bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Fabrication and performance evaluation of novel transparent ceramics RE:Tb3Ga5O12 (RE = Pr, Tm, Dy) toward magneto-optical application
Authors: Li Xiaoying , Snetkov Ilya L. , Yakovlev Aleksey , Liu Qiang , Liu Xin , Liu Ziyu , Chen Penghui , Zhu Danyang , Wu Lexiang , Yang Zhaoxiang , Xie Tengfei , Chen Haohong , Palashov Oleg , Li Jiang
Published: February 2021

Transparent ceramics are at the heart of modern magneto-optical materials providing promising opportunities for Faraday isolators. 1.0 at% RE:Tb3Ga5O12 (rare earth (RE) = Pr, Tm, Dy) transparent ceramics were successfully prepared by air sintering and sequential HIP technique using the coprecipitated powders as the raw material. All the powders have shown to be a pure cubic terbium gallium garnet (TGG) phase and exhibit good dispersion. Additionally, a change could not be observed in particle shape with the different doped ions. After the two-step sintering, all the obtained ceramics have good optical quality, and the in-line transmittances at 1070 nm are higher than 80%. Moreover, no secondary phase can be detected from the microstructures. However, the pores which remain entrapped in the ceramics can be noted. The Verdet constant of ceramic samples is optimized by RE doping, and the Verdet constant at 632.8 nm is about −143 rad·T−1·m−1, which is about 5% higher than that of TGG ceramics. Finally, the thermo-optical properties of 1.0 at% RE:TGG transparent ceramics are compared. The annealed TGG ceramic showed the best thermo-optical properties, and the thermally induced depolarization of 1.0 at% Ce:TGG and 1.0 at% Tm:TGG was inferior to that of annealed TGG ceramic.
Electric modulation of conduction in MAPbBr3 single crystals
Authors: Ke Shanming , Luo Shangyu , Gong Jinhui , Qiu Liwen , Liang Renhong , Zhou Yangbo , Luo Bingcheng , Cheng Baochang , Wang Li , Shu Longlong
Published: February 2021

The resistive switching (RS) mechanism of hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites has not been clearly understood until now. A switchable diode-like RS behavior in MAPbBr3 single crystals using Au (or Pt) symmetric electrodes is reported. Both the high resistance state (HRS) and low resistance state (LRS) are electrode-area dependent and light responsive. We propose an electric-field-driven inner p-n junction accompanied by a trap-controlled space-charge-limited conduction (SCLC) conduction mechanism to explain this switchable diode-like RS behavior in MAPbBr3 single crystals.
Localization of Fréchet Frames and Expansion of Generalized Functions
Authors: Pilipović Stevan , Stoeva Diana T.
Published: February 2021

Matrix-type operators with the off-diagonal decay of polynomial or sub-exponential types are revisited with weaker assumptions concerning row or column estimates, still giving the continuity results for the frame type operators. Such results are extended from Banach to Fréchet spaces. Moreover, the localization of Fréchet frames is used for the frame expansions of tempered distributions and a class of Beurling ultradistributions.
Intrinsic Quasi-Metrics
Authors: Rainio Oona
Published: February 2021

The point pair function $$p_G$$

p
G

defined in a domain $$G\subsetneq {\mathbb {R}}^n$$

G
⊊

R

n

is shown to be a quasi-metric, and its other properties are studied. For a convex domain $$G\subsetneq {\mathbb {R}}^n$$

G
⊊

R

n

, a new intrinsic quasi-metric called the function $$w_G$$

w
G

is introduced. Several sharp results are established for these two quasi-metrics, and their connection to the triangular ratio metric is studied.
Comparison of effects of nanofluid utilization (Al2O3, SiO2, TiO2) with reference water in automotive radiators on exergetic properties of diesel engines
Authors: Erkan Anıl , Tüccar Gökhan , Tosun Erdi , Özgür Tayfun
Published: February 2021

In this study, nanofluids formed by using ethylene glycol and three kinds of nanoparticles such as Al2O3, SiO2, and TiO2 were added to the four-stroke internal combustion engine radiator and compared with the conventional coolant (pure water). This comparison is based on the exergy performances which are the main theme of the second law of thermodynamics. The tests were carried out at a fixed engine speed of 1800 rpm using diesel fuel, and the outputs were obtained from the test setup experimentally. A total of six nanofluid tests were performed on two different dispersions (0.2% and 0.4%). As a result of this study, the best exergy efficiency was obtained by using TiO2 particles with a 35.67% value. Increasing the percentage of nanoparticles in the fluid from 0.2 to 0.4 positively affected efficiency. Pure water generally lagged behind nanofluid performance in experimental parameters. Compared to conventional coolant (pure water), the lowest exhaust temperature value was measured by using an Al2O3/Ethylene Glycol mixture with a difference of 59 K. Also, by using Al2O3 nanoparticles as a coolant, 8.858 kW of exergy exhaust value was obtained. This is the best emission value measured in the experimental study. While calculating values close to each other in the use of other nanoparticles, the worst exergy exhaust results were obtained by using the conventional refrigerant. Consequently, in this paper, exergetic outputs such as exergetic efficiency, exergy destruction, exergy heat, exergy work, exergy total exhaust, and entropy production rate were calculated for pure water and each nanofluid.
A crucial review on recent updates of oxidation behavior in high entropy alloys
Authors: Anne Bhargavi Rani , Shaik Shajahan , Tanaka Masaki , Basu Anindya
Published: February 2021

Recently, High entropy alloys (HEAs) advanced into high-temperature applications as potential candidates by enduring high temperatures with high thermal stability, higher oxidation and corrosion resistances, thermal fatigue, and creep resistances. HEAs acquire unique characteristics called core effects of HEAs: high entropy effect, sluggish diffusion effect, severe lattice distortion, and cocktail effect. HEAs frequently exhibit remarkable properties because of having such unique core effects. Thus, the emergence of HEAs has gained significant interest in the field of materials leading to a contemporary point of discussion on their exciting nature and properties. The current review article intends to summarize the significant works on the oxidation behavior of High entropy alloys (HEAs). Also, peculiar attention has been invested in comprehending oxidation behavior of HEAs in the viewpoint of the crystal structure that is BCC-HEAs, FCC-HEAs and few case studies were compared with the conventional alloys. Current challenges and essential future directions in this field are also pointed out.
Criticality Assessment of the Life Cycle of Passenger Vehicles Produced in China
Authors: Sun Xin , Bach Vanessa , Finkbeiner Matthias , Yang Jianxin
Published: February 2021

China is globally the largest and a rapidly growing market for electric vehicles. The aim of the paper is to determine challenges related to criticality and environmental impacts of battery electric vehicles and internal combustion engine vehicles, focusing not only on a global but also the Chinese perspective, applying the ESSENZ method, which covers a unique approach to determine criticality aspects as well as integrating life cycle assessment results. Real industry data for vehicles and batteries produced in China was collected. Further, for the criticality assessment, Chinese import patterns are analyzed. The results show that the battery electric vehicle has similar and partly increased environmental impacts compared with the internal combustion engine vehicle. For both, the vehicle cycle contributes to a large proportion in all the environmental impact categories except for global warming. Further, battery electric vehicles show a higher criticality than internal combustion engine vehicles, with tantalum, lithium, and cobalt playing essential roles. In addition, the Chinese-specific results show a lower criticality compared to the global assessment for the considered categories trade barriers and political stability, while again tantalum crude oil and cobalt have high potential supply disruptions. Concluding, battery electric vehicles still face challenges regarding their environmental as well as criticality performance from the whole supply chain both in China and worldwide. One reason is the replacement of the lithium-ion power battery. By enhancing its quality and establishing battery recycling, the impacts of battery electric vehicle would decrease.
A simple method for extraction of Ricinus communis L. oil and its application for biodiesel production by ethylic route
Authors: Vasco Jana Eduarda Alberto , Sabite Paulino , Clavel Estevão , Bandali Esau Carlos , Gueze Geraldo Alfredo , João Domingos Augusto , Gomundanhe Almeida Meque , Neuana Neuana Fernando
Published: February 2021

Biodiesel is a clean fuel, and an alternative to the environmental complications ascribed to fossil fuels. However, the forms of its production are still the object of research in the literature because some issues related to its process improvement and economical viability remain a challenge. Consequently, this research aims to produce biodiesel by the ethylic route fromRicinus communisL. oil extracted with a simple solid liquid extraction method without the use of the soxhled extractor and inspired from rural communities practices. In this sense,Ricinus communisL. was extracted byn-hexane as solvent, obtaining biodiesel through ethyl transesterification via alkaline catalysis. The characterization of biodiesel in terms of—acid value (AV), combustibility and corrosivity to copper. The results indicated that the yield of the extracted oil was 14% in relation to the mass of seeds used, the value of the AV was 0.96 mg NaOH/g, showing in this case that the oil can be used in the transesterification process to obtain biodiesel. The biodiesel yield obtained was 37% and the AV was 1.98 mg NaOH/g, being considered above the acceptable value for its use in diesel engines, and should be neutralized to at least 0.8 mg NaOH/g. Based on this work, biodiesel was obtained via ethyl esterification ofRicinus communisL. oil extracted from a simple and easy method.
QAUST: Protein Function Prediction Using Structure Similarity, Protein Interaction, and Functional Motifs
Authors: Smaili Fatima Zohra , Tian Shuye , Roy Ambrish , Alazmi Meshari , Arold Stefan T. , Mukherjee Srayanta , Hefty P. Scott , Chen Wei , Gao Xin
Published: February 2021

The number of available protein sequences in public databases is increasing exponentially. However, a significant percentage of these sequences lack functional annotation, which is essential for the understanding of how biological systems operate. Here, we propose a novel method, Quantitative Annotation of Unknown STructure (QAUST), to infer protein functions, specifically Gene Ontology (GO) terms and Enzyme Commission (EC) numbers. QAUST uses three sources of information: structure information encoded by global and local structure similarity search, biological network information inferred by protein–protein interaction data, and sequence information extracted from functionally discriminative sequence motifs. These three pieces of information are combined by consensus averaging to make the final prediction. Our approach has been tested on 500 protein targets from the Critical Assessment of Functional Annotation (CAFA) benchmark set. The results show that our method provides accurate functional annotation and outperforms other prediction methods based on sequence similarity search or threading. We further demonstrate that a previously unknown function of human tripartite motif-containing 22 (TRIM22) protein predicted by QAUST can be experimentally validated.
Mining Unknown Porcine Protein Isoforms by Tissue-Based Map of Proteome Enhances Pig Genome Annotation
Authors: Zhao Pengju , Zheng Xianrui , Yu Ying , Hou Zhuocheng , Diao Chenguang , Wang Haifei , Kang Huimin , Ning Chao , Li Junhui , Feng Wen , Wang Wen , Liu George E. , Li Bugao , Smith Jacqueline , Chamba Yangzom , Liu Jian-Feng
Published: February 2021

A lack of the complete pig proteome has left a gap in our knowledge of the pig genome and has restricted the feasibility of using pigs as a biomedical model. In this study, we developed a tissue-based proteome map using 34 major normal pig tissues. A total of 5841 unknown protein isoforms were identified and systematically characterized, including 2225 novel protein isoforms, 669 protein isoforms from 460 genes symbolized beginning with LOC, and 2947 protein isoforms without clear NCBI annotation in the current pig reference genome. These newly identified protein isoforms were functionally annotated through profiling the pig transcriptome with high-throughput RNA sequencing of the same pig tissues, further improving the genome annotation of the corresponding protein-coding genes. Combining the well-annotated genes that have parallel expression pattern and subcellular witness, we predicted the tissue-related subcellularlocations and potential functions for these unknown proteins. Finally, we mined 3081 orthologous genes for 52.7% of unknown protein isoforms across multiple species, referring to 68 KEGG pathways as well as 23 disease signaling pathways. These findings provide valuable insights and a rich resource for enhancing studies of pig genomics and biology, as well as biomedical model application to human medicine.
Perioperative risk stratification and strategies for reducing postoperative pulmonary complications following major surgery in resource limited areas: A systematic review
Authors: Tegegne Biresaw Ayen , Lema Girmay Fitiwi , Fentie Demeke Yilkal , Bizuneh Yosef Belay
Published: February 2021

ABSTRACT

Background:

Postoperative pulmonary complication can be broadly defined as conditions affecting the respiratory tract that can adversely influence the clinical course of a patient after surgery. Post-operative pulmonary complications are the most frequent reported cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitals. The occurrence of postoperative pulmonary complications in the world is between 5 and 80% with variation attributed to set-up, preoperative and intra-operative risk factors. The incidence of postoperative pulmonary complication was 21.7% in the study area. Postoperative pulmonary complications can be associated with patient-related and procedure related risk factors. Prevention of postoperative pulmonary complication requires comprehensive multidisciplinary approach that includes preoperative risk stratification and optimizations.

Methods:

This systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) protocol and AMSTAR 2 critical appraisal tool for systematic reviews were used. The literature has reviewed using a multiple and comprehensive database searches including HINARI (Cochrane Library, PubMed and PubMed Central) and Google Scholar to get access for updated evidences on risk stratification and prevention strategies for postoperative pulmonary complications.

Discussion:

Patients who underwent major surgery should be considered as an increased risk for postoperative pulmonary complications. Patients at risk for postoperative pulmonary complication should be identified before Surgery. Perioperative risk stratification and optimizations are widely used prevention strategies for postoperative pulmonary complications.

Conclusion:

Screening and identification of patients at high risk for post-operative pulmonary complications are vital during preoperative period. Patients in high risk group should receive pulmonary complication prevention and intervention protocol such as: cessation from smoking, preoperative inspiratory muscle training, goal-directed fluid therapy, chest physiotherapy, postoperative analgesia especially neuro-axial block, early mobilization and early oral intake.

Highlights
Face recognition: fighting the fakes
Authors: Mungovan Robert
Published: February 2021

Facial biometrics have become increasingly popular authentication tools for three main reasons. First, the user experience is familiar. Onboarding is easy – basically like taking a selfie – and since cameras are already on mobile devices, they're ubiquitously accessible. Second, they remove much, if not all of the friction that users encounter trying to remember passwords. Third, the technology works – and it's getting better every year.
The state of zero trust in the age of fluid working
Authors: Sheridan Ollie
Published: February 2021

Businesses have been thrown a curve ball that could never have been predicted at the beginning of last year, and one that has changed businesses practices forever. While many organisations had some form of fluid working before, it is now non-negotiable as business leaders have seen first-hand that the workforce can be just as productive at home as they can in the office.

While many organisations had some form of fluid working before the pandemic, it is now non-negotiable.

As a result, we've seen a boom in the adoption of enterprise technologies to support this new way of working. However, one aspect of business that shouldn't be forgotten is cyber security, because cyber criminals are taking advantage of the shift to working from home to launch increased numbers of cyber attacks, explains Ollie Sheridan of Gigamon.
Avoiding costly downtime – how MSPs can manage their networks
Authors: Walsh Brendan
Published: February 2021

For managed service providers (MSPs), managing a network is a big responsibility. Availability is the top priority in order to provide customers with constant access to critical applications that help to ensure that their businesses are able to function. 1 When a network goes down this can be due to a variety of causes such as cyber attack, hardware failure or human error and this downtime can be extremely costly. ITIC's latest ‘Global Server Hardware, Server OS Reliability Survey’ found that a single hour of downtime now costs 98% of firms at least $100,000. 2

For managed service providers (MSPs), managing a network is a big responsibility. When it goes down – perhaps as the result of a cyber attack – the results can be costly.

The need for network resilience has become even greater during the pandemic. The requirement to work from home has placed increased strain on networks and greater importance on seamless connectivity. The need for MSPs to ensure greater resilience and uptime may be here to stay, says Brendan Walsh of Opengear.
Achieving GDPR compliance post-Privacy Shield
Authors: Curry Sam
Published: February 2021

In May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became enforceable. The GDPR has changed the way that any entity conducting business with an EU country holds and processes data about EU citizens. As companies around the world embarked on a vast undertaking to meet the GDPR's list of requirements, more than 5,000 certified US organisations secured their seal of approval with respect to article 45 of the GDPR relating to data transfers through the EU-US Privacy Shield.

Until recently, US organisations have been able to manage the private data of EU citizens under the protection of the EU-US Privacy Shield. But now that has been invalidated, many are left facing uncertainty and risk.

This needs to be addressed quickly, and not just to remain compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). There is a great business opportunity for companies to address privacy issues now and it is much better to address privacy proactively, rather being summoned to court for taking the opposite stance, explains Sam Curry of Cybereason.
Securing the remote workforce in the new normal
Authors: Grimm John
Published: February 2021

The Covid-19 pandemic has been the catalyst for accelerated worldwide enterprise digital transformation. It created an unprecedented requirement for increased digital capabilities just to ensure that businesses could continue to operate. The speed at which the virus spread and its impact on the way we had to live and work forced companies to act quickly, in many cases prioritising temporary functionality over security to simply survive.

The Covid-19 pandemic has been the catalyst for accelerated worldwide enterprise digital transformation. It created an unprecedented requirement for increased capabilities.

Now, with government recommendations making remote working the norm rather than a passing phase and a majority of office workers expressing a preference to continue to work some of the week from home even after the pandemic, the question then arises of how security can meet the demands of the modern workforce, says John Grimm of Entrust.
Deprovincializing Science and Religion
Authors: Dawes Gregory
Published: February 2021

To ask about the relation of science and religion is a fool's errand unless we clarify which science we are discussing, whose religion we are speaking about, and what aspects of each we are comparing. This Element sets the study of science and religion in a global context by examining two ways in which humans have understood the natural world. The first is by reference to observable regularities in the behavior of things; the second is by reference to the work of gods, spirits, and ancestors. Under these headings, this work distinguishes three varieties of science and examines their relation to three kinds of religion along four dimensions: beliefs, goals, organizations, and conceptions of knowledge. It also outlines the emergence of a clear distinction between science and religion and an increase in the autonomy of scientific inquiry. It is these developments that have made conflicts between science and religion possible.
Why Denominations Can Climb Hills: RLDS Conversions in Highland Tribal India and Midwestern America, 1964–2000
Authors: Howlett David J.
Published: February 2021

Based on oral history interviews and archival sources, this essay analyzes the religious affiliation between Sora villagers in the highlands of eastern India with Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS) members in the American Midwest. The relationship between these distinct groups transposed a pattern of interactions between highlands and lowlands in upland Asia to a new globalized space in the late twentieth century. Conceiving of “conversion” as a broad analytic trope to discuss various individual, group, and organizational transformations, this essay argues that “converts” in the Sora highlands and American plains instrumentalized their relationships with the other for their own ends. In the Americans, the Sora found a new patron for long-standing client-patron relationships between highlands people and valley people. In the Sora, the Americans found an “indigenous other” who could be used to justify reforms within their local church body along more cosmopolitan lines. As an upshot of these interactions, Sora and Americans effectively reterritorialized older patterns of “hills” and “valleys” that had been deterritorialized by state-sponsored modernization. Thus, the hills and valleys of upland Asia found a surprising afterlife within the space of a global Christian denomination.
Members of the Clergy before the Maltese Diocesan Court, 1750–1798
Authors: Ciappara Frans
Published: February 2021

This article analyzes the procedure of the Maltese diocesan court in dealing with clerical misconduct in the second half of the eighteenth century. The clergy were accused especially of physical and verbal abuse as well as of sexual incontinence. They were given a fair hearing, being assisted by a lawyer, presenting their own witnesses, and having the right to appeal the sentence. The article also discusses how the court tried to protect the clergy's honor and reputation in an attempt to avoid anticlericalism. Convicted priests could stop proceedings against them with a fine, and those of them guilty of immoral behavior were assigned another parish or else transferred to an oratory where they did penance.
Changes in Access to Australian Disability Support Benefits During a Period of Social Welfare Reform
Authors: COLLIE ALEX , SHEEHAN LUKE R , LANE TYLER J
Published: February 2021

The Disability Support Pension (DSP) is the major Australian government financial benefit program for people of working age with medical conditions and disabilities that restrict work capacity. Between 2012 and 2018 a series of policy reforms sought to restrict the growth in DSP payments and encourage more people with some work capacity to seek employment. We characterise changes in three markers of access to disability financial support over the reform period (1) DSP recipient rates (2) DSP grant (approval) rates and (3) the rate of unemployment benefit receipt in people with impaired work capacity. Results demonstrate a significant reduction in DSP receipt and grant rates, and significant increase in the rate of unemployment benefit receipt in working-age Australians with work disabling medical conditions and disability. These changes were not distributed uniformly. People whose primary medical condition was a musculoskeletal or circulatory system disorder demonstrated greater declines in DSP receipt and grant rates, while there was a more rapid increase in unemployment benefit receipt among people with primary mental health conditions. Some trend changes occur in periods during which new disability assessment and pension eligibility policies were introduced, though our ability to attribute changes to specific policy changes is limited.
What do climate change winners owe, and to whom?
Authors: Mintz-Woo Kian , Leroux Justin
Published: February 2021

Climate ethics have been concerned with polluter pays, beneficiary pays and ability to pay principles, all of which consider climate change as a single negative externality. This paper considers it as a constellation of externalities, positive and negative, with different associated demands of justice. This is important because explicitly considering positive externalities has not to our knowledge been done in the climate ethics literature. Specifically, it is argued that those who enjoy passive gains from climate change owe gains not to the net losers, but to the emitters, just as the emitters owe compensation to the net losers for the negative externality. This is defended by appeal to theoretical virtues and to the social benefits of generating positive externalities, even when those positive externalities are coupled with far greater negative externalities. We call this the Polluter Pays, Then Receives (‘PPTR', or ‘Peter') Principle.
Political Science Scholarship on the Middle East: A View from the Journals
Authors: Cammett Melani , Kendall Isabel
Published: February 2021

Based on an original dataset of all articles on the Middle East in major political science journals during the past two decades, we assess trends in publishing on the region to explore whether it remains underrepresented in political science and how the field has evolved. We focus on the evolution of the total share of Middle East and North Africa (MENA)-focused articles, research topics, methods employed, and patterns of authorship by gender. The proportion of MENA-focused articles has increased, particularly after the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, but remains strikingly low. With respect to topics and methods, research on the Middle East is increasingly integrated in mainstream political science, with articles addressing core disciplinary debates and relying increasingly more on statistical and experimental methods. Yet, these shifts may come at the expense of predominantly qualitative research, and primary topics may reflect the priorities of Western researchers while underplaying the major concerns of Middle Eastern publics.
Selling Orchestral Music in the Vaudeville Age: The Duncan-Damrosch Tours, 1908–1911
Authors: FRANKENBACH CHANTAL
Published: February 2021

Between 1908 and 1911, New York Symphony Orchestra conductor Walter Damrosch engaged the modern dancer Isadora Duncan to perform with his orchestra in New York and on three tours of the Midwest. Posing considerable risk to his reputation as an elite conductor, this unusual alliance grew in part from his concert manager's wish to compete with the Salomé dance craze raging in vaudeville halls across the country. Damrosch's “pioneering spirit” allowed him a genuine appreciation of Duncan's expressive, transcendent dancing. Yet for his critics, the shockingly under-dressed dancer, just back from her conquest of Europe, represented yet another sensational Salomé eager to capitalize on the popular profanities of market-driven entertainment. Music critics and Protestant clergymen from St. Louis to Boston berated Damrosch for what they saw as an immoral capitulation to mass consumerism and a desecrating abuse of the sacred repertoire he guarded—a repertoire defined in part by its distance from dancing. This article draws on critiques in the daily press, Damrosch's personal papers, and scholarship in dance and religious studies to situate Damrosch's marketing experiment with Duncan in the wider context of Progressive-era devotional life, where similar concessions to mass entertainment arose in the urban revival movement of the Third Great Awakening. Damrosch's recourse to Duncan's “barefoot dancing”—oddly akin to the tactics of big tent revivalists espousing Muscular Christianity and epitomized by Billy Sunday's pulpit pantomimes—illuminates the collision of spiritual and economic concerns that shaped both musical and ecclesiastical arenas of the American “sacred.”
Millimeter-wave dual-mode and dual-band switchable Gilbert up-conversion mixer in 65-nm CMOS process
Authors: Zhu Fang , Luo Guo Qing
Published: February 2021

In this paper, a millimeter-wave (MMW) dual-mode and dual-band switchable Gilbert up-conversion mixer in a commercial 65-nm complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process is presented. By simply changing the bias, the proposed CMOS Gilbert up-conversion mixer can be switched between subharmonic and fundamental operation modes for MMW dual-band applications. With a low local oscillator pumping power of 3 dBm and low dc power consumption of 6 mW, the proposed CMOS Gilbert up-conversion mixer exhibits a measured conversion gain of −0.5 ± 1.5 dB from 37 to 50 GHz and 2.5 ± 1.5 dB from 17.5 to 32 GHz for the subharmonic and fundamental modes, respectively.
Implications of COVID-19 on progress in the UN Conventions on biodiversity and climate change
Authors: Ortiz Andrea Monica D. , de Leon Alaya M. , Torres Justine Nicole V. , Guiao Cecilia Therese T. , La Viña Antonio G. M.
Published: February 2021

2020 was to be a landmark year for setting targets to stop biodiversity loss and prevent dangerous climate change. However, COVID-19 has caused delays to the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP) of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the 26th COP of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Negotiations on the Global Biodiversity Framework and the second submission of Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement were due to take place at these COPs. There is uncertainty as to how the COVID-19 disruption will affect the negotiations, whether parties will pursue more ambitious actions or take a weaker stance on issues. Our policy analysis shows there are broad opportunities for climate and biodiversity frameworks to better respond to COVID-19, by viewing future pandemics, biodiversity loss, and climate change as interconnected problems. Importantly, there needs to be greater focus on agriculture and food systems in discussions, establishing safeguards for carbon markets, and implementing nature-based solutions in meeting the Paris Agreement goals. We can no longer delay action to address the biodiversity and climate emergencies, and accelerating sustainable recovery plans through virtual spaces may help keep discussions and momentum before the resumption of in-person negotiations.

Non-technical summary:

High ambition needed at UN biodiversity and climate conferences to address pandemics, biodiversity, climate change, and health.
Depicted Immorality Influences the Perceived Applicability of the Phrase "Committed Suicide"
Authors: Howell Andrew J. , Cowan-Nelson Emilee R. H. , Cobuz Victoria D.
Published: February 2021

Abstract. Background: "Committed suicide" is often deemed less acceptable than alternative phrases, but such judgments vary widely across individuals. Aim: We tested whether the endorsement of statements containing "committed suicide" is greater when a suicide death is depicted as immoral. We also assessed the degree of immorality suggested by the free-standing phrases "committed suicide" and "died by suicide." Method: Undergraduate participants ( N = 154) read scenarios of a suicide depicted as immoral and one depicted more neutrally and judged the applicability of statements employing either "committed suicide" or "died by suicide" to each scenario. Participants next chose between the free-standing phrases "committed suicide" or "died by suicide" in terms of which connoted immorality and provided written justifications for their choices. Results: Participants judged "committed suicide" statements to be most applicable to the immoral-suicide scenario. A large majority of participants chose "committed suicide" over "died by suicide" as connoting immorality and participants' justifications for this choice revealed several meaningful themes. Limitations: Our manipulation of immorality employed religious overtones and our participants were undergraduate students. Conclusions: Findings contribute to the empirical basis for concerns regarding the phrase "committed suicide," with implications for stigma reduction and help-seeking.
Scenarios of Human Responses to Unprecedented Social‐Environmental Extreme Events
Authors: Rusca Maria , Messori Gabriele , Di Baldassarre Giuliano
Published: February 2021

In a rapidly changing world, what is today an unprecedented extreme may soon become the norm. As a result, extreme‐related disasters are expected to become more frequent and intense. This will have widespread socio‐economic consequences and affect the ability of different societal groups to recover from and adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions. Therefore, there is the need to decipher the relation between genesis of unprecedented events, accumulation and distribution of risk, and recovery trajectories across different societal groups. Here, we develop an analytical approach to unravel the complexity of future extremes and multiscalar societal responses—from households to national governments and from immediate impacts to longer term recovery. This requires creating new forms of knowledge that integrate analyses of the past—that is, structural causes and political processes of risk accumulation and differentiated recovery trajectories—with plausible scenarios of future environmental extremes grounded in the event‐specific literature. We specifically seek to combine the physical characteristics of the extremes with examinations of how culture, politics, power, and policy visions shape societal responses to unprecedented events, and interpret the events associal‐environmentalextremes. This new approach, at the nexus between social and natural sciences, has the concrete advantage of providing an impact‐focused vision of future social‐environmental risks, beyond what is achievable within conventional disciplinary boundaries. In this paper, we focus on extreme flooding events and the societal responses they elicit. However, our approach is flexible and applicable to a wide range of extreme events. We see it as the first building block of a new field of research, allowing for novel and integrated theoretical explanations and forecasting of social‐environmental extremes.
Effects of the IMF Direction on Atmospheric Escape From a Mars‐like Planet Under Weak Intrinsic Magnetic Field Conditions
Authors: Sakai Shotaro , Seki Kanako , Terada Naoki , Shinagawa Hiroyuki , Sakata Ryoya , Tanaka Takashi , Ebihara Yusuke
Published: February 2021

Direction of the upstream interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) significantly changes the magnetospheric configuration, influencing the atmospheric escape mechanism. This paper investigates effects of IMF on the ion escape mechanism from a Mars‐like planet that has a weak dipole magnetic field directing northward on the equatorial surface. The northward (parallel to the dipole at subsolar), southward (antiparallel), and Parker‐spiral IMFs under present solar wind conditions are compared based on multispecies magnetohydrodynamics simulations. In the northward IMF case, molecular ions escape from the high‐latitude lobe reconnection region, where ionospheric ions are transported upward along open field lines. Atomic oxygen ions originating either in the ionosphere or oxygen corona escape through a broader ring‐shaped region. In the southward IMF case, the escape flux of heavy ions increases significantly and has peaks around the equatorial dawn and dusk flanks. The draped IMF can penetrate into the subsolar ionosphere by erosion, and the IMF becomes mass‐loaded as it is transported through the dayside ionosphere. The mass‐loaded draped IMF is carried to the tail, contributing to ion escape. The escape channels in the northward and southward IMF cases are different from those in the Parker‐spiral IMF case. The escape rate is the lowest in the northward IMF case and comparable in the Parker‐spiral and southward IMF cases. In the northward IMF case, a weak intrinsic dipole forms a magnetosphere configuration similar to that of Earth, quenching the escape rate, while the Parker‐spiral and southward IMFs cause reconnection and erosion, promoting ion escape from the upper atmosphere.
Data‐Driven Two‐Fault Modeling of the Mw 6.0 2008 Wells, Nevada Earthquake Suggests a Listric Fault Rupture
Authors: Frietsch Michael , Ferreira Ana M. G. , Funning Gareth J.
Published: February 2021

Structural fault complexity at depth affects seismic hazard, earthquake physics, and regional tectonic behavior, but constraining such complexity is challenging. We present earthquake source models of the February 21, 2008, Mw 6.0 Wells event that occurred in the Basin and Range in the western USA, suggesting the rupture of both the shallow and deep parts of a listric fault. We use a large data set including 150 local seismic waveforms from the USArray combined with high‐quality Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar and teleseismic waveforms. Rather than imposing an a priori fault geometry in the source inversions, as is often done in the literature, we use a data‐driven approach whereby all the faulting parameters and number of faults are determined by the data alone. We find a two‐fault normal faulting solution comprising: (i) a shallow (centroid depth ∼4.6 km) sub‐event with Mw 5.3 and fault dip of ∼77°; and (ii) a deeper (centroid depth ∼8.8 km), larger Mw 6.0 sub‐event on a fault with shallower dip angle (∼41°). Our preferred two‐fault model is consistent with aftershocks and with the tectonics of the region. The local USArray waveforms used in the modeling are key to detect the rupture of both shallow and deep parts of the possible listric fault. The lack of such dense and uniform coverage of earthquakes in other regions on Earth may explain why the full seismic rupture of listric faults may have gone undetected in the past. Thus, earthquake slip on whole listric faults may be more common than previously thought.
When Climate Adaptation Intervention Risks Further Marginalization
Authors: Pardikar Rishika
Published: February 2021

Many climate adaptation interventions focus excessively on the effects of climate change and less on examinations of what drives vulnerability.
Targeting tumor-associated macrophages to synergize tumor immunotherapy
Authors: Xiang Xiaonan , Wang Jianguo , Lu Di , Xu Xiao
Published: February 2021

The current treatment strategies in advanced malignancies remain limited. Notably, immunotherapies have raised hope for a successful control of these advanced diseases, but their therapeutic responses are suboptimal and vary considerably among individuals. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a major component of the tumor microenvironment (TME) and are often correlated with poor prognosis and therapy resistance, including immunotherapies. Thus, a deeper understanding of the complex roles of TAMs in immunotherapy regulation could provide new insight into the TME. Furthermore, targeting of TAMs is an emerging field of interest due to the hope that these strategies will synergize with current immunotherapies. In this review, we summarize recent studies investigating the involvement of TAMs in immune checkpoint inhibition, tumor vaccines and adoptive cell transfer therapies, and discuss the therapeutic potential of targeting TAMs as an adjuvant therapy in tumor immunotherapies.
Hematopoietic cell transplantation and cellular therapy survey of the EBMT: monitoring of activities and trends over 30 years
Authors: Passweg Jakob R. , Baldomero Helen , Chabannon Christian , Basak Grzegorz W. , de la Cámara Rafael , Corbacioglu Selim , Dolstra Harry , Duarte Rafael , Glass Bertram , Greco Raffaella , Lankester Arjan C. , Mohty Mohamad , Peffault de Latour Régis , Snowden John A. , Yakoub-Agha Ibrahim , Kröger Nicolaus ,   for the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)
Published: February 2021

Numbers of Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in Europe and collaborating countries continues to rise with 48,512 HCT in 43,581 patients, comprising of 19,798 (41%) allogeneic and 28,714 (59%) autologous, reported by 700 centers in 51 countries during 2019. Main indications were myeloid malignancies 10,764 (25%), lymphoid malignancies 27,895 (64%), and nonmalignant disorders 3173 (7%). A marked growth in CAR-T cellular therapies from 151 in 2017 to 1134 patients in 2019 is observed. This year’s analyses focus on changes over 30 years. Since the first survey in 1990 where 143 centers reported 4234 HCT, the number has increased to 700 centers and 48,512 HCT. Transplants were reported in 20 countries in 1990, and 51, 30 years later. More than 800,000 HCT in 715,000 patients were reported overall. Next to the massive expansion of HCT technology, most notable developments include the success of unrelated donor and haploidentical HCT, an increase followed by decrease in the number of cord blood transplants, use of reduced intensity HCT in older patients, and the phenomenal rise in cellular therapy. This annual report of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) reflects current activity and highlights important trends vital for health care planning.
Detector-integrated on-chip QKD receiver for GHz clock rates
Authors: Beutel Fabian , Gehring Helge , Wolff Martin A. , Schuck Carsten , Pernice Wolfram
Published: February 2021

Quantum key distribution (QKD) can greatly benefit from photonic integration, which enables implementing low-loss, alignment-free, and scalable photonic circuitry. At the same time, superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPD) are an ideal detector technology for QKD due to their high efficiency, low dark-count rate, and low jitter. We present a QKD receiver chip featuring the full photonic circuitry needed for different time-based protocols, including single-photon detectors. By utilizing waveguide-integrated SNSPDs we achieve low dead times together with low dark-count rates and demonstrate a QKD experiment at 2.6 GHz clock rate, yielding secret-key rates of 2.5 Mbit/s for low channel attenuations of 2.5 dB without detector saturation. Due to the broadband 3D polymer couplers the reciver chip can be operated at a wide wavelength range in the telecom band, thus paving the way for highly parallelized wavelength-division multiplexing implementations.
The transferability of handwriting skills: from the Cyrillic to the Latin alphabet
Authors: Asselborn Thibault , Johal Wafa , Tleubayev Bolat , Zhexenova Zhanel , Dillenbourg Pierre , McBride Catherine , Sandygulova Anara
Published: February 2021

Do handwriting skills transfer when a child writes in two different scripts, such as the Latin and Cyrillic alphabets? Are our measures of handwriting skills intrinsically bound to one alphabet or will a child who faces handwriting difficulties in one script experience similar difficulties in the other script? To answer these questions, 190 children from grades 1–4 were asked to copy a short text using both the Cyrillic and Latin alphabets on a digital tablet. A recent change of policy in Kazakhstan gave us an opportunity to measure transfer, as the Latin-based Kazakh alphabet has not yet been introduced. Therefore, pupils in grade 1 had a 6-months experience in Cyrillic, and pupils in grades 2, 3, and 4 had 1.5, 2.5, and 3.5 years of experience in Cyrillic, respectively. This unique situation created a quasi-experimental situation that allowed us to measure the influence of the number of years spent practicing Cyrillic on the quality of handwriting in the Latin alphabet. The results showed that some of the differences between the two scripts were constant across all grades. These differences thus reflect the intrinsic differences in the handwriting dynamics between the two alphabets. For instance, several features related to the pen pressure on the tablet are quite different. Other features, however, revealed decreasing differences between the two scripts across grades. While we found that the quality of Cyrillic writing increased from grades 1–4, due to increased practice, we also found that the quality of the Latin writing increased as well, despite the fact that all of the pupils had the same absence of experience in writing in Latin. We can therefore interpret this improvement in Latin script as an indicator of the transfer of fine motor control skills from Cyrillic to Latin. This result is especially surprising given that one could instead hypothesize a negative transfer, i.e., that the finger controls automated for one alphabet would interfere with those required by the other alphabet. One interesting side-effect of these findings is that the algorithms that we developed for the diagnosis of handwriting difficulties among French-speaking children could be relevant for other alphabets, paving the way for the creation of a cross-lingual model for the detection of handwriting difficulties.
Endogenous complement human serum bactericidal assay (enc-hSBA) for vaccine effectiveness assessments against meningococcal serogroup B
Authors: Kleinschmidt Annett , Vadivelu Kumaran , Serino Laura , Neidig Nina , de Wergifosse Bertrand
Published: February 2021

Immunogenicity of vaccines against meningococcal serogroup B (MenB) has been assessed pre-licensure with a human serum bactericidal activity assay (hSBA), tested against small numbers of strains. We report the qualification/validation of an alternative qualitative hSBA which uses endogenous complement (enc-hSBA) present in the vaccinee’s serum. Serum samples were collected from adults pre-vaccination and post-vaccination with the 4-component MenB vaccine (4CMenB). A representative panel of invasive isolates and 4 antigen-specific indicator strains were used in qualification experiments. Each strain was tested in ≥3 experiments with pre/post-vaccination sera to evaluate intermediate precision. A 110-strain panel and the 4 indicator strains met qualification criteria, demonstrating assay precision. Assay robustness, specificity and sensitivity were demonstrated using the 4 indicator strains. Enc-hSBA is highly standardized, allows testing across large panels of epidemiologically-relevant MenB strains, and accounts for complement activity differences between vaccinees. Therefore, enc-hSBA enables a more accurate estimation of effectiveness for vaccines against MenB.