bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Donnie Yen's star persona in amateur-produced videos on YouTube
Authors: Lau Dorothy
Published: September 2018

Amateur-produced, web-based videos have become an emergent locus of emulating, multiplying, and reinventing the appeal of martial arts stars, which was once a product of professionals of industrial mechanism. The constellation of user-generated practices on platforms such as YouTube, Twitter, Wikipedia, and Facebook that depend on amateur content has become a vital force driving popular construction that blurs the line between the professional and the amateur. Celebrated transnational Chinese actor Donnie Yen, who has gained huge fame thanks to his work in martial arts hits, was cast in the Star Wars feature Rogue One (2016). An analysis of two videos on YouTube that (re)narrativize Yen's persona in Rogue One shows how video makers working outside the film industry open up new aspects of articulating and understanding the star. Amateur video producers unsettle Yen's status, which is principally anchored on his martial authenticity and acrobatic skills, by either mixing the active body with other generic components like sci-fi or virtualizing the warrior figure in other media contexts, such as video games and virtual reality. The outcome is a composite, multidirectional intertext that engenders novel dimensions of a star text, negotiating and refashioning the martial arts personality. Digital creative texts have discursive power that changes and challenges the industrial structure of cultural production in a volatile media environment.
Framing alterity: Reclaiming fandom’s marginality
Authors: Booth Paul J.
Published: September 2018

At a moment when fandom is becoming more visible to mainstream audiences and fan studies interrogates the media industry's appropriation of fannish behavior, it is important not to neglect the local and independent aspects of fan activity. In a rhetorical reading of two independent geek-themed stores, the Who Shop and Alien Entertainment, I analyze the way they appear to harness, market, and generate feelings of fan alterity, a deliberate self-othering of the fan. Fan studies has discussed the mainstreaming of fandom through the lens of major media corporations and marketing campaigns. However, fan studies has rarely addressed the impact of independent, local geek stories on fan experiences. The experience of visiting the stores reinforces a discourse of fan marginality, (re)establishing a uniqueness to the fan identity that the discourse of mainstreaming elides and enlivening the fan experience through historicity and face-to-face activity.
Fan film on the final frontier: Axanar Productions and the limits of fair use in the digital age
Authors: Lerner Sarah Elizabeth
Published: September 2018

In an analysis of the copyright case Paramount/CBS v. Axanar Productions Inc. and Alec Peters (2016), which centers on a high-budget Star Trek fan film, I consider how the case frames digital-age media fandom's challenges to the law, and concomitantly, how the case frames the law's challenges to media fandom. Even while legal action of this kind does not dampen participatory culture on the whole, it raises questions about the legal definition of a fan and the limits of fair use doctrine, and it delineates the changing relationships between media industries and fans. Paramount/CBS v. Axanar Productions reveals the tension between the gift-giving ethos of fandom and online crowdfunding as a type of gift; it also reveals the negative industrial and legal reactions to fan filmmaking and crowdfunding as threats to the way film has traditionally been constituted. I analyze Axanar's use of Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns, the introduction of Paramount/CBS's restrictive fan film guidelines, and finally, the rejected fair use argument proposed by the defense. I take up the rejected fair use argument by situating it alongside the case history of appropriation art in order to consider another way to argue for fan films as transformative works.
Guerre, guerre civile, guerre révolutionnaire : la violence en héritage dans l'Italie républicaine, 1945-1980
Authors: Cirefice Virgile , Quang Grégoire Le
Published: September 2018

La fin du deuxième conflit mondial est pour l'Italie une étape clé qui met un terme à deux décennies de fascisme, couronnées par un épisode de violences fratricide à la signification multiple : guerre de libération, guerre civile et, en partie, guerre de classe. Si la compréhension de la nature du totalitarisme fasciste et de la guerre civile a été profondément renouvelée par l'historiographie récente, la portée de cet héritage conflictuel sur le long terme est un terrain d'étude seulement partiellement défriché. C'est d'abord la question des modalités du retour à la paix qui se posent, entre épuration limitée et contestation parfois radicale de l'ordre démocratique mis en place à la Libération. Le processus de transition démocratique est en effet menacé par la permanence de formes de violences politiques et par des rhétoriques de criminalisation de l'ennemi qui se renforcent avec l'entrée en Guerre froide, mais continuent de puiser largement dans les modèles et les cultures politiques héritées de la période de guerre. Au cours des années 1960 puis 1970, la rhétorique anticommuniste et la résurgence d'un antifascisme de combat contribuent également à dramatiser les oppositions politiques, et ce jusqu'aux violences de matrices terroristes qui culminent à la fin des années 1970. En résulte un brouillage persistant entre guerre et paix dans la péninsule italienne qui permet d'interroger sur plus de trois décennies l’héritage de la guerre mondiale.
La violence politique dans le périodique satirique Simplicisssimus de l’avant à l’après Première Guerre mondiale
Authors: Cohen-Avenel Pascale
Published: September 2018

La violence politique est particulièrement présente entre 1919 et 1923 dans Simplicissimus, qui fut la revue satirique la plus célèbre et la plus brillante d’Allemagne au début du XXe siècle. Cette violence caractérise avant tout les caricatures sur l’occupation des bords du Rhin, puis de la Ruhr, par les troupes françaises d’Afrique, sur le référendum d’autodétermination en Silésie, mais aussi sur la révolution de 1918, les affrontements entre partis et les putschs avortés de 1920 et 1923, ainsi que sur les guerres dans le reste du monde, en particulier entre la Chine et le Japon. Cependant ces images renvoient largement à des représentations de la violence antérieures à la Première Guerre mondiale : en Allemagne, du fait de l’oppression du pays par la Prusse, à l’étranger avec les guerres des Balkans. Si la violence nait de la guerre, la Première Guerre mondiale n’en est qu’un avatar parmi d’autres. Dans le cas des expressionnistes allemands, la confrontation directe avec la guerre marque au contraire le coup d’arrêt de leur fascination pour la violence.
Fostering Social Presence on Virtual Learning Teams
Authors: Stone Jennifer
Published: September 2018

Social presence is a key factor in student satisfaction and success in online courses and a marker for whether one has an online learning experience that is engaged, vibrant, and connected, or simply perfunctory. An action-oriented research project was conducted to determine how to foster social presence on the virtual learning teams in the Master of Arts programs in the School of Education and Technology at Royal Roads University. The study findings show that in order to support the development of social presence, the commitment and participation of multiple stakeholders is required. The results of this study suggest a common organizational understanding of social presence, clear delineation of student and faculty roles and responsibilities in its development, intentional program design, and a learning management system that specifically lends to interpersonal relationship building must all be present in order to foster the development of social presence.
Information Governance Maturity Model
Authors: Barragan Salvador P.
Published: September 2018

With the advent of big data and the ability to correlate and discover new value, information may render current retention practices obsolete. Information is now becoming a more distinct asset and can no longer be thought of as an object without significant business value. Overall, big data and infonomics presents the possibility of analyzing vast quantities of data that could not have been addressed before and appraising it for business value. In the future, applying retention to information may become more about uncovering and measuring business value than of just following legal mandates.
Mining Big Data and Streams
Authors: Abdelhafez Hoda Ahmed
Published: September 2018

Mining big data is getting a lot of attention currently because businesses need more complex information in order to increase their revenue and gain competitive advantage. Therefore, mining the huge amount of data as well as mining real-time data needs to be done by new data mining techniques/approaches. This chapter will discuss big data volume, variety, and velocity, data mining techniques, and open source tools for handling very large datasets. Moreover, the chapter will focus on two industrial areas telecommunications and healthcare and lessons learned from them.
Exploratory Data Analysis on Breast Cancer Prognosis
Authors: O. Mohammad Mehdi Owrang , Kanaan Yasmine M. , Copeland Jr. Robert L. , Gaskins Melvin , DeWitty Jr. Robert L.
Published: September 2018

Breast cancer prognosis is a vital element of providing effective treatment for breast cancer patients. Breast cancer prediction survivability has mainly been studied based on pathological factors such as tumor size, tumor grade, number of positive lymph nodes, and hormone receptors among others. This chapter looks at the significance of the non-clinical prognostic factors of age, ethnicity, and marital status in finding the prognosis for breast cancer patients. The National Cancer Institute's SEER data and the Howard University Cancer Center Tumor Registry data are analyzed. Prognostic tool NPI (Nottingham Prognostic Index) and survival analysis tools of Cox proportional hazards and Kaplan-Meier survival curve are used in analyzing the experiments. The results suggest that age, ethnicity, and marital status have some influence on the survivability rate of breast cancer patients.
Comb Filters Characteristics and Current Applications
Authors: Cruz-Jimenez Miriam Guadalupe , Romero David Ernesto Troncoso , Dolecek Gordana Jovanovic
Published: September 2018

The comb filter is a very popular linear-phase filter due its simplicity (i.e., all its coefficients are equal to unity). As a consequence, it does not require multipliers or coefficients storage. This characteristic makes this filter attractive for many applications, as for example, in decimation, communications, digital audio, among others. However, the comb filter presents passband droop and a poor attenuation in the stopband region. In this proposal, the comb filter characteristics are reviewed and illustrated with one example. Additionally, the selected methods commonly used to improve the magnitude characteristics of a comb filter will be described and illustrated with examples.
Information-Centric Networking
Authors: Firdhous Mohamed Fazil Mohamed
Published: September 2018

Information-centric networking is an emerging networking paradigm that envisages to solve the shortcomings of the host-centric internet. The usage of internet has moved away from the initial host-centric remote access one to predominantly an information serving one. In the new paradigm, information rather than the host takes the central place in serving the users. Hence, the users will search for information and download it from the nearest device holding it. In order to serve the customers better while optimizing the use of network resources, in-network caching is enabled in ICN. In ICN, the intermediate routers will serve as cache repositories in addition to acting as data forwarding devices. There are several ICN architectures proposed in the literature, each having its own merits and demerits. This chapter has taken an in-depth look at the design principles of ICN along with future open research areas that need the immediate attention of the researchers.
Interoperability Frameworks for Distributed Systems
Authors: Delgado José Carlos Martins
Published: September 2018

One of the fundamental problems to tackle when interconnecting distributed systems is to entail the minimum coupling possible while ensuring the minimum interoperability requirements. This chapter presents a solution to the coupling problem based on the concepts of compliance and conformance, in which compatibility between interacting services does not rely on a shared schema, but rather on the features that are actually used. To help systematizing the various aspects relevant to interoperability, this chapter proposes a multidimensional interoperability framework, which includes the following dimensions: Lifecycle (with typical development stages), interoperability (based on compliance and conformance, with various layers of abstraction), and concerns (to deal with non-functional aspects such as security, quality of service, and social and legal issues).
Throughput Dependence on SNR in IEEE802.11 WLAN Systems
Authors: Oghogho Ikponmwosa
Published: September 2018

This chapter seeks to present the dependence of throughput on signal to noise ratio (SNR) in IEEE802.11 WLAN systems. High throughput and low delays are presented as the requirements for indicating good performance of WLAN systems. The multiple communication data rates specified by the physical layer of IEEE802.11 WLANs which vary depending on the SNR observed is shown to appreciably influence the throughput experienced by the users. Cross-layer modelling principles which simplifies the process of estimating the dependence of throughput on SNR is presented. Recent research findings which apply cross-layer modelling principles to model the dependence of throughput on SNR only is presented along with future research directions.
A Tale of Two Agile Requirements Engineering Practices
Authors: Kamthan Pankaj , Fancott Terrill
Published: September 2018

There are a number of concerns in agile software development, including requirements engineering. There are different types of agile requirement, of which currently the most common forms are use cases and user stories. The use cases and user stories have different origins, both in space and in time, but by being among the practices of scenario-oriented requirements engineering (SORE), they are not entirely unrelated. The purpose of this chapter is to situate use cases and user stories in the context of each other. This is done by means of a conceptual framework for systematically comparing use cases and user stories. The understanding of similarities and differences between use cases and user stories have pedagogical as well as practical implications.
Semantically Enhanced Authoring of Shared Media
Authors: Dimoulas Charalampos A. , Veglis Andreas A. , Kalliris George
Published: September 2018

This chapter examines current trends and future perspectives of semantically enhanced media/multimedia, considering all forms of non-linear storytelling, sharing, and authoring. Background is presented providing basic definitions, involved technology, achieved progress, and limitations. Recommendations and future research directions are then stated, aiming at serving a two-fold target: firstly, to present new, user-friendly forms of collaborative creativity, multimedia authoring, and storytelling; secondly, to suggest innovative adaptation mechanisms that can be utilized in both the media production and consumption ends. A semantically enhanced media authoring model is proposed, integrating most of the expected progress in augmented user interaction and the upcoming Web 2.0/3.0 services. The targeted Semantically-enhanced Multimedia Storytelling Services aim at engaging audience members individually, validating their involvement and positively reinforcing personal participation in the narration. Thus, the importance of the topic toward the transition to the Web 3.0 era is revealed.
A pluralidade ilusória: o conceito de autor na obra de Jorge Luis Borges
Authors: Pontes Newton De Castro
Published: September 2018

Ao buscar compreender o conceito de autor construído ao longo da produção de Jorge Luis Borges, este artigo discute vários aspectos de seu pensamento teórico (considerando especialmente os ensaios de Inquisiciones e Otras inquisiciones (2012)), além de analisar como tais aspectos foram ficcionalizados em alguns de seus contos. Tal debate nos leva inevitavelmente a considerar o modo como Borges se relacionou com a tradição literária e o modo como interpretou escritores como Cervantes, Kafka e Shakespeare, além de obras como o Livro das mil e uma noites (Jarouche, 2006) – cujas relações com Borges recebem uma atenção especial nesta pesquisa.
Republication: Conservative Management of Skeletal Class II Malocclusion with Gummy Smile, Deep Bite, and a Palatally Impacted Maxillary Canine
Authors: Wong Ariel , Chang Chris , Eugene Roberts W.
Published: September 2018

A 21-year-old female presented with chief complaints of crooked teeth, canine impaction, deep bite, and “gummy smile” (excessive maxillary gingival exposure when smiling). Increased facial convexity (15.5°), increased lower facial height (56%), and incompetent protrusive lips (E-line to upper left 2 mm, E-line to lower left 2 mm) were associated with a severe Class II malocclusion (nearly a full cusp bilaterally). There was 7.5 mm of overjet, 100% anterior deepbite, and a left posterior buccal crossbite. Cephalometrics revealed a skeletal discrepancy due to a protrusive maxilla and a retrusive mandible (SNA 85°, SNB 78°, and ANB 7°). Cone-beam computed tomography imaging revealed a palatally impacted right maxillary canine (UR3) near to the adjacent lateral incisor (UR2). The retained right primary canine (URc) was extracted. A simplified open-window technique was utilized to surgically expose its impacted successor. A maxillary anterior mini-screw provided anchorage to align the UR3 in its correct anatomical position. Nonextraction treatment with a passive self-ligating fixed appliance was indicated to align and level both arches. Anchorage provided by infrazygomatic crest bone screws, and maxillary anterior miniscrews were used for the correction of Class II malocclusion and gummy smile. To achieve more esthetic crown lengths in the maxillary anterior segment, gingivectomy was performed with a diode laser 2 months after fixed appliances were removed. This challenging skeletal Class II malocclusion with a Discrepancy Index of 38 was treated in 32 months to excellent outcomes: Cast-radiograph evaluation score of 25 and an pink and white dental esthetic score of 2. All facial and dental corrections were stable at the 6 months follow-up evaluation (Int J Orthod Implantol 2017;48:24-46).

Republished with permission from: Ariel Wong, Chang CH, Roberts WE. Conservative Management of Skeletal Class II Malocclusion with Gummy Smile, Deep Bite, and a Palatally Impacted Maxillary Canine. Int J Orthod Implantol 2017;48:24-46.
Highly Accurate Chimeric Proteins for the Serological Diagnosis of Chronic Chagas Disease: A Latent Class Analysis
Authors: Santos Fred Luciano Neves , Campos Ana Clara Paixão , Amorim Leila Denise Alves Ferreira , Silva Edimilson Domingos , Zanchin Nilson Ivo Tonin , Celedon Paola Alejandra Fiorani , Del-Rei Rodrigo Pimenta , Krieger Marco Aurélio , Gomes Yara Miranda
Published: September 2018

The existence of an imperfect reference standard presents complications when evaluating the unbiased performance of novel diagnostic techniques. This is especially true in the absence of a gold standard, as is the case in chronic Chagas disease (CD) diagnosis. To circumvent this constraint, we elected to use latent class analysis (LCA). Previously, our group demonstrated the high performance of four Trypanosoma cruzi–chimeric proteins (Molecular Biology Institute of Paraná [IBMP]-8.1, -8.2, -8.3, and -8.4) for CD diagnosis using several distinct immunoassays. Although commercial tests had previously been established as a reference standard, the diagnostic performance of these chimeric antigens could present bias because these tests fail to produce 100% accurate results. Thus, we used LCA to assess the performance of these IBMP chimeric antigens in chronic CD diagnosis. Using the LCA model as a gold standard, sensitivity and specificity values ranged from 93.5% to 99.4% and 99.6% to 100%, respectively. The accuracy values were 96.2% for IBMP-8.2, approximately 98% for IBMP-8.1 and IBMP-8.3, and nearly 100% for IBMP-8.4. For IBMP-8.1 and IBMP-8.2, higher positive predictive values were associated with increases in hypothetical prevalence. Similarly, higher hypothetical prevalence resulted in lower negative predictive values for IBMP-8.1, IBMP-8.2, and IBMP-8.3. In addition, samples with serodiscordant results from commercial serological tests were analyzed using LCA. Molecular Biology Institute of Paraná -8.1 demonstrated potential for use in confirmatory testing with regard to samples with inconsistent results. Moreover, our findings further confirmed the remarkable performance of the IBMP-8.4 antigen to diagnose chronic CD in both endemic and non-endemic areas.
Measles and Rubella Seroprevalence in Mother–Infant Pairs in Rural Nepal and the United States: Pre- and Post-Elimination Populations
Authors: Murray Alastair F. , Englund Janet A. , Tielsch James M. , Katz Joanne , Shrestha Laxman , Khatry Subarna K. , Carlin Kristen , Leclerq Steven C. , Steinhoff Mark C. , Chu Helen Y.
Published: September 2018

We sought to compare seroprevalence of protective measles and rubella-specific antibody in mother–infant pairs across two populations: a pre-disease elimination Nepal population with recently introduced rubella vaccine and post-disease elimination U.S. population. Qualitative measles and rubella immunoglobulin G was assessed in maternal serum and cord blood from 258 pairs in Nepal, 2012–2013 and 49 pairs in Seattle, WA, 2014–2015. High rates of protective antibody were observed in both populations. Two hundred and forty-four (95%) pregnant women in Nepal had protective measles antibody versus 44 (92%) in Seattle (P = 0.42). Ninety-six percent of infants in Nepal (N = 246) and Seattle (N = 43) had protective measles antibody (P = 0.75). Ninety-four percentage of pregnant women in Nepal (N = 242) and Seattle (N = 45) had protective rubella antibody (P = 0.23). Two hundred and thirty-eight (93%) infants in Nepal had protective rubella antibody versus 44 (98%) in Seattle (P = 0.12). Continued surveillance will be necessary to ensure protective immunity, inform progress toward disease elimination in Nepal and avoid reemergence in the United States.
Case Report: Bothrops lanceolatus Snakebite Surgical Management—Relevance of Fasciotomy
Authors: Severyns M. , Nevière R. , Resiere D. , Andriamananaivo T. , Decaestecker L. , Mehdaoui H. , Odri G. A. , Rouvillain J. L.
Published: September 2018

Bothrops lanceolatus is an endemic Crotalidae species in Martinique, where approximately 30 cases of envenoming are managed yearly. Envenoming characteristics from Bothrops species include local tissue damage, systemic bleeding, and hemodynamic alterations. We hereby report a case of severe envenomation following B. lanceolatus snakebite to the right calf. Severe local manifestations developed progressively up to the lower limb despite adequate antivenom therapy. Systemic manifestations of venom also occurred, resulting in intensive care therapy. Surgery exploration revealed soft tissue necrosis, friability of the deep fascia, and myonecrosis. The patient needed multiple debridement procedures and fasciotomy of all leg compartments and anterior compartment of the thigh. Diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis was confirmed by positive Aeromonas hydrophila blood cultures. This clinical case illustrates that major soft tissue infection, including necrotizing fasciitis may occur after snakebite. Abnormal coagulation tests should not delay surgical management, as severe envenoming is a life-threatening condition.
Socially Awkward Abroad: A Call for Social Media Policies in Residencies that Offer Global Health Electives
Authors: Keating Elizabeth M. , Lukolyo Heather , Crouse Heather L. , Pitt Michael B. , St Clair Nicole , Butteris Sabrina
Published: September 2018

Both social media use and the popularity of global health electives (GHEs) have increased in recent years. Social media use during GHE is commonplace and has benefits, yet sharers may not consider the ramifications of these posts, including privacy violations. Social media policies—which have become more common in residency programs—may aid in providing clear expectations to trainees abroad. The authors aimed to determine the prevalence of social media policies among pediatric residency programs that offer GHE. The authors used a cross-sectional survey design in which educators at pediatric residency programs that offer GHE were surveyed using REDCap®. For all quantitative data, proportions of responses were calculated and analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2013®. The authors analyzed qualitative data using a conventional content analysis approach. The survey was sent to 74 educators; 39 (53%) responses were received. Most (62%; n = 24) of the pediatric residency programs that offer GHE reported that their institution had a social media policy. About one-third (34%; n = 13) of respondents stated that their programs had social media guidelines that pertained specifically to GHE and fewer indicated that social media guidelines were included in their programs’ GHE predeparture curricula (32%; n = 12). This study found that most of the residency programs surveyed had social media guidelines, but few had guidelines applicable or specific to GHE. Informed by this study and a literature review, the authors propose template language for a social media guideline with considerations for social media use in the context of GHE.
Gametocyte Carriage, Antimalarial Use, and Drug Resistance in Cambodia, 2008–2014
Authors: Lin Jessica T. , Patel Jaymin C. , Levitz Lauren , Wojnarski Mariusz , Chaorattanakawee Suwanna , Gosi Panita , Buathong Nillawan , Chann Soklyda , Huy Rekol , Thay Khengheng , Sea Darapiseth , Samon Nou , Takala-Harrison Shannon , Fukuda Mark , Smith Philip , Spring Michele , Saunders David , Lon Chanthap
Published: September 2018

Gametocytes are the malaria parasite stages responsible for transmission from humans to mosquitoes. Gametocytemia often follows drug treatment, especially as therapies start to fail. We examined Plasmodium falciparum gametocyte carriage and drug resistance profiles among 824 persons with uncomplicated malaria in Cambodia to determine whether prevalent drug resistance and antimalarial use has led to a concentration of drug-resistant parasites among gametocyte carriers. Although report of prior antimalarial use increased from 2008 to 2014, the prevalence of study participants presenting with microscopic gametocyte carriage declined. Gametocytemia was more common in those reporting antimalarial use within the past year, and prior antimalarial use was correlated with higher IC50s to piperaquine and mefloquine, as well as to increased pfmdr1 copy number. However, there was no association between microscopic gametocyte carriage and parasite drug resistance. Thus, we found no evidence that the infectious reservoir, marked by those carrying gametocytes, is enriched with drug-resistant parasites.
Onchocerciasis-Associated Epilepsy with Head Nodding Seizures—Nodding Syndrome: A Case Series of 15 Patients from Western Uganda, 1994
Authors: Kaiser Christoph , Asaba George , Rubaale Tom , Tukesiga Ephraim , Kipp Walter
Published: September 2018

Nodding syndrome (NS) is an encephalopathy characterized by the core symptom of epileptic head nodding seizures, affecting children at the age between 3 and 18 years in distinct areas of tropical Africa. A consistent correlation with onchocerciasis was found, but so far, the causation of NS has not been fully clarified. With a systematic analysis of features of a cohort of epilepsy patients examined in the Itwara onchocerciasis focus of western Uganda in 1994, we provide evidence that NS actually occurred in this area at this time, and we demonstrate a correlation between prevalence of NS and that of onchocerciasis in different villages. Following the elimination of onchocerciasis by community-directed treatment with ivermectin and ground larviciding, our data provide a baseline to examine the question whether NS will disappear once its putative cause has been removed.
Environmental Determinants of Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome in High-Risk Counties in China: A Time Series Analysis (2002–2012)
Authors: He Junyu , He Jimi , Han Zhihai , Teng Yue , Zhang Wenyi , Yin Wenwu
Published: September 2018

The transmission pattern of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is associated with environmental conditions, including meteorological factors and land-cover. In the present study, the association between HFRS and environmental factors (including maximum temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, and normalized difference vegetation index) were explored in two typical counties in Northeast and two counties in Northwest China with severe HFRS outbreaks by using seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average model with exogenous variables (SARIMAX). The results showed that rainfall with 3- to 4-month lag was closely associated with HFRS in the two counties in Northeast China, whereas relative humidity with 1- or 5-month lag significantly impacts HFRS transmission in the two counties in Northwest China. Moreover, the SARIMAX models exhibit accurate forecasting ability of HFRS cases. Our findings provide scientific support for local HFRS monitoring and control, and the development of a HFRS early warning system.
Case Report: A Common Source Outbreak of Anisakidosis in the United States and Postexposure Prophylaxis of Family Collaterals
Authors: Carlin Aaron F. , Abeles Shira , Chin Nathaniel A. , Lin Grace Y. , Young Maile , Vinetz Joseph M.
Published: September 2018

We present a case of intussusception with complete small bowel obstruction caused by intestinal anisakidosis requiring surgical resection. A 30-year-old man presented with acute onset of severe abdominal pain 3 days after eating home-cured salmon gravlax. Despite surgery, the patient developed recurrent abdominal pain on two occasions with evidence of continued inflammation proximal to the surgical anastomosis. He was then treated with albendazole and prednisone, and symptoms improved. A decision was made to prophylactically treat two asymptomatic family members who also consumed home-cured gravlax with albendazole, resulting in one individual passing an intact Anisakis worm in her stool. We suggest that albendazole therapy could be considered as a therapy for continued symptoms of anisakidosis and postexposure prophylaxis of Anisakis larvae ingestion from a common source.
Studying the impact of biomass burning aerosol radiative and climate effects on the Amazon rainforest productivity with an Earth System Model
Authors: Malavelle Florent F. , Haywood Jim M. , Mercado Lina M. , Folberth Gerd A. , Bellouin Nicolas , Sitch Stephen , Artaxo Paulo
Published: September 2018

Abstract. Diffuse light conditions can increase the efficiency of photosynthesis and carbon uptake by vegetation canopies. The diffuse fraction of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) can be affected by either a change in the atmospheric aerosol burden and/or a change in cloudiness. During the dry season, a hotspot of Biomass Burning on the edges of the Amazon rainforest emits a complex mixture of aerosols and their precursors and climate-active trace gases (e.g. CO2, CH4, NOx etc). This creates potential for significant interactions between chemistry, aerosol, cloud, radiation and the biosphere across the Amazon region. The combined effects of biomass burning on the terrestrial carbon cycle for the present-day are potentially large, yet poorly quantified. Here, we quantify such effects using the Met Office Hadley Centre Earth System Model HadGEM2-ES which provides a fully coupled framework with interactive aerosol, radiative transfer, dynamic vegetation, atmospheric chemistry and biogenic volatile organic compound emission components. Results show that the overall net impact of present-day biomass burning aerosols is to increase net primary productivity (NPP) by +80 to +105 TgC/yr, or 1.9 to 2.7 %, over the central Amazon basin on annual mean. For the first time we show that this enhancement is the net result of multiple competing effects: an increase in diffuse light which stimulates photosynthetic activity in the shaded part of the canopy (+65 to +110 TgC/yr), a reduction in the total amount of radiation (−52 to −105 TgC/yr) which reduces photosynthesis and feedback from climate adjustments in response to the aerosol forcing which increases the efficiency of biochemical processes (+67 to +100 TgC/yr). These results illustrate that despite a modest direct aerosol effect (the sum of the first two counteracting mechanisms) the overall, net impact of biomass burning aerosols on vegetation, is sizeable, when indirect climate feedbacks are considered. We demonstrate that capturing the net impact of aerosols on vegetation should be assessed considering the system-wide behaviour.
A comparison of a two-dimensional depth-averaged flow model and a three-dimensional RANS model for predicting tsunami inundation and fluid forces
Authors: Qin Xinsheng , Motley Michael , LeVeque Randall , Gonzalez Frank , Mueller Kaspar
Published: September 2018

Abstract. The numerical modeling of tsunami inundation that
incorporates the built environment of coastal communities is challenging for
both 2-D and 3-D depth-integrated models, not only in modeling the flow but
also in predicting forces on coastal structures. For depth-integrated 2-D
models, inundation and flooding in this region can be very complex with
variation in the vertical direction caused by wave breaking on shore and
interactions with the built environment, and the model may not be able to
produce enough detail. For 3-D models, a very fine mesh is required to
properly capture the physics, dramatically increasing the computational cost
and rendering impractical the modeling of some problems. In this paper,
comparisons are made between GeoClaw, a depth-integrated 2-D model based on
the nonlinear shallow-water equations (NSWEs), and OpenFOAM, a 3-D model based
on Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equation for tsunami inundation
modeling. The two models were first validated against existing experimental
data of a bore impinging onto a single square column. Then they were used to
simulate tsunami inundation of a physical model of Seaside, Oregon. The
resulting flow parameters from the models are compared and discussed, and
these results are used to extrapolate tsunami-induced force predictions. It
was found that the 2-D model did not accurately capture the important details
of the flow near initial impact due to the transiency and large vertical
variation of the flow. Tuning the drag coefficient of the 2-D model worked
well to predict tsunami forces on structures in simple cases, but this
approach was not always reliable in complicated cases. The 3-D model was able
to capture transient characteristic of the flow, but at a much higher
computational cost; it was found this cost can be alleviated by subdividing
the region into reasonably sized subdomains without loss of accuracy in
critical regions.
Teens as Teachers in the Garden: Cultivating a Sustainable Model for Teaching Healthy Living
Authors: Bolshakova Virginia L. J. , Gieng John , Sidhu C. Sheena , Vollinger Mary , Gimeno Lorena , Guild Jessica
Published: September 2018

School gardens are an ideal space to deliver a healthy living curriculum, such as nutrition and physical activity education, to elementary school youth. However, public schools often lack the resources and support to establish sustainable garden-based programming. We created the Healthy Living Ambassador program, a collaborative after-school garden program in low-income communities that brought together resources from schools, community programs, and University of California Cooperative Extension. This school garden program featured culturally competent teens as teachers to serve as near-peer educators and mentors to elementary school youth. The program development model incorporated lessons from sustainable community-based health program interventions and essential elements of teens-as-teachers programs. We share the program logic model and discuss the successes and challenges of this program model that we encountered while developing a long-term, maintainable community garden program to teach healthy living.
ADHESIVE FRICTION BEHAVIOR OF ROUGH RUBBER SURFACES SLIDING AGAINST SMOOTH RIGID SURFACES
Authors: Devalba David Stratford , Thomas Alan G. , Busfield James J. C.
Published: September 2018

A model for the characterization and prediction of the adhesional friction experienced by a rough rubber surface sliding against a smooth rigid surface using fracture mechanics based peeling behavior is supported by experimental results. The friction is characterized by the strain energy release rate associated with the unpeeling of the asperities. This peeling energy of the rubber and rigid surface interface is used to derive a general relation for the frictional shear stress. Peeling characteristics are first found using rolling experiments, then this information is used to predict the results of sliding experiments. The velocity dependence of the friction is explained by relation to the dynamic viscoelastic properties of the rubber. The experiments compare favorably with the theoretical prediction derived using the model.
EFFECTS OF 4,4′-BISMALEIMIDODIPHENYLMETHANE CURING AGENT ON MORPHOLOGICAL, RHEOLOGICAL, AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF DYNAMICALLY VULCANIZED BIIR/POLYPROPYLENE ELASTOMERS
Authors: Wang Fang , Zhang Aiming , Zhou Tao
Published: September 2018

The morphological, rheological, and mechanical properties of BIIR/polypropylene (PP) blends with various amounts of 4,4′-bismaleimidodiphenylmethane (BMI) curing agent were studied. As the level of BMI curing agent increased, the rubber single particle size decreased, but the interaction among the particles strengthened to form aggregates. The rheological properties were determined with a high-pressure capillary rheometer and a rotational rheometer. It was found that the rheological behavior was affected by both the BMI content and the morphology of the blends. The increased BMI content led to the smaller vulcanized BIIR rubber particles dispersing in the PP continuous phase because of the improvement in cross-linking speed and degree as well as the viscosity of BIIR. The dynamic vulcanization strongly improved the elasticity of the blends. The storage modulus, loss modulus, and complex viscosity of cured BIIR/PP blends were all obviously higher than those of the uncured blend, whereas the values of tan δ showed the opposite trend. The as-prepared BIIR/PP thermoplastic vulcanizate exhibited suitable hardness and good mechanical properties.
Discussion of Initial Operational Changes by Small and Medium Size Businesses in Response to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) 2017
Authors: Frankel Micah , Tan John
Published: September 2018

Congress and the president enacted the landmark Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) on December 22, 2017, the most sweeping change to the tax law since 1986. Tax laws such as this have a major impact on how business is conducted in the United States. This study does not attempt a comprehensive analysis of the changes in the U.S. tax code, but instead focuses on some key areas that affect most small and medium size business operators. Specifically this study examines how TCJA (2017) affects business operators in areas such as depreciation, net interest expenses, and entertainment. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has been continuously issuing facts sheets and statements in regards to the TCJA (2017). The first half of this study is a brief literature review on the landmark changes to the U.S. tax for corporations in regards to depreciation, net interest expenses, and entertainment. The second half of this study is a report of field observations and discussions with business operators such as a landlord of apartment complexes, a hotel operator, and a physical therapist. Though this study does not provide macro or archival data to explain how business operators responded to the TCJA (2017), field observations and discussions suggest that the three business operators are renovating in response to full depreciation write off, reducing net interest expenses, and limiting entertainment expenses.
“Not in their idol-worship, but by labor”: The Sabbath and the Book of Isaiah in Samson Agonistes
Authors: Clausen-Brown Karen
Published: September 2018

This article reconsiders Samson's relationship to Hebrew law and Christian liberty in Samson Agonistes by reading the drama alongside the seventeenth-century Sabbath debates. Milton, like many participants in the debates, was especially intrigued by the Sabbath teachings in Isaiah's final chapters. Isaiah seemingly offered an opportunity to unite the Hebrew and Christian scriptures because the book both exhorted readers to observe Hebrew Sabbath law and could be read as prefiguring Christ's work to free the oppressed. Amidst these discussions, Milton's Samson emerges as an Isaian hero who anticipates Christ's liberating labors not by breaking Hebrew law but by obeying it.
Reading Milton in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
Authors: Shohet Lauren
Published: September 2018

This article suggests that Frankenstein engages Paradise Lost with more consistency and nuance than critics have acknowledged. Rather than a straightforwardly agonistic response, the novel instead presents different kinds of Miltonic readers in its characters: the Milton-literate Creature, the Milton-oblivious Robert Walton, and the aware but studiously avoidant Victor Frankenstein. Redistributing labor from Milton's Adam, Eve, Satan, and God the Father to Frankenstein's various characters, the novel raises questions about the world of its characters and of Milton's epic. Practicing both adaptation and critique, Frankenstein dissents from other Romantic responses to prove surprisingly sympathetic to aspects of Paradise Lost's Reformist ethos.
Continuing Education in Italy: A Case Study
Authors: Ha Sha
Published: September 2018

According to the ‘International Standard Classification of Education’ (ISCED), ‘Continuing Education’ is composed of the ‘Continuing Primary and Lower Secondary Adult Education’ (ISCED1, ISCED2), followed by the ‘Adult Education and Training’ System (ISCED3), including an ‘Upper Secondary Education System’ (ISCED4 and finally, the ‘Tertiary Education’ (ISCED5, ISCED6 and above). In 2016 the percent of ‘early leavers’ from education and training amounted in Italy to 13.8%, while the EU average amounted to 10.7%. In the same period the attendance to ISCED1-ISCED3 Adult Education Courses (age 25-64) amounted to 8.3%, while the EU average amounted to 10.8%. As for ‘Tertiary Education’, the percent attainment of a university degree amounted to 29.5% among Italians and to 13.4% among foreigners residing in Italy, while the EU averages amounted to 39.9% and 35.4% respectively. According to the Author, the relatively higher percent of early leavers from education and training in Italy and the relatively low attendance to ‘Continuing Education’ programs is due to the low employment rate in the Country, particularly significant in the age range 20-34, as a consequence of the severe economic crisis which hit the country in 2008 and still persists, causing the closure of many private enterprises and the block of the turn-over at public educational institutions. In spite of all that, the quality of the Italian Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Education System is of an excellent level, as compared with that of similar institutions all over the world. In Author’s opinion, increasing the investment in the educational system would increase the attendance to Secondary and Tertiary Adult Education courses, with a positive feedback on productivity.
Efficacy of acupressure on nausea and vomiting among children with leukemia following chemotherapy
Authors: Yousef Youssria El-Sayed , Zaki Nora Abd- Elhamid , Sayed Amal
Published: September 2018

Background/Objective: Nausea and vomiting (N&V) remain the main side effects associated with cancer chemotherapy. This study determines the effect of acupressure on the control of N&V among children with leukemia receiving chemotherapy.Methods: This quasi-experiment study was conducted at two Pediatric Oncology Departments in South Egypt. Two groups of children with leukemia aging 6-18 years were included from October 2017 till March 2018. The study group (n = 60) received acupressure, while the control group (n = 60) didn’t. All were subjected to socio-demographic and clinical interview questionnaire and Rhodes Index for N&V Likert scale for assessment of frequency, duration, stress and severity of nausea and vomiting.Results: Both groups had similar demographic data, were similar in diagnosis, disease severity, family history of neoplasia, and experienced similar chemotherapy-related side effects. Significant reduction of frequency, distress and severity of nausea and frequency, duration and severity of vomiting in addition to mean scores N\&V scale among children of the study group after application of acupressure when compared to children in the control group.Conclusions: The application of acupressure at P6 in children with acute leukemia who were receiving chemotherapy led to significant reduction in the mean scores of N&V in addition to their frequency, duration and severity within 48 hours from the beginning of chemotherapy in comparison to the control group. Therefore, acupressure techniques showed be used to reduce chemotherapy induced N&V in children with leukemia.
Beck, Joachim and Wassenberg, Birte (dir.) (2014). Vivre et penser la coopération transfrontalière (Volume 6) : Vers une cohésion territoriale ?
Authors: Pupier Pauline
Published: September 2018

Beck, Joachim and Wassenberg, Birte (dir.) (2014)Vivre et penser la coopération transfrontalière (Volume 6) : Vers une cohésion territoriale ? Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 377 p.ISBN 978-3-515-10964-2
Effect of Selected Injection Conditions on the Mechanical Properties and Structure of HDPE
Authors: Mordal Katarzyna , Dobrakowski Karol , Kwiatkowski Dariusz
Published: September 2018

This paper is devoted to research of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which belongs to one of three main biomaterial groups, i.e. polymeric materials. Hence, due to its unique properties, it still plays an important role in biomedical applications – especially in the production of medical equipment, implants and parts of prostheses. This publication deals with the effect of selected conditions of processing which involved injection moulding on the mechanical properties and structure of HDPE mouldings. Samples for tests were produced on a Krauss  Maffei injection moulder on the basis of a research plan prepared using the STATISTICA program. According to this schedule, the following variable parameters of the injection process were selected: injection temperature Tw [C], mould temperature Tf [C] and injection velocity vw [mm/s]. In addition, a part of the moldings was subjected to a few processings. Then the samples obtained were subjected to different tests: tensile, impact and hardness tests, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and the melt flow rate (MFR) test in order to determine the influence of selected injection conditions and the multiplicity of processing on the mechanical, rheological and structural properties of HDPE.