bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Decision-Making of Communication Robots Through Robot Ethics
Authors: Hashimoto Tomomi , Tao Xingyu , Suzuki Takuma , Kurose Takafumi , Nishikawa Yoshio , Kagawa Yoshihito ,   Faculty of Engineering, Saitama Institute of Technology  1690 Fusaiji, Fukaya, Saitama 369-0293, Japan,   Graduate School of Engineering, Saitama Institute of Technology 1690 Fusaiji, Fukaya, Saitama 369-0293, Japan,   Faculty of Engineering, Takushoku University 815-1 Tatemachi, Hachioji, Tokyo 193-0985, Japan
Published: July 2021

With the recent developments in robotics, the ability of robots to recognize their environment has significantly improved. However, the manner in which robots behave depending on a particular situation remains an unsolved problem. In this study, we propose a decision-making method for robots based on robot ethics. Specifically, we applied the two-level theory of utilitarianism, comprising SYSTEM 1 (intuitive level) for quick decisions and SYSTEM 2 (critical level) for slow but careful decisions. SYSTEM 1 represented a set of heuristically determined responses and SYSTEM 2 represented a rule-based discriminator. The decision-making method was as follows. First, SYSTEM 1 selected the response to the input. Next, SYSTEM 2 selected the rule that the robot’s behavior should follow depending on the amount of happiness and unhappiness of the human, robot, situation, and society. We assumed three choices for SYSTEM 2. We assigned “non-cooperation” to asocial comments, “cooperation” to when the amount of happiness was considered to be high beyond the status quo bias, and “withholding” to all other cases. In the case of choosing between cooperation or non-cooperation, we modified the behavior selected in SYSTEM 1. An impression evaluation experiment was conducted, and the effectiveness of the proposed method was demonstrated.
Intraoperative Administration Of An NSAID And An Opioid Vs. An Opioid Alone Effect On Postoperative Ileus Development
Authors: Ulsh Brooke , Vedros Delaney , Whaley Rebekah , Little Sharon
Published: July 2021

The purpose of this DNP project is to examine what is known from existing literature about postoperative ileus development in the adult surgical patient population after receiving intraoperative opioids versus a combination of intraoperative opioids and NSAIDs.
The Effects of a School-Based Physical Activity Teacher Intervention on the Physical Activity Attitudes and Practices of Adolescent Students in Lagos, Nigeria
Authors: Osifeko Olalekan Remigious , Naidoo Rowena , Chetty Verusia
Published: July 2021

Background: Nigerian adolescents are faced with challenges around physical inactivity. Poor attitudes to, and practices in, physical activity during school physical education (PE) classes are also a challenge. Our study integrated an innovative PE teaching methodology (autonomous support style) into a professional development training (PDT) programme for teachers to promote PA among adolescents. The study aimed at determining the effects of this school-based physical activity intervention for teachers on the physical activity attitudes and practices of adolescents.  This study employed a descriptive quantitative research approach to determine the attitudes and practices of adolescents. One thousand two hundred students were recruited from twenty-four junior secondary schoolsthrough an intact group design process.  A PE teacher from each school was included in the PDT intervention programme. The main components of the intervention included training PE teachers to influence their students’ attitudes and practices through the use of an autonomous support style of teaching.PE teachers allocated to the intervention group implemented the autonomous support style of teaching at the schools in the intervention group for four months. There was a pre-intervention baseline assessment of the students’ physical activity attitudes and practices, with a second assessment following the intervention. Results showed that there were significant (p<0.05) changes, post-intervention, in the adolescents’ attitudes to, and practices in, physical activity participation during PE classes, and at lunch or break-time during the school day.
Classroom Process and Causes of Worsening High School Students' Failure of Literature-in-English in Nigeria
Authors: Ugwu Eucharia Okwudilichukwu
Published: July 2021

Current theories of teaching favour students-centred classrooms. In Literature-in-English lessons, active participation of students is essential for optimal learning. This study examined the level of students' active participation in Literature-in-English classrooms as the major reason for the high failure rates of Nigerian students who take this subject in the yearly senior secondary school examinations. The study was carried out in Ibadan metropolis, Oyo State. The mixed method research design was adopted. Class Observation Schedule (r=0.9) and Interview Guide for Teachers were used to gather the data. Random sampling technique was used to select three Local Government Areas (LGAs), 27 public senior secondary schools (9 from each LGA) and one Literature-in-English teacher from each school. All the teachers were observed twice during lessons while 12 of them were interviewed. Results from the quantitative data showed that the classroom process was teacher-dominated, and students' level of participation was very low. Students hardly asked questions and teachers did not use teaching techniques that encouraged active participation. Teachers identified students' inability to buy the prescribed literary texts, lack of interest in reading and poor language proficiency as some of the factors that contribute to students' failure. Several recommendations were made to enhance the teaching-learning process and maximize learning.
Laterally accreted deposits in low efficiency turbidites associated with a structurally-induced topography (Oligocene Molare Group, Tertiary Piedmont Basin, NW Italy)
Authors: Tinterri Roberto , Civa Andrea
Published: July 2021

The origin of laterally accreted deposits in ancient deep marine successions is often controversial. Indeed, not always do these features imply the occurrence of meanders or high-sinuosity turbidite channels, but they can be generated by other causes, such as sediment-gravity-flow dynamics controlled by the morphology of tectonically confined mini-basins. This work discusses laterally accreted deposits composed of sharp-based, normally graded beds in a very small tectonically controlled mini-basin. These beds, characterized by a well-defined asymmetrical cross-current facies tract, form well-developed lateral-accretion surfaces dipping in directions ranging between W and SW, and perpendicular to the paleocurrents directed towards the N. For this reason, these deposits have always been interpreted as point bars related to meandering channels. A new detailed stratigraphic framework and facies analysis have led to an alternative interpretation, namely that these deposits record lateral deflections of small volume, longitudinally segregated turbidite dense flows against a structurally controlled morphological high. This interpretation is also supported by a comparison to other tectonically controlled turbidite systems that are characterized by higher degrees of efficiency but show similar laterally accreted deposits and cross-current facies tracts.
A well-differentiated liposarcoma of the prevertebral space: A case report
Authors: Yang Tianming , Xiao Lin , Ren Huijun
Published: July 2021

Liposarcoma is common in adults; however, it very rarely occurs in the retropharyngeal space, and to date, no cases of liposarcoma in the prevertebral space have been reported. A 78-year-old man presented at the Otolaryngology Department with a 1-month history of dyspnea and dysphonia. Magnetic resonance imaging of the neck reveled a retropharyngeal mass extending from the superior margin of the axis to the level of the 7thcervical vertebra. A computed tomography scan of the patient’s neck uncovered the relationship between the mass and its’ surrounding structures. Based on the above examinations, a diagnosis of retropharyngeal liposarcoma was made initially. The patient underwent transoral surgical excision with the assistance of a nasal endoscope. During surgery, the tumor was located in the prevertebral space. Combined with pathology and immunohistochemistry examinations, the diagnosis was modified to well-differentiated liposarcoma of the prevertebral space. At the 1-year follow-up, the patient was well and there was no evidence of recurrence. The long-term outcomes are not yet known. Liposarcoma of the prevertebral space may sometimes be misdiagnosed as retropharyngeal liposarcoma; however, in our view, it is not necessary to focus on differentiating between enormous retropharyngeal and prevertebral tumors. In relation to the short-term outcome, complete excision using the transoral approach with the aid of nasal endoscope may present a better choice than the cervical approach in treating these tumors, especially in old people.
Effects of Therapeutic Plasma Exchange on the Endothelial Glycocalyx in Septic Shock
Authors: Stahl Klaus , Hillebrand Uta Carola , Kiyan Yulia , Schmidt Julius , Seeliger Benjamin , Schenk Heiko , Pape Thorben , Schmidt Bernhard M. W. , Welte Tobias , Hoeper Marius M. , Sauer Agnes , Wygrecka Malgorzata , Bode Christian , Wedemeyer Heiner , Haller Hermann , David Sascha
Published: July 2021

Background: Disruption of the endothelial glycocalyx (eGC) is observed in septic patients and its injury is associated with multiple-organ failure and inferior outcomes. Besides this biomarker function, increased blood concentrations of shedded eGC constituents might play a mechanistic role in septic organ failure. We hypothesized that therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) against fresh frozen plasma might influence eGC related pathology.Methods: We enrolled 20 norepinephrine dependent (NE > 0.4mg/kg/min) patients with early septic shock (onset < 12h). Sublingual assessment of the eGC via sublingual sidestream darkfield (SDF) imaging was performed. Plasma eGC degradation products such as heparan-sulfate (HS) and the eGC regulating enzymes, heparanase (Hpa)-1 and Hpa-2, were obtained before and after TPE. A 3D microfluidic flow assay was performed to examine the effect of TPE on eGC ex vivo. Results were compared to healthy controls. Results: SDF demonstrated a decrease in eGC thickness in septic patients compared to healthy individuals (p=0.001). Circulating HS levels were increased more than six-fold compared to controls and decreased significantly following TPE (controls: 16.9 (8-18.6) vs. septic patients before TPE: 105.8 (30.8-143.4) μg/ml, p<0.001; vs. after TPE: 70.7 (36.9-109.5) μg/ml, p<0.001). The Hpa-2 /Hpa-1 ratio was reduced in septic patients before TPE but normalized after TPE (controls: 13.6 (6.2-21.2) vs. septic patients at inclusion: 2.9 (2.1-5.7), p=0.001; vs. septic patients after TPE: 13.2 (11.2-31.8), p<0.001). Ex vivo stimulation of endothelial cells with serum from a septic patient induced eGC damage that could be attenuated with serum from the same patient following TPE.Conclusions: Septic shock results in profound degradation of the eGC and an acquired deficiency of the protective regulator Hpa-2. TPE removed potentially injurious eGC degradation products and partially attenuated Hpa-2 deficiency. Trial registration: clinicaltrials.gov NCT04231994, retrospectively registered 18 January 2020
Characterization of Monoolein Langmuir Monolayers Spread at The Salt Solution/Air Interface
Authors: Dhopte Balaji Sopanrao , Lad V. N.
Published: July 2021

The Langmuir monolayer is commonly described at interfaces for an insoluble homogenous single molecular layer. Langmuir monolayers have demonstrated various issues regarding soft matters and complex fluids by forming ideal uniform two-dimensional structures over the air-water interface. This monolayer has advantages for evaluating physicochemical properties at interfaces and, for the insoluble molecules, can be applied simultaneously to the different interaction occurrences at interfaces. For this experiment, monoolein lipid was used as a spreading solvent to create a Langmuir monolayer, and five different types of salt sub-phases were applied for the physicochemical properties’ interaction studies. On the air-water interface, the surface properties of monoolein lipids were investigated for interfacial phase behaviors, using the Wilhelmy plate pressure sensor technique compression isotherm (π-A). Data and analysis were also contributed to the correspondent, precise verification of physical state behavior with the surface pressure measurements on the interfaces through the compressibility modulus and the elasticity modulus parameters on the surface. In the experiments, the interfacial activity of the monoolein lipids was found to be stable on the aqueous sub-phase, while the area per molecule over the interface did not have much impact as a sub-phase with a change in salts. The repeatability and reproducibility of tests were affirmed by the difference in the Langmuir monolayer’s particular phase transition orientation behavior and the stability of colloidal lipid dispersion. However, Langmuir monolayer formation contributes to several special groups being restructured and is found to be a more remarkable natural process for their attractive organic dynamic structural properties over the interface, but the interfacial molecular dynamics have proven to be difficult to calculate.
Economic Efficiency of Resource Recovery – Analysis of Time-Dependent Changes on Sustainability Perception of Waste Management Scenarios
Authors: Tomic Tihomir , Kremer Irma , Schneider Daniel Rolph
Published: July 2021

Waste management systems are modelled to provide a public waste management service and need to be able to meet environmental sustainability requirements at a cost that is acceptable to system users/citizens. Overall environmental, economic, and/or socio-economic sustainability of waste management in previous publications is done through independent analyses and comparisons of obtained results or through multicriterial ranking of different alternatives where final results do not have a meaningful physical significance and cannot be interpreted independently. At the same time, those analysis either neglect time dependant changes by focusing on moment in time, or take into account changes in some timeframe changes but report only ranking focused single-score results, thus, results neglect time-dependent developments. All of these approaches are lacking some information needed for informed decision-making and/or are difficult to understand by wider groups of people. Thus, in this study, link between economic and environmental sustainability is analysed through newly defined single-score Economic Efficiency of Resource Recovery (EERR) index that shows the specific system cost for achieving identified resource recovery, while legislation based time dependent changes are taken into account through successive analyses for legislative most important years. This approach can be used for benchmarking the overall (environmental and economic) sustainability trends, while its graphical representation enables easier presentation of sustainability results and can be used for easier comparison of possible solutions and decision-making. The results show that the quality decision-making process needs to take into account the impact of expected changes on overall sustainability and evaluate how they will affect the actual perception of used technologies. In this context, it is shown that overall changes in sustainability, in comparison to the existing perception, can significantly change, depending on which technologies the system is based on.
Land Subsidence Prediction using Recurrent Neural Networks
Authors: Kumar Sunil , Kumar Dheeraj , Donta Praveen Kumar , Amgoth Tarachand
Published: July 2021

In an environment, one of the natural geological hazards is land surface subsidence. There are several reasons for land subsidence among them are underground coal mining and coal fire in subsurface or deformation is primarily measured in terms of change in ground elevation values ( Z-dimension) at different time intervals at identified ground locations. All the conventional and exiting techniques have certain limitations in monitoring and predicting land surface subsidence. In this work, we predict the land subsidence for one year in the interval of twelve days on the datasets collected through a monitoring technique called Modified PSInSAR. The sample datasets contains 14 locations and 67 previous land subsidence value calculated from each location. We train and test predictive models and perform the prediction of the land subsidence using Vanilla and Stacked long short-term memories (LSTMs). Finally, we demonstrates the predicted deformation values of the 14 locations for one year.
Effect of discoid lateral meniscus on tibiofemoral joint cartilage damage in middle-aged patients
Authors: Sulaiman Yaxiaer , Li Qi , Li Jian , Chen Gang , Tang Xin
Published: July 2021

Purpose: To investigate the effect of discoid lateral meniscus (DLM) on cartilage damage of the medial and lateral compartments of the knee in middle-aged patients.Methods: We analyzed data from 44 patients (54 knees) with symptomatic discoid lateral meniscus (DLM group) and 30 patients (30 knees) with a non-discoid lateral meniscus tear (control group). All patients were over 40 years old. We compared the tibiofemoral angle (TFA) and cartilage injury rate between the two groups. We further classified DLM group patients based on dysmorphic features of the menisci (DLM type), presence/absence of meniscal tear, and symptom durations, then analyzed whether these parameters could affect the number of cartilage injuries in the knee medial and lateral compartments.Results: DLM group showed higher TFA values (2.18°±2.86°) than control group (0.84°±1.35°, P=0.002), and a higher occurrence of medial compartment cartilage damage (P=0.003). Within the DLM group, patients with cartilage damage showed higher BMI than those without cartilage damage (P=0.009 for medial compartment and P=0.001 for lateral, respectively). We found that having symptoms for more than 6 months was associated with cartilage damage in the lateral compartment (P=0.021), but not the medial compartment (P=0.858). Neither presence/absence of a meniscal tear, nor DLM type affected cartilage injury rate in either the medial or lateral compartment (P>0.05).Conclusion: Varus inclination caused by DLM could lead to cartilage injury in the medial compartment in middle-aged patients, but may not reduce the occurrence of chondral damage in the lateral compartment. Rather, lateral compartment chondral damage in patients with DLM was mainly related to symptom duration.
The Treatment Efficacy of Transparasacral Approach for Presacral Tumor: A Single Center Experience
Authors: Wang Min , Liu Guoliang , Zhao Linxian , He Hongyu , Li Jiannan
Published: July 2021

Background

Presacral tumors, also known as retrorectal tumors, locate in the presacral space and are clinically rare and the approaches for the diagnosis and treatment of presacral tumors are still deficient. The four accepted surgical approaches for presacral tumors include transabdominal approach, sacrococcygeal approach, perineal approach, and combined approach. This study aims to evaluate the treatment efficacy of transparasacral approach for presacral tumors.
Methods

23 patients (7 males and 16 females) who are diagnosed with presacral tumors and receive surgery in transsacral approach at our department were chosen. The gender, age, body mass index (BMI), and clinical symptoms were recorded. The clinical data, postoperative complications, and short and long-term rehabilitation data were recorded and analyzed.
Conclusions

The surgery was performed smoothly and the patients recovered well without signs of intestinal fistula, abdominal and pelvic infection, lung infection, organ dysfunction, or organ failure. The incision edema occurred in only one patient. In terms of the histopathological types, presacral tumors can be classified into tailgut cyst (n = 10), epidermoid cyst (n = 5), teratoma (n = 3), and lipoma (n = 10). One patient diagnosed with tailgut cyst was accompanied by adenocarcinoma transition. Tumor recurrence didn’t occur in any patients. In addition, no patients complained about dysuria, sacrococcygeal sensory disturbance, or sacrococcygeal and perineal discomfort. Surgical resection with transparasacral approach is effective for the treatment of presacral tumors with the advantages of high safety, good treatment efficacy, few complications, good oncological prognosis, and fast recovery.
An Empirical Study towards dealing with Noise and Class Imbalance issues in Software Defect Prediction
Authors: PANDEY SUSHANT KUMAR , Tripathi Anil Kumar
Published: July 2021

The quality of the defect datasets is a critical issue in the domain of software defect prediction (SDP). These datasets are obtained through the mining of software repositories. Resent studies claims over the quality of the defect dataset. It is because of inconsistency between bug/clean fix keyword in fault reports and the corresponding link in the change management logs. Class Imbalance (CI) problem is also a big challenging issue in SDP models. The defect prediction method trained using noisy and imbalanced data leads to inconsistent and unsatisfactory results. Combined analysis over noisy instances and CI problem needs to be required. To the best of our knowledge, there are insufficient studies that have been done over such aspects. In this paper, we deal with the impact of noise and CI problem on five baseline SDP models; we manually added the various noise level (0 to 80%) and identified its impact on the performance of those SDP models. Moreover, we further provide guidelines for the possible range of tolerable noise for baseline models. We have also suggested the SDP model, which has the highest noise tolerable ability and outperforms over other classical methods. The True Positive Rate (TPR) and False Positive Rate (FPR) values of the baseline models reduce between 20\% to 30\% after adding 10% to 40% noisy instances. Similarly, the ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristics) values of SDP models reduces to 40% to 50%. The suggested model leads to avoid noise between 40% to 60% as compared to other traditional models.
Optical 8PSK Modulation Format Generator Basedon Three Microring Modulators
Authors: Singha Satyabrata , Bhowmik Sanjukta , Sinha Nitish , Bhowmik Bishanka Brata
Published: July 2021

We have proposed an 8PSK modulator based on three microring modulators (MRM). The design consists of three MRMs, each with a radius of 11.1μm. Of these three, two MRMs are connected in parallel and they together generate a QPSK (Quadrature phase shift keying) signal. While at the output port of the QPSK, a third MRM is connected in series works as an angle modulator, which is basically a 45o phase shift modulator; i.e., the output of the MRM varies by 45o depending on the bit pattern fed to it, ’0’or ’1’ respectively. In the result section, we have simulated and shown the performance of the proposed 2.5 GBaud 8PSK modulator after transmitting the modulated signal through various lengths of optical fiber. The bit error rate (BER) vs. optical signal to noise ratio (OSNR) curve shows that, 10−3BER has been achieved at 13.5dB OSNR.
CBD: A New Divergence Measure for Complex Mass Function and its Application in Pattern Recognition
Authors: Luo Lan , Xiao Fuyuan
Published: July 2021

The theory of complex mass function is an effective method to deal with uncertainty information, and it is a generalized of Dempster-Shafer evidence theory. However, divergence measure is still an open issue in the realm of complex mass function theory. The main contribution of our paper is to propose a generalized divergence measure for complex mass function that is called complex belief divergence (CBD),which has the properties of symmetry, nonnegativity, nondegeneracy. When complex mass function degenerates into classical mass function, the CBD will degenerate into classical belief divergence, which has a better ability to measure uncertainty of information. Finally, a pattern recognition algorithm based on CBD is designed and applied to a medical diagnosis problem, which proves its practical prospect.
Cumulative Live Birth Rates of Women ≥ 38 Years With Poor, Normal and High Ovarian Response
Authors: Liu Conghui , Li Yu , Jiang Hong , Wang Xuemei , Ni Feng , Liu Ying
Published: July 2021

Background
Previous studies have reported that live birth rate (LBR) decreased with aging, however, no study has evaluated the cumulative LBR (CLBR) in accordance with the ovarian response in advanced maternal age (AMA) patients. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the ovarian response and the CLBR in AMA patients.
Methods
913 women ≥ 38 years underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) and fresh embryo transfer (ET) between January 2014 and June 2019 were enrolled in this retrospective study. All subjects were categorized into three groups, poor ovarian response (POR) group: 1–3 oocytes retrieved (n = 127), normal ovarian response (NOR) group: 4–15 oocytes retrieved, and high ovarian response (HOR) group: more than 15 oocytes retrieved. The primary outcome was the CLBR in one oocyte retrieval cycle after transfer of all fresh and frozen embryos. Logistic regression models were used to derive the odds ratio (OR) to identify the relationship of CLBR with different ovarian response, adjusting for age and body mass index.
Results
Compared with women in POR group, the women in other groups (NOR and HOR groups) achieved higher CLBR [adjusted OR (aOR) = 2.12, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.16–4.38 for NOR group; aOR = 2.93, 95% CI, 1.44–5.97 for HOR]. The LBR of the fresh ET and the neonate characteristics showed no significant difference among the three groups.
Conclusion
Ovarian response is significantly associated with CLBR in women with advanced age.
Impact of Hemolysis on Multi-OMIC Pancreatic Biomarker Discovery: Derisking Precision Medicine Biomarker Development
Authors: Searfoss Richard , Shah Punit , Ofori-Mensa Kennedy , Bussberg Valerie , Tolstikov Vladimir , Greenwood Bennett , Li Hongyan , DeCicco Corinne , Granger Elder , Rodrigues Leonardo O. , Grund Eric M. , Moser A. James , Sarangarajan Rangaprasad , Narain Niven R. , Kiebish Michael A.
Published: July 2021

Cancer biomarker discovery is critically dependent on the integrity of biofluid, and tissue samples acquired from study participants. Multi-omic profiling of candidate protein, lipid, and metabolite biomarkers is confounded by timing and fasting status of sample collection, participant demographics and treatment exposures of the study population. Contamination by hemoglobin, whether caused by hemolysis during sample preparation or underlying red cell fragility, contributes 0–10 g/L of extraneous protein to plasma, serum, and Buffy coat samples and may interfere with biomarker detection and validation. We analyzed 617 plasma, 701 serum, and 657 buffy coat samples from a 7 year longitudinal multi-omic biomarker discovery program evaluating 400 + participants with or at risk for pancreatic cancer, known as Project Survival™. Hemolysis was undetectable in 93.1% of plasma and 95.0% of serum samples, whereas only 37.1% of Buffy coat samples were free of contamination by hemoglobin. Regression analysis of multi-omic data demonstrated a statistically significant correlation between hemoglobin concentration and the resulting pattern of analyte detection and concentration. Although hemolysis had the greatest impact on identification and quantitation of the proteome, distinct differentials in metabolomics and lipidomics were also observed and correlated with severity. We conclude that quality control is vital to accurate detection of informative molecular differentials using OMIC technologies and that caution must be exercised to minimize the impact of hemolysis as a factor driving false discovery in large cancer biomarker studies.
A Pilot Study on Home Range and Habitat Use of Chinese Goral (Naemorhedus Griseus): Exploring GPS Tracking Data in Cliff Landscape by Three Estimation Methods
Authors: Teng Yang , TANG Shupei , Menghe Dalai , Wu Liji , HAN Zhiqing , HAN Yingying , BAO Weidong
Published: July 2021

Home range size estimation is a crucial basis for developing effective conservation strategies and provides important insights into animal behavior and ecology. This study aimed at analyzing the home range variations, the influence of altitude in habitat selection, and comparing three methods in home range estimation of Chinese gorals (Naemorhedus griseus) living at a cliff landscape. The results indicated that there were significant differences between the annual home range sizes of individual animals but there was no difference in their seasonal home range sizes based on GPS tracking data of five female Chinese gorals from February 2015 to September 2018. The monthly home ranges decreased dramatically in May, June and July due to birth-giving. Notable seasonal variations were found in the micro-habitats of the Chinese gorals, as reflected by the altitude they inhabit, with higher altitude habitats used in spring and lower altitude habitats used in winter. Additionally, the altitude of monthly habitats was lowest in January, which may indicate an adaptation to low air temperature. We also found differences between estimation methods, namely minimum convex polygon (MCP), kernel density estimation (KDE) and α-local convex hull (α-LoCoH), with seasonal home range sizes derived from α-LoCoH being substantially smaller than those derived from MCP and KDE. In conclusion, our findings filled the gaps in home range study for this endangered species and contributed to effective conservation strategies. Considerations shall have to be given to the variations in home range estimation caused by different methods when dealing with rugged habitats, so as to make sure that any interpretation concerning the habitat use of the targeted species made on basis of such results would be meaningful and valid.
The Impact of Land-Ocean Contrast on The Seasonal To Decadal Variability of The Northern Hemisphere Jet Stream
Authors: Hallam Samantha , Josey Simon , McCarthy Gerard , Hirschi Joel
Published: July 2021

Seasonal to decadal variations in Northern Hemisphere jet stream latitude and speed over land (Eurasia, North America) and oceanic (North Atlantic, North Pacific) regions are presented for the period 1871 – 2011 from the Twentieth Century Reanalysis dataset. Significant regional differences are seen on seasonal to decadal timescales. The ocean acts to reduce the seasonal jet latitude range from 20° over Eurasia to 10° over the North Atlantic where the ocean meridional heat transport is greatest. The mean jet latitude range is at a minimum in winter (DJF), along the western boundary of the North Pacific and North Atlantic, where the land-sea contrast and SST gradients are strongest. The 141-year trends in jet latitude and speed show differences on a regional basis. The North Atlantic has significant increasing jet latitude trends in all seasons, up to 3° in winter. Eurasia has significant increasing trends in winter and summer, however, no increase is seen across the North Pacific or North America. Jet speed shows significant increases evident in winter (up to 4.7ms -1 ), spring and autumn over the North Atlantic, Eurasia and North America however, over the North Pacific no increase is observed. Long term trends are generally overlaid by multidecadal variability, particularly evident in the North Pacific, where 20-year variability in jet latitude and jet speed are seen, associated with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation which explains 50% of the winter variance in jet latitude since 1940. Northern hemisphere jet variability and trends differ on a regional basis (North Atlantic, North Pacific, Eurasia and America) on seasonal to decadal timescales, indicating different mechanisms are influencing the jet latitude and speed. It is important that the differing regional trends and mechanisms are incorporated into climate models and predictions.
Effective Degradation of Cellulose by Microwave Irradiation in Alkaline Solution
Authors: Jabareen Lama , Maruthapandi Moorthy , Saravanan Arumugam , Gedanken Aharon
Published: July 2021

The utilization of lignocellulosic biomass is effective to produce chemicals and fuels, which are of importance for the establishment of a sustainable society. The conversion of cellulose, which is the main component of the lignocellulosic biomass, into significant chemicals that can be further converted to different chemicals or fuels in the subsequent step, under gentle conditions is a promising route. Organic acids such as acetic acid, glycolic acid and formic acid are significant chemicals are examples of such products. A novel method to producing important platform chemicals from Micro-crystalline cellulose was developed. Micro-crystalline cellulose was degraded as a result of an oxidation with potassium chlorate by microwave radiation, in a one-pot procedure, efficient reaction conditions such as short reaction time and full conversion of the cellulose were identified. The reaction products have been analyzed by 1H, 13C NMR, XPS, TGA and XRD.
Development of A Physiological-Based Pharmacokinetic Model to Predict Bendamustine Exposure in Paediatric Patients
Authors: Leong Hui Wen , Tummala Hari Prabhath , Madheswaran Thiagajaran , Kandasamy Murugesh
Published: July 2021

Background the study aimed to predict bendamustine pharmacokinetics in paediatric patients by employing physiological-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model that considers age-dependent physiological maturity. Methods Using PK-Sim, a paediatric PBPK model was constructed based on a validated PBPK adult model using the recommended paediatric dose at 120 mg/m2 bendamustine intravenous (IV) infusion for 60 minutes and age-dependent mechanistic scaling. Parameter optimisation was done based on model fitting to the observed in vivo population pharmacokinetic (PK) data using the visual predictive check. The final paediatric PBPK model was extrapolated to various paediatric age categories (term newborn, infant, toddler, preschool, school-age, adolescent) for PK estimate and comparisons. The PBPK paediatric model was compared with the adult model, and PK comparisons were made for different age categories with the reference paediatric model. Results The model estimated a bendamustine fraction unbound of 4% in a paediatric patient. Renal clearance, biliary clearance and total hepatic clearance in a typical child were 1.38 mL/min/kg, 0.02 mL/min/kg and 13.76 mL/min/kg respectively. The paediatric model was comparable to the adult model. Compared to a typical child, a term newborn has the highest estimated maximum plasma concentration (Cmax) and systemic exposure (AUC0-24h), which were 1.24-fold respectively. Clearance in term newborn and infant were 1.4-1.5-fold higher than a typical child. Conclusions We developed a bendamustine PBPK model for a paediatric patient with relapsed/refractory Acute Lymphocytic Leukaemia (ALL) and Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML). The current model may be useful to estimate systemic exposure in paediatric for various age categories in different settings. More in vivo studies are needed in paediatric patients to challenge the robustness of this model.
Curcumin Sensitizes Prolactinoma to Bromocriptine by Activating the ERK/EGR1 and Inhibiting AKT/GSK3β Signaling Pathway
Authors: Tang Chao , Zhu Junhao , Yuan Feng , Yang Jin , Cai Xiangming , Ma Chiyuan
Published: July 2021

Although bromocriptine (BRC) as first-line drugs are recommended for treating patients with prolactinoma, a minority of patients with prolactinoma resistance to BRC. Moreover, our previous study showed that the difference in drug sensitivity in BRC- treated rat prolactinoma cells, MMQ cells are more resistant to BRC, and GH3 cells are more sensitive to BRC. Curcumin (Cur) has been shown to inhibit proliferation of prolactinoma cell lines. The aim of this study is to further investigate whether Cur could enhance the growth-inhibitory effect of BRC resistance on prolactinoma cell lines and its possible mechanism. CCK-8 kit was used to test cell growth. Cell-cycle analysis and apoptosis was performed by flow cytometry. Electron microscopy was used to test autophagosome. The mRNA expression profiles were analysed using the Affymetrix Gene-Chip array. Western blotting was used to test protein expression. Our data showed that Cur enhanced the growth-inhibitory effect of BRC on GH3 and MMQ cell proliferation. BRC and Cur both induced cell apoptosis, and Cur could significantly increase the apoptosis of BRC on pituitary adenoma cells through the ERK/EGR1 signaling pathway. Moreover, Cur could enhance the autophagic cell death (ACD) of BRC on tumor cell by inhibiting the AKT/GSK3β signaling pathway. The same results were confirmed in vivo study. Taken together, Cur sensitizes rat pituitary adenoma cell to BRC by activating the ERK/EGR1 and inhibiting AKT/GSK3β signaling pathway.
Force Analysis of the Overconstrained Mechanisms Based on Equivalent Stiffness Considering Limb Axial Deformation
Authors: Guo Jinwei , Zhao Yongsheng , Chen Bo , Zhang Guoxing , Xu Yundou , Yao Jiantao
Published: July 2021

Considering the limb axial deformation, taking typical 2SS + P and 7-SS passive overconstrained mechanisms, 2SPS + P and 7-SPS active overconstrained mechanisms, and 2SPS + P and 7-SPS passive-input overconstrained mechanisms as examples, a new force analysis method based on the idea of equivalent stiffness is proposed. The equivalent stiffness matrix of passive overconstrained mechanism is derived by combining the force balance and deformation compatibility equations with consideration of axial elastic limb deformations. The relationship between the constraint wrench magnitudes and the external force, limb stiffness is established. The equivalent stiffness matrix of active overconstrained mechanism is derived by combining the force balance and displacement compatibility equations. Here, the relationship between the magnitudes of the actuated wrenches and the external force, limb stiffness is investigated. Combining with the equivalent stiffness of the passive overconstrained mechanism, an analytical relationship between the actuated forces of passive-input overconstrained mechanism and the output displacement, limb stiffness is explored. Finally, adaptability of the equivalent stiffness to overconstrained mechanisms is discussed, and the effect of the limb stiffness on overconstrained mechanisms force distribution is revealed.
Self and Nonself Short Constituent Sequences of Amino Acids in The SARS-CoV-2 Proteome for Vaccine Development
Authors: Otaki Joji , Nakasone Wataru , Nakamura Morikazu
Published: July 2021

Current SARS-CoV-2 vaccines take advantage of the viral spike protein required for infection in humans. However, spike proteins may contain both “self” and “nonself” sequences (sequences that exist in the human proteome and those that do not, respectively). Nonself sequences are likely to be better candidate epitopes than self sequences for vaccines to efficiently eliminate pathogenic proteins and to reduce the potential long-term risks of autoimmune diseases. Here, we comprehensively identified self and nonself short constituent sequences (SCSs) of 5 amino acid residues in the proteome of SARS-CoV-2. Self and nonself SCSs comprised 91.2% and 8.8% of the SARS-CoV-2 proteome, respectively. We identified potentially important nonself SCS clusters in the receptor binding domain of the spike protein that overlap with previously identified epitopes of neutralizing antibodies. These nonself SCS clusters may serve as functional epitopes for effective, safe, and long-term vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 infection to resolve the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Evaluation of Failure of Oestrus Synchronization and Mass Insemination in Conception Rate of Dairy Cows in Silte Zone
Authors: Haile sharew mekonnen , Wondala Tigist , kassa Mesobework
Published: July 2021

The objective of this study was to evaluate failure of oestrus synchronization and mass insemination in the conception of dairy cattle in Silte zone. To evaluate the mechanism of the failure of OSMI conception rate we have collected (HF, jersey, and HF×Boran breed semen) from the three districts and evaluated their quality in NAGII laboratory thereafter bought 1000 qualified HF semen straw and distributed in the 3 districts. 150 cows were brought by farmers for services, and from those cows 130 cows were fulfil the precondition for this program and injected them with 2 ml of PGF2 alpha hormone. Among the 130 injected cows, 72 (55.38%) of them were responded from day 2 up to day 3 after hormone treated and then inseminated them. The lower percentages of conception rate which was observed in this study were associated with low number of AIT and mass number of cows provided during OSMI program, lack of awareness about heat detection, lack of inseminator equipment and cows did not properly managed after hormone and semen administered as we evaluated. As a result, the quality of semen in Dalocha and Sankura districts was facing with quality problem. We have checked the AITs efficiency through placing six cow per AIT thereafter they inseminated them. As a result, there was no AIT efficiency difference on conception rate based on their working experience in this study. Generally, there is a great need of skilled and experienced technician and capacity building of farmers in heat detection, husbandry practices, and good handling practice of semen in the office and improvement strategy. Therefore, improvement in facilities and management should be necessary before implementing an effective estrous synchronization and mass artificial insemination programs.
A GIS-based Novel Approach for Sustainable Sanitary Landfill Site Selection Using Integrated Fuzzy AHP and Machine Learning Algorithms
Authors: Mohsin Mohd , Ali Sk Ajim , Shamim Syed Kausar , Ahmad Ateeque
Published: July 2021

Disposal of collected waste is the least preferable way of sustainable solid waste management. But most of the cities in developing nations prefer to use open dumping in an inappropriate and non-scientific way, causing negative impacts on the environment as well as human health. This study offers a novel approach for scientific landfill site selection and sustainable waste management in Aligarh city, India. This could be possible through relevant data collection, selection of suitable models for criterion weighting, and model validation. In order to prepare a suitable landfill site selection map, a GIS-based ensemble FAHP-SVM and FAHP-RF model was implemented. Considering the previous studies and the characteristics and the study area, a total of eighteen thematic layers (decision criteria) were selected. The result reveals that land value, nearness to residential roads, nearness to hospitals and clinics, distance from waste bins, and NDBI having a fuzzy weight of > 0.10, indicates significant factors; whereas land elevation, land slope, surface temperature, soil moisture index, NDVI and urban classification having a fuzzy weight of 0, indicates these criteria have no importance for the present study. The result further reveals that FAHP-RF with an AUC value of 0.9182 is the more accurate model in comparison to FAHP-SVM. According to the final result of weight-based overlay, a total of seven potential landfill sites were identified, out of which three sites were determined as most suitable by considering current land cover, environmental and economic concerns, and public opinions. This study proposed a zonal division model based on the location of suitable landfill sites for sustainable waste management in the study area. The findings of this study may provide a guideline to the decision-makers and planners for optimal landfill site selection in other cities of developing countries.
Ketogenic Diet as a Potential Treatment for Traumatic Brain Injury in Mice
Authors: Har-Even Meirav , Rubovitch Vardit , Ratliff Whitney A. , Citron Bruce A. , Pick Chaim G.
Published: July 2021

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a brain dysfunction without present treatment. Previous studies have shown that animals fed a ketogenic diet (KD) perform better in learning tasks than those fed a standard diet (SD) following brain injury. The goal of this study was to examine whether KD is neuroprotective in a TBI mouse model. Methods: We utilized a closed head injury model to induce mild TBI (mTBI) in mice. Mice were fed KD or SD starting immediately following the trauma and throughout the following 30 days. Tail blood ketone bodies levels were checked at 0, 3, 7 and 30 days post injury. Behavioral tests took place at 7 and 30days post injury, visual and spatial memory impairments were assessed using the Novel object recognition (NOR) paradigm and the Y-maze test, respectively, and anxiety-like behavior was assessed using the elevated plus maze test. Primary mouse SIRT1 levels antibodies were used to detect changes in protein levels following TBI induction and treatments 7 and 30 days post injury and Immunohistochemical sections were stained with, NeuN (for mature neurons), Iba-1 (for microglia) and GFAP (for astrocyte). Results: Elevated levels of ketone bodies were confirmed in the blood following KD. Cognitive and behavioral performance was assessed post injury and molecular and cellular changes were assessed within the temporal cortex and hippocampus. Y‑maze and NOR tasks indicated that mTBI mice maintained on KD displayed better cognitive abilities than mTBI mice maintained on SD. Mice maintained on SD post-injury demonstrated SIRT1 reduction when compared with uninjured and KD groups. In addition, KD management attenuated mTBI-induced microglia activation and astrocyte reactivity in the dentate gyrus and decreased degeneration of neurons in the dentate gyrus and in the cortex. Conclusion: These results support accumulating evidence that KD may be an effective approach to increase the brain’s resistance to damage and suggest a potential new therapeutic strategy for treating mTBI.
Effects of Thermal Undercooling and Thermal Cycles on the Grain and Microstructure Evolution of TC17 Titanium Alloy Repaired by Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing
Authors: Zhuo Yimin , Yang Chunli , Fan Chenglei , Lin Sanbao
Published: July 2021

Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) can be used to repair blades or blisk made of titanium alloy with the advantage of high efficiency and low-cost. In this work, the finite element model of repairing the blade based on the arc heat source was established to investigate it. Results showed that the maximum effect of thermal undercooling appears when the peak current transforms to the base current (1Hz or 5Hz), which will promote the grains refinement with the combination of sufficient constitutional supercooling. Compared to the single-layer deposition, the microstructure in the near-heat affected zone (near-HAZ) of multi-layer deposition changes from the metastable β phases to the extremely fine α phases, which was caused by the repeated thermal cycles.