cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Threshold Effects of Drivers Promote Future Wildfire Changes at Mid–High Northern Latitudes
Creators: name: Zhao, Hang
name: Zhang, Zhengxiang
name: Wang, Xin
name: Zhen, Shuo
name: Zhang, Hongyan
name: Bu, Zhao-Jun
name: Zhao, Jianjun
name: Guo, Xiaoyi
name: We, Kejiang
name: Dong, Long
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2024
Subjects: classificationCode: 410205
subject: Fire ecology

description: This is the raw data, code, and graphs of the manuscript titled "Enhanced Threshold Effects of Drivers Promote Future Wildfire Changes at Mid–High Northern Latitudes".
Cherish my college life: a phenomenological study on the experiences of Chinese undergraduate international students and involvement on-campus
Creators: name: Loh, Janet Jun Siew
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2022

description: Chinese international undergraduate student experiences at U.S. higher education institutions are often hidden within the larger monolithic narrative of “international students” as a whole. The existing research on the on-campus involvement experiences of Chinese undergraduate international students is relatively minimal particularly in comparison to existing studies on the academic experiences of this population. The aggregation of knowledge on the international student experience creates a narrow perspective on the motivations and challenges of Chinese undergraduate international students in involvement. This qualitative research study explored the diverse range of involvement experiences of eight Chinese undergraduate international students who self-identified as involved students at a large public U.S. university. Specifically, this study used a phenomenological approach to explore what factors participants considered in their choice to become involved on-campus, as well as how students made meaning of and defined involvement. Findings indicated that participants chose unique and varied involvement experiences with high levels of agency, developing their ways of knowing about involvement as they navigated through their college experience.
Additional file 2 of Education interventions for health professionals on falls prevention in health care settings: a 10-year scoping review
Creators: name: Shaw, L.
name: Kiegaldie, D.
name: Farlie, M. K.
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: Medicine
Biotechnology
Science Policy

description: Additional file 2. Modified 4Ps model of quality in education design
Empirical Analysis of VDOT Crash Data
Creators: name: Li, Elizabeth
name: Shanjiang Zhu
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Improving arterial safety, particularly reducing bike and pedestrian related crashes, is a top policy goal of VDOT, as stated in the VDOT State Bicycle Policy Plan and State Pedestrian Policy Plan. As the travel demand rebounds from their low in the pandemic, highway safety patterns may present new features and attract a lot of attention from traffic engineers and policy makers. During the pandemic, people started to walk and bike more, and such preferences for active travel modes may continue during the post-pandemic era. Recent anecdotal evidence shows that crashes involving cyclists and pedestrians may be also on the rise. Therefore, it is important to investigate the new trend of road safety during the post-pandemic era and identify factors that may have contributed to such a trend. This study investigates this issue using VDOT crash data from 2015 to the current. The data is geo-referenced and can be integrated with VDOT infrastructure data for further investigation. Using the ARCGIS software and VDOT data, potential findings could help engage stakeholders in more in-depth discussions of countermeasures and investment priorities for better transportation safety.
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
Transformer-Based Incomplete Time Series Classification Framework for Fast UAV Detection Over Encrypted Wi-Fi Traffic
Creators: name: JASON HAO
name: Tong, Linda
name: Boyi Dai
name: Zeng, Kai
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: As the production of consumer unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) with video streaming capabilities increases every year, public security and personal privacy are increasingly put at risk.Thus, efficient and early detection of UAVs remains a pressing issue. To detect UAVs as early as possible, we formulate the task of UAV detection as a univariate time series classification problem, eliminating the time-consuming and computationally expensive process of calculating statistical features frequently used in neural networks for UAV detection. Initially used in natural language processing and recently applied to time series tasks, Transformer neural network models are able to determine relationships within sequential data in order to make classification decisions or predictions about future data points. Since many consumer UAVs exhibit a pattern in packet length during wireless WiFi communication between the drone and controller, we propose using Transformer models to analyze packet length over time. In addition, our research addresses the problem of packet loss over long distances. Since Transformers can generate or predict information, we use a Transformer to impute missing packet lengths, greatly increasing one UAV detection radius when there is packet loss. Overall, our Transformer model uses existing univariate time series data to impute missing packet lengths before classifying the traffic flow, allowing the model to detect UAVs quickly, efficiently, and within a larger radius.
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
A note on the entropy of mean curvature flow
Creators: name: Bao, Chao
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Differential Geometry (math.DG)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: The entropy of a hypersurface is given by the supremum over all F-functionals with varying centers and scales, and is invariant under rigid motions and dilations. As a consequence of Huisken's monotonicity formula, entropy is non-increasing under mean curvature flow. We show here that a compact mean convex hypersurface with some low entropy is diffeomorphic to a round sphere. We will also prove that a smooth self-shrinker with low entropy is exact a hyperplane.
description: Accepted for publication in SCIENCE CHINA Mathematics
Photoluminescence Mapping of Atomically Layered Photocatalysts
Creators: name: WOOJIN BYUN
name: Pelumi Adanigbo
name: Yu, Yun
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Light–driven chemical transformation via interfacial photocatalytic reactions has the potential to revolutionize energy production and sustainable chemical industry. Atomically thin materials offer a promising solution to construct efficient photocatalysts owing to their exceptional tunability of optical and electronic characteristics. In the atomic scale, the photogenerated electrons and holes are bounded as neutral quasiparticles, known as excitons. This excitonic effect limits the utilization of free carriers and results in diminished quantum efficiency in the light–driven redox processes. In this work, van der Waals heterojunctions composed of tungsten disulfide (WS2) and molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) were created to facilitate the transition of excitons into free carriers. Spatially resolved photoluminescence (PL) spectra were obtained to quantify the photoemission from the radiative decay of excitons. At the heterojunction formed by WS2 and MoS2, the strong quenching of PL was attributed to rapid charge separation and exciton dissociation. The results highlight the opportunities to leverage van der Waals heterojunctions to manipulate the excitonic effects for efficient photocatalysis.
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
Additional file 1 of Factors associated with breast cancer awareness and breast self-examination in Fiji and Kashmir India – a cross-sectional study
Creators: name: Rukaiya Malik
name: Vera, Numa
name: Dayal, Chandra
name: Choudhari, Abhay
name: Jyotishna Mudaliar
name: Hill, Amanda Noovao
name: Ilisapeci Kubuabola
name: Gunnarsson, Ronny
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Cell Biology
subject: Biotechnology
subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Cancer
subject: Science Policy

description: Additional file 1.
Developing Analytical Algorithms for the Rapid Identification of Atomically Thin Materials
Creators: name: SIDDARTH SREERAM
name: Romo, Jorge
name: Yu, Yun
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Van der Waals (VdW) heterostructures are molecular constructs assembled by the stacking of atomically thin layered substances known as 2D materials and bear applications in fields including electronics and energy storage. For heterostructure creation, monolayer or few-layer crystals are typically desired due to their superior tunability in comparison to thicker layers of the same material. In this work, a MATLAB image processing script was developed to compute optical contrast, as based on a calculation involving the intensity of light reflected by the sample (2D material) and background for specific color channels (red, green, or blue), to aid in the identification of a variety of 2D materials. A graph representing the computed optical contrast values within the microscope’s field of view was displayed. The optical contrast values in appropriate color channels were correlated with the thicknesses of the 2D flake. The software developed in this work can be utilized to expedite the accurate identification of 2D materials for the future assembly of VdW heterostructures for varied applications.
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
title: Mobbingerfahrung der Lehrkräfte
Creators: name: Varga, Julia
Year: 2021

description: Das Phänomen Mobbing wird seit Jahrzehnten im Bereich der Schule und des Arbeitsplatzes vielfach diskutiert. Wenig Beachtung wurde dabei dem Arbeitsplatz Schule geschenkt. Die vorliegende Arbeit erweitert vor allem die Forschung im deutschsprachigen Raum um eine Perspektive – jener des Mobbings gegen Lehrkräfte. Das Ziel der Arbeit war die Erfassung der Mobbingerfahrungen der Lehrkräfte an der Wiener Sekundarstufe und deren Auswirkungen auf ihre Gesundheit und ihre berufliche Tätigkeit. Hierfür wurde ein Fragebogen erstellt, der acht Skalen umfasste, die neben den soziodemographischen Daten das psychische und physische Belastungsempfinden, die Selbstwirksamkeitserwartung, die Schulverbundenheit, das Schulklima, den Umgang mit negativen Verhaltensweisen zwischen Schüler*innen, die Teilnahme an Fortbildungen und die eigene vergangene und aktuelle Erfahrung mit Mobbing erfassten. Durchgeführt wurde die Studie anhand einer Onlinebefragung, an der sich 99 Lehrkräfte der AHS, BHS und MS beteiligten. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, dass 31.3% der Lehrkräfte während ihrer Schulzeit und 12.2% in ihrer aktuellen Tätigkeit von Mobbing betroffen waren, wobei 45.4% von ihren Kollegen*innen und 27.3% von ihren Schüler*innen Mobbing erlebten. Mobbing trat dabei in indirekter und direkter Form sowie als Cybermobbing auf. Anhand der univariaten Varianzanalyse und Rangkorrelationen nach Spearman konnten signifikante Zusammenhänge des Mobbings mit dem psychischen und physischen Belastungsempfinden, der Anzahl an Klassen, dem Schulklima und dem Erkennen von Mobbing nachgewiesen werden. Weitere Ergebnisse sowie Erkenntnisse der Interkorrelationen der Skalen wurden diskutiert. Implikationen für die Schulen und die Fortbildung der Lehrkräfte wurden angeführt.
Stretchable Arduinos embedded in soft robots
Creators: name: Woodman, Stephanie J.
name: Shah, Dylan S.
name: Landesberg, Melanie
name: Agrawala, Anjali
name: Kramer-Bottiglio, Rebecca
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Robotics (cs.RO)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: To achieve real-world functionality, robots must have the ability to carry out decision-making computations. However, soft robots stretch and therefore need a solution other than rigid computers. Examples of embedding computing capacity into soft robots currently include appending rigid printed circuit boards (PCBs) to the robot, integrating soft logic gates, and exploiting material responses for material-embedded computation. Although promising, these approaches introduce limitations such as rigidity, tethers, or low logic gate density. The field of stretchable electronics has sought to solve these challenges, but a complete pipeline for direct integration of single-board computers, microcontrollers, and other complex circuitry into soft robots has remained elusive. We present a generalized method to translate any complex two-layer circuit into a soft, stretchable form. This enabled the creation of stretchable single-board microcontrollers (including Arduinos) and other commercial circuits (including Sparkfun circuits), without design simplifications. As demonstrations of the method's utility, we embed highly stretchable (>300% strain) Arduino Pro Minis into the bodies of multiple soft robots. This makes use of otherwise inert structural material, fulfilling the promise of the stretchable electronics field to integrate state-of-the-art computational power into robust, stretchable systems during active use.
description: 45 pages, 19 figures total. Main text is 28 pages with 6 figures. The rest is supplementary
Critical designing with communities: the case of a housing rights campaign in Leith, Edinburgh
Creators: name: Ryu, Sang Won
Publisher: name: The University of Edinburgh
Year: 2021
Subjects: social complexity
civic capacity
housing rights campaign
community-led design
dialectical sensemaking
political behaviour
Leith

description: Recent movements of participatory democracy in welfare states have changed the governance from public administration to the hands of social agents. The call for a responsible and rational agent has now become all the more important to increase the collaborative relations of policy actors in policy implementation. In this study, the role of a professional designer in the public realm to cope with the challenges of collaboration between state and local actors is examined in order to explore collaborative design methods aimed at coordination. The attributes of social complexity and civic capacity have been suggested as challenges to coordination, resulting in the adoption of a critical position and approaches to exploration. I conducted an eighteen-month empirical case study of the housing rights campaign held in Leith, Edinburgh, by employing ethnographic and action-research methodologies to align field and design work with the campaign operation. Working alongside the resident volunteers, social workers, and authority officials, I came to launch three cases of design work on place-making, contributing to the implementation of a three-million-pound refurbishment scheme from the city council to the affected housing blocks. As a result, the empirical findings support the promotion of caring and civic behaviors as forms of political behavior to be oriented in policy and public engagements. I claim for dialectical sensemaking as an original approach to codesign methods aimed at this promotion. Taken together, the implications to a direction on community-led design are drawn, suggesting its relevance as a future area of practice to increase local autonomy for the common good.
Developing Atomically Layered Heterostructures as Electrochemical Dopamine Sensors
Creators: name: NEHA ASURI
name: Solyip Kim
name: Yu, Yun
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Atomically thin materials, such as graphene layers, have received an exponentially growing interest for biochemical sensing applications. Their high surface-to-volume ratio and exceptionally tunable electronic properties allow them to respond to specific analytes with high sensitivity. The electrochemical sensing of dopamine, a key neurotransmitter, is an essential analytical tool for studying complex nervous systems. Graphene is a favorable sensing material for dopamine detection due to its strong π−π interaction with the aromatic rings of dopamine. However, the minimal charge density at pristine graphene layers limits the electrochemical kinetics of dopamine electrooxidation. In the study, atomically layered heterostructures composed of graphene and molybdenum trioxide (MoO3) were developed to enhance the electrochemical activity towards dopamine reaction. The high work function of MoO3 induced spontaneous hole doping of graphene, leading to enhanced charge density at the graphene surface. Graphene, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and MoO3 were mechanically exfoliated and assembled into heterostructures with a transfer system. The presence of MoO3 in the heterostructure was found to increase the graphene sheet conductance by more than two folds, indicating that charge modulation is effective and beneficial for dopamine detection. This work may pave the way for biosensors that take advantage of the excellent tunability of atomically layered heterostructures.
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
title: "Huge chaos" and "syntactic nightmares"
Creators: name: Mujagic, Dajana
Year: 2021

description: Die vorliegende Masterarbeit untersucht die Verwendung von Hyperbeln in Englisch als Linga Franca (ELF) Kommunikation, basierend auf den in zwei WhatsApp-Gruppenchats natürlich entstandenen Unterhaltungen. Die Gruppenchats wurden von sich unbekannten Studenten für den Zweck der Kommunikation während der Arbeit an Gruppenprojekten erstellt. Die Studie widmet sich den häufigsten Formen/Realisationen von Hyperbeln in den Unterhaltungen und analysiert dabei zentrale Aspekte von ELF, wie accommodation und Kreativität, im Zusammenhang mit der Verwendung von Hyperbeln. Da sich die Teilnehmer der Gruppenchats im Voraus nicht gekannt haben und Transient International Groups (TIGs) bilden, wendet die Studie eine mikro-diachronische Perspektive an und beobachtet den Einsatz von Hyperbeln durch den gesamten Verlauf der Kommunikationen. Die Ergebnisse der Analyse zeigen sowohl eine große Bandbreite an Formen/Realisationen zu unterschiedlichen Zeitpunkten der Unterhaltungen, als auch zahlreiche kommunikative Funktionen, die mit der Verwendung von Hyperbeln in Verbindung gebracht werden. Weiters kann beobachtet werden, dass die Verwendung von Hyperbeln zwischen den beiden TIGs unterschiedlich ist, was auf die Merkmale der Gruppen (zum Beispiel Gruppengröße oder Vertrautheit zwischen den Teilnehmern) zurückzuführen sein kann. Trotzdem spielen Hyperbeln in beiden TIGs nicht nur eine signifikante Rolle im Aufbau von zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen, sondern sind auch für die Aufrechterhaltung von erfolgreichen ELF Kommunikation von großer Bedeutung.
description: This thesis explores the use of hyperbole in English as a lingua franca (ELF) communication on the basis of two naturally-occurring WhatsApp group chats between unacquainted students who use ELF to communicate while working on their group projects. The thesis investigates the most frequent realizations of hyperbole in the two chats and explores the central concepts of ELF research, such as accommodation and creativity, in relation to the use of hyperbole. Considering that the ELF groups in question have no prior communicative history and constitute Transient International Groups (TIGs), the thesis uses the micro-diachronic approach and monitors the use of hyperbole throughout the entire course of communication. The findings reveal a wide range of formal realizations in different stages of communication, as well as a number of communicative functions associated with the use of hyperbole. In addition, it is observed that the use of hyperbole differs between the two TIGs, which can be related to the group characteristics (e.g. size of the group, degree of familiarity). Nevertheless, in both TIGs, hyperbole plays a significant role in establishing interpersonal relationships, as well as achieving and maintaining successful communication in ELF online group chats.
Investigating polygenic influences on pubertal timing and relationships with depression risk across development
Creators: name: Lancaster, Eva
Publisher: name: Open Science Framework
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Public Health
subject: Medical Genetics
subject: Medical Sciences
subject: Women's Health
subject: Psychiatry and Psychology
subject: Medicine and Health Sciences
subject: Medical Specialties
subject: Psychiatry

description: The overall objective of this project is to explore the shared genetic etiology between pubertal timing and depression throughout development. Specifically, we aim to examine whether genetic influences on pubertal timing impact major depression risk and symptom load exclusively during adolescence or whether this effect persists into adulthood.
Security, Trust and Privacy challenges in AI-driven 6G Networks
Creators: name: Rifa-Pous, Helena
name: Garcia-Font, Victor
name: Nunez-Gomez, Carlos
name: Salas, Julian
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Cryptography and Security (cs.CR)
subject: Networking and Internet Architecture (cs.NI)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: The advent of 6G networks promises unprecedented advancements in wireless communication, offering wider bandwidth and lower latency compared to its predecessors. This article explores the evolving infrastructure of 6G networks, emphasizing the transition towards a more disaggregated structure and the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Furthermore, it explores the security, trust and privacy challenges and attacks in 6G networks, particularly those related to the use of AI. It presents a classification of network attacks stemming from its AI-centric architecture and explores technologies designed to detect or mitigate these emerging threats. The paper concludes by examining the implications and risks linked to the utilization of AI in ensuring a robust network.
description: 19 pages, 6 tables
Variability of Venusian ionospheric electron density as observed by Pioneer Venus Orbiter and Venera 15/16 missions
Creators: name: EMILIA SLOAN
name: Yiğit, Erdal
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Electron density varies throughout the Venusian upper atmosphere and differs depending on factors related to time and location, providing an insight into the climate and atmosphere. The Pioneer Venus Orbiter and Venera 15/16 satellites conducted radio occultation experiments to measure electron density variations with atmospheric altitude. Using the archived electron density profiles from Pioneer Venus Orbiter and Venera 15/16, figures of electron density as a function of altitude were created and showed electron density peaks at approximately 140 km above Venus' surface. The electron density peak from the Pioneer Venus Orbiter and Venera 15/16 satellites matched those in publications from the Akatsuki and Venus Express satellites (Hensley et al., 20201; Tripathi et al., 20232). The electron density profiles also showed that the peak electron density varies between 5 x 103 cm-3 and 7 x 105 cm-3, depending on solar zenith angle, latitude, and longitude, demonstrating a strong spatiotemporal variability, which suggests that underlying ionization processes are dependent on these factors. Despite the differences in the peak electron density with latitude, longitude, and solar zenith angle, multiple satellite missions demonstrated that the Venusian ionospheric electron density peaks at approximately 140 km regardless of these factors. References: 1. Hensley, K., Withers, P., Girazian, Z., Pätzold, M., Tellmann, S., & Häusler, B. (2020). Dependence of dayside electron densities at Venus on solar irradiance. Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, 125, e2019JA027167. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JA027167
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
title: Absorption characteristics of Janus tadpole polymers
Creators: name: Vitecek, Benedikt David
Year: 2021

description: Die jüngsten Fortschritte in der Herstellung von Polymeren erlauben die Produktion von Kaulquappenpolymeren ("tadpole polymers", einer Kombination aus einem Ringpolymer und einer linearen Polymerkette) mit verschiedenen Eigenschaften in unterschiedlichen Regionen desselben Polymers. Motiviert durch diese Entwicklungen ist es das Ziel dieser Masterarbeit, das Absorptionsverhalten von janusköpfigen Kaulquappenpolymeren durch numerische Simulationen zu erforschen. Als Aufbau des Polymers wird ein durch grobkörnig vereinfachtes Modell verwendet, in dem Teile des Polymers (bzw. dessen Monomere) durch weiche Kugeln ersetzt und kaulquappenförmig angeordnet werden. Zusätzlich besteht das Polymer aus zwei Teilen, die sich unterschiedlich verhalten: dem Ring und der Kette. Die Festigkeit des verformbaren Ringes kann verändert werden, während die Kette immer steif ist; dazu wird jeweils einer der beiden von der Oberfläche angezogen und absorbiert. Als Simulationsgrundlage wird das normale Monte Carlo Verfahren verwendet. Wir konnten unterschiedliche Verhaltensweisen abhängig vom absorbierten Teil des Polymers feststellen, sowohl bei der absorbierten Phase welche die Oberfläche überzieht, als auch bei der nicht absorbiertem Phase, die sich in der Nähe der Oberfläche sammelte. Nähers untersuchten wir die Abhängigkeit der Phasen von der Festigkeit des Ringes und kamen zu dem Ergebnis, dass man durch diese die beiden Phasen kontrollieren kann.
description: Motivated by the recent developments in polymer synthesis that allow for production of tadpole polymers (i.e. polymers formed out of a polymeric ring to which a linear chain is attached) with differently functionalized regions within the same polymer, we set out in this Master Thesis to study the absorption behavior of these Janus tadpole polymers, using numerical simulations. We model the tadpole polymers by coarse graining pieces of the polymer (more specifically, monomers) as soft spheres assembled in a tadpole shape. Furthermore, the polymers are composed of two parts which are functionalized differently: the ring and the tail. The first is semi-flexible, having a rigidity that can be controlled, whereas the latter is a stiff rod. In turns, both tails and rings are allowed to absorb on the surface. As simulation technique we use a standard Monte Carlo scheme. We observed different behaviors depending on which part of the polymers (i.e. the ring or the tail) are allowed to attach to the surface. These differences are present both at the level of the absorbed polymeric phase which coated the surface as well as in the brush created by the non-absorbed part in the vicinity of the surface. We investigated in detail the characteristics of the adsorbed and the brush phase depending on the bending rigidity of the ring, finding out that this parameter allows us to control both phases.
Effects of 17α-ethinylestradiol on the neuroendocrine gonadotropic system and behavior of European sea bass larvae (Dicentrarchus labrax)
Creators: name: Soloperto, S
name: Olivier, S
name: Poret, A
name: Minier, C
name: Halm-Lemeille, MP
name: Jozet-Alves, C
name: Aroua, S
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Biochemistry
subject: Genetics
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Pharmacology
subject: 39999 Chemical Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Chemical sciences
subject: Ecology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified

description: The widespread use of 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), and other estrogenic endocrine disruptors, results in a continuous release of estrogenic compounds into aquatic environments. Xenoestrogens may interfere with the neuroendocrine system of aquatic organisms and may produce various adverse effects. The aim of the present study was to expose European sea bass larvae (Dicentrarchus labrax) to EE2 (0.5 and 50 nM) for 8 d and determine the expression levels of brain aromatase (cyp19a1b), gonadotropin-releasing hormones (gnrh1, gnrh2, gnrh3), kisspeptins (kiss1, kiss2) and estrogen receptors (esr1, esr2a, esr2b, gpera, gperb). Growth and behavior of larvae as evidenced by locomotor activity and anxiety-like behaviors were measured 8 d after EE2 treatment and a depuration period of 20 d. Exposure to 0.5 nM EE2 induced a significant increase in cyp19a1b expression levels, while upregulation of gnrh2, kiss1, and cyp19a1b expression was noted after 8 d at 50 nM EE2. Standard length at the end of the exposure phase was significantly lower in larvae exposed to 50 nM EE2 than in control; however, this effect was no longer observed after the depuration phase. The upregulation of gnrh2, kiss1, and cyp19a1b expression levels was found in conjunction with elevation in locomotor activity and anxiety-like behaviors in larvae. Behavioral alterations were still detected at the end of the depuration phase. Evidence indicates that the long-lasting effects of EE2 on behavior might impact normal development and subsequent fitness of exposed fish.
Addressing structural wrongs: from moral theory to implementation
Creators: name: Lin, Ting-An
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2022

description: In this dissertation, I draw on philosophical and empirical considerations to develop a moral framework for addressing structural wrongs, which exist when the influence of social structures unfairly exposes some groups of people to undeserved burdens. Over the last decade, moral philosophers have proposed a new conception of moral responsibility for structural wrongs, which is a shared responsibility that can only be discharged through collective action by a broad range of participants in the social structure. However, several related issues remain underexplored. On the one hand, what are the moral demands for addressing structural wrongs—that is, what kind of goals should this shared responsibility aim to achieve? On the other hand, how can society implement shared responsibilities in a way that ensures people will take them up? My dissertation engages with the discussions that arise from considerations of these questions. First, using sexual violence as a central case example, I contrast structural wrongs with interactional wrongs (wrongs that are directly inflicted through deviant interpersonal interactions) and discuss how the distinct nature of two types of moral wrongs implies regarding moral responses. Then, regarding the moral demands for addressing structural wrongs, I argue that morality dictates a twofold response to structural wrongs that comprises both reparation (backward-looking) and structural transformation (forward-looking). Finally, drawing on empirical studies in political science, I further argue that a form of political institutions known as deliberative mini-publics—which foster democratic deliberation among an assembly of randomly chosen representatives—offers a valuable opportunity for people to confront their responsibilities and work collectively to address structural wrongs. Overall, by considering the moral demands, responsibilities, and practical measures related to addressing structural wrongs, my proposed framework lays a theoretical foundation with which other domain experts can advance measures that combat structural wrongs and aims to help translate philosophical ideas into real-world practice.
Ab initio calculations of anomalous seniority breaking in the $πg_{9/2}$ shell for the $N=50$ isotones
Creators: name: Yuan, Q.
name: Hu, B. S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: Nuclear Experiment (nucl-ex)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We performed \textit{ab initio} valence-space in-medium similarity renormalization group (VS-IMSRG) calculations based on chiral two-nucleon and three-nucleon interactions to investigate the anomalous seniority breaking in the neutron number $N=50$ isotones: $^{92}$Mo, $^{94}$Ru, $^{96}$Pd, and $^{98}$Cd. Our calculations well reproduced the measured low-lying spectra and electromagnetic $E2$ transitions in these nuclei, supporting partial seniority conservation in the first $πg_{9/2}$ shell. Recent experiments have revealed that, compared to the symmetric patterns predicted under the conserved seniority symmetry, the $4^+_1\to2^+_1$ $E2$ transition strength in $^{94}$Ru is significantly enhanced and that in $^{96}$Pd is suppressed. In contrast, the $6^+_1\to 4^+_1$ and $8^+_1\to6^+_1$ transitions exhibit the opposite trend. We found that this anomalous asymmetry is sensitive to subtle seniority breaking effects, providing a stringent test for state-of-the-art nucleon-nucleon interactions and nuclear models. We analyzed the anomalous asymmetry using VS-IMSRG calculations across various valence spaces. Our \textit{ab initio} results suggest that core excitations of both proton and neutron across the $Z=50$ shell are ascribed to the observed anomalous seniority breaking in the $N=50$ isotones.
Ionospheric Variations During a Hurricane: Insights from COSMIC-2
Creators: name: BENJAMIN KNIGGE
name: Gann, Ayden
name: Yiğit, Erdal
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Hurricanes have far-reaching impacts and are estimated to cause up to $54 billion in damages3 this year in the United States alone. Not only do hurricanes significantly impact populations and cause temperature and pressure changes, but they also cause measurable changes in the ionosphere, particularly in the upper atmosphere. Specifically, changes in local electron density can occur. Hurricane Grace, which made landfall in 2021 near the Yucatan Peninsula1, and its day of maximum intensity served as the central theme of investigation. Data from the COSMIC-2 satellite constellation was selected and time series of electron density as a function of altitude and date were created for the days leading up to, during, and after Hurricane Grace. These time series show that maximum electron density typically occurs between 260 and 320 km. On the peak day of the Hurricane , the maximum electron density increased in comparison to previous days, and the higher electron density was prevalent in both slightly lower and higher altitudes than on previous days. Previous research posited that these increases were caused by gravity waves2. These observations align with the fact that gravity waves have a direct connection to wind speeds, which were enhanced during the hurricane. References: 1. Reinhart, B., Reinhart, A., Berg, R. (2021). National Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Grace https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/tcr/AL072021_Grace.pdf • Williams, J. , Tournay, R., Tseng, H. R., Emmons, D., Nava, O. (2021). Impact of Hurricane Michael (2018) on local vertical total electron content https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jastp.2021.105647 • Congressional Budget Office (2019) Expected Costs of Damage From Hurricane Winds and Storm-Related Flooding https://www.cbo.gov/publication/55019
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
“They have many chains to bind us”: state formation, foreign policy and the colonial pact in Mali, c.1958-2020
Creators: name: Gazeley, Joe
Publisher: name: The University of Edinburgh
Year: 2021
Subjects: French influence
Mali
former African colonies

description: This thesis explores the formation and evolution of the Malian state since independence through its interaction with the French post-colonial settlement. It draws on more than 10,000 pages of diplomatic archival documents from six states and 10 elite interviews to chart the evolution of the Malian state and Mali’s relationship with the former metropole and other foreign powers. It argues that this process has developed within a mutually constituted and dynamic post-colonial relationship rooted in economic, military and political ties. In particular, it develops the concept of the colonial pact, a more precise and less-pejorative formulation of the idea of la Françafrique, as a lens through which to analyse this relationship. It seeks to explain why this pact has remained so durable in Mali through an analysis of how it has shaped the development of the post-colonial state itself. I contend that the relative strength of the colonial pact and the relative weakness of the Malian state are related. Because the key pillars of the colonial pact (economic, military and political) intrude on the sovereign prerogatives of the state, this state weakness is not an anomaly but a feature of the Francophone post-colonial system. This thesis challenges common understandings of the origins of the colonial pact and the Malian state by emphasising the importance of contingency and adaptation. Through an analysis of the breakup of the Federation of Mali in 1960, it outlines why Mali left the first iteration of the colonial pact and demonstrates Mali’s position as an exceptional case. It then explores the tense relationship between Mali’s socialist leadership (1960-1968) and France, before charting Mali’s gradual return to the economic, military and political chains of the colonial pact. This process began with Mali’s partial return to the CFA zone in 1967 and was completed in 2013 with the final return of French troops to Mali, after an absence of 51 years. The thesis concludes with an analysis of how the colonial pact has endured and evolved in parallel to the Malian post-colonial state, shaping the state into an extraverted form that is structurally dependent on the pact for its continued survival. This makes it possible to see recent French activity in Mali since 2013 as reflective of long-term systemic interests in maintaining preferential economic, military and political arrangements. The gap between these interests and stated goals, particularly the ambiguous goal of fighting terrorism, reflects a profoundly damaging and dysfunctional relationship between the former coloniser and colonised, with neither able to substantively reform without recognising their complicity in creating and maintaining the status quo. Until Mali and France recognise that they are chained together it appears likely that the colonial pact will endure.
Long-lived spin plasmons in a spin-polarized two-dimensional electron gas
Creators: name: Agarwal, Amit
name: Polini, Marco
name: Vignale, Giovanni
name: Flatte, Michael E.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Collective charge-density modes (plasmons) of the clean two-dimensional unpolarized electron gas are stable, for momentum conservation prevents them from decaying into single-particle excitations. Collective spin-density modes (spin plasmons) possess no similar protection and rapidly decay by production of electron-hole pairs. Nevertheless, if the electron gas has a sufficiently high degree of spin polarization ($P>1/7$, where $P$ is the ratio of the equilibrium spin density and the total electron density, for a parabolic single-particle spectrum) we find that a long-lived spin-plasmon---a collective mode in which the densities of up and down spins oscillate with opposite phases---can exist within a "pseudo gap" of the single-particle excitation spectrum. The ensuing collectivization of the spin excitation spectrum is quite remarkable and should be directly visible in Raman scattering experiments. The predicted mode could dramatically improve the efficiency of coupling between spin-wave-generating devices, such as spin-torque oscillators.
description: 8 pages, 4 figures, final published version
Fluctuations in the Martian atmosphere due to solar events that affect the planet’s climate
Creators: name: ANANYA PAMAL
name: Yiğit, Erdal
Publisher: name: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research
Year: 2023

description: Mars has been the subject of significant interest to understand whether life exists elsewhere in the universe, but many gaps remain in the understanding of the history of Mars’ atmosphere. Observations of the Martian ionosphere, gained through the Langmuir Probe and Waves instrument on NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft, help evaluate fluctuations in the atmosphere that could have changed the planet’s climate over time. Since Mars lacks a magnetosphere, the ionosphere is directly exposed to solar winds, which induces a magnetic field to create a barrier. Therefore, as the density of the ionosphere decreases, the planet has less protection against solar storms, which can strip the atmosphere. Electron density measurements with respect to altitude during different periods, including data from deep dips, show that the ionospheric peak is typically around 150 km above Mars’ surface. However, measurements of electron density with respect to altitude during coronal mass ejections in early March of 2015 reveal that the increased solar activity lowered the Martian ionopause, potentially allowing for increased atmospheric escape (Thampi et al., 20181). This indicates that solar disturbances earlier in Mars’ history could have played a role in atmospheric loss in the upper atmosphere, causing a planet that could have once supported life to become cold and dry (Mace, 20202). References: 1. Mace, M. (2020, November 18). Escape from mars: How water fled the Red Planet. University of Arizona News. https://news.arizona.edu/story/escape-mars-how-water-fled-red-planet#:~:text=%22The%20loss%20of%20its%20atmosphere,to%20warm%20and%20wet%20Earth. • Thampi, S. V., Krishnaprasad, C., Bhardwaj, A., Lee, Y., Choudhary, R. K., & Pant, T. K. (2018, July 21). MAVEN Observations of the Response of Martian Ionosphere to the Interplanetary Coronal Mass Ejections of March 2015. wiley. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2018JA025444
description: Journal of Student-Scientists' Research, Vol. 5 (2023)
title: Negative Affektivität bei Studierenden in Österreich und ihr Zusammenhang mit Studienrichtung, Studienphase und Beziehungsstatus
Creators: name: Rauch, Maximilian
Year: 2021

description: Eine Reihe von wissenschaftlichen Studien beobachtete hohe Ausprägungen an negativer Af- fektivität (Stress, Depressivität und Ängstlichkeit) bei Studierenden unterschiedlicher Länder. Bis dato fehlt eine deskriptive Analyse dieser Variablen bei Studierenden in Österreich. Außer- dem scheiterte die bisherige psychologische Forschung daran, eindeutige Zusammenhänge zwi- schen negativer Affektivität und den studienbezogenen Variablen Studienrichtung, Studien- phase und dem Engagement der Beziehungsform nachzuweisen. Aufgrund der Wichtigkeit psychischer Gesundheit dieser zukünftigen Leistungsträger für ein langfristig reibungsloses Funktionieren unserer Gesellschaft widmet sich vorliegende Arbeit diesen Aufgaben. Im Rahmen einer Online-Umfrage wurden Studierenden in Österreich mehrere psycho- metrische Fragebögen vorgelegt. Die Untersuchung bestand aus einem Kernfragebogen, wel- cher von allen Proband*innen beantwortet wurde, sowie drei weiteren Zusatzfragebögen. Die Stichprobe des Kernfragebogens umfasste 1767 Teilnehmer*innen; die beiden in dieser Studie ausgewerteten Zusatzfragebögen „Stress und Belastung“ (n = 351) und „Beziehung und Sexu- alität“ (n = 178) wurden von deutlich weniger Personen bearbeitet. Circa 31% der Befragten aus der Kernstichprobe berichteten über hohen Stress, 19% über mittelhohe sowie 11% über hohe Depressivität. Ungefähr 19% der Stichprobe des ersten Zusatzfragebogens attestierten sich ein hohes Ausmaß an Ängstlichkeit. 6% der Kernstichprobe erfüllten die Kriterien eines Paniksyndroms, 14% jene eines anderen Angstsyndroms und wei- tere 9% die Kriterien beider Kategorien. Es wurde ein signifikanter Unterschied hinsichtlich erlebter Depressivität zwischen Stu- dierenden ohne Partner*in und solchen in Partnerschaft gefunden, wobei jene ohne Partner*in von höheren Werten berichteten. Zudem wurde ein signifikanter Moderationseffekt der Part- nerschaftsqualität auf den Zusammenhang zwischen Engagement der Beziehungsform und Chance, an einem Angstsyndrom (außer Paniksyndrom) erkrankt zu sein, gefunden. Alle ande- ren berechneten Zusammenhänge zwischen negativer Affektivität und studienbezogenen Vari- ablen lieferten keine signifikanten Ergebnisse bzw. bildeten einen zu geringen Effekt ab, um als relevant eingestuft zu werden. Ergebnisse dieser Studie veranschaulichen die positiven Effekte einer romantischen Be- ziehung, welche bestenfalls von hoher Qualität ist, auf die psychische Gesundheit von Studie- renden in Österreich.
Biologically inspired spiking neural networks for energy-efficient robot learning and control
Creators: name: Tang, Guangzhi
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2022

description: Energy-efficient learning and control are becoming increasingly crucial for robots that solve complex real-world tasks with limited onboard resources. Although deep neural networks (DNN) have been successfully applied to robotics, their high energy consumption limits their use in low-power edge applications. Biologically inspired spiking neural networks (SNN), facilitated by the advances in neuromorphic processors, have started to deliver energy-efficient, massively parallel, and low-latency solutions to robotics. This dissertation presents our energy-efficient neuromorphic solutions to robot navigation, control, and learning, using SNNs on the neuromorphic processor. First, we propose a biologically constrained SNN, mimicking the brain's spatial system, solving the unidimensional SLAM problem while only consuming 1% of energy compared with the conventional filter-based approach. In addition, when extending the model to 2D environments by adding biologically realistic hippocampal neurons, the SNN formed cognitive maps in real-time and helped study the neuronal interconnectivity and cognitive functions. Next, the dissertation shows how the neuromorphic approach can be extended to high-level cognitive functions such as learning control policies. Specifically, we propose a reinforcement co-learning framework that jointly trains a spiking actor network (SAN) with a deep critic network using backpropagation to learn optimal policies for both mapless navigation and high-dimensional continuous control. Compared with state-of-the-art DNN approaches, our method results in up to 140 times less energy consumption during inference, while generating a superior successful rate on mapless navigation, and achieves the same level of performance on high-dimensional continuous control when using the population-coded spiking actor network (PopSAN). Lastly, we explore how these energy gains can further be extended to training through the development of a biologically plausible gradient-based learning framework on the neuromorphic processor. The learning method is functionally equivalent to the spatiotemporal backpropagation but solely relies on spike-based communication, local information processing, and rapid online computation, which are the main neuromorphic principles that mimic the brain. Overall, work in this dissertation pushes the frontiers of SNN applications to energy-efficient robotic control and learning, and hence paves the way toward the introduction of a biologically inspired alternative solution for autonomous robots running on energy-efficient neuromorphic processors.