bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Formulae for Line Bundle Cohomology on Calabi‐Yau Threefolds
Authors: Constantin Andrei , Lukas Andre
Published: November 2019

We present closed form expressions for the ranks of all cohomology groups of holomorphic line bundles on several Calabi‐Yau threefolds realised as complete intersections in products of projective spaces. The formulae have been obtained by systematising and extrapolating concrete calculations and they have been checked computationally. Although the intermediate calculations often involve laborious computations of ranks of Leray maps in the Koszul spectral sequence, the final results for cohomology follow a simple pattern. The space of line bundles can be divided into several different regions, and in each such region the ranks of all cohomology groups can be expressed as polynomials in the line bundle integers of degree at most three. The number of regions increases and case distinctions become more complicated for manifolds with a larger Picard number. We also find explicit cohomology formulae for several non‐simply connected Calabi‐Yau threefolds realised as quotients by freely acting discrete symmetries. More cases may be systematically handled by machine learning algorithms.
Effect of abutment aspect ratio on clear‐water scour in floodplains
Authors: Abdelaziz Ahmed Abouelfetouh , Lim Siow Yong
Published: November 2019

Scour around abutments is recognized as one of the main reasons of bridge foundations failure. This paper presents the experimental results of the effects of abutment width and length on the scour development up to its equilibrium condition around 45° wing‐wall setback abutments in a compound channel. The developing scour hole characteristics are tested for three different lengths and widths at different time intervals until its equilibrium scour conditions. The findings showed that the abutment width has a profound effect on the characteristics of the scour hole, contradicting the results of previous studies. Generally, an increase in the relative abutment width leads to a reduction in the scour depth and width. However, the scour length, area, and volume initially increase with an increase in the relative abutment width, Lc/yf, from 1.33 to 10.67, where Lc is the abutment width and yf is the floodplain flow depth, and then these characteristics decrease significantly with a much wider abutment, Lc/yf, from 10.67 to 21.33. Overall, the effects of the abutment width on abutment scour should be accounted. To this end, empirical equations are proposed to predict the scour hole characteristics. Scour data from previous studies are also used to compare with the proposed equations.
Shooting stars? Uncertainty in hiring entrepreneurs
Authors: Mahieu Jeroen , Melillo Francesca , Reichstein Toke , Thompson Peter
Published: November 2019

Research Summary

This article advances a theory to explain why a spell of entrepreneurship affects the future wages of entrepreneurs returning to the wage sector. We propose that entrepreneurship holds a low rather than a negative information value, increasing the uncertainty around a job applicant's future productivity. Employers respond to this uncertainty by discounting the offered wage. The theory predicts that uncertainty in hiring—and thus the wage penalty—is more pronounced for entrepreneurs (a) who were in the upper tail of the wage distribution before the entrepreneurial spell, (b) who exited entrepreneurship quickly, and (c) who are hired by small employers. We test and find empirical support for these predictions using a novel dataset of matched entrepreneurs and employees from Belgium.

Managerial Summary

We investigate the effect of past entrepreneurial experience on the future wages of entrepreneurs who go back to paid employment. We propose that former entrepreneurs receive a pay cut because employers consider them as risky hires. In line with our theory, we find that former entrepreneurs are penalized the most (a) if they were highly paid employees before becoming founders, (b) if they were entrepreneurs only for a few years, (c) and if they are hired by small employers. Our findings caution star employees from experimenting with an entrepreneurial career, as failing fast is costly. Moreover, we suggest that firms value probationary contracts to lower the risk of hiring entrepreneurs while learning about their skills.
A Computational Study on the Photochemistry of 2,4,4‐Trimethyl‐1‐pyrroline 1‐Oxide and Investigation on the Reaction Paths of Its Photoproduct Oxaziridine
Authors: Sen Sindhuja , Chattopadhyay Anjan
Published: November 2019

This computational study reveals the reaction pathways of the experimentally reported photo‐conversion of 2,4,4‐trimethyl‐1‐pyrroline 1‐oxide to oxaziridine and the subsequent reactions (thermal and photochemical) of this photo‐product. The latter involve the oxaziridine to N‐acetyl azetidine, pyrrolidone and pyrroline formation paths. The photo‐excitation of the cyclic nitrone gives weakly allowed S0‐S1 and strongly allowed S0‐S2 transitions with transition moment values of 0.12 D and 3.16 D, respectively. The low‐lying conical intersection (S0/S1) situated at 80 kcal / mol (at CASSCF level) above the ground state nitrone geometry is found to be responsible for the oxaziridine formation. This bicyclic compound has to overcome a barrier (∼ 50 kcal / mol) to form N‐acetyl azetidine. The transition state involved in this process has an imaginary frequency of 909i cm−1. A parallel photochemical path has been also predicted for the same reaction. The thermal oxaziridine‐pyrrolidone conversion involves a transition state with an imaginary frequency of 1136i cm−1 which indicates the breaking of the C–CH3 bond adjacent to the nitrogen atom. This cyclic amide compound is almost 20–25 kcal/mol more stable than the 4‐membered cyclic azetidine and both are lower in energy than oxaziridine.
Clofibrate, a PPAR‐α agonist, abrogates sodium fluoride‐induced neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and motor incoordination via modulation of GFAP/Iba‐1/anti‐calbindin signaling pathways
Authors: Oyagbemi Ademola A. , Adebiyi Olamide E. , Adigun Kabirat O. , Ogunpolu Blessing S. , Falayi Olufunke O. , Hassan Fasilat O. , Folarin Oluwabusayo R. , Adebayo Adedeji K. , Adejumobi Olumuyiwa A. , Asenuga Ebunoluwa R. , Ola‐Davies Olufunke E. , Omobowale Temidayo O. , Olopade James O. , Saba Adebowale B. , Adedapo Adeolu A. , Nkadimeng Sanah M. , McGaw Lyndy J. , Oguntibeju Oluwafemi O. , Yakubu Momoh A.
Published: November 2019

Fluoride is an environmental contaminant that is ubiquitously present in air, water, and soil. It is commonly added in minute quantity to drinking water, toothpaste, and mouth rinses to prevent tooth decay. Epidemiological findings have demonstrated that exposure to fluoride induced neurodevelopmental toxicity, developmental neurotoxicity, and motor disorders. The neuroprotective effect of clofibrate, a peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor alpha agonist, was investigated in the present study. Forty male Wistar rats were used for this study and randomly grouped into 10 rats per group as control, sodium fluoride (NaF) alone (300 ppm), NaF plus clofibrate (250 mg/kg), and NaF plus lisinopril (10 mg/kg), respectively, for 7 days. NaF was administered in drinking water while clofibrate and lisinopril were administered by oral gavage. Markers of neuronal inflammation and oxidative stress, acetylcholinesterase activity, and neurobehavioral (hanging wire and open field) tests were performed. Immunohistochemistry was performed on brain tissues, and they were probed with glial fibrillary acidic protein, ionized calcium‐binding adaptor molecule 1, and cerebellar Ca2+‐binding protein calbindin‐D28k. The results showed that NaF significantly increased of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation and inhibited AChE activity. Immunostaining showed reactive astrocytes, microgliosis, loss of dendritic spines, and arborization in Purkinje cells in rats administered only NaF. Neurobehavioral results showed that cotreatment of NaF with clofibrate improved muscular strength and locomotion, reduced anxiety, and significantly reduced astrocytic count. Overall, cotreatment of NaF with either clofibrate or lisinopril showed neuroprotective effects by mitigating neuronal inflammation and oxidative and motor incoordination. Hence, clofibrate could be seen as a novel drug candidate against neurodegeneration and motor disorders.
Exploring the impact of a naturally occurring sapogenin diosgenin on underlying mechanisms of Ca2+ movement and cytotoxicity in human prostate cancer cells
Authors: Sun Gwo‐Ching , Jan Chung‐Ren , Liang Wei‐Zhe
Published: November 2019

Literature has shown that diosgenin, a naturally occurring sapogenin, inducedcytotoxic effects in many cancer models. This study investigated the effect of diosgenin on intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) and cytotoxicity in PC3 human prostate cancer cells. Diosgenin (250‐1000 μM) caused [Ca2+]i rises which was reduced by Ca2+ removal. Treatment with thapsigargin eliminated diosgenin‐induced [Ca2+]i increases. In contrast, incubation with diosgeninabolished thapsigargin‐caused [Ca2+]i increases. Suppression of phospholipase C with U73122 eliminated diosgenin‐caused [Ca2+]i increases. Diosgenin evoked Mn2+ influx suggesting that diosgenin induced Ca2+ entry. Diosgenin‐induced Ca2+influx was suppressed by PMA, GF109203X, and nifedipine, econazole, or SKF96365. Diosgenin (250‐600 μM) concentration‐dependently decreased cell viability. However, diosgenin‐induced cytotoxicity was not reversed by chelation of cytosolic Ca2+ with BAPTA/AM. Together, diosgenin evoked [Ca2+]i increases via Ca2+ release and Ca2+ influx, and caused Ca2+‐non‐associated deathin PC3 cells. These findings reveal a newtherapeutic potential of diosgenin for human prostate cancer.
Comparison of two fetoscopic open neural tube defect repair techniques: single‐ vs three‐layer closure
Authors: Belfort M. A. , Whitehead W. E. , Shamshirsaz A. A. , Espinoza J. , Nassr A. A. , Lee T. C. , Olutoye O. O. , Keswani S. G. , Sanz Cortes M.
Published: November 2019

Objectives

We reported previously on an exteriorized‐uterus fetoscopic repair for open neural tube defect (ONTD) using a single‐layer closure (SLC) technique. However, because SLC was associated with a high rate of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage at birth, we developed a three‐layer closure (3LC) technique comprising a bovine collagen patch, a myofascial layer and a skin layer. The aims of this study were to compare SLC and 3LC in terms of intraoperative, postoperative and obstetric outcomes, as well as short‐term neonatal neurologic and non‐neurologic outcomes.

Methods

This was a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data, from 32 consecutive SLC controls and 18 consecutive 3LC cases, that underwent exteriorized‐uterus two‐port fetoscopic repair of ONTD at our center, between April 2014 and December 2018. All patients satisfied the Management of Myelomeningocele Study (MOMS) criteria. Obstetric, maternal, fetal and early neonatal outcomes were compared between the SLC and 3LC groups.

Results

Maternal demographics and mean gestational age (GA) at fetal surgery (25.0 ± 0.7 vs 25.0 ± 0.5 weeks' gestation; P = 0.96), and at delivery (36.5 ± 3.5 vs 37.6 ± 3.0 weeks; P = 0.14), were similar between the SLC and 3LC groups, respectively. The rate of preterm prelabor rupture of membranes (PPROM) < 37 weeks (28% vs 29%; P = 0.9), mean GA at PPROM (32.3 ± 3.4 vs 32.7 ± 1.9 weeks; P = 0.83) and rate of vaginal delivery (50% vs 47%; P = 0.84) were similar for the SLC vs 3LC groups, respectively. In pregnancies that had SLC compared with those that had 3LC, there was a significantly higher incidence of CSF leakage at birth (8/32 (25%) vs 0/17 (0%); P = 0.02) and a significantly lower rate of reversal of hindbrain herniation at 6 weeks postoperatively (18/30 (60%) vs 14/15 (93%); P = 0.02). The rate of infants that met the MOMS criteria for shunt placement or died before 12 months of age (23/31 (74%) vs 7/12 (58%); P = 0.31) and those that required treatment for hydrocephalus by 12 months (15/32 (47%) vs 4/12 (33%); P = 0.42) were similar between the SLC and 3LC groups, respectively.

Conclusions

Compared to SLC, 3LC preserves the fetal and obstetric benefits of fetoscopic repair and shows improved rates of CSF leakage and reversal of hindbrain herniation at 6 weeks postoperatively. Copyright © 2019 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Maternal cardiovascular function and risk of intrapartum fetal compromise in women undergoing induction of labor: pilot study
Authors: Kalafat E. , Barratt I. , Nawaz A. , Thilaganathan B. , Khalil A.
Published: November 2019

Objective

Identification of the fetus at risk of intrapartum compromise has many benefits. Impaired maternal cardiovascular function is associated with placental hypoperfusion predisposing to intrapartum fetal distress. The aim of this study was to assess the predictive accuracy of maternal hemodynamics for the risk of operative delivery due to presumed fetal compromise in women undergoing induction of labor (IOL).

Methods

In this prospective cohort study, patients were recruited between November 2018 and January 2019. Women undergoing IOL were invited to participate in the study. A non‐invasive ultrasonic cardiac output monitor (USCOM‐1A®) was used for cardiovascular assessment. The study outcome was operative delivery due to presumed fetal compromise, which included Cesarean or instrumental delivery for abnormal fetal heart monitoring. Regression analysis was used to test the association between cardiovascular markers, as well as the maternal characteristics, and the risk of operative delivery due to presumed fetal compromise. Receiver‐operating‐characteristics‐curve analysis was used to assess the predictive accuracy of the cardiovascular markers for the risk of operative delivery for presumed fetal compromise.

Results

A total of 99 women were recruited, however four women were later excluded from the analysis due to semi‐elective Cesarean section (n = 2) and failed IOL (n = 2). The rate of operative delivery due to presumed fetal compromise was 28.4% (27/95). Women who delivered without suspected fetal compromise (controls) were more likely to be parous, compared to those who had operative delivery due to fetal compromise (52.9% vs 18.5%; P = 0.002). Women who underwent operative delivery due to presumed fetal compromise had a significantly lower cardiac index (median, 2.50 vs 2.60 L/min/m2; P = 0.039) and a higher systemic vascular resistance (SVR) (median, 1480 vs 1325 dynes × s/cm5, P = 0.044) compared to controls. The baseline model (being parous only) showed poor predictive accuracy, with an area under the curve of 0.67 (95% CI, 0.58–0.77). The addition of stroke volume index (SVI) < 36 mL/m2, SVR > 7.2 logs or SVR index (SVRI) > 7.7 logs improved significantly the predictive accuracy of the baseline model (P = 0.012, P = 0.026 and P = 0.012, respectively).

Conclusion

In this pilot study, we demonstrated that prelabor maternal cardiovascular assessment in women undergoing IOL could be useful for assessing the risk of intrapartum fetal compromise necessitating operative delivery. The addition of SVI, SVR or SVRI improved significantly the predictive accuracy of the baseline antenatal model. Copyright © 2019 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Assessing precipitation trends in the Americas with historical data: A review
Authors: Carvalho Leila M. V.
Published: November 2019

North, Central, and South America (collectively referred to as the Americas) extend across two hemispheres, and together cover approximately 28% of Earth's land area and are home to about 13% of the world's population. Unique ecosystems, diversified cultures, and communities that inhabit the region rely on precipitation delivered yearly by multiple systems, including mid‐latitudes storms, the North and South American Monsoons, and tropical storms and hurricanes. The rapid warming of the Earth's atmosphere and oceans combined with internal variability of the climate system, have modified precipitation patterns from the tropics to high latitudes. In the Americas, instrumental records have shown evidence of upward trends in extreme precipitation (amount, intensity, and frequency) in many areas. The most consistent evidence of precipitation trends occurs in mid‐latitudes of North America and in the subtropics of South America. Recent studies have indicated a poleward shift of heavy precipitation associated with South American Monsoon. Nonetheless, the deficient network of rain gauges in vast areas over tropical Americas limits the assessment of trends in regions with heavy rainfall amounts. Additionally, observed trends in the North America monsoon precipitation are difficult to separate from the contribution of tropical storms and hurricanes. Furthermore, coupled modes such as the El Nino/Southern Oscillation, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation modulate precipitation in the Americas, from the tropics to the extratropics, and these teleconnections are relevant to assess precipitation trends using historical records. This review evaluates all these complex issues focusing on observations based on instrumental datasets.

This article is categorized under:

Paleoclimates and Current Trends > Modern Climate Change
Retracted: Forecasting model for wind power integrating least squares support vector machine, singular spectrum analysis, deep belief network, and locality‐sensitive hashing
Authors: Habib Arslan , Abbassi Rabeh , Aristizábal Andrés Julián , Abbassi Abdelkader
Published: November 2019

Accurate wind power prediction can alleviate the negative influence on power system caused by the integration of wind farms into grid. In this paper, a novel combination model is proposed with the purpose of enhancing short‐term wind power prediction precision. Singular spectrum analysis is utilized to decompose the original wind power series into the trend component and the fluctuation component. Then least squares support vector machine (LSSVM) is applied to forecast the trend component while deep belief network (DBN) is utilized to predict the fluctuation component. By this means, the performance advantages of LSSVM and DBN can be brought into full play. Moreover, the locality‐sensitive hashing search algorithm is introduced to cluster the nearest training samples to further improve forecasting accuracy. Besides, the effect of LSSVM based on different kernel functions and the number of the nearest samples is investigated. The simulation results show that the normalized root mean square errors of the proposed model based on linear kernel function from 1‐step to 3‐step forecasting are 2.13%, 5.03%, and 7.29%, respectively, which outperforms all the other comparison models. Therefore, it can be concluded that the proposed combination model provides a promising and effective alternative for short‐term wind power prediction.
Long‐term stability of invisible X‐ray fluorescence identification tags
Authors: Benetková Barbora , Krejčí Jan , Drábková Klára , Ďurovič Michal , Veselý Michal , Dzik Petr , Akrman Jiří
Published: November 2019

The traditional labelling of archive documents (e.g., hand stamping) entails several limitations. It could affect the aesthetic value of the archive document and is easy to find and remove in case of the theft of the document. The use of a label that would not be easily visible by the naked eye would resolve both of these problems. One possibility in designing such label is the use of the elements that have a good response in X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrum, are not disturbing in colour, and are not usually present in the archive materials themselves. This study focuses on such type of labelling, specifically, the tags based on the oxides of lanthanum, dysprosium, samarium, gadolinium, and niobium. For the material to be taken into account by the community, it has to fulfil several important characteristics, such as harmlessness to the archival documents, non‐toxicity, or long‐term stability. In the study, the long‐term stability of these tags was studied on model samples of lignocellulose materials subjected to several types of artificial ageing. The colour changes and changes in the intensity of the responses of the individual elements in the XRF spectra were evaluated. To simulate the practical use, the tags of minimal visibility to the naked eye were printed on samples of real archive materials, and their potential for detection using a handheld XRF spectrometer was studied. Both of the research parts should help bring this type of labelling closer to the field application.
Towards a determination of absolute cross sections for projectile excitation of hydrogen‐like uranium in collisions with neutral atoms
Authors: Weber G. , Gumberidze A. , Herdrich M.O. , Märtin R. , Spillmann U. , Surzhykov A. , Thorn D.B. , Trotsenko S. , Petridis N. , Fontes C.J. , Stöhlker Th.
Published: November 2019

Recently, the contribution of the generalized Breit interaction to electron impact ionization was identified for the first time in a high‐Z system, namely, hydrogen‐like uranium. This study employed a measurement of the relative population of the j = 1/2 and j = 3/2 states of the L shell by projectile excitation in collision of U91+ with hydrogen and nitrogen targets. However, for a rigorous test of ion–atom collision theory, also the absolute excitation cross sections are of great importance. In the present work, we report on our efforts to extend the previous study to a determination of the absolute projectile excitation cross sections by normalization to the well‐known radiative electron capture process.
Analysis of Systematic Errors in Geocenter Coordinates Determined From GNSS, SLR, DORIS, and GRACE
Authors: Kosek Wiesław , Popiński Waldemar , Wnęk Agnieszka , Sośnica Krzysztof , Zbylut-Górska Maria
Published: November 2019

The goal of this paper is to determine and analyze the common geocenter signal from the geocenter coordinates based on four independent techniques: Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS), Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment with the ocean bottom pressure model, and Satellite Laser Ranging, and to analyze the residuals as the differences between these geocenter coordinates and their common signal. Another objective of this paper is to compute variable amplitudes and phases of the annual and semi-annual oscillations in the geocenter coordinates of these techniques by the combination of the Fourier Transform Band Pass Filter (FTBPF) with the Hilbert Transform (FTBPF + HT) and to compare their mean values with those obtained by other authors. It was assumed that the geocenter time series of individual techniques consist of the common signal of geocenter motion, systematic errors resulting from orbital modeling and noise. Generally, the annual oscillation amplitudes in these techniques computed by the FTBPF + HT vary in time and their mean values are of the order of 2 mm for the X coordinate, 2.4–3.6 mm for the Y coordinate and 2.8–5.6 mm for the Z coordinate and the semi-annual oscillation amplitude is variable and about two times smaller than the annual one. The phases of these two oscillations are also variable, there are differences in their mean values for different techniques and the semi-annual oscillation phases changes throughout the entire phase range. To detect the common geocenter signal the wavelet-based semblance filtering (WBSF) method was applied. The weighted mean model was computed from all geocenter coordinate pairs from individual techniques assuming weights as inversely proportional to the variances of differences between the geocenter coordinates and their corresponding WBSF outputs. The average and median models computed from these outputs show a good agreement with the weighted mean model and generally, the average amplitudes of the annual signal in these models are of the order of 2 mm in each geocenter coordinate. The FTBPF amplitude spectra of these models reveals the retrograde annual oscillation in the XY equatorial plane. The FTBPF and FTBPF + HT amplitude spectra of geocenter time series and their residuals show mainly the maxima of different heights in the annual frequency band. The annual oscillations left in all residuals and oscillations with period less than ~ 120 days in DORIS and GNSS amplitude spectra may be caused by systematic errors of techniques resulting from mis-modeling of satellite orbits.
Autoimmunity plays a role in the onset of diabetes after 40 years of age
Authors: Rolandsson Olov , Hampe Christiane S. , Sharp Stephen J. , Ardanaz Eva , Boeing Heiner , Fagherazzi Guy , Mancini Francesca Romana , Nilsson Peter M. , Overvad Kim , Chirlaque Maria-Dolores , Dorronsoro Miren , Gunter Marc J. , Kaaks Rudolf , Key Timothy J. , Khaw Kay-Tee , Krogh Vittorio , Kühn Tilman , Palli Domenico , Panico Salvatore , Sacerdote Carlotta , Sánchez Maria-José , Severi Gianluca , Spijkerman Annemieke M. W. , Tumino Rosario , van der Schouw Yvonne T. , Riboli Elio , Forouhi Nita G. , Langenberg Claudia , Wareham Nicholas J.
Published: November 2019

Aims/hypothesis

Type 1 and type 2 diabetes differ with respect to pathophysiological factors such as beta cell function, insulin resistance and phenotypic appearance, but there may be overlap between the two forms of diabetes. However, there are relatively few prospective studies that have characterised the relationship between autoimmunity and incident diabetes. We investigated associations of antibodies against the 65 kDa isoform of GAD (GAD65) with type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes genetic risk scores and incident diabetes in adults in European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-InterAct, a case-cohort study nested in the EPIC cohort.

Methods

GAD65 antibodies were analysed in EPIC participants (over 40 years of age and free of known diabetes at baseline) by radioligand binding assay in a random subcohort (n = 15,802) and in incident diabetes cases (n = 11,981). Type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes genetic risk scores were calculated. Associations between GAD65 antibodies and incident diabetes were estimated using Prentice-weighted Cox regression.

Results

GAD65 antibody positivity at baseline was associated with development of diabetes during a median follow-up time of 10.9 years (HR for GAD65 antibody positive vs negative 1.78; 95% CI 1.43, 2.20) after adjustment for sex, centre, physical activity, smoking status and education. The genetic risk score for type 1 diabetes but not type 2 diabetes was associated with GAD65 antibody positivity in both the subcohort (OR per SD genetic risk 1.24; 95% CI 1.03, 1.50) and incident cases (OR 1.97; 95% CI 1.72, 2.26) after adjusting for age and sex. The risk of incident diabetes in those in the top tertile of the type 1 diabetes genetic risk score who were also GAD65 antibody positive was 3.23 (95% CI 2.10, 4.97) compared with all other individuals, suggesting that 1.8% of incident diabetes in adults was attributable to this combination of risk factors.

Conclusions/interpretation

Our study indicates that incident diabetes in adults has an element of autoimmune aetiology. Thus, there might be a reason to re-evaluate the present subclassification of diabetes in adulthood.
Tissue classification by rapid evaporative ionization mass spectrometry (REIMS): comparison between a diathermic knife and CO2 laser sampling on classification performance
Authors: Genangeli Michele , Heeren Ron M. A. , Porta Siegel Tiffany
Published: November 2019

The increasing need for rapid, in situ, and robust tissue profiling approaches in the context of intraoperative diagnostics has led to the development of a large number of ambient ionization-based surface sampling strategies. This paper compares the performances of a diathermic knife and a CO2 laser handpiece, both clinically approved, coupled to a rapid evaporative ionization mass spectrometry (REIMS) source for quasi-instantaneous tissue classification. Several fresh meat samples (muscle, liver, bone, bone marrow, cartilage, skin, fat) were obtained from different animals. Overall, the laser produced cleaner cuts and more reproducible and higher spectral quality signals when compared with the diathermic knife (CV laser = 9–12%, CV diathermic = 14–23%). The molecular profiles were subsequently entered into a database and PCA/LDA classification/prediction models were built to assess if the data generated with one sampling modality can be employed to classify the data generated with the other handpiece. We demonstrate that the correct classification rate of the models increases (+ 25%) with the introduction of a model based on peak lists that are tissue-specific and common to the two handpieces, compared with considering solely the whole molecular profile. This renders it possible to use a unique and universal database for quasi-instantaneous tissue recognition which would provide similar classification results independent of the handpiece used. Furthermore, the laser was able to generate aerosols rich in lipids from hard tissues such as bone, bone marrow, and cartilage. Combined, these results demonstrate that REIMS is a valuable and versatile tool for instantaneous identification/classification of hard tissue and coupling to different aerosol-generating handpieces expands its field of application.
Detailed phenotyping of posterior vs. anterior circulation ischemic stroke: a multi-center MRI study
Authors:   the Stroke Genetics Network (SiGN), the International Stroke Genetics Consortium (ISGC), and the MRI-Genetics Interface Exploration (MRI-GENIE) Study, Frid Petrea , Drake Mattias , Giese A. K. , Wasselius J. , Schirmer M. D. , Donahue K. L. , Cloonan L. , Irie R. , Bouts M. J. R. J. , McIntosh E. C. , Mocking S. J. T. , Dalca A. V. , Sridharan R. , Xu H. , Giralt-Steinhauer E. , Holmegaard L. , Jood K. , Roquer J. , Cole J. W. , McArdle P. F. , Broderick J. P. , Jimenez-Conde J. , Jern C. , Kissela B. M. , Kleindorfer D. O. , Lemmens R. , Meschia J. F. , Rundek T. , Sacco R. L. , Schmidt R. , Sharma P. , Slowik A. , Thijs V. , Woo D. , Worrall B. B. , Kittner S. J. , Mitchell B. D. , Petersson J. , Rosand J. , Golland P. , Wu O. , Rost N. S. , Lindgren A.
Published: November 2019

Objective

Posterior circulation ischemic stroke (PCiS) constitutes 20–30% of ischemic stroke cases. Detailed information about differences between PCiS and anterior circulation ischemic stroke (ACiS) remains scarce. Such information might guide clinical decision making and prevention strategies. We studied risk factors and ischemic stroke subtypes in PCiS vs. ACiS and lesion location on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in PCiS.

Methods

Out of 3,301 MRIs from 12 sites in the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Stroke Genetics Network (SiGN), we included 2,381 cases with acute DWI lesions. The definition of ACiS or PCiS was based on lesion location. We compared the groups using Chi-squared and logistic regression.

Results

PCiS occurred in 718 (30%) patients and ACiS in 1663 (70%). Diabetes and male sex were more common in PCiS vs. ACiS (diabetes 27% vs. 23%, p < 0.05; male sex 68% vs. 58%, p < 0.001). Both were independently associated with PCiS (diabetes, OR = 1.29; 95% CI 1.04–1.61; male sex, OR = 1.46; 95% CI 1.21–1.78). ACiS more commonly had large artery atherosclerosis (25% vs. 20%, p < 0.01) and cardioembolic mechanisms (17% vs. 11%, p < 0.001) compared to PCiS. Small artery occlusion was more common in PCiS vs. ACiS (20% vs. 14%, p < 0.001). Small artery occlusion accounted for 47% of solitary brainstem infarctions.

Conclusion

Ischemic stroke subtypes differ between the two phenotypes. Diabetes and male sex have a stronger association with PCiS than ACiS. Definitive MRI-based PCiS diagnosis aids etiological investigation and contributes additional insights into specific risk factors and mechanisms of injury in PCiS.
Computing the Interleaving Distance is NP-Hard
Authors: Bjerkevik Håvard Bakke , Botnan Magnus Bakke , Kerber Michael
Published: November 2019

We show that computing the interleaving distance between two multi-graded persistence modules is NP-hard. More precisely, we show that deciding whether two modules are 1-interleaved is NP-complete, already for bigraded, interval decomposable modules. Our proof is based on previous work showing that a constrained matrix invertibility problem can be reduced to the interleaving distance computation of a special type of persistence modules. We show that this matrix invertibility problem is NP-complete. We also give a slight improvement in the above reduction, showing that also the approximation of the interleaving distance is NP-hard for any approximation factor smaller than 3. Additionally, we obtain corresponding hardness results for the case that the modules are indecomposable, and in the setting of one-sided stability. Furthermore, we show that checking for injections (resp. surjections) between persistence modules is NP-hard. In conjunction with earlier results from computational algebra this gives a complete characterization of the computational complexity of one-sided stability. Lastly, we show that it is in general NP-hard to approximate distances induced by noise systems within a factor of 2.
The Efficacy of a Gambling Prevention Program Among High-School Students
Authors: Calado Filipa , Alexandre Joana , Rosenfeld Liah , Pereira Rafaela , Griffiths Mark D.
Published: November 2019

Youth problem gambling has become an emergent public health issue, and adolescents constitute a vulnerable age group for the development of gambling-related problems. Although there is research concerning the risk factors of youth problem gambling, rigorous evaluations of the effectiveness of preventive initiatives is still rare. The present study evaluated the efficacy of an integrative intervention to prevent youth problem gambling based on a multidimensional set of factors including gambling-related knowledge, misconceptions, attitudes, gambling frequency, amount of money spent, total hours spent gambling per week, and sensation seeking. A pre- and post-test design was performed with 111 Portuguese high-school students randomly assigned to two groups (experimental and control). The findings demonstrated that the intervention was effective in improving correct knowledge about gambling, reducing misconceptions and attitudes, and in decreasing the total hours spent gambling per week. The intervention was also effective in reducing the number of at-risk/problem gamblers during the study period. Furthermore, these findings were stable after a 6-week follow-up. Overall, the intervention program appeared to be effective in correcting some gambling-related behaviours, and provides suggestions for future interventions.
Tigecycline-induced coagulopathy: a literature review
Authors: Cui Nannan , Cai Hongliu , Li Zhitao , Lu Yuting , Wang Guobin , Lu Anwei
Published: November 2019

Background Several adverse reactions to tigecycline, which is widely used in patients with severe infections, have been documented. Coagulopathy is a lesser known side effect of tigecycline. Aim of the review We summarize the characteristics, possible mechanisms, and treatment of tigecycline-induced coagulopathy. Method PubMed, Ovid, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, CNKI, and Wanfang were searched up to March 5, 2019. All articles concerning coagulopathy induced by tigecycline were included. The article types and languages were not limited. The retrieved articles were screened by two experienced clinicians by reading the titles, abstracts, and full texts. Results Ultimately, 17 articles were targeted, including 13 case reports and 4 retrospective observational studies. Tigecycline-induced coagulopathy usually manifests as the dose-dependent prolongation of prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time and a reduction in the fibrinogen level. Tigecycline and its metabolites may have multiple effects on coagulation, influencing the extrinsic or intrinsic pathway and even the common pathway. There is no specific treatment for tigecycline-induced coagulopathy, but it can be reversed by withdrawing tigecycline. Conclusion Tigecycline acts on the coagulation system in a dose-dependent manner, and the most severe adverse event is bleeding. Overdose and prolonged use should be avoided, suspected coagulopathy must be recognized in time, and tigecycline should be withdrawn to prevent severe adverse events. Also, drug clearance disorders can develop in patients with liver and/or renal dysfunction. For patients with severe hepatic or renal impairment, the maintenance dose should be reduced, and indicators of coagulation function should be closely monitored.
Measuring originality in science
Authors: Shibayama Sotaro , Wang Jian
Published: November 2019

Originality has self-evident importance for science, but objectively measuring originality poses a formidable challenge. We conceptualise originality as the degree to which a scientific discovery provides subsequent studies with unique knowledge that is not available from previous studies. Accordingly, we operationalise a new measure of originality for individual scientific papers building on the network betweenness centrality concept. Specifically, we measure the originality of a paper based on the directed citation network between its references and the subsequent papers citing it. We demonstrate the validity of this measure using survey information. In particular, we find that the proposed measure is positively correlated with the self-assessed theoretical originality but not with the methodological originality. We also find that originality can be reliably measured with only a small number of subsequent citing papers, which lowers computational cost and contributes to practical utility. The measure also predicts future citations, further confirming its validity. We further characterise the measure to guide its future use.
Feasibility of Solar-Enhanced Drying of Woody Biomass
Authors: Raitila Jyrki , Tsupari Eemeli
Published: November 2019

Sustainable biomass resources are limited and their utilization therefore needs to be more efficient. In addition, there is an urgent need for low-cost energy storage, particularly for solar energy. Drying considerably increases the calorific value of woody biomass, and the resulting dried biomass provides easy seasonal energy storage. The drying both improves the quality of the biomass and extends its storage life. To investigate the technology and feasibility of solar-enhanced drying, several drying experiments were conducted on wood chips in VTT’s 12 kWpeak convective dryer in Jyväskylä, Finland. Drying times varied from 3.5 to 27 h and the final moistures from 12 to 32 w-%. VTT’s experiments show that solar heat can be successfully applied to thermal drying of biomass. The moderate drying temperatures used (typically 20–50 °C) are advantageous for ensuring homogenous drying of wood particles and for preventing changes to the physical structure of the biomass and loss of volatiles. Due to the low efficiency of the system, still in its prototype phase, the calculated payback times were not highly attractive to the entrepreneur. In the experiments, best profitability was achieved by drying seasoned wood, for which a payback time of 12–17 years was estimated for a large scale system such as a biomass terminal. Based on the assumptions that technical improvements are made, the best drying efficiency reached in our experiments is achieved, and some investment subsidy is secured; scale-up is feasible. With these criteria met, the payback time of such a dryer could be brought below 10 years. This requires, however, that drying increases the selling price of wood chips.
Yogic Breathing and Mindfulness as Stress Coping Mediate Positive Health Outcomes of Yoga
Authors: Tellhed Una , Daukantaitė Daiva , Maddux Rachel E. , Svensson Thomas , Melander Olle
Published: November 2019

Objectives

Despite accumulating research on yoga and its positive impact on both physiological and psychological health, it is still unclearhowyoga improves health. Two central components of yoga,yogic breathingandmindfulness, may be important mechanisms by which individuals learn to cope with their daily stressors, and thereby reduce their risk of developing stress-related illness. In this study, we experimentally tested whether yogic breathing as a stress coping mechanism and increased mindfulness mediates the psychological health benefits of a yoga intervention

Methods

Seventy-one middle-aged adults (78% women;Mage53.5 ± 6.9) who self-rated as moderately stressed were randomly assigned to either a control group or a 5-week yoga intervention called the Yoga and Mindfulness Intervention (YOMI) program. The YOMI combines 60 min of yin yoga practice with 30 min of psychoeducation, administered twice weekly; participants also completed a 5-min breathing exercise as homework daily.

Results

The YOMI group showed greater reductions in anxiety, depression, and sleep problems compared with controls (R2varied between .09 to .23), and these reductions were statistically mediated by increased use of yogic breathing and a related increase in participants’ overall mindfulness.

Conclusions

These mediation results provide new insights into how yoga improves psychological health and suggests promising implications for policymakers aimed at improving public health.
Accretion theory of ideation: evaluation regimes for ideation stages
Authors: Sosa Ricardo
Published: November 2019

This paper presents an exercise on theory building to characterise design ideation. It starts by examining how early ideas are defined and evaluated in the literature. Anessentialistview is identified that explains the creativity of a final design solution by the creative qualities of early ideas attributed by external judges. Criteria for a theory of ideation that does not rely on the primacy of essence are enumerated. Advanced professional practice is examined to understand evaluation of early ideas ‘in the wild’. Accretion is then introduced as an analogical model to imaginatively drive definitions and conjectures about idea formation in the co-evolution of problem and design spaces. Vignettes from ideation episodes are used to illustrate an accretion theory of ideation. An accretion theory supports new ways to think about ideation as a complex formation process where creative solutions emerge from the synthesis of a multitude of fragmentary and partial ideas – or ‘ideasimals’. An accretion theory of ideation helps to explain the creative value of a final design solution without relying on early ideas having a creative essence, because the creativity of a solution is viewed as emergent rather than present in early versions. An accretion lens is used to suggest new ideation metrics to study the qualities of idea fragments and the process of idea formation. Definitions and relevant assessment regimes for different stages of ideation are discussed. The paper concludes with a discussion on entailments of an accretion theory and next steps for this theory building enterprise.
How Partisan Is Local Law Enforcement? Evidence from Sheriff Cooperation with Immigration Authorities
Authors: THOMPSON DANIEL M.
Published: November 2019

Is local law enforcement conducted differently based on the party in power? I offer an answer to this question by focusing on a case in which law enforcement is elected and has meaningful independent discretion: sheriff compliance with federal requests to detain unauthorized immigrants. Using a regression discontinuity design in a new dataset of over 3,200 partisan sheriff elections and administrative data on sheriff behavior, I find that Democrats and Republicans comply at nearly the same rate. These results contribute to ongoing research into the role that partisanship plays in local policy making, indicating that law enforcement officers make similar choices across party lines even when they have broad authority. I also present evidence that sheriffs hold more similar immigration enforcement views across party than the general public, highlighting the role of candidate entry and selection in determining the level of partisan polarization.
NOTES ON THE ETYMOLOGIES IN PLATO'SCRATYLUS
Authors: Hoenig Christina
Published: November 2019

Recent scholarship on Plato'sCratylus(=Cra.) has yielded interpretations that assign various functions of philosophical importance to the dialogue's lengthy etymological section. Barney (2001) considers the section an ‘agonistic display’ (69–73) in which Socrates beats contemporary practitioners of etymology at their own game while, at the same time, offering a cosmological theory intended for serious intellectual competition. In this context, Barney emphasizes the importance of Parmenides, a charioteer who journeys towards Truth, as a literary point of reference for Socrates’ own etymological quest after the true meaning of names which, from Cratylus’ naturalist perspective on language, are considered indicative of their referents’ essential nature. The contents of the etymologies may be a ‘rational reconstruction’ (52–7) of Cratylus’ linguistic naturalism. Sedley (2003) stresses the encyclopedic character of Socrates’ lexical interpretations and argues that these are ‘exegetically correct’ (28) in representing the opinions of the name-givers of old who subscribed to a Heraclitean view of a world in flux, as is reflected in the original form of the names they devised. Ademollo (2011) stresses that Socrates’ etymologies display the evolution of Greek intellectual thought, shown to be heavily reliant on the assumption of a universe in flux, and serve to exhibit the weaknesses in Cratylus’ naturalist view of language.
Noncommutative network models
Authors: Moeller Joe
Published: November 2019

Network models, which abstractly are given by lax symmetric monoidal functors, are used to construct operads for modeling and designing complex networks. Many common types of networks can be modeled with simple graphs with edges weighted by a monoid. A feature of the ordinary construction of network models is that it imposes commutativity relations between all edge components. Because of this, it cannot be used to model networks with bounded degree. In this paper, we construct the free network model on a given monoid, which can model networks with bounded degree. To do this, we generalize Green’s graph products of groups to pointed categories which are finitely complete and cocomplete.
Dietary inflammatory index potentially increases blood pressure and markers of glucose homeostasis among adults: findings from an updated systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Farhangi Mahdieh Abbasalizad , Nikniaz Leila , Nikniaz Zeinab , Dehghan Parvin
Published: November 2019

Objective:

In the current meta-analysis, we aimed to systematically review and summarize eligible studies for the association between dietary inflammatory index (DII) and blood pressure, hypertension (HTN) and glucose homeostasis biomarkers.

Design/Setting:

In a systematic search of PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar electronic databases up to February 2019, relevant studies were included in the literature review. Observational studies evaluating the association between DII and HTN, hyperglycaemia, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting blood glucose (FBG), insulin, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and glycated Hb (HbA1c) were included.

Participants:

Not applicable.

Results:

Total numbers of studies were as follows: OR for DII and HTN (n 12), OR for DII and hyperglycaemia (n 9), HTN prevalence (n 9), mean (sd) of SBP and DII (n 12), mean (sd) of DBP and DII (n 10), mean (sd) of FBS and DII (n 13), mean (sd) of HbA1c and DII (n 3), mean (sd) of insulin and DII (n 6), mean (sd) of HOMA-IR and DII (n 7). Higher DII scores were associated with higher odds of HTN (OR = 1·13; 95 % CI 1·01, 1·27; P < 0·001), SBP (weighted mean difference (WMD) = 1·230; 95 % CI 0·283, 2·177; P = 0·011), FBS (WMD = 1·083; 95 % CI 0·099, 2·068; P = 0·031), insulin (WMD = 0·829; 95 % CI 0·172, 1·486; P = 0·013), HbA1c (WMD = 0·615; 95 % CI 0·268, 0·961; P = 0·001) and HOMA-IR (WMD = 0·192; 95 % CI 0·023, 0·361; P = 0·026) values compared with lowest DII categories.

Conclusions:

Lower inflammatory content of diets for prevention of cardiovascular risk factors is recommended.