bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Increasing the reach: optimizing screening for atrial fibrillation—the STROKESTOP III study
Authors: Khan Mashroor , Ingre Michael , Carlstedt Fredrik , Eriksson Anders , Skröder Sofia , Star Tenn Johanna , Rosenqvist Mårten , Svennberg Emma
Published: September 2024

Aims

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of cardiac arrythmia and is an important risk factor for ischaemic stroke. Many cases of AF remain undiagnosed due to its paroxysmal, intermittent, and often asymptomatic nature. Early detection of AF through screening and initiation of treatment with oral anticoagulants can prevent stroke, increase life expectancy, and decrease the cost of healthcare for the society. However, participation has been low in previous AF screening studies employing population screening. The aim of this study is to determine whether opportunistic screening is a superior method to increase participation in comparison to population screening. We hypothesize that opportunistic screening will significantly increase participation.

Methods and results

In our study, STROKESTOP III, a randomized prospective cohort study, we compare two different methods of AF screening in high-risk individuals: population screening vs. opportunistic screening. Sixteen different primary clinics in Värmland, Sweden, serving 75–76-year-old individuals (n = 2954), will be randomized to either population screening or opportunistic screening. The individuals will be instructed to record electrocardiogram (ECG) for 30 s, 3 times daily for 2 weeks, using a handheld one-lead ECG device. Patients with detected AF will be referred to their primary healthcare physician and offered treatment. The main objective of the study is to determine the rate of participation in opportunistic screening in comparison to population screening.

Conclusions

The STROKESTOP III study will provide valuable information on which screening method to use for improved participation in atrial fibrillation screening.
Impact of Rhg1 copy number variation on a soybean cyst nematode resistance transcriptional network
Authors: Chaiprom Usawadee , Miraeiz Esmaeil , Lee Tong Geon , Drnevich Jenny , Hudson Matthew
Published: September 2024

Soybean yield loss due to soybean cyst nematode (SCN) infestation has a negative impact on the US economy. Most SCN-resistant soybeans carry a common resistance locus (Rhg1), but there is extensive copy number variation of a 31.2-kb segment at Rhg1. To identify the effects of Rhg1 copy number on the plant prior to SCN infection, we investigated genome-wide expression profiles in isogenic Fayette plants carrying different copy numbers at the Rhg1 locus (9–11 copies), that confer different levels of resistance to SCN. We found that even small differences in copy number lead to large changes in expression of downstream defense genes. The co-expression network constructed from differentially expressed genes (DEGs) outside the Rhg1 locus revealed complex effects of Rhg1 copy number on transcriptional regulation involving signal transduction and ethylene-mediated signaling pathways. Moreover, we report variation in expression levels of phytoalexin biosynthesis-related genes that is correlated with copy number, and the activation of different NBS-LRR gene sets, indicating a broad effect of copy number on defense responses. Using qRT-PCR time series during SCN infection, we validated the SCN responses of DEGs detected in the copy number comparison and showed a stable upregulation of genes related to phytoalexin biosynthesis in resistant Fayette lines during the early stages of the incompatible interaction between soybeans and SCN, before syncytium formation. These results suggest additional genes that could enhance Rhg1-mediated SCN resistance.
Caregiving-Related Depression Increases Neuroinflammation in Spousal Caregivers to Individuals With Cognitive Impairment: A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Jeon So Yeon , Yang Hee Won , Son Bo Ran , Baek Jimin , Kim Jeong Lan
Published: September 2024

Background

The caregiving burden of the spousal caregivers (SCGs) to individuals with cognitive impairment poses public health challenges with adverse psychosocial and physiological effects. However, few studies have investigated the neurobiological impact of caregiving, particularly through the investigation of neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration.

Methods

Using data from a longitudinal cohort at Chungnam National University Hospital, the relationship between caregiving burden, neuroinflammation, and neurodegeneration was examined in 38 older adult couples over a 16-month period. Caregiving burden was assessed through a multifaceted approach. For factors related to the care recipient, we assessed cognitive function and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Factors regarding the SCGs included the measurement of perceived depression. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was used as a plasma biomarker for neuroinflammation and neurofilament light chain (NfL) for neurodegeneration. Regression analyses were adjusted for age, sex, apolipoprotein E status, follow-up interval, vascular risk factors, and physical activity.

Results

Changes in depression among SCGs were significantly correlated with increased GFAP levels (p = .003), indicating that greater depressive symptoms during caregiving are associated with increased neuroinflammation. In contrast, no significant correlations were found between changes in cognitive function or neuropsychiatric symptoms in care recipients and the plasma biomarker levels of SCGs. Additionally, there was no significant association between changes in depression and NfL levels in SCGs.

Conclusions

The psychological stress experienced by SCGs while caring for partners with cognitive impairment actively contributes to neuroinflammation, a well-known risk factor for various diseases. This study emphasizes the need to address psychological stress experienced by older adult caregivers.
DQN and dynamic feedback for multitask scheduling optimization in engineering management
Authors: Cui Mingxiu
Published: September 2024

Within the realm of complex project management, the prevailing multitask scheduling optimization algorithm grapples with the dual constraints of sluggish convergence and exorbitant computational overhead. To address this challenge, this paper introduces a novel multitask scheduling optimization algorithm anchored in Deep Q Network (DQN) and dynamic feedback mechanisms. This innovative approach endeavors to ameliorate the algorithm’s learning prowess and scheduling efficiency through a reinforcement learning framework and dynamic feedback mechanisms. To substantiate the efficacy of the proposed algorithm, comprehensive experiments are conducted utilizing a sizable project management dataset. Comparative analyses are performed against established algorithms such as the ant colony algorithm, particle swarm algorithm, and adaptive genetic algorithm. Evaluation metrics encompass convergence speed and algorithmic runtime. Notably, experimental results unveil the superiority of the proposed algorithm across these metrics, underscoring its prowess in multitask scheduling within project management contexts. Looking ahead, future endeavors may entail further optimization of reinforcement learning parameters and their application in larger-scale engineering projects. Such endeavors hold the promise of augmenting the algorithm’s stability and efficacy, thereby fostering advancements in multitask scheduling optimization within the project management domain.
Optimization and application of the electricity charge trial calculation technology within the intelligent electricity billing management system
Authors: Duan Zihe , Huo Yujia , Jiang Jiyuan , Wang Wei , Ma Xiaocheng , Fu Jianpei
Published: September 2024

In response to the poor performance of the existing electricity billing management system in optimizing enterprise electricity costs, a method for predicting electricity demand based on the CNN-BiLSTM-Attention model has been proposed. This method has been implemented in the intelligent electricity optimization cloud platform to enhance the prediction accuracy of enterprise power load. The objective of this research is to forecast the continuous variation curve of 24-h demand in a day, in order to calculate the peak demand value and provide users with rational and effective energy efficiency optimization recommendations. Leveraging historical data, a prediction model was constructed using MATLAB in this study, and case simulations were conducted. By analyzing the performance of this model in predicting the demand for different energy usage characteristics, it was observed that the model performs better in enterprises with stable or fluctuating energy usage profiles compared to those with random energy usage profiles. Compared with other models, the MAE value and RMSE value of this model are reduced. Furthermore, the prediction results were compared with those of other models to validate the accuracy of the prediction model. Finally, a strategy for electricity cost optimization control was proposed, which involves controlling the charging or discharging of energy storage systems based on the predicted demand curve.
DNA break clustering as a predictor of cell death across various radiation qualities: influence of cell size, cell asymmetry, and beam orientation
Authors: Poignant Floriane , Pariset Eloise , Plante Ianik , Ponomarev Artem L , Evain Trevor , Viger Louise , Slaba Tony C , Blattnig Steve R , Costes Sylvain V
Published: September 2024

Cosmic radiation, composed of high charge and energy (HZE) particles, causes cellular DNA damage that can result in cell death or mutation that can evolve into cancer. In this work, a cell death model is applied to several cell lines exposed to HZE ions spanning a broad range of linear energy transfer (LET) values. We hypothesize that chromatin movement leads to the clustering of multiple double strand breaks (DSB) within one radiation-induced foci (RIF). The survival probability of a cell population is determined by averaging the survival probabilities of individual cells, which is function of the number of pairwise DSB interactions within RIF. The simulation code RITCARD was used to compute DSB. Two clustering approaches were applied to determine the number of RIF per cell. RITCARD outputs were combined with experimental data from four normal human cell lines to derive the model parameters and expand its predictions in response to ions with LET ranging from ~0.2 keV/μm to ~3000 keV/μm. Spherical and ellipsoidal nuclear shapes and two ion beam orientations were modeled to assess the impact of geometrical properties on cell death. The calculated average number of RIF per cell reproduces the saturation trend for high doses and high-LET values that is usually experimentally observed. The cell survival model generates the recognizable bell shape of LET dependence for the relative biological effectiveness (RBE). At low LET, smaller nuclei have lower survival due to increased DNA density and DSB clustering. At high LET, nuclei with a smaller irradiation area—either because of a smaller size or a change in beam orientation—have a higher survival rate due to a change in the distribution of DSB/RIF per cell. If confirmed experimentally, the geometric characteristics of cells would become a significant factor in predicting radiation-induced biological effects.

Insight Box: High-charge and energy (HZE) ions are characterized by dense linear energy transfer (LET) that induce unique spatial distributions of DNA damage in cell nuclei that result in a greater biological effect than sparsely ionizing radiation like X-rays. HZE ions are a prominent component of galactic cosmic ray exposure during human spaceflight and specific ions are being used for radiotherapy. Here, we model DNA damage clustering at sub-micrometer scale to predict cell survival. The model is in good agreement with experimental data for a broad range of LET. Notably, the model indicates that nuclear geometry and ion beam orientation affect DNA damage clustering, which reveals their possible role in mediating cell radiosensitivity.
COVID-19 vaccine wastage in private and public healthcare facilities in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Authors: Manickum Viloshini Krishna , Mathibe Lehlohonolo John
Published: September 2024

Background

In KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, COVID-19 vaccinations commenced in May 2021. This study investigated the extent and reasons for COVID-19 vaccine (C19V) wastage in KZN and strategies undertaken to mitigate loss.

Methods

This two-phase multicenter study was conducted at private and public healthcare facilities from May 2021 to July 2022.

Results

KZN reported 2% Pfizer and 1% Janssen C19V wasted, mainly due to expiry. C19V waste-minimization strategies reported by 100% public and private sector vaccination leads included cold chain monitoring, designated trained staff and the use of stock-management systems.

Conclusions

The WHO’s risk-mitigation factors should be implemented continuously to minimize vaccine wastage.
Moment or Process? Eucharistic Consecration and Epiclesis in Egyptian Thought: A Survey of Liturgical, Patristic, and Medieval Sources
Authors: Zakhary Beniamin
Published: September 2024

There is a long-standing polemic that the ‘moment’ of eucharistic consecration for the West is the words of institution and for the East is the epiclesis. Zheltov and Mckenna have previously analysed this issue with respect to the Byzantine rite; however, there is still a need for analysis of the Coptic rite. This paper examines the liturgical, patristic, and medieval sources to provide a survey of understandings of the epiclesis and consecration within the Egyptian liturgical heritage. The liturgical sources utilized include the early Egyptian anaphoras, as well as those utilized in the Coptic rite today—Egyptian Liturgy of St Basil the Great, Anaphora of St Gregory the Theologian, and Anaphora of St Cyril of Alexandria. The paper will show that there is diversity of thought regarding eucharistic consecration within the Egyptian tradition; yet, while accents on moment and process are both present, consecration as a process appears to be the dominant understanding.
Inelastic scattering of PO+ by H2 at interstellar temperatures
Authors: Chahal Pooja , Kushwaha Apoorv , Dhilip Kumar T J
Published: September 2024

Phosphorous species are of great interest in interstellar chemistry since they are the basic blocks for building life here on Earth. Modelling the abundance and environment of recently detected PO$^{+}$ under non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) requires rotational spectra of the molecule along with accurate collisional rates with the most abundant species, hydrogen and helium. A new 4D ab initio potential energy surface (PES) of PO$^{+}$ – H$_{2}$ collision is calculated using CCSD(T)/CBS(DTQ) methodology considering rigid rotor approximation. The region containing the minima of the PES is augmented using neural networks (NNs) model while very high potentials ($\gt 2500$ cm$^{-1}$) and asymptotic region have been approximated using Slater and R$^{-4}$ functions, respectively. The close coupling calculations have been performed using molscat software for both ortho and para-H$_{2}$. The rate coefficients have been reported for transitions $j-j^{\prime }=$$1-0$, $2-1$, $3-2$, and $5-4$ through which PO$^{+}$ has been experimentally detected in interstellar medium (ISM). The rate coefficients for even and odd transitions of PO$^{+}$ with para-H$_{2}$ are compared with that of helium and are found to be 1.1–2.0 times higher. For even transitions ($\Delta j = 2$), the ortho-H$_{2}$ rates are 10 per cent higher than para-H$_{2}$ rates. However, the trend reverses in the case of odd transitions ($\Delta j = 1$) when higher J transitions are considered at low temperatures. At higher temperatures, the ortho rates cross the para-H$_{2}$ rates and become larger than the latter. The new rate coefficients with both ortho and para-H$_{2}$ will enable accurate modelling of the PO$^{+}$ abundance in the ISM under non-LTE conditions.
Short-lived gravitational instability in isolated irradiated discs
Authors: Rowther Sahl , Price Daniel J , Pinte Christophe , Nealon Rebecca , Meru Farzana , Alexander Richard
Published: September 2024

Irradiation from the central star controls the temperature structure in protoplanetary discs. Yet simulations of gravitational instability typically use models of stellar irradiation with varying complexity, or ignore it altogether, assuming heat generated by spiral shocks is balanced by cooling, leading to a self-regulated state. In this paper, we perform simulations of irradiated, gravitationally unstable protoplanetary discs using 3D hydrodynamics coupled with live Monte-Carlo radiative transfer. We find that the resulting temperature profile is approximately constant in time, since the thermal effects of the star dominate. Hence, the disc cannot regulate gravitational instabilities by adjusting the temperatures in the disc. In a $0.1M_\odot$ disc, the disc instead adjusts by angular momentum transport induced by the spiral arms, leading to steadily decreasing surface density, and hence quenching of the instability. Thus, strong spiral arms caused by self-gravity would not persist for longer than ten thousand years in the absence of fresh infall, although weak spiral structures remain present over longer time-scales. Using synthetic images at 1.3 mm, we find that spirals formed in irradiated discs are challenging to detect. In higher mass discs, we find that fragmentation is likely because the dominant stellar irradiation overwhelms the stabilizing influence of $P\mathrm{d}V$ work and shock heating in the spiral arms.
Effects of nucleon–nucleon short-range correlation and symmetry energy on the evolution of newly born magnetars
Authors: Liu C X , Feng T F , Dong J M
Published: September 2024

Millisecond magnetars are widely suggested as the central engines powering hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae (SLSNe). These magnetars primarily lose huge rotational energy through gravitational wave radiation (GWR) and magnetic dipole radiation (MDR), with MDR serving as an energy source for SLSNe. We study the evolution of the magnetar spin, magnetic inclination angle, and the resulting thermal radiative luminosity of the SLSNe, where the impacts of the nucleon–nucleon short-range correlation, the mass and initial spin of the magnetar, and the density-dependent symmetry energy of the dense nuclear matter on the evolution are discussed. The relativistic mean-field theory is employed to calculate the nuclear matter properties, and we particularly concentrate on the time- and space-dependent bulk viscosity, which is crucial for the magnetic inclination angle evolution. It is found that the nucleon–nucleon short-range correlation weakens the damping of bulk viscosity of dense matter and therefore inhibits the growth of magnetic inclination angle, and it reduces the MDR (GWR) peak luminosity of a canonical magnetar by several times while it raises the peak thermal radiation luminosity of SLSNe by several times. For magnetars with non-rotating mass obviously lower than the $1.4 \, \rm M_\odot$ with slow initial rotation, the magnetic inclination angle is more likely to evolve towards 0 deg quickly, and these magnetars are not suitable as the central engine for SLSNe. Within the ‘family’ of FSUGarnet interaction, a stiffer symmetry energy gives a lower threshold of direct Urca process and hence gives a much larger bulk viscosity coefficient, and thus it promotes the growth of the magnetic inclination angle and the GWR for canonical stars but reduces the peak brightness of SLSNe significantly.
On the sausage magnetohydrodynamic waves in magnetic flux tubes: finite plasma beta and phase mixing
Authors: Ebrahimi Zanyar
Published: September 2024

Over the past 20 yr, there has been increasing evidence of the existence of sausage waves in the solar atmosphere. These observations make them useful tools in the context of atmospheric seismology. Here, we study sausage magnetohydrodynamic waves in a magnetic flux tube of non-zero plasma beta with a circular cross-section and a radially inhomogeneous plasma density. Solving numerically the equations of motion for an initial value problem, the spatio-temporal evolution of the velocity perturbations is obtained for different sets of parameters. We show that the ratio of the amplitudes of the longitudinal and radial perturbations is determined by the amount of plasma beta. Additionally, the longitudinal component of the velocity perturbation experiences phase mixing within a layer surrounding the boundary of the flux tube with a rate depending on the amount of plasma beta. The results revealed that in the presence of a non-zero plasma beta, the flux tube exhibits oscillations in both the radial and longitudinal directions, characterized by a combination of two frequencies: one belonging to the slow continuum and the other to the Alfvén continuum. Also, the period of radial oscillation is obtained for different sets of parameters. The dependence of the period of the radial oscillation on the wavenumber confirms the results obtained in previous studies.
CXOU J005245.0−722844: discovery of a Be star/white dwarf binary system in the SMC via a very fast, super-Eddington X-ray outburst event
Authors: Gaudin T M , Coe M J , Kennea J A , Monageng I M , Buckley D A H , Udalski A , Evans P A
Published: September 2024

CXOU J005245.0−722844 is an X-ray source in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) that has long been known as a Be/X-ray binary (BeXRB) star, containing an OBe main-sequence star and a compact object. In this paper, we report on a new very fast X-ray outburst from CXOU J005245.0−722844. X-ray observations taken by Swift constrain the duration of the outburst to less than 16 d and find that the source reached super-Eddington X-ray luminosities during the initial phases of the eruption. The XRT spectrum of CXOU J005245.0−722844 during this outburst reveals a supersoft X-ray source, best fit by an absorbed thermal blackbody model. Optical and ultraviolet follow-up observations from the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE), Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), and Swift identify a brief $\sim$0.5 mag optical burst coincident with the X-ray outburst that lasted for less than 7 d. Optical photometry additionally identifies the orbital period of the system to be 17.55 d and identifies a shortening of the period to 17.14 d in the years leading up to the outburst. Optical spectroscopy from the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) confirms that the optical companion is an early-type OBe star. We conclude from our observations that the compact object in this system is a white dwarf (WD), making this the seventh candidate Be/WD X-ray binary. The X-ray outburst is found to be the result of a very-fast, ultraluminous nova similar to the outburst of MAXI J0158−744.
Effectiveness of the First and Second Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Vaccine Dose: A Nationwide Cohort Study From Austria on Hybrid Versus Natural Immunity
Authors: Chalupka Alena , Riedmann Uwe , Richter Lukas , Chakeri Ali , El-Khatib Ziad , Sprenger Martin , Theiler-Schwetz Verena , Trummer Christian , Willeit Peter , Schennach Harald , Benka Bernhard , Werber Dirk , Høeg Tracy Beth , Ioannidis John P A , Pilz Stefan
Published: September 2024

Background

We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccinations in previously SARS-CoV-2–infected adults in the general population of Austria during the Delta wave and with extended follow-up.

Methods

In a nationwide retrospective cohort study, we calculated age-, sex-, and nursing home residency–adjusted Cox proportional hazard ratios (HRs) of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) deaths, SARS-CoV-2 infections, and non-COVID-19 deaths from 1 October to 31 December 2021, and secondarily with extended follow-up to 30 June 2022. Relative vaccine effectiveness (rVE) is rVE = (1 – HR) × 100.

Results

Among 494 646 previously infected adults, 169 543 had received 2 vaccine doses, 133 567 had received 1 dose, and 190 275 were unvaccinated at baseline. We recorded 17 COVID-19 deaths (6 vaccinated, 11 unvaccinated) and 8209 SARS-CoV-2 infections. Absolute risk of COVID-19 deaths was 0.003%. rVE estimates for COVID-19 deaths and reinfections exceeded 75% until the end of 2021 but decreased substantially with extended follow-up. The risk of non-COVID-19 death was lower in those vaccinated versus unvaccinated.

Conclusions

First and second SARS-CoV-2 vaccine doses appear effective in the short-term, but with diminishing effectiveness over time. The extremely low COVID-19 mortality, regardless of vaccination, indicates strong protection of previous infection against COVID-19 death. Lower non-COVID-19 mortality in the vaccinated population might suggest a healthy vaccinee bias.
Food Addiction, Dietary Patterns, and Obesity
Authors: Burrows Tracy L. , Whatnall Megan C. , Pursey Kirrilly M.
Published: September 2024

The food environment has changed dramatically over the last decade, paralleling the rise in the prevalence of obesity, and mental health conditions. The consumption of certain foods, particularly those high in refined carbohydrates, fats, sugar and/or salt, are speculated to trigger an addictive-like response in some individuals over time. Alongside this, foods that are described as highly- or ultra-processed, hyper-palatable, or those engineered to a particular bliss point, often get discussed in association with addictive eating. There is currently a lack of consistency in the evidence to identify whether specific foods, nutrients, or ingredients could trigger an addiction-like response in humans. A synthesis of existing research to date shows preliminary findings that highly processed, hyper-palatable foods with high levels of fat, salt, and sugar are likely to have the highest addictive potential. Given the associations with increased intakes of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods, it is not surprising that reviews of the food addiction literature have shown associations between individuals with food addiction and increased weight status and mental ill health.
Impulsivity and Food Addiction
Authors: Minhas Meenu , Murphy Cara , Gendy Marie , MacKillop James
Published: September 2024

The parallels between overconsumption of hyper-palatable foods (i.e., food high in sugar, salt, and fat) and addictive drugs have given rise to the notion of “food addiction.” As substance use disorders have been robustly associated with measures of impulsivity, this chapter reviews the extent to which analogous relationships are present between food addiction and impulsivity. Since impulsivity is a heterogeneous construct comprising independent but conceptually related facets, the current article examines food addiction in relation to three distinct domains: impulsive personality traits, impulsive choice, and impulsive action. To date, robust associations have been reported between food addiction and impulsive personality traits, particularly with sub-facets reflecting difficulties with emotional regulation and impulsive choice, reflecting overvaluation of smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed rewards, with less consistent findings for impulsive action. On balance, these relationships are substantively similar to those observed with drug addiction, supporting the notion that food addiction is an analogous condition, but for hyperpalatable food. Future priorities include longitudinal examinations and investigating the efficacy of impulsivity-focused interventions to treat food addiction.
Unmothered Untethered
Authors: Roberts Michèle
Published: September 2024

This looks at the novella/long short story The Rainy Moon. The first-person narrator–protagonist, Colette, returns to a flat in which she had once lived, while very unhappy, and which is now inhabited by a pair of sisters, one of whom is a typist who will type Colette’s latest work for her. Gradually Colette feels haunted by her own past as she begins to confront the uncanny, disturbing goings-on in the flat. A brilliant work on the uncanny.
Introduction
Authors: Eastman Christine A.
Published: September 2024

The Introduction provides an overview of the author’s experience in the field of leadership studies and her work with industry students drawing on nineteenth-century American texts. It demonstrates how engagement with these texts can strengthen an understanding of leadership in contemporary human affairs. Students can use literary works to interrogate the critical issues that impact on their organizations. Literature here is presented as a tool for promoting more critically reflective leaders. The chapter outlines the premise of the work: studying the works of great nineteenth-century writers—Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, and Willa Cather—will help students make sense of the everlasting conflict between received authority and individual insights, a conflict that lies at the heart of leadership. The thematic guiding thread of the book is the concept of sin, as explored by these nineteenth-century authors. The notion of sin has grown unfashionable and irrelevant in our hyper-connected, secular business world. Yet this chapter argues that close study of the seven deadly sins encourages us to see the disconnect between the ideal standards of leadership conduct and the reality: we need to understand why the seven deadly sins matter more than ever in examining leadership behaviour. Engagement with the classic texts profiled here will help make leaders self-aware, effective, and capable of reflecting on their lives and of enacting change. Literary works have an invigorating and soul-affirming role to play in understanding our work culture and in offering rich and innovative ideas to address leadership challenges.
The Dynamics of Modality
Authors: Mandelkern Matthew
Published: September 2024

This chapter brings together evidence that there is something dynamic in the interpretation of epistemic modality. For a simple example, consider how the word ‘must’ is interpreted in ‘Either it’s raining or it must be sunny’, versus how ‘might’ is interpreted in ‘It might be sunny’. In the latter case, ‘might’ seems to mean something like ‘For all we know…’, while in the former case, ‘must’ seems to mean something like ‘We know, given that it’s not raining, that…’ A variety of further phenomena involving incoherence and inference show that epistemic modals are sensitive to their local informational environment. The chapter goes on to explain the standard dynamic semantic account of epistemic modality, and how that theory accounts for these cases.
Group Work with Adults with Substance Use and Co-Occurring Mental Health Disorders
Authors: Bartolomeo Francis
Published: September 2024

This chapter describes an approach to group treatment with adults in a psychiatric residential facility. Individuals with co-occurring disorders present numerous practice challenges due to their complex clinical presentations and varied psychosocial needs. The agency context creates additional complications in that the hospital is an open-ended system with patients admitted and discharged daily. The author, therefore, considers each group session as the full life cycle of the group, which necessitates a leadership style that is highly active and directive. The author employs strategies and techniques borrowed from psychodrama to rapidly engage group members, create safety, assess collective and individual readiness for change, and a ritual of closure. Common group themes include ambivalence about treatment, which can be indicative of their respective stage of change, hopelessness, anger and conflict. Last, a means of closure and review is illustrated.
Group Work with Children and Adolescents Exposed to Community Violence and/or Traumatic Loss
Authors: Salloum Alison , White Mia
Published: September 2024

Many children exposed to community violence also experience traumatic loss. This chapter presents a model called Grief and Trauma Intervention for Children (GTI). Themes and methods for GTI are grouped within three overlapping areas—resilience and safety, restorative retelling, and reconnection—which are discussed. Specific strategies within these three areas are reviewed along with case examples. Information regarding outreach for participation, exclusion criteria, and the need for leaders to practice trauma-informed self-care is included.
Group Work with Combat Veterans
Authors: Waite Tracey L. , Ellis Julie A. , Boyle Joanne M.
Published: September 2024

This chapter describes group work for combat veterans, including those who fought in the Vietnam War and military personnel who have been deployed to current conflicts in the Middle East. The authors explain how Veterans’ participation in a group complements and enhances benefits gained from individual therapies. Common themes that emerge in these groups are identified; these include feeling defective and alienated from society; adjusting to new family roles and relationships after deployments; navigating a complex medical treatment system; coping with suicide and suicidality; holding strong political beliefs; and experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and a Traumatic Brain Injury. The authors describe ways that leaders can help members work collectively to address each of these themes. The chapter concludes by examining the crucial stage of group termination and evaluation.
Group Work to Promote Leadership among Undocumented Immigrant Latinas
Authors: Shields Alexandra Piñeros
Published: September 2024

This chapter describes leadership-development strategies to promote autonomy and power among marginalized women. Grounded in a case study of a community-organizing group, this chapter outlines concrete frameworks and techniques that practitioners can use to encourage individuals to “step into their own power” and become agents of change in their own lives. The chapter presents both theoretical frameworks as well as hands-on techniques that practitioners can apply in many different settings. The frameworks and strategies presented include Participatory Action Research and the Question Formulation Technique. The case study used to present the various approaches focuses on a community-organizing nonprofit that works with undocumented Latina immigrants. It provides an overview of the challenges faced by this population, as well as best practices to address those challenges.
Cultivating Essential Capacities for Moral Resilience
Authors: Rushton Cynda Hylton , Kaszniak Alfred W. , Halifax Roshi Joan S.
Published: September 2024

This book maintains that all people possess innate resilient potential and they can all develop the capacities to recognize moral adversity and suffering in daily life and particularly in clinical settings. If diligently developed, these capacities will support clinicians as they design and practice strategies that protect the integrity at the heart of clinical practice. This is the topic of this chapter. The capacities for protection against moral adversity include knowing fundamental values, cultivating mindful awareness and self-attunement, practicing reflection and insight, developing moral and ethical efficacy, engaging in activities that support self-stewardship, and embracing ongoing, transformational learning. To see clearly and honestly the internal and external factors that contribute to moral suffering is essential to a process of moral repair. Ongoing transformational learning must leverage both individual and collective insight, wisdom, and principled action. Cultivating these capacities is a moral imperative for clinicians of integrity—but it is not enough. Individual strategies must be supported and reinforced by collective strategies undertaken by clinical teams and the organizations in which they practice.
Strategies to Restore Integrity
Authors: Rushton Cynda Hylton
Published: September 2024

Restoring integrity involves strategies aimed at heeding the call of conscience, giving voice to moral adversity, and speaking up with clarity and confidence. Responding to the call of conscience requires discernment to determine whether or when to act and the degree of resistance, acquiescence, or protest to engage in if there is persistent disagreement or if one’s own position is not realized. Adopting strategies to respond to moral adversity by leveraging properly bounded moral courage, acknowledging limitations, and connecting to meaning and purpose contribute to clinicians’ abilities to respond to imperiled integrity. Engaging in skills and practices of moral repair based on Reich’s phases of suffering offers clinicians a path of healing to mitigate the consequences of moral adversity and suffering. The phases include voiceless suffering, expressive repair including narrative repair, and liberation.
Explaining Wealth
Authors: Heathershaw John , Prelec Tena , Mayne and Tom
Published: September 2024

This chapter examines the failure of a new investigative tool, the unexplained wealth order (UWO), which was introduced in 2018 as a means to crack down on corrupt capital being brought into the UK’s real estate market. It examines two of the first UWO investigations that targeted UK properties owned by officials in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. While the Azeri exile Zamira Hajiyeva—wife of jailed banker Jahangir Hajiyev, who had clearly fallen out of political favour in Azerbaijan—lost her property, the Kazakh incumbents Dariga Nazarbayeva and Nurali Aliyev—relatives of the then president of the country, and very much in positions of power—kept theirs. The chapter shows how the incumbency advantage combined with the enabler effect to make the difference.
What Is Lupus?
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

About half of lupus is systemic, with the rest being cutaneous, drug induced, or neonatal. Several criteria for systemic lupus have been devised, the latest requiring a positive antinuclear antibody. One can have lupus without fulfilling criteria such as having a positive biopsy or definitive laboratory finding that is overwhelmingly associated with it. Criteria are used for clinical trials and epidemiologic studies. Lupus is managed similarly, whether or not it fulfills established criteria.
The History of Lupus
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

Lupus was first described 1,000 years ago, but its modern descriptions date back to the 1840s. This was followed by pathologic descriptions and blood testing that suggested the disorder. The discovery of antibodies in 1948 led to the development of anti-inflammatory treatment approaches. The last 25 years have led to new descriptions of the spectrum that we now call lupus.
Why the Aches? Arthritis, Muscles, and Bones
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

Most lupus patients complain of joint aches, but only a minority demonstrate inflammatory arthritis, and only 10 percent develop deformities. Inflamed synovium can cause pain and swelling in joints, tendons, and bursae. The small joints of the hands and feet are most frequently involved. Muscles aches are also present in most patients with systemic lupus, but inflammatory muscle disease (myositis) is observed in only 15 percent during the course of their disease. To provide optimal management, arthritis, myalgias, and myositis due to lupus must be differentiated from avascular necrosis, fibromyalgia, and the adverse effects of lupus medications.
The Head, Neck, and Sjögren’s Disease
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

The most common cause of head and neck involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is Sjögren’s syndrome. Eye complaints are often due to medication, especially steroids, but 10 to 15 percent of patients with lupus develop complications from disease activity or the antiphospholipid antibody. Ulcers of the mouth or nose are seen in 20 percent of these patients. Involvement of the ear or larynx is rare. Patients and their physicians must carefully evaluate head and neck complaints, because failure to intervene promptly with autoimmune inflammation of the optic nerve or the ear can result in permanent blindness or deafness.
What about Hormones?
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

Hormones are substances secreted by an endocrine gland in response to stimulation by the brain. They are capable of modulating immunologic reactions, but the extent to which this is clinically useful is not known except that female hormones tend to promote immune responses, whereas male hormones are more immunosuppressive. Nevertheless, male lupus is often more severe than female lupus. Patients with SLE have an increased incidence of antibodies to glandular tissue and autoantibodies to reproductive organs, but the significance of this is not known. Sexual dysfunction is uncommon except that a few women with SLE have disease-related vaginal dryness, vaginal sores, or arthritic hips.
Is It Really Lupus?
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

Lupus is often difficult to diagnose. If established criteria are not fulfilled, additional blood tests, bone scanning, or a lupus skin biopsy band test can assist in making the diagnosis. ANA-negative lupus is rare, and a physician confronted with this diagnosis should embark on a workup to exclude other diseases that mimic lupus, such as scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), vasculitis, polymyalgia rheumatica, fibromyalgia, undifferentiated connective tissue disease (UCTD), or Behcet’s syndrome. Low-titer positive ANAs are found in patients with malignancies and infections, which must be ruled out before the diagnosis of lupus becomes established. Most autoimmune disorders have overlapping features with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and must be considered, because their management may substantially differ. Finally, lupus patients are at an increased risk for having concurrent fibromyalgia, which is also managed differently from SLE. Sorting out lupus from fibromyalgia flare-ups presents a major challenge for patients and their healers.
Can a Woman with Lupus Have a Baby?
Authors: Wallace Daniel J.
Published: September 2024

Lupus patients are normally fertile unless they have very active systemic disease or have received chemotherapy. Lupus pregnancies are successful 67 percent of the time; 13 percent fail due to antiphospholipid antibodies; and up to 30 percent of all deliveries are premature. If frequent competent clinical evaluations, blood testing, and good obstetric care are available, most lupus patients with mild to moderately active disease do quite well. Oral contraceptives should not necessarily be ruled out in family planning. Steroids can be safely used for exacerbations of lupus during pregnancy or for postpartum flares in those who choose to breastfeed.
The Duty of Facilitation
Authors: Fiss Owen
Published: September 2024

Because the electoral process is the source of the freedom that democracy generates, the states must facilitate the ability of citizens, as a purely practical matter, to exercise their right to vote. As a 1993 federal statute declared, “the purpose of an election is not to test the fortitude and determination of the voter, but to discern the will of the majority.” The chapter focuses on rules enacted by states for managing the electoral process—those that determine the time, place, and manner of voting—which should ensure that the franchise is extended to all who are ruled.
The Eye of the Storm
Authors: Armstrong Ryan M.
Published: September 2024

Humpty Dumpty teaches Alice that focusing on her birthday has made her overlook the potential of the un-birthday. With the pervasiveness of mediation in the book of Job, it can be tempting to overlook the significance of un-mediation in Job’s encounter with the divine. This chapter examines the impact of God’s un-mediated revelation on Job by looking closely at his final speech as he remembers his quest to see God. It is helped by two of history’s often-neglected interpretations: Albert Schultens, an 18th-century Dutch philologist and Christian pastor, inadvertently complements an interpretation attributed to the Medieval scholar and Rabbi, Joseph Kara. When taken together, their readings indicate that Job finds honesty in God’s un-mediated revelation. Job reveals his own honest thoughts, and his quest to receive honest revelation is satisfied in a surprising way that entails a rethinking of his presuppositions.
An Act for the Relief of Indian Slaves and Prisoners
Authors: Reeve W. Paul , Rich Christopher B. , Carruth LaJean Purcell
Published: September 2024

The newly transcribed debates concerning An Act for the Relief of Indian Slaves and Prisoners (referred to as the Indian indenture bill) in Utah Territory reveal a group of deeply conflicted lawmakers, some of whom were not convinced that they had the authority to legislate for what they deemed to be “Indian country.” All the legislators were anxious to solve the problem of Indian slavery in a humane manner, yet they strongly disagreed about how to do so. At least one legislator, Orson Pratt, charged that the body was instituting a form of slavery for Native Americans. Others emphasized that they were rescuing Indian captives from slavery and quite possibly death.
Implications
Authors: Reeve W. Paul , Rich Christopher B. , Carruth LaJean Purcell
Published: September 2024

This chapter considers how the Indian indenture bill and Black Servant Code functioned in the lives of African American and Native American slaves. How was their life as an enslaved person different in Utah Territory under An Act in Relation to Service than it was in Tennessee under chattel slavery laws there? Legislators clearly intended that the law that they passed be legally distinct from chattel slavery and it was. But what did such distinctions mean in the lives of the enslaved? Ultimately, Native American and African American “servants” were not free. Whether legally defined as a “servant” or as a “slave,” it may not have mattered. Ultimately, those held in bondage in Utah Territory were deprived of two of what Thomas Jefferson considered inalienable rights, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
On Xi Jinping
Authors: Rudd Kevin
Published: September 2024

On Xi Jinping: How Xi’s Marxist Nationalism Is Shaping China and the World presents the ideological worldview of Xi Jinping, who holds near-total control over the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It explains how the ideological shift of Marxist-Leninist nationalism reflected the real world of Chinese policy and behaviour. Xi’s notion of Leninism took the party and Chinese politics further to the left, while Marxism took the Chinese economic thinking to the left. Meanwhile, changes in worldview reflected Xi’s broader rehabilitation of the concept of struggle as a legitimate concept for the conduct of Chinese domestic policy and Chinese foreign policy. Moreover, Xi’s ideological worldview exhibited a new level of nationalist self-confidence about China’s future.
Hiding in Plain Sight
Authors: Rudd Kevin
Published: September 2024

This chapter provides an overview of Xi Jinping’s ideological framework for defining the future of China. It examines the primary documents of Xi’s internal political and theoretical discourse within the ranks of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to decipher the underlying ideological dialect of intra-party communication. Xi’s China now openly challenges the political values underpinning the pre-existing international order and offers. The chapter explains that China represents a profound global, geo-political, and geo-economic disruption that affects the international community. It cites that Xi’s ideological worldview holds fast and his political authority remains unchallenged, so it is highly unlikely that we will see further fundamental changes in China’s overall policy direction under Xi’s regime.