bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Exploring the Nature and Impact of Client-Related Delays on Contemporary Saudi Construction Projects
Authors: Alenazi Essa , Adamu Zulfikar , Al-Otaibi Ali
Published: June 2022

In rapidly developing countries such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), where the construction of buildings and supporting infrastructure is critical to achieving strategic developmental milestones, delays to capital projects can derail other sectors of the economy and could derail the Vision 2030 agenda. Attempts have been made over the years to explore the causes of construction project delays, including those in Saudi Arabia. Many of these studies are either outdated, narrow in scope, or tend to use only qualitative data, and not many have focused on the client-related delay factors affecting projects critical to Vision 2030. This study investigates client-related delay factors in terms of their correlation with key characteristics of recently completed construction projects in KSA. This objective necessitated the use of historical data; hence, an archival analysis was conducted for 37 projects among three different public sector ministries. The data were subjected to manual extraction, descriptive statistical analysis, and the use of established models such as schedule performance index (SPI) and cost performance index (CPI), and inferential (correlation) in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) using point-biserial correlation coefficient (rpb, where p > 0.05) to explore association and impact of project characteristics on themselves and on client-related causes of delay. Results revealed eight unique client-related causes of delay, with SPI values of 0.71 to 0.82, as well as CPI values ranging from 0.84 to 0.89, suggesting very poor time and cost performance across all projects, as well as the magnitude of correlation of key project characteristics (cost, duration, additional time, and additional cost) with the eight client-related causes of delay. The findings can help the client (authorities) understand and curb delays that are due to their own making, and it is recommended that such delay factors, whose likelihood are now established and whose potential impact can be measured against key project characteristics, be developed into a delay risk impact tool. International joint ventures can bring technical expertise for Vision 2030, but they cannot eliminate delays due to government practices.
Biopsychosocial Markers of Body Image Concerns in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer: A Prospective Longitudinal Study
Authors: Albert Justine G. , Lo Christopher , Rosberger Zeev , Frenkiel Saul , Hier Michael , Zeitouni Anthony , Kost Karen , Mlynarek Alex , Black Martin , MacDonald Christina , Richardson Keith , Mascarella Marco , Morand Gregoire B. , Chartier Gabrielle , Sadeghi Nader , Sultanem Khalil , Shenouda George , Cury Fabio L. , Henry Melissa
Published: June 2022

(1) Background: Patients and survivors of head and neck cancer (HNC) are at a high risk of developing body image concerns. Despite the prevalence of body image concerns in patients with HNC, there is a lack of longitudinal research exploring the wide array of its associated determinants. The current longitudinal study examined the determinants and longitudinal course of body image dissatisfaction in patients with HNC. (2) Methods: Patients participated in Structured Clinical Interviews and self-administered questionnaires at four time-points: (T1) upon cancer diagnosis, (T2) at 3 months post-diagnosis, (T3) at 6 months post-diagnosis, and (T4) at 12 months post-diagnosis. They also underwent a disfigurement rating on an objective scale. (3) Results: Two hundred and twenty-four patients participated in our study. Fourteen percent to twenty-eight percent of patients reported at least moderate body image concerns across time points, with the lowest rates at baseline and the highest at 3 months (T1). It was found that patients more predisposed to developing higher levels of body image concerns presented physical markers (i.e., advanced cancer stage, lower physical functioning, higher disfigurement), psychosocial markers (i.e., higher depression, higher anxiety, and higher levels of coping with denial), and health disparities (i.e., younger age, female sex, French language, and marital status, with divorced and widowers most affected). (4) Conclusions: The findings of this study highlight the multifaceted nature of body image concerns in patients with HNC and its biopsychosocial determinants. Clinicians should pay specific attention to these biopsychosocial markers in their clinics to predict high levels of body image concerns and tailor communication/refer for support accordingly.
“Smelly” Elephant Repellent: Assessing the Efficacy of a Novel Olfactory Approach to Mitigating Elephant Crop Raiding in Uganda and Kenya
Authors: Tiller Lydia N. , Oniba Ernest , Opira Godfrey , Brennan Ewan J. , King Lucy E. , Ndombi Victor , Wanjala Derick , Robertson Marion R.
Published: June 2022

Human–elephant conflict is increasing across many parts of Asia and Africa. Mitigating elephant crop raiding has become a major focus of conservation intervention, however, many existing methods for tackling this problem are expensive and difficult to execute. Thus, there is a need for more affordable, farm-based methods. Testing these methods is key to ensuring their effectiveness and feasibility. In this study, we tested a novel olfactory deterrent, the “smelly elephant repellent”, a foul-smelling organic liquid, on 40 farms in Uganda and Kenya. Our results show that the repellent was effective at deterring elephants from crop raiding. Over the study period, 82% of 309 elephant crop raids were deterred in Uganda. In Kenya, the repellent deterred 63% of 24 crop raiding incidents, and there was a significant effect of the repellent on test sites compared with control sites. The smelly repellent could be a helpful crop raiding mitigation tool for farmers, as this study showed it to be effective, relatively cheap, quick to produce from locally available ingredients, and communities have a positive attitude towards using it. Ongoing work is exploring the potential for a market-based approach to take this to scale in a financially sustainable way.
Instagram-Based Benchmark Dataset for Cyberbullying Detection in Arabic Text
Authors: ALBayari Reem , Abdallah Sherief
Published: June 2022

(1) Background: the ability to use social media to communicate without revealing one’s real identity has created an attractive setting for cyberbullying. Several studies targeted social media to collect their datasets with the aim of automatically detecting offensive language. However, the majority of the datasets were in English, not in Arabic. Even the few Arabic datasets that were collected, none focused on Instagram despite being a major social media platform in the Arab world. (2) Methods: we use the official Instagram APIs to collect our dataset. To consider the dataset as a benchmark, we use SPSS (Kappa statistic) to evaluate the inter-annotator agreement (IAA), as well as examine and evaluate the performance of various learning models (LR, SVM, RFC, and MNB). (3) Results: in this research, we present the first Instagram Arabic corpus (sub-class categorization (multi-class)) focusing on cyberbullying. The dataset is primarily designed for the purpose of detecting offensive language in texts. We end up with 200,000 comments, of which 46,898 comments were annotated by three human annotators. The results show that the SVM classifier outperforms the other classifiers, with an F1 score of 69% for bullying comments and 85 percent for positive comments.
Privacy-Preserving Design of Scalar LQG Control
Authors: Ferrari Edoardo , Tian Yue , Sun Chenglong , Li Zuxing , Wang Chao
Published: June 2022

This paper studies the agent identity privacy problem in the scalar linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) control system. The agent identity is a binary hypothesis: Agent A or Agent B. An eavesdropper is assumed to make a hypothesis testing the agent identity based on the intercepted environment state sequence. The privacy risk is measured by the Kullback–Leibler divergence between the probability distributions of state sequences under two hypotheses. By taking into account both the accumulative control reward and privacy risk, an optimization problem of the policy of Agent B is formulated. This paper shows that the optimal deterministic privacy-preserving LQG policy of Agent B is a linear mapping. A sufficient condition is given to guarantee that the optimal deterministic privacy-preserving policy is time-invariant in the asymptotic regime. It is also shown that adding an independent Gaussian random process noise to the linear mapping of the optimal deterministic privacy-preserving policy cannot improve the performance of Agent B. The numerical experiments justify the theoretic results and illustrate the reward–privacy trade-off.
Numerical Study on an RBF-FD Tangent Plane Based Method for Convection–Diffusion Equations on Anisotropic Evolving Surfaces
Authors: Adil Nazakat , Xiao Xufeng , Feng Xinlong
Published: June 2022

In this paper, we present a fully Lagrangian method based on the radial basis function (RBF) finite difference (FD) method for solving convection–diffusion partial differential equations (PDEs) on evolving surfaces. Surface differential operators are discretized by the tangent plane approach using Gaussian RBFs augmented with two-dimensional (2D) polynomials. The main advantage of our method is the simplicity of calculating differentiation weights. Additionally, we couple the method with anisotropic RBFs (ARBFs) to obtain more accurate numerical solutions for the anisotropic growth of surfaces. In the ARBF interpolation, the Euclidean distance is replaced with a suitable metric that matches the anisotropic surface geometry. Therefore, it will lead to a good result on the aspects of stability and accuracy of the RBF-FD method for this type of problem. The performance of this method is shown for various convection–diffusion equations on evolving surfaces, which include the anisotropic growth of surfaces and growth coupled with the solutions of PDEs.
A Sensorless Control Strategy for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor at Low Switching Frequency
Authors: Xue Zhao , Li Lin , Wang Xiaolu , Wang Xin
Published: June 2022

The high-frequency (HF) square-wave voltage injection method can be used in permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) drive systems. However, when the switching frequency is too low, the injection frequency will also decrease, which will reduce the update frequency of the HF response current, making it difficult to extract the position quadrature signal and affecting the accuracy of position estimation and control performance. This paper proposes a method for extracting position quadrature signals based on sampling rate transformation, and a signal processing strategy based on Cascade Integrator Comb (CIC) interpolation filtering, which can solve the problem of waveform distortion caused by the low sampling rate of the extracted position quadrature signal. This strategy can increase the sampling rate of the position quadrature signal to the pulse width modulation (PWM) update frequency by interpolating in the sampling current, thereby reducing the harmonic content of the position quadrature signal and improving the position estimation. precision. In addition, the PWM update frequency and estimated rotational speed information are used to compensate for the delay caused by position estimation and inverter update, which effectively improves the accuracy of position estimation. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy is verified by simulation.
Nonlinear Dynamic Model for Parameter Estimation of Li-Ion Batteries Using Supply–Demand Algorithm
Authors: El-Sehiemy Ragab , Hamida Mohamed A. , Elattar Ehab , Shaheen Abdullah , Ginidi Ahmed
Published: June 2022

The parameter extraction of parameters for Li-ion batteries is regarded as a critical topic for assessing the performance of battery energy storage systems (BESSs). The supply–demand algorithm (SDA) is used in this work to identify a storage system’s unknown parameters. The parameter-extracting procedure is represented as a nonlinear optimization task in which the state of charge (SOC) is approximated using nonlinear features related to the battery current and the initial SOC condition. Furthermore, the open-circuit voltage is approximated using the resulting SOC, which is performed in a nonlinear formula, as well. When used in the dynamic nonlinear BESS model, the SDA was used to verify the fitness values and standard deviation error. Furthermore, the results that were acquired using SDA are compared to recently developed approaches, which are the gradient-based, tuna swarm, jellyfish, heap-based, and forensic-based optimizers. Simulated studies were paired with experiments for the 40 Ah Kokam Li-ion battery and the ARTEMIS driving-cycle pattern. The numerical outcomes showed that the proposed SDA is an approach which is excellent at identifying the parameters. Furthermore, when compared to the other current optimization techniques, for both the Kokam Li-ion batteries and the ARTEMIS drive-cycle pattern, the suggested SDA exhibited substantial precision.
Methods for Enhancing the Electrical Properties of Epoxy Matrix Composites
Authors: Krajewski Dariusz , Oleksy Mariusz , Oliwa Rafał , Bulanda Katarzyna , Czech Kamil , Mazur Damian , Masłowski Grzegorz
Published: June 2022

This paper presents ways to modify epoxy resin matrix composites to increase their electrical conductivity. Good electrical properties are particularly important for materials used in the construction of vehicles (cars, trains, airplanes) and other objects exposed to lightning (e.g., wind turbines). When the hull plating is made of an electrical conductor (e.g., metal alloys) it acts as a Faraday cage and upon lightning discharge the electrical charge does not cause damage to the structure. Epoxy-resin-based composites have recently been frequently used to reduce the weight of structures, but due to the insulating properties of the resin, various modifications must be applied to improve the conductivity of the composite. The methods to improve the conductivity have been categorized into three groups: modification of the matrix with conductive fillers, modification of the composite reinforcement, and addition of layers with increased electrical conductivity to the composite.
Methodology for Evaluating Projects Aimed at Service Quality Using Artificial Intelligence Techniques
Authors: Sampaio de Sousa Bruno José , Villanueva Juan Moises Mauricio
Published: June 2022

The quality of the electrical energy distribution service has a significant impact on consumer satisfaction and the guarantee of the right of concession for the distribution companies. For the utility that is the object of the case study, the main continuity of service indicators was at levels below the regulatory limits. Still, due to budget constraints, the forecast of the benefit that improvement or expansion projects bring to continuity indicators must be assertive for a proper direction of investments and decision making. In this work, a methodology for evaluating projects to improve the quality of service was proposed, with the realization of the estimated benefit associated with the reduction in continuity indicators (DEC and FEC), using concepts of artificial neural networks and evolutionary algorithms. The results were obtained from a three-year history of execution of the utility’s projects. Based on the correlation analysis, a variable selection procedure was developed, where the historical values of interruptions by cause were considered as input, and the results of the continuity indicators associated with the types of projects studied form the outputs of the model. The model was developed using an artificial neural network of the multilayer perceptron type. The results obtained by simulating the new methodology presented absolute relative errors 100 times smaller for estimating the benefits of the projects compared to the current method used by the electric power distributor.
A Hybrid Taguchi Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm for Reactive Power Optimization of Deep-Water Semi-Submersible Platforms with New Energy Sources
Authors: Cheng Peng , Xu Zhiyu , Li Ruiye , Shi Chao
Published: June 2022

In order to realize the sustainable development of energy, the combination of new energy power generation technology and the traditional offshore platform has excellent research prospects. The access to new energy sources can provide a powerful supplement to the power grid of the offshore platform, but will also create new challenges for the planning, operation, and control of the power grid of the platform; hence, it is very important to optimize the reactive power of the offshore platform with new study, a mathematical model was first built for the reactive power optimization of offshore platform power systems with new energy sources, and the Taguchi method was then used to optimize the parameters and population of particle swarm optimization, thereby addressing a defect in particle swarm optimization, namely, that it can easily fall into local optimal solutions. Finally, the algorithm proposed in this paper was applied to solve the reactive power optimization problem of the offshore platform power system with new energy sources. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm has stronger optimization ability, reduces the system active power loss to the greatest extent, and improves the voltage quality. These results provide theoretical support for the practical application and optimization of the deep-water semi-submersible production platform integrated with new energy sources.
Performance Enhancement of a Centrifugal Compressor by Designing a Tandem Cascade Diffuser
Authors: Zhang Shuo , Xu Wenqian , Yang Shuhua , Lu Fuan , Dou Huashu
Published: June 2022

The performance of a vane diffuser plays an important role in transforming the high kinetic energy into pressure energy at the impeller outlet of a centrifugal compressor. In this study, the performance enhancement of a centrifugal compressor is achieved by designing a tandem cascade diffuser. An optimum value of the total bending angle of a tandem cascade diffuser is obtained through numerical simulation. The total bending angle is defined as the angle between the tangent line of the front blade arc line at the leading edge point and the tangent line of the rear blade arc line at the trailing edge point. The range of the total bending angle increases from zero to 21°. The simulation results show that the variation of the total bending angle has a great impact on the performances of the compressor stage. The best performance is achieved by the 10° model, by which the minimum total pressure loss coefficient and the maximum static pressure recovery coefficient are obtained. The mechanism of performance improvement by choosing a reasonable total bending angle is that the separated flow zone in the diffuser is constrained and the distribution of radial velocity at the inlet and outlet of the diffuser is more uniformed. With the 10° model, the separated zone almost completely disappears in the diffuser and a distribution of more uniform radial velocity along the meridional section is obtained. Compared with the stage of the prototype with a single row of vane diffuser, the stage with the newly designed tandem vane diffuser (10° model) achieved performance improvement, the efficiency increased about 6%, and the total pressure ratio increased about 3.5% at the flow coefficient of 0.15.
Novel Fractional Swarming with Key Term Separation for Input Nonlinear Control Autoregressive Systems
Authors: Altaf Faisal , Chang Ching-Lung , Chaudhary Naveed Ishtiaq , Cheema Khalid Mehmood , Raja Muhammad Asif Zahoor , Shu Chi-Min , Milyani Ahmad H.
Published: June 2022

In recent decades, fractional order calculus has become an important mathematical tool for effectively solving complex problems through better modeling with the introduction of fractional differential/integral operators; fractional order swarming heuristics are also introduced and applied for better performance in different optimization tasks. This study investigates the nonlinear system identification problem of the input nonlinear control autoregressive (IN-CAR) model through the novel implementation of fractional order particle swarm optimization (FO-PSO) heuristics; further, the key term separation technique (KTST) is introduced in the FO-PSO to solve the over-parameterization issue involved in the parameter estimation of the IN-CAR model. The proposed KTST-based FO-PSO, i.e., KTST-FOPSO accurately estimates the parameters of an unknown IN-CAR system with robust performance in cases of different noise scenarios. The performance of the KTST-FOPSO is investigated exhaustively for different fractional orders as well as in comparison with the standard counterpart. The results of statistical indices through Monte Carlo simulations endorse the reliability and stability of the KTST-FOPSO for IN-CAR identification.
Effect Evaluation and Action Mechanism Analysis of “Profile Control + Plugging Removal” after Chemical Flooding
Authors: Gao Jianchong , Lu Xiangguo , He Xin , Liu Jinxiang , Zheng Kaiqi , Cao Weijia , Cui Tianyu , Sun Huiru
Published: June 2022

The existing plugging removal operation in JZ9-3 oilfield has the disadvantages of small amount of plugging remover, fast injection speed, and short construction time. Under the condition of injection well suction profile reversal, plugging remover is difficult to enter the low permeability part and play the role of deep plugging removal. In order to improve the plugging removal effect, this paper used the physical simulation method to carry out the experimental study and mechanism analysis on the effect of water flooding, chemical flooding, and plugging removal measures of the multi-layer system combination model. The results showed that the recovery of general plugging removal after chemical flooding increases by only 0.70%, while the recovery of ‘profile control + plugging removal’ increases by ‘9.34% + 2.59%’, and the amount of produced liquid decreases by more than 40%. It can be seen that the combined operation of profile control and plugging removal has dual effects of plugging and dredging and synergistic effect, which not only expands the swept volume, but also reduces the inefficient and ineffective cycles. On this basis, the optimization design and effect prediction of the target well W4-2 plugging removal scheme were carried out by using the numerical simulation method. Recommended scheme: inorganic gel profile control agent volume 13,243.6 m3, produced by the main agent (Na2O·nSiO2), isolation fluid (Water), and auxiliary agent (CaCl2) through multiple rounds of alternating injection into the reservoir. The plug removal agent (K2S2O8) injection volume is 100 m3, the concentration is 0.8%. The post-implementation ‘Output/Input’ ratio is expected to be 3.7.
Racial Illiteracies and Whiteness: Exploring Black Mixed-Race Narrations of Race in the Family
Authors: Campion Karis , Lewis Chantelle Jessica
Published: June 2022

Drawing upon fifty-five interviews with Black mixed-race people located in Britain’s second-largest city, Birmingham, and a nearby satellite town, Bromsgrove, this article critically explores how race, identity, and whiteness, are negotiated in mixed-race families. Whilst existing studies tend to centre upon the experiences of white parents raising their children, in this article, we foreground Black mixed-race perspectives of familial practices. Whiteness can often function as an ever-present non-presence in explorations of mixed identities. We utilise concepts such as white fragility, white complicity and the white gaze to make whiteness visible and to address how racial illiteracies can manifest within everyday family settings. In doing so, we suggest that white family members can, on occasion, participate in processes of white domination even in the smallest everyday acts and conversations that deny, avoid, dismiss and, in some cases, even perpetuate racism. By identifying these moments in Black mixed-race lives, we complicate some of the studies that document the racial literacies of white parents and explore how mistakes are made. We suggest that these encounters can create moments of disjuncture in familial settings that are characterised by a complex layer of love, intimacy and racial difference. By bringing these issues to the fore, we centre the emotional labour it can take on the part of Black mixed-race people to make sense of and resist these experiences whilst simultaneously maintaining closeness within familial relationships.
Multigrid/Multiresolution Interpolation: Reducing Oversmoothing and Other Sampling Effects
Authors: Rodriguez-Perez Daniel , Sanchez-Carnero Noela
Published: June 2022

Traditional interpolation methods, such as IDW, kriging, radial basis functions, and regularized splines, are commonly used to generate digital elevation models (DEM). All of these methods have strong statistical and analytical foundations (such as the assumption of randomly distributed data points from a gaussian correlated stochastic surface); however, when data are acquired non-homogeneously (e.g., along transects) all of them show over/under-smoothing of the interpolated surface depending on local point density. As a result, actual information is lost in high point density areas (caused by over-smoothing) or artifacts appear around uneven density areas (“pimple” or “transect” effects). In this paper, we introduce a simple but robust multigrid/multiresolution interpolation (MMI) method which adapts to the spatial resolution available, being an exact interpolator where data exist and a smoothing generalizer where data are missing, but always fulfilling the statistical requirement that surface height mathematical expectation at the proper working resolution equals the mean height of the data at that same scale. The MMI is efficient enough to use K-fold cross-validation to estimate local errors. We also introduce a fractal extrapolation that simulates the elevation in data-depleted areas (rendering a visually realistic surface and also realistic error estimations). In this work, MMI is applied to reconstruct a real DEM, thus testing its accuracy and local error estimation capabilities under different sampling strategies (random points and transects). It is also applied to compute the bathymetry of Gulf of San Jorge (Argentina) from multisource data of different origins and sampling qualities. The results show visually realistic surfaces with estimated local validation errors that are within the bounds of direct DEM comparison, in the case of the simulation, and within the 10% of the bathymetric surface typical deviation in the real calculation.
Jane Austen in Mid-Victorian Periodicals
Authors: Wilson Cheryl A.
Published: June 2022

Victorian periodicals were an important part of the literary marketplace that shaped Jane Austen’s critical reception during the nineteenth century. Moreover, throughout the century, periodical authors used the critical conversation around Austen to create a space for themselves and their work in the press by beginning to shape a critical canon, as well as by raising and responding to questions about the nature of Victorian women’s authorship. Focusing on articles published during the mid-Victorian period (1852–1868), prior to the publication of James Edward Austen-Leigh’s 1870 A Memoir of Jane Austen, this essay considers Austen’s presence in periodical writing in the middle of the nineteenth century and explores how writers used both Austen herself and her writings to accomplish their own authorial ends.
Tangible and Intangible Heritage of Ibiza (Spain) and Its Potential to Be Valued as a Tourist Offer
Authors: Ramón-Cardona José , Sánchez-Fernández María Dolores
Published: June 2022

Ibiza is internationally known for its beaches and coves, but especially for its nightlife. In addition, at the beginning of the 21st century, there was an increase in luxury tourism. However, other types of tourism have a testimonial or null presence, although the administrations make efforts to promote them. This article describes the main assets that make up the tangible and intangible cultural heritage of Ibiza, its singularities, and the successes and errors in its management, using the case study methodology. The island’s heritage is made up of monuments, some of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and others of great originality and archaism, rural settings, and elements of the local culture. Specifically, the cultural heritage of Ibiza can be divided into the following four assets: the old city of Ibiza; the rural architecture; the cultural landscapes; and the traditional folklore. The restoration of some assets such as the walls or the rural churches are successes in management, and the administrative obstacles to the owners of the preserved assets are considered errors. In conclusion, it should be noted that cultural heritage is not sufficiently well preserved and is a tourist offer that has not been adequately promoted.
The Effect of Different Doses of 1-Methylcyclopropene on Postharvest Physiology and Predicting Ethylene Production through Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines in Cocktail Tomato
Authors: Bahar Askin , Cavusoglu Seyda , Yilmaz Nurettin , Tekin Onur , Ercisli Sezai
Published: June 2022

Maintaining the postharvest quality of tomatoes, which are essential in the world vegetable trade, is very important; otherwise, storage may cause severe quality and economic losses. This study aimed to determine the effects of 1-MCP treatments on quality and storage time to prevent quality loss and deterioration in tomatoes due to high temperature and to predict ethylene production through the Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines algorithm during long-term storage. For this purpose, same-sized fruits were divided into three different groups. Two groups were treated with 1-MCP (625 and 1250 ppb), and the untreated fruit was the control. Then, the tomatoes were stored for 39 days at a temperature of 20 °C and relative humidity of 85–90%. The results obtained from the present study showed that the 1-MCP treatments prolonged the life and maintained the quality of tomato fruit during storage. The ethylene production and respiration rate were significantly lower in 1-MCP-treated fruit than in the untreated fruit during the storage period (p < 0.05). According to the Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines algorithm, it was observed that increasing doses of 1-MCP inhibited ethylene production. Furthermore, weight loss and respiratory rate were effective on ethylene production at 100 and 43.9%, respectively. In conclusion, treating the fruit with 1250 ppb of 1-MCP was determined to be the best practice for maintaining all quality criteria during storage.
Peer Support and Mental Health of Migrant Domestic Workers: A Scoping Review
Authors: Ho Ken Hok Man , Yang Chen , Leung Alex Kwun Yat , Bressington Daniel , Chien Wai Tong , Cheng Qijin , Cheung Daphne Sze Ki
Published: June 2022

The effectiveness of peer support in improving mental health and well-being has been well documented for vulnerable populations. However, how peer support is delivered to migrant domestic workers (MDWs) to support their mental health is still unknown. This scoping review aimed to synthesize evidence on existing peer support services for improving mental health among MDWs. We systematically searched eight electronic databases, as well as grey literature. Two reviewers independently performed title/abstract and full-text screening, and data extraction. Twelve articles were finally included. Two types of peer support were identified from the included studies, i.e., mutual aid and para-professional trained peer support. MDWs mainly seek support from peers through mutual aid for emotional comfort. The study’s findings suggest that the para-professional peer support training program was highly feasible and culturally appropriate for MDWs. However, several barriers were identified to affect the successful implementation of peer support, such as concerns about emotion contagion among peers, worries about disclosure of personal information, and lack of support from health professionals. Culture-specific peer support programs should be developed in the future to overcome these barriers to promote more effective mental health practices.
Characteristics of Women with Lung Adenocarcinoma in the World Trade Center Environmental Health Center
Authors: Shum Elaine , Durmus Nedim , Pehlivan Sultan , Lu Yuting , Zhang Yian , Arslan Alan A. , Shao Yongzhao , Reibman Joan
Published: June 2022

The destruction of the World Trade Center towers on 11 September 2001 exposed local residents, workers, and individuals in the area (Survivors) to dust and fumes that included known and suspected carcinogens. Given the potential for inhalation of toxic substances and the long latency after exposure, the incidence of lung cancer is expected to increase in WTC-exposed individuals. We describe the characteristics of women WTC Survivors with lung adenocarcinoma who were enrolled in the WTC Environmental Health Center (WTC EHC) between May 2002 and July 2021. A total of 173 women in WTC EHC had a diagnosis of any type of lung cancer, representing 10% of all cancers in women. Most of the lung cancers (87%) were non-small cell carcinomas, with adenocarcinoma (77%) being the most common subtype. Nearly half (46%) of these patients were exposed to dust clouds on 11 September 2001. Race and ethnicity varied by smoking status, as follows: 44% of Asian women compared with 29% of non-Hispanic White women were never-smokers (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the pathologic characteristics of adenocarcinomas between never and ever smokers. We also summarize EGFR, ALK, KRAS, ROS-1 and BRAF mutation status stratified by smoking, race and ethnicity. The identification of a relatively high proportion of women never-smokers with lung cancer warrants further investigation into the role of WTC dust exposure.
γ-Polyglutamic Acid Production, Biocontrol, and Stress Tolerance: Multifunction of Bacillus subtilis A-5 and the Complete Genome Analysis
Authors: Bai Naling , He Yu , Zhang Hanlin , Zheng Xianqing , Zeng Rong , Li Yi , Li Shuangxi , Lv Weiguang
Published: June 2022

Bacillus subtilis A-5 has the capabilities of high-molecular-weight γ-PGA production, antagonism to plant pathogenic fungi, and salt/alkaline tolerance. This multifunctional bacterium has great potential for enhancing soil fertility and plant security in agricultural ecosystem. The genome size of B. subtilis A-5 was 4,190,775 bp, containing 1 Chr and 2 plasmids (pA and pB) with 43.37% guanine-cytosine content and 4605 coding sequences. The γ-PGA synthase gene cluster was predicted to consist of pgsBCA and factor (pgsE). The γ-PGA-degrading enzymes were mainly pgdS, GGT, and cwlO. Nine gene clusters producing secondary metabolite substances, namely, four unknown function gene clusters and five antibiotic synthesis gene clusters (surfactin, fengycin, bacillibactin, subtilosin_A, and bacilysin), were predicted in the genome of B. subtilis A-5 using antiSMASH. In addition, B. subtilis A-5 contained genes related to carbohydrate and protein decomposition, proline synthesis, pyruvate kinase, and stress-resistant proteins. This affords significant insights into the survival and application of B. subtilis A-5 in adverse agricultural environmental conditions.
Facilitators and Barriers of Medication Adherence Based on Beliefs of Persons with Bipolar Disorder: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Alcalá Jose Ángel , Fontalba-Navas Andrés , Company-Morales Miguel , Romero-Guillena Samuel L. , Gutiérrez-Higueras Teófilo , Gutiérrez-Rojas Luis
Published: June 2022

One of the big challenges in treating individuals with bipolar disorder (BD) is nonadherence to medication. This is the principal factor associated with a worse prognosis or outcome of the disease. This study aimed to explore and analyze the individual perceptions that people with BD have about the positive and negative aspects when taking medication. A descriptive and interpretative study was carried out using the qualitative research paradigm with the use of the analytical technique of discourse analysis, extracting the data through the completion of focus groups. Participants’ speech was digitally audio-recorded in digital format. In order to complete the codification of the participants’ speech content, we relied on the qualitative data analysis (using the QRS NVivo 10 computer software). Thirty-six participants diagnosed with bipolar disorder took part in our study. In the participants’ speech concerning the main barriers to pharmacological treatment, three key topics were identified. Perceived facilitators were summarized in four factors. The main facilitators regarding the use of pharmacological treatment in individuals with BD were the ones related with the perceived need for treatment in the acute phase, the recognition of the illness, the shared clinical decision, and the causal biological attribution in the chronic phase. In terms of perceived barriers, social control was identified in both phases, adverse effects in the acute phase, and the absence of effective treatment in the chronic state.
Design and Validation of a Virtual Physical Education and Sport Science–Related Course: A Learner’s Engagement Approach
Authors: Eswaramoorthi Vijayamurugan , Kuan Garry , Abdullah Mohamad Razali , Abdul Majeed Anwar P. P. , Suppiah Pathmanathan K. , Musa Rabiu Muazu
Published: June 2022

Learners’ engagement is shown to be a major predictor of learning, performance, and course completion as well as course satisfaction. It is easier to engage learners in a face-to-face teaching and learning format since the teacher can observe and interpret the learner’s facial expression and body language. However, in a virtual setting with the students sitting behind cameras, it is difficult to ascertain engagement as the students might be absent-mindedly attending the class. Henceforth, with the rapid transition to online learning, designing course content that could actively engage the students towards achieving the said elements is, therefore, necessary. We applied a data-driven approach in designing a virtual physical education and sport science–related course via a learner engagement model. A fully online course catering to 132 students that runs for a total of 14 weeks was used as a case study to develop the course. The study was conducted during the 2020/2021 academic year, which was the period of the peak COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. The delivery of the course content was implemented in stages to achieve three essential educational outcomes namely, skill and knowledge acquisition, and personal development as well as course satisfaction. We hypothesised that the developed learners’ engagement approach will promote the students’ acquisition of skills and knowledge and foster the personal development of the students through fitness improvement. It is also hypothesised that the students will be satisfied with the course developed upon successful completion. A chi-square analysis projected a statistically significant difference in the skill and knowledge acquisition before and after the programme (p < 0.001). A Wilcoxon rank-sum test demonstrated personal improvement in the overall fitness of the student upon completing the prescribed activity of the course content. Moreover, a total of 96.2%, 95.5% and 93.2% of students expressed their satisfaction with the clarity of the learning objectives, good organisational and course content plan, and appropriate workload of the course designed, respectively. There is sufficient evidence to accept all hypotheses formulated, and hence, we postulated that, since students spend more time outside the classroom, out-of-class learners’ engagement activity should be considered when designing a virtual course to promote lifelong learning, experience, and higher-order thinking. The techniques presented herein could be useful to academics, professionals, and other relevant stakeholders in developing virtual course content within a specific domain of interest.
Flood Routing Model Coupled with Dynamic Leakage Losses for Ephemeral Rivers with Large Potholes
Authors: Liu Congmin , Pan Chengzhong , Liu Chunlei , Zhai Yuanzheng , Xue Wanlai , Cui Yongsheng
Published: June 2022

Ephemeral rivers commonly occur in regions with a shortage of water resources, and their channel configuration tends to change substantially owing to long drying times and artificial sand extraction. During short-term water conveyance, water storage in large potholes and leakage along the dry riverbed retards the flow, which is detrimental for the river landscape and ecological water demand. The objective of this study is to evaluate the flow process corresponding to a certain release scheme. A coupled dynamic leakage loss and flood routing model was established to predict the flood routing distance for dry rivers with potholes and strong leakage. The model mainly includes three sub-models of flow dynamics, dynamic leakage loss and water balance along multiple cross sections of the river channel. The water head was dominated by flow velocity and the overflow from potholes. The model was applied to Yongding River, a typical ephemeral river in northern China, and the model parameters were calibrated and verified using monitoring data from ecological water releases into the Yongding River in 2019 and 2020, thus, making the model more stable and reliable. Finally, the model was used to evaluate the impact of cross section optimization and pothole treatment on the flow process. This study can provide scientific guidance for ecological water conveyance and the ecological restoration of ephemeral rivers.
COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress and Loneliness in Chinese Residents in North America: The Role of Contraction Worry
Authors: Lee Andrea D. Y. , Wang Peizhong Peter , Zhang Weiguo , Yang Lixia
Published: June 2022

The current study examined the association of COVID-19 contraction worry for self and for family members with COVID-19 peritraumatic distress and loneliness in Chinese residents in North America. A sample of 943 Chinese residents (immigrants, citizens, visitors, and international students) in North America completed a cross-sectional online survey during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (between January and February 2021). Univariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) models identified possible sociodemographic variables that were included in the subsequent hierarchical regression models. According to the hierarchical regression models, self-contraction worry was significantly associated with both COVID-19 peritraumatic distress (B = −4.340, p < 0.001) and loneliness (B = −0.771, p = 0.006) after controlling for related sociodemographic covariates; however, family-contraction worry was not significantly associated with the outcome variables. Additionally, poorer health status and experienced discrimination significantly predicted higher COVID-19 peritraumatic distress, whereas poorer health status and perceived discrimination significantly predicted increased loneliness. The results highlighted the detrimental impacts of self-contraction worry on peritraumatic distress and loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chinese residents in North America.
Current Stereotypes Associated with Nursing and Nursing Professionals: An Integrative Review
Authors: Teresa-Morales Cristina , Rodríguez-Pérez Margarita , Araujo-Hernández Miriam , Feria-Ramírez Carmen
Published: June 2022

Nursing and nursing professionals are associated with social stereotypes, which may hinder the profession’s development and future prospects as a scientific discipline. The aim of this study was to identify and describe the stereotypes associated with the nursing profession—students and professionals. Therefore, we carried out an integrative review. The search was conducted using PubMed, WOS, and CINAHL databases, and its search strategy was based on a combination of standardised keywords and natural vocabulary, with a temporal limit between 2016 and 2021. The data extraction and analysis was based on the conceptual framework developed by Whittemore and Knafl. Twenty-seven studies were included in the review, and their results were classified and coded. Two categories emerged, namely, stereotypes relating to the professionals’ gender and stereotypes relating to the profession itself. We concluded that the nursing profession is viewed as female with low skills, social status, salary, academic level and entry requirements, and with little autonomy. Male nurses’ professional competencies and masculinity are questioned, while the work carried out by female nurses is viewed as unprofessional. To reduce these stereotypes and bias we must present the nursing profession as a scientific discipline, developed by both men and women. Specific channels for this awareness-raising work include interventions from universities and the media, and participation in health policies.
Environmentally Specific Servant Leadership and Employees’ Energy-Specific Pro-Environmental Behavior: Evidence from Healthcare Sector of a Developing Economy
Authors: Peng Junjie , Samad Sarminah , Comite Ubaldo , Ahmad Naveed , Han Heesup , Ariza-Montes Antonio , Vega-Muñoz Alejandro
Published: June 2022

Environmental issues are significantly rising worldwide. Addressing the environmental issues and preserving the biosphere is a critical matter of concern in this era. The sheer amount of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the world is related to the energy sector, especially electrical energy. A bulk of electrical energy is consumed by individuals in buildings for cooling and heating purposes. Prior researchers have emphasized employing clean and green energy sources to deal with environmental issues. The role of green energy from a decarbonization aspect is unchallengeable. However, a critical gap in most energy-related studies exists in the available literature. That is, most of the literature focuses on the supply side (the production) of energy, neglecting the critical issue lies with the demand side (consumption side). Energy data show that a sheer amount of electrical energy is wasted by individuals due to their inadequate energy consumption behavior. In this respect, a country’s healthcare system uses a significant amount of electrical energy. In particular, hospital staff uses a bulk of electricity during patient treatment, care, and other service delivery operations. The critical aim of this study is to improve the energy-specific pro-environmental behavior (EPEB) of hospital employees in an environmentally specific servant leadership (ESL) framework. Specifically, the study was conducted in Pakistan, which is a developing country. This study also tests the mediating effect of green self-efficacy (GSE) and green perceived organizational support (GPOS) in the above-proposed relationship. The data for the current work were collected from hospital employees by employing a survey strategy (n = 316) from a developing country. Structural equation modeling was considered to analyze the data, which confirmed that a servant leader with environmental preferences could significantly drive the EPEB of employees (β = 0.699), while GSE (β = 0.138) and GPOS (β = 0.102) mediated this relationship. The findings of this study can help the healthcare sector to improve its efforts toward de-carbonization by improving the energy consumption behavior of employees through ESL, GSE, and GPOS.