bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Levels of anxiety and distress following receipt of positive screening tests in Australia’s HPV-based cervical screening programme: a cross-sectional survey
Authors: Dodd Rachael Helen , Mac Olivia , Brotherton Julia M L , Cvejic Erin , McCaffery Kirsten J
Published: January 2020

Objective

From December 2017, the Australian National Cervical Screening Program commenced 5 yearly primary human papillomavirus (HPV) screening; one of the first high-income countries to implement primary HPV screening. This study aimed to examine the psychosocial impact of self-reporting testing HPV positive in a sample of women screened since the renewal of the programme.

Methods

Women in Australia aged 25–74 years who reported participating in cervical screening since December 2017 were recruited through an online market research company to complete a cross-sectional survey. The primary outcomes were anxiety and general distress.

Results

1004 women completed the online survey; 80.9% reported testing HPV negative (HPV−), 6.5% reported testing HPV positive (HPV+) and 12.9% did not know/remember their test result. Women who reported testing HPV+ had significantly poorer psychological outcomes on a range of measures. Those who reported testing HPV+ had higher anxiety scores (53.03 vs 43.58 out of 80, p<0.001), showed more general distress (3.94 vs 2.52 out of 12, p=0.004), concern about their test result (5.02 vs 2.37, p<0.001), expressed greater distress about their test result (7.06 vs 4.74, p<0.001) and cancer worry (quite or very worried 35.4% vs 11.6%, p<0.001) than women who reported testing HPV−. Concern regarding test results was also significantly higher in women who did not know/remember their test result (3.20 vs 2.37, p<0.001) compared with women who reported testing HPV−. Women who reported testing HPV+ had greater knowledge of HPV (9.25 vs 6.62, p<0.001) and HPV testing (2.44 vs 1.30, p<0.001) than women who reported testing HPV−.

Conclusions

Receipt of an HPV+ test result was associated with high levels of anxiety and distress, which reached clinical significance. Further work is needed to understand whether distress and concern could be reduced by ensuring all women receive high-quality standardised information with their results or by other interventions.
Butyrate improves cardiac function and sympathetic neural remodeling following myocardial infarction in rats
Authors: Jiang Xiaojie , Huang Xin , Tong Yifan , Gao Hong
Published: January 2020

Increased inflammation is found in cardiac sympathetic neural remodeling with malignant ventricular arrhythmia (VA) following myocardial infarction (MI). Butyrate, as a microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acid, can inhibit inflammation and myocardial hypertrophy. However, the role of butyrate in sympathetic neural remodeling after MI is unknown. This study aimed to investigate whether butyrate could improve cardiac dysfunction and VA following MI by regulating inflammation and sympathetic neural remodeling. MI rats were randomized to administrate the butyrate or vehicle through intraperitoneal injection to undergo the study. Our data demonstrated that butyrate treatment preserved the partial cardiac function at 7 days post-MI. Butyrate downregulated the expression of essential for inflammatory response in the infarct border zone at 3 days post-MI. Particularly, butyrate promoted expression of M2 macrophage markers. Increased expressions of nerve growth factor and norephinephrine at 7 days after MI were inhibited in butyrate-treated rats. Furthermore, butyrate significantly decreased the density of nerve fibers for growth-associated protein-43 and tyrosine hydroxylase and resulted in fewer episodes of inducible VA. In conclusion, butyrate administration ameliorated cardiac function and VA after MI possibly through promoting M2 macrophage polarization to suppress inflammatory responses and inhibit sympathetic neural remodeling and may present an effective pharmacological strategy for the prevention of MI-related remodeling.
Swarm Intelligence Models: Ant Colony Systems Applied to BNF Grammars Rule Derivation
Authors: de Mingo López Luis Fernando , Blas Nuria Gómez , Castellanos Peñuela Angel Luis , Castellanos Peñuela Juan Bautista
Published: January 2020

Ant Colony Systems have been widely employed in optimization issues primarily focused on path finding optimization, such as Traveling Salesman Problem. The main advantage lies in the choice of the edge to be explored, defined using the idea of pheromone. This article proposes the use of Ant Colony Systems to explore a Backus-Naur form grammar whose elements are solutions to a given problem. Similar studies, without using Ant Colonies, have been used to solve optimization problems, such as Grammatical Swarm (based on Particle Swarm Optimization) and Grammatical Evolution (based on Genetic Algorithms). Proposed algorithm opens the way to a new branch of research in Swarm Intelligence, which until now has been almost non-existent, using ant colony algorithms to solve problems described by a grammar.
Numerical treatment of a physical problem in fluid film flow using the differential transformation method
Authors: Abualnaja Khadijah M.
Published: January 2020

The problem of thin liquid film flow over a heated horizontal stretching surface permitted by uniform transverse magnetic field in the presence of variable heat flux is studied numerically. The ordinary differential equations describing the physical problem are solved approximately by the differential transformation method (DTM). A study of the convergence analysis of the proposed method is given. The effects of the various parameters governing the thin film flow and heat transfer in this study are discussed and presented graphically. Our paper contributes to the existing literature by introducing the numerical treatment using the DTM for the nonlinear system of ordinary differential equations, which describe a thin film fluid flow affected by the variable heat flux.
On trilinear terms in the scalar potential of 3-3-1 gauge models
Authors: Palcu Adrian
Published: January 2020

The trilinear terms of the form [Formula: see text] in the scalar potential of a 3-3-1 gauge model are considered. When looking for the eigenbasis of the massive physical Higgs bosons that survive the spontaneous symmetry breakdown of the model — in light of the observed SM-like Higgs boson with mass [Formula: see text] GeV reported in 2012 at the LHC — one gets a strong constraint to the cubic term. It has to be [Formula: see text], in flagrant contradiction with the large one [Formula: see text] which is propagated in the literature to date.
A New Deep Learning Method Based on Unsupervised Domain Adaptation and Re-ranking in Person Re-identification
Authors: Wang Chunhui , Han Hua , Shang Xiwu , Zhao Xiaoli
Published: January 2020

Person re-identification (Re-ID) is a research hot spot in the field of intelligent video analysis, and it is also a challenging task. As the number of samples grows larger, traditional metric and feature learning methods fall into bottleneck, while it just meets the needs of deep learning algorithm, which perform very well in person re-identification. Although they have achieved good results in the field of supervised learning, their application in real-world scenarios is not very satisfactory. This is mainly because in the real world, a huge number of labeled images are hard to obtain, and even if they are obtained, the cost is expensive. Meanwhile, the performance of deep learning in unsupervised metrics is not ideal. For solving the problem, we propose a new method based on unsupervised domain adaptation (UDA) and re-ranking, and name it UDA[Formula: see text]. As for this method, we first train a camera-aware style transfer model to gain camstyle images. Then we further reduce the difference between the domain of the target and source by using invariant feature, and further improve their commonality. In addition, re-ranking is also introduced to optimize the matching results. This method can not only reduce the cost of obtaining labeled data, but also improve the accuracy. Experimental results show that our method can outperform the most advanced method by 4% on Rank-1 and 14% on mAP. The results also better confirm the effectiveness of Re-ranking module and provide a new idea for domain adaptation by unsupervised methods in the future.
Chaos Glowworm Swarm Optimization Algorithm Based on Cloud Model for Face Recognition
Authors: Zhou Guangyu , Ouyang Aijia , Xu Yuming
Published: January 2020

To overcome the shortcomings of the basic glowworm swarm optimization (GSO) algorithm, such as low accuracy, slow convergence speed and easy to fall into local minima, chaos algorithm and cloud model algorithm are introduced to optimize the evolution mechanism of GSO, and a chaos GSO algorithm based on cloud model (CMCGSO) is proposed in the paper. The simulation results of benchmark function of global optimization show that the CMCGSO algorithm performs better than the cuckoo search (CS), invasive weed optimization (IWO), hybrid particle swarm optimization (HPSO), and chaos glowworm swarm optimization (CGSO) algorithm, and CMCGSO has the advantages of high accuracy, fast convergence speed and strong robustness to find the global optimum. Finally, the CMCGSO algorithm is used to solve the problem of face recognition, and the results are better than the methods from literatures.
A neural network approach to predicting and computing knot invariants
Authors: Hughes Mark C.
Published: January 2020

In this paper, we use artificial neural networks to predict and help compute the values of certain knot invariants. In particular, we show that neural networks are able to predict when a knot is quasipositive with a high degree of accuracy. Given a knot with unknown quasipositivity, we use these predictions to identify braid representatives that are likely to be quasipositive, which we then subject to further testing to verify. Using these techniques, we identify 84 new quasipositive 11 and 12-crossing knots. Furthermore, we show that neural networks are also able to predict and help compute the slice genus and Ozsváth-Szabó [Formula: see text]-invariant of knots.
Knots with exactly 10 sticks
Authors: Blair Ryan , Eddy Thomas D. , Morrison Nathaniel , Shonkwiler Clayton
Published: January 2020

We prove that the knots [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] both have stick number 10. These are the first non-torus prime knots with more than 9 crossings for which the exact stick number is known.
Comparing nonorientable three genus and nonorientable four genus of torus knots
Authors: Jabuka Stanislav , Van Cott Cornelia A.
Published: January 2020

We compare the values of the nonorientable three genus (or, crosscap number) and the nonorientable four genus of torus knots. In particular, let [Formula: see text] be any torus knot with [Formula: see text] even and [Formula: see text] odd. The difference between these two invariants on [Formula: see text] is at least [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. Hence, the difference between the two invariants on torus knots [Formula: see text] grows arbitrarily large for any fixed odd [Formula: see text], as [Formula: see text] ranges over values of a fixed congruence class modulo [Formula: see text]. This contrasts with the orientable setting. Seifert proved that the orientable three genus of the torus knot [Formula: see text] is [Formula: see text], and Kronheimer and Mrowka later proved that the orientable four genus of [Formula: see text] is also this same value.
Structure of the low-lying positive and negative parity states in even–even 144−154Nd isotopes
Authors: Qasim Hussein N. , Al-Khudair Falih H.
Published: January 2020

The low-lying positive and negative parity states of even–even [Formula: see text]Nd isotopes are studied using the interacting boson model (IBM). The negative parity states are involved within the IBM model by adding a single angular momentum ([Formula: see text]) boson with intrinsic negative parity [Formula: see text]-boson to [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]-bosons model space. For these nuclei, the potential energy surfaces [Formula: see text], transition probability [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] are calculated. Phase transition from the [Formula: see text] limit to the [Formula: see text] limit is observed in the chain and the critical point has been determined for [Formula: see text]Nd isotope. It is found that the calculated positive and negative parity energy spectra of Nd-isotopes agree well with the experimental data.
BENIGN APPROACH OFCANTHIUM PARVIFLORUMAS A BIOINHIBITOR FOR MILD STEEL CORROSION IN 0.5 M H2SO4MEDIUM
Authors: KARTHICK K. A. , BHUVANESHWARI D. S. , UMAPATHI D. , RAJA PANDIAN BOTHI
Published: January 2020

Canthium parviflorum leaf extract (CPLE) was utilized for corrosion prevention against mild steel (MS) in 0.5[Formula: see text]mol[Formula: see text]L[Formula: see text] H2SO4test medium. Standard corrosion measurement techniques (gravimetric and electrochemical) were employed for this purpose. Gravimetric tests clearly confirmed that the prepared CPLE efficiently performs as corrosion inhibitor. Potentiodynamic polarization measurements (PPM) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements were performed in order to analyze the charge transfer process of CPLE. Polarization curves indicate that CPLE acts through mixed mode inhibition. Impedance study reveals that the CPLE additives enhances the charge transfer resistance values and conversely decreases values of double layer capacitance. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy analysis and Fourier-Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were done to confirm the Fe-CPLE complex formation on MS. The effect of temperature reveals that the inhibition efficiency increases with decrease in temperature and increase in concentration of CPLE (maximum of 4[Formula: see text]mg[Formula: see text]L[Formula: see text]). The adsorption of CPLE shows that it obeys Langmuir’s isotherm model with free energy of adsorption, [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]kJ mol[Formula: see text]. A suitable adsorption model is also proposed.
A Long-Term Quality Perception Incentive Strategy for Crowdsourcing Environments with Budget Constraints
Authors: Gao Li-Ping , Jin Tao , Lu Chao
Published: January 2020

Quality control is a critical design goal for crowdsourcing. However, when measuring the long-term quality of workers, the existing strategies do not make effective use of workers’ historical information, whereas others regard workers’ conditions as fixed values, even if they do not consider the impact of workers’ quality. This paper proposes a long-term quality perception incentive model (called QAI model) in a crowdsourcing environment with budget constraints. In this work, QAI divides the entire long-term activity cycle into multiple stages based on proportional allocation rules. Each stage treats the interaction between the requester and the worker as a reverse auction process. At each stage, a truthful, individually rational, budget feasible, quality-aware task allocation algorithm is designed. At the end of each stage, according to hidden Markov model (HMM), this paper proposes a new framework for quality prediction and parameter learning framework, which can make use of workers’ historical information efficiently. Experiments have verified the feasibility of our algorithm and showed that the proposed QAI model leads to improved results.
Dynamics Analysis of Spatial Mechanisms with Dry Spherical Joints with Clearance Using Finite Particle Method
Authors: Zheng Yanfeng , Yang Chao , Wan Hua-Ping , Luo Yaozhi , Li Yang , Yu Ying
Published: January 2020

The presence of clearance in a spherical joint makes the ball of the joint easy to collide with the socket, which causes additional dynamic effects on the motion of spatial mechanisms. The complexity of interaction between different clearance joints and that between a clearance joint and connected component requires an effective analysis method. In this paper, a practical method is proposed for evaluating the dynamic effects of spatial flexible mechanisms with multiple spherical clearance joints using finite particle method (FPM) combined with a clearance contact model. First, the equations of motion of the particles and internal force formulas of spatial beam elements in the discretized FPM model are derived, and the explicit generalized-[Formula: see text] method is adopted for time integration. Then, the contact state is detected based on the penetration depth, using the Lankanani–Nikravesh model to calculate the contact force and the Threlfall model to calculate the friction force during collision in the clearance joint. Specifically, a method considering the particle rotations is utilized to better evaluate the direction of the friction force. A spatial four-bar mechanism with spherical clearance joints is used to demonstrate the feasibilities of the proposed method. The effects of four parameters (i.e. clearance size, friction coefficient, multiple clearance joints, and bending stiffness) on the dynamic responses of the mechanism are fully investigated.
A Stress Distribution of Thin Rectangular Steel Wall Under a Uniform Compression
Authors: Lv Yang , Zhao Zheng , Lv Jia-Qi , Chouw Nawawi , Li Zhong-Xian
Published: January 2020

The stress distribution of a steel wall is important in the determination of its shear capacity, e.g. under a wind load or an earthquake load. Since the wall has also to simultaneously carry the gravity load, the influence of this uniform vertical load on the stress distribution is relevant. For a simple-supported thick and square wall, a stress distribution in a cosine form was adequate. However, for an extremely thin wall, a cosine distribution is no longer valid, especially in the post-buckling condition. In this work a three-segment distribution is proposed, i.e. at both edge segments a cosine distribution from edge stress to buckling stress and in the middle segment a constant distribution of buckling stress. To evaluate the proposed distribution, a finite element model using the software ANSYS/LS-DYNA is developed. This model has been verified using the results obtained from own experiments and works done by others. The results show that the proposed stress distribution is able to describe the behavior of thin walls for different aspect ratios and slendernesses. The cosine distribution and the effective width model are also discussed.
Theoretical Analysis of Free Vibration of Microbeams under Different Boundary Conditions Using Stress-Driven Nonlocal Integral Model
Authors: He Yuming , Qing Hai , Gao Cun-Fa
Published: January 2020

Previous studies have shown that Eringen’s differential nonlocal model leads to some inconsistencies for both the Euler–Bernoulli and Timoshenko beams subjected to different boundary conditions. In this paper, the free vibration analysis of the Euler–Bernoulli and Timoshenko beams is performed theoretically using the stress-driven nonlocal integral model. The Fredholm-type integral constitutive equations of the first kind are transformed to Volterra integral equations of the first kind by simply adjusting the limit of integrals. Also, the general solutions to the deflection, bending moment and so on are derived by solving the integro-differential governing equations by the Laplace transformation, of which the unknown constants are determined by the boundary conditions and extra constraint equations related to the constitutive relationship. Then the characteristic equations for free vibration of the Euler–Bernoulli and Timoshenko beams are derived, from which the vibration frequency for different boundary conditions can be determined. The effects of nonlocal parameter and vibration order on the natural frequency of the Euler–Bernoulli and Timoshenko beams are investigated numerically. The results from the present model are validated against those existing in the literature, and demonstrated to be theoretically consistent.
Pharmacophore modeling and 3D-QSAR studies of 2,4-disubstituted pyrimidine derivatives as Janus kinase 3 inhibitors
Authors: Agrawal Neetu
Published: January 2020

A robust pharmacophore model was developed and the structure-activity relationship was analyzed using 71 pyrimidine derivatives reported for covalent Janus Kinase 3 (JAK3) inhibition. Pharmacophore modeling developed a five featured pharmacophore: one H-bond acceptor, two H-bond donors, one hydrophobic, and one aromatic ring features. The atom-based three-dimensional QSAR models with statistical significance were generated using the training set of 52 compounds. The excellent predictive correlation coefficients were obtained for 3D models determined using a test set of 19 molecules. The generated QSAR model implies that the hydrophobic character is important for the JAK3 inhibitory activity of these compounds. Additionally, electron-withdrawing and hydrogen bond donor groups at specific positions positively contribute to the JAK3 inhibition potency. These results provided essential three-dimensional structural requirements and the crucial binding features of 2,4-disubstituted pyrimidine derivatives, which may direct for the design and discovery of novel potent JAK3 inhibitors.
Scaling sets and generalized scaling sets on Cantor dyadic group
Authors: Mahapatra Prasadini , Singh Divya
Published: January 2020

Scaling and generalized scaling sets determine wavelet sets and hence wavelets. In real case, wavelet sets were proved to be an important tool for the construction of MRA as well as non-MRA wavelets. However, any result related to scaling/generalized scaling sets is not available in case of locally compact abelian groups. This paper gives a characterization of scaling sets and its generalized version along with relevant examples in dual Cantor dyadic group [Formula: see text]. These results can further be generalized to arbitrary locally compact abelian groups.
Two-Stage Method Applied for Approximate Calculations of Selected Types of Statically Indeterminate Trusses
Authors: Rȩbielak Janusz
Published: January 2020

The paper presents examples of approximate calculations of force values in members of selected types of trusses, which are at the same time an internal and external statically indeterminate systems. The two-stage method makes possible the approximate calculation of such trusses by help of, for example, the Cremona’s method. In each stage, a statically determinate truss is considered, pattern of which is defined by removing from the basic truss a suitable number of members. There are also presented results of calculations of the same trusses done by means of suitable computer software together with analyses and comparison of outcomes.
Construction and Microwave Absorption Properties of Core@Double-Shell Structured Fe3O4@Polyaniline@MnO2 Nanospheres
Authors: Yang Wentong , Yang Xiansen , Li Xiang , Islam Md. Zahidul , Dong Yubing , Fu Yaqin , Liu Xiangdong , Fu Feiya , Zhu Yaofeng
Published: January 2020

In this paper, we designed a core@double-shell nanostructure to enhance the electromagnetic wave absorption performance of hybrid nanospheres. Herein, the core@double-shell structured Fe3O4@polyaniline@MnO2 nanospheres were successfully prepared by a facile solvothermal process and in situ polymerization methods. The morphology, structure, magnetism and microwave absorption properties were studied. The results reveal that the FPM nanospheres exhibit extraordinary microwave absorbing performance compared to those of either Fe3O4 or Fe3O4@polyaniline nanospheres. The minimum reflection loss of the FPM nanospheres is [Formula: see text]14.7[Formula: see text]dB at 15.76[Formula: see text]GHz with the thickness of 3.5[Formula: see text]mm, and the corresponding effective absorption bandwidth can reach 4.75[Formula: see text]GHz. The perfect EMW absorption of nanospheres can be ascribed to multi-interface polarization, multiple reflections and good impedance matching originated from the core@double-shell nanostructure.
A stochastic switched SIRS epidemic model with nonlinear incidence and vaccination: Stationary distribution and extinction
Authors: Zhao Xin , He Xin , Feng Tao , Qiu Zhipeng
Published: January 2020

In this paper, a stochastic epidemic system with both switching noise and white noise is proposed to research the dynamics of the diseases. Nonlinear incidence and vaccination strategies are also considered in the proposed model. By using the method of stochastic analysis, we point out the key parameters that determine the persistence and extinction of the diseases. Specifically, if [Formula: see text] is greater than 0, the stochastic system has a unique ergodic stationary distribution; while if [Formula: see text] is less than 0, the diseases will be extinct at an exponential rate.
Variational approaches to systems of Sturm–Liouville boundary value problems
Authors: Heidarkhani Shapour , Afrouzi Ghasem A. , Moradi Shahin
Published: January 2020

In this paper, we consider the existence of one solution and three solutions for the boundary value system with Sturm–Liouville boundary conditions [Formula: see text] for [Formula: see text]. Our technical approach is based on variational methods. In addition, examples are provided to illustrate our results.
First-principles study on optical spectra for the oxygen vacancy in lead tungstate crystal
Authors: Lu Yazhou , Liu Tingyu , Li Qiuyue , Xu Xun , Jiao Xuping , Guo Rui , Wang Xueli
Published: January 2020

Based on the first-principles, we simulated the spectral properties of PbWO4(PWO) crystals with an oxygen vacancy. As density functional theory (DFT) underestimates the band gap, the band edge is modified by Heyd-Scuseria-Ernzerhof (HSE). Moreover, artificial interactions of the charged defect of oxygen vacancies with three different charges have been corrected by finite-size correction scheme (FNV). Finally, the optical properties are obtained containing electron–phonon coupling. The calculated absorption band peaks of the F and F[Formula: see text] centers at 1.7[Formula: see text]eV and 2.47[Formula: see text]eV agree well with the experimental value, respectively.
Selective deposition of p-type Cu2O or conductive Cu thin film at 180∘C in air on a quartz glass substrate: Development of an aqueous spray solution using two-compartment electrolysis system
Authors: Uusiku Alina , Nagai Hiroki , Sato Mitsunobu
Published: January 2020

A conductive Cu thin film with a thickness of 170[Formula: see text]nm, electrical resistivity of 8.9(2) [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]cm and adhesion strength of 12(7) MPa was fabricated at 180∘C in air. The spray solutions were prepared by electrolyzing Cu electrodes in an aqueous solution of ammonium formate, and then by adding ethylenediamine-N, N, N[Formula: see text], N[Formula: see text]-tetraacetic acid (EDTA). The surface morphology image of resultant Cu thin film, observed by a field emission scanning electron microscope, revealed Cu grains with particle sizes of ca. [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]nm. It was indicated that the Cu complex containing EDTA ligand in the spray solution plays important roles to (1) provide enough amount of carbon atoms as a reducing agent for phase transition of its coordinated Cu[Formula: see text] to crystalline Cu0 and (2) prevent the product from oxidation under atmospheric O2 during spray coating.
Cycle intersection graphs and minimum decycling sets of even graphs
Authors: Cary Michael
Published: January 2020

We introduce the cycle intersection graph of a graph, an adaptation of the cycle graph of a graph, and use the structure of these graphs to prove an upper bound for the decycling number of all even graphs. This bound is shown to be significantly better when an even graph admits a cycle decomposition in which any two cycles intersect in at most one vertex. Links between the cycle rank of the cycle intersection graph of an even graph and the decycling number of the even graph itself are found. The problem of choosing an ideal cycle decomposition is addressed and is presented as an optimization problem over the space of cycle decompositions of even graphs, and we conjecture that the upper bound for the decycling number of even graphs presented in this paper is best possible.
Trends in Proximal Interphalangeal and Metacarpophalangeal Joint Arthroplasty Utilization Using Statewide Databases
Authors: Vranis Neil M. , Marascalchi Bryan , Melamed Eitan
Published: January 2020

Background: Arthritis can have profound debilitating effects on the hand secondary to finger deformities and pain. Arthroplasty of the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) and proximal interphalangeal (PIP) can be performed to reduce pain while maintaining joint range of motion.

Methods: We used outpatient surgery registries from the states of California and Florida to assess the trends of arthroplasty across several recent years and to determine if the outcomes differ based on disease etiology.

Results: We found that there has been a steady decline in number of MCP arthroplasty procedures performed annually between 2005 and 2011 while PIP arthroplasty procedures peaked in 2007 and have since also declined. There was an overall complication rate of 2.4% and no difference in cardiac, respiratory, deep venous thrombosis and infection between patients with osteoarthritis and other arthritic etiologies. However, the risk of device failure in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is found to be significantly higher than for patients with osteoarthritis (p < 0.01).

Conclusions: PIP and MCP arthroplasty are safe procedures with an overall low complication rate. The increased risk of device related complications observed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis can be used to appropriately counsel this patient population regarding post-operative expectations and prognosis.
An Unusual Case of Aneurysmal Bone Cyst of Proximal Phalanx in a 2 Year Old Child
Authors: Dhamangaonkar Anoop C. , Sathe Ashwin , Banerjee Subhashis
Published: January 2020

Aneurysmal bone cysts associated with tubular bones of the hand are rare and even rarer in the paediatric age-group. They are rapidly growing, destructive benign bone tumors. Multiple treatment modalities for aneurysmal bone cyst have been reported in the literature, but controversy exists regarding optimal treatment. We report a case of aneurysmal bone cyst of proximal phalanx of middle finger in a 2 year old child treated at our tertiary care hospital. The diagnosis was confirmed with pre-operative MRI, FNAC and post-operative histopathology. Curettage of the lesion and autologous bone grafting was performed. The hand was immobilized in a short below elbow slab for 4 weeks followed by physiotherapy. Excellent radiological and functional outcomes were obtained with no recurrence at a 5 year of follow up.
Extensor Tendon Rupture Due to Advanced Kienböck’s Disease: Two Case Reports and a Review of Literature
Authors: Kim Tae Gyun , Heo Youn Moo , Min Young Ki
Published: January 2020

Extensor tendon rupture of the finger is a very rare complication of Kienböck’s disease. However, advanced Kienböck’s disease can cause an attritional rupture of extensor tendons due to displaced lunate fragment. An extensor tendon of the thumb is frequently damaged in the distal radial fracture, and an extensor tendon of the fifth finger is mainly ruptured in arthritis of distal radio-ulnar joint. On the other hand, the extensor tendons of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th fingers are usually ruptured in advanced Kienböck’s disease. We report two elderly patients diagnosed with advanced Kienböck’s disease after non-traumatic rupture of extensor tendon of the fingers. Since the extensor tendon rupture in Kienböck’s disease present as a loss of active extension of metacarpophalangeal joint in the central fingers, these patients should undergo imaging of the wrist joints to ascertain concomitant Kienböck’s disease.
QA-Share
Authors: Ma Qiang , Cao Zhichao , Liu Kebin , Miao Xin
Published: January 2020

Taxi-sharing allows occupied taxis to pick up new passengers on the fly, promising to reduce waiting time for taxi riders and increase productivity for drivers. However, it becomes more difficult to strike the balance between a driver’s profit and a passenger’s quality of service (QoS). In this article, we propose QA-Share, a QoS-aware taxi-sharing system, by addressing two important challenges. First, QA-Share maximizes driver profit and user experience at the same time. Second, QA-Share optimizes these two metrics by dynamically adapting its schedule as new requests arrive. To address these two challenges, we formulated the optimization problem using integer linear programming and derived the optimal solution under a small system scale. Moreover, we also designed a heuristic algorithm to deal with the situation where more passenger requests for taxi service come at the same time. We evaluate our approach with a real-world dataset in a Chinese city—Zhenjiang—that contains the GPS traces recorded by more than 3,000 taxis during a period of 3 months. The results show that both QoS and profit increase by 38% compared to the current schemes. Moreover, as the first study that has conducted simulations with real traces with a population of 3 million and 3,000 taxis, we prove that taxi-sharing is a viable approach in a medium-size city.
Editors’ Choice—Respirometric in Situ Methods for Real-Time Monitoring of Corrosion Rates: Part I. Atmospheric Corrosion
Authors: Strebl M. , Bruns M. , Virtanen S.
Published: January 2020

A novel respirometric approach to monitor atmospheric corrosion kinetics is presented. Simultaneous real-time monitoring of the H2 evolution reaction (HER) and the O2 reduction reaction (ORR) is possible with a combination of optical O2 sensor measurements with gravimetric volume sensitive techniques or pressure sensor based techniques in closed chambers. The respirometric method is a universal, non-destructive tool applicable to any metal or alloy. It shows a high sensitivity for low corrosion rates and has a high time-resolution. Different examples of relevant engineering metals and alloys will be provided. Mass loss validation measurements carried out at the end of exposure show a good correlation with the total recorded cathodic charge. For metals with different oxidation states the average valency in the corrosion products can be calculated from the cathodic charge together with mass loss. The versatility of the novel monitoring technique is further demonstrated by studying the influence of wet-dry cycling, temperature steps or changes in the gas composition in situ. The rate of HER, ORR and total corrosion rate during these changing exposure conditions can be tracked directly on the same sample. Overall the new method contributes to bridging the gap between lab tests, accelerated testing and field exposure.
A Low-Cost Iron-Based Current Collector for Alkaline Battery Electrodes
Authors: Irshad Ahamed , Mitra D. , Sundar Rajan A. , Trinh P. , Balasubramanian M. , Narayanan S. R.
Published: January 2020

The use of three-dimensional porous nickel foam as the current collector of the nickel hydroxide electrode adds significantly to the cost of the nickel-based alkaline rechargeable batteries. Although iron is considerably less expensive than nickel, iron corrodes at the operating potential of the nickel hydroxide electrode. We have found that a 70–100 nm thick thermal coating of cobalt ferrite spinel protects the iron from corrosion. Such a coated iron substrate was found to be stable against corrosion even when polarized anodically at 10 mA cm−2in 30% potassium hydroxide electrolyte for 1000 h. While the thermal coating of cobalt ferrite protected iron against corrosion, incorporation of lithium ions into the coating was found to enhance the electrical conductivity of the coating. XPS and EXAFS studies confirmed that the enhanced conductivity resulted from an increase in the population of Co3+in the ferrite spinel lattice. An inexpensive iron (steel) substrate protected by such a coating when used as a nickel hydroxide battery electrode exhibited a specific capacity of 0.25 Ah g−1at C/5 discharge rate, comparable to a nickel hydroxide electrode based on a relatively expensive nickel foam substrate. The steel-based electrode also exhibited no noticeable degradation over 150 cycles at C/2 rate. This demonstration of a robust and economical steel substrate presents a unique opportunity for reducing the cost of the nickel hydroxide battery electrode in alkaline batteries.
Communication—Lithium Sulfonated Polyoxadiazole as a Novel Single-Ion Polymer Electrolyte in Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Gao Huihui , Mao Jianzhao , Li Dazhe , Yu Yuanyuan , Yang Chen , Qi Shikai , Liu Qianli , Zhu Jiadeng , Jiang Mengjin
Published: January 2020

A single-ion conductor polymer electrolyte was prepared and the effects of the ratio of isophthalic acid (IPA) to 4, 4’-diphenyl ether dicarboxylic acid (DPE) on the structure and electrochemical properties have been investigated. Results show that all the lithium sulfonated polyoxadiazoles (Li-SPODs) have excellent thermal stability (510 °C). The ionic conductivity of the Li-SPOD is 7.2 × 10−4 S cm−1 at room temperature when the IPA/DPE ratio is 6/4. A high Coulombic efficiency of 99.1% for the LiFePO4/6/4 li-SPOD SPEs/Li half-cell could be achieved with a capacity retention of 90.63% at a current density of 0.1 C after 25 cycles.
Cardiorespiratory fitness estimation from heart rate and body movement in daily life
Authors: Bonomi Alberto G. , ten Hoor Gill A. , de Morree Helma M. , Plasqui Guy , Sartor Francesco
Published: January 2020

Low cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) increases risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events. Periodic CRF assessment can have an important preventive function. The objective of this study was to develop a protocol-free method to estimate CRF in daily life based on heart rate (HR) and body acceleration measurements. Acceleration and HR data were collected from 37 subjects (men = 49%) while they performed a standardized laboratory activity protocol (sitting, walking, running, cycling) and during a 5-day free-living monitoring period. CRF was determined by oxygen uptake (V̇o2max) during maximal exercise testing. A doubly labeled water-validated equation was used to predict total energy expenditure (TEE) from acceleration data. A fitness index was defined as the ratio between TEE and HR (TEE-pulse). Activity recognition techniques were used to process acceleration features and classify sedentary, ambulatory, and other activity types. Regression equations based on TEE-pulse data from each activity type were developed to predict V̇o2max. TEE-pulse measured within each activity type of the laboratory protocol was highly correlated with V̇o2max ( r from 0.74–0.91). Averaging the outcome of each activity-type specific equation based on TEE-pulse from the laboratory data led to accurate estimates of V̇o2max [root mean square error (RMSE): 300 mL O2/min, or 10%]. The difference between laboratory and free-living determined TEE-pulse was 3.7 ± 11% ( r = 0.85). The prediction method preserved the prediction accuracy when applied to free-living data (RMSE: 367 mL O2/min, or 12%). Measurements of body acceleration and HR can be used to predict V̇o2max in daily life. Activity-specific prediction equations are needed to achieve highly accurate estimates of CRF.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY This is among the very few studies validating, in free-living conditions, a method to estimate cardiorespiratory fitness using heart rate and body acceleration data. A novel parameter called TEE-pulse, which was defined as the ratio between accelerometer-determined energy expenditure and heart rate, was highly correlated with maximal oxygen uptake (V̇o2max). Activity classification and the use of activity-selective prediction equations outperformed previously published methods for estimating V̇o2max from heart rate and acceleration data.
Analysis and Prediction of the Coupling Coordination Relationship between Tourism and Air Environment: Yangtze River Economic Zone in China as Example
Authors: Geng Yuqing , Wei Zejun , Zhang Han , Maimaituerxun Mukasar
Published: January 2020

The results show that the comprehensive development degree (CDD) of the tourism-air environment system mainly maintains stable with fluctuation and the gap among different reaches in the Zone is declining; the coupling coordination degree’s (CCD) tendency in most regions remains similar as in the previous decade. The results illustrate that the method combing information entropy weight and the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (IEW-TOPSIS), coupling coordination degree model (CCDM), and gray GM (1, 1) prediction model is effective in evaluating the coupling coordination relationship between the subsystems of tourism and air environment and in proposing specific countermeasures for tourism development and air environment governance.
A Novel Modeling Method in Metal Strip Leveling Based on a Roll-Strip Unit
Authors: Yi Guodong , Wang Zili , Hu Zhouyu
Published: January 2020

In the metal strip-multiroll leveling process, the action behavior of each roll is different. However, modeling each roll individually will result in redundancy which is not conducive to the modeling of the entire leveling process. To overcome this problem, a roll-strip unit (RSU) model is proposed to uniformly describe the behavior of each roll during the leveling process. The RSU and its equivalent model are defined on the basis of analyzing the force relationship between the roll and the strip. According to the linear distribution of the bending moment in the longitudinal direction of the strip, the position of the zero bending moment, that is, the virtual fulcrum, is obtained to determine the interval of the RSU. A plastic deformation function is established to describe the influence of plastic extension on the tension and velocity of the strip. The fitting of the deformation curve of the strip is optimized by the tension influence factor and the zero curvature moment. The static friction condition between the roll and the strip which ensures the normal operation of the RSU is given. The AMESim model of the RSU is established to lay the foundation for the dynamic modeling of the multiroll leveler.
A Novel Bearing Fault Diagnosis Methodology Based on SVD and One-Dimensional Convolutional Neural Network
Authors: Wang Yangyang , Huang Shuzhan , Dai Juying , Tang Jian
Published: January 2020

This paper constructs a novel network structure (SVD-1DCNN) based on singular value decomposition (SVD) and one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1DCNN), which takes the original signal as input to realize intelligent diagnosis of bearing faults. The output of the first convolution layer was also analyzed from the perspectives of time domain and time-frequency domain in the simulation experiment. Through qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis, it was found that the convolution kernel not only extracted the classification features of signals but also gradually highlighted the learned features in the network training process. Moreover, applying this network in fault diagnosis of bearing date provided by the Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) Bearing Data Center, it was found that the convolution kernel could also achieve the above operation. The novel network of this paper achieved a good classification effect on both the simulated signals and the measured signals.
Flights Assignment Model of Multiple Airports Based on Game Theory and CDM Mechanism
Authors: Liu Junqiang
Published: January 2020

To minimize delay cost of flights in multiple airports, this paper studied flights assignment problem under delay conditions. By considering the delay cost, airport capacity, and the slot exchange between airlines, this paper proposed a novel assignment model based on game theory and CDM mechanism. An improved ant colony algorithm was proposed to solve the flight assignment problem. The case studies showed that the proposed model can optimize the minimum delay cost between airlines under multiairport capacity constraints. The performance of proposed method was better than that of traditional non-slot-exchange method.
Dimensional and Layout Optimization Design of Multistage Gear Drives Using Genetic Algorithms
Authors: Han Lin , Liu Geng , Yang Xiaohui , Han Bing
Published: January 2020

In the minimal weight/volume design of multistage gear drives, both the dimensional and layout parameters of gear pairs have a direct effect on the design result. A new optimization model that can carry out both dimensional- and layout-constrained optimization design for any number of stages of cylindrical gear drives simultaneously is proposed. The optimization design of a three-stage cylindrical gear drive is conducted as a design example to test the application of this model. In the attempt to solve this constrained optimization problem using an elitist genetic algorithm (GA), different constraint handling methods have a crucial effect on the optimal results. Thus, the results obtained by applying three typical constraint handling methods in GA one by one are analyzed and compared to figure out which one performs the best and find the optimal solution. Moreover, a more precise projection center distance (PCD) method to calculate the degree of interference constraint violation is proposed and compared with the usually used (0, 1) method. The results show that the proposed PCD method is a better one.
Ultrasonic-Assisted Synthesis and Characterization of Chitosan-Graft-Substituted Polyanilines: Promise Bio-Based Nanoparticles for Dye Removal and Bacterial Disinfection
Authors: Alshammari Mutairah Shaker , Essawy Amr A. , El-Nggar A. M. , Sayyah S. M.
Published: January 2020

The sonication-mediated oxidative-radical copolymerization using ammonium persulfate in acidic medium provides a new successful avenue to graft Chitosan with three methylaniline derivatives. The synthesized Chitosan-graft-polymethylanilines (CGPMA) were characterized using FTIR, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, XRD, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), elemental analysis, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). XRD spectra revealed that CGPMA have a higher crystallinity degree compared to the pristine Chitosan. In addition, a methyl position-dependent crystallinity is noticeable for the grafted copolymers. This could be confirmed from TEM images that reflect structure-affected morphologies of different ordering for the graft spherical nanoparticles. Interestingly, the copolymers prepared under ultrasonic irradiation show a high potency in dye uptake compared to nonsonicated ones. Moreover, an antibacterial preliminary test on the as-prepared materials was accomplished. We have achieved promising results, which encourages us to conduct more studies to process these materials in developing biomedical active composites.