bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Combined Effects of Multiple Invasive Species on the Persistence of Experimental Populations of Imperiled Pahrump Poolfish
Authors: Paulson Brandon L. , Stockwell Craig A. 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Many ecosystems have been invaded by more than one non-native species, but research evaluating the combined effects of multiple invasive species has been limited. In the southwest USA, many aquatic systems have been invaded by multiple species such as non-native crayfish and non-native fishes. We used experimental mesocosms to test individual and combined effects of invasive Red Swamp Crayfish, Procambarus clarkii , and Western Mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis , on endangered Pahrump Poolfish, Empetrichthys latos. We found that crayfish alone reduced adult poolfish survival, however crayfish did not limit production of poolfish juveniles. By contrast, mosquitofish had no effect on survival of poolfish adults, but significantly reduced recruitment of juveniles. When both crayfish and mosquitofish were present, both adult survival and juvenile production were significantly decreased. These findings were consistent with the recent decline of a wild poolfish population from over 10,000 fish to less than 1,000 poolfish following the establishment of crayfish and mosquitofish. This study demonstrates that conservation management of the Pahrump Poolfish must have active management and removal of invasive species, otherwise extirpation and eventually extinction will likely occur and provides an example for the compounding effects of multiple invasive species for other study systems.
Coupling of dynamic hydrological response units and SWAT-MODFLOW to model the impact of vegetation change on hydrological processes in an arid endorheic river watershed
Authors: Jin Xin , Jin Yanxiang 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Vegetation change in arid areas may lead to the redistribution of regional water resources, which can intensify the competition between ecosystems and humans for water resources. Thus, it is necessary to understand the impact of vegetation change on hydrological processes in arid areas. We aimed to accurately model the impact of vegetation change on hydrological processes in an arid endorheic river watershed undergoing revegetation. The middle and lower reaches of the Bayin River basin, China were investigated because this is an area of frequent surface water–groundwater interactions and evident revegetation. A LU-SWAT-MODFLOW model was developed by integrating dynamic hydrological response units with a coupled SWAT-MODFLOW model, which can reflect actual land cover changes in the basin. The results showed that the LU-SWAT-MODFLOW model outperformed the original SWAT-MODFLOW model in simulating human activity impact as well as the leaf area index, evapotranspiration, and groundwater table depth. After regional revegetation, evapotranspiration in different sub-basins increased by 1.5 mm per month and by 6 mm per year. The groundwater recharge increased by 1.27 mm on average per month and 14.02 mm on average per year. Irrigation for the recovered vegetation strongly affected the groundwater recharge. In addition, the direction and amount of surface water–groundwater exchange considerably changed in areas where revegetation involved converting low-coverage grassland and bare land to forestland. In areas where revegetation involved converting farmland to forestland, the transition had a weak effect on the direction and amount of surface water–groundwater exchange.
Hourly soil temperature prediction using integrated machine learning methods, GLUE uncertainty analysis, Taguchi search, and wavelet coherence analysis
Authors: Seifi Akram , Ehteram Mohammad , Nayebloei Fatemeh , Soroush Fatemeh , Gharabaghi Bahram , Haghighi Ali Torabi 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
In this study, hourly Ts variations at 5, 10, and 30 cm soil depth were investigated and predicted for an arid site (Sirjan) and a semi-humid site (Sanandaj) in Iran. Standalone machine learning models (adaptive neuron fuzzy interface system (ANFIS), support vector machine model (SVM), radial basis function neural network (RBFNN), and multilayer perceptron (MLP)) were hybridized with four optimization algorithms (sunflower optimization (SFO), firefly algorithm (FFA), salp swarm algorithm (SSA), particle swarm optimization (PSO)) to improve prediction accuracy and reduce uncertainty. Uncertainty analysis was performed using generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE), while wavelet coherence was used to assess interactions between Ts and meteorological parameters. For the arid site, ANFIS-SFO (RMSE = 1.18oC, MAE = 1.05oC, NSE = 0.93, PBIAS = 7%, and R2 = 0.9998) produced the most accurate performance at 5 cm soil depth. At best, hybridization with SFO (ANFIS-SFO, MLP-SFO, RBFNN-SFO, SVM-SFO) decreased RMSE by 5.6, 18, 18.3, and 18.18 % compared with the respective standalone model. At the semi-humid site, all integrated models showed most accurate performance at 10 cm soil depth, with RMSE for the best model (ANFIS-SFO) increasing by 10.5%, and MAE by 10.1%, from 10 to 30 cm depth. GLUE analysis confirmed that integrating optimization algorithms with machine learning models decreased the uncertainty in Ts predictions. Wavelet coherence analysis demonstrated that air temperature, relative humidity, and solar radiation, but not wind speed, had high coherence with Ts at different soil depths at both sites, and meteorological parameters mostly influenced Ts in upper soil layers.
Efficient photocatalytic degradation of aniline blue under solar irradiation by ternary cobalt ferrite / graphitic carbon nitride / bentonite nanocomposite.
Authors: Thakurata Debasish Guha , Das Krishna Chandra , Dhar Siddhartha Sankar 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
The current research describes the synthesis, characterization, and application of CoFe2O4/g-C3N4/Bentonite as a novel nanocomposite for the efficient degradation of aniline blue under solar irradiation. Powder XRD, TIR, SEM, TEM, VSM, and UV-DRS were used to describe the formation and morphology of the composite. The composite has been used as a heterogeneous photo catalyst to degrade aniline blue in the presence of H2O2. In the presence of H2O2 in solar radiation, it was possible to degrade 88.5 % of 10 ppm aniline blue solution just in 50 minutes using 50 mg of the composite. The improvement in photodegradation rate in the existence of H2O2 was attributed to the advanced oxidation process (AOP) mechanism of Photo Fenton involving the production of reactive hydroxyl and perhydroxyl radicals. The degradation was found to follow 1st order kinetics with high regression coefficient with elevated rate constant.
Adrenal Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy: The Effects of a Full and Empty Stomach on Radiation Dose to Organs at Risk
Authors: Tanaka Osamu , Taniguchi Takuya , Ono Kousei , Nakaya Shuto , Kiryu Takuji , Makita Chiyoko , Matsuo Masayuki 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
BackgroundStereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) has been reported to be curative in the treatment of oligometastases to the adrenal glands. However, the adrenals are surrounded by radiation-sensitive organs. We performed an Organ at Risk (OAR) analysis for SBRT to the left adrenal gland based on gastric state.Patients and MethodsTwenty random stomachs were divided into “empty” or “full” groups of 10 each based on size. The PTV dose was 54 Gy/6 fx and D 95 coverage of PTV(CTV) (the dose to 95% of the PTV volume). ResultsThe gastric OAR dose in the empty group was significantly lower than the full group. The OAR dose to the left kidney in the empty group was significantly higher than in the full group.ConclusionThe smaller the stomach size, the lower the dose to the stomach. It is therefore better to perform SBRT on patients with an empty stomach.
Natural and Manmade (137Cs) Radioisotopes In Holocene Sequnce of The Sheresrtobitovsky Raised Bog In The Barabinsk Forest Steppe (West Siberia)
Authors: Leonova Galina A. , Melgunov Michael S. , Mezina Ksenia A. , Preis Yulia I. , Maltsev Anton E. , Shavekin Alexei S. , Rubanov Maxim V. 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
The specific activities of natural (7Be, 210Pb) and manmade (137Cs) radioisotopes in a suspended matter of snow water have been determined and the density of their fallouts on the surface of the Sherstobitovsky and Ubinsky raised bogs in the Barabinsk forest-steppe has been assessed at the points of snow sampling during winter period. It has been established that the main concentrator of 7Be radioisotope is a fine fraction of suspended matter (particle size < 0.45 µm) consisting of colloid and dissolved component, 210Pbatm is a coarse-grain fraction composed of dust particles (> 3 µm in size). As an example of the vertical profile of the Sherstobitosky peat bog, the first data on the distribution of natural (238U, 210Pb, 226Ra, and 40K) and manmade (137Cs) radioisotopes have been obtained for raised bogs of the forest-steppe zone in Western Siberia. The pattern for 226Ra and 238U in the nature of their vertical distribution is the same that is traced for 137Cs and 40K. According to our assumption, some increase in activities of these radionuclides is observed in horizons 6–12 cm, as well as in the lower part of the sequence (25–35 cm) is due to the same processes. Migration of 137Cs deep down the peat deposit is largely governed by the magnitude of peat water level fluctuations in both the seasonal and long-term cycle and it is closely related to the surface microrelief of the bog surface. Alongside this, 137Cs, being geochemical analog of the biophilic 40K, is absorbed by plant roots from underlying peat horizons during the dry season of a year. An additional contribution to the high activity of 137Cs in the upper horizons is probably conditioned by input of 137Cs to the surface of Sherstobitosky peat bog involved into atmosphere as a result of peat and forest fires.
Independent, But Not Synergistic, Effects of Landscape Structure And Climate Drive Pollination of A Tropical Plant, Heliconia Tortuosa
Authors: Dowd Claire E. , Leimberger Kara G. , Hadley Adam S. , Frey Sarah J.K. , Betts Matthew G. 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Context Land-cover and climate change are predicted to affect pollination and plant reproduction but few studies have tested how these stressors interact to drive pollination success.Objectives Using a 9-year dataset we tested whether climate interacts synergistically with forest loss and fragmentation to affect pollination of a tropical understory herb, Heliconia tortuosa. We hypothesized that hot and/or dry conditions might amplify effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, leading to declines in plant reproduction.Methods We collected data on pollen tubes, fruits and seeds of H. tortuosa in a mensurative experiment representing gradients in forest amount and patch size (N=40 focal-patch landscapes). We modeled these reproductive metrics as a function of landscape composition, configuration, precipitation, temperature, and statistical interactions among these variables.Results We found little support for synergistic landscape and climate effects. However, probability of fruit production decreased in wet years, and increased in large patches embedded in more contiguous forest landscapes. Counterintuitively, small patches in heavily deforested landscapes also exhibited a high probability of fruit – perhaps due to constraints on hummingbird movement. Amount of H. tortuosa fruit decreased in wet years and in deforested landscapes. Conclusion Although we did not detect synergistic effects, climate and landscape structure do have independent impacts on plant reproduction. Unfortunately, the regional climate is predicted to become wetter and the forest remains fragmented, with potential negative consequences for Heliconia reproduction. Decline in this common species is likely to have cascading consequences for hummingbird pollinators, and subsequently other hummingbird dependent plant species.
Depression, Hope and Social support Among Older People with Cancer: A Comparison of Muslim Palestinian and Jewish Israeli Cancer Patients
Authors: Goldzweig Gil , Baider Lea , Jacobs Jeremy M. , Ghrayeb Ibtisam M , Sapir Eli , Rottenberg Yakir 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Objectives: Studies concerning the psychosocial aspects of cancer diagnosis and treatment among older Muslim patients are scarce. The goal of this research was to compare depression, hope, and perceived social support between older Muslim Palestinians and Jewish Israelis diagnosed with cancer. Design: The study sample included 149 Muslim Palestinian and 122 Jewish Israeli cancer patients. Outcome measures: Self-administered measures of depression (5-Item Geriatric Depression Scale) and perceived social support (Cancer Perceived Agents of Social Support Questionnaire). Hope was measured via Snyder’s Adult Hope Scale and 6 specific hope items. Results: General hope was significantly higher among Muslim patients, specific hope items were significantly higher among Jewish patients, and depression was significantly higher among Muslim patients. Hope was the most significant predictor of depression in both samples, particularly among Jewish patients, with higher hope relating to lower depression. Conclusion: Healthcare providers should show cultural sensitivity and incorporate the perspectives of older cancer patients and their families in order to improve patients’ psychological well-being. The inclusion of the concept and language of hope within the therapeutic dialogue may improve psychological wellbeing and synchronize the needs and expectations of patients, caregivers, and health care professionals, resulting in more equitable and value-oriented care.
Influence of Selected Environmental Parameters on Rove Beetle (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) Communities in Central European Floodplain Forests
Authors: Stašiov Slavomír , Litavský Juraj , Majzlan Oto , Svitok Marek , Fedor Peter 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Wetlands and especially floodplain forests belong to the most endangered ecosystems in Europe, characterized by complex dynamics of flood and dry periods and providing specific irreplaceable habitats for many organisms, including bioindicators. Many rove beetle species, for instance, are well-known detectors in monitoring ecological change, however, their use in environmental assessment requires to expand the insufficient knowledge on ecological environmental particularities of their assemblages. Therefore, we compared the rove beetle communities in eight habitats of floodplain forests from 2015 to 2016. Staphylinids were sampled by pitfall trapping. We compared the rove beetle taxocoenoses in the floodplain forests and their ecotones alongside three rivers (Danube, Tisa and Begej). We evaluated the impact of plant diversity and cover of vegetation layers, area, circumference and age of forest stands, distance to the forest edge, thickness of the litter layer, physical and chemical properties of soil and leaf litter (conductivity, pH, P, N, H, C) and anthropogenic impact on structure of rove beetle communities. We recorded significant interactions between total dynamic activity of rove beetles and number of plant species in shrub vegetation layer. Species richness was significantly positively correlated with number of plant species in shrub vegetation layer and soil pH, and negatively with relative H content of soil. We did not find any significant correlation between Shannon diversity, but evenness was negatively linked with species richness of plant communities in shrub layer.
Global water retention in forest canopy, litter, and soil layers and its controlling factors
Authors: Liu Yexuan , Shi Wenjiao , Tao Fulu , Shi Xiaoli 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Forest ecosystems play a vital role in the earth’s hydrological process, and precipitation intercepted by forests accounts for more than a quarter of the water in the terrestrial hydrologic cycle. However, water retention in the three layers (canopy, litter, and soil) of forest ecosystems has not yet been thoroughly investigated on a global scale. Here, we investigate the global pattern of forest water retention capacity (WRC) and its controlling environmental factors based on 982 observations of 21 controlling factors in the three forest layers, mainly from 1990 to 2018. The results show that global WRC varies among the different forest types and climatic zones with a mean of 456.71 mm, while the average total water storage is 22,662.47 km3 in forest ecosystems. Climatic variables are the leading factors contributing to the variations in forest WRC, followed by forest structure factors, soil properties, terrain factors, and litter factors. This study advances our understanding of the mechanisms underlying large-scale variations in forest WRC in different climate zones and forest types. The findings demonstrate that controlling factors should be considered when developing policy for regions with important ecological functions. They also provide a benchmark to improve ecohydrological models for simulating global WRC.
Green Credit, Green Reputation and Corporate Financial Performance: Evidence From China
Authors: Xi Bin , Wang Yaran , Yang Mingqian 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Using green credit to guide the direction of funds is very important for improving the current social environment and enhancing economic development quality. Through its differential pricing features, evidence suggests that green credit has limited the flow of capital to highly polluting and high emission ("two high") industries, allowing more capital to flow to green industries and improving the quality of environmental and economic development. The article combines green credit and the performance of listed banks in a theoretical and empirical study to explore the intrinsic correlation between them and to find the intrinsic motivation for banks to implement green credit, which effectively improves social welfare and promotes sustainable economic development. The article first reviews the current status of green credit research and theories related to green development in China and other countries, and then analyses the dynamics of green credit development, value creation, as well as the mechanisms by which green credit improves the financial performance of listed banks. Finally, the article explores the impact of green credit on the financial performance of listed banks through empirical analysis. Here we have established a panel data model to sort out and analyze the relevant data of 19 listed Banks in China from 2008 to 2017 to study the impact of green credit on listed banks' financial performance. This study has shown that the green credit ratio, as an indicator of the amount of green credit implemented by listed banks, will positively impact financial performance. But the impact of the current period and the one-period lag is more significant, while the effect of the two-period lag is not significant. The second major finding was that when green reputation is used as an indicator to measure the quality of green credit implementation of listed banks, listed banks' financial performance can be significantly improved. Besides, this study has also found that green credit implementation generally has different impacts on different types of banks.
A Price-Aware Congestion Control Protocol for Cloud Services
Authors: sun xiaocui , Wang Zhijun , Wu Yunxiang , Che Hao , Jiang Hong 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
In current infrastructure-as-a service (IaaS) cloud services, customers are charged for the usage of computing/storage resources only, but not the network resource. The difficulty lies in the fact that it is nontrivial to allocate network resource to individual customers effectively, especially for short-lived flows, in terms of both performance and cost, due to highly dynamic environments by flows generated by all customers. To tackle this challenge, in this paper, we propose an end-to-end Price-Aware Congestion Control Protocol (PACCP) for cloud services. PACCP is a network utility maximization (NUM) based optimal congestion control protocol. It supports three different classes of services (CoSes), i.e., best effort service (BE), differentiated service (DS), and minimum rate guaranteed (MRG) service. In PACCP, the desired CoS or rate allocation for a given flow is enabled by properly setting a pair of control parameters, i.e., a minimum guaranteed rate and a utility weight, which in turn, determines the price paid by the user of the flow. Two pricing models, i.e., a coarse-grained VM-Based Pricing model (VBP) and a fine-grained Flow-Based Pricing model (FBP), are proposed. The optimality of PACCP is verified by both large scale simulation and small testbed implementation. The price-performance consistency of PACCP are evaluated using real datacenter workloads. The results demonstrate that PACCP provides minimum rate guarantee, high bandwidth utilization and fair rate allocation, commensurate with the pricing models.
Agile Attitude Maneuvers with Active Vibration-suppression for Flexible-spacecraft
Authors: Jianqiao Zhang , Kong Xianglong , Liu Chuang , Deng Qing 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
This paper addresses the agile attitude stabilization maneuver control of flexible-spacecraft using control moment gyros (CMGs) in the absence of modal information. Here, piezoelectric actuators are employed to actively suppress the vibration of flexible appendages. Both the attitude dynamics and the proposed robust controller are globally developed on the Special Orthogonal Group SO(3), avoiding ambiguities and singularities associated with other attitude representations. More specifically, an observer is first designed to estimate the modal information of vibration. A robust control law is developed by synthesizing a proportional derivative (PD) controller, an adaptive sliding mode controller, and an active vibration-suppression controller, which use the information of the estimated structural modes. The stability of the closed-loop system is proved using Lyapunov stability theory. Finally, numerical examples are performed to show the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Impaired executive functions predict repetitive behaviors in toddlers under 36 months old with autism spectrum disorder symptoms
Authors: Sadeghi Saeid , Pouretemad Hamid Reza , Badv Reza Shervin 
Published: April 2021

Abstract
Background: Executive Functions (EFs) deficit in Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been mainly investigated, while less is known about the EFs in toddlers. The study aimed was to investigate the relationship between EFs deficits and repetitive and restricted behaviors (RRBs) in toddlers with ASD symptoms. Finally, we examined whether EFs deficits were predictive of RRBs.Method: Cross-sectional data were collected from mothers of forty-five toddlers under 36 months old. The modified checklist for autism in toddlers (M-CHAT). The Gilliam autism rating scale (GARS-2), the behavior rating inventory of executive functioning-preschool version (BRIEF-P), and repetitive behavior scale- revised (RBS-R) administered to mothers.Findings: We found significant associations between parent-reported executive functions problems and (1) stereotyped behaviors, (2) self-injurious behaviors, (3) ritualistic behaviors, (4) sameness behaviors, (5) restricted behaviors, (6) compulsive behaviors, and (7) repetitive behaviors total score. There was a lack of association between M-CHAT and social interactions deficits of GARS-2 and the repetitive behaviors total score. Increases in the degree of EFs deficits predicted increments in repetitive behaviors.Discussion: These results support a link between executive disfunction and RRBs. Future research on RRBs in ASD may benefit from focusing on specific executive functioning abilities rather than general categories.