bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A holistic sustainability assessment of organic (certified and non-certified) and non-organic smallholder farms in Kenya
Authors: Kamau Juliet Wanjiku , Schader Christian , Biber-Freudenberger Lisa , Stellmacher Till , Amudavi David M. , Landert Jan , Blockeel Johan , Whitney Cory , Borgemeister Christian 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe introduction of organic farm management practices in sub-Saharan Africa could act as a lever for supporting regional sustainable development. In this study, we sought to assess the sustainability performance of organic (certified and non-certified) and non-organic farms in the dry Kajiado County and the wet Murang’a County in Kenya, based on four sustainability dimensions:Good Governance,Environmental Integrity,Economic ResilienceandSocial Well-Being. We collected household survey data from 400 smallholder farms, which were formally characterized into five types (mixed organic and conventional, certified organic, organic, conventional, and subsistence farms). We used multivariate analysis of variance, linear fixed-effects and general linear models to examine differences in sustainability performance. Model results indicate that all farms lack reliable farm management information and that only limited knowledge, skills and social security exist for farmers and farm workers. Comparison of the five farm types indicates no significant differences in their sustainability performance. Nonetheless, certified organic farms had better sustainability performance than non-certified farms due to higher economic resilience, environmental integrity, better support and training for workers. However, except for avoiding the use of agrochemicals in certified farms, there is relatively little difference in the farm management practices across farm types. Our results also indicate that farms in Murang’a were more sustainable than those in Kajiado due to better regional land-tenure security and conflict resolution mechanisms, soil and water conservation measures, and farm commercial viability. Nonetheless, unlike Kajiado, farms in Murang’a showed a tendency toward poor animal husbandry practices which affects overall animal welfare, limited credit uptake and market involvement. The results of this study can support decision making to identify appropriate interventions for improving sustainability in smallholder farms.
Social effects on AVT and CRF systems
Authors: Backström Tobias , Thörnqvist Per-Ove , Winberg Svante 
Published: September 2021

AbstractStress and aggression have negative effects on fish welfare and productivity in aquaculture. Thus, research to understand aggression and stress in farmed fish is required. The neuropeptides arginine-vasotocin (AVT) and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) are involved in the control of stress and aggression. Therefore, we investigated the effect of agonistic interactions on the gene expression of AVT, CRF and their receptors in juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). The social interactions lead to a clear dominant-subordinate relationship with dominant fish feeding more and being more aggressive. Subordinate fish had an upregulation of the AVT receptor (AVT-R), an upregulation of CRF mRNA levels, and higher plasma cortisol levels. The attenuating effect of AVT on aggression in rainbow trout is proposed to be mediated by AVT-R, and the attenuating effect of the CRF system is proposed to be mediated by CRF.
Gender-based Decision Making in Marketing Channel Choice – Evidence of Maize Supply Chains in Southern Ethiopia
Authors: Gebre Girma Gezimu , Isoda Hiroshi , Amekawa Yuichiro , Rahut Dil Bahadur , Nomura Hisako , Watanabe Takaaki 
Published: September 2021

AbstractWe examine factors affecting the choice of marketing channels for maize among male, female, and joint decision-making farm households using data from households in Dawuro zone, southern Ethiopia. Econometric results suggest that female and joint decision-makers are more likely to sell maize to consumers or retailers in the main local market where the maize price is higher than to wholesale merchants directly from the farm. Individual decision-makers (male or female) who grow improved maize varieties are more likely to sell to wholesalers directly from the farm. This may be an indication of the effectiveness of joint decisions over individual decisions related to the market price. We also found that improved maize varieties distributed to farmers in the study area are of poor quality and that there is a lack of modern storage facilities so that farmers have to sell immediately after harvest during the lower price season. Thus, there is a need for policies promoting the distribution of high-quality maize seeds and encouraging investments in the establishment of modern maize storage facilities in the study area.
Effect of upper eyelid blepharoplasty on corneal biomechanical, topographic and tomographic parameters 4 weeks after surgery
Authors: Sommer Falk , Untch Elisa , Spoerl Eberhard , Herber Robert , Pillunat Lutz E. , Terai Naim 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Purpose
To investigate the effect of “skin-only” upper eyelid blepharoplasty on corneal biomechanics and central as well as peripheral topographic/tomographic parameters before and 4 weeks after surgery.

Methods
In a prospective study, the corneal hysteresis (CH) and corneal resistance factor (CRF) were evaluated before and after blepharoplasty. Corneal topographic (maximum simulated keratometry value, inferior-superior value, index of surface variance, index of vertical asymmetry, index of height asymmetry, index of height decentration) and tomographic parameters (corneal thickness, corneal astigmatism and mean 5-mm- and 7-mm-zone keratometry value) were measured by the Pentacam HR. Statistical analysis was performed using a linear mixed model considering correlated data of both eyes.

Results
This study included 42 eyes of 35 patients (mean age: 64.5 years, range 52–82 years). Four weeks after surgery CH and CRF increased (9.4 ± 2.3 to 10.2 ± 2.2 mmHg and 9.7 ± 2.1 to 10.5 ± 2.2 mmHg) but did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.100 and P = 0.072). A significant increase in central maximum simulated keratometry value (Kmax) from 45.0 ± 2.3 to 45.4 ± 2.2 diopters (D) was observed (P = 0.004). Inferior-superior value (I-S) and index of surface variance (ISV) showed significant changes from 0.32 ± 0.98 to 0.10 ± 0.98 D (P = 0.02) and from 19.98 ± 9.84 to 22.93 ± 11.23 (P = 0.009), respectively. These alterations did not affect the subjective spherical equivalent (-0.09 ± 4.71 to -0.04 ± 4.51 D; P = 0.437) and the best-corrected distance visual acuity of patients (0.11 ± 0.14 to 0.15 ± 0.15 logMAR; P = 0.142). Age, gender and corneal thickness were not correlated with pre and postoperative differences of CH, CRF, corneal compensated IOP, Kmax, corneal astigmatism or I-S.

Conclusion
The trend of increasing CH and CRF values might indicate a rise of corneal damping capacity. Despite statistically significant differences of Kmax, I-S and ISV, all other tomographical and topographical parameters did not change 4 weeks after surgery. The corneal steepening with a mean change of 0.4 diopters and the decrease of I-S with a mean of 0.22 diopters do not seem to have a clinically relevant effect for blepharoplasty patients in daily practice.
Novel WEE2 compound heterozygous mutations identified in patients with fertilization failure or poor fertilization
Authors: Jin Jiamin , Tong Xiaomei , Zhang Yin-Li , Yang Weijie , Ma Yerong , Ren Peipei , Zhou Feng , Zhang Songying 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Purpose
To study associations between novel WEE2 mutations and patients with fertilization failure or poor fertilization.

Methods
Thirty-one Chinese patients who underwent treatment with assisted reproductive technology and suffered from repeated (at least two times) total fertilization failure (TFF) or a low fertilization rate were enrolled. Genomic DNA was extracted from patients for whole-exome sequencing. Suspicious mutations were validated by Sanger sequencing. WEE2 protein levels in oocytes from affected patients were examined by immunofluorescence. Disruptive effects of mutations on WEE2 protein stability, subcellular localization, and kinase function were analyzed through western blotting, immunofluorescence, and flow cytometry in HeLa cells.

Results
Three of thirty-one (9.6%) enrolled patients had six compound heterozygous mutations of the WEE2 gene, and three of them were reported here for the first time (c.115_116insT, c.756_758delTGA, and c.C1459T). Oocytes from affected patients showed decreased WEE2 immunofluorescence signals. In vitro experiments showed that the mutant WEE2 gene caused reduced WEE2 protein levels or cellular compartment translocation in HeLa cells, leading to decreased levels of the phosphorylated Cdc2 protein. Compared with the wild-type WEE2 protein, the mutant WEE2 proteins were also found to have different effects on the cell cycle.

Conclusion
Three novel compound heterozygous WEE2 variants were found in patients with pronucleus formation failure. This study provides new evidence that WEE2 mutations result in loss of function, which could result in fertilization failure.
Indentation modulus extrapolation and thickness estimation of ta-C coatings from nanoindentation
Authors: Lorenz L. , Chudoba T. , Makowski S. , Zawischa M. , Schaller F. , Weihnacht V. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractCoatings used in tribological applications often exhibit high hardness and stiffness to achieve high wear resistance. One coating characterization method frequently used is nanoindentation which allows the determination of indentation hardness and indentation modulus among other material properties. The indentation modulus describes the elastic surface behavior during indentation and is, among hardness, a direct indicator for wear resistance. To obtain the true indentation modulus of a coating, it must be measured with varying loads and then extrapolated to zero load. Current recommendation of the standard ISO 14577-4:2016 is a linear extrapolation which fits poorly for nonlinear curves. Such nonlinear curves are commonly found for high hardness mismatches between coating and substrate, for example, superhard tetrahedral amorphous carbon coatings (ta-C) on a steel substrate. In this study, we present a new empirical fit model, henceforth named sigmoid. This fit model is compared to several existing fit models described in the literature using a large number of nanoindentation measurements on ta-C coatings with wide ranges of indentation modulus and coating thickness. This is done by employing a user-independent and model agnostic fitting methodology. It is shown that the sigmoid model outperforms all other models in the combination of goodness of fit and stability of fit. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the sigmoid model’s fit parameter directly correlates with coating thickness and thus allows for a new approach of determining ta-C coating thickness from nanoindentation.
Clinical evaluation of a wearable sensor for mobile monitoring of respiratory rate on hospital wards
Authors: Järvelä Kristiina , Takala Panu , Michard Frederic , Vikatmaa Leena 
Published: September 2021

AbstractA wireless and wearable system was recently developed for mobile monitoring of respiratory rate (RR). The present study was designed to compare RR mobile measurements with reference capnographic measurements on a medical-surgical ward. The wearable sensor measures impedance variations of the chest from two thoracic and one abdominal electrode. Simultaneous measurements of RR from the wearable sensor and from the capnographic sensor (1 measure/minute) were compared in 36 ward patients. Patients were monitored for a period of 182 ± 56 min (range 68–331). Artifact-free RR measurements were available 81% of the monitoring time for capnography and 92% for the wearable monitoring system (p < 0.001). A total of 4836 pairs of simultaneous measurements were available for analysis. The average reference RR was 19 ± 5 breaths/min (range 6–36). The average difference between the wearable and capnography RR measurements was − 0.6 ± 2.5 breaths/min. Error grid analysis showed that the proportions of RR measurements done with the wearable system were 89.7% in zone A (no risk), 9.6% in zone B (low risk) and < 1% in zones C, D and E (moderate, significant and dangerous risk). The wearable method detected RR values > 20 (tachypnea) with a sensitivity of 81% and a specificity of 93%. In ward patients, the wearable sensor enabled accurate and precise measurements of RR within a relatively broad range (6–36 b/min) and the detection of tachypnea with high sensitivity and specificity.
Critical Configurations and Tube of Typical Trajectories for the Potts and Ising Models with Zero External Field
Authors: Bet Gianmarco , Gallo Anna , Nardi Francesca R. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractWe consider the ferromagneticq-state Potts model with zero external field in a finite volume evolving according to Glauber-type dynamics described by the Metropolis algorithm in the low temperature asymptotic limit. Our analysis concerns the multi-spin system that hasqstable equilibria. Focusing on grid graphs with periodic boundary conditions, we study the tunneling between two stable states and from one stable state to the set of all other stable states. In both cases we identify the set of gates for the transition and prove that this set has to be crossed with high probability during the transition. Moreover, we identify the tube of typical paths and prove that the probability to deviate from it during the transition is exponentially small.
A cloud-based cognitive computing solution with interoperable applications to counteract illegal dumping in smart cities
Authors: Coccoli Mauro , De Francesco Vincenzo , Fusco Antonio , Maresca Paolo 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe study presented in this paper is the outcome of the activity carried on within the program “Party Cloud Challenge per Genova”, promoted by IBM in collaboration with the city municipality of Genoa, Italy. This challenge aimed to show how using cognitive computing solutions in an integrated cloud-based development environment enables the rapid deployment of advanced services with interoperable applications. Specifically, we investigated a solution to cope with the problem of illegal dumping prevention in a smart city. In this respect, we will describe the study of the prototype of an automated visual recognition and alerting system. The presented solution relies on the use of cognitive computing technologies to analyze videos provided by cameras installed in urban areas, to identify trash, especially bulky waste, where it should not be, and trigger an alarm to the municipality. In particular, we want to take advantage of the pictures, frames and videos continuously recorded by cameras installed for traffic monitoring, for surveillance, etc. in smart cities where the waste management system is supposed to be integrated with other municipality services for environment control and management. Besides, an organization plan is also proposed for intelligent waste collection as well as some organizational ideas for scalability.
Covering Norway spruce container seedlings with reflective shading cloth during field storage affects seedling post-planting growth
Authors: Tikkinen Mikko , Riikonen Johanna , Luoranen Jaana 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe field storage of container seedlings is often a necessity after the seedlings have been transported from nurseries close to the regeneration area. Suboptimal storage conditions can lead to reduced growth or even seedling mortality. Supporting favourable conditions for the seedlings during storage requires labour, especially for the watering of seedlings, and therefore increases the costs of forest regeneration. In this study, we examined the effects of covering Norway spruce container seedlings with a reflective shading cloth and neglecting the watering during field storage. This was done by measuring the drying of the seedlings during field storage, the rooting of the seedlings when planting, and the subsequent survival and performance in the field two and three growing seasons after planting. The study comprised one-year-old Norway spruce container seedlings covered with reflective shading cloth and seedlings with no cover (subject to rainfall) in 2012 and 2013; additionally, in 2013, replicates from both treatments were stored in conditions where rainfall was impeded. The stem water potential was measured, a rooting test was carried out, and the seedlings were planted in the test field weekly over 42 days of field storage without watering. As a novel finding, the results indicate that covering the seedlings with a reflective shading cloth during the field storage increased the risk of grey mould in summer storage and led to negative effects regarding post planting seedling development. The application of a shading cloth directly on the seedlings cannot be recommended to prolong the watering intervals during field storage in the current climatic conditions in Southern Finland, where the risk of grey mould is high.
A data-driven model of the COVID-19 spread among interconnected populations: epidemiological and mobility aspects following the lockdown in Italy
Authors: Di Giamberardino Paolo , Iacoviello Daniela , Papa Federico , Sinisgalli Carmela 
Published: September 2021

AbstractAn epidemic multi-group model formed by interconnected SEIR-like structures is formulated and used for data fitting to gain insight into the COVID-19 dynamics and into the role of non-pharmaceutical control actions implemented to limit the infection spread since its outbreak in Italy. The single submodels provide a rather accurate description of the COVID-19 evolution in each subpopulation by an extended SEIR model including the class of asymptomatic infectives, which is recognized as a determinant for disease diffusion. The multi-group structure is specifically designed to investigate the effects of the inter-regional mobility restored at the end of the first strong lockdown in Italy (June 3, 2020). In its time-invariant version, the model is shown to enjoy some analytical stability properties which provide significant insights on the efficacy of the implemented control measurements. In order to highlight the impact of human mobility on the disease evolution in Italy between the first and second wave onset, the model is applied to fit real epidemiological data of three geographical macro-areas in the period March–October 2020, including the mass departure for summer holidays. The simulation results are in good agreement with the data, so that the model can represent a useful tool for predicting the effects of the combination of containment measures in triggering future pandemic scenarios. Particularly, the simulation shows that, although the unrestricted mobility alone appears to be insufficient to trigger the second wave, the human transfers were crucial to make uniform the spatial distribution of the infection throughout the country and, combined with the restart of the production, trade, and education activities, determined a time advance of the contagion increase since September 2020.
Explaining the Use of Performance Information by Public Managers: Do Task-Related Factors Matter?
Authors: Allegrini Veronica , Monteduro Fabio , Del Prete Francesco 
Published: September 2021

AbstractOrganizational factors have frequently shown a significant influence on the use of performance information by public managers, but the study of task-related factors has been neglected. Combining insights from public administration, organizational studies, and a behavioural approach, this article investigates whether some task characteristics influence the use of performance information by public managers. Drawing on an e-mail survey on managers working in Italian medium-size municipalities, an empirical analysis was developed. Findings show that task analysability and task variability directly affect performance information use by public managers. Task interdependence shows an indirect effect on performance information use through its availability.
Citation patterns between impact-factor and questionable journals
Authors: Kulczycki Emanuel , Hołowiecki Marek , Taşkın Zehra , Krawczyk Franciszek 
Published: September 2021

AbstractOne of the most fundamental issues in academia today is understanding the differences between legitimate and questionable publishing. While decision-makers and managers consider journals indexed in popular citation indexes such as Web of Science or Scopus as legitimate, they use two lists of questionable journals (Beall’s and Cabell’s), one of which has not been updated for a few years, to identify the so-called predatory journals. The main aim of our study is to reveal the contribution of the journals accepted as legitimate by the authorities to the visibility of questionable journals. For this purpose, 65 questionable journals from social sciences and 2338 Web-of-Science-indexed journals that cited these questionable journals were examined in-depth in terms of index coverages, subject categories, impact factors and self-citation patterns. We have analysed 3234 unique cited papers from questionable journals and 5964 unique citing papers (6750 citations of cited papers) from Web of Science journals. We found that 13% of the questionable papers were cited by WoS journals and 37% of the citations were from impact-factor journals. The findings show that neither the impact factor of citing journals nor the size of cited journals is a good predictor of the number of citations to the questionable journals.
Corpus Linguistics in Legal Discourse
Authors: Goźdź-Roszkowski Stanisław 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThere are many different ways in which modern Corpus Linguistics can be used to enrich and broaden our understanding of legal discourse. Based on the central principle of co-occurrence and co-selection in language construction, this paper reviews current applications of Corpus Linguistics in the area of legal discourse focusing on issues ranging from phraseology, variation in legal discourse, legal translation, register and genre perspectives on legal discourse, legal discourse in forensic contexts to evaluative language in judicial settings. It revisits the notion of ‘corpus’ and it highlights the relevance of various types of legal corpora and computer tools in legal linguistic research.
Science Highlights and Final Updates from 17 Years of Total Solar Irradiance Measurements from the SOlar Radiation and Climate Experiment/Total Irradiance Monitor (SORCE/TIM)
Authors: Kopp Greg 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe final version (V.19) of the total solar irradiance data from the SOlar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) Total Irradiance Monitor has been released. This version includes all calibrations updated to the end of the mission and provides irradiance data from 25 February 2003 through 25 February 2020. These final calibrations are presented along with the resulting final data products. An overview of the on-orbit operations timeline is provided as well as the associated changes in the time-dependent uncertainties. Scientific highlights from the instrument are also presented. These include the establishment of a new, lower TSI value; accuracy improvements to other TSI instruments via a new calibration facility; the lowest on-orbit noise (for high sensitivity to solar variability) of any TSI instrument; the best inherent stability of any on-orbit TSI instrument; a lengthy (17-year) measurement record benefitting from these stable, low-noise measurements; the first reported detection of a solar flare in TSI; and observations of two Venus transits and four Mercury transits.