bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
First steps towards national radon action plan in Serbia
Authors: Udovičić Vladimir , Maletić Dimitrije , Eremić Savković Maja , Pantelić Gordana , Ujić Predrag , Čeliković Igor , Forkapić Sofija , Nikezić Dragoslav , Marković Vladimir M. , Arsić Vesna , Ilić Jovana 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Radon problem has a special attention in many countries in the world and the most of them have established national radon programmes. The radon issues in Serbia have not been approached in a systematic and organized way. Currently, there are many research groups and institutions working in radon field, and it is a good basis to integrate all these activities into a comprehensive national programme to define the strategic objectives and action plan for the next few years. Also, Serbia as a candidate for membership in the EU is obliged to harmonize its legislation, including the field of radiation protection in which the radon issues has an important role. In this report, a brief history of radon research, present status and plans for the future activity on radon issues in Serbia are presented. Regarding the long-term plans, the establishment and implementation of the Radon Action Plan with the primary goal of raising awareness about the harmful effects of public exposure to radon and implementing a set of measures for its reduction. In that sense, the synergy between the national, regional and local organizations responsible for public health and radiation protection must be achieved.
Outdoor radon concentration in China
Authors: Wu Qifan , Pan Ziqiang , Liu Senlin , Wang Chunhong 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
A nationwide survey was conducted in 2014 to investigate environmental outdoor radon level in 33 provincial cities across China. The radon detector used was a passive-type solid-state nuclear track detector, CR-39. Measurements were conducted under the same condition following the quality control programme. Outdoor radon concentrations in China ranged from 3 to 30.0 Bq·m−3. The annual arithmetic and geometric mean radon concentration were 14 and 13.2 Bq·m−3, respectively. The radon concentrations in the locations near or along coastline were lower than the average value, while those located in the inland area were higher. As a whole, the result showed no big difference from the data measured during the period 1983–1998. It demonstrated that the outdoor radon concentration level in China has not been changing remarkably for 20 years.
Results of radon CR-39 detectors exposed in schools due two different long-term periods
Authors: Stojanovska Zdenka , Boev Blazo , Zunic Zora S. , Bossew Peter , Jovevska Svetlana 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
The paper deals with the recent survey of indoor radon (Rn) results in schools, where paired CR-39 detectors were simultaneously exposed to different long-term periods, i.e., one detector was exposed during the whole year and the other one in the period of the school year duration. To be able to compare the results obtained, for its analysis, the relative bias and U tests were used. It was found that there are no systematic differences between the results, which points that the exposure of the detector during summer vacations did not affect the estimated average annual radon concentration. The paired results were modelled by a linear function, giving an extremely high coefficient of determination R
2 = 0.99.
Agrocybe putaminum (Agaricales, Basidiomycota), New for Poland
Authors: Halama Marek 
Published: September 2016

AbstractAgrocybe putaminum (Maire) Singer, a species hitherto unknown in Poland, is reported from two localities in the southwestern part of the country, with descriptions and illustrations of the morphological characters of the newly collected basidiomata. The delimitation of A. putaminum is briefly discussed, and information on the ecology of the fungus and its world distribution is provided.
Comparison of the mechanical and wear behaviour of aluminium alloy with homogeneous and functionally graded silicon nitride composites
Authors: Radhika N. 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Homogeneous and functionally graded LM25 aluminium (Al) composites were fabricated by incorporating silicon nitride (10 wt%, 40 µm) particles through liquid metallurgy and centrifugal casting, respectively. The performance of these composites was compared with unreinforced alloy. The microstructural behaviour of the surfaces of unreinforced alloy, homogeneous composite and functionally graded composite (outer, middle and inner surfaces) were examined through optical microscopy. These surfaces were also evaluated for mechanical properties. An abrasive wear test was conducted on all these surfaces to determine their effect on wear rate. The microstructural results revealed a particle-rich region at the outer surface of the functionally graded composite material and uniform dispersion of reinforcement particles in the homogeneous composite. The outer region of the functionally graded composite showed greater hardness and the homogeneous composite displayed higher tensile strength. The abrasive wear rate increased with an increase in load and decreased with an increase in speed, and the particle-rich outer surface showed a lower wear rate. Scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed a particle-rich outer surface of functionally graded composite with fewer scratches. Therefore, higher wear resistance was observed at the outer periphery of functionally graded composites and this property can be well-utilised in automotive tribo-components such as in cylinder liners for improved performance.
A model on the curved shapes of unsymmetric laminates including tool-part interaction
Authors: Yuan Zhenyi , Wang Yongjun , Wang Junbiao , Wei Shengmin , Liu Tianjiao , Cai Yujin , He Junjie , Wang Wang 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
The room-temperature shape of unsymmetric laminate due to the residual stress developed during the curing process has been investigated in the past decades. The factors influencing the residual stress of unsymmetric laminate, including moisture, fiber orientation, aspect ratio and ply thickness, have been widely investigated. Another mechanism that can generate residual stress is the interaction between the tool and the composite part during heating-up process. In this work, the effects resulting from the interaction between laminate and tool during the heating-up phase were considered. By introducing an interfacial shear stress due to tool-part interaction, an analytical model based on the Extended Classical Lamination Theory of Dano and Hyer was proposed to predict the room-temperature shapes of cross-ply unsymmetric laminates. The interfacial shear stress, which was correlated with experimental results, was introduced to tailor the amount of residual stress transferred from the tool. The model was validated with experimental data provided in the literature. It is shown that this model which takes the tool-part interaction into consideration could predict part processing deformations more accurately.
An investigation on dry sliding wear behaviour of pressure infiltrated AA1050-XMg/B4C composites
Authors: Cevik Engin , Sun Yavuz , Turen Yunus , Ahlatci Hayrettin 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
In this study, the effect of Mg alloying addition (1–4 wt.%) on dry sliding wear behaviour of AA1050 matrix composites was investigated. Composites were produced by the pressure infiltration technique at 800°C and had a B4C particle volume fraction of 60%. Reinforcement particles were uniformly distributed in the aluminium matrix. Compared with the AA1050 matrix, the weight loss of the composites decreased with increasing Mg content. The wear rate of the composites increased when the applied load and sliding distance were increased. The results show that when the applied load reaches critical values (30 N), the weight loss increases significantly.
Effect of modified layered double hydroxide on the flammability and mechanical properties of polypropylene
Authors: Zoromba Mohamed Sh. , Nour Mohamed A. , Eltamimy Hussam E. , Abd El-Maksoud Samir A. 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Copper-aluminum layered double hydroxides (Cu-LDHs) and nickel-aluminum layered double hydroxides (Ni-LDHs) were synthesized using co-precipitation method. LDHs were organically modified by long chain sodium stearate. Polypropylene (PP)/layered double hydroxides (LDHs) and polypropylene (PP)/organically-modified layered double hydroxides (m.Cu-LDHs or m.Ni-LDHs) were prepared through the melt bending of the PP with either nanosized LDHs or m.LDHs without any other additives. The effect of stearate on the dispersibility of LDHs was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The surface morphology of LDHs was also studied using scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the thermal stability properties of PP/LDHs composites were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The mechanical properties of the PP/LDH composites, tensile strength, and modulus of elasticity were investigated. The flammability properties were investigated using the cone calorimeter test. The intercalation of modified LDHs was determined by XRD in the presence of stearate. Results showed that modified LDHs presented good disperasbility in the PP matrix. The thermal stability of PP has been improved by up to 6% using m.Ni-LDHS. Unmodified and modified nanosized LDHs decreased the fire growth rate of PP from 10.8 kW/m2.s to 4.1 kW/m2.s and 4.5 kW/m2.s, respectively.
Modellbasierte Bestimmung der zeitabhängigen Eingangsleistung von Solarzellen für das Energiemanagement drahtloser Sensorsysteme
Authors: Viehweger Christian , Kanoun Olfa 
Published: September 2016

Zusammenfassung
Für einen kontinuierlichen Betrieb von solarzellenbasierten drahtlosen Sensorsystemen wird ein intelligentes
Energiemanagement benötigt. Damit die Verteilung der eingehenden Leistung zwischen Speichern und Last optimal erfolgen
kann, ist eine Voraussage des Energieverlaufs notwendig, wodurch sich die bestmögliche Ausnutzung der Leistung planen
lässt. Prognosemodelle nach dem Stand der Technik sind aufgrund ihrer hohen Anforderungen an Speicher, Rechenleistung und
Eingangsparameter nicht für den Betrieb auf Ultra-low-power‐Systemen geeignet. Im Rahmen dieser Veröffentlichung wird ein
Verfahren beschrieben, welches auf drahtlosen Sensorknoten eingesetzt werden kann und eine bessere Planung von
Betriebszuständen ermöglicht.
SSDCα – Inherently robust integrated biomimetic sensor-to-spike-to-digital converter based on peripheral neural ensembles
Authors: Kammara S. Abhaya Chandra , König Andreas 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Rethinking analog to digital conversion has become extremely crucial in the race towards aggressively scaled technology
nodes with decaying signal swings. The concept of more recent TDCs, which are completely designed in digital domain, make
them simpler, easier to manufacture and faster to market. In previous work, LUCOS
J. Doge,
G. Schonfelder, G. Streil, and A. Konig. An HDR CMOS image sensor with spiking pixels, pixel-level ADC, and linear
characteristics. Circuits and Systems II: Analog and Digital Signal Processing, IEEE Transactions on,
49(2):155–158, Feb 2002.
, a high dynamic range image sensor using spike based processing with high pixel uniformity had
been designed. This motivated a generic ADC concept, which makes use of spike processing, to design a highly effective
sensor signal processing system, which carries the promise of robustness to technology scaling, for effective use in IoT
and Industrie 4.0. In this work, an ADC concept based on acoustic localization in biological sensory systems has been
pursued. An ADC has been designed based on this concept using biological models of spiking neurons. The first
proof-of-concept prototype chip SSDCα has been designed in ams 350 nm technology node with area of the
chip is 8.5 mm2, sampling rate from DC to 150 kHz, resolution from 8-bit to 13-bit, with
28, 200 transistors, 263 neurons and 517 synapses. The future work will move from 350 nm to
90 nm technology node to show the
improvement and robustness of the SSDC with technology scaling.
Isolation, identification of yeast strains producing bioethanol and improvement of bioethanol production on cheese whey / Biyoetanol üreten maya türlerinin izolasyonu, tanılaması ve peynir altı suyunda biyoetanol üretiminin sağlıklaştırılması
Authors: Boudjema Khaled , Fazouane-naimi Fethia , Hellal Amina 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Objective: In this study, bioethanol production on cheese whey (prehydrolysed enzymatically using β galactosidase by isolated yeast strains was investigated.
Methods: The yeast strains were isolated from Algerian natural sources (soil and grape) and further were selected on the basis of high ethanol tolerance and high ethanol production on prehydrolysed cheese whey. The selected ones were identified by morphological, physiological and biochemical characteristics. Then, a molecular identification was carried out by amplification and sequencing the D1/D2 domain of 26S rDNA region. In addition, the operating parameters of fermentation such as temperature, pH and substrate concentration (mixture of glucose and galactose) were tested for efficient yeast strain.
Results: Among the selected and identified yeast strains, three strain isolates were found to be able to produce bioethanol. These strains are Hanseniaspora opuntiae Z087A0VS, Candida tropicalis Z087B0VS and Candida tropicalis Z087D0VS with an identity of 99% and 100% respectively comparing with the stocked strains in data bank. Furthermore, Hanseniaspora opuntiae presents an ethanol tolerance ethanol up to 11% whereas the two other strains of Candida tolerate up to 12%. The fermentation parameters of most efficient strain were optimized, the temperature 30°C, pH 5 and sugar concentration (glucose and galactose) of 12.5% (w/v) are considered as optimum values for Candida tropicalis Z087B0VS.
Conclusion: Candida tropicalis Z087B0VS can be considered as a good candidature for industrial bioethanol production.
Investigation on salt bridge interactions of mammalian prion proteins by molecular dynamics simulation / Memeli prion proteinlerinin moleküler dinamik simulasyon ile tuz köprüleri etkileşimlerinin araştırılması
Authors: Chen Xiliang , Chen Xin , Liu Yafang 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Objective: Salt bridge interaction is one of the most important electrostatic interactions to stabilize the secondary and tertiary structures of protein. To obtain more insight into the molecular basis of prion proteins, the salt bridge networks in two animal prion proteins are studied in this work.
Methods: Molecular dynamics (MD) and Flow MD (FMD) simulations are employed to investigate the salt bridges interactions of rabbit prion protein (rPrPc), Syrian hamster prion protein (syPrPc) and the variants of the two prion proteins.
Results: The dynamic behaviors of salt bridges are characterized, and the relation between salt bridge interactions and local structures are also discussed. The type of salt bridges in the two prion proteins is divided into the helixloop, intra-helix and inter-helix salt bridges. It is found that the helix-loop salt bridges is more important for the stability of prion proteins than the other two kinds of slat bridge.
Conclusion: The Asp201-Arg155 (rS1), Asp177-Arg163 (rS3) and Asp178-Arg164 (syS1) are the important salt bridges to stabilize the structures of rPrPc and syPrPc, respectively. The structural stability is partly depended on the number of helix-loop salt bridge.
Diyabetik sıçanların karaciğer ve böbrekleri üzerinde Caralluma tuberculata’nın hipoglisemik ve hipolipidemik etkisi ve güvenliği / Liquidambar orientalis Mill. reçine ekstraktlarının antioksidan, sitotoksik ve iNOS aktiviteleri
Authors: Nalbantsoy Ayşe , Karış Mert , Karakaya Leyla , Akgül Yurdanur 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the in vitro cytotoxicity and iNOS (inducible nitric oxide synthase) inhibitory, and antioxidant activity in order to assess the traditional usage of Liquidambar orientalis Mill resin extract.
Methods: Different solvent extracts of Liquidambar orientalis Mill resin were prepared. The cytotoxicity of extracts was determined using MTT (3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)- 2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazoliumbromide) assay. HeLa (Human cervix adenocarcinoma), A-549 (Human alveolar adenocarcinoma), MCF-7 (Human breast adenocarcinoma), CaCo-2 (Human colon colorectal adenocarcinoma), mPANC96 (Human pancreas adenocarcinoma), PC-3 (Human prostate adenocarcinoma), U87MG (Human glioblastoma- astrocytoma) and as a normal cell line HEK293 (Human embryonic kidney cells) and Vero (African green monkey kidney epithelial cells) were used for testing cytotoxicity. RAW 264.7 (murine macrophage cell lines) was used to determine the inhibition levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). HL-60 (human acute myeloid leukemia) was used to determine antioxidant activity as DCF production per cent.
Results: Hexane, dichloromethane, methanol and water extracts were prepared, and their iNOS inhibitory, cytotoxic and antioxidant activity were investigated. The estimated IC50 values of extracts varied from 6.68 to 48.90 μg/ ml after treatment with different doses of extracts for 48 h. Inhibition of the hexane, dichloromethane, methanol, and water extracts on LPS-induced NO production in RAW 264.7 macrophage were showed that the all extracts inhibited NO production in activated RAW 264.7 cells, except methanol extract. Hexane, dichloromethane and methanol extracts inhibited NO production with IC50 values of 22 μg/ml, 22 μg/ml, and 21/ml μg, respectively. The antioxidant activity was determined by the production of DCF in HL-60 cells. The extracts showed a potent antioxidant effect, with an IC50 of in between from 19.01 to 39.77 μg/ml.
Conclusion: This study is the first report showing the potential of Liquidambar orientalis Mill resin extracts for cytotoxicity, iNOS inhibition and the antioxidant activity as an alternative therapeutic approach for traditional uses. The results demonstrated that Liquidambar orientalis dichloromethane resin extracts showed strongest cytotoxic effect while all extracts except methanolic extracts exhibited moderate iNOS inhibition. All extracts other than hexane have a potent antioxidant effect in the cellular-based assay. In conclusion, further studies should focus on the purification of the active components of this extracts and to investigate the possible mode of action to obtain a better understanding of their potential use as cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agents.
The effects of caffeine on the renal antioxidant activity in rats / Ratlarda böbrek antioksidan aktivitesi üzerine kafeinin etkileri
Authors: Demir Ebru Ofluoğlu , Demirtaş Canan Yılmaz , Paşaoğlu Özge Tuğçe 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
Objective: In our study, the short-term effects of caffeine on the renal antioxidant activity in rats were investigated.
Methods: Caffeine was given orally at two different doses: 30 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg (a high non-toxic dose). The current study included 30 rats, which were divided into 3 groups: a control group and two caffeine-treated groups. Group 1 was given caffeine at 30 mg/kg and Group 2 was given caffeine at 100 mg/kg for 14 days. We measured advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in the kidney tissue following caffeine administration. In addition, we also evaluated superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione S transferase (GST) activities in the kidney tissue.
Results: Our results showed that caffeine administration decreased lipid peroxidation and advanced oxidation protein products in kidney. Especially, MDA levels in the kidney tissue of the caffeine-treated groups decreased significantly as a result of the dose. NO levels in the kidney tissue of the caffeine-treated groups were higher than those in the control group. GST activities in the kidney tissue of rats in the caffeine groups also increased significantly. In our study, we did not observe significant changes in renal SOD activities upon caffeine consuption.
Conclusion: These results show that short-term consumption of two different doses of caffeine may protect against oxidative stress in the kidney tissue of rats. This effect is related to the caffeine dosage. Determining the mechanisms and antioxidant effects of caffeine at suitable dose requires advanced animal and human studies.
The Catalogue of Romanian Sphecidae (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Sphecidae) from the Collection of “Grigore Antipa” National Museum of Natural History (Bucharest)
Authors: Levărdă Alexandra Florina , Matache Ioana 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
This catalogue presents data on 15 Romanian sphecid wasp species (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Sphecidae) preserved in the Hymenoptera Collection of “Grigore Antipa” National Museum of Natural History, Bucharest. The collecting data, general distribution, distribution in Romania and some ecological aspects are provided for each species.
First Record of the Dacetine Ant Strumigenys argiola (Emery, 1869) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Romania
Authors: Tăuşan Ioan , Pintilioaie Alexandru 
Published: September 2016

AbstractThe Romanian ant fauna is poorly known. It seems that many cryptic and parasitic species are missing from the checklist, including species with their ranges primarily outside of the Mediterranean. Herein,Strumigenys argiola(Emery, 1869) is a newly recorded species for the ant fauna of Romania, one male being collected in North–Eastern Romania.Strumigenys argiolalives in the soil, and hunts for small arthropods. For the time being, a total of 112 ant species are known from Romania.
Bird Fauna Diversity and Habitat Evolution in Jijioara River Valley (Romania)
Authors: Gache Carmen 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
We present our five years fieldworks’ results on the birds’ diversity and seasonal presence, including breeding birds’ populations on the Jijioara River valley that represent part of ROSPA0042 Ponds of Jijia and Miletin rivers. We recorded 129 bird species, including some rare breeding species in Romania like Platalea leucorodia, Recurvirostra avosetta, Himantopus himantopus, including two globally threatened species Aythya nyroca and Crex crex, all of them being recorded with small number of breeding pairs in the area. During the passage, hundreds of individuals of waterfowls present and waders are present on the suitable feeding areas. In the western part of the site, we found a very high level of habitats’ degradation, while the birds’ diversity and effectives were presenting a constant negative trend during our study period.
Contributions to the Knowledge on the Amphibians and Reptiles of Teleorman County (Southern Romania)
Authors: Iftime Alexandru , Iftime Oana 
Published: September 2016

Abstract
The results of faunistical surveys of the amphibians in Teleorman county (Southern Romania) are presented here; we have identified nine amphibian species (Triturus cristatus, Lissotriton vulgaris, Bombina bombina, Pelobates syriacus, P. fuscus, Bufo bufo, B. viridis, Hyla arborea, Rana dalmatina, Pelophylax ridibundus), two amphibian hybrids (Triturus cristatus × T. dobrogicus and Pelophylax kl. esculentus) and six reptile species (Emys orbicularis, Lacerta agilis, L. viridis, Podarcis tauricus, Natrix natrix, Dolichophis caspius), with new records for many of these.