bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Association between the Use of Backpack and Static Foot Posture in Schoolchildren with Static Pronated Foot Posture: A 36-Month Cohort Study
Authors: Alfageme-García Pilar , Calderón-García Julián Fernando , Martínez-Nova Alfonso , Hidalgo-Ruiz Sonia , Basilio-Fernández Belinda , Rico-Martín Sergio
Published: September 2021

Background: Schoolchildren often spend a lot of time carrying a backpack with school equipment, which can be very heavy. The impact a backpack may have on the pronated feet of schoolchildren is unknown. Aims: The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of the backpack use on static foot posture in schoolchildren with a pronated foot posture over 36 months of follow-up. Methods: This observational longitudinal prospective study was based on a cohort of consecutive healthy schoolchildren with pronated feet from fifteen different schools in Plasencia (Spain). The following parameters were collected and measured in all children included in the study: sex, age, height, weight, body mass index, metatarsal formula, foot shape, type of shoes, and type of schoolbag (non-backpack and backpack). Static foot posture was determined by the mean of the foot posture index (FPI). The FPI was assessed again after 36 months. Results: A total of 112 participants used a backpack when going to school. Over the 36-month follow-up period, 76 schoolchildren who had a static pronated foot posture evolve a neutral foot posture. Univariate analysis showed that the schoolchildren using backpacks were at a greater risk of not developing neutral foot (odds ratio [OR]: 2.09; 95% CI: 1.08–4.09). The multivariate analysis provided similar results, where the schoolchildren using a backpack (adjusted OR [aOR]: 1.94; 95% CI: 1.02–3.82) had a significantly greater risk of not developing a neutral foot posture. Conclusions: A weak relationship was found between backpack use and schoolchildren aged from five to eleven years with static pronated feet not developing a neutral foot posture over a follow-up period of 36 months.
Symbolic Play among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Scoping Review
Authors: González-Sala Francisco , Gómez-Marí Irene , Tárraga-Mínguez Raúl , Vicente-Carvajal Alba , Pastor-Cerezuela Gemma
Published: September 2021

Symbolic play is considered an early indicator in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its assessment. The objective of this study was to analyze the difficulties in symbolic play experienced by children with ASD and to determine the existence of differences in symbolic play among children with ASD, children with other neurodevelopmental disorders and children with typical development. A scoping review was carried out in the Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, ERIC, and PsycInfo databases, following the extension for scoping reviews of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. The number of papers included in the review was 22. The results confirm that children with ASD have greater difficulties with symbolic play than children with other neurodevelopmental disorders and children with typical development, even when controlling for their verbal age. Difficulties are greater in situations of free or spontaneous play. Results evidenced that the absence or deficiency in the symbolic play can serve as an early indicator of ASD between the first and second year of life, the developmental moment in which this type of play begins.
First-Principle Study of Co-Adsorption Behavior of H2O and O2 on δ-Pu (100) Surface
Authors: Wang Guoliang , Zhao Zhaoyang , Zhai Pengfei , Chen Xudan , Li Yefei
Published: September 2021

The surface corrosion of plutonium in air is mainly the result of the interaction with O2 and H2O in air. In this paper, the co-adsorption behavior of O2 and H2O on a δ-Pu (100) surface is studied by the first-principle method. Two different cases of preferential adsorption of H2O and O2 are considered, respectively. Bader charge analysis and adsorption energy analysis are carried out on all stable adsorption configurations, and the most stable adsorption configurations are found under the two conditions. The results of differential charge density analysis, the density of states analysis and Crystal Orbital Hamilton Populations (COHP) analysis show that the two molecules can promote each other’s adsorption behavior, which leads to the strength and stability of co-adsorption being far greater than that of single adsorption. In the co-adsorption configuration, O atoms preferentially interact with Pu atoms in the surface layer, and the essence is that the 2s and 2p orbitals of O overlap and hybridize with the 6p and 6d orbitals of Pu. H atoms mainly form O–H bonds with O atoms and hardly interact with Pu atoms on the surface layer.
Photodetector without Electron Transport Layer Based on Hexane-1,6-Diammonium Pentaiodobismuth (HDA-BiI5) Molecular Semiconductor
Authors: Wang Yifei , Zou Xiaoping , Zhu Jialin , Zhang Chunqian , Cheng Jin , Wang Junqi , Wang Xiaolan , Li Xiaotong , Song Keke , Ren Baokai , Li Junming
Published: September 2021

With the development of the semiconductor industry, research on photoelectronic devices has been emphasized. In this paper, a molecular semiconductor material with a narrow bandgap of hexane-1,6-diammonium pentaiodobismuth (HDA-BiI5) was utilized to prepare photodetectors without electron transport layers. Using a single light source, the effects of different wavelengths and different powers on the photoresponsivity, switching ratio, specific detectivity, and external quantum efficiency of the device were investigated. It is demonstrated that this device has excellent responsivity, specific detectivity, stability, and repeatability, and this work will help expand the application of molecular semiconductor materials for photodetection.
Understanding the Origin of Structural Diversity of DNA Double Helix
Authors: Poltev Valeri , Anisimov Victor M. , Dominguez Veronica , Ruiz Andrea , Deriabina Alexandra , Gonzalez Eduardo , Garcia Dolores , Rivas Francisco
Published: September 2021

Deciphering the contribution of DNA subunits to the variability of its 3D structure represents an important step toward the elucidation of DNA functions at the atomic level. In the pursuit of that goal, our previous studies revealed that the essential conformational characteristics of the most populated “canonic” BI and AI conformational families of Watson–Crick duplexes, including the sequence dependence of their 3D structure, preexist in the local energy minima of the elemental single-chain fragments, deoxydinucleoside monophosphates (dDMPs). Those computations have uncovered important sequence-dependent regularity in the superposition of neighbor bases. The present work expands our studies to new minimal fragments of DNA with Watson–Crick nucleoside pairs that differ from canonic families in the torsion angles of the sugar-phosphate backbone (SPB). To address this objective, computations have been performed on dDMPs, cdDMPs (complementary dDMPs), and minimal fragments of SPBs of respective systems by using methods of molecular and quantum mechanics. These computations reveal that the conformations of dDMPs and cdDMPs having torsion angles of SPB corresponding to the local energy minima of separate minimal units of SPB exhibit sequence-dependent characteristics representative of canonic families. In contrast, conformations of dDMP and cdDMP with SPB torsions being far from the local minima of separate SPB units exhibit more complex sequence dependence.
Reduction of Fluorine Diffusion and Improvement of Dark Current Using Carbon Implantation in CMOS Image Sensor
Authors: Chai Su-Young , Choa Sung-Hoon
Published: September 2021

Recently, the demand of a high resolution complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor is dramatically increasing. As the pixel size reduces to submicron, however, the quality of the sensor image decreases. In particular, the dark current can act as a large noise source resulting in reduction of the quality of the sensor image. Fluorine ion implantation was commonly used to improve the dark current by reducing the trap state density. However, the implanted fluorine diffused to the outside of the silicon surface and disappeared after annealing process. In this paper, we analyzed the effects of carbon implantation on the fluorine diffusion and the dark current characteristics of the CMOS image sensor. As the carbon was implanted with dose of 5.0 × 1014 and 1 × 1015 ions/cm2 in N+ area of FD region, the retained dose of fluorine was improved by more than 131% and 242%, respectively than no carbon implantation indicating that the higher concentration of the carbon implantation, the higher the retained dose of fluorine after annealing. As the retained fluorine concentration increased, the minority carriers of electrons or holes decreased by more Si-F bond formation, resulting in increasing the sheet resistance. When carbon was implanted with 1.0 × 1015 ions/cm2, the defective pixel, dark current, transient noise, and flicker were much improved by 25%, 9.4%, 1%, and 28%, respectively compared to no carbon implantation. Therefore, the diffusion of fluorine after annealing could be improved by the carbon implantation leading to improvement of the dark current characteristics.
Seasonal Dynamics and Diversity of Haemosporidians in a Natural Woodland Bird Community in Slovakia
Authors: Šujanová Alžbeta , Špitalská Eva , Václav Radovan
Published: September 2021

Despite the ubiquity of disease seasonality, mechanisms behind the fluctuations in seasonal diseases are still poorly understood. Avian hemosporidiosis is increasingly used as a model for ecological and evolutionary studies on disease dynamics, but the results are complex, depending on the focus (hosts, parasites, vectors) and scale (individuals, community, populations) of the study. Here, we examine the local diversity of haemosporidian parasites and the seasonal patterns of infections, parasite richness, and diversity in a natural woodland bird community in Slovakia. In 35 avian species, we detected 111, including 19 novel, haemosporidian cytochrome b lineages. The highest numbers of lineages were detected during spring and autumn, corresponding with higher avian species richness and infection prevalence in the avian community during these periods of time. Nevertheless, the haemosporidian community in the local breeders in summer was relatively stable, Haemoproteus lineages dominated in the local avian haemosporidian community, and only few parasite lineages were abundant within each genus. While prevailing Leucocytozoon infections in spring suggest that the majority of sampled birds wintered in the Mediterranean region, Plasmodium infections in spring can be due to relapses in reproductively active short-distance migrants. Multiple haemosporidian infections, both intra- and inter-generic ones, were common in the local avian community. Infection intensity peaked during summer and tended to be higher in older birds, pointing to the role of supressed immunity in reproductively active birds.
Resilience and COVID-19. An Analysis in University Students during Confinement
Authors: Serrano Sarmiento Ángela , Sanz Ponce Roberto , González Bertolín Aurelio
Published: September 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed life for millions of people. The social-emotional consequences of the confinement need to be analysed urgently. This study examines self-perceived resilience and its most important determining factors in a sample of university students facing COVID confinement. The measuring instrument used is the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, divided into four factors and applied to a sample of 253 graduate and postgraduate students. Different methods of descriptive statistics and statistical hypothesis testing were used to calculate the results with the statistical program SPSS–22. The results showed generally high levels of resilience among the university students analysed, irrespective of socio-demographic variables. Factor analysis shows resilience to be highest among male students and those over 25. Self-perceived resilience was also higher among students who lived alone or with people other than their parents. Finally, students of the health sciences were more likely to adapt to change, deal with today’s challenges, and think of themselves as people capable of bouncing back after hardship.
Assessing Antecedents of Behavioral Intention to Use Mobile Technologies in E-Commerce
Authors: Vărzaru Anca Antoaneta , Bocean Claudiu George , Rotea Claudia Cristina , Budică-Iacob Adrian-Florin
Published: September 2021

The last decades have seen continuous increases in electronic commerce (e-commerce) and particularly mobile commerce (m-commerce). These sharp increases, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, have led companies to become aware of the potential of this trade channel. This paper investigates the effects of antecedents on behavioral intention in m-commerce and the role of consumer satisfaction in the buyer decision process. In our investigation, we used the modified technology acceptance model (TAM). The research was conducted through a survey based on a self-administered questionnaire, with the data being analyzed by structural equation modeling and cross-tabulation. Following the investigation, we found that perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEU) positively influence behavioral intention. Consumer satisfaction also plays a significantly positive role in m-commerce actual use, influencing future behavioral intention. The results also showed that generational and gender differences strongly affect behavioral intention, with younger generations and male respondents being more inclined to use m-commerce.
Space-Time Loop Tiling for Dynamic Programming Codes
Authors: Bielecki Wlodzimierz , Palkowski Marek
Published: September 2021

We present a new space-time loop tiling approach and demonstrate its application for the generation of parallel tiled code of enhanced locality for three dynamic programming algorithms. The technique envisages that, for each loop nest statement, sub-spaces are first generated so that the intersection of them results in space tiles. Space tiles can be enumerated in lexicographical order or in parallel by using the wave-front technique. Then, within each space tile, time slices are formed, which are enumerated in lexicographical order. Target tiles are represented with multiple time slices within each space tile. We explain the basic idea of space-time loop tiling and then illustrate it by means of an example. Then, we present a formal algorithm and prove its correctness. The algorithm is implemented in the publicly available TRACO compiler. Experimental results demonstrate that parallel codes generated by means of the presented approach outperform closely related manually generated ones or those generated by using affine transformations. The main advantage of code generated by means of the presented approach is its enhanced locality due to splitting each larger space tile into multiple smaller tiles represented with time slices.
Unsupervised Outlier Detection: A Meta-Learning Algorithm Based on Feature Selection
Authors: Papastefanopoulos Vasilis , Linardatos Pantelis , Kotsiantis Sotiris
Published: September 2021

Outlier detection refers to the problem of the identification and, where appropriate, the elimination of anomalous observations from data. Such anomalous observations can emerge due to a variety of reasons, including human or mechanical errors, fraudulent behaviour as well as environmental or systematic changes, occurring either naturally or purposefully. The accurate and timely detection of deviant observations allows for the early identification of potentially extensive problems, such as fraud or system failures, before they escalate. Several unsupervised outlier detection methods have been developed; however, there is no single best algorithm or family of algorithms, as typically each relies on a measure of ‘outlierness’ such as density or distance, ignoring other measures. To add to that, in an unsupervised setting, the absence of ground-truth labels makes finding a single best algorithm an impossible feat even for a single given dataset. In this study, a new meta-learning algorithm for unsupervised outlier detection is introduced in order to mitigate this problem. The proposed algorithm, in a fully unsupervised manner, attempts not only to combine the best of many worlds from the existing techniques through ensemble voting but also mitigate any undesired shortcomings by employing an unsupervised feature selection strategy in order to identify the most informative algorithms for a given dataset. The proposed methodology was evaluated extensively through experimentation, where it was benchmarked and compared against a wide range of commonly-used techniques for outlier detection. Results obtained using a variety of widely accepted datasets demonstrated its usefulness and its state-of-the-art results as it topped the Friedman ranking test for both the area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and precision metrics when averaged over five independent trials.
Detection and Isolation of DoS and Integrity Cyber Attacks in Cyber-Physical Systems with a Neural Network-Based Architecture
Authors: Paredes Carlos M. , Martínez-Castro Diego , Ibarra-Junquera Vrani , González-Potes Apolinar
Published: September 2021

New applications of industrial automation request great flexibility in the systems, supported by the increase in the interconnection between its components, allowing access to all the information of the system and its reconfiguration based on the changes that occur during its operations, with the purpose of reaching optimum points of operation. These aspects promote the Smart Factory paradigm, integrating physical and digital systems to create smarts products and processes capable of transforming conventional value chains, forming the Cyber-Physical Systems (CPSs). This flexibility opens a large gap that affects the security of control systems since the new communication links can be used by people to generate attacks that produce risk in these applications. This is a recent problem in the control systems, which originally were centralized and later were implemented as interconnected systems through isolated networks. To protect these systems, strategies that have presented acceptable results in other environments, such as office environments, have been chosen. However, the characteristics of these applications are not the same, and the results achieved are not as expected. This problem has motivated several efforts in order to contribute from different approaches to increase the security of control systems. Based on the above, this work proposes an architecture based on artificial neural networks for detection and isolation of cyber attacks Denial of Service (DoS) and integrity in CPS. Simulation results of two test benches, the Secure Water Treatment (SWaT) dataset, and a tanks system, show the effectiveness of the proposal. Regarding the SWaT dataset, the scores obtained from the recall and F1 score metrics was 0.95 and was higher than other reported works, while, in terms of precision and accuracy, it obtained a score of 0.95 which is close to other proposed methods. With respect to the interconnected tank system, scores of 0.96,0.83,0.81, and 0.83 were obtained for the accuracy, precision, F1 score, and recall metrics, respectively. The high true negatives rate in both cases is noteworthy. In general terms, the proposal has a high effectiveness in detecting and locating the proposed attacks.
Multiphysics Analysis and Optimal Design of Compressible Micro-Interconnect for 2.5D/3D Heterogeneous Integration
Authors: Zhang Peng , Wang Da-Wei , Zhao Wen-Sheng , Su Jiangtao , You Bin , Liu Jun
Published: September 2021

Compressible Micro-Interconnect (CMI) shows tremendous potential in 2.5D/3D heterogeneous integration due to its outstanding performance in integration, electrical isolation, and thermal management. In this work, an optimal design approach for CMIs is developed based on a coupling framework of multiphysics simulation and particle swarm optimization (PSO). In the framework, the mechanical simulation was conducted firstly to obtain the stress distributions as CMI switched from the initial state to the working position. The contact resistance between CMI and the top pad was modeled and quantitively analyzed. Subsequently, the PSO method was utilized to implement the structural optimization of CMI to improve the performance. Multiphysics simulations of both the original and optimized CMIs were carried out and compared. With the implementation of the optimized CMIs, the contact resistance dropped from 155.3 mΩ to 108.8 mΩ, which brought significant improvement in both DC voltage drop and self-heating effect. The influence of the self-heating effect on the electrical performance of CMI is also discussed qualitatively.
A Proposal of Vertical MOSFET and Electrothermal Analysis for Monolithic 3-D ICs
Authors: Zhu Jia-He , Wang Da-Wei , Zhao Wen-Sheng , Dai Jia-Yun , Wang Gaofeng
Published: September 2021

In this paper, an innovative vertical MOSFET based on through-oxide via (TOV) technology is proposed for silicon-on-insulator (SOI)-based monolithic 3-D ICs. The proposed vertical MOSFET is investigated numerically. It was found that SOI can effectively reduce the parasitic capacitance, leakage current, power consumption, as well as suppress the pulse current interference of the substrate. The simulated results indicate that the proposed MOSFET possesses excellent characteristics in saturation current over 1500 μA, sub-threshold swing of 69 mV/dec, and on/off current ratio of 1.28 × 1011. Moreover, as temperature is a critical factor for the performance degradation of semiconductor devices, electrothermal simulations are conducted to predict the influence of the self-heating effect on device characteristics. The results show that device characteristics slightly deteriorate, but can still acceptable in their applications.
Effect of Microbial Enzymes on the Changes in the Composition and Microstructure of Hydrolysates from Poultry By-Products
Authors: Merenkova Svetlana , Zinina Oksana , Lykasova Irina , Kuznetsov Alexander , Shnyakina Tatyana
Published: September 2021

Poultry by-products are promising for the production of protein hydrolysates by enzymatic hydrolysis. The aim of the study is to research the effect of bacterial concentrates on the changes in the amino acid composition and microstructure of poultry by-products during fermentation. Hydrolysis of the gizzards and combs was carried out with a liquid concentrate of bifidobacteria and propionic acid bacteria. As a result of microstructural study of fermented by-products, a decrease in the perception of histological dyes, poor visualization of the cell elements and blurring of the connective tissue matrix were established. During morphometric analyses, we found a reduction in the specific area of connective tissue, the diameter of collagen fibers and the thickness of muscle fibers. A significant effect of the fermentation on the particle size distribution was noted; samples hydrolyzed by microbial enzymes were characterized by a high uniformity of particle sizes and a large number of small particles. Our research revealed an increase in the concentration of free amino acids in the hydrolysates during the fermentation period. The results of biochemical and microscopic analysis confirm the good hydrolysability of hen combs and gizzards under the action of microbial enzymes.
Does the COVID-19 Pandemic Change Consumers’ Food Consumption and Willingness-to-Pay? The Case of China
Authors: Yue Wei , Liu Na , Zheng Qiujie , Wang H. Holly
Published: September 2021

Since COVID-19 was first detected in China in 2019, governments around the world have imposed strict measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which substantially impacted people’s life. Consumers’ food consumption behavior has also changed accordingly with reduced grocery shopping frequency, replaced in-person grocery shopping with online shopping, and increased valuation on food. In this paper, we aim to investigate the change in Chinese consumers’ food consumption and their willingness to pay (WTP) for vegetables and meat, using a dataset with 1206 online samples collected between February and March 2020. Consumers’ WTP for vegetables and meat is estimated using a double-bounded dichotomous contingent valuation design, and factors affecting their WTPs are also investigated. Results show that consumers have a higher WTP for these food products during the pandemic, and their WTP is positively affected by their anticipated duration of the COVID-19, their online shopping shares, their direct exposure to infected patients, their gender, and their income. These results imply that the food industry shall try to develop online market channels as consumers are willing to share the costs, while lower-income consumers may not be able to meet their food needs with prices increased beyond their WTP and thus may call for the government’s support.
Effect of Addition of Chokeberry Juice Concentrate and Foaming Agent on the Physical Properties of Agar Gel
Authors: Jakubczyk Ewa , Kamińska-Dwórznicka Anna
Published: September 2021

This study aimed to determine the effect of the addition of chokeberry juice concentrate (CJC) and foaming agent (egg albumin) with different percentages on the selected physical properties of agar gel. The agar gels with the addition of 5, 10, and 20% concentrations of chokeberry juice concentrate and with fructose addition were prepared. In addition, the foamed gels with different concentrations of egg albumin (in the range 0.5–2.0%) and CJC were produced. The water content, colour, density, hold-up and some mechanical and TPA (Texture Profile Analysis) descriptors as well some structural and acoustic emission parameters of non-aerated and foamed gels were analysed. The addition of CJC changed the colour of agar gel with fructose, the attractive appearance of the aerated gel was also linked with the addition of concentrate. The addition of 20% of CJC and foaming agent created samples with very low hardness, cohesiveness, and gumminess, and the structure of the aerated samples was characterised by the larger bubble diameter and the wider distribution of their size. The more promising texture and structure properties were obtained for samples with aerated gels with 5 and 10% addition of chokeberry juice concentrate.
Ovarian Cell Encapsulation in an Enzymatically Crosslinked Silk-Based Hydrogel with Tunable Mechanical Properties
Authors: Jafari Hafez , Dadashzadeh Arezoo , Moghassemi Saeid , Zahedi Payam , Amorim Christiani A. , Shavandi Amin
Published: September 2021

An artificial ovary is a promising approach for preserving fertility in prepubertal girls and women who cannot undergo current cryopreservation strategies. However, this approach is in its infancy, due to the possible challenges of creating a suitable 3D matrix for encapsulating ovarian follicles and stromal cells. To maintain the ovarian stromal cell viability and proliferation, as a first step towards developing an artificial ovary, in this study, a double network hydrogel with a high water swelling capacity (swelling index 15–19) was developed, based on phenol conjugated chitosan (Cs-Ph) and silk fibroin (SF) through an enzymatic crosslinking method using horseradish peroxidase. The addition of SF (1%) to Cs (1%) decreased the storage modulus (G’) from 3500 Pa (Cs1) to 1600 Pa (Cs-SF1), and the hydrogels with a rapid gelation kinetic produced a spatially homogeneous distribution of ovarian cells that demonstrated 167% proliferation after 7 days. This new Cs-SF hydrogel benefits from the toughness and flexibility of SF, and phenolic chemistry could provide the potential microstructure for encapsulating human ovarian stromal cells.
Whole Exome Sequencing in a Series of Patients with a Clinical Diagnosis of Tuberous Sclerosis Not Confirmed by Targeted TSC1/TSC2 Sequencing
Authors: Kovesdi Erzsebet , Ripszam Reka , Postyeni Etelka , Horvath Emese Beatrix , Kelemen Anna , Fabos Beata , Farkas Viktor , Hadzsiev Kinga , Sumegi Katalin , Magyari Lili , Moreno Pilar Guatibonza , Bauer Peter , Melegh Bela
Published: September 2021

Background: Approximately fifteen percent of patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) phenotype do not have any genetic disease-causing mutations which could be responsible for the development of TSC. The lack of a proper diagnosis significantly affects the quality of life for these patients and their families. Methods: The aim of our study was to use Whole Exome Sequencing (WES) in order to identify the genes responsible for the phenotype of nine patients with clinical signs of TSC, but without confirmed tuberous sclerosis complex 1/ tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC1/TSC2) mutations using routine molecular genetic diagnostic tools. Results: We found previously overlooked heterozygous nonsense mutations in TSC1, and a heterozygous intronic variant in TSC2. In one patient, two heterozygous missense variants were found in polycystic kidney and hepatic disease 1 (PKHD1), confirming polycystic kidney disease type 4. A heterozygous missense mutation in solute carrier family 12 member 5 (SLC12A5) was found in one patient, which is linked to cause susceptibility to idiopathic generalized epilepsy type 14. Heterozygous nonsense variant ring finger protein 213 (RNF213) was identified in one patient, which is associated with susceptibility to Moyamoya disease type 2. In the remaining three patients WES could not reveal any variants clinically relevant to the described phenotypes. Conclusion: Patients without appropriate diagnosis due to the lack of sensitivity of the currently used routine diagnostic methods can significantly profit from the wider application of next generation sequencing technologies in order to identify genes and variants responsible for their symptoms.
GPR Detection of Fossil Structures in Conductive Media Supported by FDTD Modelling and Attributes Analysis: An Example from Early Pleistocene Marine Clay at Bargiano Site (Central Italy)
Authors: Ercoli Maurizio , Bizzarri Roberto , Baldanza Angela , Bertinelli Angela , Mercantili Diego , Pauselli Cristina
Published: September 2021

The application of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) prospecting to the search of fossil structures, particularly using advanced techniques like Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) modelling and GPR attribute analysis, is currently poorly exploited in paleontology. Here, we promote the use of such a GPR workflow at Bargiano (Umbria, central Italy), a unique paleontological site known for the discovery of cetacean skeletons, dolomitized sperm-whale cololites (Ambergrisichnu salleronae), and layered fossil assemblages. The study site is characterized by a very uneven topography shaping highly conductive clayey deposits, representing not exactly ideal conditions for GPR surveying. After generating models encompassing a real topography and variable electrical properties of media, we simulated buried fossil structures at variable depth with different size and geometry, using different operative frequencies. After obtaining information on the characteristics of reflections, investigation depth, and detectability, we provide a comparison with experimental data, also used to compute instantaneous amplitude and phase attributes. Upon depicting a peculiar GPR signature for our targets, we discuss the results in light of ground-truthing performed through trenching. Our workflow allowed us to restrict the excavation areas, extending the surface information in depth in a non-invasive way, and optimizing the field operations, necessary for the preservation of the study site.
A Qualitative Study on Nudging and Palliative Care: “An Attractive but Misleading Concept”
Authors: De Panfilis Ludovica , Peruselli Carlo , Artioli Giovanna , Perin Marta , Bruera Eduardo , Brazil Kevin , Tanzi Silvia
Published: September 2021

The debate about the ethical decision-making process in the healthcare context has been enriched with a theory called “nudging”, which has been defined as the framing of information that can significantly influence behaviour without restricting choice. The literature shows very limited data on the opinion and experience of palliative care healthcare professionals on the use of nudging techniques in their care setting. The aim of this study is to explore the beliefs of experienced palliative care professionals towards nudging. We performed a qualitative study using textual data collected through a focus group. It was audio-recorded, and the transcripts were subjected to a thematic analysis. It was performed within an oncological research hospital with a small and multidisciplinary group of healthcare professionals specialised in PC. Participants reported two overarching positions grounded in two main themes: (1) translating nudging in the PC setting and (2) towards a neutral space. The participants found few justifications for the use of nudging in the PC field, even if it can be very attractive and reassuring. Participants also expressed concerns about the excessive risk of developing pure paternalism.
Measuring Spatial Accessibility of Urban Medical Facilities: A Case Study in Changning District of Shanghai in China
Authors: Cheng Min , Tao Li , Lian Yuejiao , Huang Weiwei
Published: September 2021

Medical facilities help to ensure a higher quality of life and improve social welfare. The spatial accessibility determines the allocation fairness and efficiency of medical facilities. It also provides information about medical services that residents can share. Although critical, scholars often overlooked the level of medical facilities, the composition of integrated transportation networks, and the size of service catchment in the literature on accessibility. This study aims to fill this research gap by considering the integrated transportation network, population scale, travel impedance between medical facilities and residential areas, and the impact of medical facilities’ levels on residents’ medical choices. An improved potential model was constructed to analyze the spatial accessibility of medical facilities in Changning District of Shanghai, China. Interpolation analysis was conducted to reveal the spatial accessibility pattern. Cluster and outlier analysis and Getis-Ord Gi* analysis were applied for the cluster analysis. Results show that the spatial accessibility of medical facilities is quite different in different residential areas of Changning District, Shanghai. Among them, the spatial accessibility of medical facilities is relatively high in Hongqiao subdistrict, Xinjing Town, and part of Xinhua Road subdistrict. In addition, residents have overall better access to secondary hospitals than to primary and tertiary hospitals in the study area. This study provides a spatial decision support system for urban planners and policymakers regarding improving the accessibility of healthcare facilities. It extends the literature on spatial planning of public facilities and could facilitate scientific decision making.
Predictors of Cognitive Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults by Age Group: Based on the 2017 National Survey of Older Korean Adults
Authors: Kim Jinheum , Cha Eunjeong
Published: September 2021

Owing to a growing older adult population, dementia is emerging as an important health issue. Given that maintaining cognitive functions is crucial for the prevention of dementia, this study aimed to identify the predictors of cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults, through a secondary data analysis of the 2017 National Survey of Older Koreans. A total of 9836 participants were classified into three age groups—young-old (65–74 years), old-old (75–84 years), and oldest-old (≥85 years)—and were separately analyzed using multiple linear regression models. The final model explained 28.0%, 35.0%, and 37.0% of variance in cognitive function in the three age groups, respectively. The most potent predictors of cognitive function in the young-old were electronic device-based activities, instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), and nutrition management; the predictors for the old-old group were electronic device-based activities, IADL, and dementia screening, and those for the oldest-old group were frequency of contact with acquaintances, traveling, and religion. Thus, age group-specific interventions are needed to effectively promote cognitive function among older adults. Digital literacy education, use of community-based elderly welfare programs, opportunities for social interactions, and physical activities can help older adults in maintaining a functional status and muscle strengthening.
Contextualizing the Impact of Snakebite Envenoming on Patients: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Patient-Specific Functional Scale Activities Using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health
Authors: Tupetz Anna , Phillips Ashley J. , Kelly Patrick E. , Barcenas Loren K. , Lavonas Eric J. , Vissoci João Ricardo Nickenig , Gerardo Charles J.
Published: September 2021

To categorize the Patient-specific Functional Scale (PSFS) activities in snakebite envenoming (SBE) using the International Classification of Function (ICF) model in order to describe the impact of SBE on patients’ activities and daily lives and to develop a theoretical SBE model of functioning, we performed a post-hoc analysis of two multi-center, prospective studies, conducted at 14 clinical sites in the United States with consecutive SBE patients presenting to the emergency department. Qualitative content analysis and natural language processing were used to categorize activities reported in the PSFS using the ICF model. Our sample included 93 patients. The mean age was 43.0 (SD 17.9) years, most had lower extremity injuries (59%). A total of 99 unique activities representing eight domains came within the Activity and Participation component of the ICF model, with the majority in the Mobility and General Tasks and Demands domains. The main concerns of SBE patients are the ability to perform daily activities and to engage within their social environment. Applying the ICF model to SBE can facilitate the creation of a patient-centered treatment approach, moving beyond body-structural impairments towards a function-based treatment approach and facilitate early integration of rehabilitation services.
Heterogeneous Effects of Health Insurance on Rural Children’s Health in China: A Causal Machine Learning Approach
Authors: Chen Hua , Xing Jianing , Yang Xiaoxu , Zhan Kai
Published: September 2021

This paper investigates the impact of Urban and Rural Resident Basic Medical Insurance (URRBMI) on the health of preschool and school-age children in rural China using data from the 2018 wave of the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). We employ the propensity score matching approach and causal forest to evaluate impacts. Results show that the URRBMI has significantly improved the health status of preschool children. However, the health improvement of school-age children by URRBMI is only limited to obese children, and this effect is not significant. In addition, this paper identifies important variables related to heterogeneity through the causal forest and evaluates the heterogeneity of the impact of URRBMI on the health of two types of children. For preschool children, we find disadvantaged mothers (i.e., with lower wealth, lower educated, or in rural areas) benefit more from the URRBMI. No significant heterogeneity is found for the school-age children. Our study demonstrates the power of causal forest to uncover the heterogeneity in policy evaluation, hence providing policymakers with valuable information for policy design.
Ambient PM2.5 and PM10 Exposure and Respiratory Disease Hospitalization in Kandy, Sri Lanka
Authors: Priyankara Sajith , Senarathna Mahesh , Jayaratne Rohan , Morawska Lidia , Abeysundara Sachith , Weerasooriya Rohan , Knibbs Luke D. , Dharmage Shyamali C. , Yasaratne Duminda , Bowatte Gayan
Published: September 2021

Evidence of associations between exposure to ambient air pollution and health outcomes are sparse in the South Asian region due to limited air pollution exposure and quality health data. This study investigated the potential impacts of ambient particulate matter (PM) on respiratory disease hospitalization in Kandy, Sri Lanka for the year 2019. The Generalized Additive Model (GAM) was applied to estimate the short-term effect of ambient PM on respiratory disease hospitalization. As the second analysis, respiratory disease hospitalizations during two distinct air pollution periods were analyzed. Each 10 μg/m3 increase in same-day exposure to PM2.5 and PM10 was associated with an increased risk of respiratory disease hospitalization by 1.95% (0.25, 3.67) and 1.63% (0.16, 3.12), respectively. The effect of PM2.5 or PM10 on asthma hospitalizations were 4.67% (1.23, 8.23) and 4.04% (1.06, 7.11), respectively (p < 0.05). The 65+ years age group had a higher risk associated with PM2.5 and PM10 exposure and hospital admissions for all respiratory diseases on the same day (2.74% and 2.28%, respectively). Compared to the lower ambient air pollution period, higher increased hospital admissions were observed among those aged above 65 years, males, and COPD and pneumonia hospital admissions during the high ambient air pollution period. Active efforts are crucial to improve ambient air quality in this region to reduce the health effects.
Game Design as an Autonomous Research Subject
Authors: Neves Pedro Pinto , Zagalo Nelson
Published: September 2021

This paper examines the methods and systems of game design from the standpoint of existing method proposals failing to establish a common basis for systematizing design knowledge, which this paper aims to help resolve. Game design has often been subsumed by game development and associated disciplines, and game design methodology has often been subsumed by game analysis. This paper reviews related work in defining game design as an autonomous research subject and then divides the methods and systems of game design into complementary methods and core methods, with only the latter, consisting chiefly of design patterns, attempting to systematize how game design knowledge is generated. Seminal game patterns have been descriptive rather than -prescriptive and so have failed to find the requisite practitioner adoption to fulfill their role as a living method. One recent pattern approach has sought to resolve this issue by promoting pattern usage generally over the adoption of a particular language. This paper outlines an alternate and possibly complementary approach of a novel, practical basis for game design literacy for helping core methods work as a basis for systematizing game design knowledge. The proposed basis sacrifices descriptiveness to prescriptiveness to shape methods in that direction.
Applying Self-Supervised Learning to Medicine: Review of the State of the Art and Medical Implementations
Authors: Chowdhury Alexander , Rosenthal Jacob , Waring Jonathan , Umeton Renato
Published: September 2021

Machine learning has become an increasingly ubiquitous technology, as big data continues to inform and influence everyday life and decision-making. Currently, in medicine and healthcare, as well as in most other industries, the two most prevalent machine learning paradigms are supervised learning and transfer learning. Both practices rely on large-scale, manually annotated datasets to train increasingly complex models. However, the requirement of data to be manually labeled leaves an excess of unused, unlabeled data available in both public and private data repositories. Self-supervised learning (SSL) is a growing area of machine learning that can take advantage of unlabeled data. Contrary to other machine learning paradigms, SSL algorithms create artificial supervisory signals from unlabeled data and pretrain algorithms on these signals. The aim of this review is two-fold: firstly, we provide a formal definition of SSL, divide SSL algorithms into their four unique subsets, and review the state of the art published in each of those subsets between the years of 2014 and 2020. Second, this work surveys recent SSL algorithms published in healthcare, in order to provide medical experts with a clearer picture of how they can integrate SSL into their research, with the objective of leveraging unlabeled data.
Adaptation of Fig Wasps (Agaodinae) to Their Host Revealed by Large-Scale Transcriptomic Data
Authors: Chen Lianfu , Segar Simon T. , Chantarasuwan Bhanumas , Wong Da-Mien , Wang Rong , Chen Xiaoyong , Yu Hui
Published: September 2021

Figs and fig wasps are highly species-specific and comprise a model system for studying co-evolution and co-speciation. The evolutionary relationships and molecular adaptations of fig wasps to their fig hosts are poorly understood, and this is in part due to limited sequence data. Here, we present large-scale transcriptomic datasets of 25 fig wasp species with the aim of uncovering the genetic basis for host specificity. Our phylogenetic results support the monophyly of all genera associated with dioecious figs, and two genera associated with monoecious figs, Eupristina and Platyscapa, were revealed to be close relatives. We identified gene loss and gain, potentially rapidly evolving genes, and genes under positive selection. Potentially functional changes were documented and we hypothesize as to how these may determine host specificity. Overall, our study provides new insights into the evolutionary diversification of fig wasps and contributes to our understanding of adaptation in this group.
Food Service Inspection Capacity: Needs Assessment in a Philippine Local Government Unit
Authors: Atif Wessam M. , MacDonald Craig
Published: September 2021

Applying scientific evidence through risk analysis is an important orientation for the international frameworks that have informed the Philippines’ current food-safety legislation. When implementing this legislation, local government units (LGUs) in the Philippines deal with manifold critical responsibilities using various product-based inspection procedures. This qualitative study was conducted at the end of 2017 with a focus on exploring one LGU’s food service inspection practices. The twofold aim was to find needs in the current food inspection capacity, and to illuminate how risk-based legislation is enacted among LGUs in the Philippines. Taking a discursive approach to help explain and describe the LGU’s practices and needs, the methods included an analysis of administrative documents, focus-group discussions, and observational research. This study explains the LGU’s role in carrying out food agencies’ national responsibilities; it also describes how, if adequate resources were available, new roles could exist for food safety officers and food inspectors. In conclusion, fulfilling the LGU’s needs with respect to national and regional standards would require implementation of a risk-based approach for food inspection.