bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Education of the potential of natural ingredients as an immunomodulator in the transition process from pandemic to endemic Covid-19 through webinar
Authors: Sari Dina Yuspita , Widyasari Ratna
Published: October 2023

Covid-19 is a respiratory infection caused by the coronavirus. Early prevention of Covid-19 can be done by increasing the body's resistance. Therefore, using traditional plants, which are included in the immunomodulatory group, is alternative prevention. This PkM webinar aims to introduce and educate the public and pharmacists about the potential of natural ingredients in the transition process from the pandemic. PkM is conducted through webinars. The webinar results were analyzed through a pre-test and post-test, and then the data was processed using the t-test. Evaluation of activities was carried out using a Likert scale. The results obtained from this PkM webinar are an increase in participants' knowledge, indicated by a significant difference between the pre and post-test results after being given PkM material, and the opinion of the webinar participants regarding the PkM webinar that was followed was excellent. This activity is expected to provide understanding and education in the potential of natural ingredients as immunomodulators. It is also essential to implement this as a means of education and provide benefits to the teaching and learning process as an evaluation and improvement of student's ability to think critically
A presença de Kafka no romance contemporâneo: Sefarad (2001) de Antonio Muñoz Molina
Authors: De Souza Ana Paula
Published: October 2023

A presença de grandes romancistas da alta modernidade e seus clássicos é uma tendência observada na feitura dos romances contemporâneos (Perrone-Moisés, 2016). Por vezes, esses escritores são tornados personagens de ficção, por outras, são feitas releituras de suas histórias e personagens icônicos. Uma das formas pelas quais se revela essa presença é por meio do uso reiterado de procedimentos narrativos de intertextualidade, tais como transposições, imitação, citações, alusões e referências (Genette, 2010) (Samoyault, 2008). Em toda sua narrativa de ficção, o escritor espanhol Antonio Muñoz Molina (1956) apresenta essa tendência. O romance Sefarad (2001) é um dos que melhor exemplifica essa escrita literária inspirada por releitura(s), e o escritor moderno, cuja onipresença é latente na escrita desse romance, é Franz Kafka. Este artigo tem como principal objetivo analisar os procedimentos de intertextualidade empregados por Muñoz Molina na composição de Sefarad, a fim de sistematizar a presença de Kafka na feitura do romance, atribuindo sentidos possíveis a essa presença. O resultado do estudo revela que Kafka figura na composição de Sefarad de três formas: transformado em personagem de ficção; por meio da intertextualidade estabelecida com alguns de seus mais emblemáticos textos; e pela capacidade visionária atribuída pelo escritor contemporâneo à Kafka como privilegiado pensador de seu tempo.
Notas sobre O castelo de Franz Kafka: temporalidade subjuntiva e comunidade
Authors: Izabel Tomaz Amorim
Published: October 2023

O ensaio parte de uma análise formal da temporalidade kafkiana em O castelo, mostrando como seu uso acentuado do modo subjuntivo, entre outras estratégias narrativas, ajuda a produzir o efeito insólito característico do romance. A narração em terceira pessoa, mas colada à experiência de K., descreve acontecimentos do enredo para em seguida colocá-los em dúvida, a partir de hipóteses e suposições hiperinterpretadas a partir do ponto de vista de um estranho àquela comunidade. Os fatos se esfarelam diante daquele que busca uma confirmação formal do direito de permanecer. Assim, representando e exagerando até o absurdo características marcantes da temporalidade moderna, Kafka consegue produzir um foco narrativo original que descreve a posição de insegurança, ontológica e metafísica, de figuras históricas afetadas pelas grandes guerras, como os refugiados e os imigrantes, que o protagonista K. de certa forma encarna.
Andanças do não herói pelas Américas: Kafka e João Gilberto Noll
Authors: Carneiro Flávio
Published: October 2023

Os protagonistas dos romances e de boa parte dos contos de Kafka são indivíduos perdidos num mundo estranho, incompreensível, como se fossem estrangeiros buscando um modo de entender e ser entendido pelo outro. Busca vã e infinita, que os leva a perambular pelas cidades, a dois passos do que parece ser o destino (feliz) da jornada e que logo em seguida foge de alcance, num eterno adiamento. Este perfil já se vê no primeiro romance do autor, O desaparecido ou Amerika (2003), em que o jovem Karl Rossman, partindo da Alemanha para os Estados Unidos, inicia seu périplo de estrangeiro num país hostil, como uma espécie de não herói, figura que viria se sobrepor, na contemporaneidade, ao herói romântico e ao anti-herói modernista, como acontece na obra de João Gilberto Noll, em especial no romance O quieto animal da esquina (1991). O artigo parte da ideia do não herói como protagonista tanto da obra de Kafka quanto de Noll, buscando ver como a sensação de estranheza vai se construindo, nos romances citados, a partir das andanças dos personagens numa busca guiada mais pelo instinto do que pela razão, empreendendo ambos uma viagem interminável, que de certa forma dialoga com a própria escrita dos dois autores – nestas e em outras obras –, em aberto, deixando sempre a impressão de um proposital inacabamento.
Kafka, Simmel e as linhas de composição de um mapa: Ressonâncias a partir de Um artista da fome (1922)
Authors: Oliveira Eduardo Moura
Published: October 2023

O trabalho propõe uma reflexão sobre as possibilidades de diálogo entre narrativas teóricas e ficcionais, especificamente a obra Um artista da fome, de Franz Kafka (1883-1924) e a crítica da cultura de Georg Simmel. Por meio de revisão bibliográfica, busco analisar versões do contraste entre indivíduo e sociedade através das transversalidades entre o ficcional e o teórico, identificando pontos de interlocução entre a literatura e a sociologia. O objetivo do trabalho consiste em verificar o rendimento teórico e literário de textos clássicos centenários, de modo a formar um eixo de discussão a respeito do pensamento crítico da cultura. Tomando como pressuposto a potência do conto Um Artista da fome, a pesquisa faz parte do esforço de investigação a respeito do fôlego da obra de Kafka para pensar teorias sociológicas, de modo a buscar os traços de um mapa kafkiano a partir do qual perspectivas sociológicas podem ser atualizadas.
Mujer sin hogar: una aproximación a la extrema exclusión social en Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Authors: Arias Jiménez María , Darias Martín Raquel , Díaz González José Manuel , Fernández Méndez Felipe Santiago
Published: October 2023

Las mujeres sin hogar se encuentran en una extrema situación de exclusión social donde los factores que influyen no se han podido llegar a conocer en profundidad en el caso de las personas atendidas desde el Servicio Integral de Atención a las Per-sonas sin Hogar de Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Se rea-liza una aproximación a dicha realidad analizando la base de datos del recurso para determinar cuáles son los que tienen mayor repercusión y si existe correlación entre ellos. Se da una alta incidencia de enfermedades y discapacidad, des-taca el bajo nivel formativo, el alto desempleo y los bajos recursos económicos. Esta investigación coincide con los hallazgos encontrados en otros estudios y la difícil realidad que experimentan hace que les resulten complicado alcanzar la integración social ante la confluencia de múl-tiples factores de riesgo.
Using a convex ostomy appliance to manage peristomal skin complications: introducing Aura Plus Soft Convex
Authors: Cronin Elaine
Published: October 2023

This article explores convex stoma appliances, introduces Aura Plus Soft Convex (CliniMed) and presents three case studies of its use. Convexity applies pressure to flatten uneven peristomal skin and form an effective adhesive seal, as well as increase protrusion of a poorly spouted stoma. This reduces the risk of leaks and peristomal skin damage, as well as minimising accessory use. Excess pressure can damage the skin, so convexity should be used with caution at the appropriate depth and firmness for the ostomate's body profile and stomal complications. Aura Plus Soft Convex has a soft and flexible baseplate for easy application and adherence, as well as a unique shape, comfort curves and a large adhesive area to reduce creases and leaks. The hydrocolloid contains Manuka honey to promote skin health, and integral belt loops offer additional security. The case studies show how this appliance can restore peristomal skin integrity and relieve stoma-related anxiety; provide gentle support for a flush stoma and a rounded abdomen; and prevent leaks and improve quality of life after years of stoma-related complications.
Men's satisfaction with female/unisex and male incontinence pads: a comparative clinical audit
Authors: Broom Ruth
Published: October 2023

Background:

Urinary incontinence is a common and impactful condition. Despite the availability of incontinence pads specifically designed for the male form, many men use pads designed to fit the female anatomy.

Aim:

This clinical audit-based study compares female/unisex and male incontinence pads in male community patients with urinary incontinence.

Method:

A survey was used to collect Likert-scale data on overall satisfaction and satisfaction with specific aspects of female/unisex and male incontinence pads, as well as with their health and wellbeing and situation and attitudes before and after intervention. Qualitative data were collected on positive features of, reasons for dissatisfaction with and suggested changes to each pad.

Results:

Among 18 participants, and in all but one domain, satisfaction scores were higher for male pads overall, with the greatest increases in score (1–5) for physical coverage of genital area (1.5), ability to hold urine without leaks (1.4) and level of comfort when wet (1.3). Using a male pad had a positive impact on participants' sense of health and wellbeing. Positive qualitative feedback focused on comfort, ease of use and reliability, as well as the anatomical fit of the male pad.

Conclusions:

Sex-specific fit is an important factor in the acceptability of an incontinence pad for men with urinary incontinence. Wearing pads specifically designed for the male anatomy provides men with a greater sense of comfort and confidence.
Prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and fibrinogen levels in ovarian cancer
Authors: Rosaudyn Roudhona , Mutiani Faradillah , Yuliati Indra , Indraprasta Birama Robby
Published: October 2023

BACKGROUND High neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and fibrinogen levels have been associated with mortality in several malignancies. However, the studies on the association between NLR or fibrinogen levels and ovarian cancer prognosis are inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic roles of NLR and fibrinogen in ovarian cancer.

METHODS A systematic search of electronic databases was performed to analyze studies on the association of pre-treatment NLR and fibrinogen levels with overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) among patients with ovarian cancer. The hazard ratio (HR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals [CIs] were analyzed. All statistical analyses were done using RevMan version 5.4 (Cochrane, United Kingdom).

RESULTS A total of 7,312 patients from 27 studies were included. The median cut-off for high NLR was 3.6 for OS among 17 studies and 3.23 for PFS among 11 studies reporting an NLR HR. The median cut-off for fibrinogen levels was 4.0 in 9 studies reporting fibrinogen levels HR. High NLR was associated with lower OS (HR 1.35, 95% CI 1.18 to 1.55, p<0.0001, I2 = 76%) and PFS (HR 1.35, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.60, p = 0.0005, I2 = 71%). High fibrinogen levels were associated with lower OS (HR 1.44, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.82, p = 0.002, I2 = 81%) and PFS (HR 1.34, 95% CI 1.17 to 1.55, p<0.0001, I2 = 15%). This association occurred in all ovarian cancer types.

CONCLUSIONS High pre-treatment NLR and plasma fibrinogen levels were related to poor OS and PFS in ovarian cancer.
Segregating Usonia: The Racial Politics of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fisher Housing
Authors: Watson Joseph M.
Published: October 2023

ABSTRACT: In April 1956, Jesse C. Fisher Jr., a white businessman, wrote to Frank Lloyd Wright proposing a residential development for “a group of better-type colored people” in rural Whiteville, North Carolina. Over the next two years, Wright’s office developed a scheme for Fisher’s tract based on a type of quadruplex Wright called a “cloverleaf.” This paper examines the design and development of this obscure project by putting its small collection of architectural drawings and correspondence in dialogue with relevant historical scholarship, detailed attention to the town of Whiteville, and other aspects of Wright’s work and thought. This varied approach sheds light on the contradictions—including expressions of racial tolerance masking deep-rooted prejudices—that shaped Fisher’s proposal and Wright’s designs. Lastly, the project’s obscurity within the literature on Wright raises questions about historians’ unwillingness or inability, until recently, to reckon with the racialized complexities of Wright’s work.
The Tropical Ranch: Examining the Ranch Style (1948–1970) on Everglades Island, Palm Beach, Florida
Authors: Penny Marie
Published: October 2023

ABSTRACT: Palm Beach is known for its grand Mediterranean Revival estates. During the postwar period, the architecture of Palm Beach changed, which was especially evident on Everglades Island—a small island connected to Palm Beach. In the mid-twentieth century, ranch homes dominated the island’s architecture. This note chronicles the work of three Palm Beach architects: Marion Sims Wyeth (1889–1982), John L. Volk (1901–1984), and Henry Harding (1904–1984). These three architects designed fifteen residences on Everglades Island from 1948–1970. Their architectural records are archived at the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach. This note demonstrates how architects of the ranch houses in Palm Beach incorporated Bermudian and Hawaiian influences. Numerous houses from this time period were eventually either altered or demolished due to the demand for larger more ostentatious residences, especially on Everglades Island where few of the original houses are extant.
Gofraid Méránach’s paternity and surname
Authors: Wadden Patrick
Published: October 2023

ABSTRACT: This article reexamines the debate about the paternity of Gofraid Méránach (d. 1095), king of the Isles and founder of the dynasty that ruled the Isles of Man for two centuries. Three medieval sources appear to provide conflicting accounts of Gofraid’s paternity. Drawing on recent research into the development of Gaelic surnames in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, this article argues that the conflict is more apparent than real, the result of the adoption of surnames in the Gaelic manner by the leading Hiberno-Scandinavian dynasties.
Brides and bridles. Rhiannon and the white horse during the Norman invasion of Wales
Authors: Mills Marisa
Published: October 2023

ABSTRACT: Postcolonial scholars have observed how various aspects of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi reflect anxieties of the Norman Invasion of Wales. While these readings often center on examining the Norman influence as an outside threat, this article examines the First Branch of the Mabinogi as emphasizing the importance of wise leadership within Wales, specifically in terms of inter-Welsh interactions. I do this through the exploration of Rhiannon as a fairy mistress, a motif which proliferates the chivalric romance. While scholarship often interprets the fairy mistress as ‘other’ or ‘foreign’, I argue that Rhiannon presents an important departure. Rather than being explicitly a foreign entity, she is, instead, Welsh. Pwyll’s treatment of her, then, makes the First Branch a story about inter-Welsh relationships and cautions that tending to women’s needs and voices should be a priority to Welsh leaders, rather than something which is designated as a secondary concern.
The Cavaliero Pasquil: An Anti-Marprelate Persona
Authors: Hill Chris
Published: October 2023

Abstract: Broadly considered, the popular pamphlets written against Martin Marprelate in the months encompassing 1589–1591 are treated as pale imitations of their adversary, whose rhetorical and argumentative virtuosity earned him great notoriety. Considered as strenuous attempts to both counter Martinist aggression and also solve the rhetorical problems he presented, the aggressive Pasquil tracts (1589–1590) reveal how the adoption of an established satirical persona and mode allows a writer defending the Elizabethan bishops to both adopt and condemn the dangerous speech marking the Marprelate program. The tracts thus exhibit the self-generative and popular appeal characteristic of early print and pamphlet culture.
Church Brigades and Battlefields: Militarizing British Boys Prior to World War I
Authors: Riggs Wayne
Published: October 2023

Abstract: When World War I began in 1914, Britain had neither a conscript army nor any bureaucratic mechanism for implementing conscription. By 1916, however, it had the largest volunteer army in the history of the world. Such an astounding achievement was credited to patriotism and the efforts of Field Marshall Kitchener. In reflecting on this development, contemporaries and historians largely overlooked the religious culture of militarism that dominated the pre-war years as well as the impact of the church brigade movement. The brigades fused military discipline and training with religious teaching and spiritual formation, and they ensured that well over 50 percent of British boys received a form of military training in the decades prior to the conflict, popularizing the ideas of military organization, drill, and serving in the armed forces.
Pas de statue pour Hubertine: Quand notre mémoire d’une pionnière du suffragisme fait des vagues
Authors: Cadène Nicole
Published: October 2023

In 1914, the death of Hubertine Auclert, who had dedicated her life to the feminist cause, stirred great emotion. The idea of erecting a statue in her honour was considered, but never materialized. Auclert’s memory is thus preserved in more confidential sites of remembrance. We have identified three moments, each associated with a different place. Until 1930, the suffragist’s tomb was a place of feminist pilgrimage. The following years appear to have been a low point in the history of her memory, but it was then that activist Marie-Louise Bouglé collected Auclert’s archives for safekeeping in her library, preserving them from destruction. However, while Auclert gained a degree of recognition in the wake of the second wave of feminism, the Panthéon remains closed to her. In this respect, she is emblematic of women, and even more so of feminists, who occupy a place of secondary importance in France’s national memory.
« A museum and a laboratory of Feminism » : dynamiques mémorielles et enjeux politiques au siège du National Woman’s Party, 1930-1960
Authors: Delahaye Claire
Published: October 2023

Between the 1930s and 1960s, the National Woman’s Party (NWP), an American feminist organization, was intensely committed to the preservation of the role
it played in past suffragist struggles. In order to assert its place in this activist history, it embarked on a vast historiographical undertaking in which its Washington
headquarters, the Alva Belmont House, played a leading role. Indeed, this place of memory can be analyzed as a space where historical knowledge was produced, through specific uses and practices. The mobilization of militant archives and press sources enables us to study the way in which memory is constructed, materialized and transmitted from this site, as well as the issues of power involved. This, in turn, reveals how a social movement can use, or even instrumentalize, the past for political ends.
Hill-shaped refractive index 16-core fiber with 160 channels of low crosstalk and high RCMF
Authors: Wang Chun , Li Shuguang , Li Zenghui , Shao Pengshuai , Liu Yinpeng
Published: October 2023

We present a hill-shaped refractive index (HS-RI) structure in 16-core fiber that can
provide 160 channels for the transmission system. The HS-RI mainly
settles the issue of the large inter-mode crosstalk (IMXT) between LP21 mode and LP02 mode. We obtain the optimized
parameters using the finite element method. Numerical analyses reveal
that the inter-core crosstalk (ICXT) of all modes is smaller than −30dB/100km in the C band, and the effective mode
refractive index difference (Δneff) is more than 1×10−3. The minimum effective mode field
area can achieve 89.80µm2, which greatly reduces the
nonlinearity of fiber. The max dispersion is 15.59ps/(nm∗km), which can greatly guarantee signal
quality in the transmission process. he relative core multiplexing
factor (RCMF) can reach 65.81, which realizes the high space division
multiplexing rate. The proposed fiber can be applied to a space
division multiplexing system to enhance the fiber transmission
channels and capacity.
Multi-frequency self-injection locking of a FSR-tunable multimode laser diode
Authors: Danilin Andrei N. , Lobanov Valery E. , Koptyaev Sergei N. , Chermoshentsev Dmitry A. , Bilenko Igor A.
Published: October 2023

This study presents the controllable multi-frequency self-injection locking regimes realization with an original experimental setup composed of a reflective semiconductor optical amplifier, an external feedback mirror, and a high-Q chip-scale Si3N4 ring microresonator. Our findings demonstrate the conditions of multiple modes’ simultaneous locking being analogous to Vernier effect. We varied the free spectral range of the external-cavity laser by its length tuning, enabling the robust generations from 1 to 4 self-injection locked narrow lines on demand, that is important for optical telecommunications, and photonic-based microwave and THz sources.
Scalable coding strategy for high resolution snapshot compressive temporal imaging at high compression ratios
Authors: Vera Esteban , Guzmán Felipe , Romero Bastian
Published: October 2023

High-speed cameras are a great asset to grasp highly dynamic events beyond human perception. However, storage, bandwidth, and cost severely limit its widespread usage. Based on compressed sensing, snapshot compressive imaging appears as an alternative to traditional video capture and compression, though scalability in terms of spatial and temporal resolution is often limited in both acquisition and reconstruction. This work proposes a versatile design of sampling masks that enable unseen spatio-temporal scalability for snapshot compressive imaging, offering on-the-fly high compression ratios with minimal computational burden and low memory requirements. The proposed sampling scheme is universal and can be used in companion with any reconstruction algorithm for compressive temporal imaging, which only need to handle reconstructions at low spatio-temporal resolutions. Simulations validated with a series of experimental results confirm that we can compress up to 512 frames of 2Kx2K resolution into a single snapshot, equivalent to a 0,2% of compression, delivering an overall reconstruction quality larger than 30 dB in PSNR for conventional reconstruction algorithms, while often surpassing 36 dB when using the latest state-of-the-art deep-learning reconstruction algorithms.
Varifocal occlusion in optical see-through near-eye display with single phase-only liquid crystal on silicon
Authors: Han Woongseob , Lee Jae-Won , Shin Jung-Yeop , Choi Myeong-ho , Kim Hak Rin , Park Jae-Hyeung
Published: October 2023

We propose a novel near-eye display optics that supports three-dimensional mutual occlusion. By exploiting the polarization-control properties of the phase-only liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS), we achieve real see-through scene masking as well as virtual digital scene imaging using a single LCoS. Dynamic depth control of the real scene mask and virtual digital image is also achieved by using a focus tunable lens (FTL) pair of opposite curvatures. The proposed configuration using a single LCoS and opposite curvature FTL pair enables the self-alignment of the mask and image at arbitrary depth without distorting the see-through view of the real scene. We verified the feasibility of the proposed optics using two optical benchtop setups: one with two off-the-shelf FTLs for continuous depth control, and the other with a single Pancharatnam-Berry phase type FTL for the improved form factor.
Phi fluctuates with surprisal: An empirical pre-study for the synthesis of the free energy principle and integrated information theory
Authors: Lundbak Olesen Christoffer , Waade Peter Thestrup , Albantakis Larissa , Mathys Christoph
Published: October 2023

The Free Energy Principle (FEP) and Integrated Information Theory (IIT) are two ambitious theoretical approaches. The first aims to make a formal framework for describing self-organizing and life-like systems in general, and the second attempts a mathematical theory of conscious experience based on the intrinsic properties of a system. They are each concerned with complementary aspects of the properties of systems, one with life and behavior, the other with meaning and experience, so combining them has potential for scientific value. In this paper, we take a first step towards such a synthesis by expanding on the results of an earlier published evolutionary simulation study, which show a relationship between IIT-measures and fitness in differing complexities of tasks. We relate a basic information theoretic measure from the FEP, surprisal, to this result, finding that the surprisal of simulated agents’ observations is inversely related to the general increase in fitness and integration over evolutionary time. Moreover, surprisal fluctuates together with IIT-based consciousness measures in within-trial time. This suggests that the consciousness measures used in IIT indirectly depend on the relation between the agent and the external world, and that it should therefore be possible to relate them to the theoretical concepts used in the FEP. Lastly, we suggest a future approach for investigating this relationship empirically.
Modelling how plant cell-cycle progression leads to cell size regulation
Authors: Williamson Daniel , Tasker-Brown William , Murray James A. H. , Jones Angharad R. , Band Leah R.
Published: October 2023

Populations of cells typically maintain a consistent size, despite cell division rarely being precisely symmetrical. Therefore, cells must possess a mechanism of “size control”, whereby the cell volume at birth affects cell-cycle progression. While size control mechanisms have been elucidated in a number of other organisms, it is not yet clear how this mechanism functions in plants.

Here, we present a mathematical model of the key interactions in the plant cell cycle. Model simulations reveal that the network of interactions exhibits limit-cycle solutions, with biological switches underpinning both the G1/S and G2/M cell-cycle transitions. Embedding this network model within growing cells, we test hypotheses as to how cell-cycle progression can depend on cell size. We investigate two different mechanisms at both the G1/S and G2/M transitions: (i) differential expression of cell-cycle activator and inhibitor proteins (with synthesis of inhibitor proteins being independent of cell size), and (ii) equal inheritance of inhibitor proteins after cell division. The model demonstrates that both these mechanisms can lead to larger daughter cells progressing through the cell cycle more rapidly, and can thus contribute to cell-size control. To test how these features enable size homeostasis over multiple generations, we then simulated these mechanisms in a cell-population model with multiple rounds of cell division. These simulations suggested that integration of size-control mechanisms at both G1/S and G2/M provides long-term cell-size homeostasis.

We concluded that while both size independence and equal inheritance of inhibitor proteins can reduce variations in cell size across individual cell-cycle phases, combining size-control mechanisms at both G1/S and G2/M is essential to maintain size homeostasis over multiple generations. Thus, our study reveals how features of the cell-cycle network enable cell-cycle progression to depend on cell size, and provides a mechanistic understanding of how plant cell populations maintain consistent size over generations.
Analyzing histone ChIP-seq data with a bin-based probability of being signal
Authors: Hecht Vivian , Dong Kevin , Rajesh Sreshtaa , Shpilker Polina , Wekhande Siddarth , Shoresh Noam
Published: October 2023

Histone ChIP-seq is one of the primary methods for charting the cellular epigenomic landscape, the components of which play a critical regulatory role in gene expression. Analyzing the activity of regulatory elements across datasets and cell types can be challenging due to shifting peak positions and normalization artifacts resulting from, for example, differing read depths, ChIP efficiencies, and target sizes. Moreover, broad regions of enrichment seen in repressive histone marks often evade detection by commonly used peak callers. Here, we present a simple and versatile method for identifying enriched regions in ChIP-seq data that relies on estimating a gamma distribution fit to non-overlapping 5kB genomic bins to establish a global background. We use this distribution to assign a probability of being signal (PBS) between zero and one to each 5 kB bin. This approach, while lower in resolution than typical peak-calling methods, provides a straightforward way to identify enriched regions and compare enrichments among multiple datasets, by transforming the data to values that are universally normalized and can be readily visualized and integrated with downstream analysis methods. We demonstrate applications of PBS for both broad and narrow histone marks, and provide several illustrations of biological insights which can be gleaned by integrating PBS scores with downstream data types.
Time series forecasting of COVID-19 infections and deaths in Alpha and Delta variants using LSTM networks
Authors: Sheikhi Farnaz , Kowsari Zahra
Published: October 2023

Since the beginning of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic, several mutations have occurred in the genetic sequence of the virus, resulting in emerging different variants of concern. These variants vary in transmissibility, severity of infections, and mortality rate. Designing models that are capable of predicting the future behavior of these variants in the societies can help decision makers and the healthcare system to design efficient health policies, and to be prepared with the sufficient medical devices and an adequate number of personnel to fight against this virus and the similar ones. Among variants of COVID-19, Alpha and Delta variants differ noticeably in the virus structures. In this paper, we study these variants in the geographical regions with different size, population densities, and social life styles. These regions include the country of Iran, the continent of Asia, and the whole world. We propose four deep learning models based on Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), and examine their predictive power in forecasting the number of infections and deaths for the next three, next five, and next seven days in each variant. These models include Encoder Decoder LSTM (ED-LSTM), Bidirectional LSTM (Bi-LSTM), Convolutional LSTM (Conv-LSTM), and Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU). Performance of these models in predictions are evaluated using the root mean square error, mean absolute error, and mean absolute percentage error. Then, the Friedman test is applied to find the leading model for predictions in all conditions. The results show that ED-LSTM is generally the leading model for predicting the number of infections and deaths for both variants of Alpha and Delta, with the ability to forecast long time intervals ahead.
Decomposition analysis of the decline in binary and triad undernutrition among preschool children in India
Authors: Dixit Priyanka , Tonpe Mayura , Bhatia Mrigesh
Published: October 2023

Background

To examine the socio-demographic factors associated with the decline in undernutrition among preschool children in India from National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3, 2005–06 to NFHS– 5, 2019–21.

Methods

For this study data were obtained from India’s nationally representative datasets such as NFHS-3 and NFHS-5. The outcome variables for this study were Binary undernutrition which were defined as the coexistence of anemia and either stunting or wasting and Undernutrition triad which were defined as the presence of Iron deficiency anemia, stunting and wasting, respectively. Decomposition analysis was used to study the factors responsible for a decline in undernutrition. This method was employed to understand how these factors contributed to the decline in undernutrition whether due to change in the composition (change in the composition of the population) or propensity (change in the health-related behaviour of the population) of the population over a period of 16 years.

Results

Results showed that rate, which contributes 85.26% and 65.64%, respectively, to total change, was primarily responsible for a decline in both binary undernutrition and undernutrition triad. Reduction in Binary undernutrition was mainly explained by the change in the rate of education level of the mothers and media exposer during the inter-survey period. On the other hand, the decline in the Undernutrition triad can be explained by household wealth index, mother’s education, birth order and a change in people’s knowledge or practice about the preceding birth interval.

Conclusion

Identifying important factors and understanding their relationship with the decline of undernutrition can be beneficial for reorienting nutrition-specific policies to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Relationship between health literacy and attitudes toward acupuncture: A web-based cross-sectional survey with a panel of Japanese residents
Authors: Okawa Yuse , Ideguchi Norio , Yamashita Hitoshi
Published: October 2023

The relationship between health literacy of Japanese people, their attitudes toward acupuncture, and their behavior in choosing this therapy is currently unclear. Therefore, for this study, we conducted a web-based survey to address this unknown relationship. A questionnaire comprising four categories (health status, health literacy, previous acupuncture experience, and attitudes toward acupuncture) was administered to 1,600 Japanese participants. For this study, we performed cross-tabulation and path analysis to examine the relationship between each questionnaire item. The mean score of participants’ health literacy was 3.41 (SD = 0.74), and older, educated, female participants tended to have higher health literacy. The respondents perceived acupuncture to be effective for chronic low back pain, tension-type headache, and knee pain due to osteoarthritis (40.0%, 38.7%, and 21.8%, respectively). Contrastingly, acupuncture was perceived as far less effective for postoperative nausea/vomiting and prostatitis symptoms (8.3% and 8.7%, respectively). Of the total study respondents, 34.4% reported that they would try acupuncture only if recommended by clinical practice guidelines, and 35.6% agreed that acupuncture is safe. The path analysis showed that attitudes toward acupuncture were significantly influenced by the participants’ health literacy, number of information sources, and previous acupuncture experience. However, it was also found that experience with acupuncture was not directly associated with health literacy. Although the Japanese population with higher health literacy is more likely to perceive acupuncture positively, they do not necessarily have sufficient relevant knowledge of the clinical evidence. Therefore, their decision to receive acupuncture may be more dependent on personal narratives rather than clinical evidence. Thus, future challenges lie in individual education of the population on how to choose a reliable health information source, and organizational efforts to provide more reliable health information.
Endoparasites in dogs diagnosed at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH)-University of Bologna, combined with clinicopathological results. A long-term retrospective secondary data study
Authors: Morandi Benedetto , Sabetti Maria Chiara , Napoleoni Maira , Pascucci Ilaria , Orlandi Gionata , Pietra Marco , VanLeeuwen John A. , Greenwood Spencer J. , Poglayen Giovanni , Galuppi Roberta
Published: October 2023

Humans and dogs commonly share the same domestic environment. Europe, and Italy specifically, have a substantial and growing dog population. Potentially zoonotic parasites may be harbored even by dogs receiving regular veterinary care. Thus, transmission of zoonotic or potentially zoonotic parasites to owners and their families should not be underestimated. Frequently, endoparasite infections occur as a subclinical infection and clinicopathological alterations have been documented including anemia, hypoalbuminemia, and eosinophilia. The aim of this large retrospective secondary data study was to analyze coprological endoparasite results and putative risk factors obtained from owned dogs, through a 9-year-period (2011–2019). Possible associations between diagnosed endoparasites and sex, age, seasonality, and year of examination were evaluated. Additionally, parasitological diagnoses were combined to complete blood count parameters and biochemical profiles, when available, to check for any possible hematological alteration from parasitism. A total of 1,972 dogs were evaluated for endoparasites using common fecal diagnostic tests over a 9-year period. The overall proportion of endoparasite-positive animals was 10%. The most common endoparasites detected were Cystoisospora spp. (3%), Toxocara canis (2.8%), Giardia duodenalis (1.6%), and Trichuris vulpis (1.2%). Of these parasites detected, Toxocara poses the greatest zoonotic risk, while Giardia species are considered to have a low potential to be zoonotic. There was no significant diagnostic trend across the years through the study period. Dogs were more frequently diagnosed endoparasite-positive when young and during cold seasons compared to the baselines of mature dogs and warm seasons. The clinicopathological profiles indicated that parasitized dogs had mild hematological alterations. The frequency of detected potentially zoonotic endoparasites in this study highlights that the risk should not be underestimated. Parasitic infection was found to be mostly dependent on age and season. Having this information may help clinicians to develop anthelmintic protocols to reduce the risk of transmission.
“My Body is a Spaceship”: Technoscience and Experiments Otherwise in Adam Dickinson’s Anatomic
Authors: Karpinski Max
Published: October 2023

What does an understanding of the self as constantly rearticulated mean for ecopoetry and the lyric “I”? And how might an emphasis on a multiscalar semiotics, where different forms of writing are understood to carry the capacity to literally reorganize material life, reframe the possibilities for writing under the contested sign of the Anthropocene, in the midst of the Earth’s sixth extinction event, the accelerating acidification of the planet’s oceans, and the largescale climatic reorganizations wrought by climate change? This article reads the idiosyncratic mode of production and the poems of Adam Dickinson’s Anatomic alongside recent scholarship in ecopoetics, environmental humanities, and science and technology studies to advance a particular and specific (that is, non-generic) understanding of Dickinson’s experimental poetics. From its beginnings in the desire to catalogue and identify the presence of a dizzying array of bacteria, chemicals, metals, and other substances in the body, Anatomic narrates the movement from a misguided and despairing purity politics to a transformative conception of the individual body and consciousness as shot through with relations at multiple, unfathomable scales. Intervening in the discourses, techniques, and worldview of what Max Liboiron (Métis) has termed “dominant science” (20), Dickinson’s text elaborates an experimental practice that invites us to rethink our modes and forms of relating to one another and the more-than-human entanglements that sustain, feed off, or simply co-exist with us.
Atmospheric Moon River
Authors: Rader Matthew
Published: October 2023

These two long poems address both embodied and encultured experiences of climate change in the Kelowna region of the Okanagan Valley and the Salmon Arm region of the Shuswap in the British Columbia southern interior. Both poems grapple with the fear of future-oriented thinking in a time of climate catastrophe while registering the long historical dimensions that inform that present fear.

“Atmospheric Moon River” examines desire and beauty in the context of torrential rain and flooding that resulted in the deaths of several humans and many hundreds of farm animals. The poem updates old questions about the ethics of aesthetics when it comes to suffering in the present environmental context. The poem also draws a line from the first erotic love poem in English to the work of cultural theorists such as Michel Foucault and Judith Butler and “classic” Hollywood cinema.  

“Sweet Air” links a story of personal illness and the loss of reproductive potential to the drama and climate anxiety of dramatically unseasonable weather. In “Sweet Air” the interlocutor of the poem has portions of her fallopian tubes removed to protect her from future illness resulting in the loss of an imagined future. That loss plays out against the backdrop of climate uncertainty and the resulting troubling of broader imagined futures.
“Niagara as Technology”: Rupturing the Technological for the Wordy Ecologies of Niagara Falls
Authors: Tootonsab Zahra
Published: October 2023

My research-creation examines how colonial language and words inspire the logic behind resource extraction, appropriation, and exploitation. Through found poetry—a creative and analytical process of using different (“found”) sources and various methods to critique and view the world—I create a collection of poems responding to Daniel Macfarlane’s Fixing Niagara Falls: Environment, Energy, and Engineers at the World’s Most Famous Waterfall (2020). Macfarlane claims that the “result” of Niagara Falls is a “compromise between scenic beauty and electricity generation” (208). However, I argue that Niagara Falls is not a “compromised” space but a hub of ecosystems coming into being. My poetic techniques emphasize the arbitrariness of colonial practices that classify beings as successful, political, and economic gains or progress. As such, I use various found methods to think with water and Indigenous modes of healing with Niagara Falls. By redacting, cutting, and layering the found words, I create an ethos of confusion, apprehension, unease, and responsibility in order to call into question the colonial logic that defines how settlers position themselves on Indigenous lands and in order to offer the possibility to listen otherwise.
O CONSTITUCIONALISMO ABUSIVO DO STF
Authors: Lima Martonio , Leitão Rômulo , Sousa Francisco
Published: October 2023

Contextualização: Apesar da aparente relação conflituosa, o constitucionalismo é essencial para a democracia, uma vez que a limitação do poder é um dos sustentáculos dos regimes democráticos. Ocorre que, na atualidade, observa-se, em muitos Estados que se autoproclamam democráticos e constitucionais, a prática de atos voltados ao enfraquecimento dos pilares da democracia, culminando em retrocessos autoritários, tudo isso sem a necessidade de lançar mão do meio clássico de tomada do poder, qual seja, o golpe de estado, mas fazendo uso de instrumentos das próprias constituições. O constitucionalismo abusivo estuda o uso dos mecanismos constitucionais para minar a democracia e, muito embora, os estudos acerca desse fenômeno, geralmente, concentrem-se sobre o Poder Executivo, nada impede que ele seja praticado por qualquer um dos poderes, ramos ou órgãos do Estado.
Objetivo: Este artigo tem como objetivo demonstrar como o Supremo Tribunal Federal tem utilizado instrumentos, procedimentos, institutos e medidas próprias do Direito Constitucional de forma abusiva, com graves consequências para o constitucionalismo e democracia brasileiros.
Método: Quanto à metodologia empregada, a pesquisa teve natureza qualitativa, realizada por meio de ampla revisão bibliográfica em livros e revistas especializadas sobre o tema, com a finalidade de explicar os fatores que contribuem para a ocorrência do objeto em estudo.
Resultados: Verificou-se que o Supremo Tribunal Federal tem sido decisivo em vários momentos de instabilidade política, crise institucional e ataques à democracia brasileira, mas que a mesma Corte protagoniza episódios de constitucionalismo abusivo, por meio de estratégias como a sincronicidade e o uso seletivo da subsunção, a concessão indiscriminada e discricionária de medidas cautelares individuais e o poder de agenda.
A [IN]ADEQUAÇÃO DA AVALIAÇÃO DE IMPACTO AMBIENTAL PARA A GESTÃO DE RISCOS AMBIENTAIS NAS EMPRESAS
Authors: Messias Ewerton Ricardo
Published: October 2023

Contextualização: Para o cumprimento do dever constitucional de proteção do equilíbrio ambiental, as empresas têm que lançar mão de instrumentos de gestão de riscos ambientais para evitar ou, ao menos, mitigar os riscos ambientais provenientes de seus processos produtivos. A pesquisa científica tem sua importância revelada no fato de que a escolha do instrumento de gestão de riscos ambientais a ser utilizado no âmbito da governança corporativa nas empresas, é de suma importância para evitar ou mitigar a tríplice responsabilidade ambiental a que estão expostas.
Objetivo: O presente estudo tem por objetivo elucidar se a Avaliação de Impacto Ambiental (AIA) revela-se eficiente, eficaz e efetiva para o cumprimento do dever de proteção do equilíbrio ambiental.
Metodologia: Para tanto, foram realizadas análises acerca do risco e do dano ambiental, a partir de uma perspectiva da função socioambiental das empresas nos dias atuais; da necessidade de uma nova postura das empresas; e da questão da adequação ou da inadequação da AIA como modelo de gestão dos riscos e danos ambientais nas empresas. O método de abordagem utilizado foi o dedutivo, sendo a pesquisa realizada com o emprego do método de procedimento bibliográfico, por meio do qual foram realizadas pesquisas em livros, artigos científicos e legislações.
Resultados: O resultado aponta a ineficiência, a ineficácia e a inefetividade da AIA para a gestão de riscos ambientais e, assim, para o cumprimento do dever de proteção do equilíbrio ambiental pelas empresas.
A INFLUÊNCIA DA DIVERSIDADE DE CONCEPÇÕES CULTURAIS NA CONSTRUÇÃO DO DIREITO INTERNACIONAL
Authors: Varella Marcelo D.
Published: October 2023

Contextualização: Procura-se compreender a relação entre o contexto cultural e o posicionamento dos Estados no direito internacional. Trata-se de um estudo, à luz do direito, da antropologia de sociedades complexas, uma vez que vários países têm diferentes concepções culturais, com maior ou menor diversidade.
Objetivo: Analisar a forma como as diferentes concepções culturais dos Estados influenciam o direito internacional.
Metodologia: Faz-se uma análise da relação dialética entre interesses e cultura, para, depois, analisar a influência desses elementos na formação do direito internacional e, por fim, a relação dos elementos que tornam essa relação mais ou menos direta, como o nível de democracia e de transparência dos órgãos responsáveis pela negociação.
Resultados: Há uma relação indireta entre cultura e o posicionamento dos Estados no âmbito internacional, pois incidem alguns filtros que interferem no nexo de causalidade, como o nível de democracia, os interesses político-econômicos, a força de grupos dominantes, entre outros.