bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Predictors of Chinese reading in Chinese monolingual and Chinese–English bilingual children in Mainland China
Authors: Zang Xuan , Wong Yu Ka , Lau Kit-ling 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThere is a growing number of children learning to read in bilingual environments, yet research on the uniqueness of reading acquisition in these bilingual children, particularly L1 majority bilinguals, is limited. With a sample size of 690 4th-grade students, this study investigated predictors influencing L1 Chinese reading in Chinese–English bilingual children (n = 345) attending Chinese–English bilingual schools in mainland China and made comparisons with their monolingual counterparts (n = 345). The results of a multi-group path analysis revealed both similarities and differences between the two groups. In terms of Chinese reading comprehension, word reading and linguistic comprehension were significant predictors for both groups, but their relative importance differed. While there was no difference in the predictive power between the two predictors in the monolingual group, word reading held a greater contribution in the bilingual group. Regarding Chinese word reading, both morphological and orthographic awareness emerged as significant predictors in the monolingual group, whereas in the bilingual group, only morphological awareness was significant, and the contribution of phonological awareness was insignificant in either group. These findings underscore the distinct relationship between reading and its predictive constituents in bilingual students when compared to their monolingual counterparts.
Sewage Derived Microplastic and Anthropogenic Fibre Retention by Integrated Constructed Wetlands
Authors: Warren Richard J. , Cooper Richard J. , Mayes Andrew G. , Nolte Stefanie , Hiscock Kevin M. , Tosney Jonah 
Published: May 2024

AbstractHigh loads of microplastics and anthropogenic fibres can be discharged from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) into surface water bodies. Integrated Constructed Wetlands (ICWs) are potentially well suited to provide a cost-effective mitigation solution at small WWTPs where conventional treatment is prohibitively expensive. This study aimed to assess the microplastic and anthropogenic fibre retention efficiency of two ICWs (Northrepps and Ingoldisthorpe) in Norfolk (UK) over a 12-month period (2022–2023). Analysing a total of 54 water and 23 sediment samples, the findings revealed that Northrepps ICW received on average 349,920 (± 763,776) anthropogenic fibres day−1, with a retention rate of 99.3%. No seasonal variation was observed in retention efficiency. Ingoldisthorpe ICW intermittently received anthropogenic fibres in low concentrations, with an average of 9504 (± 19,872) day−1 and a retention rate of 100%. Microplastics and anthropogenic fibres were prevalent in sediment samples of the first cell of Northrepps ICW, averaging 10,090 items kg−1 dry sediment, while none were found at concentrations above the limit of detection in the second or third cell. Of the 369 fibres analysed by ATR-FTIR, 55% were plastic (dominated by polyester). Of the 140 suspected microplastic fragments analysed by ATR-FTIR, 73% were confidently identified as plastic (mostly polystyrene, polyethylene, or polypropylene). This study demonstrates how ICWs can effectively retain sewage effluent derived microplastics and anthropogenic fibres. However, the accumulation of plastic waste in ICWs may complicate long term management and their cost-effectiveness.
Cloud storage cost: a taxonomy and survey
Authors: Khan Akif Quddus , Matskin Mihhail , Prodan Radu , Bussler Christoph , Roman Dumitru , Soylu Ahmet 
Published: May 2024

AbstractCloud service providers offer application providers with virtually infinite storage and computing resources, while providing cost-efficiency and various other quality of service (QoS) properties through a storage-as-a-service (StaaS) approach. Organizations also use multi-cloud or hybrid solutions by combining multiple public and/or private cloud service providers to avoid vendor lock-in, achieve high availability and performance, and optimise cost. Indeed cost is one of the important factors for organizations while adopting cloud storage; however, cloud storage providers offer complex pricing policies, including the actual storage cost and the cost related to additional services (e.g., network usage cost). In this article, we provide a detailed taxonomy of cloud storage cost and a taxonomy of other QoS elements, such as network performance, availability, and reliability. We also discuss various cost trade-offs, including storage and computation, storage and cache, and storage and network. Finally, we provide a cost comparison across different storage providers under different contexts and a set of user scenarios to demonstrate the complexity of cost structure and discuss existing literature for cloud storage selection and cost optimization. We aim that the work presented in this article will provide decision-makers and researchers focusing on cloud storage selection for data placement, cost modelling, and cost optimization with a better understanding and insights regarding the elements contributing to the storage cost and this complex problem domain.
A heterogeneous graph-based semi-supervised learning framework for access control decision-making
Authors: Yin Jiao , Chen Guihong , Hong Wei , Cao Jinli , Wang Hua , Miao Yuan 
Published: May 2024

AbstractFor modern information systems, robust access control mechanisms are vital in safeguarding data integrity and ensuring the entire system’s security. This paper proposes a novel semi-supervised learning framework that leverages heterogeneous graph neural network-based embedding to encapsulate both the intricate relationships within the organizational structure and interactions between users and resources. Unlike existing methods focusing solely on individual user and resource attributes, our approach embeds organizational and operational interrelationships into the hidden layer node embeddings. These embeddings are learned from a self-supervised link prediction task based on a constructed access control heterogeneous graph via a heterogeneous graph neural network. Subsequently, the learned node embeddings, along with the original node features, serve as inputs for a supervised access control decision-making task, facilitating the construction of a machine-learning access control model. Experimental results on the open-sourced Amazon access control dataset demonstrate that our proposed framework outperforms models using original or manually extracted graph-based features from previous works. The prepossessed data and codes are available on GitHub,facilitating reproducibility and further research endeavors.
Algal-based bioplastics: global trends in applied research, technologies, and commercialization
Authors: Mogany Trisha , Bhola Virthie , Bux Faizal 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe excessive global demand for plastic materials has resulted in severe plastic waste pollution. Conventional plastics derived from non-renewable fossil fuels are non-biodegradable, leading to significant environmental problems. Algal-based bioplastics represent a more viable, renewable, and sustainable alternative to conventional plastics. They have identical properties and characteristics as conventional plastics while being naturally biodegradable. The potential of the algal biomass value chain has already been well-established by researchers. Here, we review the novel insights on research, technology, and commercialization trends of algal-based bioplastics, encompassing macroalgae and green microalgae/cyanobacteria. Data showed that within the last decade, there has been substantial interest in utilizing microalgae for biopolymer production, with more focus on using cyanobacterial species compared to green algae. Moreover, most of the research conducted has largely focused on the production of PHA or its co-polymers. Since 2011, there have been a total of 55 patents published related to algal-based bioplastics production. To date, ~ 81 entities worldwide (commercial and private businesses) produce bioplastics from algae. Overall results of this study emphasized that even with the economic and social challenges, algae possess a substantial potential for the sustainable development of bioplastics while also addressing the UN’s SDGs.
Lateral load-carrying mechanism of driven battered minipiles
Authors: Mondal Sanchari , Disfani Mahdi M. 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe lateral load-carrying mechanism of vertically installed and battered minipiles is evaluated using 1g-physical and numerical modelling. Single minipiles with batter angles of 0°, ± 25° and ± 45° are tested under lateral load in medium dense and dense sand. The minipiles are instrumented with fibre Bragg grated optic fibres to obtain a strain profile (two-dimensional) along the minipile shaft. A calibrated numerical model is further adopted to produce p–y curves for battered minipiles at various node deflections. The ratio of soil reaction of battered minipiles to vertically installed minipiles is observed to change with both deflection and depth of the minipile. An analytical solution is developed based on the decomposition of lateral load into skin friction and passive pressure for battered minipiles. A reduction factor is proposed that considers a decrease in passive pressure when the minipile is loaded in the opposite direction of the batter. The analytical solution is capable of accounting for soil properties, pile rigidity and the angle of inclination of battered minipiles. The analytical method is subsequently verified for cohesive soils using full-scale field results. The ratio of the ultimate lateral load of battered minipiles to vertical minipiles presented in the literature corroborated the findings of this study.
Increased anterior insula connectivity associated with cognitive maintenance in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a longitudinal study
Authors: Li Hui , Fan Xiang , Li Kuncheng , Zhang Chen , Jia Xiuqin 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe insula, a crucial hub of the human brain network, can be divided into anterior and posterior regions. Previous studies have reported that different insula subregions play various roles in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). However, the longitudinal changes in the functional connectivity (FC) of each insula subregion in aMCI patients over time remain unclear. Twenty aMCI patients and 20 healthy controls (HCs) were recruited and underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans and neuropsychological assessments at baseline and at the 15-month follow-up. FMRI data were preprocessed using SPM 12 and the CONN toolbox. Two-way analysis of covariance was used to compare longitudinal changes in the FC of each insula subregion with covariates including sex, age, education, follow-up interval, volume of gray matter, and global correlation (GCOR). Pearson’s correlation was used to evaluate the relationship between insula subregional FC and neuropsychological performance in aMCI patients. In aMCI patients, the right anterior insula exhibited significantly increased FC with the left anterior cingulate cortex, whereas the left posterior insula exhibited decreased FC with the right precuneus compared with HCs. Furthermore, FC between the right anterior insula and left anterior cingulate cortex was significantly correlated with global cognition at follow-up. The current findings revealed different functional alterations in the insula subregions and provided new insights into the neurodegenerative process in aMCI patients.
Subjective well-being and inequality in Spain’s decline
Authors: Álvarez-Nogal Carlos , Prados de la Escosura Leandro 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe economic decline of Early Modern Spain offers an opportunity to explore how it affected perceptions of welfare and inequality. We provide an answer based on the Bull of the Crusade, an inexpensive alms collected by the Hispanic Monarchy and massively purchased by a highly religious population that believed in its spiritual benefits. The purchase of the bull represented a public practice of religion that captured people’s religiosity and belief in the afterlife and had a positive impact on their spiritual well-being. We find that our measure of spiritual well-being—the ratio of (normalized) bulls sold to their recipients (the population aged 12 and above)—deteriorated in the late 1570s and 1580s and the 1640s but improved during the 1670s, while subjective inequality—the ratio between the number of bulls sold to those who deemed themselves affluent and those sold to common individuals—increased from 1600–1640 and fell in the 1580s and early 1590s and the 1670s. Hence, improving (deteriorating) subjective well-being was accompanied by declining (improving) subjective inequality through the seventeenth century.
Epistemic Trust in Scientific Experts: A Moral Dimension
Authors: Barimah George Kwasi 
Published: May 2024

AbstractIn this paper, I develop and defend a moralized conception of epistemic trust in science against a particular kind of non-moral account defended by John (2015, 2018). I suggest that non-epistemic value considerations, non-epistemic norms of communication and affective trust properly characterize the relationship of epistemic trust between scientific experts and non-experts. I argue that it is through a moralized account of epistemic trust in science that we can make sense of the deep-seated moral undertones that are often at play when non-experts (dis)trust science.
Comparison of Different Spectral Ranges to Monitor Alcoholic and Acetic Fermentation of Red Grape Must Using FT-NIR Spectroscopy and PLS Regression
Authors: Menozzi Camilla , Foca Giorgia , Calvini Rosalba , Catellani Lisa , Bezzecchi Andrea , Ulrici Alessandro 
Published: May 2024

AbstractWine vinegar is produced through a two-phase fermentation of grape must: initially, yeast converts grape sugars into ethanol, and subsequently, acetobacteria oxidize ethanol into acetic acid. This process, spanning weeks when conducted by surface fermentation, requires constant monitoring of ethanol and total acidity levels. To enhance the quality and efficiency of process monitoring, vinegar production is shifting to faster, environmentally sustainable methods. Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, recognized for its non-invasiveness and speed, is ideal for online implementation in process control. This study tracked dual fermentation in red grape must over an extended period, monitoring two different batches simultaneously to assess fermentation kinetics and reproducibility. Ethanol content and total acidity were analyzed in fermenting musts throughout the whole fermentation process using both classical laboratory analyses and FT-NIR spectroscopy. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to explore the spectral dataset, then Partial Least Squares (PLS) was used to develop calibration models for predicting ethanol and acidity. The models calculated considering the entire spectral range were compared with those obtained for two narrower zones, where more cost-effective and easily miniaturizable sensors are available on the market. FT-NIR allowed to effectively determine ethanol content and acidity (R2Pred > 0.98), both over the entire range (12,500–4000 cm−1, corresponding to 800–2500 nm) and in the 10,526–6060 cm−1 (950–1650 nm) region. Although less satisfactory, still acceptable results were obtained in the 12,500–9346 cm−1 (800–1070 nm) region (R2Pred > 0.81), confirming the potential for cost-effective devices in real-time fermentation monitoring.
Mixed neuroendocrine–non-neuroendocrine neoplasm of the bile duct with long-term prognosis after neoadjuvant chemotherapy
Authors: Nakamura Shinya , Serikawa Masahiro , Ishii Yasutaka , Tatsukawa Yumiko , Ikemoto Juri , Miyamoto Sayaka , Uemura Kenichiro , Takahashi Shinya , Arihiro Koji , Oka Shiro 
Published: May 2024

AbstractA 74-year-old man with obstructive jaundice presented with a thickened distal bile duct wall. A transpapillary forceps biopsy revealed an adenocarcinoma; however, because the tumor image was different from that of a typical cholangiocarcinoma, endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration was performed on the tumor and enlarged lymph nodes. The tumor cells were positive for synaptophysin and CD56 with a Ki67 labeling index of 95%, and he was diagnosed with small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma. We diagnosed a bile duct tumor with neuroendocrine carcinoma component with lymph node metastasis. Preoperative chemotherapy for neuroendocrine carcinoma was administered because R0 resection was difficult and the risk of postoperative recurrence was high. Three courses of chemotherapy with carboplatin and etoposide resulted in marked tumor shrinkage, and radical resection was performed 3 months after diagnosis. Postoperative pathology revealed adenocarcinoma in the mucosal epithelium and small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma in the submucosa, most of which resolved with chemotherapy. Carboplatin and etoposide were resumed as adjuvant chemotherapy, and 67 months of recurrence-free survival were achieved after surgery.
Getting the Most Out of Every Training Day: The Influence of Instructors on Self-Regulated Learning During Firefighter Leadership Courses
Authors: Röseler Stefan , Hilbert Micha , Hertel Guido , Thielsch Meinald T. 
Published: May 2024

AbstractLeadership courses in the fire services are highly challenging, and they can seriously exhaust trainees and hamper their self-regulated learning efforts (for example, setting goals, focusing attention, seeking feedback). We theorize that experiences of failure or overload can curtail trainees’ available energy resources on subsequent training days, which, in turn, should affect trainees’ learning efforts. Given instructors’ central role in leadership courses, we hypothesize that supportive and humble instructor behaviors decrease experiences of failure and overload and, thus, increase self-regulated learning. Moreover, we argue that supportive instructor behavior may amplify the positive effects of high energy resources, while humble behavior may alleviate the negative impact of low resource levels. We tested preregistered hypotheses with 118 firefighters participating in two-week leadership courses at a German fire academy. The participants completed short web-based questionnaires before and after classes each day. Multilevel analyses confirmed that perceived daily supportive and humble instructor behavior predicted trainees’ reports of daily self-regulated learning activity. Notably, this effect was independent from positive effects of trainees’ reported energy resources in the morning. Supportive and humble behavior did not moderate the effect of energy resources. Our findings suggest that instructors play a crucial role in facilitating effective learning under challenging training conditions. Furthermore, we offer implications for leaders in fire services, who often conduct trainings with their subordinates.
How Can Malaysian Courts Consistently Perform Meaningful Constitutional Rights Review? Lessons from Past Cases and the Way Forward
Authors: Ong Benjamin Joshua 
Published: May 2024

AbstractIn the past, Malaysian courts performing constitutional rights review played a merely clerical role, applying a test that was trivially easy for legislation to pass. Then a more rigorous proportionality test took root. However, the Federal Court in the 2020 case of Letitia Bosman whittled the test down again, and the courts once more played a minimal role in checking state action. The reasons for this cannot be explained merely by diversity in judicial philosophy or political contextual factors. Rather, the near-demise of proportionality (and, with it, robust constitutional review) was made possible by a lack of a clear sense of the doctrinal foundations of proportionality (and, indeed, of constitutional rights review generally), and the relative roles of the courts and the legislature therein. As a result, there is a risk that the courts’ important role in safeguarding constitutional rights has been minimised to near vanishing point. This article aims, through an analysis of the case law and its foundations, to explain how this came to be, and hence highlight important issues which Malaysian constitutional law must grapple with if meaningful rights review is to take place.
Investor Obligations: Transformative and Regressive Impacts of the Business and Human Rights Framework
Authors: Van der Ploeg Klara Polackova 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe business and human rights (BHR) framework has regularly been considered the superior legal regime of corporate accountability for business-related human rights abuses, which must be both protected from and incorporated into investment treaties. However, investment treaties have surpassed the BHR framework in an important respect: certain investment treaties impose strict international legal obligations, including human rights-related obligations, directly on investors, thereby going beyond the normatively ambiguous corporate responsibility to respect. Investment treaty reform initiatives, including those seeking to align investment treaties with the BHR agenda, should, therefore, take care to avoid inadvertently undoing this advance towards investors’ legal accountability.
La consolidación discursiva de la cisheteronormatividad a través de la marginalización del metrosexual, y las mujeres trans: El caso de la revista SoHo (1999–2014), Colombia
Authors: García León David L. 
Published: May 2024

ResumenEn este artículo se estudia la representación discursiva de las identidades no normativas en un producto paradigmático de la industria mediática colombiana, la revista SoHo. Las preguntas que guiaron esta investigación fueron: ¿Cómo la revista SoHo (1999–2014) representa a las mujeres trans y a las masculinidades no normativas, en particular al metrosexual?; ¿qué estrategias discursivas son usadas para construir dicha representación?; y, ¿cómo la revista SoHo contribuye a cuestionar o fortalecer la cisheteronormatividad? Se sostiene que en SoHo se construye discursivamente a dichos individuos desde una mirada espectacularizante, reivindicando la cisheterosexualidad como natural y normal, y la masculinidad como propia del cuerpo del hombre cisgénero. Para demostrar lo anterior, se examinaron las estrategias discursivas utilizadas para construir dichas identidades a través de un enfoque interdisciplinar que combina los estudios culturales (latinoamericanos) y de género/queer con la lingüística queer. Este trabajo es un aporte para nuevas investigaciones en torno a la representación de las identidades sexo-genéricamente marginalizadas en la industria mediática colombiana.