bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
FDG PET-CT in Clinical Management of a Rare Case of Primary Hepatic Lymphoma: Role and Challenges
Authors: Jain Tarun Kumar , Gupta Naveen , Malhotra Hemant , Sharma Lalit Mohan 
Published: December 2023

AbstractThe common differential diagnoses for multiple space-occupying hepatic lesions (SOL) are metastases, multifocal hepatocellular carcinoma, and abscess. Primary hepatic lymphomas are rare entities that present many challenges with regard to their management. Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography is extensively used for the staging and response assessment of lymphomas but it can be challenging and difficult to interpret in cases with isolated liver involvement. We hereby present the case of an 82-year-old lady who presented with multiple liver SOL.
Correlation between Vertebral Marrow Fat Fraction in MRI Using DIXON Technique and BMD in DXA in Patients of Suspected Osteoporosis
Authors: Naik Suprava , Jain Mantu , Bhoi Sanjeev Kumar , Tripathy Sujit 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Aim Osteoporosis is a common metabolic bone disease accounting for low back pain (LBP). It is diagnosed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a routine investigation for LBP, is also sensitive to detect fat fraction (FF) of the vertebral body that increases with increasing age. This study aimed to correlate vertebral marrow FF using MRI and bone mineral density (BMD).
Material and Methods Patients presenting with low backache and suspected osteoporosis were included. All patients underwent an MRI of lumbosacral spine and DXA. Patients were categorized into an osteoporotic and a nonosteoporotic group based on the T-score obtained from DXA. “T-scores” of < –2.5 on BMD were considered as osteoporotic spine. T-score of > –2.5 was considered as nonosteoporotic. The FF obtained from the DIXON sequence of MRI was correlated between the two groups.
Result Thirty-one patients were included with a mean age of 54.26 ± 11.6 years. Sixteen patients were osteoporotic based on the defined criteria in the methods. The mean vertebral marrow FF was significantly higher in the osteoporotic patients (64.98 ± 8.8%) compared with the nonosteoporotic (45.18 ± 13.2%) (p = 0.001). The mean FF of the vertebra having fracture (69.19 ± 7.73%) was significantly higher than that of patients without fracture (57.96 ± 5.75%) (p = 0.03). Taking a cutoff value of vertebral marrow FF of 54.85, the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosing osteoporosis were 93 and 80%, respectively, with a confidence interval of 95%. The area under the curve was 0.925.
Conclusion Increased vertebral marrow FF is noted in the osteoporotic spine. FF has an inverse correlation with the T-score obtained from BMD. MRI with FF measurement can provide indirect evidence of osteoporosis, which can be done under one roof, especially in young patients where we need to avoid ionizing radiation.
Algorithmic predictions and pre-emptive violence: artificial intelligence and the future of unmanned aerial systems
Authors: Downey Anthony 
Published: December 2023

AbstractThe military rationale of a pre-emptive strike is predicated upon the calculation and anticipation of threat. The underlying principle of anticipation, or prediction, is foundational to the operative logic of AI. The deployment of predictive, algorithmically driven systems in unmanned aerial systems (UAS) would therefore appear to be all but inevitable. However, the fatal interlocking of martial paradigms of pre-emption and models of predictive analysis needs to be questioned insofar as the irreparable decisiveness of a pre-emptive military strike is often at odds with the probabilistic predictions of AI. The pursuit of a human right to protect communities from aerial threats needs to therefore consider the degree to which algorithmic auguries—often erroneous but nevertheless evident in the prophetic mechanisms that power autonomous aerial apparatuses—essentially authorise and further galvanise the long-standing martial strategy of pre-emption. In the context of unmanned aerial systems, this essay will outline how AI actualises and summons forth “threats” through (i) the propositional logic of algorithms (their inclination to yield actionable directives); (ii) the systematic training of neural networks (through habitually biased methods of data-labelling); and (iii) a systemic reliance on models of statistical analysis in the structural design of machine learning (which can and do produce so-called “hallucinations”). Through defining the deterministic intentionality, systematic biases and systemic dysfunction of algorithms, I will identify how individuals and communities—configured upon and erroneously flagged through the machinations of so-called “black box” instruments—are invariably exposed to the uncertainty (or brute certainty) of imminent death based on algorithmic projections of “threat”.
Transport and electrical properties of cryogenic thermoelectric FeSb2: the effect of isoelectronic and hole doping
Authors: Gujjar Deepak , Gujjar Sunidhi , Malik V K , Kandpal Hem C 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Thermoelectric materials operating at cryogenic temperatures are in high demand for efficient cooling and power generation in applications ranging from superconductors to quantum computing. The narrow band-gap semiconductor FeSb2, known for its colossal Seebeck coefficient, holds promise for such applications, provided its thermal conductivity value can be reduced. This study investigates the impact of isoelectronic substitution (Bi) and hole doping (Pb) at the Sb site on the transport properties of FeSb2, with a particular focus on thermal conductivity (κ). Polycrystalline FeSb2 powder, along with Bi- and Pb-doped samples, were synthesized using a simple co-precipitation approach, followed by thermal treatment in an H2 atmosphere. XRD and SEM analysis confirms the formation of the desired phase pre- and post-consolidation using spark plasma sintering. The consolidation process resulted in a high compaction density and the formation of submicrometer-sized grains, as substantiated by electron backscattered diffraction analysis. Substituting 1% of Bi and Pb at the Sb site successfully suppressed the thermal conductivity (κ) from ∼15 W (m·K)−1 in pure FeSb2 to ∼10 and ∼8.7 W (m·K)−1, respectively. Importantly, resistivity measurements revealed a metal-to-insulator transition at around 6.5 K in undoped FeSb2 and isoelectronically Bi-substituted FeSb2, suggesting the existence of metallic surface states and provides valuable evidence for the perplexing topological behavior exhibited by FeSb2.
Insights and viewpoints from a small-scale survey on current nuclear disaster preparedness measures in Japan after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident
Authors: Marui Hidenori , Sawano Toyoaki , Yamamoto Chika , Zhao Tianchen , Nonaka Saori , Nishikawa Yoshitaka , Ozaki Akihiko , Tsubokura Masaharu 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
In nuclear disaster prevention, it is essential not only to make daily efforts to prevent accidents from occurring but also to properly apply lessons learnt from actual disasters. Although significant changes have been made to nuclear disaster preparedness in Japan since the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, there is insufficient information on whether these changes have been evaluated as practical and appropriate for the needs of the Japanese public. In this survey, 20 officials of the Cabinet Office and Japan Atomic Energy Agency, in charge of planning nuclear disaster prevention policy, were asked to evaluate the current nuclear disaster prevention plan through a questionnaire, and compare it with that before the accident, and indicate what elements are lacking in the current plan. The survey results revealed that 30% of the participants (six respondents) had a positive view of the enhancement of resources, including physical and human assets. However, as many as 60% (12 respondents) expressed negative sentiments, primarily due to perceived deficiencies in organisational measures, particularly the coordination of these resources. Moreover, the participants expressed keen interest in obtaining health data during evacuation, along with information on the physical and mental effects on evacuees living in evacuation centres. These crucial insights can inform the formulation of effective future preparedness plans for evacuation and radiation protection.
Global solutions to the tangential Peskin problem in 2-D
Authors: Tong Jiajun 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
We introduce and study the tangential Peskin problem in 2D, which is a scalar drift-diffusion equation with a nonlocal drift. It is derived with a new Eulerian perspective from a special setting of the 2D Peskin problem where an infinitely long and straight 1D elastic string deforms tangentially in the Stokes flow induced by itself in the plane. For initial datum in the energy class satisfying natural weak assumptions, we prove existence of its global solutions. This is considered as a super-critical problem in the existing analysis of the Peskin problem based on Lagrangian formulations. Regularity and long-time behaviour of the constructed solution is established. Uniqueness of the solution is proved under additional assumptions.
TDCAU-Net: retinal vessel segmentation using transformer dilated convolutional attention-based U-Net method
Authors: Li Chunyang , Li Zhigang , Liu Weikang 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Retinal vessel segmentation plays a vital role in the medical field, facilitating the identification of numerous chronic conditions based on retinal vessel images. These conditions include diabetic retinopathy, hypertensive retinopathy, glaucoma, and others. Although the U-Net model has shown promising results in retinal vessel segmentation, it tends to struggle with fine branching and dense vessel segmentation. To further enhance the precision of retinal vessel segmentation, we propose a novel approach called transformer dilated convolution attention U-Net (TDCAU-Net), which builds upon the U-Net architecture with improved Transformer-based dilated convolution attention mechanisms. The proposed model retains the three-layer architecture of the U-Net network. The Transformer component enables the learning of contextual information for each pixel in the image, while the dilated convolution attention prevents information loss. The algorithm efficiently addresses several challenges to optimize blood vessel detection. The process starts with five-step preprocessing of the images, followed by chunking them into segments. Subsequently, the retinal images are fed into the modified U-Net network introduced in this paper for segmentation. The study employs eye fundus images from the DRIVE and CHASEDB1 databases for both training and testing purposes. Evaluation metrics are utilized to compare the algorithm’s results with state-of-the-art methods. The experimental analysis on both databases demonstrates that the algorithm achieves high values of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and AUC. Specifically, for the first database, the achieved values are 0.8187, 0.9756, 0.9556, and 0.9795, respectively. For the second database, the corresponding values are 0.8243, 0.9836, 0.9738, and 0.9878, respectively. These results demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms state-of-the-art methods, achieving higher performance on both datasets. The TDCAU-Net model presented in this study exhibits substantial capabilities in accurately segmenting fine branching and dense vessels. The segmentation performance of the network surpasses that of the U-Net algorithm and several mainstream methods.
ABUS tumor segmentation via decouple contrastive knowledge distillation
Authors: Pan Pan , Li Yanfeng , Chen Houjin , Sun Jia , Li Xiaoling , Cheng Lin 
Published: December 2023

Abstract

Objective. In recent years, deep learning-based methods have become the mainstream for medical image segmentation. Accurate segmentation of automated breast ultrasound (ABUS) tumor plays an essential role in computer-aided diagnosis. Existing deep learning models typically require a large number of computations and parameters. Approach. Aiming at this problem, we propose a novel knowledge distillation method for ABUS tumor segmentation. The tumor or non-tumor regions from different cases tend to have similar representations in the feature space. Based on this, we propose to decouple features into positive (tumor) and negative (non-tumor) pairs and design a decoupled contrastive learning method. The contrastive loss is utilized to force the student network to mimic the tumor or non-tumor features of the teacher network. In addition, we designed a ranking loss function based on ranking the distance metric in the feature space to address the problem of hard-negative mining in medical image segmentation. Main results. The effectiveness of our knowledge distillation method is evaluated on the private ABUS dataset and a public hippocampus dataset. The experimental results demonstrate that our proposed method achieves state-of-the-art performance in ABUS tumor segmentation. Notably, after distilling knowledge from the teacher network (3D U-Net), the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) of the student network (small 3D U-Net) is improved by 7%. Moreover, the DSC of the student network (3D HR-Net) reaches 0.780, which is very close to that of the teacher network, while their parameters are only 6.8% and 12.1% of 3D U-Net, respectively. Significance. This research introduces a novel knowledge distillation method for ABUS tumor segmentation, significantly reducing computational demands while achieving state-of-the-art performance. The method promises enhanced accuracy and feasibility for computer-aided diagnosis in diverse imaging scenarios.
Resonance magnetoelectric effect in a three-layer non-symmetric ring structure Ni/PZT/Metglas
Authors: Fetisov L Y , Savelev D V , Musatov V I , Fedulov F A , Fetisov Y K 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
The resonant magnetoelectric (ME) effect in a ring-type structure of nickel–lead zirconate titanate–Metglas amorphous alloy (Metglas 2605SA1) has been studied. The use of ring geometry and magnetic layers with different signs of magnetostriction and comparable saturation fields led to a noticeable enhancement in the ME coefficient and a decrease in the optimal bias field, as compared with two-layer planar heterostructures. At the frequency of radial acoustic oscillations of the structure and under circular magnetization, the ME coefficient of 6.4 V (Oe·cm)−1 and ac field sensitivity of 0.6 V Oe−1 were obtained for a permanent bias field of 2 Oe.
High accuracy and resolution damage detection for concrete based on novel virtual correlation imaging method and embedded piezoelectric sensing technology
Authors: Zhang Caiyan , Gao Weihang 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
This paper presents a novel virtual correlation imaging (VCI) method to reduce the adverse effects of stress wave distortion and realize high accuracy and resolution damage imaging based on the sparse stress wave data collected by embedded piezoceramic transducers. Specifically, a compensation function is first constructed in the VCI method based on the frequency response characteristic of damage-induced scattering signals. Then, the constructed compensation function is emitted as the virtual excitation signal in the simulation space via virtual channels. To automatically compensate for the effect of waveform distortion, a virtual correlation operator is developed based on the scattering signal and its corresponding virtual received signal to design the imaging function. Finally, the practicability of the proposed VCI method is investigated on a concrete specimen with two successively drilling holes under laboratory conditions. The results indicate that, compared with the conventional damage imaging methods, the proposed VCI method can effectively decrease the adverse effect of distorted probing stress waves on damage localization accuracy and spatial resolution during the imaging process.
Piezoelectric actuation combined with ultrasound for enhancing drug delivery in gastric mucosa phantom in vitro
Authors: Shen Fenghua , Peng Hanmin , Zhu Pancheng , Chen Wangyi 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
In recent years, treatments for gastrointestinal malignant tumors have attracted a lot of attention. However, due to size limitations and the working environment of gastrointestinal peristalsis, traditional treatment methods have poor efficacy. Herein, we proposed a novel drug release method of piezoelectric actuation combined with ultrasound in the endoscope biopsy channel. A bidirectional piezoelectric actuator was manufactured and inserted into the endoscope with an ultrasonic transducer, adjusting the distance between the transducer and the lesion. A gastric mucosa phantom was fabricated and a finite element (FE) model was established for ultrasound thermal calculation. For enhancing the drug release rate, a pulse-echo method was conducted using a Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench (LabVIEW) program for real-time monitoring and feedback. The results of FEM calculations show that the temperature in the phantom can reach the melting-phase transition temperature of the TSL (41 ± 1 °C). The drug release rate can increase from 2.2 × 10−4 mg min−1 to 39.2 × 10−4 mg min−1 with our actuator, the latter is nearly 18 times the former. Furthermore, the drug release rate can be increased to a maximum value of 45.8 × 10−4 mg min−1 by optimizing the driving parameter of our actuator. Therefore, our method has a bright application in targeted drug delivery of major gastrointestinal diseases in the future.
Magnetostrictive wires-epoxy resin composite structures for human motion energy harvesting
Authors: Wang Xinyu , Li Mingming , Bian Tiezan , Wang Qian , Weng Ling , Huang Wenmei 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Encapsulation of magnetostrictive alloy wires in epoxy resin has great potential for energy harvesting and can be applied to energy harvesting in human motion. In this work, a magnetostrictive wire-epoxy resin arch composite structure was proposed for harvesting energy generated by foot motion. A prestress was introduced during the resin curing process, and the relationship between the output voltage and material properties was derived based on the Villari effect. Three kinds of Fe-based magnetostrictive wires were prepared and their magnetic properties were measured, then a prototype single-layer arch composite structure was fabricated and an experimental platform was built for testing, and the amplitude of the output open-circuit voltage could reach 936 mV under an impact pressure of 750 N, which proved that the Fe–Ga alloy composite structure was superior to Fe–Co and Fe–Ni alloys in energy harvesting. The double-layer arch-shaped Fe–Ga composite structures energy harvesting prototype outputs a maximum voltage of up to 940 mV in foot energy harvesting experiments, and collected a maximum power of up to 2.45 mW at a step frequency of 3.5 Hz. Consequently, this work emphasized the feasibility of magnetostrictive alloy-epoxy composite structures for energy harvesting in human motion and the potential for developing new ways of energy harvesting.
Quantum fluctuations in atomic Josephson junctions: the role of dimensionality
Authors: Bardin A , Lorenzi F , Salasnich L 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
We investigate the role of quantum fluctuations in the dynamics of a bosonic Josephson junction in D spatial dimensions, by using beyond-mean-field Gaussian corrections. We derive some key dynamical properties in a systematic way for

D
=
3
,
2
,
1

. In particular, we compute the Josephson frequency in the regime of low population imbalance. We also obtain the critical strength of the macroscopic quantum self-trapping. Our results show that quantum corrections increase the Josephson frequency in spatial dimensions D = 2 and D = 3, but they decrease it in the D = 1 case. The critical strength of macroscopic quantum self-trapping is instead reduced by quantum fluctuations in D = 2 and D = 3 cases, while it is enhanced in the D = 1 configuration. We show that the difference between the cases of D = 2 and D = 3 on one side, and D = 1 on the other, can be related to the qualitatively different dependence of the interaction strength on the scattering length in the different dimensions.
Non-isothermal crystallization kinetics and memory switching properties of Tl-Se-Ge-Sb chalcogenide semiconductor alloy for thermally stable phase change memory applications
Authors: El-Metwally E G , Ismail A M 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Quaternary (Tl20Se70Ge10)0.85Sb0.15 chalcogenide glass was synthesized using melt-quenching and thermal evaporation techniques for bulk and thin film samples, and its amorphous character was confirmed by XRD. Based on different models of non-isothermal crystallization kinetics, the average values of the glass transition

E

̅

g

and the crystallization

E

̅

c

activation energies are 121.33 and 82.94 kJ mol−1, respectively. The crystallization mechanism in the examined composition is 2D nucleation growth, according to Avrami exponent

n
.

Thermal parameters of the studied quaternary glass, like fragility

F

g

,

fluctuation free volume

F

FV

,

reduced glass transition temperature

T

rg

,

thermal stability

SP

and glass formation ability

GFA

were investigated and indicated that the (Tl20Se70Ge10)0.85Sb0.15 ChG exhibits a good ability of glass formation and thermal stability. The obtained results of the dc electrical conductivity

σ

dc

are found to increase with temperature and decrease with film thickness. The electrical conduction activation energy

∆
E

σ

(0.583 ± 0.004 eV) is thickness independent and the predominant conduction mechanism is the hopping of charge carriers in the band tail localized states. The (

I
–
V

) curves of (Tl20Se70Ge10)0.85Sb0.15 chalcogenide glass film samples were analyzed and shown to be appropriate for a memory switch. The mean value of the threshold voltage

V

̅

th

decreases exponentially as temperature increases, whereas it increases linearly as film thickness increases. The values of threshold voltage

ε

th

and threshold resistance

∆

E

R

activation energies are 0.282 ± 0.003 and 0.521 ± 0.004 eV, respectively. The obtained switching characteristics data were discussed in view of the electrothermal model motivated by current channel Joule heating. These findings highlight the suitability of the investigated composition for various optoelectronic applications, such as memory switching devices, optical data storage, phase-change memories and optical fibres sensing devices.