bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Weak synchronization and convergence in coupled genetic regulatory networks: Applications to damped oscillators and multistable circuits
Authors: Augier Nicolas , Chaves Madalena , Gouzé Jean‐Luc 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThe study of synchronization in coupled genetic networks is a very challenging topic that is usually analyzed on a case‐by‐case basis. Here we consider a general model of genetic networks and examine two forms of interconnection, either homogeneous or heterogeneous coupling, corresponding to coupling functions that are either equal or different from those governing the individual dynamics. In the case of individual subsystems having unique but different steady states, we prove that the homogeneous coupled system has a unique globally asymptotically stable steady state. Moreover, in the case of large coupling strength, we show that under suitable assumptions the network achieves weak synchronization in the sense that the individual steady states become arbitrarily close. In the heterogeneous case, stability conditions are more intricate and some stronger assumptions on the individual dynamics have to be made, under which we prove a similar weak synchronization result in the case of large coupling strength. We apply the results to the synchronization of damped oscillators and to the control of multistable systems.
Bias compensated stochastic gradient algorithm for identification of an ARX‐type nonlinear rational model and its application in modeling of the dynamic of the cellular toxicity
Authors: Jing Shaoxue , Kiely Janice , Luxton Richard 
Published: February 2022

AbstractNonlinear rational model (NRM) is a generalized nonlinear model, the NARMAX model and Volterra model can be regarded as its special cases. In this article, the parameter identification of a class of nonlinear rational models is studied. Due to the coupling of the model output and the information vector, the parameter identification of the NRM is very challenging. To reduce the complexity of the identification, the stochastic gradient algorithm is used. However, the estimate given by traditional stochastic gradient algorithm is biased. To obtain unbiased estimation, the bias is calculated by using the observations and the previous estimate and then compensated to the biased estimate. A variable factor considering the estimation error is introduced to speed up the algorithm. Theoretical analysis shows that the proposed algorithm can obtain an unbiased estimate and has the complexity of . The proposed algorithm is validated by a numerical example and is applied in modeling the dynamics of the cellular toxicity using the tetra‐ethyl ammonium chloride. Results show that the proposed algorithm can obtain an accurate estimate for the nonlinear rational model with less computation.
Rapid location technology of odor sources by multi‐UAV
Authors: Liu Yunping , Zhao Xun , Xu Jun , Zhu Shuaihui , Su Dongyan 
Published: February 2022

AbstractA multi‐unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) offers the advantages of flexibility, safety, and efficiency with respect to odor source localization. When the traditional particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to locate the odor source, the search efficiency of the UAVs is reduced owing to unplanned search routes, and local extreme points and internal collisions may occur, making it impossible to quickly locate the odor source. In response to these problems, this paper proposes an improved particle swarm optimization (IPSO) algorithm, which combines the PSO with the Zigzag algorithm to preplan the search routes and improve the efficiency of the UAVs to search the plume. In addition, the distance between the UAVs is used as an adjustment factor to adaptively adjust the inertia weights of the particles to prevent the UAVs from falling into a local optimum during the plume‐tracking stage and further improve the positioning efficiency. Finally, the PSO combined with the artificial potential field algorithm is used to avoid the internal collision of the UAVs when tracking the plume. The algorithm is verified through simulations and physical experiments. The results show that the IPSO significantly improves the efficiency and can achieve rapid and effective location of the odor source, which verifies the effectiveness and applicability of the algorithm.
Sample size estimation using a latent variable model for mixed outcome co‐primary, multiple primary and composite endpoints
Authors: McMenamin Martina E. , Barrett Jessica K. , Berglind Anna , Wason James M. S. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractMixed outcome endpoints that combine multiple continuous and discrete components are often employed as primary outcome measures in clinical trials. These may be in the form of co‐primary endpoints, which conclude effectiveness overall if an effect occurs in all of the components, or multiple primary endpoints, which require an effect in at least one of the components. Alternatively, they may be combined to form composite endpoints, which reduce the outcomes to a one‐dimensional endpoint. There are many advantages to joint modeling the individual outcomes, however in order to do this in practice we require techniques for sample size estimation. In this article we show how the latent variable model can be used to estimate the joint endpoints and propose hypotheses, power calculations and sample size estimation methods for each. We illustrate the techniques using a numerical example based on a four‐dimensional endpoint and find that the sample size required for the co‐primary endpoint is larger than that required for the individual endpoint with the smallest effect size. Conversely, the sample size required in the multiple primary case is similar to that needed for the outcome with the largest effect size. We show that the empirical power is achieved for each endpoint and that the FWER can be sufficiently controlled using a Bonferroni correction if the correlations between endpoints are less than 0.5. Otherwise, less conservative adjustments may be needed. We further illustrate empirically the efficiency gains that may be achieved in the composite endpoint setting.
Cobalt Supported on BN Catalyst with High B‐O Defects and Its Efficient Hydrodeoxygenation Performance of HMF to DMF**
Authors: Bi Dandan , Chen Xiaoyan , Du Zhao , Guo Zhonglu , Liu Zhenya , Lin Jing , Huang Yang , Tang Chengchun , Chen Guifeng , Fang Yi 
Published: February 2022

AbstractIn this paper, a non‐noble catalyst was prepared by a simple homogeneous precipitation method and could be applied for 5‐hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) to 2, 5‐dimethylfuran (DMF). The catalyst was characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, FT‐IR, BET, XPS, ICP and H2‐TPR. The cobalt species in the catalysts dispersed on the surface of boron nitride (BN) evenly. There is a strong interaction between BN and cobalt species in the Co/BN catalysts with vast B−O defects. Under the optimal conditions, HMF can be completely converted and the selectivity of Co/BN catalyst for DMF can reach as high as 91.67 %. It is crucial that the stability of the catalyst was maintained after five cycles by simple centrifugation. Due to its simple preparation process, low cost and high selectivity, the catalyst will be applied widely in the area of industrial catalysis.
Revisiting models of internationalization: Pre‐export phase and lateral rigidity of emerging market Small and Medium Enterprises
Authors: Mishra Mahima , Paul Justin , Czinkota Michael 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThe purpose of this paper is to revisit theories of internationalization and explore their export commencement processes from emerging market lenses. The paper combines the two important concepts, the pre‐export phase and lateral rigidity to deliberate the internationalization phenomenon of SMEs. The paper draws on extant literature on the SME internationalization process and applies qualitative methods to provide deep insights into the pre‐export phase. The study uses four longitudinal context‐based case studies based at India for generalization. The conceptualization and findings show that SMEs in emerging markets require processes and innovations from a strategic and planning perspective. Emerging market SMEs require a combination of resource‐building in the pre‐export phase and the right stimuli to overcome lateral rigidity to start internationalization. This paper addresses the phase before internationalization and the concept of lateral rigidity to provide a holistic view of SME internationalization from the emerging country's perspective.
The Central Dogma revisited: Insights from protein synthesis, CRISPR, and beyond
Authors: Ille Alexander M. , Lamont Hannah , Mathews Michael B. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractFrancis Crick advanced two distinct but interrelated fundamental principles of molecular biology: (1) the Sequence Hypothesis and (2) the Central Dogma. The Sequence Hypothesis defines biological information transfer as the residue‐by‐residue transfer of sequence information between nucleic acids and to proteins. This is commonly summarized as DNA ➔ RNA ➔ protein and is colloquially referred to as the Central Dogma. More specifically, however, the Central Dogma expounded by Crick included a critical restriction, stipulating that “once sequential information has passed into protein it cannot get out again.” Under this definition, the Central Dogma has stood the test of time despite challenges. In principle, a violation of the Central Dogma could transpire through synthetic biology or by natural occurrence. To address these possibilities, we draw insights from existing modes of information transfer in protein synthesis and from synthetic Clustered Regularly‐Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) gene‐editing. We introduce a three‐part evaluation scheme, which we apply to the CRISPR/Cas9 system and the more recent CRISPR prime editing system. Potential mechanisms by which engineered sequence editing systems might violate the Central Dogma are considered. We conclude that although information transfer in protein synthesis and CRISPR gene‐editing remain within the bounds of the Central Dogma, the underlying mechanisms point toward an avenue of synthetic biology that could directly violate the Central Dogma. Finally, we speculate on some of the theoretical and practical implications of a protein‐derived information transfer system.This article is categorized under:
RNA Evolution and Genomics > Ribonomics
RNA Interactions with Proteins and Other Molecules > Protein‐RNA Interactions: Functional Implications
Translation > Mechanisms
Equity in Higher Education: Evidences, Policies and Practices. Setting the Scene
Authors: Amaral Alberto 
Published: February 2022

AbstractWidening access to higher education became an issue of political concern after the Second World War. It aimed both at improving social justice by granting conditions of access to all social groups and by improving economic performance because a more educated population would contribute to the economic competitiveness of countries. Equity has two components, fairness—which implies that personal and social circumstances do not hinder achieving educational potential, and inclusion, which means that all are able to attain a basic standard of education. It was believed that social inequalities could be reduced through the massification of higher education and, although some progress has been made in terms of increased participation, inequalities seem to persist. Much of what happens in terms of inequity is related to higher education being a positional good. Social groups from deprived backgrounds are not in a good position to compete for positional goods, which have a tendency to be monopolised by social groups from privileged backgrounds. The positional character of higher education makes fairness difficult to attain. Inclusion policies, by promoting a progressive increase of parents with higher education degrees will contribute in a safe, even if slow way, to progressively lower the level of inequity.
Access and Inequality in US Higher Education: Policy Issues
Authors: Dill David 
Published: February 2022

AbstractBecause of the international reputation and positive socioeconomic impacts achieved by US higher education, current efforts at the ‘massification’ of other national systems often look to America for guidance. But with respect to equity of access to bachelor’s degree education, the US possesses a number of limitations. For example, regarding the percentage of young US adults who have completed tertiary education as well as measures of social mobility, the US now trails a number of EU nations. This chapter reviews US research on student access addressing the nature and impacts of US college and university financial aid, the informational and behavioural constraints confronting lower income student applicants, and the effects of higher education affirmative action programmes intended to correct past discrimination. The strengths and weaknesses of these US policies are explored as a possible guide to the design of college and university access policies in other countries.
The Persistence of Inequity in Brazilian Higher Education: Background Data and Student Performance
Authors: Bertolin Julio , McCowan Tristan 
Published: February 2022

AbstractIn the last three decades Brazil’s enrolments grew from approximately 1.5 million to more than 8 million students. Unlike the expansion in the 1990s, when few students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds gained access, the current expansion of Brazilian higher education is changing student profiles. The share of students from lower socioeconomic levels among enrolees and graduates has increased significantly. However, when analysing these changes in terms of the various courses/careers and modes of education present in the Brazilian higher education system, it becomes evident that there are still remnants of an elitist system displaying significant inequity. This chapter shows how the expansion going on in Brazil, despite including new students, does not achieve ‘horizontality’, and instead reproduces inequalities in one of the most unequal societies in the world.
Undergraduate Student Funding in England: The Challenges Ahead for Equity
Authors: Callender Claire 
Published: February 2022

AbstractSince 1990, a series of cost-sharing policies in England have changed how higher education and undergraduates are funded. A funding system predicated on student loan debt emerged, informed by neo-liberal thinking and ideas underpinning the marketization of higher education. Annual tuition fees of £9000 were introduced in 2012 for all full-time undergraduates, repaid by loans with repayments linked to graduates’ ability to pay. Sustaining these reforms and evidenced in the policy rhetoric, are a range of unsubstantiated assumptions about their impact, the benefits of student loans, and their effect on student behaviour. Loans sought to protect students from tuition fee increases, to make higher education more affordable, to encourage and widen higher education participation, and to promote student choice. But these aims have been realised only partially, and the 2012 reforms can undermine these aims. Student loans have not been embraced equally by all students, as anticipated. The financial and psychic costs of borrowing can limit students’ higher education and post-graduation choices, opportunities, and experiences. But such occurrences are not random—they are socially stratified. Those students who are already disadvantaged are the most negatively affected. The student funding reforms in England, therefore, have helped to perpetuate rather than just ameliorate existing inequalities.
Data and Reflections on Access-Transition to Higher Education in Portugal
Authors: Baptista João , Sin Cristina , Tavares Orlanda 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis chapter analyses inequalities in the transition from upper secondary to higher education in Portugal, using empirical data from the General-Directorate of Education and Science Statistics (DGEEC). It argues that educational inequalities are already present in Portuguese students’ trajectories before higher education and that the transition to higher education therefore reflects these different opportunities. The central argument is that socioeconomic status is the most important aspect that directly or indirectly conditions transition to higher education in Portugal, and thus is the primary source of inequality in participation. The findings also point to other factors similar to those already highlighted in the literature as responsible for inequalities in access to higher education: previous schooling, gender, different regional opportunities and selection and admission criteria, with socioeconomic status appearing to be transversal to and/or aggravate the influence of most of these other factors (except gender). Disadvantaged students who manage to surmount all the different obstacles and reach higher education belong to a group of resilient “academic survivors”. Based on the findings of this study, several areas of intervention are proposed.
Weyl anomalies of four dimensional conformal boundaries and defects
Authors: Chalabi Adam , Herzog Christopher P. , O’Bannon Andy , Robinson Brandon , Sisti Jacopo 
Published: February 2022

Abstract
Motivated by questions about quantum information and classification of quantum field theories, we consider Conformal Field Theories (CFTs) in spacetime dimension d ≥ 5 with a conformally-invariant spatial boundary (BCFTs) or 4-dimensional conformal defect (DCFTs). We determine the boundary or defect contribution to the Weyl anomaly using the standard algorithm, which includes imposing Wess-Zumino consistency and fixing finite counterterms. These boundary/defect contributions are built from the intrinsic and extrinsic curvatures, as well as the pullback of the ambient CFT’s Weyl tensor. For a co-dimension one boundary or defect (i.e. d = 5), we reproduce the 9 parity-even terms found by Astaneh and Solodukhin, and we discover 3 parity-odd terms. For larger co-dimension, we find 23 parity-even terms and 6 parity-odd terms. The coefficient of each term defines a “central charge” that characterizes the BCFT or DCFT. We show how several of the parity-even central charges enter physical observables, namely the displacement operator two-point function, the stress-tensor one-point function, and the universal part of the entanglement entropy. We compute several parity-even central charges in tractable examples: monodromy and conical defects of free, massless scalars and Dirac fermions in d = 6; probe branes in Anti-de Sitter (AdS) space dual to defects in CFTs with d ≥ 6; and Takayanagi’s AdS/BCFT with d = 5. We demonstrate that several of our examples obey the boundary/defect a-theorem, as expected.
A clinical decision aid to discern patients without and with midfacial and mandibular fractures that require treatment (the REDUCTION-II study): a prospective multicentre cohort study
Authors: Rozema Romke , El Moumni Mostafa , de Vries Gysbert T. , Spijkervet Frederik K. L. , Verbeek René , Kleinbergen Jurrijn Y. J. , Bens Bas W. J. , Doff Michiel H. J. , van Minnen Baucke ,   The REDUCTION study group
Published: February 2022

Abstract
Purpose
To assess the diagnostic accuracy of physical examination findings and to construct clinical decision aids to discern emergency department patients without and with midfacial and mandibular fractures that require treatment.

Methods
A prospective multicentre cohort study was conducted in four hospitals in the Netherlands. Consecutive maxillofacial trauma patients were included whereupon each patient underwent a standardized physical examination consisting of 15 and 14 findings for midfacial and mandibular trauma, respectively. The primary outcome was the decision whether to treat during the emergency department stay or within 24 h of admission. The diagnostic accuracy was calculated for the individual physical examination findings and ensuing clinical decision aids with the focus being on detecting midfacial and mandibular fractures that require active treatment.

Results
A total of 766 midfacial trauma patients were identified of whom 339 (44.3%) had midfacial fractures. Of those, 74 (21.8%) required active treatment. A total of 280 mandibular trauma patients were identified of whom 66 (23.6%) had mandibular fractures. Of those, 37 (56.0%) required active treatment. The decision aid for midfacial trauma consisting of facial depression, epistaxis, ocular movement limitation, palpable step-off, objective malocclusion and tooth mobility or avulsion had a sensitivity of 97.3 (90.7–99.3), a specificity of 38.6 (35.0–42.3), and a negative predictive value of 99.3 (97.3–99.8). The decision aid for mandibular trauma consisting of mouth opening limitation, jaw movement pain, objective malocclusion and tooth mobility or avulsion resulted in a sensitivity of 100.0 (90.6–100.0), a specificity of 39.1 (33.2–45.4), and a negative predictive value of 100.0 (96.1–100.0).

Conclusion
The clinical decision aids successfully identified midfacial and mandibular trauma patients requiring active fracture treatment and so may be useful in preventing unnecessary radiological procedures in the future.

Trial Registration
The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov with the identifier NCT03314480.
Reducing the contingency of the world: magic, oracles, and machine-learning technology
Authors: Larsson Simon , Viktorelius Martin 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThe concept of magic is frequently used to discuss technology, a practice considered useful by some with others arguing that viewing technology as magic precludes a proper understanding of technology. The concept of magic is especially prominent in discussions of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Based on an anthropological perspective, this paper juxtaposes ML technology with magic, using descriptions drawn from a project on an ML-powered system for propulsion control of cargo ships. The paper concludes that prior scholarly work on technology has failed to both define magic adequately and use research into magic. It also argues that although the distinction between ML technology and magic is important, recognition of the similarities is useful for understanding ML technology.