bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development of a Balanced Mix Design Method in Oregon to Improve Long-Term Pavement Performance
Authors: Sreedhar Shashwath , Coleri Erdem , Obaid Ihsan Ali , Kumar Vikas
Published: August 2021

Most state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) and asphalt contractors do not think that commonly used asphalt mixture properties, such as voids in mineral aggregate (VMA), voids filled with asphalt (VFA), and dust-to-binder ratio, reflect the long-term performance of asphalt mixtures. In addition, there are several new additives, polymers, rubbers, and high-quality binder types incorporated into asphalt mixtures today. Volumetric mixture design methods are not capable of capturing the benefits of using all these new technologies on asphalt mixture performance. Furthermore, the interaction of virgin binders with reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) mixtures with high binder replacement contents and the level of RAP binder blending into the asphalt mixture are still not well understood. Because of all these complications related to the more complex structure of asphalt mixtures, simple volumetric evaluations to determine the optimum binder content may not result in reliable asphalt mixture designs. Two volumetrically identical mixtures may provide completely different rutting and cracking performance according to laboratory tests. For all these reasons, in this study performance tests for rutting and cracking are incorporated into current asphalt mixture design methods to make it possible to validate or revise the optimum binder content determined by the volumetric mix design method (the only method currently used for asphalt mix design).
Influence of Bridge Fires on the Properties of Concrete and Steel Components
Authors: Huang Dan , Bradt Tom , Tzu-Chun Tseng , Wang Sijia , Olek Jan , Varma Amit , Williams Christopher , Nantung Tommy
Published: August 2021

Concrete and steel specimens were collected from control (unexposed) and fire-exposed sections of highway bridges in the state of Indiana, U.S., to evaluate the degree of degradation of selected properties of concrete and steel components. The changes in the properties of concrete were evaluated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) techniques. The focus of concrete evaluation was on detection and quantification of calcium hydroxide (CH), identification of changes in the quality and quantity of other hydrates, assessment of the extent of cracking in the matrix, and the occurrence of debonding of aggregates. Concrete collected from the sections of bridges exposed to fire was found to contain lower amounts of CH compared with the concrete from the control (i.e., not exposed) sections. The observed degree of cracking and aggregate debonding was also higher in specimens exposed to fire. Steel specimens were evaluated with respect to changes in the microstructure (the size and the pattern of the grains) and hardness. No significant changes resulting from fire exposure were detected.
Does the Type of Sport Influence Morphology of the Hip? A Systematic Review
Authors: Doran Chantelle , Pettit Matthew , Singh Yash , Sunil Kumar Karadi Hari , Khanduja Vikas
Published: August 2021

Background:

Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) has been extensively investigated and is strongly associated with athletic participation.

Purpose:

To assess (1) the prevalence of cam-type FAI across various sports; (2) whether kinematic variation among sports influences hip morphology; and (3) whether performance level, duration, and frequency of participation or other factors influence hip morphology in a sporting population.

Study Design:

Systematic review; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods:

A systematic search of Embase, PubMed, and the Cochrane Library was undertaken following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. Prospective and retrospective case series, case reports, and review articles published after 1999 were screened, and those that met the inclusion criteria decided a priori were included for analysis.

Results:

The literature search identified 58 relevant articles involving 5683 participants. A total of 49 articles described a higher prevalence of FAI across various “hip-heavy” sports, including soccer, basketball, baseball, ice hockey, skiing, golf, and ballet. In studies including nonathlete controls, a greater prevalence of FAI was reported in 66.7% of studies (n = 8/12). The highest alpha angle was identified at the 1-o’clock position (n = 9/9) in football, skiing, golf, ice hockey, and basketball. The maximum alpha angle was located in a more lateral position in goalkeepers versus positional players in ice hockey (1 vs 1:45 o’clock). A positive correlation was also identified between the alpha angle and both age and activity level (n = 5/8 and n = 2/3, respectively) and between prevalence of FAI and both age and activity level (n = 2/2 and n = 4/5).

Conclusion:

Hip-heavy sports show an increased prevalence of FAI, with specific sporting activities influencing hip morphology. There is some evidence to suggest that a longer duration and higher level of training also result in an increased prevalence of FAI.

Registration:

CRD4202018001 (PROSPERO).
Proximity and High Density of Convenience Stores Was Associated With Obesity in Children of a Rural Community of Mexico: Using a Geographic Information System Approach
Authors: Zavala Gerardo Antonio , Tenorio-Palos Yessica , Campos-Ponce Maiza , Elton-Puente Juana Elizabeth , López-González Carlos Alberto , Doak Colleen M. , Rosado Jorge L. , García Olga P.
Published: August 2021

Background:

Food environment (FE) has been linked to obesity in urban areas, but there is limited information in rural areas, particularly in developing countries, where prevalence of obesity is high.

Objective:

To determine the association between FE and childhood obesity using Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

Methods:

A total of 218 (8-10 years) children participated in a cross-sectional study. Weight, height, and body fat were measured. Geolocation of convenience stores (CS) and participants’ households was collected, and the amount of processed food (PF) in the stores was measured. The proximity to the nearest CS and the number of CS within a 250-m buffer from each participant’s household was calculated using GIS. Linear regression models between obesity measurements and FE were performed.

Results:

The combined prevalence of overweight and obesity was 32%. A total of 91% of the children had access to a CS within 250 m. On average, 48% of the shelf-space of the CS were occupied with PF. A positive association between the density of CS with body fat % (β = .145; 95% CI, 0.048-0.241, P = .004), abdominal fat % (β = .206; 95% CI, 0.048-0.241, P = .003), and body mass index (BMI)-for-age z-score (BMIz; β = .028; 95% CI, 0.005-0.062, P = .005) was found. Living closer to CS was associated with increases in body fat % (β = −0.009; 95% CI, −0.017 to −0.001, P = 0.025), abdominal fat % (β = −0.012; 95% CI, −0.023 to −0.001, P = 0.033), and BMIz (β = −0.002, 95% CI, −0.004 to −0.001, P = 0.003).

Conclusion:

In a rural community in Mexico, a high density and low proximity to CS is associated with obesity in school-aged children.
The right of minority-refugees to preserve their cultural identity: An intersectional analysis
Authors: Berry Stephanie Eleanor , Taban Isilay
Published: August 2021

While UN treaty bodies have sought to address forms of oppression resulting from the intersection of gender, race and/or disability through their practice, they rarely recognise the experience of groups at the intersection of other social categories. This article uses the lens of intersectionality to analyse the practice of UN treaty bodies in relation to the intersection of minority and refugee status. We argue that while minority-refugees have fled persecution connected to their minority status, UN treaty bodies have failed to appreciate the impact of their location at the intersection of persons belonging to minorities and refugees in host States on their right to preserve their cultural identity. By failing to address the distinct experience of minority-refugees, UN treaty bodies risk participating in their oppression. Further, we reveal that current practice not only has potentially negative consequences for minority-refugees – as both individuals and groups – and for the host society but may even undermine the ability of IHRL to achieve its overarching objectives.
Bending deflection and stress analyses in a thin functionally graded material skew plate with different boundary conditions on the Winkler–Pasternak elastic foundation and under combined in-plane and uniform lateral loads using the extended Kantorovich method
Authors: Mamandi Ahmad
Published: August 2021

In this study, bending deflection and stress analyses have been conducted for a thin skew plate made of functionally graded material (FGM) with different boundary conditions on the Winkler–Pasternak elastic foundation and under combined loads including uniform transverse load, normal and shear in-plane forces, and planar body forces. The Cartesian partial differential equation governing the bending deflection of the skew plate has been converted into a partial differential equation in oblique coordinates using the conversion relations. Then, by employing the variational principle and residual weighted Galerkin method and using the Extended Kantorovich Method (EKM), the equation has been converted to a set of linear differential equations in terms of two functions in the longitudinal and transverse directions of the oblique plate, and afterward, the equation has been solved using the iterative solution method. Different boundary conditions in a combined form of simply and clamped supports have been investigated and their effects on bending deflection and generated in-plane normal and shear stresses are discussed.
A study of the compression stability of a coupler under initial asymmetric conditions
Authors: Zou Ruiming , Luo Shihui , Ma Weihua
Published: August 2021

In practice, due to the influence of assembly deviation, clearance, vibration and other objective factors, the coupler will inevitably work under asymmetrical conditions in the buffing state. However, the existing theoretical studies on the compression stability of couplers did not pay enough attention to this condition, and most of the studies are based on the premise of ideal symmetry conditions. In this paper, the initial lateral deviation between the ends of a coupling coupler is taken as a typical asymmetrical condition, and the influence of the initial asymmetrical condition on the compression stability of the coupler is analysed by theoretical analysis and dynamic simulation. The results show that with the increase of the initial lateral deviation, the rotation angle of the coupler will also increase when it reaches the self-stabilizing equilibrium point. Therefore, the initial asymmetry will reduce the stability margin of the coupler, and then weaken the self-stabilizing ability and compression stability of the coupler. Improving the symmetry of the coupler is also one of the effective methods to guarantee the compression stability of the coupler and the running safety of the locomotive. When the static friction coefficient of the coupler tail can reach 0.3, the initial lateral deviation of the coupler should be limited to less than 7 mm, and the smaller the static friction coefficient, the higher the requirements for the initial lateral deviation.
Fault-tolerant control of flexible satellite with magnetic actuation and reaction wheel
Authors: Hajkarim Mohammad H , Assadian Nima
Published: August 2021

The attitude fault-tolerant control of a flexible satellite actuated by reaction wheels and magnetic torquer bars is investigated in this article. A low earth orbit is considered for moment perturbations such as drag and gravity gradient. Furthermore, the flexible panels attached to a rigid central body are modeled through the assumed mode approach by a finite set of bending modal motion. The ordinary differential equations of their generalized coordinates are found using Lagrange’s equation, and the resulting dynamical model is validated by comparing its simulation results to the NX Siemens software results. Finally, a fault-tolerant controller based on sliding mode control is suggested and tested in different scenarios. It is showed that the proposed control method tolerates the actuators’ faults and controls the satellite’s attitude while desaturating the reaction wheels.
Development and comprehensive evaluation of a new spring-steel-driven glove for grasping assistance during activities of daily living
Authors: Chizhik Daniel , Hejrati Babak
Published: August 2021

Millions of people suffer from a decline in grip strength and hand function due to conditions such as chronic disease, injuries, and aging. Hand function decline results in difficulties with performing activities of daily living, where grasping, lifting, and releasing objects are essential. There is an increasing demand for assistive gloves to enhance users’ hand function and improve their independence. This paper presents the design of a new bidirectional lightweight assistive glove and demonstrates its capabilities through comprehensive experiments using human subjects. The developed glove can provide adequate power augmentation for grasping and releasing objects due to its simple yet effective design using spring steel strips and linear actuators. The glove directly transfers assistive forces to users’ fingertips without any complex intermediate mechanism, and its low weight of 196 g promotes its usability. The rigorous experiment design provided a thorough assessment of the developed glove by accounting for both parameters of size and weight of objects and by including subjects with different hand sizes. To quantify the glove’s performance, the subjects’ muscle activity, their finger and thumb joints’ trajectories, and their grasping forces while using the glove were investigated. The glove could generate the necessary grasping forces to assist with lifting common-household objects. The subjects’ muscle activity significantly decreased when using the glove for object manipulation. The trajectories of the index finger and thumb joints when using the glove were dependent on the size of objects similar to natural unassisted grasping. The obtained results demonstrate the glove’s ability for grip power augmentation of individuals with declining hand strength.
Clinician distress in seriously ill patient care: A dimensional analysis
Authors: Foxwell Anessa M. , H. Meghani Salimah , M. Ulrich Connie
Published: August 2021

Background:

Caring for patients with serious illness may severely strain clinicians causing distress and probable poor patient outcomes. Unfortunately, clinician distress and its impact historically has received little attention.

Research purpose:

The purpose of this article was to investigate the nature of clinician distress.

Research design:

Qualitative inductive dimensional analysis.

Participants and research context:

After review of 577 articles from health sciences databases, a total of 33 articles were eligible for analysis.

Ethical considerations:

This study did not require ethical review and the authors adhered to appropriate academic standards in their analysis.

Findings:

A narrative of clinician distress in the hospital clinician in the United States emerged from the analysis. This included clinicians’ perceptions and sense of should or the feeling that something is awry in the clinical situation. The explanatory matrix consequence of clinician distress occurred under conditions including: the recognition of conflict, the recognition of emotion, or the recognition of a mismatch; followed by a process of an inability to feel and act according to one’s values due to a precipitating event.

Discussion:

This study adds three unique contributions to the concept of clinician distress by (1) including the emotional aspects of caring for seriously ill patients, (2) providing a new framework for understanding clinician distress within the clinician’s own perceptions, and (3) looking at action outside of a purely moral lens by dimensionalizing data, thereby pulling apart what has been socially constructed.

Conclusion:

For clinicians, learning to recognize one’s perceptions and emotional reactions is the first step in mitigating distress. There is a critical need to understand the full scope of clinician distress and its impact on the quality of patient-centered care in serious illness.
Use of shape memory alloy for active shock control bump application
Authors: Qiu Jinhao , Hao Lin , Ji Hongli , Zhang Chen , Nie Rui
Published: August 2021

A shape memory alloy (SMA) with composition of Ni50.1Ti49.9 (at. %) was used for fabrication of a 3-D bump structure intended for use as an active shock control bump (SCB) into a transonic wing. This kind of bump is a variable-geometry structure designed to reduce the drag induced by shock wave ensure wing’s aerodynamic performance over the entire range of operating conditions. To meet this target, the SMA bump requires to exhibit two-way shape memory effect (TWSME) so that it can yield continuous shape change by properly changing the driving temperature. Result from differential scanning calorimetry was first presented to provide material’s phase transformation temperatures. To obtain the TWSME, a thermo-mechanical training procedure was proposed and a set of training devices were designed for training SMA bump. The SMA bump in this paper is trained to have a relatively flat shape in high temperature and can swell up when cooling. After more than 80 times training, the TWSME of the material tends to be stable. Then the thermo-mechanical responses of the SMA bump which is subjected to about 100 times training was tested. The result shows that the trained SMA bump can generate about 1.2 mm maximum recoverable deformation during martensitic transformation, which is about 3% of the ratio of the deformation region. Finally, the influence of external load on the thermo-mechanical response of the trained SMA bump were also studied.
Proton Pump Inhibitors and the Risk of Community-Acquired Pneumonia: An Updated Meta-analysis
Authors: Xun Xuejiao , Yin Qifan , Fu Yuhao , He Xueru , Dong Zhanjun
Published: August 2021

Background:

Some studies suggested an increased risk of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) among proton pump inhibitors (PPI) users. However, the published evidence is inadequate to define the association between PPI use and the risk of CAP.

Objective:

The aims of our meta-analysis were to systematically assess the association between the risk of CAP and PPI use in adults to reduce the adverse effects of PPI and ensure the safety of medication for patients.

Methods:

A comprehensive literature search was conducted, published between January 1, 2004, and February 1, 2021. The primary outcome was the incidence of CAP. This meta-analysis was performed using odds ratios (ORs) with 95% CIs as effective measures; 13 studies including 2 098 804 patients were enrolled in our meta-analysis.

Results:

Our study revealed that the incidence of CAP was higher in PPI users than non -PPI users [OR = 1.37 (95% CI = 1.22–1.53)], especially for PPI duration < 30 days [OR = 1.49 (95% CI = 1.34–1.66)]. Compared with non-PPI use, PPI use increased the incidence of CAP in the stroke disease population [OR = 1.52 (95% CI = 1.33–1.75)], but not in the liver disease population [OR = 1.13 (95% CI = 0.98–1.30)].

Conclusions and Relevance:

Using PPI could increase the risk of CAP when compared to not using PPI. PPI use increased the incidence of CAP in patients with stroke. Clinicians and clinical pharmacists should weigh the benefits before medication and strictly control the indication of the prescription, so as to reduce adverse reactions.
Development of Brief Rating Scales for Progress Monitoring Internalizing Behavior
Authors: Briesch Amy M. , Donaldson Aberdine R. , Matta Michael , Volpe Robert J. , Daniels Brian , Owens Julie Sarno
Published: August 2021

Prevalence estimates suggest that up to 20% of students in schools experience significant internalizing behaviors that impact behavioral, social, or academic functioning. School-based interventions have great potential to promote student mental health; however, validated and feasible brief assessments are needed to progress monitor students’ responses to these supports. The purpose of the current study was twofold: to (a) develop and validate teacher-completed brief rating scales for progress monitoring internalizing concerns in elementary-age students and (b) determine the reliability of the resultant measures. First, item content was generated and subjected to evaluation by two panels of school-based consumers and researchers. Within the second phase of development, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to reduce the initial number of items and ensure that the items were indicators of one latent factor. Teachers in Grades K–3 ( N = 307) each completed ratings for one randomly selected student in their classroom. Results of factor analysis for each scale indicated one-factor solutions for the 4-item Anxious/Depressed (ω = .88) and 4-item Socially Withdrawn (ω = .87) scales.
CO-llaborative VI-rtual D-esign: A Collaborative Autoethnography on Conducting Exclusively Online, Data-Led Collaborations in the Creative Industries
Authors: Spreadborough Kristal , Cochrane Thomas , Glasser Solange , Sweeney Damian , Harris Julian , Belton Amanda , Coleman Kathryn , Melzack Gene , Fitzgerald Emily
Published: August 2021

This collaborative autoethnographic story of #DataCreativities articulates data traces found within the rapid move online in education and creative sectors in Melbourne, Australia. As a result of the lockdowns imposed to combat the initial spread of COVID-19, this collaboratory began within the anxieties of 2020. #DataCreativities takes a data-related approach to understanding the fast-paced shift to making, learning, teaching, and living in a crisis through research and art. Twelve months on, we figure (out) our own data and practice. We ask: What does CO-llaborative VI-rtual D-esign look like, how can it be established, and how can it be sustained?
Can Institutional Reform Have a Lasting Impact on the Policy Agenda? Evidence From the 10-1 in Austin, TX
Authors: Shannon Brooke Nicole
Published: August 2021

Institutional reforms to districted city councils from at-large systems are typically motivated by the desire to increase geographic and descriptive representation, enriching representation for historically excluded groups. The policy impact of descriptive representation, however, has been found to be conditional and not definitive. In this article, I explore whether institutional reform from at-large to districts has effects on a city council's policy agenda, or whether institutional constraints can quell the reform's impacts. I look to the “10-1” reform in Austin, Texas, implemented in 2015, using an original dataset collected from items in the council's 2009–2019 meeting minutes for a direct measure of the agenda. After coding each item for policy substance and testing the agenda's diversity, I find that the reform had short-term effects on the policy agenda. Instead, local government's agenda is largely driven by external problems and pragmatic needs facing the city. Consequently, the effects of reform are overwhelmed by institutional stickiness.
Hodgkin Lymphoma Presenting With Spinal Cord Compression: Challenges for Diagnosis and Initial Management
Authors: Bloxham Nicola , Cross Justin , Garnett Matthew , Bewick Jessica , Armon Kate , Hook C Elizabeth , Murray Matthew J
Published: August 2021

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) can present with extra-nodal disease, but spinal cord compression is exceptionally rare. We describe a 15-year-old presenting with hip/back pain with normal initial examination. Persistent pain and raised inflammatory markers prompted further investigation with MRI, which revealed an epidural mass causing spinal cord compression. On examination, there was no palpable lymphadenopathy or cauda equina syndrome, but absent lower limb reflexes were noted. Following multidisciplinary discussion, it was determined that cauda equina syndrome was imminent and therefore surgical debulking was undertaken, both to prevent this complication and establish a diagnosis. At surgery, the tumor was highly vascular. Frozen section confirmed lesional material. Following surgery, and given the frozen section findings, a short course of steroids was commenced to reduce any peri-surgical edema. Unfortunately, histopathology was ultimately non-diagnostic, due to failure of immunohistochemistry on technically challenging material. Consequently, ultrasound-guided excision biopsy of a (non-palpable) cervical lymph node was performed five days later; histopathology showed typical effacement of the normal architecture and a conspicuous population of CD15/CD30-positive larger pale cells present, confirming nodular sclerosis classic HL, despite recent steroids. We review the available literature for HL presenting with spinal cord compression and describe the challenges for diagnosis and initial management in such cases.
Intrahepatic Cholestasis, Refractory Epilepsy, Skeletal Dysplasia, Endocrine Failure, and Dysmorphic Features in a Child With a Monoallelic 2q24-32.2 Deletion Encompassing ABCB11
Authors: Starosta Rodrigo Tzovenos , Granadillo Jorge Luis , Patel Kalyani R , Finegold Milton J , Stoll Janis , Kulkarni Sakil
Published: August 2021

We report a newborn who presented with multiple limb and facial anomalies, endocrine disorders, and progressively worsening low-GGT cholestasis. A liver biopsy revealed hepatocellular cholestasis with giant cell transformation. Immunohistochemical staining revealed complete absence of BSEP protein compared to control liver. A large 2q24-32.2 deletion leading to loss of 78 OMIM genes. Multiple structural anomalies, epilepsy and endocrine anomalies have been described with hemizygous loss of these genes. This deletion also resulted in complete heterozygous deletion of ABCB11, which encodes the bile salt export pump (BSEP). Genetic analysis did not reveal any pathogenic variants, deletions, or duplications in the other ABCB11 allele. A heterozygous variant in NR1H4, which causes the autosomal recessive progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 5, was also detected. The possible explanations for the PFIC type 2 phenotype in heterozygous loss of ABCB11 include genetic modifiers or di-genic disease with a compound ABCB11 deletion and an NR1H4 missense variant; or undetected pathogenic variants in the other ABCB11 or NR1H4 alleles.
Strontium 90 plesiotherapy for the treatment of eyelid squamous cell carcinoma in eight cats
Authors: Russak Onne-Marju , Verganti Sara , Berlato Davide
Published: August 2021

Objectives

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common eyelid tumour in cats. The main treatment is extensive surgery and the cosmetic outcome can be worrisome for some owners. Strontium 90 (ST-90) plesiotherapy is a therapeutic modality used for superficial tumours, including SCC. The aim of this study was to describe the use and response of feline eyelid SCC to ST-90 plesiotherapy either as single treatment or as adjuvant therapy following surgery.

Methods

A referral centre clinical database was searched for all cats diagnosed with SCC located on an eyelid. Cats treated with ST-90 plesiotherapy were included. The response to treatment was evaluated visually every 4–6 weeks until complete healing and based on response evaluation criteria in solid tumours (RECIST). Descriptive statistics of the survival were applied to the data collected.

Results

Eight cats treated between 2014 and 2017 met the inclusion criteria. The median age was 10.8 years. In six cases, ST-90 was used as the only treatment modality, while in two cats it was used as an adjuvant to surgery. Four cats received a single protocol and four a hypofractionated protocol. In the six cats in which ST-90 was used as the primary treatment, the response was 100%. Four cats died at a median time of 9 months (3–17 months) after ST-90 due to causes unrelated to SCC. Of the remaining four cats, three had no signs of recurrence at a median time of 34 months and one was lost to follow-up at 17 months with no signs of recurrence.

Conclusions and relevance

This small study showed that ST-90 can be used for treatment of eyelid SCC with good therapeutic and cosmetic outcomes.
A theoretical formulation of the buckling analysis of a composite sandwich structure with multiple holes
Authors: Kim Yongha , Park Jungsun
Published: August 2021

This article presents a theoretical formulation presented for conducting a buckling analysis of the composite sandwich plate with multiple holes via the homogenization method. The validity of the theoretical formulation was verified by comparing the results of the finite element analysis and experimental analysis. Finally, the theoretical formulation was used to optimize a composite sandwich plate with multiple holes for the design of an aircraft structure to minimize the mass. The optimization result allows a database to be obtained on the buckling characteristics of composite sandwich structures with multiple holes for applying aerospace applications. We then concluded that the theoretical formulation is well-suited to buckling analysis of a composite sandwich structure with multiple holes for aerospace applications due to their relative simplicity and computational efficiency.
Multi-objective building design optimisation using acoustics and daylighting
Authors: Agirbas Asli
Published: August 2021

Daylighting and acoustics parameters are related to each other in terms of material usage, specifically for window openings. However, no study has included acoustics and daylighting as objectives in the multi-objective optimisation models. In this study, this relationship was included to the optimisation process of generating building conceptual form. A model was developed to optimise the form of a building using acoustics, daylighting and floor area as the objectives. Daylight autonomy parameter for daylighting performance and C50 (speech clarity), reverberation time, Speech Transmission Index parameters for acoustic performance were used in the model which was created with visual programming language. Case studies were conducted with the model, and the results were discussed. Maximising speech clarity and maximising annual daylighting in the space were determined as objectives for the building form optimisation process in the case studies.
Digital intermediation: Unseen infrastructures for cultural production
Authors: Hutchinson Jonathon
Published: August 2021

This article constructs a theoretical model of digital intermediation: a process of three key, and unseen, components for cultural production in our contemporary media environment. Digital intermediation is a content production and consumption process that incorporates the cultural characteristics of technologies, agencies and automation. First, the article describes the key components of digital intermediation that bring about the production and distribution of cultural artefacts. Second, the article describes digital intermediation as a process of production and consumption amid these three components. Third, the article articulates the problems digital intermediation creates by examining the loss of user agency over the production of and access to cultural artefacts. Finally, the article highlights how digital intermediation problems can be addressed by cultural institutions, specifically public service media, to shore up user agency within automated media environments.
Reflexive collaboration: Building pluri-ethnographic partnerships in an Ecuadorian bank
Authors: Hill Michael D , Fernández-Salvador Consuelo , Williams Julie L
Published: August 2021

This article illustrates the value of reflexive dialogue regarding foundational assumptions about ontologies of culture and cultural change, as well as regarding key methodological and epistemological tensions at critical junctures in the research process, in a collaborative ethnographic study undertaken by Ecuador’s largest banking institution in partnership with a team of university anthropologists. While acknowledging the importance of ethnographic positionality and the complexity of organizational interests in business anthropology, the case highlights the role and power of consciously positioned reflexivity and dialogue to overcome tensions, build trust, and ultimately reach cultural insights that are products of an inclusive and pluri-ethnographic approach as opposed to a more hierarchical, or “othering,” para-ethnographic perspective. The case demonstrates how this approach requires attention not only to divergences and convergences between academic anthropologists and corporate culture workers but also to multiple positionalities within organizations themselves that inflect understandings of cultural ontologies and ethnographic epistemologies.
Investigating Undercurrents of Stationarity and Growth With Long-Term Panel Data
Authors: Dunn Steven , Graham Charles , Nenycz-Thiel Magda , Tanusondjaja Arry
Published: August 2021

There have been frequent calls in the literature for a more comprehensive understanding of marketing impact on long-term firm performance. Retail scanner data has been the principal source of empirical evidence in this strategic domain, but it cannot explain the behavioural shifts that underpin the sales dynamics it reports. With the availability of far larger and extended household panels, it is now possible to observe the effects of accumulating penetration on brand and category buying over many years. This type of data nevertheless presents theoretical and methodological challenges to researchers. In this article, we discuss an approach to extending established marketing theory to long-run repeat buying and then outline the inherent constraints of long-term panels. We illustrate these challenges using one-, five- and 10-year panel datasets and present a research agenda to progress explanatory theories of long-run brand building and category growth in this new but so far mostly untapped resource.
Artfulness as a dimension of professional practice in organizations and action research: Acknowledging sensory-aware and embodied attunement in professional organizations
Authors: Jensen Julie Borup
Published: August 2021

This article addresses the importance of action research to provide approaches to emphasizing and acknowledging artful aspects of professional practice in public sector organizations. The article introduces the philosophical works of Knud Ejler Løgstrup and Kari Martinsen as perspectives on artful aspects of professional practices and knowing. In order to concentrate on artful aspects of the research process, empirical material from two arts-involving workshops with teachers are presented as the concrete methodological expression of the participatory ideas of action research. The article addresses embodied dimensions of practice, the role of sensory awareness in professional knowing in organizations, which are some of the main preconditions for contributing to creative, social change, and scholarly weight. Thus, the article contributes with ways to regard action research as artful, participatory processes and practices that enable creation of organizational and public knowledge on the artful aspects of professional practice.
Extracellular Vesicles in Cancer Metabolism: Implications for Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
Authors: Zhang Qian , Yang Xiangling , Liu Huanliang
Published: August 2021

Metabolic reprogramming is one of the most common characteristics of cancer cells. The metabolic alterations of glucose, amino acids and lipids can support the aggressive phenotype of cancer cells. Exosomes, a kind of extracellular vesicles, participate in the intercellular communication through transferring bioactive molecules. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that enzymes, metabolites and non-coding RNAs in exosomes are responsible for the metabolic alteration of cancer cells. In this review, we summarize the past and recent findings of exosomes in altering cancer metabolism and elaborate on the role of the specific enzymes, metabolites and non-coding RNAs transferred by exosomes. Moreover, we give evidence of the role of exosomes in cancer diagnosis and treatment. Finally, we discuss the existing problems in the study and application of exosomes in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
An active detection of compromised nodes based on en-route trap in wireless sensor network
Authors: Wang Jiang-Tao , Liu Zhi-Xiong
Published: August 2021

With the development and wide use of wireless sensor network, security arises as an essential issue since sensors with restrict resources are deployed in wild areas in an unattended manner. Most of current en-route filtering schemes could filter false data effectively; however, the compromised nodes could take use of the filtering scheme to launch Fictitious False data Dropping attack, the detection of this attack is extremely difficult since the previous hop node is unable to distinguish whether the forwarding node dropt a false data report with incorrect Message Authentication Codes or a legitimate report. This is the first attempt to address the Fictitious False data Dropping attack; in this article, we propose an Active Detection of compromised nodes based on En-route Trap to trap compromised nodes in the scenario of a false data dropping. A trust model is used to evaluate trust level of neighbor nodes with respect to their authentication behaviors. A detecting algorithm of compromised node is used to detect compromised nodes. Simulation results showed that our scheme can address the Fictitious False data Dropping attack and detect 60% of compromised nodes with a low false positive rate; consequently, the packet accuracy of an Active Detection of compromised nodes based on En-route Trap increases rapidly and reaches to 86%.
A Protocol of Process Evaluations of Interventions for the Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes in Women With Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review
Authors: Mohd Sa’id Iklil Iman , Papachristou Nadal Iliatha , Forbes Angus , Goldsmith Kimberley , Ismail Irmi Zarina , Hassan Faezah , Ching Siew Mooi , Guess Nicola , Murphy Helen , Prina Matthew , Mohd Yusoff Barakatun Nisak , Basri Nurul Iftida , Binti Salim Mazatulfazura SF , Mahamad Sobri Nur Hafizah , Har Yap Pamela Phui , Ismail Khalida , Chew Boon How ,   On behalf of MYGODDESS Project team
Published: August 2021

Background

Process evaluations of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) can provide insight and inform us on the intervention implementation, the causal mechanisms and the contextual factors. This will inform about interventions’ success or failure due to their implementation or the interventions themselves. We aim to consolidate the methodology from previous process evaluations of complex interventions upon their findings on facilitators and barriers to address the prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus among women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

Methods

Comprehensive search will be conducted on electronic databases and reference lists of recent reviews for RCTs of complex interventions which address process evaluations of diabetes prevention intervention (DPI) for women with GDM in healthcare settings. There is no restriction on the language of the papers and year of publication until December 2020. Data from each study will be extracted by two reviewers independently using standardised forms. Data extracted include descriptive items on the study design and the outcomes of process evaluations from the three dimensions: (1) implementation; (2) mechanism of impact and (3) context. The quality of the studies will be assessed using mixed methods appraisal tool which is designed for the appraisal of mixed studies in systematic reviews. A narrative and framework analysis of the findings will be presented to inform the contents of a new DPI for women with GDM.

Discussion

The findings from this process evaluation findings are valuable in determining whether a complex intervention should be scaled up or modified for other contexts in future plan. It will give deeper understanding of potential challenges and solutions to aid in the implementation of effective DPIs for GDM in Malaysia.
Temporal action detection based on two-stream You Only Look Once network for elderly care service robot
Authors: Wang Ke , Li Xuejing , Yang Jianhua , Wu Jun , Li Ruifeng
Published: August 2021

Human action segmentation and recognition from the continuous untrimmed sensor data stream is a challenging issue known as temporal action detection. This article provides a two-stream You Only Look Once-based network method, which fuses video and skeleton streams captured by a Kinect sensor, and our data encoding method is used to turn the spatiotemporal temporal action detection into a one-dimensional object detection problem in constantly augmented feature space. The proposed approach extracts spatial–temporal three-dimensional convolutional neural network features from video stream and view-invariant features from skeleton stream, respectively. Furthermore, these two streams are encoded into three-dimensional feature spaces, which are represented as red, green, and blue images for subsequent network input. We proposed the two-stream You Only Look Once-based networks which are capable of fusing video and skeleton information by using the processing pipeline to provide two fusion strategies, boxes-fusion or layers-fusion. We test the temporal action detection performance of two-stream You Only Look Once network based on our data set High-Speed Interplanetary Tug/Cocoon Vehicles-v1, which contains seven activities in the home environment and achieve a particularly high mean average precision. We also test our model on the public data set PKU-MMD that contains 51 activities, and our method also has a good performance on this data set. To prove that our method can work efficiently on robots, we transplanted it to the robotic platform and an online fall down detection experiment.
I am the metre: The representation of one’s body size affects the perception of tactile distances on the body
Authors: Tosi Giorgia , Maravita Angelo , Romano Daniele
Published: August 2021

Humans must ground the perception of one’s body in a mental representation to move in space and interact with objects. This representation can be temporarily altered artificially. In the full-body illusion (FBI), participants see a virtual (or filmed) body receiving a tactile stimulation. When participants receive touches on their body similarly to the seen one (i.e., homologous location and synchronous timing), they embody the seen alien body. While the subjective embodiment of alien bodies of different sizes has been already manipulated with the FBI, it remains unexplored whether the body-metric perception is impacted too. We first developed a new setup for the FBI using 360° videos to favour the embodiment. The FBI was induced for bodies of three sizes adopting anatomical and non-anatomical viewpoints, and we measured the subjective embodiment. The results suggest that humans can embody normal size or bigger bodies seen from anatomical viewpoints, but not smaller ones. We then investigated if the FBI modulates the body-metric representation. We found that the resized bodies’ vision affects the perception of one’s body-metric representation, but this was independent of the embodiment, suggesting that the FBI alters the body representation at different levels with a specific impact.
Basilar Artery Occlusion Chinese Endovascular Trial: Protocol for a prospective randomized controlled study
Authors: Li Chuanhui , Wu Chuanjie , Wu Longfei , Zhao Wenbo , Chen Jian , Ren Ming , Yao Chen , Yan Xiaoyan , Dong Chongya , Song Haiqing , Ma Qingfeng , Duan Jiangang , Zhang Yunzhou , Zhang Hongqi , Jiao Liqun , Wang Yuping , Jovin Tudor G , Ji Xunming ,   on behalf of the BAOCHE Investigators
Published: August 2021

Rationale

There are no randomized trials examining the best treatment for acute basilar artery occlusion in the 6–24-hour time window.

Aims

To assess the safety and efficacy of thrombectomy for stroke due to basilar artery occlusion in patients randomized within 6–24 h from symptom onset or time last seen well.

Sample size

For an estimated difference of 20% in proportions of the primary outcome between the two groups, 318 patients will be included for 5% significance and 90% power with a planned interim analysis after two-thirds of the sample size (212 patients) have achieved the 90 days follow-up.

Methods and design

A prospective, multi-center, randomized, controlled, open-label and blinded-endpoint trial. The randomization employs a 1:1 ratio of mechanical thrombectomy with the detachable Solitaire thrombectomy device and best medical therapy (BMT) vs. BMT alone.

Study outcomes

The primary outcome will be the proportion of patients achieving modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 0–3 at 90 days. Key secondary outcomes are: dramatic early favorable response, dichotomized mRS score (0–2 vs. 3–6 and 0–4 vs. 5–6) at 90 days, ordinal (shift) mRS analysis at 90 days, infarct volume at 24 h, vessel recanalization at 24 h in both treatment arms, and successful recanalization in the thrombectomy arm according to the modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction (mTICI) classification defined as mTICI 2 b or 3. Safety variables are mortality at 90 days, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage rates at 24 h, and procedure-related complications.

Discussion

Results from this trial will indicate whether mechanical thrombectomy is superior to medical management alone in achieving favorable outcomes in subjects with acute stroke caused by basilar artery occlusion presenting within 6–24 h from symptom onset. Trial registration: URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02737189.