bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Global Molecular Epidemiology of Respiratory Syncytial Virus from the 2017−2018 INFORM-RSV Study
Authors: Tabor David E. , Fernandes Fiona , Langedijk Annefleur C. , Wilkins Deidre , Lebbink Robert Jan , Tovchigrechko Andrey , Ruzin Alexey , Kragten-Tabatabaie Leyla , Jin Hong , Esser Mark T. , Bont Louis J. , Abram Michael E. ,   the INFORM-RSV Study Group Christina Naaktgeboren Anouk Evers Marco C. Viveen Joanne G. Wildenbeest Frank E.J. Coenjaerts Marije P. Hennus (University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands); Anne Greenough (ReSViNET Foundation, Zeist, The Netherlands and King’s College London, London, United Kingdom); Terho Heikkinen (ReSViNET Foundation, Zeist, The Netherlands and University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland); Renato Tetelbom Stein (Pontificia Universida
Published: October 2020

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infection among infants and young children, resulting in annual epidemics worldwide. INFORM-RSV is a multiyear clinical study designed to describe the global molecular epidemiology of RSV in children under 5 years of age by monitoring temporal and geographical evolution of current circulating RSV strains, F protein antigenic sites, and their relationships with clinical features of RSV disease. During the pilot season (2017–2018), 410 RSV G-F gene sequences were obtained from 476 RSV-positive nasal samples collected from 8 countries (United Kingdom, Spain, The Netherlands, Finland, Japan, Brazil, South Africa, and Australia).
Building a master health facility list: innovative Indian experience
Authors: Mishra Amit , Sahay Sundeep
Published: October 2020

Adoption of information technology in healthcare has in recent years improved the process of information collection, analysis and use in the Indian public health system. However, it has also led to multiplicity of information systems. Currently, a good amount of data is being generated by various health management information systems (HMISs); however, usability of these data sets is limited owing to lack of technical and institutional ability to share data with other systems. The lack of an effective standard list of health facilities is one of the major impediments to building interoperability among these multiple systems. To overcome this challenge, the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has initiated a programme to build a master facility list (MFL) known as National Identification Number to Health Facilities. Facility data from two leading national public health information systems, which were routinely reporting health data since 2008, were selected for this purpose. Common facilities were placed on an online portal for verification by state-level and district-level officers. Currently, this portal holds more than 200 000 verified public health facilities. Use of facility data from existing systems has helped to quickly populate the MFL in India. However, design limitations of the existing systems were also translated to the facility portal. Some lay challenges to sustain and evolve this portal in the future include (1) integration of other HMISs holding facility data with the MFL, (2) public notification of standards for MFL, (3) comprehensive data quality audit of existing MFL facility data and (4) establishment of robust governance mechanisms. We discuss how the benefits from this exercise in technical innovation can be materialised more effectively in practice.
Intercostal chest drain fixation strength: comparison of techniques and sutures
Authors: Ringel Yaniv , Haberfeld O , Kremer R , Kroll E , Steinberg R , Lehavi A
Published: October 2020

Objective

The accidental removal of an intercostal chest drain (ICD) is common and may result in serious complications. A number of fixation techniques and suture material are in use, and the selection is often based on personal preferences and equipment availability. This study is designed to determine which of the common techniques provides the strongest ICD fixation.

Methods

This study compared the mechanical strength of eight different ICD fixation techniques (purse string, ‘Roman sandal’, ‘Jo’burg’ (JO) technique, a suture through the tube, one and two passes through a locking plastic tie, tape fixation and a commercial disposable drainage tube holder) and two silk suture sizes using porcine cadavers and a digital push–pull dynamometer to simulate accidental removal of an ICD. A total of 14 different experimental set-ups produced 280 measurements.

Results

Significant differences in ICD fixation strength were observed. A modified JO technique using a size 1 silk suture was nearly three times stronger than a purse-string fixation using a size 0 silk and 10 times stronger from a commercial, adhesive-based device (180, 70 and 22, respectively).

Conclusion

In situations where the mechanical strength of ICD fixation is important, using a size 1 silk and a modified JO technique may provide the strongest fixation.
Effect of epidural analgesia on cancer prognosis after colon cancer resection: a single-centre cohort study in Taiwan
Authors: Wu Hsiang-Ling , Tai Ying-Hsuan , Mandell Mercedes Susan , Tsou Mei-Yung , Yang Shung-Haur , Chen Tony Hsiu-Hsi , Chang Kuang-Yi
Published: October 2020

Objectives

Whether epidural analgesia affects cancer outcomes remains controversial. Most previous investigations ignored the confounding potential of important pathological factors on cancer outcomes. This study aimed to assess the association between epidural analgesia and cancer recurrence or death after resections for colon cancer.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

A single-medical centre in Taiwan.

Participants

Patients with stage I through III colon cancer undergoing bowel resection and receiving either epidural analgesia or intravenous opioid analgesia from 2005 to 2014.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

Primary outcome was postoperative recurrence-free survival and secondary outcome was overall survival.

Results

A total of 2748 and 1218 patients were analysed before and after propensity score matching. Cox regression analyses did not demonstrate any association between epidural analgesia and recurrence or death after matching (HR 0.89, 95% CI 0.65 to 1.21 for recurrence; 0.72, 95% CI 0.48 to 1.09 for death). Independent prognostic factors for cancer recurrence and death were higher level of preoperative carcinoembryonic antigen, perioperative blood transfusion, advanced cancer stage and pathological lymphovascular invasion.

Conclusions

No definite association was found between epidural analgesia and risk of recurrence or death in patients undergoing colon cancer resection.
Development and internal validation of prognostic models to predict negative health outcomes in older patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy in general practice
Authors: Müller Beate S , Uhlmann Lorenz , Ihle Peter , Stock Christian , von Buedingen Fiona , Beyer Martin , Gerlach Ferdinand M , Perera Rafael , Valderas Jose Maria , Glasziou Paul , van den Akker Marjan , Muth Christiane
Published: October 2020

Background

Polypharmacy interventions are resource-intensive and should be targeted to those at risk of negative health outcomes. Our aim was to develop and internally validate prognostic models to predict health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and the combined outcome of falls, hospitalisation, institutionalisation and nursing care needs, in older patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy in general practices.

Methods

Design: two independent data sets, one comprising health insurance claims data (n=592 456), the other data from the PRIoritising MUltimedication in Multimorbidity (PRIMUM) cluster randomised controlled trial (n=502).Population: ≥60 years, ≥5 drugs, ≥3 chronic diseases, excluding dementia.Outcomes: combined outcome of falls, hospitalisation, institutionalisation and nursing care needs (after 6, 9 and 24 months) (claims data); and HRQoL (after 6 and 9 months) (trial data).Predictor variables in both data sets: age, sex, morbidity-related variables (disease count), medication-related variables (European Union-Potentially Inappropriate Medication list (EU-PIM list)) and health service utilisation.Predictor variables exclusively in trial data: additional socio-demographics, morbidity-related variables (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale, depression), Medication Appropriateness Index (MAI), lifestyle, functional status and HRQoL (EuroQol EQ-5D-3L).Analysis: mixed regression models, combined with stepwise variable selection, 10-fold cross validation and sensitivity analyses.

Results

Most important predictors of EQ-5D-3L at 6 months in best model (Nagelkerke’s R² 0.507) were depressive symptoms (−2.73 (95% CI: −3.56 to −1.91)), MAI (−0.39 (95% CI: −0.7 to −0.08)), baseline EQ-5D-3L (0.55 (95% CI: 0.47 to 0.64)). Models based on claims data and those predicting long-term outcomes based on both data sets produced low R² values. In claims data-based model with highest explanatory power (R²=0.16), previous falls/fall-related injuries, previous hospitalisations, age, number of involved physicians and disease count were most important predictor variables.

Conclusions

Best trial data-based model predicted HRQoL after 6 months well and included parameters of well-being not found in claims. Performance of claims data-based models and models predicting long-term outcomes was relatively weak. For generalisability, future studies should refit models by considering parameters representing well-being and functional status.
Impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions for reducing transmission of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol
Authors: Regmi Krishna , Lwin Cho Mar
Published: October 2020

Introduction

Implementing non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) protect the public from COVID-19. However, the impact of NPIs has been inconsistent and remains unclear. This study, therefore, aims to measure the impact of major NPIs (social distancing, social isolation and quarantine) on reducing COVID-19 transmission.

Methods and analysis

We will conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis research of both randomised and non-randomised controlled trials. We will undertake a systematic search of: MEDLINE, Embase, Allied & Complementary Medicine, COVID-19 Research, WHO database on COVID-19, ClinicalTrails.Gov for clinical trials on COVID-19, Cochrane Resources on Coronavirus (COVID-19), Oxford COVID-19 Evidence Service and Google Scholar for published and unpublished literatures on COVID-19 including preprint engines such as medRxiv, bioRxiv, Litcovid and SSRN for unpublished studies on COVID-19 and will be reported in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Outcomes of interest for impact analysis will include the reduction of COVID-19 transmission, avoiding crowds and restricting movement, isolating ill and psychological impacts. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols checklist has been used for this protocol. For quality of included studies, we will use the Cochrane Collaboration’s tool for assessing risk of bias for randomised controlled trials and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for observational studies. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach will grade the certainty of the evidence for all outcome measures across studies. Random-effects model for meta-analysis will measure the effect size of NPIs or the strengths of relationships. For quantitative data, risk ratio or OR, absolute risk difference (for dichotomous outcome data), or mean difference or standardised mean difference (for continuous data) and their 95% CIs will be calculated. Where statistical pooling is not possible, a narrative synthesis will be conducted for the included studies. To assess the heterogeneity of effects, I2together with the observed effects will be evaluated to provide the true effects in the analysis.

Ethics and dissemination

Formal ethical approval from an institutional review board or research ethics committee is not required as primary data will not be collected. The final results of this study will be published in an open-access peer-reviewed journal, and abstract will be presented at suitable national/international conferences or workshops. We will also share important information with public health authorities as well as with the WHO. In addition, we may post the submitted manuscript under review to medRxiv, or other relevant preprint servers.

Trial registration number

CRD42020207338.
Swallowing dysfunction after minimally invasive oesophagectomy
Authors: Mann Della , Benbow Jennifer H , Gower Nicole L , Trufan Sally , Watson Michael , Colcord Madison E , Squires Malcolm H , Raj Vishwa S , Hill Joshua S , Salo Jonathan C
Published: October 2020

Objectives

Patients undergoing oesophagectomy frequently experience malnutrition, which in combination with the catabolic effects of surgery can result in loss of muscle mass and function. Safe swallowing requires preservation of muscle mass. Swallowing dysfunction puts postoperative patients at risk for aspiration and pneumonia. Modified Barium Swallow Study (MBSS) enables assessment of postoperative swallowing impairments. The current study assessed incidence and risk factors associated with swallowing dysfunction and restricted diet at discharge in patients after oesophagectomy in a high-volume surgical centre.

Methods

Patients with an MBSS after oesophagectomy were identified between March 2015 to April 2020 at a high-volume surgical centre. Swallowing was quantitatively evaluated on MBSS with the Rosenbek Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS). Muscle loss was evaluated clinically with preoperative hand grip strength (HGS). Univariable and multivariable logistic and linear regression analyses were performed.

Results

129 patients (87% male; median age 66 years) underwent oesophagectomy with postoperative MBSS. Univariate analysis revealed older age, preoperative feeding tube, lower preoperative HGS and discharge to non-home were associated with aspiration or penetration on MBSS. Age and preoperative feeding tube remained as independent predictors in the multivariable analysis. Both univariate and multivariable analyses revealed increased age and preoperative feeding tube were associated with diet restrictions at discharge.

Conclusions

Swallowing dysfunction after oesophagectomy is correlated with increased age and need for preoperative enteral feeding tube placement. Further research is needed to understand the relationship between muscle loss and aspiration with the goal of enabling preoperative physiological optimisation and patient selection.
Efficacy and Safety of Oral Simvastatin in the Treatment of Patients with Vitiligo
Authors: Zhang Shiyu , Zdravković Tanja Prunk , Wang Tao , Liu Yuehua , Jin Hongzhong
Published: October 2020

Vitiligo, an autoimmune disease, is a depigmentation skin disorder characterized by hypopigmentation spots and patches that are difficult to treat. The purpose of this study is to analyze the clinical efficacy of simvastatin in the treatment of vitiligo. From December 2016 to October 2019, five vitiligo patients from Peking Union Medical College Hospital were treated with simvastatin and tacrolimus. For simvastatin, the first three patients (patient 1, patient 2, and patient 3) began to take 40 mg/day, and the latter two patients began to take 20 mg/day. From week 5, patients 1 and 2 received 20 mg simvastatin once a day. And the 0.1% tacrolimus ointment was used topically. The response was measured using the Vitiligo European Task Force (VETF) scoring system at baseline and at the fourth and eighth weeks of treatment. The results of the VETF score showed that three of the patients achieved significant clinical efficacy. There was no significant improvement in the other two cases. No serious acute or chronic side effects were observed. In conclusion, our results suggest that conventional oral simvastatin is safe, although it may not be effective in the treatment of vitiligo.
Cryostratigraphical studies of ground ice formation and distribution in a High Arctic polar desert landscape, Resolute Bay, Nunavut1
Authors: Paquette Michel , Fortier Daniel , Lamoureux Scott F.
Published: October 2020

Ground ice distribution and abundance have wide-ranging effects on periglacial environments and possible impacts on climate change scenarios. In contrast, very few studies measure ground ice in the High Arctic, especially in polar deserts and where coarse surficial material complicates coring operations. Ground ice volumes and cryostructures were determined for eight sites in a polar desert, near Resolute Bay, Nunavut, chosen for their hydrogeomorphic classification. Dry, unvegetated polar desert sites exhibited ice content close to soil porosity, with a <45 cm thick ice-enriched transition zone. In wetland sites, suspended cryostructures and ice dominated cryofacies (ice content at least 2× soil porosity values) were prevalent in the upper ∼2 m of permafrost. Average ground ice saturation at those locations exceeded porosity values by a factor between 1.8 and 20.1 and by up to two orders of magnitude at the ∼10 cm vertical scale. Sites with the highest ice contents were historically submerged wetlands with a history of sediment supply, sustained water availability, and syngenetic and quasi-syngenetic permafrost aggradation. Ice enrichment in those environments were mainly caused by the strong upward freezing potential beneath the thaw front, which, combined with abundant water supply, caused ice aggradation and frost heaving to form lithalsa plateaus. Most of the sites already expressed cryostratigraphic evidence of permafrost degradation. Permafrost degradation carries important ecological ramifications, as wetland locations are the most productive, life-supporting oases in the otherwise relatively barren landscape, carrying essential functions linked with hydrological processes and nutrient and contaminant cycling.
Relative abundance of coyotes (Canis latrans) influences gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) occupancy across the eastern United States
Authors: Egan Michael E. , Day Casey C. , Katzner Todd E. , Zollner Patrick A.
Published: October 2020

Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus (Schreber, 1775)) populations in portions of the eastern United States have experienced declines whose trajectories differ from those of other mesocarnivore populations. One hypothesis is that gray fox declines may result from interspecific interactions, particularly competition with abundant coyotes (Canis latrans Say, 1823). Alternatively, gray foxes may respond negatively to increased urbanization and reduced forest cover. To evaluate these hypotheses, we used single-species occupancy models of camera trap data to test the effects of habitat covariates, such as the amount of urbanization and forest, on coyote and gray fox occupancy. Additionally, we test the effect of an index based on an N-mixture model of the number of coyotes at each camera trap site on gray fox occupancy. Results indicate that occupancy probabilities of coyote and gray fox relate positively to the amount of forest, but they provided no evidence urban cover impacts gray foxes. Additionally, gray fox occupancy was negatively related to the index of the number of coyotes at each site. Our models support the idea that interactions with coyotes impact gray fox occupancy across the eastern United States. These results illustrate how large-scale studies can relate mechanisms identified within specific landscapes to phenomena observed at larger scales.
Machine learning for precision medicine
Authors: MacEachern Sarah J. , Forkert Nils D.
Published: October 2020

Precision medicine is an emerging approach to clinical research and patient care that focuses on understanding and treating disease by integrating multi-modal or multi-omics data from an individual to make patient-tailored decisions. With the large and complex datasets generated using precision medicine diagnostic approaches, novel techniques to process and understand these complex data were needed. At the same time, computer science has progressed rapidly to develop techniques that enable the storage, processing, and analysis of these complex datasets, a feat that traditional statistics and early computing technologies could not accomplish. Machine learning, a branch of artificial intelligence, is a computer science methodology that aims to identify complex patterns in data that can be used to make predictions or classifications on new unseen data or for advanced exploratory data analysis. Machine learning analysis of precision medicine’s multi-modal data allows for broad analysis of large datasets and ultimately a greater understanding of human health and disease. This review focuses on machine learning utilization for precision medicine’s “big data”, in the context of genetics, genomics, and beyond.
Collinear electroweak radiation in antenna parton showers
Authors: Kleiss Ronald , Verheyen Rob
Published: October 2020

We present a first implementation of collinear electroweak radiation in the Vincia parton shower. Due to the chiral nature of the electroweak theory, explicit spin dependence in the shower algorithm is required. We thus use the spinor-helicity formalism to compute helicity-dependent branching kernels, taking special care to deal with the gauge relics that may appear in computation that involve longitudinal polarizations of the massive electroweak vector bosons. These kernels are used to construct a shower algorithm that includes all possible collinear final-state electroweak branchings, including those induced by the Yang–Mills triple vector boson coupling and all Higgs couplings, as well as vector boson emissions from the initial state. We incorporate a treatment of features particular to the electroweak theory, such as the effects of bosonic interference and recoiler effects, as well as a preliminary description of the overlap between electroweak branchings and resonance decays. Some qualifying results on electroweak branching spectra at high energies, as well as effects on LHC physics are presented. Possible future improvements are discussed, including treatment of soft and spin effects, as well as issues unique to the electroweak sector.
Tan-concavity property for Lagrangian phase operators and applications to the tangent Lagrangian phase flow
Authors: Takahashi R.
Published: October 2020

We explore the tan-concavity of the Lagrangian phase operator for the study of the deformed Hermitian Yang–Mills (dHYM) metrics. This new property compensates for the lack of concavity of the Lagrangian phase operator as long as the metric is almost calibrated. As an application, we introduce the tangent Lagrangian phase flow (TLPF) on the space of almost calibrated [Formula: see text]-forms that fits into the GIT framework for dHYM metrics recently discovered by Collins–Yau. The TLPF has some special properties that are not seen for the line bundle mean curvature flow (i.e. the mirror of the Lagrangian mean curvature flow for graphs). We show that the TLPF starting from any initial data exists for all positive time. Moreover, we show that the TLPF converges smoothly to a dHYM metric assuming the existence of a [Formula: see text]-subsolution, which gives a new proof for the existence of dHYM metrics in the highest branch.
Comparison exact and numerical simulation of the traveling wave solution in nonlinear dynamics
Authors: Yokuş Asıf , Kaya Doğan
Published: October 2020

The traveling wave solutions of the combined Korteweg de Vries-modified Korteweg de Vries (cKdV-mKdV) equation and a complexly coupled KdV (CcKdV) equation are obtained by using the auto-Bäcklund Transformation Method (aBTM). To numerically approximate the exact solutions, the Finite Difference Method (FDM) is used. In addition, these exact traveling wave solutions and numerical solutions are compared by illustrating the tables and figures. Via the Fourier–von Neumann stability analysis, the stability of the FDM with the cKdV–mKdV equation is analyzed. The [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] norm errors are given for the numerical solutions. The 2D and 3D figures of the obtained solutions to these equations are plotted.
Low-frequency resistive-type metamaterial with broadband absorption by employing screen-printing method
Authors: He Longhui , Xiong Cuixiu , Xu Hui , Liu Sheng , Xu Yunchao , Deng Lianwen
Published: October 2020

A broadband and wide-angled microwave absorber based on resistive-type metamaterial has been proposed and demonstrated in the low-frequency regime of 2–8 GHz. The minimum reflection loss of the absorption peak located at 5.27 GHz is −51.41 dB. Effective bandwidth better than −10 dB reflection loss is able to achieve 2.70 GHz in the range from 3.81 GHz to 6.51 GHz. The underlying physical mechanisms of electromagnetic wave energy attenuation are illustrated in detail by means of surface current, electromagnetic field and power loss density. Furthermore, the influence of structural dimensions on the attenuation properties of the proposed resistive-type metamaterial absorber is also investigated. More importantly, the designed resistive-type metamaterial absorber could operate well with incident angles changing from 0[Formula: see text] to 60[Formula: see text] under the transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) waves. Research results will be capable of providing guidance for the design and preparation of broadband microwave absorbing materials at low frequencies.
Surface tension and heat of the surface formation of liquids
Authors: Eyvazov E. A. , Ibrahimli A. B.
Published: October 2020

By the potential method, it was determined that regardless of the nature of the liquid, the surface tension coefficient is determined by [Formula: see text]. In this expression, [Formula: see text] is the specific heat of the surface formation, [Formula: see text] is the critical temperature. According to our approach, the specific heat of the surface formation (SHS) also depends on temperature: [Formula: see text] ([Formula: see text] — the specific heat of the surface formation at the mealting temperature, [Formula: see text] — thermal coefficent of SHS). In this research work, the temperature dependence of the surface tension coefficient was calculated for seven dissimilar liquids. It was revealed that the calculated values of [Formula: see text] are in satisfactory agreement with the available experimental values.
From microscopic black hole entropy toward Hawking radiationc
Authors: Nian Jun , Pando Zayas Leopoldo A.
Published: October 2020

The AdS/CFT correspondence has recently provided a novel approach for counting the microstates of black holes impressively matching the macroscopic Bekenstein–Hawking entropy formula of rotating electrically charged asymptotically AdS black holes in four to seven dimensions. This approach is designed for supersymmetric extremal black holes, but can also be extended to nonsupersymmetric, near-extremal black holes. Besides the dual higher-dimensional boundary CFT, an effective 2D CFT emerges in a certain near-horizon limit accounting for both the extremal and the near-extremal black hole entropies. This effective 2D description is universal across dimensions and comes naturally equipped with an approach to quantitatively tackle aspects of Hawking radiation.
Imprints of the post-recombination dissipation of helical magnetic field on the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
Authors: Jagannathan Sandhya , Sharma Ramkishor , Seshadri T. R.
Published: October 2020

Astrophysical magnetic fields decay primarily via two processes, namely ambipolar diffusion and turbulence. Constraints on the strength and the spectral index of nonhelical magnetic fields have been derived earlier in the literature through the effect of the above-mentioned processes on the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation. A helical component of the magnetic field is also produced in various models of magnetogenesis, which can explain larger coherence length magnetic field. In this study, we focus on studying the effects of post-recombination decay of maximally helical magnetic fields through ambipolar diffusion and decaying magnetic turbulence and the impact of this decay on CMB. We find that helical magnetic fields lead to changes in the evolution of baryon temperature and ionization fraction which in turn lead to modifications in the CMB temperature and polarization anisotropy. These modifications are different from those arising due to nonhelical magnetic fields with the changes dependent on the strength and the spectral index of the magnetic field power spectra.
INFLUENCE OF CARBON NANOTUBES REINFORCEMENT ON CHARACTERISTICS OF THERMALLY SPRAYED CERAMIC COATINGS
Authors: BASHA G MOHAMMED THALIB , VENKATESHWARLU B.
Published: October 2020

The influence of reinforcement of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on microstructural features and mechanical properties of thermally sprayed Al2O3–3[Formula: see text]wt.%TiO2and WC–20[Formula: see text]wt.%Co coatings was investigated. Alumina–Titania coatings were deposited by Air Plasma Spraying (APS) and Tungsten Carbide–Cobalt coatings were deposited by High-Velocity Oxy-Fuel (HVOF) spraying process. The coatings obtained with reinforcement of CNTs were characterized to interpret the microstructural changes and also to evaluate the variation in their mechanical properties. The percentage composition of CNTs in both APS and HVOF coatings systems were varied in the order of 2, 4, and 6[Formula: see text]wt.%. It has been found that homogenous dispersion of carbon nanotubes in the coating systems results in increased microhardness and reduced surface roughness. Also, the microstructural features of the coating systems clearly showed that the coatings are denser with fewer pores due to the presence of CNTs.
Supervised Method for Congestion Detection at Entry and Exit Corridors of Public Places
Authors: Pathade Manasi , Khambete Madhuri
Published: October 2020

Continuous monitoring and automatic detection of crowd activities is extremely helpful for management at public places to avoid any possible disaster. Analysis of crowded scene is a critical task as it typically involves poor resolution of objects, occlusions and complex dynamics. In this paper, we propose a novel, systematic and generalized method based on global motion analysis of people to detect Congestion situation in crowded scenes at entry/exit corridors. Our approach is tested on video footages acquired from surveillance cameras installed at exit corridors of public places. The results show the expediency of our approach.
Comparative Performance Evaluation of Greedy Algorithms for Speech Enhancement System
Authors: Kumar Bittu
Published: October 2020

In this paper, the performance of compressive sensing (CS)-based technique for speech enhancement has been studied and results analyzed with recovery algorithms as a comparison of their performances. This is done for several recovery algorithms such as matching pursuit, orthogonal matching pursuit, stage-wise orthogonal matching pursuit, compressive sampling matching pursuit and generalized orthogonal matching pursuit. Performances of all these greedy algorithms were compared for speech enhancement. The evaluation of results has been carried out using objective measures (perceptual evaluation of speech quality, log-likelihood ratio, weighted spectral slope distance and segmental signal-to-noise ratio), simulation time and composite objective measures (signal distortion C[Formula: see text], background intrusiveness C[Formula: see text] and overall quality C[Formula: see text]. Results showed that the CS-based technique using generalized orthogonal matching pursuit algorithm yields better performance than the other recovery algorithms in terms of speech quality and distortion.
Matrix group actions on product of spheres
Authors: Ye Shengkui
Published: October 2020

Let [Formula: see text] be the special linear group over integers and [Formula: see text] [Formula: see text], or [Formula: see text] products of spheres and tori. We prove that any group action of [Formula: see text] on [Formula: see text] by diffeomorphims or piecewise linear homeomorphisms is trivial if [Formula: see text] This confirms a conjecture on Zimmer’s program for these manifolds.
Coding at a crossroads
Authors: Resnick Mitchel , Rusk Natalie
Published: October 2020

While millions of students worldwide have enjoyed coding experiences over the last decade, the next challenge is spreading educational values and approaches.
Where should your IT constraint be?
Authors: Ronen Boaz , Coman Alex
Published: October 2020

Locating the strategic location of the IT junction constraint.
Five nonobvious remote work techniques
Authors: Limoncelli Thomas A.
Published: October 2020

Emulating the efficiency of in-person conversations.
Natural language misunderstanding
Authors: Kirkpatrick Keith
Published: October 2020

How do we eliminate bias in automated speech recognition?
Digital contact tracing may protect privacy, but it is unlikely to stop the pandemic
Authors: Cranor Lorrie Faith
Published: October 2020

Considering the potential benefits versus the risks of privacy-enhancing technologies.
Will post COVID-19 education be digital?
Authors: Delic Kemal A. , Riley Jeff A.
Published: October 2020

The world is experiencing large-scale social and behavioral changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes have the potential to cause a fundamental and profound shift in the way we conduct our lives, which could have both positive and negative consequences.

The need to function, both socially and at work, while sheltering at home and social distancing has led to the widespread realization that online meetings and remote working is viable. Digital education is particularly important, as millions of pupils and students worldwide struggle to continue studies in these difficult circumstances.

We have posed four questions to our fellow Ubiquity editors, garnering a balanced view from academia and industry, from STEM and business (MBA) perspective, aiming to seed a follow-up debate from other editors, culminating in a free, one-hour webinar.
Stable Cyclability Caused by Highly Dispersed Nanoporous Si Composite Anodes with Sulfide-based Solid Electrolyte
Authors: Okuno Ryota , Yamamoto Mari , Kato Atsutaka , Takahashi Masanari
Published: October 2020

All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries (ASSLIBs) without organic liquid electrolytes have attracted considerable attention as a solution to existing safety issues. Si is the most promising anode active material for increasing the energy density of such batteries owing to its high theoretical capacity. However, the stress relaxation of Si with large structural fluctuations is a major challenge to its practical use. In the present study, nanoporous Si particles and a sulfide-based solid electrolyte are composited to accommodate the volumetric expansion. To the best of our knowledge, this is a novel approach in the case of ASSLIBs. We find that the capacity retention of highly dispersed Si composite anodes is 80% up to 150 cycles. Such excellent cyclability is explained by our results, which suggest the following microstructural behavior. The pores in the Si particles act as buffer regions for large volume changes. In addition, the strains arising from the slightly expanded Si particles are relieved by the elasticity of the surrounding sulfide-based solid electrolyte. In summary, this study is a significant step toward the development of high-performance ASSLIBs for various applications.
Conformal and Smooth TiN Film Growth by using Variable-Pressure Thermal ALD Method
Authors: Cho Hyunchol , Jung Sung-Hoon
Published: October 2020

Better TiN film quality such as lower roughness and higher step coverage is required in recent semiconductor devices as the semiconductor device is scaled down. In this study, highly conformal ALD TiN film with excellent step coverage was achieved by using variable-pressure deposition method. TiN film grown at low-pressure condition was more conformal and smoother than that grown at high-pressure condition, although step coverage value grown at low-pressure condition was worse than that grown at high-pressure condition. By optimizing low/high pressure two-step TiN growth condition, it was achieved that not only better roughness than that of pure high-pressure TiN, but also, better step coverage value than that of pure low-pressure TiN as well as than that of pure high-pressure TiN.
Whole body passive heating versus dynamic lower body exercise: a comparison of peripheral hemodynamic profiles
Authors: Amin Sachin B. , Hansen Alexander B. , Mugele Hendrik , Willmer Felix , Gross Florian , Reimeir Benjamin , Cornwell William K. , Simpson Lydia L. , Moore Jonathan P. , Romero Steven A. , Lawley Justin S.
Published: October 2020

Passive heating and exercise increase blood flow through arteries, generating a frictional force, termed shear rate, which is associated with positive vascular health. Few studies have compared the increase in arterial blood flow and shear rate elicited by passive heating with that elicited by dynamic continuous exercise. We found that 30 min of whole body passive hot-water immersion (42°C bath) increased femoral artery blood flow and shear rate equivalent to exercising at a moderate intensity (∼57% HRmax).
Amelioration by Idesia polycarpa Maxim. var. vestita Diels. of Oleic Acid-Induced Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver in HepG2 Cells through Antioxidant and Modulation of Lipid Metabolism
Authors: Li Na , Sun Yi-ran , He Li-bo , Huang Lei , Li Ting-ting , Wang Tao-yu , Tang Lin
Published: October 2020

Idesia polycarpa Maxim. var. vestita Diels (I. polycarpa) is well known as an edible oil plant which contains abundant linoleic acid and polyphenols. The objective of this study was to maximize the by-product of defatted fruit of I. polycarpa. We found that the fraction D of ethyl acetate extract (EF-D) contained more polyphenols, which contribute to its strong antioxidant activity by antioxidant assays (DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP). Meanwhile, EF-D showed a significant lipid-lowering effect on oleic acid- (OA-) induced hepatic steatosis in HepG2 cells through enhancing antioxidant activity, reducing liver damage, and regulating lipid metabolism, antioxidant, and inflammation-related gene expression. The SOD and T-AOC levels significantly increased, but the levels of MDA, AST, and ALT decreased obviously when treated with EF-D. In general, EF-D improved the antioxidant enzyme activities and decreased the hepatic injury activities. Besides, treatment with EF-D for NAFLD influenced lipid metabolism and inflammation by activating PPARα which was associated with the increased expression of CPT1 and decreased expression of SCD, NF-κB, and IL-1. Moreover, EF-D improved the oxidative stress system through activation of the Nrf2 antioxidant signal pathways and upregulated its target genes of HO-1, NQO1, and GSTA2. The results highlighted the EF-D from the defatted fruit of I. polycarpa regarding lipid-lowering, proving it to be a potential drug resource of natural products for treating the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
Removal of Cadmium (II), Chromium (III), and Lead (II) Heavy Metal Ions from Water by Graft Copolymerization of Acrylonitrile onto Date Palm Fiber Using H2O2/Fe++ as an Initiator
Authors: Abuilaiwi Faraj Ahmad
Published: October 2020

The study is aimed at assessing how the date palm wood fibers (DPWF) can be used for the removal of heavy metals from water. The study involved examination of the radical polymerization and graft polymerization parameters such as reaction period, reaction time, monomer volume, amount of the catalyst, and concentration of initiator to obtain the maximum yield of graft polymerization. Fiber and copolymer were characterized using SEM and FT-IR spectroscopy to ensure the completion of polymerization. Hydroxylamine hydrochloride was used for treating the grafted copolymers for the preparation of polyamidoxime chelating resin, which was then examined for removing the heavy metal ions. Different resin dosages, contact time, and initial concentrations were used, and the batch technique experiment was utilized. The study also applied the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm model, and Langmuir was found to be better. The absorption ability was found to be better for polyamidoxime resin for metal ions of cadmium (II), chromium (III), and lead (II).
Effect of Basalt Fiber on Static and Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Metakaolin‐Based Cement Clay
Authors: Huang Kun , Ma Qinyong , Ma Dongdong
Published: October 2020

To investigate the effects of basalt fiber content on the mechanical properties and microstructure characteristic of metakaolin‐based cement clay, the static and dynamic uniaxial compressive and splitting tensile, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and scanning electron microscope (SEM) tests were performed to study the stress‐strain curves, static and dynamic peak stress, pore distribution characteristic, and reinforcement mechanism. In this research, the basalt fiber with the length of 12 mm were selected and the ratios between fiber and dry soil were 0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0%, respectively. The obtained results showed a noticeable difference of stress‐strain curve characteristics in the static and dynamic compressive tests. A positive correlation between deformation modulus and compressive strength was found for both static and dynamic tests. The addition of basalt fiber could efficiently increase the static and dynamic strengths of metakaolin‐based cement clay, and the increment 66.15% and 74.63% was observed at 1.0% basalt fiber content for static and dynamic compressive strengths, respectively, while the corresponding increment values were 93.75% and 97.62% for its splitting tensile strengths, respectively. The basalt fiber could decrease the porosity of cement clay; moreover, the reinforcement mechanism of metakaolin and basalt fiber to cement clay was analyzed based on the SEM test results.
A Pilot Study of Diabetes Mellitus Classification from rs-fMRI Data Using Convolutional Neural Networks
Authors: Liu Yunfei , Mo Xian , Yang Hao , Liu Yan , Zhang Junran
Published: October 2020

Background. As a chronic progressive disease, diabetes mellitus (DM) has a high incidence worldwide, and it impacts on cognitive and learning abilities in the lifetime even in the early stage, may degenerate memory in middle age, and perhaps increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Method. In this work, we propose a convolutional neural network (CNN) based classification method to help classify diabetes by distinguishing the brains with abnormal functions from the normal ones on resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). The proposed classification model is based on the Inception-v4-Residual convolutional neural network architecture. In our workflow, the original rs-fMRI data are first mapped to generate amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) images and then fed into the CNN model to get the classification result to indicate the potential existence of DM. Result. We validate our method on a realistic clinical rs-fMRI dataset, and the achieved average accuracy is89.95% in fivefold cross-validation. Our model achieves a 0.8690 AUC with 77.50% and 77.51% sensitivity and specificity using our local dataset, respectively. Conclusion. It has the potential to become a novel clinical preliminary screening tool that provides help for the classification of different categories based on functional brain alteration caused by diabetes, benefiting from its accuracy and robustness, as well as efficiency and patient friendliness.
Topology Optimization considering Nonsmooth Structural Boundaries in the Intersection Areas of the Components
Authors: Lian Ruichao , Jing Shikai , Shi Zefang , He Zhijun , Song Guohua
Published: October 2020

In the structural topology optimization approaches, the Moving Morphable Component (MMC) is a new method to obtain the optimized structural topologies by optimizing shapes, sizes, and locations of components. However, the optimized structure boundary usually generates local nonsmooth areas due to incomplete connection between components. In the present paper, a topology optimization approach considering nonsmooth structural boundaries in the intersection areas of the components based on the MMC is proposed. The variability of components’ shape can be obtained by constructing the topology description function (TDF) with multiple thickness and length variables. The shape of components can be modified according to the structural responses during the optimization process, and the relatively smooth structural boundaries are generated in the intersection areas of the components. To reduce the impact of the initial layout on the rate of convergence, this method is implemented in a hierarchical variable calling strategy. Compared with the original MMC method, the advantage of the proposed approach is that the smoothness of the structural boundaries can be effectively improved and the geometric modeling ability can be enhanced in a concise way. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated for topology optimization of the minimum compliance problem and compliant mechanisms.
Existence of Solutions for Nonlinear Impulsive Fractional Differential Equations via Common Fixed-Point Techniques in Complex Valued Fuzzy Metric Spaces
Authors: Humaira  , Sarwar Muhammad , Abdeljawad Thabet
Published: October 2020

The main purpose of this paper is to study the existence theorem for a common solution to a class of nonlinear three-point implicit boundary value problems of impulsive fractional differential equations. In this respect, we study the fuzzy version of some essential common fixed-point results from metric spaces in the newly introduced notion of complex valued fuzzy metric spaces. Also, we provide an illustrative example to demonstrate the validity of our derived results.
Osteokines and Bone Markers at Rest and following Plyometric Exercise in Pre‐ and Postmenopausal Women
Authors: Nelson Katlynne , Kouvelioti Rozalia , Theocharidis Alexandros , Falk Bareket , Tiidus Peter , Klentrou Panagiota
Published: October 2020

The effect of plyometric exercise on bone biomarkers has been studied in pediatric and young adult populations in order to better understand how exercise influences bone homeostasis. However, there are no such data in postmenopausal women, a group characterized by an uncoupling of the bone resorption‐formation cycle. This study examined the serum concentrations of sclerostin, dickkopf‐1 (DKK1), c‐terminal crosslinking telopeptides of type I collagen (CTXI), and procollagen type I amino‐terminal propeptide (PINP) at rest and following a single bout of plyometric exercise in 20 premenopausal (23.1 ± 2.3 years) and 20 postmenopausal women (57.9 ± 4.3 years). The exercise consisted of 128 jumps, organized into 5 circuit stations. Blood samples were obtained prior to and 5 min, 1 h, and 24 h postexercise. At rest, postmenopausal women had significantly higher sclerostin and CTXI, but lower DKK1 than premenopausal women. Sclerostin increased 5 min postexercise only in the premenopausal group. DKK1 decreased 24 h postexercise in the premenopausal women while it decreased 1 h postexercise in the postmenopausal women. In both groups, CTXI did not change across time and PINP decreased 5 min and 1 h postexercise (p < 0.05). The PINP/CTXI ratio decreased 5 min and 1 h postexercise then significantly increased 24 h postexercise only in premenopausal women. These results indicate that although plyometric exercise is effective in eliciting osteoanabolic effects in younger women; such an effect is not evident in postmenopausal women.