Bioethics, there is room to engage the facts and arguments surrounding the (lack of a) role for theology in the field. It is important, first of all, to agree that if theology is to be excluded while other normative traditions included this must be defended on the basis of a coherent set of defensible claims, not merely raw assertions and power plays. Once the field comes to terms with the fact that no coherent set of defensible claims exist which can justify excluding theology from the field, this will create the conditions for the possibility of the kind of intellectual solidarity which can transform bioethics into a field that is at once much more diverse and inclusive while also of its very nature interested in robust debate which includes references first principles and metaphysical foundations.