Full Identification Research Articles

Identification of Structural Vector Autoregressions by Stochastic Volatility

We propose to exploit stochastic volatility for statistical identification of structural vector autoregressive models (SV-SVAR). We discuss full and partial identification of the model and develop efficient EM algorithms for maximum likelihood inference. Simulation evidence suggests that the SV-SVAR works well in identifying structural parameters also under misspecification of the variance process, particularly if compared to alternative heteroscedastic SVARs. We apply the model to study the importance of oil supply shocks for driving oil prices. Since shocks identified by heteroscedasticity may not be economically meaningful, we exploit the framework to test instrumental variable restrictions which are overidentifying in the heteroscedastic model. Our findings suggest that conventional supply shocks are negligible, while news shocks about future supply account for almost all the variation in oil prices.

Appropriate citation of placenta cell lines 3A(tPA-30-1) and 3A-sub E [post crisis of 3A(tPA-30-1)] in medical literature

IntroductionTo determine how often placenta cell lines 3A (tPA-30-1) and 3A-sub E [post crisis of 3A (tPA-30-1)] are appropriately cited, or identified, as “term”-gestation placental cell lines in medical literature. MethodsWe performed a literature search on two databases, PubMed and One Search, using the terms “3A (tPA-30-1),” “3Asub-E,” “3AsubE,” “tPA-30-1,” “tPA30-1,” and “3A AND (placenta OR placental OR trophoblast OR trophoblastic) AND (cell OR line OR cell line).” Of the 218 citations retrieved, 181 were excluded due to duplication, article content irrelevance or lack of access to a full manuscript. The remaining 37 citations were thoroughly reviewed for 1)the presence of a full citation as designated by the supplier, and 2)the identification of the placental lines as “term.” ResultsOf the 37 eligible citations included in the study, five demonstrated complete identifications of the placental cell lines of interest, while 32 demonstrated partial identifications that failed to match the designations provided by the manufacturer. Furthermore, of the 37 citations, eight accurately identified the cell lines as “term,” while 27 lacked any description of gestational age, and two incorrectly identified them as “first trimester” cell lines. Overall, only three citations contained both a full citation and correct identification as a “term” placenta cell line. DiscussionOnly 5 of the 37 (13.5%) publications demonstrated a complete citation and only 8 publications accurately identified the gestational age of the placenta cell line as “term”. Such findings confirm the need for a representative set of standards for the documentation of cell lines to improve the quality of publications in the scientific community.

The Energetic Particle Detector

After decades of observations of solar energetic particles from space-based observatories, relevant questions on particle injection, transport, and acceleration remain open. To address these scientific topics, accurate measurements of the particle properties in the inner heliosphere are needed. In this paper we describe the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD), an instrument suite that is part of the scientific payload aboard the Solar Orbiter mission. Solar Orbiter will approach the Sun as close as 0.28 au and will provide extra-ecliptic measurements beyond ∼30° heliographic latitude during the later stages of the mission. The EPD will measure electrons, protons, and heavy ions with high temporal resolution over a wide energy range, from suprathermal energies up to several hundreds of megaelectronvolts/nucleons. For this purpose, EPD is composed of four units: the SupraThermal Electrons and Protons (STEP), the Electron Proton Telescope (EPT), the Suprathermal Ion Spectrograph (SIS), and the High-Energy Telescope (HET) plus the Instrument Control Unit that serves as power and data interface with the spacecraft. The low-energy population of electrons and ions will be covered by STEP and EPT, while the high-energy range will be measured by HET. Elemental and isotopic ion composition measurements will be performed by SIS and HET, allowing full particle identification from a few kiloelectronvolts up to several hundreds of megaelectronvolts/nucleons. Angular information will be provided by the separate look directions from different sensor heads, on the ecliptic plane along the Parker spiral magnetic field both forward and backwards, and out of the ecliptic plane observing both northern and southern hemispheres. The unparalleled observations of EPD will provide key insights into long-open and crucial questions about the processes that govern energetic particles in the inner heliosphere.

Detection of colistin resistant Gram negative bacilli in intensive care unit patients admitted to Ain Shams University Hospitals.

Background: Colistin is the last choice for serious infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram negative bacteria and one of the prominent causes for spreading the resistance is Plasmid-borne Mobile Colistin Resistance (mcr). Broth microdilution method (BMD) is the reference tool for Colistin MIC determination, but it has many obstacles, so commercial BMD methods had been developed that are more user-friendly than the reference method and (Liofilchem ® ComASPTM) is one of them, which we used to determine Colistin MIC in this study. Objective: to detect Colistin resistant gram negative bacilli by ComASPTM Colistin (formerly Sensi Test™Colistin) among Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients admitted to Ain Shams university hospitals and to Screen the presence of mcr-1 gene by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) in Colistin resistant isolates. Methodology: This Observational cross-sectional study was performed in the Medical Microbiology and Immunology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University between June 2019 to November 2019. One hundred isolates of Gram negative bacilli were obtained from patients admitted at different Intensive Care units of Ain Shams University Hospitals. Full identification was done by conventional microbiological methods, Then MIC was measured for all isolated organisms by using commercial BMD ComASPTM colistin, PCR was done for Colistin resistant isolates to detect mcr-1 gene. Results: 60% of the Gram negative bacilli (GNB) isolates were K.pneumoniea.Colistin resistance was 14% among 100 (GNB), 35.7% of these Colistin resistant were K.pneumoniea obtained from urine samples. Prevalence of mcr-1 gene was 7.1%. Conclusion: Commercial BMD ComASPTM Colistin is simple and uncomplicated method for detection Colistin susceptibility.

Unraveling the chemodiversity of halogenated disinfection by-products formed during drinking water treatment using target and non-target screening tools

To date, there is no analytical approach available that allows the full identification and characterization of highly complex disinfection by-product (DBP) mixtures. This study aimed at investigating the chemodiversity of drinking water halogenated DBPs using diverse analytical tools: measurement of adsorbable organic halogen (AOX) and mass spectrometry (MS)-based target and non-target analytical workflows. Water was sampled before and after chemical disinfection (chlorine or chloramine) at four drinking water treatment plants in Sweden. The target analysis had the highest sensitivity, although it could only partially explain the AOX formed in the disinfected waters. Non-target Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) MS analysis indicated that only up to 19 Cl and/or Br-CHO formulae were common to all disinfected waters. Unexpectedly, a high diversity of halogenated DBPs (presumed halogenated polyphenolic and highly unsaturated compounds) was found in chloraminated surface water, comparable to that found in chlorinated surface water. Overall, up to 86 DBPs (including isobaric species) were tentatively identified using liquid chromatography (LC)-Orbitrap MS. Although further work is needed to confirm their identity and assess their relevance in terms of toxicity, they can be used to design suspect lists to improve the characterization of disinfected water halogenated mixtures.

Identification of a Heterogeneous Generalized Regression Model with Group Effects

We consider identification in a generalized regression (Han, 1987) for panel settings in which each observation can be associated with a whose members are subject to a common unobserved shock. Common examples of groups include markets, schools or cities. The model is fully nonparametric and allows for the endogeneity of group-specific observables, which might include prices, policies, and/or treatments. The model features heterogeneous responses to observables and unobservables, and arbitrary heteroskedasticity. We provide sufficient conditions for full identification of the model, as well as weaker conditions sufficient for identification of the latent group effects and the distribution of outcomes conditional on covariates and the group effect.

P‐130: A Full Screen Biometric Identification Approach for OLED Displays by Using Near‐Infrared OLED

In this paper, we propose a full screen biometric identification approach for organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays using a near infra‐red(NIR) OLED coupled to a large area thin film transistor (TFT) pixel sensing circuit. Preliminary estimates for photons propagating from the NIR OLED source and reflecting back to the subpixel are presented. Although the signal landing on the subpixel is small, it may be amplified by the large area active pixel sensor circuits integrated in the TFT layer. The proposed approach has the key advantage of compatibility with existing large area fabrication processes. Although there are still some open technical issues such as NIR OLED lifetime, responsivity and sensor characteristics, the proposed approach demonstrates the potential to implement a full screen biometric identification within a large area display.

The unfulfilled. After youth

The article analyzes prose works by Russian twenty- and thirty-year-old authors who emerged in the early 2000s and gradually fell into obscurity right after their initial success. Sekretov’s article discusses A. Babchenko, I. Denezhkina, A. Karasyov, and others. All of their works share numerous distinctive traits, such as a predisposition to uncensored autobiographical narration, full identification of the author with the protagonist, and preoccupation with challenges faced by young adults and the force of rebellion, which, however, boils down to the axiomatic teen defiance. As a result, the young authors-cum-protagonists lose their swagger upon the first breakthrough, with their subsequent career grinding to a halt after the highest but single achievement. Therefore, in his analysis of the novels, interviews and critical reviews dedicated to the books by I. Denezhkina, A. Karasyov, I. Mamaeva and others, Sekretov identifies the generational characteristics of early 2000s literature and tracks the authors’ subsequent progress, seeking the reasons for so many failures.

A taxonomic revision of Trigonostemon (Euphorbiaceae) outside Malesia

The Trigonostemon species outside Malesia are taxonomically revised based on herbarium collections and fresh material. The research history in the concerning regions, i.e., the Indian subcontinent (including S India, SriLanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar), China, Thailand, Indochina, NE Australia and New Caledonia, is briefly summarised. A total of 32 species are accepted (including one doubtful species) and 17 names are newly treated as synonyms. Trigonostemon montanus is newly described for India. Regional identification keys, nomenclature, descriptions, geographic distributions and taxonomic notes are provided. Together with our previous work, the genus is now fully revised. A total of 59 species are accepted. A full identification list of all Trigonostemon collections seen is presented.

Identification of Fungi in Burn Wounds Using Conventional and Vitek System in Duhok City, Iraq

Background: Fungal burns and wounds infections are frequent but underestimated causing invasive infections with late-onset morbidity and mortality in patients suffering severe perturbed immune systems.
 Objectives: This study aimed to investigate fungal infections in clinical specimens by using conventional and Vitek system.
 Methods: A total of 123 swabs were obtained from wound and burns patients with different age, gender, burn degrees and nationality that admitted burns and emergency hospital in Duhok city, Iraq, from October 2019 till January 2020. All swabs screened by direct examination, fungal isolation then subjecting the purified colonies to Vitak system 2 to confirm the identification of fungal species.
 Results: Out of 123, 55.5% and 44.5% revealed fungal growth in wound and burn swab, respectively with more mono-fungal growth patterns. Male, middle ages group, Iraqi nationality and second-degree burn were more affected. Cryptococcus laurentii was the predominant (40%) followed by Stephanoascus ciferri (23%), Aspergillus nigar (11%) and Candida albicans was very low rate (1.1%), while other fungal specie’s were recorded in fewer rates. The present study demonstrated that the wound and burn fungal infection cases are relatively high in above mentioned hospitals with a variety of fungal pathogens. Unexpectedly, the Cryptococcus laurentii and Stephanoascus ciferri were highly predominant.
 Conclusions: The study concluded the necessity of using Vitak system for full identification and emphasize on the cleaning of surroundings of patients in the burn and wound units care, reduction of humidity, regular employment of topical and systemic antifungal agents that reduce morbidity and mortality in burn unit in this setting.

4-Hydroxy-3-methyl-2(1H)-quinolone, originally discovered from a Brassicaceae plant, produced by a soil bacterium of the genus Burkholderia sp.: determination of a preferred tautomer and antioxidant activity.

4-Hydroxy-3-methyl-2(1H)-quinolone (1), a molecule known for a long time and recently discovered from a Brassicaceae plant Isatis tinctoria without providing sufficient evidence to support the structure, was isolated from a fermentation extract of Burkholderia sp. 3Y-MMP isolated from a soil by a Zn2+ enrichment culture. Detailed spectroscopic analyses by MS and NMR, combined with 13C chemical shift comparison with literature values of the related compounds and a synthetic preparation of 1, allowed its first full NMR characterization and identification of 2-quinolone but not 2-quinolinol (2) as the preferred tautomer for this heterocyclic system. While the metal-chelating activity was negligible, compound 1 at 10 μM, a concentration lower than that in liquid production cultures, quenched hydroxy radical-induced chemiluminescence emitted by luminol by 86%. Because some Burkholderia species are pathogenic to plants and animals, the above result suggests that 1 is a potential antioxidant to counteract reactive oxygen species-based immune response in the host organisms.

Committing a Crime for the First Time: Validity of the Introduction of the Criminal Law and the Significance of other Circumstances

In Russian criminal lawthe fact of committing a crime for the first time determines the operation of the fundamental institutions: responsibility and punishment. The identification of the person having committed a crime for the first time is an extremely important task not only for the further proper focus for law enforcement officials on the individualization of punishment and criminal responsibility, but in general, for a more clear perception of the enforcement of the criminal legal relations caused by the criminal act. Despite the importance of this concept, if attention is given thereto in theoretical research, it is mainly from the point of view of clarifying the legal content. The questions of expediency of introducing the concept of a person who has committed a crime for the first time into the text of the criminal law, the criminal legal significance of this circumstance among others affecting the adoption of a criminal legal decision remain little explored to date. Any concept that is applied in practice and has real significance for the qualification of crimes, determining the grounds and limits of criminal liability, as well as for the imposition of punishment, undoubtedly requires criminal law consolidation. The absence of any concept of such significance in the law means that there is a gap in criminal law. Meanwhile, the concept of a person who has committed a crime is complicated by the fact that in real law enforcement it is filled with specific legal content, different from the everyday understanding of this phenomenon. This causes problems such as the association of such persons with "legally non-indictable persons". Full identification of these concepts does not allow the legislator to provide a sufficiently selective, individualized and adequate approach to different categories of such persons. In addition, questions are raised about the differentiation of responsibility of a person who committed a first-time careless crime with a person guilty of committing an intentional criminal act. The paper attempts to answer these questions by the example of specific criminal legal norms, taking into account the experience of their enforcement.

Covid-19: Refracting decision-making through the prism of resource allocation.

Medical decision-making has, across the history of the NHS, made a transitional journey from a model characterised by paternalism to one which places emphasis on partnership and patient autonomy. This article assesses the extent to which the circumstances generated by the Covid-19 pandemic affect the mode of critical care decision-making. It observes that clinical judgment influenced by protocols, algorithms and resource constraints do not lend themselves to full identification with either of the two frameworks familiar to the NHS. The unique mode of decision-making engendered can only be understood on its own terms.

Inferring Risk Perceptions and Preferences Using Choice from Insurance Menus: Theory and Evidence

Abstract Demand for insurance can be driven by high risk aversion or high-risk. We show how to separately identify risk preferences and risk types using only choices from menus of insurance plans. Our revealed preference approach does not rely on rational expectations, nor does it require access to claims data. We show what can be learned non-parametrically about the type distributions from variation in insurance plans, offered separately to random cross-sections or offered as part of the same menu to one cross-section. We prove that our approach allows for full identification in the textbook model with binary risks, and extend our results to continuous risks. We illustrate our approach using the Massachusetts Health Insurance Exchange, where choices provide informative bounds on the type distributions, especially for risks, but do not allow us to reject homogeneity in preferences.

The glutathione S-transferase genes in marine rotifers and copepods: Identification of GSTs and applications for ecotoxicological studies

Various xenobiotics are constantly being released and accumulated into the aquatic environments and consequently, the aquatic organisms are continuously being exposed to exogenous stressors. Among various xenobiotic detoxifying enzymes, Glutathione S-transferase (GST) is one of the major xenobiotic detoxifying enzyme which is widely distributed among living organisms and thus, understanding of the nature of GSTs is crucial. Previous studies have shown GST activity in response to various xenobiotics yet, full identification of GSTs in marine invertebrates is still limited. This review covers information on the importance of GSTs as a biomarker for emerging chemicals and their response to wide ranges of environmental pollutants as well as in-depth phylogenetic analysis of marine invertebrates, including recently identified GSTs belonging to rotifers (Brachionus spp.) and copepods (Tigriopus japonicus and Paracyclopina nana), with unique class-specific features of GSTs, as well as a new suggestion of GST evolutionary pathway.

Automated operational modal analysis and ambient noise deconvolution interferometry for the full structural identification of historic towers: A case study of the Sciri Tower in Perugia, Italy

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) based upon Operational Modal Analysis (OMA) constitutes an increasingly mature and widespread technology in the conservation of historic structures. Such techniques, while proved effective for assessing the global integrity of structures, may fail at detecting local damage with little influence on the modal features of the system. In this context, the analysis of propagating waves throughout the structure features a synergistic approach to OMA with superior capabilities for data-driven damage identification. Although some promising results have been reported in the literature on the application of Seismic Interferometry to reinforced-concrete structures, works concerning the continuous monitoring of ambient vibrations in historic structures are virtually non-existent. In this light, this paper proposes the coupled application of automated OMA and Ambient Noise Deconvolution Interferometry for the full structural system identification of historic structures, and evaluates the advantages of this technology through a validation case study of the Sciri Tower in Perugia, Italy. A continuous vibration-based monitoring system deployed in the tower during three weeks allows us to assess the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The reported results demonstrate the robustness of the monitoring system for identifying environmental effects on the spatial distribution of wave velocities, and shed light into the dispersion relation of the tower.

Resource implications of the latent tuberculosis cascade of care: a time and motion study in five countries

BackgroundThe End TB Strategy calls for global scale-up of preventive treatment for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), but little information is available about the associated human resource requirements. Our study aimed to quantify the healthcare worker (HCW) time needed to perform the tasks associated with each step along the LTBI cascade of care for household contacts of TB patients.MethodsWe conducted a time and motion (TAM) study between January 2018 and March 2019, in which consenting HCWs were observed throughout a typical workday. The precise time spent was recorded in pre-specified categories of work activities for each step along the cascade. A linear mixed model was fit to estimate the time at each step.ResultsA total of 173 HCWs in Benin, Canada, Ghana, Indonesia, and Vietnam participated. The greatest amount of time was spent for the medical evaluation (median: 11 min; IQR: 6–16), while the least time was spent on reading a tuberculin skin test (TST) (median: 4 min; IQR: 2–9). The greatest variability was seen in the time spent for each medical evaluation, while TST placement and reading showed the least variability. The total time required to complete all steps along the LTBI cascade, from identification of household contacts (HHC) through to treatment initiation ranged from 1.8 h per index TB patient in Vietnam to 5.2 h in Ghana.ConclusionsOur findings suggest that the time requirements are very modest to perform each step in the latent TB cascade of care, but to achieve full identification and management of all household contacts will require additional human resources in many settings.

Toxicity of three types of arsenolipids: species-specific effects in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Although fish and seafood are well known for their nutritional benefits, they contain contaminants that might affect human health. Organic lipid-soluble arsenic species, so called arsenolipids, belong to the emerging contaminants in these food items; their toxicity has yet to be systematically studied. Here, we apply the in vivo model Caenorhabditis elegans to assess the effects of two arsenic-containing hydrocarbons (AsHC), a saturated arsenic-containing fatty acid (AsFA), and an arsenic-containing triacylglyceride (AsTAG) in a whole organism. Although all arsenolipids were highly bioavailable in Caenorhabditis elegans, only the AsHCs were substantially metabolized to thioxylated or shortened metabolic products and induced significant toxicity, affecting both survival and development. Furthermore, the AsHCs were several fold more potent as compared to the toxic reference arsenite. This study clearly indicates the need for a full hazard identification of subclasses of arsenolipids to assess whether they pose a risk to human health.

Identification of Non-Equilibrium Beliefs in Games of Incomplete Information Using Experimental Data

Abstract This paper studies the identification of players’ preferences and beliefs in discrete choice games using experimental data. The experiment comprises a set of games that differ in their matrices of monetary payoffs. The researcher is interested in the identification of preferences (utility of money) and beliefs on the opponents’ expected behavior, without imposing equilibrium restrictions or parametric assumptions on utility and belief functions. We show that the hypothesis of unbiased/rational beliefs is testable as long as the set of games in the experiment imply variation in monetary payoffs of other players, keeping the own monetary payoff constant. We present conditions for the full identification of utility and belief functions at the individual level – without restrictions on players’ heterogeneity in preferences or beliefs. We apply our method to data from two experiments: a matching pennies game, and a public good game.

Continuous phase transition between bosonic integer quantum Hall liquid and a trivial insulator: Evidence for deconfined quantum criticality

The deconfined quantum critical point, a prototype Landau-forbidden transition, could exist, in principle, in the phase transitions involving a symmetry-protected topological phase; however, examples of such kinds of transitions in physical systems are rare beyond one-dimensional systems. Here, using a density-matrix renormalization-group calculation, we unveil a bosonic integer quantum Hall phase in a two-dimensional correlated honeycomb lattice, by full identification of its internal structure from the topological $\mathbf{K}$ matrix. Moreover, we demonstrate that imbalanced periodic chemical potentials can destroy the bosonic integer quantum Hall state and drive it into a featureless trivial (Mott) insulator, where all physical observables evolve smoothly across the critical point. At the critical point, the entanglement entropy reveals a characteristic scaling behavior, which is consistent with the critical field theory as an emergent ${\mathrm{QED}}_{3}$ with two flavors of Dirac fermions.