bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
3D printed spinning cup-shaped device for immunoaffinity solid-phase extraction of diclofenac in wastewaters
Authors: Carrasco-Correa Enrique Javier , Herrero-Martínez José Manuel , Simó-Alfonso Ernesto Francisco , Knopp Dietmar , Miró Manuel
Published: April 2022

This article reports current research efforts towards designing bespoke microscale extraction approaches exploiting the versatility of 3D printing for fast prototyping of novel geometries of sorptive devices. This is demonstrated via the so-called 3D printed spinning cup-based platform for immunoextraction of emerging contaminants using diclofenac as a model analyte. A new format of rotating cylindrical scaffold (containing a semispherical upper cavity) with enhanced coverage of biorecognition elements, and providing elevated enhancement factors with no need of eluate processing as compared with other microextraction stirring units is proposed. Two distinct synthetic routes capitalized upon modification of the acrylate surface of stereolithographic 3D printed parts with hexamethylenediamine or branched polyethyleneimine chemistries were assayed for covalent binding of monoclonal diclofenac antibody.

Under the optimized experimental conditions, a LOD of 108 ng L−1 diclofenac, dynamic linear range of 0.4–1,500 µg L–1, and enrichment factors > 83 (for near-exhaustive extraction) were obtained using liquid chromatography coupled with UV–Vis detection. The feasibility of the antibody-laden device for handling of complex samples was demonstrated with the analysis of raw influent wastewaters with relative recoveries ranging from 102 to 109%. By exploiting stereolithographic 3D printing, up to 36 midget devices were fabricated in a single run with an estimated cost of mere 0.68 euros per 3D print and up to 16 €/device after the incorporation of the monoclonal antibody.

Graphical abstract
Risk factors for septic arthritis and multiple arthroscopic washouts: minimum 2-year follow-up at a major trauma centre
Authors: Lu Victor , Zhou Andrew , Hussain Hassan Abbas , Thahir Azeem , Krkovic Matija
Published: April 2022

Background

Septic arthritis (SA) is a dangerous condition that requires emergency treatment. Managed by culture-specific antibiotics, irrigation, and debridement (I&D), some patients require repeat surgical treatment. The objectives were to determine the risk factors for SA and risk factors for repeat arthroscopic I&D in SA patients. We hypothesized that variables which directly or indirectly contributed to a larger infection burden would be associated with the development of SA and the need for repeat arthroscopic I&D.

Methods

All patients ≥ 18 years old presenting to the emergency department, orthopaedic and rheumatology clinics at our major trauma centre between January 2018 and January 2020 with a hot, swollen joint were retrospectively evaluated. Patients with previous trauma and metalwork in the affected joint, periprosthetic joint infection, previous joint arthroplasty surgery, soft tissue infection, missing data, transferred to another centre, diagnosis not concerning the joint, and < 24-month follow-up were excluded. Two hundred eleven patients were included (SA: 28; pseudogout: 32; gout: 50; others: 101). Variables of interest in the 3-month period preceding the diagnosis of SA were compared between SA and non-SA patients using univariable analysis. A multivariable logistic regression model was formed using covariates with corresponding univariable tests of p < 0.200. Similar analyses were performed to compare SA patients with multiple washouts/procedures with those with one washout/procedure.

Results

Multivariable analysis showed multiple risk factors for SA, namely rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (OR: 3.4; 95% CI: 1.2–10.0; p = 0.023); skin infection (OR: 3.3; 95% CI: 1.2–9.0; p = 0.017), liver disease (OR: 9.9; 95% CI: 2.2–43.9; p = 0.003), knee joint involvement (OR: 3.5; 95% CI: 1.3–9.4; p = 0.014), and use of immunosuppressive medication (OR: 3.5; 95% CI: 1.2–10.6; p = 0.027). Risk factors for multiple washouts included synovial WBC levels > 10.5 × 109 cells/L (OR: 3.0; 95% CI: 2.3–38.8; p = 0.009) and RA (OR: 3.5; 95% CI: 1.9–66.3; p = 0.017).

Conclusions

These findings suggest that prophylactic actions against septic arthritis should be targeted at patients with liver disease, RA, or skin infection. Repeat arthroscopic I&D of septic joints may be needed, especially in patients with synovial WBC levels > 10.5 × 109 cells/L and RA.

Key Points• The risk factors for septic arthritis determined in this study are rheumatoid arthritis, skin infection, liver disease, knee joint involvement, and immunosuppressant usage.• Some septic arthritis patients need multiple rounds of arthroscopic irrigation and debridement. The risk factors for this are a synovial WBC count > 10.5 × 109 cells/L and rheumatoid arthritis.
An open dataset for landslides triggered by the 2016 Mw 7.8 Kaikōura earthquake, New Zealand
Authors: Tanyaş Hakan , Görüm Tolga , Fadel Islam , Yıldırım Cengiz , Lombardo Luigi
Published: April 2022

On November 14, 2016, the northeastern South Island of New Zealand was hit by the magnitude Mw 7.8 Kaikōura earthquake, which is characterized by the most complex rupturing mechanism ever recorded. The widespread landslides triggered by the earthquake make this event a great case study to revisit our current knowledge of earthquake-triggered landslides in terms of factors controlling the spatial distribution of landslides and the rapid assessment of geographic areas affected by widespread landsliding. Although the spatial and size distributions of landslides have already been investigated in the literature, a polygon-based co-seismic landslide inventory with landslide size information is still not available as of June 2021. To address this issue and leverage this large landslide event, we mapped 14,233 landslides over a total area of approximately 14,000 km2. We also identified 101 landslide dams and shared them all via an open-access repository. We examined the spatial distribution of co-seismic landslides in relation to lithologic units and seismic and morphometric characteristics. We analyzed the size statistics of these landslides in a comparative manner, by using the five largest co-seismic landslide inventories ever mapped (i.e., Chi-Chi, Denali, Wenchuan, Haiti, and Gorkha). We compared our inventory with respect to these five ones to answer the question of whether the landslides triggered by the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake are less numerous and/or share size characteristics similar to those of other strong co-seismic landslide events. Our findings show that the spatial distribution of the Kaikōura landslide event is not significantly different from those belonging to other extreme landslide events, but the average landslide size generated by the Kaikōura earthquake is relatively larger compared to some other large earthquakes (i.e., Wenchuan and Gorkha).
Word-level human interpretable scoring mechanism for novel text detection using Tsetlin Machines
Authors: Bhattarai Bimal , Granmo Ole-Christoffer , Jiao Lei
Published: April 2022

Recent research in novelty detection focuses mainly on document-level classification, employing deep neural networks (DNN). However, the black-box nature of DNNs makes it difficult to extract an exact explanation of why a document is considered novel. In addition, dealing with novelty at the word level is crucial to provide a more fine-grained analysis than what is available at the document level. In this work, we propose a Tsetlin Machine (TM)-based architecture for scoring individual words according to their contribution to novelty. Our approach encodes a description of the novel documents using the linguistic patterns captured by TM clauses. We then adapt this description to measure how much a word contributes to making documents novel. Our experimental results demonstrate how our approach breaks down novelty into interpretable phrases, successfully measuring novelty.
OCDMA: a MAC Protocol for Industrial Intra-machine TeraHertz Network
Authors: Buratti Chiara , Cuozzo Giampaolo , Verdone Roberto
Published: April 2022

This paper considers an industrial machine, where wireless sensor nodes (denoted as tags or nodes) support control applications. This scenario poses very challenging communication requirements: hundreds of tags per cubic meter can provide an overall offered throughput of tens of Gbit/s; at the same time, control applications require a latency of less than 0.1 ms. To fulfill them, this work proposes an Orthogonal Chirp Division Multiple Access (OCDMA) scheme to be used in the TeraHertz (THz) frequency band. With THz communications, even at short distances, propagation delays can be of the same order of magnitude as the packet transmission time. This requires proper consideration of such delays in the protocol design and performance evaluation. This paper mathematically derives network throughput and latency of the proposed protocol, comparing it to benchmarks; two scenarios are considered, where tags are in fixed positions or move. Results show that OCDMA outperforms the two benchmark protocols, Aloha and Polling, for static and crowded networks, and the performance is compatible with the communication requirements of industrial control applications.
Knockdown of sarcolipin (SLN) impairs substrate utilization in human skeletal muscle cells
Authors: Mengeste Abel M. , Katare Parmeshwar , Dalmao Fernandez Andrea , Lund Jenny , Bakke Hege G. , Baker David , Bartesaghi Stefano , Peng Xiao-Rong , Rustan Arild C. , Thoresen G. Hege , Kase Eili Tranheim
Published: April 2022

Background

Recent studies have highlighted that uncoupling of sarco-/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) by sarcolipin (SLN) increases ATP consumption and contributes to heat liberation. Exploiting this thermogenic mechanism in skeletal muscle may provide an attractive strategy to counteract obesity and associated metabolic disorders. In the present study, we have investigated the role of SLN on substrate metabolism in human skeletal muscle cells.

Methods and results

After generation of skeletal muscle cells with stable SLN knockdown (SLN-KD), cell viability, glucose and oleic acid (OA) metabolism, mitochondrial function, as well as gene expressions were determined. Depletion of SLN did not influence cell viability. However, glucose and OA oxidation were diminished in SLN-KD cells compared to control myotubes. Basal respiration measured by respirometry was also observed to be reduced in cells with SLN-KD. The metabolic perturbation in SLN-KD cells was reflected by reduced gene expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC1α) and forkhead box O1 (FOXO1). Furthermore, accumulation of OA was increased in cells with SLN-KD compared to control cells. These effects were accompanied by increased lipid formation and incorporation of OA into complex lipids. Additionally, formation of complex lipids and free fatty acid from de novo lipogenesis with acetate as substrate was enhanced in SLN-KD cells. Detection of lipid droplets using Oil red O staining also showed increased lipid accumulation in SLN-KD cells.

Conclusions

Overall, our study sheds light on the importance of SLN in maintaining metabolic homeostasis in human skeletal muscle. Findings from the current study suggest that therapeutic strategies involving SLN-mediated futile cycling of SERCA might have significant implications in the treatment of obesity and associated metabolic disorders.

Graphical abstract
On the Strategic Timing of Sales by Real Estate Developers: To Wait or To Presell?
Authors: Li L. , Bao Helen X. H. , Chau K. W.
Published: April 2022

In timing property listings, real estate developers can exercise the “option to wait” or “option to presell” to mitigate price uncertainty risk. In this study, we study the effectiveness of both strategies under a unified framework. We test our hypotheses using residential development data from Hong Kong between 1995 and 2015. Empirical evidence shows that when the presale option is unavailable, developers tend to adopt the waiting strategy when facing price uncertainty risk. Conversely, when a presale option is available, developers will accelerate sales when price volatility is high. Moreover, the effectiveness of the presale option depends substantially on government restrictions. Our approach facilitates the identification of the net effect of either tool and provides an opportunity to unify conflicting findings in the literature.
The productivity impact of short-term labor mobility across industries
Authors: Piva Mariacristina , Tani Massimiliano , Vivarelli Marco
Published: April 2022

The restrictions on labor mobility imposed in the COVID-19 pandemic heighten the need to review in detail the role of mobility in improving productivity and fostering economic growth. In this study, we carry out a comprehensive analysis of business visits (BVs) understood as a productivity-enhancing intrapreneurial strategy, using the most extensive set of data available, covering 33 sectors and 14 countries during the period 1998–2013. Our database merges unique information on expenditures on BVs by sector, country, and year, sourced from the US National Business Travel Association, with OECD and World Bank productivity data. We find that BVs raise labor productivity in a significant way, but short-term labor mobility exhibits decreasing returns, being more crucial in those firms, sectors, and countries characterized by less mobility and by lower productivity performances.
Platelet thrombus formation in patients with end-stage renal disease before and after hemodialysis as measured by the total thrombus-formation analysis system
Authors: Mitic Branka P. , Dimitrijevic Zorica M. , Hosokawa Kazuya , Cvetkovic Tatjana P. , Lazarevic Milan V. , Tasic Danijela D. , Jovanovic Andriana , Jancic Nina , Vrecic Tamara , Ågren Anna , Wallen Håkan
Published: April 2022

Background

Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) receiving hemodialysis (HD) often experience bleeding. However, mechanisms behind this bleeding tendency are incompletely understood but may involve platelet dysfunction. We, therefore, studied platelet-dependent thrombus formation in flowing whole blood inside a microchip coated with collagen, and its association with circulating von Willebrand factor (VWF).

Methods

Blood samples were obtained in 22 patients before and after HD. The area under the 10 min flow pressure curve in a microchip (AUC10) reflecting total platelet thrombogenicity was measured, using the Total Thrombus-formation Analysis System (T-TAS01). AUC10 < 260 indicates platelet dysfunction. VWF activity and antigen in plasma were also assayed.

Results

VWF levels were moderately elevated and increased further after HD (P < 0.01 or lower). In contrast, AUC10 before and after HD was < 260 in 17/22 patients and < 130 in 15/22 patients, with no statistically significant difference in pre- vs post-HD measurements, indicating reduced platelet thrombogenicity, but with some variability as 5/22 patients showed normal platelet responsiveness. AUC10 and VWF activity or antigen levels in plasma were not correlated, either before or after HD.

Conclusions

Most ESRD patients display moderate-to-severe platelet dysfunction as assessed by shear-induced platelet-dependent thrombus formation with T-TAS01. HD does not influence platelet function despite HD-induced elevations in VWF. T-TAS01 should be further evaluated as a tool in the assessment of bleeding risk in patients on HD.

Graphical abstract
Effect of exhaustion on dynamic balance of professional padel players
Authors: Bourara A. , Németh Z. , Methnani J. , Wilhelm M.
Published: April 2022

Padel is an intermittent multidirectional racket sport that uses tennis’ rules and its scoring system. The popularity of padel has seen exponential growth; becoming one of the most practiced sports in the world. Balance constitutes a central component of racquet sports competitive demands. The aim of this study was exploring the effect of an exhaustive exercise on dynamic balance in elite padel players. 34 first division padel players with national rankings (age: 31.6 ± 7.9 years, height: 181.1 cm ± 5.26 cm; body mass: 81.1 kg ± 9.95 kg) volunteered for this study. Subjects were first tested for dynamic balance using the Y balance test. Then, they performed a volitional exhaustion test, followed by a dynamic balance retest. A significant main effect of condition for all balance variables was detected (all p < 0.03) except for the postero-lateral distance. A significant main effect of time was only found for the anterior distance (p < 0.001). Significant condition*time interaction was found for all variables (p < 0.02) except for the posterolateral distance. Posthoc analysis of the condition × time interaction indicated that compared to the control condition, exhaustive exercise deteriorated balance as showed by the significant decrease in the composite score (p = 0.05) and in the anterior direction (p < 0.001). This makes us focus on elaborating novel training systems in padel to improve the anterior direction distance after fatigue, being the reason of the decrease of dynamic balance capacity. This will boost the possibilities of scoring during a competitive situation.
Forecasting Intra-individual Changes of Affective States Taking into Account Inter-individual Differences Using Intensive Longitudinal Data from a University Student Dropout Study in Math
Authors: Kelava Augustin , Kilian Pascal , Glaesser Judith , Merk Samuel , Brandt Holger
Published: April 2022

The longitudinal process that leads to university student dropout in STEM subjects can be described by referring to (a) inter-individual differences (e.g., cognitive abilities) as well as (b) intra-individual changes (e.g., affective states), (c) (unobserved) heterogeneity of trajectories, and d) time-dependent variables. Large dynamic latent variable model frameworks for intensive longitudinal data (ILD) have been proposed which are (partially) capable of simultaneously separating the complex data structures (e.g., DLCA; Asparouhov et al. in Struct Equ Model 24:257–269, 2017; DSEM; Asparouhov et al. in Struct Equ Model 25:359–388, 2018; NDLC-SEM, Kelava and Brandt in Struct Equ Model 26:509–528, 2019). From a methodological perspective, forecasting in dynamic frameworks allowing for real-time inferences on latent or observed variables based on ongoing data collection has not been an extensive research topic. From a practical perspective, there has been no empirical study on student dropout in math that integrates ILD, dynamic frameworks, and forecasting of critical states of the individuals allowing for real-time interventions. In this paper, we show how Bayesian forecasting of multivariate intra-individual variables and time-dependent class membership of individuals (affective states) can be performed in these dynamic frameworks using a Forward Filtering Backward Sampling method. To illustrate our approach, we use an empirical example where we apply the proposed forecasting method to ILD from a large university student dropout study in math with multivariate observations collected over 50 measurement occasions from multiple students (<mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content">N=122\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
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Attenuation of toxicity and occurrence of degradation products of the fungicide tebuconazole after combined vacuum UV and UVC treatment of drinking water
Authors: Del Puerto Oihane , Gonçalves Nuno P. F. , Medana Claudio , Prevot Alessandra Bianco , Roslev Peter
Published: April 2022

Antifungal azoles are the most frequently used fungicides worldwide and occur as active ingredients in many antifungal pharmaceuticals, biocides, and pesticides. Azole fungicides are frequent environmental contaminants and can affect the quality of surface waters, groundwater, and drinking water. This study examined the potential of combined vacuum UV (185 nm) and UVC (254 nm) irradiation (VUV/UVC) of the azole fungicide tebuconazole and the transformation product 1,2,4-trizole on degradation and changes in ecotoxicity. In vivo ecotoxicity was examined before and after UV treatment using bioassays with test organisms from different trophic levels to integrate changes in biological effect of the parent compound and the degradation products. The test battery included the luminescent bacterium Aliivibrio fischeri, the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis, the fungus Fusarium graminearum, the green microalga Raphidocelis subcapitata, and the crustacean Daphnia magna. The combined VUV/UVC treatment of tebuconazole in drinking water efficiently degraded the parent compound at the µg/L-mg/L level and resulted in transformation products with lower toxicity than the parent compound. A direct positive correlation was observed between the applied UV dose (fluence, J/cm2), the disappearance of tebuconazole, and the decrease in ecotoxicity. The combined VUV/UVC process does not require addition of supplementary oxidants or catalysts and our study suggests that VUV/UVC-mediated photolysis of azole fungicides in water can decrease the overall toxicity and represent a potentially environmentally friendly treatment method.
Biosorption of Uranium from aqueous solution by green microalga Chlorella sorokiniana
Authors: Embaby Mohamed A. , Haggag El-sayed A. , El-Sheikh Ahemd S. , Marrez Diaa A.
Published: April 2022

Uranium and its compounds are radioactive and toxic, as well as highly polluting and damaging the environment. Novel uranium adsorbents with high biosorption capacity that are both eco-friendly and cost-effective are continuously being researched. The non-living biomass of the fresh water green microalga Chlorella sorokiniana was used to study the biosorption of uranium from aqueous solution. The biosorption of uranium from aqueous solutions onto the biomass of microalga C. sorokiniana was investigated in batch studies. The results showed that the optimal pH for uranium biosorption onto C. sorokiniana was 2.5. Uranium biosorption occurred quickly, with an equilibrium time of 90 min. The kinetics followed a pseudo-second-order rate equation, and the biosorption process fit the Langmuir isotherm model well, with a maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of 188.7 mg/g. The linear plot of the DKR model revealed that the mean free energy E = 14.8 kJ/mol, confirming chemisorption adsorption with ion exchange mode. The morphology of the algal biomass was investigated using a scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The FTIR spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that functional groups (carboxyl, amino, and hydroxyl) on the algal surface could contribute to the uranium biosorption process, which involves ion exchange and uranium absorption, and coordination mechanisms. Thermodynamic simulations indicated that the uranium biosorption process was exothermic (ΔH = −19.5562 kJ/mol) and spontaneous at lower temperatures. The current study revealed that C. sorokiniana non-living biomass could be an efficient, rapid, low-cost, and convenient method of removing uranium from aqueous solution.
Allocation in recycling of composites - the case of life cycle assessment of products from carbon fiber composites
Authors: Hermansson Frida , Ekvall Tomas , Janssen Matty , Svanström Magdalena
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Composites consist of at least two merged materials. Separation of these components for recycling is typically an energy-intensive process with potentially significant impacts on the components’ quality. The purpose of this article is to suggest how allocation for recycling of products manufactured from composites can be handled in life cycle assessment to accommodate for the recycling process and associated quality degradations of the different composite components, as well as to describe the challenges involved.

Method

Three prominent recycling allocation approaches were selected from the literature: the cut-off approach, the end-of-life recycling approach with quality-adjusted substitution, and the circular footprint formula. The allocation approaches were adapted to accommodate for allocation of impacts by conceptualizing the composite material recycling as a separation process with subsequent recycling of the recovered components, allowing for separate modeling of the quality changes in each individual component. The adapted allocation approaches were then applied in a case study assessing the cradle-to-grave climate impact and energy use of a fictitious product made from a composite material that in the end of life is recycled through grinding, pyrolysis, or by means of supercritical water treatment. Finally, the experiences and results from applying the allocation approaches were analyzed with regard to what incentives they provide and what challenges they come with.

Results and discussion

Using the approach of modeling the composite as at least two separate materials rather than one helped to clarify the incentives provided by each allocation approach. When the product is produced using primary materials, the cut-off approach gives no incentive to recycle, and the end-of-life recycling approach and the circular footprint formula give incentives to recycle and recover materials of high quality. Each of the allocation approaches come with inherent challenges, especially when knowledge is limited regarding future systems as in prospective studies. This challenge is most evident for the circular footprint formula, for example, with regard to the supply and demand balance.

Conclusions

We recommend modeling the composite materials in products as separate, individual materials. This proved useful for capturing changes in quality, trade-offs between recovering high quality materials and the environmental impact of the recycling system, and the incentives the different approaches provide. The cut-off and end-of-life approaches can both be used in prospective studies, whereas the circular footprint formula should be avoided as a third approach when no market for secondary material is established.
Deep hashing for global registration of untracked 2D laparoscopic ultrasound to CT
Authors: Ramalhinho João , Koo Bongjin , Montaña-Brown Nina , Saeed Shaheer U. , Bonmati Ester , Gurusamy Kurinchi , Pereira Stephen P. , Davidson Brian , Hu Yipeng , Clarkson Matthew J.
Published: April 2022

Purpose

The registration of Laparoscopic Ultrasound (LUS) to CT can enhance the safety of laparoscopic liver surgery by providing the surgeon with awareness on the relative positioning between critical vessels and a tumour. In an effort to provide a translatable solution for this poorly constrained problem, Content-based Image Retrieval (CBIR) based on vessel information has been suggested as a method for obtaining a global coarse registration without using tracking information. However, the performance of these frameworks is limited by the use of non-generalisable handcrafted vessel features.

Methods

We propose the use of a Deep Hashing (DH) network to directly convert vessel images from both LUS and CT into fixed size hash codes. During training, these codes are learnt from a patient-specific CT scan by supplying the network with triplets of vessel images which include both a registered and a mis-registered pair. Once hash codes have been learnt, they can be used to perform registration with CBIR methods.

Results

We test a CBIR pipeline on 11 sequences of untracked LUS distributed across 5 clinical cases. Compared to a handcrafted feature approach, our model improves the registration success rate significantly from 48% to 61%, considering a 20 mm error as the threshold for a successful coarse registration.

Conclusions

We present the first DH framework for interventional multi-modal registration tasks. The presented approach is easily generalisable to other registration problems, does not require annotated data for training, and may promote the translation of these techniques.
Confronting sustainable intensification with uncertainty and extreme values on smallholder tropical farms
Authors: Knoke Thomas , Gosling Elizabeth , Reith Esther , Gerique Andres , Pohle Perdita , Valle Carrión Liz , Ochoa Moreno Wilman Santiago , Castro Luz Maria , Calvas Baltazar , Hildebrandt Patrick , Döllerer Martin , Bastit Félix , Paul Carola
Published: April 2022

Sustainable intensification of agricultural lands might reconcile the conservation of tropical forest with food production, but in-depth assessments considering uncertainty and extreme values are missing. Uncertainty prohibits mapping probabilities to potential future states or ranking these states in terms of their likelihood. This in turn hampers the assessment of possible decision outcomes. Here, we use simulations to investigate how uncertainty may influence the social acceptability of alternative land-use strategies to halt tropical deforestation (including sustainable intensification), based on indicators representing farmer satisfaction. The results show how extreme values (worst values) for indicators of farmer satisfaction may undermine the adoption of sustainable intensification. We demonstrate that a pure forest conservation strategy leads to lower food production, but outperforms a sustainable intensification strategy that maintains food security. Pure forest conservation performed better, i.e., could secure higher farmer satisfaction, than sustainable intensification across a range of indicator groups. This suggests strong barriers to achieving sustainable intensification. Using agricultural subsidies breaks the dominance of pure forest conservation by enhancing the economic returns of sustainable intensification. We discuss the importance of access to labor and farmers’ preferences for the use of already cleared lands, which achieved the worst values under sustainable intensification and conclude that any assessment of land-use strategies requires careful consideration of uncertainty and extreme values.
The Atlantic divide: contrasting surgical robotics training in the USA, UK and Ireland
Authors: Gall Tamara M. H. , Malhotra Gautam , Elliott Jessie A. , Conneely John B. , Fong Yuman , Jiao Long R.
Published: April 2022

The uptake of robotic surgery is rapidly increasing worldwide across surgical specialties. However, there is currently a much higher use of robotic surgery in the United States of America (USA) compared to the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland. Reduced exposure to robotic surgery in training may lead to longer learning curves and worse patient outcomes. We aimed to identify whether any difference exists in exposure to robotic surgery during general surgical training between trainees in the USA, UK and Ireland. Over a 15-week period from September 2021, a survey was distributed through the professional networks of the research team. Participants were USA, UK or Irish trainees who were part of a formal general surgical training curriculum. 116 survey responses were received. US trainees (n = 34) had all had robotic simulator experience, compared to only 37.93% of UK (n = 58) and 75.00% of Irish (n = 24) trainees (p <  0.00001). 91.18% of US trainees had performed 15 or more cases as the console surgeon, compared to only 3.44% of UK and 16.67% of Irish trainees (p <  0.00001). Fifty UK trainees (86.21%) and 22 Irish trainees (91.67%) compared to 12 US trainees (35.29%) do not think they have had adequate robotics training (p <  0.00001). Surgical trainees in the USA have had significantly more exposure to training in robotic surgery than their UK and Irish counterparts.
Identification of novel genes in Behcet’s disease using integrated bioinformatic analysis
Authors: Chen Si , Li Haolong , Zhan Haoting , Zeng Xiaoli , Yuan Hui , Li Yongzhe
Published: April 2022

Behcet’s disease (BD) is a chronic vascular inflammatory disease. However, the etiology and molecular mechanisms underlying BD development have not been thoroughly understood. Gene expression data for BD were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. We used robust rank aggregation (RRA) to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between patients with BD and healthy controls. Gene ontology functional enrichment was used to investigate the potential functions of the DEGs. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis was performed to identify the hub genes. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were performed to investigate the value of hub genes in the diagnosis of BD. GSE17114 and GSE61399 datasets were included, comprising 32 patients with BD and 26 controls. The RRA integrated analysis identified 44 significant DEGs among the GSE17114 and GSE61399 CD4 + T lymphocytes. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that protein tyrosine/threonine phosphatase activity and immunoglobulin binding were enriched in BD. PPI analysis identified FCGR3B as a hub gene in the CD4 + T lymphocytes of BD patients. Our bioinformatic analysis identified new genetic features, which will enable further understanding of the pathogenesis of BD.
Presenteeism and absenteeism in the manufacturing sector: A multilevel approach identifying underlying factors and relations to health
Authors: Nowak Joshua , Emmermacher Andre , Wendsche Johannes , Döbler Antonia-Sophie , Wegge Jürgen
Published: April 2022

Presenteeism is problematic since it relates to lower health and productivity. Prior research examined many work and attitudinal variables relating to presenteeism at the individual level. Here, we conceptualize presenteeism as multilevel phenomenon also shaped by the overall attendance behavior (absenteeism and presenteeism) at the work unit. We surveyed employees at a manufacturing plant on presenteeism, health-related lost productive time (HLPT) and absenteeism (N = 911, 22 units) and collected preceding (past 12–7 and 6 months) objective absence data aggregating it at unit level. Considering the individual-level antecedents only higher physical demands predicted higher absence duration. Presenteeism related positively to physical demands, a burdensome social environment, and organizational identification and negatively to ease of replacement, and core self-evaluations. These relationships were similar for HLPT as outcome. Regarding unit-level factors, preceding unit-level absence frequency (but not duration) negatively related to presenteeism. The negative relationship between core self-evaluations and individual presenteeism decreased under a stronger presenteeism context supporting the hypothesized cross-level effect of unit-level presenteeism context strength. Moreover, individual and unit-level presenteeism correlated, as expected, more strongly with health complaints than absenteeism. Our study demonstrates the value of a contextual, multilevel approach for understanding antecedents and consequences of attendance behavior.
An ultra-compact polarization-insensitive slot-strip mode converter
Authors: Tao Zihan , Wang Bo , Bai Bowen , Chen Ruixuan , Shu Haowen , Zhang Xuguang , Wang Xingjun
Published: April 2022

Integrated waveguides with slot structures have attracted increasing attention due to their advantages of tight mode confinement and strong light-matter interaction. Although extensively studied, the issue of mode mismatch with other strip waveguide-based optical devices is a huge challenge that prevents integrated waveguides from being widely utilized in large-scale photonic-based circuits. In this paper, we demonstrate an ultra-compact low-loss slot-strip converter with polarization insensitivity based on the multimode interference (MMI) effect. Sleek sinusoidal profiles are adopted to allow for smooth connection between the slot and strip waveguide, resulting reflection reduction. By manipulating the MMI effect with structure optimization, the self-imaging positions of the TE0 and TM0 modes are aligned with minimized footprint, leading to low-loss transmission for both polarizations. The measurement results show that high coupling efficiencies of − 0.40 and − 0.64 dB are achieved for TE0 and TM0 polarizations, respectively. The device has dimensions as small as 1.1 μm × 1.2 μm and composed of factory-available structures. The above characteristics of our proposed compact slot-strip converter makes it a promising device for future deployment in multi-functional integrated photonics systems.

Graphic Abstract
Racial and socioeconomic inequities in breast cancer screening before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: analysis of two cohorts of women 50 years +
Authors: Monsivais Pablo , Amiri Solmaz , Robison Jeanne , Pflugeisen Chaya , Kordas Gordon , Amram Ofer
Published: April 2022

Background

Routine screening mammography at two-year intervals is widely recommended for the prevention and early detection of breast cancer for women who are 50 years + . Racial and other sociodemographic inequities in routine cancer screening are well-documented, but less is known about how these long-standing inequities were impacted by the disruption in health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Early in the pandemic, cancer screening and other prevention services were suspended or delayed, and these disruptions may have had to disproportionate impact on some sociodemographic groups. We tested the hypothesis that inequities in screening mammography widened during the pandemic.

Methods

A secondary analysis of patient data from a large state-wide, non-profit healthcare system in Washington State. Analyses were based on two mutually exclusive cohorts of women 50 years or older. The first cohort (n = 18,197) were those women screened in 2017 who would have been due for repeat screening in 2019 (prior to the pandemic’s onset). The second cohort (n = 16,391) were women screened in 2018 due in 2020. Explanatory variables were obtained from patient records and included race/ethnicity, age, rural or urban residence, and insurance type. Multivariable logistic regression models estimated odds of two-year screening for each cohort separately. Combining both cohorts, interaction models were used to test for differences in inequities before and during the pandemic.

Results

Significant sociodemographic differences in screening were confirmed during the pandemic, but these were similar to those that existed prior. Based on interaction models, women using Medicaid insurance and of Asian race experienced significantly steeper declines in screening than privately insured and white women (Odds ratios [95% CI] of 0.74 [0.58–0.95] and 0.76 [0.59–0.97] for Medicaid and Asian race, respectively). All other sociodemographic inequities in screening during 2020 were not significantly different from those in 2019.

Conclusions

Our findings confirm inequities for screening mammograms during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and provide evidence that these largely reflect the inequities in screening that were present before the pandemic. Policies and interventions to tackle long-standing inequities in use of preventive services may help ensure continuity of care for all, but especially for racial and ethnic minorities and the socioeconomically disadvantaged.
The early Eocene (48 Ma) Qaladeza trondhjemite formed by wet partial remelting of mafic crust in the arc-related Bulfat Igneous Complex (Kurdistan, Iraq): constraints on the timing of Neotethys closure
Authors: Nutman Allen , Ali Sarmad , Mohammad Yousif , Jones Brian G. , Zhang Qing
Published: April 2022

Events in the tectono-magmatic framework of the Eocene Bulfat Igneous Complex in the Kurdistan region of northeastern Iraq are revealed through the integrated field, petrographic, geochemical and zircon petrography and U–Pb geochronology of the Qaladeza trondhjemite sheets that cut gabbros of the complex. The trondhjemite sheets are variably deformed, with the cataclasis of large plagioclase feldspars. The trondhjemites are albitic, and geochemical features such as strong enrichment of the light REE relative to the heavy REE and low Ti and REE content show that they did not form as late differentiates of a MORB-like source, but instead by hydrous partial melting of mafic rocks, possibly also involving some more evolved crustal source as well. Qaladeza trondhjemite oscillatory-zoned magmatic zircon has an age of 48.0 ± 0.6 Ma (95% confidence). These domains have been etched to form voids in the zircons, the walls of which have thin coatings of Th- and Ca-bearing species. Subsequent partial recrystallization of the zircons obliterated the voids and increased the Th/U of the recrystallized zircon, which mostly formed at 38.74 ± 0.74 Ma. The 48 Ma domains relate to recycling of mafic crust in a proto-arc tectonic setting and are congruent with Eocene proto-arc magmatic activity within the Neotethyan oceanic basin. The 39 Ma domains relate to later tectonic-induced recrystallisation events coeval with the closure of Neotethys resulting from the late Eocene collision between the Arabian plate and Eurasia in Kurdistan.
Design and analysis of data link impersonation attack for wired LAN application layer services
Authors: ElShafee Ahmed , El-Shafai Walid
Published: April 2022

Impersonation attack, also known as MAC spoofing, is widespread in wireless local area networks. Under this attack, the senders cannot control the device that listens to their traffic. On the other hand, the physical layer of the wired local area network is more secure, where the traffic is transmitted through cables and network nodes to the intended receivers. Each network node builds its MAC address table, which states stations that are physically connected (directly or indirectly) to each port, so traffic encryption is an unnecessary process. This paper discusses the design and testing of a new attack called a data link impersonation attack. In this attack, the attacker is considered a hardware intruder that deceives data link layer apparatus like the switches of layer two or three, taking advantage of a vulnerability in the MAC address table of the network nodes. That leads the network switches to send all the network traffic to the intruder instead of the real network device (usually a network service provider under attack). Intruder accepts all incoming requests/traffic from the service requester. If the intruder does not reply to the received requests sent by service requesters, it acts as a black hole intruder, simply causing a denial-of-service attack. If an intruder responds to these requests with fake replies to steal information from service requesters, it acts as a white hole intruder. During the attack, the intruder is transparent for the whole network and does not affect overall network performance and generally the network services, so it is so hard to be discovered by the network software running the network apparatus. Different scenarios were tested using different network simulators and physical networks (CISCO L2/L3 switches). It is demonstrated that the attacker is successfully denied the service/application under attack. The proposed attack reveals the new vulnerability of the wired local area network and opens the door for network scientists to enhance network software that runs the network apparatus immune against the proposed attack.
Ultra-minimally invasive surgery in gynecological patients: a review of the literature
Authors: La Verde Marco , Riemma Gaetano , Tropea Alessandro , Biondi Antonio , Cianci Stefano
Published: April 2022

In the last decade, Ultra-minimally invasive surgery (UMIS) including both minilaparoscopic (MH) and percutaneous (PH) endoscopic surgery achieved widespread use around the world. Despite UMIS has been reported as safe and feasible surgical procedure, most of the available data are drawn from retrospective studies, with a limited number of cases and heterogeneous surgical procedures included in the analysis. This literature review aimed to analyze the most methodologically valid studies concerning major gynecological surgeries performed in UMIS. A literature review was performed double blind from January to April 2021. The keywords ‘minilaparoscopy’; ‘ultra minimally invasive surgery’; ‘3 mm’; ‘percutaneous’; and ‘Hysterectomy’ were selected in Pubmed, Medscape, Scopus, and Google scholar search engines. PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines were followed for the drafting of the systematic review. The systematic literature research provided 298 studies, of which 9 fell within the inclusion criteria. Two hundred ninety-six total patients were included, 148 for both PH and MH groups. Median age (48 years), BMI (24 kg/m2), OT (90 min), EBL (50 ml), time to discharge (1 day), self scar evaluation (10/10), and VAS (3/10) were reported. The most frequent intraoperative complication in both the PH and MH groups was surgical bleeding. The UMIS approaches were feasible and safe even for complex gynecological procedures. Operative times and complications were superimposable to the “classical” minimally invasive approaches reported in the literature. The reported results apply only to experienced surgeons.
Uniform approximation by multivariate quasi-projection operators
Authors: Kolomoitsev Yu. , Skopina M.
Published: April 2022

Approximation properties of quasi-projection operators $$Q_j(f,\varphi , \widetilde{\varphi })$$

Q
j

(
f
,
φ
,

φ
~

)

are studied. These operators are associated with a function $$\varphi $$
φ
satisfying the Strang–Fix conditions and a tempered distribution $$\widetilde{\varphi }$$

φ
~

such that compatibility conditions with $$\varphi $$
φ
hold. Error estimates in the uniform norm are obtained for a wide class of quasi-projection operators defined on the space of uniformly continuous functions and on the anisotropic Besov-type spaces. Under additional assumptions on $$\varphi $$
φ
and $$\widetilde{\varphi }$$

φ
~

, two-sided estimates in terms of realizations of the K-functional are also established.
The Grothendieck and Picard groups of finite rank torsion free $$\mathfrak {sl}(2)$$-modules
Authors: Plaza Martín F. J. , Tejero Prieto C.
Published: April 2022

The classification problem for simple $${\mathfrak {sl}(2)}$$

sl
(
2
)

-modules leads in a natural way to the study of the category of finite rank torsion free $${\mathfrak {sl}(2)}$$

sl
(
2
)

-modules and its subcategory of rational $${\mathfrak {sl}(2)}$$

sl
(
2
)

-modules. We prove that the rationalization functor induces an identification between the isomorphism classes of simple modules of these categories. This raises the question of what is the precise relationship between other invariants associated with them. We give a complete solution to this problem for the Grothendieck and Picard groups, obtaining along the way several new results regarding these categories that are interesting in their own right.
Convergence of solutions of a rescaled evolution nonlocal cross-diffusion problem to its local diffusion counterpart
Authors: Galiano Gonzalo , Velasco Julián
Published: April 2022

We prove that, under a suitable rescaling of the integrable kernel defining the nonlocal diffusion terms, the corresponding sequence of solutions of the Shigesada–Kawasaki–Teramoto nonlocal cross-diffusion problem converges to a solution of the usual problem with local diffusion. In particular, the result may be regarded as a new proof of existence of solutions for the local diffusion problem.