bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An annotated check-list of lophogastrids (Crustacea: Lophogastrida) from the seas of the Iberian Peninsula
Authors: VICENTE CARLOS SAN
Published: October 2016

The zoogeographic distribution of lophogastrid species occurring in the diverse seas of the Iberian Peninsula and neighbouring areas is analysed. For each species, data on general distribution, bathymetric ranges, habitat and localities reported on published data are provided. A total of 16 lophogastrids species belonging to 6 genera have been recorded, representing the 30% of all known world extant species and the 67% of genera. Two of them are common to the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. All known Iberian species are present in the Macaronesian region, 43.8% in the North-western Atlantic and 12.5% in the western Mediterranean. Lophogastrid distributions suggest the existence of an evolution and distribution centre of the group located around the Macaronesian Islands.
Taxonomic notes on Western Palaearctic Conopidae (Diptera)
Authors: STUKE JENS-HERMANN
Published: October 2016

Twenty-three new synonyms are introduced and one species is placed as nomen dubium in the conopid genera Conops, Myopa, Physocephala and Thecophora. Myopa fasciata is designated as the type species of Ischiodonta Lioy. Dipodium apiarium Bosc d’Antic is interpreted as an unrecognised species and therefore Dipodium Bosc d’Antic also has to be treated as an unrecognised genus. A key to the Western Palaearctic species of Physocephala is provided.
Bucardium grateloupianum n. sp. from the Lower Miocene of Aquitaine with taxonomic comments on some fossil species from Europe (Bivalvia, Cardiidae)
Authors: PERNA RAFAEL LA
Published: October 2016

The genus Bucardium J. E. Gray, 1853 has been widely used in the past literature, either for living and fossil cardiids, but only a single species was known, its type species B. ringens (Bruguière, 1789), living in the tropical waters of West Africa. Another species, from the Lower Miocene of the Aquitaine Basin, turned out to be undescribed, though known since the 19th century. It is herein described as Bucardium grateloupianum n. sp. The genus seems to have always had a low diversity and a tropical distribution. Its disappearance in Europe coincides with the general cooling trend recorded after the Middle Miocene. Several poorly known cardiids from the Lower-Middle Miocene of France and Austria and from the Upper Oligocene of Hungary show closer morphological affinities with the living Cardium indicum Lamarck, 1819, rather than with the genus Bucardium or with Cardium costatum Linnaeus, 1758, the type species of Cardium Linnaeus, 1758. These affinities suggest the need of a systematic reappraisal of the living and fossil species currently assigned to Cardium.
Tanypus urszulae, a new Tanypodinae (Diptera: Chironomidae) from the Neotropical Region
Authors: SILVA FABIO LAURINDO DA , OLIVEIRA CAROLINE SILVA NEUBERN DE
Published: October 2016

A new species of Tanypus Meigen, T. urszulae sp. nov. from Brazil, is described and figured as adult male, pupa and larva. Additionally, the generic diagnosis for the larva is emended.
Event-Based Validation of Swell Arrival Time
Authors: Jiang Haoyu , Babanin Alexander V. , Chen Ge
Published: October 2016

The arrival time of ocean swells is an important factor for offshore and coastal engineering and naval and recreational activities, which can also be used in evaluating the numerical wave model. Using the continuity and pattern of wave heights during the same swell event, a methodology is developed for identifying swell events and verifying swell arrival time in models from buoy data. The swell arrival time in a WAVEWATCH III hindcast database is validated with in situ measurements. The results indicate that the model has a good agreement with the observations but usually predicts an early arrival of swell, about 4 h on average. A histogram shows that about one-quarter of swell events arrive early and three-quarters late by comparison with the model. Many processes that may be responsible for the arrival time errors are discussed, but at this stage it is not possible to distinguish between them from the available data.
Spectral and Structure Function Estimates of Turbulence Dissipation Rates in a High-Flow Tidal Channel Using Broadband ADCPs
Authors: McMillan Justine M. , Hay Alex E.
Published: October 2016

Spectral and structure function methods are implemented to compute the dissipation rate ε from broadband, diverging-beam acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) data collected at four sites in a high-flow tidal channel. This paper shows that middepth estimates of ε obtained from spectral and second-order structure function (SF2) methods are both lognormally distributed with comparable means and variances. Speed bin–averaged ε values agree to within 16%, depending on the site and tidal phase (ebb/flood). The close agreement between the two independent methods provides further support for the argument put forward by McMillan et al.: that is, that the factor-of-2 difference between shear probe and (spectral) ADCP estimates of ε was likely caused by spatial differences in turbulence levels. The agreement between the spectral and both second- and third-order structure function methods also supports the use of for the SF2 universal constant. Notably, however, the SF3 method was less robust for these data. Two additional aspects of the SF2 approach are examined in some detail: 1) the differences from upstream- and downstream-facing beams are shown to arise from the Reynolds stress and 2) the inability of the ADCP to resolve small-scale motions does not affect the estimates of ε but yields apparent Doppler noise levels that—counterintuitively—decrease with increasing flow speed and increasing dissipation rate. A modified SF2 method that accounts for the variance associated with the unresolved scales removes the flow speed dependence and yields noise level estimates that agree with the spectral values.
Examining Measurement Invariance and Differential Item Functioning With Discrete Latent Construct Indicators: A Note on a Multiple Testing Procedure
Authors: Raykov Tenko , Dimitrov Dimiter M. , Marcoulides George A. , Li Tatyana , Menold Natalja
Published: October 2016

A latent variable modeling method for studying measurement invariance when evaluating latent constructs with multiple binary or binary scored items with no guessing is outlined. The approach extends the continuous indicator procedure described by Raykov and colleagues, utilizes similarly the false discovery rate approach to multiple testing, and permits one to locate violations of measurement invariance in loading or threshold parameters. The discussed method does not require selection of a reference observed variable and is directly applicable for studying differential item functioning with one- or two-parameter item response models. The extended procedure is illustrated on an empirical data set.
The Quiet Editor: Ivan Vladislavić and South African cultural production
Authors: Graham James
Published: October 2016

This article examines the literary and sociological significance of Ivan Vladislavić’s “double life” as both editor and writer. With reference to a number of his editorial roles as well as the joint projects he has worked on with writers and visual artists, the article considers how Vladislavić’s work with others spreads symbolic value. Described by one of his clients as the “quiet editor”, Vladislavić can be read as a new kind of author; what he terms “creative editing” as a new kind of writing, through which more traditional models of authorship and literary production are thrown into question — less Bourdieu’s “field of literary production” or Casanova’s “world literary space”, red in tooth and claw, and more Howard Becker’s “art world”: a convivial “network of cooperating people, all of whose work is essential to the final outcome”.
From Teacher Education to Practicing Teacher: What Does Culturally Relevant Praxis Look Like?
Authors: Aronson Brittany A.
Published: October 2016

Despite reports of already practicing K-12 teachers’ attempts to teach for critical social justice in their classrooms, there is little connection between teacher education programs and/or the impact of teacher practice in the classroom. This article presents data collected over 3 years from one teacher enrolled in an urban-multicultural teacher education program who transitioned into her first years of teaching. Findings revealed that the teacher implemented culturally relevant education through (a) a caring community, (b) holding high expectations, (c) cultural competence, and (d) sociopolitical awareness as a teacher. Barriers the teacher faced as well as lessons for teacher educators are shared.
Diagnostic performance of automated liquid culture and molecular line probe assay in smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis
Authors: Kotwal Aarti , Biswas Debasis , Raghuvanshi Shailendra , Sindhwani Girish , Kakati Barnali , Sharma Shweta
Published: October 2016

The diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is particularly challenging, and automated liquid culture and molecular line probe assays (LPA) may prove particularly useful. The objective of our study was to evaluate the diagnostic potential of automated liquid culture (ALC) technology and commercial LPA in sputum smear-negative PTB suspects. Spot sputum samples were collected from 145 chest-symptomatic smear-negative patients and subjected to ALC, direct drug susceptibility test (DST) testing and LPA, as per manufacturers’ instructions. A diagnostic yield of 26.2% was observed among sputum smear-negative TB suspects with 47.4% of the culture isolates being either INH- and/or rifampicin-resistant. Complete agreement was observed between the results of ALC assay and LPA except for two isolates which demonstrated sensitivity to INH and rifampicin at direct DST but were rifampicin-resistant in LPA. Two novel mutations were also detected among the multidrug isolates by LPA. In view of the diagnostic challenges associated with the diagnosis of TB in sputum smear-negative patients, our study demonstrates the applicability of ALC and LPA in establishing diagnostic evidence of TB.
“Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet”: Economic imperialism and ecclesiastical imperialism
Authors: Mong Ambrose Ih-Ren
Published: October 2016

British military aggression during the Opium War forced China to open up her coastal ports to Westerners for trade and to Christian missionaries for evangelization. Commerce and Christianity, opium and Christ were somehow connected in this relationship between Western powers and China. It was a relationship shaped by the unequal treaties imposed upon China by the West and thus it was marked by hostilities, resentment and hatred. The effects of the Opium War led to various local uprisings against the foreigners as well as against the Qing government for its failure to prevent the Westerners from humiliating China. These upheavals in China were also caused by political corruption, military degradation and natural disasters. This article focuses on two major uprisings – the Taiping Rebellion and the Boxer War – which were sparked off by anti-foreign and anti-Christian sentiments. It also attempts to highlight the impact of Christianity on Chinese soil, which on the whole was disastrous and tragic, as we shall see in the Taiping Revolt as well as the Boxer Movement.
Factors Influencing Achievement in Undergraduate Social Science Research Methods Courses
Authors: Markle Gail
Published: October 2016

Undergraduate social science research methods courses tend to have higher than average rates of failure and withdrawal. Lack of success in these courses impedes students’ progression through their degree programs and negatively impacts institutional retention and graduation rates. Grounded in adult learning theory, this mixed methods study examines the factors that influence student achievement in these courses among a sample of 724 social science students. Quantitative results indicate math self-concept, the belief that being good at math is necessary for success in the course; anxiety; attributions of course utility; learning approach; and GPA predict perceived learning. Qualitative results suggest students’ research self-concepts shape whether they take a deep learning approach (leaning in) or a surface learning approach (resistance) to the course. Course instructors also impact students’ perceptions of learning.
Self-Control, Risky Lifestyles, and Victimization: A Study With a Sample of Chinese School Youth
Authors: Ren Ling , He Ni “Phil” , Zhao Ruohui , Zhang Hongwei
Published: October 2016

Although the self-control–victimization link is now well established both theoretically and empirically within the North Atlantic circle, empirical testing of this linkage is lacking in the Far East where self-control has always been an intrinsic feature of its traditional culture. More recently, the coupling of lifestyle–routine activities theory with self-control has resulted in better understanding of both the individual and situational contexts associated with victimization experiences. This study examines the predictive power of low self-control on various forms of victimization and the mediating effects of risky lifestyles on such relationship in the Chinese setting. The data were collected from a sample of 2,961 high school students in a southern Chinese city. The results of logistic regression reveal that low self-control is positively associated with both violent and property victimizations, net of social attachment and demographic factors. In addition, risky lifestyle factors partially mediate the effects of low self-control on victimization.
Going to school in ‘Disneyland’: Imagining an international school community in Indonesia
Authors: Tanu Danau
Published: October 2016

Across Asia, English-medium international schools have been established to cater to children of expatriate workers, serial migrants and affluent local families. These schools market themselves as ‘international’ by drawing on the multinational composition of their student body. Yet, the methodological nationalism of much of the existing research rarely addresses the structural inequalities promoted by these schools. In contrast, this article uses methodological cosmopolitanism and postcolonial perspectives to draw attention to the way socio-economic privilege, and its frequent racialization as ‘white,’ turns the international school environment into an imagined community that normalizes Western expatriate perceptions of ‘home,’ which in turn relegates the host country, Indonesia, to the background of a temporary life overseas. A year-long ethnographic research showed, however, that the diverse transnational backgrounds of the students challenge the boundaries of the international school bubble to show that binary notions of home/away and migrant/native are constructed rather than self-evident.
Variability in mothers’ support for preschoolers’ contributions to co-constructed narratives as a function of child age
Authors: Zevenbergen Andrea A. , Holmes Ashley , Haman Ewa , Whiteford Nichole , Thielges Shelly
Published: October 2016

Children’s narrative abilities in the preschool years have been found to predict their later literacy skills. Mothers’ verbalizations during shared personal narratives with their preschoolers have been shown to facilitate children’s development of narrative skills. The present study sought to extend the literature by investigating mothers’ use of two types of questions (information requests, ‘yes/no’ questions) and two types of confirmation (praise, repetition of child content) when discussing past events with their preschoolers, as a function of child age and gender. Study participants were 32 American mothers and their preschoolers, who were either 3 years of age or 5 years of age. Mother–preschooler dyads were audiotaped discussing three past events which they had shared. Results indicated that mothers provided significantly more information requests and repetition of child content when co-constructing narratives with 3-year-olds than with 5-year-olds. Overall, the results are consistent with the literature regarding parental sensitivity to children’s specific needs for task assistance in the early childhood period.
Explorative Analyses of Nursing Research Data
Authors: Kim Hyeoneui , Jang Imho , Quach Jimmy , Richardson Alex , Kim Jaemin , Choi Jeeyae
Published: October 2016

As a first step of pursuing the vision of “Big Data science in nursing,” we described the characteristics of nursing research data reported in 194 published nursing studies. We also explored how completely the Version 1 metadata specification of biomedical and healthCAre Data Discovery Index Ecosystem (bioCADDIE) represents these metadata. The metadata items of the nursing studies were all related to one or more of the bioCADDIE metadata entities. However, values of many metadata items of the nursing studies were not sufficiently represented through the bioCADDIE metadata. This was partly due to the differences in the scope of the content that the bioCADDIE metadata are designed to represent. The 194 nursing studies reported a total of 1,181 unique data items, the majority of which take non-numeric values. This indicates the importance of data standardization to enable the integrative analyses of these data to support Big Data science in nursing.
The Role of Heart Failure, Daytime Sleepiness, and Disturbed Sleep on Cognition
Authors: Moon Chooza , Yoon Ju Young , Bratzke Lisa C.
Published: October 2016

Disturbed sleep and daytime sleepiness may interfere with possible direct relationships between heart failure (HF) and cognition, yet there is limited research investigating this relationship. We aimed to investigate possible mediating roles of disturbed sleep and daytime sleepiness on the relationship between HF and selected cognitive domains among individuals with and without HF. In a cross-sectional design study, we examined the data of 841 older adults with and without HF from the Aging, Demographics, and Memory Study (ADAMS). We found individuals with HF were likely to have a higher degree of disturbed sleep and daytime sleepiness. Both disturbed sleep and daytime sleepiness were significant predictors of cognition. We found that only daytime sleepiness mediated the relationship between the presence of HF and cognitive domains, such as in attention, memory, and executive function after controlling for covariates. Interventions to improve daytime sleepiness among individuals with HF may also help improving cognition.
Resternotomy, a single-center experience
Authors: Salehi Mehrdad , Bakhshandeh Ali Reza , Saberi Kianoush , Alemohammad Mahmood , Sobhanian Keivan , Karamnezhad Maziar , Rigi Farangis Sarouneh
Published: October 2016

Background

Reoperations are technically more difficult because of the risks associated with reentry in a heart with more advanced pathology, little reserve, and more frequent comorbidities. Routine peripheral cannulation before resternotomy is inadvisable, time-consuming, and has no noticeable role in decreasing the risks of reentry. We present our experience of resternotomy without routine peripheral cannulation.

Methods

This was a retrospective study on 237 consecutive patients who underwent resternotomy between June 2011 and July 2013. Their mean age was 47.7 ± 18.2 years. We chose the best approach individually, according to lateral radiograph findings, patient risk factors, and previous surgery. Our goal was to observe events intraoperatively and their outcomes postoperatively.

Results

Mean intensive care unit stay was 3.1 ± 0.9 days. Twenty-one (8.8%) patients died during their hospital stay. The most common cause of death was renal failure in 15 (71.4%) patients, coagulopathy in 4 (19%), and cardiac failure in 2 (9.5%). We had 3 right ventricular, one right atrial, one pulmonary artery, and 2 inferior vena caval tears during resternotomy and dissection; bleeding was controlled easily without peripheral cannulation. Femoral cannulation before resternotomy was performed in one patient who needed an emergency pulmonary embolectomy.

Conclusions

Based on our experience, resternotomy with central cannulation is a safe strategy, and peripheral cannulation before resternotomy should be reserved for highly selected patients.
Science news in a closed and an open media market: A comparative content analysis of print and online science news in Denmark and the United Kingdom
Authors: Vestergaard Gunver Lystbaek , Nielsen Kristian Hvidtfelt
Published: October 2016

Most content analyses of science news are conducted in large Anglo-American media markets. However, we speculate that the intimacy between sources and journalists in small media markets can influence science coverage. Here, we present a comparative analysis of Danish and British newspaper science news in 2012. We find that in both countries science news amounts to about 4% of the total news flow. We also observe that Danish science news more often than British science news is triggered by political events, gives priority to national stories and includes more coverage of humanities and social sciences. Contrary, British science news is more traditional and favours stories on health and the natural sciences often triggered by a journal article. We attribute these differences to intimacy between the public, media, political and scientific spheres in Denmark partly rooted in a closed corporatist media market compared to an open liberal market in the United Kingdom.
WNK-Cab39-NKCC1 signaling increases the susceptibility to ischemic brain damage in hypertensive rats
Authors: Bhuiyan Mohammad Iqbal H , Song Shanshan , Yuan Hui , Begum Gulnaz , Kofler Julia , Kahle Kristopher T , Yang Sung-Sen , Lin Shih-Hua , Alper Seth L , Subramanya Arohan R , Sun Dandan
Published: October 2016

With-no-lysine kinase (WNK) and Na+-K+-2Cl− cotransporter 1 (NKCC1) are involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension. In this study, we investigated the WNK-NKCC1 signaling pathway in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and their associated susceptibility to stroke injury. Basal NKCC1 protein levels were higher in SHR than in normotensive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rat brains. After inducing ischemic stroke, adult male WKY and SHR received either saline or NKCC1 inhibitor bumetanide (10 mg/kg/day, i.p.) starting at 3-h post-reperfusion. NKCC1 inhibition blunted the extent of ischemic infarction in SHR and improved their neurobehavioral functions. Interestingly, ischemia led to increased NKCC1 phosphorylation in SHR but not in WKY rats. Pronounced elevation of WNK1, WNK2 and WNK4 protein and downregulation of WNK3 were detected in ischemic SHR, but not in ischemic WKY rats. Upregulation of WNK-NKCC1 complex in ischemic SHR brain was associated with increased Ca2+-binding protein 39 (Cab39), without increases in Ste20-related proline alanine-rich kinase or oxidative stress-responsive kinase-1. Moreover, subacute middle cerebral artery stroke human brain autopsy exhibited increased expression of NKCC1 protein. We conclude that augmented WNK-Cab39-NKCC1 signaling in SHR is associated with an increased susceptibility to ischemic brain damage and may serve as a novel target for anti-hypertensive and anti-ischemic stroke therapy.
Teaching and enhancement of critical thinking skills for undergraduate students in a computational fluid dynamics course
Authors: Tian Zhao F
Published: October 2016

This paper reports the recent development and implementation of three teaching modules in order to teach and enhance the students’ critical thinking skills in a level IV undergraduate/postgraduate course ‘Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for Engineering Applications’. These teaching modules include a lecture module, an online test module and a CFD project module. The lecture module introduces the importance of critical thinking skills by an example case, critical thinking definition and processes, and the application of critical thinking skills in formulation of CFD problems. In the online test module, seven online tests have been developed to enhance the students’ understanding of the contents of lectures and practical sessions. Meanwhile, students apply their critical thinking skills to work out some of the tests. In the project module, a student-driven CFD project is designed to help students to apply CFD techniques and critical thinking skills in engineering problems. In the project, students choose their own project topic and problems. They use CFD skills learned in the course and critical thinking skills to critically analyse their problems, identify the important parameters and review results. They apply the critical writing skills to finalise a project report. To the best knowledge of the author, this systematical integration of teaching and enhancement of critical thinking skills in computational fluid dynamics course is innovative. Feedback from students is quite positive shown by an anonymous survey in 2014.
A unified first-year engineering design-based learning course
Authors: Odeh Saad , McKenna Shauna , Abu-Mulaweh Hosni
Published: October 2016

This paper describes an innovative engineering design of a first-year engineering course. The course is offered in the second semester of the academic year to students of different engineering disciplines such as mechanical, mechatronic, electrical, electronics, civil, environmental and manufacturing. The course incorporates a mix of techniques to help students better engage with the subject matter and with one another. A major part of the new course is the practical assessment component requiring students to apply physical, mathematical, mechanical and electrical concepts to real life engineering design problems. Three different engineering design modules were developed. Each module consists of an authentic engineering design problem which has been specially constructed in order to provide students with the opportunity to apply the basic engineering, maths and physics concepts they acquired during the first semester. Depending on the students intended engineering major, they choose one of the three engineering design modules. In order to best prepare students for the design project, they firstly do two small group assignment tasks on a particular engineering problem. This serves as the preparatory work for the engineering design module. The assignments are done in class time so as to promote full collaboration between students and instructors and to encourage the exchange of knowledge and ideas. The course aims to better equip students with workforce skills in problem solving and effective oral and written communication.
Naming Their World in a Culturally Responsive Space
Authors: Ngo Bic
Published: October 2016

This article draws on ethnographic research of a youth theatre program within a Hmong arts organization to explore the ways in which a culturally responsive program nurtured critical consciousness among Hmong immigrant youth. Hmong youth “named” struggles with stereotypes and acculturation expectations, and constructed positive ethnic identities as Hmong Americans in the theatre program. The study contributes to the after-school youth development scholarship by explicating the ways arts programs within co-ethnic, community-based organizations may afford immigrant youth with a means to rescript life stories, confront injustices perpetrated against them, and feel a sense of agency.
Principals’ and Teachers’ Reports of Successful Teaching Strategies With Children With High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder
Authors: Stokes Mark A. , Thomson Mary , Macmillan Caitlin M. , Pecora Laura , Dymond Sarah R. , Donaldson Emma
Published: October 2016

Little research has been conducted on the evidence base for educational interventions implemented by teachers targeting students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD). Research examining particular techniques perceived as effective may facilitate guidelines for the application of evidence-based practices. A principal and teacher of students with HFASD from each of 29 different schools provided information on their current teaching interventions. Principals participated in an online survey designed to ascertain support for HFASD learners in their school, whereas teachers completed an online reflective journal to document methods they used in the classroom. Both teachers and principals found numerous strategies such as structure and incorporating needs to be successful. Inappropriate communication, disorganisation, and a lack of understanding were considered unhelpful. These results have implications for current practices in classrooms.
Effect of the incorporation of chitosan on the physico-chemical, mechanical properties and biological activity on a mixture of polycaprolactone and polyurethanes obtained from castor oil
Authors: Arévalo Fabian , Uscategui Yomaira L , Diaz Luis , Cobo Martha , Valero Manuel F
Published: October 2016

In the present study, polyurethane materials were obtained from castor oil, polycaprolactone and isophorone diisocyanate by incorporating different concentrations of chitosan (0.5, 1.0 and 2.0% w/w) as an additive to improve the mechanical properties and the biological activity of polyurethanes. The polyurethanes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, stress/strain fracture tests and swelling analysis, and the hydrophilic character of the surface was determined by contact angle trials. The objectives of the study were to evaluate the effect of the incorporation of chitosan on the changes of the physico-chemical and mechanical properties and the in vitro biological activity of the polyurethanes. It was found that the incorporation of chitosan enhances the ultimate tensile strength of the polyurethanes and does not affect the strain at fracture in polyurethanes with 5% w/w of polycaprolactone and concentrations of chitosan ranging from 0 to 2% w/w. In addition, PCL5-Q-PU formulations and their degradation products did not affect cell viability of L929 mouse fibroblast and 3T3, respectively. Polyurethane formulations showed antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria. The results of this study have highlighted the potential biomedical application of this polyurethanes related to soft and cardiovascular tissues.
Thermal stability and mechanical properties of solution mixing–processed co-polyamide–graphene composites at extremely low graphene loading
Authors: Liu Xin , Shao Xiao-Yu , Wang Le-Ying , He Hai-Feng , Fang Guan-Biao
Published: October 2016

To enhance the thermal stability and mechanical properties of co-polyamide (CO-PA), a sequence of nanocomposites based upon CO-PA and shear exfoliation graphene (SEG) were prepared via a simple solution mixing method. The graphene used as nanofiller was fabricated by shear exfoliation in aqueous phase and is free of basal-plane defects. Atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy revealed that the graphene fabricated is few-layer graphene rather than solely monolayer graphene. X-ray diffraction and polarizing microscope indicated that SEG layers could change the crystallization behavior of the nanocomposites and conduce to the crystal form transformation. The CO-PA/SEG nanocomposites were found to be of outstanding thermal stability and mechanical properties at extremely a low graphene loading as opposed to neat CO-PA. In detail, at a graphene load of 0.05 wt%, the nanocomposites present 106.5, 56.1, and 33.7% enhancement in tensile strength, yield strength, and elongation at break compared to pristine CO-PA, respectively. Besides, thermal degradation temperatures at 50% weight loss of the nanocomposites is about 19°C higher than that of CO-PA when the SEG content is 0.15 wt%; the thermal degradation temperature at maximum weight loss rate of the nanocomposites is 25°C higher than that of CO-PA when the content of SEG is 0.20 wt%. All these enhancements of the nanocomposites were ascribed to the defect-free graphene, its superior thermal and mechanical properties, and its well exfoliation and dispersion in CO-PA matrix.
Prediction of the effects of friction control on top-of-rail cracks
Authors: Khan Saad Ahmed , Persson Ingemar , Lundberg Jan , Stenström Christer
Published: October 2016

Rolling contact fatigue is a major problem connected with railway tracks, especially in curves, since it leads to higher maintenance costs. By optimising the top-of-rail friction, the wear and cracks on the top of the rail can eventually be reduced without causing very long braking distances. There are several research articles available on crack prediction, but most of the research is focused either on rail without a friction modifier or on wheels with and without friction control. In the present study, in order to predict the formation of surface-initiated rolling contact fatigue, a range of friction coefficients with different Kalker’s reduction factors has been assumed. Kalker’s reduction factor takes care of the basic tendency of creepage as a function of the traction forces at lower creepage. The assumed range covers possible friction values from those for non-lubricated rail to those for rail with a minimum measured friction control on the top of the rail using a friction modifier. A fatigue index model based on the shakedown theory was used to predict the generation of surface-initiated rolling contact fatigue. Simulations were performed using multi-body simulation, for which inputs were taken from the Iron Ore line in the north of Sweden. The effect of friction control was studied for different curve radii, ranging from 200 m to 3000 m, and for different axle loads from 30 to 40 tonnes at a constant train speed of 60 km/h. One example of a result is that a maximum friction coefficient (µ) of 0.2 with a Kalker’s reduction factor of 15% is needed in the case of trains with a heavy axle load to avoid crack formation.
Design and testing of an innovative monitoring system for railway vehicles
Authors: Bosso Nicola , Gugliotta Antonio , Zampieri Nicolò
Published: October 2016

In recent years there has been increased interest in developing a safer and more efficient railway system, as the railway has demonstrated the potential to become the most sustainable mode of transport. In Europe, significant investments have been made in order to increase the speed of both passenger and freight vehicles, but a good efficiency of railway transport can be achieved only if it is possible to ensure a high level of safety and reliability. These requirements can be achieved by adopting onboard diagnostic systems in order to increase the vehicle safety and to improve the strategies for a scheduled and corrective maintenance. This study shows the design and testing of an onboard monitoring system, which can be installed on different types of railway vehicles. The system is able to detect anomalies of the running behavior of vehicles and faults at the component level.
Are ‘the destitute’ destitute? Understanding micro-inequalities through the concept of defiled surpluses
Authors: Jackman David
Published: October 2016

The poorest and most marginalized people in cities are often understood to be those living in the worst forms of shelter or with none at all. They are labelled the “homeless”, the “destitute” and the “extreme poor”. Based on ethnographic research in Dhaka, Bangladesh, this article challenges this association, arguing that living in the worst conditions can enable people to earn, save, and invest in lives and livelihoods elsewhere. Their capacity to do so is generally related to the urban potential for creating “defiled surpluses”, resources that can be productively exploited but at the cost of an association with the defiled. These costs and opportunities are not however equally distributed, and recognizing this helps us to understand the nature of micro-inequalities. In Dhaka the presence of people living on pavements and in markets, parks and transport terminals can represent destitution, but also the astute negotiation of the city.
Objectively measured physical activity and its influence on physical capacity and clinical parameters in patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome
Authors: Dassouki T , Benatti F B , Pinto A J , Roschel H , Lima F R , Augusto K , Pasoto S , Pereira R M R , Gualano B , de Sá Pinto A L
Published: October 2016

Objective

The objectives of this paper are to objectively measure habitual physical activity levels in patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) with mild disease activity and to determine to which extent it may be associated with physical capacity and function and clinical features.

Methods

In this cross-sectional study, 29 women with pSS were objectively assessed for habitual physical activity levels (using accelerometry) and compared with 20 healthy women (CTRL) frequency-matched for physical activity levels, age, body mass index, and body fat percentage with regard to physical capacity and function, fatigue, depression, pain, and health-related quality of life.

Results

pSS showed 8.5 min/day of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) when only MVPA accumulated in bouts ≥ 10 min was considered; when considering total MVPA (including bouts < 10 min), average levels were 26.3 min/day, with 62% of pSS patients achieving the recommendation (≥ 21.4 min/day). Moreover, pSS showed lower VO2peak, lower muscle strength and function, higher fatigue, and poorer health-related quality of life when compared with CTRL ( p < 0.05). These differences (except for aerobic capacity) were sustained even when only individuals achieving the minimum of 21.4 min/day of total MVPA in both groups were compared. Finally, MVPA time was significantly correlated with aerobic conditioning, whereas total counts and sedentary time were associated with lower-body muscle strength and the bodily-pain domain of SF-36 in patients with pSS.

Conclusion

When compared to physical activity-matched healthy controls, pSS patients showed reduced physical capacity and function, increased fatigue and pain, and reduced health-related quality of life. Except for aerobic conditioning, these differences were sustained when only more physically active participants were compared, indicating that minimum recommended levels of physical activity for the general population may not be sufficient to counteract pSS comorbidities.
Critical Friends Protocol: Andragogy and Learning in a Graduate Classroom
Authors: Storey Valerie A. , Wang Victor C. X.
Published: October 2016

The Critical Friend is a powerful concept partly due to the inherent tension between a challenging critic and a trusting friend. Originally utilized in the PreK-12 sector in both England and the United States, the application of Critical Friends has expanded across a range of contexts. This article further adds to the Critical Friend literature base by operationalizing critical friendship protocol in a higher education context. Consistent and regular application of Critical Friend protocol can develop and challenge the cognitive ability of graduate students suggesting that the Critical Friend model may be a successful andragogical strategy for developing classroom trust essential for enhancing rich Socratic dialogue.
Comparing Usual Care With a Warfarin Initiation Protocol After Mechanical Heart Valve Replacement
Authors: Roberts Gregory , Razooqi Rasha , Quinn Stephen
Published: October 2016

Background: The immediate postoperative warfarin sensitivity for patients receiving heart valve prostheses is increased. Established warfarin initiation protocols may lack clinical applicability, resulting in dosing based on clinical judgment. Objective: To compare current practice for warfarin initiation with a known warfarin initiation protocol, with doses proportionally reduced to account for the increased postoperative sensitivity. Methods: We compared the Mechanical Heart Valve Warfarin Initiation Protocol (Protocol group) with current practice (clinical judgment—Empirical group) for patients receiving mechanical heart valves in an observational before-and-after format. End points were the time to achieve a stable therapeutic international normalized ratio (INR), doses held in the first 6 days, and overanticoagulation in the first 6 days. Results: The Protocol group (n = 37) achieved a stable INR more rapidly than the Empirical group (n = 77; median times 5.1 and 8.7 days, respectively; P = 0.002). Multivariable analysis indicated that the Protocol group (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.22; P = 0.005) and men (HR = 1.76; P = 0.043) more rapidly achieved a stable therapeutic INR. Age, serum albumin, amiodarone, presence of severe heart failure, and surgery type had no impact. Protocol patients had fewer doses held (1.1% vs 10.1%, P < 0.001) and no difference in overanticoagulation (2.7% vs 9.1%, P = 0.27). Conclusion: The Mechanical Heart Valve Warfarin Initiation Protocol provided a reliable approach to initiating warfarin in patients receiving mechanical aortic or mitral valves.
Treatment Patterns in Asthma- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Overlap Syndrome
Authors: Deshpande Maithili , Arnoldi Jennifer
Published: October 2016

Background: Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap syndrome (ACOS) is a complex disease entity with limited guidance surrounding medication therapy. Objective: To evaluate a patient population with possible ACOS and their medication regimen based on the Global Initiative for Asthma and Global Initiative for COPD joint statement for ACOS. Methods: This was a retrospective study based at a large clinical practice within a school of medicine. The sample included adults 40 to 85 years old who had an active concurrent diagnosis of asthma and COPD. Patients were considered to have likely inconsistent therapy (only preventive, no rescue medication), inconsistent therapy (neither preventive nor rescue medication), and likely consistent therapy (both preventive and rescue medication or rescue medication alone). Results: A total of 513 patients were included the study. The majority of the sample were female (75%) and white (87.1%), with an average age of 61 years. About 7% of patients had likely inconsistent therapy, whereas 7.7% had inconsistent therapy to control their airway disease. Never smokers were more likely than former smokers to have inconsistent therapy (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 4.54; CI = 1.86-11.04). Adults 65 years and older were more likely than those aged 40 to 49 years to be in the likely inconsistent therapy group (adjusted OR = 4.01; CI = 1.04-15.34). Patients without any comorbid conditions were more likely than those with 2 or more comorbid conditions to be in the likely inconsistent group (adjusted OR = 3.50; CI = 1.39-8.77). Conclusion: As the disease definition and treatment recommendations evolve, future studies should continue to monitor ACOS treatment patterns and outcomes.
Dynamic Networks in the Emotional Brain
Authors: Pessoa Luiz , McMenamin Brenton
Published: October 2016

Research on the emotional brain has often focused on a few structures thought to be central to this type of processing—hypothalamus, amygdala, insula, and so on. Conceptual thinking about emotion has viewed this mental faculty as linked to broader brain circuits, too, including early ideas by Papez and others. In this article, we discuss research that embraces a distributed view of emotion circuits and efforts to unravel the impact on emotional manipulations on the processing of several large-scale brain networks that are chiefly important for mental operations traditionally labeled with terms such as “perception,” “action,” and “cognition.” Furthermore, we describe networks as dynamic processes and how emotion-laden stimuli strongly affect network structure. As networks are not static entities, their organization unfolds temporally, such that specific brain regions affiliate with them in a time-varying fashion. Thus, at a specific moment, brain regions participate more strongly in some networks than others. In this dynamic view of brain function, emotion has broad, distributed effects on processing in a manner that transcends traditional boundaries and inflexible labels, such as “emotion” and “cognition.” What matters is the coordinated action that supports behaviors.
Chinese Women’s Experience of Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring Factors Affecting Various Types of IPV
Authors: Lin Kai , Sun Ivan Y. , Liu Jianhong , Chen Xuan
Published: October 2016

Using a sample of 553 married and divorced women in a large city in southern China, this study tested the effects of demographic characteristics, risk behaviors, patriarchal ideology, and personal mentality and skills on women’s experience of physical violence, psychological violence, controlling behavior, and sexual abuse. Divorced women were more likely than married women to experience all types of IPV. Risk behaviors were consistently related to IPV incidents, whereas the impact of patriarchal ideology and personal mentality and skills was equivocal. Limitations of the study and implications for future research and policy are discussed.
Agency theory and performance appraisal: How bad theory damages learning and contributes to bad management practice
Authors: Evans Samantha , Tourish Dennis
Published: October 2016

Performance appraisal interviews remain central to how employees are scrutinised, rewarded and sometimes penalised by managers. But they are also often castigated as ineffective, or even harmful, to both individuals and organisations. Exploring this paradox, we highlight the influence of agency theory on the (mal)practice of performance appraisal. The performative nature of human resource management increasingly reflects an economic approach within which its practices are aligned with agency theory. Such theory assumes that actors are motivated mainly or only by economic self-interest. Close surveillance is required to eliminate the risk of shirking and other deviant behaviours. It is a pessimistic mind-set about people that undermines the supportive, co-operative and developmental rhetoric with which appraisal interviews are usually accompanied. Consequently, managers often practice appraisal interviews while holding onto two contradictory mind-sets, a state of Orwellian Doublethink that damages individual learning and organisational performance. We encourage researchers to adopt a more radical critique of appraisal practices that foregrounds issues of power, control and conflicted interests between actors beyond the analyses offered to date.
The relationship between perfectionistic self-presentation and reactions to impairment and disability following spinal cord injury
Authors: Read Daniel J , Hill Andrew P , Jowett Gareth E , Astill Sarah L
Published: October 2016

Univariate and multivariate relationships between perfectionistic self-presentation and reactions to impairment and disability following spinal cord injury were examined. A total of 144 adults with spinal cord injury ( M = 48.18 years old, SD = 15.96) completed self-report measures. Analyses revealed that, after controlling for time since injury and gender, perfectionistic self-presentation predicted six of eight reactions, shock, depression and internalised anger particularly strongly. In addition, at multivariate level, perfectionistic self-presentation was positively related to non-adaptive reactions and negatively related to adaptive reactions. The findings suggest that perfectionistic self-presentation may contribute to poorer psychosocial adaptation to spinal cord injury.