bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Global waterfowl production: stocking rate is a key factor for improving productivity and well-being—a review
Authors: El Sabry Mohamed I. , Almasri Obaida 
Published: November 2023

AbstractWaterfowl is an important animal-protein source, which has the potential to get a bigger share in the animal production sector. However, waterfowl farming practices and welfare standards are not well established yet. Stocking rate is one of the farming standards that can enhance the productivity, behavior, and well-being of birds; however, rare studies are available in this area. Thus, this article (1) gives an overview of the recent global waterfowls’ meat and egg production and their population distribution, (2) reviews the effects of stocking rate on social, feeding, and sexual behaviors, (3) shows the effects of stocking rate on growth performance, carcass weight, and meat quality of ducks and geese, and (4) declares the relationship between the stocking rate and egg production. Conclusively, an optimal stocking rate standard can improve behaviors, productivity (meat-egg), and meat quality. Moreover, using weight (kg)/m2 will help in affording the required space allowance for different ducks and geese under various housing systems. The fish-waterfowl production system could be a promising and sustainable solution for increasing waterfowl production, maintaining the welfare of birds, saving energy, and reducing the water footprint of waterfowl meat. Based on prior research findings, we recommended adopting the stocking rate (SR) standard for specific duck and goose breeds to achieve an optimal production-welfare balance.
CAT-Seg: cascaded medical assistive tool integrating residual attention mechanisms and Squeeze-Net for 3D MRI biventricular segmentation
Authors: Shoieb Doaa A. , Fathalla Karma M. , Youssef Sherin M. , Younes Ahmed 
Published: November 2023

AbstractCardiac image segmentation is a critical step in the early detection of cardiovascular disease. The segmentation of the biventricular is a prerequisite for evaluating cardiac function in cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI). In this paper, a cascaded model CAT-Seg is proposed for segmentation of 3D-CMRI volumes. CAT-Seg addresses the problem of biventricular confusion with other regions and localized the region of interest (ROI) to reduce the scope of processing. A modified DeepLabv3+ variant integrating SqueezeNet (SqueezeDeepLabv3+) is proposed as a part of CAT-Seg. SqueezeDeepLabv3+ handles the different shapes of the biventricular through the different cardiac phases, as the biventricular only accounts for small portion of the volume slices. Also, CAT-Seg presents a segmentation approach that integrates attention mechanisms into 3D Residual UNet architecture (3D-ResUNet) called 3D-ARU to improve the segmentation results of the three major structures (left ventricle (LV), Myocardium (Myo), and right ventricle (RV)). The integration of the spatial attention mechanism into ResUNet handles the fuzzy edges of the three structures. The proposed model achieves promising results in training and testing with the Automatic Cardiac Diagnosis Challenge (ACDC 2017) dataset and the external validation using MyoPs. CAT-Seg demonstrates competitive performance with state-of-the-art models. On ACDC 2017, CAT-Seg is able to segment LV, Myo, and RV with an average minimum dice symmetry coefficient (DSC) performance gap of 1.165%, 4.36%, and 3.115% respectively. The average maximum improvement in terms of DSC in segmenting LV, Myo and RV is 4.395%, 6.84% and 7.315% respectively. On MyoPs external validation, CAT-Seg outperformed the state-of-the-art in segmenting LV, Myo, and RV with an average minimum performance gap of 6.13%, 5.44%, and 2.912% respectively.
Besov wavefront set
Authors: Dappiaggi Claudio , Rinaldi Paolo , Sclavi Federico 
Published: November 2023

AbstractWe develop a notion of wavefront set aimed at characterizing in Fourier space the directions along which a distribution behaves or not as an element of a specific Besov space. Subsequently we prove an alternative, albeit equivalent characterization of such wavefront set using the language of pseudodifferential operators. Both formulations are used to prove the main underlying structural properties. Among these we highlight the individuation of a sufficient criterion to multiply distributions with a prescribed Besov wavefront set which encompasses and generalizes the classical Young’s theorem. At last, as an application of this new framework we prove a theorem of propagation of singularities for a large class of hyperbolic operators.
Swiss paediatric dentists’ preferences and experience on the use of articaine and other local/topical anaesthetics
Authors: Baumgartner L. , Papageorgiou S. N. , van Waes H. , Hamza B. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Purpose
This study was conducted to explore the preference and experience of paediatric dentists based in Switzerland regarding the use of articaine and other local and topical anaesthesia.

Methods
An 18-question survey was developed, piloted, and distributed to the members of the Swiss association of paediatric dentistry (n = 460). The following information were collected: most used local anaesthetic in different age groups, time needed to inject a full ampule, frequency of observed local and systemic side effects, application of topical anaesthetic prior to injection, time waited between application and the injection, and perceived effectiveness of topical anaesthetic. The dentists’ responses were analysed with logistic regressions reporting odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) at 5%.

Results
The response rate was 37% (n = 168) out of the 460 questionnaires sent, with the responders being predominantly female (67%) and 47-year-old on average. More than 80% of the dentists used articaine in all age groups. 45% of responders took longer than 60 s to inject a full ampule. Local and systemic side-effects were observed by 82% and 28% of respondents respectively, although the nature and the significance of those were not detailed due to the anonymous nature of the questionnaire. Significantly less local adverse effects were seen for older children (p = 0.04) and among dentists with more years of experience (p = 0.01). Most responders applied topical anaesthetic and half of them waited longer than 60 s before injection.

Conclusions
Articaine is a widely used local anaesthetic by the studied group of Swiss paediatric dentists regardless of patient’s age. The use of topical anaesthetic before injection is a common practice with good perceived effectiveness.
MuSelect Chain: trusted decentralized mutual selection through blockchain
Authors: Shi Xiaohu , Chang Ying , Fu Zhongqi , Zhang Yu , Ma Deyin , Yang Yi 
Published: November 2023

AbstractMutual selection (the process of two types of objects choosing each other) often occurs in practical applications, such as those concerning financial credit. Considering the increasing demands for credibility, traditional artificial methods often cannot satisfy the corresponding requirements for security and transparency. Blockchain technology has the characteristics of decentralization, traceability, transparency, and being tamper-resistant, making it a potential method for solving the abovementioned problems. However, the existing consensus algorithms have some shortcomings in terms of efficiency, fault tolerance, security, and other relevant aspects, rendering them unsuitable for direct implementation in a mutual selection scenario. In this study, a system for mutual selection operations, denoted as “MuSelect Chain," is established. First, the institution information initialization method on blockchain is developed via a smart contract, ensuring the authenticity of information stored on the chain. Second, a mutual selection relationship confirmation algorithm is designed to ensure a reliable automated mutual selection process. Next, considering the characteristics of nodes participating in the network, a consensus algorithm called “Proof-of-Leadership” is proposed to ensure consistency of information stored by different nodes on the chain. Subsequently, an incentive mechanism is established with the focus on improving MuSelect Chain efficiency. Finally, a MuSelect Chain prototype is built. Simulation results prove that the proposed MuSelect Chain is secure with strong fault tolerance.
From Religious Populism to Civil Religion: a Discourse Analysis of Bolsonaro’s and Lula’s Inaugural and Victory Speeches
Authors: Mezzanotti Gabriela , Løland Ole Jakob 
Published: November 2023

AbstractReligion played a major role during the presidential elections in Brazil in 2018 and 2022. Although much has been written about Bolsonaro’s religious influence on Brazilian politics, there is a need to understand how politicians on other sides of the political spectrum have positioned themselves in regard to religion. Thus, through transdisciplinary research rooted in Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) explanation phase, this article seeks to assess both Bolsonaro’s and Lula’s victory and inauguration speeches and their intricacies that appeal to various sorts of politicized religion by problematizing contrasting meanings in discourses of these Brazilian leaders and exploring how social circumstances have enabled or provided conditions for the reproduction of power relations between these politicians and the realm of religion, primarily Christianity. Hence, the article questions: First, which forms of political religion are expressed in the two presidents’ victory speeches and inauguration speeches in the aftermath of the last two general elections? Second, in what ways have both presidents been contributing to the politicization of religion and to what degree do Lula and Bolsonaro differ in this regard? It concludes by arguing that although Bolsonaro’s exclusionary religious populism can be contrasted to Lula’s inclusionary civil religion, there are also some important similarities in their discourses as both politicize Brazilian religion.
Eh Across Englishes: A Corpus-Pragmatic Analysis of the Corpus of Global Web-Based English
Authors: Westphal Michael 
Published: November 2023

AbstractThis paper presents an analysis of the pragmatic marker eh, which is typical of spoken discourse, in written online discourse from nine varieties of English using the Corpus of Global Web-based English. The analysis focuses on sentence-final eh and considers variation in terms of variety, punctuation, text type, and function. This paper also includes a variationist analysis of eh in contrast to huh. Although there are cross-variety differences, eh is used across all nine varieties in similar ways. Eh is mostly combined with a question mark, it is more frequent in blogs than in general websites, and emphatic functions dominate over narrative and interrogative uses. A qualitative analysis of the indexicalities demonstrates that eh mainly signals orality and informality in online writing but also has specific local meanings. The variationist analysis shows that eh is preferred over huh in the Canadian and New Zealand components. This preference is even more pronounced for the British and Philippine components. In contrast, huh dominates in the US component. These results show that eh is well integrated into online writing and can be characterized as a translocal pragmatic marker as it is used globally but has developed local characteristics.
Privatisation and Climate Change: a Question of Duties?
Authors: Herlin-Karnell Ester 
Published: November 2023

AbstractIf the state outsources a responsibility to private actors to plant trees, is that necessarily a bad thing? Surely, one would think not. Still, in constitutional theory, there are many forceful arguments against privatisation. One of the core arguments against privatisation is the question of who ought to do what and what it means for a policy area to be inherently public. In this paper, I am interested in varieties of privatisation and in particular what privatisation means in the context of climate change. The aim of the paper is to show that precisely because there is a variety of privatisation, in some areas, such as the environment and regarding climate change, we may discuss the question of ‘duty’ rather than privatisation as such.
Bio-inspired adsorption sheets from waste material for anionic methyl orange dye removal
Authors: Abdel-Aziz A. B. , Alrefaey Khlood A. , El-taweel Reem M. , Sh Husien , Pal Kaushik , Fahim Irene S. , Said Lobna A. , Radwan Ahmed G. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Nano zero-valent iron (nZVI), bimetallic nano zero-valent iron-copper (Fe0–Cu), and Raw algae (sargassum dentifolium) activated carbon-supported bimetallic nano zero-valent iron-copper (AC-Fe0–Cu) are synthesized and characterized using FT-IR, XRD, and SEM. The maximum removal capacity is demonstrated by bimetallic activated carbon AC-Fe0–Cu, which is estimated at 946.5 mg/g capacity at the condition pH = 7, 30 min contact time under shaking at 120 rpm at ambient temperature, 200 ppm of M.O, and 1 g/l dose of raw algae-Fe0–Cu adsorbent. The elimination capability of the H3PO4 chemical AC-Fe0–Cu adsorbent is 991.96 mg/g under the conditions of pH = 3, 120 min contact time under shaking at 120 rpm at room temperature, 200 ppm of M.O, and 2 g/l doses of H3PO4 chemical AC-Fe0–Cu adsorbent. The Bagasse activated carbon adsorbent sheet achieves a removal capacity of 71.6 mg/g MO dye solution. Kinetic and isothermal models are used to fit the results of time and concentration experiments. The intra-particle model yields the best fit for bimetallic Fe0–Cu, AC-Fe0–Cu, H3PO4 chemical AC-Fe0–Cu and bagasse activated carbon(CH), with corrected R-Squared values of 0.9656, 0.9926, 0.964, and 0.951respectively. The isothermal results emphasize the significance of physisorption and chemisorption in concentration outcomes. Response surface methodology (RSM) and artificial neural networks (ANN) are employed to optimize the removal efficiency. RSM models the efficiency and facilitates numerical optimization, while the ANN model is optimized using the moth search algorithm (MSA) for optimal results.

Highlights

The Fe0–Cu composite, when combined with activated carbon from Bagasse Pulp (CH), exhibited the most effective decolorization effectiveness for anionic colours present in wastewater.

The utilization of composites presents a promising opportunity for efficient dye removal due to its cost-effectiveness and environmentally sustainable nature.

The utilization of response surface approach and artificial neural network modelling improves the efficacy of removal processes and treatment techniques.
Dynamic 3D-Cartographic Symbols for VR Geovisualizations
Authors: Olberding Helge , Vetter Mark 
Published: November 2023

AbstractGeovisualizations that use a virtual reality headset can have a more immersive effect on users than when only a desktop application is viewed. However, to have an overview, a VR 3D map is usually viewed from a top-down perspective. On the other hand, the first-person perspective is used when the scenario is visualized as realistically as possible, and the ultimate goal is to feel present inside the 3D city. With the help of dynamic cartographic visualization methods, such as animated symbols appearing or a dynamic change of selected or complete visualization, it is possible to convey targeted information while being inside the 3D. For this purpose, techniques and ideas from cartography and video games were utilized and combined. The combination resulted in dynamically changeable symbol objects, which can be placed automatically using tables or building information, and dynamically changeable post-processing methods. Users can interactively select a predefined set of visualization methods and show/hide dynamic cartographic symbols in the running application via an interface. The study aims to develop cartographic visualization methods that can be technically used within a game engine for VR applications to improve spatial perception.
Recent Developments in Self-Assembling Multi-Robot Systems
Authors: Bray Edward , Groß Roderich 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Purpose of Review
This review studies recent developments towards the physical design and control of self-assembling multi-robot systems.

Recent Findings
A wide range of novel robotic systems have been developed lately, for potential applications in terrestrial, aquatic, and aerospace environments. They increasingly make use of connectors which enable modules to join with each other at arbitrary points instead of discrete locations. Although the majority of contemporary algorithms are shape-driven, an increased focus on task-driven algorithms is observed.

Summary
Self-assembling multi-robot systems allow the same set of robots to adopt specific morphologies for different tasks. The requirements for robots to be able to connect to each other, locomote, and communicate have led to a wide range of physical designs realising different trade-offs. While algorithms are validated extensively in simulation, only a small portion are yet tested on real robotic platforms. Future research should investigate the real-world application of these systems, possibly aided by the introduction of standardised and open hardware.
Trust as foundation and endangerment of democracy
Authors: Dietz Simone 
Published: November 2023

AbstractWhat are the consequences of lies for democracy? Contrary to a widespread assumption, they often do not lead to a loss of trust in politicians and a crisis of politics, because trust in politics is not primarily directed toward truthfulness. Systematic lying in politics does not necessarily threaten democracy as such, but it threatens specifically deliberative democracy and its procedures of rational opinion- and will-forming. The article starts from the thesis that it is not a general loss of trust but the one-sided concentration of political trust solely in the abilities of individual politicians or in scientific or technical expertise that endangers deliberative democracy. In answer to the question “Who owes whom trust in what in a democracy?” a distinction is made between moral trust and functional reliance, the significance of moral trust for collective action in democracy is explained, and three variants of trust that endanger deliberative democracy are outlined: autocratic, scientistic, and technocratic variants.
“Paperwork is so important!”: processes of literacising in bureaucratic contexts in Benin and Bolivia
Authors: Abou Moumouni Issifou , Krauß Rebekka 
Published: November 2023

AbstractIn both Bolivia and Benin, the state presumes that citizens can navigate its bureaucracy even if it does not provide them with the requisite literacy skills. However, bureaucratic procedures are highly characterised by literacy and digital literacy and people with little or no literacy require alternative strategies to manage them. This article contributes to debates on (il)literacy and bureaucracy studies by looking at the learning practices of persons with little or no literacy competence in La Paz and El Alto, Bolivia, and Parakou, Benin. It investigates their ways of coping with such bureaucratic requirements and especially how they manage to acquire specific literacy abilities in order to complete procedures. Our conclusions are based on empirical data obtained through various kinds of interviews and participant observation that we carried out during more than 12 months of fieldwork.Our article shows how participants have independently acquired literacy competence on their own to achieve their goals and resolve highly relevant issues. For them, literacy is not so much an end in itself but a means of dealing with the state. During bureaucratic procedures, concurrent processes of illiteracising and literacising, as well as processes of learning and unlearning literacy, take place. We conceptualise and amplify the notion of this learning and unlearning with the terms “literacising” and “illiteracising” as processual and relational. Thus, we interpret literacising in the context and during the experience of bureaucracy as an instrument through which individuals try to affect, cope with and control bureaucratic procedures.
Atomic construction and spectroscopic characterization of FeSe-derived thin films on SrTiO3 substrates
Authors: Zhang Yao , Zhang Zhi-Mo , Nie Jin-Hua , Zhang Wenhao , Fu Ying-Shuang 
Published: November 2023

AbstractControllably fabricating low-dimensional systems and unraveling their exotic states at the atomic scale is a pivotal step for the construction of quantum functional materials with emergent states. Here, by utilizing the elaborated molecular beam epitaxy growth, we obtain various FexSey phases beyond the single-layer FeSe/SrTiO3 films. A synthetic strategy of lowering substrate temperature with superfluous Se annealing is implemented to achieve various stoichiometric FeSe-derived phases, ranging from 1:1 to 5:8. The phase transitions and electronic structure of these FexSey phases are systematically characterized by atomic resolution scanning tunneling microscopy measurements. We observe the long-ranged antiferromagnetic order of the Fe4Se5 phase by spin-polarized signals with striped patterns, which is also verified by their magnetic response of phase shift between adjacent domains. The electronic doping effect in insulating Fe4Se5 and the kagome effect in metallic Fe5Se8 are also discussed, where the kagome lattice is a promising structure to manifest both spin frustration of d electrons in a quantum-spin-liquid phase and correlated topological states with flat-band physics. Our study provides promising opportunities for constructing artificial superstructures with tunable building blocks, which is helpful for understanding the emergent quantum states and their correlation with competing orders in the FeSe-based family.
1002 km twin-field quantum key distribution with finite-key analysis
Authors: Liu Yang , Zhang Wei-Jun , Jiang Cong , Chen Jiu-Peng , Ma Di , Zhang Chi , Pan Wen-Xin , Dong Hao , Xiong Jia-Min , Zhang Cheng-Jun , Li Hao , Wang Rui-Chun , Lu Chao-Yang , Wu Jun , Chen Teng-Yun , You Lixing , Wang Xiang-Bin , Zhang Qiang , Pan Jian-Wei 
Published: November 2023

AbstractQuantum key distribution (QKD) holds the potential to establish secure keys over long distances. The distance of point-to-point QKD secure key distribution is primarily impeded by the transmission loss inherent to the channel. In the quest to realize a large-scale quantum network, increasing the QKD distance under current technology is of great research interest. Here we adopt the 3-intensity sending-or-not-sending twin-field QKD (TF-QKD) protocol with the actively-odd-parity-pairing method. The experiment demonstrates the feasibility of secure QKD over a 1002 km fibre channel considering the finite size effect. The secure key rate is $3.11\times 10^{-12}$
3.11
×

10

−
12

per pulse at this distance. Furthermore, by optimizing parameters for shorter fiber distances, we conducted performance tests on key distribution for fiber lengths ranging from 202 km to 505 km. Notably, the secure key rate for the 202 km, the normal distance between major cities, reached 111.74 kbps.