bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
To evaluate the analgesic effectiveness of bilateral erector spinae plane block versus thoracic epidural analgesia in open cardiac surgeries approached through midline sternotomy
Authors: Bhat Hilal Ahmad , Khan Talib , Puri Arun , Narula Jatin , Mir Altaf Hussain , Wani Shaqul Qamar , Ashraf Hakeem Zubair , Sidiq Suhail , Kabir Saima
Published: March 2024

Background

The efficacy of the erector spinae plane (ESP) block in mitigating postoperative pain has been shown for a range of thoracic and abdominal procedures. However, there is a paucity of literature investigating its impact on postoperative analgesia as well as its influence on weaning and subsequent recovery in comparison to thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA) in median sternotomy-based approach for open-cardiac surgeries and hence the study.

Methods

Irrespective of gender or age, 74 adult patients scheduled to undergo open cardiac surgery were enrolled and randomly allocated into two groups: the Group TEA (thoracic epidural block) and the Group ESP (bilateral Erector Spinae Plane block). The following variables were analysed prospectively and compared among the groups with regard to pain control, as determined by the VAS Scale both at rest (VASR) and during spirometry (VASS), time to extubation, quantity and frequency of rescue analgesia delivered, day of first ambulation, length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU), and any adverse cardiac events (ACE), respiratory events (ARE), or other events, if pertinent.

Results

Clinical and demographic variables were similar in both groups. Both groups had overall good pain control, as determined by the VAS scale both at rest (VASR) and with spirometry (VASS) with Group ESP demonstrating superior pain regulation compared to Group TEA during the post-extubation period at 6, 9, and 12 h, respectively (P > 0.05). Although statistically insignificant, the postoperative mean rescue analgesic doses utilised in both groups were comparable, but there was a higher frequency requirement in Group TEA. The hemodynamic and respiratory profiles were comparable, except for a few arrhythmias in Group TEA. With comparable results, early recovery, fast-track extubation, and intensive care unit (ICU) stay were achieved.

Conclusions

The ESP block has been found to have optimal analgesic effects during open cardiac surgery, resulting in a decreased need for additional analgesic doses and eliminating the possibility of a coagulation emergency. Consequently, it presents itself as a safer alternative to the potentially invasive thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA).
Targeting Molecular Measurable Residual Disease and Low-Blast Relapse in AML With Venetoclax and Low-Dose Cytarabine: A Prospective Phase II Study (VALDAC)
Authors: Tiong Ing Soo , Hiwase Devendra K. , Abro Emad , Bajel Ashish , Palfreyman Emma , Beligaswatte Ashanka , Reynolds John , Anstee Natasha , Nguyen Tamia , Loo Sun , Chua Chong Chyn , Ashby Michael , Wiltshire Kaitlyn M. , Fleming Shaun , Fong Chun Y. , Teh Tse-Chieh , Blombery Piers , Dillon Richard , Ivey Adam , Wei Andrew H.
Published: March 2024

PURPOSE

A prospective phase II study examined the safety and efficacy of venetoclax combined with low-dose cytarabine (LDAC) in AML at first measurable residual disease (MRD) or oligoblastic relapse.

METHODS

Patients with either MRD (≥1 log10 rise) or oligoblastic relapse (blasts 5%-15%) received venetoclax 600 mg once daily D1-28 plus LDAC once daily D1-10 in 28-day cycles. The primary objective was MRD response in the MRD relapse cohort or complete remission (CR/CRh/CRi) in the oligoblastic relapse cohort.

RESULTS

Forty-eight adults with either MRD (n = 26) or oligoblastic (n = 22) relapse were enrolled. Median age was 67 years (range, 18-80) and 94% had received previous intensive chemotherapy. Patients received a median of four cycles of therapy; 17% completed ≥12 cycles. Patients with oligoblastic relapse had more grade ≥3 anemia (32% v 4%; P = .02) and infections (36% v 8%; P = .03), whereas grade 4 neutropenia (32 v 23%) or thrombocytopenia (27 v 15%) were comparable with the MRD relapse cohort. Markers of molecular MRD relapse included mutant NPM1 (77%), CBFB::MYH11 (4%), RUNX1::RUNX1T1 (4%), or KMT2A::MLLT3 (4%). Three patients with a log10 rise in IDH1/ 2 (12%) were included. By cycle 2 in the MRD relapse cohort, a log10 reduction in MRD was observed in 69%; 46% achieved MRD negative remission. In the oligoblastic relapse cohort, 73% achieved CR/CRh/CRi. Overall, 21 (44%) underwent hematopoietic cell transplantation. Median overall survival (OS) was not reached in either cohort. Estimated 2-year OS rate was 67% (95% CI, 50 to 89) in the MRD and 53% (95% CI, 34 to 84) in the oligoblastic relapse cohorts.

CONCLUSION

For AML in first remission and either MRD or oligoblastic relapse, venetoclax plus LDAC is well tolerated and highly effective.
Association of Serum Phosphate, Calcium and Alkaline Phosphatase With Risk of Incident Fractures in Healthy Older Adults
Authors: Hussain Sultana Monira , Seeman Ego , Schneider Hans G , Ebeling Peter R , Barker Anna L , Polkinghorne Kevan , Newman Anne B , Yu Chenglong , Lacaze Paul , Owen Alice , Tran Cammie , Nelson Mark R , Woods Robyn Lorraine , Yeap Bu B , Clark David , Beilin Lawrence J , McNeil John J
Published: March 2024

Context

Aging increases fracture risk through bone loss and microarchitecture deterioration due to an age-related imbalance in bone resorption and formation during bone remodeling.

Objective

We examined the associations between levels of phosphate, calcium (Ca), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and fracture risk in initially healthy older individuals.

Methods

A post hoc analysis of the Aspirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) trial recruited 16 703 Australian participants aged 70 years and older and 2411 US participants aged 65 years and older. Analyses were conducted on ASPREE-Fracture substudy participants from Australia with serum calcium, phosphate, and ALP measurement. Fracture data were collected post randomization. Cox regression was used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs. Phosphate, Ca, and ALP were analyzed in deciles (D1-D10), with deciles 4 to 7 (31%-70%) as the reference category. Restricted cubic spline curves were used to identify nonlinear associations.

Results

Of the 9915 participants, 907 (9.2%) individuals had incident fractures recorded over 3.9 (SD 1.4) years. In the fully adjusted model, men in the top decile (D10) of phosphate had a 78% higher risk of incident fracture (HR 1.78; 95% CI, 1.25-2.54). No such association was observed for women (HR 1.09; 95% CI, 0.83-1.44). The population attributable fraction in men within the D10 phosphate category is 6.9%.

Conclusion

This result confirms that high-normal serum phosphate levels are associated with increased fracture risk in older men.
Colonial Factions and Pamphlet Warfare
Authors: Fairfax-Cholmeley Alex
Published: March 2024

Two Paris-based factions offered the reading public competing histories of the French and Haitian Revolutions as they vied to settle old scores and secure influence over future imperial policy in Thermidorian France. One, a colonial faction, sought to restore as much as possible of Saint-Domingue's pre–slave rebellion structure and identity; the other was more mixed but consisted of individuals who were reconciled to working with the emancipated Black majority in the colony to secure the French republic's strategic and economic interests. The two groups disseminated printed pamphlets offering starkly different visions of the upheaval in France's prized Caribbean colony, as well as opposing interpretations of how revolutionary events in Saint-Domingue and the metropole had been enmeshed since 1789. What both factions shared was a belief in the political significance of controlling this narrative and an emphasis on the shared nature of Saint-Domingue and France's recent history: a dual revolution spanning the Atlantic.
Longing for the Beheaded Father
Authors: Green Netta
Published: March 2024

The article analyzes French departmental statistical reports published under the Directory and the Consulate as a prism for tracing transformations in ideas about inheritance, from the Montagnards' radical egalitarianism to the Napoleonic Civil Code. By focusing on prefects, who provided statistical reports on the population of their respective departments, the article reveals their role in ushering in a return to patriarchalism. Not only did some prefects turn a blind eye to the fact that many families were ignoring the new egalitarian inheritance laws, but they also used novel social scientific vocabulary to defend practices of local, unequal property distribution. Paradoxically, those communities that the statisticians perceived as un-French and uneducated were also those that supposedly encapsulated the domestic values that would ensure social stability for the nation.
Alfred Andersch, the Cinéma des Auteurs, and the Poetics of Screenwriting
Authors: Ächtler Norman
Published: March 2024

This essay presents a little-known chapter in the film history of the Federal Republic of Germany. Alfred Andersch, founding member of Gruppe 47 and influential broadcast editor, was one of the few authors who was intensively involved with film. The essay reconstructs Andersch’s attempt to associate film and literature and thereby develop an alternative concept to the European cinéma des auteurs. To this end, the essay discusses not only Andersch’s critical writings but also a number of documents from his estate. Andersch’s film theory is evaluated in light of the contemporary literary debate on the medium. His screenplays for the adaptations of his novels Die Rote and Die Entwaffnung are used to examine the conclusions Andersch drew regarding film aesthetics in his own poetics of screenwriting. In sum, the essay reconstructs Andersch’s attempt at a literary response to the crisis of West German film around 1960.
Presence as Absence: The Homely and the Unhomely in Jewish Photography under Nazism
Authors: Miron Shira
Published: March 2024

This article traces the change in practice and the transition of meaning in the photographs taken in Jewish homes in Germany under the Nazi regime. It draws on the ontological duality of absence and presence embedded in the medium of photography to analyze examples of such photographs selected from numerous archival and private collections, discerning a move away from the practice of interior photography as a tool of social affirmation in the late Weimar Republic toward its attestation of absence and loss shortly before emigration from Germany. Employing the Freudian term uncanny in its original spatial connotation as “unhomely,” the analysis contextualizes the latent presence of the inhabitants in images of vacant interiors through a discussion of the historical change in the domestic life of Jews in the face of the increasing Nazification of the public space. Focusing on the commemorative and mnemonic function of the photos, the article concludes by addressing their constitutive role in personal narratives as a private lieu de mémoire and as the generator of future postmemories.
Designing the Global Body
Authors: She Yasheng
Published: March 2024

Chapter 5 expands on the dissonance between Asian labors and Asian bodies through a close reading of Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding (2019), a game produced by Japanese developers but with a mostly white cast and set in a fictional United States. This close reading sheds light on the game’s racial double speaks where those who are familiar with the context can easily spot the hidden Japanese discourse and find some level of catharsis, while others can enjoy the game for its more universal and hopeful message about finding comfort in unity when facing future precarity. The chapter also argues that this practice of embodying and conveying Asian discourse stunts the progress of direct representations.
The Video Game Version of the Indian Subcontinent
Authors: Mukherjee Souvik
Published: March 2024

The Indian subcontinent has long been a zone of exploration and exoticism for the European and North American countries, and arguably it continues to remain so even in very new media such as video games. Strangely, although it is one of the most populous and diverse parts of Asia, it is generally not counted in Euro-American descriptions of “Asianness.” When it comes to representing the region, the portrayals border on extreme exoticization or sweeping generalizations. Chapter 8 analyzes the construction of South Asia and the Indian subcontinent within video games. In doing so, it invokes comparisons with the portrayals of the region in earlier narrative media, perspectives from postcolonial theory, postcolonial digital humanities, and game studies in the larger context of the Global South and, particularly, Asian identities.
High-Tech Orientalism in Play
Authors: Voorhees Gerald , Howard Matthew Jungsuk
Published: March 2024

Chapter 9 argues that in the context of gaming and esports, South Korea is made to stand in for all of Asia as the new techno-orientalist imaginary. Esports is a critical site where hegemonic North American cultures fetishize the Asiatic—specifically Asian players, play practices, and infrastructures—as signifiers of machinic precision, skilled labor, and economic capacity. The analysis focuses on how North American esports teams tried to adopt South Korean team management, gaming houses, play styles, and even players to subvert South Korean competitive dominance. In this context, South Korea attains the specific figure as both the inventor and maker of a form of technology increasingly vital to the global operation of capitalism: organizational technologies and management processes that result in dehumanization through gamification and playful labor.
The Fujoshi Trophy and Ridiculously Hot Men
Authors: Ganzon Sarah Christina
Published: March 2024

Chapter 12 examines Hakuoki—one of the first best-selling otome game titles in English—and its localization as a transcreated text that communicates assumptions about its presumed female player, particularly the ways it wants to insert women in this historical narrative. In the localization, players are addressed as fujoshis, a derogatory Japanese term for female geeks who are invested in boy’s love or male-male romances. By pointing out certain creative decisions in the localization, the author examines how localization repositions fujoshi identity and desire for men as something that is heteronormative. Ultimately, this rechanneling of desire toward hegemonic masculinity indicates postfeminist and postracist sensibilities embedded within transcreation that mask racism and sexism in the game.
Annoyances, Tolerable and Intolerable
Authors: Schwartz Ana
Published: March 2024

This chapter revises an old question: Why do early Americanists say that the Puritans weren’t repressed? And what would be at stake if they were? The answer to the second question, it suggests, is happiness. To address the first, it examines a poem, Edward Johnson’s “New England’s Annoyances,” about an aspect of Puritan daily life that tends to fall away from our attention: the fact that daily life in one of the earliest English colonies in Algonquian territories was unrelentingly full of annoyances. The poem’s humor attempts to transform these annoyances from a source of division and fractiousness into an opportunity for mutual felicity. Closely read, Johnson’s poem showcases repression’s ordinariness; historicized, it showcases the situationally specific antagonisms that repression successfully hides from sight: the disturbing experience of sharing a form of existence—abstractly individual personhood—with radically different persons and polities, here the Indigenous peoples of the continent.
Antebellum or Interbellum?
Authors: Garcia John J.
Published: March 2024

This chapter provides a critique of the antebellum period of American history in light of the 1846 US invasion of Mexico. Investigating the censoring of violent actions by American military personnel, the chapter argues that erasures found in texts by officers and soldiers fighting in Mexico shaped the war’s public meanings. Using critical bibliography, the essay makes several larger theoretical claims. First, the circumlocutions that structured cultural production of US military personnel must define the Mexican War’s place in US historiography. Second, the complex temporalities of writing and art from the Mexican War resonate with Siegfried Kracauer’s claim that periodizations are largely fictive, a connection between war and critical theory that invites broader critiques of reigning categories in early American history. Finally, representations of violence in the US military can be understood through the theories of Georges Bataille, whose conceptualization of early America was inflected by myths of violent sacrifice.
Ecology, ethology, and evolution in the Anthropocene
Authors: Sanita Lima Matheus , Lubbe Frederick Curtis , Dias dos Santos Sarah Helen , Saruhashi Stefane , Maglov Jorden Mikaela , Moreira do Nascimento Joseane , Coulson Soren Zachary
Published: March 2024

The 53rd Ontario Ecology, Ethology, and Evolution Colloquium (OE3C 2023) took place at Western University (London, Canada) on 25-27 May 2023, attracting 160 participants. This Meeting Review aims not only to recapitulate what was discussed during the event, but also to provide a brief synthesis of how biologists can move forward. The event was organised and run by graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from the Department of Biology at Western University. With three international keynote speakers, seventy talks, and fifty poster presentations, the OE3C 2023 spanned a wide range of contemporary research in Ecology, Ethology, and Evolution (“the 3 E's”). The colloquium theme was “Surviving the Anthropocene: future steps for the 3 E's under pressing planetary issues”, which was complemented by illustrations depicting the fauna and flora of the “Canadian Anthropocene”. Participants discussed what biologists and researchers can do regarding future climate and environmental catastrophes. The meeting culminated in a panel discussion comprising three climate change specialists who examined topics such as the Anthropocene and the Great acceleration, the living planet index, and carbon bombs. Although not exhaustive, these topics served as a starting point for the necessary discussions about how biologists can contribute to the fight for the survival of life on Earth.
Skipping without and with hurdles in bipedal macaque: global mechanics
Authors: Blickhan Reinhard , Andrada Emanuel , Hirasaki Eishi , Ogihara Naomichi
Published: March 2024

Macaques trained to perform bipedally used running gaits across a wide range of speeds. At higher speeds they preferred unilateral skipping (galloping). The same asymmetric stepping pattern was used while hurdling across two low obstacles placed at the distance of a stride within our experimental track. In bipedal macaques during skipping, we expected a differential use of the trailing and leading legs. The present study investigated global properties of the effective and virtual leg, the location of the virtual pivot point (VPP), and the energetics of the center of mass (CoM), with the aim of clarifying the differential leg operation during skipping in bipedal macaques. When skipping, macaques displayed minor double support and aerial phases during one stride. Asymmetric leg use was indicated by differences in leg kinematics. Axial damping and tangential leg work did not influence the indifferent peak ground reaction forces and impulses, but resulted in a lift of the CoM during contact of the leading leg. The aerial phase was largely due to the use of the double support. Hurdling amplified the differential leg operation. Here, higher ground reaction forces combined with increased double support provided the vertical impulse to overcome the hurdles. Following CoM dynamics during a stride, skipping and hurdling represented bouncing gaits. The elevation of the VPP of bipedal macaques resembled that of human walking and running in the trailing and leading phases, respectively. Because of anatomical restrictions, macaque unilateral skipping differs from that of humans, and may represent an intermediate gait between grounded and aerial running.
Comparative kinetics of humans and non-human primates during vertical climbing
Authors: Young Melody W. , English Hannah M. , Dickinson Edwin , Kantounis Stratos J. , Chernik Noah D. , Cannata Matthew J. , Lynch Samantha K. , Jacobson Reuben N. , Virga James Q. , Lopez Alexander , Granatosky Michael C.
Published: March 2024

Climbing represents a critical behavior in the context of primate evolution. However, anatomically modern human populations are considered ill-suited for climbing. This adaptation can be attributed to the evolution of striding bipedalism, redirecting anatomical traits away from efficient climbing. Although prior studies have speculated on the kinetic consequences of this anatomical reorganization, there is a lack of data on the force profiles of human climbers. This study utilized high-speed videography and force plate analysis to assess single limb forces during climbing from 44 human participants of varying climbing experience and compared these data with climbing data from eight species of non-human primates (anthropoids and strepsirrhines). Contrary to expectations, experience level had no significant effect on the magnitude of single limb forces in humans. Experienced climbers did, however, demonstrate a predictable relationship between center of mass position and peak normal forces, suggesting a better ability to modulate forces during climbing. Humans exhibited significantly higher peak propulsive forces in the hindlimb compared with the forelimb and greater hindlimb dominance overall compared with non-human primates. All species sampled demonstrated exclusively tensile forelimbs and predominantly compressive hindlimbs. Strepsirrhines exhibited a pull–push transition in normal forces, while anthropoid primates, including humans, did not. Climbing force profiles are remarkably stereotyped across humans, reflecting the universal mechanical demands of this form of locomotion. Extreme functional differentiation between forelimbs and hindlimbs in humans may help to explain the evolution of bipedalism in ancestrally climbing hominoids.
The influence of the post-hepatic septum and abdominal volume on breathing mechanics in the lizard Salvator merianae (Squamata: Teiidae)
Authors: Marini Alan , da Silva Renan Festuccia , de Souza Ray Brasil Bueno , Klein Wilfried
Published: March 2024

Teiid lizards possess an incomplete post-hepatic septum (PHS) separating the lungs and liver from the remaining viscera, and within this group, Salvator merianae has the most complete PHS. In this study, we explored the combined effects of the presence of the PHS and alterations in abdominal volume on the mechanics of the respiratory system. The PHS is believed to act as a mechanical barrier, mitigating the impact of the viscera on the lungs. Using established protocols, we determined static (Cstat) and dynamic (Cdyn) compliance, lung volume and work of breathing for the respiratory system in tegu lizards with intact (PHS+) or removed (PHS−) PHS, combined with (balloon+) or without (balloon−) increased abdominal volume. The removal of the PHS significantly reduced resting lung volume and Cdyn, as well as significantly increasing the work of breathing. An increase in abdominal volume significantly reduced Cstat, Cdyn, and resting and maximum lung volume. However, the work of breathing increased less in the PHS+/balloon+ treatment than in the PHS− treatments. These results highlight the barrier function of the PHS within the tegu lizard's body cavity. The septum effectively reduces the impact of the viscera on the respiratory system, enabling the lungs to be ventilated at a low work level, even when abdominal volume is increased. The presence of the PHS in teiid lizards underscores how extrapulmonary structures, such as septal divisions of the body cavity, can profoundly affect pulmonary breathing mechanics.
In vitro analysis of quercetin-like compounds from mistletoe Dendrophthoe pentandra (L.) Miq as a potential antiviral agent for Newcastle disease
Authors: Mochamad Lazuardi , Malarvili Selvaraja , Jasmine Khairat , Lim Vuanghao
Published: March 2024

Background Recent evidence suggests that some flavonoid compounds obtained from crude methanol extract of mistletoe leaves (Dendrophthoe pentandra L. Miq), also known as Benalu Duku (BD), have antimicrobial effects. Thus, the plant has the potential to eliminate viruses that may cause outbreaks in chicken farms. This study aimed to prove the in vitro ability of flavonoid compounds, namely quercetin-like compounds (QLCs), to eliminate field viruses, specifically the Newcastle disease virus (NDV). Methods This research was performed in two stages. An in vitro test was used with a post-test of the control groups designed at a significance of 0.05. BD leaves (5 kg) were extracted using a maceration method with methanol and then separated into hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and methanol fractions. The final extracted products were separated using semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to obtain QLCs. The QLCs were identified and compared with quercetin using HPLC, proton and carbon nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry, and ultra-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. The activity of QLCs was tested in vitro against the NDV at a virulence titer of 10−5 Tissue Culture Infectious Dose 50% (TCID50) in chicken kidney cell culture. Results Solutions of 0.05% (w/v) QLCs were discovered to have antiviral activity against NDVs, with an average cytopathogenic effect antigenicity at a 10−5 dilution (p<0.05). Conclusions QLCs from flavonoids from the leaves of BD have in vitro antiviral bioactivity against NDV at a virulence titer of 10-5 Tissue Culture Infectious Dose 50% (TCID50) in chicken kidney cell culture. QLCs may have the potential to be developed as medicinal compounds for the treatment of other human or animal viral infections.
Monkeypox and oral lesions associated with its occurrence: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Bagde Hiroj , Dhopte Ashwini , Bukhary Ferdous , Momenah Naif , Akhter Fatema , Mahmoud Okba , Shetty Krishna Prasad , Shayeb Maher AL , Abutayyem Huda , Alam Mohammad Khursheed
Published: March 2024

Background A zoonotic, double-stranded DNA virus belonging to the genus Orthopoxvirus, the mpox virus (MPXV) is most common in tropical regions of Central and West Africa. The frequency of monkeypox (mpox) cases, however, has sharply climbed globally since May 2022. Objectives To establish the threat of mpox in terms of the oral lesions caused in sufferers. Materials and methods After a thorough study of the literature identified in the PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane library databases using the PRISMA framework, 103 papers were found. Using inclusion and exclusion criteria, we chose research that was relevant for our review before shortlisting 14 papers that conformed to the review's guidelines. Results In the 14 selected studies, it was found that oral lesions were among the first clinical signs of a mpox affliction, with ulcers on the dorsal surface of tongue lips being the most common areas affected. Conclusion The rarely observed oral lesions of mpox infection may help in the diagnosis and management of this condition. It is critical to keep in mind that recognising and detecting oral lesions in mpox patients opens the door to more research and efficient patient management.
Waveform characteristics in thoracic paravertebral space: a prospective observational study
Authors: Vijitpavan Amorn , Termpornlert Sivaporn , Subsoontorn Pattika , Vareesunthorn Lalinthip
Published: March 2024

Background With increased use of thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) in thoracic surgery, many faced the challenge of locating the thoracic paravertebral space (TPVS) ultrasonographically. This observational study aimed to investigate the waveform characteristics and pressure value within the TPVS in anaesthetized patients with controlled ventilation. Methods 50 patients scheduled for elective lung surgery were enrolled. After conduction of anesthesia, all patients underwent TPVB at T4/5 and T6/7 using transverse, in-plane ultrasound guidance. A pressure transducer system with a desktop monitor was connected to the needle hub to measure pressure values and waveform characteristics in three locations: the paraspinal muscles, immediately behind the superior costotransverse ligament, and within the TPVS. Next, 15 mL of 0.33% bupivacaine was injected into each desired TPVS. After completion of the surgery, the extent of dermatomal blockade and the pain score was assessed in all patients. Results 98 typical regular respiratory waveforms with a mean pressure of ≤ 25 mmHg were detected in the TPVS of 50 patients. The sensitivity of the combined ultrasound and pressure waveform measurement technique to identify the TPVS was 95.45% (95% confidence interval, 84.527–99.445). Nontypical respiratory waveforms were present in two patients. Factors interfering with the TPVS waveform characteristics were previous thoracic surgery and chronic pleural inflammation. Conclusion The TPVS had low pressure and showed a smooth, regular waveform pattern corresponding to respiration.
Minimum work associated with separating nitrogen from air: An exergy analysis
Authors: Rinker Garrett
Published: March 2024

Background Nitrogen is essential for a variety of industries, including heat treatment, laser cutting, fire protection, and food packaging. Many companies in these industries obtain nitrogen via on-premises air separation processes. The three main processes for separating nitrogen from ambient air are cryogenic distillation, membrane separation, and pressure-swing adsorption (PSA). Improvements to these processes will likely focus on increasing efficiency, resulting in reduced environmental impact owing to less electrical power demand and opportunities for economic incentives. Regardless of the process utilized, a minimum theoretical amount of work input is required to obtain nitrogen gas at different pressures and concentrations compared to ambient conditions. Methods An equation was derived to evaluate the total exergy (including thermo-mechanical and chemical exergy) of product and exhaust mixtures resulting from air separation, indicating the minimum theoretical work input as a function of the product pressure, purity, and process recovery rate. This analysis considered an air separation system as a black box, with the input, output, and exhaust assumed to be ideal gas mixtures of nitrogen and oxygen at 15°C. The analysis applies to cryogenic distillation if the product and exhaust mixtures return to the gas phase. Results In general, the minimum required work input increases with product purity and recovery rate. Plots of minimum theoretical work versus product purity and recovery rate were made for two product pressures (atmospheric and 800 kPa) to show the behavior of the derived equation. Conclusions The analysis allows for direct efficiency (based on the second law of thermodynamics) comparisons between existing processes and future technological innovations in the field of air separation. Actual air separation systems have low efficiencies compared to ideal systems; actual PSA systems were estimated to have second law efficiencies of 5.5–11.2%. Therefore, there is great potential for improvements to current air separation systems.
Methods employed in a 2021 population-based serosurvey in Somalia
Authors: Hossain Md Shajib , Ali Asma , Clary Caitlin B. , Cooley Gretchen M. , Farid Muhammad , Gerber Sue K. , Hoff Nicole A. , Ibrahim Abdulrazak , Mainou Bernardo A. , Malik Dr Sk Md Mamunur Rahman , Martin Hélène , Mdodo Rennatus , Mengistu Kumlachew Fikremariam , Obsie Ali Abdilahi Ali , Reynolds Zachary , Rhoda Dale A. , Shube Mukhtar Abdi , Sinai Cyrus S. , Trimner Mary Kay , Webeck Jenna M.
Published: March 2024

This paper describes the design and methods of a serosurvey conducted in Somalia in 2021. The study had several concurrent aims: a) to estimate seroprevalence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, b) to obtain age-specific data on susceptibility to poliovirus, measles, rubella, diphtheria, and tetanus; and c) to estimate seroprevalence of pathogens causing malaria and neglected tropical diseases. Participants were recruited from persons seeking care at government health facilities as well as friends and family members who accompanied those seeking care. Respondents answered interview questions to establish their demographic profile, their COVID-19 exposure and experience, and, for children, their routine immunization status. Each participant contributed a sample of blood for serum or dried blood spots. Serum samples were analyzed in Somalia for SARS-CoV-2 and dried blood spots were analyzed at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC) for the other diseases and antigens of interest. This manuscript describes the study design, logistics, laboratory methods, and data management steps used to compile the study dataset. Study results will be reported in a series of manuscripts to follow.
Machine Learning Inspired Nanowire Classification Method based on Nanowire Array Scanning Electron Microscope Images
Authors: Brugnolotto Enrico , Aleksandrov Preslav , Sousa Marilyne , Georgiev Vihar
Published: March 2024

Background This article introduces an innovative classification methodology to identify nanowires within scanning electron microscope images. Methods Our approach employs advanced image manipulation techniques in conjunction with machine learning-based recognition algorithms. The effectiveness of our proposed method is demonstrated through its application to the categorization of scanning electron microscopy images depicting nanowires arrays. Results The method’s capability to isolate and distinguish individual nanowires within an array is the primary factor in the observed accuracy. The foundational data set for model training comprises scanning electron microscopy images featuring 240 III-V nanowire arrays grown with metal organic chemical vapor deposition on silicon substrates. Each of these arrays consists of 66 nanowires. The results underscore the model’s proficiency in discerning distinct wire configurations and detecting parasitic crystals. Our approach yields an average F1 score of 0.91, indicating high precision and recall. Conclusions Such a high level of performance and accuracy of ML methods demonstrate the viability of our technique not only for academic but also for practical commercial implementation and usage.
The genome sequence of the Elephant Hawk-moth, Deilephila elpenor (Linnaeus, 1758)
Authors: Boyes Douglas , Holland Peter W.H. ,   University of Oxford and Wytham Woods Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Management, Samples and Laboratory team,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: Sequencing Operations,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Core Informatics team,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: March 2024

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Deilephila elpenor (the Elephant Hawk-moth; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Sphingidae). The genome sequence is 414.1 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 30 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the Z and W sex chromosomes. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.37 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 11,748 protein coding genes.
The genome sequence of the Green Silver-lines, Pseudoips prasinana (Linnaeus, 1758)
Authors: Boyes Douglas , Holland Peter W.H. ,   University of Oxford and Wytham Woods Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Management, Samples and Laboratory team,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: Sequencing Operations,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Core Informatics team,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: March 2024

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Pseudoips prasinana (the Green Silver-lines; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Nolidae). The genome sequence is 1,125.7 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 33 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the Z and W sex chromosomes. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.23 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 20,065 protein coding genes.
The genome sequence of the Case-bearing Clothes moth, Tinea pellionella (Linnaeus, 1758)
Authors: Boyes Douglas , Boyes Clare ,   University of Oxford and Wytham Woods Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Management, Samples and Laboratory team,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: Sequencing Operations,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Core Informatics team,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: March 2024

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Tinea pellionella (the Case-bearing Clothes moth; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Tineidae). The genome sequence is 245.3 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 30 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the Z sex chromosome. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 25.86 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 13,811 protein coding genes.
The genome sequence of the dark-based cluster fly, Pollenia labialis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863
Authors: Falk Steven , Sivell Olga ,   University of Oxford and Wytham Woods Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Management, Samples and Laboratory team,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: Sequencing Operations,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Core Informatics team,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: March 2024

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Pollenia labialis (the dark-based cluster fly; Arthropoda; Insecta; Diptera; Polleniidae). The genome sequence is 908.0 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 6 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the X sex chromosome. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 18.3 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 29,755 protein coding genes.
The genome sequence of a click beetle, Melanotus villosus (Geoffroy in Fourcroy, 1785)
Authors: Sivell Duncan , Barclay Maxwell V. L. , Mendel Howard ,   Natural History Museum Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Management, Samples and Laboratory team,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: Sequencing Operations,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life Core Informatics team,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: March 2024

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Melanotus villosus (click beetle; Arthropoda; Insecta; Coleoptera; Elateridae). The genome sequence is 803.5 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 10 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the X sex chromosome. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.91 kilobases in length.
Olga Gitkiewicz, Krahelska. Krahelskie, Wydawnictwo Dowody na Istnienie, Warszawa 2021, ss. 336
Authors: Kromp Dorota
Published: March 2024

"Nakładem Wydawnictwa Dowody na Istnienie w ramach Serii Reporterskiej ukazała się książka pt. Krahelska. Krahelskie autorstwa Olgi Gitkiewicz, reporterki i redaktorki, felietonistki miesięcznika „Znak”, nominowanej do Nagrody Literackiej Nike 2018. Książka poświęcona jest historii trzech kobiet o tym samym nazwisku – Halinie, Wandzie i Krystynie Krahelskim. Według słów autorki: „Trzy kobiety, jedno nazwisko, zbliżone lata aktywności, ta sama klasa społeczna. Mylono je, dopisywano nieistniejące pseudonimy, litery w nazwisku, przypisywano nie ich intencje, mieszano szczegóły biografii, jeden życiorys rozpisywano na trzy albo – częściej – trzy zlepiano w jeden”.
Formation of the sea passenger transportation market and cruise tourism industry
Authors: Kolomiyets K. , Nefedova N. , Molodetskiy A. , Prykhodko Z. , Shashero A.
Published: March 2024

The article is devoted to the emergence, development and current state of sea passenger transportation. The main stages of development of sea passenger transportation, characteristics of vehicles, difficulties that arose during the operation of passenger vessels are presented. The factors that contributed to the development and industry of sea cruises are analyzed. The issues of gradual transformation of sea cruises into tourist entertainment of mass tourism are considered.
Damage Management
Authors: Mills Libbie
Published: March 2024

Jīrṇoddhāra replacement and repair of icons and the buildings that house them is an essential part of the full ritual of worship. Ritual officiants are there to ensure the procedure is carried out correctly, but it is the yajamāna, the patron, who must initiate the task, act as its host, and fund it. The paper considers Jīrṇoddhāra and the yajamāna’s role in it, as presented by the Devyāmata.
Poetry and Legitimacy at the Mughal Court
Authors: Podlasiński Oskar
Published: March 2024

The present paper proposes to take a new look at the imperial Mughal court’s pattern of patronage of arts and letters as a vital and indispensable component of the imperial state machinery on the one hand and an instrument of historical change on the other. It focuses on, and draws from, Čahār čaman, a mid-17th-c. work by Chandar Bhan Brahman, one of the prominent figures among poets, writers, scribes and secretaries in Mughal service; a person involved in the never-ending, and aesthetically intricate, ceremonial exchange of goods, honors, acts of refined praise and proofs of recognition that not only made up the rich and variegated courtly milieu of the period but also gave form and actively shaped the ethos of the Mughal state’s pattern of self-representation—all in the service of legitimating the imperial power and its expanding claim over increasingly vaster stretches of the Indian subcontinent and its regional rulers and their riches. The same was done in the garb of sophisticated aesthetics of imperial power that demanded rulers, princes, prominent chiefs and officers, executive clerks, accountants and administrative professionals to communicate and ever prove anew their status and position in the language and manners recognized as aesthetically pleasing and in the form requiring literary, if not poetical, skills and competence based on knowledge of recognized expressive forms and appropriate genres as well as individual talent and personal ambition.
Investigating How Social Justice Framing for Assessments Impacts Technical Learning
Authors: Nock Destenie , Pottmeyer Laura , Cranmer Alexana
Published: March 2024

Multiple studies call for engineering education to integrate social justice into classroom instruction. Yet, there is uncertainty regarding whether integrating these social topics into engineering curriculum will support or detract from the learning of technical concepts. This study focuses on evaluating how reframing technical assessments to include social justice concepts impacts student learning and investigates how well students integrate social justice into engineering decision making. Using a within-subject design, in which students were exposed to both conditions (questions with and without social justice context), we evaluate how social justice framing impacts overall student learning of technical topics. Social justice prompts are added to homework questions, and we assess students’ demonstration of knowledge of original technical content of the course, as well as their ability to consider social justice implications of engineering design. In the earlier homework assignment, the experimental group showed a significant decrease in learning when technical concepts were framed to include social justice. As the students became more familiar with social justice considerations, their learning of technical concepts became comparable to that of students who did not have the social justice components in their assignment. Their evaluation of the social implications of technical decisions also improved.

History: This paper has been accepted for the INFORMS Transactions on Education Special Issue on DEI in ORMS Classrooms.

Funding: This work was supported by the Carnegie Mellon University’s Wimmer Faculty Fellowship and the National Science Foundation [Grant 2053856]. D. Nock also acknowledges support from the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, where she is an energy fellow.

Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/ited.2022.0030 .
Peer-to-Peer Markets with Bilateral Ratings
Authors: Ke T. Tony , Sun Monic , Jiang Baojun
Published: March 2024

Bilateral ratings on online marketplaces may soften price competition and sellers of higher quality may charge lower prices.
Frontiers in Operations: The Confidence Trap in Operations Management Practices: Anatomy of Man-Made Disasters
Authors: Bhardwaj Akhil , Akkermans Henk
Published: March 2024

Problem definition: Reducing the likelihood of man-made disasters that cause harm to life, property, and the environment is a key societal goal. To that end, regulatory agencies are responsible for ensuring man-made disasters do not occur. In practice, to accomplish this task, regulators have to rely on and cooperate with operators. However, how much cooperation is optimal? In this study, we explore the prudent level of cooperation between operators and regulators to avoid man-made disasters and the role whistleblowers and other policy levers can play in maintaining it within a Goldilocks range. Methodology/results: We synthesize various theories and accounts of man-made disasters to construct a system dynamics model of the mechanisms that lead up to these unwanted outcomes. We employ simulations to uncover how changes in crucial parameters related to cooperation lead to different outcomes and influence the likelihood of the occurrence of man-made disasters. Managerial implications: We resist explanations for man-made disasters rooted in regulatory capture and offer instead a nuanced account rooted in excess cooperation between operators and regulators emerging as a result of everyday operational imperatives and constraints. Our findings indicate that absence of disasters leads operators and regulators to fall into a “confidence trap” that perpetuates limited regulatory oversight and excess cooperation and eventually leads to a disaster. To mitigate this tendency, we investigate, in particular, the role that timely whistleblowing and other policy levers can play in mitigating man-made disasters. We provide managerial and policy implications such as incentivizing and safeguarding whistleblowers, limits on the revolving door between operators and regulators, and more stringent operating and safety scientific standards. Overall, we offer a new frame and potentially fruitful frontier for the operations management community to explore.

History: This paper has been accepted in the Manufacturing & Service Operations Management Frontiers in Operations Initiative.

Supplemental Material: The online supplement is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/msom.2023.0034 .