bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Dioxins and furans in biochars, hydrochars and torreficates produced by thermochemical conversion of biomass: a review
Authors: Sobol Łukasz , Dyjakon Arkadiusz , Soukup Karel 
Published: April 2023

AbstractConverting raw biomass into valuable products protects the environment, improves economics, and helps tackle climate change by cutting resource demand and waste production. Thermochemical treatment is a common method for producing biochars, hydrochars and torreficates from biomass and organic wastes, which can also generate dioxins and furans and consequently limit the use of thermochemically converted chars. Here we review the presence of dioxins and furans in chars produced by hydrothermal carbonization, torrefaction, and pyrolysis processes under the influence of temperature, residence time, heating rate, pressure, and feedstock type. Dioxins and furans were mostly below 20 ng total toxic equivalence per kilogram (TEQ kg−1), with the highest level of 113 ng TEQ kg−1 found in over 100 samples of different char types. The most toxic products were hydrochars produced from sewage sludge. Processing temperature and feedstock type were key factors resulting in high dioxin levels in chars, and care should be taken when producing chars at temperatures up to 300 °C or using feedstocks previously contaminated with dioxins or preservatives.
Evaluation of the adaptive potential of three non-native multipurpose species for soil rehabilitation
Authors: Flores-Trejo Olga Lidia , Buendía-Espinoza Julio César , Zamora-Elizalde Mayra Clementina 
Published: April 2023

AbstractSoil rehabilitation involves restoring their capacity to provide goods and services; however, there is a lack of information regarding the survival and growth responses of individual species to local environmental variations. This study evaluated the adaptation capacity of three non-native multiple-use species in agroforestry design, in a degraded semiarid temperate climate zone located in the Tula watershed in Mexico, assessing their survival, growth of morphological variables, and death risk for use as soil restoration plants. According to the slope of the terrain, the species were planted in an agroforestry arrangement of lines and ridges. Plants were selected according to their multipurpose potential, including their taxonomy, form, function, and use, as well as their soil and climatic conditions. Survival rates for all three species were below acceptable levels$$(< 49\%)$$(<49%). NeitherSenna multiglandulosanorSedum dendroideumadapted well to the soil and climate of the site, since their survival rates were below acceptable$$(\sim 17<49\mathrm{\%})$$(∼17<49%).Aloe sp.adapted to the edaphoclimatic conditions of the site because its survival rate was excellent$$(\sim 97 \ge 90\%)$$(∼97≥90%). Climate conditions during the autumn and winter affected growth rates ofSenna multiglandulosaandSedum dendroideum.Aloe sp.growth rates were only affected by climatic conditions during the winter months.Senna multiglandulosa's final height reduced death risk by$$1.50\%$$1.50%.Sedum dendroideum's final diameter, initial canopy cover and canopy growth rate reduced the risk of death by$$55.1$$55.1,$$5.1$$5.1and$$30.7\%$$30.7%, respectively. The height growth rate of aloe and initial canopy cover reduced the risk of death by 93.9 and 2.4%, respectively. Plant species evaluated showed varying levels of adaptation.Aloe sp.was the species that adapted best to the site's soil and climate.
A digitally driven manufacturing process for high resolution patterning of cell formations
Authors: Smith Matthew A A , Khot M Ibrahim , Taccola Silvia , Fry Nicholas R , Muhonen Pirkko L , Tipper Joanne L , Jayne David G , Kay Robert W , Harris Russell A 
Published: April 2023

AbstractThis paper presents the engineering and validation of an enabling technology that facilitates new capabilities in in vitro cell models for high-throughput screening and tissue engineering applications. This is conducted through a computerized system that allows the design and deposition of high-fidelity microscale patterned coatings that selectively alter the chemical and topographical properties of cell culturing surfaces. Significantly, compared to alternative methods for microscale surface patterning, this is a digitally controlled and automated process thereby allowing scientists to rapidly create and explore an almost infinite range of cell culture patterns. This new capability is experimentally validated across six different cell lines demonstrating how the precise microscale deposition of these patterned coatings can influence spatiotemporal growth and movement of endothelial, fibroblast, neuronal and macrophage cells. To further demonstrate this platform, more complex patterns are then created and shown to guide the behavioral response of colorectal carcinoma cells.
Graphical Abstract
Social capital in academia: How does postdocs’ relationship with their superior professors shape their career intentions?
Authors: Epstein Nurith , Elhalaby Christina 
Published: April 2023

AbstractIn this study, we hypothesize that full professors have an important impact on their postdocs’ career intentions. Using multivariate regression analysis, we found a positive association between postdocs’ ratings of their professor relationship, their integration into the scientific community and their career intentions. In addition, publications as a co-author were significantly related to the intention to pursue professorship. Our results suggest that social capital but specifically the quality of postdocs’ social capital is important for their career intentions: particularly the relationship with their professor, integration into the scientific community and ties to other scientists that translate into publications. Implications for career strategy on the individual level and policy implications are discussed.
Evaluation of retinal microcirculation alterations using OCTA in hyperopic ametropic amblyopia patients before and after treatment
Authors: Rao Ting , Zou Wen , Hu Xiaoqin , He Hai , Luo Wei , You Zhipeng 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Purpose
We aimed to compare retinal microcirculation in hyperopic ametropic amblyopia patients before and after treatment and in healthy children using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), and to explore the pathogenesis of hyperopic ametropic amblyopia.

Methods
Eighteen patients with hyperopic ametropic amblyopia aged 4–8 years were selected as the patient group, and 18 age-matched healthy children were randomly selected as controls. The foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area, perimeter and circularity, vessel density (VD) and perfusion density (PD) of macular superficial retinal capillary plexus, macular thickness, peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer thickness were compared between both groups. After 6 months of amblyopia treatment, the same parameters were measured again.

Results
The VD and PD in the central, inner, inner nasal, and inner inferior regions in hyperopic ametropic amblyopia were lower than in the control group after adjustment for axial length. After 6 months of treatment, the VD increased significantly, except in the outer nasal and outer inferior regions. The PD in the central (p < 0.001), inner superior (p = 0.001), inner inferior (p = 0.011) and inner temporal (p = 0.026) regions increased. The FAZ perimeter and circularity significantly differed between the groups. After 6 months of treatment, the FAZ area and perimeter decreased, but circularity increased.

Conclusion
Hyperopic ametropic amblyopia eyes showed a significant decrease in vessel and perfusion densities. After amblyopia treatment, the vessel and perfusion densities of patients with hyperopic ametropic amblyopia increased, suggesting that abnormalities in the microvascular system are a pathogenic factor of amblyopia.
Effect of Cr:Fe ratio on the mechanical properties of (Cr,Fe)7C3 ternary carbides in abrasion-resistant white cast irons
Authors: Jokari-Sheshdeh Maziar , Ali Yahia , Gallo Santiago Corujeira , Lin Weikang , Gates J. D. 
Published: April 2023

Abstract(Cr,Fe)7C3 ternary carbides constitute the majority of eutectic carbides in abrasion-resistant white cast irons. Density functional theory models have predicted these carbides to have a combination of metallic, covalent and ionic bonding, in proportions depending on the carbide’s Cr:Fe ratio. However, experimental research to validate these predictions has been lacking. This study investigates the characteristics of the carbides as a function of Cr:Fe ratio, which was manipulated from Fe-rich to Cr-rich by varying the Cr:C ratio of the bulk alloy. The carbides’ crystalline structure, hardness, Young’s modulus, fracture toughness and abrasion performance have been assessed through techniques including nano-indentation, HR-TEM and the inner circumference abrasion test (ICAT). Fe-rich M3C formed at very low bulk Cr:C ratio was found to have an orthorhombic crystal structure. In all other alloys, with Cr:C ratios above 2.7, M7C3 was formed and found to have a hexagonal structure. Hardness, Young’s modulus and calculated fracture toughness of M7C3 all increase with Cr:Fe ratio, from (Fe5,Cr2)C3 up to a maximum for (Cr4,Fe3)C3 (in 18Cr–6.8Cr:C WCI). This gave the highest hardness (22.9 GPa) and Young’s modulus (315 GPa), but also the highest fracture toughness (4.5 MPa.m0.5). The peak fracture toughness at carbide composition of (Cr4,Fe3)C3 in this study is consistent with the prediction of DFT models in the literature; while the peak hardness at the same carbide composition shows a marginal deviation from the predictions. Abrasion performance generally increased with carbide hardness and fracture toughness, with one exception: (Cr4.3,Fe2.7)C3. Although (Cr4.3,Fe2.7)C3 showed marginally lower inherent fracture toughness than (Cr4.0,Fe3.0)C3, the higher Cr:Fe carbides imparted the highest abrasion performance, associated with modified eutectic morphology.
How School and Home Contexts Impact the School Adjustment of Adolescents from Different Ethnic and SES Backgrounds During COVID-19 School Closures
Authors: Hillekens Jessie , Baysu Gülseli , Phalet Karen 
Published: April 2023

AbstractMany schools worldwide closed to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. However, the consequences of school closures for the school adjustment of adolescents from different ethnic and SES backgrounds remain unclear. This study examined how school adjustment changed before, during, and after school closure across adolescents from different ethnic and SES backgrounds; and which factors in home and school contexts served as resources. Early adolescents (N = 124, Mage = 12.86, 58.8% boys) from different ethnic and SES backgrounds were repeatedly assessed 1 week before (March 2020), during (June 2020), and 1 year after (February 2021) the first school closure in Belgium. The results revealed that school closure augmented ethnicity- and SES-based inequalities in school adjustment. Moreover, factors in the school context—and not the home context—served as resources. Specifically, the quality of online instruction and teacher-pupil relationships buffered against reduced school adjustment during school closure, particularly among youth from ethnic minority and lower SES backgrounds. The findings corroborate unequal school adjustment consequences of school closures, but also highlight the role of teachers to buffer against them. The study design, hypotheses, and analyses were preregistered in the following link: https://osf.io/6ygcu/?view_only=c77cfb46028447bdb7844cd2c76237aa.
Health-related quality of life before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Roser Katharina , Baenziger Julia , Ilic Anica , Mitter Vera R. , Mader Luzius , Dyntar Daniela , Michel Gisela , Sommer Grit 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic forced people to give up their daily routines and adjust to new circumstances. This might have affected health-related quality of life (HRQOL). We aimed to compare HRQOL during the first COVID-19 wave in 2020 to HRQOL before the pandemic and to identify determinants of HRQOL during the pandemic in Switzerland.

Methods
We conducted a cross-sectional online survey during the pandemic (between May and July 2020; CoWELL sample; convenience sample). Before the pandemic (2015–2016), we had conducted a cross-sectional paper-based survey among a representative random sample of the Swiss general population (SGP sample). In both samples, we assessed physical and mental HRQOL (Short Form-36) and socio-demographic characteristics. In the CoWELL sample, we additionally assessed health- and COVID-19-related characteristics. Data were analysed using linear regressions.

Results
The CoWELL sample included 1581 participants (76% women; mean age = 43 years, SD = 14 years) and the SGP sample 1209 participants (58% women, mean age = 49 years, SD = 15 years). Adjusted for sex, age, and education, the CoWELL sample reported higher physical HRQOL (PCS, +5.8 (95% CI: 5.1, 6.6), p < 0.001) and lower mental HRQOL (MCS, −6.9 (−7.8, −6.0), p < 0.001) than the SGP sample. In the CoWELL sample, especially persons with lower health literacy, who had no support network or who have had COVID-19, reported lower HRQOL.

Discussion
Aspects unique to the COVID-19 pandemic affected HRQOL. Vulnerable persons such as those having had COVID-19, less support opportunities, and with lower health literacy are especially prone to impaired HRQOL during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Crotofolanes, rearranged crotofolanes, and a novel diterpene: isocrotofolane from Croton cascarilloides, collected in Okinawa
Authors: Kawakami Susumu , Otsuka Hideaki 
Published: April 2023

AbstractTo this day, since about 50% of all medicines are derived from natural sources, natural product chemistry, especially the search for biologically active natural components, remains extremely important (Newman and Cragg in J Nat Prod 83:770–803, 2020). In this review, we deal with our continuing research work for promising constituents from plants collected in the Ryukyu Archipelago. The isolation of islands in the archipelago by the sea or by straits gives rise to endemic plant species that are unique to the islands. The structural diversity of the constituents produced by this unique flora is of great scientific interest in various aspects, including chemical structures, biosynthesis, and biological activities. The components from this structural diversity have great potential as new pharmaceutical seeds. In our continuing studies, we have successfully investigated new but extremely unusual diterpenoids: crotofolanes and their rearranged varieties (nor-crotofolane, trinor-crotofolane, neocrotofolane) and a glycoside with a new skeletal diterpenoid (isocrotofolane glucoside) from Croton cascarilloides. This review summarizes our reports on the investigation of crotofolanes as well as those on crotofolanes by other research groups.
Graphical Abstract
Spezielle Aspekte der pharmakotherapeutischen Behandlung forensisch untergebrachter Patientinnen
Authors: Singer Monika , Eckermann Gabriel 
Published: April 2023

ZusammenfassungFrauen weisen ein erhöhtes Risiko für unerwünschte Arzneimittelwirkungen auf. Die Ergebnisse von Untersuchungen zu geschlechtsspezifischen Unterschieden sind dabei z. T. noch lückenhaft und widersprüchlich. Durch das komplexe Zusammenspiel exogener und endogener, geschlechtsspezifischer und individueller Einflüsse können unerwartete Effekte eintreten. Die Auswahl einer Medikation sollte nach individuellen Gegebenheiten und gemeinsamer Nutzen-Risiko-Abwägung mit der zu behandelnden Frau erfolgen. Dies ist insbesondere in der Forensik von hoher Bedeutung, da Frauen hier häufig eine Langzeitbehandlung benötigen.Aufgrund vielfältiger Einflüsse, wie z. B. auch Schwankungen von Medikamentenspiegeln im Rahmen des Zyklus, sind neben der spiegelkontrollierten Behandlung v. a. immer eine klinische Kontrolle und Befragung der behandelten Frau wichtigste Instrumente bei der Beurteilung erwünschter und unerwünschter Effekte. So kann im Idealfall gute klinische Verträglichkeit bei effektiver Wirkung Behandlungssicherheit und Zufriedenheit erhöhen.
Starch treatment improves the salivary proteome for subject identification purposes
Authors: Smith Hannah , Giulivi Cecilia 
Published: April 2023

AbstractIdentification of subjects, including perpetrators, is one of the most crucial goals of forensic science. Saliva is among the most common biological fluids found at crime scenes, containing identifiable components. DNA has been the most prominent identifier to date, but its analysis can be complex due to low DNA yields and issues preserving its integrity at the crime scene. Proteins are emerging as viable candidates for subject identification. Previous work has shown that the salivary proteome of the least-abundant proteins may be helpful for subject identification, but more optimized techniques are needed. Among them is removing the most abundant proteins, such as salivary α-amylase. Starch treatment of saliva samples elicited the removal of this enzyme and that of glycosylated, low-molecular-weight proteins, proteases, and immunoglobulins, resulting in a saliva proteome profile enriched with a subset of proteins, allowing a more reliable and nuanced subject identification.
The Role of Ipsilateral Tonsillectomy in the Extirpation of Branchial Cleft Anomalies- A Retrospective Monocentric Analysis Over 13 Years
Authors: Fiedler Lukas S. , Fiedler Lorenz F. 
Published: April 2023

AbstractBackroundBranchial cleft anomalies (BCA) can occur as sinuses, fistulas or cysts. They arise from the first, second, third or fourth pharyngeal cleft due to non-fusion or subinvolution. Mostly, located in Robbin’s neck-level II, BCA clinically present as a painless compressible swelling, cutaneous draining sinus, or fistula.AimsSurgical treatment is the gold standard to prevent recurrence in BCA, though the necessity of ipsilateral tonsillectomy is discussed and was being examined within this work.MethodsIn retrospect, data was collected from patients, that were admitted with the diagnosis BCA between 2006 and 2020 in an academic tertiary care center. 160 patients met inclusion criteria, the data was further evaluated, the focus was set on the occurrence of recurrence.ResultsRecurrence of BCA was observed in 2 out of 160 surgically treated patients (1,25%), one of them with simultaneous tonsillectomy, the other without.ConclusionA statistically significant difference in the recurrence-rate between these two groups (with/without tonsillectomy) could not be shown. The performance of an ipsilateral simultaneous tonsillectomy in the surgical workup of BCA cannot be recommended at the basis of our data.
A Partially Synthesized Position on the Automation of Machine Ethics
Authors: Nallur Vivek , Dennis Louise , Bringsjord Selmer , Govindarajulu Naveen Sundar 
Published: April 2023

AbstractWe economically express our respective prior positions on the automation of machine ethics, and then seek a corporate, partly synthesized position that could underlie, at least to a degree, our future machine-ethics work, and such work by others as well.
Shanghai Tai Chi
Authors: Lu Hanchao 
Published: April 2023

Shanghai Tai Chi offers a masterful portrait of daily urban life under socialism in a rich social and political history of one of the world's most complex cities. Hanchao Lu explores the lives of people from all areas of society - from capitalists and bourgeois intellectuals to women and youth. Utilizing the metaphor of Tai Chi, he reveals how people in Shanghai experienced and adapted to a new Maoist political culture from 1949. Exploring the multifaceted complexity of everyday life and material culture in Mao's China, Lu addresses the survival of old bourgeois lifestyles under the new proletarian dictatorship, the achievements of intellectuals in an age of anti-intellectualism, the pleasure that urban youth derived from reading taboo literature, the emergence of women's liberation and the politics of greening and horticulture. This captivating, epitomizing, and vivid history transports readers to history as lived on Shanghai's streets and back alleyways.
Wisdom Is Welcome Wherever It Comes From: War, Diffusion, and State Formation in Scandinavia
Authors: Grynaviski Eric , Steinsson Sverrir 
Published: April 2023

AbstractProminent theories of state formation hold that states formed because of warfare and competition on the one hand, or the diffusion of organizational templates and practices through learning and emulation on the other. We propose that the two strands of theory can be linked to more accurately account for mechanisms of state formation. War, we argue, is an important source of social diffusion. War establishes contacts between political elites across borders, generates migratory flows, and establishes new economic networks. We examine the validity of the theory through a comparative case study of Nordic political units from the dawn of the Viking Age to the end of the High Middle Ages (CE 800–1300), finding that raids, settlements, and conquests by Norwegian and Danish rulers in England, Europe's most advanced kingdom, set in motion state formation processes in Norway and Denmark. In these cases, the winners emulated the losers.
Two-port miniaturized textile antenna for 5G and WLAN applications
Authors: Jha Pankaj , Kumar Anubhav , De Asok 
Published: April 2023

AbstractA compact, two-element textile MIMO antenna is designed with enhanced isolation by using modification in the ground, open-ended slots along with shorting pins. Maximum 27.8 dB isolation is achieved in two-element antennae, where the edge-to-edge distance is kept at 0.19 λ0 which is less than the conventional half wavelength. The Y-shaped decoupling and shorting pins improve the isolation up to 14 dB and can mitigate the current moment between the two ports effectively. The open slots in the ground are enhancing the mutual impedance and shift the operating band of the antenna toward the lower frequency band and thus size miniaturization is also achieved. The textile antenna achieves a 10 dB impedance bandwidth from 4.24 to 5.38 GHz with more than 21.1 dB isolation in the entire band. The phantom wrist model and bending analysis are carried out with the textile antenna to validate the on-body effects of the antenna in wearable and 5G applications.
A novel wearable monopole antenna with controlled SAR using metamaterial
Authors: Ramasamy K. , Sapna B. A. , Jayasheela M. 
Published: April 2023

AbstractThis article presents a flexible wearable KIT monopole antenna for biomedical application. A metamaterial unit cell is proposed to improve the antenna performance. The proposed antenna and the metamaterial are fabricated on 1 mm-thick polydimethylsiloxane substrate to operate in the ISM frequency band of 2.45 GHz. Integration of the metamaterial improves the gain and reduces the specific absorption rate (SAR) of the antenna. The overall dimension of the antenna with the metamaterial is 49 × 49 × 19 mm3. The designed antenna is investigated for the loading effect of the body by placing on the hand phantom model. Bending tolerances are also analyzed for x and y direction with various bend radii. Gain and SAR of the proposed antenna are 4.61 dBi and 0.868 W/kg. The results of the fabricated prototype show that the proposed wearable antenna is safe for biomedical applications.