bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hiding time of the hermit crab Calcinus californiensis: observations from different shell types
Authors: Chávez-Solís Carlos Enrique , Alcaraz Guillermina
Published: May 2015

Hermit crabs respond to predators by hiding in their shells. However, retraction may cause the crab to lose hold of the rock and fall through the water column, and the crab may land with the shell aperture in a different orientation. When the shell is aperture down, hermit crabs return to activity by moving their bodies forward and placing their legs on the ground. In contrast, when the shell is aperture up, crabs need to perform a righting maneuver by extending part of their bodies out of the shell, which makes them more vulnerable to predation. The main goal of this study was to examine the hiding time of the hermit crab Calcinus californiensis Bouvier, 1898 in different shell species under these two different situations to better understand the conflict between the cost of staying in hiding and the risk of predation. The study was conducted in rocky tide pools using seven different shell types that reflect different predator protection and resource value to the crab (based on previous studies). We measured the time required to perform the righting maneuver as a measure of the potential risk incurred when returning to activity. The hiding time with the shell aperture down was not affected by shell species. The requirement to carry out a righting maneuver lengthened the hiding time, which varied in the different shell species according to the time required to recover the natural position. The potential risks associated with the righting time, the protection offered by the shells, and the resource value played an important role in the hiding time of the crabs using different shells. This study shows that hermit crabs are aware of the attributes of the shell and use this information to make decisions about how long to stay hidden after being threatened.
Simple Algorithms for Distributed Leader Election in Anonymous Synchronous Rings and Complete Networks Inspired by Neural Development in Fruit Flies
Authors: Xu Lei , Jeavons Peter
Published: May 2015

Leader election in anonymous rings and complete networks is a very practical problem in distributed computing. Previous algorithms for this problem are generally designed for a classical message passing model where complex messages are exchanged. However, the need to send and receive complex messages makes such algorithms less practical for some real applications. We present some simple synchronous algorithms for distributed leader election in anonymous rings and complete networks that are inspired by the development of the neural system of the fruit fly. Our leader election algorithms all assume that only one-bit messages are broadcast by nodes in the network and processors are only able to distinguish between silence and the arrival of one or more messages. These restrictions allow implementations to use a simpler message-passing architecture. Even with these harsh restrictions our algorithms are shown to achieve good time and message complexity both analytically and experimentally.
INSTRUMENT-AIDED LIGAMENTOTAXIS AND FUSIONLESS STABILIZATION FOR BURST FRACTURES OF MID-LUMBAR SPINE
Authors: Moon Myung-Sang , Kwon Ki-Tae , Park Bong-Keun , Park Min-Suk , Kim Dong-Hyeon , Kim Sung-Soo
Published: May 2015

Study design: A prospective study. Objectives: To assess effectiveness of instrument-aided ligamentotaxis and fusionless stabilization utilizing short contoured rod for mid-lumbar burst fractures, and the delayed mobilization on outcome. Summary of background data: A few reported instrument-aided ligamentotaxis with rod derotation and stabilization without fusion, and influence of delayed mobilization and bracing on fracture consolidation and outcomes. Material and Method: 30 patients (14 cases of L2, 10 cases of L3and 6 cases of L4fractures) were subjected to this study. Three vertebrae including fractured one (three point fixation) were stabilized with pedicle screws and rods. Fusion was not done. Patients were restricted to bed post-operatively for 2–4 weeks, and were braced for 10–14 weeks. Vertebral height, retropulsed fragment, sagittal curve, neurological status, unfused motion segments, residual pain, flexibility and fixation failure were assessed with a certain interval. Results: The average height at pre- and post-reduction at 0, 3 and 12 months were 43.2% (37.2–46.5%), 97.4% (87.2–100%), 95.3% (87.2–96.4%) and 95.2% (87.2–96.3%) of the normal height. The average intracanal displacement of retropulsed fragment at the same observation times were 43.2% (38.3–65.2%), 37.6% (34.7–40.5%), 36.3% (35.1–39.6%) and 17.7% (15.3–19.7%) of normal A-P diameter, and the average canal area occupancy at the same observation times were 53.7% (47.2–55.8%), 46.4% (43.8–49.3%), 46.0% (43.4–48.5%) and 31.2% (28.2–33.1%) of normal dimension. Consolidation began at 10 weeks and completed at 6 months on average. Kyphosis at pre- and post-reduction at zero and final stages were of 33°, 2° and 3°. Two paraparetics recovered fully. No screw and rod failures were reported. None developed residuals. Conclusion: Instrument-aided ligamentotaxis and stabilization are effective surgical procedures in reduction, maintenance of reduction and fracture consolidation. Delayed mobilization and bracing is thought additionally to be the contributing factors in maintaining reduction and consolidation.
A quantum leap in the reproducibility, precision, and sensitivity of gene expression profile analysis even when sample size is extremely small
Authors: Lim Kevin , Li Zhenhua , Choi Kwok Pui , Wong Limsoon
Published: May 2015

Transcript-level quantification is often measured across two groups of patients to aid the discovery of biomarkers and detection of biological mechanisms involving these biomarkers. Statistical tests lack power and false discovery rate is high when sample size is small. Yet, many experiments have very few samples (≤ 5). This creates the impetus for a method to discover biomarkers and mechanisms under very small sample sizes. We present a powerful method, ESSNet, that is able to identify subnetworks consistently across independent datasets of the same disease phenotypes even under very small sample sizes. The key idea of ESSNet is to fragment large pathways into smaller subnetworks and compute a statistic that discriminates the subnetworks in two phenotypes. We do not greedily select genes to be included based on differential expression but rely on gene-expression-level ranking within a phenotype, which is shown to be stable even under extremely small sample sizes. We test our subnetworks on null distributions obtained by array rotation; this preserves the gene–gene correlation structure and is suitable for datasets with small sample size allowing us to consistently predict relevant subnetworks even when sample size is small. For most other methods, this consistency drops to less than 10% when we test them on datasets with only two samples from each phenotype, whereas ESSNet is able to achieve an average consistency of 58% (72% when we consider genes within the subnetworks) and continues to be superior when sample size is large. We further show that the subnetworks identified by ESSNet are highly correlated to many references in the biological literature. ESSNet and supplementary material are available at: http://compbio.ddns.comp.nus.edu.sg:8080/essnet .
Created computed universe
Authors: Papakonstantinou Yannis
Published: May 2015

Computing crosses cosmology and makes the case for agnosticism.
Linear and Competitive Strategies for Continuous Robot Formation Problems
Authors: Degener Bastian , Kempkes Barbara , Kling Peter , Heide Friedhelm Meyer Auf Der
Published: May 2015

We study a scenario in which
n
mobile robots with a limited viewing range are distributed in the Euclidean plane and have to solve a formation problem. The formation problems we consider are the G
athering
problem and the C
hain-Formation
problem. In the G
athering
problem, the robots have to gather in one (not predefined) point, while in the C
hain
-F
ormation
problem they have to form a connected communication chain of minimal length between two stationary base stations. Each robot may base its decisions where to move only on the current relative positions of neighboring robots (that are within its viewing range); that is, besides having a limited viewing range, the robots are oblivious (they do not use information from the past), have none or only very limited identities, and they do not have a common sense of direction.

Variants of these problems (especially for the G
athering
problem) have been studied extensively in different discrete time models. In contrast, our work focuses on a continuous time model; that is, the robots continuously sense the positions of other robots within their viewing range and continuously adapt their speed and direction according to some simple, local rules. Hereby, we assume that the robots have a maximum movement speed of one. We show that this idealized idea of continuous sensing allows us to solve the mentioned formation problems in linear time O(
n
) (which, given the maximum speed of one, immediately yields a maximum traveled distance of O(
n
)). Note that in the more classical discrete time models, the best known strategies need at least Θ(
n
2
) or even Θ(
n
2
log
n
) timesteps to solve these problems. For the G
athering
problem, our analysis solves a problem left open by Gordon et al. [2004], where the authors could prove that gathering in a continuous model is possible in finite time, but were not able to give runtime bounds.

Apart from these linear bounds, we also provide runtime bounds for both formation problems that relate the runtime of our strategies to the runtime of an optimal, global algorithm. Specifically, we show that our strategy for the G
athering
problem is log OPT-competitive and the strategy for the C
hain
-F
ormation
problem is log 
n
-competitive. Here, by
c
-competitive, we mean that our (local) strategy is asymptotically by at most a factor of
c
slower than an optimal, global strategy.
Forgetting made (too) easy
Authors: Jones Meg Leta
Published: May 2015

Considering the implications of digital data removal implementations.
Plenty of proteins
Authors: Savage Neil
Published: May 2015

The growth of structural biology brings new challenges for the world's protein data archive.
Estonia
Authors: Anthes Gary
Published: May 2015

Over the next decade, the population of Estonia is expected to soar more than 600% as the country becomes the first in the world to open its borders to an influx of e-residents.
SIGCSE special projects grants
Authors: Fitzgerald Sue
Published: May 2015

The SIGCSE Board is pleased to announce three SIGCSE Special Projects grant awards, awarded in Dec. 2014.
Introduction to this special issue
Authors: Damiani Maria Luisa , Renso Chiara
Published: May 2015

Nowadays, the digital traces of moving objects, such as people, animals, goods, increasingly contain richer information than the mere location history. Traces can report, for example, the places visited by tourists during a touristic journey (e.g., hotels, entertainment spots), the activities performed during such a journey (e.g., shopping, driving), the people encountered during the trip. This supplementary information is often referred to as
semantic annotation
(of trajectories). Semantic annotations can be directly acquired from sensors or, alternatively, be the result of some analytic process or be directly provided by users. In recent times, following a few pioneering research projects, especially in Europe and Asia, the processing of large amounts of semantics-enriched trajectories has become an exciting, cross-disciplinary research area, spanning spatial computing, data analytics and geographical information science. Semantics-enriched trajectories have important applications in a variety of domains, such as urban computing, social media analysis and animal ecology, especially in connection with the analysis of moving objects' behavior, both at individual and collective level.
An integrated qualitative and boundary-based formal model for a semantic representation of trajectories
Authors: Wu Jing , Claramunt Christophe , Deng Min
Published: May 2015

Nowadays, the tracking, representation and analysis of moving objects and trajectories have attracted several research efforts at the formal level. The work presented in this paper introduces a spatial qualitative approach for enriching semantic trajectories with movement predicates. The model developed integrates topological relations and qualitative distances between a trajectory and a region of interest. Such a spatio-temporal framework supports the derivation of the basic movement configurations derived from moving and static entities. The approach is flexible enough to reconstruct the trajectory as a sequence of highly-correlated episodes according to the underlying topological properties such as the dimension and cardinality of the intersections that emerge between the trajectory and the given region.
The first ACM SIGSPATIAL PhD symposium 2014
Authors: Demiryurek Ugur , Sarwat Mohamed
Published: May 2015

The ACM SIGSPATIAL Ph.D. Symposium is a forum where Ph.D. students present, discuss, and receive feedback on their research in a constructive atmosphere. The symposium will be attended by professors, researchers and practitioners in the ACM SIGSPATIAL community, who will participate actively and contribute to the discussions. The workshop is co-located with ACM SIGSPATIAL GIS 2014 The ACM SIGSPATIAL 2014 PhD Symposium provides an opportunity for doctoral students to explore and develop their research interests in the broad areas addressed by the ACM SIGSPATIAL community. We invite PhD students to submit a summary of their dissertation work to share their work with students in a similar situation as well as senior researchers in the field. We have two tracks for submission. The Junior PhD Track is for students who are in early stages of their doctoral studies. The submission should provide a clear problem definition, explain why it is important, survey related work, and summarize the new solutions that are pursued. The Senior PhD Track is for students who are close to completion (expected to graduate by 2014/2015). The submissions focused on describing the contribution they made in their doctoral dissertation. The strongest candidates are those who have a clear topic and research approach, and have made some progress, but who are not so far along that they can no longer make changes.
Constant Delay Enumeration for Conjunctive Queries
Authors: Segoufin Luc
Published: May 2015

We survey some of the recent results about enumerating the answers to queries over a database. We focus on the case where the enumeration is performed with a constant delay between any two consecutive solutions, after a linear time preprocessing.

This cannot be always achieved. It requires restricting either the class of queries or the class of databases.

We consider conjunctive queries and describe several scenarios when this is possible.
Differences in Mouse Hepatic Thyroid Hormone Transporter Expression with Age and Hyperthyroidism
Authors: Engels Kathrin , Rakov Helena , Zwanziger Denise , Moeller Lars C. , Homuth Georg , Köhrle Josef , Brix Klaudia , Führer Dagmar
Published: May 2015

Background: Clinical features of thyroid dysfunction vary with age, and an oligosymptomatic presentation of hyperthyroidism is frequently observed in the elderly. This suggests age modulation of thyroid hormone (TH) action, which may occur, for example, by alterations in TH production, metabolism and/or TH action in target organs. Objectives: In this paper, we address possible changes in TH transporter expression in liver tissues as a mechanism of age-dependent variation in TH action. Methods: Chronic hyperthyroidism was induced in 4- and 20-month-old C57BL6/NTac male mice (n = 8-10) by intraperitoneal injections of 1 µg/g body weight L-thyroxine (T4) every 48 h over 7 weeks. Control animals were injected with PBS. Total RNA was isolated from liver samples for analysis of the TH transporter and TH-responsive gene expression. TH concentrations were determined in mice sera. Results: Baseline serum free T4 (fT4) concentrations were significantly higher in euthyroid young compared to old mice. T4 treatment increased total T4, fT4 and free triiodothyronine to comparable concentrations in young and old mice. In the euthyroid state, TH transporter expression was significantly higher in old than in young mice, except for Mct8 and Oatp1a1 expression levels. Hyperthyroidism resulted in upregulation of Mct10, Lat1 and Lat2 in liver tissue, while Oatp1a1, Oatp1b2 and Oatp1a4 expression was downregulated. This effect was preserved in old animals. Conclusion: Here, we show age-dependent differences in TH transporter mRNA expression in the euthyroid and hyperthyroid state of mice focusing on the liver as a classical TH target organ.
Radiotherapy Induces Development of Fragmented QRS in Patients with Breast Cancer
Authors: Adar Adem , Canyılmaz Emine , Kiris Abdulkadir , Ilter Abdulselam , Serdar Lasif , Memis Yahyahan , Bahat Zumrut , Onalan Orhan
Published: May 2015

Background: Myocardial fibrosis is a well-known side effect of radiotherapy. Fragmented QRS (fQRS) has been shown to be a marker of myocardial fibrosis. We postulated that radiotherapy induces development of fQRS in breast cancer patients. Patients and Methods: Breast cancer patients receiving locoregional radiotherapy were enrolled. Patients who had fQRS on electrocardiography (ECG) before radiotherapy were excluded. All patients were revaluated for the development of fQRS at 1-year follow-up. An age-matched healthy group served as controls. Results: A total of 52 breast cancer patients receiving locoregional radiotherapy were included (median age 49 years, interquartile range (IQR) 13). Of these, 19 (37%) had developed fQRS at 1-year follow-up. Compared with the control group, prevalence of fQRS was significantly higher in the irradiated group (37 vs. 12%; p < 0.002). Median total cardiac radiation dose was significantly higher in patients who had developed fQRS (5 Gy, IQR 5.2 vs. 1.7 Gy, IQR 4.4; p = 0.003). Cardiac radiation dose, entered either as a continuous variable (odds ratio (OR) 1.35, 95% confidence interval (CI) 104-1.74) or as a dichotomized variable (≥ 2.2 Gy, OR 6.48, 95% CI 1.47-28.61), was independently associated with the development of fQRS at 1-year follow-up. Conclusion: Radiotherapy for breast cancer induces development of fQRS on ECG. Cardiac radiation dose is independently associated with the development of fQRS.
Patentability of Parthenogenic Stem Cells: International Stem Cell Corporation v. Comptroller General of Patents
Authors: Mansnérus Juli
Published: May 2015

The European Court of Justice (ecj) has recently issued a ruling in Case C-364/13 International Stem Cell Corporation v. Comptroller General of Patents Designs and Trademarks (Case) that aims at harmonising the patenting practices regarding interpretation of Article 6.2.c of Directive 98/44/ec (Biotech Patent Directive) in respect of patentability of human parthenogenic stem cells (hpSCs). The Case alters the patenting regime for human embryonic stem cell (hESC) applications, by stating that moral restrictions against hESC-patents are only applicable to such cells derived from embryos that had the potential to develop into a human being. Consequently, hpSC-based inventions may be patentable in Europe. This Case represents a leap forward to striking a balance between protecting human dignity and integrity whilst granting patent incentives for biomedical research.
Transplanting Diseases from Organ Donors in Western Europe: Fault Liability or Strict Liability?
Authors: Broeckx Nils , Verhoeven Dimitri
Published: May 2015

This article will examine the problem of disease transmission through organ transplantation from a civil liability perspective. Both fault liability and strict product liability might be possible. These two types of liability will be compared, while applying them to the actions of the central parties involved in organ donation and transplantation, namely the physician/hospital, the donor and the organ exchange organisation. While product liability is generally an easier way to obtain compensation than fault liability, it might nevertheless place too heavy a burden on the transplant professionals.
Africa’s Response to r2p
Authors: Gal-Or Noemi
Published: May 2015

Although the idea of r2p had been enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union (au) shortly before the term was coined by the iciss, the au has been slow to live up to the commitment. Balancing r2p, on the one hand, with non-interference within the domaine reservé of the state, on the other hand, has proven an uphill battle. r2p sceptic member states have persistently opted for non-interference, and at most, a “non-indifference” approach representing a non-committal stance with regards to r2p. This paper offers reflections about the particular African construction of the third r2p “collective global” pillar, and explains the African reticence about the original iciss and 2005 World Summit Outcome versions of r2p. It expounds on the key reasons for this tempered reception and sheds light on the global governance security challenge as it plays out in the un-au politics of regional collaboration.
How the United Nations Secretary-General Promotes International Norms
Authors: Madokoro Daisuke
Published: May 2015

The United Nations Secretaries-General (unsg), Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-moon, have devoted themselves to the development and diffusion of the responsibility to protect (r2p) norm for over a decade since the concept first appeared in 2001. However, it still remains unclear what roles they have actually played in promoting its normative development. By focusing on the notion of norm entrepreneurship proposed by social constructivist scholars in international relations, this article explores the process in which they have engaged and what effects their activities have had on the emergence and dissemination of r2p, especially the adoption of the un General Assembly resolutions on r2p in 2005 and 2009. The research concludes by arguing that the unsg can play a contributing role in enhancing norms by persuading and encouraging member states to collectively legitimise the norms, and stating theoretical implications pertaining to the role of the unsg in developing international norms.
Development of remote monitoring and control system for mechatronics engineering practice: The case of flexible manufacturing system
Authors: Yabanova Ismail , Taskin Sezai , Ekiz Huseyin
Published: May 2015

The purpose of this study is to design a test set with remote access so that it can be used in laboratory applications in a multidisciplinary engineering education. The test set equipment used in the study consists of work stations that belong to the flexible manufacturing system, which is designed by the Festo Didactic Company. The flexible manufacturing system is a didactic set for mechatronics training. It can be used with different configurations and training purposes. In this study, the flexible manufacturing system set has nine work stations with different functions from each other. These stations such as distributing, testing, processing, handling, sorting, etc. can be worked alone and together with several assembly line configurations. In the developed didactic model, the existing equipment of the system such as mechanical and electrical infrastructure was used. Control of all the stations was realized by designing PIC 18F4580 and 18F2585 microcontrollers-based hardware. Control area network was used as the communication protocol between the work stations of the flexible manufacturing system. Online monitoring and real-time control operations for all parameters of the designed system were performed over the software which was developed using the LabVIEW program. Users who are connected to the system via the Internet can control the system using the designed LabVIEW-based software. Furthermore, they can upload–download their programs which will be written by them to the system via the Internet, and they can see the results of their own operational scenarios. Thus, the system with its developed structure is not restricted to existing operational scenarios for students. Hence, it has gained flexibility by allowing students to try their programs remotely. Also, in order to obtain feedback about the designed structure of the didactic system, a survey, conducted on 29 engineering students, was realized. The presented structure of the mechatronic didactic system was found to be successful by the students who joined the survey.
Introduction: Australian industrial relations in 2014
Authors: Todd Patricia
Published: May 2015

The annual reviews edition of the Journal of Industrial Relations provides an important opportunity to analyse recent developments in Australian industrial relations and to identify indicators of likely trends in the immediate future. This introductory article commences with a brief commentary on contemporary Australian industrial relations, noting first, the diversity of outcomes and second, the ongoing conflict between workers/unions and employers which continues to ensure a critical role for the state. This is followed by brief summaries of the review articles included in this edition. Most of the articles are focused on developments in Australian industrial relations in terms of legislation, the labour market, tribunal decisions, the position of women, and activities of employer associations and unions. In addition, two internationally focused review articles are included, one of which considers the right to strike in China and the other canvasses the literature on Global Union Federations.
Latino Attitudes About Spheres of Political Representation
Authors: Schildkraut Deborah J.
Published: May 2015

This study examines whether ethnic attachments and concerns about Latinos as a group predict the representational priorities of Latinos, and if so, whether they make a preference for narrowly targeted spheres of representation more likely. It relies on nationally representative survey data ( n = 434) and employs ordered probit statistical analysis. The results show that thinking of oneself primarily as a member of an ethnic group instead of as an American increases the importance placed on having members of Congress bring federal resources to the district and decreases the importance placed on the pursuit of national issues, and perceiving discrimination against one’s ethnic group increases the importance placed on casework and decreases the importance placed on oversight. Other factors associated with the Latino experience in the United States, including acculturation and having a Latino representative, also affect how Latinos rank spheres of representation. The implications of these findings are discussed.
The Longitudinal Relation Between Academic Support and Latino Adolescents’ Academic Motivation
Authors: Alfaro Edna C. , Umaña-Taylor Adriana J.
Published: May 2015

This study examined whether longitudinal trajectories of academic support from mothers, fathers, and teachers predicted trajectories of Latino adolescents’ ( N = 323) academic motivation. Findings indicated those boys’ perceptions of mothers’ and fathers’ academic support and girls’ perceptions of mothers’ academic support declined throughout high school. Furthermore, girls’ academic motivation increased significantly over time. Although neither boys’ nor girls’ trajectories of support predicted trajectories of academic motivation, initial levels of academic support predicted adolescents’ academic motivation in the ninth grade. Finally, girls who reported lower academic motivation during the ninth grade also tended to report steeper increases in academic motivation over time. Findings underscore the importance of examining the unique impact of academic support from multiple individuals in adolescents’ lives.
The Impact of Bicultural Stress on Mexican American Adolescents’ Depressive Symptoms and Suicidal Ideation
Authors: Piña-Watson Brandy , Dornhecker Marianela , Salinas Samantha R.
Published: May 2015

Research has found that Mexican American adolescents report higher levels of depressive symptoms than Whites and African Americans. For these youth, bicultural stress from navigating between their culture of origin and the mainstream U.S. culture can have negative mental health effects including higher levels of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. This study looks at the effects of bicultural stress and gender on depression and suicidal ideation of 516 Mexican American adolescents. Hierarchical linear and logistic regressions were performed to determine the affect of gender, bicultural stressors, and their interaction on depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Results indicate gender moderates the effect of several bicultural stressors on mental health outcomes, with boys being more affected by high levels of stress in areas when interaction effects were present. Discussion of results is framed within the intersection of ethnicity and gender role socialization.
Socioeconomic Status Across the Life Course and Cognitive Function Among Older Adults
Authors: Lyu Jiyoung , Burr Jeffrey A.
Published: May 2015

Objective: This study investigated the relationship between life course socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive function among older adults in the United States over a 12-year observation period. The mediation of adult SES on the association between childhood SES and cognition was examined, along with the relationship between cumulative SES and cognition. Method: Using a nationally representative sample from the Health and Retirement Study, cognitive status and change in cognition from 1998 to 2010 were examined using growth curve models. Results: The results showed that cognitive function varied within-persons and between-persons. SES disadvantage in childhood was associated with lower cognitive function at baseline. Adult SES mediated the relationship between childhood SES and cognitive function. Persons with higher cumulative SES demonstrated an advantage in cognitive function. Discussion: Childhood SES and adult SES both had relationships with cognitive status and, to a lesser degree, change in cognition in later life.
Numerical investigation of the hydrodynamic parameters of blood flow through stenotic descending aorta
Authors: Pasha Zanous Sina , Shafaghat Rouzbeh , Esmaili Qadir
Published: May 2015

In this study, the blood flow passing through a three-dimensional geometrically realistic stenosis is investigated both experimentally and numerically. Although the blood flow in stenotic arteries has been extensively studied in the past few decades, not much work has been focused on irregularity of stenosis. Thus, a model of an irregular stenotic descending aorta is used in this work. Due to the irregularity of stenosis model, the governing differential equations for continuity and momentum are solved numerically using finite-volume/finite-difference techniques in the generalized body-fitted coordinates. In order to verify the numerical results, the experimental measured pressure drops are compared with the numerical result. In addition, an improved method for nearly orthogonal grid generation is presented in numerical study. The grid generating system is based on the solution of a set of partial differential equations with finite difference discretization. Numerical calculations are performed to examine the effect of 55% (ratio between cross-sectional area at upstream and stenosis) irregular stenosis on the hemodynamic characteristics such as flow separation zone, wall shear stress and pressure drop. The maximum calculated wall shear stress is related to the maximum velocity gradient due to minimum cross-sectional area at the neck of stenosis. In addition, the pressure is shown as an important characteristic that is effecting on the resistance against the flow in the artery. Based on our results, the 55% irregular constriction is considered critical unlike the studies that have believed the reduction, which is greater than 75% become significant.
Cultural Expressions of Intergenerational Trauma and Mental Health Nursing Implications for U.S. Health Care Delivery Following Refugee Resettlement
Authors: Hudson Christina Camille , Adams Susie , Lauderdale Jana
Published: May 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this integrative review of the literature is to examine cultural expressions of intergenerational trauma among refugees following resettlement, and to determine culturally sensitive mental health care practice implications for health care practitioners working in U.S. health care delivery. Methodology: Data were collected utilizing a comprehensive computer-assisted search in CINAHL and PsychARTICLES/ProQuest from 2003 to 2013 of full text, peer-reviewed, scholarly journal articles, published in English. Eight articles met selection criteria and were analyzed using Gadamer’s philosophical interpretation of play, symbolism, and festival in The Relevance of the Beautiful. Results: Six recurrent themes were identified important to refugee health care delivery: silence, communication, adaptation, relationship, remembering, and national redress. Implications for Practice: Practitioners need to consider cultural influences of intergenerational trauma in processing grief related to loss and how artistic modes of expression are experienced, both individually and communally, in refugee health care delivery.
Exploring a modular adaptive metastructure concept inspired by muscle’s cross-bridge
Authors: Wu Z , Harne RL , Wang KW
Published: May 2015

The multifunctionality and versatility of skeletal muscle is a worthy inspiration towards the development of engineered adaptive structures and material systems. Recent mechanical modeling of muscle suggests that some of muscle’s intriguing macroscale, passive adaptivity results from the assembly of nanoscale, cross-bridge constituents that maintain multiple metastable configurations. Inspired by the new observations, this research explores a concept of creating modular, engineered structures from the assembly of mechanical, metastable modules, defined as modules that exhibit coexistent metastable states. The proposed integrated systems are termed metastructures: modular, engineered structures exhibiting unprecedented characteristics resulting from a synergy of the constituents. Analytical and experimental results demonstrate that when modular metastructures are prescribed a global shape/topology, the systems may yield significant and valuable properties adaptivity including variation in reaction force magnitude and direction, numerous globally stable topologies, and orders of magnitude change in stiffness. The influences of important parameters on tailoring the displacement range of coexistent metastable states are investigated to provide insight of how the assembly strategy governs the intriguing versatility and functionality which may be harnessed.
Smart concretes and structures: A review
Authors: Han Baoguo , Wang Yunyang , Dong Sufen , Zhang Liqing , Ding Siqi , Yu Xun , Ou Jinping
Published: May 2015

Smart concretes and structures are intelligent systems that have properties different from normal concrete, such as self-sensing and self-healing properties, or have the ability to react upon an external stimulus, such as stress and temperature. The “smartness” of concrete and structures is achieved through material composition design, special processing, introduction of other functional components, or modification of the microstructure. They are designed to meet specific requirements through tailored properties for improving serviceability, safety, reliability, longevity, and durability of the infrastructures and reducing the life-cycle costs of the infrastructures. This article reviews the recent researches of various smart concretes and structures, with attentions to their principles, fabrication, and properties. Future challenges in the development and applications of smart concretes and structures are also discussed.
Radiation-Associated Low-Grade Extraskeletal Osteosarcoma of the Neck Following Treatment for Thyroid Cancer
Authors: Jones Martin , Chebib Ivan , Deshpande Vikram , Nielsen G. Petur
Published: May 2015

Low-grade extraskeletal osteosarcoma is a rare tumor that may arise de novo or following radiation therapy. Because of the low-grade histology, it may be misdiagnosed as a benign lesion. We present a case of a 59-year-old man with a past history of radiotherapy for papillary carcinoma of the thyroid, presenting 16 years later with a low-grade extraskeletal osteosarcoma of the neck. The patient was treated with surgical excision and is disease free after 12 months of follow-up. The prognosis for patients with low-grade extraskeletal osteosarcoma is relatively good when compared with high-grade sarcomas. While there is a report of a low-grade extraskeletal osteosarcoma arising following radiotherapy for a benign condition, to the best of our knowledge this is the first reported case of a low-grade extraskeletal osteosarcoma occurring following radiotherapy for thyroid cancer, and the only case reported in the soft tissue of the head and neck region.
Why don’t we read hypertext novels?
Authors: Mangen Anne , van der Weel Adriaan
Published: May 2015

Ever since their appearance in the early 1990s, hypertext novels were presented as the pinnacle of digital aesthetics and claimed to represent the revolutionary future of literature. However, as a literary phenomenon, hypertext novels have remained marginal. The article presents some scientifically derived explanations as to why hypertext novels do not have a mass audience and why they are likely to remain a marginal contribution in the history of literature. Three explanatory frameworks are provided: (1) how hypertext relates to our cognitive information processing in general; (2) the empirically derived psychological reasons for how we read and enjoy literature in particular; and (3) the likely evolutionary origins of such a predilection for storytelling and literature. It is shown how hypertext theory, by ignoring such knowledge, has yielded misguided statements and uncorroborated claims guided by ideology rather than by scientifically supported knowledge.
Supporting young people living with cancer to tell their stories in ways that make them stronger: The Beads of Life approach
Authors: Portnoy Sara , Girling Isabella , Fredman Glenda
Published: May 2015

This article describes the ‘Beads of Life’ approach – a five-part methodology informed by narrative therapy to enable children and young people to make sense of their cancer journey in ways that make them stronger. Young people are invited to use beads as prompts to tell preferred stories of their identity to create a safe place to stand from which to story their cancer journey. The approach positions young people as experts in their lives. It aims to change their relationship with cancer to reduce its negative impact on life by lessening isolation. By enabling medical staff to get to know the young person apart from the cancer, this approach aims to create hope for the future and improve quality of care.
Canadian early childhood educators’ perceptions of young children’s gender-role play and cultural identity
Authors: Servos Jennifer E , Dewar Brandy A , Bosacki Sandra L , Coplan Robert J
Published: May 2015

This article investigates early childhood educators’ perceptions of children’s gender-role play and the impact their cultural background plays in their gender identity and play behaviors. Through qualitative in-depth interviews, early childhood educators in Canada ( n = 40) were asked questions relating to their experiences with children from various cultural backgrounds, how cultural diversity impacted a child’s gender identification, and who early childhood educators felt struggled more with gender identity. In general, respondents felt that cultural background could have an impact of gender identification, and that while boys and girls both struggle with gender identity, girls had the added stress of competing with popular culture expectations of gender type behaviors.
Promoting risk-taking and physically challenging play in Australian early childhood settings in a changing regulatory environment
Authors: Little Helen
Published: May 2015

This article presents data from a survey of Early Childhood Education and Care services in Australia. The study investigated outdoor play provision in terms of space, resources and planning for risk-taking in play. Overall, the results indicate that the participating centres are well-resourced to promote physical play, but vary in terms of opportunities for risk-taking in play. Although the majority of respondents believed their centres’ environments supported risk-taking in play, there were diverse perspectives among the teachers as to behaviours that constituted risky play. Regulatory restrictions relating to heights, arrangement of gross motor equipment and having insufficient space were also identified as factors limiting opportunities for challenging play. Furthermore, inconsistency in the way regulations were interpreted and applied arose as a key factor in the diversity of experiences reported by the respondents. The findings from this study have implications for pre- and in-service training for teachers in understanding how children’s risk-taking in outdoor play might be supported and managed.
Mind the Gap: An exploratory investigation of a family learning initiative to develop metacognitive awareness
Authors: Wall Kate , Burns Helen , Llewellyn Anna
Published: May 2015

Mind the Gap is a family learning project aiming to facilitate intergenerational engagement with learning in schools through the vehicle of a stop-motion animation project.1 Implicit in the animation process is reflective and strategic thinking that helps to make the process of learning explicit (Learning to Learn: Wall et al.). The animation project takes place in school and targets Year 4 children (aged 8 and 9 years old) and their dads/male guardians. The project is accompanied by staff development in school to promote the same Learning to Learn approaches across curriculum and home/school boundaries. A team of researchers at Durham University is engaged in two projects: first, developing better understanding of the intervention elements and, second, evaluating the impact. This article will focus on data arising from the former and will explore the space for family learning created in the project. We propose that the context of an inherently challenging animation project, which includes schools, parents and children working together in new ways to learn new skills associated with information technology and creative story making, increases the likelihood of dialogue about learning. It opens up the possibility of new relationships between home and school as well as increases the potential for learning-based conversations that could be lifelong and lifewide.
Kentucky Teen Institute
Authors: King Kristi M. , Rice Jason A. , Steinbock Stacie , Reno-Weber Ben , Okpokho Ime , Pile Amanda , Carrico Kelly
Published: May 2015

The Kentucky Teen Institute trains youth throughout the state to advocate for policies that promote health in their communities. By evaluating two program summits held at universities, regularly scheduled community meetings, ongoing technical support, and an advocacy day at the state Capitol, the aims of this study were to assess the impact of the intervention on correlates of youths’ advocacy intentions and behaviors and to assess youth participants’ and other key stakeholders’ perceptions of the intervention. An ecological model approach and the theory of planned behavior served as theoretical frameworks from which pre–post, one-group survey and qualitative data were collected (June 2013-June 2014). An equal number of low-income and non–low-income youth representing five counties participated in the Summer Summit pretest (n = 24) and Children’s Advocacy Day at the Capitol posttest (n = 14). Survey data revealed that youths’ attitude toward advocacy, intentions to advocate, and advocacy behaviors all improved over the intervention. Observations, interviews, a focus group, and other written evaluations identified that the youths’, as well as their mentors’ and advocacy coaches’, confidence, communities’ capacity, and mutually beneficial mentorship strengthened. Stronger public speaking skills, communication among the teams, and other recommendations for future advocacy interventions are described.
Dementia With Lew Body
Authors: Pervin Farzana , Edwards Carolyn , Lippa Carol F.
Published: May 2015

Patients who have dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and undergo surgery may develop aggravated postoperative cognitive dysfunction or postoperative delirium. Many patients with DLB respond poorly to surgery and anesthesia, and their conditions may worsen if they have other medical complications along with dementia. They may also face high risk of prolonged hospital stay, increased medical problems and/or mortality, causing significant physical, psychosocial, and financial burdens on individuals, family members, and society. Anesthesia, pain medications, old age, and surgery-related stresses are usually held responsible for the complications; however, the exact causes are still not fully understood. Literature on surgery-related complications for patients with DLB appears to be inadequate, and hence the topic merits detailed and systematic research. This article reviews postoperative complications and various surgery-related risk factors for DLB in light of other dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease, as their neuropathologic features overlap with those of DLB.
Popliteal vein repair may not impact amputation rates in combined popliteal artery and vein injury
Authors: Dua Anahita , Desai Sapan S , Ali Fadwa , Yang Kai , Lee Cheong
Published: May 2015

Introduction

This study aimed to determine the incidence, management, and outcomes of popliteal artery injury, popliteal vein injury, and concomitant popliteal artery injury and vein injury.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was completed using the 2000–2010 Nationwide Inpatient Sample utilizing International Classification of Diseases-9 codes to select patients with isolated popliteal artery injury (904.41), isolated popliteal vein injury (904.42), and isolated concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury (958.92). Variables included demographics, procedure type, and outcome during hospital course. Statistical analysis was with chi-square, Fisher exact test, and multivariate analysis.

Results

A total of 2216 patients presented with injury to the popliteal system; 71% (1568) presented with isolated popliteal artery injury, 14% (306) with isolated popliteal vein injury, and 15% (342) with concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury. Amputation was significantly increased in popliteal artery injury and concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury ( P < 0.001) as compared to popliteal vein injury. Ligation of the vein was more common in concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury when compared to popliteal vein injury ( P < 0.05). The rate of amputation was 9.8% for popliteal artery injury, significantly greater than for popliteal vein injury (0.7%, P < 0.001) but not different than for concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury (8.2%, P = NS).

Conclusion

Evidence-based management of popliteal vasculature may increase rates of limb salvage. Within the limitations of the data set used, conclusions appear to be that patients with popliteal vein injury or concomitant popliteal artery and vein injury may be managed with vein ligation without increased amputation rates as compared to popliteal artery injury.