bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Beta-blockers are associated with better long-term survival in patients with Takotsubo syndrome
Authors: Silverio Angelo , Parodi Guido , Scudiero Fernando , Bossone Eduardo , Di Maio Marco , Vriz Olga , Bellino Michele , Zito Concetta , Provenza Gennaro , Radano Ilaria , Baldi Cesare , D'Andrea Antonello , Novo Giuseppina , Mauro Ciro , Rigo Fausto , Innelli Pasquale , Salerno-Uriarte Jorge , Cameli Matteo , Vecchione Carmine , Antonini Canterin Francesco , Galasso Gennaro , Citro Rodolfo
Published: March 2022

Objective

The advantage of beta-blockers has been postulated in patients with Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) given the pathophysiological role of catecholamines. We hypothesised that beta-blocker treatment after discharge may improve the long-term clinical outcome in this patient population.

Methods

This was an observational, multicentre study including consecutive patients with TTS diagnosis prospectively enrolled in the Takotsubo Italian Network (TIN) register from January 2007 to December 2018. TTS was diagnosed according to the TIN, Heart Failure Association and InterTAK Diagnostic Criteria. The primary study outcome was the occurrence of all-cause death at the longest available follow-up; secondary outcomes were TTS recurrence, cardiac and non-cardiac death.

Results

The study population included 825 patients (median age: 72.0 (63.0–78.0) years; 91.9 % female): 488 (59.2%) were discharged on beta-blockers and 337 (40.8%) without beta-blockers. The median follow-up was 24.0 months. The adjusted Cox regression analysis showed a significantly lower risk for all-cause death (adjusted HR: 0.563; 95% CI: 0.356 to 0.889) and non-cardiac death (adjusted HR: 0.525; 95% CI: 0.309 to 0.893) in patients receiving versus those not receiving beta-blockers, but no significant differences in terms of TTS recurrence (adjusted HR: 0.607; 95% CI: 0.311 to 1.187) and cardiac death (adjusted HR: 0.699; 95% CI: 0.284 to 1.722). The positive survival effect of beta-blockers was higher in patients with hypertension than in those without (pinteraction=0.014), and in patients who developed cardiogenic shock during the acute phase than in those who did not (pinteraction=0.047).

Conclusions

In this real-world register population, beta-blockers were associated with a significantly higher long-term survival, particularly in patients with hypertension and in those who developed cardiogenic shock during the acute phase.
Evaluation of the causes of sex disparity in heart failure trials
Authors: Morgan Holly , Sinha Aish , Mcentegart Margaret , Hardman Suzanna Marie , Perera Divaka
Published: March 2022

Objectives

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in women. Despite this, even in contemporary research, female patients are poorly represented in trials. This study aimed to explore reasons behind the sex disparity in heart failure (HF) trials.

Methods

HF trials published in seven high-impact clinical journals (impact factor >20), between 2000 and 2020, were identified. Trials with over 300 participants of both sexes were included. Large HF registries, as well as population statistics, were also identified using the same criteria.

Results

We identified 146 HF trials, which included 248 620 patients in total. The median proportion of female patients was 25.8%, with the lowest proportions seen in trials enrolling patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy (17.9%), severe systolic dysfunction (left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <35%) (21.4%) and those involving an invasive procedure (21.1%). The highest proportion of women was seen in trials assessing HF with preserved LVEF (51.6%), as well as trials including older participants (40.5%). Significant differences were seen between prevalence of female trial participants and population prevalence in all LVEF categories (25.8% vs 49.0%, p<0.01).

Conclusions

A significant sex disparity was identified in HF trials, most visible in trials assessing patients with severely reduced LVEF and ischaemic aetiology. This is likely due to a complex interplay between enrolment bias and biological variation. Furthermore, the degree of both these aspects may vary according to trial type. Going forward, we should encourage all HF trials to appraise their recruitment log and suggest reasons for any reported sex disparity.
Targeting the tumor mutanome for personalized vaccination in a TMB low non-small cell lung cancer
Authors: McCann Katy , von Witzleben Adrian , Thomas Jaya , Wang Chuan , Wood Oliver , Singh Divya , Boukas Konstantinos , Bendjama Kaidre , Silvestre Nathalie , Nielsen Finn Cilius , Thomas Gareth , Sanchez-Elsner Tilman , Greenbaum Jason , Schoenberger Stephen , Peters Bjoern , Vijayanand Pandurangan , Savelyeva Natalia , Ottensmeier Christian
Published: March 2022

Background

Cancer is characterized by an accumulation of somatic mutations, of which a significant subset can generate cancer-specific neoepitopes that are recognized by autologous T cells. Such neoepitopes are emerging as important targets for cancer immunotherapy, including personalized cancer vaccination strategies.

Methods

We used whole-exome and RNA sequencing analysis to identify potential neoantigens for a patient with non-small cell lung cancer. Thereafter, we assessed the autologous T-cell reactivity to the candidate neoantigens using a long peptide approach in a cultured interferon gamma ELISpot and tracked the neoantigen-specific T-cells in the tumor by T-cell receptor (TCR) sequencing. In parallel, identified gene variants were incorporated into a Modified Vaccinia Ankara-based vaccine, which was evaluated in the human leucocyte antigen A*0201 transgenic mouse model (HHD).

Results

Sequencing revealed a tumor with a low mutational burden: 2219 sequence variants were identified from the primary tumor, of which 23 were expressed in the transcriptome, involving 18 gene products. We could demonstrate spontaneous T-cell responses to 5/18 (28%) mutated gene variants, and further analysis of the TCR repertoire of neoantigen-specific CD4+and CD8+T cells revealed TCR clonotypes that were expanded in both blood and tumor tissue. Following vaccination of HHD mice, de novo T-cell responses were generated to 4/18 (22%) mutated gene variants; T cells reactive against two variants were also evident in the autologous setting. Subsequently, we determined the major histocompatibility complex restriction of the T-cell responses and used in silico prediction tools to determine the likely neoepitopes.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrates the feasibility of efficiently identifying tumor-specific neoantigens that can be targeted by vaccination in tumors with a low mutational burden, promising successful clinical exploitation, with trials currently underway.
Trajectories of humoral and cellular immunity and responses to a third dose of mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 in patients with a history of anti-CD20 therapy
Authors: Sidler Daniel , Born Alexander , Schietzel Simeon , Horn Michael P , Aeberli Daniel , Amsler Jennifer , Möller Burkhard , Njue Linet M , Medri Cesare , Angelillo-Scherrer Anne , Borradori Luca , Seyed Jafari S. Morteza , Radonjic-Hoesli Susanne , Chan Andrew , Hoepner Robert , Bacher Ulrike , Mani Laila-Yasmin , Iype Joseena Mariam , Suter-Riniker Franziska , Staehelin Cornelia , Nagler Michael , Hirzel Cedric , Maurer Britta , Moor Matthias B
Published: March 2022

Background

The majority of patients with B-cell-depleting therapies show compromised vaccination-induced immune responses. Herein, we report on the trajectories of anti-SARS-CoV-2 immune responses in patients of the RituxiVac study compared with healthy volunteers and investigate the immunogenicity of a third vaccination in previously humoral non-responding patients.

Methods

We investigated the humoral and cell-mediated immune response after SARS-CoV-2 messanger RNA vaccination in patients with a history with anti-CD20 therapies. Coprimary outcomes were antispike and SARS-CoV-2-stimulated interferon-γ concentrations in vaccine responders 4.3 months (median; IQR: 3.6–4.8 months) after first evaluation, and humoral and cell-mediated immunity (CMI) after a third vaccine dose in previous humoral non-responders. Immunity decay rates were compared using analysis of covariance in linear regression.

Results

5.6 months (IQR: 5.1–6.7) after the second vaccination, we detected antispike IgG in 88% (29/33) and CMI in 44% (14/32) of patients with a humoral response after two-dose vaccination compared with 92% (24/26) healthy volunteers with antispike IgG and 69% (11/16) with CMI 6.8 months after the second vaccination (IQR: 6.0–7.1). Decay rates of antibody concentrations were comparable between patients and controls (p=0.70). In two-dose non-responders, a third SARS-CoV-2 vaccine elicited humoral responses in 19% (6/32) and CMI in 32% (10/31) participants.

Conclusion

This study reveals comparable immunity decay rates between patients with anti-CD20 treatments and healthy volunteers, but inefficient humoral or CMI after a third SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in most two-dose humoral non-responders calling for individually tailored vaccination strategies in this population.

Trial registration number

NCT04877496; ClinicalTrials.gov number.
Effects of physical exercise and body weight on disease-specific outcomes of people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs): systematic reviews and meta-analyses informing the 2021 EULAR recommendations for lifestyle improvements in people with RMDs
Authors: Gwinnutt James M , Wieczorek Maud , Cavalli Giulio , Balanescu Andra , Bischoff-Ferrari Heike A , Boonen Annelies , de Souza Savia , de Thurah Annette , Dorner Thomas E , Moe Rikke Helene , Putrik Polina , Rodríguez-Carrio Javier , Silva-Fernández Lucía , Stamm Tanja , Walker-Bone Karen , Welling Joep , Zlatković-Švenda Mirjana I , Guillemin Francis , Verstappen Suzanne M M
Published: March 2022

Background

A European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) taskforce was convened to develop recommendations for lifestyle behaviours in rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs). This paper reviews the literature on the effects of physical exercise and body weight on disease-specific outcomes of people with RMDs.

Methods

Three systematic reviews were conducted to summarise evidence related to exercise and weight in seven RMDs: osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), psoriatic arthritis, systemic sclerosis and gout. Systematic reviews and original studies were included if they assessed exercise or weight in one of the above RMDs, and reported results regarding disease-specific outcomes (eg, pain, function, joint damage). Systematic reviews were only included if published between 2013–2018. Search strategies were implemented in the Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library of systematic reviews and CENTRAL databases.

Results

236 articles on exercise and 181 articles on weight were included. Exercise interventions resulted in improvements in outcomes such as pain and function across all the RMDs, although the size of the effect varied by RMD and intervention. Disease activity was not influenced by exercise, other than in axSpA. Increased body weight was associated with worse outcomes for the majority of RMDs and outcomes assessed. In general, study quality was moderate for the literature on exercise and body weight in RMDs, although there was large heterogeneity between studies.

Conclusion

The current literature supports recommending exercise and the maintenance of a healthy body weight for people with RMDs.
An investigation of bat mortality in British Columbia, Canada
Authors: Beattie Imara , Schofer Delaney , McGregor Glenna , Lee Michael J. , Lee Lisa K.F. , Himsworth Chelsea G. , Byers Kaylee A.
Published: March 2022

Identifying causes of wildlife mortality can yield an understanding of the factors that impact wildlife health. This is particularly significant for species that are facing population declines because this information can inform conservation and management practices. We evaluated causes of mortality for bats in British Columbia, Canada, submitted to the provincial veterinary laboratory between 2015 and 2020, and assessed whether cause of death varied by species and (or) was associated with bat characteristics (e.g., sex and body condition). Of the 275 bats included in this study, the most frequent cause of death was cat depredation (24%), followed by blunt force trauma (23%). Bats that died by cat depredation tended to be in good body condition compared with those that died from other causes, and male bats were more likely to die from blunt force trauma compared with females. Emaciation was also an important cause of mortality (21%) and 8% of bats died due to rabies, with the greatest rabies prevalence in big brown bats ( Eptesicus fuscus (Palisot de Beauvois, 1796)). Our results demonstrate the potential burden of cat depredation on healthy bats and highlight the need for strategies to decrease cat depredation to support healthy bat populations.
Hide and seek with the third family hypercharge model’s $$Z^\prime $$ at the large hadron collider
Authors: Allanach B. C. , Banks Hannah
Published: March 2022

The Third Family Hypercharge Model predicts a $$Z^\prime $$

Z
′

gauge boson with flavour dependent couplings which has been used to explain anomalies in meson decay processes which involve the $$b\rightarrow s\mu ^+\mu ^-$$

b
→
s

μ
+

μ
-

transition. The model predicts that a TeV-scale $$Z^\prime $$

Z
′

should decay to particle-antiparticle pairs of muons, taus, top quarks and bottom quarks with appreciable branching ratios. We reinterpret various ATLAS and CMS search limits for $$Z^\prime $$

Z
′

production followed by such decays at the LHC over a parameter space of the model that results from a successful combined fit to the $$b\rightarrow s l^+ l^-$$

b
→
s

l
+

l
-

data and precision electroweak observables. Current exclusions in parameter space and expected sensitivities of the various different channels in the high-luminosity run are compared. We find that the high-luminosity run of the LHC will significantly increase the sensitivity to the model beyond the existing empirical limits, which we find to be surprisingly weak.
Effect of AlxCoCrFeNiCu binder on mechanical properties and wear performance of Ti(C, N) cermet
Authors: Wu Zihao , Chen Yuhong , Hai Wanxiu , Liu Meiling
Published: March 2022

In this study, the effects of Al[Formula: see text]CoCrFeNiCu high entropy alloy (HEA) binder on the phase composition, microstructure, hardness, fracture toughness and abrasion resistance of Ti(C, N) cermets prepared by powder metallurgy method were investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, mechanical properties and abrasion test. The results showed that the sintered Ti(C, N) cermets exhibit homogeneous core-shell microstructure at 1500[Formula: see text]C when HEAs with 0.2 at% aluminum were added. The Vickers hardness and fracture toughness of cermet with Al[Formula: see text]CoCrFeNiCu could reach the peak value of 2235 Kg/mm2 and 10.51 MPa[Formula: see text]m[Formula: see text] and the fracture morphology showed mixture fracture. The Ti(C, N) cermets with HEA binder exhibited good friction and wear properties.
Research on vibration energy collector of T-shaped piezoelectric beam
Authors: Chen Xin , Cui Jie , Tao Shenghui , Miao Dongqing
Published: March 2022

In this paper, in order to obtain a larger amplitude–frequency width, a T-shaped vibration energy harvester device with 1:2 internal resonance buckling was investigated and designed in a parametric study way, whose natural frequency can be adjusted by changing the geometric parameters and buckling load exerted on the T-shaped piezoelectric beam. The effects of different model lengths and widths on the output voltage of the energy harvester were studied systematically. By comparing the difference between the variation trend of displacement value and output voltage value of harvester model, it can be concluded that internal resonance can broaden the frequency band of vibration energy collection of buckling T-shaped piezoelectric beam. Additionally, when the internal resonance ratio is 1:2, the amplitude width and voltage output value can be effectively increased. The results show that when the buckling T-shaped piezoelectric beam resonates at a ratio of 1:2, the vibration energy collection frequency band of the buckling T-shaped piezoelectric beam can also be broadened.
Phase transitions detected in complex time series by multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis
Authors: Wong Yiu-Man , Day Thomas C. , Tumulty Joseph S. , Antanaitis Brad
Published: March 2022

A distinctive fishtail feature in multifractal spectra derived from heart rate variability (HRV) data closely resembles similar features in plots of the Gibbs free energy versus reduced pressure for a van der Waals fluid below the critical temperature, and, in analogy to the nonideal fluid, signals a phase transition from one multifractal state to another. This fishtail feature, often overlooked or dismissed in previous studies, is observed most prevalently in unhealthy patients and suggests a realignment between multifractal variables and their thermodynamic analogs. The van der Waals analogy and subsequent alternate interpretation of multifractal variables and functions lead one to construct a three-dimensional heart health phase diagram reminiscent of a [Formula: see text] diagram for the van der Waals fluid. The diagram which makes use of the Maxwell width as a measure of heart health produces an orderly progression from healthy to unhealthy.
Classification of melanoma images using 2D multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis
Authors: Wang Jian , Yan Yan , Kim Junseok
Published: March 2022

Skin cancer is a common human malignant tumor and melanoma is one of the most fatal diseases in skin cancer. There exists a high degree of visual similarity between melanoma and non-melanoma. In addition, the acquisition and labeling of skin cancer images need relevant medical knowledge, therefore, it is difficult to obtain natural images. These problems make it difficult to distinguish between melanoma and non-melanoma. How to extract the high-dimensional features of skin cancer images is the main problem to improve the classification performance of skin cancer images. For this purpose, we propose a new computer-aided classification system with a two-dimensional (2D) multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MF-DCCA) method and classifier combination. The proposed 2D MF-DCCA is expanded by the 2D MF-DFA and we aim to change the distribution of the generalized Hurst exponents calculated by the original 2D MF-DFA, making the image features represented by the generalized Hurst exponents calculated by 2D MF-DCCA are more significant. Therefore, we take the generalized Hurst exponents calculated by the two methods into the classifier and evaluate their classification performance. The classification metrics, such as Accuracy (Acc), Sensitivity (Sen), and Specificity (Spe) of two classifiers, show that the features extracted by MF-DCCA are better than those by MF-DFA. In addition, among the two classifiers such as the SVM and k-NN, the k-NN performs best in Acc and Spe with [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], respectively. The k-NN performs better than SVM in the classification Sen with [Formula: see text].
Critical nodes identification in complex networks via similarity coefficient
Authors: Lu Pengli , Zhang Zhiru
Published: March 2022

Critical nodes of complex networks are pivotal for effective information propagation. Several centrality methods have been presented to identify critical nodes relied on the relationships between node and its neighbors, which indicates that the interaction between them will account for determining the importance of nodes. In this paper, a novel ranking method based on the defined similarity coefficient is proposed. The main thought of the proposed method is that the importance of nodes being linked to the local structural similarity between node and its neighbors. By quantifying the distinction between the node’s local structure information, a similarity matrix of the entire network is constructed first. Further, the similarity coefficient of node is defined by taking into account the interaction relationships between nodes and the local structural attribute of complex networks. Finally, a novel method, named Extended Similarity Coefficient Ranking Method (ESCRM), is proposed to determine the influentiality of node based on its neighbors’ information. We perform extensive experiments on ten real-world datasets to comprehensively estimate the performance of the ESCRM and other ten representative centralities. The experimental results demonstrate that under the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered (SIR) model, the ESCRM outperforms the other centralities on identifying critical nodes, and as a relatively efficient ranking method can provide better performance.
DWT Lifting Scheme for Image Compression with Cordic-Enhanced Operation
Authors: Anju M. I. , Mohan J.
Published: March 2022

This paper proposes an innovative image compression scheme by utilizing the Adaptive Discrete Wavelet Transform-based Lifting Scheme (ADWT-LS). The most important feature of the proposed DWT lifting method is splitting the low-pass and high-pass filters into upper and lower triangular matrices. It also converts the filter execution into banded matrix multiplications with an innovative lifting factorization presented with fine-tuned parameters. Further, optimal tuning is the most important contribution that is achieved via a new hybrid algorithm known as Lioness-Integrated Whale Optimization Algorithm (LI-WOA). The proposed algorithm hybridizes the concepts of both the Lion Algorithm (LA) and Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA). In addition, innovative cosine evaluation is initiated in this work under the CORDIC algorithm. Also, this paper defines a single objective function that relates multi-constraints like the Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) as well as Compression Ratio (CR). Finally, the performance of the proposed work is compared over other conventional models regarding certain performance measures.
User-Specified Image Color Transfer
Authors: Lin Hsiau-Wen , Chen Yen-Yu , Tokuyama Yoshimasa , Lin Hwei-Jen
Published: March 2022

This paper proposes a flexible example-based color transfer system, providing an automatic mode and an advanced mode, for novices and expert users, respectively. The experimental results show that the proposed color transfer system not only can introduce natural results with simple operation by novices in the first use, but also can produce various desired results by users with short-term learning.
Design of Voltage Level Shifter Using CNTFET and Analysis of Process Voltage Temperature Variation
Authors: Prasad Vikash , Das Debaprasad
Published: March 2022

In this work, we have presented the design of voltage level shifter using carbon nanotube field effect transistors (CNTFETs). The proposed design is capable of converting two input voltage levels to two output voltage levels. The threshold voltage of CNTFETs is suitably chosen to achieve the desired output. The proposed design can perform both up and down shifting which is very useful in the system-on-a-chip design to interface with other peripherals. It exhibits lower delay and power delay product in comparison with the existing complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor-based voltage level shifters. The proposed circuit is very effective as it eliminates the requirement of additional voltage level shifter for designing systems with multi-power supply voltage domain in the nanoscale regime. The design has been analyzed for different process, voltage and temperature corners. It has been shown that the design works perfectly with [Formula: see text] variation in the diameter of the carbon nanotubes used in the CNTFET. The performance varies slightly with [Formula: see text] variation in operating voltage. Our analysis shows that the design is thermally stable for a wide variation in operating temperature.
Dynamic Analysis and Fractional-Order Terminal Sliding Mode Control of a Fractional-Order Buck Converter Operating in Discontinuous Conduction Mode
Authors: Jia Zirui , Liu Ling , Liu Chongxin
Published: March 2022

Fractional calculus provides a new tool for designing the control scheme of a PWM converter. However, in most studies of fractional-order converters, one has used the fractional orders of the converters to construct the controllers. Essentially, this controller does not add any additional fractional-order parameters, which will affect its flexibility. Taking the fractional-order Buck converter operating under discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) as well as the chaotic state as an example, this study proposes a novel fractional-order terminal sliding mode control strategy utilizing additional fractional orders. In order to analyze the nonlinear behaviors attributed to load changes, the discrete iterated mapping model of the voltage-controlled fractional-order Buck converter is proposed and built. According to the discrete iterated map, the bifurcation diagrams and Lyapunov exponent spectrums following different fractional orders are generated, indicating a process attributable to chaos. To suppress the undesirable nonlinear behaviors, a novel fractional-order terminal sliding surface is formed, and the corresponding controller is established. Moreover, the hyperbolic tangent function is introduced to solve the chattering problem. The proposed controller provides greater flexibilities to further improve the control capability. Furthermore, to verify the robustness of the proposed control method, the Mittag–Leffler stability condition of fractional-order systems is adopted. The effects of fractional orders on control performance are also discussed. Finally, circuit simulations with the approximate fractal structures of fractional-order components are implemented and compared so as to further verify the feasibility of the proposed controller.
Turing–Hopf Bifurcation in Diffusive Gierer–Meinhardt Model
Authors: Yang Rui , Yu Xiao-Qing
Published: March 2022

Gierer–Meinhardt system is a molecularly plausible model to describe pattern formation. When gene expression time delay is added, the behavior of the Gierer–Meinhardt model profoundly changes. In this paper, we study the delayed reaction–diffusion Gierer–Meinhardt system with Neumann boundary condition. Necessary and sufficient conditions for the occurrence of Turing instability, Hopf bifurcation and Turing–Hopf bifurcation deduced by diffusion and gene expression time delay are obtained through linear stability analysis and root distribution of the characteristic equation with two transcendental terms. With the aid of the normal form Turing–Hopf bifurcation and numerical simulations, we theoretically and numerically obtain the expected solutions including stable spatially inhomogeneous steady states, stable spatially homogeneous periodic orbit and stable spatially inhomogeneous periodic orbit from Turing–Hopf bifurcation.
A Novel Memristor-Based Dynamical System with Chaotic Attractor and Periodic Bursting
Authors: Yan Shaohui , Song Zhenlong , Shi Wanlin , Zhao Weilong , Ren Yu , Sun Xi
Published: March 2022

An autonomous memristive circuit is implemented by an active third-order generalized memristor. The mathematical model is established and the stability of the equilibrium point and divergence are analyzed. Lyapunov exponents and bifurcation analysis demonstrate the complex dynamical behaviors of the system. As an internal parameter of voltage controlled memristor is changed, the system changes from bursting chaos to general chaos, which includes chaotic bursting attractor and periodic bursting attractor. This system produces periodic bursting similar to the clusters discharge of biological neurons. Interestingly, the system differs from the single helical clusters discharge of neurons. The bifurcation mechanism of the periodic bursting behavior is explored by constructing equilibrium trajectories of the fast-scale subsystem to verify the Fold bifurcation and to establish the Hopf bifurcation sets. Finally, it is shown that a circuit experiment based on Multisim is consistent with the theoretical analysis and numerical simulations, which proves the feasibility of the real circuit.
Turing Instability of a Modified Reaction–Diffusion Holling–Tanner Model Over a Random Network
Authors: Hu Qing , Shen Jianwei
Published: March 2022

Turing instability is a prominent feature of reaction–diffusion systems, which is widely investigated in many fields, such as ecology, neurobiology, chemistry. However, although the inhomogeneous diffusion between prey and predators exist in their network space, there are few considerations on how network diffusion affects the stability of prey–predator models. Therefore, in this paper we study the pattern dynamics of a modified reaction–diffusion Holling–Tanner prey–predator model over a random network. Specifically, we study the relationship between the node degrees of the random network and the eigenvalues of the network Laplacian matrix. Then, we obtain conditions under which the network system instability, Hopf bifurcation as well as Turing bifurcation occur. Also, we find an approximate Turing instability region of the diffusion coefficient and the connection probability of the network. Finally, we apply the mean-field approximation theory with numerical simulation to confirm the correctness of our results. The instability region indicates the random migration of the prey and predators among different communities.
Multiple Bifurcations of a Discrete-Time Prey–Predator Model with Mixed Functional Response
Authors: Naik Parvaiz Ahmad , Eskandari Zohreh , Avazzadeh Zakieh , Zu Jian
Published: March 2022

In this paper, the one- and two-parameter bifurcations of a discrete-time prey–predator model with a mixed functional response are investigated by computing their critical normal form coefficients. The flip, Neimark–Sacker and strong resonance bifurcations are detected for this model. The critical coefficients identify the scenario associated with each bifurcation. The complex dynamical behavior of the model up to the 16th iteration is investigated.
Neuromorphic Behaviors of the 4-Lobe Chua Corsage Memristor
Authors: Dong Yujiao , Wang Guangyi , Wang Zhongrui , Iu Herbert Ho-Ching , Chen Long
Published: March 2022

Neuromorphic computing plays an important role in brain-inspired computers, which can solve complex problems with higher efficiency and lower energy. As a promising candidate of neuromorphic devices, a locally active memristor has the ability to emulate complex neuromorphic functions, which has the potential to implement large-scale hardware spiking neural networks to unleash the efficiency and intelligence of the brain. In this paper, we analyze the characteristics of the locally active 4-lobe Chua corsage memristor (CCM) using small-signal equivalent circuits. In addition, we design a CCM-based third-order neuron circuit and illustrate its rich neuromorphic behaviors near the edge of chaos, such as self-sustained oscillation, periodic spiking, chaos, transient chaos, resting states, burst-number adaption, spike latency, and refractory period. Furthermore, collective behaviors such as exotic chimera states (e.g. coherent and incoherent patterns) have been observed in the ring neural network made of third-order memristive neurons with linear and nonlocal coupling.
Partial Label Dimensional Reduction via Semantic Difference Information and Manifold Regularization
Authors: Li Haikun , Fang Min , Ge Lingchi , Wang Peng
Published: March 2022

Partial label learning is a rising weakly supervised learning framework that deals with the problem that each training instance is associated with a set of candidate labels, where only one is correct. The dimensionality reduction mechanism can effectively improve the learning system’s generalization performance. However, due to the ambiguity of the ground-truth label, it is hard to use traditional dimensionality reduction methods directly on partially labeled data sets. Existing research attempts to exploit the linear discriminant analysis (LDA) strategy to reduce the dimensionality of partial label training examples. Unfortunately, this method still suffered from false-positive labels. This paper proposed an LDA-based dimensionality reduction approach named SDIMR for partially labeled datasets. On the one hand, introduce the manifold regularization term with semantic difference information to perform dimensionality reduction procedures and simultaneously maintain the local manifold structure. On the other hand, the iterative process alternates between dimensionality reduction and disambiguation. Briefly, our approach consists of three stages: Firstly, utilize the graph structure with semantic difference information to describe the topological information in the feature space. Secondly, we propose a new objective function containing manifold regularization terms to reduce the dimensionality of original training data to generate a new training data set. Finally, the k-nearest neighbor method is employed to disambiguate the dimensionality-reduced data. Extensive experiments on artificial and real-world data sets show that our method can be comparable to state-of-the-art partial label learning algorithms.
Minimal grid diagrams of the prime alternating knots with 12 crossings
Authors: Jin Gyo Taek , Lee Hwa Jeong
Published: March 2022

In this paper, we give a list of minimal grid diagrams of the 12 crossing prime alternating knots. This is a continuation of the work in [G. T. Jin and H. J. Lee, Minimal grid diagrams of 11 crossing prime alternating knots, J. Knot Theory Ramifications 29(11) (2020) Article ID: 2050076, 14 pp.].
Dark energy, Chaplygin gas and viscosity
Authors: Beesham Aroonkumar , Msweli Mfanafuthi Siyabonga
Published: March 2022

The bulk of the matter of the universe is believed to be in the form of dark energy, which makes up about 70% of the total matter content of the universe. Since its discovery around 1998, researchers have been trying to find out about the nature of this dark energy. Despite a lot of effort, there is still no proper explanation for it. Two possible candidates for dark energy are Chaplygin gas and bulk viscosity. There is a lot of similarity in these two proposed forms. The relationship between them is explored in this presentation, and it is shown that mathematically, they are in some sense, equivalent, although their physical interpretation is different.
Reconstruction of modified Gauss–Bonnet gravity for emergent universe
Authors: Paul B. C. , Maharaj S. D. , Beesham A.
Published: March 2022

We present a flat emergent universe model in modified Gauss–Bonnet gravity in four dimensions. The emergent universe model is free from a big-bang singularity and also describes the observed universe fairly well. It is assumed that the present universe emerged from a static Einstein universe phase that exists in the infinite past. To obtain the flat emergent universe model, we reconstruct mimetic modified [Formula: see text]-gravity ([Formula: see text] representing Gauss–Bonnet terms). The functional form of [Formula: see text]-gravity is determined with or without matter, and can accommodate the early inflation and late accelerating phases satisfactorily. In contrast, in Einstein’s general theory of relativity, a flat emergent universe was obtained within the modified matter sector.
DISTAL TIBIA SPIRAL AND COMMINUTED FRACTURES: CAN ABSOLUTE ANATOMICAL REDUCTION BE COMPROMISED?
Authors: Ramanath Sharath K. , Rajan Ashwini Varadha , Shah Rahul Hemant , Singh Vanchhit
Published: March 2022

Purpose: Minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis (MIPO) is used for the treatment of distal tibial fractures, especially in cases of intra-articular fractures. There are many advantages of MIPO, including preservation of blood supply to the fracture site and enhanced bone healing, however, it is not without complication. The study aimed to elaborate the benefits of MIPO technique in managing distal tibia fractures and to describe the necessities for good union and functional outcome. Methods: A total of 38 patients with distal tibia comminuted and spiral fractures, having closed distal tibia AO/OTA 43-A, B or C fractures with or without fibular fractures, were included. All the cases were assessed for union time, complications and functional outcomes. Binomial regression using [Formula: see text] v3.6.0 was used to assess the success of MIPO based on four-cortex alignment. [Formula: see text] value [Formula: see text] was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean operative time was 70[Formula: see text]min. All 38 tibial fractures united and the mean union time was found to be 18 weeks. Five cases were noted to have complications (four superficial infections and one implant failure). Out of 38 patients, 28 (majority) showed excellent functional outcomes as assessed by the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society score, i.e. a score of [Formula: see text]90. Conclusion: MIPO is a good method for the management of tibial fractures with extra-articular and intra-articular involvement, with good union even when absolute four cortical contact is not achieved.
Recursive Predictive Optimal Control Algorithm for Real-Time Hybrid Simulation of Vehicle–Bridge Coupling System
Authors: Zhou Huimeng , Zhang Bo , Shao Xiaoyun , Tian Yingpeng , Zeng Chen , Guo Wei , Wang Tao
Published: March 2022

Real-time hybrid simulation (RTHS) is recently applied to study the vibration of the vehicle–bridge coupling system, where bridges and the vehicle are the numerical and experimental substructures respectively. Inevitable time delay of the boundary loading imposed to the experimental substructure will greatly affect the accuracy and stability of RTHS. To minimize the time delay effects, this paper proposes a recursive prediction optimal (RPO) compensator based on optimal control and recursive least squares. The numerical simulation of the RTHS of the vehicle–bridge coupling system is conducted using MATLAB/Simulink. The performance of the RPO method is compared with three traditional time delay compensation methods (i.e. the polynomial extrapolation (NI), the inverse compensation (IC) and the derivative feedforward (DF)) through both open-loop and RTHS simulations. The RPO method shows the best compensation performance in the frequency range up to 20[Formula: see text]Hz.
Free Vibration, Buckling and Dynamical Stability of Timoshenko Micro/Nano-Beam Supported on Winkler-Pasternak Foundation Under a Follower Axial Load
Authors: Li Zewei , Lin Baichuan , Chen Bo , Zhao Xiang , Li Yinghui
Published: March 2022

Axially loaded micro/nano-beams supported on foundations are extensively applied in micro/nano-electro-mechanical systems. This paper deals with the problems of free vibration, buckling and dynamical stability of Timoshenko micro/nano-beam supported on Winkler–Pasternak foundation subjected to a follower axial periodic load. Based on Hamilton’s principle, the governing equations of the system are derived in conjunction with nonlocal strain gradient and Timoshenko theory. The transition parameter is introduced to describe the follower direction of axial load during the deformation of the micro/nano-beam. Employing the weighted residual method, the variational consistency boundary conditions (BCs) can be derived according to the governing equations. Using differential quadrature method (DQM), the governing equations are discretized and numerical solutions of the natural frequencies, critical buckling load and instability region are obtained. Numerical examples are performed to verify present solutions by those available in the literature. Significant effects of the transition parameter and variational consistency BCs are revealed on the free vibration, buckling and dynamical stability of the axially loaded micro/nano-beam. The present analysis is of significance to axially-loaded micro/nano-beam mechanical system, especially for determination of the direction of follower axial force.
On finitely generated G-flat modules over domains
Authors: Hu Kui , Lim Jung Wook , Zhou De Chuan
Published: March 2022

Let [Formula: see text] be a domain. It is proved that if [Formula: see text], then the class of finitely generated [Formula: see text]-flat modules and the class of finitely generated [Formula: see text]-projective modules coincide. It is also proved that an integrally closed domain [Formula: see text] is a Prüfer domain if and only if [Formula: see text], if and only if [Formula: see text].
Unit-regularity of elements in rings
Authors: Lee Tsiu-Kwen
Published: March 2022

An element [Formula: see text] in a unital ring [Formula: see text] is said to have an inverse complement [Formula: see text] if [Formula: see text] is a unit of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. Unit-regular elements are studied from the viewpoint of the existence of inverse complements. As a source of unit-regular elements, we prove that if [Formula: see text] is a completely reducible submodule of [Formula: see text], then every element of [Formula: see text] is unit-regular if and only if any nonzero submodule of [Formula: see text] is not square zero. This generalizes some results due to Stopar in 2020. Finally, extending the case of real or complex matrices to the context of rings, we characterize the outer and reflexive inverses of a given unit-regular element depending only on its inverse complement.
Effect of initial squeezing on tripartite continuous-variable entanglement of dynamical processes
Authors: Pradana Andri , Chew Lock Yue
Published: March 2022

In this paper, we investigate the effect of initial squeezing on tripartite continuous-variable (CV) Hamiltonians based on real physical systems. The Hamiltonians are based on the three-mode magnons excited by an external field, the one-dimensional interconnected tripartite spring-like system, and two spin ensembles coupled to a cavity resonator in the nondispersive regime in the CV limit. We find that for the three-mode magnons and the spring-like system, implementation of initial squeezing invariably enhances the two-way and three-way entanglement, while for the spin-resonator system, it depends on the alignment of the spin ensembles relative to the resonator field.
Effects of Environmental Quality on Urban Housing Prices: A Hedonic Multiple Linear Regression Model Approach
Authors: Julius Mukarati , Sanderson Abel , Roux Pierre Le , Simion Matsvai , Zenzile Mahlangu
Published: March 2022

While studies on the valuation of urban environmental amenities have been limited in developing countries, their scarcity is even amplified in the Sub-Saharan Africa and Zimbabwe is no exception. For a city such as Gweru, this particular study is among the few done so far. The aim of this research is to investigate the effects of environmental conditions in a given area on the residential location. We randomly sampled 800 households and the Hedonic Pricing Regression technique was applied to analyse whether environmental quality does have a significant effect on housing prices in the city of Gweru. The set of considered variables was carried out from a location choice survey and Hedonic regression estimators are presented to verify to what extent a relationship between the accessibility conditions, environmental context and the dwelling market values does exist. Based on the estimated model, the results revealed that vegetation, sewage system, water supply and distance from the central business district (CBD) are environmental characteristics that have a bearing on property prices with sewer availability being the most significant variable that affects the price. Residents are willing to trade-off clean air (air pollution) for proximity to the CBD. The findings suggest that properties (houses) are composite goods whose demand is greatly influenced by the health-related attributes they offer. On this basis, recommendations are for the Municipalities to ensure affordable housing that also meets the minimum health standards while relevant departments and land developers should include such amenities to assist and generate the highest value on a parcel of land or house.
WHAT MITIGATION CAN ASIA CONTRIBUTE TO THE PARIS AGREEMENT GOALS?
Authors: DUAN HONGBO , PAN JIAHUA , TSVETANOV TSVETAN G. , ZHANG BING
Published: March 2022

Asia, particularly China, has been a story of rapid economic growth, rising to a prominent position in the global economy. Continued rapid growth suggests that Asia will be a source of substantial future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well. Despite modest declines in emissions in industrialized countries, such as the United States and the European Union (EU), global emissions will not come close to meeting the Paris targets without substantial mitigation actions in Asian areas. In this regard, we initiated this topical issue and tried to study how Asia can contribute to the global effort to meet the 1.5∘C and 2∘C targets, from both national and industrial levels. The papers accepted bring insightful understandings and fresh perspectives to policy making and climate governance in Asian economies. We believe that these studies well contribute to the extant literature on both climate economic methodologies and regional climate policy research.
Cultural Diplomacy in International Relations — A Case Study of Vietnam–India Diplomatic Relation Since Their Strategic Partnership
Authors: HA TRIEU HUY
Published: March 2022

Vietnam and India became exceptional friends in the context of globalization and global and regional security in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. India paid a significant consideration to South East Asia and expanded its role in this region in the early 21st century. Meanwhile, Vietnam is one country that experienced a thriving economy in its international and regional integrations. This country has a pressing demand for bilateral and multilateral cooperation with all countries in the world. Especially, the objective of rising India’s soft power along with its hard power contributed to promoting India’s benefits and involvement in Southeast Asia and Vietnam. Likewise, Vietnam has been fully aware of India’s intervention in disputes in the South China Sea and its well-meaning plans to tighten relations with Vietnam over various fields. Vietnam considered India as a partner to conduct Vietnam’s soft power. Since Strategic Partnership (2007), Vietnam has accelerated this relation through cultural exchanges, cultural projects, and shared values of Indian culture. Thus, the image of Vietnam becomes familiar to Indian people. Likewise, India encouraged Vietnam to hold cultural events and academic seminars to exchange ideologies, opinions, and plans for many domains. Vietnam is also a goal of India’s soft power in Southeast Asia. This paper aims to examine cultural diplomacy in Vietnam’s foreign policy in Vietnam–India diplomatic relations mainly based on theories of Liberalism, public diplomacy, and soft power. Thus, it clarifies cultural diplomacy in Vietnam and India’s foreign policy. Finally, the author would like to anticipate the scenario of Vietnam–India cultural diplomacy in the future.