bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Improved single image dehazing methods for resource-constrained platforms
Authors: Yang Gengqian , Evans Adrian N. 
Published: June 2021

AbstractImage dehazing is an increasingly widespread approach to address the degradation of images of the natural environment by low-visibility weather, dust and other phenomena. Advances in autonomous systems and platforms have increased the need for low-complexity, high-performing dehazing techniques. However, while recent learning-based image dehazing approaches have significantly increased the dehazing performance, this has often been at the expense of complexity and hence the use of prior-based approaches persists, despite their lower performance. This paper addresses both these aspects and focuses on single image dehazing, the most practical class of techniques. A new Dark Channel Prior-based single image dehazing algorithm is presented that has an improved atmospheric light estimation method and a low-complexity morphological reconstruction. In addition, a novel, lightweight end-to-end network is proposed, that avoids information loss and significant computational effort by eliminating the pooling and fully connected layers. Qualitative and quantitative evaluations show that our proposed algorithms are competitive with, or outperform, state-of-the-art techniques with significantly lower complexity, demonstrating their suitability for use in resource-constrained platforms.
Low reproducibility of equivocal categories of the Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytology makes the associated risk of malignancy specific to the diagnostic center
Authors: Słowińska-Klencka Dorota , Klencki Mariusz , Duda-Szymańska Joanna , Szwalski Jarosław , Popowicz Bożena 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Purpose
Equivocal categories (III, IV, V) of the Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytology (BSRTC) are characterized by high variability of the estimated risk of malignancy. The aim of the study was to analyze the reproducibility of classification of nodules into an equivocal category and the frequency of malignancy (FoM) observed in such categories.

Methods
Five experienced cytopathologists from three centers (A, B, C) independently performed reclassification of smears obtained from 213 thyroid nodules with equivocal routine cytology and known results of the postoperative histopathological examination.

Results
The interobserver agreement among all cytopathologists was poor, with a Krippendorff’s alpha coefficient equaling 0.34. The intra-center agreement was higher than the inter-center (fair vs poor). Pathologists of the center A classified smears into categories II and III significantly less often and categories IV and V more often than pathologists of centers B and C. The joint FoM of nodules classified into any of categories IV–VI (regarded as an indication for surgery) was different among centers (A: 40.0%, B: 66.7%, C: 80.6%). The FoM of category III nodules with features of nuclear atypia (AUS) in center B and C was two times higher than that of other nodules of category III (FLUS), while in center A the FoM was similar.

Conclusions
The use of published data on the risk of malignancy in nodules of particular BSRTC categories without concern for the uniqueness of the diagnostic center may lead to erroneous conclusions.
Venous Scenario in India
Authors: Khanna Ajay K. , Kumar Sandeep 
Published: June 2021

AbstractVaricose veins, venous thrombosis, and other venous diseases are equally prevalent in India as anywhere else in the world. Scientific and epidemiological studies of venous diseases in India are being made but at a slow pace. It requires to be enhanced. To boost such efforts, the Vascular Society of India came into existence in 1995 but little progress has been made in advancing the speciality and care for venous diseases in India. Though Vascular Society of India also deals with the venous component but to be more specific and emphatic the Venous Association of India came into existence. In April 2007, seven surgeons met to create the organization’s bylaws and registered the Venous Association of India in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, with the aim to promote the research and study of venous disease. These initiatives have recruited many surgeons looking into new vistas of sub or super specialization to join in the folds of Venous Association of India. These efforts have surely shown some results. As, several Indian authors have published books on venous diseases.
Bio-Nanocarriers for Lung Cancer Management: Befriending the Barriers
Authors: Rawal Shruti , Patel Mayur 
Published: June 2021

AbstractLung cancer is a complex thoracic malignancy developing consequential to aberrations in a myriad of molecular and biomolecular signaling pathways. It is one of the most lethal forms of cancers accounting to almost 1.8 million new annual incidences, bearing overall mortality to incidence ratio of 0.87. The dismal prognostic scenario at advanced stages of the disease and metastatic/resistant tumor cell populations stresses the requisite of advanced translational interdisciplinary interventions such as bionanotechnology. This review article deliberates insights and apprehensions on the recent prologue of nanobioengineering and bionanotechnology as an approach for the clinical management of lung cancer. The role of nanobioengineered (bio-nano) tools like bio-nanocarriers and nanobiodevices in secondary prophylaxis, diagnosis, therapeutics, and theranostics for lung cancer management has been discussed. Bioengineered, bioinspired, and biomimetic bio-nanotools of considerate translational value have been reviewed. Perspectives on existent oncostrategies, their critical comparison with bio-nanocarriers, and issues hampering their clinical bench side to bed transformation have also been summarized.
The association between beta-blocker therapy and daytime sleepiness in obstructive sleep apnoea
Authors: Meszaros Martina , Mathioudakis Alexander G. , Xanthoudaki Maria , Sircu Victoria , Nena Evangelia , Vestbo Jørgen , Corlateanu Alexandru , Steiropoulos Paschalis , Bikov Andras 
Published: June 2021

AbstractDaytime sleepiness is a cardinal symptom of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and a well-recognised side effect of beta-blockers, therefore patients with OSA under this treatment may have worse sleepiness. However, the interaction between daytime sleepiness and beta-blockers use has not been thoroughly investigated in patients with OSA before. We analysed the data of 2183 individuals (1852 patients with OSA and 331 snorer controls) from 3 countries (Greece, Hungary and Moldova). Medical history, including medication usage and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) were recorded. Patients and controls were divided into somnolent (ESS ≥ 11) and non-somnolent (ESS < 11) groups, and the association between-blocker use with the somnolent group was investigated with multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for confounders. Sensitivity analyses were performed in each cohort, in the severity subgroups, in patients who did not take statins and in those who had polysomnography as a diagnostic test. There was no relationship between beta-blocker usage and the somnolent OSA (p = 0.24) or control (p = 0.64) groups. These results were similar in sensitivity analyses (all p > 0.05). ESS was related to BMI (ρ = 0.25), total sleep time (ρ = 0.07), AHI (ρ = 0.32), oxygen desaturation index (ρ = 0.33) and minimum oxygen saturation (ρ =  – 0.32, all p < 0.05) in OSA, and was higher in patients with hypertension, diabetes and cerebro/cardiovascular disease and those who took statins (all p < 0.05). In general, beta-blockers are not associated with increased daytime sleepiness in OSA. Thus, the diagnosis of OSA should not discourage initiation of beta-blocker treatment, if it is clinically indicated.
Street context of various demographic groups in their daily mobility
Authors: Salgado Ariel , Li Weixin , Alhasoun Fahad , Caridi Inés , Gonzalez Marta 
Published: June 2021

AbstractWe present an urban science framework to characterize phone users’ exposure to different street context types based on network science, geographical information systems (GIS), daily individual trajectories, and street imagery. We consider street context as the inferred usage of the street, based on its buildings and construction, categorized in nine possible labels. The labels define whether the street is residential, commercial or downtown, throughway or not, and other special categories. We apply the analysis to the City of Boston, considering daily trajectories synthetically generated with a model based on call detail records (CDR) and images from Google Street View. Images are categorized both manually and using artificial intelligence (AI). We focus on the city’s four main racial/ethnic demographic groups (White, Black, Hispanic and Asian), aiming to characterize the differences in what these groups of people see during their daily activities. Based on daily trajectories, we reconstruct most common paths over the street network. We use street demand (number of times a street is included in a trajectory) to detect each group’s most relevant streets and regions. Based on their street demand, we measure the street context distribution for each group. The inclusion of images allows us to quantitatively measure the prevalence of each context and points to qualitative differences on where that context takes place. Other AI methodologies can further exploit these differences. This approach presents the building blocks to further studies that relate mobile devices’ dynamic records with the differences in urban exposure by demographic groups. The addition of AI-based image analysis to street demand can power up the capabilities of urban planning methodologies, compare multiple cities under a unified framework, and reduce the crudeness of GIS-only mobility analysis. Shortening the gap between big data-driven analysis and traditional human classification analysis can help build smarter and more equal cities while reducing the efforts necessary to study a city’s characteristics.
Simple method for identifying interdependencies in service delivery in critical infrastructure networks
Authors: Schweikert A. E. , L’Her G. F. , Deinert M. R. 
Published: June 2021

AbstractCritical infrastructure failures from natural hazard events affect the economic and social well-being of communities. This is particularly true in lower income countries, where infrastructure may be less resistant to natural hazards and disaster recovery is often limited by available resources. The interconnectivity of these systems can strongly affect the services they deliver, and the failure of one infrastructure system can result in cascade failures with wide-reaching consequences. Unfortunately, interconnectivity has been particularly difficult to measure. We present a method for identifying service-oriented interdependencies in interconnected networks. The approach uses well-established methods for network analysis and is demonstrated for healthcare services in the Commonwealth of Dominica, a small island state in the Caribbean. We show that critical links in road networks necessary for healthcare service delivery are important for more than just patient access to a facility, but also on the supply chains that enable the hospitals to function (e.g., water, fuel, medicine). Once identified, the critical links can be overlaid with known hazard vulnerabilities to identify the infrastructure segments of highest priority, based on the risk and consequences of failure. An advantage of the approach presented is that it requires relatively little input data when compared to many network prioritization models and can be run using open-source geospatial data such as OpenStreetMap. The method can be expanded beyond road networks to assess the service-oriented criticality of any infrastructure network.
Oxidative formation of bis-N-methylquinolinone from anti-head-to-head N-methylquinolinone cyclodimer
Authors: Bieniek Nikolai , Haas Christian P. , Tallarek Ulrich , Hampp Norbert 
Published: June 2021

AbstractThe light-driven formation and cleavage of cyclobutane structural motifs resulting from [2 + 2]-pericyclic reactions, as found in thymine and coumarin-type systems, is an important and intensively studied photochemical reaction. Various applications are reported utilizing these systems, among others, in cross-linked polymers, light-triggered drug release, or other technical applications. Herein coumarin is most frequently used as the photoactive group. Quite often, a poor quantum yield for dimerization and cyclobutane-cleavage and a lack of reversibility are described. In this work, we present the identification of a heterogeneous pathway of dimer cleavage found in a rarely studied coumarin analog molecule, the N-methyl-quinolinone (NMQ). The monomer was irradiated in a tube flow-reactor and the reaction process was monitored using online HPLC measurements. We found the formation of a pseudo-equilibrium between monomeric and dimeric NMQ and a continuous rise of a side product via oxidative dimer splitting and proton elimination which was identified as 3,3’-bis-NMQ. Oxidative conversion by singlet oxygen was identified to be the cause of this non-conventional cyclobutane cleavage. The addition of antioxidants suppressing singlet oxygen enables achieving a 100% photochemical conversion from NMQ to the anti-head-to-head-NMQ-dimer. Using dissolved oxygen upon light activation to singlet oxygen limits the reversibility of the photochemical [2 + 2]-cycloaddition and cycloreversion of NMQ and most likely comparable systems. Based on these findings, the development of highly efficient cycloaddition–cycloreversion systems should be enabled.
Formalising trade-offs beyond algorithmic fairness: lessons from ethical philosophy and welfare economics
Authors: Lee Michelle Seng Ah , Floridi Luciano , Singh Jatinder 
Published: June 2021

AbstractThere is growing concern that decision-making informed by machine learning (ML) algorithms may unfairly discriminate based on personal demographic attributes, such as race and gender. Scholars have responded by introducing numerous mathematical definitions of fairness to test the algorithm, many of which are in conflict with one another. However, these reductionist representations of fairness often bear little resemblance to real-life fairness considerations, which in practice are highly contextual. Moreover, fairness metrics tend to be implemented within narrow and targeted fairness toolkits for algorithm assessments that are difficult to integrate into an algorithm’s broader ethical assessment. In this paper, we derive lessons from ethical philosophy and welfare economics as they relate to the contextual factors relevant for fairness. In particular we highlight the debate around the acceptability of particular inequalities and the inextricable links between fairness, welfare and autonomy. We propose Key Ethics Indicators (KEIs) as a way towards providing a more holistic understanding of whether or not an algorithm is aligned to the decision-maker’s ethical values.
Greater adolescent tiredness is related to more emotional arousal during a hyperventilation task: An area under the curve approach
Authors: Campbell Rebecca L. , Cloutier Renee , Bynion Teah Marie , Nguyen Annamarie , Blumenthal Heidemarie , Feldner Matthew T. , Leen‐Feldner Ellen W. 
Published: June 2021

ABSTRACTIntroductionApproximately 36% of adolescents report sleep problems (Crowley et al., 2018). Understanding the relation between sleep and emotional experience is crucial in understanding the high incidence of mental health concerns during adolescence. The current study sought to expand understanding in the area by testing the hypothesis that baseline tiredness ratings would predict greater emotional arousal and negative valence across the course of emotional response elicited by a voluntary hyperventilation procedure.MethodsA community sample of 110 youth (10–18 years; 47.8% girls) provided baseline tiredness ratings and ratings of emotional valence and arousal, 2 min before, immediately after, and 3 min after a hyperventilation task. The area under the curve (AUC) was calculated using the repeated measures of valence and arousal, and correlations between the response curves and baseline tiredness were examined.Results and conclusionsFindings indicated baseline tiredness was positively associated with AUC arousal (r = 0.23), but not valence. This suggests daytime tiredness is associated with the degree of emotional arousal elicited by a psychobiological stressor. By extension, adolescents may experience more arousing emotional reactions when tired, and thus the common sleep deprivation observed during this developmental period may increase risk for mental health problems associated with elevated emotional reactivity.
Training pediatric residents in point-of-care ultrasound
Authors: Jamil Syed Furrukh , Rajendram Rajkumar 
Published: June 2021

Introduction:
The use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCU) is increasing globally. However, owing to the epidemiology of diseases and local management strategies, POCU may not be universally applicable. Before developing a POCU training program, because of limited resources for medical education, it was pivotal to conduct a needs assessment and identify the training barriers.

Methods:
This study used a validated paper questionnaire. The survey instrument was distributed to 120 pediatric residents (male 60, female 60) training at our institution to assess their self-reported level of skill in POCU, and their perceptions with regard to the applicability of POCU, measured with a 5-point Likert scale. The skills deficit was measured by subtracting the self-reported level of skills in lung, car-diac, and abdominal POCU from the perceived applicability of POCU.

Results:
Fifty-nine residents participated, resulting in a response rate of 50 and 48% (n = 29) for the male group, and 50% (n = 30) for the female group. The level of knowledge and proficiency was low. Scanning for free abdominal fluid was deemed the most applicable (mean 4.2 ± SD 1.1); however, the use of POCU to detect consolidation was considered least applicable (mean 2.7 ± SD 1.3). The skills deficit was highest for an abdominal POCU (mean 2.4 ± SD 1.6) and lowest for lung ultrasound (mean 1.4 ± SD 1.6). Although the majority (n = 48) agreed that this skill was essential, 3 (5%) had no interest, and 39% (n = 23) indicated a lack of time to acquire the skill.

Conclusions:
Though pediatric residents in Saudi Arabia agree that POCU is an essential skill, large skill deficits exist, supporting the necessity to provide POCU training. However, there are several barriers to overcome to achieve this.
First case of mechanical compression by methylprednisolone crystals following transforaminal lumbar nerve root block for left sciatic pain leading to hyperesthesia and progressive weakness: A case report
Authors: Moghamis Isam Sami , El Ansari Walid , Abdelsalam Salahuddeen , Baco Abdul Moeen 
Published: June 2021

ABSTRACT

Introduction:
Lumbosacral nerve root blocks and epidural corticosteroid injections are commonly used for short-term pain relief among patients with degenerative spinal disc disease. Serious complications following these injections are rare, and there are only a few published papers on this subject. It is important that spine surgeons are aware of the potential complications, and the possible factors that contribute to such complications.

Presentation of case:
32-year-old Lebanese female presented with progressive weakness and hyperesthesia following a transforaminal lumbar nerve root corticosteroid particulate injection. The case was managed by surgical lumbar decompression.

Discussion:
Neurological complications following transforaminal/selective nerve root block are the most feared of all possible associated complications with epidurals blocks. It has been hypothesized that such a complication is mainly due to a spinal cord infarct from corticosteroid crystal. However, there are no previous reports that such progressive weakness and hyperesthesia could be due to the mechanical compression caused by corticosteroid particulate crystals themselves as confirmed in the current case.

Conclusions:
Progressive weakness and hyperesthesia following nerve root block could be due to the effect of the corticosteroid particles used in the injectate. Such complications could be simply avoided by the use of more dilutional volume of the local anaesthetic agent and/or using a non-particulate corticosteroid in order to avoid the adherence of the corticosteroid crystals to the nerve root sheath. This is the first case of post-nerve root block neurological complications due to mechanical compression caused by corticosteroid particulate crystals.

Highlights
A Distinct Atmospheric Mode for California Precipitation
Authors: Chen Di , Norris Jesse , Goldenson Naomi , Thackeray Chad , Hall Alex 
Published: June 2021

AbstractThe hydrologic cycle in California is strongly influenced by wet‐season (November–April) precipitation. Here, we demonstrate the existence of an influential mode of North Pacific atmospheric pressure variability that regulates wet‐season precipitation variability over both northern and southern California. This mode, named as the “California precipitation mode” (CPM), is statistically distinct from other well‐known modes of pressure variability such as the Pacific‐North American pattern. In addition to controlling wet‐season mean precipitation, positive days of the CPM coincide with up to 90% of the extreme (>99th percentile) precipitation days and 76% of detected atmospheric rivers (ARs) days, while the negative days correspond with 60% of the dry days. CMIP6 models capture the CPM remarkably well, including its statistical separation from the other well‐known modes of pressure variability. The models also reproduce the CPM's strong association with California wet‐season precipitation, giving confidence in the models’ dynamics relating to regional hydrologic extremes. However, the models also exhibit biases in regional hydrologic extremes. The CPM is a useful way to understand the origins of those biases and select the more credible models for further analysis: Models with unrealistically strong gradients in the CPM pressure pattern generally oversimulate larger wet extremes and produce excessively long dry intervals in the historical period. Thus the hydrologic biases can be traced to the particular aspects of North Pacific atmospheric dynamics.