bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cryptic behavior and activity cycles of a small mammal keystone species revealed through accelerometry: a case study of Merriam’s kangaroo rats (Dipodomys merriami)
Authors: Hanscom Ryan J. , Hill Jessica L. , Patterson Charlotte , Marbach Tyler , Sukumaran Jeet , Higham Timothy E. , Clark Rulon W. 
Published: November 2023

AbstractBackgroundKangaroo rats are small mammals that are among the most abundant vertebrates in many terrestrial ecosystems in Western North America and are considered both keystone species and ecosystem engineers, providing numerous linkages between other species as both consumers and resources. However, there are challenges to studying the behavior and activity of these species due to the difficulty of observing large numbers of individuals that are small, secretive, and nocturnal. Our goal was to develop an integrated approach of miniaturized animal-borne accelerometry and radiotelemetry to classify the cryptic behavior and activity cycles of kangaroo rats and test hypotheses of how their behavior is influenced by light cycles, moonlight, and weather.MethodsWe provide a proof-of-concept approach to effectively quantify behavioral patterns of small bodied (< 50 g), nocturnal, and terrestrial free-ranging mammals using large acceleration datasets by combining low-mass, miniaturized animal-borne accelerometers with radiotelemetry and advanced machine learning techniques. We developed a method of attachment and retrieval for deploying accelerometers, a non-disruptive method of gathering observational validation datasets for acceleration data on free-ranging nocturnal small mammals, and used these techniques on Merriam’s kangaroo rats to analyze how behavioral patterns relate to abiotic factors.ResultsWe found that Merriam’s kangaroo rats are only active during the nighttime phases of the diel cycle and are particularly active during later light phases of the night (i.e., late night, morning twilight, and dawn). We found no reduction in activity or foraging associated with moonlight, indicating that kangaroo rats are actually more lunarphilic than lunarphobic. We also found that kangaroo rats increased foraging effort on more humid nights, most likely as a mechanism to avoid cutaneous water loss.ConclusionsSmall mammals are often integral to ecosystem functionality, as many of these species are highly abundant ecosystem engineers driving linkages in energy flow and nutrient transfer across trophic levels. Our work represents the first continuous detailed quantitative description of fine-scale behavioral activity budgets in kangaroo rats, and lays out a general framework for how to use miniaturized biologging devices on small and nocturnal mammals to examine behavioral responses to environmental factors.
Evaluation of the resistance of three maize varieties to Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) and Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner in the Tonkpi region (Man, Côte d’Ivoire)
Authors: Diabate Dohouonan , Tah Gueu Tatiana Thérèse , Ble Yatanan Casimir , Tano Yao 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
The corn borer Ostrinia nubilalis and the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda larvae feed on the aerial parts of maize. It is responsible for significant yield losses and are therefore a cause of food insecurity. This study carried out to evaluate the resistance of three maize varieties (EV8766 SR-MRP, PR9131-SR, CEW-SR), in Tonkpi region’s, to S. frugiperda and O. nubilalis damages. Each maize variety seeds were sown on a one hectare plot subdivided into 6 elementary plots with 75 cm between rows and 40 cm between bunches. Sampling of S. frugiperda and O. nubilalis larvae on maize plants was carried out according to the FAO method, from the third to the fifth week after planting. Maize plants damaged, the intensity of infestation and the number of larvae on maize plants were recorded. Maize plants damaged by the insect pests were marked to avoid recounting. At maturity, 100 maize cobs were harvested per elementary plot, then the larvae number and the attacked cobs by S. frugiperda and O. nubilalis larvae were recorded.

Results
The lowest damage rate by S. frugiperda were recorded in maize variety EV8766-SR-MRP (23.33%); while, the highest damage rate were in the varieties PR9131-SR (43.33%) and CEW-SR (55%). There are no significant difference values of the density of S. frugiperda larvae per maize plant attacked between the three varieties. The index of intensification of maize plant damaged by S. frugiperda larvae was lower for the variety EV8766-SR-MRP (7.50%) and was moderate for the varieties PR9131-SR (15.42%) and CEW-SR (21.67%). The damage rates of O. nubilalis larvae on maize cobs varied between 9.6 and 22.0%. These damage rates were higher for the varieties PR9131-SR (21.83%) and CEW-SR (17.50%) and were lower for EV8766-SR-MRP (9.66%). There was not significantly different from the density of O. nubilalis larvae per maize cob attacked between the three varieties. It was between 1 to 1.2 larvae. Crop losses were lower for EV8766 SR-MRP (10.228%) than those of PR9131-SR and CEW-SR (19.338%).

Conclusions
The maize variety EV8766-SR-MRP is found to be the best variety in the control of, O. nubilalis and S. frugiperda.
Robotic arm-assisted unicondylar knee arthroplasty resulted in superior radiological accuracy: a propensity score-matched analysis
Authors: Yeung Matthew H. Y. , Fu Henry , Cheung Amy , Kwan Vincent Chan Wai , Cheung Man Hong , Chan Ping Keung , Chiu Kwong Yuen , Yan Chun Hoi 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Introduction
Unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) is an effective surgical treatment for medial compartment arthritis of the knee, yet surgical outcomes are directly related to surgical execution. Robotic arm-assisted surgery aims to address these difficulties by allowing for detailed preoperative planning, real-time intraoperative assessment and haptic-controlled bone removal. This study aimed to compare the clinical and radiological outcomes between conventional manual mobile bearing and robot arm-assisted fixed bearing medial UKA in our local population.

Materials and methods
This is a retrospective case–control study of 148 UKAs performed at an academic institution with a minimum of 1-year follow-up. 74 robotic arm-assisted UKAs were matched to 74 conventional UKAs via propensity score matching. Radiological outcomes included postoperative mechanical axis and individual component alignment. Clinical parameters included a range of motion, Knee Society knee score and functional assessment taken before, 6 and 12 months after the operation.

Results
Robot arm-assisted UKA produced a more neutral component coronal alignment in both femoral component (robotic -0.2 ± 2.8, manual 2.6 ± 2.3; P = 0.043) and tibial component (robotic -0.3 ± 4.0, manual 1.7 ± 5.3; P < 0.001). While the postoperative mechanical axis was comparable, robot arm-assisted UKA demonstrated a smaller posterior tibial slope (robotic 5.7 ± 2.7, manual 8.2 ± 3.3; P = 0.02). Clinical outcomes did not show any statistically significant differences.

Conclusion
Compared with conventional UKA, robotic arm-assisted UKA demonstrated improved component alignment and comparable clinical outcomes. Improved radiological accuracy with robotic-arm assistance demonstrated promising early results.
Analysing time-use composition as dependent variables in physical activity and sedentary behaviour research: different compositional data analysis approaches
Authors: von Rosen Philip 
Published: November 2023

AbstractRecently, there has been a paradigm shift from considering physical activity and sedentary behaviour as “independent” risk factors of health to acknowledging their co-dependency and compositional nature. The focus is now on how these behaviours relate to each other rather than viewing them in isolation. Compositional data analysis (CoDA) is a methodology that has been developed specifically for compositional data and the number of publications using CoDA in physical activity and sedentary behaviour research has increased rapidly in the past years. Yet, only a small proportion of the published studies in physical activity and sedentary behaviour research have investigated the time-use composition as dependent variables. This could be related to challenges regarding the interpretation of the results and the lack of guidelines for deciding which statistical approach to use. Therefore, in this paper, four different approaches for analysing the time-use composition as dependent variables are presented and discussed. This paper advocates that the aim of research should guide how the dependent variable is defined and which data analysis approach is selected, and it encourages researchers to consider analysing time-use components as dependent variables in physical activity and sedentary behaviour research.
Breast Cancer Phenotypes in Africa: A Scoping Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Onyia Abimbola F. , Nana Toluwani A. , Adewale Elijah A. , Adebesin Ayomide O. , Adegboye Bose E. , Paimo Oluwatomiwa K. , De Campos Opeyemi C. , Bisi-Adeniyi Titilayo I. , Rotimi Oluwakemi A. , Oyelade Jelili O. , Rotimi Solomon O. 
Published: November 2023

PURPOSE Africans have been associated with more aggressive forms of breast cancer (BC). However, there is a lack of data regarding the incidence and distribution of different subtypes on the basis of phenotypic classification. This scoping review and meta-analysis was undertaken to determine the distribution pattern of BC phenotypes (luminal, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 [HER2]+, and triple-negative breast cancer [TNBC]) across the African region. METHODS Four online databases (PubMed, Scopus, ProQuest, and EBSCOhost) were accessed to identify studies published between 2000 and 2022 reporting the representation of receptor status (estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER2) in African patients with BC. Furthermore, the meta-analysis was carried out using a random-effects model and pooled using the inverse variance method and logit transformation. 95% CI and I2 statistics were calculated using the Clopper-Pearson method to estimate between-study heterogeneity. RESULTS A total of 2,734 records were retrieved, of which 2,133 were retained for further screening. After the screening, 63 studies were finally selected for the scoping review and meta-analysis. The pooled frequency of luminal, HER2-positive (HER2+), and TNBC was estimated at 56.30%, 12.61%, and 28.10%, respectively. Northern Africa had the highest frequency of the luminal subtype, while West Africa showed higher frequencies of HER2+ and TNBC subtypes. The review also had a representation of only 24 countries in Africa. CONCLUSION Our results highlight the disparity in the representation of molecular subtypes among the people in different regions of Africa. There is a need to incorporate routine molecular subtyping into the management of African patients with BC.
Probing mean values and correlations of high-spin systems on a quantum computer
Authors: Kuzmak A. R. , Tkachuk V. M. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
We consider simulation of the high spins on a quantum computer. The protocols which allow one to measure the mean value of spin and correlations between spins are proposed. As a result, we determine the time dependence of the mean values of spin-1 in the magnetic field prepared on the ibmq-santiago quantum computer. In addition, we study the evolution of two interacting spins on the ibmq-lima quantum computer. The time-dependencies of the mean value of spin-1 and correlations between these spins are detected. Finally, we generalize these protocols for the spins of arbitrary values.
State Calculations and the Political Promise of Replication
Authors: Graizbord Diana 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This article examines how and to what effect the scientific ideal and practice of replication is adopted by a Mexican federal government agency charged with measuring poverty. The commitment to replication among state poverty experts is traced to their self-conception as democratic reformers working against cultures of state opacity associated with an authoritarian past. These experts deploy the ideal of replication as a bureaucratic ethos and the practice of replication as a public-facing and legitimating strategy. Replication successfully performs transparency and generates trust by appealing to, and strengthening ties with, elite academic and policy actors. Ultimately, the article shows how scientific ideals and practices adopted by state actors are cast as democracy enhancing even as they produce elite closure and limit public participation.
Toxic Avoidance
Authors: Henry Emmanuel 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
If the words “our product is doubt” characterize the production of ignorance, in turn, the production of nonproblem could be encapsulated by “our product is silence.” This article looks behind both these words and this concept of nonproblems, drawing attention to public policy mechanisms whose effect (whether explicitly intended or not) is to reduce the attention paid to a given problem, resulting in public inaction, not taking charge of a problem. It highlights the role in those dynamics of two factors: the scientific instruments attempting to quantify environmental and occupational health issues and the scientific expertise in the field of the regulation of chemicals. Downstream of these regulatory processes, the use of science-based regulatory instruments implicitly steers regulatory policies in a direction that results in tolerance of certain risks (rendering them acceptable) and can lead to public inaction.
From Thin to Thick
Authors: Foster Jacob G. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This article argues that contemporary research practices in artificial intelligence will produce AI technologies incompatible with human flourishing, social complexity, or vibrant politics. Adopting James Scott's anarchist squint, it instead proposes a vision of AI that embraces local vernaculars, the multiplicity of objectives, the responsibilities that come with producing persons, and the potential of instigating rather than circumventing political contestation. To clarify the stakes, it draws on the key evolutionary idea of niche construction, contrasting the thin, universalizing, top-down construction characteristic of contemporary AI with thick, local, and contested co-construction. It also introduces the idea of semantic power, showing how AI's ability to impose objective functions on the world shapes our very categories of meaning. Finally, it calls for a new social science of possible worlds, outlining strategies for rigorous exploration of the imaginal world where unrealized but possible social arrangements reside.
White in the Deep Blue
Authors: Kosmatopoulos Nikolas 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Although the imperial ship has been a key location through which to theorize colonialism and the origins of racial capitalism, little research exists on the postcolonial ship as an analytical indicator for the persistence and distinctiveness of contemporary racial capitalism. This article explores a largely uncharted territory through a critical appraisal of postwar Greek-owned shipping. Greece's dominant place in global shipping offers an illuminating and yet understudied entry point to political economies of neocolonial / racial capitalism at sea. The first part of this brief intervention invokes the Greek-owned tanker in threefold ways: as a geopolitical actor in response to the decolonization of maritime energy routes and to worldmaking at and through the sea; as a floating financial device that produces deterritorialized hierarchies of global space through processes of flagging-out and offshoring; and as a physical site where structures of racial capitalism, mainly in terms of labor, proliferate. The second part of the article discusses certain forms of community waters’ defense as a possible path toward decolonization and Indigenous efforts to “take sea back.”
Aerial Social Spaces and State Power
Authors: Zaidi Waqar 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This article suggests that aerial networks can be usefully conceptualized as broad “aerial social spaces” that can (and often do) extend, produce, and reproduce state power. They are not easily created: their creation and maintenance require large resources both on land and in the air. The same aerial network can be embodied in multiple aerial social spaces that produce and reproduce state power in different ways. This article highlights two such pathways: the first through cultural and the second through logistical impact. In support it presents two case studies based on the expansion of civil aviation in the developing world in the 1940s and 1950s: the International Civil Aviation Authority's interventions in the Middle East and US involvement in Saudi Arabian aviation.
Phylogenomics of Leptospira santarosai, a prevalent pathogenic species in the Americas
Authors: Chinchilla Diana , Nieves Cecilia , Gutiérrez Ricardo , Sordoillet Vallier , Veyrier Frédéric J. , Picardeau Mathieu 
Published: November 2023

Background
Leptospirosis is a complex zoonotic disease mostly caused by a group of eight pathogenic species (L. interrogans, L. borgpetersenii, L. kirschneri, L. mayottensis, L. noguchii, L. santarosai, L. weilii, L. alexanderi), with a wide spectrum of animal reservoirs and patient outcomes. Leptospira interrogans is considered as the leading causative agent of leptospirosis worldwide and it is the most studied species. However, the genomic features and phylogeography of other Leptospira pathogenic species remain to be determined.

Methodology/principal findings
Here we investigated the genome diversity of the main pathogenic Leptospira species based on a collection of 914 genomes from strains isolated around the world. Genome analyses revealed species-specific genome size and GC content, and an open pangenome in the pathogenic species, except for L. mayottensis. Taking advantage of a new set of genomes of L. santarosai strains isolated from patients in Costa Rica, we took a closer look at this species. L. santarosai strains are largely distributed in America, including the Caribbean islands, with over 96% of the available genomes originating from this continent. Phylogenetic analysis showed high genetic diversity within L. santarosai, and the clonal groups identified by cgMLST were strongly associated with geographical areas. Serotype identification based on serogrouping and/or analysis of the O-antigen biosynthesis gene loci further confirmed the great diversity of strains within the species.

Conclusions/significance
In conclusion, we report a comprehensive genome analysis of pathogenic Leptospira species with a focus on L. santarosai. Our study sheds new light onto the genomic diversity, evolutionary history, and epidemiology of leptospirosis in America and globally. Our findings also expand our knowledge of the genes driving O-antigen diversity. In addition, our work provides a framework for understanding the virulence and spread of L. santarosai and for improving its surveillance in both humans and animals.
Circulating levels of miR125a, miR126, and miR146a-5p in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and their relation with markers of endothelial dysfunction
Authors: Fadaei Reza , Fallah Soudabeh , Moradi Mohammad-Taher , Rostampour Masoumeh , Khazaie Habibolah 
Published: November 2023

Background
obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent sleep disorder that is associated with increased risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Oxidative stress, insulin resistance, inflammation, and endothelial dysfunction are increased in OSA patients and microRNAs (miRs) are regulatory elements that influence these pathological mechanisms. miR125a, miR126, and miR146a-5p play a role in these pathological mechanisms and have not been evaluated in patients with OSA.

Method
This case-control study was performed on 90 OSA patients and 34 controls. Circulating levels of miR125a, miR126, and miR146a-5 were determined using real-time PCR, and serum levels of hsCRP, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1 were evaluated using ELISA kits.

Results
miR125a and miR146a were elevated in patients with OSA compared to controls while miR126 decreased significantly. All three miRs indicated a remarkable difference between the mild-OSA group compared to the severe-OSA group. Furthermore, patients with OSA showed elevated levels of hsCRP, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1. Multiple linear regression indicated an independent association of miR125a with ICAM-1 and hsCRP, miR126 associated with VCAM-1 and total cholesterol, and miR146a-5p represented an association with apnea-hypopnea index and ICAM-1. Furthermore, miR146a-5p illustrated a good diagnostic ability to differentiate between OSA and controls.

Conclusions
Circulating miR125a, miR126, and miR146a-5p fluctuations in patients with OSA and their relations with markers of endothelial dysfunction provide in vivo evidence and suggest a potential role for these miRs with endothelial dysfunction in patients with OSA.
“Exceptionally challenging time for all of us”: Qualitative study of the COVID-19 experiences of partners of diplomatic personnel
Authors: Brooks Samantha K. , Patel Dipti , Greenberg Neil 
Published: November 2023

BackgroundAlthough the romantic partners of diplomatic personnel frequently accompany their spouses to overseas postings and face the challenges of having to adjust to new cultures and separation from friends and family, they have rarely been the focus of academic research. This study explores the lived experiences of the partners/spouses of diplomatic personnel from the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsPartners of FCDO staff took part in semi-structured interviews about how COVID-19 had affected their lives and their perceptions of the organisation’s response to the pandemic. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.ResultsEleven partners of FCDO staff took part, who between them had lived in 14 different countries during the pandemic. The analysis identified six key themes: deployment-specific challenges such as travel restrictions, quarantine and evacuation; children; impacts of the pandemic including financial and psychological; perceptions of the organisational response to COVID-19; support and help-seeking; and suggestions for the future. Overall participants reported experiencing a number of challenges, many of which left them feeling powerless and not in control of their own lives. Participants frequently described a lack of clarity around policies and support. Social support appeared to be valuable, but many participants wanted more support from the organisation and from informal networks.ConclusionsDiplomatic (and similar) organisations could enhance the wellbeing of the partners of their staff through improved communication and support. Keeping families informed about restrictions, requirements, policies and available help during a crisis, and reaching out to them to offer advice and support, would likely be beneficial. It is important that lessons are learned from the COVID-19 crisis in order for organisations to be able to support their employees and families if another prolonged crisis were to occur.