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The aim of this study is to employ a response surface methodology (RSM) to optimize experimental parameters in microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (µ-PADs). The independent parameters include concentrations and volumes of acetylcholinesterase, acetylthiocholine iodide, and 5,5-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid). Their effect on mean color intensity was tested and optimized. From the analysis of variance, high regression and fitting values were obtained between the experimental and RSM predicted mean color intensity. Under optimum conditions, satisfactory linearity (R2 > 0.9990) in the range of 0.25–16 mg/L was obtained for the studied pesticides. The limit of detection (LOD) varies from 0.13 to 0.27 mg/L; high precision (RSD of 3.8–8.0%), reproducibility (RSD of 7.2–11.0%), and recovery (78–97%) were achieved. The RSM approach has been demonstrated to be more efficient than the traditional approach. It resulted in a µ-PAD system with less amount of reagent usage and better LOD compared with a univariate approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The print industry has observed an exponential growth over the last decade. A shift from plastics to paper has been observed in the packaging industry due to its sustainability. The gravure process dominates the packaging industry because of long runs and high print precision. This work focuses on the effect of gravure process parameters on print mottle for 50 GSM (gram/square meters) and 65 GSM (gram/square meters) C1S (coated-one-side) paper. Solid mottle refers to unevenness in print density and occurs due to variations in substrate, ink, and process parameters degrading the print quality, thereby resulting in printed wastage and loss to an organization. The intricate mechanism of ink transfer in the gravure process needs to be studied in depth so as to deliver higher yield and lower print waste. The Stochastic Frequency Distribution Analysis (SFDA) algorithm was used to measure the print mottle. The design of experiments (DOE) was run for gravure process parameters such as line screen, viscosity, press speed, electrostatic assist (ESA) voltage, and air gap (distance between impression roller and charge bar) at varying levels. The experimental data were analyzed through analysis of variance (ANOVA), main plot, and interaction plot. The analysis revealed significance of all process parameters for minimization of solid mottle. The optimized settings showed reduction in solid mottle by 64.68% and 67.78% for 50 GSM and 65 GSM, respectively. A stepwise regression model was developed to predict the print mottle that showed correlation coefficient of 0.912 and 0.938 for 50 GSM and 65 GSM C1S papers. This work could serve as a framework to maintain operating levels of gravure process for minimization of solid mottle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decolorization of Reactive Red 195 (RR195) by the oxalate catalyzed photoelectro-Fenton (PEF) process using carbon paper electrode as a cathode under visible light was studied. Comparison between electro-Fenton (EF), PEF, and PEF/oxalate processes for the removal of RR195 showed that color removal follows in decreasing order: PEF/oxalate > PEF > EF. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine the effects of the four main independent parameters (initial dye, oxalate and Fe concentrations, and reaction time) on decolorization efficiency. A high coefficient of determination value ( R = 0.963) has resulted from the analysis of variance (ANOVA). The optimum values of the initial Fe concentration, the initial amount of oxalate, the initial dye concentration, and the reaction time were found to be 0.3 mM, 0.6 mM, 20 mg/L, and 120 min, respectively. A high decolorization efficiency (>93 %) was experimentally obtained for RR195 under the established optimum conditions. The response surface plots were employed to establish the effect of experimental parameters on the decolorization efficiency. These results clearly indicated the success of RSM as a suitable method for optimizing the operating conditions. The mineralization of the dye was investigated by total organic carbon (TOC) measurement. 96.2 % mineralization of 50 mg/L RR195 was observed at 9 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peer reviewing is the key ingredient of evaluating the quality of scientific work. Based on the review scores assigned by individual reviewers to papers, program committees of conferences and journal editors decide which papers to accept for publication and which to reject. A similar procedure is part of the selection process of grant applications and, among other fields, in sports. It is well known that the reviewing process suffers from measurement errors due to a lack of agreement among multiple reviewers of the same paper. And if not all papers are reviewed by all reviewers, the naive approach of averaging the scores is biased. Several statistical methods are proposed for aggregating review scores, which all can be realized by standard statistical software. The simplest method uses the well-known fixed-effects two-way classification with identical variances, while a more advanced method assumes different variances. As alternatives a mixed linear model and a generalized linear model are employed. The application of these methods implies an evaluation of the reviewers, which may help to improve reviewing processes. An application example with real conference data shows the potential of these statistical methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To compare (1) fluid, food and nutrient intake obtained with a paper versus an online version of a 7-day food record and (2) user's acceptability of both versions of the food record. Methods: A cross-over study was carried out in 2010 in France. A total of 246 participants aged 18-60 years reported their food and fluid intake using both versions of the 7-day food record, separated by a 7- to 14-day washout period. To help participants in estimating consumed portions, both versions of the food record were supported by a photographic booklet of standard portions and containers. At the end of the study protocol, participants completed a questionnaire designed to assess the acceptability of the two questionnaires. Results: The reported water intake of fluids was significantly higher with the online version compared with the paper version (respectively 1348 ± 36 and 1219 ± 34 mL/day, p < 0.0001). No difference was found between methods in terms of energy intake and the consumption of most food categories, macro- and micronutrients. Furthermore, 77 % of the participants preferred the online method to the paper version. Conclusions: Fluid intake, but not food intake, reported with the online 7-day food record was higher in comparison with the paper version. In addition, the online version was preferred by users. In population surveys, the online record is therefore a relevant alternative, and even a preferred alternative in the case of fluid intake, to the paper record. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method was developed for the determination of trichloroanisole, tribromoanisole and pentachloroanisol by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography in paper samples (Kraft liner, Test liner and Miolo). Four commercial SPME fibers were evaluated: Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), Polyacrylate (PA), Carbowax/Divinylbenzene (CW/DVB) and Divinylbenzene/Carboxen/Polydimethylsiloxane (DVB/CAR/PDMS). DVB/CAR/PDMS gave the best results and was therefore selected. Other variables involved in the extraction procedure were studied and optimized, such as: sample volume, salting-out effect, temperature and extraction time, effect of organic solvent and previous sample preparation. Optimum conditions were obtained using 20 mL of sample with 5 mol L−1 NaCl in a 40 mL vial, extraction temperature of 70 °C and sonication and extraction time of 30 and 40 min, respectively. Detection limits ranged from 0.43 to 1.32 ng g−1 for all analytes. Recoveries between 70 and 100% were obtained and relative standard deviation was below 10% for all compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which determines the effect of untreated effluent from two pulp and paper mills on a benthic marine fish, Pseudopleuronectes americanus. The study uses one- or two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), mean and standard errors, and organ somatic indices. Results show that main aspects of long-term pollution caused by effluents from paper and pulp mills include the negative effects on fish populations and communities.

The article presents a study which examines the laboratory induction in the intersexuality of Gambusia (G.) affinis mosquitofish using paper mill effluent. Study used analysis of variance and multiple linear regression statistical analyses during data analysis. Study reveals that an androgenic-like compound, androgen, or a water-borne androgen precursor serves as responsible agent for poeciliid fishes' intersex condition.

The article discusses a study which examined the development of the paper-based Hajji Health Record (PHHR) instrument. Topics covered include the conduct of a survey among physicians in Alnoor Specialist Hospital in Saudi Arabia, the supportive effects of electronic health record system on health care and the need for standard-based health information technology to get quality of care.

In the present school-based study, a convenience sample of 477 students in grades 6-9 and second year in high school from a city and a smaller town recorded daily occurrence and intensity of headaches in a standard paper diary during a 3-week period. Total headache activity (headache sum), number of headache days, intensity level and duration for weekly headaches were estimated. Approximately 85% of the adolescents had experienced headache of any intensity level during the 3-week recording period. On the average, they reported 2.5 headache days per week and a mean intensity level for headache episodes of 1.7. Our estimates for headache of any intensity level (1-5) occurring at least once a week was surprisingly high (73.8%). For the highest intensity level across the whole 3-week period, almost identical proportions of mild and moderate headaches were reported by students (22.3-22.5%), while about twice as many (40.7%) had experienced severe headaches. Girls consistently reported more headaches than boys, in particular of the moderate and severe intensity types. Students in the city also reported more frequent and intense headaches than those in the town. Peak headache activity was observed at noon and in the afternoon and in the days from the middle of the week until weekend. The use of prospective recordings in diaries will further advance our knowledge on the prevalence and characteristics of recurrent headaches among children and adolescents in community samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid development of pure electric vehicles, how to improve the range has become the focus of research. Due to the large shell mass of the battery pack shell (BPE), it is necessary to optimize its structure in turn. In this paper, the BPE model was reconstructed by improving the upper shell material and adding reinforcements following the direction of the leaf vein fibers of the Magnolia Grandiflora. A quasi-Monte Carlo method based on Sobol sequences and a Latin hypercube design with variance sensitivity analysis was used to determine the seven design variables. The 122 data sets were trained and predicted using the basic gradient descent algorithm combined with the conjugate direction method, and the predictions were compared with static mechanical simulations for sharp cornering conditions on bumpy roads. The results showed that the BPE weight reduction ratio was 19.5%, and the maximum stress reduction ratio was 27.49%, and the displacement reduction ratio was 29.29% respectively, which satisfied the material requirements. It had a 20.88% increase in first-order mode frequency, which effectively prevented resonance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, the reaction conditions required for the partial oxidation of a commercial nonionic textile surfactant, an alkyl polyethoxylate, with the H2O2/UV-C treatment process were optimized using central composite design and response surface methodology (CCD-RSM). CCD-RSM allowed for the development of empirical quadratic equations that satisfactorily predicted COD and TOC removal efficiencies under all studied experimental conditions. Analysis of variance revealed that the variables “H2O2concentration” and “initial surfactant COD” were found to be the process independent parameters most positively and negatively affecting the treatment performance, respectively, whereas the process variable “treatment time” had a smaller influence on COD and TOC removal efficiencies. According to the established polynomial regression models, for the degradation of the nonionic surfactant at an initial COD of 450 mg L−1and pH of 10.5, the optimized treatment conditions were 15 mM H2O2and a reaction time of 80 min. In order to achieve the treatment targets (complete surfactant removal accompanied by 60% COD and TOC elimination to meet the national discharge consents into receiving water bodies) either H2O2concentration or photochemical treatment time had to be increased. Activated sludge inhibition experiments conducted with nonionic surfactant solution being subjected to photochemical oxidation under optimized reaction conditions indicated that the inhibitory effect of the nonionic surfactant could be completely eliminated during H2O2/UV-C treatment and the partial degradation intermediates were more biodegradable than the original textile surfactant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study introduces a quadtree decomposition approach for assessing surface structures. The calculated quadtree variables like the number of blocks (nQT), the mean block size (mQT) and the standard deviation of the block sizes (sQT) seem to be suitable surface descriptors for quantifying the structural changes of the paper surface due to, e.g. production or printing conditions. The graphical representation of the quadtree decomposition is also intuitive and easy to interpret, thus giving a unique opportunity to observe and track structural changes locally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel chromogenic reagent, 2-(2-sulfo-4-acetylphenylazo)-7-(2,4,6-trichlorophenylazo)-1,8-dihydroxynaphthalene-3,6-disulfonic acid 1, was prepared by diazo coupling of 4-acetylaniline-2-sulfonic acid and 2,4,6-trichloroaniline to chromotropic acid through –N=N– groups. Based on this reagent, a simple, sensitive and selective spectrophotometric method was developed for the determination of lead. In 0.20 M phosphoric acid medium, lead reacts with 1 to form a 1:2 blue complex with an absorption maximum of 654 nm. Beer’s law is obeyed in the range of 0–0.6 mg L-1 of lead. The apparent molar absorptivity is 1.25 × 105 L mol-1 cm-1. The detection limit and quantification limit were found to be 0.63 µg L-1 and 2.1 µg L-1, respectively. The relative standard deviation for eleven replicate measurements was of 2.6%. The interference of foreign ions was also investigated. All the other foreign ions studied did not interfere with lead determination except for Ca(II) and Ba(II). The interference caused by Ca(II) and Ba(II) can be eliminated by prior extraction of lead with potassium iodide-methylisobutylketone (KI-MIBK). The proposed method was applied to the determination of lead in certified samples with satisfactory results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia (CIAS) represents a distinct, persistent, and core group of schizophrenia symptoms. Cognitive symptoms have been shown to have an impact on quality of life. There are several published CIAS measures, but none based on direct patient self-report. It is important to capture the patient's perspective to supplement performancebased outcome measures of cognition to provide a complete picture of the patient's experience. This paper describes additional validation work on the Patient-Reported Experience of Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenia (PRECIS) instrument. Methods: Data from two large, international, pharmaceutical clinical trials in medically and psychiatrically stable English-speaking patients with schizophrenia and 88 healthy controls were analyzed. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted in one trial (n = 215), using the original 35-item PRECIS. The factor structure suggested by EFA was further evaluated using item response theory (IRT; Samejima's graded response model), and tested using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Both EFA and CFA results were tested in a second trial with similar inclusion/exclusion characteristics (n = 410). Additional statistical properties were evaluated in healthy controls. Results: EFA suggested that the best solution after item reduction suggested a factor structure of 6 factors based on 26 items (memory, communication, self-control, executive function, attention, sharpness of thought), supporting a total score, with an additional 2-item bother score (28 items in all). IRT analysis indicated the items were well-ordered within each domain. The CFA demonstrated excellent model fit, accounting for 69% of the variance. The statistical properties of the 28-item version of the PRECIS were confirmed in the second trial. Evidence for internal consistency and test-retest reliability was robust. Known-groups validity was supported by comparison of healthy controls with patients with schizophrenia. Correlations indicated moderate associations between PRECIS and functioning instruments like the Schizophrenia Cognition Rating Scale (SCoRS), but weak correlations with performance-based outcomes like MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). Discussion: Using two clinical trial samples, we identified a robust factor structure for the PRECIS and were able to replicate it in the second sample. Evaluation of the meaningful score difference (MSD) should be repeated in future studies, as these samples did not show enough change for it to be evaluated. Conclusions: This analysis provides strong evidence for the reliability and validity of the PRECIS, a 28-item, patient-reported instrument to assess cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia. The correlation with functioning and the weak correlation with performance on cognitive tasks suggests that patient reports of cognitive impairment measure a unique aspect of patient experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to investigate the friction and wear behavior of LM 25 Aluminum alloy reinforced with Hexagonal Boron Nitride (h-BN) and Boron Carbide (B4C) by using a mixture design and desirability approach. Ten different samples were prepared by the stir casting method with different compositions of base Alloy (LM 25) and h-BN and B4C reinforcements. Tests were performed on pin-on-disk equipment under dry sliding conditions and Wear and coefficient Friction of the samples have been analyzed. From microstructure analysis, it was clear that the mixing was done properly and reinforcements were uniformly distributed in the matrix phase. From wear analysis all the reinforced samples have less wear loss as compared with the base alloy. Out of all the samples, sample with compositions of h-BN with 2% and B4C of 6% have low wear loss. Also low coefficient of friction was found as 0.26850 for the composite sample with composition of h-BN with 6% and B4C of 2%. The optimal values with wear loss of 0.005 g and coefficient of friction of 0.282 were found with LM 25 of 92.368%, h-BN 5.188% and B4C of 2.444% with a desirability score of 0.989. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple criteria decision-making methods have been extremely useful for identifying the optimal alternative in complicated decision problems. However, in dynamic decision situations, they often suffer from rank reversal problem (RRP). For minimising the RRP, various improvements in existing methods have emerged in recent times. The proximity-indexed value (PIV) method is one method that promises to minimize the rank reversal problem. However, a detailed investigation of the RRP issue for the PIV method does not exist. In this paper, the PIV method has been taken up for a detailed examination of RRP using a MATLAB simulation-based framework by generating a sample of 10,000 random decision matrices. Seven approaches have been used to detect the existence of rank reversal. It is found that a sizeable prevalence of rank reversal remains in the PIV method. A new, improved PIV (IPIV) method is also proposed in this paper, which has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing the prevalence of rank reversal to almost zero. The effect of varying the number of criteria and the number of alternatives is also evaluated while considering the variation in criteria weights, i.e. equal and unequal criteria weights. Analysis of variance using the concept of blocking has been carried out on the results obtained at a 5% level of significance. The study also identifies more effective approaches from the seven approaches used to detect rank reversal. In addition, the application of the IPIV method is demonstrated in a real-world problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sentiment analysis involves extricating and interpreting people's views, feelings, beliefs, etc., about diverse actualities such as services, goods, and topics. People intend to investigate the users' opinions on the online platform to achieve better performance. Regardless, the high-dimensional feature set in an online review study affects the interpretation of classification. Several studies have implemented different feature selection techniques; however, getting a high accuracy with a very minimal number of features is yet to be accomplished. This paper develops an effective hybrid approach based on an enhanced genetic algorithm (GA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to achieve this purpose. To beat the local minima convergence problem, this paper uses a unique two-phase crossover and impressive selection approach, gaining high exploration and fast convergence of the model. The use of ANOVA drastically reduces the feature size to minimize the computational burden of the model. Experiments are performed to estimate the algorithm performance using different conventional classifiers and algorithms like GA, Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE), Random Forest, ExtraTree, AdaBoost, GradientBoost, and XGBoost. The proposed novel approach gives impressive results using the Amazon Review dataset with an accuracy of 78.60 %, F1 score of 79.38 %, and an average precision of 0.87, and the Restaurant Customer Review dataset with an accuracy of 77.70 %, F1 score of 78.24 %, and average precision of 0.89 as compared to other existing algorithms. The result shows that the proposed model outperforms other algorithms with nearly 45 and 42% fewer features for the Amazon Review and Restaurant Customer Review datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the paper is to improve the efficiency of vehicle based sensing technology in highway pavement condition assessment by evaluating the effect of four factors (sensor placement, pavement temperature, drive speed, and threshold for pavement distress classification) and providing suggestions to better improve the accuracy of pavement condition detection and minimize the interruption of pavement sensing operation. Two I-10 corridors in the Phoenix region were selected for vibration data collection and data analysis. A series of statistical analyses were performed to determine if each one of the factors has a significant impact on the pavement distress detection. The results of Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) tests show that the placement of sensors have a significant effect in the pavement condition assessments. The significant differences occurred in the group of sensors that were placed on the same side of the vehicle, as well as, in either front wheels or rear wheels of the vehicle. The effect of pavement temperature on the vehicle based sensing implementation is significant while the mean drive speed is not seen as a significant factor in the pavement condition survey. The two thresholds were determined to select points of interest (POI; cracks, potholes) for the pavement distress classification and these POIs are in good agreement with international roughness index (IRI) data in an ArcGIS map. The findings of the paper can be used to better improve the computing algorithms of vehicle based sensing techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fisher–von Mises–Langevin distributions are widely used for modeling directional data. In this paper, the problem of testing homogeneity of mean directions of several Fisher–von Mises–Langevin populations is considered when the concentration parameters are unknown and heterogeneous. First, an adaptive test based on the likelihood ratio statistic is proposed. Critical points are evaluated using a parametric bootstrap. Second, a heuristic test statistic is considered based on pairwise group differences. A nonparametric bootstrap procedure is adapted for evaluating critical points. Finally, a permutation test is also proposed. An extensive simulation study is performed to compare the size and power values of these tests with those proposed earlier. It is observed that both parametric and nonparametric bootstrap based tests achieve size values quite close to the nominal size. Asymptotic tests and permutation tests have size values higher than the nominal size. Bootstrap tests are seen to have very good power performance. The robustness of tests is also studied by considering contamination in Fisher–von Mises–Langevin distributions. R packages are developed for the actual implementation of all tests. A real data set has been considered for illustrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The augmented randomized complete block design (ARCBD) is widely used in plant breeding programs to screen numerous new treatments. The error variance is estimated based on the replicated control treatments run over a randomized complete block design and is used to test the new treatments that are administrated each once in the extended units of the blocks. However, one or more observations corresponding to the control treatments may be missed in experiments, making difficulties, e.g., biased estimates. An approximate common approach to deal with this problem is the imputation of the estimated value which is with some uncertainties. Moreover, in real-life experiments, there are more sources of uncertainty that cause conflict-indeterminate, vague, imprecise, and erroneous data that increases the complexity of the analysis. In this paper, an exact scheme is utilized to deal with a missing control treatment in ARCBD. To overcome the problem of indeterminacies in data, a novel neutrosophic analysis approach is proposed. Specifically, the problem of a missing value in an ARCBD for an uncertain environment is resolved analytically by considering an augmented incomplete block design in the framework of neutrosophic statistics so-called neutrosophic augmented randomized complete block design (NARCBD). In this approach, by proposing the neutrosophic model, the neutrosophic estimations as well as the mathematical neutrosophic adjusted sums of squares are derived and the analysis of variance table is provided. The new model is applied to the neutrosophic genotype data example of safflower and assessed by a simulation study. Furthermore, a code in the R software was written to analyze the data based on the proposed approach to fill the calculation gap for data analysis in NARCBD with a missing value. In light of the results observed, it can be concluded that the neutrosophic exact proposed method performs better than the classic in the presence of uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of TNF-α blockers on ulcerative colitis (UC) and their safety. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of TNF-α blockers for treatment of UC were retrieved from databases. Heterogeneity test was performed on all data to select effects models. Finally, sensitivity analysis was carried out, and a funnel plot was drawn to evaluate publication bias. Results: A total of nine RCTs conformed to the inclusion criteria. Of 1,226 patients with UC, 806 were given a TNF-α blocker, and 420 were given placebo or other drugs as control. Infliximab was used in eight papers and adalimumab in one paper. Placebo was used in seven papers and hormones in two papers. Short-term response, short-term relief, long-term response, and long-term relief were better in the TNF-α blocker group than in the control group ( P < 0.05). TNF-α blockers decreased the colectomy rate ( P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in mucosal healing and quality of life between the two groups ( P > 0.05). The rates of adverse reactions were similar in the two groups ( P > 0.05), but the rate of severe adverse reactions was significantly lower in the TNF-α blocker group than in the control group ( P < 0.05). The funnel plot of each parameter was symmetrical with the lower part broader than the upper. Conclusions: TNF-α blockers have better therapeutic effects on moderate or severe UC, which shows little response to conventional therapy. TNF-α blockers can induce short-term response, maintain long-term clinical response and clinical relief, and decrease the colectomy rate and the severe adverse reaction rate, but they fail to improve quality of life and mucosal healing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In a context of increasing automation of road transport, many researchers have been dedicated to analyse the risks and safety implications of resuming the manual control of a vehicle after a period of automated driving. This paper performs a systematic review about drivers' performance during takeover manoeuvres in driving simulator, a tool that is widely used in the evaluation of automated systems to reproduce risky situations that would not be possible to test in real roads. Objectives: The main objectives are to provide a framework for the main strategies, experimental conditions and results obtained by takeover research using driving simulation, as well as to find whether different approaches may lead to different outcomes. Methodology: First, a literature search following the PRISMA statement guidelines and checklist resulted in 36 relevant papers, which were described in detail according to the type of scenarios and takeover events, drivers' engagement in secondary tasks and the assessed takeover performance measures. Then, those papers were included in a meta-analysis combining PAM clustering and ANOVA techniques to find patterns among the experimental conditions and to determine if those patterns have influence on the observed takeover performance. Conclusions: Less complex experiments without secondary task engagement and conducted in low-fidelity simulators are associated with lower takeover times and crash rates. The takeover time increases with the time budget of the first alert, which reduces the pressure for a driver's quick intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic review of the literature was performed in July 2011. Original papers based on longitudinal studies measuring spine, femoral neck, or total body bone mass by DXA were included ( n = 17). Birth weight was positively associated with bone mass among children. The association was unclear among adolescents and weak among adults. This study aims to evaluate the association between birth weight and bone mass in future ages through a systematic review of literature and meta-analysis. A systematic review of the literature was performed in July 2011 in Medline, Web of Science and LILACS bases using key terms: ( 'birth size' OR 'birth weight' OR birthweight OR prematurity OR premature OR 'gestational age') AND (osteoporosis OR 'bone mass' OR 'bone density' OR 'bone mineral density' OR 'bone mineral content' OR 'bone area') AND (longitudinal OR cohort). Original papers based on longitudinal studies measuring lumbar spine, femoral neck or total body bone mass by dual-emission X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) were included. A meta-analysis was performed using birth weight and bone mass density and/or content as continuous variables and adjusted for current height and/or weight. A total of 218 articles were retrieved from which 17 were selected and grouped into three categories according to age: studies with children; with adolescents and young adults, and studies with adults (older than 25). Five papers were included in the meta-analysis. Positive association between birth weight and bone mass was clear among children, unclear among adolescents, and weak among adults. The effect on bone mass content was stronger than those on body mass density regardless of age. Birth weight influences positively bone health in later life. Preventive health policies dealing with early-life modifiable risk factors, as birth weight, should be encouraged to attain an optimal peak bone mass as an strategy to decrease osteoporosis in the elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For an increasing number of applications, the quality and the stability of manufacturing processes can be determined via image and video-image data analysis and new techniques are required to extract and synthesize the relevant information content enclosed in big sensor data to draw conclusions about the process and the final part quality. This paper focuses on video image data where the phenomena under study is captured by a point process whose spatial signature is of interest. A novel approach is proposed which combines spatial data modeling via Ripley's K-function with Functional Analysis of Variance (FANOVA), i.e., Analysis of Variance on Functional data. The K-function allows to synthesize the spatial pattern information in a function while preserving the capability to capture changes in the process behavior. The method is applicable to quantities and phenomena that can be represented as clusters, or clouds, of spatial points evolving over time. In our case, the motivating case study regards the analysis of spatter ejections caused by the laser-material interaction in Additive Manufacturing via Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF). The spatial spread of spatters, captured in the form of point particles through in-situ high speed machine vision, can be used as a proxy to select the best conditions to avoid defects (pores) in the manufactured part. The proposed approach is shown to be not only an efficient way to translate the high-dimensional video image data into a lower dimensional format (the K-function curves), but also more effective than benchmark methods in detecting departures from a stable and in-control state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research papers assessing the content of soil organic carbon with the help of Vis-NIR spectroscopy approaches are systematically analyzed and subject to meta-analysis. This meta-analysis included 134 studies published in 1986–2022 with a total sample of 709 values of quantitative metrics. The papers have been searched for in databases of scientific periodicals (RSCI, Science Direct, Scopus, and Google Scholar) by the key word combination "Vis-NIR spectroscopy AND soil organic carbon". The meta-analysis using the nonparametric one-sided Kruskal–Wallis variance analysis in conjunction with nonparametric pairwise method shows the presence of a statistically significant difference between the median values of the accepted quantitative metrics of the predictive power of the models, namely, coefficient of determination (R2cv/val), root mean square error (RMSE), and the ratio of performance to deviation (RPD). The best performance of the preprocessing method for spectral curves is demonstrated and the estimates of soil organic carbon content obtained by laboratory and field spectroscopies are compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this comment on the discussion paper "The power of monitoring: how to make the most of a contaminated multivariate sample" by A. Cerioli, M. Riani, A. Atkinson and A. Corbellini, we describe how the hard rejection property of the MCD method can be mimicked by an S-estimator with appropriate rho-function. We also point the reader to fast and deterministic algorithms for the MCD, S- and MM-estimators that are specifically suited for monitoring experiments. They were made available a few years ago and successfully used for monitoring in our papers. Finally, the question is raised how monitoring can be applied or extended for increasing numbers of cases, variables and tuning parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The process of evaluating papers for journal publication is a measurement process, similar to the other measurement processes of qualitative material in the social sciences. A good qualitative measurement technique rarely has a reliability coefficient of more than about 0.50 i.e., a correlation of 0.50 of one measurement with another measurement by the same technique. The square root of the reliability of a measure is the upper limit of its validity. If it is assumed that journal editing as a measurement process is as good as good qualitative measurement can possibly be, given this experience in the social sciences it would estimate the validity of a judgment of article quality to be about 0.70. The two major journals in Sociology accept about 16 per cent of the papers submitted to them. If the quality of papers judged is approximately normal, then one can say that papers judged to be 1 standard deviation or more above the mean of papers submitted will be accepted. Assuming a correlation of 0.70 between the true quality of the paper and the judged quality, one can estimate the proportion of acceptances of papers of different quality.

The paper aims to develop prediction model that integrates clinical, radiomics, and deep features using transfer learning to stratifying between high and low risk of thymoma. Our study enrolled 150 patients with thymoma (76 low-risk and 74 high-risk) who underwent surgical resection and pathologically confirmed in Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University from January 2018 to December 2020. The training cohort consisted of 120 patients (80%) and the test cohort consisted of 30 patients (20%). The 2590 radiomics and 192 deep features from non-enhanced, arterial, and venous phase CT images were extracted and ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficient, PCA, and LASSO were used to select the most significant features. A fusion model that integrated clinical, radiomics, and deep features was developed with SVM classifiers to predict the risk level of thymoma, and accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, ROC curves, and AUC were applied to evaluate the classification model. In both the training and test cohorts, the fusion model demonstrated better performance in stratifying high and low risk of thymoma. It had AUCs of 0.99 and 0.95, and an accuracy of 0.93 and 0.83, respectively. This was compared to the clinical model (AUCs of 0.70 and 0.51, accuracy of 0.68 and 0.47), the radiomics model (AUCs of 0.97 and 0.82, accuracy of 0.93 and 0.80), and the deep model (AUCs of 0.94 and 0.85, accuracy of 0.88 and 0.80). The fusion model integrating clinical, radiomics and deep features based on transfer learning was efficient for noninvasively stratifying high risk and low risk of thymoma. The models could help to determine surgery strategy for thymoma cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we discuss key characteristics and typical experimental designs of the visual-world paradigm and compare different methods of analysing eye-movement data. We discuss the nature of the eye-movement data from a visual-world study and provide data analysis tutorials on ANOVA, t-tests, linear mixed-effects model, growth curve analysis, cluster-based permutation analysis, bootstrapped differences of timeseries, generalised additive modelling, and divergence point analysis to enable psycholinguists to apply each analytical method to their own data. We discuss advantages and disadvantages of each method and offer recommendations about how to select an appropriate method depending on the research question and the experimental design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An automated diagnosis system is crucial for helping radiologists identify brain abnormalities efficiently. The convolutional neural network (CNN) algorithm of deep learning has the advantage of automated feature extraction beneficial for an automated diagnosis system. However, several challenges in the CNN-based classifiers of medical images, such as a lack of labeled data and class imbalance problems, can significantly hinder the performance. Meanwhile, the expertise of multiple clinicians may be required to achieve accurate diagnoses, which can be reflected in the use of multiple algorithms. In this paper, we present Deep-Stacked CNN, a deep heterogeneous model based on stacked generalization to harness the advantages of different CNN-based classifiers. The model aims to improve robustness in the task of multi-class brain disease classification when we have no opportunity to train single CNNs on sufficient data. We propose two levels of learning processes to obtain the desired model. At the first level, different pre-trained CNNs fine-tuned via transfer learning will be selected as the base classifiers through several procedures. Each base classifier has a unique expert-like character, which provides diversity to the diagnosis outcomes. At the second level, the base classifiers are stacked together through neural network, representing the meta-learner that best combines their outputs and generates the final prediction. The proposed Deep-Stacked CNN obtained an accuracy of 99.14% when evaluated on the untouched dataset. This model shows its superiority over existing methods in the same domain. It also requires fewer parameters and computations while maintaining outstanding performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microlearning, as an informal learning approach, has gained increasing popularity in both the training industry and professional studies disciplines over the last several years. However, despite the rising interest in microlearning, how to design microlearning activities and what microcontent is reasonable for microlearning activities have rarely been addressed. In this study, we designed a 6-week micro-reading activity. During the process, 30 students majoring in Education Technology participated in the activity. They were randomly divided into an electronic book reading (e-reading) group and a paper book reading (p-reading) group, and were required to read the same book within 6 weeks. Formative and summative evaluations were performed to assess the effectiveness of the micro-reading activity. Descriptive statistics and bar and line chart were applied to reflect the results of formative evaluation; One-way ANOVA analysis was used to process the data of summative evaluations. Students' average reading time, reading pace, and weekly reading notes were recorded and analyzed as the formative evaluation. The results indicated that all students achieved the reading objective, and they kept relatively high engagement in the micro-reading activity. According to the results of the summative evaluation, both groups of students' average scores were relatively high. However, compared to the p-reading group, the average score of the e-reading group was higher, and some significant differences were also found in the average scores of the two groups. Therefore, the 6-week micro-reading activity was beneficial for students' reading effectiveness, and the e-reading type was more effective for promoting students' reading effectiveness. In the future, it would be worthwhile for designers to consider how to design the duration of activities in a reasonable way and to compare how new electronic reading platforms compare with traditional print sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trauma refers to an overwhelming experience that can leave lingering and negative memories in individuals. Although it is a precursor to challenging behaviours among students with disabilities, the ability of teachers to manage and support them in overcoming their post-trauma experiences is rarely discussed in the literature. This study aims to understand the perceived competence of teachers in adopting trauma-informed practices (TIP) for students with disabilities in regular classrooms in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The trauma model of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) guided the development of the Teacher Trauma Management Scale (TTMS) as well as the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR-16), which was used for data collection. A total of 244 in-service teachers were recruited from 22 schools in one of the seven Emirates in the UAE. The data were subjected to a t-test, an analysis of variance, Pearson moment-production correlation, hierarchical regression and moderation analyses. The results show an interrelationship between most of the domains of the SAMHSA model, the ambivalence of participants towards the implementation of TIP, a small influence of social desirability and the effect of background variables on TIP in the UAE. The study findings showed neutrality of participants on trauma management and thus, highlighting the need for TIP policy formulation, curriculum reform and other implications, which are discussed in detail in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine possible changes in outcome from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and to compare severity of lung injury and methods of treatment from 1967 to 1994.Data Sources: Computerized (Medline, Current Contents) and manual (Cumulated Index Medicus) literature search using the key word and/or title ARDS.Study Selection: Only clinical studies published as full papers reporting data on both patient mortality (survival) and oxygenation index (PaO2/FIO2) were included. Single case reports, abstracts, reviews and editorials were excluded from evaluation.Data Extraction: Relevant data were extracted in duplicate, followed by quality checks on approximately 80% of data extracted.Data Synthesis: 101 papers reporting on 3264 patients were included: 48 studies (2207 patients) were performed in the USA, 43 studies (742 patients) in Europe and 10 studies (315 patients) elsewhere. Mortality reported in these studies was 53 +/- 22% (mean +/- SD), with no apparent trend towards a higher survival (1994: 22 studies, mortality 51 +/- 19%). The mean PaO2/FIO2 ratio remained unchanged throughout the observation period (118 +/- 47 mmHg). No correlation could be established between outcome and PaO2/FIO2 or lung injury score. Patients who underwent pressure-limited ventilation had a significantly lower mortality (35 +/- 20%) than patients on volume-cycled ventilation (54 +/- 22%) or patients for whom there was no precise information on ventilatory support (59 +/- 19%). Significantly lower PaO2/FIO2 ratios (61 +/- 17 mmHg) were observed in patients prior to extracorporeal lung assist, together with mortality rates in the range of those for conventionally treated patients (55 +/- 22%).Conclusions: The mortality of ARDS patients remained constant throughout the period studied. Therefore, the standard for outcome in ARDS should be a mortality in the 50% range. Neither PaO2/FIO2 ratio nor lung injury score was a reliable predictor for outcome in ARDS. Patients might benefit from pressure-limited ventilatory support, as well as extracorporeal lung assist. Since crucial data were missing in most clinical studies, thus preventing direct comparison, we emphasize the importance of using standardized definitions and study entry criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amputation of a limb may have a negative impact on the psychological and physical well-being, mobility and social life of individuals with limb amputations. Participation in sports and/or regular physical activity has a positive effect on the above mentioned areas in able-bodied individuals. Data concerning participation in sports or regular physical activity together with its benefits and risks for individuals with limb amputations are scarce. No systematic review exists that addresses a wide range of outcomes such as biomechanics, cardiopulmonary function, psychology, sport participation and sport injuries. Therefore, the aim of this article is to systematically review the literature about individuals with limb amputations and sport participation. MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE, CINAHL® and SportDiscus® were searched without time or language restrictions using free text words and MeSH terms. The last search date was 31 March 2010. Books, internet sites and references of included papers were checked for papers relevant to the topic under review. Papers were included if the research topic concerned sports and a minimum of ten individuals with limb amputations were part of the study population. Papers were excluded if they included individuals with amputations of body parts other than upper or lower limbs or more distal than the wrist or ankle, or if they consisted of case reports, narrative reviews, books, notes or letters to the editor. Title, abstract and full-text assessments were performed by two independent observers following a list of preset criteria. Of the 3689 papers originally identified, 47 were included in the review. Most of the included studies were older than 10 years and had cross-sectional designs. Study participants were generally younger and often had more traumatic amputations than the general population of individuals with limb amputations. Heterogeneity in population characteristics, intervention types and main outcomes made data pooling impossible. In general, sports were associated with a beneficial effect on the cardiopulmonary system, psychological well-being, social reintegration and physical functioning. Younger individuals with unilateral transtibial amputations achieve better athletic performance and encounter fewer problems when participating in sports compared with older individuals with bilateral transfemoral amputations. Regardless of their amputation level, individuals with limb amputations participate in a wide range of recreational activities. The majority of them were not aware of the sport facilities in their area and were not informed about available recreational activities. Sport prosthetic devices were used mostly by competitive athletes. For football, the injury rate and pattern of the players with an amputation were similar to those of able-bodied players. Individuals with limb amputations appear to benefit both physically and psychologically from participation in sports and/or regular physical activity. Therefore, sports should be included in rehabilitation programmes, and individuals with limb amputations should be encouraged to pursue a physically active life following hospital discharge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Atomic Energy Agency uses the Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry Total Evaporation method routinely to analyze the n(U-235)/n(U-238) atom amount ratios in inspection and quality control samples. This paper uses a top-down statistical model applied to quality control measurements of certified reference materials (CRM) to study the capabilities of the technique. The technique is shown to produce measurements with a relative standard deviation not more than 0.03% when applied to a wide range of certified reference materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is common wisdom that luck plays a role in sports, along with skill. However, there is no consensus among researchers on what constitutes luck. One strand of the literature studied randomness in sports, most of which did the analysis at the levels of pitch actions, or at the match level. There is no empirical study to assess the role of luck in the determination of rank positions in football (soccer) leagues. In this paper, we define X-factor as unforeseen and unaccounted factors and quantify it as the difference between actual and predicted values of performance or outcome variables. For league football, we have perceived the difference between actual and expected goal difference as the X-factor effect in performance, and the difference between actual and expected points as the X-factor effect in outcome. Further, we have ideated that a plausible role of luck cannot be ruled out if the X-factor effect on outcome is significant while that on performance is not. Conducting analyses of variance on observations from seven seasons (2014–15 to 2020–21) in the top tier leagues of England, Spain, Germany, Italy, and France, we detected the presence of a significant and systematic X-factor effect. We have studied the role of luck using Tukey's HSD test. In general, luck does not play any significant role in determining the rank positions in league football. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elder abuse is evil in human society. The present paper unveils this social issue from two major factors psychological and physical abuse. The study sensitizes the subject matter of study by examining the effects of demographic variables like gender and age on elders. For achieving the purpose of the study the research is a design by exploring and validating the factors of measuring elder abuse through the mix method approach, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). To test the established hypotheses of the effects of the demographic variable on elders the two-way ANOVA was applied. The present study verdicts the development of a sound measurement scale with two influence factors. The separate and composite effect of aging and gender type on elder abuse was evidenced. These findings are crucial especially when the prevalence of elder abuse is higher during COVID-19. The limited novel understudied variable opens an avenue for further research in behavioral and demographic variables like marital status. The present study has practical insinuation for caring the elders in any human society like physical and psychological treatment of elders to avoid abusive situations. In addition, the study attempts to validate the novel issues like psychological and physical abuse of elders in the dimensions of demographic variables. Some rare studies in the Indian continent established the motivation of conducting the research on this dimension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drilling precise micro-holes in glass material has brought a new challenge, primarily due to its application in microfluidic devices. It is required to reduce machining time and simultaneously achieve repeatability of the process. The machined hole should have minimum overcut to get desired hole diameter. Maximum hole circularity and minimum heat-affected zone are the essential hole characteristics to achieve controlled machining. The multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method is quite effective in selection of best possible combination of outputs from several alternative solutions. The experimental data from the previously published paper is used in the current study. As input parameters, the experiment data include voltage, tool feed rate, and machining time. The radial overcut (ROC), circularity of the machined hole and heat-affected zone (HAZ) were calculated as output responses. The experiments were conducted using copper and nickel-coated copper tools in previous study and response data were used in current work. The present study uses the methods which include hybrid grey relational analysis (GRA), technique for order performance by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS), and VIšekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje (VIKOR) methods for the selection of the best combination of process parameters in drilling to obtain the optimal geometric characteristic of a hole, i.e. optimal values of ROC, circularity and HAZ, in glass using electrochemical discharge machining (ECDM). In this study, weight calculation for MCDM was proposed using entropy and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) methods and combined to get final weights using the fuzzy logic tool, which determines the importance of AHP and entropy weights using the expert opinion. The final weights were used to calculate the ranks from each MCDM method and determine optimal process parameter selection in ECDM hole drilling with copper and nickel-coated copper tools. The fuzzy logic method determined that the weight contribution from AHP is 0.586 in the present study. Genetic algorithm-based multi-objective optimization was conducted, and a non-dominated Pareto front was generated. The Spearman correlation method was used to determine the relationship between different MCDM methods. The current study will be helpful in selecting the best combination of process parameters in drilling holes during ECDM machining using MCDM methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research focuses on the perception of the Mucharz reservoir in relation to costs and benefits for two types of communities. The primary aim of the paper is to compare the social impact of dam projects among both resettled and non-resettled local communities. The secondary aim of the paper is to test multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) as a tool to examine the social impact assessment (SIA) of dam projects. The studied dam is located on the Skawa River within the Polish Carpathians. We used in-depth interviews with a non-resettled (N = 96) and resettled (N = 57) local population. To analyse the collected data, we performed multivariate analysis of variance. The main results indicate that the social assessment of dam projects differs significantly depending on whether one belongs to the group of resettled or non-resettled population. MANOVA is an effective tool for the analysis of the social impact assessment (SIA) of dam projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Tablet-based assessments offer benefits over scannable-paper assessments; however, there is little known about the impact to the variability of assessment scores. Methods Two studies were conducted to evaluate changes in rating technology. Rating modality (paper vs tablets) was manipulated between candidates (Study 1) and within candidates (Study 2). Average scores were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA, Cronbach's alpha and generalizability theory. Post-hoc analyses included a Rasch analysis and McDonald's omega. Results Study 1 revealed a main effect of modality (F (1,152)= 25.06, p< 0.01). Average tablet-based scores were higher, (3.39/5, 95% CI= 3.28 to 3.51), compared with average scan-sheet scores (3.00/5, 95% CI= 2.90 to 3.11). Study 2 also revealed a main effect of modality (F (1, 88)= 15.64, p< 0.01), however, the difference was reduced to 2% with higher scan-sheet scores (3.36, 95% CI= 3.30 to 3.42) compared with tablet scores (3.27, 95% CI= 3.21 to 3.33). Internal consistency (alpha and omega) remained high (>0.8) and inter-station reliability remained constant (0.3). Rasch analyses showed no relationship between station difficulty and rating modality. Discussion Analyses of average scores may be misleading without an understanding of internal consistency and overall reliability of scores. Although updating to tablet-based forms did not result in systematic variations in scores, routine analyses ensured accurate interpretation of the variability of assessment scores. Conclusion This study demonstrates the importance of ongoing program evaluation and data analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writer identification (WI) is a typical pattern recognition problem with the goal of recognizing the writer of a text from images of his or her handwriting. For handwriting-based applications, a new approach is required that can confirm the writer based on a very small amount of available text. However, due to the limited number of characters and the diverse contents of the available samples, it is still challenging to achieve a high recognition rate on large-scale databases. To solve this problem, this paper proposes an efficient method for offline text-independent WI using redundant writing patterns and dual-factor analysis of variance (DF-ANOVA). In this method, a search for writing patterns in a limited number of handwritten texts is first conducted to generate meaningful codebooks. Then, these writing patterns are described by means of the simplified Wigner distribution function (WDF) and improved directional index histogram (DIH) descriptors to extract both structural and texture features, and the two corresponding feature distances are integrated by means of a fuzzy integral rule to make the final decision. The Fisher discriminant ratio (FDR) is used for feature selection, and DF-ANOVA is used to eliminate the influence of factors associated with the labels of samples on the feature distance. The results of evaluations on the IAM (96.92%), Firemaker (96.4%), and Uyghur2016 (100%) databases illustrate that this system shows strong robustness to an increasing number of writers and a decreasing number of words in the sample texts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we aim to find new approaches to assess venous thrombus embolism (VTE) risk level. We have obtained valid data by filtering all data relevant to the VTE risk rating which was collected in Shanghai general hospital from May to July 2018. In our research, the distribution rule of the valid data was found and the differences of VTE risk scores before and after the surgery was analyzed via variance analysis. We also explored the correlation between the VTE risk score and inner diameter and flow rate of deep vein in lower extremities. Meanwhile, We build linear model, nonlinear model and ordered multinamial probit model to give out the VTE risk scores. After repeated test,it was concluded that the ordered multinamial probit model was the optimum way in the assessment of VTE risk scores. In short, this paper suggests that surgery has increased VTE risk level which is closely associated with inner diameter and flow rate of deep vein in lower extremities. By deploying ordered multinamial probit model, we are able to assess the VTE risk level. The paper is significant both in theory and the practical application of risk assessment,prevention and treatment of VTE and it is also a theoretical support in VTE risk forecasting for patients with operation in hospital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated that the trauma population has needs for rehabilitation services that are best provided in a continuous and coordinated way. The discharge destination after acute care is the second step to ensuring quality of care. There is a lack of knowledge regarding the factors associated with the discharge destination for the overall trauma population. This paper aims to identify sociodemographic, geographical, and injury-related factors associated with discharge destination following acute care at trauma centers for patients with moderate-to-severe traumatic injuries. Methods: A multicenter, population-based, prospective study was conducted with patients of all ages with traumatic injury [New Injury Severity Score (NISS) > 9] admitted within 72 h after the injury to regional trauma centers in southeastern and northern Norway over a 1-year period (2020). Results: In total, 601 patients were included; a majority (76%) sustained severe injuries, and 22% were discharged directly to specialized rehabilitation. Children were primarily discharged home, and most of the patients ≥ 65 years to their local hospital. Depending on the centrality of their residence [Norwegian Centrality Index (NCI) 1–6, where 1 is most central], we found that patients residing in NCI 3–4 and 5–6 areas sustained more severe injuries than patients residing in NCI 1–2 areas. An increase in the NISS, number of injuries, or a spinal injury with an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) ≥ 3 was associated with discharge to local hospitals and specialized rehabilitation than to home. Patients with an AIS ≥ 3 head injury (RRR 6.1, 95% Confidence interval 2.80–13.38) were significantly more likely to be discharged to specialized rehabilitation than patients with a less severe head injury. Age < 18 years was negatively associated with discharge to a local hospital, while NCI 3–4, preinjury comorbidity, and increased severity of injuries in the lower extremities were positively associated. Conclusions: Two-thirds of the patients sustained severe traumatic injury, and 22% were discharged directly to specialized rehabilitation. Age, centrality of the residence, preinjury comorbidity, injury severity, length of hospital stay, and the number and specific types of injuries were factors that had the greatest influence on discharge destination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional measurement methodology is applied in many psychological fields to investigate cognitive operations of information integration that people use in judgment and decision making. It is in principle an effective methodology. However, it relies on multi-subject designs and includes the methods of rating, factorial design, and analysis of variance that may cause difficulties in interpreting findings. This paper examines these difficulties and suggests future research that may overcome them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a Meta-analysis of 54 papers that study the relationship between multinationality and firm performance. The analysis examines whether any systematic relationships exist between the characteristics of each study and the reported results of linear and curvilinear regressions. Also described is the economic approach undertaken in the studies analyzed.

The existing F-test for two counts data from the Poisson distribution under classical statistics can be applied only when the counts in the data are exact or not intervals. The existing test cannot be applied when the count data is indeterminate, in the interval, and uncertain. In this paper, the F-test for two counts data from the Poisson distribution under classical statistics is designed. The test for two counts recording at the same time or different times is presented. The daily and the monthly number of records broken data in the U.S from the weather department is selected for the application of the proposed test. The application and comparison studies show the efficiency of the proposed test. The proposed test was found to be informative, flexible, and appropriate to be applied in an uncertain environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this mixed-method study was to examine the effect of a new vocabulary revision technique "peer-chain" developed by the researchers on vocabulary learning and retention among English as a foreign language (EFL) university students. A total of 46 participants (21 in the control group and 25 in the experimental group) completed the study, and the effectiveness of the treatment was checked via conducting a pre-test post-test/retention test control group design for the quantitative part. The study was eight weeks in duration, and the students were assessed with a 42-question, multiple-choice vocabulary achievement test (VAT). An analysis of ANOVA for the quantitative data showed a significant difference in students' vocabulary achievement between the students who used peer-chain and the students who used traditional word cards. Also, the study explored learner perceptions through interviews with the experimental group students. The qualitative content analysis of the interview data showed that most learners had positive perceptions of the technique. Both quantitative and qualitative outcomes suggest that integrating WhatsApp with the peer-chain technique in teaching vocabulary is a promising technique and can be more successful than the traditional paper-based word cards for vocabulary learning and retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the problem of scheduling n jobs on a single machine and on m identical parallel machines to minimize the completion time variance of jobs. This problem of scheduling jobs on parallel machines is motivated by a case study in an automobile ancillary unit. First, a heuristic to solve the single-machine scheduling problem is proposed. The parallel-machine scheduling problem is solved in two phases: job-allocation phase and job-sequencing phase. Two heuristics are proposed in the job-allocation phase, whereas in the job-scheduling phase, the single-machine scheduling approach is used. In this paper, both versions of parallel-machine scheduling problem (restricted and unrestricted) are considered. A good upper bound is obtained using a genetic algorithm, to evaluate the performance of the proposed heuristics for the parallel-machine scheduling problem. An extensive computation evaluation of the proposed heuristics is presented for both single-machine scheduling problem and the parallel-machine scheduling problem (especially considering the case study), along with the comparison of performances with the existing heuristics in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]