bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Super and Nonresponders to Catheter Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation: A Quality-of-Life Assessment Using Patient Reported Outcomes
Authors: Farwati Medhat , Wazni Oussama M. , Tarakji Khaldoun G. , Diab Mohamed , Scandinaro Anna , Amin Mustapha , Zmaili Mohammad , Bazarbashi Najdat , Dikilitas Ozan , Nakagawa Hiroshi , Kuroda Shunsuke , Kanj Mohamed , Dresing Thomas J. , Callahan Thomas D. , Bhargava Mandeep , Baranowski Bryan , Rickard John , Cantillon Daniel J. , Tchou Patrick J. , Saliba Walid I. , Hussein Ayman A.
Published: July 2021

Background:

Atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation targets improvement in quality of life (QoL). Data is scarce on predictors of QoL improvement following ablation. We aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics underlying differential response in QoL after AF ablation (with or without arrhythmia recurrence).

Methods:

All patients undergoing AF ablation (2013–2016) at our center were prospectively enrolled in a fully automated patient-reported outcomes registry. A large number of variables were collected including AF symptom severity scale and AF burden (as indicated by AF frequency and duration scores). Patients were divided into 3 groups based on self-report of QoL improvement: remarkable (super responders), mild/moderate, and unchanged or worse (nonresponders). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models assessed clinical characteristics and QoL outcomes.

Results:

A total of 956 patients were included (25% females, mean age 63.9). Most patients (≈80%) were super responders (n=761), 138 (14.4%) had mild/moderate improvement, and 57 (5.9%) were nonresponders. The strongest predictors of remarkable QoL improvement were freedom of arrhythmia recurrence (OR, 2.42 [95% CI, 1.27–4.59],
P
=0.007) and lower AF burden at 12 months. Similarly, higher AF burden was significantly associated with clinical nonresponse. In patients with observed clinical recurrence-QoL mismatch, changes in AF burden at 12 months were the main predictors of QoL outcome, with lower burden predicting higher improvement in QoL and vice versa.

Conclusions:

Most patients derive significant QoL benefit from AF ablation. Freedom from arrhythmia recurrence and lower AF burden predict remarkable QoL improvement following ablation.
Propagation Vectors Facilitate Differentiation Between Conduction Block, Slow Conduction, and Wavefront Collision
Authors: Yavin Hagai D. , Bubar Zachary P. , Higuchi Koji , Sroubek Jakub , Yarnitsky Jonathan , Anter Elad
Published: July 2021

Background:

Differentiation between conduction block, slow conduction, and wavefront collision can be difficult using activation mapping alone, often requiring differential pacing. Therefore, a real-time method for determination of complex patterns of conduction may be desired. We hereby report a novel algorithm for displaying propagation vectors, allowing differentiation between complex patterns of conduction and facilitating real-time detection of block during ablation.

Methods:

In 10 swine, a chronic transcaval ablation line with an intentional gap or complete block was created, simulating conduction block, slow conduction, and wavefront collision. The line was mapped during atrial pacing using Carto 3 and a novel high-resolution array that includes 48 minielectrodes (surface area, 0.9 mm2, spacing 2.4 mm) distributed over 6 splines (Optrell, Biosense Webster). Propagation vectors were created from unipolar waveforms of adjacent electrodes along and across splines that were acquired at single beats. To examine the utility of propagation vectors for detection conduction block during ablation, a cavotricuspid isthmus line was created during coronary sinus pacing with the array positioned lateral to the line.

Results:

Propagation vectors detected the gap in all 6 interrupted ablation lines, while activation maps only identified gap in 3/6 lines; in the remainder, activation maps alone could not differentiate between conduction block, slow conduction, or wavefront collision. Propagation vectors accurately determined block in all 4 contiguous ablation line, while activation maps suggested conduction block or were indeterminant due to wavefront collision in 2/4 lines. Cavotricuspid isthmus line block was detected during ablation by abrupt reversal of propagation vectors from a lateral-to-septal direction, and acute reconnection was detected by reversal of the propagating vectors back to a lateral direction.

Conclusions:

Real-time propagation vectors enhance the ability of standard activation maps to differentiate between complex patterns of conduction, including determination of conduction block during ablation.
Differentiating Hemolysis, Elevated Liver Enzymes, and Low Platelet Count Syndrome and Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome in the Postpartum Period
Authors: Burwick Richard M. , Moyle Kimberly , Java Anuja , Gupta Megha
Published: July 2021

Pregnancy-associated atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS) is a life-threatening thrombotic microangiopathy which may be mistaken for hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count (HELLP) syndrome. We sought to identify laboratory parameters that differentiate aHUS and HELLP syndrome in the postpartum period. PubMed was searched from inception to March 2018 to identify cases of aHUS in the postpartum period, while cases of HELLP syndrome were identified from a cohort of deliveries at our institution from January 2015 to December 2018. Postpartum laboratory data were abstracted as either peak values (AST [aspartate transaminase]; creatinine; LDH [lactate dehydrogenase]) or nadir values (hemoglobin; platelet count). Differences were compared using the
t
test, Wilcoxon Rank Sum, or χ
2
test, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed. We identified 46 cases of aHUS and 45 cases of HELLP syndrome in the postpartum period. Women with HELLP syndrome were older, but rates of nulliparity and cesarean delivery, and gestational age at delivery, were similar between groups. Peak serum creatinine and LDH values after delivery were the most useful to diagnose aHUS with area under the curve 0.996 (95% CI, 0.99–1.0) and 0.91 (95% CI, 0.83–0.98) respectively. Serum creatinine ≥1.9 mg/dL, LDH ≥1832 U/L, or serum creatinine ≥1.9 mg/dL in combination with LDH ≥600 U/L were the optimal thresholds for diagnosing pregnancy-associated aHUS. We conclude that standard laboratory data, most specifically peak serum creatinine and LDH, may be used to differentiate aHUS and HELLP syndrome in the postpartum period.
Is Transposition of the Great Arteries Associated With Shortening of the Intrapericardial Portions of the Great Arterial Trunks? An Echocardiographic Analysis on Newborn Infants With Simple Transposition of the Great Arteries to Explore an Animal Model‐Based Hypothesis on Human Beings
Authors: Omer Seham O. , Alhabshan Fahad M. , Jijeh Abdulraouf M. Z. , Caimbon Natalia C. , Enriquez Carmelita C. , Männer Jörg , Yelbuz Talat Mesud
Published: July 2021

Background

The pathogenesis of transposition of the great arteries (TGA) as a congenital heart defect of the outflow tract with discordant ventriculoarterial connections remains an enigma. TGA usually have parallel great arteries suggesting that deficient torsion of the embryonic arterial heart pole might cause discordant ventriculoarterial connections. It has been speculated that deficient elongation of the embryonic outflow tract might prevent its normal torsion resulting in TGA. The aim of our study was to clarify whether the intrapericardial portions of the great arteries in human patients with TGA might be indeed shorter than in normal hearts.

Methods and Results

Thirty‐four newborns with simple TGA and 35 newborns with normal hearts were analyzed by using images of the outflow tract in their echocardiograms and the following defined lengths of the great arteries were measured: aortic length 1, (AoL‐1) and aortic length 2 (AoL‐2) = distance between left and right aortic valve level and origin of the brachiocephalic artery, respectively. Pulmonary trunk length 1 (PTL‐1) and pulmonary trunk length 2 (PTL 2) = distance between left and right pulmonary valve level and origin of left and right pulmonary artery, respectively. All measurements of the AoL were significantly shorter in TGA compared to normal hearts (AoL‐1: 1.6±0.2 versus 2.05±0.1;
P
<0.0001; AoL‐2: 1.55±0.2 versus 2.13±0.1;
P
<0.0001). With regard to the pulmonary trunk (PT), PTL‐1 and PTL‐2 were found to be shorter and longer, respectively, in TGA compared with normal hearts, reflecting the differences in the spatial arrangement of the PT between the 2 groups as in TGA the PT is showing a mirror image of the normal anatomy. However, the overall length of the PT between the 2 groups did not differ.

Conclusions

Our data demonstrate that, compared with normal newborns, the ascending aorta is significantly shorter in newborns with TGA whereas the overall length of the PT does not differ between the 2 groups. This finding is in accord with the animal model‐based hypothesis that TGA may result from a growth deficit at the arterial pole of the embryonic heart.
Proteomic Signature of Dysfunctional Circulating Endothelial Colony‐Forming Cells of Young Adults
Authors: Tan Cheryl M. J. , Lewandowski Adam J. , Williamson Wilby , Huckstep Odaro J. , Yu Grace Z. , Fischer Roman , Simon Jillian N. , Alsharqi Maryam , Mohamed Afifah , Leeson Paul , Bertagnolli Mariane
Published: July 2021

Background

A subpopulation of endothelial progenitor cells called endothelial colony‐forming cells (ECFCs) may offer a platform for cellular assessment in clinical studies because of their remarkable angiogenic and expansion potentials in vitro. Despite endothelial cell function being influenced by cardiovascular risk factors, no studies have yet provided a comprehensive proteomic profile to distinguish functional (ie, more angiogenic and expansive cells) versus dysfunctional circulating ECFCs of young adults. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed proteomic comparison between functional and dysfunctional ECFCs.

Methods and Results

Peripheral blood ECFCs were isolated from 11 subjects (45% men, aged 27±5 years) using Ficoll density gradient centrifugation. ECFCs expressed endothelial and progenitor surface markers and displayed cobblestone‐patterned morphology with clonal and angiogenic capacities in vitro. ECFCs were deemed dysfunctional if <1 closed tube formed during the in vitro tube formation assay and proliferation rate was <20%. Hierarchical functional clustering revealed distinct ECFC proteomic signatures between functional and dysfunctional ECFCs with changes in cellular mechanisms involved in exocytosis, vesicle transport, extracellular matrix organization, cell metabolism, and apoptosis. Targeted antiangiogenic proteins in dysfunctional ECFCs included SPARC (secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine), CD36 (cluster of differentiation 36), LUM (lumican), and PTX3 (pentraxin‐related protein PYX3).

Conclusions

Circulating ECFCs with impaired angiogenesis and expansion capacities have a distinct proteomic profile and significant phenotype changes compared with highly angiogenic endothelial cells. Impaired angiogenesis in dysfunctional ECFCs may underlie the link between endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular disease risks in young adults.
Coronary Circulatory Indexes Before and After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in a Porcine Tandem Stenoses Model
Authors: Chang Haseong , Kim Hyun Kuk , Shin Doosup , Lim Kyung Seob , Kim Sun‐Uk , Jeon Chang‐Yeop , Lee Hwal‐Yong , Lee Youngjeon , Won Jinyoung , Lee Seung Hun , Kakuta Tsunekazu , Lee Joo Myung
Published: July 2021

Background

In tandem stenoses, nonhyperemic pressure ratio pullback is the preferred method to fractional flow reserve (FFR), based on the assumption of stable resting coronary flow. This study aimed to evaluate temporal changes of coronary circulatory indexes in tandem stenoses before and after angioplasty for proximal stenosis.

Methods and Results

Coronary tandem stenoses were created by porcine restenosis model with 2 bare metal stents in the left anterior descending artery. Four weeks later, changes in distal coronary pressure (Pd), averaged peak velocity, microvascular resistance, transstenotic pressure gradient across distal stenosis, resting Pd/aortic pressure, and FFR were measured before and 1, 5, 10, 15, and 20 minutes after balloon angioplasty for proximal stenosis. After angioplasty, there were significant changes in both resting and hyperemic Pd, averaged peak velocity, microvascular resistance, and transstenotic pressure gradient across distal stenosis (all
P
values <0.01). After initial acute changes, hyperemic averaged peak velocity and microvascular resistance did not show significant difference from the baseline values (
P
=0.712 and 0.972, respectively). Conversely, resting averaged peak velocity remained increased (10.1±0.7 to 17.8±0.7;
P
<0.001) and resting microvascular resistance decreased (6.0±0.1 to 2.2±0.7;
P
<0.001). Transstenotic pressure gradient across distal stenosis was significantly increased in both resting (13.1±7.6 to 25.3±4.2;
P
=0.040) and hyperemic conditions (11.0±3.0 to 27.4±3.3 mm Hg;
P
<0.001). Actual post–percutaneous coronary intervention Pd/aortic pressure and FFR were significantly lower than predicted values (Pd/aortic pressure, 0.68±0.22 versus 0.85±0.14;
P
<0.001; FFR, 0.63±0.08 versus 0.81±0.08;
P
<0.001).

Conclusions

After angioplasty for proximal stenosis, transstenotic pressure gradient across distal stenosis showed similar changes between resting and hyperemic conditions. Both actual post–percutaneous coronary intervention resting Pd/aortic pressure and FFR were significantly lower than predicted values.
White Supremacy, Terrorism, and the Failure of Reconstruction in the
United States
Authors: Byman Daniel
Published: July 2021

Reconstruction failed in the United States because white Southerners who were opposed to it effectively used violence to undermine Black political power and force uncommitted white Southerners to their side. Although structural factors made it harder to suppress this violence, a series of policy failures proved most important. The Radical Republican-led U.S. government did not deploy enough troops or use them aggressively. Nor did it pursue alternative paths that might have made success more likely, such as arming the Black community. The violence caused Reconstruction to fail, and the victorious white supremacists embedded structural racism into the post-Reconstruction political and social system in the South. Reconstruction's failure illustrates the dangers of half measures. The United States sought to reshape the American South at low cost, in terms of both troop levels and time. In addition, the failure indicates the importance of ensuring that democratization includes the rule of law, not just elections. Most important, Reconstruction demonstrates that a common policy recommendation—compromise with the losers after a civil war—is often fraught, with the price of peace being generations of injustice.
When Do Ideological Enemies Ally?
Authors: Haas Mark L.
Published: July 2021

Why is it that international ideological enemies—states governed by leaders engaged in deep disputes about preferred domestic institutions and values—are sometimes able to overcome their ideological differences and ally to counter shared threats, and sometimes they are not? Alliances among ideological enemies confronting a common foe are unlike coalitions among ideologically similar states facing comparable threats. Members of these alliances are perpetually torn by two sets of powerful contending forces. Shared material threats push these states together, while the effects of ideological differences pull them apart. To predict when ideological enemies are and are not likely to ally in the pursuit of common interests, it is necessary to know which of these contending forces is likely to dominate at a particular time. The values of two ideological variables beyond that of ideological enmity play the key role in determining outcomes: (1) states’ susceptibility to major domestic ideological changes and (2) the nature of the ideological differences among countries. Similar levels of ideological enmity and material threats will have vastly different effects on leaders’ alliance policies as the values of these additional ideological variables alter.
Statistical Properties of Color Matching Functions
Authors: da Fonseca María , Samengo Inés
Published: July 2021

In trichromats, color vision entails the projection of an infinite-dimensional space (the one containing all possible electromagnetic power spectra) onto the three-dimensional space that modulates the activity of the three types of cones. This drastic reduction in dimensionality gives rise to metamerism, that is, the perceptual chromatic equivalence between two different light spectra. The classes of equivalence of metamerism are revealed by color-matching experiments in which observers adjust the intensity of three monochromatic light beams of three preset wavelengths (the primaries) to produce a mixture that is perceptually equal to a given monochromatic target stimulus. Here we use the linear relation between the color matching functions and the absorption probabilities of each type of cone to find particularly useful triplets of primaries. As a second goal, we also derive an analytical description of the trial-to-trial variability and the correlations of color matching functions stemming from Poissonian noise in photon capture. We analyze how the statistical properties of the responses to color-matching experiments vary with the retinal composition and the wavelengths of peak absorption probability, and compare them with experimental data on subject-to-subject variability obtained previously.
Integration of Leaky-Integrate-and-Fire Neurons in Standard Machine Learning Architectures to Generate Hybrid Networks: A Surrogate Gradient Approach
Authors: Gerum Richard C. , Schilling Achim
Published: July 2021

Up to now, modern machine learning (ML) has been based on approximating big data sets with high-dimensional functions, taking advantage of huge computational resources. We show that biologically inspired neuron models such as the leaky-integrate-and-fire (LIF) neuron provide novel and efficient ways of information processing. They can be integrated in machine learning models and are a potential target to improve ML performance. Thus, we have derived simple update rules for LIF units to numerically integrate the differential equations. We apply a surrogate gradient approach to train the LIF units via backpropagation. We demonstrate that tuning the leak term of the LIF neurons can be used to run the neurons in different operating modes, such as simple signal integrators or coincidence detectors. Furthermore, we show that the constant surrogate gradient, in combination with tuning the leak term of the LIF units, can be used to achieve the learning dynamics of more complex surrogate gradients.

To prove the validity of our method, we applied it to established image data sets (the Oxford 102 flower data set, MNIST), implemented various network architectures, used several input data encodings and demonstrated that the method is suitable to achieve state-of-the-art classification performance.

We provide our method as well as further surrogate gradient methods to train spiking neural networks via backpropagation as an open-source KERAS package to make it available to the neuroscience and machine learning community. To increase the interpretability of the underlying effects and thus make a small step toward opening the black box of machine learning, we provide interactive illustrations, with the possibility of systematically monitoring the effects of parameter changes on the learning characteristics.
Contesting the Colonizer or Hopeless Submission? Colonialism, Indigeneity, and Environmental Thinking in India, 1857–1910
Authors: Mandala Vijaya Ramadas
Published: July 2021

This article examines in detail how the forms of national or indigenous consciousness emerged in the sphere of Indian political ecology between 1857 and 1910. The subjects of “ecological indigeneity” and “dispossession” formed as defining characteristics in the articulation of this ecopolitical thinking. The scholarship to date has produced voluminous writings on the political, economic, and social dimension of the histories of colonial unrest, but it has not adequately addressed the issue of how the subtext of environmentalism greatly mattered in shaping some of the resistance movements. Focusing on the period between the 1857 revolt and 1910, this study evaluates three groups – (1) the 1857 Indian rebels and the Gonds; (2) the ādivāsī tribes of Bastar in 1910; and (3) the early Indian Congress Nationalists in the 1880s – to elucidate the emergence of environmentalism and indigenous dispossession in colonial India, which became foundational in critiquing British interventionist policies.
Clarification of some imperfectly understood characters in the Chinese species Thalictrum przewalskii (Ranunculaceae), with reduction of T. lasiogynum and T. latistylum to its synonymy
Authors: ZENG YOU-PAI , YUAN QIONG , YANG QIN-ER
Published: July 2021

Based on critical observations on both herbarium specimens (including type material) and living plants in the wild, here we clarify some morphological characters in the Chinese species Thalictrum przewalskii (Ranunculaceae) and demonstrate that T. lasiogynum and T. latistylum, described respectively from China’s Sichuan and Gansu provinces, are conspecific with it. We therefore reduce T. lasiogynum and T. latistylum to the synonymy of T. przewalskii. Thalictrum sect. Platystylus, which was established to accommodate T. latistylum, is reduced to the synonymy under T. sect. Omalophysa. The identity of T. rockii is further confirmed and the distribution in China of T. sparsiflorum, a species most closely similar to T. przewalskii and widely distributed in northeastern Asia and North America, is also determined.
Neopestalotiopsis cavernicola sp. nov. from Gem Cave in Yunnan Province, China
Authors: LIU XIANGFU , TIBPROMMA SAOWALUCK , ZHANG FAN , XU JIANCHU , CHETHANA K.W.T. , KARUNARATHNA SAMANTHA C. , MORTIMER PETER E.
Published: July 2021

In this paper we describe a new species of cave fungus belonging to Sporocadaceae (Amphisphaeriales), collected from Gem Cave, Fumin County, Yunnan Province, China. Initial morphological observations confirmed that our fungal collection is a pestalotioid species. Phylogenetic analyses of combined internal transcribed spacer (ITS), β-tubulin (TUB) and translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF1α) gene sequence dataset confirmed that our fungus forms an independent branch within Neopestalotiopsis. Thus, we describe our fungus as a new species of Neopestalotiopsis based on both morphology and multigene phylogeny. This is the first-ever report of Neopestalotiopsis from a cave habitat. A full description, micrographs and a phylogenetic tree showing the placement of the new species are provided.
Cardamine hunanensis (Brassicaceae), a remarkable new species from Hunan (China) with fully bracteate racemes
Authors: WU LIE , LIU W. J. , MU C. , AL-SHEHBAZ IHSAN A.
Published: July 2021

Cardamine hunanensis is described as a new Chinese-endemic species with fully bracteate racemes. Its differences from the closely related and bracteate-flowered C. lihengiana are discussed.
A catalog of Stratiomyidae (Diptera: Brachycera) from Chile, with a new synonym and notes on the species
Authors: FACHIN DIEGO AGUILAR , GONZÁLEZ CHRISTIAN R. , ELGUETA MARIO , HAUSER MARTIN
Published: July 2021

A list of all 24 genera and 73 species of Stratiomyidae from Chile is provided, along with all their synonyms and photos of the type specimens of 20 species (including 12 primary types). Only one species is assigned to morphospecies level. All references known to us from the taxonomic and biological literature, including information about name, author, year of publication, page number, type specimens, type locality, and references are given. The geographic distribution of each species is given based on bibliographic and collection data. Three species are removed from the Chilean fauna: Nemotelus tenuivena James, 1974 is only known from the type locality in Argentina; Promeranisa nasuta (Macquart, 1850), which has its type locality corrected to Bolivia, Chiquitos Province; and Ptecticus pomaceus Loew, 1855, referred to Chile due to a locality information error, is a junior synonym of P. trivittatus Say, 1829, syn. nov.
Two new species of the genus Nephelomilta Hampson (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae) from China and Indonesia
Authors: VOLYNKIN ANTON V. , DUBATOLOV VLADIMIR V. , HUANG SI-YAO , KISHIDA YASUNORI
Published: July 2021

Two new species of the genus Nephelomilta Hampson, 1900 are described: Nephelomilta wangmini sp. n. (China, Guangdong) and Nephelomilta devosi sp. n. (Indonesia, West Java). Nephelomilta diehli Volynkin & Černý, 2018 is reported from the island of Borneo (Indonesia) for the first time. Adults and male genitalia of the new and the similar species are illustrated.
A new species of Torrent frog (Anura, Ranidae, Amolops) from the Coastal Hills of Southeastern China
Authors: ZENG ZHAO-CHI , WANG JIAN , LYU ZHI-TONG , WANG YING-YONG
Published: July 2021

The Amolops populations in the coastal hills in eastern Guangdong and southern Fujian, China, were controversially recorded as A. hongkongensis or A. daiyunensis before. In this study, based on the morphological examination and phylogenetic analysis of the specimens from these areas, a new species, Amolops teochew sp. nov., is described. Amolops teochew sp. nov. can be distinguished reliably from A. hongkongensis and A. daiyunensis by a combination of characteristics morphologically and distinct divergences genetically. The description of the new species highlights the Amolops diversity in the limited hilly region of southeastern China, which is remarkably higher than that in the more extensive inland region of southeastern China.
Truth-Telling to Terminal Stage Cancer Patients in India: A Study of the General Denial to Disclosure
Authors: Mondal Souvik
Published: July 2021

Telling the truth to the terminal-stage cancer patients differs socio-culturally based on the priorities assigned to patients’ autonomy and the principles of beneficence and non-maleficence. After conducting in-depth interviews with 108 terminal-stage adult cancer patients, 306 family members, and 25 physicians, in private and public hospitals in both rural and urban areas, in the state of West Bengal, India it has been found that even though 85.60% of the patients prefer full disclosure, only 22.03% are actually informed. Though demographic characteristics, like age, gender, education etc., have marginal influences over the pattern of truth-telling, the main factor behind non-disclosure is the family members’ preference for principles of beneficence and non-maleficence over patient autonomy. Hence, only 9.32% of those 118 patients’ family members have agreed to full disclosure. Physicians comply with this culture of non-disclosure as family, in India, is the centre of decision-making and acts as the primary unit of care.
Forming process and evaluation of chip in machining of high-strength steel by an independent-developed microgroove turning tool
Authors: Jiang Hongwan , Ren Zhongwei , He Lin , Yuan Sen , Zou Zhongfei
Published: July 2021

Chip morphology is one of the evaluation indexes of cutting performance of cutting tools, and chip forming process has a direct and important influence on chip morphology. High-strength steel 40CrMnMo is one of typical oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and difficult-to-cut materials, and its chip morphology represents the machining quality of OCTG. The chip forming process of a new independent-developed microgroove turning tool for turning oil country tubular goods 40CrMnMo is researched, combining machining experiments with theoretical analysis. Research results show that with the increase of cutting speed, the initial radius of curvature of the chip fluctuates slightly, but the overall trend is upward. However, the ultimate radius of curvature decreases and the chip’s radius ratio also decreases. The relative ideal chip can be obtained if the proper cutting velocity and feed rate are given. Chip morphology results from the comprehensive effect of the two processes: The fracture and separation process of the workpiece during passing through the shear deformation zone and the process of curling and breaking away of the chip after passing through the rake face of the tool. The research results have a certain guiding significance for controlling the cutting process of machining the other material with similar performance.
Witness-in-communion: a theology of existence to essence during the pandemic
Authors: Bell Charles J. M.
Published: July 2021

The past months of pandemic have laid down a number of challenges to both the practices of the Christian faith and the theology that underpins many of these practices. This article seeks to discern a method of doing theology that can be responsive to these changed circumstances and which might help cast new light on entrenched positions in the Church. Such a theology takes experienced phenomena seriously, recognizing the key role a lived reality plays in a sacramental faith. It situates the importance of this experience in the biblical mandate to the Christian to be a witness, albeit one grounded in and inhabiting the community of the faithful. This grounding tests experience in the fire of Scripture and living tradition to continually refine the essential nature of what can be said to be. In doing so, we enter ever more into the mystery of a God made incarnate and of God’s created order.
Can we have a theology of difference?
Authors: Kibble David G.
Published: July 2021

The former Chief Rabbi, Jonathan Sacks, wrote about the dignity of difference. This article seeks to understand what this might mean in terms of interfaith relationships and in terms of relationships between Christians holding different views within the Church.
Women Who Inject Drugs (WWID): Stigma, Gender and Barriers to Needle Exchange Programmes (NEPs)
Authors: Gibson Kirsten , Hutton Fiona
Published: July 2021

Global evidence suggests that experiences of access to Needle Exchange services are gendered and that women who inject drugs (WWID) access needle exchange services differently to men. Despite being a significant proportion of injecting drug users, women’s voices and experiences have often been silenced in studies around harm reduction service provision, hampering the development of harm reduction services for WWID. This article highlights the experiences of four women and one trans man who have previously injected drugs, in accessing needle exchange programmes (NEPs) in a New Zealand context. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were carried out with five participants and thematic analysis of the interviews produced three core themes: how stigma permeates WWIDs’ lives; barriers in accessing needle exchange services; and how experiences within a drugs context are gendered. Stigma was an overwhelming issue affecting WWID which also acted as a barrier to their access of NEPs. The WWID in our study in terms of Goffman’s original theorizing were “doubly discredited” as well as “precariously discreditable” due to their gender and injection drug using status. The participants keenly felt their stigmatized status through interactions with pharmacy-based needle exchange staff, perceiving that pharmacy staff viewed them as more contaminated than their male counterparts. Gendered relationships were also noted in injection practices, although initiation for this group of WWID was done by intimate partners as well as friends, dispelling the stereotype of WWID as passive victims. Some participants also learnt to self-inject which gave them a sense of empowerment and freedom as they did not have to rely on others to help them. The social structures that support stigmatizing tropes about WWID need to be addressed as well as more local interventions to prevent stigma in NEPs, alongside women focused services.
An improved saturation evaluation method of Chang 8 tight sandstone reservoir in Longdong West area of Ordos Basin, China
Authors: Bai Ze , Tan Maojin , Shi Yujiang , Zhang Haitao , Li Gaoren
Published: July 2021

This study focus on saturation evaluation of Chang 8 tight sandstone reservoir in Longdong West area of Ordos Basin, China. An improved saturation calculation method was proposed based on the equivalent rock capillary bundle theory. Firstly, according to characteristics of reservoir pore structure and rock conductivity, the conductive space of reservoir rock is equivalent to the parallel conductive of micro capillary bundle representing the micro pores and the coarse capillary bundle representing the macro pores. Then, the variable cementation index(m) saturation model was deduced by using Poiseuille flow equation and Darcy's law. During the calculation of model parameters, the T2 spectrum data of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was used to calculate the equivalent radius of reservoir micro pores and macro pores, which ensured the ability of model popularization and application. Finally, the proposed saturation calculation method is applied to reservoir evaluation of the study area, and compared with the classical Archie saturation model. The application effect shows that the calculated saturation from the proposed variable m model is much closer to the sealed coring data than that from classical Archie model, and the average relative error of saturation calculated by the variable m model is within 7%, which proves that the proposed saturation calculation method is applicable and effective.
Successful negotiation of goal conflict between romantic partners predicts better goal outcomes during COVID-19: A mixed methods study
Authors: Vowels Laura M. , Carnelley Katherine B. , Francois-Walcott Rachel R. R.
Published: July 2021

When romantic partners’ personal goals conflict, this can negatively affect personal goal outcomes, such as progress. In a concurrent mixed methods study, we investigated whether goal conflict and negation of goal conflict were associated with goal outcomes (progress, confidence, motivation) and what strategies partners used during the COVID-19 pandemic to negotiate goal conflict. Survey participants ( n = 200) completed a daily diary for a week and weekly longitudinal reports for a month and interview participants ( n = 48) attended a semi-structured interview. Results showed that higher goal conflict was associated with lower goal outcomes, and successful negotiation of goal conflict was associated with better goal outcomes. Qualitative analyses identified three goal conflict negotiation strategies (compromise, integration, concession). Conversations focused on both practical and emotional needs and included respectful communication and space from conflict (timeout or avoidance). The mixed methods results suggest that goal conflict was low during the pandemic and participants were often able to negotiate goal conflict resulting in better goal outcomes.
Real time implementation of interval type-2 fuzzy logic based damping controller for wind integrated power system
Authors: Anil Naik Kanasottu
Published: July 2021

In this paper, the real time simulation results using an interval type-2 fuzzy logic based damping controller of wind integrated power system is presented. The fundamental control block of the employed SATCOM includes the proposed damping controller to reduce the damping oscillations/fluctuations. Real time digital simulations (RTDS) are developed using OPAL-RT real time simulator in order to show the effectiveness of the proposed fuzzy control technique. The real time simulator (RTS) lab consists of two targets (processors). On first processor (target one) a typical wind power system has been implemented and on second processor an interval type-2 fuzzy logic algorithm is modelled and developed hence, hardware in loop (HIL) configuration is achieved. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method by comparative analysis, three different scenarios (STATCOM-without damping controller, STATCOM-with type-1 FLC based damping controller and STATCOM-with interval type-2 FLC based damping controller) are considered subjected to various disturbances such as noise in wind speed and different types of network faults.
Predicting unbalance asymmetric rotor vibration behavior based on sensitivity analysis and using Response Surface Methodology method considering parallel misalignment
Authors: Jamshidi Hamed , A Jafari Ali
Published: July 2021

Mass unbalance, shaft misalignment, rotor asymmetry, and force due to rotor weight are the main causes of vibrations in rotary machines especially when the shaft is not symmetric. Although extensive researches have been carried out to determine the effect of each on the increase of vibration levels far, there has been no clear study on the simultaneous existence of all these parameters and their interactions. In this research, the model is a rotor composed of a rigid disk and a flexible asymmetric shaft. The general equations of motion are first derived by considering the effect of high order large deformation in bending. The equations are discretized using the Rayleigh–Ritz method. The obtained equations are nonlinear coupled differential equations that are solved using the numerical method. Sensitivity analysis has been utilized to identify the percentage of the contribution of each parameter to the increase of vibration. Then a DOE-based Response Surface Methodology (RSM) is applied to present a model to predict the vibration behavior of the system with good accuracy. Genetic algorithm is also used to optimize the effective parameters and to verify the results. A 3D model of the asymmetric rotor is carried out in experimental studies to attain more precise responses. The research shows that rotor asymmetry alone and also its combination with gravitational force has much more effects on the vibration amplitude. These effects are observed at frequencies both once and twice the rotational speed in spectral data, in comparison with other factors. The mass unbalance also plays a significant role in frequency equal to the rotational speed. In the end, the achieved results are validated with experimental simulations.
Finite element model for static characteristic analysis of rolling linear guide
Authors: Wei Jiayong , Li Cancan , Ma Yali
Published: July 2021

From the designer’s point of view, the static precise finite element model of the single ball-raceway, the overall and the unit slice of the rolling linear guide (RLG) are established based on the limited data obtained. According to the contact characteristics of a single ball-raceway, Hertz theory and finite element method (FEM) are used to determine the maximum contact stress and deformation of RLG under a specific preload value. The specific modeling process of the overall and unit slice finite element model of the RLG is described in detail as well. The comparative analysis results indicate that the unit slice finite element model can take place of the overall finite element model at the static level. On the basis of previous research, the mapping laws between external load, preload value, curvature ratio, the carriage’s wall thickness, the guide’s width, and static mechanical properties of RLG are studied. The combined application of these precise finite element models can solve the problems of large calculation and low efficiency in statics of RLG. Meanwhile, it also provides a new way to achieve high-efficiency and high-rigidity design of RLG from the source.
Optimization of machining parameters in chromium-additive mixed electrical discharge machining of the AA7075/5%B4C composite
Authors: Dubey Vineet , Sharma Anuj K , Singh Balbir
Published: July 2021

The present study establishes the optimum process condition for additive mixed electrical discharge machining of Al7075–5%B4Cp metal matrix composite by performing experimental investigation. The suspension of chromium particles in a dielectric fluid is used as an additive. The input process parameters selected for experimentation are specifically pulse on-time, gap voltage, pulse off-time and peak current, for analysing their influence on wear of the tool along with surface roughness of the composite. Comparative study of the machined surface is done by analysing microstructures, cracks and recast layers formed at different settings of input parameters using a scanning electron microscope. Rise in amount of current and pulse on-time led to increased height of the recast layer generated on the surface of the machined workpiece. Furthermore, a confirmatory experiment was performed at the optimal setting. The result revealed an error of 5.5% and 7.5% between experimental and predicted value of tool wear rate and surface roughness.
Prenatal serum screening for Down syndrome and neural tube defects in the United States: Changes in utilization patterns from 2012 to 2020
Authors: Lepage Nathalie , Wyatt Philip , Ashwood Edward R , Best Robert G , Long Thomas , Palomaki Glenn E
Published: July 2021

Objective

To compile current usage of serum-based prenatal screening for Down syndrome in the United States and compare it with results from a similar 2011/2012 survey.

Setting

The College of American Pathologists maternal screening proficiency testing survey includes a supplemental question on the first of three yearly distributions.

Methods

Information regarding tests offered and the monthly number of pregnancies tested for US-based laboratories were reviewed. Results were stratified by size of laboratory, tests offered, and pregnancies tested. Findings were compared to an earlier survey.

Results

Fifty-six laboratories reported they will have screened 1,131,336 pregnancies in 2020. Of these, 36% are screened by stand-alone first trimester testing, 48% by stand-alone second trimester testing, and 16% using tests that integrate results from both trimesters. Eighty percent of all serum screens were provided by the five laboratories that performed the most screens (at least 50,000). These five performed similar proportions of first or second trimester screens (42.2% and 41.8%, respectively). Compared to eight years earlier, there are now 54% fewer laboratories. Pregnancies screened using the first trimester, second trimester, and integrated protocols were lower by 27%, 69%, and 72%, respectively. The serum screening activity in the US showed a 62% decrease from 2012 levels. During 2012–2020, the number of cell-free DNA tests increased from negligible to 1,492,332.

Conclusions

Maternal serum screening for common aneuploidies has changed significantly in eight years with fewer laboratories, a shift toward larger laboratories and a 2.5-fold reduction in pregnancies tested, likely due to the introduction of cell-free DNA screening.
“They Make These Laws to Put Us Back in Our Place”: A Found Poem on the Trauma, Hope, and Resilience of Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth and Discriminatory Policies
Authors: Paceley Megan S. , Greenwood Emera , Dikitsas Zosimo A. , Fish Jessica N. , McInroy Lauren B. , Riquino Michael R. , Henderson Sara Birnel
Published: July 2021

In early 2021, over 50 bills were proposed to limit rights for transgender and gender diverse (TGD) youth across the United States. Anti-TGD policies and rhetoric are associated with poorer mental health for TGD youth. We used focus groups with a TGD youth research board ( N = 6) to explore the impacts of the current policy climate. Following thematic analysis, we used quotes from participants in the form of a research poem to share the story of the findings. We share this poem as a call to action for scholars and advocates to resist these harmful and dangerous policies.
Combustion parameter evaluation of diesel engine via vibration acceleration signal
Authors: Zhang Pan , Gao Wenzhi , Li Yong , Wei Zhaoyi
Published: July 2021

Efficient combustion control has increasingly become a quality requirement for automobile manufacturers because of its impact on pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions. In view of this, the management system development of modern internal combustion engines is mainly aimed at combustion control. The real-time detection of in-cylinder pressure characteristic parameters has a considerable significance on the closed-loop combustion control of the internal combustion engine. This paper presents a detection method in which the start of combustion, peak pressure, maximum pressure rise rate, and phase of maximum pressure rise rate are identified through vibration acceleration signal. In order to analyze the relationship between vibration and in-cylinder pressure signal, experimental data are acquired in a diesel engine by implementing various injection strategies and engine operating conditions (speed and load). The results show that the start of combustion can be detected by analyzing its relationship with the peak position of the filtered vibration signal, and the phase of the maximum pressure rise rate can be identified by examining its relationship with the zero-cross position that is adjacent to the right of the peak position. Moreover, the filtered vibration signals are also truncated in the same length and utilized as inputs for algorithms to detect the peak pressure and the maximum pressure rise rate. The algorithms are mainly performed on data compression (or feature extraction) and target regression. Major algorithms, such as one-dimensional convolutional neural network, compression sensing, wavelet decomposition, multilayer perceptron, and support vector machine, are tested. Various experimental results verify that for the test engine the phase detection accuracy of the start of combustion and maximum pressure rise rate is less than 1.7°CA for a 95% prediction interval width. For the detection of the peak pressure and maximum pressure rise rate, the normalized error threshold is set as 0.05, then the accuracies can be not less than 95%.
Comparing respondents who passed versus failed an Instructional Manipulation Check: A case study about support for climate change policies
Authors: Rubio Juan Maria , Revilla Melanie
Published: July 2021

The presence of satisficers among survey respondents threatens survey data quality. To identify such respondents, Oppenheimer et al. developed the Instructional Manipulation Check (IMC), which has been used as a tool to exclude observations from the analyses. However, this practice has raised concerns regarding its effects on the external validity and the substantive conclusions of studies excluding respondents who fail an IMC. Thus, more research on the differences between respondents who pass versus fail an IMC regarding sociodemographic and attitudinal variables is needed. This study compares respondents who passed versus failed an IMC both for descriptive and causal analyses based on structural equation modeling (SEM) using data from an online survey implemented in Spain in 2019. These data were analyzed by Rubio Juan and Revilla without taking into account the results of the IMC. We find that those who passed the IMC do differ significantly from those who failed for two sociodemographic and five attitudinal variables, out of 18 variables compared. Moreover, in terms of substantive conclusions, differences between those who passed and failed the IMC vary depending on the specific variables under study.