bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ethical Publication Standards in Articles Reporting on Novel Surgical Methods: Analysis of Three Pediatric Surgical Journals
Authors: Uecker Marie , Ure Benno M. , Dingemann Jens 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
Introduction According to the Declaration of Helsinki, medical research and new therapeutic interventions involving human subjects require prior informed consent and ethical approval. In 2010, 46% of pediatric surgical publications lacked documentation of ethical approval and 84% lacked documentation of informed parental consent with lowest rates of ethical adherence found in articles concerning novel methods. The aim of this study was to investigate whether adherence to ethical standards has improved in pediatric surgical publications.
Materials and Methods All 3,093 consecutive articles published in Journal of Pediatric Surgery, European Journal of Pediatric Surgery, and Pediatric Surgery International over the last 5 years were systematically reviewed for publications describing novel surgical methods. Novel methods were defined as surgical methods not published before or not considered common practice. The publications were reviewed as to whether ethical approval and informed consent to participate was documented.
Results In total, 105 articles describing novel surgical methods were identified (61 Journal of Pediatric Surgery, 16 European Journal of Pediatric Surgery, and 28 Pediatric Surgery International). Authors reported on new operative techniques (62%), modified techniques (31%), or use of new materials (7%). Ethical approval was documented in 52% of the articles with almost half reporting approval for retrospective data analysis only but not the application of the novel method. Informed consent was documented in 21% of publications. Complications were reported in 48% of the studies, including recurrences and reinterventions for the unsuccessful novel methods. Two authors reported mortalities due to underlying disease, one of which failed to report prior ethical approval or informed consent.
Conclusion Adherence to ethical publication principles in pediatric surgery has improved over the last years but is still lacking in many publications. When implementing new methods, prior ethical approval and informed consent and their documentation are mandatory, specifically in the light of potential hazard to patients.
Application of Machine Learning Techniques for Enuresis Prediction in Children
Authors: Tokar Baran , Baskaya Mukaddes , Celik Ozer , Cemrek Fatih , Acikgoz Ayfer 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
Introduction As a subset of artificial intelligence, machine learning techniques (MLTs) may evaluate very large and raw datasets. In this study, the aim is to establish a model by MLT for the prediction of enuresis in children.
Materials and Methods The study included 8,071 elementary school students. A total of 704 children had enuresis. For analysis of data with MLT, another group including 704 nonenuretic children was structured with stratified sampling. Out of 34 independent variables, 14 with high feature values significantly affecting enuresis were selected. A model of estimation was created by training the data.
Results Fourteen independent variables in order of feature importance value were starting age of toilet training, having urinary urgency, holding maneuvers to prevent voiding, frequency of defecation, history of enuresis in mother and father, having child's own room, parent's education level, history of enuresis in siblings, consanguineous marriage, incomplete bladder emptying, frequent voiding, gender, history of urinary tract infection, and surgery in the past. The best MLT algorithm for the prediction of enuresis was determined as logistic regression algorithm. The total accuracy rate of the model in prediction was 81.3%.
Conclusion MLT might provide a faster and easier evaluation process for studies on enuresis with a large dataset. The model in this study may suggest that selected variables with high feature values could be preferred with priority in any screening studies for enuresis. MLT may prevent clinical errors due to human cognitive biases and may help the physicians to be proactive in diagnosis and treatment of enuresis.
Radiologic Pathologic Correlation of Primary Paratesticular Rhabdomyosarcoma
Authors: Mohan Vignesh Kumar , Ethiraj Dillibabu , Indiran Venkatraman , Pandiaraj Immanuel Judah , Murugan Adarsh , Maduraimuthu Prabakaran 
Published: August 2020

AbstractRhabdomyosarcoma is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in childhood and adolescence, arising from the mesenchymal tissue. It is an intrascrotal tumor localized in the paratesticular structures such as the epididymis or spermatic cord. The majority of this tumor occurs in the first two decades of life. Ultrasound is considered the imaging modality of choice for evaluating an intra-scrotal abnormality. We present a case of a 4-year-old boy with a 2-weeks history of rapidly increasing left scrotal swelling which was clinically diagnosed as hydrocoele. We present the ultrasound, elastography and MRI features of a case of paratesticular embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma with pathologic correlation and also emphasize need to consider sarcoma as a differential diagnosis for rapidly growing scrotal swelling.
COVID-19 and Cold Agglutinin Hemolytic Anemia
Authors: Maslov Diana V. , Simenson Victoria , Jain Suma , Badari Ambuga 
Published: August 2020

AbstractNovel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread throughout the world and has infected close to 4 million people. It commonly presents with fever, cough, and fatigue. Due to the high inflammatory response, it is suggested that the coagulation cascade is enhanced causing thrombotic events for many patients. We describe a patient with clinical features of cerebrovascular accident, as well as documented blood clots in bilateral upper extremities. Labs revealed the presence of cold agglutinin hemolytic anemia. The association between cold agglutinin autoimmune hemolytic anemia and thrombotic events in COVID-19 patients has not been well investigated. The patient unfortunately passed away within 48 hours after admission. This case stresses the importance of considering a full workup to diagnose autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) in COVID-19 patients with thromboses and possible implications for management.
Towards a hermeneutic definition of software
Authors: Possati Luca M. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe paper intends to establish a comprehensive definition of software from a postphenomenological and hermeneutic point of view. It intends to show the contribution of continental philosophy to the study of new technologies. In section “Introduction: why do we need a comprehensive definition of software?,” I underline the need for a philosophical analysis that can highlight the multifaceted and paradoxical nature of software. In section “Engineering in written form: the five criteria,” starting from some remarks on the history of programming languages, I define a list of minimal requirements (five criteria) that something needs to meet to be qualified as software. All these requirements share two essential features: the written form and the effectiveness, that is, the need to be executed by a physical machine. In section “Software as text: a hermeneutic model,” I focus on software as form of writing. I develop this idea by using Ricoeur’s hermeneutic model. I claim that software is a type of text. In section “The grammatology of microprocessor,” I focus on the second aforementioned feature: the effectiveness of software. I claim that this effectiveness is based on the analogy between electric circuitries and Boolean logic. Software is a writing and re-writing process that implies an interpretation on two levels, epistemological and ontological.
LIN28B/
let-7
control the ability of neonatal murine auditory supporting cells to generate hair cells through mTOR signaling
Authors: Li Xiao-Jun , Doetzlhofer Angelika 
Published: August 2020

Significance
Cochlear hair cell loss is a leading cause of deafness in humans and other mammals. In the immature cochlea, lost hair cells are regenerated by neighboring glia-like supporting cells. However, for reasons unknown, such regenerative capacity is rapidly lost as supporting cells undergo maturation. Here we identify a direct link between LIN28B, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activity, and supporting cell plasticity. Mimicking later developmental stages, we found that loss of the RNA binding protein LIN28B attenuated mTOR signaling and rendered young, immature supporting cells incapable of producing hair cells. Conversely, we found that reexpression of LIN28B reinstated the ability of maturing supporting cells to revert to a progenitor-like state and generate hair cells via activation of mTOR signaling.
Estimating unobserved SARS-CoV-2 infections in the United States
Authors: Perkins T. Alex , Cavany Sean M. , Moore Sean M. , Oidtman Rachel J. , Lerch Anita , Poterek Marya 
Published: August 2020

Significance
In early 2020, delays in availability of diagnostic testing for COVID-19 prompted questions about the extent of unobserved community transmission in the United States. We quantified unobserved infections in the United States during this time using a stochastic transmission model. Although precision of our estimates is limited, we conclude that many more thousands of people were infected than were reported as cases by the time a national emergency was declared and that fewer than 10% of locally acquired, symptomatic infections in the United States may have been detected over a period of a month. This gap in surveillance during a critical phase of the epidemic resulted in a large, unobserved reservoir of infection in the United States by early March.
The paradoxical lean phenotype of hypothyroid mice is marked by increased adaptive thermogenesis in the skeletal muscle
Authors: Kaspari Rachel R. , Reyna-Neyra Andrea , Jung Lara , Torres-Manzo Alejandra Paola , Hirabara Sandro M. , Carrasco Nancy 
Published: August 2020

Significance
The rate of obesity is steadily increasing in the United States and around the world, which is a major health concern, as weight gain is strongly associated with many leading causes of death. Although recent findings have deepened our understanding of the mechanisms underlying obesity, there is still a lack of therapeutic targets for inducing weight loss. We have found that a drug-free mouse model of hypothyroidism is paradoxically leaner than euthyroid controls. Here, we show that hypothyroid mice consume less food and display strikingly higher levels of skeletal-muscle adaptive thermogenesis. Our findings yield insights into the physiological adaptations that occur in hypothyroidism and may eventually help bring to light new targets for promoting weight loss.
Broad host range of SARS-CoV-2 predicted by comparative and structural analysis of ACE2 in vertebrates
Authors: Damas Joana , Hughes Graham M. , Keough Kathleen C. , Painter Corrie A. , Persky Nicole S. , Corbo Marco , Hiller Michael , Koepfli Klaus-Peter , Pfenning Andreas R. , Zhao Huabin , Genereux Diane P. , Swofford Ross , Pollard Katherine S. , Ryder Oliver A. , Nweeia Martin T. , Lindblad-Toh Kerstin , Teeling Emma C. , Karlsson Elinor K. , Lewin Harris A. 
Published: August 2020

Significance
The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of COVID-19, a major pandemic that threatens millions of human lives and the global economy. We identified a large number of mammals that can potentially be infected by SARS-CoV-2 via their ACE2 proteins. This can assist the identification of intermediate hosts for SARS-CoV-2 and hence reduce the opportunity for a future outbreak of COVID-19. Among the species we found with the highest risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection are wildlife and endangered species. These species represent an opportunity for spillover of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to other susceptible animals. Given the limited infectivity data for the species studied, we urge caution not to overinterpret the predictions of the present study.
An experimental study of the effect of close reading versus casual reading of social drama on the stimulation of the cognitive capacity of empathy
Authors: Karam Khaled Mostafa , Elfiel Helmy 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe current study investigates whether the mode of reading practice has an effect on the degree of readers’ empathic response to social drama, using Enda Walsh’sChatroom(2015), tackling contemporary adolescents’ problems, as an experimental example. The experiment conducted in this paper hypothesizes that in contrast with casual reading, the conscious techniques of close reading are more effective in promoting participants’ empathic engagement with the dramatic text and improving their capacity of problem discovery and solution. Accordingly, the close reading of social drama can reinforce social integration and work as an antidote to the ostracism of one social group from their community. Moreover, the L2 students’ stimulated empathic response is translated into a written output which is richer in quantity and quality.
A scoping review of published literature on mathematical modelling for chikungunya.
Authors: Berthiaume Philippe , Côté Jean-Charles , Mascarenhas Mariola 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
Chikungunya is a disease caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV), a mosquito-borne alphavirus that is emerging and re-emerging in different parts of the world. Urban expansion, globalization, increase in human travel and tourism are some of the factors increasing the risk of importation of the disease in new areas. Furthermore, climate change is modifying the environmental suitability for the establishment of CHIKV vectors and can add to the risk for the autochthonous transmission of chikungunya in many geographical areas. In a recent scoping review (ScR), the literature published on chikungunya until January 2017 was broadly categorized according to different research areas. The results presented here focus exclusively on the 103 articles categorized under mathematical modelling. All 103 articles were revisited and further reclassified into four non-exclusive categories based on their methodology - disease transmission modelling, mathematical equations used to perform risk assessment, vector mapping and burden of disease assessment. A new data characterization form was devised, which included specific sets of questions tailored to each category. Extracted data were analysed and our results show that over the last 20 years, there has been a significant increase in the number of publications on chikungunya transmission modelling, or using mathematical equations to perform risk assessment, vector mapping and burden of disease assessment. A total of 76 articles have contributed information on disease transmission modelling, 37 on risk assessment, 20 on vector mapping and eight on burden of disease. Data including the specific purpose of the models, methods used, geographical areas targeted and main results from each article were identified and collated.
Characterization of systematic error in Advanced LIGO calibration
Authors: Sun Ling , Goetz Evan , Kissel Jeffrey S , Betzwieser Joseph , Karki Sudarshan , Viets Aaron , Wade Madeline , Bhattacharjee Dripta , Bossilkov Vladimir , Covas Pep B , Datrier Laurence E H , Gray Rachel , Kandhasamy Shivaraj , Lecoeuche Yannick K , Mendell Gregory , Mistry Timesh , Payne Ethan , Savage Richard L , Weinstein Alan J , Aston Stuart , Buikema Aaron , Cahillane Craig , Driggers Jenne C , Dwyer Sheila E , Kumar Rahul , Urban Alexander 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
The raw outputs of the detectors within the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory need to be calibrated in order to produce the estimate of the dimensionless strain used for astrophysical analyses. The two detectors have been upgraded since the second observing run and finished the year-long third observing run. Understanding, accounting, and/or compensating for the complex-valued response of each part of the upgraded detectors improves the overall accuracy of the estimated detector response to gravitational waves. We describe improved understanding and methods used to quantify the response of each detector, with a dedicated effort to define all places where systematic error plays a role. We use the detectors as they stand in the first half (six months) of the third observing run to demonstrate how each identified systematic error impacts the estimated strain and constrain the statistical uncertainty therein. For this time period, we estimate the upper limit on systematic error and associated uncertainty to be <7% in magnitude and <4 deg in phase (68% confidence interval) in the most sensitive frequency band 20–2000 Hz. The systematic error alone is estimated at levels of <2% in magnitude and <2 deg in phase.
Singularity resolution depends on the clock
Authors: Gielen Steffen , Menéndez-Pidal Lucía 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
We study the quantum cosmology of a flat Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker Universe filled with a (free) massless scalar field and a perfect fluid that represents radiation or a cosmological constant whose value is not fixed by the action, as in unimodular gravity. We study two versions of the quantum theory: the first is based on a time coordinate conjugate to the radiation/dark energy matter component, i.e., conformal time (for radiation) or unimodular time. As shown by Gryb and Thébault, this quantum theory achieves a type of singularity resolution; we illustrate this and other properties of this theory. The theory is then contrasted with a second type of quantisation in which the logarithm of the scale factor serves as time, which has been studied in the context of the ‘perfect bounce’ for quantum cosmology. Unlike the first quantum theory, the second one contains semiclassical states that follow classical trajectories and evolve into the singularity without obstruction, thus showing no singularity resolution. We discuss how a complex scale factor best describes the semiclassical dynamics. This cosmological model serves as an illustration of the problem of time in quantum cosmology.
Solitary choanoflagellate dynamics and microconfined directed transport
Authors: Sparacino Javier , Miño Gastón L , Banchio Adolfo J , Marconi V I 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
In evolutionary biology, choanoflagellates are broadly investigated as the closest animal ancestors. Under suitable environmental cues, choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta can differentiate into two types of solitary motile cells. Each group is recognized by its own strategy to swim and its morphology. Moreover, under nutrient limited conditions, S. rosetta experience a haploid-to-diploid transition evidenced by the presence of gametes. It is challenging to determine if there is a connection between the two types of swimming strategies and the male and female gametes. Therefore a current interest is to isolate and concentrate the fast swimming cells, for instance, using a microfluidic device. Following this aim we measured their body sizes and characterized their motilities. We determined that fast cells swim remarkably different from slow cells and proposed a phenomenological model to reproduce the observed dynamics. We solved the Langevin dynamical equations of motion using experimental parameters for choanoflagellates swimming in a confined flat microdevice divided by a wall of asymmetric obstacles. A systematic study of the directed transport efficiency was performed in order to optimize the geometry of the obstacles wall. Numerical results showed that fast choanoflagellates can be directed efficiently for a wide range of geometric parameters of the obstacles wall while slow cells are hardly directed independently of its geometry. The clear differences found in the rectification of fast and slow choanoflagellates suggest that an efficient micro-sorter device could be designed for further applications in evolutionary biology.
Zones optimized multilevel diffractive lens for polarization-insensitive light focusing
Authors: Yildirim Bumin K , Bor Emre , Kurt Hamza , Turduev Mirbek 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
In this study, we present the numerical design and experimental demonstration of an all-dielectric low refractive index polarization-insensitive multilevel diffractive lens (MDL) at microwave frequencies. The proposed MDL structure is composed of concentric rings (zones) having different widths and heights. Here, the heights and widths of each dielectric concentric rings of lens structure are optimized by using the differential evolution (DE) algorithm to obtain the desired polarization-insensitive focusing performance. The DE method is incorporated with the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method to design an MDL structure and evaluate its wave focusing ability. The design frequency is fixed to 10 GHz and, at the design frequency, the DE method is applied to achieve light focusing with the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) values of 0.654λ and 0.731λ for transverse-magnetic (TM) and transverse-electric (TE) polarizations, respectively, where λ is the wavelength of incident light in free space. Moreover, focusing efficiencies and numerical apertures are calculated as 60.3% and 0.853 at the design frequency, respectively, for both polarizations. Besides, experimental verifications of the numerical results are carried out in microwave regime where the MDL design is fabricated by 3D printing technology by using a polylactic acid material. In the microwave experiments, MDL focuses the TM and TE polarized waves at the focal distances of 71.82 mm and 69.3 mm with the FWHM values of 0.701λ and 0.887λ, respectively. We believe that the proposed design approach can be further expanded to design low refractive index lenses for visible and near-infrared wavelengths.
Strongly trapping soluble lithium polysulfides using polar cysteamine groups for highly stable lithium sulfur batteries
Authors: Shen Xiaowei , Xu Na , Liu Xuejun , Liu Jie , Qian Tao , Yan Chenglin 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
Sulfur has become one of the most promising positive electrode materials for lithium sulfur batteries due to its high theoretical capacity and high energy density (2500 Wh kg−1). The use of common nonpolar carbon/sulfur composites has proved to be a good way to improve the performance, but they still cannot efficiently trap highly polar lithium polysulfides due to the weak interactions between nonpolar carbon and polar polysulfides. Herein, we report a new strategy of using polar cysteamine groups to trap polar polysulfides, leading to greatly enhanced capacity of ∼920 mAh g−1 at 1 C with a high Coulombic efficiency of ∼99.1%, and a long cycle life of over 600 cycles with a capacity retention higher than 80%. Importantly, in situ UV/Vis spectroscopy was employed to identify intermediates during cycling, which demonstrates the constructed unique polar cysteamine functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can greatly reduce the production of polysulfides and suppress the shuttle effect. The broken-bond model of linear polysulfane during cycling was further demonstrated by density functional theory calculations. The present strategy of using polar cysteamine-functionalized CNTs to trap soluble intermediates is promising and has significant potential for the development of highly efficient lithium sulfur batteries.