bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The End of Satellite Treaty Law as We Know It? The German Federal Constitutional Court, European Integration by International Law and Treaties “Supplementing or Being Otherwise Closely Tied to the EU”
Authors: von Luckner Johannes Graf 
Published: March 2022

AbstractAmidst the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, the German Federal Constitutional Court rendered a little-noticed, but potentially far-reaching decision regarding European integration. When it declared the law ratifying the Unitary Patent Court Agreement unconstitutional, it did so because it is a treaty “supplementing or being otherwise closely tied to the EU”, in other words, a satellite treaty, inter-se agreement, or more generally: an international law agreement furthering European integration outside the EU law framework. This commonly used integration technique is therefore going to be a lot more difficult in future whenever Germany is involved. At the same time, the court order gives all German citizens a far-reaching right to have laws ratifying such treaties checked before the Constitutional Court, which is a significant extension compared to its earlier case-law. In future cases of disagreement, EU Member States may have to find different ways to proceed than resorting to international law, such as using the enhanced cooperation mechanism.
Prevention of common mental disorders among women in the perinatal period: a critical mixed-methods review and meta-analysis
Authors: Waqas Ahmed , Zafar Syeda Wajeeha , Meraj Hafsa , Tariq Mahjabeen , Naveed Sadiq , Fatima Batool , Chowdhary Neerja , Dua Tarun , Rahman Atif 
Published: March 2022

AbstractPerinatal depression and anxiety account for a high burden of perinatal morbidity and poor psychosocial functioning. There is a growing interest among mental health professionals, to devise interventions to prevent this condition. This review synthesizes evidence for the effectiveness of psychological and psychosocial interventions aimed at the prevention of perinatal depression and anxiety. We also explore qualitative evidence to understand the acceptability and feasibility of these interventions. Using a mixed-methods approach, data from a total of 21 studies were collated to inform the evidence for preventive interventions for perinatal depression and anxiety. Based on their theoretical orientations, these interventions were described by authors as cognitive-behavioral (n = 7); psychoeducational (n = 6); mindfulness (n = 2); and interpersonal psychotherapy (n = 2). These also included psychosocial approaches such as social support (n = 1) and multicomponent interventions (n = 3). For depressive symptoms, these interventions yielded moderate to strong effect sizes in favor of the intervention group [standardized mean difference (SMD) = −0.59; 95% confidence interval (CI) −0.95 to −0.23]. For anxiety symptoms, a strong effect size was estimated in favor of the intervention group (SMD = −1.43, 95% CI −2.22 to −0.65). Preventive interventions significantly reduce the severity of perinatal depressive and anxiety symptoms. These interventions are also acceptable and feasible in many settings.
Contrasting definitions and incidence of healthcare-associated respiratory viral infections in a pediatric hospital
Authors: Most Zachary M. , Jackson Patricia , Sebert Michael , Perl Trish M. 
Published: March 2022

AbstractObjective:To determine the difference in the incidence of healthcare-associated respiratory viral infection (HARVI) in a pediatric hospital depending on the definition used.Design:Descriptive historical cohort study.Setting and participants:Patients aged 0–21 years old who were admitted between July 2013 and June 2018 to a 490-bed primary to quaternary-care pediatric hospital serving northern Texas.Methods:HARVI was defined using microbiologic confirmation, development of new symptoms while hospitalized, and exposure time greater than the minimum incubation period for each specific virus. Events that occurred following the maximum incubation period for that virus were classified as definite, otherwise they were classified as possible. This definition was compared to definitions using alternate timing of onset and symptomatology requirements. Data pertaining to demographics, diagnoses, and illness severity were collected.Results:In total, 498 HARVIs (320 definite and 178 possible) were identified, with an incidence rate of 0.98 per 1,000 patient days (0.63 and 0.35, respectively). Rhinovirus or enterovirus and respiratory syncytial virus were the most identified viruses (58% and 10%, respectively). The median time from admission until HARVI was 10.5 days (interquartile range [IQR], 5–30 days). When alternate definitions were employed, the incidence of HARVI ranged from 0.96 to 2.00 per 1,000 admitted patient days.Conclusions:HARVI remain a common nosocomial infection in pediatric hospitals and the measured incidence is dependent on the definition used. Because of the endemic and pandemic potential of respiratory viruses, standardized definitions are needed to facilitate intra- and interhospital comparisons.
Mindfulness older workers and relational leadership
Authors: Roche Maree , Shang Sudong , Bentley Tim , Catley Bevan , Blackwood Kate , Teo Stephen , Sutton Anna 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThere is scant research examining both the psychological (individual) and leadership (environmental) influences on older workers. We firstly examine the influence of older workers' mindfulness on their job engagement, job satisfaction and turnover intentions. Secondly, we address effective leadership approaches for older workers, comparing two positive relational leadership styles, leader member exchange and leader autonomy support (LAS). We survey 1,237 participants from 28 organisations in New Zealand and employ structural equation modelling to test our hypotheses using AMOS 24.0. We find that mindful older workers enjoy greater wellbeing and are discerning of the leadership styles that most benefit their engagement, satisfaction and intentions to stay within the organisation. We find that mindfulness has direct importance and LAS has indirect importance on advancing the wellbeing of older workers. Mindful older workers exhibit greater work wellbeing than non-mindful workers, but they also demonstrate greater expectations and discernment of the leadership styles they encounter.
External observers' reactions to abusive supervision in the workplace: the impact of racial differences
Authors: Gligor David M. , Bozkurt Siddik , Gligor Nichole M. 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThis research examines external observers' reactions to abusive supervision in the workplace while accounting for the impact of the abusive supervisor's race and the abused employee's race. We conducted four different studies to examine differences in external observers' protective behavior across the four possible abusive supervisor–abused employee racial combinations. The focus of these studies is on the two largest racial groups in the US: White Americans and African Americans. Our findings reveal that external observers' willingness to protect an abused employee depends significantly on the abused employee's race and the abusive supervisor's race.
Lake ice deformation on Khovsgol Lake from Sentinel data before, during and after the 2021 Mw 6.7 earthquake in Turt, Mongolia
Authors: He Ping , Wen Yangmao 
Published: March 2022

AbstractKhovsgol Lake, a seasonal ice-covered lake located in boreal Siberia, plays important economic, transportation and agricultural roles for local residents. On 11 January 2021, an Mw 6.7 earthquake struck the center of this lake, providing a unique opportunity to better understand lake ice movement, ridge distribution, and hydraulic and hydrodynamic processes, as a result of the mainshock. We use a pixel-tracking method on both Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar and Sentinel-2 optical remote-sensing data covering this lake before, during and after the mainshock to obtain lake-ice displacement. Combining these measurements with different viewing geometries, we determine the locations of pressure ridges in each period and derive their relative 3D displacement maps with a precision of <2.2 m. Our results indicate a large E-W displacement of up to 10.3 m and a vertical displacement of up to 4.6 m during the coseismic period, which has a distinctly different magnitude and pattern of displacement compared to the pre- and post-event periods. Given the ice motion pattern and magnitude, we speculate that the unique ice displacement of Khovsgol Lake may have been caused by a rare seismic seiche after the mainshock.
Dietary intake of branched-chain amino acids and pancreatic cancer risk in a case–control study from Italy
Authors: Rossi Marta , Turati Federica , Strikoudi Panagiota , Ferraroni Monica , Parpinel Maria , Serraino Diego , Negri Eva , La Vecchia Carlo 
Published: March 2022

AbstractCirculating branched-chain amino acids (BCAA), a subgroup of the nine essential amino acids, has been associated with pancreatic cancer risk. The aim of this study is to estimate the relation between BCAA intake from diet and pancreatic cancer risk. We analysed data from a multicentric Italian case–control study, including 326 pancreatic cancer cases and 652 controls, matched to cases by study centre, sex and age. A validated FFQ was used to collect the participants’ usual diet before cancer diagnosis (or hospital admission for controls) and to compute dietary intakes of various nutrients, including BCAA. OR and the corresponding CI were computed through logistic regression models conditioned on the matching variables and adjusted for major confounding factors, including total energy intake. We found a positive association between BCAA intake and pancreatic cancer risk (OR for the third quartile = 1·88, 95 % CI = 1·08, 3·26; OR for the fourth quartile = 2·17, 95 % CI = 1·17, 4·06), with a significant trend in risk. The association persisted after excluding subjects with diabetes and family history of pancreatic cancer and across strata of selected covariates. These data support and quantify the association between dietary BCAA and pancreatic cancer, previously suggested by studies on circulating BCAA.
THE RIGHT TO LIFE AND THEJUS AD BELLUM: BELLIGERENT EQUALITY AND THE DUTY TO PROSECUTE ACTS OF AGGRESSION
Authors: Jackson Miles , Akande Dapo 
Published: March 2022

AbstractGeneral Comment 36 of the Human Rights Committee, adopted in 2018, asserts that ‘States parties engaged in acts of aggression as defined in international law, resulting in deprivation of life, violate ipso facto article 6 of the Covenant.’ One question about this claim is whether it reduces incentives for compliance with international humanitarian law for States and their agents—incentives provided through the principles of belligerent equality and combatant immunity. It is argued that it does not do so—such a worry about incentives is not a reason to reject the claim in General Comment 36. In the process, it can also be shown that, if accepted, this claim is interesting in another way: it entails, in effect, a duty on States to prosecute acts of aggression insofar as they entail killing, as they often will. This itself is doctrinally innovative. As to who is to be prosecuted, it is the political and military leadership of the State. It is their decision to wage war unlawfully that renders the killings arbitrary.
Can probiotic gargles reduce post-tonsillectomy morbidity in adult patients? A pilot, triple-blind, randomised, controlled trial and feasibility study
Authors: Nasserallah M V , de Silva N M , Tobin V , Rozen W M , Hunter-Smith D J 
Published: March 2022

AbstractObjectiveThis study aimed to determine the efficacy of probiotic gargles compared with placebo gargles on reducing post-tonsillectomy morbidity in adults.MethodThis was a triple-blind, randomised, controlled trial and feasibility study. Thirty adults underwent elective tonsillectomy and were randomly assigned to receive either probiotic or placebo gargles for 14 days after surgery. Daily pain scores and requirement of analgesia were measured for 14 days post-operatively. Secondary outcomes assessed probiotic safety and tolerability and the feasibility of the trial.ResultsThe probiotic group experienced less pain at rest on day 2. However, the amount of oxycodone (5 mg) tablets used was greater in the probiotic group compared with placebo. There were no statistically significant differences in the frequency of adverse effects between both groups. This trial was feasible.ConclusionThis pilot study suggested that probiotic gargles do not reduce post-tonsillectomy pain or bleeding, highlighting the importance of pilot and feasibility studies in clinical research.
The proper basicality of belief in God and the evil-god challenge
Authors: Hendricks Perry 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThe evil-god challenge is a challenge for theists to show that belief in God is more reasonable than belief in evil-god. In this article, I show that whether or not evil-god exists, belief in evil-god is unjustified. But this isn't the case for belief in God: belief in God is probably justified if theism is true. And hence belief in God is (significantly) more reasonable than belief in evil-god, and the evil-god challenge has been answered.
Consciousness, complexity, and evolution
Authors: Veit Walter 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThe idea that consciousness and complexity are closely related has been a major driver of the popularity of integrated information theory (IIT) of consciousness, despite its major formal, phenomenological, and neuroscientific shortcomings. Here, I argue that we can recover this intuition by replacing its biologically neutral notion of complexity with an evolutionary one that I shall dub “pathological complexity.”
Why evolve consciousness? Neural credit and blame allocation as a core function of consciousness
Authors: Fitch W. Tecumseh 
Published: March 2022

AbstractI concur with Merker and colleague's critiques, suggesting that hypotheses about the evolutionary function of consciousness can help address them. Brains are parallel systems that function to compute possible actions and predict outcomes. I hypothesize that a core function of consciousness per se is the global feedback of information about those actions actually executed, supporting local learning via neuronal updating.
Depoliticizing China's Grassroots NGOs: State and Civil Society as an Institutional Field of Power
Authors: Tian Fengrui , Chuang Julia 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThis article employs ethnographic fieldwork and interviews to examine two distinct processes of depoliticization by non-governmental organizations advocating rights for sex workers in China. Drawing upon Bourdieu and institutional theory, we argue that the consolidation of state repression of civil society under the Xi regime created an institutional field of power to which two NGOs responded differently. While one of them relied on government procurement as its major funding source, thus diluting the original mission, the other internalized state rhetoric as it sought political legitimacy through state certification, thus sanitizing its political mission. These distinct responses were then institutionalized into organizational practices, norms and culture. Rather than portraying NGOs in China as either capable political actors or pawns of an authoritarian state, this article illustrates how NGOs are subtly depoliticized by being inculcated in a state-produced, hierarchical social order in which compliance with state norms becomes synonymous with organizational competence.
Convolution and concurrency
Authors: Cranch James , Doherty Simon , Struth Georg 
Published: March 2022

AbstractWe show how concurrent quantales and concurrent Kleene algebras arise as convolution algebras of functions from relational structures with two ternary relations that satisfy relational interchange laws into concurrent quantales or Kleene algebras, among others. The elements of the quantales can be understood as weights; the case where weights are drawn from the booleans corresponds to languages. We develop a correspondence theory between properties of the relational structures and algebraic properties in the weight and convolution algebras in the sense of modal and substructural logics, or boolean algebras with operators. The resulting correspondence triangles yield in particular general construction principles for models of concurrent quantales and Kleene algebras as convolution algebras from much simpler relational structures, including weighted ones for quantitative applications. As examples, we construct the concurrent quantales and Kleene algebras of weighted words, digraphs, posets, isomorphism classes of finite digraphs and pomsets.
Best practices for CBT treatment of taboo and unacceptable thoughts in OCD
Authors: Williams Monnica T. , Whittal Maureen L. , La Torre Joseph 
Published: March 2022

AbstractAlthough general cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can help alleviate distress associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), strategies tailored to targeting specific cognitions, feelings, and behaviours associated with OCD such as exposure and ritual prevention (Ex/RP) and cognitive therapy (CT) have been shown to be a significantly more effective form of treatment. Treatment of individuals with unacceptable/taboo obsessions requires its own specific guidelines due to the stigmatizing and often misunderstood nature of accompanying thoughts and behaviours. In this article, OCD expert practitioners describe best practices surrounding two of the longest standing evidence-based treatment paradigms for OCD, CT and Ex/RP, tailored specifically to unacceptable and taboo obsessions, so that clients may experience the best possible outcomes that are sustained once treatment ends. In addition, CT specifically targets obsessions while Ex/RP addresses compulsions, allowing the two to be highly effective when combined together. A wide range of clinical recommendations on clinical competencies is offered, including essential knowledge, psychoeducation, designing fear hierarchies and exposures, instructing the client through behavioural experiments, and relapse prevention skills.Key learning aims(1)To learn about the theoretical underpinnings of specialized approaches to treating taboo/unacceptable thoughts subtype of OCD with gold-standard CBT treatments, cognitive therapy (CT) and exposure and ritual prevention (Ex/RP).(2)To learn about recognizing and identifying commonly missed covert cognitive symptoms in OCD such as rumination and mental compulsions.(3)To learn how to assess commonly unrecognized behavioural symptoms in OCD such as concealment, reassurance seeking, searching on online forums, etc.(4)To gain a nuanced understanding of the phenomenology of the taboo/unacceptable thoughts OCD subtype and the cycles that maintain symptoms and impairment.(5)To learn about in-session techniques such as thought experiments, worksheets, fear hierarchies, and different types of exposures.
Classification of scattering parameters of body-embedded wideband textile antennas for early diagnosis and monitoring of breast cancer
Authors: Das Nirmalya , Basu Banani , Dutta Sagar , Nandi Arnab 
Published: March 2022

AbstractIn this paper, we propose a machine-based classification technique using the scattering parameters obtained using a wearable wideband textile antenna to diagnose breast tumors. The breast phantom is formed following the dielectric properties of the human breast tissues and characterized to ensure the resemblance with a actual tissue model for the range of frequencies from 3 to 10 GHz. A biocompatible textile antenna is fabricated and embedded on an artificial breast phantom model to capture the variation of the reflection coefficient S11 and the transmission coefficient S21 for frequencies 3–10 GHz for different locations and sizes of tumors within the phantom model. Support vector machine is used to classify the healthy tissues from the malignant tumors based on the variation of the scattering parameters owing to the variation of the dielectric characteristics of the breast phantom model. The proposed method offers 84% and 89% accuracy while using S11 and S21 parameters alone for the analysis. However, the results further improve up to 93% as a combination of S11 and S21 signals is considered.
Restricting Democratic Choice in Thailand's 2019 Election: “Retrograde” and “Sophisticated” Authoritarianism
Authors: Sripokangkul Siwach , Crumpton Charles David , Draper John 
Published: March 2022

AbstractSince the end of its absolute monarchy in 1932, Thailand has been variously described as a “hybrid regime,” “flawed democracy,” and “failed democracy.” Furthermore, its governance system has been identified as “electoral authoritarianism,” ‘hybrid authoritarianism,” “military domination,” and “Thai-style democracy.” Regardless of the analytic lens applied, the history of Thai politics has involved a continuing struggle for control of government between both authoritarian and democratic forces. Following the 2014 military coup d’état, the first election held in 2019 saw the 2014 military coup leader, General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, elected as prime minister. This article assesses the conduct and results of the 2019 election in terms of the general discourse on electoral authoritarianism and as an emerging framing of authoritarian regimes particularly applicable to Southeast Asia—the rise of “sophisticated authoritarianism.” This approach distills and integrates the discourse on electoral authoritarianism to produce a typology that is useful for considering the empirical characteristics of Southeast Asia. The 2019 election offers an opportunity to consider Thailand within this framing and to determine to what extent the military-dominated regime and its holistic manipulation of electoral institutions and processes can be assessed as “sophisticated authoritarianism.” This study demonstrates that Prayuth's election partially demonstrates “sophisticated authoritarianism”; nonetheless, his attempt to depoliticise Thailand and reduce it to a non-political state has met substantial resistance that will likely persist while he remains in power.
Vertical Wind Speed Variation in a Metropolitan City in South China
Authors: Wu Yueyuan , Li Qinglan , Li Guangxin , He Bing , Dong Lin , Lan Haining , Zhang Lijie , Chen Shenpeng , Tang Xiaoxin 
Published: March 2022

AbstractSevere wind with high altitudes may threaten the safety of the metropolitan city. This study investigates the relationship between the variation of vertical wind speeds (including 10 min average wind speed (avg‐wind) and 3 s average wind speed (gust wind)) and the height changes in Shenzhen, based on the hourly wind speeds observed on the Shenzhen Meteorological Gradient Tower, Ping An Building, and in the Central Park. The samples are grouped according to the wind speeds. The power law and least square fitting methods are used to obtain the Hellman coefficient value for each group. We find that the fitted Hellman coefficients for both gust wind and avg‐wind are subject to the exponential decay function. When the winds reach their corresponding high percentile level, that is, around 80% of the wind record, the Hellman coefficients almost keep constant. The Hellman coefficient is generally higher over the urban area than that over the rural area. Over the urban area, the Hellman coefficient is with the range of 0.49 ∼ 0.169 for gust wind and 0.64 ∼ 0.327 for the avg‐wind; while over the rural area, the Hellman coefficient is with the range of 0.33 ∼ 0.077 for gust wind and 0.49 ∼ 0.153 for the avg‐wind. There is an apparent diurnal variation of the Hellman coefficient, which is lower during the daytime and higher during nighttime. The monthly variation of the Hellman coefficient over the urban area is not evident, mainly due to the city's climate condition and urban heat island.