bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Opportunity for sustainable biomass valorization to produce biochar for improving soil characteristics
Authors: Ulusal Aysu , Apaydın Varol Esin , Bruckman Viktor J. , Uzun Basak Burcu 
Published: August 2020

AbstractBiochar, a byproduct obtained from valorization of waste biomass, is utilized in environmental management to restore or improve soil functions where it alters chemical, physical, and biological processes. Therefore, in this study, vastly available oak sawdust was evaluated as a potential feedstock for biochar production with the aim to identify the influence of carbonization conditions on biochar characteristics. Slow pyrolysis with temperatures ranging from 400 to 600 °C and residence times from 15 to 120 min was performed. The feedstock material and resulting biochar were characterized for physical, chemical, and hydraulic properties that are significant for their ability and characteristics as a soil amendment. The pH, BET surface area, carbon content, nutrient content, alkaline functional groups, and water holding capacity increased with increasing pyrolysis temperature and residence time while biochar yield, O/C ratio, and acidic functional groups decreased. Although the effect of holding time on biochar physicochemical properties is less significant than that of temperature, it is an essential parameter to obtain desired biochar properties. It can be concluded that pyrolysis has the potential to add value to regionally available oak sawdust on a sustainable basis and help to restore or improve essential soil functions.Graphical abstract
Assessment of thermal and energy performance of masonry blocks prepared with date palm ash
Authors: Ashraf Noman , Nasir Muhammad , Al-Kutti Walid , Al-Maziad Faris A. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThis article evaluates the thermal and energy performance of mortar blocks containing local agricultural waste. The mortar blocks were cast by the replacement of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) with varying amounts of date palm ash (DPA) in the range of 10–30%. Experiments and simulations were carried out to assess the thermal characteristics and energy performance of the specimens. A prototype office building was modeled and simulated in DesignBuilder (Version 6.1.06) with modified blocks prepared with DPA under the Arabian Gulf environment characterized by hot and humid climatic conditions of Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The developed blocks are characterized as lightweight blocks based on density data which satisfy the requirement of ASTM C55-11. The analysis and simulation indicate that the incorporation of DPA improves the thermal resistance of up to 47%, enhances the indoor environment and yields annual energy consumption of up to 7.6%, consequently reduces the cost of masonry block production by ~ 11% without compromising the physical, chemical, and mechanical properties. The masonry blocks prepared with DPA found to be economical than conventional masonry blocks. It is postulated that the novel DPA-based developed blocks are significantly sustainable products which will contribute to the valorization of DPA waste along with the reduction in the cost of construction and operational cost of the building.
Revenue management systems as symbiotic analytics systems: insights from a field study
Authors: Schütze Claudia , Cleophas Catherine , Tarafdar Monideepa 
Published: August 2020

AbstractRevenue management is a complex operational planning process involving predictive and prescriptive analytics. As real-world implementations strongly rely on the joint outcomes from both algorithms and analysts, we consider the revenue management system as an example of symbiotic analytics systems. This paper presents insights from a field study observing a natural experiment in revenue management. As a firm updates its automated revenue management systems, it also updates the related processes and the corresponding organizational structure. We use this opportunity to examine the multilevel use of symbiotic analytics systems based in a field study and explore the implications for the design of future systems. Specifically, we identify two different perspectives on the revenue management process. In the functional view, jobs are organized sequentially with a high degree of system-oriented specialization. The process view organizes jobs in a parallel structure, differentiating two perspectives on demand. Depending on what view the firm implements, different structural fault lines turn the communication and training of analysts into keystones of the planning process. Furthermore, as we point out, even implementing more sophisticated algorithms and redesigning planning processes and organization do not seem to reduce the relevance of human analysts.
Secondary-Atom-Doping Enables Robust Fe–N–C Single-Atom Catalysts with Enhanced Oxygen Reduction Reaction
Authors: Luo Xin , Wei Xiaoqian , Wang Hengjia , Gu Wenling , Kaneko Takuma , Yoshida Yusuke , Zhao Xiao , Zhu Chengzhou 
Published: August 2020

AbstractSingle-atom catalysts (SACs) with nitrogen-coordinated nonprecious metal sites have exhibited inimitable advantages in electrocatalysis. However, a large room for improving their activity and durability remains. Herein, we construct atomically dispersed Fe sites in N-doped carbon supports by secondary-atom-doped strategy. Upon the secondary doping, the density and coordination environment of active sites can be efficiently tuned, enabling the simultaneous improvement in the number and reactivity of the active site. Besides, structure optimizations in terms of the enlarged surface area and improved hydrophilicity can be achieved simultaneously. Due to the beneficial microstructure and abundant highly active FeN5 moieties resulting from the secondary doping, the resultant catalyst exhibits an admirable half-wave potential of 0.81 V versus 0.83 V for Pt/C and much better stability than Pt/C in acidic media. This work would offer a general strategy for the design and preparation of highly active SACs for electrochemical energy devices.
German Teachers’ Digital Habitus and Their Pandemic Pedagogy
Authors: Blume Carolyn 
Published: August 2020

AbstractAfter closing public schools in early 2020 to slow the spread of Covid-19, attempts to provide continuity of education in Germany by means of digital tools faltered in variety of ways, with insufficient competence and inadequate technology leading to inequitable access and uneven implementation. Understanding how German teachers were caught unprepared in this time of crisis, especially in comparison with their European neighbors, requires an examination of their habitus as discussed by Bourdieu and Wacquant (1992) that accounts for their behaviors beyond existing models regarding technology acceptance. Drawing on existing sociological and media-related studies, this contribution will describe the attitudes of German teachers and educational decision-makers in light of their digital, cultural, and educational habitus to provide a partial explanatory account for the current state of affairs. It will show how traditional skepticism for innovation among teachers in general, and German teachers in particular, is reinforced by demographic and sociological characteristics of the German teacher population and the nature of German schooling. After describing extant conditions regarding digitally mediated educational experiences during the initial Covid-19 phase in Germany based on emerging data, this article will subsequently identify prospective issues in this area in the near future. While the transition to digital teaching and learning has the potential to bring about a number of challenges, early data suggests that a possibility of significant positive development may occur as well. Based on these indications, the article will conclude with implications for teacher professionalization going forward.
Polyphenolic extracts from the olive mill wastewater as a source of biopesticides and their effects on the life cycle of the Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata (Diptera, Tephriditae)
Authors: Di Ilio Vincenzo , Cristofaro Massimo 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe Mediterranean Fruit Fly Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) (Diptera, Tephriditae) is an important pest in the Mediterranean region causing severe economic losses. Currently, pyrethroids are the most common insecticides used in the control of the Medfly. However, the demand for biopesticides is growing due to the necessity to limit the use of hazardous chemical pesticides in the context of the integrated pest management. In this context, a valid alternative is the use of plant derived pesticides with a selective action against target pests and a shorter persistence in ecosystems.Among plant products, olive tree phenolic and polyphenolic compounds show potent bioactive properties as insecticides and growth regulators. The olive mill wastewater is an important source of these compounds.We are reporting here that the polyphenolic fractions of the olive mill wastewater, show ovicidal effects in terms of reduction of the hatching rate, whereas the larval development is not affected by the treatments.On the adults, we show that selected fractions induce a complete block of the fecundity of the females probably due to an induced disruption of the oogenesis.These results suggest that the polyphenolic fractions derived from the olive mill wastewater can be used as a strong natural chemosterilant against the Mediterranean Fruit fly and can be considered as a putative ovicidal agent.
DPHL: A DIA Pan-Human Protein Mass Spectrometry Library for Robust Biomarker Discovery
Authors: Zhu Tiansheng , Zhu Yi , Xuan Yue , Gao Huanhuan , Cai Xue , Piersma Sander R. , Pham Thang V. , Schelfhorst Tim , Haas Richard R.G.D. , Bijnsdorp Irene V. , Sun Rui , Yue Liang , Ruan Guan , Zhang Qiushi , Hu Mo , Zhou Yue , Van Houdt Winan J. , Le Large Tessa Y.S. , Cloos Jacqueline , Wojtuszkiewicz Anna , Koppers-Lalic Danijela , Böttger Franziska , Scheepbouwer Chantal , Brakenhoff Ruud H. , van Leenders Geert J.L.H. , Ijzermans Jan N.M. , Martens John W.M. , Steenbergen Renske D.M. , Grieken Nicole C. , Selvarajan Sathiyamoorthy , Mantoo Sangeeta , Lee Sze S. , Yeow Serene J.Y. , Alkaff Syed M.F. , Xiang Nan , Sun Yaoting , Yi Xiao , Dai Shaozheng , Liu Wei , Lu Tian , Wu Zhicheng , Liang Xiao , Wang Man , Shao Yingkuan , Zheng Xi , Xu Kailun , Yang Qin , Meng Yifan , Lu Cong , Zhu Jiang , Zheng Jin'e , Wang Bo , Lou Sai , Dai Yibei , Xu Chao , Yu Chenhuan , Ying Huazhong , Lim Tony K. , Wu Jianmin , Gao Xiaofei , Luan Zhongzhi , Teng Xiaodong , Wu Peng , Huang Shi'ang , Tao Zhihua , Iyer Narayanan G. , Zhou Shuigeng , Shao Wenguang , Lam Henry , Ma Ding , Ji Jiafu , Kon Oi L. , Zheng Shu , Aebersold Ruedi , Jimenez Connie R. , Guo Tiannan 
Published: August 2020

Abstract
To address the increasing need for detecting and validating protein biomarkers in clinical specimens, mass spectrometry (MS)-based targeted proteomic techniques, including the selected reaction monitoring (SRM), parallel reaction monitoring (PRM), and massively parallel data-independent acquisition (DIA), have been developed. For optimal performance, they require the fragment ion spectra of targeted peptides as prior knowledge. In this report, we describe a MS pipeline and spectral resource to support targeted proteomics studies for human tissue samples. To build the spectral resource, we integrated common open-source MS computational tools to assemble a freely accessible computational workflow based on Docker. We then applied the workflow to generate DPHL, a comprehensive DIA pan-human library, from 1096 data-dependent acquisition (DDA) MS raw files for 16 types of cancer samples. This extensive spectral resource was then applied to a proteomic study of 17 prostate cancer (PCa) patients. Thereafter, PRM validation was applied to a larger study of 57 PCa patients and the differential expression of three proteins in prostate tumor was validated. As a second application, the DPHL spectral resource was applied to a study consisting of plasma samples from 19 diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients and 18 healthy control subjects. Differentially expressed proteins between DLBCL patients and healthy control subjects were detected by DIA-MS and confirmed by PRM. These data demonstrate that the DPHL supports DIA and PRM MS pipelines for robust protein biomarker discovery. DPHL is freely accessible at https://www.iprox.org/page/project.html?id=IPX0001400000.
Legal Governance on Fintech Risks: Effects and Lessons from China
Authors: YUAN Kang , XU Duoqi 
Published: August 2020

AbstractFintech risks have a special type of structure and formation mechanism; regular updates and a complete financial legal system are needed to implement an effective legal governance. China’s fintech development is leading the world, but its lagging legal development does not match its rank in the field. Due to the difficult co-ordination of regulatory goals, unclear allocation of regulatory power, insufficient risk identification, and incomplete regulation tools, China’s legal governance on fintech risks has been swinging between the paths of suppressive, indulging, and adaptive regulation. It is urgently necessary to follow the fintech-risk law and fully tap into the local resources and explore the intervening path with more proactivity, foresight, and refined characteristics, through specification of the legal status and governing power of the intervening entity, the institutional basis and legal effect of interventional means, and the governing key and constitutional rules of intervening objects, to establish a legal-governance system on fintech risks that is innovation-friendly, regulatorily effective, and safe at the bottom line, fully covering the whole process.
Investigation and Analysis of 108 Cases of Home Isolated Patients With Mild COVID-19
Authors: Li Hang , Peng Yuan-Yuan , Lu Jin-Ping 
Published: August 2020

ABSTRACTBackground:Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) began to spread across Wuhan, China, by the end of 2019, and patients were unable to be hospitalized because medical resources were limited.Methods:A questionnaire survey was conducted among 108 participants with mild COVID-19 who have isolated at home under the guidance of doctors. The results of the questionnaire and outpatient data were integrated to evaluate participants’ compliance with various epidemic prevention measures.Results:During isolation, most participants were able to follow epidemic prevention measures under the guidance of doctors. After 14 d from the start of isolation, 45.37% of the participants recovered. Approximately half of the participants were relieved of symptoms, and most of them were transferred to mobile cabin hospitals to continue isolation. Three participants with worsening symptoms were transferred to the designated hospitals. There were no deaths of the participants, but there were 7 family members that were infected.Conclusions:During a period of home isolation under the guidance of a doctor, individuals can comply with epidemic prevention measures and symptoms can be improved. Scientific home isolation may be an effective way to relieve the strain of medical and social resources during the epidemic of COVID-19.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) screening upon inpatient hospital admission: Is there concordance between nasal swab results and samples taken from skin and soft tissue?
Authors: Petry Natasha J. , Montgomery Anna D. , Hammer Kimberly D. P. , Lo Tze Shien 
Published: August 2020

AbstractBackground:Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections are associated with increased mortality and healthcare costs. In 2007, a Veterans’ Affairs (VA) hospital implemented a MRSA nasal screening program, following a nationwide VA mandate, in an effort to reduce healthcare-associated MRSA infections.Objective:To evaluate the correlation between the nasal screening results for MRSA and culture results of wound and tissue sites.Methods:This retrospective study was conducted on inpatients at our VA hospital. Patients were included if they had undergone nasal screening for MRSA plus culture of a wound or tissue site within 30 days of hospital admission.Results:In total, 337 patients underwent nasal screening and wound culture and 211 underwent nasal screening and wound and tissue cultures. The prevalence of MRSA nasal colonization was 14.2% for wound samples and 15.2% for tissue samples. The sensitivities of MRSA nasal screening for detecting MRSA were 64.6% for wound cultures and 65.5% for tissue cultures. Specificities were 86.2% and 88.8% for wound and tissue cultures, respectively. The positive predictive values (PPVs) were 43.7% and 51.2% for wound and tissue cultures, respectively, and the negative predictive values (NPVs) were high at 93.6% and 93.5%, respectively.Conclusions:In cases of wound or tissue samples for which culture results are pending, a negative MRSA nasal swab may be a component of the decision to withhold or discontinue MRSA-active agents.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) nucleic acid contamination of surfaces on a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ward and intensive care unit
Authors: Redmond Sarah N. , Dousa Khalid M. , Jones Lucas D. , Li Daniel F. , Cadnum Jennifer L. , Navas Maria E. , Kachaluba Nataliya M. , Silva Sandra Y. , Zabarsky Trina F. , Eckstein Elizabeth C. , Procop Gary W. , Donskey Curtis J. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractOn coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) wards, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) nucleic acid was frequently detected on high-touch surfaces, floors, and socks inside patient rooms. Contamination of floors and shoes was common outside patient rooms on the COVID-19 wards but decreased after improvements in floor cleaning and disinfection were implemented.
From History Book to Digital Humanities Database: The Basic Annals of the Shiji
Authors: Li Bin , Li Yaxin , Yang Qian , Wang Yaqi , Chen Rui 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe Shiji (史記 Records of the Grand Historian) is of great value for Chinese history before 90 BCE. Many online databases provide character-based search of the Shiji. We go beyond simple search by creating an word-based open-access database of the Basic Annals (本纪) of the Shiji that allows the exploration of relationships between persons and the relationships between persons and named places.
Using Philologic For Digital Textual and Intertextual Analyses of the Twenty-Four Chinese Histories 二十四史
Authors: Tharsen Jeffrey , Gladstone Clovis 
Published: August 2020

AbstractWhat does it mean to be able to study Chinese history at scale? What methods, tools, and approaches will allow us to understand Chinese history and historiography from a larger perspective over the longue durée, including linguistic, philosophical, ethnographic, and literary concerns? In this article we present what we feel is one potential key to answering these questions and provide an overview of the utility and value of harnessing this framework for text-based historical research as a means to expand one's scholarship to virtually limitless scales.
Director Networks, Political Connections, and Earnings Quality in Malaysia
Authors: Abdul Wahab Effiezal Aswadi , Jamaludin Mohd Faizal , Agustia Dian , Harymawan Iman 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThis article investigates the relationship between director networks and earnings quality in Malaysia. Using data on 4,416 individual directors who served on the boards of 745 firms listed on Bursa, Malaysia during 2011, we map the entire network of directors and generate measures to reflect the size and quality of information within the network. We find a negative and significant relationship between the overall connectedness of a director's network and the firm's earnings quality. In addition, we find a negative and significant relationship between the political connectedness of the director's network and earnings quality. Our results are robust for different measures of earnings quality.
The IntCal20 Northern Hemisphere Radiocarbon Age Calibration Curve (0–55 cal kBP)
Authors: Reimer Paula J , Austin William E N , Bard Edouard , Bayliss Alex , Blackwell Paul G , Bronk Ramsey Christopher , Butzin Martin , Cheng Hai , Edwards R Lawrence , Friedrich Michael , Grootes Pieter M , Guilderson Thomas P , Hajdas Irka , Heaton Timothy J , Hogg Alan G , Hughen Konrad A , Kromer Bernd , Manning Sturt W , Muscheler Raimund , Palmer Jonathan G , Pearson Charlotte , van der Plicht Johannes , Reimer Ron W , Richards David A , Scott E Marian , Southon John R , Turney Christian S M , Wacker Lukas , Adolphi Florian , Büntgen Ulf , Capano Manuela , Fahrni Simon M , Fogtmann-Schulz Alexandra , Friedrich Ronny , Köhler Peter , Kudsk Sabrina , Miyake Fusa , Olsen Jesper , Reinig Frederick , Sakamoto Minoru , Sookdeo Adam , Talamo Sahra 
Published: August 2020

ABSTRACTRadiocarbon (14C) ages cannot provide absolutely dated chronologies for archaeological or paleoenvironmental studies directly but must be converted to calendar age equivalents using a calibration curve compensating for fluctuations in atmospheric14C concentration. Although calibration curves are constructed from independently dated archives, they invariably require revision as new data become available and our understanding of the Earth system improves. In this volume the international14C calibration curves for both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, as well as for the ocean surface layer, have been updated to include a wealth of new data and extended to 55,000 cal BP. Based on tree rings, IntCal20 now extends as a fully atmospheric record to ca. 13,900 cal BP. For the older part of the timescale, IntCal20 comprises statistically integrated evidence from floating tree-ring chronologies, lacustrine and marine sediments, speleothems, and corals. We utilized improved evaluation of the timescales and location variable14C offsets from the atmosphere (reservoir age, dead carbon fraction) for each dataset. New statistical methods have refined the structure of the calibration curves while maintaining a robust treatment of uncertainties in the14C ages, the calendar ages and other corrections. The inclusion of modeled marine reservoir ages derived from a three-dimensional ocean circulation model has allowed us to apply more appropriate reservoir corrections to the marine14C data rather than the previous use of constant regional offsets from the atmosphere. Here we provide an overview of the new and revised datasets and the associated methods used for the construction of the IntCal20 curve and explore potential regional offsets for tree-ring data. We discuss the main differences with respect to the previous calibration curve, IntCal13, and some of the implications for archaeology and geosciences ranging from the recent past to the time of the extinction of the Neanderthals.
SHCal20 Southern Hemisphere Calibration, 0–55,000 Years cal BP
Authors: Hogg Alan G , Heaton Timothy J , Hua Quan , Palmer Jonathan G , Turney Chris SM , Southon John , Bayliss Alex , Blackwell Paul G , Boswijk Gretel , Bronk Ramsey Christopher , Pearson Charlotte , Petchey Fiona , Reimer Paula , Reimer Ron , Wacker Lukas 
Published: August 2020

ABSTRACTEarly researchers of radiocarbon levels in Southern Hemisphere tree rings identified a variable North-South hemispheric offset, necessitating construction of a separate radiocarbon calibration curve for the South. We present here SHCal20, a revised calibration curve from 0–55,000 cal BP, based upon SHCal13 and fortified by the addition of 14 new tree-ring data sets in the 2140–0, 3520–3453, 3608–3590 and 13,140–11,375 cal BP time intervals. We detail the statistical approaches used for curve construction and present recommendations for the use of the Northern Hemisphere curve (IntCal20), the Southern Hemisphere curve (SHCal20) and suggest where application of an equal mixture of the curves might be more appropriate. Using our Bayesian spline with errors-in-variables methodology, and based upon a comparison of Southern Hemisphere tree-ring data compared with contemporaneous Northern Hemisphere data, we estimate the mean Southern Hemisphere offset to be 36 ± 2714C yrs older.