bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Barriers and Facilitators to Accessing PrEP and Other Sexual Health Services Among Immigrant Latino Men Who Have Sex with Men in Los Angeles County
Authors: Brooks Ronald A. , Nieto Omar , Rosenberg-Carlson Elena , Morales Katherine , Üsküp Dilara K. , Santillan Martin , Inzunza Zurisadai 
Published: July 2024

AbstractIn the United States, immigrant Latino men who have sex with men (ILMSM) are, compared to white MSM, disproportionately burdened by HIV and lack access to highly effective HIV prevention strategies, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Qualitative research centered on exploring barriers that ILMSM experience in accessing PrEP and other sexual services is extremely limited, despite a high prevalence of HIV in this population. In this study, a purposive sample of ILMSM (n = 25) was recruited to participate in a semi-structured in-depth interview to identify the distinct barriers and facilitators ILMSM experience in accessing sexual health services given their complex intersectional identities of being an immigrant, Latino, and a sexual minority man. Using a thematic analysis approach, nine themes were generated from the data representing barriers and facilitators. Barriers included: (1) cost and a lack of health insurance, (2) complexity of PrEP assistance programs; (3) challenges related to the immigrant experience; (4) impact of gay stigma; and (5) communication challenges. Facilitators included: (1) improving affordability and accessibility of PrEP services; (2) receiving services from LGBT- or Latine LGBT-centered clinics; (3) receiving services from medical providers who are gay and/or Latino; and (4) providing targeted community outreach, education, and promotion of PrEP to ILMSM. While many of the barriers illuminated in the study were structural (e.g., cost and lack of health insurance), and not easy to overcome, the findings highlight a range of facilitators that can support access to PrEP and other sexual health services for ILMSM. Considering these findings, we suggest strategies that may enhance access to needed sexual health services among ILMSM.
Optimizing regression testing with AHP-TOPSIS metric system for effective technical debt evaluation
Authors: Zarrad Anis , Bahsoon Rami , Manimaran Priya 
Published: July 2024

AbstractRegression testing is essential to ensure that the actual software product confirms the expected requirements following modification. However, it can be costly and time-consuming. To address this issue, various approaches have been proposed for selecting test cases that provide adequate coverage of the modified software. Nonetheless, problems related to omitting and/or rerunning unnecessary test cases continue to pose challenges, particularly with regard to technical debt (TD) resulting from code coverage shortcomings and/or overtesting. In the case of testing-related shortcomings, incurring TD may result in cost and time savings in the short run, but it can lead to future maintenance and testing expenses. Most prior studies have treated test case selection as a single-objective or two-objective optimization problem. This study introduces a multi-objective decision-making approach to quantify and evaluate TD in regression testing. The proposed approach combines the analytic-hierarchy-process (AHP) method and the technique of order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) to select the most ideal test cases in terms of objective values defined by the test cost, code coverage, and test risk. This approach effectively manages the software regression testing problems. The AHP method was used to eliminate subjective bias when optimizing objective weights, while the TOPSIS method was employed to evaluate and select test-case alternatives based on TD. The effectiveness of this approach was compared to that of a specific multi-objective optimization method and a standard coverage methodology. Unlike other approaches, our proposed approach always accepts solutions based on balanced decisions by considering modifications and using risk analysis and testing costs against potential technical debt. The results demonstrate that our proposed approach reduces both TD and regression testing efforts.
Modelling Mixed-Frequency Time Series with Structural Change
Authors: Glova Adrian Matthew G. , Barrios Erniel B. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractPredictive ability of time series models is easily compromised in the presence of structural breaks, common among financial and economic variables amidst market shocks and policy regime shifts. We address this problem by estimating a semiparametric mixed-frequency model, that incorporate high frequency data either in the conditional mean or the conditional variance equation. The inclusion of high frequency data through non-parametric smoothing functions complements the low frequency data to capture possible non-linear relationships triggered by the structural change. Simulation studies indicate that in the presence of structural change, the varying frequency in the mean model provides improved in-sample fit and superior out-of-sample predictive ability relative to low frequency time series models. These hold across a broad range of simulation settings, such as varying time series lengths, nature of structural break points, and temporal dependencies. We illustrate the relative advantage of the method in predicting stock returns and foreign exchange rates in the case of the Philippines.
Dissipation during crack growth in a viscoelastic material from a cohesive model for a finite specimen
Authors: Ciavarella M. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractIn the present paper, we extend results recently given by Ciavarella et al. (J Mech Phys Solids 169:105096, 2022) to show some actual calculations of the viscoelastic dissipation in a crack propagation at constant speed in a finite size specimen. It is usually believed that the cohesive models introduced by Knauss and Schapery and the dissipation-based theories introduced by de Gennes and Persson-Brener give very similar results for steady state crack propagation in viscoelastic materials, where usually only the asymptotic singular field is used for the stress. We show however that dissipation and the energy balance never reach a steady state, despite the constant propagation crack rate and stress intensity factor. Our loading protocol permits a rigorous solution, and implies a short phase with constant specimen elongation rate, but then possibly a very long phase of constant or decreasing elongation, which differs from typical experiments. For the external work we are therefore unable to use the de Gennes and Persson-Brener theories which suggested that the increase of effective fracture energy would go up to the ratio of instantaneous to relaxed modulus, at very fast rates. We show viscoelastic dissipation is in general a transient quantity, which can vary by orders of magnitude while the stress intensity factor is kept constant, and is largely affected by dissipation in the bulk rather than at the crack tip. The total work to break a specimen apart is found also to be possibly arbitrarily large for quite a large range of intermediate crack growth rates.
The d’Alembert solution in hyperboloidal foliations
Authors: Valiente Kroon Juan A. , Gomes Da Silva Lidia J. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractWe explicitly construct the analogue of the d’Alembert solution to the 1+1 wave equation in an hyperboloidal setting. This hyperboloidal d’Alembert solution is used, in turn, to gain intuition into the behaviour of solutions to the wave equation in a hyperboloidal foliation and to explain an apparently anomalous permanent displacement of the solution in numerical simulations discussed in the literature.
“It’s Not Like I Go Oh That’s Really Exciting” – A Qualitative Study of Upper Secondary School Students’ Identity Negotiations in Physics
Authors: Gertz Emilie , Madsen Lene Møller , Holmegaard Henriette Tolstrup 
Published: July 2024

Abstract
Transitions between educational levels have been identified as posing potential barriers for students’ sense of belonging in science. In this paper, we focus on the transition from lower secondary to upper secondary school while foregrounding physics as a subject. We approach transitions as an ongoing negotiation-process of identities embedded within the norms, practices, and expectations of physics. Methodologically, we narrow the focus to students who self-identify as female, as these are underrepresented in physics worldwide. We apply the analytical lens of physics identity constructed through competence, performance, interest, and recognition while drawing on the concept of the ideal student to understand what identities are idealized and marginalized, and how these are negotiated by the students. We found that a large group of the students were marginalized in relation to their interests in physics and experienced learning physics to be instrumental and meaningless. Only a small group were able to form a sense of identity mainly due to the resemblances of physics to mathematics. In conclusion we call for attention on who counts as knowledgeable and what counts as knowledge in the physics classroom. Second, we wish to question interests as imperative for being in physics. Lastly, we urge reflection on mathematics’ role in physics and what physics is without mathematics to disrupt the elite status of the subject.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Autism – A Systematic Review
Authors: Doherty Monica , Foley Kitty-Rose , Schloss Janet 
Published: July 2024

AbstractComplementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) is a therapeutic option currently used by autistic people with continued interest and uptake. There remains limited evidence regarding the efficacy of CAM use in autism. The aim of this systematic review is to comprehensively review published clinical trials to explore the efficacy of CAM in autism. A systematic literature review of available research published from June 2013 to March 2023 was conducted. Our literature search identified 1826 eligible citations, and duplications removed (n = 694) with 102 articles eligible for title/abstract screening. After full text review, 39 studies were included. The results of this systematic review identified that for autistic people, vitamin and mineral supplements may only be of benefit if there is a deficiency. The results also found that the main interventions used were dietary interventions and nutraceuticals, including targeted supplements, vitamins and minerals, omega 3 s and prebiotics, probiotics and digestive enzymes. The evidence does not support some of the most frequently utilised dietary interventions, such as a Gluten Free Casein Free (GFCF) diet, and the use of targeted nutraceutical supplements may be of benefit, but more conclusive research is still required to direct safe and effective treatment.
Study of FZO thin films deposited by ultrasonic spray: influence of precursor milling
Authors: Barrón Gabriela B. , Olvera M. de la L. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractIn this work, the results of the study of ZnO:F (FZO) films deposited on glass substrates using the ultrasonic chemical spray technique are reported. For the preparation of the films, starting solutions were used at a concentration of 0.2 M of zinc acetate dihydrate [Zn(CH3COO)2.2H2O]) dissolved in a mixture of deionized water:methanol:acetic acid. The precursor was previously ground in a planetary ball mill at 500 rpm at different times. For the addition of the dopant, a 1.6 M solution of ammonium fluoride in deionized water was prepared NH4F. The atomic ratio of [F]/[F + Zn] remained constant at 30 at%. Structural characterizations by X-ray diffraction, morphological by scanning electron microscopy, optical by UV–Vis spectroscopy, and electrical by Hall effect were performed on all deposited films. From the analysis of results, the hexagonal wurtzite phase was confirmed, and a variation of the morphology was observed depending on the deposit conditions. In general, the films presented high optical transmittance in the visible region and the n-type conductivity was confirmed.
End-to-End No-wait Scheduling for Time-Triggered Streams in Mixed Wired-Wireless Networks
Authors: Sharma Gourav Prateek , Tavernier Wouter , Colle Didier , Pickavet Mario , Haxhibeqiri Jetmir , Hoebeke Jeroen , Moerman Ingrid 
Published: July 2024

AbstractProprietary communication technologies for time-critical communication in industrial environments are being gradually replaced by Time-sensitive Networking (TSN)-enabled Ethernet. Furthermore, attempts have been made to bring TSN features into wireless networks so that the flexibility of wireless networks can be utilized, and the end-to-end timings for Time-Triggered (TT) streams can be guaranteed. Given a mixed wired-wireless network, the scheduling problem should be solved for a set of TT stream requests. In this paper, we formulate the no-wait scheduling problem for mixed wired-wireless networks as a Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) model with the objective of minimizing the flowspan. We also propose a relaxation of the original MILP in the form of a 2-stage MILP formulation. Next, a scalable approach based on the greedy heuristic is proposed to solve the problem for realistic-size networks. Evaluation results show that the greedy heuristic is suitable for realistic problem sizes where the MILP-based approach is found to be practically infeasible. Furthermore, the impact of wireless requests on the performance of the greedy heuristic is reported.
A systematic approach for learning imbalanced data: enhancing zero-inflated models through boosting
Authors: Jeong Yeasung , Lee Kangbok , Park Young Woong , Han Sumin 
Published: July 2024

AbstractIn this paper, we propose systematic approaches for learning imbalanced data based on a two-regime process: regime 0, which generates excess zeros (majority class), and regime 1, which contributes to generating an outcome of one (minority class). The proposed model contains two latent equations: a split probit (logit) equation in the first stage and an ordinary probit (logit) equation in the second stage. Because boosting improves the accuracy of prediction versus using a single classifier, we combined a boosting strategy with the two-regime process. Thus, we developed the zero-inflated probit boost (ZIPBoost) and zero-inflated logit boost (ZILBoost) methods. We show that the weight functions of ZIPBoost have the desired properties for good predictive performance. Like AdaBoost, the weight functions upweight misclassified examples and downweight correctly classified examples. We show that the weight functions of ZILBoost have similar properties to those of LogitBoost. The algorithm will focus more on examples that are hard to classify in the next iteration, resulting in improved prediction accuracy. We provide the relative performance of ZIPBoost and ZILBoost, which rely on the excess kurtosis of the data distribution. Furthermore, we show the convergence and time complexity of our proposed methods. We demonstrate the performance of our proposed methods using a Monte Carlo simulation, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) data application, and imbalanced datasets from the Keel repository. The results of the experiments show that our proposed methods yield better prediction accuracy compared to other learning algorithms.
Lyapunov stability of suspension bridges in turbulent flow
Authors: Barni Niccolò , Bartoli Gianni , Mannini Claudio 
Published: July 2024

AbstractIn the era of sleek, super slender suspension bridges, facing the issue of stability against dynamic wind actions represents an increasingly complex challenge. Despite the significant progress over the last decades, the impact of atmospheric turbulence on bridge stability remains partially not understood, evoking the need for innovative research approaches. This study aims to address a gap in current research by investigating the random flutter stability associated with variations in the angle of attack due to turbulence, which has not formally been addressed yet. The present investigation employs the 2D rational function approximation model to express self-excited forces in a turbulent flow. The application of this type of models to bridge dynamics yields a viscoelastic coupled dynamic system characterized by memory effects and driven by broad-band long-time-scale noise, described here by a linear homogeneous time-variant differential equation, which shows apparent nonlinear features, and which has rarely been matter of research. Utilizing a Monte Carlo methodology, this work innovates in applying the largest Lyapunov exponent (LE) and the moment Lyapunov exponents (MLE) to study bridge random flutter stability. The calculation of LE and MLE under diverse turbulent wind conditions uncovers lower flutter stability than without turbulence effects. In most cases, sample and low-order p-th moment stability thresholds closely align with the bridge dynamic response pattern; therefore, the flutter critical wind speed is unequivocal. However, under certain turbulence scenarios, it is necessary to resort to MLE for a complete description of stability, evoking some additional consideration of which statistical moments should be considered for the engineering assessment of the flutter limit. Finally, this work provides a qualitative insight into the instability mechanisms by approximating the random parametric excitation with a sinusoidal gust and evaluating the time-periodic system stability via Floquet theory.
Celebrating biomimicry: bioinspired layers in optical biosensors
Authors: Wityk Pawel , Kosowska Monika , Kwon Junyoung , Iatsunskyi Igor , Bechelany Mikhael , Viter Roman , Szczerska Malgorzata 
Published: July 2024

AbstractOptical sensors have seamlessly integrated the progress of materials science, giving rise to a novel class of devices. These cutting-edge sensors incorporate bioinspired sensing layers, coatings, and mechanisms, tailor-made for various specialized applications in fields like medicine, industry, and technology. This advancement paves the way for groundbreaking improvements in biosensor technology, offering enhanced capabilities for detecting and analyzing various substances in diverse settings. In this brief report the recent and future challenges in biosensors applying bioinspired sensing layers, as well as advances in science and technology to meet them, are presented.
Multi-omic applications for understanding and enhancing tropical fruit flavour
Authors: Lomax Joshua , Ford Rebecca , Bar Ido 
Published: July 2024

AbstractConsumer trends towards nutrient-rich foods are contributing to global increasing demand for tropical fruit. However, commercial cultivars in the breeding pipeline that are tailored to meet market demand are at risk of possessing reduced fruit flavour qualities. This stems from recurrent prioritised selection for superior agronomic traits and not fruit flavour, which may in turn reduce consumer satisfaction. There is realisation that fruit quality traits, inclusive of flavour, must be equally selected for; but currently, there are limited tools and resources available to select for fruit flavour traits, particularly in tropical fruit species. Although sugars, acids, and volatile organic compounds are known to define fruit flavour, the specific combinations of these, that result in defined consumer preferences, remain unknown for many tropical fruit species. To define and include fruit flavour preferences in selective breeding, it is vital to determine the metabolites that underpin them. Then, objective quantitative analysis may be implemented instead of solely relying on human sensory panels. This may lead to the development of selective genetic markers through integrated omics approaches that target biosynthetic pathways of flavour active compounds. In this review, we explore progress in the development of tools to be able to strategically define and select for consumer-preferred flavour profiles in the breeding of new cultivars of tropical fruit species.
Popular autocrats: why do voters support Viktor Orbán’s government in Hungary? A quantitative analysis
Authors: Hajnal Áron 
Published: July 2024

Abstract
Authoritarian populism has become an increasingly prevalent subtype of hybrid regime and is characterized by weakened democratic institutions and a leader who relies on populist appeals. Authoritarian populist regimes limit citizens’ freedom, undermine accountability and the rule of law, and are likely to be more corrupt than democratic regimes. Nevertheless, certain authoritarian populist regimes appear to enjoy broad popular support. Based on the European Social Survey database and my calculations of respondents’ personal income tax rates, I investigate the factors that influenced voters’ support for Viktor Orbán’s government in Hungary from 2010 to 2020, which may be considered an exemplary case of an autocratic populist regime. The analysis shows that voters’ support for the government was influenced by their perceptions of the economy and government performance, political beliefs (i.e., policy congruence and ideology), and basic human values (i.e., self-transcendence and conservation). By contrast, changes in voters’ individual economic conditions were not found to be associated with their support for the government. The findings indicate that, in addition to explanations of government support that specifically focus on hybrid regimes, economic voting theory, which originated from and has typically been applied in democratic contexts, also provides viable explanations for understanding support for authoritarian populist regimes. More broadly, the findings also lend support to the altruistic and expressive voter hypotheses.
Mandevillian vices
Authors: Astola Mandi , Bland Steven , Alfano Mark 
Published: July 2024

AbstractBernard Mandeville argued that traits that have traditionally been seen as detrimental or reprehensible, such as greed, ambition, vanity, and the willingness to deceive, can produce significant social goods. He went so far as to suggest that a society composed of individuals who embody these vices would, under certain constraints, be better off than one composed only of those who embody the virtues of self-restraint. In the twentieth century, Mandeville’s insights were taken up in economics by John Maynard Keynes, among others. More recently, philosophers have drawn analogies to Mandeville’s ideas in the domains of epistemology and morality, arguing that traits that are typically understood as epistemic or moral vices (e.g. closed-mindedness, vindictiveness) can lead to beneficial outcomes for the groups in which individuals cooperate, deliberate, and decide, for instance by propitiously dividing the cognitive labor involved in critical inquiry and introducing transient diversity. We argue that mandevillian virtues have a negative counterpart, mandevillian vices, which are traits that are beneficial to or admirable in their individual possessor, but are or can be systematically detrimental to the group to which that individual belongs. Whilst virtue ethics and epistemology prescribe character traits that are good for every moral and epistemic agent, and ideally across all situations, mandevillian virtues show that group dynamics can complicate this picture. In this paper, we provide a unifying explanation of the main mechanism responsible for mandevillian traits in general and motivate the case for the opposite of mandevillian virtues, namely mandevillian vices.