bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimal control of the stationary Kirchhoff equation
Authors: Hashemi Masoumeh , Herzog Roland , Surowiec Thomas M.
Published: March 2023

We consider an optimal control problem for the steady-state Kirchhoff equation, a prototype for nonlocal partial differential equations, different from fractional powers of closed operators. Existence and uniqueness of solutions of the state equation, existence of global optimal solutions, differentiability of the control-to-state map and first-order necessary optimality conditions are established. The aforementioned results require the controls to be functions in$$H^1$$H1and subject to pointwise lower and upper bounds. In order to obtain the Newton differentiability of the optimality conditions, we employ a Moreau–Yosida-type penalty approach to treat the control constraint and study its convergence. The first-order optimality conditions of the regularized problems are shown to be Newton differentiable, and a generalized Newton method is detailed. A discretization of the optimal control problem by piecewise linear finite elements is proposed and numerical results are presented.
Clinical Effects of the ‘Crisis Toolbox’ (CTB): A Brief, Skills Based, Intervention Delivered in a Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team
Authors: Mulligan Lee D. , Neil Sandra T. , Carter Lesley-Anne , DeBank Georgia , Johnstone Megan , Fox Katie , Veakins Dominic
Published: March 2023

Access to psychological interventions for people under Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Teams (CRHTTs) is limited. The Crisis Toolbox (CTB) is a skills-based intervention designed to increase access using flexible methods of delivery. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical effects of the CTB. A retrospective service evaluation of 399 participants who accessed the CTB between November 2020 and February 2021 was employed. Sessional measures comprising the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalised Anxiety Scale (GAD-7) were recorded across three time points. Overall, there were significantly decreasing trends in PHQ-9 (β = − 1.6, p < 0.001) and GAD-7 scores (β = − 1.5, p < 0.001) in participants who accessed the CTB. The magnitude and direction of specific trends differed according to age, diagnosis, and neurodiversity. The CTB could help reduce depression and anxiety in people experiencing crisis. Randomised controlled trials are now required to test its acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness.
Stimulating the Development of Rhythmic Abilities in Preschool Children in Montessori Kindergartens with Music-Movement Activities: A Quasi-Experimental Study
Authors: Laure Maruša , Habe Katarina
Published: March 2023

This article examines the effects of Montessori music-movement activities on the development of the rhythmic abilities of 59 children from Montessori preschools, aged between 3 and 6 years. Children were deployed into two experimental groups (EG 1 (n = 20) & EG 2 (n = 22)) and a control group (CG) (n = 17). Our intervention consisted of introducing 15 to 20 min of unstructured movement time, either accompanied by a piano (EG 1) or recording (EG 2), three times a week for four months, whereas the control group carried on the usual Montessori program. We used a quasi-experimental nonequivalent groups design with pretest–posttest. Three tests for measuring rhythmic abilities were used: auditory discrimination of the rhythmic patterns, imitation of spoken rhythmic phrases, and determining the synchronization of movement with the rhythm of the music. The interventions had a positive effect on the development of the rhythmic abilities of children included in the study. The most significant effect was noticed in EG 1, while no effect of non-activity was detected in the control group.
Cognitive Profiles of Children with Isolated and Comorbid Learning Difficulties in Reading and Math: a Meta-analysis
Authors: Viesel-Nordmeyer Nurit , Reuber Julia , Kuhn Jörg-Tobias , Moll Kristina , Holling Heinz , Dobel Christian
Published: March 2023

The causes underlying comorbid learning difficulties in reading (RD) and math (MD) are still a matter of debate. Based on current research, two models for the relation of the cognitive profile of isolated and combined learning difficulties (RDMD) are discussed. Regarding the “multi-deficit model”, the profile of RDMD is characterized by the sum of domain-specific core deficits of RD and MD (additivity) as well as shared domain-general risk factors of RD and MD resulting in less severe deficits than expected under additivity (under-additivity). The “three independent disorders model” explains RDMD as a distinct learning disorder, showing a separate cognitive profile with distinct and/or more severe deficits, compared to the sum of RD’s and MD’s profiles (over-additivity). To evaluate these approaches, a meta-analysis including 74 studies, examining children aged 6–12, was conducted. Separate group comparisons for the three subcomponents in the cognitive profiles—reading, math, executive functions (EF)—were considered. Linear hypothesis testing revealed different results regarding the three subcomponents of the cognitive profiles of children with isolated vs. combined learning difficulties: Whereas RDMDs’ deficits in reading and math represented the sum of the deficits in the isolated groups (additivity), there was some evidence that RDMDs’ deficits in EF skills corresponded to under-additivity. Furthermore, group differences in math skills were more pronounced in symbolic than in non-symbolic math tasks, whereas in reading, group differences were larger in phonological processing and reading than in rapid automatized naming and language skills. Results are discussed in terms of intervention options for RDMD.
Bedload transport through emergent vegetation: current status and its future prospect
Authors: D’Ippolito Antonino , Calomino Francesco , Dey Subhasish , Gaudio Roberto , Penna Nadia
Published: March 2023

Vegetation present in the water streams, on the banks and in the floodplain areas largely affects the river hydraulics. Indeed, river vegetation significantly influences hydrodynamics, sediment transport, bedforms, and pollutant transport. Environmental management of rivers requires an understanding of the various processes and predictive capabilities of models. In the past, many studies were conducted, especially in laboratory settings, in order to quantify flow resistance due to vegetation. It is only recently that the effects of vegetation on sediment transport came to the attention of researchers. In particular, both suspended and bedload transport were considered. This paper reviews recent works conducted on the effect of vegetation on incipient sediment motion and bedload transport. With regard to the incipient sediment motion, methods based on critical velocity, turbulence, vegetation drag, and velocity in the bed roughness boundary layer have been discussed. For bedload transport, methods based on bed shear stress, turbulent kinetic energy, a revisiting of classical formulas for estimating bedload transport in non-vegetated channels, and estimation from erosion around a single vegetation stem are analyzed. Finally, indications on further research and new development are provided.
JEMMA: An extensible Java dataset for ML4Code applications
Authors: Karmakar Anjan , Allamanis Miltiadis , Robbes Romain
Published: March 2023

Machine Learning for Source Code () is an active research field in which extensive experimentation is needed to discover how to best use source code’s richly structured information. With this in mind, we introduce : An Extensible Java Dataset for Applications, which is a large-scale, diverse, and high-quality dataset targeted at . Our goal with is to lower the barrier to entry in by providing the building blocks to experiment with source code models and tasks. comes with a considerable amount of pre-processed information such as metadata, representations (e.g., code tokens, ASTs, graphs), and several properties (e.g., metrics, static analysis results) for 50,000 Java projects from the dataset, with over 1.2 million classes and over 8 million methods. is also extensible allowing users to add new properties and representations to the dataset, and evaluate tasks on them. Thus, becomes a workbench that researchers can use to experiment with novel representations and tasks operating on source code. To demonstrate the utility of the dataset, we also report results from two empirical studies on our data, ultimately showing that significant work lies ahead in the design of context-aware source code models that can reason over a broader network of source code entities in a software project—the very task that is designed to help with.
Hidden freedom in the mode expansion on static spacetimes
Authors: de Souza Campos Lissa , Dappiaggi Claudio , Sinibaldi Luca
Published: March 2023

We review the construction of ground states focusing on a real scalar field whose dynamics is ruled by the Klein–Gordon equation on a large class of static spacetimes. As in the analysis of the classical equations of motion, when enough isometries are present, via a mode expansion the construction of two-point correlation functions boils down to solving a second order, ordinary differential equation on an interval of the real line. Using the language of Sturm–Liouville theory, most compelling is the scenario when one endpoint of such interval is classified as a limit circle, as it often happens when one is working on globally hyperbolic spacetimes with a timelike boundary. In this case, beyond initial data, one needs to specify a boundary condition both to have a well-defined classical dynamics and to select a corresponding ground state. Here, we take into account boundary conditions of Robin type by using well-known results from Sturm–Liouville theory, but we go beyond the existing literature by exploring an unnoticed freedom that emerges from the intrinsic arbitrariness of secondary solutions at a limit circle endpoint. Accordingly, we show that infinitely many one-parameter families of sensible dynamics are admissible. In other words, we emphasize that physical constraints guaranteeing the construction of ground states do not, in general, fix one such state unambiguously. In addition, we provide, in full detail, an example on $$(1 + 1)$$

(
1
+
1
)

-half Minkowski spacetime to spell out the rationale in a specific scenario where analytic formulae can be obtained.
Crop wild relatives in Lebanon: mapping the distribution of Poaceae and Fabaceae priority taxa for conservation planning
Authors: Sayde Eliane , Raggi Lorenzo , Chalak Lamis , Yazbek Mariana , Negri Valeria
Published: March 2023

Lebanon is a part of the Fertile Crescent recognized for its agrobiodiversity wealth in terms of both cultivated plants and crop wild relatives (CWR) diversity. Within the context of climate change and its adverse effect on agrobiodiversity, conservation of CWRs in Lebanon is essential to prevent the loss of potentially useful genetic diversity and to facilitate their use in crop breeding. To establish a comprehensive conservation plan for Lebanese CWR belonging to Poaceae and Fabaceae, in this study we prioritized 16 taxa based on their value for world security and local economy, gene pool (primary and secondary) and genome type (A, B and D for Triticum genera). Georeferenced occurrence data of populations belonging to the prioritized taxa list were retrieved from different sources and imported into QGIS to visualize by mapping their distribution in-situ and ex-situ on the Lebanese territory, highlighting sites with highest density per genus and sites characterised by the highest taxa richness. The analysis allowed to identify Lebanese areas that still need further surveying actions (mainly the south-west parts of the country) and showed that priority taxa had different distribution pattern independently from genus. Bekaa and Baalbak governorates were evaluated to include sites represented with highest taxa richness, which makes them preliminary contenders to be included within in-situ conservation actions. This study provided a foundation for further research into the conservation planning of crop wild relatives belonging to Poaceae and Fabaceae in Lebanon by identifying areas with highest taxa richness.
Predicting drug shortages using pharmacy data and machine learning
Authors: Pall Raman , Gauthier Yvan , Auer Sofia , Mowaswes Walid
Published: March 2023

Drug shortages are a global and complex issue having negative impacts on patients, pharmacists, and the broader health care system. Using sales data from 22 Canadian pharmacies and historical drug shortage data, we built machine learning models predicting shortages for the majority of the drugs in the most-dispensed interchangeable groups in Canada. When breaking drug shortages into four classes (none, low, medium, high), we were able to correctly predict the shortage class with 69% accuracy and a kappa value of 0.44, one month in advance, without access to any inventory data from drug manufacturers and suppliers. We also predicted 59% of the shortages deemed to be most impactful (given the demand for the drugs and the potential lack of interchangeable options). The models consider many variables, including the average days of a drug supply per patient, the total days of a drug supply, previous shortages, and the hierarchy of drugs within different drug groups and therapeutic classes. Once in production, the models will allow pharmacists to optimize their orders and inventories, and ultimately reduce the impact of drug shortages on their patients and operations.
The genetic basis for adult-onset idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy in people of African descent
Authors: Tsabedze Nqoba , Ramsay Michele , Krause Amanda , Wells Quinn , Mpanya Dineo , Manga Pravin
Published: March 2023

Cardiomyopathies are a heterogeneous group of cardiac muscle disorders that result in dilated, hypertrophic, or restrictive pathophysiological entities. Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is the most common form in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, population-specific research studies reporting the actual burden of DCM in this region are still lacking. Also, little is known about the genetic basis of DCM in this population, and genetic testing is still not readily accessible. This review describes the common pathogenic genes implicated in DCM globally and discusses the evidence-based management of patients with DCM. We also present a summary of studies describing genes implicated or associated with DCM in patients residing in SSA.
Controlling time-varying confounding in difference-in-differences studies using the time-varying treatments framework
Authors: Myint Leslie
Published: March 2023

This article clarifies how the biostatistical literature on time-varying treatments (TVT) can provide tools for dealing with time-varying confounding in difference-in-differences (DiD) studies. I use a simulation study to compare the bias and standard error of inverse probability weighting estimators from the TVT framework, a DiD framework, and hybrid approaches that combine ideas from both frameworks. I simulated longitudinal data with treatment effect heterogeneity over multiple time points using linear and logistic models. Simulation settings looked at both time-invariant confounders and time-varying confounders affected by prior treatment. Estimators that combined ideas from both frameworks had lower bias than standard TVT and DiD estimators when assumptions were unmet. The TVT framework provides estimation tools that can complement DiD tools in a wide range of applied settings. It also provides alternate estimands for consideration in policy settings.
Bram Büscher: The Truth about Nature: Environmentalism in the Era of Post-truth Politics and Platform Capitalism. University of California Press, Oakland. 2021. ISBN: 978-0-520-37145-3 (Paper), ISBN: 978-0-520-37144-6 (Cloth); ISBN: 978-0-520-97615-3 (epub); xiv + 230 Pages, Index
Authors: Kleinod Michael
Published: March 2023

This article reviews Bram Büscher’s book The Truth about Nature: Environmentalism in the Era of Post-truth Politics and Platform Capitalism (2021).
A meta-analysis of drought effects on litter decomposition in streams
Authors: Ferreira Verónica , Graça Manuel A. S. , Elosegi Arturo
Published: March 2023

Droughts, or severe reductions of water flow, are expected to become more frequent and intense in rivers in many regions under the ongoing climate change scenario. It is therefore important to understand stream ecosystem functioning under drought conditions. We performed a meta-analysis of studies addressing drought effects on litter decomposition in streams (50 studies contributing 261 effect sizes) to quantify overall drought effects on this key ecosystem process and to identify the main moderators controlling these effects. Drought reduced litter decomposition by 43% overall, which can impact energy and matter fluxes along heterotrophic food webs. The magnitude of drought effects on litter decomposition depended on the type of drought (natural drought > human-induced drought), type of decomposer community (microbes + macroinvertebrates > microbes) under natural drought, climate (warm and humid > temperate and Mediterranean) under human-induced drought, and on litter identity. The magnitude of drought effects on litter decomposition also increased with the severity of the drought. The effects of ongoing climate change will likely be strongest in streams with abundant shredders undergoing natural drought, especially if the streams become temporary. The composition of the riparian vegetation may modulate the magnitude of drought effects on litter decomposition, which may have management applications.
Quantum Particle on Dual Weight Lattice in Even Weyl Alcove
Authors: Hrivnák Jiří , Motlochová Lenka , Novotný Petr
Published: March 2023

Even subgroups of affine Weyl groups corresponding to irreducible crystallographic root systems characterize families of single-particle quantum systems. Induced by primary and secondary sign homomorphisms of the Weyl groups, free propagations of the quantum particle on the refined dual weight lattices inside the rescaled even Weyl alcoves are determined by Hamiltonians of tight-binding types. Described by even hopping functions, amplitudes of the particle’s jumps to the lattice neighbours are together with diverse boundary conditions incorporated through even hopping operators into the resulting even dual-weight Hamiltonians. Expressing the eigenenergies via weighted sums of the even Weyl orbit functions, the associated time-independent Schrödinger equations are exactly solved by applying the discrete even Fourier–Weyl transforms. Matrices of the even Hamiltonians together with specifications of the complementary boundary conditions are detailed for the C2 and G2 even dual-weight models.
Two-year outcomes of patients presenting to Sydney Eye Hospital with neovascular glaucoma
Authors: Kingston Ezekiel J. , Lusthaus Jed A.
Published: March 2023

Background

Neovascular glaucoma (NVG) is a sight-threatening condition that is often refractory to treatment. Current management principles are yet to be standardized due to lack of evidence. We studied the interventions used to treat NVG at Sydney Eye Hospital (SEH) and the two-year surgical outcomes.

Methods

We performed a retrospective audit of 67 eyes of 58 patients with NVG from January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2018. Intraocular pressure (IOP), best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), number of medications, repeat surgery, recurrent neovascularization, loss of light perception and pain were studied.

Results

The average age of the cohort was 59.67 years (SD 14.22). The most common etiologies were proliferative diabetic retinopathy (35 eyes; 52.2%), central retinal vein occlusion (18 eyes; 26.9%) and ocular ischemic syndrome (7 eyes; 10.4%). 70.1% of eyes (47) received vascular endothelial growth factor injections (VEGFI), 41.8% (28 eyes) received pan-retinal photocoagulation (PRP) and 37.3% (25 eyes) received both prior to or within the first week of presentation to SEH. The most common initial surgical interventions were trans-scleral cyclophotocoagulation (TSCPC) (36 eyes; 53.7%) and Baerveldt tube insertion (18 eyes; 26.9%). 62.7% of eyes (42 eyes) failed (IOP > 21 or < 6 mmHg for two consecutive reviews, further IOP-lowering surgery or loss of light perception) during follow-up. Initial TSCPC failed in 75.0% (27/36 eyes) compared with 44.4% (8/18 eyes) after Baerveldt tube insertion.

Conclusion

Our study reinforces the refractory nature of NVG, often despite intensive treatment and surgery. Improvements in patient outcomes may be achieved with earlier consideration of VEGFI and PRP. This study identifies the limitations of surgical interventions for NVG and highlights the need for a standardized management approach.
Iterative transformations for deeper exploration during concept generation
Authors: Clancy Shannon M. , Murphy Laura R. , Daly Shanna R. , Seifert Colleen M.
Published: March 2023

Engineering designers often generate multiple concepts to increase novelty and diversity among early solution candidates. Many past studies have focused on creating new concepts “from scratch;” however, designers at every level become fixated on their initial designs and struggle to generate different ideas. In line with prior work on design transformations, we propose a concept generation process ofiterative transformationto create new ideas by intentionally introducing major changes in form, nature, or function to an existing concept. A study of this concept generation process recruited beginning engineering students likely to benefit from an alternative to "blank slate" generation. Working alone in a single test session, students generated an initial concept for a presented design problem. Then, they were instructed to generate another concept by transforming their initial design into a new concept and repeated this process to create three more concepts. In a second design round, students were asked to consider 7 Design Heuristics strategies to prompt possible transformations for their concepts. Beginning again with their initial concept, each student generated another set of four transformed concepts using iterative transformation. The analysis considered 60 initial concepts and 476 transformed concepts with and without the use of Design Heuristics. We createdDesign Transformation Diagramsto observe links (sequential, non-sequential, or both) between transformed concepts within each set of four concepts and between the two sets. Three patterns across the diagrams were identified: Fully Sequential, Sequential with Deviation, and Divergent. When aided by Design Heuristics, transformations included more non-sequential links, suggesting synthesis, refinement, and extension of other prior concepts, and resulting in more varied and distinct transformations. This iterative transformation process may support more diversity in concepts generated through a deeper exploration of related concepts without requiring an escape from the influence of existing concepts. Concept generation strategies like Design Heuristics may support engineering students as they learn to expand their early exploration of design concepts.
Structural mechanism of Fab domain dissociation as a measure of interface stability
Authors: Pomarici Nancy D. , Waibl Franz , Quoika Patrick K. , Bujotzek Alexander , Georges Guy , Fernández-Quintero Monica L. , Liedl Klaus R.
Published: March 2023

Therapeutic antibodies should not only recognize antigens specifically, but also need to be free from developability issues, such as poor stability. Thus, the mechanistic understanding and characterization of stability are critical determinants for rational antibody design. In this study, we use molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the melting process of 16 antigen binding fragments (Fabs). We describe the Fab dissociation mechanisms, showing a separation in the VH–VL and in the CH1–CL domains. We found that the depths of the minima in the free energy curve, corresponding to the bound states, correlate with the experimentally determined melting temperatures. Additionally, we provide a detailed structural description of the dissociation mechanism and identify key interactions in the CDR loops and in the CH1–CL interface that contribute to stabilization. The dissociation of the VH–VL or CH1–CL domains can be represented by conformational changes in the bend angles between the domains. Our findings elucidate the melting process of antigen binding fragments and highlight critical residues in both the variable and constant domains, which are also strongly germline dependent. Thus, our proposed mechanisms have broad implications in the development and design of new and more stable antigen binding fragments.
A two-stage RNN-based deep reinforcement learning approach for solving the parallel machine scheduling problem with due dates and family setups
Authors: Li Funing , Lang Sebastian , Hong Bingyuan , Reggelin Tobias
Published: March 2023

As an essential scheduling problem with several practical applications, the parallel machine scheduling problem (PMSP) with family setups constraints is difficult to solve and proven to be NP-hard. To this end, we present a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) approach to solve a PMSP considering family setups, aiming at minimizing the total tardiness. The PMSP is first modeled as a Markov decision process, where we design a novel variable-length representation of states and actions, so that the DRL agent can calculate a comprehensive priority for each job at each decision time point and then select the next job directly according to these priorities. Meanwhile, the variable-length state matrix and action vector enable the trained agent to solve instances of any scales. To handle the variable-length sequence and simultaneously ensure the calculated priority is a global priority among all jobs, we employ a recurrent neural network, particular gated recurrent unit, to approximate the policy of the agent. The agent is trained based on Proximal Policy Optimization algorithm. Moreover, we develop a two-stage training strategy to enhance the training efficiency. In the numerical experiments, we first train the agent on a given instance and then employ it to solve instances with much larger scales. The experimental results demonstrate the strong generalization capability of the trained agent and the comparison with three dispatching rules and two metaheuristics further validates the superiority of this agent.
Calcium–Magnesium oxide by the ball-milling method using eggshell as calcium source: its study for photodegradation of methylene blue
Authors: Reyes-Vallejo Odín , Sánchez-Albores Rocío , Maldonado-Álvarez A. , Ashok A. , Duran-Alvarez J. C. , Subramaniam Velumani
Published: March 2023

In this study, the synthesis of Calcium–Magnesium oxide through the ball milling method using eggshell as a CaO source, developing an ecological process synthesis, is presented. After ball milling, an annealing process was carried out in order to increase the crystallinity of the material to enhance its optoelectronic properties by varying the temperature from 450 to 900 °C. The samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, Raman and UV–Vis spectroscopy, FE-SEM, photoluminescence, and BET analysis. The ball milling process itself promoted a reduction in particle size, which increased slightly during the annealing process, achieving a more homogeneous size distribution and improving its crystallinity, according to XRD and Raman spectroscopy. The samples were tested for the photodegradation of methylene blue (100 mL of a 10 ppm solution), using LED lamps (200 W). The best photodegradation performance was recorded with the sample annealed at 750 °C, which is explained by the more homogeneous size distribution and the greater surface area, a smaller band gap, and fewer surface defects, which causes greater absorption of light, a better transport of the charge carriers and consequently a better performance in the photodegradation of MB. The complete removal of MB was achieved in 20 min under sunlight stimulation, which can be reducedto 12 min using 400 mg of the catalyst. On the other hand, the trapping experiment showed that superoxide radicals (·O2−) and holes (h+) are the key reactive species in the photodegradation process of MB. The kinetic study showed to follow a pseudo-first-order for all cases. These photodegradation results reported for the first time are better than those reported in other Calcium–Magnesium oxide synthesized by combustion or ultrasound-assisted methods.
The impacts of kitchen and dining spatial design on cooking and eating experience in residential buildings: a scoping review
Authors: Sal Moslehian Anahita , Warner Elyse , Andrews Fiona
Published: March 2023

The built environment is a factor widely known to have significant impacts on dietary behaviours and the promotion of healthy food practices. Yet, there is limited understanding of the influential design features of domestic cooking and eating spaces on food practices. This systematic scoping review aimed to provide an overview of the body of knowledge (by identifying and classifying different design features of domestic kitchen and dining area and their impact on the cooking/eating experiences generally and in different age cohorts), as well as explore knowledge gaps to aid the planning of future research. In total, 27 articles met the selection criteria for the analysis, most of which were qualitative, from the USA, the UK, and Australia, and published from 2014 onwards. Influential design features associated with cooking/eating experiences included size and layout, connection to other spaces, fixture and fittings (including spatial ergonomics, materiality, and texture), and indoor environmental qualities (lighting, ventilation, visual access, and window views). Many of these features such as the provision of sufficient dining space were common requirements for a diversity of residents. However, kitchen layout and the significance of certain safety features to food practices differed according to age group. To conclude, it was noted that despite the range of studies reviewed, currently there is insufficient practical knowledge and evidence to inform design decisions. Further research using a multidisciplinary approach is required to explore the detail of kitchen design features and individuals’ food practices to provide recommendations for future design policy.
Analysing the Probability of Detection of Shallow Spherical Defects by Means of Pulsed Thermography
Authors: D.’Accardi E , Palumbo D , Errico V , Fusco A , Angelastro A , Galietti U
Published: March 2023

The capability of Active Thermography (AT) techniques in detecting shallow defects has been proved by many works in the last years, both on metals and composites. However, there are few works in which these techniques have been used adopting simulated defects more representative of the real ones. The aim of this work is to investigate the capability of Pulsed Thermography of detecting shallow spherical defects in metal specimens produced with laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) process and characterized by a thermal behaviour very far from the flat bottom hole and so near to the real one. In particular, the quantitative characterization of defects has been carried out to obtain the Probability of Detection (PoD) curves. In fact, it is very common in non-destructive controls to define the limits of defect detectability by referring to PoD curves based on the analysis of flat bottom holes with a more generous estimation and therefore not true to real defect conditions. For this purpose, a series of specimens, made by means of Laser-Powder Bed Fusion technology (L-PBF) in AISI 316L, were inspected using Pulsed Thermography (PT), adopting two flash lamps and a cooled infrared sensor. To improve the quality of the raw thermal data, different post-processing algorithms were adopted. The results provide indications about the advantages and limitations of Active Thermography (AT) for the non-destructive offline controls of the structural integrity of metallic components.
A Glance at Novel Materials, from the Textile World to Environmental Remediation
Authors: Tummino Maria Laura , Varesano Alessio , Copani Giacomo , Vineis Claudia
Published: March 2023

In the current state of the art, textile products and materials generate a significant environmental impact since they are not managed under a circular economy paradigm. It is urgent to define new sustainable paths in the textiles industry by setting up materials, technologies, processes, and business models to reuse and recycle textiles production waste and End-of-Life textiles. In this direction, taking advantage of textile-related materials, especially from renewable and waste resources, for depollution purposes appears very promising since it enables re-use, but it also supports secondary applications with a high sustainability impact. This review collects and describes possible adsorption, filtration and purification capabilities of (i) various functionalized textiles, (ii) biopolymers constituting the natural fibers (cellulose, keratin, fibroin) and (iii) textile-derived active carbons and biochar, in order to provide a structured framework for the systemic exploitation of the depollution potential of waste textiles. The correlations among the type of textile materials, the physical-chemical treatments, and the characteristics influencing the performances of such materials as decontaminating tools will be underlined.
Examination of the fire performance of wood materials treated with different precautions
Authors: Lublóy Éva , Mészáros Diána Tímea , Takács Lajos Gábor , Cimer Zsolt , Norbert Horváth
Published: March 2023

This paper aims to discover how organic wood preservatives containing different fungicides and insecticides used to protect wood against fungal and insect pests affect the fire performance and combustion properties of wood materials commonly used in the domestic wood and construction industry. The aim of this article was to investigate the charring depth. From the point of view of the loss of load-bearing capacity of the wood, only the charring depth matters, since the reduction of the load-bearing capacity will be determined by the reduction of the cross section of the wood. We examined the effects of wood preservatives applied to undamaged samples of Scots pine and Norway spruce conditioned under normal climate conditions. The test samples underwent a second treatment application after which we examined the effect of different preservative combinations. Seven treatment mixtures were selected from the organic solvent and water-based wood preservatives available on the domestic market. The soaking experiments demonstrated that the preservative impregnation of Norway spruce differs significantly from that of Scots pine, which affected the comparability of the test results. We have experimentally investigated the moisture content, the loss of mass and we have calculated the char depth. Adhering to the MSZ 9607–1:1983 standard, the Linder method was performed to analyze the wood and wooden-based construction products used in construction. The effect of the different treatment materials was more significantly detectable when analyzing the size of the surface burn patterns. The Scots pine specimens suffered much greater surface burn than the Norway spruce specimens did, regardless of the type of preservative used. The higher body density, resin content (1–10%) and higher initial moisture content of Scots pine caused it to bend and, therefore, to burn better.
Phenolic acids and a static magnetic field change the expression of transforming growth factor β isoforms in amelanotic melanoma cells
Authors: Kimsa-Dudek Magdalena , Synowiec-Wojtarowicz Agnieszka , Krawczyk Agata
Published: March 2023

Background

Melanoma is an aggressive type of cancer that can metastasize to numerous other organs. TGFβ is one of the key signaling pathways in melanoma progression. Previous studies on various types of cancer have shown that both: polyphenols and a static magnetic field (SMF) can be potential chemopreventive/therapeutic agents. Therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of a SMF and selected polyphenols on the transcriptional activity of TGFβ genes in melanoma cells.

Methods and results

Experiments were performed on the C32 cell line treated with caffeic or chlorogenic acids, and with simultaneous exposure to a moderate-strength SMF. The RT-qPCR method was used to determine the mRNA level of genes encoding the TGFβ isoforms and their receptors. The concentration of the TGFβ1 and TGFβ2 proteins were also measured in the cell culture supernates. The first response of C32 melanoma cells to both factors is the reduction of TGFβ levels. Then, mRNA level of these molecules returned to values close to pre-treatment level by the end of experiment.

Conclusion

Our study results demonstrate the potential of polyphenols and a moderate-strength SMF to support cancer therapy by altering TGFβ expression, which is a very promising topic for the diagnosis and treatment of melanoma.
A new multimedia cryptosystem using chaos, quaternion theory and modular arithmetic
Authors: Luis Mendez , Daniel Ladino , Isabel Amaya , Deicy Alvarado
Published: March 2023

Based on the combination of quaternion numbers, residual matrices, and chaotic attractors, a new cryptosystem is proposed for multimedia processing files such as images and audio. The key employed in this encryption schema consists of an image with a wide and sensitive range, obtained from the Julia Quaternion set rendered using a computational tool. Due to the use of quaternion matrices mixing the information between RGB layers and audio samples was possible, whereas using XOR operation and residual matrices modulus 257, added high sensitivity to small perturbations during encryption, key preparation and decryption processes, to such an extent that a minimal change in the image or in the audio leads to a totally different encryption result. The use of dynamic programming also reduced the processing time for matrix operations on the $\mathbb {Z}_{257}$

ℤ

257

ring. To corroborate security of the algorithm, different tests were performed, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology test obtaining different indicators that were compared with other scientific references of similar works, finding behavioral patterns in accordance with those referenced works.
Mortality trends in primary malignant brain and central nervous system tumors vary by histopathology, age, race, and sex
Authors: Thierheimer Marisa , Cioffi Gino , Waite Kristin A. , Kruchko Carol , Ostrom Quinn T. , Barnholtz-Sloan Jill S.
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Primary malignant brain and other central nervous system tumors are rare cancers that have shown rising mortality rates in recent years. To elucidate potential factors involved in this rising death rate, we examined mortality trends for primary malignant BT in the United States stratified by histopathology groupings, age, race, and sex.

Methods

Mortality rates for demographic factors within primary malignant BT were generated using the National Center for Health Statistics' National Vital Statistics Systems data from 2004 to 2018. Additionally, histopathology-specific incidence-based mortality rates were calculated using the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End-Results (SEER) 18 data from 2004 to 2018. Joinpoint modeling was used to estimate mortality trends and annual percent changes with corresponding 95% confidence intervals.

Results

Overall, there was a very small increase in mortality from 2004 to 2018. Individuals > 65 years saw a small increase in mortality, while changes in individuals of other ages were non-significant. Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian/Alaskan Native had the largest increase in mortality. Among histopathology groupings, there was a small mortality increase in adults ages > 65 years with glioblastoma, while the mortality rate of other malignant gliomas declined in the same age group. CNS lymphoma mortality rates in patients ages 15–39 and 40–64 years declined significantly while rising significantly in the > 65 age group. In pediatric patients, embryonal tumor mortality had a non-significant increase between 2004 and 2007 but declined significantly between 2007 and 2018.

Conclusion

Examining age, race, sex, and histopathology-specific mortality trends at the population level can provide important information for clinicians, researchers, and aid in public health planning.
Evaluation of the Explanatory Power Of Layer-wise Relevance Propagation using Adversarial Examples
Authors: Dieter Tamara R. , Zisgen Horst
Published: March 2023

Approaches for visualizing and explaining the decision process of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have recently received increasing attention. Particularly popular approaches are so-called saliency methods, which aim to assign a valence to each input pixel based on its importance and influence on the classification via saliency maps. In our paper, we contribute by a novel analyzing approach build on adversarial examples to investigate the explanatory power of saliency methods exemplified by layer-wise relevance propagation (LRP). Based on the hypothesis that distinct decisions, such as an image’s classification and the classification of its corresponding adversarial examples, should yield to dissimilar saliency maps to provide transparent rationales, we break down relevance scores of images and corresponding adversarial examples and analyze them using a comprehensive statistical evaluation. It turns out that different relevance decomposition rules of LRP do not lead to clearly distinguishable saliency maps for images and corresponding adversarial examples, neither in terms of their contour lines, nor in terms of the statistical analysis.
Analysis and characterisation of extreme wind gust hazards in New South Wales, Australia
Authors: El Rafei Moutassem , Sherwood Steven , Evans Jason , Dowdy Andrew
Published: March 2023

Extreme wind gusts cause major socioeconomic damage, and the rarity and localised nature of those events make their analysis challenging by either modelling or empirical approaches. A 23-year long data record from 29 automatic weather stations located in New South Wales (eastern Australia) is used to study the distribution, frequency and average recurrence intervals (ARIs) of extreme gusts via a peaks-over-threshold approach. We distinguish between gust events generated by synoptic phenomena (e.g. cyclones and frontal systems), hereafter called “synoptic events”, and convective phenomena (i.e. thunderstorms), hereafter called “convective events”, using the wind time series. For synoptic events the frequency of gusts$$>25$$>25m/s decreases systematically inland from the coast, in contrast to convective gusts which are more uniformly distributed geographically and occur more often than synoptic gusts at nearly all inland locations. At inland locations the most extreme wind gusts are likewise dominated by convective events, whereas at coastal stations both gust types have similar intensities at low ARIs but convective events again dominate at the highest ARIs. Extreme gust directions were found to be predominantly westerly at inland locations and southerly at coastal ones, with more variable direction for convective than synoptic events. This study confirms the dominant role of thunderstorms in producing the most extreme gusts in the region, and shows that wind risk varies strongly with distance from the coast.
Refractory corticotroph adenomas
Authors: Sumal Amit K. S. , Zhang Dongyun , Heaney Anthony P.
Published: March 2023

The majority of corticotroph adenomas are benign but some are locally invasive, demonstrate high rates of recurrence, and exhibit a relatively poor response to often repeated surgical, medical, and radiation treatment. Herein, we summarize the currently known somatic and genetic mutations and other molecular factors that influence the pathogenesis of these tumors and discuss currently available therapies. Although recent molecular studies have advanced our understanding of the pathogenesis and behavior of these refractory corticotroph adenomas, these insights do not reliably guide treatment choices at present. Development of additional diagnostic tools and novel tumor-directed therapies that offer efficacious treatment choices for patients with refractory corticotroph adenomas are needed.
The effects of greater frequency of two most prevalent bothersome acute respiratory symptoms on health-related quality of life in the 2020 US general population
Authors: Ware John E. , Coutinho Graça , Smith Adam B. , Tselenti Evi , Kulasekaran Anuradha
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) and related symptoms are widespread and a common reason for visiting primary care with cough and sore throat being most prevalent. Despite their impact on daily activities, no studies have explored the impact on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in representative general populations. We aimed to understand the short-term impact of the two most prevalent URTI symptoms on HRQOL.

Methods

Online 2020 surveys including acute (≤ 4 weeks) respiratory symptoms (sore throat and cough) and SF-36® health survey (all with 4-week recall) were analysed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in comparison with adult US population norms. Linear T-score transformation of SF-6D utility (ranging from 0 to 1) enabled direct comparisons with SF-36.

Results

In total, 7563 US adults responded (average age: 52 years; range: 18–100 years). Sore throat and cough lasting at least several days were experienced by 14% and 22% participants, respectively. Chronic respiratory conditions were reported by 22% of the sample. A clear and consistent pattern of group HRQOL means declining significantly (p < 0.001) for acute cough and sore throat symptom presence and severity. Declines were observed on SF-36 physical (PCS) and mental component (MCS) and health utility (SF-6D) scores controlling for covariates. Those reporting respiratory symptoms ‘most days’ declined ≥ 0.5 standard deviation (minimal important difference [MID]) worse with averages at the 19th and 34th centiles for cough on the PCS and MCS, and 21st to 26th centile for sore throat.

Conclusion

Declines in HRQOL with acute cough and sore throat symptoms consistently exceeded MID standards and should not be ignored as self-limiting without intervention. Future studies on early self-care for symptom relief and its implications on HRQOL and health economics would be valuable to understand the benefits on healthcare burden and need for updating treatment guidelines.