Editorial Policies Overview

As a global open access publisher, Tech Science Press is dedicated to disseminating cutting-edge scholarly research among scientific community by advocating an immediate, world-wide and barrier-free access to the research we publish. To ensure all publication meeting our ethical and scientific quality standards, each submission goes through a rigorous review process, including pre-peer-review by relevant editorial board, a single-blind peer-review process by scientific experts, revision following reviewers’ comments as well as final approval by the editorial board.

Human papillomavirus genotype distribution in Ethiopia: an updated systematic review

Background Cervical cancer is caused by infection with high-risk human papillomaviruses (HR-HPVs). It is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in Ethiopia and globally. To develop efficient vaccination and HPV-based cervical cancer screening approaches, data on genotype distribution of HPVs is crucial. Hence, the study was aimed to review HPV genotype distribution in Ethiopia. Methods Research articles were systematically searched using comprehensive search strings from PubMed/Medline and SCOPUS. Besides, Google Scholar was searched manually for grey literature. The last search was conducted on 18 August 2021. The first two authors independently appraised the studies for scientific quality and extracted the data using Excel sheet. The pooled HPV genotype distribution was presented with descriptive statistics. Results We have included ten studies that were reported from different parts of the country during 2005 and 2019. These studies included 3633 women presented with different kinds of cervical abnormalities, from whom 29 different HPV genotypes with a sum of 1926 sequences were reported. The proportion of high-risk, possible/probable high-risk and low-risk HPVs were at 1493 (77.5%), 182 (9.4%) and 195 (10.1%), respectively. Of the reported genotypes, the top five were HPV 16 (37.3%; 95% CI 35.2.1–39.5%), HPV 52 (6.8%; 95% CI 5.8–8.0%), HPV 35 (4.8%; 95% CI 3.9–5.8%), HPV 18 (4.4%; 95% CI 3.5–5.3%) and HPV 56 (3.9%: 95% CI 3.1–4.9%). Some of other HR-HPV groups include HPV 31 (3.8%), HPV 45 (3.5%), HPV 58 (3.1%), HPV 59(2.3%), and HPV 68 (2.3%). Among the high-risk types, the combined prevalence of HPV 16/18 was at 53.7% (95% CI 51.2–56.3%). HPV 11 (2.7%: 95% CI 2.1–3.5%), HPV 42 (2.1%: 95% CI 1.5–2.8%) and HPV 6 (2.1%: 95% CI 1.4–2.7%) were the most common low-risk HPV types. Conclusions We noted that the proportion of HR-HPV types was higher and HPV 16 in particular, but also HPV 52, HPV 35 and HPV 18, warrant special attention in Ethiopian’s vaccination and HPV based cervical screening program. Additional data from other parts of the country where there is no previous HPV genotype report are needed to better map the national HPV genotypes distribution of Ethiopia.

Ergodic stationary distribution of a stochastic rumor propagation model with general incidence function

In daily lives, when emergencies occur, rumors will spread widely on the Internet. However, it is quite difficult for the netizens to distinguish the truth of the information. The main reasons are the uncertainty of netizens' behavior and attitude, which make the transmission rates of these information among social network groups being not fixed. In this paper, we propose a stochastic rumor propagation model with general incidence function. The model can be described by a stochastic differential equation. Applying the Khasminskii method via a suitable construction of Lyapunov function, we first prove the existence of a unique solution for the stochastic model with probability one. Then we show the existence of a unique ergodic stationary distribution of the rumor model, which exhibits the ergodicity. We also provide some numerical simulations to support our theoretical results. The numerical results give us some possible methods to control rumor propagation that (1)increasing noise intensity can effectively reduce rumor propagation when $\widehat{\mathcal{R}}_{0}>1$. That is, after rumors spread widely on social network platforms, government intervention and authoritative media coverage will interfere with netizens' opinions, thus reducing the degree of rumor propagation; (2) Speed up the rumor refutation, intensify efforts to refute rumors, and improve the scientific quality of netizen(i.e. increase the value of $\beta$ and decrease the value of $\alpha$ and $\gamma$ ) can effectively curb rumor propagation.

Global cervical cancer research: A scientometric density equalizing mapping and socioeconomic analysis

Cervical cancer has caused substantial morbidity and mortality for millions of women over the past decades. While enormous progress has been made in diagnosis, prevention and therapy, the disease is still fatal for many women—especially in low-income countries. Since no detailed studies are available on the worldwide research landscape, we here investigated the global scientific output related to this cancer type by an established protocol. The “New Quality and Quantity Indices in Science” platform assessed all relevant cervical cancer research published in the Web of Science since 1900. A detailed analysis was conducted including country-specific research productivity, indicators for scientific quality, and relation of research activity to socioeconomic and epidemiologic figures. Visualization of data was generated by the use of density equalizing map projections. Our approach identified 22,185 articles specifically related to cervical cancer. From a global viewpoint, the United States of America was the dominating country in absolute numbers, being followed by China and Japan. By contrast, the European countries Sweden, Austria, and Norway were positioned first when the research activity was related to the population number. When the scientific productivity was related to annual cervical cancer cases, Scandinavian countries (Finland #1, Sweden #4, Norway #5, Denmark #7), the Alpine countries Austria (#2) and Switzerland (#6), and the Netherlands (#3) were leading the field. Density equalizing mapping visualized that large parts of Africa and South America were almost invisible regarding the global participation in cervical cancer research. Our data documented that worldwide cervical cancer research activity is continuously increasing but is imbalanced from a global viewpoint. Also, the study indicated that global and public health aspects should be strengthened in cervical carcinoma research in order to empower more countries to take part in international research activities.

COVID-19 data are messy: analytic methods for rigorous impact analyses with imperfect data

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an avalanche of scientific studies, drawing on many different types of data. However, studies addressing the effectiveness of government actions against COVID-19, especially non-pharmaceutical interventions, often exhibit data problems that threaten the validity of their results. This review is thus intended to help epidemiologists and other researchers identify a set of data issues that, in our view, must be addressed in order for their work to be credible. We further intend to help journal editors and peer reviewers when evaluating studies, to apprise policy-makers, journalists, and other research consumers about the strengths and weaknesses of published studies, and to inform the wider debate about the scientific quality of COVID-19 research. Results To this end, we describe common challenges in the collection, reporting, and use of epidemiologic, policy, and other data, including completeness and representativeness of outcomes data; their comparability over time and among jurisdictions; the adequacy of policy variables and data on intermediate outcomes such as mobility and mask use; and a mismatch between level of intervention and outcome variables. We urge researchers to think critically about potential problems with the COVID-19 data sources over the specific time periods and particular locations they have chosen to analyze, and to choose not only appropriate study designs but also to conduct appropriate checks and sensitivity analyses to investigate the impact(s) of potential threats on study findings. Conclusions In an effort to encourage high quality research, we provide recommendations on how to address the issues we identify. Our first recommendation is for researchers to choose an appropriate design (and the data it requires). This review describes considerations and issues in order to identify the strongest analytical designs and demonstrates how interrupted time-series and comparative longitudinal studies can be particularly useful. Furthermore, we recommend that researchers conduct checks or sensitivity analyses of the results to data source and design choices, which we illustrate. Regardless of the approaches taken, researchers should be explicit about the kind of data problems or other biases that the design choice and sensitivity analyses are addressing.

Analisis Hybrid Decision Support System dalam Penentuan Status Kelulusan Mahasiswa

Determination of graduation status is often faced by lecturers in every university. The facts show that many of the decisions still have a fairly high error rate in determining graduation status. This study aims to develop an analytical model in the process of determining student graduation using the Hybrid Decision Support System (DSS). The methods used in the analysis process are Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Others Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The performance of AHP can determine the value of the weight criteria and TOPSIS performs rankings to produce solutions in determining. The criteria indicators used to consist of Depth (C1), Material Breadth (C2), Answer Accuracy (C3), Fluency of Answers (C4), Scientific Attitude (C5), Logical Consistency of Content (C6), Authenticity (C7), Scientific Quality ( C8), Language (C9), and Writing (C10). The results of this study indicate that the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method provides a weighting value for each criterion with a fairly good accuracy rate of 85,86%. These results conclude that each criterion has a consistent level of relationship in determining student graduation. Based on the output of the TOPSIS analysis, the results presented can determine the student's graduation status correctly and accurately.

Biodegradation and Non-Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Poly(Lactic-co-Glycolic Acid) (PLGA12/88 and PLGA6/94)

The predicted growth in plastic demand and the targets for global CO2 emission reductions require a transition to replace fossil-based feedstock for polymers and a transition to close- loop recyclable, and in some cases to, biodegradable polymers. The global crisis in terms of plastic littering will furthermore force a transition towards materials that will not linger in nature but will degrade over time in case they inadvertently end up in nature. Efficient systems for studying polymer (bio)degradation are therefore required. In this research, the Respicond parallel respirometer was applied to polyester degradation studies. Two poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) copolyesters (PLGA12/88 and PLGA6/94) were tested and shown to mineralise faster than cellulose over 53 days at 25 °C in soil: 37% biodegradation for PLGA12/88, 53% for PLGA6/94, and 30% for cellulose. The corresponding monomers mineralised much faster than the polymers. The methodology presented in this article makes (bio)degradability studies as part of a materials development process economical and, at the same time, time-efficient and of high scientific quality. Additionally, PLGA12/88 and PLGA6/94 were shown to non-enzymatically hydrolyse in water at similar rates, which is relevant for both soil and marine (bio)degradability.

Análisis de contenido y nivel de evidencia de los artículos sobre Covid-19 más citados en la Web of Science

The scientific literature on Covid-10 has seen unprecedented growth, becoming published so rapidly that it has caused a loss of quality and the peer review process to be questioned. This research analyzes the characteristics of the publications with a wider impact on Covid-19, mainly those related to the content, the quality and level of evidence of the studies. Web of Science Core Collection was searched for articles containing the terms Covid-19 and SARS-CoV-19 and the 100 most cited articles published in 2020 were selected. The data extracted included bibliographic data, dates of submission, acceptance and publication in the journals, main topics covered, type of study and level of evidence according to the SIGN scale, and the presence of corrections. Half of the articles were published in 3 journals, most of them in the first months of 2020. The most frequent types of studies corresponded to case series, narrative reviews and expert opinions, with only 1 randomized controlled clinical trial. The articles focused mainly on the clinical characteristics and complications of the patients, diagnostic and treatment methods, as well as the epidemiology and characteristics of the virus. The design of these studies reflects a low level of evidence, and data and scientific quality may be affected by how quickly they are published, and the peer review process is performed. Resumen El crecimiento sin precedentes de la bibliografía científica sobre Covid-19 y la rapidez en su publicación ha llevado a cuestionar la calidad y el proceso de revisión por pares. Este estudio tiene como objetivo analizar las características de las publicaciones con mayor impacto sobre Covid-19, principalmente las relacionadas con el contenido, la calidad y nivel de evidencia de los estudios. Para ello, se buscó en la colección principal de Web of Science los artículos que contenían los términos Covid-19 y SARS-CoV-19 en el campo del título y se seleccionaron los 100 artículos más citados publicados en el año 2020. Además de los datos bibliográficos, se recogieron datos de las fechas de envío, aceptación y publicación en las revistas, principales temas tratados, tipo de estudio y nivel de evidencia según la escala SIGN, así como de la presencia de correcciones. Más de la mitad de los artículos están publicados en 3 revistas, y la mayoría de ellos en los primeros meses de 2020. Los tipos de estudios más frecuentes son series de casos, revisiones narrativas y opiniones de expertos, con solo 1 ensayo clínico controlado aleatorizado. El contenido de los artículos trata principalmente de las características clínicas y complicaciones de los enfermos, métodos diagnósticos y de tratamiento, así como de la epidemiología y características del virus. Los artículos presentan un nivel de evidencia bajo, a pesar de estar publicados en revistas de medicina con muy alto factor de impacto. El tiempo transcurrido entre la fecha de envío y de publicación es muy corto y cuestiona la realización y/o rigor del proceso de revisión por pares.

Exploration on the Construction of Online and Offline Blending Teaching Mode in the Introduction to Earth Science

The course “Introduction to earth science” is a basic general course integrating science and interest run by the School of Atmospheric Sciences in Chengdu University of Information Technology. It is also a public elective course for the cultivation of college students' scientific quality. With the development of Internet plus education and the promotion of information technology, the paper combines the traditional offline teaching mode with the online teaching mode adopted during the spring semester in 2020 because of the COVID-19, giving full play to the advantages of the two teaching modes. According to the school's teaching environment and teaching objectives, the online and offline blending teaching mode is constructed by introducing the recording of course video + MOOC + SPOC+ online resources of high-quality open courses + Flipped Classroom+ Rain Classroom + QQ group + WeChat + Tencent meeting, in order to improve the comprehensive teaching performance, and provide an important reference for the educational reform of similar courses in the post epidemic era.

Peer Review Declaration

All papers published in this volume (IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science) have been peer reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing. • Type of peer review: Single-anonymous: authors’ identities are known to the reviewers, reviewers’ identities are hidden from authors. Main criteria used by Reviewers when accepting/declining papers: 1. Relevance to the scope of the Conference 2. Suitability & length of the title 3. Scientific originality 4. Adequacy of the abstract 5. Scientific quality 6. Text quality 7. English level • Conference submission management system: Full paper submission was fully managed by editorial board of Conference • Number of submissions received: 53 full papers • Number of submissions sent for review: 51 full papers • Number of submissions accepted: 48 full papers • Acceptance Rate (Number of Submissions Accepted/Number of Submissions Received X 100): 90.56 % • Average number of reviews per paper: 2 (117 reviews) • Total number of reviewers involved: 51 reviewers (15 institutes) from 3 countries • Any additional info on review process: The review process and revision were conducted 3 rounds on average for each paper since the first submission after presentation at the conference. The first step was to check the format of paper and base quality of English level. The second-round of review was organized for papers with minor remarks from reviewers, for example the graphics or style. The third round required only for papers that need major modifications (scientific discussion on topic). All reviewers were asked to complete the review within enough time ranged no more than three weeks. We have asked authors to revise according to suggestions by reviewers within time ranged between 7-10 days. After being accepted, the final English proofread and format checking our specialists were carried out to ensure the quality prior to submission to IOP EES. • Contact person for queries: Name: Aleksandr Zakupin, Ph.D. Affiliation: Institute for Marine Geology and Geophysics, Department of Seismology Email: [email protected]