bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Clinical practitioners’ views on the management of patients with medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUPS): a qualitative study
Authors: Brownell A Keith W , Atkins Chloe , Whiteley Andrea , Woollard Robert F , Kornelsen Jude
Published: December 2016

Objectives

By identifying strategies that practicing physicians use in managing patients with medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUPS), we present an interim practical management guide (IPMG) that clinical practitioners may find useful in their clinical practices and that may help guide future research.

Design

A qualitative research study based on interview data from practicing physicians with experience in dealing with MUPS and known to the physician members of the research team. A parallel exploration of patient experiences was carried out simultaneously and is reported elsewhere.

Setting

2 urban centres in 2 different Canadian provinces in a healthcare system where family physicians provide the majority of primary care and self-referral to specialists rarely occurs.

Participants

The physician members of the research team invited practicing family and specialty physicians to participate in the study.

Results

We characterise the care of patients with MUPS in terms of a 4-part framework: (1) the challenge of diagnosis; (2) the challenge of management/treatment; (3) the importance of communication and (4) the importance of the therapeutic relationship.

Conclusions

On the basis of the details in the different parts of the framework, we propose an IPMG that practitioners may find useful to facilitate the clinical care of patients with MUPS. The guide can be readily implemented into the practice of any physician who cares for patients with MUPS.
Nairobi Newborn Study: a protocol for an observational study to estimate the gaps in provision and quality of inpatient newborn care in Nairobi City County, Kenya
Authors: Murphy Georgina A V , Gathara David , Aluvaala Jalemba , Mwachiro Jacintah , Abuya Nancy , Ouma Paul , Snow Robert W , English Mike
Published: December 2016

Introduction

Progress has been made in Kenya towards reducing child mortality as part of efforts aligned with the fourth Millennium Development Goal. However, little advancement has been made in reducing mortality among newborns, which now accounts for 45% of all child deaths. The frequently unanticipated nature of neonatal illness, its severity and the high dependency of sick newborns on skilled care make the provision of inpatient hospital services one key component of strategies to improve newborn survival.

Methods and analyses

This project aims to assess the availability and quality of inpatient newborn care in hospitals in Nairobi City County across the public, private and not-for-profit sectors and align this to the estimated need for such services, providing a description of the quantity and quality gaps between capacity and demand. The population level burden of disease will be estimated using morbidity incidence estimates from a literature review applied to subcounty estimates of population-adjusted births, providing a spatially disaggregated estimate of need within the county. This will be followed by a survey of neonatal services across all health facilities providing 24/7 inpatient newborn care in the county. The survey will include: a retrospective audit of admission registers to estimate the usage of facilities and case-mix of patients; a structural assessment of facilities to gain insight into capacity; a questionnaire to nursing staff focusing on the process of delivering key obstetric and neonatal interventions; and a retrospective case audit to assess adherence to guidelines by clinicians.

Ethics and dissemination

This study has been approved by the Kenya Medical Research Institute Scientific and Ethics Review Unit (SSC protocol No.2999). Results will be disseminated: to participating facilities through individualised reports and a joint workshop; to local and national stakeholders through meetings and a summary report; and to the international community through peer-review publication and international meetings.
Burden of multimorbidity in relation to age, gender and immigrant status: a cross-sectional study based on administrative data
Authors: Lenzi Jacopo , Avaldi Vera Maria , Rucci Paola , Pieri Giulia , Fantini Maria Pia
Published: December 2016

Objectives

Many studies have investigated multimorbidity, whose prevalence varies according to settings and data sources. However, few studies on this topic have been conducted in Italy, a country with universal healthcare and one of the most aged populations in the world. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of multimorbidity in a Northern Italian region, to investigate its distribution by age, gender and citizenship and to analyse the correlations of diseases.

Design

Cross-sectional study based on administrative data.

Setting

Emilia-Romagna, an Italian region with ∼4.4 million inhabitants, of which almost one-fourth are aged ≥65 years.

Participants

All adults residing in Emilia-Romagna on 31 December 2012. Hospitalisations, drug prescriptions and contacts with community mental health services from 2003 to 2012 were traced to identify the presence of 17 physical and 9 mental health disorders.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

Descriptive analysis of differences in the prevalence of multimorbidity in relation to age, gender and citizenship. The correlations of diseases were analysed using exploratory factor analysis.

Results

The study population included 622 026 men and 751 011women, with a mean age of 66.4 years. Patients with multimorbidity were 33.5% in 75 years and >60% among patients aged ≥90 years; among patients aged ≥65 years, the proportion of multimorbidity was 39.9%. After standardisation by age and gender, multimorbidity was significantly more frequent among Italian citizens than among immigrants. Factor analysis identified 5 multimorbidity patterns: (1) psychiatric disorders, (2) cardiovascular, renal, pulmonary and cerebrovascular diseases, (3) neurological diseases, (4) liver diseases, AIDS/HIV and substance abuse and (5) tumours.

Conclusions

Multimorbidity was highly prevalent in Emilia-Romagna and strongly associated with age. This finding highlights the need for healthcare providers to adopt individualised care plans and ensure continuity of care.
Surgical versus conservative treatment for lumbar disc herniation: a prospective cohort study
Authors: Gugliotta Marinella , da Costa Bruno R , Dabis Essam , Theiler Robert , Jüni Peter , Reichenbach Stephan , Landolt Hans , Hasler Paul
Published: December 2016

Objectives

Evidence comparing the effectiveness of surgical and conservative treatment of symptomatic lumbar disc herniation is controversial. We sought to compare short-term and long-term effectiveness of surgical and conservative treatment in sciatica symptom severity and quality of life in patients with lumbar disc herniation in a routine clinical setting.

Methods

A prospective cohort study of a routine clinical practice registry consisting of 370 patients. Outcome measures were the North American Spine Society questionnaire and the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey to assess patient-reported back pain, physical function, neurogenic symptoms and quality of life. Primary outcomes were back pain at 6 and 12 weeks. Standard open discectomy was assessed versus conservative interventions at 6, 12, 52 and 104 weeks. We filled in missing outcome variable values with multiple imputation, accounted for repeated measures within patients with mixed-effects models and adjusted baseline group differences in relevant prognostic indicators by inverse probability of treatment weighting.

Results

Surgical treatment patients reported less back pain at 6 weeks than those receiving conservative therapy (−0.97; 95% CI −1.89 to −0.09), were more likely to report ≥50% decrease in back pain symptoms from baseline to 6 weeks (48% vs 17%, risk difference: 0.34; 95% CI 0.16 to 0.47) and reported less physical function disability at 52 weeks (−3.7; 95% CI −7.4 to −0.1). The other assessments showed minimal between-group differences with CIs, including the null effect.

Conclusions

Compared with conservative therapy, surgical treatment provided faster relief from back pain symptoms in patients with lumbar disc herniation, but did not show a benefit over conservative treatment in midterm and long-term follow-up.
Estimating change in cardiovascular disease and diabetes burdens due to dietary and metabolic factors in Korea 1998–2011: a comparative risk assessment analysis
Authors: Cho Yoonsu , Cudhea Frederick , Park Ju-Hyun , Lee Jong-Tae , Mozaffarian Dariush , Singh Gitanjali , Shin Min-Jeong
Published: December 2016

Objectives

Over the past 10 years, the burden of chronic diseases in Korea has increased. However, there are currently no quantitative estimates of how changes in diet and metabolic factors have contributed to these shifting burdens. This study aims to evaluate the contributions of dietary and metabolic risk factors to death from cardiometabolic diseases (CMDs) such as cardiovascular conditions, strokes and diabetes in Korea, and to estimate how these contributions have changed over the past 10 years (1998–2011).

Design and methods

We used data on 6 dietary and 4 metabolic risk factors by sex, age and year from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The relative risks for the effects of the risk factors on CMD mortality were obtained from meta-analyses. The population-attributable fraction attributable to the risk factors was calculated by using a comparative risk assessment approach across sex and age strata (males and females, age groups 25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, 65–74 and 75+ years) from 1998 to 2011.

Results

The results showed that a suboptimal diet and high blood pressure were the main risk factors for CMD mortality in Korea. High blood pressure accounted for 127 096 (95% uncertainty interval (UI): 121 907 to 132 218) deaths from CMD. Among the individual dietary risk factors, a high intake of sodium (42 387 deaths; 95% UI: 42 387 to 65 094) and a low intake of fruit (50 244 deaths; 95% UI: 40 981 to 59 178) and whole grains (54 248 deaths; 95% UI: 47 020 to 61 343) were responsible for the highest number of CMD deaths in Korea.

Conclusions

Indicating the relative importance of risk factors in Korea, the results suggest that metabolic and dietary risk factors were major contributors to CMD mortality.
‘It promoted a positive culture around falls prevention’: staff response to a patient education programme—a qualitative evaluation
Authors: Hill Anne-Marie , Waldron Nicholas , Francis-Coad Jacqueline , Haines Terry , Etherton-Beer Christopher , Flicker Leon , Ingram Katharine , McPhail Steven M
Published: December 2016

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to understand how staff responded to individualised patient falls prevention education delivered as part of a cluster randomised trial, including how they perceived the education contributed to falls prevention on their wards.

Design

A qualitative explanatory study.

Methods

5 focus groups were conducted at participatory hospital sites. The purposive sample of clinical staff (including nurses, physiotherapists and quality improvement staff) worked on aged care rehabilitation wards when a cluster randomised trial evaluating a patient education programme was conducted. During the intervention period, an educator, who was a trained health professional and not a member of staff, provided individualised falls prevention education to patients with good levels of cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination >23/30). Clinical staff were provided with training to support the programme and their feedback was sought after the trial concluded, to understand how they perceived the programme impacted on falls prevention. Data were thematically analysed using NVivo qualitative data analysis software.

Results

5 focus groups were conducted at different hospitals (n=30 participants). Staff perceived that the education created a positive culture around falls prevention and further, facilitated teamwork, whereby patients and staff worked together to address falls prevention. The educator was perceived to be a valuable member of the team. Staff reported that they developed increased knowledge and awareness about creating a safe ward environment. Patients being proactive and empowered to engage in falls prevention strategies, such as ringing the bell for assistance, was viewed as supporting staff falls prevention efforts and motivating staff to change practice.

Conclusions

Staff responded positively to patient falls prevention education being delivered on their wards. Providing individualised patient education to older patients with good levels of cognition can empower staff and patients to work as a team to address falls prevention on hospital rehabilitation wards.
Protocol for developing, disseminating and implementing a core outcome set for endometriosis
Authors: Hirsch Martin , Duffy James M N , Barker Claire , Hummelshoj Lone , Johnson Neil P , Mol Ben , Khan Khalid S , Farquhar Cindy
Published: December 2016

Introduction

Endometriosis is a common gynaecological disease characterised by pain and subfertility. Randomised controlled trials evaluating treatments for endometriosis have reported many different outcomes and outcome measures. This variation restricts effective data synthesis limiting the usefulness of research to inform clinical practice. To address these methodological concerns, we aim to develop, disseminate and implement a core outcome set for endometriosis engaging with key stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, researchers and women with endometriosis.

Methods and analysis

An international steering group has been established, including healthcare professionals, researchers and patient representatives. Potential outcomes identified from a systematic review of the literature will be entered into a modified Delphi method. Key stakeholders will be invited to participate including healthcare professionals, researchers and women with endometriosis. Participants will be invited to score individual outcomes on a nine-point Likert scale anchored between 1 (not important) and 9 (critical). Repeated reflection and rescoring should promote whole and individual stakeholder group converge towards consensus, ‘core’, outcomes. High-quality outcome measures will be associated with core outcomes.

Ethics and dissemination

The implementation of a core outcome set for endometriosis within future clinical trials, systematic reviews and clinical guidelines will enhance the availability of comparable data to facilitate evidence-based patient care. This study was prospectively registered with Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials Initiative; number: 691.
Safety and feasibility of sublingual microcirculation assessment in the emergency department for civilian and military patients with traumatic haemorrhagic shock: a prospective cohort study
Authors: Naumann David N , Mellis Clare , Smith Iain M , Mamuza Jasna , Skene Imogen , Harris Tim , Midwinter Mark J , Hutchings Sam D
Published: December 2016

Objectives

Sublingual microcirculatory monitoring for traumatic haemorrhagic shock (THS) may predict clinical outcomes better than traditional blood pressure and cardiac output, but is not usually performed until the patient reaches the intensive care unit (ICU), missing earlier data of potential importance. This pilot study assessed for the first time the feasibility and safety of sublingual video-microscopy for THS in the emergency department (ED), and whether it yields useable data for analysis.

Setting

A safety and feasibility assessment was undertaken as part of the prospective observational MICROSHOCK study; sublingual video-microscopy was performed at the UK-led Role 3 medical facility at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, and in the ED in 3 UK Major Trauma Centres.

Participants

There were 15 casualties (2 military, 13 civilian) who presented with traumatic haemorrhagic shock with a median injury severity score of 26. The median age was 41; the majority (n=12) were male. The most common injury mechanism was road traffic accident.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

Safety and feasibility were the primary outcomes, as measured by lack of adverse events or clinical interruptions, and successful acquisition and storage of data. The secondary outcome was the quality of acquired video clips according to validated criteria, in order to determine whether useful data could be obtained in this emergency context.

Results

Video-microscopy was successfully performed and stored for analysis for all patients, yielding 161 video clips. There were no adverse events or episodes where clinical management was affected or interrupted. There were 104 (64.6%) video clips from 14 patients of sufficient quality for analysis.

Conclusions

Early sublingual microcirculatory monitoring in the ED for patients with THS is safe and feasible, even in a deployed military setting, and yields videos of satisfactory quality in a high proportion of cases. Further investigations of early microcirculatory behaviour in this context are warranted.

Trial registration number

NCT02111109.
Ten‐minute chat
Authors: Goldberg Samantha
Published: December 2016

Samantha Goldberg is a small animal vet who is very taken with beagles. She was recently nominated as a finalist for the Kennel Club's Breed Health Coordinator of the Year award.
Icariin improves eNOS/NO pathway to prohibit the atherogenesis of apolipoprotein E-null mice
Authors: Xiao Hong-Bo , Sui Guo-Guang , Lu Xiang-Yang
Published: December 2016

Impaired endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS)/nitric oxide (NO) pathway induces atherogenesis. The present study examined whether icariin improves the eNOS/NO pathway to prohibit the atherogenesis of apolipoprotein E-null (ApoE−/−) mice. In vitro, primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were randomly divided into 7 groups: control; vehicle; icariin 10; lyphosphatidylcholine (LPC) group; LPC + icariin 1; LPC + icariin 3; and LPC + icariin 10. In vivo, 80 mice were separated randomly into 4 groups (n = 20): control, ApoE−/−, ApoE−/− + icariin 10, and ApoE−/− + icariin 30. ApoE−/− mice had significantly more atherosclerosis in the aortic root together with increased aortic ROS production, body mass, plasma triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) concentration, decreased aortic eNOS expression, and plasma NO concentration. LPC (10 μg/mL) treatment induced a big decline in NO level in the conditioned medium and eNOS expression, and an increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in HUVECs. Icariin treatment decreased atherogenesis, ROS production, body mass, plasma TG concentration, and plasma TC concentration, and increased NO concentration and eNOS expression. These findings suggested icariin could improve eNOS/NO-pathway to prohibit the atherogenesis of apolipoprotein E-null mice by restraining oxidative stress.
Cascading failure in interconnected weighted networks based on the state of link
Authors: Ding Chao , Yao Hong , Du Jun , Peng Xingzhao , Wang Zhe , Zhao Jingbo
Published: December 2016

Recently the robustness of coupled network under cascading failure has attracted a lot of attention. In this paper, we investigate the cascading failure of the interconnected weighted networks based on the state of link. The load on one link is defined by a function of the strength of the two nodes at the ends of that link, using four intentional attack strategies, we study the invulnerability of the interconnected weighted networks when cascading failure occurs. Our studies show that when the link with highest load is attacked, the damage to the network will be more serious by attacking the inner-link with highest load than that caused by attacking the coupling link with highest load, and no matter how the coupling links distribute, there are two thresholds. In addition, we find that the larger the weight increment in the model or the smaller the network’s mean clustering coefficient, the stronger the ability of the network to resist cascading failure when the inner-link with highest load is attacked, while the weaker the ability of the network to suppress the cascading failure when the inner-link with lowest load is attacked.
The spin-zero Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau equation in a cosmic-string space-time with the Cornell interaction
Authors: de Montigny M. , Hosseinpour M. , Hassanabadi H.
Published: December 2016

In this paper, we study the covariant Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau (DKP) equation in the cosmic-string space-time and consider the interaction of a DKP field with the gravitational field produced by topological defects in order to examine the influence of topology on this system. We solve the spin-zero DKP oscillator in the presence of the Cornell interaction with a rotating coordinate system in an exact analytical manner for nodeless and one-node states by proposing a proper ansatz solution.
Study of Λb → Λℓ+ℓ− (ℓ = e,μ,τ) decays in the G(221) model
Authors: Wang Shuai-Wei
Published: December 2016

We study respectively the baryonic semilepton decays [Formula: see text][Formula: see text] in the [Formula: see text] model, which includes the tree-level flavor-changing-neutral-currents (FCNCs) induced by [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] bosons and modifies the Wilson coefficients [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. For the form factors, we use the results of QCD light-cone sum rules (LCSR) in the low [Formula: see text] region and lattice QCD in the high [Formula: see text] region, respectively. We consider the effects of this new physics (NP) model on some measured physical observables, like the differential branching ratio, the longitudinal polarization of the dilepton system, the lepton-side forward–backward asymmetry and the baryon-side forward–backward asymmetry, and find, obvious differences occur in some observables between the Standard Model (SM) and this NP model. Meanwhile, we also discuss the double lepton polarization asymmetries of these decay channels, and find, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] of these decay channels are sensitive to the contribution of this NP model.
Schreier’s formula for prosupersolvable groups
Authors: Shusterman Mark
Published: December 2016

We classify the finitely generated prosupersolvable groups that satisfy Schreier’s formula for the number of generators of open subgroups.
Steady state concentration for a phenotypic structured problem modeling the evolutionary epidemiology of spore producing pathogens
Authors: Djidjou-Demasse Ramses , Ducrot Arnaud , Fabre Frédéric
Published: December 2016

In this paper, we construct a model to describe the evolutionary epidemiology of spore producing asexual plant pathogens in a homogeneous host population. By considering the evolution in the space of the pathogen phenotypic values, we derive an integro-differential equation with nonlocal mutation terms. Our first main result is concerned with the existence and uniqueness of the endemic steady state of the model. Next assuming that the mutation kernel depends on a small parameter [Formula: see text] (the variance of the dispersion into the space of the pathogen phenotypic values), we investigate the concentration properties of the endemic steady state in the space of phenotypic values. In the context of this work, several Evolutionary Attractors (EAs) (as defined in classical adaptive dynamics) may exist. However, in rather general situations, our results show that only one EA persists when the populations are at equilibrium and when [Formula: see text] is small enough. Our analysis strongly relies on a refined description of the spectral properties of some integral operator with a highly concentrated kernel. We conclude the paper by presenting some numerical simulations of the model to illustrate this concentration phenomenon.
Quantum computing and second quantization
Authors: Makaruk Hanna
Published: December 2016

Quantum computers by their nature are many particle quantum systems. Both the many-particle arrangement and being quantum are necessary for the existence of the entangled states, which are responsible for the parallelism of the quantum computers. Second quantization is a very important approximate method of describing such systems. This lecture will present the general idea of the second quantization, and discuss shortly some of the most important formulations of second quantization.
SYNTHESIS OF GRAPHENE OXIDE USING MILDLY OXIDIZED GRAPHITE THROUGH ULTRASONIC EXFOLIATION
Authors: HU YANG , LI ZHUANG , LI HONGQIANG , SONG SHAOXIAN , LOPEZ-VALDIVIESO ALEJANDRO
Published: December 2016

This study investigated the preparation of graphene oxide from mildly oxidized graphite through ultrasonic exfoliation. Both the original and produced materials were analyzed by ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer, X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy. The results indicated that the exfoliation yield of graphene oxide was proportional to the input ultrasonic energy. In addition, a two-stage exfoliation phenomenon was observed in the exfoliation of mildly oxidized graphite with both ultrasonic homogenizer and cleaner. It also was found that increasing the content of [[Formula: see text]] in a C–H2SO4–[[Formula: see text]] reaction system was the most simple and direct method to increase the oxidation degree of graphite oxide.
RADIOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF BONY UNION AFTER OCCIPITOCERVICAL FUSION
Authors: Moon Myung-Sang , Kim Dong-Hyeon , Yoon Min-Geun , Kim Sung-Soo , Sihn Jang-Cheol
Published: December 2016

Study design: Assessment of posterior occipitocervical fusions, based on the post-operative (postop) follow-up radiographic findings. Objectives: To investigate an objective radiological evaluation method of the occipitocervical stabilization and fusion. Summary of Background data: For evaluation of the union of the non-instrumented or instrumented stabilization and bony fusion of the occipitocervical segments, only a few studies have been performed by some previous authors. Material and Methods: Occipitocervical fusions were performed in 20 patients from 1995 to 2007. The patients underwent occipitocervical fusions with 4 different surgical methods; autogenous iliac bone grafts and wire fixation (seven cases), loop and sublaminar wire fixation (five cases), Cotrel–Dubousse (CD) occipitocervical rod (two cases), and contoured reconstruction plate and screw systems (six cases). The stability and established union of the fused segment and the instrument failure or loosening were evaluated with flexion/extension lateral radiograms. The stability was evaluated by alignment change in degrees and distances between a point of the occiput and cervical vertebrae on the sagittal plane radiograms, taken at postop three months ago. Angular motion over 2[Formula: see text] and 2[Formula: see text]mm of displacement on radiograms were defined to be unstable and/or ununited. When there was no such motion of the fused segment and the instrument breakage or loosening, the fused segment was judged stable and fused. Results: Diagnosis of nonunion was made in three out of seven patients who have undergone fusion with autogenous bone grafts with wire fixation. In the other patients, we were unable to determine the presence of a solid fusion mass at the fusion site, because of overlapping of the instrument and graft bones. In all rigidly instrumented cases, stability was obtained. Conclusion: The occipitocervical fusion segments were judged clinically to be stabilized rather than fused, if the flexion/extension radiographs, taken at postop three and six months, did not demonstrate motion at the fusion site.
A computer-assisted existence proof for Emden's equation on an unbounded L-shaped domain
Authors: Pacella Filomena , Plum Michael , Rütters Dagmar
Published: December 2016

We prove existence, non-degeneracy, and exponential decay at infinity of a non-trivial solution to Emden's equation [Formula: see text] on an unbounded [Formula: see text]-shaped domain, subject to Dirichlet boundary conditions. Besides the direct value of this result, we also regard this solution as a building block for solutions on expanding bounded domains with corners, to be established in future work. Our proof makes heavy use of computer assistance. Starting from a numerical approximate solution, we use a fixed-point argument to prove existence of a near-by exact solution. The eigenvalue bounds established in the course of this proof also imply non-degeneracy of the solution.
Non-stationary flows of asymptotically Newtonian fluids
Authors: Breit Dominic , Stroffolini Bianca , Verde Anna
Published: December 2016

We study nonlinear parabolic Stokes systems with an asymptotically linear structure. This refers to the slow flow of a non-Newtonian fluid with Newtonian behavior for large shear rates. We show that the symmetric gradient of the velocity field is locally bounded in space-time.
Sharp decay rates for a class of nonlinear viscoelastic plate models
Authors: Gomes Tavares E. H. , Jorge Silva M. A. , Ma T. F.
Published: December 2016

This paper is concerned with uniform stability of the energy corresponding to a class of nonlinear plate equations with memory. It is assumed that the memory kernel [Formula: see text] satisfies the condition [Formula: see text] of Alabau-Boussouira and Cannarsa [A general method for proving sharp energy decay rates for memory-dissipative evolution equations, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris Ser. I 347 (2009) 867–872], where [Formula: see text] is positive, convex, increasing, and satisfies [Formula: see text]. Then, we obtain sharp energy decay rate in the sense that it recovers the decay rate assumed to the memory kernel. To this end we use a recent approach proposed by Lasiecka and Wang [Intrinsic decay rate estimates for semilinear abstract second order equations with memory, in New Prospects in Direct, Inverse and Control Problems for Evolution Equations, Springer Series INDAM, Vol. 10 (Springer, 2014), pp. 271–303].
Quantitative results on Fejér monotone sequences
Authors: Kohlenbach Ulrich , Leuştean Laurenţiu , Nicolae Adriana
Published: December 2016

We provide in a unified way quantitative forms of strong convergence results for numerous iterative procedures which satisfy a general type of Fejér monotonicity where the convergence uses the compactness of the underlying set. These quantitative versions are in the form of explicit rates of so-called metastability in the sense of Tao. Our approach covers examples ranging from the proximal point algorithm for maximal monotone operators to various fixed point iterations [Formula: see text] for firmly nonexpansive, asymptotically nonexpansive, strictly pseudo-contractive and other types of mappings. Many of the results hold in a general metric setting with some convexity structure added (so-called [Formula: see text]-hyperbolic spaces). Sometimes uniform convexity is assumed still covering the important class of CAT(0)-spaces due to Gromov.
Norms supporting the Lebesgue differentiation theorem
Authors: Cavaliere Paola , Cianchi Andrea , Pick Luboš , Slavíková Lenka
Published: December 2016

A version of the Lebesgue differentiation theorem is offered, where the [Formula: see text] norm is replaced with any rearrangement-invariant norm. Necessary and sufficient conditions for a norm of this kind to support the Lebesgue differentiation theorem are established. In particular, Lorentz, Orlicz and other customary norms for which Lebesgue’s theorem holds are characterized.
Resonance tongues for the Hill equation with Duffing coefficients and instabilities in a nonlinear beam equation
Authors: Gasparetto Carlo , Gazzola Filippo
Published: December 2016

We consider a class of Hill equations where the periodic coefficient is the squared solution of some Duffing equation plus a constant. We study the stability of the trivial solution of this Hill equation and we show that a criterion due to Burdina [Boundedness of solutions of a system of differential equations, Dokl. Akad. Nauk. SSSR 92 (1953) 603–606] is very helpful for this analysis. In some cases, we are also able to determine exact solutions in terms of Jacobi elliptic functions. Overall, we obtain a fairly complete picture of the stability and instability regions. These results are then used to study the stability of nonlinear modes in some beam equations.
On the semigroup of all partial fence-preserving injections on a finite set
Authors: Dimitrova Ilinka , Koppitz Jörg
Published: December 2016

For [Formula: see text], let [Formula: see text] be an [Formula: see text]-element set and let [Formula: see text] be a fence, also called a zigzag poset. As usual, we denote by [Formula: see text] the symmetric inverse semigroup on [Formula: see text]. We say that a transformation [Formula: see text] is fence-preserving if [Formula: see text] implies that [Formula: see text], for all [Formula: see text] in the domain of [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we study the semigroup [Formula: see text] of all partial fence-preserving injections of [Formula: see text] and its subsemigroup [Formula: see text]. Clearly, [Formula: see text] is an inverse semigroup and contains all regular elements of [Formula: see text] We characterize the Green’s relations for the semigroup [Formula: see text]. Further, we prove that the semigroup [Formula: see text] is generated by its elements with rank [Formula: see text]. Moreover, for [Formula: see text], we find the least generating set and calculate the rank of [Formula: see text].
Rings whose proper (principal) right ideals are strongly compressible
Authors: Tamer Koşan M.
Published: December 2016

It is known that a ring [Formula: see text] is semiprime right Goldie if and only if [Formula: see text] is a strongly compressible module if and only if every right ideal of [Formula: see text] is strongly compressible, and that a ring [Formula: see text] is semiprime Goldie ring if and only if every right ideal of [Formula: see text] is weakly injective if and only if every essential right ideal of [Formula: see text] is weakly injective. In this paper, we characterize the rings whose proper (principal) right ideals are strongly compressible, and the rings whose proper (essential) right ideals are weakly injective.
Automorphisms of the zero-divisor graph of 2 × 2 matrix ring over ℤps
Authors: Zhang Hengbin , Nan Jizhu , Tang Gaohua
Published: December 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be the ring of integers modulo [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is a prime and [Formula: see text] is a positive integer, [Formula: see text] the [Formula: see text] matrix ring over [Formula: see text]. The zero-divisor graph of [Formula: see text], written as [Formula: see text], is a directed graph whose vertices are nonzero zero-divisors of [Formula: see text], and there is a directed edge from a vertex [Formula: see text] to a vertex [Formula: see text] if and only if [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we completely determine the automorphisms of [Formula: see text].
The non-orthogonal Cayley–Dickson construction and the octonionic structure of the E8-lattice
Authors: Petersson Holger P.
Published: December 2016

Using a conic [Formula: see text] algebra [Formula: see text] over an arbitrary commutative ring, a scalar [Formula: see text] and a linear form [Formula: see text] on [Formula: see text] as input, the non-orthogonal Cayley–Dickson construction produces a conic algebra [Formula: see text] and collapses to the standard (orthogonal) Cayley–Dickson construction for [Formula: see text]. Conditions on [Formula: see text] that are necessary and sufficient for [Formula: see text] to satisfy various algebraic properties (like associativity or alternativity) are derived. Sufficient conditions guaranteeing non-singularity of [Formula: see text] even if [Formula: see text] is singular are also given. As an application, we show how the algebras of Hurwitz quaternions and of Dickson or Coxeter octonions over the rational integers can be obtained from the non-orthogonal Cayley–Dickson construction.
Finite groups and degrees of irreducible monomial characters II
Authors: Pang Linna , Lu Jiakuan
Published: December 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be a finite solvable group, and let [Formula: see text] be a prime. We obtain some conditions for [Formula: see text] to be [Formula: see text]-nilpotent or [Formula: see text]-closed in terms of irreducible monomial characters.
A Hybrid of Genetic Algorithm and Evidential Reasoning for Optimal Design of Project Scheduling: A Systematic Negotiation Framework for Multiple Decision-Makers
Authors: Monghasemi Shahryar , Nikoo Mohammad Reza , Fasaee Mohammad Ali Khaksar , Adamowski Jan
Published: December 2016

Traditional project scheduling methods inherently assume that the decision makers (DMs) are a unique entity whose acts are based on group rationality. However, in practice, DMs’ reliance on individual rationality and the wish to optimize their own objectives skew negotiations towards their preferred solutions. This makes conventional project scheduling solutions unrealistic. Here, a new two-step method is proposed that seeks to increase the overall efficiency of project schedules without violating individual rationality criteria, to find scheduling solutions that are acceptable to all DMs. First, a genetic algorithm is combined with evidential reasoning (ER) to obtain near optimal project schedule alternatives with respect to the priorities of each DM, separately. Second, the fallback bargaining method is used to help the DMs reach a consensus on an alternative with the highest group satisfaction. The proposed model is tested on a benchmark project scheduling problem with over 3.6 billion possible project scheduling alternatives. The results show that the model helps DMs when appointing their preferences using a well-organized procedure to provide a transparent view of each project schedule performance solution. Furthermore, the model is able to absorb the maximum support from the DMs, not necessarily a unique entity, by collecting all the self-optimizing DMs’ preferences and fairly allocating the benefits.
The performance of semi-supervised Laplacian regularized regression with the least square loss
Authors: Sheng Baohuai , Xiang Daohong
Published: December 2016

The capacity convergence rate for a kind of kernel regularized semi-supervised Laplacian learning algorithm is bounded with the convex analysis approach. The algorithm is a graph-based regression whose structure shares the feature of both the kernel regularized regression and the kernel regularized Laplacian ranking. It is shown that the kernel reproducing the hypothesis space has contributions to the clustering ability of the algorithm. If the scale parameters in the Gaussian weights are chosen properly, then the learning rate can be controlled by the unlabeled samples and the algorithm converges with the increase of the number of the unlabeled samples. The results of this paper show that choosing suitable structure the semi-supervised learning approach can not only increase the learning rate, but also finish the learning process by increasing the number of unlabeled samples.
A STUDY OF THE SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP ECOSYSTEM: THE CASE OF MOROCCO
Authors: KABBAJ MERYEM , EL OUAZZANI ECH HADI KHALID , ELAMRANI JAMAL , LEMTAOUI MORAD
Published: December 2016

Today, social entrepreneurship is considered as a growth driver for emerging countries. This phenomenon that combines economic utility and social efficiency has recently attracted considerable interest in the academic world as well as among public institutions. In Morocco, it is during the last decade we witnessed an infatuation toward this new type of entrepreneurship. Several actors are working today to promote the sector; however, there is a lack of research on their role in developing the ecosystem of the Moroccan social enterprise. Based on a qualitative study, this article aims to map the stakeholders of social entrepreneurship, their missions and their role in creating a favorable environment for the emergence of social entrepreneurs. The results are presented as an exploratory basis.
HOW GROUP LENDING AFFECTS INNOVATION: EVIDENCE FROM ETHIOPIA
Authors: HIRTH ROBERT M , PESTONJEE DAANISH
Published: December 2016

Microlending has become one of the primary interventions intended to alleviate poverty in the developing world. However, empirical results of the benefits of microlending have been disappointing. This article proposes the common microlending practice of group lending reduces the likelihood borrowers will engage in innovative activities, which has been demonstrated to be a key factor in improving borrower outcomes. The hypotheses proposed are tested with data collected from interviews with 340 microloan borrowers in Ethiopia. The findings are consistent with a weak sorting effect where innovative individuals are less likely to participate in group loans than individual loans, and a social pressure effect where innovative individuals taking group loans are pressured to behave less innovatively than their peers taking individual loans.
Sensitivity and Uncertainty Analysis of SHPB Tests for Concrete Materials
Authors: Liu Ping , Han Xu , Hu Dean , Jiang Chao
Published: December 2016

Many researches focus on the effect of interfacial friction on Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) tests of concrete materials, in which SHPB is one of the most widely used techniques for determination of the dynamic stress–strain response. However, except for the interfacial friction, the stress–strain response is also affected by many other parameters, such as the errors of specimen dimensions and material parameters. In this paper, the sensitivity of these parameters is comprehensively analyzed through a series of SHPB tests and simulations. The influence of different strengths of cement mortars and different strain rates of cylindrical specimens is considered, the orthogonal experimental design method and nonprobability interval algorithm are used for sensitivity and uncertainty analysis. Research results proved that the interfacial friction is the most sensitive parameter in the present test conditions, and the peak stresses measured by SHPB tests are in good agreement with the interval of uncertainty analysis. This research provides a good reference to understand the uncertain properties of concrete materials under SHPB tests.
A High-Order Numerical Manifold Method Based on B-Spline Interpolation and its Application in Structural Dynamics
Authors: Wen Wei-Bin , Yao Kai , Lei Hong-Shuai , Duan Sheng-Yu , Fang Dai-Ning
Published: December 2016

In this paper, a new numerical manifold method (NMM) is formulated on the basis of quintic polynomial interpolation. For linear elastodynamics analysis, the generalized instantaneous potential energy principle for the NMM is employed to obtain the formulation of its elastodynamic equilibrium equations. For the presented NMM, the penalty method is designed to deal with the boundary conditions. The initialization of the dynamic equilibrium equation coupled with its time integration method is exclusively designed. The proposed NMM is applied for static and dynamic analysis of an elastic beam to verify the validity of the proposed NMM. The calculation accuracy and computation efficiency analysis are conducted by comparing the NMM with the finite element method (FEM). Numerical result comparison shows that the proposed NMM possesses higher calculation accuracy than the FEM, especially for the gradient solutions. Time consumption analysis demonstrates that the proposed NMM provides far more accurate numerical results with lower time cost than the FEM.
Dynamic Damping in Joints: Multiscale Model Taking into Account Defects in a Nominally Plane Surface
Authors: Peyret Nicolas , Chevallier Gael , Dion Jean-Luc
Published: December 2016

The prediction of damping remains an important research challenge in structural dynamics. This paper deals with the energy losses caused by friction in assembled structures. From previous analytical works and experimental studies of the bending vibrations of a clamped–clamped beam with original positions of the interfaces, the objective of this work is to compute the damping of the structure taking into account the local properties of the joints. The purpose is to understand and analyze the contribution of the surface defects on the damping due to the joints based on multi-spherical contacts governed by Hertz' and Mindlin's theories. A design of experiments based on the model parameters is proposed and the final results are compared to the experimental's ones.
Surface Effects on Large Deflection of a Curved Elastic Nanobeam Under Static Bending
Authors: Liu Hua , Han Yi , Yang Jia-Ling
Published: December 2016

Curved structures are common shapes used in practical engineering. In this paper, the large deflection behavior of a curved elastic nanobeam with rectangular cross-section under static bending is investigated. Surface stresses in the curved nanobeam are considered as an external load and derived on the basis of the general Young-Laplace equation. The governing equations for the large deflection of the curved nanobeam with surface effect are established. By using the shooting method, the boundary value problem is solved numerically. Some numerical examples are given for cantilever, simply supported, and fixed–fixed nanobeams with positive and negative residual surface stresses. It is found that nanobeams in the presence of surface effect may be stiffer or more flexible, which is related to the residual surface stress, initial curvature of the nanobeam, the externally applied load, and boundary conditions. For nanobeams with smaller cross-sectional sizes, the height of the nanobeam can affect the deflection of the nanobeam considerably and the influence of the width of the nanobeam is negligible. The findings in the present investigation are helpful in understanding the mechanical behavior of curved nanobeams with surface effects.
Effect of Dual Radio Frequency Bias Power on SiO2 Sputter Etching in Inductively Coupled Plasma
Authors: Jang Haegyu , Chae Heeyeop
Published: December 2016

Dual radio frequency (RF) powers are widely used with commercial plasma etchers for various nanoscale patterns. However, it is challenging to understand the relationship among the dual RF powers and the etching processes. In this work, the effect of the dual RF bias powers on SiO2 sputter etching was investigated in inductively coupled plasma (ICP). The relationship was studied among 2[Formula: see text]MHz and 27.12[Formula: see text]MHz RF bias powers, a 13.56[Formula: see text]MHz ICP source power, the ion bombardment energy, the ion density and the etching rate. The results show that the ion density of Ar plasma can be controlled in the region of 109–10[Formula: see text] ions/cm3, and DC self-bias can be controlled by controlling the ratio of dual RF bias powers while the ion density is maintained with the operation of source power. This work reveals that the dual RF bias powers expand the process window of the ion density and the ion bombardment energy independently in the ICP plasma source. The sputter etching rate is also modeled using the ion-enhanced etching model, and the model shows good agreement with the etching rate data.