Standard Concepts Research Articles

On Structural and Safety Properties of Head-to-Tail String Stability in Mixed Platoons

The interaction between automated and human-driven vehicles in mixed (human/automated) platoons is far from understood. To study this interaction, the notion of head-to-tail string stability was proposed in the literature. Head-to-tail string stability is an extension of the standard string stability concept where, instead of asking every vehicle to achieve string stability, a lack of string stability is allowed due to human drivers, provided it can be suitably compensated by automated vehicles sparsely inserted in the platoon. This work introduces a theoretical framework for the problem of head-to-tail string stability of mixed platoons: it discusses a suitable vehicle-following human driver model to study mixed platoons, and it gives a reduced-order design strategy for head-to-tail string stability only depending on three gains. The work further discusses the safety limitations of the head-to-tail string stability notion, and it shows that safety improvements can be attained by an appropriate reduced-order design strategy only depending on two additional gains. To validate the effectiveness of the design, linear and nonlinear simulations show that the string stability/safety trade-offs of the proposed reduced-order design are comparable with those resulting from full-order designs.

Creating an ignorance-base: Exploring known unknowns in the scientific literature

Background:Scientific discovery progresses by exploring new and uncharted territory. More specifically, it advances by a process of transforming unknown unknowns first into known unknowns, and then into knowns. Over the last few decades, researchers have developed many knowledge bases to capture and connect the knowns, which has enabled topic exploration and contextualization of experimental results. But recognizing the unknowns is also critical for finding the most pertinent questions and their answers. Prior work on known unknowns has sought to understand them, annotate them, and automate their identification. However, no knowledge-bases yet exist to capture these unknowns, and little work has focused on how scientists might use them to trace a given topic or experimental result in search of open questions and new avenues for exploration. We show here that a knowledge base of unknowns can be connected to ontologically grounded biomedical knowledge to accelerate research in the field of prenatal nutrition. Results:We present the first ignorance-base, a knowledge-base created by combining classifiers to recognize ignorance statements (statements of missing or incomplete knowledge that imply a goal for knowledge) and biomedical concepts over the prenatal nutrition literature. This knowledge-base places biomedical concepts mentioned in the literature in context with the ignorance statements authors have made about them. Using our system, researchers interested in the topic of vitamin D and prenatal health were able to uncover three new avenues for exploration (immune system, respiratory system, and brain development) by searching for concepts enriched in ignorance statements. These were buried among the many standard enriched concepts. Additionally, we used the ignorance-base to enrich concepts connected to a gene list associated with vitamin D and spontaneous preterm birth and found an emerging topic of study (brain development) in an implied field (neuroscience). The researchers could look to the field of neuroscience for potential answers to the ignorance statements. Conclusion:Our goal is to help students, researchers, funders, and publishers better understand the state of our collective scientific ignorance (known unknowns) in order to help accelerate research through the continued illumination of and focus on the known unknowns and their respective goals for scientific knowledge.

Transforming Primary Care Data Into the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership Common Data Model: Development and Usability Study.

Patient-monitoring software generates a large amount of data that can be reused for clinical audits and scientific research. The Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) consortium developed the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) Common Data Model (CDM) to standardize electronic health record data and promote large-scale observational and longitudinal research. This study aimed to transform primary care data into the OMOP CDM format. We extracted primary care data from electronic health records at a multidisciplinary health center in Wattrelos, France. We performed structural mapping between the design of our local primary care database and the OMOP CDM tables and fields. Local French vocabularies concepts were mapped to OHDSI standard vocabularies. To validate the implementation of primary care data into the OMOP CDM format, we applied a set of queries. A practical application was achieved through the development of a dashboard. Data from 18,395 patients were implemented into the OMOP CDM, corresponding to 592,226 consultations over a period of 20 years. A total of 18 OMOP CDM tables were implemented. A total of 17 local vocabularies were identified as being related to primary care and corresponded to patient characteristics (sex, location, year of birth, and race), units of measurement, biometric measures, laboratory test results, medical histories, and drug prescriptions. During semantic mapping, 10,221 primary care concepts were mapped to standard OHDSI concepts. Five queries were used to validate the OMOP CDM by comparing the results obtained after the completion of the transformations with the results obtained in the source software. Lastly, a prototype dashboard was developed to visualize the activity of the health center, the laboratory test results, and the drug prescription data. Primary care data from a French health care facility have been implemented into the OMOP CDM format. Data concerning demographics, units, measurements, and primary care consultation steps were already available in OHDSI vocabularies. Laboratory test results and drug prescription data were mapped to available vocabularies and structured in the final model. A dashboard application provided health care professionals with feedback on their practice.

PHARMACEUTICAL-ANALYTICAL STANDARDIZATION OF KUKA COUGH SYRUP: AN AYURVEDIC POLYHERBAL MEDICINE

The concept of standardization evolved which became a necessity in the present times to ensure the safety and quality of the product. Standardization is an essential tool for establishing quality control methods for Ayurvedic drugs. Objectives: The study was planned by keeping in view the following objective: 1. To develop SMP for Kuka Cough Syrup. 2. To assess and standardize Kuka Cough Syrup analytically. Methods: A thorough and detailed screening of classical literature was done to formulate the composition, and method of preparation and for testing all three batches analytically. Result & Conclusion: The SOP of Kuka syrup developed in this paper yields for the production of a batch size of 5 litres. The end product so obtained is at par with all the laid standards.

Standardization of Nubian Levallois Technology in Dhofar, Southern Arabia

ABSTRACT The characteristics and distribution of “Nubian" Levallois technology have been prominent in recent discussions of Middle Palaeolithic/Middle Stone Age technological variability and its implications. Here we explore Nubian Levallois technology by focusing on the relative “standardization” of the TH.69 assemblage from western Dhofar, one of the most “Nubian” of all “Nubian” assemblages. Aspects evaluated include the shape of cores and the dorsal surface preparation patterns. We found that in some ways – such as the overall reduction method, and coefficients of variation for various features of core shape – the assemblage does demonstrate standardization. Yet, in others, such as the precise way in which dorsal surface convexity was prepared, the assemblage is rather less standardized. Our findings highlight the complexity of defining and operationalizing the concept of standardization. On balance, we argue that TH.69 does demonstrate relatively standardized reduction, yet the wider meaning of this is not clear.

Arduino - Uno Based Underground Cable Fault Detection System (AUCFDS)

Today, it is very challenging to manually find underground cable faults like wear and tear or rodents, because it costs more and takes more time. Finding the fault sources is also very difficult because the entire line must be dug to check for cable line faults. Our suggested system utilises an Arduino- microcontroller to help locate the fault's exact location. The standard concept of Ohm's law is applied in this system. The location of the shorted cable line determines the current flow when a low DC voltage is applied to underground cable lines at the feeder end through a series resistor. The system makes use of a rectified power supply and an Arduino- microcontroller board. The Arduino - microcontroller board is interfaced with a combination of resistors and current sensing circuits. the cable's length is represented by digital data that is sent from the internal ADC device to the microcontroller and displayed on the LCD Display.

Probabilistic Descriptions of Fluid Flow: A Survey

Fluids can behave in a highly irregular, turbulent way. It has long been realised that, therefore, some weak notion of solution is required when studying the fundamental partial differential equations of fluid dynamics, such as the compressible or incompressible Navier–Stokes or Euler equations. The standard concept of weak solution (in the sense of distributions) is still a deterministic one, as it gives exact values for the state variables (like velocity or density) for almost every point in time and space. However, observations and mathematical theory alike suggest that this deterministic viewpoint has certain limitations. Thus, there has been an increased recent interest in the mathematical fluids community in probabilistic concepts of solution. Due to the considerable number of such concepts, it has become challenging to navigate the corresponding literature, both classical and recent. We aim here to give a reasonably concise yet fairly detailed overview of probabilistic formulations of fluid equations, which can roughly be split into measure-valued and statistical frameworks. We discuss both approaches and their relationship, as well as the interrelations between various statistical formulations, focusing on the compressible and incompressible Euler equations.

Curating and extending data for language comparison in Concepticon and NoRaRe.

Language comparison requires user-friendly tools that facilitate the standardization of linguistic data. We present two resources built on the basis of a standardized cross-linguistic format and show how the data is curated and extended. The first resource, the Concepticon, is a reference catalog for standardized concepts from linguistic research. While curating the Concepticon, we found that a variety of studies in distinct research fields collected information on word properties. However, until recently, no resource existed that contained these data to enable the comparison of the different word properties across languages. This gap was filled by the Database of Norms, Ratings, and Relations (NoRaRe), which is an extension of the Concepticon. Here, we present the major release of both resources - Concepticon Version 3.0 and NoRaRe Version 1.0 - which represents an important step in our data development. We show that extending and adapting the data curation workflow in Concepticon to NoRaRe is useful for the standardization of cross-linguistic datasets. In addition, combining datasets from different research fields enables studies grounded in language comparison. Concepticon and NoRaRe include lexical data for various languages, tools for test-driven data curation, and the possibility for data reuse. The first major release of NoRaRe is also accompanied by a new web application that allows convenient access to the data.

Effects of early introduction of solid foods on nutrient intake in preterm infants during their 1st year of life: a secondary outcome analysis of a prospective, randomized intervention study.

ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01809548.

Digitization and the Value of Intermediaries in the Market for News

This short paper presents an economic perspective on factors that shape the market for news in the digital age. Using standard economic concepts of supply, demand, and competition, I offer ways of thinking about the value and impact of search, aggregation, and social networks in the market. I extend these ideas to discuss how royalty payments from platforms to publishers can alter incentives for market participants, with the potential for unintended consequences. The paper synthesizes ideas presented at the 2022 Symposium of the Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts.

Horizon scan of DNA-based methods for quality control and monitoring of herbal preparations.

Herbal medicines and preparations are widely used in healthcare systems globally, but concerns remain about their quality and safety. New herbal products are constantly being introduced to the market under varying regulatory frameworks, with no global consensus on their definition or characterization. These biologically active mixtures are sold through complex globalized value chains, which create concerns around contamination and profit-driven adulteration. Industry, academia, and regulatory bodies must collaborate to develop innovative strategies for the identification and authentication of botanicals and their preparations to ensure quality control. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) has significantly improved our understanding of the total species diversity within DNA mixtures. The standard concept of DNA barcoding has evolved over the last two decades to encompass genomic data more broadly. Recent research in DNA metabarcoding has focused on developing methods for quantifying herbal product ingredients, yielding meaningful results in a regulatory framework. Techniques, such as loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), DNA barcode-based Recombinase Polymerase Amplification (BAR-RPA), DNA barcoding coupled with High-Resolution Melting (Bar-HRM), and microfluidics-based methods, offer more affordable tests for the detection of target species. While target capture sequencing and genome skimming are considerably increasing the species identification resolution in challenging plant clades, ddPCR enables the quantification of DNA in samples and could be used to detect intended and unwanted ingredients in herbal medicines. Here, we explore the latest advances in emerging DNA-based technologies and the opportunities they provide as taxa detection tools for evaluating the safety and quality of dietary supplements and herbal medicines.

COVID-19 vaccination decisions among Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller communities: A qualitative study moving beyond “vaccine hesitancy”

BackgroundMany people refuse vaccination and it is important to understand why. Here we explore the experiences of individuals from Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller groups in England to understand how and why they decided to take up or to avoid COVID-19 vaccinations. MethodsWe used a participatory, qualitative design, including wide consultations, in-depth interviews with 45 individuals from Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller, communities (32 female, 13 male), dialogue sessions, and observations, in five locations across England between October 2021 and February 2022. FindingsVaccination decisions overall were affected by distrust of health services and government, which stemmed from prior discrimination and barriers to healthcare which persisted or worsened during the pandemic. We found the situation was not adequately characterised by the standard concept of “vaccine hesitancy”. Most participants had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, usually motivated by concerns for their own and others’ health. However, many participants felt coerced into vaccination by medical professionals, employers, and government messaging. Some worried about vaccine safety, for example possible impacts on fertility. Their concerns were inadequately addressed or even dismissed by healthcare staff. InterpretationA standard "vaccine hesitancy" model is of limited use in understanding vaccine uptake in these populations, where authorities and health services have been experienced as untrustworthy in the past (with little improvement during the pandemic). Providing more information may improve vaccine uptake somewhat; however, improved trustworthiness of health services for GRT communities is essential to increase vaccine coverage. FundingThis paper reports on independent research commissioned and funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Policy Research Programme. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR, the Department of Health and Social Care or its arm's length bodies, and other Government Departments.

Is cognition integral to psychopathology? A population-based cohort study.

Lower cognitive functioning has been documented across psychiatric disorders and hypothesized to be a core deficit of mental disorders. Situating psychopathology and cognition as part of a unitary construct is therefore important to understanding the etiology of psychiatric disorders. The current study aims to test competing structural models of psychopathology and cognition in a large national cohort of adolescents. The analytic sample consisted of 1189 participants aged 16-17 years, screened by the Israeli Draft Board. Psychopathology was assessed using a modified version of the Brief Symptom Inventory, and cognition was assessed based on four standardized test scores ((1) mathematical reasoning, concentration, and concept manipulation; (2) visual-spatial problem-solving skills and nonverbal abstract reasoning; (3) verbal understanding; (4) categorization and verbal abstraction). Confirmatory factor analysis was implemented to compare competing structural models of psychopathology with and without cognition. Sensitivity analyses examined the models in different subpopulations. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a better model fit of psychopathological symptoms without cognition (RMSEA = 0.037; TLI = 0.991; CFI = 0.992) than with cognition (RMSEA = 0.04-0.042; TLI = 0.987-0.988; CFI = 0.988-0.989). Sensitivity analyses supported the robustness of these results with a single exception. Among participants with low cognitive abilities (N = 139), models that integrated psychopathological symptoms with cognition had a better fit compared to models of psychopathology without cognition. The current study suggests that cognition and psychopathology are, generally, independent constructs. However, within low cognitive abilities, cognition was integral to the structure of psychopathology. Our results point toward an increased vulnerability to psychopathology in individuals with low cognitive abilities and may provide valuable information for clinicians.

Virasoro blocks and the reparametrization formalism

An effective theory designed to compute Virasoro identity blocks at large central charge, expressed in terms of the propagation of a reparametrization/shadow mode between bilocal vertices, was recently put forward. In this paper I provide the formal theoretical framework underlying this effective theory by reformulating it in terms of standard concepts: conformal geometry, generating functionals and Feynman diagrams. A key ingredient to this formalism is the bilocal vertex operator, or reparametrized two-point function, which is shown to generate arbitrary stress tensor insertions into a two-point function of reference. I also suggest an extension of the formalism designed to compute generic Virasoro blocks.

Curating and extending data for language comparison in Concepticon and NoRaRe

Language comparison requires user-friendly tools that facilitate the standardization of linguistic data. We present two resources built on the basis of a standardized cross-linguistic format and show how the data is curated and extended. The first resource, the Concepticon, is a reference catalog for standardized concepts from linguistic research. While curating the Concepticon, we found that a variety of studies in distinct research fields collected information on word properties. However, until recently, no resource existed that contained these data to enable the comparison of the different word properties across languages. This gap was filled by the Database of Norms, Ratings, and Relations (NoRaRe), which is an extension of the Concepticon. Here, we present the major release of both resources - Concepticon Version 3.0 and NoRaRe Version 1.0 - which represents an important step in our data development. We show that extending and adapting the data curation workflow in Concepticon to NoRaRe is useful for the standardization of cross-linguistic datasets. In addition, combining datasets from different research fields enables studies grounded in language comparison. Concepticon and NoRaRe include lexical data for various languages, tools for test-driven data curation, and the possibility for data reuse. The first major release of NoRaRe is also accompanied by a new web application that allows convenient access to the data.

Magnetic equilibrium optimisation and divertor integration in spherical tokamak reactors

Managing the heat exhaust presents one of the main challenges in the design of a spherical tokamak reactor. The development of a robust exhaust solution is intrinsically linked to the optimisation of the plasma equilibrium, together with a compatible poloidal field (PF) system. A multidisciplinary design framework should balance a host of often conflicting physics and engineering requirements and identify a set of self-consistent constraints. This work employs an iterative approach which integrates the core plasma scenario and divertor magnetic topology, ensuring compatibility with the available technology. The aim of this paper is to develop and assess a number of optimal magnetic configurations consistent with the UKAEA STEP Prototype Plant designs. Firstly, we use the Fiesta free-boundary equilibrium code to optimise the global configuration for a chosen double-null scenario, employing both standard and alternative exhaust-handling schemes. We then analyse the local scrape-off layer (SOL) magnetic topology in order to preliminarily assess the anticipated divertor performance. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each configuration in terms of the selected divertor metrics, the effects on the core plasma scenario, engineering feasibility, and the implications for whole reactor design.The inner divertor proves to be the most challenging issue in a compact device such as STEP. The small target area and reduced SOL width at the small strike-point radius lead to excessive heat loads beyond the power-handling capacity of standard concepts. We propose an alternative inner X-divertor configuration and compare it with the standard divertor optimised for maximal connection length and poloidal flux expansion. The objective is to achieve the optimal global configuration with a realistic coil set, taking into account space constraints and material limitations. We discuss the feasibility of each considered exhaust solution in STEP, where the PF shaping coils can be placed either in unfavourable locations outside of the toroidal field (TF) coil or mounted inside the TF and operating near their engineering limits.

Konsep Amar Ma’ruf Nahi Munkar Dalam Tafsir Al-Munir Karya Wahbah Al-Zuhaili:


 This article attempts to examine the concept of amar ma'ruf nahi munkar initiated by Wahbah al-Zuhaili in his commentary book al-Munir. The behavior of amar ma'ruf nahi munkar which has been misunderstood because there is no standard concept offered by the Qur'an has become an interesting discourse. The development of the times has contributed to influencing the concept of amar ma'ruf nahi munkar, in which each era has its own moral values and ideas adapted to the context of its society. This article is intended to provide understanding to the public regarding amar ma'ruf nahi munkar. The conclusion in this paper uses a normative approach, with the aim of trying to reveal the values of truth in society so that it should be actualized in the future. As for the findings that Wahbah al-Zuhaili said: that before doing amar ma'ruf nahi munkar one must have knowledge, both religious sciences and social sciences.
 Keywords: Wahbah Al-Zuhaili, Tafsir Al-Munir, Amar Ma'ruf, Nahi Munkar

Scale-up analysis of a twin-bed PSA pilot plant

Small-scale pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants, also referred to as pilot plants, are commonly exploited for studying separation processes in favour of the development of mathematical models and scale-up strategies. The applicability of a lately presented mathematical model, which was developed based on experimental data acquired from a high-purity twin-bed N2-PSA pilot plant, is verified in this paper for the design of large-scale systems by an analysis of the mass transfer zone development at different PSA cycle times. Effects of the PSA scale-up factor, adsorber aspect ratio, packed-bed density, and flow resistances along the piping system on the process performance are studied numerically. These considerations are particularly relevant for the scale-up of bank-type PSA units as well as for skid-mounted systems fitted to local space limitations, where the standard scale-up concept of keeping the gas velocity constant often cannot be fully realised. It is demonstrated that the sensitivity of the PSA performance to studied factors increases along with the required product purity level. Therefore, recommendations for adequate dimensions of pilot plants depending on the desired gas purity level can be derived. Limitations of the gas velocity through the adsorber shall be observed to generate reliable simulation data. The agreement between experimental results obtained from an industrial-scale system on one hand, and the outcome of a dynamic simulation on the other hand, is confirmed—provided that realistic pressure profiles are generated by a proper adjustment of flow resistances along the piping.

Actualization of methodology of diagnostic reference levels establishment for interventional radiological procedures

Interventional procedures are accompanied with high levels of patient exposure and even with the possibility of radiation skin damage. That’s why any actions leading to reduction of patients’ exposure levels are of utmost importance. Implementation of diagnostic reference levels is considered to be one of the most successful actions to reduce patient exposure levels. However the basic concept of diagnostic reference levels cannot be used for interventional radiology due to fact that procedures are not standardized. The article studies the main difficulties in applying the standard concept of diagnostic reference levels for interventional radiology procedures and proposes a new concept, taking into account the specifics of these procedures; the domestic and international documents are analyzed. The list of interventional procedures for diagnostic reference levels establishment is suggested based on the statistical data on performed procedures in the Russian Federation. The results of this study were used for the new Russian guidelines “Optimization of radiation protection of patients undergoing medical radiation diagnostic examinations through the use of diagnostic reference levels”.

International auditing standards and their role in achieving financial transparency requirements in insurance companies

The research discusses the role of International Auditing Standard No. 20, in achieving financial transparency, which has become an international requirement for organizations to classified and adopt their data as an economic indicator of the efficiency of the markets in which these organizations operate. And the research discussed the concept of international auditing standards and their relationship to achieving Elements of financial transparency through the application of its principles in organizations. And research reached a number of results, the most important is the weak interest of the auditing bodies in insurance companies to share the results of audit work with the media and the parties interested in the results of their work and their weak role in attracting researchers’ attention to the results of their work as part of the requirements Audit Standard No. 20.