julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
Fast 5-minute shoulder MRI protocol with accelerated TSE-sequences and deep learning image reconstruction for the assessment of shoulder pain at 1.5 and 3 Tesla
2024-03-08

A fast 5-minute TSE<sub>DL</sub> MRI protocol of the shoulder is feasible in routine clinical practice at 1.5 and 3 T, with interchangeable results concerning the diagnostic performance, allowing a reduction in scan time of more than 50% compared to the standard TSE<sub>S</sub> protocol.
How professional and academic pre-qualifications relate to success in medical education: Results of a multicentre study in Germany
2024-03-08

Objective Every year, many applicants want to study medicine. Appropriate selection procedures are needed to identify suitable candidates for the demanding curriculum. Although research on medical school admissions has shown good predictive validity for cognitive selection methods (undergraduate GPA, aptitude tests), the literature on applicants with professional and/or academic experience prior to entering medical school remains slim. In our study, we therefore aimed to examine the association between academic success in medical school and having previously completed vocational training in the medical field, voluntary service (≥11 months) or an academic degree. Methods Data were collected in a multicentre, cross-sectional study at five medical schools in Germany (Baden-Wuerttemberg) from students during medical school (i.e. 3 rd -, 6 th -, and 10 th -semester and final-year students). Academic success was assessed according to scores on the first and second state examinations, the total number of examinations repeated and the number of semesters beyond the standard period of study. For the analysis we calculated ordinal logistic regression models for each outcome variable of academic success. Results A total of N = 2,370 participants (response rate: RR = 47%) participated in the study. Having completed vocational training was associated with a higher amount of repeated examinations (small effect), while having an academic degree was associated with worse scores on the second state examination (medium effect). No significant association emerged between voluntary service and academic success. Conclusion The results indicate that professional and academic pre-qualifications pose no advantage for academic success. Possible associations with the financing of study and living conditions of students with pre-qualifications were analysed and discussed in an exploratory manner. However, the operationalisation of academic success from objective and cognitive data should be critically discussed, as the benefits of prior experience may be captured by personal qualities rather than examination results.
Science and Heritage Language Integrated Learning (SHLIL): Evidence of the effectiveness of an innovative science outreach program for migrant students
2024-03-08

Abstract Migrant students tend to underperform in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects and are less likely to pursue higher education in STEM when compared with their nonmigrant peers. Given the substantial increase in migration, this disparity has been a central concern in science education in many European countries. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of an innovative science outreach program that brings together migrant students and STEM professionals with the same linguistic and cultural backgrounds. The program consists of one‐off workshops that follow an inquiry‐based approach and include hands‐on activities and science communication in the students' heritage language. Using surveys with adapted scales and open‐ended questions, we applied a randomized block design with waitlist control groups and repeated measures. Eighty‐three Portuguese‐speaking migrant students aged 6–17 years participated in the workshops in Germany and the United Kingdom. Results indicate that both the students and STEM professionals evaluated the program positively and that students who participated in the workshops tended to demonstrate an increase in their attainment value for science and an increase in their self‐concept of ability for the heritage language 4 weeks after the intervention when compared with students in the control condition. These effects were particularly pronounced for students with low prior motivation to study science or speak the heritage language. Our results thus show that it is possible to foster migrant students' attainment value for science and increase their self‐concept of ability regarding the heritage language through a brief science outreach intervention.
Viral genome sequencing to decipher in-hospital SARS-CoV-2 transmission events
2024-03-08

Abstract The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the need to better define in-hospital transmissions, a need that extends to all other common infectious diseases encountered in clinical settings. To evaluate how whole viral genome sequencing can contribute to deciphering nosocomial SARS-CoV-2 transmission 926 SARS-CoV-2 viral genomes from 622 staff members and patients were collected between February 2020 and January 2021 at a university hospital in Munich, Germany, and analysed along with the place of work, duration of hospital stay, and ward transfers. Bioinformatically defined transmission clusters inferred from viral genome sequencing were compared to those inferred from interview-based contact tracing. An additional dataset collected at the same time at another university hospital in the same city was used to account for multiple independent introductions. Clustering analysis of 619 viral genomes generated 19 clusters ranging from 3 to 31 individuals. Sequencing-based transmission clusters showed little overlap with those based on contact tracing data. The viral genomes were significantly more closely related to each other than comparable genomes collected simultaneously at other hospitals in the same city (n = 829), suggesting nosocomial transmission. Longitudinal sampling from individual patients suggested possible cross-infection events during the hospital stay in 19.2% of individuals (14 of 73 individuals). Clustering analysis of SARS-CoV-2 whole genome sequences can reveal cryptic transmission events missed by classical, interview-based contact tracing, helping to decipher in-hospital transmissions. These results, in line with other studies, advocate for viral genome sequencing as a pathogen transmission surveillance tool in hospitals.
Functional Outcome and Safety of Endoscopic Treatment Options for Benign Prostatic Obstruction (BPO) in Patients ≥ 75 Years of Age
2024-03-08

Background: The selection of suitable patients for the surgical treatment of benign prostatic obstruction (BPO) is a challenge in persons ≥75 years of age. Methods: After a systematic literature search of PubMed, 22 articles were included in this review. Clinical and functional parameters were evaluated statistically. Results: The mean age of the patients was ≥79 years. The mean duration of postoperative catheterization ranged between 2 (d) (ThuLEP, thulium laser enucleation of the prostate) and 4.4 days (TURP, transurethral resection of the prostate). Complication rates ranged between 6% (HoLAP, holmium laser ablation of the prostate) and 34% (PVP, photoselective vaporization of the prostate); the maximum rate of severe complications was 4% (TURP). The mean postoperative maximal urinary flow (Qmax) in mL/sec. ranged between 12.9 mL/sec. (HoLAP) and 19.8 mL/sec (Hol-TUIP, holmium laser transurethral incision of the prostate). The mean quality of life (QoL) score fell from 4.7 ± 0.9 to 1.8 ± 0.7 (HoLEP), from 4.1 ± 0.4 to 1.9 ± 0.8 (PVP), from 5.1 ± 0.2 to 2.1 ± 0.2 (TURP), and from 4 to 1 (ThuVEP, thulium laser vapoenucleation of the prostate). Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) revealed a positive linear correlation between age and inferior functional outcome (higher postoperative International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) [r = 0.4175]), higher overall complication rates (r = 0.5432), and blood transfusions (r = 0.4474) across all surgical techniques. Conclusions: This meta-analysis provides the summary estimates for perioperative and postoperative functional outcome and safety of endoscopic treatment options for BPO in patients ≥ 75 years of age. Of particular importance is that all surgical techniques significantly improve the postoperative quality of life of patients in this age group compared to their preoperative quality of life.
Ancient Solutions of Ricci Flow with Type I Curvature Growth
2024-03-08

Abstract Ancient solutions of the Ricci flow arise naturally as models for singularity formation. There has been significant progress towards the classification of such solutions under natural geometric assumptions. Nonnegatively curved solutions in dimensions 2 and 3, and uniformly PIC solutions in higher dimensions are now well understood. We consider ancient solutions of arbitrary dimension which are complete and have Type I curvature growth. We show that a simply connected, noncompact, <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>κ</mml:mi></mml:math> -noncollapsed Type I ancient solution with nonnegative sectional curvature necessarily splits a Euclidean factor. It follows that a <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>κ</mml:mi></mml:math> -noncollapsed Type I ancient solution which is weakly PIC2 is a locally symmetric space.
Dynamic recrystallization of olivine during simple shear: evolution of microstructure and crystallographic preferred orientation from full-field numerical simulations
2024-03-08

The deformation of the upper mantle is predominantly governed by the mechanical behavior of olivine (Karato et al., 1989). During mantle flow, olivine undergoes crystal-plastic deformation, leading to the development of crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs). In this process, the a-axes of olivine polycrystalline aggregates align with the flow direction (Hansen et al., 2012). Consequently, the observed CPOs in olivine-rich rocks serves as an indicator of the mantle flow direction. While the influence of plastic deformation is well understood, the role of dynamic recrystallization during deformation remains not fully comprehended, hindering our ability to interpret the deformation history of naturally-deformed rocks.This contribution employs microdynamic numerical simulations of olivine polycrystalline aggregates with varying iron content (fayalite content) to explore the CPO and grain size response to dynamic recrystallization. Utilizing a full-field approach with explicit simulation of viscoplastic deformation (http://www.elle.ws; Bons et al., 2008; Piazolo et al., 2019) and dynamic recrystallization processes under simple shear boundary conditions up to high strain, this study indicates that simulations with only dislocation glide and also those including recrystallization successfully reproduce such steady state conditions, without requiring other potential mechanisms. The model establishes a framework for understanding the development of olivine CPOs in mantle rocks, highlighting the interplay between plastic deformation and dynamic recrystallization processes, including grain boundary migration, intracrystalline recovery, and new grain nucleation.Acknowledgements: Yuanchao Yu acknowledges funding by the&amp;#160;China Scholarship Council&amp;#160;for a PhD scholarship (CSC-202008130104). This work has been developed using the facilities of the Laboratory of Geodynamic Modelling of GEO3BCN-CSIC.
Chronology of Upper Paleolithic human activities recorded in a stalagmite at Points Cave (Aiguèze, Gard, France)
2024-03-08

Abstract In this article, we propose an approach to reconstruct the timing of human activity at Points Cave, an Upper Paleolithic rock art site located in the middle of the Ardèche River Gorge (Rhône valley, France), based on the dating and characterisation of a stalagmite containing soot. Points Cave (‘Grotte aux Points’ in French), also called the ‘little sister of Chauvet Cave’, is famous for its parietal art including a series of dots made of palm prints. A large number of stalagmites formed in the cave during the last 500 ka. However, quarrying of the cave floors during historic times led to the partial destruction of the sedimentary deposits, and many of the stalagmites were found lying on the floor. In particular, one of them (STM‐18‐04) showed the presence of at least four dark layers in cross‐section, which appeared as possible remnants of fire‐related activities in the cave. Despite being present at the same site, no other specific link between STM‐18‐04 and the rock art has been documented. This stalagmite, however, allows us to identify phases of human presence, located at the cave entrance. To do so, we performed a series of analyses to determine its period of growth and the nature of the dark layers that it contains. Scanning electron microscopy and Raman microspectroscopy confirmed that the dark layers include soot, and uranium‐series dating indicated that the fire events occurred, respectively, around 14,200–14,100 and 12,500 years ago, in agreement with the radiocarbon ages of charcoal specimens recovered from the excavation areas nearby. We thus highlighted phases of human activity at the site during the Upper Magdalenian and/or beginning of the Epipaleolithic. By comparing our results with the regional paleoclimatic record, the soot layers trapped in the stalagmite appear to be synchronous with two cold periods, likely the Older Dryas and the Younger Dryas.
Rooted in the city: Unveiling the hidden world of Quercus cerris enzymatic activity in urban soils&#160;
2024-03-08

&amp;#160;The intricate interaction between human activities and the repercussions of climate change has made urban ecosystem health and biodiversity&amp;#8212;both vital to human survival and well-being&amp;#8212;particularly vulnerable. Recent research has spotlighted the frequently underestimated but crucial role that interactions between plant roots and several biotic and abiotic components of soil play in affecting urban biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics.We conducted a controlled experiment to investigate&amp;#160;this relatively obscure aspect of the urban environment. The experiment has been done with young plantlets of Quercus cerris and three urban soils collected from distinct sites in the city of Campobasso (Italy). We selected three sites in the city to clearly show a specific gradient of urbanization and vegetation fragmentation. Q. cerris young plants were grown in the rhizoboxes packed with three urban soils for two weeks to evaluate the impact of soil-plant interactions on the possible enzymes&amp;#8217; release by the roots and root-harboring microorganisms. The spatial distribution of three enzymes, namely acid phosphatase (P-cycle), &amp;#946;-glucosidase (C-cycle), and leucine aminopeptidase (N-cycle), was mapped and detected in each soil region (i.e., bulk soil and rhizosphere longitudinal surface) using a 2-D soil zymography technique.The zymogram analysis revealed that the enzyme activities in soils differed spatially along the urbanization gradient, with the more urbanized soil having the highest levels of enzymatic activity and hotspot presence.The root activity toward the exudation correlated with the highest enzymatic activity, that futrther lead to more intensive turnover of soil organic matter in soil. This could be linked to the exudation of roots to regulate plant growth in unfavorable conditions or to the rhizodeposition of substrates to change soil composition.&amp;#160;Further in-depth analyses of the physical and chemical properties of the soil, along with the profiling and characterization of the microbial community composition, are currently underway in order to obtain a better understanding of the role of root enzymatic activities and their consequences on the biogeochemical processes in urban soils.
Do Grenzgletscher's Dynamics Shift? Insights from Terrestrial Radar Interferometry and Comparative Analyses
2024-03-08

We present surface velocity maps of Grenzgletscher (Swiss Alps) obtained by terrestrial radar interferometry and compare them to velocity maps derived in earlier field campaigns to examine changes over time. To obtain recent velocity maps, we installed a Gamma Portable Radar Interferometer (GPRI) near Rotenboden Station facing the Grenzgletscher and collected data for five days in October 2023 with a three-minute sampling interval. From the resulting interferograms, the line-of-sight velocities can be calculated for various time intervals after averaging, which corrects for atmospheric noise. We find high line-of-sight velocities in the area of a steep ice fall, which suggests that the glacier is sliding in this area. We validate with concurrent GPS measurements and compare our velocity maps with those obtained in previous field campaigns, including a similar GPRI survey in 2008 and a survey utilizing unmanned aerial vehicles in 2017. This comparative analysis aims to identify temporal dynamic changes in areas where the various surveys overlap, ranging from sub-daily, to seasonal and yearly time intervals. This work will provide important observational boundary conditions to better understand mechanisms for the onset of basal sliding beneath glaciers in alpine and polar environments.
Dependence of simulated variability of surface climate on model complexity &#8211; insights from an ensemble of transient simulations of the Last Deglaciation
2024-03-08

Climate variability is crucial to our understanding of future climate change and its impacts on societies and the natural world. However, the climate records of the observational era are too short to explore long-term variability. Conversely, an exploration of long transient simulations from state-of-the-art Earth System Models (ESMs) poses high computational demands. It is therefore pertinent to identify the level of complexity sufficient to simulate the variability of surface climate from annual to centennial and longer timescales.To this end, we use an ensemble of transient simulations of the Last Deglaciation, the last period of significant global warming. The ensemble covers an energy balance model (EBM), models of intermediate complexity (EMICs), general circulation models (GCMs) and ESMs. This constitutes a hierarchy that we categorize based on employed atmosphere and ocean components and their resolution, as well as implemented radiation, land hydrology, vegetation and aerosol schemes.To investigate the simulated variability of surface temperature and precipitation, we analyze changes in the shapes of their distributions as characterized by their higher order moments &amp;#8211; variance, skewness, kurtosis &amp;#8211; with warming. These higher order moments relate the tails to the extremes of the distributions. We identify spatial and temporal patterns and how they depend on model complexity. The EMICs can generally match the global and latitudinal changes in temperature variability found in more complex models. However, they lack in precipitation variability. We further find that the EMICs fail to simulate the tails of the precipitation distributions. We observe dependency of variability on the background state, generally increasing with model complexity. However, there is still a large spread between models of similar complexity, some of which can be related to differences in forcings. Furthermore, questions remain on the abilities of models of any complexity to simulate a magnitude of long-term variability similar to that found regionally in proxy reconstructions. Our analysis offers implications as to the complexity needed and sufficient for capturing the full picture of climate change and we offer some first insights into how the findings translate to future projections of climate change.
How can we quantify, explain, and apply the uncertainty of complex soil maps predicted with neural networks?
2024-03-08

Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have proven to be a useful tool for complex questions that involve large amounts of data, for example, predicting soil classes on various scales. Our use case of predicting soil maps with ANNs is in high demand by government agencies, construction companies, or farmers, given cost and time intensive field work.However, there are two main challenges when applying ANNs. In their most common form, deep learning algorithms do not provide interpretable predictive uncertainty. This means that properties of an ANN such as the certainty and plausibility of the predicted variables, rely on the interpretation by experts rather than being quantified by evaluation metrics validating the ANNs. This leads to the second challenge: these algorithms have shown a high confidence in their predictions in areas geographically distant from the training area or areas only sparsely covered by training data.To tackle these challenges, we use the Bayesian deep learning approach &amp;#8220;last-layer Laplace approximation&amp;#8221;, which is specifically designed to quantify uncertainty into deep networks, in our explorative study on soil classification. It corrects the overconfident areas without reducing the accuracy of the predictions, giving us a more realistic uncertainty expression of the model's prediction.&amp;#160; In our study area in southern Germany we divide the soils into typical soils of valleys, the Swabian Jura and the Black Forest. As a test case, we then explicitly exclude the soil types of Swabian Jura and Black Forest in the training area but include these regions in the prediction. These two regions are characterized by very different soil types compared to the rest of the study area due to their considerably different geology, climate, and terrain.Our findings emphasize the need to address the issue of overconfidence in ANNs, particularly for distant regions from the training area. Moreover, the insights gained from this research are not only limited to addressing overconfidence in ANNs, but also offer valuable information on the predictability of soil types and identifying knowledge gaps. By analysing regions where the model has limited data support and, consequently, high uncertainty, stakeholders can recognize the areas that require more data collection efforts.