bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Better Hegemon? My Little Pony as a Pop Representation of Diplomacy in the Context of American Hegemony
Authors: Clerc Louis
Published: January 2023

Social imaginaries carried by the entertainment industry matter for understanding how the general public makes sense of complex social phenomena. Mass culture is a representation of pre-existing ideas on international politics, rooted in space and time, and a constitutive element of the social and political world. Mass entertainment, as well as massively popular forms of popular culture such as video games, are only now entering the field of vision of scholars interested in cultural representations of international relations. This article contributes to this trend by looking at visions of diplomacy present in a global mass entertainment franchise: Hasbro’s My Little Pony. Behind the lighter aspects of a show created for young children lies a fictional universe with elements of diplomacy and international relations. The article insists on the importance of visions of early 21st-century American unipolar order and a liberal view of international politics in the show’s world.
Odontocetes (‘Toothed Whales’): Cognitive Science and Moral Standing – Are Dolphins Persons?
Authors: Pettit Sara G. , McCulloch Steven P.
Published: January 2023

Odontocetes, or ‘toothed whales’, have a complex brain structure and possess rationality, self-awareness, sociability and culture. Cognitive science and modern theories of personhood challenge the notion that humans alone are moral persons. This paper reviews evidence from the cognitive science literature relevant to moral personhood in bottlenose dolphins, orcas, and beluga whales. It applies theories of personhood of Peter Singer, David DeGrazia, and Steven Wise, and finds that odontocetes fulfil criteria to be granted at least borderline personhood. The legal implications of attributing personhood to dolphins remains uncertain. Recognition of dolphin personhood may lead to fundamental legal rights against capture, captivity, and killing; alternatively, the courts may continue to restrict legal personhood and associated protections to human beings. Finally, despite the major influence of personhood on morality and law in the West, the biologically more widespread quality of sentience is sufficient for greater moral considerability and legal protections for nonhuman species.
Towards the Upper-Ocean Unbalanced Submesoscale Motions in the Oleander Observations
Authors: Cao Haijin , Fox-Kemper Baylor , Jing Zhiyou , Song Xiangzhou , Liu Yuyi
Published: January 2023

Oceanic submesoscale dynamics with horizontal scales < 20 km have similar temporal and spatial scales as internal gravity waves (IGWs), but they differ dynamically and have distinct impacts on the ocean. Separating unbalanced submesoscale motions (USMs), quasi-balanced submesoscale motions (QBMs), and IGWs in observations remains a great challenge. Based on the wave–vortex decomposition and the vertical scale separation approach for distinguishing IGWs and USMs, the long-term repeat Oleander observations in the Gulf Stream region provide an opportunity to quantify these processes separately. Here in this study, the role of USMs in the divergence is emphasized, which has confounded the wave–vortex decomposition of wintertime data in previous analyses. We also adopt the vertical filtering approach to identify the USMs by applying a high-pass filter to the vertical scales, as USMs are characterized by smaller vertical scales. This approach is tested with submesoscale-permitting model data to confirm its effectiveness in filtering the submesoscale velocity perturbations, before being applied to the compiled velocity data of the Oleander dataset (years 2005–18). The results show that the averaged submesoscale eddy kinetic energy by USMs can reach ∼1 × 10−3 m2 s−2 at z = −30 m in winter, much stronger than found in other seasons. Importantly, this study exemplifies the possibility of obtaining USMs from existing ADCP observations and reveals the seasonal dynamical regimes for the submesoscales.
Events and Crises: Toward a Conceptual Clarification
Authors: Sendroiu Ioana
Published: January 2023

This article aims for a conceptual model of how crises and events function together and apart, starting from the view that the two are not interchangeable. I therefore define events as structural transformations that can be the object of empirical knowledge, but which are not self-evident or known to all as they take place. Crisis-claims, meanwhile, are performative judgments or demands for a different future. Given that structural transformations are not self-evident in the moment, a crisis-claim, in this sense, is a guess that an event is taking place. This distinction is elucidated through a computational text analysis of U.S. media reporting on shootings, focusing on the month before and the month after George Floyd’s death. Building on this conceptual distinction, I argue that events and crises can coincide, constitute, and even modify the other. But crises can occur without reference to events, and events can take place which are not deemed to be crises.
A Qualitative Investigation of Professionals’ Perceptions of Working in Senior Care Organizations During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Price Katey A.
Published: January 2023

Senior care organizations were some of the hardest hit by COVID-19 infections and deaths early in the pandemic, both for those receiving care as well as staff; 22% of COVID-19-related deaths through March, April, and May of 2020 occurred in the senior care facility population. Professionals in senior care are an important population to understand as they have had to navigate a constantly changing work environment, increasing workloads, less support to safely and effectively conduct their work, and an ever-evolving communication environment. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven professionals employed by a variety of senior care organizations across the United States. Inductive thematic analysis revealed four themes related to perceptions of organizational functioning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The themes indicate that similar issues were encountered by professionals working in senior care, however, job type impacted the perceptions of those issues. Structuration theory is applied to the findings to explain how structure and agency are created and reinforced in the social systems of senior care organizations.
Feasibility of a Low-Power, Low-Resolution Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Instrument for Analysis of Nickel Alloys: Quantification of the Major Alloying Elements and Classification
Authors: Choi Hanbum , Kim Hyang , Han Song-Hee , Kim Sunhye , Jung Sehoon , Nam Sang-Ho , Lee Yonghoon
Published: January 2023

A simple cost-effective laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument was used for quantification of major elements in several nickel alloys and also sorting them. A compact low-power diode-pumped solid-state laser and a miniature low-resolution spectrometer were assembled for the LIBS instrument. Material properties of the nickel alloys depend mainly on the composition of the major elements, Ni, Cr, and Fe, ranging from a few to ∼60 wt%. The emission peaks at 547.7 nm, 520.4 nm, and 438.1 nm for Ni, Cr, and Fe, respectively, were chosen for this analysis. The analytical performance was found to be enough for the quantification of Ni, Cr, and Fe in the nickel alloys. Limits of detection and accuracy were estimated to be a few weight percent (wt%) and measurement precisions were less than 10% in terms of relative standard deviation. The calibration performance of this intensity-based method was compared with that of the “ratio method” which is used in conventional optical emission spectroscopy analyses. The comparison indicates that the intensity-based method is more appropriate with the low-performance LIBS instrument that detects emission peaks of only a few major elements. Also, multivariate modeling of the six different nickel alloy samples based on the emission peak intensities of Ni, Cr, and Fe was performed using k-nearest neighbors (KNN) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA). The KNN and ordinary LDA models showed 95.0% and 98.3% classification correctness for the separate test data set, respectively. To improve classification performance further, the two-step LDA model was trained. In this approach, the two closest sample classes responsible for the decrease in the classification correctness were separately modeled in the second step to exploit their difference effectively. The two-step LDA model showed 100% correctness in classifying the test objects. Our results indicate that such a low-performance LIBS instrument can be effectively utilized for quantitative analysis of the major elements in the nickel alloys and their rapid identification or sorting in combination with an appropriate multivariate modeling algorithm.
Young adult–targeted vaping cessation media campaigns: Promising themes
Authors: Eggers Matthew E , Fajobi OlaOluwa , Kelly Lisa K , Thompson Jesse , Nonnemaker James M
Published: January 2023

Objective:

With the proliferation of vaping in recent years, vaping-related mass media campaigns have been implemented to discourage vaping among youth and young adults. Research on salient vaping-related themes for vaping cessation is lacking. This study aimed to identify promising belief themes for use in young adult-targeted vaping cessation media campaigns.

Design, Setting and Method:

In 2020, we conducted an online survey of 620 New York residents aged 18 to 35 years who were currently using vape products. We asked respondents about vaping-related beliefs across multiple domains and about their intentions to quit vaping. We assessed endorsement with various belief themes and strength of association between belief themes and intention to quit vaping to identify promising themes for vaping cessation messaging.

Results:

Most belief themes had moderate endorsement and thus ample room to move. Among dual users and vapers only, themes of harmful ingredients and the health consequences of vaping demonstrated strong promise as themes for message targeting. Among dual users, all but two themes (smoking cessation and harm to others) demonstrated positive, statistically significant associations with intentions to quit vaping and potential percentage to gain scores with confidence intervals that did not overlap with zero. Among vapers only, themes of harmful ingredients and health consequences of vaping had the strongest association with intentions to quit vaping and the highest potential percentage to gain.

Conclusion:

This study demonstrates that most belief themes have substantial room to move, and that themes of harmful ingredients and health consequences of vaping are particularly promising for vaping cessation campaigns aimed towards dual users and vapers only. Study findings can be used by planners to inform the development and implementation of high-impact media campaigns to promote vaping cessation among young adults.
Monetary Policy and Stock Market Interaction: International Evidence
Authors: Saini Sakshi , Sehgal Sanjay
Published: January 2023

This article investigates monetary policy and stock market interaction across 41 developed and developing economies using GMM-Panel VAR model. The analysis is undertaken in two sub-periods—before and after the crisis of 2008 to make a comparative assessment of whether the relationship between monetary policy and stock prices altered in the aftermath of the crisis. We verify the existence of different channels of monetary transmission to stock prices. Our results point to the prevalence of discount rate channel of monetary policy in affecting stock prices after the crisis of 2008. Further, our results indicate an important role of excess liquidity in pushing stock prices upward in developed economies in the post-crisis period. In developing economies, term premia channel is the dominant channel of transmission to stock prices. Also, we find evidence of monetary authorities of developed economies responding directly to stock price movements to ensure financial stability in the post-crisis period. Central banks react primarily to inflationary pressures by tightening monetary policy both before and after the crisis in developed and developing economies.

JEL Codes: C32, E44, E52, F42
Changes in Stress, Depression, and Anxiety Symptoms in a Brazilian Sample During Quarantine Across the Early Phases of the COVID-19 Crisis
Authors: Blacutt Miguel , Filgueiras Alberto , Stults-Kolehmainen Matthew
Published: January 2023

Objective

We aimed to estimate prevalence and incidence of stress, depression, and anxiety symptoms in Brazilians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Method

We assessed 103 (54 women, 49 men) participants online in three periods of the pandemic: March 2020 (T1), April 2020 (T2), and June 2020 (T3). Estimates of prevalence and incidence were identified when mental health scores were two standard deviations above the mean compared to normative data. Mental health indicators were measured using the Perceived Stress Scale, the Filgueiras Depression Index, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory – State Subscale.

Results

At T1, 89% of individuals were below cut-off scores for stress, anxiety, and depression, which dropped to 35% by T3. Estimated stress prevalence was 1.9% at T1, 7.8% at T2, and 28.2% at T3. Estimated depression prevalence was 0% at T1, 23.3% at T2, and 25.2% at T3. Estimated state anxiety prevalence was 10.7% at T1, 11.7% at T2, and 45.6% at T3. Stress incidence increased by 7.8% from T1 to T2, and 23.3% from T2 to T3. Depression incidence increased by 23.3% from T1 to T2, and 15.5% from T2 to T3. Anxiety incidence increased by 9.7% from T1 to T2, and 39.8% from T2 to T3. Stress severity scores significantly increased from 16.1 ± 8.7 at T1 to 23.5 ± 8.4 at T2, and 30.3 ± 6.0 at T3. Depression severity scores significantly increased from 48.5 ± 20.5 at T1 to 64.7 ± 30.2 at T2, and 75.9 ± 26.1 at T3. Anxiety increased from 49.0 ± 13.4 at T1 to 53.5 ± 12.5 at T2 and 62.3 ± 13.4 at T3. Females had significantly higher anxiety scores than males by T3 (66.7 ± 11.8 vs. 57.4 ± 13.5).

Conclusion

Prevalence and incidence of stress, depression, and anxiety significantly increased throughout the pandemic. The largest increase in stress and anxiety occurred between T2 and T3, and between T1 and T2 for depression. Severity of stress, depression, and anxiety increased throughout the study.
Student insights towards animal welfare science and law. Survey results from Sassari University, Italy
Authors: Varoni Maria V , Serra Pier A , Sanna Passino Eraldo
Published: January 2023

In this paper, we describe the results of an online survey consisting of 23 questions created to evaluate the knowledge and interest on animal welfare by students attending 15 different scientific, medical, and biomedical courses at University of Sassari, Italy. The survey collected students’ demographic data, level of knowledge both on animal welfare and 3Rs, as well as their opinions on animal experimentation. The majority of the cohort was female and over 24 years of age. About a third of the students responded that their graduate programme included subjects that taught science, ethics, and animal welfare legislation. Just 21.2% of respondents had heard about the concept of 3Rs. About a quarter of the students believed that animal models can be replaced by in vitro and in silico methods while half believed that both are needed. However, 70% of the participants did not know the existence of an Ethics and Animal Welfare Committee. The result showed the importance of an Animal Welfare Course for the professional future of a larger number of students and underlined the key role of veterinary medicine in promoting ethics and animal experimentation.
Telegram as a Space for Peer-Led Harm Reduction Communities and Netreach Interventions
Authors: Rolando Sara , Arrighetti Giulia , Fornero Elisa , Farucci Ombretta , Beccaria Franca
Published: January 2023

To date, studies of peer-led online harm reduction communities have focused on web forums, arguing that online spaces are strategic settings for both obtaining up to date information on substances and patterns of drug use and implementing new forms of outreach on the web. The present study analyzes the content and dynamics of a spontaneous users’ group on Telegram, where a team of peer workers was invited to intervene. The study’s aim was to learn more about people who use drugs’ communities on chat apps and provide insights to professionals wishing to implement harm reduction interventions in this type of environment. After obtaining the chat administrator’s permission, all content posted on the chat from March 1 to May 31, 2020, was analyzed adopting an abductive approach. It was found that peer-led communities based on a chat app are not very different from earlier web forum communities. The findings also show that the chat’s activity does not run counter to the public health perspective on drug use, provided that harm reduction is recognized and accepted as an important and effective strategy, and that people who use drugs are quite open to dialog and discussion with professionals who adopt the non-judgmental peer-to-peer approach typical of outreach interventions. Such an approach can be successful in gaining the attention and trust of people who use drugs, thereby boosting their spontaneous harm reduction attitudes.
Disturbance-observer-based finite time sliding mode controller with unmatched uncertainties utilizing improved cubature Kalman filter
Authors: Sindhuja P Princes , Panda Atanu , Velappan Vijayan , Panda Rames C
Published: January 2023

Complex reactions are difficult to control as the reactants not only produce desired product but may also further undergo unwanted reactions or the original reactants may degrade through alternate paths. This can be improved by selecting proper measurement and control. In this paper, a robust augmented derivative-free Kalman filter (augmented cubature Kalman filter, ACKF) is propounded for the continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) carrying out Van-de-Vusse type complex reactions where the intermediate is the desired product in the midst of consecutive and parallel reactions. Non-isothermal CSTR shows strong non-linearity with inherent challenges as the reaction kinetics depends on process temperature through Arrhenius laws and accompanies non-ideal flow behaviour and unmeasurable disturbances. First, the process exhibits inverse or non-minimum phase behaviour. Second, to control product temperature and concentration, a finite time sliding mode controller (FSMC) is suggested which effectively tracks servo response to the desired set point. Third, a disturbance filter has been proposed in association with FSMC, which constructively eliminates the input disturbances. Realistic simulations for servo-regulatory compliance, elimination of measurement noise, impact on large perturbation, and parametric uncertainty with a state-of-the-art simulator ensure the efficacy of the proposed controller. The results are analysed further with a derivative-free FSMC control approach, considering various performance indices (root mean square error (RMSE), total variation (TV), mean square deviation (MSD)) to assess the goodness of the newly developed control strategy. It has been found that improved control law (improved augmented cubature Kalman filter (IACKF)-FSMC) yields better RMSE (7.2645e–05) than ACKF-FSMC (7.5814e–05).
High-order model-free adaptive iterative learning control
Authors: Xu Jian , Lin Na , Chi Ronghu , Li Xueqiang
Published: January 2023

In this paper, a high-order model-free adaptive iterative learning control (HOMFAILC) scheme is proposed for nonlinear non-affine discrete-time systems. The main feature of the proposed HOMFAILC is that not only the control input iterative learning law is designed with higher-order algorithms but also the parameter iterative adaptive updating law has the similar forms. Using additional control knowledge in both the iterative learning control law and the parameter estimation law, the control performance of the proposed HOMFAILC can be improved consequently. Furthermore, the similar structure in the control law and parameter updating law can also help to achieve a better control performance. The convergence is proved with rigorous mathematical analysis. Simulation study shows the effectiveness of the proposed HOMFAILC.
Extreme learning machine–radial basis function neural network–based state-of-charge estimation of lithium-ion batteries assisted with fiber Bragg grating sensor measurements
Authors: Yang Yi , Zhou Qi , Zheng Min , Niu Qun , Zhang Li , Du Dajun , Gao Lei , Yuan Xiaodong
Published: January 2023

Lithium-ion batteries have been widely used in power systems for accepting large-scale renewable energy generations and in the transport sector to facilitate vehicle decarbonization, the accuracy of state-of-charge (SOC) estimation is extremely crucial for the battery systems to operate safely and reliably. Many approaches have been developed for battery SOC estimation based on the measurable electrical signals. However, the electrical measurements are usually corrupted by sensor noise and are also limited by insulation, corrosion, and electromagnetic compatibility. To address these problems, fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors are used to replace thermocouple sensors, the battery SOC therefore can be estimated based on the measurement of the strain information. In order to train the SOC estimation model for lithium-ion batteries, an FBG sensor–based battery SOC estimator, namely, ELM-RBFNN, is developed using the radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) identified by extreme learning machine (ELM). According to the ELM principle, the ELM-RBFNN model randomly selects the radial basis function (RBF) centers and determines the parameters of the hidden-layer nodes without any manual adjustment. The ELM-RBFNN estimation model has the advantages of fast learning speed, global optimization, and excellent generalization. Experimental results confirm that compared to the linear estimator and the polynomial estimator, the developed SOC estimator is able to produce more accurate results.
The Effects of Large-Scale Social Movements on Language Attitudes: Cantonese and Mandarin in Hong Kong
Authors: Shum Priscilla Lok-chee , Tse Chi-Shing , Hamamura Takeshi , Wright Stephen C.
Published: January 2023

Speakers with standard accents are typically judged more favorably than non-standard speakers, but this may shift in response to perceived intergroup conflict with ethnolinguistic outgroups. Three studies were conducted to examine how large-scale social movements may impact language attitudes in Hong Kong. Attitudes toward standard-accented and non-standard-accented Cantonese and Mandarin were collected across four instances in 2013 and 2015 (pre- and post-Umbrella Movement), 2018 and 2019 (pre- and post-Anti-Extradition Bill Movement), respectively. Compared to Study 1 (2013), Hong Kong participants judged standard speakers of Cantonese (the ingroup variety), and ingroup, non-standard speakers of Mandarin (the outgroup variety) significantly more favorably in Study 2 (2015). Study 3 showed that the retrospective endorsement of the Umbrella Movement moderated preferences for standard Cantonese and Mandarin speakers. Comparison of 2018 and 2019 data partially replicated the findings in Studies 1 and 2, though the current endorsement of the Anti-Extradition Bill Movement did not moderate preferences for standard speakers.
Subtyping of hepatocellular adenomas using Gd-EOB-DTPA: a qualitative and quantitative analysis
Authors: Schaible Jan , Schreyer Andreas G , Mehrabi Arianeb , Longerich Thomas , Kieser Meinhard , Kreimeyer Sylvia , Klauss Miriam , Grenacher Lars
Published: January 2023

Background

The goal of medical imaging is not only to identify the entity “hepatocellular adenoma,” but to detect typical magnetic resonance (MR) patterns of the subtypes so that lesions with a higher malignant transformation rate could be differentiated from those that should just be controlled.

Purpose

To evaluate the differentiation between subtypes of hepatocellular adenomas using hepatobiliary specific contrast agent (Gd-EOB-DTPA) in MR imaging.

Material/Methods

A total of 11 patients with 39 lesions with histologically proven hepatocellular adenomas were evaluated. Of the, 34 were inflammatory hepatocellular adenomas (IHCA) and 5 were HNF1α adenomas. No β-catenin-mutated adenoma was found. In all patients, a standard protocol considering the guidelines of the international consensus conference of Gd-EOB-DTPA was performed in a 1.5-T scanner. Besides a qualitative analysis of all sequences, we measured the quantitative signal intensity (SI) ratio in all examinations.

Results

Qualitative analysis showed that best sequences for differentiation of HNF1α adenomas from IHCA were T1-weighted (T1W) precontrast ( P = 0.03) and portalvenous phase ( P < 0.0001) as well as arterial phase ( P = 0.002). All adenomas were hypointense in hepatobiliary phase (15 min). The quantitative analyses of the SI ratio and of lesion-to-liver contrast (LLC) ratio show statistically significant differences in T1W precontrast (SI: P = 0.035; LLC: P = 0.049) and portalvenous phase (SI: P = 0.002; LLC: P = 0.002).

Conclusion

Subtyping of hepatocellular adenomas using Gd-EOB-DTPA is possible due to qualitative and quantitative analyses regarding T1W precontrast and portalvenous phase. In addition, the SI ratio and liver-to-lesion contrast ratio in the arterial phase gave additional qualitative information for differentiation.
Perception of COVID-19-related stigma and associated psychological challenges among healthcare workers at Cairo University hospitals
Authors: Gaber Dalia Mohamed , Ahmed Marwa Mostafa , Sayed Amal Mohamed , Elkholy Yasmine Samy , Sarhan Mai Diaa
Published: January 2023

Objectives

The current study explores the level of perceived social stigma and associated psychological challenges among healthcare workers during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Egypt.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study of 150 healthcare workers at Cairo University hospitals that were confirmed positive for COVID-19 infection. Participants were interviewed for assessment of perceived COVID-19-related stigma and associated psychological symptoms using the Patient Health Questionnaire for depression, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment for anxiety, and the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for post-traumatic stress symptoms.

Results

Two-thirds of participants perceived moderate-to-severe COVID-19-related stigma. Depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms were observed at varying levels in 58.0%, 38.0%, and 11.3% of participants, respectively. Female sex and occupation as a nurse were significantly associated with the total perceived COVID-19-related stigma score. COVID-19-related stigma perception significantly correlated with depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress.

Conclusion

Perceived social stigma prevails among healthcare workers and is associated with numerous psychological disturbances.
Out-of-Pocket Health Care Spending at Older Ages: Do Caregiving Arrangements Matter?
Authors: Friedman Esther M. , Beach Scott R. , Schulz Richard
Published: January 2023

Identifying the correlates of out-of-pocket (OOP) health care spending is an important step for ensuring the financial security of older adults. Whether or not someone has a family member providing assistance is one such factor that could be associated with OOP spending. If family caregivers facilitate better health, health care spending could be reduced. On the other hand, costs would be higher if family members facilitate more (or more costly) care for loved ones. This paper explores the relationship between caregiving arrangements and OOP spending using data from 5045 individuals in the 2000–2016 Health and Retirement Study with Medicare coverage and caregiving needs. We do not find a relationship between family caregiving and OOP health care costs, overall. However, among those with Medicare HMO insurance, having a family caregiver is associated with more spending than having no helper. This is mainly due to differences in spending on prescription medications.
L-carnitine attenuates acoustic startle reflex dysfunction in adult male rats exposed to mancozeb
Authors: Dehghani Ali , Pourjafari Farimah , Koohkan Faeze , Haghpanh Tahereh , Pourjafari Fahimeh , Sheibani Vahid , Afarinesh Mohammad Reza
Published: January 2023

The fungicide mancozeb increases oxygen-free radicals in the central nervous system. As an antioxidant, L-carnitine protects DNA and cell membranes from damage caused by oxygen-free radicals. The present study investigated how L-carnitine affected the acoustic startle response (ASR) in rats exposed to mancozeb. In this experimental study, male Wistar rats were gavaged orally with mancozeb (500, 1000, and 2000 mg/kg), L-carnitine (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg), or L-carnitine (200 mg/kg) + mancozeb (500 mg/kg) three times in 1 week. In the sham group, saline (0.9%, 10 mL/kg) was gavaged at a volume equivalent to that of the drugs. The control group did not receive any treatment. The results showed that locomotor activity and the percentage of prepulse inhibition in the mancozeb groups decreased compared to the sham group while these parameters increased in the L-carnitine group (200 mg/kg) compared to sham rats. In conclusion, mancozeb may increase the risk factor for cognitive diseases such as schizophrenia in people exposed to it while pretreatment with L-carnitine can attenuate the toxic effect.
Simulation study on mechanical wear of the diamond grain cutting pipeline steel
Authors: Zhang Lan , Chen Haiyun , Liu Ming , Zhu Zhengbin , Sha Xianbin , Wang Liquan
Published: January 2023

With the exploitation of marine resources, the development of maintenance operation technology for subsea pipelines transporting oil and gas has become the focus worldwide. Diamond bead wire serves as important engineering equipment in subsea pipeline maintenance, and the study of the wear mechanism of diamond grains on the beads is key to improving the cutting efficiency and lifetime of diamond bead wire. In this work, a theoretical model of the mechanical wear rate of the diamond grain was established, and a simulation model of the diamond grain cutting X65 pipeline steel was developed by applying smoothed particle hydrodynamics method. By studying the effects of the cutting factors of the diamond grain on mechanical wear, the mechanisms of adhesive wear, abrasive wear, and fatigue wear were clarified. The results indicate that the diamond grain in line contact or large surface contact with X65 steel contributes more to wear rate reduction than point contact; The mechanical wear rate predominated by adhesive wear and abrasive wear of the diamond grain increases with the increase of cutting speed and depth. And when the cutting speed is 22–26 m/s and the depth is 20–30 μm, the growing trend of the mechanical wear rate turns gentle, which is more suitable to balance improving cutting efficiency and reducing mechanical wear.
Analysis of the contact angle of ball screw with Gothic profile considering raceway profile manufacturing error and radial clearance
Authors: Zhao Jiajia , Jiang Hongkui , Song Xianchun , Zong Shuzhen , Wu Yifan , Qi Baobao
Published: January 2023

The ball screw is a mechanical linear actuator that translates rotational motion to linear motion with little friction. The elastic contact angle is considered as the key parameter for the ball screw mechanism with Gothic profile, and it is hard to measure this parameter directly. This paper investigates a calculation method for elastic contact angle of the ball screw considering the raceway profile manufacturing error and radial clearance. The method is based on two deformation model of balls under two preload states in ball screw. The deduced formula from the model on free contact angle is found to be identical with results of split inner-ring ball bearing. The effect of the radial clearance and raceway profile manufacturing error are investigated in this paper. The results show that the radial clearance is a key factor affecting the elastic contact angle. The research provides a theoretical basis for error analysis and optimization design of the new type double-nut ball screw mechanism.
Generation and analysis of synthetic surface electromyography signals under varied muscle fiber type proportions and validation using recorded signals
Authors: Narayanan Sidharth , Gopinath Venugopal
Published: January 2023

The magnitude and duration of muscle force production are influenced by the fiber type proportion. In this work, surface electromyography (sEMG) signals of muscles with varied fiber type proportions, are generated. For this, relevant components of existing models reported in various literature have been adopted. Also, a method to calculate the motor unit size factor is proposed. sEMG signals of adductor pollicis (AP) and triceps brachii (TB) muscles are simulated from the onset of force production to muscle fatigue state at various percentages of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) values. The model is validated using signals recorded from these muscles using well-defined isometric exercise protocols. Root mean square and mean power spectral density values extracted from the simulated and recorded signals are found to increase for TB and decrease for AP with time. A linear variation of the features with %MVC values is obtained for simulated and experimental results. The Bland-Altman plot is used to analyze the agreement between simulated and experimental feature values. Good agreement is obtained for the feature values at various %MVCs. The mean endurance time calculated using the model is found to be comparable to that of the experimental value. This method can be used to generate sEMG signals of different muscles with varying fiber type ratios under various neuromuscular conditions.
Green development of the country: Role of macroeconomic stability
Authors: Chen Yang , Lyulyov Oleksii , Pimonenko Tetyana , Kwilinski Aleksy
Published: January 2023

The intensification of ecological issues provokes to search for the appropriate mechanism and resources to solve them without declining the economic growth. This requires moving from resources oriented to green economic development. It could be realised through two goals: achieving macroeconomic stability – core driver of economic growth; declining environmental degradation and increasing efficiency of resources using – core requirements for green development. The paper aims to check the hypothesis on macroeconomic stability's impact on the green development of the countries. The object of investigation is European Union countries from 2000 to 2020. The study applied the following methods: the Global Malmquist-Luenberger productivity index – to estimate the green development of the countries; Macroeconomic Stabilisation Pentagon model – to estimate macroeconomic stability; Kernel density estimation and Tobit model – to check the macroeconomic stability impact on the green development of the countries. The empirical findings show that Malta from the ‘Green Group’ and Estonia from the ‘Yellow group’ have the highest value of green development, and Sweden and Greece have the highest value of macroeconomic stability. Besides, the findings allow confirming the research hypothesis. Thus, the growth of external dimensions of macroeconomic stability by 1 point led to the growth of green economic development by 0.085 (among ‘Green group’) and 0.195 (among ‘Yellow group’). It confirms that harmonising macroeconomic stability among all EU members allows for achieving the synergy effect.
Solvent-based recovery of acrylate polymer from display film waste
Authors: Lee Nahyeon , Ahn Byungmin , Lee Jechan
Published: January 2023

Acrylate polymer is widely used to manufacture display films as an adhesive. Improper disposal of acrylate polymer-containing display film waste (a kind of E-waste) may cause serious environmental problems. As an effort to develop a display film waste treatment strategy, this study applied a solvent-based method to recover acrylate polymer from display film waste. The solubility of acrylate polymer (e.g. poly( tert-butyl acrylate)) in 18 different organic solvents was calculated using Hansen solubility parameters. As a result, 2-butanol and methyl acetate were chosen as organic solvents for the acrylate polymer recovery from the display film waste. Effects of various recovery parameters (e.g. temperature, time, and stirring speed) on the recovery of acrylate polymer in five different solvent systems consisting of 2-butanol and methyl acetate (2-butanol, methyl acetate, 1:1 mixture, 1:2 mixture, and 2:1 mixture) were explored. 2-Butanol was found to be a better solvent than any others because it is more hydrophobic than methyl acetate. The recovery condition at which the highest acrylate polymer recovery yield in 2-butanol was obtained was T  =  30 °C, t  =  1 h, and stirring speed of 250 r/min, reaching 8.28 wt%. This study would help to develop an E-waste recycling method that can be recovering value-added products from E-waste.
Divided-and-combined omnibus test for genetic association analysis with high-dimensional data
Authors: Wang Jinjuan , Jiang Zhenzhen , Guo Hongping , Li Zhengbang
Published: January 2023

Advances in biologic technology enable researchers to obtain a huge amount of genetic and genomic data, whose dimensions are often quite high on both phenotypes and variants. Testing their association with multiple phenotypes has been a hot topic in recent years. Traditional single phenotype multiple variant analysis has to be adjusted for multiple testing and thus suffers from substantial power loss due to ignorance of correlation across phenotypes. Similarity-based method, which uses the trace of product of two similarity matrices as a test statistic, has emerged as a useful tool to handle this problem. However, it loses power when the correlation strength within multiple phenotypes is middle or strong, for some signals represented by the eigenvalues of phenotypic similarity matrix are masked by others. We propose a divided-and-combined omnibus test to handle this drawback of the similarity-based method. Based on the divided-and-combined strategy, we first divide signals into two groups in a series of cut points according to eigenvalues of the phenotypic similarity matrix and combine analysis results via the Cauchy-combined method to reach a final statistic. Extensive simulations and application to a pig data demonstrate that the proposed statistic is much more powerful and robust than the original test under most of the considered scenarios, and sometimes the power increase can be more than 0.6. Divided-and-combined omnibus test facilitates genetic association analysis with high-dimensional data and achieves much higher power than the existing similarity based method. In fact, divided-and-combined omnibus test can be used whenever the association analysis between two multivariate variables needs to be conducted.
Governing Through Scalar Elasticity: An Analysis of the Accountability Gap in Migration Control in the Central Mediterranean
Authors: Santer Kiri Olivia
Published: January 2023

Accountability has become elusive in the context of migration control, especially at the external borders of the EU. In the Central Mediterranean, a regime of cooperative interdiction has developed since 2017 whereby migrants fleeing the North African shores by boat are intercepted and forcibly returned to Libya, without ever entering European jurisdiction. This article scrutinises practices of strategic litigation by Italian lawyers who have sought to destabilise this regime of externalised control, which emerged after the 2017 Libya–Italy Memorandum of Understanding. It outlines the difficulties of litigation seeking to challenge deterrence measures and shows the variety of actions lawyers have had to come up with to address Europe and Italy's role in this system. The analysis of this litigation sheds light on the dynamic shape that both sovereignty and migration control take on in transnational contexts of governance, and how legal scales become blurred across local, national, and international jurisdictions. I argue that accountability for migration control is rendered elusive by the fact that Europe's external maritime border is governed via scalar elasticity. In practice, this is a form of governance that takes place across a multiplicity of legal scales, whilst authoritatively referring to statist scalar visions
Language, Mother-Tongue Education and Sustainable Development: Some Reflections on Gandhian Thought
Authors: Pandey Avinash Rambachan
Published: January 2023

Mother-tongue education has increasingly become a keyword in formulations of development goals, especially the Sustainable Development Goals (2015) . Achievement of these goals acquires a grave sense of urgency in light of the ever-increasing threat to the very fabric of our linguistic diversity. The basic premise of this article is that Gandhian thought can serve as a guiding principle in our struggle to stem the tsunami of language endangerment. Engagement with Gandhian thought enables us to critically examine the current presuppositions about development and the role of language in nation-building (especially in schools) and also inspires us to look for more sustainable alternatives.

This article aims at examining the linguistic world order that Gandhi envisaged—an order where languages do not encroach upon each other. In postulating such a world order, Gandhi shows a keen awareness of the dangers that languages such as English could pose to mother tongues. Furthermore, diversity is not seen as a ‘management’ problem but rather a necessary condition for all that is human. Emphasis on ensuring that the child in school is an active producer rather than a passive consumer of knowledge, as well as envisaging the school as a resource centre for the neighbourhood ensures that the mother tongues (L-languages) and languages taught in schools (H-languages) enter into a harmonious and symmetrical pedagogical relationship rather than a relationship of violent conflict, which characterises the current linguistic world-order. The article argues that such a pedagogical relationship serves as a necessary component of any sustainable developmental paradigm.
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of CAR T-Cell Therapies vs Antibody Drug Conjugates for Patients with Advanced Multiple Myeloma
Authors: Kapinos Kandice A. , Hu Ellen , Trivedi Jigar , Geethakumari Praveen Ramakrishnan , Kansagra Ankit
Published: January 2023

Objectives

Among advanced multiple myeloma (MM) patients, B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) specific targets like Belantamab Mafodotin (belamaf) and CAR T-cell therapies have been shown to improve clinical outcomes, but at significant costs. To compare the expected costs per quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained among a hypothetical cohort of triple refractory MM patients treated with one of three BCMA-directed therapies: (1) idecabtagene vicleucel (ide-cel), (2) ciltacabtagene autoleucel (cilta-cel), and (3) belamaf for up to 20 months.

Methods

In this cost-effectiveness analysis, we built a Monte Carlo Markov Chain microsimulation model using estimates and parameters from the evidence on MM treatment for 10 000 hypothetical patients between the ages for 40 and 80. We assigned expected years of life remaining and made varying assumptions about survival beyond 5 years

Results

We predicted total cost of treatment for CAR-T therapy to be six times greater than for belamaf, but the QALYs gained from treatment are 6 to 8 times greater. Ide-cel was weakly dominated by cilta-cel and our base-case incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER) comparing cilta-cel with belamaf was $109,497 per QALY gained, averaging $123,618 in probabilistic sensitivity analyses.

Conclusions

These findings hinge on the assumption of longer-term survival but suggest that the use of CAR-T therapy is approaching standard ICER thresholds.
Revealing the Meaning of Cannabis Use as an Occupation: A Scoping Review
Authors: Guyonnet Emma , Stewart Katherine E , Davis Jane A
Published: January 2023

Background:

Occupational science and occupational therapy typically perceive occupations as promoting health and well-being. However, this perspective overlooks the many occupations that are viewed as illegal, unhealthy, or risky, such as drug use. Due to its negative association with health, drug use is perceived as not holding significance or meaning in people’s lives.

Objective:

This study explores how individuals perceive and describe the meaning of their cannabis use in the context of their lives, from an occupational perspective.

Methods:

A scoping review was conducted using Levac et al.’ modifications to Arksey and O’Malley’s framework. To examine the peer-reviewed literature, 7 databases were searched using terms related to cannabis and meaning. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the selected studies, and reflexive thematic analysis identified cross-study themes.

Results:

Fourteen studies were selected. Most studies have been published since 2008, with 5 published in the last 2 years. Four themes were identified across the studies: (a) preserving life; (b) navigating the routines of everyday life; (c) understanding the self, identity, and belonging; and (d) expanding the view of the world.

Conclusions:

Cannabis use was revealed in this study as a support for navigating occupational routines and enhancing occupational repertoires and engagement, feelings of belonging, and collective user identities. As such, substance abuse treatment practices, including those provided by occupational therapists, should recognize the potential significance of cannabis use within people’s lives. Using a harm reduction approach, occupational therapists can acknowledge the ways in which clients use cannabis to manage their daily routines, while also focusing on supporting clients to reduce the ill-effects of cannabis. As individuals become more engaged in occupations that are significant in their lives, their need for and meaning of cannabis use may change leading to a possible reduction in its use and a shift in their identity construction.
Micro- and macro-scale characterization of the microstructure and scratch resistance of the 5083-anodic aluminum oxide film
Authors: Abid Mohamed , Fortes da Cruz Julien , Kchaou Mohamed , Haboussi Mohamed
Published: January 2023

This paper focuses on the thickness, microstructural, and scratch resistance of the sulfuric oxide layer of 5083-aluminum alloy for different anodizing durations/reaction times (RT = 30, 60, and 90 min). The thickness and the microstructure analyses were carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and ImageJ post-processing software. The scratch resistance was investigated using macro- and micro-scratch tests. Experimental results revealed that the oxide layer was covered by larger-sized microcavities and a thicker oxide layer for 90 min RT. Moreover, the area, which was covered by microcavities percentage, was decreased for 60 min RT and increased for 90 min RT. Besides, using the macro-scratch test, and when increasing RT, no micro-cracks were detected inside the scratch mark. Nerveless, the increasing of the normal load was shown that the oxide layer was more resistant to scratch. Finally, the 5083-aluminum alloy oxide layer had a high-scratch resistance such as a weak penetration depth and a low friction coefficient.