bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Imaging in gynecological disease (26): clinical and ultrasound characteristics of benign retroperitoneal pelvic peripheral‐nerve‐sheath tumors
Authors: Fischerova D. , Santos G. , Wong L. , Yulzari V. , Bennett R. J. , Dundr P. , Burgetova A. , Barsa P. , Szabó G. , Sousa N. , Scovazzi U. , Cibula D.
Published: April 2023

Objective

To describe the clinical and sonographic characteristics of benign, retroperitoneal, pelvic peripheral‐nerve‐sheath tumors (PNSTs).

Methods

This was a retrospective study of patients with a benign, retroperitoneal, pelvic PNST who had undergone preoperative ultrasound examination at a single gynecologic oncology center between 1 January 2018 and 31 August 2022. All ultrasound images, videoclips and final histological specimens of benign PNSTs were reviewed side‐by‐side in order to: describe the ultrasound appearance of the tumors, using the terminology of the International Ovarian Tumor Analysis (IOTA), Morphological Uterus Sonographic Assessment (MUSA) and Vulvar International Tumor Analysis (VITA) groups, following a predefined ultrasound assessment form; describe their origin in relation to nerves and pelvic anatomy; and assess the association between their ultrasound features and histotopography. A review of the literature reporting benign, retroperitoneal, pelvic PNSTs with preoperative ultrasound examination was performed.

Results

Five women (mean age, 53 years) with a benign, retroperitoneal, pelvic PNST were identified, four with a schwannoma and one with a neurofibroma, of which all were sporadic and solitary. All patients had good‐quality ultrasound images and videoclips and final biopsy of surgically excised tumors, except one patient managed conservatively who had only a core needle biopsy. In all cases, the findings were incidental. The five PNSTs ranged in maximum diameter from 31 to 50 mm. All five PNSTs were solid, moderately vascular tumors, with non‐uniform echogenicity, well‐circumscribed by hyperechogenic epineurium and with no acoustic shadowing. Most of the masses were round (n = 4 (80%)), and contained small, irregular, anechoic, cystic areas (n = 3 (60%)) and hyperechogenic foci (n = 5 (100%)). In the woman with a schwannoma in whom surgery was not performed, follow‐up over a 3‐year period showed minimal growth (1.5 mm/year) of the mass. We also summarize the findings of 47 cases of benign retroperitoneal schwannoma and neurofibroma identified in a literature search.

Conclusions

On ultrasound examination, no imaging characteristics differentiate reliably between benign schwannomas and neurofibromas. Moreover, benign PNSTs show some similar features to malignant retroperitoneal tumors. They are solid lesions with intralesional blood vessels and show degenerative changes such as cystic areas and hyperechogenic foci. Therefore, ultrasound‐guided biopsy may play a pivotal role in their diagnosis. If confirmed to be benign PNSTs, these tumors can be managed conservatively, with ultrasound surveillance. © 2023 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Drug information sources in professional work—a questionnaire study on physicians’ usage and preferences (the drug information study)
Authors: Seidel Pia , Rolander Bo , Eriksson Anna L. , Lindahl Ulf , Wallerstedt Susanna M. , Hägg Staffan , Kling Anders
Published: April 2023

Purpose

This study aimed to explore physicians’ use of drug information in professional work, with special focus on those working in primary care, and also in relation to personal characteristics of physicians.

Methods

A web-based questionnaire was distributed by e-mail to physicians in five regions in Sweden. The questions concerned drug-related queries at issue when searching for information, sources used, and factors of importance for the choice of source, as well as responder characteristics.

Results

A total of 3254 (85%) out of 3814 responding physicians stated that they searched for drug information every week. For physicians working in primary health care, the corresponding number was 585 (96%). The most common drug-related issues searched for by 76% of physicians every week concerned pharmacotherapeutic aspects (e.g., dosing), followed by adverse drug reactions (63%). For 3349 (88%) physicians, credibility was the most important factor for the choice of sources of drug information, followed by easy access online (n = 3127, 82%). Further analyses among physicians in primary care showed that some personal characteristics, like seniority, sex, and country of education, as well as research experience, were associated with usage and preferences of drug information sources.

Conclusions

This study confirms that physicians often use drug information sources in professional work, in particular those who work in primary health care. Credibility and easy access are key factors for usage. Among physicians in primary care, personal factors influenced the choice of drug information sources.
Prognostic relevance of sarcopenia, geriatric, and nutritional assessments in older patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: results of a multicentric prospective cohort study
Authors: Pénichoux Juliette , Lanic Hélène , Thill Caroline , Ménard Anne-Lise , Camus Vincent , Stamatoullas Aspasia , Lemasle Emilie , Leprêtre Stéphane , Lenain Pascal , Contentin Nathalie , Kraut-Tauzia Jerôme , Fruchart Christophe , Kammoun Leila , Damaj Gandhi , Farge Agathe , Delette Caroline , Modzelewski Romain , Vaudaux Sandrine , Pépin Louis-Ferdinand , Tilly Hervé , Jardin Fabrice
Published: April 2023

This prospective study aimed to investigate the prognostic effect of sarcopenia, geriatric, and nutritional status in older patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Ninety-five patients with DLBCL older than 70 years who were treated with immunochemotherapy were included. The lumbar L3 skeletal muscle index (L3-SMI) was measured by computed tomography at baseline, and sarcopenia was defined as low L3-SMI. Geriatric assessment included G8 score, CIRS-G scale, Timed Up and Go test, and instrumental activity of daily living. Nutritional status was assessed using the Mini Nutritional Assessment and the body mass index, and several scores used in the literature incorporating nutritional and inflammatory biomarkers, namely the Nutritional and inflammatory status (NIS), Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index, Prognostic Nutritional Index, and Glasgow Prognostic Score.

Fifty-three patients were considered sarcopenic. Sarcopenic patients displayed higher levels of inflammation markers and lower levels of prealbumin than non-sarcopenic patients. Sarcopenia was associated with NIS, but was not associated with severe adverse events and treatment disruptions. They were, however, more frequent among patients with elevated NIS. Sarcopenia did not appear in this study as a prognostic factor for progression-free survival (PFS) or overall survival (OS). However, NIS emerged as predictive of the outcome with a 2-year PFS rate of 88% in the NIS ≤ 1 group and 49% in the NIS > 1 group and a significant effect in a multivariate analysis for both PFS (p = 0.049) and OS (HR = 9.61, CI 95% = [1.03–89.66], p = 0.04). Sarcopenia was not associated with adverse outcomes, but was related to NIS, which appeared to be an independent prognostic factor.
Downscaling long lead time daily rainfall ensemble forecasts through deep learning
Authors: Jin Huidong , Jiang Weifan , Chen Minzhe , Li Ming , Bakar K. Shuvo , Shao Quanxi
Published: April 2023

Skilful and localised daily weather forecasts for upcoming seasons are desired by climate-sensitive sectors. Various General circulation models routinely provide such long lead time ensemble forecasts, also known as seasonal climate forecasts (SCF), but require downscaling techniques to enhance their skills from historical observations. Traditional downscaling techniques, like quantile mapping (QM), learn empirical relationships from pre-engineered predictors. Deep-learning-based downscaling techniques automatically generate and select predictors but almost all of them focus on simplified situations where low-resolution images match well with high-resolution ones, which is not the case in ensemble forecasts. To downscale ensemble rainfall forecasts, we take a two-step procedure. We first choose a suitable deep learning model, very deep super-resolution (VDSR), from several outstanding candidates, based on an ensemble forecast skill metric, continuous ranked probability score (CRPS). Secondly, via incorporating other climate variables as extra input, we develop and finalise a very deep statistical downscaling (VDSD) model based on CRPS. Both VDSR and VDSD are tested on downscaling 60 km rainfall forecasts from the Australian Community Climate and Earth-System Simulator Seasonal model version 1 (ACCESS-S1) to 12 km with lead times up to 217 days. Leave-one-year-out testing results illustrate that VDSD has normally higher forecast accuracy and skill, measured by mean absolute error and CRPS respectively, than VDSR and QM. VDSD substantially improves ACCESS-S1 raw forecasts but does not always outperform climatology, a benchmark for SCFs. Many more research efforts are required on downscaling and climate modelling for skilful SCFs.
Experiences of sexual well-being interventions in males affected by genitourinary cancers and their partners: an integrative systematic review
Authors: Schubach Kathryn , Niyonsenga Theo , Turner Murray , Paterson Catherine
Published: April 2023

Purpose

Sexual well-being has been identified as an unmet supportive care need among many individuals with genitourinary (GU) cancers. Little is known about the experiences of using sexual well-being interventions among men and their partners.

Methods

This review was reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) and followed a systematic review protocol. Data extraction and methodological quality appraisal were performed, and a narrative synthesis was conducted.

Results

A total of 21 publications (reporting on 18 studies) were included: six randomised control trials, seven cross-sectional studies, three qualitative studies, and five mixed methods studies. Sexual well-being interventions comprised medical/pharmacological and psychological support, including counselling and group discussion facilitation. The interventions were delivered using various modes: face-to-face, web-based/online, or telephone. Several themes emerged and included broadly: (1) communication with patient/partner and healthcare professionals, (2) educational and informational needs, and (3) timing and/or delivery of the interventions.

Conclusion

Sexual well-being concerns for men and their partners were evident from diagnosis and into survivorship. Participants benefited from interventions but many articulated difficulties with initiating the topic due to embarrassment and limited access to interventions in cancer services. Noteworthy, all studies were only representative of men diagnosed with prostate cancer, underscoring a significant gap in other GU cancer patient groups where sexual dysfunction is a prominent consequence of treatment.

Implications for cancer survivors

This systematic review provides valuable new insights to inform future models of sexual well-being recovery interventions for patients and partners with prostate cancer, but further research is urgently needed in other GU cancer populations.
Efficacy and volume stability of a customized allogeneic bone block for the reconstruction of advanced alveolar ridge deficiencies at the anterior maxillary region: a retrospective radiographic evaluation
Authors: Blume Oliver , Back Michael , Dinya Elek , Palkovics Daniel , Windisch Peter
Published: April 2023

Objectives

The aim of this retrospective case series was to evaluate the efficacy and volume stability of a customized allogeneic bone block (CABB) for the hard tissue reconstruction of severely atrophied anterior maxillary ridges.

Materials and methods

Hard tissue alterations between baseline (T1), 2-month follow-up (T2), and 6-month follow-up (T3) cone-beam computed tomography scans were evaluated with semi-automatic segmentation. Following automatic spatial alignment of the datasets, 3D subtraction analysis was performed. The volume stability of the inserted allogeneic bone block was determined on the basis of the ratio of the T3 and T2 hard tissue volumes.

Results

The newly formed hard tissue volume at T2 averaged at of 0.75 cm3 ± 0.57 cm3, whereas at T3, an average of 0.52 cm3 ± 0.42 cm3 volumetric hard tissue gain could be detected. The T3/T2 ratio was found to be 67.83% ± 18.72% on average. The dice similarity coefficient between the T2 and T3 hard tissue models averaged at 0.73 ± 0.15.

Conclusions

Cancellous CABBs are a reliable option for the reconstruction of severely atrophied alveolar ridges. The resorption rates of these grafts are similar to those found in the literature; however, with precise manufacturing and proper intraoperative flap management, the resorption rates may be reduced.

Clinical relevance

With precise knowledge of the resorption patterns, the shape of blocks can be altered in the future to compensate for the volumetric loss.
Early morning physical activity is associated with healthier white matter microstructure and happier children: the ActiveBrains project
Authors: Esteban-Cornejo Irene , Lara-Jimenez Inmaculada , Rodriguez-Ayllon Maria , Verdejo-Roman Juan , Catena Andres , Erickson Kirk I. , Ortega Francisco B.
Published: April 2023

The background of this study is to examine the associations of individual and combined early morning patterns (i.e., active commuting to school, physical activity before school, having breakfast and good sleep) with white matter microstructure (WMM) and, whether the associated white mater microstructure outcomes were related to mental health outcomes in children with overweight or obesity. 103 children with overweight or obesity (10.0 ± 1.1 years old, 42 girls) from the ActiveBrains project participated in this cross-sectional study. Early morning patterns and mental health indicators (i.e., self-esteem, optimism, positive and negative affect, stress, depression and anxiety) were self-reported by the children using validated questionnaires. WMM was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging using diffusion tensor imaging. When examined independently, early morning patterns were not related with WMM (allP > 0.05). However, the combination of early morning patterns was related with WMM (P < 0.05). Specifically, physically active early morning patterns (i.e., active commuting to school and physical activity before school) were associated with global fractional anisotropy (FA) (β = 0.298,P = 0.013) and global radial diffusivity (RD) (β = − 0.272,P = 0.021), as well as with tract-specific FA (β = 0.314,P = 0.004) and RD (β = − 0.234,P = 0.032) in the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). Furthermore, combined physically active early morning pattern-associated global (i.e., FA and RD) and tract-specific (i.e., FA and RD in the SLF) WMM indicators were positively associated with happiness (βabsolute value range from 0.252 to 0.298, allP < 0.05). A combination of physically active early morning patterns may positively relate to white matter microstructure in children with overweight or obesity, and, in turn, happiness.
SeQual: an unsupervised feature selection method for cloud workload traces
Authors: Ali Shallaw Mohammed , Kecskemeti Gabor
Published: April 2023

One challenge of studying cloud workload traces is the lack of available users’ identities. Therefore, clustering methods were used to address this challenge through extracting these identities from workload traces. For better extraction, it is beneficial to select attributes (columns in the traces) for clustering by using feature selection methods. However, the use of general selection methods requires details that are not available for workload traces (e.g. predefined number of clusters). Therefore, in this paper, we present an unsupervised feature selection method for cloud workload traces to identify good candidate attributes for clustering. This method uses Silhouette coefficients to rank attributes that are best for users’ extraction through clustering. The performance of our SeQual method is evaluated in comparison with commonly used (supervised and unsupervised) feature selection methods with the help of clustering quality metrics (i.e. adjusted rand index, entropy and precision). The results show that the SeQual method can compete with the supervised methods and perform better than unsupervised ones, with an average accuracy between 90% and 99%.
Environmental impact of potentially toxic elements on soils, sediments, waters, and air nearby an abandoned Hg-rich fahlore mine (Mt. Avanza, Carnic Alps, NE Italy)
Authors: Barago Nicolò , Mastroianni Cristiano , Pavoni Elena , Floreani Federico , Parisi Filippo , Lenaz Davide , Covelli Stefano
Published: April 2023

The decommissioned fahlore Cu-Sb(-Ag) mine at Mt. Avanza (Carnic Alps, Italy) is a rare example of exploited ore deposits, as the tetrahedrite (Cu6[Cu4(Fe,Zn)2]Sb4S13) is the main ore mineral found. This multi-compartmental geochemical characterisation approach provides one of the first case studies regarding the geochemical behaviour and fate of Hg, Sb, As, Cu, and other elements in solid and water matrices and of Hg in the atmosphere in an environment affected by the mining activity of a fahlore ore deposit. Elevated concentrations of the elements (Cu, Sb, As, Pb, Zn, Hg) associated with both (Zn-Hg)-tetrahedrite and to other minor ore minerals in mine wastes, soils, and stream sediments were observed. Concentrations in waters and stream sediments greatly decreased with increasing distance from the mining area and the Igeo index values testify the highest levels of sediment contamination inside the mine area. Thallium and Ge were associated with the “lithogenic component” and not to sulfosalt/sulphide minerals. Although mine drainage water often slightly exceeded the national regulatory limits for Sb and As, with Sb being more mobile than As, the relatively low dissolved concentrations indicate a moderate stability of the tetrahedrite. The fate of Hg at the investigated fahlore mining district appeared similar to cinnabar mining sites around the world. Weak solubility but the potential evasion of gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) into the atmosphere also appear to be characteristics of Hg in fahlore ores. Although GEM concentrations are such that they do not present a pressing concern, real-time field surveys allowed for the easy identification of Hg sources, proving to be an effective, suitable high-resolution indirect approach for optimising soil sampling surveys and detecting mine wastes and mine adits.
Protectin DX as a therapeutic strategy against frailty in mice
Authors: Perazza Laís R. , Gower Adam C. , Brown-Borg Holly M. , Pajevic Paola Divieti , Thompson LaDora V.
Published: April 2023

Frailty in aging is driven by the dysregulation of multiple biological pathways. Protectin DX (PDX) is a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)-derived molecule that alleviates many chronic inflammatory disorders, but its potential effects on frailty remain unknown. Our goal is to identify age-related impairments in metabolic systems and to evaluate the therapeutic potential of PDX on frailty, physical performance, and health parameters. A set of 22-month-old C57BL/6 male and female mice were assigned to vehicle (Old) or PDX daily gavage treatment for 9 weeks, whereas 6-month-old (Adult) mice received only vehicle. Forelimb and hindlimb strength, endurance, voluntary wheel activity and walking speed determined physical performance and were combined with a frailty index score and body weight loss to determine frailty status. Our data shows that old vehicle-treated mice from both sexes had body weight loss paralleling visceromegaly, and Old females also had impaired insulin clearance as compared to the Adult group. Aging was associated with physical performance decline together with higher odds of frailty development. There was also age-driven mesangial expansion and glomerular hypertrophy as well as bone mineral density loss. All of the in vivo and in vitro impairments observed with aging co-occurred with upregulation of inflammatory pathways and Myc signaling as well as downregulation of genes related to adipogenesis and oxidative phosphorylation in liver. PDX attenuated the age-driven physical performance (strength, exhaustion, walking speed) decline, promoted robustness, prevented bone losses and partially reversed changes in hepatic expression of Myc targets and metabolic genes. In conclusion, our data provides evidence of the beneficial therapeutic effect of PDX against features of frailty in mice. Further studies are warranted to investigate the mechanisms of action and the potential for human translation.
Medical clowning in hospitalized children: a meta-analysis
Authors: Kasem Ali Sliman Rim , Meiri Noam , Pillar Giora
Published: April 2023

Background

Medical clowning has been proven effective in reducing pain, anxiety, and stress in many sporadic, usually small-scale studies. Our meta-analysis aims to evaluate the efficiency of medical clowns in reducing pain and anxiety in hospitalized pediatric patients and their parents in different medical fields.

Methods

A thorough literature search was conducted from different databases, and only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included with children aged 0 to 18 years old. A total of 18 studies were included, and statistical analysis was performed on the combined data.

Results

A total of 912 children (14 studies) showed significantly reduced anxiety when procedures were performed with a medical clown compared with the controls (− 0.76 on anxiety score, P < 0.001). Preoperative anxiety was lower in 512 children (nine studies) with clown interventions than in the controls (− 0.78, P < 0.001). The pain scale was completed by 338 participants (six studies), indicating a trend toward reduced pain during procedures performed while the clown was acting compared to controls (− 0.49, P = 0.06). In addition, medical clown significantly (− 0.52, P = 0.001) reduced parental anxiety in 489 participants in ten studies; in six of the ten studies, with a total of 380 participants, medical clown significantly reduced parental preoperative anxiety (P = 0.02).

Conclusion

Medical clowns have substantial positive and beneficial effects on reducing stress and anxiety in children and their families in various circumstances in pediatrics.
SARS-CoV-2 BW lineage, a fast-growing Omicron variant from southeast Mexico bearing relevant escape mutations
Authors: García-López Rodrigo , Rivera-Gutiérrez Xaira , Rosales-Rivera Mauricio , Zárate Selene , Muñoz-Medina José Esteban , Roche Benjamin , Herrera-Estrella Alfredo , Gómez-Gil Bruno , Sanchez-Flores Alejandro , Taboada Blanca , Arias Carlos F.
Published: April 2023

Purpose

The swift expansion of the BW.1 SARS-CoV-2 variant coincided with a rapid increase of COVID-19 cases occurring in Southeast Mexico in October, 2022, which marked the start of Mexico’s sixth epidemiological wave. In Yucatan, up to 92% (58 of 73) of weekly sequenced genomes between epidemiological week 42 and 47 were identified as either BW.1 or its descendant, BW.1.1 in the region, during the last trimester of 2022. In the current study, a comprehensive genomic comparison was carried out to characterize the evolutionary history of the BW lineage, identifying its origins and its most important mutations.

Methods

An alignment of all the genomes of the BW lineage and its parental BA.5.6.2 variant was carried out to identify their mutations. A phylogenetic and ancestral sequence reconstruction analysis with geographical inference, as well as a longitudinal analysis of point mutations, were performed to trace back their origin and contrast them with key RBD mutations in variant BQ.1, one of the fastest-growing lineages to date.

Results

Our ancestral reconstruction analysis portrayed Mexico as the most probable origin of the BW.1 and BW.1.1 variants. Two synonymous substitutions, T7666C and C14599T, support their Mexican origin, whereas other two mutations are specific to BW.1: S:N460K and ORF1a:V627I. Two additional substitutions and a deletion are found in its descending subvariant, BW.1.1. Mutations found in the receptor binding domain, S:K444T, S:L452R, S:N460K, and S:F486V in BW.1 have been reported to be relevant for immune escape and are also key mutations in the BQ.1 lineage.

Conclusions

BW.1 appears to have arisen in the Yucatan Peninsula in Southeast Mexico sometime around July 2022 during the fifth COVID-19 wave. Its rapid growth may be in part explained by the relevant escape mutations also found in BQ.1.
Comparative study on boundary lubrication of Ti3C2Tx MXene and graphene oxide in water
Authors: Sun Wei , Song Qingrui , Liu Kun , Zhang Qing , Tao Zhensheng , Ye Jiaxin
Published: April 2023

The emerging use of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials as boundary lubricants in water offers numerous benefits over oil-based lubricants; whereas the friction reduction varies significantly with nanomaterial type, size, loading, morphology, etc. Graphene oxide (GO) and Ti3C2Tx MXene, a relatively new 2D material, are investigated as boundary lubricants in water in this study. The contact pair mainly includes Si3N4 balls and Si wafer. The results found (1) monodispersed GO offers better lubricity than monodispersed MXene under identical concentration and testing conditions; and (2) the mixed dispersion of GO and MXene (0.1 mg/ml: 0.1 mg/ml) produced the lowest friction coefficient of ∼ 0.021, a value 4× and 10× lower than that produced by comparable mono-dispersions of GO or MXene, respectively. Wear track analysis, focused ion beam microscopy, in-situ contact observation, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) characterization suggest (1) GO nanoflakes have higher adhesion than MXene and are more easily adsorbed on the tribopairs’ surfaces, and (2) GO/MXene tribofilm has a layered nanostructure constituting GO, MXene, amorphous carbon, and TiO2. We further hypothesized that the high lubricity of GO/MXene results from the synergy of GO’s high adhesiveness, MXene’s load support ability, and the low shear strength of both constituents. The present study highlights the key role of tribofilm stability in water-based boundary lubrication using state-of-the-art 2D nanomaterials.
Literature Survey on Automatic Pipe Routing
Authors: Blokland M. , van der Mei R. D. , Pruyn J. F. J. , Berkhout J.
Published: April 2023

Piping systems are common in many architectures and designing such systems is often a complex task. Design automation of piping systems is therefore a universal research subject. Nonetheless, these piping systems are often still designed by hand as a result of their complexity. Consequently, costs associated with piping design are high, especially for large-scale architectures like ships and chemical plants. The goal of automatic pipe routing is to reduce the design time and associated costs of a piping system by automating the routing of these pipes. This survey provides an overview of the current state of automatic pipe routing literature to assist researchers and practitioners to further the study of automatic pipe routing. This is done by pinpointing and explaining the most important obstacles that stand in the way of making a full-scale automatic pipe routing method. The barriers that are analyzed are related to both model representation and optimization complexity. Finally, a synthesis table of research papers on automatic pipe routing is provided based on the handling of the aforementioned barriers and other general features of automatic pipe routing methodology. The survey concludes by discussing directions for further research.
Investigation of wind energy speed and power, and its impact of sustainability: Saudi Arabia a model
Authors: Waheeb S. A. , Al-Samarai Riyadh A. , Alias M. F. A. , Al-Douri Y.
Published: April 2023

The study of wind energy is presented in six sites; Sharurah, Jeddah South, Al Wajh, Riyadh, Hafar Al Batin and Al Jouf of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is updated. The wind energy and its status are interpreted. The annual mean values of long-term for wind speeds are varied between the years 2000 and 2020. Also, the wind power density annual values are varied between the years 2006 and 2020. In addition, the speed of winds over whole the geography of KSA is researched. The distribution of percent frequency at different speeds of wind of these six sites at 12 m along two decades ago is presented that could affect on sustainability.
Does Row Planting Enhance Farm Productivity and Reduce Risk Exposure? Insights From Ethiopia
Authors: Ahmed Musa Hasen
Published: April 2023

This study examines the impact of the row planting method on maize productivity and risk exposure using panel datasets from Ethiopia. A flexible moment-based production function is fitted to capture the expected yield, yield variance, and exposure to downside risk. A Mundlak–Chamberlain approach is combined with a switching regression treatment effects model to account for unobserved heterogeneity and endogeneity. The study shows that adopters of the row planting method significantly reduced exposure to downside risk while increasing expected yield. The analysis also identified some household and environmental conditions that affect the gain from the row planting method.
The Moral Permissibility of Digital Nudging in the Workplace: Reconciling Justification and Legitimation
Authors: Ruehle Rebecca C.
Published: April 2023

Organisations increasingly use digital nudges to influence their workforces’ behaviour without coercion or incentives. This can expose employees to arbitrary domination by infringing on their autonomy through manipulation and indoctrination. Nudges might furthermore give rise to the phenomenon of “organised immaturity.” Adopting a balanced approach between overly optimistic and dystopian standpoints, I propose a framework for determining the moral permissibility of digital nudging in the workplace. In this regard, I argue that not only should organisations provide pre-discursive justification of nudges but they should also ensure that employees can challenge their implementation whenever necessary through legitimation procedures. Building on Rainer Forst’s concept of the right to justification, this article offers a way to combine contract- and deliberation-based theories for addressing questions in business ethics. I further introduce the concept of meta-autonomy as a capacity that employees can acquire to counter threats of arbitrary domination and to mitigate organised immaturity.
Leveraging Big Data in port state control: An analysis of port state control data and its potential for governance and transparency in the shipping industry
Authors: Ampatzidis Dimitrios
Published: April 2023

The International Maritime Organization along with couple European countries (Paris MoU) has introduced in 1982 the port state control (PSC) inspections of vessels in national ports to evaluate their compliance with safety and security regulations. This study discusses how the PSC data share common characteristics with Big Data fundamental theories, and by interpreting them as Big Data, we could enjoy their governance and transparency as a Big Data challenge to gain value from their use. Thus, from the scope of Big Data, PSC should exhibit volume, velocity, variety, value, and complexity to support in the best possible way both officers ashore and on board to maintain the vessel in the best possible conditions for sailing. For the above purpose, this paper employs Big Data theories broadly used within the academic and business environment on datasets characteristics and how to access the value from Big Data and Analytics. The research concludes that PSC data provide valid information to the shipping industry. However, the lack of PSC data ability to present the complete picture of PSC regimes and ports challenges the maritime community’s attempts for a safer and more sustainable industry.
In the middle of things: the political economy of labour beyond the market
Authors: Rittich Kerry
Published: April 2023

While legal analyses of political economy typically centre on events and processes within the market, this discussion argues that contemporary dilemmas requires attention to labour and productive activity at its edges and beyond. Questions surrounding labour provide an unparalleled vantage point from which to assess how groups are differentially situated within the economy, especially at moments of economic crisis and transformation. The constitutive role of law in market relations, in turn, makes legal analysis fundamental to understanding how risks and rewards at work are distributed.

Reflecting on the role of macroeconomic governance to work, evident in times of crisis in particular, and drawing upon concepts and tools developed within critical legal thought, this paper analyses two sites of labour, unpaid household care work and informal labour, that are at the centre of distributive struggles around work now. As the historical separation of the household and market labour discloses, transformations of legal form, and classification played a critical role in the simultaneous production of waged labour and valueless care. Similar processes are underway in labour markets now; thus, understanding the legal constitution of value and of work itself remains central to questions of inequality now.

Bargaining analysis as well as taxonomies of family law suggest the significance of a wide range of legal rules and their interaction to labour market outcomes and the position of workers. The analysis of informal work points in a similar direction, as contract, competition, and corporate law and beyond are all implicated in the growth of informality and precarity at work. Finally, uncovering the legal foundations of racial fragmentation at work requires attention to multiple legal regimes as well as the conceptual and ideological commitments that sustain them. All engage questions about the role, and transformation, of legal form, classification and consciousness within contemporary political economy.
The political economy of tenancy contract law – towards holistic housing law
Authors: Eller Klaas Hendrik
Published: April 2023

Europe’s aggravating housing crisis lies in the blind spots of law. While central in constructing housing both as a home and as an asset, law bears the task of mediating between housing’s multiple – social, economic, and cultural – dimensions. However, inner-legal fragmentation and a legal imaginary of property, the nation state, and its welfare system have depoliticized, deflected and rendered inaccessible the ‘housing question’. Turning to tenancy contract law in particular, this article argues that the ‘social’ orientation of this early example of a ‘materialised’ field of contract law is not only ill-suited to reflect the recent structural shifts in the housing market brought about through financialisation. Tenancy contract law has effectively taken a conservative drift by claiming to adequately administer the bilateral landlord–tenant relation while being insensitive to macro-level developments. Tenancy contract law reindividualises tenant responsibility in the eye of hardships whose roots lie outside the contractual sphere and thereby furthers, rather than curtails, neoliberal housing policies. As a reaction, the article proposes political economy as a conceptual vantage point from which to develop a ‘holistic housing law’. Such a perspective combines a concern for democratic and collective agency with careful attention to law’s tacit and technical role in shaping the flow of finance and the techniques of landlords’ governmentality. Part of this is a ‘transformative tenancy law’, to be reformulated to protect not against landlord bargaining power in the first place but against a hegemonic and expansive market rationality that structurally corrupts the social and material meaning of housing.
The drainage of glacier and ice sheet surface lakes
Authors: Schoof Christian , Cook Sue , Kulessa Bernd , Thompson Sarah
Published: April 2023

Supraglacial lakes play a central role in storing melt water, enhancing surface melt and ultimately in driving ice flow and ice shelf melt through injecting water into the subglacial environment and through facilitating fracturing. Here, we develop a model for the drainage of supraglacial lakes through the dissipation-driven incision of a surface channel. The model consists of the St Venant equations for flow in the channel, fed by an upstream lake reservoir, coupled with an equation for the evolution of channel elevation due to advection, uplift and downward melting. After reduction to a ‘stream power’-type hyperbolic model, we show that lake drainage occurs above a critical rate of water supply to the lake due to the backward migration of a shock that incises the lake seal. The critical water supply rate depends on advection velocity and uplift (or more precisely, drawdown downstream of the lake) as well as model parameters such as channel wall roughness and the parameters defining the relationship between channel cross-section and wetted perimeter. Once lake drainage does occur, it can either continue until the lake is empty, or terminate early, leading to oscillatory cycles of lake filling and draining, with the latter favoured by large lake volumes and relatively small water supply rates.
REVISITING ARCHIVED RYE GRAINS DISCOVERED AT THE NEOLITHIC SITE CUNEŞTI (ROMANIA)
Authors: Golea Mihaela , García-Vázquez Ana , Mircea Cristina , Cârciumaru Marin , Sava Gabriela , Mueller Johannes , Kirleis Wiebke , Lazăr Cătălin
Published: April 2023

Direct accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dating is crucial for a correct integration of plant remains in the (pre)history of crops, particularly for those that do not belong to the Neolithic package and are known to arrive in Europe much later. This paper reviews one of the earliest records of rye from Romania. The grains were discovered in the tell settlement of Cunești, which belongs to the Gumelnița communities (ca. 4600–3900 BC). In 1954, due to Danube flooding, a large portion of the south part of the tell collapsed, and between the burnt dwelling visible in the resulting profile, a large number of sherds from three typical Gumelnița pots were identified. According to the excavation’s author, rye grains were found in association with those sherds, and it was assumed that a batch was stored in these Eneolithic vessels. Consequently, the rye was published as belonging to the Gumelnița period. Our reanalysis led to two radiocarbon (14C) dates, from two different laboratories, which indicate that the Cunești rye is not prehistoric but dates to the medieval period. To correct this error concerning this rye batch and the implications for European archaeology, we decided to republish these grains in an updated chronological framework. In addition, we performed stable isotope analyses on the charred grains, confirming they were cultivated on dry land, as well as a 3D morphometric investigation. Our research brings new and original data on rye cultures from the medieval period in southeastern Europe.
TRADE UNIONS AND THE LAW: A MATERIALIST PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Adams Zoe
Published: April 2023

This paper draws on Marxist scholarship concerning the law's emancipatory potential to shed new light on the history of UK trade unions, and their relationship with law. It traces the historical development of UK trade union law from the nineteenth century to the present day with a view to illustrating the importance of considering not just the content, but also the form, of law, in explaining the role of law in shaping the development of the trade union movement, and in understanding the limits of law, including human rights law, when it comes to realising the emancipatory potential of trade unions in society today. It concludes with some observations about how legal and social actors might make use of their understanding of the legal form when it comes to harnessing the law as part of their political strategies.
Territorialisation de l'action publique éducative nationale et décentralisation en France et en Espagne : une étude comparée des activités sportives dans le secteur scolaire
Authors: Hernández Yannick , Loudcher Jean-François , Suchet André
Published: April 2023

Cette étude analyse tout d'abord les activités sportives dites périscolaires en France et extraescolares en Espagne à partir de leur cadre législatif de l’éducation au niveau national. Sont après identifiées les différentes dynamiques de décentralisation de chaque pays. Cet article interroge ensuite plus précisément leurs divergences en termes de territorialisation de l'action publique. Ainsi, sont analysés le rôle des États dans les jeux d’échelle politique et la participation des partenaires dans la gestion de ces activités à caractère intersectoriel. Ce travail démontre le désengagement des administrations nationales des deux pays dans le pilotage desdites activités. Cela s'explique par des raisons autres que la seule décentralisation. Paradoxalement, la décentralisation avérée n'a pas toujours comme résultat la territorialisation de l’éducation par projet favorisant une meilleure coordination des partenaires. La décentralisation peut d'ailleurs se révéler étonnamment contraignante.
INTERSECTIONALITY IN CICERONIAN INVECTIVE
Authors: Chong Caroline
Published: April 2023

This article applies an intersectional approach to Roman invective (and praise) to elucidate how those at the centre of Roman power exploited discriminatory and laudatory ideologies relating to intersections of identity to sway a Roman jury. Analysing the depiction of an unnamed woman in thePro Scauroshows how Cicero plays upon normalized prejudices to bias the jury againstista Sarda. These internalized prejudices could also be utilized to discredit women with privileged intersectional identities, as demonstrated by Cicero's portrayal of Clodia and Sassia in thePro Caelioand thePro Cluentio, a process that helps reify the marginalization of certain identities.
The Multiple Registers of Arabic in the Daudi Bohra Daʿwa and South Asian Public Life, c. 1880–1920
Authors: O'Sullivan Michael
Published: April 2023

In 1917, an Arabic treatise was published by the recently inaugurated Daudi Bohradāʿī al-muṭlaq(chief cleric), Tahir Sayf al-Din (r. 1915–65). In the work, entitledDawʾ Nur al-Haqq al-Mubin(The Brilliance of the Light of Transparent Truth), thedāʿīnot only underscored his monopoly of religious interpretation in the Daudi Bohra community, but also engaged in a series of jibes against Sunnis and Shiʿis.1As the book gained a wider readership beyond the confines of the Daudi Bohra community, several cities in Gujarat were beset by public campaigns against thedāʿīand his followers. Handbills in Gujarati and Urdu were disseminated challenging thedāʿīto a disputation and calling for his censure. Arabic, Persian, and Urdu fatwas were also penned castigating thedāʿīfor engaging in what his detractors regarded astakfīr(excommunication).
Afterword: Reassessing Arabic in South Asia
Authors: Zaman Muhammad Qasim
Published: April 2023

In his learned and stimulating article that helps frame the contributions to this roundtable while also outlining directions for future work in this area, Nile Green notes the striking fact that it has been nearly a hundred years since the last substantial English survey of the field was attempted. That was M. G. Zubaid Ahmad's “Contribution of India to Arabic Literature,” completed as a PhD dissertation under the supervision of the noted Orientalist Sir Thomas Arnold (d. 1930) at the School of Oriental Studies (as it was then known), University of London, in 1929. It was subsequently published with a preface by another distinguished Orientalist, Sir Hamilton Gibb (d. 1971), and retains some scholarly interest to this day.1 That interest lies not only in the descriptions of the many Arabic-language works it lists—going well beyond Carl Brockelmann's classic Geschichte der arabischen Litteratur in this respect—but also, in hindsight, in the assumptions that guide Ahmad's work. Ahmad believed there was little in the Arabic literature surveyed that showed any originality, partly because there was not much remaining to be said in fields like Qur'anic exegesis, the reported teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (hadith), or law by the time Indian scholars began engaging seriously with these subjects. It was also partly to do with an intellectual decline well underway by the time relevant areas of inquiry had reached India. The intellectual landscape remained unrelieved whether one looked at religious or secular literature, or even at writings in Persian for that matter: “… in spite of the abundance of Persian literature produced in India, nothing original is found in these contributions.”2
Nahda-izing India: The Urdu-Hindi Debate and its Arabic Alternative, c. 1860s–1947
Authors: Bar Sadeh Roy
Published: April 2023

In 1869–70, the celebrated South Asian Muslim intellectual Sayyid Ahmad Khan (1817–98) visited Egypt on his way to England. Khan, one of South Asia's most renowned Muslim thinkers, was the founder of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College (est. 1875; hereafter MAO College), a higher education institution in the North Indian town of Aligarh modeled after Oxbridge. Responding to intensified efforts by Hindu organizations to elevate the status of Devanagari-script Hindi to that of Urdu in Indian provincial courts, Khan argued throughout his journey that the use of Urdu was even more extensive than that of French in Europe, contrasting it with Hindi, which he “did not find anywhere.” In his view, Urdu was a clear and simple language that facilitated connections between diverse peoples, unlike Hindi.
One Vol to Rule Them All: Common Volatility Dynamics in Factor Returns
Authors: Kapadia Nishad , Linn Matthew , Paye Bradley
Published: April 2023

We show that a common component governs volatility dynamics across a wide range of traded equity factors. This “common factor volatility” (CFV) exists even among orthogonal factors. CFV occurs in both cash-flow and discount-rate components of factor returns and derives from market responses to fundamental news rather than underlying commonality in news volatility. Incorporating CFV improves factor volatility forecasts relative to models that include only own-factor volatility. CFV allows us to characterize stochastic discount factor (SDF) volatility dynamics in a very general sense and we show that many popular models imply SDFs with time-varying volatility that correlates strongly with CFV.
Major drivers of biodiversity loss and their impacts on helminth parasite populations and communities
Authors: Marcogliese D.J.
Published: April 2023

The world's biodiversity is in peril. The major threats to biodiversity globally are habitat change, overexploitation, climate change, invasive species and pollution. Not only do these stressors impact free-living organisms, but they affect parasitic ones as well. Herein, this perspective examines the potential consequences of these anthropogenic perturbations on helminth populations and communities, with emphasis on significant developments over the past decade. Furthermore, several case studies are examined in more detail for each of these threats to biodiversity. While effects are widespread and diverse, for the most part all these environmental stressors have negative effects on parasite populations and communities. Those parasites with complex life cycles that are trophically transmitted are often more at risk, although larval parasites with a wide host spectrum, and directly transmitted ectoparasites, appear less threatened and may even benefit. However, differential effects on hosts and parasites, on parasite life cycle stages and on host–parasite interactions made specific predictions difficult and context-dependent. Experimental laboratory and mesocosm studies on specific parasites that test effects on the different life cycle stages, hosts and host–parasite interactions, permitting the determination of net effects of an environmental stressor, yield insightful and sometimes counterintuitive results, although they remain a simplification of real-world complexity. Recent advances in the use of parasites as bioindicators of effects also are discussed.