bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Measurement of species associations in mixed‐species bird flocks across environmental and human disturbance gradients
Authors: Mammides Christos , Chen Jin , Goodale Uromi M. , Kotagama Sarath W. , Goodale Eben 
Published: July 2018

AbstractIn a changing world, it is important to understand how species interactions, such as those among species in mixed‐species animal groups, are impacted by human activity. New techniques for measuring associations, in particular social networks and null simulations, have been applied to mixed‐species group analyses. Unanswered questions include: (1) How do these methods compare to each other and to the traditional frequency table approach? (2) How similar are associations for the same pair of species in different habitats, such those with different disturbance histories or at different altitudes? (3) What traits of species influence these association strengths? Using data from an intensive study of mixed‐species bird flocks in Sri Lanka, we used Mantel tests to compare associations calculated through three methods: the phi coefficient, social networks, and null simulations. Results from the three methods varied (0.53 < r < 0.75), but converged when out‐of‐flock data were added to the phi coefficient and social network methods (0.75 < r < 0.94). Correlations between the associations in different habitats were uniformly low (all <0.50) across all methods. These results, when combined with the fact that only a small percentage of the associations were statistically significant (9–14%, depending on the method used), suggest that on average, birds may not have strong preferences for other species in flocks. The trait analysis, conducted using the Multiple Regression Quadratic Assignment Procedure found that species that are more similar to each other in their body mass and diet had higher association strengths. This result was similar to what has been found before in global meta‐analyses; however, contrary to earlier reports, in this study association strength increased with increasing phylogenetic distance. The strength of these results decreased when non‐statistically significant species associations were included in these analyses or out‐of‐flock data were excluded, again emphasizing that the method of calculating species associations can influence conclusions. Nevertheless, it is clear that species associations in avian mixed‐species groups are not greatly consistent across natural or anthropogenic gradients, although they are influenced to a certain extent by similarities in species traits, especially for species that show statistically significant associations.
A study of indoor VLC system based on TLS receiver
Authors: Niaz Muhammad Tabish , Imdad Fatima , Mehmood Kashif , Kim Hyung Seok 
Published: July 2018

AbstractIn this paper, the effect of different types of filters on the performance of a total least square–based receiver for a visible light communication system is studied. In the literature, the most common type of filter that is used is a matched filter. This is considered to be an optimal filter and it is commonly available. In the computationally limited environment, where there are not enough resources to match the needs of an optimal filter such as matched filter, this paper investigates the use of other potential filters such as Butterworth, elliptical, and Chebyshev filters. This paper also investigates the effect of choosing a suitable transmission band to countermeasure the effects of noise from artificial light sources and sun. The proposed system is analyzed on the parameter of bit error rate.
Big data‐driven machine learning‐enabled traffic flow prediction
Authors: Kong Fanhui , Li Jian , Jiang Bin , Zhang Tianyuan , Song Houbing 
Published: July 2018

AbstractReal‐time effective traffic flow big data prediction network has important application significance. Over the past few years, traffic flow data have been exploding and we have entered the big data era. The key challenge of traffic flow prediction network is how to construct an adaptive model relying on historical data. Existing big data‐driven traffic flow prediction networking approaches mainly use shallow learning, and there are unsatisfying for many realistic applications, which inspire us to rethink the traffic flow big data prediction problem with deep learning. In this paper, we propose a novel prediction approach based on machine learning. In addition to the minimum prediction error as the goal, we present the long short‐term memory model, which is a typical machine learning algorithm with deep learning network. This method is applied into the real‐world traffic big data from performance measurement system. Experimental results show that the proposed machine learning algorithm has more applicability and higher performance, compared with shallow machine learning prediction network.
Electrochemical Characterization of Pre‐conditioning Process of Electrospun Nanofiber Electrodes in Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells
Authors: Si D. , Zhang S. , Huang J. , Wang C. , Liu Y. , Zhang J. 
Published: July 2018

AbstractStructure innovation and optimization of polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) catalyst layers is instrumental in improving catalyst utilization and effectiveness. Electrospinning technique has been recently used to fabricate nanofiber electrodes for PEFCs with improved performance compared to electrosprayed electrodes. However, the origins for the performance improvement are yet poorly understood. This study examined the evolution of the electrochemically active surface area (ECSA) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) during the pre‐conditioning process, and compared the performance of electrospun nanofiber electrodes with electrosprayed electrodes within a wide range of operating conditions. ECSA increases, and both mass transfer resistance and charge transfer resistance decrease monotonically during the pre‐conditioning process of electrospun nanofiber electrodes. Such effects are attributed to the dissolution of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and the ensuing change of the interface between Pt and the ionomer. After pre‐conditioning, the electrospun nanofiber electrodes outperformed the electrosprayed electrodes with the same Pt‐loadings at 80 °C, whereas the electrosprayed electrodes have higher cell voltages at high current densities at 60 °C and 70 °C in high relative humidity (RH) range. The change in the relative performance of the two types of electrodes is attributed to the competing effects of electrode thickness and pore sizes on cathode gas transport.
Wind induced impacts on hypolimnetic temperature and thermal structure of Candlewood Lake (Connecticut, U.S.A.) from 1985–2015
Authors: Siver Peter A. , Marsicano Laurence J. , Lott Anne‐Marie , Wagener Stephen , Morris Nate 
Published: July 2018

Climate change has affected freshwater lakes in many ways, including shifts in thermal structure, stability, ice cover, annual mixing regimes and length of the growing season, all of which impact ecosystem structure and function. We examine the impacts climate variables, especially wind speed, had on water temperature and thermal stratification at three sites in Candlewood Lake (Connecticut, U.S.A.) between 1985 and 2015. Despite the lack of regional time‐related trends in air temperature or precipitation over the 31 year period, there was a significant decline in wind speed during spring and summer months, with a mean decline of 31% over the study period. Even though a wide range in mean July epilimnetic temperature (22.8–28.2°C) was observed, there was no trend over time. In contrast, a significant cooling trend was recorded for the hypolimnion that was highly correlated with the declining wind speed. Decreasing wind speed was also correlated with an increase in the strength of the thermocline estimated from maximum RTRM values. Despite the lack of a warming trend in surface waters over the entire study period, the strength of summer thermal stability estimated using total RTRM scores was highly correlated with epilimnetic temperature. The potential consequences of declining wind speed, a cooling hypolimnion, and a stronger thermocline are discussed.
Hospice use and end‐of‐life care among older patients with esophageal cancer
Authors: Tramontano Angela C. , Nipp Ryan , Kong Chung Yin , Yerramilli Divya , Gainor Justin F. , Hur Chin 
Published: July 2018

AbstractBackgroundHospice and end‐of‐life health care utilization among patients with esophageal cancer are understudied. We used the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)‐Medicare linked database to analyze hospice use and end‐of‐life treatment patterns.MethodsWe included patients diagnosed with esophageal adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma between 2000 and 2011 and who had died by December 31, 2013. We evaluated patterns of hospice enrollment, chemotherapy receipt, radiation receipt, acute care hospitalizations, and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions at end of life. We used multivariate logistic regression to evaluate possible associations with hospice use, late ICU admission, and late chemotherapy receipt.ResultsOur study included 6449 patients; 3597 (55.8%) enrolled in hospice. Among hospice enrolled patients, 31.4% enrolled in the last 7 days of life. Hospice enrollment increased over time, from 43.2% in 2000 to 59.6% in 2013. Patients who were older, female, with stage IV disease, or those with higher socioeconomic status were more likely to enroll in hospice. Among all patients, 19.1% had an ICU admission within the last 30 days and 4.6% received chemotherapy within the last 14 days of life. Those who were Black or Asian (compared to White), married, or had a comorbidity score >1 were more likely to have a late ICU admission. Males and younger patients were more likely to receive chemotherapy at end of life.ConclusionHospice enrollment rates among patients with esophageal cancer have increased over time; however, a significant percentage of patients enrolls near the end of life. Further research is needed to improve understanding of how end‐of‐life care decisions for these patients are made.
Quantitative comparison of river inflows to a rapidly expanding lake in central Tibetan Plateau
Authors: Ding Jie , Zhang Yinsheng , Guo Yanhong , Ma Ning 
Published: July 2018

AbstractThe recent rapid expansion of inland lakes on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) are a good indicator of the consequences of climate change. Quantifying the hydrological cycle of the lake basin is fundamentally important to understand the causes of lake growth. However, the hydrological processes of the TP interior are very complex and difficult to investigate because of the lack of observations. This is especially true for estimating the lake changes when run‐off inflows are affected by small lakes located in the flow routes within drainage areas. We used an integrated hydrological model, in combination with glacier melt and lake retention models, to analyse the run‐off inflows to Lake Siling Co, the largest endorheic lake in Tibet. It includes four subdrainage basins: Zhajiazangbu, Zhagenzangbu, Alizangbu, and Boquzangbu. Lake Siling Co was characterized by considerable increases during warm season from 1981 to 2012, due to the increased run‐off from Zhajiazangbu accounting for about 51–62% of the total run‐off inflows. Moreover, the dramatic increases exhibited during cold seasons were related to the increased retention water released from the small lakes within Zhagenzangbu and Alizangbu. Of the studied subdrainage basins, Boquzangbu contributed the least during both warm and cold seasons. On average, the annual amount of evaporation from lakes within the drainage area was about 2 times greater than that of glacier melt run‐off. Our results suggest that the retention effects of lakes on river inflows should receive more attention, because understanding these effects is potentially crucial to improved understanding of lake variations in the TP.
Structural alerts for the identification of bioaccumulative compounds
Authors: Valsecchi Cecile , Grisoni Francesca , Consonni Viviana , Ballabio Davide 
Published: July 2018

Abstract

Legislators have included bioaccumulation in the evaluation of chemicals in the framework of the European Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation. REACH requires information on the bioconcentration factor (BCF), which is a parameter for assessing bioaccumulation and encourages the use of a weight-of-evidence approach, including predictions from quantitative structure–activity relationships (QSARs). This study presents a novel approach, based on structural alerts, to be used as a decision-support system for the identification of substances with bioaccumulation potential. In a regulatory framework, these alerts can be integrated with other sources of information, such as experimental and in silico data, to reduce the uncertainty of the assessment, thereby supporting a weight-of-evidence approach. Moreover, the identified alerts have a direct connection with relevant structural features, thus fostering the applicability and interpretability of the approach. The structural alerts were identified on 779 chemicals annotated for their fish BCF, and the approach was then validated on 278 external molecules. The developed decision-support system allowed identification of 77% of bioaccumulative chemicals and was competitive with more complex QSAR models used in regulatory assessments. The approach is implemented in an easy-to-use workflow, provided free of charge. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2019;15:19–28. © 2018 SETAC
Childbirth experiences related to obstetric violence in public health units in Quito, Ecuador
Authors: Brandão Thais , Cañadas Sofía , Galvis Alejandro , de los Ríos María Moreno , Meijer Magriet , Falcon Kirsten 
Published: July 2018

AbstractObjectiveTo explore women's experiences of obstetric violence related to childbirth in Ecuador.MethodsThe present cross‐sectional descriptive study combined qualitative and quantitative elements of women's childbirth experience in Quito, Ecuador, between July 1, 2016, and July 1, 2017. Women who delivered in public health units providing different levels of care completed a survey of 32 questions, divided into six dimensions of obstetric violence.ResultsOverall, 388 women completed the survey, of whom 259 (66.8%) delivered vaginally and 129 (33.2%) delivered by cesarean. Among 120 women who delivered for the first time, 62 (51.7%) had an episiotomy. At the second stage of labor, uterine fundus pressure (Kristeller maneuver) was performed for 49 (19.4%) of 252 women. Overall, 196 (50.5%) women reported that they were not allowed to engage in early attachment, and 135 (34.8%) reported that they did not receive support for the initiation of breastfeeding.ConclusionVarious forms of obstetric violence are occurring in the public health services of Quito, despite World Health Organization recognition of the need for perinatal care at the highest level. Programs designed to prevent and diminish obstetric violence are urgently required.
Detoxification and methane production kinetics from three‐phase olive mill wastewater using Fenton's reagent followed by anaerobic digestion
Authors: Bampalioutas Konstantinos , Vlysidis Anestis , Lyberatos Gerasimos , Vlyssides Apostolos 
Published: July 2018

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe implementation of an integrated treatment scheme consisting of an oxidation and an anaerobic digestion (AD) process was investigated at laboratory scale for the detoxification of olive mill wastewaters (OMWW) and their utilization for energy production. Initially, a detoxification step was implemented for oxidizing the OMWW in a batch‐stirred reactor with Fenton's reagent. Subsequently, the pretreated OMWW was fed to an anaerobic digester containing active sludge in order to determine its suitability for further biological treatment and biogas production.RESULTSThe kinetics of the two processes were examined for different initial conditions by varying the most important parameters: the initial concentrations of H2O2 and FeSO4.7H2O and the temperature of the oxidation process while the initial pH was kept constant. Increasing the initial concentrations of H2O2 and FeSO4.7H2O from 1 to 5 g L−1 and temperature from 20 to 35 °C, led to increased total phenolic content (TPC) removal (88.8%) and TOC degradation (35.4%) in the chemical oxidation process and an increased pseudo‐first‐order constant value (kAD = 0.718 d−1) in the AD process. The optimum kAD value corresponded to a biomethane production of 20.1 L CH4 / L pretreated OMWW. A modified pseudo‐first order model was selected to describe the conducted experiments.CONCLUSIONThe combination of Fenton's oxidation together with AD is an effective method for treating three‐phase OMWW as the TPC is first significantly decreased and then substrate biodegradability is enhanced as the proposed pretreatment methodology increases considerably the rate of AD. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry
Doxorubicin‐induced cardiomyocyte toxicity – protective effects of endothelial cells in a tri‐culture model system
Authors: Alias Eliesmaziah , Parikh Vijay , Hidalgo‐Bastida Araida , Wilkinson Malcolm , Davidge Kelly S. , Gibson Tim , Sharp Duncan , Shakur Rameen , Azzawi May 
Published: July 2018

AbstractDoxorubicin‐induced cardiomyopathy is a clinically prevalent pathology, occurring as a sequelae following chemotherapy for cancer patients. In particular, the “first dose” effect has been particularly challenging, given the heterogeneous and multifactorial nature of this pathophysiology. Here, we describe the development of a physiologically relevant in vitro model for cardiotoxicity testing, using human cells. Primary cardiomyocytes, endothelial, and smooth muscle cells were tri‐cultured in 2D, or within nano‐fibrous scaffolds in a 3D environment, under dynamic nutrient flow, using the Quasi Vivo® system. State‐of‐the‐art sensor chips were used to detect troponin I levels, 2 h after acute exposure to doxorubicin. We demonstrate a significant improvement in cardiomyocyte viability when grown in a 3D tri‐culture environment over a 5‐day period and a 10‐fold reduction in doxorubicin‐induced toxicity. Our tri‐culture model can be used as a valuable tool for physiologically relevant assessment of drug‐induced cardiotoxicity in vitro.
Computational simulation of medial versus anteromedial tibial tuberosity transfer for patellar instability
Authors: Elias John J. , Jones Kerwyn C. , Copa Andrew J. , Cosgarea Andrew J. 
Published: July 2018

ABSTRACTThe study utilizes dynamic simulation of knee function to determine how tibial tuberosity medialization and anteromedialization influence patellar tracking and contact pressures for knees with patellar instability. Dual limb squatting was simulated with six multibody dynamic simulation models representing knees being treated for patellar instability. Each knee exhibited lateral patellar maltracking in the pre‐operative condition based on the bisect offset index. The patellar tendon attachment points on the tibia were medialized by 10 mm to represent tibial tuberosity medialization, with an additional 5 mm of anteriorization applied for anteromedialization. The patellofemoral contact pressure distribution was quantified using discrete element analysis. Data were analyzed with repeated measures analysis of variance with post‐hoc tests and linear regressions. Tibial tuberosity medialization and anteromedialization significantly (p < 0.05) decreased the bisect offset index for nearly all flexion angles up to 80°, with the largest changes near full extension. Both procedures significantly decreased the maximum lateral pressure at 55°, but increased the maximum medial pressure from 30 to 80°. The pre‐operative to post‐operative increase in the maximum contact pressure was significantly correlated with the maximum pre‐operative bisect offset index for tuberosity medialization (r2 = 0.84), but not for anteromedialization. Statement of Clinical Significance: The results indicate tibial tuberosity medialization decreases patellar lateral maltracking and lateral patellofemoral contact pressures, but increases medial contact pressures. When pre‐operative patellar maltracking is relatively low, tibial tuberosity medialization is likely to increase maximum contact pressures. Tibial tuberosity anteromedialization lowers the risk of elevated post‐operative contact pressures compared to medialization. © 2018 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 36:3231–3238, 2018.
Climate drivers of Zizaniopsis miliacea biomass in a Georgia, U.S.A. tidal fresh marsh
Authors: Li Shanze , Hopkinson Charles S. , Schubauer‐Berigan Joseph P. , Pennings Steven C. 
Published: July 2018

AbstractTidal fresh marshes are at least as productive as nearby salt marshes, but much less is known about controls on primary production in tidal fresh vs. salt marshes. We studied a tidal fresh marsh in Georgia, U.S.A., dominated by the C3 grass Zizaniopsis miliacea. We documented seasonal variation in Z. miliacea above‐ground biomass and below‐ground macro‐organic matter over 1 yr, and annual variation in end‐of‐season aboveground biomass over 15 yr in creekbank and midmarsh zones. Aboveground biomass showed a distinct peak in July and October. Belowground macro‐organic matter was much greater than aboveground biomass and peaked in October. Overall productivity was similar to that of salt marshes downstream. Z. miliacea end‐of‐season above‐ground biomass showed a classic hump‐shaped “subsidy‐stress” relationship with plot elevation, but on average the creekbank supported about twofold more above‐ground biomass than the midmarsh, and both zones varied in biomass about 1.7‐fold among years. Annual variation in above‐ground biomass was negatively correlated with maximum and mean temperature in both zones, and positively with river discharge in the creekbank zone. Sea level, precipitation and water column salinity showed biologically plausible trends with respect to biomass. The responses of Z. miliacea to abiotic drivers were muted compared with the responses of nearby salt marshes dominated by Spartina alterniflora. Temperature was more important for Z. miliacea, whereas drivers of porewater salinity were more important in the salt marsh. Likely future changes in temperature, precipitation, and river discharge may pose a threat to the high productivity of tidal fresh marshes.
High resilience of harpacticoid copepods in the landward slope of the Japan Trench against disturbance of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake
Authors: Kitahashi Tomo , Jenkins Robert G. , Kojima Shigeaki , Shimanaga Motohiro 
Published: July 2018

AbstractOn 11 March 2011, an earthquake of magnitude Mw 9.0 known as “the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake” occurred off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture. To assess the effect of the earthquake on the deep‐sea ecosystem, we compared harpacticoid assemblages at six stations (100–6000 m water depth) in the landward slope of the Japan Trench off Sanriku in northeastern Japan. We collected samples at the same locations after 4.5 months (2011) and 1.5 yr (2012) after the earthquake. There were no significant differences in depth‐related patterns of harpacticoid assemblages in terms of diversity and community composition between 2011 and 2012. Changing patterns of harpacticoid community composition along water depth in the Sanriku region after the earthquake did not significantly differ from those in the reference region (Kuril region, 500 km away from the Sanriku region, Japan). Our results suggest that the harpacticoid assemblage at the Sanriku region was not affected by the earthquake or that it quickly recovered after the event. Around our study area, large earthquakes have occurred at 500‐yr intervals on average. The observed high resilience of harpacticoid assemblages against the earthquake suggest that benthos with high resilience against disturbance are dominant under a situation in which large disturbances occur every 500 yr or more.