bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The voice quality of pedagogical agent impacts learning and agent perceptions
Authors: Siegle Robert F. , Craig Scotty D. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractBackgroundThe voices virtual on‐screen characters use has been shown to impact learning and perception outcomes. Recent replication research on these voices showed that synthetic voices were not a detriment if produced by a high‐quality engine with clear articulation. The current manuscript examines previous accent research that utilized now outdated engines, to determine if the impact of accents still holds with high‐quality engines and voice actors.ObjectivesTo investigate the impact on learning and perceptions with pedagogical agents speaking in accented voices, synthetic voices, and the interaction between the two using modern voice engines.MethodsThis study is a between‐subjects two (accent) by two (type) factorial design to determine the impact the voice accent, voice type, and the interaction have on learning retention, learning transfer, mental effort efficiency, and perception measures. 197 participants were recruited from the online Amazon's Mechanical Turk with qualifications of 18 years of age, “normal or corrected‐to‐normal hearing”, and located with the continental United States of America.Results and ConclusionsThere were no significant differences between the accented conditions or interaction effects, deviating from previous research that showed impact of accents on learning. The synthetic condition had significantly lower knowledge retention, knowledge transfer, mental effort efficiency, and perception measures than the human professional. These findings demonstrate the importance of considering voice quality when designing pedagogical agents. Previous research showed synthetic voices perform as well as the average voice, and this research continues the narrative of voice quality by showing professional recordings outperform modern synthetic engines.
Self‐care behaviours and their determinants in people affected by coronary heart disease
Authors: Di Matteo Roberta , Bolgeo Tatiana , Dal Molin Alberto , Bassola Barbara , Lusignani Maura , Maconi Antonio , Rasero Laura , Vellone Ercole , Iovino Paolo 
Published: June 2024

AbstractObjectiveTo describe self‐care in Italian adults with coronary heart disease and to identify sociodemographic and clinical determinants of self‐care.DesignThis is a cross‐sectional analysis of data from the Italian multicentre longitudinal study.MethodsWe used the follow instruments: Self‐Care of coronary heart disease inventory, Self‐care Self Efficacy Scale, Charlson Comorbidity Index and Sociodemographic questionnaire. Descriptive statistics including absolute numbers, percentages, means and standard deviations were used to describe the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of the sample, and the items. A structural equation model was fitted to understand sociodemographic and clinical variables associated with self‐care, and possible effects mediated by self‐efficacy.ResultsWe enrolled 427 patients. Self‐care maintenance, monitoring, management and self‐care self‐efficacy means scores were 58.27 (SD = 20.07), 48.53 (SD = 26.97), 65.34 (SD = 22.85) and 77.16 (SD = 20.76), respectively. Except for the self‐care self‐efficacy scale, all the scores lay below the cut off 70 for adequacy. Older age, higher comorbidities, a higher number of stents placed, and the presence of a caregiver predicted poor self‐care.ConclusionSelf‐care in Italian CHD populations is poor. Several associations were found between the dimensions of self‐care and sociodemographic factors. Implications for the profession these findings are important for health care providers to plan interventions to improve self‐care behaviour.Impact

The study addressed self‐care behaviours of coronary heart disease patients.

Self‐care was poor in this population; several associations were found between the dimensions of self‐care and sociodemographic and clinical determinants.

Our results can be used to support health professionals in planning interventions to improve specific self‐care domains.

Reporting MethodSTROBE checklist was followed.
Anti‐Blackness and psychological stress: The application of critical race psychology and minority stress theory among Black communities
Authors: Stamps David L. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractIncreased anti‐Blackness, including interpersonal racist encounters and macro forms such as extrajudicial killings by the state, have demonstrated that Black communities and their psychological well‐being are in a precarious position. Extant research has revealed that increased encounters with anti‐Blackness are related to excessive psychological stress. However, the role of stigma awareness, its relationship to anti‐Blackness and psychological stress, and our understanding of the relationship among subgroup identities (e.g., gender) remain underdeveloped. Appropriately, the current work adopted critical race psychology and minority stress theory and explored Black individuals’ (N = 410) experience with anti‐Blackness, stigma awareness, and their relationship to psychological stress. Results demonstrated that experience with anti‐Blackness was positively associated with increased physical, emotional, and cognitive stress; however, stigma awareness mediated only emotional stress. In addition, among the sample, Black men and Black individuals with increased education (e.g., received a college degree) reported increased levels of psychological stress compared to Black women and less educated Black individuals.
Development of sleepiness in professional truck drivers: Real‐road testing for driver drowsiness and attention warning (DDAW) system evaluation
Authors: Ahlström Christer , Anund Anna 
Published: June 2024

SummaryAll new vehicle types within the European Union must now be equipped with a driver drowsiness and attention warning system starting from 2022. The specific requirements for the test procedure necessary for type approval are defined in the Annex of EU Regulation C/2021/2639. The objectives of this study were to: (i) investigate how sleepiness develops in professional truck drivers under real‐road driving conditions; and (ii) assess the feasibility of a test procedure for validating driver drowsiness and attention warning systems according to the EU regulation. Twenty‐four professional truck drivers participated in the test. They drove for 180 km on a dual‐lane motorway, first during daytime after a normal night's sleep and then at nighttime after being awake since early morning. The results showed higher sleepiness levels during nighttime driving compared with daytime, with a faster increase in sleepiness with distance driven, especially during the night. Psychomotor vigilance task results corroborated these findings. From a driver drowsiness and attention warning testing perspective, the study design with sleep‐deprived drivers at night was successful in inducing the targeted sleepiness level of a Karolinska Sleepiness Scale score of ≥ 8. Many drivers who reported a Karolinska Sleepiness Scale ≥ 8 during the drives also acknowledged feeling sleepy in the post‐drive questionnaire. Reaching high levels of sleepiness on real roads during daytime is more problematic, not the least from legal and ethical perspectives as higher traffic densities during the daytime lead to increased risks.
Undesirable Difficulty of Interleaved Practice: The Importance of Initial Blocked Practice for Declarative Knowledge Development in Low‐Achieving Adolescents
Authors: Hwang Hyun‐Bin 
Published: June 2024

AbstractThis study explored the effects of practice schedule on the processing of new second language (L2) vocabulary and resulting knowledge. Participants were 107 low‐achieving adolescents attending a vocational high school in Korea. They were randomly assigned to one of three practice groups and completed a L2 English–L1 Korean paired‐associates learning task. The blocking group practiced one word at a time before switching to different words (e.g., A/A/A/B/B/B/C/C/C); the interleaving group practiced multiple words in sequence (e.g., A/B/C/A/B/C/A/B/C); and the hybrid group had both blocked and interleaved practice. Results revealed that (a) interleaved practice alone posed undesirable difficulty for low achievers, (b) blocked practice in the early learning phase facilitated the development of new declarative knowledge, and (c) hybrid practice produced more robust long‐term retention than blocking and interleaving. The findings are discussed in relation to real‐time processing accuracy, reaction time, coefficient of variation, and meaning recognition test outcomes. Additionally, I explore possible applications of these findings in developing optimal algorithm‐based software for vocabulary learning.
Glomerular basement membrane ultrastructural changes in a patient with COQ2 glomerulopathy: A case report
Authors: Sun Liuyu , Ren Yali , Su Baige , Wang Suxia , Zhong Xuhui , Jiang Yuwu , Wang Fang 
Published: June 2024

AbstractPrimary coenzyme Q10 deficiency‐1, caused by COQ2 disease‐causing variants, is an autosomal recessive disorder, and genetic testing is the gold standard for diagnosing this condition. A Chinese boy with steroid‐resistant nephrotic syndrome, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, and progressive kidney insufficiency was included in the study. Electron microscopy revealed the glomerular basement membrane with irregular thickness and lamellation with diffuse effacement of foot processes in the podocytes, and swollen mitochondria with abnormal cristae in the podocytes. Coenzyme Q10 supplementation started about 3 weeks after the onset of mild kidney dysfunction did not improve the proband's kidney outcome. Proband‐only whole‐exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing revealed two heteroallelic COQ2 variants: a maternally inherited novel variant c.1013G > A[p.(Gly338Glu)] in exon 6 and a variant of unknown origin c.1159C > T[p.(Arg387*)] in exon 7. Subsequent long‐read sequencing demonstrated these two variants were located on different alleles. Our report extends the phenotypic and genotypic spectrum of COQ2 glomerulopathy.
Aberrant differentiation and proliferation of hepatocytes in chronic liver injury and liver tumors
Authors: Nishikawa Yuji 
Published: June 2024

AbstractChronic liver injury induces liver cirrhosis and facilitates hepatocarcinogenesis. However, the effects of this condition on hepatocyte proliferation and differentiation are unclear. We showed that rodent hepatocytes display a ductular phenotype when they are cultured within a collagenous matrix. This process involves transdifferentiation without the emergence of hepatoblastic features and is at least partially reversible. During the ductular reaction in chronic liver diseases with progressive fibrosis, some hepatocytes, especially those adjacent to ectopic ductules, demonstrate ductular transdifferentiation, but the majority of increased ductules originate from the existing bile ductular system that undergoes extensive remodeling. In chronic injury, hepatocyte proliferation is weak but sustained, and most regenerative nodules in liver cirrhosis are composed of clonally proliferating hepatocytes, suggesting that a small fraction of hepatocytes maintain their proliferative capacity in chronic injury. In mouse hepatocarcinogenesis models, hepatocytes activate the expression of various fetal/neonatal genes, indicating that these cells undergo dedifferentiation. Hepatocyte‐specific somatic integration of various oncogenes in mice demonstrated that hepatocytes may be the cells of origin for a broad spectrum of liver tumors through transdifferentiation and dedifferentiation. In conclusion, the phenotypic plasticity and heterogeneity of mature hepatocytes are important for understanding the pathogenesis of chronic liver diseases and liver tumors.
Extraction and characterization of microcrystalline cellulose from Vachellia nilotica plant leaves: A biomass waste to wealth approach
Authors: Vithya B. , Saravanakumar S. S. , Senthamaraikannan P. , Murugan R. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractBiobased waste utilization is an intriguing area of research and an ecologically conscious approach. Plant‐based materials can be used to render cellulose, which is an eco‐friendly material that can be used in numerous aspects. In the current investigation, cellulose was extracted from the leaves of the Vachellia nilotica plant via acid hydrolysis. The application of this research is specifically directed toward the utilization of undesirable plant sources. To validate the extracted cellulose, FT‐IR spectroscopy was applied. The cellulose was measured to have a density of 1.234 g/cm3. The crystallinity index (58.93%) and crystallinity size (11.56 nm) of cellulose are evaluated using X‐ray diffraction spectroscopy analysis. The highest degradation temperature (320.8°C) was observed using thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry curve analysis. The analysis of particle size was conducted utilizing images captured by scanning electron microscopy. Particle size of less than 30 μm was found and they exhibit non‐uniform orientation. Additionally, atomic force microscopy analysis shows an improved average surface roughness (Ra), which increases the possibility of using extracted cellulose as reinforcement in biofilms.
Plastid‐expressed AdDjSKI enhances photosystem II stability, delays leaf senescence, and increases fruit yield in tomato plants under heat stress
Authors: Bulle Mallesham , Devadasu Elsinraju , Rampuria Sakshi , Subramanyam Rajagopal , Kirti Pulugurtha Bharadwaja 
Published: June 2024

AbstractHeat stress substantially reduces tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) growth and yield globally, thereby jeopardizing food security. DnaJ proteins, constituents of the heat shock protein system, protect cells from diverse environmental stresses as HSP‐70 molecular co‐chaperones. In this study, we demonstrated that AdDjSKI, a serine‐rich DnaJ III protein induced by pathogens, plays an important role in stabilizing photosystem II (PSII) in response to heat stress. Our results revealed that transplastomic tomato plants expressing the AdDjSKI gene exhibited increased levels of total soluble proteins, improved growth and chlorophyll content, reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, and diminished PSII photoinhibition under elevated temperatures when compared with wild‐type (WT) plants. Intriguingly, these transplastomic plants maintained higher levels of D1 protein under elevated temperatures compared with the WT plants, suggesting that overexpression of AdDjSKI in plastids is crucial for PSII protection, likely due to its chaperone activity. Furthermore, the transplastomic plants displayed lower accumulation of superoxide radical (O2•─) and H2O2, in comparison with the WT plants, plausibly attributed to higher superoxide dismutase (SOD) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities. This also coincides with an enhanced expression of corresponding genes, including SlCuZnSOD, SlFeSOD, SlAPX2, and SltAPX, under heat stress. Taken together, our findings reveal that chloroplastic expression of AdDjSKI in tomatoes plays a critical role in fruit yield, primarily through a combination of delayed senescence and stabilizing PSII under heat stress.
The progression of cognitive impairment and its influencing factors in older adults based on longitudinal item response theory
Authors: Xue Jihui 
Published: June 2024

AbstractBackgroundUnderstanding the development of cognitive impairment and its influencing factors in older adults is crucial for formulating early intervention strategies.PurposeTo identify the early dimensions of cognitive impairment and provide a comprehensive description of the trajectories of cognitive decline in older adults prior to death.MethodsBased on the data of 9883 older adults in the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey from 2002 to 2018, a longitudinal item response theory (Longitudinal IRT) model including covariates was applied to estimate the following parameters. The items in which older adults encountered obstacles first had the least difficulty parameters (δ). The earlier the information curve of an item is lifted, the more information it provides in the early stages of cognitive impairment. Regression coefficient (β) represents the relative rate of cognitive decline. The cognitive impairment values estimated from the Longitudinal IRT were fitted to a mixed‐effects model to examine cognitive impairment trajectories.Results‘Draw the figure on B Card’ (δ = −0.816) was the most challenging item, followed by ‘recalling ‘clothes” (δ = 0.348) and ‘recalling ‘apples” (δ = 0.419), while ‘name the ‘pen” (δ = 4.402) was the simplest instruction for the old adults. The curves of the items in the recall dimension began to rise in the early stages of cognitive impairment. Cognitive impairment of older adults who were women (β = 0.061), elder (β = 0.111), smokers (β = 0.060), living in rural areas (β = 0.052), not participating in organised social activities (β = 0.092), suffering from hypertension (β = 0.022), hyperglycaemia (β = 0.035), dyslipidaemia (β = 0.314), low education levels (β = 0.128), manual labourers (β = 0.027), and eventual development of dementia (β = 0.212) exhibited a more accelerated progression. These individuals also had poorer cognitive trajectories.ConclusionRecall is the earliest dimension of cognitive impairment. The subjects who were women, elder, smokers, living in rural areas, not participating in organised social activities, suffering from hypertension, hyperglycaemia, dyslipidaemia, low education, manual labourers, and eventually development of dementia, had a faster descending speed and poorer trajectories.
Control in context: The theta rhythm provides evidence for reactive control but no evidence for proactive control
Authors: Mendl Jonathan , Banerjee Sayani , Fischer Rico , Dreisbach Gesine , Köster Moritz 
Published: June 2024

AbstractA prime goal of psychological science is to understand how humans can flexibly adapt to rapidly changing contexts. The foundation of this cognitive flexibility rests on contextual adjustments of cognitive control, which can be tested using the list‐wide proportion congruency effect (LWPC). Blocks with mostly incongruent (MI) trials show smaller conflict interference effects compared to blocks with mostly congruent (MC) trials. A critical debate is how proactive and reactive control processes drive contextual adjustments. In this preregistered study (N = 30), we address this conundrum, by using the theta rhythm as a key neural marker for cognitive control. In a confound‐minimized Stroop paradigm with short alternating MC and MI blocks, we tested reaction times, error rates, and participants' individualized theta activity (2–7 Hz) in the scalp‐recorded electroencephalogram. An LWPC effect was found for both, reaction times and error rates. Importantly, the results provided clear evidence for reactive control processes in the theta rhythm: Theta power was higher in rare incongruent compared with congruent trials in MC blocks, but there was no such modulation in MI blocks. However, regarding proactive control, there were no differences in sustained theta power between MC and MI blocks. A complementary analysis of the alpha activity (8–14 Hz) also revealed no evidence for sustained attentional resources in MI blocks. These findings suggest that contextual adjustments rely mainly on reactive control processes in the theta rhythm. Proactive control, in the present study, may be limited to a flexible attentional shift but does not seem to require sustained theta activity.
Does opening up change customs? Evidence from trade liberalization and marriage payments in China
Authors: Feng Qiyangfan , Shangguan Yiwen , Wei Hao 
Published: June 2024

AbstractThere is widespread concern about whether opening up changes cultural customs. However, empirical evidence remains limited. In this paper, we provide new evidence on this issue by examining the impact of trade liberalization on marriage payment customs in China. We first provide a conceptual framework based on a labor market perspective to illustrate how trade liberalization has driven changes in marriage payment customs. Then, using China's World Trade Organization accession as a quasi‐natural experiment, this paper uses the difference‐in‐differences strategy and China's large‐scale household survey data to conduct an empirical study. Our results suggest that trade liberalization has reduced marriage payments in China, especially the bride price but not the dowry. Evidence from industry and census surveys suggests that the declining earning ability of marriageable men and the increasing relative economic status of women have driven down the bride price from the supply and demand sides, respectively. We also find that the impact of trade liberalization has been concentrated on southern and rural households. In addition to the decline in the bride price, the bad practice of child marriage in China has also been alleviated as a result.
The remittance‐growth nexus in leading remittance‐earning nations, controlling regulatory quality, trade openness, energy use, and financial expansion
Authors: Islam Md. Saiful 
Published: June 2024

AbstractMany emerging countries rely on incoming remittances to finance their economic growth, as remittance inflow has a variety of positive knock‐on effects. This study looks at the “remittance‐growth nexus” among the top 20 nations that earn remittances, considering regulatory quality, trade openness, energy consumption, and financial development as controlling variables. It makes use of panel data covering the years 1996–2021, the “Common Correlated Effects Mean Group (CCEMG)” and “Augmented Mean Group” estimation techniques, and the “Dumitrescu‐Hurlin (D‐H)” causality assessment. The primary estimation findings demonstrate a unique outcome that incoming remittance hurts economic growth (EG). However, EG benefits from trade openness, energy use, financial expansion, and regulatory quality, which have a beneficial impact on EG. The D‐H causality assessment results support the primary estimation findings and also reveal that despite both regulatory quality's and financial expansion's influence on EG, they don't cause remittances, rather remittance inflow causes them. The findings have significant policy ramifications for inbound remittance to be routed to saving and investment, guaranteeing reliable energy availability, enhancing trade openness, a prudential banking system, and improving regulatory quality to affect EG positively.
Integrating geospatial data and street‐view imagery to reconstruct large‐scale 3D urban building models
Authors: Wu Changbin , Yu Xinyang , Ma Can , Zhong Rongkai , Zhou Xinxin 
Published: June 2024

Abstract3D urban building modeling is a vital foundational step for building Digital Twins and Smart Cities. In response to existing challenges, such as high time costs, complex production processes, and low consistency with real‐world textures in large‐scale 3D urban building modeling methods, this research proposes a reconstructing 3D urban building models (3DUBM) approach that integrates geospatial data and street view. The approach achieves an enhanced generation of large‐scale 3DUBMs. Based on open geospatial data and street‐view imagery (SVI), the approach was tested in modeling experiments conducted in Shanghai, Hongkong, and Nanjing. Furthermore, a dataset covering unique blocks of 30 cities in China was constructed to demonstrate the approach's characteristics of large coverage, high time efficiency, high model quality and low economic cost. The accuracy of texture mapping from SVI to 3DUBM reached 85%. This achievement has significant economic value in bridging the gap in the production of large‐scale and low‐cost 3DUBM data, promoting the construction of Digital Twins, Smart Cities, and Real‐world 3D modeling.