bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Arctic Psychrotolerant Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 Exhibits Temperature-Dependent Susceptibility to Aminoglycosides
Authors: Kang Minjeong , Choi Tae-Rim , Ahn Soyeon , Heo Hee Young , Kim Hyerim , Lee Hye Soo , Lee Yoo Kyung , Joo Hwang-Soo , Yune Philip S. , Kim Wooseong , Yang Yung-Hun
Published: August 2022

Bacteria can evade antibiotics by acquiring resistance genes, as well as switching to a non-growing dormant state without accompanying genetic modification. Bacteria in this quiescent state are called persisters, and this non-inheritable ability to withstand multiple antibiotics is referred to as antibiotic tolerance. Although all bacteria are considered to be able to form antibiotic-tolerant persisters, the antibiotic tolerance of extremophilic bacteria is poorly understood. Previously, we identified the psychrotolerant bacterium Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 from the glacier foreland of Midtre Lovénbreen in High Arctic Svalbard. Herein, we investigated the resistance and tolerance of Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 against aminoglycosides at various temperatures. This bacterium was resistant to streptomycin and susceptible to apramycin, gentamicin, kanamycin, and tobramycin. The two putative aminoglycoside phosphotransferase genes aph1 and aph2 were the most likely contributors to streptomycin resistance. Notably, unlike the mesophilic Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14, this cold-adapted bacterium demonstrated reduced susceptibility to all tested aminoglycosides in a temperature-dependent manner. Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 at a lower temperature formed the persister cells that shows tolerance to the 100-fold minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of gentamicin, as well as the partially tolerant cells that withstand 25-fold MIC gentamicin. The temperature-dependent gentamicin tolerance appears to result from reduced metabolic activity. Lastly, the partially tolerant Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 cells could slowly proliferate under the bactericidal concentrations of aminoglycosides. Our results demonstrate that Pseudomonas sp. B14-6 has a characteristic ability to form cells with a range of tolerance, which appears to be inversely proportional to its growth rate.
Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Novel Fusidic Acid Derivatives as Two-in-One Agent with Potent Antibacterial and Anti-Inflammatory Activity
Authors: Tu Borong , Cao Nana , Zhang Bingjie , Zheng Wende , Li Jiahao , Tang Xiaowen , Su Kaize , Li Jinxuan , Zhang Zhen , Yan Zhenping , Li Dongli , Zheng Xi , Zhang Kun , Hong Weiqian David , Wu Panpan
Published: August 2022

Fusidic acid (FA), a narrow-spectrum antibiotics, is highly sensitive to various Gram-positive cocci associated with skin infections. It has outstanding antibacterial effects against certain Gram-positive bacteria whilst no cross-resistance with other antibiotics. Two series of FA derivatives were synthesized and their antibacterial activities were tested. A new aromatic side-chain analog, FA-15 exhibited good antibacterial activity with MIC values in the range of 0.781–1.563 µM against three strains of Staphylococcus spp. Furthermore, through the assessment by the kinetic assay, similar characteristics of bacteriostasis by FA and its aromatic derivatives were observed. In addition, anti-inflammatory activities of FA and its aromatic derivatives were evaluated by using a 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) induced mouse ear edema model. The results also indicated that FA and its aromatic derivatives effectively reduced TPA-induced ear edema in a dose-dependent manner. Following, multiform computerized simulation, including homology modeling, molecular docking, molecular dynamic simulation and QSAR was conducted to clarify the mechanism and regularity of activities. Overall, the present work gave vital clues about structural modifications and has profound significance in deeply scouting for bioactive potentials of FA and its derivatives.
Antibiotic Resistance Risk with Oral Tetracycline Treatment of Acne Vulgaris
Authors: Swallow Madisen , Fan Ryan , Cohen Jeffrey , Bunick Christopher
Published: August 2022

Almost 1 billion people worldwide have acne, and oral tetracyclines, including doxycycline and minocycline, are effective and frequently prescribed treatments for acne. However, there is growing concern for the development of antibiotic resistance with such widespread utilization by dermatologists. Additionally, tetracyclines are known to have various potential side effects, including gut dysbiosis, gastrointestinal upset, photosensitivity, dizziness, and vertigo. However, in 2018 a novel narrow-spectrum tetracycline, sarecycline, was Food and Drug Administration-approved to treat moderate-to-severe acne vulgaris in patients 9-years-old and above. Sarecycline was designed to target Cutibacterium acnes, the pathogenic bacterium in acne vulgaris, which may reduce the risk of resistance. This paper examines the growing concerns of antibiotic resistance due to oral tetracycline usage in the treatment of acne vulgaris, with a focus on the promising third-generation, narrow-spectrum tetracycline, sarecycline.
The Assessment of Dietary Organic Zinc on Zinc Homeostasis, Antioxidant Capacity, Immune Response, Glycolysis and Intestinal Microbiota in White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei Boone, 1931)
Authors: Yang Jinzhu , Wang Tiantian , Lin Gang , Li Mingzhu , Zhang Yanjiao , Mai Kangsen
Published: August 2022

This study aimed to assess dietary organic zinc on zinc homeostasis, antioxidant capacity, immune response, glycolysis and intestinal microbiota in white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei Boone, 1931). Six experimental diets were formulated: Control, zinc free; S120, 120 mg·kg−1 zinc from ZnSO4·7H2O added into control diet; O30, O60, O90 and O120, 30, 60, 90 and 120 mg·kg−1 zinc from Zn-proteinate added into control diet, respectively. The results showed that organic zinc significantly promoted zinc content and gene expression of ZnT1, ZIP11 and MT in the hepatopancreas and enhanced antioxidant capacity and immunity (in terms of increased activities of T-SOD, Cu/Zn SOD, PO, LZM, decreased content of MDA, upregulated expressions of GST, G6PDH, ProPO, LZM and Hemo, and increased resistance to Vibrio parahaemolyticus). Organic zinc significantly upregulated GluT1 expression in the intestine, increased glucose content of plasma and GCK, PFK and PDH activities of hepatopancreas, and decreased pyruvate content of hepatopancreas. Organic zinc improved intestinal microbiota communities, increased the abundance of potentially beneficial bacteria and decreased the abundance of potential pathogens. Inorganic zinc (S120) also had positive effects, but organic zinc (as low as O60) could achieve better effects. Overall, organic zinc had a higher bioavailability and was a more beneficial zinc resource than inorganic zinc in shrimp feeds.
Signaling Pathways Associated with Chronic Wound Progression: A Systems Biology Approach
Authors: Basu Proma , Martins-Green Manuela
Published: August 2022

Previously we have shown that several oxidative stress-driven pathways in cutaneous chronic wounds are dysregulated in the first 48 h post-wounding. Here, we performed an RNASeq analysis of tissues collected up to day 20 after wounding, when we have determined full chronicity is established. Weighted Gene Correlation Network Analysis was performed in R segregating the genes into 14 modules. Genes in the modules significantly correlated (p < 0.05) to early and full chronicity were used for pathway analysis using pathfindR. In early chronicity, we observed enrichment of several pathways. Dysregulation of Ephrin/Eph signaling leads to growth cone collapse and impairs neuronal regeneration. Adra2b and Adra2a overexpression in early and full chronicity, respectively, decreased cAMP production and impaired re-epithelialization and granulation tissue formation. Several pathways involving a Smooth-muscle-actin (Acta1) were also enriched with Acta1 overexpression contributing to impaired angiogenesis. During full chronicity, the ‘JAK-STAT’ pathway was suppressed undermining host defenses against infection. Wnt signaling was also suppressed, impairing re-epithelialization and granulation tissue formation. Biomarkers of cancer such as overexpression of SDC1 and constitutive activation of ErbB2/HER2 were also identified. In conclusion, we show that during progression to full chronicity, numerous signaling pathways are dysregulated, including some related to carcinogenesis, suggesting that chronic wounds behave much like cancer. Experimental verification in vivo could identify candidates for treatment of chronic wounds.
Lactoferrin Prevents Chronic Alcoholic Injury by Regulating Redox Balance and Lipid Metabolism in Female C57BL/6J Mice
Authors: Li De-Ming , Wu Yun-Xuan , Hu Zhi-Qiang , Wang Tian-Ci , Zhang Li-Li , Zhou Yan , Tong Xing , Xu Jia-Ying , Qin Li-Qiang
Published: August 2022

This study aimed to investigate the preventive effects of lactoferrin (Lf) on chronic alcoholic liver injury (ALI) in female mice. Female C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into four groups: control group (CON), ethanol administration group (EtOH), low-dose Lf treatment group (LLf), and high-dose Lf group (HLf). In the last three groups, chronic ALI was induced by administering 20% ethanol ad libitum for 12 weeks. Mice in the CON and EtOH groups were fed with AIN-93G diet. Meanwhile, 0.4% and 4% casein in the AIN-93G diet were replaced by Lf as the diets of LLf and HLf groups, respectively. HLf significantly reduced hepatic triglyceride content and improved pathological morphology. HLf could inhibit cytochrome P450 2E1 overexpression and promote alcohol dehydrogenase-1 expression. HLf activated protein kinase B and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), as well as upregulating nuclear-factor-erythroid-2-related factor-2 expression to elevate hepatic antioxidative enzyme activities. AMPK activation also benefited hepatic lipid metabolism. Meanwhile, HLf had no obvious beneficial effects on gut microbiota. In summary, Lf could alleviate chronic ALI in female mice, which was associated with redox balance and lipid metabolism regulation.
Long-Term Thermo-Hydraulic Numerical Assessment of Thermo-Active Piles—A Case of Tropical Soils
Authors: Zhang Jiamin , Dias Daniel , Pan Qiujing , Ma Chunjing , Tsuha Cristina de Hollanda Cavalcanti
Published: August 2022

Thermo-active piles are an upcoming technology for the utilization of subsurface geothermal energy in urban areas. This environmentally friendly technology has already been widespread for the heating and cooling of buildings in temperate regions, whereas in tropical regions it is still limited due to their unbalanced energy demands. This paper presents 3D thermo-hydraulic coupled numerical simulations to assess the long-term performance of thermo-active pile systems in tropical environments for different energy demands. The simulations are based on real data (in situ tests and field investigations) considering three typical thermal solicitations, thereby maintaining their practical relevance. Moreover, the energy exchange within soil control volumes is quantified based on an approach that allows calculating conductive and advective divergence. Parametric analyses regarding thermal solicitation, pile diameter, and groundwater flow are also performed. The results indicate that groundwater flow plays the most important role in improving the thermal balance of thermo-active piles.
Numerical Modelling of Droplets and Beads Behavior over Super-Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Coatings under in-Flight Icing Conditions
Authors: Croce Giulio , Suzzi Nicola , Pretto Marco , Giannattasio Pietro
Published: August 2022

Current technology has produced a wide range of advanced micro-structured surfaces, designed for achieving the best wettability and adhesion performances for each specific application. In the context of in-flight icing simulations, this opens new challenges since the current most popular and successful ice accretion prediction tools neglect the details of the droplet behavior opting for a continuous film model. Here, a phenomenological model, following, in a Lagrangian approach, the evolution of the single droplets from the impinging to the onset of rivulets, is developed to simulate the performances of super-hydrophobic surfaces in icing application. Possible rebound and droplet spread on the impact, coalescence, single ice bead formation and droplet to rivulet transition are taken into account. The first validation shows how the models are able to predict the anti-icing capability of a super-hydrophobic surface coupled with a heating system.
Distantly Supervised Named Entity Recognition with Self-Adaptive Label Correction
Authors: Nie Binling , Li Chenyang
Published: August 2022

Named entity recognition has achieved remarkable success on benchmarks with high-quality manual annotations. Such annotations are labor-intensive and time-consuming, thus unavailable in real-world scenarios. An emerging interest is to generate low-cost but noisy labels via distant supervision, hence noisy label learning algorithms are in demand. In this paper, a unified self-adaptive learning framework termed Self-Adaptive Label cOrrection (SALO) is proposed. SALO adaptively performs a label correction process, both in an implicit and an explicit manners, turning noisy labels into correct ones, thus benefiting model training. The experimental results on four benchmark datasets demonstrated the superiority of SALO over the state-of-the-art distantly supervised methods. Moreover, a better version of noisy labels by ensembling several semantic matching methods was built. Experiments were carried out and consistent improvements were observed, validating the generalization of the proposed SALO.
Comparison of Principal-Component-Analysis-Based Extreme Learning Machine Models for Boiler Output Forecasting
Authors: Deepika K. K. , Varma P. Srinivasa , Reddy Ch. Rami , Sekhar O. Chandra , Alsharef Mohammad , Alharbi Yasser , Alamri Basem
Published: August 2022

In this paper, a combined approach of Principal Component Analysis (PCA)-based Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) for boiler output forecasting in a thermal power plant is presented. The input used for this prediction model is taken from the boiler unit of the Yermarus Thermal Power Station (YTPS), India. Calculation of the accurate electrical output of a boiler in an operating system requires the knowledge of hundreds of operating parameters. The dimensionality of the input dataset is reduced by applying principal component analysis using IBM@SPSS Software. In the process of principal component analysis, a dataset of 232 parameters is standardized into 16 principal components. The total dataset collected is divided into training and testing datasets. The extreme learning machine is designed for various activation functions and the number of neurons. Sigmoid and hyperbolic tangent activation functions are studied here. Its generalization performance is examined in terms of the Mean Square Error (MSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Root Mean Square (RMSE), and Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE). ELM and PCA–ELM are compared. In both the ELM and PCA–ELM models, when the extreme learning machine was designed with a sigmoid activation function with 100 nodes in the hidden layer, RMSE was 5.026 and 4.730, respectively. Therefore, the developed combined approach of PCA–ELM proved as a promising technique in forecasting with reduced errors and reduced time.
Periodic Monitoring and Filtering Suppression of Signal Interference in Mine 5G Communication
Authors: Zhang Liya , Yang Wei , Fang Weidong , Jiang Yufeng , Zhao Qing
Published: August 2022

Diverse IoT applications, such as unmanned driving, intelligent video, unmanned working face, industrial control, and intelligent robot inspection, are the key technologies in the field of intelligent mines. In order to fully meet the requirements of underground IoT systems of high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connections, it is necessary to study 5G technologies suitable for underground environments to achieve effective deployment in mines. In key areas, such as main transport roadways, fully mechanized mining faces, and underground substations, both spurs and crosstalk in the frequency domain are the dominant factors affecting the stability and reliability of 5G signals. For the purpose of improving the performance of mine 5G, a fusion anti-interference scheme is designed here. Based on a deep complex network and blind source separation, periodic monitoring and filtering suppression of signal interference can be achieved. The test results show that the frequency domain spurs’ suppression capability of the proposed method is 20% higher than that of the traditional equalization method. For frequency domain crosstalk, 90% interference elimination could be achieved by the proposed method without additional delays when compared with the conventional blind source separation. The high-bandwidth and low-latency characteristics of 5G communication can be guaranteed by this method.
Maximum Safe Parameters of Ships in Complex Systems of Port Waterways
Authors: Gucma Stanisław , Gucma Maciej , Gralak Rafał , Przywarty Marcin
Published: August 2022

Context: From the perspective of marine traffic engineering, a system of port waterways is composed of a set of waterways (port areas), such as approach channels, port entrance, inner fairways (port channels, rivers, lakes), turning basins and port basins of various terminals. The sea waterway must be adjusted to the navigation of specific types of ships, characterized by length, breadth, draft and airdraft. The primary requirement for shipping in sea waterways is the safety of navigation. Each sea waterway has traffic restrictions for the ships using it. These restrictions are called conditions of sea waterway operation or conditions of ship operation in the sea waterway. Problem: There are a number of empirical, deterministic or probabilistic methods to determine the safe width of maneuvering areas on port waterways. The direct application of empirical methods to determine the conditions for the safe operation of ships on the complex waterway, such as the Świnoujście–Szczecin fairway, was impossible due to the complexity of the waterway and various restrictions on its individual parts. Method: The paper presents the assumptions and calculation procedure of a method allowing for the determination of maximum safe parameters of ships in existing complex waterways. Results: The proposed method was used in the preparation of port regulations for the dredged and widened Świnoujście–Szczecin waterway. The results of these calculations are presented as a practical application of the method. Conclusions: This article defines conditions for the safe operation of ships in complex port waterways systems and presents the methodology for determining maximum safe parameters of ships in existing complex port waterways systems.
The Rise of Blockchain Internet of Things (BIoT): Secured, Device-to-Device Architecture and Simulation Scenarios
Authors: Rana Arun , Sharma Sharad , Nisar Kashif , Ibrahim Ag. Asri Ag. , Dhawan Sachin , Chowdhry Bhawani , Hussain Samreen , Goyal Nitin
Published: August 2022

Most Internet of Things (IoT) resources are exposed to security risks due to their essential functionality. IoT devices, such as smartphones and tablets, have a limited network, computation, and storage capacity, making them more vulnerable to attacks. In addition, the huge volume of data generated by IoT devices remains an open challenge for existing platforms to process, analyze, and discover underlying trends to create a convenient environment. As a result, to deliver acceptable services, a new solution is necessary to secure data accountability, increase data privacy and accessibility, and extract hidden patterns and usable knowledge. Moving the Internet of Things to a distributed ledger system might be the most effective way to solve these issues. One of the most well-known and extensively utilized distributed ledger systems is the blockchain. Due to its unique properties, such as privacy, accountability, immutability, and anonymity, blockchain technology has recently attracted a lot of interest. Using IoT in conjunction with blockchain technology can bring several benefits. This paper reviews the current state of the art different BIoT architectures, with a focus on current technologies, applications, challenges, and opportunities. The test findings prove that the decentralized authentication platform-based blockchain-based IoT (BIoT) device-to-device architecture has a significantly higher throughput than the gateway-based architecture. To encrypt the elliptical curve cryptographic (ECC) and to generate keys, the Chinese remainder theorem (CRT)-based scheme is proposed and compared with the secure hash algorithm (SHA-256). Finally, ECC-CRT is used to access system performance in terms of latency, throughput, and resource consumption, simulated through the Contiki Cooja (CC) simulator, and alter orderer and peer nodes for performance study in BIoT. A comprehensive analysis and simulation results show that the proposed scheme is secure against a variety of known attacks, including the man-in-the-middle (MiM) attack, and outperforms the SHA-256 cryptographic algorithm. Moreover, the significance of blockchain and IoT, as well as their analysis of proposed architecture, is discussed. This paper will help readers and researchers understand the IoT and its applicability to the real world.
Synthesized Transmitting Coil for Magnetic Focusing of Pulsed Eddy Current for Downhole Casing Inspection
Authors: Yang Ling , Liu Changzan , Dang Jingxin , Zhao Yang , Dang Bo , Dang Ruirong
Published: August 2022

Pulsed eddy current (PEC) is a widely utilized technology for the nondestructive inspection of industrial tubes and pipes due to its rapid and accurate results. To improve the longitudinal resolution of PEC, multiple transmitting coils (MTCs) are used to realize magnetic focusing. However, this approach is difficult to apply to narrow downhole environments because of the complex transmitting array and electrical circuits. To address this issue, we present a synthesized transmitting coil (STC) that combines MTCs into a single coil with multiple connected sections using different winding directions and number of turns to adjust the magnetic field distribution. A theoretical derivation was presented for the analysis and interpretation of the magnetic field, and a figure of merit (FoM) was constructed to optimize the STC parameters. Numerical simulations and experiments were performed to validate the proposed STC for downhole casing inspection, and the experimental results showed good agreement with the simulation results.
Preventing the Cloud Networks through Semi-Supervised Clustering from Both Sides Attacks
Authors: Nadeem Muhammad , Arshad Ali , Riaz Saman , Zahra Syeda Wajiha , Dutta Ashit Kumar , Almotairi Sultan
Published: August 2022

Cloud computing is a centralized data storage system providing various services worldwide. Different organizations are using the cloud for other purposes. As the number of users on the cloud server increases, so does the rate of attacks on the cloud. Various researchers have devised different solutions to solve these problems, the most widely used being the Intrusion Detection System (IDS). In this paper, a network architecture has been designed in which an efficient technique, semi-supervised clustering, has been used. In this technique, users’ responses inside and outside the cloud server have been observed, and various rules and mechanisms have been enforced based on these responses. The network is divided into three different scenarios. In the first scenario, attacks outside the cloud server have been detected, and then ways to prevent these attacks are discussed. The second scenario uses Cloud Shell, allowing authentic users to access the cloud server through authentic queries. In the third scenario, this tool’s performance and detection rate have been measured by applying different results to the confusion matrix. A comparative analysis has been done with other papers at the end of the paper, and conclusions have been drawn based on different results.
Analytical Investigation of Sound Radiation from Functionally Graded Thin Plates Based on Elemental Radiator Approach and Physical Neutral Surface
Authors: Singh Baij Nath , Hota R. N. , Dwivedi Sarvagya , Jha Ratneshwar , Ranjan Vinayak , Řehák Kamil
Published: August 2022

This paper analyzes the sound radiation behavior of a clamped thin, functionally graded material plate using the classical plate theory and Rayleigh Integral with the elemental radiator approach. The material properties of the plate are assumed to vary according to the power-law distribution of the constituent materials in the transverse direction. The functionally graded material is modeled using a physical neutral surface instead of a geometric middle surface. The effects of the power-law index, elastic modulus ratio, different constituent materials, and damping loss factor on the sound radiation of functionally graded plate are analyzed. It was found that, for the considered plate, the power-law index significantly influences sound power level and radiation efficiency. There exists a critical value of the power-law index for which the corresponding peak of sound power level is minimum. In a wide operating frequency range, approximately 500–1500 Hz, this research suggests that the radiation efficiency is lower for the power-law index equal to 0 and 1. However, for very low frequencies (less than 250 Hz), the power-law index does not affect radiation efficiency significantly. Further, as the modulus ratio increases, the sound power peak decreases for a given power-law index. For the given material constituents of the functionally graded plate, the different values of damping loss factors do not significantly influence radiation efficiency. However, the selection of material constituents affects the radiation efficiency peak.
On the Patterns and Scaling Properties of the 2021–2022 Arkalochori Earthquake Sequence (Central Crete, Greece) Based on Seismological, Geophysical and Satellite Observations
Authors: Vallianatos Filippos , Karakonstantis Andreas , Michas Georgios , Pavlou Kyriaki , Kouli Maria , Sakkas Vassilis
Published: August 2022

The 27 September 2021 damaging mainshock (Mw6.0) close to Arkalochori village is the strongest earthquake that was recorded during the instrumental period of seismicity in Central Crete (Greece). The mainshock was preceded by a significant number of foreshocks that lasted nearly four months. Maximum ground subsidence of about 18 cm was estimated from InSAR processing. The aftershock sequence is located in an almost NE-SW direction and divided into two main clusters, the southern and the northern ones. The foreshock activity, the deformation area, and the strongest aftershocks are located within the southern cluster. Based on body-wave travel times, a 3-D velocity model was developed, while using combined space and ground-based geodetic techniques, the co-seismic ground deformation is presented. Moreover, we examined the co-seismic static stress changes with respect to the aftershocks’ spatial distribution during the major events of the foreshocks, the Mw = 6.0 main event as well as the largest aftershock. Both the foreshock and the aftershock sequences obey the scaling law for the frequency-magnitude distribution as derived from the framework of non-extensive statistical physics (NESP). The aftershock production rate decays according to the modified Omori scaling law, exhibiting various Omori regimes due to the generation of secondary aftershock sequences. The analysis of the inter-event time distribution, based on NESP, further indicates asymptotic power-law scaling and long-range correlations among the events. The spatiotemporal evolution of the aftershock sequence indicates triggering by co-seismic stress transfer, while its slow migration towards the outer edges of the area of the aftershocks, related to the logarithm of time, further indicates a possible afterslip.
Model Test Study on a Shield Tunnel Adjacent to Pile in the Sub-Clay of a Coastal Area
Authors: Guo Xuan , Li Zhitong , Zhang Xiaoli , Pu Mengjun
Published: August 2022

In this study, a model test system of shield driving adjacent to pile is realized to study the response of surrounding rock and pile induced by an advanced shield tunnel in silty clay layer in a coastal area. The function of automatic pushing and the synchronous grouting of the shield were partially simulated. Similar materials of lining, soft rock and pile, were developed. A total of 33 sets of orthogonal model tests were designed to study the progressive failure caused by excavation in silty clay and the change in stratum displacement and soil pressure; the displacement and internal force response of the pile were also analyzed. The following conclusions can be given: (1) the best grouting filling coefficient range of the shield test for the case study is 1.4 to 1.6; (2) the fitting of the experimental data to obtain the settlement through the width parameter suggests that the K value of the surrounding rock is decreased by 0.075 at least, and the K value increases with the increase in pile-tunnel distance and decreases with the increase in pile depth; and (3) the weak surrounding rock in the tunnel system can be divided into five zones according to the displacement and pressure change in soft surrounding rock and the pile response in the case study. The key condition control factor was also determined.
Metaheuristics Optimization with Deep Learning Enabled Automated Image Captioning System
Authors: Al Duhayyim Mesfer , Alazwari Sana , Mengash Hanan Abdullah , Marzouk Radwa , Alzahrani Jaber S. , Mahgoub Hany , Althukair Fahd , Salama Ahmed S.
Published: August 2022

Image captioning is a popular topic in the domains of computer vision and natural language processing (NLP). Recent advancements in deep learning (DL) models have enabled the improvement of the overall performance of the image captioning approach. This study develops a metaheuristic optimization with a deep learning-enabled automated image captioning technique (MODLE-AICT). The proposed MODLE-AICT model focuses on the generation of effective captions to the input images by using two processes involving encoding unit and decoding unit. Initially, at the encoding part, the salp swarm algorithm (SSA), with a HybridNet model, is utilized to generate effectual input image representation using fixed-length vectors, showing the novelty of the work. Moreover, the decoding part includes a bidirectional gated recurrent unit (BiGRU) model used to generate descriptive sentences. The inclusion of an SSA-based hyperparameter optimizer helps in attaining effectual performance. For inspecting the enhanced performance of the MODLE-AICT model, a series of simulations were carried out, and the results are examined under several aspects. The experimental values suggested the betterment of the MODLE-AICT model over recent approaches.
Analysis of the Most Relevant Factors for Routing in Internet of Space Things Networks
Authors: Garcia-Loya Eduardo , Galaviz-Mosqueda Alejandro , Villarreal-Reyes Salvador , Rivera-Rodríguez Raúl , Lozano-Rizk José E. , Conte-Galván Roberto
Published: August 2022

The “Internet of Space Things” (IoST) is an emerging paradigm to provide Internet and data services around the globe. IoST networks can potentially support the deployment of services in underserved areas, such as monitoring inaccessible areas for early warning applications, open ocean and sea ice monitoring, and surveillance of remote ecosystems such as forests and jungles, among others. To enable the IoST paradigm, designing and developing appropriate routing protocols is crucial. This work presents a methodology based on 2k factorial statistical analysis and an in-house developed space simulator (available upon request) to identify the critical factors affecting the performance of routing protocols in “Internet of Space Things” scenarios. The analyzed factors consider reactive and proactive routing approaches, connectivity, and the freshness of routing information. The results provide essential lessons for the research community to design protocols that could adapt under different IoST scenarios. The 2k factorial analysis applied in the study of the routing protocols’ performance can be an effective tool for developing specialized routing protocols.
Investigation on Vibration Influence Law of Double-Shield TBM Tunnel Construction
Authors: Lu Zelin , Wang Xuchun , Zhou Guanghong , Feng Lei , Jiang Yusheng
Published: August 2022

Double-shield TBM is more efficient than shield tunnel construction in hard rock strata. It is widely used in subway tunnel construction, such as in Qingdao and Chongqing in China. However, construction vibration problems caused by double-shield TBM critically affect human comfort in surface buildings. In order to study the vibration influence law of double-shield TBM, the on-site monitoring plan of double-shield TBM is developed, relying on a tunnel section of Qingdao Metro Line 4. Then, the vibration monitoring results are analyzed, and the time domain and frequency domain characteristics of vibration acceleration are obtained. Subsequently, taking vibration peak acceleration as the research object, the transverse and longitudinal vibration laws of double-shield TBM construction are studied. Finally, according to the standard of human comfort in buildings, the vibration influence ranges of double-shield TBM construction are obtained. The research results can provide a reference for the vibration effect of double-shield TBM passing through houses, highways and bridges. Moreover, it can also provide a basis for the disputes that double-shield TBM tunnel construction affects the lives of inhabitants.
Incremental Pathways of Post-Disaster Housing Self-Recovery in Villa Verde, Chile
Authors: Carrasco Sandra , O’Brien David
Published: August 2022

Housing reconstruction is considered the backbone of disaster recovery. The increasing losses in housing due to disasters challenge conventional top-down schemes and call for people-centred approaches to acknowledge their agency and self-recovery resources. This paper examines the pathways for housing self-recovery through resident-controlled incremental housing development. This paper focuses on the Villa Verde settlement built in the Chilean city of Constitución, which was severely impacted by the 2010 Chile Earthquake. Villa Verde, designed by the Chilean architecture studio Elemental, is one of the most notable incremental housing projects worldwide that encourage residents to extend their houses within a provided structural framework. This research aims to provide clarity in the much-needed understanding of disaster-affected people’s agency to self-recover, noted by researchers as one of the crucial elements for improving the humanitarian response in the aftermath of disasters. Through capturing the evolution of incremental housing construction, this paper presents multiple complexities resulting from the variety of households’ characteristics and needs in their process of post-disaster housing self-recovery. The resident-controlled process studied evidence that the people’s capacities and dedication to self-recover challenged the established housing framework with extensions beyond the designers’ parameters requiring further evaluation of the long-term implications of self-help constructions.
Regeneration of Pinus sibirica Du Tour in the Mountain Tundra of the Northern Urals against the Background of Climate Warming
Authors: Ivanova Natalya , Tantsyrev Nikolai , Li Guoqing
Published: August 2022

Climate is one of the key drivers of the plant community’s structure and trends. However, the regional vegetation-climate features in the ecotone have not yet been sufficiently studied. The aim of the research is to study features of Pinus sibirica Du Tour germination, survival, and growth in the mountain tundra of the Northern Urals against the background of a changing climate. The following research objectives were set: To determine the abundance and age structure of P. sibirica undergrowth on the mountain tundra plateau, identify the features of P. sibirica growth in the mountain tundra, and examine the correlation between the multi-year air temperature pattern, precipitation, and P. sibirica seedling emergence. A detailed study of the Pinus sibirica natural regeneration in the mountain stony shrub-moss-lichen tundra area at an altitude of 1010–1040 m above sea level on the Tri Bugra mountain massif plateau (59°30′ N, 59°15′ E) in the Northern Urals (Russia) has been conducted. The research involved the period between 1965 and 2017. Woody plant undergrowth was considered in 30 plots, 5 × 5 m in size. The first generations were recorded from 1967–1969. The regeneration has become regular since 1978 and its intensity has been increasing since then. Climate warming is driving these processes. Correlation analysis revealed significant relationships between the number of Pinus sibirica seedlings and the minimum temperature in August and September of the current year, the minimum temperatures in May, June, and November of the previous year, the maximum temperatures in May and August of the current year, and precipitation in March of both the current and previous years. However, the young tree growth rate remains low to date (the height at an age of 45–50 years is approximately 114 ± 8.8 cm). At the same time, its open crowns are rare single lateral shoots. The length of the side shoots exceeds its height by 4–5 times, and the length of the lateral roots exceeds its height by 1.2–1.5 times. This is an indicator of the extreme conditions for this tree species. With the current rates of climate warming and the Pinus sibirica tree growth trends, the revealed relationships allow for the prediction that in 20–25 years, the mountain tundra in the studied Northern Urals plateau could develop underground-closed forest communities with a certain forest relationship. The research results are of theoretical importance for clarifying the forest-tundra ecotone concept. From a practical point of view, the revealed relationship can be used to predict the trend in forest ecosystem formation in the mountain forest-tundra ecotone.
Variability of Precipitation Recycling and Moisture Sources over the Colombian Pacific Region: A Precipitationshed Approach
Authors: Enciso Angelica M. , Baquero Olga Lucia , Escobar-Carbonari Daniel , Tapasco Jeimar , Cerón Wilmar L.
Published: August 2022

This study assessed the precipitation recycling and moisture sources in the Colombian Pacific region between 1980–2017, based on the monitoring of moisture in the atmosphere through the Eulerian Water Accounting Model-2 layer (WAM2 layer) and the delimitation of the area contributing to terrestrial and oceanic moisture in the region is performed using the “precipitationshed” approach. The results indicate a unimodal precipitation recycling ratio for the North and Central Pacific and Patía-Mira regions, with the highest percentages between March and April, reaching 30% and 34%, respectively, and the lowest between September and October (between 19% and 21%). Moreover, monthly changes in the circulation of the region promote a remarkable variability of the sources that contribute to the precipitation of the study area and the spatial dynamics of the precipitationshed. From December to April, the main contributions come from continental sources in eastern Colombia and Venezuela, the tropical North Atlantic, and the Caribbean Sea, a period of high activity of the Orinoco Low-Level jet. In September, the moisture source region is located over the Pacific Ocean, where a southwesterly cross-equatorial circulation predominates, converging in western Colombia, known as the Choco Jet (CJ), decreasing the continental contribution. An intensified Caribbean Low-Level Jet inhibits moisture sources from the north between June and August, strengthening a southerly cross-equatorial flow from the Amazon River basin and the southeastern tropical Pacific. The March–April (September–October) season of higher (lower) recycling of continental precipitation is related to the weakening (strengthening) of the CJ in the first (second) half of the year, which decreases (increases) the contribution of moisture from the Pacific Ocean to the region, increasing (decreasing) the influence of land-based sources in the study area.
Temporal Variation and Source Analysis of Atmospheric CH4 at Different Altitudes in the Background Area of Yangtze River Delta
Authors: Shan Meng , Xu Honghui , Han Lujie , Pang Yuting , Ma Juncheng , Zhang Chao
Published: August 2022

Through an analysis of CH4 data observed at different altitudes at the atmospheric background station in Lin’an from 2016 to 2020, in combination with back-trajectory and distribution characteristics of potential source areas, the CH4 concentration variations at higher and lower altitudes and their relationships with sources and sinks were studied. The results showed that the CH4 concentration was characterized by notable diurnal variations. The largest concentration difference occurred between 5 and 7 a.m.; the concentration difference in summer was higher than that in the other three seasons. Background filtering of the hourly CH4 concentration was carried out using a numerical method. The results showed that the difference in the CH4 background concentration between the two altitudes was 4.6 ppb (SD = 7.9). The CH4 background concentrations at the two altitudes had the same seasonal variation: double peaks and valleys. The peaks appeared in May and December, and the valleys appeared in March and July. In spring and summer, the potential CH4 source areas were mainly distributed in the rice planting and wetland discharge regions. In autumn, they were mainly distributed in regions affected by fugitive emissions from rice planting and coal mining. In winter, they were mainly distributed in livestock and poultry management regions.
Atmospheric Factors Affecting Global Solar and Photosynthetically Active Radiation Relationship in a Mediterranean Forest Site
Authors: Proutsos Nikolaos D. , Liakatas Aristotle , Alexandris Stavros G. , Tsiros Ioannis X. , Tigkas Dimitris , Halivopoulos George
Published: August 2022

Light availability and its composition in components affecting plant growth as photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), are of critical importance in agricultural and environmental research. In this work, radiation data for the period 2009–2014 in a forest site in Greece were analyzed to identify the effect of meteorological variables on the formation of the photosynthetically active to global solar radiation ratio. The temporal changes of the ratio are also discussed. Results showed that the ratio values are higher in summer (0.462) and lower in autumn (0.432), resulting in an annual average of 0.446. In addition, for the investigated site, which was characterized by relatively high water content in the atmosphere, the atmospheric water content and clearness were found to be the most influential factors in the composition of the global solar radiation in the wavelengths of PAR. On the contrary, temperature and related meteorological attributes (including relative humidity, vapor pressure deficit and saturation vapor pressure) were found to have minor effect.
The Thomas More Lists: A Phonemically Balanced Dutch Monosyllabic Speech Audiometry Test
Authors: Vanpoucke Filiep , De Sloovere Marleen , Plasmans Anke
Published: August 2022

Speech audiometry tests are a crucial tool in clinical care and research. In Dutch, the common practice is to use lists of monosyllabic words with a consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) structure. However, there are relatively few lists, and they are short. Here, the goal is to develop an adult speech audiometry test for Dutch (Flemish) consisting of phonemically balanced lists of 25 CVC words. The ISO 8253-3:2012 norm was followed. From a pool of 689 well-known words, an initial set of 26 lists was recorded by a female speaker. The lists were optimized for perceptual balance by means of two studies with young normal hearing listeners (N1 = 24, N2 = 32). The final corpus contains 16 phonetically and perceptually balanced lists. In a last study (N3 = 25), the reference speech recognition curves in quiet and in speech-shaped noise were determined. Reference speech recognition threshold and slope values for phoneme scoring are respectively 20.3 dBSPL in quiet (slope 5.2%/dB) and −7.7 dBSNR (7.5%/dB) in noise, similar to existing materials. The lists may be a useful addition to the existing audiometric tests.
Remarkable Divergence of the Sex-Linked Region between Two Wild Spinach Progenitors, Spinacia turkestanica and Spinacia tetrandra
Authors: She Hongbing , Xu Zhaosheng , Zhang Helong , Wu Jian , Wang Xiaowu , Liu Zhiyuan , Qian Wei
Published: August 2022

The sex-linked region (SLR) plays an important role in determining the sex of a plant. The SLR of the Y chromosome, composed of a 14.1-Mb inversion and a 10-Mb Y-duplication region (YDR), was deciphered in Spinacia oleracea previously. However, our understanding of the SLR in its wild relatives, S. turkestanica and S. tetrandra, remains limited. In this study, we used 63 resequencing data from the three Spinacia species to infer the evolution of the SLR among the Spinacia species. In the SLR, all the cultivated spinach and S. turkestanica accessions were clustered into two distinct categories with both sexes, while the S. tetrandra accessions of both sexes were grouped. This suggests that S. oleracea shared a similar SLR with S. turkestanica, but not with S. tetrandra, which was further confirmed based on the population structure and principal component analysis. Furthermore, we identified 3910 fully sex-linked SNPs in S. oleracea and 92.82% of them were available in S. turkestanica, while none of the SNPs were adopted in S. tetrandra. Genome coverage in males and females supported the hypothesis that the YDR increasingly expanded during its evolution. Otherwise, we identified 13 sex-linked transposable element insertion polymorphisms within the inversion in both S. oleracea and S. turkestanica, demonstrating that the transposable element insertions might have occurred before the recombination suppression event of the inversion. The SLR was conserved compared with the pseudoautosomal region given that the genetic hitchhiking process occurred in the SLR during its evolution. Our findings will significantly advance our understanding of the characteristics and evolution of the SLR in Spinacia species.
Effect of Hypothermia Therapy on Children with Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
Authors: Du Qiujing , Liu Yuwei , Chen Xinrong , Li Ka
Published: August 2022

Hypothermia therapy is a promising therapeutic strategy for traumatic brain injury (TBI); however, some trials have shown that hypothermia therapy has a negative effect on patients with TBI. The treatment of hypothermia in children with TBI remains controversial. We conducted a search of six online databases to validate the literature on comparing hypothermia with normal therapy for children with TBI. Eight randomized controlled trials (514 patients) were included. The meta-analysis indicated that hypothermia therapy may increase the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) scores. However, in terms of improving the rate of complications, intracranial pressure (ICP), mortality, cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP), and length of stay both in hospital as well as pediatric ICU, the difference was not statistically significant. Hypothermia therapy may have clinical advantages in improving the GOS scores in children with TBI compared with normothermic therapy, but hypothermia therapy may have no benefit in improving the incidence of complications, ICP, mortality, CPP, and length of stay both in pediatric ICU as well as hospital. The decision to implement hypothermia therapy for children with TBI depends on the advantages and disadvantages from many aspects and these must be considered comprehensively.