bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The CSR committee as moderator for the ESG score and market value
Authors: Bifulco Giuseppe Maria , Savio Riccardo , Paolone Francesco , Tiscini Riccardo 
Published: June 2023

AbstractThis paper investigates the relationship between the ESG score and market values. Specifically, we test the moderating role of CSR committee defined as organizational subcommittees of boards of directors that make social and environmental recommendations to the boards of directors and support members in their CSR‐related tasks. We built a panel data set with all the listed companies in STOXX Europe 600, covering the period 2014–2020. Firms' data come from Refinitiv Eikon database which contains financial and ESG scores data of all EU listed companies. Our sample of firm‐level data contains a dataset of 600 European listed companies which are part of the STOXX Europe 600 Index. We included ESG data of STOXX Europe 600 Index components in the period 2014–2020. Our dataset contains a total of 4800 firm‐year observations. We found a negative relationship between ESG score and stock prices while the presence of CSR committee as moderating variable generates no significant evidence of ESG score. The presence of CSR committee is not considerably supporting ESG in achieving higher market performance. The CSR committee plays an essential role in monitoring management activities. This may support management practitioners in better understanding and reacting to stakeholder expectations.
Layered Low‐Dimensional Ruddlesden‐Popper and Dion‐Jacobson Perovskites: From Material Properties to Photovoltaic Device Performance
Authors: Liu Rui , Hu Xin , Xu Maoxia , Ren Haorong , Yu Hua 
Published: June 2023

AbstractLayered low‐dimensional halide perovskites (LDPs) with multiple quantum well structure have shown increasing research interest in photovoltaic solar cell applications owing to their intrinsic moisture stability and favorable photophysical properties in comparison with their three‐dimensional (3D) counterparts. The most common LDPs are Ruddlesden‐Popper (RP) phases and Dion‐Jacobson (DJ) phases, both of which have made significant research advances in efficiency and stability. However, distinct interlayer cations between RP and DJ phase lead to disparate chemical bonds and different perovskite structures, which endow RP and DJ perovskite with distinctive chemical and physical properties. Plenty of reviews have reported the research progress of LDPs but no summary has elaborated from the perspective of the merits and drawbacks of the RP and DJ phases. Herein, in this review, we offer a comprehensive expound on the merits and promises of RP and DJ LDPs from their chemical structure, physicochemical properties, and photovoltaic performance research progress aiming to provide a new insight into the dominance of RP and DJ phases. Then, we reviewed the recent progress on the synthesis and implementation of RP and DJ LDPs thin films and devices, as well as their optoelectronic properties. Finally, we discussed the possible strategies to resolve existing toughs to realize the desired high‐performance LDPs solar cells.
A continuous Class‐EF power amplifier based on the general continuous mode design theory
Authors: Wei Xuepeng , Luo Yonglun 
Published: June 2023

SummaryContinuous mode provides better bandwidth performance and constant efficiency by offering greater design flexibility in fundamental and harmonics. However, this mode is mainly applicable to limited classes of power amplifiers (PAs) (such as Class‐F, Class‐J, and their derived types). In view of this problem, this paper proposes a general design theory for high‐efficiency broadband continuous PAs, which can easily extend any waveform of PAs to obtain the continuous impedance space. In theoretical analysis, first, the high‐efficiency equations are analyzed from the perspective of frequency domain. Furthermore, combining time domain constraints, a general continuous mode analysis and solution theory is presented. The theory is applied to the bandwidth expansion of Class‐EF PAs, resulting in a new continuous Class‐EF (C‐EF) mode that maintains constant efficiency while offering greater broadband design freedom. The proposed theory is verified by fabricating a C‐EF PA using GaN HEMT CGH40010F, which demonstrated output power (Pout) ranging from 39.5 to 41.2 dBm and drain efficiency (DE) of 69.5% to 79.2% in the frequency range of 2.5–3.6 GHz.
Integrating community science and agency‐collected monitoring data to expand monitoring capacity at large spatial scales
Authors: Sipe Hannah A. , Keren Ilai N. , Converse Sarah J. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractMonitoring species to better understand their status, ecology, and management needs is a major expense for agencies tasked with biodiversity conservation. Community science data have the potential to improve monitoring for minimal cost, given appropriate analytical frameworks. We describe a framework for integrating data from the eBird community science platform with agency‐collected monitoring data using a multistate occupancy model. Our model accounts for the structural differences across datasets and allows for estimation of both occupancy and breeding probabilities. The framework was applied to Common Loons (Gavia immer) in Washington State. A total of 766 sites had observation effort, of which 713 sites had only eBird effort, 26 sites had only Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) effort, and 27 sites had both. We predicted that the probability of occupancy was only 0.07 (95% Bayesian credible interval, BCI = 0.02–0.51) at the 2324 sites in our sampling frame, though the probability that Common Loons were breeding at occupied sites was 0.95 (95% BCI = 0.71–1.00). We found that probability of occupancy was positively related to waterbody size (probability of a positive effect = 0.88) and negatively related to an index of human influence (probability of a negative effect = 0.94). We found that probability of breeding at occupied sites was positively related to tree canopy cover (0.86), negatively related to elevation (0.99), and negatively related to barren, scrub/shrub, and herbaceous land cover (0.98). We found that state agency biologists were 16 times more likely to detect breeding Common Loons at a site than were eBird users (0.94, 95% BCI = 0.78–0.99 for agency biologists vs. 0.08, 95% BCI = 0.06–0.10 for eBird users). However, the amount of effort expended by eBird users meant that they confirmed Common Loons at 94 sites while agency biologists confirmed them at just 24 sites, although evidence of reproduction was only contributed by agency biologists. Our results provide a better understanding of the distribution of Common Loons in Washington, while further demonstrating that community science data can be a valuable complement to agency‐collected data, if appropriate frameworks are developed to integrate these data sources.
Fitness and niche differences are both important in explaining responses of plant diversity to nutrient addition
Authors: Dostál Petr 
Published: June 2023

AbstractPlant species loss due to eutrophication is a common phenomenon in temperate perennial grasslands. It occurs in a nonrandom fashion and is usually explained by increased competitive size asymmetry between the co‐occurring winner (tall species with optima in productive habitats) and loser species (small‐statured plants typical for unproductive habitats). It remains unclear why nutrient addition decreases diversity in communities consisting of losers only, whereas it has little effect on winner‐only communities. Here, I used the framework of modern coexistence theory to explore fertilization‐driven changes in fitness and niche differences between different combinations of field‐identified winner (W) and loser (L) species. I experimentally estimated competition parameters for plant species pairs constructed from a pool of eight species, including pairs of species from the same (WW, LL) and different species categories (LW) grown for approximately 2 years in control and fertilized conditions. Concurrently, I also followed plant species diversity in mesocosm communities constructed from the same species pool (four‐species communities including winners, losers, or both) exposed to control and nutrient addition. I found that nutrient addition can reduce but, unexpectedly, also promote species coexistence depending on the type of species pairs. Whereas nutrient addition eroded the coexistence of losers with winners, but also with other losers, treatment had the opposite effect on the persistence of winner species. Fertilization induced large fitness differences between species in loser–winner and loser–loser combinations, but had little effect on the fitness differences of species within the winner–winner combination. In addition, the persistence of winner pairs was promoted by larger niche differences compared to loser species, irrespective of soil nutrients. The differences in how nutrient addition modified coexistence at the pairwise level were reflected by differences in the evenness of multispecies communities assembled from the corresponding species categories. These results suggest that the effect of eutrophication on plant species richness cannot simply be explained by an increased competitive asymmetry. To fully understand the effect of fertilization on the diversity of temperate grasslands, interspecific and intraspecific interactions should be explored while considering differences in species' ecological optima.
Characterizing tree trait variance over spatiotemporal scales
Authors: Umaña Maria Natalia , Hulshof Catherine M. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractBeyond the study of the mean, functional ecology lacks a concise characterization of trait variance patterns across spatiotemporal scales. Traits are measured in different ways, using different metrics, and at different spatial (and rarely temporal) scales. This study expands on previous research by applying a ubiquitous and widely used empirical model—Taylor's Power Law—to functional trait variance with the goal of identifying general patterns of trait variance scaling (the behavior of trait variance across scales). We compiled data on tree seedling communities monitored over 10 years across 213 2 m2 plots and functional trait data from a subtropical forest in Puerto Rico. We examined trait‐based Taylor's Power Law at nested spatial and temporal scales. The scaling of variance with the mean was idiosyncratic across traits suggesting that the drivers of variation are likely to differ across traits that may make variance scaling theory elusive. However, slopes varied more in space than through time, suggesting that spatial environmental variability may have a larger role in driving trait variance than temporal variability. Empirical models that characterize taxonomic patterns across spatiotemporal scales, like Taylor's Power Law, can provide an insight into the scaling of functional traits, a necessary next step toward a more predictive trait‐based ecology.
Eligibility for vericiguat in a real‐world heart failure population according to trial, guideline and label criteria: Data from the Swedish Heart Failure Registry
Authors: Nguyen Ngoc V. , Lindberg Felix , Benson Lina , Ferrannini Giulia , Imbalzano Egidio , Mol Peter G.M. , Dahlström Ulf , Rosano Giuseppe M.C. , Ezekowitz Justin , Butler Javed , Lund Lars H. , Savarese Gianluigi 
Published: June 2023

AbstractAimWe investigated the eligibility for vericiguat in a real‐world heart failure (HF) population based on trial, guideline and label criteria.Methods and resultsFrom the Swedish HF registry, 23 573 patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) enrolled between 2000 and 2018, with a HF duration ≥6 months, were considered. Eligibility for vericiguat was calculated based on criteria from (i) the Vericiguat Global Study in Subjects with Heart Failure and Reduced Ejection Fraction (VICTORIA) trial; (ii) European and American guidelines on HF; (iii) product labelling according to the Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency. Estimated eligibility for vericiguat in the trial, guidelines, and label scenarios was 21.4%, 47.4%, and 47.4%, respectively. Prior HF hospitalization within 6 months was the criterion limiting eligibility the most in all scenarios (met by 49.1% of the population). In the trial scenario, other criteria meaningfully limiting eligibility were elevated N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide levels and nitrate use. In all scenarios, eligibility was higher among patients hospitalized for HF at baseline (44.3% vs. 21.4% [trial scenario] and 97.3% vs. 47.4% [guideline/label scenarios] for hospitalized vs. non‐hospitalized patients). Overall, eligible patients were older, had more severe HF, more comorbidities, and consequently higher cardiovascular mortality and HF hospitalization rates compared with ineligible patients across all scenarios.ConclusionIn a large and contemporary real‐world HFrEF cohort, we estimated that 21.4% of patients would be eligible for vericiguat according to the VICTORIA trial selection criteria, 47.4% based on guidelines and labelling. Eligibility for vericiguat translated into the selection of a population at high risk of morbidity/mortality.
Systematic selection of ancestry informative SNPs for differentiating Han, Japanese, Dai, and Kinh populations
Authors: Wan Wen , Zhang Hongling , Ren Zheng , Wang Qiyan , Liu Yubo , Ji Jingyan , Yang Meiqing , Zhang Han , Huang Jiang , Jin Xiaoye 
Published: June 2023

AbstractBiogeographical origin inferences of different populations can provide valuable clues in the forensic investigation by narrowing down the detection scope. However, much research mainly focuses on forensic ancestral origin analyses of major continental populations, which may provide limited information in forensic practice. To improve the ancestral resolution of East Asian populations, we systematically selected ancestry informative single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (AISNPs) for differentiating Han, Dai, Japanese, and Kinh populations. In addition, we evaluated the performance of the selected AISNPs to differentiate these populations via multiple methods. Totally 116 AISNPs were selected from the genome‐wide data to infer the population origins of these four populations. Results of principle component analysis and population genetic structure of these populations indicated that the selected 116 AISNPs could achieve ancestral resolution of most individuals. Furthermore, the machine learning model built by 116 AISNPs unveiled that most individuals from these four populations could be assigned to correct population origins. To sum up, the selected 116 SNPs could be available for ancestral origin predictions of Han, Dai, Japanese, and Kinh populations, which could provide valuable information for forensic research and genome‐wide association study in East Asian populations to some extent.
Dual‐mode biosensing platform for ultrasensitive Salmonella detection based on cascaded signal amplification coupled with DNA‐functionalized Ag2S NPs@PB
Authors: Jiao Jing‐bo , Kang Qing , Du Ting , Cao Jiang‐li , Xiao Ze‐hui , Wei Li‐fei , Zhao Chu‐min , He Liu , Du Xin‐jun , Wang Shuo 
Published: June 2023

AbstractSalmonella is one of the most common zoonotic foodborne pathogens and can cause serious threats to public health and global economy. A dual‐mode biosensing platform was demonstrated based on cascaded signal amplification coupled with DNA‐functionalized Ag2S NPs@PB (Ag2S NPs@PB‐DNA) for ultrasensitive and selective Salmonella detection. Specifically, once Salmonella was recognized and captured by the control probe, the primer was released to trigger rolling circle amplification and generate a multimeric single‐stranded DNA (ssDNA) with repetitive sequences. The ssDNA could form multicomponent nucleic acid enzyme with cleavage activity to destroy multiple pieces of L‐DNA, achieving cascaded signal amplification and cleaving L‐DNA as a linker between DNA‐functionalized magnetite microspheres (MMs@DNA) and Ag2S NPs@PB‐DNA, leading to reduction in the capture of Ag2S NPs@PB by MMs@DNA. Due to the excellent photothermal properties of Ag2S NPs@PB under near‐infrared irradiation, the changes of temperature and pressure could be simultaneously monitored in the detection system, and the dual‐mode biosensing platform showed outstanding sensitivity, with a limit of the detection value of 100 CFU mL−1 in temperature and 101 CFU mL−1 in pressure. Moreover, the developed biosensing platform could successfully detect 5.7 CFU of Salmonella in spiked chicken breast after 4 h of enrichment. All the results show this study provides a new avenue for specific, sensitive, and convenient bacterial detection in food analysis and environment safety.
Evidence for sophisticated raw material procurement strategies during the Lower Paleolithic—Hula Valley case study
Authors: Finkel Meir , Bar Oded , Ben Dor Yoav , Ben-Yosef Erez , Tirosh Ofir , Sharon Gonen 
Published: June 2023

AbstractThe Hula Valley has two key Acheulian sites: Gesher Benot Ya'aqov (GBY), a large flake Acheulian site with hundreds of basalt bifaces and a significant number of flint handaxes, and Ma'ayan Barukh (MB), where more than 3500 flint handaxes were collected. Over the last one million years, the valley was filled by alluvium and basalt flows, devoid of flint sources suitable for handaxe production. We conducted archaeological and geological surveys combined with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry geochemical study to determine the source(s) of flint, comparing elemental compositions of handaxes from GBY and MB with those of different flint sources using a novel statistical method. The results demonstrate that Hula Valley Acheulian flint handaxes were derived from Eocene flint. For GBY, the nearest matching source for its small number of excavated handaxes is a secondary deposit of the Dishon streambed found ~8 km northwest of the site. A more likely source for both GBY and the thousands of MB handaxes is the Dishon flint extraction and reduction complex located 20 km to the west, a possibility also supported by the near absence of production waste flakes at the sites themselves. These findings support direct procurement strategy as early as the Lower Paleolithic.
Consumption of aspartame and other artificial sweeteners and risk of cancer in the Spanish multicase‐control study (MCC‐Spain)
Authors: Palomar‐Cros Anna , Straif Kurt , Romaguera Dora , Aragonés Nuria , Castaño‐Vinyals Gemma , Martin Vicente , Moreno Victor , Gómez‐Acebo Inés , Guevara Marcela , Aizpurua Amaia , Molina‐Barceló Ana , Jiménez‐Moleón José‐Juan , Tardón Adonina , Contreras‐Llanes Manuel , Marcos‐Gragera Rafael , Huerta José Mª , Pérez‐Gómez Beatriz , Espinosa Ana , Hernández‐Segura Natalia , Obón‐Santacana Mireia , Alonso‐Molero Jessica , Burgui Rosana , Amiano Pilar , Pinto‐Carbó Marina , Olmedo‐Requena Rocio , Fernández‐Tardón Guillermo , Santos‐Sánchez Vanessa , Fernández de Larrea‐Baz Nerea , Fernández‐Villa Tania , Casabonne Delphine , Dierssen‐Sotos Trinidad , Ardanaz Eva , Dorronsoro Ane , Pollán Marina , Kogevinas Manolis , Lassale Camille 
Published: June 2023

AbstractUse of artificial sweeteners (AS) such as aspartame, cyclamate, saccharin and sucralose is widespread. We evaluated the association of use of aspartame and other AS with cancer. In total 1881 colorectal, 1510 breast, 972 prostate and 351 stomach cancer and 109 chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) cases and 3629 population controls from the Spanish Multicase‐Control (MCC‐Spain) study were recruited (2008‐2013). The consumption of AS, from table‐top sweeteners and artificially sweetened beverages, was assessed through a self‐administered and validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Sex‐specific quartiles among controls were determined to compare moderate consumers (<third quartile) and high consumers (≥ third quartile) vs non consumers (reference category), distinguishing aspartame‐containing products and other AS. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to estimate adjusted OR and 95%CI, and results were stratified by diabetes status. Overall, we found no associations between the consumption of aspartame or other AS and cancer. Among participants with diabetes, high consumption of other AS was associated with colorectal cancer (OR = 1.58, 95% CI 1.05‐2.41, P trend = .03) and stomach cancer (OR = 2.27 [0.99‐5.44], P trend = .06). High consumption of aspartame, was associated with stomach cancer (OR = 2.04 [0.7‐5.4], P trend = .05), while a lower risk was observed for breast cancer (OR = 0.28 [0.08‐0.83], P trend = .03). In some cancers, the number of cases in participants with diabetes were small and results should be interpreted cautiously. We did not find associations between use of AS and cancer, but found associations between high consumption of aspartame and other AS and different cancer types among participants with diabetes.
Can market information outperform hard and soft information in predicting corporate defaults?
Authors: Filomeni Stefano , Bose Udichibarna , Megaritis Anastasios , Triantafyllou Athanasios 
Published: June 2023

AbstractRecent evidence has shown that hybrid models for credit ratings are important when assessing the risk of firms. Within this stream of literature, we aim to provide novel evidence on how hard (quantitative), soft (qualitative), and market information predict corporate defaults for unlisted firms by implementing the Cox proportional hazard model. We address this research question by exploiting a unique proprietary dataset comprising of detailed information on internal credit ratings of European unlisted mid‐sized firms and compute their Merton's distance‐to‐default (DD) measure of credit risk with market data collected on comparable publicly listed companies. Our results show that the bank's use of hard, soft, and market information when assessing the credit ratings of borrowers has a significant influence on the prediction of their defaults. Further, we investigate the significant influence of soft information in predicting corporate defaults by drawing on two separate processes through which loan officers can inject soft information in credit scoring, that is, ‘codified’ and ‘uncodified’ discretion. Finally, when we distinguish between the loan officer's discretion to upgrade or downgrade an applicant's credit score, we find that it is the upgrade that is likely to predict a lower probability of a firm defaulting. This study contributes to the policy debate on safeguarding the banking sector's continuity by positing that integrating market information into banks' hybrid methods of credit rating helps to improve the accuracy in predicting unlisted firms' credit risk that is useful to policy makers for the design of future forward‐looking financial risk management frameworks.