bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Optimization using central composite design (CCD) of response surface methodology (RSM) for biosorption of hexavalent chromium from aqueous media
Authors: Bayuo Jonas , Abukari Moses Abdullai , Pelig-Ba Kenneth Bayetimani 
Published: May 2020

AbstractIn this study, unmodified biosorbent was obtained fromArachis hypogeahusk and applied to remove hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] from aqueous media through batch technique. The independent variables (contact time, pH of the solution and initial Cr(VI) concentration) influencing the adsorption process were optimized by central composite design (CCD) found in response surface methodology of the Design-Expert software 12.0.0 at a fixed temperature of 30 ± 0.5 °C. Furthermore, equilibrium sorption isotherms and kinetics studies were also investigated. The ANOVA component of the CCD indicated that all the process independent variables investigated had significant impacts on the sorption capacity of Cr(VI) byArachis hypogeahusk. The obtained experimental data showed that at the optimized 120 min contact time, 8.0 pH of the aqueous solution and 50 mg/L initial Cr(VI) concentration resulted in an optimum adsorption capacity of 2.355 mg/g. Equilibrium sorption isotherm and kinetic studies showed that Redlich–Peterson adsorption isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models fitted well to the equilibrium data. The unmodified adsorbent fromArachis hypogeahusk was found to be efficient for Cr(VI) decontamination from the aqueous media.
Evaluation of diffuse fraction and diffusion coefficient using statistical analysis
Authors: Salhi Hicham , Belkhiri Lazhar , Tiri Ammar 
Published: May 2020

AbstractIn this study, eighty models are proposed in order to estimate the diffuse fraction and diffuse coefficient. For the proposed models, sunshine ratio and clearness index are considered as predictors. Monthly average global and diffuse solar radiation together with sunshine duration data of Tamanrasset station form 1995 to 2017 were analyzed. The different proposed models are compared and statistically analyzed to assess the performance of the best fitted model. Nine statistical indicators and Global Performance Indicator are computed to evaluate different proposed models. It is concluded that the cubic model with sunshine ratio and clearness index is selected as the best accurate model to estimate diffuse solar radiation on a horizontal surface in the study area.
Öffentlich-private Partnerschaften und kommunale Verschuldung
Authors: Wigger Berthold U. , Zimmermann Dominik H. 
Published: May 2020

ZusammenfassungDer vorliegende Beitrag untersucht, ob es einen Zusammenhang gibt zwischen der Verschuldung einer Kommune und ihrer Neigung, Infrastrukturprojekte in Form von Öffentlich-privaten Partnerschaften zu realisieren. Ähnlich wie Kredite verschieben Öffentlich-private Partnerschaften (ÖPP) Zahlungsverpflichtungen der öffentlichen Hand in die Zukunft. Gelegentlich wird deshalb argumentiert, dass Gebietskörperschaften ÖPP dazu missbrauchen, das tatsächliche Ausmaß öffentlicher Verschuldung zu verschleiern. Kommunen, die das Verschuldungsinstrument bereits intensiv genutzt haben, sollten dann eine höhere ÖPP-Neigung aufweisen. Der vorliegende Beitrag findet dafür keine belastbare Evidenz. Mit Hilfe von Daten des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen findet der Beitrag zwar, dass Kommunen mit ÖPP auch eine höhere Verschuldung aufweisen. In einer ökonometrischen Analyse entpuppt sich der Effekt der Verschuldung auf die Anzahl von ÖPP aber als insignifikant und zudem quantitativ unbedeutend.
»Jedesmaligkeit«
Authors: Axer Eva 
Published: May 2020

ZusammenfassungIn seinem Buch Einfache Formen (1930) entwickelt André Jolles in Auseinandersetzung mit Goethes Naturkunde die Vorstellung einer besonderen Zeitlichkeit der von ihm so genannten »Einfachen Formen«, die er als »Jedesmaligkeit« bezeichnet. Jolles greift damit den morphologischen Gedanken einer Vielgestaltigkeit von Form vor dem Hintergrund der sprachwissenschaftlichen Debatten seines politisierten akademischen Umfelds in Leipzig auf, das den Saussure’schen Systemgedanken der Sprache unter Rückbezug auf Wilhelm von Humboldt holistisch umdeuten wollte. Der Aufsatz verortet Jolles’ Überlegungen in der formorientierten Literatur- und Kulturtheorie der Zeit. Anhand seiner Zeitbegriffe und seines Formkonzepts wird gezeigt, wie er die zeitgenössischen Ideen der Ganzheit und der Verzeitlichung von Form im Ausgang morphologischer Fragen auf eigenwillige Weise interpretierte.
Acquired methemoglobinemia presenting to the pediatric emergency department: a clinical challenge
Authors: Friedman Nir , Scolnik Dennis , McMurray Lindsey , Bryan Jennifer 
Published: May 2020

ABSTRACTObjectivesAcquired methemoglobinemia (MetHb) is an uncommon presentation of cyanosis in the pediatric emergency department (ED), making its diagnosis and management a clinical challenge. Through this case series we hope to improve clinician ability to recognize the potential for MetHb in pediatric ED patients and to avoid overlooking this important cause of cyanosis.MethodsThis was a case series using a health records review, investigating patients diagnosed with MetHb at our pediatric ED during 2007–2018. We included only cases with methemoglobin saturation ≥5%.ResultsTen patients were diagnosed with MetHb in our pediatric ED during the study period. Five had an underlying hematologic disease who received a pharmacologic trigger known to induce MetHb as well (four dapsone, one rasburicase). The other five patients were previously healthy, who presented with a clinical picture of hemolytic anemia, all of whom were diagnosed with previously unknown glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. Two of the patients received methylene blue, and five patients needed packed red blood cells. All of the patients survived the acute MetHb episode.ConclusionAcquired MetHb in the pediatric ED is a rare but important cause of cyanosis. Diagnosis and management of acute, acquired MetHb in the ED requires a high level of suspicion, and a background knowledge of the common precipitants and underlying conditions associated with this condition. We hope this case series will help ED physicians to consider MetHb in pediatric patients presenting with cyanosis and persistent hypoxia. Exposure to known precipitants (e.g., medications and foods), particularly in the setting of active treatment for malignancy or with symptoms of hemolytic anemia should further increase suspicion.
CTSA recruitment resources: An inventory of what CTSA hubs are currently offering
Authors: Niyibizi Nyiramugisha , McIntosh Scott , Hudson Brenda Lee , Sipocz Ashley , Paku Emily , Dykes Carrie 
Published: May 2020

AbstractIntroduction:In order to tackle the challenge of efficiently meeting clinical research accrual goals, many Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) recipients have developed recruitment support mechanisms and resources to help investigators successfully recruit study participants. Disseminating recruitment best practices and developing collaborations between institutions can help strengthen recruitment capabilities and methodologies currently utilized by researchers.Methods:To discover what recruitment resources and mechanisms CTSAs are using, the CTSA Recruitment and Retention working group developed an electronic survey, which was distributed to CTSAs between May and July 2019. The survey contained over 50 multiple choice and short answer questions, with 40 of the 64 CTSA institutions completing the survey. Institutions reported on registries, feasibility assessment tools, clinical trial listings, experience recruiting special populations, program operations and evaluation, workforce education, social media use, and other recruitment resources.Results:All respondents currently utilize some form of a volunteer registry; over 80% of the CTSAs provide investigators with recruitment consultations, feasibility assessments, study listings, and electronic health record (EHR) utilization; 73% assist with study materials; 47% offer social media assistance. Many institutions reported success in recruiting patients and healthy volunteers, but difficulty in recruiting special populations such as non-English-speaking persons and rural populations. Additional recruitment tools included use of the EHR to facilitate recruitment, use of registries, and use of social media to engage participants.Conclusions:Areas of opportunity or growth include the development of innovative solutions in the areas of social media advertising, identification of participants from special populations, and research volunteer engagement.
Governance through Documents: The Board of Trade, Its Archive, and the Imperial Constitution of the Eighteenth-Century British Atlantic World
Authors: Siddique Asheesh Kapur 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis article examines the role of documents, their circulation, and their archivization in the enactment of the imperial constitution of the British Empire in the Atlantic world during the long eighteenth century. It focuses on the Board of Trade's dispatch of “Instructions” and “Queries” to governors in the American colonies, arguing that it was through the circulation of these documents and the use of archives that the board sought to enforce constitutional norms of bureaucratic conduct and the authority of central institutions of imperial administration. In the absence of a singular, codified written constitution, the British state relied upon a variety of different kinds of documents to forge the imperial Atlantic into a governed space. The article concludes by pointing to the continuing centrality of documents and archives to the bureaucratic manifestation of the imperial constitution in the immediate aftermath of the American Revolution.
England's Immigrants, 1330–1550: Aliens in Later Medieval and Early Tudor England
Authors: Ormrod W. Mark 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis article, a revised and annotated version of a plenary lecture given at the North American Conference on British Studies meeting in October 2018, considers the place and significance of aliens in England's history between the expulsion of the Jews in 1290 and the arrival of the French and Dutch Protestants from the 1540s onward. It draws extensively on a new database of immigrants to England between 1330 and 1550, which itself relies principally on the remarkable records generated by a tax on aliens resident in England, collected at various points between 1440 and 1487. Aliens emerge as a significant element in English society—sometimes chastised, sometimes subject to violence and other abuse, but also recognized clearly for their contribution to the economy. If immigrants were sometimes seen as a potentially disruptive presence, they were also understood to be a natural and permanent part of the social order.
“The People Who Write to Us Are the People Who Don't Like Us”: Class, Gender, and Citizenship in the Survey of Sickness, 1943–1952
Authors: Payling Daisy 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe Second World War and the rise of social medicine in 1940s Britain reframed population health as a social problem in need of state investigation. The resulting government inquiry, the Survey of Sickness, sampled the whole adult population of England and Wales, engaging a broad and diverse cross-section in public health research for the first time. Complaints made against the Survey of Sickness reveal a complex set of relationships between different sections of the public and the British state. This article situates complaints about privacy, liberty, and wasted resources, as well as challenges to the authority of survey fieldworkers, in the context of wider resistance to postwar controls. By viewing these protests and criticisms in light of the material circumstances of the people who made them, this article argues that, for those with social, economic, and political capital, the role of the public in public health was up for negotiation in postwar Britain. The everyday politics of the survey's doorstep encounters were heavily influenced by gendered notions of home and citizenship. This exploration of how different sections of the public were constructed by public health and how they responded to that construction describes the hierarchies of expertise under formation while illuminating how class and gender informed contemporary understandings of citizenship in the emerging postwar British state.
British Humanitarian Political Economy and Famine in India, 1838–1842
Authors: Major Andrea 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis article explores the nature and limitations of humanitarian political economy by discussing metropolitan British responses to a major famine that took place in the Agra region of north-central India in 1837–38. This disaster played a significant role in catalyzing wider debates about the impact of East India Company governance and the place of the subcontinent within the post-emancipation British Empire. By comparing the responses of organization such as the Aborigines Protection Society and British India Society to that of proponents of the newly emergent indenture system, the paper seeks to contextualize responses to the famine in terms both of longer histories of famine in South Asia and of the specific imperial circumstances of the late 1830s. In doing so, it explores how ideas of agricultural distress in India fed into competing strategies to utilize Indian labor in the service of colonial commodity production both within India and around the empire.
The Talking Dead: Everyday Muslim Practice in Russia
Authors: Schmoller Jesko 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis article focusses on the issue of “traditional Islam” in Russia and the practices associated with it. Employing an approach that combines the concepts of lived religion and everyday nationalism, those practices are taken into consideration that are often interpreted in terms of vernacular Islam and regarded skeptically, if not outright rejected, by proponents of a more global Islam. Discussed in detail are commemoration ceremonies for the dead, prayers in the cemetery, saint veneration and local pilgrimage, themawlidcelebration and the use of prayer beads. These practices indicate an outlook on life, where Muslim believers cultivate a close connection to their environment and maintain personal relations to various human and more-than-human beings, thus creating the space for an exchange crossing the boundary between life and death. The article contributes to the anthropological study of Islam in Russia and—by focusing on religious practice—specifically attempts to capture the main characteristics of “traditional Islam.”
‘Scientific Strabismus’ or two related pandemics: coronavirus disease and vitamin D deficiency
Authors: Kara Murat , Ekiz Timur , Ricci Vincenzo , Kara Özgür , Chang Ke-Vin , Özçakar Levent 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe WHO has announced the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak to be a global pandemic. The distribution of community outbreaks shows seasonal patterns along certain latitude, temperature and humidity, that is, similar to the behaviour of seasonal viral respiratory tract infections. COVID-19 displays significant spread in northern mid-latitude countries with an average temperature of 5–11°C and low humidity. Vitamin D deficiency has also been described as pandemic, especially in Europe. Regardless of age, ethnicity and latitude, recent data showed that 40 % of Europeans are vitamin D deficient (25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels <50 nmol/l), and 13 % are severely deficient (25(OH)D < 30 nmol/l). A quadratic relationship was found between the prevalences of vitamin D deficiency in most commonly affected countries by COVID-19 and the latitudes. Vitamin D deficiency is more common in the subtropical and mid-latitude countries than the tropical and high-latitude countries. The most commonly affected countries with severe vitamin D deficiency are from the subtropical (Saudi Arabia 46 %; Qatar 46 %; Iran 33·4 %; Chile 26·4 %) and mid-latitude (France 27·3 %; Portugal 21·2 %; Austria 19·3 %) regions. Severe vitamin D deficiency was found to be nearly 0 % in some high-latitude countries (e.g. Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Netherlands). Accordingly, we would like to call attention to the possible association between severe vitamin D deficiency and mortality pertaining to COVID-19. Given its rare side effects and relatively wide safety, prophylactic vitamin D supplementation and/or food fortification might reasonably serve as a very convenient adjuvant therapy for these two worldwide public health problems alike.
Asset Variance Risk Premium and Capital Structure
Authors: Lotfaliei Babak 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis article investigates how the asset-return variance risk premium changes leverage. I find that the premium reduces leverage by increasing risk-neutral bankruptcy probability and costs in a model where asset returns have stochastic variance with the risk premium. Empirically, the model calibrations verify a significant reduction in optimal leverage, closer to observed leverage than the model without the premium. In model-free regressions, I document that leverage correlates negatively with the variance premium. The highest negative correlation is among investment-grade firms with low asset beta and historical variance but high variance premiums because their assets have high exposure to the market’s variance premium.
Architecture and Cellular Composition of the Spleen in the Japanese Quail (Coturnix japonica)
Authors: Mustafa Fatma El-Zahraa A. , El-Desoky Sara M.M. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe spleen is considered a key player in birds’ immunity. The stroma and the parenchyma of the spleen of the adult quail were demonstrated histologically, histochemically, and ultrastructurally. A thin capsule and the absence of trabeculae were the most characteristics of spleen stroma. The demarcation between white pulp and red pulp was not observed in the quail. White pulp formed from the periarterial lymphatic sheath and the periellipsoidal lymphatic sheath, both of which were surrounded by arteriole and ellipsoid, respectively. Ellipsoids appeared more numerous and were characterized by cuboidal lining of the epithelium and supporting cells. Red pulp consisted of sinuses and cords. White pulp and red pulp of the quail spleen contained various cells, such as red blood cells, macrophages, heterophils with characteristic granules, lymphocytes of different sizes, dendritic cells, plasma cells, and telocytes. In addition, closed circulation and open circulation established the blood flow on the spleen.
Enhancing benefits of bolus use through minimising the effect of air-gaps on dose distribution in photon beam radiotherapy
Authors: Bahhous Karim , Zerfaoui Mustapha , Rahmouni Abdelaali , El Khayati Naima 
Published: May 2020

AbstractIntroduction:Bolus material is frequently used on patient’s skin during radiation therapy to reduce or remove build-up effect for high-energy beams. However, the air-gaps formed between the bolus and the skin’s irregular surface reduce the accuracy of treatment planning. To achieve a good treatment outcome using bolus, experimental investigations are required to choose its thickness and to quantify the air-gap effect.Material and methods:Measurements for a 6 MV photon beam with a fixed source surface distance were carried out using the 31021 Semiflex 3D chamber into the water phantom. Firstly, the depth of maximum dose (R100) and the dose value at surface (Ds) were evaluated as a function of bolus thickness for some square fields. Secondly, to test the effect of the air-gaps ranged from 5 to 30 mm with a step of 5 mm between the bolus and the phantom surface, a water-equivalent RW3 (Goettingen White Water) slab form of 10 mm thickness was considered as a bolus.Results:We observed that the linear behaviour of R100 in terms of the bolus thickness makes the choice of this parameter more convenient depending on field size. In addition, increasing the air-gaps widens the penumbra and created electrons that have a greater probability to quit the radiation field borders before reaching the surface. The dose spread of the off-field area could have a significant influence on the patient treatment.Conclusion:Based on dose distribution comparisons between the measurements with and without air-gaps for the field size of 100 mm × 100 mm, it has been demonstrated that a maximum air-gap value lower than 5 mm would be desirable for an efficient use of the bolus technique.
Impact of Fluidized Granular Flows into Water: Implications for Tsunamis Generated by Pyroclastic Flows
Authors: Bougouin A. , Paris R. , Roche O. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractNovel laboratory experiments of fluidized granular flows entering water are reported, for the purpose of investigating tsunamis generated by pyroclastic flows. Qualitatively, the impact of a fluidized granular flow into water leads to (i) an initial vertical granular jet over water, (ii) a leading and largest wave, and (iii) a turbulent mixing zone forming a turbidity current. The present study focuses on the leading wave features in the near‐field region, as a function of the mass flux per width qm and the volume per width υ of the flow, the maximum water depth Ho, and the slope angle θ of the inclined plane. The obtained waves are of Stokes and cnoidal types, for which the generation is mostly controlled by qm and υ. By contrast, Ho plays no role on the wave generation that occurs in the shallowest region. Moreover, a comparison between fluidized granular, dry (nonfluidized) granular, and water flows entering water is addressed under similar flow conditions. The dimensionless amplitude scales as A/Ho=f(ζ), where
is a dimensionless parameter depending on the Froude number Fr, the relative slide thickness S, the relative mass M, and the slope angle θ. Data of fine fluidized granular, fine dry granular, and water flows collapse on a master curve, which implies that the nature of the flowing material is of lesser importance in the current setup. By contrast, coarse granular flows generate lower amplitude waves, which is attributed to the penetration of water into the porous granular medium.
Coupled Ocean‐Atmosphere Modeling Over the Maritime Continent: A Review
Authors: Xue Pengfei , Malanotte‐Rizzoli Paola , Wei Jun , Eltahir Elfatih A. B. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe Maritime Continent (MC) plays a vitally important role in the Earth's climate system from both oceanic and atmospheric perspectives. While the critical role of ocean‐atmosphere coupled dynamics over the MC has long been recognized, development of two‐way coupled regional climate models for this region is still in its early stages. In this work, the authors review recent progress in two‐way coupled ocean‐atmosphere regional climate modeling. Development of coupled models and their applications in the MC are summarized. Model performances are discussed with a focus on regional oceanic and atmospheric characteristics. Through a critical review of modeling advances and limitations in simulating sea surface temperature, precipitation, and oceanic throughflows, the authors identify deficiencies of current models and discuss possible reasons. The review shows that model biases mainly stem from unresolved physical processes, inadequate model representations of the coupled system, and uncertainties in model configurations. The study reveals large‐scale coupled modes of variability, local air‐sea interactions, atmospheric dynamics, and oceanic processes play various roles in the observed modeling biases. Lastly, the authors offer suggestions on emerging opportunities for improving regional coupled modeling over the MC.