bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A noninvasive method to quantify the impairment of spinal motion ability in Parkinson’s disease
Authors: Spindler Philipp , Alzoobi Yasmin , Truckenmüller Peter , Hahn Sabine , Manzoni Yves N. , Feldmann Lucia , Hermann Kay-Geert , Kühn Andrea A. , Faust Katharina , Schneider Gerd-Helge , Vajkoczy Peter , Schmidt Hendrik
Published: October 2022

Purpose

There is a high demand on spinal surgery in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) but the results are sobering. Although detailed clinical and radiological diagnostics were carried out with great effort and expense, the biodynamic properties of the spine of PD patients have never been considered. We propose a noninvasive method to quantify the impairment of motion abilities in patients with PD.

Methods

We present an analytical cross-sectional study of 21 patients with severe PD. All patients underwent a biodynamic assessment during a standardized movement-choreography. Thus, individual spinal motion profiles of each patient were objectively assessed and compared with a large comparative cohort of individuals without PD. Moreover, clinical scores to quantify motor function and lumbar back pain were collected and X-ray scans of the spine in standing position were taken and analysed.

Results

Biodynamic measurement showed that 36.9% of the assessed motions of all PD patients were severely impaired. Men were generally more functionally impaired than women, in 52% of all motion parameters. The neurological and radiological diagnostics recorded pathological values, of which UPDRS-III ON correlated with findings of the biodynamics assessment (R = 0.52, p = 0.02).

Conclusions

The decision to operate on a PD patient’s spine is far-reaching and requires careful consideration. Neurological and radiological scores did not correlate with the biodynamics of the spine. The resulting motion profile could be used as individual predictive factor to estimate whether patients are eligible for spinal surgery or alternative therapies.
Wild boar visits to commercial pig farms in southwest England: implications for disease transmission
Authors: Bacigalupo Sonny A. , Dixon Linda K. , Gubbins Simon , Kucharski Adam J. , Drewe Julian A.
Published: October 2022

Contact between wild animals and farmed livestock may result in disease transmission with huge financial, welfare and ethical consequences. Conflicts between people and wildlife can also arise when species such as wild boar (Sus scrofa) consume crops or dig up pasture. This is a relatively recent problem in England where wild boar populations have become re-established in the last 20 years following a 500-year absence. The aim of this pilot study was to determine if and how often free-living wild boar visited two commercial pig farms near the Forest of Dean in southwest England. We placed 20 motion-sensitive camera traps at potential entry points to, and trails surrounding, the perimeter of two farmyards housing domestic pigs between August 2019 and February 2021, covering a total of 6030 trap nights. Forty wild boar detections were recorded on one farm spread across 27 nights, with a median (range) of 1 (0 to 7) night of wild boar activity per calendar month. Most of these wild boar detections occurred between ten and twenty metres of housed domestic pigs. No wild boar was detected at the other farm. These results confirm wild boar do visit commercial pig farms, and therefore, there is potential for contact and pathogen exchange between wild boar and domestic pigs. The visitation rates derived from this study could be used to parameterise disease transmission models of pathogens common to domestic pigs and wild boars, such as the African swine fever virus, and subsequently to develop mitigation strategies to reduce unwanted contacts.
Numerical Investigation of Regime Transition in Canopy Flows
Authors: Nicholas Shane , Omidyeganeh Mohammad , Pinelli Alfredo
Published: October 2022

We have carried out highly resolved simulations of turbulent open channel flows. The channel wall is covered with different filamentous layers sharing the same thickness ($$h=0.1H$$

h
=
0.1
H

, where H is the open channel height) and bulk Reynolds number (i.e., $$Re_b=U_bH/\nu $$

R

e
b

=

U
b

H
/
ν

, , $$U_b$$

U
b

is the bulk velocity and $$\nu $$
ν
the kinematic fluid viscosity). The layers are composed of rigid, slender cylindrical filaments mounted perpendicular to the bottom wall. We have selected two layer configurations characterised by filament spacing ratios of $$\Delta S/H=\pi /24\simeq 0.13$$

Δ
S
/
H
=
π
/
24
≃
0.13

and $$\Delta S/H=\pi /32\simeq 0.098$$

Δ
S
/
H
=
π
/
32
≃
0.098

. The geometrical features of the two layers, allow to classify them as transitional canopies ($$\lambda =dh/\Delta S^2\simeq 0.15$$

λ
=
d
h
/
Δ

S
2

≃
0.15

, where d is the filament diameter, i.e. dh is the filament frontal area) (Monti et al. 2020), which is defined as the separation between the sparse-dense asymptotic regimes, proposed by Nepf (2012). While the physical characterisation of the two asymptotic regimes is fairly understood, the transitional conditions remain an open question since the physical characteristics unique to the sparse and dense scenarios coexist in the transitional regime. By resolving every single filament with the aid of an immersed boundary technique in the framework of a Large Eddy formulation, we report the physical mechanisms that emerge at the onset of different regimes (chosen values of $$\lambda $$
λ
fall on the verge between a dense and a sparse condition) and verify the criterion associated with the inception of the transition regime.
Access to online learning: Machine learning analysis from a social justice perspective
Authors: McIntyre Nora A.
Published: October 2022

Access to education is the first step to benefiting from it. Although cumulative online learning experience is linked academic learning gains, between-country inequalities mean that large populations are prevented from accumulating such experience. Low-and-middle-income countries are affected by disadvantages in infrastructure such as internet access and uncontextualised learning content, and parents who are less available and less well-resourced than in high-income countries. COVID-19 has exacerbated the global inequalities, with girls affected more than boys in these regions. Therefore, the present research mined online learning data to identify features that are important for access to online learning. Data mining of 54,842,787 initial (random subsample n = 5000) data points from one online learning platform was conducted by partnering theory with data in model development. Following examination of a theory-led machine learning model, a data-led approach was taken to reach a final model. The final model was used to derive Shapley values for feature importance. As expected, country differences, gender, and COVID-19 were important features in access to online learning. The data-led model development resulted in additional insights not examined in the initial, theory-led model: namely, the importance of Math ability, year of birth, session difficulty level, month of birth, and time taken to complete a session.
Embryo classification beyond pregnancy: early prediction of first trimester miscarriage using machine learning
Authors: Amitai Tamar , Kan-Tor Yoav , Or Yuval , Shoham Zeev , Shofaro Yoel , Richter Dganit , Har-Vardi Iris , Ben-Meir Assaf , Srebnik Naama , Buxboim Amnon
Published: October 2022

Purpose

First trimester miscarriage is a major concern in IVF-ET treatments, accounting for one out of nine clinical pregnancies and for up to one out of three recognized pregnancies. To develop a machine learning classifier for predicting the risk of cleavage-stage embryos to undergo first trimester miscarriage based on time-lapse images of preimplantation development.

Methods

Retrospective study of a 4-year multi-center cohort of 391 women undergoing intra-cytoplasmatic sperm injection (ICSI) and fresh single or double embryo transfers. The study included embryos with positive indication of clinical implantation based on gestational sac visualization either with first trimester miscarriage or live-birth outcome. Miscarriage was determined based on negative fetal heartbeat indication during the first trimester. Data were recorded and obtained in hospital setting and research was performed in university setting.

Results

A minimal subset of six non-redundant morphodynamic features were screened that maintained high prediction capacity. Features that account for the distribution of the nucleolus precursor bodies within the small pronucleus and pronuclei dynamics were highly predictive of miscarriage outcome as evaluated using the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) methodology. Using this feature subset, XGBoost and random forest models were trained following a 100-fold Monte-Carlo cross validation scheme. Miscarriage was predicted with AUC 0.68 to 0.69.

Conclusion

We report the development of a decision-support tool for identifying the embryos with high risk of miscarriage. Prioritizing embryos for transfer based on their predicted risk of miscarriage in combination with their predicted implantation potential is expected to improve live-birth rates and shorten time-to-pregnancy.
A μ-mode BLAS approach for multidimensional tensor-structured problems
Authors: Caliari Marco , Cassini Fabio , Zivcovich Franco
Published: October 2022

In this manuscript, we present a common tensor framework which can be used to generalize one-dimensional numerical tasks to arbitrary dimension d by means of tensor product formulas. This is useful, for example, in the context of multivariate interpolation, multidimensional function approximation using pseudospectral expansions and solution of stiff differential equations on tensor product domains. The key point to obtain an efficient-to-implement BLAS formulation consists in the suitable usage of the μ-mode product (also known as tensor-matrix product or mode-n product) and related operations, such as the Tucker operator. Their MathWorks MATLAB®/GNU Octave implementations are discussed in the paper, and collected in the package KronPACK. We present numerical results on experiments up to dimension six from different fields of numerical analysis, which show the effectiveness of the approach.
On Gegenbauer Point Processes on the Unit Interval
Authors: Beltrán Carlos , Delgado Antonia , Fernández Lidia , Sánchez-Lara Joaquín
Published: October 2022

In this paper we compute the logarithmic energy of points in the unit interval [-1,1] chosen from different Gegenbauer Determinantal Point Processes. We check that all the different families of Gegenbauer polynomials yield the same asymptotic result to third order, we compute exactly the value for Chebyshev polynomials and we give a closed expression for the minimal possible logarithmic energy. The comparison suggests that DPPs cannot match the value of the minimum beyond the third asymptotic term.
Manual Versus Artificial Intelligence-Based Segmentations as a Pre-processing Step in Whole-body PET Dosimetry Calculations
Authors: van Sluis Joyce , Noordzij Walter , de Vries Elisabeth G. E. , Kok Iris C. , de Groot Derk Jan A. , Jalving Mathilde , Lub-de Hooge Marjolijn N. , Brouwers Adrienne H. , Boellaard Ronald
Published: October 2022

Purpose

As novel tracers are continuously under development, it is important to obtain reliable radiation dose estimates to optimize the amount of activity that can be administered while keeping radiation burden within acceptable limits.

Organ segmentation is required for quantification of specific uptake in organs of interest and whole-body dosimetry but is a time-consuming task which induces high interobserver variability. Therefore, we explored using manual segmentations versus an artificial intelligence (AI)-based automated segmentation tool as a pre-processing step for calculating whole-body effective doses to determine the influence of variability in volumetric whole-organ segmentations on dosimetry.

Procedures

PET/CT data of six patients undergoing imaging with 89Zr-labelled pembrolizumab were included. Manual organ segmentations were performed, using in-house developed software, and biodistribution information was obtained. Based on the activity biodistribution information, residence times were calculated. The residence times served as input for OLINDA/EXM version 1.0 (Vanderbilt University, 2003) to calculate the whole-body effective dose (mSv/MBq).

Subsequently, organ segmentations were performed using RECOMIA, a cloud-based AI platform for nuclear medicine and radiology research. The workflow for calculating residence times and whole-body effective doses, as described above, was repeated.

Results

Data were acquired on days 2, 4, and 7 post-injection, resulting in 18 scans. Overall analysis time per scan was approximately 4 h for manual segmentations compared to ≤ 30 min using AI-based segmentations. Median Jaccard similarity coefficients between manual and AI-based segmentations varied from 0.05 (range 0.00–0.14) for the pancreas to 0.78 (range 0.74–0.82) for the lungs. Whole-body effective doses differed minimally for the six patients with a median difference in received mSv/MBq of 0.52% (range 0.15–1.95%).

Conclusion

This pilot study suggests that whole-body dosimetry calculations can benefit from fast, automated AI-based whole organ segmentations.
Application of parametric trend life cycle assessment for investigating the carbon footprint of ammonia as marine fuel
Authors: Chalaris Ioannis , Jeong Byongug , Jang Hayoung
Published: October 2022

Purpose

This study aimed to determine whether ammonia can genuinely help to reduce the carbon footprint of maritime activities. Given this, it was decided to investigate the life cycle of ammonia and its impact on the environment regarding the global warming potential.

Methods

To achieve this goal, the parametric trend life cycle assessment was applied to yield a general and reliable observation. The research was combined with a comprehensive dataset of over 2061 bulk carriers and eight different ammonia production methods: steam methane reforming, photovoltaics, electrolysis via wind, biomass downdraft gasifier, biomass circulating fluidized bed gasifier (CFBG) system, underground coal gasification (UCG) with carbon capture and storage (CCS), UCG without CCS, and 3-step Cu-Cl cycle. In addition, an existing ME-LGI (ME-liquid gas injection) engine was selected as the propulsion system.

Results

The results from PT-LCA revealed that for estimating the carbon impact of ammonia as marine fuel from a well-to-wake (WTW) perspective, it is mandatory to focus on the well-to-tank (WTT) phase. The lowest carbon production pathway for the global warming potential (GWP) is the 3-step Cu-Cl cycle and eventually is the most potential route for using ammonia as fuel in the maritime industry. Finally, this study concludes with some formulas, based on regression analysis, which serves as rapid indications for comparing the overall carbon impact of thousands of bulk carriers equipped with the ME-LGI engine, carrying ammonia as fuel from different production methods.

Conclusions

Given these fuel production routes, the research has also demonstrated that ME-LGI engines can be a groundbreaking way to reduce the carbon footprint of ships. Additionally, the research findings showed that the environmental indicators proposed in this article have the potential to make a significant contribution to the industry. They are anticipated to assist stakeholders in overcoming the discrepancy problem generated by past studies that were so dissimilar from case to case that the scope, boundary of analysis, data, and assumptions they employed were far from current standards and rules. In addition, the GWP according to the ship power was compared and reviewed in terms of the well-to-wake (WTW). Thus, the proposed methodology for developing ammonia ship environmental indicators is to provide valuable insight into environmental policy and decision-making processes.
A Comparative Analysis of Metabolome Reveals the Regulation of the Anthocyanin Biosynthesis Branch in Potatoes
Authors: Liu Fang , Chen Guangxia , Zhang Ye , Zhao Peng , Dong Daofeng , Wang Yongqiang , Wang Shufen , Yang Yuanjun
Published: October 2022

A comparative metabolomic analysis was performed using purple potato tubers and derived red mutant tubers to investigate the regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis. The metabolome analysis revealed 19 key differential metabolites including 10 flavonoids and 4 nucleotides. As a differential metabolite, pelargonidin was responsible for the mutant, and other metabolites had a correlation with it. To further analyse the regulatory mechanism of the differential metabolites, correlation analyses of metabolome and transcriptome were done. Among the differential metabolites, seven flavonoids and F3′5′H were in the flavonoid metabolic pathway. F3′5′H is responsible for the anthocyanin biosynthesis branch in potato tubers. To further analyse the regulatory mechanism of F3′5′H, the transcriptome analysis identified 63 differentially expressed genes, which highly correlated with F3'5'H. Furthermore, correlations among the key differential metabolites and the differentially expressed genes indicated that 11 differential genes and 10 differential metabolites presented 76 significant correlations. These 11 genes mainly encoded serine/threonine protein kinase, UMP-CMP kinase, MADS-box transcription factor, and WD repeat-containing protein. The 10 differential metabolites were involved in pelargonidin, luteolin, kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside, eriodictyol-7-O-glucoside, and uridine monophosphate. Through yeast one-hybrid experiments, the proteins interacting with the promoter of F3'5'H were screened: ethylene-responsive transcription factor ERF011, gibberellin-regulated protein 9-like, and serine-threonine protein kinase, transcription factor LHW bHLH. These results will provide valuable insights into the regulation mechanism of the anthocyanin biosynthesis branch in potatoes.
Experimental Study on the Configuration Hydrodynamics of Trimaran Ships
Authors: Jia Jingbei , Zong Zhi
Published: October 2022

This paper presents experimental results on configuration hydrodynamics. Three models are used in the model tests, which are typical of hard, round, and soft chines. Although specific values are different, the influence patterns are similar in the three ship models. A set of different outrigger positions is investigated in calm water and regular waves. A variety of interesting phenomena are observed, among which the splash resistance is the dominant component for a trimaran at high speeds (with Froude number Fr > 0.6). If two small outriggers are placed inside Kelvin’s wave systems of the main hull, a strong splash appears, resulting in a significant resistance increase. Moreover, short and long waves cannot be neglected, for they may excite the motions of much smaller outriggers. This condition leads to non-vanishing heaving at high-frequency and non-normalized pitches at low frequencies. Based on the tests, three spectra of optimum configurations for resistance, longitudinal motions, and transverse motions are presented. These results reveal the optimum configurations of a trimaran hull in terms of hydrodynamic performance, thus providing a very powerful tool for optimum design of trimaran ships.
Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease and liver function markers are associated with Crohn’s disease but not Ulcerative Colitis: a prospective cohort study
Authors: Chen Jie , Dan Lintao , Tu Xinru , Sun Yuhao , Deng Minzi , Chen Xuejie , Hesketh Therese , Li Ran , Wang Xiaoyan , Li Xue
Published: October 2022

Background

Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is recently recognized as a condition featured with metabolic dysfunctions in liver. It has been supposed that MAFLD might contribute to the development of IBD, but evidence from prospective cohort studies is lacking and inconclusive.

Methods

A total of 221,546 females and 183,867 males from the UK Biobank cohort enrolled in 2006–2010 were included to examine whether MAFLD and liver function markers were related to incident IBD. MAFLD was identified based on hepatic steatosis defined by fatty liver index plus the prevalence of overweight, type 2 diabetes mellitus, or at least two metabolic abnormalities. Biomarker related to liver function (albumin [ALB], alkaline phosphatase [ALP], alanine transaminase [ALT], aspartate transaminase [AST]; gamma-glutamyl transferase [GGT], total bilirubin [TB], total protein [TP]) was measured using colorimetric or enzymatic assays. The incidence of IBD was ascertained based on primary care and inpatient records. Cox proportional hazard model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the magnitude of their associations.

Results

With a mean follow-up of 12.1 years, 2228 incident IBD cases were documented. We identified 150,385 individuals with MAFLD at baseline and 86% participants’ circulating liver function markers were within the normal range. Participants with MAFLD were associated with a 12% (HR 1.12, 95% CI 1.03, 1.23, p = 0.012) increased risk of IBD compared with those without MAFLD at baseline; the association was stronger (p-Heterogeneity = 0.006) with Crohn's disease (HR 1.35, 95% CI 1.15, 1.59, p < 0.001) than ulcerative colitis (HR 1.03, 95% CI 0.93, 1.15, p = 0.57). As for the serum liver function markers, the HRs of IBD for per 1-SD increment in ALB, ALP, AST, and TB concentration were 0.86 (95% CI 0.83, 0.90, p < 0.001), 1.18 (95% CI 1.13, 1.24, p < 0.001), 0.95 (95% CI 0.91, 0.99, p = 0.027), 0.92 (95% CI 0.87, 0.96, p < 0.001), respectively. We did not observe significant associations of GGT and TP with IBD.

Conclusions

Individuals with MAFLD were at increased risk of developing IBD, especially CD, but not UC. Circulating levels of liver function biomarkers as the surrogate indicators of MAFLD were also associated with IBD risk.
Compatibility promotion between platforms: The role of open technology standards and giant platforms
Authors: Spaeth Sebastian , Niederhöfer Sven
Published: October 2022

Most platform literature focuses on single platforms and their governance, e.g. concerning app developers. Yet, platform competition and dynamics are increasingly important as they form connections with each other and build complex networks. More focus on platform-to-platform relationships and the role of standards is warranted. Therefore, the goal of this study is to investigate how platform sponsors select platforms to promote as compatible with their own products, taking open standards and “giant platforms” into account. To address these questions, we construct a unique data set covering 157 platforms in the smart home market. We conduct a network analysis based on an exponential random graph model (ERGM) to incorporate platform features, dyadic characteristics, and structural processes. We find that platform-to-platform compatibility promotion is determined by a careful selection of platforms with dissimilar industry sectors and ecosystem niches. We identify two strategic approaches to select and promote platforms as compatible, based on standard complementarity and the size of the installed base. We find that platforms more often promote other platforms with similar supported standards. The majority of endorsements are directed at giant platforms, allowing platforms to support a smaller number of standards and thus a reduced degree of openness at the technology level. Platforms often integrate several giant platforms at the same time. Our study makes two major contributions to the literature. First, we extend the concept of selective promotion (Rietveld et al. 2019) to include inter-platform compatibility and open technology standards. Second, we demonstrate how platform sponsors compensate for higher accessibility at the technology level with transparency at the marketplace level.
Scham als Material sexualpädagogischer Praxis – neomaterialistische Perspektiven auf Schampraxis
Authors: von der Heyde Judith
Published: October 2022

Die Sexualpädagogik ist ein Feld sozialpädagogischer Praxis, das den menschlichen Körper besonders in den Fokus rückt. Er wird ganz explizit als sexueller Körper zum inhaltlichen Thema gemacht, wodurch gleichzeitig die Körper der Adressat*innen und die der Pädagog*innen an Sichtbarkeit gewinnen. Durch diese Exponiertheit des menschlichen Körpers in der Verbindung mit dem Thema Sexualität wird Scham und Beschämung zu einem impliziten und expliziten begleitenden Faktor der pädagogischen Situation. Dieser Beitrag zeigt empirische Ergebnisse einer ethnographischen Studie, die Situationen sexueller Bildung praxistheoretisch rekonstruiert, und fokussiert dabei die Körper in ihrer Relation. Unter einer neomaterialistischen Perspektive kann hierbei deutlich werden, dass eben nicht nur menschliche Körper für die Konstitution der sexualpädagogischen Situation konsekutiv sind, sondern dass alle Materialitäten gemeinsam die situative Ordnung herstellen. Ein zentrales Ergebnis der Beobachtungen macht Scham als wesentliches Momentum der sexualpädagogischen Situation sichtbar. Ein „doing shame“ ist dabei ein stetes Ergebnis der Praxis aller Körper. Mit einem neomaterialistischen Blick wird deutlich, in welchen materiellen Relationen Scham überhaupt hergestellt und bedeutsam wird und wie sie somit selbst zum Material sexualpädagogischer Praxis wird.
Looking beyond values: The legitimacy of social perspectives, opinions and interests in science
Authors: Hilligardt Hannah
Published: October 2022

This paper critically assesses the current debates in philosophy of science that focus on the concept of values. In these debates, it is often assumed that all relevant non-epistemic influences on scientific research can be described as values and, consequently, that science carries social legitimacy if the correct values play their proper role in research. I argue that values are not the only relevant non-epistemic influences on research: not unless our definition of values is so broad that it becomes unmanageable. Other factors also affect the authority and social legitimacy of science. I employ political theorist Iris Marion Young’s concepts of social perspectives, opinions and interests to attempt a differentiation of contextual influences relevant to scientific research. While problems arising from these influences may overlap, they often differ in important ways too. As a consequence, I argue that contextual influences cannot be managed jointly but require distinct and complementary strategies.
Improving the Journey Before, During and After Diagnosis of a Neurodevelopmental Condition: Suggestions from a Sample of Australian Consumers and Professionals
Authors: Evans Kiah , Afsharnejad Bahareh , Finlay-Jones Amy , Downs Jenny , Strumpher Elissa , Freeman Jacinta , Wray John , Whitehouse Andrew J. O. , Mullan Narelle
Published: October 2022

Objectives

The current study used a transdiagnostic approach to explore experiences of consumers and professionals on how the process of assessing and diagnosing neurodevelopmental conditions can be improved.

Methods

Individuals with personal and/or professional experience of this clinical pathway were invited to complete an online survey. A convenience sample of 117 Australian participants provided qualitative data describing how to improve this clinical pathway, including 71 consumers and 53 professionals (seven participants held both roles). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the characteristics of the participants and two researchers analyzed the qualitative responses using a template approach.

Results

Participants described a five-stage “journey” spanning before, during and after diagnosis of a neurodevelopmental condition. They progressed through “searching” for an explanation, “waiting” for the diagnostic evaluation, “investigating” the signs and symptoms, “knowing” that their child has a neurodevelopmental condition and “accessing” support. Participants also suggested nine key improvements to this process that were named “awareness” through professional training and empathy, “clearer pathways” through professional checklists and plans, “acceptable timeframes” through reduced local waitlists, “more holistic” through assessment and supports, “more collaboration” through communication with key parties, “stability and consistency” through continuous and coordinated services, “generic community programs” through early needs-based support, “understanding” through meaningful diagnostic disclosure and “addressing their needs” through further targeted supports.

Conclusions

The findings from this study provide a foundation for future work to improve the diagnostic journey for neurodevelopmental conditions through a collaborative effort between consumers, professionals, researchers and policy makers. These findings highlight the importance of a transdiagnostic and comprehensive clinical pathway that spans the entire journey, where supports are readily available to consumers before, during and after diagnosis. Further research is required to explore the experience of consumers and professionals from more diverse backgrounds, as a limitation of this study was that almost all participants were females and very few identified as belonging to a specific cultural group.
Performance assessment of data driven water models using water quality parameters of Wangchu river, Bhutan
Authors: Choden Yeshi , Chokden Sonam , Rabten Tenzin , Chhetri Nimesh , Aryan Komal Raj , Al Abdouli Khameis Mohamed
Published: October 2022

Multifarious anthropogenic activities triggered by rapid urbanization has led to contamination of water sources at unprecedented rate, with less surveillance, investigation and mitigation. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in tracking and predicting water quality parameters has surpassed the use of other conventional methods. This study presents the assessment of three main models: adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (ANFIS), artificial neural network (ANN) and multiple linear regression (MLR) on water quality parameters of Wangchu river located at capital city of Bhutan. The performance and predictive ability of these models are compared and the optimal model for predicting the parameters are recommended based on the coefficient correlation (CC), root mean square error (RMSE) and Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) evaluation criteria. Overall NSE and RMSE, the ANN model predicted parameters with maximum efficiency of 97.3 percent and minimum error of 8.57. The efficiency of MLR and ANFIS model are 95.9 percent and 94.1 percent respectively. The overall error generated by MLR and ANFIS are 10.64 and 12.693 respectively. From the analysis made, the ANN is recommended as the most suitable model in predicting the water quality parameters of Wangchu river. From the six-training function of ANN, trainBR (Bayesian Regularization) achieved the CC of 99.8%, NSE of 99.3% and RMSE of 9.822 for next year data prediction. For next location prediction, trainBR achieved CC of 99.2%, NSE of 98.4% and RMSE of 6.485, which is the higher correlation and maximum efficiency with less error compared to rest of the training functions. The study represents first attempt in assessing water quality using AI technology in Bhutan and the results showed a positive conclusion that the traditional means of experiments to check the quality of river water can be substituted with this reliable and realistic data driven water models.

Article highlights

Total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), potential of hydrogen (pH) and dissolved oxygen (DO) are selected as main water quality parameters as data for modeling.

Artificial neural network model gives highest efficiency and accuracy compared to MLR and ANFIS model.

Use of artificial intelligence shows better performance to provide water quality and future predictions over conventional methods leading to conservation of water resources and sustainability.
Recent Formulation Advances of Mangiferin
Authors: Barakat Sara , Nasr Maha , Ahmed Rania F. , Badawy Sabry , Mortada Nahed
Published: October 2022

Nutraceuticals have recently gained interest owing to their valuable contribution in the treatment of several diseases, with high safety margin and low incidence of side effects. However, their efficacy is limited by some challenges, namely poor solubility, low permeability, and, consequently, low bioavailability. Delivery carriers have proven that they can overcome almost all the aforementioned limitations, leading to improvement in the pharmacological efficacy of nutraceuticals. Among the promising nutraceuticals that have currently evoked considerable interest is mangiferin from mango tree, which is a polyphenol exhibiting many favorable pharmacological actions, but unfortunately suffers from poor aqueous solubility and other limitations that lower its bioavailability and halter its efficacy. This review summarizes the pharmacological actions of mangiferin and provides an insight on how delivery carriers for mangiferin (lipidic, vesicular, polymeric, inorganic, and protein nanoparticles, as well as complexes) can overcome its pharmaceutical challenges, hence reflecting on its improved therapeutic effects in treatment of different diseases.
Health Research Priority Agenda for Ministry of Health, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 2020 to 2025
Authors: Alotaibi Athari , Saleh Wafaa , Abdulbaqi Abdulaziz , Alosaimi Maha
Published: October 2022

Method

The current study applied e-Delphi technique via online self-administered questionnaire was distributing to headquarter, and 16 health affairs directorates spanning 75 hospitals and specialized health centers, 24 primary health-care centers, 2 health-care clusters, and 5 medical cities. In addition, community involvement was represented by 26 organizations: 7 universities, 9 scientific health associations, 5 charitable associations, and 5 key Saudi health partner organizations. Research field’s prioritization was performed by ranking weighed mean aggregate score via application of the combined consensus and metrics-based approach. Then the top five research topics were analyzed, verified, refined and classified into specific health research themes.

Results

The study included 2252 participants and attained a 90% response rate. The study deliverables were listed into two research priority domains: health system research priorities (1st agenda) and diseases and health problems priorities (2nd agenda). Overall, the types of the top five research priorities in the first agenda included service delivery (40.9%), health workforce (14.4%), governance and leadership (13.0%) ,preparedness and response to disasters and emergency (10.2%), health information systems (9.3%), access to essential medicines products and vaccines (6.97%), and financing (5.1%). On the other hand, the top five research priority areas in the second agenda were non-communicable diseases (16.9%), child and neonatal health (15.9%), medications (13.6%), women health (10.4%), dental health (10.4%). furthermore, biomedical and radiology technology and devices (5.6%), communicable diseases (3.7%), nutrition (3.2%), trauma and general management (3.2%), innovative approaches (2.4%), emergency management (2.7%), physical therapy and rehabilitation (2.3%), public health (2.3%), holistic approaches to health and wellness, behavior and lifestyle (1.5%), environmental health (0.6%),pilgrims’ health (0.6%), geriatric health (0.3%), and family medicine (0.3%).

Conclusion

Adequate description of the stakeholders and methodology can strengthen legitimacy and credibility and maximize the impact of the priority-setting process. Involvement of policymakers, researchers and funding organizations increases the opportunity of translation into actual research, supports redesigning the research landscape and ensures uptake of results and integration.
Continuous Auditing of Artificial Intelligence: a Conceptualization and Assessment of Tools and Frameworks
Authors: Minkkinen Matti , Laine Joakim , Mäntymäki Matti
Published: October 2022

Artificial intelligence (AI), which refers to both a research field and a set of technologies, is rapidly growing and has already spread to application areas ranging from policing to healthcare and transport. The increasing AI capabilities bring novel risks and potential harms to individuals and societies, which auditing of AI seeks to address. However, traditional periodic or cyclical auditing is challenged by the learning and adaptive nature of AI systems. Meanwhile, continuous auditing (CA) has been discussed since the 1980s but has not been explicitly connected to auditing of AI. In this paper, we connect the research on auditing of AI and CA to introduce CA of AI (CAAI). We define CAAI as a (nearly) real-time electronic support system for auditors that continuously and automatically audits an AI system to assess its consistency with relevant norms and standards. We adopt a bottom-up approach and investigate the CAAI tools and methods found in the academic and grey literature. The suitability of tools and methods for CA is assessed based on criteria derived from CA definitions. Our study findings indicate that few existing frameworks are directly suitable for CAAI and that many have limited scope within a particular sector or problem area. Hence, further work on CAAI frameworks is needed, and researchers can draw lessons from existing CA frameworks; however, this requires consideration of the scope of CAAI, the human–machine division of labour, and the emerging institutional landscape in AI governance. Our work also lays the foundation for continued research and practical applications within the field of CAAI.
Examining Motivations in Social Discussion Experiments
Authors: Connors Elizabeth C. , Pietryka Matthew T. , Ryan John Barry
Published: October 2022

Does interpersonal political communication improve the quality of individual decision making? While deliberative theorists offer reasons for hope, experimental researchers have demonstrated that biased messages can travel via interpersonal social networks. We argue that the value of interpersonal political communication depends on the motivations of the people involved, which can be shifted by different contexts. Using small-group experiments that randomly assign participants' motivations to seek or share information with others as well as their motivations for evaluating the information they receive, we demonstrate the importance of accounting for motivations in communication. We find that when individuals with more extreme preferences are motivated to acquire and share information, collective civic capacity is diminished. But if we can stimulate the exchange of information among individuals with stronger prosocial motivations, such communication can enhance collective civic capacity. We also provide advice for other researchers about conducting similar group-based experiments to study political communication.
Three Misconceptions about Federal Regulation
Authors: McLaughlin Patrick A. , Mulligan Casey B.
Published: October 2022

Three common misconceptions persist about federal regulations. The first misconception is that most new regulations concern the environment, but in fact, only a small minority of regulatory flows are environmental. The second misconception is that regulators offer reasonable justifications and quantitative evidence for the majority of regulations. However, quantitative estimates rarely appear in published rules, negating the impression given by executive orders and Office of Management and Budget guidance, which require cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and clearly articulate sound economic principles for conducting CBA. Environmental rules have relatively higher-quality CBAs, at least by the standards of other federal rules. The third misconception, which is particularly relevant to the historic regulations promulgated during the COVID-19 pandemic, is that regulatory costs are primarily clerical, rather than opportunity or resource costs.
Multijurisdictional Prosecution of Multinational Corporations: Double Jeopardy vis-à-vis Sovereign Rights in the Globalized Anti-bribery Regime
Authors: Bu Qingxiu
Published: October 2022

The emergence of multijurisdictional anti-bribery actions presents a substantial challenge to multinational corporations (MNCs). Multiple sovereigns have the jurisdiction to pursue criminal enforcement action against the same entity for the same underlying bribery. The existing legal framework is not sufficient for addressing this global challenge. The difference between theories of double jeopardy and judicial practices across sovereigns complicates multinationals’ strategic designs of their compliance programmes. A global settlement regime would help in efficiently using precious judicial resources and incentivize MNCs to self-disclose in furtherance of their cooperation.
Lesson (un)replicated: Predicting levels of political violence in Afghan administrative units per month using ARFIMA and ICEWS data
Authors: Libel Tamir
Published: October 2022

The aim of the present article is to evaluate the use of the Autoregressive Fractionally Integrated Moving Average (ARFIMA) model in predicting spatially and temporally localized political violent events using the Integrated Crisis Early Warning System (ICEWS). The performance of the ARFIMA model is compared to that of a naïve model in reference to two common relevant hypotheses: the ARFIMA model would outperform a naïve model and the rate of outperformance would deteriorate the higher the level of spatial aggregation. This analytical strategy is used to predict political violent events in Afghanistan. The analysis consists of three parts. The first is a replication of Yonamine’s study for the period beginning in April 2010 and ending in March 2012. The second part compares the results to those of Yonamine. The comparison was used to assess the validity of the conclusions drawn in the original study, which was based on the Global Database of Events, Language, and Tone, for the implementation of this approach to ICEWS data. Building on the conclusions of this comparison, the third part uses Yonamine’s approach to predict violent events in Afghanistan over a significantly longer period of time (January 1995–August 2021). The conclusions provide an assessment of the utility of short-term localized forecasting.
Cassirer v. Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection Foundation (U.S. Sup. Ct.)
Authors: Behzadi Emily
Published: October 2022

During the winters of 1897 and 1898, from the window of his Parisian hotel, Camille Pisarro painted one of his first urban scenes, Rue Saint-Honoré in the Afternoon. Effect of Rain (the Painting). The Painting marks a significant deviation from Pissarro's prior works, which primarily consisted of au plein air country landscapes. In addition to the Painting's art historical significance, it has now become one of Pissarro's most infamous paintings. Currently sitting in the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (TBC) in Madrid, this artwork has been the subject of a decades-long court battle over its ownership. After the Nazis assumed control of Germany, the original owner forcibly surrendered the Painting in order to obtain exit visas for her family. Decades later, the heirs of the original owners attempted to recover the Painting under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA). After this decades-long litigation, the case went to the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a procedural issue: what choice-of-law rule a court should apply in an FSIA case raising state claims.
Stationary analysis of an (R, Q) inventory model with normal and emergency orders
Authors: Boxma Onno , Perry David , Stadje Wolfgang
Published: October 2022

We consider an (R, Q) inventory model with two types of orders, normal orders and emergency orders, which are issued at different inventory levels. These orders are delivered after exponentially distributed lead times. In between deliveries, the inventory level decreases in a state-dependent way, according to a release rate function
$\alpha({\cdot})$
. This function represents the fluid demand rate; it could be controlled by a system manager via price adaptations. We determine the mean number of downcrossings
$\theta(x)$
of any level x in one regenerative cycle, and use it to obtain the steady-state density f (x) of the inventory level. We also derive the rates of occurrence of normal deliveries and of emergency deliveries, and the steady-state probability of having zero inventory.
El pasado autoritario de la justicia transicional mexicana
Authors: Treviño-Rangel Javier
Published: October 2022

El tema de la justicia transicional mexicana, materializado a través de una Fiscalía Especial que funcionó entre 2001 y 2006, sigue siendo ignorado en la academia. La mayoría de los estudios existentes supone que la Fiscalía Especial fue creada para generar resultados que contribuirían a la consolidación de la democracia mexicana: particularmente, verdad y justicia. También señalan que esta institución fracasó, porque no obtuvo verdad ni justicia. No coinciden, sin embargo, sobre las razones detrás de dicho fracaso: falta de voluntad política, ausencia de personal capacitado, elaboración de estrategias jurídicas torpes. Este artículo se aleja de estas interpretaciones y rastrea la genealogía de la Fiscalía Especial. Para hacerlo, analiza críticamente el papel crucial que desempeñó en la justicia transicional la Comisión Nacional de los Derechos Humanos (CNDH), institución que hasta ahora ha sido ignorada en los estudios sobre el tema. El argumento que enmarca esta investigación es que, en México, la justicia transicional fue diseñada por la CNDH de tal manera que contribuyó a perpetuar la injusticia. Este artículo busca mostrar que no es que la Fiscalía Especial haya fracasado en la marcha, sino que desde su origen fue pensada para otorgar un indulto a los perpetradores de crímenes.
THE LATE PLEISTOCENE HISTORY OF THE BROWN BEAR URSUS ARCTOS LINNAEUS, 1758 IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
Authors: Marciszak Adrian , Wagner Jan , Kyselý René , Matyaszczyk Lena , Roblíčková Martina , Plichta Aleš , Káňa Vlastislav
Published: October 2022

During the Late Pleistocene (MIS 5e-2), the brown bear Ursus arctos was widespread in the Czech Republic. From this time interval, the species was recorded in 51 Czech localities, including 10 open-air and 41 cave sites. A total of 18 radiocarbon dates obtained from the material showed the presence of the species in this territory 46–12.6 kyr ago during the Late Pleistocene, but most of the dates are concentrated between 45.7 and 29.3 kyr. Later, its occurrence continued into the Holocene. Three dates confirmed the presence of U. arctos just before and during the LGM. However, during the coolest part of the GS-2.1b interval (about 20.9–19.0 kyr), the species was not recorded in the territory of the Czech Republic. A large, broad-toothed, highly carnivorous priscus ecomorph adapted to live in open grasslands occurred during the Late Pleistocene, while the arctos ecomorph was rarely recorded from that period. The post-LGM time (17.5–14.7 kyr) was characterised by increasing numbers of brown bear dates on the territory of the Czech Republic. It was also a period of progressive afforestation and the disappearance of the priscus ecomorph. The latest occurrence of the priscus ecomorph in the territory of the Czech Republic was represented by a robust mandible from the Býčí skála Cave, dated at 15.4–14.9 kyr.
A NOTE ON MÖBIUS DISJOINTNESS FOR SKEW PRODUCTS ON A CIRCLE AND A NILMANIFOLD
Authors: HE XIAOGUANG , WANG KE
Published: October 2022

Let
$\mathbb {T}$
be the unit circle and
${\Gamma \backslash G}$
the
$3$
-dimensional Heisenberg nilmanifold. We consider the skew products on
$\mathbb {T} \times {\Gamma \backslash G}$
and prove that the Möbius function is linearly disjoint from these skew products which improves the recent result of Huang, Liu and Wang [‘Möbius disjointness for skew products on a circle and a nilmanifold’, Discrete Contin. Dyn. Syst.41(8) (2021), 3531–3553].