Common Trend Research Articles

Content of heavy metals in Carpathian soils (Poland)

The article addresses determining the concentration of six chemical elements: Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the soils of the southern slope of the Jaworzyna Krynicka mountain in the Beskid Mountains. The research consisted of determining the diversity of metal content in soil samples taken at different altitudes (500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, and 1100 m MSL). The test results indicated low soil contamination in the selected area, particularly for the altitudes of 500 and 900 m MSL. For these altitudes, the content of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn was similar to the concentration of these metals in uncontaminated soils. In the conducted research, very low Cd content was found for all absolute altitudes. The chemical element of metal whose content in the soils under study was the highest and exceeded natural values was Zn. All tested metals showed a common trend of increasing content in the soils up to 800 m MSL.

A modified Kushner-Moore approach to characterising small-scale blender performance impact on tablet compaction

Continuous Direct Compaction (CDC) has emerged as a promising route towards producing solid dosage forms while reducing material, development time and energy consumption. Understanding the response of powder processing unit operations, especially blenders, is crucial. There is a substantial body of work around how lubrication via batch blender operation affects tablet critical quality attributes such as hardness and tensile strength. But, aside from being batch operations, the design of these blenders is such that they operate with low-shear, low-intensity mixing at Froude number values significantly below 0.4 (Froude number Fr being the dimensionless ratio of inertial to gravitational forces). The present work explores the performance of a mini-blender which has a fundamentally different mode of operation (static vessel with rotating blades around a mixing shaft as opposed to rotating vessel with no mixing shaft). This difference allows a substantially wider operating range in terms of speed and shear (and Fr values). The present work evaluates how its performance compares to other blenders studied in the literature. Tablet compaction data from blends produced at various intensities and regimes of mixing in the mini-blender follow a common trajectory. Model equations from literature are suitably modified by inclusion of the Froude number Fr, but only for situations where the Froude number was sufficiently high (1 < Fr). The results suggest that although a similar lubrication extent plateau is eventually reached it is the intensity of mixing (i.e. captured using the Froude number as a surrogate) which is important for the lubrication dynamics in the mini-blender, next to the number of revolutions. The degree of fill or headspace, on the other hand, is only crucial to the performance of common batch blenders. Testing using alternative formulations shows the same common trend across mixing intensities, suggesting the validity of the approach to capture lubrication dynamics for this system.

Effect of Salt Solution Tracer Dosage on the Transport and Mixing of Tracer in a Water Model of Asymmetrical Gas-Stirred Ladle with a Moderate Gas Flowrate

In previous research simulating steelmaking ladles using cold water models, the dosage/volume of the salt tracer solution is one of the factors that has been overlooked by researchers to a certain extent. Previous studies have demonstrated that salt tracers may influence the flow and measured mixing time of fluids in water models. Based on a water model scaled down from an industrial 130-ton ladle by a ratio of 1:3, this study investigates the impact of salt tracer dosage on the transport and mixing of tracers in the water model of gas-stirred ladle with a moderate gas flow rate. A preliminary uncertainty analysis of the experimental mixing time is performed, and the standard deviations were found to be less than 15%. It was observed in the experiments that the transport paths of tracers in the ladle can be classified into two trends. A common trend is that the injected salt solution tracer is asymmetrically transported towards the left sidewall of the ladle by the main circulation. In another trend, the injected salt solution tracer is transported both by the main circulation to the left side wall and by downward flow towards the gas column. The downward flow may be accelerated and become a major flow pattern when the tracer volume increases. For the dimensionless concentration curve, the sinusoidal type, which represents a rapid mixing, is observed at the top surface monitoring points, while the parabolic type is observed at the bottom monitoring points. An exception is the monitoring point at the right-side bottom (close to the asymmetric gas nozzle area), where both sinusoidal-type and parabolic-type curves are observed. Regarding the effect of tracer volume on the curve and mixing time, the curves at the top surface monitoring points are less influenced but curves at the bottom monitoring points are noticeably influenced by the tracer volume. A trend of decreasing and then increasing as the tracer volume increases was found at the top surface monitoring points, while the mixing times at the bottom monitoring points decrease with the increase in the tracer volume.

Trends in temperature and precipitation at high and low elevations in the main mountain ranges of the Iberian Peninsula (1894–2020): The Sierra Nevada and the Pyrenees

AbstractThis study describes temperature and precipitation trends in the two National Parks located in the two highest mountain ranges on the Iberian Peninsula: the Sierra Nevada (Sierra Nevada National Park, SN) and the Pyrenees (Aigüestortes i Sant Maurici National Park, ASM). Special focus is placed on analysing disparities between the lowlands and the highlands, as well as the agreement between observational data and grid data (IBERIA01 and E‐OBS). For this purpose, a quality‐controlled and homogeneity‐adjusted database of the daily maximum temperature, minimum temperature and precipitation (SMADS database) has been generated. Regional trends in mean temperature indicate that warming in ASM (0.17°C·decade−1) was greater than in the Sierra Nevada (SN) (0.13°C·decade−1) in the longest joint period, 1930–2020. For annual precipitation, the trends over the past nine decades were negative, although not significantly. Only the summer in SN showed a significant negative trend, which has intensified in recent decades to −13.4%·decade−1 for 1975–2020. A parallel evolution was observed in the annual mean temperature of the highlands (&gt;1500 m) and lowlands (&lt;1500 m) of ASM, with a common trend of 0.17°C·decade−1, while in SN negative elevation‐dependent warming was detected. Differences between lowlands and highlands were also noted in precipitation trends in both mountain ranges: a positive trend in precipitation was found in the lowlands while in the highlands practically null trends (ASM) or decreasing precipitation trends (SN) were detected. The comparison of the Spanish Mountain Adjusted Daily Series (SMADS) results with the IBERIA01 and E‐OBS grid series yielded differences no greater than ±0.2°C·decade−1. No notable differences were detected between the regional trends calculated with observational series or with grid series. These results worsened when the differences in the trends detected in the individual observed temperature series were compared against the corresponding grid series.

Comparative Analysis of Vaccine-Induced Neutralizing Antibodies against the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron Variants of SARS-CoV-2.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus has infected more than 660 million people and caused nearly seven million deaths worldwide. During the pandemic, a number of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines were rapidly developed, and several are currently licensed for use in Europe. However, the optimization of vaccination regimens is still ongoing, particularly with regard to booster vaccinations. At the same time, the emergence of new virus variants poses an ongoing challenge to vaccine efficacy. In this study, we focused on a comparative analysis of the neutralization capacity of vaccine-induced antibodies against four different variants of concern (i.e., Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron) after two and three doses of COVID-19 vaccine. We were able to show that both two (prime/boost) and three (prime/boost/boost) vaccinations elicit highly variable levels of neutralizing antibodies. In addition, we did not observe a significant difference in antibody levels after two and three vaccinations. We also observed a significant decrease in the neutralization susceptibility of all but one SARS-CoV-2 variants to vaccine-induced antibodies. In contrast, a SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection between the second and third vaccination results in overall higher levels of neutralizing antibodies with a concomitant improved neutralization of all virus variants. Titer levels remained highly variable across the cohort but a common trend was observed. This may be due to the fact that at the time of this study, all licensed vaccines were still based exclusively on wild-type SARS-CoV-2, whereas infections were caused by virus variants. Overall, our data demonstrate the importance of (booster) vaccinations, but at the same time emphasize the need for the continued adaptation of vaccines to induce a protective immune response against virus variants in order to be prepared for future (seasonal) SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks.

Effects of OVLT or MnPO lesion on the gut microbiome

Hypertension is a multifaceted condition affecting 700 million people worldwide, and despite decades of study, several aspects of its complex pathophysiology remain unclear. Changes in the gut microbiome have been associated with hypertension, though the cause and effect are not well defined. Historically, circumventricular organs in the brain, such as the organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis (OVLT), and its central downstream nucleus the median preoptic nucleus (MnPO) have been shown to play a role in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Studies from our lab have demonstrated roles of both the OVLT and MnPO in the pathogenesis of angiotensin II mediated hypertension. Furthermore, we have previously reported that DOCA-salt treated OVLT lesioned rats had attenuated hypertension, and a gut microbial population more closely resembling normal controls, compared to sham lesioned rats. Lastly, we have recently shown the MnPO to be necessary in mediating DOCA-salt hypertension in the rat. Because data suggests changes in the gut microbiome occurred during the attenuated hypertensive response in lesioned animals, it is still unclear whether these changes occurred due to and shortly after the lesion, or subsequently during the hypertensive stimulus in lesioned animals. Therefore, the goal of this study was to further define the relationship between an OVLT or MnPO lesion and consequent changes in the gut microbiome without any hypertensive stimulus. Male Sprague Dawley rats underwent electrolytic lesion or sham operation using stereotaxic surgery with predetermined coordinates and settings. After 7 days, brain and regional gut tissues were harvested for analysis. Gut microbial genomic data from lesioned and sham rats were analyzed, and PCoA analysis showed statistically significant differences in microbiome composition between OVLT lesioned and sham rats in most gut regions. Generally, Shannon diversity analysis revealed sham rats had a more diverse population than OVLT lesioned rats, though both had a relatively similar spread of species abundance. Additionally, there was a common trend of higher relative abundance of Ligilactobacillus in lesioned rats for all four gut regions. In conclusion, the OVLT lesion itself has effects on the diversity of the gut microbiome, which suggest an OVLT-gut microbiome link that may contribute to attenuating hypertension. This study was supported by University of Minnesota Grant-In-Aid of Research, Artistry and Scholarship #546839 and a University of Minnesota Lillehei Heart Institute Collaborative Pilot Grant. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Exploring the dynamic behaviors of five pesticides in lettuce: Implications for consumer health through field and modeling experiments

Lettuce, a globally consumed nutritious vegetable, is often linked to concerns regarding pesticide residues. To address this issue, we conducted field trials and utilized dynamiCROP modeling to examine the uptake, distribution, translocation, and dissipation of five pesticides (λ-cyhalothrin, difenoconazole, acetamiprid, dimethomorph, and β-cypermethrin) commonly detected in lettuce. At harvest, pesticides residues were below the maximum residue limits (MRLs) at 0.05, 0.39, 0.047, 0.72, and 0.072 mg kg−1, respectively. Simulation results elucidated distinct behaviors of the pesticides following application to lettuce foliage across various compartments. However, all pesticides exhibited a common dissipation trend, initially stabilizing or increasing before gradually declining. For all five pesticides, the largest contribution of residues on lettuce leaves came from the leaf surface during the early period after application, and from the soil in the long term. Health risk assessments indicated negligible risks associated with consuming lettuce containing these pesticides, both in the short and long term.

Machine learning algorithms for safer construction sites: Critical review

Machine learning, a key thruster of Construction 4.0, has seen exponential publication growth in the last ten years. Many studies have identified ML as the future, but few have critically examined the applications and limitations of various algorithms in construction management. Therefore, this article comprehensively reviewed the top 100 articles from 2018 to 2023 about ML algorithms applied in construction risk management, provided their strengths and limitations, and identified areas for improvement. The study found that integrating various data sources, including historical project data, environmental factors, and stakeholder information, has become a common trend in construction risk. However, the challenges associated with the need for extensive and high-quality datasets, models’ interpretability, and construction projects’ dynamic nature pose significant barriers. The recommendations presented in this paper can facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration between traditional construction and machine learning, thereby enhancing the development of specialized algorithms for real-world projects.

Unravelling the genetic mechanisms and paleoenvironmental controls of early Cretaceous Oyster Mass occurrences (OMOs), Neuquén Basin, west-central Argentina

Lower Valanginian oyster mass occurrences (OMOs) from the Neuquén Basin of Argentina are analyzed using a multidisciplinary approach, including the description of their sedimentological signature and stratigraphic contacts, assessment of taphonomical attributes, and paleontological and paleoecological characteristics. These OMOs present a wide distribution in the study area, with lateral continuity for at least 2.5 km and up to 12 m thick. They occur within a single stratigraphic interval, constrained in terms of sequence stratigraphy and biostratigraphy. Three stacked tabular OMOs separated by mudstone levels were recorded in all the studied localities. The associated lithofacies point to a mainly outer ramp paleoenvironment, below storm wave base and occasionally disturbed by exceptional, distal storm flows. Internally, the OMOs share a common vertical trend characterized, from base to top, by a gradual increase in oyster abundance and a transition from mainly reclining, disarticulated oysters to articulated, cementing oysters conforming build-ups. Hence, a mainly biogenic origin is proposed, with autobiostromes grading vertically to bioherms. This vertical trend was interpreted in terms of development stages, namely, colonization, expansion, climax and extinction, which were in turn related to specific paleoenvironmental controls. Particularly, the OMOs establishment and development were associated to low sedimentation rates, salinity fluctuations and high nutrient input as a result of high primary productivity. At a larger scale, the overall paleoenvironmental conditions and subtropical geographical position of the basin were detrimental for most reef builders typical of the Cretaceous period (e.g., corals, sponges, rudists), and could have favored oyster proliferation and OMOs development instead.

Seasonal breeding in three sympatric rodent species in semi-arid Tigray, northern Ethiopia

Abstract We investigated the breeding activity of three sympatric rodent species: Stenocephalemys albipes, Mastomys awashensis, and Acomys cahirinus, in the semi-arid region of Tigray in northern Ethiopia, using mark-recapture data, to determine the influence of rainfall on their breeding patterns within exclosure (i.e., protected area from livestock grazing). Breeding activities of S. albipes and M. awashensis commenced during the wet season, continued into the early dry season, and ceased during the subsequent dry season. The proportion of breeding females reached its peak during the wet season, gradually declining until the dry season. In contrast, A. cahirinus exhibited a different breeding strategy, with year-round breeding, including during the dry season, a period characterized by limited resources. A significant difference in the proportion of breeding females among the three species was observed across seasons. Furthermore, all species shared a common trend of heightened breeding activity, particularly at the conclusion of the wet season and the onset of the early dry season. These findings enhance our understanding of the interplay between rainfall and seasonal breeding within exclosures, while other variables remain constant. Moreover, the region’s future plans for managing rodents and the establishment of exclosures must take this information into account.

An Assessment of the Resurgence of Historical and Classical fashion due to the economical use of language in South Africa

The common trend of fashion is that it comes and goes as history changes and human development advances. However, as humans develop and are supposed to be progressing, sometimes in terms of fashion they also retrogress. The assumption is that language used by advertisers and designers influences people to revisit history. The purpose of this study was to argue that the work of art never expires as it gets repackaged, remodelled and modified over the ages. Some works and designs of art used in a particular period of history may have become obsolete, but the use of a language in a future epoch may bring them back to popularity. In this conceptual qualitative study, literature from both online and offline was used in making the case that art develops with the use of language than perishing. Within this desktop conceptual study, it was found that the language of advertisement is crucial in portraying fashion because language use can revive fashion. The power of language creates a hunt and frenzy to wear clothes of the 1500s calling them ‘vintage’. Using an analytic theoretic framework, this paper investigated the linguistic power and its influence on different epochs. This study specifically argued for the necessary merger between art and linguistics as that would be beneficial in creating classical fashion trends. The recommendation thereof was that teachers of art must work together with language specialists and incorporate both value and language in advertisements. This study posits that language has much power to influence the economy, culture, fashion, and even lifestyle of many people across generations. Keywords: Fashion Fads, Language Potency, Vintage, Economic Language, Fashion Resurgence

Feasibility and Usefulness of Repetitions-In-Reserve Scales for Selecting Exercise Intensity: A Scoping Review.

The intensity of resistance training (RT) exercise is an important consideration for determining relevant health and performance-related outcomes. Yet, current objective exercise intensity measures present concerns in terms of viability or cost. In response to these concerns, repetition-in-reserve (RIR) scales may represent an adequate method of measuring and regulating intensity. However, no recent review has focused on how RIR scales have been used for this purpose in prior research. We prepared the present scoping review to analyze the feasibility and usefulness of RIR scales in selecting RT intensity. We conducted a systematic search in PubMed, SPORTDiscus, PsycINFO, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases (last search date April 2023) for experimental and non-experimental studies that utilized an RIR scale to measure proximity to failure in RT activities with apparently healthy individuals of any age. We qualitatively analyzed 31 studies (N = 855 mostly male adult participants) published between 2012-2023. RIR scales appeared to be contextually feasible and useful in prescribing and adjusting RT intensity. The most common trend in this research was to prescribe a target RIR and adjust the exercise load for a desired proximity to muscle failure. Additionally, when measuring proximity to failure as an outcome of interest, the literature suggests that the RIR prediction should be made close to task failure to increase its accuracy. Future research should further explore the impact of sex, RT experience, exercise selection, and muscle conditioning on the overall RIR approach.

Оценка состояния почвенно-растительного покрова бассейна реки на основе данных дистанционного зондирования

The aim of this work was to summarize the studies devoted to the soil and vegetation cover assessment of the river basin on the example of the Klyazma River catchment using remote data for a 17-year period. The remote data from the MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Cover Land Cover, Landsat ETM+ and Meteor with different spatial resolutions were used in the work. The assessment of land use structure dynamics was carried out for the Klyazma River basin as a whole, as well as for individual landscapes. According to MODIS data there is a common trend towards an increase (about 9%) in the area of forest vegetation and a decrease in arable land and pastures for most of the basin. The exception is the interfluve of the Lukh River, where there is a decrease in forest lands and their transition to wetlands. Different landscapes of the Klyazma Rivers basin vary in both the rate and intensity of organic matter accumulation in the form of gross and net primary production as well as respond differently to climatic changes and land use change. However, the unified ecosystem of an entire river basin is more stable compared to its constituent landscapes. The remote sensing data allowed us to establish that the deep valley of the Rpen River (a tributary of the Klyazma River) forms an air flow that carries atmospheric pollution out of the Vladimir industrial zone.

Combining machine learning and econometrics: Application to commercial real estate prices

AbstractIn this article, we combine a random effects model with different machine learning algorithms via an iterative process when predicting commercial real estate asset values. Using both random effects and machine learning allows us to combine the strengths of both approaches. The random effects will be used to estimate a common trend, property type trends, location value, and property random effects for properties that sold more than once. The machine learning algorithm will fit the observed characteristics (features) in a complex nonlinear fashion. The model is applied to a small sample of 2652 transactions in Phoenix (AZ) between 2001 and 2021. We only observe a limited number of property characteristics. The average out‐of‐sample MAPE is below 11%, which is as good or even better compared to the average appraisal error found in literature. The out‐of‐sample MAPE is even 9% for properties that sold more than once in the training set. In addition, our model provides indexes and locational heatmaps. These have their own uses and cannot be obtained with standard machine learning algorithms.

An anomalous low dose phenomenon in gamma irradiated BaTiO3-based commercial multilayer ceramic capacitors

Owing to its miniaturization and high dielectric permittivity, BaTiO3-based multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) have attracted more and more attention in recent years, and are widely used in gamma-ray environments, such as nuclear and space application. Compared to the extensively studied thermal or electrical reliability issues, the potential risks caused by irradiation have not been well understood, let alone the dielectric structure changes. Unlike the common monotonic dose-dependent trend, we found non-monotonic results in MLCCs with low dose, named as the anomalous low dose (ALD) phenomenon. That is the capacitance decreases at low gamma-ray doses, and then abnormally recovers to the initial value at high doses. Similar cases have been found in almost all the physical properties of MLCCs. Intensive characterizations help to confirm that it is the dose-dependent consistent lattice and electronic structure changes that are most likely to cause this anomalous phenomenon. In detail, the gamma irradiation induces charged defects and consequently lattice distortion, which reduces the number of domains with low-field inversion and eventually causes the capacitance decrease. This work provides a new cognition about the gamma irradiation effect of BaTiO3-based (BTO) dielectrics and commercial MLCCs based on BTO.

Enhancing heterogeneous cluster efficiency through node-centric scheduling

This article delves into the critical realm of modern computer cluster management. It focuses on the effect that the increasing heterogeneity of the clusters has on the workload managers. The proposed schedulers consider node properties instead of job properties to make decisions, which is something not currently done by mainstream scheduling algorithms. In order to increase the knowledge in this topic, this paper proposes two novel algorithms whose main task is to choose the best compute nodes to schedule the incoming jobs. To this effect, they exclusively take into account the properties of the nodes, instead of the common trend of considering the properties of the jobs. The experimental results show that these algorithms outperform well-known heuristic algorithms found in the literature.

Category construction and knowledge production in childhood studies: rethinking ‘left-behind children’ through the case of ‘liushou children’ in China

ABSTRACT Narratives about children whose parents have migrated exhibit a common global trend, with these children and their families being widely pathologised, creating a stereotyped image of this group. Hence, it is timely and necessary to interrogate the category construction of left-behind children and the politics surrounding the knowledge produced. This article explores the global construction and widespread stigmatisation of left-behind children through the lens of a postcolonial critique and criticises the hegemonic notion of childhood promoted primarily by the Global North. It then explores the indigenous category of ‘liushou children’ for left-behind children in China – revealing its cultural expectations and Indigenous construction. Although the pathologisation of such children occurs in both global and indigenous dimensions, the understanding and causation of such pathologisation differs since diverse actors often present different understandings of this phenomenon, which refract different expectations, moral and value judgements, or political motivations. Therefore, this article calls for research on the lives of these children in the context of global economic and social structural shifts and how these are reshaped in local and national dimensions. In so doing, it provides insights into ongoing debates on the politics and ethics of knowledge production in childhood studies.

Winemaking in Southern Russia: Barriers to development and positioning strategies

Russian wineries are currently facing the need to adapt to dynamic changes in the economic and legal environment. At the same time, they are confronted with market issues such as consumer behavior inertia and decreasing effectiveness of conventional promotion strategies. In the article, we analyze economic, institutional, consumer, and communication barriers to the development of wine brands in Southern Russia. The theoretical framework of the study covers the principles of institutional and narrative economics, marketing, sociology of consumption, and visual sociology. The research methods include content analysis and analysis of marketing information. The empirical data consist of economic statistics of the wine industry from 2018 to 2022 and the results of the analysis of 290 wine product lines manufactured by 63 enterprises in the Southern Federal District. High speed and ambivalent dynamics of institutional change can be observed in the Russian wine industry. Using the empirical data, we have identified three communication strategies (global, foreign, and local) for wine brand positioning. The results of the research show that reliance on global and foreign strategies is a common trend in Krasnodar krai, the Republic of Crimea, and the city of Sevastopol, while producers in Rostov oblast pursue the local positioning strategy. The research results contribute to the understanding of the institutional and consumer determinants of the wine market development in Russia, associated with producers’ orientation towards global and foreign positioning strategies.

Violence Against Children

Violence against children (VAC) is a global phenomenon that needs deliberate attention. Children exposed to violence in their families, communities, and schools in their early years are likely to maintain this cycle of violence in their youth and adult lives if no efforts are made to break this cycle. Taking this into consideration the author adopts a social-ecological theoretical perspective in exploring global, regional, and South African literature on the risks and causes of VAC as well as the protective factors that can prevent VAC. Embedding VAC within a social-ecological perspective warrants the need to explore it at four crucial levels, namely individual, relationships, community, and society. The literature review embodies the relevance of these four levels since all risk and causal factors of VAC are easily categorised in one or more of these levels. As such, the author provides a social-ecological perspective comprising all four levels that holistically address the prevention of VAC. The literature review indicated that many of the risks and causes of VAC are a common trend across countries even though it is more prevalent within African contexts. This suggests that the preventive measures discussed are likely to have global value.

Fault Detection in Electrical Grids: Harnessing Machine Learning for Enhanced Reliability

This study focuses on enhancing the reliability and redundancy of electrical systems through machine learning-based fault detection. This project’s objective is to create an inexpensive system for early detection of faults in electrical systems. This study proposed a methodology combining machine learning techniques and feature engineering. A dataset containing 12,001 sensor readings each consisting of six values was examined and analyzed by machine-learning techniques. Results showed the system's success in detecting faults with an accuracy of 99% from only six readings. In economically underserved regions, a common trend is the presence of less sophisticated electrical infrastructures. These systems translate into more frequent and longer power outages, a serious concern when essential institutions like hospitals rely on them to function. This research contributes to the field of fault detection by offering a practical and effective way to improve fault detection in underserved regions.