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This study introduces the New Exponential-Exponential Distribution (NEED) within the broader New Exponential-Generating (NE-G) family of distributions, targeting enhancements in rainfall data analysis. The significance of this research lies in addressing the need for sophisticated statistical models to accurately capture the complex variability of rainfall patterns, which are critical for effective environmental planning and disaster management. Aiming to refine rainfall data modeling, we employ the NEED model, emphasizing its application across diverse climatic conditions. Our methodology encompasses a comprehensive evaluation of seven distinct parameter estimation techniques, with a particular focus on the Anderson-Darling and maximum product spacing methods. These were selected based on their performance in minimizing bias and mean square error, assessed through a rigorous Monte-Carlo simulation study. Additionally, the study utilizes rainfall data from various geographical regions to validate the model's efficacy. The major conclusion of our investigation is the demonstrable superiority of NEED over traditional models in fitting rainfall data, as evidenced by its enhanced predictive accuracy. This outcome not only contributes to the theoretical advancements in statistical meteorology but also offers practical methodologies for improved weather forecasting. The integration of NEED with contemporary machine learning algorithms further suggests potential for groundbreaking applications in climate science and water resource management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vertical toe position at minimum toe clearance (MTC) in the swing phase is critical for walking safety. Consequently, the joints involved should be strictly controlled and coordinated to stabilize the foot at MTC. The uncontrolled manifold (UCM) hypothesis framework has been used to determine the existence of synergies that stabilize relevant performance variables during walking. However, no study investigated the presence of a multi-joint synergy stabilizing the foot position at MTC and the effects of age and walking speed on this synergy. Is there a multi-joint synergy stabilizing MTC during treadmill walking? Does it depend on the persons' age and walking speed? Kinematic data from 23 young and 15 older adults were analyzed using the UCM approach. The participants walked on a treadmill at three speeds: slow, self-selected, and fast. The sagittal and frontal joint angles from the swing and stance legs and pelvis obliquity were used as motor elements and the vertical toe position at MTC was the performance variable. The variances in the joint space that affected (V ORT , 'bad' variance) and did not affect (V UCM , 'good' variance) the toe position at MTC and the synergy index (ΔV) were computed. The ΔV >0 was revealed for all subjects. Walking speed did not affect ΔV in older adults, whereas ΔV reduced with speed in young adults. ΔV was higher for older than for young adults at self-selected and fast speeds, owing to a lower V ORT in the older group. The vertical toe position at MTC was stabilized by a strong multi-joint synergy. In older adults, this synergy was stronger, as they were better at limiting V ORT than young adults. Reduced V ORT in older adults could be caused by more constrained walking, which may be associated with anxiety due to walking on a treadmill. • A multi-joint synergy (ΔV Z) stabilizes the minimum toe clearance (MTC) in walking. • ΔV Z is higher and variances (V UCM and V ORT) are lower at MTC than in the first half of swing phase. • The ΔV Z and V ORT reduced in young but not in older adults when walking in fast speed. • Older adults showed higher ΔV Z and lower V ORT than young adults. • A reduced V ORT in older adults may be a compensatory strategy adopted to constraint the MTC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Isolated REM sleep behavior disorder (IRBD) is characterized by loss of the normal atonia of REM sleep. Patients with IRBD are at substantial risk of developing the synuclein-related neurodegenerative diseases (NDD). Few predictors of phenoconversion (from IRBD to NDD) have been identified such as age >65 years, hyposmia, constipation, elevated Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS). We aimed to detect rate and risk factors of phenoconversion. The study designed as retrospectively. NDD was developed in 18 (27.27%) patients while NDD wasn't developed in 48 (72.73%) patients after ten years. The data of the first visit (age, gender, hyposmia, constipation, ESS, comorbidities, physical/neurological examinations, laboratory, and polysomnography) were compared between NDD (n:18) and IRBD (46) groups. The statistical program IBM SPSS Statistics Version 20.0 was used for all analyzes. The threshold for statistical significance for each test was set at 0.05. Although, most first-visit data (age, gender, hyposmia, constipation, ESS, laboratory, polysomnography) were not different between NDD (n:18) and IRBD (n:48) groups, diabetes mellitus (DM) frequency (p:0.021), mean duration of DM (0.027), chest circumference (p:0.017), and hip circumference (p:0.045) were found higher in NDD than IRBD. If the risk of phenoconversion calculated by logistic regression analysis was different only in terms of DM frequency (p:0.030) [odds ratio: 4.909 (1.17–20.19)]. The present study showed that the phenoconversion rate for ten years is 27.27%, and IRBD patients with diabetes mellitus increase the phenoconversion risk nearly five times. • The phenoconversion in iRBD (n: 66) was 27.27 % in Türkiye. • Fifty percent of these patients were had early (<2 years) phenoconversion. • Diabetes mellitus and elevated hip-chest circumference are the risk factors for phenoconversion from IRBD to NDD. • Elevated heart rate and AHI cause faster progression from IRBD to NDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The detrending-moving-average-based multivariate linear regression has been recently introduced as a new tool to probe into multiscale dependent behavior between multivariate data. It well solves the dependence among the nonstationary variates while classic multivariate linear regression dose not. The real-world applications demonstrate its versatility and robustness. However, the statistical significance of this new model needs to be further improved mathematically not just empirically. Hence, the main motivation of this paper is to provide a solid theoretical basis for the latest regression framework. Specifically, four propositions and three theorems are deduced theoretically to support the statistical significance test of detrending-moving-average-based multivariate linear regression model. These propositions and theorems revolve around hypothesis testing of each partial regression coefficients and regression model. They can examine the statistical significance at every given scales. Moreover, we also resort to synthetic time series to verify the performances of the proposed statistical test procedure. By using those statistical tests, we investigate the multiscale interdependence between the crude oil price and the exchange rates among oil-importing and oil-exporting countries. Some interesting findings show that the dependent behavior between the oil price and exchange rates varies at various scales, which cannot be achieved from classical multivariate regression model. • Statistical properties are derived mathematically for the model of DMA-based MLR. • Artificial experiments are also conducted around the statistical test of new model. • The scale-dependent co-movement behavior is investigated between crude oil price and exchange rate by the proposed methods. • The co-movement behavior is compared before and during the oil bust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis aimed to compare two different single-tooth extraction surgical approaches in anterior maxillary areas of the ankylosed teeth: less traumatic magneto-electrical (mag) versus conventional tooth extraction (con) in minimizing the adverse effects on post-extractive sockets. Parameters of clinical interest such as intra-surgical fracture of the buccal bone plate, presence of postoperative inflammation, and application of stitches were acquired from medical records. The data were subjected to Pearson's χ2 analysis or to Fisher's exact test with significance at 0.05. Sixty-six hopeless maxillary permanent ankylotic teeth were extracted in the same number of patients. In the mag group 2 incisors suffered a fracture. Two patients out of 40 had signs and symptoms of inflammation that resolved completely within 3 days. In the con group 18 out of 26 patients suffered from buccal alveolar fracture. Six of these patients experienced signs of inflamed tissue. The two groups showed significant differences with p-values ≤0.0009 with regards to fracture (2/38 vs. 18/8) and tissue inflammation variables (2/38 vs. 10/16). A significantly different distribution about the presence of sutures was registered between the mag (4/36) and the con (18/8) group with a p-value <0.0001. Mag group seemed to have reduced frequency of fractured and infected post-extractive sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Innovative phenotype-genotype association analysis for categorical genomic data having non-ignorable missing values. • Statistical learning method of random forest is used for variable selection in the analysis. • Weighted logistic ridge regression with EM algorithm is used for missing data imputation in the analysis. • Linear statistical hypothesis testing is used for determining the missingness mechanism in the analysis. • An application to analyzing real data from Australia breast cancer genome-wide association study (GWAS). Genomic data arising from a genome-wide association study (GWAS) are often not only of large-scale, but also incomplete. A specific form of their incompleteness is missing values with non-ignorable missingness mechanism. The intrinsic complications of genomic data present significant challenges in developing an effective and efficient procedure of phenotype-genotype association analysis by a statistical variable selection approach. In this paper we develop a coherent procedure of categorical phenotype-genotype association analysis, in the presence of missing values with non-ignorable missingness mechanism in genomic data. It is developed by integrating the statistical learning methods of random forest for variable selection, joint weighted logistic ridge regression with EM algorithm for missing data imputation, and linear statistical hypothesis testing for determining the missingness mechanism. Two simulated genomic datasets are used to undertake the phenotype-genotype association analysis by the proposed procedure, with the performance validated. The proposed procedure is then applied to analyze a real data set from breast cancer GWAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the value of amide proton transfer weighted (APTw) combined with intra-voxel incoherent motion (IVIM) imaging in differential diagnosis of stage I-II endometrial carcinoma (EC) and endometrial polyp (EP). A total of 53 female patients (37 cases with EC and 16 cases with EP) confirmed by surgical resection or biopsy from June 2019 to Jan. 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. All patients underwent 3.0 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination including diffusion weighted imaging (DWI), APTw and IVIM scans. The pure diffusion coefficient (D), pseudo-diffusion coefficient (D⁎), perfusion fraction (f), apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and APT values were independently measured by two observers. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) were used to test the consistency of measurements by the two observers. Mann-Whitney U test was performed to analyze the difference of each parameter between EC and EP groups. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed, and the Delong test was used for ROC curve comparison. Pearson's correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between APTw and IVIM parameters. There was no significant difference in clinical manifestations between the two groups (P > 0.05). APT and D⁎ values of the EC group were significantly higher than those of the EP group [APT: 2.64 ± 0.50% vs. 2.05 ± 0.58%; and D⁎: (54.06 ± 36.06) × 10−3 mm2/s vs. (30.54 ± 16.67) × 10−3 mm2/s]. D, f and ADC values of EC group were significantly lower than those of EP group [D: 0.62(0.53,0.76) × 10−3 mm2/s vs. (1.45 ± 0.48) × 10−3 mm2/s; f: 22.18 ± 8.08% vs. 30.80 ± 8.92%; and ADC: (0.88 ± 0.16) × 10−3 mm2/s vs. (1.57 ± 0.43) × 10−3 mm2/s]. The area under ROC curves were observed as: AUC (IVIM+APT) > AUC (D) > AUC (ADC) > AUC (APT) > AUC (f) > AUC (D⁎). Delong test suggested statistical significance between AUC by APT and D, D and D⁎, D and f, D⁎ and ADC, APT and com(IVIM+APT), D⁎ and com(IVIM+APT), as well as f and com(IVIM+APT). No significant correlation between the APT and IVIM parameters was observed in either EC or EP group. Both APT and IVIM parameters showed statistical differences between EC and EP. With combination of APT and IVIM parameters, the diagnostic accuracy between EC and EP can be significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the issue of false positives in the era of big data and high-frequency health measurement technologies ,published in the periodical, October 2023.

To quantify trends in ophthalmology practice consolidation in the United States. A retrospective cross-sectional study. Providers in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) National Downloadable File with a primary specialty designation of ophthalmology. We used the CMS database to determine national practice consolidation trends in ophthalmology on individual physician and group practice levels and analyzed by region, sex, and years spent in practice. We used the Cochran-Armitage test to determine the statistical significance of practice size differences between 2015 and 2022. Temporal practice size trends for physicians and practices in ophthalmology and regional, sex-specific, and age-related trends. Between 2015 and 2022, the number of ophthalmologists decreased from 17 656 to 17 615 (–0.2%), whereas the number of practices decreased from 7149 to 5890 (–18%). The percentage of ophthalmologists in practices of 1 to 2 members decreased from 35% to 28%, whereas those in groups of 50 or more increased from 7% to 11%. The percentage of practices with 1 to 2 members decreased from 75% to 71%, and those with 50 or more increased from 0.2% to 0.4%. Consolidation trends were significant on individual ophthalmologist (P < 0.001) and group practice (P < 0.001) levels. All regions, sexes, and subgroups of years spent in practice demonstrated consolidation (P < 0.001). The Northeast showed the greatest increase in groups of 50 or more physicians (+7%) between 2015 and 2022. Proportionally fewer female than male ophthalmologists were associated with practice sizes of 1 to 2 members in 2015 (29% and 36%, respectively) and 2022 (23% and 30%, respectively). Proportionally fewer ophthalmologists with 0 to 10 years of experience in practice were associated with practice sizes of 1 to 2 members than those with more than 30 years in practice in 2015 (18% and 48%, respectively) and 2022 (14% and 40%, respectively). Ophthalmology has undergone practice consolidation from 2015 to 2022. A decrease in the proportion of physicians affiliated with smaller practice sizes seems to have occurred. Proprietary or commercial disclosure may be found in the Footnotes and Disclosures at the end of this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of statistical significance is under discussion. Many statisticians and researchers advocate for its retirement. Conversely, other statisticians and researchers think that its retirement would damage science. There is room for improvement in the use of hypothesis testing and p -values in biochemical sciences and omics. The selection of variables by statistical significance with solid cutoffs drives and may bias the biological interpretation of biochemical data. To obtain robust knowledge by comparing studies, it is essential to report thoroughly all results (both quantitative and categorical variables). Because of the big number of variables, the problems of selecting variables by statistical significance increase for omic studies. Over recent years many statisticians and researchers have highlighted that statistical inference would benefit from a better use and understanding of hypothesis testing, p -values, and statistical significance. We highlight three recommendations in the context of biochemical sciences. First recommendation: to improve the biological interpretation of biochemical data, do not use p -values (or similar test statistics) as thresholded values to select biomolecules. Second recommendation: to improve comparison among studies and to achieve robust knowledge, perform complete reporting of data. Third recommendation: statistical analyses should be reported completely with exact numbers (not as asterisks or inequalities). Owing to the high number of variables, a better use of statistics is of special importance in omic studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• P-values can deny genuine beneficial effects of an intervention. • Bradford Hill created a rounded assessment to determine causality. • Incorporates previous literature, study design, mechanism and secondary outcomes. • Rounded assessment can be more reflective of true clinical impact of intervention. • Alternative methods to evaluate the clinical benefit of an intervention are required. Medical practice relies on reliable research observations. Whether such observations are true is traditionally tested by hypotheses and expressed with P-values. A strict P-value driven interpretation could potentially deny benefits of treatment. A strict P-value driven interpretation was compared to a context driven causality interpretation using the Bradford Hill Criteria to determine the clinical benefit of an intervention. We searched all randomised controlled trials in Women's Health, published in five leading medical journals since January 2014. These were then scored using the 10 Bradford Hill Criteria for causation. Each component of the Bradford Hill Criteria was given a score from zero to three, resulting in a total score between zero and 30 for each article, converted into a decimal value. These scores were then compared to conclusions based on the p-value and conclusions drawn by the authors. For results discordant between Bradford Hill Criteria and P-values, we compared results with meta -analysis. We found 68 articles for extraction of data. Of these, 49 (72%) showed concordance between Bradford Hill criteria and p-value driven interpretation, 25 (37%) of the articles reporting effectiveness (true positive), and 24 (35%) reporting no effectiveness (true negative). In eight (12%) articles, Bradford Hill criteria scores suggested effetiveness while p-values driven interpretation did not. Seven of those eight articles had p-values between 0.05 and 0.10. Out of these eight articles, six had a subsequent meta-analysis' published on the intervention being studied. All six meta -analysis demonstrated effetiveness of the intervention. In the interpretation of clinical trials, a context driven interpretation of causality may be more clinically informative than a strict P-value driven approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reproducibility of research is poor; this may be because many articles report statistically significant findings that are false positives. Two potential solutions are to lower the P -value for statistical significance testing from 0.05 to 0.005 and to report the minimum false-positive risk (minFPR). This study determined these metrics for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in general anaesthesiology journals. We identified superiority RCTs published between January 1, 2019 and March 15, 2021 from seven leading anaesthesia journals. P -values for primary outcomes were collected, and minFPRs for these outcomes were calculated using a formula assuming a 50% prior probability of an intervention being effective (minFPR 50). The primary outcomes were the percentage of RCTs maintaining statistical significance at P <0.005 and minFPR 50. We included 318 RCTs. P -values below 0.05 were reported in 205/318 (64%) of RCTs. Of these 205 RCTs, 119/205 (58%) maintained statistical significance at the P <0.005 threshold. The mean (standard deviation) minFPR 50 was 22% (20). At P =0.005, the minFPR 50 was approximately 5%. These proposed metrics aimed at mitigating reproducibility concerns would call a significant portion of the anaesthesiology literature into question. We found a minFPR of 22% and determined that 42% of primary outcomes would not maintain statistical significance if the P -value threshold changed from 0.05 to 0.005. These findings could partially explain the lack of reproducibility of research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Out of the estimated few trillion galaxies, only around a million have been detected through radio frequencies, and only a tiny fraction, approximately a thousand, have been manually classified. We have addressed this disparity between labeled and unlabeled images of radio galaxies by employing a semi-supervised learning approach to classify them into the known Fanaroff-Riley Type I (FRI) and Type II (FRII) categories. A Group Equivariant Convolutional Neural Network (G-CNN) was used as an encoder of the state-of-the-art self-supervised methods SimCLR (A Simple Framework for Contrastive Learning of Visual Representations) and BYOL (Bootstrap Your Own Latent). The G-CNN preserves the equivariance for the Euclidean Group E(2), enabling it to effectively learn the representation of globally oriented feature maps. After representation learning, we trained a fully-connected classifier and fine-tuned the trained encoder with labeled data. Our findings demonstrate that our semi-supervised approach outperforms existing state-of-the-art methods across several metrics, including cluster quality, convergence rate, accuracy, precision, recall, and the F1-score. Moreover, statistical significance testing via a t-test revealed that our method surpasses the performance of a fully supervised G-CNN. This study emphasizes the importance of semi-supervised learning in radio galaxy classification, where labeled data are still scarce, but the prospects for discovery are immense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a screening support method of cryoprotective agents (CPAs) for regenerative medical products considering environmental impacts. A process matrix was developed that can analyze raw materials of CPA candidate compounds systematically. Life cycle assessment provided the basis for the environmental impact assessment of 13 categories. Using the developed process matrix, 40 CPA candidate compounds were classified into seven groups based on the raw materials. Statistical hypothesis testing was performed to evaluate the effect of raw materials on the environmental impacts and the physical performance. The results showed that the environmental impacts of the agricultural and livestock origin group were higher than those of the natural resource origin group. By contrast, the physical performance of the natural resource origin group was significantly higher than that of the agricultural and livestock origin group. The developed screening support method could be conceptually applied to new CPA candidate compounds. • We created a screening support method of CPAs considering environmental impacts. • A process matrix was developed that helps determine the raw materials of CPAs. • We performed an environmental impact assessment of 40 CPA candidate compounds. • The importance of considering the raw materials is highlighted. • We applied the developed method to new CPA candidate compounds conceptually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep Learning (DL) predictions are uncertain; but how uncertain? Statistical inference estimates the probabilities of uncertainty from a sample drawn from a population. Assessing the statistical significance of accuracies reported by DL remains largely unexplored. A framework to do so would usefully support a range of applications, and in particular group classifications from neuroimages where, for operational reasons, sample sizes are necessary limited and thus often do not generalise well. We applied a random-effects inference based on a label permutation test to calculate the statistical significance of K-fold cross-validation (CV) from statistical power and Type-I error rates. Our hypothesis is that in low sample size scenarios, the use of resubstitution with upper bound correction (RUB) as a validation would mitigate the debate on the generalisation ability of DL models. The derived framework enables testing such generalisation ability of DL models as feature extraction methods. A combination of autoencoders and support vector machines as feature extraction and classification models is evaluated in a case-control analysis of Alzheimer's disease with well-established outcomes. We found that RUB slightly outperforms K-fold CV as a validation method, especially estimating statistical power in the most heterogeneous samples. Therefore, we suggest RUB as potent and valid method for DL with neuroimages in terms of bias, variance and computational demand. • A non-parametric framework is used to assess statistical significance. • The complexity of a neural network affects its generalisation ability adversely. • The CV estimate is statistically consistent only when the classifier is stable. • Cross-validation in limited sample databases is not advisable. • In neuroimaging, using RUB offers more advantages than cross-validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The increasing use of digital technologies has allowed organizations to improve their business processes, enhancing the productivity and efficiency of their operations. The implementation of Robotic Process Automation (RPA), a technology that allows replicating human actions in existing systems, given its benefits, can play an important role in achieving this goal, often referred as the digital transformation of organizations. However, the benefits of RPA implementation may not be perceived equally by managers, those responsible or that required its implementation, and lower-level employees. The work described in this paper aims not only to assess the perception that both groups have of the impacts of technology, but also to understand whether the use of robots by the employees of a shared services company positively influences their perception of the technology and whether it affects developments in additional robots in the future. A questionnaire, underpinned in a multidimensional evaluation model of the technology and given to all the company's employees, is used as the main research instrument, while results are analysed and interpreted using descriptive statistical techniques and hypothesis testing. We argue that this study may be an important contribution to the company for a better understanding of its employees' perception of RPA, allowing the tailoring of its future communication strategies to facilitate the acceptance of the technology and, thus, enhance the success and effectiveness of its implementation. Furthermore, the multidimensional evaluation model developed enhances the existing literature on the topic of RPA impacts, more specifically in terms of evaluating possible differences in perceptions between managers and other employees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The DERs models have an impact on all studied variables. • The deterministic and probabilistic approaches show differences in their results. • The probabilistic approach and inferential statistics complement the analysis. • Co-simulation reduces calculation time and helps with results analysis. Distributed energy resources (DER) can have significant effects on distribution networks. Their growing integration makes it necessary to conduct characterisation studies on the effects of several operating scenarios. Such studies apply deterministic or probabilistic techniques to the modelling and simulation of networks and DER. Nevertheless, the lack of studies that integrate three DER within the same research to quantify the potential effects that each one singly and all jointly could have on the networks is perceptible. In addition, the analysis of the most significant number of parameters studied for correctly interpreting the results and using inferential statistics can be helpful. Moreover, we examined various modelling and simulation approaches to evaluate the differences and similarities among multiple scenarios. Accordingly, this paper presents and details deterministic and probabilistic analysis approaches to characterise the hourly impact of photovoltaic systems, storage units, and electric vehicle charging stations in a 13-node IEEE test feeder. This elucidates DER integration in networks and could guide future studies. Estimating the individual or collective effects of a DER consists of quantification and hourly comparison of RMS values of voltages and currents, voltage unbalance, chargeability of transformers, and power losses. We collected the data for analysis using a co-simulation PowerFactory-Python for eight operating scenarios. The hourly stochastic comparison between scenarios consisted of calculating the difference in sampling means and applying hypothesis testing of inferential statistics. This comparative analysis verifies that the applied approach (deterministic or probabilistic), specific hour of analysis and simultaneous number of DER in a simulated scenario influence the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the effect of periodic changes in rotation speed on torsional stress and screw-in force using the dedicated alternative rotation technique (ART) motion of the EQ-M (Metabiomed, Cheongju, Korea) endodontic motor. Two ART modes of the EQ-M motor in 2 alternative techniques (ART30 and ART50) and continuous rotation were compared using ProTaper Next X2 (Dentsply Sirona, Charlotte, NC) files and simulated resin blocks (n = 12 per group). ART30 and ART50 were operated by continuous rotation of 350 rpm for 360° and then rotated at 30% increased speed from the base speed for 180° and at 50% increased speed for 180°, respectively. Before the test, the simulated resin blocks were pre-enlarged using ProTaper Gold S1 and S2 (Dentsply Sirona) and fixed on a metal stage connected to the force- and torque-measuring unit. During shaping the simulated canal in an automatic up-and-down manner, the parameters of maximum torque, sum of torque, maximum screw-in force, and maximum apical force were measured. The data were statistically analyzed using 1-way analysis of variance and the Tukey post hoc comparison test at the 95% significance level. The ART30 and ART50 groups showed a lower maximum torque, sum of torques, screw-in force, and apical drive force than the continuous rotation group. There was no significant difference between the ART30 and ART50 groups (P >.05). When the screw-in force increased suddenly, the torque correspondently increased. Under the limitations of this study, the ART mode could reduce the torsional stress and apical forces of the screw-in during instrumentation in comparison with continuous rotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Le terme « épistémologie » est apparu chez le métaphysicien écossais James Frederick Ferrier (1808–1864), dans son ouvrage Epistemology or Theory of Knowing (1854). La généralisation de son usage n'interviendra qu'à partir de la fin du XIXe siècle dans les textes de philosophes et scientifiques anglais et continentaux, puis nord-américains. Les discussions des membres de la Société Médico-Psychologique, créée en 1852, n'ont été répercutées par les Annales Médico-Psychologiques qu'à partir de 1853. Les questions en lien avec l'Épistémologie étaient alors référées à la Philosophie de la connaissance ou à la Philosophie des sciences. Elle repose sur l'approche de l'Épistémologie comparative (G.G. Granger), historique et clinique, sur l'analyse critique du langage et leurs propres recherches. Les auteurs reprennent la partition chronologique proposée par G. Lantéri-Laura en montrant en parallèle l'évolution des questions traitées par la philosophie des sciences, puis par l'Épistémologie. Ils analysent successivement l'impact de la Philosophie des Sciences à la Société Médico-Psychologique au cours du XIXe siècle dans la période 1852–1902, puis l'ancrage de la tradition épistémologique à la Société Médico-Psychologique avec l'apport de Pierre Marchais, et l'intrusion de l'approche nord-américaine au début du XXIe siècle. Il est illusoire de rechercher une méthode scientifique unique, définitive, applicable dans toutes les situations, car l'objectif scientifique ne dispense pas du rapport au concret. Pour la psychiatrie, quelles que soient les connaissances présentées comme nouvelles, les problèmes resurgissent à partir de perspectives diverses, dans des contextes différents, car la dynamique propre au développement de chaque discipline ou sous-spécialité les réactualise périodiquement. The term epistemology was first used by the Scottish metaphysician James Frederick Ferrier (1808–1864), in his book Epistemology or Theory of Knowing (1854). The generalization of its use will not occur until the end of the 19th century in the texts of English and continental philosophers and scientists, and thereafter in North America. The discussions of the members of the Société Médico-Psychologique , created in 1852, were not reflected in the Annales Médico-Psychologiques until 1853, and questions related to epistemology were then assigned to the fields of the philosophy of knowledge or the philosophy of science. This article is based on the approach of comparative epistemology (G.G. Granger), on an historical and clinical approach, on the critical analysis of language, and on the authors' own research. Epistemology is "a critical study of the principles, hypotheses and results of the various sciences, intended to determine their logical (non-psychological) origin, their value, and their objective significance." The authors employ the chronological score proposed by G. Lantéri-Laura by showing in parallel the evolution of the questions treated by the philosophy of science, then by epistemology. They analyze successively the impact of the philosophy of science on the Société Médico-Psychologique during the 19th century during the period of 1852–1902, then the anchoring of the epistemological tradition at the Société Médico-Psychologique due to the contribution of Pierre Marchais, and finally, the incursion of the North American approach at the beginning of the 21st century. It is illusory to seek a single, definitive scientific method, which is applicable in all situations, because the scientific objective does not dispense with the relationship to the concrete. For psychiatry, whatever knowledge is presented as new, problems arise from different perspectives, in different contexts, because the dynamics of the development of each discipline or sub-specialty are updated periodically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we evaluate the evolution and growth of global neurosurgery publications over time, further focusing on the contributions and impact of authors in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In this systematic bibliometric analysis, we conducted a two-stage blinded screening process of global neurosurgery publications from 5 databases from inception through July 2021. Articles involving multi-national/multi-institutional research collaborations, detailing any area of global neurosurgery collaboration, or influencing global neurosurgery practice were included. Statistical hypothesis testing was conducted to analyze trends and hypotheses of LMIC authorship contributions. The number of global neurosurgery publications has soared in the last decade. Overall, authors from HIC countries were most commonly from the US (41.1%), Canada (4.0%), and the UK (3.9%), while authors from LMIC countries were most commonly from Uganda (4.2%), Tanzania (2.6%), Cameroon (1.8%), and India (1.8%). Over a quarter (28%) of publications had no LMIC authors, while only 11% had 3 or more LMIC authors. The proportion of LMIC authors (LMIC-R) was not correlated with the citation rate of individual articles or with the year of publication, and a positive trend emerged when the LMIC-R of top-publishing LMICs was individually examined and compared to the year of publication. Despite recent growth, the number of global neurosurgery publications arising from LMICs pales in comparison to those from HICs. Collaborative efforts between certain HICs and LMICs have likely contributed to the observed increase in LMIC author independence over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We discuss a newly published study examining how phrases are used in clinical trials to describe results when the estimated P-value is close to (slightly above or slightly below) 0.05, which has been arbitrarily designated by convention as the boundary for 'statistical significance'. Terms such as 'marginally significant', 'trending towards significant', and 'nominally significant' are well represented in biomedical literature, but are not actually scientifically meaningful. Acknowledging that 'statistical significance' remains a major determinant of publication, we propose that scientific journals de-emphasise the use of P-values for null hypothesis significance testing, a purpose for which they were never intended, and avoid the use of these ambiguous and confusing terms in scientific articles. Instead, investigators could simply report their findings: effect sizes, P-values, and confidence intervals (or their Bayesian equivalents), and leave it to the discerning reader to infer the clinical applicability and importance. Our goal should be to move away from describing studies (or trials) as positive or negative based on an arbitrary P-value threshold, and rather to judge whether the scientific evidence provided is informative or uninformative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cet article retrace une partie de l'accompagnement d'un jeune garçon âgé de dix ans, accueilli au sein d'un Dispositif ITEP. Cet écrit soulève les interrogations quant au comportement oscillatoire de cet enfant : enfant furieux, enfant paisible, c'est comme s'il n'y avait qu'un pas entre les deux. L'intérêt des auteurs s'est porté sur la particularité fonctionnelle du psychotraumatisme qui, par son poids, vient cliver certaines zones psychiques du reste du monde sensoriel. Ils ont tenté de comprendre le lien, dans sa dimension sensorielle et affective, entre ces zones qui ne participent plus à la vie psychique et le reste du monde sensoriel dans le cadre précis du psychotraumatisme. Les auteurs mêlent les médiations thérapeutiques et l'approche psychanalytique. La méthode utilisée réunit l'art du théâtre à la capacité métaphorique qu'offrent les cartes Dixit. Ce théâtre particulier nommé « Théâtre Dixien » propose un lieu d'expression scénique où l'apparition de la furie n'est pas stoppée mais encadrée. Dans cet espace, et à travers l'accompagnement des thérapeutes, il apparaît que la violence de ce jeune garçon se manifeste sur scène mais l'enfant n'est pas en proie au furor et présente une violence supportable pour tous. L'enfant arrive peu à peu à lier ses moments de furie actuels aux événements terribles de son passé. Le dispositif proposé par les auteurs a fait émerger une relation transférentielle particulière où le clinicien devient le lieu de dépôt d'une réalité psychique qui n'a pas pu être élaborée jusqu'alors. Le thérapeute devient alors le maillon d'une chaîne associative favorisant la restitution d'un contenu psychique appropriable à l'enfant. Le dispositif d'accompagnement clinique a laissé sa place au corps expressif et à la rêverie de l'adulte. Le théâtre, devenu thérapeutique, a pu aider à relancer un mouvement psychique là où certains contenus n'étaient plus accessibles, meurtris par le trauma. L'enfant peut alors accéder à nouveau à une dynamique temporelle mêlant un « avant », un « pendant » et un « après » trauma. This article retraces part of the accompaniment of a ten-year-old boy in a special education program. This article raises questions about the child's behavior, which oscillated between fury and tranquillity, as if there was only one step between the two. The authors focus on the functional particularity of psychotrauma which, by its weight, splits certain psychic zones from the rest of the sensory world. They try to understand the link, in its sensory and affective dimension, between areas that no longer participate in the subject's psychic life and the rest of the sensory world, within the precise framework of psychotrauma. The authors combine art therapy techniques with a psychoanalytical approach, combining the art of theater with the metaphorical capacity offered by Dixit cards. This particular theater, called "Dixian Theatre," offers a place of scenic expression where the appearance of fury is not stopped, but delimited. In this space, and through the accompaniment of the therapists, it appears that the violence of this young boy manifests itself on stage; the child is not in the grip of furor, and the violence that he enacts is bearable for all. The child is gradually able to link his present moments of fury to the terrible events of his past. The device proposed by the authors gives rise to a particular transferential relationship where the clinician becomes the place of deposit of a psychic reality that could not have been elaborated until that moment. The therapist then becomes the link of an associative chain promoting the restitution of psychic content that the child can reappropriate. The clinical support system encourages bodily expression and the adult's reverie. The theater, which became therapeutic, is able to help relaunch a psychic movement, after certain contents had become inaccessible and bruised by trauma. The child can then regain access to a temporal dynamic mixing a "before," a "during," and an "after" trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Walter Benjamin a été un grand lecteur de Freud. Dans son essai Sur quelques thèmes baudelairiens , en 1938 et 1939, la lecture rigoureuse et originale qu'il fait d' Au-delà du principe de plaisir , lui permet de structurer l'opposition, présente dans ses premiers travaux, entre l'expérience que l'on a (Erfahrung) et l'expérience que l'on fait (ou expérience vécue) (Erlebnis). Benjamin montre qu'à partir du XIXe siècle, le monde moderne a imposé un dépérissement de l'expérience que l'on a (Erfahrung). Pour cela, il reprend l'hypothèse de Freud d'une incompatibilité entre conscience et mémoire, déjà présente dans L'interprétation du rêve , et la conception économique du trauma exposée dans Au-delà du principe de plaisir. Pour éviter ou atténuer les potentiels effets traumatiques de la modernité dans les grandes villes, c'est-à-dire pour éviter des effractions trop étendues du pare-stimuli, le système Perception-Conscience doit être « préparé par l'angoisse ». Mais ce surinvestissement défensif de la conscience entraîne une diminution de l'attention portée au monde psychique interne. Plus la conscience devra parer les chocs constants du monde moderne, plus les événements vécus ne seront pas articulés dans une expérience (Erfahrung) vivante, mobilisable et transmissible. Même si le trauma parvient à être évité, le coût individuel et collectif du surinvestissement du système Perception-Conscience dans un monde où le choc est devenu la norme, est considérable et a mené, pour Benjamin, aux catastrophes du XXe siècle. Walter Benjamin was a great reader of Freud. In his essay "On Some Motifs in Baudelaire" (1938–1939), his rigorous and original reading of Beyond the Pleasure Principle allowed him to structure the opposition, already present in his first works, between two categories of experience, Erfahrung and Erlebnis. Benjamin showed that, from the 19th century onward, modernity has imposed an impoverishment of Erfahrung. Benjamin's analysis relies on Freud's hypothesis of the incompatibility between consciousness and memory, already present in The Interpretation of Dreams, and the economic conception of trauma exposed in Beyond the Pleasure Principle. To avoid or to reduce the potential traumatic effects of modernity in big cities, to avoid extensive ruptures of the protective shield, the perception-consciousness system has to be prepared by anxiety. But this defensive overinvestment of consciousness leads to diminished attention to the internal psychic world. The more consciousness will have to counter the constant shocks of the modern world, the more lived events will not be articulated in a living, mobilizable, and transmissible experience. Even if trauma can be avoided, the individual and collective cost of overinvesting in the perception-consciousness system, in a world where shock has become the norm, is considerable and led, in Benjamin's eyes, to the catastrophes of the 20th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cet article traite de la question des transformations identitaires et subjectives au cours du processus adolescent à partir du paradigme de l'inquiétante étrangeté et du double. Une fois précisé le champ problématique de l'identité, de la réflexivité et du double, nous soutenons l'hypothèse selon laquelle le contexte pubertaire, par le bouleversement psychique qu'il implique, fragilise le moi adolescent au point parfois de produire une « détransitionnalisation » de l'identité subjective. Cette menace de « détransitionnalisation » met à l'épreuve les grandes oppositions à partir desquelles l'identité subjective s'était construite jusqu'alors, comme le moi et le non-moi, le même et le différent, l'étranger et le familier, etc. La présentation et l'analyse d'une observation clinique mettant en scène une jeune adolescente aux prises avec des vécus douloureux et une souffrance identitaire aiguë, conduit à examiner les implications de la discontinuité pubertaire et le rôle de l'objet sur le travail de reconstruction subjective à l'adolescence. D'un point de vue clinique, la question de la survivance de l'objet et l'expérience d'une suffisante continuité dans le transfert soutiendrait l'appropriation subjective d'une altérité marquée par les enjeux du pulsionnel pubertaire et la rencontre avec l'autre sexué. L'exploration des liens entre identité et altérité à soi permet d'inférer l'importance du rôle du double et de ses effets transitionnels dans le travail de transformation identitaire et subjective à l'adolescence. This article looks at the question of identity and subjective transformations during the adolescent process from the paradigm of the uncanny and the double. Once the problematic field of identity, reflexivity, and the double has been clarified, we hypothesize that the pubertal context, through the psychic upheaval it implies, weakens the adolescent self to the point of sometimes producing a "detransitionalization" of the subjective identity. This threat of "detransitionalization" puts to the test the great oppositions on the basis of which the subjective identity had been constructed until then, such as the ego and the not-ego, the same and the different, the strange and the familiar, etc. The presentation and analysis of a clinical observation involving a young adolescent girl struggling with painful experiences and acute identity suffering, leads to an examination of the implications of pubertal discontinuity and the role of the object on the work of subjective reconstruction in adolescence. From a clinical point of view, the question of the survival of the object and the experience of a sufficient continuity in the transference would support the subjective appropriation of an otherness marked by the stakes of the pubertal drive and the encounter with the sexual other. The exploration of the links between identity and otherness allows us to infer the importance of the role of the double and its transitional effects in the work of identity and subjective transformation in adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In echo-planar diffusion-weighted imaging, correcting for susceptibility-induced artifacts typically requires acquiring pairs of images, known as blip-up blip-down acquisitions, to create an undistorted volume as a target to correct distortions that are often focal where regions with differences in magnetic susceptibility interface, such as the frontal and temporal areas. However, blip-up blip-down acquisitions are not always available, and distortion effects may not be specifically localized to such areas, with subtle effects potentially extending throughout the brain. Here, we apply a deep learning technique to generate an undistorted volume to correct susceptibility-induced artifacts and demonstrate implications for image fidelity and diffusion-based inference outside of areas where high focal distortion is present. To demonstrate differences due to susceptibility artifact correction, uncorrected baseline images were compared to identical images where correction was performed using an undistorted target volume produced by the deep learning tool "PreQual". Widespread geometric distortion was assessed visually by referencing diffusion-weighted images to T1-weighted images. Tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) were utilized to perform whole brain analysis of fractional anisotropy (FA) values to assess differences between subject groups (depressed vs. non-depressed) via permutation-based, voxel-wise testing. Multivariate regression models were then used to contrast TBSS results between corrected and non-corrected diffusion images. Susceptibility artifact correction resulted in visible, widespread improvement in image fidelity when referenced to T1-weighted images. TBSS results were dependent on susceptibility artifact correction with correction resulting in widespread structural alterations of the mean FA skeleton, changes in skeletal FA, and additional positive tests of significance of regression coefficients in subsequent regression models. Our results indicated that EPI distortion effects are not purely focal, and that reducing distortion can result in significant differences in the interpretation of diffusion data, even in areas remote from high distortion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We test for Granger causality in mean and quantiles between wage share and capacity utilization in developed countries. • We employ confidence intervals generated by bootstrap and the Wald test for joint significance. • Capacity utilization positively Granger causes the wage share in eight countries at the center, lower and upper tails. • The positive Granger causal effect of capacity utilization is strong, heterogeneous, and larger for extreme quantiles. • The wage share negatively Granger causes capacity utilization in all quantiles in Spain and above the median in Italy. This paper tests for Granger causality in quantiles between the wage share and capacity utilization in twelve developed countries using annual data ranging from 1960 to 2019. Instead of focusing only on the conditional mean, we test for Granger causality in the entire conditional distribution of the variables of interest. This method detects Granger causal dynamic relations in both the mean and the whole conditional distribution using bootstrap confidence intervals and the Wald test. Our results indicate that capacity utilization positively affects the wage share in eight out of the twelve sample countries. This Granger causal effect is strong and heterogeneous across quantiles, being larger for more extreme quantiles. Capacity utilization positively Granger causes the wage share in all conditional quantiles in the U.S., Sweden, and Italy. Meanwhile, the wage share negatively Granger causes capacity utilization in all conditional quantiles in Spain and in some quantiles above the median in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• In this work we propose two metaheuristic algorithms for generating linguistic descriptions of data. • We proposed fuzzy quantified statements involving three well-known quantification models. • We describe extensive experimentation with two real meteorological data sources: observation and forecasting. • We compare both approaches in terms of their performance and quality of the descriptions generated. • We perform tests of statistical significance for assessing the differences between both algorithms. In this paper we experimentally assess, from both algorithmic and pragmatic perspectives, the adequacy of linguistic descriptions of real data generated by two metaheuristics: simulated annealing and genetic algorithm meta-heuristics. The type of descriptions we consider are fuzzy quantified statements (both Zadeh's type-1 and type-2) involving three well-known quantification models (Zadeh's scalar and fuzzy and Delgado's GD). We conducted an empirical validation using real observation and prediction meteorological data, where both automatic (metrics-based) and manual (human experts-based) assessment on the adequacy of the generated descriptions was assessed. Results indicate that, overall, the genetic approach performs better than simulated annealing in terms of quality of the obtained descriptions and time execution. Significance of this outperforming depends on the type of meteorological data and the quantification model selected. Tests of statistical significance point out that for type-1 descriptions no significant differences exist between the two meta-heuristics in the prediction case. For type-2 descriptions, significant differences exist for Delgado's GD model for both types of data. For Zadeh's scalar and fuzzy quantification significance depends on the type of data (observation or prediction). Globally, outperforming of the genetic approach over simulated annealing i) is significant in 4 out of 12 scenarios considered (all of them type-2), and ii) is not significant in the other 8 out 12 scenarios (all type-1 and two type-2). Also human expert assessment on the adequacy of the descriptions was conducted, showing that both meta-heuristics behave similarly for type-1 descriptions, while genetic algorithms produce more suitable type-2 linguistic descriptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Paleoproterozoic metasedimentary rocks of the Zaonega Formation (Onega Basin, NW Russia) are important archives of inferred global environmental change following the initial oxygenation of the Earth's atmosphere and oceans. However, the geochemical signals preserved in these exceptionally organic-and pyrite-rich metasedimentary rocks and their environmental meaning remain contested. In particular, the Zaonega Formation's unusually high pyrite sulfur isotope ratios (δ34S) have been explained by either global or local forcings acting on sulfur cycling processes. We tested former interpretations of the Zaonega Formation's sedimentary pyrite record by integrating bulk and micro-scale δ34S analysis to discriminate the isotopic signatures of different generations of pyrite and determine the underlying mechanisms contributing to δ34S variability. We show that the prolonged genesis of pyrite occurred via multiple stages and included precipitation from early diagenetic fluids, organic matter pyritization, and late-stage alteration fluids. Our results demonstrate that early-stage pyrite typically carries more variable and lower δ34S values than late-stage pyrite. Although the early pyrite captures pore water S isotope signatures least evolved from the seawater, their contribution to the bulk δ34S results can be dwarfed by the greater volume of late-stage coarse pyrite. Consequently, determining the sequence of pyrite precipitation and δ34S characteristics of individual generations in any given sample are fundamental to interpreting bulk δ34S records. Our micro-scale results suggest that previous estimates based on bulk pyrite data (ca. 6 to 18‰) should not be related to the original seawater sulfate's isotopic composition. These results demonstrate that a thorough understanding of the geological context and mechanisms associated with S-cycling, and pyrite formation is necessary to interpret bulk δ34S records accurately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of neurosurgeons in the Philippines is less than ideal for its population, so there is a need to recruit and train more. This study aimed to determine medical students' perception of neurosurgery and their likelihood of pursuing a career in this specialty. A cross-sectional survey was conducted of medical students in the Philippines to assess their perceptions and likelihood of pursuing a career in neurosurgery. Data obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a χ2 test with a significance level of 0.05. A total of 627 medical students completed the survey, with a response rate of 72.4%. The mean age was 23.8 years, and almost half (49.1%) were women. They had mostly negative perceptions of neurosurgery, and only 18.7% were likely to pursue a career in this specialty. Reasons included poor work–life balance, poor understanding of neuroscience and neurosurgery, and the self-perceived lack of manual dexterity. The most common sources of their perceptions included lectures, movies, and neurosurgery residents and consultants whom they met in hospital. Previous exposure to neurosurgery lectures or rotations, going back to their hometown to work, and having a physician parent were associated with a higher likelihood of pursuing neurosurgery. Our study showed that medical students' perceptions of neurosurgery were generally negative and that only 18.7% were likely to pursue it as a career. Major changes would have to be made to improve students' perceptions to attract more students to the field and increase the neurosurgical workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statistical test analysis has proven itself to be versatile tool in various scientific and technical fields, following either a frequentist approach based on a p − value, or a Bayesian approach evaluating a Bayes factor. In this study, the authors adapted a Bayesian approach to a radiation-detection application in the industrial context of nuclear decommissioning. The detection of a weak uranium signal on concrete, under the constraint of a very low signal-to-noise ratio, represents in particular a major challenge in this application area. For this purpose, we developed an original Bayesian statistical hypothesis test based on a bivariate gamma distribution of Kibble. Said test allows merging the absolute and relative characters of two Bayesian tests developed in the same context, as well as providing better performance tradeoff in both cases of stationary and non-stationary radiological backgrounds. The simulation-based study showed that the proposed Bayesian test should meet the abovementioned expectations, and allow the detection of a relatively low surface activity uranium contamination, while ensuring a competitive tradeoff between statistical sensitivity and specificity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detection of speech and music is an essential preprocessing step for many high-level audio-based applications like speaker diarization and music information retrieval. Researchers have previously used various magnitude-based features in this task. In comparison, the phase spectrum has received lesser attention. The phase of a signal is believed to carry non-trivial information that can help determine its audio class. This work explores three existing phase-based features for speech vs. music classification. The potential of phase information is highlighted through statistical significance tests and canonical correlation analyses. The proposed approach is benchmarked against four baseline magnitude-based feature sets. This work also contributes an annotated audio dataset named Movie - MUSNOMIX of 8 h and 20 min duration, comprising seven audio classes, including speech and music. The Movie - MUSNOMIX dataset and widely used public datasets like MUSAN, GTZAN, Scheirer–Slaney, and Muspeak have been used for performance evaluations. In combination with magnitude-based ones, phase-based features improve upon the baseline performance consistently for the datasets used. Moreover, various combinations of phase and magnitude-based features show satisfactory generalization capability over the two datasets. The performances of phase-based features in identifying speech and music signals corrupted with different environmental noise at various SNR levels are also reported. Last but not least, a preliminary study on the efficacy of phase-based features in segmenting continuous sequences of speech and music signals is also provided. The codes used in this work and the contributed dataset have been made freely available. • This work explores phase information in the task of speech vs. music classification. • Statistical significance and generalization ability of phase features are reported. • Performance with signals corrupted with noises at various SNR levels is reported. • An 8 h and 20 min hindi movie audio dataset with seven audio classes is contributed. • Effectiveness in segmenting sequences of speech and music signals is also studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chattering effect, robustness and stability are the major issues in a typical Sliding Mode Control (SMC). The selection of sliding manifold parameters are complicated, time-consuming and tedious. The parameter convergence is also a challenging work. Hence, the paper accords a global optimization of Second-Order Sliding Mode Controller (SOSMC) parameters with new sliding surface using the Jaya algorithm for non-linear uncertain process tank systems. The controller (SOSMC) role is to direct the sliding surface and it's first order time derivative to zero in a finite time. The Jaya algorithm uses 'optimal features' by updating the solutions in populations. The effectiveness of proposed strategy is evaluated for five objective functions and compared with Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) based SOSMC, classical SOSMC, typical SMC, Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm based First-order SMC (NSGA-II FOSMC) and Proportional+Integral+Derivative (PID) controller which is validated through real-time experimentation. The asymptotic stability is guaranteed through direct Lyapunov candidate function. The statistical significance of algorithms has been verified by using Friedman, Dunn, critical time efficiency and p -value tests. The Jaya algorithm shows a better performance over reported methods concerning process speed, settling time, rise time, reaching time, overshoot, response time and parameter convergence as explored from simulation, statistical, and experimental results. Furthermore, the elevated dead-time and oscillatory processes have been presented to show the efficacy of proposed strategy. [Display omitted] • The Jaya-SOSMC method has been proposed for process control system. • Non-parametric tests verifies the statistical significance of algorithm. • A performance comparison with the prevalent control designs. • The proposed strategy has better multi-level set-point tracking and disturbance rejection capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a growing interest in the concept of climate justice, both in academia and society in general, there is still no consensus regarding the best models and data to represent it. Thus, the objective of this paper is to test and statistically validate the confirmatory factor model for climate justice. To do this, we applied Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), which designs and tests statistically the significance of a multidimensional theoretical construct. The main results were: a) the individual freedoms derived from the capability approach and the climate actions of adaptation and mitigation were empirically confirmed as viable perspectives for assessing climate justice; b) the theoretical constructs of human development, climate actions and climate justice can be constructed based on a set of 25 indicators; and c) the three confirmatory models were successfully tested to validate a theoretical/measurement model for climate justice. We believe that the results observed will provide policymakers and national governments with a new perspective for the alignment of different types of human development programs with climate change actions, helping them on the establishment of possible links between actions taken at the national level and the definition of global goals. • Presence of synergies between the confirmatory model and the Sustainable Development Goals. • The proposition of definition of Climate Justice based on the Capability Approach. • The 25 selected indicators can guide nations in their transition to a fairer low-carbon economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive statistical framework in order to rigorously derive the correlation coefficient distribution between two independent chemical data sets. The novel approach not only allows for unequivocal interpretation of distribution parameters and confidence intervals but also the generalization of previous results for fixed size comparisons into the new and experimentally important case of variable dimension data assessments. Original theoretical results include an objective criterion ("number of nines") for the coefficient of multiple determination in mathematical model fitting (e.g. calibration curve acceptance in validation protocols) and the requirement of a minimum correlation coefficient match of approximately 70% in variable size evaluations. Significance tests have been applied to the drug profile linkage of 532 real case cocaine samples seized by the National Police of Peru between the years of 2021 and 2022. • A novel and comprehensive mathematical framework to rigorously derive the correlation coefficient distribution between independent data sets. • Generalization of fixed dimension comparisons into the new and experimentally important case of variable size assessments. • Explicit derivation of critical correlation coefficient values in terms of Excel® statistical functions. • Minimum correlation coefficient value of approximately 70% for variable size data evaluations. • Coefficient of multiple determination criterion for calibration curve acceptance in validation protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Passenger ships have complex transportation systems and seafarers face high workloads, making them susceptible to serious injuries and fatalities in the event of accidents. Existing unimodal workload recognition for seafarers mainly focuses on fixed load induction in bridge simulators, whereas a multimodal approach using multi-sensor data fusion can overcome the reliability and sensitivity limitations of a single sensor. To accurately identify the workload of seafarers, we propose a machine learning-based multimodal fusion method at the feature layer and utilise the Gini index to determine the feature weight of the multimodal data. Through a real ship navigation experiment, the subjective workload assessment technique (SWAT) was employed to collect the continuous workload scores of 24 seafarers in daily tasks. Further, the Dempster–Shafer evidence theory was used to integrate these scores with the unsafe behavior probability of seafarers to obtain a calibrated workload. Electroencephalogram (EEG), electrocardiogram (ECG), and electrodermal activity (EDA) signals were collected in real time, and a high-dimensional feature matrix was extracted to construct the workload recognition model. Random forest, XGBoost, and back-propagation neural networks were used to establish multimodal fusion workload recognition models at the feature-fusion stage, and the model performances were compared. The results showed that the multimodal fusion based on EEG, ECG, and EDA had an excellent recognition accuracy. The XGBoost algorithm has better performance with an accuracy of 85.72%, which is an increment of 9.49% compared to that of the unimodal algorithm, and this improvement passed the statistical significance test. Important features suitable for multimodal fusion recognition were also analysed. The findings of this study have profound significance for enhancing risk control measures pertaining to human factors and ensuring navigation safety. • Multimodal fusion recognition methods of seafarers' workload in the feature layer is proposed using EEG, ECG and EDA. • The accuracy of the multimodal fusion model based on EEG, ECG and EDA reached 85.72%, which transparently improved the performance, and the results passed the statistical test. • EEG θ band wave and β band wave related activities can be used as the features of seafarers' workload recognition. • ECG, EDA signals related indicators can be introduced and calculated as physiological features for multimodal fusion recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Causal Decomposition (CD) constitutes a novel and widely accepted method for discovering and quantifying the internal causal relationships inherent to complex systems. This new causality bases not on time nor state. Instead, it relies on instantaneous phase coherence between the corresponding Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs) of the signals, obtained via Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD). In this paper we compare the results obtained with two noise-assisted methods: Ensemble EMD (EEMD) and Noise Assisted Multivariate EMD (NA-MEMD). Given the inherent stochastic nature of noise-assisted methods, CD was treated as a randomized experiment. Hence, we repeated procedures to perform a robust statistical analysis. Confidence intervals, adequate normality conditions and differential causality hypothesis testing were then evaluated. The methodology was adjusted through the paradigmatic case of a forced mechanical oscillator, since the causal implications are known in advance. CD was then applied to a couple of series from the Earth system: insolation and oxygen isotope rate. Differential causality was established in favor of insolation at the frequency corresponding to the obliquity cycle. The apparent causality detected with EEMD on other time scales was discarded and attributed to a mode mixing problem. Therefore, NA-MEMD outperformed EEMD with less mode mixing and sharper mode alignment. • Causal Decomposition was performed with EEMD and NA-MEMD methods. • Causal relationships were firmly established through statistical analysis. • The methodology was adjusted through the case of a forced mechanical oscillator. • Causality was established in favor of insolation related to the obliquity cycle. • NA-MEMD outperformed EEMD with less mode mixing and sharper mode alignment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The post-irradiation anneal tests for dispersion fuel plates are commonly employed to determine the blistering threshold temperature in order to evaluate their resistance to accidents. In this study, a three-dimensional simulation method for UMo/Zr dispersion fuel plates is developed to predict the normal stresses in the fuel skeleton and some related variables during in-pile irradiation and out-of-pile anneal tests. The effects of the intrusion of extra fission gas atoms into gas bubbles are investigated, and the contributions of the creep performances of fuel particles and the matrix are examined. The predictions reveal the following insights: (1) the thermo-mechanical behaviors during anneal tests are strongly dependent on the intrusion of extra fission gas atoms into gas bubbles and the additional fission-gas induced swelling during post-irradiation anneal tests; the maximum tensile stress in the fuel skeleton increases significantly, from 57.4 MPa to 346.0 MPa, as the fraction of generated fission gas atoms in gas bubbles shifts from approximately 23.4 % to 100 % in the annealing process; (2) the thermo-mechanical responses during anneal tests are greatly influenced by the creep performances of fuel particles and the matrix; the significantly weakened creep ability of fuel particles is found to be the critical factors responsible for particle cracking in the annealing process; the fuel particle fracture will hardly occur when the irradiation creep rate model is maintained during the considered annealing scheme, because the skeleton tensile stress does not appear. It is important to note that the particle cracking and the subsequent blister behaviors under in-pile neutron irradiation conditions are possible to occur if a rapid temperature increase takes place under accident conditions. Consequently, the out-of-pile annealing tests are of significance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a distribution-free Bayesian procedure that detects infinite degrees of stochastic dominance (SD ∞) between two random outcomes and then seeks a finite degree k ≥ 1 of stochastic dominance (SD k). Based on small samples, we construct four-choice Bayesian tests by combining an encompassing prior Bayesian model with the Dirichlet process priors that discriminate between SD ∞ and SD k of one random variable over the other with non-dominance or equality between them. We use Monte Carlo simulations to evaluate the novel Bayesian tests for SD k and SD ∞ and compare them to the subsampling and bootstrap significance tests for SD k. Our simulation shows that the Bayesian tests for SD k outperform the significance tests for small samples, especially for detecting non-stochastic dominance. This study shows that the test for SD ∞ is an accurate decision-making tool when using small samples. • We offer a Bayesian procedure that detects infinite and finite degrees of SD. • Novel four-choice Bayesian tests for SD employ an encompassing priors approach. • The Bayesian tests for SD outperform the significance tests for small samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human photoreceptors consist of cones, rods, and melanopsin-expressing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs). First studied in circadian regulation and pupillary control, ipRGCs project to a variety of brain centers suggesting a broader involvement beyond non-visual functions. IpRGC responses are stable, long-lasting, and with a particular codification of photoreceptor signals. In comparison with the transient and adaptive nature of cone and rod signals, ipRGCs' signaling might provide an ecological advantage to different attributes of color vision. Previous studies have indicated melanopsin's influence on visual responses yet its contribution to color perception in humans remains debated. We summarized evidence and hypotheses (from physiology, psychophysics, and natural image statistics) about direct and indirect involvement of ipRGCs in human color vision, by first briefly assessing the current knowledge about the role of melanopsin and ipRGCs in vision and codification of spectral signals. We then approached the question about melanopsin activation eliciting a color percept, discussing studies using the silent substitution method. Finally, we explore various avenues through which ipRGCs might impact color perception indirectly, such as through involvement in peripheral color matching, post-receptoral pathways, color constancy, long-term chromatic adaptation, and chromatic induction. While there is consensus about the role of ipRGCs in brightness perception, confirming its direct contribution to human color perception requires further investigation. We proposed potential approaches for future research, emphasizing the need for empirical validation and methodological thoroughness to elucidate the exact role of ipRGCs in human color vision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subacromial Pain Syndrome (SPS) is a prevalent musculoskeletal shoulder disorder. Shoulder pain in overhead athletes is often associated with sport-specific demands and changes in strength, flexibility, and posture at the shoulder and along the upper limb. Crossfit is a popular sport with a high prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders, including in the shoulder. Therefore, identifying performance and physical impairments in the shoulder of Crossfit practitioners with SPS may contribute to a better understanding of the high prevalence of this disorder. This study aimed to compare the shoulder's physical performance and clinical measures between Crossfit practitioners with and without SPS. An observational cross-sectional study was conducted in CrossFit boxes in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Twenty participants with SPS and 23 participants without SPS were included. Participants performed upper limb physical performance tests (Closed Kinetic Chain Upper Extremity Stability Test, Seated Medicine Ball Throw Test, Upper Quarter Y-Balance Test). Range of motion and isometric muscle strength were also investigated. Self-reported pain, disability. Possible differences between groups were investigated using the independent sample t-test (two tailed). There was no statistically significant difference between groups for upper limb physical performance tests, shoulder range of motion and isometric strength. The result of the SPADI in the SDSA group was 30.7% (23.62) for pain, 16.46% (19.24) for disability, and a total score of 21.92% (20.22). Crossfit practitioners with and without SPS presented similar upper limb physical performance. Subacromial pain syndrome may not influence performance on physical tests, strength level, and upper quadrant range of motion in CrossFit practitioners. Including crossfit-specific movements in the physical assessment can complement the physical evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hierarchical bootstrap as alternative to parametric Type I/II error simulations. • Identify inflated Type I & II errors of two most common approaches to RT analyses. • Identify substantial over-optimism of RT analyses in the literature. • Identify issues with past parametric validations of analysis approaches. • Provide recommendations for new standards in RT analyses. We investigate the statistical power and Type I error rate of the two most common approaches to reading time (RT) analyses: assuming normality of residuals and homogeneity of variance in raw or log-transformed RTs. We first show that the assumptions of such analyses—such as t -tests, ANOVAs, and linear mixed-effects models—are neither consistently met by raw RTs, nor by log-transformed RTs (or any other common power transforms, incl. inverse-transformed RTs). Only a non-power transform (log-shift) provides a decent fit for all data sets and data preparation steps we consider. We then compare the statistical power and Type I error rate for linear mixed-effects models over raw or log-transformed RTs. Previous studies on this matter relied on parametrically generated data. We show why this is problematic, and introduce as an alternative a hierarchical bootstrap approach over naturally distributed reading times. This approach yields substantially different—and arguably more informative—results than the parametric simulation approaches we compare it to. Our results suggests that it is time to heed the advice others have provided for reading research: for any but the simplest designs, we find both the rate of spurious significances and the rate of undetected true effects can strongly depend on the scale (e.g., raw or log-RTs) in which effects are assumed to be linear. Researchers should thus clearly motivate the choice of analysis based on theoretical grounds, assess the robustness of findings under different analysis approaches, and discuss potential mismatches between analyses. The R scripts and libraries shared in the accompanying OSF repo allow researchers to assess the reliability of their analyses via hierarchical bootstrap over their own data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents new findings related to the assessment of wear test parameters, including material, load, and sliding speed, focusing on understanding the statistical characteristics of response variables such as width, depth, wear volume, specific wear rate, and coefficient of friction. Wet sliding wear tests were conducted on both borided and non-borided AISI 316 L-SS samples under controlled environmental conditions. The tests were developed using the ASTM G133–05 standard guidelines and UMT-2 tribological equipment. The results of the variance analysis revealed that the material factor exhibited the most substantial statistical significance for width, depth, wear volume, specific wear rate, and CoF, accounting for 91.4%, 88.1%, 86.3%, 79.4%, and 78.8% of the variance, respectively, followed by the normal load factor. The response variables behavior was analyzed through the Surface Response Methodology statistical technique, and the approach equations were obtained. • ANOVA was obtained on borided and non-borided AISI 316 L under ball-on-flat wet wear tests. • The material type factor exhibited a dominant statistical influence with 79.48% of the variation in the k value. • A complete factorial design randomized approach was applied to study the parameter's significance. • Borided AISI 316 L provides minor k values than non-borided ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a new test when there is a nuisance parameter λ under the alternative hypothesis. The test exploits the p-value occupation time [PVOT], the measure of the subset of λ on which a p-value test based on a test statistic T n (λ) rejects the null hypothesis. Key contributions are: (i) An asymptotic critical value upper bound for our test is the significance level α , making inference easy. (ii) We only require T n (λ) to have a known or bootstrappable limit distribution, hence we do not require n -Gaussian asymptotics, allowing for weak or non-identification, boundary values, heavy tails, infill asymptotics, and so on. (iii) A test based on the transformed p -value sup λ ∈ Λ p n (λ) may be conservative and in some cases have trivial power, while the PVOT naturally controls for this by smoothing over the nuisance parameter space. Finally, (iv) the PVOT uniquely allows for bootstrap inference in the presence of nuisance parameters when some estimated parameters may not be identified. • P-value smoothing that alleviates the need to construct a test statistic functional. • Achieves the correct level asymptotically. • Consistent if the underlying test is consistent. • Robust to weak identification when the pointwise p -value is robust. • Sidesteps test statistic functionals which are not (uniformly) robust to weak identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compressive strength (CS) has been considered as the utmost critical parameter while designing concrete structures. Usually, it is determined through laboratory tests, which are expensive, time consuming, and requires consumptions of materials. Therefore, correct prediction of CS before actual placement of concrete is highly desirable. The relationship among the constituent materials that forms concrete structures is highly nonlinear and necessitates application of intelligent methods. Though a few such methods like artificial neural network (ANN) based models are available in the literature; their performance in the context is limited to certain extent and they have their own merits and demerits. Hence, to address some of the limitations of ANN (non-higher order Neural Network) based models, this contribution proposed a hybrid model in which a flat network i.e., a type of higher order neural network- functional link artificial neural network (FLANN) is used as the base structure and genetic algorithm (GA) is employed to find out the optimal FLANN parameters (i.e., GA + FLANN). The training process comprises selection of connection weights, bias, as well as optimal number of basis functions of FLANN by GA rather fixing them earlier. Thus, an optimal FLANN is crafted on fly from exploitation of training data. The proposed model is used to assess the CS of concrete cements from datasets available in the literature considering samples of curing age at 3, 7, 14, 28, 56, and 91 days. A rolling window is used for input selection and five evaluation metrics are used for performance evaluation. On an average, the GA + FLANN obtained 0.477052 MAPE (mean absolute percentage of error), 0.598067 ARV (average relative variance), 0.593862 UT (U of Theil's statistic), 0.551452 NMSE (normalized mean squared error), and 0.206135 SD (standard deviation) values which are the lowest compared to others. The superiority of the model is established through comparative studies and statistical significance tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between purified protein derivative of tuberculin (PPD) values, an indicator of BCG protection, and COVID-19 disease in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on the kidney transplant waiting list. Age, sex, dialysis type, ERSD etiologies, and PPD values of patients on the renal transplant waiting list were recorded. SARS-CoV-2 PCR data, whether the patients were previously infected with the virus, and, if infected, the severity of the disease were noted. Data were statistically compared. PCR of 87 (47.02%) of 185 patients were studied; 107 of the patients were male and 78 were female, with a mean age of 52.8 years. The test result was positive for 28 patients. Of the patients for whom PCR was studied, 41 had a negative PPD result, while 46 had a positive PPD result. There was no correlation with SARS-CoV-2 PCR positivity in patients with a PPD ≤ 5 mm and > 5 mm. However, patients with pneumonic infiltration who required hospitalization had a significantly higher PPD value. The PPD measurement, which is an indicator of BCG protection, might be a significant parameter for predicting the course of the disease in SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Six Socio-economic and climatic indicators that affect MSW production are selected. • The k-means clustering algorithm was used to divide all cities in mainland China. • The clustering results be checked by statistical significance test. • Cities cluster result could be used in waste prediction and policy development. Cities in mainland China are usually classified according to geographical locations. This traditional city classification system is limited to relative fixed factors, which lives out a gap in terms of the spatial differences of municipal solid waste (MSW). Developing a more comprehensive city classification system is essential for MSW generation prediction and waste management. In this study, six economic, social and climatic indicators that affect MSW generation: population, per capita GDP (PCGDP), environmental sanitation investment (ESI), average temperature, average precipitation, and average humidity, are selected. Weights were calculated for each indicator using a combination of CRITIC weight method and Pearson correlation coefficient prior to cluster analysis. The k-means clustering algorithm was used to classify all cities into four clusters, which differed significantly in the relationships between MSW generation and influencing factors. The results of Kruskal-Wallis test also show that cities in different clusters show different distributions in terms of the indicators selected. The cross-prediction results of the model further validate the reliability of the clustering results from a quantitative perspective. By establishing a city classification system, cities with similar relationships between MSW generation and influencing factors can be placed into one cluster. The model established in one certain city cluster can be used to predict the MSW generation for cities in the same cluster that lack historical data. This may also help to formulate appropriate regional policies according to different relationships between MSW generation and influencing factors, especially for the four city clusters in the mainland China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We sought to evaluate overall survival (OS) and local recurrence (LR) in patients with grade 2 meningiomas treated with adjuvant radiotherapy compared to surgery alone at time of diagnosis. All patients at the authors' institution between 2007 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. OS, LR, and treatment toxicities were assessed. Sensitivity analyses were performed for patients with initial gross total resection (GTR) and subtotal resection (STR). Kaplan-Meier analyses and log-rank test for significance were used to compare surgery alone and adjuvant radiotherapy groups. We included 189 patients with mean age 57.4 ± 14.6 years. Patients were 64% female, and median follow-up was 64 (interquartile range: 20−96) months. At initial treatment, 21 patients received adjuvant radiotherapy and 168 received surgery alone. There was no significant difference for OS (hazard ratio = 1.3 [95% confidence interval 0.4−4.5], P = 0.92) overall or when limited to GTR (P = 0.38) or STR (P = 0.85). There was no significant difference in LR overall (P = 0.75) or when restricted to GTR (P = 0.77) or STR (P = 0.20). No patient had radiotherapy stopped or altered because of side effects; however, 71.4% reported tolerable side effects during the treatment period and 14.3% reported chronic side effects persisting longer than 12 months post treatment. In a large retrospective cohort, we found no survival or local recurrence benefit to adjuvant radiotherapy in treatment of grade 2 meningiomas. Sensitivity analysis limited to initial GTR and STR also failed to demonstrate any OS or LR benefit with adjuvant radiotherapy. In our experience, there is limited utility to upfront adjuvant radiotherapy following initial surgical resection in the treatment of grade 2 meningiomas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]