bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Role of Radiative Interactions in Tropical Cyclone Development under Realistic Boundary Conditions
Authors: Zhang Bosong , Soden Brian J. , Vecchi Gabriel A. , Yang Wenchang
Published: December 2020

The impact of radiative interactions on tropical cyclone (TC) climatology is investigated using a global, TC-permitting general circulation model (GCM) with realistic boundary conditions. In this model, synoptic-scale radiative interactions are suppressed by overwriting the model-generated atmospheric radiative cooling rates with their monthly varying climatological values. When radiative interactions are suppressed, the global TC frequency is significantly reduced, indicating that radiative interactions are a critical component of TC development even in the presence of spatially varying boundary conditions. The reduced TC activity is primarily due to a decrease in the frequency of pre-TC synoptic disturbances (“seeds”), whereas the likelihood that the seeds undergo cyclogenesis is less affected. When radiative interactions are suppressed, TC genesis shifts toward coastal regions, whereas TC lysis locations stay almost unchanged; together the distance between genesis and lysis is shortened, reducing TC duration. In a warmer climate, the magnitude of TC reduction from suppressing radiative interactions is diminished due to the larger contribution from latent heat release with increased sea surface temperatures. These results highlight the importance of radiative interactions in modulating the frequency and duration of TCs.
The Mechanisms of White Space(s)
Authors: Moore Wendy Leo
Published: December 2020

In 2008, I published a theoretical frame of White institutional space beginning with the generalized proposition that social organizations, social institutions, and social structure are fundamentally and recursively related. In other words, individual organizations (like particular law schools) are produced by and function to reproduce racialized social institutions (like the institutions of education and law), just as social organizations and institutions are produced in as an element of and therefore reify the racial social structure—which in the United States is based on White supremacy. Within U.S. social organizations, there exist routine and systematic mechanisms, including racist historical and contemporary institutionalized hierarchies of power, racist institutionalized logics, and racist discourses and ideologies which inform everyday racialized practices, that function synergistically to channel the resources of U.S. organizations and institutions disproportionately to Whites. In this article, I utilize elements of my original research in elite law schools to delineate and demonstrate how mechanisms of White institutional space function tacitly and explicitly to reify White power and privilege.
Systematic Raman Spectroscopic Study of the Isomorphy Between the Arsenate Minerals Roselite, Wendwilsonite, Zincroselite, Brandtite, and Rruffite
Authors: Kloprogge J. Theo
Published: December 2020

In nature, numerous minerals are known with the general formula X2M(TO4)2·2(H2O) and an important group is formed by minerals with T = As. Most of these occur as minor or trace minerals in environments such as hydrothermal alterations of primary sulfides and arsenides. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy have been utilized to study the chemistry and crystal structure of the roselite subgroup minerals, Ca2M(AsO4)2·2H2O (with M = Co, Mg, Mn, Zn, and Cu). The AsO4 stretching region exhibited minor differences between the roselite subgroup minerals, which can be explained by the ionic radius of the cation substituting on the M position in the structure. Multiple AsO4 antisymmetric stretching and bending modes were found, pointing to a tetrahedral symmetry reduction. Bands around 450 cm–1 were attributed to ν4 bending modes. Several bands in the 300–350 cm–1 region attributed to ν2 bending modes also provide evidence of symmetry reduction of the AsO4 anion. Two broad bands for roselite were found around 3330 and 3120 cm–1 and were attributed to the OH stretching bands of crystal water. These bands are accompanied by two bands around 1700 and 1610 cm–1 attributed to the corresponding OH-bending modes. In conclusion, both XPS and Raman spectroscopy are valuable nondestructive analytical tools to characterize these secondary arsenate minerals. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman microspectroscopy allow the chemistry and molecular structure of the roselite group minerals to be studied in a nondestructive way. The minerals in the roselite subgroup are easily distinguished based on their chemical composition as determined by XPS. As expected for minerals with the same crystal structure, similarities exist in the Raman spectra, sufficient differences exist to be able to identify these minerals.
Family Socioeconomic Determinants and Students’ Demand for Private Supplementary Tutoring in English in Urban and Rural Bangladesh
Authors: Mahmud Rafsan
Published: December 2020

The article examines family socioeconomic determinants that stimulate students’ demand for private supplementary tutoring in English in urban and rural areas. It identifies the scale disparities of tutoring demand factors between urban and rural settings. Usually private supplementary tutoring is called shadow education that parallels mainstream school education before or after school hours on extra fee basis. This study found in a 2014–2015 survey that 84.7% urban and 60.7% rural secondary students received private supplementary tutoring in English. The research employed an explanatory sequential mixed method design including quantitative and qualitative data collected from a survey and individual interview. In spite of emergence of tutoring demand, a few students could not be capable to receive private English tutoring. Family socioeconomic standpoints shake forms of students’ claims for learning through tutoring. The study draws on Bourdieu’s theory of capital, which is then linked with family ability for children’s tutoring.
How Days Between Tests Impacts Alternate Forms Reliability in Computerized Adaptive Tests
Authors: Wyse Adam E.
Published: December 2020

An essential question when computing test–retest and alternate forms reliability coefficients is how many days there should be between tests. This article uses data from reading and math computerized adaptive tests to explore how the number of days between tests impacts alternate forms reliability coefficients. Results suggest that the highest alternate forms reliability coefficients were obtained when the second test was administered at least 2 to 3 weeks after the first test. Even though reliability coefficients after this amount of time were often similar, results suggested a potential tradeoff in waiting longer to retest as student ability tended to grow with time. These findings indicate that if keeping student ability similar is a concern that the best time to retest is shortly after 3 weeks have passed since the first test. Additional analyses suggested that alternate forms reliability coefficients were lower when tests were shorter and that narrowing the first test ability distribution of examinees also impacted estimates. Results did not appear to be largely impacted by differences in first test average ability, student demographics, or whether the student took the test under standard or extended time. It is suggested that for math and reading tests, like the ones analyzed in this article, the optimal retest interval would be shortly after 3 weeks have passed since the first test.
Command Agriculture and Food Security: An Interrogation of State Intervention in the Post-Fast Track Land Redistribution Era in Zimbabwe
Authors: Makuwerere Dube Langton
Published: December 2020

Command agriculture is a contract farming scheme necessitated by land redistribution that ruptured Zimbabwe’s sources of resilience, distorted credit access, heightened tenure insecurity, and spiked vulnerability to droughts. Using qualitative analysis of extant literature, this article rationalizes the program’s nobility of cause but argues that the program alone cannot revamp agriculture. Notwithstanding how the program has evolved, revamping agriculture also encompasses policies that address fiscal prudence and macroeconomic resilience. Equally important is agricultural training that fosters skills and technologies that are not only climate-responsive but also meet the demands of the constantly evolving agrarian value chain.
Identification of skeletal remains by orthopaedic implant: A case report and brief review of the literature
Authors: Khartade Harshwardhan K , Meshram Vikas , Garg Shashidhar P , Mishra Dhruwa K
Published: December 2020

Establishing identity from skeletal remains is a challenging task for forensic experts. Identification in such cases can be achieved by dental records, post-mortem radiography and DNA profiling. However, these methods require additional data for comparisons. Positive identification can also be achieved using implanted medical devices. This is a rapid and inexpensive method, as long as a central database is maintained for effective tracking of such devices. We present a case report in which identity was established from skeletal remains using information furnished on the implanted metallic dynamic hip screw and side plate. This case report discusses the legal scenario in India and globally with regard to medical devices and their utility for forensic application. It emphasises the need for legal provision relating to medical devices in India, which would compel the manufacturer to use unique identification numbers for each medical device and to maintain a person-specific database.
Ship-course modeling and control using the SIMSCAPE physical modeling environment
Authors: Fernandez de Canete Javier , Martin-Aguilar Jesus
Published: December 2020

Simulation is an important tool for evaluating the design of a ship-course control system. The object-oriented modeling supports the physical modeling of a multi-domain dynamical system by using a hierarchical acausal structure, as compared to block diagrams or differential equation-based causal structures. In this paper we describe the use of the SIMSCAPE simulation environment for the physical modeling-based design of the course control system of a ship. The complete model has been implemented by using this physical modeling approach whereby dynamic system equations are transformed into a diagram of interconnected physical blocks so as to represent in this way the true structure of the modeled system. The performance of the course control of the ship model was analyzed by simulation in light of the existing hypothesis and indirect validation tests previously performed with operational data. The results obtained by using sequences of course-changing maneuvers with varying disturbances serve to demonstrate the usefulness of the physical modeling-based approach with high accuracy and small computational cost as compared to the classical differential equation-based or the adimensional block-oriented diagrams. This methodology can be easily extended to other engineering fields provided that a suitable set of SIMSCAPE physical libraries can be used (electrical, mechanical, hydraulics, thermal,…). In fact, the ship-course control system model here developed represents an interesting benchmark in the field of engineering systems to get insight on the physical modeling approach under SIMSCAPE or even under MODELICA, despite its specificity to marine systems.
SARS-CoV-2 Presence in Cerumen
Authors: Celik Serdal , Kalcioglu M. Tayyar , Esen Fehim , Hanege Fatih Mehmet , Cag Yasemin , Kocoglu Esra
Published: December 2020

The emergence of a new coronavirus strain (SARS-CoV-2) in December 2019 from China led to a global pandemic. The lack of herd immunity against this virus and the possibility of viral spread from asymptomatic individuals is still a major challenge for the prevention of viral transmission. The studies of Islamoglu and Hanege evaluated the presence of the virus in different bodily secretions (Cerumen) as a potential source of viral spread among patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. We would like to comment on these 2 studies.
A Structural Equation Model for Place-based City Love: An Application to Swedish Cities
Authors: Kourtit Karima , Neuts Bart , Nijkamp Peter , Wahlström Marie H.
Published: December 2020

Recent years have shown an increasing interest in local factors shaping the happiness or attachment of citizens in regard to their daily living environment, sometimes also coined city love or neighborhood love. This new strand of literature—often framed in the context of the “geography of happiness” or the “economics of happiness”—means an extension of quantitative socio-psychological or socio-economic research on determinants of people’s affection for their living environment, including local quality-of-life, sense of community, place-based social capital, attachment to “urban ambiance,” and so on. The present paper conceptualizes the nature and composition of urban characteristics of place attachment and appreciation ( city love) in terms of two constituent factors, viz. city soul (indicators on the perceived intangible attractiveness of the city and its neighborhoods) and city body (indicators reflecting the tangible attractiveness features of the city). This analytical approach will empirically be tested for four Swedish cities. Resident surveys were conducted among a total of 2,573 respondents; the multidimensional relationships between outcome variables and background factors were tested through a Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Model (PLS-SEM), which revealed significant effects of Aesthetics, Amenities, Accessibility, Safety and Health, and City Image on place attachment and appreciation (“city love”). A more detailed city level analysis revealed salient place-specific differences. In general, Aesthetics seemed to be the most universal driver for city love, while City Image was the most important factor to contribute to city soul.
Mind the (cultural) gap: International news channels and the challenge of attracting Latin American audiences
Authors: Morales Pablo Sebastian
Published: December 2020

This article explores the role of cultural proximity in the perception of international news channels in Latin America by focusing on the cases of CGTN (China), RT (Russia) and HispanTV (Iran). Instrumental to the public diplomacy strategies of their home countries, the success of international broadcasters depends on if/whether audiences accept them. Based on a series of focus groups conducted in Mexico and Argentina, this article argues that cultural proximity strongly influences viewers’ aesthetic experience. The findings show that international broadcasters from culturally distant countries bridge the cultural gap by evoking the style of western broadcasters while dissociating themselves from perceived negative images of their own countries of origin. At a deeper level, cultural proximity entails inclusionary and exclusionary processes even within subcultural spheres. Finally, the findings also show how issues of representation can undermine channel identification by audiences.
Validation of a Hearing‐Related Quality‐of‐Life Questionnaire for Parents and Deaf or Hard‐of‐Hearing Infants and Toddlers
Authors: Sola Ana Marija , Vukkadala Neelaysh , Giridhar Sonya , Stephans Jihyun , Allen Isabel Elaine , Chan Dylan K.
Published: December 2020

Objective

To design and validate a hearing‐related quality‐of‐life questionnaire targeted toward parents and deaf or hard‐of‐hearing infants and toddlers: the Hearing‐Related Infant/Toddler and Parent Quality of Life (HIP‐QL) questionnaire.

Study Design

Cross‐sectional questionnaire and prospective instrument validation.

Setting

Academic pediatric otolaryngology clinic.

Methods

A 67‐question questionnaire developed from constructs of a grounded theory analysis was administered to parents of 31 deaf or hard‐of‐hearing children and 14 typically hearing children. Questionnaire construct validity, reliability, and discriminant validity were tested.

Results

Based on exploratory factor analysis, a 32‐item construct composed of developmentally appropriate questions was reduced to a 17‐item construct with 4 domains addressing quality of life for both child (auditory/communication behavior, temperament) and parent (management, parent‐directed factors). Internal consistency measures were appropriate (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.65), and test‐retest reliability was high (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.73). Total HIP‐QL scores correlated significantly with related total PedsQL scores (r = 0.57, P <. 001). As predicted, parents of children who are deaf or hard of hearing reported significantly lower mean HIP‐QL scores but not mean PedsQL scores. HIP‐QL was more sensitive than PedsQL for predicting case versus control membership (86.7% vs 76.9%). Multivariable regression confirmed a negative relationship between severity of hearing loss and HIP‐QL score after controlling for age, sex, income, and maternal education.

Conclusions

This context‐specific questionnaire is the first validated quality‐of‐life instrument for parents and deaf or hard‐of‐hearing infants and toddlers. Previously, parental stress and functional disability questionnaires were used as proxies; therefore, this questionnaire has the potential to serve as an important tool for patient‐ and caregiver‐centered outcomes research.
Comparison of Tracheal vs Nasopharyngeal Secretions for SARS‐CoV‐2 RT‐PCR Testing in Patients With Tracheostomy
Authors: Costeloe Anya , Samad Mohammad‐Nadim , Babu Seilesh , Metz Christopher
Published: December 2020

This study compares nasopharyngeal and tracheal samples for COVID‐19 viral testing in patients with a tracheostomy. This was a prospective cohort study done at 2 academic hospitals between March and June 2020. Patients admitted through the emergency department who had a COVID‐19 test and an existing tracheostomy or underwent a tracheostomy during the admission period were included. Patients with a positive initial nasopharyngeal swab were placed in the experimental group (n = 8), while those with a negative swab were the control group (n = 7). Nasopharyngeal and tracheal samples underwent COVID‐19 testing using the Abbott RealTime SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA assay. Fourteen patients underwent tracheostomy, and 1 had an existing tracheostomy. The average duration of viral shedding in nasopharyngeal samples was 20.9 days. One patient (6.7%) tested positive in tracheal secretions after a negative nasopharyngeal swab. In the remaining patients (93.3%), the nasopharyngeal and tracheal specimens correlated.
Development and Evaluation of the Shared Decision Making Process Scale: A Short Patient-Reported Measure
Authors: Valentine K. D. , Vo Ha , Fowler Floyd J. , Brodney Suzanne , Barry Michael J. , Sepucha Karen R.
Published: December 2020

Background

The Shared Decision Making (SDM) Process scale is a short patient-reported measure of the amount of SDM that occurs around a medical decision. SDM Process items have been used previously in studies of surgical decision making and exhibited discriminant and construct validity.

Method

Secondary data analysis was conducted across 8 studies of 11 surgical conditions with 3965 responses. Each study contained SDM Process items that assessed the discussion of options, pros and cons, and preferences. Item wording, content, and number of items varied, as did inclusion of measures assessing decision quality, decisional conflict (SURE scale), and regret. Several approaches for scoring, weighting, and the number of items were compared to identify an optimal approach. Optimal SDM Process scores were compared with measures of decision quality, conflict, and regret to examine construct validity; meta-analysis generated summary results.

Results

Although all versions of the scale were highly correlated, a short, partial credit, equally weighted version of the scale showed favorable properties. Overall, higher SDM Process scores were related to higher decision quality ( d = 0.18, P = 0.029), higher SURE scale scores ( d = 0.57, P < 0.001), and lower decision regret ( d = −0.34, P < 0.001). Significant heterogeneity was present in all validity analyses.

Limitations

Included studies all focused on surgical decisions, several had small sample sizes, and many were retrospective.

Conclusion

SDM Process scores showed resilience to coding changes, and a scheme using the short, partial credit, with equal weights was adopted. The SDM Process scores demonstrated a small, positive relationship with decision quality and were consistently related to lower decision conflict and less regret, providing evidence of validity across several surgical decisions.
Cost-Effectiveness of Surveillance Scanning Strategies after Curative Treatment of Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer
Authors: Wolff Henri B. , Alberts Leonie , Kastelijn Elisabeth A. , El Sharouni Sherif Y. , Schramel Franz M. N. H. , Coupé Veerle M. H.
Published: December 2020

Background

After curative treatment of primary non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), patients undergo intensive surveillance with the aim to detect recurrences from the primary tumor or metachronous second primary lung cancer as early as possible and improve overall survival. However, the benefit of surveillance is debated. Available evidence is of low quality and conflicting. Microsimulation modeling facilitates the exploration of the impact of different surveillance strategies and provides insight into the cost-effectiveness of surveillance.

Methods

A microsimulation model was used to simulate a range of computed tomography (CT)–based surveillance schedules, differing in the frequency and duration of CT surveillance. The impact on survival, quality-adjusted life-years, costs, and cost-effectiveness of each schedule was assessed.

Results

Ten of 108 strategies formed the cost-effectiveness frontier; that is, these were the strategies with the optimal cost-health benefit balance. Per person, the discounted QALYs of these strategies varied between 5.72 and 5.81 y, and discounted costs varied between €9892 and €19,259. Below a willingness-to-pay threshold of €50,000/QALY, no scanning is the preferred option. For a willingness-to-pay threshold of €80,000/QALY, surveillance scanning every 2 y starting 1 y after curative treatment becomes the best option, with €11,860 discounted costs and 5.76 discounted QALYs per person. The European Society for Medical Oncology guideline strategy was more expensive and less effective than several other strategies.

Conclusion

Model simulations suggest that limited CT surveillance scanning after the treatment of primary NSCLC is cost-effective, but the incremental health-benefit remains marginal. However, model simulations do suggest that the guideline strategy is not cost-effective.
Changes in Gender Stereotypes Over Time: A Computational Analysis
Authors: Bhatia Nazlı , Bhatia Sudeep
Published: December 2020

We combined established psychological measures with techniques in machine learning to measure changes in gender stereotypes over the course of the 20th century as expressed in large-scale historical natural language data. Although our analysis replicated robust gender biases previously documented in the literature, we found that the strength of these biases has diminished over time. This appears to be driven by changes in gender biases for stereotypically feminine traits (rather than stereotypically masculine traits) and changes in gender biases for personality-related traits (rather than physical traits). Our results illustrate the dynamic nature of stereotypes and show how recent advances in data science can be used to provide a long-term historical analysis of core psychological variables. In terms of practice, these findings may, albeit cautiously, suggest that women and men can be less constrained by prescriptions of feminine traits. Additional online materials for this article are available on PWQ’s website at 10.1177/0361684320977178
Cost-effectiveness of a Contact Intervention and a Psychotherapeutic Program for Post-discharge Suicide Prevention
Authors: Martínez-Alés Gonzalo , Cruz Rodríguez José B. , Lázaro Pablo , Domingo-Relloso Arce , Barrigón María Luisa , Angora Ricardo , Rodríguez-Vega Beatriz , Jiménez-Sola Eduardo , Sánchez-Castro Pilar , Román-Mazuecos Eva , Villoria Lucía , Ortega Ana José , Navío Mercedes , Stanley Barbara , Rosenheck Robert , Baca-García Enrique , Bravo-Ortiz María Fe
Published: December 2020

Objective:

To determine the cost-effectiveness of 2 strategies for post-discharge suicide prevention, an Enhanced Contact intervention based on repeated in-person and telephone contacts, and an individual 2-month long problem-solving Psychotherapy program, in comparison to facilitated access to outpatient care following a suicide attempt.

Methods:

We conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis based on a decision tree between January and December 2019. Comparative effectiveness estimates were obtained from an observational study conducted between 2013 and 2017 in Madrid, Spain. Electronic health care records documented resource use (including extra-hospital emergency care, mortality, inpatient admission, and disability leave). Direct cost data were derived from Madrid’s official list of public health care prices. Indirect cost data were derived from Spain’s National Institute of Statistics.

Results:

Both augmentation strategies were more cost-effective than a single priority outpatient appointment considering reasonable thresholds of willingness to pay. Under the base-case scenario, Enhanced Contact and Psychotherapy incurred, respectively, €2,340 and 6,260 per averted attempt, compared to a single priority appointment. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses showed both augmentation strategies to remain cost-effective under several scenarios. Enhanced Contact was slightly cost minimizing in comparison to Psychotherapy (base-case scenario: €−196 per averted attempt).

Conclusions:

Two post-discharge suicide prevention strategies based on Enhanced Contact and Psychotherapy were cost-effective in comparison to a single priority appointment. Increasing contacts between suicide attempters and mental health-care providers was slightly cost minimizing compared to psychotherapy.
New evidence of mid- to late- Holocene vegetation and climate change from a Neolithic settlement in western fringe of Central Ganga Plain: Implications for Neolithic to Historic phases
Authors: Tripathi Deepika , Kotlia Bahadur Singh , Tiwari Manish , Pokharia Anil K , Agrawal Shailesh , Kumar Pankaj , Long Tengwen , Paulramasamy Morthekai , Thakur Biswajeet , Pal Jagannath , Singh Mahar Kamalesh , Chauhan Devendra Kumar
Published: December 2020

Here we present a continuous palaeoclimatic record of 5980 years (7230 cal BP–1250 cal BP) from Hetapatti, a Neolithic site situated on the western fringe of the Central Ganga Plain. The region was a center of reurbanisation following the decline of the Harappan civilisation and is considered a hub of economic, political and religious evolution since the sixth millennium BC. Hetapatti contains an uninterrupted sequence from Neolithic to Historic (Gupta) period. The study integrates two different approaches (phytoliths and carbon isotope analysis) to infer vegetational and climatic changes and to understand their relationship to the cultural sequence. Our results show a gradual transformation from a warm and humid climate into a warm and dry climate from the Neolithic to Historic (Gupta) period. We find an abrupt weakening of the ISM at ~2080 cal BP driving a warm and dry climate. The comparison of our data with other high resolution regional and global records led us to hypothesise a synchronicity in this warm and dry trend, coeval with the Roman warm period (RWP). The observed variation in vegetation and climate might have driven by the fluctuations in the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM). Additionally, the phytolith analysis provides evidence of cereal crops including rice, wheat, barley, millets, etc. suggesting a crop affinity with the earlier Indus crop package. It is interesting to note that the site displays an uninterrupted cultural sequence from Neolithic to Historic times, with artefacts of each phase exhibiting technological and stylistic developments from the preceding culture. From this we infer that the well adapted socio-ecological strategies and availability of perennial rivers may have helped the ancient civilisation to absorb the stress relating to a varying climate.
The networked economy of firms in city-region peripheries
Authors: Salder Jacob
Published: December 2020

City-regions have become a core unit of analysis for spatial economy, providing an explicit link between bounded administrative units and more networked spaces of production. Too often, however, such analysis is focused on the core of the city-region, applying presumptions of gravity-based agglomeration. This paper examines these networked spaces of production from the city-region periphery, using a firm-based approach as critical determinants of spatial economy via their key interactions. Focused on the Greater Birmingham city-region, UK, the paper explores the integration of city-regional geography with firm-based networked economy. In doing so, it applies a set of networks of practice, focused on firms’ factored, transactional, and transitional dependencies. Using these networks of practice, it critically analyses the spaces of production formed through firm-based interactions, and their concomitance with city-regional designations. It makes two key contributions. First, it enhances the call for greater understanding of the relationship between core and periphery in the context of city-regions. Second, it argues that network-based approaches, which form spatial economy around firm interactions over administrative configurations, offer useful insight into understanding firm–place relationships which more conventional place-based approaches cannot.
Teachers’ Voices on the Impact of COVID-19 on School Education: Are Ed-Tech Companies Really the Panacea?
Authors: Jain Samta , Lall Marie , Singh Anviti
Published: December 2020

COVID-19 has brought about changes to the education system that impact teachers in multiple ways. The article discusses the views of affected teachers under the three-gap framework: access, usage, and pedagogical skills gap. Between 29 April 2020, and 29 May 2020, an online survey was administered to 550 Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) teachers, of which 288 responded. The data show that the inequalities between private schools and government schools are sharpened by the move to online education. This is compounded by the fact that students from economically weaker sections of society have become hard to reach, and teachers do not know how to support hard-to-reach students who are also severely affected by the pandemic.

The data also show that teachers have not been trained in online pedagogies. Ed-Tech companies have been stepping in, presenting themselves as a panacea to the problem with further consequences to teachers’ profession, standing, and livelihoods. However, Ed-Tech solutions are not relevant for hard-to-reach students or teachers in schools that serve hard-to-reach communities. The article first presents the voices of teachers affected by the pandemic and then critically examines the role of Ed-Tech companies, which pertain to fill the online pedagogical gap.
Stability and Governability the Benign Effects of Party Dominance in South Africa
Authors: Mancebo Ainara
Published: December 2020

A tripartite alliance formed by the African National Congress, the South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Unions has been ruling the country with wide parliamentarian majorities. The country remains more consensual and politically inclusive than any of the other African countries in the post-independence era. This article examines three performance’s aspects of the party dominance systems: legitimacy, stability and violence. As we are living in a period in which an unprecedented number of countries have completed democratic transitions, it is politically and conceptually important that we understand the specific tasks of crafting democratic consolidation.
A Mother-Scholar During COVID-19
Authors: Lac Van
Published: December 2020

This poem highlights the current challenges and the lived realities of a mother-scholar during COVID-19. As a mother of two young children, the author details how the global pandemic has thrown her life into chaos as she attempts to provide support to her children with distance learning while also fulfilling her duties with teaching, research, and service as a junior faculty member on the tenure-track. Reinforcing the emergent literature on the lack of research productivity during this pandemic for mother-scholars, the author as a qualitative researcher illuminates this exact challenge in her poem.
Early Experience With Methylprednisolone on SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the African American Population, a Retrospective Analysis
Authors: Saggi Subodh J , Nath Sridesh , Culas Roshni , Chittalae Seema , Burza Aaliya , Srinivasan Maya , Abdul Rishard , Silver Benjamin , Lora Alnardo , Ibtida Ishmam , Chokshi Tanuj , Capric Violeta , Mohamed Ammar , Worah Samrat , OuYang Jie , Geraghty Patrick , Gruessner Angelika , Salifu Moro O
Published: December 2020

Background:

Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is associated with acute kidney injury (AKI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with high mortality rates. In African American (AA) populations, COVID-19 presentations and outcomes are more severe. NIH and Interim WHO guidelines had suggested against the use of corticosteroids unless in clinical trials until the recent publication of the RECOVERY trial. Here, we analyzed the treatment effect of methylprednisolone on patients with AKI and ARDS during the initial 2 months of COVID-19 and detail the learning effect within our institution.

Methods:

Between March 1 and April 30, 2020, 75 AA patients met our inclusion criteria for ARDS and AKI, of which 37 had received corticosteroids. Twenty-eight-day mortality, improvement in PaO2/FiO2 ratio, and renal function were analyzed. The impact of methylprednisolone treatment was assessed with multivariable methods.

Results:

Survival in the methylprednisolone group reached 51% at 21 days compared to 29% in the non-corticosteroid group ( P < .001). Methylprednisolone improved the likelihood of renal function improvement. PaO2/FiO2 ratio in the methylprednisolone group improved by 73% compared to 45% in the non-corticosteroid group ( P = .01). Age, gender, BMI, preexisting conditions, and other treatment factors did not show any impact on renal or PaO2/FiO2 ratio improvement. The use of anticoagulants, the month of treatment, and AKI during hospitalization also influenced outcomes.

Conclusion:

In AA COVID-19 positive patients with ARDS and AKI, IV methylprednisolone lowered the incidence of mortality and improved the likelihood of renal and lung function recovery. Further investigation with a randomized control trial of corticosteroids is warranted.
How a lack of truthfulness can undermine democratic representation: The case of post-referendum Brexit discourses
Authors: Hansson Sten , Kröger Sandra
Published: December 2020

This article draws attention to how the ethics of democratic representation operates as a discreet factor in a crisis of representation afflicting Western democracies by identifying the ways a disregard for truthfulness can harm democratic representation. We argue that such a disregard undermines democratic representation by (1) reducing freedom and equality, (2) weakening accountability, (3) undermining citizens’ trust in democratic institutions, and (4) jeopardising the ability to compromise. We illustrate the processes that produce these effects by analysing examples of untruthful communication about Brexit by senior British politicians in the post-referendum debates. We show how all four of these effects were triggered by the ways they misled the public by (1) making claims about overwhelming popular support for their policy, (2) misrepresenting the power relations between the European Union and the national government, and (3) seriously downplaying the complexity of negotiations involved in leaving the European Union and reaching trade deals thereafter.
Impact of contrast-induced acute kidney injury on the association between renin-angiotensin system inhibitors and long-term mortality in heart failure patients
Authors: Lei Li , Huang Yulu , Guo Zhaodong , Song Feier , He Yibo , Liu Jin , Sun Guoli , Liu Bowen , Chen Pengyuan , Zhao Jianbin , Wu Dengxuan , Xue Yan , Yan Wenhe , Lin Zefeng , Huang Xiuqiong , Chen Guanzhong , Chen Shiqun , Liu Yong , Chen Jiyan
Published: December 2020

Introduction:

Renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASi) reduce mortality among heart failure (HF) patients, but their effect among those complicating contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) remains unexplored. We aimed to investigate whether the relationship between RASi prescription at discharge and mortality differs between HF patients with or without CI-AKI following coronary angiography (CAG).

Methods:

About 596 HF patients from an observational cohort were divided into a CI-AKI group ( n = 104) and a non-CI-AKI group ( n = 492) based on whether they had CI-AKI following CAG. The endpoint was all-cause mortality. Multivariable Cox regression was performed in each group to explore the associations between RASi at discharge and mortality.

Results:

During the median follow-up time of 2.26 (1.70; 3.24) years, higher mortality rate was observed in the CI-AKI group compared to the non-CI-AKI group (18.3% vs 8.9%, p = 0.002). Among HF patients with CI-AKI, after adjusting for confounding factors, the association was not significant between RASi prescription at discharge and mortality (HR: 0.39, 95%CI: 0.12–1.31, p = 0.128), while it was among those without CI-AKI (HR: 0.39, 95%CI: 0.18–0.84, p = 0.016).

Conclusion:

RASi prescription at discharge for HF patients complicating CI-AKI tended to be ineffective, while it benefited those without CI-AKI. Further randomized evidence is needed to confirm this trend.
Estimation of ship flue gas emissions in dynamic operational conditions with ANN
Authors: Bilgili Levent , Buğra Çelebi Uğur
Published: December 2020

While ship emissions are incomparably less in comparison to land units, the threat of the world’s population and certain regions are in a serious danger due to 70% of these emissions occur in areas up to 400 km from the coast and on certain maritime routes. The formation of ship emissions strongly depends on the dynamically varying travel conditions and it is important to identify the emissions in order to guide the rule-makers to take the necessary measures correctly. In this study, an emission estimation modelling based on dynamic variables, such as voyage duration, engine revolutions per minute, speed, displacement, weather condition, sea conditions and average draught, has been realized by using artificial neural networks (ANN). The difference between the results of ANN and traditional estimation methods was found to be 1.57%. Then, in order to determine the optimum route, the ANN model was implemented for June and January in the Northern and Southern routes of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and it was concluded that harder sea and weather conditions produced more emissions. Finally, fuel consumptions, fuel costs and social costs of the emissions for different routes were calculated.
1D-TICapsNet: An audio signal processing algorithm for bolt early looseness detection
Authors: Wang Furui , Song Gangbing
Published: December 2020

Recently, for bolt looseness detection, percussion-based methods have attracted more attention due to their advantages of eliminating contact sensors. The core issue of percussion-based methods is audio signal processing to characterize different bolt preloads, while current percussion-based methods all depend on machine learning–based techniques that require hand-crafted features and overlook bolt looseness at the incipient stage. Thus, in this article, the main contribution is that we propose a novel one-dimensional training interference capsule neural network (1D-TICapsNet) to process and classify percussion-induced sound signals, thus achieving bolt early looseness detection. First, compared to machine learning–based techniques, 1D-TICapsNet can fuse feature extraction and classification in one frame to achieve better performance. In addition, due to two tricks (i.e. training interference), including wider kernels in the first convolutional layer and the targeted dropout technique, our proposed 1D-TICapsNet outperforms several state-of-the-art deep learning techniques in terms of classification accuracy, computational costs, and the denoising capacity. We call these two tricks as “training interference” since they work during training procedure. Finally, we confirm the effectiveness and superiorities of 1D-TICapsNet via experiments. Considering the efficacy of 1D-TICapsNet, we can expect its real-world applications on bolt early looseness detection and other classification of one-dimensional signals.
Enabling human–infrastructure interfaces for inspection using augmented reality
Authors: Maharjan D , Agüero M , Mascarenas D , Fierro R , Moreu F
Published: December 2020

Decaying infrastructure maintenance cost allocation depends heavily on accurate and safe inspection in the field. New tools to conduct inspections can assist in prioritizing investments in maintenance and repairs. The industrial revolution termed as “Industry 4.0” is based on the intelligence of machines working with humans in a collaborative workspace. Contrarily, infrastructure management has relied on the human for making day-to-day decisions. New emerging technologies can assist during infrastructure inspections, to quantify structural condition with more objective data. However, today’s owners agree in trusting the inspector’s decision in the field over data collected with sensors. If data collected in the field is accessible during the inspections, the inspector decisions can be improved with sensors. New research opportunities in the human–infrastructure interface would allow researchers to improve the human awareness of their surrounding environment during inspections. This article studies the role of Augmented Reality (AR) technology as a tool to increase human awareness of infrastructure in their inspection work. The domains of interest of this research include both infrastructure inspections (emphasis on the collection of data of structures to inform management decisions) and emergency management (focus on the data collection of the environment to inform human actions). This article describes the use of a head-mounted device to access real-time data and information during their field inspection. The authors leverage the use of low-cost smart sensors and QR code scanners integrated with Augmented Reality applications for augmented human interface with the physical environment. This article presents a novel interface architecture for developing Augmented Reality–enabled inspection to assist the inspector’s workflow in conducting infrastructure inspection works with two new applications and summarizes the results from various experiments. The main contributions of this work to computer-aided community are enabling inspectors to visualize data files from database and real-time data access using an Augmented Reality environment.
miR-574-5p Targets FOXN3 to Regulate the Invasion of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells via Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway
Authors: Lin Zhonghao , Chen Miaoan , Wan Yawen , Lei Liguang , Ruan Huiqing
Published: December 2020

MicroRNAs (miR) are a class of non-coding endogenous RNA molecules that suppress the translation of protein-coding genes by destabilizing target mRNAs. The MiR-574-5p has been reported to be involved in the several types of cancer. However, the expression of miR-574-5p and its mechanism in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remain unclear. We found that the expression level of miR-574-5p was significantly increased in the NPC cell lines. We further demonstrated that Forkhead box N3 (FOXN3) was a target gene of miR-574-5p. FOXN3 overexpression and inhibition reversed the promoting or suppressing effect, respectively, of NPC cell proliferation, migration and invasion caused by miR-574-5p. Furthermore, miR-574-5p enhanced the β-catenin and TCF4 protein expression by repressing FOXN3 expression, resulting in the activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, but the activity of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway was inhibited by a miR-574-5p inhibitor or FOXN3 overexpression, which reversed the effect of miR-574-5p. Wound-healing and Transwell assays also showed that miR-574-5p promotes the cell migration and invasion of NPC cells, whereas the promoting effect of miR-574-5p was also reversed by a miR-574-5p inhibitor or FOXN3 overexpression. Collectively, these data suggested that miR-574-5p promotes NPC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion at least partly by targeting the FOXN3/Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway.
Rapid and ultrasensitive detection of circulating human papillomavirus E7 cell-free DNA as a cervical cancer biomarker
Authors: Rungkamoltip Phetploy , Temisak Sasithon , Piboonprai Kitiya , Japrung Deanpen , Thangsunan Pattanapong , Chanpanitkitchot Saranya , Chaowawanit Woraphot , Chandeying Nutthaporn , Tangjitgamol Siriwan , Iempridee Tawin
Published: December 2020

Circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has attracted attention as a non-invasive biomarker for diagnosing and monitoring various cancers. Given that human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA integration and overexpression of E6/E7 oncogenes are pivotal events for carcinogenesis, we sought to determine if HPV E7 cfDNA could serve as a specific biomarker for cervical cancer detection. We applied droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) to quantify HPV16/18 E7 cfDNA from the serum of patients with cervical cancer, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, and controls. HPV16/18 E7 cfDNA was highly specific for cervical cancer, displaying 30.77% sensitivity, 100% specificity, and an area under the curve of 0.65. Furthermore, we developed a sensitive isothermal detection of HPV16/18 E7 and the PIK3CA WT reference gene based on recombinase polymerase amplification combined with a lateral flow strip (RPA-LF). The assay took less than 30 min and the detection limit was 5–10 copies. RPA-LF exhibited 100% sensitivity and 88.24% specificity towards HPV16/18 E7 cfDNA in clinical samples. The agreement between RPA-LF and ddPCR was 83.33% ( κ = 0.67) for HPV16 E7 and 100% ( κ = 1.0) for HPV18 E7, indicating a good correlation between both tests. Therefore, we conclude that HPV E7 cfDNA represents a potential tumor marker with excellent specificity and moderate sensitivity for minimally invasive cervical cancer monitoring. Moreover, the RPA-LF assay provides an affordable, rapid, and ultrasensitive tool for detecting HPV cfDNA in resource-limited settings.