bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Under-Five Child Growth and Nutrition Status: Spatial Clustering of Indian Districts
Authors: Striessnig Erich , Bora Jayanta Kumar 
Published: March 2020

AbstractVariation in human growth and the genetic and environmental factors that are influencing it have been described worldwide. The objective of this study is to assess the geographical variance of under-five nutritional status and its related covariates across Indian districts. We use the most recent fourth round of the Indian National Family Health Survey conducted in 2015–2016, which for the first time offers district level information. We employ principal component analysis (PCA) on the demographic and socio-economic determinants of childhood morbidity and conduct hierarchical clustering analysis to identify geographical patterns in nutritional status at the district level. Our results reveal strong geographical clustering among the districts of India, often crossing state borders. Throughout most of Southern India, children are provided with relatively better conditions for growth and improved nutritional status, as compared to districts in the central, particularly rural parts of India along the so called “tribal belt”. Here is also where girls are on average measured to have less weight and height compared to boys. Looking at average weight, as well as the proportion of children that suffer from underweight and wasting, north-eastern Indian districts offer living conditions more conducive to healthy child development. The geographical clustering of malnutrition, as well as below-average child height and weight coincides with high poverty, low female education, lower BMI among mothers, higher prevalence of both parity 4 + and teenage pregnancies. The present study highlights the importance of combining PCA and cluster analysis in studying variation in under-five child growth and of conducting this analysis at the district level. We identify the geographical areas, where children are under severe risk of undernutrition, stunting and wasting and contribute to formulating policies to improve child nutrition in India.
Fabrication of Electrospun Levodopa-Carbidopa Fixed-Dose Combinations
Authors: Bukhary Haitham , Williams Gareth R. , Orlu Mine 
Published: March 2020

Abstract
We report in this work coaxial electrospun fibers with potential applications in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. The fibers comprise a fixed dose combination (FDC) containing the active ingredients levodopa and carbidopa, loaded in a fast dissolving polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) shell and an insoluble but swellable Eudragit® RLPO core. Under appropriate processing conditions we are able to prepare fibers with distinct core/shell architectures and diameters of approximately 400 nm. X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry analyses revealed that the drugs are dispersed on the molecular level within the polymer carriers, and IR spectroscopy indicated the presence of intermolecular interactions. At pH 1, the composite fibers yields extended release over more than 8 h, with an initial loading dose being freed from the PVP shell and then a sustained release phase following from the insoluble core. This is markedly extended over the release period of the commercial FDC product, and thus the fibers generated here have the potential to be used to reduce the required dosing frequency.

Graphic Abstract
Expression of Stromal Progesterone Receptor and Differential Methylation Patterns in the Endometrium May Correlate with Response to Progesterone Therapy in Endometrial Complex Atypical Hyperplasia
Authors: Neal Adam S. , Nunez Miguel , Lai Tiffany , Tosevska Anela , Morselli Marco , Amneus Malaika , Zakhour Mae , Moatamed Neda A. , Pellegrini Matteo , Memarzadeh Sanaz 
Published: March 2020

AbstractProgesterone therapy is a viable treatment for complex atypical hyperplasia (CAH) and endometrial adenocarcinoma, though reliable molecular determinants of response are not available. To explore if analysis of pre-therapy endometrial biopsies could yield biomarkers of response to progesterone, patients with CAH or adenocarcinoma undergoing treatment with progestins were included in this cross-sectional study. Immunohistochemistry for progesterone receptor (PR) was performed. Manual PR expression scores (PRES) were first calculated for biopsies by counting PR-positive nuclei in 12 sensitive vs 9 resistant samples. Significant differences in manual PRES were detected in the stroma (p < 0.01) and total endometrium (p < 0.01) for sensitive vs resistant patients. Manual PRES in the stroma had the highest accuracy in segregating sensitive vs resistant patients (96%). Differences in epithelial PRES were not significant. To validate these findings, a correlation between manual PRES and visual PRES was performed in the 21 patients. An additional 11 patients were analyzed to test if visual PRES would be predictive of response to progesterone. Visual PRES in epithelia and stroma in the 32 specimens was calculated. Significant differences in visual PRES were detected in the stroma for sensitive vs resistant samples (p < 0.01), while differences in epithelial and total endometrium were not significant. Whole genome bisulfite sequencing was performed on DNA isolated using pre-therapy biopsies from 6 sensitive and 6 resistant patients in this cohort. Differentially methylated regions were identified in the stroma and epithelium when evaluating sensitive vs resistant samples. Pathways involved in cell adhesion demonstrated the greatest difference in methylation in these samples.
Applications of Satellite Remote Sensing for Archaeological Survey: A Case Study from the Sinis Archaeological Project, Sardinia
Authors: Plekhov Daniel , Gosner Linda R. , Smith Alexander J. , Nowlin Jessica 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTSatellite imagery has long been recognized as well suited for the regional and ecological questions of many archaeological surveys. One underexplored aspect of such data is their temporal resolution. It is now possible for areas to be imaged on an almost daily basis, and this resolution offers new opportunities for studying landscapes through remote sensing in parallel with ground-based survey. This article explores the applications of these data for visibility assessment and land-cover change detection in the context of the Sinis Archaeological Project, a regional archaeological survey of west-central Sardinia. We employ imagery provided by Planet, which has a spatial resolution of 3 m, in four spectral bands, and is collected daily. Using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) values calculated for each survey unit, we find that there is a relationship between NDVI values and field-reported visibility in general, though the strength of this correlation differs according to land-cover classes. We also find the data to be effective at tracking short-term changes in field conditions that allow us to differentiate fields of similar land cover and visibility. We consider limitations and potentials of these data and encourage further experimentation and development.
Entrepreneurial Stewardship: Why Some Profits Should Be Used to Benefit Others
Authors: Lee Jooho 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTEntrepreneurs should act as stewards of entrepreneurial rent. Entrepreneurial rent is the difference between the ex post value of a venture and its ex ante costs. It is the result of competition among buyers and sellers within the market process rather than the sole efforts of the entrepreneur. As a result, entrepreneurs should allocate entrepreneurial rent for the benefit of other market participants rather than consuming it for themselves. The moral obligation to steward entrepreneurial rent is consistent with traditional bases of property rights and the norm of social welfare maximization, and it applies to corporations and their shareholders, as well as individual entrepreneurs.
Organic selenium supplement partially alleviated diquat-induced oxidative insults and hepatic metabolic stress in nursery pigs
Authors: Doan Nicole , Liu Yanhong , Xiong Xia , Kim Kwangwook , Wu Zhaohai , Bravo David M. , Blanchard Alexandra , Ji Peng 
Published: March 2020

AbstractThe study investigated antioxidant effects of Se on resilience to diquat-induced oxidative stress in nursery pigs. Thirty-five weaned pigs were individually housed and randomly assigned to one of the five treatments. Pigs were (1) fed a basal diet and intraperitoneally injected with sterile saline (negative control), (2) fed the basal diet and injected with diquat solution (positive control, PC), or fed the basal diet supplemented with 0·3 mg Se/kg as (3) sodium selenite (SS), (4) soyabean protein-chelated Se (SC) or (5) selenised yeast (SY) and intraperitoneally injected with diquat. Pigs were fed the experimental diets for 17 d and injected with diquat at 10 mg/kg body weight or saline on the 11th day of the study (day 0 post-injection (PI)). Diquat exposure induced acute stress and innate immune activation (P< 0·05) at 6 h PI and compromised (P< 0·05) plasma glutathione peroxidase activity on day 2 PI, which was accompanied by an increase in plasma malondialdehyde at 6 h and day 2 PI (P< 0·10). Organic Se, particularly SY, enhanced (P< 0·05) endogenous antioxidant activity in various aspects compared with the PC group. The growth rate and feed intake from day 0 to day 7 PI were significantly lower in the PC, SS and SC groups than the NC group (P< 0·05). Untargeted metabolomics analysis revealed that twenty-two hepatic metabolites (false discovery rate < 0·15) associated with lipid and cellular antioxidant metabolism were altered by diquat. SY restored hepatic metabolic profiles in some but not all samples.
Otolaryngology residents’ perceptions of endoscopic ear surgery during surgical training
Authors: Ng C L , Ong W , Ngo R Y S 
Published: March 2020

AbstractBackgroundThe introduction of endoscopic ear surgery has implications for the training of otolaryngology residents.ObjectivesTo report on the status of endoscopic ear surgery and assess the effects of this new technology on otolaryngology training in Singapore, from the residents’ perspective.MethodsAn anonymous survey was conducted amongst all Singaporean otolaryngology residents. Residents’ exposure to, and perceptions of, endoscopic ear surgery were assessed.ResultsResidents from institutions that practise endoscopic ear surgery were more positive regarding its efficacy in various otological surgical procedures. Of residents in programmes with exposure to endoscopic ear surgery, 82.4 per cent felt that its introduction had adversely affected their training, with 88.3 per cent of residents agreeing that faculty members’ learning of endoscopic ear surgery had decreased their hands-on surgical load. Both groups expressed desire for more experience with endoscopy.ConclusionThe majority of residents view endoscopic ear surgery as an expanding field with a potentially negative impact on their training. Mitigating measures should be implemented to minimise its negative impact on residents’ training.
Marketization and Its Discontents: Unveiling the Impacts of Foundation-led Venture Philanthropy on Grassroots NGOs in China
Authors: Lai Weijun , Spires Anthony J. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractAlthough the Chinese state has an outsized influence on shaping civil society in China, extant literature has generally overlooked the increasing role of the market in its non-governmental organization (NGO) development. This paper examines the marketization of Chinese civil society through an ethnographic investigation of funding relationships between domestic Chinese philanthropic foundations and grassroots NGOs. Two case studies of foundation venture philanthropy projects show that businesspeople, through their intensive involvement in foundation-led funding programmes, are introducing strong market influences to the non-profit sector. Notwithstanding the attraction of foundation funding, many NGOs decry the negative side effects of non-profit marketization. We argue that NGOs in this context risk being transformed into social product providers and resource-chasing machines, detracting from the self-directed social missions that many NGO leaders see as their original calling. These observations on emergent NGO–foundation relationships also reflect participants’ increasing uncertainty about the direction of Chinese civil society development.
Plague, pumas and potential zoonotic exposure in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Authors: Elbroch L Mark , Vickers T Winston , Quigley Howard B 
Published: March 2020

SummaryWe tested for plague (Yersinia pestis) in a puma population in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) over 9 years, overlapping a case when a boy in the area became infected with plague. Antibodies to Y. pestis were detected in 8 of 17 (47%) pumas tested by complement-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the organism itself was detected in 4 of 11 (36%) pumas tested after necropsy. Neither puma sex nor age was significantly associated with Y. pestis exposure or mortality, although our sample size was small. The overall prevalence of exposure we recorded was similar to that found along the western slope of Colorado, which is adjacent to the Four Corners region, a known plague hotspot in the USA. This suggests that: (1) Y. pestis may be present at higher levels in the GYE than previously assumed; (2) plague is a significant source of mortality for local pumas (6.6% of sub-adult and adult mortality); and (3) pumas may be a useful sentinel for potential risk of plague exposure to humans throughout the West. We would also emphasize that hunters and others handling pumas in this region should be made aware of the possibility of exposure.
Dry forest is more threatened but less protected than evergreen forest in Ecuador’s coastal region
Authors: Rivas Carlos A , Navarro-Cerillo Rafael M , Johnston Jon C , Guerrero-Casado José 
Published: March 2020

SummaryThe Ecuadorian coast has two main types of forests, which are differentiated by their phenology: dry forests are deciduous and more humid forests are evergreen. Less of the dry forests on the Ecuadorian coast is protected (13% of its area) than the evergreen forests (28%), and the area devoted to the protection of dry forests (1069 km2) is substantially less than the area devoted to the protection of evergreen forests (2800 km2). Yet the conservation status of dry forests is more critical, with 83% of their area classified as having very low connectivity, 70% as being highly fragile and 86% as being highly threatened. In addition, the dry forests have fewer protected areas than the evergreen forests. It is therefore necessary to increase the protection of deciduous ecosystems as part of a comprehensive national strategy because they support high levels of biodiversity and many endemic species.
Potential distribution of a climate sensitive species, the White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis in Europe
Authors: BRAMBILLA MATTIA , RESANO-MAYOR JAIME , ARLETTAZ RAPHAËL , BETTEGA CHIARA , BINGGELI ANAÏS , BOGLIANI GIUSEPPE , BRAUNISCH VERONIKA , CELADA CLAUDIO , CHAMBERLAIN DAN , CHIFFARD CARRICABURU JULES , DELGADO MARIA DEL MAR , FONTANILLES PHILIPPE , KMECL PRIMOŽ , KORNER FRÄNZI , LINDNER ROBERT , PEDRINI PAOLO , PÖHACKER JAKOB , RUBINIČ BORUT , SCHANO CHRISTIAN , SCRIDEL DAVIDE , STRINELLA ELISEO , TEUFELBAUER NORBERT , DE GABRIEL HERNANDO MIGUEL 
Published: March 2020

SummaryThe White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis nivalis is assumed to be highly threatened by climate change, but this high elevation species has been little studied and the current breeding distribution is accurately known only for a minor portion of its range. Here, we provide a detailed and spatially explicit identification of the potentially suitable breeding areas for the Snowfinch. We modelled suitable areas in Europe and compared them with the currently known distribution. We built a distribution model using 14,574 records obtained during the breeding period that integrated climatic, topographic and land-cover variables, working at a 2-km spatial resolution with MaxEnt. The model performed well and was very robust; average annual temperature was the most important occurrence predictor (optimum between c.-3°C and 0°; unsuitable conditions below -10° and above 5°). The current European breeding range estimated by BirdLife International was almost three times greater than that classified as potentially suitable by our model. Discrepancies between our model and the distribution estimated by BirdLife International were particularly evident in eastern Europe, where the species is poorly monitored. Southern populations are likely more isolated and at major risk because of global warming. These differences have important implications for the supposed national responsibility for conservation of the species and highlight the need for new investigations on the species in the eastern part of its European range.
Computing knowledge in equational extensions of subterm convergent theories
Authors: Erbatur Serdar , Marshall Andrew M. , Ringeissen Christophe 
Published: March 2020

AbstractWe study decision procedures for two knowledge problems critical to the verification of security protocols, namely the intruder deduction and the static equivalence problems. These problems can be related to particular forms of context matching and context unification. Both problems are defined with respect to an equational theory and are known to be decidable when the equational theory is given by a subterm convergent term rewrite system (TRS). In this work, we extend this to consider a subterm convergent TRS defined modulo an equational theory, like Commutativity. We present two pairs of solutions for these important problems. The first solves the deduction and static equivalence problems in rewrite systems modulo shallow theories such as Commutativity. The second provides a general procedure that solves the deduction and static equivalence problems in subterm convergent systems modulo syntactic permutative theories, provided a finite measure is ensured. Several examples of such theories are also given.
LitMod2D_2.0: An Improved Integrated Geophysical‐Petrological Modeling Tool for the Physical Interpretation of Upper Mantle Anomalies
Authors: Kumar Ajay , Fernàndez Manel , Jiménez‐Munt Ivone , Torne Montserrat , Vergés Jaume , Afonso Juan Carlos 
Published: March 2020

AbstractLitMod2D integrates geophysical and petrological data sets to produce the thermal, density, and seismic velocity structure of the lithosphere and upper mantle. We present a new LitMod2D_2.0 package with improvements focused on (i) updated anelastic attenuation correction for anharmonic seismic velocities, (ii) chemical composition in the sublithospheric mantle, and (iii) incorporation of sublithospheric mantle anomalies. Sublithospheric mantle anomalies can be defined with different chemical composition, temperature, seismic velocities, and a combination of them, allowing the application of LitMod2D_2.0 to regions affected by mantle upwelling, subduction, delamination, and metasomatism. We demonstrate the potential application of LitMod2D_2.0 to such regions and the sensitivity of thermal and compositional anomalies on density and seismic velocities through synthetic models. Results show nonlinearity between the sign of thermal and seismic velocity anomalies, and that S wave velocities are more sensitive to temperature whereas P wave velocities are to composition. In a synthetic example of subduction, we show the sensitivity of sublithospheric mantle anomalies associated with the slab and the corner flow on surface observables (elevation, geoid height, and gravity anomalies). A new open‐source graphic user interface is incorporated in the new package. The output of the code is simplified by writing only the relevant physical parameters (temperature, pressure, material type, density, and seismic velocities) to allow the user using predefined post‐processing codes from a toolbox (flexure, mineral assemblages, synthetic passive seismological data, and tomography) or designing new ones. We demonstrate a post‐processing example calculating synthetic seismic tomography, Rayleigh surface‐wave dispersion curves, and P wave receiver functions from the output file of LitMod2D_2.0.
Estimation of the Critical Infiltration Rate for Air Compression During Infiltration
Authors: Wei Yunbo , Chen Kouping , Wu Jichun 
Published: March 2020

AbstractDuring intense rainfall or flood irrigation, air may be compressed below the wetting front in the unsaturated zone, which reduces infiltration and thereby leads to excessive runoff and soil erosion. However, estimation of the critical infiltration rate (Icrit) that leads to air compression remains difficult. In this study, the critical infiltration rate for air compression was investigated experimentally and analytically. During infiltration experiments, significant air compression was observed as the infiltration rate excessed some critical rate for the working sands. And this measured critical rate increased as particle size of the sand increased. An innovative analytical approach was then proposed to estimate the values of Icrit using the parameters of the sands. When taking the impedance of air into consideration, the estimated Icrit matched well with the measured Icrit in the experiments. Based on the analytical approach, an equation was proposed to predict Icrit for a porous medium. According to the equation, the value of Icrit was determined by the permeability and pore size distribution of the porous medium. It was found that Icrit increased with the permeability of the porous medium, and also increased as the pore size of the medium became more uniform.
Thank You to Our 2019 Reviewers
Authors: Schildgen Taylor , Aitchison Jonathan , Jolivet Laurent , Rusmore Margi 
Published: March 2020

AbstractPeer review is an essential component of scientific publishing, ensuring that our science is well communicated, accurately documented, appropriately placed in the context of prior work, and effectively archived for future usage, all within a timeframe that ensures the highest possible impact. The 200 papers published in Tectonics in 2019 benefitted from the careful scrutiny and constructive criticism drawn from the expertise of 728 reviewers, who provided a total of 1,082 reviews. These papers have helped to elucidate the evolution, structure, and deformation of Earth's lithosphere across a range of geologic to recent timescales. To all of the members of our community who have volunteered their time and efforts toward this collective goal, we thank you for helping Tectonics produce the high quality output that has helped us maintain a prominent position in scientific publishing for years, and for the spirit of teamwork that makes the peer review process an asset in our community.