bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Food Choices and the Malay Muslim Middle Class in Brunei Darussalam
Authors: Ibrahim Faizul
Published: April 2023

This chapter examines the middle class in Brunei Darussalam through an exploration of their everyday food choices. In doing so, I investigate middle-class food consumption and eating habits both at home and when eating out. While Brunei is a socially stratified society, this research suggests that being middle class is more than just expressing status-seeking behaviour or material aspirations. Rather, the analysis proposes that a middle-class status is also reflected in food-related behaviour, attitudes and feelings such as nostalgia, fondness and affection for meals and mealtimes. A significant middle class certainly exists and it continues to shape the fabric of Brunei society.
Pengangun: Female Ritual Specialists for Malay Weddings in Brunei Darussalam
Authors: Hakim Mufidah Abdul
Published: April 2023

This chapter is an ethnographic account of the spiritual function of female wedding attendants and ritual experts (pengangun) in the Brunei-Muara district, Brunei Darussalam. It details and examines the important role of women in these wedding rituals. The discussion then further considers the ways in which their role has changed in contemporary Brunei and the everyday challenges they face.
Dressing bulk spinor fields in AdS3
Authors: Lifschytz Gilad , Patra Milan
Published: April 2023

Abstract

We continue the program of bulk reconstruction for fermionic fields. We reconstruct, from the CFT, the Dirac fermion field in AdS3 coupled to a Chern-Simons gauge field. We show that the three conditions; solving the equation of motion, satisfying expected transformation under modular flow and a simple charge distribution at infinity are all compatible and all produce the same bulk operator. We also compute the bulk-boundary tree level three point function from the CFT construction.
New Criteria on Oscillatory Behavior of Third Order Half-Linear Functional Differential Equations
Authors: Grace Said R.
Published: April 2023

This paper deals with some new criteria for the oscillation of third order half-linear differential equations. The purpose of the present paper is the linearization of equation 1.1 in the sense that we would deduce oscillation of studied equation from that of the linear form and to provide new oscillation criteria via comparison with first order equations whose oscillatory behavior are known. The obtained results are new, improve and correlate many of the known oscillation criteria appeared in the literature for equation 1.1. The results are illustrated by some examples.
The relationship between problematic Instagram use and eating disorders psychopathology: an explanatory structural equation model
Authors: Fioravanti Giulia , Cassioli Emanuele , Rossi Eleonora , Lucherini Angeletti Lorenzo , Casale Silvia , Ricca Valdo , Castellini Giovanni
Published: April 2023

An emerging body of research has evidenced the negative influence of using and being exposed to social networking sites (SNSs) on body image. Furthermore, it has been postulated that SNS use might be related with onset and persistence of eating disorders (EDs) psychopathology. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the complex interplay between problematic Instagram use (PIU) (conceptualized as a potential behavioral addiction comprising withdrawal, conflict, tolerance, salience, mood modification and relapse) and ED psychopathology, by means of an explanatory structural equation model. We hypothesized that PIU would be associated with ED symptoms through the mediating role of appearance comparison, individual psychological investment in physical appearance, and body uneasiness. A sample of 386 young female participants (Mage = 26.04 ± 6.73) was recruited, of which 152 had received a diagnosis of ED. ED patients used Instagram more than the control group and showed higher levels of PIU. Results from structural equation modeling (fit indices: χ2 = 44.54, df = 19, p < 0.001; RMSEA = 0.059; CFI = 0.98; SRMR = 0.02) showed that PIU predicted appearance comparison and psychological investment in physical appearance, which in turn predicted body uneasiness. In turn, body uneasiness predicted ED psychopathology and interpersonal difficulties. Our model provides a useful account of how eating disorder symptoms could be triggered and maintained by an addictive use of Instagram.
Hierarchical ‘rose-petal’ ZnO/Si surfaces with reversible wettability reaching complete water repellence without chemical modification
Authors: Kanidi M. , Bardakas A. , Kerasidou A. , Anastasopoulos A. , Tsamis C. , Kandyla M.
Published: April 2023

Smart surfaces with externally controlled wettability patterns are ubiquitous building blocks for micro-/nanofluidic and lab-on-chip devices, among others. We develop hierarchical surfaces of ZnO nanorods grown on laser-microstructured silicon with reversible photo-induced and heat-induced wettability. The as-prepared surfaces are superhydrophilic, with very low water contact angles (~ 10°), and transition to a wetting state with high water contact angles (~ 150°) when annealed in vacuum. As the annealing temperature increases to 400 °C, the surfaces become completely water-repellent. Even though the annealed surfaces present high water contact angles, at the same time, they are very adhesive for water droplets, which do not roll off even when tilted at 90° or 180o (rose-petal effect), unlike standard hydrophobic surfaces which typically combine high water contact angles with low roll-off angles. The surfaces return to the superhydrophilic state when irradiated with UV light, which indicates a reversible wettability with external stimuli. Based on this transition, we demonstrate local modification of the wetting state of the surfaces by UV irradiation through a mask, which results in directed liquid motion, useful for microfluidic applications. The high contact angles obtained in this work are usually obtained only after chemical modification of the ZnO surface with organic coatings, which was not necessary for the hierarchical surfaces developed here, reducing the cost and processing steps of the fabrication route. These rose-petal surfaces can be used as “mechanical hands” in several applications, such as no-loss transport of small liquid volumes, precision coatings, spectroscopy, and others. Furthermore, the completely water-repellent surfaces, rarely reported elsewhere, may find important applications in frictionless liquid transport for microfluidic and other devices.
Measurements on the effect of steps on the transition of laminar boundary layers
Authors: Heintz Alexander , Scholz Peter
Published: April 2023

The effects of steps on the transition of laminar boundary layers were measured on a flat plate for low Reynolds numbers with critical and subcritical step heights. The transition position was measured by determining the intermittency distribution in streamwise direction, including the characteristic length of the transitional region. The results are compared with formulations of a critical step Reynolds number $${\textrm{Re}_\textrm{h}}$$

Re
h

, i.e., the step height that will instantly trigger transition at the step position, and—for subcritical step heights—with $${{\Delta N}}$$

Δ
N

-formulations from the literature. For backward-facing steps, the concept of a step Reynolds number can be used to distinguish between subcritical and critical step heights, whereas for forward-facing steps there seems not to be one unique $${\textrm{Re}_\textrm{h}}$$

Re
h

. Furthermore, for subcritical backward-facing steps the concept of a $${{\Delta N}}$$

Δ
N

-approximation gives a reasonable description of the experimental observations. Again in contrast, for forward-facing steps a $${{\Delta N}}$$

Δ
N

-approach scattered a lot and no clear dependency was found between the reduction in the critical N-factor of transition and the relative step height.
Curve-on-curve technique does not improve tibial coverage in total knee arthroplasty in comparison to tibial tuberosity technique with use of anatomical implants: randomized controlled trial
Authors: Maciąg Bartosz M. , Kordyaczny Tomasz , Żarnovsky Krystian , Budzińska Martyna , Jegierski Dawid , Łapiński Marcin , Maciąg Grzegorz J. , Stolarczyk Artur
Published: April 2023

Introduction

During the last years, main attention while performing total knee replacement was paid to femoral component alignment; however, there is still lack of studies concerning tibial baseplate rotational alignment, especially in terms of anatomical designs of knee prosthesis. Some recent studies proved that tibial baseplate malrotation might be a cause of knee pain and patients’ dissatisfaction. The aim of this study was to compare tibial component rotation and its coverage on the tibial plateau achieved with curve-on-curve and tibial tuberosity techniques (t-t technique) with use of anatomic knee designs with asymmetric tibial baseplate.

Materials and methods

A total of 88 patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to undergo total knee arthroplasty with use of the PERSONA PS (Zimmer Biomet) knee design with an asymmetric baseplate. The rotation of the tibial component was assessed and performed with two different techniques: curve-on-curve technique and tibial tuberosity technique. Tibial component rotation was measured on computed tomography (CT) scans using the method suggested by Benazzo et al. and designed for asymmetrical implants. For the measurement of the tibial bone coverage, the component surface area was outlined and measured on a proper CT section, then the tibial cut surface area was outlined and measured on a section just below the cement level. Pre- and post-operative range of motion was measured by another independent researcher 12 months post-operatively during follow-up visit.

Results

There was a statistically significant difference between both groups in median value of tibial rotation angle: 7° (interquartile range (IQR) = 0–12) in curve-on-curve technique group vs 2° (IQR-1–7) in tibial tuberosity technique group, probability value (p) = 0.0041, with values above 0 meaning external rotation of the component. There was no statistically significant difference between both groups in terms of range of motion (ROM) with average values of 124.3° ± 13.0° for curve-on-curve technique and 125.6° ± 12.8° for t-t technique with p = 0.45. There was a statistically insignificant difference between both groups in terms of coverage percentage in slight favor for curve-on-curve technique (85.9 ± 4.2 vs 84.5 ± 4.8, p = 0.17).

Conclusion

In this study, no difference between the groups in terms of tibial bone coverage and range of motion was proved, even though both techniques differed significantly with values of tibial rotation. Future studies should be focused on influence of specific values of tibial rotation on patient-reported outcomes and survivorship of anatomic knee implants.
Thunderbeat®: a new step forward in transoral surgery—systematic review of literature and our experience
Authors: Saraniti Carmelo , Barbara Verro
Published: April 2023

Introduction

Minimally invasive surgery is today the main challenge of ENT surgeons who aim to achieve oncological radicality with less aesthetic and functional impact. This is the basis for the widespread transoral surgical techniques, as the Thunderbeat®.

Objective

To date, the use of Thunderbeat® in transoral surgery is still little known and widespread. So, this study analyzes, with a systematic review, current literature about the transoral use of Thunderbeat® and shows our case studies.

Methods

The research was carried out on Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochrane databases using specific keywords. Then, a retrospective study was carried out on 10 patients who underwent transoral surgery by Thunderbeat® in our ENT Clinic. Both in our cases and in the systematic review the following parameters have been evaluated: treated anatomical site and subsite, histological diagnosis, type of surgery, duration of nasogastric tube and hospitalization, post-operative complications, tracheostomy, resection margin status.

Results

The review included 3 articles that described transoral use of Thunderbeat® for a total of 31 patients suffering from oropharyngeal, hypopharyngeal and/or laryngeal carcinoma. Nasogastric tube was removed after 21.5 days on average, temporary tracheostomy was performed in 6 patients. The main complications were: bleeding (12.90%) and pharyngocutaneous fistula (29.03%). Thunderbeat® shaft was 35 cm long and 5 mm large. Our case studies included 5 males and 5 females, mean age 64.4 ± 10.28, with oropharyngeal or supraglottic carcinoma, parapharyngeal pleomorphic adenoma and cavernous hemangioma of the tongue base. Temporary tracheostomy was performed in 8 patients. Free resection margins were achieved in all cases (100%). No peri-operative complications occurred. Nasogastric tube was removed after 5.3 ± 2 days on average. All patients were discharged without tracheal tube and NGT after 18.2 ± 4.72 days on average.

Conclusion

This study demonstrated that Thunderbeat® has several advantages over other transoral surgical approaches, such as CO2 laser and robotic surgery, in terms of best combination of oncological and functional success, less post-operative complications and costs. So, it could represent a step forward in transoral surgery.
Prognostic MRI parameters in acute traumatic cervical spinal cord injury
Authors: Dobran M. , Aiudi D. , Liverotti V. , Fasinella M. R. , Lattanzi S. , Melchiorri C. , Iacoangeli A. , Campa S. , Polonara G.
Published: April 2023

Purpose

The aim of this study is to estimate the prognostic value of some features documented on preoperative MRI study in patients with acute cervical spinal cord injury.

Methods

The study was conducted in patients operated for cervical spinal cord injury (cSCI) from April 2014 to October 2020.

The quantitative analysis on preoperative MRI scans included: length of the spinal cord intramedullary lesion (IMLL the canal diameter at the level of maximal spinal cord compression (MSCC) and the presence of intramedullary hemorrhage. The canal diameter at the MSCC was measured on the middle sagittal FSE-T2W images at the maximum level of injury.

The America Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) motor score was used for neurological assessment at hospital admission. At 12-month follow-up all patients were examined with the SCIM questionnaire.

Results

At linear regression analysis, the length of the spinal cord lesion [β coefficient −10.35, 95% confidence interval (CI)−13.71 to−6.99; p < 0.001], the diameter of the canal at the level of the MSCC (β coefficient 6.99, 95% CI 0.65 to 13.33; p = 0.032), and the intramedullary hemorrhage (β coefficient  − 20.76, 95% CI − 38.70 to − 2.82; p = 0.025), were significantly associated with the score at the SCIM questionnaire at one year follow-up: shorter spinal cord lesion, greater diameter of the canal at the level of the MSCC, and absence of intramedullary hemorrhage were predictors of better outcome.

Conclusion

According to the findings of our study, the spinal length lesion, canal diameter at the level of spinal cord compression and intramedullary hematoma documented by the preoperative MRI study were associated with the prognosis of patients with cSCI.
Shape control of moderately thick piezoelectric beams
Authors: Schoeftner Juergen
Published: April 2023

The present contribution focuses on shape control of thick beam-type structures. First the governing equations of a multi-layered beam are derived by taking advantage of the Timoshenko assumptions and the constitutive relations of piezoelectric materials. The deflection curves are explicitly given for a piezoelectric cantilever subjected to a polynomial distribution of the vertical load and the applied electric voltage. In order to find a solution for the optimal shape control voltage an objective function, which depends on the quadratic deflection curve over the beam length, is minimized. Finally several benchmark examples are given for thick beams and the outcome is compared to finite element results and previously derived shape control results from the scientific literature that hold for thin piezoelectric beams. The presented shape control method shows a better agreement with the numerical outcome than the analytical shape control results within the Bernoulli-Euler theory, but the desired voltage distribution only slightly differs from the outcome for thin beams. Furthermore it is found that for a given total thickness-to-length ratio piezoelectric bimorph structures may be more difficult to be perfectly controlled than three-layer beams with thin piezoelectric layers. This is due to higher order piezoelectric effects which are not considered by the present theory (e.g. the thickness deformation caused by the thickness piezoelectric coupling constant).
Effect of Nitrogen Application and Fertigation Scheduling On Potato Yield Performance Under Drip Irrigation System
Authors: Badr M. A. , Ali Eman , Salman S. R.
Published: April 2023

The drip irrigation method offers the potential of higher application efficiency of water and allows precise placement of fertilizer directly in the root zone. The use of drip irrigation also facilitates the frequent application of fertilizer via injection in the irrigation system, which allows the conjunction between nutrient application and time of crop needs. The effect of nitrogen (N) rate and drip fertigation scheduling were evaluated on yield, N uptake, and recovery of potato grown on sandy soil. The N was applied at two rates under regular irrigation (control) or through drip irrigation along with four fertigation schedules including: equal doses applied at the weekly or biweekly intervals and different doses based on growth curve characters (12.5, 25, 50, and 12.5% of the total N amount) at the same intervals, for initial, developmental, mid, and mature stages, respectively. The N rate and wise fertigation scheduling significantly affected yield and yield components except for the tuber number per plant. The higher tuber yield was associated with a higher N rate when the respective nutrient was stage wise scheduled and typically responded to growth curve character than equal scheduling at any time intervals. The increase in yield was higher with wise weekly by 13 and 22% than with equal weekly or biweekly intervals, respectively. For this scenario, the modeled crop uptake at the weekly interval was 16% higher than equal applied at the same interval or even greater by 31% than equal applied at the biweekly interval. Similarly, the higher N rate and wise weekly scheduling increased N recovery and N use efficiency (NUE). Soil N movement with wise scheduling resulted in lesser leaching of NO3−-N to deeper soil layers, particularly with wise weekly scheduling. The framework presented in this study regarding the rate and N scheduling to copy with plant growth curve can sustain high crop yield while reducing NO3−-N leaching, increasing N uptake and recover.
'You have to put a lot of trust in me': autonomy, trust, and trustworthiness in the context of mobile apps for mental health
Authors: Müller Regina , Primc Nadia , Kuhn Eva
Published: April 2023

Trust and trustworthiness are essential for good healthcare, especially in mental healthcare. New technologies, such as mobile health apps, can affect trust relationships. In mental health, some apps need the trust of their users for therapeutic efficacy and explicitly ask for it, for example, through an avatar. Suppose an artificial character in an app delivers healthcare. In that case, the following questions arise: Whom does the user direct their trust to? Whether and when can an avatar be considered trustworthy? Our study aims to analyze different dimensions of trustworthiness in the context of mobile health app use. We integrate O'Neill's account of autonomy, trust, and trustworthiness into a model of trustworthiness as a relational concept with four relata: B is trustworthy with respect to A regarding the performance of Z because of C. Together with O'Neill's criteria of trustworthiness (honesty, competence, and reliability), this four-sided model is used to analyze different dimensions of trustworthiness in an exemplary case of mobile health app use. Our example focuses on an app that uses an avatar and is intended to treat sleep difficulties. The conceptual analysis shows that interpreting trust and trustworthiness in health app use is multi-layered and involves a net of interwoven universal obligations. At the same time, O'Neill's approach to autonomy, trust, and trustworthiness offers a normative account to structure and analyze these complex relations of trust and trustworthiness using mobile health apps.
Dynamic effects of social influence on asset prices
Authors: Huang Jia-Ping , Zhang Yang , Wang Juanxi
Published: April 2023

This paper examines the dynamic effects of Social Influence on asset prices in the presence of heterogeneous expectations among investors. In our model, the choices of investors’ trading strategies are influenced not only by past payoffs but also by their neighbors’ choices in the social network. To obtain tractable results with generic implications for social structure, we use a mean-field approximation approach rather than specifying the exact structure of social network. Analytical conditions for the existence and local stability of equilibria of price dynamics are established and validated through numerical simulations. Our analysis shows that social influence increases the dimension of the dynamical system and that equilibria can only be expressed implicitly as solutions of certain equations. We also investigate the long-run behavior of price and fraction of trading strategies using numerical simulation under a scale-free network and a power function type social influence factor. Our results suggest that the system tends to be stable when social influence is small but exhibit complex periodic orbits and even chaos when social influence is large. These findings yield valuable insights into the role of social influence in financial markets.
The EFQM excellence model, the knowledge management process and the corresponding results: an explanatory and predictive study
Authors: Bocoya-Maline José , Rey-Moreno Manuel , Calvo-Mora Arturo
Published: April 2023

This study aims to analyse the relationships among the EFQM model, the knowledge management (KM) process and the corresponding results. It also seeks to analyse the predictive power of the phases of the KM process with regard to organisational results. The sample under study is composed of 113 Spanish organisations that feature some kind of Excellence Recognition System granted by the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM). This paper uses partial least squares (PLS) path modelling to test and validate the research model and the proposed hypotheses. In addition, thorough analyses are conducted to assess the model’s predictive performance. The results show that organisations that use the management framework proposed by the EFQM model implement the phases of the KM process efficiently. Moreover, the synergies resulting from the simultaneous implementation of the EFQM model and the KM process contribute to improving the corresponding results. Also, the predictive power of the phases of the KM process is confirmed in terms of their ability to anticipate the results that the organisation will be able to achieve with respect to customers, people, society and key business factors. Finally, this study provides empirical evidence of the direct and indirect relationships among the EFQM model, the KM process and the corresponding results. In addition, the paper identifies out-of-sample prediction as an integral element of the evaluation of the model using PLS-SEM and as a way to evaluate its practical relevance, since it allows us to predict results.
Stéatose hépatique non alcoolique : diagnostic et traitement en 2022
Authors: Tagkou Nikoletta Maria , Goossens Nicolas
Published: April 2023

La NAFLD (Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease) est la manifestation hépatique d’un trouble métabolique multisystémique. Elle est la principale cause de maladie hépatique au niveau mondial, avec une prévalence croissante. Bien qu’il s’agisse principalement d’une maladie silencieuse à évolution lente, certains patients présentent un risque élevé de progression de la maladie et d’issues plus graves telles que la cirrhose, le carcinome hépatocellulaire et la transplantation hépatique. Malgré les multiples études menées et les nombreux essais cliniques en cours, il n’existe pas de médicaments approuvés pour la NAFLD/NASH (Non Alcoholic Steato-Hepatitis), et le traitement doit donc se fonder sur des stratégies de modification du mode de vie. Cette revue explorera la définition et l’épidémiologie courantes de la NAFLD et de la NASH ainsi que les facteurs de risque et les conséquences de la maladie, tout en résumant les recommandations existantes pour le diagnostic, la stratification du risque et la prise en charge de la maladie.
Low-carbon city planning based on collaborative analysis of supply and demand scenarios
Authors: Yu Dan , Zhou Xiaohan , Qi Hui , Qian Fanyue
Published: April 2023

With the proposal of carbon reduction goals of countries around the world, "green and low-carbon" has become a new key to urban development and construction. However, in the existing urban planning system, the energy planning mapped by carbon emissions has received less attention, and the main goal is often to ensure safe supply. There is less research on carbon emissions. Therefore, it is necessary to take the energy planning in urban planning as the breakthrough point to carry out research on green and low-carbon development and construction at the urban level in the " Carbon Reduction " era. First, a city in China was taken as the research object to evaluate the resource endowment and development potential of the target city. Then, the carbon reduction paths of target cities in the three fields of construction, transportation and industry were studied, and the carbon reduction potential in different scenarios was quantified. After that, the influence of electric power carbon emission coefficient on different carbon saving scenarios was studied through sensitivity analysis. Finally, the government's low-carbon urban planning and decision-making suggestions were given. The results show that the relatively effective way is to carry out large-scale promotion of ultra-low energy consumption buildings and electric vehicles on the demand side, and to build distributed photovoltaic and heat pump systems on the supply side. On this basis, with the introduction of additional 30% of foreign green power, the per capita carbon emissions of cities would be reduced to 1.5tCO2 in 2035. In this way, the target city can achieve the goal of carbon neutrality in advance. Therefore, the results of this study have certain theoretical reference value for the study of low-carbon urban planning.
New Evidence for the Dating and Impact of the Black Death in Asia
Authors: Hymes Robert , Green Monica H.
Published: April 2023

Since 2014, when The Medieval Globe first presented the latest interdisciplinary scholarship on the Black Death as a global pandemic, the pace and intensity of research has intensified. This follow-up volume features two extended essays laying out evidence that the Second Plague Pandemic was already ravaging China by the second quarter of the thirteenth-century - over a century before it made its appearance in the greater Mediterranean region.
Existence of positive solutions for Kirchhoff-type problem in exterior domains
Authors: Jia Liqian , Li Xinfu , Ma Shiwang
Published: April 2023

We consider the following Kirchhoff-type problem in an unbounded exterior domain $\Omega\subset\mathbb{R}^{3}$:
(*)
\begin{align}
\left\{
\begin{array}{ll}
-\left(a+b\displaystyle{\int}_{\Omega}|\nabla u|^{2}\,{\rm d}x\right)\triangle u+\lambda u=f(u), & x\in\Omega,\\
\\
u=0, & x\in\partial \Omega,\\
\end{array}\right.
\end{align}where a > 0, $b\geq0$, and λ > 0 are constants, $\partial\Omega\neq\emptyset$, $\mathbb{R}^{3}\backslash\Omega$ is bounded, $u\in H_{0}^{1}(\Omega)$, and $f\in C^1(\mathbb{R},\mathbb{R})$ is subcritical and superlinear near infinity. Under some mild conditions, we prove that if
\begin{equation*}-\Delta u+\lambda u=f(u), \qquad x\in \mathbb R^3 \end{equation*}has only finite number of positive solutions in $H^1(\mathbb R^3)$ and the diameter of the hole $\mathbb R^3\setminus \Omega$ is small enough, then the problem (*) admits a positive solution. Same conclusion holds true if Ω is fixed and λ > 0 is small. To our best knowledge, there is no similar result published in the literature concerning the existence of positive solutions to the above Kirchhoff equation in exterior domains.
Physicotheology in Kant’s Transition from Nature to Freedom
Authors: Hamid Nabeel
Published: April 2023

This article examines Kant’s treatment of the design argument for the existence of God, or physicotheology. It criticizes the interpretation that, for Kant, the assumption of intelligent design satisfies an internal demand of inquiry. It argues that Kant’s positive appraisal of physicotheology is instead better understood in terms of its polemical utility for rebutting objections to practical belief in God upon which Kant’s ethicotheological argument rests, and thus as an instrument in the transition from theoretical to practical philosophy. Kantian physicotheology plays this role (a) by criticizing alternative speculative accounts of the ground of nature, and (b) by analogizing from the structure of finite rational agency in order to represent more clearly the action of an ideal agent.
The genetic landscape and clinical implication of pediatric Moyamoya angiopathy in an international cohort
Authors: Zanoni Paolo , Steindl Katharina , Sticht Heinrich , Oneda Beatrice , Joset Pascal , Ivanovski Ivan , Horn Anselm H. C. , Cabello Elena M. , Laube Julia , Zweier Markus , Baumer Alessandra , Rauch Anita , Khan Nadia
Published: April 2023

Pediatric Moyamoya Angiopathy (MMA) is a progressive intracranial occlusive arteriopathy that represents a leading cause of transient ischemic attacks and strokes in childhood. Despite this, up to now no large, exclusively pediatric MMA cohort has been subjected to systematic genetic investigation. In this study, we performed molecular karyotyping, exome sequencing and automated structural assessment of missense variants on a series of 88 pediatric MMA patients and correlated genetic, angiographic and clinical (stroke burden) findings. The two largest subgroups in our cohort consisted ofRNF213and neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) patients. While deleteriousRNF213variants were associated with a severe MMA clinical course with early symptom onset, frequent posterior cerebral artery involvement and higher stroke rates in multiple territories, NF1 patients had a similar infarct burden compared to non-NF1 individuals and were often diagnosed incidentally during routine MRIs. Additionally, we found that MMA-associatedRNF213variants have lower predicted functional impact compared to those associated with aortic disease. We also raise the question of MMA as a feature of recurrent as well as rare chromosomal imbalances and further support the possible association of MMA withSTAT3deficiency. In conclusion, we provide a comprehensive characterization at the genetic and clinical level of a large exclusively pediatric MMA population. Due to the clinical differences found across genetic subgroups, we propose genetic testing for risk stratification as part of the routine assessment of pediatric MMA patients.
A vision transformer for decoding surgeon activity from surgical videos
Authors: Kiyasseh Dani , Ma Runzhuo , Haque Taseen F. , Miles Brian J. , Wagner Christian , Donoho Daniel A. , Anandkumar Animashree , Hung Andrew J.
Published: April 2023

The intraoperative activity of a surgeon has substantial impact on postoperative outcomes. However, for most surgical procedures, the details of intraoperative surgical actions, which can vary widely, are not well understood. Here we report a machine learning system leveraging a vision transformer and supervised contrastive learning for the decoding of elements of intraoperative surgical activity from videos commonly collected during robotic surgeries. The system accurately identified surgical steps, actions performed by the surgeon, the quality of these actions and the relative contribution of individual video frames to the decoding of the actions. Through extensive testing on data from three different hospitals located in two different continents, we show that the system generalizes across videos, surgeons, hospitals and surgical procedures, and that it can provide information on surgical gestures and skills from unannotated videos. Decoding intraoperative activity via accurate machine learning systems could be used to provide surgeons with feedback on their operating skills, and may allow for the identification of optimal surgical behaviour and for the study of relationships between intraoperative factors and postoperative outcomes.
ChatGPT’s inconsistent moral advice influences users’ judgment
Authors: Krügel Sebastian , Ostermaier Andreas , Uhl Matthias
Published: April 2023

ChatGPT is not only fun to chat with, but it also searches information, answers questions, and gives advice. With consistent moral advice, it can improve the moral judgment and decisions of users. Unfortunately, ChatGPT’s advice is not consistent. Nonetheless, it does influence users’ moral judgment, we find in an experiment, even if they know they are advised by a chatting bot, and they underestimate how much they are influenced. Thus, ChatGPT corrupts rather than improves its users’ moral judgment. While these findings call for better design of ChatGPT and similar bots, we also propose training to improve users’ digital literacy as a remedy. Transparency, however, is not sufficient to enable the responsible use of AI.
Subjective consistency increases trust
Authors: Nowak Andrzej , Biesaga Mikolaj , Ziembowicz Karolina , Baran Tomasz , Winkielman Piotr
Published: April 2023

Trust is foundational for social relations. Current psychological models focus on specific evaluative and descriptive content underlying initial impressions of trustworthiness. Two experiments investigated whether trust also depends on subjective consistency—a sense of fit between elements. Experiment 1 examined how consistency of simple verbal characterizations influences trust judgments. Experiment 2 examined how incidental visual consistency impacts trust judgments and economic decisions reflecting trust. Both experiments show that subjective consistency positively and uniquely predicts trust judgments and economic behavior. Critically, subjective consistency is a unique predictor of trust that is irreducible to the content of individual elements, either on the dimension of trust or the dimension of valence. These results show that trust impressions are not a simple sum of the contributing parts, but reflect a “gestalt”. The results fit current frameworks emphasizing the role of predictive coding and coherence in social cognition.
Medial prefrontal cortex oxytocin mitigates epilepsy and cognitive impairments induced by traumatic brain injury through reducing neuroinflammation in mice
Authors: Chen Wen , Man Xiaoxiao , Zhang Yu , Yao Guangyan , Chen Jing
Published: April 2023

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major risk factor to develop epilepsy and cognitive impairments. Neuropeptide oxytocin has been previously evidenced to produce antiepileptic effects. However, the involvement of central oxytocin in TBI-induced epileptic status and cognitive dysfunctions is not fully elucidated. In this study, we aim to investigate the role of oxytocin on a TBI model followed by seizure induction to clarify whether the epilepsy and cognitive deficits could be mitigated by oxytocin. TBI was established by weight drop and epileptic behaviors were induced by pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) injection in mice. Moreover, oxytocin was microinjected into the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) to observe the effects on the epilepsy and cognition. The blood–brain barrier (BBB) function and the neuroinflammation were measured by Evans Blue staining and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, respectively. Mice exposed to TBI demonstrate increased vulnerability to PTZ-mediated seizures and cognitive disturbances with a decrease in peripheral and brain oxytocin levels. Additionally, TBI reduces oxytocin, disrupts the BBB permeability and triggers neuroinflammation in mPFC in PTZ-treated mice. Intra-mPFC oxytocin simultaneously mitigates epilepsy and cognitive impairments. Finally, oxytocin restores BBB integrity and reduces mPFC inflammation in PTZ-treated TBI mice. These findings showed that intra-mPFC oxytocin suppressed the seizure vulnerability and cognitive deficits in TBI mice. The normalization of BBB integrity and inhibition of neuroinflammation may be involved in the antiepileptic and cognition-improved effects of oxytocin, suggesting that targeting inflammatory procedure in mPFC may decrease the risk to develop epilepsy and cognitive impairments in individuals previously experienced TBI.
Bacterial microbiome in tropical lichens and the effect of the isolation method on culturable lichen-derived actinobacteria
Authors: Weeraphan Trinset , Somphong Achiraya , Poengsungnoen Vasun , Buaruang Kawinnat , Harunari Enjuro , Igarashi Yasuhiro , Tanasupawat Somboon , Phongsopitanun Wongsakorn
Published: April 2023

Ten samples of tropical lichens collected from Doi Inthanon, Thailand, were explored for the diversity of their bacterial microbiomes through 16S rRNA-based metagenomics analysis. The five predominant lichen-associated bacteria belonged to the phyla Proteobacteria (31.84%), Planctomycetota (17.08%), Actinobacteriota (15.37%), Verrucomicrobiota (12.17%), and Acidobacteriota (7.87%). The diversity analysis metric showed that Heterodermia contained the highest bacterial species richness. Within the lichens, Ramalina conduplicans and Cladonia rappii showed a distinct bacterial community from the other lichen species. The community of lichen-associated actinobacteria was investigated as a potential source of synthesized biologically active compounds. From the total Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) found across the ten different lichen samples, 13.21% were identified as actinobacteria, including the rare actinobacterial genera that are not commonly found, such as Pseudonocardia, Kineosporia, Dactylosporangium, Amycolatopsis, Actinoplanes, and Streptosporangium. Evaluation of the pretreatment method (heat, air-drying, phenol, and flooding) and isolation media used for the culture-dependent actinobacterial isolation revealed that the different pretreatments combined with different isolation media were effective in obtaining several species of actinobacteria. However, metagenomics analyses revealed that there were still several strains, including rare actinobacterial species, that were not isolated. This research strongly suggests that lichens appear to be a promising source for obtaining actinobacteria.
Recent advances in gut microbiota-associated natural products: structures, bioactivities, and mechanisms
Authors: Dai Huanqin , Han Junjie , Wang Tao , Yin Wen-Bing , Chen Yihua , Liu Hongwei
Published: April 2023

Natural products modulate interactions between gut microbiota and host.
Unravelling the impact of oily alkane molecules on the optical properties of the calcite(10.4) surface
Authors: Mokkath Junais Habeeb
Published: April 2023

Projected density of states and electron localization of the dodecane adsorbed calcite surface.
Influence of a CO2-switchable additive on the surface and foaming properties of a cationic non-switchable surfactant
Authors: Benedix Robin R. , Botsch Sophia , Preisig Natalie , Kovalchuk Volodymyr , Jessop Philip G. , Stubenrauch Cosima
Published: April 2023

This study overturns the prevailing understanding of the effect of CO2-switchable water additives: the switching does not only alter the ionic strength of the solution but also the composition of the surface thus affecting foam stability.
Effect of the spacer on the structure and self-assembly of FF peptide mimetics
Authors: Ibukun Olamilekan Joseph , Gumtya Milan , Singh Surajit , Shit Ananda , Haldar Debasish
Published: April 2023

FF peptide mimetics with 1,4-butadiene and m-xylylenediamine spacers form stimuli-responsive gels in a wide range of solvents including methanol but the compound with m-diaminobenzene forms a water mediated duplex stabilized by π–π interactions.
Effectors and effects of arginine methylation
Authors: Wang Yalong , Bedford Mark T.
Published: April 2023

Arginine methylation is a ubiquitous and relatively stable post-translational modification (PTM) that occurs in three types: monomethylarginine (MMA), asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA). Methylarginine marks are catalyzed by members of the protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) family of enzymes. Substrates for arginine methylation are found in most cellular compartments, with RNA-binding proteins forming the majority of PRMT targets. Arginine methylation often occurs in intrinsically disordered regions of proteins, which impacts biological processes like protein–protein interactions and phase separation, to modulate gene transcription, mRNA splicing and signal transduction. With regards to protein–protein interactions, the major ‘readers’ of methylarginine marks are Tudor domain-containing proteins, although additional domain types and unique protein folds have also recently been identified as methylarginine readers. Here, we will assess the current ‘state-of-the-art' in the arginine methylation reader field. We will focus on the biological functions of the Tudor domain-containing methylarginine readers and address other domains and complexes that sense methylarginine marks.
A versatile humanoid robot platform for dexterous manipulation and human–robot collaboration
Authors: Shu Xin , Ni Fenglei , Fan Xinyang , Yang Shuai , Liu Changyuan , Tu Baoxu , Liu Yiwei , Liu Hong
Published: April 2023

Humanoid robots have attracted much attention by virtue of their compatibility with human environments. However, biped humanoids with immense promise still cannot function steadily and reliably in real‐world settings in the current state. Hence, rationally combining a humanoid robot with different stable mobile platforms is a favoured solution for diverse scenarios. Here, a new versatile humanoid robot platform, aiming to provide a generic solution that can be flexibly deployed in diverse scenarios, for example, indoors and fields is presented. Versatile humanoid robot platform incorporates multimodal perception, and extensible interfaces on hardware and software, allowing it to be rapidly integrated with different mobile platforms and end‐effectors, only through easy‐to‐assemble interfaces. Additionally, the platform has achieved impressive integration, lightness, dexterity, and strength in its class, with human‐like size and rich perception, targeted to have human‐intelligent manipulation skills for human‐engineered environments. Overall, this article elaborates on the reasoning behind the design choices, and outlines each subsystem. Lastly, the essential performance of the platform is successfully demonstrated in a set of experiments with precise and dexterous manipulation, and human–robot collaboration requirements.
A new code‐based digital signature based on the McEliece cryptosystem
Authors: Haidary Makoui Farshid , Gulliver Thomas Aaron , Dakhilalian Mohammad
Published: April 2023

Digital signature schemes are used for the authentication and verification of signatures. The Courtois–Finiasz–Sendrier (CFS) digital signature is a well‐known code‐based digital signature scheme based on the Niederreiter cryptosystem. However, it is not widely used due to the computation time of the signing algorithm. Most code‐based digital signature schemes are based on the Niederreiter cryptosystem. This paper proposes a new code‐based digital signature that is based on the McEliece cryptosystem. Key generation, signing, and verification algorithms are presented. The key generation algorithm constructs a public key using random inverse matrices. The signing algorithm has lower complexity and requires less computation time than the CFS scheme to sign a document. The verification algorithm is able to detect forgeries. It is shown that the proposed scheme is secure against public key structural attacks.
Harmonic suppression and fault ride‐through method of diode‐rectifier‐based hybrid high‐voltage direct current system for offshore wind farms integration
Authors: Fang Zixi , Yang Renxin , Cai Xu , Wei Xinchi , Zha Kunpeng , Yu Haotian
Published: April 2023

The diode‐rectifier (DR)‐based high‐voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission is regarded as a low‐cost alternative to the HVDC transmission for offshore wind farms (OWFs) integration. However, the DR would generate harmonic voltages in the offshore grid, which greatly affects the power quality. To solve this problem, this paper utilizes a parallel‐connected small‐capacity auxiliary converter to suppress the harmonic voltages and provide black‐start energy for the OWFs. In addition, the submodule branches (SMBs) of the auxiliary converter can be used as part of the HVDC chopper. On this basis, a coordinated grid fault ride‐through (FRT) strategy is proposed in this paper. After a grid fault occurs, the HVDC chopper constructed by the auxiliary converter is able to constrain the DC‐link voltage. At the same time, the OWFs are controlled to reduce the output active power. As a result, the cost of the FRT can be significantly reduced. The proposed harmonic voltage suppression and the FRT method are verified through the simulation model in Simulink.
Starlet higher order statistics for galaxy clustering and weak lensing
Authors: Ajani Virginia , Harnois-Déraps Joachim , Pettorino Valeria , Starck Jean-Luc
Published: April 2023

We present a first application to photometric galaxy clustering and weak lensing of wavelet-based multi-scale (beyond two points) summary statistics: starlet peak counts and starlet ℓ1-norm. Peak counts are the local maxima in the map, and ℓ1-norm is computed via the sum of the absolute values of the starlet (wavelet) decomposition coefficients of a map, providing a fast multi-scale calculation of the pixel distribution, encoding the information of all pixels in the map. We employ the cosmo-SLICS simulations sources and lens catalogues, and we compute wavelet-based non-Gaussian statistics in the context of combined probes and their potential when applied to the weak-lensing convergence maps and galaxy maps. We obtain forecasts on the matter density parameter Ωm, the reduced Hubble constant h, the matter fluctuation amplitude σ8, and the dark energy equation of state parameter w0. In our setting for this first application, we consider the two probes to be independent. We find that the starlet peaks and the ℓ1-norm represent interesting summary statistics that can improve the constraints with respect to the power spectrum, even in the case of photometric galaxy clustering and when the two probes are combined.