Important Items Research Articles

Characterizing Important Dietary Exposure Sources of Perfluoroalkyl Acids in Inuit Youth and Adults in Nunavik Using a Feature Selection Tool.

Previous studies have identified the consumption of country foods (hunted/harvested foods from the land) as the primary exposure source of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAA) in Arctic communities. However, identifying the specific foods associated with PFAA exposures is complicated due to correlation between country foods that are commonly consumed together. We used venous blood sample data and food frequency questionnaire data from the Qanuilirpitaa? ("How are we now?") 2017 (Q2017) survey of Inuit individuals y of age residing in Nunavik (). Adaptive elastic net, a machine learning technique, identified the most important food items for predicting PFAA biomarker levels while accounting for the correlation among the food items. We used generalized linear regression models to quantify the association between the most predictive food items and six plasma PFAA biomarker levels. The estimates were converted to percent changes in a specific PFAA biomarker level per standard deviation increase in the consumption of a food item. Models were also stratified by food type (market or country foods). Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA), and perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA) were associated with frequent consumption of beluga misirak (rendered fat) [14.6%; 95% confidence interval (CI): 10.3%, 18.9%; 14.6% (95% CI: 10.1%, 19.0%)], seal liver [9.3% (95% CI: 5.0%, 13.7%); 8.1% (95% CI: 3.5%, 12.6%)], and suuvalik (fish roe mixed with berries and fat) [6.0% (95% CI: 1.3%, 10.7%); 7.5% (95% CI: 2.7%, 12.3%)]. Beluga misirak was also associated with higher concentrations of perfluorohexanesulphonic acid (PFHxS) and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), albeit with lower percentage changes. PFHxS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and PFNA followed some similar patterns, with higher levels associated with frequent consumption of ptarmigan [6.1% (95% CI: 3.2%, 9.0%); 5.1% (95% CI: 1.1%, 9.1%); 5.4% (95% CI: 1.8%, 9.0%)]. Among market foods, frequent consumption of processed meat and popcorn was consistently associated with lower PFAA exposure. Our study identifies specific food items contributing to environmental contaminant exposure in Indigenous or small communities relying on local subsistence foods using adaptive elastic net to prioritize responses from a complex food frequency questionnaire. In Nunavik, higher PFAA biomarker levels were primarily related to increased consumption of country foods, particularly beluga misirak, seal liver, suuvalik, and ptarmigan. Our results support policies regulating PFAA production and use to limit the contamination of Arctic species through long-range transport. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP13556.

Interactive effects between water temperature, microparticle compositions, and fiber types on the marine keystone species Americamysis bahia

Recently, there has been an increasing emphasis on examining the ecotoxicological effects of anthropogenic microparticles (MPs), especially microplastic particles, and related issues. Nevertheless, a notable deficiency exists in our understanding of the consequences on marine organisms, specifically in relation to microfibers and the combined influence of MPs and temperature.In this investigation, mysid shrimp (Americamysis bahia), an important species and prey item in estuarine and marine food webs, were subjected to four separate experimental trials involving fibers (cotton, nylon, polyester, hemp; 3 particles/ml; approximately 200 μm in length) or fragments (low-density Polyethylene: LDPE, polylactic acid: PLA, and their leachates; 5, 50, 200, 500 particles/ml; 1–20 μm). To consider the effects in the context of climate change, three different temperatures (22, 25, and 28 °C) were examined. Organismal growth and swimming behavior were measured following exposure to fragments and microfibers, and reactive oxygen species and particle uptake were investigated after microfiber exposure. To simulate the physical characteristics of MP exposure, such as microfibers obstructing the gills, we also assessed the post-fiber-exposure swimming behavior in an oxygen-depleted environment.Data revealed negligible fragment, but fiber exposure effects on growth. PLA leachate triggered higher activity at 25 °C and 28 °C; LDPE exposures led to decreased activity at 28 °C. Cotton exposures led to fewer behavioral differences compared to controls than other fiber types. The exposure to hemp fibers resulted in significant ROS increases at 28 °C. Microfibers were predominantly located within the gastric and upper gastrointestinal tract, suggesting extended periods of residence and the potential for obstructive phenomena over the longer term. The combination of increasing water temperatures, microplastic influx, and oxidative stress has the potential to pose risks to all components of marine and aquatic food webs.

한·중 차(茶)박물관 비교 연구

The Modern Museum is a complex educational and cultural center that collects, investigates, researches, and discloses important materials and items in various fields such as art, history, food, and electronic devices, and emphasizes education, research, and exhibitions. Accordingly, this study focuses on the Korean Tea Museum and the Chinese Tea Leaf Museum, studies their development plans, and seeks ways to promote friendship between the two countries through tea in the future.
 The revitalization plan for the Korea-China Museum is as follows. First, communication between museums and visitors must be strengthened by introducing digital technology. Second, visitors’ intention to revisit must be increased through differentiation strategies. Third, the tea museum's service types should be expanded and used as a festival space to revitalize the local economy. Fourth, the brand value of tea culture must be increased overseas. Fifth, tea culture must be promoted through a globalization strategy. In other words, considering the cultural specificity and role of tea, the value of the tea museum must be realized through tea and tea culture in a global universality.

The Research on the Improvement of FP-growth Algorithm

This paper focuses on the issue of low efficiency in the FP-growth algorithm for frequent pattern mining and proposes an improved algorithm, ICFM-growth. Experimental results demonstrate that the improved algorithm outperforms the FP-growth algorithm in terms of both runtime and space utilization. By studying the classical frequent pattern algorithms Apriori and FP-growth, the latter is an improved algo- rithm based on Apriori to address the problems of generating a large number of candidate itemsets and consuming significant memory space. While FP-growth exhibits superior mining efficiency compared to Apriori, it faces challenges when dealing with large and long transactional databases due to the construction of numerous FP-trees, which increases computational tasks and prolongs runtime, leading to lagging mining efficiency. To address this issue, the improved algorithm ICFM-growth is proposed. It constructs a co-occurrence frequency matrix to perform preliminary screening on the transaction set, focusing on high-frequency and co-occurring item pairs, thereby reducing unnecessary computa- tions. In the initial stage, as important item pairs have already been filtered, the algorithm can directly operate on these item pairs and items, rather than the entire dataset, thereby reducing the search space and computational complexity. Additionally, the structure of the FP-tree ena- blesthe algorithm to store and process data more efficiently, avoiding frequent scanning of the entire database, as seen in traditional Apriori algorithms. Finally, through simulation experiments on publicly available datasets such as Movie Data and House Data, validated using cross- validation, the ICFM-growth algorithm proves to be significantly superior to FP-growth in terms of time and space efficiency. It demonstrates faster runtime, lower memory consumption, and superior mining efficiency compared to FP-growth.

The reporting quality of randomized controlled trials in pharmacotherapy for pituitary adenomas.

Medical therapy has become an increasingly important intervention owing to improvements in the multidisciplinary care for pituitary adenomas (PAs). This study aimed to assess the reporting quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on PAs pharmacotherapy. RCTs evaluating the efficacy of pharmacotherapy in PAs published in English between January 1, 1974, and December 31, 2022, were searched for and collected from PubMed and MEDLINE. The 2010 Consolidated Standards for Test Reports (CONSORT) statement-based 28 items overall quality score (OQS) was used to evaluate the overall quality of each report. Twenty-seven related RCTs including 1816 patients were retrieved. The median OQS score was 12 (range, 6-19) on a scale of 0 to 28. Important items, such as background, objectives, participants, interventions, and outcomes, were sufficiently reported in 100% (27/27) of the articles. Statistical methods were adequately described in 93% (25/27) of patients. However, RCTs underreported identification as randomized trials in the title (3/27, 11%), sample size, allocation concealment, implementation, ancillary analysis method, and Diagram and Ancillary analyses (1/27, 4%). The OQS of published RCTs has significantly increased since 2010 (P = .012). The multivariate final model showed significant associations between higher OQS and publication since 2010 and enrollment of more than 100 patients. The overall reporting quality of RCTs on pharmacotherapy in PAs was poor, based on the 2010 CONSORT statement. However, we noticed an improvement in the OQS over the years and identified the factors associated with a better report. Increased effort is necessary to raise awareness of these issues among writers, readers, reviewers, and editors.

Diet composition of the Mediterranean horse mackerel, Trachurus mediterraneus (Steindachner, 1868) (Osteichthyes: Carangidae), from the Aegean Sea

Data on feeding habits in aquatic ecosystems are of great importance in determining the role that a certain fish species plays in its habitat and in related ecosystems. In this study, the diet composition of Mediterranean horse mackerel, Trachurus mediterraneus was investigated for 728 specimens from the central Aegean Sea to compare our data with those from other regions of the Mediterranean Sea and throughout all four seasons. Catches from five major groups were identified. Crustaceans (particularly copepods) proved to be the most important food item considering the index of relative importance (IRI). At least 58 different copepod species were identified. Abundant copepod species that occur in every season were Corycaeus sp., Oncaea media, Oncaea spp., Isias clavipes, Euterpina acutifrons and Oithona nana. Isias clavipes occurred only in spring, with all of them appearing in the diet with a %IRI >10. Although found in a relatively smaller quantity, teleost larvae ranked as the second most important prey in the overall diet, with increasing quantities in fish larger than 18.0 cm.

Malnutrition in emergency general surgery: a survey of National Emergency Laparotomy Audit Leads.

Patients who are malnourished and have emergency general surgery, such as a laparotomy, have worse outcomes than those who are not malnourished. It is paramount to identify these patients and minimise this risk. This study aimed to describe current practices in identifying malnutrition in patients undergoing a laparotomy, specifically focusing on screening, assessment, nutrition pathways and barriers encountered by clinicians. Following piloting and validity assessment, anaesthetic and surgical National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) Leads at hospitals across England and Wales were emailed an invitation to a survey. Responses were gathered using Qualtrics. Descriptive analysis and correlation with laparotomy volume and professional role were performed in SPSSv26. University of Sheffield ethical approval was obtained (UREC 046205). The results from the survey are reported according to the CHERRIES guidelines. The survey was completed by 166/289 NELA Leads from 117/167 hospitals (57.4% and 70.1% response rates, respectively). Participants reported low rates of nutritional screening (42/166; 25.3%) and assessment (26/166; 15.7%) for malnutrition preoperatively. More than one third of respondents (40.1%) had no awareness of local screening tools; indeed, the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) was used by approximately half of respondents (56.6%). Contrary to guidelines, NELA Leads report albumin levels continue to be used to determine malnutrition risk (73.5%; 122/166). Postoperative nutrition pathways were common (71.7%; 119/166). Reported barriers to nutritional screening and assessment included a lack of time, training and education, organisational support and ownership. Participants indicated nutrition risk is inadequately identified and is an important missing data item from NELA. There was no significant correlation with hospital laparotomy volume in relation to screening or assessment for malnutrition, the use of nutritional support pathways or organisational barriers. There was interprofessional agreement across a number of domains, although some differences did exist. Wide variation exists in the current practice of identifying malnutrition risk in NELA patients. Barriers include a lack of time, knowledge and ownership. Nutrition pathways that encompass the preoperative phase and incorporation of nutrition data in NELA may support improvements in care.

Defining competencies in robotic thyroidectomy: development of a model assessing an expert operator's intraoperative performance skills and cognitive strategies.

The changing medical education environment emphasizes the need for time efficiency, increasing the demand for competency-based medical education to improve trainees' learning strategies. This study was performed to determine the competencies required for successful performance of robotic thyroidectomy (RT) and to determine the consensus of experts for performance of RT. Data were collected through 12 semi-structured interviews with RT experts and 11 field observations. Cognitive task analysis was performed to determine the competencies required for experts to perform RT. A modified Delphi methodology was used to determine how 20 experts rated the importance of each item of RT performance on a Likert 7-point scale. The criteria for the Delphi consensus were set at a Cronbach's α≥0.80 with two survey rounds. After 11 field observations and 12 semi-structured interviews, 89 items were identified within six modules. These items were grouped into sub-modules according to their theme. The modified Delphi survey, involving 21 experts, reached the consensus standard during the second round (Cronbach's α=0.954), enabling the identification of the 64 most important items within six modules related to RT performance: midline incision to isthmectomy (MID module; n=8), lateral dissection (LAT module; n=7), preservation of inferior parathyroid glands (INF module; n=16), preservation of recurrent laryngeal nerve and dissection of the ligament of Berry (BER module; n=21), dissection of the thyroid upper pole (SUP module; n=10), and specimen removal and closure (END module; n=2). This mixed-method study combining qualitative and quantitative methodology identified modules of core competencies required to perform RT. These modules can be used as a standard and objective guide to train surgeons to perform RT and evaluate outcomes.

The Threat of Economic Deglobalization from Cold War 2.0: A Japanese Perspective

Abstract The intensified geopolitical tension in Northeast Asia and the U.S.–China confrontation have shifted policy debates in Japan toward national security while the economic discussion has become thin. To regain more balanced policy talks, this paper tries to quantitatively comprehend the effect of the United States and its allies’ export controls on the East Asian machinery production networks and Japan's trade performance. Major findings include the following four points: First, most of the supply chain decoupling policies by the Japanese government have been the ones to prepare for sudden interruptions of the supply of important items while decoupling policies for strategic competition are limited only in the context of the cooperation with the United States. Second, international trade statistics at the industry level do not show clear evidence of supply chain decoupling in East Asia due to the U.S. export controls, at least up to 2022. Third, however, the negative trade effect becomes visible at the product or individual firms’ level, and the recent strengthening of the United States and its allies’ export controls may augment the negative effect on machinery production networks. Fourth, although the scope of trade controls would expand further, the supply chain decoupling is likely to end up with a partial one. The paper claims that middle powers such as Japan must establish a well-balanced trade policy.

Türkiye’nin Gelenek Dışı Para Politikasının Lisanssız Güneş Santrallerinin Kârlılığı Üzerine Etkisinin Değerlendirilmesi

Türkiye’s unorthodox monetary policy implemented between September 2021 and June 2023 affected many macroeconomic indicators including inflation. Turkish Central Bank’s (CBRT) continuous lowering of the policy interest rate increased the negative real interest rate constantly. As a result, households invested in alternative assets including housing, foreign currency and gold in order to hedge against inflation. This increase in demand soared real estate prices. Besides, land is an important cost item for solar power plant investments. Considering the linear relationship between land prices and housing prices, this paper investigates the effect of the increase in housing prices on the capital expenditure (CAPEX) of 37 unlicensed solar power plant projects in Türkiye. According to the results, a correlation of -0.97 was determined between the real interest rate and housing price index in Türkiye. In addition, a correlation of 0.20 was found between housing price index and the CAPEX of unlicensed solar power plants. This situation indicates that the increase in housing prices primarily due to the unorthodox monetary policy might adversely affected the profitability of unlicensed solar power plants, since CAPEX is an important factor affecting the profitability. Although the unconventional monetary policy has been abandoned as of July 2023, the negative effects of this policy on the economy, especially inflation, still continue. Policies and practices that would increase the profitability of solar power plants will make significant contribution to the renewable energy investors and Türkiye's green transition. In this context, development and issuance of carbon development credits under the voluntary carbon market standards such as Global Carbon Council (GCC) Standard and International Carbon Standard (ICR) presents additionality to support solar power plant investors and help the country to reach her carbon neutrality target.

Fuzzy Testing Method of Process Incapability Index

The process capability index is a tool for quality measurement and analysis widely used in the industry. It is also a good tool for the sales department to communicate with customers. Although the value of the process capability index can be affected by the accuracy and precision of the process, the index itself cannot be differentiated. Therefore, the process incapability index is directly divided into two items, accuracy and precision, based on the expected value of the Taguchi process loss function. In fact, accuracy and precision are two important reference items for improving the manufacturing process. Thus, the process incapability index is good for evaluating process quality. The process incapability index contains two unknown parameters, so it needs to be estimated with sample data. Since point estimates are subject to misjudgment incurred by the inaccuracy of sampling, and since modern businesses are in the era of rapid response, the size of sampling usually tends to be small. A number of studies have suggested that a fuzzy testing method built on the confidence interval be adopted at this time because it integrates experts and the experience accumulated in the past. In addition to a decrease in the possibility of misjudgment resulting from sampling error, this method can improve the test accuracy. Therefore, based on the confidence interval of the process incapability index, we proposed the fuzzy testing method to assess whether the process capability can attain a necessary level of quality. If the quality level fails to meet the requirement, then an improvement must be made. If the quality level exceeds the requirement, then it is equivalent to excess quality, and a resource transfer must be considered to reduce costs.

Dietary metabarcoding of keystone sardine species reveals the importance of their ichthyoplankton prey in food webs of the Southern Brazilian Bight fisheries

AbstractClupeiform fishes are ecologically and economically important species contributing to industrial and artisanal fisheries worldwide. They represent key links in food webs, influencing the dynamic between trophic levels. The dietary interactions of these species are poorly studied in many regions, yet essential for fisheries management. To elucidate the role of these species in food webs of the Southern Brazilian Bight pelagic fisheries, we used metabarcoding analysis of fish stomach contents of Clupeiformes and possible predators. Onboard sampling from March to September 2016 allowed for processing of 87 stomach samples representing 31 species (including 12 samples representing three species of Clupeiformes). Links between trophic levels showed the predominance of Sardinella brasiliensis and Engraulis anchoita as important dietary items of a large range of fishes (28 species belonging to 18 families) and representing the majority of the total prey read abundance assigned to clupeiform fishes (~46% and ~32%, respectively). Opisthonema oglinum contributed to the diet of 16 species in 13 families and ~18% of total read abundance of clupeiform fishes as prey. The appearance of multiple clupeiform taxa in the diet of predators that are not commonly associated with pelagic prey indicates that ecosystem‐based fisheries management should not be separated between pelagic and demersal fisheries. The diet of Clupeiformes revealed an unexpectedly large diversity of fish species and a low proportion of invertebrates (<5% of clupeiform prey reads). This was likely due to a combination of both a limitation of the metabarcoding method (primer bias and low success of invertebrate taxonomic identification) as well as a contribution of early life stages (ichthyoplankton) to the diet of these fishes. The potential role of clupeiform fish populations as a constraint to the recruitment from the ichthyoplanktonic phase of other ecologically or commercially important fishes should be considered as an important direction for future studies.

Neuro quantum-inspired decision-making for investor perception in green and conventional bond investments

The purpose of this study is to make a comprehensive analysis of investor perceptions in the context of green and conventional bond investments. For this purpose, a new model is presented by considering two steps. First, a criteria set is generated by considering balanced scorecard perspectives that are finance, customer, organizational effectiveness and learning and growth. After that, the neuro Quantum fuzzy M-SWARA method is considered to weight these criteria. Secondly, seven critical determinants for bond investments are identified that are coupon rates, volume, maturity, riskiness, liquidity, volatility, and tax considerations. Neuro Quantum fuzzy TOPSIS approach is employed to rank these factors. The main contribution of the study is that by combining the balanced scorecard framework and quantum-inspired decision-making techniques, this paper offers a novel and sophisticated decision-making model to understanding investor behavior. Similarly, in the proposed model, a new methodology is generated by the name of M-SWARA. In this framework, some enhancements are adopted to the SWARA technique. The weighting results indicate that meeting customer expectations is the most critical factor that affects the investor perception to make investments to the bonds. Moreover, according to the ranking results, it is concluded that coupon rates are the most important item for both conventional and green bond investors. On the other hand, with respect to the conventional bond investor, tax is the second most essential factor. However, regarding the green bond investors, volatility plays a critical role. AcknowledgmentThis research has been/was/is funded by the Science Committee of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan (№ AP 19679105 “Transformation of ESG financial instruments in the context of the development of the green economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan”).

Development and validation of parent-reported gastrointestinal health scale in MECP2 duplication syndrome

Background/aimsWe aimed to develop a validated patient-reported Gastrointestinal Health Scale (GHS) specific to MECP2 Duplication Syndrome (MDS) to be used in clinical trials.MethodsMDS parents completed a Gastrointestinal Health Questionnaire (GHQ) to investigate the most relevant and important items associated with gastrointestinal problems in MECP2-related disorders. Item reduction was executed according to EORTC guidelines. We performed reliability and validity studies for the finalized scale.ResultsA total of 106 surveys were eligible for item reduction and validation processes. The initial 55 items were reduced to 38 items based on parent responses, expert opinion, and initial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The final MDS-specific GHS included 38 items and 7 factors that underwent further reliability and validity assessments. The power of the study was at least 0.982. The Cronbach’s alphas of the instruments were General Health: 0.799, Eating-Chewing-Swallowing: 0.809, Reflux: 0.794, Motility: 0.762, Mood: 0.906, Medication: 0.595, Parenting: 0.942 and all items together: 0.928. The correlation coefficient between total and individual item scores ranged from 0.215 to 0.730. Because of the ordinal nature of the variables, the diagonal weighted least squares estimation (DWLS) method was used to execute the CFA and Structural Equation Modeling. The GHS had excellent model fit with the acceptable range of fit indices values.ConclusionsWe developed a parent-reported, reliable, and valid MDS-specific GHS. This scale can be utilized in clinical settings or as an outcome measure in translational and clinical research.

Research on Vegetable Pricing and Replenishment Strategy Based on TOPSIS Method and Simulated Annealing Algorithm

By mining the relationship between categories and individual products, this paper puts forward enterprise replenishment and pricing strategies under different conditions. First of all, from the 49 kinds of vegetables sold, the TOPSIS method based on entropy weight is used to select the top 20 important items by taking the market demand and excess income as the first-level index, and taking the historical sales rate, average daily sales volume, variance of sales volume, vegetable loss rate and unit profit as the second-level index. Then, based on the concept of complementary and alternative goods, through the Spearman correlation coefficient, and using the weighted correlation coefficient method, select the top 9 items, such as ginger, garlic, millet pepper combination and so on. Using these selected items, taking the profit maximization of fresh merchants as the objective function and the demand of each category as constraints, a 0-1 integer nonlinear programming model is established. Then, the simulated annealing algorithm is used to simulate the planning for 1000000 times, and the pricing strategy and supply plan of the enterprise on July 1st are obtained, and the maximum profit on that day is 2098.17 yuan.

Seasonal Diet Changes and Trophic Links of Cold-Water Fish (Coregonus albula) within a Northern Lake Ecosystem

The seasonal feeding patterns of the cold-adapted fish, Coregonus albula, are poorly studied in high-latitude lakes but could provide insight for predicting the effects of global warming. We examined vendace’s diet composition, traced the carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios from producers to consumers in the food web, and estimated vendace’s trophic position in a subarctic lake (the White Sea basin). Results showed the vendace to be a typical euryphagous fish, but clear seasonal differences were found in the relative importance of plankton and benthos in the diet. The vendace consumed primarily benthic amphipods in the summer, planktonic cladocerans in the autumn, and copepods in the winter–spring (under ice); larvae of aquatic insects were the second-most important food items throughout the year. Because of the substantial proportion of fish embryos in its diet, the vendace had a trophic position similar to that of a predatory fish (perch). The Bayesian food source-mixing model revealed that the majority of vendace energy derives from planktonic copepods. The dominant Cyclops had the lowest carbon isotope values, suggesting a carbon-depleted diet typical for methanotrophic bacteria, as its probable food source was in a lake under ice. Understanding the feeding patterns of vendace provides information to better predict the potential biotic effects of environmental change on lake ecosystems.

Food and Feeding Habits of Oreochromis Niloticus in Lower River Benue, Makurdi

This study investigated the food and feeding habits of Oreochromis niloticus in the lower River Benue to determine the diet composition in the stomach of O. niloticus Fift samples of the species were collected, and their stomach contents were analyzed by frequency of occurrence, numerical and volumetric methods. The IRI (Index of Relative Importance) was used to determine the stomach contents. The results showed that green algae are the most important food item in the diet of O. niloticus with an IRI value of 22.61%. Other plant-based foods that make up a significant proportion of the diet include plant tissues (10.19%) and plant seeds (9.26%). The species have a moderate to high overlap in their consumption of certain food items such as rotifers (DOI = 0.83, sig = 0.03*), desmids (DOI = 0.67, sig = 0.05*), and snails (DOI = 0.51, sig = 0.05*). Generally, O. niloticus exhibited omnivorous feeding habits in their diet from the Lower River Benue. It is possible to conclude that food and feeding habits of O. niloticus influenced by seasons, and fish sizes from Lower River Benue. Therefore, water buffer zone management is needed to improve the food and feeding habits of this fish for the better sustainable utilization.

Feeding habits of Pacific anchovy, Engraulis japonicus (Actinopterygii: Clupeiformes: Engraulidae), captured off the southern coasts of Korea

Understanding the feeding ecology of anchovies in the southern waters of Korea is crucial for improving ecosystem management. However, to date, few studies have examined seasonal changes in the diet of Pacific anchovy, Engraulis japonicus Temminck et Schlegel, 1846, in Korean waters, with the majority of these focusing on the larval and adult stages. The presently reported study provides updates on the feeding habits of E. japonicus off the southern coast of Korea. We analyzed 347 individuals. One-way analysis of similarity was performed to evaluate the differences in diet composition among size classes and seasons of E. japonicus, and correspondence analysis was conducted using the matrix of the percentage by number (%N) data for prey with occurrence of less than 10% to determine the distribution of prey across all size classes and each season. The diet of E. japonicus was investigated according to season and four size classes. The fork length of these specimens ranged from 5.4 to 14.1 cm. A total of 55 prey taxa of varying sizes between 0.33 mm (diatom Coscinodiscus spp.) and 5.8 mm (fish larvae) were recorded. Anchovies were exclusively planktivorous, and copepods were the most common prey, comprising 82.1% of the identified food items and 84.3% of anchovy stomach contents analyzed. However, their occurrence and abundance varied according to season and Pacific anchovy size class. According to the percentage of the index of relative importance (%IRI), the most important prey items were the copepods Calanus sinicus (48.0%), Paracalanus orientalis (31.7%), bivalve larvae (5.8%), Ditrichocorycaeus affinis (4.2%), and calanoid copepods (2.4%). Analysis of similarities and similarity percentage analysis indicated that a distinct diet of Pacific anchovy in the southern waters of Korea is potentially driven by differences in hydrological conditions. Correspondence analysis revealed that anchovies had the most significant impact on the differences between size classes. The results deepen our understanding of prey species diversity and intraspecific food competition off the southern coast of Korea.

METhodological RadiomICs Score (METRICS): a quality scoring tool for radiomics research endorsed by EuSoMII

PurposeTo propose a new quality scoring tool, METhodological RadiomICs Score (METRICS), to assess and improve research quality of radiomics studies.MethodsWe conducted an online modified Delphi study with a group of international experts. It was performed in three consecutive stages: Stage#1, item preparation; Stage#2, panel discussion among EuSoMII Auditing Group members to identify the items to be voted; and Stage#3, four rounds of the modified Delphi exercise by panelists to determine the items eligible for the METRICS and their weights. The consensus threshold was 75%. Based on the median ranks derived from expert panel opinion and their rank-sum based conversion to importance scores, the category and item weights were calculated.ResultIn total, 59 panelists from 19 countries participated in selection and ranking of the items and categories. Final METRICS tool included 30 items within 9 categories. According to their weights, the categories were in descending order of importance: study design, imaging data, image processing and feature extraction, metrics and comparison, testing, feature processing, preparation for modeling, segmentation, and open science. A web application and a repository were developed to streamline the calculation of the METRICS score and to collect feedback from the radiomics community.ConclusionIn this work, we developed a scoring tool for assessing the methodological quality of the radiomics research, with a large international panel and a modified Delphi protocol. With its conditional format to cover methodological variations, it provides a well-constructed framework for the key methodological concepts to assess the quality of radiomic research papers.Critical relevance statementA quality assessment tool, METhodological RadiomICs Score (METRICS), is made available by a large group of international domain experts, with transparent methodology, aiming at evaluating and improving research quality in radiomics and machine learning.Key points• A methodological scoring tool, METRICS, was developed for assessing the quality of radiomics research, with a large international expert panel and a modified Delphi protocol.• The proposed scoring tool presents expert opinion-based importance weights of categories and items with a transparent methodology for the first time.• METRICS accounts for varying use cases, from handcrafted radiomics to entirely deep learning-based pipelines.• A web application has been developed to help with the calculation of the METRICS score (https://metricsscore.github.io/metrics/METRICS.html) and a repository created to collect feedback from the radiomics community (https://github.com/metricsscore/metrics).Graphical

Natural and Sociocultural Values of a Tourism Destination in the Function of Sustainable Tourism Development—An Example of a Protected Area

The Special Nature Reserve “Kraljevac” (RK) is located in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, in southern Banat. This first-category reserve covers an area of 264.3 ha and represents a natural item of exceptional importance. The reserve is characterized by significant geological heritage such as loess sections and dune relief, a lake with famous floating peat islands that form the physiology of this wetland, and very rare representatives of flora and fauna. The RK is characterized by the rich cultural heritage of the population living in South Banat. The different ethnic composition of the population and multiculturalism are the main sociocultural tourist motives of this protected area. The Deliblato Sands, known in Europe for their rare geological features, flora and fauna, are located in the immediate vicinity. This significantly increases the value of the RK. Quantitative methodology was used in the paper, which included interviewing respondents as a research technique. The research was conceived according to the Prism of Sustainability (PoS) model. For this sustainable tourism research, a total of 750 respondents (470 residents and 280 visitors) were surveyed. A written and online questionnaire was used in the survey of respondents. By using a questionnaire, respondents expressed their views on certain statements that were grouped into two categories. The claims refer to the natural and sociocultural factors of tourism development in this protected area. Both categories of tourism destination factors can significantly influence sustainable tourism. In addition, we examined the impact of sociocultural and natural factors on respondents’ satisfaction with sustainable tourism. The research results indicate that there is a significant influence of these factors on the satisfaction of residents and visitors with sustainable tourism. The results of this research can provide important information when planning the development of tourism in this protected area. Also, the results can help in the evolution of tourism development at the local, national and regional levels. The forms of tourism that could be central in the RK are scientific research, sports–recreational, ecotourism, bird-watching, events, cultural, gastronomic, and other tourism forms. These forms of tourism can provide environmental, economic and social benefits for this protected area as a tourism destination.