bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ultrasound assisted extraction: A relook at solvent to material ratio, its effects on process efficiency and how it can be exploited for different uses
Authors: Dzah Courage Sedem , Dzigbor Aaron 
Published: April 2023

AbstractUltrasound assisted extraction (UAE) is one of the preferred green extraction techniques widely used for the extraction of bioactive compounds from plant materials. It has attracted much attention and many studies have been done to understand its mechanism, effects and efficiency. However, no study has discovered and given enough attention to the superior role solvent‐to‐material ratio (SMR) plays in moderating UAE efficiency. This study therefore emphasizes the importance of SMR as the main determinant of UAE efficiency and further proves its mechanistic effects with ultrasound physics. It discusses SMR effects on extraction medium density, acoustic energy transfer, cavitation rate, power intensity attenuation and free hydroxyl radical generation during water‐based UAE. This understanding is needed to assist researchers in the design of their extraction experiments and optimizations. Without this insight, even optimization processes will be limited in giving the true conditions needed for the highest UAE efficiency. The study shows that low SMR increases acoustic energy scattering and absorption and attenuates ultrasound power intensity and vice versa. SMR can be controlled to either preserve bioactivity of compounds or produce free radicals for microbial inactivation and elimination and oxidative degradation of natural pigments in aqueous media.Practical applicationA comprehensive understanding of the mechanism and physics behind the effects of solvent‐to‐material ratio (SMR) during ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) of bioactive compounds helps in fine‐tuning SMR purposely to ensure that ultrasound power attenuation is minimized. Ultrasound power defines UAE efficiency by virtue of acoustic cavitation. Due to the fact that UAE in aqueous media generates free hydroxyl radicals (*OH) from water autolysis, SMR can be deliberately tuned to induce controlled power attenuation to limit this phenomenon. This becomes a strategy to protect bioactive compounds that are prone to oxidative degradation. As ultrasound power is linked to energy consumption, fine‐tuning SMR to minimize power attenuation can significantly improve process efficiency and reduce treatment time, saving energy and enhancing profitability, especially during large scale industrial treatments.
Quality attributes prediction and maturity discrimination of kiwifruits by hyperspectral imaging and chemometric algorithms
Authors: Shang Jing , Tan Tao , Feng Shunan , Li Qinrong , Huang Renshuai , Meng Qinglong 
Published: April 2023

AbstractThe nondestructive detection of the quality attributes and maturity of kiwifruits by using hyperspectral imaging technique and chemometric algorithms were investigated. Two models of the partial least square regression and principal components regression were built up based on full variables. The multiple linear regression (MLR) was designed to develop the simplified detection models based on feature variables chosen by the successive projection algorithm and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS). Results showed that the optimal CARS‐MLR model was designed to determine the quality attributes with RPD above 2.2. Particularly, about SSC (R2P = 0.896, RMSEP = 0.628%, RPD = 3.121), about firmness (R2P = 0.871, RMSEP = 1.065 kg/cm2, RPD = 2.809). The partial least square discriminant analysis and simplified k nearest neighbor models were designed to discriminate the kiwifruits maturity stages with a classification accuracy of 93.3% and 98.3%. This research demonstrates that the hyperspectral imaging technology coupled with chemometric algorithms is promising for the quality assessment and maturity discrimination of kiwifruits.Practical applicationsThe quality and maturity of kiwifruits have a direct relationship with the indicators of the SSC, firmness and color. Traditional methods for predicting the quality and maturity of kiwifruits are destructive, time‐consuming, and unusually affected by subjective factors. Hyperspectral imaging technique has the advantages of nondestructive, rapid, non‐pollution, and so on. The results demonstrated that the hyperspectral imaging technique coupled with chemometric algorithms can predict the quality and maturity of kiwifruits, which provides a theoretical basis to develop a real‐time detection system to predict the quality and maturity of fruits.
Analgesic electrical currents associated with carboxytherapy in women with cellulite: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Sadala Adria Yared , Rampazo Érika Patrícia , Liebano Richard Eloin 
Published: April 2023

AbstractBackgroundPain is considered the main limiting factor in carboxytherapy. Electroanalgesia has gained recognition in the field of dermatology and to date, only transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) has proved to be effective at reducing pain associated with carboxytherapy; however, the effect of medium frequency currents has yet to be investigated.AimsCompare the effects of TENS, interferential current (IFC), and Aussie current on pain intensity associated with carboxytherapy and sensory comfort in the treatment of cellulite.Patients/MethodsSeventy‐five women aged 18–49 years with moderate and/or severe gluteal cellulite were randomized into three groups: TENS (n = 25), IFC (n = 25), and Aussie current (n = 25), which underwent three sessions of carboxytherapy associated with an electrical current. Current amplitude was adjusted after each puncture, according to the maximum tolerance reported by participants, below the motor threshold. Pain intensity was measured using a numeric rating scale (0–10) and sensory comfort with the visual analogue scale (0–10).ResultsThere was no significant intergroup difference in pain intensity (p > 0.05) and sensory comfort (p = 0.502) during the application of carboxytherapy throughout the three treatment sessions.ConclusionTENS, IFC, and Aussie currents showed no difference in pain intensity reduction and no current was found to be more comfortable.
Institutional Divide, Political Ties, and Contested Corporate Governance Reform in Taiwan
Authors: Chung Chi‐Nien , Luo Xiaowei Rose , Zheng Weiting 
Published: April 2023

AbstractThis study attempts to address the question of under what conditions political ties buffer firms from, or bind firms to, political pressure. We draw attention to the institutional divide between the executive and legislative branches of a presidential democracy. Using the case of Taiwan, a ‘third wave’ democracy with relatively strong state intervention, we argue that the two branches differ in their respective institutional roles, basis of legitimacy, and resources in a context in which the regime is seeking to fulfil its national agenda and please floating voters. We posit that corporate ties to these respective branches exert divergent influence on the adoption of government‐initiated but highly contested corporate governance reforms. Ties to the executive branch push firms to reform because they depend on the government for resources, while ties to the legislative branch act as a buffer to reform as legislators court the support of firms in pursuit of electoral gains. Empirical analysis of reforms to enhance board independence from 2002 to 2005 supports our thesis. Our study contributes to research on corporate political strategy and corporate governance reform, revealing how the structural fragmentation of the state can give rise to conflicting roles of political ties to different branches.
Preliminary evidence of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation effects on sleep in veterans with post‐traumatic stress disorder
Authors: Bottari Sarah A. , Lamb Damon G. , Porges Eric C. , Murphy Aidan J. , Tran Amy B. , Ferri Raffaele , Jaffee Michael S. , Davila Maria I. , Hartmann Simon , Baumert Mathias , Williamson John B. 
Published: April 2023

SummarySleep problems are common among veterans with post‐traumatic stress disorder and closely associated with hyperarousal symptoms. Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) may have potential to improve sleep quality in veterans with PTSD through effects on brain systems relevant to hyperarousal and sleep–wake regulation. The current pilot study examines the effect of 1 h of tVNS administered at “lights out” on sleep architecture, microstructure, and autonomic activity. Thirteen veterans with PTSD completed two nights of laboratory‐based polysomnography during which they received 1 h of either active tVNS (tragus) or sham stimulation (earlobe) at “lights out” with randomised order. Sleep staging and stability metrics were derived from polysomnography data. Autonomic activity during sleep was assessed using the Porges‐Bohrer method for calculating respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSAP‐B). Paired t‐tests revealed a small decrease in the total sleep time (d = −0.31), increase in N3 sleep (d = 0.23), and a small‐to‐moderate decrease in REM sleep (d = −0.48) on nights of active tVNS relative to sham stimulation. tVNS was also associated with a moderate reduction in cyclic alternating pattern (CAP) rate (d = −0.65) and small‐to‐moderate increase in RSAP‐B during NREM sleep. Greater NREM RSAP‐B was associated with a reduced CAP rate and NREM alpha power. This pilot study provides preliminary evidence that tVNS may improve sleep depth and stability in veterans with PTSD, as well as increase parasympathetically mediated nocturnal autonomic activity. These results warrant continued investigation into tVNS as a potential tool for treating sleep disturbance in veterans with PTSD.
Pre‐pandemic circadian phase predicts pandemic alcohol use among adolescents
Authors: Hasler Brant P. , Wallace Meredith L. , Graves Jessica L. , Witt Rachel , Guo Kathryn , Buysse Daniel J. , Siegle Greg J. , Clark Duncan B. 
Published: April 2023

SummaryLater circadian timing during adolescence is linked to worse sleep, more severe depression and greater alcohol involvement, perhaps due to circadian misalignment imposed by early school schedules. School schedules shifted later during the COVID‐19 pandemic, ostensibly reducing circadian misalignment and potentially mitigating problems with depression and alcohol. We used the pandemic as a natural experiment to test whether adolescent drinkers with later circadian timing showed improvements in sleep, depression and alcohol involvement. Participants were 42 adolescents reporting alcohol use. We assessed circadian phase via dim light melatonin onset prior to the pandemic, then conducted remote assessments of sleep, depressive symptoms and alcohol use during the pandemic. Mixed‐effects models were used to test for pandemic effects, covarying for age, sex, time since baseline evaluation, and current school/work status. Adolescents with later circadian timing reported less sleep than other teens on school nights, both before and during the pandemic. Although school night sleep increased during the pandemic (F = 28.36, p < 0.001), those increases were not greater for individuals with later circadian timing. Individuals with later circadian timing reported larger increases in alcohol use than other teens during the pandemic (X2 = 36.03, p < 0.001). Depressive symptoms increased during the pandemic (X2 = 46.51, p < 0.001) but did not differ based on circadian timing. Consistent with prior reports, adolescents with later circadian timing obtained less sleep, and later school schedules facilitated increased sleep duration. Nonetheless, individuals with later circadian timing reported the sharpest increases in alcohol use, suggesting that circadian timing contributes to risk for alcohol use beyond the effects of insufficient sleep.
IN SEARCH OF LOST SIGNS: A NEW APPROACH TO THE ISSUE OF WRITING AND NON‐WRITING ON CRETAN HIEROGLYPHIC SEALS
Authors: Ferrara Silvia , Montecchi Barbara , Valério Miguel 
Published: April 2023

SummaryThis article addresses a long‐debated topic related to the hieroglyphic script from the island of Crete, namely the status of its sign‐list. The signs of this script are predominantly image‐based and as such their inherent position as bona fide signs of writing or, alternatively, decorative symbols with no specific relation to language has raised issues of inclusion or exclusion from the sign‐list as presented in the standard corpus of inscriptions. This article aims to propose a new approach based on a contextual, distributional, and structural architecture of criteria. The goal is to reach a balanced reassessment of the evidence and contribute to a definitive sign‐list. This represents a fundamental step for any cogent decipherment attempt.
Crossing racial predicaments and reconstructing identity: The biopolitics of race in Edwidge Danticat's works
Authors: Cai Yi 
Published: April 2023

AbstractFocusing on The Farming of Bones, Brother, I'm Dying, and the short story “Night Talkers” collected in The Dew Breaker, this article explores how Edwidge Danticat engages with the biopolitics of race in her writing. The biopolitics of race traumatizes people through racial discrimination, exclusion, and purification; in Danticat's works, this is manifested in atrocities inflicted on Haitian workers, the exclusion of asylum seekers, and the deportation of Haitian descendants. Those racially excluded people resist the destructive effects of state racism by creating testimonial narratives to record crimes and atrocities, or by establishing communities for mutual support. Through the dynamics of biopolitical oppression and resistance, Danticat empowers those precarious people and achieves her purpose of political writing: while dissolving the negative influence of biopolitics, she reconstructs individual subjectivities through testimony, and rebuilds fragmented identities through the solidarity of Haitian communities, in order to reaffirm the national identity of the Haitian people.
Are all reasons for living made equally? Reasons for living and dysfunctional attitudes in psychotic disorders and bipolar I
Authors: Ehret Blaire C. , Titone Madison K. , Carey Colin J. , Martinez Alexandra , Chalker Samantha A. , Granholm Eric L. , Depp Colin A. 
Published: April 2023

AbstractObjectives: Persons with schizophrenia, schizoaffective, or bipolar I disorder are more likely to die by suicide compared to the general population. Dysfunctional attitudes have been shown to be significant predictors of cognitive vulnerability to depression, hopelessness, and poor problem‐solving skills, which predict suicidal ideation. Dysfunctional attitudes are common in persons with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) and bipolar I. The Reasons for Living Inventory (RFLI) examines distinct reasons for not dying by suicide. This study's objectives were to examine the relationship between the RFLI subscales and dysfunctional attitudes among persons with SSDs and bipolar I. We hypothesized significant positive correlations between two RFLI subscales (Fear of Suicide and Fear of Social Disapproval) and total score on the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS). We did not expect significant correlations between other subscales.Design and Methods: This correlational, cross‐sectional study examined baseline scores on the RFLI and dysfunctional attitudes (DAS) among N = 102 outpatients with SSDs or bipolar I.Results: Significant positive correlations were observed between RFLI subscales Fear of Suicide and Fear of Social Disapproval and DAS total scores. No other significant relationships were observed.Conclusions: Certain reasons for living (i.e. fear of suicide and social disapproval) may be associated with dysfunctional attitudes among persons with SSDs or bipolar I. These, in turn, may place these individuals at a greater risk for suicide by increasing their cognitive vulnerability. These findings may inform clinical treatment targets for persons with SSDs and bipolar I.
Latent class analysis of college women's motivations for engaging in same‐sex performativity
Authors: Stevens Samantha M. , Oswald Flora , Matsick Jes L. 
Published: April 2023

AbstractSame‐sex performativity (SSP), or public performances of sexuality (e.g., kissing) between women who identify as heterosexual, is a relatively common relational experience among college‐aged women. Identifying patterns of women's motivations for engaging in SSP can elucidate the heterogeneity among women's social and sexual behaviors during a critical developmental period (i.e., college). We used latent class analysis to identify classes of heterosexual undergraduate women who engaged in SSP (N = 282). We identified three classes of motivational patterns: Other‐Motivated (i.e., notably motivated by male attention, wanting to shock others, wanting to bond, and social pressure), Ambiguously Motivated (i.e., most motivated by alcohol and fun, but minimally motivated overall), and Sexually Motivated (i.e., notably motivated by sexual desire and sexual experimentation). We then examined how class membership was associated with variables related to participants' evaluation of their SSP experience, self and identity, sexuality, and heterosexism. Classes significantly differed in SSP evaluations, as well as in certain facets of self and identity and sexuality (i.e., sorority membership and same‐sex desire). These data provide evidence of substantial complexity in the characterizations of women who engage in SSP. We discuss the implications of the relationship between motivational patterns and women's evaluations of the SSP experience.
Nitrogen enhances the effect of pre‐drought priming against post‐anthesis drought stress by regulating starch and protein formation in wheat
Authors: Ullah Attiq , Zhao Chengfeng , Zhang Maixi , Sun Chuanjiao , Liu Xiaoxue , Hu Jingling , Zeeshan Muhammad , Zaid Abbu , Dai Tingbo , Tian Zhongwei 
Published: April 2023

AbstractDrought stress is one of the most serious environmental stress factor constraining crop production across the globe. Among cereals, wheat grains are very sensitive to drought as a small degree of stress can affect the enzymatic system. This study aimed to investigate whether nitrogen and pre‐anthesis drought priming could enhance the action of major regulatory enzymes involved in starch accumulation and protein synthesis in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). For this purpose, cultivars YM‐158 (medium gluten) and YM‐22 (low gluten) were grown in rain‐controlled conditions under two nitrogen levels, that is, N180 (N1) and N300 (N2). Drought priming was applied at the jointing stage and drought stress was applied 7 days after anthesis. Drought stress reduced starch content but enhanced protein content in grains. N2 and primed plants kept higher contents of nonstructural carbohydrates, fructans, and sucrose; with higher activity of sucrose‐phosphate synthase in flag leaves. Furthermore, N2 and priming treatments showed higher sink ability to develop grains by showing higher sucrose‐to‐starch conversion activities of adenosine diphosphate‐glucose pyrophosphorylase, uridine diphosphate glucose pyrophosphorylase, sucrose‐synthase, soluble‐starch synthase, starch branching enzyme, and granule‐bound starch synthase as compared to N1 and non‐primed treatments. The application of N2 and primed treatment showed a greater ability to maintain grain filling in both cultivars as compared to N1 and non‐primed crops. Our study suggested that high nitrogen has the potential to enhance the effect of pre‐drought priming to change source‐sink relationships and grain yield of wheat under drought stress during the filling process.
Risk assessment of airborne virus transmission in an intensive care unit due to single and sequential coughing
Authors: Kusuluri Rajendra , Mirikar Dnyanesh , Palanivel Silambarasan , Arumuru Venugopal 
Published: April 2023

AbstractThe virus causing COVID‐19 has constantly been mutating into new variants. Some of them are more transmissive and resistant to antibiotics. The current research article aims to examine the airborne transmission of the virus expelled by coughing action in a typical intensive care unit. Both single and sequential coughing actions have been considered to get closer to practical scenarios. The objective is to assess the effectiveness of air change per hour (ACH) on the risk of infection to a healthcare person and how the air change rate influences the dispersion of droplets. Such a study is seldom reported and has significant relevance. A total of four cases were analyzed, of which two were of sequential cough. When the ACH is changed from 6 to 12, the average particle residence time is reduced by ∼7 s. It is found that the risk of infection in the case of sequential cough will be relatively low compared to a single cough if the outlet of the indoor environment is placed above the patient's head. This arrangement also eliminates the requirement of higher ACH, which has significance from an energy conservation perspective.
Debt and real interest rates: Evidence from G20 countries
Authors: Sun Lixin 
Published: April 2023

AbstractIn this article, we examine the relationship between the debt and the ex‐post real interest rate on the basis of a sample from the G20 with the panel analysis, the panel threshold model, and a panel VAR model, particularly during times of high debt levels. In contrast to the results from the previous literature, our estimates suggest the negative connections between debt levels and real rates of interest: high debt levels reduce the current and expected real rate of interest, and the low real interest rate would raise the current and forward‐looking debt levels. Further investigations using the panel threshold model identify and quantify threshold values of debt on the forward real interest rate. In addition, we find that the threshold values of debt levels for advanced countries are far higher than the relevant values for emerging countries, which confirms the theory of “debt intolerance.” Third, the estimated impulse response functions from the panel VAR simulation support the significantly negative associations between debt levels and real interest rates. Fourth, the system GMM regressions and dynamic panel threshold tests show that our above conclusions are robust.
The Segal conjecture for smash powers
Authors: Bergsaker Håkon Schad , Rognes John 
Published: April 2023

AbstractWe prove that the comparison map from ‐fixed points to ‐homotopy fixed points, for the ‐fold smash power of a bounded below spectrum , becomes an equivalence after ‐completion if is a finite ‐group and is of finite type. We also prove that the map becomes an equivalence after ‐completion if is any finite group and is of finite type, where is the augmentation ideal in the Burnside ring.