bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A prospective study on the prevalence of MASLD in people with type‐2 diabetes in the community. Cost effectiveness of screening strategies
Authors: Forlano Roberta , Stanic Tijana , Jayawardana Sahan , Mullish Benjamin Harvey , Yee Michael , Mossialos Elias , Goldin Robert , Petta Salvatore , Tsochatzis Emmanouil , Thursz Mark , Manousou Pinelopi
Published: September 2023

Background and Aims

As screening for the liver disease and risk‐stratification pathways are not established in patients with type‐2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), we evaluated the diagnostic performance and the cost‐utility of different screening strategies for MASLD in the community.

Methods

Consecutive patients with T2DM from primary care underwent screening for liver diseases, ultrasound, ELF score and transient elastography (TE). Five strategies were compared to the standard of care: ultrasound plus abnormal liver function tests (LFTs), Fibrosis score‐4 (FIB‐4), NAFLD fibrosis score, Enhanced liver fibrosis test (ELF) and TE. Standard of care was defined as abnormal LFTs prompting referral to hospital. A Markov model was built based on the fibrosis stage, defined by TE. We generated the cost per quality‐adjusted life year (QALY) gained and calculated the incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio (ICER) over a lifetime horizon.

Results

Of 300 patients, 287 were included: 64% (186) had MASLD and 10% (28) had other causes of liver disease. Patients with significant fibrosis, advanced fibrosis, and cirrhosis due to MASLD were 17% (50/287), 11% (31/287) and 3% (8/287), respectively. Among those with significant fibrosis classified by LSM≥8.1 kPa, false negatives were 54% from ELF and 38% from FIB‐4. On multivariate analysis, waist circumference, BMI, AST levels and education rank were independent predictors of significant and advanced fibrosis. All the screening strategies were associated with QALY gains, with TE (148.73 years) having the most substantial gains, followed by FIB‐4 (134.07 years), ELF (131.68 years) and NAFLD fibrosis score (121.25 years). In the cost‐utility analysis, ICER was £2480/QALY for TE, £2541.24/QALY for ELF and £2059.98/QALY for FIB‐4.

Conclusion

Screening for MASLD in the diabetic population in primary care is cost‐effective and should become part of a holistic assessment. However, traditional screening strategies, including FIB‐4 and ELF, underestimate the presence of significant liver disease in this setting.
The genetics of portal hypertension: Recent developments and the road ahead
Authors: Shalaby Sarah , Ronzoni Luisa , Hernandez‐Gea Virginia , Valenti Luca
Published: September 2023

Portal hypertension (PH), defined as a pathological increase in the portal vein pressure, has different aetiologies and causes. Intrahepatic PH is mostly secondary to the presence of underlying liver disease leading to cirrhosis, characterized by parenchymal changes with deregulated accumulation of extracellular matrix and vascular abnormalities; liver sinusoidal endothelial cells and hepatic stellate cells are key players in PH progression, able to influence each other. However, PH may also develop independently of parenchymal damage, as occur in portosinusoidal vascular disorder (PSVD), a group of clinical and histological entities characterized by portal vasculature dysfunctions. In this particular group of disorders, the pathophysiology of PH is still poorly understood. In the last years, several genetic studies, based on genome‐wide association studies or whole‐exome sequencing analysis, have highlighted the importance of genetic heritability in PH pathogenesis, both in cirrhotic and non‐cirrhotic cases. The common PNPLA3 p.I148M variant, one of the main determinants of the susceptibility to steatotic liver disease, has also been associated with decompensation in patients with PH. Genetic variations at loci influencing coagulation, mainly the ABO locus, may directly contribute to the pathogenesis of PH. Rare genetic variants have been associated with familiar cases of progressive PSVD. In this review, we summarize the recent knowledges on genetic variants predisposing to PH development, contributing to better understand the role of genetic factors in PH pathogenesis.
Intelligent recognition of joints and fissures in tunnel faces using an improved mask region‐based convolutional neural network algorithm
Authors: Lei Ming‐Feng , Zhang Yun‐Bo , Deng E , Ni Yi‐Qing , Xiao Yong‐Zhuo , Zhang Yang , Zhang Jun‐Jie
Published: September 2023

To address the challenges of low recognition accuracy, low robustness, and low detection efficiency in existing tunnel face joint and fissure recognition methods, we present a deep learning recognition segmentation algorithm called the mask region convolutional neural network (Mask R‐CNN) that is enhanced by an advanced Transformer attention mechanism and deformable convolution network (Mask R‐CNN‐TD). The Transformer attention mechanism improves the backbone network's ability to extract image features by focusing on important areas. A deformable convolutional network enables the network to more precisely conform to the morphological characteristics of joints and fissures on the tunnel face, thereby enhancing the accuracy of detection. Experimental results demonstrate that Mask R‐CNN‐TD achieves superior performance, compared to Mask R‐CNN series algorithms and other instance segmentation methods in terms of detection accuracy, with mean average precision scores of 70.5%, 70.8%, 53.2%, and 63.3% for detection box and mask segmentation at thresholds of 0.5 and 0.75, respectively. Based on the stable and efficient Mask R‐CNN‐TD model, we developed a mobile application called tunnel face detector to automatically detect tunnel faces on the construction site.
Neuroactive metabolites modulated by the gut microbiota in honey bees
Authors: Cabirol Amélie , Moriano‐Gutierrez Silvia , Engel Philipp
Published: September 2023

Honey bees have emerged as a new model to study the gut–brain axis, as they exhibit complex social behaviors and cognitive abilities, while experiments with gnotobiotic bees have revealed that their gut microbiota alters both brain and behavioral phenotypes. Furthermore, while honey bee brain functions supporting a broad range of behaviors have been intensively studied for over 50 years, the gut microbiota of bees has been experimentally characterized only recently. Here, we combined six published datasets from metabolomic analyses to provide an overview of the neuroactive metabolites whose abundance in the gut, hemolymph and brain varies in presence of the gut microbiota. Such metabolites may either be produced by gut bacteria, released from the pollen grains during their decomposition by bacteria, or produced by other organs in response to different bacterial products. We describe the current state of knowledge regarding the impact of such metabolites on brain function and behavior and provide further hypotheses to explore in this emerging field of research.
Food and nutrient intake of adolescent women in Medellín, Colombia
Authors: Restrepo‐Mesa Sandra L. , Correa Guzmán Nathalia , Manjarrés Correa Luz M. , Duque Franco Luz , Bergeron Gilles
Published: September 2023

Nutritional imbalance in adolescent girls causes alterations in health, reproductive cycles, and fetal outcomes of future generations. To evaluate the dietary pattern and prevalence of inadequate nutrient intake, a 24‐hour multi‐step food recall was carried out among 793 adolescent women (14–20 years old) from Medellin, Colombia. Their dietary pattern was characterized by lower than recommended intakes of fruits and vegetables (CRI 0.4, AMD 0.2), dairy (CRI 0.5, AMD 0.2), and proteins (CRI 0.8, AMD 0.3), while starches (CRI 1.2, AMD 0.4), fats (CRI 1.1, AMD 0.6), and sugars (CRI 1.0, AMD 0.5) were at similar or higher levels than recommendations. A high risk of deficiency was found in the usual intake of energy (53.0%), protein (39.8%), calcium (98.9%), folates (85.7%), iron (74.4%), thiamine (44.3%), vitamin C (31.3%), zinc (28.3%), vitamin A (23.4%), cyanocobalamin (17.3%), and pyridoxine (10.9%). A low risk of deficiency was noted in usual fiber intake (0.5%), and a higher than recommended intake was noted in saturated fat (100.0%) and simple carbohydrates (68.8%). Anecdotally, a large proportion of respondents saw decreases in their food consumption during the COVID‐19 pandemic. These results suggest an urgent need for nutrition education programs to emphasize the importance of adequate nutrition among adolescent women.
“Order and adventure”: The political in Paul Auster's 4321
Authors: Zhang Meiping
Published: September 2023

Paul Auster's 4321 is on the surface organized around a multiplication of one's life story. This essay argues that the kind of textual multiplication developed in the novel can also be linked with an essential need to express the depth and breadth of the political. Looking at three forms of expression—journalism, film, and poetry—it analyzes their functions in creating openings into a public realm departing from normative conceptions of collectivity and identification, which then leads to a rethinking of the common through the multiplicities of experience.
Fusobacterium nucleatum triggers senescence phenotype in gingival epithelial cells
Authors: Albuquerque‐Souza Emmanuel , Shelling Benjamin , Jiang Min , Xia Xia‐Juan , Rattanaprukskul Kantapon , Sahingur Sinem Esra
Published: September 2023

The prevalence of periodontitis increases with physiological aging. However, whether bacteria associated with periodontal diseases foster aging and the mechanisms by which they may do so are unknown. Herein, we hypothesize that Fusobacterium nucleatum, a microorganism associated with periodontitis and several other age‐related disorders, triggers senescence, a chief hallmark of aging responsible to reduce tissue repair capacity. Our study analyzed the senescence response of gingival epithelial cells and their reparative capacity upon long‐term exposure to F. nucleatum. Specifically, we assessed (a) cell cycle arrest by analyzing the cyclin‐dependent kinase inhibitors p16INK4a and p14ARF and their downstream cascade (pRb, p53, and p21) at both gene and protein levels, (b) lysosomal mediated dysfunction by using assays targeting the expression and activity of the senescence‐associated β‐galactosidase (SA‐β‐Gal) enzyme, and (c) nuclear envelope breakdown by assessing the expression of Lamin‐B1. The consequences of the senescence phenotype mediated by F. nucleatum were further assessed using wound healing assays. Our results revealed that prolonged exposure to F. nucleatum promotes an aging‐like phenotype as evidenced by the increased expression of pro‐senescence markers (p16INK4a, p21, and pRb) and SA‐β‐Gal activity and reduced expression of the counter‐balancing cascade (p14ARF and p53) and Lamin‐B1. Furthermore, we also noted impaired wound healing capacity of gingival epithelial cells upon prolong bacterial exposure, which was consistent with the senescence‐induced phenotype. Together, our findings provide a proof‐of‐concept evidence that F. nucleatum triggers a pro‐senescence response in gingival epithelial cells. This might affect periodontal tissue homeostasis by reducing its repair capacity and, consequently, increasing susceptibility to periodontitis during aging.
Juche in the broader context of Korean philosophy
Authors: Kim Hannah H.
Published: September 2023

There is ongoing debate on whether Juche (주체/主體), the North Korean state ideology, is indigenous, Marxist‐Leninist, or Confucian—or if its a real philosophy at all. In this article, I introduce Juche and show how characteristics that philosophers identify to be unique or pronounced in premodern Korean philosophy can be found in Juche as well. Intellectual adaptation, pragmaticism, and an emphasis on continual improvement are prominent in both premodern Korean thought and Juche. Juche should be understood as a politically inflected outgrowth that is embedded within the larger context of Korean philosophy.
PrEP‐aring stylists: Development of a stylist educational workshop to increase PrEP awareness and knowledge among Black women in the US south
Authors: Johnson Ragan , Conley Cherie , Jeter Elizabeth , Randolph Schenita D.
Published: September 2023

Background

Black cis‐gender women are disparately affected by HIV and require prioritization in prevention efforts, including pre‐exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Preparing trusted community leaders such as salon stylists as health‐based opinion leaders may be promising to increasing awareness, knowledge, and uptake of PrEP among Black women. We sought to develop training and better understand stylists who may participate in a salon‐based PrEP intervention for Black women.

Methods

A community‐research partnership designed a stylist training workshop for stylists with a majority Black women clientele. A two‐session workshop focused on HIV knowledge, HIV prevention including PrEP, and the role of an opinion leader to influence community social and health norms. An exploratory research design and analysis was conducted to examine stylists and provide training feedback.

Conclusions

Stylists showed a high level of knowledge and willingness to serve as an opinion leader in their salons and with their communities. Stylists also verified medical mistrust in the healthcare system that makes community‐based interventions attractive. This article discusses how the training was piloted and accepted by stylists.
The immunomodulatory effects of the C‐type lectin protein of Toxocara canis on experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis
Authors: Etebar Fazeleh , Hosseini Seyed Hossein , Borhani Zarandi Mehdi , Moghadasi Abdorreza Naser , Jalousian Fateme
Published: September 2023

Toxocara canis is a global zoonosis infection that can cause chronic and long‐term toxocariasis in their paratenic host. The excretory‐secretory (ES) products of T. canis larvae are considered to be responsible for the Th2 polarization and regulatory immune responses in toxocariasis. The C‐type lectin family is one of the most prominent components of ES products of T. canis infective larvae. This study aimed to investigate the ameliorative effect of a T. canis C‐type lectin recombinant protein (rCTL), on experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) which is a T‐cell‐mediated autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. C57BL/6 mice were subcutaneously treated with 30 μg rCTL, three times at an interval of 1 week. EAE was induced by myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein 35–55 peptide (MOG35‐55 peptide) immunization, and weight and clinical scores were evaluated. Real time polymerase chain reaction was performed to evaluate the expression levels of T‐bet, Gata3, and Foxp3 in splenocytes. In addition, the levels of interleukin 4, interferon gamma, and tumour growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) were quantified by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay in splenocyte culture supernatants. The results indicated that the rCTL decreased clinical disability scores and delayed the onset of EAE. Furthermore, the data showed that rCTL treatment modulated the immune response, which was associated with upregulation of the mRNA expression of the Foxp3 gene and higher production of TGF‐β in rCTL‐treated mice. This study demonstrated that rCTL might be a potential agent to ameliorate EAE symptoms by stimulating anti‐inflammatory responses.
‘Materie piacevolissime da leggere e utili da essequire’: The introductory letters in Leonardo Fioravanti's Capricci medicinali
Authors: Katinis Teodoro
Published: September 2023

This contribution examines the changes in the type and sequence of paratexts at the beginning of Leonardo Fioravanti’s Capricci medicinali from the first edition (1561) to the 1680 edition. The aim of this paper is to study the building of a selfimage and promotion of Fioravanti and his medicine via the paratextual letters. This was the first and most published of Fioravanti’s works which spread in Venice, one of the most vital book markets of sixteenth‐century Europe, and attracted the attention of publishers and public. After a description of the different paratextual elements, this contribution briefly focuses on two specific texts, i.e., Dionigi Atanagi’s letter in praise of Fioravanti as an ideal physician and writer of medical matter, and Fioravanti's Ragionamento. Self‐care and self‐fashioning serve each other and collaborate to draw as much attention as possible on the Capricci but also on its author and even on Atanagi, a most popular polygraph at that time, as an ideal reader of the work. The parallel narration of those two texts creates a fruitful echo effect that amplifies the results and possibly contributed to the success of the Capricci medicinali.
Specificity, frequency, and intent: Multiple characteristics of adolescents' suicide plan correlate with their history of suicidal behavior
Authors: Beaton Maura A. , Gratch Ilana , Cha Christine B.
Published: September 2023

Background

Suicide plans (SP) can be a common precipitant to suicidal behavior (SB) during adolescence, and SPs can vary in how specific they are, how frequently they are thought about, and how strongly they are intended to be enacted. To date, we have limited understanding of how discrete SP characteristics (i.e., specificity, frequency, and intent to act) present among adolescents, and whether they relate to SB. In the current study, we investigated SP characteristics and their association with SB history among adolescents who had previously considered suicide.

Methods

Participants were 142 community‐based adolescents (14–19 years; M = 17.6, SD = 1.4) who reported a history of suicidal ideation. Adolescents provided responses pertaining to their SP history, SP characteristics, and SB history, via the Self‐Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Interview‐Revised (SITBI‐R).

Results

Greater specificity, frequency, and intent were each associated with modestly increased odds of reporting an SB history. The associations between plan specificity and SB history, as well as between frequency of thinking about one's SP and SB history, were mediated by adolescents' intent to act on their SP.

Conclusions

It may not only be whether, but how, adolescents plan for suicide that relates to their tendency to engage in SB.
Design and practice of an emergency blood allocation system based on radiofrequency identification technology
Authors: Xie Shuhong , Cao Yan , Shen Xixi , Tian Chuan , Wang Mingyuan
Published: September 2023

Background and Objectives

Currently, blood allocation is solely done by scanning barcode labels for each bag of blood, with low efficiency. However, the rapid allocation of emergency blood is required owing to the rapid increase in blood consumption during unconventional emergencies. This study aimed to design and apply radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology for the rapid allocation of blood in batches with advantages in time, efficiency and accuracy.

Materials and Methods

A blood emergency allocation system based on RFID technology was designed using a multi‐label anti‐collision algorithm and tested with automatic information check, a comparative study of scanning speed and accuracy, data analysis and other methods.

Results

The optimal packing quantities of suspended red blood cells and fresh frozen plasma were 40 and 50 bags per box, respectively. The application of rapid batch allocation of blood using RFID technology was performed, and the data sent and received by RFID scanning and barcode scanning were compared.

Conclusion

The designed RFID blood emergency allocation system could effectively achieve the rapid and batch allocation of emergency blood and has the advantages of stability, efficiency and accuracy in blood emergency allocation and management.
Increasing the time‐to‐freezing for clinical apheresis plasma meets quality specifications
Authors: Winter Kelly M. , Webb Rachel G. , Mazur Eugenia , Ismay Sue , Marinakis Dimitra , Marks Denese C.
Published: September 2023

Background and Objectives

In Australia, the vast distances between blood collection centres and processing facilities make it challenging to align supply with demand. Increasing the time to freezing for clinical plasma beyond 6 h would alleviate supply issues. This study aimed to determine the quality of clinical apheresis plasma frozen within 12 h of collection.

Materials and Methods

Apheresis plasma (n = 20) collected at donor centres was immediately transported to a blood processing facility, stored at 26°C and sampled aseptically at 6, 8 and 12 h post collection. Frozen samples were thawed, and coagulation factors (F) II, V, VII, VIII and XIII, von Willebrand factor (vWF) and fibrinogen were measured using a coagulation analyser.

Results

FVIII concentrations declined in plasma frozen at 6, 8 and 12 h post collection (1.22 ± 0.27, 1.21 ± 0.25 and 1.16 ± 0.24 IU/mL, respectively) but not significantly (p = 0.3338). Importantly, all components met the FVIII specification (>0.7 IU/mL) for clinical plasma. Fibrinogen concentrations were stable from 6 to 12 h (p = 0.3100), as were vWF concentrations (p = 0.1281). Coagulation factors II, V, VII and XIII were not significantly different (p > 0.05 for all factors).

Conclusion

Clinical apheresis plasma can be frozen within 12 h of collection, allowing collections from donor centres further from processing centres and increasing supply.
Lagrangian configurations and Hamiltonian maps
Authors: Polterovich Leonid , Shelukhin Egor
Published: September 2023

We study configurations of disjoint Lagrangian submanifolds in certain low-dimensional symplectic manifolds from the perspective of the geometry of Hamiltonian maps. We detect infinite-dimensional flats in the Hamiltonian group of the two-sphere equipped with Hofer's metric, prove constraints on Lagrangian packing, find instances of Lagrangian Poincaré recurrence, and present a new hierarchy of normal subgroups of area-preserving homeomorphisms of the two-sphere. The technology involves Lagrangian spectral invariants with Hamiltonian term in symmetric product orbifolds.
Selective symplectic homology with applications to contact non-squeezing
Authors: Uljarević Igor
Published: September 2023

We prove a contact non-squeezing phenomenon on homotopy spheres that are fillable by Liouville domains with large symplectic homology: there exists a smoothly embedded ball in such a sphere that cannot be made arbitrarily small by a contact isotopy. These homotopy spheres include examples that are diffeomorphic to standard spheres and whose contact structures are homotopic to standard contact structures. As the main tool, we construct a new version of symplectic homology, called selective symplectic homology, that is associated to a Liouville domain and an open subset of its boundary. The selective symplectic homology is obtained as the direct limit of Floer homology groups for Hamiltonians whose slopes tend to $+\infty$ on the open subset but remain close to $0$ and positive on the rest of the boundary.
Mints not Mines: a macroscale investigation of Roman silver coinage
Authors:   University of Liverpool, Wood Jonathan R. , Ponting Matthew ,   University of Liverpool, Butcher Kevin ,   University of Warwick
Published: September 2023

Although silver coins have been investigated through the lens of geological provenance to locate argentiferous ore deposits exploited in their production, we consider that this avenue of research may be a cul-de-sac, especially for studies that rely heavily on deciphering lead and silver isotope signatures that may have been altered by the addition of lead and copper (and their associated impurities) during silver refining and debasement, and by ancient recycling of coinage. Instead, we focus our attention on mints, by analysing the compositions of over 1000 silver coins from the early 1st century BC to AD 100. We propose that lead from the west Mediterranean was used exclusively to refine silver at mints in the West, and that an unknown lead supply (possibly from Macedonia), used in the East by the Late Seleucid ruler Philip I Philadelphus and later Mark Antony, was mixed with western lead. Extensive mixing of lead and/or silver coins is particularly evident under Nero and Vespasian, aligning with historically attested periods of recycling following currency reform. We further propose that coins minted in the kingdom of Mauretania used different lead and silver sources from the majority of coins minted in the western Mediterranean, and that silver coins minted at Tyre are derived from silver refined in the west Mediterranean. Coinage minted at Alexandria is consistent with debasement of recycled Roman denarii, thereby suggesting that denarii were deliberately removed from circulation to mint tetradrachms during the early Imperial Roman period.
An Improved Static Model for Bidirectional Notched Continuum Robot Considering the Cable Tension Loss
Authors: Wang Zhengyu , Jia Zirui , Qian Sen , Wang Daoming , Yu Xiang , Liu Xuchang
Published: September 2023

The notched continuum mechanism is particularly suitable for natural orifice transluminal surgery benefiting from its small size and hollow structure. However, the widely used kinematic model based on constant curvature assumption does not reveal the actual deformation of the continuum mechanism, and its control accuracy is unstable, while the general mechanics model has the problem that the tension of the distal driving cable is difficult to measure. In this paper, a nonconstant curvature static model for a bidirectional V-shaped notched continuum mechanism is presented. The deformation of each part of the continuum mechanism from the distal end to the proximal end is analyzed in turn. The tension loss of the driving cable caused by the contact with the continuum mechanism is modeled using the capstan equation. The recursive equation between the deformation of each part of the continuum mechanism from the proximal end is derived, which can be solved numerically. The bending state of the continuum mechanism can then be estimated when only the tension of the proximal flexible cable is known. The model is experimentally verified by driving the continuum mechanism to move at a very low speed. The experiment results show that the estimation effect of the proposed model is significantly improved compared with that of the constant curvature model.
Design and Implementation of Upper-Body Exoskeleton for Assistance of Individuals With Manual Handling Tasks
Authors: Chen Bing , Ni Xiang , Zi Bin , Xu Qingsong , Qian Jun
Published: September 2023

This paper illustrates the design and testing of an upper-body exoskeleton for the assistance of individuals with load-lifting and load-carrying tasks, and the provided assistive force can well match with the force required by the human. First, the biomechanics of the human lumbar during the squat lifting of an object is described. Next, the modeling of the exoskeleton is introduced. Additionally, the hardware design of the exoskeleton is presented. The exoskeleton is mainly composed of a back-assist mechanism and an upper extremity labor-saving mechanism, which can assist the wearer’s lumbar during the squat lifting of an object and assist the wearer’s arms to carry an object during walking, respectively. Finally, experiments are conducted to evaluate the performance of the developed upper-body exoskeleton. The experimental results demonstrate that the exoskeleton has the potential to provide assistance for individuals with manual handling tasks. An average assistive force of 44.8 N can be provided for the wearer to lift a 10-kg object. During the squat lifting of the 10-kg object, reductions of 31.86% and 28.30% of the average muscle activities of the wearer’s lumbar erector spinae and thoracic erector spinae are observed, respectively. In addition, a reduction of 23.78% of the average muscle activity of the wearer’s biceps brachii is observed during walking while carrying the 10-kg object.
Growth and optical properties of NiO thin films deposited by pulsed dc reactive magnetron sputtering
Authors: A. F. Lahiji Faezeh , Bairagi Samiran , Magnusson Roger , Sortica Mauricio A. , Primetzhofer Daniel , Ekström Erik , Paul Biplab , le Febvrier Arnaud , Eklund Per
Published: September 2023

NiO thin films with varied oxygen contents are grown on Si(100) and c-Al2O3 at a substrate temperature of 300 °C using pulsed dc reactive magnetron sputtering. We characterize the structure and optical properties of NiO changes as functions of the oxygen content. NiO with the cubic structure, single phase, and predominant orientation along (111) is found on both substrates. X-ray diffraction and pole figure analysis further show that NiO on the Si(100) substrate exhibits fiber-textured growth, while twin domain epitaxy was achieved on c-Al2O3, with NiO(111)∥Al2O3(0001) and NiO[11¯0]∥Al2O3[101¯0] or NiO[1¯10]∥Al2O3[21¯1¯0] epitaxial relationship. The oxygen content in NiO films did not have a significant effect on the refractive index, extinction coefficient, and absorption coefficient. This suggests that the optical properties of NiO films remained unaffected by changes in the oxygen content.
Cluster-aware channel estimation with deep learning method in deep-water acoustic communications
Authors: Wang Diya , Zhang Yonglin , Tai Yupeng , Wu Lixin , Wang Haibin , Wang Jun , Luo Wenyu , Meriaudeau Fabrice , Yang Fan
Published: September 2023

In underwater acoustic (UWA) communications, channels often exhibit a clustered-sparse structure, wherein most of the channel impulse responses are near zero, and only a small number of nonzero taps assemble to form clusters. Several algorithms have used the time-domain sparse characteristic of UWA channels to reduce the complexity of channel estimation and improve the accuracy. Employing the clustered structure to enhance channel estimation performance provides another promising research direction. In this work, a deep learning-based channel estimation method for UWA orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems is proposed that leverages the clustered structure information. First, a cluster detection model based on convolutional neural networks is introduced to detect the cluster of UWA channels. This method outperforms the traditional Page test algorithm with better accuracy and robustness, particularly in low signal-to-noise ratio conditions. Based on the cluster detection model, a cluster-aware distributed compressed sensing channel estimation method is proposed, which reduces the noise-induced errors by exploiting the joint sparsity between adjacent OFDM symbols and limiting the search space of channel delay spread. Numerical simulation and sea trial results are provided to illustrate the superior performance of the proposed approach in comparison with existing sparse UWA channel estimation methods.
Effect of initial temperature on the plastic deformation of Al/Ni self-propagation welding by molecular dynamics study
Authors: Li Junchen , Bao Yanfei , Ren Junqiang , Wang Yu , Lu Xuefeng , Xue Hongtao , Tang Fuling
Published: September 2023

This study investigates the impact of initial temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of welded components, using molecular dynamics (MD). The stress–strain curves of the welded components, following various initial temperature treatments, revealed a double yielding phenomenon. Notably, there was a significant strain difference of 19.7% between the two yields. When the strain was loaded to the point of doubling yielding, stacking faults and twins covered the aluminum component part, while no such observations were made in the nickel component part. Additionally, tensile cracking occurred in the aluminum component part. The results indicate that treatment at varying initial temperatures alters the internal structure of the welded components. After the material yielded the first time, a significant number of disordered atoms and Shockley partial dislocations emerge, resulting in a substantial buildup of dislocation tangles and reduced dislocation migration rates. Consequently, the material exhibits a phenomenon of double yielding, with dislocation slip and deformation serving as the primary mechanisms. The optimal mechanical properties of the welded components achieved an initial temperature of 200[Formula: see text]K. Additionally, the effect of tensile temperature on the mechanical properties of the welded components were analyzed, and similar observations of double yielding were made. The significant number of dislocation tangles served as a barrier to dislocation slip, effectively enhancing the material’s mechanical properties. The simulation results provide theoretical support for the development of aluminum–nickel multilayer film self-propagation welding process.
Ultra-wideband polarization-insensitive microwave absorber with a composite of CIP and TPU
Authors: Ye Yifen , Yi Xuran , Chen Kejian
Published: September 2023

This paper presents an ultra-wideband microwave absorber with a composite of carbonyl iron powder (CIP) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material and a wide-angle absorption stacked cross structure. The simulation results show that although the total thickness is less than 3.21[Formula: see text]mm, the proposed device can achieve high absorption (over 90%) in the range of 7.55–100[Formula: see text]GHz, and the total bandwidth is 92.45[Formula: see text]GHz, with a relative bandwidth of 172%. In addition, the absorber is insensitive to the polarization characteristics of incident electromagnetic waves and can achieve a wide incident angle absorption of up to 60∘.
Singular integrals in QED corrections of three-body systems
Authors: Qi Xiao-Qiu , Zhong Zhen-Xiang , Zhang Pei-Pei
Published: September 2023

Singular integrals that appear in calculations of quantum electrodynamic (QED) corrections for three-body Coulomb systems are studied using Hylleraas coordinates. A general scheme is developed to separate divergent parts of singular integrals involving Hylleraas basis functions. Subsequently, the obtained singular integrals can be used in the calculations of QED corrections. The numerical results of two typical operators that appear in [Formula: see text] order QED corrections are precisely calculated. The leading radiative corrections are presented as well. These singular integrals would be intensively used in the calculations of high-order QED corrections for three-body systems such as helium, lithium ions, and hydrogen molecular ions.
EFFECT ON MUSCLE STRENGTH DURING LIFTING TASKS WITH WEARABLE SUIT USING WIRE AND ELASTIC BANDs
Authors: LEE KWANG-HEE , YU MI , KWON TAE-KYU
Published: September 2023

Recently, as modern people’s consumption trends have been concentrated on contactless consumption such as online shopping since the 2019 COVID-19 Pandemic, the delivery industry, which is in charge of physical movement of online consumption activities, has also seen a series of utilization and demand. However, in contrast to the rapidly increasing volume of couriers, the labor environment of courier workers is poor, and the rapid increase in demand for courier service after the 2019 COVID-19 Pandemic has led to the rise in musculoskeletal diseases in courier workers. Various muscle support systems such as wearable robots have been developed to prevent musculoskeletal diseases in industrial sites, but the system is bulky, so the total weight is high, they are inconvenient to wear, and the wearers cannot freely perform activities when power is not supplied. In this study, the disadvantages of hard wearable robot systems, such as weight and power supply, were supplemented through elastic rubber bands and wires. In addition, wearable suits were developed to reduce the load on the body, prevent overwork, verify the effectiveness of work clothes, and prevent musculoskeletal diseases in courier workers. The experiment was conducted to verify whether the wearable suit affects muscle strength assistance by measuring the muscle usage when lifting weight after measuring the Maximum Voluntary Contract (MVC). The lifting types were classified into three types, and the strength assistance effects of the waist and lower extremities according to the wearable suit were compared.
RELIABILITY OF STATIC BALANCE TEST IN FALLER AND NONFALLER PARKINSON DISEASE PATIENTS
Authors: KWON YU-RI , KIM JI-WON
Published: September 2023

Little is known about the reliability of center of pressure (COP) variables during static balance test in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Furthermore, reliability studies on fallers and nonfallers PD patients have not been explored. Therefore, our study investigated the test–retest reliability of COP outcome measures in faller and nonfaller PD patients. Eighty-one PD patients (49 nonfallers and 32 fallers) were recruited for measurement of static balance test. The patients maintained double-leg stance with feet on a force plate as stably as possible. To analyze the test–retest reliability of each COP outcome measures, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) statistical method was performed. Among COP outcome measures, mean velocity had the highest ICC value in faller patients ([Formula: see text]–0.915) and nonfaller patients ([Formula: see text]–0.960). Mean distance had excellent reliability in medio-lateral (ML) direction in both faller patients ([Formula: see text]) and nonfaller patients ([Formula: see text]). Ellipse area had excellent reliability in nonfaller patients ([Formula: see text]), but less reliability in faller patients ([Formula: see text]). Our results demonstrate that objective and quantitative balance assessment method is reliable in PD patients with or without a history of falls. On the other hand, it was not appropriate to use ellipse area to assess postural balance for faller PD patients. Our findings could be useful to develop an optimal balance protocol and apply appropriate COP outcome measures for PD patients.
Phytochemical Evaluation of Different Solvent Mediated Extracts and Brine Shrimp Lethality Bioassay of Psychotria octosulcata W. A. Talbot
Authors: Banurekha J. , Sangeetha M. , Mahendran C. , Muruganatham S. V.
Published: September 2023

Plants’ bioactive chemicals have been utilized throughout human history as supplements and medicines to support the body’s natural physiological processes. When their function is discovered, many substances are added for medical uses. Herbs are known to contain a variety of organic substances. These crucial herbs are the main ingredients in many pharmaceutical and healthcare products. Traditional folk medical practices offer essential information for the extraction and creation of numerous medications and activities as well. The production of a few highly active pharmaceuticals is justified by the extraction and characterization of a variety of bioactive chemicals from green factories. This study uses quantitative analysis of ethyl acetate, ethanol, n-hexane, chloroform and aqueous extract along with established methodologies to assess the phytochemicals. Alkaloids, flavonoids, reducing sugars, proteins, amino acids, saponins, tannins, terpenoids and glycosides were discovered in the quantification and phytochemical screening results. Due to the presence of several phytochemical substances, the entire plant of Psychotria octosulcata W. A. Talbotdemonstrated a diversity of medicinal potential. The cytotoxicity activity of the plant extracts was predicted using brine shrimp lethality assay (BSLA). The results showed that the shrimp in the ethanolic extract of Psychotria octosulcata W. A. Talbotare extremely hazardous in higher concentrations. Only 10 shrimps are discovered to be lethal at lowest concentrations even after 24 h. This can be due to the presence of bioactive substances.
PLATELET RICH FIBRIN EXTRACT APPLICATION IN CLINIC CORNEAL ULCER
Authors: Lin Sheng-Chuan , Lin Wan-Chi , Panthi Sankar , Hsuuw Yan-Der
Published: September 2023

Corneal injuries in pets cause severe suffering and vision impairment, creating significant challenges in the field of veterinary medicine. It is important to understand that the cornea lacks the inherent capability to regenerate itself through the administration of substances such as hyaluronic acid or antibiotics, which are commonly utilized by veterinarians for managing edema and infections in animals. It has been shown that platelet rich fibrin extract (PRFE) is effective in healing both deep corneal ulcers and superficial keratitis. In this case report, the use of PRFE in dogs and cats which showed promising results.
A Rate-Temperature-Dependent Visco-Hyperelastic Constitutive Model for UD CF/PEEK Prepregs During a One-Step Hot Stamping Forming Process
Authors: Lu Yan , Li Yibo , Yue Qiang , Liu Jingsong , Zhang Yong , Dong Lei
Published: September 2023

An anisotropic visco-hyperelastic constitutive model for rate-temperature-dependent deformation during one-step hot stamping forming simulation of unidirectional (UD) CF/PEEK prepregs is presented. This constitutive model is based on strain energy decomposition and a multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient. Two simple Maxwell models are used to characterize the viscoelastic behavior of the melted PEEK matrix and longitudinal shear deformation, respectively, and a shear invariant of [Formula: see text] is proposed to calculate the shear deformation. Moreover, the fiber stretching deformation is modeled by an anisotropic hyperelastic model. To obtain the model parameters, tensile tests at different strain rates and temperatures above the melt temperature of PEEK are performed on [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] CF/PEEK prepreg specimens, respectively. In parallel, the [0]8 and [45]8 curved beam specimens are experimentally fabricated to validate the constitutive model. The VUMAT subroutine is developed according to the proposed constitutive model and applied for a [Formula: see text] off-axis tensile simulation and hot-stamping forming simulation of CF/PEEK prepregs. The experimental and simulation results show that the materials flow, distribution of strain and stress, forming defects (wrinkles and overlap) of CF/PEEK curved beam can be captured by the proposed model.
Strong limit theorem for largest entry of large-dimensional random tensor
Authors: Ding Xue
Published: September 2023

Suppose that [Formula: see text] are i.i.d. copies of random vector [Formula: see text]. Let [Formula: see text] then the random tensor product constructed by [Formula: see text] is defined by [Formula: see text] In this paper, we obtain the strong limit theorems of the largest entry of large-dimensional random tensor product [Formula: see text] under two high-dimensional settings the polynomial rate and the exponential rate. The conclusions are established under weaker moment condition than the exist papers and the relationship between [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is more flexible.
TAPA: A Scalable Task-parallel Dataflow Programming Framework for Modern FPGAs with Co-optimization of HLS and Physical Design
Authors: Guo Licheng , Chi Yuze , Lau Jason , Song Linghao , Tian Xingyu , Khatti Moazin , Qiao Weikang , Wang Jie , Ustun Ecenur , Fang Zhenman , Zhang Zhiru , Cong Jason
Published: September 2023

In this article, we propose TAPA, an end-to-end framework that compiles a C++ task-parallel dataflow program into a high-frequency FPGA accelerator. Compared to existing solutions, TAPA has two major advantages. First, TAPA provides a set of convenient APIs that allows users to easily express flexible and complex inter-task communication structures. Second, TAPA adopts a coarse-grained floorplanning step during HLS compilation for accurate pipelining of potential critical paths. In addition, TAPA implements several optimization techniques specifically tailored for modern HBM-based FPGAs. In our experiments with a total of 43 designs, we improve the average frequency from 147 MHz to 297 MHz (a 102% improvement) with no loss of throughput and a negligible change in resource utilization. Notably, in 16 experiments, we make the originally unroutable designs achieve 274 MHz, on average. The framework is available at
https://github.com/UCLA-VAST/tapa
and the core floorplan module is available at
https://github.com/UCLA-VAST/AutoBridge
“What’s the Point of Having This Conversation?”: From a Telephone Crisis Helpline in Bangladesh to the Decolonization of Mental Health Services
Authors: Bhattacharjee Ananya , Sultana Sharifa , Amin Mohammad Ruhul , Iqbal Yeshim , Ahmed Syed Ishtiaque
Published: September 2023

Most of the HCI work on mental health is based on the Western metaphysical definition of mind that is less applicable outside the West. This article focuses on this issue and critically examines “
Kaan Pete Roi
” (KPR), a suicide prevention and emotional support helpline in Bangladesh, through an interview study with 20 participants. We find that KPR’s service, grounded in the “befriending” model—originating from the UK and emphasizing non-judgmental active listening without offering direct advice—often struggles to ensure callers’ safety, provide long-term support, and protect volunteers from harassment and distress. We argue that such failures are often rooted in some foundational ideas of the UK-born “befriending” model that underpins the service. Building on Enrique Dussel’s decolonial philosophy, we argue that “befriending” model and its underpinning Western metaphysical ideation of mind carry a colonial impulse, and we discuss how community-based approaches may better address the mental health problems in the Global South.
Semi-Supervised Classification of Malware Families Under Extreme Class Imbalance via Hierarchical Non-Negative Matrix Factorization with Automatic Model Selection
Authors: Eren Maksim E. , Bhattarai Manish , Joyce Robert J. , Raff Edward , Nicholas Charles , Alexandrov Boian S.
Published: September 2023

Identification of the family to which a malware specimen belongs is essential in understanding the behavior of the malware and developing mitigation strategies. Solutions proposed by prior work, however, are often not practicable due to the lack of realistic evaluation factors. These factors include learning under class imbalance, the ability to identify new malware, and the cost of production-quality labeled data. In practice, deployed models face prominent, rare, and new malware families. At the same time, obtaining a large quantity of up-to-date labeled malware for training a model can be expensive. In this article, we address these problems and propose a novel hierarchical semi-supervised algorithm, which we call the
HNMFk Classifier
, that can be used in the early stages of the malware family labeling process. Our method is based on non-negative matrix factorization with automatic model selection, that is, with an estimation of the number of clusters. With
HNMFk Classifier
, we exploit the hierarchical structure of the malware data together with a semi-supervised setup, which enables us to classify malware families under conditions of extreme class imbalance. Our solution can perform abstaining predictions, or rejection option, which yields promising results in the identification of novel malware families and helps with maintaining the performance of the model when a low quantity of labeled data is used. We perform bulk classification of nearly 2,900 both rare and prominent malware families, through static analysis, using nearly 388,000 samples from the EMBER-2018 corpus. In our experiments, we surpass both supervised and semi-supervised baseline models with an F1 score of 0.80.