bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Memes, viruses, and violence
Authors: Finkelstein Joel
Published: June 2022

On January 20, 2022, the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies (CASIS)-Vancouver hosted a Digital Roundtable titled Memes, Viruses, and Violence: A Nation Guide to Managing Contagious Threats, conducted by Dr. Joel Finkelstein, the director of the Network Contagion Research Institute. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with questions from the audience and CASIS-Vancouver Executives. The main discussion topics included the intersectionality of memes, violence, and viruses; their impact on the culture of escapism; and how big data mapping could model predictions for memetic violence before it manifests into violence.
Priorities of Economic Cooperation Between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China in Modern Conditions
Authors: Kuzmina V. M. , Podturkin D. S.
Published: June 2022

In modern conditions, close relations between the two member states of the UN Security Council - Russia and China, are a unique phenomenon and open up tremendous opportunities for the transformation of the existing system of international relations and the transition to a new era. In addition to the obvious prerequisites for cooperation, such as a common border, both powers are in a state of confrontation with the West, oppose interference in their internal affairs, and therefore seek to pursue an independent sovereign policy, defending their own national interests.

The purpose is to study the priority areas of Russian-Chinese cooperation in the context of a pandemic and the prospects for this relationship.

Objectives: consider the dynamics of trade between Russia and China from 2016 to 2020; to study and visualize the dynamics of the trade balance for 2016-2020; explore the prospects for long-term trade and economic cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China.

Methodology. The article uses the method of statistical analysis of data from the Russia and the China on such indicators as the share of the PRC in the export / import of the Russian Federation, to study the trade balance of the two countries; used the method of comparative analysis of the dynamics of trade between Russia and China for the period from 2016 to 2020, an illustrative-graphical method.

Results. Cooperation is based on interaction in various areas, which include joint integration projects and initiatives, which is a feature of modernity and the development of global foreign economic relations. Both sides - Moscow and Beijing - are interested in developing cooperation in the economic sphere, however, their interaction in this area should be more diversified in order to meet the needs of both states in the future and meet their national interests without prejudice to each other. It is necessary to increase the pace and expand the spectrum and boundaries of investment cooperation, extending it to new areas of interaction.

Conclusions. It is concluded that the Russian Federation and the PRC are strengthening their partnership, implementing large-scale economic projects, investing in new priority areas: technology and space. The practice of bilateral interaction testifies to the readiness of countries for long-term projects that open up prospects in the economy.
Digital Platforms and Their Role in the Innovative Development of the Economy
Authors: Obukhova A. S. , Chernyikh Ya. V.
Published: June 2022

Relevance. The use of digital platforms can improve the efficiency of business processes. Digital technologies and the huge amounts of digital data generated by their use radically affect the socio-economic processes taking place in society. The main segments in the field of digital transformation at the moment are: payments and transfers, crowdfunding, asset management, financial marketplace, blockchain, platform technologies.

The purpose of the study is to determine the features of the functioning of digital platforms and describe their role in the innovative development of the economy.

Objectives: to describe global trends in financial technologies; to characterize the approaches of Russian and foreign authors to the definition of digital platforms; to identify factors contributing to the development of digital platforms; to characterize the change in the structure of the market through the use of digital platforms.

Methodology. The study used general scientific methods: comparative analysis, generalization, induction. Results. Based on the conducted research, the following results were obtained: global trends in financial technologies are described; approaches of Russian and foreign authors to the definition of "digital platform" are given; factors influencing the development of digital platforms (changing customer behavior, etc.) are described; the transformation of the market structure under the influence of digital platforms is characterized, which consists in creating multilateral platforms that unite consumers, service providers and stakeholders to exchange values within a larger ecosystem.

Conclusions. The digital platform is an integrated information system that provides a multi-sided process of user interaction for the exchange of information. While reducing overall transaction costs, optimizing business processes, increasing the efficiency of the supply chain of goods and services. The most important strategic decision for financial institutions is to create their own digital platform or partnership with existing third-party platforms.
The Burden of Cold Agglutinin Disease on Patients’ Daily Life: Web-Based Cross-sectional Survey of 50 American Patients
Authors: Joly Florence , Schmitt Lisa Anne , Watson Patricia Ann McGee , Pain Emilie , Testa Damien
Published: June 2022

Background

Cold agglutinin disease (CAD) is a rare disorder, affecting 15% of patients with autoimmune hemolytic anemia. Few studies have assessed CAD symptoms and their impact on daily life, but these studies did not address the patients’ perspectives.

Objective

The aims of this study were to increase the knowledge about CAD through a patient-centric survey and to gain a better understanding of the burden of this disease.

Methods

We conducted an internet-based survey in September 2020 among American patients registered on the CAD Unraveled website and members of the Cold Agglutinin Disease Foundation.

Results

A total of 50 respondents were included in this study. Totally, 90% (45/50) of the patients reported having experienced fatigue. Fatigue was mainly reported on a daily basis, and approximately one-third of these patients (13/45, 29%) said that their fatigue was constant throughout the day. It has also been shown that CAD has a great impact on patients’ physical well-being, emotional well-being, social life, and household finances. The disease varies over time, with or without symptoms. A total of 88% (44/50) of the patients reported previous episodes of the increased intensity or sensitivity of their CAD symptoms, with a mean of 4.5 (SD 5.4) episodes reported during the past year. More than half of the patients (27/50, 54%) considered their disease to be moderate or severe, and 42% (21/50) of the study group reported that their symptoms had worsened since the time of diagnosis.

Conclusions

Our study has provided new data on CAD symptoms, particularly data on the importance and type of fatigue and the fluctuation of CAD symptoms.
Changes in Temporal Properties of Notifiable Infectious Disease Epidemics in China During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Population-Based Surveillance Study
Authors: Zhao Xixi , Li Meijia , Haihambo Naem , Jin Jianhua , Zeng Yimeng , Qiu Jinyi , Guo Mingrou , Zhu Yuyao , Li Zhirui , Liu Jiaxin , Teng Jiayi , Li Sixiao , Zhao Ya-nan , Cao Yanxiang , Wang Xuemei , Li Yaqiong , Gao Michel , Feng Xiaoyang , Han Chuanliang
Published: June 2022

Background

COVID-19 was first reported in 2019, and the Chinese government immediately carried out stringent and effective control measures in response to the epidemic.

Objective

Nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) may have impacted incidences of other infectious diseases as well. Potential explanations underlying this reduction, however, are not clear. Hence, in this study, we aim to study the influence of the COVID-19 prevention policies on other infectious diseases (mainly class B infectious diseases) in China.

Methods

Time series data sets between 2017 and 2021 for 23 notifiable infectious diseases were extracted from public data sets from the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China. Several indices (peak and trough amplitudes, infection selectivity, preferred time to outbreak, oscillatory strength) of each infectious disease were calculated before and after the COVID-19 outbreak.

Results

We found that the prevention and control policies for COVID-19 had a strong, significant reduction effect on outbreaks of other infectious diseases. A clear event-related trough (ERT) was observed after the outbreak of COVID-19 under the strict control policies, and its decreasing amplitude is related to the infection selectivity and preferred outbreak time of the disease before COVID-19. We also calculated the oscillatory strength before and after the COVID-19 outbreak and found that it was significantly stronger before the COVID-19 outbreak and does not correlate with the trough amplitude.

Conclusions

Our results directly demonstrate that prevention policies for COVID-19 have immediate additional benefits for controlling most class B infectious diseases, and several factors (infection selectivity, preferred outbreak time) may have contributed to the reduction in outbreaks. This study may guide the implementation of nonpharmaceutical interventions to control a wider range of infectious diseases.
Strategies for Implementing Occupational eMental Health Interventions: Scoping Review (Preprint)
Authors: Bernard Renaldo M , Toppo Claudia , Raggi Alberto , de Mul Marleen , de Miquel Carlota , Pugliese Maria Teresa , van der Feltz-Cornelis Christina M , Ortiz-Tallo Ana , Salvador-Carulla Luis , Lukersmith Sue , Hakkaart-van Roijen Leona , Merecz-Kot Dorota , Staszewska Kaja , Sabariego Carla
Published: June 2022

BACKGROUND

The implementation of eMental health interventions, especially in the workplace, is a complex process. Therefore, learning from existing implementation strategies is imperative to ensure improvements in the adoption, development, and scalability of occupational eMental health (OeMH) interventions. However, the implementation strategies used for these interventions are often undocumented or inadequately reported and have not been systematically gathered across implementations in a way that can serve as a much-needed guide for researchers.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this scoping review was to identify implementation strategies relevant to the uptake of OeMH interventions that target employees and detail the associated barriers and facilitation measures.

METHODS

A scoping review was conducted. The descriptive synthesis was guided by the RE-AIM (reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance) framework and the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research.

RESULTS

A total of 31 of 32,916 (0.09%) publications reporting the use of the web-, smartphone-, telephone-, and email-based OeMH interventions were included. In all, 98 implementation strategies, 114 barriers, and 131 facilitators were identified. The synthesis of barriers and facilitators produced 19 facilitation measures that provide initial recommendations for improving the implementation of OeMH interventions.

CONCLUSIONS

This scoping review represents one of the first steps in a research agenda aimed at improving the implementation of OeMH interventions by systematically selecting, shaping, evaluating, and reporting implementation strategies. There is a dire need for improved reporting of implementation strategies and combining common implementation frameworks with more technology-centric implementation frameworks to fully capture the complexities of eHealth implementation. Future research should investigate a wider range of common implementation outcomes for OeMH interventions that also focus on a wider set of common mental health problems in the workplace. This scoping review’s findings can be critically leveraged by discerning decision-makers to improve the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of OeMH interventions.
Cybersickness Variability by Race: Findings From 6 Studies and a Mini Meta-analysis (Preprint)
Authors: Martingano Alison Jane , Brown Ellenor , Telaak Sydney H , Dolwick Alexander P , Persky Susan
Published: June 2022

BACKGROUND

With the influx of medical virtual reality (VR) technologies, cybersickness has transitioned from a nuisance experienced during leisure activities to a potential safety and efficacy concern for patients and clinicians. To improve health equity, it is important to understand any potential differences in cybersickness propensity among demographic groups, including racial groups.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to explore whether cybersickness propensity differs across racial groups.

METHODS

We collected self-reported cybersickness ratings from 6 racially diverse independent samples within 1 laboratory group (N=931). In these studies, the participants were asked to perform tasks in VR such as traversing environments, pointing at and selecting objects, and interacting with virtual humans.

RESULTS

Significant racial differences in cybersickness were found in 50% (3/6) of studies. A mini meta-analysis revealed that, on average, Black participants reported approximately one-third of SD less cybersickness than White participants (Cohen d=−0.31; P<.001), regardless of the nature of the VR experience. There was no overall difference in reported cybersickness between the Asian and White participants (Cohen d=−0.11; P=.51).

CONCLUSIONS

Racial differences in cybersickness indicate that researchers, practitioners, and regulators should consider patient demographics when evaluating VR health intervention outcomes. These findings lay the groundwork for future studies that may explore racial differences in cybersickness directly.
The Syndemic of Inequity and COVID-19 in Virtual Care (Preprint)
Authors: Chaudhuri Esha Ray
Published: June 2022

UNSTRUCTURED

The critical intersections of structural inequities and vulnerabilities of marginalized populations, particularly those engaging the social gradient of minority ethnic communities, are revealed in the syndemic approach to COVID-19. Although proposals for cultural interventions to improve virtual care provide relevant measures, they may not address the root cause of the disparate impacts of a pandemic on population subgroups. The common misperception of equality as synonymous with equity further impedes the efficacy of digital health in quality-of-care initiatives, as it systemically fails to acknowledge the disparate realities of marginalized populations, while intending to benefit all. This commentary suggests that an alignment of the health care system with Canada’s pluralist principles would support a paradigm shift in transforming virtual care into an equitable standard as envisioned by Pham and colleagues in their paper, “The Future of Virtual Care for Older Ethnic Adults Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic.”
Fuzzy c-means for extraction and quantification of words representing degrees of diseases (Preprint)
Authors: Han Feng , Zhang ZiHeng , Zhang Hongjian , Nakaya Jun , Kudo Kohsuke , Ogasawara Katsuhiko
Published: June 2022

BACKGROUND

Modern medicine generates unstructured data containing a large amount of information. Extracting useful knowledge from this data and making scientific decisions for diagnosing and treating diseases have become increasingly necessary. Unstructured data, such as in the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III (MIMIC-III) dataset, contain several ambiguous words demonstrating the subjectivity of doctors. These data can be used to further improve the accuracy of medical support system assessments.

OBJECTIVE

We propose using fuzzy c-means (FCM) method and Gauss membership to quantify the subjective words in the clinical medical dataset MIMIC-III.

METHODS

Using 381,091 radiology reports collected from MIMIC-III, we extracted words representing the subjective degree from the text and converted them into corresponding membership intervals based on the words.

RESULTS

Consequently, the words representing each degree of each disease had a range of corresponding values. Examples of membership medians were atelectasis (2.971), pneumonia (3.121), pneumothorax (2.899), pulmonary edema (3.051), and pulmonary embolus (2.435). These membership sections can determine the symptoms of each disease.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, we used the FCM and Gaussian functions to extract words from the MIMIC-III, which represent a subjective degree and cannot be processed by a computer, and performed fuzzy processing on them. It was concluded that words representing the degree in an English interpreted report can be extracted and quantified. The use of these words in medical support systems may improve diagnostic accuracy.
Cross-Platform Detection of Psychiatric Hospitalization via Social Media Data: A Comparison Study (Preprint)
Authors: Nguyen Viet Cuong , Lu Nathaniel , Kane John M , Birnbaum Michael L , De Choudhury Munmun
Published: June 2022

BACKGROUND

Previous research has shown the feasibility of utilizing social media data from a singular platform (e.g., Facebook or Twitter) in distinguishing individuals with a diagnosis of mental illness or experiencing an adverse outcome from healthy volunteers. However, the performance of these models on data from other social media platforms unseen in the training data (e.g., Instagram, TikTok) have not been investigated.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to explore if online identities fragmented across social media platforms, models would have better testing performance on data from already seen social media platforms, in comparison to unseen social media platforms. It also aims to explain such discrepancies in performances if they are found.

METHODS

Windowed timeline data from three platforms with clinically-verified labels of hospitalization among patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia was gathered: Facebook (N = 254), Twitter (N = 54), and Instagram (N = 124). Then, we utilized a 3 x 3 combinatorial binary classification design to test model’s performance on testing data from all available platforms. We further compared results from models within intra-platform experiments (i.e., training and testing data belongs to the same platform) to models within inter-platform experiments (i.e., training and testing data belongs to the different platforms). Finally, we utilized SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) to extract top predictive features to explain the underlying constructs that predict hospitalization on each platform.

RESULTS

We found that models within intra-platform experiments on average achieved an F1-score of 0.72 in detection a psychiatric hospitalization due to schizophrenia, which is 68% higher compared to the average of models within inter-platform experiments at an F1-score of 0.428. We also found that by combining training data of all three platforms, a slight improvement of 0.5% was observed on the testing sets on average, compared to original intra-platform models. An analysis of top features for the intra-platform models shows low predictive feature overlap between the platforms, with ‘anger’ being an unique top feature for Facebook while ‘sad’ being an unique top feature for Instagram.

CONCLUSIONS

We demonstrated models built on one platform’s data to predict critical mental health treatment outcomes, such as a hospitalization, may not generalize to another, because each platform offers different construct validity. However, combining data from multiple platforms together may offer a more comprehensive view of a patient’s state and situation, and therefore fare better in relapse prediction. With the changing ecosystem of social media use among different demographic groups and as online identities continue to get fragmented across platforms, further research on holistic approaches to harnessing these diverse data sources is required.
Correction: Mobile Health–Based Thermometer for Monitoring Wound Healing After Endovascular Therapy in Patients With Chronic Foot Ulcer: Prospective Cohort Study (Preprint)
Authors: Lin Donna Shu-Han , Lee Jen-Kuang
Published: June 2022

UNSTRUCTURED

In the “Patient Selection” section in Methods, “Patients with chronic foot ulcers were consecutively enrolled from the outpatient clinic or during admission from June 2019 to December 2019” should instead be “Patients with chronic foot ulcers were consecutively enrolled from the outpatient clinic or during admission from July 2019 to December 2019”. Similarly, in the “Methods” section in the Abstract, “Patients who had a chronic foot ulcer (>3 months) and underwent endovascular therapy between June 2019 and December 2019 were included” should read “Patients who had a chronic foot ulcer (>3 months) and underwent endovascular therapy between July 2019 and December 2019 were included”. Lastly, in the “Patient Demographics and Clinical Features” section in Results, “Between June 2019 and December 2019” should instead be “Between July 2019 and December 2019”.
Analysis of related factors of lymph node metastasis in middle-aged and elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and papillary thyroid cancer (Preprint)
Authors: Weifang Li
Published: June 2022

BACKGROUND

In the past 30 years, the number of people with diabetes has increased significantly year by year, and the incidence rate of Chinese adults is 11.2%. Most of them are type 2 diabetes mellitus (type 2 diabetes mellitus), and the incidence rate increases with age. The latest survey shows that the prevalence of diabetes among Chinese people over 60 years old is about 20%. A number of studies have shown that diabetes is a risk factor for many tumors, among which papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is the most common thyroid malignancy, and its incidence in diabetics is 2-3 times that of healthy people . Thyroid cancer increases with age in patients with type 2 diabetes. The clinical outcome of malignant tumors is very important, and patients with papillary thyroid cancer with lymph node metastasis are more likely to relapse, thus affecting the prognosis.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the influencing factors of lymph node metastasis in middle-aged and elderly patients with type 2 diabetes and papillary thyroid carcinoma.

METHODS

Included 213 cases of type 2 diabetes complicated with papillary thyroid carcinoma who were hospitalized in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from July 2018 to October 2020 with complete clinical data. Collect patient's general information and test results. According to the lymph node metastasis or not, it is divided into metastatic group and non-metastatic group. The clinical data of the two groups were compared, and the unconditional Logistic regression model was used to analyze the risk factors.

RESULTS

Single factor statistical analysis showed that the differences in gender, lactic dehydrogenase, superoxide dismutase, TAP, tumor location, tumor diameter, and ultrasound grade were statistically significant between the two groups（P0.05）. The difference in superoxide dismutase between the two groups was further analyzed within the group. The level of superoxide dismutase in the lymph node metastasis group was lower than the normal level, and the difference was statistically significant（P0.0167）.

CONCLUSIONS

Middle-aged and elderly men with type 2 diabetes and papillary thyroid carcinoma, elevated TAP, and bilateral tumors are more likely to have lymph node metastasis.
Severity of COVID-19 after Vaccination among Hemodialysis Patients
Authors: Ashby Damien R. , Caplin Ben , Corbett Richard W. , Asgari Elham , Kumar Nicola , Sarnowski Alexander , Hull Richard , Makanjuola David , Cole Nicholas , Chen Jian , Nyberg Sofia , McCafferty Kieran , Zaman Faryal , Cairns Hugh , Sharpe Claire , Bramham Kate , Motallebzadeh Reza , Anwari Kashif Jamil , Salama Alan D. , Banerjee Debasish
Published: June 2022

Background and objectives

Patients receiving hemodialysis are at high risk from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and demonstrate impaired immune responses to vaccines. There have been several descriptions of their immunologic responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccination, but few studies have described the clinical efficacy of vaccination in patients on hemodialysis.

Design, setting, participants, & measurements

In a multicenter observational study of the London hemodialysis population undergoing surveillance PCR testing during the period of vaccine rollout with BNT162b2 and AZD1222, all of those positive for SARS-CoV-2 were identified. Clinical outcomes were analyzed according to predictor variables, including vaccination status, using a mixed effects logistic regression model. Risk of infection was analyzed in a subgroup of the base population using a Cox proportional hazards model with vaccination status as a time-varying covariate.

Results

SARS-CoV-2 infection was identified in 1323 patients of different ethnicities (Asian/other, 30%; Black, 38%; and White, 32%), including 1047 (79%) unvaccinated, 86 (7%) after first-dose vaccination, and 190 (14%) after second-dose vaccination. The majority of patients had a mild course; however, 515 (39%) were hospitalized, and 172 (13%) died. Older age, diabetes, and immune suppression were associated with greater illness severity. In regression models adjusted for age, comorbidity, and time period, prior two-dose vaccination was associated with a 75% (95% confidence interval, 56 to 86) lower risk of admission and 88% (95% confidence interval, 70 to 95) fewer deaths compared with unvaccinated patients. No loss of protection was seen in patients over 65 years or with increasing time since vaccination, and no difference was seen between vaccine types.

Conclusions

These data demonstrate a substantially lower risk of severe COVID-19 after vaccination in patients on dialysis who become infected with SARS-CoV-2.
The impact of lower limb chronic venous disease on quality of life: patient and physician perspectives
Authors: Santiago Fabricio Rodrigues , Ulloa Jorge , Régnier Catherine , Peudon Thibault , Braund Emilie , Fradet-Aubignat Claire , Gianesini Sergio
Published: June 2022

Aim:
This research compared patient and physician perceptions of quality of life (QoL) in C0–4 chronic venous disease (CVD).
Methods:
Qualitative standardized phone interviews were conducted with 100 patients and 60 specialists from Brazil, China, the Czech Republic, Italy and Russia.
Results:
In addition to the impact of physical symptoms on QoL, patient interviews revealed a high aesthetic and emotional burden of C0–4 CVD that contributes to social isolation and affects relationships. Physicians were aware of the physical impact but underestimated the other implications of CVD on their patients' QoL.
Conclusion:
Healthcare professional awareness of the overall impact of CVD on QoL needs improvement. All aspects of QoL should be assessed in order to manage CVD effectively.
ОТКРЫТЫЕ СЕТИ РАДИОДОСТУПА OPEN RAN
Authors: Росляков А.
Published: June 2022

Рассмотрены базовые принципы новой концепции сотовой сети − Open RAN (открытая сеть радиодоступа), согласно которой оборудование реализуется в виде программного обеспечения, работающего на открытых аппаратно-независимых платформах, а любой интерфейс между компонентами радиоподсистемы являет­ся открытым и готов к взаимодействию с компонентом другого производителя. Показаны преимущества использования архитектуры Open RAN для операторов мобильной связи, современное состояние стандартизации, возникающие проблемы и имеющий­ся зарубежный и отечественный опыт.
МОДЕЛИ УПРАВЛЕНИЯ ЛУЧОМ В СЕТЯХ 5G NR ЧАСТЬ 2. ВЫРАВНИВАНИЕ ЛУЧЕЙ ПРИ ВЕДЕНИИ РАДИОСВЯЗИ
Authors: Фокин Г.
Published: June 2022

Во второй части исследования, посвященного моделям управления лучом в сетях 5G NR, приводятся результаты имитационного моделирования процедуры выравнивания лучей при ведении радиосвязи. Данная процедура служит для уточнения ориентации лучей из более узкого набора предварительно заданных направлений, полученных на предыдущем этапе начального установления направленного соединения UE с gNB. Анализ средствами имитационного моделирования позволяет выполнить качественную оценку потенциала уточнения ориентации лучей в первом приближении.
Stability and instability analysis for the standing waves for a generalized Zakharov-Rubenchik system
Authors: Quintero José R.
Published: June 2022

In this paper, we analyze the stability and instability of standing waves for a generalized Zakharov-Rubenchik system (or the Benney-Roskes system) in spatial dimensions N = 2, 3. We show that the standing waves generated by the set of minimizers for the associated variational problem are stable, for N = 2 and σ(p − 2) > 0. We also show that the standing waves are strongly unstable, for N = 3 and if either σ < 0 and 4/3
 0 and 0 <p< 2. Results follow by using the variational characterization of standing waves, the concentration compactness principle due to J. Lions and the compactness lemma due to E. Lieb to solve the associated minimization problem.
On Δᵐ-statistical convergence double sequences in intuitionistic fuzzy normed spaces
Authors: Antal Reena , Chawla Meenakshi , Kumar Vijay , Hazarika Bipan
Published: June 2022

In the present paper, the basic objective of our work is to define Δᵐ-statistical convergence in the setup of intuitionistic fuzzy normed spaces for double sequences. We have proved some examples which shows this method of convergence is more generalized. Further, we defined the Δᵐ-statistical Cauchy sequences in these spaces and given the Cauchy convergence criterion for this new notion of convergence.
On fuzzy γµ-open sets in generalized fuzzy topological spaces
Authors: Das Birojit , Chakraborty Jayasree , Bhattacharya Baby
Published: June 2022

In this paper, we explore the existence of operation approach on open sets in a generalized fuzzy topological space. We introduce the concept of fuzzy γµ-open set and study some basic properties of it. We obtain an interesting result that the intersection of two fuzzy γµ-open sets may not be a fuzzy γµ-open set, but if the operation is regular then the intersection becomes a fuzzy γµ-open set. We also initiate the notions of fuzzy minimal γµ-open set and fuzzy γµ-locally finite space and establish various results related to these.
Comparison of Fungal Fluorescent Staining and ITS rDNA PCR-based Sequencing with Conventional Methods for Diagnosis of Onychomycosis
Authors: Makled Amal F. , Ghonaim Mabrouk M. , Ali Sahar A.M. , ElHefnawy Sally Mohammed , Sabal Mona Salah , Elbrolosy Asmaa Mohammed
Published: June 2022

Accurate identification of fungal causes for onychomycosis is essential for proper treatment. Presently available laboratory methods show unreliable sensitivity; so there is a requirement for innovative detection techniques. The aim for this work was to assess the efficiencies of fluorescent staining and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) ribosomal DNA (rDNA) polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based sequencing in comparison to conventional techniques for diagnosis of onychomycosis. Nail specimens obtained from 100 patients with clinically- diagnosed onychomycosis were analyzed. Nail scrapings or clippings were subjected to direct microscopic examination by KOH mount, culture by using Sabouraud’s dextrose agar and histopathological examination with periodic-acid Schiff (PAS). Collected specimens were subsequently examined by fluorescent staining and PCR-based sequencing (30 specimens only) to compare the feasibility, sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy for these two methods. The most frequently isolated fungi were yeasts (39/76: 51.3%), dermatophytes (24/76; 31.6%) and non-dermatophyte molds (NDMs) (13/76; 17.1%). Mixed mycotic infections were recovered from 6% of the collected nail specimens. The positive detection rates were significantly different between KOH examinations (52%), nail plate histology (55%), fungal culture (70%) and fluorescent staining (80%). Considering fungal culture as the gold standard, the most sensitive technique was PCR (100%) followed by fluorescent staining (89%), PAS staining (69%) while the least sensitive technique was KOH mount (53%). Fluorescence staining can be used as a rapid and high-yield technique for identification of fungi in the specimens. PCR-based sequencing was highly sensitive and faster compared to culture. Whenever possible, it enables species identification with higher adequacy.
Situação sanitária dos medicamentos na atenção primária no Sistema Único de Saúde nas capitais do Brasil
Authors: Tavares Pereira Marcelo , Alves Costa Ediná
Published: June 2022

Introduction: Pharmacies, within the scope of the Unified Health System (SUS), must comply with health standards, as well as follow the guidelines established by the Ministry of Health to guarantee access to safe, effective and quality medicines. Objective: To characterize the technical issues and conservation conditions of medicines of primary care in the Unified Health System, in the capitals of Brazil, grouped by regions, about technical-sanitary requirements, storage and environmental conditions, fire safety and electrical breakdown items, control system of inventory, fractionation, waste management, regulation of advertising/promotion of medicines, actions related to pharmacovigilance and transport. Method: Cross-sectional, exploratory study, covering 455 pharmacies in primary care services in the capitals of Brazil, which constitute a subsample of the Pesquisa Nacional sobre Acesso, Utilização e Promoção do Uso Racional de Medicamentos (PNAUM). An observation guide and interviews were used with those responsible for pharmaceutical assistance (n = 24) and those responsible for delivering medicines to services (n = 108). Results: Non-compliance with technical and sanitary conditions, which can interfere in maintaining stability, quality, efficacy, and safety, indicating management problems, infrastructure and quality of pharmaceutical services were identified, in addition to possible increased costs for the system due to losses. More deficient sanitary conditions in general were found in the capitals of the North and Northeast and better conditions in the capitals of other regions. Conclusions: Pharmacies of the SUS primary health network face problems in management, infrastructure, organization, and quality of pharmaceutical services that can compromise the quality of the medicines offered, and increase costs for the system. Improvement of management, investments in infrastructure and in the qualification of human resources, and improvement of inspection and health surveillance are urgently needed for essential medicines and pharmaceutical assistance policies to be effective.
Reflexión para la innovación curricular en enfermería:
Authors: Moscoso Paz
Published: June 2022

El presente escrito tiene por objeto plantear una reflexión sobre la importancia y la posibilidad de incorporar el conocimiento practico al contenido curricular de la formación inicial en enfermería y sea considerado a la hora de innovar.

Es reconocida la brecha existente entre la teoría y la práctica en Enfermería. Con el fin de colaborar concretamente a disminuir esta brecha entre los años 2013 y 2017 se realizó una investigación posicionada en el paradigma interpretativo que se propuso: desvelar el saber que el experto utiliza en su quehacer profesional para proyectarlo al curriculum. Esta investigación finalmente logró recoger la expresión del saber experto , ello mediante la utilización de la metodología de la práctica reflexiva en cada uno de los medios de recogida de datos tales como la observación permanente, entrevistas incidentales y entrevistas en profundidad a expertos en los tres niveles de atención en salud. Hoy, después de 5 años la evidencia nos sigue informando que, la brecha teórico práctica es un asunto de constante preocupación, es por ello y en vista de los procesos de innovación curricular invitamos a la reflexión.

Reconociendo como posible la explicitación del saber práctico en enfermería, invitamos a integrar a nuestro currículo inicial este conocimiento situado , el cual genera la posibilidad de un currículo enriquecido, contextualizado con la realidad práctica, un currículo que se aleje del papel y se haga más humano.
Bush-crickets show lifelong flexibility in courtship signals to match predation threat
Authors: Hubancheva Antoniya , Senderov Viktor , Nowotny Manuela , Schöneich Stefan , Goerlitz Holger
Published: June 2022

Courtship signals may attract predators. Thus, finding a mating partner
and avoiding predation are contradicting tasks with direct fitness
consequences. It is unclear, however, how prey species balance the costs
and benefits of those vital tasks over their lifetime. Here, we
quantified how a prey species with a conspicuous courtship song, the
bush-cricket Tettigonia viridissima (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae),
adjusts its singing behaviour in response to increasing levels of bat
predation threat and how those adjustments change in the course of its
lifetime. We show that young males favour survival over mating by
acoustically hiding from predators for a longer time, while old males
prioritize mating over survival. Thus, males of different ages trade-off
differently the risk of losing mating opportunities against the risk of
falling prey to bats. This illustrates that even species with limited
cognitive abilities are capable of carefully balancing the costs and the
benefits of reproduction and survival by making different choices
throughout their lifetime. Our results highlight the flexibility of
vital behaviours and demonstrate how they are balanced over a lifetime
to maximize fitness.
Acute-on-Chronic Aortic Dissection in the Setting of Giant Cell Arteritis: A Case Report
Authors: Son Joohee , Zuckerman Aaron , Scheinerman Josh A. , Basu Atreyee , Moreira Andre , Vaynblat Mikhail
Published: June 2022

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is a chronic vasculitis of large- and
medium-sized vessels that can lead to acute aortic adverse events. We
describe a 74-year-old female patient who presented with
acute-on-chronic aortic dissection. Her pathology was significant for
aortitis in the setting of giant cell arteritis. The patient ultimately
underwent successful repair of her dissection and was discharged home.
Policy Decisions and Modal Choice: An Example from the European Union
Authors: RIBBINK DINA , VAN RIEL ALLARD C. R. , SEMEIJN JANJAAP
Published: June 2022

This study addresses the question of how trans-national regulations could stimulate environmentally friendly and socially responsible transportation. Three scenarios are developed for 2010, taking into account various costs related to road, rail, and inland waterway transportation, including costs to society and environmental costs. The attractiveness of different containerized transport modes is calculated for a representative freight corridor in the European Union. The modal split is adjusted for the capacity limitations of the different modes. Analysis of the results reveals that dedicated cargo rail and inland waterways, the two more socially responsible transportation modes, are already relatively attractive to shippers, but lack sufficient capacity to deal with forecasted demand. Further legislative interventions, such as increased taxation, would therefore only increase the financial burden to shippers and society. Important investments appear necessary for the further development of dedicated cargo rail and inland waterways.
North American Container Port Capacity: A Literature Review
Authors: MALONI MICHAEL , JACKSON ERIC C.
Published: June 2022

International marine container volumes have surged over the last several decades, but North American ports and their supporting container distribution networks have struggled to increase capacity to match this expansion. This article seeks to review and organize existing container network capacity literature into a taxonomy based on the interrelated stakeholders of container flows. The article first establishes the industry capacity situation, then examines research of capacity influences from stakeholders, including port authorities, terminal operators, longshore labor, shippers, railroads, drayage carriers, intermediaries, ocean carriers, governments, and local communities. Ultimately, the article attempts to establish the urgency of container network capacity problems and identify areas needing further research.
The Core Shipper Concept: A Proactive Strategy for Motor Freight Carriers
Authors: DOBIE KATHRYN
Published: June 2022

Motor freight providers today are faced with an increasingly restrictive and demanding operating environment. In an effort to improve safety on the highway, hours-of-service rules have been changed. Security issues also play a role and global trade has become the norm. Shippers' goals of creating the integrated, time-based supply chain using lean inventory strategies necessary for their competitive survival place even greater demands on transportation providers. Yesterday's admonition to better understand shipper concerns and to respond to them is no longer adequate to ensure carrier success. Instead of simply reacting to shipper concerns, carriers must take a proactive approach to determining which shippers they should serve. This approach would enhance the ability of motor carriers to meet their own financial and strategic objectives as they provide shipper-specified services that are intended to enhance the shippers' product/service offerings to their customers. In contrast to focusing on market segments based on shipper similarities, adopting a core shipper strategy requires carriers to take a proactive approach to shipper selection by focusing on the carriers' competencies, resources, and strategic objectives.
Semantics? Service versus Product in Air Transport
Authors: MARETT PAMELA C.
Published: June 2022

The author takes issue with the common practice among air transportation companies of interchanging the words service and product. This is established as case of performance as opposed to pedantry. Successful carriers grasp and embrace a service identity that is unmistakable to employees and customers. Struggling carriers are infused with incongruent identities conveyed to employees and customers through the concurrent usage of service and product. Moreover, the traditional factors indicated for differentiating a service from a product contribute to the creation of a product mentality and obfuscation of a successful service focus.
North American Container Port Capacity: An Exploratory Analysis
Authors: MALONI MICHAEL , JACKSON ERIC C.
Published: June 2022

Major North American container ports were surveyed for their opinions of capacity concerns in consideration of rapidly rising container volumes. The results indicate several areas of concern. For one, the ports expect capacity issues to worsen in the next ten years, implying current congestion problems will also deteriorate. The ports are also highly concerned about a considerable number of capacity drivers, many of which are controlled by other stakeholders including governments, railroads, truck carriers, and labor unions. These results point to a need for an immediate and coordinated approach among multiple stakeholders to address imminent port capacity issues.
A Study of the Activities and Roles of Public Transit Boards
Authors: OBENG KOFI , UGBORO ISAIAH O.
Published: June 2022

This study examines public transit boards of directors' role performance, prescribed activities that facilitate role performance, relationships between the roles and prescribed activities, and characteristics of boards and their members that affect members' involvement in board activities. It surveys public transit boards and analyzes the resulting data, using factor analysis, structural, and stepwise regression equations. The study finds that transit boards' role performance is enhanced by board members' involvement in contextual, analytical, strategic, interpersonal, and political activities, but not by involvement in board educational activities. Additionally, it finds positive relationships between many of the board member characteristics examined and most of the prescribed board activities. Exceptions to these positive relationships are also revealed. Negative relationships exist between the level of formal education of board members and such activities as setting aside time to learn about the organization and discussing future directions of the organization with other board members. Appointment of board members by state governments exerts a negative effect on board members' attentiveness to decision-making processes, and the use of long-range plan priorities in making strategic decisions. Service on other boards negatively affects members' involvement in transit board-related interpersonal activities.
A Social Anthropology of Logistics Research: Exploring Productivity and Collaboration in an Emerging Science
Authors: AUTRY CHAD W. , GRIFFIS STANLEY E.
Published: June 2022

For more than forty years, professionals and academics have undertaken scholarly research in the field of logistics, attempting to expand the knowledge base of the discipline, and thereby improve logistics practice. This study represents an initial investigation of logistics researchers who have participated in the development of the field. Using a comprehensive database of published logistics articles from four leading journals, social network theory is applied for analysis of logistics researcher productivity and collaboration. Results of the exploratory study indicate that high levels of researcher productivity are present in logistics; however, the results also show that the discipline would benefit significantly from more collaborative effort blending researcher backgrounds and perspectives across major research groups, which are currently somewhat isolated. Implications for future logistics research are discussed, advocating more collaborative research production within the field.
The Air Cargo Industry in China: Implications of Globalization and WTO Accession
Authors: FUNG MICHAEL KA-YIU , ZHANG ANMING , LEUNG LAWRENCE CHI-KIN , LAW JAPHET SEBASTIAN
Published: June 2022

This article provides an overview of China's air cargo industry. China's recent accession into the WTO establishes the country's commitment to the liberalization of distribution rights and to the relaxation of restrictions on services such as logistics, thereby creating opportunities for foreign investors. However, the industry has been fragmented and is operating with little market mechanism. It is highly protected and regulated, and is dominated by state-owned enterprises, due to prevalent local protection and rigid functional demarcations. The manner in which this fragmented industry has coped with the growing need of modern logistics management, which requires integration, both physically and with information, to effectively manage supply chains, is examined. Furthermore, there are tremendous barriers to foreign participation in China's air cargo sector. These arise from a variety of sources, ranging from domestic regulations, guidelines, institutions, and administrative mechanisms to infrastructure and policy constraints. Relevant research issues that are pertinent to the understanding of this transitioning industry are raised.