bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pembrolizumab Alone or With Chemotherapy for Recurrent/Metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma in KEYNOTE-048: Subgroup Analysis by Programmed Death Ligand-1 Combined Positive Score
Authors: Burtness Barbara , Rischin Danny , Greil Richard , Soulières Denis , Tahara Makoto , de Castro Jr Gilberto , Psyrri Amanda , Brana Irene , Basté Neus , Neupane Prakash , Bratland Åse , Fuereder Thorsten , Hughes Brett G.M. , Mesia Ricard , Ngamphaiboon Nuttapong , Rordorf Tamara , Wan Ishak Wan Zamaniah , Ge Joy , Swaby Ramona F. , Gumuscu Burak , Harrington Kevin
Published: March 2022

PURPOSE

The phase III KEYNOTE-048 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02358031 ) trial of pembrolizumab in recurrent or metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) included planned efficacy analyses in the total population and in participants with programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) combined positive score (CPS) ≥ 1 and CPS ≥ 20. To further characterize the predictive value of PD-L1 expression on outcome, we conducted efficacy analyses in the PD-L1 CPS < 1 and CPS 1-19 subgroups in KEYNOTE-048.

METHODS

Participants with R/M HNSCC and no prior systemic therapy for R/M disease were randomly assigned 1:1:1 to pembrolizumab, pembrolizumab-chemotherapy, or cetuximab-chemotherapy. Post hoc efficacy analyses of the PD-L1 CPS < 1 and CPS 1-19 subgroups were performed.

RESULTS

Of 882 participants enrolled, 128 had PD-L1 CPS < 1 and 373 had CPS 1-19. For pembrolizumab versus cetuximab-chemotherapy, the median overall survival was 7.9 versus 11.3 months in the PD-L1 CPS < 1 subgroup (hazard ratio [HR], 1.51 [95% CI, 0.96 to 2.37]) and 10.8 versus 10.1 months in the CPS 1-19 subgroup (HR, 0.86 [95% CI, 0.66 to 1.12]). For pembrolizumab-chemotherapy versus cetuximab-chemotherapy, the median overall survival was 11.3 versus 10.7 months in the PD-L1 CPS < 1 subgroup (HR, 1.21 [95% CI, 0.76 to 1.94]) and 12.7 versus 9.9 months in the CPS 1-19 subgroup (HR, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.54 to 0.94]).

CONCLUSION

Increased efficacy of pembrolizumab or pembrolizumab-chemotherapy was observed with increasing PD-L1 expression. PD-L1 CPS < 1 subgroup analysis was limited by small participant numbers. Results from the PD-L1 CPS 1-19 subgroup support previous findings of treatment benefit with pembrolizumab monotherapy and pembrolizumab-chemotherapy in patients with PD-L1 CPS ≥ 1 tumors. Although PD-L1 expression is informative, exploration of additional predictive biomarkers is needed for low PD-L1–expressing HNSCC.
Recalibrating Interpretations of Aldosterone Assays Across the Physiologic Range: Immunoassay and Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry Measurements Under Multiple Controlled Conditions
Authors: Brown Jenifer M , Auchus Richard J , Honzel Brooke , Luther James M , Yozamp Nicholas , Vaidya Anand
Published: March 2022

Context

Clinicians frequently rely on aldosterone thresholds derived from older immunoassays to diagnose primary aldosteronism. Liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is increasingly widespread and reported to yield lower aldosterone concentrations.

Objective

Given the health impact of incorrect interpretations of aldosterone levels, we compared measurements using LC-MS/MS and immunoassay across the full range of aldosterone physiology by evaluating distinct regulation by angiotensin II and adrenocorticotropin (ACTH).

Methods

Normotensive volunteers underwent prospective characterization of aldosterone production by immunoassay and LC-MS/MS during 4 conditions (n = 188): oral sodium suppression and restriction (to assess angiotensin II–mediated aldosterone production) and dexamethasone suppression and cosyntropin stimulation (to assess ACTH-mediated aldosterone production).

Results

Serum aldosterone concentrations by LC-MS/MS and immunoassay had a correlation of 0.69 (P < .001), with good agreement (intraclass correlation 0.76; 95% CI 0.52-0.87). Aldosterone was lower by LC-MS/MS than immunoassay (median 10.5 [3.8, 21.9] vs 19.6 [9.5, 28.0] ng/dL; P < .001), with an average difference of 37.2%. The most notable discrepancy was in the clinically discriminatory range <20 ng/dL: 9.9 (7.1, 13.8) ng/dL using immunoassay corresponded to 5.5 (1.4, 8.9) ng/dL by LC-MS/MS (P < .001). Following oral sodium suppression, the aldosterone-to-renin ratio was 4-fold higher using immunoassay (27.2 [19.7, 62.4] vs 6.4 [3.5, 19.1] ng/dL per ng/mL/hour; P < .001).

Conclusion

Aldosterone measurements are substantially lower by LC-MS/MS than immunoassay across the full physiologic range, especially when aldosterone levels were less than 20 ng/dL. These findings highlight the need to recalibrate diagnostic interpretations when measuring aldosterone via LC-MS/MS and provide insights into potential biologic causes of assay differences.
Small Farms, Cash Crops, Agrarian Ideals, and International Development
Authors: EFFLAND ANNE
Published: March 2022

This address is an exploration of a lifetime of disparate and often conflicting observations about how different people view what is right and good for agriculture, food, and farmers around the world. The exploration utilizes the concept of wicked problems to focus on the issue of differing historical interpretations of global agricultural development. Sandra Bade defines wicked problems as "dynamically complex, ill-structured, public problems" for which "there can be radically different views and understanding of the problem by different stakeholders, with no unique ’correct’ view. "The wicked problem construct is applied to four core ideas in the history of agricultural development—small farms, cash crops, agrarian ideals, and international development—to demonstrate the potential for using this concept to approach complex problems of historical interpretation and contribute to solutions to the challenges of global agricultural development. The author suggests historians should acknowledge contradictory interpretations and work toward reconciliation and synthesis, where it is possible and, where not, toward a clear explication of the basis for remaining differences. The author also encourages historians to seek multidisciplinary research opportunities that will help bring insights about historical context to policy deliberations.
AGRICULTURAL HISTORY ROUNDTABLE COMPLICATING THE STORY: ORAL HISTORY AND THE STUDY OF THE RURAL SOUTH: LU ANN JONES, ADRIENNE PETTY, MARK SCHULTZ, REBECCA SHARPLESS, AND MELISSA WALKER
Authors: Jones Lu Ann , Petty Adrienne , Schultz Mark , Sharpless Rebecca , Walker Melissa
Published: March 2022

Five historians who have used oral history to study the rural South assess the ways that oral history methodology and content have complicated our understanding of the region’s agricultural past. They explore two major themes: first, the ways that the information gathered in oral history interviews revealed the diversity and complexity of the rural South and second, how the dialectical process of the interview—the give and take between interviewer and informant—shaped their interpretation of that rural past. Sharpless and Jones examine new content gained through interviews with German Americans and plantation managers, who have been excluded from most studies. Through their personal experiences, Petty and Schultz consider the ways in which relationships between interviewer and interviewee shape the narrative, often obviating differences of class and particularly race. Walker frames the discussion from her experiences in interviewing a variety of rural Southerners.
The Front, the Frontier, Police Anarchy, and the Solidarity of the Shaken
Authors: Feldman Allen
Published: March 2022

This essay opens the question of the political genesis of fractal topologies from monolithic fronts of power and privation. The political front can no longer be encapsulated as a continuous norm-provisioning ground. Emerging frontier zones of violence jettison anachronistic centralized fronts of law and procedure in their wake. The political frontier is exemplified by the current fusion of warfare and lawfare — the extrajudicial violence of racialized and militarized policing, the right to look and inspect and the murder and carceralization of minorities, migrants, and cognate others. Police power, as the surviving repository and legatee of the historical wreckage of sovereignties past, is the anarchy that has captured the state in the present.
“Hindustan Is a Dream”
Authors: Taneja Anand Vivek
Published: March 2022

In a time of dominant Hindu nationalism and rising Islamophobia in India, Urdu poetry is the medium in which an alternative political theology finds popular articulation, questioning the “normative horizon” of the nation-state. The political theology being articulated through Urdu poetry is one that is concerned not with the state, but with the constitution of the self through a network of thick relations to locality. The vision articulated by this alternate political theology — which draws on both long-standing Indo-Islamic traditions and the lived experience of Indian democracy — calls for a radical reimagining of intimate relations as the basis of belonging and the forming of political community.
Race, Gender, and Religion
Authors: Moallem Minoo
Published: March 2022

This article focuses on anti-Muslim racism as a discourse that collapses race and religion and cannot be reduced to phobia. It is instead about a racial project of accumulation based on European superiority and how cultural racism upholds the European civilizational project. The author argues that Islamophobia should be traced back to colonial modernity, its regimes of othering, and its perception of Islam as Mohammedanism that conceals its nature as a fetishistic, primitive, barbaric, patriarchal, and irrational set of beliefs. To illustrate anti-Muslim racism, the author elaborates briefly on three interconnected ideas: the construction of Islam as a unified religious and cultural mindset, its fetishistic character, and its enigmatic image of the woman to reflect on how Islam is presented as the antonym of Western civilization.
The Entanglement of Secularism and Feminism in Pakistan
Authors: Jamal Amina
Published: March 2022

In many Muslim-majority societies, including Pakistan, liberal progressive subjects who espouse feminism and gender equality do so through the language of universal human rights and political secularism. This brings them into conflict not only with anti-secular rightwing conservatives within their own societies but also with progressive scholarly critics of secularism in other contexts. To clear the space for a nuanced understanding of feminist secularism in Pakistan, the author examines a unique style of politics that may be described as “secular” among middle-class Muslim women interviewed by the author in Karachi and Islamabad. She argues that the espousal of secularism by feminists as a political cultural discourse in South Asia can initiate a politics that challenges hegemonic notions of self, community, and nation that are gaining strength in Pakistan. This position militates against simplistic understandings of secular feminism in this Muslim-majority society as the politics of colonized subjects or as a hegemonic nexus for reproducing the discursive power of Eurocentric and universalist discourses.
A kinase-dead Csf1r mutation associated with adult-onset leukoencephalopathy has a dominant inhibitory impact on CSF1R signalling
Authors: Stables Jennifer , Green Emma K. , Sehgal Anuj , Patkar Omkar L. , Keshvari Sahar , Taylor Isis , Ashcroft Maisie E. , Grabert Kathleen , Wollscheid-Lengeling Evi , Szymkowiak Stefan , McColl Barry W. , Adamson Antony , Humphreys Neil E. , Mueller Werner , Starobova Hana , Vetter Irina , Shabestari Sepideh Kiani , Blurton-Jones Matthew M. , Summers Kim M. , Irvine Katharine M. , Pridans Clare , Hume David A.
Published: March 2022

Amino acid substitutions in the kinase domain of the human CSF1R gene are associated with autosomal dominant adult-onset leukoencephalopathy with axonal spheroids and pigmented glia (ALSP). To model the human disease, we created a disease-associated mutation (pGlu631Lys; E631K) in the mouse Csf1r locus. Homozygous mutation (Csf1rE631K/E631K) phenocopied the Csf1r knockout, with prenatal mortality or severe postnatal growth retardation and hydrocephalus. Heterozygous mutation delayed the postnatal expansion of tissue macrophage populations in most organs. Bone marrow cells from Csf1rE631K/+mice were resistant to CSF1 stimulation in vitro, and Csf1rE631K/+ mice were unresponsive to administration of a CSF1-Fc fusion protein, which expanded tissue macrophage populations in controls. In the brain, microglial cell numbers and dendritic arborisation were reduced in Csf1rE631K/+ mice, as in patients with ALSP. The microglial phenotype is the opposite of microgliosis observed in Csf1r+/− mice. However, we found no evidence of brain pathology or impacts on motor function in aged Csf1rE631K/+ mice. We conclude that heterozygous disease-associated CSF1R mutations compromise CSF1R signalling. We speculate that leukoencephalopathy associated with dominant human CSF1R mutations requires an environmental trigger and/or epistatic interaction with common neurodegenerative disease-associated alleles.
Risk-taking coping style correlates with SERT SNP290 polymorphisms in free-living great tits
Authors: Riyahi Sepand , Carrillo-Ortiz José G. , Uribe Francesc , Calafell Francesc , Senar Juan Carlos
Published: March 2022

The coping style of an individual in relation to potentially dangerous situations has been suggested to be inherited in a polygenic fashion, SERT being one of the candidate genes. In this study, we assessed in free-living great tits (Parus major) the association between SNP290 in the SERT promoter and three standard fear-related behaviors: the response of the birds to a black-and-white flag fixed to the top of the nest box, distress calling rate of the birds in the hand once captured and the hissing call of incubating females when approached by a predator. We found a strong association between SNP290 polymorphism and the three risk-taking behaviors, with birds with genotype CT entering the nest box with the flag faster and displaying more distress calls and fewer hissing calls. CT birds could therefore be described as more proactive than CC individuals. These results also suggest that hissing behavior should be regarded as a fear-induced shy behavior, and confirm that SERT has an important function in relation to risk aversion behaviors and coping style.
Comparative study of conventional ROI-based and volumetric histogram analysis derived from CT enhancement in differentiating malignant and benign renal tumors
Authors: Zhu Qingqiang , Zou Jinzhao , Ye Jing , Zhu Wenrong , Wu Jingtao , Chen Wenxin
Published: March 2022

Objective:

To quantitatively compare the diagnostic values of conventional region of interest (ROI)-based and volumetric histogram analysis derived from CT enhancement in differentiating malignant and benign renal tumors.

Methods:

A total of 230 patients with pathologically confirmed renal tumors who had undergone CT enhancement were classified into clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) (n = 133), non-ccRCC (n = 56), and benign renal tumor(n = 41) group. Parametric CT enhancement of each tumor from volumetric histogram were obtained using in-house software, including 10th percentile, 25th percentile, median, 75th percentile, 90th percentile, mean, standard deviation, as well as skewness, kurtosis and entropy, and histogram metrics among these groups were analyzed. ROI-based enhancement density was also analyzed.

Results:

The entropy and SD values of ccRCCs were higher than those of non-ccRCCs and benign renal tumors (p < 0.05). The 10th percentile, 25th percentile, median, 75th percentile, 90th percentile and mean values of ccRCCs were lower than those of benign renal tumors, however, higher than those of non-ccRCCs (p < 0.05). The ROI-based enhancement density of non-ccRCCs were lower than those of ccRCCs and benign renal tumors(p < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses showed that entropy and mean values had the highest diagnostic efficacy in differentiating ccRCCs/non-ccRCCs and benign renal tumors. ROC curve analyses showed that mean values had the highest diagnostic efficacy in differentiating ccRCCs and non-ccRCCs. In terms of pairwise comparisons of ROC curves and diagnostic efficacy, ROI-based CT enhancement density was worse than volumetric histogram analysis (p < 0.05).

Conclusion:

Volumetric histogram analysis parameters can effectively distinguish malignant and benign renal tumors.

Advances in knowledge:

1. Entropy and mean values had the highest diagnostic efficacy in differentiating ccRCCs/ non-ccRCCs and benign renal tumors. 2. Mean values had the highest diagnostic efficacy in differentiating ccRCCs and non-ccRCCs. 3.Volumetric histogram analysis had better performance than ROI-based enhancement density.
Practical needs and considerations for refugees and other forcibly displaced persons with neurological disorders: Recommendations using a modified Delphi approach
Authors: Rezaei Shawheen , Sakadi Foksouna , Hiew Fu-Liong , Rodriguez-Leyva Ildefonso , Kruja Jera , Wasay Mohammad , Seidi Osheik AbuAsha , Abdel-Aziz Saad , Nafissi Shahriar , Mateen Farrah ,   Global Working Group for Refugees with Neurological Needs
Published: March 2022

Background: There are >70 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, including refugees, internally displaced persons, and asylum seekers. While the health needs of forcibly displaced people have been characterized in the literature, more still needs to be done globally to translate this knowledge into effective policies and actions, particularly in neurology.

Methods: In 2020, a global network of published experts on neurological disease and refugees was convened. Nine physician experts from nine countries (2 low, 1 lower-middle income, 5 upper-middle, 1 high income) with experience treating displaced people originating from 18 countries participated in three survey and two discussion rounds in accordance with the Delphi method.

Results: A consensus list of priority interventions for treating neurological conditions in displaced people was created, agnostic to cost considerations, with the ten highest ranking tests or treatments ranked as: computerized tomography scans, magnetic resonance imaging scans, levetiracetam, acetylsalicylic acid, carbamazepine, paracetamol, sodium valproate, basic blood tests, steroids and anti-tuberculous medication. The most important contextual considerations (100% consensus) were all economic and political, including the economic status of the displaced person’s country of origin, the host country, and the stage in the asylum seeking process. The annual cost to purchase the ten priority neurological interventions for the entire displaced population was estimated to be 220 million USD for medications and 4.2 billion USD for imaging and tests.

Conclusions: A need for neuroimaging and anti-seizure medications for forcibly displaced people was emphasized. These recommendations could guide future research and investment in neurological care for forcibly displaced people.
Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on prehospital emergency care for stroke and transient ischaemic attack: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Burton Edel , McCarthy Vera JC , Merwick Aine , Kearney Patricia M , Buckley Claire M
Published: March 2022

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted on health service provision worldwide, including care for acute time sensitive conditions. Stroke and transient ischaemic attacks (TIA) are particularly vulnerable to pressures on healthcare delivery as they require immediate diagnosis and treatment. The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on prehospital emergency care for stroke/TIA is still largely unknown. Thus, the aim of this study is to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on prehospital emergency care for stroke and TIA.

Methods

Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, the review is registered on PROSPERO (registration number CRD42022315260). Peer-reviewed quantitative studies comparing prehospital emergency care for adults with stroke/TIA before and during the COVID-19 pandemic will be considered for inclusion. The outcomes of interest are ambulance response times and emergency call volumes for stroke/TIA. A systematic search of databases including PubMed, Embase and Scopus will be conducted. Two authors will independently screen studies for inclusion based on predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data extraction and quality assessment will be conducted by two authors. Meta-analysis will be performed to calculate overall pooled estimates of ambulance response times (primary outcome) and stroke/TIA call volumes (secondary outcome), where appropriate.  Where heterogeneity is low a fixed-effects model will be used and where heterogeneity is high a random-effects model will be used. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses will include location, stroke/TIA diagnosis and COVID-19 case numbers.

Results

Data on primary and secondary outcomes will be provided. Results of subgroup/sensitivity analyses and quality assessment will also be presented.

Conclusions 

This review will identify existing literature reporting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on prehospital emergency care for adult patients with stroke/TIA and provide summary estimates of effects on ambulance response times.
Long-term trend of the ionospheric E-layer response to solar flares
Authors: Givishvili Givi , Leshchenko Liudmila
Published: March 2022

Using data from ground-based vertical sounding of the ionosphere (VS) at the station Moscow and five Japanese stations for the period from 1969 to 2015, we have examined the long-term response of the E layer to solar X-ray flares. The analysis relies on the previously developed method for estimating the ratio between rates of ionization by X-rays qx and ultraviolet radiation qu during flares. We confirmed the existence of a long-term (at least covering the 45-year observation period) increase in the proportion of X-rays in the total ionization rate of the ionospheric E layer, characterized by the ratio qx/q, where q=qx+q. The qx/q ratio is shown to increase throughout the period of interest at a rate independent of the solar activity cycle. There is also no dependence of the qx/q trend rate on the season, latitude (26°–56° N), and longitude (37°–28° E).
Dynamics of carbon pool in Oak dominated community forests of District Tehri Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India
Authors: Bagri Ajendra Singh , Singh Neeraj , Singh Ankit , Singh Hardeep , Hussian Jaffer , Dhingra Gulshan , Tiwari Prabhawati
Published: March 2022

The present study was carried out community forest of Tehri Garhwal Uttarakhand. The amount of growing stock volume density in the study region were ranges between 28.21 m3/ha and 44.59 m3/ha, above-ground biomass density ranges between 200.59 Mg ha-1 and 238.44 Mg ha-1, belowground biomass density range between 128.03 and 192.96 Mg/ha, total biomass density was in the range of 287.76 and 431.40 Mg ha-1 and total carbon density ranges between 162.40 and 194.13 Mg ha-1. The isolation of total biomass density into aboveground and belowground parts showed a similar pattern in every one of the forest locales. Present study proposes that community forests play a vital role in ecosystem health they are playing their job quietly in the moderation of environmental carbon and crucial for future planning. Loss of old community forestry system is centre for concern to the forest department, forest rangers and forestry researchers. Protection of community forests is an urgent need for the maintenance of community ecosystem in temperate region of Garhwal Himalaya Uttarakhand. Preservation of the both young and old growth forests is the best way to adapt to environmental change and a worldwide temperature alteration. As we probably are aware the pattern of old cultivating in the networks close to the urban communities is decrease and will be supplanted by present day procedures so we need to look through some new strategy and execution to monitor the old cultivating methods. The ground stock volume density shows moderate positive correlation with altitude (r =0.325) while above ground biomass density (r = 0.203) below ground biomass density, total biomass density and total carbon density shows week positive correlation with altitude (r =0.117, r = 0.194 and r = 0.194 respectively). The Linear regression shows that ground stock volume density, above ground biomass density, below ground biomass density, total biomass density  and total carbon density  not dependent only altitude some other factor affecting them. While as above ground biomass density show highly positive correlation with total biomass density and total carbon density whereas altitude show less positive correlation with below ground biomass density).
E-procurement and the Principle of Transparency in Public Procurement in the European Union
Authors: Sołtysińska Aleksandra
Published: March 2022

Public procurement is one of the areas of government activity where the process of electronization began early in this century. The creation of e-procurement promotes the effective implementation of the principle of transparency from the perspective of contractors, citizens and the internal market of the European Union. Free access to procurement documents equalizes the chances of economic operators in accordance with the principle of fair competition and allows for easier investigation of possible violations. Increased confidence in the public procurement system contributes to the development of competition on the internal market of the European Union. In addition, access to contract notices and the outcomes of tender procedures allows citizens to follow the process of spending public funds from the budget and to report possible objections to competent control bodies.
Courteous or Crude? Managing User Conduct to Improve On-Demand Service Platform Performance
Authors: Mai Yunke , Hu Bin , Pekeč Saša
Published: March 2022

In this paper, we study how an on-demand service platform could improve its performance through managing user conduct. In such a platform, service providers may reject certain platform-proposed service requests, and their responses, in turn, incentivize users to adjust their conduct. We develop an evolutionary game theory model of user conduct and provider responses that shows that the platform could improve user conduct through either setting a low wage for service providers or implementing priority matching. Building upon these results, we further model providers and users joining and leaving the platform by once again utilizing the evolutionary game theory approach. We find that wage setting alone is a blunt instrument to improve platform performance via managing user conduct, whereas supplementing the wage decision with priority matching could overcome its limitations and serve as an effective strategy to further improve platform performance in terms of growth and profitability. This finding suggests that matching prioritization could be an important strategy for managing platforms with user and provider heterogeneities. In addition, our analysis and results also demonstrate the potential of the evolutionary game theory approach for analyzing the impact of pricing and matching decisions on the performance of large markets.

This paper was accepted by Gabriel Weintraub, revenue management and market analytics.

Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4391 .
Suboptimal Local Minima Exist for Wide Neural Networks with Smooth Activations
Authors: Ding Tian , Li Dawei , Sun Ruoyu
Published: March 2022

Does a large width eliminate all suboptimal local minima for neural nets? An affirmative answer was given by a classic result published in 1995 for one-hidden-layer wide neural nets with a sigmoid activation function, but this result has not been extended to the multilayer case. Recently, it was shown that, with piecewise linear activations, suboptimal local minima exist even for wide nets. Given the classic positive result on smooth activation and the negative result on nonsmooth activations, an interesting open question is: Does a large width eliminate all suboptimal local minima for deep neural nets with smooth activation? In this paper, we give a largely negative answer to this question. Specifically, we prove that, for neural networks with generic input data and smooth nonlinear activation functions, suboptimal local minima can exist no matter how wide the network is (as long as the last hidden layer has at least two neurons). Therefore, the classic result of no suboptimal local minimum for a one-hidden-layer network does not hold. Whereas this classic result assumes sigmoid activation, our counterexample covers a large set of activation functions (dense in the set of continuous functions), indicating that the limitation is not a result of the specific activation. Together with recent progress on piecewise linear activations, our result indicates that suboptimal local minima are common for wide neural nets.
Cooperation with Strangers: Spillover of Community Norms
Authors: Molina Mario , Nee Victor , Holm Hakan
Published: March 2022

Why do leaders of organizations cooperate with players with whom they may never transact again? Such transactions can involve the incentives to exploit the other party because these interactions are not recurrent or embedded in networks. Yet, in a market economy, organizational actors learn to cooperate with strangers; otherwise, they risk closure from new ideas and business opportunities outside of their local community. With a large random sample of CEOs of manufacturing firms in the Yangzi River Delta region of China, we measured social norms using vignettes that describe hypothetical situations illustrating the social mechanisms of norm enforcement in respondents’ local communities. Several years later, in a laboratory-in-the-field experiment, we asked the same participants to play a one-shot Prisoner’s Dilemma (PD) game with a complete stranger. Our findings suggest that belief in the reliability of robust norm enforcement is positively associated with a higher probability of cooperation with strangers. To our knowledge, this mixed-method study is the first to explore the relationship between social norms and cooperation with strangers using a large sample of leaders of organizations outside the environment of the laboratory. Finally, to explore the generalizability of our behavioral findings, we experimentally manipulated norm vignettes and study the PD game in online experiments with managers in the Yangzi River Delta region.

History: This paper has been accepted for the Organization Science Special Issue on Experiments in Organizational Theory.

Funding: V. Nee gratefully acknowledges funding for research from the John Templeton Foundation (2005-2009 and 2015-2018), and from the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University. H. Holm thanks the Jan Wallander’s and Tom Hedelius’ Foundation for funding lab-in-the-field behavioral game.

Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1521 .
Settlement Constellations and the Dynamics of Fields Formed Around Social and Environmental Issues
Authors: Buchanan Sean , Zietsma Charlene , Matten Dirk
Published: March 2022

Firms are increasingly responding to social and environmental issues in highly complex and heterogeneous organizational fields that transcend national boundaries. Yet, we still have a limited understanding of how these fields are structured and the implications of structural variation on how issues are addressed over time. We advance theory in this area by arguing that issue fields are characterized by varying settlement constellations that structure these fields. We develop a typology of three settlement constellations—unified, fragmented, and bifurcated—and describe their impact on field structure and the challenges they raise for addressing field-defining issues. We then theorize the evolution of fields with different settlement constellations and explain how and why constellations are sustained over time as well as when they may change. Our paper helps advance theory on organizational fields, private regulation, and firm responses to social and environmental issues. More broadly, our paper highlights the unique position of organizational and institutional scholars to examine complex social and environmental issues, or “grand challenges.”
Transanal irrigation at a glance
Authors: Hill Barry , Mitchell Aby
Published: March 2022

This article provides a brief overview of transanal irrigation (TAI). It covers the rationale behind the procedure, the contraindications, possible complications and considerations for patient education and support.
Nurse-led surveillance of ileoanal pouch patients post-stoma reversal: outcomes at 12-month review
Authors: Perry-Woodford Zarah L , Marinova Petya
Published: March 2022

Restorative proctocolectomy with pouch anal anastomosis is the accepted treatment for suitable patients with ulcerative colitis, yet surveillance following stoma reversal remains contentious and involves several issues. While most patients are discharged from routine follow-up between 6 weeks and 3 months, some remain on surveillance pathways indefinitely. A high volume of patients require advice for many months or years after the stoma has been reversed, with the burden of surveillance on consultant-led clinics. Nurse-led follow-up after restorative proctocolectomy has been recognised for decades but has not been validated. This study reports the first protocol-based pathway for nurse-led follow-up. Using validated questionnaires, suitable pouch patients were followed up in nurse-led clinics over a 12-month period then sent an online survey to report on the service they received. Overall, most patients were satisfied with the nurse-led follow-up; however, further engagement and investment in the workforce and infrastructure is required to offer sustainable services.
PwC probes green tech future as investment grows 210%
Authors: Ring Tim
Published: March 2022

A major new study finds green hydrogen is a core global technology attracting heavy investment, but funding may be focused in the wrong place. Tim Ring reports.
Ruling the waves? Future of H2 and fuel cells in shipping
Authors: Forsyth Adam
Published: March 2022

Clean energy expert Adam Forsyth from Longspur Capital assesses the competing merits of hydrogen, methanol and other sustainable fuels for use in the shipping industry – and the significant role fuel cells could play in decarbonising this sector.
COVID-19 and non-governmental organisations in Nepal
Authors: KC Dipendra
Published: March 2022

This research note highlights the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in developing countries. It takes Nepal as a case study and illustrates the effects of the pandemic on NGOs in the country and their contribution to the response to and recovery from the pandemic. It presents the findings of two surveys, one conducted in 2020 and one conducted in 2020–21, among 482 NGOs. The study’s findings suggest that NGOs faced a three-fold pressure in terms of a spike in demand for their services, a reduction of funding and other supporting resources and a challenge in dealing with state-imposed restrictions on mobility.
Ultra-broadband LP11 mode converter with high purity based on long-period fiber grating and an integrated Y-junction
Authors: Huang Quandong , Wang Xibin , Dong Jiangli , Zheng Zhaoqiang , Xu Ou , Fu Songnian , Peng Di , Li Jianping , Qin Yuwen
Published: March 2022

We report an ultra-broadband LP11 mode converter with high purity based on integrated two shunt-wound long-period fiber gratings (LPFGs) and an adiabatic Y-junction, together with a high-order-mode bandpass filter. Two shunt-wound LPFGs are inscribed by CO2 laser in a two-mode fiber to achieve a 10 dB bandwidth of 50 nm and 51 nm at resonance wavelengths of 1530 nm and 1570 nm, respectively. Meanwhile, the Y-junction fabricated by lithography can be operated over S + C+L band to combine the converted LP11 mode. The presented ultra-broadband mode converter is able to achieve a mode conversion efficiency of 95%, together with a wavelength-dependent loss of less than 3 dB over the S + C+L band. This device has low modal crosstalk of 17 dB between the LP01 and LP11 modes, because most of the residual LP01 mode is further filtered by a high-order-mode bandpass filter at the output port of the Y-junction. The insertion loss of mode converter is estimated to be lower than 2.7 dB, due to the use of low loss polymer material during the fabrication. The proposed ultra-broadband LP11 mode converter with high purity is promising for the application of ultra-broadband mode-division-multiplexing transmission systems.
Experimental observation and manipulation of optical tornado waves
Authors: Chen Lai , Wang Li-Gang
Published: March 2022

We report experimental realization and manipulation of optical tornado waves (ToWs). By controlling the self-focusing length, total angular momentum, and foci deviation of ToWs, the propagation properties of optical ToWs, especially their angular velocity, can be manipulated. Controlling the accumulated rotation angle of the main intensity lobes of ToWs from 0° through 1100° is experimentally demonstrated, and their angular velocity is predicted to be the highest around the foci overlap situation. Our experimental results are in good agreement with numerical results.
High-efficiency 940- and 969-nm brightness-maintaining wavelength-multiplexed LD-pumped 240-W thin-rod Yb:YAG amplifier
Authors: Wang Shang , Cong Zhenhua , Liu Junliang , Zhang Xingyu , Zhao Zhigang , Liu Zhaojun
Published: March 2022

A high-efficiency ultrafast laser amplifier based on thin-rod Yb:YAG was demonstrated, featuring a 940- and 969-nm brightness-maintaining wavelength-multiplexed laser diode (LD)-pumping method. Two high-brightness LDs (940 nm and 969 nm) were spectrally combined into one beam spatially with a dichroic mirror, thus enabling twice pump power while maintaining high brightness. A maximum signal power of 240 W was obtained at a repetition rate of 1 MHz, with a power extraction efficiency (PEE) of ∼51%. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of >50% efficiency as well as the highest average power operating at the fundamental mode for thin-rod Yb:YAG amplifiers. The beam quality factors (M2) of the amplified signal were measured to be 1.72 and 1.12 for the horizontal and vertical directions, respectively. A preliminary pulse compression was conducted at a signal power of 80 W with a chirped volume Bragg grating (CVBG) compressor. The compressed pulse duration was 744 fs with an average power of 66.5 W, corresponding to a compression efficiency of 83.1%.
A 10-kHz intrinsic linewidth coupled extended-cavity DBR laser monolithically integrated on an InP platform
Authors: Kumar Rakesh Ranjan , Hänsel Andreas , Far Brusatori Mónica , Nielsen Lars , Augustin Luc M. , Volet Nicolas , Heck Martijn J. R.
Published: March 2022

We report a monolithically integrated coupled extended-cavity distributed Bragg reflector laser with, to our knowledge, the lowest reported intrinsic linewidth of ∼10 kHz, which is extracted from a corresponding frequency-noise level of ∼3200 Hz2/Hz, realized on an InP generic foundry platform. Using the delayed self-heterodyne method, the experimentally measured linewidth was 45 kHz. The laser has an on-chip optical output power of 18 mW around 1550 nm at an injection current of 95 mA. The laser operates in a single-mode regime with a side-mode suppression ratio of 54 dB. Our monolithic approach paves the way toward further integration, such as integrated quantum key distribution transceivers.
Design of vanadium-dioxide-based resonant structures for tunable optical response
Authors: Fayyaz Kashif Muhammad , Stomeo Tiziana , Antonietta Vincenti Maria , De Vittorio Massimo , Scalora Michael , D’Orazio Antonella , de Ceglia Domenico , Grande Marco
Published: March 2022

Phase change materials are suitable for tunable photonic devices where the optical response can be altered under external stimuli, such as heat, an electrical or an optical signal. In this scenario, we performed numerical simulations to study the optical properties of a flat unpatterned resonant structure and a grating, both coated with a thin film of vanadium dioxide (VO2). Our results suggest that it is possible to modulate broadband and narrowband reflectance spectra of the resonant structures in the visible to near-infrared range by more than 40 % when the VO2 undergoes an insulator-to-metal phase transition. Resonant devices with a tunable spectral response may find application in sensors, filters, absorbers, and detectors.
Wide-angle polarization selectivity based on anomalous defect mode in photonic crystal containing hyperbolic metamaterials
Authors: Wu Feng , Chen Mingyuan , Xiao Shuyuan
Published: March 2022

Conventional defect modes in all-dielectric 1D photonic crystals (PCs) are polarization-insensitive. This poses a great challenge in achieving high-performance polarization selectivity. In this Letter, we introduce a defect layer into a 1D PC containing hyperbolic metamaterials to achieve an anomalous defect mode with polarization-sensitive characteristics. As the incident angle increases, such a defect mode remains almost unshifted under transverse magnetic polarization, while strongly shifting toward shorter wavelengths under transverse electric polarization. The polarization-sensitive characteristics of the defect mode can be well explained by the Fabry–Perot resonance condition. Assisted by the polarization-sensitive defect mode, wide-angle polarization selectivity with an operating angle width up to 54.8° can be realized. Our work provides a route to designing wide-angle linear polarizers using simple 1D structures, which would be useful in liquid crystal display and Q-switched lasers.
Rapid ellipsometric determination and mapping of alloy stoichiometry with a neural network
Authors: Yann Battie A , Valero Adrià Canós , Horwat David , Naciri Aotmane En
Published: March 2022

Due to their tunable physical and chemical properties, alloys are of fundamental importance in material science. The determination of stoichiometry is crucial for alloy engineering. Classical characterization tools such as energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX) are time consuming and cannot be performed in an ambient atmosphere. In this context, we introduce a new methodology to determine the stoichiometry of alloys from ellipsometric measurements. This approach, based on the analysis of ellipsometric spectra by an artificial neural network (ANN), is applied to electrum alloys. We demonstrate that the accuracy of this approach is of the same order of magnitude as that of EDX. In addition, the ANN analysis is sufficiently robust that it can be used to characterize rough alloys. Finally, we demonstrate that the exploitation of ellipsometric maps with the ANN is a powerful tool to determine composition gradients in alloys.
Optically levitated conveyor belt based on polarization-dependent metasurface lens arrays
Authors: Xu Feng , Liu Yang , Zhang Chi , Jiang Min , Zhang Jiahui , Wang Guanghui , Xu Fei , Lu Yanqing
Published: March 2022

In this Letter, we have proposed an optically levitated conveyor belt based on periodic arrays of a polarization-dependent nanoslit-based metasurface lens (NBML) that is capable of realizing far-field capture, transport, and sorting. The NBML in arrays can be lit up in a relay way by rotating the polarization angle of the excitation beam and thereby provide a better stiffness for transporting particles. When excited at the wavelength of 1064 nm and power density of 0.3 mW/µm2, the particles will follow the directional movement of hot spots with an alternative switch of polarization angle and the success ratio of transport can be up to 97.0% with the consideration of Brownian motion. Furthermore, the influence of polarization switching time and incident optical power densities on the efficiency of transport are investigated numerically from a statistical point of view. The sorting of particles with different sizes has also been proved in a given power density. With the analysis of numerical results, our research provides a new approach, to the best of our knowledge, for particle trapping and transport, which is beneficial to on-chip optofluidic applications.
Halide Perovskites for Photonics and Optoelectronics: introduction to special issue
Authors: Wang Kang , Gong Xiwen , Zhao Yong Sheng , Makarov Sergey , Rand Barry P. , Dou Letian
Published: March 2022

This is an introduction to the special issue of Optical Materials Express on Halide Perovskites for Photonics and Optoelectronics.
Analysis of the cybersecurity ecosystem in the European Union
Authors: Bederna Zsolt , Rajnai Zoltan
Published: March 2022

The information society is a complex network of interconnected public and private entities and human beings. Many of them choose a certain level of technological development from the generally available solutions to support internal processes attaining objectives that support operations, creating technological dependence via internal or external services of the information and communication technologies (ICTs). Due to the technological development and technological dependence caused by ICTs, a society-wide political need has arisen for tackling security requirements for cyberspace in several sectors to satisfy the individuals’ needs that directly or indirectly define the requirements for such services, resulting in a complex ecosystem with several participants. Although the European Union has formulated some crucial rules via regulations and directives with which it increasingly defined cybersecurity stakeholders from time to time, there are several missing affected parties. This paper aims to review the relevant technological, societal, and economic factors of the information society creating the necessity to strictly handle cybersecurity requirements and analyse decisive stakeholders via a theoretical framework. Furthermore, it also identifies the current legislative framework issues to identify pain points.
Non-communicable diseases attributed mortality and associated sociodemographic factors in Papua New Guinea: Evidence from the Comprehensive Health and Epidemiological Surveillance System
Authors: Pham Bang Nguyen , Jorry Ronny , Abori Nora , Silas Vinson D. , Okely Anthony D. , Pomat William
Published: March 2022

Background

Papua New Guinea (PNG) is undergoing an epidemiological transition with increased mortality from NCDs. This study examined NCDs-attributed mortality and associated sociodemographic factors in PNG.

Method

Using WHO 2016 instrument, 926 verbal autopsy (VA) interviews were conducted in six major provinces from January 2018 to December 2020. InterVA-5 tool was used to assign causes of death (COD). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify sociodemographic factors associated with mortalities from emerging and endemic NCDs.

Finding

NCDs accounted for 47% of the total deaths, including 20% of deaths attributed to emerging NCDs and 27% of deaths due to endemic NCDs. Leading CODs from emerging NCDs were identified including cardiac diseases, stroke, and diabetes. The risk of dying from emerging NCDs was significantly lower among populations under age 44y compared with population aged 75+y (OR: 0.14 [0.045–0.433]; p-value: 0.001). People living in urban areas were twice likely to die from emerging NCDs than those in rural areas (OR: 1.92 [1.116–3.31]; p-value: 0.018). People in Madang province were 70% less likely to die from emerging NCDs compared to those from East New Britain province (OR: 0.314 [0.135–0.73]; p-value: 0.007). Leading CODs from endemic NCDs included digestive neoplasms, respiratory neoplasms, and other neoplasms. Only children aged 0-4y had significant lower risk of dying from endemic NCDs compared to the population aged 75+y (OR: 0.114 [95% CI: 0.014–0.896]; p-value: 0.039).

Conclusion

Public health interventions are urgently needed, prioritizing urban population and those aged over 44y to reduce premature mortality from NCDs.