bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Synergetic binary organocatalyzed ring opening polymerization for the precision synthesis of polysiloxanes
Authors: Okamoto Hiroshi , Sogabe Atsushi , Honda Satoshi 
Published: March 2024

AbstractOrganocatalytic ring-opening polymerization (ROP) is a versatile method for synthesizing well-defined polymers with controlled molecular weights, dispersities, and nonlinear macromolecular architectures. Despite spectacular advances in organocatalytic ROP, precision synthesis of polysiloxanes remains challenging due to the mismatch in polarity between highly polar initiators and nonpolar monomers and polymers and the difficulty in suppressing the formation of scrambling products via transetherification reactions during ROP of cyclic siloxanes. Here, we describe a binary organocatalytic ROP (BOROP) of hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3) employing organic bases as catalysts and (thio)ureas as cocatalysts. The BOROP of D3 using triazabicyclodecene (TBD) and (thio)ureas generates polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMSs) with narrow dispersity (Mw/Mn < 1.1). Despite the similar basicities of TBD and 1,8-bis(tetramethylguanidino)naphthalene (TMGN), which is known as a proton sponge, a unitary organocatalytic system using TMGN was inactive for the ROP of D3. When the TMGN was paired with acidic urea, the BOROP of D3 yielded PDMSs with narrow dispersity (Mw/Mn < 1.1). Data suggest that the synergetic effect of TMGN and urea is results in an unprecedented activation–deactivation equilibrium between dormant and propagating species. The benefits of the present BOROP system are demonstrated by the formation of PDMS elastomers with more uniform network structures that are highly stretchy and have excellent mechanical properties.
Paper-based electrochemical device for early detection of integrin αvβ6 expressing tumors
Authors: Cinti Stefano , Tomassi Stefano , Ciardiello Chiara , Migliorino Rossella , Pirozzi Marinella , Leone Alessandra , Di Gennaro Elena , Campani Virginia , De Rosa Giuseppe , D’Amore Vincenzo Maria , Di Maro Salvatore , Donati Greta , Singh Sima , Raucci Ada , Di Leva Francesco Saverio , Kessler Horst , Budillon Alfredo , Marinelli Luciana 
Published: March 2024

AbstractDespite progress in the prevention and diagnosis of cancer, current technologies for tumor detection present several limitations including invasiveness, toxicity, inaccuracy, lengthy testing duration and high cost. Therefore, innovative diagnostic techniques that integrate knowledge from biology, oncology, medicinal and analytical chemistry are now quickly emerging in the attempt to address these issues. Following this approach, here we developed a paper-based electrochemical device for detecting cancer-derived Small Extracellular Vesicles (S-EVs) in fluids. S-EVs were obtained from cancer cell lines known to express, at a different level, the αvβ6 integrin receptor, a well-established hallmark of numerous epithelial cancer types. The resulting biosensor turned out to recognize αvβ6-containing S-EVs down to a limit of 0.7*103 S-EVs/mL with a linear range up to 105 S-EVs /mL, and a relative standard deviation of 11%, thus it may represent a novel opportunity for αvβ6 expressing cancers detection.
Global warming and heat extremes to enhance inflationary pressures
Authors: Kotz Maximilian , Kuik Friderike , Lis Eliza , Nickel Christiane 
Published: March 2024

AbstractClimate impacts on economic productivity indicate that climate change may threaten price stability. Here we apply fixed-effects regressions to over 27,000 observations of monthly consumer price indices worldwide to quantify the impacts of climate conditions on inflation. Higher temperatures increase food and headline inflation persistently over 12 months in both higher- and lower-income countries. Effects vary across seasons and regions depending on climatic norms, with further impacts from daily temperature variability and extreme precipitation. Evaluating these results under temperature increases projected for 2035 implies upwards pressures on food and headline inflation of 0.92-3.23 and 0.32-1.18 percentage-points per-year respectively on average globally (uncertainty range across emission scenarios, climate models and empirical specifications). Pressures are largest at low latitudes and show strong seasonality at high latitudes, peaking in summer. Finally, the 2022 extreme summer heat increased food inflation in Europe by 0.43-0.93 percentage-points which warming projected for 2035 would amplify by 30-50%.
Advancing tuna catch allocation negotiations: an analysis of sovereign rights and fisheries access arrangements
Authors: Andriamahefazafy Mialy , Haas Bianca , Campling Liam , Le Manach Frédéric , Goodman Camille , Adams Timothy J. H. , Hanich Quentin 
Published: March 2024

AbstractRegional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) determine conservation measures for transboundary fisheries resources. They are also a forum for collective action toward the management of marine resources. One of the most complex and controversial aspects of this process is the allocation of catches between RFMO members. There are a variety of processes that can be used for catch allocation. In recent years, there has been a trend in some RFMOs towards establishing a system of criteria or indicators to determine the volume or percentage of catch that should be allocated to each RFMO member. Establishing such a system is challenging and the position of countries negotiating at RFMOs is also shaped by fisheries access arrangements. The debate on allocation has been ongoing at the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission for more than a decade, where one key point of disagreement is the treatment of historical catch taken in the waters of a coastal State. On the one hand, coastal states claim that catches historically taken in their exclusive economic zones (EEZ) should be attributed to them based on their sovereign rights over living resources. On the other, some fishing countries from outside the region claim catch history based on fishing conducted in the coastal State’s waters pursuant to access agreements. We analysed UNCLOS articles, publicly available fisheries access agreements, and national legislation to unpack the linkage between fisheries access arrangements and catch allocation discussions, and we also explored examples from other regions and RFMOs. We point out that the sovereign rights of coastal states over their EEZ provide a strong basis for allocation negotiations. In the absence of specific agreements to the contrary, any catch history that arises from foreign vessels fishing inside the EEZ should be attributed to the coastal State. We also argue that it is time for members of RFMOs—and especially of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission—to move beyond the historical catch debate. They need to resolve their differences or consider other ways to allocate participatory rights in shared fisheries.
¿Notas La Diferencia? [Do You Hear the Difference?]: Perceptual Consequences of Intensive Voice Treatment in Spanish Speakers With Parkinson's Disease
Authors: Moya-Galé Gemma , Hernández Jonathan Delgado , Goudarzi Alireza , Walsh Stephen J. 
Published: March 2024

Purpose:
The primary objective of this study was to explore the effects of intensive voice-focused treatment on speech parameters in Spanish speakers with dysarthria associated with Parkinson's disease (PD) as perceived by naïve listeners.

Method:
Fifteen Spanish speakers with dysarthria associated with PD received the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD) for a month. Voice and speech recordings were conducted pretreatment, posttreatment, and at a 1-month follow-up. Thirty naïve adult listeners rated the perceptual dimensions of ease of understanding (EoU), resonance, articulatory precision, prosody, and voice quality from sentences extracted from an emotional monologue on a visual analogue scale.

Results:
EoU, resonance, articulatory precision, and voice quality significantly improved pre- to posttreatment, but gains were not maintained at follow-up. Speech severity was a significant source of variance in mean listener response for all perceptual dimensions, although the interaction between speech severity and time was only significant for resonance and voice quality.

Conclusions:
LSVT LOUD may be beneficial to improve perceptual speech domains affected by PD in Spanish speakers with dysarthria. Its impact on the different speech subsystems may reflect a universal distribution of effects when directly targeting the glottal source. Language-specific contributions of each perceptual domain to speech intelligibility should be explored in further research to determine linguistically sensitive treatment targets.
Tjong: A transformer‐based Mahjong AI via hierarchical decision‐making and fan backward
Authors: Li Xiali , Liu Bo , Wei Zhi , Wang Zhaoqi , Wu Licheng 
Published: March 2024

AbstractMahjong, a complex game with hidden information and sparse rewards, poses significant challenges. Existing Mahjong AIs require substantial hardware resources and extensive datasets to enhance AI capabilities. The authors propose a transformer‐based Mahjong AI (Tjong) via hierarchical decision‐making. By utilising self‐attention mechanisms, Tjong effectively captures tile patterns and game dynamics, and it decouples the decision process into two distinct stages: action decision and tile decision. This design reduces decision complexity considerably. Additionally, a fan backward technique is proposed to address the sparse rewards by allocating reversed rewards for actions based on winning hands. Tjong consists of 15M parameters and is trained using approximately 0.5 M data over 7 days of supervised learning on a single server with 2 GPUs. The action decision achieved an accuracy of 94.63%, while the claim decision attained 98.55% and the discard decision reached 81.51%. In a tournament format, Tjong outperformed AIs (CNN, MLP, RNN, ResNet, VIT), achieving scores up to 230% higher than its opponents. Furthermore, after 3 days of reinforcement learning training, it ranked within the top 1% on the leaderboard on the Botzone platform.
Research on a local path planning algorithm based on multivehicle collaborative mapping and a potential field method
Authors: Sun Chunya , Jing Haixin , Xiao Yanqiu , Cui Guangzhen , Zhao Meijie , Zhang Weili 
Published: March 2024

AbstractTo eliminate blind spots in the field of vision and achieve a safe and collision‐free path, this paper proposes a path planning method based on multivehicle collaborative mapping in the context of vehicle networking. First, a multi vehicle map merging strategy based on the fireworks algorithm is proposed. In this strategy, a dissimilarity objective function based on the concept of grid map similarity is established and an improved fireworks algorithm is used to quickly search for the maximum overlap between local maps, achieving multivehicle collaborative mapping. Second, a real‐time path planning method based on artificial potential field theory is proposed. The information obtained from multivehicle collaborative mapping is first combined with the potential field model to form a multifield coupled road environment model. Then, the obstacle repulsion potential field model is improved to address the issues of traditional artificial potential field methods that target unreachability and poor dynamic response. The feasibility and effectiveness of the collaborative path planning method and single vehicle path planning method are tested through simulation analysis. This paper demonstrates through simulation analysis that the proposed path planning method can effectively achieve beyond line of sight perception and safely and comfortably guide vehicles to complete path planning.
Optimization of wind‐wave hybrid system based on wind‐wave coupling model
Authors: Liu Tiesheng , Liu Yanjun , Huang Shuting , Xue Gang 
Published: March 2024

AbstractThe integration of wave energy converters (WECs) into floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) can effectively reduce costs and increase power generation. When WECs are integrated into FOWT, the hydrodynamic interference, motion coupling, and other factors contribute to the high spatial dimension of the coupled optimization, making it difficult to find the globally optimal solution. Therefore, this study proposes an optimization method based on a wind‐wave coupling model, and takes a new wind‐wave hybrid system as an example for verification and analysis. First, the experimental design is completed through random sampling, and the corresponding WECs and wind turbine power of each sample point are calculated using full coupling simulation. And then according to the design input and simulation results, the wind‐wave coupling model is obtained by training the elliptical basis functions neural network (EBFNN). At last, based on this model, the non‐dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA‐II) is used to optimize the WECs microarray. The results show that the prediction model established in this paper has high accuracy and is used with the NSGA‐II to effectively improve the wind‐wave coupling energy harvesting. This method can effectively solve the problem of high coupling dimensions in the process of hybrid system design.
Sweeteners in Orodispersible Films: How Much is too
Much?
Authors: Rahić Ognjenka , Behrem Sabina , Tucak-Smajić Amina , Hadžiabdić Jasmina , Imamović Belma , Hindija Lamija , Šahinović Merima , Vranić Edina 
Published: March 2024

AbstractFour natural sweeteners (sucrose, xylitol, fructose, and isomalt) were selected
to examine the influence of their qualities and amounts on the characteristics
of orodispersible films. Sodium carboxymethylcellulose (2% w/w) was utilized as
the film-forming polymer and 1% w/w glycerol as a plasticizer. Films were
produced through the solvent casting method, rendering them suitable for
convenient application in community or hospital pharmacy settings. The
physicochemical and optical properties of the films were analyzed, and
Fourier-transform infrared analysis was carried out. All films exhibited
acceptable disintegration time, uniformity of mass, thickness, and optical
characteristics, with significant dependence (p<0.05) on both sweetener type
and quantity. Disintegration time varied based on the employed method, as well
as the characteristics and amount of sweetener. Additionally, all films
maintained pH values within the oral cavity range, suggesting no potential
irritancy upon administration. Fourier-transform infrared analysis confirmed the
formation of the film and demonstrated compatibility between its components.
Automatic detection system for steel skeleton size based on machine vision
Authors: Jin Huaxue , Fan Wei , Chen Xiaoya , You Wenbiao , Ye Ruifang 
Published: March 2024

Currently, most buildings are constructed using prefabricated concrete slabs supported by a steel skeleton that is generally tied and welded manually. However, if the overall size of the skeleton is incorrect and this error is not noticed before the concrete is poured, then a huge waste is incurred by having to scrap all the prefabricated slabs. Therefore, we propose an automatic system for measuring the frame size needed for prefabricated slabs made of reinforced concrete using LabVIEW and the NI Vision library of machine-vision functions to perform image processing and machine-vision detection. A charge-coupled device camera obtained an overall image, and then, LabVIEW processed the image and extracted its features. The system compared the measured size with the design size and issued a warning if the two differ by more than 0.5 cm. From experimental comparison and verification, the maximum measurement error between the test results and the actual size was 2.7% and the root mean square error was 0.66%. This meets the requirements of actual site construction and provides a scientific reference for realizing the automatic detection of the skeleton size for reinforced-concrete precast slabs.
Correlated libration in liquid water
Authors: Shelton David P. 
Published: March 2024

The libration spectrum of liquid H2O is resolved into an octupolar twisting libration band at 485 cm−1 and dipolar rocking–wagging libration bands at 707 and 743 cm−1 using polarization analysis of the hyper-Raman scattering (HRS) spectrum. Dipole interactions and orientation correlation over distances less than 2 nm account for the 36 cm−1 splitting of the longitudinal and transverse polarized bands of the dipolar rocking–wagging libration mode, while the intensity difference observed for the bands is the result of libration correlation over distances larger than 200 nm. The coupled rock and wag libration in water is similar to libration modes in ice. The libration relaxation time determined from the width of the spectrum is 36–54 fs. Polarization analysis of the HRS spectrum also shows long range correlation for molecular orientation and hindered translation, bending and stretching vibrations in water.
Positioning antagonistic discourses in the (de)bounded spaces of power
Authors: Lamour Christian , Mazzoleni Oscar 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Scholarship has underlined how radical right-wing populism (RRWP) emphasizes border control aiming to protect the
“people”. Although increasing attention is being paid to the discursive dimensions of border construction, the complexity of the
phenomenon suggests the need for further analysis in an interdisciplinary perspective and with an emphasis on the geometry of
spatial powers (Massey 1999, 2005).
Understanding power dynamics in space is all the more important now that radical right-wing populism (RRWP) is becoming a key
political phenomenon. The use of the border in right-wing populist narratives draws on the representation of power struggles in
space concerning the management of flows (people, goods, services, capital, ideas, values, etc.). The scope of the introduction to
this special issue is to address the connection between radical right-wing populism, borders, and spaces of power, and to present
the research articles investigating this link through a series of different case studies.
Towards a quantum field theory description of nonlocal spacetime defects
Authors: Carone Christopher D , Donald Noah L 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
We propose an ansatz for encoding the physics of nonlocal spacetime defects in the Green’s functions for a scalar field theory defined on a causal set. This allows us to numerically study the effects of nonlocal spacetime defects on the discrete Feynman propagator of the theory defined on the causal set in 1+1 dimensions, and to compare to the defect-free limit. The latter approaches the expected continuum result, on average, when the number of points becomes large. When defects are present, two points with the same invariant spacetime interval can have different propagation amplitudes, depending on whether the propagation is between two ordinary spacetime points, two defects, or a defect and an ordinary point. We show that a coarse-grained description that is only sensitive to the average effect of the defects can be interpreted as a defect-induced mass and wave-function renormalization of the scalar theory.
Microtexture region segmentation of eddy current testing data using a structural prior
Authors: Homa Laura , Lesthaeghe Tyler , Cherry Matt , Wertz John 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Microtexture regions (MTRs) are collections of grains with similar crystallographic orientation. Because their presence in titanium alloys can significantly impact aerospace component life, a nondestructive method to detect and characterize MTR is needed. In this work, we propose to use data from two nondestructive evaluation methods, eddy current testing (ECT) and scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM), in order to recover the boundary and dominant crystallographic orientation of each MTR in a specimen. ECT is an electromagnetic method that is sensitive to changes in crystallographic orientation associated with MTR; however, its low resolution prevents it from resolving MTR boundaries well. In contrast, SAM is a high frequency ultrasound method that is able to resolve MTR boundaries but is not sensitive to orientation. This paper proposes an algorithm to characterize MTR that makes use of a method known as covariance generalized matching component analysis. This method is used to build a surrogate linear forward model that relates MTR boundaries and orientation to ECT data. The model is inverted using the SAM data as a structural prior. We demonstrate this technique using simulated ECT and experimental SAM data from a large grain titanium specimen.
Atomistic simulations of the frictional properties of 2D materials: a review
Authors: Wu Gang , Ogata Shigenobu , Gao Lei 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
The two-dimensional (2D) materials are regarded as the ideal solid lubricants at micro- and nano-scale. Besides the experiments and analytical models, the atomistic simulations are important tools to investigate the frictional properties of 2D materials. This review will focus the recent atomistic simulation studies on frictional properties 2D materials with a particular emphasis on the density functional theory (DFT) calculations and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Starting from the proper calculation of long range dispersion forces, the correlations between the physical characteristics (e.g. electronic charge redistribution, interfacial commensurability, chemical modification, moiré superlattice, layer effect, atomic contact quality, defect, external fields, humidity and temperature) and frictional properties of 2D materials are reviewed for both the interlayer and surface sliding. Meanwhile, recent MD simulations about the phononic energy dissipation in friction of 2D materials are summarized. At last, some shortcomings in current simulation techniques are summarized and it is suggested that the atomistic simulations combined with machine learning will be a more powerful strategy to investigate the frictional properties of 2D materials.