bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
EL APROVECHAMIENTO FORESTAL BOLIVIANO: CARACTERIZACIÓN DE LAS NORMATIVAS QUE REGULAN LA GESTIÓN FORESTAL
Authors: Romero Flora Magdaline Benitez , Colomo Guido Hernán Vásquez , Romero Richard Andres Benitez , Antezana Marcos Vichenzo Abasto , Alvez Ariz Humeres , Viera Carlos Maradey , Lopes Rosana Barbosa de Castro , Fearnside Philip Martin
Published: April 2023

Debido a los problemas de degradación, deforestación, e incendios forestales, y la creciente pérdida de biodiversidad en la región amazónica, surge la necesidad de analizar las políticas públicas adecuadas que reconozcan las funciones y actividades deben cumplir para el aprovechamiento de los recursos naturales y sus límites y capacidades de regeneración del bosque. En ese sentido, el presente documento tiene el objetivo de caracterizar las leyes, normas y todos sus anexos que regulan el aprovechamiento de los recursos naturales en la región Amazónica boliviana. Actualmente existen normativas, que rigen desde 1996, Ley Forestal 1700 con su reglamentación, Resolución Ministerial N°248/98, y leyes que ayudan a normar el manejo de los recursos naturales, como Ley INRA 1715, Ley de Medio Ambiente 1333 y Ley Derechos de la Madre Tierra 071. La Ley Forestal 1700 da los lineamientos base de la gestión forestal del Estado boliviano; por consiguientes es fundamental la protección, conservación del medio ambiente y abastecimiento de materia prima al sistema económico y social. Asimismo, la Ley de Reforma Agraria, busca proteger, y rehabilitar cuencas hidrográficas, detener la erosión de la tierra y la degradación de los bosques. Además, la Ley de Medio Ambiente establece que “Las entidades públicas deben fomentar las actividades de investigación (flora y fauna)” e consecuentemente, los informes deben contener sugerencias, de manejo y gestión de los recursos naturales de forma sostenible, para garantizar una producción permanente, como lo explica la ley INRA 1715 y la Ley Madre Tierra 071. Asimismo, los instrumentos de gestión (Plan General de Manejo Forestal, Plan de Gestión Integral de Bosques y Tierra, Plan de Manejo Integral de Bosques y Plan de Ordenamiento Predial POP), operación (Plan Operativo de Aprovechamiento Forestal y Plan Operativo de Gestión Integral) y seguimiento (Informe Anual del Plan Operativo de Aprovechamiento Forestal e Informe Anual del Plan Operativo de Gestión Integral) son fundamentales para el aprovechamiento y conservación de los bosques. En vista de ello, los instrumentos de gestión forestal son normativas que se aplican en la etapa de aprovechamiento de los recursos forestales y su manutención de los bosques a lo largo del tiempo. Sin embargo, existe una brecha sobre la evaluación post aprovechamiento en la Amazonia boliviana, lo que dificulta a tomar acciones y elaboración de políticas públicas relacionadas a la regeneración de especies y monitoramiento de la vegetación en áreas de manejo forestal. Por lo tanto, es necesario la actualización, inclusión y elaboración de instrumentos legales pos aprovechamiento e de técnicas que regulen y mitiguen los efectos del aprovechamiento forestal en la amazonia boliviana.
Detection of a High-velocity Prominence Eruption Leading to a CME Associated with a Superflare on the RS CVn-type Star V1355 Orionis
Authors: Inoue Shun , Maehara Hiroyuki , Notsu Yuta , Namekata Kosuke , Honda Satoshi , Namizaki Keiichi , Nogami Daisaku , Shibata Kazunari
Published: April 2023

Stellar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) have recently received much attention for their impacts on exoplanets and stellar evolution. Detecting prominence eruptions, the initial phase of CMEs, as the blueshifted excess component of Balmer lines is a technique to capture stellar CMEs. However, most of prominence eruptions identified thus far have been slow and less than the surface escape velocity. Therefore, whether these eruptions were developing into CMEs remained unknown. In this study, we conducted simultaneous optical photometric observations with Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite and optical spectroscopic observations with the 3.8 m Seimei Telescope for the RS CVn-type star V1355 Orionis that frequently produces large-scale superflares. We detected a superflare releasing 7.0 × 1035 erg. In the early stage of this flare, a blueshifted excess component of Hα extending its velocity up to 760–1690 km s−1 was observed and thought to originate from prominence eruptions. The velocity greatly exceeds the escape velocity (i.e., ∼350 km s−1), which provides important evidence that stellar prominence eruptions can develop into CMEs. Furthermore, we found that the prominence is very massive (9.5 × 1018 g < M < 1.4 × 1021 g). These data will clarify whether such events follow existing theories and scaling laws on solar flares and CMEs even when the energy scale far exceeds solar cases.
Membership Analysis and 3D Kinematics of the Star-forming Complex around Trumpler 37 Using Gaia-DR3
Authors: Das Swagat R. , Gupta Saumya , Prakash Prem , Samal Manash , Jose Jessy
Published: April 2023

Identifying and characterizing young populations of star-forming regions are crucial to unraveling their properties. In this regard, Gaia-DR3 data and machine-learning tools are very useful for studying large star-forming complexes. In this work, we analyze the ∼7.1 deg2 area of one of our Galaxy’s dominant feedback-driven star-forming complexes, i.e., the region around Trumpler 37. Using the Gaussian mixture and random-forest classifier methods, we identify 1243 highly probable members in the complex, of which ∼60% are new members and are complete down to the mass limit of ∼0.1–0.2 M
⊙. The spatial distribution of the stars reveals multiple clusters toward the complex, where the central cluster around the massive star HD 206267 reveals two subclusters. Of the 1243 stars, 152 have radial velocity, with a mean value of −16.41 ± 0.72 km s−1. We investigate stars’ internal and relative movement within the central cluster. The kinematic analysis shows that the cluster’s expansion is relatively slow compared to the whole complex. This slow expansion is possibly due to newly formed young stars within the cluster. We discuss these results in the context of hierarchical collapse and feedback-induced collapse mode of star formation in the complex.
The SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper Reverberation Mapping Project: Unusual Broad-line Variability in a Luminous Quasar
Authors: Fries Logan B. , Trump Jonathan R. , Davis Megan C. , Grier C. J. , Shen Yue , Anderson Scott F. , Dwelly Tom , Eracleous Michael , Homayouni Y. , Horne Keith , Krumpe Mirko , Morrison Sean , Runnoe Jessie C. , Trakhtenbrot Benny , Assef Roberto J. , Brandt W. N. , Brownstein Joel , Dabbieri Collin , Fix Alexander , Fonseca Alvarez Gloria , Frederick Sara , Hall P. B. , Koekemoer Anton M. , Li Jennifer I-Hsiu , Liu Xin , Martínez-Aldama Mary Loli , Ricci Claudio , Schneider Donald P. , Sharp Hugh W. , Temple Matthew J. , Yang Qian , Zeltyn Grisha , Bizyaev Dmitry
Published: April 2023

We present a high-cadence multiepoch analysis of dramatic variability of three broad emission lines (Mg ii, Hβ, and Hα) in the spectra of the luminous quasar (λ
L

λ
(5100 Å) = 4.7 × 1044 erg s−1) SDSS J141041.25+531849.0 at z = 0.359 with 127 spectroscopic epochs over nine years of monitoring (2013–2022). We observe anticorrelations between the broad emission-line widths and flux in all three emission lines, indicating that all three broad emission lines “breathe” in response to stochastic continuum variations. We also observe dramatic radial velocity shifts in all three broad emission lines, ranging from Δv ∼ 400 km s−1 to ∼800 km s−1, that vary over the course of the monitoring period. Our preferred explanation for the broad-line variability is complex kinematics in the gas in the broad-line region. We suggest a model for the broad-line variability that includes a combination of gas inflow with a radial gradient, an azimuthal asymmetry (e.g., a hot spot), superimposed on the stochastic flux-driven changes to the optimal emission region (“line breathing”). Similar instances of line-profile variability due to complex gas kinematics around quasars are likely to represent an important source of false positives in radial velocity searches for binary black holes, which typically lack the kind of high-cadence data we analyze here. The long-duration, wide-field, and many-epoch spectroscopic monitoring of SDSS-V BHM-RM provides an excellent opportunity for identifying and characterizing broad emission-line variability, and the inferred nature of the inner gas environment, of luminous quasars.
Exploring the Connection between Helioseismic Travel Time Anomalies and the Emergence of Large Active Regions during Solar Cycle 24
Authors: Stefan John T. , Kosovichev Alexander G.
Published: April 2023

We investigate deviations in the mean phase travel time of acoustic waves preceding the emergence of 46 large active regions observed by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager. In our investigation, we consider two different procedures for obtaining the mean phase travel time, by minimizing the difference between cross-correlations and a reference, as well as the Gabor wavelet fitting procedure. We cross-correlate the time series of mean phase travel time deviations with the surface magnetic field and determine the peak correlation time lag. We also compute the perturbation index—the area integrated mean phase travel time deviations exceeding quiet Sun thresholds—and compare the time of peak perturbation index with the correlation time lag. We find that the lag times derived from the difference minimization procedure precede the flux emergence for 36 of the 46 active regions, and that this lag time has a noticeable correlation with the maximum flux rate. However, only 28 of the active regions have peak perturbation index times in the range of 24–48 hr prior to the flux emergence. Additionally, we examine the relationship between the properties of the emerged active regions and the strength of helioseismic signals prior to their emergence.
DESI Survey Validation Spectra Reveal an Increasing Fraction of Recently Quenched Galaxies at z ∼ 1
Authors: Setton David J. , Dey Biprateep , Khullar Gourav , Bezanson Rachel , Newman Jeffrey A. , Aguilar Jessica N. , Ahlen Steven , Andrews Brett H. , Brooks David , de la Macorra Axel , Dey Arjun , Eftekharzadeh Sarah , Font-Ribera Andreu , A Gontcho Satya Gontcho , Kremin Anthony , Juneau Stephanie , Landriau Martin , Meisner Aaron , Miquel Ramon , Moustakas John , Pearl Alan , Prada Francisco , Tarlé Gregory , Siudek Małgorzata , Weaver Benjamin Alan , Zhou Zhimin , Zou Hu
Published: April 2023

We utilize ∼17,000 bright luminous red galaxies (LRGs) from the novel Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument Survey Validation spectroscopic sample, leveraging its deep (∼2.5 hr galaxy−1 exposure time) spectra to characterize the contribution of recently quenched galaxies to the massive galaxy population at 0.4 < z < 1.3. We use Prospector to infer nonparametric star formation histories and identify a significant population of recently quenched galaxies that have joined the quiescent population within the past ∼1 Gyr. The highest-redshift subset (277 at z > 1) of our sample of recently quenched galaxies represents the largest spectroscopic sample of post-starburst galaxies at that epoch. At 0.4 < z < 0.8, we measure the number density of quiescent LRGs, finding that recently quenched galaxies constitute a growing fraction of the massive galaxy population with increasing look-back time. Finally, we quantify the importance of this population among massive (

log
(

M

⋆

/

M

⊙

)

> 11.2) LRGs by measuring the fraction of stellar mass each galaxy formed in the gigayear before observation, f
1 Gyr. Although galaxies with f
1 Gyr > 0.1 are rare at z ∼ 0.4 (≲0.5% of the population), by z ∼ 0.8, they constitute ∼3% of massive galaxies. Relaxing this threshold, we find that galaxies with f
1 Gyr > 5% constitute ∼10% of the massive galaxy population at z ∼ 0.8. We also identify a small but significant sample of galaxies at z = 1.1–1.3 that formed with f
1 Gyr > 50%, implying that they may be analogs to high-redshift quiescent galaxies that formed on similar timescales. Future analysis of this unprecedented sample promises to illuminate the physical mechanisms that drive the quenching of massive galaxies after cosmic noon.
Alien and native species in Italian marine and transitional waters
Authors: Di Muri Cristina , Lazic Tamara , Rosati Ilaria , Pierri Cataldo , Boggero Angela , Corriero Giuseppe , Basset Alberto
Published: April 2023

Biological invasions are one of the major threats to the ecosystem structure and functioning. After the initial introduction, frequently mediated by human activities, alien species can overcome different biogeographical and ecological barriers and determine severe impacts on native biodiversity and socio-economic activities. The Italian peninsula is located at the intersection of large trade routes within the Mediterranean Sea. Such position, along with the intense commercial activity and the high population density of the Italian coast, are considered important drivers of alien species in Italian marine and transitional ecosystems. The Italian peninsula, however, is also one of the regions with the highest native species richness within the Mediterranean Sea and, therefore, it is crucial to account for both alien and native species diversity when estimating the impact of biological invasion. Yet, such comprehensive information is frequently scattered across several biodiversity information systems and databases.

Here, two datasets with alien and native species records in Italian marine and transitional waters are described. These datasets, created for the LifeWatch Italy case study on alien species, are the result of a large-scale collaboration involving experts working across the whole range of taxonomic diversity. The marine dataset includes a total of 12,219 records belonging to 3,772 species gathered from 91 investigated sites and seven EUNIS habitats. The dataset on transitional waters biodiversity includes 3,838 records belonging to 2,019 species found in 23 locations and four EUNIS habitats. Alien species were recorded in both marine and transitional waters, accounting respectively for 140 and 171 biological records belonging to 59 and 97 species. These occurrence data can be used for further research studies or management purposes, including the evaluation of the invasion risk and the formulation of alien species control and management plans. Furthermore, these compiled datasets can be used as input data for the Biotope vulnerability case study of LifeWatch ERIC, which offers a number of ICT services for the calculation of the incidence and of the impact of alien species on European biotopes.
Complex Thinking and Its Relevance in Professional Training: An Approach to Engineering Students in a Mexican University
Authors: Cruz-Sandoval Marco , Vázquez-Parra José Carlos , Carlos-Arroyo Martina , Del Angel-González Marco Vinicio
Published: April 2023

This article aims to present the results of an analysis of the level of perceived achievement of the complex thinking competency among a group of engineering students in their last semester at a university in Western Mexico. The intention is to identify whether this population has the necessary skills to meet challenges and solve problems related to the demands of their future professional environments. Specifically, we not only seek to know the level of perception of achievement of complex thinking but also to understand its behavior and the possible existence of differences between the male and female populations. Methodologically, exploratory and multivariate descriptive statistical analyses were carried out. The results showed that the participants felt a high level of perceived achievement of the complex thinking competency, which was more noticeable in the male population.
Tractor Stability for Agricultural Engineering Students: Learning Through a Project-Based Task
Authors: Castillo-Ruiz Francisco J. , Arbizu-Milagro Julia , Varela Alajandro , Tascón Alberto
Published: April 2023

Most of the fatalities in the agricultural sector in developed countries are related to machinery use, particularly tractor overturning. Despite its importance, a lack of practical teaching about this topic has been detected in the Agricultural Engineering curricula. For this reason, an active learning activity was planned within a teaching innovation project. The objective of this project was to design a structure as new teaching material to implement and use it to determine the tractor’s center of gravity coordinates. This teaching innovation project was organized in two stages: 1) The design of proposals by students following previously established requirements, and 2) A practical exercise to analyze tractor stability. Each stage involved students from two different Agricultural Engineering degree subjects. Before the second stage, the professor performed the final design of the structure based on previous proposals and later the structure was built. Five different ramp design proposals were received and graded in the first stage. A positive correlation between peer review and the professor’s grades was found. During the second stage, the ramps were used in another subject, in which the grades obtained in the related practical exercise were significantly higher in comparison with those got in the previous year. However, no improvement was found in the final exam grades. This activity involved students in the entire learning process and showed a positive influence on some of the evaluation activities.
Performance Analysis for 3D Reconstruction Objects in Meshroom and Agisoft—A Comparative Study
Authors: Enesi Indrit , Kuqi Anduel
Published: April 2023

3D reconstruction of objects is with ​​interest nowadays, mainly in production industry. The main challenge of them is accuracy and processing time, especially for small and detailed objects. The field of photogrammetry realizes the 3D reconstruction of objects through 2D photos. Different software, free or non-free exists, providing different quality and performance. Accurate 3D reconstruction is important in cloning objects, especially in the industry of spare parts or in the production of prostheses in medicine, etc. Determining accurately the sizes of the object, especially those with complex geometric shapes is very important in the 3D printing process.                                             
The purpose of this paper is the analysis of the performance of 3D reconstruction in terms of accuracy for objects of different sizes regarding the number of its photos and the time evaluation of this process. The 3D reconstruction will be performed by free software Meshroom, measurement will be done in MeshLab and non-free software Agisoft. Experimental results show that quality and performance of 3D reconstruction depends on the number of photos of the object, concluding in finding the optimal balance between these parameters.  By comparing obtained results from MeshRoom and Meshlag versus Agisoft, it is claimed that Agisoft performs better than MeshRoom. It offers more optimization techniques, reduces processing time, more visual quality in the reconstructed 3D object as well as more accuracy in measurement.
Design and Implementation Unit Cell for 6G Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface Application
Authors: Jaafar Qassim Kadhim  , Adheed H. Sallomi
Published: April 2023

This article presents a model through which the reflection coefficient amplitude as well as phase of reflective intelligent surfaces can be estimated accurately. The reconfigurability of the surface was achieved by incorporating the varactor diodes into the surface of the cell unit. The manipulation of the phase of the reflection coefficient can be achieved by making adjustments to the biasing state of the varactors. The model, which makes use of a physics-based methodology and is based on a transmission-line circuit description of the Reconfigurable Intelligent surfaces (RIS) unit cells, considers every pertinent electrical and geometrical characteristics of the proposed surface. With the method proposed in this paper, fast and accurate RIS-based communication lines can be created. The recommended accuracy of the proposed method was confirmed through the use of a CST microwave studio full-wave simulations.
LabVIEW Instrument Aimed for the Research on Brain-Computer Interface by Enabling the Acquisition, Processing, and the Neural Networks based Classification of the Raw EEG Signal Detected by the Embedded NeuroSky Biosensor
Authors: Rușanu Oana Andreea
Published: April 2023

The Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) is a scientific field aimed at helping people with neuromotor disabilities. Among the current drawbacks of BCI research is the need for a cost-effective software instrument for simple integration with portable EEG headsets, the lack of a comparative assessment approach of various techniques underlying recognizing the most precise BCI control signal –voluntary eye-blinking, and the need for EEG datasets allowing the classification of multiple voluntary eye-blinks. The proposed BCI research-related virtual instrument accomplishes the data acquisition, processing, features extraction, and the ANN-based classification of the EEG signal detected by the NeuroSky embedded biosensor. The developed software application automatically generated fifty mixtures between selected EEG rhythms and statistical features. The EEG rhythms are related to the time and frequency domains of the raw, delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma. The extracted statistical features contain the mean, median, standard deviation, route mean square, Kurtosis coefficient, mode, sum, skewness, maximum, and range = maximum-minimum. The results include 100 EEG datasets to classify multiple voluntary eye-blinks: 50 datasets with 4000 recordings and 50 with 800 recordings. The LabVIEW application determined the optimal ANN models for classifying the EEG temporal sequences corresponding to detecting zero, one, two, or three voluntary eye-blinks.
Automatically Avoiding Overfitting in Deep Neural Networks by Using Hyper-Parameters Optimization Methods
Authors: Kadhim Zahraa Saddi , Abdullah Hasanen S. , Ghathwan Khalil I.
Published: April 2023

Overfitting is one issue that deep learning faces in particular. It leads to highly accurate classification results, but they are fraudulent. As a result, if the overfitting problem is not fully resolved, systems that rely on prediction or recognition and are sensitive to accuracy will produce untrustworthy results. All prior suggestions helped to lessen this issue but fell short of eliminating it entirely while maintaining crucial data. This paper proposes a novel approach to guarantee the preservation of critical data while eliminating overfitting completely. Numeric and image datasets are employed in two types of networks: convolutional and deep neural networks. Following the usage of three regularization techniques (L1, L2, and dropout), apply two optimization algorithms (Bayesian and random search), allowing them to select the hyperparameters automatically, with regularization techniques being one of the hyperparameters that are automatically selected. The obtained results, in addition to completely eliminating the overfitting issue, showed that the accuracy of the image data was 97.82% and 90.72 % when using Bayesian and random search techniques, respectively, and was 95.3 % and 96.5 % when using the same algorithms with a numeric dataset.
Débat d’idées en Éducation Physique et Sportive : une forme spécifique d’action didactique conjointe pour l’enseignement des sports collectifs
Authors: Poggi Marie-Paule , Gréhaigne Jean-Francis , Zerai Zeineb
Published: April 2023

Cet article propose de présenter le débat d’idées comme une forme particulière d’« action conjointe », à la fois révélatrice de ses descripteurs fondateurs et productrice de modalités particulières d’interactions fondées sur les échanges contradictoires entre élèves. Largement utilisée en EPS dans l’enseignement des sports collectifs en France, cette organisation pédagogique consiste en une situation dans laquelle les élèves s’expriment (verbalisation audible) et échangent des faits et des idées (verbalisation partagée), sur la base d’observations ou d’activités personnelles vécues dans le jeu (verbalisation consécutive). Le débat d’idées, comme situation didactique favorise les apprentissages par l’élaboration d’actions en projet et la construction de connaissances en situation d’opposition. À l’appui de plusieurs études empiriques présentées dans le cadre de cet article, nous soulignons l’efficacité du dispositif en termes d’évolution des réponses des élèves et des progrès dans leurs acquisitions tout en identifiant certaines conditions qui en limitent la pleine expression en termes d’égalité d’accès aux savoirs scolaires.
DETECTION AND CLASSIFICATION OF COVID-19 CASES FROM OTHER CARDIOVASCULAR CLASSES FROM ELECTROCARDIOGRAPHY SIGNALS USING DEEP LEARNING AND ResNet NETWORK
Authors: Akbari Shokufeh , Ebrahimi Faraz Edadi , Rajabioun Mehdi
Published: April 2023

Nowadays, the world confronts a highly infectious pandemic called coronavirus (COVID-19) and over 4 million people worldwide have now died from this illness. So, early detection of COVID-19 outbreak and distinguishing it from other diseases with the same physical symptoms can give enough time for treatment with true positive results and prevent coma or death. For early recognition of COVID-19, several methods for each modality are proposed. Although there are some modalities for COVID-19 detection, electrocardiography (ECG) is one of the fastest, the most accessible, the cheapest and the safest one. This paper proposed a new method for classifying COVID-19 patients from other cardiovascular disease by ECG signals. In the proposed method, ResNet50v2 which is a kind of convolutional neural network, is used for classification. In this paper because of image format of data, first data with image format are applied to the network and then for comparison, ECG images are changed to signal format and classification is done. These two strategies are used for COVID-19 classification from other cardiac abnormalities with different filter sizes and the results of strategies are compared with each other and other methods in this field. As it can be concluded from the results, signal-based data give better accuracy than image classification at best performance and it is better to change the image format to signals for classification. The second result can be found by comparing with other methods in this field, the proposed method of this paper gives better performance with high accuracy in COVID-19 classification.
Predictive Modeling of Out-of-Plane Deviation for the Quality Improvement of Additive Manufacturing
Authors: Wang Hao , Shraida Hamzeh A Al. , Yu Jin
Published: April 2023

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a new technology for fabricating products straight from a 3D digital model, which can lower costs, minimize waste, and increase building speed while maintaining acceptable quality. However, it still suffers from low dimensional accuracy and a lack of geometrical quality standards. Moreover, there is a need for a robust AM configuration to perform in-situ inspections during the fabrication. This work established a 3D printing-scanning setup to collect 3D point cloud data of printed parts and then compare them with nominal 3D point cloud data to quantify the deviation in all X, Y, and Z directions. Specifically, this work aims at predicting the anticipated deviation along the Z direction by applying a deep learning-based prediction model. An experiment with regard to a human “Knee” prototype fabricated by Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is conducted to show the effectiveness of the proposed methods.
Research Progress of Ceramic and Metal Welding Technology
Authors: LI Chang Ning , Yin Shao Hua
Published: April 2023

The connection characteristics and methods of ceramic and metal were studied, and emphatically the current research status of ceramic and metal active brazing, diffusion welding, self-propagating high temperature synthesis welding, fusion welding, friction welding, ultrasonic welding, hot-press reaction sintering welding and other welding methods were introduced. The main problems and improvement methods existing in the current ceramic and metal welding are discussed, and the development trend of ceramic and metal brazing connection is prospected.
Friction Coefficient during Five-Phased Start-Stop Tests of PEEK-PTFE Hybrid Radial Ball Bearings Reaching 50 c° under 487N at 600rpm in Air
Authors: Adachi Shota , Mizobe Koshiro , Matsueda Takahiro , Kida Katsuyuki
Published: April 2023

Start-stop rolling contact fatigue tests of PEEK-PTFE hybrid radial bearings were carried out, to investigate the influence of start-stop heat cycle on the friction coefficient of PEEK-PTFE hybrid radial bearings. It was found in all start-stop tests, the temperature of sample side increased as the friction coefficient increased. RCF cycles to reach 50 °C of the third start-stop phase clearly increased from the second start-stop tests, and then kept constant value.
Utilization of Waste Non-Metallic Printed Circuit Boards in Polymer Composites from Acrylate-Styrene-Acrylonitrile
Authors: Sapsrithong Pornsri , Rattanapan Apaipan , Sritapunya Thritima , Tuampoemsab Surakit , Nithitanakul Manit
Published: April 2023

One of the important environmental problems today is the increase in electronic and electrical wastes produced from daily usage and the modern lifestyle. This work focused on the use of waste non-metallic printed circuit boards (WNMPCB) obtained from comminuted recycled printed circuit boards (PCBs) as a filler for acrylate-styrene-acrylonitrile (ASA) composite. The effect of filler loading and the type of interfacial agent employed in the composite were investigated. The ASA/WNMPCB composites were prepared with varying amounts of WNMPCB as filler between 0-30 phr of ASA by melt-blending technique, and the ASA/WNMPCB composites would be modified with surface treatment agents, including a silane coupling agent and styrene-maleic anhydride (SMA). All materials were mixed by using a two-roll mill at 240 °C, and test specimens were prepared with an injection molding machine. Phase morphology, mechanical and thermal properties of acrylate-styrene-acrylonitrile (ASA) reinforced with waste non-metallic printed circuit boards (WNMPCB) were determined in this study and compared with neat ASA. Experimental results showed that WNMPCB could be employed as a filler, and improved properties were obtained. Phase morphology from SEM images was found that the interfacial modification enhanced the interfacial adhesion between WNMPCB (filler) and matrix (ASA), caused an improvement in properties. The maximum improvement of properties of ASA/WNMPCB was 30 phr of WNMPCB modified with styrene-maleic anhydride (SMA).
Recruitment of Teachers and Strategies to Retain Them: A Study Conducted in International Schools in Sri Lanka
Authors: Shariffdeen F. S.
Published: April 2023

Teacher recruitment procedures are one of the significant factors in providing effective and quality teacheing in schools. However, limited research has delved into how teachers are recruited in international schools. Hence, this study attempts to investigate the factors considered in teacher recruitment procedures and how teachers can be retained in the secondary section of international schools. A sample of 72 teachers from six leading international schools in Colombo was used to obtain relevant information. The study revealed that besides academic and professional qualifications, the six main traits that are considered during teacher recruitment are subject knowledge (80%), language skills (80%), firm personality (70%), voice projection (66%), teaching experience (45%) and teacher-student interaction (35%).There is a shortage of qualified teachers in all streams, especially in the Arts and Technology streams. Nevertheless, teacher turnover rates are also high in these two streams, 44% and 28% respectively. The four main reasons that were identified for teacher turnover are management interference (76%), strict rules and regulations (69%), lack of job security (56%) and overload of work (56%). The four main teacher retention strategies are financial incentives (30%), reducing workload (20%), flexibility and supportive (15%) and improving working conditions (15%). , It is recommended that management should rethink about the teacher recruitment and retention protocols by managing human resources more effectively.
A SARS-CoV-2 variant of C-36 lineage with L452R mutation infects a family in Sri Lanka, but has limited spread – A Case Series
Authors: Abeygoonawardena H. , Jayasinghearachchi H. , Senaratne T. , Jayasekera P. , Nakkawita D. , Mubarak N. , Kulasekera U. , Kawyangana P. , Govindapala D. , De Silva A. D.
Published: April 2023

We report a family cluster of six members who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection in April 2021 at University Hospital, Kotelawala Defence University, Sri Lanka. Samples from three members were subjected to Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) and all were identified as SARS-CoV-2 variant of pangolin lineage C.36, containing the L452R mutation which is associated with high infectivity. All patients recovered with mild symptoms and no complications. This is the first report identifying a new variant of the C.36 lineage containing the L452R mutation from Sri Lanka followed by detection of the same lineage from Northern Sri Lanka in June 2021 and no reported cases hereafter.  At that time, it was relatively rare for a whole family to get infected, and the concern was that this strain would spread rapidly. Due to unknown circumstances it never spread to be detected by the national surveillance programme. Other variants, B.1.411 and B.1.1.7, more dominant and infectious, were already in circulation and presumably outcompeted this strain.
Direct rapid antimicrobial sensitivity test (dRAST): A distant dream or palpable reality
Authors: Chinniah Terrence Rohan
Published: April 2023

No abstract available
Federal Policies and Mass Incarceration in America
Authors: Ly Lisa
Published: April 2023

In “the land of the free,” there are 1.6 million people incarcerated in prison or jail as of 2023 (World Prison Brief n.d.). The United States system of mass incarceration disproportionately impacts communities of color and inflicts personal, social, and economic harm on incarcerated individuals. This paper examines the history of previous federal policies and funding that influenced the criminal justice system and how these legislative actions resulted in the era of mass incarceration in the US. This paper concludes that allocating federal funding to support reentry programs, establish universal voting rights, and increase monitoring of reform efforts, along with a coordinated policy response from state lawmakers, will propel lasting change in the criminal justice system.
The Great Green Wall: Understanding Policy Options for Carbon Border Adjustments
Authors: Gordon Sean
Published: April 2023

National transitions away from fossil fuels and towards advanced energy sources can be undermined by firms offshoring production to evade carbon taxes or regulations, referred to as “carbon leakage.” To advance these transitions, in lieu of a globally set carbon tax, some policymakers have proposed carbon border adjustments, a type of duty placed on goods that are made in less environmentally restricted countries. This paper seeks to examine the research and proposals for carbon border adjustments and provide a guide for policymakers on the efficacy and design of such border adjustments.
An Economic Analysis of Outcomes-based Payment in Healthcare
Authors: Misustin Brady
Published: April 2023

The United States spends significantly more on healthcare than any other developed country in the world, yet the US experiences relatively poor health outcomes when compared to other developed nations. To address this issue, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 includes directives to “improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare” by “linking payment and quality outcomes.” An outcomes-based payment model links provider payment directly to patient outcomes and the cost of care to change provider incentives and improve the value of care provided. In this paper, I analyze the current fee-for-service payment model in the United States healthcare system and the potential market corrections that can be made through the implementation of an outcomes-based payment model. This analysis is conducted utilizing standard and behavioral economic theory with accompanying practical recommendations for successful implementation.
Nudging to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of a Medicare Mailed Fecal Immunochemical Test Program
Authors: White Benjamin
Published: April 2023

This paper presents a cost-benefit analysis of the implementation of a mailed fecal immunochemical test (FIT) program for Medicare beneficiaries who have fallen behind on recommended colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. An ex-ante cost-benefit analysis was conducted to determine the total net benefits to US society of the implementation of a Medicare Mailed FIT program on one-year and 10-year timelines. Costs and benefits associated with the implementation of such a program were valued using Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reimbursement rates and results from existing research. Analysis procedures followed Health and Human Services Guidelines for Regulatory Impact Analysis to the maximum extent possible. The base-case net benefits after program year one were estimated to be $9.6 billion with estimated 10-year net benefits of $74.5 billion. Best-case sensitivity analysis outcomes were estimated to be $22.7 billion in net benefits at the end of year one and $202.3 billion in net benefits on a 10-year timeline, while worst-case sensitivity analysis outcomes were estimated to be $1.4 billion in net benefits at the end of year one and $12.5 billion in net benefits on a 10-year timeline. Further sensitivity analyses all yielded positive net benefits on one and 10-year timelines indicating that the implementation of a mailed FIT program for Medicare beneficiaries who have fallen behind on CRC screening offers considerable net benefit to US society.
Right-to-Work Laws: Impacts on the Labor Market, Union Organizing, and Social Equity
Authors: Reis Branden J.
Published: April 2023

Right-to-work (RTW) laws do not require workers to pay dues in order to become a member of a labor union as a condition of employment. State governments, particularly those in the Midwest and South, have introduced RTW laws to attract businesses and industrialize local economies. Consequently, the laws increase competition among nonunion workers, driving wages down. The laws also weaken labor unions’ ability to bargain for wage increases, especially as unions are strained to bargain for workers that are not dues-paying members. After implementation, RTW laws generally increase economic inequality. However, the local socioeconomic conditions, such as racial and gender diversity in the labor force, can influence the demand for union representation and may impact the degree to which economic inequality will change. There have been repeated attempts to expand RTW to the national level, but these attempts would risk magnifying wage disparities, undermining unions’ bargaining power, and exacerbating socioeconomic inequalities.
Preventing Splitting in the United States’ Clean Energy Future: Policy Options to Ensure Longevity of the Domestic Nuclear Power Industry
Authors: Liguori Giovanni
Published: April 2023

The nuclear energy industry in the United States has struggled to stay afloat financially due to extraordinarily high construction and financing costs, leading reactors to retire prematurely. These closures leave massive gaps in clean energy production, inherently jeopardizing the ability of the U.S. to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 in accordance with the Paris Agreement. The federal government should take initiative to help struggling nuclear facilities to maintain its current output and reverse the current backsliding the industry is experiencing. This essay discusses two policy options, including a subsidy for nuclear facility construction and an enhanced nuclear production tax credit. As electricity demand continues to grow into the future, federal investment in domestic nuclear energy would yield significant benefits for energy infrastructure and technological advancement and help mitigate the climate crisis.
Measuring the Prospects of Newsom’s Newest Housing Laws
Authors: Varnell Nathan
Published: April 2023

In fall 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed two major affordable housing bills into law. This article breaks down on why affordable housing in California is a major issue right now and how these new laws will ease the housing crunch.
The Vehicle Safety Standard Bias: How Male-Based Crash Testing Leaves Female Drivers in the Backseat
Authors: Vanella Julia
Published: April 2023

What do crash test dummies and gender bias have to do with one another? A lot more than you might think. This article explains how today's vehicular safety standards can put women at risk.
Where Refundable Tax Credits Fall Flat
Authors: Carr Patrick
Published: April 2023

Why are Americans offered thousands of dollars by the federal government turning it down? This article addresses the issues with refundable tax credits and considers possible solutions for improving the tax filing process.
Simultaneous presence of Brugada and overgrowth syndromes
Authors: Segreti Andrea , Piccirillo Francesco , Crispino Simone Pasquale , Cocchia Francesca , Martucciello Arianna , Calabrese Vito , Gurrieri Fiorella , Grigioni Francesco
Published: April 2023

In the present article, we describe the case of a 21-year-old male presenting to the Emergency Department following a syncopal episode. Physical examination revealed a distinctive facial appearance in the context of an overgrowth syndrome. Also, an ajmaline test was performed because of the evidence of an incomplete right bundle branch block with ST-T segment elevation in the right precordial derivations, revealing a type-1 Brugada electrocardiographic pattern. Considering the high cardiovascular risk phenotype, the patient underwent subcutaneous cardiac defibrillator implantation. The subsequent comprehensive genomic testing analysis led to the diagnosis of a variant of an uncertain significance of the nuclear receptor binding SET domain protein 1 (NSD1) gene and a heterozygous mutation of the calsequestrin 2 (CASQ2) gene. NSD1 gene alterations are usually responsible for the Sotos syndrome, characterized by distinctive facial appearance, learning disability, and overgrowth, in addition to cardiac anomalies, ranging from single self-limiting alterations to more severe, complex cardiac abnormalities. On the contrary, a compound heterozygous or homozygous alteration of the CASQ2 gene is usually associated with catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia; however, the significance of a merely heterozygous alteration in CASQ2 gene, as in the present case report, is not yet clear. In conclusion, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first description of the coexisting presence of Brugada and overgrowth syndromes in a single patient.
Young Latina college students’ perspectives on mask-wearing post lifting of mask mandates
Authors: Clobes Thomas A. , Alonge Heather Craig
Published: April 2023

Confusion, miscommunication, and debate regarding the benefits of wearing masks, social distancing, and stay-at-home orders ensued for much of the COVID-19 pandemic. Without a consistent message from the government, doubt regarding masks’ effectiveness in preventing the spread of COVID-19 became common and led to an anti-masking effort and resistance to COVID-19 protocols. This qualitative study used thematic analysis to understand experiences of young Latina college students during the pandemic and how these experiences contributed to their decisions to continue following COVID-19 protocols after the lifting of relevant restrictions. Twenty-two Latina college students were interviewed, and interview transcripts were analyzed to identify themes. Four themes emerged: i) disinformation and mistrust, ii) economic impacts, iii) emotional impacts, and iv) maintaining health. Thematic analysis of in-depth interviews allowed for a deeper understanding of health-seeking behaviors of Latina college students. Inconsistent messaging from public health officials during the pandemic contributed to confusion and resistance to the various mandates among participants—the majority of whom, as of this writing (June 2022), have chosen to continue to wear masks and follow other protocols despite public health and university officials lifting mask mandates.
Connes' integration and Weyl's laws
Authors: Ponge Raphaël
Published: April 2023

This paper deals with some questions regarding the notion of integral in the framework of Connes' noncommutative geometry. First, we present a purely spectral theoretic construction of Connes' integral. This answers a question of Alain Connes. We also deal with the compatibility of Dixmier traces with Lebesgue's integral. This answers another question of Alain Connes. We further clarify the relationship of Connes' integration with Weyl's laws for compact operators and Birman–Solomyak's perturbation theory. We also give a “soft proof” of Birman–Solomyak's Weyl's law for negative order pseudodifferential operators on closed manifold. This Weyl's law yields a stronger form of Connes' trace theorem. Finally, we explain the relationship between Connes' integral and semiclassical Weyl's law for Schrödinger operators, including for (fractional) Schrödinger operators on Euclidean spaces and on noncommutative manifolds. We thus get a neat links between noncommutative geometry and semiclassical analysis.
Percepción del público joven sobre las plataformas online de la televisión pública española: RTVE Play y Playz
Authors: Eguzkitza Mestraitua Gaizka , Casado del Río Miguel Ángel , Guimerá i Orts Josep Àngel
Published: April 2023

Introducción: la televisión ha cambiado: la expansión de Internet ha fomentado el consumo online y, ante el auge de las plataformas, los canales tradicionales reaccionan creando sus propios sitios web, algunos específicos para la juventud. En concreto, RTVE dispone de RTVE Play, de contenido generalista y de Playz, orientado al público joven. Metodología: se ha realizado una encuesta que indaga acerca de la percepción que las personas entre 18 y 35 años en España tienen sobre RTVE Play y Playz. Resultados: los resultados arrojan un escaso conocimiento de Playz pero mayoritario de RTVE Play, así como una pobre identificación de la audiencia con ambas parrillas. Sin embargo, la calidad, la innovación y la diversidad de sus contenidos son apreciados de manera notable por la audiencia. Discusión: RTVE debiera fortalecer la promoción de sus plataformas en las redes sociales, medios de comunicación cotidianos para la juventud actual (Stollfuß, 2019); por otro lado, convendría impulsar la política innovadora del ente que le permita ser referencial y enriquecer, así, su aportación social (EBU, 2016). Conclusiones: se constata la desconexión entre la juventud y RTVE y sus plataformas online, a pesar de los esfuerzos del ente público en acercarse a este segmento de la población.
Об арф-инвариантах в коразмерности 1 в группе Уолла диэдральной группы
Authors: Akhmet'ev Petr Mikhailovich , Muranov Yury Vladimirovich
Published: April 2023

В группе Уолла $L_3(D_3)$ от диэдральной группы порядка $8$ с тривиальным характером ориентации указан элемент $x$, являющийся элементом третьего типа в смысле Харшиладзе относительно любой системы односторонних подмногообразий коразмерности $1$, в которой группа препятствий к расщеплению вдоль первого подмногообразия изоморфна $LN_1(\mathbb Z/2\oplus \mathbb Z/2\to D_3)$. Элемент $x$ не реализуется как препятствие к перестройке на замкнутом $\mathrm{PL}$-многообразии. Также доказано, что единственный нетривиальный элемент группы $LN_3(\mathbb Z/2\oplus \mathbb Z/2\to D_3^-)$ детектируется с помощью $Wh_2$-кручения Хассе-Витта.
Библиография: 25 названий.