bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Within-Person Variability Score-Based Causal Inference: A Two-Step Estimation for Joint Effects of Time-Varying Treatments
Authors: Usami Satoshi
Published: August 2022

Behavioral science researchers have shown strong interest in disaggregating within-person relations from between-person differences (stable traits) using longitudinal data. In this paper, we propose a method of within-person variability score-based causal inference for estimating joint effects of time-varying continuous treatments by controlling for stable traits of persons. After explaining the assumed data-generating process and providing formal definitions of stable trait factors, within-person variability scores, and joint effects of time-varying treatments at the within-person level, we introduce the proposed method, which consists of a two-step analysis. Within-person variability scores for each person, which are disaggregated from stable traits of that person, are first calculated using weights based on a best linear correlation preserving predictor through structural equation modeling (SEM). Causal parameters are then estimated via a potential outcome approach, either marginal structural models (MSMs) or structural nested mean models (SNMMs), using calculated within-person variability scores. Unlike the approach that relies entirely on SEM, the present method does not assume linearity for observed time-varying confounders at the within-person level. We emphasize the use of SNMMs with G-estimation because of its property of being doubly robust to model misspecifications in how observed time-varying confounders are functionally related to treatments/predictors and outcomes at the within-person level. Through simulation, we show that the proposed method can recover causal parameters well and that causal estimates might be severely biased if one does not properly account for stable traits. An empirical application using data regarding sleep habits and mental health status from the Tokyo Teen Cohort study is also provided.
Block preconditioners for linear systems in interior point methods for convex constrained optimization
Authors: Zilli Giovanni , Bergamaschi Luca
Published: August 2022

In this paper, we address the preconditioned iterative solution of the saddle-point linear systems arising from the (regularized) Interior Point method applied to linear and quadratic convex programming problems, typically of large scale. Starting from the well-studied Constraint Preconditioner, we review a number of inexact variants with the aim to reduce the computational cost of the preconditioner application within the Krylov subspace solver of choice. In all cases we illustrate a spectral analysis showing the conditions under which a good clustering of the eigenvalues of the preconditioned matrix can be obtained, which foreshadows (at least in case PCG/MINRES Krylov solvers are used), a fast convergence of the iterative method. Results on a set of large size optimization problems confirm that the Inexact variants of the Constraint Preconditioner can yield efficient solution methods.
Fundamental functions for local interpolation of quadrilateral meshes with extraordinary vertices
Authors: Beccari Carolina V. , Casciola Giulio , Romani Lucia
Published: August 2022

The aim of this work is to present a general and simple strategy for the construction of compactly supported fundamental spline (piecewise-polynomial) functions for local interpolation, that are defined over quadrangulations of the real plane with extraordinary vertices. The proposed strategy — which extends the univariate framework introduced in Antonelli et al. (Adv Comput Math 40:945–976, 2014) and Beccari et al. (J Comput Appl Math 240:5–19, 2013)—consists in considering a suitable combination of bivariate polynomial interpolants with blending functions that are the natural generalization of odd-degree tensor-product B-splines. These blending functions are constructed as basic limit functions of the bivariate, primal subdivision schemes developed simultaneously in Stam (Comput Aided Geom Des 18:397–427, 2001) and Zorin et al. (Comput Aided Geom Des 18:483–502, 2001). As an application example of our constructive strategy we present the compactly supported $$C^2$$

C
2

fundamental functions for local interpolation that arise by considering as blending functions the basic limit functions of the celebrated Catmull–Clark subdivision scheme proposed in Catmull and Clark (Comput Aided Des 46:103–124, 2016).
Regulatory Mechanisms, Protein Expression and Biological Activity of Photolyase Gene from Spodoptera littoralis Granulovirus Genome
Authors: Elmenofy Wael , El-Gaied Lamiaa , Salem Reda , Gomaa Lamis , Mahmoud Alshimaa , Magdy Aml , Mohamed Ismail
Published: August 2022

One of the most important factor that affects the efficient using of baculoviruses as a biopesticide is their sensitivity to UV irradiation. In this study, a photolyase gene (phr) of 1.4 kbp DNA fragment was cloned and characterized from Spodoptera littoralis granulovirus, an Egyptian isolate (SpliGV-EG1). A sequence of 466 amino acid were deduced when the gene was completely sequenced with a predicted molecular mass of ~ 55 kDa. Transcriptional regulation analyses revealed that phr transcripts were detected early at 6-h post-infection (hpi) and remained detectable until 72 hpi, suggesting their transcriptional regulation from a putative early promoter motif. An approximately ~ 55 kDa protein fragment was expressed from phr-induced bacterial culture and detected by SDS-PAGE and western blotting. In addition, direct exposure to UV irradiation resulted in a twofold decrease in SpliGV-EG1 occlusion bodies activation compared with Spodoptera littoralis nucleopolyhedrovirus (SpliNPV) occlusion bodies which decreased with about 129-fold after exposure to UV irradiation based on median lethal concentration value (LC50). The obtained results suggested that the presence of photolyase gene possibly alters the inactivation of SpliGV-EG1-occluded bodies by UV irradiation. These results support the role and application of the photolyase protein to improve the damaged DNA repair mechanism as well as resistance of SpliGV to UV light inactivation.
Politeness in Human–Robot Interaction: A Multi-Experiment Study with Non-Humanoid Robots
Authors: Kumar Shikhar , Itzhak Eliran , Edan Yael , Nimrod Galit , Sarne-Fleischmann Vardit , Tractinsky Noam
Published: August 2022

We studied politeness in human–robot interaction based on Lakoff’s politeness theory. In a series of eight studies, we manipulated three different levels of politeness of non-humanoid robots and evaluated their effects. A table-setting task was developed for two different types of robots (a robotic manipulator and a mobile robot). The studies included two different populations (old and young adults) and were conducted in two conditions (video and live). Results revealed that polite robot behavior positively affected users' perceptions of the interaction with the robots and that participants were able to differentiate between the designed politeness levels. Participants reported higher levels of enjoyment, satisfaction, and trust when they interacted with the politest behavior of the robot. A smaller number of young adults trusted the politest behavior of the robot compared to old adults. Enjoyment and trust of the interaction with the robot were higher when study participants were subjected to the live condition compared to video and participants were more satisfied when they interacted with a mobile robot compared to a manipulator.
Cardiovascular biomarkers in body fluids: progress and prospects in optical sensors
Authors: John Reena V. , Devasiya Tom , V.R. Nidheesh , Adigal Sphurti , Lukose Jijo , Kartha V. B. , Chidangil Santhosh
Published: August 2022

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the major causative factors for high mortality and morbidity in developing and developed nations. The biomarker detection plays a crucial role in the early diagnosis of several non-infectious and life-threatening diseases like CVD and many cancers, which in turn will help in more successful therapy, reducing the mortality rate. Biomarkers have diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic significances. The search for novel biomarkers using proteomics, bio-sensing, micro-fluidics, and spectroscopic techniques with good sensitivity and specificity for CVD is progressing rapidly at present, in addition to the use of gold standard biomarkers like troponin. This review is dealing with the current progress and prospects in biomarker research for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases.

Expert opinion.

Fast diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) can help to provide rapid medical intervention, which can affect the patient’s short and long-term health. Identification and detection of proper biomarkers for early diagnosis are crucial for successful therapy and prognosis of CVDs. The present review discusses the analysis of clinical samples such as whole blood, blood serum, and other body fluids using techniques like high-performance liquid chromatography-LASER/LED-induced fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, mainly, optical methods, combined with nanotechnology and micro-fluidic technologies, to probe patterns of multiple markers (marker signatures) as compared to conventional techniques.
Honey bee colonies maintain CO2 and temperature regimes in spite of change in hive ventilation characteristics
Authors: Meikle William G. , Barg Aidan , Weiss Milagra
Published: August 2022

CO2, a byproduct of respiration, is toxic at high concentrations so regulation of CO2 within the honey bee hive is an important colony function. In this study, we measured hive CO2 concentrations at 1-s intervals while ventilation characteristics of the hive were changed every few days, and we analyzed the data for effects of increased ventilation on colony behavior and thermoregulation. Average CO2 concentrations were significantly higher, by > 200 ppm, when hives had screened bottom boards (higher ventilation) compared to hives with solid bottom boards (lower ventilation) at the same time. Daily CO2 concentration amplitudes, hourly temperature, daily temperature amplitudes, nor hourly hive weight changes were not significantly affected by the changes in hive ventilation. In a second experiment, we found average CO2 concentrations at the top center of the upper hive box, on top of the frames, were significantly lower than concentrations at the center of a solid bottom board underneath frames, which was expected due to the higher density of CO2 relative to air. Bee colonies have been reported to cycle air, with shorter periods of 20 to 150 s and longer periods of 42–80 min, but a periodogram analysis of the CO2 concentration data found no evidence of important CO2 cycle periods other than a strong 24-h period. Bee colonies maintained strong daily cycles of CO2 concentration, with average maximum concentrations > 11,000 ppm, even in conditions of increased ventilation, indicating that managing CO2 concentration is a complex colony behavior.
A novel dual-modal emotion recognition algorithm with fusing hybrid features of audio signal and speech context
Authors: Xu Yurui , Su Hang , Ma Guijin , Liu Xiaorui
Published: August 2022

With regard to human–machine interaction, accurate emotion recognition is a challenging problem. In this paper, efforts were taken to explore the possibility to complete the feature abstraction and fusion by the homogeneous network component, and propose a dual-modal emotion recognition framework that is composed of a parallel convolution (Pconv) module and attention-based bidirectional long short-term memory (BLSTM) module. The Pconv module employs parallel methods to extract multidimensional social features and provides more effective representation capacity. Attention-based BLSTM module is utilized to strengthen key information extraction and maintain the relevance between information. Experiments conducted on the CH-SIMS dataset indicate that the recognition accuracy reaches 74.70% on audio data and 77.13% on text, while the accuracy of the dual-modal fusion model reaches 90.02%. Through experiments it proves the feasibility to process heterogeneous information within homogeneous network component, and demonstrates that attention-based BLSTM module would achieve best coordination with the feature fusion realized by Pconv module. This can give great flexibility for the modality expansion and architecture design.
Processing emotional prosody in a foreign language: the case of German and Hebrew
Authors: Shakuf Vered , Ben-David Boaz , Wegner Thomas G. G. , Wesseling Patricia B. C. , Mentzel Maya , Defren Sabrina , Allen Shanley E. M. , Lachmann Thomas
Published: August 2022

This study investigated the universality of emotional prosody in perception of discrete emotions when semantics is not available. In two experiments the perception of emotional prosody in Hebrew and German by listeners who speak one of the languages but not the other was investigated. Having a parallel tool in both languages allowed to conduct controlled comparisons. In Experiment 1, 39 native German speakers with no knowledge of Hebrew and 80 native Israeli speakers rated Hebrew sentences spoken with four different emotional prosodies (anger, fear, happiness, sadness) or neutral. The Hebrew version of the Test for Rating of Emotions in Speech (T-RES) was used for this purpose. Ratings indicated participants’ agreement on how much the sentence conveyed each of four discrete emotions (anger, fear, happiness and sadness). In Experient 2, 30 native speakers of German, and 24 Israeli native speakers of Hebrew who had no knowledge of German rated sentences of the German version of the T-RES. Based only on the prosody, German-speaking participants were able to accurately identify the emotions in the Hebrew sentences and Hebrew-speaking participants were able to identify the emotions in the German sentences. In both experiments ratings between the groups were similar. These findings show that individuals are able to identify emotions in a foreign language even if they do not have access to semantics. This ability goes beyond identification of target emotion; similarities between languages exist even for “wrong” perception. This adds to accumulating evidence in the literature on the universality of emotional prosody.
Interdependence and Cultural Resources to Mediate Change: What Was Missing in Engeström’s Third Generational Activity Theory
Authors: von Fircks Enno
Published: August 2022

In the present paper, I praise the benefits of organizational activity theory by means of an empirical example. I draw here on my work experience within a pharmacy. A client enters the pharmacy and demands medication for skin issues. The pharmacist wanting to prescribe a standard ointment refrains suddenly from this standard treatment while asking for the specific nature of the problem. The client lifting up his shirt lets him glimpse into his very intimate action field (body) which is the basis for an innovative solution – contacting a befriended dermatologist. The client entering the pharmacy is thus – equally – entering the complex interlocked action sphere of the pharmacist that can be made fertile for specific goals and purposes. Activity theory was able to decipher this complex human interaction while showing innovative solutions on the side of the pharmacy. It is thus doing justice to the complexity of dynamic people moving in time. Yet, activity theory lacks concrete cultural mechanisms of change. Here, I appeal interested readers not to create a new generation of organizational activity theory but to complement the third generation of it. I argue that interdependence and jointly negotiated cultural resources can mediate sustainable change within an organizational system. Interdependence of goals is important for the dermatologist to join the pharmacist in an alternative treatment while client and pharmacist need to negotiate the concrete details of exchanging contacts, sending photos of the skin issues and transferring contact details. I argue that these mechanisms should be the beginning of a research program that pays attention to cultural mechanisms that mediate change within organizational activity theory. The time is ripe.
Reconstruction and variability of tropical pollination networks in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
Authors: Pereira Juliana , Ribeiro Milton Cezar , Battiston Federico , Jordán Ferenc
Published: August 2022

Loss of biodiversity comprehends not only the extinction of individual species, but also the loss of the ecological interactions among them. Survival of species, continuation of ecosystem functioning in nature, and ecosystem services to humans depend on the maintenance of well-functioning networks of species interactions (e.g. plant–pollinator networks and food webs). Analyses of ecological networks often rely on biased and incomplete survey data, especially in species-rich areas, such as the tropics. We used a network inference method to reconstruct pollination data compiled from a large tropical rainforest habitat extent. To gain insight into the characteristics of plant–pollinator interactions across the region, we combined the reconstructed pollination network with species distribution modelling to obtain local pollination networks throughout the area. We explored how global network properties relate to natural forest cover and land cover heterogeneity. We found that some network properties (the sum and evenness of link weights, connectance and nestedness) are positively correlated with forest cover, indicating that networks in sites with more natural habitat have greater diversity of interactions. Modularity was not related to forest cover, but seemed to reflect habitat heterogeneity, due to the broad spatial scale of the study. We believe that the methodology suggested here can facilitate the use of incomplete network data in a reliable way and allow us to better understand and protect networks of species interactions in high biodiversity regions of the world.
Engineering Brain: Metaverse for future engineering
Authors: Wang Xiangyu , Wang Jun , Wu Chenke , Xu Shuyuan , Ma Wei
Published: August 2022

The past decade has witnessed a notable transformation in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry, with efforts made both in the academia and industry to facilitate improvement of efficiency, safety and sustainability in civil projects. Such advances have greatly contributed to a higher level of automation in the lifecycle management of civil assets within a digitalised environment. To integrate all the achievements delivered so far and further step up their progress, this study proposes a novel theory, Engineering Brain, by effectively adopting the Metaverse concept in the field of civil engineering. Specifically, the evolution of the Metaverse and its key supporting technologies are first reviewed; then, the Engineering Brain theory is presented, including its theoretical background, key components and their inter-connections. Outlooks of this theory’s implementation within the AEC sector are offered, as a description of the Metaverse of future engineering. Through a comparison between the proposed Engineering Brain theory and the Metaverse, their relationships are illustrated; and how Engineering Brain may function as the Metaverse for future engineering is further explored. Providing an innovative insight into the future engineering sector, this study can potentially guide the entire industry towards its new era based on the Metaverse environment.
Fusion of thermal and RGB images for automated deep learning based crack detection in civil infrastructure
Authors: Alexander Quincy G. , Hoskere Vedhus , Narazaki Yasutaka , Maxwell Andrew , Spencer Billie F.
Published: August 2022

Research has been continually growing toward the development of image-based structural health monitoring tools that can leverage deep learning models to automate damage detection in civil infrastructure. However, these tools are typically based on RGB images, which work well under ideal lighting conditions, but often have degrading performance in poor and low-light scenes. On the other hand, thermal images, while lacking in crispness of details, do not show the same degradation of performance in changing lighting conditions. The potential to enhance automated damage detection by fusing RGB and thermal images together within a deep learning network has yet to be explored. In this paper, RGB and thermal images are fused in a ResNET-based semantic segmentation model for vision-based inspections. A convolutional neural network is then employed to automatically identify damage defects in concrete. The model uses a thermal and RGB encoder to combine the features detected from both spectrums to improve its performance of the model, and a single decoder to predict the classes. The results suggest that this RGB-thermal fusion network outperforms the RGB-only network in the detection of cracks using the Intersection Over Union (IOU) performance metric. The RGB-thermal fusion model not only detected damage at a higher performance rate, but it also performed much better in differentiating the types of damage.
Networks in the Public Sector
Authors: Siciliano Michael D. , Wang Weijie , Hu Qian , Medina Alejandra , Krackhardt David
Published: August 2022

Networks contain complex patterns of dependency and require multiple levels of analysis to explain their formation, structure, and outcomes. In this Element, the authors develop the Multilevel Network Framework. The framework serves as (i) a conceptual tool to think more deeply about network dynamics, (ii) a research tool to assist in connecting data, theory, and empirical models, and (iii) a diagnostic tool to analyze and categorize bodies of research. The authors then systematically review the network literature in public administration, management, and policy. They apply the Multilevel Network Framework to categorize the literature; identify significant gaps; examine micro, macro and cross-level relations; and examine relevant mechanisms and theories. Overall this Element helps readers to (i) understand and classify network research, (ii) use appropriate theoretical frameworks to examine network-related problems, (iii) understand how networks emerge and produce effects at different levels of analysis, and (iv) select appropriate empirical models.
Surveillance, the Cold War, and Latin American Literature
Authors: Noemi Voionmaa Daniel
Published: August 2022

Surveillance, the Cold War, and Latin American Literature examines secret police reports on Gabriel García Márquez, Pablo Neruda, Octavio Paz, Elena Poniatowska, José Revueltas, Otto René Castillo, Carlos Cerda, and other writers, from archives in Mexico, Chile, Guatemala, Uruguay, the German Democratic Republic, and the USA. Combining literary and cultural analysis, history, philosophy, and history of art, it establishes a critical dialogue between the spies' surveillance and the writers' novels, short stories, and poems, and presents a new take on Latin American modernity, tracing the trajectory of a modern gaze from the Italian Renaissance to the Cold War. It traces the origins of today's surveillance society with sense of urgency and consequence that should appeal to academic and non-academic readers alike throughout the Americas, Europe and beyond.
Water and Aid in Mozambique
Authors: Van Houweling Emily
Published: August 2022

Analysing how water development projects unfolded in five rural communities in Mozambique, Emily Van Houweling offers an alternative perspective on water and the politicised nature of water management in the region. Using a hydro-social cycle framework, she demonstrates how water is tied to everyday life in matrilineal Nampula and how social relations, gender roles, and local politics were reconfigured during the project. While centring the experience of community members, Van Houweling also includes the perspectives of project implementers, showing how project plans were translated and negotiated as they worked their way down to the community. Employing the concept of organisational culture, Van Houweling reveals the tensions that resulted from different actors' decision-making processes and motivations, and illuminates possible explanations for the gaps between policy and practice. Exploring women's empowerment, community ownership, and participation, this book facilitates innovative ways for thinking about evaluation, sustainability, and gender-water relations.
Milton's Late Poems
Authors: Morrissey Lee
Published: August 2022

Upending conventional scholarship on Milton and modernity, Lee Morrissey recasts Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, and Samson Agonistes as narrating three alternative responses to a world in upheaval: adjustment, avoidance and antagonism. Through incisive engagement with narrative, form, and genre, Morrissey shows how each work, considered specifically as a fiction, grapples with the vicissitudes of a modern world characterised more by paradoxes, ambiguities, subversions and shifting temporalities than by any rigid historical periodization. The interpretations made possible by this book are as invaluable as they are counterintuitive, opening new definitions and stimulating avenues of research for Milton students and specialists, as well as for those working in the broader field of early modern studies. Morrissey invites us to rethink where Milton stands in relation to the greatest products of modernity, and in particular to that most modern of genres, the novel.
Visualising Lost Theatres
Authors: Tompkins Joanne , Holledge Julie , Bollen Jonathan , Xia Liyang
Published: August 2022

This pioneering study harnesses virtual reality to uncover the history of five venues that have been 'lost' to us: London's 1590s Rose Theatre; Bergen's mid-nineteenth-century Komediehuset; Adelaide's Queen's Theatre of 1841; circus tents hosting Cantonese opera performances in Australia's goldfields in the 1850s; and the Stardust showroom in 1950s Las Vegas. Shaping some of the most enduring genres of world theatre and cultural production, each venue marks a significant cultural transformation, charted here through detailed discussion of theatrical praxis and socio-political history. Using virtual models as performance laboratories for research, Visualising Lost Theatres recreates the immersive feel of venues and reveals performance logistics for actors and audiences. Proposing a new methodology for using visualisations as a tool in theatre history, and providing 3D visualisations for the reader to consult alongside the text, this is a landmark contribution to the digital humanities.
Narrative Determination
Authors: STUDTMANN PAUL , SHIELDS CHRISTOPHER
Published: August 2022

The traditional problem of free will has reached an impasse; we are unlikely to see progress without rethinking the terms in which the problem had been cast. Our approach offers an alternative to the standard terms of the debate, by developing an authorially parameterized approach articulated within a two-dimensional semantics for temporal predicates.
The Magic of Ad Hoc Solutions
Authors: SMID JEROEN
Published: August 2022

When a theory is confronted with a problem such as a paradox, an empirical anomaly, or a vicious regress, one may change part of the theory to solve that problem. Sometimes the proposed solution is considered ad hoc. This paper gives a new definition of ‘ad hoc solution’ as used in both philosophy and science. I argue that a solution is ad hoc if it fails to live up to the explanatory requirements of a theory because the solution is not backed by an explanation or because it does not diagnose the problem. Ad hoc solutions are thus magical: they solve a problem without providing insight. This definition helps to explain both why ad hoc solutions are bad and why there may be disagreement about cases.
Severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections occurring in healthcare workers after booster vaccination: A comparison of delta versus omicron variants
Authors: Reeves Kimberly D. , Polk Christopher M. , Cox Laura A. , Fairman Robert T. , Hawkins Gregory A. , Passaretti Catherine L. , Sampson Mindy M.
Published: August 2022

In this study, we used genomic sequencing to identify variants of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in healthcare workers with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) after receiving a booster vaccination. We compared symptoms, comorbidities, exposure risks, and vaccine history between the variants. Postbooster COVID-19 cases increased as the SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant predominated.
The Appointment of Women to Authoritarian Cabinets in Africa
Authors: Kroeger Alex , Kang Alice J.
Published: August 2022

What explains variation in the inclusion of women in authoritarian cabinets? We theorize that leaders of electoral autocracies are affected by changing international norms of democracy and women's rights to appoint women ministers. We propose two hypotheses. First, increasing dependence on aid from democratic donors encourages leaders of electoral autocracies to appoint more women ministers. Second, electoral autocrats uprooting democratic traits appoint more women ministers to minimize the reputational costs of their autocratization. Using data from authoritarian regimes in 38 African countries between 1973 and 2013, we find that increases in aid from democracies are associated with modest increases in women's share of cabinet seats. As our theory suggests, this relationship holds only in electoral autocracies in more recent years when norms of gender equality have been strongest. Conversely, we find no evidence that autocratization periods are associated with increases in women's cabinet share. Additionally, we show that supply-side factors and the politics of multi-ethnic coalition building appear to explain differences in women's cabinet seat share in autocracies.
Trends in Clostridioides difficile infection rates in Canadian hospitals during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic
Authors: Choi Kelly B. , Du Tim , Silva Anada , Golding George R. , Pelude Linda , Mitchell Robyn , Rudnick Wallis , Hizon Romeo , Al-Rawahi Ghada N , Chow Blanda , Davis Ian , Evans Gerald A. , Frenette Charles , Johnstone Jennie , Kibsey Pamela , Katz Kevin C. , Langley Joanne M. , Lee Bonita E. , Longtin Yves , Mertz Dominik , Minion Jessica , Science Michelle , Srigley Jocelyn A. , Stagg Paula , Suh Kathryn N. , Thampi Nisha , Wong Alice , Comeau Jeannette L. , Hota Susy S. ,   for the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program (CNISP)
Published: August 2022

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed significant burden on healthcare systems. We compared Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) epidemiology before and during the pandemic across 71 hospitals participating in the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program. Using an interrupted time series analysis, we showed that CDI rates significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dietary sodium sources according to four 3-d weighed food records and their association with multiple 24-h urinary excretions among middle-aged and elderly Japanese participants in rural areas
Authors: Ogawa Fuyuka , Takachi Ribeka , Ishihara Junko , Yamagishi Marina , Maruya Sachiko , Ishii Yuri , Kito Kumiko , Nakamura Kazutoshi , Tanaka Junta , Yamaji Taiki , Iso Hiroyasu , Iwasaki Motoki , Tsugane Shoichiro , Sawada Norie ,   for the JPHC-NEXT Protocol Validation Study Group
Published: August 2022

Reducing Na intake is an urgent global challenge, especially in East Asia and high-income Asia-Pacific regions. However, the sources of Na and their effects on urinary Na excretion have not been fully studied. We sought to clarify these sources and their association with urinary Na excretion. We examined four 3-d weighed food records and five 24-h urinary collections from each of 253 participants in Japan, aged 35–80 years, between 2012 and 2013. We compared the levels of Na according to four categories: foods contributing to discretionary or non-discretionary Na intake, the situation in which dishes were cooked and consumed, food groups and types of cuisine. We also conducted regression analysis in which 24-h urinary Na excretion was a dependent variable and the amounts of food intake in the four categories were independent variables. Levels of Na were the highest in discretionary intake (60·6 %) and in home-prepared dishes (84·0 %). Of the food groups, miso soup showed the highest percentage contribution to Na intake (13·3 %) after seasonings such as soya sauce. In the regression analysis, the standardised coefficient for foods of non-discretionary Na sources was larger than that for discretionary sources, whereas that for home-prepared dishes was consistent with the levels of Na in those foods. Pickled products, followed by fresh fish and shellfish, miso soup and rice, were associated with high urinary Na excretion. Thus, discretionary foods (such as miso soup) contribute the most to Na consumption, although non-discretionary intake (such as pickled vegetables) may influence urinary Na excretion.
RECURSIVE DIFFERENCING FOR ESTIMATING SEMIPARAMETRIC MODELS
Authors: Shen Chan , Klein Roger
Published: August 2022

Controlling the bias is central to estimating semiparametric models. Many methods have been developed to control bias in estimating conditional expectations while maintaining a desirable variance order. However, these methods typically do not perform well at moderate sample sizes. Moreover, and perhaps related to their performance, nonoptimal windows are selected with undersmoothing needed to ensure the appropriate bias order. In this paper, we propose a recursive differencing estimator for conditional expectations. When this method is combined with a bias control targeting the derivative of the semiparametric expectation, we are able to obtain asymptotic normality under optimal windows. As suggested by the structure of the recursion, in a wide variety of triple index designs, the proposed bias control performs much better at moderate sample sizes than regular or higher-order kernels and local polynomials.
Co-Designing Together through Crisis: Development of a Virtual Care Guidance Document to Support Providers, Older Adults, and Caregivers
Authors: Glover Jody , Elliott Jacobi , McIntyre Muddle Kelly ,   the South West Frail Senior Strategy Regional Patient and Family Caregiver Advisory Group
Published: August 2022

COVID-19 has had a disproportionate and devastating impact on older adults. As health care resources suddenly shifted to emergency response planning, many health and community support services were cancelled, postponed, or shifted to virtual care. This rapid transformation of geriatric care resulted in an immediate need for practical guidance on decision making, planning and delivery of virtual care for older adults and caregivers. This article outlines the rapid co-design process that supported the development of a guidance document intended to support health and community support services providers. Data were collected through consultation sessions, surveys, and a rapid literature review, and analyzed using appropriate qualitative and quantitative methods. Although this work took place within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the resulting resources and lessons learned related to collective impact, co-design, population-based planning, and digital technologies can be applied more broadly.
Associations between variety of fruits and vegetables consumed, diet quality and socio-demographic factors among 8th and 11th grade adolescents in Texas
Authors: Marshall Allison N , Ranjit Nalini , van den Berg Alexandra , Gill Montana , Hoelscher Deanna M
Published: August 2022

Objective:

To examine demographic and dietary correlates of consumption of a variety of fruits and vegetables (FV) among Texas adolescents. Different types of FV are needed for adequate dietary intake of vitamins and phytochemicals for proper development and functioning throughout the lifespan.

Design:

Cross-sectional analysis from the Texas Surveillance of Physical Activity and Nutrition (Texas SPAN) data comparing consumption of a variety of fruit and vegetables by gender, race/ethnicity and region (Texas-Mexico border/non-border).

Setting:

Middle, high schools in Texas.

Participants:

8th, 11th grade Texas adolescents (n 9056 representing n 659 288) mean age 14·8 years.

Results:

Within this sample, mean fruit and vegetable variety scores (0–7) ranged from 2·47 to 2·65. Boys consumed a significantly greater variety of fruit than girls (mean = 1·12 compared with 1·04). Adolescents in non-border regions consumed a greater variety of vegetables and FV compared with those in border regions. FV variety was associated with healthier eating in the full sample, particularly in the highest socio-economic status (SES) tertile. Within the highest SES tertile, a one-unit increase in variety of fruit, vegetable and FV was associated with significant increases (P < 0·001) in a healthy eating measure, the SPAN Healthy Eating Index: Fruit variety (β = 1·33, se = 0·29), vegetable variety (β = 0·90, se = 0·28) and FV variety (β = 0·81, se = 0·19).

Conclusions:

Consumption of a greater variety of FV appears to be associated with a healthier overall diet. Associations of FV variety with healthy eating were most significant in the highest SES tertile. These findings support the need to further examine consuming a variety of FV within healthy eating behaviour.
Evaluating the Tsunamigenic Potential of Buried Versus Trench‐Breaching Megathrust Slip
Authors: Carvajal Matías , Sun Tianhaozhe , Wang Kelin , Luo Haipeng , Zhu Yijie
Published: August 2022

Subduction megathrust ruptures that breach the trench, such as in the 2011 M = 9 Tohoku‐oki earthquake, can be very tsunamigenic. However, whether buried ruptures are intrinsically less tsunamigenic has not been fully investigated. Here, we conduct this investigation by studying the mechanics of seafloor deformation and the resultant tsunami runup. With a trench‐breaching rupture, deformation is dominated by the rigid‐body translation of the frontal upper plate, and seafloor uplift is enhanced by the horizontal motion of the sloping seafloor. With a buried rupture, the rigid‐body motion is reduced, but the shortening of the upper plate due to seaward slip termination causes elastic thickening to enhance tsunamigenic seafloor uplift. By combining a finite‐element deformation model and a shallow‐water equation tsunami model, we systematically test various subduction zone geometrical and slip parameters to study the trade‐off between rigid‐body translation and elastic thickening in causing seafloor uplift and tsunami runup. To isolate the effect of slip depth, we compare scenarios with the same peak slip and rupture width. We find that very shallow ruptures, including those breaching the trench, are generally less tsunamigenic than deeper ruptures. Given peak slip, tsunamigenic potential is maximized if the rupture is not too shallow or too deep but is buried to moderate depths. Our model tests using variable hypothetical rupture depths suggest that, with a slip magnitude as large as in the 2011 Tohoku‐oki earthquake, tsunami runups as high as the observed would occur even if the rupture were fully buried.
Using Data to Mitigate Inequitable Environmental Burdens
Authors: Anenberg Susan , Xiao Qian , Kerr Gaige , Chakraborty Jayajit
Published: August 2022

A new transdisciplinary special collection welcomes studies exploring data and tools for identifying and mitigating environmental injustice.
Update on the Temperature Corrections of Global Air‐Sea CO2 Flux Estimates
Authors: Dong Yuanxu , Bakker Dorothee C. E. , Bell Thomas G. , Huang Boyin , Landschützer Peter , Liss Peter S. , Yang Mingxi
Published: August 2022

The oceans are a major carbon sink. Sea surface temperature (SST) is a crucial variable in the calculation of the air‐sea carbon dioxide (CO2) flux from surface observations. Any bias in the SST or any upper ocean vertical temperature gradient (e.g., the cool skin effect) potentially generates a bias in the CO2 flux estimates. A recent study suggested a substantial increase (∼50% or ∼0.9 Pg C yr−1) in the global ocean CO2 uptake due to this temperature effect. Here, we use a gold standard buoy SST data set as the reference to assess the accuracy of insitu SST used for flux calculation. A physical model is then used to estimate the cool skin effect, which varies with latitude. The bias‐corrected SST (assessed by buoy SST) coupled with the physics‐based cool skin correction increases the average ocean CO2 uptake by ∼35% (0.6 Pg C yr−1) from 1982 to 2020, which is substantially smaller than the previous correction. After these temperature considerations, we estimate an average net ocean CO2 uptake of 2.2 ± 0.4 Pg C yr−1 from 1994 to 2007 based on an ensemble of surface observation‐based flux estimates, in line with the independent interior ocean carbon storage estimate corrected for the river induced natural outgassing flux (2.1 ± 0.4 Pg C yr−1).
Saturn Anomalous Myriametric Radiation, a New Type of Saturn Radio Emission Revealed by Cassini
Authors: Wu S. Y. , Ye S. Y. , Fischer G. , Taubenschuss U. , Jackman C. M. , O'Dwyer E. , Kurth W. S. , Yao S. , Yao Z. H. , Menietti J. D. , Xu Y. , Long M. Y. , Cecconi B.
Published: August 2022

A new radio component namely Saturn Anomalous Myriametric Radiation (SAM) is reported. A total of 193 SAM events have been identified by using all the Cassini Saturn orbital data. SAM emissions are L‐O mode radio emission and occasionally accompanied by a first harmonic in R‐X mode. SAM's intensities decrease with increasing distance from Saturn, suggesting a source near Saturn. SAM has a typical central frequency near 13 kHz, a bandwidth greater than 8 kHz and usually drifts in frequency over time. SAM's duration can extend to near 11 hr and even longer. These features distinguish SAM from the regular narrowband emissions observed in the nearby frequency range, hence the name anomalous. The high occurrence rate of SAM after low frequency extensions of Saturn Kilometric Radiation and the SAM cases observed during compressions of Saturn's magnetosphere suggest a special connection to solar wind dynamics and magnetospheric conditions at Saturn.
Micromagnetic Modes of Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility in Natural Magnetite Particles
Authors: Nikolaisen Even S. , Fabian Karl , Harrison Richard , McEnroe Suzanne A.
Published: August 2022

Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) is commonly used to assess sedimentation, deformation, tectonics, rock fabric, and texture. Using focused‐ion beam nanotomography, we develop a micromagnetic method to investigate the AMS of individual magnetite inclusions in silicates across the transition between single‐domain (SD) to multidomain behavior. We calculate individual AMS tensors by modeling the magnetization response of a particle to weak applied fields in three orthogonal directions. The main AMS mode of elongated SD particles is not a homogeneous magnetization rotation, but focused alignment of spins at their edges and tips. In single‐vortex particles, vortex displacement is the dominant AMS mode, which focuses the largest magnetization changes in a planar region containing the vortex core, and perpendicular to the direction of vortex motion. In multi‐vortex structures a combined motion of all vortex centers can lead to high degrees of anisotropy when some motion patterns are energetically much easier to achieve than others.
Impacts of Simulated Contrail Processing and Organic Content Change on the Ice Nucleation of Soot Particles
Authors: Gao Kunfeng , Kanji Zamin A.
Published: August 2022

Soot particles may undergo cloud‐processing during atmospheric transport after which the particle porosity and surface wettability can be modified. Soot particles therefore show varying ice nucleation (IN) abilities via the pore condensation and freezing (PCF) mechanism, leading to poorly constrained effects on cirrus formation and climate. This study simulates a typical cloud‐processing condition (at 228 K) for size‐selected (200 and 400 nm) aviation soot proxies with different organic contents. Based on the particle size, mass and morphology changes, as well as the findings from parallel studies on similar soot samples, we demonstrate that cloud‐processing increases the particle compactness and water‐interaction ability. However, the pore availability change resulting from above property changes dominates the IN ability of cloud‐processed particles via PCF. Even originally organic‐rich and hydrophobic soot particles can nucleate ice via PCF if suitable pores can be generated after organic removal and cloud‐processing.
LINC00941 promotes pancreatic cancer malignancy by interacting with ANXA2 and suppressing NEDD4L-mediated degradation of ANXA2
Authors: Wang Jie , He Zhiwei , Liu Xinyuan , Xu Jian , Jiang Xueyi , Quan Gang , Jiang Jianxin
Published: August 2022

Recently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) have been proven to regulate pancreatic cancer (PC) progression. We aimed to explore the pathogenesis of LINC00941 in PC regarding protein binding. By using PCR analysis, we found that LINC00941 was overexpressed in PC tissues and was higher in patients with liver metastasis than in patients without liver metastasis. In addition, high LINC00941 expression was associated with a poor prognosis. Functional experiments and mice models were respectively used to evaluate PC cell proliferation and migration in vitro and in vivo. The results suggested that LINC00941 overexpression promoted PC proliferation and metastasis. Subsequently, RNA pull-down, mass spectrometry (MS), and RNA-binding protein immunoprecipitation (RIP) were performed to identify LINC00941-interacting proteins. The results suggested that ANXA2 was the potential LINC00941-interacting protein. Nucleotides 500–1390 of LINC00941 could bind to the Annexin 1 domain of ANXA2. LINC00941-mediated malignant phenotype of PC was reversed by ANXA2 depletion. Co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) followed by MS was conducted to determine the potential interacting protein of LINC00941. The results illustrated that NEDD4L, an E3 ligase involved in ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation, bound to the Annexin 1 domain of ANXA2 and promoted its degradation. Mechanically, LINC00941 functioned as a decoy to bind to ANXA2 and suppressed its degradation by enclosing the domain that binds to NEDD4L. Eventually, LINC00941 upregulated ANXA2 and activated FAK/AKT signaling, increasing PC cell proliferation and metastasis. This study indicates that LINC00941 promotes PC proliferation and metastasis by binding ANXA2 and potentiating its stability, leading to the activation of FAK/AKT signaling. Our data demonstrate that LINC00941 may serve as a novel target for prognosis and therapy.